Love in the Oddest Places (bowuigi story)

Chapter 34: Blast from the Past

"No."

"Please! Hear me out!"

"Jean, shut up."

Kai turned her attention to the target in front of her, aiming for the center. Jean scowled and snapped her book shut. "You know I'm right! You just don't want to admit it," she scoffed.

With a solid thunk, a hammer knocked the target down. Kai walked to a table and grabbed another hammer, rolling her eyes at her sister's persistence. "Okay, let's say they are together," Kai pondered aloud. "That Luigi and the King have a thing going on. How can that be?"

Jean's eyes dilated, her mind racing with elaborate scenarios. Kai suddenly regretted allowing her sister to rant about her latest conspiracy theory. Jean paced back and forth, her thoughts spinning tales of Bowser and Luigi's apparent closeness, their level of trust, and the intricacies of their relationship with the king. She delved into how Bowser had been allowed to become so close to Junior, to the point where the prince regarded the human as his father.

Kai scoffed and threw another hammer, resigned to letting Jean continue her insane ramblings. She sighed, shaking her head as Jean persisted with her tirade about the supposed secret relationship between Luigi and the King. Indulging her sister in this wild theory felt absurd, but there was an undeniable passion in Jean's voice that was hard to ignore.

As Jean paced, her animated voice filling the room, Kai couldn't shake the concern nagging at her. While Jean's theories were usually outlandish, there was often a nugget of truth buried within her fantastical narratives. With a heavy sigh, Kai dropped her hammer and settled beside her sister, resting her head on her hand, "I still don't understand why they would even bother to hide it," she replied. "It's kinda obvious as you so painfully explained."

Jean scratched her face, her brow furrowing in contemplation. "Well... due to his past, maybe King Bowser's too scared to make a move."

"H-hey! We're not about to talk about that!" Kai whispered urgently, shooting a glance around to ensure no one overheard.

"I-I know, but... it's the truth," the Hammer Sister said, her voice dropping to a confidential tone. "We've all heard the story. The king's powerful, yeah, but he has a limit, you know? Or maybe it's the fact that Luigi's not royalty; that could be another reason why."

Kai froze at the last comment. Now that she mentioned it, could Luigi even court King Bowser? He was from another world and of a common background. Kai didn't know much about the court's inner workings – she was a soldier, and spending more than two seconds thinking about it gave her a headache – but she felt their relationship could cause some discord. The heir situation wouldn't be a problem since the king had Prince Junior, but the nobles would be upset since Luigi brings nothing to the table.

"What're y'all whispering about?"

"THE FUCK?!" the sisters exclaimed in surprise.

They both leaped out of their seats. Jean topped her seat over, causing her book to go flying as she was frightened by a Shy Guy's presence. His mask's unblinking eyes stared back at them. The Shy Guy raised his hands defensively, realizing he had startled them. "Whoa, sorry! Didn't mean to scare ya," he mumbled behind his mask.

Jean, recovering from the surprise, straightened up. "Geez, you nearly gave us a heart attack!"

"Yeah, seriously, what's with the sneak-up routine?" Kai added, her heart still pounding in her chest.

The Shy Guy shifted nervously from foot to foot. "You were talking about the king and Luigi, right? I couldn't help but listen in."

Kai glanced at Jean, exchanging a puzzled look before turning her attention back to the Shy Guy. "What's it to you?"