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This was the coolest thing to happen to Tangle since the Crossworlds tournament.
See, before Sonic met Tangle and her friends, he liked to participate in the olympics with his pals.
…and those pals included Mario and Co.
Yeah, THE Super Mario. Turns out, while they don’t visit each other in person very often, the two are actually good friends slash rivals. And every so often, they get together for the olympic games. Except this year was different.
See, the olympics decided to push them to the side for… well, let’s just call them very scammy JPGS, which didn’t take long at all to die out. And Mario and Sonic decided they wanted nothing to do with them.
So they met up one day and said; what the hell, why don’t we just make our own?
And that’s just what they did. With some help from Dodon Pa and Princess Rosalina, Olympic events were now being hosted around both Mario and Sonic’s worlds. They decided to call it the Olympics Between Worlds. Not the most creative, but Crossworlds was used already.
And how did all this work?
Honestly, Tangle didn’t have the foggiest idea. She was too excited to figure out the logic behind all of it. Because this time, Tangle was invited! Of course, so were Whisper and Lanolin. (Though they did need to be told Eggman, Zavok and Zazz wouldn’t be there.) Jewel, Rachel and Ashley tagged along too, but the former two made it clear they’d only be watching in the crowd.
Surge and Kit did get invited too, but they were still pretty cross with Dodon Pa. They were still ticked off over being left out of Crossworlds, it seems.
Dodon Pa decided the first set of events would take place in Mario’s world. Everyone was given until tomorrow afternoon to prepare.
That also gave Sonic and Co. time to explore the Mushroom Kingdom. So where was everyone now?
Whisper, Lanolin and Ashley were chilling in Neos’ hotel room in Toad Town, discussing their events. Surge and Kit were out getting food with Rachel, and Jewel had gotten dragged by Amy to shop for souvenirs.
And Tangle… she didn’t want her time here to go to waste. She had no idea if something as grand as this could be pulled off ever again. So now, she was outside of Toad Town, sitting on a tree branch after hurling herself across other trees, and taking in all the pipes, rolling hills, floating platforms and question blocks she could.
Her first thought was to find Mario, but she didn’t want her overexcited self to weird the plumber out. Because… well, while she hasn’t met him in person like Sonic has, she has heard of Mario’s feats. And to be honest, while Sonic is one of the lemur’s biggest inspirations, she’d be lying if she said Mario wasn’t high up there, too.
He wasn’t this cool dude with an attitude, had no intimidation factor, nor was he this hunk of a man. (This was not an insult, let her finish!) But truth be told… he didn’t really need to have, or be any of that. All he needed to be was kind and inviting. Everything the guy has faced, he did so with a “Wahoo!” and a jolly smile.
To put it simply… Sonic is cool. Mario is fun. The perfect combination.
“...you ever wish you could go back there?”
“Oh, absolutely. I still think about-a Connie and the others a lot.”
Hearing two voices, Tangle perched herself onto a tree branch and looked down. And speak of the devil, Sonic was down there with Mario, both of them seemingly on a walk.
“Between you and me, if there’s-a one person I miss less than the others, it’s-a this girl named Adaphne,” Mario cringed. “Though, maybe I’m-a just petty because of how over the top she was with-a my bro… He was clearly uncomfortable.”
“Oof. Yeah, that’ll do it,” Sonic nodded in understanding.
While the two continued to talk, Tangle’s eyes became huge. Mario was right there!
Though, now didn’t seem like a good time to make herself known. And popping out of a tree definitely wouldn’t make her look good.
Okay, I’ll just quietly get down from here, and wait for a pause in their conversation. Then I can formally introduce myself! Tangle started to plan out. And I’ll just tell them I was swinging across the area- wait, I WAS doing that! What am I saying-?!
She suddenly felt the branch she was sitting on begin to give out.
Oh no-
*SNAP*
“Wait, Rosa’s joining the events, too?” Sonic asked. “Isn’t she assisting Dodon Pa?”
“Well, she’s-a helping us travel across worlds. She’s not really hosting anything like the tanuki,” Mario answered.
“Ah, I guess that makes sense… I just wanna make sure she’s not rigging anything, is all.”
“Hey, Rosalina’s an honest person-!”
*THUD*
Only a few feet away from them, Tangle fell from the tree, landing on her face and startling both of them.
When they turned to her, Mario had a look of concern for the lemur. Sonic, however, didn’t look too phased.
“Well now, look who it is!” he greeted, way too casually. “You just decided to drop by?”
Going up to her knees, Tangle snickered. “That- ow- is such an outdated pun, dude-”
A gloved hand entered her point of view. “Are you okay, lemure?”
Tangle looked up, and saw Mario reaching out to her, worried over the fall she took.
Ohhhhh my gosh.
Managing to push her fangirlism to the side, she nodded and grabbed the plumber’s hand.
“Y-yeah, man, I’m totally fine!” she assured him as he helped her up. “Believe me, this is one of my more tamer spills.”
After blurting that part out, she was mentally punching herself in the face. WHAT ARE YOU DOING, DON’T TELL HIM THAT-
“So, if I may ask, what exactly were you doing in a tree?” Sonic asked while the lemur dusted herself off.
