Authoress' Notes: Events leading to "BOA II" are within our grasps! I've even decided to use roman numerals because they're all dramatic and stuff, lol. I've already got the plot and characters, but I still need to tie together a few more loose ends... Other than that, please read on and enjoy!
Better Off Alone
Chapter 12: Gratitude
How long was it going to be before this madness ended? All he wanted to do was go home and continuing living the way normal Koopas lived... But at this point, he was anything but a normal Koopa. How many Koopas did he know actually aided a famous superstar in saving the world, instead of making things worse? None, that's who, Koops thought to himself as they crossed a concrete bridge leading to the weird tower. He didn't know why, but ever since Gloomtail had succumbed to... whatever he had succumbed to, he was feeling quite sure of himself.
Arriving at the elongated doors, Mario pushed them open to reveal a null and void area, seeping with malevolence. ...It was cold, dark, and eerily quiet as they stepped inside. Koops hated this place enough on the outside, but the inside felt dangerously demonic... The entire decor consisted of an ugly, faded blue with the sporadic spotting of bright stars having a glow-in-the-dark effect to them. There was a spiraling staircase in the middle and several doors located around it.
"Any idea on what this place is supposed to be?" asked Waffles.
Goombella looked around the room. "...It could be some sort of battling arena and each these doors leads to a different opponent... That's all I can say. I really have no idea what this thing's for..."
"I don't think we should be separating in this place," said Ms. Mowz. "Chances are, it's riddled with traps..."
Koops was ready to agree before doing a rather delayed double take."Riddled"? What was that supposed to mean? Did she mean to use that type of word, or was it only a coincidence?
"Yeah, you're right," responded Goombella, not catching on. "Do you think it matters what door we try first?"
The rodent walked over to a door on the room's west side. "Oh, no, not at all. Every door looks the same to me, so why not try our luck on this one? I'm sure our predicament will eventually reveal our key objective very soon."
It didn't take much contemplating before Bobbery perked up. "Key? Wait a minute... Didn't Gloomtail spit up a strange-looking key? Maybe we have to get some more keys to use along with it, or something..."
"Oh, good! It seems that you've stumbled upon something very important! Why, with a bit of good luck and a lot of hard work, I bet we'll get through this silly little funhouse in no time."
Opening the door, she stepped in with the others following suit. Koops lagged behind, skeptical about her little tip-off. It wasn't that he didn't trust her, but she seemed to have become quite loquacious ever since they step foot in the building...
The new room didn't seem appear much different from the main foyer; it had the same creepy feeling, the same dull decor, and the same foreboding essence amid its grimy walls. The only thing of note were two red "!" blocks and a small message embedded on the wall's far end.
Approaching the message first, Flurrie read,"Beyond, beyond, beyond... Complete All Seven... Before, before..."
Waffles raised an eyebrow. "Now what the heck is that supposed to mean?"
Goombella flipped through her Tattle Log. "Sorry guys, but I don't think this is going to help... There's nothing in here about riddles."
"Maybe it has something to do with the Crystal Stars," put in Koops.
"Yes, perhaps we have to use their power to make the key appear in this room," was the Admiral's suggestion.
Ms. Mowz suddenly barged in. "Riddles, you say? Hmm... Well, not to gloat, but I happen to be quite skilled at brainteasers, especially the kind that don't seem to make any sense."
"Then, let's see you make heads or tails of this," challenged Waffles.
"It's simple, really. 'Beyond, beyond, beyond...' That must mean the red block beyond the first one, meaning Mario has to hit this block three times. 'Before, before...' is referring to the previous block and since that only says it twice, he must only strike it two times. I don't know how you couldn't see that from the beginning."
Not being the type to stand around, Mario hit one block three times and the other twice. Instantly, black puffs of smoke materialized on the grayish floor. In its midst appeared a strange black box; its eerie appearance sent sharp chills and shivers up everyone's spine... Expect Ms. Mowz, who seemed a little cocky at the moment.
