Disclaimer: I do not own Earthbound/Mother 2. Nintendo does.
XXXXXXXXXX
EarthBound
Diary of a Female Punk
By Cyberweasel89
Chapter 1: Gangs of New Onett
XXXXXXXXXX
When Ness got home, the first thing she did was assure her worried mother that, despite her singed clothes and short hair, she was unharmed. Then came explaining what she had to do next. Oddly, her mother was okay with letting her eldest daughter leave town for the summer. But then again, Ness' mom was always one to give her daughter freedom. When all was explained and understood, Ness returned to her room, throwing off her slightly burnt clothes and just collapsing on her bed. She was physically, mentally, and emotionally drained. So... Just a quick nap.
XXXXXXXXXX
She awoke a few hours later, finding it to only be 11:30 according to her bedside clock. Getting up from bed, Ness stretched, yawned and went to get dressed. After a quick shower, of course.
Stepping out of the shower, she took a look at her nude, soaking wet form in the mirror. She was kind of tall for a girl her age... Five foot six. It gave her legs length in addition to shapeliness. She worked hard to keep them hair-free. Her stomach was nice and flat from all that time spent playing baseball, but then there were her breasts. They had to be at least a DD, and she was only fifteen. Made her hope they didn't grow anymore, but they could be useful against boys. She'd found most boys were more into ass, though, but luckily she had a nice, round, perky one, though she had to admit it wasn't as nice as her legs, and her legs weren't as nice as her breasts.
Her hands were tough and worn from gripping a baseball bat, her feet covered in callouses from running the bases, her nails cracked and jagged from grip slips. She was covered in little scars from various cuts and scrapes suffered during baseball wipeouts. It was about the only thing that kept her legs from being her best feature, as she'd skinned her knee and banged her shin one too many times. At least her thighs were scar-free, though they were a bit meaty for her liking.
Her hair was once long and curly, down to her neck, but since she'd cut it all off in honor of Buzz Buzz and her renewed resolve, it was cut short and boyish, and her normal curls were reduced to more of a bedheaded messiness.
Ness wore no makeup. She just got out of the shower, after all. But she never wore any makeup anyway. It all ended up getting smeared or ruined from the sweat of baseball. She wasn't into that stuff, anyway. Any time she'd worn make up, her mother had applied it for her. She couldn't stand stuff getting near her eyes.
She selected a pair of jean short-shorts that came down to about mid-thigh, which she liked because a surprising amount of men were into legs or ass as opposed to breasts, and these tight shorts accentuated both. She paired it with a deep V-neck belly shirt with horizontal blue and yellow stripes. She liked it because it showed off her impressive cleavage as well as her midriff. On her feet were some white socks and red running sneakers, and finally her yellow backpack. All that was missing was her hat, which was currently reduced to burnt remains and resting on Buzz Buzz's grave. Oh, and her baseball bat. She'd have to pick up another bat at the drug store. Luckily, she knew where to find a replacement hat.
After a breakfast of chocolaty cereal, Ness stepped outside to find, of all people, Picky standing just at the end of her walkway.
"Picky?"
"Hi, Ness." the boy greeted, giving her a wave.
Ness walked up and the two fist-bumped, though Ness was a little confused. "Is something wrong, Picky?"
"Nope. But I'm here to help you out any way I can."
"Huh? But Picky, you aren't one of the chosen four. Buzz Buzz said it himself."
"Yeah, but he also said I'd have my own role to play in this, and that I should take risks. That's why I swiped this from my dad."
Picky held up his hand, and it was only then Ness noticed he had been holding something behind his back.
It was a golf club. And it looked like an expensive one, too.
"You stole from...? Picky, you're a braver kid than I." Ness sighed.
"See? I'm taking risks. Now how about we head into town and do, uh... where were you headed, anyway?"
"There's a 'my sanctuary' or whatever location near town called Giant Step. I'm off to go there and absorb the melody from that location in the Sound Stone."
"Cool. I can help. Let's go."
"Hang on, Pick. I need to grab a new baseball bat from the drug store, then stop by the hideout for a replacement hat."
"Oh. Then what are we waiting for?"
Ness sighed. "Fine. But don't do anything stupid, okay? Risks are one thing. Lack of common sense is another."
"Right. No problem, Nessie."
"Don't call me Nessie."
"Got it, boss."
"Don't call me boss, either."
"Master, then?"
"Just Ness. It's my name, and it's what you've called me all the years I've known you."
