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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 Forty-Two
I had to keep reminding myself not to drive like a maniac tonight because if I got in a car accident and died, I'd be of no help to Daisy. So I tempered myself on my way to the old abandoned building at the end of town. All our stuff that was jammed into the suitcase in the backseat fell onto the car floor. I payed it no mind. It felt like my mind was already bursting with questions and paranoid scenarios of what was going on to my love. I was also really, really frustrated. I felt like this was my fault. If I had only paid more attention to the girl and where she was at all times, maybe this wouldn't have happened.
That's impossible to do and you know it, I tried to tell myself.
But I still felt guilty for letting this happen.
You didn't let this happen; you can't control what Ludwig does
I didn't care about that, as logical as it sounded. The point was, Ludwig had taken her and there was nothing I could do about it. There was nothing that blaming myself would accomplish, either, but it was so hard not to scrutinize and dwell on every mistake I'd made. I shouldn't have waited so late to come and pick her up, maybe then I wouldn't have caught such awful traffic.
Or maybe I still would have run into traffic
There was no guarantee that anything I did or didn't do would have prevented this from happening. The real root of the problem lay with that arrogant sorcerer. I knew he was absolute trouble from and yet I'd still tried to hold my tongue and make peace with him. I went along with his dangerous, self-serving plans like a fool and at Daisy's expense. Even after I'd realized what he'd done, I still tried to remain on civil terms with him. I felt so stupid because now Daisy was paying the price for my inaction all over again. But this time would be different. As soon as I reached the punk I'd find her and get her out of there and, though I usually didn't believe in revenge or all that, I had to make him pay for what he'd done. This time he just went too far.
Once I'd made it to the old warehouse, I parked my car in the back lot and grabbed the suitcase out the backseat. I ran into the building and hurried to the luminescent warp pipe. It was getting late and though I didn't remember the exact layover from here to the Mushroom Kingdom, I knew it would be even later there. First I threw the suitcase down the pipe, then launched myself afterwards. I landed on top of it and that killed my side but the pain was nothing to me at this point. I just picked up my stuff and rushed to the train station. It was night before I reached it.
Checking the route and schedule information posted on a bulletin on the wall, I saw that the last train going to the kingdom had left an hour ago. The next one wouldn't leave until tomorrow. I didn't know what to do. I couldn't wait that long. I pondered walking to Toad City. It was cool, so I didn't have to worry about the heat doing me in. I supposed I could get there before morning if I left now and made really good time.
I turned from the wall and ran a hand through my hair, then bent down and grabbed the handle of my suitcase. While I was raising the handle up, I heard something interesting. I think my brain was hard-wired to hear certain things, and Peasley's name was one of them. His name came out the mouth of an older woman standing a few feet away from me.
The woman was garbed in white and brown clothes and had her hair in a loose bun. Her eyes and voice and body language screamed 'weary', whereas the older man with the stiff grey hair and firm, able body seemed determined. He glanced my way with his arms crossed, his muscles straining underneath his poor white shirt and brown breeches. He seemed like a farmer or somebody who worked a lot. The man started talking to his wife, rushing her. I saw that they were just standing by the wall opposite mine. The woman was looking at the same maps that were posted on a twin bulletin over there.
I heard her say, "I just want to be sure we're headed in the right direction."
"I know, dear, but if we don't make haste, this trip will be in vain." The man spoke urgently.
The woman gave him a severe look and said, "Don't take that tone with me, Ernest! Caleb is my son, too. Don't you think I want to see him healed as well?"
The man did look a bit chagrined but said gruffly, "Well, let's just hope this fancy prince'a yours is as good as they say."
"Prince Peasley is very skilled." The woman said faithfully. "He'll be able to help us."
Now I was walking over towards them. I saw in the distance that they had an old wagon, which meant they were traveling on their own. I didn't really feel comfortable asking strangers for help under normal circumstances, but for Daisy I'd do anything.
