Okay, fellow readers. Here is the fourteenth chapter of this story!
Yeah, this is pretty much the start of Chapter 2. So be prepared for what's to come in this part. In this chapter, Andrew, Goombella, and Koops accompany Punio through the Boggly Woods, they meet the Shadow Sirens for the first time, another part of Andrew's backstory is revealed, they see the Great Tree up close, and they have to get involved in finding a necklace for a wind spirit, among a few other things.
How will things go for them in the mysterious land of the Boggly Woods? Read and find out, now!
IN THE BOGGLY WOODS:
It didn't take long for Andrew to get out of the pipe along with Goombella, Koops, and Punio that got him into the Boggly Woods. As soon as he stepped down, the sight that he was seeing left him speechless.
He felt like he had stepped into another world; like he had just set foot into a pop-up fantasy story of some kind. It was strangely tranquil in these woods, considering its eerie and lonely atmosphere accentuated by large gusts of wind that he heard in the background.
He also took notice of the trees, sharp-looking bushes, flower patches, and other curly-looking plants nearby.
The trees were black with white gorgeous looking leaves shown in a beautiful pattern. The sharp-looking bushes were also black with white lining patterns running along them. He took notice of the completely white flower patches. It looked as if he was walking through a snow bank.
As he looked toward the ground, he saw that the floor had a tree-branch-like texture with a purple-blue-green gradient, and was made out of crystal. In short, it looked so beautiful and mesmerizing.
The hills in the background had a flat surface and were black, with orange circular beads that made a pattern on each hill.
But the thing that stood out to him the most was the sky. It was a golden color, where the lower part of the sky was white. The sky looked more gold the further up he looked. And the highest part looked very dark gold. And to add to that, Andrew also saw small circular beads chained together to make a necklace of some kind.
It would appear that Andrew was wrong yet again. This place was far more beautiful than Rogueport was, maybe even more beautiful than Petal Meadows. To say that he was stunned by the scenery around him would've been an understatement.
It was clear that Goombella and Koops were also mesmerized by the Boggly Wood if the surprised looks on their faces were anything to go by.
"Wow..." Andrew finally said slowly as Goombella and Koops jumped down from the hollow gray pipe. "So these are the Boggly Woods. Seems like we stepped into another world."
"You're telling me, Andrew," Goombella commented in agreement. "They sure look... boggling. Ooh! I've got butterflies!"
"Boggling is certainly the best way to describe this place Goombella," Andrew remarked in agreement. "It 'really' lives up to its name."
"Yeah. Looks mysterious, all right," Koops said. "What'll we run into next?"
"I dunno, Koops," Andrew shrugged. "But something tells me that we could run into something that we've never seen before."
Goombella and Koops nodded in understanding at that. Punio, by contrast, had lived in these woods for years. So he was pretty much used to the eerie environment and mysterious feeling in the air.
"Um, OK, just a bit further and we should be able to see the Great Tree," Punio advised them as he crawled down from the pipe. "The elder and her friends are waiting for us there... Oh, and my little sister, too! Come on, let's go!"
"All right. Looks like we get to meet the entire Puni clan in the Great Tree," Andrew had to smile at that. "Let's go you two."
Goombella and Koops nodded as the four of them walked away from the pipe and walked through the white-colored flower patches.
"You know, guys," Andrew decided to comment calmly. "These woods are very quiet and mysterious. I've never seen anything like them in my life."
"Uh-huh. Pretty surreal, huh?" Goombella agreed as she looked at the sky. "Looks like it's out of a picture book. It's pretty...but in an eerie sort of way, y'know?"
"No doubt about that," Koops trailed in awe. "Petalburg and Petal Meadows are nothing compared to this..."
"None of the places we've been to are anything as mysterious as this place," Andrew commented. "And I don't think this'll be the last mysterious place that we go to, either."
"Nope. That's the whole part of adventuring and whatnot," Goombella exclaimed.
"Umm...Wow. Can hardly wait to see the rest of this region," Koops admitted.
Andrew only nodded as the three of them followed after Punio throw the woods.
Before they could go further, the four of them stopped when they saw three shady figures in front of them, standing off to the side.
It was the Shadow Sirens. And they were waiting to ambush Andrew and take his map, as commanded by Sir Grodus. They looked unique to Andrew's eyes, and he was confused.
"Huh?" Andrew queried silently as he overheard the Shadow Sirens talking amongst each other along with his two partners and Punio.
It was then Beldam decided to cackle as she started discussing the plan with her sisters.
"Mmmmwee hee hee hee! Time to go to work, lovelies!" Beldam declared before looking towards her youngest sister. "Vivian! You understand what we've got to do, yesss?"
"Mm-hmm! A) Find that Andrew guy and B) steal the map to the Crystal Stars, right?" Vivian recited before meekly asking her. "We can just do away with Andrew and his friends, can't we? Or is that bad?"
Vivian 'clearly' didn't see why they'd have to kill Andrew and his friends. From her perspective, it didn't seem like a good thing for her to do. By contrast, Beldam thought differently, as she expressed herself.
"Oh, bad things happen all the time, Vivian," she told her sharply. "But you're right about our goals."
Jeepers. This crone of a woman makes Andrew look like an idealist. Goombella thought, cringing in a rather uncomfortable manner as they continued to hear Beldam talking.
