Life might tear us apart, but our bond will always bring us together
Disclaimer: The characters are property of Nintendo, not mine.
Enjoy!
SMB =Mario
SMB=Mr.L/Luigi
SMB=Both
Light
He's drowning.
Invisible hands cling to him and drag him hard to the bottom of that endless ocean. Its waters are cold, numbing his body and freezing his skin. Intangible figures, with red eyes and accusing glances, whisper secrets and narrate tragedies. Someone calls out to him incessantly, amidst sensual laughter and disdainful smiles, a name he does not recognize as his own, but which pulls him, pulls him and pulls him...
He closes his eyes, echoes of screams and cries joining the dark symphony that has been composed in his honor. It is useless to fight, to try to save himself and go back to the surface, he has learned it years ago, when shouting for help only sunk you faster and trying to free yourself ends up with all those figures jumping over you and sinking you, sinking you, sinking you...
Staying calm is the best option he has, he just has to endure the incessant burning in his chest and suppress his desperate desire for some oxygen. At some point he will hit the bottom, or be dragged down into the abyss and open his eyes with a scream stuck in his throat and his heart about to burst out of his mouth. It is something he has dealt with all his life, enduring in silence because no one cared whether he suffered or lived in absolute terror that all those voices would, at last, truly consume him.
But... it's okay. He knows how to handle the eternal darkness that constantly surrounds him in real life and in his dreams. Even when that light that illuminates the waters looks so tempting and warm...
He opens his eyes, with something close to surprise. The cloak of darkness dissipates to make way for a blinding light that gradually covers him. Something holds him by his clothes, and with a strong pull releases him from the grip of the deformations that, screaming in terror, flee from there. L is pulled, now to the surface, and soon finds himself coughing and spitting out water, swallowing huge puffs of air to put precious oxygen into his lungs.
Whatever pulled him tries to pull him out completely, but its strength is not enough and its light not bright enough to clear that sinister darkness that holds him prisoner. Voices and nightmares watch like predators in the shadows, waiting. He floats wearily, swaying to the calm rhythm of the waves that remain unmoved by what's happening. The warm light seems to resign itself for the moment, and remains floating beside him, keeping him on the surface without loosening its grip even for an instant.
He doesn't really understand what is happening, but for the first time in his twenty-four years of life, Mr. L feels something close to peace in this stormy dream; a sense of security surrounds him, makes him want to cry as he used to in the past, that eternal hole in his chest filling up with something he doesn't know what it is, but which his heart has always missed. Even knowing that nightmares await any moment of weakness, L closes his eyes again, allowing himself to be vulnerable, knowing that this presence would protect him from anything. So, for the first time in his life, he can rest on a moonless night.
In real life, the figure of the green thief smiles softly, his breathing becoming slow and his features relaxing under the new tranquility of his dream. At his side, Mario sleeps peacefully, one hand under his head and the other clinging to the younger's clothes.
Whether in reality or in dreams, his duty as a big brother will always be to protect him.
Identity
Everything is blurred, he had trouble breathing and his body felt completely exhausted. Disoriented, he look around, smoke trails and enormous flames consumed the entire scene, and his heart raced in panic. (Was this the Mushroom Kingdom?)
(No... something was wrong...)
(Where...?)
"What are you doing just lying there?! Move it already!"
He jumped at the roar of an unknown voice... but immensely familiar. Fear settled on his chest (huh?) and he quickly got to his feet, taking the rucksack with his few belongings to run after the owner of the voice. The last thing he wanted was to make her more angry, especially after her plans were ruined by him.
He awkwardly dodged the terrified villagers, trying to protect his face from the heavy flames and ashes that floated in the air.
(Wait... W-what is...?)
"Hurry up, boy!" He let out a little shriek and tried to force his little legs further. "If you want to live, ignore the pain, and don't even think about crying!"
He nodded sharply and bit his lower lip, trying to keep his sobs under control.
(Who is she? Why do I obey her?)
(What the hell is going on?!)
The strong heat waves stunned him and made him nauseous, the thick layer of smoke irritated his eyes and made his chest hurt, but he refrained from complaining, knowing that it would only provoke the anger of his master (master?). Holy stars, how did everything get so out of control? Why didn't anyone come to help them?
Where... Where was the hero?
The small houses were falling apart after being consumed by the powerful flames, people were running in fear trying to get away from there. It was an impressive and very horrible sight, the crying of the children squeezing his heart hard, but he could not look back, his teacher would be angry, after all, that had been the first lesson she had given him...
(Help others and they will help you.)
Be the strongest, the smartest, and you will survive.
(But... but that never...)
"Stop! What are you doing?!"
Curious, he made a big mistake in that moment. He stopped and turned, watching large ships ply the sky, and farther away, a grey ship took flight and disappeared amidst the glow of the stars. Screams of horror, curses, and wails could be heard equally, but nothing so loud as the beat of his heart in his ears as a chill pierced his bones.
The hero... the one who swore to protect them with all his heart... had escaped...
(Why?)
W-why?
His eyes flooded with tears, unable to take his eyes off the sky. The ships drew their cannons, and a powerful glow began to emanate from them.
