Toadette's Story

Chapter 52 - Peach's Sugary Feet

A minute after the event, metal debris was still fluttering in the air. Not far from us, there was a formerly-pristine black car now cut into a million pieces, with its occupants barely moving.

That we all survived was both disappointing and miraculous. I was writhing in the newly formed crater, rapidly losing blood but smiling in pride. If they thought they were gonna beat us, they’d just been proven wrong. Right on top of me was my little brother, his shirt tattered. Captain Toad and Minh T. hurried over to us, the former holding his left shoulder, and the latter stomping on the asphalt.

“This was supposed to be a fun, happy trip back to Mushroom City!” She marched over to our injured opponents. “I hate you all!”

Captain Toad lifted the boy off me. “Either they had firework bombs in that car, or he ran straight through both cars’ gas tanks. That’d explain the blast. Ugh, stinks.”

“I don’t know if that’s the gas.” Minh T. helped me to my feet, then pointed down. “Take a look.”

“Toadette, you really need some shoe freshener! No one’s feet should smell like that!”

“Tell me something I don’t know,” I groaned.

All eyes were now on DT. As dust settled, we three adults came to realise that the game was over. I was no longer this random girl who happened to be named Toadette and bore a passing resemblance to the one who’d disappeared years ago. I was that girl. And however it happened, DT found out. I was too overwhelmed and dizzy to look him directly in the eye, but fortunately, he couldn’t have looked at me if he wanted to.

“You took a big risk giving him that Super Star,” Captain Toad said. “Boy’s lucky he’s just unconscious. I say we get him to his home before anything else.”

“How?” Minh T. pointed at the debris and vast empty fields that surrounded this thin road. “No cars, no phones, and we’re all injured. Not to mention, very far from civilisation.”

I coughed, dehydrated and disoriented. With little energy, I tugged on my friend’s arm.

“Relax, Toadette.” She leaned closer. “We’ll think of something if we have—”

“It’s okay,” I weakly said. “We’ll make it.”

“I know.”

Hoooooooonk!

Out the corner of my eye, a yellow taxi came into view. Captain Toad and Minh T. were puzzled.

“There’s no way he could’ve gotten here at the same time as us on foot, no matter how fast he is.” I gave my unconscious brother a smirk. “He was smart enough to have a taxi on stand-by.”

“Must’ve cost more than usual,” Minh T. lamented. “Poor Dane T.”

After grabbing our belongings, we crammed ourselves in the taxi. Once my shoes were on, the smell of stinky feet and gas was replaced with heavy incense. And several ours of driving later, the taxi made its first stop at the apartment. Minh T. determined he had bruises, but the Super Star’s effects made them fairly minor in the chaos. He could lay in his bed, explaining why he wasn’t at work to our mom whenever that moment came.

We retrieved our other stuff—our phones and Minh T.’s bag being very important—then our next destination was…the hotel.

“Sure you don’t wanna go to the hospital?” Minh T. asked, her voice softening. “Your stomach looks bad, Toadette. You could get infected.”

“The harder I work now, the less I’ll have to kiss Peach’s ass later.” I focused on Captain Toad. “Shouldn’t the castle’s medical team have a Life Shroom on deck? That’d get us through the day.”

“Heh. You wanna gamble on a rarity, be my guest. They’re gonna be very confused to why you and I are using them in a place like this.”

I scoffed. “Screw them, that’s my answer. We were on the front lines.”

Entering the hotel felt so refreshing after the Scapelli building. Rich and pretentious, but with a more positive vibe. Captain Toad immediately dragged me and Minh T. to one of the castle’s nurses, in a room on the second floor. After stripping us to our underwear, her conclusions on our conditions came in a flash. Captain Toad only needed a heavy bandage on his wound, and fortunately the Scapellis’ crazy aim hit him in the perfect spot. Just high enough in the shoulder to graze him, but not low enough for the bullet to lodge. Minh T.’s face was bruised, though she was the least injured of us all. This stood in stark contrast to my situation. I got a few bandages and alcohol rubs for my minor cuts, but this fist-sized hole in my stomach… Yeesh.

“We can get it under control in about a week,” she said, grabbing a bunch of doctor’s utilities.

“I need a Life Shroom right now,” I said. “Our princess needs me on my feet as soon as possible. Probably to rub her nasty feet…”

“I understand, miss, but we only have one Life Shroom. Your injury isn’t life-threatening, but someone else’s could be later, including that of Her Highness.”

