Chapter 3 Perfect
The morning of Wendy's eighteenth birthday had to be the most illuminating morning Iggy had in years. LITERAL years. Roy and Larry weren't camping out in front of his bedroom door in order to annoy him immediately after waking up, for one. Morton and Lemmy treated him pleasantly, which while not too terribly surprising was still immensely appreciated, and even Ludwig was at least civil to him when they ran into each other in the hallway. This was how the interaction played out:
"Good morning, Iggy," is what Ludwig said while rubbing sleep from his eyes.
"Good morning to you too!" Iggy had replied with a smile.
That… was it. No snarky comments, no remarks about anything offensive, nothing. Ludwig had just been polite and friendly. Polite and friendly was often a big ask from Iggy's siblings, but today? No. Not in the slightest.
Iggy couldn't thank Wendy enough for instilling the rule she had the night before. She may have meant it as a joke, sure, but so far, all the male Koopalings seemed intent on sticking within the parameters she had set up.
That was SO awesome! In fact, it went beyond awesome; Iggy owed every good thing he could provide to his sister! He owed her the world! He owed her a great and stimulating conversation! He owed her expensive jewelry, wonderful food, a memory that would never leave her head… he owed EVERYTHING to her.
And everything was what he planned to provide. As he, his brothers, and his father sat at the breakfast table, eating the rest of the waffles Morton and Larry so generously cooked, Iggy's mind flared up with inspiration. He was constructing a grand master plan for how Wendy's birthday party this evening was going to go. He formulated the flow of the event, how exactly the great castle was to be decorated, and who would be the most sensical to put on the guest list. His legs vibrated, and he let out little giggles the deeper he got into his imagination, not because he was trying to annoy anyone but more so because he was THAT excited about this.
"Iggy?" Iggy lifted his head to see his family giving him either concerned or annoyed looks (not that their annoyance could be acted upon, of course). Bowser leaned forward, not taking his eyes off his son. "Are you alright?"
"Yeah, you're acting like you had too much sugar." Junior smirked. "Maybe you shouldn't have had that extra helping of whipped cream on your waffles."
Iggy was about to scold Junior when he remembered that, technically, he hadn't been in the room when Wendy gave Iggy a royal pardon from mockery. So, that meant that he wasn't technically participating in the challenge Wendy gave. A bit of a bummer, but… eh, he could live with that. Six out of his seven siblings being civil and disciplined was pleasant enough on its own.
He cleared his throat. "Apologies, my familial relations, my mind has just been hyperactive today." Iggy smiled. "I have developed a desire to make Wendy's birthday party a delight for her."
"Oh, have you?" Bowser asked as he leaned against his arm.
"Yep. I have so many ideas." He adjusted his position in the chair. "I believe the decor should be a nice, light shade of lavender. While our sister appreciates pink above all else, she has expressed to me a liking toward the lavender and periwinkle hues a few days ago." Iggy gasped. "Ooh, periwinkle can be utilized too! And for the dinner, I think she would appreciate beef wellingtons! She told me last week that she never tried them, so this would be a good choice for an entree!"
Larry, from his spot a few seats away from Iggy, snorted. "Man, where were all these ideas and excitement on my last birthday?"
Iggy smirked and cupped his hand around his ear. "What's that, Lawrence? Was that an insulting quip I just heard? You do know that you can't direct insults toward me today!"
Larry shook his head. "Okay, first off, I didn't say your name. I could've been talking to someone completely different."
"Oh really? And whom would that be? You are not in the immediate vicinity of anyone else."
Larry just sharply exhaled. "Well… I was talking to the tablecloth, obviously." He grabbed a handful of the tablecloth and started wagging his finger at it. "You are a very inconsiderate tablecloth, tablecloth! You and your big fancy words!"
Iggy smirked and shook his head. "Wow. What a smooth way to salvage this conversation." He turned back to the rest of his family. "But yes, I have a lot of good ideas."
"Good!" said Bowser. "I'm glad to hear that!" He chuckled. "In fact, I'm starting to think I should put you in charge of party planning while Wendy and I are out! You could really breathe life into the event."
Iggy gasped and squealed in delight. "Oh, that is more than appreciated, Bowser! Thank you so much!"
"Yeah." Ludwig bit his lip and stared down at his plate. "Thanks so much, Bowser…" the other Koopalings, while they weren't insulting Iggy, still looked mightily uncomfortable and/or disappointed. Needless to say, this didn't make Iggy feel good.
Thankfully, Bowser was there. "Oh, come on guys, chin up!" Bowser smiled. "Iggy would make a great leader! He can inject the party with some well needed structure! And besides…" Bowser looked Iggy in the eye. "He is not going to do everything all by himself. He will allow each of you an opportunity to contribute to the party in your own unique way. Right Iggy?"
Even though this might be counted as Bowser calling Iggy out, he didn't feel a smidge of negativity from this interaction. He just laughed. "That is precisely what I plan to do, Bowser. Everyone has their own talents, and they can use them in ways that would not only be beneficial, but extraordinary."
Bowser smiled. "Good boy, Iggy. Good boy." He clapped for him, and despite the others hesitating at first, they eventually joined in. Iggy felt his face growing warm, warmer than it had any right to be. The Koopa family stopped applauding just as Wendy came into the room. She blinked at this.
