How the world fares
Super Smash Bros. Brawl fanfiction by Shade-Duelist
disclaimer: I own no one in this story save the OC's Stella and Player Shii. I do not own SSBB or any of the games that feature in it. I do own this story, so be wary of my wrath when using it in the wrong way. And I determine what is wrong.
Chapter 4: The new guest
A month had passed, during which Peach and Pit had gradually gotten more and more involved in their relationship. The two now spent each evening together, sometimes in the company of Yoshi, Samus, Snake (who turned out to be somewhat amiable once you knew him better) and Kirby. Most of the people residing in the Mansion knew of the blooming relation between the angel and the princess – not everyone agreed with it, however. Mario had been outraged at first, but he had quickly realised that Peach and he had grown apart over their argument and so he had settled for a wary neutral position. Bowser had been as outraged as Mario, but unlike the plumber he had not changed his position. This led to a fierce rivalry between Pit and Bowser in the arena, but neither seemed to be willing to actually harm the other too much and thus a truce had been called.
That afternoon, after a fierce free-for-all between Yoshi, Ganondorf, Pokémon Trainer and Falco Lombardi (which Yoshi won with ease), the dinosaur relaxed with Pit, Peach and Kirby by his side. As usual, Pit and Peach sat in a tight embrace – Yoshi pretended not to see the occasional kiss the two exchanged, but Kirby giggled every time. In celebration of his mate's victory, Kirby wore his Yoshi cap and the two enjoyed a bowl of fruits.
"Pnam pnam...", Yoshi said as he walked to one of the trees near where they were sitting, plopping down underneath it and falling asleep soon after, his soft snores joined after a while by Kirby's. This left the couple to their own devices and they walked back into the mansion, aimlessly wandering around in the cool of the house.
"Would you like a nap?", Pit suggested. Peach giggled and nodded, a slight blush spreading across her face. Pit raised an eyebrow but the princess tugged at his wrist, pulling him with her to the fourth floor, to her room. "Peach, what are you-", Pit started, but then he was inside her room and he was awed. She had a very luxurious room, with a walk-in wardrobe, a beautiful two-metre high mirror, and a balcony overlooking the gardens of the Mansion. And Pit had to admit that the room was not the bright explosion of pink he'd expected. Instead, it was a very subdued pastel pink and yellow, with subtle brighter pink accents which mainly consisted of hand-painted cherry blossom and peach blossom branches that swirled around windows and doors.
"Do you like it?", she asked, and Pit nodded.
"Peach, your room is great! But nothing can be more beautiful than you, who make this room even more radiant than it was before.", he added with a grin, earning him another soft kiss on his forehead from the princess.
"Now, the nap?", she suggested coyly, and Pit nodded with a deep blush adorning his cheeks. She noticed and pulled him along. "Don't worry, I won't eat you..."
"You know I meant just the nap, don't you, beautiful princess?", Pit admitted with a faint voice, and Peach snickered though she now blushed as well.
"Oh! Of course I knew... I mean, I know. I didn't mean- I didn't think about that.", she admitted after a short silence. The two now sat on the edge of the princess' king-size bed, which was big enough to fit four to five persons in it. "I never did think about that...", Peach added to reassure Pit, but it only served to confuse the young angel.
"Pardon me if this is rude or uncomfortable, but you and Mario... You didn't..." He let the implication carry itself and Peach shook her head.
"Oh, n-no! Mario and I had more of an... emotional bond..." It was followed by a sigh. "Let's not talk about that, though... Come, lay down by my side, and let's get that nap started." Pit obliged with a broad grin, rushing to lay down and cuddle with his beloved princess. Meanwhile, he mentally said another word of thanks to Palutena for his happiness. The two fell asleep after a while, the warmth of their embrace and the comfort of being together easing them into a quiet and deep slumber.
"Heya, wake up, little buddy..."
