All right, readers. This is the 38th chapter of this story!
Now, for this chapter, I want you all to know that if you thought that Andrew's past was tragic enough (the death of his mother, a huge bully for a big brother, etc.), then trust me. He'll be put through the wringer here.
Seriously, you'll be feeling sorry for Andrew when you see what he gets put through in this chapter now that his name and body were stolen from him. At the same time, he will learn a couple of things and realize the error of his ways in regards to having been a loner in the past, in addition to confronting the doppelganger for himself.
Aside from that, we get to see the Shadow Sirens again, and we see Vivian get abused some more at the hands of her eldest sister Beldam, who forces Vivian to find something while she and Marilyn take their leave for the moment.
Both Andrew and Vivian will cross paths here, an alliance will be formed between Andrew and his fifth partner, and some other stuff will take place. How will things go for Andrew now that his name and body have been stolen? Read and find out, now!
WARNING: This chapter might as well be without a doubt, one of the darkest chapters I've written in this story, as this chapter will contain a suicide reference. So keep that in mind as you read this chapter.
IN TWILIGHT TOWN:
Back in Twilight Town, it would appear that the pig curse that affected the town was finally lifted. This was evident by the fact that everyone was turned back to normal, and there were no pigs left in the village.
Additionally, the Shadow Sirens were now in Twilight Town, as they had gotten word that Andrew was in the area. Unaware of what had happened to Andrew, Beldam was more than eager to put an end to Andrew's life once and for all, thanks to the Superbombomb that she has, or had rather.
"Mwee hee hee hee hee..." Beldam cackled again before declaring proudly. "Yes... This time we'll take that Andrew and get his map!"
It didn't take long for Beldam to clear her throat as she started boasting haughtily about the plan to kill off Andrew. "With this Superbombomb here, there's no way we can fail. No, not likely..."
"Guhhhhhhh..." Marilyn hummed her usual grunts, sounding like she was looking forward to this.
"Vivian!" Beldam barked out her demand and held her hand out towards her. "Hand me that glorious Superbombomb!"
"Huh?" Vivian felt her heart skip a beat as she suddenly frowned, knowing exactly where this was going to go.
Beldam, for her part, recognized the tone Vivian used when she said that. Upon hearing it, Beldam frowned and started growling in Vivian's direction. She hoped that this didn't mean what she thought it meant.
"Vivian... Don't you dare..." Beldam sneered her warning, as she floated right over to her youngest sister. "Does that 'Huh?' mean what I think it does?"
Vivian didn't want to answer. She didn't. But despite knowing what the outcome would be from telling her, she had to say it anyway.
"I..." Vivian stuttered before she cried in defense. "I never had it! You were holding it just two seconds ago! You said it was too important to trust me with!"
In a matter of seconds, Vivian was smacked across the face by Beldam, who glowered at her. It was clear that she was not pleased by what she just heard Vivian tell her.
"Oh, you terrible LIAR! Stop making up stories to cover yourself!" Beldam snarled with gritted teeth. "If I don't have it, then OBVIOUSLY you must have it! And OBVIOUSLY, you lost it!"
What Beldam did next was that she went over and grabbed the nearest tree branch and gripped it in her right hand before floating back over to Vivian, who was cowering by this point.
"Or..." Beldam started, getting dangerously close to Vivian's face. "Are you trying to imply that I lost it, you little lollygagging worm?"
"I..." Vivian gulped, seeing that angering her would set her off more since she had a tree branch in her hand. "No, of course not, Beldam..."
Nonetheless, Beldam still smacked Vivian across the face with the tree branch. To Vivian, it hurt just as badly as it did in the Boggly Woods. Beldam shook her head and scoffed as she then told her.
"Well, we can't do much without it, now can we?!" Beldam snapped before grumbling under her breath. "Oh, you are SUCH an idiot..."
Beldam then took a deep breath as Vivian slowly stood back up before she continued. "Very well... I'm sure you must have dropped it here somewhere..."
Beldam then pointed towards Vivian and gave the youngest Shadow Siren her next order. "So why don't you look for it while Marilyn and I go take a well-earned siesta."
Beldam then floated over to Vivian once again as she gave her a grim look and asked her. "And if you don't find it... Well, you know what'll happen, don't you?"
"I..." Vivian whimpered before she said. "I get punished..."
"That's right, you little twit," Beldam then took the branch and pressed the pointy side up to Vivian's throat. "And I can assure you, that the next punishment will not be pretty. It'll be the last mistake that you'll make, Vivian! This is your last chance! So get cracking and don't blow it! Understood?!"
"Y-Yes..." Vivian was on the verge of crying again. "S-Sis..."
Beldam pulled the branch away from her neck. To make sure that her warning was 'perfectly' clear, Beldam went and decked Vivian across the face, causing the youngest Shadow Siren to fall onto the ground in a heaping mess.
Seeming satisfied with what she did, Beldam dropped the tree branch and floated back over to where Marilyn was standing.
"Come, Marilyn. Let's leave this useless little fool to her chore." Beldam informed her.
"Guh-huh..." Marilyn nodded in agreement to that.
With that, Beldam and Marilyn departed through the shadows to take their nap, leaving Vivian all alone to find the Superbombomb herself. By the time Vivian got back up, she saw that her sisters were gone.
Now being left alone, Vivian started crying with tears dripping down onto the ground, as she started looking for the Superbombomb. She just couldn't live like this anymore. When will the pain and agony end? Will she ever be spared this abuse if just one person could show her kindness?
Sniff... I'll never find that Superbombomb... Vivian thought sadly. I know for sure that I'm gonna be punished for this... I just wish that this torment I've been going through will finally come to an end...
With that in mind, Vivian continued to look for the Superbombomb that Beldam forced her to search for, as she kept crying to herself...
ON TWILIGHT TRAIL - ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF TWILIGHT TOWN:
By now, Shadow Andy had just managed to get out of the woods within an inch of his life. He had a troubling encounter with a Crazee Dayzee who did nothing but sing its lullaby to him, forcing him to doze off as he tried smacking himself awake. There was no way that he could take a Crazee Dayzee by himself. Not without his partners to help him.
