It had been a long day and all Luigi wanted to do now was rest up by watching some old movies in the relatively decent sized manor he called his home. He was already all settled on his couch with his polterpup and girlfriend snuggled up next to him even the bat that lived in his home was hanging down from the ceiling asleep, keeping him company in the mansion that would have felt much to empty without them. The only problem that occurred during the process of relaxation was that when the movie he and Daisy were watching got to the climax the TV screen was filled with an image of an old man with a small tuft of hair on top of his head, "LUIGI!" Came a yell alongside when the man suddenly appeared which caused the green clad man to jump off the couch and run behind the nearest wall in his surprise.
The man on the television backed away and cackled in delight as Luigi glared at him with disdain, :P-Professor E. Gadd… m-must you always do that?!" He asked in annoyance. He thought of the professor as a good friend of his ever since he met him at the mansion he believed to be the one he won but, unfortunately for Luigi, it turned out that that mansion was filled with ghosts and one of them had even captured Mario. It was thanks to the man on the television that Luigi was able to clear out the ghosts for the time being and his older brother was safe. But it didn't mean that the man hiding behind the wall still wasn't the target of the old man's pranks.
E. Gadd wiped a tear from his eye after finally having his laughter die down before he replied, "Ah, sorry, sonny." He apologized, not very genuinely, "You always give the best reactions even after I've done this tons of times before." He mused with a bit of a smirk.
Daisy, the ever perceptive princess that she was, rolled her eyes at the display and hid the small bit of annoyance she had due to the interruption of her and her boyfriend's movie marathon night as she got up and moved over to the man shivering behind the wall, "C'mon, Luigi! It's not like he'll do anything besides tease you." She told him with her hands on her hips and a quirked brow.
The green plumber still quivered in fright as he looked up at the red-haired woman that he adored so much- the sight of her made him feel warm and less fearful, "Y-You're right, Daisy…" He agreed but still didn't want to take his hands off the wall. At least not until he noticed the gentle hand of his lover being held out to him which made him crack a small smile as he gingerly took her hand and allowed himself to be pulled back to the living room. He didn't let go of her hand as he looked back at the professor who had now been staring at the couple with a much kinder smile, enjoying the interactions they were having, "Professor, what was it you wanted from me…?" The plumber asked the old man with a curious look on his face, "You usually do this whenever you need something… usually something to do-"
"There's a ghost-hunting job for you!"
"-to do with ghosts…" Luigi finished his thought with a groan, not exactly glad to be proven correct. He laid his chin on top of Daisy's shoulder as his frown became present once more, "Why do you never call for REAL ghostbusters?" He sighed, "You know how easily I get frightened…" He mumbled. The floral princess heard him and gave him a gentle smile as she kissed the top of his head to help him calm down some.
E. Gadd shrugged, "You're cheaper." He said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, which is true. When he noticed the slight seething look he got from the boy he gave a sheepish smile, "I kid, I kid. I'll be sure that you get a fair amount of money." He assured him.
"Fine... " Luigi sighed, defeated, "Where is the place you want me to go capture the ghosts?" He asked as he picked his head off of Daisy's shoulder, holding his hand out to the television expectantly.
The professor quickly took the hint as he used his Pixelator to send over the map to the place in need of some ghost cleaning before beginning to explain some details but the man clad in green hardly heard a word as he began to shake again once he realized where he was supposed to go. It was someplace he had no desire to revisit, that's for sure. Maybe he could ask the professor to reconsider? Maybe he could just outright refuse? Maybe he could- "Luigi?" A quiet, feminine voice got him out of his thoughts as he snapped up to look at the princess who seemed worried about him, "Do you know that place, Luigi?" She asked in curiosity but also concern. He nodded but said nothing, not wanting to tell her what the place was because she didn't know anything it like he did nor did he want her to ever find out, "You know you don't have to force yourself, right? I could always go with you."
He sucked in his breath at that question as he thought about what would happen if she were to go with him and possibly see something there that would make her question his sanity- could. He looked back down at the picture of the place that he was supposed to be hunting ghosts in, not noticing as the bat swooped down and perched herself on his shoulder so she could look down at the picture too. The man sighed as he shook his head at Daisy, "I… I have to do this alone." He told her with a slightly confident smile before finally noticing the bat and chuckled a little as he pointed at her, "If it makes you feel better, I can take this bat with me?" He offered after noticing his girlfriend giving him an unsure look, obviously hearing the fear and anxiety that was still edging itself into his voice.
Daisy stayed in her uncertain silence for a bit longer before sighing and kissing Luigi on the cheek, "Just try not to run for hills, alright?" She teased him with a small snicker which made her boyfriend roll his eyes and nod with an amused look. She then looked over at the bat who was looking at the plumber in shock and gave her a small pet of the head which gained her a hiss from the animal who apparently didn't enjoy the affection, "Take care of him for me, please…" She whispered to the bat, obvious worry for the man in her voice. The small animal looked at her with something that seemed like a kind look before nodding.
