Conversations Mario'd had in the last 24 hours now raced through his mind—all of the promises and declarations he had so boldly and confidently made, now haunting him and mocking him-

"You're not alone, Little Bro; we'll figure this out."

"I'm definitely not going to let anything happen to Luigi—we just need to stick together and be vigilant!"

"C'mon, Little Bro—have I ever let you down before?"

"…Luigi…. Fratellino… I promised to help you!"

And then, his conversation with Peach not too long ago-

"I can't imagine losing my little bro. It's too terrible to think about."

Too terrible, and yet, Mario's greatest fear was coming true, his world crashing down all around him…

"Mario…?" Peach asked, placing a hand on his shoulder. She let out a quiet gasp as Mario looked back at her again with an uncharacteristically broken expression. "Oh, Mario, I'm so sorry…"

"I…. I couldn't help him… Couldn't save him…"

"This can't be it!" Daisy exclaimed, her voice rising an octave with how upset she was. "This can't be! We got you back, didn't we? We can get Luigi back, too!"

"That's right!" Pit said. "As long as we can get his spirit back to his body before Dracula enslaves him-"

Mario paled.

"You're right—we have to find him before Dracula does!"

He led the way, blinking back tears.

Luigi… I was able to hear you yesterday; I hope you can hear me now… I'm so sorry, Little Bro… All the promises I made to you

"Hey!" Bowser suddenly exclaimed, jolting him from his thoughts. "I hear fighting over there!"

Mario could hear the sounds from the great hall, and changed direction; if there was a fight going on now, it was very likely going to be over Luigi's spirit. Whoever this Simon Belmont was that Pit and Palutena had been talking about, Mario could only hope they were strong enough to stand up to Dracula's dark magic.

They reached the great hall, pausing as they saw two men, one blond and one brunet, both clearly related to each other, attempting to drive Dracula away.

"Simon!" Pit exclaimed.

The blond glanced over and looked at Pit with a brief look of recognition before turning his attention back to Dracula. Simon and his companion continued to attack Dracula, who looked vexed to see Mario and the others arriving.

But Luigi was nowhere to be seen.

Daisy was the first one of their crew to jump into action; she dashed forward, hip-checking Dracula right into the path of Simon's whip. As Dracula was knocked back by the whip, Pit and Link showered him with arrows until Peach hip-checked him now towards Mario's direction.

Fueled by pure anger and sorrow, Mario unleashed the Mario Finale at the vampire. Though this wasn't enough to slay the vampire, Dracula did retreat to a more secluded area of the castle, knowing that Simon had the means with which to kill him.

"That was awesome, Simon!" Pit exclaimed. "Thanks for your help—and your friend's!"

"Richter Belmont," the brunet introduced himself. "Descendent of Simon's—guess you could say that I showed up here to help my family."

Mario's heart twisted.

"At least you succeeded…" he said, quietly.

"Oh, Mario…" Peach said, softly. She looked to Simon and Richter. "I don't suppose you've seen Mario's brother, Luigi?"

"The one Palutena spoke to me about?" Simon asked. "…Yes, I saw him." His expression changed to one of sympathy as Mario looked at him, half with concern and half with dread. "…I'm sorry. By the time I had found your brother, Death had ripped his spirit from him. I was able to stop Death from delivering him to Dracula, however; Luigi's spirit escaped when I attacked Death."

"…Wh… Where is he now…?" Mario managed to asked, his throat finding it difficult to speak. His only consolation was knowing that Dracula did not have his brother yet—with "yet" being the operative word.

"I don't know," Simon confessed. "I lost track of him while fighting Death—and then Dracula showed up. If it hadn't been for Richter, I, too, might have suffered the same fate as your brother-"

Another scream of pure fright, echoing from another room, cut him off. Peach gasped, recognizing the voice.

"That's…"

"LUIGI!" Mario yelled.

He bolted in the direction of the scream, trying very hard to ignore Bowser as the Koopa King made an offhand comment, wondering what could possibly be so horrible to frighten a spirit.

They soon found out; running into a room with barred windows, Mario momentarily stopped in his tracks as he saw a large face leering through a window, her eyes leaking what appeared to be blood.

