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Bowser had been listening to the King of the Dead belly ache and ramble for almost an hour straight. The Koopa King was getting really tired of the overgrown marshmallow, but he needed to explain to King Boo that he was working on something that, if successful, would mean that Boo would no longer be able to mess with mortals. The only issue was that Boo hadn’t let Bowser say a word since they greeted each other. Bowser had just said his name, and then Boo was off, floating beside Bowser as they made their way to Boo’s art gallery.
That had been an hour ago, and Bowser really wanted to be done. Boo’s mansion was fridged to the point where Bowser was starting to get sleepy. A dangerous sign that meant his body temperature was getting too low. “Boo, I’m getting tired of this and while I would love to sit here and listen to you complain about old men and vacuum cleaners, I did actually have something to inform you of.” Bowser announced loudly, cutting off King Boo’s current rant. Boo glared at Bowser but allowed him silence to speak freely. “I’ve got a project currently in the works. I don’t know when it's going to be ready, but when it is, I’ll come back here personally to tell you about it. Until then, lay low. Don’t go causing trouble. Stay in your territory. When this project is off the ground, great things will happen and I don’t want you messing it up before then, alright?”
Boo sneered at Bowser. “You really expect me to just sit around and do nothing?”
“I didn’t say, do nothing. I said, stay put. You’ve got plenty that you can do in this forest of yours. Just don’t be dragging other mortals into your mess.” Bowser ordered as he stood up. “I’m leaving. If I hear that you’re on the move, I’m going to come back personally and shut it down. Don’t forget that I’m the High King of the Darklands. You answer to me, not the other way around.” Bowser opened the door to leave. “Just focus on your people and your land for a bit. I’ll update you as progress occurs. Good day, Boo.”
Bowser could feel Boo’s icy glare through his shell as he left the room. Bowser didn’t care. He needed to get out of the mansion before he fell asleep. He hated going to Boo’s mansion. The cold atmosphere always left Bowser sleepy and achy. If he immediately went home to the koopalings, he would no doubt end up catching whatever was currently infecting them. Almost all the time, at least one of the kids was sick or coughing. Bowser just needed to warm up. He needed to get into the sun and just relax for a bit.
Bowser recalled a little slice of land between Boo’s Forest and the Evershade Valley that usually had a bit of sun. He needed to lay down and warm up. Bowser hoped that the rising sun would warm him up quickly. The last thing he needed was to accidentally hibernate in the middle of nowhere.
Bowser decided to leave his airship on the edge of King Boo’s forest and walked to the unowned bit of land. As Bowser got closer, he realized that someone must have finally purchased the land because there was a quaint little house sitting atop the green hill. A white picket fence spread across the land, marking the property line. The green house gave off the vibes of a certain plumber, but Bowser’s sleepy brain wasn’t letting him put two and two together. Instead, Bowser wandered over to the front gate where the sun was beaming onto and decided it was a good enough space for a quick nap.
It didn’t take long before Bowser drifted off on the warm pavement, thinking about the trip he took to the beach festival with his kids. He had a great time and found himself enjoying the green mustached man’s presence. He wondered what the man was doing and more importantly, how he was doing.
The sound of some creature sniffing woke up Bowser. He groggily opened his eyes to look at what was smelling him, and he found himself face-to-face with a white blur. He started blinking the sleep out of his eye with a groan and he heard another sound come from behind him.
“Out of all the things Polterpup has brought home, this certainly has to be the weirdest.” The voice chuckled as Bowser rolled over to look at the man that was speaking to him. Through the bleariness, Bowser could have sworn he was looking at an angel. The dark hair on the man’s head and face, a loose white shirt gently rustling in the wind, and the gentle crease of a smile making the man’s blue eyes shimmer with humor caused a lazy purr to emanate from Bowser’s chest. “Good morning.” The man chuckled, leaning over the white gate to get a better look at the sleeping king.
Bowser grumbled and stretched before doing a simple push-up to get into a more vertical position. “Luigi?” Bowser mumbled out as he moved to sit on the warm concrete.
“Yeah. Why are you napping out front of my house?” Luigi asked, smiling at the waking koopa.
