Chapter 17 Icy Treats

If there was one thing that Stonebrim could be given credit for, it was that it had a shop that served the best ice cream in the Koopa Kingdom. At least, that's what the commercial advertisements conveyed. Those painted the shop as having ice cream so good that it could be considered acceptable by even Koopa Kingdom royalty. So, Ludwig decided that now of all times was the best time to test that theory.

When the group arrived, Ludwig looked at the line situated in front of the window. It certainly stretched on, backing up the statement that this place had really good ice cream. So, while keeping his wallet firmly in his hand, he turned back toward his siblings as well as his guest. Almost all of them watered at the mouth, a sight that Ludwig found pretty humorous. Those locusts will eat everything in sight if given the opportunity.

"Okay," he said. "Who wants what?"

The reaction to that question was more or less explosive. All of the Koopalings crowded around the oldest, practically screaming their orders at the top of their lungs. It was so bad that Ludwig actually had to cover his ears.

"Okay, okay!" He gave everyone a stern look. "If you guys don't quiet down immediately, I'll leave and you guys will get nothing!"

That shut everyone up. Ludwig breathed a sigh of relief as Aria's giggling echoed in his ears. He gave his siblings a stern look, even going so far as to cross his arms.

"Now," he said. "You guys are royalty, so can you tell me in a civilized manner what you all want?"

This got a roll of the eyes from Larry. "Jerk."

"Okay, so Larry wants nothing," Ludwig said. It was only a large amount of apologies and promises from Larry that he would tone it down that made Ludwig listen to the youngest's order. After he got and memorized what the rest of his siblings desired, he got in line. He tapped his hand on the side of his leg and hummed a song to himself, knowing that if he didn't do that, the wait would otherwise become unbearable for him.

Right as two people were given their ice cream, Aria joined him in the line. Ludwig stole a side glance at her face before taking hold of her hand. He squeezed, feeling as if this was another component that could make the wait more tolerable for the ever impatient Koopaling.

"This is fun," Aria said to him.

"I'm glad you think so," Ludwig replied with the beginnings of a smile. He squeezed her hand even tighter, a gesture that Aria, much to his delight, returned.

"Your siblings are quite an interesting bunch," Aria said.

Ludwig snorted. "Sure. Interesting. That's the best word to use." He took a step forward as the line moved.

"I'm serious!" Aria said with a giggle. "They're all very colorful, both figuratively and literally."

Ludwig snorted again. "Even Morton?" he asked, using a tongue and cheek kind of tone.

Aria snickered. "He's colorful on the inside." This got both Koopas to laugh.

"Well, I'm glad that you're able to tolerate them, Aria." Ludwig smirked. "Believe me when I say that they can be handfuls to live with."

"So? If anything, I think that would make life more interesting. Everyday is an adventure, you never know what's going to happen and when. Personally, I think that sounds like a life I would like to live." She laughed. "That's part of the reason why I became a demon hunter."

Ludwig actually laughed out loud when he said that. "I don't think you meant to compare my siblings to demons, but it's a fitting metaphor."

Aria turned red when that was said, but ended up laughing eventually. The two of them laughed like clowns, getting all sorts of looks from the people who stood in the line and sat at the outdoor tables. Ludwig wasn't bothered by this though. For once in his life, he was having fun. Sure, that fun partly came at the expense of his siblings, but he didn't mind. It was all in good fun, and honestly, the rascals earned the right to be made fun of. At least, that was the justification that Ludwig used. That was a good excuse to be a jerk, right?

After they stopped laughing, there was silence for a little bit. Ludwig turned toward Aria, about to start up another conversation, when he saw a flash of rainbow colors out of the corners of his eyes. He turned and saw Lemmy standing on his right, grinning with enough enthusiasm to last for weeks.

"What is it?" Ludwig asked, trying not to sound too disappointed that his alone time with Aria had been interrupted.

Lemmy giggled. "Oh, nothing. I just wanted to see how you two lovebirds are doing."

Ludwig's face grew steaming hot. "LEMMY!" He tried to say something else, but nothing came. HIs burning hot face and flustered tongue made the perfect combo of embarrassment and bewilderment. He tried to get his act together, but between looking in the faces of the giggling Lemmy and the amused Aria, speaking was more or less an impossibility.

