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 :)

Chapter Twenty-One

All of a sudden Daisy felt like she'd done something horribly wrong. She stopped in what she was doing and gazed warily at her friend. This dead-serious look of Alicia's had come out of nowhere. One minute they were in the cafe drinking hot chocolate and sharing cookies and talking and now the light-skinned girl was staring at her like she'd just committed every last one of the seven deadly sins.

"Did I say something to offend you?" Daisy asked.

Alicia pulled back at the two-seat table and took a sip of chocolate. She hadn't meant to react that way, but the situation was uncannily similar to her own. She could remember going through trauma and then having it affect her next relationship, so to see the same in her friend was sort of jarring. She took a breath and composed herself, then raised her head calmly. Daisy watched the other girl and tried to reign in her perplexity.

"Alicia?" She spoke in question.

"Sorry, D." Alicia spoke gently, "I just had a moment. Now. Tell me what happened again."

"You won't freak out?" Daisy asked hesitantly.

"Nope, not again."

"Alright." Daisy conceded.

She didn't want to have to tell everything again, so she skipped over the details and told Alicia of her great night, in short, and her subsequent wonderful morning.

"Then I started thinking," Daisy said softly.

Alicia had to lean forward over their tiny table to hear her. The cafe was down the street from their job, a place they headed to after work to have talks such as these. The young women were hardly alone, but in their corner they did feel a bit of privacy.

"About you being a masochist." Alicia supplied from memory.

The first time she'd said it, Daisy had spoken even more softly than ever but somehow Alicia still heard her; perhaps because her mind was already prepared to receive a response akin to that. Instead of repulsion or any other sort of judgement Daisy expected to see, there was understanding and something else, something withheld and reserved.

Alicia then said, "And you think you're a masochist because?"

"Because even though Luigi," Here Daisy's voice dropped again, "even though he made love to me and it was sweet and beautiful, my favorite parts were when it hurt."

"That's not unusual," Alicia relayed at once. "It's the psychological damage you're experiencing. I read up on this stuff because, like you, I thought something was wrong with me. There's nothing wrong with you. The only thing that I'd be concerned about is what you put your poor boyfriend through."

"Huh?" Daisy blinked. "What do you mean?"

"You told me earlier that you and bae had a talk," Alicia started.

"Bae?" Daisy interjected, puzzled.

"It's a nickname for your boyfriend," Alicia informed her offhandedly. "You know; baby, boo-thang, significant other."

"Oh. I get it." Daisy nodded.

Alicia smiled, then regained full solemnity when she said, "You told me you had a talk with him about marriage and kids."

"Yeah," Daisy recounted dismally, "I think I may have creeped him out or something. He got this look on his face like I was talking crazy."

"I can imagine so," Alicia hummed, "You're only what, 23?"

"Yes, but I love him." Daisy argued, "And he loves me. Why shouldn't we get married?"

"Because relationships need time to grow and get stronger." Alicia replied.

"Ours is already strong," Daisy said with conviction. "I don't see why we should wait any longer."

Alicia studied her friend for a moment and then grew quiet.

"Daisy," She said slowly, "Why do you really want to get married?"

Daisy stressed her brow and stated, "Because I love him. Why else would I want to?"

Alicia gave her a pointed look but could tell that Daisy wasn't following her.

"I don't want you to feel like you have something to prove." Alicia expanded. "Getting married right off the bat, having kids; that's not going to fix anything and it's not going to prove you're 'cured', or that you're-"

"-not like him." Daisy finished.

She looked down in her lap and thought for a moment. Had she been rushing into marriage? She didn't think so. She was nearly 24, it wasn't as if she was a little girl, and she knew she loved Luigi, so what use was there in waiting? Could she be rushing? Could she be racing to prove that she was okay, that she'd moved on? That the Dark King hadn't been haunting her from beyond the grave?

Quite possibly, now that I think on it, Daisy thought.

