Gamer4 in. Sorry I'm late, I got a surprise job offer at the local grocery store, things have been relatively busy. Before we begin, I'll break the mold a tad and answer a question up here- specifically, FelineWithin's question regarding the Gastlies pulling the carriages. The fact of the matter is, I was never that much of a Pokemon fan- I'm pretty familiar with the series, and I loved the show when I was a kid, but I'm not intimately familiar with some of the ins and outs of the games and lore. And, since I'm an author who prides himself on faithfulness to the source material (Roy's last name is Eliwood!)... Shut up... as an author who prides himself on faithfulness to the source material (Candy Kong is Diddy Kong's girlfriend!)... shut up... as an author who prides himself on faithfulness to the source material (Kjelle constantly acts like a jack- *gunshot.*) Okay, yeah, you get the point, I mess up on a lot of things, but I generally do strive to have some amount of consistency with the games I love so much, so I need to ask any Pokemon fans out there- just how attuned are Gastlies to flight? Their evolved forms, Haunters? Not sure if it really changes anything at this point, but if I'm so far off the mark on this one that I might as well be in a different country, I might be forced to reconsider this choice. To let me know, please R&R, constructive criticism- oh, wait, this is the beginning. Sorry about that, let's get on with the actual chapter.
Disclaimer: Don't know how many of you know this song, but the only alternative was 'Bear Necessities...' A long, long time ago, I can still remember how that music used to make me smile... and I knew if I had my chance, I could make those people dance, and maybe they'd be happy for a while...
Chapter XI
The Water Pump's Speech
No longer willing to push the matter, Mario decided to drop the issue of the strange, gaseous orbs currently dragging them up to the mansion. No, he was quite content to lean back and allow Peach to take the reigns of the conversation. "So, everyone notice that Kjelle's back? Wonder why? Crazy's not in trouble, is he?"
"Honestly, I would not be entirely broken up if the Hand were to not be teaching this year," Melia abruptly spoke up. "Over in Retro, we decided the Master Hand appointed him as a joke."
"A joke, huh?" Link asked derisively. "What, because Kjelle left out half the student body from her lessons?"
"Nothing to do with Kjelle," Melia shook her head. "Only... caterpiles and ultimate chimaeras do not a good curriculum make."
Link still had a solid frown on his face as he turned to Mario. "Hey, you sure this girl's right for this story?"
"Like I have any say in it," Mario scoffed.
"I'm sure you could put in a word with Gamer4."
"Like that winnicott ever listens to me?"
"More likely you than anyone else."
"You know what? Fine- we'll test her," Mario sighed. Looking out, he felt himself brighten as his gaze raked up the large hill, at the top of which was perched an even larger mansion- the Smash Mansion, glowing like a beacon in the night. "Look!" he called everyone's attention to him. "The Smash Mansion!"
Catching on, Link grinned. "The Smash Mansion!"
Zelda sighed. "The Smash Mansion!"
Peach giggled. "The Smash Mansion!"
Luigi's eyes brightened as he carried it on. "The Smash Mansion!"
"It's only a model," Melia shrugged dismissively.
Mario couldn't help smiling. "Sorry, Link, she stays."
"Dangit," Link muttered under his breath.
Finally, the carriages came to a halt, the students disembarked, and with one last glance back at those strange spheres, Mario turned and followed his friends, at long last, into the foyer of the Smash Mansion. He couldn't stop a wide smile from gracing his features as he took in the great chamber, large enough to accommodate several small houses, with light coming at once from everywhere and nowhere. He was almost prepared to skip as he headed towards the Dining Hall- all that crud, and he was finally back!
His good mood was dampened only slightly as he noticed, out of the corner of his eyes, several students staring at him- it was much the same treatment he'd received on board the Great Fox. Forget them, this was his real home, he wasn't going to let any amount of staring put him off.
