Super Mario Brothers: Epidemic

(A/N: Now that they have a chance, let's see what I can do with the reunions between families and the addition of Syrup. I don't really go much into the fate of the Koopaling's mother here, as I'm not sure what happened to her. Some think she's alive, some think she'd dead, so I'll go with a medium. I also go more into Bowser's reptilian abilities.)

Heart-to-Heart

Syrup turned back to the Koopalings. "So… what to do with you four."

"You're not gonna ransom us, are you?!" Lemmy asked, eyes wide. "Wh-where's King Dad?!"

"Calm yourself, Lemmy. Fazher is out on deck," Ludwig assured. Lemmy relaxed in relief, breathing a sigh.

"Baby," Roy grumbled.

"Roy," Syrup warned lowly.

"Leave Lemmy be!" Iggy snapped sharply at Roy.

"Why you…" Roy began. Iggy held out a bomb, grinning crazily as Roy started to get up to attack. Roy froze. He had no idea what Iggy had done with that thing and he wasn't inclined to find out. Instead he harrumphed and began doing crunches instead. He had to be ready to meet these infected creeps head on. He needed to protect his siblings. No one hurt them except for him. No one was permitted to.

"Relax, children, I have no intentions of any such malicious act. At least not right now," she replied, tapping her chin ponderously as she thought of the possibilities. Bowser was filthy rich. She wondered how much he would be willing to pay to see his children back. Then again, the Koopa was stubborn. With her luck lately, he wouldn't pay a cent for them, though how a father could do such a thing and just abandon his little ones was beyond her. "How much do you think your father would be willing to pay for your return?" she questioned them nonetheless.

"Nothing," Roy stated.

"He probably wouldn't notice," Iggy agreed.

"Dad cares about us, he does!" Lemmy insisted.

"Just not enough. I doubt he would even pay for Junior's release. He is stingy like zat," Ludwig remarked.

"Of course he'd pay for us!" Lemmy loyally stated. He was furiously dedicated to their father. He always had been. Perhaps it had been an attempt at gaining his dad's acknowledgment and respect and love. Nonetheless, he was sticking by Bowser for better or worse.

"Fine, eighty coins, ten for each of us," Roy grumbled. Somehow Syrup sensed Bowser would pay far more than that if push came to shove. Oh well, time would tell.

"He'd pay millions to get us back! He'd give up the Darklands for us," Lemmy stated. Syrup wasn't sure if going as far as to say Bowser would give up the Darklands for them was accurate or just hopeful. Millions, though; that was all she really cared about.

"What about your mother. What would she pay?" Syrup asked.

SMB

She knew she'd said something wrong the minute Ludwig's notes on the piano turned sour, Roy froze mid-crunch, Iggy stopped in place paling, and Lemmy's expression filled with misery and anguish. She bit her tongue instantly, sickly sweet smile falling. "Oh no…" she said. "She isn't…"

"She might as vell be dead!" Ludwig shot sharply. Syrup started at this. Well, that was unexpected.

"She's alive?" Syrup asked.

"As far as we know," Roy replied.

"We're just not sure, King Dad never talks about her," Iggy semi-rhymed, shoulders sagging ever so slightly.

"He never tells us anything. We don't even know where our mother is," Lemmy said, gazing sadly down and tracing invisible pictures on the covers of the blanket he was under. He missed her. He missed her so much…

"Maybe she wanted to be free," Syrup remarked.

"Nein!" Ludwig snapped sharply, scowling viciously with eyes flashing. She started, looking at him. There was confusion written on his face, though. "Or… or maybe jawohl…" he uncertainly added. Tears threatened Iggy's eyes, but he kept them shut and looked away, putting down what he'd been working on. Roy was looking down frustratedly, confusion and hurt burning in his eyes along with the threat of tears. This threat he forced away. Men didn't cry. That was a girly thing to do… Lemmy was crying, though, and Lemmy had proven himself more of a man than any of them today, just by going with Bowser and not chickening out like he, Ludwig, and Iggy had. After a long moment, Ludwig continued, saying, "Even if she vanted to be free, how could she just-just leave us? Ve vere her children. Be free, mozher, but at least let us know you still love us, zat you're still alive somewhere…" Syrup was silent.

"She loved us with all her heart," Lemmy remarked, voice breaking as he remembered her. He loved his mother with everything. He had been the mommy's boy, well him and Larry, but Larry had never even gotten the chance to know her. Morton hardly remembered her, and definitely not Junior. She was even a fading image in Wendy's memories it had been so long.

