The instant the pink fairy appeared, Shu's eyes widened, and his hand reflexively reached for the pause button.
What is this? Who is this pink fairy?!
The sense of déjà vu was overwhelming, the voice and intonation so familiar.
Even the subtitles had that musical note symbol... ♪
But he couldn't bring himself to press pause. The story on screen continued.
Shu didn't even notice that the black-and-white film had somehow transitioned into color.
["Hello there, beautiful Fairy Miss," Homu stepped forward, greeting the pink fairy who floated in the air, curiously observing the three Homus.
"Hello to you too! Traveler friends from afar~♪" the pink fairy responded, doing a cheerful twirl in the air.
"Fairy Miss looks completely different from us..." Homu-la whispered. "She seems really happy?"
"Fairy Miss has always stayed within the Fairy Land. Since no one has been willing to lay down their weapons to pass through Mushroom Beach for many years, naturally, no one has seen Fairy Miss for a long, long time," Hori explained, holding his umbrella. [Hori is the umbrella Homu, assumed name based on context]
Ah, I see, Homu thought. So Fairy Miss is a kind fairy who loves excitement and really wants to meet travelers!
"You were willing to put down your weapons to pass through Mushroom Beach, so you must have something very important to do, right?" the Fairy Miss's cheerful voice made the Homus feel happy just listening to her.
"Let me guess~♪" The Fairy Miss adopted a thoughtful expression, spinning in the air.
Soon, she floated down from the sky. "Are you looking for a vial of the Sun-Moon Reversing Lake water that can cure any illness or pain?"
Homu shook his head.
"Oh, no?~" The Fairy Miss looked a little disappointed, puffing out her cheeks as she thought again. Then she asked, "Then are you looking for the stones from the bottom of the Sun-Moon Reversing Lake that can make someone young again?"
Homu still shook his head. He looked nervously at the crestfallen Fairy Miss. "We came to borrow the Sun-Moon Reversing Homu Holy Sword."
"Oh! So you came for that sword!" The Fairy Miss had a moment of realization, happily twirling in the air again. "Okay, okay, I'll take you to find the sword right away~♪"
The Fairy Miss's enthusiasm surprised everyone.
"Fairy Miss, aren't you going to ask why we want to borrow the sword you've guarded for so long?" Homu asked, astonished.
"Of course, I have my conditions," the Fairy Miss said, turning back as she was about to lead the way. She pointed to the little pony Homu had been riding.
"Let this little pony rest here for a while. It's carried you for so long, it must be very, very tired," the Fairy Miss said. "You should all rest here for a bit too. You've walked such a long way, you must be tired, right?"
The Homus looked at each other for a moment, then shook their heads and said in unison, "Fairy Miss, we're not tired!"
But the horse was tired. It neighed once, then galloped happily into the distance.
"We are here to defeat the evil dragon Homusilla! It captured Princess Homu-mi of our Great Homu Kingdom!" Homu declared firmly.
"So—please lend us the Sun-Moon Reversing Homu Holy Sword!" Homu bowed deeply to the Fairy Miss.
"You're going to fight that big guy... That's quite a task," the Fairy Miss's expression showed a hint of worry. Then, she came closer to Homu.
"Come on, I already agreed to give you the sword," she said with a smile. "Just follow the rainbow, and you'll reach the rainbow bridge. Across the rainbow bridge, we can go anywhere in the world."
The three Homus happily followed the Fairy Miss onto the rainbow bridge.
The bridge curved gently, its other end disappearing into the unknown.
"Fairy Miss, why are you willing to lend us the sword just because we asked? What if we were bad guys?" Homu asked, puzzled.
The Fairy Miss turned back, speaking as if it were obvious.
"Bad guys can't pass through Mushroom Beach because they always carry weapons. Bad guys also can't make friends with the villagers of Bomb Village because the villagers would blast them away."
"But not only did you make friends with the Bomb Village residents, you also successfully passed through Mushroom Beach and appeared before me. Therefore, you must be a very good Homu!♪"
Homu felt embarrassed by the praise and could only lower his head, walking behind the Fairy Miss.
Before long, the rainbow bridge began to descend. They walked the final stretch and saw a small island in the center of a lake.
On the island stood a multicolored stone, and embedded within it was a stunningly beautiful sword.
Every ray of light made the sword gleam with a soft, colorful glow. Its beauty stunned every Homu.
"Ta-da~♪ This is the Sun-Moon Reversing Homu Holy Sword! Go on, pull it out!" The Fairy Miss smiled, stepping aside to clear the path for Homu.
Homu stepped forward and tried with all his might to pull out the Holy Sword.
But his strength was insufficient. The sword only trembled slightly, then remained still.
"How can this be?!" Homu couldn't believe it. The Holy Sword had rejected him!
He retreated dejectedly. "Fairy Miss, why did this happen?"
The Fairy Miss thought for a moment. "Because the Holy Sword loves everyone. The armor you wear contains the deep love of your mother. The Holy Sword doesn't want to intrude on the space your mother's love occupies for you."
Homu understood instantly. He looked down at the armor with difficulty.
The fire source from his praised neighbor, he gave to Homu-la;
The umbrella from the king who entrusted him, he gave to Hori;
The sword from his father, he left before Mushroom Beach;
The pony he grew up with found happy freedom here;
Now, what he needed to discard—was his mother's deep love.
Under the sympathetic gazes of Homu-la, Hori, and the Fairy Miss, Homu resolutely removed his armor and stepped forward, grasping the hilt of the Holy Sword.
Sensing Homu's determination, the Holy Sword responded to his plea and allowed itself to be drawn from the stone.
"Please protect my mother's armor, Fairy Miss. And my pony," Homu said solemnly to the Fairy Miss after drawing the sword.
"Wait!" the Fairy Miss called out to Homu. She took a red cloak from the discarded armor, held it to her lips, and gently bestowed a blessing upon it.
"May your mother, father, and friends always remain by your side..." ♪
So Homu fastened the cloak around his shoulders. He raised the Holy Sword high, facing the distant dragon's lair to launch the final assault.
"Let's go rescue Princess Homu-mi!" Homu declared bravely.
They left the beautiful place and embarked on the final leg of their journey to the dragon's lair.]