Threadbare

Threadbare (adj): having the nap worn off so that the thread shows

Thread (n): a thin continuous strand of spun and twisted textile fibers; a tenuous or feeble support

Bare (adj): naked; unconcealed or exposed; empty; leaving nothing to spare

-from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, 11th ed. (2004)


TW: Chapter contains violence and brief cutting/blood at the end. Read at your own risk.

"Poyo, poyo," Kirby said to the Wireframe busboy.

The Wireframe nodded, serving up another large sundae for Kirby. Empty ice-cream bowls lay scattered around him, but he didn't care. This was escape from another day of pointless, undeserved harassment.

Where to start? Fox had "accidentally" tripped him at breakfast, sending his food flying everywhere. Pikachu had given him the cold shoulder, most of his focus on some sort of petition targeting Luigi's side special. The electric mouse had gone to Kirby's matches for the sole purpose of shooting Luigi dirty looks. And the day's spectators had been more vicious than yesterday's. Tuff, Tiff, Chef Kawasaki and Luigi had made it a point to sit in the first row, only to be treated as personae non grata. Which led up to here—Kirby sitting in the remodeled ice-cream parlor, eating sundae after sundae, hoping the creamy dessert could dull the pain.

"I'll have what he's having, please."

Kirby paused, spoon to his lips.

Jigglypuff had entered the ice-cream parlor and situated herself on the stool next to Kirby, payment in hand.

As the Wireframe fixed Jiggs's sundae, the Balloon-type turned to Kirby.

"Hitting those sundaes pretty hard, aren't we?" she warbled.

Kirby shrugged. "Poyo, poyo, poyo," he said quietly.

"Okay, well—maybe you can talk to me about it," offered Jiggs.

"Poyo?"

"Definitely, Kirby. I'm all ears," Jiggs said cheerily.

Kirby sighed deeply. "Poyo, poyo, poyo popoyo poyoy poyoyo poy poyo popoyo poyo," he said. "Poyo poy poyoy poyo, poyo, poyo poyoy poy popoyo. Poy poyo poyoy poyo, poyo poy…" The words spilled out of Kirby's mouth as he bared his soul to Jigglypuff. He found himself revealing things he wouldn't dare to reveal to anyone else, even Luigi and Tiff! By and by, he slipped into a level of intimacy rivaled only when he was with Pikachu—intimacy which was lacking in recent weeks.

Jiggs listened intently. She didn't interrupt Kirby, nor did she judge him. When he was finished, she sat there silently, allowing this information to sink in. Finally, she spoke.

"It isn't right, what Fox and his cronies are doing to you."

"Poyo!" Kirby said fiercely.

"But not all of them are like that. Luigi and his pals have done a great job trying to stick up for you."

Kirby smiled briefly. "Poy," he said wistfully. Sadly, he added, "Poyo poy poyo poyoy poyo."

"Kirby, please. They hate seeing you beaten down. But you make a good point. This is something you don't bounce back from. I'll see if I can talk to them later today."

Kirby brightened. "Poyo!"

The Wireframe placed the sundae before Jiggs, who immediately dug in.

"Poyo poy poyo," observed Kirby.

"I only moved up a slot. It's nothing to sneeze at," shrugged Jiggs.

"Poyo, poyo, poyo, poyo poyoyo popoyo poyo, poyo!" added Kirby. "Poyo, poyo, poy poyo?"

"When it comes to Ganondorf and Koopa, it's not about tiers. It's about power and having fun at everyone else's expense," explained Jiggs. "You'll be tempted to throw their low rankings in their faces, but—don't. Because if you do, you'll be no better than them."

Kirby nodded in understanding.

"Poyo, poyo," he said softly. "Poyo, poyo."

"Kirby—you looked so sad that I just had to keep you company," said Jiggs.

"Poyo—poyo poy poyo poyoyo?" Kirby asked cautiously.

"Am I doing anything later? Well, aside from a few matches, not much."

"Poyo, poyo, poyo poy poyoy poyo?"

Jiggs blinked. "Are—you asking me out on a date?" she gasped.

Kirby blushed.

"What about Pikachu?"

"Poyo poy poyo," muttered Kirby, looking at the floor. "Poyo poy poyoyo."

"He's barely paying attention to you? He's fixated on Luigi and his side-B? Why, that's not right!" cried Jiggs. "He needs to get his priorities straight!"

"Poyo, poyo, poyo."