As a last resort, Shadow Andy had to use the Boo Sheet that he found earlier to become invisible and get away from the Crazee Dayzee and get out of the forest safely. To say nothing of the fact that he almost ran into an Amazy Dayzee; a rare golden-colored Crazee Dayzee that is really hard to find and extremely dangerous if it decides to stick around for a fight.
By the time the Boo Sheet wore off, Shadow Andy had already gotten out of the forest and was making his way back to Twilight Town.
Throughout the trip through the woods, Shadow Andy starts to realize one thing that he's been doing all this time. He's been taking his partners for granted.
Sure, he was a pretty strong fellow, but he has had at least one partner fight alongside him since he headed to Petal Meadows. Just the thought of having them fight by his side and get him out of tough situations also made him realize that he greatly appreciated everything they had done for him.
And now they were gone.
Not to mention the fact that the enemies found on Twilight Trail were far stronger than a simple Goomba or Koopa, or even Lord Crump.
He then started wondering if his four partners were just partners. Or if they were more than his partners; they were his friends.
Goombella had been traveling with him right from the start. Shadow Andy recalled how Goombella asked if she was his friend on their way to Shhwonk Fortress, and he told her that she was. And he has also been there for him.
Koops was a great guy who had traveled with him to Hooktail Castle. His father Koopley even referred to him as one of Koops's friends. Since then, Koops has been a trustworthy ally and was there for him whenever he needed his help.
Flurrie was a famous actress that Shadow Andy was a huge fan of and had a massive crush on her. He was ecstatic to have run into her in the Boggly Woods. The two seemed fairly close since they started traveling together. And after the fun that they had at her house, could he possibly see himself and Flurrie as friends with benefits?
As for Yoshiam, Shadow Andy has been a decent surrogate father to him, and Yoshiam will stop at nothing to back him up when he's in a jam. So there's no doubt that Yoshiam saw him as his friend too.
Just thinking about them made him miss them even more, and that they were indeed his friends, after all. He could only hope to find this doppelganger and settle things straight with him.
"Gosh. I didn't realize how much I appreciate them for their help, and that they are more than just my partners," Shadow Andy had to rub his chin. "I 'really' have taken them for granted..."
Shadow Andy was nearing the abandoned shed and was about to reach Twilight Town when suddenly, a voice called out to him. And he recognized it from before.
"Hey, what's up, Slick?" That voice called out. "Been waiting for you!"
"Huh? All right, you jerk! I know that's you," Shadow Andy called out. "Show yourself!"
In a matter of seconds, the doppelganger popped out of his hiding spot and landed right in front of the shadow. Shadow Andy got a good look at his doppelganger. He looked exactly like Andrew, except for his hunched-over back and his constant panting.
One other thing that Shadow Andy noticed was his imposter's eyes. They were completely black with red pupils; they were the eyes of his doppelganger.
"Yeah, you're Andrew, right?" The doppelganger asked him.
"Yeeeeeesssss..." Shadow Andy trailed cautiously with some anger in his voice.
"What a great name!" The doppelganger wasted no time in boasting about his new body that he had. "And I dig this ripped body of yours, too! MAN, can I jump now?! And check this out. Now I can flex my muscles and impress all of the chicks that you never bothered getting!"
To prove it, the doppelganger started flexing his muscles while doing several poses. This disgusted Shadow Andy, as he wouldn't ever do something like that to show off. He barely did that before his current predicament, as he frowned at this.
"And I'm 'really' digging those six-pack abs of yours! Man, this is so cool!" The doppelganger gloated. "And hey! You're so popular around here, that I get mobbed by all the ladies! I just love being you!"
The doppelganger then pointed towards the shadow before revealing. "Yeah, it's so cool, I don't think I wanna ever stop!"
"Yeah. Yeah. I'm flattered that you're enjoying my body," Shadow Andy retorted sarcastically as he rolled his eyes and then demanded. "You did something to switch bodies with me, didn't you?"
It was then the doppelganger laughed haughtily, surprised that the shadow figured it out so quickly.
"So, you figured it out by now, right, Slick?" The doppelganger wasted no time in revealing to him. "Your body and name belong to me now!"
"I should've figured," Shadow Andy sighed at his.
"See, I've got the power to change my shape into anyone I want..." The doppelganger informed him. "It comes in handy."
"Isn't that something that all Duplighosts are capable of?" Shadow Andy asked wearily.
"Uh huh," the doppelganger nodded before continuing. "But to 'REALLY' be someone, I need to take their name and body, too!"
The doppelganger then pointed towards Shadow Andy and told him in a taunting manner, almost sounding like he was making fun of his predicament. "Which means you turn into a shadow and can't use your name! Tough break, Slick!"
"Seriously?" Shadow Andy growled as he curled his hands into fists.
"That's not enough, either..." The doppelganger cracked his knuckles and then hummed darkly. "I aim to erase you for good!"
"You...You..." Shadow Andy was now horrified by what he heard him say as he gritted his teeth and gave him a venomous glare. "You can't do that! You won't get away with it!"
The doppelganger simply brushed it off. Truth be told, he expected this shadow to react that way after knowing what he had in store for him. But to make things interesting, he decided to pull Shadow Andy's strings some more with one important info about him that he doesn't know about.
"I guess it'd be unsporting to ruin you without a challenge...so I'll give you one chance," the doppelganger sounded like he was giving the shadow a proposition.
"Like what!?" Shadow Andy snapped while raising an eyebrow.
"If you guess my real name, then I'll give you back your name and body!" The doppelganger told him.
"Your name?!" Shadow Andy grew wide-eyed before he suddenly shouted. "How the heck am I supposed to know your name!?"
The doppelganger ignored this as he continued. "What do you say, Slick? This'll be fun, right?"
"I don't think stealing someone's name and body counts as fun." Shadow Andy deadpanned in annoyance.