"If my information is correct, Andrew should be coming down this road quite soon," Beldam then started shouting at Vivian what she wanted her to do while pointing towards her. "You must ambush him here and get that map!"
Andrew seemed a little suspicious and uncomfortable about these three shadow figures. Were they looking for him? Were they also in alliance with the X-Nauts? He decided not to jump to conclusions as he continued to overhear them talking.
It was at that moment that Beldam noticed something. She saw Vivian wearing something over her neck, and it looked shiny. Getting a little curious by this, Beldam leaned over and leered at her.
"Hmmmm? What's this, now?" Beldam then demanded from her. "Vivian! What's that you're fawning over there?"
Upon being told that, Vivian took the object off from her neck and showed it to Beldam. It was revealed to be a golden-colored pearl necklace, which Vivian was smiling in admiration while staring at it.
"Oh! What, you mean this?" Vivian then revealed to her. "I found it near that tree over there a while back. Isn't it a gorgeous necklace? It was so lovely... I just HAD to pick it up!"
Vivian sounded like she was gushing about the necklace around the time she wrapped up her explanation to Beldam. Andrew had to admit that Vivian did sound cute when she gushed like that, but he kept silent about it. He then saw Vivian put the necklace back on around her neck when Beldam scoffed at her.
"Hmph! Vivian! For shame!" Beldam showed her disapproval at this. "Picking up someone's scraps? Disgusting! Greedy!"
"I-I'm sorry... I didn't think it was a big deal..." Vivian had to whimper softly.
"But enough about that!" Beldam decided to forget about the matter. There were more important matters that they had to tend to, as she then pointed towards Vivian and demanded from her. "Vivian, my dear pack rat... Bring out the sketch of that Andrew guy that you got from Grodus! Mmmmmwee hee hee!"
It was then Vivian frowned and felt her heart skip a beat in fright as she heard Beldam make that demand. Did she just demand the sketch from her? The one that Beldam didn't trust her youngest sister with? After jumping, Vivian started panicking with her hands over her cheeks.
"Eeep! Wh-What?" Vivian yelped before revealing it to her. "I... I don't have that! You said it was way too important, so you took it. You should have it..."
Beldam then jumped a couple of times as she was growing irritated with her youngest sister. She did not appreciate the fact that Vivian was implying that she had the sketch in her possession.
"Don't be ridiculous! I don't have that thing. You were in charge of it!" Beldam howled before sneering at her angrily. "You wretched little worm! Blaming me for something you probably screwed up!"
It now looked like Vivian was on the verge of tears as she whimpered. "But, I..."
Andrew now had to stare off in confusion. He didn't know what their deal was, or who had the sketch of what supposedly had his picture, but were they always having these arguments? Did things amongst these three shadowy-looking sisters always turn bitter?
These were questions that plagued his mind when he noticed the middle sister; Marilyn taking notice of him watching them.
"What the...?" Andrew murmured, sounding puzzled.
It was then Marilyn decided to turn around towards Beldam to get her attention about Andrew being right near the corner.
"Guh! Guh!" Marilyn grunted in a language that one wouldn't normally understand, but she seemed to have something important to tell Beldam.
Beldam took notice of Marilyn wanting to talk to her. Putting Vivian to the side for the moment, she now had her attention on her.
"Oh, what IS it, Marilyn?" Beldam then heard Marilyn tell her something in her grunts, which she managed to understand. "...Huh? What's that? A muscular fellow?"
Beldam decided to dismiss this as some foolishness on Marilyn's part. She then scolded her for it. "This is no time for such nonsense, you great oaf! Save your games for later!"
Marilyn said nothing else as Beldam turned her attention back to Vivian. Floating closer to her youngest sister, Beldam then glowered at her before getting back on topic.
"Now, now, where was I? You! Vivian!" Beldam poked her in the portly stomach. "Don't tell me you lost our precious sketch!"
Vivian was now growing afraid. She knew how Beldam was going to react when she said what she had to say. There was no avoiding it. Beldam would have gone through with it, no matter what she said to convince her otherwise.
"But... Listen... I..." Vivian started crying. "Look, it's not my fault... I never had the sketch..."
"SILENCE, YOU DITZ!" Beldam snapped at her in a bellow, getting Andrew and his two partners to jump in fright as Beldam was snarling at her weeping little sister. "Such impudence! How dare you talk back to me like some rebellious child?!"
Beldam then readied her hands into fists as she was planning on giving Vivian one of her punishments. "It's clear to me that the only rationale your type understands is force..."
In an instant, Beldam grabbed Vivian by the neck and started pummeling her, beating her up and hurting her. Vivian made pleas for her to stop, but Beldam ignored her and continued pounding her.
Having witnessed this, Andrew, Goombella, and Koops couldn't help but gasp and stare in shock. Were they 'really' seeing Beldam beat the tar out of Vivian, her 'own' sister?
The shock Andrew felt a second ago slowly turned into that of anger, as he started furrowing his eyebrows and frowned deeply. He almost felt a blood vessel start to pop out of his forehead. He was all too familiar with this situation. Beldam was being a horrible bully to Vivian when the latter did NOTHING to deserve it.
Seeing Vivian's predicament reminded Andrew alot of himself and the same scenario he endured from his own older brother, who was named Fred. Ever since Andrew was born, Fred had done nothing but constantly make fun of Andrew, pick on him, take his toys, step on his possessions, and oftentimes give him a black eye and/or a bloody nose.
