Chapter One

Just Peachy

"That wasn't as fun as I thought it would be..." said a defeated Peach. She was sitting in the courtyard by the fountain, gloomy. She had just lost another fight and decided to get some fresh air and calm down a bit. Though, the chilly air did nothing but make the pain of losing stick to her. She looked down onto the ground at the grass as it swayed in the cold breeze. Though cold as it might be, it wasn't enough to hurt the plants. The water of the fountain trickled onto the open water and a small mist rose out of the water. She looked to the trees and saw no signs of wildlife; it was most likely due to the upcoming winter that the birds were nowhere to be found today.

"Hmm..."

She wasn't sure what else she could do outside. She felt better once she took in a deep breath of cold air and exhaled slowly. The princess stood up, patted off her dress, and turned towards the front doors of the mansion.

"I just wish I could...really," she said to herself. She walked towards the front entrance, opened one of the double doors of the entrance and quickly got inside. The warmth that met her when she opened the door seemed inviting and secretly, she wondered why she had even gone outside in the chilly weather. The door closed with a loud rumble.

"Oops," she thought. The loud sound echoed and she looked around the parlor, hoping not to have startled anyone with her clumsiness. No one was here, apparently.

"Of course, they're all still battling. I'm probably the only one who fell out so early," she thought to herself, taking hold of the railing leading upstairs. She walked up and opened another pair of double doors and walked in. She then closed the door again, but quietly, facing it as she pulled it with both hands.

"Hey, there you are," said a voice behind her suddenly.

"Ah!"

She turned around and backed into the door, making another loud noise, startled. In front of her, stood a young man in regal clothing and a sword at his side. The blue-haired man was a prince, the Prince of Altea, a faraway kingdom. He smiled at her, but had an apologetic look on his face.

"What are you doing? Startling me..." she said, looking down at the ground again. She suddenly realized something and looked back towards him.

"Wait...you-?"

"Yes, princess, I lost early," he said, scratching the back of his head. "I got careless and managed to get blown up with one of those accursed Motion Sensor Bombs. I actually was the one who set it there." He chuckled, but was embarrassed.

"Well, at least yours was an accident. I was beaten, rolled up, and tossed aside," she replied, holding both of her hands behind her.

"Ah," he said, lifting his head a bit.

"I apologize," he said, bowing slightly.

"Why do you?" she asked.

"That they were so rough with you during your match. You're still a princess," he replied. Peach made a face, despite being taught to be lady-like.

"I'm not just a princess. I survived so many kidnappings that I've grown tough enough to look after myself," she retorted with a huff.

"Ah, I'm sorry," he said, smiling nervously.

"No!!" yelled a voice. The both of them were shaken by the loud noise. Marth could've sworn her saw the nearby night stand shake slightly as well.

"Who could that be?" said Peach, turning to look at an opening door and out of it came an angry Jigglypuff.

"I can't believe I let that Pikachu throw me around and shock me like some mental patient!" she yelled. She gritted her teeth and her left eye twitched. The nightstand behind the door nearly toppled as she yelled.

"Don't make so much noise. There will be other times," said a deep voice. It seemed to come from nowhere. Peach turned around and tried to find the source, but to no avail. But it was unique enough to be remembered and maybe even feared by the inhabitants of the mansion. Marth smiled.

"Mewtwo, how come you are here?"

A dark figure stood in the shadows ominously, his tail partially revealed by the light. Mewtwo came out into the open, hovering just inches above the ground. He had his arms crossed like always and an intimidating expression plastered on his face.

"I couldn't bear to watch anymore. The present match was horrific. That Pichu was knocking everyone out of the ring," he replied.

"Really, our little Pichu?" asked Peach.

"The only itemed that appeared was a Hammer," he said brusquely, looking up towards the ceiling. Peach giggled and Jigglypuff fell over with a "Puff!"

"Hmm, now I have the urge to go watch a match, would you like to join me, princess?" asked Marth, holding out his hand. Peach was flattered, but was still with the after effects of her last match.

"I would, but I'd like to rest for a while. I'll come by later when I can," she sighed, walking past him and down the hall in a hurry. Mewtwo already knew how bad she was feeling, being able to feel the auras surrounding individuals, and didn't stop her. Jigglypuff started to rampage again when the speaker by their spot announced that Pikachu was one of the winners of the matches being held and the sound of breaking glass could be heard. Walking through the hallways, Peach avoided making conversation with anyone she had passed by on her little scurry. With the confused looks of Young Link and Roy, and the greetings from Samus and Captain Falcon were ignored, Princess Peach found her room, went inside, closed the door and dropped onto her bed, bouncing just a bit. She closed her eyes for a moment, frowning, and then opening them again to stare at the decorated ceiling of her room. It somewhat resembled her chambers in the Mushroom Kingdom, but had less space and only a portion of her belongings were allowed to be taken with her. Her golden crown separated from her head and lay next to her pillow. She merely stared at the inactive light above her head.

"Oh! I wish I was better at fighting!" she shouted to herself.

