When we got back to Beanbean, the ice was worse than when we left. Luma has grabbed a pair of ice skates for us before we left, and we put them on. I like ice skating, but I'm not too fond of doing it into the wind. It was absolutely freezing as Waluigi and I slowly made our way towards Brian's ship. We arrived, and no one was there. Concerned, I called for Booling. He appeared, and explained that everyone had defeated Mr. E for the time being, and that they went back to the palace, mentioning that Peasley was getting better. Waluigi and I ice skated back to the palace, and managed to break open the ice around the door. Brian stood up, preparing to fight, but put away his sword when he saw Luma fly through the door. Brian shouted that we were back, and that there was no need for alarm.

"What's going on?" Waluigi asked softly.

"Peasley got hurt while you and Waluigi were gone." He explained. "He has recovered a lot, however, and should be getting out soon. Fiamo is freaking out about it, though…"

"Where are they?" I asked.

"You can bring him here if you want; I feel that he would be more comfortable that way. They are both upstairs with Rose in Peasley's room."

I nodded, thanking him. After taking off the skates, I put on my normal shoes and made my way upstairs. It was a little warmer, but not by much. I made my way to Peasley's room, and Fiamo was sitting on the ground next to it. His eyes were closed and his face looked like it was fighting. I rested my hand on his, and he looked up at me. He smiled softly, but it diminished as soon as it appeared. He sighed softly. After talking him into coming downstairs with me, he started to break.

"Man, today is the day to break." I spoke lightly.

"I know about Waluigi; Luma filled me in while you were gone." Brian spoke lightly as we came down the stairs. "Rose is on edge of breaking for the same reason. Mario was scared for you, but he didn't cry…we're just one big paranoid family."

Fiamo laughed a little. "I am a lot better than earlier, mind you."

"That's good to hear." I answered.

We were all holding a nice chat, and Rose came down the stairs a few minutes later, saying that Peasley was alright. He came down as well, and he and Fiamo spoke softly to one another. Mario joined the rest of us. We were going to head into the Conference Room to speak again, but the door slowly opened. We all backed up, and Mr. E walked in, darkness swirling around him. He let off a small chuckle as the door closed behind him, sealing off our exit.

"It is time." E spoke his voice thick with rage. "I must put an end to this…madness."

"Madness?" Rose asked. "I think that is the wrong word to choose unless you are talking about yourself."

Mr. E laughed as he blasted a beam of darkness. Peasley dashed off, going to retrieve his weapon. Rose followed him, and they both came back with speed. Brian drew his weapon, and also pulled out what looked like a bottle filled with red liquid. All the sudden he threw it at the ground, and red smoke pillowed all throughout. I felt my energy increase, and I smiled, knowing that he healed all of us by making a normal Power Mushroom dissolve into a liquid. When mixed with oxygen, it can turn into a smoke, and anyone who inhales it is healed.

I learned a lot of weird tricks while I hung out with Gadd once upon a time.

I rolled my neck and cloaked my hands and arms with flames. Mario followed suit, and Fiamo came back with his quiver full of arrows and his bow. Apparently he had used the explosion to cover his escape to grab his weapon. He had an arrow already out and prepared to shoot.

"Don't think for a minute that this will be easy." E hissed.

He spread his arms wide, and all the sudden stakes materialized in midair and struck the ground. They all landed in a circle around him, making a force field of darkness. He laughed in wicked glee as we gathered our strength for the battle. Mario threw a fireball at him, but the darkness reflected the attack. Mario got out of the way just in time. Peasley attacked from behind, taking out one of the stakes and making an opening. Following suit, Brian and I started taking out the stakes. Mr. E was firing darkness at us as we did this, but we soon disarmed his force field. A few arrows were shot at E, but he dodged them with ease. I electrocuted him with lightning and Mario punched him in the gut with flames. Rose held him in place by making a wall of wind behind him as Fiamo released more arrows. E broke out of the prison, and summoned two orbs of energy.

"Slow down, Mr. E." Wendy spoke as she waked through the door.

I upped my defense when she came into the room. She strutted into the room in a purple spaghetti strap mini dress and a red necklace. The earrings matched, and her hair was done up nice. The most horrifying thing was the red go-go boots she was wearing along with them. She laughed a sweet and bitter laugh as she winked at Waluigi.

"My, she does now how to pick them." She spoke her voice not her own.

"I got this, Wendy." Mr. E hissed.