It got worse the older Andrew got, and the older Fred got as well. Fred would eventually give Andrew wedgies, dunk Andrew's head into the toilet, punch him constantly while treating him like a punching bag, kick him at the bus stop to get him covered in mud, and there was even one time when Fred committed arson by setting all of Andrew's favorite belongings on fire just to spite him. He even remembered all of the horrible things Fred said to him while beating him up.
"You're nothing but a disgrace! A mistaken having been born! Mother always loved you best! Why were you even born, you little pathetic excuse for a son, a brother, and a runt!?"
Now, Andrew realized that Fred's behavior came out of jealousy for their mom always supposedly treating Andrew better than she did Fred, which didn't help that Fred would get into all sorts of trouble, earning him some scoldings from their mother. But jealousy or no jealousy, that didn't excuse Fred's horrible behavior and attitude and how he treated Andrew so poorly over the years.
To an extent, Fred started developing a hatred for their mother too, citing that giving birth to Andrew was a good reason not to love her anymore. And the worst part is Fred blamed Andrew for how their father ran off when Andrew had never even known or seen his father, aside from the stuff that their mother told him.
And to top it off, Fred managed to show how much he's grown to hate their mother after their mother died. When it came to the funeral of their mother, Andrew noticed that Fred never bothered attending her funeral. Andrew saw this as the biggest disrespect and worst sendoff that Fred was giving to their mother, one last time before she was put to rest.
After the funeral was over, Fred pretty much moved far away from the area and never wanted to speak to Andrew again. And it was clear that Fred had cut all ties and relations with Andrew altogether.
Andrew didn't care though. Fred had done nothing but make his life miserable and never showed any respect towards him or their mother since the day he was born. He was glad that he no longer had to deal with his older brother. This pretty much showed that he hated his older brother.
Still, another reason Andrew left his old home was because it brought up so many terrible memories of all the times Fred made Andrew's life miserable and all the painful suffering he endured from it. The Mushroom Kingdom was the best place for him to move to, free from all the bullying and harassment that he put up with from his older brother in the past.
Just seeing Vivian get pummeled and beaten up by Beldam brought those memories back, as he was starting to feel sorry for Vivian while growing a serious anger and hatred towards Beldam. He looked like he was going to lash out right then and there.
Unfortunately, Andrew had to calm down and took deep breaths to keep his anger under control. He didn't know who these three shady women were, so he didn't need to cause a ruckus with three people he'd never seen before, let alone what their species was.
By then, Beldam was done beating up Vivian. She then dropped her for a moment. Floating to a nearby tree, Beldam snapped a branch off, floated back toward Vivian, and swung the tree branch across Vivian's face.
Vivian felt herself recoil as she fell to the ground, with cuts on her face. The necklace she was wearing managed to fly right off her neck as she watched the necklace get grabbed by the likes of Beldam. It would appear the eldest Shadow Siren was going to confiscate it from her.
"For your punishment, I'll be taking that necklace you just found," Beldam sneered at her as she put the necklace in her hammerspace before giving a mock apology. "Yes, so sorry."
It was then Vivian felt tears dripping down from underneath her curly hair. Both from the beatings she got from Beldam, and from the fact that Beldam took her precious necklace away from her. She held her right hand over her face as she whimpered.
"But... But, Beldam..." Vivian whimpered as she proclaimed. "Oh, you're horrid!"
"Now stop groveling and help us find that sketch!" Beldam barked at her.
"Y-Yes... Sis..." Vivian murmured sadly with a scared tone as she helped Beldam and Marilyn find the sketch that depicted Andrew's picture.
Andrew was still fuming at this as Goombella and Koops decided to comment on them.
"OOOOOOOOO-K..." Goombella trailed off awkwardly. "Sooooooo, what d'you suppose those creatures are?"
"I dunno..." Koops scratched his head. "They don't look familiar to me."
"Yeah," Andrew took a deep breath before saying. "I've never seen them before in my life..."
"Neither have I..." Koops proclaimed shyly.
"Whatever they are, it looked like there was a violent altercation." Goombella had to point out.
"Don't I know it," Andrew said through his gritted teeth, trying his best not to sound angry.
"OK. Maybe we should head to the Great Tree before they spot us," Punio suggested as they tried to sneak by.
"HEY YOU! MR. MUSCLES!" Beldam took notice of Andrew and got his attention, without knowing who he 'really' was.
"Well, so much for getting by without being seen by them," Goombella retorted while rolling her eyes.
"Have you seen a sketch lying around?" Beldam demanded from Andrew, who had a 'really' forced smile on his face.
"No," Andrew said in a strained voice. "I haven't seen a sketch anywhere."
"Then leave us! Scram!" Beldam rudely yelled at him, basically telling him to get lost. "Right NOW! I have no business with you!"
"Right," Andrew grumbled under his breath through gritted teeth as he scurried away from her, with Goombella, Koops, and Punio following him.
"Well that lady is certainly the neighborly type," Goombella said sarcastically at Beldam's attitude.
"No kidding," Andrew muttered through his gritted teeth, signs that he was struggling to keep his anger from being shown.
"Hey umm...Andrew? Are you okay?" Koops had to ask. "You seem a little tense..."
"What do you mean?" Andrew had to clear his throat and strain the anger in his voice.
"Well for starters, you've been giving that crone of a woman the stink-eye," Goombella felt like pointing out, referring to Beldam.
