A/N: Let's get it
Chapter 113: Whodunnit
"What are you saying, Ganon?" Link said. "You think she was responsible for Peach, Daisy, and Makato's disappearances?"
Ganondorf let out a grunt. "That's exactly what I'm saying, fool." He kept his glare straight at the shaken Inkling. "Saying you were with Peach, Daisy, and Makato throughout the Grand Opening is suspicious. Every time you were with them, they disappeared. Why is that? This sneaky brat used her poisonous ink and inserted it into their juice or some shit. Which gave you the chance to kill them."
"N-no, I didn't do it!" Marmalade said, defending herself. "And that's gross!"
"That Squid was trying to fool us this whole time," Bowser said.
"Then answer this," Wolf then said. "Did anyone see you between the time you left to search for Peach? Or the other time when you and Daisy went to search for Peach?"
"I. . . I think somebody might have-"
"Aw, hell no!" King. K. Rool flashed his teeth in anger, stomping like a mad barbarian. "I know a liar when I hear one!"
"Damn right," King Dedede said.
The villains one-by-one began to gang up on the defenseless Inkling. Chatter spread through the courtroom, with a new suspect being held.
"Hey, hold on!" F. Corrin waved her hands in the courtroom. "Y'all talk about Marmalade killing them! If she did, we would have found their bodies!"
Ganondorf let out a hardy laugh. "Ha! Found their bodies? Marmalade most likely used her acid to burn their corpses along with their bones. Nobody saw Marmalade when she was with them."
"I don't have acid powers!" The Inkling defended herself once more. "I would never. . . I would never hurt any of them! Especially Daisy. . . She's my best friend!"
"Cut the crap and admit what you did," Bowser said.
"I didn't do it!" The Inkling cried out.
"I don't think Marmalade is capable of killing them and hiding a body," Pac-Man said. "With a lot of people around, someone is bound to notice her actions."
"Yes, that's right!" M. Corrin nodded.
Zelda lowered her head and folded her hands. "I agree, Pac-Man. But. . . we must consider the possibility that she is capable of doing such things."
"H-huh?" Marmalade's eyes become glossy with so much emotion intact with her words.
"Nobody saw Marmalade when she went searching for."
"I saw her."
"Huh?"
A voice from the audience spoke, confident yet comforting. Black wavy hair, big framed glasses, in a black school uniform. He had his hand raised like he wanted to be called on the teacher.
"I. . . was with her," Ren repeated his statement. "She's. . . quite shy about mentioning me, but. . . during the search, she called me to look for one of the Smashers named Peach."
"W-w-w-wamee?" Marmalade glanced at Ren in dead confusion.
"O-oh. . .? This cute schoolboy?" Palutena smiled and battered her eyelashes.
"Lady Palutena! That's illegal!" Pit cried out.
"I'm n-not that old!"
"Is that true?" Bayonetta asked. "You were with the little one the whole time?"
"Yes. So. . ." Ren smiled at Marmalade, showing a slight nod. "She has an alibi."
"Funny how the timing works. . ." The Umbra Witch then murmured in a sly grin.
Ike crossed his arms. "I never believed it was Marmalade, to begin with, anyway."
"Thank you, Ike. . ." The Inkling said.
"She knew me once I told her what I'd do to her if anything happened to Makato." The mercenary then smiled. "Ah, it feels good when somebody listens to reason."
". . ."
(oOoOoOo)
Cloud, Marth, and now Marmalade had solid alibis to prove they weren't traitors. Last but not least. . .
"Ok! Robin, you better choose your words carefully! Let's rrrrock and roooollll!" Kirby cheered.
Robin grinned, almost as if he was excited to tell his story. "FINALLY! Whoever is framing me will pay! I do have alibis! But, I'll take my time. I'm going to end this traitor's career and this trial in one go."
The tactician adjusted his collar and gaze around the courtroom to make sure all eyes were at him. "Let me take you to the day before the Grand Opening. In my room, I found a black feather on my bed. I see it, I pick it, I grind it into a powder, and head for Makato's room. Miru, Ike, and eventually Makato were in the room at that time."
"Let's not forget what you did too. . ." Miru added.
Robin let out a small chuckle and raised his hands as if guns were pointing at him. "Yes, the black substance you saw was made with those black feathers. I'll admit, what happened to Makato may be partially my fault."