Melia separated from them, heading towards the table laid out for Retro, where Mario couldn't help but notice she was being given a wide berth- only a couple students, including Shulk Clairvoya and Fiora Uzuki, seemed ready to approach her. Peach headed over to some of her own friends, and Mario, Luigi, Link, and Zelda took their usual spots next to Pit, Nintendo's resident ghost. The moment his butt made contact with his seat, Mario turned his eyes up to the staff table and scanned it... then scanned it again, though he knew there was no point- the one he was looking for stuck out like a sore thumb- on a hand that had no other fingers.
"He... he's not there."
Link and Zelda followed the same scanning procedure, and came to the same conclusion. "He didn't leave, right?" Link asked.
"No... no, he'd never leave the Master Hand." Mario was certain of it.
They both turned to Zelda, who had her patented 'thinking-things-over' face on. "So... any theories, Zelda?" Link asked.
"I think..." Zelda answered slowly, beckoning them closer, glancing over her shoulder to ensure no one else heard, "I think... he might still be on that job. Remember, last year, the Master Hand sent him on a top-secret job for Philanthropy?"
"Sounds reasonable," Link nodded. "But... that doesn't really mean I'm happy about it."
Zelda was about to speak again, when abruptly, her jaw dropped, her eyes popping out as she looked up at the staff table. "Who the flip..."
Mario turned and saw who she was looking at. As previous chapters have probably informed you, there was one seat at the staff table that never seemed to keep a single resident- the chair right next to the headmaster's, the chair for the teacher of Protection from the Evils. Currently sitting in that chair, whispering in the direction of the Master Hand, was a short, squat man dressed in ludicrously stereotypical middle-eastern clothing, particularly his hat, and even now, still with a banana in his hand that he gnawed away at in between his sentences.
"Fassad?" Mario wondered out loud.
"Who's putting on a facade?" Zelda asked, confused.
"No, that guy," Mario shook his head. "He's Fassad- Fassad Yokuba, he was at my trial, he works directly for Andrew Ryan!"
"Loving the hat," Link smirked. "Hope he doesn't wear it near the Tumblr crowd..."
Zelda, however, was frowning. "No..." she muttered, seemingly to herself. "No... they wouldn't... they couldn't..."
Mario would have asked her what she was talking about, but Kjelle had just appeared at the staff table, assuming the chair that usually belonged to the Crazy Hand. That could only mean one thing... and sure enough, a second later, the doors to the foyer swung open, and in came Samus Aran, leading a large group of noobs into the hall, ready to be sorted into their various groups. As Samus climbed to the head of the hall, a silence fell over the students. Pikachu provided a bench, and, almost as if from nowhere, Samus provided a strange object that resembled the lovechild of a water pump and a backpack- the FLUDD whose job it was to perform the sorting. She placed it on the bench, and turned to the noobs. "When I call your name-"
*Cough, cough,*
Everyone looked around in surprise, surprise that didn't exactly dissipate when they realized it was the FLUDD that had just coughed. As everyone stared, it seemed to speak, the nozzle moving up and down as a robotic voice filled the hall. "Ms. Aran, if it is all the same to you, I request permission to offer this speech for myself this year."
Samus blinked, but shrugged and stepped back, giving a motion that said, You have the floor.
"Thank you," the FLUDD bowed its nozzle in thanks before turning to the hall at large. Another cough. "Before we begin the sorting this year, I have a tale to tell- a tale of triumph, sorrow, and- most of all- caution.
"Several thousands of years ago, smashers did not enjoy the great standard of living they do now. In those times, they were persecuted by muggles who feared our potential to harm them. Initial attempts from both sides to coexist peacefully met with dismal failure, and bit by bit, smashers began to withdraw to safer refuges.
"In this time, the greatest group of smashers of all was a four-man team- Chuggaaconroy, Proton Jon, Josh Jepson, and Nintendo Capri Sun. These four smashers had honed their powers almost to perfection- the only thing stronger were the bonds that tied them together. One day, they devised a plan- they believed the first step to true peace between smashers and muggles was to teach smashers to control their powers from a young age, guide them along the proper path, and hopefully alleviate some of the fear that the muggles felt so deeply. And so, they came out here, to the outskirts of this country, and constructed this mansion, where they proceeded to invite their friends and begin a school dedicated to their goals.
