7B - Lady Bow's Mansion
By the time Mario and friends approached the vicinity of Boo's Mansion, it was 6:25 PM. The mansion was enclosed within a dark red fence, which meant that the group had to find and open the gate to get in the mansion.
Even though Luigi had calmed down a little following the Forever Forest puzzles, he was still shaking and his breathing shallowed, but not too much.
"W-where's the...g-gate...Mario...?" Luigi asked in a shaky voice.
"It should be on the front of the fence," Mario replied as he began inspecting the fence. It only took about five seconds to find the gate, which was nearly blended in.
Just when Mario was about to reach for the gate's latch, the gate slammed open, scaring Luigi again.
Luigi gazed at the mansion's exterior, which was lit up due to the lights inside, and harked back to when he, Mario, Yoshi, and Jim went through the Donut Ghost House ten years ago. His flashback caused Luigi's vision to block out the lit-up windows.
"No..." Luigi murmured. "I-I'm...n-not going...i-in th-there... I c-can't d-do it..."
"Luigi, you just said you were ready," Mario reminded Luigi.
"I n-never...s-said th-that..."
"Okay. Are you absolutely sure you're ready to go in?" Mario asked.
"Y-yes... I-I'll go i-in..."
"Good. Remember what Jim told you back then. The ghosts are not gonna hurt you. Pretend there's no one in there but me and Goombario."
Mario held Luigi's hand again and the group approached the mansion's front door before walking inside.
"I'm not surprised the door was unlocked," Goombario remarked. "Maybe they're cool with all kinds of guests."
Again, Luigi covered his eyes to not look at the Boos floating all around. In front were two doors; the left one was concealed by a bookcase. The group then approached the right-side door.
"Luigi, there aren't any ghosts in front of us. You can open your eyes," Mario said, seeing that the Boos were roaming in the middle of the foyer next to the staircase and a green sofa. Luigi uncovered his eyes and focused on the door.
"W-what's i-in there...?" Luigi questioned.
"Let's find out," Goombario answered. Just as Mario reached for the doorknob, a giant Boo apparition popped out from the door, causing Luigi to scream really loud and fall on his back. Mario immediately helped Luigi back up.
"W-why th-that...?!" Luigi panted. His forehead was sweating a bit.
"It's okay. I didn't expect it either," Mario reassured Luigi as they went inside the room with Goombario. There was nothing in there but a rainbow-colored urn and two Yellow Exclamation Point Blocks.
"Look at that, bro. There might be something in those blocks that can cheer you up," Mario pointed out as he and Luigi went under both blocks. They hit the blocks from underneath, revealing a Super Leaf and a Repel Gel tube, respectively. Mario took the Super Leaf and stowed it in his overalls pocket.
"W-what's this...tube...?" Luigi asked as he took the Repel Gel.
Mario examined the text on the tube that said, "Rub a quarter-sized amount on both arms to become invisible for 3 minutes".
"This can be useful if there's a strong enemy that can really hurt you," Mario instructed Luigi. "Don't use it now; only if necessary."
After exiting the room, the group went upstairs and saw two doors in front. Luigi closed his eyes again while going upstairs.
"Let's try the right door again," Goombario said. Inside the right-side room was nothing but an empty bed, a rocking chair, and a wooden cabinet on the left side.
"See? It's not that bad so far, bro." Luigi opened his eyes again and saw the cabinet, wondering what was in there. "Have at it, Luigi."
Luigi slowly approached the cabinet because he was still shaking. He then quickly opened the cabinet because if he did so slowly, he would have backed out by the time it was halfway open. For a couple seconds, it appeared that the cabinet was empty, relieving Luigi.
Suddenly, a group of Boos flew out of the cabinet circled around the middle of the room. The second the Boos flew out of the cabinet, Luigi screamed again and cowered in the left corner of the cabinet.
"Marioooooo... You have come..." one of the Boos drawled after floating in the center of the circling Boos. It held up a green and black vinyl. "If you want this vinyl, you must guess who holds it."
The Boo turned to the other ones and instructed them, "Lady Bow will be very angry if we let him get it too easily, fellow Boos! Do your best, like we practiced!" The Boo then threw the vinyl to one of the circling Boos and relayed to three others before it was hidden completely.
Because Luigi was too scared to participate in this challenge, Mario opted to determine which Boo had the vinyl and took out his hammer. It took ten seconds for him to see the vinyl barely visible in one of the Boos and quickly hammered it to release the vinyl.
"You did it, Mario!" Goombario exclaimed as Mario picked up the vinyl. "Well done!"
