Author's notes: I can't believe I'm still writing and editing this much after 6 f-ing years of NOTHING. I'm as surprised as you are. Brace yourselves. A couple more chapters, and then we finally say farewell...

"Hey, get outta here, whaddya think you're doin'?"

I heard the voice, and it sounded mean. It sounded like Mario. I hoped he wasn't yelling at me. I was curled up in a ball on the grass, so he couldn't hurt me much if he wanted to.

"Any one of you brats lays a finger on him, and I'll—" I thought he was saying something in Italian, but I wasn't sure what it was. He wasn't saying it very nice. Then a hand touched me, and I shouted and curled up tighter.

"Come on, Luigi, we gotta go home."

Mario didn't sound very mad anymore. I looked up from the grass and saw the other boys standing across the street. I looked back down because I didn't want them to hurt me again.

"Come on, kiddo. Sit up." I sat up and he wanted to see my eye but I wouldn't let him, it felt sore. He touched it and I almost started crying again. Then the other boys starting making fun of me.

"Needs his brother to fight for him! Poor baby! Lookit the scaredy baby!" They laughed, but Mario stood up and ran to them, and they all screamed and ran away, except for one frozen kid. Mario grabbed his shirt and shook him and he looked scared, I kinda felt bad for him, because Mario was scary sometimes when he was mean.

"You touch him again, and I swear your mama won't recognize you! And I hope you're little friends heard that too!" He dropped the kid, and he ran away really fast.

Mario was scary sometimes when he was mean.

But he wasn't mean anymore. He walked back to me grabbing my shoe off the street, and asked me to stand up, but my foot hurt too much.

"What happened, Weegie?"

"D-don't call me that!"

"Tell me what happened."

"…they were playing soccer, an' I wanted to play too, but they said I couldn't c-cause I was bad at it. …But I played anyway, and they didn't like that. T-they said I would be the s-soccer ball…" I started crying and I felt worse. Only scaredy babies cry, not big boys.

"Don't worry about them, Luigi. They won't bother you anymore. And if they do, you just tell me, okay?"

I just crossed my arms, sitting in the grass and sniffling. He wanted to know if anything was broken. I didn't want to go to the hospital and told him so. Then I told him no, and stop…but Mario picked me up in his arms and carried me down the sidewalk back home. I felt like such a baby, just like the other boys said, and hid my face with my hands. But I felt safe too. It almost felt like mama picking me up, before she and daddy went to heaven.

"…That was really brave of you, Luigi."

"What was? How I got beat up?"

"No, you dork. How you jumped into the game and played anyway, even after those big kids told you no. You were super brave."

"…it was stupid."

"Nope. It was brave. You're my hero, Weegie."

"Stop calling me that!"

"But that's your hero name. Weegie!"

I crossed my arms again, huffing at him, but still feeling safe and protected, too. I didn't huff this time when he told me, again, with conviction, "You're my hero."

Getting the crowd of mushrooms and turtles to settle down was something of an ordeal. Once they were fully assembled out of the pipe, armed with their weapons and in the presence of the Marios, they were perhaps too excited for battle. Mario tried yelling over their chanting, but it just melted into the noise. Luigi finally climbed up onto a fallen pillar and whistled sharply with his fingers, glaring at them. The din grew quiet, til there were only a few whispers, and all eyes on the younger Mario. He looked down at them uncomfortably now, and his older brother gave him a bracing smile, gesturing with a hand. Luigi swallowed. Did they expect him to give them a speech? Him? The number two?

He stammered, glancing back again at Mario helplessly, while his brother silently encouraged him with pride. Luigi finally cleared his throat, facing them with sheepish resignation.

"Hey. So, uh. Thanks, thank you for coming. I know this, um…probably wasn't an easy decision." He met their eyes, finding fear in some of them. "But the sort-of good news is, we think we blocked them from using the Dark World pipe."

"How?"

