A/N: Hey guys! So last time we got to see Fawn talk to Roy and Lemmy. Roy was mean to her, Lemmy wasn't. Ok so now we deal with the last two: Larry and Morton. And we get another moment with Bowser. This'll be the last chapter like this.

Thank you to reviewers.

Angela: Well he is called Bully Koopa ^^' he's kind of dick, yeah. It's funny, because you wouldn't expect it from a pink guy! Get it? Ahhh Nintendo you've done it again.

Coooool123: Don't be scared again I like Roy so they're good plans I think XD

Well enjoy!

Chapter 14: Good talkers

Fawn

Bowser and I had stayed out for quite some time before we finally went back to our rooms. I slept much better after I saw him.

I once again awoke to the same scene as yesterday. I freshened myself up and Jimmy was at the door. He gave me food and more washed clothes. We chatted a little before we went separate ways.

I decided to continue wandering around the castle, until I came across the dining hall. There I bumped in to Larry, walking out with his shell bulging slightly. I had actually seen Larry passing by in the distance a few times before, with the same slight bulge in his shell.

"O-oh! I'm so sorry!" I apologized.

"Oh...it's alright ma'am," he said after checking himself.

I realized that I hadn't talked to Larry much, and thought I should at least try to. "So um...why are you leaving the dining hall?" I asked awkwardly, trying to start a conversation.

"Oh, why no reason. I just thought I'd ask the chefs if I could help in anyway," he said sweetly.

"Oh...well, you're very kind!" I said honestly. "But...why is your shell bulging?"

"Just curious, how knowledgeable are you on the anatomy of Dragon Koopas?"

"Um...not very..."

"Ah, that explains it. You see, when a Dragon Koopa is young, his shell occasionally begins to stretch out. You know, to accommodate whatever future size he may be," he explained. He started to seem unconfident. "It may seem slightly awkward at times...I feel like such a weirdo!"

Oh no, my ignorance of Koopa puberty offended him! "N-no! You look great! Handsome! You're fine..."

"Oh, thank you so much!" he said happily. "Well I must go do my homework now! Thank you for chatting ma'am."

"Oh...okay! Bye!" I said. I saw something on the floor though, a piece of candy.

"Oh, I think you dropped this!" I called, holding up the candy.

He turned around and quickly snatched the candy. "Oh...why thank you! I don't know how I dropped it...well, I must be going!" With that he took off.

I smiled after him. What a nice boy... "Hey Fawn! There you are! I was looking for you!"

I turned around to see Morton walking toward me.

"Hey! I wasn't sure where you'd be so I was on my way to your room, but then I saw you here, so you saved me the time!" he greeted.

"Oh...your welcome!" I said, remembering I was to spend the day with him.

"Come on!" he said, gripping my hand and tugging me along.

His hallway had a brown carpet and white walls. There were paintings of him reading and talking, with the one serious picture up of him. I noted some sort of research award before I was pulled in to his room.

His room had a dark red carpet and dark blue walls. There were several bookcases along the walls that were packed with books and a large plasma TV that had lots of stuff next to it...they seemed to be videogames. His bed had dark red sheets on it. There was also a very large desk with papers strewn on top of it and a large living room plush chair in front of it. He led me to his bed where we both sat down.

"Wow, we have so much to talk about!" he said excitedly.

"Like what?" I asked curiously.

"Well, do you mind if I ask you questions? Since you're a human you probably have a lot of cool things to say!"

"Okay, ask."

"Um...what's your last name?"

"Forest."

"Wow, that's cool! Fawn Forest is a really awesome name! Really pretty!" he exclaimed excitedly.

"Thank you..." I smiled.

"Okay, um...what's your village like?"

I explained what my village was like, which he followed by asking what my life was like. It was rather nice, as he was asking easy questions that I could keep up with and was appreciating them. Eventually I decided to ask him a question.

"Morton...you seem to like books," I observed.

"Yep! I like books and TV and games!"

"Right...how come?"

"Because you can learn a lot! I learn a lot from books, because they have so much info, like science and math and philosophy and it teaches me a lot! But then they can also have really fun characters that are really cool to think about and talk about! That's why I like TV and games. You don't learn as much, but boy are there some interesting characters!"