Thankfully, Aria stepped forward and spoke for him. "You think we're in love, Lemmy?"

"Well, I would certainly hope so!" Lemmy exclaimed. He looked between the two, a glee in his features shining brighter than the north star. "You two just go together so well! Like peanut butter and tomatoes!"

Ludwig made a face at Lemmy's odd metaphor while Aria laughed. "I'm glad you feel that way." She looked into Ludwig's eyes, as if she was searching through his soul for any sign that he agreed with her. This made Ludwig's face grow even warmer, but thankfully he found the strength to speak.

"We're not together Lemmy." He narrowed his gaze. "And you already know why."

Lemmy's facial features sank a little bit. "I know, I know…" he shook his head. "But a koopa has to have dreams, you know?" With that, he walked away, much to Ludwig's relief. As much as he loved his immediate younger brother, he had to admit that sometimes Lemmy overstepped his bounds. Exactly like he had done just then.

As Ludwig turned back to the line, he felt relieved to see that there was only one person standing in front of them. This almost made him rise into the air in excitement, especially seeing how he hadn't found the wait to be as unbearable as he predicted.

"What did you mean by 'you already know why?'"

And just like that, Ludwig seized up again. "Uh…" he looked at Aria, his heart racing. Not here! He didn't want to reveal the secret here! What could he do? Was there anyway to prevent the secret from spilling out?

"Uh… what I meant is that Lemmy knows that we're just friends." Ludwig almost breathed a sigh of relief; he pretty much nailed that lie.

"Oh." Aria shrugged after giving this a little bit more thought. "Yeah, that is true, we are just friends." She smiled at him. "And I'm happy that's what we are."

Ludwig smiled back until he noticed something about her expression. It looked… it looked off. Even though her mouth turned upwards into a smile, her eyes didn't match that at all. It almost looked like she was screaming on the inside, screaming for something that was out of her reach. This made Ludwig's heart race. Did she not actually believe those words? Did she actually want the two of them to advance their relationship to the next level? Oh goodness. What would Ludwig do if that was actually the case?

He did a double take just as the person in front of them walked away with their ice cream. He could think about this later. Not that there was much to think about; Aria was a friend. Sure, she was a gorgeous friend, but still a friend. And Ludwig was more than comfortable with continually calling her a friend.

Anyway, the two of them input their orders. The server's ice grew wide when Ludwig ordered seven different ice creams (he himself was getting a soda, this time one that wasn't diet). Fortunately, they went to get the orders ready without any form of complaint. As he waited, Ludwig looked behind him. He saw other Koopas who had gotten in the line, and felt somewhat guilty that they had to wait through someone ordering eight different items. Fortunately, it didn't take long for the eight orders to be completed. This came as a humongous relief to him. Without much discussion, he telekinetically lifted the eight objects into the air. This garnered a gasp from all the onlookers, which made him smile. He bowed at them as they began to clap.

You know, I love being a special sometimes.

With that, they went back to the table. Ludwig sighed. "Well…" he set the orders down on the tabletop. "Eat your hearts out, everyone."

The Koopalings each grabbed their order, with only about half of them bothering to thank Ludwig. That was okay though, as Ludwig more or less had come to expect that from his family. He and Aria sat down, all while Ludwig pulled his soda close to him. He took some sips as the others each ate their ice cream with dreamy faces.

"Mmmm!" Lemmy exclaimed after getting some chocolate ice cream on his face. "This really is the best ice cream in the kingdom!"

"With that, I have to agree," Iggy said. He looked down at his purple moo moo ice cream with a grin. "No doubt the makers of this spent a considerable amount of time working to perfect the flavor!"

"Yeah!" Roy said. He took another bite of his hot fudge sundae before looking over at Ludwig. "Why didn't you get some, though? You're totally missing out!"

Ludwig snorted. "You know how I am with sweet stuff." He took another sip of his soda, letting the sparkly flavor granted to it by the carbonation rest on his tongue.

"I know, but still!" Roy took two more bites. "This stuff is amazing, and you're not even going to try it! I know your tongue is messed up in all the wrong ways, but come on dude!"