"Got it, Ness... You sure we can't use codenames on this mission?"
Ness just sighed, rubbing her temple and turning to walk away. But she stopped, Picky even bumping into her.
"What's the matter, Ness?"
She turned around, tapping her fist into her palm. "Mr. Agerate said he had something to show me, and me alone. You wait here. I'm heading up the mountain to speak to him."
"Oh. Okay."
XXXXXXXXXX
Ness knocked on Lier X. Agerate's door, hearing his voice answer 'come in' from inside. She opened the door and walked in, finding the small house seemingly devoid of all life.
"In here. Come into the den."
Shrugging, Ness followed where his voice came from, surprised to see a hole in the wooden floor with a ladder leading down.
"Now, I'm doing this because I trust you." Trust her? They barely knew each other. "First, let's go to the basement." Uh oh... This better not be raping time. "Ah! I can tell by the look on your face you don't want to hang out, do you? That's all right. After all, we are not even related. I know you think I'm a big liar, but maybe I'll surprise you!"
Mr. Agerate climbed down the ladder. With a shrug, Ness climbed down after him, hoping this wouldn't lead to her untimely and mysterious disappearance...
XXXXXXXXXX
The ladder turned out to lead several yards underground, where it was evident Mr. Agerate had been digging, judging by the shovel and wheelbarrow lying nearby. It was dark, but Mr. Agerate lit two lanterns, handing one to Ness, and led her down the tunnel. He stopped and turned to face her right before a turn.
"...So Ness, buddy, I've found proof of a great treasure... a huge haul..." He laughed. "I'll show you, but you're the only one. C'mon."
Sighing, Ness followed her sort-of-neighbor around the corner, pausing when she saw a faint golden glow at the end of it. When it came within view of Mr. Agerate's and her lantern, Ness could tell it was some sort of human-sized, sparkling golden statue, looking somewhat like a devil standing in an Oscar pose, complete with horns and pointed ears.
"If this is a sign of what lies below, I just need a little time." Mr. Agerate began. "My destiny is to find and dig up the buried treasure. I'll eat garlic and work out to help strengthen myself. Go home now. You're getting in the way of my work. You may start to get greedy thoughts..."
"Uhhh... Sure. See ya, Mr. Agerate."
Ness turned to leave, giving her sort-of-neighbor and the golden devil statue one last look over her shoulder before departing. Ness was generally a fearless person... But that statue gave her the creeps, what with its strange glowing...
XXXXXXXXXX
Ness and Picky made their way into town, where the boy insisted on stopping by the library to borrow some maps of the various towns of Eagleland. They also asked around and found out Giant Step was through a cave to the northwest of town. Stopping by the drug store, Ness withdrew some money from the ATM and purchased a new baseball bat, while also meeting an odd dog named Ruffini who seemed to be possessed by some spirit...
Afterwards, Ness went to the Hideout, where one of her friends, the kid with the shaggy black hair, was wandering just outside the woods. Technically, he wasn't a member of their little club yet. As evidenced by the fact that he didn't wear a hat of some sort. So he got guard duty, but long enough at it and he'd become a member.
"Hey, Ness." The boy greeted. "What happened to your hat?"
"Hiya, Sticks. Long story. Is Thimble around?"
"You bet. Whole gang's here. We just finished cleanin' up. Damn Sharks egged the place last night."
"Sorry I didn't arrive sooner to help clean up. Stuff going on. Can I come in?"
"Of course you can. But that guy can't." Sticks gestured to Picky.
"You heard the man. Picky, you'll have to wait out here."
"Awww... Fine."
Walking through the woods, ness found the tree she was looking for, climbing the rope ladder into the small wooden tree house. It really was the perfect hideout. It had a window on each side, a table they had brought in for playing games, old crates to sit on, and a trunk for storing their comics, games, and equipment.
"Hey, Ness." The boy in the black bowler greeted from where he sat at the table, playing cards with the boy with the gray fedora.
"Hiya, guys."
"Hey, Ness." The boy with the fedora began. "I had a dream about you, and you were traveling with a cute girl. If the dream comes true, tell her your old buddy Mouth says hi. After all, I'm single..."
"What, am I not cute enough for ya?" Ness smirked, crossing her arm under her breasts.
"That's different. You're the club's boss. No way any of us are good enough for you."
"Gee, thanks, buddy. I appreciate that."
"No problem. By the way, your hair is short. And you don't have your hat. What happened?"
