-Castle of the Beast-

Olimar, sitting on Epona, rode through the dark forest, looking at the path confused. He had been traveling for a few days now, and had expected to reach the fair by today, but it seems he had taken a few wrong turns and ended up lost in this forest. Epona kept along, nervously observing her surroundings as she realized what her master had led her into. The dark trees loomed over them, and the shadows they cast seemed to give them faces of evil, leering down at the man and horse as they went along. As the wind blew through the trees, it seemed to Epona as laughter, as if with every step they were simply walking further and further into their trap. Olimar went along, oblivious to all these signs of terror as he focused solely on trying to find his way. Eventually the pair came to a crossroad, and at this they saw a post with signs pointing in either direction. However, the letters were too scratched out to make out what they said. Olimar resolved, "Looks like we'll just have to guess."

Down the left path, the darkness seemed to part a little, and Epona could clearly see some light towards the very end. Down the right path, however, there was only more darkness, that seemed to get thicker and thicker down the path, and at the very end it was so dark it was as looking into an abyss. Oblivious to which was the better choice, Olimar pointed Epona down the right path, muttering, "I think this is the way…"

Terrified of what lay down there, Epona resisted, neighing and trying for the left path, before Olimar pulled her back ordering, "What's wrong with you? I said we're going this way!"

Epona reluctantly obeyed, going down the right path. As they walked down, the ground seemed to get harsher beneath Epona's hooves, the darkness blotting out more and more any source of light. After a while of walking down, Epona looked about her, and saw something piercing the darkness; a pair of yellow dots. As soon as she spotted them, many other pairs of dots appeared about them, and began moving closer. When they reached the edges of the trees, Epona and Olimar realized to their horror what they were.

They were eyes… Wolves' eyes.

Olimar looked around in horror as the wolves closed in around them. He gave Epona a kick as she began racing down the path, the wolves leaping and chasing after them. However, after a moment, a few more wolves leaped onto the path in front of them, causing Epona to stand on her hind legs in shock. Olimar tried to hang on, but he slipped from the horse and fell back onto the hard ground. He looked up and saw Epona spin around, rushing back the way they came, drawing away some of the wolves, though the majority still seemed focused on Olimar. The old man jumped up, running down the path as fast as he could as the wolves pursued. As fast as he ran, he knew he could not outrun these wolves. As he saw them close in to pounce upon him, he ducked behind some trees, throwing the wolves off long enough for Olimar to see a large gate 20 yards or so away. If he could just get to there, he would be safe. As the wolves jumped through the trees to catch their prey, Olimar rushed out into the open, making a break for the gate. Adrenaline powering his body now, Olimar rushed through the gate where it was opened slightly, shutting it hard behind him as the wolves crashed into it, barking at him. Olimar backed up a bit to give some distance from him and the gates, making sure the wolves couldn't get through. After a moment, they realized they had lost their prey, turning around and running away.

Olimar bent over, breathing hard as he tried to catch his breath. After a moment, he felt rain drops fall onto him. He looked up, and saw that it was starting to rain heavily. Within seconds he was soaked. Turning around, he saw before him a mighty and dark castle. It must have been the size of a small mountain, with various towers and walls making it up. Olimar also realized the ground he stood on was a stone bridge. Looking over the side, Olimar saw a deep dark abyss below, even deeper than the castle was tall. Looking back at the castle, Olimar felt dwarfed and humble as he approached the doors. Taking a deep breath, Olimar opened the doors and entered the castle.

The inside of the castle was just as cold and unwelcoming as the outside was. Olimar saw he was in a grand hall, and saw at the end of a red carpet a grand staircase that went up then split off to the left and right. He looked around and saw there was little light in this castle, and it seem uninhabited. Olimar called out, "Hello? Anyone? I came in here because of the storm."

On the table to the side, a candle holder and a clock watched on as Olimar looked around. The clock whispered to the candle holder, "Not a word, Fox…"

"Oh come, Mario, have a heart," the candle holder insisted to the clock, who put his hand over Fox's mouth to keep him quiet. Getting annoyed by Mario's cold behavior, Fox fixed this by holding his own hand (a flaming candle) under Mario's, burning it. He felt a massive amount of heat surge into his hand as he had no choice but to withdraw it, crying out in pain from the burn. Fox then smiled, exclaiming, "Of course, Moiseur, you are welcome here!"

"Who said that?!" Olimar demanded, startled by this voice seemingly coming from nowhere. He picked up the nearby candle holder to see who said that, when he suddenly noticed the candle holder staring at him, smiling as he greeted, "Hello."

Olimar cried out in shock as he dropped Fox, who picked himself up patiently as Mario jumped down, scolding, "Well, now you've done it Fox! Now we- Hey, put me down!"

Mario exclaimed this last part as Olimar picked him up, studying the clock with curiosity. Mario scolded him, "Why really sir, I would ask you to put me down at once!"

Mario hopped out of the man's hands as Olimar apologized, "I'm sorry, it's just I've never seen a talking cl- AH CHOO!"

Olimar was cut off by his sneeze, sniffling as Fox said sympathetically, "Why Moiseur, you are soaked to the bone! Come, warm yourself by the fire."

Fox gestured towards the door to the left, opened enough for Olimar to see a living room with a single chair near a fire place. Olimar felt warm already by the kindness in Fox's voice, following him into the living room as he heard Mario protest, "No, no, no! I demand you stop at once! You know what the master will do if he finds him here!"

"I don't want to cause any trouble," Olimar insisted, now concerned by Mario's words as Fox beckoned, "It is no trouble, really! Come, sit, please Moiseur."

Olimar smiled, sitting on the chair, sighing with relief. He then heard a dog bark and looked over to see a footrest run towards him, getting under his feet to help him relax as it panted. He then sensed a rushing cart come up to his right side. He looked over to see a tea pot smile at him as she asked, "Spot of tea?"

"Why yes, thank you," Olimar smiled gratefully, taking a chipped cup that held the warm tea, and started drinking it. After a few sips, he heard a boy's voice giggle, "His mustache tickles, Mama!"

He pulled the cup away, seeing that it was a child cup as the old man smiled, saying, "Well, hello there young one."

He put the cup down as the pot greeted, "Allow me to introduce us properly. I am Toadette, and this is my son, Pit."

Before any further conversation could take place, a cold wind blew through the room, extinguishing the fire as Olimar felt great fear come over him suddenly. He heard stomping as someone came into the room. Fox looked towards the entrance, terrified as he stuttered, "M-master, this gentleman was lost in the forest and-"

His words were cut off by a loud roar. Olimar nervously turned to the side, his heart pounding hard as he saw before him a mighty beast. He stood taller than any man he had ever seen, with thick brown fur, sharp teeth, horns on his head, razor claws, and mighty blue eyes. Olimar slipped out of the chair, backing away as the beast pursued, demanding, "Who are you?! What are you doing here?!"

Overcome with fear, Olimar stumbled, "Please, sir, I just came in because of the storm…"

"You are not welcome here!" The beast roared, causing Olimar to nearly trip backwards as he stared in fear at the being before him, stumbling, "I'm sorry, I just…"

"What are you staring at?!"

"Nothing. I was just…"

"So, you've come to stare at the beast have you?!"

"Please! Sir, I meant no harm. I was just looking for a place to stay for the night,"

"Oh, I'll give you a place to stay!" The beast insisted, picking Olimar up with a single hand as he carried him out of the room as Olimar begged, "No! Please, don't!"

The beast slammed the doors behind him, leaving the servants terrified and alone.

Sorry it took a while to update, but then it was just thanksgiving :p anyways, hope everyone enjoyed, and stay tuned for more.