"Please, have a seat".
Koop ushered the three women into the home's dining room and began setting the table, Koopie and Maria sitting on one side and Bobbera taking seat on the other. "Forgive me; I wasn't expecting any guests tonight, so I hope you don't mind some reheated shroom steak and spicy soup".
"Oh, it's fine. I'm sure I'm not the only one who's barged in on someone while they're unprepared" said Maria as she sheepishly laughed to herself. Koop took a deep breath but said nothing, and left for the kitchen with his hands slightly shaking.
Koopie's own composure began to fade as well after Koop left, as she began nervously tapping her feet in the cold, silent room. Koopie looked up at the crystal chandelier above the table, all of which showed thousands of reflections of Koopie. She quickly turned away however, preferring to look down at her empty plate.
Koopie couldn't help but jump as Maria placed a hand on her shoulder, achieving the opposite of what Maria wanted to happen. "Whoa there girl, calm down! You nearly jumped out of your clothes for a second". Maria let out another pathetic laugh before retreating her hand and returning to the silence of the room.
By now they could all clearly smell the steak being heated and they all knew that it would only be another minute before Koop would come in and they'd have to stop running. Koopie practically began hyperventilating as the tension began to form on her like a ton of bricks. "Don't worry Koopie, everything is going to be fine" assured Maria. "You did nothing wrong and we just have to make him understand that".
This didn't help however, as Koopie continued to spiral out of control. She felt like she was hit with a dizzy dial as the whole room appeared to spin. At that moment Koopie wished more than anything that she had her hoodie with her so she could turtle up inside it and just hide forever.
Without warning, Bobbera reached over to the other side of the table and placed a cigarette in Koopie's mouth. "What are you doing?" asked Maria. "Smoking kills you know". "Girlie, I think she'll die if she doesn't smoke at this point" replied Bobbera. Bobbera lit Koopie's cigarette, and Koopie tried her best to smoke it. She started coughing almost instantly and threw the tobacco to the trash. "How do you stand those things?" asked a much calmer Koopie, finally distracted from the situation at hand. "They seem a little bad at first, but you wonder how ever lived without out them". "Yeah…" sighed Koopie, eyes heading downwards again.
"I'll be out in just a second!" yelled Koop from the kitchen, causing Koopie jerk straight up in her chair. "What do I do?" whispered Koopie to Maria. "As I've said Koopie; relax. Just imagine this like…soccer! Except without the ball…or the kicking…or the game…and with more a stake…and…I should probably shut up now".
Koop came out of the kitchen wearing a classic "Kiss the Cook" apron and the food all in one tray. He placed the steaks and bowls of soup on everyone's plate without saying a word or looking at Koopie as he sat down beside Bobbera and diagonal of Koopie. Maria sipped her soup in silence and tried to think of a way to get the young couple to talk without causing a train wreck.
"So uh…nice weather huh?" "That's Petal Meadows for you" replied Koop as he dug deep into his shroom steak. Maria, giving up, sighed and returned to her soup.
A few minutes later, halfway through their meals, Koop was the first to speak up. "Ms. Bobbera was it? Koopie has told me an awful lot about you; you're a sailor in Rougeport, right?" "That's right" replied Bobbera, looking proud. "It's a hard woman's work, but someone has to do it. You'd be amazed by all the adventures you can have on the high seas". "You were married most of your career as well, right? Were you actually able to remain faithful all those months away from your husband?" "Of course, he meant more to me than anything in the world. I wouldn't let anything get between us".
Koopie began to sink in her seat, trying her best to hold herself together. Bobbera noticed this and quickly tried to repair the damage. "N-not that he wouldn't have forgiven me if I had, because…I knew our love was stronger than that". Maria groaned at the clichéd line, and signaled with her hand for Bobbera to stop talking.
Eventually everyone had eaten as much as they could, which wasn't very much, and Koop collected their dishes. He returned with a Couple's Cake, and cut a piece for each of his guests. "I was planning on sharing this with you when you finally got home Koopie" said Koop. "It really is a shame, everyone knows you aren't supposed to eat this cake with more than two people. Isn't that right Koopie? Or have you forgotten that?"
Koopie slumped even further in her chair as Maria desperately tried to think of a way to change the subject and somehow buy Koopie more time. "I, uh, love your apron Koop! I have one just like it at home, where did you get it?" "Oh, Koopie got this for me for our anniversary last year" replied Koop, eliciting a sharp wince from Maria as she internally cursed herself for opening her big fat mouth again.
