Daisy stood on tiptoe in front of the bathroom mirror. Her calves pressed against the side of the tub in her effort to see as much of herself as she could. Of course no matter how she stretched and twisted the bathroom was too small and the mirror was too short to display all of her. With a deep sigh, she dropped her hands to her sides and squared her shoulders. She wore a yellow, button down shirt with cap sleeves and an knee-length orange skirt. The ensemble made her feel ridiculous. It was similar to—though less severe than—the affect of putting on her gown and tiara. Cute and clean had never looked the way she envisioned herself and it was a bit jarring to see it in the mirror. Running her fingers through her hair, she walked out to the living area.

Waluigi was in the kitchen, surrounded by pots and pans. In between long drags from an ever-present mug of coffee, he was flipping pancakes and frying hash browns. The aroma of bacon and sausage permeated the air. Luigi sat at the table already, digging happily through a huge plate of food. When he saw Daisy, he grinned. "Welcome to Waluigi's House of Waffles. Party of one, is it?"

Waluigi snorted. "You're not as funny as you think you are, pipsqueak." But he was smiling.

"Is there an occasion?" Daisy asked, eying all the food. She didn't even remember buying half of the ingredients he had out. He must've gone to the store—at some point between midnight when they'd left him on the couch and 8am when they'd awakened to the sound of him clattering around the kitchen.

"Found some extra time after I finished dragging the empty boxes to the dumpster." He made a plate and plopped it unceremoniously in front of her place at the table.

"You look sharp," Luigi commented.

"I'm glad someone thinks so," she said. "I feel stiff and stuffy."

"No, it's great," Luigi insisted. "Cute and professional."

She looked to Waluigi, who was in the process of pouring another cup of coffee. "What about you?"

"What about me what?" He asked as he picked up an extra piece of bacon.

"Any thoughts?" She did a little twirl.

He took a bite of the bacon and chewed slowly as he contemplated her. Finally he said, "I want to bend you over a desk and spank you with a ruler for forgetting your homework."

"I do not look like a school girl," Daisy scowled.

"Eh…" He held his hand horizontally and tipped it side to side.

She huffed and shook her head. "The skirt is too much. I'm changing."

Luigi caught her hand as she spun away from them. "You look fine. Don't worry so much."

"I've never job hunted before. I have no idea what I'm doing," she collapsed into her chair.

"Nothing bad is going to happen. People are nice. Just be friendly and confident," Luigi said.

"And don't be afraid to color in the truth when you have to," Waluigi winked as he bowed between them. "Gotta soften your weaknesses." Taking a chin in each hand, he kissed both sets of lips in turn. "I picked up copies of the bus schedule for you. Good luck." Then he was out the front door.

Daisy sat quietly for a moment, contemplating Waluigi's advice. She didn't have any 'real world' experience. Her parents had groomed her to take over as leader of Sarasaland for most of her life, though. There had to at least be some sort of leadership lessons she could take from that. On another level, while she knew being prepared to defend her weaknesses was important, unrelenting optimism was the strongest weapon she had at the moment.

Silence descended in the absence of Waluigi's fidgeting. Silence that nudged Luigi's attention to his equally silent phone. It felt heavy in his trouser pocket. He fought the urge to pull it out and look at it.

"So what were your plans?" Daisy asked.

"I found a lead on a janitorial position at the high school. I figured it would be easy to start there. You?"

"Retail, I guess." It was the most common and accessible thing she could think of, especially in a city this size.

Luigi's hand drifted to his hip and touched the phone-shaped lump in his pocket. He should've been glad that he hadn't heard from Mario in two days. It drove him nuts when his brother checked in on him every time he was out for more than a couple hours. He was so used to his brother's constant hovering, however, that the sudden lack of support from that sector played hard on his nerves.

"Is something wrong?" Daisy asked, noting the distance of distraction in Luigi's expression.

"I'm not looking forward to finding my way around a strange city alone. It's a Technicolor maze out there."

"If you do find yourself getting lonely later in the day, call me. We'll meet somewhere for lunch."

Luigi smiled at her. "I'll keep that in mind." He couldn't ignore that transferring his dependence from Mario to Daisy or Waluigi wouldn't be any better for him. They had such strong personalities, however, that it seemed inevitable.

They finished eating and left the apartment at the same time. When they reached the bus stop, they had to separate. The bright colors, sunshine, and busy streets were much more exciting than anything Daisy had ever seen in the more rural Mushroom Kingdom. It was a world teeming with potential. She had a good feeling about the day.

000

As Daisy stepped out of the pet store and into the blinding, sweltering world, she dropped her painful smile. What a frustrating day. She'd collected a shoulder bag filled with blank applications, but she could not imagine finding the strength to fill them all out and retrace her steps. At least not now. Dodging a group of anthropomorphic cats on skate boards, she trudged to the nearest bus stop and flopped onto the bench next to an old woman with pink hair. Hopefully Luigi was having better luck.

