Mushroom Story

by F14M3RZ

In a world where males are a commodity and everyone is a gijinka, join Mario on this monster girl quest as he saves Prince Peach from Queen Bowsa in this retelling of Paper Mario 64. Adopted from the OG theirself, Mushroomstoryperson, and inspired by the mind of ShadowKnux372.

39. Chapter 38: LLI Part 1 Arrival

Luretta's lips brushed lightly against Mario's moustache as the two began eagerly making out atop Beli's shoulders, the sound of the passing ocean waves around them just barely covering up their gasps and moans. Their hands roamed each other's bodies as well, with Mario squeezing Luretta's tight rear underneath her bushy black hair and Luretta doing her best to wrap her arms around him and squeeze her body to hers as hard as she could. And the longer they kissed, the hotter they both seemed to feel, and they both knew it wasn't just the hot tropical weather that was to blame.

"My, look at them go! Tearing each other's clothes off like that!" Kolorado said as she watched the two go at it. "It reminds me a bit of my younger days, back when I used to be even more adventurous than I am now. Why, I remember this one time I was searching for proof that ancient Bloopers used forks, and I met this charming Beanish boy at a Javabean hotel, and well… I don't want to get too graphic…"

"Uh, I think we're quickly getting past the point of 'graphic' right now," Goommaria pointed out as Luretta tossed off her shirt and bra.

"Ah, yes, I suppose so," Kolorado replied. "I think I'd rather tell you when we're back on solid ground, though; the rocking of the waves makes this much less romantic in my opinion."

Meanwhile, Luretta had moved on from removing her own clothes and was now working on Mario's, undoing his long overall straps and pulling them down so she could be face-to-face with his thick Italian sausage.

"Wow… so this is what a penis looks like." Luretta poked at the dick curiously for a few moments. "I've never seen one before. Well, not up close at least… but I have walked in on a few so-called 'friends' who were 'just going out for some air' with a boy that I introduced them to!"

"Hey, calm down! They don't matter right now." Mario placed a comforting hand on the girl's curly hair. "There's no competition here; just you and me."

"Right… sorry, I'm still just a little bitter." Luretta let out a sigh and got closer to Mario's dick. Curiously, she extended her tongue and began to lick from base to tip, exploring its alien flavor and texture. "Hmmm… tastes pretty salty, but… I actually kind of like it!"

"Th-thanks! And I like what you're doing too!" Mario said with a soft gasp. "Please, keep going!"

Encouraged, the Fuzzipede brought herself to the tip of Mario's cock and took it into her mouth, her warm, thick lips wrapping tightly around it and forming a perfect seal. Inside, Mario could feel her tongue circle like a tornado around his head, encouraging it to get even harder. Then, right when she was rewarded with the first drops of his precum, she pulled herself off and laid onto her back.

"Alright… I think I'm ready," Luretta announced, looking up at Mario with a blush on her face. "Would you please… sink your hook into me?"

"Of course!" Mario said as he carefully lined himself up with her lower lips. "And I promise that I won't let you get away~"

Mario then gently pressed himself forward until he felt his cock slip inside her moist folds, which eagerly constricted around the tip of his shaft while Luretta squeaked in pure delight. She was so tight that she actually managed to bring Mario's hips to a complete halt. He made sure not to force himself, though, and gently held Luretta's hand as he eased the rest of his cock inside of her.

"Aaaah… this feels so good! I can hardly believe it's real!" Luretta giggled and rubbed her hands over her lower stomach, feeling the tip of Mario's dick throbbing inside of her. "I can feel you, right here! I-I think you're right next to my womb!"

"Heh, yeah, it sure feels great when he hits that spot, huh?" Bombette asked, balancing back over her shoulder. "It really gets your Mono breeding instincts going!"

"Y-you're telling me! I'm so hot, I'm afraid I might catch on fire!" Luretta gasped, her moans seemingly growing louder with each of Mario's thrusts. "Eeee! I-imagine… if you really were my boyfriend, Mario! If I could somehow do this every day… ah! It would be like I'm living in paradise!"

"Don't worry, Luretta; I'm sure you'll find someone you can do this with eventually, even if you don't believe it yourself," Mario assured her, caressing her face with his hand as he slammed even harder into her soft hole. "And even if you don't, then… at least… at least you'll still have me, right?"

"Eeeh! Y-you mean… we can do this again!?" Lurette gasped and tightened even harder around Mario's shaft. "Aaaah! Having Mario as a sexfriend! It… it's just too much! Aaaaah!"

Luretta then wrapped her arms around Mario's neck and pulled him into another kiss, furiously swirling her tongue around the insides of his mouth as her folds clenched harder with each thrust. She began bucking her hips in time with Mario's thrusts as well, overwhelming him with the sensation.

"Ah! Luretta! Y-you're too tight!' Mario gasped. "I… I think I'm going to cum soon! D-do you want me to pull out?"

"Of course not!" Luretta immediately wrapped her legs around Mario's waist and held onto him as hard as she could. "I don't mind at all if you get me pregnant! In fact… I'd love that!'

"And I would too, actually!" Beli commented beneath them. "I've always wanted to pick out baby clothes."

"Alright… you asked for it!' Mario gripped Luretta's shoulders and gave a few more powerful thrusts, making sure that he hit her clit every single time before he finally exploded inside of her. Luretta let out another squeal of delight as she felt her womb fill with his thick white seed. She wasn't sure if she was fertile that day or not, but her pussy didn't seem to want to take any chances and kept milking his shaft until it was wrung completely dry.

"Ah… thank you so much for that, Mario… that was incredible!" Lurette gasped as Mario pulled himself from her body. "You really did make me feel like a 'catch'."

"Hey, I did promise, didn't I?" Mario kissed Luretta on the cheek as he laid down beside the Fuzzipede so they could both bask in the sun together.

"Yeah, I guess you did!" Lurette smiled and nuzzled herself into Mario's chest. "Say, uh… do you maybe want to go again?"

"Actually, as fun as it would be to watch you again, I think it would probably be best if we all save our energy for now," Goommaria interrupted. "We're going to a remote tropical island with no idea what traps Bowsa's set. We'll need to be ready for anything."

"Oh… I guess that's alright." Luretta replied, hugging Mario again. "Sunbathing with you is good enough."

"Mhm!" hummed Mario.

"Say… why don't we follow their lead?" Koopie said, turning to Kolorado. "I mean, we literally dream about opportunities to sunbathe like this back at Koopa village, didn't we?"

"Yes, I suppose… but I'm not sure if I'd be comfortable out of my shell in front of so many people," the archeologist replied.

"Ah, that's right; your hometown is actually pretty prudish, huh?" Bombette asked before casually taking off her dress. "Well, we won't force you to get naked, obviously, but I'm definitely not letting this opportunity slip by either!"

"Bark bark!" Chompy agreed before slipping out of her clothes as well. Koopie and Goommaria quickly followed suit, and soon Beli's back was divided in two, with the have(clothe)s on the one side and the have-no(clo)t(he)s on the other.

"Ah… now this is the life~" Bombette sighed as the sun shined off her perfect pale skin.

"Are you sure about that? Because it sure feels like I'm in hell right now," Bow said from underneath her green parasoul nearby. "Augh, even just looking at you makes me feel like my skin is boiling. How you people could do this for fun is beyond me."

"Yeah, having a tan is kinda overrated if you ask me," said Nita. "Though, that still leaves the question of what we're going to do for the rest of the ride."

"I know! When I was a lassie I remember I used to pass long train rides by playing 'I spy' with my mother," said Kolorado. "I'll go first! I spy something… white!"

"Is it a cloud?" Nita asked.

"Yes, it is!" Kolorado answered.

"Oh, sweet; I actually won," Nita replied. "I like winning… let's go again."

"Okay! I spy something… blue!" said Kolorado.

"Is it the ocean?" asked Nita.

"Correct, my dear!"

"Uh… on second thought, I think I might join you girls," Bow said as she flew over to the other side of Beli's back. "Does anyone have any sunscreen? SPF 5000 would be best."

---

Two hours later and the sun was a little lower in the sky, but it was still going strong, warming Mario and his party as they all kept enjoying its warmth. Well, most of them were enjoying it, anyway; even with her special sunscreen on, Bow simply couldn't seem to stay still with the sun's heat beaming down at her, so she hid in Koopie's shell to escape its rays.

"Augh! This has got to be the worst adventure we've been on yet!" the heiress whined, her voice echoing in the shell.

"Heh, if you think this is bad, I wonder what you would have thought of the Dry Dry Desert," Bombette smirked, now lying on her stomach.

"Wait, you went there? Is that why there's so much sand in here?" Bow asked. "Wait, nevermind; I don't care. Are we getting close to the island yet!?"

"Hmm… yes, actually! I can see it on the horizon now!" Beli announced, her eyes squinting into the distance. "We'll be there in just a few minutes!"

"Really?! You better not be joking!" Bow popped out of the shell wearing only her lacy black underwear with her parasol over her head and flew to the top of Beli's head. There, she saw a small island covered in dense rainforests and overlooked by a tall, imposing volcano whose peak seemed to glow an ominous red. That didn't concern Bow in the slightest, however, as her eyes were fixed firmly on the trees below. "Yes! Finally! Sweet, sweet shade! Come to momma!"

"Aww, we're almost there? That's lame" Nita said near Beli's rear, casually kicking her feet in the ocean water as she sat alongside Kolorado. "I wanted to win at least a few more times."

"Ah, but as fun as the journey may be, you must admit that the destination is exciting too." Kolorado stood up and walked to Beli's head to look at the approaching landmass. "Lavalava Island, home to one of the last independent Yoshi tribes on the planet, saved from colonization only by its harsh jungles and perilous surrounding seas. It's considered an almost sacred heritage site for Yoshis the world over."

"Wow, that's incredible!" Koopie said, walking up beside Kolorado in her underwear. "And… why exactly did you say that you wanted to visit the island again?"

"Why, to meet with the locals, of course!" she replied. "People know of the Yoshis here, but very few have ever taken the time to interview them. Plus, I hope to get permission to examine some of the ancient ruins on Mt. Lavalava herself. The Yoshis all live in the jungles, but there are rumors that there was once a human settlement in the caves of the mountain; the only native human settlement on the entire planet!"

"Wait, what? You mean that our world actually had its own humans once?" Bombette asked in shock. "I thought they were all brought over because of warp pipes, like Mario here."

"Yes, the most famous humans in history all came that way, but some still theorize that humans originated from this world too; and I'd like to include myself in that group" Kolorado explained. "All I need is to find some sort of definitive proof, and then my hypothesis will finally be proven correct!"

"That sounds cool and all, but… does it really matter if you find the proof or not?" Nita asked. "Finding their bones won't change the fact that they're all still dead."

Kolorado giggled at that. "Well, look at it this way; archeology is kind of like the biggest, hardest, most rewarding game of I spy in the whole world. And if I find proof humans lived here, then I win that game forever!"

"Ooooh! Now I get it." Nita bowed respectfully to the older Koopa. "Good luck, then."

"Alright, here we are! Lavalava Island!" Beli splashed onto the pristine white beaches of the island and let Mario and his party climb down from her body. "Stay safe while you're here, okay?"

"Of course, Beli! Thank you so much for taking us!" Koopie put her shell back on, slid down the whale girl's arm, and gave her big hand an even bigger hug.

"Say, you know we're going to head back to the mainland when we're done here; is there any chance you could come by to pick us up again?" Goommaria spoke up.

"After what you did to help me and my friend, that would be no trouble at all!" Beli took a moment to rub the head of the Fuzzipede on her shoulder. "When should I come back for you?"

"Uh… that's a good question." Goommaria turned to her friends. "How long do you think this will take?"

"I'd say about… two days probably," Mario said, rubbing his chin. "One to explore the forest, and then another to explore the mountain."

"Ah, that makes sense; if I know anything about Bowsa, she probably hid the Star Spirit somewhere in that mountain," said Goommaria. "So, do you think you can pick us up on the morning of our third day?"

"No problem!" Beli saluted the adventuring party and turned back toward the sea. "Good luck, everyone!"

