SJ: -Runs in- I'm so late, I'm so late, I'm so late, I'm so—! –Gets flattened by the big 108- XX

Samus: -Sitting in a chair, polishing blaster lazily- You sure took your sweet time, hm?

I was busy! –Struggles to get free from underneath the big 108- Argh!

THANK-YOUS!

Royal Kenya (Yay! Thankies! ), Sage of Downtown Hyrule (WOO! –Grabs Link and shoves him to you-), Crystalicios (YAY CRYSTALICIOS!), theorganizedmess (Wow…thanks!), Bumble Bee (Thank you!), Raze (Thanks), Babykoalaprincess (WOOT! –Crowns you the Rockin' Queen for being the 100th reviewer-), xNobodyPutsSammyInTheCornerx (-Bows- xD), Melody (Aw, thanks! And since you asked so nicely, sure!), readergirl-290 (Glad it did! XD), Empress Caroline of Tamaran (XD Don't die of laughter, now…-Sweatdrops-), Anonymous (HOLY…-Stares up at long review, then dies out of feeling so loved- xD Just kidding. Thanks a bunch! –Hugs, showers with plushies-) Medabot Freak (Uh…thanks!) ShadowSong StarGlaive The Wolf (W00T! –Showers with Young Link and Nana plushies-) Wrath – Blue Spheal Ranger (XD Thankies! –Gives cookies- Here's the update!)

THANK-YOU!

-Is currently trying to be tugged out from underneath the big 108 by Marth and Roy- OWW! Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow—

Marth: -Pulling- Ugh…you're stuck in there pretty deep, SJ! I don't think…we…can, ugh, get you out!

Roy: -Pouts- My hands are starting to hurt!

Samus: -Rolls eyes, and aims blaster at the 108- Hold still.

BOOM!

SJ/Roy/Marth: AHHHHH! –Go flying off to oblivion-

Samus: -Nods in satisfaction and turns to readers- Enjoy the story.

Title: 'Chocolate Chip'

Couple: Samarth, just to get back in the mood again.

Summary: A storm, a midnight snack, a banished prince who likes midnight snacks, and a bounty hunter that's scared of storms. What could possibly happen?

Dedication To: Royal Kenya, Sage of Downtown Hyrule, Babykoalaprincess (CONGRATS, 100th REVIEWER!), Crystalicios, and all the other Samus x Marth lovers. Here's your fluff!

WARNING: FLUFFY! (I wrote this with a friend, so IT'S HER FAULTTTTT! –Cries— Her and her EVIL ideas…plus there's a lot of Marth torture I'm sorry Marth! –Huggles him— so yeahhhhh…-Innocent smile-

And the song is "Rainy Day" by Ayumi Hamsaki. Such a pretty song…XD)

Boom.

The figure flinches in reflex at the sound of thunder crashing like an explosion outside in the dark, stormy sky, and he takes a small step backwards in hesitation.

Creeeeeeeeek.

He slightly winces at the way the floor creaks as his foot steps upon the floor, just outside his door, and slowly shifts his feet along the hallway. He tries to be light, he truly does, but when he hears Bowser's grumble of—"Mmmrpphh…who's stealin' my teddy…?"—he merely dashes down the hallway and flies down the stairs towards the kitchen, not caring anymore about being quiet…

…even though he trips twice along the way. Loudly.

Everybody's too exhausted to get up anyway, he thinks to himself, trying to soothe his jumpy nerves. The tournament was quite the killer…not literally, but even I can barely keep my eyes open, and I'm the early riser.

Soon, after many close-encounters with his fellow Smashers' sleepy forms, he makes it to the kitchen and spots the bowl, still sitting on the counter top, as if waiting for him.

He grins, all nervousness and exhaustion gone automatically.

A few chocolate chips might make that change, however…

He reaches towards it, slowly, and almost has it in his grasp when…

"Marth!"

"—Eh?! A-Ah! NO!"

He stumbles back from the intruder, his hand smacking against the bowl.

Thunder rumbles outside; he hears a small whimper.

The bowl falls, and hits the ground with a clatter that echoes all around the air.

Shocked, he stares at the fallen contents, not even bothering to look up at the other figure standing rigid in the doorway; the silence around them is heavy, very heavy, and he gulps, almost being able to hear the stirring upstairs.

Fortunately, after a few minutes of that heavy, heavy silence, nobody comes down nor asks what's going on, so he allows himself to relax—but only briefly, as his short-temper flares and he glares at the figure in the doorway.

