I'm sorry this took so long. At times like this, it's tempting to blame the real world for getting in the way, and I did have a lot of midterm crap to get through, but that's not completely honest. It was more a combination of writer's block, and lack of motivation. Anyway, here's the chapter, enjoy.

Also, if you celebrate it, Happy Thanksgiving.

Chapter 3: Reunion, and Turnabout

Professor Frankly's Pizza was a popular after class location for the students and professors of Woohoo Hooniversity. Unlike a certain "other" pizzeria, it wasn't haunted by murdered children or filthy, and the pizza didn't taste like cardboard. Frankly himself, a short, mushroom-like creature referred to as a Goomba, and a former teacher as his restaurant name suggested, was always happy to have them, and formed close friendships with repeat customers. Sure, people were weirded out over the fact that he had constant dizzy spirals on his eyes, but he was nice enough. He lived in a small apartment above the restaurant, meaning he was never late to open the shop.

At the moment, Frankly was currently closing up shop for the night. "G'night, you crazy kids!" he called after the departing couple. He then turned the sign to the "closed" side, and set about locking the door, which is actually a pretty impressive feat for a guy with no arms.

A knock on the door distracted him from his task. Frankly politely indicated with sign without looking up. It wasn't anything new to him. There was always some high college kid who got the munchies really late at night. He used to let them in, but had learned just how much of a bad idea that was from previous experiences.

The knocker didn't seem to care, as he or she rapped on the glass again. Mildly annoyed, Frankly looked up to dispense a piece of his mind to the persistent kid, but stopped dead in his tracks upon seeing who it was. Luigi Martin stood outside his door, waving and smiling his same old smile. He'd aged a bit, and looked more ragged than he used to, as well as completely exhausted, but it was the genuine Luigi, no doubt.

Frankly hurriedly began to unlock and open the door again. "Lu?" he asked, unable to keep the shock out of his voice, "You haven't been around here for five years, man! I missed ya!"

Luigi walked into the pizzeria. "Hey, Frankly," he said, "Sorry for dropping by unannounced, but I didn't have access to a phone." After much consideration, he'd concluded this was the best place for him to go, as much of a risk as it was. He could be traced if he checked into a motel, and he hoped he could get away without sleeping on the street again.

"It's not a big deal, trust me," said Frankly, "Pizza? I got some leftover slices." Luigi nodded eagerly. He hadn't had any food since he swiped some poor sap's fast food breakfast, and he could never say no to Frankly's cooking. Not to mention he probably burned a lot of calories while moonlighting as a giant, rampaging gorilla.

Frankly watched as the scientist devoured his pizza like a hungry wolf. "Some things really don't change, do they?" he chuckled.

Luigi smiled a genuinely happy smile for the first time in a while. "Nope," he agreed, with his mouth full. He swallowed. "I take it you've know why I've been gone?"

Frankly snorted. "All that crap about you stealing military secrets? I never believed it." He wanted to ask Luigi for the truth, but decided to respect his friends' privacy.

Luigi smiled. At least there were some people left that hadn't turned against him.

"So," Frankly continued, bracing himself to ask the question he was really reluctant to, "Have you seen Daisy?"

Luigi's smile faded, and he looked down at his plate. "Yeah..." he answered finally, "I can't let her know I'm here, though. Who's she seeing?" He wondered why he'd even bothered to ask that question. It wasn't like he and Daisy would ever meet again. Her new boyfriend's identity shouldn't mean a thing to him. Not to mention how much it would upset him.

"His name's Peasley," said Frankly, "Apparently, he used to be a soldier. A bit arrogant, but he's an okay guy overall." He immediately regretted that last sentence. Like making Luigi feel any worse was something a friend would do.

Luigi took it in stride, however. If she was with a good guy, at least she was happy. He felt the weight of his worry for Daisy lift off of his shoulders. The pain of missing her still pushed down on his heart, but he could work on that. At least he hoped he could.

"Listen, Frankly," he started, changing the subject, "I don't want to get you in trouble or anything-"

"You can stay for as long as you need," said the Goomba, "Believe me, you're worth it."

Luigi's smile lit up once more. "Thank you," was all he could say. It astounded him as to how people were willing to give so much to a person like him. The feeling that, to someone, he was special enough to risk going to prison for, was enough to relieve the stress of the Kong and all it carried.