Tangle blushed. “I was in the middle of exploring this place… we’re in an entirely different world! You can’t blame me for wanting to look around!”
“Without-a your teammates?” Mario observed.
Of course it was harder for her to get words out when Mario talked.
“I mean, I asked them, but… I guess they’re more interested in saving their energy for the events tomorrow,” the lemur shrugged. “Lucky for me, I’ve got plenty to spare!
While Mario and Tangle talked, Sonic squinted at the latter.
Out of all the newcomers that joined Sonic and his pals for this otherworldly competition, Tangle was the one that seemed the most excited when he came to her with the invitation. Clearly, she admired Mario. And rightfully so!
However, it seemed that despite being so stoked for this, actually meeting the guy made her into a nervous wreck.
Hmm. Maybe she needs to push herself a little!
Sonic flicked his right ear up, and then tapped on it.
“Wha- oh geez, sorry Mario, but I gotta go,” he said. “Tails needs help training for his event!”
Both Mario and Tangle raised an eyebrow.
“Huh? But… Tails is-a doing the uneven bars, isn’t he-?” Mario started.
“Sorry, can’t talk anymore. Dueces!”
“Wha- b- Sonic, WAIT-“
Unfortunately for Tangle, Sonic dashed off before she could finish. A blue streak was briefly left behind before it quickly faded away.
“Mama mia…” Mario muttered, scratching the back off his neck. “It’s always a pleasure to see him, but he needs to-a make a habit of not running away in the middle of conversations…”
Despite the circumstances Sonic has thrown her in, Tangle found it in her to chuckle. “Oh, he does that type of stuff to you too?”
“Mmmh… not all-a the time, but sometimes,” the plumber answered. “You don’t know how confusing it was when-a he first pulled it on me. His friends had to tell me that’s just a thing he does.”
“Heh, yeah. Yeah…”
It was at this point that Tangle realized Mario had started walking again. And the lemur was right beside him, matching his pace.
Okay… despite my huge fumble, not the worst start.
“By the way, you’re-a Tangle, right?”
Tangle could have broken her neck with how fast she turned her head at Mario.
“Ah- uh, y-yeah! It is!” she responded. “Has Sonic mentioned me?”
“Of-a course he has,” Mario nodded. “He’s told me about you and your friends while we-a set this whole thing up. That guy’s-a meeting so many cool, new people…”
DID HE JUST CALL ME COOL?! Tangle blushed.
“You’re cool too,” she squeaked, her brain moving on auto-pilot.
The worst possible time for it to do that.
While Mario appreciated that small compliment, the quickness of it threw him for a loop. He looked at the lemur, who was now hiding her face away with her tail.
“Sei nervoso?” he asked.
Tangle only peeked out through her tail, looking back at Mario.
“…sorry, I should clarify. I’m-a asking if you’re-“
“Nono, I understood,” Tangle interrupted. “I’m… I’m actually Italian myself.”
Another pleasant surprise.
“Hoohoo! That makes things easier, then,” he chuckled.
Tangle laughed along as well, slowly unraveling her tail around herself.
“It’s just… Sonic’s brought you up to me as well,” she started to explain. “More than once, in fact. I’ve heard of a lot of the stuff you've done, and… when it comes to admiration, you’re in the same boat as Sonic for me. I’ve always wanted to meet you!”
Ah. Of course.
“So you’re a fan, huh? I’m-a flattered,” Mario nodded. “You don’t-a have anything to be nervous about, though.”
“I know I shouldn’t. And normally, I wouldn’t be, but, like…” Tangle sighed and brushed her hand through her head fluff. “I don’t know if this kind of thing will ever happen again! You and Sonic have done olympics before, sure, but this is clearly on a much bigger scale… and I’m fully aware how neither of you want to go back officially…”
“Maybe if they actually put-a their money into worthwhile products…” Mario grumbled. “Really, though, I wouldn’t worry about-a that. If Sonic and I met multiple times before this, it’s-a guaranteed it’ll happen again. Just… not as much.”
Tangle nodded in understanding. “That’s pretty reassuring… I guess I’m just scared I’ll make a moron out of myself, is all.”
Mario shook his head. “Well, I haven’t seen that. I just see someone who’s excited to meet-a me. Surely, you’ve got admirers of your own!”
The lemur smiled, thinking back to Spiral Hill, and her friends.
“...yeah. Yeah, you’re right!” she nodded, deciding it was time to get out of this mindset. “Thanks, Mario. I just really needed to hear that, I think.”
“Mhm! Glad to help you out!”
He blinked.
“...wait, is this-a why Sonic ran off?”
“Probably,” Tangle sighed. “I… have made it clear to him how much I wanted to meet you. A warning sign would have been nice.”
“I swear, he tends to help-a people out in the strangest ways,” the plumber sighed. “But it did work out, I suppose…”
“You can say that again- oh!”
Mario looked back at Tangle again, and she had put her focus on some blocks overhead. She made the tip of her tail into a fist, and it stretched upward, hitting one of them. Some coins popped up, but immediately poofed away after.
