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A few months had passed since Koopin's victory in Rogueport. McGoombus had kindly given Koopin his new star, a shiny blue one that he safely kept away alongside Catherine's pink one in his drawer, as well as revealing the next opponent via a riddle. Despite Koopin and FG's own misgivings about the fight ending a little abruptly, McGoombus would not hear another word, and humbly accepted his defeat in recognising Koopin as a worthy opponent. "If ya feel a li'l cheated out," said McGoombus before they left, "then the next guy'll give ya a REAL run for yer money! He's the strongest out of all of us, an' he's damn spry too." That was all the motivation Koopin needed to keep on his personal quest. Unfortunately this would be delayed due to the riddle's meaning hinting at a place much farther away, as Koopin explained to FG eventually. At the moment however, Koopin was making some of his favourite tea, heading out to his backyard in order to give James a cup. The raptor was working on a little something in Koopin's yard, bent down at the side of a shiny new motorcycle that was coloured a smooth amber sheen. "Here ya go," said Koopin. "Thanks," said FG, "just put it down on that bench." Koopin placed it on a small workbench before sitting up on a deckchair nearby, enjoying the sight of his lover working away with greasy arms and oily face. The motorcycle had a smooth armoured front like the half of an egg shell, a curved windshield for one's head if bent down against the wind. The front wheel was exposed on its struts, while the back wheel was protected in a clamp-like guard. James was currently near the back of the bike, fiddling around with the exhaust system without a shirt on as usual, his chest streaked with axel grease.

"How long you gonna keep fixing this thing?" asked Koopin. "It's been a month since you bought it, and the races are gonna be in like two weeks, you gotta get ready someday!" "I gotta make sure this thing is giving it all," said James, "the turbocharger's fucked an-" "Jaaaames." "Sorry, screwed, and I know I fixed it up last week but I'm a li'l worried about its alignment." "You shoulda asked for a discount and checked it first." "Noooo that was my fault, I bumped it on a stupid dip at the test track." "Ahhhh huh...are bikes different in your world?" "They're a lot more powerful yeah, this thing is like a hundred-and-fifty cc for god's sake. That's a dirt bike! Not a REAL bike like my old Triumph." "How much uh, cc did that have?" "About eight-hundred-and-eighty." "...wow you'd rip your face off if you tried driving that!" "Hahaha, well my face stayed perfectly fine when I was riding it. Seriously the bikes you guys have in this world are for babies, and they call this a Mach Bike?! I'm gonna OWN at these races." "I wouldn't know, bikes aren't really my thing." "Yeah, don't worry, you got your martial arts, I got my-AH, f-f-fuck." "You okay!?" "Yeah just a...cut, lemme dry it." James pulled back from the bike and wiped his hands clean with a rag and some handwash, before taping a band-aid onto his finger. He also took the time to drink up some of his tea, feeling it warm his heart before getting back to work. "Mmmm thanks. So yeah, you got your martial arts, I got my bikes. Both something we're good at." "Well technically," said Koopin, "I got my geography, you got your mechanics." "Heh, right." "...why do you hate wearing shirts?" "I don't HATE wearing shirts, I just feel more comfortable without 'em. Especially if I got my scissors on me, the scabbard straps kinda chafe and pull against fabric yanno?" "And when ya don't have them on ya?" "Wellll then it's okay to wear one when in town I guess, there are some nice designs I like on some shirts." "Right." "Speaking of geography," said James, "didya ever figure out that riddle yet?" "Oh yeah, ages ago! Did you?" "I'm gonna saaaaaay it's to do with Lavalava Island, but I don't remember a green mountain there" "Nope, yer wrong. It's Yoshi's Island, there's a small green mountain beneath the taller three ice mountains." "Right right...and the rest of the riddle?" "On an island far away, a green mountain stands beneath three mountains of ice. When you find your way there, a battle always waits, look for the one who goes by the name 'Poochie'." "...Poochie?"