"A hundred percent." Ike then said.
"How about I meet you halfway and make it fifty percent." Robin lowered his hands and crossed his arms. "Somebody placed the feather on my bed, and used it against me, knowing well I love the strange and unknown. Please note, it's my first day coming back to the mansion, so it was quite the maze of finding my room. Alright, next with the. . . amazing, body-dropping, wedding fashion show. . ."
"Freaking pig!" F. Robin screeched.
"The snapping sound you girls heard? That was me! I was under the stage, taking. . . behind the scenes pics."
The girl Smashers grew agitated with what Robin was confessing. Something that he should have kept his mouth shut on.
"We already know, pervert!" F. Corrin screeched.
"You don't have to sound so proud about it," Samus said.
Zelda's face went green but slowly changed back to her normal tone. "I hate to ask, but do you have proof for what you were doing-?"
She paused herself when Robin walked over to Ike and wrapped his arm around Ike's shoulders.
"Ike was quite the curious kitty as well-"
"Don't lump me with your perverted shit." Ike glared. "I was trying to stop him."
"And Marth, when you were looking for Ike, wouldn't it explain why you couldn't find him? And why did he have my camera?"
"Oh. . ." Marth sweatdropped. "Ok. . ."
"And also~" Robin's voice reached a certain someone which brought more frustration to their pupils. "My dearest friend, Solo! The green-haired super Saiyan stabbing the stage and calling you girls whores~! That was proof enough that I was under the stage."
"I'll kill that fucking bastard!" Solo growled out in the audience.
"Now that's the Solo I know! Always the potty mouth." Robin gave a firm pat before slipping his arms out from the mercenary's shoulders, walking back to his spot. "Next, I couldn't have done anything to Peach or Daisy. The Byleths were with me when I was leading them to the changing room."
F. Byleth heard her name in the trial and stood up. "That's correct! This kind gentleman led us to Peach!"
"Did you say kind?" Link arched an eyebrow.
"Quite the compliment, ain't it?" Roy snickered. "Robin being a gentleman isn't what I was expecting, right Chrom?"
"Don't. . . don't. . ." Chrom couldn't speak a full sentence.
Robin continued. "Now towards the end of the Grand Opening, a handful of people know that I got Buster Wolfed from Chrom's friend, Terry. Terry, would you mind waving your hand out?"
"Oh-kay!" Terry got up from his seat and twirled his red cap.
F. Corrin choked and wiped her drool from her face. "Daddy Terry?!"
Robin then lifted his cloak to show bandages wrapped around his waist. ". . . The attack led to me being hospitalized. I never returned to my room that night." He then set his cloak down, dusting himself. "Let me ask you everyone: why would I leave a bottle of feathers on my bed, in plain sight for anyone to see? I might as well be the dumbest criminal in the history of Smashville. It's obvious the traitor used my absence as their advantage to frame me.
"They knew what happened to Makato, Daisy, and Peach; they wrote slick clues with black feathers attached to them to hint me as a suspect. Quite a childish move isn't it? Anyone would know the real traitor wrote those notes! In conclusion, not only me, but Cloud, Marth, and our little adorable Inkling aren't the traitors."
Silence filled the room. Robin never talked this long when it came to him. It was mostly a few sentences and then a dash away from the situation. But, the tone, and the way he stacked evidence to prove himself not guilty.
"I didn't hear any holes in his story that may be off. . ." Zelda said. "It sounds like he was speaking the truth."
"Yeah, the truth alright. . ." Samus said.
"What a story. . ." Marth added.
"Well done, my friend!" Chrom showed a thumbs up.
"Heh," Robin smirked, rubbing his chin. "I bet I got the traitor trembling in their boots."
"So, we're back to square one, huh, kids?" Richter said.
"Whoever did it should just say they did it!" Ness cried out.
"Then it would be a boring trial!" Kirby then said.
"Ugh, I can't believe I'm about to say this. . ." F. Robin sighed. "That Male is speaking the truth. I think we've narrowed down our suspects."
"What makes you say that?" Ike asked.
F. Robin twirled one of her pigtails and cocked her head. "Not like I cared what that degenerate male is saying, Peach, Daisy, and Makato are all involved with these black feather messages. And the black feathers themselves can be grounded or blended from what Robin said. Before the Grand Opening, Makato I believe somehow came into contact with the black feathers. And during the Grand Opening, Ridley witnessed a black feather following Peach."
