~~
Jeshi: Okay, I'm back! ^-^

Larry: Nooo!! *

Jeshi: Yeeesss!! ^.^ Heehee, silly Larry! You know you can't get rid of me!

Larry: _ Or CAN I?!

Jeshi: _ No, you can't.

Larry: Awww!! T_T

Jeshi: ::ahem:: -_-; Disclaimer!

Larry: *sighs* u_u Jeshi doesn't own anything from Mario or whatever..

Jeshi: Very good, Larry. You earned yourself a cookie. *hands him a cookie*

Larry: O_O….ooooh…cookie…
~~

Larry had yet again awakened in the later afternoon. He opened his eyes sleepily and looked around. He remembered that he didn't know where he was, or if he was even anywhere near the Mushroom Kingdom.

He looked up and saw the tree he was sleeping under, standing tall with the many shades of green of the leaves. He then looked ahead of himself to see an elderly man watching him intently. Larry suddenly jumped up and gazed over at the man.

The man was quite thin, and pale too, barely any muscle or fat inside his body. It was more like looking at a skeleton that only had skin placed on it.

"You lost?" the man asked him. Larry shook his head.

"No…"he mumbled, straightening himself as he stood, "I'm leaving!" He turned to go down a road, when the man called out to him again.

"I wouldn't go down there, koopa. There's many of the villagers who will panic when they see you. And then the village panics, they really panic!"

Larry stopped and faced the man. He stood there giving Larry a thoughtful smile. Well, if this was true, then why was the man standing there talking to him? Shouldn't he have been running too?

"Why are you even talking to me, then?" Larry asked him. The man kept smiling and replied, "Well, you aren't going to do anything to us."

"What do you mean?!" Larry snapped.

"I was just walking by when you were sleeping. I heard you in your sleep. You were crying, calling for your dad apparently, and other people…you sure you aren't lost, kid?" he asked.

"Hmph..no.."

"Then what are you?"

"I'm not lost!! I'm misplaced!" Larry exclaimed. The man started chuckling when he heard this. He knew that the koopa boy was obviously lost, but didn't want to admit it. Though it was actually quite adorable as to how he was trying to convince himself otherwise.

"You're actually a cute kid, you're really young to be out on your own, you think you should go home?" the man asked him.

"I would if I could actually FIND home…" Larry said angrily.

"Don't worry, little one. If you have faith, you will find it, and your family." Larry shook his head at the old man.

"No, there is no 'faith'…I haven't been even close to my home yet, and at this rate, I never will be either..and everyone runs from me, so I really can't ask for directions," Larry replied to him.

"You're right. Because you are a koopa, you are considered bad and quite dangerous, though you mean no harm at this time because you are simply looking for your home. But the people do not know that do they? It's true, it does make it quite hard to find help then, but like I said, you must have faith. Faith isn't an object or a map that'll point out where home is. It's a special feeling in your heart, something that tells you that everything will be okay, reassuring you in some way or another. It keeps you strong and gives you confidence, and the more you believe in it, the more you have," the old man told him.

Larry thought that the man was nuts for a second, but after thinking about it, he was actually right. Larry never let himself believe that he was 'lost'…he kept telling himself that he was 'misplaced', that he was going to find his home one way or another. Sure he had gotten discouraged a few times, but it didn't stop him yet, and it still wasn't going to. How else could he have gotten so far? Especially all by himself. He then looked up and smiled at the old man, who stood smiling back at him.

"Heheh, you are a cute kid. Not many of the children around here listen to the old folk or talk to them, I was actually surprised that a koopaling would actually listen."

"Why wouldn't they listen? You're smart…you're like my brother, Ludwig!" Larry said. The man sat down in the soft grass, Larry sat down next to him.

"Well, talking to a koopa isn't that bad actually. There's nothing different about you at all. You breathe, you eat, you sleep and have feelings too. The only thing that is different is that you don't look like everyone else, but looks aren't the only thing to worry about…I really have no family, they're gone, they left far away and never speak to me…so I'd like to hear about yours. What's your family like?" he asked.

"Well…I have my dad…and then I'm the youngest of the children….and then I have 6 older brothers and sisters.." he started.

"6? Really, you have quite a big family, don't you?"

"Yeah…my oldest brother is Ludwig..he's really smart, and he's always there to help me, and all of us actually…and Lemmy and Roy…and Iggy and my sister Wendy ,and then Morton.." Larry stared at the ground, as if trying to memorize every little rock that sat in front of him.

"Wow..that sounds like a pretty big family…sounds really nice too. But even with so much, you don't always get along with them, do you?" the man asked. Larry shook his head.

"No…my brother Roy got really mad at me..and then I ran off and got lo- 'misplaced'..so I'm trying to get home now," Larry answered sadly.

"Well, don't worry, I'm sure you'll find your way home. Then you'll be with all of your brothers and your sister, and your dad, and you'll see, your brother will be so happy to see you again that he will have even forgotten that he was mad at you in the first place."

The man smiled at Larry. Larry just stared at him, and then he smiled too.

"It's actually quite nice to have an actual conversation with someone. I never have anyone to talk to, so I'm always alone. But it was really nice talking to you today, boy. I should get going now, and maybe I'll talk to you later then. If you're still hanging around, you could come by my house, it's just outside the village down the road," he said.

"Okay…" Larry replied. He felt a bit happier now, this man had trusted him in telling him where he lived. No one trusted him with anything like that.

After the man left, Larry got back to his feet. He liked talking to the old man, he didn't run from him, and the man seemed to understand his situation better than other people did. He decided that he wanted to go see the man the next day, talk to him some more…just a bit, before he carried on to find his home.

But for now, he was hungry. He ventured about until he had come across an apple with a small bruise on it. Since it was all he could find, he ate it and then tried to build a small little shelter for the night under the tree he had slept under earlier.

It was early the next morning when he made the short trip to the outskirts of the next unfamiliar village, where the old man's house must have been. Except there was something not right. There were people crowding the house, they all seemed worried. He cautiously walked up and looked around at all the anxious faces. Was this even the man's house? Or was he just mislead again?

Finally two people had come out of the house, and carried with them a lifeless person…who coincidentally was thin and pale like the old man he met yesterday…unless…that was the old man…

Larry stood there wide-eyed. The old man had died overnight. And he had only just met him.

"I really have no family, they're gone, they left far away and never speak to me…"

"It's actually quite nice to have an actual conversation with someone. I never have anyone to talk to, so I'm always alone" The old man wasn't just old, he was pretty lonely too.

At least Larry knew that he was able to make the old man happy again for at least one last time.

It was then that a lady in front of him had turned around. She stared wide-eyed at him. He stood there, staring back at her. She hesitated, then screamed. Everyone turned and looked at Larry, and suddenly panicked. Some people grabbed rocks and started throwing them at him, and others yelled and screamed, grabbing other things to chuck at him.

Larry didn't get it..he didn't do anything to them, so why were they attacking him?! Either way, he turned and ran as fast as he could again, trying to avoid the flying objects that were thrown at him. But his only problem was that he ran right into the small town.

~~
Jeshi: Yay! ^-^

Larry: No! Not yay!! T_T I'm gonna get hurt!

Jeshi: T_T But that's what makes the story so much better and sadder-ish!!

Larry: O_O….odd…

Jeshi: Anyways…^-^ I'll try to get the next chapter up soon, that is if I don't happen to catch writer's block…@_@ I think I'm heading for another one…..

Larry: O_O Oh no…
~~