Chapter 36 Steve Glorious Steve

The Flower Kingdom. So many aspects about it stood out to Pom Pom, ranging from the vast rolling hills to the glorious blue sky. It was a very sightly landscape, complete with all sorts of flowers to fit the kingdom's name. But what was so interesting to Pom Pom in particular was the scent of the place. The flowers combined to have an absolutely delectable aroma. It smelled of roses, of lilacs; it smelled like this was a little snippet of Heaven that a wise and caring God so graciously allowed to be on this planet. Just based on the scent alone, Pom Pom could easily see why this kingdom had appealed to Viv for so many years.

Speaking of Viv, it was probably going to take a while to find her. Sure, the fact that she was such a unique creature meant that she could easily stick out in a crowd, which gave them an advantage. But did Viv even want to be found? Would she just be out in the open at this place, just strolling through Pipe Rock Plateau without anything obscuring her from view? Just based on the knowledge Pom Pom had regarding Viv's personality, that was highly unlikely.

They still needed to find her though so she and Wendy may as well keep their eyes peeled.

The girls walked through Pipe Rock Plateau for a bit, taking note of their surroundings as well as the people they passed. Naturally, most of the people who lived in the Flower Kingdom were poplins, little flower creatures that were essentially the toads of this region. And Pom Pom had to admit, it was pretty cool to see them. Like with the Beanbean Kingdom, Pom Pom's family had never been called to live in the Flower Kingdom, so she had never seen poplins in person before. If she gained nothing else from this cross-world trek, Pom Pom could at the very least say she got the opportunity to cross items off her bucket list.

Eventually, Pom Pom and Wendy got to an open-air market filled with poplins. These poplins just strolled about, smiling and greeting each other with warm demeanors. This was nice... while also being confusing.

"Why aren't any of these people panicking?" Pom Pom asked. "Everywhere else we went, people were worried about the darkness, or at the very least the Shadow Sirens's message."

Wendy laughed. "You clearly know nothing about poplins, Pom Pom." Wendy waved at a poplin who waved at her. "They don't value worry as a culture, so they just don't do it."

Pom Pom snorted. "If only it were that easy..."

"It is for them. I've interacted with poplins before, and they've explained to me that they more or less weeded worry out of their psychology." Wendy snorted. "Don't ask me how they did that, but they did it. If there's anywhere in the Mushroom World that wouldn't be panicking during the apocalypse, it's here."

"I see." It was at this point that Pom Pom realized how hungry she was. She and Wendy hadn't gotten anything to eat since… what, the peanut butter and jellies on the airship? That was a LONG time ago, and it went against the girls' original plan. Obviously, they wanted to eat in the restaurant at the hotel, and just as obviously they didn't get the opportunity to do so. So… yeah, they needed to eat something. Luckily, there were a ton of options here in this market.

"Hey Wendy, do you wanna get some of that bread?" Pom Pom asked as she pointed to a stall.

Wendy let out a big breath of relief. "I was hoping you would say that. Like, REALLY hoping." They both laughed as Wendy nodded. "But yeah, I think that'd be for the best."

So, they approached the stall. The blue poplin who ran the stall smiled when they saw the two girls. "Hello, ladies. Would you like to try some sunflower rolls?"

Wendy blinked. "Sunflower rolls? I can't say I've heard of them."

"Me neither," said Pom Pom.

The poplin laughed. "Most tourists haven't. They're basically an open and very well-kept secret here in the Flower Kingdom." The poplin pointed to the rolls sitting in front of her. Pom Pom blinked; they had what looked like a very black type of spice on the top, and every other part was yellow and VERY sticky. "I would highly recommend them; they're my specialty."

"Hmm." Wendy looked down at the rolls before nodding. "Sure. We'll take two."

The poplin grinned. Wendy handed the coins to her, and she handed them both the sunflower rolls on two paper plates. Before she put it in her mouth, Pom Pom sniffed it. It smelled pretty good, like a combination of cloves and honey. She raised it to her lips and took a bite, smiling at the subdued but very appealing sweetness.

"Hmm. Not bad."

"Thank you!" The poplin beamed. "Honestly, I think sunflower rolls tend to be an acquired taste for the tourists that come through this market. I have about a 50/50 shot of them liking them."

Wendy laughed. "Who are the fifty percent who don't like them; they need to get checked by a doctor." All three of them laughed. "But thank you very much, this was very nice."

"You are ever most welcome." The poplin looked like she had just won the lottery. Her smile was so sweet, and… you know, maybe she would have an idea as to where they would find Viv.

"Hey, mind if I ask you something?" The poplin nodded enthusiastically, so Pom Pom got closer to her. "We're looking for someone. Her name is Vivian, and she's a creature that looks like a purple shadow." Given Pom Pom's history, she felt very weird and uncomfortable giving that description, but… oh well, it needed to be done. "She has pink hair, has a tenor voice, is usually seen wearing a pink and white hat… have you seen her?"

The poplin put her hand to her chin. "Hmm. Can't say I have. But, if there's anyone who's probably seen someone like her, it's Steve. You should ask him."

Pom Pom blinked. "Steve? Who's Steve?"

"I am!"

Pom Pom and Wendy blinked again, feeling ultra confused. The poplin giggled. "Check behind my tent. He's got a bud there."

Feeling even more confused, Pom Pom and Wendy followed her instructions. When they got behind the tent, they didn't see anything except a little orange flower. And… wait, did that orange flower have eyes? Was… was that…

"Are you Steve?" asked Wendy as she approached the flower.

"You know it!" the flower responded, catching Pom Pom completely off guard. "It's nice to meet ya! You look like you aren't from here!"

Wendy chuckled as Pom Pom still tried to wrap her head around this. "Yeah, we come from pretty far away." Wendy gestured toward the cadet. "This is Pom Pom, and I'm Wendy."

