Chapter Text
It was a glorious morning within the Mushroom Kingdom. Bunches of small toads shuffled about the streets filled with vivid green pipes, while other Yoshi's scrambled through the scattered roads with the casual honk of a bicycle horn. In the background stood the marvelous stone castle, the pink bordering clashing against the soft gray of the bricks. Within the castle, was the princess of the castle, her lovely orchid dress glazing against the tiled flooring. The quartz walls whispered to her as she hurried through the halls, the sound of her crimson heels bouncing off the walls.
When she arrived at her destination, she hastily stopped so she could take a moment to fix herself. She pulled at her silk, luminous gloves to her elbows, and flattened her ruffled dress. A deep sigh ran through her and was let out through her mouth before her hands glided across the large doors leading to the office. Then, she pushed forward to hear high, mischievous giggles and deep, troubled grunts.
“Daaaaad,” the voice whined, “I wanna go play!”
“Not now Junior, I know I forced you here but could you please try to behave?” Bowser’s broad voice replied, an irritated sigh escaping him. He rubbed his fingers against his temple, his intimidating claws shining in the iridescent chandelier from above.
Peach cleared her throat, displaying a polite, welcoming smile to the both of them, “Greetings to the both of you. I wasn’t aware that you would bring your son, King Bowser.”
“Well, I wasn’t exactly planning on it, but Kamek had last-minute plans with an important official from Sasaraland. I am sorry for not informing you beforehand.” Although Bowser’s voice was filled with sincerity, it had a tint of malice behind the words.
Peach gave a soft smile to Bowser Jr. leaning in his father’s lap. “No worries, I understand. There is a chance that I could have one of my men tend to him while the meeting occurs if that would be alright with you?”
“Hmm…” Bowser hummed hesitantly, “I need some time to decide that. My son here can be a bit…chaotic, you might say.”
“I realize. Nevertheless, the idea is still there, and it would be greatly appreciated if you could take me up on the offer considering the issues we are discussing today, no?” Peach spoke sternly, but not rudely at the King, who silently sneered in response.
Meanwhile, somewhere else in the castle, there were two pairs of leather boots scuttling through the tiled, vast hallways. The sounds of their huffing from rushing were heavy as one of them cursed under their breath.
“Luigi,” The older brother muttered, “I knew we should have set our alarm earlier. The princess told us how significant this meeting was to the kingdom, so our late arrival is going to send her day into a whirl, and it has barely even started.”
Luigi’s eyes glanced at his sullen brother, and then back to the floor as they continued through the hallways. He couldn’t help but feel like their delay was due to him. The constant feeling of self-loathing was a common pain for Luigi though, so it was nothing new. Just as he snapped out of his thoughts, the end of the hallway was near. He focused his eyes on the turn before the office and tried to concentrate on the task at hand. This meeting could settle the differences between the Mushroom and Koopa Kingdoms, and Luigi didn’t want to mess it up more than he already did. Although, it wasn’t like Luigi was going to be doing much in the meeting anyway. He would just be sitting on the chair next to Mario, disinterested in what they had to say. Mario was the hero of the Mushroom Kingdom, and Luigi was just his inconvenient sidekick. There was nothing else to it.
The pair of brothers entered through the glamorous set of doors, their heavy breaths interrupting an exchange between Junior and his dad. All heads snapped to Mario and Luigi, their eyes like daggers.
“Sorry that we are late Your Highness, we promise we rushed here as fast as we could.” Mario gasped as he put a hand on his chest. Then, out of respect, he bowed to the princess before him. Peach released a distressed breath before she nodded their heads to signal that they could sit down.
“Greetings Mario and Luigi, I understand that your delay has gotten us a little off schedule, but we shall begin anyway. But, before we do, let me call a Toad for Ju-” Peach began her tangent before her eyes laid on Luigi, who was fidgeting with a pocket on his overalls. Luigi was one of the most gentle people that Peach knew, as Luigi had trouble sticking up for himself. From what she saw, he was also considerably good at watching over children. With that thought, a mischievous grin spread from ear to ear as her eyes glanced from Junior to Luigi.
“Bowser, would you mind if Luigi watched over your young one during this meeting? Although he isn’t one of my guards, he is still an honorable man of this kingdom and is excellent at handling ‘rascals’ like your son.” Peach gestured to Luigi, who was startled at the mention of his name. Luigi’s eyes peered at Junior, who was cocking his head like a curious dog at the plumber.
“That should be fine,” Bowser tilted his head toward Junior and gave him an affectionate look, “You know what to do, right Junior?”
Junior’s smile lit up the room, his beady eyes squinting at his father’s. He nodded cheerfully before rolling off his dad and making his way over to Luigi. Luigi felt as if he was in a trance while the whole thing was happening.
Peach beamed at Luigi, “Please attend to him properly. You may have access to the kitchen, garden, and lounge for the time being. We will find you once the meeting is over. I know you will make me proud.”
Peach’s words resonated with Luigi as he carefully rose from his seat and gave an awkward chuckle in response. He gently put his palm on Junior’s shoulder and led him outside of the office. Junior’s smirk sent chills down Luigi's spine, and it made him realize that-
He was not cut out for this in the slightest.