Disclaimer: I do not own any of the material appearing in this story. The OC's belong to their respective owners.
A Day Before the Blorb Crisis
Marnie lay on her bed, staring directly at the ceiling in her apartment with her hands behind her head. What to do? She thought to herself as she turned her head to her desk, spotting a book on top of it.
"Here, thought you could use this."
"Um, bro? I'm not a little kid anymore. I don't do diaries."
"I know, but think of it as a journal instead."
"It's the same concept!"
"Is it, though? Heh, who knows… you might come up with something cool for Bowser."
"Like you are with making a soundtrack for Bowser's castle?"
"Gotta liven it up somehow."
Marnie rolled her eyes and then sat up, walking over to her desk and sat on her chair, staring directly at the journal that Piers had given her. She looked up and saw pictures on the back of the desk. Pictures of her, Piers and Team Yell. Another with Gloria and Hop, another with Neo and Luigi, and one with Ruby deciding to take a selfie with her.
She smiled at them all and then looked down at it again. "Well… might as well humor him." She said as she grabbed a pen and closed her eyes, wondering what to write about before it hit her. "Of course!" She grinned and then started to write.
"I never thought I'd write in this thing… but, guess I oughta stop delaying the inevitable, huh? I guess I'll start with… my life turning upside down, and I don't mean that in a bad way. Before Galar's Gym Challenge, I was… quiet. I kept to myself all the time, and wasn't really all that chatty.
Sure, my brother tried to get me to open up but… I didn't have many friends aside from a Morpeko that Piers had given me. Then he decided to do only he would do… start up a fanbase and calling it "Team Yell". I admire him looking out for me, but I didn't think it was necessary… oh well, the people in Spikemuth were always a bunch of rowdy folk. I know it was a way for me to open up, but they got so rowdy very quickly, it was startin' to annoy me a bit… but I know they meant well.
However, everything changed the moment I decided to take part of the Gym Challenge… the moment my life started to turn upside down."
"Oi, you lot! No one is allowed to go through here until Marnie herself checks in!"
"What the hell are you doin'?!" Gloria said. "I don't know who this Marnie is, but ye better get out of my way or so help me…"
"Or you'll what? Fight us in a Pokemon battle?"
"Oh, I'll give ye somethin' more than just a Pokemon battle."
"Gloria… chill!" Hop pleaded, trying to restrain the Scot.
"Rrrgh! Let me go!"
"Oi! You lot… stop pesterin' these nice folk." A voice said as they turned to see Marnie approaching them.
"Ah! Lady Marnie! So sorry we-"
"Stop callin' me Lady…" Marnie blushed. "Anyway, you have to forgive these knuckleheads… they mean well."
"They were gatekeeping!" Hop pointed out.
"…I didn't say they were good at "meaning well"." Marnie sweatdropped. "Anyway, name's Marnie. Who are you two?"
"Name's Hop!"
"Gloria, nice to meet ya, lassie."
"Lassie?" Marnie looked at her in surprise. "Oh, I didn't expect a Scottish girl to join the challenge. Honestly, it would explain the look…"
"Look?!" Gloria exclaimed, causing Hop to snicker. "What's wrong with my look?!"
"Nothing, nothing." Marnie let out a soft giggle. "It's just not every day I meet a Scotswoman. I'm lookin' forward to defeatin' you in battle." She said and walked off.
"…I don't know why, but I feel like she doesn't get out much." Hop said.
"What makes you say that?"
"I dunno…"
"He wasn't exactly wrong… I didn't really get out much. I was surprised Hop was able to figure it out so quick. Still… it was an enjoyable ride. Milo and Nessa were easy… and I've heard Kabu is where things get really tough, so I figured the best way was to train. What better way to train was challenging the Scotswoman herself? I've heard how she, in some people's words, "destroyed" Milo and Nessa, but I thought they were exaggerating…"
"Bun BUUUUUN!" Scorbunny yelled, kicking down Morpeko.
