Author Notes - Imagine how fun it would be if the scrambled rooms were randomised each playthrough. That would make it even more infuriating for speedrunners.
Random note, check out my LM3 speedruns on the-website-whose-URL-I-can't-give-you-or-this-website-will-remove-it if you wanna.
Choose the correct hat, and I think you'll find that DragonFlame64, Taiski, EmperorWolfgang, omnimegalander, and Vortex Lord have added favourites/follows! We are so close to fifty favourites and I am so excited!
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN - PRESENTING: NIKKI, LINDSEY, AND GINNY!
'What in the ever loving-?!'
Daisy and Polterpup were greeted with their reflections once again. They had returned to the room with the bed on top of the giant block of glass, and it gave Daisy vertigo.
'Wha...? How?' She growled in realisation. 'GAH, it was those triplets again! They've scrambled up the whole place. Maybe I don't want any children...'
Just to make the whole thing even more disorientating, the whimsical background music became more frantic and confused. Polterpup emitted a bewildered whimper.
'Tell me about it.' Daisy muttered. 'You got any ideas?'
The spectral hound shrugged his shoulders. Daisy sighed, and headed for the door that previously led to the small hall. For some reason, Polterpup got a very bad feeling about that door.
'So if the doors are all jumbled up, we just gotta go through them all until we arrive back at that stage thing.'
'Ruff?'
'Hey, don't question me! It's a good idea.' She said, stepping through the door. 'It's the best we've - OH MY GOOD LORD!'
That door did not lead to the stage. Or any room for that matter. Daisy couldn't feel any solid ground. She looked down for a moment, and bore witness to the ground below - eleven floors below, mostly hidden beneath the fog. The rain made the step before the abyss wet and slippery.
And Daisy could feel herself wobbling forward.
'AAHHHHH!'
Polterpup grabbed her by the back of her shirt, and dragged her back into safety. She fell to the soft solid floor as Polterpup slammed the door shut.
Daisy unleashed an inelegant cry of despair and agony. 'OKAY!' She yelled, her eyes twitching. 'Let's be a little more careful with these doors...'
A horrible thought had dawned on her. Had Luigi opened a door just as lethal, only to fall victim to its trap? The thought made her sick to her stomach, and unfortunately it rooted itself in her mind. Unlike all her other fears, however, this one wasn't going to stop her.
'Okay, let's not even risk splitting up. Our team is divided enough as is. Stay by my side at all costs, and let's pray to Luvbi that this door won't lead directly to my death.'
They dreaded where the third door could've taken them, but they had no other options besides busting down the walls and potentially breaking the rules again. This time, Daisy opened it much more slowly and carefully, making sure she didn't take a single step over the line. It led directly into the elevator hall, from the door that Luigi had to Dark-Light. Which, of course, meant there were no other doors to go through.
'OH, I see!' Daisy yelled, looking around. 'So it's either get stuck in rooms with only one door, or fall to my death. Great options!'
Her eyes spied the elevator door. She had a stupid thought: if that was an elevator 'door', was it also affected by the room scrambling? Stupid thoughts were the best.
'Hey Poltiepup, do you think...?'
She hadn't even shared her suggestion yet, and he was already giving her a look.
'You got any better ideas? It has a chance to work, and compared to falling to my impending doom I'd rather take my chances.'
With the ghostly dog trailing behind her with a disapproving look, Daisy pressed the button for the elevator. Unlike every other time it was pressed, the elevator did not take a few seconds to arrive or do so with a distinctive 'DING' sound. The door just opened.
To the gravity-defying bedroom.
Daisy smirked at Polterpup. 'A-HA! Told you it would work!'
His expression didn't change, except now he was giving it not for her idiotic idea but instead her 'in your face!' attitude. Her cockiness faded away almost immediately when she saw the fan on the floor. It spun around so fast its own anchor could barely hold it. Paranormal gates emerged and blocked off both doors.
'Oh lord...'
Not one, not two, not even three, but four Oozers emerged from thin air, all armed with pool balls and handfuls of coins.
'Well, well, well.' One of them said, juggling the balls in her hands. 'You know what they say... divide then conquer!'
'Wait, isn't it divide and conquer?' Another asked.
A third pinched what would've been the bridge of his nose if he had one. 'Dang it, Becky! We've been over this joke a million times!' He sighed. 'You're hopeless...'
'Forget that!' The fourth said. 'We have a princess to pound.'
Daisy chuckled. Simple Oozers would pose little risk to her. This would be fun.
After her adorable yet oddly powerful sneeze, Lindsey had ended up in the elevator hall. Of course, she didn't want to be left behind, so she went back through the wall the moment she realised what happened. She left before Daisy could see her.
When she went through that wall, she expected to arrive back in the bathroom. There, her sisters would be waiting for her and they could hopefully do anything else other than bully the green man. She did not arrive in the bathroom as she had hoped, or any of the bathrooms for that matter. It was a much smaller room that didn't even have a functioning light, but she could tell by the sickening smell of detergent exactly where she was.
'The... the laundry?'
The towels on the floor and the washing machines by the wall confirmed it. An ironing board folding out of the wall barely missed her as it slammed to the floor.
'No... Nikki? Ginny? Where are you?'
No response. Her stress levels spiked. She hyperventilated. The world got blurry.
'Oh no. Oh please no... they couldn't have. There's no way they jumbled the rooms without me. T-They didn't...'
No! She refused to believe that her own sisters had abandoned her like that, no matter how badly they had been treating her since the green man arrived. It was just another one of their harmless pranks.
Right?
Lindsey giggled. 'Oh, I'm not falling for this joke again. I know what you're doing. I betcha hiding in the washing machines again! That got me good the first time, but I'm onto you!'
She gave one of the machines a shake, giggling to herself. A rattling sound came from inside it, which could've been either clothes or one of her sisters.
'Ah, so you're gonna try lowering my guard, hey GinGin? Come on, I'm your sister. I know how you think!'
She threw her entire body at the machine, slamming her shoulder into it. The lid snapped open, but it was not Ginny or even Nikki who popped out. A bucket's worth of water sloshed out the hole, and splashed onto Lindsey's arms. The moment that liquid hit her ghostly skin, she screamed. It sent her back almost five centuries ago. All she could hear were the accusations being thrown her way before she was lowered into the lake.