"What?" Andrew looked at her as if she had grown an extra head.
"Errr...Not that I blame you for it, Andrew. I mean, that shady woman is certainly selfish and mean!" Goombella proclaimed.
"Saying she's selfish and mean is putting it lightly," Andrew said with a dangerously low-toned voice.
"You see how cruel she is to her 'own' sister?" Goombella pointed out in horror and disgust from witnessing the beatings Beldam gave to Vivian. "What a total meanie! I wonder what went on between them..."
"Ummm... Do you 'really' think the pink-haired girl lost this sketch they're looking for?" Koops felt like asking.
"I dunno..." Andrew shrugged before thinking angrily in his mind.
Whether she lost the sketch or not, Vivian did NOTHING to deserve being beaten up by her sister Beldam like THAT! Andrew was 'clearly' angry from how that thought popped up in his head.
"H-Hey, guys?" Punio got their attention. "Can we get to the Great Tree?"
Andrew had to sigh. Growing angry with what he witnessed wasn't getting him anywhere, as they had some other important matters to attend to.
"All right. Let's go to the Great Tree," Andrew remarked more calmly.
Goombella and Koops nodded at that as the three of them followed Punio towards the Great Tree.
While trekking through, Andrew found a Sleepy Sheep in one of the trees and found a jar of Honey Syrup in another tree, which got him confused by how it would be out in the open like this.
Aside from that, there were two Pale Piranhas; black-and-white colored Piranha Plants, that tried to make a meal out of them. But Andrew and Koops dispatched them quickly.
They then noticed a gray-colored Cleft, which disguised as a rock and revealed itself when Andrew was nearby. It tried picking a fight with him, but Andrew used his Power Swing to knock it out cold.
By the time they got to the central part of the woods, Andrew, Goombella, and Koops were pretty much astounded by their surroundings. Andrew then found another Inn Coupon in the bush near another hollow pipe and placed it into his backpack. It was then that Punio saw something in the distance, which got him to gasp.
"Guys! Guys! Look!" Punio squealed for their attention. "There! Can you see it? That big tree..."
Andrew then saw what he was directing his attention to, as did Goombella and Koops. They saw the Great Tree itself. It was probably even bigger than Hooktail Castle, as there were plenty of white puffy-looking leaves surrounding its massive grayish-black branches, connected to its grayish-black trunk.
"Holy cow," Andrew was in awe at the sight before him. "That's the Great Tree?"
"Yes. That's what I was telling you about. That's where we Punies live. That's home," Punio confirmed before adding something to his sentence. "Uh, of course, it's not just us in the tree. Lots of Jabbies and Piders, too."
Andrew noticed that Goombella's skin paled as she cringed at the mention of Piders. It would appear that Goombella 'really' hates Piders; whatever they were supposed to be to the muscular man.
"Well, anyway, Andrew..." Punio motioned him and his two partners to the hollow pipe that had a small mouse-shaped hole. "Follow me!"
And with that, Punio went through the hole as the three travelers saw Punio in the background, heading for the Great Tree.
"Well, ready to check this tree up close for ourselves Goombella? Koops?" Andrew suggested as he jumped onto the pipe.
"Definitely," Goombella beamed, forgetting about the Pider comment for now as she jumped onto the pipe next to Andrew. "Let's go!"
"Okay, Andrew. If you say so," Koops said shyly as he jumped onto the pipe, joining Andrew and Goombella.
With that, the three travelers went down the pipe and emerged from the pipe in the background. They then walked for the Great Tree, jumping over the gaps that were in front of them. They were going to be in for a treat and a shock when they saw the Great Tree up close in person...
AT THE SIGHT OF THE GREAT TREE:
Undoubtedly, Andrew, Goombella, and Koops were amazed and stared in awe at the Great Tree before them. Living up to its name, it was massive in size, and it looked like it was the home to more than one hundred Punies, among other species that blend in perfectly with the environment. After staring at it for a few moments, Andrew found his voice.
"Wow..." Andrew commented. "So this is the Great Tree, up close in front of us..."
"You're telling me, Andrew. I mean... Wowser," Goombella agreed. "Seriously. It must have watched over the Boggly Woods for over 1,000 years. That's insane..."
"Yeah..." Koops trailed off shyly. "I've never seen a tree this big in my entire life."
"Me either," Andrew nodded.
After Andrew saw an FP Plus badge behind a miniature waterfall to the right of the tree, where he grabbed it and put it in his badge kit, Andrew saw Punio standing in front of what appeared to be an electronic automatic door that was red and had a red light flashing above it.
Judging by how Punio looked like he was pouting in defeat, Andrew decided to see what was up, along with Goombella and Koops.
"Hey, Punio? What's up?" Andrew got his attention.
"Uh..." Punio trailed off, not sure about what to say right away, something that the three travelers took notice of.
"What's going on?" Goombella asked in curiosity.
"Oh, no... What's the matter?" Koops wondered worriedly.
"What seems to be the problem, Punio?" Andrew queried, hoping that they'd get an answer out of him.
"Uh, well... Take a look!" Punio motioned them towards the door in front of them. "This door wasn't here before! Someone just installed it!"
"Likely by the X-Nauts themselves," Andrew had to sigh, pinch the bridge of his nose, and shake his head.
"And...I can't open it," Punio then said sadly. "I thought I could finally save everyone... I'm a fool."
"Oh, quit being melodramatic!" Goombella advised him.
