"Hey! Where are you taking us?" Noëlle demanded of the creatures holding them captive.

"Quiet, you!" The black mask one said.

They were taking her and Luigi to a red hot air balloon. Luigi was mostly quiet but she heard him whimper nervously at some points.

Noëlle noticed when he looked back at the castle with a deep expression on his face.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked gently.

"That castle reminded me about something," he answered.

"What is it?"

Luigi told her a flashback of himself and Mario when they were much younger, specifically in their toddler years, and how Mario once defended Luigi from a bully after the mean boy destroyed a castle Luigi built at that time. The story felt heartwarming to Noëlle.

"He's always had your back, huh?"

Luigi said. "We always have each other's backs. That's one of the things that makes Mario a great person…and brother."

"That's beautiful. My older brother and I are the same too," she said. They both looked at each other. "Whoa. We have something in common."

"Yeah," he smiled before frowning again and observed their surroundings.

All Noëlle could do at this moment was try to cheer herself and Luigi up. But how? She thought.

What she did next didn't make the creatures shut her up and it stunned Luigi.

I promised myself
I promised I'll wait for you
The midnight hour
I know you'll shine on through

I promised myself
I promised the world to you
I gave you flowers
You made my dreams come true

How many of us out there
Feel the need
To run and look for shelter?

Some of the words reminded her of her father and nearly made her cry but she held it together for the sake of herself and her friend.

I promised myself
That I'd say a prayer for you
A brand new tomorrow
Where all you wish comes true

I promised myself
That I'd make it up to you
My sister and brother
Know I'm in love with you

How many of us out there
Feel the pain of losing what was once theirs?
God I know what people say about her
No mistake, who can live without love?

"Noëlle, that was beautiful," the youngest brother said. "I didn't know you could sing."

"Thanks," she smiled. "It's actually been a few days ago since the last time I sang. And I thought it would somehow cheer us up in this current position we're in."

"That's a voice I can listen to all day," he grinned.

"Aw, thank you, Luigi," she said, feeling touched. "No one's ever said that to me before."

"Really?"

"True story."

During the trip, Noëlle wondered where they were being taken to and thought of another thing she and Luigi could do to pass the time.

"Do you wanna…" she said to him. "…play a game?"

"What kind of game?" He sounded interested.

"Hmm, a this or that kind of game."

"All right," he said. "Ladies first."

"Cat or dog?"

"Neither," he said, looking nervous.

"Why not?"

"I'm...afraid of them," he said embarrassingly.

"Why?"

"I can't explain it. It's just something about them that scares me. By the way, there was a dog at our job site today and he didn't like it when I accidentally stepped on and broke his bone in half."

"Aw," she said sympathetically. "The poor thing. It's like accidentally breaking your favourite toy."

"I didn't do it on purpose," Luigi said.

"I'm sure," she said and began to laugh. "Sorry, it's just..." she laughed more about it.

"Heh, heh" Luigi chuckled nervously. "Glad that amuses you. What about you, regarding the question."

"I like both. I have a cat named Sofia, Sophie for short, a black cat."

He nodded, finding it intriguing.

"Okay, your turn."

"Uh...pizza or pasta?" He asked.

"Ooh. Tough one," she said, thinking. "Well, I grew up with noodles. And funny story, I had my first pizza when I was thirteen. So, can't I choose both?" She laughed.

"Yeah, I like both too."

"Favourite pizza?"

"Ones with mushrooms," he replied.

"Nice. Me, mushrooms and pepperoni."

"Nice," he repeated her statement.

"Okay, uh...blue or green eyes, regarding someone you want to date?"

"Doesn't matter," he said. "Most important is the personality."

"So true," she smiled. "Me, also doesn't matter. The guy must just be great. Period."

Luigi thought of another question. "Can I ask you something personal?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Was it hard having to leave our school?"

Noëlle was surprised by this. She kind of thought, since she and the brothers never contacted each other all those years ago, that maybe they'd forgotten about her but she was glad they didn't. "Yeah. I mean, my parents got a new job and we had to move and all. It was hard because I really liked school here. It was definitely more fun than my other one. I know that you guys and I didn't hang out a lot but you guys were my favourite."

"Really?"

"Course. You guys helped me a lot with maths before class started for one. And I-" she almost let it slip that she had a crush on Luigi a long time ago. But she didn't want to ruin their new friendship because of it so she kept quiet about it and told another bit of her truth. "And it was one of my best times of my life."

He grinned before furrowing his eyebrows in curiosity. "What did you mean more fun than the other school?"

She sighed deeply. "The other school had more bullies. I was always getting picked on for some reason but eventually I no longer tolerated it. I got stronger because of those experiences. Also, thanks to my protective brother for teaching me that."

Luigi thought of the times when he was bullied at school. "Yeah, me too. They always teased me for being scared all the time. Pranks in my locker, coming out of corners to give me a fright..."

"I'm sorry," Noëlle wanted to reach for his hand to comfort him but couldn't because of their ropes.

"But I'm glad to see you again after all these years."

"Me too," she grinned at him.

There was a sudden bump on the balloon. The humans took a look and saw that they were now approaching a floating dark castle that had a horned creature's face in the middle with glowing eyes.

The song is I Promised Myself by Nick Kamen