Chapter 13 Combing the Books

Surrounding Luigi and Daisy as they searched through the Toad Town Library were piles and piles of books, stacked all the way to the ceiling. They had collectively gone through each and every single one of them, with Luigi feeling worse and worse with how little progress they were making. Statistically, they should've found SOMETHING at this point! They had searched through every subject available to them; science textbooks, books on urban legends, even some fiction in order to find if there was something inspired by the were-mushroom. They found squat, and now Luigi was flipping through a page of werewolf urban fantasy romance and feeling as though his whole life was over. By this point, he prayed to every God he knew, hoping to find the answers he needed.

He didn't find anything. And so, when he got to the end of the book, he sealed it close and put his head in his hands. "This isn't working." He sniffled. "Why isn't this working?"

Daisy, who sat by his side, reached out and put her hand on his shoulder. "It's okay." She rubbed his shoulder in the sweetest way possible. Unfortunately, such a lovely action didn't do much in terms of helping Luigi feel better. "We'll find something."

"When?" Luigi turned to face her. "When exactly are we going to find something, Daisy? We've been here for six hours. That's half the day! If we haven't found something by now, then there's probably nothing that can help us!"

Daisy bit her lip. "Of course there is," she said, her voice level. She was clearly trying to keep her head on straight, trying to be the support Luigi needed at such a horrible and trying time in his life. An appreciated gesture, but it wasn't enough. Luigi was extremely sad to say that it wasn't, as Daisy usually put more effort than anyone else into helping the green-clad plumber. But now, all the effort and support in the world meant nothing. "We'll find something. I know we will."

"No." Luigi wiped a tear from his eyes. "No, we won't." Whimpering, he lowered his head down and pressed it against the surface of the table. It really was over. Ashina had been right all along about the curse being irreversible. She had been right on the money…

"Hey." Daisy scooted closer to him. "Look at me." Luigi lifted his head. He saw that Daisy had a determined and serious face, one right on the cusp of being irritated. Whimpering, he raised himself up, not taking his eyes off of her. "We will find something. I know we will. You've overcome every single challenge that was ever thrown at you, Lou. Why is THIS one the one where you throw in the towel?"

Luigi shook his head. "Probably because this one involves a horrible curse that is actively ruining my life."

"Oh, and the attacks Bowser made on Peach's Castle didn't do that?" Daisy's look grew more serious. "We'll fix this, Lou." She looked past him. "Maybe the problem is we aren't using the right resources. Books are so outdated; we need to be using the Internet." She got up out of her chair and made her way across the room toward the collection of computers the library had. Luigi, feeling sad yet praying in his head that she was right, got up and followed her. She plopped herself down in the chair, immediately getting to work typing into the computer. The first thing she typed in was "werewolf curse." As to be expected in a situation like this, it mostly brought up sources of fiction. There was a series of romance novels written with the soul purpose to entertain, a movie series were some werewolves and vampires engaged in a war against each other, and various other works of dramatized and very fake stories.

"Hmm," Daisy said. She went back to the search bar, this time typing in "were-mushroom." The only thing she got were several other mushrooms that acted as power-ups. The search engine even assumed that Daisy had made a spelling error and asked her if she meant something different.

Which of course worked WONDERS for Luigi's confidence. "See! There's nothing here!" He put his head in his hands again. He really felt so small and helpless, even more than he usually did. How could he pick himself up and keep going after what Ashina did to him? How could he handle turning into a monster every month when the full moon rises? He couldn't! There was no way! He would never get his life back, would be stuck under this horrible curse forever. Oh, how he hated Ashina right at this moment. That horrible, horrible woman… no, that horrible, horrible CREATURE had completely ruined him. She ruined him while wearing a pleased and happy smirk on her face the whole time.

"Lou," Daisy said as she turned around. "It's going to be okay."

"No. It's not." Luigi's mind traveled back to the scene with Mario this morning. His brother had looked upon him with genuine fear, a fear that Luigi had never seen or expected to see from his brother. After all, he was Super Mario! The hero who faced off against Bowser, the brother who loved Luigi with all his heart. That same brother had been afraid of him. That same brother's life had almost been taken. If the sun hadn't come up when it did, then…

"Oh God." Luigi dried some tears from his eyes. Although that practice was in vain; even if he wiped every single last year away, the sadness would still be there. It would be overwhelming, ugly, and vicious, just like the beast that Luigi was forced to become every month.