The raptor raised an eyebrow despite Koopin's awkward shrug. "I'm not sure either! We just have to find that green mountain on Yoshi's Island and find a guy called Poochie." "And we're not going now because?" "Well I still gotta work," said Koopin firmly. "Have to wait for the next good time to get on vacation when it's a long-enough break to be able to go out to the islands and back again!" "You sure get a lot of breaks, I had no idea the tourism industry was that open." "Well...here it is, I mean I dunno how it is in your world but there's enough places to keep me busy back and forth. Trips to other places to help out, or just staying local et cetera, but sometimes the seasons dry up and long as I keep up with the paperwork, they don't mind where I go." "Yeah I remember last year when we started going out that you basically spent a week on Delfino Isle, soaking up the rays while I was stuck here in a toad house." "Aww but you had fun, you were at the bar!" "That's true...so we have to find a guy called Poochie?" "Yep." James chuckled at the faintest memory flickering in his head. "Heh...I knew a guy called Pooch." "Yeah?" "He was a dick, Sarah banned him from the bar after a month." "Hahahaha, what he do?!" "Kept screwing with the jukebox and trying to sing, he thought it was a karaoke machine." "Haahahahahaa, oh wow...oh my gosh, I'd LOVE to hear you do karaoke." "Ohhhh no, no you don't, I am not singing." "Awww I bet you got a good voice." "Hah, no I don't. I don't even know any songs here, what you expect me to sing?!" "You'll learn!" James stopped in his repairs before turning to Koopin, smirking at him. "With what? I notice all your CDs are pretty much either classical stuff, or anything by Deadmouser." "It's DRY, as in DryMou5er. And yeah, I didn't mean me, I meant at a club, or even my mom!" "Oh no." "No she's great, you heard her at karaoke night! She's really patient about anyone with music, she'd love to teach you some songs!" "Hahaha...ahhhh I guess...whenever we're visiting and I got time." Soon James was satisfied with his work on the exhaust system, fitting it back up before working on the wheels. Removing the clamp-like guard of the back wheel, he checked over the wheel's stability by shaking and spinning it softly. "Shock absorber's a little weathered," said James. "What's that?" "See this thing here?"

He pointed at a large coiled spring that was attached to the rear guard, looking particularly stiff in place beneath a large piston-like object. "This thing helps me drive down bumpy roads without any trouble. The rear guard I'm gonna assume is to stop the wheel getting fu-uh...messed up if anyone tries to hit me from behind with any crazy stuff." "Right. Did they ever do that in races where you came from? I mean, throw shells and banana peels at each other?" "Hehehe, nah, we just beat the shit out of each other with whips and chains. I had a crowbar once, that was awesome." Koopin groaned and put his head in his hands, making FG shrug nervously. "Uh...sorry." "I should put like a swear jar in the house sometime, that way at least I'll get something out of your bad mouth." The raptor smirked and started to tease Koopin with a constant grin. "Hahaha, a swear jar? Really? Good luck with that, I'm just gonna steal from it." "James!" "It's my money, I'm gonna get it back." "You're not stealing anything from my house!" "I already did." "What?!" "...I already stole your heart." James leaned in close to Koopin and made fawning noises up at him, causing the koopa to blush and smirk into a giggling fit. "Snrkhehehehe, s-stop it!" "Awwwwww are you gonna report me? Make me spend a night in jail with all those big muscly men?" He rolled his head upwards while in a sitting position, placing it directly in Koopin's lap to stare straight up at him. "Have you ever been in a Turkish prison Koopin?" "N-NO I don't know wh-what a Turkish p-prison is hhhHAHAHAhahaha!" Koopin broke down with laughter, trying not to fall out of his chair as James laughed happily with him, letting out his chuckles before returning back to the bike. Eventually he wasn't satisfied enough to just simply fix the shock absorber, and decided: "Yeaaaah I'm gonna head back to the store and get it replaced. I got money for this, I knew repairs were gonna cost a bit." "Don't spend TOO much now," warned Koopin. "No worries. Man, I still can't get over how crazy the races are here. I mean, shells? Banana peels? Fake magic boxes!? That's some brutal stuff!" "Good thing the local races here are no-blue zones." "No-blue zones?" "Yeah, as in 'no blue shells allowed' zones. Some racing circuits allow the blue shell, some don't, it's a very controversial maneuver that was SO much trouble, that they eventually just made different circuits that have them or didn't have them." "How bad is this blue shell?" "It...basically targets whoever's in first place and wrecks them." "...hahahaha wow that is bullshit." "Jaaames." "Sorry...how much is that in the swear jar now?" "MORE THAN YOU CAN EVER OWE ME!" "PFFFHHHA HA HA HA HA HA!" Laughing even more throughout the day, the raptor's spirits were high and flying with both excitement over the new bike and being overjoyed that Koopin was so supportive of him having one. On their off-days, James would spend at least an hour and a half making sure his bike was up to snuff, covered with a tarp and secured to Koopin's backyard by means of a chain around a post. A little low-tech but it was the best they could do without a garage or a lockup anywhere nearby. Koopin even tried to suggest giving him his own logo to put on the side, but they eventually gave up on the idea, the raptor focusing more on winning than anything else. Soon the day of the races came, and it was thankfully on an off-day so Koopin was able to attend.

