"Hey you stupid crocodile! Gimme back my coin!" Mallow exclaimed.
"Wake up!" came the response.
"No. I'm going to get you now and I'm not dreaming."
The crocodile pulls a bomb out of his bag and throws it right at Mallow... Bam! Mallow grabbed his head in pain.
"Jiggly jig jiggly!"
"Huh?" Mallow said, opening his eyes. "What the-?" He was back in the Cave of Many Voices.
"You were dreaming about a "crocodile" and "coin." I told you to 'Wake up' but you wouldn't so Jigglypuff whacked your head," Rita explained.
"Oh."
"Wanna talk about it?"
"Uh, maybe after the war is over here."
"The- ? Oh my goodness you're right! I wasn't thinking! We have a battle going on outside. Let's go back out there," Rita said.
"Oh, don't get that worked up. Yeah, we'll go help finish things, but there isn't all that much more to worry about. We got rid of a lot of these things and those other guys got a rid of a few," Mallow responded.
"A few? They got rid of a lot too when we arrived and they had been fighting for a while before we even arrived, considering all the bodies that already covered the ground. And that rumbling is gone too. So they must've taken care of the big one you couldn't."
"I could have; I chose not to since they seem "better" as I said before."
"Will you please drop that? Oh, and by the way, did you recover your Flower Points?"
"No. I need a full sleep, not a short nap like this one. I still have some power though. How are your wounds?"
"They are fine," Rita told him. But it was a good thing Mallow hadn't asked how her wounds felt, or her answer would have been different. "I'm going to go outside and get a good look around."
"But Rita, your-"
"Wounds are healing, thanks to you. Don't worry. I'm just looking." So Rita left through the opening, paused, then shouted, "They're gone!"
Mallow chuckled. "Told you we got rid of most of 'em."
"Some of those things are still here. All those good fighting guys are gone. The dinosaurs are doing the fighting," Rita said in despair.
"What!?" Mallow asked in disbelief. "They deserted us! They really don't want us around!"
"Uh, Mallow, I may not know "times" perfectly yet, but I think we were sleeping for over an hour. They can't just wait around for us. How could they have found us in here anyway? Do you think it wise to look for three new faces for an hour during a life or death situation like this when they won't even work with you?"
"We wouldn't -!?"
"Yeah. After they got too busy to hear you say Jigglypuff's plan, you've been blowing them off completely. You wouldn't even help them with that earthshake maker."
What could Mallow say besides she was right? It wasn't those guys' fault they had to go and fight elsewhere. Yet he intentionally has been ignoring them.
He sighed and said, "You being right is getting old, Rita. Okay, let's go out there and help the dinosaurs fight the last of these things, and if we see those guys again, I'll try to work with them."
"Thanks," Rita said with a smile.
"Jig Jig Jig Jiggly!"
"Psychopath... Oh. Okay. I'll let them know."
"What did she say?"
"She looks forward to fighting alongside those guys too, and also teaching them manners."
"Uh, manners? What was wrong with them?"
"She had said that boys always could use more manners."
"Oh. Well I don't know if we'll see them again or not, but let's go out and protect the Great Valley!" Rita shouted, but as she started to hurry out, although she tried to hide it, Mallow noticed her wince.
"I summon Snowy!" He shouted, and a large snowman appreared, blocking her path.
"Mallow?"
"Look Rita. Would you keep me from worrying at the cost of your life? I can see your pain. Your wounds can't be fully healed if you have to wince like that just to move. Do you think I'd worry less if you weren't alive to worry about?"
Mallow's words stunned Rita. He was the right one now. She didn't want her friends to feel bad, but if she pushes herself until she can't go on, they'd be devastated. "Thanks Mallow. I won't do anything unless I absolutely have to."
"Why do you thank me? What else can a friend do?'
And Rita smiled at those words as Mallow cancelled his summon and he and Jigglypuff ran out into battle while Rita stayed behind, watching them and hoping they'd be okay.
Author's Note:
The dream Mallow had at the beginning of this, low quality as it was, is an actual reference to an event he experienced on his world, in case you didn't know.