She pulled out her phone to check the time. It was after 5pm and she hadn't heard from him. That seemed like a good sign. Her thumb hovered over the buttons as she debated whether to check in with Luigi, or head home and take a nap. The sun and the walking were really getting to her. Before she could decide, the phone rang and Waluigi's caller ID picture flashed on the screen. It was him holding Luigi in a headlock. His other arm was extended to take the picture and that cheesy grin was plastered across his face. Shortly after the picture was taken, Daisy remembered, Luigi had retaliated by tickling him into submission. The memory brought her smile back. "Yes?" She answered.

"Where are you?" He asked.

"Um… Outside of Petri's Pets."

"And that is…?"

Daisy looked around. "I don't know. It's on bus route thirteen."

"Huh…" His voice got quieter as he lowered the phone to talk to someone else on his end. The street sounds at both ends of the line rendered the words he spoke unintelligible. "All right," he finally said. "Walk north until you see the Mona Pizza billboard. We'll meet you there."

"Do you know how much walking I've done today?" Daisy sighed.

"Luigi's hungry."

"Where are you two? There's a Pizza Dinosaur right across the street. Can't we just-"

"No! Are you kidding me? You will walk as far as you need to, and you will like it, missy."

"Wal-"

"It's worth it. Trust me. And hop to it. I think Luigi's ready to chew my arm off."

He hung up the phone before she could protest further. With a deep sigh, she rose to her feet, adjusted her bag, and started walking. The place was a couple blocks away and her skin couldn't breathe through the damn shirt she wore, but she didn't feel like arguing with the headstrong purple tower.

She found her Weegees sitting on a planter outside the restaurant. At least Waluigi was sitting. Luigi stood in front of him, firmly ensnared in his doppelganger's spindly limbs. As she watched, Waluigi whispered something in Luigi's ear and shoved his narrow hands into Luigi's pockets. The smaller man blushed and squirmed, grabbing at the bony wrists and nervously searching for anyone who might've seen or heard. His eyes settled on Daisy and telegraphed a silent 'help' to her as the taller man's fingers spidered under the edge of his green polo shirt.

Daisy plopped next to Waluigi, nudging him hard with her hip as she did so. "Do I have to get the hose?"

He promptly ensnared her with an arm as well. "It's his own fault for being so molestable. How was your day?"

Daisy saw Luigi relax somewhat when the imp's grip on him loosened, so she said, "You know the feeling that people are just giving you something to politely make you go away?"

"Not the polite part…" Waluigi answered.

She showed him her stack of applications. "I'm probably being paranoid, but some of them…" She shook her head and shrugged.

"Then I guess it's celebratory pizza for Luigi and… better luck next time pizza for you."

"You got the job?" Daisy asked as they headed for the Mona Pizza entrance. When they entered the building, cool air washed over her sweat-damp skin. The aroma of baking bread and garlic had never smelled so amazing. Her mood experienced an immediate, if not minute, improvement.

Luigi nodded sheepishly. He wasn't one to carry on about his successes in front of anyone who had been less successful. Apparently all the hubris had gone to his doppelganger.

Before they could pick a table, a girlish squeal sounded across the restaurant. "Waluigi!" A red and white blur streaked across the room and came to a sudden stop just short of barreling the trio over. The little redheaded teenager grabbed his hand. "I have a table open in my section, come on!"

"You know Wario's not with me, right?" Waluigi asked as he let her drag him to a booth.

"Oh…" her face fell. "I was hoping he might be meeting you later."

"I don't know what the fatass is doing. I haven't talked to him since Friday."

Her attention rebounded to the pair with him. "He did say you moved in with your… What, good half? I never really understood how that whole thing with you four worked." She smiled brightly. "Anyway, I'm Mona. Unofficial mascot of Mona Pizza. Or at least the face on the billboard, if you hadn't noticed. I'm guessing you're Luigi, and you are…"

"Daisy."

"The Daisy?" Mona winked at Waluigi.

Waluigi put one arm around each of his companions. "Waluigi always wins."

Mona's gaze wandered from one to the other. "You mean…"

"That's right," Waluigi grinned, practically puffing out his chest. "I got myself a princess and one of Mushroom Kingdom's heroes."

Luigi couldn't help smiling a little. He wasn't used to being considered a trophy. More generally a consolation prize.

"Huh." Mona put a finger on her chin and stared at the ceiling. "That raises so many questions..." Then she grinned. "Anyway, good for you, player." She punched him lightly in arm—she couldn't quite reach his shoulder."Sit down. You want to see the menu?" The Wa brothers ate there all the time. Wario, at least, had the menu memorized.

