"Mail call!" It was an invitation to a Masquerade party celebrating the princess's latest rescue. She figured since these rescue celebrations happened way too often, she'd change it up a bit this time and have everyone wear a mask.
Mario dressed smartly in a white suit with a red shirt and bow-tie. Luigi wore a black suit with a green shirt and black tie.
As they approached the castle, Luigi fiddled with the strip of cloth in his hand. It wasn't anything special, just a scarf-like strip with two eye-holes. He couldn't help but feel the simplicity of it reflected who he was too well.
The hall was filled with mushroom people and humans alike. Luigi looked out at the dimly lit dance floor. "Bro…" he whispered.
Mario knew that look. "Don't be nervous, bro!" He slapped his shoulder. "You're a phenomenal dancer!"
"Yeah, sure, but… …not without a dance partner…"
"Mario!" Peach greeted him. "I'm glad you could make it."
"Duty calls, bro! But don't worry." Mario took Peach and escorted her to the dance floor. He placed his white mask over his eyes and began to dance with the princess.
Luigi stood but for a second, then went over to a table to sit down. Toad came by and sat next to him. He started trying to fit a ski-mask type mask over his mushroom head. "What's up, Master Luigi?"
Luigi smiled. Toad and Toadette were the only ones who called him that. Toadsworth didn't even know his name half the time. "Can't dance without a girl, Toad." He helped him with his mask and got it to fit.
"True, true… But you are looking pretty cool tonight.
Luigi hid a scoff and put the mask over his eyes. Toad helped him tie it from the back. He got it pretty securely on his head. There was no risk of it falling off no matter how long he danced.
Toad looked him over. "Why don't you go mingle? You may even meet a pretty girl!"
"Ha! That's a laugh. Look at me."
"Luigi… you could be anybody… or nobody. You're wearing a mask, after all. Who do you want to be tonight?"
"You're right…" Luigi looked out toward the others. One thing he took pride in was his ability to dance. Maybe today was the day he could actually—odd as it sounded—show off. "Okay. I'll dance!" He stood up with such force, Toad laughed.
"That's the spirit!"
Luigi stepped out on the floor, and just as he did, he bumped into a young woman. "Oh, I'm terribly sorry."
"It isn't a problem." She smiled sweetly. Of course, the smile was all he could see. She wore a plain dark yellow mask, no feathers, no flair. It covered everything but her mouth.
He decided now was as good a time as any. He threw caution to the wind and said, "I—um…" He cleared his throat. "…at least owe you a… um… a dance?"
Her eyes scanned him with a mischievous sparkle. "Was that a question, or a command?"
"N-Neither! Uh, no, um… more of a… ahem… request?"
She smirked and stifled a chuckle. "You need to sound more sure, sir."
"Fine." Luigi stood up straight and took the girl's hand. "Will you be so kind as to honor me with a dance?"
She smiled. "Yes."
And dance they did. It was a slow, jazzy tune, but his foxtrot was still full of energy. The young woman was obviously quite impressed with Luigi's style and grace. Even her brown hair flew flawlessly. It was like a dream, for the both of them. Luigi's eyes sparkled as he gazed into hers.
The song ended, and the woman whispered, in awe, "I… am impressed, sir."
Luigi smiled, "You are a good dancer yourself."
"I never knew I would enjoy it, though. I'm impressed you could make it so exciting for me." She paused. "What's your name?"
Luigi hesitated. "Th-the point of the mask is to hide my identity, isn't it?"
"I suppose you're right. After all, I expect mine to do the same for me."
They sat at the edge of the room and talked. They didn't speak about anything in particular. They merely commented on the party and the music. The woman, previously acting stiff, started to relax. Surprisingly, so did Luigi. He was shocked at how easy it was to talk to this girl.
"Now that's something a mask can't hide," he said at one point.
"What?" she asked.
"That beautiful smile."
She smiled wider. "Are you flirting with me?"
He blushed. "I wouldn't know."
She laughed. "Well, you certainly know how to dance! Where did you learn?"
"I, um… taught myself… actually."
It had been a while since that first dance, so Luigi held out his hand again and asked, "Another dance?"
"Most definitely," she replied.
He took her out on the ballroom floor. The next dance was a fast-paced waltz, but Luigi didn't miss a step. He spun her, swooped her, and even lifted her. They were having so much fun, laughing breathlessly as they twirled around the floor. On the last chord, Luigi pulled her into such a quick, deep dip that her mask slid right off. As he pulled her up, he saw her true face and gasped.
"Oh, that was fun!" she laughed.