"Carmilla!" Richter snarled.

But Mario couldn't care less who or what the face was, for his gaze went to the floor beneath the window, where his brother's body lay. His throat constricted again, and only one word made it past his lips-

"…Fratellino…"

As Pit and Link assisted the Belmonts in driving off Carmilla, Peach, Daisy, and Bowser gathered around Mario as he tended to his fallen brother. For Peach, it was a horrible reversal of the previous night—now it was Mario, broken and kneeling with his dead brother in his arms, pleading for him to awaken.

It was the expression of sheer, unadulterated fear on Luigi's face that haunted Mario most; Mario had felt no fear in the reactor last night, as Ridley had taken him by surprise before he could have processed what had happened. Luigi, on the other hand, knew exactly what was happening to him, and had been utterly terrified—and still was, if the scream from his spirit only moments ago had been any indication.

…But where was his spirit?

Luigi… Please, come back, Mario silently transmitted. I know I let you down, and there's no way I can ever make up for that, but… I came back for you yesterday. Please… give me another chance, too

There was no answer; either Luigi had been too scared, or… he didn't want to come back.

The very notion of that chilled Mario to the core; it was certainly within the realm of possibility. Luigi probably had seen himself as a liability, being tied to the prophecy and carrying the burden of the darkness buried in his heart. He had probably believed that to move on to the next world was a necessary sacrifice for someone who had (wrongly) been convinced that his role was that of a mere sidekick, otherwise unimportant and unneeded.

More memories raced through Mario's mind now-over two decades' worth of memories, from as far back as he could remember up to the last time he had seen his brother alive; standing on each other's shoulders as children to access cookies that their mother had attempted to keep out of their reach… snowball fights in wintertime… attending trade school together and opening a plumbing business, and the shenanigans that had ensued from that… and, of course, all of their adventures together in the Mushroom Kingdom and other lands… One thing had always remained constant on those adventures—that every time Mario looked over his shoulder, Luigi would be right behind him, ready to lend his support; it was something that Mario missed whenever he went on solo adventures… and the very idea that he would never be able to see Luigi following him ever again was enough to start the tears flowing.

You were always important, Luigi. You still are. Please… don't go

As she had last night, Peach kept one hand on Mario's shoulder and the other on Luigi's hand; Daisy took Luigi's other hand. Unlike Mario's broken neck, there didn't appear to be any injuries on Luigi's body—there was no reason why his spirit shouldn't have been able to return to it.

Link, Pit, and the Belmonts now rushed to their side, having successfully driven off Carmilla.

"Carmilla did not have Luigi's spirit with her," Simon informed them, softly. "It would appear that his spirit went into hiding upon noticing her."

"So… he's still here?" Peach asked, slightly relieved.

"C'mon, Luigi…" Daisy said, looking around. "Where are you!?"

"C'mon, Buddy!" Pit called. "It's safe now!"

"We still need to find him—and quickly," Simon added. "Aside from the fact that Dracula is still looking for his spirit, once too much time goes by, he won't be able to return to his body."

"There's… another possibility," Richter said. "It could be that Luigi was so scared by Carmilla, out of desperation, he might have crossed over to escape from her."

"…Or if he thought he was making a sacrifice, taking the darkness of the prophecy with him," Mario said, his voice quivering.

Bowser, who had been silent all this time, now lumbered up to Mario, who was still holding Luigi's body.

"You know this is all your fault, don't you!?" he said, pointing at the brothers.

"Bowser!" Peach scolded.

"…No," Mario said, quietly. "He's right. You and Luigi both warned me that Ganondorf would target me again, and I promised you both that I'd be vigilant. But I still let myself get captured, and brought here, and Luigi sacrificed himself to make sure I got out alive. This is my fault."

"And now Dracula could get ahold of Luigi's spirit!" Bowser roared. "If he makes Luigi his servant and awakens his darkness, we're all done for! And even if Luigi managed to escape to the other side, do you really think Dracula and Ganondorf are gonna let that pass!? They'll take it out on us—on my kids!"

