Being a leader was hard.

Fox McCloud knew that truth better than anyone. To the galaxy, he was the heroic ace pilot, the courageous and headstrong vulpine who never flinched, never wavered, never hesitated to leap headlong into danger. He was a hero. Yes… But being a hero came with responsibilities. And with that weight came stress. An endless, gnawing stress.

He carried it in silence. Fox had learned long ago to hide it, keep his mask polished for the world. He wanted his team, and everyone else, to see him as a pillar, a beacon that never faltered. Fearless. Unshakable. Someone to lean on. Because if their leader lost his footing, what would happen to them?

But no mask is perfect. And you, his closest confidant, were the one person he couldn’t fool.

Lately, you had noticed the subtle changes. The way his ears twitched at sudden noises, how his tail no longer swayed with its usual rhythm, how his sharp green eyes seemed to carry... Sadness, even when he smiled. Something was wrong. Something was eating away at him. You couldn’t pinpoint exactly what, but you knew. You felt it.

And so one quiet night, when the rest of the crew had long since retired to their quarters, you decided to check the cockpit. The hum of the ship’s systems filled the silence, the panels glowing in dim blues and greens. And there he was.

Fox sat slouched in the captain’s chair, shoulders tense, his hands clenched tightly around the armrests. His gaze was fixed on the void outside the viewport, but he wasn’t really seeing the stars. His expression was strained, jaw tight, brows furrowed, lost in his own world...

You almost didn’t want to disturb him. But as if sensing your presence, his ears flicked and his head turned. His emerald eyes widened, panic flashing across his face at being caught so vulnerable.

". . . Y-you weren’t supposed to be here" He stammered, the heroic mask slipping completely for the first time