"Everybody run!" Peach shouted, planting her feet hard as the Hoo flapped above. Her eyes looked murderous. Peach clenched her Rage Stone, ready to unleash her power to save her toads.
"No way, Princess," Toadum cried. "We can't leave you!" The nineteen other toads roared in agreement. From their backpacks they pulled out weapons: bows and arrows, grappling hooks, and sticks and rocks.
Peach felt frustrated by their stubbornness. Did they want to be killed? "Run to the forest!" she urged as the toads stepped forward. "I'll distract her!"
"No! This bird's goin' down!" Toadum shouted. He struck a match and lit his arrow with it before notching it in a bow. "Take this, you confounded bird!"
"Toadum! No!" Toaddette cried.
He let the arrow fly, and a dozen other fire-arrows accompanied his. Peach could only watch helplessly as they flew through the air towards the Hoo. The huge owl tucked in her wings and dove down a couple of feet, narrowly avoiding the onslaught of arrows. Unfortunately, they landed at the tree line behind her. Twelve arrows impaled the thick forest undergrowth, and soon flames arose, licking up the trees and eating through the bramble easily.
Toadum's jaw dropped. "Er, well, I didn't mean - "
"Oh no!" Toaddette cried. "The forest is on fire!"
The Hoo cast a worried glance behind her and then looked back to the toads, who were pausing in their assault and pondering if they should attack again. The Hoo glanced behind her again and Peach suddenly realized what she was thinking: her chicks! If she wasn't quick, they would be quickly engulfed in the fire!
The Hoo must have made a decision, because she flapped hard twice and flew away, soaring over the trees. Peach didn't know why, but she felt a strong pang of sympathy. Her forest was on fire, and her children were in danger thanks to them.
She didn't know why she did it, but she reached up and activated her Joyful Stone. The wind whipped around her, forming her cyclone. Toaddette looked over in alarm.
"Princess? Where are you going?" she asked.
"I'm going to help the Hoo," she said over the roar of the wind. "The forest fire wasn't her fault, and I'm going to help her save her babies."
"You're insane!" Toadlee shouted. "She'll feed you to her chicks!"
"She's got more to worry about than feeding her chicks now, thanks to us," Peach snapped. "You! Toadum!" The toad looked up at her sheepishly. "You started this fire! Now you're going to put it out! Use the water from the river and douse as much of it as you can!"
"But Princess, how will we - " Toadum began.
"Figure it out!" Peach said. "I'll be back in a flash!" In a burst of heat and air, Peach rocketed out of the clearing.
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Peach easily caught up with the Hoo, as she was racing faster than a bullet. She trailed behind the big owl as she soared high above the trees and up towards the cliff where her nest was located. Peach flew in an arched curve after her.
The forest fire was quickly eating away at the forest. Already, it seemed to be a couple of miles inland and was steady racing towards the Hoo's nest. The owl landed at the top of the nest, where her chicks were racing around frantically, and Peach cancelled her Joyful Stone and slammed down into the nest beside her.
At her presence, the Hoo started and hopped back a foot. The baby owls, however, chattered excitedly and hopped towards Peach. Murder flashed in the Hoo's yellow eyes, and raised her beak menacingly.
"I'm not here to hurt you!" Peach cried, holding up her hands. "I want to help." The Hoo paused, and Peach blundered on: "We never meant to disturb you in your forest. We crash landed here when Bowser's forces shot us down."
The Hoo started again, seeming surprised, and Peach continued. "Ever since, I've been searching high and low for the people of my kingdom, the toads. When we saw them in your nest, I had to rescue them. Please understand. We never meant to set your forest on fire either. My toads are trying to put it out as we speak. I give you my word!"
The Hoo slowly bent down until she was eye level with Peach. "So you're the witch," she said softly. Peach was surprised. The owl could talk? Her voice was deep and smooth.
"Er, witch?" she asked.
"Rumors have it that a witch is destroying the land," the owl rumbled. "Ladida Plains was ravaged with her magic, and several Goombas were gravely injured. Petey Piranha is near death."
Peach felt herself pale, but she stood her ground. "That was me protecting my people," she said with conviction. "I had no intention of hurting Petey or burning up Ladida Plains. It was an accident that that happened. I came to retrieve a friend that was captured against his will by someone powerful named Bowser."
The Hoo's eyes lit up again. "The Koopa King."
Peach gasped. "You know him?"
"I do."
Peach didn't know what to say. How did this owl have an acquaintance with Bowser?
"Um, maybe we should get your babies out of here first," Peach suggested. Behind the Hoo, the forest was steady ablaze with flames. To the Hoo's distrustful stare, she said, "I'll carry two of them, if you want. I won't let them fall, I promise."
After a moment, the Hoo nodded in approval. "Let us go then. Use your magic to carry two of them. I will have the other two on my back." She made a loud clucking noise, and two of the chicks hopped over to her and jumped onto her back. Peach rounded up the last two in her cyclone. Together, she and the Hoo flew away, just as the nest caught on fire.
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When Peach and the Hoo reached the clearing site, the twenty toads were ducking behind a large group of stones not five feet away. Anger burned in Peach's chest. What were they doing?!
"Toadum!" Peach cried as she landed. The two baby owls hopped about, looking at the new scenery excitedly. "What are you guys doing? Why aren't you putting out the fire?"
"Paratroopas, Princess!" Toadonelly said, pointing skyward as he gazed through his binoculars. Peach looked up to see hundreds of winged Koopas flying in over the forest, armed with hoses. They began to shower the forest with water.
"Bless them," the Hoo rumbled. The toads whipped around in shock at her words.
"We have to get out of here!" Perry cried. "If they catch us, we're goners!"
"Allow me," the Hoo said. "There are twenty of you, correct? My back is large. Ten of you can ride with me. The other ten can go with the witch."
"Who?" Toadonelly asked, slightly afraid.
"Me," Peach said. "Come on, guys! You can trust the Hoo! Our priority is getting to safety. Let's go!"
Reluctantly, the twenty split into two groups of ten. Perry, Toadonelly, Toaddette, Toader, Toadlee, and six other toads gathered around Peach while the last ten clambered onto the Hoo's back. Her chicks hopped on as well, nipping toads left and right with excitement. The owl flapped her wings and rose into the air, the toads on her back gripping her downy feathers. Peach commanded the wind to fly after them, carrying them away from the raging forest fire and finally to safety.
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The wind holding her aloft, Peach, her toads, and the Hoo flew for two hours, the Hoo in the lead. They flew out of the Hoo's Wood and over Ladida Plains, which was still recovering from its own fire. Peach spotted dozens upon dozens of Goombas and Koopas on the burnt plains, putting down what looked like patches of sod.
Peach wondered if she would be setting every region on fire before she managed to get to Mario.
At long last, they came to a new region. It was swathed in woods as well. The dark, tightly packed trees seemed to have their own spooky aura. The whole region was misty, blotting out the sun, and seemed dark and foreboding, even though the sun was steady rising in the sky.
The Hoo began a smooth banking circle and Peach followed suit, landing after the Hoo had already touched down.
"Wow, that was fun!" Toadum said as he jumped off the huge owl's back. She bent down slightly so that everyone else could slide off her feathers. Her babies leapt off, flapping their wings slightly, but landed awkwardly on the ground.
Peach cancelled her cyclone and took a good look around. Darkness extended wherever she looked, but the trees seemed to glow scarily, striking fear into her heart.
"Er, where are we?" she asked the Hoo.
"The haunted region of Vibe Island," the huge owl answered. "Home of Shriek Mansion."