"She left after Junior was born," Iggy bitterly said.

"If she left because she hated Junior we're better off without her," Roy growled. Anyone who hated or hurt his siblings would be beaten to a fine pulp or, in his mother's case, disowned… But he didn't believe his mother had hated Junior… He wouldn't believe it. Why should Junior be different than the rest of them?

"We want our mother back, we always have… But she's never coming back…" Lemmy said sadly.

"And Junior and Larry and Morton and… and Wendy… They just want a mother," Ludwig added, rising and leaving the room.

"Wendy was mommy's little angel," Iggy remarked, shrugging and wiping away a tear in annoyance as he followed Ludwig. Roy harrumped and took off without a word. Lemmy sighed deeply and burrowed under his covers in an attempt to hide from the world.

"Lemmy…" Syrup began.

"Just let me sleep," Lemmy miserably begged. Syrup was silent. Finally she brushed a hand through his hair gently and left the room.

SMB

Syrup walked on deck and went up to the helm. She looked out over the water, scanning for land or any other Pirate Ships, namely Captain K. Rool's. She knew he and his people had taken to the seas the minute this infection had started spreading. She somehow doubted, though, that he was still normal anymore. Last she'd heard, one of his men had been sick. Syrup scanned the deck below, mentally checking off the passengers she had. Lemmy was in her cabin. Let's see, Ludwig, Roy, and Iggy were all heading towards the sleeping quarters with intent to turn in. Waluigi, Wario, Mario, Luigi, Stanley, and Spike seemed to be catching up on old times. She'd been extraordinarily surprised to learn that Wario and Waluigi had had another cousin besides Mario and Luigi, albeit an estranged one who, ultimately, wanted little to do with any of the four's adventures. Stanley was content working his greenhouse and occasionally taking on Donkey Kong who was, as she'd heard it, currently out of the picture. Last but not least, besides her crew of course, were Peach and Mona who were chatting animatedly as they walked around the deck. All were present and accounted for. Wait, where was Bowser?

She looked around frowning. She didn't trust the scaly reptile to be on her ship, in all honesty. Bowser had quite the name and was far from someone you would want to trust. She paused, though, on seeing him crouched high up in the Crow's Nest, looking out over the ocean. Thankfully the crow's nest was big enough to hold him without the whole boat rocking from side to side. This ship wasn't a small ship, after all, so it could take Bowser's weight. At least when he was this size. She was almost certain the Koopa King could change his height according to what he desired. It wouldn't be hard for him. Bowser was powerful, she knew; more powerful than he ever let on. If he unleashed all his abilities at once on Mario and Luigi, the chances were he'd come a lot closer to victory than he ever had before. Hmm, perhaps she would climb up to him. There was nothing to do down here, after all. Perhaps he could shed some light on everything that had happened. She still didn't fully understand all that was going on, on land and in the sky.

SMB

Bowser growled lowly, sensing a rise in temperature from somewhere nearby, sensing an infrared image, in a way. It was a body, a human, a woman. He turned coldly, hissing dangerously as his forked tongue, which he rarely ever displayed, flickered out, tasting the air. This wasn't Peach's taste, though. This taste was exotic, a blend of spices and aromas and tastes from all around the Mushroom world and beyond that he just couldn't pin down to one word. It was the taste of an adventurer, not a princess. The air tasted of peaches when Peach was near, delicate and sweet. Of course that wasn't what all princesses tasted like. When Daisy was near, the air tasted of exciting and exotic spices of all sorts native to Sarasaland.

What? He was a reptile race. They did this sort of thing. It was part of their makeup. In that sense it wasn't creepy at all that he could taste the air and judge who was coming. "Syrup," he growled in greeting before she was even in sight. There was no other woman on board whose taste it could be. A few seconds later she scrambled into the crow's nest.

"Bowser," she greeted.

"How is Lemmy?" Bowser asked.

"He's fine, recovering quickly," Syrup answered.

"Kid always was tougher than I or anyone else ever gave him credit for," Bowser grumbled.

"I suppose…" she began, thinking of how to phrase her next question. "They mentioned their mother to me."

SMB

Bowser immediately stiffened. After a long moment he looked at her, eyes narrowed, and replied, "Then you're the first. They never even talked about her to Peach… What did they say?"

"They don't know whether she's alive or dead, you won't tell them either way, and not even your two eldest are certain as to what occurred, etc," she vaguely replied. He was silent. She looked up at him. He was looking into the sky with a tired and slightly saddened look in his eyes. She bit her lower lip then gingerly said, "They want closure. Tell me, is she alive or dead?"