"At first, all seemed well- many of their friends came, ready to pass their knowledge on to the next generation, and leadership of the school was divided evenly between the four founders. However, even then, a rift began to show itself- each founder valued separate ideals, looked for different virtues within their students. Chuggaaconroy valued bravery and nobility- Josh Jepson, wisdom and intelligence- Nintendo Capri Sun, loyalty and hard work, and Proton Jon, the ambition and cunning necessary to achieve true power.
"A debate one night resulted in the most peaceful solution- the splitting of the school into four separate groups- Chuggaconroy founded Nintendo, NCS, Hal, Josh Jepson, Retro, and Proton Jon, Sierra. A fine solution, one that stopped the fighting before it began, with only one nagging worry at the back of the founders' minds- for now, it was all well and good, but what would they do once they inevitably passed on? What impartial third party could they entrust to sort after that?
"At the time, I was an artifact Chuggaaconroy had discovered on one of his travels- and it was he who produced me to the other three. They granted me the gift of life eternal, with the single task of sorting the newest students at the start of every year. You need only approach the bench, don me on your back, as Chuggaa did so many times, and I will tell you which group you are best suited to."
"Thank you," Samus nodded. "Now, when I call your name-"
"Excuse me, but I had not quite finished yet," the FLUDD interrupted. Samus looked slightly affronted, but backed off again. "Now, where was I? Oh, yes...
"For a time, all problems seemed solved... until one day, Proton Jon approached the others with a revelation he'd had- he believed that muggle-born students could not be trusted to receive their education from this school. He believed that, given the opportunity to sell the school out to muggles in return for forgiveness of their sins- of being born smashers- that muggle-borns would take it. The others, however, disagreed." Mario glanced over at Sierra, and the ghost that floated there- the ghost of Proton Jon himself, looking increasingly sour as the speech continued. He knew Jon went into his afterlife regretting those beliefs- and their consequences- more than anything, wishing every day he could take it all back. Reliving it now could only be uncomfortable...
"Eventually, the rift grew into the event that I refer to, in my own head, as the Smash Bros. Civil War," the FLUDD continued. "The various teachers turned against each other, taking sides with either Jon or Chuggaa... the students turned against each other, following their various teachers into the war over blood... it is a time that I wish to never see again. The hospital wing was perpetually filled... friends became enemies... enemies became temporary allies... it was as if the Metal Gear series were being played out within the halls of our fair mansion, though, I am proud to say, there were no deaths.
"It only ended when, one day, Proton Jon took leave of the school- never to return. With his departure, the fighting stopped, yes... but to say Chuggaa had won would be a bit of an overstatement. With Proton Jon's departure, the school felt more... hollow than it had before. A piece of us went missing that day, a truly irreplaceable piece. I am sad to say that ever since that day, the four groups of the Smash Mansion have never been as truly united as the founders once wished to see.
"You may wonder why I am telling you this story- for good reason. You see, every year, it is my fate to separate you all into your different groups, so I will. However, a lurking fear gnaws at the back of my mind, stronger this year than ever before- the fear that dividing you all in this way will bring us back to that Civil War all over again. Dark times are fast approaching, unity among every Smash Sister and every Smash Brother is becoming more imperative than ever before... and so I implore all of you, though you may be divided into different groups, remember, at the end of the day, we still stand united under the same roof. Do not let history repeat itself- united, we stand, divided, we fall. Thank you."
A dead silence fell over the hall, everyone staring up at the water pump as it fell silent. When Samus spoke again, it was with her eyebrows raised and a slight stutter in her voice. "So... when... when I call your name..."
Link turned his own raised eyebrows towards Mario. "Never heard the old FLUDD give a speech before."