"I see..." I struggled for a good question. "Is that why you got a research award?"

"Yeah! I got it when my teacher asked us to do a book report on different authors. I got Koopasphere. He's really cool! He was really smart and wrote intense plays with cool characters and had great symbolism and literary devices! So I had a lot of fun researching about him and I found out where he was born, who he was writing to, the people he influenced, the people he supposedly met, the people that saw his plays, and a lot more information. And eventually I found out he wasn't real. It was just the queen of the kingdom writing under an alias. Apparently nobody had figured that out, so I got an award and some money. It was so fun!"

"Wow...that's impressive!" I said, absorbing it all. "You're incredible to find all that out on your own!"

He rubbed his neck and bashfully said, "Gosh...thanks!"

"So...what's your favorite author?"

His eyes lit up. "Well..."

He went on a long discussion on his favorite author. But it didn't end there. He managed to link other authors in to his long speech, and then different topics, all in a continuous flow of speech and knowledge. It was amazing to see his mind work like that; it was a never ending stream of consciousness.

It was very pleasant for me, as I soon realized that I didn't have to contribute to the conversation. In fact, I could listen to him talk about something interesting, drift off as I pleased, and tune back in to hear him say more interesting things. It was an easy and enjoyable conversation for me, and I didn't have to contribute at all, letting him do all the work. This worked until he suddenly stopped talking.

I looked at him to see him pouting. "I'm talking to much and boring you, aren't I?"

Oh no I did offend him! "No you're not!" I said honestly.

"Yes I am, you weren't paying attention just now...it's okay, everyone's like that," he said sadly.

"Hm?" I frowned.

"Don't act surprised, everyone says I talk to much…it's no one's fault, not yours either."

"Well…what exactly do you mean?" I asked curiously.

He sighed. He seemed to pick his words carefully. "You know…it's obvious just from talking to me. People think I talk a lot so they don't like to talk to me. They don't listen. I can't help it; I have a lot to say. People also think I'm weird because of my colors."

"But those are great things about you!" I said, confused by these people he spoke of.

"They are?" he asked skeptically.

"Yes! I think your scales are pretty! Being different is a good thing, I love the color brown!"

"You do?" he said hopefully.

"Yes. And I'll admit, I did daydream..." I said guiltily. "But that doesn't mean I'm bored, or don't want to talk to you! I do that all the time...and you didn't seem to mind, so I did. But I loved hearing everything you had to say, it was all so interesting!"

"It was?" He seemed happier.

"Yes. So don't think I was bored, it was all very interesting! I don't know why one would think you're boring with all that knowledge..." A lot of things I've heard here didn't make much sense to me, actually. Why no one plays with Junior, why Iggy did his experiments and paid for things like blood, why no one supports Lemmy's skills, and why people are mean to Morton, was beyond me.

He smiled widely. "Thank you."

Not a word more was said before Bowser of all people walked in to the room.

"Hey, there you are," Bowser said to me.

"Oh, hello Bowser," I greeted nonchalantly. "I was having a conversation with Morton."

"You were?" He almost looked like he was trying not to seem worried.

"Yes, he's a very bright boy," I assured.

Bowser seemed to look relieved, but then he actually broke in to a large smile. "That he is."

"King Dad!" Morton exclaimed, rushing up to his dad. "Fawn is so cool! Her full name is so neat, it's Fawn Forest! And she's really nice, she listens to me!"

He smiled and patted his sons head. "Well, she should! You're a bright kid. Not as bright as me, but you're getting there. You're finding out some pretty neat stuff, you're pretty bright like she says."

Morton's eyes shined with pride and admiration. "I'll get there one day King Dad!"

The scene warmed my heart, and a smile crossed my face. Bowser does seem to care about his kids…I was beginning to worry if he didn't. But I couldn't help but ask, "Why are you here?"

He looked at me and cleared his throat. "Well, there's sort of something I need to talk to you about."

I smiled faintly. How odd...he's never looked for me before. This should be interesting...

"Okay," I said, getting off the bed. I walked to him and patted Morton's shoulder. "Bye Morton. Nice talking to you!"