He drew his gigantic fist back, readying a punch at Mario, who made no effort to defend himself; Peach grabbed a frying pan, and Daisy grabbed a tennis racquet, cursing loudly. Link, Pit, and the Belmonts also moved to defend Mario, but everyone stopped as Luigi's spirit suddenly materialized between Mario and Bowser, glaring at the Koopa King.

To everyone's surprise, Bowser merely smirked triumphantly.

"I knew that'd work," he said, and he backed down immediately as the others stared at him, dumbfounded.

"I don't understand…" Daisy said, after a moment. "Luigi, couldn't you hear us?"

"I could," Luigi said. "But I, er… I was too scared…"

"Oh, Luigi," Peach sighed.

"Luigi…" Mario managed to say; his throat had constricted again at the sight of his brother's ghost.

"Big Bro…" the spirit said, turning back to him with a soft expression. "Please don't blame yourself for this. You and I both know that you would have done the exact same thing for me." He cast a sad glance at his body. "But I wouldn't have wanted that. I'm… not happy to be dead, but I'm glad it wasn't you again. I couldn't let it happen again, Mario! Not after what happened yesterday!"

There was so much Mario wanted to say—saying that now he understood exactly how Luigi must have felt, but that didn't change how he was feeling now… But, still, there were more important things to discuss.

"You… you can come back, right…?" he managed to ask.

"I… I would like to…" Luigi said. "But I don't know if I can…"

"But you haven't been dead long enough to prevent the return to your body," Simon frowned.

"When I tried to go back earlier, something felt… wrong," Luigi said. "I don't know exactly what, but it didn't feel right. …And then Carmilla showed up, and I got scared and bolted."

"Well, going back after being disembodied is always a weird thing—I've been there before," Pit said.

"Please, Little Bro…" Mario said. "Try again."

He sounded so lost—nothing at all like the confident hero that everyone knew him as. But Peach knew that it was to be expected—Mario was not someone who put on false airs. The heroic will had been shattered upon losing the brother and best friend that he had been looking after since childhood; if Luigi couldn't come back, Peach knew that the day would end with them losing both brothers, for Mario would never recover from the loss.

"Luigi, please…" she said, appealing to the frightened spirit. "We all want and need you back… But your brother needs you most of all."

Luigi nodded, and, after pausing to glance at Mario, who managed to give him a nod of encouragement, Luigi's spirit crossed his arms and slowly phased back in to his body. Mario still held him in his arms, waiting for something to happen, quietly praying and pleading in Italian, just under his breath.

He wasn't sure how much time had passed, but, after what seemed like ages, Peach's expression suddenly brightened.

"I can feel his heartbeat!" she exclaimed, her fingers now checking for a pulse on Luigi's wrist.

"Me too!" Daisy exclaimed. "C'mon, you! Just a little bit more!"

Luigi's eyes, which had been wide-open and blank, now shut for a moment before opening again, blinking into focus.

He didn't even have a moment to react before Mario pulled him into a tight hug; it was clear, though, just how devastated Mario had been, and how relieved he was now.

And as the memories of his last moments returned to him, Luigi felt himself trembling in fear as he recalled the full horrors of dying alone and scared.

"M-Mario…"

Mario only tightened the hug, and Luigi then returned it, still trembling. Peach now hugged the both of them, and Daisy joined in on the group hug, as well. Bowser awkwardly looked away as Pit also joined in, and Link opted to place a hand on each of the brothers' shoulders instead; the Belmonts followed suit until Bowser finally spoke.

"Look, can we get out of this place?" the Koopa King asked. "Dracula might come back, and besides, I hate this castle." He scowled at the décor. "…Not enough lava…"

"He's right about Dracula," Richter said. "How did you get here?"

"Through a Subspace portal," Peach said. "It should still be opened."

"Good; go through that," Simon instructed. "Richter and I can cover your retreat."

"Hey, why don't you come back with us?" Pit asked. "Dracula isn't gonna let you off easy for helping us get away with Luigi, and besides—I'm sure Master Hand will let the both of you join the fighting tournament, too!"

Ancestor and descendant exchanged glances for a moment.

"It would be an honor, Pit," Simon replied. "Very well, we will go back with you."