"As far as I'm concerned, Clawdia is dead," Bowser replied.

"Do you not know or do you just not want to say?" Syrup wondered.

Again Bowser was quiet, looking down at her. After a long moment he replied, "Alive, last I heard, but… No, she's dead. There's no other explanation."

"What happened to her?" Syrup wondered.

"Why should I open up to a complete stranger?" he asked.

"Because I saved your scaly hide," Maple bluntly replied.

He glared icily at her, but to be fair she had a point. He gazed again out over the ocean. There was silence. Finally he replied, "After Junior was born… She had been sick; ill with a rare disease that left her unable to care for our little one. She went into a deep post-partum depression… It… It almost killed her… and then it did… She just couldn't handle it. Eight children and unable to feed the youngest who was starving slowly in front of her eyes? She couldn't watch. She couldn't handle it all… So she ran away… I don't believe she's still alive… They never found a body but I know… I know she died out there somewhere… She wouldn't have left them for nothing… she couldn't have… Please, tell me she didn't…" Bowser admitted to Maple, gazing out over the ocean.

SMB

Syrup looked up at him then leaned against the railing, eyes softening ever so slightly. Part of her wished she was able to answer his plea, but as to the Koopa Queen's fate, she had no clue. "Hmm," she mused quietly. "My mother left… She left of her own free will. She wasn't depressed or ill… I loved her so much, and for the longest time I believed she would come back for me… She never did… I don't know if she's alive or dead… It's hard, not to have closure, I know it is. I can't claim to understand how you or your children feel, but you have to know you're not alone in the losses you've suffered. I'd do anything to know what happened to my mother… It's one of the reasons I became a pirate. I thought that maybe if I sailed far enough and visited enough locations, then one day I would find her and I could bring her back… At least your children have their father. I had no one," she said.

"I'm not much of a father," Bowser replied.

"Aren't you?" she asked. "That's not the impression I'm getting right now."

"You don't know me… It doesn't matter anyway. They need a mother… If only Peach would be that mother, but me… It's me she can't stand, and my children suffer for it," Bowser replied.

"You lock her in a cage," Syrup bluntly said.

"Because I can't do anything else," Bowser replied.

"No one likes to be a prisoner," Syrup remarked.

"I give her everything. Free-reign of the Castle, even!" Bowser argued.

"But she's still a captive," Syrup said.

"She loves my kids, she lets herself be captured just so she can be with them; I know because I've seen her fight before and she could easily avoid being taken… So doesn't that make it bearable?" Bowser growled. "Maybe she doesn't love them enough… Maybe that's why Ludwig refuses to call her mother or accept her as one. Maybe that's why he defends his siblings when she starts to get too close. Though he has a soft spot for her and her for him, he knows it's not enough."

"She's never a willing captive?" Syrup asked.

Bowser was silent a long moment. Finally he replied, "No… But she's the only chance my children have of getting a mother. Don't they deserve as much, doesn't any child?"

"They do," Syrup replied. "But if you think they wouldn't be content with just you, you're gravely mistaken." With that she leapt out of the crow's nest and seized a rope, nimbly swinging and sliding down to the deck below. Bowser looked after her in amazement, startled at not only her words but her agility as well.

SMB

"I never meant for it to happen," Stanley quietly said, looking at the ground. Talking about the past had been a grave mistake. They had reached the part when Spike had cast out Waluigi and… Well, needless to say things had gotten intense between him and his purple clad cousin. He and Waluigi had gotten into it deep. Waluigi was ready to murder and Stanley was ready to burst into tears and fall to his knees begging for forgiveness.

"But it did!" Waluigi screamed. "Look at this family! We are nothing to each other!"

"That wasn't my fault!" Stanley shouted back, a surge of boldness and defiance shooting through him. "You, Wario, Luigi, and Mario hated each other from the moment you were put together in the crib! That was you and them, Walu, not me! All I ever wanted was for our family to be one…! And then we grew, and I couldn't stand you. You and Wario, cruel and greedy and violent; me, Luigi, and Mario your victims… What we became to one another wasn't because of me. I just sped up the inevitable. You would have been estranged from me and dad in time regardless; all four of you. Dad hated Mario and Luigi, you and Wario hated me."

"We never said we hated you!" Wario instantly insisted, defending himself quickly.

"I never said I despised any of you either, say for Waluigi; and that was only in a fit of emotional collapse," Stanley said. "You nearly killed me, Wally!"

