Chapter 7 Sleepless Arguing

"AAH!"

Ludwig bolted upright. His heart and mind raced around, making him feel physically sick. He sat still in his bed, trembling and shaking like he just found out the Matrix was real. He was so preoccupied with these emotions, as well as the imagery he saw in his nightmare, that he didn't even notice Lemmy waking up from across the room.

"Ludwig?" Lemmy asked, his voice groggy while also concerned to an absurd degree. "What happened?"

Ludwig didn't answer, mostly because the guilt he felt over waking Lemmy up was far too great for him to deal with. He took a few deep breaths, trying to tell himself that it was all going to be okay. He repeated that message on a loop in his head, and yet, it never seemed to stick with him. Instead, it just made him feel disoriented and confused.

"H...how long was I asleep?" he asked out loud. He looked over at his clock, his heart instantly sinking when he saw that it had only been ten minutes. Ten. Measley. Minutes. What the actual fuck!

"Ludwig, are you okay?"

Ludwig's heart sank even lower because he realized an explanation for Lemmy was probably required at this point. This fact made him stiffen up, made him internally cringe. Did he even have the strength to talk about this? Well, even if he did, he knew for certain that talking about this was the last thing that he wanted. When he had this thought, he sighed and put his hand to his face.

"This is a nightmare in and of itself," he muttered. He took more deep breaths, counting to ten in his head and telling himself that this would all be okay. It had to be okay, otherwise... he didn't know. He didn't know what would become of him if this pattern continued. He didn't know what the future held, all he knew about was the present filled with horrible atrocities.

As well as his past, which contained the worst atrocity of them all.

"Ludwig, it's going to be okay," Lemmy said. He got up from his bed, came over, and put his hand on Ludwig's arm. The brothers didn't talk for a good long while, which was nice because, again, Ludwig didn't really want to talk. He just sat there, regulating his emotions and trying to prevent himself from freaking out. Of course, that last task was easier said than done. Thinking about that nightmare... thinking about Aria...

Oh crap, now he was crying. Ludwig whimpered, wiping the tears from his eyes. He probably looked like the biggest baby this side of Sarasaland. He desperately wanted to stop, to gather his bearings and appear like the mature adult everyone had told him he was. And yet, in this moment...

"I'm sorry," he said out loud while wiping away a tear. "I'm sorry I woke you up again, Lemmy."

Lemmy laughed a hollow laugh. "I think that you getting sleep is much more important than me getting sleep at this point." Lemmy frowned. "Have you gone to see Kamek?"

Ludwig seized up when he heard that. As if the nightmare hadn't been bad enough, now a new fear came over him. The best word that could describe it was dread, and it seized hold of his mind without even thinking about letting go. Ludwig sat, frozen, trying to think of the best thing to say.

"Uh..." Oh dear word, he was drawing a blank! That hardly ever happened! He needed to say something; anything! A lie would probably be the best thing to say, as that at least would appease Lemmy. Or, it would appease Lemmy until the littlest Koopaling applied even the most basic level of critical thinking. Ludwig wouldn't be having any sleep problems if he had gone to Kamek, after all.

"Uh..." it felt like Ludwig was naked under a spotlight. He looked over at Lemmy, whose face fell. It wasn't long before Ludwig's younger brother was glaring at him.

"Why haven't you gone to Kamek?" Lemmy asked, a sort of unease and disappointment present in his voice.

Ludwig swallowed a lump. "He's...busy.

Lemmy raised an eyebrow. "Busy?" Ludwig nodded, which unfortunately made Lemmy look even more mad. "Bullshit. Utter bullshit."

Now Ludwig was shaking for an entirely different reason. "I..." he looked down at his bed. Maybe it was because Lemmy was usually so happy and peppy, but being on the receiving end of his anger was one of the worst feelings in the entire world. His stomach felt gurgly and sour. He didn't even bother looking at Lemmy, instead feeling like he was shrinking into the mattress and Lemmy continued giving him one of the most disappointed looks in the world.

"Why won't you go to Kamek?" Lemmy got even closer. "It's just a simple sleeping spell. What's so bad about that?"

Ludwig bit his lip. "Well... nothing's wrong with the sleeping spell..."

"Then what's wrong with Kamek?" Lemmy asked, his volume rising.

"It's...complicated." Ludwig shrunk into the mattress even more. The feeling that he was naked under a spotlight got even more pronounced, so much so that all other emotions were kind of put on the back burner.

"What about it is complicated?" Lemmy asked. All of his usual happiness was gone. Now, being next to Lemmy felt like standing next to someone pointing a gun right at your head. "Ludwig, why won't you go to Kamek? It'll help you! It'll make things better! Don't you think getting rid of your nightmares would be worth it?"

"No!" Ludwig gripped his hand to his fist, and blue flames started to flicker as he looked at Lemmy. "I don't!"

Lemmy stepped even closer. "Why not?" he growled.

Ludwig stiffened up and turned away from Lemmy. "I can't tell you."

"BULLSHIT! What's wrong?"

"I can't tell you!"

"Sure you can! Ludwig, what the hell is wrong with you?"

"I CAN'T..." Before Ludwig even knew what was going on, a lightning bolt flew from his forehead and shocked Lemmy in the chest. Lemmy let out the most bloodcurdling yell and fell to the ground. All the while, Ludwig watched him in terror.

"Oh my God!" A million new types of emotions made themselves known. He got up from the bed. "Lemmy... I'm so sorry!"