Mario looked to his brother.

"Do you think you can walk?" he asked.

Luigi managed a nod.

"I think so…" he said. "But I still feel like something is off…"

"I'll help you," Mario promised, supporting Luigi as they stood up.

They had to fight against more bats and mummies as they made their way back to the Subspace portal, but, at last, they emerged back at the mansion, much to the relief of everyone present, especially Cappy, who once again perched on Mario's head.

Palutena was pleasantly surprised to see Simon along with them, and it was as she and Pit began to introduce the Belmonts to everyone that Ganondorf now began to chuckle, despite being surrounded by several other fighters.

All eyes turned to the Gerudo King.

"So, you got back my servant and key to my reign? I thank you."

"We didn't rescue Luigi for you!" Mario shot back.

"Perhaps not, but that's exactly what you ended up doing!" Veran taunted.

"You are both crazy if you think the two of you stand a chance against all of us!" Peach fumed.

"Ah, but it isn't two anymore," Ganondorf said. "Now, it is three—and the third member of our party is one you will not dare attack!"

He raised his hand, and the Triforce of Power began to glow.

"What's he doing?" Mario asked. "Is he going to transform again-?"

"Mario…!" Luigi gasped, cutting him off.

Mario turned to his brother, and then paled as he saw a similar Triforce mark glowing on the back of Luigi's hand, setting the younger plumber's body aglow with a golden aura.

"What!?" Daisy shrieked.

"No…!" Mario gasped, grabbing his brother by the shoulders before glaring at Ganondorf. "What have you done!?"

"Back at the castle, when I had transformed and accidentally seized him instead of you, I infused his body with some of the magic of the Triforce of Power—a great power not unlike that of the Chaos Heart of the prophecy," Ganondorf. "And, therefore, a power that could be hosted by the Man in Green, just like the Chaos Heart! But as I am the destined bearer of the Triforce of Power, I still hold control over it—and him!"

"Mario! Help me…!" Luigi cried, as the golden glow intensified around him. It was just like the book, he realized with horror—when Dimentio had planted a Floro Sprout in the mind of his paper self… His paper self hadn't been able to resist its control—nor had his real self been able to resist the control of the Legendary Racquet, either…

Mario tightened the grip on Luigi's shoulders, helpless as he realized that there was nothing he could do to help.

"I… I can't…!" he choked out. Please… Please, not this. I just got him back; I can't lose him again—please!

"Attack Ganondorf!" Peach ordered. "If we break his control, Luigi will be freed!"

"I think not!" Ganondorf sneered. "Luigi, come here!"

The Triforce of Power glowed even more brightly in his hand, causing the glow around Luigi to intensify even further. Luigi let out a cry as his legs began to move forward against his will, taking him towards Ganondorf.

"NO!"

Mario enfolded his brother in a tight embrace again, bracing his feet against the ground and preventing him from walking any further.

The other fighters were attempting to battle Ganondorf and Veran; Ganondorf was nonchalantly fighting them off with one hand, still using his other hand to control Luigi.

"I said to come here, Luigi!" he snarled. Sparks of golden energy now circled his hand, and the same sparks circled around Luigi, causing him to cry out in pain. "You wish for the pain to stop? Then stop resisting!"

Mario felt his heart breaking again as he heard his brother's cries of pain and felt him writhe in agony beneath his embrace.

"Luigi…. Luigi, you have to hang in there-"

The sparks grew in intensity, and the scream of pain that followed was so heart-rending that Mario let go of him, staring at him in horror. Luigi's eyes had glazed over—whether from pain or from Ganondorf's control grabbing ahold of him, Mario didn't know, but either reason was too terrible.

The sparks suddenly stopped, and Ganondorf looked pleased as Luigi doubled over, trying to catch his breath.

"That's right," he said. "See how much easier it is this way?"

"No…" whispered Peach. "Luigi…"

"This isn't fair!" Daisy shrieked. "This isn't what he wants! You're manipulating him with torture and mind-control!"

"The end results are all that matter," Ganondorf sneered. "Now, Luigi—we must make sure that your foolish brother doesn't get any ideas to interfere. Unleash the Triforce-enhanced Negative Zone and use its dark magic to plunge him into an eternal sleep!"

