AN: Quick little author's note thanking you guys for reading and reviewing! Enjoy the chapter!
After his disastrous failed escape attempt, Luigi wasn't sure he wanted to get out of bed the following morning. Not only did he end up back where he started, but he ended up sympathizing with his captor.
He could almost hear Mario chastising him for being too nice for his own good.
Regardless, staying in his warm bed seemed like the best option. It was safe from koopa troopas harassing him, and best of all, he didn't have to deal with any embarrassing encounters with Bowser.
Or so he thought.
Moments after he dozed off, he was awoken again by the strong scent of something burning. He jolted away in his half asleep state in a moment of confusion and panic.
He pulled on his fluffy green bathrobe (a gift from Goombella) and ran straight for the source. He knew fire could only mean one thing. Bowser's temper had gotten a hold of him for whatever miscellaneous reason, and he was about ready to turn the castle into an oven.
That was where he discovered the kitchen in its current disastrous state. Dough painted the stone walls, cooking supplies were thrown about lazily, flour dusted the floor, and everything food related was either burnt to a crisp-hence the smell, or in an odd turn of events, liquefied.
Roy and Morton stood guiltily in the middle of the room.
"Dio mio..." He uttered, already wishing he could crawl back into bed. "How did this happen?"
"He did it!" Both boys pointed at each other, although together they were clearly guilty.
If Luigi had any space between the bridge of his nose, he would be pinching it in exasperation right now. "I'm not your father so I can't discipline you, but we need to clean this mess up."
"Wait!" Roy shouted, scowling deeper. "This isn't a mess, I was trying to make breakfast."
"And I was helping!" interjected Morton. "I think we messed up a little." He held up a plate with fish bones and some goopy matter inside. "But we can only make mistakes."
He grimaced. "I thought the cooks typically make meals?"
"Well, yeah, but Roy likes to-"
"Shut up!" Roy glared at his little brother. "You can go now, prisoner. We'll have Kamek clean it up. He likes to clean."
Luigi thought for a moment. "How about I teach you how to cook something properly?"
Morton and Roy looked at him curiously, neither of them knew if they could trust this strange man to cook for them. Or why he would want to cook with them.
Morton was the first to crack. He tilted his head. "Can you make us pancakes?"
"No, but you can help me make pancakes." Luigi chuckled. "Roy, will you please find more flour?"
"I'm not taking orders from you." He scowled, but still stomped his way to the cabinets.
"What can I do?" Morton asked, eager to help.
"See if you can find some baking powder, please?"
Once they had found all the necessary ingredients, Luigi carefully instructed them to find the perfect amount to put in their batter. As he helped Morton stir the mixture, Roy was cracking two eggs inside at the same time.
"Excellent work!" He praised. "This should be enough for everyone."
"Aw, do we have to share?"
"Si, and that's the best part!" Luigi said, adjusting the step stool for Morton. "You get to see everyone's faces as they eat your amazing dish! Oh, ah, Roy only a pinch of salt, please." He gasped as the pink koopaling had decided to shove his fist into the spare bowl.
"A pinch?" Roy repeated. "I thought you said a punch."
"Ah...no, I don't think it would ever require a punch of anything." Luigi wiped his brow and grinned. "All we need to do now is put the batter into a pan and cook it. Then we're done!"
"Not quite." A deep, but warm voice interjected from the kitchen's entrance. Bowser stood with Junior sitting on his shoulders.
"Papa!" Morton exclaimed, leaping off the stool to hug his father, an action that made Luigi's heart leap. "What did we forget?"
"Chocolate chips!" Junior announced, showing off the bag of treats. "You can't have pancakes without them!"
"We heard the noise and decided to check up on you all," Bowser said.
"I thought you would be busy today," Luigi commented dryly. "With the invasion and all."
"I'm free this morning, actually. It was a difficult night." He handed the bags off to the boys to sprinkle in the batter. "We will continue later this afternoon. Besides, breakfast is the most important meal of the day, we can't possibly miss it." Although the sentence was innocent, it still made him uneasy. Perhaps it was the way
"Right..." But any words he wanted to say were left unsaid, due to Morton shouting out that they needed to prepare the pancakes. Bowser and Luigi volunteered, for fear of the trouble-making boys getting burnt.
