SJ: I am probably the worst updater in the entire world—no, galaxy. I mean, if aliens had and they put up stories and I was a member there, I wouldn't update for like a freaking year as well and if there was a record for not updating I think I would win and—

Samus: You're rambling.

Ugh! I guess I am. But seriously folks, sorry for practically abandoning 101 SM. I've been really busy with school and I haven't even brought myself to play Super Smash in quite a loooong time. But thanks to a cold, I was able to start playing again and thus re-awakened my muse to write at least one more one-shot for the pile! HOORAY FOR COLDS …except not really. /sneezes

So enjoy. I'm not entirely sure if this means I'm back to writing for SSB again, so just to be safe I'll stay with the HIATUS status. But before you ready your rotten veggies and fruits to throw at me in a fit of mob rage, you never know when the plot bunny will strike again, so stay tuned! /cliché …please?

Samus: Stay tuned? But…I don't watch TV.

That explains a lot. ANYWHO. A huge thank you to all you reviewers and readers! So long as there are people who love this story, I'll do my best to keep it alive! /cue the punch the air thing

Oh yes, and about this one-shot, I can't help but LOVE the idea of Samus being a sort of 'mother-figure' to Lucas. I mean, the poor kid is so cute, and the idea of Samus having a soft spot for him is even cuter, so my mind just came up with this.

Note: I haven't played Mother 3 since it's only in Japan (I think) so I'm going on what I've heard...which isn't a lot. /FAIL

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Super Smash Bros, any of the characters…just the story.

x.x.x.x.

Title:

'Family Photo'

Characters/Shippings:

Samus, Marth, Lucas-centered; bit of Samarth

Summary:

In which Lucas learns about family and gets a gift.

Dedicated To:

All my lovely reviewers and readers.

x.x.x.x.

What is a family?

Lucas doesn't know. He doesn't know how it feels to have a mother, and every time he thinks of the one he had makes his eyes burn and his body tremble and he has to stop thinking about her before he starts to cry. His father is no different, and when it comes down to thinking about his twin brother, Claus, Lucas wonders just how other people, normal people who don't go around fighting other people for a living, have families…and why he doesn't.

It's not fair, he thinks as he sees families come in flocks to see them at a fundraiser for the Smasher Mansion. He's flustered when children rush to him, eager for autographs, and signs them shyly; their moms and dads will smile at him, congratulate him on being such a good fighter and then leave, holding their children's hands.

For some odd and unexplainable reason, Lucas' chest will tighten at the sight and he wishes he knew why.

He's not alone, of course. Despite a few bumps along the way (specifically the 'I-like-to-pick-on-kids-because-I'm-a-super-evil-and-creepy-bully' Wario and his pranks) Lucas finds himself at home at the Smasher Mansion. At first it was scary, and Lucas had been quite tempted to try and convince the weird floating hand that he couldn't be a Smasher—if, of course, Lucas could have mustered up the courage to talk to the floating hand, anyway (and the other one, who was even scarier; it had a thing for screaming random things, from, 'I WANT TO EAT BLUE BUNNIES' to 'THIS IS SERIOUS BUSINESS PEOPLE' even when it wasn't but that's another story).

Then Ness in all his friendly optimism had befriended him and things just went uphill from there.

Still, Lucas can't help but feel sad at seeing all the families. Sure, he has friends, but to have a family would be…nice. Comforting, maybe, or at the very least it would be something that could scare off all the demons of his past. Just the thought of having a mother to run to and hug; of having her bake cookies for you or make sure you looked presentable before going out…all of it sounds so nice that Lucas is not surprised when he thinks that he wants it more than anything.

So naturally, it's not really surprising that for one week, he's in a sulky daze, not really thinking about anything else except for his dream family; he even imagines Claus and him, arm in arm, grinning as their mother and father stand behind them, beaming as if ready for a picture and—

"Hey, Lucas, can you try these?"

—he's wearing a neat little tuxedo that his dream mother told him he looked so dashing in, while Claus is wearing the exact one, only in white—

"They're hot, so be careful, I don't want you burning your tongue like last time and…Lucas? Lucas! What's wrong? Don't tell me you've zoned out on me!"