'No, please!' She cried. 'I-I was just defending my sister! I-I'm not a witch, I promise!'
She had already bore witness to her eldest sister succumbing to a fire, and she was not ready to meet a similar fate.
'GINNY, HELP ME!'
She ran, fleeing from her watery fate. Without even realising it, she phased through one of the walls and ended up in another room. Whichever wall she came in from was irrelevant with how jumbled up the layout was. If she had a heart, it would've stopped right there. No longer was there just a simple splash of water on her arm. Now, she was completely submerged in it.
No matter how much time had passed, she could never forget the day she lost her life.
Where was she? She had no idea. Her mind couldn't focus on a single thing aside from the feeling of being utterly waterlogged. Unleashing one more scream, she rushed to the nearest corner she could find, and hid in her top hat.
'So where are Daisy and Polterpup?'
'I... am not sure. The doors are supposed to lead to the same room each time they're opened. Maybe your friends were given a different path. The triplets are very powerful for their age.'
Luigi saw the same two doors from before, and the blaring frantic circus music in the background did not help him choose in the slightest.
'Okay, so where should we go?' He asked.
'Er, slight problem.' Polterkitty answered. 'They mix it up every time. Last time I witnessed a mortal fall victim to this, that door led to the bathroom with a shower full of water.'
'So in other words, it's totally random?'
'Yep. We'll just have to try all the doors until we find the right path.'
Luigi groaned.
'On the bright side,' Polterkitty continued. 'They never arrange a path with an impossible layout. So, we really can just guess wildly until we get it. As long as we don't go insane or accidentally choose the one door that leads to outside the building, we'll be fine.'
'Wait, if we don't what now?'
Polterkitty felt awful vibes emanating from the box with the saw jammed into it. Why the triplets would want such a grim reminder of their past mystified her.
'What do you suggest?' Luigi asked.
'Um... the right door, maybe?'
The hesitance in her voice did little to calm his nerves, but regardless he opened the door that usually led to the elevator hall. To say that it didn't do so would be an understatement, and the sight made Luigi blush. He bore witness to a Goob in a room full of mirrors, brushing her teeth with a toilet brush. Once her mouth was foamy enough, she used that same toilet brush to clean her behind. She then put it back in her mouth.
'Eugh...' Luigi muttered.
The Goob spun around and shrieked. 'My word! You are invading my privacy, you peeping Tom!'
Luigi shrieked too. 'S-S-Sorry miss! I-It was an accident!'
He slammed the door shut, and pressed his back up against it as if holding back a great evil. His cheeks were the reddest they were that night. No words could leave his throat, and he wanted the floor to collapse beneath him.
'Uh, it could've been worse.' Polterkitty said, almost as embarrassed. 'That could've been a Mini Goob.'
'Don't put that image into my head!'
With their reddening cheeks just getting worse, Polterkitty sauntered for the third door. Luigi followed close behind, holding his cap down over his eyes.
'The good news is,' She said. 'At least we know this is the right door.'
'Y-Yeah. Uh, we won't come across that door again, right?'
'Nope. Each door is unique.'
'Oh thank goodness...'
Behind that door was fortunately not the eleven storey drop like Luigi dreaded, but that small hall that had dropped a hat onto Daisy. The top hat in question remained knocked over as it was left. One major problem though - the next door had a paranormal gate over it, yet with no ghosts that Polterkitty could sense. The Panthergeist grunted, and slashed the gate to pieces. It only took a second for it to reform.
'What?!' She cried. 'They're not supposed to just reappear like that.'
'Maybe there's a puzzle those girls want us to solve?'
'Right. That makes sense. But what though?'
She looked around the room. Compared to the other rooms on this floor, this one was relatively normal. The path to the right simply lead to some bookshelves and a table. That, and a marble statue of Nikki, Lindsey, and Ginny themselves. Except, today the statue was missing something big. While the marble representations of Nikki and Ginny had their hats, Lindsey lacked hers. Her bare head stood out among her sisters. Polterkitty glanced up at the knocked-over top hat.
'Wait, Luigi! I think I've got it.' She said, before grabbing the hat with her teeth and being careful not to shred it.
'Uh, alright. I'm following... not really.'
Polterkitty threw the hat on top of the marbleised Lindsey, and from its bottom to its top the hat was slowly petrified. After a few seconds, it had blended in with the rest of the statue perfectly like the hat was never missing at all.
She sighed. 'Dang it, Ginny. Do you need to ruin Lindsey's statue too?'
Like she had hoped, the paranormal gate released.
'Nice!' Luigi said, grinning. 'How did you know that would work?'
'I didn't. I just guessed.'
'That's fine too! I can't count how often just guessing has gotten me through things.'
He opened the door as he said this, stepping through with a more optimistic attitude. With Polterkitty on his side, he felt as if he could actually maybe do this.
'So if we keep guessing, we might be able to - LEAPING LASAGNA!'
It was not the fact that he had arrived in the unfamiliar water tank bathroom that elicited such a reaction. In the far corner, he saw another purple top hat on the floor. It gave off quiet sobbing and sniffling sounds. Without even any first thoughts, he ran over to that hat and used a burst to make it fly away.
'Eep!' The ghost within it yelped.
Luigi's eyes widened. 'L-Lindsey? What are you doing here?'
The young ghost looked up to him with the most beaten-up-looking eyes he had seen in a long time. Compared to the other two, who were schoolyard bullies, Lindsey was their lonely victim.
She wiped her eyes and nose before answering. 'I-I don't think my sisters care about me anymore...'
Luigi stepped back. Her teary, broken voice only broke his heart more.
'W-What makes you say that?' He asked.
'T-They jumbled all the rooms without me. I-I mean, that's happened many times before, but they used to go looking for me immediately. Now, they don't even care enough to do that...'
Luigi didn't need to think about it for a moment, and brought her into a warm hug. He could feel her ectoplasmic tears soaking into his shirt.
'Of course they care about you, Lindsey.' He said, running his fingers through her hair.
'But why don't they care about me now? They used to. But ever since Mr Potter brought us into this hotel, they've hated me.'
The fatherly instincts in Luigi kicked in, and he hugged her tighter. Polterkitty plodded into the room, and found the sight of a heartbroken Lindsey to be far more heart-wrenching than she could have ever expected.