The atmosphere was electrifying, with a surprisingly huge turnout for what was a non-celebrity race. Koopin explained that the biggest races that everyone attended were the ones that Mario himself would attend, as well as Luigi, Peach and various other celebrities of the Mushroom Kingdom. But everyone loved the Mario Kart races, and James was happy to see such an enthusiastic kingdom that wanted to enjoy the smell of burning rubber and tarmac. The course they were using was known as the Mario Raceway, the crowd sitting to James' left within a huge audience box, adorned by a magnificent red cap overshadowing them all. James already saw a few twisting turns upon small hills when coming in, as well as some sort of large pipe-shaped tunnel around the corner behind him. He was already enjoying the idea of a few sharp corners. During the pre-race preparations however, he sized up the competition, all of whom were riding on bikes like him. There were various shapes and sizes he noticed among the seven other racers, ranging from small to medium to large with some rather funny designs. One bike was shaped like a heavy bullet bill, and even more bizarrely, another was designed like a magikoopa flying on its broom. He also saw that every kind of species was allowed to race, seeing quite the mixture with two toads, two koopas, a shy guy, a yoshi and a boo. Koopin stood at the sidelines nearby, having earned a ringside seat from James' participation. James also noted it rather odd that they did not have to wear helmets, even with the rather low level of cc that was allowed within these races. But he didn't mind, he always enjoyed riding without a helmet anyway, not even wearing a shirt for this event, as he rarely ever did. He was imagining at least one or two guys and girls swooning for this dark handsome stranger straddling upon a powerful machine, resisting the urge to rev it up until it was time. Sitting firmly in the sixth position, he looked up at the huge red cap hanging over the crowd and scoffed at the blue yoshi next to him.

"Sheesh this Mario's got some ego for a plumber." "Hah naaaah," said the yoshi in seventh, "that's just advertising, Mario don't even know half the stuff that gets done in his name. He's a nice guy after all." "Yeah I met him once, pretty cool dude. Hey, what's the layout of this course like?" "I dunno, I'm new here, they said it was one of the shortest but it's got some pretty twisty turns. Sure yer gonna be alright on a Mach Bike?" "Heh, don't worry, you got one too and all. May the best racer win, right?" "Right." The two nodded with respect as they waited to begin. The crowd soon fell silent, and Koopin desperately tried not to shout out to him until the race was on. A Lakitu came down from above, riding upon a happy-looking cloud while holding a traffic light upon a fishing line. James shook his head as he waited for the announcement, whilst the announcer for the TV audience was loud and clear within the vicinity of the audience, a boo and a koopa with smart blue ties in the announcer box. "Good evening everybody, I'm yer host Boose!" "And I'm your other host Koopson." "And today we're comin' atcha live from the Mario Raceway for the first part of the Tanooki Cup." "Which, while nowhere near the level of excitement of the celebrity races, is certainly not one to turn yer beak up at!" "For those of us who even have beaks, Koopson. Or noses." "Well least ya won't choke on the exhaust huh, hahaha." "Heheh, right. We have a lot of young hopefuls up this year, let's run down a few stats on 'em shall we?" A video feed behind them turned on, from a camera-wielding Lakitu near the tracks that gave a good view of the racers from above. "We got a few returners trying to get their spot back once again Koopson!" "Indeed, including my favourite right there in position number five, good ol' Wakoshi." "Now I remember you made a bet on him once right?" "He'll win me true one day, just you wait, the boy's got a lotta strength in him to handle a bigger bike, but he likes to stick to the medium." "Speaking of boys with strength, check out number six! James Campbell, he's an oddball the bookies are STILL scratchin' their heads over, a real unknown from Dinosaur Land!" "Looks like he's gettin' friendly with my boy Wakoshi there, a li'l friendly rivalry, or just two respecting racers?" "Who knows Koopson?!" said the Boo with exaggerated shrug. "They're certainly gonna tear up the track out there! The real dark horse here is that li'l shy guy all alone in the crowd, number seven's Shylacque." "With a tiny li'l Bit Bike like that, how's he gonna handle racin' with the big boys?!" "Well don't rule him out JUST yet, that li'l guy is gonna have some GREAT handling, better than anyone else here! And if he gets off-road, you can guarantee he's gonna snap back faster than anyone else will!" "Hold that thought Boose, cuz it's time for the race to start! We take you now live to the action." "LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!" said the starter Lakitu, "START YOUR ENGINES!" James revved up his bike moderately so, wanting to not put too much power into the engine before he could boost off the starting line. The other racers did the same, the silence broken by a constant roar of exhaust. The traffic light soon began to glow, as James' thoughts throbbed in his head with excitement. Here we go. Red. You ready to see this Koopin? Orange. Let's DO THIS! Blue.