Bowser groaned, rubbing his eyes. “King Boo decided to show up after going awol for a bit. Had a meeting with him and told him to stay put for a while.”
Luigi visible stiffened. “Boo’s back?” He whispered. His voice dripped with fear.
“Yeah, but I told him to not bother anyone and if I find out he is messing around in places that he should be, I’ll shut him down.” Bowser waved his hand as if to brush the thought of King Boo away. “Anyway, had a meeting with Boo and his mansion is way too cold for me, started getting tired and I didn’t wanna fly until I was warmed up.” He pointed to Luigi’s house. “I remember this lot being unowned and it would get a lot of sun so I thought it would be a good place for a nap.”
“And was it?” Luigi chuckled, waving Polterpup over to where he stood by the gate.
“It was decent. Would have slept better if I’d just gone to the airship and napped in the cabin, but it was certainly warmer here.” Bowser looked around Luigi’s vibrant green yard. “Nice place you’ve got here. How long you been living here?”
Luigi sighed in thought, looking around at his yard and house. “Maybe like 3 or 4 years.” He tilted his head at the assumption. “I don’t really remember, but I’ve enjoyed living here. I mean, as long as I don’t get visits from unwanted guests.” Luigi chuckled looking towards Boo’s forest.
“You don’t want ghost hanging out?” Bowser questioned with a raised eyebrow pointed at the spectral pup.
“I mean, Polterpup doesn’t leave and he keeps me on schedule. But other ghosts make me uneasy, specifically, uh...” He pointed towards Boo’s forest with a shaking hand. He took a breath before waving away the thought. “B-But, I’ve noticed that ghosts, boos, and specters are very territorial and typically stay in, what they consider is, their area, like a house, a room, or an area outside. So, I don’t really get visitors.” He looked at Bowser. “But I won’t consider you to be an unwelcome guest.”
Bowser chuckled. “Glad to know I’m welcome.” He looked up at the endless blue sky with a smile. “It’s a beautiful day.”
“Yeah...” Luigi said, but Bowser could hear the odd tone inflection in his voice.
“Got something on your mind?” He asked, looking at the plumber. Luigi crossed his arms over his chest and shrunk down for a moment before sighing. He leaned over the gate again to look Bowser in the eyes.
“Don’t tell Mario I’m telling you this, okay? Promise?” He asked with a pointed finger.
Bowser held his hands up in mock surrender. “It’s not like I’d actively go out of my way to talk to the guy. But yeah, sure, I’ll promise. I won’t tell Mario a word.”
Luigi scrunched his nose up, like he was debating telling Bowser at all before his pointed finger turned into an open palm. “SO!” He exclaimed and Bowser could already tell he was in for an awesome gossip session. Scootching closer to the gate, Bowser leaned forward, putting his chin in his hands and his elbows on his knees. “Mario comes over like two days ago early in the morning in a panic. He’s yelling and banging on my door, ‘Luigi! Luigi! Come quick! It's an emergency!’ So, I run to the door and Mario tells me that I need to get dressed and we needed to leave. There was something going on in the Mushroom Kingdom.”
Luigi slouched casually against the gate as he continued his story. “So, I get dressed, I grab my helmet, and we’re off. We drive to his house on our cycles. He opens the door and, I kid you not, I could see the green smell particles escaping his house. He goes, ‘I have a pest infestation! You clean in here and I’ll go get some stuff to kill everything off!’ And then he leaves, like excuse me? You woke me up at 6 in the morning, got me on a bike just for me to be your personal housemaid?”
Bowser scoffed in Luigi’s defense. “Seriously? What did Mario do to his house to need a housemaid?”
“Well, Mario’s always been a bit sloppy. When we were living with our parents in Brooklyn, Mario’s side of the room was always a mess. He had clothes all over the floor, dirty dishes sitting on every surface, and everywhere else there was trash. Anytime Mama warned us to clean our room, Mario always left me with the chores. If I didn’t clean our room, he’d just end up trying to shove everything under both our beds and then we’d both get in trouble.” Luigi complained.
“Wow, what a charmer. No wonder Peach is enamored.” Bowser stated sarcastically.