'Don't tell that idiot kid about what I'm doing to her sisters.' Master had ordered. 'I need her compliancy, even if my mind tricks are a complete waste on her. After all, a goody-two-shoes like her needs a little harshness.'
The day before, she would've just left the crying girl alone. After all, it wasn't her problem. Hanging out with Green Man and Mean Lady was changing her much more than she thought.
When Lindsey caught sight of the hulking Panthergeist, she brightened up in seconds. 'PUDDING!'
She leapt off the floor and wrapped her arms around 'Pudding's neck, rubbing her cheeks against the warm ghostly fur. 'Pudding' soaked it all up and purred like a motor boat.
'Um, Pudding?' Luigi questioned.
'Oh, that's my nickname for the wittle kitty. Did you know I can understand animals? Cos I can. And she's a friend of mine! Aren't you, Pudding?'
Polterkitty responded with a cheerful mew, completely unbefitting of her monstrous appearance.
'Who's a cute wittle Pudding? You are! Yes you are!'
Despite the sweet moment, Polterkitty felt the need to finally give the young ghost the info that she had needed years ago.
'Mroo-oo-oow...'
'WHAT?!' Luigi and Lindsey cried at the same time.
'Y-You mean that, Pudding?' Lindsey asked. 'M-Ms Gravely is using her mind tricks on my sisters, but not me? And she's been doing this ever since we were hired?!'
Polterkitty nodded, and looked to the floor. She was surprised to see that Lindsey smiled. Oh goodness, did she smile.
'That's awesome!' She yelled. 'I mean, it's awful that my sisters are falling victim to the mind tricks. Absolutely awful! BUT, that means they still care for me! It's just-' She gasped, and frowned. 'Ms Gravely! Oh, that witch...'
Luigi placed his hand on her back. 'Don't worry about her. Daisy and I will stop her.' He sighed. 'You know, you're not the only one dealing with Ms Gravely. She's taken my older brother from me.'
Lindsey, upon hearing such an injustice, wrapped her arms around him and hugged. 'So we'll take her down together!'
Luigi's eyes shot open. As gently as he could, he pushed her away. Her smile remained unfettered.
'L-Listen Lindsey,' He said, scratching the back of his neck. 'I appreciate your, um, enthusiasm to join, but it's really dangerous for someone your age. Even if you're a ghost, I don't feel comfortable with bringing a child with us. I hope you understand.'
'Oh, yeah I understand! That's alright. My older sisters never let me do anything dangerous. And Ginny tried oh so hard to keep me safe when...'
She winced. Such awful, awful memories came back to her.
'Don't worry.' Luigi said. 'You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to.'
'Um, but I kinda do. Y-Yeah, it was... horrible, but, you know, talking about it helps. That's what Mr Potter told me. Mr Potter likes to pretend he doesn't like us, but we know he adores us. What was I saying? Oh yeah. Talking about it might make me feel better.'
Luigi took his seat on the floor, and patted the space next to him.
'Okay.' He said. 'If you wanna talk about it, I'll listen.'
She sat down next to him and put her head on his shoulder. He wrapped his arm around her; if this is what it was like to have a child, he wanted one more than ever. Once the both of them - the three of them if you counted Polterkitty curling up on the floor - got comfortable, Lindsey gave the water tank a shaky glance and told her story.
See, my older sisters and I have been ghosts for a long time. Like, a really long time. A really, really long time. A few centuries... I think? We came from the Cap Kingdom, back when humans lived there too. The others didn't like me or Ginny very much. I think it's because we have... asparagus? Ice burgers? I don't remember.
Luigi's eyes widened. No wonder they had such great chemistry with each other. It certainly explained a lot about both her and Ginny.
But everything was fine. Especially when we found out how great we were with the art of illusion! You should've seen it. Nikki sawed me in half in front of the entire village! Ginny helped us pull it off.
We learnt that... showing off our magical talent was a terrible idea.
'How come?' Luigi asked.
The other people in our village? They didn't like it. They called us witches.
'Witches?!'
Suddenly, Luigi didn't want to hear the rest of it. He had paid enough attention in school to know where this was going. Still, he continued to listen for her sake.
Yeah. Nikki was the first accused, since she was the one who did the trick. Our parents tried to stop it, but... the others burnt her alive. Though, I think the smoke got to her first. I-I was next. After I tried to defend Nikki, I was accused too. They tied me to a rock and said that if I was a witch, I'd save myself from... d-drowning. Uh, you can see it didn't work.
She punctuated that sentiment with a laugh that she couldn't make sound real even if she tried her hardest. Polterkitty cringed, the story bringing back her own horrible memories.
'Aw, your poor poor thing...' Luigi said, softly. 'I-I know my words don't really help, but-'
'Oh, don't worry! Your words are just fine. I like them. They're nice. If you wanna know what happened to Ginny, she tried her hardest to keep me safe, even offering to take my place. I wasn't around to see what happened to her, but... she wasn't the same after it.'
She cuddled into his chest, smiling as she indulged in the warm. Almost forgetting about the mission at hand, Luigi brought her closer like she was his actual daughter.
'Luigi,' Polterkitty said. 'If we're gonna talk about the past, I have something to admit too.'
Luigi reached out and stroked her head. 'Alright. You okay with that, Lindsey?'
'Oh yeah! Pudding can tell you what happened to her. But it's really tragic.'
Polterkitty rested her head on Luigi's lap as she explained her story.
'I was born with two tails, unlike my brothers and sisters. The third ended up growing in the afterlife, if you're wondering. My birth defect meant nothing, but my breeders didn't care. It still scared them. They tried to pawn me off, but no one wanted to adopt me. It didn't take long for my breeders to give up on me, so they...' She sighed. 'There's a reason why I'm so afraid of water.'
She could say no more, but Luigi understood exactly how that story ended. It disgusted him. How anyone could do that to an animal, just because they were born with a harmless defect, was a question he didn't want answered. He could understand putting a poor creature out of its misery, but no way an extra tail would've affected her life at all.
'And that's why we get along so well!' Lindsey randomly declared. 'Both of us were unfairly drowned and hate water because of it. It's a weird thing to have in common, but it's something!'
Luigi wanted nothing more than to be able to relax here with his two new friends, savouring the warmth and serenity. However, he knew he couldn't.