"Hey, Rids, when did you see her in the basement?" Roy asked.
"Call me that again, I'll puncture you." Ridley threatened. "I don't know; she was wearing a big white dress."
"So, it was when Peach ran out of the dressing room. . ." Zelda said.
F. Robin nodded and gave a little smirk. "Just as expected. . . If you guys noticed what Ridley said, he saw Peach after she left the changing room and that was when the black feather appeared and not before. So that means the suspect that placed the black feather-" She made a twirl and pointed up to the ceiling, "-had to be in the girl's changing room! Those who were in the room are our prime suspects!"
Lots of gasp and shocked remarks spread amongst the Smashers and the audience that was watching the trial. Kirby hit his gavel to bring the commotion to a minimum.
"Who were the people that were in the changing room?" Ryu asked out loud.
"Besides us female Smashers," Samus tilted her head and crossed her arms. "We had the fashion crew, Mega Man, Rosalina, Tifa."
"Yes, I was there. . ." Mega Man said.
"Same here." Rosalina smiled.
"And Peach got like these two twin Priests," Tifa said. The Byleths who were sitting beside her got up from their chairs and waved.
"Yes, we are indeed Priests in training." F. Byleth said.
"We're never priests, to begin with." M. Byleth corrected.
"We need to know what happened to Daisy. Did anyone notice something different? Anything at all?" Robin asked.
"Uh. . ." Lucina searched for the orange sash and picked it up beside her feet, showing it to the Smashers. "Yes. Daisy's sash was different from ours. It had some kind of black stuff beneath it."
Just as Lucina said, she flipped the sash, showing the grains of black, coated on the other side of the sash.
"The same stuff on my face. . ." Ike said, recognizing it.
"Ok, ok." Richter nodded. "It's about time we end this class trial. Whoever had Daisy's sash last is the culprit! Bada bing bada boom!"
"Yes," Simon said.
Most of the girls turned to the audience, who they all knew Tifa was in charge of the sashes.
"I had everyone's sash, but Peach's and Daisy's," Tifa said. "I know that-"
"C-Cloud?!" Toon Link cried out, being the first to react.
Before Tifa could finish, the blonde mercenary leaped from his spot, gripping the Buster sword.
"Where are they?" Cloud's face tightened in anger as he pointed his sharp blade at what he believed to be the culprit behind everything. The disappearances of the three girls and the black feathers.
"H-huh?! It's not me!" Mega Man's face darkened with the sword right at his neck.
"Um, Cloud, h-how about you calm down a bit?" Marth hoped his words would deescalate his surprising rage.
Cloud's eyes were blue flames at this point. Eyebrows furrowed to a V shape which brought the younger Smashers in fear of his silent, but deadly rage. "As I said earlier, I was watching through the vents. Tifa came back to the changing room with everyone's sashes but Peach and Daisy's. She mentioned you saying you forgot to put 'glitter' on their sashes."
"O-oh. . . that's true!" Zelda said.
Flashback
"We got the sashes!" Tifa entered the room with the sashes in a bag. "Each one has your name!"
"Thank you, Thot-fa- -I mean, Tifa~" Peach corrected herself, walking toward Tifa as she pulled out her hand for her custom-made sash.
"You know what? I'm just gonna ignore that. . ." Tifa murmured. "And besides, I have everyone's but Peach and Daisy's. Mega Man said he forgot to add some of the glitters."
Later, when Rosalina made her announcement to the girls, Mega Man entered the changing room with Peach and Daisy's sashes.
"Sorry. . . it took a while. I wanted it to be amazing."
End of Flashback
"The quiet kid?!" F. Corrin's pupils shrunk in shock.
"It's not me!" Mega Man repeated. "I really-"
Still locked on Mega Man's spot, Cloud kept his glare locked onto Mega Man's blue, shaky eyes. The Buster sword aimed for his blue helmet, creating a tapping sound when it came into contact.
Mega Man's heart was racing to the point his helmet danced to the beat of his heart.
Cloud then asked in an ominous tone, "What were you doing besides the fucking glitter?"
"I really didn't. . .!"
