...

Author's Note:

I got some good reviews from the last chapter. I'm glad to hear that I'm not the only one who would like to see Mr. L working with Luigi instead of fighting against him. From my memory, I only recall/find these two fanfic where the two are friendly (or eventually turned friendly) towards each other - HowlingMisfit's Mario fanfic "Errands", and GintaxAlvissForever's Super Smash Brothers fanfic "Fallen Angel".

...

Enjoy :)

...

Disclaimer: I don't own anything but the story idea and any OCs.

Chapter 41:
A Chance at Freedom

...

...

"Luigi...Luigi..."

Wendy whined sadly as she desperately tries to call out to Luigi. She had woken up this morning, earlier than she usually wakes up. Still feeling tired, she snuggled against Luigi intending to go back to sleep. What she didn't count on was for him to snuggle against her.

Now wide awake, she stood up from her bed and look over at her bedmate. Gently, she called out to him. Her heart skipped when she saw his head moved. After 16 days of being in a comatose state, he was finally starting to wake up.

"Luigi..." She said. "Luigi, please, open your eyes,"

A small groan caught her ear holes and she tense when his eye lids started flickering. Slowly, they began to open. Before she knew it, her blue eyes were staring down on another pair.

"Lu-Luigi...?"

The second set of blue simply stared at her for few seconds. When they close again, Wendy began to panic, thinking they might never open again. But her fear quickly melted away when they did reopen, this time with a smile.

"H-Hey there, beautiful; d-did you m-miss me?"

"Luigi!" Wendy cheered as she threw herself onto him.

"Ow," Luigi groaned in pain. "I g-guess t-that's a yes,"

Realizing what she was doing, Wendy quickly climbed off him. "Oh, sorry,"

"N-No, no, it's fine." He said; his voice was raspy from the lack of use. "T-The pain is good; i-it means I'm still alive." He looks around and noticed that he was in their room. "Uhm, w-what happened again?"

"Kalvin...stabbed you." Wendy explained. "He was aiming for me and you stood in his way."

"I...did?" Luigi said as he tries to push himself up.

"Oh no, don't get up," Wendy said as she gently tries to push him down. "You're still recovering from what happened."

"Wait..."The memory of the incident two weeks ago slowly return the plumber as he settled back on the bed. "I r-remember now. I went against Kalvin w-when one of his henchmen poisoned me. I d-didn't notice until it was too late. T-Then you and t-the others came in..."

"We're all fine," Wendy ensure him before he could worry. "There were injuries but no one died from the explosion."

"That's good." Luigi sighed in relief. "So...what h-happened next?"

"Well," She explained. "After you got stabbed, we immediately took you to infirmary. The doctor had to surgical remove the dagger from your chest. It was only a few inches away from your heart. You..." She paused for a second to glance down on the bed. "You nearly died on the operation table."

"R-Really?" Luigi questioned in surprise. She nodded.

"They said your heart had stopped beating. It took them a few minutes before they could get it going again."

Luigi frowned. "H-How long... was I out?"

"Over two weeks," Wendy replies sadly. "The doctor said you had lost a lot of blood and that your body was weak from the poison." Tears started falling from her eyes. "They didn't know when you were going to wake up and I was worried that..."

"Wendy..." Luigi interrupted her, understanding her fear and concern.

He gestured her to come over which she did. He pushed himself up to a more upright position as she sat beside him. Careful of his wounds, he pulled Wendy into a comfort hug.

"I'm s-sorry, Wendy," he said softly. "I d-didn't mean to m-make you worry."

"It's not your fault." Wendy said as a few tears fall freely. "Kalvin is to blame for all this, as well as Clawd. Right now, I'm just glad to see you wake."

"Wendy...I w-want you to know... I-I'll always be there to protect you,"

"I know," She said as she pull away and gently cup his face. "And I want you to know that I'll always protect you too... I love you, Luigi"

The heart monitor skipped which didn't go unnoticed to the two of them. Luigi beamed; he was happy to see his love finally being return. "I love you too Wendy."

She smiled and pulled him closer to put their lips together. The kiss was soft yet passionate which was just perfect for them.

"Alright…First day up and you're already getting some action."

Luigi jumped at the sudden voice, causing them to part. Wendy frowned, "Is something wrong?"

Luigi glanced at her. It didn't look like she heard anything. "Oh, no, I'm...I'm fine" He said "Just a b-bit sore."

She nodded in understand. Their attentions were drawn to the knock on the door.

"Mistress Wendy, are you awake?" said the voice knocking. "I'm here with the nurse."

"That's Kammy," Wendy said as she climbed out of bed.

As she heads for the door, Luigi mumbled softly to himself. "Mr. L?"

"Yes?" A reply, one Luigi was not expecting to hear.

"A-Are you... in my head?"

"Yes," His darker side replied. "But don't worry through. Eventually I will fade away in your subconscious…just give it a little time."

"Oh...Okay then." He said.

It was certainly odd to have a semi-conscious voice inside his head. But since it was only temporary, he wasn't going to think much of it. Wendy opened the door and was greeted by the purple Magikoopa.

"Good morning, Miss Wendy; how was your night?" she said.

Wendy smiled. "Better than it has been in weeks,"

"Really, how so?" Kammy asked curiously as she and the nurse enter the room. They both paused when they saw the figure on the bed.

"G-Good morning, ladies," Luigi greeted them with a smile.

"Luigi...you're awake,"

"Yes, I am,"

"Well, this is certainly good news." She said as she stood next to the bed. "Everyone's been waiting to hear from you again."

