Paper Mario - A New Beginning

Chapter 1: Goombella, Age 7-8

- Age 7 -

"Goombella, sweetie, how many times have I told you that 10:00's your curfew? You're not supposed to read past that time!"

My mom looks at me from the doorway and I sigh. She turns the light on as I tuck the book back in the shelf behind the bed, pulling the covers over my head.

"Mom, you know I like reading. Sometimes I can't help myself. Besides, it's not my fault that it was an epic scene." I tell her. It's true, too. The most recent book I've been reading tells about goombas that have succeeded as heroes. The scene I mentioned was telling of a goomba who once defeated a mighty dragon by turning its own fire against it! According to the story, the dragon is nothing more than bones now, although a few speculate it still lives.

"Goombella, you start school tomorrow. Plus, your birthday's in five days. We'll extend your curfew to 10:30 then, alright?"

I smile. I almost forgot! I'm going to turn 8 soon! Aside from being able to read later, I also get to see my brother again! My brother lives in Goomba Village with my dad. My mom lives here in Rogueport, so I live here too. And even though I'm happy for the girls-only arrangement, I can't wait to see my brother! He's pretty cool, believe it or not.

I nod and then pull off my headlamp, which was a gift from my brother last year. I put it on the table and my mom walks up to the bed, tucking me in. "Good night, Goombella." She whispers, flicking off the light as she exits the room, closing the door behind her. Of course, as usual, I wait a few seconds then flip on my headlamp, ducking under the covers and pulling my book under with me.

While flipping through the pages, a new chapter catches my attention.

'Garson and the Thousand Year Door? What's that?' I wonder to myself as I read through it. It speaks about a goomba from a few years ago who discovered a site known as the Thousand Year Door. According to the story, the goomba, whose name was Garson, vanished at that point. He returned months later, bringing with him what seemed to be a map. He claimed the map showed the locations of ancient artifacts that opened the door. Most don't believe him, so eventually he gave it to a professor who now works in the town of-

Rogueport!

That pulls me up short. An ancient treasure map in my home town?? That's so cool!!! I smile widely. I need to look into more detail about this! Maybe if there's a history lesson in school, and we have a project about something that happened out Goomba history, I can write about this! I sigh, closing the book. Maybe tomorrow I'll research it more. The school I'm going to has computers in the library, so that could be helpful. I put the book back up on the shelf, pulling the blankets up above my head, and dreaming about what it would be like to be one of those heroes.

- Age 8 -

"Happy birthday!"

I wake up with a start, looking around my room. I see my clock sitting at 7:48 and then seeing my brother standing next to the bed, carrying a present. I gasp and hop out of bed, smiling. I hug him tightly. "Thanks soooo much!! I haven't seen you in a year!" I say happily. He giggles a bit and then I let go of him.

"I had to come over. It's your birthday!" He says. I smile slightly and he picks up the present, hopping back to the living room and putting it on the table with the rest of them. There's a medium blue box with a green bow, another box a bit bigger with red wrapping and a purple bow, a small box with pink wrapping and a gold bow, and then my brother's present, which is bigger than I am and it's dark blue with an orange bow.

I smile and walk out of my room, shutting the door behind me, the radio playing in the living room. My father's in the kitchen talking with my mother and my brother's playing Goomba Bros on the TV. I jump down on the couch, looking over at my brother. "Can I join?" I ask. He smiles and nods, gesturing to the extra controller on the coffee table. I grab it and lean back, pressing the start button and joining the game.

After a few hours of gameplay, mom calls us to the kitchen for lunch. It's one of my favorites, hot dogs on the barbeque! I grab a slice of extra-cheddar cheese and put it between the hot dog and the bun, then adding some ketchup overtop. My brother has it with relish. He likes relish a lot, but I'm not that big a fan.

After lunch, mom ushers us into the living room. I hop onto the couch and mom picks up the light blue box. She puts it down next to where I'm sitting and I smile, pulling off the ribbon and reading the cars inside.

Dear Goombella,

I hope you have a wonderful birthday! Eight is an important year, you know. This gift should help you in your next school year.

Love, Mom

I open the present and gasp with delight. "A telescope?" My mom nods and I hug her tight, immediately grabbing the telescope components and setting them up. I set the telescope near the window with a clear view of the sky. I smile and turn around, opening the other presents.

In the end, I end up getting Goomba Bros Portable from dad, and a 3DS from both my parents. The only present left now is from my brother. I open the card and smile.

Dear big sis,

Happy birthday! I hope you like the present. I bet you will! You're awesome, sis!

Your awesome brother, Goombario

I pull open the wrapping paper and gasp.

"Goombario!! Where'd you find this?"

"That's a little secret of mine!"

I stare down at the book. It's a limited edition Tattle Log! I've wanted one since I've heard of it. It instantly records information of anyone that gets close to it! I'm speechless for a few seconds and then run over and hug Goombario tightly.

"Thank you soooooo much!!!!!" I say, smiling.

"No prob, big sis." He replies. I hop onto the couch and immediately open the tattle log. It already shows entries for me, mom, dad, and Goombario. I look up at him and smile big. He looks at me and returns the smile.

"Wanna play that new game you got now?" He asks.

"Sure!" I say. I boot up my new 3DS, load in the game, and he does the same with his. We play for a few hours, and after he and dad go home, look out at the stars with the new telescope, and mom uses the star map she has to identify the different planets and stars. And once midnight hits, I go to bed, still smiling from the party.

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