Luigi groaned. “It is ridiculous. So anyway, Mario leaves me with the biohazard he calls a house and I swear he had a mountain of trash that was bigger than you.” Luigi pointed towards the king. Bowser’s eyebrows lifted in shock. “Yeah, I think I got like 10 or 12 bags of trash just out of the kitchen. Seriously, I know that he’s had a whole bunch of money to buy take-out every day, but that doesn’t mean he should. I’ve got about as much money as Mario, if not more, and I take pride in how clean I keep my house.” Luigi placed a hand proudly on his chest, and Bowser smiled at the house.
“It looks great from out here.” Bowser chuckled.
“But do you want to know what really pissed me off?” Bowser nodded, leaning forward to show Luigi how interested he was. “Mario never came back.”
“Seriously?” Bowser gaped in amazement at the audacity of the Mushroom Hero.
“Yeah!” Luigi exclaimed, throwing his hands into the air. “He leaves me with the mess. I’m on my hands and knees scrubbing his floors, taking out the trash, doing his dishes, his laundry and where is he?” Polterpup ran up to Luigi and put down a toy gold bone. Luigi quickly picked it up and promptly threw it as hard as he could towards Boo’s Forest. “Nowhere to be seen!” He shouted angrily. Bowser watched as the bone flew through the air, and the spectral dog quickly ran to fetch it. “He’s off doing who knows what while I’m trying to put his house back together.”
“Even I don’t make my staff clean up after me or my kids. If we make a mess, we clean it up.” Bowser commented, moving his eyes from the flying dog and to the stomping plumber.
“See! Even a King is capable of cleaning up after himself!” Luigi scoffed. “But no! The great Mushroom Kingdom Champion doesn’t clean up his room, or his dishes, or his laundry. He can’t even take out the trash.” He looked at Bowser with fury in his eyes. “I swear the man doesn’t even know how to use a washing machine. I would hope he at least knows how it works because stars know how many we’ve installed in the past year alone!”
Polterpup came running back to Luigi and dropped the gold bone at his feet. Bowser watched as Luigi picked the bone up again and tossed it just as hard back into the forest. “Kamek made sure that I knew how to do my own washing. I make sure to wash my choker and bands at least twice a week. Mario can’t even wash his own clothes?” Bowser asked with a scoff.
“He doesn’t even know how to use a laundry hamper!” Luigi shouted, throwing his arms again. Bowser was having the time of his life, watching this little man yelling and bad-mouthing Mario. The mustached man was so expressive with his arms and hands, and the little scrunching of his nose was making Bowser’s heart flutter. Polterpup came running back with the bone and dropped it by Luigi with an excited bark. Bowser listened as Luigi shouted in his mother tongue. From the way mustached man was shouting, Bowser assumed that Luigi was cursing out Mario and it was a sight to behold.
After a few minutes of watching Luigi shout, Bowser leaned his hand over the gate to gently grab the man’s arm. Luigi stopped in the middle of his sentence to look at Bowser, and there were unshed tears gathering in the pools of his ocean blue eyes. Bowser carefully caressed Luigi’s arm with a small smile on his face. Luigi took a deep breath before he looked down at Polterpup again. He had brought the bone back and was happily wagging his tail.
Luigi let out a chuckle. “Sorry about that.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Bowser quickly answered. A noise from behind them caused both men to look at the road up to Luigi’s house. A shaking toad with a newspaper and letters in hand was standing next to Luigi’s mailbox. At being noticed, the toad let out a squawk-ish shout before shoving everything into Luigi’s post and running back down the road. Luigi sighed and called out a ‘thank you’ as the toad ran, never looking back. Bowser stood up and walked down to Luigi’s mailbox. He grabbed the three letters and newspaper before walking back up the way to where Luigi stood, handing the mail to him.
“Thanks.” Luigi smiled, looking at the mail for a moment before giving Bowser a side-eye glance. “You didn’t have to get my mail.” He accused.
Bowser shrugged. “I know.” He casually stated before leaning over the gate to look at Luigi’s mail. “Bills?” He questioned.
Luigi shook his head. “Nah, they’re just bank stuff. I’ve got a couple different bank accounts in different kingdoms because I don’t want to put all my coins in one place.” He looked at Bowser with a smirk. “I’ve got an account at Koopa Koin Keeper.”