Mario's heart sank as Luigi, his eyes now fully glazed over with a golden hue, turned to him with a blank expression. They stared at each other, and Mario's heart twisted further as he saw a tear slip from each of Luigi's eyes. Luigi was an unwilling prisoner in all of this, who had not wanted to use the darkness, but only wanted to stay in the light with his big brother—who Ganondorf was now forcing him to destroy.

"Oh, Luigi…" he whispered. He pulled his brother into an embrace one more time. "I don't blame you for this; I know this isn't what you wanted. You're not responsible for this…" He cringed, faced with the truth. "This all happened just because you wanted to save me from Dracula's castle—getting infused with the Triforce, dying, and now this… But you keep fighting him, okay, Luigi? You keep fighting him, and break free one day, because I know you can… And maybe someday, you'll find a way to wake me up from this Triforce-enhanced Negative Zone. Just… Just remember me, Fratellino, and know that I will always believe in you."

"Now, Luigi!" Ganondorf ordered.

Mario still didn't let go—not this time. He wanted to be in contact with his brother until the very end.

But the end did not come, and Ganondorf growled in frustration.

"Didn't you hear me!?"

"I won't do it!" Luigi cried back. "I won't hurt my big bro! I won't—!" He let out a cry of agony again as the golden sparks resumed punishing him for his disobedience.

"Luigi…!" Mario cried. He couldn't stand to see his little brother enduring such pain and suffering anymore; he was almost tempted to tell him to do what Ganondorf was saying, if only to make the torture stop, and yet… He shook his head and tightened his hug again. "I'm right here, Little Bro! Just focus on me!"

He felt Luigi hug him back, still writhing in pain… But then, something happened. The golden glow around Luigi was replaced with a bright, white light—a light that, Mario realized, he, too, was glowing with.

The white light now eliminated the golden, and the fragment of Triforce of Power that Ganondorf had infused in Luigi was now launched from his body, clattering on the ground.

"WHAT!?" Ganondorf bellowed.

The pain of the golden sparks now gone, Luigi fell forward into his elder brother's embrace, trying to catch his breath.

"…Big Bro…?"

"I'm here; I'm right here," Mario promised.

"What… what just happened?" Luigi asked.

"It was light magic!" Daisy exclaimed, running over to them. "You both activated some sort of shared light magic—I bet it's the same kind of magic that gives you the power to sense each other's thoughts and locations and use those combination Bros Attacks that you two are so good at!"

"I think it's more than just that," Peach said, still awed by what they had seen. "If this light magic is from your bond as brothers, then Luigi sacrificing himself for you back at Dracula's Castle—a selfless and noble act—only strengthened that light magic. Ganondorf's magic was no match for it."

"This isn't over!" Ganondorf vowed, as the others surrounded him and Veran again. "My magic is still stronger than that pitiful light magic—I will use all of my Triforce of Power to-"

He was cut off as he was sent hurtling into the air by a Lloid Rocket that had snagged onto his cape. The fighters paused, looking to the Villagers, but they all seemed just as baffled until Isabelle scrambled over to them, waving an invitation letter.

"Sorry I'm late!" she chirruped. She blinked as Ganondorf crashed back down, only to be swarmed by the other fighters. "Oh dear, I didn't see him there… Did I interrupt something? I didn't mean to-!"

"Don't sweat it, Pal," Daisy grinned, as more fighters swarmed to hold Veran down, too. "You just saved us a ton of trouble!"

Mario managed a smile and exchanged a weary, but relieved, glance with his younger brother.

Somehow, against all odds, they had made it through.

Epilogue

Master Hand was more than willing to let Simon and Richter join the tournament as thanks for all of their help. Ganondorf was now corralled along with Ridley, Dark Samus, and K Rool, and Master Hand had instructed Mewtwo to wipe their memories of the entire incident, along with their knowledge of the prophecy, and do so for Dracula if he ever showed up, too. Veran would be sent back to her timeline, also with her memories modified.

