Author's Note:
This story takes place before the events of the game Paper Mario, and is loosely set in that universe. Some of the characters from that game will be part of the story, but will not be the focus. What I hope to end up with is a good adventure story, with some humor mixed in here and there (writing things that are funny and still written well is actually pretty hard, I've come to realize). Any reviews are very, very much appreciated, as writing a story and getting no feedback or comments (even if there's just a certain part you liked, I'd love to know) isn't any fun. Maybe I'm too old to be writing Paper Mario fanfiction, but I don't care. It is by no means perfect. Heck, I'm writing this author's note after finishing chapter 9, and already I'm going back and changing a bunch of things, adding in more details here and there. So, this story will be a good writing exercise for me, as I've never really written a story before! So, without further adieu, I present to you, "Yoshi Tails".
Prologue
The warm, salty breeze rolled over the luscious green canopies and meandered its way into a quaint Yoshi village. For longer than anyone could remember, Yoshis had been living here on Lavalava Island. From the ancients to the present time, they remained. The Ravens, a longtime friend of the Yoshis, also lived on the island. They lived in elaborate treehouses with remarkable architecture, and were known for their ingenuity, despite their strange quirks and ways.
The island itself was very secluded from other regions of the Mushroom Kingdom. So much in fact, that no Yoshi had ever even left the island. Well, to be fair, no Yoshi had ever bothered to try. They had everything they needed – food, water, shelter, more food – eating was a cornerstone of Yoshian culture. It was customary to eat eight square meals a day. Breakfast, second breakfast, mid-morning brunch, lunch, mid-afternoon lunch, afternoon lunch, dinner, and second dinner. With snacks in between each meal of course! So, life as a Yoshi was peaceful and for the most part, everyone was content with the simplistic lifestyle.
For the most part.
Chapter 1 :: The Beginning
"Wake up sleepy head!" Sori yelled as she jumped up and down on the bed, shaking it repeatedly. "I'm sooo bored of this place! Nothing ever happens. We just get up, and eat, and eat, and eat. And then we go to sleep." There was no response. "Come on, Ryu! Get up!" Sori said as she jumped even harder.
"Mmmpthg" snorted Ryu as he got out of the bed. "Okay, just give me a minute to wake up, will you?" He then proceeded to get up. "Okay, I'm ready. What's this all about?"
"I had the great idea of going up to the volcano and throwing rocks in. Wouldn't that be so much fun?" Ryu thought of at least three other things that could be more fun, but he didn't say.
"Sure! Let's go get Byre, too. He could use the adventure." Byre was a rather odd Yoshi. He wasn't very courageous, but could outrun any other Yoshi that had ever tried to race him. He was extremely shy, but could cook like nobody's business. Because of this uncanny ability to cook food, one could imagine he was quite popular among food connoisseurs, which of course includes every Yoshi in existence. He was also a yellow yoshi, in case that has some sort of significance.
Sori and Ryu walked over to Byre's hut and knocked on the door. Byre answered. "Hey guys, nice peaceful morning, isn't it?"
"Ryu and I are going to toss rocks into the volcano. Want to come?"
"Umm, well you see, I'd rather n—"
"Great, let's go!"
Sori knew how to play Byre. She always tried to pull him into things so that he'd be less shy and more courageous. Ryu, on the other hand, was very courageous. There wasn't anything that could phase him – at least noticeably. His color reflected his bright and flashy personality – red. Sori was similar, but different. She was also courageous, but not as much as him. She was also smarter. And less stupid. And not jerkish. And – Sori caught her thoughts as they came up to the rim of the volcano. All three stood in a line and peered slowly over into the dark abyss.
"Saved your life!" said Ryu as he shook Byre. He shrieked in terror and jumped backwards into Ryu. Ryu was laughing through it all.
"Hah hah, it's all fun and games until someone gets hurt" said Byre.
"Yeah, yeah. I couldn't resist" said Ryu. He tossed in a rock, and everyone listened as it clanged against the stone walls. They didn't hear a thud. After a short while, they were all very bored.
"This is getting boring guys. Let's just go back and do something else" said Sori.
"I agree, let's just go back before someone—"
"I bet you can't push that big rock down, Sori" said Ryu, as he gestured to a rock, perched on the rim of the volcano. Ryu knew how to play Sori. She could never resist a challenge.
"Oh I can do that, easy!" she said as she started to push the rock over.
"Is this the best idea, I mean, what if—" The rock tilted over the rim, and hurtled down towards the dark abyss. It hit the walls a couple of times, causing lots of dirt and rocks to explode outwards. It hit the bottom with a very audible thud.
"Told you I could do it" said Sori. The ground rumbled and shook. Before Ryu and Sori could turn around to get away from the rim, Byre had already started scuttling downwards. A fraction of a second later, red-hot lava came spewing out the top of the volcano.