"Oh, you guys stop with your applause when I come in? Come on, aren't I worth celebrating too?"
Larry giggled. "Why yes. Yes, you are, Wendy." He stood up on his chair and clapped his hands in the loudest and most obnoxious fashion possible. "YAY WENDY! YOU'RE SPECIAL! YOU ARE SPECIAL AND DEFINITELY NOT GETTING PITY APPLAUSE FROM ME!"
Wendy giggled. "Alright, alright, that's enough." With a smile on her face and a twinkle in her eye, Wendy went over to her adopted father. "Hey Bowser!"
"Hey! Happy birthday, sweetheart!" He reached out and gave Wendy a hug, which she gladly returned. Honestly, getting hugs from Bowser had to be Iggy's favorite birthday tradition in the castle. It was a little understated, sure, but it was so nice regardless. Bowser gave her one last squeeze and smiled at her. "Are you ready for an awesome day with your awesome Koopa King?"
Wendy's eyes looked like stars. "You'd better believe it!" She laughed alongside her dad and turned toward her brothers. "You guys have already made this day super special! All of you have!"
Lemmy chuckled. "No, we haven't! We all just woke up!"
"That doesn't matter!" Wendy went to stand closer to them. "You make my day special just by being a part of it."
Iggy gasped and put his hand to his heart. "Aww!" His heart was melting, it was really and truly melting. "That feeling is definitely reciprocated."
"And we share that feeling too!" Roy said. "Except we feel it towards you and not ourselves."
Morton snickered. "Yeah, no egocentric love felt at this table, that's for sure."
Wendy giggled. "Thanks, guys. I didn't spend eighteen years on this planet to avoid forming bonds with my brothers."
Iggy beamed. "Well, your positive regard for us inspires many positive feelings." He stood up. "Which is why I, as the newly appointed party planner that Bowser has singled out, am going to make your birthday party a joyous one. Everything about it will be PERFECT! P. E. R. F. E. C. T! There won't be a single element of it that feels half baked or half assed. Tonight is going to be great, Wendy. I promise."
Ludwig sighed. "Oh God, you're making promises now, Iggy? That's…" Iggy flashed him a look, willing him to continue, but he shook his head and put a smile on his face. "No, no, I shouldn't insult you. I WON'T insult you; you want to go all out for Wendy. I can definitely get on board with that."
Wendy laughed. "Thanks, guys. Thank you ALL of you." Wendy went back over to Bowser. "I don't know what this day has in store, but I know I'm gonna love it."
"I can confirm that." Bowser checked down at his watch and gasped. "Oh! It's almost nine o'clock! We need to hurry up if we want to be on schedule!"
"Ooh! We're following a schedule today," said Wendy.
"Why yes! Yes, we are!" Bowser wiped his mouth with his napkin and stood up. "Okay, boys, we're heading out. Remember; behave, be sweet, be nice, be safe, be loving, and…"
"And share," the boys said, completing the say Bowser loved to use in their youth. Iggy nodded. "We will, Bowser. If there is any occasion where you can fully put your trust in us, it's today."
"Good." He extended his hand. "Come on, baby girl, let's get going."
Wendy giggled and waved her finger at Bowser in a joking manner. "Nuh uh uh Bowser, you can't call me baby anymore. I'm a full-grown woman."
"I know, but you'll always be my baby. Besides, saying 'come on, grown-ass woman' doesn't sound right." Bowser scratched the back of his head. "Especially when a dad is talking to his daughter."
"Eh. Good point." Wendy took Bowser's hand, and together, they walked out of the dining room. Iggy watched them go, already feeling his enthusiasm levels rise.
"Okay. Now we can start party planning." He looked across the table. "Larry, since you despise hearing me bark out orders so much, what do you think about leaving the castle in order to get the decorations I specified?"
Larry grinned and stood up. "Now you're talking!" He flew out of the room pretty much immediately.
Iggy turned to Lemmy. "Lemonade, I need you to figure out some entertainment for the evening. You did an amazing job during the Ultimate Laugh-Off, and I want you to channel that energy again."
"Yes, sir!" Lemmy saluted and left the place.
Iggy then turned to Morton and Roy. "Okay, Morty, I'm gonna have you work on the menu. I know beef wellingtons are tricky, so…"
"Don't worry; I got this."
"Okay, excellent. And Roy, I'm going to work with you on this; we're going to assemble an adequate guest list."
Roy chuckled. "I don't know how many things in the castle we have to guess about…" he gasped. "Oh wait, you mean PARTY guest!" He stood up. "Yeah, I can help you with that!"
"Thank you. Once we accomplish that task, we will get right to contacting people. Now, Ludwig…"
"Let me guess." Ludwig gave him a smile. "You want me to come up with music for the evening?"
Iggy smiled back at him. "You just read my mind." Ludwig smiled and flew away. Once he was gone, Iggy turned to Junior. "Now, Junior… do you want to go get presents for Wendy?"
"Ooh! Can I make a card for her too?" Iggy nodded, and he whooped as he sprung out of his chair. "Awesome!" He bolted out of the room.
Iggy sighed. "Alright. Everyone has their respective tasks." He smiled. "This really and truly is going to be perfect."