"Well, uh. We blew it up. We think we did. So, we stalled—"

A roar of a cheer started up again. Luigi whistled sharply again, angry this time, bringing near-silence back. He swallowed.

"…he still knows where we are. And he knows we're alive. So, we know he's coming. All we did was stall for time."

A voice chirped. "How did this happen?"

"Yeah, how do they know about the Princess?"

"…one of his…th-they saw us. And we couldn't stop them in time."

More whispering broke out, and the turtles shifted their weight uncomfortably.

Luigi continued. "But we can beat him. There's hundreds of you."

A complaint came from the crowd. "There's hundreds of them, too…"

"I'm not saying it's gonna be easy. I'm saying, we have the upper hand…"

They chattered over each other at that, casting looks of doubt at the man standing in front of them. Luigi seemed to curl inward, and Mario climbed up to stand beside him.

"What do they have left? Some spears, maybe. But mostly just fear. Some of you know what I mean." The turtles shifted uncomfortably again, as Mario continued.

"You can't fight if you're afraid. And all that's all they are now. Afraid. …even…even Bowser. He's afraid. You heard me. He brought an army, because he knows who he's dealing with."

The great hall was filled with silence, now, eyes on their hero.

"There's no victory in fear. You have weapons. You have skilled soldiers among you. You have the Marios. …And you have your Princess. She has faith in you, all of you. …Months ago, I was afraid. I didn't have any of these things. But…now I do." He glanced at his brother beside him, Luigi's eyes focused on his own shoes.

"I've got more courage now than I've had…in a long time. I wouldn't even be here, without—" He cleared his throat, and looked back at their allies.

"…We have each other. And we have more strength inside us than we realize. …m-maybe today, history will be different. Maybe today…the sun will rise again."

Mushrooms and turtles alike started up, applauding, cheering to a roar louder than before, chanting again. Mario didn't stop them. He exhaled nervously, and turned to his brother again…but Luigi was already gone, disappearing up the stairs, away from the crowds and the courage.

Luigi sat on the window sill of his room, his feet dangling three floors above the dry ground, and scanned the horizon. The din downstairs finally grew quiet, and he didn't know how much time had passed since he retreated here.

Leaning out a bit, he vainly searched for Sarasaland. It was distant from the Mushroom Kingdom, but large and distinct enough to be a little visible. He told himself himself not to look anymore, because he had already tried countless days to find it, in hopes that he would see Daisy walking towards him again, only this time, she would be in perfect health. Every step she would take would cause the grass to grow, the flowers too; and all the rivers and lakes and streams would be filled and everything would be beautiful again, just because she would be alive.

He blinked, clearing his eyes, and she still wasn't there. Above him, clouds had moved in once more, but more dark and sinister than Luigi remembered.

His hands shook and he tried folding them together, looking down at them, feeling a panic build in the pit of his stomach.

He was afraid. He was nothing like his brother. He should have left months ago, back to Brooklyn. He could have started a new life of his own. It was not without it's own challenges, but Mario still fell back into his role as hero. Luigi could not. He tried. He told himself the next day would be better, but each week that passed, he felt that piece of him was gone.

Or maybe it was never there to begin with.

His gaze returned to the horizon…and he blinked again, gasping softly.

There, marching over the dead, dry horizon was Bowser and his hundreds. It was nowhere near the horde that had crossed this place fourteen years before, but it remained a terrible sight.

He climbed back out of the window, the panic in his stomach churning again. He looked back down at his hands, how they shook.

You can't fight if you're afraid…

As Mario's words haunted him, his brother stepped through the door.

"Weege, it's me. I… You okay?"

Luigi just looked up at his brother breathlessly, pointing with a trembling hand.

Mario hurried to it and stared.

"…they're here."

"Hhn…"

"We have to get downstairs."

"I c-can't…" Luigi's hand went to his neck. He felt choked.

"You can. Luigi. Bro, look at me."

