Chapter 19 A Sparkling Sight

Ludwig turned over on his side. He pulled the blanket up further around his body, feeling chilly for quite a few reasons. He closed his eyes, hoping that sleep would come easily to him. After the last few days, he needed rest. He needed to sleep, escape from he thoughts and worries that plagued him while he was awake.

The oldest Koopaling lay still for a few minutes before sighing and rising to a sitting position. He rubbed his face, his tired eyes feeling like they were going to shut all on their own without his input. He ran his hand through his hair before setting his feet down on the floor and standing up. He decided that he needed to pace; he used to do that all the time as a kid, and it proved to be an efficient way to calm his anxieties. Maybe the old faithful would continue being faithful even as an adult.

So, he started pacing. The one benefit that immediately became apparent to him was the feel of the carpet beneath his feet. It was so soft and fluffy as if it was sewn from thread made from the clouds just outside. That certainly helped take the edge off of things, and it made the pacing a little more enjoyable. Back and forth, back and forth Ludwig paced. Without much input from his brain, he started humming one of his symphonies. He must've changed the key of said symphony at least four times over the course of his pacing; he wasn't paying much attention, so he really couldn't say for sure. In fact, he didn't even notice he was humming until he decided to bring his pacing to a stop. He stood in place, blinking, as he put his hand to his throat. He felt his mouth, his larynx, his Adam's apple, feeling as though he wanted to laugh. He let out a few chuckles, only stopping himself when the thoughts of his missing brother returned to him. So… yeah, he was still as anxious as ever.

Maybe going outside would help. The hotel room he stayed at had a balcony (he didn't settle for just any old hotel room, oh no. He had gotten a luxury suite; he felt it was okay to splurge after all the stress piling up). He made his way over, telekinetically opening the doors and walking out. Once he got to the edge of the balcony, he laid his hands on the railing and just… stood still. Tapping his finger against the railing in a fast rhythm, much faster than any of the songs he had so proudly composed, Ludwig allowed his brain to think. He allowed it begrudgingly, as he knew where his mind was going to take him and how exactly that topic was going to make him feel.

Frowning, Ludwig reached into his hammerspace. The first thing that he felt was his new phone, which was certainly a welcome sensation. He pulled it out and turned it on, going to his contacts. His finger hovered over the names of his family, all while he bit his lip. He could talk to Wendy, he could talk to Lemmy, he could talk to Bowser. They wouldn't need to discuss anything deep or complex, they could just… talk. Talk about the weather, talk about their interests, talk about their hopes for the future, and how much they appreciate being in each other's company.

Ludwig stood frozen in place before sighing and putting his phone back in his shell. As a small zephyr blew through his hair, he reached his hand deeper within his hammerspace. He honestly had no idea what he was actually looking for. He figured he would know it when he found it. He felt several things; sheet music for songs, that card Lemmy gave him for his last birthday that he read on the particularly difficult and nasty days. He considered taking that out and rereading it in the moonlight when he felt something else. He had honestly forgotten about it, but…

He pulled out the smiling star plushie he had gotten from the street vendor two days ago. He held it down near his chest, unable to take his eyes off the twinkle in its eye (no pun intended). He frowned, scowled actually. He felt water building up in his eyes, water so hot that it would turn his eyes red and scorch his face. Hastily, he wiped away the tears before they even had a chance to fall. He looked back down at the toy, feeling like he was the scum of the earth.

Maybe he was the scum of the earth. After all, what kind of monster would act the way he did toward his brother? He should've been better. He should've said softer things, he should've gotten his head out of his own ass for just a few seconds. Junior didn't deserve the harshness that Ludwig had laid on top of him, and… thinking about what he said, both to Junior's face and behind his back…

Oh great, the tears were coming harder and faster. Ludwig wiped them away, feeling like he wanted to shrivel up and die. He directed his attention away from the toy and toward the moon. The same moon that was shining its light down on his whole family, including Junior. Ludwig felt as if he didn't deserve to see the same light his much more innocent siblings were currently seeing, but… God makes it rain on the just and unjust, doesn't He?

Shaking his head, Ludwig put the star plushie back in his hammerspace. He looked back at his bed, so comfy and big. He could stay here, but… eh, he probably wouldn't accomplish much if he did. There was no way that he could effectively go to sleep right now, that much he knew for certain. He debated in his head what he wanted to do before his eyes traveled back toward the town that the balcony overlooked. Should he… eh, it wouldn't hurt.