“I wanna see her. Let’s see if I can’t get her permission.”

In five minutes, the nurse was back. Peach was behind her. Hmph! Royal bitch. The reason we were so hurt in the first place. Look at her, all covered in makeup, perfectly clean, content to do little else but sit and direct her subjects all day long. Once she crossed me, we exchanged opposing expressions. A frown on my face, a smile on hers. My next words might not have been so flowery if Minh T. and Captain Toad hadn’t been in the room with me.

“Against all odds, Your Highness, we’ve managed to activate the microphones on those coins. Mission accomplished.”

“So I see. We were notified the moment it happened.” She crossed her arms at Captain Toad. “How is it that she managed to do what you couldn’t while you were on safe ground?”

“No excuse, Your Highness.”

“Well, allow me to ask another question. What exactly happened that caused this mission to take an extra day? I know Penelope attempted to contact you, Toadette, and you never responded once.”

“We…” I didn’t want to tell Peach anything about my family, much less that my brother was delivering to those people. But why would she ask anyway? If we were doing this mission a day after the coins were delivered, then they were obviously already at the Scapellis’ doorstep when she sent us out.

“We missed them the first day, Your Highness.” Minh T. beamed brightly. “But today we got into their base and did the deed. Toadette wasn’t gonna return until she knew for sure that the job was done.”

“Oh, so you actually went inside.”

She nodded. “Mmm-hmm! Oh, you know, on that same floor, I saw all these papers talking about some chemical stuff. And there were drawings of you all over them, Your Highness. I think Toadette put some in her bra, ‘cause a bunch came pouring out when she took it off.” After looking at the nightstand, she pointed Peach in the direction.

Oh my fucking… Could someone just gag this girl? Peach’s demeanour didn’t change much after receiving this information, but for some reason that confused me even more. While her eyes glazed over the papers, I just wanted to whisper something to Minh T. Something about how the princess’ lack of surprise made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. But knowing this girl, she’d find some way to make it make sense.

“Excellent find, my beloved Toads.” Peach grabbed the papers, then grinned at us. “I’ll have them analysed so we may get to the bottom of this. Now that you’ve done your job, intercepting these clueless gangsters will be a breeze.”

“That’s great news,” Minh T. sighed.

“Can we talk about my stomach, please?”

“Ah, yes.” Peach nudged the nurse. “Give her the last Life Shroom.”

“Procedure demands I double-check. Are you absolutely certain, Your Highness?”

“Toadette will need it. And we’ll need her.”

Behold, the mushroom responsible for saving people at the point of death. Normally, this and the 1-Up Mushroom are for people whose hearts are ready to give out. Tasting its sweet, blueberry-like richness filled me with some embarrassment. Knowing that this could be useful to others, it was so selfish for me to consume it. But the more the blueberry went down my throat, and the faster the hole in my stomach sealed, the more that regret became a distant memory.

Before celebrating…

BAM!

Whoo-hoo! The blow to my stomach didn’t sting at all. Amazing what ancient medicine could still do in the modern age.

“Knowing my luck, you just ate the one Life Shroom I’ll end up needing later on.” Captain Toad turned to Peach. “What do you need me to do, Your Highness? I’m ready.”

“You’re to go to the main field and conduct your security drills with your men. Focus on area closest to the throne. And with your previous mission having been completed, hopefully I won’t have to babysit you today.” With a wave, Captain Toad left us, leading the princess to focus on me and Minh T. “Assuming the flower girl can work, you two have a special assignment.”

And now came the worrying. Specifically, the tapping of Peach’s foot. She may have been wearing a dress, but we could hear the expensive heel hitting the carpet. I crossed my fingers that she hadn’t been wearing shoes all morning. If so, we were gonna be in for a sweaty version of Hell.

“Don’t dawdle, Toadette.” Peach was already outside the room, Minh T. right behind her with a proud, dopey smile as she got her clothes on.

Didn’t have much of a choice, did I? I kept my distance behind them, trying to get a good view. Mmm… Those plump heels were as enticing as ever, every time they hit the ground. And even the deep brown dirt coat, though not my cup of tea, made my heart tingle. It outlined the shape of this woman’s foot excellently. After all the stress of the past two days, being back in safe hands and seeing something so nice was amazing.

Ah… Minh T., what have you and your feet done to my brain?

