CHAPTER THREE: MAGIC WAND
The next morning, everyone emerged from their bedrooms with lines under their eyes. It was hard to get any sleep knowing that there was a killer on the loose. Mario tried to remain calm as he stepped into the kitchen and turned on the stove. Luigi and Peach sat at the counter silently, staring at the tiled floor. Wario and Waluigi entered the kitchen.
"'Ey, what's for breakfast?" asked Wario, scratching the top of his exposed head. Nobody answered. Waluigi nonchalantly opened the cupboard next to the refrigerator.
"Whoa!" The cupboard was filled with mounds and mounds of cakes, pies, puddings, donuts, pastries, and other delicacies. Wario turned to look and immediately began to drool.
"Holy..."
He lunged in front of his brother and reached out for a vanilla frosted cupcake, but pulled back immediately. He tried again, this time slowly extending his arm forward, but when his hand reached the cupboard, it was as if a plate of glass was protecting the treats. Waluigi did the same, with the same results. Mario approached the cupboard and examined it thoughtfully. After a few moments' consideration, he gave up and announced, "I don't get it."

After everyone had eaten, they migrated to the dining room where they conversed casually. Wario stayed behind for further examination of the mysterious cupboard. He noted that it was connected to a larger cupboard directly below it, though he doubted the importance of this detail.
"Wait a minute..."
He opened the bottom cupboard and peered inside. The top of it, which also acted as a floor for the cupboard containing the treats, seemed to be attached to the sides with a pair of shafts, inside which the ends of the board were placed. If he were to simply slide the board through the shafts toward himself leaving an opening just large enough for his arm, he could reach up from the bottom cupboard and pull down items from the top. Delighted at his own discovery, he carefully slid the board back and reached up to grab a yummy-looking tart.

A few minutes later, Wario, satisfied, strode to the sink to get a glass of water. While he turned on the faucet, he noticed his own hat behind the sink. It had been missing all day. He picked it up to put it on his head, revealing a strange object: a magic wand. It was a blue rod with a red gem on the end. He picked it up and waved it around. He heard something shatter somewhere in another room. Nervous, he anxiously repeated his cupboard trick and hid the wand behind a box of chocolate muffins.

"What the heck just happened?!" Mario exclaimed as he stepped over the remains of a ceramic vase.
"This vase just exploded!" Bowser Jr. replied with a large grin on his face. Beads of sweat dripped down Wario's face as he stepped into the dining room with everyone else. Donkey Kong grunted in displeasure as he saw him fake surprise and point his finger at Mario.
"How could I have done it?" Mario said. "You saw me, I didn't even touch it!"
"Wario was in the kitchen, he didn't see you," Luigi responded sensibly.
"What was Wario doing in the kitchen?" Shy Guy inquired monotonously. Wario began to sweat worse than ever.
"I-I-I was g-getting... getting a glass of water," he stuttered.
"Thirsty, eh?" Bowser replied, smiling threateningly. "Why so thirsty?" Wario gulped.
"Alright, alright, this is getting out of hand," said Toad. "Wario didn't do anything, he was in the kitchen. It's impossible. And nobody touched the vase, so it was probably just a freak thing. Bad sculpting or something. Let's just leave it at that."
Mumbling and grumbling, everyone returned to their activities. Wario entered the kitchen and reached into the cupboard. After peering cautiously at the door, he grabbed the wand and pocketed it.

That night, Peach entered the bathroom with a towel. She hung it on the rack and pulled back the shower curtains, and gave a blood curdling scream at what she saw: a cryptic message engraved on the wall, and a limp body in the bathtub.