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Across the plains of Mushroom Ruins, The blocks floating in mid-air suspended by nothing were quite familial, As one of the area's the starvia was the weakest, It was quite serene...That was, Until coming across something sitting next to a Tree, Sat down and breathing to itself...

...Thats quite a sad sight. The Goomba posessed a empty expression, unable to express any emotion or movement. It just...Say there, Breathing and blood pumping. It was Alive, but dead. No energy left to do anything. You could poke it and feel the squishy body sink from the press of a finger, as the goomba would flop over, unable to react at all. But you wouldnt do that, Would Ya' , You monster?


The Worst part...Was that there was a trail of these Life-less husks laying about, stuck against blocks and tree's, as they were unable to move or react to anything around them. Something was sucking the very Life out of them. And thats what your here to find out! Go get 'em hero!

[Mari]

"O-Oh... I think I found a clue..." Amitwo stammered out in discomfort at the sight. " . . . Let's follow it. It looks like our little pig left behind a trail of breadcrumbs." Raffina remarked with mild disgust. She knew what she was looking at. To call these things alive was a lie, or at the very least boldly misleading. Without a soul, they couldn't even be called sentient. They were vegetables, stuck in a coma they could never wake up from. They couldn't even dream. To lose your soul and to have that soul destroyed was to have your very existence erased in a way so devastating not even a ghost could survive. True death, final death. It was an act so corrupt... that seeing it somehow made Raffina feel guilty. She wondered if the people she'd... consumed were still slightly intact, even though a part of her knew they'd been completely broken down and couldn't be saved. Still, it haunted her in hindsight.

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Traveling along the path of Soul-less husks of Minor Enemies, It would be easy to follow a short trail, Leading to what appeared to be a Small Castle--



Not really a castle, More of a Fort now that you look at it. The Final Body was rested at the Enterance to this stone structure, With no other souless bodies lied about around it. If it was anywhere...The source was Here. Moving in deeper, Would result in viewing a Dark, Lightless Room, With Furniture and weapons strewn about from old Toad Warriors that had long abandoned this Barrack. And stranger than anything...

A Mirror. On the far side of the room, Next to a empty door. If Raffina looked, she could vaguely make out what looked to be a black outline of herself. standing completely still...Before its face twisted a grin, and dashed away, Further into a empty door, leading downstairs.


Though, Before any chase could be given Down into the depth's of this castle, They might find themselves in the sight of some Crying. Gross, Ugly, Goomba sobbing.



"Aaahhhhh!!!! B-bowsa', Help me, S'she's suckin out everyone's soul!!!" The Goomba would sob, Until looking up at Raffina's face...And suddenly start crying even harder than before, Trying to back away and run from Raffina. "N-no, Not again, Not like dis, I-i dont wanna die! Ill do whatever you say your majesty, j-just dont make me like them!!!"

[Mari]

Raffina promptly grabbed the goomba, picking him up. Hold on now, you're our witness! "Wait--! I'm not--! I'm not--! going to--! You have to--! Stop--! ..." the pinkette struggled, only to find the goomba inconsolable. Eventually, she just gets pissed off because the goomba wouldn't listen to her and she wasn't sure why. Stupid... talking mushroom. She didn't do anything to deserve this! "Alright, fine! If you insist on treating me like a monster, I"ll act like one! Aaah!" Raffina snapped before gobbling the goomba up in one gulp. Well, that hadn't taken long. Unfortunately for the goomba, Raffina liked her vegetables. "Raffina, I think that was one of the good guys!!" Amitwo blurted out in a panic, grasping Raffina's midsection where the goomba would currently be trapped. The sudden and uninvited touching did a great job at grabbing Raffina's attention, a deliberate move on Amitwo's part. Raffina could be a little hard to talk to at times when she was upset, but she reacted strongly to a more physical approach. Thankfully for her, she was close enough to Raffina to get away with that. While an average person might get slugged for invading her personal space, Raffina refused to get rough with Amitwo. Not even a little. Instead, she just kinda let herself get grabbed. "I'm not going to digest him... Even if he is a great source of protein" she quietly reassured, breaking the ice with a health joke. Although she was speaking quietly, she obviously couldn't hide her words from her prisoner. If anything, her voice probably sounded louder from inside her--if not a bit distorted.

((May I have the goomba's two least awful stats~?))

