Chapter 13 Just A Game

Roy let out a breath as Junior looked back down at the notebook. These stories...they were really something else. They made Junior experience emotions that he had never experienced before, discover sides of himself that he didn't know were there. Hearing about what his siblings had gone through...it was incredible. He appreciated their stories, he appreciated everyone of them.

He smiled as he opened up to another area of the book. He smoothed out the page, making sure there wasn't a single speck of dust on it. He wanted to capture this next story perfectly, after all.

"Hey, Roy?"

"Yeah?" Roy perked up and turned his head toward the Koopa Prince.

Junior put on a bright smile. "Can you tell me another story?"

Roy blinked. "Another story?" He whistled. "Man, Junior, you're sure asking me to stretch my brain today."

Junior sniffed. "Well, everyone else told me two stories so far. I think it would only be appropriate if you do so."

Roy let out an interesting noise; one that sounded like a cross between a groan and a sigh. Junior felt a pang as he grasped the notebook. "Unless you don't want to…"

Roy sighed. "No, no, you're right. Everyone else told you two stories; it's best if I do the same." He put his fingers to his temples. "Just give me a minute."

Junior waited with bated breath as Roy closed his eyes. He could tell his brother was making an attempt at using his brain. He was completely silent, and veins bulged in his forehead. It honestly made Junior cringe a little; it looked beyond painful.

"I...I…" Roy sighed. "I can't think if anything; I'm getting too much of a headache."

Junior's heart sank. "Oh…"

Roy put on an apologetic face. "I'm sorry, Junior. Really, I am." He looked down at the floor. "I wish I was smarter. I really do."

Junior sighed. "It's fine…" he looked down at the notebook again. "I guess...I'll just ask someone else to tell me three stories." He chuckled. "I bet Iggy would be beyond happy if I did that."

Roy laughed. "Yeah! Iggy loves to run his smartypants mouth."

"What was that?"

Roy froze, and Junior did the same thing. They slowly turned toward the entrance to the common room to find Iggy staring at them. He had a book in his hands, and he looked beyond miffed.

Roy swallowed a lump. "Uh...hey, Iggster."

Iggy slowly came into the common room. "I love to run my mouth, huh? Is that really what you think about me?"

Roy chuckled nervously. "Well...I mean, it's the truth."

Iggy shook his head, his mouth in a serious line. "Wow. And here I thought my brothers respected me."

Roy's face fell; plummeted, actually. He fidgeted with his fingers, unable to look Iggy in the eye. Junior could feel the awkwardness emanating off of him, and by jove, was it painful. He had a feeling that his brother was hurting a lot on the inside, all because of those words Iggy said. Realizing this, Junior cast his brother a glare.

"Iggy, that's mean."

"Mean, you say? The one who has been exhibiting the irrational, unrighteous behavior is clearly our older brother. He is willing to degrade my character behind my back."

Roy seemed to sink into the couch. However, Junior stood firm. He stood up so that he could fully face Iggy.

"Roy's behavior is not unrighteous; not in the least. And if anything, you're being hypocritical. You're the one who degraded him just now. And two wrongs don't make a right, Iggy."

Iggy blinked. "Well, I suppose…"

"No; you know. You're smart enough to know." he gestured toward Roy. "Apologize to him."

Iggy sighed and faced Roy. "I apologize, Roy. I apologize sincerely."

Junior smiled. That was the thing about Iggy; he always seemed to say his apologies in the most sincere and sweet of tones. There was no doubt in the Koopa Prince's mind that the genius was being genuine.

Roy smiled. "Thanks, Iggster."

Junior's smile grew even bigger. All was right with the world it seemed. Now, if only he could fill up his scrapbook with another of Roy's stories.

Although...now that he thought about it, he did have a question.

"Iggy?"

"What is it you desire, my prince?" Iggy asked.

Junior chuckled. "Just call me Junior, Iggy. Um, have you ever heard of scrapbooking?"

Iggy smiled. "Scrapbooking? Why yes! Yes I have! It is an activity that is commonly practiced by humans and toads. I always did wonder why our kingdom has not decided to try it yet; it sounds like a fun, wholesome way to capture memories."

Junior beamed. "I was thinking the same thing! I decided to try it after Princess Peach showed me what it was."

"Really?" Junior nodded, causing Iggy's face to light up. "That is spectacular? An idea that I very much have appreciation for!"

Junior felt a warm feeling well up in his chest. He wasn't one hundred percent sure why. Maybe he just really liked knowing that one of his siblings approved of the ideas he had and the things he wanted to try. Especially when one of those siblings was Iggy, the genius with an IQ of 278.

"Good." Junior patted the top of his notebook. "Anyway, I was wondering…" Iggy leaned forward, causing Junior to let out a breath. "So far, I have only been collecting stories. However...do you think I should also be collecting experiences?"

Iggy blinked. "Experiences?" He put his hand to his chin. "Hmm. I theorize that such a thing would not hurt you in any way." He smiled. "I say go for it!"

Junior grinned. "Okay!" He turned toward Roy. "Hey, Roy, what experiences do you think we should put into the scrapbook?"

Roy fidgeted again. "Uh...I don't know. Whatever it is, I don't want it to be too awkward."

Junior laughed. "What do you mean by awkward? You think I'm going to propose to you or something?"

Roy turned crimson. "No! No, I just…" he groaned and put his head in his hands. "I'm just being dumb; don't listen to me."

Junior felt another pang. Roy shouldn't be feeling this way. He needed to find a way to cheer him up. He exchanged a look with Iggy before his eyes fell on the Nintendo Switch. He began to smile. "Do you want to play Super Mario Galaxy with me?"