'Listen Lindsey,' He said. 'I would love to stay here for the rest of the night, but we really need to get going. My friends could be in trouble, and - as much as I hate to say this - I think the only way we can get out of this is by fighting and capturing your sisters.'
Lindsey responded to such a statement by leaping into the air, and putting her hat back on. She pulled out her wand and gave a determined grin for the first time in a while.
'Then I'm coming with!' She said. 'Maybe I can talk them out of it, now that I know they really do still love me.'
Luigi did not want to tell her that he truly doubted that would work, but he did not want to soil the joy of a child; especially a child who died so horribly.
'Okay.' He said after a lot of thought. 'But the second things start getting dangerous for you, I want you gone.'
'I can do that!' She paused. 'Can you be my big brother?'
'What?!'
'Just until we find my sisters! Sorry if that wasn't clear. I already have an older brother. His name is Clem!'
Luigi gave her a look. 'Wait, Clem? You mean the plumber?'
'Yeah, him! And Billie's our big sister too. I mean, we're not related, but they really like us! We're like their unofficial sisters.' A pause. 'Am I talking too much?'
'No, no. It's okay. But we should get going right now.'
'Lead the way, Green M- I mean, Luigi!'
'Are you fu- for f- you have got to be sh-!'
To say the Oozers were not a threat would be an understatement. With Polterpup around to sniff them out, Daisy tore through them like wet paper. They were not what was causing her to almost-swear every few seconds. It was those blasted doors. Running down the gallery past the portrait ghosts, screaming in agony from finding yet another one-door room, ending up in the lounge for the fiftieth time... if she didn't find that stage any time soon, she would disregard the rules completely and physically bash her way through.
'ARE YOU-?! Ugh.'
She couldn't even recognise this room. It appeared to be yet another bathroom, but this had a bunch of oversized playing cards laying about. Without really thinking, she picked up the Ace of Spades card resting on the toilet seat and ripped it to shreds. Polterpup just observed her minor breakdown with nonchalance.
'Arf?'
'NO, I AM NOT OKAY HERE!' She shouted. 'I'm about to have a Grambi-damned aneurysm thanks to this stupid floor!'
She almost ripped off the next door's handle, though still left it heavily dented. Polterpup had long since crossed the line of no longer caring.
'If I don't find those triplets RIGHT NOW,' Daisy yelled as she opened the door. 'I'M GONNA- oh.'
By sheer 'luck' - actually just stubbornness and process of elimination - she had finally ended up back in the stage room. Two of the triplets awaited her, but neither seemed to notice that she had finally arrived.
'We don't have to do any bloody planning.' Ginny said. 'The tossers never get this far anyway.'
'I know, but it never hurts to think about it.' Nikki replied. 'After all, you never know. These guys gotta be good if they survived Ms Serpci's pyramid. We don't want to be caught with our pants down.'
'We're not wearing any bloody pants!'
'What? No. I mean-'
Daisy, not in any mood to sit through twelve-year-olds argue over which Galaxy Wars movie was best, cleared her throat as loudly as she could. Both girls snapped their attention to her.
'What?!' Ginny yelled. 'How the bloody hell did a wanker like you make it through the rooms without losing your mind?'
'Making it through? Yes.' Daisy said. 'Without going insane? Eh, the jury's kinda out on that one.'
Ginny growled. 'C'mon Nik, there's gotta be some rule this wanker broke.'
Nikki shook her head. 'Sorry GinGin, but from what I can tell she followed the rules to a T. She wouldn't be so red in the face if she just cheated her way through.'
The middle sister crossed her arms and pouted. Nikki just rolled her eyes, an impressive feat considering her lack of pupils.
Daisy cocked an eyebrow. 'Wait, where's the third one?'
'That doesn't matter.' Nikki said. 'I think this fight will be a lot better for us without little Lindsey dragging us down.'
Lo and behold, with the most perfect timing ever, Luigi opened the other door to the stage just a few moments later. Polterkitty and Lindsey were right behind him.
Daisy's eyes brightened. 'Luigi!'
'Daisy!'
The happy reunion was over before it could even begin, thanks to Lindsey.
'NIKKI! She cried in absolute joy. 'GINNY!'
She flew across the room and brought both her older sisters into a big, tight hug. The only way she could've looked any happier was if 'Pudding' was a part of this embrace.
'Get off me, ya pillock!' Ginny yelled, shoving herself away.
'Seriously Lindsey,' Nikki said, pushing her away by the forehead. 'Stop with the hugs.'
'But you girls don't understand!' Lindsey said. 'Ms Gravely is controlling your minds! You gotta fight back.'
To her shock, her older sisters just laughed.
'Linny, tell me.' Nikki said, giving her a patronising grin. 'Why do you think Hellen Gravely ignores you? Hm?'
'I-I-I, um, don't know...'
'Oh what a shock!' Ginny said. 'And that's precisely why. Not only are ya too nice for ya own good, but you're a complete bloody berk!'
Now, Ginny teased Lindsey all the time. Every second of the day. Usually, however, Lindsey knew she didn't really mean it. At that moment, Lindsey knew she truly did mean it this time. She turned away from her sisters, trying to hide the tears coming to her eyes.
'Anyway!' Nikki announced, like she didn't just insult her own sister. 'I would like our guests to please step forward onto this wooden stage. It is required for our next trick!'
None of our heroes thought this was going to be even remotely good for them, but it wasn't like they had much choice in the matter. Luigi with Polterkitty and Daisy with Polterpup stepped onto the stage as directed, and braced for any sort of attack.
'And now,' Nikki continued, waving her arms out. 'Nikki, Lindsey, and Ginny shall present to you-'
'Actually,' Lindsey said, adopting a more serious frown. 'It'll be just Nikki and Ginny today.'
Whatever trick they had planned got interrupted. Nikki and Ginny gave their youngest sister odd looks, with the former putting her hands on her hips.
'And what makes you say that?' She asked, an eyebrow raised.
'Have ya finally bloody realised you're dragging us down?'
'NO!' Lindsey yelled, crossing her arms.
Her older sisters jumped back, and so did our heroes.
'I'm not going to help you anymore tonight!'
Nikki, once she processed what she just said, faked a gasp. 'But Linny, you can't do that! We're your sisters, remember? We gotta stick together as a family, just like what we've done for centuries.'