"Between the time you had Peach and Daisy's sashes and the time you came back, you had the chance to tamper with their sashes," Marth joined the conversation, noticing Mega Man's repeating defense. "Do you have an alibi?"
Mega Man's head vibrated as he turned his attention toward the prince. "Um. . . No, I didn't. But. . ., Tifa also doesn't have an alibi."
"So what?" Ike said. He grew angry as well from the anger that was spilling from Cloud. "Did any of those girls disappear when she had their sashes? I think the fuck not! You had Peach and Daisy's sashes and they're both gone!"
An invisible punch struck the blue boy's gut, cringing as he gritted his teeth. Someone with no presence, yet always perhaps, obedient, happened to be the prime suspect.
"I can't believe it was him. . ." Roy frowned. "Like, dude! You. . . Did someone bully you into doing this?!"
"Yeah, it can't be him." Link shook his head. "Maybe there was that black powder on the sashes before."
"You could be right, Link!" Pit's face lightened up, as his wings sprouted like a blooming flower. "Maybe they put black feathers beforehand, and Mega Man didn't know about it."
"Quiet kids don't do this kind of behavior!" F. Corrin defended. "He never had a strap, to begin with! Daisy and I made fun of him, and we're still alive! Oh. . . wait. Well. . . I'm still alive! I don't know about Daisy, hehehehe. . ."
M. Corrin shuddered in a half ball, as the blades of embarrassment poked him multiple times. "Please, girl me. . ."
Little by little, talk by talk, Smashers began to defend Mega Man to the point Cloud lowered his sword at the blue boy. It took a different turn when Marmalade was once suspected by Ganondorf, but now, everyone wanted to defend Mega Man when there was concrete evidence that pointed to him.
"I never saw him do anything bad. . ." Mario muttered, as he rubbed his mustache. "He's quiet, but. . . he's a good kid."
"I agree, Mario," Luigi said.
"It's hard to believe. . ." Samus looked over to Zelda for a bit of help. Zelda answered back with a lost gaze.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. . ." Ike called out, breaking everyone out of their thoughts on Mega Man. "Do we or do we not have the evidence that points to him?"
"We do, but. . . I don't believe Mega Man is the type to do this." F. Robin said.
A loud groan came from another tactician's lips which made everyone turn their attention toward M. Robin.
"You've gotta be kidding me. I hate to be the short end of the stick but, Mega Man is the traitor. T.R.A.I.T.O.R. And you better shut up, Witch."
"E-excuse me?! Who are you calling a witch?! The only witch we have is that freakishly tall-!"
Bayonetta turned to F. Robin with a Dummy in her mouth.
F. Robin paused herself halfway to avoid a bullet to the head.
"Hey, calm down, Robin." Chrom sweatdropped. "Yes, but-"
"But what?!" Robin's ears burned from the bullshit he had to hear during the last few minutes. His eyebrows arched up like rainbows, followed by a maniac's laugh. "This is soooooo fucking cute! When I'm suspected, everyone thinks I've done it without a doubt. Now that we have solid evidence of the traitor that perhaps could be a cold-blooded murderer, everyone goes soft on this. . . blue midget ironman?! The first appearance of the black feathers came before the Grand Opening. So the suspect had to be one of us at that time. Then came the surprise wedding fashion show. Nobody knew the girls planned a fashion show, so it only shrunk the number of suspects. And then you, Mister Mega Man. . . you happened to have Peach and Daisy's sashes. And now, they're both gone. For the love of- -! Just! Admit! Your! Actions!"
"Ro. . .bin." Chrom struck by lightning at Robin's anger portrayed out to everyone who heard. He never saw him as the angry type, but. This was different.
Many froze in terror and kept quiet. The evil gang stood silent, also in a tad of shock from Robin's outburst.
Those who defended Mega Man stayed still and waited for him to argue back.
But he kept quiet. For a second, then it turned into a minute, and a few more minutes.
Hot air was released from Robin's nose, coming to a heavy sigh. "Let's end this Kirby-"
"I'm sick of being called a midget ironman." Mega Man started in a sour tone, arching his back till only everyone's eye view was the top of his blue helmet. He took in a breath of cracks and heavy gaps as if he's about to cry. "It's been hell during the past few weeks. Nobody. . . nobody cared about my well being, even when Super Smash Bros came back."
