Chapter 41 They Will Never Know

Chilliness. Bone freezing chilliness, the kind of cold that indicates evil lurks within the shadows. This was the type of cold that can cause the molecules in the blood to stop in their tracks as someone awaits the inevitability of freezing to death.

And the strangest part was that it wasn't even winter. Despite her vision being lacking, Celia knew (somehow knew) that there was no snow on the ground. There was no conceivable explanation as to why the temperature was below zero, and dropping with every second.

She hugged herself, trying to conserve as much body heat as possible. She shivered, her teeth chattered. She could barely see it in the darkness, but her fingers were turning blue. She wrapped them up within the folds of her hoodie as a realization occurred to her. She had to find shelter.

She sprinted forward. The wind rushed around her, making the freezing temperature all the more noticeable. It slapped her in the face, punched her in the nose. The chattering of her teeth became unmanageable. The shivers running up and down her arms became unbearable.

Luckily, she saw a house up ahead. It was a Mushroom house, the house where a Toad most likely lived. At first, Celia hesitated. Did she really want to show herself to a Toad? Did she really wish to subject herself to all the pain she had tried so desperately to escape from?

Her hands were turning to ice. She didn't have much of a choice now.

She bolted toward the house. The wind grew louder, nastier, more spiteful. It almost felt like teeth nipping down on her. She sped up again and felt relief when the door she knocked on was opened.

"Can you let me in? It's freezing out here."

The Toad's facial expression was blank as a sheet of paper. "Of course."

Celia's shivers grew stronger. The way that the Toad said that sounded...eerie. Ghostly, almost. Regardless, she couldn't let it bother her. She had to get out of the cold. She went inside, taking deep breaths as the warmth of the interior spread to her skin.

She turned toward the Toad. "Thank you."

The look the Toad gave back to her was so blank, so stoic, that she didn't even know if they were fully present. She swallowed a lump.

"Um, hello?" She reached her hand out, wanting to lay her hand on the Toad. That option would at the very least indicate to her that they were real.

Before she could touch the Toad's mushroom cap, they grabbed hold of her hand. They squeezed her wrist with a grip so tight, so painful. Celia whimpered. She tried moving her hand, but that was impossible.

"What are you…"

The Toad's face remained emotionless as they spoke up. "You do not belong in my house. You're an abomination."

Tears fell from Celia's eyes. Those words...Mavery said them. And hearing them stung just as bad if not more the second time.

"Le..let me go." Her hand was starting to turn purple as circulation to it was cut off. The Toad just stared at her, their eyes drilling down into her mind.

"You are Koopa scum," they whispered. "You were the biggest mistake that anyone could have possibly ever made."

With that, they threw Celia against the wall. Her spine went crack, her skull felt like it had shattered. She put her hand to the spot on the back of her head, and instantly winced. It hurt so, so much.

What's more, her other hand was now completely purple. She tried moving her fingers, but that was impossible. The appendage was dead. Fear struck her in the heart, panic filled her mind. She stared at her discolored hand, unable to comprehend what she would do without it.

A shadow crossed over her form. She looked up, slack jawed, into the eyes of the Toad. They were no longer emotionless. They were hateful.

"Why….!" Celia struggled to find the words as tears sprung up again.

"You know why," the Toad sneered. "You don't deserve anything. Let alone the life you've been given." He narrowed his eyes in a show of superiority. "I guess it falls on me to correct your parents' mistake."

With that, the Toad descended down on her. He kicked her, bit her, hit her. Celia screamed. The pain was so intense as this Toad attacked her in every way imaginable. Why was this happening? Why?

….

Celia bolted upright and screamed blue bloody murder. Prickles formed on her skin similar to how they had done in the cold. She turned on the light and frantically looked at her hands. They were both yellow. She felt the back of her head. It was intact.

Celia began to cry. She got into a feeble position, holding onto her legs like they were lifesavers that would pull her back to a boat. She cried into her own lap, for no one was there to comfort her.

"Celia!"

Celia lifted her head. There was Roy. His glasses were off, so she could see the worry present in his features. He bolted over to her and sat down on the bed, all with a dropped jaw.

"What happened? Are you hurt?" His speech was too quick for comfort. Celia dried her eyes, knowing full well that there was no point in lying to him. Not like she did last time.

"I had a nightmare."

Roy's brow furrowed. "What kind of nightmare? What happened in it?"

Celia swallowed a lump and directed her gaze toward her knees. "A Toad...tried to kill me."

Roy blinked before an expression of horror appeared on his face. "What? Why...why? Why would a Toad try to kill you?" He leaned forward. "Is that...is that like some sort of phobia that you have?"

Celia shook her head. "No. It's not. It's…" she sighed. "It's based on past experiences."

Roy looked confused. "Past...past experiences?"

Celia took a deep breath. She might as well tell him. She had wanted to avoid this topic, knowing full well that it would cause her more pain as she recounted it. But it was unavoidable now.