"So long, Mario!" Luretta shouted as she jumped up and down on Beli's back. "Come back to port in one piece, you hear me?"

"Don't worry; it's a promise!" Mario waved at Lurette one last time before turning back to the jungle island. "So, I suppose the first thing we should do is try to find some civilization, huh?"

"Yes, definitely; we need to get permission to explore the island as soon as possible!" Kolorado replied. "We've wasted too much time on the ride over already; let us make haste to the nearest village! Tally-ho!"

"W-wait, Kolorado! Slow down!" Koopie called out as the archeologist dashed into the distance. "If you get too far ahead, we might lose you! Oh dear… and she's already gone."

"Don't worry, I'm sure she'll tire herself out eventually," Bow assured her. "Now, let's get off this beach and into the understory already! I'm so sick of this stupid sun!"

Mario nodded and took off after Kolorado's footprints in the sand, trailing them along the pristine white sand to the edge of the island's jungle. There, they followed Kolorado's footprints a little longer, but they soon became lost among an endless sea of leaves and twigs.

"Ah, shoot… I think we might have lost an explorer already," Bombette said with a sigh.

"Welp! Should I write an obituary for us now, or should we wait until the next archeologist who comes by finds our bones?" asked Nita.

"Hey! This is serious!" Mario pointed out.

"I know, so am I," Nita said with a pen and paper in hand.

"Calm down; there's no need to panic," Koopie said, walking to the middle of the group. "Chompy, do you think you could go back to her footprints on the beach and find her sce-"

"Hoooohaaaa!" A very posh scream suddenly burst from a group of trees nearby.

"Nevermind; I think we found her."

The group quickly dashed in the direction of the scream and found Kolorado without her shell standing in her beige underwear surrounded by two strange women who were tossing her shell back and forth between them like it was a volleyball. It took Mario a moment, but he soon recognized them by their distinct hoodies, short stature, lack of pants, and plentiful pubic hair that these girls were Fuzzies. However, unlike the girls that Mario had met back in Koopa village, these Fuzzies were blonde with yellow hoodies rather than dark-haired with black hoodies.

"Hey! Stop this at once, you hooligans!" Kolorado shouted as she tried fruitlessly to catch her shell. "Curses… even this far away from home, I'll never be free of you wretched pranksters!"

"Hehehe! Look at this old bat! Running around totally defenseless in her underwear! She even has old lady panties!" the Fuzzy on the right giggled. "Who does that?"

"Not me; I prefer to let it all hang out!" the other replied, laughing between shell tosses. "Hey, maybe we should steal the rest of her clothes so she can know what it feels like? You know, enjoy all the clean ocean air au-naturale~ Heheheh-" She stopped laughing as she finally noticed Mario and his friends staring at them through the trees. "Oh… uh… hello."

"Hey there; nice to meet you," Bombette said as they stepped closer to the pair, cracking her knuckles "That wouldn't be our friend that you were bullying, would it?"

"Oh, what? Her? Of course not!" The Fuzzy girl said defensively. "In fact, I didn't have anything to do with this! It was all her fault!"

"What!?" The other Fuzzy shouted, only to have Kolorado's shell forced into her hands by her friend.

"Anyway, I've got an appointment that I really need to get to, so I'll get going here!" The Fuzzy said, backing away slowly at first before breaking out into a full sprint.

"H-hey! Wait for me!" The other Fuzzy ran after her friend with Kolorado's shell held high above her head.

"Hey! Hold it right there, you thieves!" Koopie shouted as they all gave chase.

"Oh no, not this again…" Goommaria groaned. "If this ends with another weird tree guessing game, I think I might swim back home."

"Don't worry, we won't let them get away that easily; we have a secret weapon this time," Mario assured her. "Chompy! Go fetch!"

"Bark bark!" Chompy nodded and dashed forward like a bolt of lightning, zipping between the trees faster than Mario could even keep track of. Before the Fuzzy girls even knew what was happening, the Chain Chomp had almost completely caught up with them.

"Wah! This isn't good!" The blonde Fuzzy holding Kolorado's shell shouted in a panic. "Felicia! Do something!"

"Oh, jeeze…" The Fuzzy girl turned around mid-run and stopped in her tracks. "Alright, mutt; if you want me, then come and get me!"

"Bark bark!" Chompy eagerly launched herself right at the Fuzzy, intent on licking her face into submission, but was surprised when the Fuzzy's mouth met her for a kiss. Before she could react, the Fuzzy's tongue was inside her mouth, sucking so hard that it felt like Chompy's soul was being coaxed right out of her body. The Fuzzy giggled as she played with the dog girl's tongue and rubbed her hands across her body… and then, suddenly the Fuzzy disappeared into a cloud of smoke.

Chompy coughed and tried to fan the smoke away with her tail, but when it cleared there wasn't just one Fuzzy standing there; there were three! "Arf?" Chompy tried to bring herself to a stop, but it was already too late; her momentum sent her barreling her straight into the blonde trio, and they were on her in an instant, pinning her to the ground while a fourth Fuzzy ran off behind them.

"Heheh, gotta love clones!" the Fuzzy cackled to herself as her dopplegangers got to work stripping the Chain Chomp of her clothes. "By the time she realizes what really happened, I'll be miles from here!"

"Oh no! Chompy!" Koopie gasped and rushed toward her silver-haired friend. "You get away from her right now!" She threw a punch at the nearest Fuzzy clone, but before her hand could connect, the group disappeared into another puff of smoke. "Eh?!" Koopie fell forward, flat onto her face. "What's going on!?"

"Crud! She made decoys!" Goommaria exclaimed. "Some Fuzzies can cast all sorts of magical spells with the energy they extract from kisses. I always heard that the ones on jungle islands can make temporary clones of themselves, but to actually see it happen… this would honestly be the coolest thing in the world if Kolorado's shell wasn't at stake!"

"Yeah, but don't worry; we've still got this," Bombette said before turning to Nita. "Hey, Gal! Did you ever play shot-put when you were in high school?"

"Yeah, a few times," the Shy Gal answered. "It wasn't as fun as most of the other sports, though. Why do you ask?"

"Because I want you to do something." Bombette jumped into the shorter woman's arms and pointed at the fleeing Fuzzies in the distance. "Now, pretend I'm a shot-put ball and they're the record line. Think you can do that?"

"Hmm… yeah, I guess so." Nita pulled back her arm for a moment before shoving it forward as hard as she could, sending Bombette flying through the air like a cannonball.

"Huh?" The Fuzzy running with Kolorado's shell looked up curiously. "Did you just hear something break the sound barrier a moment ago? Wha-"

Before her friend could reply, Bombette slammed into the Fuzzy's body and pinned her to the ground as Kolorado's shell bounced away and came to a rest beneath a large tree.

"Gotcha!" Bombette laughed triumphantly as she smothered the shorter girl's face with her large breasts. "Now, don't you even think about moving, or else! These babies are loaded!"

"Wow! That was an amazing shot, Nita!" Koopie said with wide-eyed amazement.

"Eh, it was okay." Nita shrugged. "My form was off, though, and my ricochet game could use some work. I'm way too out of practice…"

"Eep! Fuzzy down!" Her friend jumped up and down in a panic. "Meork! I'm out of here! Ooof!"

The girl turned to run, but found her escape blocked by Mario, Bow, and Goommaria.

"And where exactly do you think you're going?" Goommaria asked with her arms crossed.

"Uh… uh…" The Fuzzy girl ran around, looking for some avenue of escape, only to find every route promptly blocked. "I… I surrender! Please don't lick me!" The Fuzzy dropped to the ground and began to beg.

"Lick you? What? No, we don't want to do that," Mario replied. "We just want the shell back, and for you to promise that you won't do this again."

"What? Seriously? No eating me out at all?" The Fuzzy girl asked, looking up. "Oh, phew; I didn't realize that none of you were Yoshis! That's a relief!"

"D-does that mean you'll get your friend over here off me?" the other Fuzzy shouted, though her voice was mostly muffled by Bombette's tits.

"Just one more second… I want to make sure that you learned your lesson." Bombette pressed her breasts hard against the Fuzzy's face for a few more moments before finally standing up. "Okay, that's enough!"

"Gasp! I thought… I was going to suffocate there for a moment," the other Fuzzy said as she stumbled over toward her friend.

"So, what do you girls say?" Koopie asked, her foot tapping and her arms crossed.

"Uh… that one Gal has a really good pitching arm?" one of the Fuzzies replied, to which the Koopa just glared at them. "Okay, okay! We're sorry, and we won't do it again!"

"You better not - or else I might have some trouble standing back up next time~" Bombette shook her tits menacingly.

"G-got it!" The Fuzzies both blushed and scampered up the nearest trees, disappearing into the thick green foliage of the treetops.

"You know, I think you went rather easy on them," Bow said as she flew up to the group, fanning herself. "If I had learned someone had stolen from me, there would be at least one broken bone, or at least a trip to the therapist."

"Eh, they're not worth it," Goommaria said with a shrug. "Besides, we have bigger flowers to fire."

"Thank you so much for that, Mario; that was nearly a very sticky situation." Kolorado said as she put her shell back on. "I apologize for getting ahead of myself! I suppose I had been waiting there at the port for so long that I went a little shell-crazy."

"It's fine, Kolorado; just promise you won't do that again," said Goommaria.

"So, what are these little urchins doing here anyway?" Bow asked. "Didn't you say that this place was home to Yoshis?"

"Yes, they are the majority here, but there are a few other Mono species that have made themselves at home here too. It's hard to find anywhere on this planet that's just one group of Mono, after all," Kolorado explained. "I believe the other major group of Mono on this island are the Ravens, who like to nest in the tallest treetops. They have a sort of symbiotic relationship with the Yoshis, where the Yoshis give the Ravens their eggs to snack on and the Ravens protect their villages from above."

"Eggs? Do they raise chickens here or something?" asked Mario.

"Uh… not exactly," Koopie replied. 'It'll make more sense when you finally meet them."

"Oh! And speak of the devil! There it is!" Kolorado pushed a nearby bush aside and revealed the entrance to a village made of wood and stone huts. "I knew my sense of adventure wasn't steering me wrong! Let's head in and look around, shall we?"

"Huh, so these are Yoshis, huh?" Mario said as they walked into the village and got a look at the residents. They were all entirely female, like he expected, but they were also very lizard-like in appearance, with vertical slits for pupils, slightly scaly skin tones that were a variety of different colors, and long, matching lizard tails that followed them wherever they went. Aside from their lizard-like qualities, they had short hair that seemed to match every single color of the rainbow, medium-sized breasts on average, and clothing that seemed to consist of colorful, finely woven cloths. They also seemed to be wearing something on their backs that was halfway between a red backpack and a saddle, complete with stirrups. "I'm not sure what I was expecting a Yoshi to look like, but I'm still a little surprised."

"Wow… you have no idea how bizarre it is to hear you say that, do you?" Goommaria asked. "Yoshis are, like, practically synonymous with you, Mario! They've probably helped you out more than any other Mono! I even had a poster of you when I was little with you riding one of them into battle!"

"Riding? Wait, you mean those saddles on their backs aren't just for show?"

"Yeah - in Yoshi culture, they're practically obligated to give rides to whoever needs it," Koopie explained. "In fact, they're obligated to help anyone in need with almost anything they ask for. It's actually kind of a problem with them."

"Indeed; hence why there are so few Yoshi kingdoms, and the few that remain are almost all exclusively on islands," Kolorado explained. "They're always so keen on being helpful that they often invite visitors to stay with them, or they get conquered by those they try to help… as you can imagine, Bowsa and the Koopa Klan have done stuff like that multiple times."

"Yes, but you've always helped bail them out in the end, Mario!" Goommaria jumped up into the air with excitement. "They say that with a Yoshi woman underneath you, that no one could possibly beat you!"

"Really?" Mario stroked his chin at that. "You don't think that perhaps Bowsa tricked them into hiding the Star Spirit here, do you?"

"Oh, heavens no; they might be helpful, but they'd never help someone hurt someone defenseless!" said Kolorado. "And something tells me that your Star Spirit friend would be quite vocal in calling for help."