"Hey! Were you even listening to me?!" Professor E. Gad's annoyed shout interrupted the couple's conversation. Both Luigi and Daisy turned towards the professor with the boyfriend chuckling sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. The baby-faced old man rolled his eyes before giving his ghost hunter a hint of a sympathetic look, "You could always refuse to do it, sonny, but I know the woman who owns the place would be very grateful if you could help her out."
"No, it's alright, professor." Luigi gave a ghost of a smile to E. Gadd and tried to put on a self-assured air about it him even though everyone, including the bat, could easily tell that the air was completely fabricated, "I can do this… I can do this, I think." He said with a bit less assurance than he tried showing on his outward appearance, "Did the owner of the place say when she wanted me to come?" He asked with a cocked brow.
"No, my boy, but I think it'd be best if you do it tomorrow after you get enough rest."
"You aren't just gonna teleport me there like you usually do?" Luigi asked was surprised after noting that E. Gadd seemed actually kinder than usual.
The professor laughed a bit at the assumption the plumber had, "No. I can tell you're quite shaken by this place so I want you to be all rested and ready before you go." He replied before glancing behind his left shoulder to where one of his helper ghosts was trying to get his attention. He told the ghost to give him a second before looking back at Luigi, "Just make sure to suck up a bunch of those nasty ghosts! There should only be one really troublesome ghost but you should be fine!" He told him with a grin before turning off their communication and letting the movie come back onto the scene it was interrupted at.
Although the movie was back on the residents of the manor didn't seem to notice as the couple and the little bat just stared at the picture of the place Luigi would have to suck up ghosts in. Daisy had a quizzical look on her features as she couldn't understand why this place seemed to hold so much significance to her lover but apparently he was hiding something from her- she wanted to ask about it but she was afraid if she pushed him while he was in this fragile, frightened state that he break and she couldn't bear doing that to him. The floral princess just stayed silent as she watched the man in stare at the picture for a bit longer before placing it on the table in front of the couch, the bat flying out through the open window to presumably get something to eat and enjoy the rest of the night. He looked over at the red-haired woman beside him who still seemed worried and decided not to address her worry since he didn't know what he could tell her to ease her mind so instead all he did was turn off the television, hold out his hand and ask, "Maybe… Maybe we should just go to sleep…?" He asked quietly, his voice made it sound like that was all he wanted to do at that moment. Daisy gave him a small, warm smile that made him feel much safer than how he was feeling the past few minutes before taking his hand in hers as she agreed that some sleep might do them both some good. He sighed in relief before they went to the bedroom.
It was the next day when Luigi found himself with the Poltergust 5000 on his back and the bat from his home on top of his iconic green hat. As he looked up at the imposing dark castle that stood before him he had to admit that the building was doing a wonderful job on intimidating him and probably anyone else who dared go up to the castle- who in their right mind decided that this place would be a great home? Probably someone who wasn't in their right mind. He closed his eyes for a moment as he tried to calm his nerves before he went in there- all he has to do is go in, suck up the ghosts, and leave. Simple! Not if his past ghost hunting adventures had anything to say about that… He began to shiver in fear again but apparently his little bat friend wasn't having any of that as she put her face in his and screeched loud enough to make the man jump in surprise, "WAH!" He yelped as he fell onto the ground, looking up at the animal who was now in the air in front of him, "D-Don't do that!" He snapped at her. She took no heed in his words as she just started to fly towards the castle. He scrambled to his feet a second after he registered that he was getting left behind,"Hey! Wait up!" He called after her as he started to run after her.
By the time Luigi caught up to the bat he noticed that she was flying about the door as if looking for something but he didn't know what it was. Maybe the key since the note that was on the back of picture of the castle had said that the owner of the home would be out of the castle for a while so he would have plenty of time to clean up 'all those nasty ghosts' from the her place of residence. He didn't say anything as he simply watched small creature use her ultrasonic frequency to examine a certain bust that was near the door before pointing one of her claws at a small spot on the bust. He tilted his head in confusion but decided to touch the spot that she was pointing at, only to be surprised when he found out that he actually pressed something that caused the doors to slowly swing open. He blinked in surprise at that, "Wha-" He gaped at the bat as if she had grown two heads, "How- How did you know that?" He questioned in complete awe- he didn't expect an answer but he was becoming a bit suspicious of the little bat but it'd probably be best to ignore the suspicion for now instead he followed her inside.
A/N: Well, anyone who read my first attempt at this story my find this to be completely different. I like to say that that's because I've improved and got better ideas for this but it's also because I refused to reread the original due to how cringeworthy it is to me now. I'm much happier with this one and I promise to try to finish this one. Try to.
Anyhow! Constructive criticism and any type of non-hate feedback is welcomed!