Luigi's euphoria was interrupted by a sudden idea. "Hey, now that I think about it, there's one other thing..."

Out of all of the odd jobs Luigi had worked over the past five years, delivery boy had never been one of them, which, all things considered, was highly unusual. Yet, here he was, riding his bike down the path, through the crowd of Woohoo Hooniversity staff and students, with several pizza boxes on the back. It wouldn't have been so bad, if he didn't have to wear the stupid dizzy spiral glasses until he got there. This was more humiliating than being cast as Neville Longbottom in a Harry Potter parody.*

He checked his watch again, just to make sure he wouldn't run into Daisy. He knew her well enough to know she hated teaching any classes after three-thirty, especially on a Friday, like today. Fortunately, as he already knew, he had planned this trip correctly, and would not encounter his ex. He had enough as his plate without throwing that wrench into his menagerie of problems.

He parked his bike outside the entrance to the biology building, carrying his pizza boxes up to the security desk. Now for the ultimate test. "Hey, I got a delivery, for upstairs," he told the guard, "In the staff room, I think."

The guard, wearing a purple uniform and intensely staring at the security camera feed through his monitor, gave a squeak of surprise, grabbing a cartoon bear mask from under the table and cramming it onto his head, covering his eyes as well. Luigi stared at him in surprise for a few seconds, before the man opened his eyes, breathed a sigh of relief, and pulled the mask off.

"Sorry," he said, sheepishly, "I thought you were a...killer robot..."

"Wait a minute," said Luigi, "Did we seriously make two Five Nights at Freddy's references in this chapter already? Is that even relevant anymore?"

The guard shrugged. "I don't know. I'm just following the script."

"Unbelievable," groaned Luigi, taking out the cell phone he wasn't supposed to have in this story. He made a quick call, putting out a hit on the author, before returning to the story.

"Anyway," said the guard, "I'm sorry, but orders are to only admit authorized personnel."

"Aw, damn," sighed Luigi, "My boss is gonna bust my ass if I don't get the cash for this." He pretended to think for a moment, then grabbed one of the pizza boxes. "Look, I got an extra medium mushroom. You take this, no charge. What do you say?"

The guard looked like he was about to object, but as soon as Luigi opened the box, he was immediately hypnotized by the smell of fresh cheese and tomato sauce, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath to get as much of the scent in as possible. Luigi smirked. This was almost too easy.

The guard grabbed the pizza box. "This never happened," he told the mustached man, seizing the delectable food.

"You're a smart man," answered Luigi, taking off down the hall. Mentally, he began to wonder why he didn't bribe people more often. It worked well enough.

As he reached the higher levels of the laboratory, he took a brief moment to look at the radiology lab, particularly the sight of his "incident." He glanced in the window, and was glad to see that the damage he had wrought had at least been repaired. Inside stood a bunch of scientists, none of whom he recognized, working away at some project. He felt the hairs on the back of his neck begin to rise, as memories of that day began to surface, before he shot them down. Flashbacks would be most unwelcome at this time.

Eventually, Luigi made it to the old computer labs, paying off the lone tech with his last pizza. Smiling at the man from across the room, Luigi popped open the login window for the university staff. Praying she hadn't changed it after all this time, Luigi entered Daisy's name and password. After a few seconds of loading, he was granted access to the university archives. Luigi briefly allowed a triumphant grin to cross his face, but shut it down just as quickly.

Opening a new search, Luigi typed in the name of the project he'd worked on: Wave Shield. He was greeted with his worst nightmare as a result: Data not found. Trying not to panic, Luigi went back to the search engine, punching in his own name. Again, the results turned up negative.

Luigi started to hyperventilate, the pulse monitor on his wrist beginning to beep again. Willing himself to calm down, he took several deep breaths, bringing his heart rate down. If he transformed here, there was no telling how many people he'd kill. He quietly installed the encryptor program onto the new computer, opening up the messenger and contacting Evershade.

"I'VE GOT NEWS," he wrote.

"EXCELLENT, FELLER!" responded his contact, "HAVE YOU FOUND ALL THE DATA?"