—and then he's looking at the camera, beaming and ready to say, 'Cheese' just like all the normal families do when they're taking a family portrait…or at least he thinks they say that, anyway—

"Lucas!"

He jumps and nearly topples off the stool, but a hand grabs his arm and steadies him. He blinks before looking sheepishly at Samus, who's frowning at him and holding a smoking tray in her gloved hand. "S-Sorry," he mumbles, apologetically. "I-I didn't…um…hear you."

Samus raises an eyebrow at that. "I'm pretty sure people heard me from upstairs, kid, but alright. I'll drop it," she says and puts the tray on the counter, waving the smoke away with her hand. Lucas stares at what's on it: round black things that look like they might've been cookies once upon a time. He must look wary about trying them for Samus adds, "I burnt them a little, but even if they look nasty, they taste good! Trust me on this one…I can't cook, but I'm not completely hopeless at baking."

Lucas hesitates again, but all it takes is another look from the bounty hunter for him to crack and take one reluctantly. He bites into it, expecting to choke on ash, but blinks, pleasantly surprised by the chocolate-y taste. He finishes off the burnt cookie and smiles. "I-It really is good!" he admits, then scrambles to correct himself, "I-I mean, I didn't doubt you or anything, b-but…"

To his relief, Samus only laughs and takes a cookie, biting into it. She hums thoughtfully and swallows. "Huh. They taste better than last time," she says, and smiles at him. "Marth kept complaining that the cookies gave him a stomach ache, but I think it was because he scarfed them all down without really chewing anything." She leans in and whispers, "Between you and me, I think he's secretly related to a pig."

The image that comes into his mind is too much, and Lucas bursts into laughter, unable to stifle the giggles at the thought of Marth having a snout and a curly tail. Samus looks smug that she's made him laugh, and waits until he's calmed down to ask, "So…what's on your mind, Lucas? You're not usually so out of it."

Lucas' smile freezes and he shifts, uncomfortably. Samus is probably one of the only people he feels comfortable around other than Ness, and he really can't see any problem in telling her, but…

Samus…Samus doesn't have a family, either…I-I don't want to make her sad…

He doesn't say anything. Samus stares at him, before silently taking off the oven gloves and straightening. She hangs up the apron, puts away all the ingredients she used and sits down beside him.

"You don't have to tell me," she says with gentleness that he's never heard from her before. She gazes at the cookies for a long moment before actually smiling and going on, "but if you ask me, it's a lot better to talk about it than keeping it all in…especially if you're thinking about what I think you're thinking about."

"W-What do you think I'm thinking about?"

"What do I think? Well, I think that you're thinking that I think that you're thinking that I'm thinking you're thinking of," Samus says simply.

Lucas stares at her, before giggling a little at the confusing statement. He fiddles with his thumbs shyly, glancing up at Samus' patient expression and back down at his hands. "W-Well…" he takes in a deep breath and gathers up his courage, hoping he doesn't hurt the bounty hunter's feelings. "I-I just…I can't h-help but think of why I don't have a family, and—"

Three things happen at once. Lucas sees Samus' eyes grow soft and sympathetic, then turn shocked when there's a loud bam! Both of them turn to see Marth stumble into the room, dazed and smoking, Ness and Pikachu stumbling in after him equally messy. Marth collapses on the floor, Ness on top of Marth and Pikachu simply falls on top of Ness' head with a weary, "Pikaaaa…"

There's a long pause. Lucas sees different emotions flicker through Samus' expression. Surprise, then a sort of…amusement? He blinks and the look is gone, replaced by a frustration and fury that somehow always appears on the bounty hunter's face whenever Marth Lowell is involved.

Huh.

Maybe I'm just…seeing things?

Samus stands and shoots Marth a suspicious look as he comes to. The blue-haired swordsman looks back at her, blinks and smiles warily, as if he's unsure of her reaction. "Uh…h-hey, Sam-chan! Fancy seeing you here, I would've thought you would be in a Brawl right now—"

"Don't 'hey, Sam-chan' me," Samus cuts in, getting right to the point. "What were you doing? All of you?"

