Joker: It's been quite some time, but we're back with a new chapter.
Zelda: A new chapter in this first arc. I am excited to dig deeper into it.
Bayonetta: Start the show, Darlings
Lucina and the Gentleman Thief
Chapter Eight: Gathering the Party
"So, you two want me to steal a secret from Sheik's heart?" Ren asked.
Bayonetta nodded.
"And that secret is why Sheik abandoned her real name?" Joker asked.
"Yes," Zelda replied.
"I don't know," Morgana said as he sat beside Ren. "We're used to taking hearts, not stealing secrets from them. Especially if they don't have a palace."
"Do we know if Sheik has a palace?" Ren asked.
"All princesses have palaces," Zelda said.
"A Palace is a manifestation of "distortion," strong negative or corrupt thoughts that warp the perceptions of people into a hazard for themselves and others," Morgana explained. "Most people's negative and corrupt thoughts are blended together into the Metaverse in a location called Mementos, which is a Palace for all of humanity. However, powerful distorted individuals manifest personal Palaces that their Shadow Self solely inhabits."
"Are you saying that she's corrupted?!" Zelda exclaimed, aghast.
"Not really," Ren said. "Some individuals can form palaces without being evil. For example, my "baby Sister's" suicidal thoughts and repressed memories of her mother formed her palace."
"So, extremely negative emotions or psychological trauma can also cause a Palace to form," Bayonetta summed up.
"Exactly," Ren said with a smile. "So, other than not talking about it, does Sheik exhibit any powerful negative emotions?"
"She mostly keeps to herself and Ike, so I'm not sure…." Zelda admitted. "But I need to know why. And it's evident that this issue is disturbing her greatly. I want to help my predecessor find peace."
"I kind of understand what you mean," Ren sighed out. "Morgana. Is it even possible? To steal a secret from someone's heart?"
"Hm," Morgana began, his paw tapping at his chin. "It might be possible to steal a secret. But still, we would need to know if she had a palace."
"But if she does, does that mean Smashville as a Metaverse? Or even a Mementos?" Morgana asked.
"Smashville has different rules compared to our world. Like, you're able to switch between your Metaverse form and cat form," Ren said to Morgana, who was in his Metaverse form currently. "So maybe she could have a palace, but Mementos and the Metaverse may not exist."
"So, will you two do it?" Zelda asked.
"I will need a team," Ren said.
"Consider me already in," Zelda said.
"I've always been curious at how did things, my little coffee boy. I am in as well," Bayonetta said.
"You know I'm with you, Ren," Morgana said.
"Same here," A new voice announced, causing the group to turn around to see the young Ike leaning against the doorway.
"Ike!" Zelda gasped out.
"You've been listening to us this whole time?" Ren asked.
"How did I not sense you?" Bayonetta asked.
Ike held up a small grey disk with a grin, causing Bayonetta's eyes to lighten in recognition. "Cloaking Device. Found this bad boy in the basement of the mansion under the "Melee Items" shelf. I've been testing it out all day to see if it really turns things invisible," Ike explained.
"You cheeky swordsman," Bayonetta said with amusement.
"Why test something like that?" Ren and Zelda asked in unison.
Ike grinned.
Roy and Shulk stared at their room in horror.
Everything was completely gone.
Even their swords were missing.
Richter, who stood between the two, patted their shoulders sympathetically and said, "It could be worse. Waluigi could have been in here naked again."
"No reason," Ike answered. "But, while I was sneaking about, I overheard you and Bayonetta talking in the hall about Sheik, so I followed. Admittedly, I'm glad I did."
"You are?" Morgana asked.
"Sheik has been….distant," Ike admitted with a frown. "Something has been diverting her attention. She doesn't return even return to our room anymore. She's either sparring with Greninja or just gone from the mansion itself. I'm worried about her. And hearing Zelda explain everything, I'm curious if whatever she's been hiding is the cause of this distance."
"Well, that's five. We'll need three or four more members," Morgana asked.
"Why so many?" Ike asked.
"Well, these palaces, if she has one, can be very dangerous. We often need the extra hands," Morgana said.
"I can get Min-Min. She's been pretty curious about my universe and why I'm here. Might as well tell her why."
"I'm sure Little Mac and Cloud will help us," Ike said. "They both owe me a favor anyways."
Zelda rolled her eyes at the mention of Little Mac as she muttered, "Ugh, the boxer."
"You have an issue with Little Mac, Luv?" Bayonetta asked.
"He's alright. It's just….I'm still a little irked at him," Zelda muttered.
"Why?" Ike asked.
"He called me a weaker replacement for Twilight Zelda after I harmlessly made fun of his height," Zelda explained. "We don't get along."
"Okay," Morgana drawled out. "So, surprising beef aside, we may have eight of our members. Ren and I will try to find out if she has a palace."
"I'll talk to Cloud. You can talk to Little Mac," Bayonetta told Ike, who nodded in agreement.
"And we'll talk to Min-Min," Morgana said.