"Now, guess!" The doppelganger then asked him. "What's my name? Hit me with your best shot!"
"Uhhh...how should I know?" Shadow Andy asked.
"Here! Use this, Slick," the doppelganger gave him a keyboard with a little screen at the top of it. "Maybe this'll make things interesting."
Shadow Andy rolled his eyes as he took the keyboard and looked at the keys. It was then he noticed something about the keyboard. The lowercase 'p' was missing. Could this doppelganger have hidden it from him where he could never find it?
That's odd. The lowercase 'p' is missing. Did he do something with it? Shadow Andy thought. Whatever his name is, it must have a lowercase 'p' in it since it's gone. Hmmmm...
After thinking, the shadow took a wild guess and typed out what the name could be on the keyboard before he showed it to his imposter.
"Is it Slimeball?" Shadow Andy showed him the name he had written.
"Wrongamundo, little nobody!" The doppelganger laughed at this as he swiped the keyboard from him. "Who'd name their kid that?"
"You tell me," Shadow Andy sneered at him.
"Prepare for doom, Slick!" The doppelganger was ready to battle Shadow Andy. "Yuk yuk yuk! And don't even think about running from battle, hear? NO RUNNING!"
"Very well then," Shadow Andy got ready to fight him. "You'll pay for this!"
Shadow Andy raced over towards his imposter and he then did a Power Jump on him. Unfortunately, he was in for a shock when he saw that it did nothing to him.
"Huh?" Shadow Andy blinked.
"Yuk yuk yuk! You see? Until you guess my name, Slick, you can't hurt me," the doppelganger gloated at this. "I'm invincible!"
With that, the doppelganger then went over and smacked Shadow Andy across the head with his bat. What surprised Shadow Andy was that it didn't do anything to him either.
"Nice try, slimeball," Shadow Andy told him sharply. "Your attacks aren't working on me either!"
"Exactly, Slick! Just think of it this way; we can continue fighting a non-winnable battle together," the doppelganger then gave him a rather sick and disturbing smile before he uttered in a creepy tone. "Forever and ever..."
Shadow Andy was disturbed by this. Seeing that they were fighting a battle that neither of them could win, he knew what he had to do now.
"Ugh! I don't have time for this!" Shadow Andy then turned around to face the direction Twilight Town was in. "I'm getting out of here!"
With that, Shadow Andy made a run for it as he raced his way towards Twilight Town, leaving his doppelganger behind in the dust, seeming upset that he had to run off like that.
"Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww..." The doppelganger whined in a rather childish manner. "That's no fun..."
Nonetheless, the doppelganger decided to take his leave as he went back into hiding. He would check on the Goomba, Koopa, Wind Spirit, and Yoshi that came back with him in a bit. For now, he'd hide out, waiting for Shadow Andy to be too occupied to notice him come into town...
TWILIGHT TOWN:
By the time Shadow Andy made it to Twilight Town, he realized something; all of the villagers were back to normal. This meant that the pig curse that they were under had been lifted, in no part thanks to his doppelganger.
I'm pretty sure my imposter lifted the curse to make it look like he was the one who took care of the curse... Shadow Andy thought bitterly. From what he told me, he's probably enjoying every moment of this. Gloating and acting arrogant while remaining under my image...
Shadow Andy shook his head as he told himself. "Now, I should try asking all the villagers if they know who that doppelganger is. Maybe one of them might know something that can help me get my name and body back."
After walking away from the gate, Shadow Andy sighed as he looked around the town, hoping to find some answers.
"Well, I guess I better get cracking," he uttered. "I'm not gonna be able to find that monster's name from just standing around..."
And with that, Shadow Andy started going around town and asking the villagers about the Duplighost and if any of them knew the guy's name. He could only hope that he would get some piece of information that could help him with getting his name and body back...
LATER ON...
As it turns out, the attempt to ask the villagers about his imposter proved to be fruitless. None of them knew anything about the Duplighost, as they displayed it with ignorance and apathy.
Not only that, but just about everyone in Twilight Town shunned him, made fun of his appearance, saying how Andrew was far better than him, and even drove him away.
The shopowner's wife was the only person who didn't drive Shadow Andy away. Granted, she was just doing her job since the shop was opened again, and she was willing to sell some stuff to him, but it was something.
Otherwise, everyone in the town treated him like an outcast. Shadow Andy can still remember some of the harsh and biting comments that some of the villagers made towards him.
"Huh? What are you doing here, shadow freak? Can't you see that you're not wanted here!?"
"Andrew is quite the wonderful man to our fair village! He's at least half the man that you are, shadow creep!"
"You're a shadow, aren't you? Why don't you do what you do best and fade away in the darkness?! That's where you truly belong!"
"I don't know who you are, but you better get out of my pumpkin garden if you know what's good for you! I will get that Andrew hero to rid of you once and for all, shadow nobody!"
"YOU BETTER GET OUT OF MY HOUSE, YOU SHADOW PUNK!" One of the citizens had yelled at him. "I WILL GET PERMISSION FROM THE MAYOR TO KILL YOU IF YOU DON'T GET LOST!"
And that last encounter had one of the residents throwing kitchenware and other objects at Shadow Andy. This included a frying pan, a tea kettle, an ice pack, a spatula, some firewood, and some other stuff that hurt upon striking him.
It was these experiences alone that ended up teaching Shadow Andy something else. He had not only taken his partners for granted. He had taken everyone else for granted by never socializing with anyone in Toad Town.
Truth be told, Shadow Andy had thought that being a loner, he'd be able to endure being shunned away. But he was proven to be wrong.
This made him think back to how he lived life in Toad Town when he was a loner. He was never shunned by the people of that town.
True, he was seen as a recluse and a loner by everyone that knew of him in Toad Town. But the thing was, they never treated him like an outcast. They treated him as another citizen who lived in their fair town and they respected him as a citizen too, all while going about with their lives.
Even Princess Peach treated Shadow Andy like a person instead of an outcast when she attempted to invite him to one of her parties. He had declined the invite for personal reasons, but he still thanked her for sending the invite anyway.