Pikachu lets out a series of quick 'Pika, Pikachu!'s that don't make any sense at all to Lucas, but Samus understands (it is here that Lucas wonders just where she learnt to speak Pokemon, most of all Pika-tongue, but dismisses the weird thought). Whatever the Pokemon said, however, makes Samus' eyes narrow and Lucas winces when she folds her arms.

That is one thing that anybody can understand, regardless of language.

When Samus Aran folds her arms, it basically means she wants answers before she makes you give them.

Lucas hopes that Master Hand doesn't get hysterical again when (or hopefully if) Samus unleashes her fury on Marth and destroys the kitchen, who currently resembles a fish—a very poor fish who is about to get skewered and doesn't know what to say or do in order to stop it.

Fortunately for the blue-haired man, Ness leaps to his rescue and stands up, scrambling to explain to the bounty hunter. "It's my fault, Samus!" he insists, pointing to himself. "I wanted to try out a new PK ability and Marth only volunteered to supervise! But, uh…we're not hurt or anything, and we didn't wreck a single thing, honest! So can't you let us off easy this time? Pleaseee?"

Samus' look wavers, but she still stands firm, torn between saying something and simply letting the whole situation drop. Ness is using his very best 'puppy dog pout' and Lucas admires how long Samus lasts, staring at it, before she cracks and sighs.

"Next time, you should get somebody responsible to supervise you," she chides lightly, and sits back down next to Lucas. Then she promptly swipes a cookie from the tray and munches on it, still unconvinced that it was just a 'new PK ability'.

"Thanks, Samus!" Ness beams at her, before noticing the cookies and brightens. "Are those…cookies? Did you make these ones, Samus?" At her nod, he grins and leaps to his feet, practically floating to the tray and taking one, biting into it happily despite its burnt appearance. "Awesome! It's been a while since you've baked, I missed these! Want one, you guys?"

The psychic user hands a cookie to Pikachu and Marth, who climbs to his feet and eats the cookie, shooting an apologetic smile at Samus. Lucas sees her try her hardest to ignore it, but she glances at him, nonetheless. Her lips twitch for a split second, but that's all it takes for Lucas to realize that Samus likes Marth way more than she lets on and that she maybe even l—

Samus must remember that they had been talking before for realization dawns on her face and she turns to look at him. Serious now, she frowns and says slowly, carefully, "Lucas…? About our talk…"

Lucas freezes. A sudden fear overcomes him and he stops in taking another cookie. Ness shoots him a curious look that quickly turns into a worried one at seeing his expression, and that only makes the blonde boy feel worse.

"I-I…" he swallows. "It…w-was nothing."

There's a pause. Marth and Pikachu exchange a look and Ness looks tempted to say something but Samus speaks up, "You can talk to me about anything, Lucas."

His eyes widen and, for some unexplainable reason, his chest tightens. He shifts nervously on the stool, glancing around anxiously, and jumps when Samus reaches over and touches his hand. He looks up at her…

…and feels his entire face flame up when he thinks, she looks exactly like…w-what I think my mom would look like.

That thought is enough for Lucas to tear his hand free of Samus' and leap off the stool. "S-Sorry," he stutters out before dashing away, running out of the kitchen and up to his room. He hears the others calling him back and doesn't stop until he's safe inside his dorm. He quivers and collapses on his bed, sniffling and struggling not to cry.

Why am I crying? T-This…I shouldn't b-be crying, but…but…

A mother would make this all better, a voice says softly in the back of his mind.

That's all it takes for the tears to start.

It only takes the fact that Lucas ran off to sink in before Ness lunges to his feet, cookies forgotten and an unwavering determination and concern appearing on his face.

"I'm going after him!"

"Wait," Samus says, stopping Ness from dashing after his best friend. She grabs him firmly by the shoulder, despite his protest and fixes him with a firm look. "I know you're worried, but—"

"He needs somebody to comfort him!" Ness butts in fiercely, trying to shrug the bounty hunter's hand off. He frowns deeply. "I'm his best friend, Samus, I can't just sit here and let him just bawl his eyes out in his room—"

Marth nods, trying to smooth over the situation and also convince the bounty hunter about the right thing to do. "Ness is right, Sam-chan. There's obviously something wrong with the poor boy, and we have to find out what!"