She turned to him. "Do you now? You look pretty beaten up, and there isn't a scratch on the others."

Her voice returned, and a small deep laughed came from her as she approached us. She slowly walked towards Fiamo, who had an arrow out and ready to shoot. She rested her hand on his shoulder, and slowly slid it down his arm.

"That feels strange and awkward." He answered before she could ask. "You're trying to flirt with me when I don't have any kind of interest in you."

"That… can easy be changed." She whispered.

"No not really." Fiamo pulled away. "Not only are you extremely creepy, but your taste in clothing is too bad for me to get past."

I almost snorted.

"Why don't you like me?" she attempted to be seductive.

He jumped out of the way and shot her hand with an arrow. "As I mention earlier; you aren't my type."

"Well, then…" she threw ice at him as she continued talking. "What are you interested in if not me?"

Fiamo dodged with ease and continued to fire arrows at her. "Well, it is already established that I don't like you. As Wendy, I would, based on the stories I have heard from your boyfriend and sister. But not this…whatever the hell you are now. You're not the Wendy I was told about."

"That's right; I am better. Wait…boyfriend?" she asked horrified.

I laughed. Waluigi even snickered.

"Wow…" Fiamo spoke. "That's low of you. Beside the point, you're not my type."

"That was already mentioned. I will ask one more time; what is your type?"

He flashed a cocky smile. "Well, I hate to tell you that I will be taken if everything goes as planned. I have a good feeling that it will. All I can say that it is something you can't pull off."

"I'm up for the challenge."

"Well, if you can make a gender swap right here right now, then we'll talk." Wendy's face was horrified and Fiamo laughed "Didn't think so."

"I thought you said you had this fight, Wendy." Waluigi stepped in. "I am quite disappointed by the effort."

She faced him. "Well, as you can see, I am not wearing the most appropriate battle attire."

"And whose fault is that?"

"Wendy, go get ready." E spoke up, "You have… things… to do. I'll handle them."

"Don't disappoint again." Wendy hissed as she walked out.

Mr. E faced us and drew back his hood. "I am going to give this to you flat. If you want to try and stop the revival, then you better listen well. Put your weapons away, or I will say nothing."

A few minutes of silence passed between all of us. Sighing, Fiamo gave in and placed his remaining arrows in the quiver and his bow back on his back. Peasley and Brian put away their blades and the rest of us released our spells.

"Good. Now, I am going to tell you where it is and when it will happen."

"Why are you telling us?" I asked.

He faced me. "You're not the only one who doesn't want this revival to happen. Come to the clearing between Beanbean and the Mushroom Kingdom tonight; I will be waiting for you there."

With that, he disappeared within his own dark portal.

"I feel that this is a trap." Rose mused.

"I think the same, but the problem is that he is the only one who knows where the seal is." Mario responded.

"He is right." Booling spoke behind me. "Pardon me for hiding in your hat, Luigi, but it was the only way I could join you in the middle of the day."

"No wonder Luma hasn't been there." I spoke lightly.

"Anyways," Booling spoke. "The seal is in between the two kingdoms where you and Daisy fought the Shroobs. The vines she summoned weakened the seal, allowing the revival to take place. It wasn't her fault; it would have happened eventually."

I nodded slowly.

"The only choice we have is to follow." Peasley proclaimed. "We have stopped a revival before; we can stop another."

After speaking for a few hours on the matter, it was decided that we go to the clearing. We all went our separate ways to do some things before heading out into the cold. Mario was making sure we had all the equipment. Luma sat on my shoulder and chatted with Booling. Brian and Rose were cleaning the blades. Noticing that the other three were missing, I asked them about it.

"I think Waluigi went to practice the piano." Brian spoke softly. "I can hear it from here."

Thanking them, I went through the castle and found all three of them. Just as Brian said, Waluigi was playing a small song on the piano based on memory. It was slow and full of passion. A few measures into it, Peasley joined in, playing the violin. Fiamo was sitting in a chair off to the side, just listening to the music. I smiled at him as I sat down. He smiled back, and we both listened. Luma moved to the piano and sat on Waluigi's shoulder, admiring his handiwork. A few minutes passed, and both of them stopped.

"I didn't know you played violin, Peasley." Waluigi said patting Luma on the head.