"Yeah, don't take it so hard..." Koops remarked.
"Don't put yourself down because of this obstacle Punio," Andrew assured him the best he could. "Although, it does look thick and sturdy."
"What are we gonna do now?" Andrew found himself asking in unison with Goombella and Koops.
Punio took a moment to think 'really' hard to remember if there was another alternate way to get into the tree. From the grunting he was doing, he was trying his best to recall such a memory that was still here.
"Uh... Um... Hmmmm... Ermmm... Mmmmmmmm... Hrrrmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm..." It was then Punio remembered something important, and that it could be the answer to their problems. "GOT IT!"
"You do?" Andrew saw Punio climbing up another part of a tree before he stopped.
Andrew and his two partners thought it was best to follow him, which they did.
"What did you remember all of a sudden?" Andrew asked once they were right behind Punio.
"Long ago, the Puni elder told me about a secret entrance somewhere around here. We can get in through there! I'm completely sure of it!" Punio declared before having to point out another problem. "Uh, the problem is... I doubt finding it is going to be easy. I mean, it won't be labeled Secret Entrance! What should we do?"
"I wouldn't be so sure of that," Andrew had to admit while crossing his arms. "I've seen movies where the Secret Entrance was conveniently labeled with a sign that says Secret Entrance. So I wouldn't be surprised if there was one for the Great Tree."
"Even then, how are we supposed to find a secret entrance?" Goombella felt like asking. "It's secret for a reason, y'know."
"I agree with them," Koops spoke up. "I mean, not to be a worrywart, but how in the heck can we find somebody's secret entrance?"
"You do have an explanation for that, do you?" Andrew queried.
"Well, it's hidden by this invisible...thingy," Punio tried his best to explain. "We need to find and remove the thingy."
"Invisible thingy?" Andrew couldn't help but tilt his head in confusion.
"Yeah," Punio confirmed as he continued. "Boy, but removing a normal 'thingy' sounds tough enough, let alone an invisible one!"
"Sorry to say it Punio, but I don't think I could remove something such as a thingy from plain sight," Andrew apologized. "Invisible or visible."
"Yeah. I'm 'totally' stumps on ideas for this situation," Goombella confessed.
"Ummm... I can't come up with anything either," Koops admitted. "Don't think I could remove it either."
"Do you know anyone who could remove it?" Andrew felt like asking.
"Uh..." Punio took a moment to think of someone before one particular person immediately sprang to his mind. "Oh! Got it! Flurrie! Surely Madame Flurrie's powers can help us!"
Madame Flurrie? Why does that name sound so familiar? Andrew couldn't help but think this through in his mind.
"Madame Flurrie?" Goombella and Koops had to ask him.
"Yes. Flurrie is a refined and dignified lady who lives in these woods," Punio explained to them. "The elder says she's a wind spirit who can wield the powers of air with ease. You see where I'm going with this?"
"Oh. That makes sense," Andrew understood it, as he had a funny feeling as to who Flurrie was. "So Flurrie could help out by blowing away this thingy with her wind spirit powers, right?"
"Exactly! She can use wind power to blow the thingy away!" Punio proclaimed. "Well, it won't hurt to try."
"Well OK, Punio," Goombella was all for it. "We can see if Flurrie can help us out."
"Uh, do you know where she lives?" Koops asked.
"Sure do. Flurrie lives in the deepest corner of the woods, so..." Punio trailed off before climbing down the tree branch and pointing towards the Boggly Woods again. "Let's head back in the direction we came from."
"You got it," Andrew proclaimed before he told his two partners. "I guess we're heading to Flurrie's House."
"You betcha," Goombella smiled. "Let's get rolling!"
"Right. We better keep up with Punio," Koops said.
Without anything else being said, Andrew, Goombella, and Koops followed Punio back into the Boggly Woods, where they were planning to head straight for Flurrie's House...
MEANWHILE - IN ANOTHER PART OF THE BOGGLY WOODS:
We are now focused on another part of the Boggly Woods, which was likely the deepest corner of the entire woods.
We are then greeted by what appears to be a beautiful-looking house in the distance. It was a fancy-looking grandeur, where the walls on the outside were yellow, while the roof was red-violet. There were two white pillars connected to the front stairway with a glass door that had red-violet lines around it.
There were also a few round-looking green bushes on the side of the house, near a white set of three stairs. It was then someone was heard speaking inside of the house.
"Ahhh! These woods are the most wonderful in all the world," a womanly voice was heard talking amongst herself. "Yes, indeed! Building a house here was just the FINEST idea I ever did have. Oh, my, yes!"
We are then given an inside look of the house, which became evident that the house was fashioned with the rich folk in mind, what with the red walls and fancy furniture, such as the dining room table and stool chair. There was a fancy curio cabinet nearby, along with a drawer with two light purple vases, beautiful window curtains, and many other stuff.
"This place is so different from the bright flashbulbs of the world I'm used to... Such peace..." The womanly voice proclaimed. "This negative image of the real world soothes my body and soul."
There was a sigh in the house that came from her, as she continued.
"But what's even better... Is that I, Madame Flurrie, grow ever more lovely here!" The voice was revealed to be that of Madame Flurrie herself. "Plus, those squishy, adorable little Punies that live in that tree are SO nice to me!"
