The following takes place after the events of "The Tragedy of Waluigi and Rosalina," another story by the same author. If you have not read that, you probably should, otherwise a lot of things in this story won't make sense.

It was a beautiful day. Shocking, really, considering the events that transpired a few days ago. The Mushroom Kingdom just barely avoided destruction at the hands of a giant demonic creature. Peace reigned over the kingdom once again. All was calm. But this was just the calm before the storm.

In the Royal Garden of Toadstool Castle, a particular green plumber was having a conversation with the princess of Sarasaland. For years, this man had a crush on the royal woman, but was far too shy to do anything about it. Just recently he was her escort to the Royal Ball. It was the moment he was waiting years for, but it didn't go exactly as planned. The man's shyness made it impossible for him to be of much company to the princess, and the two spent most of the evening sitting quietly at their table.

Now the man was about to hear the worst news of his life. Princess Daisy scratched her head, trying to find the right words. This was a very delicate situation, and it needed to be handled carefully. Finally, she spoke. "Luigi, I had fun at the ball with you… But I think we should just be friends. Is that alright?"

Luigi's heart dropped at the statement. He thought long and hard on how he should respond. He finally nodded in agreement. Daisy hugged him as a sign of appreciation. Luigi wanted to crawl under a rock and spend the rest of his life there.

When the princess let go of him, she noticed a tall figure exiting the garden. "Oh, Princess Rosalina is leaving! C'mon, we gotta say goodbye!" Daisy urged before rushing back into the palace to get everyone else. Luigi sighed heavily as he rose. It wasn't meant to be. As he started to leave, the plumber felt something strange. It was as if someone was watching him. He froze for a moment, but shook off the feeling and made his way back into the palace.

Soon the whole gang was in front of the castle, waving goodbye as the Observatory hovered far above them. When it was finally out of view, the group dispersed. Luigi headed inside the castle, said goodbye to his friends, and went home for the evening. He wasn't in much of a mood for anything else this day.

The skies started to darken as night fell. Luigi started whistling to steady his nerves. He wasn't afraid of the dark, but rather of what was in the dark. The plumber quickened his pace, his heart thrashing in his chest.

"Luigi."

What was that? Someone had whispered his name. Luigi's eyes darted in every direction. He called out, asking if anyone was there. No response. Even more frightened, the man took extra caution with every step. His home wasn't too far from here. He'd be there in no time.

"Luigi!"

Now the man was running as fast as he could, fearing for his life. He darted past Wario's woods, through Toad Town, and finally to his mansion. It was a good thing there were no more ghosts, otherwise Luigi would have died of a heart attack.

The man pulled out his keys and unlocked the door. It creaked open slowly, not helping Luigi's paranoia. He entered quickly and turned on the lights. Though a mansion, Luigi's home was rather humble and had no outstanding features. It was just a normal house, but with many rooms. The green-clad man sighed in relief as he closed the door behind him.

"Hello, Luigi."

The plumber turned around quickly. A dark figure was standing right in front of him in his living room. Luigi tried running out of the house, but the stranger pointed his hand at the door and cast some sort of spell that kept the door locked. Luigi pressed his body close against the wall., panting heavily. "What's the matter, old friend?" the figure asked; "Do I frighten you? Don't tell me that you don't remember my face."

The stranger stepped out of the shadows. His clothes were quite peculiar, following the color scheme of purple, yellow, and black. On his head was an odd jester's hat of a similar pattern. But what stood out the most was his mask. A mask, half white and half black, with an ominous smile. The figure stared at Luigi with that horrifying grin.

"I'm just here for a little… business."