-Jail Mates-

Luigi and Little Mac were waiting for the guards Wario and Waluigi. When they arrived, Little Mac started shouting at them.

Little Mac: "HEY! GUARDS! HELP!"

Wario and Waluigi walked over to check on the cell. Their eyes widened in shock when they saw Luigi having a seizure on the floor. Wario immediately unlocked the cell and went over to Luigi. Waluigi made sure to keep an eye on the boxer.

Little Mac waited for Luigi to start the fake possession act. Once Luigi started talking in tongues, that was the boxer's cue to fight back. Seeing Luigi's eyes roll back caused Waluigi to freeze. Luigi told Little Mac that Waluigi is afraid of demons and ghosts, so they decided to use that in their plan.

Little Mac saw that Waluigi was too scared to move. He suplexed him to the ground causing Waluigi to hit his head on the ground knocking him out. Wario turned around to see what happened, but when he did he was punched in the face by Little Mac. That's when Luigi kneed him on the balls. Together the two jumped Wario and took his keys. They unlocked the door and left both Waluigi and Wario trapped in the cell.

"Ok, we're out, now what?" Luigi asked.

"Now, we go to the travel machine and find Kirby."

"What about Ness? I need to go see him."

"Right I uh…"

WHAM!

Little Mac punched Luigi in the head as hard as he could. He watched the green plumber fall on the ground unconscious.

"Sorry, nothing personal, but uh you're also a creep so… Yeah," Little Mac taunted.

He threw Luigi in an empty cell and locked it. He left the dungeon and made it back to the mansion. However, he needs to lay low. He snuck his way back to his room. Too bad he didn't have the key, so he punched the door off. He went through his closet and changed. He now wore new shorts, tanktop, and a pink hoodie. He put the hood on and left. His room isn't safe, the smashers will find him and arrest him again.

As he was on his way to the travel machine room, he bumped into Samus.

"Watch where you're going!" Samus yelled.

"S-sorry." (Oops, I probably shouldn't have talked.)

"Little Mac? What're you doing here? I thought you were in jail?"

"Samus I… Look, I broke out."

"What!"

"I was falsely accused. I mean sure I allowed Pit to be taken by Dark Pit, but it's because the hospital was gonna let him die."

"I don't understand."

"I don't have time for this."

Little Mac moved to the side and started jogging away. However, Samus stopped him using her whip.

"Samus, let me go!" Little Mac demanded.

"No! You're a criminal!"

"LET GO!"

"GUARDS! LITTLE MAC ESCAPED!"

Little Mac couldn't break out of her whip. He had no choice but to attack her directly. He swung a punch at her while she was shouting and looking around for the guards. When his fist connected, she let go of the whip and stumbled backwards.

He booked it. He ran to where the travel machine was, but it wouldn't open. Dammit! The guards surrounded him. They grabbed a hold of him using man catchers. He tried to break free, but he couldn't. They beat him unconscious and threw him back in jail.

…

-Mario's Plan-

Mario woke up and yawned. He did a little stretching and put on his clothes. That was a nice nap. He checked the time. This is the time he usually goes to the cave to feed his pets; however, the Sonic clone has been doing that. He kind of wanted to see them though. He hasn't visited the cave in a while. Aww, but what if the Sonic clone already fed them? It'll be awkward if he shows up. He only visited them to feed and make fun of them.

He texted the Sonic clone to ask if he already fed the pets. About 5 minutes goes by and the clone still hasn't answered. That's odd. He always answers quickly. He wondered what was up. Maybe he's distracted because he's socializing with the pets.

Oh well, he has a wedding to plan anyway. He put his hands in his pockets out of habit and realized that both felt empty. That's weird. Where's his key for the cuffs? He double checked them, but the keys were gone. It probably fell out when he threw his clothes on the floor. It's in his room somewhere. He looked around but he couldn't find them. It doesn't matter. He has a spare and he's never going to uncuff them.

He left the room and went on with his day. He hung out with Peach for a while. They talked about their wedding and how excited they are for the future. Peach mentioned having a baby, but Mario didn't seem too excited about it. He's planning world domination. He doesn't have time for a kid. However, he pretended to act happy about it. He didn't want Peach to feel discouraged. He'll talk to her about having a child later.

After spending time with Peach, he hung out with some of his friends. Mickey, Sora, Goofy, and Fox. They were chit chatting about Mario's wedding. They were all so excited for him. Mario pretended to act social and happy, but for some reason he felt like there was something off. Clone Sonic still hasn't texted him back. Something is wrong. He excused himself.

Mario left the mansion and threw out his Ho-Oh. He rode his Ho-Oh to the cave where his pets lived. When he arrived, he saw his pets sitting there quietly looking miserable.

Mario: "Um, hello?"

Sonic: "Whoa! Mario is that you? I thought you forgot about us."

