11B - The Sneaky Parasol

It's 6:05 PM, about three hours after Mario and friends encountered and fought Lava Piranha before barely escaping Mt. Lavalava.

Back up in Peach's castle, as always, she paced around her bedroom in a bored mood.

"I don't know how much longer I can take being isolated in my room," Peach said.

"Well, it's unfortunate that Bowser felt the need to lock you in your room, but at least we found a way to sneak around, which we did great at so far," Twink replied.

"We have, indeed." After a half minute, Peach came up with an idea. "Hey, Twink. I haven't explored the rest of the castle ever since Bowser took it over. How would you feel about sneaking out of here again?"

"Princess Peach! You've gotten so bold! And here I thought you were gentle and delicate..." Twink stated.

"Not anymore. I know Toadsworth taught me to be delicate and cautious, but I'm my own princess. It's like he's an overprotective father to me even though I already have a father, who's half-and-half in my opinion," Peach explained.

"Hmm... All right. I believe you, Princess Peach," Twink responded after briefly thinking it through. "You are your own princess, but you know I'll always help you whenever."

"That's nice, Twink. Thank you," Peach thanked Twink. "Now let's go for it." Without further ado, Peach and Twink went through the secret path and out the office study back into the second floor. By now, there were fewer Koopatrols roaming around probably because Bowser and Kammy punished some for being careless and not doing their jobs right.

"Perfect," Peach whispered. "This should be easier for us." To start off, Peach and Twink made their way to the door next to the right-side staircase leading to the third floor. The room turned out to be a large storage closet with mirrors, tablecloths, boxes, and books scattered all over the place.

"Why are we in here?" Twink asked.

"I don't know. Maybe one of the guards left something lying around." Peach then rummaged through everything in the closet for a minute before discovering a baby blue umbrella with a yellow rim. On the end of the handle was a purple button.

"What umbrella is this?" Peach questioned before examining the handle's button. "And what does this button do?"

"You tell me," Twink responded.

After going back outside, Peach pressed the handle button without thinking, causing a silent burst of magic to spew from the umbrella's tip. She immediately became confused.

"What just happened?" Peach whispered. "Did I just see something shoot out the umbrella?"

"I saw it."

"Should I try it on one of the guards?"

"I don't think so," Twink warned Peach quietly. "They'll see you with their flashlights." But Peach didn't listen and slowly approached one of the Koopatrols before pointing the umbrella's end forward and releasing the magic. She immediately turned into a Koopatrol.

"What...?" Peach murmured in a different voice; she couldn't speak with her natural voice due to her being a Koopatrol.

"Well, hello there," the other Koopatrol said after spotting Peach from the corner of his eye. "You look like you're new here."

"Um... Why, yes. It's been...three days since Bowser recruited me," Peach said with slight hesitation.

"Are you sure about that?"

"I don't tell lies. You know King Bowser taught me to be truthful."

"Okay. Whatever you say," the Koopatrol gave in before walking away. Instead of walking slowly to avoid detection, Peach in her Koopatrol disguise walked casually down to the first floor with Twink following her.

"Below the mezzanine are the kitchen and dining room," Peach said softly. "I don't think there's anything in those rooms."

"What else is down here?" Twink asked.

"One second." Peach started walking around by herself with Twink hiding near the ceiling. Knowing she already went to the living room, Peach decided to go through the rightmost door leading to the aquarium. She beckoned Twink to follow her into the aquarium.

After closing the door, Peach asked, "How do I change back to normal?" She thought it over for a couple seconds before snapping her fingers, which removed her Koopatrol disguise. She was holding the umbrella again.

"That was neat," Twink remarked, having been intrigued at the umbrella's power. "So does this aquarium."

"I know. There's a whole bunch of fish species we've kept here for so many years," Peach said before showing Twink the giant fish tanks embedded in the walls.

"We got lake trout, yellowtail snappers, shark minnows, tiger catfish, etc." Peach then turned to a water painting with a blue frame.