"Ooh, those are pretty names! You sound like you could be movie stars!"

"Aww, thanks Steve!" Wendy said.

"You're very welcome." Steve laughed. "So, what brings you lovely ladies to the Flower Kingdom?"

"We're looking for someone named Vivian," Pom Pom said. "The poplin at the tent told us that you might have seen her." Pom Pom cringed. "Although, I don't exactly know how you could, considering you're only in one spot."

Steve laughed. "It might look like that, but I actually have spots all over the Flower Kingdom!" Pom Pom blinked as Steve explained. "You see, my roots connect with all the other Steve buds. We see and hear everything that happens everywhere!"

"Do you now?" Pom Pom asked, admittedly feeling kinda impressed.

"Yep! We're kinda like a hive mind." Steve giggled, turned his head to the left a little, and called out "Isn't that right, Steve?"

"You know it, Steve!" Steve's voice called out from behind a rock a few feet away.

Wendy and Pom Pom exchanged a look before following Steve's voice. Pom Pom felt mightily shocked to see another Steve a little ways away from the rock. When this Steve saw them, he laughed.

"Yep! I have eyes and ears EVERYWHERE!" Steve laughed, and the sound was actually kind of contagious. Pom Pom smiled and was just about to laugh herself when Steve calmed himself down. "But back to your original question. I actually know who you're talking about!"

"Oh, you've seen Vivian?" Wendy asked.

"Yep! She lives in a cottage in Petal Isles! She's actually not that far away; probably about a few hundred meters. I can lead you to her house if you want!"

Pom Pom blinked. "Uh… thanks Steve, but how exactly would you do that?"

Steve laughed. "Never underestimate the power of the almighty Steve!" He cleared his throat and started vocalizing as he flapped his leaves. "Mimimimimi…"

"Mimimimimi," another Steve echoed from a few feet away.

"Oh!" Wendy smiled. "We follow the trail of Steves!" She ran in the direction of the singing Steve. "Come on, Pom Pom!"

Pom Pom stood in place for a second. "Singing flowers leading me to the house of my childhood 'imaginary' friend." She shook her head. "I have officially seen everything."

With that, she and Wendy ran after the various Steves. It was quite an interesting experience, with these singing flowers leading to the heart of the kingdom. If Pom Pom had been told just last week that this would be happening to her, she would've laughed in the messengers face. But… that was life, she supposed. Sometimes things happened that way.

Anyway, the trail that the Steves led the girls through started to slope downward. This confused Pom Pom until she saw the Petal Isles in the distance. Surrounded mostly by water, they had sand that came in all sorts of different colors. And just based on their trajectory, it seemed Steve was leading Wendy and Pom Pom to a blue island. A little strange, but considering it was one of the least strange things to happen on this journey, Pom Pom was willing to let that slide. Sliding down the plateau and jumping over some of the rocks in their way, they splashed into the water. The water itself wasn't deep in the slightest, so they were able to get across it no problem. When they hopped on shore, they followed the vocalizing Steve for a few more turns until they got to a little cottage. It was just a simple purple poplin house with a garden beside it; not very impressive in the least. But with that said…

"You have arrived!" Steve announced. "Welcome to the house of the beautiful and elusive Vivian!"

Pom Pom's heart skipped a beat. She… she really was here. Vivian lived at this house. The Vivian, the person who Pom Pom had thought didn't exist. THE Vivian. She was here, she was in this house, and… and…

"Pom Pom, are you okay?" Wendy asked.

Pom Pom took in a shaky breath as her knees buckled. "Yeah. I'm fine." She faced the door. It was a big challenge on so many levels, but she could conquer it. She would conquer it. "Let's… let's do this."

Wendy nodded, and the approached the house. Wendy knocked on the door, but no one came. She knocked again, but still nothing.

"You can go in," Steve said. "Vivian usually doesn't mind people coming in through the front door."

Wendy and Pom Pom exchanged a look. "Uh… okay." Wendy reached out and turned the knob. Biting her lip and telling herself to get it together, Pom Pom stepped in. As Wendy closed the door, she looked around the cottage. It was so… normal. Practically nothing stood out about it; it just had a little kitchen, a little living room, a little dining room… it was so quaint.

It was also empty. Pom Pom and Wendy went around the house, keeping their eyes peeled. They checked every nook and cranny in every room, calling Vivian's name at several points. But she wasn't there. She wasn't in any of the rooms, which was… where could she have gone? Why wasn't she at home?

Well… there was one way to find out, wasn't there? After checking the rooms one final time, Pom Pom took Wendy back outside. As they closed the door, they went up to Steve, who looked at them with bright-eyed wonder.

"Find her?"

"Uh, no, we didn't," said Pom Pom. "Do you know where she might be?"

"Hmm…" Steve wore a contemplative expression. "Well, I haven't seen her leave the house since last night. She's probably sleeping."

Wendy shook her head. "We checked her bedroom. She wasn't there."

"Oh poo." Steve sighed. "That means she's sleeping in the shadow dimension again."

Pom Pom blinked. "She sleeps in the shadow dimension?"

"Yeah. She's told me about it some time ago. Apparently, it's a very peaceful place where she can go when the real world is too noisy or stressful." Steve giggled. "Makes me wish I had a shadow dimension of my own."

Pom Pom's heart sank. "Well, we don't have access to the shadow dimension, and we need to find her!"

"I see, I see." Steve thought about this before perking up. "Well, lucky for you, I think I know a way to help you there?"

"Really? How?" asked Wendy.

Steve beamed. "Follow me; I'll lead you to it."

AN: Added a bit explaining the poplin's attitude after seeing supermariobroultimate's review.