Luigi was unable to type for a few moments, as though not acknowledging the failure would somehow erase it from existence. "IT'S BEEN DELETED," he finally typed.

There was no response for a few seconds, and he eventually saw "I CAN'T FINISH THE CURE WITHOUT IT, FELLER."

Luigi sighed, resting his head in both hands. He'd come so far, taken so many gigantic risks, only to find nothing yet again. For a moment, he was tempted to surrender to despair, transform right now, and joy be the consequences but that thought only lasted for a few seconds. After mentally smacking himself around for even considering giving up, he returned both hands to the keyboard.

"I NEED TO MOVE ON FROM HERE. FIND SOMETHING ELSE. I'LL CONTACT YOU WHEN I HAVE THE CHANCE," he typed, then ended the conversation.

Back at Frankly's restaurant slash house, Luigi silently packed what little he had. Frankly was currently managing the last few customers of the day before the place closed, and Luigi had decided it would be better to just slip out the backdoor, with a note left behind on his bed. He hated to run off without saying anything, face to face but he believed his friend would understand. Besides, it would be more advantageous to slip away under cover of the night. Slinging his duffle bag over his shoulder, he went downstairs to the lobby, approaching the backdoor.

What he saw in the lobby froze him in his tracks.

Frankly was busy at the counter, serving up a handful of pizza to the final two customers. What stopped Luigi was the fact that they were Daisy and Peasley, sitting together and laughing as they ate. Peasley himself was about Luigi's height, with long, flowing blond hair, and a really pretentious looking white suit. Occasionally, he flicked his hair with one hand, causing it to sparkle so brightly it lit up the entire room. Daisy herself was dressed in her favorite yellow shirt, and chuckled at something Peasley said.

"And then I told him, clean that up, before I strike you about the head! Hah hah hah!" Peasley chuckled, flipping his hair again. Daisy laughed, though this one seemed obviously forced.

Luigi kicked himself for forgetting that she'd always loved this place, and Friday nights were her favorite. He decided to try and tiptoe out the door without making a sound, praying they wouldn't look in his direction.

Naturally, he stepped on the one creaky floorboard in the entire building.

Daisy curiously turned her gaze to the sound of the creaking, and froze where she sat. Luigi swore, trying to think of some way to get out of this, before he settled on sprinting out the back door as fast as his legs could carry him.

Daisy's brain tried to process what she was seeing, and came up blank. She'd convinced herself several years ago that he had died, and she had no chance of seeing him again. Alive, at least. She'd tried to move on with her life, but still thought about him, feeling memories of him surface every now and then. Part of her wondered if what she saw now was nothing more than a hallucination, but she had to know for sure.

She rose from her seat, ignoring all of Peasley's questions. Her legs carried her at full speed to the door, ignoring the pain caused by her high heels. She rushed outside after Luigi, right into the now pouring rain. She glanced both ways, but Luigi was nowhere in sight. Peasley followed after her.

"Luigi..." she whispered, as though the empty alley would answer her.

"Daisy, what on Earth's the matter?" he asked, reaching for her hand.

Daisy didn't even hear him, turning around and running back into the restaurant. Frankly sat at the table, having seen everything.

"Daisy, I..." he started, but found he had no words.

"Please..." she pleaded, "Just tell me what that was. Was that...?"

Frankly's silence was all she needed.

Luigi felt as though he were dragging himself against the strongest current on earth. The rain poured harder and harder, soaking through all of his clothes, but he barely noticed. Mentally, he had no thoughts, feeling only emptiness at the events that had occurred a few minutes ago. He felt nothing, and cared about nothing. Even the possibility of turning into a giant gorilla monster at a moment's notice didn't arouse any emotion inside him.

He held his thumb out to a passing car, hoping this was another person who wasn't against hitchhiking. These hopes were quickly dashed as the car rushed past him, spraying him with water from the gutter. Sighing in defeat, Luigi held up his thumb once again as he kept walking, on the off chance that the next driver was a little more considerate.

However, the next car proved to be quite a shocker for the scientist, as it pulled up right next to him, and the driver's side door swung open. The driver's footsteps could be heard dashing around the stationary vehicle, and soon Luigi was face to face with Daisy Ocelot for the first time in years.