"And check out this painting. It basically depicts the ocean with air bubbles floating upward."

"Wow," Twink said with awe. "Whoever painted this picture did an amazing job."

"Fun fact: this painting once led to this world called Jolly Roger Bay," Peach went on. "It was made up by Bowser to hide seven Power Stars within; those Power Stars along with 114 others were created to keep my castle up and running. I'm glad Bowser didn't take them away this time."

Peach resumed walking around the aquarium, looking for clues as to where the next Star Spirit might be located. She gave up after a couple minutes as the floors were clean and nothing was sticking out the bottom of the fish tanks.

"Oh golly," Twink muttered. "Now where to?"

"Bear with me, Twink. There's still more to discover," Peach reassured Twink. As soon as Peach went back into the foyer, she used her umbrella on another Koopatrol and turned into a Koopatrol. Both went back upstairs to the second floor and tried the last known door, which was located just to the right of the double doors.

Inside was an unmade bed, an open wardrobe, and a dresser with three drawers. The curtains were partially opened. Peach snapped her fingers to go back to normal and looked all around the wardrobe's interior. She suddenly found a note taped to a shirt hanger and took it for herself.

The note read, "Dear King Bowser, if you manage to find this note, I am already on my way to hide these colored seeds that I found in this closet. You mentioned something about a giant brown cloud holding a Star Spirit in some sort of flower field, correct? If that's the case, I went and scattered and buried the seeds in random places that Mario and Luigi will hopefully never come across. Something tells me these seeds were meant to form a gateway to the flower field, but I could be wrong. I got to go now before Kammy spots me. Talk to you later."

"How do we keep finding stuff like this out in the open when those guards were told to keep them hidden well?" Peach questioned.

"All I can say is the guards are lazy. That's that," Twink answered. "Let's go back to your room now that we got what we needed." Peach and Twink quickly left the guest bedroom and snuck back into the office study before taking the secret path into Peach's bedroom.

"Oh man," Peach sighed with relief. "I feel like I'm getting better at this more and more."

"Do you want me to find Mario and Luigi?" Twink asked.

"I would let you go, but I bet Mario and Luigi are tired right now. They need their sleep, so I would go wait for them at Toad Town just as the sun rises," Peach instructed Twink.

"It's a deal. I guess I'll go back to the Star Road for now." Twink proceeded to leave Peach's bedroom back to the Star Road; Peach walked onto her balcony and sat in her chair to watch the starry sky for a while.

Rewinding back to 3:12 PM, Misstar carefully set Mario, Luigi, Watt, and Dr. Kolorado next to the tree trunk leading into Mt. Lavalava; Mario and Luigi's Ice forms wore off afterward. The volcano continued to erupt, but at a moderate level; lava was flowing down the sides as a result.

"Are you all okay?" Misstar asked the group.

"We're fine, but it was scary at the end," Mario replied.

"HEY! WHERE'S MY TREASURE?!" Dr. Kolorado uttered loudly, scanning his surroundings for the chest holding the Volcanic Vase. He just realized the chest was gone. "I THOUGHT I HAD IT IN MY HANDS!"

"Sir, listen to yourself!" Misstar told Dr. Kolorado. "No treasure in the world is more valuable than life! Be thankful you escaped! To think this island was put in terrible peril because of the meddling of Bowser's minions. I think it will work out fine. The eruption will subside, and Lavalava Island will be just the same as it used to be."

"But... It... I..." Dr. Kolorado started before sighing with disappointment. "Oh God... I had that chest in my hands... And then I got saved and yelled at by some sort of blooming great starfish..." Dr. Kolorado walked back to Yoshi's Village with his head hung low.

"Doc! The Star Spirit has a point!" Mario called out. "I know you wanted that treasure badly, but you could've died if it weren't for her!" But Dr. Kolorado didn't listen and kept walking.

"Mario, Luigi, I'm so sorry you had to see that," Misstar apologized. "I just never expected someone like your friend to act selfish when there are bigger things to worry about."