So, he took a deep breath, rising into the air when he let it out. He got right to flying, passing over the houses in the town of Raincloud. He was like a wind, or perhaps a lonely ghost. He went completely unnoticed by everyone else, solely due to how late and dark it was at the current moment. This fact made an eerie feeling settle over the Koopaling. It kinda felt like loneliness, a type of loneliness he had never really experienced before. Really, he had no reason to feel lonely in his everyday life, as he had a big family who loved him to pieces. But now? Now, no one was here to see him. No one was here to be with him. No one was here to comfort him.

Ludwig cringed, coming to a stop and landing on the top of a clock tower. While standing above the clock (that was so close to saying midnight, by the way), Ludwig once again took out his phone. His family was right there, the ability to get in contact with any of them right under his fingertips. He whimpered as he looked at his contact list. He wanted to talk to them so bad but… he couldn't. They were probably asleep. No, they were definitely asleep, and they were no doubt stressed about the search too. No use piling more stress on top of them and making them break under the weight of countless burdens.

Shaking his head, Ludwig exited out of his contact list. He was about to put his phone back into his hammerspace and head back to the hotel when…

"Oh my God." He did a double take, blinking his eyes just to be sure that he was actually seeing this. "Oh my God!" He got his phone back out, his mouth hanging open in awe as he went to his camera.

Right above his head, made even more glorious thanks to the silver light of the moon, were countless shooting stars. They lit up the sky, staining it with all the different colors in their tails. Red, blue, green, aqua, gold… oh goodness. They were so visually appealing, so… indescribable. Ludwig stood in place, gawking at this amazing, once-in-a-lifetime sight. Was he the only person in this town seeing this? He wouldn't be surprised.

After his mind readjusted itself and told him that he couldn't let an opportunity like this go to waste, he raised his phone up and hit play on the camera. His eyes went back and forth between looking at the phone screen and looking at the sky, all while his heartbeat was more noticeable than it was normally. As a particularly big comet shot past, leaving a glittering purple trail that kinda reminded Ludwig of Roy's shell, he felt something. A new emotion, one so beautiful and yet so alien, washed over his soul.

"This is amazing," he whispered while keeping a firm grip on his phone. And… really, it just showed how twisted and weird fate was. If he was correct in thinking that he was the only person awake and alert enough to see something like this and capture it, both on his camera and in his mind's eye… then what did that mean? Did that mean that fate was trying to console him? Did that mean that God, whichever form or by whatever name He went by, forgave him for his sins against his youngest brother?

He didn't know, but damn it, it would be a crime not to be deeply moved by a sight like this. And that was exactly what he did; he felt more emotions than he thought existed under the sun. He felt like he just won the lottery, like every single last dream he had ever had over the course of his entire life had just come true. The tears welled up in his eyes again, but they were different from last time. They weren't scorching, they weren't painful. They actually felt kinda nice. HE felt kinda nice. He felt as though maybe, just maybe, making things up to Junior was possible. Maybe he would be the Koopa who ended up finding the prince, and maybe he would be the one to comfort him and bring him back home. Maybe things would work out after all. And Lord knew that things needed to work out. Especially for Ludwig; he made so many mistakes, both in the recent past in the distant past that… well, things going well would be a nice change of pace. He didn't deserve that; oh, he definitely didn't deserve that. There wasn't a doubt in his mind about that.

But Junior did.

Ludwig continued filming the meteor shower until the last meteor zipped across the sky, leaving a pink trail that resembled a string of Koopsmas lights. And with that last sight, Ludwig hit stop on the video recording. As he put his phone back down in front of his chest, he stood in place for a few minutes and just... thought about this whole experience. Was it kinda poetic that THIS was his first video ever captured with his phone? It kinda felt that way. And even if it wasn't, Ludwig had no reason to complain. He had no reason to complain about anything, really. Nor did he have any reason to fear. After all… maybe he could show this video to Junior when he found him again. Maybe he could offer both the video and the star plushie as a form of apology. Maybe that would be what Junior needs. Maybe seeing Junior's face light up upon seeing and experiencing such gifts would be what Ludwig needs too. Maybe God Himself sent this meteor shower, as a sign to Ludwig. Maybe this was God's way of saying "It's all gonna be okay."

Yawning, Ludwig rose back up into the air. He looked back up into the sky, at the moon that seemed a little brighter somehow. "Thank you," he whispered, his voice being carried by the wind. Smiling for perhaps the first time since the beginning of the search, he turned and flew back to the hotel.