Luigi's froze where he stood. His brain ordered his legs to turn around and run once again, but his body refused to obey. He couldn't even breathe. Luigi Martin was no stranger to his own silence, as he was a quiet man who never spoke unless he felt it was necessary. However, this was the first time he truly could not make himself say anything.

Daisy was the one to free them from the deafening quiet. "Please..." she begged, stepping closer and reaching forward hesitantly, as though she feared Luigi would fade into dust if she touched him, "I don't want you to go away...please..."

Luigi couldn't stop himself. He rushed forward and threw his arms around her, causing her to respond in kind. As they stood in the pounding rain, wrapped around each other, he finally spoke two words.

"I'm sorry."

The drive back to Daisy's house was even more unnervingly quiet. Neither passenger could think of anything to say, even after all this time. Luigi stayed ducked down under the window, so as to avoid being spotted. Paranoid, sure, but it paid off more often than not. Once they pulled into Daisy's garage, he was finally free to sit up. Passing into the living room, Daisy made their favorite tea, so they'd have something to do in case of more silence.

Luigi had regained some of his composure, and was now able to speak in whole sentences once more. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you when I ran off," he said, quietly, "You were still unconscious in the hospital, and Ocelot wouldn't let me anywhere near you."

Daisy nodded. "Dad wouldn't tell me a thing about the incident, or the project, or what happened to you," she replied, "I barely remember anything, except you turning into a giant gorilla...thing. I went to him so many times, and all he would say was that you were dead. Eventually, I just stopped talking to him. After so much time, I decided maybe he'd been telling the truth." Remorse covered her face. "I never should've believed anything he said."

Luigi hung his head as he sipped his tea. "Maybe it'd be better if I had died," he grunted. Upon Daisy's look of confusion, he continued, "Every time my pulse rate goes above two-hundred, I change back. The thing rampages for a while, then I become me again."

Daisy looked shocked. "But...why does dad want you? Does he think you're too dangerous to live?"

"Worse," said Luigi, gravely, "The project had nothing to do with radiation resistance, it was another super soldier experiment. That serum was altered without us knowing it. He told me in person that he wants an army of those things at the beck and call of the United States."

Daisy swallowed nervously. She'd been suspicious of her father's intentions for the past five years, but this was far worse than she'd expected. As often as they'd butted heads, she'd believed her father was a good and kind man who wanted to serve and protect his country. This was insane, not to mention cruel. Trying not to think about it, she decided to change the subject.

"Do you...remember it? When you change back?"

"Flashes of it," said Luigi, "Images, sounds. Nothing concrete." He laid his empty cup down on the coffee table. "I've spent the last several years looking for cures. I've got a contact up north who thinks he could do something, but not without the data from the initial experiment."

Daisy was quiet for a moment, before she walked over to the shelf, where a small, wooden box sat. Opening it an reaching inside, she pulled out a small, black flash drive, and handed it to Luigi. "It's all on there," she said, "I pulled it all before Dad could have it cleared. I...wanted to have some record. I couldn't let him erase it off the face of the Earth like it never happened."

Internally, Luigi's mind was suddenly filled with a burst of hope. The data wasn't gone, after all. If he could get this to Evershade, they could finish the antidote. Maybe he could finally cure himself. Maybe this nightmare could be over. Then the rational part of his brain chimed in, reminding him that the cure might not even work, and he couldn't afford to be this optimistic. However, this time, Luigi didn't care. He had a chance. Of course, the first step was to actually get there.

"Listen," he reluctantly started, "I'd better get outta here by morning. It's not safe for me to stay in one place. Especially around here."

Daisy's face suddenly took on notable disappointment. "Okay," she said in a voice barely above a whisper, "I've got a spare bedroom. You don't have to sleep on the couch."

Luigi nodded, unable to find the words. She had to know that this tore him apart just as much as it did her. He hated to leave her again, especially after getting back to her for the first time in half a decade. His rational brain was strong enough to overpower any argument he could come up with at this moment, unfortunately for him. Ocelot and that greasy-haired weirdo were still searching for him, and Ocelot wouldn't hesitate to throw his own daughter in prison if she were caught helping him.

"Thanks," he eventually said, quietly. He couldn't bring himself to say anything else.