Bowser’s eyebrows went up. “Really? They don’t usually take non-citizens.”
“Well, showing them their weight in gold bars and gems convinced them otherwise.” Luigi chuckled before tucking the letters under his arm and pulling up the newspaper. Bowser watched as Luigi’s face went from pleasantly entertained right back to utterly pissed. Bowser tried to lean across the gate to see what the man saw but couldn’t make out much other than a picture of a house party. “I can’t believe him.” Luigi whispered with a fury hotter than Bowser’s fire breath.
“What’s up?” Bowser asked with concern. Luigi turned the newspaper around for Bowser to look at the headline.
“MARIO INVITES EVERYONE TO HIS HOUSE FOR A BIRTHDAY BANANZA!”
“The Mushroom Kingdom’s greatest hero celebrated another birthday here in our lovely town and invited everyone to the festivities, including our beloved Princess Peach, the amazing Princess Daisy, the bodacious Prince Donkey Kong, as well as many others. His wonderful home was opened to the public yesterday, and everyone got a chance to see the beautiful home that the humble hero resides in. Mario allowed us to take pictures of all his trophies and gifts that he has gotten over the years (article continued on page 3).”
Bowser squinted at the paper and looked back up at Luigi with a curious look. “I’m confused.”
“I’m furious!” Luigi shouted, throwing the paper onto the ground. “I spent the entire day cleaning and sanitizing his house. I’m the one that decided to move all his trophies and junk so that they were on display. Mario just stuffed all his junk in my old room. I couldn’t even open the door when I got there. I had to climb through the window to get in!” Luigi shouted. “He decides to invite everyone over to his house for OUR birthday and everyone is like, Mario is so clean and nice, and he puts all our gifts on display. He’s so amazing and wonderful!” Luigi let out an exasperated yell.
Bowser blinked in surprise, picking out the one piece of the sentence that he believed Luigi was most upset about. “Happy birthday.” He simply said, making Luigi blink at him in surprise. “You said, our birthday. I didn’t realize that your birthday was so soon. Otherwise, I would have invited you over to the castle. The kids love parties, especially birthday parties because it means cake.”
Luigi sighed and shook his head. “Well, our birthday was yesterday so there’s no reason to be so upset about it.” Luigi crossed his arms and looked down at the newspaper and letters on the ground. “I just... Mario loves taking credit for everything, and he does do great stuff. But for these people to think he’s perfect is absolutely ridiculous and the fact that there is no mention of me is...” Luigi let out another heavier sigh.
“Insulting?” Bowser suggested. Luigi let his head gently nod. “It is insulting. You did all the work and he’s getting all the glory. You shouldn’t have to put up with that kind of treatment.”
Luigi groaned. “He’s my brother. That’s just how he’s always been.”
“You don’t have to take it.” Bowser stated before he gestured to the house. “Is it bold of me to assume that you moved out to get away from Mario?”
“Well...” Luigi tilted his head back and forth. “Yes and no. See, I got this house after I captured King Boo for the first time. E. Gadd mentioned that the land was unowned, and he had connections to build me a house with the money that I found in Boo’s illusion. I didn’t really feel like telling him no, so I ended up with a house.” Luigi looked up at Bowser. “I didn’t really leave Mario. More like, I decided to take advantage of the house that was built for me.”
“But it’s nice to be away from Mario, isn’t it?” Bowser asked with a smile. “It’s nice not being around someone who takes advantage of your good nature. You’re able to feel like a person rather than just another tool in someone else’s toolbox.” Luigi sighed and looked away. “You can still love your brother, but he doesn’t have the right to steal your time and energy.”
“Coming from the koopa who consistently takes our time and energy when he kidnaps the local leader.” Luigi gave Bowser a tearful smirk.
“I know I’m not the best person to be telling you this.” Bowser admitted looking Luigi in the eyes. “But someone has to tell you. Just because everyone else will treat you horribly doesn’t mean you have to take it. You can leave.” Luigi looked down, but Bowser quickly moved his large paw to tilt his head back up. “You might think that you’ll lose everything if you leave, but if things stay the same, you’ll lose something worse than everything.” Luigi looked at him with wide eyes. “You’ll lose yourself and that’s the worst thing to lose.”