"Excuse me," I spoke clearly, "Are you going to Bean Kingdom?"
The man, Ernest, stared at me hard and asked, "Who's askin'?"
"Just me." I told him, "I really need to get to the Mushroom Kingdom, so if you can drop me off-"
"No can do, son." The man cut in. "We're not makin' any more stops."
"Ernest." The woman chided strongly.
He told her, "We can't afford to waste any more time!"
The woman told me apologetically, "He's right, I'm afraid. Our son is very sick and we won't be able to delay our trip to Bean Kingdom's hospital any longer. We've traveled so long already and-"
"You don't have to drop me off, then," I interjected desperately. "Just let me ride with you. I have a girl that I love and she's in trouble, like her life may be in danger. I need to get to Bean Kingdom as soon as possible. I'll even pay you."
I reached into my pocket and pulled out my American money. They looked at it strangely and that's when I realized how futile the gesture was. The old couple shared a glance, though, and seemed to deliberate on whether letting me come along or not. In the end, something about my words or my genuine demeanor must have gotten through to them because the woman smiled weakly and the man gave me a terse nod.
"Alright then." He said. "Throw your stuff in the back and get in where you fit in."
She woke up drowning. Or at least that's what her sleep-addled mind would have her believe. Before she opened her eyes, the sea of silk bedding felt like cool water over her skin and she panicked, fighting against the inanimate aggressor until she realized what was going on.
Oh, she thought with a silly smile, it's just sheets.
The girl lay still on her back in the bed and peered up at the ceiling lazily. There was a candle chandelier right above her head. She froze.
Candle chandelier, silk sheets, she listed in her head, I must be having another nightmare.
Usually, when she realized she was dreaming within a dream, her mind cleared, became lucid. This seemed to happen now as Daisy took a moment to first calm herself. This wasn't the first time she'd woken up in a dream, but each time it started with the same triggers; silk sheets, candle chandelier, chains. From the point of her awakening on, she was free to control her dreams and dictate what happened to her. It was the only way she'd truly learned to conquer her recurring nightmares. Daisy rose slowly in the bed, feeling only slightly in control this time. There was something off about her dream.
It's the lights, she guessed as she looked down at her attire. Odd. She was wearing her work uniform. The girl looked back up to the chandelier and nodded mentally.
Definitely the lights; they seem brighter, she noted.
From there she let her feet drop down onto the floor. She had on her customary sheer thigh-highs, so she couldn't feel the total plushness of the soft flooring below her soles. She shivered at the familiar sensation of the beige carpet swallowing her feet up and turned to the vanity mirror. Usually she couldn't see her reflection in it, another trigger, but this time her own face stared back at her. Her reflection didn't smirk at her or do anything out the ordinary, which was strange. It was never just still and silent in her dreams like it was now.
The girl turned to face the opposite wall and nearly jumped out of her skin. There, chained to the wall, was the most potent trigger of them all: the Dark King himself. He was bound by his wrists and sat cross-legged on the floor. He seemed to be in good health like he always did in her nightmares but this time there was no smirk. He only gazed at her blankly. She gazed back at him, and then sighed.
Time to get rid of him, she thought to herself.
She closed her eyes and focused on dispelling what she thought was the visage of her greatest enemy and oppressor. When she opened them again, she expected him to be gone. It almost always worked that way. If there was something she didn't like in a dream, all she had to do was will it away. This time she was unsuccessful. The Dark King merely stared at her with a trace of confusion coloring his handsome face. Daisy tried again and again to will him away with the only results being the king's heightening perplexity.
Maybe I have to speak to him, she reasoned.
In a clear voice she said to him, "Go away."
Now the Dark King spoke. He usually never spoke. In her early nightmares, she did hear his voice, but it was disembodied and never came from his mouth. This time she saw his lips move over each word.
"Go where?" He asked her tonelessly.
