Author's Notes: Welcome back to the story, or if this is your first time, welcome! The past two chapters were about Mario A and Bowser A being thrust into Universe B. That leaves the question however: What happened to their B Universe counterparts? Well, that question gets answered here, so I hope you enjoy reading this chapter of "In Another Life (and Another Castle)" :)


Chapter 3

Three's A Crowd

Yoshi drove home from the race in his kart and sang along to the Yoshi-language pop song playing on the radio. It had been a fun day of racing, though it would have been more fun if he could have won. He was at least happy Luigi had won. That poor man was always struggling to keep up with everyone else, so it warmed Yoshi's heart that he was finally coming into his own.

While Yoshi was still relatively young for a member of his species, he had helped to raise Mario and Luigi, so he sort of thought of them as sons or nephews. He still remembered the day he saw those little ones crying in their blankets after being dropped by the stork. Yoshi had almost mistaken Mario for a Shy Guy and eaten him, but fortunately he soon figured out it was a Mushroom Kingdom baby. Theirs was a beautiful friendship ever since.

As Yoshi drove along he smelled something burning. It smelled delicious, like charred Goomba meat. He tried his best not to eat Goombas, but it was a hard habit to break. Yoshis were obligate carnivores, after all.

Unable to bear the suspense any longer, Yoshi hopped out of his kart and started looking for the source of the scrumptious barbecue smell. His nose led the way through the lush forests surrounding the Yoshi village. He walked past the go-kart track and through the tennis court. He walked until he was in the thick brush of the jungle beyond the various sports arenas. Hey, a Yoshi's nose is very powerful. He couldn't help himself.

Finally, Yoshi saw the source of the smell, and his hunger quickly turned to dread. It was a burned citizen of the Mushroom Kingdom. He recognized it as a humanoid member of the kingdom due to the slightly taller build and slightly pudgy stomach. Yoshi turned the poor victim over to see who it was, and to his horror he realized it was Mario!

"Yoshi! Yoshi Yoshi!" Yoshi begged his friend to wake up.

Yoshi shook the charred plumber in hopes of waking him up, and much to his relief the man groaned and stirred a bit.

"Yoshi!" Yoshi screamed.

"Yoshi...is that you?" Mario rasped, his throat dry from being burned.

"Yoshi!" Yoshi cheered with joy at seeing Mario awaken.

"Yoshi...you must 'a hurry...find...Luigi," Mario breathed with difficulty as he spoke, "Princess...in danger...Bowser...Luigi...must..."

Mario then passed out again, and Yoshi yelped in panic. Not knowing what else to do, Yoshi picked up Mario and ran back to his kart, which he had left some distance away.

Yoshi didn't know who to turn to about this. He had never seen Mario so hurt before. Mario asked for Luigi, so Yoshi decided he would drive his friend back to Luigi's house. Surely Luigi would know what to do about this. Then again, Mario was the only one between them with a medical degree, even if it was just in herbal medicine. Yoshi was out of ideas however, so off to Luigi's house he would go.


Bowser Jr. waved goodbye to Luigi and Princess Peach as they left the castle grounds. He was always happy to see both of them. They were like an uncle and aunt to him, and soon that feeling would be even closer. He was so happy that Peach and Mario were going to be married! He would probably get to be the ring bearer, and he would get to eat cake until he exploded! He loved Princess Peach's cake...

Junior was almost in the castle when he saw the envoy that had gone to Yoshi Island to pick up his dad and Mario. Bowser Jr. knew his dad was super proud of his infinite warp pipe, so he would probably want to talk about it when he got home. When Junior saw the clown copter come back home however, the Troopas were driving and Bowser was passed out beside them!

"What happened!?" Junior asked a Troopa.

"We found him like this on the Yoshi Island tennis court," A red shelled Troopa explained, "Mario was nowhere to be found. We think something went wrong with the transport, so we're taking him to the medical room."

"Take me with you!" Bowser Jr. demanded.