Roy lifted his head. "Would...would that be a fun experience?"

"Oh, yes. Yes, definitely."

Roy grinned. "Then let's do it!"

Junior nodded and turned toward the TV. He switched on the Switch and put Super Mario 3d All Stars in. Once they were on the Galaxy title screen, Junior smirked at Roy's icon.

"Dude, that's your mii? It looks like it bashed it's head into the wall!"

Roy laughed. "Well, you know. They don't have a Koopa option or anything like that."

"True, true." He activated that save file and turned toward Iggy. "Hey, Iggy, do you have a camera in your hammerspace or something?"

"Yes indeed I do," Iggy said as he pulled out his camera. "I assume these are pictures that need to be developed, since you are putting them in a scrapbook, right?"

"Right," Junior said. He turned toward the TV and saw Mario at the Observatory on the screen. He went up to Mail Toad, who gave him the usual 1-ups from Peach. Junior smirked.

"You know, Dad's minions must be really incompetent in this game if they just allow Peach to send Mushrooms to Mario like this."

Roy laughed. "Yeah! Seriously!" He gasped with realization. "No, no! They probably help her! I highly doubt that there is a postal service that goes all the way to the center of the universe!"

Iggy snapped a photo and laughed. "Come on, guys. This is a children's game. You aren't supposed to think about the logic behind it too deeply."

"Eh, true," Junior said. He handed the controller to Roy. "Why don't you take over, big guy?"

"Okay!" He took the controller and went to the Kitchen Dome. "I've been stuck on the daredevil Bouldergeist mission for a while. I hope I'll be able to beat it this time around."

Junior smiled as Iggy snapped another photo. "I know you will. You're very good at games."

Roy blushed again. "Thanks."

When they got to the dome, they went to the Bouldergeist Mission. Junior watched as the cinematic played out, giggling to himself as he saw the boss arrange itself.

"Hello," he said, "I'm Bouldergeist. I showed up and hate you for no specified reason at all."

Iggy and Roy laughed. "That is a good point!" said Roy. "He really does hate us for no reason!"

"He isn't even a part of Bowser's army in real life!" Iggy said. He giggled. "He just shows up out of nowhere and suddenly...boom, we're in a boss fight!"

Junior chuckled. "I wonder if it has anything to do with us looking like Mario specifically."

"Hmm. Yeah," Roy said as the boss fight started. "He isn't exactly the nicest guy irl."

With that, Roy began to go after Bouldergeist. He had to do it all without taking a hit, which made Junior nervous on some level. Every time Roy got close to get hit, he would let out a little gasp.

"Junior, stop," Iggy said as he snapped another photo. "You're making him nervous."

"Sorry. It's just a nerve wracking boss fight."

"Grr!" Roy said as he leaned forward. "Shut up, shut up, shut up! I'm trying to….DANG IT!"

Mario dropped dead on the screen, much to Junior's dismay. His life count then went down by one, leaving Roy with two lives.

"Gah!" Roy said as he put his head in his hands. "This is so hard! And the worst part is, I can't even get a life Shroom because it's the Daredevil version of the fight."

Junior snickered. "Just be thankful we aren't playing 'The Perfect Run.'"

Roy smirked. "Ugh. Don't remind me."

With that, he tried again. He managed to get two hits this time, entering the final phase of the fight.

"Come on, come on, come on….DANG IT, I FORGOT THAT HE HAD HANDS!"

Junior burst into laughter. "How can you forget he has hands? They're right out in the open for everyone to see!"

"I know!" Roy whimpered and put his head in his hands. "That's what makes this all the more embarrassing."

Iggy approached. "If you wish, we can try a less stressful mission. This technically isn't required if you wish to gain access to the Bowser fight."

Roy sighed. "I know. But I still really want to beat this fight."

Iggy smirked. "As you wish." He backed away. "Amazing how a bunch of ones and zeros can affect the emotional synapses so severely."

Roy gritted his teeth endeared toward the TV. He was so close that he was just a few inches away from the screen. While Junior knew that couldn't be good for his eyesight, he didn't denounce him for it.

"Come on, big guy! You can do it!"

Roy bit his lip extra hard. He clacked away on the controller at a million miles an hour. He got to the last phase again, causing his breathing to speed up dramatically.

"Come on, come on!" He growled. "This stupid fight is so…" he shrieked a little when he almost got hit. He then breathed a sigh of relief as he just barely dodged. "Oh, mama mia."

Junior looked at him. "You can do it buddy, I believe in you."

Roy smiled. "You believe in me?"

"Yeah. You can definitely...ROY, LOOK OUT!"

Roy turned toward the screen again and started screaming as he made his avatar run across the map. "Frick! Frick frick frick frick frick….NOOOO!" He put his head in his hands again as Mario died again. "I...was so….CLOSE!" He sighed. "I'll never get past this mission. And I need it for one hundred percent completion!"

Junior smiled and patted his brother on the shoulder. "Never say never. You'll do it someday. I know you can."

Roy looked at Junior and smiled. "Thanks. You're very sweet, Buddy."

Now it was Junior's turn to blush. "Uh...yeah." He turned toward Iggy. "Did you get the photos?"

"Yes indeed!" Iggy took the black photos and set them on the table. "After they develop, we can put them in your scrapbook."

Junior jumped up. "Awesome! Thanks, Iggy." He turned toward Roy. "And thank you, Roy."

Roy, despite his previous anger, managed to smile. "You're welcome."

Junior smiled and turned toward Iggy. "Can I help you develop the photos?"

"Of course, my prince. And afterwards…" his eyes sparkled… "I have some stories I want to tell you."

Junior did a fist pump.