"Yeah," Mario agreed. "Honestly, I think this is the first time since my sorting I've even heard it talk..."
Zelda turned to Pit. "Has it ever said anything like that before?"
"A couple times," Pit nodded. "Any time it senses danger approaching, it'll give that speech, tell its story. Always the same moral- he said it better than I can."
Eventually, the sorting completed, Pikachu and Samus took away the FLUDD and its bench, and the Master Hand rose up. "Welcome, welcome one and all to another year at the Super Smash Bros. School of Smashing! There is a time for talking... which isn't now! Let the feast... begin!"
And, as ever, food appeared on the plates up and down the hall, apparently from nowhere, but Mario and co. knew better- the yoshis in the Smash Mansion's kitchens were sending it up, light in their eyes at the thought that those above were enjoying the food they'd worked so hard to make...
The Master Hand had made the feast sound like a competition, and if one was observing the feast from over Link's shoulder, they may indeed come to that conclusion- he was loading his plate almost to the point that the metal was beginning to bend, then began wolfing it down as fast as he could. He always was a big eater. Mario, for his part, dove into a large bowl of his old standby- long, cooked noodles swimming in tomato sauce. A bowl so large, in fact, that he raised no objections when Luigi decided to assist him in emptying it- it was almost the size of a bathtub, after all...
By the time he'd finished, he was very much ready to turn in for the night- his bed would feel even better than usual after all the crud he'd been through since he'd slept in it last. But, of course, the Master Hand had his own speech to give first.
"Ah, the feasts here never fail to impress," the Master Hand sounded bright and cheery as he took the floor again. "Now, I know that listening to an old geezer droning on and on is hardly at the top of your to-do lists, but I beg your attention anyways- I have a few notices to give out. First off- that big, dark forest at the edge of the grounds that looks like a serial killer is hiding behind every tree? Don't go in there. A few of our older students..." Mario and Link hid behind their hats, while Zelda allowed herself to sink beneath the table, "should know this by now. In addition, Mido has grown increasingly agitated of the various powers being used in the hallways- he says this is the nine thousand and first consecutive time he's had to bring this up with me, so I implore you in turn- refrain from using your powers in the hallways. They're only for use in class, m'kay?
"As you may have noticed, there are two new teachers on hand this year- Kjelle Sheh, for Smashing Creatures, and Fassad Yokuba, for Protection from the Evils!"
There was some applause, but it was generally pretty half-hearted. Mario, Link, and Zelda, meanwhile, were glancing nervously at each other- Kjelle would be taking Smashing Creatures... for how long? Where was Crazy?
XXXX
"Come'n, brudda! Youz gotsa be leavin' da monkey behind! We gotsta get goin'!"
"G...Go...Gori..."
"...Youz be sayin' sometin?"
"L...l...l...LOOOOOOOVVVVVEEEEEE!"
XXXX
"In addition, if any of you wish to try out for your group's Smash-Up team, contact-"
"Nwe-hem!"
Everyone looked around wildly for the second time that night. It wasn't immediately obvious, the guy's legs were so short and stumpy, but it seemed Fassad Yokuba had just risen to his feet, and wasn't intent on sitting again until he said... whatever it was he was going to say.
The Master Hand seemed taken aback- never, to Mario's knowledge, had he been interrupted in such a way. Nevertheless, he retained his composure, quietly returning to his chair and offering the same You have the floor motion Samus had offered the FLUDD not that long ago.
"Thank you, thank you very much, Mr. Hand, for the food and the words of recognition," Fassad spoke in that strangely high-pitched voice of his. He gave a cough that sounded more like a cackle, ("Nwehe...") and continued. "It has been so long since I stood here in the halls of the Smash Mansion, just a young student from Retro! Seeing all these young, bright faces truly warms my heart!"
Mario stared- did this guy think he'd stumbled into a preschool? Apparently- "I seek only to make this place the safest of spaces, and to find true happiness for us all!"