"I know. It's sad that he chose to be that way," Mario replied. "But I promise he'll learn." Suddenly, Dr. Kolorado swore at the top of his lungs from far away, causing Mario to chuckle briefly. "Or maybe not."

"Allow me to introduce myself, Mario and Luigi. My name is Misstar," Misstar introduced herself. "I am proud that you've saved five of us Star Spirits now. Only two more remain. As a thank you, let me grant you the power that will help you along."

Misstar raised her arms up, causing Mario and Luigi to sparkle for a few seconds. Mario's Star Power Band's Star Energy refilled to its fullest and was increased by another unit and reached as far as the fifth white button from the center of the band.

"What I've granted you two is the power called 'Full Recovery'," Misstar said. "It's like Eldstar's 'Refresh' power, except that it gives you a brief rush of adrenaline as opposed to just curing any poison or relieving pain inflicted on you. Be aware that 'Full Recovery' costs three units of Star Energy, so take precaution when choosing that power."

"Thank you, Misstar," Mario and Luigi said in unison.

"You're welcome. I have to go back to the Star Road for now, but if you need me, please call on me at any time," Misstar said. "I will be watching you and wishing for your success. I know you'll see Princess Peach soon enough, Mario and Luigi. Have faith." With that, Misstar rose toward the Star Road.

"Where did Dr. Kolorado go?" Watt asked.

"Let's-a go to Yoshi's Village first," Mario replied before leading Luigi and Watt to Yoshi's Village. They saw Yellow Yoshi pacing next to the dining hall and walked up to him.

"Hi, Yellow Yoshi," Mario greeted Yellow Yoshi.

"Oh! Hello again!" Yellow Yoshi answered with delight. "Thank goodness you made it out of there! All of us felt the eruption and went absolutely nuts!"

"It wasn't a bad eruption," Luigi said. "Yes, there was a lot of rumbling, but the lava didn't splatter everywhere."

"Where's Dr. Kolorado?" Mario asked.

"Last I saw, he was screaming really loud and left the village that way." Yellow Yoshi pointed to the village sign.

"Thanks, Yellow Yoshi. We also got to find this Volcanic Vase that was inside the volcano," Mario said.

"Okay. Before you guys go, I want to thank you so much for visiting the village," Yellow Yoshi thanked the Mario Bros. "As soon as I saw you two walk in, I was like, 'My heroes! They came back for me!'"

"We sure did. It's always great to see old friends like you," Mario remarked. "Well, we'll see you soon." Mario hugged Yellow Yoshi before Luigi did the same.

"Goodbye, Yellow Yoshi," Luigi and Watt bid Yellow Yoshi goodbye before they followed Mario back toward the SS Oceania.

After the group reentered Jade Jungle, they deviated from the path to try and find the Volcanic Vase. It was hard for them at first, given that there were more Putrid Piranhas and Jungle Fuzzies that lurked around the jungle. Eventually, Mario spotted the chest sitting next to a small pond in between two trees.

"There we go." Mario said while picking up the chest. "Now to take this back to the boat." He led Luigi and Watt back down the path leading down the shoreline and back to the ferry. Just as they were about to board the ferry, Mario and Luigi saw a winged creature flying above them.

"What's that?" Mario asked.

"I don't know. It's probably a giant hawk," Luigi replied. "Maybe it's trying to search for its prey from above."

"I kinda agree." Captain Jonah wasn't waiting by the entrance this time as he was already at the bridge prepping for departure. Mario, Luigi, and Watt found Dr. Kolorado sitting by himself at one of the dining room tables.

"Are you okay, Doc?" Mario asked.

"What does it look like?" Dr. Kolorado replied with a scratchy voice. "I failed the museum director. He's gonna kill me."

"No, he isn't. You know why?" Mario took out the chest and opened it to reveal the Volcanic Vase.

"Oh! Good heavens!" Dr. Kolorado exclaimed, immediately grabbing the vase. "It's the Volcanic Vase! How did you find this?"

