Chapter 2 That Name of Hers

When he got home that evening, Ludwig was all high spirits. He grinned as he flew over to his bed, floating down onto the mattress in a way so light and airy that not even the lightest feather could replicate it. He thought about the date, first and foremost. Telling Aria all about the things that had happened in his life… it had been strangely fun. Plus, somewhat therapeutic, for as interesting as those events were, they had also shook him to his core when they actually occurred. So, talking about them with an outside party… it helped. It helped out a lot.

Of course, Ludwig shouldn't lose sight of what was really important about this day. While still smiling the sweetest of smiles, he fished his phone out of his hammerspace. While situated in the most comfortable position on his bed, he went to his contact list and arrived at the name of his clone. He let out a breath as he selected that three letter name and held the phone to his ear.

"Hello?" Ludwig's own voice said on the other line after about a ten second wait.

"Why hello there," Ludwig said, his grin somehow growing more intense. "I'd say I haven't seen you in a while, but you and I both know I like to look in the mirror."

Bob laughed on the other line. "Hey, Ludwig!" The excitement in his voice was practically immeasurable. "I can more or less say the exact same thing about you!" Both koopas chuckled some more. "How have you been? What has been going on in the interesting journey that you call a life?"

Ludwig snickered. "Oh, not much. Going into a TV set, being turned into a cat, facing off against demons before being stuck in a time loop… you know, just typically Friday night stuff."

Bob burst into laughter. "Oh man! That all sounds exciting!" He paused to catch his breath. "I mean, I already knew about the time loop stuff, but I never would've imagine you'd go through all that." He snickered, and Ludwig wouldn't at all be surprised if he was smirking. "And all during the same Friday night, no less."

Ludwig shook his head. "Not exactly all on the same Friday night, but… you know, semantics." He readjusted himself, trying to find a position that was somehow even more comfortable. "Anyway, what's been going on with you?"

Bob sighed. "Well, nothing that comes even close to matching the level of craziness that has been going on in your life, I hate to say." He let out a breath, which no doubt was being accompanied by some sort of smile. "But… there is one development that I can say is very good! I managed to get a girlfriend!"

Ludwig's eyes grew wide. "Wait, really?" He sat up. "I thought you didn't one to date anymore! You know, because of the disaster that was your relationship with Marissa…"

Bob let out a sheepish chuckle. "Well, that was the plan… originally." He paused. "But… well, what can I say? I met this amazing girl. She restored the hope that I might actually have a good future when it comes to my relationship with women." He chuckled, this time without any semblance of a sheepish tone. "Let me tell you Ludwig, Jackie is the most amazing girl ever. She's everything one could possibly want in a significant other."

Ludwig only barely heard that last part, mostly because one thing that Bob had said had captured his attention. To be more specific, the name of his girlfriend. Jackie…. Jackie… why did that sound so familiar? Ludwig was sure he had come across a girl named Jackie in the past… oh well, it was probably nothing. There were possibly thousands of Jackies in the Koopa Kingdom. This girl having that name was more than likely a coincidence.

"Well, I am very happy to hear that. After all that you've gone through… you deserve to have a nice lady in your life, Bob."

"Hehe, thanks." When he spoke, Bob used a more lovestruck, less dynamic tone. "I really like Jackie. We've only been on four dates, but they all have been absolutely lovely. I… I don't want to get ahead of myself, as I know that taking things too fast is not a good idea. But… but she's just amazing, Ludwig. I… I feel like we have something special here." He let out another breath. "In fact, I think it would be really nice if you met Jackie. I think you'd really like her."

Ludwig beamed. "I'm sure I would too. In fact…" he lied back down in his bed. "That actually ties into why I decided to call you in the first place. You see… I have a girlfriend too."

Bob gasped. "What? No way!" He laughed, the sound hearty as a childhood memory. "That's so cool! We both have girlfriends at exactly the same time!" Ludwig heard shuffling occurring on the other side of the phone, possibly because Bob was taking the time to adjust his position on his bed (it seemed that the maker and the clone did at least have some things in common). "Tell me all about her!"

Ludwig blew a strand of hair out of his face as he put on a smile. "Well, her name is Aria. We met when we were kids, but managed to reconnect recently."

Bob snorted. "Considering that you two are now a couple, I think that is somewhat of an understatement."

Ludwig snickered right alongside his clone. "Well, what can I say?" He sighed. "And let me tell you Bob, she's just as amazing as she was back when we first met. She's strong, spunky, and as a bonus, she just so happens to be a demon hunter!" Bob gasped when that was said, causing Ludwig to laugh. "Yep! She's a demon hunter, and she kicks a significant amount of ass at her job." He looked around, starting to feel a little guilty. "Just, don't say the word 'ass' around her. She, uh… she doesn't find any value in swearing."

"Makes sense." Bob giggled, sounding kind of like the kind of mischievous little imps Aria would encounter in her line of work. "She sounds great though. And hey, if you love her enough, not being able to swear in front of her would only be a small price to pay."

"Oh, and believe me, it certainly is," Ludwig said. "I am absolutely crazy about her, and I want to keep her around for as long as possible."

"Ooh!" Bob exclaimed. "Sounds like there are wedding bells chiming in the future!"

Ludwig's face grew hot. "Well… I don't know if I would go that far…" he tried his best to not let this joke from Bob make him feel too embarrassed. "But… yeah, she's great. And, as matter of fact…" he sat up again, the smile from before returning to his face. "She told me she wants to meet you."