"I'm tired of being knocked out before the match begins. I'm tired of the same people using the same technique six times and hitting me with all six of them! I'm tired of people ridiculing me because I'm not a fighter! I'm…I'm tired of...of-" she shouted, beginning to cry. She could feel the tears welling up in her eyes and she turned over and cried, muffling out the sound. She grabbed the closet pillow she could and hid her face in it, sobbing for just a few moments before repositioning herself into a sleeping position. The tears that welled up in her eyes began to diminish as she shut her eyes.

". . ."

"Hmm?" she said, sniffling. She lifted her head and looked around her room; but there was nothing. The door was closed, the windows were locked; she was by herself, but she could sense someone nearby.

"Who's there?" she asked.

". . ."

She became tense and stood up, alarmed. Someone was in her room. Was it Mewtwo? No, he wouldn't come visit her. Why would he? Was it Pichu being mischievous? No, he was currently in a battle. Then who was it? The mirror stirred.

"What? Is someone trying to scare me?" she yelled, wiping the tears from her eyes. She looked from her standing spot to her large revolving mirror. She walked over to it and stood there, her reflection mimicking her every move. She moved her right hand up to her chest and her reflection did the same. She leaned forward, then back, and spun around. There was nothing out of the ordinary. She decided to place it on her stressful day and turned to lie on her bed again. Her reflection did not turn around, and its hand extended, as if trying to grab her. A gloved arm escaped the mirror and grabbed onto her right shoulder. Peach was startled and screamed, turning suddenly. She met her own face, moving out of the mirror, leaving ripple-like effects as if throwing a stone into a pond. Being face to face, she saw the horror that was indeed the intruder in her room; it had her face and the same browned adorned its head, yet its entire body was colored with a thick black, and almost all of its appendages had the most sickening swirls. Loops of hair trailed from the mimic's head and even its fingertips upon the princess' shoulder were curled. Peach saw that the neck had elongated and the body was still within the mirror along with its arm. She gasped and she shook.

"W-What is this?!" she cried. The creature opened its mouth and held it in place, showing a gaping hole of darkness. Its eyes were wide and terrified, looking straight into the princess'. It then let out a horrifying, low, moaning sound. As it did, its whole body distorted with a couple moments between each occurrence. Each time it reminded her of looking at a television screen that had bad reception.

"Ah..."

The hand upon Peach's shoulder was brought up and slowly was brought to the back of her head, along with the creature's other arm. She closed her eyes, hoping to God that is was only a nightmare and that she would wake up at any moment now, right before the climax. She felt cold, rigid fingers grasp her hair and she cried out before being enveloped in a whirling cloud of darkness. Her drapes flapped like the window had opened and a strong wind came and one of her windows broke; her blanket flew off of her bed and got caught on the mirror, covering it. The cloud of darkness seemed to be disturbed and stopped, leaving Peach to fall onto the ground, hard. It seemed to shudder and seem to be lost. It then floated down towards Peach. She had fainted from the spectacle and laid flat on the ground, her back to the ceiling. The black cloud covered her like a blanket and just seemed to disappear. A few moments later, there was a knock on her door.

"Princess?" said a familiar voice. The doorknob turned and the door opened. Marth had entered her room carefully, hoping not to have disturbed her at all.

"I heard you shouting to yourself and I thought I'd come and-!" he began before he stopped and was shocked. Peach's room was an absolute mess. The blanket barely hanging onto the large mirror, the shards of glass on the floor, some of the wallpaper on the wall had peeled off and her Highness was on the ground.

"Princess!" he cried as he knelt down at her side. He lifted her head and she began to stir.

"Princess, are you alright?"

"Ah..." she said, opening her eyes. Her vision was blurry before it cleared up as she could see Marth smiling with relief. She blinked and then something suddenly came back to her.

"Ah!" she cried, before lifting her left hand and smacking him on the side of his face. He was surprised and was knocked back and fell on his back. Peach had landed on her arms and she helped herself up before realizing what she just did.

"I apologize, princess," he began, rubbing his cheek.

"Ah, this really hurts," he mumbled.

"Oh! I'm so sorry!" she said, covering her mouth with her hands.

"It's alright, princess. I shouldn't have startled you again," he said, smiling.

"It's just that...wait," she began.

"What happened?!"

She looked around her and saw shards of glass all around the floor and the room itself in a mess of her belongings.

"Calm down. Please, tell me what happened," the prince told her.

"Well, uh...I was in my room trying to get some rest and there was this noise. I could hear it, but it wasn't like anything normal. It was like sensing someone being there, but no one actually was. I saw my mirror move and I walked over. I looked at myself in the mirror and found nothing strange until I turned to leave. I saw myself come out and grab me. Once "I" did, there was a whirling black and I think I fainted..." she summarized. Marth listened attentively, but could make no sense of it.

"Are you hurt at all, princess?" he asked.

"No, I don't think I am," she replied. She looked over her shoulder and at her back, tapped her foot on the ground, and felt around her head. She wasn't.

"Good, I will go and report this disturbance," he said to her, turning to leave.

"Wait!" she shouted to him, extending her hand to grab his shoulder. She stopped, though, as he turned around.

"Could I...come with you?"

She sounded shaken and nervous. Marth sighed and couldn't help but smile. A damsel in distress wasn't as common here at the Smash Mansion as it was back in his home kingdom of Altea.

"Alright, I will escort you to Master Hand, though, he's quite busy. Let us leave, princess."

End of Chapter One