Author's Preface

I was a huge fan when I was a kid (many, many years ago!) and have renewed my interest out of nostalgia. It's easy to become nostalgic when your world has gone from an entire globe to four walls. Anyway, this idea of a Luigi story in the modern universe hasn't left me alone for months, so I've decided to acquiesce to its demands. This story starts at the beginning, so take it in that context.

This is a Luigi-Daisy romance. Please do not ask me for Luigi/male or a Luigi transgender story; while there are LGBT+ protagonists herein, they are generally in line with Nintendo canon and do not feature an intentional misunderstanding of gender identity or orientation versus gender expression tofeature a sexist Mary/Marty Sue.

I would like to address some notable changes to the Nintendo canon:

1. I've taken the essential characters – Mario, Luigi, Daisy, Peach, Bowser, and Yoshi – and put them in contemporary Brooklyn/NYC, c. 2014-2015. I've also made this story 16-17+ (Teen/low-end of Mature), as it will contain adult language and themes. New Yorkers are well-known for their love and frequent use of profanity, so Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Bowser, etc., will use it, too.

2. There is an age gap between Mario and Luigi of roughly eight years; while I know that they are canonically fraternal twins, it would not be credible, given the physical and emotional differences between the two, to have them be the same age in a modern universe story. (Honestly, I never agreed with Nintendo's decision to make them twins. It made no sense except from a purely technical aspect.) Having said this, I will not do a Super Mario Bros movie mess and make Mario a father figure to Luigi. They're close, for sure, but like in the games, their relationship is one of sibling love and rivalry.

3. In the games, Mario is 155 cm tall, which is roughly 5'1" in Imperial. For many reasons, including making this story more realistic, as many plumbing shops would not hire him due to height-related safety concerns, I increased his height to 5'6" or 168 cm. Keeping the same proportions, Luigi is 6'1" (185 cm) instead of 5'8" (173 cm). The princesses are taller than Mario, but not taller than Luigi.

4. In this story, "Jumpman" is not Mario, but Mario and Luigi's father, Mario (II). The eldest son over three generations is called Mario: Mario (grandfather), Mario (father), Mario (Luigi's brother). I think there's some support for this in canon, but it's widely accepted that Jumpman was the 1981 original version of Mario. Jumpman does factor in this story, but I won't say how at this time.

5. Mario and Luigi's surname is not Mario because having the same forename and surname would be odd, even in Italy. Nonetheless, they are still the "Mario Brothers." Segale was a consideration, but it's a Northern name (Lombardy). There are numerous Northerners in Brooklyn, but they tend to be current second- or third-generation Italian Americans, as the majority immigrated to the U.S. in the 1890-1920s. Mario and Luigi are likely first/second generation, given the Super Show and their "fluency" in (mock) Italian in most of the games, so it would make more sense that their parents are of Southern Italian descent, e.g., from Napoli, Abruzzo, and Sicily, as many immigrated in the 1940s to the 1960s to escape World War II and the Mafia. I did keep Mario and Luigi's mother's maiden name as Rigassi.

6. Since there are no Mushroom Kingdom, Koopas, or Sarasaland in this story, I've made geographical and ethnicity/origin changes to some of the characters, e.g., Toad, Wario, Waluigi, Peach, Bowser, Yoshi, and Daisy. I've tried to keep their personalities the same, though I've given an upgrade to Peach – she will not be a damsel in distress in this story. I've also split "Bowser" into two characters of the same family: one that is closer to the archnemesis that we know (and love/hate) and another that is closest to the frenemy of Super Paper Mario.

7. I have told certain events out of order to make the story more "believable," so if you see differences between the video game and the story, don't panic – this was done intentionally.

8. I've also changed Daisy's and other characters' eye colors, as not everyone can be blue-eyed in real life!

9. Neither Luigi's Mansion nor Super Smash will factor heavily in this story, though there will be a few characters borrowed or referenced. I really wanted to do a King Boo vs. Luigi story, but I ultimately decided against it for two reasons. First, I don't like stories with too many characters; they rarely read well. Second, I want to give King Boo his due; throwing him in a story that doesn't fit would absolutely suck. He's a great character and deserves better. Perhaps if I manage to finish this one, I'll do a sequel with Luigi's Mansion.

10. I have changed some of the names of real unions and/or schools to avoid a lawsuit or intellectual property infringement concerns. This is a work of fiction, and Nintendo and/or Sega own all the characters save one or two.