This pretty much gave the implication that Flurrie was once a famous actress, but had retired from the spotlight due to the filthy air of the theater business, and built this fancy-looking house in the tranquil Boggly Woods, where she associated with the Punies. Still, Flurrie started thinking it over, as she continued speaking to herself.
"But...I suppose if I stay here too long, I'll begin to crave and hustle before long!" Flurrie admitted before letting out a rather dramatic gasp. "Oh! Oh, my! It's happening even as I speak! Already I feel the need for drama!"
She thought it over before she told herself. "That moment of exhilaration when the spotlight shines down on the stage...on me! Surely I was born to be...an actress for the ages!"
We are now given a good view of Flurrie's room, which has a shelf that probably had some good cocktail in a bottle and other such similar drinks on it, two sofas and a table, a vase of flowers, a lamp that was on a desk next to a canopy bed, placed on a furry looking carpet. There was also a desk with fashion accessories and a mirror for Flurrie to look into. She also had a treasure chest on her desk.
We then get a brief look at Flurrie, where only parts of her are shown. The only thing that was shown was her light purple skin and her dark purple colored hair. Flurrie then declared that she had made her decision.
"It's settled, then. I shall rise again!" Flurrie then decided to do something first. "But...before I make my stage comeback... I simply must whip my body and mind into shape. I'll just have to put on some makeup and make my beauty even more beautiful."
She was working on putting on her make-up and such while looking into the mirror. It was then she noticed something shocking. She was missing something valuable and important.
"Wait a moment..." Flurrie uttered as shock overcame her at that very second.
"Noooooooooooooooo!" Flurrie yelled dramatically. "It's gone! Gone I tell you! My... My..."
Flurrie was so distraught with despair, that she was unable to finish her sentence at that moment, as she floated back down and tried figuring out where her something disappeared to...
"If we head straight in this direction, we'll see Flurrie's place in no time," Punio directed Andrew and his two partners to the other end of the woods that they hadn't been to yet, since they had already left the Great Tree.
"Right," Andrew nodded as they headed in that direction.
When they entered another part of the woods, Andrew took out a Cleft that ambushed them as a rock with his Power Swing, before they were startled by a Dark Puff; a white cloud with a face, that happened to be a variant of a Ruff Puff. Luckily, Andrew and Goombella were able to fend it off too.
"Hey Andrew, some advice for you," Goombella offered with her Tattle ability. "Can you see that tunnel-like opening in the ledge wall?"
"Hmm? Why, yes. Yes, I can," Andrew saw the opening in the ledge wall for himself. "And I bet it leads us to something important. I'm gonna check it out."
And that's just what Andrew did as he went into it with Goombella, Koops, and Punio following him. He found himself walking along the edge near a bunch of tall black trees.
Along the way, he revealed a hidden red ?-block with a P-Down, D-Up P badge, that he claimed and put into his badge kit. He then saw a Star Piece, which he pocketed, and then found a blue switch.
Acting on instincts, Andrew slammed the switch with his baseball bat and activated it as it disappeared. As a result, the tree-like pipe grew in height along with the Paper Airplane Panel that was connected to the side of it.
Making their way back down, Andrew, Goombella, Koops, and Punio went to the side of the pipe and found themselves at the top of it, where they jumped down on the Paper Airplane Panel, which started glowing.
Before Andrew decided to turn into a paper airplane, he caught a glance of something important. It was a clear yellow box, and inside the box was a Shine Sprite.
"Guys, look," Andrew got his two partners to see for themselves. "It's another Shine Sprite."
"Amazing Andrew! I can't believe we found another one!" Goombella cheered.
"Yup," Andrew then faced his Koopa partner. "Koops, would you mind getting it for me?"
"Sure, Andrew," Koops nodded as he got into his shell.
Andrew then jumped and kicked him towards the Shine Sprite block, which he then hit and took the Shine Sprite inside of it. Koops went back to Andrew in his shell, like a boomerang.
"All right," Andrew grabbed the Shine Sprite as Koops got out of his shell and back onto his shell. "I'll put this away with the other one."
"Great to know, Andrew," Goombella then advised him as he put the Shine Sprite in the backpack with the one he still had on hand. "Because now since we're standing on this panel, we're gonna have to fly in Plane Mode."
"Right," Andrew grabbed Goombella and Koops with both hands as he faced Punio. "Punio, would you mind getting on my head for a second?"
"Oh. Okay," Punio obliged as he crawled up onto Andrew until he was right on his head.
"Thanks," Andrew then focused and turned himself into a paper airplane and made it over to the ledge on the other side.
Once he hit the ground, he turned back to normal and let go of Goombella and Koops while Punio crawled back down on the ground. Before they could continue, Andrew saw another red ?-block, which he jumped and punched to reveal another badge.
It was 'apparently' a Quake Bat badge, which depicted a purple-colored baseball bat in the form of a badge.
"Well, this badge looks kinda important," Andrew then lifted the left side of his unbuttoned t-shirt. "I better put this badge on with the others."
Once he pinned it next to the Multibounce badge, he put the left side flap back down, as Goombella smiled encouragingly while Koops gave him a brief thumbs up. Andrew then faced Goombella, Koops, and Punio before asking.
"Shall we continue?" Andrew suggested.
"Yes. Flurrie's House should be just up ahead," Punio directed as he led Andrew, Goombella, and Koops towards the deepest part of the woods, where Flurrie's House was...