Meanwhile, the Boos were angry that Mario won the challenge. "Noooo! Boo hoo! You...You guessed right. Now Lady Bow's really going to flip out on us..." The Boos then made scary faces and screamed before fading away. By now, Luigi was breathing shallowly, and his face was nearly covered in sweat. He took off his cap to fan himself.
Mario saw Luigi cowering and helped him up before noticing the sweat. "Mamma mia. You don't look good."
"I...kn-know..." Luigi murmured before eyeballing the vinyl. "W-what's...th-that f-for...?"
"I'm not sure, but we'll find a way to use it," Mario replied as the group left the room and went through the left-side door. There was another Boo in front of a small treasure chest and a gramophone was situated on the left side of the room. Luigi immediately ran next to the gramophone and backed against the wall before looking to his right.
Mario approached the Boo guarding the chest and asked, "Can you move out of the way?"
"Sorry, but that treasure is mine," the Boo responded. Mario then walked away and looked at the vinyl before noticing the gramophone. He figured if he played the vinyl, the music would attract the Boo's attention, giving him the chance to take the treasure.
"This should be easy..." Mario said to himself before placing the vinyl on the gramophone. He then wound the handle before setting the needle on the vinyl. The music that played was the Ghost House theme from "Super Mario World". Upon hearing the music, Luigi experienced the Donut Ghost House flashback again, visualizing himself being scared from the Boos behind his back and threw himself towards the floor before covering his ears.
"Turn i-it...o-off..." Luigi moaned. "P-please..."
It took 20 seconds before the Boo floated to where the gramophone was and started dancing by spinning around; the Boo didn't hear the music initially because it was preoccupied with the chest.
"Goombario, turn off the gramophone after I take the treasure." Mario whispered to Goombario, who nodded in agreement. Mario then hurried over to the treasure chest and opened it to reveal a gray weight in the shape of a small vase. Hearing Mario open the chest, Goombario shut off the gramophone.
"Oh noooo..." the Boo murmured looking at the gramophone and Mario holding the weight. "Lady Bow gave me one job...to guard that treasure chest. She is gonna punish me so bad if she finds out about this!" The Boo made a scary face and screamed before fading away.
By the time Luigi stood up, he clutched his stomach, feeling nauseous. Mario saw Luigi hunched over slightly and asked, "Are you okay?"
"N-no..." Luigi answered. "I...m-might th-throw up..."
"We're almost done, Luigi. I wouldn't puke right now," Mario said. After entering the foyer again, Mario thought about the bookcase and looked at the chandelier. He was determined to jump onto the chandelier and weight it down, which should move the bookcase out of the way.
Without hesitation, Mario executed his plan and dropped down to the floor before seeing the left-side door being revealed. Goombario and Luigi took the stairs back to the foyer and went with Mario through the left-side door, which took them to the basement.
Inside the basement were a bunch of mirrors and wooden tables and chairs lined up against the north wall. There was also a big crack on the east wall. Mario proceeded to swap Goombario with Bombette and had her blow up the crack before releasing Goombario again.
"Come on, Luigi," Mario said, beckoning Luigi to go with him and Goombario into the next room. There were several wooden boxes and a small treasure chest scattered around the room. Mario didn't hesitate to open the treasure chest, which had nothing in it.
"Where did the-" Mario started to ask himself before another group of Boos flew out of the chest and circled around the center of the room.
"No...!" Luigi cried before running back against the south wall and closing his eyes again.
One of the Boos floated to the center of the circling Boos and said, "Marioooo... Welcooooome... If you want the Boo's Portrait, you must guess who holds it." The Boos held up the Boo's Portrait and announced to the other Boos, "Lady Bow will be very angry if we let him get it too easily, fellow Boos! Do your best, like we practiced!" The Boo then threw the portrait to one of the circling Boos and relayed to three others before it was hidden completely.
Mario turned to Luigi and said, "It's your turn to see which Boo has that picture."
"I-I d-don't w-wanna...d-do it..." Luigi muttered. But Mario handed Luigi his hammer before leading him toward the circling Boos; Luigi still had his eyes closed and was holding his stomach with his left hand.
"Like I said, you have to face your worst fear. Just open your eyes for a brief second and swing that hammer. Who knows? Maybe you'll get it on the first try."
"O-Okay..." Luigi kept his eyes closed for another five seconds and quickly opened them before dashing through the Boos. He screamed while running and held the hammer out in front; the hammer hit one of the Boos on the other side of the circle, releasing the portrait. Luigi couldn't stop running and crashed into the wall before falling over.