They were again looking at each other in the eyes, but Luigi's eyes shone with terror. The woman before him was none other than Peach's friend from Sarasaland, Princess Daisy Saras. He stepped away. "I… uh…" He remembered all too well under what circumstances they met. He was anything but impressive. He was a coward, in awe over her fighting instead of fighting for her. He couldn't show his face to her after that. "I… um… have to go…"
"Uh-oh…" Mario glanced over at them. He was just in time to see Luigi practically run away from Daisy's still-outstretched hand. "Don't say a word to her," he told Peach as he got up. "I'll talk to him…" He hurried out of the castle, where he finally caught up to Luigi. "Hey, bro!" he called. "What's going on?" He smiled teasingly, "Who are you, Cinderella?"
Luigi ignored his joke. "I was dancing with a princess!"
"And…?"
"I… I…" He was spluttering. "I'm nothing, Mario! I don't have anything worthwhile to a princess! All I have to my name of any worth—"
"Stop it!" Mario's voice grew into scolding. "Just stop right there before you go any further! Because I'm not going to like what you say!" He took a breath. "Luigi… she liked you."
"She liked the man in the mask!"
"That's you!"
"I'm beneath her!"
"No, you're not!"
"I can't show my face to her… She can't know it's me. The last time she saw me, I was a coward… I'm always a coward! An unworthy brother of a hero! That's all I'll ever be!"
"There's more to life than heroics, Luigi. Not every girl needs a hero."
"But… she's a princess…" He turned away, toward home. "I'm anything but a knight in shining armor."
"Then show her that 'anything' part, bro. And you'll see."
Luigi shook his head and started off, leaving Mario standing there earnestly.
Mario sighed, "You just don't understand how great you are, little bro…"
.
Daisy gazed out of the window. She thought that staying with her best friend Peach for the week would be a complete bore. Between elegant balls and fancy pink living conditions, she could almost gag. Peach knew her to be a rough-mannered tomboy. If it was up to her, she wouldn't force her to stay for so long. But it was the plan of Toadsworth and Sarsworth, who always seemed to have it out for her.
But it seemed like all of that formal stress was taken away from her tonight. She couldn't stop thinking about that guy… "That guy!" she whispered to herself. She would never have described herself as easily smitten, and she never thought that she would be so easily "swept off her feet." She would sooner add those romantic thoughts to the gag list. But tonight was one of the greatest exceptions she could ever hope for… until it ended so abruptly.
But that masked man… She found it so easy to talk to him. He had locked his blue eyes right in hers. There was no pressure for her to be ladylike, for she was wearing a mask to hide who she was. And the moment it fell from her face was the moment her fun had ended. "Why did he leave?" she questioned. "Perhaps it's for the best."
.
The man in the mask… Luigi looked at his reflection in the mirror. He had an idea. It may just work…
Stealthily, he sneaked out of his room, out of the house, and down the path to the princess's castle. He climbed up and over the wall as quickly as possible. He knew he looked like some kind of criminal in his black mask and black jacket zipped up to the top.
He looked up at the window. "This is insane…" he told himself for the fourth time, yet just like all the other times, he stayed put. What am I going to do? Start throwing pebbles at her window? This is crazy! But he was there.
"Hello?" a voice called.
His heart jumped into his throat. He faltered and, before he could catch himself, landed with a splash in the fountain.
The familiar laugh lit up the night brighter than the fountain's light, but his face flushed red as he tried to stand up. "I-I…" His dark hair was now sticking to his face.
"I'm glad you came back," Daisy said, stretching her hand out to help him up. When she saw him, she frowned ever so slightly. "You're still wearing your mask…"
"I… um… I thought I should apologize…"
"No, it's alright. I guess my being royalty would startle a guy like you. I should have warned you."
"Princess… I am not the sort of man… that is… I…"
"Hush." Daisy was now right next to him, lifting a hand to his mouth, causing him to turn as red as Mario's cap. "Think of what you want to say before you stutter it out."
"I'm sorry." Luigi was heartbroken. Here was this girl, a girl that he had grown to like very much during the masquerade party, and she was one girl he could never deserve.
"You don't have to be." Daisy sat on the fountain and tapped a space beside her. "I don't need to know who you are to know that I like you."
"Y-You do?" Luigi sat down, still dripping water.
"Well, yes! You were great company at my friend's dance." She turned to him. "And a grand dancer to boot! I never like those kinds of gatherings… but you… well, I don't feel I was worthy of your skill."
"You?"
"I tend to have a hard time following."
Luigi smiled.
"Yeah, I'm more of a leader, as any princess should be, I suppose."
Daisy was certainly a dominant personality. Luigi let her do most of the talking that night. She seemed to enjoy it, anyway. She asked for his views on different things, but whenever he answered he remained vague enough to hide his identity.