Another Dark Puff was seen in the white flower patch nearby, but Andrew dispatched of that too, like it was nothing. Andrew found another Star Piece in the tree in the center of the white flower patch.
He then walked further with Goombella, Koops, and Punio behind him before he saw a fancy house in the distance. Before Andrew could comment on it, Punio said something about it.
"Look! There, in the distance!" Punio directed them. "That's what I was telling you about. Flurrie's place."
"That's Flurrie's House," Andrew murmured as he mused while rubbing his chin. "What a fancy house. It looks beautiful."
"Yeah," Koops couldn't help but agree. "Ummm... I think Flurrie must've been rich or something, you know..."
"From the looks of it, I'm pretty sure she was, Koops," Andrew agreed with him.
"Maybe we oughta take a closer look," Goombella suggested to them. "Let's go."
"Right," Andrew then walked over to the narrow gap of some sharp bushes and allowed himself to turn paper thin with his Paper mode along with Goombella and Koops.
Andrew was also able to get Punio to squeeze by the narrow crack before they turned back to normal. Andrew ended up grabbing a Volt Shroom, which he put into his backpack.
He then found yet another Star Piece near a gray hollow pipe, which he grabbed and pocketed before walking towards the pipe with Goombella, Koops, and Punio following him.
"Well, let's go pay Flurrie a visit," Andrew recommended, which the Goomba girl, the shy Koopa, and the Puni agreed with.
They then went down the pipe and came out of another pipe that was in the background. Once the four of them jumped over more gaps that were in the way, they made it to the front entrance of Flurrie's House, went up the stairs, and made their way through the front door...
INSIDE OF FLURRIE'S HOUSE:
It was certainly bigger inside the house than they had anticipated, as Andrew, Goombella, and Koops had to gasp at the sight before them. Everything looked like it was set up by some wealthy person. That was a given.
"Holy cow. This place is phenomenal," Andrew had to compliment. "It looks so cool! Flurrie must have had quite a living with this type of house she owns."
"You're telling me, Andrew. What a 'totally' nice house!" Goombella had to admit. "Super coordination between the red walls and furniture! I'm so jealous it's not even funny. I have like, NO sense of interior decoration."
"Wow. Golly," Koops had to admit. "Koopie Koo and I couldn't afford this kind of house in Petalburg, even if we tried."
"Yeah. My house is nothing compared to this," Andrew had to admit. "But now that that's out of the way, where is Flurrie?"
"...Uh... Excuse me!" Punio was heard at the top of the stairway, leading up to a door at the end of the room.
No voice was heard in the house. Punio had to conclude. "Ummm... Maybe she isn't here. I wonder if she went for a walk in the woods."
"Don't talk like that, Punio," Andrew informed him. "Maybe she is further into the house. Maybe she's in her bedroom."
"You're right, Andrew," Punio understood. "Well, it wouldn't hurt to try. Come on up here."
Andrew nodded as he, Goombella, and Koops went up the stairs and walked over to where Punio was standing. When they were close to the door, Punio was heard saying once again.
"Madame Flurrie! Hellooooo?" Punio hollered. "If you're here, say something!"
"Call me crazy, but I think this place is 'totally' deserted," Goombella had to come to an assumption.
"Yeah," Koops agreed with her. "I don't think anyone's home. It's too quiet..."
"No! She's gotta be home," Punio begged. "I can hear her!"
Andrew didn't say anything as he stared fixedly at the door leading to Flurrie's room, with his arms crossed.
"Hmmm..." Andrew mused to himself.
He could only come up with one solution. They'll have to go into Flurrie's bedroom themselves. With that in mind, Andrew walked over, grabbed the handle, and started to turn it. Right as he was doing that, however, he heard the door get locked up before he heard a loud voice on the other side.
"Eeeeek!" A powerful woman-like voice yelled. "No! Out of the question! You mustn't come in here!"
This got Andrew to jump along with Goombella and Koops as they heard that voice.
That voice sounds so familiar too... Andrew thought to himself yet again.
After regaining himself, Punio then decided to walk towards the door and call out to her. "Uh...Madame Flurrie? Are you there? Is that you? ...What are you doing?"
The voice, that belonged to Flurrie decided to speak again.
"Oh! Wait a moment..." Flurrie spoke, sounding more calmer this time. "Those darling, squishy little footsteps... Is that you, Punio? Oh, it's been an AGE since I saw you last!"
Flurrie then sounded worried from the other side of the door as she asked. "You poor dear! Is there something you need?"
Punio decided to get down to business as he explained everything to the wind spirit.
"Uh, well, the thing is... We have a problem that only you can help us with, ma'am," Punio explained. "The Great Tree's entry hole is blocked. There's this stupid door we can't seem to open. My Puni friends are inside, so they're in a pickle, and Andrew here needs these Crystal Stars..."
Punio had to calm himself before he finished. "It's a train wreck, 'really'. If you can't find the secret entrance for us, we're done."
Flurrie took a minute to take that in before she gave her thoughts on it.
"Oh... Is that all, dearie? You came all the way here just for that? My adorable little Punio... You know I would do anything in my power to help you," Flurrie said before sighing. "However, lamentably... I'm in a bit of a bind myself. I just cannot come out."
"Hmmm?" Andrew had to raise an eyebrow at that.
"Wow, what's the matter?" Goombella asked from the other side.
"Gee... Is something wrong?" Koops also queried from behind the door.
"What seems to be the problem," Andrew stepped in. "Maybe we can help."