Shadow Andy realized that he had it better than he thought, despite being a loner, and that he was never treated as horribly as he's been treated so far in Twilight Town. Now this treatment wouldn't have been as horrible if it weren't for one thing; he wasn't himself.
Now he was truly alone. He never experienced true loneliness in his life until now. He was currently a friendless, lonely shadow, wandering around alone in the dark.
But that wasn't the worst part of it all. Shadow Andy had found Goombella, Koops, Flurrie, and Yoshiam at the mayor's house with his imposter. He had tried talking to them, but they didn't recognize him. And they didn't even notice that he was there. They made comments about how Andrew has acted more arrogant and haughty than before, but they didn't bother acting on it.
But the worst of them all had come from Mayor Dour himself. Shadow Andy managed to get his attention, but he then got a not-so-positive response from him.
"Now, who might you be? I don't remember inviting any shadows to my house..." Mayor Dour said rather coldly. "Sorry, but Andrew is visiting today! If you don't need anything, please leave."
Shadow Andy then tried explaining the situation to him, but the mayor then commented on how they don't see any shadows during twilight and gave him a not-so-subtle threat telling him to get out.
That hurt more than anything. He went through all that trouble to lift the pig curse for the town, and this is the thanks he gets.
Currently, Shadow Andy was sitting all alone near some bushes as he was taking in everything that he had been through. Never in his life did his mood feel like it was at its all-time low, and he felt like he was suffering from anxiety and depression.
He would've loved to know that Duplighost's name, but no matter what he does, he'll get shunned and driven off like an outcast. And the worst part was that he couldn't even leave Twilight Town since he needed his name written on him. And since his name was stolen, he couldn't get through.
"Well, I guess it's time to face the music," Shadow Andy uttered to himself. "No one in this town is gonna help me. And that doppelganger is going to erase me from existence. If there was any hope that I had left in this state, all of that hope was gone. There's nothing I can do to get back my name and body..."
Shadow Andy felt his eyes water up, but he quickly wiped his tears away since he didn't want anyone to feel pity for him. He never wanted anyone to worry about him. This was precisely the reason why he never told Goombella about his personal life. Her perspective of him would change in a flash.
After dwelling on his thoughts, Shadow Andy had made a decision. Since he'll never get anywhere with getting back his life, there was only one last thing that he could do.
"Well, if that doppelganger wants to replace me permanently, then who am I to stop him?" Shadow Andy said in a glum tone. "I can't leave this place. I've been rejected by the people here. I'm treated like an outcast. And I'm never going to get my name and body back, ever..."
So I guess it's for the best for everyone. I have no choice but to make his goal a reality and end it all...
And he had just the thing that could get the job done quickly. Shadow Andy dug into his pocket until he pulled out a mushroom. But this wasn't any ordinary mushroom.
For one, the cap on top was completely black. And on the front of the cap was a skull and crossbones underneath it. This was a sign that always indicated death.
The name of this mushroom happens to be known as the Death Shroom, and it lived up to its name. It was by far, the most deadliest and dangerous mushroom in the entire world. Even more so than the Poison Shroom.
The Poison Shroom, while dangerous upon consumption, wasn't entirely life-threatening. This is because there are cures that could save anyone who consumes a Poison Shroom, what with all the medical aid and mushroom magic that could help cure whoever eats a Poison Shroom.
By contrast, the Death Shroom will KILL anyone who consumes it in a matter of seconds. And there is 'absolutely' no amount of HOPE, medical aid, or magical mushroom power that can save anyone who had eaten the Death Shroom, as death was inevitable and instant.
It's for this reason alone that the Death Shroom is never sold in any stores, it's rarely found in the wild, and nobody DARES to talk about it, as just mentioning its name is known for bringing fear and despair.
And Shadow Andy had possession of one the few Death Shrooms left in the world. It pains him to have to do this, but he has no choice. He had 'absolutely' no way of recovering his name and body, and he was in a permanent rut right now.
"Well, Goombella? Koops? Flurrie? Yoshiam? It's been nice knowing you all. I do hope that you will all be much happier with my doppelganger replacing me," Shadow Andy uttered sadly, trying his darn hardest not to cry about it. "I...I've been nothing but a failure to you guys. And I'm sure that you guys will be better off without me. So, goodbye. And farewell, everyone..."
And with that, he opened his mouth, as he was planning on eating the Death Shroom right then and there. However, before he could even take a nibble of the Death Shroom, he heard someone crying nearby. And from the sound of it, it sounds like a female was crying. Getting concerned, Shadow Andy pulled the Death Shroom away from his mouth.
"Gee, is someone crying?" Shadow Andy put the Death Shroom away for the moment as he stood up. "Sounds like it's coming near those bushes."
Shadow Andy was able to find exactly who was crying. It was Vivian, and she was still looking for the Superbombomb, unsuccessfully. Shadow Andy could hear her crying to herself.
"Sniff... Sniff... Sniff... What'll I do? What'll I do?" Vivian whimpered as she felt tears dripping from her hidden eyes. "Poor me..."
"Hey, isn't that Vivian?" Shadow Andy tilted his head. "What's she doing here? And where are her sisters? Is she being forced to find something thanks to Beldam, threatening to beat her up as punishment for failing her? She looks so sad..."
It was then a thought had rang through Shadow Andy's mind. It was one that he recalled thinking about quite some time ago in the Boggly Woods.
Who was that girl? And why do I feel so sorry for her? I wish I could help her.
It was at that moment that he realized one thing. Sometimes, wishes do come true. Just not in the way that you'd expect it. As it stands, Shadow Andy never expected to have his name and identity swiped away from him and be left in the state of a nameless shadow.
But there she was. Alone. And in need of some help.
It was then that Shadow Andy felt his moral compass overcome him again. Just like the day that he saved Goombella from Lord Crump when he first set foot in Rogueport, now he had to do the same for Vivian and give her his aid so she wouldn't feel so miserable.