At these words, it seemed like half the hall broke down into silent laughter- just from his vantage point, Mario could spy Saria Kokiri and Ilia Ordona laughing into each others' shoulders, and it was much the same story with the Faron twins and their third ranger at the Smash Mansion, Teddy Ellay.
Another "Nwe-hem!" and Fassad continued speaking, now in a boring, dull, 'ripped-directly-from-the-source-material' kind of way. "The Government of Smashing has always considered the education of young smashers to be of vital importance. The rare gifts with which you were born may come to nothing if not nurtured and honed by careful instruction. The ancient skills unique to the Smashing community must be passed down through the generations lest we lose them forever. The treasure trove of smashing knowledge amassed by our ancestors must be guarded, replenished, and polished by those who have been called to the noble profession of teaching."
Fassad turned his attention briefly to the his fellow teachers, where Mario saw only animosity almost on the level of what had been directed towards Tingle Limpah three years earlier. Back to his incredibly uninspired speech.
"Every headmaster and headmistress of the Smash Bros. has brought something new to the weighty task of governing this historic school, and that is as it should be, for without progress there will be stagnation and decay. There again, progress for progress's sake must be discouraged, for our tried and tested traditions often require no tinkering. A balance, then, between old and new, between permanence and change, between tradition and innovation..."
Mario had already read this speech several times on his many read-throughs of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix- it bored him then, and it bored him now. He could see plenty of other students around the hall allowing their attention to drift- Shulk and Fiora were speaking to each other over at the Retro table, Melia had produced her copy of the Alcamoth Times once more, Pauline Dama was talking to her friends, and over at the Sierra table, Waluigi was giving some speech of his own, accompanied with much flourishing of his hands, watched by an exasperated Robin and Lucina...
The only student Mario could see paying full attention was, as you may have already guessed, Zelda, who was crinkling her nose as though she smelt something repulsive- apparently, whatever she was getting from this incredibly dull, vacuum-cleaner, cookie-cutter speech, she didn't care much for it.
"... because some changes will be for the better, while others will come, in the fullness of time, to be recognized as errors of judgement. Meanwhile, some old habits will be retained, and rightly so, whereas others, outmoded and outworn, must be abandoned. Let us move forward, then, into a new era of openness, effectiveness, and accountability, intent on preserving what ought to be preserved, perfecting what needs to be perfected, and pruning wherever we find practices that ought to be prohibited."
Whereupon he finally sat back down. The Master Hand led the staff in clapping, and steadily, as the students who'd fallen asleep woke up and realized they should be clapping, the applause began to spread.
As it died back down, the Master Hand allowed himself a nod. "Thank you very much, Mr. Yokuba, I feel I understand you so much more now. Now, for those of you who wish to join the Smash-Up teams-"
"Oh, I understand you alright," Zelda muttered. "Crystal freaking clear."
"Cut the preamble and just skip to the part where you tell us what all that BS meant," Mario grunted.
"Don't you know? It's the exact same speech from the book."
"It's been a while..."
"Look," Zelda sighed, "it means he's a plant."
"Don't you mean a fruit?" Link smirked.
Zelda shot him a glare. "No, a plant- the Government sent him to keep an eye on us."
Finally, the feast was over, and everyone began to rise from their seats. Zelda tapped Link on the shoulder- "Hey, Link, the noobs- we need to show them where to go."
"Oh, right- hey, noobs, over here! All noobs follow me! Noobs, come this way!" Link smiled at Mario and Zelda's exasperated looks. "Always wanted to do that."
Mario sighed and turned towards the foyer, beginning his own lonesome walk up. He'd only made it up a few stairs, however, when he was accosted by a pair of fourth years- Pichu and Plusle Minun. "Mario! Hey, hey Mario!" Pichu called out happily.
Mario sighed as he turned to his self-appointed biggest fan. "Hey, Pichu."