"I know, that's why—"

"See, even Marth agrees with me! How about you, Pikachu?"

"Pika-pika!"

"I'll take that as a 'yes'. Either way, I'm not just going to stand here! I'm going to go and help Lucas!"

"Yes, yes, but first I think—"

"That's a very mature decision, Ness! I'll go with you! Now, if you'd be so kind as to stand aside, Sam-chan…"

"Pikachuuu!"

"Right! Let's—"

"Would you honestly let me finish what I want to say?!"

All three Smashers jump and stare at the bounty hunter, caught off guard by the outburst. Samus glares at them all and huffs, shaking her head. "Honestly, you're all so impatient," she grumbles, looking annoyed. "And what makes you think that I'm not worried about Lucas, too? I am! But instead of rushing up there and crowding around him, I have a better idea. I know what's wrong."

Ness blinks. "You do? What is it?!"

Samus looks at the boy. "Ness, has Lucas ever told you about his family?"

"His family? Well, he's mentioned his brother a few times, but other than that, he doesn't like talking about them. Why would you…" the boy trails off, the reasons clicking in his mind and he looks even more worried than before. "That's what this is about, isn't it? Lucas is torn up about his family!"

"Or lack thereof," Marth corrects gently, solemn-faced. "I don't doubt that the boy is confused and rather hurt about the fact that he's never had a real family to call his own. He doesn't even have a mother." The swordsman pauses and glances at Samus when he adds, "It's difficult to grow up without a family."

Samus' gaze flickers downwards before she dismisses the comment and goes back to the task at hand. "Exactly," she says, nodding, "but from experience, I know that even if we make him feel better now, it doesn't mean he won't be sad later. Lucas keeps stuff in. That's why we need to make him see that he really does have a family…us."

Ness, Marth and Pikachu all exchange a look. "What's the plan then?" Ness asks, reluctant to leave Lucas alone but also intent on making his best friend feel better.

"I need you to go get Peach. Tell her to bring her camera—she's the most experienced photographer here, what with all the pictures she takes of herself. Pikachu, you go with him," Samus says, smiling slightly. "Marth and I will get Lucas outside. You come meet us out in the courtyard."

The psychic user looks confused, but agrees. "Alright, we'll be back soon! C'mon, Pikachu!" he says and they go running off to find the pink princess. Samus watches them go off before standing and walking towards the stairs and up to Lucas' room. Marth jogs to catch up with her, and they walk in silence for a while.

"You know, if we're all a family," he says casually, "then I'm pretty sure who Lucas looks up to most of all. There's only one person in this entire Mansion who I think he'd consider close to a mother."

Samus looks at him, curiously. "Who would that be?"

The prince smiles. "You, Sam-chan."

He watches the surprise flutter through the bounty hunter's face before a small, almost unnoticeable smile crawls onto her face, pride evident within it. "Who would the father be then?" she asks softly, before looking shocked at the question. She shakes her head and walks past him, red-faced. "D-Don't answer that."

"If it meant that I'd be your husband, Sam-chan, I'd hope me," Marth whispers, but the words fail to reach the bounty hunter. He sighs, rubs the back of his head sheepishly and walks to catch up with her once more.

She knocks on the door to Lucas' room gently. "Lucas? Are you there?"

There's the sound of shuffling before the door opens and Lucas peeks out, miserably. "Y-Yes?" he asks, straining to be polite. Then he notices who it is and very nearly shuts the door; Samus blocks the attempt with her foot.

"We just want to show you something," she insists, smiling. "It won't take very long, and I promise you won't regret it."

"You can trust us, Lucas," Marth adds. "You've learned that already, haven't you? After spending so much time with us here in the Smasher Mansion?"

Lucas hesitates and tries to slink back into the room. Marth is afraid that Samus' plan won't work when the bounty hunter holds out her hand, a tenderness that surprises him in her voice as she asks, "Please?"

