Chapter 10: Camping Out, Pt. 1
As my cabin mates and I headed down the steps of the supply cabin with sleeping essentials in our grasps, two little Lumas floated towards us and pointed in the direction of the nearby woods next to the cabin circle. We had assumed our tent was already set up, although we did not expect to believe that we were going to sleep in a bushy forest. We followed the Lumas under an orange sky, the light burning out as we walked under persisting pine trees. As the brightness dimmed, the Lumas' little bodies began to shine a path for us.
The Lumas' light stopped after a short walk away from the closest cabin near the woods. Right in front of us, it looked like a little fort. The squared area was surrounded by randomly sized rocks and pebbles as if to create a fort-like aesthetic, which worked because two tents, one orange and the other a light blue, were sitting next together tall and proud, with a little mat laid out at their doorstep. It sat right beside a small pre-made campfire that already had small pieces of wood in the middle, with four large logs surrounding it.
"Cool!" Villager exclaimed. He rushed to the front of the line and ducked into the orange tent. He immediately crawled inside, and we heard him slam his body onto the ground.
"Only two tents?" Ness asked.
"I guess we're sharing them like we share bunk beds," I told.
"Oh?" Toon Link looked at me. "Who's going to sleep with who then?"
"Me and Toonie!" Villager popped his head back out.
"…Can we make it different this time?" Toon Link disappointingly asked.
"…You don't like me, Toonie?" Villager frowned.
Toon Link shook his head, "No, I didn't mean it like that—"
Villager's eyes quickly bubbled with water as he continued to stare at Toon Link. His lips quivered, only shaking guilt out of our cabin mate even more.
"Okay, fine!" he gave in.
"Yay!" Villager retreated back inside the tent, with Toon Link sighing as he entered as well.
"Wow, it's bigger than I thought they'd be," Ness commented. He was already inside the other tent.
"Right? I could grow a tree in here!" Villager yelled over.
"Please don't," Toon Link added.
I chuckled as I entered the tent Ness was in. He was already laying down his sleeping bag and extra pillow on one side, leaving me to lay my belongings down on the other side.
One of the Lumas entered our tent, nodding at us happily.
"Thanks for the help," Ness expressed.
"Yeah, thanks!" I added.
The Luma nodded again and then left the tent.
"So what do you guys wanna do now?" Toon Link called to us from the other side. We saw his head trying to poke through against the walls of his tent.
"Well, I'm kind of hungry," I said.
"We should eat first before doing anything else," Ness told. "Turnip Flurry really wore me out."
"Same here," Toon Link said.
"Man, I wish I could've played," Villager pouted.
"I'm sorry Villager," I called to him. "I could have let you played."
"Nah, you won for us!" he smiled. "You deserve praise!"
"He's right, you did a good job," Ness smiled at me. I blushed and scratched the back of my head.
"What about after we eat?" Toon Link asked.
"…We could make a campfire to start off, and then eat some s'mores for dessert I guess?" Ness suggested.
"Ooh—and then scary stories!" Villager added.
"No!" Toon Link reacted.
"Heh," Ness chuckled. "Let's go eat dinner first."
"Right, and then scary stories!" We heard Villager's weight jump out of the tent and walking away.
"Can we skip the scary stories?" Toon Link pleaded as he exited.
"So what do you wanna do tonight?" Ness asked, looking at me.
I shrugged my shoulders. "I don't know. I was going to say I usually go for a swim whenever I camped back at my home, but swimming after eating isn't a good idea, isn't it?"
"Yeah. Plus, it's probably going to be too dark to swim after dinner…"
We both exited the tent and started to follow the other two towards the cafeteria. As we walked, Ness planted his fist into his other hand, as if he came up of a good idea.
"I got it!" he remarked. "I know just the thing."
"What is it?" I asked.
Ness chuckled, "You'll see."
:*:
"I can't believe we won the hot springs~!" Lucina squealed. "This is a dream come true!"
"Looks like they're working hard." Robin looked out the window to see multiple Lumas working in a transparent tent, drilling and hammering away at the ground.
"Rosalina said they'd be done in the morning," Palutena reminded. "So we just need to wait."
"And then we can bathe in the morning!" Robin added. She looked over at a clock hanging on one of the walls. "For now, it's dinner time, so let's go eat."
Sheik jumped up. "Right! But first, let's get all pretty." She walked over to the closet and rummaged through her belongings.
Lucina tip-toed to Palutena. "Hey, Palutena…"
"Hm?" The goddess looked back at the cautious swordswoman, but she was then directed to turn their heads to the window to keep a private conversation.
"You ship Shulk and Pit, right?" Lucina whispered.
