Chapter 13 A Gray Rainbow

Celia, admittedly, found Morton intriguing. He looked physically different from the rest of his siblings, given how he had skin the color of charcoal. She herself could relate to feeling different. She wondered if the Koopaling often felt like the black sheep of his family (no pun intended). She decided to ask Roy as they made their way up the stairwell.

"Hey," she said. "Why does Morton have gray skin?"

Roy shrugged. "I dunno. Iggy says it's a 'recessive genetic trait,' whatever the World Eight that means."

Celia nodded. "Okay." Admittedly, she didn't exactly know what that meant either. However, she wasn't going to make herself look like an uneducated fool in front of Roy. So, she just pushed the comment to the side in her mind and jumped right to the point that she wanted to get at. "Does he often feel….different because of that?" When Roy raised an eyebrow, she stuttered over her words. "I...I just ask because….you know. It...it might explain why he's feeling down."

Once again, Roy shrugged. "I don't know. I mean, Morty is often very….stoic, I guess you could say. He doesn't really seem to feel different from the rest of us." Roy beamed. "I often do some workouts with him. He really enjoys it when we do that." His face fell. "Or, I guess I like that. Morton is just Morton, in the sense that he….doesn't show any emotion. Like….at all. It's...kind of weird, now that I think about it." He shuddered. "Sometimes, I feel like he's staring into my soul."

Celia nodded. This information made her wonder even more about the dark skinned Koopaling. Why was he like this? Well, whatever the reason, it seemed she was going to find out sooner rather than later. Because, much to her delight, she and Roy had arrived at Morton's bedroom door.

Roy pounded his big, meaty fist against it. "Hey, Morty?"

There was a pause. Shuffling sounds and the switching off of a TV could be heard before a flat, monotone voice called out from the other side. "Come in."

So, Roy turned the knob. The first thing that came to Celia'a attention about the room was the fact it was as dark as a morgue. No light came in due to the fact that the heavy, thick curtains were drawn shut. Another thing Celia noticed was the smell. Now, it wasn't bad, it just smelled...odd. She wondered why this was the case when she felt something brush up against her leg. She held back a shriek, unsure of what exactly it was. Thankfully, when she looked down, she saw that it was just a cat.

"Meow," said the cat.

Celia grinned. "Aww!" She reached down and rubbed the kitty's furry head. Just as she did that, she heard shuffling coming from one corner of the room. She looked up and saw a chain chomp bounding toward her. It was small, no bigger than a bowling ball. She smiled as it panted near her legs, jumping up and down and barking all the while.

"Woof! Woof woof!"

"These guys are adorable!" Celia said. She turned toward Morton. "Are they yours?"

Morton nodded. "Yep. The cat is named Toasty, and the chain chomp is named Wiggles."

Celia chuckled. Those were literally the most perfect names for pets that she had ever heard. She pet Toasty some more as Wiggles continued bouncing up and down, looking for some love. She pet his sleek, shiny head.

"They're amazing!" she swooned.

Morton nodded just as he got up out of the bed and came over, stepping over the food he had brought out of the refrigerator as he did so. Celia took notice of how big he was. He seemed to beat Roy in terms of pure size.

"Yes, they are. I'm thinking about getting a bird later on." He put his hand on his hip. "And who might you be?"

Celia gasped, realizing that it must be weird for Morton to have a total stranger in his room. She was just about to give her introduction, but Roy beat her to it.

"She is Celia Patch," he said with a shining grin. "Half human, half Koopa hybrid and daughter of the great and mighty King Bowser!"

Morton raised an eyebrow. However, that was the extent of the emotion he showed. His mouth just remained in a stoic line.

"Huh. Neat."

Now it was Celia's turn to raise an eyebrow. "You actually believe it?"

Morton shrugged. "I've heard and seen weirder stories."

Celia nodded, unsure if Morton was being truthful or not. His face was so hard to read, it was almost as if it was just a stone. The darkness in the room didn't really help matters.

"Um, okay." She noticed something underneath his bed, something that caught her attention. While it was hard to see, it looked a little bit like a little horse plushie. She pointed toward the object. "What is that?"

Morton seized up. "Nothing." He went over to his bed and swept the plushie further underneath with his foot. "It's nothing."

Celia nodded, despite being taken aback by this display. "Alright." She looked around the room, studying it some more. She noticed a TV, resting on an entertainment unit on the left hand wall. She noticed that there was an open DVD box resting beside it, which had a rainbow-maned pegasus on the cover. The title read "Rainbow Mare and the Pony Posse Pals, Season 1 Volume 1." It was then that Celia started wondering. Was Morton a closeted pony fan?

Before she could question this any further though, she noticed something else. Resting on a chair beside Morton's was a box of tissues. A crumpled up tissue rested right beside the box. Celia looked at Morton, noticing the tear stains on his cheeks for the first time. She turned to Roy, wondering if he noticed this yet.

Unfortunately, the burly Koopa still hadn't taken off his sunglasses, despite the room being darker than the void of space. It was a wonder how he was able to see anything at this point. Needless to say, he hadn't noticed any of the details that had captured Celia's attention. All he seemed to be aware of was the excessive amounts of food.

"You know, Morty," he said as he leaned against Morton's shoulder. "You're gonna ruin your appetite for supper if you shove all that food down your gullet."

Morton sniffed, his eyelids at half mast. "And you care about this because….?"

Roy hesitated. "Well…" he laughed. "I just think all this food is going a little overboard. After all, how are you gonna get as muscular as me if you don't take care of yourself?" He patted Morton's belly, causing a ripple effect on the surface of his skin.

Morton looked down at his stomach. "True." He looked back up at Roy. "However, I don't think I would be as good as you even if I tried."

Roy laughed. "Yeah. You're right." He did a flex. "I am quite the catch, aren't I?"

Morton slowly nodded. "Yes. Very." Once again, Celia couldn't determine whether he was being ironic or not.

Roy smiled, continuing to chuckle. "Thanks, man." He patted Morton on the back. "So, you're feeling alright, yes?"

Morton paused for a brief moment before nodding. "Of course I'm alright."

That sentence actually made Celia a little concerned. Unlike when Morton was speaking before, there was a tinge of emotion in his tone. It was subtle, yes, but it still sounded as if the Koopaling was lying through his teeth. Maybe it was the pause that occurred before that sentence was spoken; Celia wasn't sure. Either way, she couldn't just let this go unaddressed.

"Are you sure?"

Morton blinked, seemingly taken aback by the girl he had just met asking him that question. Once again, he hesitated before answering it.

"Yes. I'm sure."

Celia looked over at the tissue box again. Obviously, this Koopa was lying. She looked at him, trying to read his face for the umpteenth time. She had never seen someone put on such an unemotional front before. Could it possibly be because he was hiding something? And if so, what?

"Real…"

"Hey, Celia, my dude said he's okay," said Roy. "Prying will just make him feel bad."

Celia looked over at Roy before sighing. "You're right. I shouldn't be rude."

Morton nodded. "It's alright." He yawned. "Well, I've been feeling a little lethargic today, so I'm gonna take a nap."

"Okay, buddy!" Roy said with a smile. "You have a good one. Come on, Celia."

Celia hesitated before following Roy to the door. Before she exited, however, she cast one more look at Morton. He crawled into his bed with his pets, still wearing the same unemotional face he had worn previously.

Celia directed her head toward the ground. She didn't know much about this Koopa yet, but she did know he was mysterious. Very mysterious indeed.