"I don't care." She stated plainly. "You're not welcome here."
His mouth tugged upward at the corner when he asked, "Am I truly not welcome in my own palace?"
"This isn't just your palace." She told him assuredly. "It's my dream, and you can't be here if I don't want you to be, now leave."
The Dark King's grin was slow but broad. He finally realized why the girl had been acting so strangely when she first awoke. She sincerely believed she was still asleep. He still had a faint amount of his subconscious emotions inside him and they stirred at this realization.
With a smirk he told her, "This is no dream, Precious."
Daisy frowned and said, "Yes it is."
"No, it's not." He told her patiently. "You're awake. You have been for about a minute now."
"That's impossible." She refuted.
He's lying. Trying to trick me like he always has, she told herself, there's no way I'm awake. That's insane.
"I know this is a dream." She told the king. "You're dead and I don't live here anymore, I live in Brooklyn in a very small apartment and I'm asleep there in the bed."
The king rose one brow, still looking highly amused.
"It's time to wake up." Daisy told herself.
"Wake up." She commanded again when that didn't work.
The girl pinched herself multiple times on the arm and only succeeded in making her skin bright red there. She was starting to panic. This didn't feel like a dream. This didn't usually happen in her dreams, either.
What if I am awake? What if he's right?
"That's insane," She muttered to herself. "How would I have even gotten here?"
The old king told her, "I believe you were kidnapped."
"What?" Daisy blurted. "Kidnapped by who?"
"Ludwig or one of his subordinates." The royal informed her dully.
"That doesn't make sense." She rejected. "Why would he kidnap me?"
"Because I asked him to." The king supplied.
"Okay," Daisy sighed, "Now I know I'm dreaming."
Another faint smirk crossed the Dark King's face. He stood slowly because he still hadn't gained all his strength back yet. While he got to his feet, the chains on the wall rattled and extended as if they were being retracted along a pulley system. He approached the girl that was backing away fearfully.
This is wrong, she thought, none of this is supposed to be happening.
"You're not real," she spoke in a thin whisper.
It was hard to believe that when she could feel the heat of his incoming body. He smirked harder and closed the distance between the two of them. The metal manacles were still around his wrists but the chains had slackened enough for him to reach out and take both her hands in his. She flinched but he laced his fingers through the backs of hers and brought her palms towards his body.
"What are you doing?" She asked her supposedly imagined manifestation of the Dark King.
He didn't say anything, just slid her hands up his stomach and chest. His hard body was taut and warm under her fingertips and she shuddered. He brought her hands up to his mouth and kissed them almost reverently.
"Now doesn't that feel real to you?" He asked her quietly.
She immediately jerked away from him and flew to the bathroom. She was vomiting in the sink because he was right. That did feel real. And with the moment of doubt came her memories, flooding back. She remembered getting off from work and seeing her mother of all people, standing out against the New York crowd. She'd followed the woman with tears in her eyes and had been led into a dark alleyway. There things got fuzzy. She remembered spinning and being jerked around, like the ground had suddenly disappeared and she was hurtling through space and time. That was all she remembered.
My mother is gone, she knew. There's very little possibility that she could have found me, all the way in Brooklyn, after so many years. Even if she weren't dead, it's highly unlikely.
In the face of cold logic there was but one explanation: the Dark King had been telling the truth, this was no dream, she was really here in his palace.
Daisy vomited again but this time found herself dry heaving, as there was nothing to come back up. She turned on the faucet and let the water run, washing away all the pungent unpleasantness and soothing her nerves with its steady whooshing. Daisy focused on the noise to calm herself. She dipped her hands under the spray and let the cold water do its work.
How did this happen? How did I get back here? Why am I back here? I thought this was over!
Her body, already on edge, jolted at the sound of the door opening in the other part of the room. She saw that it was Ludwig himself, looking very worse for wear. She shut off the bathroom faucet and hurried over to him. She was careful to give the king a wide berth on her way to the door. Before she could say a single word, Ludwig took her by the hand and almost dragged her out of the room. He slammed the door behind them and leveled her with a critical stare.