"Who the hell…" he starts, his voice an angry whisper, but the figure snaps right back, and cuts him off.

"Don't even think about using that tone with me, you stupid prince!" the figure hisses.

Immediately his anger vanishes, and he wrinkles his nose thoughtfully.

"Wait a sec…Sam-chan? That you?" he asks, flushing a dark red. Nice job, Marth. Snapping at your crush isn't exactly a good way to make her stop hating you.

Samus Aran glares fiercely at him, and folds her arms tightly across her chest. "Who else could it be?"

He smiles meekly and shrugs a little, knowing that if he says anything, she'll probably smack him. Instead he looks at her, and notices that she's not in her armor, but blue pajamas; this makes him blink.

She notices. "What're you lookin' at?" she growls, and he quickly looks away, stuttering a quick, "N-Nothing!" and, as she stares at him with piercing eyes, he tries to look at the floor, interested in the patterns. H…Hey, is that a stain there…?

Fortunately, after a few horribly tense minutes, he can feel the heat get off his back, and he glances up warily to see her turning away, huffing; he hears her mutter, "Stupid pervert…" and he flushes, feeling his dignity getting a chunk ripped off it almost instantly; his rather short temper flares, if only briefly, but it's enough.

Nobody calls a prince a pervert and gets away with it!

The anger simmers down after the thought. Then again, usually when he was—IF EVER—called a pervert before, the guards would take care of it by kicking the girl—or guy, even—out of the castle rather roughly.

He pauses, trying to imagine seeing Samus, dressed as a princess, and calling him a pervert, only to get dragged off by a bunch of guards, but the thought fails (he knows that she would probably be the one to throw his guards out, anyway).

Though…he does keep the image of 'Princess Samus', however…

"SEE!" Samus's rather hushed, yet angry cry brings him back to reality, and soon she's up in his face, looking furious while having the decency to blush. "You have that stupid dreamy smile on your face! Shove any thoughts of me in that sick, twisted mind of yours OUT before I make you…you…you—"

There's a crack of thunder, drowning out whatever she wants to say; he barely sees her—no, hears her—give out a little small sound of…is she frightened? But before he can even open his mouth to speak—Are you okay, Sam-chan?—she murmurs, "I…have to go…" and promptly stuffs herself under the table, wrapping her arms around her knees and burying her face into her arms, tensing when the thunder boomed once more.

He stares at her once more, definitely puzzled to the max.

Oookay. I'm not dead yet. Weird…grateful, of course! But weird…

He's even more puzzled when he a soft sound, like sobbing, coming from under the table—coming from the bounty hunter herself.

…Weird, is all he can think, almost dumbly, before he straightens himself out. He bends down, and looks at her, frowning a bit at not being able to see her face.

"Sam-chan…?" he calls out softly, and once he does, the sobbing ceases.

"…W-What?" she snaps, her voice muffled. "L-Look…I-I…like it d-down here, o-okay? Got a p-problem with—"

"You were crying," he cuts her off, barely caring about the risk of having himself brutally murdered in a kitchen, "and I want to know why."

"Crying?" she scoffs, ignoring his question and getting her fiery temper back; though her voice is nothing but a mere croak. "Me? Do you t-think that I'd cry over such a stupid thing like…like…" she laughs a bit, almost a little bitterly, at the thought as she weakly finishes off, "…a thunderstorm?"

Hell yeah, he thinks, but instead says, "No, since it's most likely that you'd encounter thunderstorms before, probably worst ones, on other planets. Though it's odd that since you're not afraid you're under a table, but…" Oh great…now she's glaring at me…and she's still crying, damn it! No matter! k-keep it cool, keep it cool, Marth… "…B-But don't get me wrong, you're the best bounty hunter I've ever met—" More like the only one I ever met… "—just…in my own opinion I must say that I believe that you, Samus Aran—" Here it comes. Better prepare for the punch…"—is afraid of thunderstorms."

He lets out the last part in a large gush of breath, trying not to allow his voice to squeak, nor for himself to dash off screaming like his common sense is telling him to do. He stays there, firmly looking down upon the bounty hunter with the air of a prince about him, and the stern look upon his face that makes him look absolutely fearless…

…even though he isn't. Fearless people don't think about running off and screaming over a girl (even though the girl knows how to kick your butt and blast a hole in your gut).