"Long story. Let's just say I'm going to be leaving town for the summer soon, and I need you guys to take care of the hideout while I'm gone."
"Hey, Ness."
The boy in the red batting helmet walked up, holding out a red baseball cap. "Here's my old baseball cap. I know you've had your eye on it."
Ness smiled, taking it and affixing it on her head. "Thanks, Thimble. I know how much it means to you. Given to you by a famous ball player, right?"
"Yep. You take good care of it, okay?"
"You got it, bro." Ness knocked fists with him before climbing down the ladder to find Picky talking with Sticks about the previous night.
"Ready to go, Pick?" Ness asked as she walked up.
"Aww, I didn't get to hear the rest of the story..." Sticks complained.
"Picky can fill you in later. We need to check out Giant Step."
"Sure. See ya, Ness. See ya, Pick."
"See ya, Sticks."
XXXXXXXXXX
Heading up the path to the northwest a little, they found a sign board telling them Giant Step was ahead. They walked forward expecting to see a cave entrance, but the path ended at a small shack with a fence on either side of it. A sign to the left told them not to enter, while a sign on the right marked it as the traveling entertainers' shack. Two slightly clowny-looking fellows were hanging around outside, so Ness ran up to talk to them.
"Hey. Is Giant Step around here?" she asked.
"Yep, right on the other side of this shack is a cave that leads right to it. It's on the top of the mountain." the first entertainer explained.
"But the shack was locked by someone from City Hall, so neither you nor we can use it." the other entertainer added.
"Why was it locked?" Ness asked.
"Supposedly a punk named Frank trashed the place. What a drag... We can't even change our clothes, and hotels are expensive."
"Isn't Frank the leader of the Sharks?" Picky asked.
"Yeah. Looks like we'll need to pay city hall a visit if we want the key to this shack."
"First, food, though! I'm hungry, and it's time for lunch." Picky demanded.
Ness sighed. "I had a late breakfast, but I guess we can stop by the burger joint if you're hungry."
"Cool! Thanks!"
XXXXXXXXXX
They stopped by the burger shop next to the drug store, but Picky went around the side to where a trash can sat.
"Picky, the food is inside the joint." Ness pointed out.
"I know." Explained Picky as he pulled the lid off the trashcan. "But this place sometimes throws away perfectly good food."
To Ness's disgust, Picky began rooting through the trash can, eventually emerging with a cheeseburger that was still wrapped in paper.
"Yes! Score!" Picky was about to take a bite out of it, but Ness grabbed his wrist to stop him.
"Picky... No. Just... No. That's gross. Put it back."
"Aww, man." Picky whined. "Can't we just put it in your backpack? Maybe we can use it for something later."
"Ugh. Fine. Put it in there. But it better not make my pack smell like garbage."
"Sweet, one burger to go!" Picky exclaimed as he re-wrapped the burger and put it in Ness's backpack.
XXXXXXXXXX
The duo made their way to City Hall to talk to the mayor about the key to the entertainers' shack. As they walked through the building, they passed by a woman at a desk, who called out to them.
"Wait! That's the stairs to the mayor's office! You need an appointment before you visit. I'm going to have to stop you if you try to see the mayor." she explained.
"Pfft! Just try and stop me, lady." Ness dismissed, trudging up the stairs.
She was approached immediately by a police officer the moment she entered the mayor's office.
"Hey, you're not allowed up here without an appointment!"
"I just need to talk to the mayor real quick. Should only take a second." Ness explained.
"No way! The mayor is busting his ass with all the troubles in town, like the Sharks and the meteorite. Unless you're here to reform the Sharks, scram!"
The officer grabbed Ness roughly by the arm and escorted her downstairs, throwing her out in front of the secretary's desk where Picky waited.
"Look. I told you so..." the secretary pointed out.
Picky helped Ness up. "What should we do now, oh fearless leader?"
"Shut up, Picky. It looks like we'll have to deal with the Sharks."
"I thought you said you weren't the hero type, Ness..."
"I'm not. But this is a means to end. The mayor will owe us a favor, and I'll get payback for the Sharks egging the hideout."
"Cool. Let's do it."
XXXXXXXXXX
Ness and Picky found some Sharks who were spraying graffiti on the back of the bakery.
"Hey!" Ness called.
Both turned. "What do you want, sugar tits?" asked one, tossing his can of spray paint up and down in his hand.
