Chapter 3: Day One

Samus rose early the next morning, energized and excited for the day that lay ahead. She kept her Zero Suit on and walked to the kitchen. She saw some of the people at the table eating. Kirby and Yoshi were locked in a debate about which foods were better. She saw Captain Falcon eating some cereal, waved to him, and then walked over to get her own breakfast. She grabbed a plate, put two pancakes on it, drowned them in syrup, and snagged a few pieces of bacon, and then proceeded to sit down beside Falcon.

He stared at her and her Zero Suit and gaped. "Déjà vu," muttered Samus. She then turned to Falcon. "Close your mouth, hotshot, you're dribbling milk all over yourself." Samus chuckled, a smile on her face. She didn't like being stared at, but the expression on Falcon's face was too priceless, the milk being an added bonus.

Falcon quickly wiped his mouth with his sleeve and smiled somewhat sheepishly. "Sorry, you look…great." He then took a napkin and started to wipe off where the milk had spilled.

They talked, ate and laughed, and when they were done, Samus said, "Hey, you want to train?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Okay. Just wait here while I go put my Power Suit on."

"'K."

Fifteen minutes, later, she came back. "Geez!" cried Falcon. "Finally! How long does it take to put on a suit?!?"

"Shut up! This thing has tons of pieces!"

"Pfft. Women." Remarked Falcon, who was soon met with a smack across the back of his head. "Ow!"

Elsewhere, Mario and Luigi were training against each other. They decided that if they were going to fight in a tournament, they needed to familiarize themselves with their own techniques, and what better way to do that than to spar against someone with the same moves as you?

"You're good, bro," panted Luigi.

"Thanks!" Mario called across the stage. "You too!" They were fighting at the Mushroom Kingdom stage, so as not to feel away from home. Mario delivered a kick to Luigi. Of course, it knocked him back, but it didn't hurt. Master Hand had installed special shields into the stages so no one could be damaged.

"Whew," Mario sighed, wiping his brow. "We've been at this for a while; let's go back to the mansion." They left the recreated Mushroom Kingdom and walked back up to the building.

When they reached the mansion, they split up. Luigi headed over to the bar, and Mario went up to his room for a shower.

There was no one at the bar. Luigi ordered a beer with a shot of mushroom juice from the bartender wire frame. He popped off the cap and started drinking. He was having a good time there at Super Smash Bros. He had made a few good friends, and it was nice to be able to fight without the pressures of the fate of the world or dying on his back.

He was almost done with his drink when Samus walked over, panting and sweating, and collapsed into the seat next to him.

"Geez, Samus, you look hot," Luigi commented. She shot him a hard glare. "What??" It then dawned on Luigi. "Oh, no! I meant "hot" as in sweaty and tired. You been training hard?"

"Yeah, with Captain Falcon. That guy is tough."

"Yeah, he seems like he would be. I should probably train with him sometime."

"Hey, what do you think about your upcoming match, Luigi?"

"Well, to tell you the truth, I think it will be kinda easy, seeing as it's a pink puffball."

"I wouldn't be so quick to underestimate, Master Hand picked us 12 out of all the fighters in the universe. We're some of the best."

"True." Luigi gulped down the rest of his drink. "Well, I'm going to go up to my room and change."

"See ya."

Behind, the bar, a small pink puffball sat and fumed.

"Hey, guys." DK grunted as he plopped down on the sofa next to his friends.

"Hey DK. Whatcha been up too?" asked Yoshi.

"Eh, training and eating," he replied.

"Same," returned Yoshi.

"Likewise," came Kirby's voice.

Ness and Pikachu just sighed.

Elsewhere, Link was at the bar with Fox. "So, this tournament thing is shaping up pretty well, huh, Fox?" Link asked.

"I'd say so. It looks like the competition will be rough, but I'm already hoping Master Hand plans another. Heck, maybe even two."

"That would rock. Hmmm…" Links sentence trailed off, both of their minds concentrating on what this tournament would hold in store.

Later that night, Master Hand had once again called for everyone to come down into the main hall. "Well, smashers, I hope you have enjoyed your first full day here at the Smash Mansion. As you all know, the first round of the tournament will be held in seven days time. I want you all to be ready by then, so train hard!" Master Hand finished up his speech and warped away.

All of the smashers collapsed into their beds that night, worn out from the day's work.