"What did he say to you?" He demanded.
She blinked and said, "What?"
"The Dark King." Ludwig spoke impatiently. "What did he say to you?"
"I didn't, I mean he didn't say much but Ludwig why am I here?" Daisy deflected.
Ludwig asked, "He didn't tell you?"
"He told me you kidnapped me." Daisy spoke in accusation. "Is that true?"
Inside Ludwig swore. He'd had sinister plans to lie to the girl, to tell her it was by the former king's designs that she'd arrived here so that she'd believe him when he stringed her along later, biding his time until he found a way to both return the subconscious and control the power. He did plan on returning her when he'd done these things, as safe as could be, but now that the old bastard had run his mouth, he couldn't do that. He could, but he could see that things would just unravel later on. He ran a hand through his long hair irritably.
"Ludwig!" Daisy snapped, at the same level of frustration.
His eyes snapped to hers but not for long; it was as if he couldn't stay focused on one thing at a time. Both of them looked bad, but he was worse off. Daisy was just bad in the face, as in her skin was pale from the shock of the situation, her mouth was slightly swollen, and her eyes were a bit red. Ludwig was bad all over. His clothes were wrinkled and the green shirt and lilac silk pants with burgundy boots gave the impression of him having thrown something together without care. His hair was tangled and lackluster, and his eyes were wild. He looked awful.
"What's happened to you?" Daisy now asked with a touch of concern.
In the hall she held her arms round herself and tried to spare some concern for the ex-enforcer. He dismissed her solicitation with a wave of his hand.
"That's not important." He told her.
"Then can you please explain what I'm doing here?" She then prompted.
Ludwig asked, "Do you remember that final battle?"
"Of course." She nodded, needing no further elucidation.
"That day I performed a spell," Ludwig relayed. "One that would transfer the Dark King's powers to me."
"Why would you do that?" Daisy frowned. "Don't you have your own?"
"I had my reasons." Ludwig clipped in answer. "When the power was transferred to me, his subconscious mind was transferred as well and it's making me sick."
That would explain a lot, Daisy thought. No wonder he hasn't been himself lately.
She said, "That sounds terrible and all, but that doesn't explain why that monster is alive again."
"He was never really dead."
"Come again?"
Ludwig said, "The spell called for a living host. I couldn't kill him because then I wouldn't be able keep the power."
"You never killed him?" Daisy asked, flabbergasted.
She was on the verge of having a panic attack. Her breaths were coming in shorter and shorter and her skin was starting to get hot all over. She folded her arms under her chest and unwittingly drew the sorcerer's attention there. Like a moth to a flame Ludwig's stare was fixed.
"Excuse me." Daisy spoke sharply. "Why didn't you kill him?"
"I told you why." Ludwig murmured, reluctantly meeting her eyes again. "The spell wouldn't have worked if I did."
"So it sounds like you've gotten yourself into a bind." Daisy observed. "I'm really sorry you're sick, but I don't see how this is my problem or why I'm here."
Ludwig said, "You're here because I need your help."
"With what?"
"I can't keep dealing with his subconscious," Ludwig admitted. "It's hellish. I can't sleep, I can't eat, I can't...I'm losing my mind and I'm afraid it's going to kill me."
Daisy faltered. She could see the bald honesty in his claims but she couldn't bring herself to muster up a great amount of sympathy. He'd brought this on himself when he refused to let the Dark King die.
"I'm sorry about what you're going through," Daisy tried to sound sincere. "But I don't know how you think I'd be able to help you."
"I know you'll be able to." Ludwig spoke cryptically. "It's already been handled."
"What do you mean?" Daisy asked through narrowed eyes. "What did you do?"
"I did what was necessary." Ludwig answered coldly.