"Morpeko!" Marnie exclaimed, seeing Morpeko KO'd.
"Woo! That's how ya kick arse!" Gloria fist pumped.
"…I was wrong. Dead wrong. That Scorbunny is something else… is it any wonder why Cinderace is Gloria's best Pokemon? Aside from that Kingler of hers… but anyway, I was a little bit shaken up from that defeat, despite me saying it was a great battle. Something about facin' Gloria… I don't know what it was, but it was quite… interestin', I guess.
After that, I decided to train on my own after that, just to get my mind off things. However, just as I had some time to myself…"
"You're not going to get very far."
"Huh?" Marnie turned around to see Bede. "Oh, you're that kid that Rose endorsed… Bede, isn't it?"
"That's right, and I'm going to be the champion. Leon had his time in the sun, so how about someone new take over? That's right… you're looking at the new future champion right before your eyes!"
"Oh, you're one of those cocky people. What do you want, come to gloat?"
"Heh, I saw you having a battle with that Scottish girl. It was such a sad display on your part. You're not going to get very far with just a Morpeko and a Purrloin."
"Alright, so what do you suggest?"
"Give up. You're not gonna get anywhere."
"Huh?!"
"You're obviously weak. If you think you can make progress, then you're joking. Honestly, there's no competition here… especially that Scot."
"You really think you're going to win, do you?"
"Yes. That's right. You might as well bow down to me now."
"Why should I bow down to someone who's full of hot air?"
"WHAT!"
"You heard me." Marnie smirked.
"Rrrgh… at least I'm making a name for myself! You, on the other hand… you're nothing. You probably won't make a name for yourself. That little fanbase of yours? They're just feeling sorry for you."
"At least Ihave a fanbase. Do you?"
Bede's eyes twitched. "Whatever, have fun losing to the gym leader. I'm gonna laugh if you fail."
"Yeah, keep laughin', I've honestly stopped carin' about ya the moment you started yappin'."
"Rrrrgh! Fine… keep being worthless." Bede said and walked off.
"What's his problem?"
"Bede… he was honestly very arrogant. Sure, he's mellowed out… kinda. But he was so full of hot air, I was wonderin' if he was ever gonna lift off the ground. Anyway, after I trained… it was my time to shine against Kabu… and even though it was fairly difficult, I won in the end.
After that, I decided to train a little more in the wild area before I went to Hammerlocke… and as I did, I heard the most peculiar thing. Bede got himself disqualified over the dumbest thing… why did he use a Copperajah to destroy a mural, I'll never understand. Sad thing is, I never got around to askin' him, so maybe I'll ask him one of these days.
Anyway, I've trained up and got more badges… but uh, something happened. Team Yell thought it would have been a good idea to block everyone out of Spikemuth so I can have myself an easy win against my brother. I thought it was pure asinine… and then that's when I met up with Gloria again. I told her to follow me because I knew another way inside.
Before that… I asked her for another fight. I was a lot stronger and I thought for sure I would give Gloria a run for her money."
"RAAAAAAAAACE!"
"Scraaaaft!"
"Crap…" Marnie groaned, watching Scrafty fall on his back KO'd.
"Once again, I was wrong. To be honest… I've never actually won a fight against Gloria. I'm admittedly kinda jealous… maybe if we did hand to hand combat, I could knock her down? …Oh, who am I kiddin'? She has those power ups from outer space, she'd probably pin ME to the ground in that Lopunny form of hers.
Anyway, once Gloria had fought Piers and took off with another badge, I confronted my bro about the whole thing before we had our battle."
"Okay, you mind explainin' to me why Spikemuth was locked down just like that? No one could enter?"
"Don't look at me, it wasn't my idea. It was theirs."
"But why the hell didn't you stop them?"
"Eh, thought it wasn't a big deal… besides, you know about the secret entrance and you brought Gloria in, so no skin off my back."
"Was this because Team Yell wanted me to get a head start?"
"…Yes."
"And you didn't even call them out?"