“Even if I did leave, where would I go? All the people I know are friends with Mario, and they’ll immediately tell him where I am. Then Mario would convince me to go back with him and I’d be stuck in the same loop again.” Luigi’s eyes filled with tears as he tried to think of a way to avoid Mario.
“You can always come with me.” Bowser offered. “If you need a break from Mario’s demands, I swear I’d never tell him where you were at.” Bowser let Luigi think for a moment before the king had an idea. “You know what? Yeah, I’m officially inviting you to come and stay with me for a week.”
“W-What?” Luigi exclaimed, putting his hands up between him and Bowser. “Why?”
“Because I want to celebrate your birthday!” Bowser smiled down at the man. “I want you to feel appreciated, and my kids are the best at that!”
“I-I don’t know. M-Mario might need my help cleaning up from his party.” Luigi started before Bowser stopped him.
“Then Mario can clean it himself. You don’t own him anything. Plus, it was your birthday too. You deserve a good time. What happened to teaching you the importance of self-care?” Bowser asked with a raised eyebrow.
Luigi blinked bashfully before he looked down at his feet. "I… I guess I could take a week off. We should probably leave soon because Mario could show up any minute begging for my help." Bowser chuckled, reaching to unlatch the gate and pick up Luigi's mail from the ground.
"Then let's get you packed. My ship is parked just inside Boo's Forest. Not too far. We'll be out of here and back to the Koopa Kingdom in no time." Luigi worried his lip for a moment before he grabbed his mail from Bowser's paw and ran to his door with Polterpup at his heels.
"Come in!" Luigi called as he slammed his door open and ran inside the house. "There's just a few things that I need to pack and I'll be ready. Are you sure it's alright for me to stay for a whole week?" Bowser leaned down to enter Luigi's home and he found it comfortably cozy. If he stood upright completely, his horns would scrape against the ceiling. Luckily for Bowser, he usually hunched over when he walked. Helped with his balance.
"Oh yeah, the kids would love to have you for a whole week!" Bowser smiled at the large bookshelf that held Luigi's books. He found a few books that had been worn from multiple reads. One of them Bowser recognized as his adopted daughter's favorite book, "The Koopa's Bride". Bowser smiled. "Even if you don't have everything you need, I'd be happy to buy whatever you needed. The kids love shopping, if you couldn't tell."
Bowser heard Luigi let out a chuckle from his bedroom. "I got that feeling, yeah." Luigi let out a grunt and Bowser heard a muted thud. "Got it." Luigi walked out of his room with a large suitcase. "I've got extra clothes, shoes, and a few hair products. If I need anything else, I'm sure I'll find it somewhere."
"I'll get you anything you need." Bowser smiled before turning away from the bookshelf. "Shall we?" He gestured towards the door with a bit of flair. Luigi returned Bowser's smile and rushed out of the door. Polterpup barked excitedly and started running towards his toy. He grabbed it in his mouth and happily jumped over the fence, trotting off towards Boo's Forest.
"And you're sure it'll be alright for me to stay?" Luigi held his suitcase in front of his legs as he watched Bowser close his front door behind them and walked towards the open gate.
"Of course. It's my kingdom. I can do whatever I want and what I want is to show you how great us Koopa are at throwing birthday bashes!" Bowser chuckled proudly, closing the gate behind them. Luigi followed beside Bowser as they made their way towards Boo's Forest.
"From what I'm hearing, Koopa's are great at just about everything." Bowser let out a loud laugh.
"Absolutely!" He brought his arm down around Luigi's shoulders. "We'll throw a better party than Mario did at his puny hut of a house." It didn't take them long before the familiar sight of an airship came into view. "Here, lemme help you up." Bowser brought his other arm down under Luigi's legs and lifted him into a bridal carry before taking a massive leap onto the deck of the ship. Luigi let out a squeak and clinged to his suitcase before Bowser carefully placed him down. "You remember this beauty?"
Luigi looked at the ship and nodded. "This was the ship you took to the festival a few months ago, right?"