"Ask him, ask him, ask him!" Plusle, Pichu's little brother, squeaked, bouncing with excitement.
"I'm going to!" Pichu nodded happily. "So, Mario, they're saying you're lying about the Great Darkness being back and all! Is it true?" Mario was on the verge of opening his mouth when Pichu shook his head. "I guess it doesn't really matter- you're the man! Even if you are lying, there's gotta be a good reason behind it! Probably some super secret plan you have to make the world a better place, right? Didn't I tell you how awesome this guy is, Plusle?"
"Sure did!" Plusle nodded, eyes glittering.
"Freaking awesome!" Pichu cheered. "Well, see you back up in the hub, Mario!"
They dashed off, leaving Mario feeling very conflicted. On the one hand, they believed in him, but on the other hand... they didn't actually believe him. He began climbing again.
Could he really blame them, he wondered? After all, from their point of view, he'd just arrived on the outskirts of a labyrinth, soaking in blood, carrying Donkey Kong's dead body, raving about Tabuu being back... could he really blame his fellow students for their skepticism?
He looked up to find himself in front of Rosalina, guardian portrait of the Nintendo hub. Only then did he realize that he didn't know the password. "Er... um... uh..."
"I can't let you in without the password," Rosalina stood firm.
"Come on, Rose, you've known me for four years, now."
"Rules are rules, Mario," Rosalina shook her head.
"I've got it!" came a shout behind him- Mario turned to see Luigi dashing up behind him, looking overjoyed. "I've got it this time, Mario, I've got it! For once, I've got this password in the bag- blue star!"
"Glad to see you honing your memory for once," Rosalina nodded before swinging open for the two of them.
Mario was glad to finally be breathing in the atmosphere of the Nintendo hub... but it was starting to look like some of his fellow Nintendoes wanted to talk to him, a sentiment he did not share, so he decided to follow Luigi up the stairs to the boys' dorm.
As the two of them entered, they immediately spied Ness Levi and Diddy Kong, their two roommates, milling around and unpacking their luggage. Their voices turned off as they entered- Mario wondered if they had been talking about him. His next course of action was to glance in the mirror to see if he'd suddenly turned into Simon Belmont.
"Hey, Mario, how's it going?!" Ness asked cheerfully, coming up behind him as he opened up his suitcase at the foot of his bed. "What's been going on in your world?"
"It's a long story," Mario muttered. "A very long story. How about you?"
"I've been chillin'," Ness shrugged. "Bouncin' 'round the world- visited a pen pal of mine over in Dalaam... definitely have nothin' to complain about, when I look over at Diddy."
"Diddy?" Luigi asked, looking over with an eyebrow raised. "Something wrong?"
Diddy was much quieter than usual as he adjusted a poster of his Smash-Up team on the wall. It took him a while to turn back towards the others. When he did, he spoke with an off voice that didn't sound much like him. "My... my parents didn't want me coming this year."
"They what?" Mario asked, surprised.
"They didn't want me to come back to the Smash Mansion," Diddy repeated dully.
Mario blinked- Diddy was a half-blood smasher- smasher mother, muggle father, but to his knowledge, neither of them were Smiths. "Why would they say that?"
Diddy was trembling as he turned his back. "Well... kind of... because of... well, because of you."
Mario's stomach disappeared. No, no, Wave Existence, no... "Me?"
"Well, not just you," Diddy shook his head. "Kind of the Master Hand, too..."
"The Fourside Tribune?" Mario guessed, closing his eyes. "She thinks... she thinks I'm lying, and the Hand's going senile."
"That's... that's about it, yeah."
Mario felt a cold washing over him. Diddy was... not exactly a close friend, the way Link, Zelda and Lu were, but he was still someone he valued...
Finally, Diddy turned back to Mario. "So... want to tell us what really happened that night?"
Mario felt anger mounting within him. Before he knew it, he was bursting out, "Oh, what, the Tribune didn't paint a good enough picture? It was good enough for your parents, wasn't it? The news said it, it must be true, huh?"