'That's just it. You're not my sisters! My sisters might tease me and call me a wanker - or whatever it is you say, Ginny - but they would never abandon me once the rooms are scrambled. But you girls did. You are not my sisters. You are just whatever it is Ms Gravely is moulding my sisters into!'
'Wha... you...?'
Lindsey twirled her wand in her hand like it was a gun, and left her sisters with a swing in her 'step'. She wrapped her free arm around Luigi's shoulder, and glared at the other two young ghosts.
'Pudding here told me all about what Ms Gravely was doing to you. I hoped that we could just talk it about, but that didn't work. I could never fight my own sisters... but until you start caring about me again, you are not my sisters!'
Nikki and Ginny gasped, this time for real. Luigi had no idea what was going on.
'Well fine then!' Ginny yelled. 'Join the bloody tossers instead of your own sisters.'
'YOU'RE NOT MY SISTERS!'
Nikki pinched the bridge of her nose. 'Alright then. If that's how it's gonna be... Nikki and Ginny shall present to you our most favourite trick!' She waved her wand around. 'Now, simple stage, shed your normal form. Get weird and wacky as you transform!'
Ginny gave her a 'really?' look. 'Did you seriously just rhyme transform with form?'
'I'm a magician, not a poet!'
Red curtains rose from the floor, surrounding the entire wooden platform with our heroes and Lindsey caught up in it. A spotlight from nowhere turned on, and shone so brightly that Luigi had to shelter his eyes. The remaining triplets had disappeared, but the real trick showed itself when the curtains sunk onto the floor again.
The normal room was gone without a trace, with only the wooden platform and the stage lights surrounding it left. Now, our heroes stared off into a swirling purple void. It was like a reverse black hole, with random objects like dice and chairs flying out of its glowing white middle and spiralling away.
You'd expect Daisy to freak out once again, but she just shrugged. 'Yeah, random purple void of death. Perfectly normal! I don't even care anymore.'
In contrast, Luigi's entire body twitched. 'Speak for yourself...'
Daisy peered over the edge. The void seemed to go on forever, far deeper than the hotel or even planet would surely allow. She had no idea what would happen if she fell, and she didn't want to find out.
'Oh dear...' Lindsey murmured.
'Lindsey,' Daisy said, putting her hand to her forehead. 'I hate to ask, but why is this an 'oh dear' situation?'
'We haven't done this trick for, um, decades, I think? My sisters only do it if they really want someone dead.'
'Oh great.'
Nikki and Ginny reappeared with two puffs of lavender smoke, just barely out of Daisy's reach. By the way they were floating next to each other, it was clear that Lindsey was supposed to be to the right of Nikki.
'I see some shivering legs and sweaty faces!' Nikki said, putting one hand on her hip and the other in the air. 'That means our greatest trick of all is working! What do you guys think of it?'
'I hate it.' Daisy stated bluntly.
'Um, it's alright, I guess?' Luigi said.
'Alright? Just alright?!' Ginny shouted, clenching her fists. 'DO YOU TOSSERS KNOW HOW BLOODY LONG IT TAKES TO GET THIS TRICK RIGHT?!' She sighed. 'Bloody mortals...'
Nikki sighed, fed up with both her younger sisters at this point. She whacked Ginny across the back of the head with her wand, to which the middle triplet responded by dropping about a dozen expletives that cannot be repeated.
'Just ignore my sister, okay?' Nikki said. 'Where were we? Oh yeah. I assume you mortals are looking for this. I hope when I reveal this, you won't be a glutton. But I think what you want is this shiny yellow button!'
With a quick flick of her wrist, she materialised the next elevator button from thin air. It had a big bold '12' printed on it. Nikki could tell just by looking at those mortals' pupils that she had them right where she wanted them.
'You ever played a game of cup-and-ball?' She asked. 'Good, then you know how this'll work. Just remember - I'm the one with the button!'
'And,' Ginny added. 'Since our country matter of a sister doesn't want to just bloody cooperate, we'll need to add something else to this little game.'
Using her wand, Nikki summoned another top hat identical to Lindsey's where the youngest sister would've stood. A ticking bomb could be heard within it. That sound did not help anyone's nerves. At all.
'Whether you get Ginny or the bomb,' Nikki said. 'You're in for a bad time! And believe me. I know that from experience.'
'And trust me!' Lindsey added. 'I'd rather find the bomb.'
'And that's the way I like it!' Ginny yelled.
Before anyone could ask how it could possibly be hard to find a target right in front of them, Nikki and Ginny disappeared into their hats. Like the game they described, the three hats swapped places about ten times. They moved just fast enough not to be impossible to tell.
'Left!' Daisy cried, pointing at the hat on the left. 'My left, if you need that clarification.'
'Ah ah ah!' Nikki's voice echoed from everywhere around. 'Did you think it would be that easy? Right or wrong, our game doesn't end here!'
One by one, the hats left their spots and soon all three were circling around the stage, each leaving behind a sparky trail of purple mist. Thanks to the disorientating void in the background making him dizzy, Luigi lost track of Nikki in seconds. Polterkitty let out a distressed yowl. Daisy, however, kept herself spinning on the spot like a ballerina.
'You think this scares me?' Polterpup said. 'I can sniff out that button like nothing.'
'Sorry Puppy,' Lindsey said, tapping her fingers together. 'But that's not gonna work. See, to really make sure that this game is fair, they use, erm, some sort of magic to jumble up your sense of hearing and smell. So, you're just gonna smell that button everywhere.'
'Ugh, you serious? Of course.'
The hats spun and they spun and they spun. Daisy, through all of it, had managed to keep track of Nikki but was slowly succumbing to dizziness.
'Come at me!' She yelled.
The hats did just that, shrinking the circle they were tracing slowly but surely. The trails created a galaxy shape as they closed in, before the hats got so close that their trails touched and formed a complete circle. They spun so fast that they left red hot sparks behind. Daisy stepped back until she bumped into the Poltergust.
'Luigi, sweetie,' She said, beginning to sweat. 'Do you maybe wanna-?'
'Way ahead of you!'
Luigi activated a burst, sending the caps flying backwards. They landed on their tops, each with a rainbow rope of handkerchiefs hanging out of them. Each rope was equally as long as the others, with no visual differences between them at all. Like Lindsey had said, Polterpup couldn't even smell the difference.