Thinking about it for a good moment, Amitwo suddenly realized that Raffina's belly was the safest place to be right now. She of all people would be familiar with the bizarre concept of hiding inside someone else. Well that made what Raffina did okay then! ...Sort of. "Ooooh... Wow! I've never seen you eat so much~" Amitwo replied, clearly impressed. She'd known Raffina to obey a strict diet in the name of sculpting a girlish yet muscular figure. Raffina, of course, took this comment another way. She flinched. "Ami, that's no way to talk to a lady..! It's mean..." she lamented, even more softly than before. Her feelings were evidently hurt, judging by the way she became self-conscious about her figure and began fussing with a compact mirror. "Oh--S-Sorry. I didn't mean it that way."

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((Raffina will gain bonuses from the Goomba's Horrible CON and STR.))

As the Goomba was trying to escape, it would kick its little feets in complete and utter shock as it was eaten whole. Sucks being a bite-sized mushroom monster! Raffina would feel plenty of squirmings and kicks from inside as the Goomba struggled to try and escape, But to no avail! "Nooo!!! K-koobart, it got me!!" The Goomba would yell, though muffled, Something would slowly come from cover.



"Y-you again! You already scared the stuffin' out of everyone, what more do you want!" The Koopa would yell, before staring at Raffina for a good few seconds.. "Wait a second! You aint got those Fangs! And your hair aint changin' colors! And ya' aint got the same curvature of the hips! See, It aint the monster girl Goombert, Your overreacting!" The Koopa would say, as the Goomba would scream "SHE LITERALLY JUST ATE ME!!" From insisde. What a ugly baby.


Regardless, The Koops would stare at both Amitwo and Raffina, with a shake of its head. "So, Is the Blue girl a friend of your's?? The one thats going around slapping people with Blue Veams and Sucking out there lives??" The Koopa would ask. You imagined the Goomba would of done the same, but considering he's currently serving as a Delic--...Well, A Snack. Definately. I wouldn't eat a Goomba, atleast.

[Mari]

"A-Ah..! That feels so weiiird!" Amitwo squealed, withdrawing her hands from Raffina's stomach. She had no idea how Raffina stayed calm and collected with someone squirming around in there. The answer, of course, was barely. She took a deep breath and tightened her stomach muscles a bit to restrain the goomba with a rather squishy hug. "Why thank you for noticing." Raffina replied in a more pleasant tone of voice. "--Curvitch..? Curvitchure of her hips?" Amitwo asked in bewilderment, struggling a bit with that word. That turtle was oddly eloquent! ...And also was he paying really close attention to their hips?? "Cur-'va'-ture It's where the word curve comes from." Raffina helpfully explained, only for muffled yelling from inside her to finally draw her ire.

" . . . Oh la-ti-da! Big babies will stay in their bellies until they're ready to behave."

...Amitwo couldn't help but partially cover her mouth and stifle some laughter at Raffina's choice of words, a little giggle escaping her none-the-less. She for one apparently found that hilarious. "...Actually, we're here to investigate. We were supposed to be doing some detective work to figure out who did all of this. I take it it was a girl of my likeness..."

Raffina 200 / 200 HP 70 / 70 Shield Status: Playing Mom (+1 Str / Con)

Amitwo 105 / 105 HP 25 / 25 HP Status: Normal

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"Yeah man, Quit being a big baby!" The Turtle would yell, as the Goomba inside would scream out a rather loud "WHYYYYY-HY-HY!!!" As he continued to struggle as much as his mushroom body could. The Koopa, however, seemed fairly happy to explain the situation. Why was this koopa so okay with letting one of his buddies be eaten alive? Maybe he owed the goomba money, so this was a good way out of it.


"That'd Be Correct. She looks just like you, But...Well, She's a liiiittle shorter, Has Bright Blue-- Well, Its usually bright blue, sometimes it changes colors, Anyway, Thats her Hair, She's a bit more Pear-shaped, She's got Fangs...And she has these weird, Yellow eyes....And she always goes around comparing us to Food!...I-i mean, You know, aside from you literally using us as Food. How you doing in there buddy?"


"ITS TIGHT AND DAMP AND SQUISHY AND I JUST WANNA GO HOME."

"Yeah keep cryin', Crybaby....Oh, And There was this weird point, Where I tried to attack her...And when i bumped into her, It kinda felt like...It felt like i was headbutting Air. Like she was there, Physically, But not actually there at all.." The Koopa would say, As, Something that may stir the pot of interest to Amitwo. Seems there was a Mirage Person aloose in these Castle Basements.