A shadow crossed Diddy's eyes. "Don't talk about my parents that way."
"I'll talk about anyone any way I want! Especially when they're calling me a liar!"
"Break it up, break it up, what's going on?" came a voice from the door- everyone turned to see Link entering, eyebrows raising.
"This... this crazy killer is insulting my parents!" Diddy shouted, tears forming at the corner of his eyes.
"Killer?" Link asked, taken aback.
"The Tribune," Mario growled. "The only news source less reliable than Buzzfeed and the Huffington Post."
Link closed his eyes. "Ah. I... I see."
"What do you see?" Diddy asked, voice still through the roof. "That this... this psycho killed my cousin, then put all the blame on the Great Darkness coming back?!"
Mario winced- he'd forgotten. Donkey Kong had been Diddy's favorite cousin. Hearing those words stung more than anything else so far. Link's eyebrows knitted, that ever-dangerous teapot whistle rising up. "You're crossing a line, Diddy- don't be making any accusations-"
"Accusations?!" Diddy cried, the tears starting to fall in earnest now. "After everything he's done, and you actually believe him about the Great Darkness?!"
"Through and through," Link nodded, eyes narrowing.
"Then it's time to pull your head out of your butt!" Diddy stomped a foot.
"Well, it doesn't really matter where my head is, because my chest has a prefect badge on it," Link spoke coldly. "And it's telling me you're this close to a detention!"
Diddy opened and closed his mouth a couple times, then turned his back, hiding some furious tears. Link turned to Luigi and Ness. "Either of you two want to try your luck?"
"Both my parents are muggles- to my knowledge," Ness shrugged. "Dad's hardly ever home, and Mom doesn't really care about what goes on on our side, as long as she gets to load me up on steak whenever I'm home."
"And Grandma Katsuragi calls bull on the whole thing," Luigi threw his two cents into the ring. "She cancelled our subscription- and used our last issue for target practice." Luigi approached Mario nervously, giving him a tentative hug. As he leaned his head on his shoulder, he whispered, "We believe you. She says if the Master Hand says the Great Darkness is back... he's back."
Mario felt a rush of gratitude. Luigi slowly pulled away and returned to unpacking, placing his blue star chips on his bedside drawers. Mario glanced around as he followed suit.
He was glad to know that Luigi was on his side, and Ness was hardly the type to ever be vindictive towards anyone for anything- he was a polyana, through and through- but Diddy's words stung him more than anything that had happened so far. And if his example was anything to go by, this was just the beginning. He was certain- absolutely certain- that the truth would come out in the end, but he was wondering how many more friends would turn against him before that happened.
XXXX
Solemn ending... Sorry to all of Diddy's fans out there. I don't hate the guy, just to clarify, but somebody had to have their head on the chopping block for this chapter, and Diddy kind of drew the short straw... Well, that's all I have to say about that, so time for the Q&A! Alright, in addition to her earlier questions, FelineWithin also asked...
Q: Isn't Neville's best subject Herbology? A: Canonically, yes, but as far as this series goes, it's Phys Ed.
It's not a direct question, but SpiderShadow was curious about the shipping of Luigi with Melia, to which I want to clarify, real quick- it's not a pairing I see everywhere or anything like that, it's a personal ship of mine. Maybe I'm crazy for thinking it, I just wanted to point that out- it's not like you can click over to deviantart and see loads of pictures of it, it's just something that came out of my head.
And, finally, to the Master Core, who wants to know why he's not the Big Bad of this series! To which I have to say... sorry, sir, please don't kill me! I started this series before you were introduced, it's not my fault, forgive me! I... I don't know where you might fit in later down the line, but I promise I'll keep an eye out if you don't kill me!
Whew, and he's leaving me alone. Never thought writing fanfics could be this dangerous... alright, that's about all for now. See you all next time! Please R&R, constructive criticism and questions embraced, flames, not so much, Gamer4 out!