Round 6- Pipe Maze
Mario- Red, (Four), 46 Coins
Luigi- Blue, (Six), 1 Star, 42 Coins
Peach- Red (Two), 55 Coins
Daisy- Red, (Five), 40 Coins
Although I had just returned from a 'death', when I returned to the blue room I couldn't help but feel relieved. For once, we were in a safe game. My only challenge was to stand at the bottom of a pipe and hope that ten coins happened to land on my head. If every task could have been like this one, I would have been very thankful. It was also nice to know that after being traumatized for life….twice in a row, I would be getting a well-deserved chance to take a breath and relax. There was no way I was letting anybody touch that button anytime soon. Sure, I wanted to go home. But there was no way I was getting home in the condition I was in now! As I sat apart from the others, thinking this all through, I could feel their eyes on me. They were silently asking each other if I was okay, I was sure of it. Well, I hoped so anyway. Finally, they could take it no more.
"Hey, are you alright?" Peach asked, coming over to me first, which was a shock. After all, when she had been rocking back and forth in anguish I hadn't done anything for her. Not helping me out in return would be the perfect passive aggressive way to get revenge. But she had long since put that past her and I was glad of that.
"Yeah, I'm fine." I replied, grinning to show her that I wasn't lying. No, I wasn't perfectly alright. But I was far from broken. It had been a painful experience and terrifying too…but instead of causing me pain it just made me want to win even more. "Thanks."
"No problem. That's what friends are for, right?" She replied, punching me very lightly. I chuckled, sitting back on the blank ground.
"Right." I replied, grinning. Luigi and Mario, seeing that we were done conversing, took that as their cue to come over to us. They sat beside us, their backs to the red button. It felt weird to be sitting here like circle time for some class, but peaceful as well. After the last few rounds I hardly believed that peace was even possible here. But alas, I was proven wrong.
"Do you guys know what this game is and how it's played?" Luigi asked, always in game-mode. I nodded, while Peach shook her head. "Well, it's simple. I pick a pipe to put 10 coins down. Then the coins go through the pipes for a while until they land on one of our heads. The person who it lands on gets 10 coins." Peach nodded, narrowing her eyes in confusion.
"That's it? You mean to tell me there's no danger?" Peach asked doubtfully. "There's a mini-game that's not about torturing us?" Luigi nodded, a trace of a smile on his lips.
"Surprised, huh? Well, this game has been kind enough to give us a break."
"That's a relief." I muttered. Once again we were overtaken by a long silence. It was not an uncomfortable silence but I couldn't help but notice a small ominous tinge about it. It was as though we were on borrowed time, like this was the calm before the storm. However, the thought disappeared a moment later. Finally, after the silence had stretched on for long enough, I stood. It made me feel brave to be the first one ready to jump back into the fray. "You guys ready?" I asked, noticing how reluctant they all seemed to be.
"Ready when you are!" Peach replied first. "Could you lend a hand though?" Peach added, smiling sheepishly at me. I rolled my eyes, acting as though I were exasperated by her antics.
"Fine…" I replied with fake aggravation. Mario and Luigi stood up a moment later. We made our way over to the button and paused a moment before pressing it. None of us were truly ready to enter the 'danger zone' again, no matter what we wanted to believe. Grow up! I scolded myself, then moved forward and pressed the button before I could decide against it.
3
I stood, staring at the pipe over me in slight fear.
2
I wondered vaguely whether I was supposed to catch the treasure, it would float, or it would bop me on the head.
1
Sighing, I decided I didn't care. Getting worked up over this mini-game would be truly pathetic.
Go!
When the game began, I instantly relaxed. It was odd, feeling no apprehension, no nerves. Maybe this place could have been a cool and fun little adventure, if every round had been like this. No worries, no fear, no panic. Beside me, I could see Luigi concentrating hard, deciding how he would try to make himself win. I assumed he was smart enough to figure that out. Mario was next to him, looking completely at ease. Beside me on the other side was Peach, to whom I sent a thumbs up towards. Finally I saw that Luigi relax and I knew that he had let the treasure down the pipe. I could hear the clinking of the wood against metal, although I could not see anything from my angle. Finally the treasure fell and I was surprised to notice that it fell right over my head! Obviously Luigi had miscalculated. I turned to give Luigi and apologetic look, only to see that he was already watching me and I could have sworn he was smiling. I raised an eyebrow, but before I could say anything more- everything went dark.