Peach took us several floors up, keeping her silence during the elevator ride. Once the doors let us out, she led us down a narrow corridor that continued the rich aesthetics of this hotel. Gold and platinum walls that made you feel like you didn’t deserve to be here. But this floor smelt different than the others. As I sniffed…

“I can smell!”

Peach stopped. “You just realised that?”

My eyes crinkled as I smiled widely. My arms were still somewhat plain, so it seemed the Life Shroom didn’t cure every element of my illness at one point. But perhaps by tomorrow, I’d be back to normal. Just having less snot in my nostrils and the ability to was a blessing. Sniffing, the room smelt like some kind of kitchen. More specifically, a bakery. The air was so sweet, like we’d landed on an island of candy. One moment I was inhaling the warming scent of gingerbread, the next my lungs were drowning in vanilla.

Her Highness put her card key in an unsuspecting door and pulled us inside.

Would you look at that. Maybe not a candied island, but it was indeed a room full of sweet objects. It wasn’t too disimilar from the castle’s kitchen, only a little smaller and with tons more ingredients scattered around. Chocolate chip cookies, bags of sugar, chocolate syrup, strawberry fudge blocks, lemon candy, fiery lollipops, tarts, sprinkles, oh…

Minh T.’s irises overtook her sclera. “We get to eat it all?”

“A bag of sugar would give you a stomach ache.”

“Your Highness, I will take that risk.”

“Don’t get ahead of yourself. You and Toadette’s job is not to eat all the goodies here, not directly.” She leapt onto the table, her feet dangling over the edge. As one of her pink heels popped off her foot, holding onto her big toe, she caught Minh T. in another trance. From candy to feet, damn, anything that wasn’t a drug could get her hooked.

“Knowing the pattern around here, I imagine you’re going to cover your feet with sugary substances, and then have us lick it off for some pointless reason.”

“Not quite.” Peach sent her heels into the air, one of them hitting my cap. “I’d like both of you to tackle one foot and decorate it however you like. Come up with the yummiest combination of ingredients your little brains can think of.”

“Why?” we asked in unison.

“Ten minutes,” she sang, rolling onto her stomach. “That’s all you get. Starting now.”

Of course. An easy enough goal. Making a foot taste…delicious. Peach may not have been Minh T., but ten minutes was more than enough for me to make her foot just as good.

Minh T. stepped past me. “I’ve got the right foot.”

“Leaving me with the lefty, huh?” As I walked over to another table full of ingredients, I realised that this wasn’t exactly a baby-sized task. Even though I could cook decently, I tended to follow kid-level books for this stuff. It was rare that I had to innovate on my own. Just brainstorming took up a minute of my time.

Meanwhile, Minh T.’s hands were working overtime. In the same minute, she’d started to spread a kind of icing on the princess’ foot. She took a few cups of sugar, emptied them onto the sole, then began to spread the pieces with her fingers.

Time to rip a page out her book. I, too, would start with a layer of icing. But what flavour? Chocolate, butterscotch, cream cheese, strawberry…

Wasn’t gonna copy Minh T., so butterscotch or cream cheese were out of the question. They were too similar in colour. Chocolate might’ve tasted good, but my butter knife was already swirling in the tub of strawberry frosting. And that was the first ingredient for my Peachy Foot Special. Starting at the heel, I worked my way down to the toes, leaving the little of Peach’s foot exposed.

“Ay! Ticklish, Toadette.”

“You asked for this, Your Highness.” You know what? After what she put me through, our princess could use a little tickle torture. With a cheeky grin, I loosed my grip on the knife, barely squeezing it between my fingers. Then I let it slowly comb between her long toes. As soon as the rounded edge rubbed those in-between crevices, Peach’s foot jerked back at me. “No, no, no, Your Highness! You want your foot to taste good, don’t you?”

Had Peach ever reacted like that in all the time I served her? I may have never seen her tickled before, but even hearing her laugh so loudly felt alien. If anyone was going to giggle at having a frosting-covered knife slide between her toes, it was going to be my favourite athletic princess. Daisy would’ve kicked me and left a salty footprint on my face. Peach was usually more reserved, but right now her toes were wiggling like they were on fire. Ah, but the sound of her pleading for me to slow down was like music to my ears. And I had no intention of stopping the tickling as I rubbed the knife against the chunky ball of her foot.

“Cinco minutos, Toadette,” Minh T. said, rushing past me with a bottle of caramel syrup. “Mmm… Can’t wait to see what you’ve cooked up.”