[Mari]

Raffina shuddered a bit. She... had felt worse things than the goomba's struggles to put it lightly. Thankfully, her makeup did a decent job at hiding her blush. Now if only all his squirming wasn't making her a bit nauseous... No amount of lip gloss could hide the way she kept swallowing excess saliva though, frankly, you'd need to be unusually perspective to notice such a thing and pretty knowledgeable to understand that it was a sign of internal distresss. She took a brief moment to take a drink of water from a small bottle in her fanny pack before putting it away and shifting her hands to her hips. Meanwhile, a very anxious Amitwo began talking to Raffina's stomach. "D-Don't worry..! It may be a little icky, but we'll keep you safe until we catch the uhm... The imposter!" Amitwo awkwardly replied. It was hard for her to use words like that, but what else did you say? She needed a hug now, but instead an errant kick from Raffin's midsection bopped her on the nose, eliciting a little squeak of alarm. Raffina seemed to be doing her best to ignore the goomba right now. "Where'd this faker go? I want to have a word with them." Raffina replied, giving a gentle swing of her hips to punish the goomba for daring to mildly fluster her precious companion, rocking him about for a moment.

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Despite Amitwo's Plea's to try and calm the Goomba inside of Raffina's belly seemed to do a little bit better, as the Goomba seemed to settle down. Perhaps he tuckered himself out. The Koopa would then proceed to...Oh wait, Koopa's dont got fingers to point with. The Koops then took a minute to think, Before shooting a Spike at a Open Doorway, Leading Downstairs, into the deeper Barracks. "She went down there a lil' bit ago! I dunno why, But, She said something about something we were carrying in!" The Koopa said. "...S-so, With that said, I-im free to leave now, right??" The Koopa would ask, Seeming to Plead for a reason to leave Raffina and Amitwo to go back home and drown himself in tears. Hey, wouldnt blame him!

"Yyou two have fun talking to the scary cotton candy lady, See ya'!" The Koopa said, before running off, Thinking it safe to return back home! He dont wanna die, What'd you expect??

Down the Stairs, It'd be quick to see a series of Husk'd Goomba's and Koopa's flopped around in beds, as, In the far back of the room, A Figure with long hair would be staring down one of the Goomba husks With a sadistic smile on her face.  "Oh~hohoho~ Come ooon, You didnt even give me enough for Seconds! No wonder everyone thinks your kind are so weak...I kind of prefer it that way anyway~" She would say, as due to the Stair's Area, Raffina and Amitwo could freely peer in without being noticed initially.

She would soon turn around, Walking closer. "Now...Where's the Main course~? I know you all brought one..."

...Now aint that a horrible sight. She would seem to be completely oblivious to Raffina and Amitwo's presence at the moment.

[Mari]

Raffina and Amitwo just kinda watched the koopa leave for a moment before rushing off to confront the doppelganger. Better try and save some of these other mushroom kingdom edible citizens! Unfortunately for the eaten goomba, Raffina was too much of a lady to reward him for his good behavior. He'd have to take solace in his relative safety. --Well, physical and soul safety anyway. His dignity maybe not so much. When they discovered the doppelganger though, Raffine pulled Amitwo to her side and hid her behind the wall to prevent the innocent doppelganger's curiosity from outing them. Her mind raced at the sight of ...that thing. She looked similar, but at the same time not really. She couldn't even identify it as the same one she'd spoken to in the mirage, not that that was surprising. Her perceptiveness wasn't one of her stronger traits. When Raffideux moved closer to where they were hiding, though, Raffina didn't hesitate to take advantage of the way the other was leaving herself open.

When Raffideux got within arm's reach of their sightline, Raffine released Amitwo and suddenly stepped out to confront the other. Without giving Raffideux time to react, she made a forceful grab for the other's throat and promptly dug her nails into it, shifting to slam Raffideux up against the nearby wall and pin her there. There was a certain rage in her eyes a she moved in to confront the other, her grip only tightening around the other's throat. Thankfully, doppelgangers didn't normally need to breath--because she was definitely strangling the other. In actuality, this wasn't just raging on her part. Going for the throat was about the best chance someone like her had back on Primp if she ever had to defend herself from a mage, and without her pouch, she was pretty vulnerable. "...Nice body. Where'd you get it?" Raffina asked in an accusing tone as she forced Raffideux to meet her gaze.