"I remember you saying you like to cook." Bowser commented as he flipped a pancake. He looked completely out of his element, holding the spatula with his smallest claw.
"You did?" He seemed surprised, if a bit timid judging by his quieter tone.
"Of course." He scoffed. "Why wouldn't I?"
"Aside from the obvious?"
Bowser laughed. "Only three days here and you're already comfortable disrespecting me. I ought to lock you right back in a cage with the other prisoners."
Luigi raised an eyebrow, serving the pancakes to Roy first, then Morton. Soon all the koopalings followed suit. "Um…are you going to?"
"Going to what?"
Luigi quietly groaned in exasperation. "Lock me in the dungeons."
"I don't think so."
"You could if you wanted to."
"Well-" He stopped himself. "Well, I'm not. No need to thank me."
Luigi felt a tap on his shoulder as soon as he served another batch of pancakes to Lemmy. "Mr. Luigi?" He was surprised to see the little girl koopaling-Wendy with her stack of pancakes completely devoured. "Thank you for making the pancakes. I've never seen a hostage make us food. And Dad's minions always mess them up."
"Aha, no problem!" He said. "Your brothers and your dad helped too." As she smiled and ran off, he turned back to Bowser. Soon all of the kids had left them alone.
Bowser stared at him suspiciously. "When did you become so brave?"
"What do you mean?" No one's ever called him brave before. Unless they were being sarcastic.
"As I recall saying, when you arrived here you were petrified. You fainted two times on the first day! You were a shivering, whimpering mess and now? Now you're talking to me like an equal. Like we're friends, or...or roommates."
Luigi glanced back quizzically. "Do you want me to fear you?"
"No. And to be honest, I'm not sure why."
"I don't either. But what I do know is that I'm not going to spend my time here cowering. Not anymore." He climbed off his step stool with a huff. "I depend on Mario too much, and I need to realize who I am. The kind of person I want to be. Being scared of you doesn't help me discover anything. Anyway..." He raised an eyebrow. "Are you staying here to talk with me because you want more advice on the Princess?"
Peach...right. How could the Princess not even cross his mind? He had been spending too much time focused on everything else to worry about what she would think of him.
It didn't matter regardless. Even if she rejected him, he would find a way to get her to marry him. But even thinking that felt wrong.
"No." He answered. "I wanted to talk to you."
Luigi blinked, his face contorting into an adorably confused expression. "Eh? M- me?" He stammered.
"I've been thinking a lot over the past days..." Bowser muttered. "and how in learning about human behaviors and such, I realize we aren't too different, I guess. I mean, obviously we're different species, and I'm bigger, stronger, and more cunning but..."
"Go on."
"What I'm trying to say is, I think you've taught me everything I need to know."
Bowser had wanted to add on to that, say something clever and witty, but he couldn't stop staring at Luigi's blue eyes. Had they always sparkled so brightly before? They reminded him of the petals of an ice flower.
Wait. That was weirdly specific.
"I don't? Are you sure?"
Bowser physically gulped and forced a completely natural grin towards the plumber. "I definitely understand now. At least, more than I did before. Thank you. And my awesome skills, of course." And when Luigi looked back at him with a smile, he felt something inside him that he had never experienced before.
But deep down, he felt a twinge of suspicion that Bowser was hiding something from him.
Luigi was told to return to his room by Kamek once he had finished his chat with Bowser. It was a routine he was used to at this point, and with any luck he could stop thinking about him.
The conflicting emotions that he felt surrounding Bowser were impossible to ignore. He could deny all he wanted, but he knew deep down he enjoyed the company of the Koopa King. Or maybe he loved being treated to delicious food and a cozy bed. That, and Bowser's lessons on treating him with respect seemed to be going fairly well, all things considered. He didn't yell as much, and he seemed to try to keep his temper in check-even after Luigi's failed escape attempt.