"Hmm… I wonder how these people win games together if they're so nice?" Nita pondered.

"Well, they make exceptions for competitions of course, but most of the games that Yoshis come up with have everyone win in the end."

"... I've never heard of anything so disgusting in my life," Nita muttered darkly.

"Well, I guess if I've gotten along with them so great in the past, I might as well just walk up to one and ask if they know anything about the Star Spirit." Mario located the closest Yoshi woman he could find - a girl with red skin and blue hair - standing underneath a pineapple tree. "Hello there! My name is Mario, and I'm here to-"

Mario stopped speaking as the Yoshi woman, who was facing away from him, opened her mouth and casually extended her tongue. That would have been strange enough by itself, but this wasn't a garden-variety tongue; it was long, stretchy, and seemed to have a will of its own as it shot up into the air, wrapped itself around one of the pineapples, and pulled it back down into the Yoshi's mouth, who swallowed it in one loud gulp.

"Uh…" Mario stared in shock, his mind seemingly unable to process what he just saw.

"Oh, right; I probably should have told you about that too." Goommaria laughed nervously. "Yoshis have very voracious appetites… and they have the tongues to back them up."

"Huh?" The Yoshi girl glanced curiously behind her. "Oh! I'm sorry; I didn't realize that you were talking to me! Yoshi! It's so great to meet you!"

"Ahem, yes, Yoshi to you too." Kolorado cleared her throat and stepped forward. "Greetings; my name is Kolorado, and I am a professor at the Toadstool University's Department of Anthromonogy. I am here to ask permission to examine your sacred Mt. Lavalava for evidence that humans once lived here."

"Really? That seems like kind of a silly thing to spend time finding out, but I don't see why we'd turn you down," she replied. "You'll have to talk to the village leader about that. You can find her over there, by the tea tables."

"Thank you; I'll go see you right away." Kolorado bowed her head respectfully. "Yoshi!"

"'Yoshi' means both hello and goodbye in yoshi cultures," Goommaria whispered to Mario.

"Ah, gotcha," Mario replied. "Excuse me, miss; I have a question too. You haven't seen anyone suspicious on the island recently, have you? You know, foreigners who might mean you ill will."

"Hmm… yes, yes I have!" She replied cheerfully, causing hope to bloom on Mario's face. "You girls match that description pretty well!"

"Oh… uh, don't worry; we're not here to do any harm," intoned Bombette.

"Speak for yourself; I'd use that volcano to block out the sun in a heartbeat if I could," Bow grumbled a few feet away.

"Have you seen anyone else? Perhaps some Koopas who were carrying an emblem featuring a very scary woman?"

"I don't know about Koopas, but the Piranha Plants have gotten really ornery lately. Why, just the other day one of them tried to chew through the house of the village Toad and kidnap him! Do you think that might have something to do with what you're talking about?"

"Maybe… but either way, that doesn't sound good," Bombette replied. "You stay safe out there, okay?"

"Of course! Have a wonderful day! Yoshi!" The dinosaur girl waved and walked off to go snack on another fruit tree.

"Village Toad? Are they talking about the Toad at their Toad House?" Bombette asked curiously as they all took off after Kolorado.

"No, actually; Yoshis are one of the few Mono species that don't have any problems with jealousy, so they don't really have a Toad House," Goommaria explained. "Instead, they usually just find a Toad and share him; no money or fights or anything. They even let the guy meet and help raise his children."

"Seriously? Wow… this place kinda sounds like a paradise compared to the mainland," Bombette said as they finally approached the tea area, where they promptly spotted an older Yoshi woman sitting at a table sipping from a steaming cup. She had green skin with red hair, and she was wearing a golden necklace, a red cloth over her generous bust and wide hips, and a small white feather tucked behind her right ear.

"Ah; guests! It's so good to see you," the village leader greeted when she noticed the crowd of strangers heading toward her. "It's been so long since we've had friendly strangers stop by, let alone those from off the island. Yoshi; my name is Bessie, and I'm the leader of all the Yoshis on this island. May I ask who you are?"

"Hello; it's so very nice to meet you," Goommaria said as he walked up to the Yoshi alongside Mario. "This is Mario, and the Koopa with the brown helmet thing is Kolorado. Do you know anything about what's been happening on the mainland?"

"Yes, actually; while we don't get many boats around these parts, our Raven friends fly back and forth from the mainland regularly, keeping us up to date on all the latest news and cooking trends," Bessie replied. "We know all too well about what Bowsa has done to the Mushroom Kingdom and the Star Spirits. We'd help if we could, but unfortunately, we haven't been able to sail off this island in quite some time."

"Oh, that's fine; there's not much anyone can do about Bowsa right now anyway," Koopie spoke up. "But if you want to help us out, do you think we could have your permission to look around the island? We heard from, uh, a little birdie that she might have hidden a Star Spirit somewhere on the island."

"A Star Spirit? Here? Strange… we haven't noticed anything unusual of late," the Yoshi chieftess replied. "Though, I must admit that we also rarely travel outside of our villages. The jungle here is a very dangerous place, after all, teeming with creatures and rival tribes of Mono, and we have all that we could ever need right here."

"Hmm… do you think perhaps one of those rival tribes might be helping Bowsa out, Mario?" Bombette interjected.

"Probably; Bowsa seems to be like the kind of person who plays on people's divisions," Mario replied. "Do you think maybe we could talk to these other tribes too, Bess?"

"Perhaps… but I'd advise against traveling into the jungle to look by yourselves," Bessie warned. "Without someone who knows the area, you would doubtlessly get lost; not to mention, things have been extra perilous because of the recent activity of Mt. Lavalava."

"Actually, I was hoping I could talk to you about that, too." Kolorado stepped forward. "I believe there may be some archeological sites of great significance on Mt. Lavalava, and I'd like the chance to examine it myself if at all possible."

"You mean you actually want to get closer to Mt. Lavalava? Ahahaha!" The Yoshi woman's whole body, including her large breasts, shook as she laughed uproariously. "If that's what you came here for, then I suggest you go home before you become turtle soup."

"I am well aware of the dangers, ma'am; I didn't take all those years of Geology for nothing, after all," Kolorado replied. "But science cannot advance without risk, and I take full responsibility if anything were to happen to me or my friends in our journey."

"Hmm… if you're that determined, then I suppose I can let you go… however!" Bessie put a thunderous foot on the ground. "Please, before you go; spend some time in our village. Get to know us better, rest a while, and try some of our famous food. You'll need all your energy before you go, after all, and you should at least take some time to be sure that this journey is what you really want."

"Thank you, Bessie; you are too kind," Goommaria said before she, Mario, and Kolorado all bowed and the brown-skinned Yoshi sitting across from Bessie began pouring them all cups of fruity tea.

"Augh, seriously? Do we honestly have to do this?" Bow whispered to her friends after she was handed her cup. "Can't we just sneak out into the jungle when their backs are turned or something? This is a waste of time, we got all the rest we needed on the way here."

"Sorry, my dear, but that is out of the question; denying a Yoshi's hospitality is considered incredibly rude, and we cannot risk offending them," Kolorado replied before taking a sip of her tea. "Besides, what's the harm in taking a small break on our journey? It'd be a great learning experience, after all."

"Fine… but don't expect me to eat any of that shiny fruit they have growing everywhere," Bow replied. "No food has any right to ever have a glare that bright."

"Aaah… thank you so much for the tea, Bessie," Mario said as he put his cup back down onto the chieftess's stone table. "So, since this is your town, where do you think we should check out first?"

"If you'd like a place to start, then I'd recommend checking out the Raven nest in the tree at the center of town," she replied. "It's a bit of a climb up, but the view is nice and the Ravens themselves are always such a delight to spend time with."

"Thank you; we'll head on over right now!" Goommaria replied before heading in the direction of the nest, Mario and the others following closely behind her.

"Wow, this place sure is lively," Koopie said as they walked, looking at all the Yoshis walking around, talking, and playing with each other. "Not to mention colorful. It's almost hard to believe that they're all the same species, let alone all from the same families."

"I know, right? It's amazing!" said Goommaria. "Apparently the color of a Yoshi's hair and skin has something to do with the diet of the mother before she lays her egg, and how warm the egg's nest is. Trying to predict what they'll wind up like is kind of like trying to predict the result of a one hundred sided die."

"Oh, so they're the ones who lay the eggs. I suppose that kind of makes sense," Mario said, nodding with realization as he watched a Yoshi with blue skin walk by pushing a stroller with a green-spotted egg sitting inside. "But, uh… didn't you say that they give eggs to the Ravens to eat?"

"Yeah, they do, but don't worry; they make a lot of infertile eggs," Koopie explained. "Like, a lot a lot. At least once a week, I think, which is quite a lot compared to most of us Koopas. They're pretty big too."

"Egg-dogs! Get your egg-dogs here! They're extra fresh! Come get 'em while they're hot!" An orange Yoshi with green hair shouted from a booth on the side of the road, holding up what looked like a hotdog on a bun. Her stomach was also much larger than most of the other Yoshis, which made Mario think that she was due to lay another fresh one soon.

"Oh my…" Mario said as he tried not to gawk at her. "I don't think I'll ever not say this, but this world's culture really is different from Earth's."

"Maybe, but it's what the Yoshis call normal," Kolorado said as they reached the tallest tree in town. "Now, let's go immerse ourselves in another culture, shall we?"

Mario nodded and followed Kolorado up a wooden ladder that was nailed into the side of the tree. Then, when they reached the top, Mario was greeted to the sight of several large bird's nests sitting in the green foliage of the upper tree branches. Sitting inside the nests were small groups of women with fair skin and jet-black hair, and long, feathered black wings instead of arms. They were also wearing tight-black tube tops and grey shorts which sat above their yellow, bird-like clawed feet. At the moment they arrived, the girls mostly seemed to be lazing around, cleaning their feathers and lightly chatting with each other as they tended to their nests and snacked on grain.

"Hello there," Mario greeted with a friendly wave as he and the others stepped onto the treetop. "Sorry if we're intruding, but we're new here and we wanted to take a look around."

"Hey, don't worry, man; it's no big deal," the nearest Raven greeted as she crossed her legs and lay back in her nest. "Feel free to look around and take in the sights. What's ours is yours."

"How kind of you," Koopie said with a smile as she walked out onto the tree branch. "Wow, you can see so far around! This island is so stunning!"

"Yeah, it really is an amazing place, isn't it?" the Raven sitting closest to Koopie said. "Raven tradition says that the untouched beauty of this island helps put us in connection to the magical world."

"Magical world? What's that, some kind of theme park?" Nita asked.

"No, of course not, little woman. It's the place where all magic comes from," the Raven explained. "From the bottom of the oceans to the stars above, it connects everything with a beautiful light. And if you can tap into it, you can do amazing things!"

"You mean… like cast spells and grant wishes?" Bombette asked.

"More than that; you can understand life, the universe… even see the future," the Raven replied, stars in her eyes as she waved a wing dramatically in front of her.

"Oh, please; like that's true," Bow interjected with an angry eye roll. "I can put up with a lot of things - I can even put up with how bright this place is - but phony psychics are one thing I cannot stand!"

"Wait, what?" Goommaria and the others all turned to Bow in Surprise. "Bow… you haven't been swindled by fake psychics in the pasts, have you?"

"What? Me, swindled? Preposterous!" Bow turned away and cursed with an angry pout. "And even if I was, it wouldn't be my fault."

"Heheh, you know, it's funny; the magic world told us that she'd react like that, but somehow it's still kind of funny to actually see it happen," one of the Ravens replied.

"Oh yeah? And what else did your magic planet tell you?" Bow asked suspiciously.

"Oh, lots! Like, the guy with the red hat is Mario, he's here for the Star Spirit Misstar, you arrived here a little while ago on the back of a whale girl whose friend you helped out with her relationship problems, and you're going to pick up a partner while you're here on the island," the Raven replied casually. "That last part was a little vague, though; almost as if that part wasn't set in stone."