Bowser gave a smile as he walked to the helm. "That's right. One of my favorites. She's fast and gets the job done better than any other. That's why she's my ship." He activated the engines and propellors before he told Luigi to hang on. Luigi placed his suitcase on the ground and pressed it and himself against the railing beside Bowser.
The ship lifted off the ground and started turning around to make its way to the Koopa Kingdom. Luigi carefully made his way to the edge of the ship and looked down at the ground as it grew further away with the rising altitude. Off in the distance, Luigi could see dust in the distance and Luigi's stomach dropped.
"Mario's coming." Luigi whimpered as he quickly dropped down below the railing to hide. Bowser glanced in the direction of the kicked up dust and smirked.
"Well, too bad for him. You're mine for the week." Bowser kicked the thrusters on and the ship jerked forward, propelling them over Boo's Forest and towards the Darklands.
"He's going to be mad." Luigi bit his lip while he crawled over to his suitcase. "I should go back. This isn't a good idea."
"What's not a good idea is thinking that your life revolves around Mario. What happened to all that teaching you about self-care? Good times, good food, relaxation and appreciation. Now come on!" Bowser waved an arm to Luigi and stepped back from the helm. "Let's have a good time."
Bowser watched Luigi think about his offer for a second before he took in a deep breath. He watched the mustached man put his suitcase back down on the deck and he walked over to Bowser.
"Flying an airship is pretty easy." Bowser placed his paws over Luigi's hands on the wheel. He pulled back and the ship pitched upwards. He pushed forward and the ship dipped down. Steering was explanatory enough. "You think you got it?" Luigi nodded his head nervously. "Don't worry. You got this. All my kids can drive an airship. If they can do it, you can too." He pointed to the distance where a large glowing mountain was. "See that volcano? That's where we're heading. The castle is at the base of it."
Luigi nodded and turned the ship towards the volcano. Bowser watched the man's eyes wander to the control panel as he bit his lip. "So… what do I do to make the ship go faster?" He asked with a shy smirk. A wide grin spread across Bowser's face. He pointed to the lever next to the wheel. The lever had triangle labels that read "full forward", "hover", and "full reverse". Luigi locked eyes with Bowser before he placed his hand on the lever and slowly started pushing it forward.
Slowly, the thrusters increased in power and before long, Bowser was grabbing Luigi's suitcase and strapping it to the side of the railing so it wouldn't go flying off. Afterwards, he walked up behind Luigi and held onto the railing around the smaller man.
"I got you." He chuckled into Luigi's ear. "Open her up." Bowser watched with a hint of pride as the man's face split into a grin. He pushed the lever all the way forward and the ship rapidly shot through the air. Luigi fell back against Bowser's plastron and started laughing giddily. "That's the spirit! Now don't jerk the wheel!" Bowser shouted over the rushing wind. "Move with the wind, not against it!"
Luigi gently started shifting the wheel to maneuver the ship back and forth through the air. If Bowser hadn't been right behind Luigi, the koopa was convinced the man would have gone flying off. The ship jolted a bit as Luigi moved the ship into an air current. With surprise, Bowser watched the man shift the wheel to follow the current and Bowser let out a loud boisterous chuckle.
"That's it! This jet stream will take us right around to Volcano Hydrus! Just stay with it." Luigi nodded, squinting to shield his eyes from the violent winds. "I'll buy you some goggles and a mask so you don't get wind whipped next time." Bowser spoke directly into Luigi's ear.
Within just a few minutes, the volcano was nearly below them and Bowser took control of the ship again with Luigi still between his arms. The king reduced the speed of the thrusters and carefully moved them out of the jet stream. It was a little turbulent, but Bowser handled it with the skill of a master.
He heard Luigi let out a small "Mama mia" as he steered the ship towards the docking bay. Docking was a bit tough for the little ones so there were spaces for automatic arms to extend and carry the ship into the hangar, but Bowser could park airships with his eyes closed. He carefully got the ship into the docking bay and turned off the propellers, letting the ship rest on the bilge blocks.
Bowser shut off all the engines and waited for the ship to settle before he looked down at the wind ruffled man. "So, how was that for a good time?"
Luigi busted out with excited giggles. "That was awesome!" He nearly shouted, turning around to face Bowser. "Just, wow!"