"Ship them? Oh, I Sh-Pit," Palutena laughed.
Lucina chuckled. "Good one. Well, I have an idea…" Lucina said, and then they began to whisper while looking at the construction of the hot springs.
Robin stared at the two with a disappointing look. "Something tells me they're up to no good." Then, she glanced over at Sheik, who just walked past her and went into the bathroom.
"Don't take too long, Sheik," Robin reminded. "We're leaving soon."
"I know! I just going to change my foot prisons," Sheik said from beyond the door.
"Foot prisons?" Robin repeated.
"She means shoes," Palutena looked over and answered.
"EXCUSE ME?!" Sheik burst out the door and everyone laid their attention on her.
"Was I wrong?" Palutena questioned.
"YES, YOU ARE!" Sheik responded.
"But foot prisons make sense as shoes, don't they?" Lucina tilted her head.
"No, not that!" Sheik exclaimed. "You called me a 'she'?! How dare you! I identify myself as male, thank you very much!"
"Oh, my apologies," Palutena told. "I didn't know you preferred to be called as such."
Sheik tiled his head. "Well, you're forgiven this time, but for future reference, I prefer being called as he, or him, and etcetera." Sheik re-entered the bathroom, closing the door promptly.
"…That was unexpected," Robin mumbled.
"But isn't Zelda a girl like us?" Lucina asked. "So why...?"
"No, Lucina, it's not like that," Palutena said. "You see, Sheik may be Zelda who is a female and identifies herself as female, but Sheik identifies himself as a male. Therefore, we must respect Sheik's wishes and call to him as a male."
"…Huh?" Lucina tilted her head.
"Lucina, just go along with it," Robin told.
"But I don't get it?" Lucina mumbled.
The bathroom door opened again, and out came Zelda in her regular attire. "Ah, I feel much better! No more tight foot prisons and back to my pretty butt cape."
Robin sighed, "Well, Zelda, if you're done, let's head to the cafeteria."
"Right!" Zelda followed Robin towards the cabin door.
"…So do I call Zelda he and him too?" Lucina whispered to Palutena.
"No, Lucina, you're not getting it—" she sighed. "I'll explain later, let's go get food first."
:*:
Lucario headed down the steps of his cabin, pausing as soon as he sensed a furious Mewtwo barking at his two followers.
"You have disgraced me, Jigglypuff!" Mewtwo roared. "Do you know how muy bueno a cabin expansion would have been?! I would have more room for my Puerto Rican possessions, but no…YOU HAD TO LOSE! THAT IS NOT MUY NACHO LIBRE!"
"FORGIVE ME SENPAI!" Jigglypuff bowed down.
"YES, PLEASE FORGIVE HER AND DO NOT BE ANGRY!" Red bowed down as well.
"Hm? Who ever could you be talking about, Red?" Mewtwo looked away.
"OH NO! SENPAI DOESN'T NOTICE ME ANYMORE! NOOOOO!" Jigglypuff ran away crying.
Lucario walked towards them with crossed arms. "Aren't you being a little harsh?"
"Nonsense, they chose to be treated like this," Mewtwo told. "Now then little Red, I shall only forgive you if you…do my Puerto Rican laundry for a week."
"YES SIR!" Red exclaimed. He ran into Lucario's cabin.
"But you don't wear clothes," Lucario told. Then, they saw Red jump out of the cabin carrying a giant pile of gaudy clothes and headed towards the lake.
"Incorrect, little Lucario," Mewtwo said. "My Puerto Rican clothes are for my dates with Puerto Rican women. I wear clothes to charm them before I…kink it up, you may say."
"…I see," Lucario told.
RIIING!
"Ah, speak of the Puerto Rican devil." Mewtwo cleared his throat. "WELCOME TO THE SPICY PUERTO RICAN TRIPLE X HOTLINE. THIS IS THE PUERTO RICAN PENETRATOR SPEAKING. Puerto Rico."
"Hello, is this Taco Bueno?" said the caller.
"YOU DARE CHOOSE TACO BUENO OVER TACO BELL?" Mewtwo roared.
"Taco Bell? Ew, you mean Taco Hell?"
"HOW DARE YOU INSULT THE NAME OF TACO BELL! YOU MY FRIEND ARE NOT VERY TACO BUENO! NACHO LIBRE!"
"Whatever, so can I get like a chicken quesadilla and a nachos grande with a side of—"
"NO YOU MAY NOT! For insulting the name of the Puerto Rican style tacos, I will find you… AND THEN I WILL GUT YOU!" Mewtwo hung up immediately.
"…I'm going to the cafeteria now." Lucario walked away.