"Nope. Didn't feel like givin' a crap."
Marnie facepalmed. "Oh, bro… what am I gonna do with you?"
"Love and adore me like always?" Piers smirked, causing Marnie to roll her eyes and playfully punched him.
"Whatever… can we get on with our battle already?"
"Thought you'd never ask." He got into position. "Just because you're my little sis won't mean I won't go easy on ya."
"Good, give me everything you got. I'm going to get stronger and win against Gloria! Because I want a shot at the championship and I'll do whatever it takes… even if it means defeating her."
"Heh, sounds like you made a friend." Piers smirked, causing Marnie to blush. "Now then, let's begin! Go Scrafty!"
"Liepard, let's rock!"
"I was way in over my head when I said I'd win against Gloria… sure, she motivated me to get stronger and more determined to win against her. Guess that's what makes rivalries so fun, y'know? After my fight with my bro, and then Raihan… I was qualified for the championship, I was determined to win. If I had beaten Gloria, I would have faced Leon myself…
But… like I said, I was way in over my head…"
"Alright, Grimmsnarl! Take down that Toxtricity with a Max Starfall!"
"SNAAAARL!"
"Hang in there!" Gloria yelled as the Toxtricity took the Starfall like a champ. "Alright, finish it off with a Max Ooze!"
Marnie's eyes widened, letting out a small gasp. "Don't let it hit you! BLOCK IT!" She yelled frantically as Grimmsnarl tried to block the attack with its arms, but it wasn't enough as the Max Ooze struck Grimmsnarl. "Come on… hang in there! I KNOW you got some fight left in ya!"
Unfortunately, the Dynamax'd Toxtricity gave Grimmsnarl another Max Ooze, which was enough for the Grimmsnarl to go out in an explosive end.
"Snaaaarl!" It cried before shrinking back down to size and Marnie recalled it.
"Damn…" Marnie whispered, looking away from Gloria and looked down at the ground, tears were filling her eyes.
"We have a winner! Give it up for challenger Gloria!"
Marnie didn't even see it, but Gloria walked up to her and wrapped her arms around her. "H-huh?"
"That was so much fun! I can't wait until we battle again!" Gloria grinned.
"Wh- huh…?"
"I've a feelin' you'll be beatin' me some day. I can definitely see the spark in ya. So dry those tears, lass! You'll get stronger, I know it! You'll definitely make a name for yerself!"
"…Thanks, Gloria." Marnie smiled, wiping her tears away and returning the hug.
"To this day, I still haven't beaten her in a Pokemon battle… but one of these days, I'm gonna get her. Not sure how, but I will. But… make a name for myself? If only if it were that easy… Gloria's the champion, Hop is Professor Sonia's assistant, Bede is… Bede, but a gym leader. I mean, I'm a gym leader too but… I want to be more than that.
Anyway, after my fight with Gloria, I thought it would be best if I were to help her get to Leon because Oleana was bein' a drag. Then Rose decided to end the world with Eternatus and… everything was such a blur, I can't remember what I was doin' at that moment. I know Gloria and Hop went to stop him, but… like I said, it's been nothin' but a blur… same with those two doofuses… what were their names again? Dickhair and Shield head? Eh… not like they have any more hair after a Kartana gave them a haircut.
But… just when I thought things were quieting down, Gloria ends up disappearin'. I was concerned… actually, all of us were. We were wonderin' what happened to her, and that's when we met this guy all the way from Kanto. THE champion himself… Red. Admittedly, I was a bit star struck but he told us where Gloria was at. The three of us… me, Hop and Bede were wanting to know where she was at, and so he took us into a portal.
And this is where my life continued to turn upside down. I was in a new world… Remnant… I didn't know there were other worlds aside from our own. I was a bit taken aback, but I got used to it. I think Hop was more in shock than I was. We found Gloria and… we decided to stick around for a while, wondering what Remnant and the Mushroom Kingdom had to offer.