"I might as well try to help her," Shadow Andy nodded in determination, having made his decision. "That way she'll at least be happier than I am currently, and it'll be one more person I help before I go..."
With that in mind, Shadow Andy marched over to where Vivian was and decided to get her attention while she was still crying and frantically searching for the Superbombomb.
"Hey, excuse me, miss?" Shadow Andy got her attention. "I couldn't help but hear you crying over here. Is there something wrong?"
Vivian couldn't help but flinch at the presence of this shady-looking man. She didn't recognize him, and she didn't know if she should be talking to him. Nonetheless, she decided to inform him about her dilemma.
"Sniff... I'm looking for something very important," Vivian whimpered. "If I don't find it, my sister's going to punish me again..."
So Beldam was threatening to punish her if she didn't find it! Shadow Andy thought bitterly in his head, as his blood was boiling upon remembering how cruel Beldam was to Vivian in the Boggly Woods.
"But it's just not here..." Vivian finished, getting his attention again as he shook his head.
"Maybe I can help you find it," Shadow Andy offered to assist her.
"Please, mister... P-Please leave me alone," Vivian told him while sniffing. "I-I don't want to burden you with my problems..."
Before Shadow Andy could even say anything about it, Vivian already floated off, presumably to search elsewhere for the object. He couldn't help but feel sorry for her. And she desperately needed some help, whether she wanted to accept it or not.
I know she didn't want my help... Shadow Andy thought. But I'm gonna do it anyway. I'm gonna help her find whatever it is that she's looking for...
With that in mind, Shadow Andy started searching for the object separately from Vivian. The search proved to be fruitless, as the only things that he found were a single coin and a Star Piece, which he collected and put into his backpack.
Then suddenly, just before he was about to give up, he looked in the bush that was the closest to the pipe. He then saw what the object was that Vivian was looking for.
It was the Superbombomb. To put it simply, it looked like a green grenade with a skull on the front of it. Shadow Andy had to pick it up and observe it.
This must be what the Shadow Sirens are going to use to kill me and steal my map... Shadow Andy thought. Regardless of that, Vivian deserves to be happy. So I'm gonna give it to her right now.
From there, Shadow Andy walked over to where Vivian was currently and tapped her on the shoulder.
"Excuse me, miss?" He asked politely.
Vivian sniffed and looked at him again. She knew that she told him to leave him alone. But just in case he did something bad to her, she decided to ask what he wanted from her.
"What is it this time..." Vivian uttered sadly.
"Is this the object that you're looking for?" Shadow Andy then held out the grenade in his hands for her to see.
Vivian had to gasp at what she saw. It was the Superbombomb. This strange shadow figure went through the trouble just to find it for her, even though she told him that she didn't want to burden him with her troubles. He found it anyway.
"What?! You found it?" Vivian asked in a gasp.
"This is what you're looking for, isn't it?" Shadow Andy said simply.
At that moment, Vivian didn't care who this guy was and the fact that he still helped her. She went over to him and hugged him for finding it for her.
"Oh... Oh, thank you so much..." Vivian thanked him dearly as he handed her the Superbombomb. "Thank goodness... At least I won't get punished now..."
"That's a good thing, right," Shadow Andy couldn't help but give her a rather sincere smile at this pleasant moment as she looked it over.
Unfortunately, the moment came to an abrupt and sudden end when Vivian noticed something. There was a crack on the side of the grenade. And this got her upset all over again.
"OH NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Vivian wailed. "It's... It's broken!"
"What the...!?" Shadow Andy looked at the crack for himself as he jumped.
"It must have broken when my sister dropped it..." Vivian had come to the proper conclusion.
And yet Beldam was still going to punish her if she didn't find the object that she lost in the first place. Shadow Andy thought bitterly. It's horrible how Beldam treats Vivian like a scapegoat.
He was brought out of his thoughts when Vivian started crying again.
"What'll I do? What'll I do?" Vivian cried. "I guess I was just meant to be punished for life..."
Seeing that she needed some more comfort, Shadow Andy went ahead and decided to make her feel better.
"Oh, shh shh shh. It's OK. Don't feel bad. It'll be OK," Shadow Andy told her softly as he patted her back in comfort. "'In fact', here. Let me fix it."
Shadow Andy grabbed the Superbombomb and attempted to fix it for her. Vivian had to wipe her tears at this as she needed to tell him.
"Oh, don't even bother trying..." Vivian informed him. "It's 'really' busted."
"I see..." Shadow Andy said as he dropped it. "I just wanted to make you feel better. And to keep you from being punished. Don't feel bad. Maybe I can work something out and help you get out of this jam. I'll be here for you. I promise."
"Thanks... You're very sweet," Vivian couldn't help but smile at his generosity. "That 'actually' makes me feel a little better."
"I'm glad that it did," Shadow Andy gave her a light smile.
"But what'll I do now?" Vivian had to remind him. "My sisters will be back any minute now..."
This caused Shadow Andy to come crashing back down. Truth be told, he didn't know what he could do now. And given his current predicament, he was sure that he wouldn't be of any further help to her.
"I...I dunno," Shadow Andy frowned upon remembering that he was no closer to getting his name and identity back.
Now that he's made one person happy for the last time, perhaps it was time for him to go back to pulling off the grizzly fate that he was going to do to himself.
As soon as he got up, he started walking off in a rather sad manner. This time, though, Vivian noticed that he was leaving. She reacted to how this strange but nice person was walking off.
"Hey, mister! Where are you going?!" Vivian called out to him.
"Nowhere," Shadow Andy told her in a more forlorn tone of voice.
Vivian picked up on this and realized that something was bothering him. Even though she wouldn't pry from him, she wanted to at least know one thing about him.
"Wait! Before you go, can I at least know what your name is," Vivian asked while floating over to him. "Won't you tell me?"
This got Shadow Andy to stop as Vivian managed to catch up to him. He then sighed and knew something crucial from doing this. Once she knows who he is, she will no longer want to associate with him. Wanting to get this done and over with, Shadow Andy decided to tell her.