Neither Luigi nor Daisy was able to sleep well that night. Luigi had enjoyed a hot bath and a fresh set of clothes for the first time in a while not to mention the cushy bed. However, the day's events weighed heavily on him. He'd promised himself he'd never go near Daisy again, if only to ensure her safety. Yet, here he was, following her into her home, staying there, talking to her, almost as though the accident had never happened, and he wasn't a ticking time bomb that could kill her at any second.

"It's only for tonight," Luigi reminded his brain, but his rational side would have none of it.

Daisy fared no better. In the past few hours, her world seemed to have turned completely on it's head. Luigi was, in fact, alive, but horribly mutated as a result of the experiment, and her own father wanted nothing more than to capture and exploit him. Even worse, Luigi couldn't stay with her, and she would lose him again so soon. Her mind kept her awake, desperately trying to find a path through the chaos, but failing miserably. For the first time in a long time, Daisy Ocelot was terrified, and not for her own life.

Patriots Military Base, Medical Ward

Mumkhar Valek shoved open the door to the exam room he'd been directed to. Inside, he discovered General Ocelot, looking annoyed as per usual. Two technicians were busy preparing the equipment for the injection procedure, which he couldn't see, with the exception of a metal flask that read "Project Evolution. Oak, Dr. S." Pulling off the top of the flask revealed a vial of a white, milky liquid he didn't recognize. In the middle of the room sat one of those stretchers that could strap someone down, then flip them over. Seeing that his skin would be exposed if he were positioned on it, Mumkhar silently removed his shirt. He cared little for modesty, anyway.

"Here's how this is going to go," said Ocelot, his voice carrying the same tone as when he gave orders, "You will receive the lowest functioning dose. At the first sign of any side effects, you will be pulled out of this operation, and sent to isolation until it wears off. Is that understood?"

"Yes, sir," said Mumkhar, mildly annoyed. However, his opinion of Ocelot was of no consequence now. All that mattered was whether or not the serum worked.

Having finished the preparations, the technicians turned to Mumkhar. "There will be two specific injection sites," he explained, producing a syringe gun with a thin needle, "The deep muscles, and the bone marrow centers." He grinned, causing all the hairs on Mumkhar's neck to stand on end, before continuing, "In your spine."

Mumkhar shivered, but he tried not to let it show, especially in front of Ocelot. The general in question rolled his eyes. "Get on with it," he grunted.

Mumkhar sat down on the exam table. The technicians, each armed with a large syringe gun, stood on either side of him, filling up the fluid capsules on each apparatus. They placed both needles on each side of his neck, causing Mumkhar to clench his teeth in pain, as cold steel pushed through his flesh. Time seemed to slow to a crawl as the needles went further and further in, eventually coming to a stop. Both triggers were pulled, releasing the serum into Mumkhar's body. Both needles were pulled out, and Mumkhar released the breath he didn't know he'd been holding.

"That...wasn't so bad," he thought. He nearly said it out loud, but Ocelot's ever watchful eyes convinced him to stay silent. He got on the stretcher, where he was immediately strapped down by the technicians. As is quietly waited, he observed them replacing the needles on the syringe on with much longer ones, which nearly matched the length of his forearm. It was getting harder and harder not to show any fear, as sweat dripped down the back of his neck. One of the technicians thankfully remembered to flip him over at this point, so they had a clear view of his back.

This time, Mumkhar consciously held his breath as the technicians prepared the syringe gun. At the same time, they also marked the placed on his spine where the injections needed to go. The pattern consisted of three columns, with three points in each column, down the middle of his back. Positioning the needle at an angle, so as not to drive it through his organs, they placed the tip at the first point, and pushed.

Mumkhar bit his tongue to block out the blood-curdling scream that threatened to escape from his mouth. The pain was comparable to a knife wound to his stomach, something he'd experienced before. The cold of the metal permeated his entire body, leaving him shaking as the injections progressed. The pain was so severe, Mumkhar failed to notice the swelling surge of strength that began to flow through him. His muscles bulged, increasing ever so slightly in size, and his bones tightened, growing stronger and stronger. Ocelot continued to observe, replacing his trademark scowl with an unsettling grin.

*Mario Mario and the Bottle of Lightning. You're welcome, gamer4.