"Your boyfriend is awfully short." The other one remarked. "But I guess that makes it easier for him to stare at your huge tits."
Ignoring them, but inwardly seething, she held her baseball bat up so they could see it. "Where's Frank?"
"Our boss? You wanna see our boss?" one of the Sharks asked in disbelief.
"Why? You lookin' to get beat up?" Asked the other, smirking.
"Graaaaahhh!"
Picky jumped forward, beating one in the gut with his nine iron. The Shark bent over from getting the wind knocked out of him, then got the consciousness knocked out of him with a golf swing to his lowered head. Picky turned around to face the other Shark, only for him to spray paint in his face.
"Gaaah! My eyes!" Picky cried, falling to the ground and rubbing his face.
"Hah! Serves you right." The Shark teased.
"This serves you right, then!"
The Shark turned around to see Ness swing her bat at his head, denting and knocking his helmet off. The Shark fell to the ground, unconscious.
Ness ran over to Picky where he writhed on the ground, placing her hands over his face.
"Lifeup Alpha!" she announced, a blue light glowing from her hands as Picky's eyes were healed.
"Whoa." Picky said once he had stopped flailing. "That's pretty awesome. Can you do that to yourself?"
Ness shrugged. "Dunno. Hope I won't have to."
Picky pulled one of the Sharks up, punching him awake. "Where's Frank?" he demanded.
"Why should I tell you...?" the Shark groaned.
"Because if you do, I'll show you my tits." Ness offered with a smirk.
"He's in the back yard of the arcade, thinking about peace and love!" the Shark hurriedly shouted.
"Good. Thanks."
"Do I get to see your tits?"
"Nope. Picky, take care of him."
"Awesome."
Picky punched the Shark in the face once more, throwing his limp body onto the pavement.
"Hey, I got an idea, Ness. The arcade is probably crawling with Sharks. How about we take these guys' uniforms and sneak in?"
"Depends. Can you be subtle for once in your life?"
"You got it, Ness."
"I'm serious. This time, it's about stealth and playing it cool."
"Sure, sure. Now let's go."
XXXXXXXXXX
Hm... Problem. There were no female Sharks. So Ness would have to hold her backpack up against her body to hide her breasts. Hopefully they wouldn't notice what a shapely ass she had.
"Ugh... This uniform stinks." Picky remarked, adjusting his goggles.
"You think I like this better? This thing clings to me in all the wrong areas. I think I've got cameltoe..."
"Yeah, I know what you mean, I think I've got... Wait, what?"
"Nevermind. Let's just sneak into the arcade."
"Uh... Sure."
XXXXXXXXXX
Inside, the place was indeed crawling with Sharks. Two of them guarded the door to the fenced-in yard behind the arcade, where Frank supposedly was. Ness and Picky strolled up to the door, trying to act nonchalant.
"...the hell you want?" One of the Sharks asked.
"Just here to deliver some loot to Frank." Ness explained, trying to deepen her voice and showing them the backpack clutched against her chest.
"Oh. Then you'll have to pay a loot tax."
"A what?" Picky asked.
"A loot tax. You know, you gotta give up some of what you got in the pack." The other Shark explained, smirking.
"Uh... Sure. Just keep your hands off the bat."
"Sure thing. I don't even play ball."
The Shark rooted through Ness's backpack a little, making her worry that he would bump against her breasts. His hand soon emerged with the cheeseburger from the trash can outside the burger shop.
"Oh, sweet! Score! Mind if I take this burger off your hands?" he asked.
Ness smirked. "Sure thing! Wasn't hungry anyway."
"Cool. You're free to go in, now."
"Cool. I'll just... take the rest to Frank."
Ness walked through the door, followed closely by Picky. They found a boy about their age with shades and blonde hair styled into a shark fin. He was practicing with his knives, and there was also some sort of machine in the corner behind a tree.
"Hey... Wait a sec, you aren't Sharks." He pointed out.
"Nope." Ness assured him, pulling her backpack onto her back and slipping the mask off. Picky removed his helmet as well.
"Oh, I see. Here to take me down, eh? Lookin' to take over? Well, don't think ol' fail-proof Frank won't go down without a fight."
Frank lunged forward, stabbing with his knife, which Ness jumped to the side to avoid. He pulled another from his jacket, dual-wielding them. Picky jumped forward and attempted to pound down on Frank with his golf club, but the leader of the Sharks jumped back to avoid him and threw his knife at the boy. It stuck Picky in the arm, causing him to cry out in pain, but he still managed to get up and run forward, swinging his nine iron around like wild. Frank jumped back fluidly each time, but eventually the club clipped his arm, making him stop smirking and jump back, rubbing at what would likely be a bruise later.