Everyone was silent until Waffles, tired of everyone being so serious, marched over and opened the box. He pulled out a rather ugly-looking key.
Goombella looked at Ms. Mowz in awe. "But how... How did you know that?"
"Like I said, I'm very good at these sorts of things. You can't just think about the riddle; you have to know it."
Bobbery asked, "...I beg your pardon?"
"Well, whatever," Waffles brushed off the perplexity. "If she could solve this riddle, then the rest of this place will be a breeze!"
It finally dawned on him... So, that's what Ms. Mowz was talking about...
"...But you've done your part for now. It's time I offered my assistance."
He thought she meant that by simply explaining what happened with Gloomtail, but now Koops understood...
"Ms. Mowz," he whispered. "You knew about this place, didn't you?"
"I guess you could say... a little Swoopula told me," she said, winking.
Now he was bothered. Ms. Mowz actually knew about the strange-looking tower? How? She may've been an expert nomad, but the Palace of Shadow had been inaccessible for the last millennia. Sure, everyone had heard about it, but she acted like she even lived there at one time. It just didn't add up...
"Well, Koops? Would you like to ask me about anything else?"
Her playful sarcasm pulled him from his thoughts. "No, that's all right. I was only thinking..."
The riddles went on and on forever it seemed; another baffling one behind each door and even up the swirling flight of stairs. Eventually, all the 'Palace Keys', as Ms. Mowz called them, were found and carried to the third floor. Speculation and confusion were at their highest from the sight of a large mechanical device and several pedestals sitting around it. Assumption their only asset, the Palace Keys were placed in each one. This caused the enormous instrument to rotate and much rumbling ensued. After the earthquake had passed, all felt still again, if not more calm than at first.
Going outside to investigate, they found nothing amiss. Everything was intact, the moat appeared calm, and the Red Chomps were even sleeping. Ms. Mowz instantly became fixated on Koops.
"Perhaps another door opened up somewhere," she said, offhandedly.
"Like down there?" he glanced toward the door leading to Gloomtail's lair.
"It makes sense. There's no other way leading out of his room..."
So, that was it; they were going back the way they came. It made Koops feel he was going in circles. Were they actually on the way to being captured in a trap? Grodus did already pass there; He could've planned for this to happen. What if by passing through that door, a swarm of Dark Bones were unleashed upon them? They'd be all killed, to say the least.
...Was he really ready to die? He had a father at home, waiting for him to come back and make his town proud. And Kroop couldn't wait to have him take over as the new mayor. All of Petalburg was cheering him on, knowing he'd return and make them proud.
Then his thoughts came to rest on Koopie Koo...
How would she react if he came back? She didn't seem too angry about him leaving, but she didn't exactly look ready to celebrate either. And what would she say about Vivian? What if she had moved on to another Koopa, or left town completely? His reflecting came to a crashing halt upon hearing:
"So, you've gotten past Riddle Tower, have you? ...Impressive, but I'm afraid your journey ends here."
That voice... It sounded so familiar, but it couldn't be. How could they've possibly returned after already defeated them? And why? Maybe because Beldam was still after Vivian...
His assumptions were confirmed; Blocking their way to the next room stood Beldam, Marilyn, and Doopliss. After many times of trying and failing, the old siren just wouldn't give up the hedonism of her little sister's torment. Seeing her now made his blood boil.
"Oh, for Pete's sake! Not you three bumbling buffoons again!" Bobbery scoffed.
"We've already given you the boot before, so just go away before we have to do it again!" threatened Waffles.
Beldam laughed. "What a shame. We came all this way to greet you here and you give us the cold shoulder like we're common criminals?"
"You are common criminals! Get outta the way!"
"Oh, I don't think we'll be going anywhere. Not until you see our newest member, anyway..."
"Newest... member?" Goombella questioned.
"You should know her from previous times and she's just been dying to see you again!" Doopliss jumped in. "Anyone wanna guess who it is?"