:*:
Dark Pit had flopped down onto the bed, and was still for a long time. His cabin mates continued to converse about his state of being.
"It's almost dinner time, Dark Pit!" Fox exclaimed. "Come on, you don't wanna miss pizza night!"
"Forget him, he's still sour over you losing for us," Wolf said.
"Dayum he's stubborn to the wubborn to the lubborn," Falco commented. "I oughta kick his assy wassy out of bed."
"Well, if he's not gonna move, might as well mess with him, eh?" Wolf said, walking over to Dark Pit.
The three of them gathered around the fallen angel and merely poked at him. Dark Pit made no response. Wolf grinned, and then began to pinch at Dark Pit's skin. The angel wanted to yelp out in pain, but his anger towards them was still stronger and kept him still moping in bed. In fact, as Falco and Fox continued to prod and even sit on him, his anger grew stronger.
"Ooh, tickle his wings again, see what happens!" Wolf exclaimed.
"All right!" Fox began to reach for one of Dark Pit's wings. Before he could touch it, his arm was grabbed, and then he was thrown out.
"Wh—whoa!" Fox tumbled as he landed on the hardened ground.
"Gah!" Wolf landed next to him.
"Ugh!" Falco followed them as well.
Dark Pit stamped to the door, looking at them with reddened fury. "YOU THREE STAY OUT UNTIL YOU WIN ME A CABIN EXPANSION!" he screamed, and then he slammed the door on them.
"Dayum what's his problem to the noblem to the koblem?" Falco grunted.
"Did he just kick us out?" Fox asked. "B-But where are we going to sleep?!"
"I dunno, that's your problem," Wolf told. "I don't mind napping outside. Problem is finding a nice tree to sleep under…" he began to walk away.
"Falco, what do we do?!" Fox exclaimed. "You know I don't do well sleeping outside!"
"Chillax bro, I got this-fish-pish-lish," Falco assured. "I got some buddies that'll hook us up."
"Aw sweet! You're the best!"
"Dayum straight to the mate, now let's go see 'em!" Falco walked towards one of the existing cabins with Fox following behind.
:*:
Chrom calmly ate his food as he continued to listen to his cabin mate's bickering.
"I can't believe I didn't win 1st place!" Ike said. "I was a good shoe-in for it!"
"Hey, at least you won 16th place for us!" Link said.
"But isn't that kind of like last place?" Marth added.
"That's still a good thing!" Link said. "Being last is special—as much as being first. But being last is waaay cooler."
"Hey, you're right!" Ike exclaimed. "You know what, I'm proud to be last! LAST PRIDE!" He slammed the table.
"Loser," coughed Snake's voice from afar.
"Maybe we can win first place for the next camp event," Marth told.
"Yeah! We just have to train really hard and try our best!" Link exclaimed.
"Right, let's train right now!" Ike suggested. He then pointed firmly at his cabin mate, "LINK, I CHALLENGE YOU TO AN ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT-CONTEST!"
"BRING IT ON!" They quickly dashed to grab a large plate of food and began to wildly gorge down. Marth cheered on each of them from the sidelines.
Chrom sighed, "We are never going to win an event."
:*:
Pit sighed as he depressingly poked at his mashed potatoes.
"Something wrong, Pit?" Shulk asked. "You haven't been eating as eagerly as you would."
"I'm okay, just bummed out."
"Still sad about losing?"
"Yeah. I mean, how could Pittoo just hold out his shields like that?! I could've won…maybe if I had just aimed for Ness or Wario more instead…"
"It's all right, Pit," Shulk reassured. "We don't really need a lot of things to add to our cabin. It's more than enough for just the two of us."
"That's true, but…"
"But?"
Pit pulled out a pouty face with saddened eyes, "…my hot springs…"
"Maybe next time we'll win, perhaps at something that Dark Pit will not be good at."
"I hope so. I'll just have to train harder and not lose to him again!"
"That's the spirit. But you can't train on an empty stomach, so eat."
Pit chuckled, "Right."
"Psst, Pit."
Pit jumped in his seat once he felt a gush of wind directly whisper in his ear. Lucina stood there, smiling.
"Gah! Lucina?" Pit questioned. "What is it?"
"You want to take a dip in the hot springs, don'tcha?" she asked.
"Yes I do!" Pit exclaimed.
Lucina held up a key. "The Lumas gave us keys to our hot springs. Because I'm so nice, I'll let you have our spare key. You can use it anytime we're not using it."
"What—?!" Pit exclaimed. "REALLY?!"