Not to mention Bowser himself was really nice to look at-
No. Stop it Luigi. He's the same, terrifying monster who kidnapped you! So what if he's treated you nicely for the past few days? He's still using you to get to Mario!
He tried to ignore the voice in his head yelling at him. He was already angry at himself for not escaping when he had the chance. He would have probably reunited with his brother by now and then they could go back home.
Home. It seemed like such a foreign concept now, but he missed it terribly. Bowser could try as he might to make his castle accommodation, but it would never be his home if he could help it. But try as he might, he couldn't exactly hate it either.
He liked the koopalings, even though they were loud and rambunctious, they were just kids. And Bowser...well he was trying to be a good dad. For some reason, it was extremely endearing to watch him with his children. He was a good, loving Dad-despite him denying it.
That made everything so much more difficult.
He decided to keep walking.
Soon he passed another stone statue of Bowser. Wait. Luigi stopped in his tracks. Hadn't he seen that particular stature before? Retracing his steps didn't seem to be an option, considering he couldn't remember if he had turned right or left.
Okay. Don't panic. This castle may be huge, and a little scary but that doesn't mean anything!
He tried to recount where he was. The trouble was all the hallways looked identical. The carpet was a suspicious red fabric, and the walls were stone with portraits hanging. Everything looked identical-save for the occasional scowling Thwomp that he had to avoid.
His breath hitched. The first time he ever traveled around the castle without an escort, he found himself lost. Still, he forced himself to keep moving. Surely there would be a door somewhere leading him back to his room.
"Well well well, if it ain't Greenie himself?"
Luigi jumped out his skin at the unknown sneer. He spun around to face a koopa duo-although they didn't look like Bowser's usual troopas. They were taller, with bulkier green and red shells and matching helmets. They were also wielding hammers, much to his horror.
"Nah, I think the right word is Lord Bowser's pet!" The green one cackled. "Little Linguini!"
He didn't bother correcting them. "Wh- who are you?"
"Ha! Get a load of this guy!" the red koopa smacked his companion on the shell. "G- g- gosh I dunno, who are we?" He mocked Luigi's stutter, earning a guafaff from the other.
"Still haven't figured it out yet?"
"We're the Hammer Bros!" Together they puffed out their chests and raised their hammers in a striking pose.
"Oh...yay." Luigi backed against the wall. "Nice to, um, meet you?"
"Wow, you're a real comedian, aintcha?"
"This part of the castle is off limits for scum like you. So beat it, bozo."
"Yeah, get lost!"
Luigi swallowed his nerves and attempted to reason with the koopas. "Bowser never mentioned anything about-"
"Oh, we got one of them wise guys, huh?" The lead hammer bro snapped. "Think you can tell us what to do?"
"We don't listen to prisoners. Scram back to the dungeons where you belong! Or we'se gonna have to use the big guns."
"Erm, we don't actually have guns. They're just hammers."
"Same difference!"
He grimaced. All he wanted was to return to his room, take a shower and sleep. Now he was stuck cornered.
"Please, I just need to get back to my room! I lost my way and-"
He shrieked and ducked as a hammer was spontaneously thrown right at his head. It stuck to the ceiling.
"That was only a warning!" The red hammer bro snarled. "You may think you've got the privilege to run around all willy nilly but ya don't! To Lord Bowser, you're nothing more than a lowly prisoner ready to be dropped in the next pit of lava." He marched towards Luigi and glowered at him. "I ain't gonna repeat myself. Get. Lost."
Normally words like this would hurt him. But after years of being tormented, whether it was by kids at the playground, or Spike, his old boss, Luigi was used to it.
"Bowser told me that I'm...free to roam as long as I don't try to escape." He tried to remain calm, despite the circumstances. If he could only stop shaking, that is.
"Yeah, he only said that for your whole 'agreement' or whatever, not 'cause he likes you." The other hammer bro rolled his eyes. "S' only a matter of time before he kills you once he gets bored."