"It was deep within the jungle. We almost couldn't find it," Luigi answered.

"Well, congratulations to you, dear men! You are simply the cat's meow!" Dr. Kolorado took out a blonde colored seed.

"Is that a Magical Seed?" Mario asked, having remembered two other seeds he picked up earlier.

"If that's what it's called, yes," Dr. Kolorado replied. "A Bub-ulb gave it to me while I was going back to the boat. I'm sure it's quite a valuable seed, but I'm not interested in it at all." He gave Mario the Magical Seed, which Mario stowed in his overalls pocket.

"Now that I've got the Volcanic Vase, I proclaim this adventure to be a complete success! Two for two! It will be forever recorded in the Museum of Archaeology!" Dr. Kolorado declared.

"Attention, passengers. Welcome aboard the SS Oceania," Captain Jonah announced over the speakers. "We hope you had a splendid time at Lavalava Island. We will be departing the island momentarily back to Toad Town Port. Our trip time will be the same as before: three hours and 50 minutes."

"Given it's 3:32 PM now, we will arrive no earlier than 7:22 PM tonight," Captain Jonah went on. "With that, sit tight as we start up the boat and get sailing. Thank you."

Two hours after departure; Mario, Luigi, and Dr. Kolorado had a hearty steak dinner in the dining room. Mario had a bone-in ribeye, Luigi ate a New York strip, and Dr. Kolorado had a lean sirloin. Each had their own sides of mashed potatoes and broccoli.

"Mamma mia," Mario sighed after finishing his meal. "I don't even want dessert. That plate was enough for me."

"Me too," Luigi agreed. Suddenly, the group heard a loud rustling up on the second floor. "What the heck was that?"

"I don't know. Let's-a go see," Mario answered before leading Luigi upstairs. "Dr. Kolorado and Watt, please stay down here."

Up on the second floor, Mario decided to search the quarters while Luigi went into the game room.

"Could there have been a stowaway?" Mario whispered to himself while looking under one of the quarter's beds. "This is getting weird."

Just as Mario turned to leave the room, he saw Jr. Troopa flying in the doorway with two bat wings attached to his eggshell. Jr. Troopa screamed as soon as Mario turned around. Mario screamed louder than Jr. Troopa and fell backwards through the quarter's window, breaking the glass in the process.

"Mario?! What happened?!" Luigi called out, hurrying to where Mario fell out of the quarter; he saw Jr. Troopa snickering with glee.

"Serves you right, redhead," Jr. Troopa said while looking out the window. "Now you'll learn never to mess with me."

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!" Luigi yelled, prompting Jr. Troopa to turn around.

"You! What are you doing in my bedroom?"

"I'm here to shatter your shell for good!" Luigi lunged for Jr. Troopa and grabbed his wings. Jr. Troopa immediately started flying all over the quarter before soaring out the broken window. Luigi screamed with terror while Jr. Troopa struggled to break free of his grasp. "MARIO! HELP!"

"Let go of my wings!" Jr. Troopa shouted. The ferry's foghorn sounded, signaling the boat slowly stopping in the middle of the sea. The foghorn blaring caused the startled Luigi to let go of Jr. Troopa's wings and fall toward the water below.

"All right! Now you're done!" Jr. Troopa declared. "But just for good measure, I'll be back to teach you another lesson! Hehehe!" Jr. Troopa proceeded to fly off to the north.

"MARIO!" Luigi cried, swimming frantically. "WHERE ARE YOU?!" He dove underwater to see if Mario went under for some reason. Suddenly, he barely saw Mario lying on his back on the sea floor and quickly swam to grab him and hurry to the surface. Mario was unconscious and didn't appear to be breathing.

"SOMEONE! THROW A LIFE PRESERVER!" Luigi screamed. Dr. Kolorado barely heard Luigi's cries and hurried to the storage closet at the bar to find two life preservers. Both Mario and Luigi were treading just near the first floor's open balcony.

