Peppy, Please Stop Bringing Up My Dead Dad

By Fox McCloud Hey Peppy. Hey buddy. Hey. Look, I know you're probably wondering why I asked to talk to you in private like this, but--hoo boy. Okay, this is awkward. Here's the thing: Could you stop bringing up my dead dad?  I know you and dad were very close, and you know that I see you as family. You're like the uncle I never had. I know that my dad's death must have had a real impact on you. It had a huge impact on me too! We both went through that trauma together and I understand we all grieve in our own ways. But I'd suggest maybe you should work through these things with a licensed therapist, or perhaps a peer of your own age, instead of constantly mentioning it to me, his son, mid-dogfight. It's so sweet that I remind you of him. That's touching to hear, really. Most of the time. The thing is, though, when you just keep bringing it up, it sort of dulls the impact. I look up to my dad, and I'm trying to grow into a leader like he was. But honestly, it's kind of starting to seem like the main thing that reminds you of him is just that I'm a fox flying a starship, which is just my species and job. This fight against the armies of Andross has been difficult. You know as well as I do that a moment's hesitation, even a slight delay of my reflexes, could spell disaster. We've made it out of our share of scraps by the skin of our teeth--right, buddy? The thing is, it's already very stressful dodging a mega-laser from a monkey space-fascist. That's without the added stress of having my father's surviving best friend break comms to tell me how I barrel rolled just like James.  It's just… not the time, you know? Frankly, Peppy, you're really not the best pilot on the Star Fox team. I know you and dad were together in the glory days, but your competition for best mate was a greedy pig. The team has expanded since then and you're trailing near last. Falco is an ace and, heck, even Slippy isn't getting himself into trouble as much as you have been. You're still on the team because we value your veteran expertise but also, let's be honest, as a legacy hire. If I'm going to be the real leader of Star Fox, I'm going to have to orient the team to be the best it can be, and that may mean cutting older, slower, more wistful pilots who may be, just for example, distracting the other pilots. I see the Great Fox is approaching Venom airspace, so we should wrap this up. Look, I want you to stay on the team. I just really need you to hear me on this and honor my wishes. I really, truly, need you to stop talking so much about my dead dad. Seriously. Thanks.