"Say, why don't we help him out? We can smash ya into tiny bits before he can!"
"Oooh, maybe we'll get a raise!"
Luigi braced himself. Once their terrible banter was over, he would be finished.
"Not likely, dorks." A new voice snarked, sounding uninterested and yet still threatening. Luigi had been covering his eyes at this point, but retracted his hand to see who the person was.
Holding her own sparkling scepter, Wendy O. Koopa glared at the duo of hammer bros. One would think that a pink koopaling with a giant bow wouldn't be intimidating, but due to her status as Bowser's daughter, she was.
"Lady Wendy!" The green hammer bro's voice quivered. "We didn't hear you come in! Ahaha...what a lovely surprise."
"That's Princess Wendy to you, peasant!" She snapped. She swirled her wand around, and out shot silver ice from the tip, freezing the fallen hammers. "Dad says it's my turn to torture the hostage, not you! So leave before I turn you both into popsicles!"
Their eyes went wide and they nodded vigorously. "Y- yes Princess Wendy!" Without another word, they dashed away down the opposite end of the corridor, and out of sight.
Wendy burst into maniacal laughter. "Look at them running with their tails between their legs! What babies!"
She frowned when she saw Luigi was still sitting in shock, not laughing at all. "Hey, you okay? You look a little green. So to speak."
"You said you were gonna torture me next!" Luigi said, attempting to shield himself with his, unfortunately weak noodle arms. He may be a grown man, and she was only a teenager, but he saw with his very own eyes how powerful that scepter was.
"I was only saying that to get those guys away from you." She folded her arms across her plastron and dropped her scepter. "Besides, this isn't even mine. I stole it from Iggy."
"You mean, you wanted to help me?"
"Ugh, don't make it sound so mushy!" Wendy scoffed, with an expression very similar to that of Bowser. "You made the best pancakes I've ever eaten, Luigi, so there's no way I'm getting rid of you. Plus, Pops would definitely be upset with me if I did."
"He would?" Luigi nearly choked on air at how casual she sounded. Did she know? No she couldn't possibly. She was only a kid. Kids are oblivious.
Wendy ignored his question, peering at him curiously. "What were you even doing with those creeps anyway?"
"I- I got lost."
"Huh? Why would you do that?"
"I didn't do it on purpose!"
"Whatever." She examined her nails idly and picked up her scepter. "I guess I could show you around so you don't get lost again. It's not like I'm doing anything anyway. Follow me, and don't wander off."
"Oh. Um. Alright..." He stumbled to his feet and followed the girl reluctantly.
"You just go along with whatever I say, don't you?" She asked.
"I'm afraid if I don't, you'll have your Dad drag me to the dungeons."
"Like he'd ever do that!" Wendy looked at him with a condescending smirk. "Nah, he's way too weird and soft on you. It's embarrassing."
"Embarrassing?"
"Duh! He's supposed to be focused on conquering the Mushroom Kingdom, not making sure you're comfortable!"
Luigi could only look on incredulously at her, shocked that she would admit that Bowser had been acting a bit strange around him. Mamma Mia, did everyone else know? That would be mortifying.
It wasn't like they had feelings for each other, it was just really weird circumstances.
She skipped along and started her impromptu tour. "See these portraits on the walls here? They're old koopa monarchs throughout history." She gave an over-exaggerated yawn. "Boring!"
Luigi could see there was a long line of koopa kings and queens, each looking scarier than the rest. The last two pictures were of Bowser and Junior respectively.
"Where are you?"
"In the next hall with my siblings. We're not direct heirs, but Pops wanted us to have pictures too. Now come on, I wanna show you the death traps!"
"D- D- Death traps?"
The death traps and training rooms were just as horrifying as Luigi imagined they would be. Wendy simply moved on from them and instead showed off all the different weapons-mostly wands.
"Since we can't use power ups, we typically use wands."
Luigi had no clue what a power up was, but he nodded as though he did. "Don't you guys have your spiky shells? Aren't they weapons?"
"They're more for defense really. Not all koopas have fire breath, so the wands help as a substitute."