Raffina's other hand then lurched forward and rather rudely wormed its way underneath the bottom of Raffideux's blouse, grasping at ...her stomach. Feeling up the doppelganger's belly, Raffina scowled slightly at her own actions. This was the sort of thing she herself would have beaten someone senseless for doing--and probably cried over it if she couldn't. It was extremely inappropriate, but there was, of course, a reason she was doing it to Raffideux. "Feels kind of familiar... Almost as if it belongs to me." Raffina went on to snap. And the reason she was doing this? She was trying to get a feel for if there was anything in there. Namely, Raffina was trying to figure out if she could simply get Raffideux to barf up all the souls she'd been eating.

"H-Hey... What're you doing to her..?" Amitwo nervously asked, hovering over Raffina's shoulders. She wasn't in on this plan. A very light hand reached down to grasp at Raffina's shoulder, eliciting a flinch from the pinkette. She paused what she was doing, just kinda idly holding Raffideux up against the wall for a moment to acknowledge Amitwo, just kinda sharing an unseen glance with the other.

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Raffideux was taken aback by the spontaneous attack on herself by Raffina, Her Shocked gaze turning into a almost twisted smile as she looked at Raffina with a nice, Wide grin and narrowed eyes as her Breath-less Throat was Strangled by the other, Feeling as if Raffina was grabbing onto Nothing but some slightly Tangable Air, Followed in part by the similar feeling shared when she reached under her blouse to check Raffideux's Tummy. In all actuality, There was nothing there but a slightly sizable belly, that would of been only made by meals long-since had. Whatever souls she's consumed were, at this point, just part of her Ether, Melded together.

"Ohh...Id Agree~ It does belong to you, Hm hm~" Raffideux would taunt, with a Happy smile as she peered her Yellow eyes over to Amitwo, who was busy watching this whole scene happen in one go, as Raffideux would Coo. "Aww, Raffina, Your Scaring the poor girl~ Wouldnt be the first time you scared Amitie to Death...Wouldnt be the first time you Put her to death either~" She would say, Giggling as She was Almost goading Raffina onto her worst fears.

"C'mon, You dont remember me? We had such fun conversations...Remember when i gave you that Card...The Empress~??" Raffideux would ask, Reminding Raffina of just who she was speaking to. "I am you...Well, I used to be you. But for right now..." Raffideux would slowly raise her right hand, revealing the Magic-draining Sigils on it, Holding it to Aim at Amitwo. No doubt something like that would threaten her life..."Maybe we should talk this over, Before we both do something we'll regret~" The Mirage Reflection of Raffina would say, offering that they not jump to such violence, and Talk in place.

[Mari]

Raffina's eyes narrowed to hateful slits, one hell of a death glare manifesting itself. Her hand slowly withdrew from Raffideux's belly, her interests having suddenly shifted. She'd only been interested in saving these poor idiots from further death, but now Raffideux had done everything in her power to piss Raffina off short of returning the favor. Meanwhile Amitwo, in all her innocence, watched Raffideux's hand with curiosity. She didn't seem to realize she was being threatened. Was this an invitation to high five? What a weird time for celebration...

"Alright, let's TALK!" Raffina replied rather venomously. She then slowly eased in and got up in Raffideux's face until their noses were a mere millimeter apart. Her grasp relaxed, but only because she was now holding Raffideux in a much more awkward position. "Ms. Amitie... has been there for me and put up with me all this time, and somehow she still likes me as a person. And sometimes I don't even like me as a person. So the best explanation I have for that is that she's a better person than you or me." Raffina remarked, tugging Raffideux back off the wall and shifting her so that Amitwo was somewhat between them. She then shoved Raffideux back, releasing the other. "I don't deserve her, and she doesn't deserve that. So if you don't want to..." Raffina continued, only to trail off. She'd started crying during her 'talk' and was starting to get choked up. At this, Amitwo moved to embrace Raffina from behind and just sort of hold her comfortingly. The concern was evident on her face, but she didn't know what to say. Not to Raffina, anyway. Looking over the gently sobbing Raffina's shoulder at Raffideux, she offered the other a disappointed look.

"...Hasn't this gone a little too far? Raffina's trying her best, okay? Can't we try being nice to each other?" Amitwo offered, guiltily avoiding looking at the heartbroken pinkette. It was kind of uncomfortable seeing her suffer like this. Especially knowing she couldn't really help better than she already was. Raffina was a broken, fragile person compared to the proud classmate she remembered.