"Uh… okay, I have to admit, that is a little uncanny," Goommaria said nervously.

"Oh, oh! What's tomorrow's Happy Lucky Lottery number?" Bombette said, waving her hand in the air. "Tell me, tell me!"

"Eh, sorry, but it's not actually us who receives the future visions," A Raven sitting on a branch above Mario replied. "That honor belongs to Raphael, who gets them at her temple deep in the jungle."

"I wouldn't go there if I were you, though; if you don't have wings, the trek can be a little dangerous," said another Raven.

"Oh, sure, that's why you don't want me near it," Bow said.

"Right…" Goommaria rolled her eyes and turned back to the Ravens. "So anyway, how do you girls like living on the island? Do you girls ever feel stressed from all the Mono attacks on the village?"

"Pfft, of course not! Raphael is so good at predicting those attacks that we don't even bother looking out past the village borders anymore," a Raven in a hammock replied. "Plus, the Yoshis are such a delight to have around! They're always so fun and helpful…"

"Totally!" another Raven girl agreed. "Why, they're so nice that I haven't gone into a rage-induced smashing-spree in years!"

"A… rage-induced what?" Mario asked.

"Oh, right; Ravens are famous for having… short fuses, so to speak," Goommaria intoned. "It's more or less why you hardly ever see Ravens living with any other Mono species; Yoshis are the only ones who get along with them."

"Huh… you don't say…" Koopie replied. "Uh, say, Mario? Could we get back to the ground now? I just remembered that I have a fear of heights."

"Oh? You're leaving already? Raphael didn't tell us anything about that," a Raven by the ladder down said. "Well, thanks for visiting us anyway. Feel free to come back anytime."

"Ah, that really was quite fascinating; to think that Ravens could be so calm and friendly. Why, I remember I once lived next to a Raven so ornery, that I couldn't so much as invite her over for tea without getting cursed at," Kolorado said as they got back down to the ground. "Now, let's take a look at the rest of the village… gasp! Look, over there! It's a traditional Yoshi restaurant! I've never gotten the chance to see one in person before!"

"Restaurant? What are you talking about?" Nita asked as she looked around in front of her. "All I see are a bunch of Yoshis lying on the ground in front of a catapult."

"Pull!" The blue Yoshi with green hair standing next to the catapult shouted before pulling a large lever, allowing the catapult to launch several colorful fruits up into the air. The Yoshis lying on the ground underneath swiftly got to work, snatching up as much food as they could with their long tongues and gulping it down greedily. Despite the catapult launching a whole cornucopia's worth of fruit, not so much as a cherry was able to reach the ground.

"Huh… I stand corrected," Nita said, scratching her head.

"And look, over there; a Yoshi nursery!" Kolorado pointed south toward an open area filled with baby cribs and cradles. Instead of being filled with babies as one might expect, though, they were filled with large white eggs covered in a variety of colored spots. "Ah, they all look so peaceful!"

"Careful! Don't speak so loud!" A Toad man with white shirt, blue pants and red spots on his cap said in a hushed tone as he walked up to one of the egg cradles and rocked it. "They're sleeping, you know."

"Sleeping?" Bow cocked her head to the side curiously. "Eggs… sleep?"

"Of course they are; they may not look like much from the outside, but on the inside, most of them are already almost completely formed," the Toad explained. "It takes them many years to get ready to hatch, though, but in the meantime they can still hear us pretty well. In fact, by the time they do hatch, most of my kids are already speaking and complaining about my bad dad jokes. It's, uh, sometimes the first thing they say, actually…"

"Oh? So I take it that you're the father of these fine young eggs then?" Kolorado asked, turning to the man. "Well, I must congratulate you then! They look like they're all in impeccable shape!"

"Thank you; I try my best," the Toad replied."My name's Travis, by the way; Travis Toad. Do you mind if I ask who you strangers are?"

"Oh, right, how rude of me; my name is Kolorado, and this is Mario; we're just a few humble visitors to this island of yours," the Koopa explained. "It is nice to make your acquaintance."

"Yeah, it's, uh… very nice to meet you," Mario said as he looked over the nursery and the dozens of eggs contained therein. "Wow, you… really fertilized all the eggs? And you're okay with being a dad to so many kids?"

"Of course!" Travis replied with a wide smile. "I mean, yeah, it can be a bit stressful at times, and I have lost a few nights of sleep wondering if my eggies are warm enough at night, but I like to think that it's all worth it. Besides, things don't get really hard until they hatch and the girls become- oof!"

Travis was abruptly cut off when five colorful, pint-sized bullets collided with his body, knocking him to the ground. After rolling for a few moments, the Toad came to a stop and revealed five Yoshi girls - one red, one green, one blue, one yellow, and one purple - all wearing white dresses and all looking to be about twelve years old, though Mario had no idea if Yoshis 'started' after they hatch or after they were laid.

"Haha! We got you, daddy!" The red Yoshi giggled as they all hugged Travis as hard as they could. "You really have to work on those reflexes of yours if you want to survive on this island!"

"Heh, I guess I do." Travis hugged the Yoshis back and played with their hair. "As I was saying, raising these kids doesn't get hard until they hatch and they become these adorable little monsters. They're always so full of energy and a love of play! It can be very fun, but also a little exhausting."

"Oh, please! You're just saying that because we always win the games we play!" the purple Yoshi countered. "But we're not letting you off that easy! Come on, play another game with us!"

"Yeah! The Fearsome Five challenges you to another game of hide-and-seek!" the green one declared as threateningly as her adorable voice would allow.

"I'm sorry kids; I'd love to play with you, I really would… but I'm feeling pretty wiped out right now taking care of these new eggs," Travis replied. "How about you girls go play with Auntie Sushie and Auntie Rachel, okay?"

"Augh… fine… but you owe us all double playtime later!" the red one said before they all climbed off his body.

"Ah… such sweet kids," Travis sighed wistfully as she watched the Yoshis walk away. "They're a handful, but I wouldn't trade them for anything in the world."

"Yeah… you're really lucky to have them," Mario said. "Uh… say, Goommaria. You mentioned a while back that I have kids in this world too, right? Have I kept in contact with any of them?"

"Uh… I'm not sure, to be honest," Goommaria replied. "I mean, you always seemed like the kind of guy who would, but I don't know that much about you."

"Oh… I see…" Mario trailed off as Travis returned to tending to his eggs.

"Hey, don't feel down! You're a guy; it's not like you're actually expected to take care of them, after all," Goommaria assured him, though that didn't seem to make him feel any better. "Hey, I'll tell you what; when all this is over, I'll let you come visit my kid whenever you want!"

"Yeah, mine too!" Bombette chimed in "My little girl's friends are going to be super jealous to have a dad come visit them!"

"Me too!" said Koopie.

"Arf arf!" Chompy barked.

"I suppose I could let you see mine as well… but you have to dress up and bring a good gift every time! She's going to be an heiress, after all," said Bow.

"Thanks, girls… that means a lot to me," Mario said, finally breaking a smile. "But we can worry about all that once the kingdom is finally safe for them all to grow up in, okay?"

"Yeah, I suppose that would be for the best." Nita reached into her pocket and pulled out a tourist's map of the island that she had somehow acquired. "So, where do you all want to go next? I'm partly torn between the relaxing flower field, and the river that the Yoshis use like a water slide."

"Hmm… actually, why don't we stop by the watering hole that the Yoshis use to bathe?" Kolorado suggested. "I heard that it was quite fascinating to watch these women swim."

"That sounds like it would be a good idea; maybe we can talk to a few more Yoshis while we're there," Mario said before heading off in the direction to the nearest lake. There, they found several Yoshis of many hues casually bathing naked in its calm waters.

"Oh? We have visitors? How lovely," a Yoshi with yellow skin and red hair greeted. "Come in, stay a while. There's more than enough room here if you want to join."

"No thank you - I actually can't swim that great," Goommaria replied. "Plus, I'd rather not risk getting all my things wet."

"Same here; I don't want to get my fuse wet when I might have to go off at a moment's notice," said Bombette.

"Are you quite sure about that? I honestly can't think of anything more refreshing," a voice said behind them. Turning around, Mario was greeted, not by the sight of a Yoshi, but by a smiling, chubby woman about his height with lightly tanned skin, orange hair with blue highlights tied back into a bun, a long white apron, and a blue one-piece swimsuit underneath. As she approached, Mario could also see that she had what looked like glittering fish scales on her hands and legs, and her neck had a distinctly gill-like appearance to them. "Though, I guess I might be a little biased in that regard."

"Oh, hello there! I didn't know that this island was home to any Cheep Cheeps," Goommaria greeted.

"Yes, well, I'm not a native I'm afraid, but these lovely Yoshis were kind enough to take me in after being separated from my school when I was young," the fish woman replied. "Oh, how rude of me, I just realized I haven't introduced myself yet! My name is Sushie, and I'm kind of the unofficial nanny of the young Yoshis here on the island. It's also more-or-less my job to pick up anything that someone accidentally drops to the bottom of the pool or the river."

"Huh, so if Travis is the village dad, I guess that makes you like the village mom huh?" Bombette asked, cocking her hips. "That must be a pretty taxing job; especially if they expect you to feed the little tykes too." The bombshell groped her own breasts for emphasis.

"Don't worry; young Yoshis eat pure fruit juice, not milk," Sushi assured her. "And I'm not doing this alone either; not only do the other Yoshis help out, but I've got my friend Rachel to lend a hand too! Er, wing, in her case, I suppose."

"Ah, well that's jolly-good to hear!" Kolorado replied. "And where is this Rachel lass now?"

"Well, last I saw her she was right about to play a game with a few of our charges just a few minutes ago… ah, there she is now!" Sushi perked up as she noticed a Raven girl with a poofy silver dress, silver hair and feathers, and a bright yellow hair clip in her long locks walking disinterestedly through the middle of Yoshi village. "Rachel! Dear! How are you doing?"

"Oh, just swell, thanks for asking!" The Raven girl replied, not looking quite in Sushie's direction. "I saw a really shiny puddle on the way here, the warmth of the sun feels great today, the flowers over by the field smell lovely!"

"That's great, Rachel! Did the kids have a chance to smell the flowers too?" Sushie asked.

"... kids?" Rachel looked at Sushie curiously for a few moments before suddenly perking up. "Oh, that's right! They didn't get a chance to smell them because we started playing a game together!"

"A game?" Sushie looked behind Rachel and began to sweat when she noticed that the Yoshi kids were nowhere to be seen. "And… what game did you girls play?"

"Oh, just some simple hide and seek," Rachel replied. "... Ah, shoot. I think I forgot to finish looking for them again."

"That's okay, dear; I'm sure they're around here somewhere," Sushie assured her. "I'm sorry, but could you please excuse us? I need to help my friend here find where she misplaced the 'Fearsome Five'."

"Of course, Sushie." Mario shook his head. "Thanks so much for talking to us; it was so nice to meet you."

"As to you, visitor! So long!" Sushie shook Mario's hand before leaving with Rachel, checking every bush and fruit basket she passed along the way.

"Ah, so I see you've stopped by our swimming hole," a voice suddenly said behind Mario. Turning around, the group saw Bessie walking toward them with a white towel in-hand. "Did you wish to stop by for a dip to contemplate whether going to Mt. Lavalava is really worth it?"

"I'm afraid not. None of us are really prepared for any kind of swim," Koopie answered. "And, if you don't mind me being frank miss leader ma'am, but… I don't think there's really anything that can dissuade us from wanting to go to the mountain."

"Yeah, the fate of the world hinges on us completing this quest, we can't afford to just turn back here! Not to mention, that innocent Starwoman is counting on us!" Goommaria said passionately.

"And that's not even mentioning the potential scientific discoveries!" said Kolorado, to which everyone turned to stare at her. "Oh, yes, and the world saving and whatnot, but science is important too!"

"Well, that is disappointing, but… I suppose I can understand the need to help someone at any cost." Bessie nodded knowingly and put down her towel beside the swimming hole. "Very well then; you have my permission to go to Mt. Lavalava, but only if you promise to be careful and don't get yourselves hurt."

