Acorn Plains- Book One (COMPLETED)

-TWELVE-

"Look. I know you know I don't really like you. And I don't. By any means. But we have to talk about something."

I look up from sharpening a branch into a spear into Daisy's big blue eyes. "Now?"

"Yes. While we're alone. Look, honey," she says, sitting on the log with me. "I know you have a thing for Rosalina. And you need to get rid of it. You can't like her."

I gulp. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

She rolls her eyes. "Come on. 'Oh, Rosalina, we're all alone so let's talk quietly behind Daisy's back.'" She smirks. "But seriously. Back off."

"What does it matter to you?" I grumble, looking back down at my spear.

She scoffs. "Um, you're supposed to be marrying my other best friend?"

I look at her. "You know Peach doesn't want to marry me. We all do."

She shrugs. "She'll do anything for her people. You know, I always found that funny."

"What?" I ask.

"She's always said she doesn't want to be queen. But she loves her people like a queen would. And she'll fight for them to have the best lives they can."

I freeze and look at her. "She doesn't want to be queen?"

She shakes her head. "You didn't know that?"

I shake my head. "No. Of course not."

"Oh. Okay, well, you're marrying Peach so leave Rosalina alone. She doesn't like you. She's in a relationship with someone else."

"Who?" I ask, not believing her.

"No one," she says, getting up. She dusts off her hands. "Just know she's not available." She walks away.

I roll my eyes and continue sharpening. 

Next thing I know, Luigi sits next to me. 

"Hey, little bro," I tell him, not looking at him.

"Hi," he says quietly. 

"What are you up to?"

He shrugs. "Nothing... literally."

I laugh. "Yeah, I'm just making a spear for tonight. I know you guys would like to eat something other than protein bars. And, well, we're running low."

Luigi looks at me with wide eyes. "How low? We're only in Acorn Plains... The layer-cake desert is next. Without these bars, however much we hate them, we will starve."

I gulp and set the spear on the ground in front of me. I turn so I'm completely facing him. "I will not let us starve." My voice cracks. I pull him into a tight hug. I don't want to think of the road ahead, but I know I have to. I'm the one leading the way. "Where are Rosalina and Daisy?" I ask.

"I don't know," he says, pulling away. "It's almost night-fall."

"Yeah," I breathe, worried that they're hurt.

Then I hear a soft giggle behind the brush. I look at Luigi and nod that way. He glances at me, then there, and nods. We get up and walk slowly over there, me grabbing the spear. We pull back the leaves and I yell and raise the spear and- stop. A little green thing stands there grinning.

"Hello-o!" he squeals excitedly. "I am Yoshi! Jest of the Western Mushroom Kingdom and Servant to His Majesty."

"Yoshi?!"

I look behind me and see Daisy. "Yoshi, what the fuck are you doing here?"

He giggles. "Ah, milady Daisy! My absolute favorite maiden in the land!" He screams and hobbles over to him, his large green feet causing tiny vibrations in the ground. 

Yoshi was shorter than me, but a little taller than a toad. He had a big snout and small beady eyes. He was a little chubby.

He wraps his tiny arms around Daisy and she howls. "Get off of me Yoshi! I SWEAR TO GOD!"

Yoshi wails and falls back on his bottom.

"What the heck is going on?" Rosalina asks, coming into the clearing. "Aren't we supposed to be keeping quiet?"

"Yes," Luigi says to her. The rest of us ignore her. I don't even know if Daisy hears her. 

"No, no, no! Go back home, Yoshi! You don't belong here!" Daisy says, pointing in a random direction.

"Waaaaah!"

"Oh, my god, okay," I say. "Hey! Yoshi!"

"What?" He whines.

"Why are you here?"

He grins and stands back up. "His Royal Majesty sent me to get word on your journey!" He looks around. "Where's Kinopio?"

We all tense up. We still hadn't talked about him since his... passing. 

"He's gone," Rosalina says.

I look back at her. She's holding her head high, but I wonder just how much of that confidence is fake. 

"Oh. Well, may he rest in peace! Did he have a proper burial? What on earth happened?" He sprouts off about a hundred different questions at once. 

"Shut the fuck up, Yoshi," Daisy tells him.

Rosalina laughs. 

I roll my eyes. "Are you joining us, Yoshi?"

He nods. "Until you reach the Layer-Cake Desert. Which isn't too far away, if you ask me. Which, thank god. I would hate to face the same fate as Toad."

Daisy smacks him on the top of the head. He falls back on the ground and cries again. 

"Hey. Hey! Everybody, knock it off! Okay. Daisy, please stop staring at him like you're going to murder him. Yoshi, have you brought any food?"

"Um, yes! I have brought yummy toadcakes!" he exclaimed, waving his arms above his head.

"Toadcakes? Yoshi, that won't fill us up."

"Maybe not you," he mumbles. He pulls a red apple out of his yellow pouch. 

"Yoshi, you have apples?" I ask.

His eyes go wide and he shakes his head, trying to hide it. "Mine."

"That's not nice Yoshi!" Daisy yells, strangling him. 

"Waaaah!"

"Oh my lord, knock it off! Both of you! Can't we all be adults here? Daisy, honestly, why do you hate him so much?" I ask, sighing.

She shrugs. "He's Yoshi."

I shake my head. "No. You need to get along. We're not going to be with him for long. You can deal with it. We're a team, remember?"

Rosalina nods. "He's right."

Daisy looks at her, question in her eyes. "I mean, I guess, if he agrees," she says, pointing to Yoshi.

"Yes," he groans.

"I agree. We have to stick together," Luigi says in his quiet voice.

I smile. "Thank you. Now. Is everyone ready to hunt?"