He even prevents himself from cringing when the awkward silence comes back—Wow, I'm good!—and hope soars up within him when Samus's glare softens and she looks at him with an odd look…w-wait a second, that's not g-good…why is she looking at me like that?

He doesn't have the chance, however, to take a guess at why as the thunder comes back, louder than ever.

BOOOOOOM.

"Eh?" he blinks, his head snapping up just in the nick of time to see a flash outside the window. He's transfixed, if only for a second, but in that one second the whole world flashes by him as he soon finds himself lying sprawled on the floor.

His first thought is: Why am I on the floor?

His second thought is: I wonder if I'll those chocolate chips are still good to eat, even though they're on the floor that hasn't been cleaned in a month 'cause Peach got fed up with us for being so messy?

And finally his third thought is: HOLY SWEET GODDESS OF ALTEA, IS SAM-CHAN ON TOP OF ME?!?! Then, after a small pause, he thinks, …Sweet! I MEAN, NO! NO! NO! BAD ME! BAD, BAD…

He feels like smacking himself for such thoughts, but fails to do so as he finds both his arms are stuck…

…under her body.

Oh crap, his mind says, and the naughty thoughts come back. Noooooooo…

But he forgets about them—if that's even possible—when he feels the bounty hunter's body rack with new sobs; her arms tighten themselves around his neck, and he gulps, both nervous about their position, and the crying woman on top of him.

"Er…Sam-chan?" he asks, his voice sounding alien to even himself with its worried and almost desperate tone, "Sam-chan, are you all right? Sam-chan, please…stop crying…please?"

She doesn't. Rather, she cries more, and starts mumbling incoherent things in between sobbing, making him more confused than ever. He manages to get his hands free when she shifts around to bury her face in his shoulder at another loud crash of sound outside, and he puts them awkwardly on her back, trying to soothe her, and his pounding heart with little success in each.

"Uh…there, there…it'll be alright…?" he manages to get out, in a slightly high-pitched whisper. He winces, and instantly scolds himself, frowning down at the girl on top of him.

What's wrong with me?

Before when there was a girl crying or a girl in distress, he would automatically become the 'charming gentleman' princes usually know how to be. He would comfort them (and manage to capture their hearts in the process) and cure their problems (while making them swoon and almost faint when he did so) without even truly trying.

Yet with Samus, this situation is different.

He feels his heart pounding—obviously something that rarely happens around girls.

He feels something inside him twist and ache at the sound of her sobbing—obviously something that never happens as he's dumped multiple girls and never really felt bad about afterward.

But most of all, he feels…calm? No, that's the last thing he feels… soothed? No, not that either…

Complete…?

He pauses, looking down at the crying girl, thoughts, feelings and ideas all flooding inside his mind and making his head spin; faintly, he can swear he can hear her mumble, "No…thunderstorm…mom…died…go away…" but then there's another loud crash of sound outside and he feels her bury her face into his shoulder more in a desperate attempt to block it out.

A thought comes to his mind, and, if the situation isn't what it is, he's sure he would've said it was the 'corniest thing that was ever made in corny land' (just like Roy usually likes to say).

But since the situation is what it is, his sarcasm dies and he tightens his hold on the bounty hunter, if only a little.

She makes me feel…complete.

Silence comes soon after that. Even the thunder stops booming, if only for a little while, as the two of them lie on the kitchen floor, the only sounds hearable her sobs…

…and his soft voice, as he sings a small little song in Japanese.

"…Are wa aru samui hi de…tsuyoi amy no naka…boku wa tada kimi dake o…machi tsuzukete ita…"

The sobs cease. With a small sniff, she looks at him, eyes sparkling in the dim light of lightning flashing outside, a puzzled expression on her face.

"…W-What?"

He flushes, and grins a little, meekly. At least she's stopped crying…

"It's…it's a lullaby…that my Sister used to sing whenever I was away or our parents were," he explains, growing a bit hesitant to continue when he sees her eyes widen, but mentally smacking himself for his—dare he say it?—shyness. His eyes grow a little shifty as he adds, "It translates to, 'it was a cold day I kept waiting just for you in the hard rain'…" He chuckles nervously, trying not to pull at his collar…dear Goddess the room's turned rather hot…"Heh…er…c-corny, huh?"