"Mm-hm," Lucina grinned. "On one condition…"
Shulk lifted an eyebrow as he watched Lucina and Pit chatter in secret. He couldn't hear the conversation completely, but he didn't pay much attention once he began to see a vision.
"We really shouldn't be here…I don't think it's right."
"Shh, I think it's clearing up!"
...
"Move it, Ike! I wanna see too!"
"Oh-hoho! That's a reeeeally nice view!"
Shulk sat in silence, trying to comprehend his vision. He only saw lots of steam in the background, and guessed that it emanated from a large source of hot water. He still wasn't sure what to conclude, but had hoped he would get a clearer vision in the future.
:*:
After we ate, we all headed back towards our tents in the nearby woods. As Villager continued to eat a chocolate chip every couple of seconds from a bag full of them, the rest of us were carrying items to take along for our campfire s'mores. However, as we walked past the supply cabin, Ness stopped in his tracks.
"Oh, uh, I just remembered I was going to go get something from the supply cabin," Ness told. "You guys go on ahead and start the fire without me."
"Uh, all right?" Toon Link asked. "Gimme the crackers, though."
"Right, here." Ness handed over the bag of s'mores crackers.
I opened up a telepathic channel. "What're you gonna get?"
"It's a secret, you'll see," Ness replied. He ran back towards the supply cabin and headed inside.
Toon Link, Villager and I continued on and arrived back at our little camp. Toon Link went ahead and got started on fortifying the campfire by adding large rocks to the surrounding of the firewood. I was tasked in preparing sets of s'mores stacks ready to be toasted, placing them on a small plate. Villager had wandered through the forest, looking for large pieces of wood. However, occasionally I heard a faint cracking sound similar to that of an axe chopping…
Villager eventually returned with bountiful pieces of wood and laid them out in the circle. I merely watched them as they continued to set up the fire. Toon Link had two sharp rocks in his hands, trying his best to begin a spark of heat. He first built up friction, and then tested a scratch occasionally. We eventually saw a small spark and then Toon Link began to scratch it at the pile of wood.
Villager casually walked up to him. "Toonie, why are you using rocks to start a fire?"
"Because I've got nothing else?" Toon Link replied.
"Don't you have some kind of lighter when you use your bombs?" Villager asked.
"…Bombs?" I repeated.
"…" Toon Link immediately paused. He tossed the rocks away and pulled out a small lighter, successfully spreading the fire at the top of the pile.
"Should've remembered I had this long ago," he said, putting it away.
"Well, I could have used my fireworks too," Villager asserted.
"I'd think you'd only cause a bigger fire," Toon Link told.
I was the only one with a dumbfounded expression. "…He has fireworks?"
Just then, I felt a familiar presence that poked at my brain. I looked up ahead to see that Ness was approaching us, with four oddly colored items in his hand and arms, and a large container held on his back.
"It's Ness," I called out, notifying the others.
Toon Link looked over, "Oh, Ness! What'cha got there?"
At another closer look, I realized it was some kind of toy gun. Ness didn't say a thing and merely pointed the object at the beginning fire. He pumped a round cylinder at the end of the gun and then pulled the trigger. A clear flow of water gushed out from the gun and dissolved the fire.
"A water gun!" Villager stated.
"Aw, my fire!" Toon Link whined. "What was that for?"
"Forget the s'mores, we're playing a water gun fight first," Ness said. He handed a similar sized gun to the each of them, and then walked towards me with one.
"Water gun fight?" Toon Link questioned.
"Sounds like fun!" Villager exclaimed.
Ness handed me my own water gun, and I took it reluctantly. He had then set down the container hanging on his back. We all saw and heard water crashing within it.
"How do we play?" I asked.
"Simple, just shoot each other!" Ness answered. "We'll all play against each other. The first one to get hit five times by water has to make s'mores for everyone."
"Easy enough," Toon Link said. "Just aim for Lucas."
"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" I retorted.
"In my opinion, Toonie's an easier target," Villager sneered.
"Oh, you wanna bet?" Toon Link grinned.
Ness chuckled, "Keep the tension for later, lemme finish. The whole woods is our battlefield. If you leave it, you automatically lose. And if you need to refill water, you can come back to home base here. Touching this keeps you safe." Ness opened up the container and gently dipped his water gun in it, pumping another round part and refilling his ammo. "Once you're full, you got two seconds of invincibility so that you can run away."
I shook my gun and saw that my water gun's reserve was rather full. Villager walked up to the container and refilled his. Toon Link examined the mechanics of his gun before throwing it over his shoulder.
"How do we know if someone is hit five times?" I asked.
Ness put his fingers at his lip for a moment. "If you get hit, call out 'hit' and a number. So if I got shot for the fourth time, I'd say 'hit 4'."