"Here!" Dr. Kolorado threw the preservers at the Mario Bros; Luigi put one of them over his torso and helped the unconscious Mario in the other preserver. Dr. Kolorado pulled each preserver in one by one, with Mario coming in last.

At this point, Luigi was crying because he thought Mario had drowned. Luigi laid Mario's body face-up and started doing CPR on him.

"Please, bro!" Luigi cried. "Don't die on me!" He was applying five chest compressions and two mouth-to-mouth breaths in a fixed pattern. Watt overheard the commotion from the dining room and hurried over to the balcony. She immediately became concerned for Mario's wellbeing.

"Keep at it, Luigi!" Dr. Kolorado ordered Luigi. "Try harder!"

For the next 45 seconds, Luigi kept doing CPR on Mario, sobbing so much that his tears dripped onto Mario's overalls. Finally, Mario started coughing and hacking up water that was lodged in his windpipe.

"Mario!" Luigi immediately hugged Mario tight, relieved that he was alive again. Even Dr. Kolorado shed a couple tears, but they were tears of joy.

"Luigi..." Mario murmured. "What..."

"Shh. It's okay, bro," Luigi shushed Mario. "You're here with me."

"Last thing...I remembered..." Mario started to say after Luigi let go of him but held his stomach because it was hurting him badly. "Ow... I think...I belly-flopped..."

"You did. Jr. Troopa somehow boarded the boat without-" Before Luigi could explain why Mario fell out the window, Mario angrily shoved Luigi away from him and immediately stood up.

"WHY?! I THOUGHT I KILLED HIM!" Mario yelled.

"Calm down, Mario. You nearly drowned," Dr. Kolorado coaxed Mario. At the same time Mario pushed Luigi, the ferry started up again and resumed its journey.

"WAS THAT THE HAWK FLYING ABOVE US?!"

"I thought that that's what it was!" Luigi protested while standing back up. "Why take your anger out on me when I saved your life?!"

"Don't destroy the dining room!" Watt pleaded.

"I didn't mean to lash out at you!" Mario whined; he started crying out of stress. "I just didn't expect to see him again! Two times is enough!"

"I know, bro. He's probably still fuming from you accidentally trespassing his playground," Luigi said.

"Then he's got to freaking get over it! It's not that big of a deal!"

"Guys, can we just calm down?" Dr. Kolorado butted in. "I don't think yelling at each other's gonna clear things up."

"He's right, Mario. Please tone it down," Luigi said, calming Mario down a small bit.

"Okay..."

Luigi put his arm around Mario and walked with him upstairs to the second floor before settling him in one of the quarters' beds.

"What were you thinking?" Luigi asked quietly. "Don't do this again."

"I'm sorry... I didn't see the window behind me..." Mario moaned. "Can you please leave...?"

"Are you sure? I'm worried about you," Luigi responded.

"Fine. Just stay here."

"No. If you want me to leave, I'll go."

"Don't go... I need you..." Mario started crying again, prompting Luigi to hug him.

"Oh, Mario..." Luigi whispered. "My poor bro..."

Fast forwarding to 7:25 PM, the SS Oceania finally pulled up at Toad Town Port. By now, Mario had fallen asleep, which meant that Luigi had to carry him out of the boat and back to Mario's Pad. He didn't bother saying goodbye to Dr. Kolorado or Captain Jonah because he was fixated on Mario's condition.

As soon as the group entered Mario's Pad, Luigi slowly tucked Mario into the top bunk bed in the bedroom before prepping himself a cup of decaf coffee.

"Is Mario gonna be okay?" Watt asked quietly.

"I hope so," Luigi answered. "He went through a lot today. Luckily, we're gonna start off fresh tomorrow with a big breakfast. I'm sure Mario will be happy to eat his favorite foods after waking up."

AUTHOR'S NOTE: How about that subchapter? I know it was a long one, but then again, there was a lot to cover. The next subchapter will kick off Flower Fields. I don't think I've asked this before, but feel free to leave a review and favorite the story if desired. I hope you're enjoying the action and drama so far.