"Smart move. I would take a break from him, too, if he was acting like that toward me. But this get-together is not a date, understand? I'm not gonna be the rebound puff."

"Poyo," agreed Kirby.

"All right," said Jiggs. "See you later."

She took her sundae, patted Kirby on the appendage and left. The Star Warrior smiled after her.

Things were looking up a little bit.

Master Hand sat in his spacious office, mind whirling like an out of control Ferris Wheel. It was happening all over again. In spite of his reprimand yesterday, the hounds were once again on the hunt. Earlier this morning, the Lylat Disciplinary Council rendered their decision. Fox and Falco received a 30-day suspension of their pilot's license. The Hand of Creation hoped the duo would take this consequence to heart, but so far, it didn't look like it.

Maybe Luigi was right. Maybe MH was too lax on those who triggered his zero-tolerance policy. So far, he had to call many offenders to his office for a dressing-down, only for them to turn around and do it again when they thought he wasn't looking. But in 1999, he repeatedly reprimanded and suspended Fox and Captain Falcon, to little avail. Who was to say it would work this time around?

The glove emailed the head of the Lylat Disciplinary Council, thanking them for their time and assistance. Just as he was about to busy himself with planning tomorrow's matchups, someone knocked on the door.

"Enter."

Kirby toddled in, his bean-shaped eyes red from crying, his body mottled with bruises.

"Ah, Kirby. I was just about to summon you," said MH.

Kirby sat down at the desk. "Poyo?"

"I want you to know that Fox and Falco answered for the stunt they partook in yesterday morning. Their licenses to fly were suspended for 30 days each."

Kirby blinked. "Poyo poy. Poyo poyoy poy popoyo poyo?" he asked flatly.

"Flying with Star Fox is a big deal to them, so yes, I'm sure they'll learn from this."

"Poyo poy poyo, poyo. Poyo, poyo, poyo poy poyoyo popoyo poy poyo," said Kirby with a sniffle.

"They're taking it out on you? Kirby, remember what I said. Just ignore them. They'll stop in due time."

"Poy poyo popoyo poyo."

"Easy to say but hard to do? I know it's hard to do, but you have to try. I'll do what I can to further discourage this behavior, but you have to work with me, all right?"

Kirby sighed. "Poyo."

MH smiled. "Remember, that tier list isn't there to judge you. Luigi had to learn the same thing, and he eventually grew stronger from it. Which actually reminds me, I'm glad you're spending a lot of time with him. He's been through the exact same thing and no doubt understands the burden you bear. Do you think you can follow his example and come out of this a stronger person?"

"Poyo," nodded Kirby.

"All right, Kirby. You are dismissed."

Kirby puffed himself out of the office, resolved to get through another day.

Later that day, Master Hand made his rounds through the Smash Mansion. The first thing catching his attention were the posters plastered to the walls. One of them featured Pikachu doing his Skull Bash, the text reading "COPYCATS WOULD LIKE TO STEAL THIS MOVE! DON'T LET THEM!" Continuing on, MH noticed that the tone of these posters grew increasingly aggressive and hostile, more and more explicitly antagonizing Luigi. "LUIGI LIKES TO COPY SIGNATURE MOVES AND CALL THEM HIS OWN. COULD HIS NEXT TARGET BE YOURS?" asked one. "DON'T LET THIS LITTLE GREEN ROCKET TAKE OFF—JOIN THE CAUSE TODAY!" exhorted one depicting Luigi about to let fly with his Green Missile.

"Holy cow," murmured Master Hand as he floated past, making a mental note to take these posters down later and pinpoint those who put them up.

Shortly thereafter, he reached the newly-remodeled gym. MH pushed through the doors to find a group of female Wireframes huddled in the Aerobics Area, giggling.

"What's so funny?" he asked them.

One Wireframe put a finger to her lips. "Shh," she said, pointing toward the Cardio Area.

MH followed her finger and saw what the Wireframes were giggling at. Luigi, wearing a pair of green leggings and no shirt, was astride one of the spin bikes, occupied in a very intense workout, blasting through the stress of the day. Blue eyes, fixed on the wall opposite him, had a hard, intense glint. His mouth was rounded in a perfect "O" shape. Twin cords snaked from a pocket of his leggings to a pair of headphones on his head, and MH recognized the shape of a Walkman radio in that pocket. The female Wireframes giggled and blushed at the sight of the plumber's abs winking in the light, dancing and weaving with the pedaling strokes. His skin had flushed to a soft pink and was decorated with sweat droplets and sweat trails. The perspiration dripped from his bulbous nose and chin, coasted down his neck, sparkled along his shoulders and back, forked along his arms and glittered on his chest, abdomen and belly. They watched the cords and knots of muscles as they worked. The gears of the spin bike whirred softly, and joining that soft whirr was the sound of deep, measured, whooshing breaths.