"How should we know who it is?" Koops spoke, demanding for an answer more than asking.
"Trust me, you should recognize her. She was the most incompetent member of your little group and couldn't last two seconds on her own without becoming lunch for the crows..."
Waffles shook a fist. "Stop beating around the bush and just tell us who it is already!"
The wicked witch didn't have to say another word as the unmistakable form of obscurity appeared behind her. There was an odd hush before anyone was able to tell who it was. Even then, it was still such a shock when they realized exactly who they were up against...
"Vivian?"
Koops inched closer, trying to get a good look at her. Of what part of her face he could see, she looked out of it; almost like she was in a trance or something...
"I must point out that Vivian's been under a lot of stress lately, no thanks to you, so she'll be coming back with us now," Beldam said.
Waffles approached. "That's a lie! C'mon back over here! You know they're the enemies!"
"...That's where you're sorely mistaken. My sisters aren't the enemies... And you'll be handing over the Crystal Stars now... before we have to beat them out of you..." She spoke with such acrimony, making her usually gentle tone reek of distortion.
"We're being serious here! Stop playing around and ditch these losers already!"
Instead of responding, Vivian tightly balled up her fist and unleashed a Shade Fist on Waffles. The force threw him back several feet and into Bobbery, nearly knocking him over.
Goombella frowned, realizing what was wrong. "She must be brainwashed! And back on their side!"
"Exactly. I'm surprised to see you halfwits figured it out so easily," scoffed Beldam. "Now like the girl said, hand over the Crystal Stars before something nasty transpires."
Koops glowered at her. "Not on your life..."
"Very well..."
In a poof of smoke, Doopliss turned into Flurrie and proceeded in using her Gale Force to stun their opponents, as the Shadow Sirens disappeared.
Looking up from the receding windstorm, Koops saw how Doopliss managed to separate everyone across the area. Goombella and Flurrie were past the bridge fighting Beldam. Beyond them, Ms. Mowz had problems of her own as Marilyn attacked her. Past the other bridge's side, Mario, Waffles, and Bobbery were battling the doppelganger.
But where did Vivian go...?
Turning around, Koops got his answer. He was now face-to-face with the deluded siren. He responded by locking hands with her, struggling with all his might to gain some ground. She was incredibly powerful; her muscles seemed to get stronger the more he resisted...
"It's futile to resist," she growled. "You will never defeat me in hand-to-hand combat. It'd be easier to give up and hand over the Crystal Stars like you were ordered."
"Vivian, you have to listen to me... You're being control against your will... These guys... They're only using you in order to get what they want... And when they do, you'll be tossed aside like a rotten Mushroom..."
"Impossible. I see through your lies. You're only trying to trick me into letting my guard down. I wouldn't trust your kind for a second..."
"I'd never lie to you, Vivian... I swear it..."
"Maybe when I snap your neck in two you'll be more cooperative..." Her voice was so ugly and twisted, overflowing with the sadistic pleasure of his weakening state.
The feeling had long left Koops' arms. Everything from his shoulder down was numb and throbbing, begging for him to stop his strenuous pushing. It felt like his ulnas were about to break in half; his fingers trembled and buckled between Vivian's sweat-drenched gloves.
His face wrenched in horror. How can she be so strong...? What happened to make her do this? And most of all...
Out the corner of his eye, he saw Goombella dodging left and right from Beldam's freezing spells. Flurrie soon came to her aid as she covered the vicinity with a thick Dodgy Fog, making it nearly impossible to see.
Past the stone bridge over the moat, Ms. Mowz scampered around while Marilyn scrambled behind, trying to catch her. Annoyed at coming up empty over and over again, she tapped into her power of electricity and proceeded to fry her quarry. The rodent evaded her attack and added to its inefficiency by givingher a harsh slap across the face.
Not far off from there, Mario picked up Bobbery and tossed him at Doopliss, who, by reflexes alone, caught the Bob-omb in time for him to explode in his hands. After the explosion, he reverted back to his normal state, just in time for Waffles to throw an egg in his face.