Five minutes? Tickling was now over! With nothing but strawberry frosting on her foot, it didn’t look as special as I’d imagined. Maybe some sprinkles could help, yes. I let them fall mostly around the toes, knowing a few would get stuck between them. At least there would be a reward if I had to lick them later. Still, there was something wrong with this foot.

Looking over at Minh T., she was building a whole damn meal. Something that looked like it would be served on a plate. But there was one ingredient she wasn’t using. Whipped cream.

Shake, shake, shake, shake, shake…

As the white substance hit Peach’s right foot, she curled her toes again at the chilling sensation.

“It’s like I’m wearing makeup on my feet, what a peculiar feeling,” she said. “By the way, Toadette, did you know that whipped cream melts quickly?”

“Does it?” I squealed, watching the swirl of cream crumble. Its contents continued to spread on the princess’ foot, down to her toes. In fact, a lot of the cream was leaking between her toes. But… Aw, I couldn’t just wipe it off, or I’d ruin the whole frosting layer. Man, how could I have forgotten something so obvious? At least there was still enough whipped cream on the foot to change the flavour. We’d just have to see how much of it would be affected.

Peach snapped her fingers. “Time’s up.”

Minh T. panted like an animal, stumbling away from the left foot. “I think I did good.”

Oof. Hers put mine to shame in the detail department. While I gave the right foot a simple layer of strawberry frosting, some sprinkles, all topped with a thin layer of whipped cream, Minh T. had a whole event going on.

The left foot started with a coat of frosting (flavour undetermined) and moved to a second, smaller layer of another frosting. This second layer was only on the parts of the foot that would form a footprint—the toes, the ball, the arch and the heel. Between the toes sat two thick cookies. You know those cookies that are actually two cookies with a layer of cream in the middle? Perfect, because those were what she used. And the cream layer wasn’t white but a brownish orange, like a pie.

The girl even had the nerve to use a third layer of icing, this time strawberry. She used it to draw a large heart on the heel. Scattered across every inch of the foot, on every layer, was a blizzard of sugar mixed with cookie crumbs.

“Yours looks really creamy, Toadette. Yum.”

“I think my pancreas just died looking at yours.”

“We’ll let our judge decide how you both did.”

“Hi…”

My hand stung the moment I backhanded Penelope. All this provoked from the girl was a series of choking laughs. One day she’d learn not to sneak up on me like that… But before she could focus on her mother, she wrapped herself around my body.

“Are you purring?” I asked.

“You’re back…”

“I was only gone for a day and a half.”

“Was it only a day?” She pulled herself back and cracked her knuckles. “Did something happen to you?”

“Now, now, don’t worry about Toadette right now,” Peach said, tickling her daughter’s lips with her toes. “It’s judgement time, Penelope.”

“Yes, Mother.”

Penelope first took the left foot, the one I’d worked on. The first thing she did was rub her index finger along the ball of the foot. After a thick swirl of pink frosting wrapped around the finger, she slowly stuck it in her mouth.

Already it was obvious that I’d applied too much for one coat. The fact that she took a huge scoop and the foot looked completely unaffected attested to that.

Nevertheless, in a matter of seconds, her mother’s toes entered her little mouth. One by one, they sprinkled-covered digits disappeared. Well, only three were able to get in there, and even they were stretching Penelope’s throat to its limits. While gargling the foot in her mouth, the girl’s body generated endless gagging sounds. First they were quiet, then they were getting louder.

“Is she okay?” Minh T. asked.

“Well, with my long toes in a position like this, she might find herself getting hooked like a fish from time to time. Nothing she can’t handle.” Peach’s voice was too optimistic for this type of thing.

Penelope pulled her hair back, all while her face pushed closer towards the foot. At this point, her lips were curving around the very tip of the ball of the foot. Any further, and she’d lose her mind. Something about seeing a daughter suck on her mother’s feet was… Well, it wasn’t normal for sure. But if your mother is the princess of the kingdom, the last thing you’d want to do is disappoint her.

After releasing the three toes from her mouth, Penelope took a breath of air. She then slid to the right foot.

Now THIS was something we absolutely had to see. Would Penelope leave Mushroom City with diabetes, or would we just have to deal with a hyperactive child for the next week? Minh T. put her hands in a prayer position before Penelope went to town on Peach’s toes.