"Well, I'm not sure if I'll be able to avoid screwing up somehow, but I'll do my best to stay safe at the very least," Nita replied.

"Great! Then it's settled; onward, to the mountain!" Kolorado jumped up into the air in excitement before dashing straight into the forest and toward the looming smoking mountain.

"... Anyone want to take bets on how long before she gets attacked again?" asked Nita.

"Please - as if we'll actually have time to take-" Bow began to say before she was abruptly cut off by the sound of a turtley scream in the distance. "Nevermind. Let's just go get her before she gets her shell stolen again."

"Right!" Mario nodded and took out his hammer. "See you later, Bess!"

"Good luck, my friends! I truly hope you find what you are looking for!" The chieftess called out, but Mario and his friends barely heard her; they had already dashed into the forest.

"Oooh, nice hat!" A Shy Gal wearing a red hoodie, white mask with red marks along the cheeks, and a leaf skirt said as she held Kolorado's hat out in front of her and two similarly-dressed Shy Gals. "Clean, fashionable, practical… perfect for going on adventures!"

"Are you sure that's actually a hat?" one of the Gals restraining Kolorado asked. "It looks more like a bowl to me."

"Maybe it's a second shell," the other Gal suggested. "And she puts it on whenever she's feeling thin!"

"Hahah, yeah, maybe!" The first Gal laughed loudly with her friends. "I wonder if I'd look good in this…"

"P-please, don't put it on! Anything but that!" Kolorado begged desperately. "You'll stretch it out too much!"

"Hahaha! And what makes you think you can stop-" The gal holding the hat began to say, only to be interrupted by Nita slamming into her side with a powerful kick, sending the other Gal flying into a nearby tree with a loud thud.

"Alright, alright, you've had your fun picking on the nerd for now," Nita said as she caught the hat as it fell out of the air. "Now, would you please run off now? I'd rather not get in another fight; I'm sure I'd screw it up somehow."

"Was… that supposed to be a threat? Because you kinda failed to follow-up on that initial intimidation factor," the Gal holding Kolorado's left arm said.

"Yeah, that kick was awesome, and you're just going to follow it up with something weak like that?" the other Jungle Gal asked.

"Well, how about this then," Bombette cracked her knuckles as she and the others finally caught up. "You let our friend go, and we'll let you walk out of here with your noses in one piece!"

"You see? Now that is how you do a threat!" the Gal on Kolorado's right arm said. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to run away screaming now. Goodbye! Gyaaaahaha!"

With that, the Gals dropped everything they were holding and scampered off into the forest, the thick foliage quickly obscuring their bright red clothes as they ran.

"Phew… thanks again, my fellow adventurers. It seems as though I bit off more than I can chew once again." Kolorado dusted herself off and put her hat back on. "I thought for sure that I could take them, or at least juke my way past them, but it appears the days where I could do things like sled down Mount White Bear without breaking a sweat are behind me."

"Yes, they are," Bow said curtly before flying up to Kolorado and smacking the Koopa in the face with her fan. "And don't you dare get accosted again, or else we might not bother rescuing you."

"Don't worry; I've learned my lesson." Kolorado replied, though her look of regret lasted only a second before she turned back toward Mt. Lavalava with a renewed look of adventure on her face. "Now, let's get back to the task at hand, shall we? Those artifacts in those mountain caves aren't getting any fresher, and we need to pick up the pace if we want to get there before nightfall!"

"H-hey! What did I just say!?" Bow shouted after Kolorado as she began jogging toward Mt. Lavalava again. "Augh! I'm so glad she's not actually part of our party; if she was, I would have handed her over to Bowsa by now."

"Well, I can't really blame her too much for being excited," Bombette said as they continued pushing through to green foliage all around them. "After all, this is her life's work."

"Well, if you ask me she should have gotten a better life's work," Bow countered. "I mean, honestly. Do you have any idea how many ghosts have had their furniture stolen because of archeologists like her? They're a hazard to the undead community."

"Hey, wait, hang on a second; I think I see Kolorado up ahead!" Mario interrupted. "And she's… stopped?"

"Ah, thank goodness! My shell was starting to chafe from all this running," Koopie sighed as she began slowing down. "So, does this mean that you finally realized how important it is to stick together, profes...sor?"

Koopie trailed off as she looked past Kolorado and saw what the elder Koopa had taken the time to stop and stare at. Standing between her and Mt. Lavalava was a deep trench, and at the bottom of that trench was some glowing red lava that was so hot that they could feel it's warmth all the way from the other side of it.

"Oh my… so that's why you stopped running," Koopie said as she stared down.

"Yes, quite right; I may be able to take a few conks to the old shell, but I'm afraid there'd be no bouncing back from a tussle with that," Kolorado said, wiping some sweat from her forehead with a white handkerchief. "I knew coming here that the volcano would be active, but it seems that I underestimated just how true to its name this place would be."

"Well, I'm sure we can find some way to get over this," Goommaria interjected. "Chompy, do you think you can swing us across with your tail?"

"Hmm…" The Chain Chomp looked around for anything she could use, but all the trees that had been nearby had all burned away. "Bark bark!" she answered, shaking her head.

"Well… what about you, Bow? Can't you fly us all across?" Goommaria asked.

"Just because I can fly doesn't mean I can actually lift any of your sorry butts; and even if I could, there's no way I'd risk letting any of you mess up my nails on the way over," Bow replied, showing off her perfectly dark-green fingernails.

"Uh… could we maybe cut down a tree and make a bridge?" Goommaria was starting to sweat with desperation.

"I suppose that is an option… but I'm afraid with the heat of this lava flow, there's no way it wouldn't catch on fire; and it probably wouldn't be good for our health to be trapped on the far side of this lava," Kolorado pointed out. "But not to worry; we shan't give up just yet! True explorers never give up on their goals, after all; we just need to start looking for solutions."

"Well, unless you want us to start carving a bridge or staircase out of stone, I suggest we start looking elsewhere," Bombette intoned. "Why don't we head back to Yoshi Village and see if anyone there knows what to do."

"Ah, of course! They have been living with this mountain for thousands of years, they must have some way of dealing with the lava!" Kolorado jumped and turned back toward the way they came. "Then, let's get back to the village posthaste! Tally-ho!"

"Wait, Kolorado! Don't run off a-" Koopie began to say, but the professor had dashed into the forest before she could even finish her sentence. "A-again… Geez… she's not nearly as careful as I thought she was."

"Hey, you don't know she's going to be attacked again," Mario countered. "Maybe this time, everything will go fine and-"

"Gyaaaah!" Kolorado's scream of terror interrupted.

"Sigh… nevermind." Mario shook his head before running off into the forest to rescue Kolorado as quickly as possible, only for him to arrive at her location and find Kolorado standing underneath a tree completely fine.

"Oho! I bet you thought I was being accosted again, didn't you? Don't worry; I'm not that helpless." Kolorado chuckled to herself. "This was just a fun jape is all."

"Heheh, yeah… really funny," Koopie replied, doing her best to stop herself from hyperventilating. "But, uh… please don't do that again."

"Yeah; I'd rather not think my I Spy buddy is in trouble," said Nita.

"Ah, yes, quite right; I should remember to remain professional." Kolorado cleared her throat embarrassedly. "Now, let's finish the rest of our journey back… together, shall we?"

"Yes, let's," Mario nodded and, for once, they were able to make it back to the village without any incident. When they arrived, however, they found that the normally-calm Yoshis were running around, looking under rocks and behind buildings as they frantically searched for something. Even Bessie herself was running around with them, sweating as she climbed up fruit trees to check their leaves.

"Uh… excuse us!" Goommaria called up to the chieftess. "We're back from trying to get into Mt. Lavalava! This isn't a bad time, is it?"

"Mario!" Bessie slid down from the tree to address the group, though even as she spoke, she didn't stop her frantic searching. "I wish I could say it's good to see that you've decided to turn back from trying to enter Mt. Lavalava, but I'm afraid nothing is nice right now! While you were gone, five Yoshi children barely out of their eggs went missing and we can't find any trace of them!"

"Wait, you're not talking about those 'fearsome five' girls, are you? Weren't they just going to play hide-and-seek?" Nita asked, scratching her head curiously.

"Yes, they were doing that, but… normally someone would have found them by now, and we've checked just about everywhere in the village!" Bessie answered frantically. "And if they aren't here, then they must have tried hiding out… in the jungle!"

"My word! That's terrible!" Kolorado gasped. "I've already learned from experience just how dangerous that place can be."

"Yes, and since they've never been in the jungle before, they're bound to get lost! Oh, this is terrible!" Bessie gripped the sides of her head and jumped up and down so hard that the ground almost shook. "What are we going to do? What are we going to do!?"

"Shhh, don't worry! They haven't been gone that long, so I'm sure they're still fine." Koopie walked up to the panicking leader and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "We can help you look for them if it'd make you feel any better."

"Really? That is nice of you to offer, but I'm not sure if I could ask that… this doesn't have anything to do with you, after all, and you are our guests," Bessie replied, still sweating profusely.

"Nonsense! Rescuing people is practically our hobby at this point," Bombette replied confidently. "Just let us have a shot, and we'll have them back before you even know it."

"Well… I suppose having more people help couldn't hurt our chances… but, please, do be careful out there! I'd hate to have even more people go missing on us!" Bessie begged. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to keep searching the village just in case! Maybe I missed them by the melon patch…"

"Ohoh! Quick to offer your heroic services, I see. A very admirable trait, I must say," Kolorado complimented. "But I'm afraid this island is quite big, and jungles are one of the few places that a Yoshi's colorful hair won't stick out like a sore shell. How will we even begin tracking them down?"

"That… is actually a pretty good question." Goommaria scratched at her chin. "Chompy, do you think you can catch their scent?"

The Chain Chomp put her nose to the ground and sniffed for a few moments before shaking her head. "Bark bark!"

"Ah, shoot… it looks like they're already too far gone… and the fact that so many other Yoshis have been running around probably hasn't helped," said Koopie.

"Welp, guess it's time to just give up, I suppose. Those geese are as good as cooked." Nita's shoulders slumped for a moment before taking a shovel out of seemingly nowhere. "Maybe we can make it up to Bessie by digging their graves. They're small and probably torn to bits, so we won't have to dig that deep."

"Yeeesh…" Goommaria grimaced and pushed the shovel away. "You've been pretty morbid today, haven't you?"

"I know, I'm happier that we chose her with each passing minute!" said Bow. "But, sadly, I think I know of a way that we might be able to actually find those children. Remember those two women we met earlier; Sushi and Rachel? Why don't we talk to them? If anyone is going to have any idea where they might be, it's going to be them."

"Say, that's actually a pretty good point, Bow," Mario admitted. "Come on, let's see if we can find them somewhere."

"Oh no… oh no…" Sushie the Cheep Cheep was sweating Bullet Betties as she checked underneath the rocks just outside Yoshi village. "I can't believe we let this happen, Rachel… and after everyone trusted us to keep a close eye on those kids! Oh, we have to find them, now!"

"Right, right, of course!" The Raven girl behind her latched onto a particularly large rock with her clawed, yellow feet and lifted it up into the air as she flew up with her winged arms. "... uh, what are we looking for again?"

"Augh…" Sushi sighed and shook her head. "I'm not sure if I'll be able to work with you after this… oh!" Sushi perked up when she noticed Mario's group approaching her. "Why, hello again! I'm sorry, but I don't have time to chat with you, I'm very busy finding something really important right now!"

"Actually, that's exactly what we wanted to talk to you about, Ms. Sushie. We were hoping to try and lend a hand," Mario said as he stopped. "Do you have any idea where the Fearsome Five might have gone? Even something as simple as a direction or a favorite kind of tree might help."

"Oh, that's very sweet of you, but… I'm afraid I can't help you," Sushi answered sadly. "I've already searched everywhere I could think of, and I haven't found saddle or hair of those kids!"

"Wait, we're searching for the kids?" Rachel dropped the rock she was holding and landed back on the ground. "Well, why didn't you just say so! I know exactly where they are!"