Pumping the accelerator, James screeched off the starting line with a powerful boost, the crowd suddenly cheering in a mass wave of excitement that washed over them all, barely hearing Koopin cry: "GO JAMES GO!" He was quickly joined by six other racers all around him who had managed to start successfully. Two behind him had overcharged their boost, the exhaust wreathing them in smoke before they started moving. He hadn't felt this feeling in years, the wind against his bare flesh, his wrists shaking with the vibrations of the engine, his thighs warmed by the beast beneath him. A grin stayed upon his lips, rearing back to show a wicked row of teeth glinting in the sun. The first corner was no problem, a simple nearly 90-degree turn directly in front of him, turning to face a long stretch of road. He charged through with three other races cramped around him. The urge to kick one of them was strong, but he resisted, knowing he'd have his chance to attack soon. He could see five strange rainbow-coloured cubes hovering just above the track, a curious question mark displayed on each of them. He raced straight towards one to see what would happen for his first time. Koopin was watching the race's progress on a large TV screen opposite the audience box, the announcers above them rattling off names and positions for the sake of the TV audience. "Aaaaaaand that was some start," said Boose, "but seems like Shylacque and Koopay got a terrible start!" "Mmhmm," agreed Koopson, "that's gonna cost Shylacque a lot of ground he may never recover. Not gonna worry about Koopay though with his stronger bike." "I tell ya who got a REAL boost, James Campbell leadin' the front. But hold up, he looks a li'l confused by the item boxes comin' up!" "Looks like he's gonna get his first taste of no-holds-barred Mario Kart combat!" And so he did. The moment the racers sliced through the item boxes, items suddenly appeared in their hands. James found himself curiously holding a banana peel, grinning as he threw it behind him right in front of a toad biker. His skidding was hilarious for the raptor to see as the toad squealed and struggled to control his bike, making James laugh. Soon he saw a wiggly S-shaped section of track with a hill on one side and a soft grassy slope on the other. James swerved easily, not bothering about falling behind for the first lap.

What did bother him however was being smacked in the back of the bike with a green shell, clonking his wheel off its pace and making his bike shudder while slowing down. He quickly got his speed back up and kept up with everyone else, letting them fight it out. He had no idea what each item would do exactly, but he was certainly going to find out soon. A straight section of road allowed the other racers to catch up briefly before another turn around the hill, straight towards a U-turn around a giant mushroom. "And we got some casualties already!" said Koopson. "James handled that shell-knockin' well, but Blas. T. got unlucky with that banana peel!" "But Koopay's managed to catch up!" said Boose, "and things are really gonna heat up once we make it to this U-turn!" "Only problem with this track is there's not a lot of potential to drift, meaning it really is all about speed and skill. Who's got the best of both!? Let's find out." James turned hard around the giant mushroom, which itself was at the end of a solid brick wall that lined the inside of the track itself. The U-turn was sharp but short, and offered no time to gain momentum with drift, the raptor instead trying to steer deep inside of the turn. He managed to squeak out into third place, with the yoshi Wakoshi and another toad with black spots and waistcoat. A smattering of trees lined up on either side of the slightly wiggy race track ahead, with another cluster of item boxes floating tentatively ahead of them. James tore through one and found himself with a green shell circling his bike like a shark. He wanted a challenge from Wakoshi, so instead he decided to aim straight for the toad's back wheel with a cry of: "FIRE!" A direct hit! The toad shrieked and lost control, crying out from the hit as he spun slightly off course onto the grass. James cackled with a wicked glee as he weaved through the track. "HOWSIT FEEL FUCKER?! SEEIN' SPOTS NOW?! HAHAHAHAHA-WOAH FUCK!"