Lemmy grunted as he rose to his feet. He didn't say anything, just rubbed the burn mark on his chest. When he looked up at Ludwig, all the anger he had been feeling was gone. In its place was fear, which was the last emotion Ludwig wanted to see from anyone. Least of all his baby brother.

"Lemmy..." Guilt overcame him, guilt triggered by all sorts of factors. He reached up and touched the jasper that served as the button for his cloak. Feeling the smooth texture under his fingers helped him calm down the tiniest bit, but it also made him think about what the cause of this whole mess was. The nightmares, the feelings; all of it was tied to this gem, and as a consequence, he couldn't keep touching it for too long. He pulled away, wondering what exactly he could say now.

"Lemmy..." Ludwig bit his lip again. "If... if I went to Kamek... I'd have to deal with some... unpleasant truths..."

Lemmy got up, blinking as he did. "Unpleasant truths?" He stepped towards the bed. "What do you mean?"

"I..." Ludwig hesitated before shaking his head. "Never mind; it's not important."

"No no, tell me!" Lemmy got onto the bed. "Maybe I can help you out!"

Ludwig hesitated again. Should he tell Lemmy about his secret? He didn't want to, especially as he thought about what the consequences of doing so would be. He could already imagine the look of horror on Lemmy's face if he were to reveal the truth, and doing so made his heart hurt. Besides, the secret really wasn't worth talking about, right? Maybe, if he stayed silent about it and didn't tell anyone about what happened, the sin he committed would fade into the ether. History would just keep moving forward, and Ludwig wouldn't need to think about it ever again. He could finally and fully move on. After all, the world had forgotten about what he did, so maybe he would too.

But... he knew that wasn't possible. It could never be possible, and Ludwig was just deluding himself by saying that it was. While the world might not remember what he did, his actions were forever branded in his memory. He couldn't forget them any more than he could erase them.

Perhaps, then, he should talk about it. It might hurt, but... it was the right thing to do.

"Alright," Ludwig said after letting out a long sigh. He faced his brother with the most serious expression ever.. "Lemmy, do you..." he hesitated again, an action that proved how difficult this was going to be. "Do you remember when you showed me your 'happy place?'"

"Of course I do." Lemmy snickered, smiling for the first time since Ludwig had woken him up. "Swapping bodies is kind of an unforgettable experience, Ludwig, and so is being able to read your mind"

Ludwig, despite himself, let out a chuckle. "True." His laughter faded, and his face slowly fell into sadness. "Well, that happy place involved me showing you my jasper for the first time." He touched it once again. "And, unfortunately, the story of how I got this gem is... well, it's really messy."

Lemmy blinked. "Messy?"

Ludwig felt afraid, almost as if he was standing on the edge of oblivion itself. Come on, you can do this, he thought to himself. He took another deep breath, causing him to rise an inch into the air. "Well... I got the jasper from..." his breath caught in his throat. He tried to speak, but for some reason, he couldn't. He opened his mouth, feeling the words on the tip of his tongue before they faded away. Slipping away from him like sand.

"Lemmy, have you ever heard of a place called...Frostwall?" Ludwig asked, figuring that if he approached the explanation from this angle, it would be just a smidge easier.

"Frostwall?" Lemmy was silent for a little bit before shaking his head. "No, I can't say that I have."

"It's... it's a city in World 3." Ludwig took in another breath, telling himself that he could do this. "I...went there when I was a little kid. And...and…"

Lemmy, wide-eyed, leaned closer to Ludwig. "And what?"

Ludwig took another deep breath. I can do this. I know I can. He took yet another deep breath. "When... when I went there, I..."

The door burst open before Ludwig could finish, although he didn't know if he was relieved or disappointed about that. Both Koopalings turned to see Shelldon, one of the Koopa Troopa servants, looking at them with wide eyes.

"Master Ludwig! Master Lemmy!" Even his voice sounded high-strung. "Your siblings need you down at the castle grounds!"

Ludwig and Lemmy exchanged a worried look. "Why?" Lemmy asked.

"Well..." Shelldon hesitated. "Do you remember when you guys had to face a gang who were loitering on Castle property?"

Ludwig and Lemmy exchanged a look. "Yes," they said in unison.

"Well... they're back." Shelldon had insurmountable terror both in his eyes and in his inflection. "And they're angry! They've already beaten up five of the guards who went after them!"

Ludwig blinked, trying to wrap his head around that. "They are." He took some time to think about this. "So... I guess us Koopalings getting involved would be for the best."

"Oh yes. Definitely."

"Alright," Ludwig said, putting on a determined face. "We'll be down in a minute."

Shelldon smiled, thanked them, and left the room. Once he was gone, Lemmy gave Ludwig a worried look. "But... but you need sleep…"

"I know. But it's okay." Ludwig smiled. "Actually fighting these guys with my powers back sounds like it'll be fun."

Lemmy hesitated. Something uncomfortable hung in the atmosphere, but Ludwig ignored it. Sure, he knew his brother had a point, but he really wanted to do this. Maybe giving these bozos a good fight would be the exact thing Ludwig needed. Maybe it could help him feel less scared. Less guilty.

"Alright," Lemmy said eventually. "Then... let's get going."

With that, Lemmy left the room. Ludwig rose from the bed, actually feeling a little excited. The fight with the gang had been one of the most stressful ones Ludwig had ever participated in, mostly because he had been in Lemmy's body and didn't have a real method of fighting. Having a proper rematch was just what Ludwig wanted.