~Serenity's POV~
I walked through my mother's castle, smirking at employees as I made my way through the halls and stopped in front of a door. I reached out for the knob...then hesitated. Why now? I was all for talking to my mom when I got the invite. Why was I hesitant now?
"Come on," I said to myself. "It's just mother. Surely she's not going to bite my head off." I took a deep breath and then opened the door. I walked in, stopping as I saw that my mother wasn't even in the room at the moment.
So much for 'on the dot', I thought. I sighed as I walked around the room. A giant fireplace was aglow with flames, and a desk was off to the side by the giant window looking out to the forest below. And above the fireplace, was a portrait of myself as a little girl...with my Shadow Queen mother.
I grinned at the photo, remembering when we had that commissioned. It was before the Treasure of Rogueport reached my mother's ears. But, even then, the Shadow Queen was evil and had taught me how to be just as evil (if not more) as her.
But the thoughts of my former friend, like Peach, came back to my mind. My heart said one thing, telling me that the path of good was more rewarding than evil. But my mind, having it so ingrained in me, told me that evil and wicked nature was the only way of living.
(SONG: "Evil Like Me" - Descendants)
At 22, I was still debating what to do with my life. I didn't know what to think or do or even feel. I was lost.
SERENITY: Look at you/look at me/I don't know who to be/Mother./Is it wrong/is it right?/Be a thief in the night/Mother!/Tell me what to do
"Oh, honey," I spun around to see my mother standing behind me now. "Don't be too hard on yourself."
SHADOW QUEEN: I was once like you my child/Slightly insecure/Argued with my mother too/Thought I was mature/But I put my heart aside/And I used my head/Now I think it's time you learned/What dear old momma said.
SERENITY: And what was that?
SHADOW QUEEN: Don't you wanna be evil like me?/Don't you wanna be mean?/Don't you wanna make mischief your daily routine?/Well you can spend your life attending to the poor/But when you're evil, doing less is doing more/Don't you wanna be ruthless and rotten and mad?/Don't you wanna be very, very good at being bad?
SERENITY: Sure, but--
SHADOW QUEEN: I have tried my whole life long to do the worst I can/Clawed my way to victory/Built my master plan/Now the time has come my dear for you to take your place/Promise me you'll try to be an absolute disgrace./Don't you wanna be evil like me?/Don't you wanna be cruel?/Don't you wanna be nasty and brutal and cool?/And when you grab that wand that's when your reign begins/Who wants an evil queen without a sack of sins?/Don't you wanna be heartless and hardin' as stone?/Don't you wanna be finger licking' evil to the bone?/This is not for us to ponder/This was preordained/You and I shall rule together/Freedom soon regained/Mistress of the Universe/powerful and strong./Daughter, hear me/Help me, join me./Won't you sing along?
BOTH: Now we're gonna be evil it's true/Never gonna think twice
SERENITY: And we're gonna be spiteful
SHADOW QUEEN: Yes, spiteful/That's nice./In just an month or two/Our future's safe and sure/This mother, daughter act is going out on tour/If you wanna be evil and awful and free/Then you should thank your lucky star/That you were born the girl you are/The daughter of an evilicious queen/LIKE ME!
(End of the song)
"Now, come my dear," Mother began, "and tell me, how is the progress on finding that Moonlight Rod?"
"We're still looking," I spoke with a smirk. "We've narrowed down our search to towns and cities near us. It shouldn't be long now."
"Excellent! That's what I wanted to hear," Mother exclaimed. "Now, about your coronation."
"You mean my coronation to be the next "Shadow Queen"?" I asked, rolling her eyes. "I'm not ready."
"Serenity, don't be ridiculous! Of course, you are!"
"No, I'm not! I think would know if I was ready or not, mother," I yelled back. "So, stop cramming this down my throat and let me live my life for a few more months. After we get the wand...we'll talk then."
Mother squinted at me, giving the evil eye as her way of trying to get me to do her bidding. But I stood my ground, crossing my arms over my cloaked chest.
And thus, defeated mother.
"Very well, darling," She sighed. "You win. But, no renigging the moment you have the wand. We need to discuss preparations."