"Well, if you want to know, my name is..." Shadow Andy tried uttering his name to her, but nothing came out of his mouth. Every time he tried to say 'Andrew', nothing but thin air came out.
Crud! Looks like that doppelganger wasn't kidding when he said that I couldn't use my real name! Shadow Andy thought.
"What? I couldn't quite catch that..." Vivian then tilted her head in confusion.
"OK. The truth is, I actually don't have my name on me right now," Shadow Andy sighed and told her. "It's been stolen from me..."
"I see..." Vivian had to comment. "I guess that happens from time to time..."
"Uh...I don't recall it ever happening to anyone else, though," Shadow Andy said skeptically.
"You're right! It doesn't!" Vivian had to yelp. "Your NAME was stolen? That's 'absolutely' crazy!"
"Yes. It certainly sounds crazy," Shadow Andy told her. "Now miss uhhhh..."
"Vivian. My name's Vivian," Vivian remarked.
"Vivian," Shadow Andy pretended that he didn't know her name so that she wouldn't get suspicious about how he knew of her. "I suppose I should tell you the whole story. Do you have time?"
"Sure. I dunno when my sisters will be back," Vivian looked around her. "So yeah. I got plenty of time."
"OK," Shadow Andy sighed as he then explained it to her. "So here's how it started..."
And so, Shadow Andy spent the next few minutes telling Vivian about how he and his four friends he was traveling with were dealing with this Duplighost, who pulled a nasty trick on him and stole his name and body from him. He also told her that he had to guess his name to get his name and body back. Needless to say, he was getting quite a bit off of his chest just from telling Vivian alone.
"...And that's how I have gotten into my current predicament." Shadow Andy finished explaining to her.
Vivian had been paying attention to everything that he had told him. A part of her started feeling sorry for him and his predicament. Still, his situation didn't stop him from helping her when she needed it the most. That alone got her to smile a bit.
"Gee whiz, you have way worse problems than I do!" Vivian exclaimed.
"I guess you can say that," Shadow Andy tugged on his shadow handkerchief.
"And you were worried about me that whole time..." Vivian uttered softly.
"Of course," Shadow Andy nodded. "I didn't want you to feel as miserable as I am."
"That's so...kind..." Vivian couldn't help but hug Shadow Andy once again as she admitted to him. "No one's ever been this nice to me before..."
"I know," Shadow Andy whispered as he returned the hug and patted her.
Truth be told, he enjoyed it. It was the first thing of comfort that he got since he lost his identity, to begin with. So he was going to make the most of this moment while he could.
Shortly afterwards, Vivian broke out of the hug and gave Shadow Andy a determined look before saying. "All right, that's IT!"
"What's IT?" Shadow Andy queried in confusion.
"I'm going to help you get back your name...and your body!" Vivian had to declare. "And your friends!"
Shadow Andy couldn't help but freeze at that. Even though she didn't know his real name, she'd probably regret helping him once she found out who he was.
"Uh no... T-That's a bad idea," Shadow Andy shook his head. "I-I mean, what about your sisters?"
"Hey, that's OK!" Vivian placed her gloved hand on his right shoulder. "Don't worry about my problems... I'm not sure I 'really' want to stay with my sisters anymore, anyway..."
Oh, if only you knew who I 'really' was, Vivian... Shadow Andy thought in guilt.
"And I feel like I need to repay your earlier kindness," Vivian told him assuringly. "It's the right thing to do."
Shadow Andy had to think about this. Truth be told, he felt pretty guilty for using her like this. Especially since he knew that she wasn't stupid, and she knew exactly who Andrew was. So it brought him nothing but shame to do this.
Then again, considering that he has no leads at all, and the fact that Vivian wanted to help him, he felt like having her around would help ease the tension he's having, and might bring back some hope into the shadow.
"Well, I suppose it couldn't hurt to have your help..." Shadow Andy rubbed his chin thoughtfully before he decided to go with it. "Sure, Vivian. I'd love to have your help with this. Shall we see how we can resolve this?"
"Wait!" Vivian told him. "Before we get started, I wanna give you something for helping me, Mister."
"What is it?" Shadow Andy was confused by this.
Without saying a word, Vivian grabbed Shadow Andy by the cheeks, puckered her lips, and then kissed him right on the mouth. Shadow Andy was in a state of shock and awe at what she did. He now had a yellow kiss mark right where his lips were. There was no doubt about it. Even if they weren't successful, they would be lonely shadows together, and they would have each other for comfort.
"Wow..." Shadow Andy said in awe at what she had just done.
"So, hmm hmm hmm hmm..." Vivian couldn't help but giggle at this before saying to him sweetly. "Here we go!"
"Right! Great to have you along, Vivian," Shadow Andy smiled. "So, shall we get started?"
"Oh sure," Vivian nodded. "I guess we need to find out that ghost's real name first, huh? That'll be a start."
"Yeah," Shadow Andy admitted.
"Now how are we going to get that kind of information..." Vivian had to wonder.
"Don't bother trying to ask the villagers. I tried doing that already," Shadow Andy admitted sadly. "All I got from it was getting shunned, driven off, and was treated like an outcast..."
"Oh, gee," Vivian gave him a sympathetic look. "Sorry that that happened to you, Mister."
"No. No. It's all right," Shadow Andy insisted. "Now if only there was some kind of lead that we COULD go with."
"Oh, hey," Vivian snapped her fingers as she remembered something. "I have sort of an idea!"
"Well, I'm all for ideas at this point," Shadow Andy looked at her curiously. "What do you have in mind?"
"Uh, it goes like this," Vivian then explained to him. "Birds pretend to be innocent with people around... But they're 'actually' 'really' well informed from all that flying and eavesdropping."
"Is that so," Shadow Andy mused at this. "And how can we tell what they're thinking when we aren't around?"
"With my power, you can listen in on their conversations without them knowing," Vivian told him. "So, instead of asking the villagers, let's try to get some info from the local birds."