"He's been here most of the afternoon," whispered another Wireframe. "He only took two brief breaks so far. He really likes that spin bike."

"He is so hot!" gushed another. "I can look at him for hours! Especially when he leans out of the saddle and his…"

"Whoa, take it easy," cautioned a third Wireframe.

"Look at that six-pack," a fourth sighed dreamily. "Have you ever seen a six-pack like that before? Man, he is all muscle! Okay, mostly muscle, but you know what I'm talking about. And that belly button—that cute little belly button!"

The Wireframes giggled again.

"O—kay, that's enough noshing on the eye candy for one day," chided MH. "I'll watch the gym for a bit while you go on your break."

Shoulder sagged, but the Wireframes complied, after sneaking a lingering, last look at Luigi, of course.

"If I may," said the last Wireframe to leave, "he's seems to be taking this well."

"Better than most," opined MH.

Once the Wireframes left, MH slouched onto the chair, observing Luigi as he approached the apex of his workout. The plumber's fierce facial expression reminded him why he'd stopped here. For a full hour, maybe more, he dutifully waited, until the sweat started flying and Luigi closed his eyes, pushing himself to the absolute limit.

Finally, Luigi relaxed, opened his eyes, and slowed his pedaling pace.

"Fancy seeing you here," he said to MH between gasps for breath.

"I sent the Wireframes on a break," MH told him.

"Hmm. That's nice of you," said Luigi.

"So, how are you, L?"

Luigi skimmed a finger across his brow. "Peachy. What's this about?"

"I wanna talk to you about Kirby," explained MH.

"So, you've finally noticed."

"I get that you want to look out for him and all that, but there are times when Kirby's gonna feel—you know—smothered. Once in a while, you need to give him time for himself, time to think."

"That's exactly what another one of his friends told me," said Luigi.

"You're in contact with Kirby's friends?"

Luigi added resistance to the spin bike. "Sir Meta Knight. Kirby was his pupil after they made peace. I knew he'd give me some good advice. I've got his contact information if you're interested."

"No, thank you, L," said MH, "but you should continue to communicate with Sir Meta Knight. And if the need arises, he is certainly welcome to come over."

"Didn't Fox and Falco have to meet with that council this morning?" Luigi abruptly changed the subject.

"They did."

"And?"

"Their piloting licenses were suspended for 30 days each."

"Wow. That makes me feel better." However, the look on the plumber's face and the increased aggression in his pedaling said otherwise.

"Luigi, I know you're angry at them, and you have every right to be," said MH, "but there's only so much that I—and Lylat—can do without going overboard. And I think that not being able to do something they love for a month is enough to sober them. I had this talk with Kirby, too."

"What if they don't? What if they take it out on Kirby? I'm telling you—Fox hasn't changed a bit. He still has his Mr. Big Stuff attitude from the first tourney."

Just the thought of Fox sent his adrenaline back up, causing him to push himself back to threshold. Respectfully, MH stood back and allowed Luigi to sweat the rest of his anger out. For another hour, the sound of his breathing filled the room. His face and upper body became illuminated in a fantastic glow, a tight smile slowly forming on his lips. The last time Master Hand had seen that smile, Luigi was beating the ever-loving [bleep] out of Captain Falcon and Fox in a free-for-all in 1999. The Hand of Creation found himself growing acutely afraid for Fox, Falco, Marth and anyone who hurt and harassed Kirby.

Finally, Luigi cooled down and slid off the bike. "Trying to give Kirby space is gonna be so hard to do. He's a good friend of mine, and him going through what I endured—it's different because he's only a child. But thank you for the talk. Good to see that you're finally paying attention."

On those words, Luigi grabbed up his drink and left.

That evening, Kirby puffed his way into the Smash Bake Shoppe, where the hostess directed him to Jigglypuff's table.

Jiggs had a green ribbon tied around her head and a smile that warmed Kirby's heart. "Puff! It's nice to see you," she said.

"Poyo," said Kirby as the two hugged.