Mario: "Did the Sonic Clone come here by any chance?"

Gordon: "No."

Sonic: "Where is he? Isn't he the guy giving us food now?"

Mario: "He didn't stop by at all?"

Kawasaki: "Nope. Just you, Mario."

Sonic: "Why? Did something happen to him?"

Mario: "I'm-a not sure."

Gordon: "He's probably running late."

Sonic: "Nah, he forgot about us."

Kawasaki: "Hey, Mario, do you have food for us? I'm hungry."
Sonic: "Oh yeah. Where's our cat grub?"

Mario: "I didn't bring any."

Sonic: "Aww, what!"

Gordon: "Guess we're going to starve another night."

Mario: "I'll come back to give you guys food."
Kawasaki: "Thank you, Mario. You're so nice."

Gordon: "For fucks sake…"

Mario went back to the mansion to grab three cans of cat food. He went back and gave his pets food and river dirty water like always.

Gordon: "What? No games tonight?"

Mario: "You want to?"

Gordon: "No, I'm just surprised that you're not making us play your stupid games."

Sonic: "Yeah, no trivia?"

Kawasaki: "Ooooh I wanna play~"

Mario: "No. Not tonight. I think something happened to the Sonic Clone."

Sonic: "Good! Now people are gonna realize that I'm missing."
Mario: "Even if they did, they'll think that Kirby did it."

Gordon: "You snake."

Sonic: "That's bullshit."

Mario: "I'm just… I don't care if he died. I'm just worried that if he did, how did it happen."

Sonic: "Wouldn't it be funny if Ness was still alive and he killed the clone?"

Mario: "That's impossible. He died. The wendigo ate him."

Gordon: "He was eaten?!"

Mario: "Yes."

The room went silent. Gordon and Sonic looked depressed. It was confirmed. Ness died. But by a wendigo? That's insane!

Kawasaki: "What's a wendigo?"

Gordon: "A monster."
Kawasaki: "Ness was eaten by a monster?!"

Mario: "Yes. The Sonic Clone made sure."

Sonic: "And you believe him?"

Mario: "Yes, he would never lie to me."

Sonic: "Are you sure about that?"

Mario: "Very sure."

Gordon punched the wall. His face was red with rage.

Gordon: "He didn't deserve to die!"

Mario: "Gordon, do you really want to yell at me?"

Gordon: "Fuck you! If it wasn't for you, he would still be here!"

Mario took out his F.L.U.U.D and blasted Gordon with it. He kept blasting him until he almost drowned.

Mario: "Don't you ever insult me again, or else I'll do more than nearly drown you."

Sonic: "Whoa, dude. Can't you give us a break? I mean, we lost a friend."

Mario: "Your friend? O-ho-ho-ho! Friends don't usually bully each other every second."

Sonic: "Yes they do!"

Mario: "Not the way you guys did it. You three were ruthless. Especially you Gordon."

Gordon: "..."

Mario: "You guys only miss him because you can't bully each other. He was an easy target and now that he's gone, you three are bored. You guys don't really care about Ness."

Kawasaki: "He is my friend."

Mario: "Kawasaki, you think everyone is a friend."

Kawasaki: "So? He's still my friend."

Mario: "You're too dumb to make enemies."
Kawasaki: "Hey! I'm not dumb."
Mario: "You like me. I kidnapped you. That makes you stupid."

Kawasaki: "Kidnapped? I thought you just wanted us to hang out with you."
Mario: "Oh Kawasaki, never change."
Sonic: "Fuck you! I do care about Ness!"

Mario blasted Sonic with F.L.U.U.D until he too nearly drowned.

Mario: "Didn't you learn from Gordon? Don't fucking insult me."

The cave went quiet. Mario fixed his clothes up a bit and left. He went back to the mansion and looked for Clone Sonic. There's no way that Ness killed him. He's dead. But what if Kirby came back and killed Clone Sonic? It's not good to jump to conclusions. He didn't even know if Clone Sonic was dead. There's no way that Kirby came back, right? How would she? The barrier is still up. It's fine, he has nothing to worry about. But perhaps maybe it won't hurt to call Clone Ness.

…

-Back And Ready To Attack-

Leaf slapped Ness across the face without warning. He was shocked. He put his hand on his cheek and looked down. The two heard Lucky growl. The Espeon was about to pounce on her, but Squirtle used water gun and blasted Lucky away. Lucky eyes glowed blue and picked up Squirtle using his telekinetic power. He was about to throw Squirtle across the area and attack Leaf, but Ness grabbed a hold of Lucky.

"Lucky, stop!" Ness hugged him.

"Espii? (What, why?)

"She's not an enemy. It's ok. I'm ok."

"Espeon!" (But she hurt you!)

"We're ok."

"Espi." (Fine.)

