Author's Note: Here's a short story I wrote in my notebook one night. It's only a one-shot, but I might turn this into a series.
It's from Waluigi's POV, and it's my first ever attempt at writing Rosalina.
Acceptance of the Stars
He had always known that he would never find acceptance in this world.
Everyone hated him. Nobody could even stand the sight of him. Well, OK, that was an exaggeration, but he had never met someone in the entire Mushroom Kingdom who didn't throw him nasty looks over their shoulders as they stalked away from him, or whispered things – bad things – about him behind his back. He was tired of it all. He had never wanted to be the first thing on most people's 'hate lists'; he had never wanted nor asked for the way people spoke about him.
Nobody ever had a single, vaguely pleasant word to say to him, not even, 'Have you seen how high Waluigi can jump?!' No, they just followed him around with insults and taunts, calling him a skinny freak. No conversation ever had the words 'Waluigi' and 'nice' in the same sentence, and he was all too aware that it was usually the opposite.
He had forced himself to grow deaf to their insults, however, and began responding with even more vile words of his own. This created a long and vicious war between him and the other people living in the Mushroom Kingdom, and was the reason everyone hated him with such fury and spat upon his name to this day. The war lasted several years, and during this time nobody was on his side except his older brother Wario.
Even Wario had the occasional moment when he didn't seem entirely comfortable around his sibling, and this often resulted in harsh arguments followed by pointed silences. When this happened – which was far too frequently – Waluigi would leave the house they shared and disappear into Forever Forest, to spend the night with his pet piranha plants for company.
Ah, those piranha plants. His only true friends. They were as misunderstood as he felt he was, so he found solace in their companionship. They never turned their vicious, snapping teeth towards him, and he had never raised hand or fist against them in return. They were the only creatures he could talk to, even if they didn't talk to him back or understand what he was saying. So what if they were cruel, eyeless, dim-witted plants? They were the only living beings he could place even a small amount of trust in. And they didn't even have a clue what trust was.
However, he had lived in the kingdom for a long time, and many interesting things can happen in the span of two decades or so. Respect had been one of those things – born from the fear he inspired in other people – but it had eventually diminished into nothing, because nobody truly feared him or saw him as a threat anymore.
Friendship was another of those things, and it was not a matter he had much experience in. He knew, from watching the interactions between Mario and his many friends, than the company of another person was something most people enjoyed. He knew that having friends meant that you always had a comrade to fight alongside in battle; always had someone to talk to and reassure you during difficult times.
He also knew that some people preferred the calm and quiet of solitude. He didn't know what kind of person he was, though, because his only friends were his piranha plants, and they could not tell him what they thought about him.
Yet another thing he had noticed taking place among the other people in the kingdom was... love. He knew very little about it. He viewed it as a powerful friendship, but somehow he knew that it meant something more complex than just that. He has seen it many times – the way Mario and Peach acted around each other, the way they spoke and what they spoke about. How Mario made a point of complimenting the princess on some small detail, such as the colour of her eyes or the way in which the sunlight caused her hair to shine more than usual. And Peach would often respond to this by laughing and, occasionally, giving him a kiss on the nose, as she always did after he rescued her from Bowser's grasp again.
Seeing these things happening annoyed him endlessly.
Why was he the odd one out? It seemed to him as though everyone in the kingdom had friends, and were trusted, respected, and even loved. Why not him as well? Why was he so ignored, paid so little attention to, and what exactly had he done to make people act this way towards him? And, most of all, why didn't anyone else show him the same trust and liking displayed by his ever-faithful piranha plants?
And why, above all else, could he never find acceptance in this world no matter how hard he tried?
And that was what had brought him here, to the edge of this great rocky cliff overlooking the sea. He thrust his gloved hands deep into his pockets and stared out across the moonlit water, which reflected a seemingly infinite number of glittering silver stars, forming patterns and constellations beyond his understanding.
There was also another star, larger than the rest, which looked as though it was moving at a slow rate across the night sky.
He sighed, wishing that the others – Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, and countless more people – could put aside their hatred of him, even if it was only for one day. Put aside the sneering looks and unpleasant laughter, just for a little while, so that he could find out what it was like to be accepted as a member of the kingdom and part of this world.
That big star seemed closer than before, or maybe it was just his imagination playing up. Hold on, he didn't have an imagination. It must have been his eyesight tricking him; yes, he was crazy enough for that. Crazy enough to be seeing things that didn't exist.
Silently, he took off his cap and hurled it out into the sea over the edge of the clifftop. He didn't hear the splash as it struck the surface of the rippling water, but he barely noticed this oddity, too busy gazing out into the distant horizon.
When he happened to glance up a few minutes later – after pulling himself out of his vaguely depressed stupor – he couldn't see that giant, moving star anymore... it was nowhere to be seen in the sky. A few slow seconds after, his mind registered the low humming sound of an engine coming from somewhere below the edge of the cliff, close to the water. He frowned.
When the huge mushroom-shaped starship rose up from beneath the clifftop, he momentarily thought he was dreaming. But only for a moment. Then instinct kicked in and he reflexively leapt sideways to make room for the ship as it landed, clunking to a halt on the long grass, the drone of its engine fading into silence. Mouth slightly open, he observed the ship, which he now remembered was called the Starshroom.