"So no playing dirty," I added.
"Right," Ness nodded. "So, we all ready to play?"
"I guess," I replied.
"Yep!" Toon Link answered.
Villager pulled his gun out of the tank. "All done!"
"Good," Ness said. "Now you all got ten seconds to run away from here before I start shooting each of ya."
"Oh crap!" Toon Link quickly turned around and dashed away.
"I'll see ya guys later!" Villager headed in another direction into the woods.
I hesitated for a moment, standing still and continuing to look into Ness' eyes. He grinned at me, almost a bit smug, as if he thought he was going to beat me.
"That means you too," he said.
"I know," I responded. I turned around and started lightly running away.
"I won't go easy on ya!" he yelled.
"Same here!" I called back.
I picked up my speed and headed deeper into the forest. I found a fitting tree large enough to cover my body, and hid behind it.
It felt like ten seconds had already passed. The game had already begun. Everyone else began to hunt each other down.
I wasn't sure on how to handle the game. I didn't mind losing on purpose and making s'mores for everyone, but I don't want them to have a boring game. I decided, why not play? Besides, I thought playing with water guns was a fun idea.
But how should I play? Hit and run? Hide and then strike? Who to target? How will the others fight? I let my mind wander as my heartbeat raced faster. It felt like I was being watched the whole time. Perhaps someone was already waiting for me to walk out so they can shoot at me. What would I do if something like that actually happened? Fight back, or run?
I kept leaning against the tree, believing it was my best shield for now. Running around would be a bad idea, since it would be a waste of energy and I'd give up my position. Though I knew I couldn't stand still forever. Who knows if someone would make a surprise attack at me while my guard is down? I kept looking left and right, and even in front of me. I saw another large-looking tree in which I could maneuver too. I decided to do so, abandoning my current base.
Nothing out of the ordinary so far. I looked around me, and then back behind me again. There was still not another person. It was just me, and plenty of trees.
"GAH!"
I jumped up at the echoing shriek. It sounded like a light voice, and was rather far away. Toon Link's voice? Did someone find him?
I steadied my breath and kept my ears open, the drumming of my heart occasionally catching my attention. I listened to the wind blowing on the trees, the leaves rustling and blocking out minor sounds like gentle footsteps. I took the chance to tiptoe towards the direction where Toon Link may have ended up in.
Just then, I heard an abnormal crunching sound. I had been stepping lightly and trying to avoid fallen leaves or sticks on the ground, so I know it was unlikely me.
"Someone found me? Who?" I took in mind that Toon Link was probably already occupied. Ness was closer to him than Villager, because he ran off in the opposite direction.
That meant…Villager?
I looked back and saw him. He was smiling.
"Guh!" I cried out. He took quick aim and fired.
I quickly tackled to the side, and then sprinting forward some more as Villager's gun continued to fire a straight spray. I managed to hide behind a tree, where he stopped shooting. I looked back and saw him run behind another tree.
I stepped out and ran around, trying to get around him. He had seen me and responded by running farther away from me. Once I had him aligned for a slight moment, I shot at him, though I was out of range.
Villager kept escaping, and didn't change directions. He did look back at me, laughing. It was a short battle, but the thrill excited us both. I smiled back at him, hoping he'd seen my reaction.
"Come back here!"
"No fair Ness—!"
I turned into the direction of the familiar voices, then quickly hid behind a tree. Poking my head out, I saw Toon Link and Ness running towards my direction, with the latter chasing the other. They kept shooting at each other with simple burst shots, all missing each other.
Toon Link looked wet at two spots on his clothes. Ness had a soaked shirt. They must have hit each other already, but the question was how many.
I was about to find out soon. Toon Link came running closer towards me, but he didn't see that I was hiding. As soon as he got close enough, I jumped out, catching him off guard. He stopped running and pulled up his gun, but I fired at him just in time. Even as I shot him, he fired back at me, hitting me in the stomach with cold water.
"Gah—hit three!" Toon Link disappointingly shouted as he backed off.
"Hit one!" I responded to his attack.
"Make it hit two." Ness' telepathic voice rung in my head. I turned around and found him behind me, his arm tucked and gun ready. He shot and struck my neck. The cold water tickled me again.
"Gaahaa—hit two!" I laughed and tried to run from the spray. I attempted to shoot back, but I missed because of the water splashing in my face. I hid myself behind a tree, panting fast. It took me a few breaths to realize Toon Link was standing just a couple meters away from me at another tree. We aimed for each other again, going in different directions as we shot.
