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Enjoy!
Chapter Fifty-Six
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 if you see me throw a little of that in, too
It didn't matter that things were different this time around. It didn't matter that we had Peasley on our side, who was a novice sorcerer but a skilled medic and a very crafty and intelligent individual overall. It didn't matter that we had the Lord of Illusions, one of the most powerful creatures in the Mushroom World, right here with us. It really didn't matter that we had an army or that we had these guns and shields and other weapons. At the end of the day, it was still just me and Daisy and the Dark King coming between us yet again. Once she was inside, it'd be him and her and I'd have to be on the outside yet again, on the sidelines while she just threw herself in the middle of a snake pit.
"Commander, we're ready."
I think Portia will be my second in command. She's always the one to report to me first on the overall condition of the rest of the troops. Since Daisy and I were pretty much equal in terms of authority (what's a Commander to a Princess and vice versa in the field of battle?) it made sense. The young woman was just as somber as the rest of the soldiers as she stood before me.
Like the rest of them, she was ready and prepared for the worst. The map did work, and we were able to jet over to Sarasaland and back, having stocked up on weapons and supplies. Portia shifted her shield over her shoulder, looking more like her father in expression, or rather in lack thereof. She had her long violet hair in a ponytail, the end of which flew around in the breeze from the hole in the back of her cap. I stared from her to the troops and sighed. Why did they still look like a rag-tag group of young people?
Sure, they did look the part of a diligent army on the outside, but my eye was trained to see beyond that, to see the hesitance in some of their eyes. They sure could have had anyone else fooled though. Like Portia said, they were ready.
No more ready than my fiancée, though. Daisy was wearing something different today. On top of her black pants and shirt she had on a black cloak and though I didn't see how that would help her blend in, she'd insisted on wearing it. She had the hood down now and I saw how focused she was. Her eyes were slightly squinted as she stared ahead, her light eyes reflecting the mid-morning sunlight. We were back in the desert but much closer to the city. It wasn't a long walk to the gates. Everyone was waiting on me.
Here we go, I thought dreadfully.
I wiped a hand over my brow and glanced down at the sand near my boots. It was time to do this. No stalling, just go ahead and get in there.
"Alright, let's move." I called, leading the way.
I felt my troops and Daisy fall in step behind me as we headed towards the gates. We had no horses this time, seeing as how the map allowed us to travel much more quickly. And besides, there was nowhere for the poor animals to graze or drink. They were more a hindrance than anything.
"They look happy to see us," I remarked when we reached the gates.
I was talking about the guards; they'd smiled as if in relief and had started opening the gates before we even got there. It was funny at first, how they moved so hastily and bowed to us, but then I thought about it. If they're glad to see us, that can't be good. It must mean they've had a little taste of the Dark King's brand of hospitality.
Sure enough, we all stopped and took in the sight of the partially-burnt warehouse. It was extensively damaged to the point of being exposed to the elements, what with all the holes in the walls and ceilings. Most of it lay in a collapsed, ashy heap. The ground was alright, though it was littered with more ash and debris. It looked terrible.
"This is Bowser's handiwork," I told my soldiers, because they were looking on silently.
Portia turned up her nose and said, "This is just like the other palace. What, is the big bastard into arson or something?"
"You could say that," Daisy said slowly.
She was looking at the burnt building but not in the same way the rest of us were. She was studying the place. She then looked to me.
"You should leave your troops here." She suggested. "No one will even think to come and investigate."
I frowned, then nodded. It made sense. If Bowser was here, he might be suspicious to find out an army was here. And I didn't know if the guards and Roy had already told him about us being here so either way we'd need a place to inconspicuously squat at. This abandoned building would do nicely.
I would have told Daisy it was a good idea but she'd already walked off. I turned to the troops and gestured towards the building.
"You guys stay here." I instructed. "Daisy—well, you know, she and I are gonna' go ahead with the rest of the mission. Don't act until I come back."
I got a lot of nods in response and left them then, hurrying to catch up with Daisy. She wasn't walking very fast because she knew I was coming but it unnerved me how she'd just taken off. Was I reading too much into things or would this acting alone be a pattern with her?
If so, we can call this off right now, I thought, frowning.
I strode beside Daisy and she jerked her hood up. The girl's pace doubled so it was difficult to walk and talk.
