Day 8

Prompt: Surprise

Characters: Captain Toad, Rosalina, Mario

Summary: As the Comet Observatory passes over the world, Rosalina wonders about the traditions of the people below. Suddenly, a familiar person arrives to introduce her to them.

Something streaked across the night sky, illuminating the constellation-filled blackness. Too large to be a shooting star, it moved with a defined flight path. Most people who looked up would have no idea what it was. But, on the drawbridge of Peach's castle, Mario lifted his gaze to the sky and smiled with recognition. All that bothered him was the question of why it had appeared so early.

Rosalina mentioned that she only flew over this planet once every hundred years, didn't she? Why would she be here already? It's only been two years since I last saw that starship...

Shaking his head, he decided that the question was nowhere near important enough to stand here puzzling over. Rosalina had obviously come here for a reason, and she might need his help. Even though the Comet Observatory seemed to be flying through the sky with no problem at all, it didn't necessarily mean that nothing else was wrong, or that Rosalina and her lumas weren't in some kind of trouble. But he had no idea where the Observatory was intending to land, and trying to follow it on foot would be pointless.

I can't get there quick enough... I need someone who has their own starship to fly up and meet her...

The image of an enthusiastic-looking red Toad with a light attached to his head suddenly sprung to mind.

Captain Toad still has that old mushroom ship... right? Maybe I can ask him to go.

With a decision firmly in mind, and a spring in his step, Mario ran off - across the stone drawbridge and the dark, frost-coated grass that lay beyond the grounds of Peach's castle.

A sigh escaped Rosalina as she stood aboard the Comet Observatory, gazing down wistfully at the planet below. From up here, the Mushroom Kingdom resembled a large map drawn in vibrant colour. The kingdom was mostly made up of lush fields, woods and dark mountains, but beyond its borders, she could also see vast deserts - cold at night - and frozen tundras - massive plains of snow and ice, unforgiving to all who dared enter. Unforgiving, yet eerily beautiful as well. The way the snowflakes caught the lights from Shiver City as they drifted down in utter silence made her want to fly down there and see it more closely.

There's so much more to this world than what I've seen, she mused, and felt a momentary pang of regret that she had never taken the time to explore it properly. She was always on the move, roaming the infinite voids of space as she cared for the lumas. She couldn't even remember the last time she had taken time out of her lifestyle to do something different. And it was a lonely lifestyle, despite the company of her star children. Sometimes she reflected on the time she had met Mario, and his brother Luigi, and the Toad Brigade that accompanied them - their adventure to save the universe was a story she frequently recited to the lumas now.

'It would be nice to see them all again,' she whispered, and several nearby lumas flitted closer in response.

'Mama? What's wrong?'

'It's nothing, my children. Don't worry. Mama is just thinking out loud.'

They didn't understand - how could they? But they darted off to play, leaving her alone. Suddenly, the low thrum of an engine reached her ears. Tensing slightly, Rosalina peered over the edge of the Observatory, lifting her wand in preparation to shoot either a defensive or offensive spell depending on what she saw.

She ended up doing neither of those things. A tiny ship, certainly not large enough for any humans or human-sized people, was slowly bumbling towards the Observatory. When the glaring light from the beacon fell upon the ship, she realised that it was styled to look like one of the mushrooms from the world below.

The Starshroom... She could remember the name now...

Engine spluttering, the little ship made its way up to the Garage and slowly touched down on the landing pad. The door opened and a metal ramp began to descend. Rosalina was running to the Garage before the ramp had touched the ground. A warm light came from inside the cosy starship, which was designed to fit five Toads and minimal supplies, but with a ceiling too low for anyone taller to comfortably stand underneath.

As she drew near, a red-spotted Toad wearing a head light suddenly tumbled down the ramp with a series of yelps, landing in a heap at her feet.

'...Are you OK?...' she asked, bending over him.

'Good! All good!'

Captain Toad scrambled to his feet, dusting himself off.

'It is I, the brave leader of the Toad Brigade! ...Well, the others aren't here right now... I had to pilot the ship all by myself... But never mind that! I've been requested by Mr Mario and Princess Peach to invite you down to our planet for the Christmas celebrations.'

'...Christmas...?' She remembered Christmas, but it was an old, foggy memory. I don't think I've ever had Christmas on board the Observatory... 'What will we do?' she asked curiously.

'All kinds of things! We'll have parties, and eat nice food, and exchange presents. And they'll be snowball fights, and ice-skating in Shiver City!'

It was the mention of snow that caught her attention the most. Hadn't she just been gazing down at the snowy tundra, wishing that she could experience it for herself? The beauty of the snow captivated her. Somehow, it looked different from the snow she had seen on cold planets like Freezeflame.

'I'd like to go,' she said. 'If it's no trouble to anyone.'

'Of course it's not! You've been invited. Oh, and you can bring the lumas too, if you like! Follow my ship; I'll lead you to a safe landing zone.'

As Captain Toad excitedly ran back up the metal ramp, Rosalina suddenly found herself being swarmed by numerous young, confused lumas.

'Mama? What's going on? What's 'Christmas'? Is that a funny planet?'

She almost laughed, but restrained herself to a small smile. They were so endearing in their ignorance. 'Well, why don't we follow the Starshroom down and find out?' she suggested gently. 'Some of you have never met my friends, Mario and Princess Peach, before. I think it would be lovely for you to see them now. And we'll all find out what Christmas means, together.'