"Which was?" Daisy pressed. "Ludwig, why am I here?"
"The bastard's agreed to take back his subconscious," Ludwig told her. "At the cost of a few conditions."
I don't like where this is going, Daisy thought in dismay.
"What conditions?" She asked with growing dread.
"Petty things." Ludwig spoke quickly. "The comfort of his own room. Three square meals a day. Visits with his spawn. You."
"What?"
Ludwig sighed and said, "Petty things; the comfort of his-"
"You said me. Er, you. Which means me." Daisy cut in. "He asked for me?"
"Yes." Ludwig told her.
"Well I hope you said no."
"Would you be here if I did?"
Daisy let her hands drop and took a moment to stare at Ludwig hard, to search his face for any signs of subterfuge or mischief because she just knew he couldn't be serious. There was no way he was serious. He had to be joking.
In a level voice she asked, "Are you saying that you'll give me over to the ruthless, sadistic, psychopathic Dark King so that you can have what...some power?"
"I'm doing this for you, too."
"Bullshit." Daisy spat. "How is offering me up on a silver platter helping me out?"
"If I don't get rid of his subconscious, it'll kill me." Ludwig responded.
Daisy chuckled sarcastically and said, "Uh-huh. Yeah. I'm hearing a lot of 'I' right now, but that still doesn't explain how this is my problem."
"It will be your problem once he rises again." Ludwig threatened. "Once I die, the subconscious and the power will return to the original host, that being the old bastard."
"Well that's just fantastic, Ludwig." Daisy dripped sardonically. "Not only have you managed to endanger yourself and myself, but now the entire Mushroom World! Congratulations!"
She emphasized the last word with a shove to his shoulder. He let her assault him but didn't fight back. That only fueled her tirade.
"You know, it really shouldn't surprise me." She spoke. "You've always been so selfish and greedy. You did this without telling anybody, not me or Luigi, because that's just how you are. Arrogant and anti-social."
Ludwig didn't even flinch, he just stood there and let her rant. Daisy was getting more and more infuriated.
"This isn't my fault." Daisy said, "None of this is my fault, so it's not fair to drag me into this and make me suffer."
"Suffer?" Ludwig suddenly echoed. "What would you know of suffering? Day in and day out, all I see is you! Everywhere I go, you're there with your sinful body and your evil eyes! I can't stop thinking about you and it's driving me crazy! I get headaches that split my skull, anything I eat ends up right back up my throat. Do you know what that's like?"
"There's this thing called accountability." Daisy said slowly. "Why don't you start showing some for a change! None of this would have happened if you hadn't taken it upon yourself to steal from him in the first place!"
"You're right. This is my fault, but what's done is done." Ludwig told her. "All I can do now is rectify my mistakes."
"You're not using me to satisfy your means to an end." Daisy told him fiercely. "I'm not a bartering chip."
"No, but you are a princess." Ludwig told her. "You should know all about sacrificing yourself for the greater good."
"This is unfair, Ludwig." She growled at him. "The greater good wouldn't be at stake if you hadn't made a mess of things."
"You're only getting one apology out of me." Ludwig told her. "I said I acknowledge my mistake and I'm trying to fix it but I need you to work with me."
"I don't know why you say 'with you' because I'm the only one sacrificing." She rose her voice. "I'm the one who's being thrown back into the lion's den while you go out-"
"Listen!" Ludwig shouted. "He can't hurt you. He's not a threat without his powers. He's got chains on his body and he's lost a lot of strength."
"He's still the Dark King." Daisy argued. "I'm not stupid enough to underestimate him, even without his powers."
"He can't do anything to you." Ludwig tried to convince her. "All you have to do is stay with him until I can give back the subconscious and then I'll take you home. I promise."
"I don't trust you, Ludwig." She shook her head. "You tricked me back in New York. You kidnapped me."
"Would you have come otherwise?"
"No."
"Well then you see why I had to do what I did." Ludwig replied.
