Hello, this is my first Mario fanfic and my first story to be written in a very long time. I do not have a beta, so if there are any mistakes please let me know!

Notes: This story focuses a lot on interactions between Luigi and Daisy. To me, Daisy is a strong independent woman who knows exactly what she wants and nothing will get in her way. In this story she makes several hard decisions, and at times I may present her in a flawed or unflattering manner. I in no way think that Daisy is a bad person, nor do I think the choices I have her make are in any way wrong. I realize that the situations and choices described in this story may be controversial to some, and I only wish to warn my readers of this.

Warning: Story includes allusions to sexual relations and discusses unplanned pregnancies.

Disclaimer: Mario and all associated characters/locations belong to Nintendo.

Enjoy

Chapter 1: Talking

It was always a wonder to Luigi how dirty a room could get even with nobody living in it. He took off his glove to wipe his finger through the thick dust on the mantle. He shook his head in disgust. He and Mario had only been gone a couple weeks, yet dust and dirt had managed to cover the entire cottage. With a sigh he wiped his finger off on a rag and continued to dust around the living room.

Luigi hummed to himself as he cleaned. After being on an adventure with Mario for the past fortnight, it was nice to have some time to himself. He loved his brother, but being in each other's company for so long always put a bit of strain on the two of them. So when the brothers had been invited to the castle to regale Princess Peach with details of their latest quest, Luigi politely declined, as he usually did. Besides, Mario had always been better at handling the post adventure hype than the younger twin.

Luigi smirked to himself. That wasn't the only reason he sent his brother on alone. He was certain his older twin would have no problem spending time alone with Princess Peach. He glanced up from where he was dusting to the picture frame on the end of the mantle. Smiling out from the behind the glass was Peach and Mario, arms around each other and waving at the camera. The two of them really did make a great pair. He idly wondered when one of them would finally get tired of waiting and confess their feelings to the other.

He then eyed the other pair framed in the picture. He and Daisy were standing next to Mario and Peach. Unlike the latter two, Luigi and Daisy were holding hands. Daisy was beaming at the camera, while Luigi had a small grin that was directed at the Sarasaland princess. The picture had been taken shortly after the two of them had become… well… Luigi didn't exactly know what to call the thing between him a Daisy. They were certainly closer than just friends. However, anytime he approached the princess about the situation, she would always find an excuse to avoid the conversation. Luigi shook his head. It was a problem they would have to sort out at some point. Maybe he could schedule a trip to her kingdom. He took a breath to sigh and choked on the dust his cleaning had stirred up. Planning a trip could wait until after his cleaning spree was finished.

Several hours later, the house was decidedly less dusty. Luigi inhaled the fresh scent of the room and smiled. A job well done. He glanced at the clock and startled. He had taken longer than he had anticipated. He had been working since mid-morning and it was already late in the afternoon. He had yet to even eat lunch. As soon as he thought this his stomach began rumbling. "Hopefully there's something in the pantry: I haven't gone grocery shopping yet." Thankfully dried pasta and canned sauce have long shelf lives.

He was just sitting down to his meal when a knock came at the door. "Just a moment!" He called out. He quickly crossed the kitchen and living room to the front door. His eyes widened in surprise at the person on his doorstep. "P-princess Daisy! Hello! I wasn't expecting you." He glanced down in embarrassment at his torn, faded overalls he used for working around the house.

Daisy gave him a grin. "Hey Luigi. May I come in?" Her simple yellow sun dress was much more regal in comparison to his dirty work clothes.

Luigi nodded and stepped back. "Of course! C-Come on in." He ushered her inside and sat her down in the kitchen. "Can I get you something to drink? Or to eat? I hope you don't mind, we don't have much."

Daisy shook her head. "No thank you. I'd rather not risk eating anything."

Luigi frowned at her odd comment but didn't pry. "I was just sitting down to my own lunch. Do you mind?"

"No, of course not," she told him. He smiled and sat down across from her to return to his plate. She returned his smile hesitantly. "Is, um, is Mario around?"

Luigi shook his head. "No. He's at the Castle with Peach. He's supposed to be giving her a report of our trip."

She folded her hands on the table and watched him eat. "That's good. Peach told me you two were off on anther adventure. Where did you go?"

"The F-forever Forest," Luigi said, his voice shaking only slightly. "Lady Bow and her Boos were being harassed by King Boo's minions. She asked Mario for his help and I, unfortunately, got dragged along. We just got back last night." He swallowed a bite of pasta before frowning slightly. "When did you speak with Peach?"