"How was I supposed to know that that bridge gate wasn't latched?" Waluigi demanded. "Thank your lucky stars I bothered to save your sorry hide! After Luigi, you were the one I disliked most."

"And you nearly killed me multiple times!" Luigi snapped sharply, backing Stanley.

"Oh because you and Mario were so angelic," Spike snarled. "Don't pretend that you, Mario, didn't get a kick out of putting down Waluigi and making him feel like crap."

"In defense of Luigi because Wario was doing the same to him! I was a child. How was I-a supposed to know there were better ways to deal with it than that!?" Mario insisted.

"It wasn't just you. Luigi belittled Waweegee too," Wario shot.

"For the love of… you all belittled each other!" Stanley shot. "I was the only one in this godsforsaken family who tried to keep the peace! I never insulted any of you. I tried to pull us together!"

"Until you ripped us apart why whining to Uncle Spike because…" Waluigi began.

"Because of you getting me rushed to emergency in a helicopter? Yeah!" Stanley shot. "What part of I almost died don't you get?! I repeat, I thought I was going to die! The doctors didn't think I'd make it! That was all you!"

"It was an accident!" Waluigi insisted. "I never wanted to hurt you! I could almost tolerate you more than I could tolerate Wario. You were just so easy a mark…"

"I know I was, but not anymore," Stanley replied. "I don't want to war forever with you over what happened that night, cuz. I never wanted us to quarrel. It was dad's choice to cast you out, not mine."

"And for that I'll take the blame. I overreacted. Regretted it every day since," Spike grumbled.

SMB

There was silence for a long moment. Finally Mario said, "It doesn't change what happened. It doesn't change that we can hardly even be classified family anymore. You stuck with your father, Stanley, and you snubbed us, rejected us, turned your back on your cousins! Don't play innocent in that! I won't claim the victim here either, though, because in turn Luigi and I rejected Wario and Waluigi. They became nothing. In turn Wario and Waluigi rejected all of us."

"The only family I've-a ever had was my brother," Wario growled. Waluigi nodded in agreement.

"Same here!" Mario barked, putting an arm around an obviously distressed and distraught Luigi who had said very little.

"And the only family you and Spike have ever had, Stan, is each other," Luigi muttered softly to his cousin.

"That's not true!" Stanley insisted.

"To me it was," Spike confessed. "Your cousins were faces to be forgotten in time. There was only you and I… Perhaps that was the mistake all of us made. We forgot what it was to be a family, what it meant to our survival and emotional states."

"Am I the only one who wants to fix it?" Stanley asked meekly.

"Cousin, the rift between me and you, between all of us and you and Uncle Spike, may be fixed, yeah, but it's-a too badly broken between Mario, Luigi, Wario, and I for it to ever be repaired," Waluigi said, forcing himself to deal with this in a calmer manner.

"The four greatest heroes of the Mushroom Kingdom and you don't even like each other," Spike grumbled.

"We aren't heroes!" Wario and Waluigi snapped sharply.

Stanley was inwardly thanking his lucky stars he wasn't technically one of core four so much as he was an extra helping hand for when convenience presented itself. He wasn't the only other cousin Mario, Luigi, Wario, and Waluigi had, so he didn't feel like a complete outsider because of it. Besides, adventuring wasn't his bag like it was Mario and Wario's; and he had no reason to follow them around like Luigi and Waluigi did.

"This is-a gonna be a long trip," Wario grumbled.

"Maybe that'll be a good thing," Stanley remarked to him. "Come on, Wario, cut me a break. Side with me for once in your life. What do you say, are we family?"

Wario glared at him doubtfully and glanced at his hand. After a long moment he took it and shook, saying, "We always were."

"Nothing can ever change the fact that we have the same blood running through our veins," Luigi agreed, taking Stanley's hand and shaking.

"I never stopped seeing you as family," Mario murmured to his cousin, taking his turn.

Waluigi remained grumbling off to the side. "Waweegee, get over here and make up so we can get this crap done with," Wario ordered impatiently.

Waluigi was silent a long moment as he looked at Stanley. Finally he reached out his hand and lamely shook his cousin's, muttering, "Famiglia. Sempre famiglia." Family. Always family. Spike grunted roughly and stuck out his own. Waluigi and Wario all too eagerly took it. Mario and Luigi, though more hesitant, finally relented, shaking.

"Famiglia," Luigi said. Family. They were family, and whether they liked it or not they all had to live with it. You couldn't pick your family.