…And wouldn't you know it, that's when things got crazier for me. I met RWBY, the Mario Bros, Byleth, her friends from Garreg Mach, JNPR, JINX, ATMC… but most of all, it's also where I met my soon to be best friend of this world. Neo.
Despite her being a supposed "bad guy" who hangs around Roman and Bowser… I don't think she's all that bad. Once you get to know her, she's actually a total sweetheart. I've seen her in battle and while she CAN be sadistic… she's not all that bad.
It's funny, she's mute… but somehow, I can understand her. It's probably why we became fast friends when she needed someone after Roman couldn't recognize her from amnesia. She doesn't have many friends… just like I didn't have many friends either… and Luigi too. It's odd, I thought for sure Luigi had a lot of friends but apparently not.
It's kinda why the three of us became fast friends in an instant. We didn't have many friends so we just kinda… connected. Neo was hurting and despite Yang being… Yang, I was there for her. Sure, Byleth was there for her too, but the three of us just became good close friends.
I think Piers would be proud… me making new friends in some other world. It's cute, honestly… but something happened along the way. This princess from Erdrea… Jade… she gave me some spare Orichalchum Claws. I didn't know what to think of it at first but fighting with these claws while Luigi had his Thunder Hand and hammer and Neo just had her umbrella… it just felt so… natural. Like I was made for close quarter combat.
At that moment, I felt like I was making a name for myself. This punk's got claws… and she's not afraid to use 'em. But… I wonder if I could be more than that. After all, I'm not the first gym leader in Galar who prefers close quarter combat. That belongs to the fighting champion herself, Bea. I swear, she's possibly a black belt… wouldn't surprise me if she was.
Make a name for myself… I don't know why, but me feeling a sense of wanting more… it feels like a major case of deja vu… like I've said this before to Gloria, Hop and… Bea of all people. Odd, why am I picturing myself saying this with the Phantom Thieves close by… gah, focus!
I never felt so… alive with the Orichalchum Claws. It felt so… free! No longer was I just some Pokemon Gym Leader… now I'm someone who can kick some ass physically if I wanted to. Especially when we were fighting Cackletta… she was honestly scary, but I had to put my fears to the side and wanted to fight and save the Beanbean Kingdom.
So… after the fight with Cackletta, I decided to do some exploring around the kingdom and see what's goin' on. Next thing I knew, I get a text message from Neo about somethin' to do at the Mushroom Hills. I hurry over… and I come across a Togekiss. Mario and Luigi's Togekiss, to be exact. Parfait… I patched her up and looked around for her owner, not knowing what was going on at the time.
Then, I see Bowser invading Peach's Castle and I think to myself: "I shouldn't get involved, but perhaps someone in the castle might know who Parfait belongs to" and… I get caught up in the Shroob invasion. Eventually, I find the Koopa Troop in the UFO and I bust them out first… and then just when my life couldn't get any more upside down… Bowser, out of nowhere, conscripts me into his army.
I had no idea what to say… I wanted to say no, in fact, I think I did say no, but he was so happy I don't think he ever listened. I don't regret saving him… it was the right thing to do after all. After that, we all teamed up and took down Princess Shroob together… and then Elder Princess Shroob right after.
I wanted to leave the Koopa Troop right after that… in fact, I told Neo about it and, I was surprised when she asked me to give it a chance. "Who knows, I might actually enjoy Bowser's company", she says. Well… I do like to try new things at times, so how bad could it be?
I did tell Bowser that I didn't want anything to do with harming my friends over it, I didn't want to fight them or anything… I didn't want to get in their way. Surprisingly, he understood it and the more I got to know the big lug… the more I see him in a different light.
Sure, he kidnaps Princess Peach a lot, but, on his off days, I see him as a chill guy who's a hell of a good father. Maybe being conscripted wasn't so bad after all… because I got to really know a lot of the Koopa Troop. Kamek's like the grandfather of the Koopa Troop… he may be strict but he means well. He's a softie, believe me.
