Chapter Twelve: Death of a King

-The Dark Lands-

Bowser began to worry when he began to see less and less of Mr. L. He knew that his friend didn't like to show his pain, but he knew that Mario disowning him in front of everybody was a major blow to the man's ego. The king also knew that Mr. L stopped searching for Daisys companionship too. He knew that Luigi and Daisy was a thing once upon a time, so ignoring her is only going to serve as a reminder that his formal life is over.

Though Bowser knew exactly where he was. Mr. L was in his room, maybe working on rewriting the peace treaty, or maybe sulking. He couldn't tell… he used to be able to read Luigi like a book. But now Mr. L is just a mystery to him.

Looking down at the table, he stared hard at the large, extremely detailed map. He was in the war room where they first brought Daisy. It wasn't the best place for her, but they couldn't trust her in any other room. Since this strategy table hadn't been used in years…for obvious reasons.

But his moment of silence was interrupted when he heard the incredibly familiar footsteps of his loyal advisor. Kamek silently shuffled into the room, usually bringing bad news. Like when Mario became king.

"What is it now?"

The magikoopa bowed his head "my lord… the Sarsaserian king… is dead…" he took a breath "he had a heart attack last night and died this morning…the princess is the only sole heir and…"

Bowser looked up from the table, finishing the rest for him "and now she has the ability to sign the peace treaty herself!"

The king stood up "you're dismissed…"

"Sir, do you want me to fetch the ambassador?" Kamek asked. Bowser shook his head "no, I am going to get him myself."

…

Mr. L's chamber was incredibly dark; heavy curtains blocked the windows and the only candles that lit the room were snuffed out hours ago. Leaving Mr. L to sit in his room, facing that damned mirror of his.

Heavy knocking had brought him out of his trance like state. Using his finger tips to light some candles he answered the door to Bowser, if the king was in this side of the castle, then something big happened.

"Bowser…" Mr. L took a breath "what happened, you look like you seen a ghost…"

The king shook his head "I might as well, Mr. L... the king of Sarsaland had a heart attack last night...he died this morning..."

The smaller man was silent, as a new array of emotions washed over him. The king never really liked Luigi, because he believed that his only daughter should marry to one of pure, royal blood. The king was a very traditional man, and one of the main reasons why Luigi was to be knighted was practically to win his favor…though deep down, it was all in vein. But Mr. L felt relief take over, if Daisy signed the treaty she is out of here… out of this kingdom and out of his hair.

"Where is Daisy...?" Mr. L asked slowly "I want to be the one to break the news…" Bowser pointed to a direction "she's in the dining hall…" he wanted to warn Mr. L to be gentle with this news, but he knew deep down that the man could handle it.

…

Daisy sat alone in the dining hall, she had just finished her meal not too long ago, so she knew that she had this moment to be alone. Though her only moment was interrupted when she looked up to see Mr. L. She smirked "well…look who it is… for a while I thought you had died after King Mario ripped you a new one…"

Mr. L rolled his eyes; Daisy had only grown to be harsher during her stay here. Just another thing he had failed, her mind hadn't been changed about the peace treaty… part of him wanted to be blunt and cruel about her father's fate. Though he maintained his patience with the flower princess and got on his knee.

"Listen Daisy…" he tried to take her hand but she snatched it away, choosing to cross her arms and look away. Still Mr. L forced himself to continue "I have some news…"

Daisy looked back at him "did father sign the treaty? Am I able to finally go home?"

Mr. L shook his head "no… Daisy, I'm so sorry… your father had a heart attack last night…he… passed away this morning…"

The room grew silent, as Daisy confident features melted away to a look of shock and grief. Mr. L watched as she began to panic "what… he can't be… the doctors said that he was doing better…"

She stood up abruptly, knocking Mr. L back, pointing the finger at him "you! This is all your fault! If you didn't push him about this stupid treaty he would've still be here!"

She leaned in closer, angry tears spilling down her cheek "first I lost the love of my life then I lose my father! Why did you come here Mr. L? Come to rub it in my face some more? Who else are you going to take from me?!"

Mr. L stood up "oh, so you wanted Bowser to come in here and just bluntly say that your precious daddy is dead? At least I tried to be gentle about it! But of course, blame it all on me! Just more shit on my plate!"

Daisy turned away to storm out of the room "get away from me, Mr. L! I don't want to see you stupid face right now!"

Instinctively Mr. Ls hand shot out and grabbed onto her arm pulling her back and into his chest. Daisy froze but then curled into his embrace; probably something in the way he was holding Daisy reminded her about Luigi...

Mr. L felt awkward but it didn't stop Daisy from sobbing into his chest. Maybe she was pretending that Luigi was still here and he was the one to comfort her. But he knew that Daisy wasn't the one to play pretend. Though part of him secretly did…

She remained silent in his arms, and he held her tighter. Mr. L wasn't the one to comfort someone in their time of grief, but holding her seemed good enough...

They stood there for Grambi knows how long, until Daisy took a deep breath, looking up at him. For a moment she silently studied his face, almost like she knew who he was. Resting her head back onto his chest, she sighed.

"I will…sign…the treaty…"

Mr. L froze, though quickly looking down at Daisy. Maybe she agreed to sign it only to leave for her father's funeral. But she couldn't tell.

"But I can't go back…"

That caught him off guard "why…?" Daisy looks back up at him, her eyes red from crying "Sarsaland is very different from the Mushroom Kingdom… if I go back now, they will just marry me off in a heartbeat…and not wait so long like what they did with Peach… if I am still here… I can…" she trailed off. Mr. L knew what she was going to say, though he pressed on "so you can what?" Daisy closed her eyes with a sigh, he didn't want her to finish, but part of him needed to hear it.

"So I can wait for...him to come back…"

He knew that Daisy assumed he was a completely different person, at least, he thought she assumed that Luigi was hiding somewhere and not in this room. But he knew well that Luigi is not here, that he is never going to come back. He wanted to tell her that Luigi is dead, but he couldn't. As if breaking that news to her made it all too real for him to stomach…

…

The night before Daisy is due to sign the treaty, the castle decided to do something for her in return. By draping its windows in a sheer black curtain, including the Bowser family crests and drapery, since the flower princess wouldn't be able to return to her home kingdom…Mr. L and Bowser decided that they could at least show their respect to the fallen king.

Later Mr. L returned to his chambers, after a long day of mourning a king that he never really liked to begin with. But he sat through it for Daisys sake and she was grateful for that. Though he knew part of her was still reluctant to sign the treaty tomorrow. After years of being raised with that kind of brainwashing, he knew that it would be difficult for her. But he knew that she will come through...and that he was grateful for.

Lying on his bed, Mr. L was left alone to his thoughts, letting the events from the last few months circled around his brain. He wondered if he could be trusted to be alone with his thoughts.

'I don't have a brother'

'I want you and your filthy peace treaty out of my kingdom…'

'There is no evil…why can't you understand that…'

Mr. L closed his eyes, curling up into a tight ball, staring into mirror across from him. He got what he wanted, got what he had worked so hard for… but why does he feel so empty.

Staring deep into the mirror, he only saw Mr. L.

'Luigi is dead for all I care'

End of Chapter