Chapter One: Toad Town Shopping

Luigi stepped out into the busy landscape of Toad Town, unsure of what he would do today. He had only left to give Mario and Vivian some alone time, but now he didn't know how he would spend his day. He usually planned things to the tiniest detail. Mario, however, only acted on impulse, 'winging it' as he put it, every single time he and Luigi were thrust into chaos.

Don't worry. Just act like Mario, and everything will be fine, Luigi told himself as he made his way through the streets.

Deciding to stop at the market, Luigi wanted to surprise Mario with his favorite drink, Chuckola Cola. He also decided to pick up some Life Shrooms, just in case he ran into trouble, which he almost always did.

The initial morning rush in Toad Town had died down, much to Luigi's relief. He decided to stop by Rowf's Badge Shop to see what they had in stock for today.

"Hey, Luigi! How's it going?" Rowf beamed upon seeing Luigi walk in.

"It's going great! What do you have in stock today?"

"Well, we have some classics today. Take a look for yourself."

Luigi looked around the badge shop. On the counter he saw a Multibounce, a Speedy Spin, and a Spike Shield. He wanted to be prepared for anything, so he bought the Spike Shield. However, that drained him of his last 100 coins.

It didn't matter much, as there were plenty of sights to see. Like toads. Even for a place called Toad Town, Luigi had never seen this many toads here before. In fact, they were all crowded around... something. He decided to investigate what all the fuss was about.

He moved his way through the crowd, to find a Rock Paper Wizard challenging the residents of Toad Town to Roshambo matches.

"Can anybody beat me? C'mon, give me a challenge!" boomed the Rock Paper Wizard, clearly very cocky. "You know what, I'll up the stakes! 500 COINS FOR ANYONE WHO CAN BEAT ME!

Luigi's interest was piqued. He didn't know how he could possibly beat the Wizard, but then he remembered something peculiar. One time Mario told him that if you asked somebody a question before a match of Roshambo, they had a higher chance of playing scissors. He had nothing to lose, so why not try it out?

"I'll challenge you."

Everybody looked at Luigi in relative shock, mostly because he never did anything like this. But Luigi was feeling rather brave today. He sat down at the table with the Wizard, and deciding to put his brother's theory to the test, Luigi asked a question.

"So what brings you here?"

"Traveling on business," was the Wizard's response. "I'm attending some intense Roshambo tournaments, and right now I've got some down time. All right, let's do this."

The crowd stirred around them. They were pumped.

"RO!"

Luigi was nervous. What if the Wizard didn't play scissors?

"SHAM!"

Then he calmed himself, realizing there was nothing to lose by doing this.

"BO!"

Luigi closed his eyes and played rock. The crowd was silent. Not knowing what was going on, he opened his eyes, and...

The Rock Paper Wizard had played scissors.

The crowd went absolutely wild, chanting "LUIGI!" repeatedly.

"Well, I'll be darned," was the Wizard's only words as he pulled out 500 coins out from under his table, and handed them to Luigi, who was in absolute shock from what just happened. The chanting continued, only it had died down. Actually, only one person was chanting. But he wasn't chanting. He was calling for Luigi.

"Luigi! Wait!"

It was Toad, who stopped him. Luigi could barely understand Toad's "accent" (Toad has a very scratchy voice, much scratchier than all of the other toads), but what he understood was that Bowser was just sighted at Peach's Castle. Not wanting to bother his brother, Luigi decided to take matters into his own hands and take down Bowser himself.

Upon reaching Peach's Castle, Luigi walked through the grand hallways until he reached the throne room. In there was Bowser, standing before Princess Peach. Before making a scene, Luigi decided to wait and eavesdrop.

"Why are you trying to kidnap me this time?" Peach asked, bored of this same routine by now.

"No, that's not why I'm here," Bowser replied, already getting annoyed. "I've been thinking, and... well, to be frank, this kidnapping thing never works out for me. I lose valuable troops, and I get my ass kicked by those plumbers. It's too exhausting, and besides, I always end up having to work with you guys anyways, so... I want to establish a truce. Between the Mushroom Kingdom and the Koopa Kingdom."

"Well, Bowser, I'm glad to hear a change of heart."

