Heya all! Back with a new chapter! This one is swinging back to Starlow's perspective (in third person, that is).
ROLL ON THE CHAPPY!
Starlow climbed the stairs out of the lowest floor of the castle to the main floor of the dungeons, thinking. How on earth was she going to get them out of this situation? She used to hate Fawful, what with all the hurt and pain and anguish he had caused the Mushroom Kingdom, and it made her only madder when she found out what had happened over at the Beanbean Kingdom all those years ago. But when she had looked at him back then, out cold...he looked like he was sleeping peacefully, that he had no worries, no schemes to think about. She thought about Cackletta, and realised that he had lost someone too - with what Mario and Luigi had told her she had been like a mother to him; perhaps the mother he never had...
Starlow was broken out of her thoughts when she managed to walk down the length of the hallway and was now climbing the staircase that joined to the main castle. She saw Anna and Bruce waiting for her at the peak.
"Bruce!" Anna fretted. "We've gotta get you to the infirmary, pronto!" She tried to pull him down the hallway, but Bruce remained stubbornly where he was.
"Wanna stay for Starlow..." he mumbled, staring down the stairwell. Spotting Starlow his eyes lit up. "Starlow!" he cried, starting forwards, but Anna had enough strength to keep him back.
"Couldn't you see she was thinking?" she hissed, staring down the stairwell with Bruce. Bruce gave an apologetic smile to Starlow.
"Sorry about that, Starlow!" he called. Anna and Starlow both rolled their eyes at the same time.
"No need, Bruce," Starlow called, joining them at the stairwell's peak. She smiled at Anna, who smiled a strained smile back (tied as she was to Bruce).
"Gerroff me!" Bruce struggled against Anna's grasp, but Anna was winning the battle and was slowly leading him down the corridor. Starlow followed, shaking her head in amusement.
"Why do ya wanna be near me so much, Bruce?" she said, a playful twinkle in her eye. Bruce visibly swallowed.
"Er...no reason, Starlow. I thought those two captives may have got you," he said quickly. Starlow rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, right," she said, walking past them and stopping at the door to the infirmary. "We gotta get you in here, mister!" Bruce laughed; he limped towards the door, clutching his stomach. Anna followed with a concerned look. The door swung shut behind them, and Starlow leaned against the wall just to the left of it, sighing heavily. Today had been another busy day, and she had maimed her love again. She hated doing that, but at least this time she had been able to tend to him - or at least give him the supplies to tend to himself. She felt bad about swinging the flat of her blade at Fawful's head. She had forgotten he was still a kid, no matter how diabolical he was and how much he had seen, and his head was still pretty soft. She had immediately regretted it when she saw that great spurt of blood jolt out of his forehead - it reminded her of Luigi. She swallowed the bile rising up her throat, coughing. Then, taking a deep breath, she went back down to the dungeons.
They can survive without me for a while...
As soon as Starlow set foot in that long corridor where Luigi and Fawful's cell was located a feral scream erupted from said cell and something heavy hit the bars. She heard a low, soothing voice, and recognised it as Luigi's. He had used the same voice when he was teaching her...she shook her head clear of memories. That was all in the past now - she couldn't think of that. She approached the cell to find Fawful with his face pressed up against the bars, glaring at her.
"YOU!" he screamed at her, then let off a string of incoherent words. Luigi just smiled at her and mouthed, "Heya,". Starlow smiled and waved back. She stared back at the Beanbean kid, who was now banging the bars in a futile attempt to break them and get to her.
"You had the putting of I who is Fawful into the sea of despair!" he howled, sliding down the bars, his energy spent. Starlow raised her eyebrows at this.
"'The sea of despair?' What do you mean by that? It was just unconciousness..." she laughed. Fawful seethed at her, waves of hate emanating from him.
"I...had the seeing...of Great Cackletta..." he whispered, hiding his face in his hands. Starlow and Luigi exchanged surprised looks.
"You did? How? Hallucination?" Luigi asked. Starlow noted the worried note in his voice. So he's worried for the kid...well, what they've been through would bond ANYONE - Fawful glared at Luigi and Starlow sighed mentally - except these two...
"It was not being a hallucination!" Fawful cried. "It was being as real as the hay I am sitting on!" Luigi stared at the hay; he picked some up.
"Pretty real, alright..." he muttered to himself, allowing the hay to trickle through his fingers. Then, he got up and enveloped the psychotic Beanbean kid scientist in a hug. Fawful stiffened, but soon relaxed into it. Starlow stared at him, jealousy rising in her like an angry viper.
"What are you DOING?!" she yelled at them. Luigi raised an eyebrow at her.
"What does it look like? I'm comforting him..." he said matter-of-factedly.
"I am not needing the comforting..." Fawful mumbled into his shoulder, but Luigi ignored him. He pulled away and walked towards Starlow.
"I hate seeing other people in suffering, Starlow..." he whispered to her. Starlow stared at him, the jealousy boiling just below her surface. She visibly swallowed it down.
"F...fine..." she mumbled, turning away so he wouldn't see her tears. Luigi sighed.
"Starlow. Look at me," he ordered. Starlow, still facing away from him, shook her head. Luigi reached a hand out, thorugh the bars, and grasped the back of her yellow t-shirt. Starlow stiffened slightly, turning around to him. Luigi's hand trailed around her as she turned, ending up on her stomach. She looked down at it, then back up at him, her eyes red and puffy.
"Starlow...come here..." he said softly. Starlow hesitated, and immediately berated herself for doing so. He LOVES you! What do you think he's gonna do? Murder ya? For a start, he doesn't have anything that can maim or kill... Starlow walked forwards, and Luigi wrapped his arms around her in an awkward hug through the bars. Starlow sighed and melted into his arms, resenting the fact there were some steel bars in their way. She sighed happily.
"Oh, Luigi..." she whispered. Fawful watched all of this, confused.
"Are you...having the feelings of romance for each other?" he asked slowly. Starlow looked over her shoulder at him.
"Yeah...you could say that..." she giggled, snuggling further into his arms. Or as far as she could with some steel rods in the way. Luigi breathed in her scent - he loved it. It smelt of nectar, and honeyblossom...he just couldn't get enough of it. Starlow broke from the hug, turning around. She placed his hands on either side of her head.
"Kiss me," she commanded. Luigi grinned - he brought her closer, their lips making the first contact in what seemed like forever. It was just as good as Starlow remembered it. It was sweet and soft, but also passionate as they slowly poured their love for each other into it. They both broke away after a few minutes, gasping due to a lack of air.
"Wow..." Starlow breathed. Luigi smiled at her - then visibly paled.
"Um...Starlow? You...may wanna turn around..." he said, shaking. Starlow obliged, and gasped in shock when she saw who was there.
Her best friend, Anna.
"Would you like to explain what - the - HELL - that - was - ABOUT?" she snarled, twirling her hammer menancingly. Starlow and Luigi gulped.
Uh-oh...
Oh christ. They've been DISCOVERED! OH NOEZ! Just as things were getting sentimental, Anna comes along and spoils it. Bet she's wondering why Starlow's gettin' smoochy with Luigi :) They're gonna need some answers. And fast :P
Anyway, hope you liked this chapter - AND THEY ARE FINALLY STARTING TO GET LONG! WOOT!
...A-hem. Anyway, I love writing romantic scenes between Luigi and Starlow - bless that couple, they are so SWEET!
...I sound like a reviewer to my own story XD
Anyway, REVIEW, PEOPLE! (like I inadvertently did:P)