She narrowed her eyes and said, "You have got a lot of nerve, expecting me to just go along with whatever convoluted scheme you've got going here. I understand what you're going through and it's really just sad. Your own greed has gotten you here. Now you need to use that crafty mind of yours to figure out a way to fix all this because I am going home."
She brushed past him but he grabbed her arm and jerked her back. She pulled away from him and glared heatedly at him.
"Why don't you just kill him and be done with this all?" Daisy asked.
"Our minds our linked." Ludwig responded. "Killing him now may also kill me."
"Great." She threw up her hands. "Just perfect."
"Don't you see how imperative it is that you do this?" Ludwig asked her.
"No." Daisy spat. "All I see is you trying to have your cake and eat it, too."
"Don't say that to me!" Ludwig shouted. "You just don't know what I have been dealing with-"
"Shut the fuck up, Ludwig!" Daisy swore loudly, "I am tired of hearing you whine about the pain that came by your own hand! What about what I've been through? What about the torture and the violence and the molestation that I had to endure? You don't care about me or anyone else. You'll send me back to that maniac's bed in a heartbeat because you're the same self-serving bastard that you've always been!"
Ludwig's eye twitched but again he didn't deter her in her speech. He stood there and took her verbal lashing with stoic indifference. When she'd finished, he took her arm.
"Let go of me!" She yelled.
"I tried to reason with you." he said in a detached tone. "I thought you would understand. But now I can see that I was-"
So loud was the deafening crack of Daisy's hand hitting the side of Ludwig's face. Her palm stung viciously but she was ready to slap him again. She stood fuming while he just glanced down, accepting this latest blow. He gripped her arm even tighter and shoved her in the room. She fell on her knees in the carpet and immediately flew to the door. Ludwig held her by the shoulders with her back to his chest.
"You've gotten what you wanted." He sneered at the Dark King.
With a meaningful glance, the king rattled his shackled wrists. To Daisy's immense horror, Ludwig flicked his fingers and those metal chains disappeared. Daisy wrestled even more in his grip.
He said to the Dark King, "As soon as I get back, you're taking this curse off of me."
Bowser smirked and said, "It would be my pleasure."
The sorcerer made to leave but Daisy clung to his shirt.
"Please," She now begged, "You can't do this. Ludwig, please! You have to take me home."
"I can't." He told her without a moment's deliberation.
Daisy quaked with anger. "How could you do this to me?"
His reply was jarring. "Better you than me."
Daisy reared back and slapped him again, hard enough to cut his mouth against his teeth.
Ludwig just scowled and shoved Daisy once more to the floor. This time she wasn't fast enough to catch the door as it slammed shut. She yanked and yanked at it, but it wouldn't budge. It was locked, either by physical or magical means. She cried out with each tug of the handle, frustrated and distressed, and started beating on the ornate wood.
"Open this door!" She shouted. "Open this door and take me home! Ludwig! Get me out of here! Get me out of here!"
Her yells degraded into sobs and she collapsed to her knees in front of the door. This was really happening. Her past had come back to haunt her in the worst of ways.
A/N: A lot of people are probably hating Ludwig right now. He is very corrupted. The subconscious is mixing with his own and changing his nature, and to be honest, he wasn't exactly a saint before all this happened, so yeah.
Please don't give up on the story now. I promise this is not the end. Ludwig has his own plans, but Bowser does too and he may not have asked for Daisy for the reasons that one would think; the Dark King has an agenda of his own and Daisy is still very much a fighter, though she's in a bit of a shock right now.
And let's not forget good old Cack and Fawful. Hm. What will Peasley say when he finds out the news? Where is Peasley anyway? Will Luigi make it in time?
Oh yeah. And Munson. To clear up any confusion, both Munson and Alicia are my OC's, I didn't derive them from any canon characters.
All this and more will be revealed in the upcoming chapters! Until next time...
~DymondGold~