Chapter 1 There's A Girl For You
Roy Koopa wasn't someone who often sat around and reminisced. It was such a boring activity, having to think. He would rather do, do something that was fun and energizing. Thinking was just dull; that's why he rarely if ever took the time to think.
However...if he were to think about something, when the three Mushroom Moons aligned, he would recall that one event from his childhood. He didn't remember every detail of it though. The color of the walls? Uh...gray? The contents of the book he was reading? Ugh, what a snooze-thon; who could remember that? The mood that Kamek had been in? Uh, um..does boring count as a mood?
Yeah, Roy's brain wasn't exactly the best at remembering things. If anything, his brain threw out any and all details that it didn't find important (which was really all of them). Yet another reason why he didn't think about stuff now. It was too hard to remember.
Luckily, he did know a few things about the day. He knew that he was ten years old. He knew that Kamek had been giving him a lesson, as he often acted as his private tutor back then. He also knew that Bowser had called him out of the classroom for a little talk.
Those details_the details about the talk they had_those were the details that Roy could recall off the top of his shiny bald head.
It had been really warm in the hallway. Outside the window, it had been another soggy day. So soggy, in fact, that Roy couldn't see the sky. But then again, he hadn't been focusing on the sky. He had been focusing on Bowser. And Bowser was looking at him with disappointment.
"Roy," he said. "Kamek told me that you haven't been applying yourself in your lessons."
Roy smirked. What? Him? Not applying himself? He put on a smile, trying to bat the assumption away with confidence.
"Of course I've been applying myself! I always apply myself!"
Bowser raised an eyebrow, an eyebrow that looked like a humongous red Caterpillar that Roy had dug up in the castle gardens. On a side note, he wondered where butterflies came from. Why does a Caterpillar build a cocoon, and then a butterfly comes out? What happened to the caterpillar; did the butterfly eat it?
"Oh really?" Bowser said, drawing the young Koopa boy back down to Earth. "Then why did you get an F on your last test?"
Wait, Roy got an F? Since when? He thought that he did good on the last test! Unless, of course, the F didn't mean what Roy thought it meant.
"When you say 'F,'" he said, putting on another suave smile. "Are you talking about a letter that stands for something? Like fabulous or terrific?"
Bowser nodded.
"Yes, actually, failing!" He pulled a crumpled up piece of paper from his hammerspace, one that Roy immediately recognized as the test. "And I am starting to see why you failed this spelling test, because terrific does not start with F!"
Roy's tail started to curl up into a knot. Regardless, the ten year old Koopa was not done with his pretend confidence. He chuckled nervously.
"Well, I did my best!"
Bowser sniffed and displayed the test to Roy. Roy gulped down an embarrassed lump when he actually saw it. Only half of the words were filled in, and of those half, only two were correct. As for the half that he didn't fill in...well, Roy guessed that he had gotten bored while writing down the spelling words, because there was a very pretty and very inappropriate picture of a woman drawn on the paper in pencil.
"Wow," he said. "Who knew I was so good at drawing, am I right?"
Bowser sighed. Then, for some reason that was unknown to the young Roy, he put on a smile.
"Roy, come walk with me."
It wasn't a question, it was an order. Roy nodded hesitantly and started to walk alongside his adopted father. They passed down the hall of portraits, greeted some Koopa troopa servants who Roy couldn't remember the names of. Just as Roy was starting to wonder where exactly Bowser was trying to take him, they wound up in the throne room. Bowser sat down on the golden throne and motioned for Roy to hop onto his lap.
"Son," he said once Roy was in his proper place. "I understand that you don't like school."
Roy felt a pang. What Bowser said was not correct.
"No, no, I like school! I want to do well! It's just…" Roy shook his head. "Maybe if I wasn't such a dummy."
"Don't say that," Bowser said. "Never say words like that about yourself. If you keep thinking you're a dummy, and keep calling yourself a dummy, then guess what? Eventually, you're going to believe that you're a dummy."
"But I am a dummy! I can't even get a good score on a stupid spelling test." Roy started to feel tears swelling up in his eyes. Bowser gave him a hug before continuing on.
"Roy, stop it. Tears aren't going to fix things."
Roy nodded, once again feeling like he had done something incredibly stupid. He wiped his eyes and his nose. Once he was done, he cleaned his arm by licking it.
"Look, son," Bowser said. "You might not realize this...but you are a very powerful person."
Roy's eyes grew wide. He let out a gasp.
"Powerful? Does that mean I'm a special like Ludwig?"
Bowser laughed.
"No no no. You have powers that are much more important than that." He poked his finger right in the middle of Roy's chest. "Your power comes from in here."
Okay. Now Roy was deathly confused.
"I don't follow."
Bowser smiled. It was the strangest smile Roy had ever seen. Bowser had smiled smiles that looked happy and playful before. This one looked sagely and wise, which was not something Roy was used to seeing on Bowser.
"Roy. You have a destiny that is unique to you and only you. You can make an impact that only you can make. You will touch the lives of some many people, all because you try to be yourself."
Roy stared at Bowser. Bowser chuckled embarrassedly.
"I suppose I could use an example." He pulled out the test that Roy had failed. "Do you see the girl you drew?"
Roy nodded as he gently took the paper back.
"Well, one day you will meet a girl just like this one. You will make such a big impact on her life that you will get married. You will have kids. You will live a happy life, one of the happiest that you could possibly live." Bowser smiled. "I know this because I know you, Roy. Ludwig thinks with his temper. Lemmy thinks with his smiles. Iggy thinks with his brain. But you...you think with your heart."
Roy was still confused. Had Bowser finally gone off the deep end? Did Kamek need to take him to the looney bin? What was all this stuff that Bowser was rambling on about, girls and marriage and destiny?
"Do you know what I am saying to you, Roy?"
Roy shook his head.
"Not a clue."
Bowser chuckled and grinned.
"Don't worry. You'll understand when you're a little older."