Kirby settled himself across from Jiggs and took a sip of water. "Poyo, poyo, poyo?" he asked.

"I hear this place is all the rage, and pretty affordable, too," said Jiggs. "As a matter of fact, I ordered just the meal for us…"

A waitress approached their table, holding a nice-sized circle-shaped cake frosted and iced with chocolate, with fudge crème and candies on top. She placed the cake on the table, along with two plates, a knife and a cake server. "Enjoy," she said before she left.

"Allow me," said Jiggs, cutting and levering out a slice of the cake and setting it onto one plate, which she held out to Kirby.

Kirby salivated at the sight of the moist, chocolate cake, the thick layer of frosting, the fudge filling…

"Poyo…"

Jiggs cut a slice of cake for herself. "All right, Kirby. Dig in," she said.

She didn't have to ask twice. The first forkful was heaven, rich and delicious and oh, so chocolatey that Kirby temporarily forgot his problems. He'd never had cake like this before. After swallowing the first forkful, he ate another forkful, and another, and another, until his mouth was covered in that yummy chocolate goodness.

"I guess you like it," said Jiggs.

"Poyo poy," said Kirby.

"You're welcome. I knew it would cheer you up," Jiggs told him. "Now, I've got the raddest news ever."

"Poy."

"I was passing the gym when I heard MH giving Luigi the talk I intended to give him," reported Jiggs.

"Poyo…?"

"Luigi said something about contacting this—Meta Knight. Is he a friend of yours?"

Kirby visibly lit up. "Poyo! Poyo, poyo!"

"Your mentor and surrogate father? No wonder L reached out to him," said Jiggs. "Anyway, I realized how truly worried Luigi is about you, so I don't wanna push him about giving you space. But now that he's got Meta Knight on the case…"

"Poyo poy! Poyoy poyoyo poy poyoy poyo, poyo popoyo poyo," Kirby assured her.

"I just love that you have so many people looking out for you!" gushed Jiggs. Her face fell. "I just wish Pikachu would get with the program instead of complaining about the Green Missile."

"Poyo," sighed Kirby. He'd seen the electric mouse handing out flyers and pamphlets and tried to broach the subject of his current trials with him, but he'd seemed disinterested, like it wasn't his top priority. The puffball had been understandably stung.

"Luigi said himself that it's gonna be hard to not smother you with affection all the time, but he also said he's willing to try. That's a true friend."

"Poyo," Kirby said in agreement.

"And you should've seen Peach on Yoshi's Story with Marth," Jiggs went on. "She whipped his royal [bleep] six ways to Sunday! Boy, was she mad at him over yesterday! That was the first time I ever saw her show anger."

Kirby laughed.

"What I'm trying to say, Kirby, is that you have more friends and allies than you think. These idiots can't take that away from you. And when I look at you, I don't see the worst fighter in Melee. I see an unflappable hero who's always cheerful and who never let's anything get him down for long. If Luigi can soldier through this crap, then so can you. Your name's the one we should know, and you're the star of the show! You're fantastic! You're selfless! You're adorable! Kirby—you're the one!"

Tears—happy tears this time—welled up in Kirby's eyes. "P—poyo…"

"And I'm not just saying this to butter you up. I'm saying it because I mean it. Don't let these words define who you are. You have to keep on, Kirby. Keep on fighting."

Kirby smiled at Jiggs. They'd known each other since that first get-together, but now the Star Warrior began to see the Balloon-Type in a whole different way. She could do more than just knock someone out by taking a nap or sing people to sleep and draw on them with a Sharpie. She was intelligent, bubbly and optimistic—a little bit like him. Unlike Pikachu, she gave herself time to sit and listen as he poured out his troubles. She didn't have to accept his invitation to dine with him tonight, yet she chose to. Had he asked Pikachu, he would've given a hollow excuse that he was busy with other things, and judging by those pamphlets and flyers he was handing out, he had a very good idea of what those "other things" were.

"Poyo—poyo, poyo, poyo poy poyoyo poyo?" Kirby asked softly.

Jiggs blushed. "Well, people think I'm cute, but I'm glad you think that," she said.

Kirby finished his slice of cake and cut himself another slice.

"I think you're cute, too," said Jiggs. "Has Pikachu ever told you that?"

"Poyo poy poyo poyoyo," shrugged Kirby. "Poyo poy poyoy poyo, poyo, poyo. Poyo poyoy poyoyo popoyo poy poyo, poyo, poy poyo. Poy—poy poyo, poyo, poyoyo popoyo poyoy."