"There's nothing wrong with you," Alicia continued. "So don't feel like you have to prove you're normal by squeezing out some babies and playing the part of some perky little housewife. Sorry. Projecting."

"Hm?" Daisy hummed.

"I was projecting my own thoughts and insecurities onto you," Alicia explained. "I used to think that if I could just fall in love with someone that was good for me, I'd be okay. Then I met Dean and I still wasn't satisfied, so I thought that if I just married him and had a child and fell into a domestic role, I'd stop feeling so dirty and used and damaged."

"Whoa," Daisy breathed. "I totally understand what you mean."

Those very same feelings chased her when she was alone with her thoughts. She did feel damaged and used; the tyrant had put his filthy hands all over her body and no matter how often she bathed, she feared she may always have that lingering 'dirty' feeling.

"I know," Alicia smiled faintly, "It's scary how much I can relate to you even though I don't know what you've been through. I guess it's a spiritual thing."

Daisy nodded at that and said, "So Luigi wasn't overreacting? I really was being hasty?"

"Trust me, you were, because I was at one time." Alicia affirmed. "Just take your relationship in stride, D. Give yourself time to really heal 'cause that's what you need: time. Not a child, not a piece of paper and a metal ring. Time. All that other stuff will come later."

"Alright." Daisy mulled. "I guess you're right. Thanks for that."

"Anytime."

Alicia then grinned conspiratorially. "Now that's enough of all that heavy talk. Tell me more about your little cousins."

Subject changed, Daisy felt a bit lighter. She let a small smile grace her features and gave a short laugh.

"Well first of all, they're not little, not to themselves at least."

It came to him while he lay in sleep. His memories. The weapon he'd been assigned to make, the altered formula, the harsh exchange with his older brother, his impassioned threat of leaving, the physical turn things had taken, and at last, the obliviation of the entire encounter.

Iggy felt like he'd be sick.

It wasn't nearly time to wake, but there was no way he could get back to sleep, not after this. Iggy recalled with stark vividness the way Ludwig had ordered him to harm another living being, the way he justified the way he forced them all to train. Iggy could feel the shame and guilt coming back to him all over again at having gone through with the assault on that Koopa, even if he had dimmed down the potency of Ludwig's substance.

He turned on his side, facing his bedroom wall in the top bunk bed. In his plain pants and t-shirt he felt hot. The sweat was making the sheets stick to his bare arms. With his heart racing, he sat up slowly and extricated himself from the covers. His hair, long and lime green, was tied down with a bandanna so as not to obstruct his view at night, so he didn't have to worry about that. He wiped the moisture from his cheeks and forehead and breathed in a long breath to calm his heart.

"Why would he erase that memory?" Iggy asked softly, but the answer became apparent.

He had the full extent of his memories back by now, and he knew that there was something Ludwig wasn't telling him or his siblings, some important things about their origin. He was determined to find out.

"I wish I could get out of here first," He lamented bitterly.

Like his sister he was trapped: he could feel the foreign magic thrumming through his bloodstream. It didn't feel natural, not like his own ethereal essence. He knew that Ludwig could control him, control whether he left or stayed in the palace. It was enough to make Iggy's fists clench in rare anger but he tempered himself.

"That's alright," He said tightly to himself, "I'll find a way to undo this. And I'll find out what Ludwig's hiding, too."

"Mmmm..."

Iggy started at the sound of his brother below him. Ever since Larry kept falling out of the top bunk, they switched beds. Now Larry was down there, groaning and waking up. Iggy peeked over the edge of the bed a bit and saw his blue-haired brother blink up at him.

"What's on? What's going on?" Larry croaked.

"Nothing," Iggy told him gently, "Go back to sleep."

"Was that you talking to yourself?" Larry asked. "What's Ludwig hiding?"

"Nothing," Iggy said again. "You must have been dreaming. Go back to sleep now."

"Hmm. If you say so." Larry mumbled.

Very soon he dozed off once more.