He notices she, too, is blushing as she murmurs, finally looking away from him (much to his disappointment, "Y-Yeah…corny…"

Then…

…damn it, I swear I'll go completely and utterly INSANE if this stupid silence keeps on going on like this!

He makes a face, half-wishing she'll speak up, half-relieved that she doesn't say anything about his song (or his singing voice).

Then, after a pause to think about it more, he shakes his head and lets her go, much to the bounty hunter's surprise.

…What am I doing, anyway? Still holding her…as if…as if I'm her boyfriend or something! H-Ha! As…as if…

"I'll have my midnight snack later," he utters, just under his breath, getting up and brushing himself off. He gives a little cough—the kind of cough you give when it's a 'this-is-an-awkward-situation-so-I-suppose-I'll-exit-like-a-gentleman-would-now'—and looks down at the bounty hunter, who, oddly enough, hasn't budged from the floor.

"C'mon, Sam-chan. If you get up, I'll escort you to your room," he says, holding his hand out for her to take—Take it before I loose my dignity, dang it!—his face still quite a dark red, and…

"No." The answer is firm; flat; curt; giving off a knowledge that there's absolutely no chance of a argument after, and that her word is final.

Poor little Marth, however, oblivious as he is, stares at her, and says intelligently, "Huh?"

She looks up at him, her stubborn streak obviously and happily back.

"I'm not going to bed. Sing me the rest of the song," she says—no, orders—while giving him a firm look.

He groans a little, "But Sam-chan, it's late…I need—I mean you need your beauty sleep!" He realizes what he previously said, and quickly adds, "Not that you need it, of c-course! Ha…ha…heh…"

But she doesn't find it funny. "Sing me the rest of the song," she repeats, her voice a little more strained, yet still with that perfect, 'If-you-don't-you'll-have-that-sword-shoved-up-somewhere-painful' tone and expression.

Boom.

She winces—he notices—and hisses, her voice shaky, "Now."

"B-But I…" he swallows hard, looking anywhere—anywhere but at her, and her death glare.

It was just a spur of the moment thing, though!

She thinks differently, as her eyes narrow.

He gulps, and racks his brain for the rest of the song, wondering if she would mind if he sings the same verse again repeatedly to save his life, when he finds it; pushing his nervousness back, he opens his mouth and sings, his voice soft and wavy through the still, thick air.

"Shiawase ni warai au…hitobito ga boku no…sugu soba o nando demo…toori nuketa kedo…hitori kiri kaka mo naku…tachi tsukuku boku wa…dare yori mo odayaka ni…hohoende ita…"

Somewhere along the line, he finds himself yanked down beside her; he pauses his singing to look at her, curiously, when she gives him a dark look, and he quickly goes back to singing.

Still, it's hard for him to ignore the way her arms wrap around his arm, and the way her head rests on his shoulder…

…Stop it already, you sick, evil twisted mind of mine! Just keep letting me sing!

The dirty thoughts stop.

Yet he still doesn't know exactly how his arm winded up around her neck, nor how her hands were suddenly clasping one of his tightly.

"Kogoeru te o kazashite…arawareta kimi o mite…nakidashi sou ni natta no wa…kanashimi no sei ja nai…"

The thunder rumbles again from outside, but not as loudly as before. Still, he feels her wince, but, much to his relief, she doesn't begin to cry again (Thank the Goddess…)…

She only yawns, and out of the corner of his eye, he sees her blink her sleepy eyes. He smiles, and lets her rest her head again on his shoulder, her eyes slowly falling to a close.

He squeezes her hand lightly, before singing the last verse, his eyes suddenly becoming heavy as well; his head leans against hers, but he insists to himself it's only for a little while—it's not permanent…—as he tries to wake himself up.

"…Bokutachi o isshun no…hikari ga terashita…korekara no yuku michi o…iwau kano you ni…"

Then the whole world goes dark.

"…Well…they look comfortable, don't they?"

Voices. So many voices…

Mmm…dear Goddess, don't wake me up yet…I'm still tired…

"…But honestly, why would Marth pick a stupid KITCHEN to make his moves? I would've at LEAST picked my bedroom…and that's only at LEAST!"

"…Er…sure, Roy, whatever. But who's going to wake them up?"

Ehhh? Wake us up? What do you…

Violet eyes flutter open; light blinds them briefly for a few seconds, but after a few blinks, the whole world swirls back and he's able to see.

"AH!"

Even though he really shouldn't have.