When the clock struck one, Daisy gasped, "Oh man!" It's getting' late!" She had begun talking more like herself now that the two were warming up even more toward each other.
Luigi stood and turned to help her from her seat. "Goodnight, Princess." He bowed.
She looked him right in the eye and said, "I'll know who you are someday, Mask."
Luigi gulped. Just the way she said that, he was almost convinced that it would happen. But he was determined not to let it.
.
Daisy never had such comfortable nights in her friend's castle. It had nothing to do with Toadsworth being at her service or even her friend staying in the castle for her sake. "Peach, feel free to go out and see Mario. I'll be fine," she insisted.
"Well, someone has to entertain you in the morning," Peach winked.
Daisy smirked. "Didn't take long for you to find out."
"Well, I was awoken by a rather large splash last night." Peach tried not to smile too widely—for the poor man's sake, Daisy figured. "Have you found out anything about him?"
"I haven't found out who he is, if that's what you mean." Daisy was almost grumbling.
Peach nodded but remained silent.
Night after night, the masked man would visit Daisy, leaving when the clock struck one each time with no more than a formal bow. It annoyed Daisy to death. However, she was learning… Bit by bit, piece by piece, the man's story was falling into place in her mind.
Daisy's conversation tonight was about her chancellor, Sarsworth. The Mask smiled as she ranted on about how much he annoyed her and never let her do what she wanted. "Well," she was saying, "I guess that's not true. I mean… he's the closest thing I have to a dad… I care about him, I really do… He's just really… overbearing." She looked at him and was surprised that he was still paying attention. "I'm sorry… I shouldn't complain, I guess. He's only looking out for me and the kingdom." She paused, trying for a casual tone to fish for information. "What about you? Any overbearing parents?"
He bit his lip and cast his eyes downward.
"What's the matter?"
"I…" he sighed. "I was orphaned very young… I… never knew my parents."
Daisy felt awful for trying to fish that information out of him. "Oh, no… I'm sorry…"
"No, it's alright." The Mask tried to smile at her. "My brother did well raising me."
"Your brother?"
"Yeah… he's a good man…" He looked up at the moon.
Daisy's hand twitched. She was staring right at the knot on the back of his head. She wanted to lift it, to see his face as he had seen hers. She wanted desperately to know who he was Who was this mysterious stranger? She stopped when she noticed that her hand was almost at his head. No, she told herself. He has his reasons… and I shouldn't betray his trust now. She was spending time with a man she loved. That was all that mattered. She brought her hand back to her lap. "Do you think that he still feels responsible for you, even now?"
The man laughed. "I know it." He turned back to her. "I often regret the kind of kid brother I've been… constantly needing him… relying on him… I feel like… I was a burden."
Daisy shook her head. "I'm sure you weren't a burden."
He smiled weakly back at her, then looked again at the moon. "It's so bright tonight."
"I agree." She leaned her head on his shoulder, which tensed with surprise and timidness. She closed her eyes and relaxed. He laid his head on the top of hers. They sat like that until the clock struck one.
.
Luigi crept quietly back into the house. He closed the door with no more volume than a whisper, but a light turned on behind him, causing his eyes to squint instinctively. "And where were you?" Mario inquired.
"N-Nowhere…" he tried to avoid the impending conversation.
"You are not getting out of this that easily, Weegie. What's up, bro?"
Luigi was still wearing the mask, and when Mario saw it he smiled knowingly. "You went back."
"Yeah," Luigi admitted.
"Way to go, bro!"
"Well… I'm going to bed…"
"Oh no, you don't! I want to hear just what you've been up to!"
"Does it matter? It's not going to come to anything."
"How can you say that? You two obviously like each other! How long as it been?"
"Almost a week."
"Yeah, I think it's safe to say she likes you."
"She likes The Mask."
"You are The Mask!"
"Until I take it off! Then I'm just me!"
"Which is even better, bro. Take off the mask, Weegie."
"I can't…" He slid past Mario and into his bedroom.
"I should tell you, bro…" Mario whispered outside his closed door. "Tomorrow is her last night. She leaves the next morning for Sarasaland. If you don't reveal yourself to her now… she may never know it was you." He went back into his own room.
"That's the plan," Luigi mumbled.
.
Daisy couldn't hide it anymore. She wanted to make it very obvious she wanted to know who he was before she left. She even went so far as to tell him. "Please… let me see who you are!" she nearly begged.
But the masked man shook his head. "I'm not worthy of a princess, I'm afraid."
"Who says you have to be?" She shook her head. "I'm the most bizarre princess you'll ever meet! Surely you've discovered that by now!"
He nodded somberly. "All the more reason I can't reveal myself. You're… You're strong… you're… amazing… and I'm… not."