Penelope had to open her mouth wider to fit the toes inside, thanks to the two cookies squeezed between them. Once they penetrated her, she immediately let out a little groan. Or a moan. Hard to tell among all the sloshing and slobbering that filled the room. Though Penelope notably made more moves this time around than with the previous foot. At some points, she’d stroke her mother’s leg, and at other points, she’d play with her own hair. All the while, thrusting her small tongue between those imposing toes.

A minute into it, she dropped to her knees, now lapping the toes like they were ice cream cones.

I decided to step even closer, just to see in detail how Penelope looked when doing this. Hmm… Her eyes were half closed, and now her entire mouth was stained in various colours of frosting. If you looked close enough, you could spot all the bits of sugar, with maybe one sprinkle. Licking the toes was way easier than sucking them, something she mumbled the moment I plopped next to her.

“Do you actually like this, or…”

She gave me a thumbs-up. “The more I try, the funner it gets. I see why Minh T. loves this.”

Penelope took the left foot first, the one I’d been working on. The first thing she did was rub her index finger along the ball of the foot. After a thick swirl of pink icing had wrapped around the finger, she slowly put it in her mouth.

It was already obvious that I’d applied too much for a single coat. The fact that she took a huge scoop and the foot was completely unaffected proved it.

Nevertheless, within seconds, her mother’s toes found their way into her little mouth. One by one, the sprinkle-covered digits disappeared. Well, only three managed to get in, and even they stretched Penelope’s throat to its limits. As she gargled the foot in her mouth, the girl’s body made endless gagging sounds. They started off quiet, then grew louder.

“Is she okay?” Minh T. asked.

“With my long toes, she might get hooked like a fish from time to time. Nothing she can’t handle.” Peach’s voice was too optimistic for this type of thing.

Penelope pulled her hair back as her face moved closer to the foot. At this point, her lips curled around the very tip of the ball of the foot. Any further, and she’d lose her mind. Something about watching a daughter sucking on her mother’s feet was… It certainly wasn’t normal. But when your mother is the princess of the kingdom, the last thing you want to do is disappoint her.

After releasing the three toes from her mouth, Penelope took a breather. She then stepped towards the right foot.

Now THIS was something we had to see. Would Penelope leave Mushroom City with world-shattering diabetes, or would we just have a hyperactive child on our hands for the next week? Minh T. put her hands in a prayer position before Penelope went to town on Peach’s toes.

She had to open her mouth wider to fit the toes inside, thanks to the two cookies wedged between them. As soon as they entered her, she let out a little groan. Or a moan. Hard to tell with all the sloshing and slobbering that filled the room. Though Penelope made noticeably more movements this time than with the previous foot. Occasionally she’d stroke her mother’s leg. Moments came where she’d play with her hair as she fondled the sides of her mom’s meaty heels. All the while, she stuck her little tongue between those imposingly gigantic toes.

After a minute, she dropped to her knees, now licking the toes as if they were ice cream cones.

I decided to get even closer, just to see exactly how Penelope looked. Hmm… Her eyes were half closed, and now her entire mouth was stained with different shades of frosting. If you looked closely enough, you could see all the pieces of sugar, with maybe a little sprinkle or two. Licking her toes was a lot easier than sucking them, which she muttered as soon as I sat next to her.

“Do you actually like this, or…”

She gave me a thumbs up. “The more I try, the funner it gets. I can see why Miss Minh T. likes this.”

As if to prove her point, she tried to stuff her mother’s entire foot into her mouth like it was some huge pizza. I couldn’t believe it. Penelope’s mouth stretched as wide as a frog’s. And even with this technique and the moisture Peach’s foot had received, only three toes were allowed in Penelope’s mouth at a time.

Behind us, Minh T.’s cheeks were flaring. From her point of view, who could blame her? If Peach’s feet were so big that a child couldn’t stuck on all the toes, then they were a paradise for a foot freak.

“Onto the conclusions, Penelope.” Peach rubbed her slimy toes against her daughter’s forehead. “How do they taste?”

She immediately poked the right foot. “This one’s better. It’s a lot sweeter.”

Not that I was the least bit surprised. It certainly looked tastier than mine with all the additional sugar and frosting layers.

Penelope quickly added, “But the other one tastes good too. I think the strawberry mixes a bit better with the…sweat.”

“Do I get a prize?” Minh T. squealed with delight.

“You both do.” Peach rolled onto her back. “I don’t remember saying it was a competition, just a test to see how excellent you could make my feet taste.”

“Like I said, for no reason.”