"You mean the crows that live in these trees?" Shadow Andy queried.
"Mhmm. Exactly," Vivian nodded. "That's the least I could do for you with my powers!"
"Wait, I've been meaning to ask you," Shadow Andy decided to ask her. "What is your special ability?"
"Come on! I'll show you," Vivian pointed to a nearby tree that had some crows in here. "Just stand right in front of this tree."
Shadow Andy obliged as he got in front of the tree. When he looked up, he only saw the crows cawing like they usually do.
"Uh, I don't understand," Shadow Andy scratched his head. "What now?"
"I'll demonstrate," Vivian told him as she grabbed a hold of his waist and dragged him into the shadows to hide, showcasing her Veil move to him.
As soon as the two shadows were gone from sight, the crows started talking like normal people. And Shadow Andy could hear every word that was being said.
"So I was chatting with Rotbeak in Mushroom Town on instant messenger yesterday..." One of the crows said. "And he said he'd just gone fiber optic on his home network, you believe that?"
"Rad," the other crow said to the first crow. "I bet he's downloading 100-meg apps with no problems on those fat pipes. He's probably surfing that Feather Club for Crows site at the speed of light now."
"Yeah, it just blows me away, all this 'information age' hype you hear about," that first crow commented. "And yet, it's all games and feather-loss sites that are driving the technology."
"Yeah, but I think tech-bust survivors can thrive if they get viable business models..." The second crow remarked on that before they were done talking.
Shadow Andy felt like his mind was blown at how he was able to overhear everything that was being said to the crows. As soon as Vivian went back up to the surface along with Shadow Andy, he reacted accordingly to this.
"Holy cow!" Shadow Andy blinked in amazement. "I heard everything they said. That was pretty cool!"
"Mmm hmm hmm hmm... Isn't it?" Vivian giggled at his reaction.
"How did you know to do something like that?" Shadow Andy asked her.
"Well, it's a special ability that we Shadow Sirens are capable of doing when it comes to getting information from birds," Vivian exclaimed. "Though Beldam only uses it for important information, such as stuff that could help her further her goals... I think she's used it on people too..."
Shadow Andy didn't bother questioning her about that. He already knew what Beldam's objective was, and how she was trying to kill Andrew and steal his Magical Map. So he felt that it was pointless to bring it up.
"I see," Shadow Andy shrugged. "So, I guess they didn't know anything about the monster who stole my identity."
"That's OK," Vivian tried to perk him up. "There are plenty of other crows that we can check out. Let's see what they know."
"Wait a moment," Shadow Andy then smelled something sweet coming from Vivian and he decided to comment on it. "Is that...strawberry perfume?"
"Yes?" Vivian gave him a quizzical look.
"Wow," he then told her. "It smells wonderful."
"Isn't it?" Vivian couldn't help but gush when she said that. "This stuff smells so nice, I just love wearing it! It helps ease the tension that I feel when I'm with my sisters..."
Shadow Andy was rather impressed by seeing this side of Vivian. The only other time he witnessed it was when she was fawning over the necklace she found that belonged to Flurrie back in the Boggly Woods. He had to admit, this side of her was adorable.
"That's very nice," Shadow Andy complimented.
"If only my sisters thought the same way about it as you do," Vivian then admitted sadly. "Beldam never liked it. She says it's nothing but a mere distraction from our goals. And that it's nothing more than useless junk."
"Well, she doesn't know what she's missing out on," Shadow Andy then assured her. "I think it smells lovely. And I think it's 'definitely' you, Vivian."
"I know. I'm glad that you like it," Vivian beamed in excitement. "Now come on! We better see what the rest of these crows are saying amongst themselves when we're not around!"
"Of course," Shadow Andy nodded as he and Vivian decided to do the same thing with the other crows that reside in Twilight Town.
Needless to say, he was already feeling a rather impactful friendship being formed between him and Vivian. And it was rather pleasant too...
Time had passed as the two shadows had overheard nearly every tree of crows in Twilight Town. But none of them had any answers as to what the doppelganger's name was.
"Well, Vivian. I dunno what to say," Shadow Andy said as they were near the gate leading out of Twilight Town. "We checked almost every tree of crows in town. And we didn't get any answers at all."
"Wait a minute, Mister," Vivian pointed towards the last tree that had crows in it that they hadn't checked out yet; it was located near that pumpkin farm. "We still have those crows that we can check out."
"That works for more," Shadow Andy sighed. "Let's use your Veil ability and overhear anything that those crows have for useful information."
"Mhmm," Vivian nodded shyly as she and Shadow Andy went over to that last tree.
Once the two shadows were in front of it, Vivian used her Veil move and dragged herself and Shadow Andy into the shadows to hide. Then on cue, the two crows in the tree started talking and gave out some important information for them.
"So that hero guy meeting with the mayor, he's 'actually' the bad guy, right?" The first crow commented. "And nobody even knows. Humans are so dumb, it makes me want to peck their noses."
These Twilighters are certainly ignorant... Shadow Andy thought in agreement.
"The only soul that knows the bad guy's name is locked under Creepy Steeple, I hear," the second crow revealed. "Because, you know, if no one knows your name, then you can use unstoppable magic."
Shadow Andy was then in shock as he was thinking something over as the crows continued chatting.
"But if someone says your real name to you, then your magic will stop working..." The first crow commented on that.
"So...I wonder how all this is going to end up, then?" The second crow wondered in musing as the crows were done talking.
It was then Shadow Andy remembered something crucially important. The well that he went into earlier with Goombella, Koops, Flurrie, and Yoshiam. Specifically, that window that they couldn't get by.
Oh! Of course! The window that my friends and I saw earlier in the well! I bet there's something important beyond it that could lead to this one person who knows this Duplighost's real name! Shadow Andy thought as an idea started to form in his mind. And if Vivian's Veil can help with slipping us through objects such as that window, we might be able to get by there and find the secret for ourselves!
With that thought in mind, it was becoming clear that some hope was being restored after all. He just hoped that Vivian could be of help for them to get by that window.