I said, "You ready for this?"
"I kinda' have to be." Daisy said a little tersely. "Come on, we can cut through the gardens."
"Right."
I didn't try to speak anymore as we rushed towards the palace. This was getting harder and harder to bear. The closer we got to the gardens, the worse I felt. That feeling inside me was like a wet blanket tossed over my heart, dragging it down and soaking it with cynical, fearful emotions. I tried not to think about what could go wrong and instead kept my eyes ahead like Daisy. How was this girl handling this so well?
"This way," Daisy guided me.
I wondered how she knew about this shortcut but then again, she's known about Arid City longer than I have. Maybe she's been here before. Or maybe she's just been reading the hell out of that map.
I followed my princess out of the busy city streets and towards the sandy surrounding, then saw the oddity that was the former king's gardens. It was like a spot of freshness among dried, golden earth. She grabbed my hand because maybe I was moving too slow or maybe her nerves were getting bad but I was glad for the connection either way. Together we entered through a gap in the tall hedges and from there we had to navigate through the labyrinth of greenery and beautiful flowers.
Much too fast we were walking to appreciate the variety of sweet-smelling and brightly colored plants. Daisy was partly dragging me by the hand through the twisting and turning stone pathways. It was so much cooler in the gardens, but I was breaking out in a steady sweat, which was making it hard to keep a good grip on my shield. I tugged it onto my shoulder and it clanged once again the gun strapped at my hip. It was a smaller gun than the rifle across my back but when my shield hit it Daisy whipped her head around and shushed me.
"I know!" I whispered, shifting my gun to the side as I walked.
Better yet I kept one hand on it just in case. Daisy was probably doing the same thing under her cloak.
Man, she's gotta' be hot under that thing, I pitied her. The girl didn't show it. She moved like a cat of prey, prowling around corners and keeping her steps nearly silent.
We reached the center of the garden, or what I assumed was the center. It had a giant space of square stone ground and there were benches so I used it to get a sense of where we were. Here we stopped, or rather Daisy did and turned to me.
"You should probably stay here," She told me.
I frowned and felt my heart start to jackhammer and a flood broke out in my palms, worse than before. I was sick to my stomach with a deluge of grief. This was it? Already we were splitting? I thought I'd at least get to watch what happened between her and Bowser but then again, that wouldn't be practical. I might get discovered and then this mission, and possibly our lives, would be over.
Daisy dropped her hood and stood before me, more the girl I fell in love with than she'd been since we discovered the first attacks at the engagement party. She gazed at me and seemed to be committing my face and features to memory. I shuddered inside when she brought her hand up to the side of my face in the way I think everyone does right before they cry. But I wasn't gonna' cry. Crying means you've given up hope, somebody told me that, and I guess in this situation it would mean I was saying goodbye to her for good, which wasn't true. God, I hoped not. I couldn't let this girl go.
"Luigi."
She'd been acting so infuriatingly heroic lately and it was making me have second thoughts about parting ways. If I let her go, would I even see her again? Would she ignore my love for her and lay down her life for the greater good? She said she didn't want to exist in a world where the Dark King did, too, or something like that—couldn't she understand that I didn't want to exist in a world where she didn't?
"Luigi, please."
I was a wreck without her. An absolute mess. If I lose her, what would I do? Where would I go? It wouldn't be right to stay in the palace, not just because we weren't married yet but because this was her home, not mine. She'd done her best to make me feel like I belonged but the truth remained that my 'home' was a shitty old apartment in Brooklyn and if I go back there…no, there's no way I could go back to that dark storm that was my life before I met this girl.
If I lose her, it'll be way worse than last time, I predicted grimly.
"Luigi." Daisy spoke more insistently.
In addition to that, she held both sides of my face and forced me to get out of my thoughts and look at her and be here right now. What I saw surprised me.
When had she started crying?!
There were tears in her beautiful eyes but they hadn't fallen, not yet. She stared at me with conviction and anguish and I wondered if I'd caused that.
"Please," She begged me softly. "Please don't have that look on your face. It's killing me."
"What?" I frowned.
She shook her head and said, "This isn't forever."
"How do you know?" I asked quietly, distrustful moreso of fate than her.
Daisy shook her head again and let her hands slide from my face down to my shoulders. She warred between a stoic and heartbroken expression before settling on something in between with much more of the former.