(No... Move, move!)
He couldn't move a single muscle, he was paralyzed with fear. His teacher... where was his teacher? He wanted to go with her, why did he have to turn around? He was afraid... he was terrified.
"Brat, you fucking dumbass! What was the first thing I told you?!"
It was her voice, it sounded so angry... and so far away from him. People started passing him around in a big stampede, but he couldn't move, he couldn't process what was happening.
(What the hell is going on?! Why can't I move? If I stay here...)
"No..." He found himself mumbling, shaking his head as thick tears ran down his cheeks. "Don't... Don't... STOP IT, DON'T DO IT!"
(This is not going to work, what are you waiting for? Run!)
The glow covered the whole place, and his sobs finally escaped his throat.
"No... Stop..." He raised his hands, covered by black gloves that he didn't recognize as his own. "Stop...please..."
He carefully observed his hands, then the rest of his attire, filthy and unkempt as it was; it was dark green combined with black. These were not his clothes... this... this was not his body...
(What's going on? What's going on?!)
His head began to hurt, the oxygen coming in between gasps, and with a scream leaving his mouth he pulled his hands tightly to his ears.
There was a thunderous roar, and the cannons were fired.
"NO! STOP!"
"BRAT!"
"AAAAAAAAAHHHH!"
Mario woke up with a shriek, falling out of bed with a crash. His breath was completely agitated, his eyes open in panic watching nothing as his heart struggled to get out of his chest. It took his brain forever to process what was happening.
A nightmare... just a nightmare...
Exhausted, he dropped to the ground with a huge sigh, trying to calm the tremor in his hands and that dreadful desire to cry that was consuming him. In fact...
He ran a hand over his eyes, discovering that he had indeed been crying in his sleep. Tears that had not been his, but of that frightened child whose heart felt so tired...He let out a grunt, feeling the sweat dripping off his clothes and a headache coming on. Those dreams always left him a mess, and he could only hope that Bowser wouldn't come up with one of his attacks on the castle or plans to kidnap the princess because he certainly wasn't going to be at his one hundred percent. It was far too ridiculous; those dreams had been plagued him for a few years, but lately they had become more... real; less like seeing behind a curtain of water and more like... memories.
The most frightening thing was this feeling of confusion about who he was. He was always waking up with thoughts and ideas that were not his own, with unknown names floating around in his head and emotions so bitter that they caused his flames to escape his hands with less self-control than usual. It always took him a couple of hours to sort out his thoughts and put aside the residues of that other person. On this occasion it seemed that the matter was not as serious, having been able to identify that such a memory did not belong to him.
He pressed his lips together, closing his eyes wearily.
Mario... I am Mario...
He sighed heavily, staring at the ceiling of his room with something close to melancholy, his thoughts going even further, at that frightened child who felt so lonely and sad.
But who are you?
Wishes
The little glimmers contained the wishes of all the inhabitants of his world, each of a different color, whose brightness depended on the intensity with which the wish had been made.
Amidst some glimmers, shining in a reddish/orange tone like a miniature sun, was the wish of a little boy who longed, even now in his adulthood, for some star to grant it.
"I wish to find my other half."
Reasons
"So... you're saying that the fulfillment of wishes is not up to you?"
Eldstar sighed heavily, watching them all with remorse.
"I'm saying it's not as simple as you think it is. There are some wishes that even we stars don't have the power to fulfill." He said softly, as if explaining to small children. Mario clenched his forearms tightly, frowning slightly as he stared at the ground.
"So what? You just let those wishes get stuck while children down there wonder why they never got their wish?" he asked roughly, earning a surprised look from his companions, mostly from the princess in pink.
"Mario..."
The aforementioned snorted under his breath, dodging her gaze. The old star looked at him sadly, as if he understood why he was suddenly so frustrated, so... disappointed.
"It's not that we're leaving them adrift. Sometimes, when they are asked for continuously with such fervor, these wishes come true on their own power." He explained gently, looking into his eyes. "There are others that simply aren't in our power to come true, but in theirs..." The hero in red held his gaze, and the solemnity with which he spoke afterwards caused his heart to contract painfully. "And there are others... who will be fulfilled not by fervor or by us... but because destiny will want it so."
It was said for everyone, but he knew his words were directed at him. And Mario understood it, his rational side understood it completely, but his heart... the one that longed for, the one that continued to beg with the same fervor of a small child for his wish to be fulfilled, could not help but listen to them as simple excuses.
Concern
Stupid hero.
"I thought you didn't care what happened to the Hero."
"And I don't."
"Then why have you been glued to the TV since his battle with King Koopa was announced?
He pressed his lips and refused to even glance at Mimi, who was smirking at him.
Tsk. Stupid hero.
AN: From now on, the drabbles won't have any specific order. It can jump form one subject to the other.
Thanks so much to Amethyst Goldenwind, lalalei and Megan Romero for your kind reviews!
Hope you enjoy it! (I'm still learning how to write in english, be patient with me, please :D)
Anyone who guesses which drabbles used references and from what movie they are, can give me a word for a drabble, or if they want an specific idea I may be able to actually write it.
Read you later!
Can I have a review?