"Wait, what!?" Everyone gasped at once and turned toward Rachel, and Sushi grabbed her by the shoulders. "But… how? I was with you the whole time, I didn't see them anywhere!"

"What do you mean, Sushie? I thought we all found them together." Rachel's face scrunched up as began thinking harder. "Or, rather… we will find them together? Or, are we about to find them together? Sorry, I have trouble figuring out what's past and what's future sometimes…"

"Ah, right; this again; I should have known." Sushi sighed again and let go of Rachel."Perhaps you should just head home, Rachel. This might be a bit too much for you."

"Wait, hold on just a sec; what did she mean when she said she knew where the kids were?" Bombette asked. "Was she just… confused or something?"

"Kind of, but it's a bit more complicated than that," Sushi said, turning back to the group. "Like Raphael, Rachel here has been 'blessed' with the power to see through time. She doesn't have complete control of it, though, so she's constantly seeing visions from the past and future, meaning that she loses track of reality pretty easily. As a result, she's usually less of a prophet and more of a carefree goofball. Good with kids… but not much else."

"But… that means she really does know where the kids are going to be, right?" Koopie spoke up. "Can't we use that information to track them down before they get hurt?"

"Yes, in theory, but trust me when I say her predictions are usually a lot less helpful than you'd expect," Sushi replied, glancing at Rachel's content face out of the corner of her eye.

"Well, she's the only lead on those kids we have right now, so I think we should at least give her a shot." Mario walked up to Rachel and put a hand on her shoulder. "Do you think you can guide us to where you saw the kids? Er, or will see them?"

"Sure, I could do that," Rachel replied before staring off into space. "Oh, you mean right now! Right, of course! Follow me!"

The Raven began flapping her wings again and began flying through the forest at a leisurely pace.

"Alright, I suppose I'll come too; you never know what you might find out there, after all," Sushi said as she followed after the group, her webbed feet making little squishing noises as she went.

"Okay… the first one will be over by the river next to the heart plants there," Rachel instructed as she flew. "I think she's hoping to snack on a few of them while she's hiding to pass the time."

"And spoil her dinner? Oh, that, little rascal," Sushi cursed.

"Wait, you girls have heart plants on this island? That's so cool! Those are pretty rare these days," Goommaria said excitedly. "If you don't know, Mario, they're this plant whose stem is both super tasty and super healthy!"

"Healthy and tasty? I can see why they'd start to go extinct," Mario replied. "What do they look like?"

"They don't stand out that much, but they have big green leaves around the base and a long brown stem shaped kind of like a question-" Goommaria began to explain, only to cut herself off when she noticed some plants matching that exact description sitting on the ground by the river. "Wait, there they are! Right where she'd said they'd be! Mmm, and they look so juicy!"

"Man… the last time I got my hands on a heart plant, I don't think I had a cup size yet." Bombette drooled a little and wiped it away from her mouth. "The kids probably wouldn't mind if we stop to have a quick bite ourselves before we find them, right?"

"Yeah… I guess that wouldn't hurt…" Nita said as she and the other two began approaching the plants.

"Huh, that's funny… I don't remember seeing any heart plants when I swam by here yesterday…" Sushie said, suspicious. "Oh no… hold on! Don't touch those plants!"

"What, are you jealous that we got to them first?" Bombette said as she grabbed a plant by the stem and pointed it toward her mouth. "Well, finders keeper-mmmph!?"

Bombette found herself abruptly silenced as the stem suddenly shot forward into her mouth, expanding and gagging her as it entered her throat. Nita and Goommaria quickly met similar fates, with the vines entering their mouths as even more emerged from underneath the leaves on the ground to restrain them.

"Huh!? W-what's going on?!" Koopie asked as she shivered in her shell. "I didn't think heart plants attacked people!"

"They don't; those aren't heart plants," Sushie replied. "Those are Hurt Plants; plants native to the island that pretend to be heart plants to lure women toward them. Then, when their guards are down, they latch onto the woman and force them to swallow their seeds for hours so the girls can… deposit them around the island later."

"Oh dear! That's awful!" " Koopie covered her face in shock. "Do they at least taste like heart plants?"

"No. I'm afraid they taste like the worst, stale licorice," Kolorado intoned. "I should know, I had a tragic encounter with them when I was your age."

"Don't worry, though they won't have to taste it for long," Sushie interrupted. "These things are tough, but I've dealt with them before. Wait here, I'll take care of this."

Sushie cracked her fins and approached the Hurt Plants just as they were lifting their victims up into the air and began sliding new tendrils underneath their clothes to molest them. The Cheep Cheep did her best not to pay them any mind, though, and instead reached to grab the plants by their bases and yank them up as hard as she could. A moment later and three girls with greenish-yellow skin popped up out of the ground underneath the Hurt Plants.

"H-hey! What do you think you're doing? Can't you see we're busy here?" The girl underneath the leaves and tentacles complained.

"Yeah, busy assaulting my guests!" Sushi scolded as the one attacking Bombette opened up her dress and began thrusting a vine between her breasts. "You let them go right now, or else I'll have to punish you!"

"Aww, but we have to do this! How else are we supposed to spread our seeds?" The one who was shoving her tendrils underneath Nita's mask asked.

"Well, have you ever considered just making your own gardens? Or dating like a normal person?" Sushie replied, her voice drenched in a classic motherly scold. "Now you put them down this instant!"

Sushie's cheeks then swelled for a moment before she fired a powerful jet of water out of her mouth and into the faces of the plant girls, who each cried out in pain and surprise as they were drenched.

"Hack hack! Hey! Cut that out! Don't you know that overwatering can be bad for plants?" one of the Hurt Plants asked, her vines stopping just before they were about to tear off Goommaria's panties. The group tried a few times to attack Sushie as well, but for a woman with as much meat on her bones as she did, she was shockingly agile. "Alright, fine! You win! We'll just go plant our seeds somewhere else."

With that, the Hurt Plants put Mario's friends back down and receded back into the ground, tunneling off to somewhere else on the island.

"Wow, that was… disturbing," Bombette said with a shiver as she fixed her clothes. "I'd hate to think what might have happened if you didn't step in there, Sushie."

"Yeah, they are pretty bad, but they're probably the only reason that heart plants haven't gone extinct on this island yet, so I can't hate them too much," the fish girl replied. "Oh, and speaking of which, I think I can spot a few real heart plants over there! You can tell they're genuine because the ground is solid and dark around the base, which means there isn't anyone hiding underneath."

"Wow - it seems to me that you are quite knowledgeable of the flora here if you were to notice something as small as that," Kolorado quipped as they approached the shrubs. "Quite impressive."

"What can I say? When you live around Yoshis for so many years, you learn pretty quickly about what is and isn't edible," Sushie replied, smiling warmly. "Now, is this the spot where you saw the Yoshi kid hiding, Rachel?"

"Yes, I think so… little Casey should be hiding right about… here!" Rachel placed her wings onto a bush and pushed its branches aside dramatically, revealing a young Yoshi girl with green skin and blue hair squatting on the other side.

"Aw, you actually found me? And here I thought I finally had the perfect hiding spot…" The girl whined, her shoulders slumping.

"There you are, you adorable little idiot!" Sushie immediately ran up to the kid and picked her up off the ground, pulling her into a hug so strong that it probably would have broken the poor girl's spine if her body wasn't cushioned against the older woman's soft bust. "Haven't we told you enough times that you shouldn't come out here without an adult? You could have gotten yourself seriously hurt!"

"Yeah, but playing in the village gets so boring after a while!" Casey whined. "Plus, there's so much cool stuff on this island to see and do… and I didn't get out of one egg shell just to get trapped in another!"

"Oh, I know it can sometimes feel like we're smothering you, but I promise; we only do it because we love you. We care about you more than anything else in the world." Sushie leaned down and gave the Yoshi a loving kiss on the forehead. "Now, you head straight back to the village, and I promise I'll go take you on a field trip to Starfruit Grove tomorrow, okay?"

"Starfruit!? Seriously? Sweet!" The Yoshi gave herself a fistbump and broke free of Sushie's arm. "Alright, I'll see you back in town! Yoshi!"

"Wait! Hold it right there!" Bow interrupted before the Yoshi could disappear through the trees. "Aren't you going to tell us where the rest of you little monsters are hiding?"

"What? No, of course not; what do I look like, a snitch?" The Yoshi stuck her long tongue out at Bow before running off as she giggled to herself.

"Augh… I guess things couldn't be that easy," Bow groaned, slapping herself in the face. "Well, at least we still have Rachel to guide us."

"Yeah, of course! I won't let you down!" The Raven stuck out her chest proudly. "I'll make sure you get to the banquet hall one way or another!"

"Uh… banquet hall?" Koopie asked.

"... ah, shoot! That was last year, wasn't it?" Rachel slapped herself with one of her wings. "Right, finding the Yoshi kids! The next one should be… over by some rocks, in that direction!" Rachel lifted her right leg to point to a hill just barely visible through the trees on the other side of the river.

"Really? Over in that direction?" Nita walked to the water's edge and looked down curiously at the rushing wates. "Well, I'd love to go for a swim, but I'm afraid I left my swimsuit at home. Can one of you girls go get the kid instead?"

"Sorry, but I don't have a suit either," said Goommaria.

"Me neither, I'm afraid - and my dress is dry-clean only," said Bombette.

"I'd try to make it across, but with how fast the river is going my shell would probably drift away in the current," said Koopie. "Do you think you could carry us across, Rachel?"

"Hmm, well, I'm pretty sure that I've failed every time I've tried to carry someone, and I'll fail every time I ever try in the future… but that doesn't mean I shouldn't try again, right?!" Rachel jumped onto Koopie's shoulders, gripped with her feet as hard as she could, and began flapping her wings… to no effect.

"Augh… don't worry, Rachel, that won't be necessary." Sushie took off her apron and tossed it to the side before jumping right into the water, sending water flying everywhere as she became soaked in its clear fluids. "Alright, everyone, step up one at a time; I'll get you all across!"

"Wait, what?" Mario did a double take at the Cheep Cheep as she shimmied her back at him. "Are you sure about that? I mean, I don't want us to strain you or anything."

"Oh, don't worry about me! I've been carrying heavier loads when you were just guppies!" Shushie assured him as she pat herself on the back. "Now hop on, and I'll promise I'll get you across before you can say tugboat."

"Alright, if you say so." Mario nervously got into Sushie's back. "But please be careful; I'm carrying some heavy stuff, and I'd hate to w-woah!"

Mario was abruptly cut off as the Cheep Cheep took off swimming, making it all the way to the other side in a blink of an eye without even getting a drop of water on Mario in the process.

"Okay, here we are!" Sushi announced as the stunned plumber stepped off her back. "I told you I could get you over here quick! Now, who's next?"

"Oh, me! I want to go!" Bombette raised her hand excitedly. "I hope you don't mind if I'm wearing heels."

"Trust me; compared to a group of kids, this is practically nothing," Sushie replied and, less than two minutes later, the buxom babysitter had transported the entire group to the other side of the river.

"Huh… you know, I never expected this to happen, but I'm actually starting to get used to being ferried across water like this," Koopie said as she stepped onto the far shore. "Is that weird?"

"Not really," Rachel said as she flew lazily across the river. "When boats crash as often as they do out here, Mono is basically the preferred method of travel."

"Yep, and if you ever need help keeping dry, feel free to ask me anytime you want." Sushie smiled proudly as she pulled herself out of the water and wrung out her hair. "Now, where did you see the girl we're looking for."

"Uh… I don't think I've seen her yet, but I should spot her right over… here!" Rachel kicked the side of a large fruit tree and, a moment later, a Yoshi girl with purple skin and blue hair plopped down into a nearby bush along with some ripe pears.

"Oh, uh… hi, Auntie Sushi! Funny seeing you out here…" the Yoshi girl greeted with a nervous chuckle just before Sushi pulled her into a suffocating hug.

"Oooh, I thank the sea that you're okay, but you're lucky that I don't have time to scold you right now!" Sushie squeezed the girl tightly for a few more moments before finally letting her go. "Now, you head on back to village right away while we go get your friends."

