"And this is the garden, Luigi," Junior said as he put Luigi on the floor so he could walk. It's been two days since they got to the Darkland, and Luigi is already having a bad time. It's full of lava that he has almost set himself on fire, and there are a lot more Koppa here than on the flying fortress they were on. If the Koppa were like the Toads, he didn't want any of them seeing him in case they screamed and tried to kill him like a rat.
"It's much bigger than I thought. I'm just glad that there's no lava." Luigi said as he moved over to some rose brush next to them. He also half expected it to have only power-up and, of course, the peach tree Junior told him about.
"Yeah! It's the only piece of land that would actually grow plants so dad makes sure that there is nothing nearby that can burn them," Junior said, moving toward the peach tree. "This way Luigi! I want you to see the peach tree! The peaches are starting to grow!"
Luigi followed him, taking in every flower in the garden. Most were red, like roses, tulips, marigolds, and bleeding hearts. The following popular colors were yellow and green, rarely seeing any other color besides the pink and white that only pop in one area - near the peach tree. Once at the tree, Luigi noticed how big it was, not because of how small he was but because it was a fully grown tree. Luigi thought that it was a newly planted tree, but it was a peach tree about to grow peaches. It had all the flowers on it.
"Once those flowers start to go away, the peaches will start growing, and they taste amazing! Peach shows me a pie recipe I'll make with her!" Junior said, looking up at the tree with a smile. "I can't wait till you have some!"
Luigi averted his gaze, putting on a sad smile. He found it sweet that since Junior found him, he treated him as if he was a person and not some toy, but it broke his heart, opening old wounds.
"That's very kind of you, Junior, but...I can't eat it. I have no need for it." Luigi told him. When he first turned into a nutcracker, his biggest fear was how he would take care of himself. How would he eat and drink if he had a hole in his back? How will he sleep and know if he is sleeping? How would he know if he was in pain or was missing some part? He soon learned the answer to all of those questions when he was in a cage, locked up in a forgotten room for no one to hear him. No one to see him. No one to save him.
"Why not?" Junior asked; it was an innocent question, but it felt like a knife was stabbing Luigi.
"I'm... I'm just a toy. Toy don't need food to live. They also don't need water, or sleep...they don't need the things that you need to live." He explained, not wanting to explain this to a child.
"But you always pretend to fall asleep when I do, why can't you do that with food?"
"Because of my back," Luigi said, turning around, "it has a hole in it. It's there so my mouth can move, and when I put something in my mouth...it just falls out. It makes me feel empty, like a ghost."
"Oh," Junior said, sadness showing on his face, "Well...what if I wish you real?!" His face turned into a smile at his grand idea. "If I wish you could be alive, then what stops me from wishing that you're a real person?!"
Luigi frowned; this isn't a wish; it's a curse. A curse that he can't tell anyone about; he learned the hard way when he told Professor E. Gadd. Luigi still remembers the horror of what happened to him, the professor's eyes turning white as he covers his ears. He kept yelling to make the noise disappear, crying as his body slowly turned to stone. Luigi tried to save him, he wanted to make it stop, but when Luigi touched him, he, too, started to turn. Finally, his wooden body turned so hard that he couldn't move, he lost his voice, and his sight began to turn black. And the noises, oh, how the noise hunted him since it was just that laugh. That god-awful laugh before he saw those glowing purple eyes turn pitch black. Luigi nodded no, hoping that he hadn't started crying.
"No, Junior. That's not how wishes work." He told him, thinking quickly to make a cover story, "Everyone gets one wish. Once a wish is used, you can't make another wish."
"What about you then? If everyone gets a wish, doesn't that mean you get one too?"
"A wish doesn't get one since its only purpose is to make the person who wishes it happy. You wish I was alive that way; you can have a friend to talk to and who can help you with your dad and his love life. I don't need a wish if I only wish to make you happy." Luigi tells him, but Junior's face tells him that he is heartbroken by this. Luigi felt terrible, but he wouldn't make the same mistake again, and he wouldn't let that monster find him again too. He just wasn't.
"If I had known, I would have made my wish to be that you made my dad happy as much as you make me happy," Junior said, holding his tears back. Luigi hugged him, Junior getting on his knees to return it.
"It's ok, if anything, if that is what makes you happy, I'll do everything in my power to do so." Luigi jokes, just trying to get Junior to smile, but this gives Junior an idea.
"Wait, I just had an idea! When we gave Peach her tea, both she and Dad were really happy. What if we help them get together? Make it so they could be friends - maybe even more! You can tell me what to do and what Peach likes, and I'll tell Dad what to do so he can use it! That way, you don't have to speak with Dad, and I'm not breaking any of the rules since he'll think that Peach told me." Junior tells him the plan. Luigi wasn't sure about this; Mario was with Peach. They have been together for years, even though people still think they're just friends with feelings for each other. Then again, he wasn't against the fact that Peach and Bowser should be friends, especially if it meant that she could come and visit Junior after Luigi was forgotten about or worse. Mario doesn't know that he has a brother, and Peach doesn't seem to remember Luigi, so it can't hurt either of them. It can't even hurt Bowser since he didn't recognize him, either. This was just a son trying to help his father get his happy ever after. Luigi wouldn't stop Junior from being hopeful, even if it would stop at just being friends.
