Chapter 12 What? Character Development?

Star awoke pretty early. The sky was glowing with a light the color of marigolds. Star could see that the sand of the desert, now that the sun was up, was a soft pink. Star placed her hand against the ground and felt its warmth. It made her smile.

The Koopalings were still not awake yet. She could see that they were still snuggled up tight in their sleeping bags, and she could also hear that they were snoring softly. Most of the snores were coming from Roy, which made Star giggle. He sounded like a walrus.

Watching the characters who she loved made Star think. They would be extremely hungry when they woke up and would inevitably want to have some breakfast. There didn't appear to be any restaurants around, nor were there any fruit trees that Star could see. That meant that someone would have to go out and find food.

And she knew that someone had to be her.

Why not? Sure, she had no experience hunting or gathering (unless gathering candy under her bed counted). Sure, she was as weak as a pair of broken glasses. But you know what? She would be doing something good for the Koopalings. Honestly, she needed to do a good deed for them after the absolute mess that was the last few days. Yes, she was an overpowered Mary Sue, but that didn't mean the world had to revolve around her every single second of every single day!

So, with that, Star started on her way away from the camp.

…

This was a mistake.

The sun was beating down on Star. Her already dry, eczema covered skin was acting up even more. She was also sweating like a pig who had just run a marathon. Her tongue felt as dry as the sand that surrounded her. She felt as if she was dying.

With that, Star collapsed to the ground. She needed water. Without it, she was surely going to die within the hour. Unfortunately, she didn't have any water. All she had was buckets full of sweat (which she was not going to drink).

Star heaved for breath. Anxiety filled her mind. She couldn't move another step. She couldn't go anywhere else. How would she be able to find the food? If she did die, how would everyone react? She didn't want to die in a fictional world. She could imagine the looks of grief and sadness on the faces of her family when they found out that she was gone for good.

That was when Star realized that she couldn't do this. She had to find a way to find some food. She had to find a way to help the Koopalings, and herself for that matter. She had to get up out of the sand and make her way through the desert. She tried to lift herself up, but even then it was too much of a chore. She collapsed again. She couldn't move anymore, at least not without having a drink of water.

It was at this point that Star was seriously considering using her powers to procure herself a water bottle. Should she do it? No, she shouldn't. She had been explicitly told by the Koopalings not to, and for good reason. They would cause the world to crack at the seams.

But then again...no, no, Star had made a promise! She had crossed her heart and all that jazz! She couldn't use her powers!

So, using all the determination she had at her disposal, Star hoisted herself back up. She continued on. Sand was filling her shoes and clinging to her socks. She kept seeing mirages that looked so convincing that she ran after them more than once. Unfortunately, she did not find any food. She collapsed to the ground again. She was so dehydrated that she couldn't even cry.

What should she do? Should she use her powers? It would keep her from dying in this situation. And really, wouldn't that be the best for this world? After all, if she was dead, she couldn't write anymore. Then what would happen to this world?

So, with this thought in mind, Star imagined a water bottle. It appeared right in front of her, and she eagerly took it. The crisp liquid was so amazingly refreshing that Star could feel her energy returning. Once she had devoured every last drop, she stood up and wiped her lips in satisfaction. She noticed that the pink dunes were glitching, but she hardly cared. She just made her way through the dunes until she found an oasis. She made bottles appear, thinking that they would be able to hold water for the Koopalings. Once all the bottles were filled, she noticed a coconut tree growing near the water. She smiled.

…

Star got back in no time at all. She carried each of the water bottles and each of the coconuts in a backpack that she had materialized out of thin air. The sky kept shifting from day to night, and parts of the landscape seemed to no longer be impacted by the power of gravity. Nevertheless, Star was just happy that she had something to return to the Koopalings.

Once she got back to the camps Star grinned when she saw that the Koopalings were still asleep. They didn't even notice that she was gone. As a bonus, some of the landscape was starting to cease with its glitching. Noticing this, Star placed her backpack on the ground and cleared her throat.

"Guys!"

Each of the Koopalings woke up in no time at all. Roy groggily rubbed his eyes as he sat up.

"Wha? What's going on?" he asked.

"It's breakfast time!" Star said as she opened the backpack. The water bottles and coconuts poured out onto the sand. The Koopalings looked at the treats with wide eyes.

"Where did you get those?" Wendy asked.

"I found an oasis nearby," said Star with a smile. Iggy raised an eyebrow.

"I assume that's where you found the backpack, too?"

"Pfft. Of course!" Star said with a wave of the hand. "It was just sitting near the water! I thought it would be perfect for carrying all this stuff!"

Iggy raised an eyebrow, possibly detecting Star's lie. Nevertheless, there was nothing he could really prove. Besides, how could Iggy complain after Star brought them food? That's what Star wanted to know.

"Well, thanks Star," said Ludwig as he telekinetically picked up a coconut and opened it. "That's really nice of you."

"Yeah!" said Lemmy as he grinned. "I love coconuts! They're like my twenty third favorite food of all time!"

"You're welcome," Star said as she blushed at the compliments. "You guys had better start eating. We need to get an early start if we want to be at the cave."

The Koopalings nodded and started to eat coconuts. Star watched them eat, feeling extremely happy.