Neither of us called out "hit." I ran away a bit more, looking back to watch Toon Link try to find a hiding spot. Ness stepped out in between us and was deciding which one of us to go after. I kept running away, pumping my gun as well and expanding the distance between us. I tried to go into the direction of the camp. I thought I could use a refill, so I could be better prepared for the next duel.
I was smiling the whole time I headed towards the camp. The cold water made me shiver a little, but I enjoyed it. In fact, I wanted to get sprayed by water more. It was a lot of fun.
I eventually made it to the clearing where I saw our tents, the doused firewood, and the water container. I slowed my pace and headed towards the safe zone.
And unexpectedly, I was shot with a blast of water, causing me to squeal.
"Hit three—!" I yelled, causing the water spray to stop. I looked up ahead where the water came from. Villager had hid behind one of the tents, stepping out.
"Camping sure is fun," Villager said, walking out from the tents.
"Cheater," I stuck my tongue out at him. He simply smirked as he approached me. He took a few more steps and aimed his gun at me again. I quickly shot back as I jumped away. I struck Villager in the arm, and he flinched trying to cover his face.
"Hit one," Villager told.
Only once? That was right, it had only been a short while but Villager escaped in the other direction where Ness, Toon Link and I had been fighting. He had been laying low, probably waiting for one of us to strike each other down. I wasn't sure whether to compliment or be upset at his ways of fighting.
Villager continued smirking at me. And it wasn't just the water making me shiver, but I could feel the serious bloodlust from the way he looked at me. He was having fun. Too much fun.
But I was having a lot of fun, too. I pumped my gun again as he did the same with his. In the midst of his pumping, he ran towards me, and I dashed backwards.
However, he shot at me despite being at a far distance. His gun managed to reach my shorts.
"Hit four," I said with a struggle. Villager didn't stop approaching me. I was pushed back more into the depths of the forest, hitting a tree with my back. And it was a rather big tree, with enlarged roots that could make me trip if I tried to hurry over them. Villager kept stepping forward, pumping his gun again. He could shoot me at any time and I'd be done for.
"Hehe, looks like you'll be making s'mores," he said. "Just so you know, I like to eat a lot."
I frowned and shot him with my gun again. The water had hit him, but the spray ended with a very awkward noise.
"Hit two," Villager said. "And it sounds like you're out of ammo."
I sighed, "Guess I lose."
"Don't take it personally Lucas," Villager told. "I like to play seriously, it's how I win." He pointed his gun at the middle of my body. I knew it was going to be unavoidable to dodge. I closed my eyes, awaiting the hit.
I heard the sound of a gun spray. What I had thought was going to hit me was just my soaked clothes continuing to give me chills. I looked up and saw two shots of water hitting Villager at his neck and leg, and he quickly backed off.
"Waah—!" he cried. He shot back at my right side, hitting something.
"Hit two," Ness' voice said. "But you should be saying 'hit four'."
"Drats," Villager responded.
"One left and you're done for!" Toon Link exclaimed. He came from my left side, pumping his gun and started to run towards Villager. They both fled the scene, chasing each other.
I stood up and Ness came to my side.
"You all right?" he asked.
I quickly poked his body with my gun out of instinct. I was cautious that he may be tricking me to hit me for the fifth time. He poked back at me with his own gun.
"I know you're done in one more hit. You sure you wanna do that?" he smirked.
I lowered my gun and stepped back. He lowered his weapon, "I'm not gonna shoot you, don't worry."
"Why?" I asked.
"Just 'cause," he answered.
"Just 'cause?" I repeated. He wouldn't spare me without a good reason. I opened my mouth to question him again until I heard Toon Link's scream.
"GAAAH!"
"Oh, one of them finished," Ness said. We both headed towards the other two and saw that Toon Link was downed, and Villager panting.
"Who won?" I questioned.
"I got him!" Villager exclaimed.
"Boo," Toon Link mumbled. "Yeah, he did."
"Good game," Ness added, clapping lightly.
"Hehe, now you get to make s'mores for us, Toonie!" Villager grinned.
"Fine, whatever," Toon Link sighed. He got up and then nudged an eyebrow. "I lost, but y'know what? Might as well empty my gun." He shot at Villager's face.
"…Oh you're gonna get it now, Toonie." Villager pointed back at him and fired. Toon Link shot back and they were emptying their ammo onto each other, laughing along.
Ness chuckled as well, "All right, come on guys. Let's go get some s'mores."
"'kay!" they said, but continued to shoot each other.
We followed Ness towards the direction of our camp, setting our water guns down away from the fire. Toon Link glared over at the few pre-made s'mores I already laid out on a blanket left in one of the tents, soon bringing them out to be cooked using an extensive tong. He placed them and some plates next to the log he was going to sit at. Villager offered to start the fire, but Ness rubbed his hands together before pointing his palm at the firewood.