She said in a firm voice, "We need to be strong. Both of us. If we go into this expecting the worst, we're doomed from the start."
I looked away from her and held in my opinion that it already felt that way. I instead nodded and waited until I'd schooled my features in a mask similar to her own—all empty and dutiful—to look back at her.
"Alright, Daisy, if that's what you want." I said impassively.
I didn't even know what I was agreeing to; to shut up and go along with this? That's what it felt like. Fuck my feelings. All for the greater good, right? Who cares if the most important person in my world may not be around anymore, so long as Bowser's defeated it's all cool, right?
"We've got the mirrors," Daisy reminded me, her voice working its way back to its normal regal, in-control tone. She said, "I'll keep in touch every day."
"Yeah." I remarked dully.
Daisy stared at me, I saw her out the corner of my eye, and I waited for her to say something else so I could respond in a flippant or nonchalant way. So what if it was childish and bitter? It's like my thoughts and feelings and ideas were getting stepped on so who cares?
Do you really want to leave this way?
That small voice was like a reproachful look from my mom and it made me feel real guilty. So what if this hurt, this was the last time I'd get to see Daisy for who knows when. The least I could do was part on a good note.
I didn't warn her or anything, I just leaned down and kissed the girl like I wasn't indirectly mad at her and the world and God or whoever for sending this angel into my life and then cruelly tormenting me with the possibility of having her taken away. I kissed her like it was the first and last time we would do this, with all the earnest passion of initial love and the enduring gentleness of time-weathered affection. She was the one to step away first. I don't think she was ready for that.
She brought a few fingers up to her lips and looked at me with her eyes wet again, then blinked and inhaled audibly and released the air through her nose. She opened her eyes, regaining a large measure of her previous stoicism, and swallowed.
"Alright," She said, her voice shakier than her appearance. She sturdied it when she gave me a weak smile and said, "I'll talk to you in a little while."
Letting her go, watching her walk away from me was the hardest thing ever. But I took her words to heart and forced myself to believe I'd be talking to her again very soon. I sat on one of the benches and took the gun from my side and held it in both hands between my legs. It was a mystery even to me who I'd be using it on, depending on how this turned out.
Let's not go to extremes, I warned myself, but I seriously doubted I'd last very long in a world without Daisy. Hopefully I wouldn't have to find out.
As soon as she was away from Luigi Saraland's princess threw up the hood of her cloak and cried. She walked briskly and she cried that silent type of cry where her body moved ahead robotically and her face stayed stuck in that mannequin-esque blank expression but her insides were all cold and pinched and twisted. She couldn't get that look out of her head, the one Luigi wore for the longest before he kissed her.
It was like he'd had his soul wrung out and stepped on, she thought dismally. And it's my fault. I didn't want to leave him like that.
She thought about that kiss and nearly stopped walking because that kiss was a powerful thing. She touched her lips again and blinked the rest of the tears away. It was weird how that kiss was so sad and sweet at the same time. It gave her hope. This wasn't the end of things, it just felt like it because this mission was so dangerous and important.
Luigi's worrying too much, she reasoned, wiping her face and feeling her insides match her outer resolve. He's just real broken up about separating again. We should have spent more time together. But it's alright. There will be time for that after this is through.
Though she was prepared for the worst, Daisy fully intended to come out of this alive. She held her head high and felt the last of her confidence fill her once more as she navigated through the maze-like gardens. She reached the patio area and stopped, for she encountered someone sitting on one of the benches.
"Where did you come from?" Roy asked her.
He looked like he only half-cared because his body was hunched over and his head was in his hands and he looked so tired, too tired for a boy of only eighteen years. He peered at her with those green eyes and then glanced at the hedges from where she'd emerged.
Daisy approached him and asked, "Where's your father?"
Roy stood and stretched his arms across his chest in turn, thinking. Daisy waited impatiently for him to reply and he scratched his shaggy hair.
"I dunno." He said at last.
Daisy frowned and asked, "Did he come back to the city?"
"Yeah," Roy responded. "He just stepped out this morning. You should go to the front of the palace. He should be back any minute now and you'll be able to see him coming."
Daisy nodded and said, "Thank you."
She then left the boy standing on the patio and entered the palace through the already-open doors. She immediately pulled her hood up and skulked through the large, mostly empty building. It was a nice, lavish place to be honest, but there was a strange feeling here.