"Waah!" Yoshi jumped up, startled by the hand patting his big round nose, and then sighed in relief when he noticed it was just Samus. "Hm?", he asked. Like Pit and the ones from the Mushroom Kingdom, Samus had developed a wordless understanding with Yoshi and realised he asked what was the matter.
"Oh, it's time for dinner, that's all, and I was just wondering if you'd seen Peach."
"Pffrt...", Yoshi said with a shrug, showing he didn't know. "Hop hop!", he then voiced, and he took out a blue Koopa shell, his inquisitive eyes posing Samus the question whether she wanted him to scout out for her.
"Okay, you go see at her room, I'll check with Pit, okay?", she said. She dashed off at an amazing speed – sometimes the Chozo enhancements were everything but subtle. Yoshi laughed softly before swallowing the blue shell and feeling the wings sprout out of his back again. He didn't hesitate and jumped up, using the momentum to flap his wings a few times in order to get to the fourth floor, where Peach's room was. The green dinosaur landed on the balcony and looked into the room, seeing nothing. He pushed open the door into the princess' room and whispered out "Wie-ea..." Then, his ears picked up the even breathing coming from the bedroom and the green dragon walked tentatively toward it – he stopped in the doorway, seeing the princess and Pit lying in the kingsize bed, their arms still half around each other as they were both deep asleep. Yoshi sighed in endearment – a deep "ahh hmm" sound – and then backed away, gliding back down to the ground towards a waiting Samus.
"Pit wasn't in his room... were they, you know...", Samus asked, and Yoshi shook his head. He closed his eyes and made sleeping noises, and then said "waaw..." with a sort of endearment the bounty hunter could understand fully.
"Ah, let's let them sleep. Yoshi, my boy, I know a few bowls of fruit with your name on them, and there's bound to be a juicy tender steak that just screams to be eaten!"
After dinner, Yoshi, Kirby, Samus and Snake sat outside, watching the evening's calm. Samus and Snake sat with one arm loosely around the other – an act of intimacy they would only dare when in the presence of friends – while Yoshi and Kirby played some ways before them. The night was calm, and the sun had only just set which set the clouds ablaze in vibrant orange and pink hues. Kirby and Yoshi were idly discussing the shapes of the clouds when suddenly, the green dinosaur tensed. Only a split second later, Samus and Snake sat up as well, detached from one another, and Kirby looked up to the sky, following their gaze. Where moments before the sky had been darkening, stars appearing between the clouds, now the sky was rapidly growing lighter from a point in the skies. One of the stars grew brighter and brighter until it seemed to pulse with light – and then it suddenly grew dark again, leaving only an orange globe in the sky that quickly faded from view. The four were silent, until Samus and Snake spoke up almost simultaneously:
"A supernova!" The bountyhunter and the commando looked at each other with a grin. Samus then turned to Kirby and Yoshi to explain. "That's a star that has exploded... You know how the stars are like our sun but very very far away?" When both silent creatures nodded, she continued: "Well, when a sun is out of fuel to shine, it explodes with its last energy."
"Awawawawaw..." Yoshi voiced, and Kirby nodded, his eyes showing sadness. A sun dying seemed sad to Samus as well, though she knew it to be inevitable. Suddenly, something else drew her attention.
"Wait... What's that?"
Pit awoke next to princess Peach, her golden hair spread out on the pillow beside him and her hands resting loosely on his shoulder and his cheek. She smiled softly in her slumber, meaning she had good dreams, and he turned around very slowly and deliberately in order not to wake her up. In the silent darkness of the room – he knew evening had to have come, and yet he didn't mind – he prayed to Palutena, his words barely whispered.
"Palutena, my goddess of eternal benevolence, I pray to thank you for the blessings you have bestowed upon me. You have truly gifted me, oh light of the heavens, with such kind friends and such a beautiful and kind-hearted woman to be by my side. Please watch over all within this Mansion, and grace them with your benevolence as you have graced me." He awaited her answer, but it didn't come immediately as always. When it did come, Palutena sounded different.