"Get ready for dinner soon," Bowser reminded.

"Okay thanks guys!" he said eagerly.

We walked outside and shut the door.

Bowser

I walked along with Fawn, with me leading the way to her destination. I couldn't help but notice I was a little nervous. Why am I nervous? This shouldn't be a problem, just say it! Who cares if she gets upset?

Despite my usual bluntness with people, and how little I should care about matters like this, I couldn't help but small talk a little first to avoid the topic in mind for a few minutes, and maybe soften it a little.

"So...you like Morton, huh?" I asked. I also genuinely was interested in what she thought of my kids.

She nodded. "Oh yes, he's a very sweet boy. He's really smart and wants to share his knowledge. I learned a lot today!"

"Well, he's a knowledgeable kid. I think he just wants to share it a little to much and ends up running his mouth..."

"He told me about that. I don't see why people wouldn't want to learn from such a thoughtful person." She frowned.

I grinned. "Yeah, that's how I've seen it when I talk to him. Damn, that kid knows a lot for a twelve year old…" Though I hated to admit it, he probably knew a lot more than me despite his young age.

After we walked for a bit she added, "I also talked to Larry briefly. What a nice boy!"

"Well, that's what everyone says at first..." I muttered, knowing the deviousness that hid behind his sweet act.

"Hm?"

"Nothing." The boy was a good actor, and had a natural charisma to him. And he could be genuinely nice on occasion…but that boy sure did love to cheat and steal. I decided not to tell her that.

With all the chatting we finally made it to the room I had been leading her to.

"Well, I should tell you why I came to see you," I said, finally cutting to it.

"Oh? What is it?"

"I'm finally kidnapping Peach tonight. I figured she'd want her room, so you're going to have to take this guest room," I explained.

She took a second to seemingly absorb that before jumping for joy. "Yay!"

"Yay?" I raised a brow.

She calmed down and nodded. "Well...I missed Peach. So I'm excited to see her! She's my friend."

"I see..." I said, still surprised. I remembered I still had to ask how they met.

"Mmhmm. Plus..." She grew nervous. "I don't really like my room..."

"You don't?" I asked, surprised. I thought this whole time she'd be mad for making her leave it, which was why I was so nervous. Plus this new room wasn't exactly classy…

"Yes...I mean, it's to pink and bright for my tastes...not that it's a problem! I'm happy with any room, really."

I sighed. "Well you may not like this room much more."

I opened the door and let her in. It was somewhat spacious, but very Spartan. It was a guest room that no one had bothered to decorate, as was the case for all guest rooms except Peach's. The walls and floor were cobblestone. The room was torch lit with a white sheeted bed, a door to a balcony, a door to a bathroom, and a dresser.

She observed the room quickly and turned to me. "I like it."

"Oh...well okay. Glad you like it," I said, ever shocked. This seemed to be a constant with this girl. Really, like all the humans, she seemed to have a unique personality of her own, which continued to confuse me. I'd say she's rivaling my own children in quirkiness, which is really saying something.

"Yeah...I'm just glad that you'll finally be able to see Peach," she said happily, as I she were happy for me.

"What do you mean?"

"Well I mean you love her and all...right?"

I was flabbergasted. She had just said it like it was the simplest thing in the world. She knows...? She KNOWS!?

"Wh-what are you talking about?" I asked, trying to stay calm despite my nerves acting up. I felt my face heat up. How does she know!? No outsider has known! Not even all of my subjects have caught on!

"I'm saying you love her. I mean it's pretty obvious..." she said, confused.

"N-no I don't! Where'd you get an idea like that!?" I denied.

"You don't? I was wrong..." She frowned. "I suppose no one really agrees with me, now that I think about it...for some reason everyone agrees that it's preposterous. But it seems so obvious! I guess I was wrong?"

"It seems...obvious?" I asked. So far, no one outside my kingdom had been able to figure that out. Only some of my subjects knew; Mario, Luigi, and nearly the entire world, including Peach herself had no idea. They thought I was just doing it for her kingdom and to be evil in general.