"I'll help but if they can't be more than friends we have to stop ok?"
"Ok, we'll stop if they can't be more than friends."
"Do you promise?"
"I promise, Luigi. Oh, I can't wait to see those smiles on my dad's face!"
"Yeah, me too Junior. Me too"
Peach was making her way to the garden. It was the only nice place she liked to go to in the Darkland. At this point in her life, it was like a second home, a second home that she would much prefer if she could make changes. Along the way, she bumped into Bowser, who had a teapot and cup in one hand and cookies in the other. Ever since he and Junior came to her room in the fortress, Bowser has brought her tea daily. This has always brightened her mood; just having tea and cookies makes her feel even more at home. However, something is bothering her, and a couple of things are actually.
That day after tea, she felt as if she had forgotten something. She remembers Bowser and Junior being there but can't remember if someone else was there. It was nagging at her, and the more it did, the more it hurt her feelings. Finally, she shook it off once again, bringing her force on the giant Koppa in front of her.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Bowser," she apologized.
"It's fine," he said, stepping back, "I guess you're going to the garden?"
"Indeed, care to join me?" she asked. She knows that being here, she would have to hang out with Bowser occasionally, and since the two weeks are almost up, why not speak to him for a while.
"Are you sure? I know that you're only asking to be nice."
"I'm positive. Besides I don't want to leave on a sour note, let's get some air," she said, walking ahead as Bowser followed. They walk in silence as Koppa keeps a curious eye on them. Peach could feel the look from everyone, even the side glances that Bowser was giving her before he spoke up.
"Junior in the garden, he was playing with a new toy. I was going to ask you about it, since it was...well I personally don't like it." he said; this made Peach raise a bow.
"What is it that you don't like about it?" Bowser was silent to her question as if he was getting embarrassed by this.
"It looks like Mario. It's this wooden doll that's painted green but it's a tall Mario!" he said, annoyed at this toy, "I was wondering if you gave it to him."
"Me? I haven't given him anything." Bowser looked troubled by her answer, which made her worry a bit. Not many times has Peach seen Bowser worried. "Is it just that it looks like Mario that's troubling you?"
"No," he admitted, "you may find this odd but...I have this feeling that I've seen it before. Mind you this is the first time I've seen it but it reminds me of another feeling I've been having, one of forgetfulness."
"Have you been feeling it since you gave me the tea the first time three days ago?" Peach asked; Bowser's eyes went wide when she said that.
"Yes, that's exactly when it started! The morning after that, I felt I'd forgotten something but knew I had everything in check. And after seeing that toy, the feeling just got stronger." They both shared a look of worry. This started to scare Peach as this didn't seem like something the Koppa would do, particularly if Bowser was also feeling the effect of it. She needs to know more, but Bowser stops her in her tracks. She saw they were already in the garden, watching Junior play with what Bowser said - a wooden doll, or what she called a Nutcracker.
Looking at it, she now understood what Bowser was saying. The feeling of forgetfulness was getting more robust, and it was unsettling. She never saw the toy before, yet there it was, making her body shake in fear. The more and more she stared at it, the more and more it became blurring, making her head hurt as a headache started. She had to close her eyes since the pain was worsening, and she was slowly bending over.
Bowser saw this and dropped everything in his hands, breaking the kitchen wear and making a mess. This made Junior turn his head; he placed Luigi down and ran over to her and his father to see what was wrong. Peach managed to open her eyes to see Bowser's hands holding her, Junior running out of the garden, and a ghost. She stared at this ghost, her face turning white as it started at her. It was tall, and his silhouette looked just like Mario's but thin. It was staring at her, and those purple-glowing eyes made her scream. Bowser picked her up, taking her away as Junior followed. The pain and horror made her drift into unconsciousness. Bowser carried her bridal style down the hall, yelling at the Koppa to get a doctor fast.
Luigi got up from his motionless body, feeling horrible that he had done that to Peach again. It wasn't the first time, the second, or even the third, but he was glad that Bowser took care of her. He remembers the first time this happened. Luigi managed to get into her room after returning home. Mario didn't see him even though he yelled and pulled on his clothes. She was at her dresser when he dropped down on it and called out her name. When she looked at his wooden body, it looked like she couldn't see him, but then she looked up and screamed. He waited till the next day to see if she had told anyone, and she did, telling Mario that she saw a ghost of him, tall and thin, staring at her with purple-glowing eyes. Luigi was horrified when he heard that. He had to look in a mirror to ensure that wasn't true.
His baby blue eyes stared back at him as tears fell, knowing that no matter who he talked to, they would never be about to help him.