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It begins when invitations to a lavish party in a neighboring kingdom were given sent out all across the lands, intending to celebrate the wintery season. Though such celebrations that demanded great social interaction could be daunting, at first Luigi had felt like he could handle it because his big bro and Princess Peach would be going along too. But, as fate and luck would have it this could not come to pass because about two days before the party was to commence, Bowser was up to his usual tricks: which meant that Luigi had to go to the party alone.
In the hours leading up to the party Luigi tried to be brave and look at the situation with a bright outlook like Daisy.
But it was different in theory than in practice. It was increasingly difficult to do once he actually was at the party. He would attempt to join conversations only to be pointedly ignored or met with a disgruntled glance. Standing quiet made it obvious that he was being iced out.
After a third conversation that went nowhere because he wasn’t included, Luigi took a few looks around this particular castle. Contrary to the grandness of its name it was decorated with rustic furniture to match the eternal winter outside, with grayish-blue colors surrounding him whether it was by the banners or the party decorations. He quietly weaved through the crowd to the second floor, and found a door leading out to a balcony decorated with resilient outdoor furniture.
The chatter of the party was muffled when Luigi was outside and closed the doors behind him. The snowy wonderland outside was completely silent, the snow below stretching onward and onward undisturbed. It almost glowed reddish-gold under the setting sun, making for an ethereal sight. It was almost comparable to Daisy. Somehow it felt warmer out here when compared to that chilly reception.
“You’re not wanted,” he thought, “So what else is new?”
Luigi shook his head and told himself that wasn’t true. Even if it hurt that the other party goers had met him with clear contempt or derision he wouldn’t let himself get lost in self-loathing. And he always had a warm home to return to, when this was all over. He remembered that in one of Daisy’s letters she wanted to see him soon so they could enjoy a winter day together. He held onto that as a good thing to look forward to in the future.
Luigi’s head lifted up when he heard loud screams of outrage coming from behind him and the doors to the balcony opening up quickly. He turned to see Daisy closing the doors behind her, muffling the commotion within, with an anxious expression that quickly tempered itself to look like nothing was wrong. It transformed into something infinitely more cheerful when she saw him.
“What – hey! You came after all!” Daisy exclaimed. And then she jumped forward to give him a giant hug. Her cheek pressed against his neck as she held him tight and a warm feeling replaced the deep melancholy that had lodged itself in his chest.
“You’ve been here the whole time?” Luigi asked, partly breathless because of the tight hug. Even if it hurt his ribs a little he still didn’t want to let go, so they stayed there for a few seconds.
“Yeah, didn’t you get my letter? I said I was gonna go too,” Daisy said when she let go of him. Before he could respond, a thought seemed to pop into her head because she winced. “Oh. Uh oh, I don’t think I sent it at all, it got buried underneath everything else on my desk…”
“It’s okay,” Luigi said, “I should’ve sent you one.”
“Maybe you did send me a letter, forgot that you did, but it didn’t matter because it got buried on my desk,” Daisy joked, the mutual mistake forgiven. “But I guess we just missed each other in there. You enjoying the party?”
Luigi’s shoulders slumped, the icy feeling invading the warmth that he was feeling right now. “No. Nobody’s talked to me.”
“Everyone – nobody talked to you?” Daisy asked, her tone sounding like a mixture of anger and crestfallen. “What? Why?”
“They don’t like me.” At her expression he gave a small smile, his hands up in a placating gesture. “I’m used to that.”
“You shouldn’t have to be.” Daisy huffed, folding her arms and glaring down at the ground. “I knew I was right to go with my instincts.”
There was a pause alongside how Daisy’s eyes widened momentarily like she didn’t mean to say that. Luigi stole a glance at the balcony doors and listened to the muffled cacophony inside for a few moments, slowly piecing together an idea of what exactly caused that noise.
“What happened?”
Daisy pursed her lips together, continuing to look away. But with the silence eventually she conceded and sighed before she began to tell him what exactly happened in there.
“I was up on the second floor, looking at this vase of icy flowers. I heard someone on the first floor making fun of you – it was so loud, I could hear him all the way up there – so I…” She said the last bit quickly, “I picked up the water pitcher that was nearby for the flowers, let it fall so it soaked him with freezing water and then I ran here.”
“Daisy…”
“Hey, I didn’t get caught. Besides, he had it coming,” Daisy said bluntly. “That’s what happens when someone says stupid lies.”
Even though she didn’t get caught, he wouldn’t want her to mar her reputation for him. But at the same time, he felt humbled to know that she’d go to his defense like that. “Well – thanks, Daisy.”
It was quiet again as the sun continued to set, making the snow look dusky. Sunsets always looked more beautiful after Luigi fell in love. They reminded him of Daisy.
It was punctuated when she said, “For what it’s worth, I like you a lot.”
“I think of sunsets differently because of you,” Luigi immediately said, spurred on by love and the heat in his cheeks that couldn’t entirely be blamed on the cold.
Daisy grinned. “In a good way?”
“The best way.”
It was good to see her happy. She joined him at the balcony, evaluated the drop and decided it was safe. She turned to him with that same grin that made him weak in the knees. “You wanna go?”
The wheels turned in his mind. They’d have a better evening at his house, if they hurried back to his home. From what he tasted of the food at this party, cooking together would make for better food in any case, too. At his nod, she jumped down first and landed perfectly. When he followed he lost his footing upon reaching the ground and stumbled face-first into the snow. Luigi gave a little groan at how cold the snow was, completely the opposite of how it looked warmish under the setting sun.
Daisy helped him up with a fond laugh, and the sunset bathed her in beautiful colors when he looked at her. That’s just how it was – to Luigi, Daisy was always beautiful.