...Why wasn't Vivian using her elemental abilities? Sure, she was formidable enough in a direct fight, but she'd be unstoppable when her powers of flammability came into play. So what was stopping her from thrashing him with a scorching Shade Fist or a blazing Fiery Jinx...?
Breaking the struggle, Koops pulled into his shell and spun like crazy to ward off the delirious adversary. Emerging, he suddenly realized Vivian was gone, meaning she probably disappeared into the shadows. And he was right; She reappeared and tried pouncing from behind, only to stumble and miss. Koops took this to his advantage and straddled her.
"Listen to me!" he commanded, squeezing her arms.
Her normally curly hair turned unruly as she struggled on the floor. "I swear to the stars, if you don't let go of me...!"
"Look at me, Vivian! Look at me!"
The ugly twisting of her demented features slowly melted away as she stared into his eyes.
"Vivian, please remember! Remember when... when..." he struggled for an example. "Back on Keelhaul... You and me... We sat on the beach together..."
As her flailing gradually decreased, she slowly muttered, "...Keelhaul...?"
"Yeah... Remember with the flowers...?"
"Flowers...?"
"Yes, the flowers," he eagerly nodded. "You said they reminded you of your sister... and you were so sad..."
"...Flowers... sister...? I-I can't..." she frowned. "I can't remember..."
"Try harder. You have to remember. I know you do..."
She was trying to fight it... The resistance could be seen on her face. Vivian was so disoriented, but at least... At least she still had her common sense. All he had to do was break through the spell's artificial intelligence and...
Suddenly, she jerked her head away. "...No... No! You're only trying to trick me! It won't work!"
"I'm not trying to trick you, Vivian! I just want you to realize you're being used!"
"Shut up!" Growling crossly, her body faded into the ground and out of his grasp.
Koops was like a sitting duck in the large opening. Vivian could appear from anywhere... Rather than looking, he tried to hear her approaching. It was faint, but the Shadow Sirens always made an unmistakable noise whenever they rose or sank into the darkness... Unfortunately, the way the paved area was structured, every sound uttered bounced off the thick walls and created a long echo that went on for several seconds at a time...
Hearing anything at that point was impossible...
Just then, he felt a rough hand his seize neck and throw him into the wall. Vivian drew back her arm, ready to punch him in the face. The Shade Fist attack was cut short, her fist stopped just as it pushed against his nose.
"Please listen to me..." pleaded Koops. "You know what you're doing is wrong. What did I ever do to you? Why are you so angry at me?"
"I..." she trailed off. "...I don't know..."
"I promise I'll help you. I know it's hard, but please... try to calm down..."
Her mouth slowly opened, like she was going to say something, but suddenly snapped shut in an angry clench of her teeth. With the spell regaining control, she pushed him further into the wall. "Stop trying to trick me! It's... It's all your fault and you know it!"
"What are you talking about? What's my fault?"
She squeezed harder on his windpipe, causing him to gag. "Don't play stupid with me! I can't trust you! You just want to kill me and make a name for yourself... just like... just like how they did with Lillian!"
"That's not true, Vivian..."
"Yes, it is! ...You... You killed her, didn't you?!"
Hysterics were starting to take over; the evidence showed in her voice as she demanded an answer. He was putty in her hands, on his knees at her mercy of whatever command she desired. It seemed so strange how once, they were actually equals, sitting in the Poshley Heights hotel and talking about their favorite pastimes. Now, Vivian towered over him in a manic dominance that just didn't seem right for her timid character.
"...I've never even see your sister," he muttered, disappointment more evident in his voice than failure. "And I know the real Vivian wouldn't do this..."
The following blow felt like a smoldering ash tray shoved into his snout. Koops was starting to think he'd rather have his neck snapped than his face burned off. The more the fight dragged on, the angrier she became and she wouldn't hesitate to shatter his shell into a thousand pieces... Trying to reason with her wasn't working; the spell was far too strong to stop with mind over matter. If he wanted to snap her out of it, he had to use brute force...