Mario picked up the portrait before the Boos stopped circling. "Noooo! Boo hoo! You...You guessed right. Now Lady Bow's really going to flip out on us..." The Boos then made scary faces and screamed before fading away. At the same time the Boos screamed, Luigi suddenly turned to his left and vomited all over the floor. Mario rushed up to Luigi and set his hand on Luigi's back.
"Oh God... This might be worse than the Donut Ghost House for Luigi..." Mario said to himself. He quickly grabbed the hammer so that the vomit wouldn't coat it.
"What's wrong with Luigi?" Goombario asked.
"He got scared too much," Mario replied. "Apparently, this is what happens. I don't know why, though." It took about three minutes before Luigi stopped vomiting.
"It...hurts so...bad..." Luigi groaned as he held his stomach again. He was feeling stomach pains now that everything in him was gone. Mario figured that Luigi needed water, so he checked the boxes and found one of them had several water bottles within a layer of ice cubes.
He took two bottles and handed one to Luigi, who immediately drank all of it in one go.
"It's...not enough..." Luigi said while holding his head. "I...feel lightheaded..."
"Do you want the other water?" Mario asked.
"No... I-I'm f-fine..." Luigi lied.
"All right-y," Mario gave in as he led Luigi and Goombario back into the foyer. They then went upstairs and searched the rest of the floor before seeing an empty picture frame on the far end.
Mario thought that the Boo's Portrait could be placed in the frame and did so before the picture spoke, "Phew... Ah, that feels better! It's nice to be back inside my frame after so long!"
"No problem," Mario replied.
"All right, then. I'll help you go to the third floor, okay? Jump toward the drawing and I'll take care of the rest." Mario held Luigi's hand before the group leaped into the painting and found themselves on the third floor, which did not have a railing. By now, Luigi was feeling so weak that he found it hard to stand up straight.
"Oh no... I'm so sorry, Luigi..." Mario said with sympathy. He saw two doors again and entered the right-side one while beckoning Goombario to go with him and Luigi inside. The floor had blue carpeting all around and there were two chandeliers hanging from the ceiling.
Suddenly, a female voice called out, "Gwah hee haha! You've finally arrived! You took your sweet time, huh?"
Even though he didn't see anything, Mario answered, "We took up too much time. Sorry."
"Well, I was testing you to see if you live up to your reputation. How were the tests? Tough?"
"Pretty simple."
A few seconds later, a green female Boo and the pale Boo with the white hair and mustache appeared in the middle of the room. Mario and Goombario stepped forward a few steps while Luigi stayed in place and was breathing rapidly with sweat dripping from his face.
"My name is Lady Bow, but you may call me Bow," Bow introduced herself. "I'm glad to finally meet you."
"Thank you," Mario thanked Bow.
Bow noticed Luigi behind Mario. "That must be your brother, right?"
"Yes, this is Luigi. I'm so sorry you're seeing him hunched over. He's deathly terrified of ghosts like you." Mario pointed to Luigi.
"Don't apologize. I understand," Bow answered. "This is Bootler, my butler and my humble servant. The reason why I asked you here is that I need a favor. Bootler, give them the rundown."
"Of course, my lady," Bootler said before turning to Mario. "Mario and Luigi, first off, just beyond the mansion is this area called Gusty Gulch. A hill rises at the top of the gulch, and upon it sits the castle of Tubba Blubba. He's a monstrous creature...who eats...us! Ghosts!"
"Boos are his favorite food. Many friends have been eaten! We've tried attacking the evil fiend to save our friends, but Tubba Blubba is far too strong for us Boos to slow him down even slightly. He seems invincible. That's why he's known as the Invincible Tubba Blubba," Bootler explained. "There is hope, however. If the rumors are true, then Tubba Blubba has a secret that he closely guards. And that secret is...probably something that relates to his weak point."
"So, Mario and Luigi, I want you to find out his secret and defeat him," Bow said. "Of course, you'll get a reward for doing us this service. If you beat Tubba Blubba up, I'll let you have this." A cage lowered from the ceiling; inside of it was the third Star Spirit, Skolar.
"Mmmmm... Mario. I'm sorry we must meet in such a dire situation. My name is Skolar. I escaped from Tubba Blubba's castle, but...I was in quite a weakened state when I made it outside. As a result, I couldn't go back to the sky at first," Skolar said.
