Hi to no one! Because no one reads my fics. Oh, my apologies. I've one person who's reviewed me since the hurtful flame. Thank you to drumroll ... supersmashgal! Confizzling is just a neologism meaning confusing. I use lots of them. Anyway, here is chapter six of my story, "Extended Family!"
Disclaimer: once again, I do not own anything Mario-ified. That's all Nintendo's business. I only own Jessie, Ian, Nicole, and Mogjyn.
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Chapter 6: On Hallway Two
"I can't keep this up... I can't keep this up..." Mogjyn was bent over in hallway two, panting over and over, "Why? Why?" He was flushed and hot and short of breath, probably from the activities of the dance and the being in a large social gathering.
Mogjyn looked down the hallway to make sure no one was around. He faced away from the direction he came from, the back hallway, then reached up and took off his white mask.
'
Nicole walked down the atrium of her high school and looked for hallway two, where she'd seen Mogjyn go. Clearly they'd taken different routes. He'd probably taken the back hallway that went up the side of the school, but she'd taken the path that went through the atrium.
"H2," she whispered to herself when she'd found the hallway. Nicole turned down the corridor and saw a blue-robed figure with his head in his hands at the corner on the other end- clearly Mogjyn. She thought she'd have some fun and scare him, so she tiptoed down the hallway very quietly and stood over him. "Boo!" she said and watched his head snap up in surprise. But what she saw surprised HER.
"AAAAAGH-!" she screamed before the boy cupped his hand over her mouth. This was not who she expected. This kid wearing shy guy robes and Mogjyn's jacket and tie did not wear his shy guy mask. He was a human! A human with buzzed black hair and yellowish-tan skin (kind of like a Japican or Ameripan) Kinda cute, Nicole thought, but at the moment she didn't particularly care.
"Shhh!" he shushed her frantically, abandoning his mask on the floor to stand at his friend's height to quiet her. He turned his head to look down all the hallways and check for anyone who might have heard Nicole scream. "Pleasepleaseplease- puh-lease don't do that again!" he begged her.
"Give me a reason not to! Who the heck are you!" Nicole demanded. He cupped his hand over her mouth again, but this time she bit his finger.
"Ouch!" he cried pulling his hand away and waving it in the air. "Nicole, it's me for crying out loud! Mogjyn!"
"BS!" she retorted about to run down the hallway, but he grabbed her by the arm. "Let go-!"
"One hundred percent!" he exclaimed pulling her back.
"What are you talking about?" Nicole asked quickly and skeptically.
"One hundred, ninety-five, ninety-four, ninety-eight, ninety-seven, ninety- five, and one hundred!" the boy said. "Those are your current grades in each of your classes from first through eighth!"
Nicole stopped pulling for a moment. "How did you know that?" she queried uncertainly.
"Why would anyone know that?" he asked her.
"I'd have to have told them," she said slowly. He let go of her arm and bent down to pick up his mask.
"And the only people you told were Jessie, Ian, and me," he put the mask on. "Mogjyn." Nicole stared at him wonderingly.
"Mogjyn!" she asked incredulously. "You're a human?"
"Don't tell Jessie and Ian though," Mogjyn said pulling his hood back on and starting down the hall back to the dance.
"Why not?" Nicole asked running up and standing in his way. "Mogjyn, this is huge! I mean, you're just like us! The only humans in all of Mushroom Kingdom! Why would you not want Jessie and Ian to know this-?"
"For one thing, I don't have any family or anywhere to go. I take care of myself right now. If I brought attention to the fact that I'm human, the fact that I'm parentless would soon follow. At that point- well, I suppose you can guess what would happen..." Mogjyn explained. "Secondly, my name's not REALLY Mogjyn," he said. "It's Martin."
"Martin? What's with the name-changing-?" Nicole started. Then something dawned on her. "Wait a second- not the same Martin that was Jessie's cousin back in the other world-?"
"Yeah, that's me."
"Why didn't you want Jessie to know you're her cousin?"
"Because it's JESSIE. She'd probably want to find my family and stuff and get me unparentless. And all of that extra attention is really unnecessary right now, what with the school crap and basically just sorting everything out."
"I still don't get it. If Jessie's your cousin, then why can't you just look to her and Mario and Luigi for family support."
"One problem there. Jessie was my cousin in the other world. I have no clue if she's my cousin here or not."
"She would still treat you like her family."
"Look, Nicole, could we please talk about this later? If we don't get back soon they're gonna think we're doing something we shouldn't," he said.
"...All right..." Nicole said disappointedly.
"And until then would you PLEASE not tell them about me?" he requested.
"But-!"
"Please!"
"...Fine... But we're going to talk about this soon," Nicole said, pointing a finger right at his nose.