"PK Fire!" he exclaimed, and a bolt of fire zapped the firewood, immediately igniting a big portion. The fire quickly spread and grew at its maximum size, intense enough for warmth from a good distance.
"Ah, so warm…" Villager mumbled, holding out his hands.
"And we're still soaked," Toon Link mentioned, picking at his clothes. "We probably should have grabbed some extra clothes before doing this."
"And some towels," Villager added.
"Our cabin is closed off though, isn't it?" I reminded. "It's not like we could've gotten inside."
"It's true that I could have thought through about this better, though," Ness said.
"What about the supply cabin?" Villager asked.
Toon Link stood up, "Oh yeah, the supply cabin should have towels! I'll go get some for us." He started to walk away, but a small breeze of wind blew by all of us. Toon Link quickly returned back to us and plopped his self down, holding his arms together.
"T-Too cold," he shivered.
"Yeah, it's already getting dark, too," Ness told. "You might end up getting lost without a light."
"Well we're gonna freeze if we don't get something to dry off with soon!" Toon Link whined.
"True…" Ness stared at the fire for a moment. We all focused on warming our bodies as much as we could, reaching for the fire as much as possible without it being too intense. We only heard each other's soft breaths and the cracking of the fire, until a weird rustling noise was made.
Ness was taking his shirt off and wrung out the water behind him. He placed it on the log beside him, and proceeded to unbutton his shorts.
"Wha—What're you doing?!" Toon Link stuttered.
"Trying to stay warm, what else?" Ness answered. "It's better than catching a cold."
I agreed with his reasoning, and followed suit by taking my own shirt off, squeezing out the water as well. In the corner of my eye, Villager removed his clothing as well, twisting them and then laying them flat on the log. After beginning to take off my shorts and shoes, I saw Toon Link hesitating for a moment as he glanced over at each of us. Then he proceeded to take his own clothes off and wring them out.
Ness was the first to feel fully relaxed as he held his hands closer to the fire. I felt more at ease too, even though we both were still in soaked briefs. I could have taken my last piece off, but I wasn't sure how the others felt about modesty, and since Toon Link and Villager still kept their underwear, I didn't think they were comfortable with the idea, so I left myself as is.
"Toonie, I'm hungry," Villager called over.
"Huh?" he tilted his head.
"You lost the game, remember?" Ness reminded. "Make us some s'mores."
"…Can't I dry off for a bit longer? I really don't wanna walk around in my boxers."
"But I'm hungry now!" Villager whined playfully.
"You just ate a big plate of dinner like an hour ago!" Toon Link retorted.
"But I'm really craving s'mores now. Pweeease?"
"Yeah Toonie, pweeease?" Ness teased.
I laughed along as Toon Link sighed before he stood up and reached for the tong and s'mores, beginning to cook one. Villager handed each of us a plate and then waited along with us.
"Who wants the first one?" Toon Link questioned.
"Me!" Villager exclaimed.
Toon Link walked over to Villager's log and gave him his snack, then proceeded to cook another one. Villager stared at his melting food before attempting to eat it.
"Ooh, hot," he said.
"Let it cool a bit first," Ness told.
Toon Link gave Ness and myself the next s'mores before making one for his self, although Villager stole it next. When we wanted more s'mores, we happily called on 'Toonie' who showed us some playful anger as he handed them to us. I stopped eating after about four sandwiches and then focused on drying my clothes faster by bringing them closer to the fire. Everyone else copied me after they were all done eating.
"Today was a fun day, wasn't it?" Ness asked.
"Yep!" we all replied.
"Turnips, camping, and s'mores!" Villager stated.
"Today's event was pretty fun," Toon Link said. "And to top it all off, we won a bigger cabin and hot springs together."
"Thanks to Lucas especially," Ness told.
I blushed, putting my clothes down. "Not just me; you and Toon Link did great too."
"That's right!" Toon Link added.
"Next time, can we make sure that I participate?" Villager asked.
"Of course," Ness answered. "Say, since you didn't get to join, why not tell us what you could have done to fight the others?"
"Oh, easy." Villager pulled out his axe, "FEEDING CERBERUS THE LEFTOVERS—striking back turnips!"
"Wouldn't you cut them instead?" Toon Link asked.
"Not if I hit them with the flat side," Villager answered. "Or, I could have caught them and thrown them back at the others. I have a perfect catching skills."
"Catch them? They disintegrate into you before you can," Toon Link retorted. "And, there's no such thing as perfect catching."