As much as Daisy wanted him to reveal himself, she didn't want her last conversation with the man to be about whether or not he would remove his mask. So she spent the last night describing the place she would be going home to, Sarasaland. "You should visit the kingdom sometime. It's really kinda nice."
"I'm sure you wouldn't be holding any fancy balls, though," The Mask smirked.
She laughed. "I would not normally be the type. But perhaps… Perhaps I could host a masquerade of my own." She looked over at him. "If I have your RSVP early as now."
"I'll be there. Just name the date and time."
Maybe she could still see him. Maybe she could come back to visit the Mushroom Kingdom more often than she already did. Maybe she could get Peach to send out little spies to find out who this man really was. Maybe…
"You alright?" the man's voice snapped her out of her thoughts. She realized her eyelids were drooping.
"I think these late nights have taken a toll on me," she said regrettably. "I can barely keep my eyes open."
He reached his hand toward her face, then stopped. He began to retreat, but she grasped his hand and placed it on her cheek. She watched him as he swallowed. "P-Perhaps I should let you rest… You leave tomorrow at noontime, don't you?"
"Yeah… that…" She stifled a yawn as best she could, but couldn't quite hold it back.
"Goodnight, Princess." He left as he normally did, and she watched him go. She looked up at the clock. It was barely 11:00. She sighed and went back inside the castle. She climbed the stairs to her room. Peach frowned as she watched her but didn't stop her to chat. Daisy collapsed on the flowery, pink bed and closed her eyes. Tired as she was, she wouldn't be asleep for awhile.
.
It was the morning of Daisy's leave. Mario all but glared at Luigi as he sat at the table, fidgeting with his napkin and not touching his food.
"You're just going to let her go," Mario stated more than asked.
"I have to. She's got things to do. She's a princess."
"Mamma mia, Luigi! If you talk about her being a princess again—"
"But that's what she is!"
"And if she wasn't?"
"What?"
"Would you be hiding from her like this if she wasn't a princess?"
"Y-Yeah…"
Mario shook his head. "Why, Luigi?"
"Because of how we met! She was the hero that day! I was a cowering… coward!" He sighed. "Once she sees me, she won't want to know my name!"
"You don't give yourself enough credit, bro. You really don't." Mario put an arm around his little brother. "When are you going to see what we all see in you, Weeg?"
Luigi looked up at him.
"Remember what the Yoshis always told us… Courage is being scared to tears…"
"…but fighting through it anyway," Luigi finished reluctantly.
Mario left him to sit there, alone with his thoughts.
He glanced over at his mask. I should at least say goodbye… He stood up from his seat and fingered the holes in the cloth. Taking a deep breath, he grasped the disguise and headed for the door.
.
Daisy woke with no particular rush. She let the servants finish packing her things with no fuss about how she wanted to do it herself. Peach tried to talk to her during breakfast, but Daisy wasn't really listening. "Why did my stupid mask have to fall off?" she asked.
"If it hadn't, he would have never known where to find you," Peach noted.
"If it hadn't, we could have both revealed ourselves at the same time!" Daisy insisted.
"Trust me, he wouldn't have wanted to reveal himself no matter who you were." She smiled and shook her head.
Daisy looked up and narrowed her eyes. "What?"
"I said, he—" Peach stopped. "Nothing."
"You know who he is, don't you?!"
"Daisy…"
"Holy mushrooms, Peach! You knew the whole time, didn't you?!"
"Daisy… I can't tell you—"
"Why not?!"
"Because it's not my secret to reveal. It's his decision. Not mine. Not yours."
Daisy sighed. She knew her friend was right not to tell. But it frustrated her to no end to know that all this time Peach had known and did not tell her anything.
"Come on, Daisy. Let's get you out in some fresh air. That always cools your mood."
Daisy let out a small growl, but let her friend lead her outside the castle.
.
Luigi nervously approached the fountain. Daisy was sitting at its edge, looking in at its clear, crystal water. He clutched the black cloth he still held in his hand tighter. With one last push of resolve, he took the last step before she turned with a start. Upon looking at him, she tilted her head, puzzled. Then, she saw the mask in his hand. Her smile reached across her face, it seemed, and she ran to Luigi and embraced him. "I'm glad you've revealed yourself, Luigi!" she exclaimed.
"H-How do you know my name?" Luigi was shocked.
"Silly!" She pulled back. "We met a few years ago… Don't you remember?"
"You remember my name from back then?"
"'Course! What do you take me for?"
"Most people never give me a second glance."
"Well, they should. Because you're pretty cool, Luigi." Her grin did not leave her face, even as she planted a kiss on his cheek, turning it red as though by magic.