Ness returned Lucky back inside his ball and sat on the bench again. He didn't know what to do or say after all of that. He figured Leaf would leave, but she didn't. She stood there and started crying.

"Leaf… I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that," Ness apologized.

She ignored him and continued to cry. He walked over to her and grabbed her hand. She let him lead her back to the bench and together they sat. She couldn't help but rest her head on his shoulder while still sobbing. The two stayed there for a minute.

"I… I… I can't do this alone," Leaf cried.

"You mean raising the baby?"

"Yeah."

"I… *Sighs* I didn't lie to you. You dated my clone. It wasn't me."

"It's hard to trust that, when you've lied to me before."

"That wasn't me."

"You lied about cheating for who knows how long."
"That wasn't… Me… If we were dating, I would never do that to you."

"Please stop gaslighting me. Stop pretending you're someone else."

"I'm telling you the truth. Leaf, we never dated."

"Please, I don't want to hear it. I know it's because you love Nana and you don't want anything to do with me anymore."

"I would never date Nana. That was my clone you saw with her."

"Stop with the clone excuse!"

"But it's true, Leaf. I know the truth sounds ridiculous, but sometimes crazy things happen."

"But a clone? No, that's not possible."

Ness stood up.

"Look, I told you my story. I went through hell for the past 8 months. I'm sorry that you were tricked and betrayed by my clone. I wish this never happened to you. I really do, but I have a key to look for. If I don't find it, then I can't free my friends. Time is crucial and if I don't make it back in time for Mario's wedding, smash as we know it will fall in Mario's hands."

"There you go again! Speaking nonsense and not taking responsibility."

"I'm sorry, Leaf. I'm not the father. But whatever I say, you're not going to believe me. I wish I could make it up to you somehow, but right now, I can't. I promise I'll come back and we can work something out together."

"What?"

"I have to go."

"You can't just leave me!"

"I… I'm sorry."

"YOU CAN'T LEAVE ME ALONE LIKE THIS! YOU… You… You're such an awful person. I hate you! I fucking hate you!"

Hearing that broke Ness's heart. He barely knew her, but the memories he did have with her were always on good terms. Now he made an enemy all because of his awful clone. He started walking away, but he stopped when he heard her crying and coughing. He… He can't leave her like this. Maybe the clone left her to suffer, but he couldn't do it. He turned around and walked back to her.

He saw her. She was sitting on the floor covering her face with her hands. He never thought he would see her like this. She's usually bubbly and full of confidence. He hated seeing how hurt she was. He squatted down and gave her a hug. She didn't respond at first. Her hands were covering her face, but when she felt that Ness hugged her harder, she hesitantly hugged him back.

"W-why… Why did you come back?" She asked.

"I can't leave you alone knowing you're sad."

"Why do you care?"

"I care."
"D-don't you… *Sniffs* Have another girl to care about?"

"Leaf… I told you already, I didn't sleep with anybody. That was the clone."

"Sure, clone…" *Sniffs*

"It's true though."

"W-what about your key mission or whatever?"

"It's getting dark. I couldn't find it anyway even with this dinky flashlight," Ness showed her the tiny flashlight.

"Why don't you use your phone?"

"The clone has it."

"..."

Ness noticed that saying that made her more upset. She's sensitive about his story because she thinks he's lying. He doesn't blame her. It sounds absurd. There's gotta be something to cheer her up, but he's losing precious time. Maybe he could convince her to help him look for the key.

"Hey, do you want to help me look for the key?" Ness asked.

"Not really."

"Well, I do need the help. That key is pretty important."

"I just… I'm…" She shook her head.

"What if we have a Pokemon battle? If I win, you have to help me."

"W-what?"

"You heard me. Let's have a Pokemon battle."

"You'll lose."
"Wow. Are you saying I'm bad?"

"I won championships."

"So? That was in your game. This is different."

"No offense, but have you ever done a Pokemon battle?"

"I know a thing or two."

"But have you?"

"N-no."
"I'm going to win."

"Not exactly."

"You only have one Pokemon."

"How about a one vs one then?"

"I'll still win. My Pokemon are more experienced."

"Hey! Don't underestimate Lucky. We fought a Wendigo together!"

Leaf allowed herself to forget about the bad. She wanted to have fun. She didn't want to suffer and think about the child anymore. Before she saw Ness, she had been crying all day and it only got worse after hearing his story. She needed this distraction.

"Ok!" She threw out her Charizard.

Of course she's using her strongest Pokemon. Damn, he knew he wasn't going to win, but he wanted to make her happy. After this battle, she'll feel better and he can go back to looking for the key with Lucky. Sure, he's wasting time, but who knows he might win. If he wins, then she and her Pokemon will help him look.

Ness sent out Lucky.

"Alright, buddy. Ready for your first Pokemon Battle?" Ness said.

"Espi?" (A battle?)

"Perfect. Let's go!"