“What? Where did they…” she began, until she felt something in her jumpsuit. “Wait, are they in my pockets?!”
She’s quite easily mesmerized, he thought, while Tangle felt around in her pockets. Then again, this is her first time here…
“You know, speaking of Sonic…” Tangle suddenly realized. “How come he didn’t invite you to the Crossworlds Grand Prix? There were so many otherworldly people there! And I mean that figuratively and literally!”
Mario took his hat off and rubbed the back of his head.
“Well… he actually tried to invite me,” he corrected. “But… I guess the roster was full by the time he asked Dodon Pa, because he said no.”
“Wh- Dodon Pa said-?!” Tangle sputtered. And Mario couldn’t help but snicker.
“You don’t-a have to get offended for my sake, Tangle.”
“I know, but it would have been so cool!” she groaned. “I mean, I guess it makes sense, but… ugh!”
Mario put his hat back on, while Tangle muttered, “Maybe that’s why only Whisper and I got invited…”
“It wasn’t a complete loss,” he assured her. “I had-a my own kart racing tournament in the meantime.”
“Really? What was it like?”
“Oh, it was-a wonderful! I wasn’t expecting some of the contestants, though… there was a crab, a Cataquack, a Goomba… even a cow and a snowman.”
Tangle stared at him for a second before snorting.
“That’s… okay, not gonna lie, that’s pretty funny,” she said. “Our most outlandish contestant (other than the sponge guy and the blocky dude) was an Egg Pawn.”
“That’s-a one of Eggman’s creations, right?”
“Yeah. Come to think of it, that spot could have gone to someone else,” the lemur sighed. “At least Metal Sonic actually stands out.”
“It didn’t have, like, a unique design?”
“Nope! Just your regular, run-of-the-mill Egg Pawn. It really makes me think Eggman hogged a slot just to screw with us.”
“That-a sounds like him,” Mario agreed. “...actually, did Sonic ever tell you about the times Bowser and-a Eggman teamed up to ruin the Olympics?”
“Wh- times?” Tangle gasped. “You mean it happened more than once?!”
Mario held out his open hand. “Five times. See, the first time was when we decided to do the winter games…”
-
Fifteen minutes later, Mario and Tangle were back at the entrance of Toad Town.
“So… Sonic and Eggman had 16 bits, while you and Bowser only had 8 bits? What kind of game console was that?” Tangle asked, scratching her head.
“I’m not-a so sure myself…” Mario shrugged. “Definitely one of Eggman’s weirdest creations… hm?”
Mario looked away from the lemur, and spotted the sign welcoming the two to the aforementioned town.
“Oh mama mia, I didn’t even realize we circled back here!” he laughed, while Tangle gasped.
“La cazzata, how long has it been?!” she asked, covering her mouth. “I promised the girls I wouldn’t take long!”
“Well, the sun’s still up, right?” Mario pointed to the sky. “I don’t think those two will be too bothered.”
“Hopefully not… still, I need to head back.” She smiled at Mario.
“Thanks a lot for taking the time to talk, man. And sorry for getting so nervous around you,” she said, rubbing the back of her head. “It’s just so awesome to finally meet someone as big as you!”
Mario raised an eyebrow. The lemur really had no need to apologize. He shook his head.
“Uh, wait, hold on, I didn’t mean big in that way-” Tangle began to blabber, before Mario put a hand up.
“Tangle… you should think more highly of yourself,” he told her. “Besides, Sonic didn’t just tell me your name. I know you’ve played your part in saving the world and-a helping others, too. The same goes for your friends.”
He stepped closer to her. “Sonic and I might have more of these grand-scale adventures, but that-a doesn’t matter. I might be ‘big,’ as you say, but at the end of the day, we’re all equals.”
He put a firm hand on her shoulder. “I’m-a happy I got to meet with you today. And I hope that when you get the chance, you can introduce me to your friends, too!”
Hearing the plumber say all that to her, after finally being able to interact with him for the first time ever… Tangle couldn’t have been happier. Her giddy smile couldn’t be hidden.
“Dude… thank you! That’d be awesome!” she nodded happily. “These next few days are gonna be a blast!”
“I’m thinking the same thing,” Mario concurred, taking his hand off her shoulder. “It’s inevitable we’ll be competing against each other at least a few times, so you’d-a better give it your best!”
“Ooh-hoo-hoo, I intend to!” Tangle boasted.
Mario then noticed her tail now wrapped around a lamppost a few feet away, confusing some bystander Toads.
“Well… like I said, I’d better get going! Arrivederci!”
With that, she slingshotted herself off. Mario was surprised at first, but laughed as he watched her swing to her hotel. He waved her off.
“Non farti desiderare!”
Once she was out of sight, he lowered his hand, the muttering of the nearby Toads entering his ears.
“Who the heck was that?”
“Isn’t she one of the contestants to that olympics thing?”
“I thought Mario and the others weren’t doing that anymore!”
“No, dude, this is something different! Didn’t you hear…?”
Mario smiled brightly and started to walk forward. Next stop was the princess’s castle.
Well, she’s a bundle of energy, isn’t she? he thought to himself. Next time I see her, I should introduce her to Luigi…