Mewtwo was happy to comply, and so, to make it seem as though the events of the last 24 hours had never happened, the welcome banquet was held again (though, officially, for the first time), allowing Isabelle, Simon, and Richter to enjoy the festivities, as well as waiting for more invitees that, according to Master Hand, were also running late, but were due to arrive soon.

Mario and Luigi were more than a bit nervous to see Ganondorf walking around the banquet hall (Samus was quite furious to see Ridley and Dark Samus there, as were the Kongs to see K Rool), but Mewtwo assured them that they were all perfectly safe.

"The locks on their memories will last until I unlock them (which I have no intentions of doing), or until they are killed and resurrected again," Mewtwo assured them, and then the cat's eyes narrowed. "…I am told this happens a lot, particularly for Ganondorf, but as long as everyone resists the temptation to kill him during this tournament, then there should be no issues."

Indeed, Ganondorf didn't give Luigi a second glance this time, much to the relief of the brothers and their friends—and even Bowser, too.

"Memory lock or not, I'm gonna keep an eye on that Gerudo creep," he vowed. He glanced back at the brothers. "Look… Don't get used to this whole 'being on your side' thing. This is just until we get back to the Mushroom Kingdom, got it?"

Without even waiting for an answer, he headed back to Junior and the Koopalings, instructing them to refrain from making too much of a mess while they were stuffing their faces.

Peach now turned to the brothers.

"Well," she sighed. "I think you two have a lot to talk about, so Daisy and I will give you some space to go do that."

"In the meantime, we got you covered with some eats to munch on while you talk," Daisy added, indicating the platters of pasta and other foods that the brothers enjoyed.

They thanked the princesses and took the food outside to the garden, Peach sighing as they headed outside.

"I'm so glad they're alright," she said.

"You and me both, Pal 'o Mine," Daisy agreed.

"I mean—really, though; Mario wouldn't have been the same if we had lost Luigi for good," Peach added. "His family means the world to him."

"You mean the world to him, too, you know," Daisy said.

"I know," she said. "We were both discussing that last night—we know we love each other, but we just aren't sure of what kind of love it is."

"Did you figure it out?" Daisy asked.

"Not yet," Peach said. "We both need time, and after what happened here, we'll need a lot of it—especially Mario. If I were to rush him into a conversation about love now, then I'd be guilty of the same thing I chided him for about his ill-timed proposal. But what I do know is that, just like how Mario said that he wanted to be a part of my life, regardless of the role… I want that, too."

Daisy nodded.

"I like having you guys in my life, too, ya know" she said. "You really make things interesting."

"That's an accurate way of putting it," Peach said, managing a smile.

They would move on from this, slowly but surely. For now, Peach would be grateful that they were still together after all the dust had cleared.

Outside, the brothers sat and ate together under in the crisp, night air—grateful to be able to share a meal together again after what they had been through. They were quiet, at first, trying to figure out which of the elephants in the room to address first. Finally, Mario spoke.

"I let you down today, Little Bro," he said, his voice full of remorse. "And there are no words I can say that will ever be enough to apologize."

"No, Mario," Luigi said, shaking his head. "What happened at Dracula's Castle was because of my choice."

"But you wouldn't have been there if I hadn't got captured-!"

"You've stuck your neck out for me so many times before!" Luigi reminded him. "This was no different!" His expression softened. "I know you feel like you have to be the one to look after me, but we both know that we look after each other. We're a team, Big Bro—that's how our light magic was enough to stand up to the Triforce of Power."

"Yeah…" Mario mused. "I guess you're right. I just wish…" His throat tightened again, recalling the haunting images of seeing Luigi lying dead, and then, after his revival, the pain and torture he underwent at the hands of Ganondorf. "I just wish you hadn't had to go through all that for our light magic to activate like that."

"I know," Luigi sighed. "I didn't want this, either. I was a little frustrated that you didn't seem to understand how I was feeling last night after seeing you dead in the reactor—you just acted your usual, confident self, like nothing had happened. But this wasn't how I wanted you to know how I felt—not like this. I could tell you were really hurting when you found me dead, and again when Ganondorf tortured me…"

"It wasn't just finding you dead, I was beginning to think…" Mario shut his eyes, trying to physically keep any tears from forming. "…I was beginning to think you'd crossed over because you thought it was a necessary sacrifice to take the darkness with you—because you thought you were the expendable sidekick or something."