The clown copter wasn't meant to accommodate so many passengers, but the Koopa Troopas were in no mood to deal with Bowser should his son not get what he wants, so they scooted over for the impetuous child. Junior squeezed in the car, and the four of them took off for the medical room.

Junior held his unconscious father's hand, slightly comforted by the weight of his powerful claws. His father would be alright. He had to be. Junior didn't want to be raised by servants the way his dad had been. He didn't want to be alone.

Just hang in there, Dad. You'll be alright. You have to be alright...


Luigi drove to his Victorian style mansion at a rather fast pace. He was still jazzed from winning the Koopa Kingdom Grand Prix, so his accelerator foot was just itching to pump on the gas. Because of his adrenaline rush, he made his way back to the Mushroom Kingdom in record time.

As it turned out it was a fortunate thing he didn't waste time. When he got home Yoshi was sitting in his driveway with a badly burned Mario draped across his back seat. The fire had so thoroughly wrecked Mario that it was hard to differentiate his skin from his overalls!

"Mama Mia!" Luigi exclaimed in shock, "Yoshi, what happened?"

Yoshi explained that he found Mario in the woods, and that he didn't know why Mario was so badly burned.

"We have to get him inside! Hurry!" Luigi ordered as he rushed for his front door.

Everyone rushed inside and Luigi pulled a plastic covering off his living room couch. He was very fussy about dust and whatnot, but he didn't want his brother sliding off his couch, so he relented just this once and resigned himself to vacuuming like crazy once Mario was well.

Mario groaned when he was set down, but otherwise he didn't stir. Luigi had seen Mario get injured before. Heck, he'd even seen Mario get burned before when he played too hard on a lava-laden course. This was different however. He looked almost dead, and Luigi wondered what in the Mushroom Kingdom could have happened to his brother for it to turn out like this.

Yoshi went into the kitchen to brew some 1-Up tea. That would get Mario back on his feet quicker than anything else they could think of, but that would depend on whether or not Mario could drink it. He had to wake up!

"Mario, speak to me!" Luigi pleaded with his unconscious brother, "Mario, this isn't funny. What happened to you?"

Luigi's day had been going so well, but that was all forgotten now that his brother was lying in critical condition on his couch. Who could possibly have it out for Mario? Possibly one of his sports competitors, but there were so many. Wario and Waluigi were insane, and Wario clearly had an obsession with Mario since he dressed like him and had a similar name. Still, while those two might be greedy and obnoxious, Luigi couldn't see them doing something like this. Fire wasn't their style.

Perhaps it had been Petey Piranha, or Donkey Kong. No, that seemed silly. They both might have been very competitive, but they weren't capable of doing something so evil. Who would actually do this to Mario?

Perhaps a fan. It could have been someone crazy or someone who didn't like the idea of their hero getting engaged to Princess Peach. Luigi would have to ask Bowser if he had seen anything unusual. Bowser was near Mario more than anyone else that day, so surely he would have noticed anything amiss.

Yoshi brought back the tea, and he and Luigi sipped along on it pensively. Luigi was out of his depth here. Mario was the health expert. Then again, Mario seemed to be an expert on almost everything. The Mushroom Kingdom loved Mario for being strong, but Luigi was one of only a few people aware of how intelligent Mario was. Mario loved to learn new things, and while he wasn't good at everything he certainly always applied himself when he found a new challenge.

A slight groan was heard, and Mario began to awaken. Luigi and Yoshi held their breath, hoping Mario would be able to shed some light on what happened to him out there in the forest. Yoshi was sure he had been mugged, while Luigi was still going with the rabid fan theory.

"Mario, can you speak?" Luigi asked gingerly.

"I...think so," Mario replied weakly, "Luigi...I'm 'a so glad...you're okay."

"Of course I'm okay. You're the one who got hurt," Luigi reminded him, "How are you feeling?"

"Did you rescue Peach?" Mario asked, his eyes wild with dread despite the weakness of his body.

"Peach? She's fine, Mario," Luigi told him, "At least, when I saw her an hour ago she was fine."

