**This entire chapter will be about how Mario and company are doing back at Bowser's Castle. I made this, 'cause, well, you might all be thinking I'd forgotten about them.**
In Bowser's Castle:
"Hurry up, captives," a Hammer Bro said, "it's time to your dinner!"
"I don't like this," Toadsworth muttered, "I wonder if what they're going to feed us is actually clean."
Mario, Princess Peach, Toadsworth, and the rest of the Mushroom Kingdom Castle captives were in chains; only their hands were partially free to be able to get a tray and pick up their dinner. Princess Peach looked at the table where they were obviously going to pick their food, and made a disgusted face at the menu.
"Ugh," Princess Peach muttered, "don't they have anything good?"
Mario followed Princess Peach's gaze, and shook his head. "It's always the same old thing in Bowser's place."
"I'm not allowing this," Toadsworth mumbled low, his voice with the same level of disgust as with Princess Peach's voice. "And to think that Bowser considers himself 'royalty.' " He snorted.
"Hey," another Hammer Bro called, "are you guys going to get your dinner or not?"
"Given the choices in the menu, I'd rather starve," Toadsworth complained.
"Let's just hang on to all this—I'm sure we'll be able to get out of here soon," Mario whispered to Toadsworth, then he said to the Hammer Bro, "Yeah, we'll go and get our food."
The Hammer Bro narrowed his eyes and said, "Good—and here I thought you weren't going to. If His Majesty finds out you guys weren't eating, not only will you guys get the rage, so will I—for 'slacking' off my job."
"Really?" Mario asked, trying to make small talk with the Hammer Bro. "And I don't suppose that, after you do get 'the rage,' you'll be out of the job?"
The Hammer Bro shrugged. "Hopefully not..."
He and Mario stared at each other in silence for a long period of time.
"Well, get going," the Hammer Bro grunted all of a sudden. "Are you going to eat or do you wanna starve?"
"We'll eat," Mario said. Behind him, he heard Toadsworth's mumbled complaint about the food, then Princess Peach's soothing words:
"Relax, Toadsworth, being kidnapped by Bowser for so many games, eventually you get used to the food."
Mario looked straight, careful not to show any sign of reaction toward the voices he heard behind him. Then he looked at the food set on the table.
All the plates there were filled with all sorts of things only a creature as ghastly as Bowser himself would appreciate. Even food being served in a jail cell would be better compared to what was given here as a choice.
Of course, Mario reasoned to himself, it's not like you had better food during your years when you were always the one who had to bring back Princess Peach. He then considered it, and amended, In second thought, maybe I was way better off during my princess-rescuing years.
"Mario?"
The red plumber turned around to see Toadsworth looking at him directly with sober eyes.
"Yes, Toadsworth?"
"Will there still be hope for us to ever get out of here?"
Mario nodded without hesitation. Toadsworth looked at him with somehow doubtful eyes, as if Mario had nodded automatically without taking time to even let the words sink in.
"Yes, I believe we'll still get out of theez place...alive."
Toadsworth's eyes widened.
Mario sighed. "I know, I know, it's not a-going to be easy...But I do know Luigi and Yoshi are out there." He then looked straight, as if he were looking somewhere that wasn't around the walls of Bowser's Castle, his eyes set somehow else; Toadsworth could tell the plump Mario Brother wasn't talking to him anymore. "They're coming for us—they'll save us this time around. And I know it won't be long before we a-finally get out of here."
"I can see you have unwavering faith on your brother, Mario, but...how far have those two gone?"
Mario broke from his reverie then; his eyes blinked as if his focus had been taken back to Bowser's Castle; his eyes focused on the grave expression on Toadsworth's face. Toadsworth was expecting an answer, but Mario didn't have one, so it took him a minute to choose his words carefully.
"I have no idea."
**Original FanFiction Chapter link: link
In Bowser's Castle:
"Hurry up, captives," a Hammer Bro said, "it's time to your dinner!"
"I don't like this," Toadsworth muttered, "I wonder if what they're going to feed us is actually clean."
Mario, Princess Peach, Toadsworth, and the rest of the Mushroom Kingdom Castle captives were in chains; only their hands were partially free to be able to get a tray and pick up their dinner. Princess Peach looked at the table where they were obviously going to pick their food, and made a disgusted face at the menu.
"Ugh," Princess Peach muttered, "don't they have anything good?"
Mario followed Princess Peach's gaze, and shook his head. "It's always the same old thing in Bowser's place."
"I'm not allowing this," Toadsworth mumbled low, his voice with the same level of disgust as with Princess Peach's voice. "And to think that Bowser considers himself 'royalty.' " He snorted.
"Hey," another Hammer Bro called, "are you guys going to get your dinner or not?"
"Given the choices in the menu, I'd rather starve," Toadsworth complained.
"Let's just hang on to all this—I'm sure we'll be able to get out of here soon," Mario whispered to Toadsworth, then he said to the Hammer Bro, "Yeah, we'll go and get our food."
The Hammer Bro narrowed his eyes and said, "Good—and here I thought you weren't going to. If His Majesty finds out you guys weren't eating, not only will you guys get the rage, so will I—for 'slacking' off my job."
"Really?" Mario asked, trying to make small talk with the Hammer Bro. "And I don't suppose that, after you do get 'the rage,' you'll be out of the job?"
The Hammer Bro shrugged. "Hopefully not..."
He and Mario stared at each other in silence for a long period of time.
"Well, get going," the Hammer Bro grunted all of a sudden. "Are you going to eat or do you wanna starve?"
"We'll eat," Mario said. Behind him, he heard Toadsworth's mumbled complaint about the food, then Princess Peach's soothing words:
"Relax, Toadsworth, being kidnapped by Bowser for so many games, eventually you get used to the food."
Mario looked straight, careful not to show any sign of reaction toward the voices he heard behind him. Then he looked at the food set on the table.
All the plates there were filled with all sorts of things only a creature as ghastly as Bowser himself would appreciate. Even food being served in a jail cell would be better compared to what was given here as a choice.
Of course, Mario reasoned to himself, it's not like you had better food during your years when you were always the one who had to bring back Princess Peach. He then considered it, and amended, In second thought, maybe I was way better off during my princess-rescuing years.
"Mario?"
The red plumber turned around to see Toadsworth looking at him directly with sober eyes.
"Yes, Toadsworth?"
"Will there still be hope for us to ever get out of here?"
Mario nodded without hesitation. Toadsworth looked at him with somehow doubtful eyes, as if Mario had nodded automatically without taking time to even let the words sink in.
"Yes, I believe we'll still get out of theez place...alive."
Toadsworth's eyes widened.
Mario sighed. "I know, I know, it's not a-going to be easy...But I do know Luigi and Yoshi are out there." He then looked straight, as if he were looking somewhere that wasn't around the walls of Bowser's Castle, his eyes set somehow else; Toadsworth could tell the plump Mario Brother wasn't talking to him anymore. "They're coming for us—they'll save us this time around. And I know it won't be long before we a-finally get out of here."
"I can see you have unwavering faith on your brother, Mario, but...how far have those two gone?"
Mario broke from his reverie then; his eyes blinked as if his focus had been taken back to Bowser's Castle; his eyes focused on the grave expression on Toadsworth's face. Toadsworth was expecting an answer, but Mario didn't have one, so it took him a minute to choose his words carefully.
"I have no idea."
**Original FanFiction Chapter link: link