Earthbound: Homesick-Ness
Ness held the phone shakily, his free hand hovering over the phone's rotary dial carefully, gulping.
Ness was just a young boy, living in an average town, with his average parents. Well, a dad who is rich enough to send him thousands of dollars every day and a mom who could probably put all the greatest chefs in the world to shame. Ever since the fateful day, when a meteor hit the earth and a little "fly" named "Buzz-Buzz" arrived from inside, asking him to save the world, nothing has ever been normal for him. He had traveled far from his home, having bid his mother, sister, and dog goodbye, with a teary smile. Throughout the journey to defeat the evils that hold his planet hostage, he had beaten back young gangs hanging out in an arcade, cults who threatened to paint the world blue, even golden statues. He had grown stronger, smarter, more daring throughout his journey.
The one thing he couldn't seem defeat was his homesickness. Sure, now he could easily just teleport back home using his newfound psychic powers, but the journey he took was long and tedious, leaving little room for relaxation. A talk on the phone with his mother or father could remedy his longingness for home sweet home, only for a moment. Oh, how he longed for the comfort of his bed, the wet yet friendly warm licks from his dog on his face, or his mother's home cooking… The best… Pizza? Hamburgers? Steaks? He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but he knew it was delicious.
The boy hesitated, adjusting his cap, looking around timidly. The hotel he stood inside was small and friendly, people lounging quietly despite the threat looming over them all. Ness turned back to the phone, reaching for it.
Ness met quite the characters on his way, as well as new friends, rescuing Paula from the Happy Happy clan, rescued in turn by Jeff who made a surprise landing in his Sky Runner, and Poo who had teleported over to them in Summers, declaring his allegiance to them in their quest. They all helped him in his journey, aiding in ways he couldn't possibly do by himself.
His finger descended on the rotary dial, aiming for a number.
From the small town of Onett, to the great city of Fourside he ventured, taming wild animals by hitting them, somehow, and beating back crazed humans that have gone insane due to Giygas's influence. As odd and honestly terrifying as it was, Ness remained vigilant, pressing on through evil after evil, misguided after misguided in his quest.
Why was it so hard for him just to call his mother?
He dialed a single number, paused, and reached for another number.
As far as he'd come, he still remained scared. At any moment, he could die by the hands of evil, well, some not even requiring hands. He had gotten hurt and had collapsed before, always getting back up, but it was painful, and discouraging each time he would fall down. His friends, if they weren't also incapacitated, would cheer him on, or get him to a hospital as soon as possible. It worked. For the moment. Every single time he "fell", he couldn't help but feel guilty, knowing that he had failed in his battle, for a moment, letting the evil of the world slip past.
Finally dialing the last number, he swallowed his doubt and fear, and raised the phone up to his ear.
The phone rang on the other end, the chime ringing almost nonstop. The ringing echoed throughout the small house.
"Mom! Could you get that, I'm sorting out a storage space for one of my clients!" A young girl shouted.
"Sure thing Tracy!" A woman's voice called back.
A blonde haired woman wearing a red dress and red slippers walked over to the phone, and picked it up, bringing it up to her right ear.
"Hello?" She asked politely through the phone.
A voice of a distressed boy meekly answered through the other end.
"...Ness? Honey, are you okay?" She asked.
On the other end, Ness shook his head no.
"...What's wrong?" The woman asked worriedly.
The youth on the other end of the phone murmured into the phone, borderlining on a sob.
"...Oh, honey…" The woman sighed, laying one arm on a small end table. "I'm sorry to hear that."
Ness cried silently on the other end, wiping tears from his face. He mustered himself, wiping away some tears, telling his mother how his adventure went so far.
"...But you've managed to move past all that." Ness's mother said quietly. "Ness, you are the strongest boy I know."
Ness sighed, putting down the phone somewhat.
His mother frowned, her finger on her chin, deep in thought. Her face brightened up a little, picking the phone back up quickly.
"...Ness, look…"
Ness picked up the phone, raising it to his ear again.
"...I believe the morning sun, is always going to shine again, yeah?" His mother began.
Ness held onto the phone.
"Like believing that a pot of gold, waits at every rainbow's end…" Ness's mother began singing softly.
Ness held the phone closer, smothering his ear with the phone's speaker, sniffling.
"I believe in roses kissed with dew, why shouldn't I believe the same in you?" His mother sang.
"I believe in make believe… Fairy tales and lucky charms and… I believe in promises, spoken as you cross your heart, oh… I believe in skies forever blue, why shouldn't I believe the same in you?"
Ness began to smile, tears of joy dripping down his face…
"You may say I'm a fool… Feeling this way that I do, you can call me Pollyanna, say I'm crazy as a loon, I believe in silver linings, and that's why I believe in you!" Her mother sang through the phone.
"Mom?" Tracy questioned from upstairs, causing Ness's mother to freeze.
She cleared her throat, a small blush on her face. "Um, so, Ness honey… What I'm trying to say is-"
A melancholy yet strangely joyful sobbing came from the phone, Ness hugging the phone, much to the bewilderment of others in the hotel lobby. Ness's mom smiled.
"Tracy is asking me about something, honey, I have to go. Stay safe, Ness. I love you." Ness's mom said, putting down the phone receiver.
Ness smiled as well, drying his tears up with his shirt. An employee of the hotel nearby walked up to him, handkerchief in hand, giving it to Ness, who wiped away his tears, blowing his nose. He smiled sheepishly, giving the handkerchief back to the employee, who walked away, bowing, yet slightly disgusted by the used tissue in his hand. Ness straightened himself up, and turned around, where three ghosts floated nearby, halos just above their heads.
"Are you feeling better, Ness?" One of the ghosts asked caringly, Ness shaking his head in response.
"Ah! Very good, very good." Another ghost began timidly, twiddling his fingers. "Err, if you don't mind, would you please visit a hospital?"
"Master Ness has just finished speaking to his mother, this seems rather inconvenient to him, does it not?" One last other ghost stated formally.
Ness rubbed the back of his head, sniffling one more time, nodding. He left the hotel, the ghosts following him, smiling under the bright blue sky, the sun shining down brightly on him and his friends.
AN: A short Earthbound story? Wow, what is this, feh! Nah but seriously, thanks for reading this, I always thought that the "Homesickness" effect Ness would get from time to time was incredibly heartwarming, knowing that our little hero still missed his mother on his adventure to defeat Giygas. It's a little short, but I never intended it to be too long… So, mission accomplished I suppose. Thanks for reading, this is ThePizzaLovingTurtle, this story stinks!