A prince in the ocean (spin-off)

(10) Bowser's fury

One day, Cloud was having the princess and princes practice their music for their late mother's birthday. Noctis swam over and whispered to Mario,

"I have something really important to show you."

The young prince smiled, desperate to get away from music practice, and swam to the hideout. It was only after the song finished that Cloud and the siblings noticed Mario's absence.

"Somebody has to nail that boy's fins to the floor." Cloud sighed. A hammer bro swam up to Cloud and the royals, calling his name.

"Urgent message from King Koopa, he wants to see you right away. Something about Mario." The hammer bro told the guard.

Cloud gasped. "He knows." He thought.

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Cloud nervously swam in to the throne room, looking at his king.

"You wanted to see me sire?" Cloud asked, trying to keep the fear from his voice.

"Cloud, I'm sure you noticed how Mario has been acting recently," the king said to the knight, "Moping around, talking to himself, tossing and turning at night."

Cloud was dead nervous, he almost didn't catch the playfulness in Bowser's voice. Cloud struggled to find a suitable answer to his king's queries.

"Cloud, you know you can tell me anything." Bowser said sympathetically, thinking he knew how Cloud was going to answer. The knight cracked under the pressure.

"I tried to stop him sir!" Cloud exploded, "But he wouldn't listen to me! I told him that Mobians were dangerous but he never—"

"Mobians?" Bowser's confusion quickly turned to fury, "WHAT ABOUT MOBIANS!?"

Cloud realised what he said and quickly slammed his hands over his mouth. Then asked, quite pathetically, "Who said anything about Mobians?"

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"Why can't you tell me what the surprise is?" Mario asked as he swam after Noctis, clearly excited.

"Then it wouldn't be a surprise, duh." Noct chuckled at his friend's excitement.

The two arrived at the cove and Mario gasped at the sight of the Sonic statue.

"It's wonderful Noctis! It even has his eyes!" He took to it right away.

"Why Sonic?" The prince daydreamed aloud, "Me? Swim away with you? Gee, this is so sudden." He giggled happily until he felt a pair of eyes burning into the back of his head.

"P-papa!" Mario turned around and gasped at the angry eyes of his father, followed by Luigi and Cloud, the former looking scared and the latter looking guilty.

Bowser looked around and sighed at the sight of Mario's collection.

"I consider myself a reasonable Koopa," he said in a calm, but nigh threatening, tone of voice as he looked at his youngest son. "I set certain rules, and I expect those rules to be obeyed."

"But Papa-"

"Is it true you stopped a Mobian drowning, Mario!?"

"I had to-"

"Contact between the people of Mobius and the people of Mushroom is strictly forbidden! Mario, you know that."

"He would have died, though."

"Why should you care? They're all the same! Savage, cruel and heartless fish eaters! Incapable of anything feeling like—"

"Because he loves him, Papa!" Luigi exclaimed for his twin, his sadness dissolving for a second before his dad's burning eyes turned from his youngest to his second-to-youngest.

"Mario, is what Luigi told me true!?" Bowser asked, worse than furious. Not waiting for an answer, Bowser told his youngest, "He's a Mobian, you're a merman!"

"Like I give a fish!" Mario used an abbreviation of what Cloud would say when he hid what he would have said, and Bowser's burning eyes made him regret it immediately.

"I cannot believe this." Bowser sighed again. "I'm sorry boys, but if this is the only way to get through to you two, you leave me no other option."

Bowser pulled out a sceptre and waved it around. Instantly, Mario's collection self-destructed, much to the twin princes' dismay.

Mario sobbed nonstop when Sonic's statue got destroyed, he ordered his friends and twin to leave after his father left.

After a few seconds of sobbing, two new voices joined the cove and a comforting hand found it's way onto Mario's back.

"Poor child," one voice said,

"Poor sweet child," said the other,

"He has a very serious problem, doesn't he Sephiroth?" One voice asked,

"Yes, he does Ardin." Sephiroth sighed, rubbing the miserable prince's back, "I don't know what we could do to help him."

"Hm, perhaps our boss can." Ardin said.

Mario looked up at the two mermen, a little scared,

"W-what do you mean?" He asked, his sorrow giving way to fear.

"Don't be scared," Ardin reassured, "Our boss, Boo, can help you get your prince."

Mario hesitated. "No, I don't make deals with evil uncles."

"Oh well," Sethiroth sighed as he began to swim away, "We were only suggesting anyway." The silver haired merman purposely knocked down Sonic's statue with his tail.

Mario looked at the destroyed statue for a few seconds before turning to the mermen. "Wait." He ordered.

"Yes?" The mermen asked slyly.