It might not have been any brighter physically in Evershade Valley the next morning, but somehow, even in that dark and gloomy place, the world had seemed to have become far less black. Sure, darkness and fog still presided over ninety percent of the land, and what was left was shrouded in rain and marsh; but, for some reason, things felt as though the sun where shining. Relief had come. It was like a long, nightmare-filled night had broken into day; broken into calm, warming light. Even though it was only a feeling. For, in reality, nothing had changed. Bats and crows saw no difference. The spirits of the valley saw no difference. But three human beings, who had just survived perhaps the most traumatic night of their lives, embraced it full-heartedly.
Mario had decided to spend the night, seeing as Luigi could barely stand. Their adventures had really taken a toll on the younger brother. His terror alone had worn him down, only adding to his pain caused by his inter-dimensional fluctuation. When his echo had re-merged with his body, and the two dimensions had been restored, Luigi had been in a daze. His vision had still been very hazy, and all color had drained from it; or so it seemed. The room around him had felt as though it were slowly spinning; then rocking side to side. He had slammed his eyes shut, trying to will his own body back to normalcy. After several agonizing moments, his surroundings stilled, and the nausea left him.
The first thing he had become aware of was two, strong hands wrapped around him. Then, as his senses slowly began to return, he realized that he was returning the embrace just as desperately. He could hear his brother's heavily accented Italian mumbling into his shoulder as Mario hugged him fiercely; as if afraid to let go. And Luigi returned it, feelings and all.
It had been obvious to Mario that Luigi was in no shape to leave the Gloomy Mansion without rest. A lot of rest. And when Luigi had suddenly collapsed into, what appeared to be a deep sleep, his mind was made up for him. Gadd had been more than understanding. In fact, the scientist had practically insisted that they spend the night. Together, the two men had eased Luigi up between them; carefully leading the green plumber to the closest bedroom. Mario supposed that, under normal circumstances, Luigi would rather do anything else other than sleep overnight in the old mansion. Far too many frightful memories were connected with the place. Every corner seemed to hold some sort of traumatic mental image or thought; now more than ever. Even Mario had found the idea uncomfortable. His mind had been in overdrive; causing him to cringe at the slightest sound or movement. His senses had been almost painfully sharp, causing his brain to feel light and fiercely attentive.
Gadd had helped settle the younger Mario Brother in bed; overalls and all, since they weren't sure if Luigi would have been able to handle the energy required in getting into any nightclothes. Even if the professor had had something to offer for sleepwear, it had just seemed unnecessary in that case.
Once the job of getting Luigi comfortable had been accomplished as efficiently as possible, Gadd had offered Mario a room directly next door, where the red-clad plumber could rest up as well, but Mario had declined. Setting a chair by his brother's bedside, Mario had eased himself into it; looking quite determined to stick to Luigi all through the long, remaining hours of night.
And Elvin Gadd had not blamed him in the least. The professor found that he too could not bring himself to retire to his usual chamber alone; and so he also chose to stay, though at a respectful distance from the two brothers.
It had been a very long night, but it was finally over; darkness receding slightly to give a dull, rainy morning.
Surprisingly, it was Luigi who awakened first. It was the splitting headache that had done it; along with the restricting soreness in his chest and limbs. He felt as though every villain he and Mario had ever faced had beat the tar out of him, all in the course of a single night. It took him a moment to recall what had happened the day before, but, when he did, it all came flooding back with tremendous force. With a gasp, Luigi snapped back to full consciousness. He instantly regretted it as the room gave a violent turn, not all that unlike it had all the other times before. This time, however, it diminished almost at once. His mind quickly discerned which way was up, and the ceiling slowly came into focus.
Luigi blinked. He was laying in a soft, well-mattressed bed; covered with thick sheets to protect him from the chill in the air. It was warm within them, so he guessed he had been there for quite some while. He shifted his left leg beneath the blanket experimentally, finding that limb to be especially stiff. Luigi nearly panicked when he found that he could not move it, before he realized it was because there was something weighing down upon it. Deciding that that warranted the effort of sitting up, at least a little, Luigi began to force his aching body into a semi-sitting position in the bed.
What he saw both surprised him, and filled him with relief.
Mario, sleeping deeply, sat partially in a chair beside Luigi's bed. Some time during the night he had failed to keep his sleepiness at bay, and had succumbed to a slumped slumber. He had fallen forward, falling against Luigi's leg, which was now trapped beneath the red plumber's upper chest and head. Luigi felt dizzy with relief. He couldn't truly remember his last moments conscious the day before, but he had been very frightened; he remembered that much. And Mario had been his main concern then, and it was again now. Luigi had been terrified for his own safety, but that had paled in comparison to the fear he had had for his older brother. To see Mario not only safe, but asleep, did wonders for the green plumber's soul. With a shuddering sigh, Luigi leaned back against the pillows at his back.
The movement caused the bed to creak, and, with a start, Mario jolted awake. Eyes blurry with sleep, but, even more so, filled with concern, the bright, blue orbs locked on Luigi's weary face. It seemed to take a moment for the older brother to fully realize that Luigi was awake; but then it seemed like Mario was practically inches from his face, trying to check him over. "Luigi! Are-a you alright? Hurt? Can-a you understand-a me?" The questions came thick and fast, and Luigi quickly decided that his headache was not in the mood to be prodded.
Wincing and holding a hand to his head, Luigi gave a weak smile. "I'm-a fine...Just a little...tired." He flinched when he tried to move again. "And-a sore."
"That is to be expected."