"Last week," Daisy admitted. "I had come by to talk to you. When you weren't here I went to the castle." She paused. She opened her mouth to speak, but after a moment pressed her lips together and looked away.

Luigi became concerned. "Daisy? What's the matter?"

Daisy took a deep breath. "I need to talk to you," she said, still not looking at him.

Slowly, Luigi put down his fork. He voice was small, nervous. He had never heard the confident princess sound so unsure before. He reached across the table and laid his hands over her own. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine!" she snapped, her eyes darting to glare at him.

He pulled one hand back, slightly stung. "Sorry…"

Her sky-blue eyes were icy, glaring daggers at him. After a moment the look faded and she looked to her lap. "Actually, no. I'm not ok. I'm…" Her jaw clenched shut. She pulled her hands away from him and folded them in her lap.

"Daisy?" he asked hesitantly. Even though he hadn't actually asked a question she shook her head. Luigi was startled to see tears building in her eyes. "Daisy! What's wrong?"

"I wanted to…" She swallowed the shaky words. He could hear her breathing speed up, quickly approaching hyperventilation. A few deep breaths seemed to help her regain her composure. She lifted her eyes to his and tried again. "Do you remember the Summer Faire a while back?"

Luigi nodded. It had been a wonderful festival. The Kingdom had been peaceful, the weather was beautiful, and there hadn't been trouble requiring the Mario Bros. help in weeks. Luigi, Mario, Daisy, and Peach had spent the entire day enjoying the efforts the Toad Town denizens had put into the celebrations.

Daisy frowned at him a bit, her brows signaling annoyance. "And… do you remember after the Faire?"

This time Luigi had to think a moment. After the faire? He remembered the four of them sitting on the balcony at the castle to watch the fireworks that signaled the end of the festival. Once the display had finished they had sat out to watch the stars awhile and shared a few drinks. Mario had gotten a bit tipsier than he had planned so Peach offered a guest room to the two plumbers. He remembered Daisy and he tucking the somewhat drunk man into bed. He remembered escorting the princess to her own guest room. He remembered Daisy giving him a good night kiss. He remembered…

He remembered being led by the hand into her room. His eyes widened slightly. "I-I remember," he told her quietly.

Her face relaxed slightly. She stared at him for several minutes. Luigi felt as if her eyes were tracing the progression of his blush as the memories of their night together raced through his mind. He was sure the red had reached his ears by the time she spoke. "Were weren't as careful as we should have been," she said flatly.

Luigi's eyes widened even further. "W-w-what do you mean."

Daisy's expression turned sour. "You know exactly what I mean, Luigi."

On some level he did know what she meant. He realized they had both been a bit drunk – he was a notorious light-weight but he had only had one drink, while Daisy had had quite a bit more but knew her limits well – but he thought they had been careful. Thinking back he could have sworn they had taken every precaution. He knew that nothing was guaranteed, that they could have slipped up. He was aware of what that could mean.

On another level, however, his mind had shut down. He couldn't think, couldn't comprehend her words! She was trying to imply something his brain could not process. It was so far out of his realm of understanding. He felt as if a fog had entered his head and couldn't be cleared out.

He caught sight of her expression. It was darkening with every minute he stayed quiet. Eventually both parts of him came together long enough to string together one half of a question. "Daisy, are you…?" He was too scared to even say it.

In the end he didn't have to say it. She understood. A small, sharp nod was all the reply he got.

The two sat silently at the table, neither one sure how to break the silence.

Luigi's thoughts were racing, but he was still in a fog. His mind kept circling around a single idea. 'She's pregnant. Daisy's pregnant. She's pregnant. What do we do? She's pregnant. How did this happen. Why did this happen? Daisy's pregnant.' He was starting to feel sick. He continued to sit there and let his thoughts swirl around. Suddenly, another thought pushed through his daze. 'I'm going to be a father.'

He had no sooner thought this than he heard Daisy whisper. He picked his head up and frowned at her, not having heard her words. "What?"

Daisy's gaze rested somewhere around his navel, her whole body tense. "I said," she said quietly, just loud enough for him to barely hear, "I don't want it."

Suddenly his body matched her own tension. "W-what?"

She glared at him. "You heard me," he voice louder now. "I don't want it!"

Luigi was stunned. "Why?" was all he could manage to say.