"I remember it like it was yesterday. I remember just the two of us alone in this house together, I remember celebrating the death of Hooktail with her. I remember laughing all evening with her as we drank sodas watched silly TV. I remember Koopie saying we'd be together forever…I remember the soft sheets…" Koop couldn't say anymore as tears began to form in his eyes and he rested his head in his hands.
After a moment he finally sat up and looked at Koopie. "Do you think we'll have another day like that again?" Before Koopie could say anything however, Bobbera exploded. "I've had quite about enough of this! You've been guilting and shaming Koopie this whole night. A good spouse should be kind and understanding, not mean and hateful!"
"I told you, this is just between us!" responded Koop. "Is that why you publically dragged her here by her ear like a child?" retorted Bobbera, her face as red as her shirt. "She may be free of the Hooktail, but there still appears to be one selfish dragon in this town! You're being completely unreasonable right now!"
"If Koopie would just say she's sorry for what she's done and promised to stay here, everything would go back to normal" replied an insulted Koop. "And what exactly has she done to you? Played a game of cards in her underwear with two men who probably do that every day? I'm so sure that she had romantic feelings for them over you" said Bobbera sarcastically.
Maria meekly tried to defuse the situation by saying "Well, that wasn't entirely her fault. I mean, if those Boos hadn't-". "Koopie is a grown woman now, she has to take responsibility for her actions" interrupted Koop. "Then maybe you should treat her like an adult and respect her decisions, instead of lording over her like a paranoid father" said Bobbera.
"STOP IT!"
Maria, Bobbera, and Koop all looked shocked as they turned to see Koopie standing up from her seat. "Koop is right…I have to take responsibility for what happened. It was entirely my decision to join that game, and I do regret it. With everything leading up to our wedding I've just felt so trapped and helpless, and the Pianta Palace gave me a chance to be brave and…rebel I guess" Koopie said with a small tint of guilt in her voice.
"It was childish of me, and I deserved to be treated like a child" said Koopie. "I'm glad we've finally reached an understanding" said a relieved Koop as Maria and Bobber dejectedly looked at each other in defeat.
"With that said though…I don't think we can be together anymore Koop" said Koopie as fast as she could get the words out of her mouth. "What!?" yelled Koop. "I did all that because I was frustrated with the way you treated me but I didn't want to say it to your face. I just procrastinated and hid from my problems like a little schoolgirl, but now I'm taking responsibility for my feelings as well as my actions".
There was again silence as the two stared at each other in the dim room, the former lovers staring each other in the eyes, Koop speechless. "I don't love you anymore" said Koopie, finally saying what she knew for months but hopped she'd never have to say. "I'll be back for everything that is mine in the morning, but for now…I think I'll spend the rest of the night with my friends".
"I-…I-…I understand" said Koop, tears now fully running down his face. He walked over to the front door in darkness and held it open. "I'll see you in the morning" he said guiltily before slamming the door as soon as the trio had left.
Once on the street they could finally sit down to talk again. "Of all the things I've ever experienced on Halloween…that was by far the scariest" said Koopie, still visibly shaken. "Did I do the right thing?" she asked her friends.
Bobbera just patted her on the back and said "You were direct, honest, and brave, which is far more than I can say for Koop. I'm very proud of you".
Maria meanwhile pulled Koopie into a very strong hug and was bursting with happiness and relief. "Do you really think you can spend the rest of the night with us after everything that just happened?" Maria asked Koopie. "Yeah", she replied, "I should be fine. Besides, it isn't like I have a place to go back to anymore do I?" Maria finally let out another genuine laugh and helped Koopie get back on her feet.
"That is true, but you can always bunk with one of us for a while if you need to" said Maria. "That's okay; my mom should be able to find a place for me to stay somewhere" replied Koopie as the three started to search town for their other friends.
"Maria…has anything like this ever come between you and the prince? It seems like you've been together for an eternity" asked Koopie as they walked. "Ehh, sometimes. We always get through it in the end though, even that time he almost left me for a computer" replied Maria. "Wow, how do you do it?" asked Koopie as they nearly reached the main meadows.
"Because we know fire that burns and the fire that warms and illuminates are the same fire. It may hurt, but we will never let it go out".