Hey. I'm back for now with the next chapter.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Mario or its franchise; it belongs to

Nintendo and their affiliates. I just am really grateful to its creators for giving

me such a wonderful game and media series to write about!

I also don't own anything related to Harry Potter, all that belongs to J.K. Rowling,

but thanks go to her as well because, using her wonderful work, I can expand this

story to make it more interesting.

I also don't own anything related to Naruto.

Chapter Five

Of each kingdom, there was a little bit inside Sarasaland's Princess. That included Chai and its orderliness; Daisy did have an anal-retentive side that liked things to be neat and in its place, hence the state of cleanliness that her personal office was in. It was a newly-refurbished room in the palace designed for her use, and she was getting in a lot of time there already. For a couple of hours since her meeting this morning she'd been holed up in there, going over the reports she'd gathered from the kingdom's officials earlier. She had the papers in respective stacks in front of her according to what they entailed and who they were from, and her mind was focused on gleaning the most important details from all the notes. But even with the papers to occupy her mind, Daisy still had trouble concentrating. Her mind kept going back to Luigi.

Daisy leaned back in her cushioned seat and dropped her pencil on the table, atop the paper she'd been scrawling on. She drummed her fingers on the arms of her chair and stared ahead unseeingly.

I wonder if he's alright, She thought.

Earlier the girl had run into General Zair and knew he would be training Luigi personally before her boyfriend would be awarded the position as commander; that worried her. She knew the old General wasn't hateful or malicious, not exactly. But she also knew Zair could be a bit...zealous when it came to fulfilling his duties and was often...creative when it came to testing people's physical limits.

Luigi is tough, Daisy thought resolutely, he'll survive. I did, after all, and I was little more than a kid when I pulled that stunt.

She'd pulled a lot of stunts as a little princess, but the one in mind was entering Zair's ranks as a male recruit. Daisy smirked at the memory again and leaned forward once more.

Luigi will be fine, she affirmed to herself, then started to finish up her work.

Someone was coming up the stairs.

He could hear the soft footfalls of someone making their way towards his room. So acute was his hearing these days. It only made sense that that particular sense had been augmented in light of the other senses being dulled; not taste or sight or touch, but his sixth sense of magical keenness. He couldn't detect magical signatures anymore, not that he'd be able to anyway, for the person approaching was masking theirs. Ludwig figured it was King Boo.

Why does he even bother coming around?

The young man-turned-child had previously been sleeping in the corner of the guest bedroom. He had his legs crosses and his head in his hands, slumped over facing the wall. As soon as he heard the noise from the stairs, he slowly raised his head and strained his ears. He had a crick in his neck and was aching all over, especially in the stomach, but that was due in large part to the book tossed about a foot away from him. The burgundy book lay open innocuously but Ludwig glanced at it with loathing. He recalled how weeks ago he'd taken to wandering the estate and discovered that some rooms were off limits to him. The library was one of them. At the time, that hadn't bothered Ludwig, but days wore on and he grew increasingly restless. He'd swallowed his pride and went skulking around once more through the estate, late at night, when he figured King Boo was busy. He figured there'd be a book lying around somewhere, and if he could get his hands on it, he could teach himself magic, even if it was just a rudimentary trick or two. His idle mind craved any sort of stimulation beyond glaring at his bedroom walls.

So Ludwig had found a book in the kitchen and had stolen away to his bedroom as fast as his prepubescent legs could carry him, only to realize his godfather had anticipated even this turn of events: King Boo had all the books in his estate charmed to make Ludwig burst into hysterical laughter if he opened them, just in case something like this ever happened. Ludwig hadn't gotten ten pages before he had to toss the book away. His ribs were still killing him.

What an asinine waste of magic, the young navy-haired child thought bitterly. He didn't find King Boo's innovative means of punishment amusing at all. He'd opted to take a nap after his unsuccessful attempt at reading and had only just woken up. Once more Ludwig glanced at the door because someone was turning the knob. Promptly Ludwig turned and faced the wall again.

I don't even want to see his face, the ex-enforcer sneered.

He folded his arms across his chest and heard the door open. Predictably, the voice of his former mentor rang through the previously silent room.

"Ludwig, you have visitors."

That wasn't what Ludwig was expecting to hear, but since his back was still turned, neither King Boo nor the individuals with him could see the navy-haired child's eyes narrow at the news. Ludwig didn't even move.

King Boo saw this and shook his head, then said. "I'll leave you alone, then."

Ludwig heard him retreat and heard the door close. He then heard more footsteps move over the carpet, light footsteps.

"...So it's true, then."

Ludwig stiffened at that voice.

"The rumors of the fallen king were right."

In a low drawl, Ludwig asked, "Have you come to gloat, Ignatius?"

"Frankly I don't care about the state you're in or how you've come to be this way." Iggy spoke coldly. "I already knew you'd come to some ruinous end."

Ludwig snorted quietly at that. "Don't credit yourself with omniscience; you're just impossibly cynical."

"Maybe." Iggy replied absently, then said. "But I didn't come here for you. I came for answers."

