* * * * CHAPTER 1 * * * *

'You're not saying the princess has been kidnapped again?' sighed Mario that morning as he sat down in a chair in his house, watching his younger brother dishing up something for breakfast.

'I already told you,' Luigi also sighed, exasperated that Peach had gotten herself taken and even more exasperated with Mario's attitude towards the whole thing. 'Come on, she's your friend right? Why wouldn't you want to help her out?'

'It's not that. It's just... this is the third time she's gotten captured this month. I kinda want a peaceful Christmas, without having to fight off Bowser and his hordes of troops every few days.' His stomach rumbled suddenly, reminding him that he had other problems to deal with besides saving Peach. 'Hey, can you hurry up there?'

Luigi only rolled his eyes and turned away from the kitchen stove, handing his brother a large plate of fried eggs, sausages, tomatoes and a few other, odd things which made him wrinkle his nose up in disgust. Leaving Mario inhaling his meal at lightning speed, he went to the cupboard to dig out a box of cornflakes for himself.

'It won't take you long,' he said, trying to insert a comforting note into his voice as he addressed his brother. 'Leave now and you can be back in time for lunch.'

'Wha' if somethin' happ'ns, though?' Mario asked through an indecently huge mouthful of food. Luigi winced.

'It'll be fine!' he responded. 'Bowser's an idiot, you know that as well as I do. Just run into his castle, grab Peach and go. You might not even have to fend off his minions, if you're quick.' He glanced over his shoulder, one hand stretched towards the fridge, to judge whether his words were having any effect.

'Mmmph.' Mario returned his full attention to his breakfast, demonstrating his inability to concentrate on talking and eating at the same time. Apparently, Luigi's little rallying speech had put his worries to rest.

'And besides,' the green-capped plumber added, as he took a seat at the other side of the table to finish his cornflakes, 'Peach will probably bake you another nice cake after you rescue her. She always does.' He spotted the light that came into Mario's eyes and knew that was all the initiative he needed. With a sigh, he completed his breakfast and set to work tidying up the kitchens and throwing the dirty plates and bowls into the sink to be washed.

While he busied himself, Mario stuffed a couple of 1-UP shrooms into his pockets for reassurance and headed for the exit. With one hand on the doorknob, he paused briefly and looked back. 'What are you gonna do while I'm out?' he asked.

Luigi shrugged, accustomed to hearing this question every time Mario went off on some new adventure to save Princess Peach. 'Oh, hang around. Go talk to the Toads. You know, the usual.'

'Right. See you later then!' Mario left the cabin in a cheery mood, apparently not noticing the slight despondency in his brother's tone. As soon as the door crashed shut behind him, Luigi let out a long, slow exhale and flopped onto the armchair beside the hearth. He momentarily curled his fingers around the television remote, then thought better of it and tossed it across the room instead.

'Why does he always get all the fun?' he mumbled to himself.

After wallowing in self-pity for half an hour or so, Luigi finally dragged himself up and left the cabin. Even if he hadn't been invited to join Mario on his adventure, he could still attempt to make himself useful by going into town and helping out. Maybe he could hang up some Christmas decorations or something.

Toad Town was, as usual, a fairly quiet place, filled with peace-loving people who generally wanted nothing to do with Bowser's minions. There was always the occasional uproar – a Goomba wandering through here, a robbery there, and that one time when the Toad Town Express had slipped off its rails and crashed spectacularly in the station – but such occurrences were few and far between. Today was no exception and the only sounds to be heard were the birdsong and generic murmur of chatting voices.

Luigi adjusted his cap as he strode into town, drawing several quick glances from the people who noticed him. As soon as they realised he wasn't Mario, their gazes slid away without further interest – he felt a sickening sense wash over him as he observed their reactions to his arrival. He was nothing to them. The only person they wanted to see was their hero, the one who always saved the princess and brought them peace.

Once he got into the main centre of town, he saw that the preparations for Christmas were already well underway. Tinsel and holly branches were draped along the fences, wreaths were nailed to the doors of buildings, and a massive tree stood in the middle of the area, catching the attention of everyone walking past. Luigi, as always more observant than the people around him, immediately noticed the lack of a star on top of the tree.

It was the princess' duty to place that star. If Mario couldn't return with her safely today... he let the thought trail off. Mario would rescue her. He'd certainly never failed before, though that didn't mean he wasn't in danger. Luigi still shuddered a bit when he remembered a particular time his brother had come back with Peach, having saved her from Bowser and his army once again. Both injured, they'd been forced to stay in the hospital for a week under the watchful eye of the most skilled medics Toadsworth could find. Even with the aid of countless mushrooms, there had been some doubts Mario would come out of the experience alive.

Luigi pushed the memory away. There was no point dwelling on it; either Mario would return unharmed or he wouldn't. But he never believed his brother would fail to rescue Peach...

Still lost in thought, he wandered into a café (it had only opened last month) and sank down into a chair beside the window. There were a few Toads in here and a single Koopa, but other than that he was alone. When he waitress came to take his order, she had to address him three times before he heard.

'Sorry,' he stammered, blushing slightly when he realised how long he'd been staring blankly into space. 'Um... just a cup of tea, thank you.' He'd already had breakfast and didn't even come in here with the intention of eating.

The waitress nodded and left, and Luigi went back to his previous task of gazing through the café window. But when she returned with his tea a few minutes later, her face showed a flicker of concern.

'Hey, are you OK? You looked a bit...' she hesitated, 'spaced out!'

He let out a low chuckle at that. 'Grazie,' he said quietly, taking the cup from her and staring thoughtfully into the swirling brown liquid. 'Maybe I was, at that.'

'Why?' the waitress' tone was gentle but insistent. H e looked at her properly for the first time and saw a young Toad with a pink mushroom cap, red waistcoat and a kind expression. His mouth gaped in recognition.

'Toadette! Why are you working as a waitress?'

She grinned cheerily. 'Nobody else wanted the job so I thought I'd be nice and help out for a while,' she replied, then quickly changed the subject. 'But anyway, what are you looking so miserable about? I haven't seen you like this before.'

'I'm not!' His hasty response didn't seem to convince her, so he merely sighed and tried his best to elaborate. 'Mario went off to rescue the princess again, so I ended up left at home with nothing to do.'

Toadette slowly slid into the chair opposite him, apparently forgetting she was still at work. Luigi could almost hear the cogs turning as she asked, '...And you're angry because he didn't invite you to go with him. Is that right?'

'No!' She looked sceptical, so he sighed again and explained. 'I just wish everyone would remember me. It feels like no-one in this town even notices me, especially when my brother's around. Am I even worth anything to Toad Town? Or to the princess?' He stared forlornly into his tea and took a gulp of it when he stopped speaking.

Toadette's eyes widened in almost comical dismay. 'But we do notice you, Luigi! OK, you might not be a big hero like Mario... but we still care about you and you've helped Peach out loads of times!'

'Name one.'

'Um...'

Luigi finished his tea in a state of eerie silence. Then he carefully put the cup aside and stood up. 'I think I'm gonna help with the decorations or something,' he said a little unsteadily. 'I've... got nothing better to do.'

'Luigi, wait! Hold on!' Toadette leapt to her feet and stretched out a hand pleadingly for him, but the green-capped plumber was already out of the door.