He gazes at her for a long moment, touched by the emotion he's seeing before smiling and looking at Lucas. The blonde boy is staring at the hand, nervously.

Then he takes it with a soft, "O-Okay…"

Samus' smile widens and she gently tugs him out of the room, holding his hand as they all head outside. Marth can't help but hold Lucas' other hand, surprising the boy and the swordsman feels his chest warm when the boy squeezes his hand. Lucas stumbles and the two of them heave him to his feet before he can even touch the ground, and Marth is surprised at how normal it all feels.

He likes it.

They make it outside, where Ness, Pikachu and Peach are all waiting. Ness brightens visibly at the sight of his friend, ready to pounce on him and make sure he's alright, and then relaxes a little at seeing him holding hands with Samus and Marth.

Peach bounces up to him, ever in a good mood. "Aww, what an adorable sight! You three look just like a family, don't you?" she coos. She giggles at Lucas' blush and gushes on, "Why, it's perfect! Lucas is the sweet little boy, Sammy is the mommy and Marthy is the—"

"Peach, did you bring your camera?" Samus coughs, slightly embarrassed. Marth doesn't comment on the pink in her cheeks.

"Why, of course! When darling Ness and Pikachu came running to me saying it was an emergency and that you needed the best photographer in the Mansion, I didn't hesitate!" she said cheerfully. "So, what do you need, Sammy? It's not like you to ask to get your picture taken!"

"It's not just me having my picture taken," Samus says, and Lucas jumps when she holds up their interlocked hands. "We're all taking one. Together."

Lucas' eyes widen, Ness grins, Marth smiles, Pikachu squeaks happily and Peach squeals. Samus looks thoughtful for a moment before looking down at Lucas and smiling.

"We need a family portrait, don't we?"

What is a family?

Lucas still doesn't know, and whenever he thinks of his mother it still makes his eyes burn and his chest tight and a thousand and more awful feelings come. He's never really had a family to call his own.

But that doesn't mean he doesn't now.

Smiling, the boy climbs into bed, looking at the picture on his night table, framed and taken just today. In the picture there is a family, and he's in it, just in front of Samus (who is smiling, but blushing furiously due to the fact that Marth has his arm around her) and beside a beaming Ness. Pikachu is on his head, and they all look so happy, so…normal together that Lucas is amazed he hadn't seen it sooner.

All this time, even when I didn't think I did, I really did have a…

"Lucas? You still awake?"

He looks over at Ness, who's sitting up groggily in his bed. He smiles, apologetically. "Sorry. Did I wake you up?" he asks.

"Nah, I was awake already," his friend says, waving it off and yawning. He blinks and notices the picture beside him and grins. "Feel better now, buddy?"

Lucas nods. "T-Thanks, Ness…really," he says, touched beyond words. "I…I really appreciate you d-doing this."

Ness laughs. "I only helped! It was really Samus' idea, however nice it is to get the praise," he says. "She came up with the whole thing…she wanted to make you realize that you don't need to have blood-relatives to have a family. You got us! And most importantly, me!" Ness strikes a pose so ridiculous that it makes Lucas laugh and his best friend grins. "But seriously, Samus was behind it all."

"Oh…" Lucas looks at the picture before smiling so widely his cheeks hurt. "I-I gotta thank her tomorrow! S-She didn't have to do that…"

"But she did," Ness points out, "and it's because she considers you part of her family, Lucas. She doesn't have any blood-relatives, either, but she's got us…and now she's got you."

The words hang in the air and Lucas gazes at the picture again, not knowing what to say. Ness smiles and flops back onto his bed, snuggling into his blankets.

"Well…I'm glad you liked it. 'Night, buddy. Sweet dreams."

"Good night," Lucas says softly, and the lights go out. The blonde boy settles into bed, and gazes up at the ceiling. He thinks about a dozen and more things, but eventually settles on one thing:

Even if she wasn't his real mother, Samus Aran was the best mother anybody could ask for.

And she made darn good cookies, too.

FIN