He hated the thought of having to treat such a delicate thing so violently, but his life hung in the balance. Whispering a quick apology for what he was about to do, he kicked his oppressor in the stomach and started to run away. She recovered quickly and attacked from behind, pulling on his shell with the strength of 10 Koopatrols, if not more. He stumbled back and turned to punch her in the jaw.
He hated it... He hated it so much, but it had to be done...
She let go and backed away, shaking off the attack, but seething at the same time. That hit to her face was a form of retaliation, something he had yet to do since their battle began. Now she felt threatened.
Koops carefully stepped back towards the bridge. Maybe if he could get over that...
Vivian attacked again, this time, holding her fingers out. Koops knew what this meant and wasn't too happy about it. The siren was planning on using her Fiery Jinx, an attack that would probably scald or even blind him if it hit in the right spot. He pulled together in his shell at the last moment, feeling the lethal hex bounce off its covering. With an irritated growl, she faded into obscurity once more.
There was no time to lose... Koops advanced from safety and made a dash for the bridge.
Doopliss hit the ground hard with a loud groan of defeat, as Waffles dusted off his hands. "Man, that freak-sheet was really starting to work my nerves! Turning into Vivian and setting on you fire was cheating!"
"...I think we can both come to terms of agreement on that one..." coughed a charred Bobbery.
Marilyn was barely able to keep up with Ms. Mowz as she danced about in a dizzying mirage of hops and skips. Her maneuvers proved too much for the larger sibling, eventually leading to her defeat.
The battle was rapidly turning in Mario's team's favor. Every time Beldam used one of her icy spells, Flurrie blew it back in her face. And because Goombella and Flurrie kept their distance, her other spells had no effect. The plan was a failure; Everyone was losing and nothing could be done about it.
"Give up now!" called Goombella. "Not only are you beat, but you're outnumbered!"
"I would expect someone as foolish as yourself would say that. Why, you have no idea what's ahead, do you?"
"What are you implying?" asked the Cloud Sprit.
"Sorry, but I can't exactly say," Beldam began backing away. "I'll just leave you with this warning... You may've won the battle... but the war is just beginning..."
"Hey! You can't just run away!"
"I'd like to think of it as retreating, not fleeing..."
Before she could make a comeback, the siren of ice had already faded into darkness, leaving no trace behind.
Goombella looked at Flurrie. "Do you think she was bluffing?"
"...I'm not sure I know what to believe anymore, dear."
Meanwhile, Koops was nearing the first bridge, seeing Goombella, Flurrie, and Ms. Mowz in the distance. All he had to do was keep running... despite Vivian gradually getting closer by the second.
Suddenly, he got an idea. Stopping short, he noticed Vivian's aim proved to be worse than first thought, as she stumbled over and fell headfirst to the ground.
He grabbed her lissome body and pulled her into a headlock. Koops now understood; similar to his shell's sometimes unreliable manner, her greatest strength was also her greatest weakness. While sturdy in the upper extremities, Vivian's main structure lacked resistance, making it easy to throw or toss her around.
She thrashed about in his grasp like mad, hissing, growling, and rotating her neck aggressively in hopes of escaping. Suddenly, she snapped forward, whipping her tail past Koops' feet, making him lose his balance. He landed with a hard thump on his shell.
Muttering an expletive, he laid back panting, tired and helpless form the brawl. Vivian hung over him now, looking more annoyed than pleased with his predicament. Her mouth was turned up and she was just sitting there... staring...
"...You're going to pay for what you did to my sister..."
"Vivian, you're being used... Don't do this..."
"I make my own decisions..." she raised a hand, embers starting to form in her palm. "and I'm not going to let some snotty little Koopa persuade me otherwise..."