And boy, nobody didn't know how to respond to what he just said. Everyone in the court was in dead silence as they watched him take a couple of steps back.
"Gone. Disappeared. Whisked away. Missing. Dead. That's how I felt when nobody remembered me. . ."
"Uh?!" Richter spread his arms wide with his hands out as if he was expecting a hug, with a sarcastic gesture. "Remember you?! Bruh! I don't even know your middle name!"
Simon slapped the back of Richter's head. "Silence, fool."
"This guy." Mega Man ignored Richter's comment and made his attention towards the crowd. Eyes locked on the young teen who claimed to be an alibi on Marmalade's behalf. "My first, FAKE friend, when the Smashers lost the mansion, ditched me while playing hide and seek with me!"
Flashback
July 28th
"Wow! You guys are so fun to hang out with!" Mega Man in a black tee and gray sweatpants, with black sandals, sat outside of a drugstore with his new friends, eating popsicles.
". . ." Ren adjusted his glasses, sitting across from him with a blue popsicle in his hands. His cat, Morgana, sat on the table with a grin, licking his share.
"So, Ren." Mega Man said, shoving the last piece of frozen juice down his throat, breathing out a chilling breath. "What are we going to do today?"
"Next, a huge game of hide-and-seek!"
"Ok! Should I count?" Mega Man offered.
"Yea, count to two hundred. We'll start from this drug store." Ren said.
Morgana pawed his owner's hand. "You're joking, right?"
"No."
"Ok! I'll start counting!" Mega Man said, covering his big blue eyes. "One, two, three. . ."
He continued to count, fidgety in his steps. Excited to play a simple game in a big place such as Smashville. Such a challenge it was going to be.
"Two hundred! Ready or not! Here I come!"
End of Flashback
"Since then, I searched and searched till my feet ached! I grew desperate and thought maybe he was lost? Maybe! I hoped it was a maybe. Then. . . a week went by."
Flashback
August 10th
Smashville
Fantasy Street
A crowded, skin-melting day in the summertime in Smashville. Mega Man walked alone in the dark street of an alley. Limping from the pain of searching without a breath.
"I. . . I hope. . . I hope. . ."
"What are you doing?" A little green-haired girl with pointy ears in a short pink dress stared up at Mega Man. Her accent was thick from a different land. Maybe European?
"H-huh?" Mega Man coughed out to the little stranger.
"This is my home." She said, pushing his back away from the large dumpster. "Shoo, shoo!"
"Sorry, I'm just looking for a friend." Mega Man rubbed his eyes, tired from the journey of a search.
Her eyes sparkled, "Mar-Mar?"
"No. . . who's Mar-Mar?"
The little pointy ear girl puffed her cheeks. "If you don't know him, you are useless! Shoo, shoo! And take a shower! You smell like sweaty cheese, midget ironman!"
He decided to let her have her way and continued on the search for Ren. With no hope in the back alleys, he staggered his way to the main mall of Smashville. Hoping to find black hair and glasses, he headed for the gym area, as it was popular amongst the youth.
Entering the Smash Gym was the problem with the way he looked and smelled. He rather not go back to the motel, until he found his friend. Determined, he kept a reasonable distance at the side of the building, glancing at a few windows. There were many faces and many people with dark hair which made the search tough like leather.
"How many laps can you do around Smashville if we're talking about a marathon?"
"Do I look like a marathon addict to you? I just happened to be running because they caught me sneaking into the gym. . ."
Two familiar voices froze Mega Man that brought eureka into his heart. He turned his head to the voices, now seeing Ren and Ike's back. Ren wore a white t-shirt and red sweatpants. Ike on the other hand, shirtless with black, saggy pants and a white towel hanging around his neck.
Both of them, running side by side down the sidewalk, having a conversation. Different from the one-sided conversation that Mega Man experienced with his new friend, Ren.
Mega Man followed the two from behind even when they were both running. He was bound to lose sight of Ren again, but the pace of his steps made him not care.
Ren was fine. Not playing the big game of hide-and-seek. He probably forgot all about Mega Man by now.
Mega Man sniffled his nose and held back tears, watching them disappear into the flood of people.
"Not fair. . . This. . . this isn't fair. What about us? Our friendship?"