He hadn't looked where he was going on a straight road and was suddenly facing the maw of a huge pirahna plant, big enough to swallow his bike in one gulp. He screeched and turned hard directly to his left, tearing the tarmac with steam and dodging its wicked bite. Wakoshi was ahead of him by quite a bit, but James was not undaunted as he revved ahead. The next and final part of the track was a large half-circle turn with grass on one side and sand on the other, which ended in a very tight S-shaped turn. Three pirahna plants were also here. "And it's time for Pirahna Plant Avenue!" said Boose excitably. "James Campbell nearly got eaten all up, so he better watch out next time he comes around here!" "Looks like this guy don't like the beach," said Koopson, "when he's keeping away from that sand like it was poison!" "Well sand is gonna mess up their bikes faster than some rough grass will, so I hope they all do! Let's see how these racers handle that tight S-shaped turn before the big pipe to the finish!" The raptor chuckled as he weaved as best as he could through the S-turn of sand and grass, steering away from the sand. It cost him however a chance to get on the inside to gain a place, as a boo racer cackled his way past him. James did not like being laughed at during a race, and had his chance for revenge when another row of item boxes came right up in front of them. James grabbed himself a red shell. The boo had a banana peel. He threw it hard across the ground, watching it spin towards the boo's bike with a homing capability. But just before it hit the bike, it completely slipped up on the boo's banana peel that he had waiting. Another mocking cackle from the ghost as it tore ahead. The one thing James did not like more than being laughed at during a race, was being laughed at for having his dirty tricks become foiled, as evidenced by his screaming roar. "_FUCK YOU! FUCK YOU YOU FUCKING GHOST, I'M GONNA FUCK YOUR HEAD IN! _"

Straight ahead of him was a large pipe-shaped tunnel. It was short, but it was a bottleneck capable of squashing up several racers into a straight line. First one in was first one out. He raced up to behind the boo and grinned at one very important fact. Nobody could see either of them. He crunched his bike against the boo's bike to shove him out of the way, streaking barely ahead of the spectral racer. The next lap he was not going to be so gentle, and the announcers quickly noted the growing rivalry occurring between both racers. As the raptor and the boo completed the first lap of three, Koopin's voice was barely heard over the crowd, screaming: "COME ON JAMES, YOU CAN DO IT!" "And OH what's this?!" cried out Boose. "Looks like our unknown dinosaur has a bone to pick with Boorichello, an up-and-coming racer who loves to play hard and fast!" "And here I was expecting Wakoshi," said Koopson, "looks like my favourite racer's a better mind than either of these two for not resorting to such tactics." "Oh get a room why dontcha? Let's see how this plays out." Turning around the corner towards the S-shaped road around the hill, James grabbed the first item box on his second lap, wedged between Wakoshi and another koopa with a red shell. The koopa was lucky enough to grab a mushroom in his box, immediately planting it against his exhaust. The exhaust suddenly burned a furious flame, shooting the koopa ahead who squealed with a cackling glee. James however wasn't going to let him get away, now that he had three green shells on him, slowly circling him. He wasn't entirely sure how they even worked, but he had no time to estimate, roaring out his command while trying to aim the bike. "FIRE! _ FIRE! FIIIIIRE! " His eyes twitched with a maniacal glee. The demon of speed had possessed him once again, that look in his eye he always got when he was on a bike and desperate to win. His mind was more tempered, but his spirit was just as furious. Out of the three green shells he fired, only one came close enough to making the red-shelled koopa panic and try to steer away. His panicked brake was all it took for James to push past him, along with Wakoshi and a toad. Around the U-turn they went, skirting the mushroom as James ducked in low to his bike and turned hard inside the corner, keeping his speed up without slowing down. Wakoshi was his only true rival in terms of skill, but he had his eyes set on the Boorichello ahead of him. The raptor slammed through the second set of item boxes, receiving a bunch of banana peels instead of one. He raised his arms briefly in outrage. "_AW COME OOOON!"