"Yes ma'am…" The Yoshi hung her head a little in shame before heading to the river's edge and using her energetic legs to leap to the other side.

"Great! That's two down, three to go!" Bombette cheered, pumping her fist in the air. "At this rate, we'll be done in no time at all!"

"No time?" Rachel blinked a few times, as if just realizing something. "Uh… say, what time was it again?"

"Huh? Well, it's just about 2 PM," Goommaria replied. "Why do you ask?"

"Oh, no reason…" Rachel replied. "It's just that, from what I can remember, the rest of the kids are hiding a lot deeper in the jungle, so we won't be getting back until evening."

"Wait, what!?" Sushi gasped and bit her right hand in frustration. "Oooh, why is it that working with children is never easy?"

"Worry not, my dear! There is no reason to act as if we've lost those girls just yet," Kolorado said bravely, putting a hand on Sushie's shoulder. "I promise you that we'll find the rest of your missing herd even if we have to search the entire island, and your shells crack under the strain of exhaustion. Because when true adventurers set their sights on helping people…"

"They don't stop until they succeed!" Koopie finished for her. "Oh, I always loved that quote of yours!"

"Yeah; I'm sure that our trip to the mountain can wait a little while longer. We'll get each of those kids back safely before you know it; and that's a promise!" Mario assured her.

"Wow… you'd really go that far for me?" Sushie sniffled and wiped her eyes. "Thank you all so much… but we don't have time for speeches like that! Those kids are still out there counting on us, after all, so let's go get them!"

"Yeah!" The group cheered and pumped their fists in the air before heading back into the forest, ready to head straight toward the heart of the island - as well as anything else that might be between it and them.

---

*Bad End 1*

"Oh, jeeze…" The Fuzzy girl turned around mid-run and stopped in her tracks. "Alright, mutt; if you want me, then come and get me!"

"Bark bark!" Chompy eagerly launched herself right at the Fuzzy, intent on licking her face into submission, but was surprised when the Fuzzy's mouth met her for a kiss. Before she could react, the Fuzzy's tongue was inside her mouth, sucking so hard that it felt like Chompy's soul was being coaxed right out of her body.

"Heheh… got you~" The Fuzzy giggled as she broke the kiss and enjoyed the dazed look in the Chain Chomp's eyes. "Say, I think playing tag out here has started getting a little bit stale… why don't we have a little fun someplace more private? Just the two of us~"

"B-borf?" Chompy replied, still dazed, and not entirely sure what she meant by that.

"Perfect; let's go!" The Fuzzy grabbed Chompy by the shoulders and whisked her into the underbrush just as Mario and his other friends came rushing past, completely unaware of what befell her.

"Chompy! Wait up!" Koppie called out as she ran as fast as she could. "If you run so fast, we might not be able to find you!"

"B-bar-mmph!" The Chain Chomp tried to call out to her friends, but her Fuzzy captor swiftly silenced her with another powerful kiss, her tongue dominating Chompy's as she sucked even more energy out of her body.

"Mmm, I'm sorry, pretty girl, but you might as well forget about your friends now; they're never going to find you," the Fuzzy said evilly when the kiss broke once more. "But don't worry; I promise that you won't be lonely while you're with me~"

She then pushed Chompy onto her back and pinned her arms over her head with one hand while the other made its way underneath the dog girl's oversized white shirt. Her fingers swiftly found their target, rubbing up and down the helpless girl's slit while her thumb playfully teased Chompy's sensitive clit. Chompy whined and struggled when she felt her sex start to be toyed with, but with her energy gone, there wasn't anything she could do but lie there and let the Fuzzy molest her.

"I can see you're getting pretty wet already; I guess you mainlander girls are just as horny as I heard you were," the Fuzzy whispered into Chompy's ear, her hot breath mixing with the moist air of the forest on her skin. "Are you so desperate for someone to have sex with that you'd really get this hot over a complete stranger?"

"B-bark… arf!" The black-skinned woman did her best to bark out a refutation, but that just devolved into an ashamed whine of pleasure as her whole body began to shiver.

"Aww, what's the matter, doggy? Am I overstimulating you?" The Fuzzy teased. "Well then, you probably aren't going to like it when I do… this~"

The Fuzzy swiftly lined up two fingers with Chompy's dripping hole and shoved them inside her as hard as she could, setting off an orgasm almost instantly.

"Ah, ah, awooo!" Her mind overwhelmed by the suddenness of the pleasure, Chompy let out a long howl into the sky as she coated her captors hands in a spray of pungent arousal.

"Oooh, you look so cute when you cum your brains out like that!" The Jungle Fuzzy giggled and nuzzled her nose against Chompy's as the Chain Chomp panted with her long tongue hanging out of her mouth. "In fact, you're so cute that I might just have to keep you as a pet! How does that sound, girl? You, becoming my very own little bitch?"

"Grr…" Chompy clenched her teeth as she thought back to her time enslaved by Tutankoopa. She knew she wasn't going to let herself go through that again if she could help it. "Bark! Bark bark bark!" Shrugging the Fuzzy off her body, Chompy got back on her feet and prepared her chain tail to strike.

"Oooh, you still have some energy in you? That's great!" The Fuzzy jumped for joy, not the least bit intimidated by the Chain Chomp's move. "That means that I can have even more fun sucking you dry~"

"Grr… arf, arf!" Not amused by the Fuzzy's playfulness, Chompy began lashing out with her tail. The smaller girl was even more agile than she looked, though, and easily dodged her attacks before somehow disappearing into a puff of smoke. Not wanting to let the girl get away, Chompy dove right into the smoke - only to discover three Fuzzy girls waiting there for her instead of one.

"Bark!?" was all the Chain Chomp could say before she found her lips captured once again, her tongue sucked into the girl's small mouth along with all her energy.

"Heh, bet you thought you had the upper hand, didn't you?" The Fuzzy behind Chompy asked as she reached around to grope the silver-haired girl's breasts through her shirt. "Well fortunately for me, Jungle Fuzzies always have a few tricks up their sleeves. I usually use my clones for quick escapes and for reaching things that are on really tall shelves, but they have their other uses too~"

Chompy tried to growl and start struggling once again, but it swiftly became clear that there wasn't much she could do to stop the three girls that were holding her down. Things only got worse as the rest of them started to kiss Chompy's body as well, trailing their lips up and down her dark skin along her neck and legs and draining even more of her energy.

"Mmm, you taste so delicious~" The clone between Chompy's thighs cooed as she gently lapped at her sensitive skin. "Are all mainlanders this sweet? Or, perhaps your skin down here is only like that because of… this!"

"Mmmmph!" The silver-haired girl let out another muffled whimper as the clone latched her mouth onto her exposed pussy and shoved her tongue deep inside. The Fuzzy was absolutely shameless with her technique, shoving her tongue in and out and licking every single part she could reach. Chompy could also swear that the Fuzzy was starting to send energy back into her with the way she made her clit feel like it was on fire.

Chompy once again screamed into her captor's mouth, her thoughts of getting help long gone from her mind as she simply let her lust out unchained. The Fuzzy refused to let even the trees hear her, though, and savored the taste of her long tongue as the island girl dominated Chompy's mouth.

"Ah, even your orgasms are delicious!" the Fuzzy clone exclaimed as she wiped the girl-cum from her mouth. "That's it; you're coming with me, puppy! You're mine now!"

The clones then disappeared and the real Fuzzy behind Chompy wrapped her own chain tail around her neck and began leading her through the forest like it was a leash.

"Just wait until I show you to my friends," the Fuzzy said as she skipped cheerfully through the jungle. "I hope you don't mind if they have a taste of you too~"

After that, Chompy's life became a haze of mouths, hands, and arousal, and constant petting of every variety. The Fuzzies were all relentless with their toying, playing with her to orgasm again and again and constantly draining her energy dry so that she could never put up a fight against them. Eventually that became unnecessary, though, as Chompy's spirit was finally broken and she fully embraced her new life as a pet. She became so loyal to the Fuzzies that she'd spread her legs on command, lick whatever they asked her too, and even guarded their homes at night. By the time anyone from the Mushroom Kingdom saw her again, she wasn't the same woman anymore; she was an animal.

The End.

---

*Bad End 2*

"Was… that supposed to be a threat? Because you kinda failed to follow up on that initial intimidation factor," the Gal holding Kolorado's left arm said.

"Yeah, that kick was awesome, and you're just going to follow it up with something weak like that?" the other Jungle Gal asked.

"Well, how about this then," Bombette cracked her knuckles as she and the others finally caught up. "You let our friend go, and we'll let you walk out of here with your noses in one piece!"

"Now that was much better! Good job there, bombshell!" the Jungle Gal on Kolorado's right congratulated. "Unfortunately for you, though, you're still missing one key element to actually being scary…"

The gal snapped her fingers and, a moment later, dozens of Shy Gals with differently-colored hoodies popped out of the bushes and trees around them holding blowdart guns in their mouths.

"... superior numbers."

"... Ah, shoot, I screwed up already didn't I?" Nita asked sadly. "I should have known."

"Ahem, well then…" Bow cleared her throat nervously. "It's been nice knowing you all, but I really should be g-"

The Jungle Gals didn't give Bow the chance to finish her sentence, instead unleashing a flurry of tiny red darts that stung slightly as they embedded themselves into Mario's party's skins. They then all felt woozy for a few moments before they fell face-first onto the ground, their whole worlds going dark as the laughter of Shy Gals filled the air.

"Augh… my head…" Mario groaned as he began regaining consciousness. "Where… where am I?"

Mario craned his sore neck around and saw that he was lying on some kind of white cloth mat in the middle of a forest clearing, his clothes gone and his hands bound behind his back. Around him, he could see dozens of small wooden huts and even more Shy Gals in jungle skirts and mask paint casually going about their days, carving toys and squishing fruit into jellies and candies.

"W-what?" Mario began to struggle against his bonds. "What's going on here? Where am I?"

"Ah, looks like you're finally awake! That's good!" A Jungle Gal walked up behind Mario and rubbed him playfully on the head. "There's only so much you can do with an unconscious body, after all, and we were starting to get bored."

"Nnngh!" Growing angry, Mario began struggling more against his bonds. "Where are my friends? What did you do with them?"

"Oh, you don't have to worry about them anymore," the Jungle Gal answered casually. "My friends are busy spitroasting them as we speak."

"Spitroasting?" Mario gasped. "No, wait… you wouldn't! You monsters!"

"Eh? What are you talking about? Of course we would!" The Jungle Gal walked up to the hut behind Mario and pushed aside the brown cloth that served as the door, revealing that quite the crowd was inside. All his friends were there and tied similarly to the way he was, and each and every one of them had two Shy Gals resting on top of them - one over their mouths and another over their groins with long, pink dildos connecting their pussies. "Everyone loves a good spitroasting!"

"O-oh… so that's what you meant…" Mario blushed and looked away.

"Well, duh! What the heck did you think I meant by spit roasting?" The Jungle Gal asked.

"N-nothing, I just thought for a moment that… well…" Mario trailed off.

"... Hey! I'll have you know that's a very shameful stereotype, and you should be ashamed!" The Jungle Gal scolded. "Now, come on - it's time for your turn!"

"W-wait a second!" Mario called out as he was dragged to the center of the hut. "Can't we talk about-mph!"

"Sure, we can talk!" the Jungle Gal replied as she hiked up the hem of her hoodie and forced her pussy into Mario's face, muffling him. "Just so long as you don't mind talking to my other mouth. Don't worry, though; she's quite the chatterbox!"

Mario struggled but there was little he could do to try and shake her off - in fact, that seemed to encourage her to press herself into his face even harder as her soft thighs wrapped around his face.

"Oh, give it a rest already! You know there's no way that you're going to get out of here," another Shy Gal said as she sat herself on Mario's groin so she could start grinding against his hardening cock. "You should be more like your bomb friend over there; she's gotten into it!

A few feet away, Bombette was currently tongue-deep inside a Jungle Gal in an orange hoodie, her hands gripping the Gal's thighs to give her extra leverage. The Gal riding her face was clearly loving every moment of it, her mask crooked and part of her tongue sticking out from underneath as she moaned wildly and without abandon. The Gal fucking her other end was clearly having a good time too, as she barely had to thrust with how much Bombette was doing the work for her.