Bob let out another gasp, this one more… explosive than the other ones he made over the course of the phone call. "Really? That's great! I would love to meet her!" If the last gasp wasn't enough, he let out another one, this one so packed full of excitement that it put the last one to complete and utter shame. "Oh, Mama Mia! What if we went on a double date! That would be incredible!"

Ludwig smiled. "Hey yeah! That could be fun!" In fact, the more he thought about the idea, the more he liked it. One, it would be an activity more than appropriate for Ludwig and Aria to do as a couple. Two, it would help Ludwig to be introduced to and get to know Jackie, the woman who had knocked Bob off his feet. And three… well, it would just be plain fun, as he had previously expressed. "I'm all for it!"

"Great! I have a day off of work next Friday. Would that be a good time for you?" When Ludwig reassured him that any time would be a good time for him, Bob let out a little whoop. "Woo hoo! I guess I'll see you then, Ludwig! I'll call you sometime in the near future so that we can flesh out the details!"

"Perfect! See you then!" With that, Ludwig hung up the phone. He let out a happy breath, one that caused his special powers to activate and make him rise into the air. "I'm going on a double date on Friday!" He had to admit, this was pretty exciting. He had never been on a double date before. This was mostly because Aria was his first real girlfriend (he had been on dates before, but most of them had turned into one-night stands). So, this would fall under the category of "trying something new." Oh man, was there anything more rewarding than trying something new?

With that thought in mind, Ludwig got out of bed and looked into the mirror right next to the door. He studied his appearance, questioning how he could tweak it in order to make it suitable for the upcoming event. Maybe he could do a little experimenting on his hair; not by cutting it necessarily, but by styling it in a way that he had never done before. Granted, it would take a while for him to settle on what that style should be. He guessed, in that sense, it was a good thing Friday was three days away. Gave him some time to prepare…

Right as he was thinking this, Lemmy came in through the door. "Hey Ludwig!" He came into the room, rolling around on a circus ball for what was possibly the first time in about a year.

Ludwig actually blinked when he saw this. "You got a new circus ball?"

"Yep-a-roo!" Lemmy giggled before doing a backflip, landing perfectly on the surface of the ball (which Ludwig happily noted was rainbow-colored. That was a nice change of pace from the yellow ball with orange stars that Lemmy usually rode on). "And believe me Ludwig, it is such a nice thing to be able to use a circus ball again!" He put one hand down on the ball and did a one-handed handstand. "It helps me feel more… complete, you know?"

"Oh yeah, I know." While Ludwig couldn't relate to this exact scenario, he had to admit that getting back in touch with your hobbies, passions, and interests did help a person feel more alive. "I also know how downtrodden you were when your first ball broke, so…" he chuckled sheepishly, scratching the back of his head as he did. "I hope you don't blame me to badly for that." Ludwig had, after all, been the person who originally popped the thing.

Lemmy beamed as he stood back up straight. "Don't worry; I don't hold a grudge against you." He giggled. "I don't hold a grudge against anybody…"

Ludwig actually snickered at the delivery of that line, as the tone used felt more appropriate for the delivery of a threat or a death sentence (or something else along those lines). "Okay, that makes me feel a little better."

"Good!" Lemmy dismounted his ball and went over to his side of their shared room. "So, now that that's out of the way…" he mounted his bed his eyes sparkling as he looked at his one and only older brother. "How are things going with you and Aria?"

"Oh, they're beyond perfect!" Ludwig exclaimed. "In fact…" he turned back to the mirror, pushing one strand of hair to the side in an effort to determine how he should style his hair. "I have a double date with Bob and his new girlfriend this Friday!"

Lemmy beamed. "Really? That's awes…" he stopped mid-sentence, his eyes growing wide as what was said sank in. "Wait, Bob has a girlfriend too? Since when?"

"Since relatively recently, if what he told me is to be believed." Ludwig looked down at the jasper that served as the button for his blue cloak. As a gift from Aria, it carried a lot of significance for Ludwig. However, it didn't really seem appropriate for a double date…

"That's great!" Lemmy exclaimed. He jumped back up and down in his bed like a little kid (which, thanks to his diminutive stature and his high-pitched voice, he very closely resembled). "What's her name? What's she like?"

Ludwig chortled. "Well, I can't exactly answer the latter…" he looked back in the mirror, deciding that it wouldn't hurt to ask Wendy for some concealer (hey, guys could use makeup too!). "However, I can say that her name is Jackie."

Lemmy stopped bouncing. "Jackie?" He put his hand to his chin. "That name sounds kind of… familiar…"

Ludwig did a double take. "Oh, to you too?" He went over to Lemmy's bed. "I thought the same thing! I just… I just can't piece together where I heard it before."

"Yeah, I can't either…" Lemmy mused. The two Koopalings spent the next minute or so in silence, racking their brains for the time when they might have heard Jackie's name, once upon a time ago. Unfortunately, neither one of them could determine the answer, which surprisingly got a frustrated groan from Lemmy. "Drat, I don't remember." He shook his head and looked back at Ludwig. "When you get back from the double date, you'll have to tell me about her."

"Oh, I will." After all, Ludwig was just as determined to piece together this puzzle as Lemmy was. "Believe me, I will…"