Villager nudged an eyebrow. "Wanna bet? Throw some s'mores at my face."
"Sure, okay." Toon Link picked up a sandwich, throwing it straight at Villager's upper body. The s'mores pieces separated as it flew, but Villager merely held out his hand as the all the ingredients landed neatly on his palm, forming a perfect sandwich as if it was untouched.
"What the?!" Toon Link jumped back.
"Ooh, nice," Ness commented.
"See? It's easy for me to catch anything." Villager shoved the sandwich into his mouth.
I looked up at the darkened sky. The wind suddenly felt chillier as I let myself embrace the air behind me. The campfire blew towards Toon Link for a moment, the heat focusing only on him before returning to the rest of us.
"How about we tell scary stories now?" Ness suggested.
"I thought we weren't gonna—?" Toon Link complained.
"Ooh-ooh, me first!" Villager exclaimed. "I got a good one!"
"So spook us then," Ness smiled.
"Okay! But first, s'more me." Villager held out his palm and he was handed a slightly roasted s'mores.
This was gonna be a fun night…
:*:
I woke up to the chill of the air tickling my foot. I was still in my underwear, as everyone's clothes were still wet and didn't dry fast enough, despite us sitting through Villager's…unique scary stories. Ness shared a tale too, and he was just as good as Villager. Meanwhile, Toon Link trembled often from the chills of fear and the cool evening.
I couldn't sleep well. I thought I would, since I was between two very cozy, warm blankets and a soft tent ground. Why did I use two blankets? Ness' blanket overlapped with mine, so we agreed on sharing them, and it was a good idea. He was sleeping soundly next to me, or so I thought.
"You awake?" I heard in my head.
"Ness?" I called back.
"Yeah, it's me."
"Did I wake you?"
"Yeah, something wrong?"
I laid back down, turning on my side and facing him. "A little chill woke me up."
"Yeah…sorry, I really should have brought towels along."
"It's fine. Something similar like this happened to me back at my home."
"Yeah? What happened?"
"It was really hot, so brother and I jumped into a lake without our clothes. When we finished, our clothes were missing. Turned out a baby drago we played with often had stolen them."
"Wow, that must have been terrible—wait, a baby drago? What's that?"
"A drago is…a drago."
"Gee, that's really descriptive."
"I don't know what to say, you'd have to see them for yourself. They're like giant lizards, I guess."
"And you play with them? They don't eat you or anything?"
"No, not at all! They're really friendly. They let me ride them and slide down their backs."
"Huh…your world sounds really…special."
"What about yours?"
"Not much to say, it's a pretty normal place. Cars, people, school, and stuff. And then having to fight aliens is a thing."
"You fight aliens?"
"Sometimes, haven't dealt with much. They're pretty easy to beat. Just read their mind and hit them where they don't expect it."
"You sound like you're living in a dangerous place."
"Well, my hometown is pretty peaceful, but there's probably a lot more aliens everywhere else. Since I can fight them, I might as well save the world day by day, I guess."
"So why'd you come to Camp Smash?"
"I wanted a break from all the fighting. Plus I'd thought it'd be fun. Though I didn't expect meeting really, really strange people, and then having to fight them in camp events."
"So was it worth coming?"
"Yeah, so far it's really been fun. And, I met another psychic, and he's a really cool guy."
"Would that be me?"
"Heh, who else?"
"Um…Mewtwo."
"Oh, right. Yeah, I mean you."
I felt my face flushing with some warmth. "Thanks. You're really…cool, too."
"Am I?"
"Yeah, you're the one that showed me I was a psychic. And I don't regret it. I mean, mind reading and telepathy is really amazing, plus all this other stuff we can do."
"Well, we still got a long ways to go about getting stronger."
"Right. Hopefully Mewtwo teaches us more stuff soon."
"By the way, are you going to teach me that magnet thing you did today?"
"Oh, sure! I'm supposed to teach you anyways, Mewtwo said so. In return, you're supposed to teach me PK Fire."
"All right, then let's teach each other tomorrow?"
"It's a deal."
"Then let's get some sleep. Can't be too tired.
"Right. Good night, Ness."
"G'night, Luke."
We've only known each other for just a week already, but I already felt like we were best friends. And I sensed that he felt the same, too…or rather, I read his mind a little after he quickly fell asleep.
It was a really good idea to come to Camp Smash. I would have never met Ness if I had chosen to not come. Just the thought of him being around me really made me happy.
In a second more, I realized something changed within me. I felt a little too happy just being beside him right now. Was that strange of me? Well, we are really good friends now. I was sure it was normal of me to feel like that.
Before I could wonder about anything else, my mind went blank, and I fell asleep.