"Stop it." Luigi lifted his head, seeing Daisy looking almost mad at him (of course, his negative emotions right now could only be making things up). "Stop it, Lou, it's gonna be alright. So the library doesn't have the info we need. That's fine. We'll be able to find it eventually. We just have to look somewhere else."

Luigi sniffled and wiped his nose. "Like where?"

"Like…" Daisy put her hand to her chin before gasping. "I know. Why don't we go to where that Ashina bitch was keeping you?"

"The hideout?" Luigi was about to outright object, but the more he thought about that… "Hmm. I mean, that is the most likely place to find something. If there's anyone in the world who would have the answers, it's Ashina."

"Exactly!" Daisy bounced to her feet. "She probably has some history or something on how the werewolf curse came to be. If we search through her room, we'll probably find something eventually!"

The more Luigi considered that option, the more hopeful he became. It was risky and a bit of a long shot, but… if it worked… if he could actually get his life back…

"You're right, Daisy. You're absolutely right!" His face fell. "But her hideout is full of members of her pack. How will we sneak past them?"

Daisy smirked. "Well, that's what invisibility caps are for!" Daisy grabbed hold of his hand. "Come on, let's go get some!"

…

"Ashina? Ashina!"

Ashina groaned. Her eyes fluttered open, and she could feel the horrible HORRIBLE sunlight shining down on her back. Oh, how she hated sunlight. She would much rather live by the light of the moon. She was more accustomed to it. It was much kinder to someone of her nature.

"Ashina!"

Ashina lifted her head. Two members of her pack, a human and a Toad, stood over her, fully clothed and filled with concern. Man, what a horrible expression to see on those inferior to her; it made her feel weak. Groaning, she lifted herself up. The Toad offered her his hand, but she refused it. She didn't need help. She didn't need help from anyone.

"Are you okay?" The human asked. "What happened?"

Ashina growled, the sound just as fierce as it would be in her wolf form. "Exactly what you think happened. Luigi Mario didn't appreciate being put under the curse, and he made his displeasure known in a very…" she let out a cry, putting her hand on her back to apply pressure to the wound Luigi inflicted. "Obtuse method."

The Toad cringed. "I'm very sorry, m'lady."

Ashina glared at him. "No. No no no; don't you EVER say those words to me again. You do NOT feel sorry for me. You follow my orders and do my bidding. That's it."

"Right, yes, of course." The Toad sighed. "I just… I am more than a little concerned is all. Luigi Mario is a fearsome figure…"

"HA! He's a pathetic figure is what he is! There isn't a single brave bone in his body. He's a coward. He's weak. Put him in front of a stronger enemy and he'll topple like a domino."

"Er… yes. But… if he was able to beat you up then… well…"

A silence settled over the scene. It occurred to Ashina that the words she said regarding Luigi meant that him beating her up made her look weak and pathetic. Internally groaning, she stood up to her full height. Her two betas stood at attention, looking ready to follow whatever orders she was willing to give to them.

"Look, this isn't a big deal. In a month's time, Luigi will succumb to the curse again. He may feel like he won against me, but no. He will transform and more than likely have enough hunger to consume the ones who he holds near and dear to his heart." Ashina grinned and licked her lips. "That would be oh so satisfying to witness."

The human cleared his throat. "You are more than correct about that, m'lady, in every way possible." He cringed. "But…"

Ashina raised an eyebrow. "But what?" She asked through gritted teeth.

"But… what if he finds out how to remove the curse beforehand?"

"He won't," Ashina said immediately. "I am the only one who knows how to do that. Even if he were to get the information, the process is long and painful, not to mention close to impossible to achieve. That curse is more or less permanent for him."

The human nodded. "Right, right, of course."

"Yes." Ashina stepped forward. "And besides, what the great and mighty Mario brother fails to realize is that we have the advantage here. If he thinks he can win in the end, he is sorely mistaken. We have the power. WE are the ones who call the shots. He is nothing more than a pawn, an ends to a mean. He will not win. I will personally see that he does not win."

The Toad nodded. "I know, m'lady. I know it with all my being."

"As do I," the other beta responded.

"Good." Ashina smiled and stepped forward. "Now, let's get back to the hideout so I can put on some clothes, okay?"

The betas nodded, and together the three of them made their way back. As they did, Ashina kept Luigi on her mind and smirked as a result. He was as good as hers. There was no doubt about it. He just didn't know it yet.