"Pit, my child, as the light from the stars shines down on the world below, so shall I shine eternally upon you and your friends. But I sense the shifting of balance in the worlds beside ours, an explosion of raw energy... Someone will come your way, but to bring you doom or dawn I do not know. Pray that my blessings endure even when times should turn dire, Pit, my blessed general, for the time draws nigh when you must choose the path to take..." Pit wanted to ask her what she meant, but found her non-responsive, which was odd by itself. 'Why would Palutena not answer me?', he wondered.
He wandered off, to the balcony, and looked down. The sight of Yoshi and Kirby sitting a little ways from the Mansion greeted his eyes, along with Samus and Snake who obviously enjoyed a moment of privacy together. The green dragon and the pink creature were playing around a bit, making the young angel smile. 'Palutena, I thank you for your grace and insight – I have made friends here that I shall never forget in my endless life!', he mused.
Suddenly, Yoshi tensed. Samus and Snake followed suit, and then all four were staring at the horizon, at a spot between two clouds. Pit followed their gaze and saw a star rapidly brightening and then slowly extinguishing. 'W-what's this?!', he thought, feeling the raw energy that radiated off the explosion. The raw energies spiralled from the extinguished star, as if it had been annihilated by pure brute force – and then he noticed one focused beam of raw energy shooting out in the direction of the mansion. A speck of light appeared at the horizon, rapidly growing larger. Pit felt the threat that came from it and ran inside, quickly dashing down. As he came to the first floor, he heard voices come from the office of the Twin Hands on the other side of the main hall. He quickly dashed in that direction and found the door opened slightly. Peering inside, he saw Yoshi, Samus, Snake and Kirby – but the feeling of raw energy and the slight sense of danger were there as well. Something had come from that explosion, that something was there in the office.
"I had no where else to turn to." A deep, feminine voice sounded from within the office, and Pit's hair stood on end. The voice was pleasant to his ears, almost too much so. "I have no place left to go, no one to help me. The destruction of my world... the brute force of the Magifacts..."
"Yes, but can you fight?", Master Hand's authoritarian voice resounded.
"Yes... I can demonstrate..." Suddenly, everyone in the room gasped. "See?"
"M-much like Kirby's talent, but perfected...", Master Hand said. "Regardless...", he started, regaining his calm, but he was unceremoniously interrupted by another voice much like his own, though this one sounded unbalanced.
"Brother, this girl needs our help! Now, I say she can stay here for the duration of the tournaments, fighter or not, and after the tournaments she is at liberty to go where she pleases! That is final!" Pit realised that voice had to belong to the other hand, Crazy Hand. The voice now softened. "Take these forms, fill them in at your own liberty and return them to me tomorrow. You'll get a room on the third floor, with a balcony for easy access. ...Yoshi, can you show her? You seem to be at ease around her..." When Yoshi apparently nodded, Crazy Hand added one last remark. "The tour can wait until tomorrow, Yoshi, when she's had a bit of rest and when she's restored from the shock of losing her home world..." Then the door opened and everyone filed out.
Pit gasped. Between Yoshi and Crazy Hand walked what could best be described as a cross-breed between a human and a raven. The young woman stood over a head taller than he did, and she was black as the night with bright orange eyes and hair. Over her head and behind her back, wings of the purest black extended. Shocked, Pit took a step back. The girl looked up and her eyes widened.
"This one! Who is he?" Her voice was commanding, and he was unsettled to find Yoshi turn to her. Even more unsettling, however, was when no words were exchanged for a few seconds, after which the girl nodded. "I see. I will not bother you, Pit. But perhaps tomorrow we should speak. A friend of Yoshi should become a friend of mine." She then walked dutifully behind the green dragon, disappearing up the stairs shortly. Pit turned to see the others gone. Alone in the hallway, he found the feeling of impending danger chilling him to the bone...