Larry chuckled. "You're getting too emotionally invested, Roy." He stuck a spoonful of pistachio ice cream in his mouth. "I personally like that he doesn't get to experience the joys we do."

Ludwig almost choked on his drink. Wow. Wow wow wow wow wow. Talk about a horrible thing to say. He was just about to say something to scold his youngest brother, but surprisingly, Aria of all people beat him to it.

"You know, with an attitude like that, I don't believe I would like being your wife."

THAT caused Larry's eyes to grow wide. "No!" He looked over at Ludwig, looking so apologetic that Ludwig almost laughed. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry Ludwig; I'm really sorry!"

"It's alright." Ludwig thought about saying something more, but decided against it. He just leaned back, watching in amusement as Larry reluctantly ate more of his treat. Man, if he knew that Aria would be this good of shaking Larry to the core, he would've invited her to eat out with them a long time ago.

Anyway, the Koopa family ate the rest of their ice cream in silence, for the most part. This was a benefit for Ludwig, for as an introvert, he wasn't always the biggest fan of having conversations with people. No, sometimes the best possible thing for him to do was sit back, relax, and soak in the quietness that solitude provided. And that was just what he did here. Granted, every so often one of his siblings would make some sort of comment, ruining the moment for him. So, he decided to go off to another, empty table across the way. As he got up, his siblings looked at him in confusion.

"Where are you going?" Lemmy asked.

"Nowhere. I just want some more space." With that, he made his way over, despite the grievances from his family. They could think he was weird all they wanted; he didn't mind. Sometimes, a koopa's gotta do what a koopa's gotta do.

So, he took his seat. Aww, so much peace. So much quiet. So much freedom from the sounds that he heard nonstop during his life living in the castle with the rest of his family. He leaned back, soaking up the tranquility as he kept his eyes on the sky. It was such a beautiful blue, he was just starting to notice that now. This once again ignited a desire inside Ludwig to paint. Sure, he had very little confidence in his artistic abilities due to the fact that he was very, very… very very very rusty, but he still wanted to try. After all, how hard would it be to paint something as simple as the afternoon sky?

He smiled as he thought about that. Yeah, he probably should try it out. Before the lot of them left Stonebrim to go back to the castle, he was going to stop by an arts and crafts store and pick up art supplies. The sky was just too gorgeous to not be captured in a painting. Almost as gorgeous as…

"Hey."

Ludwig looked up. Aria. Oh Aria, why art thou so pretty? Why did she have looks that would make anybody within a fifty mile radius swoon? Ludwig thought about these questions for a minute before realizing that they were taking him too close into "attraction" territory. So, after returning Aria's greeting, he turned around and drank the rest of his soda. All the while, his face felt hot enough to act as a stovetop.

This became all the more true as Aria took a seat in front of him. "Liking that soda?"

Ludwig nodded. He continued taking big slurps, actually feeling a little disappointed when he inevitably reached the bottom. He set his cup to the side, looking at Aria as he did. He took notice of her lavender ice cream. Yes, lavender. That was a strange flavor if he had ever seen one. Seriously, he didn't even know that lavender had a flavor!

"Are you enjoying your ice cream?" he asked, figuring it was a good follow up to her soda question.

"Oh yes." Aria took another bite. "I know it seems like a weird flavor; heck, that's pretty much why I chose it. But, surprisingly, it's really good. It has a sort of subtle flavor, which is really nice as it isn't too overwhelming." She looked over at Ludwig. "I know you and sweet aren't exactly the best pairing, but would you like to try it?"

Ludwig did a double take. "Uh…sure." Hey, if the flavor really was as subtle as Aria advertised, then this might be the first time in his life where he enjoyed eating ice cream. He telekinetically picked up a glob of it, making it float into his mouth. He let it rest on his tongue for a little bit before forming his full opinion on it.

"Huh. Not bad."

"No, it really isn't!" Aria took another bite. "I think it's pretty good! Granted not my favorite, but it's still a really nice flavor."

Ludwig nodded. He could agree with her on that. He didn't know if it was something he would try again, but he certainly didn't hate it. And when it came to desserts, really that was all Ludwig really asked for.