'Make sure you get the right one!' Lindsey said. 'If you get the wrong one, you might-'
'This one!' Daisy yelled, reaching for a rope seemingly at random. 'Get ready to grab her, Luigi!'
'Um, okay?'
Daisy grabbed onto that rope and yanked on it. The other hats vanished into smoke, and whatever object lay inside the hat came tumbling out and fell onto her face.
'Ow...' Nikki muttered, rubbing her forehead. 'That hurt way more than I- GAH!'
Luigi flashed the Strobulb into her eyes, leaving her stunned before she could even realise what was going on. He had dreaded that he would have to bash her into the floor, but he found the pull surprisingly weak.
'Alright, alright!' She cried, just barely fighting against the vacuum cleaner. 'I obey the rules of my own game, and you have beaten me. The prize is yours!'
Nikki was sucked up into the device with hardly any effort. Our heroes knew there was a problem when the void hadn't gone away yet. Despite that, the Poltergust rattled around, signifying the button was about ready to fly out.
'Don't celebrate yet, guys!' Lindsey said. 'Nik may obey the rules, but GinGin doesn't.'
'Meaning?' Polterpup asked.
The button flew out of the nozzle, but the moment our heroes could see it, it vanished into thin air.
'Hey!' Daisy yelled.
'Did you clots really expect us to give you the button and sod off?' Ginny's voice boomed from everywhere. 'My sisters may be a bunch of bloody jessies, but I'm not. If wazzocks like you want this button, you'll need to have a punch-up with me!'
Ginny reappeared in the starting position, with a spare hat on both sides. Now, both hats emitted that ticking bomb sound. The middle triplet snickered to herself, before disappearing into her own hat.
'I'm gonna keep trying until you bugger off and die!'
Lindsey gulped. 'Oh, I miss the days when that was an empty threat.'
Daisy's line of sight was planted firmly on the middle hat, watching it intently as it went left, right, all around... if poor Luigi was too overwhelmed and if the bizarre landscape confused the Polterpets, Daisy would make up for them and more. Ginny kept swapping until she made herself dizzy.
'Right!' Daisy announced to everyone. 'She's on the right!'
The hat in the middle spun around on the spot a little faster than the others, before firing out a flying playing card. It soared through the air like an arrow. Daisy jumped out the way, not daring to make any snarky comments about how a card could be scary.
Luigi was not so lucky.
'OWIE!'
The card just barely touched his cheek as it passed by, but that was all it needed. It sliced through his skin, leaving behind a small but bleeding cut.
'Oh, sweetie!' Daisy cried. 'You okay?'
'Y-Yeah.' He said. 'It's basically just a paper cut.'
'Paper cuts are bloody painful! ... Oh, great. Now I'm doing it.'
Lindsey cringed. Sure, Ginny could be rough, but intentionally causing someone to bleed was beneath her. Usually. Polterkitty hissed and growled at Ginny, just barely missing her with her claws.
'Shut the bloody hell up, ya pestiferous cat!'
Polterkitty did not stop snarling, though she was perfectly aware that Ginny followed up on her threats.
'Pudding, be careful!' Lindsey cried. 'Ginny could do anything she wants to you. I know she usually likes you, but she doesn't right now!'
'I don't know what we're all worried about.' Daisy said. 'She's on the right. I can track her.'
Lindsey gave her begging eyes. 'No, you don't understand! Ginny won't follow any of her own rules. She will do anything to ensue that she wins. If there was a spell that could make you disappear completely, she'd do if you ticked her off enough.'
'Well, right now, I'm more pissed off than she could ever be!'
Just like before, the hats began to circle the arena. The middle hat went first, and the all-important right one went next. Daisy spun around on the spot, her eyes like a crosshair on their target. Luigi attempted to track one too, but a flying grandfather clock in the void took away his focus.
'Hey, I used to have a grandfather clock just like - D'OH!'
With the scent of everything everywhere, Polterpup couldn't concentrate on anything. Meanwhile, the scattering smoke reminded Polterkitty too much of Master's Gheistpaint. She couldn't think with the thoughts of that sneeze-inducing powder flooding her mind. Lindsey's conscious simply didn't let her even glance at the hats. Daisy watched. She paid attention to that one hat like she'd die the moment she looked away. No matter what, even if she had to stand there for days, she would not lose track.
'Do ya plonkers really think I'd make it this easy? I'll leave ya jessies begging for mercy! Now watch as I pour in all of my heart, into this spell that'll leave you in the dark!'
Everything went dark with nary a warning, so dark that Luigi's own flashlight couldn't begin to pierce it. Even the ghostly eyes of Polterpup and Polterkitty could barely see a foot in front of them.
Luigi and Daisy screamed at once.
'Daisy, where are you?! I don't even know where I am!'
'I'm right here, Luigi. Don't worry! At least, I think I am. GINNY!'
The middle triplet cackled. 'Now how's that for a jolly ol' trick? Nikki would tell me that isn't fair, but she's not bloody here!'
Lindsey grumbled. 'But I'm still here!'
Ginny scoffed. 'You? You're a little wallflower, Linny!'
The youngest sister clenched her fists. Even if she couldn't see them, she could hear her mortal friends crying and panicking, and she could feel their fear in the air. She straightened up her hat and held her wand up to the sky.
'That's it!' She declared. 'I only helped you kill all those other mortals because you girls were doing it! I convinced myself that if I played along, you'd love me again. But now I know the truth. Now I know that it's all Ms Gravely's fault, and only her fall will bring you and Nik back. And Luigi here is just the guy to do it!'
Ginny snickered. 'What the bloody hell are you saying? That you'd rather help out those wankers than your own sister?'
'No! I'm saying that these 'wankers' will help me get my sisters back! And I'm gonna help them. Now, my wand, help me do what's right. Help out these mortals and bring back the light!'
The dark vanished, as quickly as it arrived. The hats had kept spinning, but were closing in fast. Had Lindsey delayed her magic for another second, the mortals would've dealt with the razor-sharp spinning blades.
'Damn it, Lindsey!' Ginny's voice echoed. 'I was going to cut their feet off!'
Luigi activated a burst, knocking the hats away and onto their tops. Like before, rainbow ropes spewed out and waited to be pulled on.
'Daisy, which one is it?' Luigi asked, trying to hide his mounting stress. 'Daisy?!'