"If they agree, bring them back here because tonight, we'll meet here on the roof to discuss our next step. Until then, the meeting concludes," Ren said.
"Sure, I'll be happy to help," Min-Min answered as she poured the ramen into the bowl and placed it on the counter in front of Ren and Morgana. "Who else is going?"
"Bayonetta, Zelda, Ike, Morgana, and myself so far," Ren answered. "Ike is going to ask Little Mac, and Bayonetta is going to ask Cloud to come with."
"Cloud?" Min-Min asked.
"Yeah," Ren said. "You don't have a problem with him, do you?"
"No, not at all. He comes here often enough," Min-Min said as she placed another bowl of ramen on the counter before flipping over it and landing on her feet. She sat beside Ren and said, "We've become good friends."
"Awesome," Morgana said. "I thought you were going to have a similar reaction like Zelda had when Ike bought up Little Mac."
"Zelda has an issue with Little Mac?" Min-Min questioned before she blinked. "Wait, Little Mac talks?!"
"Yeah," Morgana answered. "He's often hanging around Falco, Ken, Lucina, Wii-Fit, and U-Fit."
"He knows Lucina?" Ren asked.
"Yeah, apparently they became friends during the Smash 4 Season," Morgana said.
Ren nodded.
Perhaps he could grill Little Mac on things Lucina likes so he could get back into her good graces.
"Weird. I've watched some of his interviews. Doc Louis seemed to do most of the talking for him," Min-Min said. "Wow, getting to work with the youngest WVBA World Champion. Ribbon-Girl will be so jealous!"
"It was weird," Isabelle said as Cloud walked beside her and Princess Daisy into the living room of the Smash Mansion. "This is the second day I've received this sunflower on my bed. I wonder who is delivering it."
"A secret admire, maybe?" Cloud questioned.
"Must be," Daisy said with a grin. "Our little Isabelle Shizue has a secret admirer!"
"D-Daisy!" Isabelle said, her cheeks reddening before she thoughtfully looked at the ceiling, "Although…."
"Daisy," Cloud began, prompting the brunette to look at him. "So, is it true you and Luigi are partners for the upcoming Tag Tournament?"
Daisy smiled and said, "Damn right! I've been waiting for this moment since I got the envelope. I can't wait for us to tear down Team StarFox and take those championships from them!"
"It seems Link and myself have quite the competition ahead of us," Cloud chuckled. "I'm surprised he chose to team with you instead of Mario."
"Mario's forced to team with Bowser, remember?" Isabelle said, snapping out of her thoughts about her admirer.
Cloud and Daisy grimaced.
At the tail end of the Smash 4 Season, Mario and Bowser got into an altercation involving Princess Peach that was bad enough to have Master Hand and Crazy Hand step in to stop them.
Both Mario and Bowser were disappointed, especially since King Koopa was looking forward to teaming with King K Rool for the tourney.
"Ah! There you are!" Bayonetta's voice shouted, prompting Cloud, Daisy, and Isabelle to turn around to face the Umbra Witch. "I've been looking all over for you, Mr. Strife."
"Me? Why?" Cloud asked.
"I hear you owe a debt to Ike, and he wants to collect," Bayonetta said.
Cloud frowned, then said to Daisy and Isabelle, "I'll talk to you two later."
Daisy and Isabelle nodded, but as they walked away, Bayonetta said, "Isabelle, Darling."
Isabelle turned around curiously.
"That sunflower in your hair. It's a lovely addition," Bayonetta said.
Isabelle smiled as Daisy said, "Her secret admire placed it on her bed."
"Interesting," Bayonetta said with a knowing tone before she turned to Cloud and said, "Let us talk."
Cloud nodded.
"Absolutely not," Little Mac said as he punched at the punching bag that Ryu was holding in place.
"Mac," Ike said.
"I know I owe you," Little Mac said. "But teaming up with the princess? No way, Jose."
"Do you two not get on?" Ryu calmly asked.
"Not really," Little Mac answered. "She made fun of my height. You know how I feel about that."
"Yes, Samus still complains about that uppercut of yours," Ryu stated with a good-natured chuckle.
"At least she apologized for it," Little Mac grunted. "But the replacement Zelda? Hasn't even uttered a word to me since our argument."
"You did call her a weak replacement for Twilight Zelda," Ike softly countered.
"After she made fun of my height," Little Mac argued. "I know that I'm short, but I'm the best ground fighter around and youngest WVBA World Heavyweight champion. I was even World Smash Champion after defeating Ganondorf for a spell. I do deserve some respect for my accolades."
Little Mac then sighed. "But if you really need my help, I'll put that aside and give it," the boxer finished.
"As will I," Ryu announced. "You assisted me when I first arrived in Smash. If you need an extra hand, I will be glad to lend it."
"I'm sure the others won't mind the extra glove. Welcome aboard, you two!" Ike said with a smile.
"If that is the case, then I will be coming as well," Samus' voice rang out.
Captain Blues: And that is the end of this chapter. We have our team. So the next chapter will have Ren and Morgana see if Sheik actually has a palace. Until then!