Chapter 6 A Great Escape

"So then I told them that they were acting like a major dinkus, which of course they took extremely well."

Celia laughed. Over the past few days, she had been coming up to visit Aqua. The Princess, while trapped, wasn't going to pass up an opportunity to tell her new friend some anecdotes and stories that she had either made up or lived out. Celia listened with keen interest every single time that Aquamarine opened her mouth. The two shared in the laughter over this new joke.

"What did they do after that?" Celia asked.

"Oh, you know," Aqua said with a shrug. "They basically called me a jerk and slapped me across the face."

"What? That's horrible," Celia said. "Why would they do that to their princess?"

"Beats me." Aqua snickered. "I mean, I knew they weren't completely there upstairs, but that just pushed me over the edge."

Celia nodded. She wondered why Aqua didn't have that Toad executed. But then again, the Toadstools seemed to operate under a certain set of ideals. They were known across the land as fair, merciful royals, governing their kingdoms with a stern yet gentle hand. Aqua was probably raised under that same set of standards.

"I feel bad for you, to have to endure that," Celia said.

Aqua waved her hand to dismiss the statement.

"Eh, it's not that big a deal." As she said this, she started to scratch herself. The pink dress that she wore seemed to be biting down on her figure.

"Are you okay?"

Aqua hesitated for just a minute.

"Can I tell you a secret?"

"Sure. Of course."

Aqua let out a sigh.

"This is my first time being kidnapped. And let me tell you, I don't know how my sister is able to deal with this nonsense every other week."

Celia nodded. She definitely wouldn't want to be in Aqua's position. Sure, she was well fed. Sure, she had access to clothes and a bed. But at the same time, she was being detained. For someone with a free spirit like Aqua's, she probably was going stir crazy.

"She must have gotten used to it."

"Well, if that's the case, I pity her," Aqua said as she continued to scratch. Celia stared as the Princess proceeded to scratch her arms. They were turning red and flaky. Bumps that resembled scars were starting to make themselves known.

"What's wrong with your skin?" Celia asked.

"I have eczema. It doesn't act up as badly when I'm back home. However, this place is just so darn dry."

Celia's sympathy for the princess grew a hundredfold.

"Have you been drinking? I heard that tends to help."

Aqua sighed.

"The koopas are afraid of giving me stuff to drink because of my Hydrokinesis. They think that if I get a hold of enough water, I would escape."

"Well, won't you?"

"Uh, duh!" Aqua said. "I would be out of here in a heartbeat." She shook her head. "Unfortunately, they've only been giving me a cup at a time. While that is enough for me to do stuff with, I don't want to risk dehydration."

Celia nodded. Once again, she felt her sympathy for the Princess increase.

"Do you know what they are going to do to me?" Aqua asked. Celia noticed a tiny hint of fear appear in her eyes.

"They are planning on a hostage negotiation," she said gently. "Bowser wants to exchange your freedom for Peach becoming his queen."

Aqua looked horrified, if only subtly. She tried to mask her terror with a scoff.

"That's typical. Bowser has been trying to get Peach's hand for years." She let out what sounded like a whimper. "I wish there was something we could do."

Celia considered this. She realized that there was only one thing standing between the Princess' freedom and her captivity. That something was her. None of the Koopalings were willing to let Aqua go, probably because they were afraid of what would happen if they did. Yet Celia couldn't let her new friend lay in this room, waiting for her sister to accept her arch enemy's hand.

"Maybe there is."

…

Aqua waited around for Celia to return. As she did, she continued to scratch at her skin. It wasn't painful, but it was annoying. The itchiness of the eczema patches didn't make her waiting any easier.

Neither did her thoughts. She wondered what Celia was planning. It had better be good.

Finally, the hybrid returned. In her hands were three items. They were a wand, a spellbook, and a blue cloak that Aqua had seen Ludwig adorning. Aqua raised an eyebrow, but didn't speak as Celia laid the cloak down on the floor. She flipped through the spellbook.

"Newton Pasture Vanique!"

She waved the wand. Before she knew it, the force field surrounding the entryway of Aqua's room had vanished. Aqua was astonished as Celia handed her the cloak.

"Put this on, pull the hood up, and follow me," she said.

Aqua nodded without another word. Interestingly, because of her short stature, the cloak fit her perfectly. She pulled the hood up and followed Aqua out of the room.

Despite the fact that Aqua was covered, the two girls made sure to duck behind the corners wherever possible. Aqua thought that this situation was eerily similar to a spy mission. It certainly had many of the same elements.

"We're almost there," Celia whispered once the two had gotten to the entrance hall. Aqua breathed out a sigh of relief. She could see that they were closing in on the door that would lead outside the castle, and consequently to Aqua's freedom.

Unfortunately, once they made their way outside, they encountered two hammer brother guards. Aqua held in a breath, waiting for them to bust her. Thankfully, they weren't the observant type.

"Good afternoon, Celia. Good afternoon, Master Ludwig," one of them said with a tip of the hat. Celia nodded at them and brought Princess Aqua all the way down the hill that the castle rested on. It wasn't until they were a good distance away from the castle that Aqua let out a sigh of relief.

"I can't believe it," she said as she pulled back the hood of Ludwig's cloak. "I'm free!"

Celia nodded, her breath sounding frantic.

"Yes. So, what do we do now?"

Aqua smiled.

"We get me out of this dress," she said as she continued to scratch. Celia laughed.

"Sounds like a plan."