"Ah, good," Mario breathed a huge sigh of relief, "I'm proud of you, Luigi."

"Proud of me? Aw, it was just a kart race," Luigi blushed, "I'm sure you'll win that trophy next time."

"Kart race?" Mario asked in confusion, "No, I refer to you...rescuing the princess. You said...she was 'a safe. You got her away from Bowser, right?"

"Uh...She left Bowser's castle after we finished playing golf," Luigi shrugged.

"Golf?" Mario asked incredulously, "Why would you play golf in a deadly fortress?"

"It's more challenging," Luigi replied nonchalantly, "It's 'a the same reason we play soccer in the desert, or why we play board games with our own bodies as the game pieces."

"Luigi...remind me to never ask 'a you about your hobbies," Mario chuckled, but when he laughed he hurt his sides and stopped to wince.

Luigi flinched when he saw his brother in pain, and Yoshi dutifully handed the injured plumber some tea. Mario took it gratefully, but didn't quite feel strong enough to drink yet. This whole scenario was so confusing. His brother saved the princess? Peach must think him a coward, but it wasn't his fault. Bowser had cut him off while he was still on Yoshi Island and burned him to a crisp! Yoshi had been turned into an egg, and the princess had been taken away, screaming for help all the way. He could still hear her call his name frantically as that horrible monster made off with her...

Yet now, everything was fine. No Bowser, and apparently Peach had been rescued by Luigi, who was a golfer now for some reason. Yoshi was fine too. Not a scratch on him. This didn't look like their house though. It was so gothic, and so...big. Nothing like Mario and Luigi's place. Where was he, and where was Princess Peach?

"Luigi...where are we?" Mario finally worked up the strength to ask.

"We're in my mansion," Luigi replied simply, "You were too weak to move back to your house."

"You don't live in a mansion," Mario stated quizzically, "We live in the same little cottage we have for years. On Yoshi Island next door to Yoshi, remember?"

"Yoshi?" Yoshi asked in confusion.

"Mario, that was two years ago," Luigi replied, equally puzzled, "You moved to the Mushroom Kingdom to be closer to Peach. You live in Toad Town now. I inherited this mansion shortly after. You don't remember everything I went through to keep this place? You don't remember the paintings, and King Boo, and E. Gadd?"

"E. Gadd is in prison," Mario told him, "And good riddance! That's 'a probably the only thing Bowser did 'a right!"

"Oh yeah, we should call Bowser!" Luigi exclaimed, "He will want to know what happened."

"Call Bowser?" Mario was aghast, "Bro, we've been 'a working together since we were children! You cannot possibly betray me for Bowser!"

"Betray? Mario, I think you hit your head when you were attacked," Luigi deadpanned.

"Yoshi Yoshi?" Yoshi further prodded.

"Bowser is the one who attacked me! Don't you remember?" Mario asked heatedly, regaining some of his strength in that moment, "He kidnapped Peach, and he tried to kill us! How are you both so calm about this?"

Luigi and Yoshi looked at each other, not entirely sure what to think.

"Yoshi?" Yoshi asked Luigi if it was true.

"Of course not," Luigi whispered back so that Mario wouldn't get upset, "I just left his palace. He and Mario were fine. They were going to look around Bowser's lab. You don't think they got into a fight while I wasn't looking, do you?"

"Yoshi," translated as "Mario says he did."

"What do we do?" Luigi asked nervously, "Mario clearly thinks Bowser hurt him. How do we keep him calm until we can heal him?"

Yoshi's advice was simply to humor him. Luigi agreed.

"Okay Mario, since Bowser attacked you, I won't contact him," Luigi promised.

"You're sure Peach is safe?" Mario asked worriedly.

"Of course. She's back in her own castle, probably baking more of her world famous cake," Luigi assured him, "You just get some rest, and drink your 1-Up tea. Soon everything will be better."

"Thank you, Luigi," Mario replied gratefully.

Mario then took a sip of his tea, and his wounds started the process of healing. Before he finished the cup however, Mario had one more question.

"Um, Luigi? Where do I live?"