“Oh, but there is, Toadette. You two just guaranteed that we’ll set this up as a game for the Star Festival, a last-minute addition.”

A game for the Star Festival? Of course… But the concept of this game didn’t concern me much. It was the eventual implementation. Did Peach want herself to be the main subject? Or were one of us going to be subjected to having strangers lick our feet? Ew…

“As for your prize, both of you can finish your small desserts.”

“Don’t gotta tell me twice!” Minh T. took hold of the right foot, dragging her tongue from the heel to the toes. She couldn’t have cared less that Penelope’s mouth juice was on every single digit. Her tongue was ecstatic to suck all of that up while sliding between the toes. I, on the other hand, could totally skip the toes on the left foot.

Luckily I had a happy appetite. And so, after wrapping my hands around Peach’s heavyweight foot, I got to work sucking on the heel. A bit of sucking and a bit of grazing with my teeth, actually. The latter action made it so much easier to get the thick frosting off. And since many of the sprinkles were still attached, it felt like I was in an ice cream parlour, feasting on a delicious ice cream cake. One in the shape of the foot, but after the fourth bite, my brain accepted this. I was smacking my lips so hard you’d think I was chewing bubble gum.

For sure, there was a hint of Peach’s sweat coming through. It added some saltiness to this snack. And yet it somehow worked.

You could compare it to sea salt ice cream. The words made it sound like it would’ve been a disaster, but it really wasn’t bad. Quite the understatement, in fact. It was scrumptious. I slid my tongue all the way up to the ball of my foot and made a long journey back down, picking up every sprinkle. The more frosting that went down my throat, the giddier I became.

Over on the other foot, the same rang true for Minh T. She’d already eaten almost every layer of frosting off that monster. And even then, she was still licking the drenched sole. The Toad swirled her tongue all over it, moaning loudly as Peach occasionally urged her to suck on the big toe. And when that happened, Minh T. had to massage her own face, as if to rid herself of the tingling sensation.

“I’m convinced that hiring you was a genius move on my part, Toadette.” Peach sat back in satisfaction as we mushrooms cleaned her royal feet. “And your skills seem to have improved a bit since our last session. Like your tongue has gotten the slightest bit stronger.”

Between licking Minh T.’s feet in the movie theatre, sucking the black stuff off Ace’s feet, sucking Minh T.’s feet in the arcade, and giving my first sloppy blowjob, hmm… It made sense that my tongue’s power had gotten a boost. It definitely didn’t get as tired as it might’ve from my earlier days.

Stuffing her mouth with Peach’s slobbery toes, Minh T. looked into my eyes. Was that more flirting on her end?

If she wanted my toes tonight, well, she could have them.

When we finished sliding our tongues across Peach’s feet for 40 minutes (jeez, that was long), she ordered us to clean this kitchen-like room. Penelope was more than eager to help, always trying to pick things up before I could reach them. Together we wrapped things up in a timely manner.

“Excellent. You’ve given me the perfect idea of how to structure this game,” Peach said, rubbing her wet feet on the hallway carpet. “Toadette, tomorrow you’ll go to the field where the festival is being held. Minh T. should assist you as long as no emergency pops up. You do whatever they tell you to do out there, while I’ve some conversations to attend to.”

“Understood.” “Okie dokie.”

“Hold on.” She pointed down. “Kiss my feet.”

My heart was both too exhausted and too fluttery to resist the command. I got on my knees, along with Minh T., and gave the top of Peach’s left foot a brief kiss. Nothing major, nothing with love. Just a little peck. Minh T. just had to go the extra mile and add in sound effects. What’s more, her lipstick from this morning left a soft mark on the princess’ foot.

“Cute.” With a lengthy twirl, Peach danced into the elevator. “Now that the spy coin is taken care of, we’ll be able to relax a little more. And more importantly, I can relax a little more.”

The door shut before Penelope could enter. The little goober ended up bumping her head and falling back. For someone her age, she sure knew how to not cry from injuries. Just stubbing my toe as a child would turn me into an inconsolable wreck.

“I’ll be on the field too, Miss Toadette.” She called for another elevator, pressing a thousand times while Minh T. and I giggled at her. “Hope I see you there.”

“Feeling’s mutual,” I said with a smile, ruffling her yellow hair. “Oh! Before you go, do you think you can help me with something?”

“No problem.”

“How do I get in contact with Sarasaland’s stink-footed leader?”