General Guy, when he's not commanding Shy Guys around or drivin' a tank that fires Bullet Bills, he's also soft for being such a hard headed Shy Guy. I think I caught him watching soap operas one time… he really needs to close his door.
Junior… oh Arceus, that kid is a handful, but you know what? He's pretty cool. Definitely needs some growing up to do, but ya know what? I'm sure he's just fine… it's not like he's gonna command an army overnight and do horribly with it… why do I feel like I just jinxed myself?
The Koopalings… gods, I love these guys. Some of them might be a bit stubborn (Looking at you, Roy.) but they're not that bad. Morton's a sweetheart, Wendy is… Wendy, but she can be nice when she wants to be. Iggy is straight up insane. Ludwig is surprisingly good at the piano… though I'm not sure who this "Beethoven" is. Same goes with this "Bach", "Mozart" and "Tschikovsky". Mmm, they might be Mushroom Kingdom celebrites I've never heard of, or maybe Remnant's? Who knows…
Anyway, Lemmy is straight up the most adorable Koopaling I've ever seen. No, seriously… I think he's cuter than Junior. Love that kid… he's so playful. Roy is completely stubborn but… I think he has a soft spot, he just doesn't want to show it. And Larry… he's alright.
Then we have the Captains. Goomba, Shy Guy, Boo and Koopa… I'm not sure what it is, but these four seem to idolize me. They call me Lady Marnie… actually, come to think of it, most of the Koopa Troop calls me that. But these four… gah, those four just warm my heart. Oh… wait, I forgot another captain. Captain Slime.
Captain Slime's pretty cool… in fact, he showed me a few tricks with a sword, but… eh, swords aren't really my thing. He does bow every time he calls me Lady Marnie. Guess that's his chivalry, I suppose. Anyway…
When I first heard the words "Lady Marnie" from the Koopa Troop, at first I was confused… but then Bowser told me "It's because of what you did. You're not with the minions, you're with the big leagues" or something like that. I mean… it does make sense but I don't hear people saying "Lord Kamek" or "Lord General Guy"… eh.
I will say though… despite me being in the Koopa Troop, I refuse to call Bowser "Lord Bowser"… yet. It's odd, I'm loyal to my friends but I'm also becoming loyal to the Koopa Troop, because… I care about these guys. They're like… a ragtag group that you just can't help but admire. As cliche as it sounds, they feel like family… I mean, Neo's kinda like a sister to me, so there's that, I guess.
When Piers found out about me being conscripted into the Koopa Troop, he thought it was a joke… but when I explained that it wasn't… well, let's just say he got really protective of me when he confronted Bowser…"
"HEY! I don't know what your deal is, but I'm not going to let my little sister be a part of your army."
"Hey, she's having a lot of fun here. I'm not sure why you're making a big stink out of it." Bowser said.
"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kick your butt right now and haul Marnie away from the likes of you." Piers glared.
"Piers, enough! There's no need for this!" Marnie protested.
Bowser smirked. "You have a guitar, don't ya? Marnie told me all about ya."
"Yeah, so?"
"How's about you become the hype squad? Give me more of an epic entrance when I invade Toad Town again."
"…I'm listening."
"HUH?!" Marnie said in shock.
"Like, you get yourself a band, write up some songs and play 'em when I'm storming Toad Town and kidnapping Peach."
Piers smirked. "Well… sounds like you got yourself a band."
"Great! I've got some Sumo Bros and Chargin' Chucks who are trying to start a band."
"Let me sort 'em out."
Marnie stared on in disbelief while Bowser and Piers walked off. "What the HELL just happened?"
"To this day… I still don't know how the hell that happened. One moment, Piers was being overly protective and the next, he happily joins the ranks… I still don't get it. But that's not all that threw me for a loop.
Considering I liked it here so much, the folks at the Monster Community decided to make me an apartment out of gratitude for me being so kind to them. I think Neo had a hand in this… it does sound like something she'd do. At first, I didn't know what to think but… me living in a new apartment? I was all excited!