He wasted no time in getting rid of them, thinking at the least he could use them as ways to delay the other races behind him. Three banana peels in all was all he could use, making a small roadblock with them that the toad fell victim to. The red koopa went behind the toad and dodged at the last minute, whereas the yoshi dangerously went between the bananas. James admired such skill, but was ready to race ahead. Lap 2 was almost over, with one more set of item boxes left. The boo was ahead, and he appeared to have a red shell on him, just waiting to be used for anyone trying to come close. James felt his hand grip something small with stubby ends as he grabbed a box. A star. Before he was about to ask himself what the hell it was for, the boo grinned at him from ahead, and released his red shell. He panicked and squeezed the star tightly in his hand. The world soon changed very briefly for him. "Uh oh!" said Boose in the announcer's box, "looks like Boorichello's just waiting to spring that trap on Campbell!" "Sure looks it," said Koopson, "and that's gonna really cost him in the pipe tunnel when everyone else is gonna tear past him...wait, what's that?!" "Is that-" "IT IS! JAMES GOT A STAR!" At that very instant, he felt an energy come alive within his body. A powerful shining light of fantastical excitement overwhelmed him, and he felt every single nerve in his being just twitch with renewed vigour. The last time he felt this sort of feeling was when he was in the F-Zero races. And it all came flooding back to him. Colours flooded his vision with a magnificent purity, yet he was not blinded by them. To everyone else, they beared witness to a rainbow-coloured raptor riding a motorcycle with a psychotic cheer in his green-set eyes. It was every bit as absurd as it sounded. And they were all cheering him on as he came down on the boo ahead of him. The star power had given him a hell of a boost in both spirit and speed. It also turned James briefly into a maniac. He imagined this was exactly what it was like to be on drugs, but without all the crippling addiction and physiological problems. Hopefully. "HA HA HA HA HAAAAA, I'M THE SHINIEST FUCKING DINOSAUR IN THE WOOOOORLD!"

Boorichello shrieked at the sight and sound behind him, and desperately tried to dodge. But FG wasn't letting him get away. Revving the engine furiously with glee, he hunted down the ghost from the side, finding out another wonderful fact. The star power made the bike unaffected by any grass or sand that would slow him down. The moment he came out of the pipe, he steered across the grass without losing any speed, until he was right along side the boo's bike. He extended his left arm out, readying a clothesline maneuver. "I FUCKING WARNED YOU GHOST BOY! TASTE THE RAINBOW, MOTHERFUCKER!" With one violent punching slam into the back of the boo's head, he roared past the spinning shrieking Boorichello as he spun wildly out of control, his speed crippled temporarily. He roared past the crowd, pumping his rainbow-coloured fist into the air with the middle finger up, staring with the eyes of a psychotic winner. Surprisingly the crowd were not terrified by this, as they continued cheering on the ecstatic velociraptor. Koopin facepalmed softly with a happy smirk on his lips. For all the while the star power lasted, James had already cleared beyond the S-shaped turn at the hill, even grabbing an item box which blessed him with another wonderful item. A single cheerful-eyed mushroom. He cackled all the way to the U-turn's giant mushroom until the star power ran out, and his vision returned to normal, eyes blinking back to the world as it was. "HAAAA HAHAHAHHAHA! HHHHAAAAAAA HAHAHAHAHAAAA-W-wait-what?! What?! ...awwwwwww!" But his mood was nowhere near disappointed, as he cleared the U-turn with mushroom in hand easily so, way ahead of the other racers who were desperate to catch up. He realised that since a boost could help clear any obstacle off-road, he was reckless enough to make a test. "Lessee how good a boost you are, huh?!"