"Can you?"
"Breathe fire?" Wendy suddenly looked defensive. "Of course I can! I'm-I'm really good at ...it. Moving on!" She dragged him by the arm and took him to another, unrelated room. She pushed open the door and practically shoved Luigi inside.
Luigi felt as though he had stepped in an explosion of pink. Or his niece's Barbie Dreamhouse. Every single part of it, the walls, the curtains, the vanity tables, was frilly, pink and covered with lace and ribbons. Now Luigi loved pink, but even he thought this was excessive.
"Welcome to my boutique!" Wendy spun around. "Do you like it?"
He nodded earnestly. "It's very nice. Did you decorate it yourself?"
"I did!" Her eyes lit up with pure joy at the compliment. "Sometimes a lady needs more than one place to beautify herself." She hummed, trotting towards one of the vanity's and taking a seat to focus on fixing her makeup.
Luigi was unsure what to do, so he sat on the floor. "More than one place? So this isn't your room?"
She shook her head. "Gross, no. My room is with the others upstairs. I technically share this one with Lemmy. He likes to dress up too."
Wendy applied some blush to her cheeks, beaming at the mirror. She seemed confident in herself, and proud to share her talents with Luigi. "Should I do pale pink or magenta eyeshadow?"
The question was rhetorical, but he blurted out: "Pale pink!" Upon seeing her raised eyebrow through the mirror, he clarified. "Er, uh, it's more subtle."
"Hmmm, you have a point." She scrunched her beak and stared at her reflection, drawing her hand to her bow. She seemed concerned about something, but Luigi couldn't tell what it was. "I wish I didn't have this bow."
"You could always take it off if it's uncomfortable."
"It's not uncomfortable. I just..." Wendy bit her lip. "Nevermind, it doesn't matter!"
"If you're sure."
"I'm sure!" She snapped. "It's none of your business anyway. It's just...ugh! I only wear my bow because I ...don't have..."
It took a second for him to realize what she meant, but as soon as he did, he felt a wave of sympathy.
"It's not fair." She said, her voice cracking. "It's not like hair makes me a better koopa. Most koopas don't have hair! But I feel so ugly without it. My siblings have hair."
"Morton and Roy don't."
"But they're boys!" She wailed. "I'm supposed to be the pretty daughter and...and I'm not! I'm hideous!" She caressed her head and sighed. "I don't even know why I'm complaining to you, you're just some guy. What would you know about being beautiful?"
He decided not to bring up his forced practice proposal from yesterday.
"First of all Wendy, you're not ugly, okay?" Luigi said. "You're a very bright and pretty young girl. Hair or no hair. But second of all, don't you have magic? If you want hair so badly... couldn't you wave your wand?"
"I would if I could, dummy! But, I can't make things appear yet." She sunk in her chair. "I tried asking Kamek to use his magic to make me grow some, but he said no."
"Why would he say no?"
"Because he doesn't have time to deal with such girlish nonsense." She lamented. "It's only hair..."
An idea popped in his head. "I've got it! Wendy, do you mind taking me back to my room? I think I have an idea."
Wendy seemed confused, but obliged.
"So this is where you sleep?" Wendy asked as she stepped in. "I thought Dad liked you. Huh. Guess not."
"What's wrong with it?" said Luigi.
"It's small."
Luigi chuckled. "Take a seat. I'll only be a minute."
He scrounged around inside his walk in closet, hoping to find the box he so desperately needed. Then as his glove grazed the cardboard, it started to glow."
Luigi has found the Princess Peach wig! It is now in his inventory.
"Eh? That was weird." He commented, but decided not to mention anything as he brought it over to Wendy.
She greedily skipped over and ripped it open without a second thought. "A wig?" She touched the blonde curls with her claws with some hesitancy.
"Do you like it? I know it isn't the same as real hair, but I thought-"
Wendy hugged it close to her plastron, squealing. "I love it! I love it! I love it!"
Luigi sighed in relief. "Here let me help you put it on."
