Might as well address what’s on her mind right away.

Author's Note: Sorry for the lack of updates this past week. Real life hit pretty hard last weekend, but I'll spare y'all the details. To make up for the lack of content, today is a special triple update day. Enjoy!

After telling the others that he’d catch up with them soon, Mario headed into the castle and found a secluded room to talk in. Mario noted with mild interest that it was the same guest bedroom that he’d checked the other day when he was on the hunt for Peach. By the Star Spirits, that was only yesterday and yet it felt like a lifetime ago.

“What did you want to talk about Tip?” Mario said as he neatly closed and locked the door behind him. The rainbow Pixl had flown in her typical robotic approximation of what a butterfly in flight should look like to land atop a wardrobe just outside Mario’s immediate reach.

“I do not know how to tell you this without causing you to panic,” Tiptron began slowly, as she turned to face him, “But before I begin, I want you to know that I will not stand in your way or endeavors.”

Mario became concerned as his eyebrows knit together, “Tip…, where are you going with this?”

“I know about the Grimoire, Master,” Tiptron announced.

Mario glanced up at where she’d perched on the cloth-covered wardrobe, his eyes wide in shock. “How? When? I thought I’d been careful!”

“Did you forget, Master?” Tiptron’s voice continued in emotionless monotone, “One of my functions is to uncover hidden objects. Particularly those bending the dimensions about themselves.”

“Oh my,” Vidyhyne gasped, bringing a hand to her mouth. Mario glanced over at her. He had seen her poker face, so he knew that this wasn’t an act. The goddess was genuinely surprised at this revelation.

“‘Oh my,’ indeed,” Tiptron responded smartly, “It is a pleasure to officially make your acquaintance, Madam Vidyhyne.”

Mario sighed in relief, “I should’ve known. But now that you know, Tip, what do you want?”

“I wish to be of assistance,” Tiptron announced simply, “My function is to serve you, Master, and I feel as though I have not been able to fulfill that purpose for quite some time. As I am now, I can be your eyes and ears in the Kingdom and can be someone that you can share your desires with and flesh out your fantasies before writing them out.”

“Hmm,” Mario rubbed his chin. Although he had just obtained true clairvoyance and didn’t really need a spy, per se, an extra set of eyes and ears wouldn’t hurt. Especially in times or situations where he couldn’t use his extrasensory perception powers. Not to mention having a partner in crime other than Vide would help him out in other ways.

“If we’re going to do this, then I need you to do something for me,” Mario said after some consideration.

“Anything, Master,” Mario could almost hear desperation in her robotic tones. Was she that anxious to be of use to him again?

“I’m going to need you to be my moral compass,” Mario told her, “The proverbial angel on my shoulder. The saying ‘Absolute power corrupts absolutely’ exists for a reason, and I’ve already been toeing the line as it is. I need someone there to keep me from going off the deep end, and I can’t think of anyone more perfect for that role than you, Tip.”

“Me, Master?” Tip asked, almost in disbelief, “But I’m… Could my sense of right and wrong really be trusted? I’m not even a real person. I’m a simulacrum, a copy of someone else colored through the lenses of…,”

Francis’s name hung in the air, unspoken. Mario sighed, he figured that this would be her hang-up. “Listen, Tip. Even if you were originally a copy of someone else, that person was one of the most noble and duty-driven individuals I’ve ever known. Tippi, or rather, Lady Timpani had a strong moral compass and people like… him care more about faithfully recreating something down to a ‘T’ than whatever perverted fantasies, sexual or otherwise, that they might have.

“Not to mention that you’ve been apart from him and from her long enough that you’ve long since become your own person. You’re not just a copy to me, you’re Tip – my friend, and I trust you.”

Tiptron was silent for a long time, long enough to make Mario think he had said something wrong, but then she spoke up with a slight warble in her voice, “Thank you, Master. I will do my best for you.”

“Are you okay?”

“There is an unidentified subroutine interfering with my thought processors. It is causing misfires and simultaneously reducing and increasing overall processing speed at random intervals,” Tiptron reported, “I believe my simulated personality program is experiencing an unknown emotion or emotions. I do not know how to rectify the error.”

“Emotions aren’t errors, Tip,” Mario held out a hand, “Come here.”

Tip uncannily fluttered to Mario’s outstretched hand and he petted her body as he cooed soft words to her. “It’ll be okay, Tip,” he said.

“You are correct Master,” Tiptron said after a moment, “The subroutine has been rectified with your comfort protocols. I apologize for the disturbance.”

Mario sighed. This girl. She had a long road ahead of her, and it made Mario almost feel a little guilty using her the way he was, but she probably needed this as much as he did.

“I don’t mean to ruin this touching moment,” Vide told them, “But, Mario, if you want your surprise before the Banquet, you’re going to have to wrap things up. You have to be alone before it’ll take effect.”

“Oh, I did not realize that I was interfering with the Master’s work,” Tiptron announced, flitting away to a nearby vent in the wall, “I shall see you at the Banquet, then.” And with that, she was gone.

Mario and Vide looked at the vent, their expressions a mix of bemused exasperation. “I guess she was serious about not wanting to get in your way,” Vide finally said with a chuckle, “But still…, people who could see me without first touching the Tome. That’s a first.”

Mario thought through a mental list of some of his other acquaintances, “I’m sure she’s not the only one, either.”