***
With Ossie's help, the 20-minute walk took only about 10 minutes. Most of the ride was easy enough for Ossie, since they were traveling down the other side of the mountain, and the two Koopalings along with Rachelle enjoyed the wind in their faces.
Lemmy was astonished to see that much of what lay on the other side of the mountain seemed exactly the opposite of the desert; warm, lush, and green. Not scorching hot, like the desert. Just warm.
Soon they arrived at Rachelle's house. It was in a village full of Birdos. Even though Lemmy and Wendy had never seen so many Birdos in one place, Rachelle seemed indifferent. She was obviously used to it.
"Whee!" yelled Rachelle as the trio climbed off of Ossie. "That sure beats walking!"
"That's what we thought too," agreed Wendy.
Inside, Lemmy and Wendy were able to tell their story in more detail. They told her everything that had happened since they first walked onto the Doomship. About everything, that is, except Iggy. There was no need to go around telling that to a complete stranger. Rachelle seemed nice enough, but they had still only just met her.
"Well, it seems like you're in quite a predicament," she stated after the two were finished talking. "How you even managed to make it this far is beyond me. The desert is pretty harsh."
"So we noticed," said Lemmy.
"Well, you tell me you came from Plit. That's pretty far off. You might want to take a boat or something," Rachelle suggested. "To try to find some way back to the mainland."
"Huh?" Wendy wondered aloud. "If we're not on the mainland. then where are we?"
"Yoshi Island, of course," Rachelle answered. "Where did you think you were?"
"Uh, Yoshi Island didn't exactly occur to us."
"Being unexpectedly stranded in a foreign environment can do that to a Koopa," added Lemmy sarcastically.
"So we'd need a boat or something then?" Wendy asked. "We don't have any coins or anything, so we couldn't rent one."
"No problem," answered Rachelle. "There are always a few ways to cross the ocean without money. Or at least maybe one way."
"Really?"
"You bet. There are usually some Gooney Birds down by the beach. They're pretty big, and I've seen them fly great distances without landing. Maybe you could hitch a ride."
"Anything is fine," said Lemmy quickly. "As long as it works."
And that's how shortly later, the two Koopalings ended up making total fools of themselves trying to catch a Gooney Bird. They tried everything from laying baited traps to flinging themselves at the oversized seagulls in hopes of capturing one while Rachelle tried to stifle her laughter.
"Hey, you shut up!" Wendy said indignantly. "It's not as easy as it looks, you know."
"But you look so funny!" Rachelle giggled.
Finally, Lemmy managed to grab one by the foot. The two girls managed to help him hold it down before it carried him off.
"I've got. a Gooney Bird," gasped Lemmy as he tried to catch his breath. "Now what?"
"Well, now you have to catch another one," Rachelle told him. "You think this one can carry you both all alone?"
After some more failed attempts, Wendy grabbed herself another Gooney Bird and struggled to restrain it.
After thanking Rachelle and bidding Ossie a tearful farewell (at least on Wendy's part), they were on their way. Wendy sniffled. She'd become quite attached to their feathery friend.
"Thanks for everything!" Wendy yelled back at the last minute. "Don't forget to write!"
Riding on a Gooney Bird wasn't too complicated, and Lemmy learned early on in the flight that as long they let the bird do what ever it wanted, there wasn't much to worry about. He tried to steer his Gooney Bird, and the look it gave him could have frozen water. They tried to fly within speaking distance, but this also proved to be a difficult task.
Finally, Lemmy's Gooney Bird just had to take a rest. It landed on the water, but Wendy's just kept on going.
"Hey, you!" she exclaimed frantically. "Bird! Stop flying! Take a rest! You heard me, land already!"
The bird ignored her until she bonked it on the head. It decided it didn't like that and finally landed in the water. She came to a buoyant stop a ways off from Lemmy, but she could still see him. Soon, Lemmy's bird took to the air again, and another bonk prompted Wendy's into doing the same thing.
After around three more hours of flying, it was Lemmy who first spotted land. He shouted to Wendy, who was too far away to understand what he was saying until she saw it for herself. She cried out happily. This annoyed her Gooney Bird.
It decided that it had put up with too much, and attempted to dislodge its unwelcome rider. It shook and bumped around and generally just caused a lot of trouble for Wendy until she finally couldn't hold on any longer. Down she fell, landing with a splash.
"S-s-stupid b-b-bird!" she chattered as she tread the icy-cold water. "I k- k-knew this was a b-b-bad idea!"
Lemmy wasn't worried about his sister drowning; she was a very good swimmer. However, the water was extremely cold, so he knew he'd have to get her out as soon as possible. Actually achieving this was not so easily done though. He wrestled for flight control for a minute or so before persuading the bird to land near to Wendy.
"I h-h-hate Gooney B-b-birds," Wendy muttered to herself as she climbed on with Lemmy.
The single Gooney Bird couldn't fly with both of them on its back, so they had to float to shore. This took a little bit longer, but its little legs still paddled furiously as they headed towards the mainland.
Finally, after hours at sea, the two Koopalings were delighted to finally find themselves on solid ground once more. They tried to ignore the weird looks they were getting from people as they drank in the familiar sights of the Mushroom Kingdom. They were almost home.
To be continued.
