Off to the Fair!

Perhaps one of the best highlights of summer is the Smash Fair. It comes around every July and ends in August. The fairgrounds have variable locations. The first Smash Fair, in 1999, had its grounds in Saffron City. Melee's fairgrounds were near Peach's lovely castle. Since 2008, Smashville has served as the fairgrounds, with Villager sparing no expense to put on the best Fair the Smashers have ever experienced.

Four Smashers in particular have been devout attendees of the Fair since the beginning. They are the Formidable Four, the original four secret fighters of the tournament. They have taken steps to set themselves apart from the other fighters, and that's the case when it comes to the Fair. They pick specific days to attend, they travel together, and they carpool rather than take the bus. Sometimes, they bring dates, and other times, it's just the four of them. The sacred way the treat the Fair would remind one of young children. It never lost its spark to them, even after seventeen years.

The appointed day has arrived. It's a Saturday, warm but not too hot, and all of the best attractions are destined to be open. Just the way the Formidable Four like it.

Luigi, the spine of the fabulous foursome and the younger brother of Nintendo's mascot, is the first one up, grooming himself and pulling on a fresh pair of clothes. Since a few Smashers are still asleep, he tiptoes down the hallway to Ness's room, where he knocks on the door.

"Hey, Ness," he whispers. "Are you up?"

"Uh—yeah, gimme a minute," replies the sleepy voice of the psychic boy from Onett. Seconds later, the door opens, revealing young Ness, sporting pajamas and rumpled raven hair. "What's the big occasion?"

Luigi beams at him. "Today's the day," he simply says.

The fog of drowsiness scatters, and Ness's mouth opens in remembrance. "We're going to the Fair!" he squeals excitedly. "Let me get dressed. I'll meet you downstairs!"

Ness darts to his closet for something to wear while Luigi continues down the hall to the room of a certain racer. To his surprise, said racer is already awake and suiting up in one of his racer outfits.

"Morning, L!" crows Douglas Jay Falcon. "How do I look?" He strikes a pose.

"Good," nods Luigi. "You ready?"

"You bet I am! I wanna bring Sammy along. Is that okay?"

"That's perfectly fine," replies Luigi. "We'll all group downstairs, okay?"

The man in green leaves Douglas to finish getting ready while seeking out the last member of the group.

Jigglypuff, the Balloon-type, is still fast asleep when Luigi arrives at her doorstep. Luckily, her alarm clock chooses that moment to go off.

"Puff?" she yawns.

"Jiggs! Today's the day!" Luigi announces.

"Just a sec," she warbles. Jiggs jumps into a quick shower and then emerges from her room, greeted by her enthusiastic friend. "Hi, L. You ready to go?"

"Yeah, and Ness and the Cap'n are just about ready. We agreed to meet downstairs to get some stuff, and then I'll bring my car around."

"I love it when we take your car!" laughs Jiggs.

Luigi smiles at her and then heads downstairs to start getting ready.

Soon, the other three join him in packing the essential fair survival kit. Extra water. Extra cash. Wet wipes, lots of them. Scissors. First-aid supplies. Barf bags. Valid identification. They make sure that their phones are completely charged and designate emergency contacts. Now, they're ready to go.

Luigi goes outside, warms up his car, and pulls it up to the front of the Smash Mansion. The others are waiting for him, Ness carrying the bag of supplies and Falcon carrying a small cooler. The racer puts the cooler in the front seat with him while Ness takes the bag to the backseat, along with himself and Jiggs.

"Do we have everything?" asks Luigi.

"Yup!" chorus his three friends.

"Okeydokey! Here we go!" sings out Luigi.

And with that, the Formidable Four hit the road for the Smash Fair, singing along to the radio the whole way.

Please R&R.