"Granted, we have been fucking her like that for a few hours, so her mind might be a little bit… melty, but still, she has the right idea!"

"N-no… I… I have to save-mmph!" Mario tried to say, only for the Shy Gal to muffle him again.

"Eh, don't worry about him, sis; he'll be more cooperative by the time we're gone a few rounds with him," the one grinding against Mario's groin said before lifting herself up over Mario's tip and then dropping herself down, impaling herself on his length. "Ooooh yeah… that's the stuff! Toys may be great, but they can never… beat the real thing!"

She took a few moments to enjoy the feeling of Mario's length inside her, but she soon began picking up speed, her hips making loud wet smacks against Mario's groin with each thrust. Mario's thoughts of escape started to become a blur as he felt his length soaked in the Gal's arousal, her warm pussy seemingly growing tighter with each passing second.

"Yes that's it… give in and have a little fun!" The Gal raping Mario cooed as she felt his hips start to buck a little. "It's always better when our playmates play back! I'd hate for you to end up like that Koopa girl."

"Oooooh gosh… please… stop!" Koopie begged her captors a few feet away, her face and groin coated in girl-cum. Her body was constantly shaking as if she was having a low-grade seizure, but it was clear to anyone paying attention what was really going on; she was cumming almost constantly, to the point where she had lost control over her own body.

"But then again, maybe it'd be better if you don't get too into it…" The Gal on Mario's cock said as she aimed his dick closer to her womb. "I'm not sure if we could handle someone else like the Boo girl…"

"Come on… is that… all you've got?" Bow asked toward the back of the hut as she rubbed her clit violently into a Shy Gal's cunt underneath her, the Gal's right leg raised up over Bow's shoulder so she could get extra leverage. "Come on! You peasants wanted to do this with me so bad, so you'd better put your all into it!"

"Ooooh gosh… the whole world… is spinning!" the Jungle Gal beneath her moaned, her hoodie soaked-through with sweat as she shuddered through what felt like her hundredth orgasm that day. "I… I don't think I can tell which way is up anymore!"

"Mmm, but I can tell that you won't be like that at all…" The Gal riding Mario's dick groaned sensually and rubbed her hands across his stomach. "You're going to be a good boy for us, aren't you?"

Mario's response came in the form of a loud grunt followed by his hips bucking upward and the Gal being rewarded with the feeling of his warm seed splashing into her womb.

"Oooh~ I'll take that as a 'yes'~" Cooed and enjoyed the feeling of the fresh creampie for a moment before standing up off his body. "Alright, who's up next for the roast?"

"Oh, me! Pick me!" A Jungle Gal in a blue hoodie shouted as she ran into the hut, where she quickly got to work getting Mario hard again.

Mario and his friends would be 'spitroasted' for the rest of the day, constantly pleasing the Jungle Gals' insatiable appetite for pleasure over and over again. They just kept going and going, only stopping to let them rest when they passed out from sheer exhaustion. And then, when the next day rolled around, the Jungle Gals started their little 'game' all over again. Eventually, they became such a regular fixture in the village that it was almost as if they were always there; maskless Shy Gals who, just like the rest, existed for only two things; fun and breeding.

The End.

---

*Bad End 3*

"Aww, but we have to do this! How else are we supposed to spread our seeds?" The one who was shoving her tendrils underneath Nita's mask asked.

"Well, have you ever considered just making your own gardens? Or dating like a normal person?" Sushie replied, her voice drenched in a classic motherly scold. "Now you put them down this instant!"

Sushie's cheeks then swelled for a moment before she fired a powerful jet of water out of her mouth and into the faces of the plant girls, who each cried out in pain and surprised as they were drenched.

"Hack hack! Hey! Cut that out! Don't you know that overwatering can be bad for plants?" one of the Hurt Plants asked, her vines stopping just before they were about to tear off Goommaria's panties. The group tried a few times to attack Sushie as well, but for a woman with as much meat on her bones as she did, she was shockingly agile. "I said… cut that out!"

Enraged, the Hurt Plant summoned even more tendrils out of the ground and shot them all directly at Sushie. This time, she wasn't able to move quickly enough and found herself completely entrapped, tendrils rubbing all across her skin and underneath her swimsuit.

"Uh oh…" Sushie shivered as she felt two of the tendrils wrap tightly around her tits. "I may have overestimated my ability to win this fight… by just a little bit, I'm afraid?"

"Oh yeah, you never stood a chance against them; water makes plants stronger, after all," Rachel commented. "... Oh, wait, I should have told you that earlier, shouldn't I?"

"I-it's okay, Rachel… I know… oooh! That you were trying your best!" Goommaria mumbled through the thick vine in her mouth.

"Well, if Sushie can't help them, then maybe I can!" Mario took out his hammer and lunged at the two plant girls - only to be grabbed by vines as well and get tossed into the nearby river.

"Sorry, weedwhacker, but we're not interested in any cross-pollination here today!" one of the Hurt Plants snickered.

"Oh no! Mario!" Koopie gasped as she watched her friend be carried downstream by the current. "Don't worry, we'll save you!"

Thinking quickly, Koopie hopped out of her shell and threw it into the river before hopping onto the back of it with Kolorado and her other uncaptured friends, using it as a raft to chase after him.

"H-hey! What about us?" Bombette gasped through the vine that was still trying to force its way into her throat.

"Don't worry; we'll be sure to show you girls plenty of attention~" The Hurt Plant holding Bombette smirked as she flexed her fingers and, in an instant, the clothes of all the girls lay shredded on the ground and they were completely naked and exposed. "Now, who's ready to get their fertile pots filled?"

The four girls, with the exception of Nita, all struggled harder at that, desperate to try and escape the fate the plant women obviously had in store for them. The plant girls just laughed at their futile attempts and tightened their vines, forcing their legs to spread and their pussies to become completely exposed.

"Come on, don't be afraid! Don't meaties like you like communing with nature?" The Hurt Plants both chortled to each other as they extended four new vines to their captives' cunts, slowly rubbing the tips against their lower lips, up and down their labias. "Well, what could possibly get you closer to nature than this, huh?"

"Mmmmph!" Sushie moaned angrily and spat the tendril violating her mouth back out. "Th-this is exactly why I've always hated women like you… making love and making babies should be something that's done romantically… with care! You shouldn't just use us and toss us away like common catfish!"

"Are you sure? Because it looks to me like you're all enjoying it." The plant girl holding Nita brought the Shy Gal's pussy closer to Sushie's face. "Do you see how wet your little friend is? Her soil's practically begging for a good tilling!"

"Well… this does feel… kind of good," Nita admitted, her captor removing the vine from behind her mask to let her speak. "Maybe this is for the best… maybe if I can never be a good Anti-Gal, I'll just have to be a good garden instead."

"Yes, that's the spirit! I think someone deserves a little reward~" The vine prodding Nita's pussy pulled back and began to shift its shape, growing thicker as it formed a spiral. Then, the vine moved forward and pressed into Nita's cunt until finally piercing her like a drill, twisting as it drove all the way to her womb.

"Gah, aaaah!" Nita's eyes widened behind her mask as she felt her pussy suddenly stretched to its limit and her mind suddenly overflowed with pleasure. "W-woah! That's… quite the vine you've got there! I'm not sure… I've ever felt anything like this!"

"Of course not - compared to toys and boys, we're the best there is at making girls like you feel good!" the Hurt Plant beneath her assured her. "Though, I will warn you… the Hurt in our name isn't just for show!"

With that, the plant girl shoved a vine back into Nita's mouth and began thrusting from both ends as hard as she could, making both her throat and her lower abdomen bulge with every powerful movement.

"W-wait, hold on! Maybe we can work something ou-mmmph!" Sushie said before meeting a similar fate. Her body was pushed to its very limit by the ravenous vines while her breasts swung beneath her body, two smaller vines occasionally squeezing them and playing with her hardening nipples as she moaned helplessly into her leafy gag.

Goommaria and Bombette, meanwhile, didn't get the chance to even say anything before the vines began raping them, each Hurt Plant enjoying their holes without any mercy. One of them even added a vine to Bombette's ass while yet another tugged playfully on her blonde ponytail.

"Oooooh yeah, this is what I've been waiting for~" the Hurt Plant beneath Goommaria moaned with a shiver as she let the Goomba's juices drip down onto her head. "Waiting in the ground for all those days has finally been worth it! And to think, we managed to get four girls at once!"

"I'll say! If we accidentally caught another animal, I was going to set a forest fire!" the other agreed. "Oooh, and I can feel the seeds start to come! I hope you're ready, girls, because you're about to become four proud mothers!"

Goommaria looked down and noticed, with terror, that vines had once again changed. This time, there were several large lumps in the tentacles that were violating her mouth and pussy, and they were all slowly heading toward her body inch by inch. Goommaria tried once again to struggle herself free, but the harder she fought, the harder the tendrils seemed to hold her in place. In the end, she couldn't do anything but watch as the first orbs reached the end of the vines and began to exit out the tips, along with a thick, green fluid. In her mouth, the Goomba was forced to swallow it all in big, loud gulps, while she could feel her pussy walls tighten involuntarily as seeds began being stuffed into her folds.

Strangely enough, though, the more the seeds and goo filled her body, the more Goommaria felt herself begin to relax. It was almost as if the licorice-flavored goo was melting all her troubles away… and filling her mind with warm thoughts of getting even more seeds shoved inside her. Soon, she was no longer bothering to scream for help; but she was moaning in pure bliss.

Her friends swiftly followed her example, moaning shamelessly as the Hurt Plants filled their stomachs and cunts full-to-bursting before finally pulling out and covering their faces and bodies as well. And then, at long last, the Hurt Plants finally put the four girls back on the ground.

"Phew… that took a lot out of me," one of the plant girls said, wiping some sweat off her forehead as she pulled her vine out of Sushie's pussy.

"Yeah, but it was definitely worth it!" said the other. "Say… it looks like their friends won't be back anytime soon. What do you say we take these girls back home and do a few extra rounds of gardening with them?"

"Sure, why not?" The Hurt Plants extended their vines again and began dragging the blissful girls along the forest ground by their ankles. "Though, I think I might be able to go for more than just a 'few' rounds."

After that, the lives of Sushie, Goommaria, Nita, and Bombette became a blur as the Hurt Plants decided to make the four permanent fixtures in their homes. They were well-fed with the nutritious goo that the Hurt Plants constantly fed them with, but that also meant that their minds were so clouded with lust that none of them could spend much time thinking about anything other than sex. For the next few years, they'd be pumped with bushel after bushel of seeds. None of them grew inside them, of course, and most of the ones that made it to the ground were duds as well, but eventually they had a few little saplings to take care of along with their new, green mistresses.

Those girls would never see Mario or any of their other friends again, but eventually they couldn't bring themselves to care. Now, spending their days wearing leaves instead of clothes and fucking freely wherever their owners wished, they knew that the island, the jungle, had claimed them.

And as far as they were concerned, they wouldn't have it any other way.

The End.

---

A/N: Hey guys, I decided to do something different this time around with the Bad Ends. I figure since there's already so much to do with Mario, that there wouldn't be any harm in focusing on the other girls. Hopefully that isn't too odd. As far as Yoshi eggs are concerned, I decided to use the same logic that Monster Musume does with Harpy eggs; ie, there's not much of a moral quandary when the eggs themselves are unfertilized. It's kinda weird… yes. But there's a lot of weird stuff in Mushroom Story when you think about it. So why not?
And as I'm sure that you've guessed, the next partner's been introduced in this chapter. The vote won't happen here though, since the split hasn't happened yet and it wouldn't make sense to do it now, but I thought I may as well give you a heads up for those that were curious. I hope I wrote her well enough for you guys to like her, but I suppose we'll find out 2 chapters from now, right?
Anyways, see you in Under Tail, where I'll hopefully be able to catch up with TheWill's Under(her)tail… but probably not. Take care!