Daisy continued to glare. "Why? You're really going to ask me why? I can't have a baby. Not now! Probably not ever. I never wanted kids. I'm not the mothering type. I have responsibilities, duties to my kingdom! Besides, I'm heir to the throne! What would the people think if I had a child!?" He voice continued to raise throughout her tirade. "This isn't something I'm ready for! I want to be free to do what I want with life, not cater to a child! Stars above this isn't something I want!" She saw the cowed look on his face and backed down a bit. "I've had time to think, and I just… I don't want it."

Luigi swallowed, hard. "Oh…"

They were quiet a while longer. Eventually Daisy started speaking again. "As much as I don't want it though, I had to tell you." She mimicked Luigi's earlier act and took his hand in hers. "I wanted to let you know. You have the right to know."

"Thank you," he whispered. He gripped her hands hard. "What… What do you plan to do?"

At this Daisy looked unsure. "I don't really know. I have a few options, but..."

"Does anyone else know?"

She shook her head. "No, that's why anything I decide is going to be hard. No one can know about this," she told him sternly. Luigi agreed hesitantly. She nodded in satisfaction. "There are places that can… help. But I can't have any one recognize me! I was thinking I could take a trip, go to a different kingdom where no one knows me. It would be quick. A week and it could be over. Maybe even quicker."

Luigi took this information in. She really didn't want it. She didn't want her baby. Their baby. "What… what about adoption?"

Daisy sighed. "I don't know. I don't think I could hide it that long."

"What if you went to another Kingdom, like you said?" Luigi suggested, his voice a little stronger than before.

She snorted. "For that long? I think somebody would get suspicious. Besides," she said, "more than likely it would end up in an orphanage. What kind of life is that?"

Luigi said something else, but his voice had dropped low again. "What was that?" Daisy asked.

He cleared his throat. "What if you knew it would go to a real home, with somebody that wanted it?"

Daisy shrugged. "I mean, maybe? There's no guarantee, though. I don't think that…" She stopped as she caught the tears in his eyes. "L-Luigi?"

He kept eye contact with her, unable to look away. He did, however, pull his hand away from her. "Daisy… I-I can't tell you what to do. It's not m-my decision to make. B-but if there was any way you... If you could have the baby, I ask that you would. I… I would…"He hung his head, unable to continue.

"Luigi," she asked evenly. "Do you… want this?"

He nodded.

She took a deep breath. "Look at me." When he didn't respond, he temper flared. "Luigi Mario you look at me!" His head snapped up to meet her gaze. "Are you being completely serious?" she asked. "Are you honestly saying you want a baby?"

"I am," Luigi said. "I never thought it would be like this. That it would be so soon. But…" he hesitated, trying to sort out his thoughts. "Mario and I have talked a bit about stuff like this. I've always known I want kids someday. It wouldn't be the family I pictured," he admitted, "but my life never has worked out the way I planned." He fidgeted in his seat under her gaze.

"Luigi, do you have any idea what raising a child would be like?" Daisy asked incredulously.

He shrugged. "Well, Mario and I did end up taking care of our past selves, so that kind of counts?"

"That's not nearly the same!" Daisy said. "A baby will change your whole life! Everything will revolve around it and its needs! Every minute of your day will have to be scheduled around the baby. You'll rarely have time to be social. Anything you can go to has to be kid friendly." She smacked the table with her hand and glared at him. Luigi got the feeling that what she really wanted to do was knock his head. "And you can say goodbye to adventuring! You can't take a baby into danger like that! Kids need routine, something which your life has never had! It will change everything!" She had come up out of her chair, leaning across the table towards him, trying to get him to see her point.

Luigi wondered how much of her rant was her own reasons for not wanting a baby. He had curled in on himself, trying to hide from her anger. He couldn't bring himself to look at her. "That's what being a parent means," he told her softly.

She pulled away, but remained standing. Luigi stared at the grain of the table, unwilling to speak again. Daisy sighed. "I don't know," she told him, her voice even once again. "I really thought I wasn't going to go through with this pregnancy. I still don't know if I will. I…"She turned away from him. "I need to think." She moved away from the kitchen towards the door. She stopped with her hand on the doorknob. She didn't look back as she spoke. "I still have time to decide. When I do, I'll let you know." She opened the door and stepped out into the bright afternoon sun. She paused one last time. "I don't know if I can do what you're asking." With that final line, she pulled the door closed behind her.

X.X.X.X.X.X

When Mario returned late that evening, it was to a clean, empty house and a cold plate of pasta.

Feels good to get back on the horse! I appreciate any and all reviews. Thank you for reading. Please feel free to message me with any comments or concerns.