"She's a fun ship to pilot. The kids might be a little jealous that I let you fly her." Bowser chuckled as he grabbed Luigi's suitcase. He walked back over to the control panel and flipped a switch that lower a section of the main deck railing. After it finished, he flipped another switch that brought out the gangplank. "Shall we?" Bowser gestured for Luigi to disembark first before the koopa followed after. The docking bay was bustling with activity. Koopas were running around, fixing and maintaining ships. Another team came to his ship and started cleaning the cleaning process.
Bowser put his arm around Luigi and led them away from the docks to a massive door. "The docks lead right into the inner walls of the castle. This hallway goes to the main gates and the entrance to the main castle."
Luigi looked up at the vaulted ceilings with awe. "I've never seen this side of the castle." Luigi admitted.
Bowser nodded. "We're in the western wall of the inner castle. You guys always just come in the front door. That's just through his door." Bowser pointed to another set of large doors. He opened them and they entered the main entry hall. "This whole entrance shifts when we are anticipating an attack."
"This turns into the arena that…" Luigi paused, biting his lip, but Bowser knew what he was going to saw.
"That I'd keep Princess Peach hostage in and you and Mario would fight me, yeah." Bowser shrugged. "Also, makes for a great ballroom." Bowser tried to lighten the conversation. "These doors on the far ends of the room go to store rooms and armory stations. The door on that back wall," he pointed to the right door in front of them. "goes to the kitchens and great hall. The other door on the left goes to the hospital wing. But we're going up the stairs towards the eastern wall."
Bowser looked down at Luigi, who already looked lost, despite still having Bowser's arm guiding him. "What's in the eastern wall?" The man asked, looking around at the torches and tapestries.
"That's where the royal suites are." Luigi's head turned to look at Bowser with a confused look. "What? Did you think I was going to have you stay in the barracks?" Luigi stuttered a little bit with a shrug. "Yeah right. For one, you're a guest and for two, you practically know how to fly my airship now and the last thing I want is for you to be right around the corner from the docks. For all I know, you'd take my precious out on a joyride in the middle of the night when the guards are being lazy."
Luigi scoffed. "I wouldn't do that." The man gave Bowser a sneaky smirk before following the koopa up the stairs and through another hall.
"My kids like going on joyrides." Bowser commented with a chuckle. "I've had to have Kamek put a charm on all their personal airships to make sure the ships fly themselves back to their docks at a specific time. The hatchlings like to avoid bed time." Luigi looked a bit impressed with Bowser's solution. "The guest rooms are down the hall from mine and the kids' bedrooms, so you shouldn't have kids crawling into your bed at night, but they will know where you sleep."
"Well, that sounds ominous." Luigi muttered with a half-hearted laugh.
Bowser seconded the laugh. "I suppose it did. It wasn't meant to be. Just matter-of-factly." They turned another corner and Bowser stopped. Luigi looked at him confused. "Pick a room." The koopa gestured to the many doors in the hall. "All of them are guest rooms and all are available. Pick one."
Luigi looked between Bowser and the hallway of doors for a moment before he wandered to the second room on the left. Bowser raised an eyebrow at the choice, but shrugged it off. As long as Luigi remember what room he chose, that was all that mattered to Bowser. The koopa followed the human into the room and placed the suitcase on the bed.
"Big bed, dresser, wardrobe, writing desk, reading chair, decent balcony that overlooks the main gardens, and en suite bathroom through there." Bowser pointed out all the main features of the room as Luigi explored. "Settle in. Get comfy. If you need to shower or change, go ahead. The kids are studying right now. They'll be done in about an hour and a half. I've got some reports that I need to fill out from the meeting this morning." Luigi nodded in understanding. "If you need anything, you can call for Kamek. Just shout and he'll hear you. Otherwise, if you want to wander around, there are a couple patrols that are making their rounds and they'll be able to take you anywhere. I'll let Kamek know to inform everyone that you're a guest. You shouldn't have any problems. Any questions?"
Luigi thought about it for a moment before he spoke again. "Any place that is forbidden?"