End of Flashback
When Mega Man lifted his head, tears poured from his blue orbs, stunning the Smashers in the court circle. "I was blinded by anger and despair. I wanted to be the friend to go out and take jogs. But, replaying that scene in my head over. . . and over made me filled with so much despair. Then the Smash Mansion came back, and no one told me about it. Not even Mario. So much pain accumulated over time, and I started to think dark thoughts. . . And so I went to this weird shop. . . That's when I found the black feathers. . .What happened to Makato, Peach, and Daisy wasn't my intention to harm them! I swear! The scary evil voice. . . the reminding pain if I didn't follow orders. . .! Please, it wasn't my fault. . .! I just wanted him to be my friend again."
"Wamee. . .'' The Inkling somehow connected to what Mega Man said, feeling immense sadness.
"Not your fault. Never your intention. All excuses." Ike said. "But. . ."
"Mega Man. . ." Marth frowned.
". . ." Watching Mega Man in distress made Cloud put away his sword.
Ren stood up from the audience's section. "I'm sorry. . . Mega Man. Forgive me. I didn't mean to make you feel that way. I. . . I got bored of playing hide-and-seek."
"Ren. . ." Mega Man's tears curled down to his chin one drop at a time. "At least, you could have said it to my face."
"Yeah. . . I know."
"If only I knew you were feeling so lonely." Corrin walked up to him, opening his arms wide and closing in for a tight embrace. "I would have comforted you. Your pain. . . is all too familiar."
Frozen from the warmth of Corrin's arms, he accepted it, taking in the hug.
Pac-Man smiled at the sight and nodded.
"It's finally. . . been settled." Mario couldn't help but smile. "Mega Man. . . even though he meant no harm to the three Smashers, he's still the culprit. But, you'll never be a traitor, Mega Man. We've betrayed you and your feelings."
"Well, said." Link agreed, placing his hands on his hips.
"Now," Robin said, clasping his hands together. "It's about time we end this class trial. Kirby, would you mind and show us the live footage that your cousins captured. Only on Mega Man with Peach and Daisy's sashes. That part is the most crucial."
"So that's everyone's final choice? You all believe Mega Man is the traitor?" Kirby asked.
Nods were shown of the Smashers' actions in silence.
"Micro Kirbies! Show us who the traitor is!"
"Poyo!" All of the ants of Kirbies combined themselves into one regular size Kirby with a camera strapped to its head. The film played in a third person's perspective which brought no bias in the film whatsoever.
(oOoOoOo)
A Micro Kirby Production
The Grand Opening
Tifa and Mega Man sat in the library area that was newly added upon the Smashers to read books. The two used the space to work on the sashes for the Wedding Fashion Show.
"Okay! These sashes are done." Tifa sighed, stacking each sparkling sash on top of the other. She got up and dusted her hands. "Ready to go?"
"Uh. . ." Mega Man sweatdropped, staring at Peach and Daisy's that were in front of him. "I. . . forgot to add glitter on these two. Go on ahead without me."
"Alright. But you better hurry, you know how Peach is. Quite the impatient one. . ." Tifa then said, gathering up the sashes into her arms. Once she left the library, Mega Man sighed and checked around the library even though it was dead silent. He dug something from under his shirt which was two pieces of feathers.
Mega Man turned Peach's sash inside out and pulled out a feather from the jar. Rubbing the feather with his fingers, the black feather ground into a powder as it was being sprinkled upon Peach's sash. And then Daisy's. After flipping it back to what it was, Mega Man added more glitter to the sashes just as he said he would.
"I can't. . . take this anymore. . ." Mega Man murmured. "What else do you want from me?"
After another long sigh, Mega Man got up from his chair, carrying the sashes with him, and headed to the girl's changing room.
(oOoOoOo)
The short film was then paused and turned off abruptly, bringing back the Smashers to the present time.
"As you all saw, this footage is 100% real from my cute little cousins. They produce the best quality so if you want to start your own YouTube channel, hook them up if you can speak Kirbone- Kaboonese- -whatever the fuck it is." Kirby said. "This court has been adjourned, poyo! As you said, my Italian piece of bread, Mega Man, is the traitor!"
There wasn't any applause or cheering at the end of finding out the traitor amongst the Smashers. Almost a tad of relief in a sense it wasn't some random stranger, but a broken friend that led him to do the desperate actions.
The next step was to find out where the three princesses were. Dead or alive.