"The truth is...I've suffered from severe bullying in the past."

"Bullying?"

Celia nodded and wiped another tear away. "Yeah. I mean, I'm half Koopa. I grew up in the Mushroom Kingdom, the one place where no Koopa is or could ever be welcomed." She bit her lip and pulled her hair back, allowing the wide eyed Roy to see her scar. "I got that on the first day of preschool."

Roy stared at her, at her scar, in shock. "How...how?"

"Some kids beat my head into the side of the swingset." This time, Celia didn't even bother stopping the glow of tears as she pulled her hair back. "They all hated me. They hated me so much, Roy. I…" she lowered her head. "Because of it, I ran away from home when I was ten. I…." She shook her head. "Toads hate me, Roy."

Roy adorned an expression of...realization? "Oh." He looked straight at her. "That actually makes sense. Do you remember when I went to that gas station in the Mushroom Kingdom on our drive back?"

Celia nodded. "Did a Toad give you a hard time?"

"Yeah. They...they told me to fuck off, more or less." Roy shook his head. "That guy was a jerk. I almost went to jail that night." He looked straight at her. "Are all Toads like that?"

"Every Toad that I've encountered." She whimpered. "And now we can add my grandmother to the list of people who hate me." She buried her head in her hands. She took deep breaths, but that did very little to help. Almost nothing.

Roy watched her cry. He didn't reach out, he didn't touch her. He didn't do anything. But Celia felt his presence. On some level it helped, but it also hindered. A friend was seeing her during a time of weakness. She didn't want that. She didn't want to be seen like this. She didn't want to be seen after she got in a wrestling match with herself and her life. In times like this…

"I wish I could disappear."

Roy blinked. "What do you mean?"

She raised her head ever so slightly. "I am so...tired of it all. I am tired of always being weak like this. I...wish I could just...stop existing."

Roy shook his head. "You don't mean that."

"I do." She stared at nothing, her eyes empty. "If I could just go to bed one day and never wake up the next morning...that would be amazing. To get rid of all of this pain. To get rid of this horrible life."

This time, Roy reached out and laid his hand on her shoulder. "You know I would miss you if that happened, right?"

Celia dried another tear. "Why? There's nothing great about me. I'm not even a Princess like I originally believed. I'm just...a nobody."

"False," Roy said sternly. He leaned toward her. "You are so much more than that." He gently placed his hand on her face and dried the tears from her eyes. "Those toads, those humans, your grandmother...they could never know. They will never know how amazing you are."

Celia sucked some air through her teeth. "Stop. I'm not amazing."

Roy looked hurt, beyond hurt, when she said that. "Not amazing?" He shook his head. "I'm sorry, Celia, but I cannot agree. I am someone who has taste in girls. I know an amazing, precious girl when I see her, and you fit that bill to a Tee."

Celia shook her head. "You can say it all you want; it doesn't make it true." She lowered her head into her lap. "You say that my story can inspire people. But what's so inspiring about a half human hybrid who constantly gets the short end of the stick? Who can that possibly inspire?"

"Me. It inspires me."

Silence. Celia stared at Roy, into his exposed eyes. She shook her head.

"What about it inspires you?"

"Everything. Absolutely, positively everything."

There was silence again. Celia sighed and sank into the bed.

"Look," Roy said. "I can't tell you how to feel. I can talk and talk and talk about how much worth you have, but until you internalize it, there isn't much that my words can do." He stared at her seriously. "I want you to believe you have worth. I want to know. Those bullies will never know who you are."

Celia raised her head. "And who am I?"

"You're Celia Patch."

Maybe it was just the way that Roy said her name, but that...actually made Celia laugh a little.

"Oh wow. Stop the presses everyone."

Roy squinted at her. "You laugh, but that is your name. It means something. It is the name that you will carry with you forever. You can tell generations about it, or stay silent about it. But it is still your name. And it is just as important as the person who has it."

Celia blinked before smiling. "You should be a motivational speaker."

Roy snickered. "That is an idea, that's for sure. But yeah. They will never know. Keep telling yourself that."

Celia lowered her gaze once again. Good advice, she supposed. But it was useless in the long run. Even if she repeated that phrase to herself everyday, there was no way she could get rid of all of the physical and mental scars. They were too deep.

Roy chuckled. "You think I would make a good motivational speaker?"

Celia laughed. "Why else would I suggest it?"

Roy beamed and puffed out his chest. "Hmm. I bet I could inspire loads of people, help pull them out of ruts. I would be the best motivational speaker of all time."

Celia smiled. "Yep. You would."

Roy smiled back at her. "Thanks, Celia." He yawned. "Oh man. Do you think you'll be able to get back to sleep?"

Celia considered this statement before slowly nodding. "I'll manage."

"Good." Roy stood up. "Well, try to do that. We're asking Kamark about your Dad tomorrow, so it'll be a big day."

With that, he left.