"Hey," Aria said as she leaned forward. "Thank you for introducing me to your family."

"No problem," Ludwig said. "They are pains in the tailpipe sometimes, but they can be good people to converse with." He chuckled. "Plus, it's not everyday that they're introduced to someone new, so this was a pretty special event for them."

"Makes sense." Aria giggled. "A lot of them were clearly excited." She laughed. "You know, if I had a coin for everytime a preteen asked me to be their wife, I'd have two coins. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice."

Ludwig burst into laughter, and Aria joined in. After they finished, Ludwig smiled at her.

"Honestly, I'm surprised you've only been asked twice." He grinned. "You… I mean you're…. You're beautiful."

Aria blinked. "You think so?"

"Of course! You're quite a looker, I have to admit." He felt embarrassment creeping in, but he did his best to ignore it. "Any guy would be lucky to go on a date with someone like you."

Now it was Aria's turn to blush. "Thanks. You have no idea how much it means to me to hear that."

With that, there was silence, and a very awkward one at that. The longer he waited, the more Ludwig regretted telling her that. As true as it was, it could also give her the impression that he thought of her as… well, more than just a friend. And honestly, Ludwig didn't want that. They had a good gig going on when it came to their friendship. And besides, the inevitable reveal of what happened to Frostwall would only serve to put a wedge between them, so Ludwig didn't want to start any sort of physical relationship.

So, he fished around in his mind for something to say, something that would turn both of their attention away from what was just said. "Uh… um…." Wow, thinking up a topic was a lot harder than he thought. It felt like an eternity was dragging on the longer he went trying to decide what to say. It was only the mercy of the gods that finally allowed him to find a topic worth discussing.

"So, you're a demon hunter. That's pretty exciting."

Aria snorted. "It's frustrating is what it is."

"Oh?" Ludwig asked. "Why's that?"

Aria let out a sigh, the type that could only ever precede someone going off on a rant. "For one, the pay is shit. I can barely afford the rent of my house, meaning that I would have to relocate to somewhere other than Sparksville. Which would be a shame, because as I said before, there is a lot of dark magic reside resting under the town." She shook her head, her expression looking pained. "Although, as bad as that fact is, it's got nothing on what really grinds me gears."

Ludwig raised an eyebrow. "And what would that be?"

Aria bit her lip. "Well… I'm currently on the hunt for more information regarding someone called The Dark Prince. I've been wanting to find him because… well, he just fascinates me. A lot of mythology that we have in our world is about him and his birth." She traced her finger around the brim of her ice cream cup. "But even then, all of those stories are… vague. Like, really vague. We don't have the name of his father, his own name, or even what he looks like. And I know… just know that there's more to his story. I want to find out what that is, more than I've ever wanted anything before. I think…." she sunk into her chair. "This may sound embarrassing, but I think it would make my mother proud."

"That's not embarrassing," Ludwig protested. "It makes sense that you'd want to do that." He smiled. "Honoring someone's name and memory is a very noble thing to do, in my opinion."

Aria chuckled. "Thanks." She sighed again. "I just…I just wish I could make some more progress. I mean, on some level, I'm glad the Dark Prince is hard to find, because if he wasn't, then the whole Mushroom World would be in loads of trouble. But… I just…. I just have this itch in my mind. Nothing I do can make it go away. "

"Makes sense." Ludwig sipped some air through his straw, keeping his eyes on her and her only. "You know, if I could help you, I could." He blinked before smiling. "Why don't I come with you on one of your hunts? Maybe we'll make more progress as a group."

"Really?" Aria blinked before hesitating. "I… I don't know, Ludwig. Going out on these hunts is pretty dangerous. There's a whole smorgasbord of deadly demons one could come across. And…" she looked into his eyes. "I'd hate to see you get hurt."

Ludwig felt a pang. He leaned forward and took hold of her hand. "And I'd hate for the same thing to happen to you. And besides, I want to help you." He smiled. "Maybe me being with you could finally help you to make some actually progress."

"Maybe…" Aria thought about this before smiling. "You know what? Sure! I would love for you to come on a hunt!"

Ludwig grinned.