This can't be it... his conscious refused to believe it. He couldn't go out like this. It just didn't seem possible... Being burned alive by an ancient demon out of some fairy tale. One that he actually considered to be in love with at one point...
"I don't know what's going on here, but I'm about to put a stop to this!"
"Huh?
"In a flash, Waffles scurried over and jumped on top of Vivian's hat, jamming the rim down her face.
"Get off of me!" she growled, thrashing about in a wild attempt to throw him off.
Koops rocked back on his shell, eager to flip it right-side up, but his effort proved useless once again. All he could do was watch Vivian struggle and Waffles hanging on for dear life.
Fed up with his interference, the Shadow Siren held her glowing hands near the intruder in hopes of scorching him instead. Her intentions were literally doused as Ms. Mowz appeared on the scene. In the utter confusion, Vivian tripped over her and fell backwards into the moat with a loud splash. Flurrie floated over to the still-struggling Koops and helped him up.
The rest steadily gathered together and watched in tense anticipation. A couple of minutes passed and bubbles churned on the surface. The bubbling suddenly stopped and Waffles rose from the murky moat, wearing Vivian's soaked hat. Briefly afterwards, the latter emerged, coughing violently.
"Man!" Waffles staggered out the moat, shivering. "That water is cold!"
"...Vivian? Are you okay?" asked Goombella.
She slowly reached up to part her flowing hair; its sopping, cherry hue resembled ribbon streaks in the water. Koops held his breath, fearing the overpowering spell would command her to leap out and attack someone.
"...W-where am I...?" was the confused question.
"You're safe," breathed the Koopa. He then added, "And back with us."
The siren massaged her temples and groaned. "...Oh... What was I doing? My head hurts so bad..."
"Whatever drove you to join your sisters again must've given these migraines. Here, I'll help you up." Flurrie outstretched her hand toward the fallen comrade.
"Oh, yes... Thank you..." she whispered with the same meekness everyone found themselves accustomed to.
As she was being pulled her from the moat, Koops struggled with himself to keep from grabbing the once secluded outcast in a warm embrace. He felt so enervated at her absence and now that she was back, all he wanted to do was take better care of one of the few things he still considered precious.
Careful to keep her face concealed, Vivian grabbed a large clump of her drooping hair and squeezed the water from it. Once dry, her locks sprang back to life, retaining their vibrant color and graceful quality.
"Here. Kept it warm for ya," Waffles laughed, handing her the drenched hat.
"Thanks," she said taking it. She twisted it in her grip to ring it out, somehow doing this while her soaked hair covered almost her entire face. Koops could never understand how she did that...
Vivian decided to sit down, flinching from the floor's cold surface. She neatly coiled herself together and began playing with her hair; she combed it and smoothed it out, making sure every curl was place. Koops figured this was a good time as any to talk to her.
"Vivian?"
She stopped combing, stuck in an awkward position where anyone could've easily seen her eyes. Hurriedly, she threw it in every which way to make sure her face was covered. Unfortunately, she could barely see anything like this.
"I was really worried about you..." he went on, sitting nearby.
"Oh..." she paused, literally caught up in her curls. "No, don't worry about me... They didn't rough me up too much..."
"You're not hurt, are you?"
"No..."
She was lying. Koops knew it by the way she averted his gaze. He then noticed a dark bruise around each of her wrists.
"What's that on your arms? Let me see..."
Instead of pulling away and making excuses, the Shadow Siren agreed, allowing Koops to gently finger the area around her gloves. Upon closer inspection, the bruises on her wrists were just what they looked to be, bruises. Vivian only had a few minor injuries, mostly around her arms and face, but didn't seem to be in any pain... Exactly how she got these bruises was the only thing bugging Koops. Though, her overall wellbeing was good enough for him.
"I think you'll live," he joked.
She smiled and finished patting down her hair. "That's good."
It wasn't long before her smile slowly faded into a frown, accompanied with a sigh.
Seeing this, Koops asked, "What's wrong?"
"...Are you mad at me?"