"Fine, whatever," I said, throwing my hands up in defeat. "We done here?"
"Yes, we're done. Go get me that wand."
"Will do, mother." And on that final note, I turned around and left the room. As the door closed behind me, I looked out the window in front of me. I could see Peach's castle far off in the distance. How I missed going over there.
"Should I be evil/like her/or should I be good?/Don't know what path/to take/don't know if I should./But still, I'll grab that wand/and live on/as a bright and fresh new queen./And that's all I will ever/be."
Then I left in a puff of smoke.
~Luigi's POV~
I walked up to my home quickly, swinging the front door open and walking inside. It slammed shut behind me. I walked to the living room, grabbing the remote from the top of the TV and pressing the first button I saw. There was static, it glitched, and even made this weird buzzing noise before finally, the man I needed showed up on the screen. His tuft of grey hair swayed as he stared at the screen.
"Luigi! Hello!" Elvin stated with a smile. "How are you doing, my boy?"
"I'm not sure," I replied, looking at my hand again. "How's Evershade Valley treating you after the Dark Moon incident?"
"It's going well! All the ghosts are friendly and the Dark Moon is still intact after 5 years," I grinned at knowing he was safe. I may not show it most of the time, but Professor Elvin Gadd was like a grandfather to me. I never knew my grandparents, mainly because my mom and dad moved here when Mario and I were just infants.
Our lives have never been the same since.
"What can I help you with, Luigi?" Elvin asked, making me take a deep breath before showing a shadowy orb appearing in the palm of my hand. I saw Elvin's face, I saw his eyes widen in shock as I let the orb dance around my hand. As I did, I grew worried and let it dissolve before anything bad could happen again.
"How are you doing that?" Elvin asked surprised.
"That's why I called," I said. "Do you think you can help me figure this out?"
"Of course, Luigi!" Elvin exclaimed. "I just need to research that power-" He trailed off as he typed on his computer. "Maybe there's a reason in the explanation of dark energy."
"That's what you think it is? Dark energy?" I asked, worried.
"I mean, it has the consistency of the Dark Tribe," Elvin said. "And they're a tribe of werewolves, vampires, and shadow-lings."
"So, monsters essentially," I retorted, getting a nod in response as I heard one final key get clicked...and his face grew in shock. "What?" He stayed quiet, scared at what he saw. "Elvin, what is it?"
"It's Shadow Magic," Elvin finally spoke. "It only develops when the host or hostess has a darkened heart or soul." I stared in shock. So my theory was true.
"But that makes no sense with you, Luigi." Elvin spoke. "You're always upbeat and happy!" I scoffed, flexing my hand a bit before cramming it into my pocket.
"You obviously don't know me then," I spoke. He stared confused. "Thanks for looking that up. I think I know why I got it now. I'll see you around."
"Luigi, what do you-?" I turned off the signal before he could ask and plopped down on my chair, dropping the remote. I trembled, fear coursing through my veins as my mind wandered to what this meant.
Mr. L...
He was the only ego I had that was dark in heart and soul, and almost destroyed my family back in the Count Bleck days. Though, even that ego failed to do anything right. I couldn't even be a good villain for Count Bleck. Why did I think I'd make a good hero?
I jumped at the sound of my phone ringing, making me sigh as I answered.
"Hello?" I expected it to be Elvin, continuing the conversation.
"Hey, Bro!" I perked up. "Peach is holding a dinner for my rescue of her tonight! You need to come and join us." I hesitated for a moment. Do I go or make an excuse as to why I couldn't? I could say that Elvin needed help with ghost research again, or I could say Daisy wanted to talk about getting back together (though we never were. That was just a pipe dream of mine).
"Uh," I started to say, still debating.
"Peach won't take no for an answer," Mario said, making me sigh in defeat and fake a smile.
"I'll be there, then."
What could go wrong?
Follow my socials:
Twitter: brittanybauer95
Instagram: brittany_bauer95
Also, if you want to read some original, NON-MUSICAL, short stories of mine, check out my website! It's just my name (brittanybauer) with a dot com at the end of it (can't put links here sadly).
