Two: Acceptance
Characters: Fawful

Fawful did not handle the loss of his mistress well at first. He screamed and cried and was a pile of general misery for several days.

But one morning, he got up, found something to eat, and started walking. He kept going until he got to Princess Peach's castle, bent on walking right in the front door and attacking the Mario Bros without much more than his bare fists.

No, she would call him a fool if he did that. So he poked around and discovered the sewers. So he set up a base there, where he could begin to pull himself together and start anew.

He traded beans for badges with the few people who visited, and went out and got what he needed when that wasn't enough. In time, the pain dulled, and working on new inventions brought the spark back to his spirit.

Soon enough, he began to discover what it was to be alone, to be independent and afraid. He didn't give up, didn't let his fear consume him. She wouldn't want him to be weak, and he would do this for her.

He watched. He listened. Word came to his ears of an artifact even more powerful than the Bean Star. With complete confidence, he set out to awaken the Dark Star.

This was the first scheme he had planned and performed on his own. He made mistakes, was merciful where he shouldn't have been. He lost his life.

But as the darkness overtook him, he did not cry. He did not scream. He accepted the fact that this was the end. He accepted that he had failed, that he would never be able to rightly face her again. But he also accepted that he had given it his best, and now he would be reunited with the person most important to him.