PRINCESS DAISY'S GAME OF DEATH
Princess Daisy, ruler of Sarasaland, was one of the prettiest girls in all of the Mushroom Kingdom. She had been engaged for several months to Luigi, who came to see her every Sunday. Daisy was a gay and fun-loving person. Luigi loved her in a way that was too serious for her liking; she would often tease him, and the pranks she enjoyed playing on him sometimes went beyond a joke.
There was a little servant at the manor, Shyguy, who was at least as mischievous as Daisy. He helped her to tease poor Luigi. When he would come over to the manor on a Sunday morning, Daisy would rarely be there to greet him. The little servant would take it on himself to explain his sweetheart's absence, spinning him an improbable yarn. Daisy, in fact, would simply have gone to hide in the attic, or behind a pile of straw in the yard. Just as Luigi was about to retrace is steps and return home crestfallen, she would suddenly show herself. Then she and the little servant would start laughing. Luigi would try to cheer himself up, whilst reproaching his loved one for childishly wasting time that could have been so well spent saying sweet things to each other..
But Daisy was unmoveable.
One Saturday night, she said to her little servant:
"What silly trick shall we play on Luigi tomorrow? "
"Lady," replied the little servant, "whatever we do, it must be something new, for almost all of our old tricks have gone stale."
"That's my opinion, too. Listen Shyguy, I've got an idea. I'd like to find out if Luigi loves me as much as he says. When he comes tomorrow and asks you where I am, you must look very sad and answer him as follows: "Alas! She's with God, and you'll never see her in this world again."
"You're going to play dead, Princess Daisy?"
"Precisely."
"They say it's not good to do that."
"Bah! An innocent joke.. Only to see if Luigi would really be upset if he believed I was dead."
"All right," replied Shyguy.
They spent a good half of the night organising the plot.
The sun rose the next day. As soon as they were alone, the two of them hurried to put into effect the project they had planned the night before. Daisy stretched herself out on the kitchen table, her head resting on a piece of bread which she had wrapped in a napkin from the cupboard.
The little servant spread a sheet over Daisy's body.
Then he went and sat on the bench that ran along the length of the kitchen wall.
Luigi appeared in the open doorway.
"Good day and-a joy to you, Shyguy; where's a-Princess Daisy, eh?"
"It's a bad day and sadness that you should be saying, Luigi," said Shyguy the little prankster in a crying tone.
"Are you trying to say that she a-no longer loves me or that-a since last Sunday someone's a-been here and a-taken my place?"
"Daisy shall not be your wife, or anyone else's. She's with God now."
"Dead! Daisy! Take it easy, Shyguy. Not all jokes are good."
"But look over at the table! Lift the sheet and see what's beneath it."
Luigi became quite pale, whilst inside himself the little servant was most amused.
He went over and lifted the sheet and drew back horrified.
"Alas, it's only too true!" He exclaimed.
"Luigi," said Shyguy keeping himself serious, "haven't you heard them say that a lover can resuscitate his dead loved one by taking her and slapping her about the face? You should try this remedy."
"What! No! You're still joking?"
"Try, I tell you, and don't be angry. Hold on, I'll help you."
He got up from the bench where he was sitting but he had scarcely reached the table when he nearly fell over backwards.
Princess Daisy really had taken the colour of death. Her wide open eyes could no longer see.
"It's not possible! It's not possible" cried Shyguy.. "Here Luigi, help me.. Let's sit her up.. I swear that she's alive.. She can't be dead."
Yes, Daisy was dead, and quite dead. The united efforts of Shyguy and Luigi served only to torment a corpse.
They buried the pretty princess in Darkstone Cemetery.
Luigi probably recovered from it in the long run, but the little servant went mad. He went from house to house begging for food, and would suddenly burst out laughing, and a moment later, he would cry enough to break one's heart.