In a matter of seconds, Vivian went back up to the surface and brought Shadow Andy with her. Once they were above, Vivian decided to comment on what they just overheard from those two crows.
"Did you hear that?" Vivian had to ask him.
"Yes. I did," Shadow Andy nodded.
"If we search under Creepy Steeple, maybe we can find out that guy's real name!" Vivian declared.
"Of course! Vivian?" Shadow Andy decided to ask her. "Do you think your Veil ability can help us slip by inanimate objects, like a window?"
"Yeah. Sure. As long as they move right over us," Vivian then had to ask. "Why do you ask?"
"Well, earlier, my friends and I saw this window in the well that we couldn't remove," Shadow Andy explained. "If your Veil can get us by the window, we might be able to find the secret room and this person that knows the name of this Duplighost!"
"Yay! That's a great idea!" Vivian beamed excitedly while clapping. "Mister, you are 'really' resourceful! You know that?"
"I've been told that," Shadow Andy said modestly as he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "Anyway, looks like we know what we gotta do now."
"Yup," Vivian nodded while smiling. "Let's go! To Creepy Steeple!"
"All right," it was then Shadow Andy remembered something as he groaned in slight annoyance at the backtracking that he had to do. "Wait a minute. Do we have to go through that stupid forest again? Ugh..."
"What's wrong, Mister?" Vivian asked in concern.
"Oh, nothing. Nothing. Don't worry about it," Shadow Andy shook his head. "In any case, maybe we should go to the store first before we go to Creepy Steeple."
"Good idea," Vivian agreed. "Who knows what could ambush us in the woods on the Twilight Trail, am I right?"
"Don't I know it," Shadow Andy nodded as he and Vivian went to the store to buy some stuff before heading off to Twilight Trail, and into the woods that lead to Creepy Steeple.
Before they went into the store, Shadow Andy did have one thought cross his mind.
I have to wonder, how would Mario have reacted if he was in this position that I'm in right now... Shadow Andy wondered in his thoughts, which he kept to himself.
When they entered the store, the two shadows noticed that there were some good items on sale. As a result, they both went with purchasing two Super Shrooms, a jar of Maple Syrup, another Life Shroom, a Stop Watch, and a Thunder Rage.
Feeling satisfied by the stuff that they bought, Shadow Andy decided to take his leave, with Vivian trailing right behind him.
"Well, that store certainly has some good stuff on sale," Shadow Andy had placed the stuff in his backpack. "This should help us get by those woods in case we're in a situation."
"Yeah. Good thinking, Mister," Vivian then felt a wince on a spot that Beldam struck her in earlier. "Ouch!"
"What's wrong?" Shadow Andy asked worriedly.
"Oh, nothing," Vivian told him meekly. "Just a sore spot my sister left on me earlier..."
You're seriously doing this to her again, Beldam... Shadow Andy thought in an irate manner.
"Here Vivian," Shadow Andy got out a regular Mushroom for her. "This should help with those injuries that you got from your sister."
"Oh," Vivian politely accepted the Mushroom as she ate it. "Thank you."
As soon as she ate it, she felt a lot better, and her injuries were healed up.
"Feeling better?" Shadow Andy asked her.
"Yeah! Gee, mister. That certainly helps," Vivian smiled. "You 'really' saved me. You are a hero. You know that?"
"Oh, well, I wouldn't say that," Shadow Andy said humbly. "I just did the right thing is all..."
"Well, regardless," Vivian grabbed Shadow Andy's right arm affectionately. "You're my hero."
"I know. And I appreciate that," Shadow Andy patted her on the shoulder. "Now let's go. We better get to Creepy Steeple."
"Right. Of course," Vivian adjusted her witch hat as she nodded. "Let's go and get your name and body back!"
"You said it," Shadow Andy smiled at her as they left the store and headed straight through the gate.
The two lonely shadows were planning on finding out what the Duplighost's name is, in the only person who knows is under the Creepy Steeple, which is connected to the well.
Needless to say, this was the beginning of a wonderful friendship between Shadow Andy and Vivian, especially since the latter technically saved the former's life. Their quest to figure out the monster's name was about to begin. That was a given...
END OF CHAPTER 38...
All right. That's it for this chapter. I hope you all enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it.
I have to be honest right now, this happens to be my 'personal' favorite chapter that I've written so far. And it's not just because Vivian teams up with Andrew either.
Given the situation that Andrew was in, I was willing to take advantage of the seriousness of the situation and what Andrew was going through as a shadow.
Some people have to wonder what was going on through Mario's head when he lost his name and identity. The game never really explored that or showed how those events affected him and his psyche, which would lead to some doubt about himself. Some fanfictions have explored the fact that the events of Chapter 4 here have affected Mario and he still hasn't fully recovered from the ordeal.
Then again, Mario is a generic static character, so not much could've been done with diving into that in the game. Trust me, Andrew's psyche will be shown later as it'll be evident that he hasn't recovered from the stolen identity ordeal.
Another thing, I do love the moments that are shared between Andrew and Vivian. It is a tender moment for two lonely shadows who have each other for comfort.
Lastly, I want you to know that I was the one who came up with the concept for the Death Shroom and how it could kill anyone who consumes it in a matter of seconds. The suicide reference isn't that vague, but it's subtle enough that it's not explicit.
Anyway, for the next chapter, Andrew (Shadow Andy) and Vivian head back to Creepy Steeple after encountering the doppelganger again, and after passing through Twilight Trail, they go into the well.
From there, they will find the secret passageway, and Andrew will share some stuff with Vivian, they end up in a secret room with a parrot, who blurts out the name when they're not around, Andrew finds the lower-case 'p' in a chest, and some other stuff will occur. How will this go for the two shadows? Find out next time, readers!
For now, only if you like, you can leave a review and let me know what you thought of the chapter overall.
Otherwise, that's all that I have for now. So until next time, I hope you all look forward to the remainder of Chapter 4. And on that note, thanks again for reading, everyone!