"All I need is my dresses, so come on!"
But when they returned to Wendy's makeshift boutique, they weren't alone. Little Lemmy Koopa was standing there by the vanity, clad in an elegant blue princess gown with a guilty expression.
"Lemmy!" Wendy shrieked, storming over to her elder brother. "What are you doing here?"
"It's my room too!" He shouted defensively. "Dad said we can both share!"
"That's one of my dresses, take it off!"
"I just wanted to try it!"
"Why? It's for princesses!" She scowled and put her hands on her hips. "You! Luigi, tell him that he can't wear my dress!"
Luigi massaged his temples, wondering how he suddenly became caretaker of eight kids in the span of a week. "Lemmy, you should really ask before you take your sister's dresses."
Lemmy nodded timidly. "I know."
Wendy grinned triumphantly.
"But...Wendy, you shouldn't shout at him. Ask nicely next time, okay?"
"Hmph." Her smile faded. "...okay."
Neither koopa moved, both wondering if Luigi was going to make another move. Instead, Lemmy spoke up.
"I just...wanna be a princess too." He admitted, his voice uncharacteristically soft compared to the young koopaling he had seen the evening prior.
Wendy's scowl twisted into a concerned frown. After a moment, she held her hand out in acceptance. "You can keep that one actually. It doesn't really go with my complexion anyway."
"Really?" Lemmy's face brightened. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" He hugged his sister tightly. "And thank you Luigi! You're not so bad, I guess!"
"Phew..." Luigi smiled thinly, once again relieved that another crisis had been averted. He decided to leave the teens be as they further discussed what it meant to be a princess.
Although Luigi could go where he pleased in the castle, he was limited to the rest of the Darklands. Word spread of his failed escape mission, and as such, whenever he went outside, he was greeted with koopa guards at every corner with spears in their claws. He didn't expect anything different, seeing as he was still a prisoner. Sometimes he just forgot that important fact.
Still, it wasn't like there was anywhere to go. More gates had been added, security was tight, and it wasn't worth attempting to wade through lava. He simply had to stay put and wait.
Luigi found a spot outside the castle to sit. The river lava nearby emitted a warm glow, like a bowl of thick tomato soup. Except deadlier.
He pulled out an old koopa history book from his pockets, one he had found in the library. He never intended on reading it, but Kamek wouldn't let him leave until he took at least one book. The text was lengthy, and he wasn't sure he could read it all, but he tried. Kame Koopa was apparently the previous king and father to Bowser. His reign was brief, as Bowser took the throne at the age of eleven...
Luigi closed the book. Not out of disinterest, but because of an eerie sound erupting from the lava pools. Bubbles rippled and breached the river, as if something was swimming inside it. Luigi backed up, throwing the book aside and took a nervous stance.
Suddenly, Bowser's enormous form came from the surface of the lava-causing Luigi to yelp and jump back.
"Raargh!" The koopa king roared, stretching his arms and leaning his carapace back. He padded towards the shore like he was swimming in a jacuzzi. His eyes were closed, in complete bliss. "Ahhh..."
Luigi was trembling, still in shock from the abrupt visit, yet slightly amused.
Bowser's eyes fluttered open. "Oh hey." He didn't seem phased at all by Luigi's mild freak out. "Did I scare you?"
"N-no!" He denied, while nodding vigorously. "...maybe a little."
"Bwahaha!" Bowser splashed a little, though he was gracious to not hit the small man. "Sorry about that. I was just taking a bath."
"Oh!" Upon realizing what he was doing, he quickly averted his eyes.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm respecting your privacy."
Bowser blinked. "Luigi, I don't even wear clothes."
"Oh, heh, right. So you bathe in... lava?" His voice raised several octaves.
"Where else would I go?"
"Um, I'm used to bathing in ...water."
"Tch, you and everyone else." He rolled his eyes. "Koopas can handle the heat. We're adaptable like that." He swam around, lying on his back. Luigi couldn't help but watch with fascination. He had never seen him look so relaxed before. His golden scales even seemed to glisten from the flames, and his red hair was wild and pulled back.
