Second chapter: not too much happening but a bunch of plot advancers, so try and bear with me. I hope you all like this story so far. As of yet I'm not sure whether or not Mario will be involved at all in the story; I really haven't thought it out that far yet XD
Disclamer: I own nothing, except for Davinna, David, and Captain Shanta. And the storyline.
It wasn't until seven years later that Davinna, known by friends and family as Nillie, thought about that day again. Spring had come to Toad Town, bringing with it the feeling of new chances and hope as rain took the place of snow, and sweet flowers replaced old dead leaves.
Her short, curly brown hair bounced around her still cherubic face, and her bright green eyes twinkled merrily. The blue skirt she wore matched the spots on her large white cap. She was walking down that same road, on the way to her same best friend's house.
She reached the little house and knocked on the sturdy wooden door. "Dave!" she called, standing on tiptoe to peer through the unusually high windows "Dave I know you're not sleeping in, now come on!"
The door opened and she was greeted by the smiling face of her long-time friend. "Aw, Nil, how d'you know? After all it is Saturday." He leaned against the doorjamb jauntily, and Nillie had to grin as she rolled her eyes.
"Dave, you dweeb! We both know you don't sleep in. I've only known you for… how long? Forever?" she said sarcastically. "Come on, let's go!"
David looked around, before looking back at his friend with intelligent, crystal blue eyes. "Um… where are we going?"
"We're going…" she said, grabbing him by the wrist and pulling him out of the house. "On a cruise."
David pulled his hand loose and shut the door of his house. "A cruise," he repeated, looking at her in disbelief.
"Yeah! Now come on or we'll be late!" she cried enthusiastically, laughing at the look on Dave's face as she grabbed him by the hand again and ran down the street, dragging him along behind.
A moment later they had slowed to a walk, and were meandering down one of the main streets of Toad Town. The place was aptly named; nearly everyone's last name was Toad: all except Merlin, the mailman Parakarry and of course, the Marios.
"I've got the whole day laid out for us," Nillie was telling Dave as they walked past the garden in the town square, headed south. "It's gonna be great. Wait till you see! We can stay all day-"
"All day on a boat?" Dave interrupted. "No offence, but won't that be boring?"
Nillie laughed. "Well, yeah, all day on a boat would be pretty boring. Which is why the boat ride is only half the fun. You'll know what I mean when we get there," she added. They had reached the corner where Tace T's Bakery stood, and turned right, headed for the port.
"Ahoy there!" came a greeting from down by the water. They looked over at Fishmael, who was sitting at the edge of the pavement by the water, and doing his favorite thing in the world: fishing. "Headed out ter sea?"
"Yes we are! It's a nice day for sailing, isn't it?" Nillie said, smiling pleasantly.
Fishmael shook his head. "It looks that way ter me, but I wouldn't know fer sure- I'm no sailor, ye know." He reeled in the line and scowled at the bare hook. "Took the bait," he muttered. "Need that Fuzzipede back- now that thing brought in some fish."
Dave grinned at Nillie, who shook her head, giggling. "All right, well, we'll talk to you later." The fisherman was fighting with the hook and some bait, and apparently hadn't heard them. The two laughed as the walked towards the docks, leaving Fishmael behind.
"Well," Nil said, "There she is." She waved a hand at the end of the dock, where a small white boat was moored. The peeling blue letters on the side read "The Oasis". "Beautiful, isn't she?"
"You've got to be kidding," Dave said, raising an eyebrow. "I thought we were going on a cruise."
Nillie shrugged. "Well, it floats, doesn't it? Use your imagination, 'kay? Besides, the actual boat ride is really pretty short, to be honest." She walked out to the end of the dock and carefully stepped up the gangplank and onto the deck. "Come on, Davie!"
Dave stepped cautiously onto the old wooden plank and slowly walked up to the boat. He soon realized that despite its shabby appearance, the boat was actually quite sturdy. He looked around and realized that Nillie was nowhere to be seen. "Nil?" he said loudly.
"Down here!" came her voice from somewhere below. He looked around again and saw that the galley door was open, and that a stairway led downwards. He climbed down the stairs and saw Nillie standing by a green nomadimouse wearing a sailor's cap and a blue ascot. "This is the captain," Nil said. "He's the only known nomadimouse to sail on a ship!"
"Pleased to meet you. My name is Captain Shanta," said the captain, stepping forward. Despite his choice in profession, he still spoke in the odd, Asian-type accent of the people of Dry Dry Outpost. "I came to the ocean because I got tired of all of the sand. So dry, so hot! I had heard of an endless expanse of water and swore to find it and master it someday. Finally one day I did; crossed the desert, climbed down the mountain, and took the train to Toad Town. I bought this boat- my own boat!- and learned to sail."
"You should hear the long version," Nillie whispered to Dave. Aloud she said, "Well, captain, whenever you're ready we can set sail."
"Aye, then! You can stay in the galley or come up on deck; it's all the same to me."
They decided to go up with Captain Shanta and watch the launch, and then they stayed on deck, chatting and enjoying the cool sea breezes and warm midday sun. Their voyage was indeed short lived but very enjoyable all the same, and when they reached their destination and docked, they were both totally content.
"Are you ready for your day of eating tropical food and totally relaxing? Unless you'd rather have an exciting jungle adventure; a trek through Jade Jungle! Or perhaps you'd prefer a refreshing dip in the cool waters of the bay? Whatever strikes your fancy, you can find it here, on beeea-utiful Lava Lava Island!" Nillie cried as they jumped down from the boat and onto the sandy beach.
Dave had to laugh; she sounded like she'd swallowed a travel brochure. "So, this is your secret plan for them day, huh?" he said with a broad grin. "Sounds great. But why just pick one when we could do it all?"
That was exactly what they did; David had never actually been to Lava Lava, so first Nillie insisted on showing him the sights. She took him to the spectacular volcano, where red hot lava flowed constantly. She took him to the entrance to Jade Jungle, and showed him the lush greenery. She even took him to the spot where it was rumored that a giant tuna had recently waited in the water after transporting Mario to the island on one of his adventures.
After their tour they returned to the village, where they bought cool drinks and chatted with the friendly yoshis who resided there. They agreed that it was great to live so close to such a wonderful tropical paradise, and to have a friend who could take them there whenever they wanted. "We've gotta do this more often," David said. Nillie nodded enthusiastically.
A while later they were getting bored with lounging around. There were still a few hours before they needed to be home, so they decided to explore the jungle a little more. Saying goodbye to their yoshi friends, and making sure that the five yoshi kids didn't follow, they set out into Jade Jungle.