"It's somewhat embarrassing...but I never go out without my favorite necklace," Flurrie decided to explain to them. "I just can't find the blessed thing! I suspect I dropped it on my daily constitutional. I'd be simply SCANDALIZED if anyone saw me without it, so I shan't be going out. I absolutely MUST have that necklace to highlight my beauty, and that's that."
Andrew had to deduce that her not being seen without her necklace would be the equivalent of a man not wearing any undergarments, or a woman not wearing bras or panties. He had this feeling that she'd be indecent without her necklace.
Besides, he somewhat understood how she felt. He would've been a train wreck too if his favorite handkerchief went missing. He was brought out of his thoughts when Goombella called out to her.
"Oh, I 'TOTALLY' know how you feel!" Goombella tried to reassure her. "When I go out, I am all about the accessories!"
"I didn't know you had accessories, Goombella," Andrew couldn't help but smirk at his Goomba partner when he made that comment.
"Oh stop it, will ya," Goombella told him while sticking his tongue out at him. "I just don't happen to have them on me right now."
Goombella then smiled before adding. "But I'll be more than glad to show you when I do get the accessories."
"Uhhh... Right," Andrew said awkwardly as he tugged on his handkerchief.
"Gee whiz, that must be some nice necklace, huh?" Koops felt like commenting in regards to it before remembering something important. "...Hang on... You know what? It's weird... I'm sure I just heard someone talking about a necklace..."
"Omigosh! You're right Koops! You lost your NECKLACE? I'm also having a deja vu, big time!" Goombella remembered it too. "I swear, someone just said they FOUND a necklace..."
"I remember too," Andrew snapped his fingers. "Those three shadow women we saw earlier wearing witch hats. One of them mentioned something about a necklace."
"You're 'totally' right, Andrew," Goombella recalled. "That pink-haired girl said she found a necklace."
"Though I don't think she knew that it belonged to Flurrie," Andrew insisted. "Not to mention that crone of a witch took it from her as punishment for something she most likely didn't do. That crone currently has it."
"What's that? DO speak up!" Flurrie overheard Andrew speaking from her bedroom. "You! Whoever just spoke with that rather manly voice! Do you have some clue as to my necklace's whereabouts?"
"I sure do," Andrew confirmed. "And oh, my name's Andrew."
"OK, Andrew. Since you do, you must help me!" Flurrie begged. "Please! Be a dear! Find it and bring it back to me! If you could, then I'd be delighted to help my squishy little friend, Punio."
"Don't worry, Madame Flurrie!" Punio called out on Andrew's behalf. "I'm sure Andrew can get your necklace back. Word is, he's super!"
"Oh, come on Punio. Don't say that. I'm not super," Andrew informed him in his usual modest tone of voice. "But I'll be glad to find that necklace for you Flurrie. Don't worry, we'll be back with it!"
"Awesome! Well, c'mon! Shall we get going?" Goombella suggested.
"Guess we better go back to the Boggly Woods," Andrew sighed. "They're close to where we came into the woods by pipe."
"Ummm...Right," Koops gulped worriedly. "Let's get this done and over with..."
"I'm sorry to trouble you so," Flurrie had to apologize sincerely.
"Now don't apologize for ANYTHING Flurrie," Andrew insisted. "We are honored to help out."
The muscular man then had to face Punio. "Although Punio, you might want to sit this one out. Something tells me that we're going to get into a fight with these shadow figures."
"A fight?" Punio gulped. "Uh, you're right Andrew. Perhaps I shall stay here at Flurrie's House and wait for you, Goombella and Koops to come back with the necklace."
With that, Punio got onto the couch and got himself comfortable. "But if you do get into a fight, please be careful."
"No worries. We should be okay," Andrew decided to assure Punio before turning to face Goombella and Koops again. "Let's go Goombella and Koops. We have a necklace to get back."
"You betcha," Goombella couldn't help but gleam. "Let's get going."
"Yeah. I'm behind you too," Koops spoke hesitantly. "We better get that necklace back..."
"Good," Andrew opened the door leading back to the Boggly Woods. "Let's shove off."
Goombella and Koops didn't say anything else as they followed Andrew out of Flurrie's House and back into the Boggly Woods to deal with the Shadow Sirens. They were unaware of the great shock that they'll be in for once they see the Shadow Sirens again...
END OF CHAPTER 14...
Yeah. That's it for this chapter. I hope you all enjoyed reading it like I enjoyed writing it out.
So yeah, didn't expect that to be part of Andrew's backstory, huh? Well, I thought it'd be great for Andrew's past to reveal that he was a victim of bullying, by his own older brother no less, who never treated Andrew with respect at all. And so seeing that kind of similarity with how Beldam treats Vivian so horribly, that it brought out a rather 'personal' anger inside of Andrew.
Anyway, for the next chapter, Andrew, Goombella, and Koops have to fight the Shadow Sirens to get the necklace back. It'll also show Andrew being able to show how he's not to be underestimated and that it's something when the normally calm and collected Andrew shows signs of anger. Aside from that, some other stuff will be featured too. How will this go for the three travelers? Find out next time, readers.
In the meantime, you can leave a review for this chapter, if you wish. I hope you look forward to the next two chapters since I already look forward to writing them.
Otherwise, that's all I have. So until next time, I hope you look forward to the following few chapters here. And on that note, thanks again for reading, everyone!