Bowser Jr. was scared. Scared in a way he had never felt before. Something was very wrong with his dad, and he wasn't sure if there was anything he could do about it.

It had all started when Bowser awoke in the Koopa medical wing. He had insisted to his doctors that he felt fine, and didn't know exactly why he had passed out on Yoshi Island. As a child, Bowser Jr. accepted that his father knew everything and therefore would know if he was alright or not. So when Bowser left the medical wing, Bowser Jr. tagged along like an excited puppy.

"What do you wanna do now, Dad?" Bowser Jr. asked as he ran to keep up with Bowser.

Bowser looked down at the young Koopa prince like he had never seen him before. He raised a quizzical eyebrow, and then asked "Um...which one are you again?"

"Haha, very funny, Dad!" Junior laughed, certain this was some odd joke, "It's me, Bowser Jr.! Hey, you wanna watch me paint?"

"Bowser Jr.?" Bowser repeated slowly, "I don't have a son by that name. I don't know who put you up to this prank, but it isn't very funny. Now if you will excuse me, I will be in the dungeon."

Bowser then lumbered away, leaving Junior dumbstruck. How could his own father not know him? Whatever happened in the woods obviously affected him more than he realized. Well, Junior was going to get to the bottom of this, one way or another.

Junior started following his father down the long winding corridors. Bowser looked around, seemingly lost, while Junior remained his silent shadow. It took several minutes before Bowser made it to the door he seemingly wanted, but when he opened the door...

"RAAARG!" Bowser roared angrily, "Where's the bridge? Where's the dungeon!? This is just a stinking bathroom!"

"I know where the dungeon is!" Bowser Jr. offered from behind him.

"Huh? Oh, it's you, kid," Bowser replied disinterestedly, "Fine. Direct me to the dungeon. I have a date with a very special lady..."

Bowser Jr. was admittedly a little squicked out by that last statement. He knew for a fact the only 'lady' in the dungeon was Birdo, and that was just for public intoxication. Bowser had her thrown in there to cool off for the night, and she was due for release the next day. Was that where Bowser was going? To free Birdo? It seemed logical, yet Junior knew his father wasn't behaving logically, so he was a little nervous about what might happen.

"Here are the cells, Dad!" Junior announced when they arrived.

"Don't call me 'Dad'," Bowser growled, "I am 'your highness' or 'Lord Bowser' to you."

"But Dad-!" Junior protested.

"No!" Bowser boomed, shutting Junior up, "I have seven children, and you are not one of them."

With that Bowser walked toward the cells of the dungeon, leaving Junior stunned. His dad only had one child, and that child was him. Why was his own father treating him like a stranger? Did he do something wrong?

Bowser searched each cell, seemingly looking for someone. Junior hid behind the door frame so his dad wouldn't know he was still there watching. When every cell had been checked, Bowser seemed to grow angrier. He let out a furious roar that shook the room! Several prisoners screamed in panic. Bowser then called one of his servants, and a hammer bro ran as fast as he could to his master.

"How may I serve you, your highness?" The hammer bro asked obsequiously.

"Where is she!?" Bowser demanded to know.

"Um...Birdo was released two hours ago," The hammer bro informed him uncertainly.

"What? No! Princess Peach! Where is my princess!?" Bowser hollered indignantly.

"She left an hour ago, with Luigi," The hammer bro stammered nervously, "I think she was going home for the day."

"Luigi?" Bowser spat the name like a curse, "So, he isn't as dumb and cowardly as I gave him credit for. Well now, this changes things. I defeated his brother Mario, and I can defeat him too. Servant! Ready my ship! I'm going to teach Luigi a lesson he won't soon forget!"

Junior couldn't believe what he was hearing. His father wanted to hurt Luigi? But they were friends! Practically family! Junior couldn't let his father beat Luigi up like that. He had to do something.

Running toward the hanger with his personal clown copter, Bowser Jr. readied himself for the second race he had participated in that day. This time however, it was a race that would mean life and death, and his only opponent would be his father.