Luigi's POV
Today was the day we'd begin putting my plan in action. I was still surprised that Bowser actually agreed to my plan. It's hard to believe that I went from being a prisoner to the king's advisor.
I got ready for the day, then proceeded to head out of my room.
I had a couple of Bowser's troops escort me to Bowser's throne room. Some of the guards even started to get used to escorting me everywhere and eased up a bit around me.
When I got there, I saw Bowser sitting on his throne as usual. His eyes immediately met mine. I waved while walking towards him. He cracked a small smile, giving me a welcoming nod.
"How did you sleep?" He asked me as I sat beside him.
"Pretty well. You?"
"Better than I expected."
"That's good to hear." I smiled at him.
"Before I fell asleep, I was thinking about you and what we talked about last night. It put my mind at ease." He said, a soft smile spreading across his face."Do you really think all this is gonna work?"
"I have hope"
"That reminds me, I have a task for you. It's rather light."
"Uh, alright. What did you need me to do?"
"When we gather all the troops here for the announcement, I want you to be the one to deliver them the big news."
His request took me by surprise.
"M-me? But, we've been preparing this moment for you."
"Well, I want to share this moment with you. Besides, I want everyone to know that you are now my adviser. I see no more perfect time than this afternoon."
" I'm not sure if I can do that. I'm not a good public speaker. What if I mess up?"
"You'll be fine. I have faith in my adviser." He nudged me with a wink.
His playful gesture brought a small smile to my face for a brief moment.
"Hey, it's okay if you can't do it." He placed a hand on my shoulder to comfort my unease feeling.
"N-no, I can do it."
"Alright. I'll be with you the whole way."
"Thanks. That helps." I said, smiling up at him.
"You're welcome." He said, standing up from his seat."We have about an hour until we announce the big news. We should start getting ready. Come with me."
I nodded and stepped up from my seat. He took hold of my hand as we made our way out of the throne room.
It was interesting to see Bowser trying to be a bit nicer. So far he hasn't had any outburst so that's a good sign.
I was taken to a part of the castle that I had never seen before. We stopped when we came across two large golden doors with two koopa troops guarding them.
They immediately stepped aside when Bowser approached the door. He opened the doors and ushered me inside.
The room had a beautiful red carpet and a large window. There was a huge closet along with his fancy bed. I couldn't help but stare in awe.
"Is this your room?"I asked.
"Mhm." He nodded.
"It's beautiful."
I noticed a fancy outfit that was folded on his bed. He proceeded to grab the clothes and hand them to me.
"I had one of my seamsters put this together for you. I want you to look your best."
"Alright. I'll see you in an hour, your highness." I playfully bowed, bringing a small chuckle out of him which surprised me a little since I didn't think it would.
After exiting his room, I had a few of his guards escort me back to my room. After settling in, I began trying to make the most of the one hour I had to mentally prepare, however there was something that was breaking my focus.
For some unsure reason, I couldn't get my mind off of Bowser. My thoughts would always go back to the night we had dinner together. It was almost like I got to see a different side of him.
It feels like I have mixed feelings on the guy. I mean, not only did he take me in as his prisoner, he also kidnapped one of my closest friends and threatened to use me as bait for Mario. I mean, this guy was gonna set me on fire less than a week ago.
But at the same time it felt like we were almost friends. He seemed comfortable enough to open up to me about working non stop and having no friends. Not to mention his worries of not having a proper relationship with his son.
His heart seemed to be in the right place to a certain extent. He apologized to me and he hasn't gone into one of his fits of rage ever since. Still, I should still be on the lookout for that just to be safe.
While I didn't know too much about his personal life, he briefly stated that his childhood was lonely. I was probably the closest thing to a friend that Bowser's ever had.
Knowing all of this about him made me view him in a different light. He was a guy tasked with the responsibility of ruling his Kingdom and had to raise a child by himself. All of this with no emotional support to fall back on.
I mean, I can only imagine what that's like but it sounds miserable. Though if that were the case, it would explain why he's so angry all of the time. It would also explain why he's spent so much time chasing after the princess. Maybe he needs this party just as much as everybody else here.
For a bit, I was able to get my mind off of him and mentally prepare. After an hour, I got dressed and had a few koopa escort me to the throne room. The room already seemed full of koopa.
I could hear them discussing amongst themselves, saying that they haven't had a meeting like this in a while.
I felt a stubby hand tugging on my leg. I looked down to see Junior, eating a piece of chocolate.
"Junior."
"Hey Luigi. Dad's been waiting for you. Come on." He said.
As usual, he tugged my arm practically dragging me to where Bowser was. I saw Bowser standing just behind the third stair where his throne was. After Junior dragged me to the front, I joined Bowser at the top.
"Sorry I took so long." I apologized.
"Just glad you could make it. Are you sure you're up to this? You look tense."
"I'll be fine."
"Alright. I'll start whenever you feel you're ready."
I took a deep breath.
"You can start." I told him.
I watched as Bowser took a deep breath. He then blew out a huge wave of fire that reached across the room just barely above the koopas heads, getting all of their attention.
"Good afternoon everyone. I've gathered all of you here to have an important talk. First of all, I'd like to thank all of you for your recent loyal 5 years of service. I'd also like to apologize for the difficulties you've all had to face these past years. It's been brought to my attention that I...." He paused for a moment looking over at me.
I gave him a reassuring nod as he looked back at the crowd of koopa.
"I haven't been the king you all deserved. I put all of you under so much pressure to protect a kingdom that you have no reason to be attached to. There is much work to be done on my end, but I won't be alone. I now have the help of my trusty advisor, who would like to share a few words with you all." Bowser said, stepping aside.
I timidly looked at the crowd then at Bowser. He gave me a reassuring smile.
"Good afternoon everyone. First, I'd like to give a huge thanks to the King for providing me with a huge opportunity like this. I may not know any of you personally, but I can promise you that I have your best interest at heart. I know I haven't been here long but I can see a bright future here in the Lava Kingdom. Me and Bowser had a discussion and mutually agreed to let all of you have three days off. Lastly, we'd like all of you to return on Thursday at 7pm sharp. You'll be surprised by what we have in store. You're all dismissed."
After that all the koopa troops left, I let out a relieved sigh. Bowser gave me a pat on the back.
"You were great." He said with a smile.
"Thanks."