It's like sadness in the air, Daisy frowned as she hurried along. I wonder if something bad or tragic happened here.
She had to be very quiet and careful when walking past a sort of sitting room because there were a ton of men gathered there. However, they were too loud and obscenely and wholly engaged in whatever they were doing to notice someone passing by in a cloak. Most of them wore ones as well so they might have thought it was another member. Daisy released a breath of relief but soon those breaths were hard to come by.
She was getting nervous. The front doors were in sight and she didn't know what lay on the other side of them. Was he back yet? Or would she have to wait? She preferred the latter because then she had time to get her mind right.
Speaking of that, I don't know what kind of mindset he'll be in, she acknowledged. She didn't know if it'd be better or worse if he were mad or in a bad mood. His anger disabled him, made him easier to manipulate. But then again, he could kill her. His good moods were no better because he may try to mess with her head and jerk her around and that would just be frustrating and a waste of time.
Here we go, she coached herself, pushing past the palace doors. She blinked, once again in contact with the morning light and saw that it was a fairly quiet day so far. No one was around either the palace or in the surrounding streets ahead. It would seem the further away from the city the quieter things had gotten.
Okay, Daisy thought, descending the steps slowly. This is good. Now I can be ready for him.
She took a mental inventory of all the weapons she had on her person; the gun at her hip, the gun in her backpack, the knives on either sides of her waist, hooked onto her belt loops. She reached over and took the heavy metal pistol in both hands and relaxed; that was something she knew would hurt even the mighty snake, based on what happened last time. She took deep breaths and watched the streets ahead and the desert on the left and right. It was almost breathtaking the way the light made the sand look like a shimmery, honey-colored sea that continued on until it met the horizon and gave way to a pale blue, cloudless sky.
Noises brought Daisy's attention back to the front. Wherever they'd come from, the Dark King was here, and he was joined by more of the same kind of men from inside the palace.
Daisy thought, who are they?
But then she saw glimpses of the Dark King in the middle and held herself under her cloak. The men kept rank like soldiers, three on all sides of the redhead, but they stopped when they saw her approaching.
She was able to advance as long as she stared at the men and not at who was between them, but then he had to come shoving his way to the forefront. He was probably confused about why they'd stopped, and didn't look so impressed when he stood face to cloaked face with the cause of their hiatus. He frowned down at the shorter person and narrowed his eyes.
Daisy felt her body freeze, not just in step but on the inside as well. Her heartbeat flew but at the same time it felt like it was caught in an ever-tightening invisible fist. She stared up at him, feeling so many emotions at once, and overrode her desire to run and never stop. This was her tormentor, in the flesh, and she was terrified. If she didn't remember what he'd done to her, her body did and it tensed as if in anticipation of the same torturous pain she'd experienced before. Before she started to shake, she balled her fists and forced herself to get it together.
Be strong, you're the one in control, she told herself. He doesn't know who you are, he doesn't know what's going on. You've got that on your side, you're the one in control. You're in control.
"I'm in control," She whispered.
The Dark King's jade eyes narrowed further because he heard the disturbance of air and the mumbled bookends of some sentence, but overall was unable to detect what she'd said. He was about to lose his patience.
Daisy got one good look at him, making herself stare from the crown of his head to his booted feet, and told herself not to be afraid anymore. There was nothing to fear in this creature. She glanced over the tips of his ivory horns, buried in a mass of brilliant red hair that was just as untamed as the man before her and then she met his eyes. They were angry and slanted, and his mouth twisted downwards in a deep scowl.
Alright, she prepped herself before removing one hand from the gun underneath her cloak and raising it to her hood. She gripped the cowl with her slim, sweaty fingers and pulled back until the cowl rested against her back and her entire head was exposed.
Those eyes, those hypnotic jade eyes widened and then narrowed again under a suspiciously furrowed brow. She locked eyes with the Dark King and held her breath as he studied her as she'd done to him just seconds ago. He started coming towards her—weren't they already close enough?—and he didn't stop until he was right there in her space. She couldn't help it, she took a step back. Damn her instincts but every time this creature got close to her she ended up getting hurt.
He had the nerve to smirk at her then, the tan skin around his mouth pulling up faintly and his gold-flecked eyes pinning her with a knowing sort of amusement. She resented that so much because it was like he'd taken a bit of the control over their encounter away from her. She took it back when she held her head high and spoke first.