"Huh?"
"Are you mad at me?" she repeated, starting to cower.
"Of course I'm not mad at you. And neither is anyone else. What made you think of that?"
"I know you all told me to stay there... but I was in a lot of pain... I had to leave..."
"That's alright; it was kind of a stupid idea to make you stay there, anyway..."
She went on as if she didn't hear him. "Then I thought I could bring the princess to you. I thought I'd be doing you a favor..."
His eyes widened in surprise. "You mean... you knew where she was?"
"Well..." she cowered again. "Yes..."
"Why didn't you tell us?"
"You couldn't get down there anyway; Grodus shut down the mainframe system so the only way in or out was through his manual command."
"So, how'd you get down there?"
"There must've been a bug in the system because the elevator was still working when I tried it. I found Peach and was going to bring her back to Mario. I really thought it'd work, but Grodus surprised me and took both of us captive..."
"I bet he's probably the one who hypnotized you, huh?"
"Yes... He said something about wanting to use me to his advantage and not bait, since Peach was already the main attraction."
"Well, you don't have to worry about anymore," he assured her. "We got the seventh Crystal Star from that Crump guy and made sure those X-Nauts would never step foot on Earth again."
"That's good and all and I'm glad you got the last star. But Koops..." her voice suddenly turned dark. "I... really need to tell you something important..."
"What?"
"You all have to leave this place..."
"Leave? How come?"
"By entering through the Thousand-Year Door, you don't know what you've done. It's practically a sin to walk around in here..."
"...I don't understand..."
"You don't have to," she placed a hand on his. "Just get out of here before something awful happens..."
Overhearing her, Waffles came over. "Whaddya mean, 'leave'? We still have to save the princess from those X-creeps and stop Grodus from taking over the world!"
Vivian stood, her nigrescent form looming over him. "...You must leave, you have to. This is... such an awful place... I never would've let any of you come if I were still with you..."
"Vivian, what are you talking about?" asked a confused Flurrie.
"This is the Palace of Shadow, a dark and evil void of despair where only shadows are supposed to live. I'm surprised you got this far, and I'm thankful for that, but the trials ahead are long and dangerous and... and there's a chance you might all be killed!"
"Don't you worry about that!" Bobbery added. "The road ahead may be long, but we'll tackle it with gusto!"
"Yeah! We went through a lot of crazy stuff in this place! We had to jump over fireballs, walk past booby trapped floors, go through this crazy staircase room, fight like, a MILLION Dull Bones, and solve that whacked-out...er... tower thing over there!" said Waffles, numbering off each one.
By the time he was done, Vivian looked completely horrified. "You... you went through all that...?"
"What's the big deal, anyway?" pouted the young Yoshi, upset his point wasn't getting across. "It's not like we've never done backbreaking work before while trying to save someone, or find something, or find someone for someone, or find something to give to someone, or--"
"We get it, Waffles," Goombella grumbled, cutting him off.
"You don't understand how close you all were to being killed... and all just to save me..."
"Not only that, but we still have to find Her Highness... But I digress; finding you was a great feat for all of us, if I do say so myself."
Flurrie's opinion was complemented by many signs of agreement from the others. In opposition, the distraught Shadow Siren started shaking her head in a bitter refusal.
She grabbed Koops, clinging tightly to his clothes. "Look, I'm really serious here! All the things you've been through this far... They're nothing like the things ahead!"
"Vivian, you know as well as I do we have to keep going..."
"No, you don't! Please... I don't want anyone to get hurt over me..."
"But we're going after the princess now."
She glanced down for a moment, then faced him again. "I know this place better than any of you and... I can get her for you! I swear I will! Maybe I can get Grodus to..."
"Did you hit your head on something?" spat Waffles. "Look, we're going to keep going whether you want us to or not! Trying to negotiate with Grodus is like trying to eat a Poison Shroom; Nothing good can ever come from it!"
"But... but..." she looked about frantically, anxiety taking over. "...But you'll get hurt..."