"Thank you." He readjusted his mask, hood, and robe. "How do I look?"
"Like an abnormally tall, athletic, and deep-voiced shy guy," Nicole answered and started down the hallway. Mogjyn joined her and they returned to the dance.
'
"I am going to hunt down and systematically destroy every person who put a check on that box," Jessie growled through clenched teeth. Every club and team that entered a banner in the homecoming parade had to nominate one person to homecoming court, then the people in the Future Educators of Mushroom Kingdom, who were in charge of homecoming this year, narrowed it down to three boys and girls per grade. Unbeknownst to Jessie and Ian, they and Nicole had been nominated... because they were the sister of the hero and the long-lost royalty.
"WE didn't even want to be here! And now they're suddenly crowning us homecoming royalty?" Ian complained. "I thought that was the football player's and the cheerleader's burden?" Yeah, they got voted duke and duchess, the titles given to the winners of the sophomore class. Freshmen were lord and lady, junior: prince and princess, senior: king and queen.
"I want to know who exactly nominated me and WHY I was not informed!" Jessie growled as they headed toward the makeshift stage. They looked out over the cafeteria and saw Nicole and Mogjyn gaping at them from their table. Many of the students were pointing at Jessie's outfit again. The FEMK treasurer gave the freshmen their little rewards and let them say something, then moved on to Jessie and Ian.
"Do you want to say anything?" Paulina, the mole secretary, asked as she handed them each an envelope and Jessie a bouquet of flowers.
"YOU don't want us to say anything," Ian said, glaring at her. Paulina looked nervous and allowed the vice president to award the prince and princess, and the president awarded the king and queen.
"Are we allowed to leave yet, or are we still on exhibit for our fellows?" Jessie asked Paulina.
"I- I guess you can leave now," Paulina answered timidly.
"Bye!" they flashed her the fakest, cheesiest smile of all time and dismounted, the others following. "I swear if anyone ever does that again, heads will roll!" They returned to their table.
"Evil preps, huh?" Nicole asked.
"That would be my guess," Jessie muttered.
"It wouldn't be so bad if the reason they nominated us wasn't because we were siblings to heroes and royalty!" Ian said.
"But it was, and so it is bad and sucks and totally incenses me-!" Jessie said.
"But, there's not much you can do about it," said a familiar voice behind them. Mr. Yidderan was standing right behind them.
"I'll bet you had something- SOMETHING- to do with this," Nicole said pointing a playfully accusing finger at Mr. Yidderan.
"Again, if I did there's not much you can do about it. Accept the things you cannot change, change the things you can, and find the wisdom to tell the difference between the two," Mr. Yidderan said.
"Whoa! Repeat that! That's one for the favorite quotes list!" Jessie exclaimed taking a pen from her breast pocket and writing it on her palm as Mr. Yidderan repeated it.
"That wasn't just a bunch of pretty words, y'know."
"You're right, we're going to take that advice. There's nothing we can do about it now," Ian said
"Good boy."
"But next year we can make sure that we're not nominated!"
"Oh, goodness..." Mr. Yidderan said. He was about to walk away when he turned back to Jessie, "By the way, Jessie. I like the outfit. It's very you." She smiled at him as he left.
"Okay, it's going on nine-fifteen now," Ian said.
"I think we've more than fulfilled our athletic obligations," Mogjyn added. They all agreed and stood up to leave. They forced their way outside and started the walk home.
"So, what did they give you for winning?" Nicole asked when they got to the point where they all had to split up.
"Dunno exactly," Ian answered remembering the envelope he'd received. He took it out and started to open it.
"Oh, flowers and some other thing in this envelope that I haven't opened yet-," Jessie said.
"Holy friggin' crap!" Ian exclaimed as he looked at the paper in his hand.
"What is it?" Nicole asked.
"Nothing. Just a stupid little certificate that says I was homecoming duke for 2003," he answered.
"Right. Like you couldn't have figured that one out on your own," Mogjyn said. They all rolled their eyes.
"Well, see you all later," Jessie said. She turned left and walked down the road toward the pipe house.
"Hasta luego," Ian said as he and Nicole turned right to head into town toward the castle. Mogjyn was left to walk straight ahead to his home. A little ways down the road he looked around and walked up to a small house that wasn't in great condition and had a "For Sale" sign in front.
"Welcome home," he mumbled and walked up to the front door. He went inside and took off his shy guy disguise, lay down in a sleeping bag on a crappy couch that had been left by the previous owner, and went to sleep, trying to figure out where to go from there.
'
Yeah, some turn around in there. Seriousness a little bit. And I don't know who I'm talking to. Oh, well. If no one else my ten-year-old sister and me like my stories... sings It's a sad world afterall. It's a sad world afterall. It's a sad world afterall. It's a sad, sad world...