"I had the choice of piano or violin. I can't really perform my emotions sitting down. I have to be able to walk around a little." Peasley walked over to Fiamo, and played a slow melody, walking around him. "Besides, I like how I can change moods drastically depending on how fast I move the bow. I can easily turn a ballad into a dance by picking up the tempo. It is possible with a piano, but it gets complicated because you might miss a key or two."

"Then why do you have one?" Waluigi asked putting the cover over the keys.

"The King used to play it." Peasley placed the violin under his chin and played softly as he continued, "He went on a mission years ago and never returned. The Queen couldn't get rid of the piano; it is one of the last things remaining of him. I know how to play it, but I don't very often. It makes her sad."

"Is that why you chose the violin?" Fiamo asked softly.

"Partly. I don't want to address it too much. Let's enjoy the moment we have before fighting, shall we? Waluigi, you are more than welcome to continue to play the piano. I actually would prefer it."

Nodding, Waluigi went back to the ivory keys, and strummed a short ditty to warm up his fingers. Both the musicians continued to play the song they were earlier, and Fiamo and I enjoyed the music. Luma enjoyed it, too; he hovered close to Peasley (he moved too much for Luma to sit in his shoulder), watching in interest. After a little bit, Peasley noticed, and handed Luma the bow, teaching him how to play it. Pushing a chair closer to him with his foot, Peasley sat down and held the violin as Luma slowly pushed and pulled the bow across the strings. Together, they played a small song. Waluigi added himself into it by playing a simple chord over and over softly. Once the song closed, Luma thanked him with a cheerful squeal, and I smiled as he came back, saying that he was a musical Luma.

Waluigi closed the lid again, and stepped out after thanking Peasley. I followed, leaving Fiamo and Peasley to themselves. I approached Waluigi, and he sighed. Luma flew up to him, took his hat, and chanted that he had it. He flew around and around in circles, doing different dances as he passed Waluigi and I. After Waluigi started smiling, Luma gave him his hat back.

"Play piano pretty." Luma piped at him. "Practice for Nice Doctor Lady. Play when she come back, okay?" Waluigi nodded and Luma hit his nose before the smile diminished. "No sad. Happy."

Brian approached us, saying that it was time to go. I turned to go get the other two, but they had just come out, holding hands and speaking to one another. We gathered the rest of the crew and got into our winter attire. After checking that we had everything, we put on our ice skates, and slowly made our way to the revival area.

The travel there was slow and very cold. We kept our conversations to a minimal; no use wasting the energy that could be used to keep us warm. We were in a bird's flying formation: Waluigi was leading the pack, Rose and I were behind him, Mario was behind me and Fiamo and Peasley were talking up the rear. Once we got to the clearing, we slowed down to a complete stop.

"Where are they?" Rose's muffled voice asked through a blue scarf.

"I'm afraid that this is not the right place." Brian answered through a skier's mask (how the hell did he get one of those?). It covered the entire lower part of his face, and the only thing exposed was his eyes. "Is this where you fought the Shroobs, Luigi?"

Suddenly stakes fell from the sky, trapping us through dark magic. Mr. E's voice echoed off the ice as he appeared in front of us.

"I must say that that was easier than I had expected it to be." He laughed.

"Excellent job, Mr. E." Dimentio appeared in the middle of the air. "I told you that they were gullible."

"Shall we start the show?"

Dimentio laughed a possessed wicked laugh filled with vial glee. It sent chills through all of us. He floated above us, and made the dark forces invisible around us. The red circle from where the spell was cast was still visible, telling us that we were still imprisoned. Peasley, who was wearing a scarf and a hooded cloak, took off his gloves and gave them to Fiamo, saying that he needed them more than he. I felt Mario rub his hands up and down my arms, trying to keep me warm. I noticed that we were slowly moving closer, trying to prevent the others from freezing to death. I cupped my hands over my heart, trying to keep Luma from freezing.

We watched in terror as Dimentio flew higher in the air, and raised his hands above his head. The jewels on his hat flickered with life, and all the sudden a complex series of pictures and words in an unrecognizable language appeared on the ice in front of us.

"Surge magistrum…" Dimentio chanted as Mr. E joined him in the air.

"Tenebras meas, docebit vos." Mr. E echoed as Dimentio voiced his.

"Per glaciem sanabo vulnerati tui corde." Wendy stood next to us. She was wearing a slutty version of a purple ceremonial outfit and carrying a golden staff with a red jewel on top as well as wearing King Boo's crown.