Daisy stood in the middle of the arena, still as a rock. Her eyes darted from hat to hat, the ticking bombs getting louder and louder. Her heart beat out of her chest.
'Daisy?'
'I... I... I LOST TRACK!' She shouted. 'T-The lights turned off, and n-now I don't know which one is right!'
Luigi gasped. 'Oh, I should've known. I don't wanna stress you out...'
'Don't worry, cos I'm doing a pretty good job at that myself!'
She reached out for one of the ropes, but stopped herself. A two-thirds chance to blow herself up threw her off.
'You have to pick one!' Luigi cried. 'We don't know what Ginny is capable of.'
'I KNOW! But what if she tricked us? What if they're all bombs? What if they blow up if we take too long?!'
Daisy could only stand there as her face turned pale. She could feel those pickle dandelions wanting to fly back out of her stomach. Luigi's heart stopped; he realised that Daisy was having a panic attack.
'MIAOW!'
Polterpup turned to a panicked Lindsey. 'Okay Linny, I know you can understand me. You gotta do something!'
Lindsey chewed on the end of her wand. 'I-I know she's not really my sister right now, but-'
'Look, I get it. It's hard. Of course it would be. But if you don't do anything-'
'Then my sisters will never be freed!' She grinned. 'Thanks Cheesecake!'
'There you go-! Wait, Cheesecake?'
The panicked moaning sounds that Luigi emitted only pushed her further to help. She gave him another hug before she flew into the air.
'Ginny, forgive me this... I'm still a Twisted Sister, even though I've swapped sides. But I need to know where my middle sister hides!'
At first, nothing happened. Then, one of the hats began to glow green. Green hearts fluttered out of it, followed by the sounds of Ginny inside.
'AH-CHOO!' A bunch of sparkles burst out of the hole. 'Ugh, bloody pixie dust!'
Daisy gasped, and yanked on the rope leading from the glowing hat. The other two vanished as Ginny came flying out of it. Unlike Nikki, she got to her proverbial feet in moments.
'YAY!' Daisy cheered. 'Bloody hell!'
Ginny's eyes fell not onto the mortals nor their pets, but instead her younger sister.
'You...' She muttered. 'You twat! You betrayed your own sister!'
Lindsey teared up, but gave her a glare. 'This is the only way I can save you, GinGin. Just be like Big Sis Nik and surrender! You'll be freed from Ms Gravely.'
'As if I would surrender to you wankers!'
Luigi did not want this argument to go on any further, and unleashed a full blast Strobulb at Ginny. The young ghost predicted such a move, and dove to the left.
'Only a git like you would think I would raise the white flag that easily!' She yelled.
'GINNY!' Lindsey snapped back. 'Listen to me! We can be a family again if you just let Luigi capture you.'
'BAH! I don't need no bloody family. 'Specially two sisters who only held me back!'
Luigi attempted to flash her again, but she was out of reach. Daisy groaned, and stood between the two sisters.
'Hey Lindsey!' She said, waving her arms up and down. 'Why don't you perform some sort of spell to get the button back or something?'
Ginny laughed out loud. 'HA! You think that muppet can do something that bloody complicated? You know how knackering it is to intentionally teleport something?'
Lindsey looked to the floor and fiddled with her wand. 'Hm... GinGin's right. I'm no good with magic...'
Daisy pulled at her hairs and groaned. 'FOR GRAMBI'S SAKE! The one spell that could get us out of this right now, and you can't bloody do it. Geez... why are you so USELESS?!'
Silence.
Everyone stared at her. She didn't need their looks to immediately regret her own words. Lindsey's heartbroken eyes did that for her. The young girl sniffled.
'Oh, Lindsey...' Daisy said. 'I-I didn't mean it. I've been bottling up my own insecurities for so long that I-'
'What. Did. You. Just. Say?' Ginny muttered behind her.
Daisy spun around, and saw Ginny giving her a death stare that rivalled even King Boo's. The middle sister bent her wand so much, it was a miracle it didn't snap.
'Um, that your little sister is useless?' Repeating those words left a very sour taste in her mouth.
Ginny crossed her arms. 'Listen here, ya twat! I don't care who you are. No one - and I mean bloody NO ONE - bullies my little sister but ME!'
Lindsey smiled; it was the first time in years her older sister managed to get her to do that. Ginny got up in Daisy's face, pointing her wand right between her eyes. Her purple aura turned to a furious red as she got closer and closer. Daisy was forced to back away constantly.
'She's MY little sister, ya blighter! And if you think I'm gonna let you get away with calling her useless, you've got another think coming.'
All of Luigi's hate for Ginny vanished like it was part of a magic trick.
'If you're gonna say such beastly things about MY little sister...'
However, he was very much aware that Daisy was approaching the edge, and he was not ready to see if it was indeed an endless abyss.
'Then you're just A BLOODY C-!'
'GinGin!' Lindsey cried.
'WHAT?!'
Ginny snapped around, only to find herself at the receiving end of a Strobulb flash. Though Luigi really didn't want to, he tethered onto her tail and began to drain her ghostly energy.
'GET OFF ME YA TOSSER!'
He changed his mind. A ghost almost as defiant as Chambrea needed to be taught a lesson. And said lesson consisted of him slamming her into the floor several times. With each bash, Ginny spat out a curse that cannot be repeated. No matter how hard she fought the pull, she quickly became another victim to the Poltergust. She grabbed onto the floor in some fruitless attempt to anchor herself.
'GAAAHH!' She screamed. 'I'm gonna kill you if I ever escape this bloody vacuum!'
She disappeared with a pop. The nozzle rattled about, and the twelfth floor button went flying out of the Poltergust. As it fell to the floor, the bizarre void returned to the normal room from before.
Silence. It took a while until Daisy got her words back.
'Oh goodness...' She muttered, wiping her brow and picking up the button. 'I lost it... I freaking lost it...'
Luigi's attention immediately fell on Lindsey. 'We... we are so sorry that we had to do that. I-I'm so, so sorry.'
Lindsey took off her hat and bowed before the green-clad man, and she did so with a smile. She chucked her hat aside, and floated down to the man's level.
'It's okay. Really!' She said. 'My sisters are now safe from Ms Gravely, and that's all I care about. I got to see Pudding again, and I met Cheesecake too! I just have one more favour to ask for.'
'I'll do whatever you want.'