"R-Really?" Luigi asked surprise.

"Of course," said Wendy. "People even left you flowers and gifts to show how thankful they are."

Luigi glanced over to the corner. His eyes widen at the sight of the large pile of flower and gift baskets, all of which were for him.

"A-All that...is for me?" He said, astoundingly.

"That's right,"

'Well, aren't you a popular guy,' said Mr. L.

"You might find it hard to believe but we highly acknowledge brave acts like that, especially towards members of our Klan." said Kammy. "And although he might not openly admit it, the king is very grateful towards you and your service."

"Well, I-I was just doing w-what I thought was r-right," Luigi said. "Even if I don't always a-agree with what y-you guys do, you still didn't d-deserve t-to go out like that."

'Plus the creep insulted Wendy,' Mr. L commented. 'That guy deserved to get punched.'

Luigi try to act like he didn't hear that, and yet silently agreed with him.

"That's understandable," Kammy said. "I should inform the king of your awakening. I'll let the nurse look after you."

The purple Magikoopa step aside and let the nurse begin her examination. She asked a few questions on how he was doing while checking all his vital signs. Wendy sat by his side and held his hand through the whole process. Once she was done, she left with the promise that she'll return with the doctor.

"Well," said Luigi "I guess t-there's nothing to d-do but wait."

Wendy lean forward and snuggled against him. "I guess so,"

Luigi wrap his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close. "So...now what,"

She shrugged. "I don't know."

'Hmm…what could the two of you do to pass the time?' Mr. L thought. 'Oh, I know! You could get together, pull the sheets on top of ya, and…well, you get the idea.'

Luigi mentally blush. 'W-We are not doing that,'

'Aw, why not?'

'Why not? Because...I just wake up from a coma; I'm in no condition to do anything that physical'

'Yeah, and…?'

'And...' Luigi thought. 'And... because I say so.'

'Fine, fine, fine…' Mr. L said. 'I'll leave you alone.'

'Thank you,' Luigi smiled.

"Why don't you get some sleep?" Wendy suggested breaking him out of his thoughts. "You're still recovering after all."

He groaned. "I t-think I had enough s-sleeping for a little bit. Although," He held her closer. "I w-would like to s-stay like this f-for a while."

Wendy blushed slightly and snuggled closer to him. "Me too,"

Luigi smiled and kissed her softly on the forehead. Unfortunately, they couldn't stay like that forever. A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door. Luigi slightly grunt. Wendy stood up from the bed and answered the door. When she opened it, Bowser stepped inside along with Kammy and Kamek.

"So, what I hear is true; you are awake," said the Koopa King. "And here I was starting to think you would stay like that forever."

Luigi sat up from the bed. "I'm sorry if t-that came as a d-disappoint to you, Sir"

Bowser shrugged. "Hey, if I couldn't get rid of ya, then I doubt some other koopa will. For plumbers, you're hard to get rid of."

"Well, you k-know what t-they say...a good p-plumber is always h-hard to put down."

Bowser snorted a laugh. Kamek elbowed him on the side. Bowser glanced at him real quick before groaning softly.

"Right, well" He said, clearing his voice. "Luigi..."

Both the plumber and Wendy looked up to him in surprise. Bowser had always known the green hero's real name; he just doesn't acknowledge it as much as he did with his brother. This was actually the first time he address him as such since coming here.

"Uhm, yes?"

"You know, I'm not one to say thanks to anyone...especially if I that someone was once considered my enemy." Bowser started, feeling a bit uncomfortable about this conversation. "But since you saved both me and my family's lives, I guess I have no choice but to swallow my pride down."

"Your Highness," Luigi said. He understood the Koopa King's predicament. "Y-you don't have to, honestly."

"Actually I do," He interrupted him. "And believe me when I say this isn't easy, but..." He paused for a moment to his swallow down his pride. "Thank you for saving my kingdom. It wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for you."

Luigi was astonished; King Bowser, the most prideful koopa around, had actually thanked him. That was something he never thought will happen in a hundred years.

'Wow,' said Mr. L. 'Who knew the big guy had it in him?'

"I really d-don't know what t-to say." Luigi spoke. "But I guess t-thank you will be the most a-appropriate thing."

"Yeah, well, don't mention it." Bowser mumbled. "I mean it...Don't ever mention it to anyone outside this room."

"Oh, don't w-worry..." Luigi smiled. "My lips are sealed."

'Not mines' Mr. L said but Luigi ignored him.

"Good," He turned to leave the room when Kamek called out to him.

"Uh, your Koopaness; aren't you forgetting something?"

Bowser paused and turned back to him. He stood there for a moment, trying to recall what Kamek was referring to. Eventually, it did come to him.

"Oh, right," he moaned. Kamek stepped forward.

"Luigi," he said. "As an appreciation to your services, the king has decided to present you with a reward."

"A reward?" Luigi blinked. What could be better than Bowser thanking him?

"Yeah, a reward" Bowser said as he steps in. "And don't bother declining it; you're getting it whether you like it or not."

"Okay s-since I don't h-have a choice...what's t-the reward?"

Kamek turned to the king. "Your Majesty?"

"Right," Bowser walked over and stood next to the bedside. He stood up straight and tries to act professional. "Luigi...as a show of gratitude to me and my kingdom, I'm allowing you to return back to Mushroom Kingdom without any of the penalties."

...

...

...

...

Ending Note:

Okay, I'm going to let you guys decide - should I keep Mr. L around as Luigi's second conscious or is his minor appearance good enough?

...

Review Please :)