The three villains strung their sentences together, echoing them and chanting them until it got into a cluttered chaotic mess. Surge magistrum. Tenebras meas, docebit vos. Per glaciem sanabo vulnerati tui corde. They echoed it off of each other until it made no sense. The seal glowed and pulsed as the chanting continued. A few terrifying minutes passed, and a loud crack exploded in the air, causing the chanting to stop and making me jump. There was a nasty, jagged crack in the middle of the seal. Mr. E floated just above the crack, and summoned more spears of darkness. Each one landed in the seal, outlining the circumference.

Everyone stopped chanting; it was deathly silent as Wendy froze each spear and connected them together like a spider making a web. Once it was done, Mr. E raised high in the air, summoned one more spear and held on to it. As he did, he added more and more darkness to it. The ground started vibrating like a terrible earthquake. The vibrations grew more intense and before I lost my balance, he let out a terrifying scream of rage and fury as he broke the ice web and drilled it through the seal, shattering the design on the ice. He held his position as the seal fractured. Each break echoed off of the icy terrain and soon the entire seal dissolved into the ice again. Mr. E stepped back, and as soon as he stopped moving, the ground exploded and ice covered clay rained on all of us. The most terrifying monster emerged from the deadly opening that was carved into the earth. I felt the terror possess the entire group as the ice demon pulled itself out of his prison. Its head; a giant skull made of pure ice, came inches away from us and roared in fury and glee of freedom.

"Welcome back, Master." Dimentio spoke as he appeared next to us. "We brought you a little 'house warming' gift for you."

The barrier was removed from around us, and all the sudden an arrow stuck itself in Dimentio's shoulder. He spun around and growled at us. Fiamo drew another arrow and shot at the skull. It bounced off of him, but that didn't stop Fiamo from firing a hailstorm of arrows as we got out of the situation. Everyone scrambled, and soon Waluigi and I were leading the pack. Every once in a while, we would scatter so we wouldn't get caught all at once. We finally got back to the Mushroom Kingdom and showed no signs of slowing down. We booked it all the way to Waluigi's house.

"Marco!" I shouted at the top of my lungs.

I was still weak from all of the "sprinting" that I had done the last few seconds, but I was thankful when the front door opened and Daisy was standing there, responding "polo". I read the shock and terror on her face as she stepped aside. I think we were all too frightened to care; we skated as hard and fast as we could to the front door. I got in first, and somehow managed to get out of the way as the rest of the group flew through the door. As soon as the last person entered, Daisy slammed the door shut. There were a few tense moments of silence. Everyone was deathly still, uncertain and too tired to do anything else. The only sound that was heard (other than the fire in the fireplace) was the breathing of everyone trying to catch their breath.

All the sudden Peasley choked back a sob. Fearing something terrible, Fiamo held him, asking what was wrong. An uneasy moment passed as Peasley tried to compose himself, but he couldn't bring himself to calm down.

"We're…we're alive." He finally broke down. "Oh my fucking god, we're alive."

Slowly, Fiamo pulled a rose out of his jacket, and handed it to Peasley. He adjusted a little bit, and Peasley sat on his lap and leaned his head against Fiamo's chest. He finally let go, and he cried freely as Fiamo held him close. He stroked his hand through his hair slowly as Peasley buried his face into his chest.

"There is no reason to cry, Peasley." Fiamo spoke lightly as he cupped the Prince's face.

"I was afraid…" he whispered. "I was afraid that I would suffer the same fate as the King. He…he went on a mission and…and never came back. I…I…"

"Peasley, Peasley…calm down. Everything is alright. I am here to protect you. I will be here to protect you when you need it, as you will with me; that was the promise we made to each other. You have a giant heart, but you hide it in your need to be a strong figure towards your people in their time of need. The blessing is that I am the only one that sees past this defense, and see the man deep inside your heart. I would carry on and on about your eyes and face…but it is the heart I am most in love with."

Peasley sniffed and pulled away to wipe away his tears. He tried to pull himself together again, but he was still fighting. Fiamo gently rested his hand on his, and they held hands.

"Your smile and your laugh tell me that you are happy and content; I don't want to see you cry." Fiamo spoke as he slowly brushed hair away from Peasley's eyes. "Please, don't cry anymore."

The prince smiled, and whispered his thanks. Before anything else could happen, Fiamo threw the entire crew off guard when he leaned in and kissed Peasley.

"No." Fiamo whispered. "Thank you."