Moving in felt so… natural. Sure, I'm still the gym leader and I can just easily teleport there with a built in teleporter that they made for me in case if I feel a little home sick and want to go back to Spikemuth for a bit. Teleporters… who knew they'd exist?
Speaking of Spikemuth, I did participate in the Galarian Star Tournament and, I thought I was gonna kick some ass with Hop. Our second opponents were Ruby and Gloria. The moment I made eye contact with Gloria… I knew I'd be in for a hell of a fight. Little did I know what Ruby was capable of as a Pokemon Trainer… I will be honest, Gloria wasn't the only person who rattled me… where did THIS feisty girl come from? I've always seen her as this… oh, how did Weiss put it… dolt? But not in a mean-ish way that Weiss puts it. It's more…. friendlier? I dunno.
My time here in Lethal Lava Land or whatever you want to call it? It's a nice change of scenery but… the more I spend time with the Koopa Troop, the more I question: "How is everyone going to take this?" I want to become more involved with the Koopa Troop… because, as I said… I want to make a name for myself. I don't want to be just some girl who's a Pokemon Trainer who has claws… I want to be more than that…
Hell, I recently learned magic from Hyrule… specifically, the Ocarina of Time era. Din's Fire, Nayru's Love, Farore's Wind… I even got an ice and lightning staff to go with it. I want to be… someone who has a purpose. I feel like being with the Koopa Troop is something that I want… but, I don't want to tell the Koopa Troop that… not yet anyway.
I don't know why I don't want to tell them… I guess it's just some sort of anxiety that I built up because I'm afraid of what the others would think. I'm afraid I might get branded a traitor and get my ass handed to me, especially when RWBY gets involved… out of all of them, Ruby and Yang scare me the most. Speed and Power? Ugh… how does Neo handle it all?
Speaking of Neo… I… I don't know where she is. She and Roman disappeared recently and… I've been searching for them, but I don't know what happened to them. Are they okay? Has something happened to them? Please tell me they didn't pull a Ruby… no, of course not, they wouldn't do that."
Some tears landed on the paper. "Huh?" Marnie wondered, realizing they were her own as she wiped them away. "I'm crying? …Am I that worried about them?"
"Just now, I teared up… I know they're more than capable, but I can't help but worry something bad happened to them and I can't find them anywhere. I guess that's just the motherly part of me… I dunno. I just hope they're okay…
I'm loyal to the Mushroom Kingdom… but I'm also loyal to the Koopa Troop. What do I even do? I can't just vent to Neo… she's nowhere to be found. I could try to vent to Luigi, but I'm pretty sure he's on a date with Daisy and I don't want to interrupt.
Kamek told me that I oughta confess to the Koopa Troop, and Bowser himself that I want to be more involved with the Koopa Troop and declare my loyalty to them, while at the same time, declaring loyalty to the Mushroom Kingdom and asking that they don't beat me to a pulp.
Can it really be that simple? Being loyal to both? Can it be done… is it even possible? I love them all… I love everyone in this world. The Mushroom Kingdom and the Koopa Troop. But is it even possible to be loyal to both… I hope Kamek knows what he's talking about…
My life has been turned upside down ever since I met Gloria… and then it went even further the moment I entered this world, and there's not a day that goes by where I don't cherish those moments. If I want to make a name for myself… I'm sure doing a hell of a job making one.
Neo, where are you? I hope you and Roman are okay…
I ought to get my mind off things. I know they're okay. I've been meaning to paint the living room anyway… that might be good to get my mind off things for a while.
Here's hoping in the next adventure, it will be the time I declare my allegiance to the Koopa Troop.
I just hope everyone in Toad Town is okay with it… because my anxiety over this issue is stressing me out…
Marnie closed her journal and took a deep breath, leaning back on her chair and sighing. "Right… paint the living room… let's get it over with." She said, standing up and walked out.
This would have been out earlier but... alas, power outages can be a pain.