"I tried to head for Star Hill to make the leap to the Star Road, but I became lost in the forest. While hunting for a way out, I was captured by Boos. And now here I am... I don't know what to say..." Skolar's cage raised back up toward the ceiling.
"What do you think, guys? Not such a bad deal, is it? You would have had to fight Tubba Blubba to save this Star Spirit anyway, right?" Bow asked. "This way, you help us Boos too. Besides, I'm going with you. I'll help you like no one else can."
Bootler became shocked and turned to Bow. "My lady?! What did you just say now? You? At Tubba Blubba's castle? Quite out of the question! I simply cannot allow you to put yourself in such danger!"
"Shut it, Bootler!" Bow retorted. "I've seen too much suffering caused by Tubba Blubba! I wish to see him punished with my own two eyes. Besides, Mario and his brother will need me. There's no way they can reach the castle without my powers!"
"Oh... Alas... Then, Lady, I shall accompany you," Bootler requested. "It is my sworn duty to see that no harm befalls you. The ancestors demand it! I will be at your side always."
"Just... Just stop that nonsense, okay?" Bow grouched. "I'm not a child anymore. I'll be fine by myself. You wait here for my return, okay?"
"All right..." Bootler replied with disappointment.
At the same time Bow argued with Bootler, Luigi kept murmuring to himself while holding his head, "I'm gonna die... I'm gonna die... I'm dying... I'm dying..." He felt his hands tingling and quickly took his gloves off before dropping them. He then grabbed his chest with his right hand as it was aching so bad. He was also breathing way too fast and sweating more and more. Basically, Luigi was suffering from a panic attack.
"Is this all right, Mario?" Bow asked Mario. "I'll join up with you and Luigi until we oust Tubba Blubba."
"You're in, Bow. Welcome to the team," Mario answered before sending Goombario into his Partner Companion Band.
"Okay, then! Tubba Blubba's going down! Gwaah ha haaa!" Bow cackled. Mario turned to Luigi, who was about to collapse on the ground.
"Oh my God! Luigi!" Mario yelled as he caught Luigi after he passed out.
"What happened?" Bow asked with concern.
"Luigi just had a panic attack from his fear, and he's passed out!" Mario cried. He was tearing up a bit. "We got to get him out of here now!" Mario picked up Luigi's gloves, hung Luigi over his right shoulder, and jumped off the third floor toward the foyer before rushing out the front door.
After exiting the mansion, Mario checked Luigi's pulse and was relieved that he felt his blood vessels pumping, but still felt sorry for his condition.
"Bow, I'm REALLY sorry you had to see that! SO sorry!" Mario wept.
"It's all good. Just lay him down for now," Bow replied. Mario hurried Luigi next to the fence and laid him on his back. Luigi was breathing, but he was still unconscious. Mario took out the second water bottle and kneeled next to Luigi.
"Poor Luigi...!" Mario murmured as he took Luigi's cap off his head. At this time, it was 6:45 PM. It took five minutes before Luigi slowly woke up.
"Ugh... Wha..." Luigi groaned as he opened his eyes.
"Luigi? Are you okay?" Mario asked.
"Who... Who is...it...?" Luigi said in a weak voice.
"It's-a me, bro."
"Mario..." Luigi lifted his head up and looked around. "Where...am I...?"
"You're back outside. We did everything we needed to in the mansion," Mario explained.
"What...happened...?" Luigi asked.
"You had a panic attack when Bow joined our team. I didn't think you'd suffer from one." Mario took off one of his gloves and felt Luigi's forehead. It was warm and sweaty, but not too hot.
"Who's...Bow...?"
"Bow's the mansion owner. She understands your condition," Mario replied. He took the water bottle and handed it to Luigi. "Drink this."
Luigi tried drinking from the bottle but spat out the water.
"No! Luigi! Don't spit it! You need to hydrate yourself!" Mario ordered. He held the bottle up to Luigi's mouth and helped him drink up. "You literally emptied your whole system and you need to fill it up again."
"Okay..." Luigi moaned before laying his head down again. "I'm...tired..."
"I know you are," Mario responded. "I'll tell you what. It's getting late anyway. You should get some sleep."
"Okay..."
"Do you want me to sleep with you?" Mario offered.
"Yes..." Just as Luigi began to doze off, Mario took his cap off and laid next to Luigi.
"Please, God. Please take care of Luigi," Mario prayed silently. "He needs to feel better."
Meanwhile, Bow hovered next to the front gate and gazed at the Mario Bros.
"I hope Luigi gets well by tomorrow morning," Bow said to herself. "We got to get going first thing in the morning."