"Well, yeah! You always kidnap her for a kingdom, but that's not a very effective tactic. You never hurt her or anyone in the process really, despite claiming not to care. You'd probably being hurting people if you planned to conquer their kingdom. And despite losing every time with this faulty tactic, you keep trying," she explained thoughtfully. "What else could it be...are you really just trying to conquer a kingdom? If so, you're not really going about it the right way."

I was at a loss for words. "I-I uh..."

She squinted her eyes. "Wait...denial is said to be a part of love. Cult told me that...and Morton did to, when I talked to. Are you denying it?"

I stood there in a cold sweat for a while before eventually sighing in defeat. She figured it out…I'll have to trust this girl after all... "Okay, maybe I do..." I muttered, looking away. I was actually a little afraid of how she might react. She'll probably do what everyone else does and call me a monster, and say I can't love, and that I'm harassing the princess like a tyrant, and-

"Well, okay. See? It's a good thing she's coming!"

"...What?" I asked.

"I don't know why you're making this so complicated. Go get her, you love her! You've done it a million times before, I'm sure she's okay with it by now. Why wouldn't she be? You and this kingdom are great! Plus I feel like she would've escaped herself by now if she didn't…" She shrugged. "And if not, the Mario Bros. come rescue her anyway, so she should be fine for that short bit of time that she's here, in case she doesn't like it. Speaking of her caring, she knows right?"

I was so stupefied that I automatically responded "No..."

She frowned and began to stroke her chin in thought. "What? How could that be...?"

I wasn't paying attention to her now, instead paying attention to what she said. She had had a smile on her face the whole time, directed at me. Directed at a friend...not a monster.

I blinked at her. She knows...and supports it? She figured out...no one's ever figured it out! And it's because she's...

I observed her once more. A faint smile on her face, a friendly smile.

Oh hell, I guess she really is my friend! And...a good one!

I laughed despite myself. "You're a real piece of work, you know that?"

She frowned, but my laughter made her break in to a giggle. "Thanks I guess...but so are you!"

"Oh don't worry. You don't need to tell me twice the piece of work these are," I said playfully, flexing my biceps. I was at complete ease now, letting my true colors show.

She didn't react to my teasing like I thought she would. Instead of laughing, she stared at my muscles, which kind of confused me.

"Well yes," she finally said. "Those are huge and strong, so that's a piece of work." She...she said they're huge and strong...um... I'm normally not so bashful, but that caught me by surprise, and I ended up blushing pretty strongly. And the fact that you won't tell Peach how you feel makes you a piece of work too!"

I blinked as I stopped flexing. I was so stupefied by both her comments that I could only dumbly say, "...What?"

"Well, it seems illogical to keep going this route! She doesn't know how you feel, how she doesn't I don't know, so nothing will change! So you have to tell her...don't you?"

I was struck by how fast she had come up with the logical course of action. Although I shouldn't be, it was common sense. But the idea of it had always terrified me...the idea of being rejected by one of the only people that didn't see me as a monster or a tyrant terrified me. This somehow seemed easier.

My blush returned slightly as I quickly said, "Let's not talk about this."

She frowned before shrugging. "Okay, if you say so."

An awkward silence came over us before I remembered something.

"Okay Fawn, I've got to go have dinner. I'm kidnapping Peach afterward. I'll let you settle in."

"Oh, okay. Thanks again for the new room!"

I chuckled as I began to leave. "See ya later."

"Bye Bowser!"

She seemed so happy, so at ease around me. It was all so strange...people weren't like that around me, especially not outsiders. I felt some sort of gratitude almost. Gratitude that she didn't see me as a monster. Gratitude that she saw me as a friend.

I was planning to just leave and save whatever shred of manliness and dignity I had after this, but as I left, I couldn't help but stop for a second.

"Thanks," I muttered, rushing out if the room.

Well, Peach is gonna get thrown back in the mix. That'll mix things up...Fawn may realize something's not right...we'll see what happens! Oh and for those who couldn't tell from Fawn's POV, Larry was stealing food from the kitchen. He stuffed it in his shell and made a bs reason why his shell was stuffed to throw off Fawn, cuz she didn't know better. Oh Larry...

Well, thanks for reading. Please review or fav. Byee