"…I'd be lying if I said that I hadn't thought of that," Luigi admitted. "It seemed like the logical thing for a darkness-cursed coward to do-"

"Don't."

"Huh?"

"Don't let anyone call you a coward—not even yourself!" Mario said. "What you did today… Those were the bravest things I've ever seen, Luigi."

Luigi blinked, and then managed a small smile.

"Thanks," he said, and then he sobered. "But yes, I did think that, but I still didn't want to go. I knew you would miss me, and… I would miss you—and Peach and Daisy and all our friends. I know that even if I don't think I'm important, or if most everyone else thinks that I'm not… You would never."

"That's right," Mario said, with a nod. "I'm… glad you know that, at least. It's like I told Simon a little while ago—I owe Link and Mipha my life for what happened yesterday, but… I owe Simon so much more today for making sure that Death didn't deliver you to Dracula."

"I'm glad he was able to stop that from happening," Luigi agreed. "But I was worried for a while after that something felt off about my body when I was trying to go back—now I know that it was that bit of Triforce of Power that Ganondorf had given me."

Ah, yes, the other elephant—how Mario had been so helpless and could only watch as his brother had been tortured…

Mario placed his platter of food aside and hugged his brother once more. Luigi instantly returned it.

"I was so scared," Luigi confessed. "I knew he was controlling me with it, and I thought… I thought it was all over, like with the Legendary Racquet…" His voice quivered. "But then he wanted me to use the Negative Zone on you, powered up with the Triforce… I couldn't! I just couldn't—no matter what he did to me, or… or how much it hurt…" He trailed off, trembling. "And it hurt a lot…"

"I know," Mario said, still haunted by Luigi's cries of pain. "If I could have done anything to make it stop…"

"But you did…" Luigi reminded him. "When you told me to focus on you… I did, and then our light magic activated." He sighed. "You know, I never thought that our Bros Attacks were from that same magic, but I guess it makes sense—you wouldn't expect kicking a shell back and forth to increase its power, or things like that…"

"Yeah, that's right…" Mario said, and he managed a smile. "Too bad we can't enter as a duo like the Ice Climbers and use our Bros Attacks in the tournament here."

Luigi did chuckle at that.

"We do make an unbeatable team," he sighed.

"We sure do," Mario agreed, and he recalled all of the memories he had thought about back in the castle. "Luigi… Sometimes, I don't say things as often as I should—I guess because I know that you know without my needing to tell you… but that doesn't mean that I should be satisfied with that." He tightened the hug around his brother. "You're my brother and my best friend—the first friend I ever had. Thank you for being there whenever I've needed you most."

Luigi nodded.

"That goes for me, too," he said. "You're the best big bro ever, and thank you for being there for me, too."

Mario nodded back. They were both going to need time to heal from this, but with each other's support, they would be able to recover.

"You know we're going to end up facing each other at some point in this tournament," he said, after a while. "Even after everything that's happened… Don't you hold back, alright?"

"No way!" Luigi promised. "One of us is going to win this tournament—I can feel it!"

"Oh, yeah!" Mario grinned. "C'mon, let's get back inside and join the others!"

Luigi nodded and followed Mario back to the banquet hall.

It had been a dangerous, heartbreaking struggle, but they had managed to get through it together—their brotherhood stronger than ever before as a result, and their hopes returning once again.

The End


Notes: and that's the end! Thanks to everyone who followed and supported this fic! The idea that the Bros Attacks from the Mario & Luigi series are powered by the bros' combined light magic is an idea that came to me after seeing some of the flashier attacks-as well as how ordinary shells and other items end up being stronger than normal. It's probably also related to how the brothers' bond allowed Dreamy Luigi to become a giant in Dream Team whenever Mario was in trouble by a giant boss.

If the rumors are true about a story mode being included in Ultimate, there's a very good chance I might end up being inspired to write a sequel to this—and with Luigi's Mansion 3 on the horizon, I'll probably end up writing something for that as we learn more about it, too.