Bowser did not like the implication that he was a good guy now.

"You get me straight, no heart is changing! All that changes is the hostility to my presence in your kingdom, and having each other as allies from now on."

"Okay then, Bowser Koopa. I formally establish a permanent truce between the Mushroom and Koopa Kingdoms."

Suddenly, a mysteriously familiar voice calls out from somewhere nearby.

"Well then, I guess I'll have to deal with Rookie as well as the princess."

"Who said that?" questioned Peach, not recognizing the voice.

"I'm the one who will take over the Mushroom Kingdom," the voice jeered.

"NOBODY DOES THAT AROUND HERE, NOT EVEN ME! AND DON'T CALL ME 'ROOKIE,' EITHER!" the Koopa King roared.

Luigi, knowing he had to do something, figured he might need backup. He didn't want to bother Mario and Vivian on their date, but he didn't have much else of a choice. He took out his Dual Scream, and wrote an email to Mario. Sent.

"Okay then, Luigi. You can do this."

Mario and Vivian were still in each other's embraces for a few minutes before Mario finally invited her in. He pulled up a chair in the kitchen for her and started making a cup of tea for her.

"Thanks, Mario, but you don't have to do this," was all Vivian said about Mario's chivalry.

"No, no, you are a guest, and my girlfriend. Consider yourself royalty."

"Well, about that first part... you see, um, I know it's probably too soon, but... can I live here for a little bit?"

"I thought you were living with your sisters in Twilight Town? Did something happen?" Mario paused for a moment, before a theory sparked in his mind, and it was one that enraged him. "Did Beldam hurt you again!? Mama Mia, when I get my hands on he-"

"No! No, it's nothing like that. I just... want to leave. It's getting a little stale, and it's not like I ever felt welcome there."

"Well, I'll have to talk with Luigi about it. I'll also have to find you a bed, and then..." Mario started rambling about the logistics of Vivian moving in.

"Wait, wait," Vivian interrupted. "First of all, you don't need to go all out for me. I promise that I'll fit right in. Second, who said I needed a separate bed?"

Vivian was simply referring to the couch as to not take up space or waste Mario's money, but he interpreted it a little differently, thinking that the shadow wanted to sleep in the same bed as him. His face instantly went beet red, and Vivian, realizing what Mario thought she was saying, also went red. It was like this for a few minutes, Mario now thinking about what would happen if they had to share a bunk with his younger brother, and Vivian thinking about warm cuddles with Mario in the night. This silence was finally broken with Mario saying "Let's talk about this later, okay?"

Vivian nodded, and Mario suggested watching a movie, which she happily agreed with. Mario, in a kind of daze-like state from earlier, put on some random cheesy action movie starring Zip Toad. It didn't matter to either of them, though, because of what Vivian did next.

Mario and Vivian were sitting on the couch together. However, they were on opposite sides of the couch, due to the whole living together debacle. That was, until, Vivian scooted over to Mario, and, out of pure impulse, kissed him. It was very brief, and after realizing what she was doing, she pulled away, going red again. After coming out of his daze, Mario only had one question.

"Why'd you stop?"

What followed was a few minutes of passionate kissing, and then the couple finally settled down into some cuddling. They fell asleep in each other's arms, and while it would have lasted hours, it was cut short by Mario vibrating.

"Is that... your email?" Vivian questioned, clearly annoyed that cuddle time was interrupted.

Mario checked his email, to see a message from Luigi:

Hey, bro! I went out to Toad Town, and I bought you some Chuckola Cola, your favorite! I also got some Life Shrooms, just in case. I also got a Spike Shield so I can put my jump to good use! You'll never believe what happened next. I beat a Rock Paper Wizard! That theory of yours with scissors was right! Also, Bowser signed a treaty with the princess, so I guess he's on our side permanently now. But now a mysterious figure is attacking the castle! He seems familiar, but I can't put my finger on it. He's trying to take over the kingdom, and I'll try to take care of it, but I might need some backup. Oh yeah, this is Luigi, by the way!

"Hey, Vivian?"

"Yes?"

"Wanna go out on another adventure?"

"If it's with you, definitely."

"Then let's a-go.