He aimed straight towards the grass between the trees, missing the road altogether before planting the mushroom squarely into the exhaust. "And James Campbell tears up the track!" said Boose. "Looks like he got his first taste of that star power and it's certainly got him beggin' for more!" "Well yanno what they say," said Koopson, "you never forget your first time with a star. And it sure looks like he won't either, especially now he's got a mushroom and way ahead of the pack!" "It's anyone's game here, and by anyone I mean either Campbell or Wakoshi coming up-OH WAIT! There he goes, tearing through the trees with that mushroom of his, clearly missing those item boxes and just taking the lead even further with that BOOST!" "I was expecting him to save it for the sand," said Koopson, "but I guess he really doesn't like it after all!" "He's almost at the end! Can he survive that bottleneck without a crash, or will someone take the gold before his very eyes?!" Their answer soon came in the form of FG grabbing his last item box of the race, quickly finding himself with a banana peel once more. At first he was rather annoyed, but then he looked behind him. A rogue red shell. "Ohhh no you fucking don't." Remembering the boo's tactics from before, he quickly planted down the banana peel right behind his bike, speeding into the pipe-shaped tunnel with no way to dodge. It worked like a charm, as the red shell skidded and crashed like a go-kart on the peel. Nothing was stopping him now. The end was in sight. He didn't even register the last turn he made before he crossed the finish line. He only stopped once he was certain the race was over, steering off of the track and into the racer's pit. Cheers of wild ecstasy were heard all around him, and he looked up at the rows of happy faces when he finally stopped. He was close enough to hear the announcers, as Boose cheered with:

"AND JAMES CAMPBELL TAKES FIRST PLACE WITH NINE POINTS! WOW! What a race for the first-time dinosaur!" "You said it Boose!" said Koopson. "After that furious race I think a lot more of us should be tuning in to see what'll happen to this up-and-comer! Aaaaaand here comes Wakoshi in second place with six points! Don't count him out yet folks, he's still got a chance in the next three races! Koopay comes up in third place with three points while Boorichello barely struggles into fourth at one point. He's gonna be feeling that for a while." "JAMES!" A voice cried out from the crowd as Koopin leapt over to him, waving out from the audience box towards him as he tried weaving through the crowd. When he was close enough, James grabbed at his flailing yellow hand and pulled him close. "YOU DID IT! YOU DID IT JAMES!" "I KNOW! SEE, I TOLD YOU I'D TEAR IT UP! I TOLD YOU I WOULD!" "THAT WAS AMAZING, I NEVER KNEW YOU COULD-" "CUMMERE!" "WHA?!" "CUMMERE, STAND WITH ME!" In the midst of the crowd and burning with excitement, he pulled Koopin out gently from the audience, before kissing him deeply in front of the entire track. Koopin's eyes widened with a hot embarrassed flush to his cheeks, but eventually he melted into James' kiss. Both their eyes closed as the crowd kept on cheering, the confetti pouring across the track and over all of the racers before they parted lips. Koopin was at a loss for words, while James merely smirked with a shrug. "Hey!" A voice came from afar, the raptor turning to see the blue yoshi walking up to him, offering his hand to shake. Wakoshi merely smiled and said: "Not bad dude. Not bad at all, for a first-timer at these races you got some guts." "Heh, thanks!" He gladly shook the yoshi's hand, acknowledging a friendly rival. "Maybe next race you get ahead of me huh?" "HAH, oh you bet I will, it's not over yet dino boy." "What's yer name?" "Wakoshi." "I'm James. See ya next race pal." "Heh, same to you." Wakoshi soon left, and while most of the racers just shrugged off or smiled humbly, Boorichello sneered at James with the most foul of contempt. He simply ignored him and pulled Koopin close, bathing him within the warmth of his victory. But Koopin was not entirely content. A dark chill came up the back of his neck, and his eyes traced over towards one corner of the large audience. A black robe briefly flapped in the wind before fading out of sight. His mind quickly synced up to what he thought he saw back at the Shhwonk Fortress. Was it just his imagination? He was certain it wasn't this time. But he let it go quickly, enjoying James' moment in the sun far too much to let paranoia get the best of him. The raptor had proven his worth to his old past. He was glad that there was at least one part of him that he would never have to change.