"Just relax, take a deep breath, and stop worrying so much..." said Koops.
She obeyed, taking loud, shaky breaths and exhaling deeply. After a few moments breathing, she regained her tranquility.
"Now, look... We're going to find the princess. Nothing bad's going to happen and we'll be extra careful. Since you're here, you can help and tell us if there're any traps around, okay?"
She heaved a disgruntled sigh, shaking her head in shame. With disgust in her voice, she answered, "...You shouldn't be here. But, if you absolutely promise me you'll be careful..."
Deep down, Vivian refused to believe Koops was right, but their fate was no longer under her control. It was seven against one; No matter how many times she would warn them, they'd end up going anyway...
With Vivian found, everyone continued on in hot pursuit of the princess. No one knew the whereabouts of Beldam, Marilyn, and Doopliss, but it didn't matter. Deafeating all three twice was more than enough of a warning.
Although Vivian's claims of threatening dangers seemed convincing, she was proven wrong as they got past all the traps, solving all the puzzles, and making the most out of their random encounters with wandering enemies. Seeing what great progress they were making, she no longer felt inclined to mention the palace's "impending doom" and not once did she have to help anyone past a problem.
Another thing the party was able to do was keep their sense of humor, despite their pathway getting progressively darker. They'd go down long hallways kidding around with one another in order to keep their sprits up. Jokingly, Waffles once said to beware of the native Dark Wizzerds because they'd one day rule the world with their evil tickling power of doom. Goombella countered by saying Bobbery would blast them away with a fleet of Bombshell Bill Blasters. Even Vivian found this funny...
She thought they weren't ready. She couldn't stand thought of losing her only friends in the world. But maybe... they did have what it took to rectify things...
They were on the road to doing away with Grodus forever. Beldam was gone and wouldn't dare mess with them again. Mario still had the Crystal Stars, meaning the dreaded Shadow Queen wouldn't come back to power after all. The whole thing made her feel a little insignificant... But things were going so great, nothing could've possibly made it any better.
She looked ahead at Koops walking in front of her and blushed. Vivian once remembered hearing an old saying about how absence makes the heart grow fonder. She wouldn't be surprised if it was true...
Koops felt something roughly nudge his hand. Not at all surprised, he turned to see Vivian, giving him one of her "I want attention" looks.
He smiled knowingly. "What's wrong--?"
Before he could finish, Koops was cut off by a sudden embrace. Vivian squeezed tightly around his body with a short, but sweet hug. Like a warm clump of feathers, her hair settled on his cheek and nose. Her soft hands caressed his shell, starting around the middle and abruptly ending with a playful tug at his jacket's collar. It probably didn't last much longer than a few seconds before she let go.
He looked at her, confused and startled by her actions. She violently jerked her hat down in shame, and refused to look at him. Through her trepidation, the bewildered Koopa racked his brain to figure out her intentions...
The unnerving silence was finally broken by Waffles in the distance. "Hey! Come on, already! You guys are slowing us down! We wanna save the princess sometime this millennium!"
Koops snapped back into reality, only to notice her already running off to join the others.
Vivian sure was hard to figure out. He wasn't sure what the purpose of that hug was, but maybe it was her way of thanking him for bringing her back to her senses... Perhaps it was a sign of appreciation in her own little passionate way.
"You're welcome..." he whispered with a smile.
Grodus raised his head. The trouncing of his femme fatales and Vivian's releasing from his spell were easily comprehended, despite the fact they were nowhere near his locality.
"I see. So, not even with Vivian could Beldam and her bumbling fools stop this Mario. Either he is a force to be reckoned with or my confidence in her has been fueled by false optimism. No matter..." he placed himself against the throne. "Mario's downfall will come soon enough... and it will be at my hands..."
Authoress' Notes: Don't you think it's kinda odd how Vivian says "I'm sorry, Sis..." after beating the three assholes? I guess it's just showing off more of her perceived naïveté.