"Well, well, well!" Link grins at him, slyly. "Look at that! The two sleeping beauties decided to wake up by themselves!" He chuckles. "Y'know, Bowser just went to go get a bucket of water from the fountain…"

"Oh shut-up, you smug little—wait." He freezes. "Two 'sleeping beauties'? Who's the second…"

He feels somebody shift beside him; he blinks, and, slowly, looks over to see whom it is.

Automatically his face flushes red, before the thoughts come flooding back to him.

OH. Now I remember…crap. Crappity, crap, CRAP.

"Aww, why so red, Marthy-boy?" Roy teases, poking his blue-haired friend in the head. "Embarrassed 'cause you got caught?"

"No!" he snaps, hotly, but shushes himself, remembering the sleeping bounty hunter beside him. He sweatdrops, and makes a move to get up and rush away from the situation—but I'm still FEARLESS, damn it!—only to be jerked back down by an unknown force. "GAH!"

Link smiles amusedly, watching the banished prince writhe around on the ground, trying to get free.

"Looks like little Sammy's not letting you go so easily, Marth."

He stops struggling to look at the elf blankly. "What? Sam-chan's not letting me…" he trails off and looks, once again, at the bounty hunter, groaning when he sees that her arms are wrapped firmly around his waist.

Oh damn it…could it get any worse?

"Good morning everybody…nice day, isn't…EEEEEKKKK! MY PRECIOUS FLOOR!"

He cringes as Peach comes in, remembering the scattered chocolate chips all over the floor, and the broken pieces of the bowl that broke when it had fallen.

…Never mind. I'm screwed, he thinks, watching as the princess raises up her 'pan-of-doom'.

Mm…that was probably one the best sleeps I've ever gotten!

Yawning, Samus Aran rises up from her bed, smiling; not a sore ache anywhere on her body.

And to think, I thought it would be a horrible sleep when the thunderstorm came. Ah well.

Humming a song she can't quite remember where she heard, she walks to the window, opening the curtains and letting the sun shine through. She nods at the beautiful day, stretching a bit with the warmth covering her, and is about to get dressed again when she spots something outside.

…Marth?

She blinks, and squints her eyes, trying to spot the figure that's walking outside—in his pajamas.

"It is Marth!" she exclaims to herself, recognizing the blue hair.

Quickly, she opens the window, about to call his name when she spots him heading inside the Mansion. Frowning, she grabs her bathrobe and slips it on, walking towards the door to meet him downstairs when there's a knock.

"Who is it?" she calls, her happy mood ruined a little. "I'm busy."

"Marth," comes a mutter from the other side.

"Hold on a sec!" she flattens out her hair, which had been sticking out oddly, and bites her lip—Why am I nervous all of a sudden?—before opening the door.

She knows she would've bursted out laughing if she wasn't so shocked.

Soaking wet, and with multiple bumps on his head, Marth Lowell stands there, still in his pajamas and with his face a dark, dark red. He ignores her gaping and sighs, looking at her with a shy glance.

"Sam-chan…look…I…" he pauses, and runs a hand through his hair, nervously. "Dear Goddess, how should I put this…?"

She looks at him oddly. "Marth, why are you so wet? And why are there bumps on your—"

He engulfs her in a hug. A wet hug, but a hug, nonetheless.

"M-Marth!" she squeaks, shocked.

Smack him, is her first impulse, but she freezes when she feels his warm breath on her ear, and hears his soft voice singing to her ever so gently.

"Wasure taku nai koto nara…oboeyou to shinaku temo…wasureru koto nante nai…sou shizuka ni kanjiru…"

"W-What in the…" she starts, ready to snap at him, when he presses something into her hands and kisses her softly on the cheek, rendering her again speechless and shocked for a second time and allowing him to smile at her and dash away just as Peach's angry shriek is heard, yelling, "GET BACK HERE, MARTH LOWELL!"

The bounty hunter stands there, not even replying to Peach's quick, "Morning Sammy!" nor noticing how quickly the pink princess's expression changes from a sunny, happy one, to one only a psychotic, murderous woman can muster as she charges down the hallway, her 'pan-of-doom' clutched in her hands as she bellows a warrior cry.

She regains her senses and looks down at the object in her hands. She frowns as she sees it's a container of some sort, and she takes off the lid, her confusion only growing worse as she sees what's inside…

…a bag of chocolate chips, with a small, messily painted thundercloud beside it on a piece of paper.

+fin+