Rachelle Davison 2001
With Ossie's help, the 20-minute walk took only about 10 minutes. Most of the ride was easy enough for Ossie, since they were traveling down the other side of the mountain, and the two Koopalings along with Rachelle enjoyed the wind in their faces.
Lemmy was astonished to see that much of what lay on the other side of the mountain seemed exactly the opposite of the desert; warm, lush, and green. Not scorching hot, like the desert. Just warm.
Soon they arrived at Rachelle's house. It was in a village full of Birdos. Even though Lemmy and Wendy had never seen so many Birdos in one place, Rachelle seemed indifferent. She was obviously used to it.
"Whee!" yelled Rachelle as the trio climbed off of Ossie. "That sure beats walking!"
"That's what we thought too," agreed Wendy.
Inside, Lemmy and Wendy were able to tell their story in more detail. They told her everything that had happened since they first walked onto the Doomship. About everything, that is, except Iggy. There was no need to go around telling that to a complete stranger. Rachelle seemed nice enough, but they had still only just met her.
"Well, it seems like you're in quite a predicament," she stated after the two were finished talking. "How you even managed to make it this far is beyond me. The desert is pretty harsh."
"So we noticed," said Lemmy.
"Well, you tell me you came from Plit. That's pretty far off. You might want to take a boat or something," Rachelle suggested. "To try to find some way back to the mainland."
"Huh?" Wendy wondered aloud. "If we're not on the mainland. then where are we?"
"Yoshi Island, of course," Rachelle answered. "Where did you think you were?"
"Uh, Yoshi Island didn't exactly occur to us."
"Being unexpectedly stranded in a foreign environment can do that to a Koopa," added Lemmy sarcastically.
"So we'd need a boat or something then?" Wendy asked. "We don't have any coins or anything, so we couldn't rent one."
"No problem," answered Rachelle. "There are always a few ways to cross the ocean without money. Or at least maybe one way."
"Really?"
"You bet. There are usually some Gooney Birds down by the beach. They're pretty big, and I've seen them fly great distances without landing. Maybe you could hitch a ride."
"Anything is fine," said Lemmy quickly. "As long as it works."
And that's how shortly later, the two Koopalings ended up making total fools of themselves trying to catch a Gooney Bird. They tried everything from laying baited traps to flinging themselves at the oversized seagulls in hopes of capturing one while Rachelle tried to stifle her laughter.
"Hey, you shut up!" Wendy said indignantly. "It's not as easy as it looks, you know."
"But you look so funny!" Rachelle giggled.
Finally, Lemmy managed to grab one by the foot. The two girls managed to help him hold it down before it carried him off.
"I've got. a Gooney Bird," gasped Lemmy as he tried to catch his breath. "Now what?"
"Well, now you have to catch another one," Rachelle told him. "You think this one can carry you both all alone?"
After some more failed attempts, Wendy grabbed herself another Gooney Bird and struggled to restrain it.
After thanking Rachelle and bidding Ossie a tearful farewell (at least on Wendy's part), they were on their way. Wendy sniffled. She'd become quite attached to their feathery friend.
"Thanks for everything!" Wendy yelled back at the last minute. "Don't forget to write!"
Riding on a Gooney Bird wasn't too complicated, and Lemmy learned early on in the flight that as long they let the bird do what ever it wanted, there wasn't much to worry about. He tried to steer his Gooney Bird, and the look it gave him could have frozen water. They tried to fly within speaking distance, but this also proved to be a difficult task.
Finally, Lemmy's Gooney Bird just had to take a rest. It landed on the water, but Wendy's just kept on going.
"Hey, you!" she exclaimed frantically. "Bird! Stop flying! Take a rest! You heard me, land already!"
The bird ignored her until she bonked it on the head. It decided it didn't like that and finally landed in the water. She came to a buoyant stop a ways off from Lemmy, but she could still see him. Soon, Lemmy's bird took to the air again, and another bonk prompted Wendy's into doing the same thing.
After around three more hours of flying, it was Lemmy who first spotted land. He shouted to Wendy, who was too far away to understand what he was saying until she saw it for herself. She cried out happily. This annoyed her Gooney Bird.
It decided that it had put up with too much, and attempted to dislodge its unwelcome rider. It shook and bumped around and generally just caused a lot of trouble for Wendy until she finally couldn't hold on any longer. Down she fell, landing with a splash.
"S-s-stupid b-b-bird!" she chattered as she tread the icy-cold water. "I k- k-knew this was a b-b-bad idea!"
Lemmy wasn't worried about his sister drowning; she was a very good swimmer. However, the water was extremely cold, so he knew he'd have to get her out as soon as possible. Actually achieving this was not so easily done though. He wrestled for flight control for a minute or so before persuading the bird to land near to Wendy.
"I h-h-hate Gooney B-b-birds," Wendy muttered to herself as she climbed on with Lemmy.
The single Gooney Bird couldn't fly with both of them on its back, so they had to float to shore. This took a little bit longer, but its little legs still paddled furiously as they headed towards the mainland.
Finally, after hours at sea, the two Koopalings were delighted to finally find themselves on solid ground once more. They tried to ignore the weird looks they were getting from people as they drank in the familiar sights of the Mushroom Kingdom. They were almost home.
To be continued.
Rachelle Davison 2001