It seemed like, since Daisy and I had that talk, I've been seeing children everywhere. Big kids with chubby cheeks, little kids with chicken legs and scrawny arms and every other child in between. New York had tons of people and so did Brooklyn alone, but I knew it was because of Daisy's pervasive desire to have children that I was noticing all the kids today. They were cute I guess. Nice to look at and say 'aww' but I didn't really feel inclined to go and have one of my own. It was a ton of work and I just wasn't ready for that. I did love Daisy but this was the one thing I needed to think about first.

Marriage on the other hand; that's a whole lot easier to swallow

I could imagine a small gathering of family and friends like how Daisy described. That sounded pretty nice for someone as anti-social as me. I also wondered if it would be prudent to get married in this world or in the Mushroom Kingdom. Brooklyn wasn't screaming offers at me and the scenery here wasn't exactly to die for, but I wasn't too eager to go back there to be honest. Like I said, too soon.

"Are you ready?"

It was the weekend so I was off during the day. I still had some hours to make up for that advanced check. I was going to take Daisy to the old warehouse downtown so that she could drop off the letters she'd written to her cousins. I also had something for them, some candy I thought they might like and some more of my old comic books packed into a small cardboard box.

"I'm coming," Daisy called from the bedroom.

I stood by the door and waited for her. It was getting warmer so I could go out in just my pants and a shirt for once instead of having to don a jacket. Daisy was dressing accordingly, too, as I could see when she emerged from the back of the apartment. She wore a jean romper with suspenders and a slim brown belt that matched her sandals. Underneath the outfit she had on a white button up shirt with her hair down in waves; she bought a curling iron sometime last week I think. As she walked to the door, Daisy pushed her hair behind her shoulders and smiled.

"I'm ready," She announced.

She had two envelopes in her left hand, the one with the gold bracelets around its wrist. I didn't know if it was the influence of her friend or perhaps her own innate ability, but Daisy was adjusting well to the sense of fashion here. She was picking up information about this world so fast, but then again she was quite intelligent and adaptable so I shouldn't be at all surprised.

"Let's go then." I said.

I grabbed my keys from the hook on the wall and headed downstairs. Watching Daisy climb into the passenger seat was a show; the girl had nice, slender, shapely legs. She settled herself down and gazed at me expectantly; I was still standing by the car like an idiot.

One of these days I'll get used to how beautiful she is

Having tossed the box I had into the backseat, I got into my old vehicle and strapped myself in.

"Luigi I wanted to apologize." Daisy said after I'd started the car.

I glanced from her to the rear view mirror and back in mild confusion. Daisy wrung her hands before continuing.

"I realize that I was rushing things," She stated, "I thought that marriage and children would maybe make me stop dwelling on some things relating to um what happened to me, but I was wrong."

"Oh." I said lamely. "That's good."

That's good isn't it? What was I supposed to say to that?

I always felt so useless when it came to things like this. I wasn't an expert in psychology or the after-effects of trauma so I couldn't offer her any consolation other than the usual cliche patronizations, and I thought to highly of her to tell her any of that. I figured it was better to just say very little and hope for it to suffice.

"Alicia said that only time would help me get over what he did to me." Daisy then told me.

I said, "You have a very wise friend."

I didn't say anything more because I could feel myself getting mad again, just like I always did when I remembered that nitty-gritty aspects of Daisy's involvement in the fall of the late king. I averted that anger into nonchalance and watched the road for a while.

"Is this the place?" Daisy asked dubiously.

I was slowing the car to a stop outside the old abandoned warehouse and while I did I nodded. This was the place Mario and I used to set up an inter-dimensional correspondence system with the help of an old magician friend of my brother's, Mervin I think his name was. Anyway, the thing was fairly simple to use: just stick something in and it would get to the palace in the Mushroom Kingdom. Occasionally I'd find a letter or, like a year ago, an invitation.

"I would say it's not as creepy as it looks," I told her, "But it is. And the inside is only worse."