"I want to talk to you."
That's what she said, but he heard something totally different. Her being here was like telling him, 'I want you', and he smirked harder. She frowned and he stepped towards her again. This time she held her ground, which meant there was an uncomfortably small space between his body and hers.
Daisy had second thoughts. He wasn't listening to her, he was staring at her mouth. She gripped the gun under the cloak tightly and felt the necklace resting near her chest start to vibrate. That was her out, if she needed it. She stood straighter and continued.
"I came here to speak with you on behalf of my country," She clarified.
The Dark King looked up at her first, then glanced around and beyond her. She knew why.
"I came alone," She told him, an easy lie. "I want to negotiate with you, one on one."
He looked back to her, his smirk still present.
Is he even taking this seriously, she thought irritably.
She told him in her most concise tone, "I know what you're planning and I don't want you messing with my kingdom or my people."
He stepped closer still and tilted his head forward because he was towering over her. She didn't let show how much he intimidated her.
She said, "I'm fully prepared to do whatever is necessary to spare the lives and freedom of my citizens so—"
The fallen king brought his hand up towards her face and she pulled out that gun. The men guarding him stepped up threateningly but the Dark King raised a hand and held them off. He stared down at the gun, so close that it almost touched his chest, and then looked at the girl holding it. He saw the acrimony in her eyes and he loved it.
"Don't. Touch me." She warned him, her tone venomous but her expression even.
Finally he spoke and his low voice sent a chill through her. He slid his fingers along the top of the gun's barrel and tilted his head.
Locking eyes with her yet again he murmured, "What an impossible thing to ask." He said in a lighter tone, "If you really want to spare your people, join me." His voice dropped. "Reign with me and I swear I'll leave your kingdom be."
You liar, she thought, pulling a very disparaging and disbelieving face. She had to suppress a smirk of her own, though, because that's exactly what she wanted to hear.
Good to see he's still so predictable, she thought victoriously, at least in this respect.
Rather than let on how pleased she was, she held that earlier face and The Dark King was properly fooled by her reaction. He lifted a red brow, partly in teasing but also in question.
"Is that too much for you, precious?"
She flinched and her expression of distaste was less rehearsed and more habitual.
Daisy blinked coolly and said, "Not at all. But I don't want you putting your hands on me."
Bowser laughed and reached for her and Daisy raised the gun so that it was pointing at his head. He shook it and smiled patiently.
"Alright," He told her. "I will…try to do as you ask, but be reasonable, Your Majesty." His eyes flickered down to the gun and back. "I can't have you trying to kill me."
"Don't give me a reason to."
Oh wait, the girl thought wryly, too late for that.
He laughed at her and closed his hand over the barrel of the gun. Before or after she pulled the trigger, she wasn't sure, he'd melted the thing closed and rendered it useless. She glared at him and tossed the impotent piece of metal at his face. He swatted it away and it clattered to the ground.
"You expect me to be around you without any protection?" She asked him with angry incredulity.
He stared down at her and stated smoothly, "If I know you, precious, and I'd like to say I do, that wasn't your only weapon."
Daisy glared up at him and hated times like these where she wanted him to be wrong so badly but he was right.
But it's not because he knows me, she told herself. He's just predicting an enemy. Only a fool would come with one weapon. He just guessed, that's all.
"Come inside," The Dark King spoke in such an intimate tone.
He knew how to make his voice sound like silk sometimes while at others he roared and barked and snarled like an animal.
He brushed past her, knocking his arm and shoulder against hers lightly and moving his hand over the back of hers. She wrenched it away and turned sharply, her instincts telling her to keep him in her line of sight. She saw him offer his hand and smile in a small, serene way.
"Don't you want to discuss the terms of our arrangement?" He asked her.
The girl sneered at his proffered hand and walked past him. She knocked into his shoulder on her way past, something like he'd done, but she did so with animosity. He just laughed quietly to himself and followed her, raising his hand towards his guards to do the same.
A/N: Alright so far so good, right? We'll see.
I don't think Bowser knows what he's doing, but then again he has a habit of underestimating people and he still believes this girl will come around. Well.
I'll try to get the next chapter out soon.
Ciao everybody!
~DG~