So brusque was his delivery that Ludwig felt compelled to turn around and stare at his younger brother. He was almost impressed with what he saw. Gone were the traces of awkwardness and uncertainty, what he saw in front of him was a young man who was confident of where he was going and determined not to be impeded. In place of gangly limbs and disproportionate features there was a slightly muscular, lean individual with astute eyes and alabaster skin. Iggy wore his white cloak and stood in front of his smallest brother Lemmy, who was silently regarding Ludwig with his own still-large eyes.

So this is what Ignatius has become, Ludwig thought to himself. There was always an air of maturity about him, but now it's started to show.

"You've changed," Ludwig stated.

"More than you know," Iggy clipped. "I want to know about where I came from."

Ludwig asked, "You're still going on about that? Just leave it alone."

"Not. An option." Iggy replied stalwartly.

The navy-haired Koopa gazed at his brother and sighed. For a second, he looked beyond his own miserable situation and put himself in the place of where Iggy was. He'd personally been there, a long time ago.

He was only speaking from experience when he said, "Trust me, little brother, that is not a road you want to go down."

"Just tell me what you know." Iggy demanded.

Under his cloak, his slender hands gripped the fabric of his pants. He was trying not to lose his patience or get upset, but he couldn't understand why his older brother was making this so difficult.

Ludwig rolled his eyes and asked, "Why is this so important to you?"

"It just is." Iggy answered insistently. "And if you have any shred of familial decency left within you, you'll tell me whatever you know."

He didn't have to raise his voice for Ludwig to perceive he was very serious about this, and wouldn't be dropping the matter any time soon. Ludwig stared vacantly at his brother for a long time and Iggy began to wonder if the other rumors, the ones about Ludwig having lost his mind, were also true.

In an even tone, Ludwig recited, "29, 74, 76. 75, 21, 56."

Iggy blinked, then frowned and asked, "What?"

"You know I don't like to repeat myself."

Iggy opened his mouth to further question his brother but Ludwig ended the conversation the moment he turned his face to the corner again. Iggy frowned at his brother's back and tried to recall the numbers once more. His memory had greatly improved in the time he'd first left his brother's palace. That was mostly because Iggy invested time and energy into strengthening and repairing and protecting it. He never wanted to feel as violated as he did when Ludwig 'obliviated' him.

Why would he give me a bunch of numbers? Iggy glanced once more at his brother in the corner and then shook his head. He knew he'd not be getting anymore information out of Ludwig.

"Come on," He spoke to Lemmy. "Let's go."

Lemmy had held his peace through the whole encounter, but now the seven-year-old refused to take Iggy's hand. Instead, Lemmy walked over to the corner where Ludwig sat and got down on his knees. He and his older brother were almost the same height. Lemmy wrapped his arms round the back of Ludwig's shoulders, hugged him tightly, and kissed his brother's cheek.

"Bye, Lu." He murmured while squeezing the navy-haired sorcerer.

Ludwig didn't say or do anything to return or reject his baby brother's embrace. Having done what he wanted, Lemmy stood again and walked over to Iggy. He now took Iggy's hand and the thirteen-year-old glanced at Ludwig, but didn't say a word.

The two left the bedroom and headed down the stairs. Iggy wore a look of consternation and was so absorbed in analyzing the significance of those numbers that he didn't see King Boo standing at the base of the staircase waiting to receive the two guests. Consequently, he plowed right into the immortal.

"Sorry," Iggy apologized, gaining his bearings.

King Boo held him by the shoulders to steady him and nodded understandingly. He searched the children's faces to gauge how the visit had gone and saw no traces of elation or joy, but also no traces of anger or grief. He didn't know what to make of that.

"Is something the matter?" The old immortal asked.

Iggy almost said, 'no', but then asked, "What do the numbers 29, 74, 76 and 75, 21, 56 mean?"

King Boo's brow furrowed, then something dawned on him. He sighed in a way Iggy just couldn't comprehend, in a way that belied his knowledge on the matter.

The King said, "Why don't you two come and take a meal with me? It's near noon."

"But what about the numbers?" Iggy persisted.

King Boo told him, "They're not just numbers. They're coordinates."

It was in the shower under the pelting hot water that the pain of this morning's training wore off to a dull ache. The blood and the dirt washed down the drain and so did the edginess of having nearly lost a few vital body parts. But with the absence of these things came the prevalent pangs in my stomach; I was famished. I was washing my hair when I felt my stomach do something painful and impatient in want of food. That spurred me to hurry up and rinse off and clean my face and get dressed. I brushed my teeth while climbing into a t-shirt and combed through my hair at the same time as I shoved my feet back into my trainers. I think I put something on backwards or inside out. Not that I cared, I just wanted to get something to eat.

Once I was as decent as I was gonna' get, I headed downstairs and tried to find the kitchen from memory. The palace was big and hunger was clouding my mind; it was a challenging task in light of this. I had to back-track a couple of times and a lot of the servants had to help me out, but eventually I found the kitchens and was promised a meal, so long as I waited in the dining room. I had no problem finding that because it was literally the next room over. Once there, I saw there was another person already seated.

