AN: Okay, this story officially has more chapters than the last version. That means that you no longer have to leave guest reviews on the chapters (Amethyst, I'm mostly talking to you.)

Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy.

Chapter 19 Pray for Hairspray

Ludwig let out a breath of relief. Placing his cloak down on the dresser, he studied the room. His bed was nowhere close to matching his standards of cleanliness. Half the comforter was on the floor, and the other half lay in a wrinkled heap at the foot of the bed.

"I suppose I should make my bed," he muttered out loud. Holding out his hand, he focused on the blanket. When nothing happened, he blinked and scowled in frustration. He concentrated harder before his confusion cleared away and was replaced with realization. He sighed.

"Right. I don't have my powers anymore." He internally kicked himself for forgetting something so obvious. He walked over to the bed. "I guess that means I have to do this the old fashioned way."

So, Ludwig picked up the comforter and placed it on the mattress. He wore a grumpy look as he did. "Man, I can't even remember the last time I made my bed like this." When he thought about it, it was completely possible that he hadn't.

Anyway, once the comforter was safely on the bed, Ludwig stepped away from that and moved onto the pillows. Once he did, he found a strand of golden yellow hair underneath one of them.

"Seriously?" He picked up the strand and placed it in the waste basket. He realized that if there was one, there was bound to be a few others. His theory was proven right when he found a red strand stuck in one of the pillowcases. He exhaled in disgust. "Alright, as soon as I'm back in my body, everything on this bed is going in the laundry."

With that, he placed the pillows on the chair beside the bed. Picking up the comforter, he was just about to make it cover the bed when a collection of flaky scales fell out of it onto the floor.

"Scales?" Ludwig picked one of them up. "Okay, I know for a fact these aren't mine because I don't shed." He felt around his current body, checking the arms and the torso. When he didn't find anything, he went over to the bathroom door and knocked. "Lemmy, do you have a patch of scales that tends to scaife off?"

"Yeah, it's on my butt!"

Ludwig dropped the scale immediately, His nose wrinkled and his eyes remained shut tight for the better part of seven seconds.

"Did I say laundry earlier? I meant to say trash."

He went back over to the bed. Thankfully, he didn't find anything else that belonged to Lemmy, so he got to make it worry and stress free. He breathed a sigh of relief when he finished.

"There. That's much better." He got up and studied his part of the room. "Okay, my side looks good." He looked over at Lemmy's territory. "And Lemmy's looks like the love child between an earthquake and a cyclone, so I guess nothing new there." He walked over towards Lemmy's bed, his upper lip curling up at the scattered toys and his soul gagging at the dusty, gunky trash. "One of these days, I need to come in here with a trash bag and disinfectant."

He stepped on something. Ludwig blinked and raised his foot. "Ohh, gross!" It was a piece of chewed up chewing gum. He pulled it off of his foot and brought it over to the waste basket near his bed. "That is abhorrent!" He shook his head. "Man, if this is what he's like with his room, I can't even imagine what he was like with this body when he was in it." Realization struck him, causing him to recoil and put his head in his hands. "Oh no. He's going to do the same thing with mine, isn't he?" He shook his head. "Okay, I need to listen to some music."

He went over to his side and got his personal music player and a pair of wireless headphones. Once he successfully climbed up onto his newly made bed, he drew in a calming breath. "I might not be able to write my music at the moment, but at least I can listen to it." He scrolled through the menu before ultimately hitting play on a piece called "Blossom in March." Once the opening notes finished playing, he closed his eyes and listened to the melody. The beat pulsated against Lemmy's ears, sounding like an angelic metronome. He flutes, soft and whimsical, sounded like a choir of fairies. The rhythm was superb, and the clarinets stood out with their dark and bitter tone.

Ludwig smiled, all while keeping his eyes closed. He could practically see himself on the stage, performing this song for thousands. He raised his hand and conducted the shadows of the past. He pointed it toward the woodwind players, telling them to go a little faster than previous anticipated. The brass, which consisted exclusively of trombones, sent their voices out on full blast. When Ludwig pointed at the percussion section, his spirits soared. That beat_the skeleton for which every other part of the composition rested on_it was awesome. Ludwig's heart pounded. Sounds were mixing with color now. Orange stars glimmered up above. Yellows and purples swirled around like the northern lights. Cyans and navys tinted the atmosphere with their calming filters The whole rainbow, from red to green to violet to black…it was here. It was all compacted into "Blossom in March."

Ludwig's grin grew bigger as the first act reached its climax. His hand rose high above his head, telling the whole orchestra to give it their all. When the symbols let out that powerful CRASH, the instruments quieted down. They quieted down until only the flute's soft whisper could be detected. Ludwig opened his eyes and exhaled. Despite no longer being in that plane of reality, the joy of being up on that stage again would certainly stay with him for a while.

"Yeah Ludwig," he said confidently. "You've still got it." He giggled before pressing the left earphone closer to the eardrum. "Man, I haven't listened to this piece in forever. I think it's one of my older ones." His brow wrinkled. "How old was I when I wrote this; twelve?" He picked up the music player and did a double take when he checked the date. "No, I was TEN!" Ludwig's jaw dropped. "Man, I can't believe I haven't listened to this one in so long; the melody is really good!" He put his hand to his chin. "Maybe after Lemmy and I switch back, I can work on remaking this?" He smiled. "Yeah, I just might do that." He listened closely to the music coming through the speakers. "Hmm. This version uses a lot of flutes. I wonder; would trumpets sound good as the dominant instrument? Yeah, that could work." He was just about to turn off the music before something occurred to him. "Wait. Electric guitars weren't really a thing when I was ten…." He turned off the music. "You know what? Forget the trumpets; that's what I'm going to do." He bounced out of bed. "Ludwig, you're a genius."