Bowser thought for a moment before he shook his head. "Not really. There are places that I wouldn't suggest you go, like the dungeons or the magma chambers just because you probably wouldn't like them. You're free to go wherever you want. I'll have Kamek find you when I'm done." Luigi nodded and wished him luck with his reports. Bowser grumbled out a "thanks" before he exited the room and made his way to his office.
Once he sat down at his desk, he immediately called for Kamek. The magikoopa materialized and straightened up. "You certainly took your time returning to the castle, your tardiness."
"Yeah, well, I ended up taking a nap. Also, Luigi's here. He's staying for the week." Bowser commented bluntly before pulling out some papers to start writing his report.
"Excuse me? Luigi's staying for a week?" Kamek questioned, adjusting his spectacles. "Is there a particular reason for this, sire?"
"Yeah, his birthday was yesterday and his brother is a jerk who didn't invite him to his house party, but invited the entire toad population." Bowser scoffed. He looked at Kamek with fury. "He is our guest and we are going to celebrate his birthday for the rest of the week. Make sure all the patrol know that Luigi is to be treated as a major official and should be catered to."
"Sire, are you sure that's what Luigi would want?" Kamek asked with a raised eyebrow.
Bowser sighed as he sat back in his chair. "I don't know." He tossed his hands in the air before they landed back on his desk. "I was trying to tell him where things were, but he looked lost. He's worried about Mario getting pissed at him for leaving. I already hated Mario, but hearing how he treats Luigi is just…" Bowser let out a growl and flexed his claws as if he were going to crush Mario's head between them. He relaxed and sighed.
"I'll inform the patrols of Luigi's privileges and title. Is there anything else you need, sire?" Kamek tilted his head in Bowser's direction.
"No. But when you're done informing the troops, come back here." Kamek nodded before poofing away. Bowser sighed and rubbed his eyes with the heels of his palms. He groaned for a minute before he shook himself out of his emotions. He wanted to get the reports done as soon as possible so he could return to his guest.
Bowser's emotions were all over the place regarding that one specific human. When they first interacted after Bowser cut back on his schemes, it was just cultural education. He showed Luigi the benefits of caring about one's self, but then Bowser saw the spark in the green man's eyes. The mild flirty comments at the festival and the ride back to the castle?
Bowser lifted his eyes away from the reports and thought about the unbridled joy on the man's face as they raced to the castle. He looked so excited when he wasn't worrying. If Bowser could, he'd get rid of all the man's worries just to witness the joy on the man's face all day.
"Sire?" Kamek suddenly appeared beside Bowser, making the giant koopa jump.
"Stars! You can't do that to me!" Bowser yelled, clutching his chest. Whether Bowser was trying to slow his heart because of the jumpscare or the thought of Luigi's smile, the koopa would never tell.
"My apologies, your distractedness." Kamek bowed slightly. "You requested I return when I finished educating the troops. What else did you require?"
Bowser sighed, dragging his hands down his face in an attempt to calm himself down. "Birthday preparations." The king said simply. "For today, we might take Luigi shopping for more stuff. Just to make sure he's comfortable while he's staying here."
Kamek hummed at the thought. "Wendy may enjoy that greatly. There is a concert happening tomorrow night that Ludwig and Roy were excited about." The old magikoopa suggested.
Bowser nodded. "Yeah, we could do the concert tomorrow night." Bowser looked back down at his paperwork. "When the kids are finished with their studies, have them start brainstorming more ideas."
"Of course, sire. Anything else you require?"
"Nah, that's all. I just need to get this finished and then I'll see where Luigi ended up." Bowser started writing down his meeting notes from the morning with King Boo.
"Would you like me to accompany Luigi until you are available?" Kamek inquired with a raised eyebrow.
Bowser thought about it for a moment before he answered. "If there is nothing else more pressing for you to take care of, sure. Go for it. I told him to ask the patrols for direction if he got lost or to call you for help, but I don't know if he will."
Kamek nodded. "I'm happy to assist, sire."
"Thanks, pops. That's all for now." Bowser waved his hand to dismiss Kamek and the magikoopa poofed away, leaving Bowser alone with his thoughts once again. The giant koopa sighed and got back to filling out his reports. The sooner he finished his kingly duties, the sooner he could hang out with Luigi and make him smile.