"Yo."

When I spoke, Daisy lifted her head from a pile of papers to me. She looked pretty cute just sitting at the head of the table with her feet tucked under her and her body hunched over her work. There was a plate of food to the side of her and a glass of what looked like juice; both were half-empty.

"Good morning," Daisy greeted me with a genuine smile spreading over her face.

She climbed out of her seat and met me halfway as I came over to her. Her arms wrapped round my neck and I held her waist and kissed her forehead, then her still-smiling mouth. She had to get on her toes to reach and when she settled back down on her feet, her light eyes were alight.

"So how was it?" She asked me eagerly.

I quirked a brow and asked, "How was what?"

"Your training," Daisy clarified on her way back to her seat.

She held my hand and guided me to a chair at her left. I slouched into it and resisted laying my head down on the table; I was starting to feel tired. I kept my head up and rubbed at my eyes while Daisy adjusted herself in her seat.

"The training was alright." I told her. "Never mind the few times I almost died."

Daisy touched my arm and said, "Sorry about that; I should have warned you about the General."

"He's alright," I stated carefully, "I just didn't know he was so gung ho, is all."

Man, I'm giving that dude a lot of credit, I noted wryly. I mean, I'm no head doctor, but he's a dead-ringer for the psycho-sadist personality type.

"How was your day?" I then asked Daisy, "I mean, so far that is."

I wanted to get off the subject of training because just thinking about all that was making me ache again. Daisy glanced up from her work again and put down her pencil. Her hair was a bit tangled, as if it'd been braided and she'd let it come undone. It was beautiful.

"I had a meeting with all the governors of Chai Kingdom this morning." She told me.

"How was it?" I asked.

Where's the food, I also wanted to ask.

Daisy replied, "It was boring. There's five governors for the five provinces of Chai and they all had their own, long-winded report of the state of affairs in their region."

"Is something bad going on?" I frowned.

She shook her head and said, "No, everything's fine. That's just how the officials are here in Chai; long-winded and dull and...orderly. I'm just looking over the notes I took."

Yeah, that does sound boring, I thought.

"Well I'm glad you're okay," Daisy told me with a soft grin. "I knew you were strong enough to handle whatever General Zair threw at you."

Barely, I grimaced lightly.

Aloud I asked, "How long have you known him?"

"Since I was a kid." Daisy answered. "I was young when I found out Chai only took males in the army, so being the little rebel that I was, I dressed as a boy and joined the military to...stick it in the man?"

"Stick it to the man," I assisted.

Daisy nodded and smiled a bit shyly. She was always doing that back in Brooklyn, stumbling over unfamiliar sayings and lingo and phrases. I thought it was incredibly cute and helped her out whenever she needed it.

"And what happened after that?" I asked.

Finally the food was brought out; three or four plates of I-don't-care-so-long-as-it's-edible, a la mode. The breakfast smelled great and wasn't too hot so as to scald my mouth when I started shoveling it into my face, so that made it fine in my book. Daisy laughed when she saw how I was eating.

"Um, oh yeah." She spoke, "It turns out, all new recruits have to go through basic training; that meant I had to go through Zair."

"Did you make it?" I asked, bemused and afraid for her at the same time.

Daisy said, "Sort of. I lasted through training, and that went on for weeks. I passed every intense, almost-inhumane, vomit-inducing physical test he gave us, even if it was sometimes by the skin of my teeth."

I nodded, impressed.

She told me, "The only reason I didn't make the cut for the army was because I got found out. During one of the uh, exercises, I got hurt really bad. Usually I'd just suck it up because I knew if I'd go to the infirmary, my secret would be out; but there was just one time I couldn't help it. And that's when the doctors realized I was a girl, and the princess no less."

I smiled, because it reminded me of Mulan. And now that I thought of it, Chai was a lot like China in some ways.

"They told Zair and worst of all, my parents." Daisy smirked. "My mama was horrified. My papa tried so hard not to show how funny he thought the whole thing was. And Zair, well, I thought he was mad at me but I think I earned his respect. Either way, the army started accepting male and female recruits."

"...Wow." I murmured. "That's really amazing, Daisy. You're still the strongest and bravest person I know."

Maybe even more so than Mario; or maybe they're on par with each other.

Daisy just shrugged and said, "You call it brave, but I'm just really stubborn."

And then she got a strange, pensive look on her pretty face for a moment. She shook her head and turned to her plate of half-eaten food when the moment passed. I didn't know what that was about, but I did know that each and every day I was learning something new about this girl, and it was only making me love her even more.

A/N: Luigi really loves Daisy.

Yeah, I'm back after another long wait. Sorry bout that. You can chew me out in a review, or just tell me what you think about this chapter or what have you.

I only started writing again because I had a dream about Daisy and the Dark King, so you can actually thank old despicable Bowser for this update, haha. And speaking of that, if you know why Daisy had that little moment, it would make me smile :)

Until next time!

~DymondGold~