"Like what you see?" Bowser smirked, having noticed Luigi's gawking.
He squeaked, cheeks burning. "I- I- no!"
"You're blushing."
"I am not! It's the heat...from the lava..."
"Right. So what are you doing out here anyway? You're not trying to escape again, are you?" He was teasing, which calmed Luigi's nerves.
"Of course not." He replied. "I was reading."
"Reading?"
"It's a fun pastime. Since the only books you have in your library are about koopas, I decided to check out the history section."
Bowser's demeanor changed. His red eyes glared at him as though he was eyeing prey, and waiting for his next move.
"I didn't realize about your father Kame. He-"
"Enough!" His growl was dangerously threatening.
Luigi flinched, startled by the sudden harshness of his tone.
"Never speak that name again. Ever." He stood up and towered over his shivering form.
"I didn't mean to, I'm sorry."
Bowser exhaled and sunk back into the lava. "You shouldn't have been snooping in there anyway. It's none of your business."
"You're right, I'm so sorry."
"Ah...ugh. I'm doing it again." He frowned. "I shouldn't have yelled. It's a sensitive topic, that's all."
He dipped his head in some understanding. From the bits and pieces he did know about Bowser's father, the previous koopa king's reign did not sound very pleasant. Not that Bowser's was any better.
"It's...alright."
Bowser snorted, unconvinced. "Whatever you say, 'Stache." With another snort, he exhaled a puff of smoke into a loud and unexpected sneeze.
The simple action caused Luigi to burst into giggles, an adorable sound that made Bowser's heart fill with unexplained joy. How could someone so small be so endearing?
"Hey, it wasn't that funny!" Bowser scoffed.
"I'm sorry, it's just-" Luigi covered his mouth with his hands to stifle his laughter. "I didn't expect you to have a little kitten sneeze!"
"I don't know what a kitten is, but from the way that you're reacting, it can only mean that it isn't a strong warrior." He said wryly. "I admire your bravery. Not many people would dare mock the King of the Koopas.'
"Not openly." Luigi teased.
Bowser tapped the lava with his claw, his tail wagging. "Perhaps you have a point." He casted his gaze to the side.
Something felt off.
"Um...are you alright, Bowser?"
He scrunched his snout. "Pfft, of course! Why wouldn't I be?"
"Oh, well..." He bit his lip, worrying that he was treading over some dangerous territory yet again. "I dunno, you seem a little tense."
"I'm not tense-!" Bowser replied sharply, before backing up. "I mean, I'm not tense."
"Alright, well, I just wanted to make sure you're okay."
"I'm fine." Bowser said, almost too quickly. "Stop worrying so much."
"Sorry."
"And jeez, you don't need to keep apologizing."
"Sorry." Luigi's eyes went wide. "Oops, sorry."
That made Bowser guafaff louder than Luigi had ever heard him. The sound alone made the ground move. Soon they were both laughing together.
"You have quite the wit, Luigi," Bowser said as he climbed out of his 'bath'. "You must make a lot of people laugh back in your world."
"Eh, no not really. Except for my mama, and Mario of course." He didn't catch Bowser's flinching at the mention of his brother. "Mostly people laugh at me, not with me."
Bowser made a face. "Your kingdom sounds judgemental."
"It's not a kingdom, it's actually-"
"Lord Bowser!"
Together they jumped in surprise at the irritated magikoopa floating above them. Neither one had heard him fly in.
"Kamek!" Bowser said. "I told you not to interrupt my bath time."
"You have no qualms with him accompanying you..." countered Kamek, who shot a glare at Luigi. "You are required for another meeting."
"I'll be there soon."
"It's important."
"Fine, fine, I'll go. Come on Luigi."
Kamek flew in front of the plumber and stopped him from moving further. "Actually, I think it would be best if the green one stays behind. It is a royal matter, after all."
Bowser nodded, although even he seemed reluctant. "Right..."
Luigi watched them leave, feeling his anxiety grow with more uncertainty.