So, the prodigy got to work on locating his guitar. While he didn't have immediate access to an electric one, he at least wanted to experiment with the chord progression on his acoustic. Just as he was pulling the case out from under the bed did the bathroom door open.

"Hey, Ludwig! I'm done."

Ludwig blinked. That didn't take long at all. He lifted his head away from the guitar and looked at Lemmy. When he did, he gasped.

"Oh my God!" He stood up straight. "WHAT DID YOU DO!" His jaw was hanging by a thread as he stared at his hair, sopping wet and hanging down over his shoulders. "My hair! My beautiful, beautiful hair; it's ruined!"

Lemmy blinked. "No it isn't; it's just a little wet."

"It's not supposed to hang down like that…!" Ludwig whimpered. "Come here, let me take a look." When Lemmy did, Ludwig pinched one of his cerulean strands between his fingers. He felt like fainting at the texture. "It's not even rinsed properly; there's still soap!" He put his head in his hands. "Now I'm gonna get dandruff! It's gonna get everywhere; people will think I have head lice!" He would have growled, but he was too distraught. "Seriously Lemmy! Who taught you how to take care of your hair; Sasquatch?"

Lemmy looked guilty. "I'm sorry. I'm just not used to this!"

Ludwig took a deep breath, trying to get the oxygen circulating at an acceptable level. Once he did, he put his pointer fingers to his lips in a calculating manner. "Alright. I can fix this. I can FIX this! All we have to do is rinse it thoroughly, take the blow dryer to it, comb it through, maybe get a little gel and hairspray, and we'll be good to go!" He clapped his hands together. "Alright Lems, follow me!"

Ludwig ran back into the bathroom. He got a bucket and filled it with water. Once that was all set, he placed it in the sink. "We've got to work fast before it dries." He stood up on to of the toilet, allowing himself to get a full view of Lemmy standing in the doorway. "Come here." Lemmy did. "Okay Lems; dunk your head in that."

Lemmy seized up. "I don't…do I really….I don't think…" His hesitance caused Ludwig's rage to reach a boiling point.

"DO IT OR I GO AFTER ONE OF YOUR SOCK MONKEYS NEXT!"

Lemmy took a deep breath and dunked his head into the bowl. He gasped when he resurfaced. "Mama Mia, that's warm!"

Ludwig nodded. "Yes. Now we need to do that until its thoroughly rinsed. Go back under."

Lemmy dived.

…

Ludwig made sure that each individual strand was in place. With the comb in one hand, he manipulated his hair to his liking. Once he straightened out one last fiber, he let out the breath he had been holding in.

"Okay. Looks good from the front. Now turn around; let me see the back."

Lemmy did as he was told. Ludwig smoothed out another lock and sent one strand to the opposite side. Once he did that, he took a step back.

"Okay. Perfectly symmetrical; looks good, looks good." He smiled and sighed contentedly. "Great! Mission accomplished, disaster averted, crisis handled!" He clapped his hands together. "Alright! Now, let's go get my cloak. Exit stage left!"

Both of the Koopalings exited the bathroom. Once Ludwig had given Lemmy his cloak and it was fastened into place, Lemmy looked at his older brother with a hint of shame.

"I'm sorry."

Ludwig sighed. "Lemmy, I told you this was my pride and glory. You know how careful I am with this; you should have known better."

"I know! But…I didn't want to take 45 minutes in the bathroom like you usually do!"

Ludwig held back a groan and pinched his brow. "Believe it or not Lemmy, I don't take that long because I'm trying to annoy you; I take that long because that's how much time I need!" He shook his head. "I take great pride in my appearance, and it has nothing to do with vanity! How you look on the outside gives the world a picture of what kind of person you are on the inside! There's nothing wrong with taking care of yourself! And, while we're on that subject, that does beg the question…" He touched a section of Lemmy's mohawk and instantly pulled back. "OH! I knew it! I knew it! It seems that it's a good thing that I am telling you this now because your hair feels like cardboard! Lemmy, I tolerate how you handle your side of the room, but THIS is DISGUSTING! I did NOT spend the better part of the last decade building a name and reputation for myself only to trade it all for a body that belongs to a person who doesn't understand the value of basic hygiene!" He shook his head. "Before we switch back, I am going to give your hair a deep and thorough clean. At least I have the common sense to not use bar soap!!"

Lemmy nodded, his face making it clear that he was definitely on board with what Ludwig was saying, both the positive and the negative. The oldest massaged his temples one last time.

"Okay, rant's over, and I'm starving. You look great. I look okay, (by your standards, at least) so let's not waste anymore time here. Let's go have breakfast with our siblings."

"Sounds good," Lemmy said with a nod. The two of them made their way toward the door. Right before Ludwig opened it was when a question popped up in Lemmy's mind. "Hey Ludwig, do the servants know about the swap?"

Ludwig paused. "That's a good question; I don't think they do." He took his hand off the knob and turned back to Lemmy. "How are we going to eat in the dining hall without causing a panic?"

Lemmy bit his lip in a thoughtful fashion. He and Ludwig looked around the room before they spotted Lemmy's wand resting on the dresser. They exchanged a look. They didn't even need to speak to know that they were in full agreement.