It was wet, as though it had dipped below the ocean's surface during its flight. But despite his loneliness, he was far from thrilled at the idea of meeting with the Toads, irritating loud-voiced creatures that they were. In fact, he would much rather continue to be alone, and the arrival of the Starshroom had disturbed his peace and quiet.
But before he could decide whether or not to turn around and walk back the way he had come before the Toads disembarked, the side door started to creak open. It fell to the ground, forming a small ramp down from the entrance of the ship. He couldn't see anything inside; it was too dark. Then he heard soft, slow footsteps, coming down the ramp, clunking against metal flooring.
He watched, unable to move an inch, apprehension growing faster than he had imagined. His mouth dropped even further when he recognised the tall figure walking down from the door of the Starshroom.
Her sapphire eye, the one that wasn't covered by her pale golden hair, regarded him with a mixture of wisdom, dignity and sorrow. A light blue dress fell in long waves past her feet. At her side was a sparkling black star-shaped creature, which he knew was called a Luma, but he did not this particular one's actual name. He had seen both of them before, but he had never heard their names. That wasn't what shocked him most, though. She was holding his cap in one hand, as carefully as if she were holding a live butterfly.
He was transfixed. She was gazing back at him with such sadness, such sympathy, that it left him speechless and unable to look away. She was holding his cap, and he couldn't even remember her name.
She came forwards, slowly, but not hesitating. He couldn't believe it at first; what was she doing? She was actually walking towards him. And there wasn't even a flicker of disgust or anger in her one visible eye, just sorrow and endless compassion.
She opened her mouth, and at exactly the same moment, he closed his.
'I think this is yours,' she said, her voice ringing with power yet barely louder than a whisper. It made him think of wind chimes.
He reached out cautiously to take his cap from her, trembling slightly. She gave it to him with simple grace, and then surprised him when their hands touched briefly during the exchange. Instead of recoiling in disgust as anyone else would have done, she let her hand linger on the back of his own gloved one for a second, and she pulled it away slowly, almost reluctantly.
Didn't she hate him like everyone else did?
He took his cap, but didn't bother putting it on. They were gazing at each other, only three feet apart; his eyes full of confusion, hers full of quiet regret and understanding. 'You may not have heard my name before,' she said in her soft wind-chime voice.
'No... I don't remember...' he tried to reply, his own sounding rough and dull by comparison, even to his own ears.
'That doesn't matter. I understand that you have probably never heard of me.' The deep sorrow and pity in her eye increased, confusing him even more. 'The other people on this planet don't let you join in their adventures. They don't tell you anything that happens, do they?' She shook her head. '...Not even your own brother.'
Her gaze was penetrating; he couldn't turn away from her even if he wished to. The black Luma hovered above her right shoulder, silent, but acutely watchful. Not in a threatening way, but he was still made him uneasy to see the creature's dark eyes fixed on him.
She took another slow step towards him, so close that he could hear her breathing. He was still gripping his cap in one hand, but it was forgotten; he didn't even know it existed. She was standing directly in front of him now, and they were of almost equal height.
'You must find it difficult, living in the world where every person and creature views you with hatred and mistrust...' She tilted her head downwards to look at him, and he realised that she was just a few inches taller. 'Everyone has their own destiny. Yours is to prove that others cannot stop you from being who you are.'
She lifted an arm in a sweeping gesture at the field of stars glittering in the night sky. He followed her gaze, and she opened her hand slightly as though to embrace the galaxy above them.
'Someday, you will find the peace you wish for. Do not lose hope in the world. Let the galaxy and its stars guide you to freedom.'
No words of his could match this. When she finished speaking, she simply stood there and watched him in silence for a long time. Their eyes remained locked, emotion plain in both of them, but his was a very different emotion from hers. For the first time in years, he was feeling the beginnings of hope rising within him.
Her first slow pace backwards brought him back to reality, and he feared she was leaving. But before he could say anything that might stop her, she had walked smoothly up the metal ramp leading into the Starshroom, turning away from him. His words froze in his throat; his didn't want her to go. He didn't know why. She had given him what he had been searching for over the duration of many years – hope and trust, and other things that were unfamiliar, but somehow comforting. He was terrified that she was about to disappear and he would never see her or hear her wind-chime voice again. But then she turned back, standing in the doorway of the Starshroom.
'I will return, do not worry. Until then, remember to have faith in the stars and allow them to guide you. Follow the galaxy however you think is right, and do not let others stop you. We will meet again someday, I promise.'
He had nothing to say to her; nothing he could say would be worth more than what she had given him. He could only stand still and watch as she vanished into the Starshroom, and the door creaked shut behind her, and the ship slowly lifted off the ground and disappeared below the edge of the cliff.
And he remembered that she had never told him her name. But that didn't matter to him. She had filled him with a new life he hadn't known in an immeasurable amount of time.
Everything that other people knew – trust, respect, and friendship – he had felt towards her. And he knew that she had felt the same way towards him. The first person to ever show him kindness, compassion, sorrow.
And acceptance.