"Wonderful." Daisy said wryly.

She got out the car and followed me from the empty lot to the barricaded building. The white bricks were yellowed with age, and huge chunks of it were spray painted in fat, colorful letters. I took Daisy's hand in the one that I wasn't using to carry the box of candy and guided her around the back, where a sole door lay un-boarded up like all the rest. I had to give the door a bit of a shove but on the third push it gave in. A cloud of dust rose up to greet us. Daisy coughed and waved a hand in front of her face. I could feel some of the particles blow into my eyes and make them sting.

"It's been a while since I've come here," I said sheepishly.

Daisy grinned and said bemusedly, "I can tell."

Through the darkness, the cobwebs, the dirty cracked tile floors, the many doorways with no doors on their hinges and past the smeared glass windows I led Daisy. While we walked over mounds of debris, I tried to ignore the pungent smell of mold or something. This place was deteriorating so badly, I could hardly believe what it once was.

"A bakery."

"Huh?"

"This place," I clarified, "It used to be a bakery. Or so I heard."

"Whoa." Daisy said from behind her hand. "I wouldn't have known."

"Here it is," I said at last. "The Pony Express."

Daisy gave me a look of intrigue and inwardly I groaned.

"I'm sorry. That was corny." I muttered.

"You forgot what I said a while back?" Daisy asked softly and with a coy smile, "I like corny."

I shook my head but remembered her words. In front of us now, at the very back of the warehouse, there was a hole in the wall. It reminded me of a trash chute because it was shiny and square-shaped and metal, so unlike the crackling plaster wall it was wedged within. It was enchanted, too, and seemed to hum faintly with magical energy.

"So this is it?" Daisy piped. "This is how you communicate with your brother?"

"This is how we could communicate." I amended.

I think once Mario got into the swing of his life and I sank into the monotony of mine, the letters stopped coming and going. Daisy seemed intrigued at this, though. I put my fingers around the bar on the square vent and pulled back. I was fully prepared to put my box in and tell Daisy to do the same with her letters, but something stopped me.

"What's that?" Daisy asked.

I pulled out the bright white envelope and felt a bit of deja vu wash over me. Well, well, well; my brother speaks. I knew this shimmery gold-trim envelope had to be an invitation of some sort, so I handed it to Daisy. She read over it while I settled our mail into the vent and shut the door.

"It's a wedding invitation," Daisy declared excitedly, "Your brother and the princess are marrying in a month, they've invited us to stay with them and join in the week's festivities!"

"Excellent."

"You don't sound very enthused."

"Forgive me."

"Luigi." Daisy chided, her hands on her hips.

I took the letter from her and said, "I'm really happy for them. Truly I am. But we've been down this road before; wedding invite equals bad news if my memory serves me correctly."

Daisy stepped closer to me and put her arms around my torso. She looked up at me with those light eyes reproachfully.

"Don't be so pessimistic," She said. "These are new times. There is no...there is no Dark King to make a mess of things. Let's go and make the best of it, kay?"

"Of course." I nodded down at her. "We'll go. I just hope nothing happens, is all."

"And, while we're there," Daisy spoke with a grin and a sparkle in her eyes, "We can see how they celebrate and take cues for our own wedding."

"Right."

"Am I being forward again?" She asked abruptly.

I let my kiss answer that for her. She responded immediately, moving her hands to hold either side of my face with the added height her tip-toes brought. If it weren't for the fact that we were in a creepy ass building that was falling apart a little each day, I'd have enjoyed her lovely mouth a lot more. As it was, I had to pull away from her in favor of getting out of there before the roof fell in on us.

A/N: Another shorty, sorry people. This is going to be the last short chapter for a while, I hope. I like writing longer, more detailed installments.

I hope you enjoyed it nonetheless and I thank you for your awesome reviews, both long and short :) Still fighting for my right to party...er, update so bear with me please.

Until next time!

~DymondGold~