'Please, capture me too.' Her voice cracked. 'I can't be without my sisters. We've been together since the beginning.'
Luigi nodded. 'Alright. After all you've been through, it's the least I can do.'
Lindsey had no idea where she ended up, but she didn't care. As long as her sisters were there, she would be happy.
'LINNY!'
She was in the ghost container unit for only a few seconds when her older sisters brought her into a massive hug. She hadn't felt that warmth in a long, long time.
'Are you okay? The green man didn't hurt you, did he?'
'I'm telling you Linny, I'm gonna teach that bloody blighter a lesson for saying those beastly things to you!'
'I'm okay, girls!' Lindsey said. 'Luigi's a really nice guy. And Daisy was pretty nice too.'
Ginny realised what she was doing, and broke away from the embrace. She crossed her arms and turned away.
'Pfft. I wasn't that worried about a git like you.' She said. 'I don't know what you're yabbering on about.'
Lindsey giggled. 'You know I saw what you nearly did to Daisy.'
Ginny blushed. 'You- I- you can't prove that!'
'I see what this is.' Nikki said, hugging Lindsey tighter. 'I like to call it Tomboy Syndrome. You want to distance yourself from anything girly so much, you don't want admit that you actually love your sister.'
Ginny said nothing, but her blush got more intense. Fortunately for her, another distraction popped up.
'HOOOO-WEEEE! Lookit that, Billie.' Clem yelled, pointing at the triplets. 'Our sisters are back!
'Hawtdog! And here Ah t'was worried we'd never see them again once we was sucked inta tha void thing.'
'Uh, Billie, there was no... forgit it.'
The Hayseed twins joined in on the family hug, to which Ginny stuck out her tongue. No way she was in the mood to be crushed by a couple of rednecks. Though, that hug seemed kinda tempting... no! She was too tough for that.
'GAH!' Dr Potter exclaimed. 'I don't need no whippersnappers here too!'
'W-Welcher?' Amadeus questioned in his native tongue, before he gasped. 'Girls! You've returned!'
Soon, most of the other ghosts stopped doing whatever nonsense they were doing and rushed off to the only children among them.
'You guys okay? Was the green guy friendly?'
'Ug see some signs of emotional distress, but not enough to make Ug too worried.'
'When zis is all over, I'll bake you girls zee sweetest cake you've ever eaten.'
'Geez. Dat was scary for a moment dere. Youse good?'
Some of the ghosts didn't crowd around them. Unsurprisingly, Chambrea was one of them. She was still throwing her body at the walls in some attempt to break out.
'I don't CARE how long it takes me!' She shouted. 'I'll get that green boy even if it kills me a second time!'
Serpci and MacFrights were all the way in their own little corner. The two had spent the last several hours staring deeply into each other's eyes, lying down in the air like they were on some sort of romantic picnic.
'I'm so happy to see my brave heroic warrior!'
'Thou art ye light ineth me life, me gorgeous queen!'
Ginny gagged. Things were getting way too sappy for her now. She took pleasure out of the fact that no one had noticed that she had left the crowd. No one except for Dr Potter. The old gardener approached her nice and quietly; the last thing he wanted was to attract attention.
'Ginny? Yeh okay?' He asked. 'Are yeh hurt? Any bruises? Bumps? Scratches? Did that green whippersnapper hurt yeh? Did that plant murderer do anything tah yeh?!'
Ginny grumbled. 'Only because I was being such a bloody twat. God, I feel awful for that chap.'
'So yer good? No injuries?'
'Not anything severe. At least on the outside...'
Dr Potter opened his arms out, and beckoned for a hug. Ginny hesitated for a moment, before rushing into his embrace. She hugged him tight, and he stroked her messy blonde hair. Try as hard as she might, she couldn't help but to weep softly into his dusty old clothes.
'It's okay, Ginny. I know we're all a li'l scared right now. No one has tah know how scared yer really are.'
NIKKI, LINDSEY, AND GINNY, THE TWISTED SISTERS
AGE - 12
GENDER - Female (All)
CAUSE OF DEATH - Witch-hunting
The Twisted Sisters (last name Kahdabrah) were triplets with tons of talent in the magical arts. Thanks to their talent, they were accused of being witches and were murdered by their village. They spend their afterlife playing (usually) harmless pranks. Out of all the 'Grand Ghosts', they are the youngest.
NIKKI, THE POMPOUS LEADER
CAUSE OF DEATH - Suffocation caused by smoke
Nikki is the eldest of the triplets, and the self-pointed leader. She cares deeply for her younger sisters, even if they annoy her sometimes. She can easily take her power a little too far, which usually results in Ginny getting on her case. Keep fire far, far away from her.
LINDSEY, THE IDEALISTIC DITZ
CAUSE OF DEATH - Drowned
Lindsey is the youngest of the triplets, and no doubt the ditziest. She's very kind-hearted, to the point where Hellen Gravely doesn't bother with her. She doesn't like confrontations. The very sight of water is enough to make her panic.
GINNY, THE IMPULSIVE TOMBOY
CAUSE OF DEATH - Crushed by stones
Ginny is the middle child, and the obligatory tomboy. She's easy to anger, and tends to act without thinking. Not to mention swears like a sailor. She bullies Lindsey from time-to-time. If YOU make fun of Lindsey, though, Ginny will teach you the meaning of pain.
Author Notes - Hey, you know what's fun? Wanting to do more with the scrambled rooms, only for the scene between Lindsey and Luigi to go on longer than expected. Eh, I'm sure TGN will make up for that. SYNERGY! Also f*** this chapter got long.
Ginny tried, damnit. She bloody tried. She fought back those people trying to drown her little sister with all her might. And what did it get her? Stones to the skull.
Nikki kept the three of them going, no matter how much they wanted to give up. Their multiple-century-spanning journey brought them to the Last Resort. Hellen Gravely refused at first to let them in, believing that hiring children gave her little benefit. Even as Amadeus demanded it, she didn't listen. It didn't help that Dr Potter REALLY didn't want 'no whippersnappers' in his hotel.
Which is why Lindsey found it weird when Dr Potter went straight to Ms Gravely and said that he would cover all expenses concerning the three girls. He seemed just as desperate to bring them in as he was to keep his plants safe. He was there for a while, and refused to return to Audrey until all the triplets were welcomed in.