Gasping, he looked up at his brother, who stared back at him, serious and firm.

"…we did not come this far to fail. You didn't go back to Brooklyn, and hunt down my sorry ass, just to fail. You didn't go back to that hell to bring Peach back to me just to fail. All of this is happening because of you. …We won't fail. I won't let us. Not this time."

Luigi stared at him through bleary eyes, still gasping. Mario reached and took Luigi's hand, clinging at his neck, and lowered it to his chest, holding it over his brother's heart. His tone was the tiniest bit softer.

"We can do this. You'll be okay. But we have to go downstairs, alright?"

Finally, Luigi nodded jerkingly, and swallowed. Mario released him and hurried out the room, down the stairs. Halfway down, he spotted Kaden, dragging two big sacks toward Oliver, and looking pleased with himself. Mario rushed to them.

"Whoa, Kaden, what are you doing here? I told you to stay with Peach. You have to leave, now."

"I know, I will, I just—"

Mario interrupted with a hiss. "They're here. You have to go."

"W—! J-just take it, then!" Kaden shoved the bag into him, and his eyes were wide at the news.

Allies close at hand heard them.

"They're here?"

"They're coming?"

"I don't see them."

"What's in the bags?"

"Shutup, they're coming!"

Mario saw his armies were panicked, but hushed. Impatiently, he grabbed the sack, forcing it open…and his eyes literally sparkled at what lay inside.

Power stars. Dozens of them.

"Sh-she said don't use them til you have to. And these, too," Kaden, shoving the second sack at Oliver. The meeker mushroom opened his, and balked. It was full of green mushrooms. A bag full of weapons, and a bag full of healing. Mario couldn't help himself, and started to grin, picking up Kaden in one arm.

"I could kiss you."

"Ugh, gross! Get off me! Save it for your girlfriend!"

Mario dropped him back to the floor. The older mushroom straightened his vest, and spoke up again with flushing cheeks, staring at something besides Mario.

"…sh-she told me to tell you. …you too."

Mario exhaled, giving him an appreciative nod. Hearing the Troopas marching behind him, he pointed back to the vault with his hook. "Go. Now."

Kaden nodded, and hurried back to the vault, weaving through the small soldiers.

"Oliver. Set up shop. Back in that corner. You're gonna take care of anyone who needs healing. Go."

Oliver's footsteps retreated on the stone floor. Mario looked down at the remaining sack with a small smile, then glanced up to find Luigi next to him. He was pale, already weary, still breathing a bit strangely, and his gaze was toward the palace gate.

Mario turned his head to follow his eyes through those massive, splintered, broken doors. He still couldn't see them, but he heard the dull thudding of their footsteps. Eventually, the allies heard it too, and they hushed, the frantic scramble for their weapons pausing, eyes raised with trepidation.

Finally, the marching stopped. The hundreds in the castle held their breath as one. The silence was heavy and crushing.

Something small and round flew into the palace, eliciting fearful gasps and cries, bouncing off one of the gate doors, before skidding along the floor. It slid with a bump against Mario's feet, still spinning slowly as it's trajectory came to a stop.

It was a familiar pink shell, blood and ash smeared over it. Tied around the joint, where a shoulder and neck should have been, was an ivory lace hanky.

Kelley.

Mario heard a small sound from his brother, the allies horrified into silence. A few turtles close at hand trembled and whimpered.

The chanting, purple-shelled turtle from Sky World knelt beside Kelley's shell, smoothing her hand over the rounded surface, smearing ash and blood together, and feeling the deep cracks in it. She raised her face then, tears in her eyes, anger on her face. Mario stopped her from stepping forward, his hook lowered in front of her. His hand shook a little, but he nudged his brother in the ribs for attention, and showed him the contents of the glowing sack.

Man and turtle took in the sight with wide eyes. Mario gave Luigi that same, bracing smile, took in a deep breath, and turned to his army.

"Courage. There's no victory in fear."