Ness took this as her chance to attack, and jumped forward for a Ness Home Run. She was stopped with an elbow to the stomach from Frank, then a swipe at her chest with his knife. The blade tore a gash right in her Sharks uniform, exposing her cleavage and parts of her breasts.
"Bastard!" Grunted Ness, reaching up to feel that there was a small bleeding scratch right in the middle of the tear.
"Sorry, didn't mean to damage those melons of yours." Frank smirked, though he was still rubbing his arm from where Picky got him, who was currently kneeling on the ground, a knife dug into his arm.
"I'll show you melons!" Ness screamed, feeling an odd energy well up inside her. With a shove of her hand forward, Frank was... Pushed backwards with surprising force, slamming into the fence and slumping to the ground?
Ness looked at her hand, seeing some kind of purple glow emanating from it. Was that some sort of psychic attack? The name soon entered her head.
"PK Rockin' Alpha?" she called the attack, though unsure.
Frank coughed, looking up at where Ness stood. "Fail-proof Frank can't be beaten." Frank groaned. "Say hellow to Frankystein Mark Two!"
The machine behind the tree started up, emitting puffs of steam as it rolled up on its treads. The flag attached to the back of its head billowed in the breeze. Ness looked in awe as the robot wheeled up to her and swung its arms at her, beating her several times in the gut, then punching her in the jaw. Ness fell to the ground, rubbing her sore jaw.
"Dammit!"
Grabbing her bat, Ness got up and ran forward, striking the robot in the side with her weapon. She saw it had very little effect, only making the robot rattle and loosening some bolts.
"Graaaaahhh!"
Picky jumped and landed on the robot's back, hands gripping its head. The robot began flailing about, its stiff arms unable to reach the boy clinging to its back.
"Ness! Use that power again!"
"Uhhh..." Ness held out her hands, trying to focus. "PK... Rockin' Alpha!" she called, summoning all her energy as she sent a psychic shockwave forward, breaking several pieces off the robot and sending Picky flying. The robot sparked, clearly malfunctioning. Grabbing her bat, Ness ran forward, readying for a swing and bashing her bat into the robot's head. "Ness Home Run!" she cried, smashing the robot's head to pieces.
The robot sparked and whirred a bit more before steam poured forth from every part of it, its arms falling limp as it broke down.
Frank's face fell as he saw his robot beaten. "...This is my first defeat. Fail-proof Frank is now just failure Frank." He admitted.
Ness said nothing, walking over to Picky and pulled the knife from his arm, making the boy wince. She brought her hands over the wound and began to heal it, though it was going to be a challenge.
"So... You some kind of psychic, or something, sugar tits?"
Ness ignored him, focusing on healing Picky's wound.
"Look... I know you've been asking around, so I'll tell you about Giant Step. It... seems... to be quite a powerful spot. Some kind of special power is stored there that allows certain people to perform wondrous feats. However... a monster sucked up all the energy at that spot. It's difficult to get to Giant Step. That's all I know... I suggest you collect more information on your own. The entrance to the path leading to Giant Step is behind the touring entertainers' shack. Pirkle, the mayor of Onett, has a key to the shack."
Picky healed, Ness got up and walked over to Frank, healing him as well.
"Whoa... This is weird. Bein' helped by the babe who just kicked my ass... Ness, baby... You've become stronger than I. Something tells me your adventure is just beginning..."
Ness smiled, standing and pickup up her baseball bat. "You have to promise not to make trouble for the town anymore." She smirked. "That's my job." She turned to walk away, but stopped when she heard Frank's voice.
"Heh... Hey, babe... Take this."
Frank tossed something to her, which she caught and took a look at. It looked like a bowie knife. She pulled it from its sheath to see that it had an engraving on the blade.
"Honor?"
"It's what I live by, Ness, baby. And you've proven you have more of that than me."
Ness smiled, slipping the knife into her backpack and going on her way. "C'mon, Picky."
"Sure thing, Ness!" Picky agreed, going after her.
Frank got up, taking a look at his trashed abomination of a machine. He'd have to disband the gang now... But truth was, he had built the Frankystein Mark Two himself. Maybe it was time to use his skills for good instead of making trouble...