"Well, it's a good thing he doesn't like you solely for your cuteness, that he fell in love with you because he saw something on the inside," said Jiggs, "but that doesn't excuse the fact that he's been neglecting you! You have to bring this up with him sometime."

"Poyo. Poyo—poyo."

"Then when?"

"Poyo poyoy poyo."

"When he decides to listen? That'll be the day," scoffed Jiggs.

Kirby smiled. He loved Jiggs's spiciness. Part of him hoped that she'd give that electric mouse a good talking-to herself, doodle on him with that Sharpie, maybe…

"Kirby!" chided Jiggs, as if reading his thoughts. "You know that violence isn't the answer! But one of these days, I'll take him aside. Don't you worry!"

Kirby relaxed further. He was starting to think that he was dating the wrong Pokémon!

The waitress returned, this time with a pitcher of milk and two glasses. She set the glasses down before the two and poured the milk into them.

Jiggs raised her glass once the waitress left. "Cheers," she said.

"Poyo," replied Kirby, and they toasted.

It was a lovely get-together. Jiggs and Kirby munched on cake, drank milk and talked about life. The Star Warrior considered Jiggs Heaven-sent, but she insisted that this wasn't a date. He wanted to respect her wishes not to be somebody's rebound, but at the same time, he couldn't deny that their friendship was deepening. Plus, he didn't want to give up on him and Pikachu so soon.

Alas, this good feeling wasn't to remain. Three-quarters of the cake had been eaten when the door to the Bake Shoppe was abruptly slammed open.

"Oh, hey, you two!" Fox's voice sang out. "What a coincidence, running into you here!"

Fox plunked himself down at their table and slung his arm around Jigglypuff.

"Puff! Fox, do you mind?" Jiggs asked in annoyance.

"How's my fellow high-tier doing, hmm?" Fox wanted to know, completely ignoring the question.

"I'm doing fine, thank you," Jiggs said curtly, shoving Fox's arm off of her.

Suddenly, the vulpine wrinkled his nose. "Wait a minute, what are you doing, hanging around with him?" he asked snottily.

"Poyo, poyo!" snapped Kirby. He was getting a little tired of Fox's b.s.

"I didn't ask you," sneered Fox. "By the way, is that cake?" He snatched the last of the cake from the platter and shoved it into his mouth. "Mmm, thanks, Kirbs."

Kirby growled.

"Look, Fox—Kirby and I were having a conversation here," said Jiggs.

"Yeah, what about? How badly he sucks in Melee?" snickered Fox.

"No," said Jigglypuff, seeing Kirby bristle. "What we were discussing is none of your business."

"Poyo, poyo poyoy poyoyo poy poyo, poyo—poyo poy POYO poyoy poyo!" Kirby exploded.

"Until I showed up?! Thanks to you, I can't fly for a month!" Fox said hotly.

"Poyo, poyo, POYO popoyo?" Kirby asked incredulously.

"Yes, it is! This is all your fault! All of it! All you had to do was sit there and take it! But no! You had to play the victim, and Master Hand went and chewed out Falco and me before throwing us under the bus! And now the Lylat council took our wings away! Proud of yourself?!"

"Poyo, poyo, poyo!" yelled Kirby. "Poyo, poyo, poyo poy poyo, poyo poyoyo poyo, poyo poyoy poy poyo! Poyo!"

"Oh, shut your fat face, you little pink twerp!" spat Fox. "All you do is eat and copy people! No wonder Sakurai cast you at the bottom! He despises you! You're an embarrassment to him, and you're an embarrassment to Smash!"

"Fox!" gasped Jiggs. "How could you say that? Sakurai brought Kirby into this world himself!"

"You stay out of this!" Fox said coldly.

"Excuse me?" sassed Jiggs, folding her arms across her chest.

Kirby felt his "hands" curling into fists. He had to stay strong. He had to!

"Your own king does business with a corporation to send monsters after you!" Fox turned his fury back on Kirby. "You even put your own homeland in danger when you insisted on repairing that Star Rod! What kind of hero does that?" He leaned forward and got right in Kirby's face. "Even Pikachu doesn't want anything to do with you anymore, and he was tight with you back in '99. For a mouse, he's smart enough to cut his losses! Who in their right mind would want to be with a trash-tier, anyway?"