Both brothers turned to face Professor Elvin Gadd as the scientist came closer to the bedside. Neither knew just when he had shown up, or awoken, but there were definitely mixed feelings on his arrival. Mario felt a mixture of anger and frustration; maybe even a little distrust. Gadd had made one too many mistakes this time. Mistakes that had very nearly cost them Luigi's life. Now, understand, Mario wasn't refusing to forgive Gadd; far from it. In fact, he had every intention of mending the rift in their friendship...No, not their friendship; that was still there. What was missing was trust. Mario wasn't sure whether he could ever trust the professor as flawlessly as before. He wanted to, but that wasn't up to just him; Gadd would have to earn it back.
Luigi felt an odd sense of relief at their friend's presence. Not a calm, final relief; an uneasy, half-hearted relief. He too felt the chasm of un-trust between them; but, unlike his brother, Luigi also sensed Gadd's feelings of painful regret. It balanced his uneasiness with pity, which resulted in a shaky, but still intact, fragment of trust. And that gave him the power to forgive immediately. True trust would build quickly; perhaps because of the younger Mario Brother's kind heart and almost child-like nature.
Gadd approached slowly; uncertainly. "You've been through a terrible ordeal; one that I am largely to blame for." His voice nearly gave out on him, but he quickly cleared his throat. "Ahem, eh...I feel the need to check you over for any...lasting effects." He came and carefully placed himself on the edge of Luigi's bed. "Now, tell me, my boy; how do you feel? And, please, don't leave out a single detail."
Luigi slowly pushed himself up a little straighter. "I was-a dizzy when I first-a woke up...Headache was-a pretty bad; and-a my chest and-a arms and-a legs are hurting."
Gadd nodded, eyes seeming to have locked with Luigi's own. "And this headache; how bad is it?"
"Not-a so bad now; though it was-a very painful when I first-a opened my eyes."
Gadd seemed happy with that answer. Lifting up a finger, he had the green plumber follow it with his eyes. Satisfied with Luigi's performance, he then lowered his hand and gave a true grin. "Good. Good, that means you'll be alright." Those words should have eased his tension, but, somehow, it just seemed to increase it. Finally, the emotional dam broke.
"I'm so sorry that this all happened," the professor blurted, hurriedly; as though he expected to be interrupted. "I-I made a terrible mistake; I see that now. I should never have tampered with inter-dimensional travel in the first place, and I should have been more mindful of the dangers my experiments might cause. It was wrong of me, and terribly unprofessional. My actions nearly cost you your lives, and nothing should be worth that; not any science or project. I...I don't know what I can possibly do or say that will be able to fix this...but...I'm so, so sorry." He lowered his eyes to the planked floor. "Please, forgive me."
A long silence prolonged his feelings of anxiety; making it feel like an eternity before Luigi answered.
"Professore...You didn't mean-a for this to happen...I believe that...And-a so does Mario." At this Mario sent his brother an uncertain look that conveyed that those words weren't completely true; at least from the older plumber's perspective. "You made a mistake...It-a could have happened-a to anyone." Here Luigi paused, trying to come up with a more encouraging; more sincere response. "But the difference-a between you and-a most people who make-a mistakes, is that-a you did your best-a to fix it. No one can ask-a for a more trust-a-worthy friend-a than that." He gave a weak, but honest, smile. "I forgive-a you."
A weight seemed to lift from Gadd's heart. The professor's eyes flicked nervously to Mario, as if that would give him the deciding factor. Mario met his gaze, still slightly reluctant; but the look of hope and need for forgiveness in Elvin Gadd's face must have been enough to win him over, because, after a moment, Mario smiled and gave a nod of confirmation.
Things were going to be alright. Really alright. The dimensions were safe; the ghosts were back; and everyone was safe and alive.
Things, at long last, were back to normal.
As Mario and Luigi made their way through the shaded woods of Evershade Valley, the brothers walked in silence. Their goodbyes to the professor had been swift, but heartfelt; they wanting to leave as soon as possible. The Valley still held an awful lot of unpleasant memories; even though warm friendship still thrived within it. All the brothers wanted was to get back to the Mushroom Kingdom. True, there was sure to be yet another crisis there for them to take care of; as there always seemed to be; but at least they'd be on ground they were more familiar with.
Mario sent a glance over his shoulder, back in the direction of the professor's mansion. The fog-laden woods were a little unnerving, especially after his last trip through them. "We'll come-a visit him," he said hurriedly, as though he were adding to a conversation that had been going on for some time. "We'll come and-a see how he's-a fairing...sometime."
Luigi nodded, and the silence continued.
After a long moment, Mario tried again; this time getting right to the point. "Do you think-a he meant it? I mean, do you think-a he meant what-a he said about never trying to reach-a the other dimension?" His voice was hopeful, but it was clear he knew the answer even before Luigi voiced it.
The green-clad plumber sighed and shook his head. And even though he tried to hide it, a smile found a way to his face. Gadd was not one to let his curiosities lie. His questions would grow, as would his inventions and ideas. He would try again...sometime. It wasn't a matter of 'if', it was a matter of 'when'.
But, despite all that had happened, Luigi didn't feel as afraid as he would have thought himself to be. He had a friend; a loyal friend, in the professor; as well as his brother. And a number of others.
As long as he remembered that; as long as that lasted, Luigi knew everything would always turn out alright. Through whatever adventures awaited him and Mario; wherever it would take them, that would never change.
And that filled him with courage that no one could take away.
Finished! Thank you all for the reviews, favs, and follows! It means a whole lot to me. :)
This was a fairly short story, but I have another, far longer Mario story in the works. Hopefully better written, but we'll see. This was a joy to write, and I would like to dedicate it to my little sister; who kept me going and let me read each chapter to her before bed. Sis, you're the best little editor ever. :) Love you!
Thanks everyone!