Author's Notes:To be honest, I first thought the secondary quests for both Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga andMario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story would be nothing more than pointless, silly quests. But, despite the rather strange play style of these secondary stories, I find their plots and how they fit into the main game to be both intriguing and still containing holes ripe with potential. Hence, I decided to start this story to focus on both that plot and to filling what I thought were empty, while also ignoring most of the RPG-styled fighting.
Disclaimer:I don't own much of anything here. I don't own any characters, nor do I own much of the dialogue. However, due to me filling holes, there will be times when I do make up my own dialogue found nowhere in the game. This chapter is one such example; it's not included anywhere within the game. Next chapter is when we start using dialog from the game itself.
Thanks to Hip Neptune for beta reading this chapter!
Anyway, I hope you enjoy this story!
"Master Junior! It's time for your classes!"
"Go away, Kamek!"
Kamek sighs as he knocks on Bowser Jr's chamber door again; having raised Bowser over three decades ago, the magikoopa's accustomed to such shenanigans his now-boss threw—figuratively and literally—at him, but the childish actions still get under his robe-draped skin.
Kamek wants Junior to be king, but he's unfit if he's unwilling to change his behavior.
Of course, Kamek admits, Bowser only changed slightly since his bratty days. While the king's more sensible in his decision-making nowadays, he also only relies on his own knowledge rather than the subject matter experts. His demeanor's also one of pride, gluttony and greed; traits that only matured as Bowser aged. Kamek knows those traits ended up being a stumbling block for the koopa king, and he wants them rid from Junior.
Bowser wants his child to be successful; he wants Junior to conquer lands the larger koopa only envisions. Bowser wants Kamek to get Junior prepared for such feats in whichever way the magikoopa sees fit, even if Junior's demeanor must change. Likewise, Junior desires to extend the Koopa Kingdom. He assured his father of his aspirations as they sat on an abandoned island and watched Isle Delfino's Shine Gate reactivate, and the young koopa never forgot the pledge.
But Junior never takes his training seriously.
Not hearing the small koopa respond, Kamek unsheathes his wand and touches the doorknob with it. An orange light overcomes the doorknob before the door swings open, revealing Junior half-asleep in his king-sized bed.
"Master Junior! You must be trained, on orders from your father!" the blue-robed magikoopa complained.
Junior shifts in his bed before pulling his emblem-donning blankets over his head. Kamek exhales before waving his wand, lifting the blankets away from Junior and into the air.
"You need to get ready for the day, Master Junior. Your father wants to have a word with you."
"Yeah yeah, stuff it, old geezer," Junior moaned as a shiver overcomes him, "And give my blankets back!"
"I cannot, Master," Kamek shakes his head before draping the blanket over Junior's obsidian chandelier, "Master Junior, I need to be serious with you. You are not fit to be king at your current rate of skipping trainings and meetings!"
"I don't wanna do those! They're boring, and everyone talks too much!"
"I refute, Master Junior. This job is vital and it requires hard work; you cannot prioritize playing with your toys or video games over ruling a kingdom!"
Junior smirks, "Watch me, Grandpa; I can rule it just fine. But look, I can get a blanket from my closet. Now get lost!"
As the koopa lifts himself from the bed and opens the closet, a large brown ball rolls from the closet and towards Junior. Junior grins at the ball; his wishes for sleeping in dissipate as he begins poking and kicking the ball.
Meanwhile, Kamek wears an intrigued look as he studies the brown object and notices a face and feet-like structures. His confusion transforms into panic as he puts two-and-two together.
"Junior! Get away from that! Lord Bowser needs to see this!" Kamek rushes out of the room, leaving Junior alone with the ball.
Junior also starts studying the ball; unlike his mentor, the small koopa stares at the face in awe despite the object's concerned expression. He lifts himself onto the ball before finding the guts to stand on top of it.
Junior smiles; one of his guardians, Lemmy, favors riding on a ball wherever he goes. Junior finds the feat cool; he always wanted to learn it, but he always got stuck learning the same boring royalty lessons. Perhaps now's an appropriate time to learn.
Ignoring the ball's two feet, Junior leans forward, resulting in the ball also moving forward. Junior then moves a foot back and shifts his weight onto that leg. The ball slows, but Junior's also not at risk of falling. He needs to alternate for the ball to move.
He practices alternating his legs on the ball before pushing it into the hall and towards Bowser's throne room. By this time, the confident koopa's picking up speed; to him, the ball almost seems to be moving itself.
Thrilled at his speed, Junior starts cheering and laughing as he keeps rolling forward. He understands the thrill of riding a ball; it beats walking in entertainment and speed.
Amid his utterances, Junior never noticed any outside noise, including a bloodcurdling scream just before him…