Kirby's gut twisted.

"That's enough, Fox!" snapped Jiggs. "Pikachu isn't that kind of person, and you know it!"

"Oh? Then how come he's avoided him lately?" challenged Fox.

"He's—distracted by some stupid disagreement!"

Fox just laughed. "I'm sure he's just using that as a cover so poor little Kirby won't get suspicious," he snickered.

"Poyo poy," Kirby said tightly.

"Whoa, whoa—you're telling me to shut up? Who do you think you are?"

"Poyo poy!" Kirby said louder.

"Or what? You'll tell your friends on me?" Fox guffawed. "The little puffball always has to have his friends protect him? Well, I don't see any of them anywhere. Face it Kirby, nobody wants to hang around with a filthy casual like you."

"Well, I do," Jiggs asserted, "and I won't hesitate to alert Master Hand if you keep this up. You're already in enough trouble as it is!"

"Well, good luck with that," Fox snorted. "It's gonna be your word against a god-tier's. And do I see any other witnesses? No."

"Poyo poy poyo, poyo," hissed Kirby.

"Oh, I'm a piece of [bleep]? I'm a piece of [bleep]? Maybe all of that cake did something to your brain." Fox was on a roll, despite Jiggs's best efforts to shut him up. "The only piece of [bleep] I see is you! If you hadn't vilified me, then I'd still have my wings! How would you like it if I got you in trouble, and MH took away your little Warp Star?! You're a [bleep] fighter in a [bleep] tier, and I'm getting sick just looking at your face!"

That did it! Kirby pulled back and hit Fox. In the face. Harder than he'd ever hit anyone or anything in his life. "POYO!" he screamed.

Fox staggered, catching himself on another table, too surprised to feel any pain. This lowly low-tier had actually struck him. The nerve of that puffball! Surprise quickly morphed into rage as the vulpine whirled on Kirby.

"Okay, now you've asked for it!" Fox whipped out his Blaster and swung it viciously, smashing it into Kirby before he or Jiggs could even react!

Kirby landed hard on the floor as Jiggs screamed, and Fox delivered two swift kicks to the puffball's side before snatching up his half-eaten slice of cake and ramming it into his mouth. "Here! You want it so much?! Eat it!" he bellowed, practically shoving the dessert down Kirby's throat.

"Fox! Stop it!" hollered Jiggs. "This is barbaric! This is no way for the leader of Star Fox to settle affairs!"

Her words fell on deaf ears as Fox pinned Kirby to the floor and began pummeling him, first with his fist, then with the barrel of his Blaster until it literally cracked open. Tossing it aside, Fox punched Kirby a few more times before standing up and pelting him with kicks and stomps, calling him vile names the whole time.

Jiggs, now attempting to pull Fox away, yelled for the waitress to call 9-1-1. As the waitress complied, Wireframes rushed into the Shoppe to assist the Balloon-Type. For his part, Kirby tried to defend himself, but the vulpine was just too strong and too angry.

After what seemed like a thousand years, Jiggs and the Wireframes finally managed to yank Fox off of Kirby and restrain him.

"Let's go!" barked one of the Wireframes as they marched Fox to MH's office, him spitting curses and going on about how Kirby made him do this as they hauled him out.

"Kirby!" cried Jigglypuff as she rushed to Kirby's side.

He was curled up where he'd fallen, trembling, whimpering and sobbing. Blood poured from his mouth and nose and where the Blaster's barrel had cut him. There were terrible bruises, too, and one eye was swelling up. "Poyo…"

"Shh. Shh. Save your strength. Look at me," said Jiggs. "You're gonna be all right."

More Wireframes and EMTs arrived on the scene, followed by Dr. Mario and Crazy Hand.

"What on Earth is going on here?" barked the Hand of Destruction.

"Fox—he—he…" said Jiggs.

"I got him," said Dr. Mario, joining Jiggs at Kirby's side and checking him for major injuries. "Get me a blanket!"

Jiggs obeyed, and Dr. Mario draped the blanket around the puffball before gently lifting him up and onto the EMTs' stretcher. "Take him to my office. Hurry!"

Swiftly, they wheeled the stretcher down the hall, through several corridors and into Dr. Mario's office as Jiggs followed closely behind.

"I'm sorry, Jiggs," Dr. Mario said breathlessly, "but you'll have to wait outside."

"I know," Jiggs said through tears.