"Oh, just water for me." Waluigi gave her his biggest, Cheshire cat grin as he took the booth opposite Daisy and Luigi. The extra elbow room was almost a requirement.

"You will order food and you will tip me for my hard work," Mona pouted. "I need a new guitar. I can't afford to have both of you jerking me around this week."

Waluigi chuckled. "How about a Mona Special for the table, then?"

She nodded as her pen moved across her note pad. "That's better." After getting drink orders from the other two, she skipped off to her next table.

"You didn't mention you had friends out here," Luigi said.

"Eh, she's one of Wario's weird buddies. More an acquaintance than anything else." Waluigi picked up the glass shaker of parmesan cheese and tapped it idly on the table, watching the clumps inside slowly disintegrate.

"Weird?" Luigi looked at the little redhead. "She seems nice enough to me."

"Ha! You'll see." He slid the shaker across the table and caught it in his other hand. "No little high school girl can have a crush on my brother and be sane."

Luigi wasn't one to point, but he couldn't help staring at Mona as he said, "That's 'Wario's fangirl?'" That description had originally been Waluigi's words.

Waluigi pursed his lips and nodded slowly.

"How old is she?"

"Too young to know any better."

They said more, but Daisy couldn't focus on their conversation. Her thumb stroked the corner of her stack of papers, rifling through the edges like a flip book. All she had was a name and an address. How could anyone take her seriously if she had to leave so much information blank? Even on the off chance that it could work way out here, special treatment via her rank and title was the last thing she wanted at this point. "Guys? How did you get your first jobs?"

They both looked at her simultaneously. Then, in unison, "My brother knew someone."

It was adorable how alike they could be.

"Jynx!" Waluigi exclaimed, slamming a hand on the table.

Luigi's mouth was open—a breath away from speaking the same word—but he sighed and closed it instead.

Poking his good half in the arm, Waluigi said, "I'll figure out what you owe me later."

Daisy crossed her arms on the table and rested her chin on them. Her eyes wandered to the window. Wario Ware Inc. squatted on the city skyline. After a long moment of contemplation, she hesitantly ventured, "… I don't suppose Wario…"

"Uh uh. You don't want to work for him, and I wouldn't let you," Waluigi said.

"That bad?" Daisy asked, wrinkling her nose a bit.

"You'd have to be desperate, crazy, or stupid to voluntarily submit yourself to his bullshit for forty hours a week."

"Is that so?" Mona asked, appearing next to them with their drinks.

Completely unfazed, Waluigi looked her square in the eye. "That's what I said."

Mona plopped the tray heavily on the table so she could put her hands on her hips. She bent at the waist to glare more directly into his face, but even with Waluigi sitting down she didn't have to lean over far. "Which one am I, then?"

"Mostly desperate and crazy."

She smiled and shrugged. "I guess I can live with that. Okay, tea..." She placed the drink in front of Daisy. "Soda…" She placed the drink in front of Luigi.

"There might be little of stupid in there, though," Waluigi grinned, holding up both pointer fingers, an inch apart.

She smacked the bill of his hat, flipping it into his face. "You shouldn't be mean to the people who handle your food."

"You said it yourself. He jerks you around every pay week." He calmly readjusted his hat. "Am I wrong?" Waluigi rested his chin on his fist and watched her sideways.

"The whole micro game thing is more like hobby, and hanging around Wario is a perk. Besides, he racks up such a big tab here every week that even at a ten percent tip he's giving me more than he realizes." She leaned closer as she plunked Waluigi's water down in front of him. "Being a waitress can be surprisingly lucrative if you know how to work people. Nothing stupid about that." As she straightened up, she flicked her hair over her shoulder with a jerk of her chin.

Waluigi only shrugged and took a sip from his straw. His 'fights' with Mona were more or less the same as his 'fights' with Wario, as far as he was concerned. It was fun to subvert her perky demeanor, but he didn't really care about winning.

"Working for Wario does take a special kind of tolerance, though." Mona's attention focused on Daisy. "I can ask Joe if he has any open spots here, if you want. We always need more delivery people."

"Wow." Daisy felt a weight leave her stomach. "That'd be great. Thanks."

Mona closed her eyes, tilted her head, and giggled. Then she was off again.

"It would be pretty cool if I could get my first apartment and my first job in the same week," Daisy said.

"Moving on down, princess," Waluigi smirked and held up his glass in a mock toast.

"I'm going to pretend that you aren't just being a smart ass." She tapped her cup against his.

Luigi fumbled his phone out of his pocket and held it in his lap. No new messages. No missed calls. He sighed. It would have been nice to share the news with Mario, but he couldn't bring himself to break the silence first. He needed to be strong. Otherwise his big brother might never take him seriously.

A/N: Diamond City is weird. That was part of its appeal, but in hindsight I hope I didn't get in over my head…