Emotionally spent, Jiggs collapsed on a bench, wondering how in God's name things got to this point.

Luckily, Kirby's injuries weren't serious. After he gave his statement to Master Hand, he was prescribed painkillers, given a Maxim Tomato and released with a clean bill of health. As for Fox, he was barred from competing in Smash events, ordered to write a letter of apology to Kirby and once again referred to the Lylat Disciplinary Council. It didn't take long for word of this incident to spread, and it took five people to hold Luigi back from charging into Fox's room. The plumber calmed down only when MH and CH threatened him with disciplinary action.

"L," they said, "the only thing you can do tonight is—pray. You can probably visit him in the morning."

Half of the Smashers could barely sleep that night. Link tossed and turned, had disturbing dreams and wound up turning to Zelda for comfort. Young Link eventually crawled into bed with them. Peach and Mario lay in each other's arms, wondering what they could've done before and what they could do now. The Ice Climbers were at the gym, climbing a rock wall, while Samus hogged the treadmill. Falcon watched a classic movie to rid his mind of the guilt and the memories. Sheik played her lyre and contemplated her own actions thus far. Pichu wondered if he should confront Pikachu over this business. Mr. G&W and Roy managed some fitful sleep. Jiggs had to sing herself to sleep when her racing thoughts got out of control.

And Luigi.

He lay on his back, hands clasped behind his head, staring at the ceiling. Images of vulgar bathroom pranks, shoelace-tying, ostracizing, name-calling and derisive blog posts flickered through his mind like an old movie. Falcon's voice was a distant echo, laughing and saying the words. "Last-place loser". "N—b". And Fox's scoffing and turning up his nose. His heart was thumping, faster and harder, and he could barely breathe. There was pain, so much pain, his pain and Kirby's pain. A low sob slid from his mouth, followed by another and another. His tears dripped onto his pillow. This was only going to get worse, and he didn't know if he could stop it anymore. They'd never learn. They'd only say what the victims wanted to hear and then target someone else. Luigi had endured some physical assaults in 1999, but never like that. Never like that.

"Oh, Dio," he wept. "Tell me what to do. Please, tell me what to do."

And in Kirby's room, he sat in the corner, fresh tears on his cheeks, his eyes dead. His day was getting better, and then along came Fox, spewing his nonsense and blaming him for being punished. He didn't vilify Fox! He didn't get him in trouble! All he did was attempt to remove himself from the situation, and then Master Hand had walked in and reacted accordingly. Fox's attitude was taking a turn for the worse, and if something wasn't done, it would be no turning back for the vulpine.

Fox hated him. Pikachu was ignoring him. Most of the higher-tiers were berating him. The audience was treating him like some wrestling heel. All of it was steadily wearing away at him, and he didn't know if he could hold out much longer before things became—threadbare.

Slowly, he rose from the corner and went to his drawer, opening it to reveal the glass shard he'd hidden yesterday. He took it out, admiring it. In that shard, he saw what these people were doing to him, what they were turning him into. Kirby sat on his bed, studying the glass, unraveling its mysteries.

Yes, he thought. Yes. Lowering the shard, he pressed it against his right appendage, gently at first, and then a little harder. A small bead of blood appeared, dark against his pink skin. Instinctively, Kirby removed the shard and put the appendage to his mouth, once again tasting his own blood. What was he thinking? He couldn't do this! He had to keep it together!

Kirby closed his eyes for a few seconds. Then, he reopened them and looked at the shard again. And then he brought it to that same arm and slowly drew it across the skin, a thin and shallow cut, almost like a papercut. He watched a line of blood slowly well out from the wound. A small slice of him, gone. He proceeded to do the same to the other arm. Now, both arms had matching slivers cut from them.

Moving clinically, Kirby dabbed the cuts with antiseptic and bandaged them. They'd heal before morning, he was sure of it. Carefully, he wiped the shard clean and put it back in the drawer. And then he slid under the covers, turned out the light and tried to get some sleep.

He found little of it that night.


A little bit about this chapter:

I'm currently mourning the loss of my dad and my uncle, who passed on within six months of each other. I've been dealing with a lot of grief, but I want to reassure you that I haven't been tempted to do what Kirby did at the end of the chapter. And just like Kirby, I will rise up and move on, start a new chapter. Maybe I won't face off against Galeem like Kirby will, but I'll be ready to move on.

Also, let me know if I need to increase the rating to an M. It's only going to get more intense from here.

Please read and review.