Chapter Text
After being interrogated by Bowser, King of the Koopas, Luigi was sent to the lava dungeon where he awaits an uncertain fate. Recovering from his fall, he sees that he is in a cage hung over lava.
Luigi looks around and he sees a plethora of other cages, and most of those cages are filled with penguins. That didn’t bother him a bit, compared to the boiling pit of lava below him.
Luigi whimpered at the sight of the lava. “Where am I?” He asked.
Luigi gasped when he heard a child giggling. He turned to see that the child was actually a glowing blue star.
“Home!” Responded the star after it stopped giggling.
Luigi stared at the star in confusion. He wondered if it is a figment of his imagination because stars can’t talk. But, then again, monsters like the Shy Guys or Bowser shouldn’t have existed, but they do, so he has to come to terms that this talking star is no figment of imagination.
“Pay him no heed,” said a voice. Luigi turned to see that the voice came from a penguin wearing a crown, which made the green plumber believe that he is the king of this penguin race. “He’s cute, but he’s also…” He whistled as if to say that the star is a nutjob.
“In an insane world, it is the sane who is called crazy,” replied the star.
“Not in my vocabulary!” Cried out a woman who sounded tomboyish.
Luigi turned to find the source of the female voice and it came from a woman wearing a yellow and orange dress. The woman is also a short-haired brunette. The moment he locks eyes with the girl, he is instantly smitten.
“Like the Penguin King said,” the woman said to Luigi, not really paying attention to his face. “Pay Lumalee no heed.” The woman finally looked at Luigi and she gasped in amazement. She, too, has been smitten with the green plumber. “Oh, hello, handsome. My name is Daisy, Princess of the Sarasaland Kingdom. What’s yours?”
“Ummmm…” Luigi began, blushingly. He is so smitten with this girl, he is at a loss of words. “My name is Luigi.”
“Luigi, huh?” Daisy replied in her tomboyish accent. “That’s a pretty neat name. I assume that your a human from Earth?”
“Yes, that’s right,” Luigi replied.
“You’re a human?” Asked the Penguin King, who seemed skeptical. “How did you find your way here? I could’ve sworn Toadsworth sealed the pipe away at Earth.”
“Who’s Toadswsorth?”
“He’s the advisor to Princess Peach and the leader of his people, the Toads,” Daisy replied. “He sealed the pipe away because he feared that humans are dangerous to be meddling with. But something tells me that you are no danger of any sort.”
“No, I’m not,” Luigi confirmed. “I’m just a plumber who got lost from my brother, Mario.”
“Oh, you have a brother?!” Daisy gasped. “You’re so lucky! I’m an only child.”
There was a short pause before Luigi broke it. “How long have you guys been in here?”
“Time, like reality, is an illusion…” Lumalee replied
“Oh, God, enough, Lumalee!!” Shrieked Daisy in frustration.
“Yeah!” Followed the Penguin King. “We’re depressed enough as it is!”
Daisy sighed as she looked back at Luigi. “Not long,” she answered. “I was kidnapped weeks ago because I am a threat to Bowser. One time I slapped him to another land because he wouldn’t stop bothering Peach.”
“Who is this Peach?” Luigi asked. “Is she like you?”
“Mmm-Hmm!” Daisy hummed in affirmation. “She’s my BFF! She is exactly like me, but she’s a blonde and she wears a pink dress. Pink is her favorite color, as mine is a mixture of yellow and orange.”
“I see,” Luigi replied. “Wait a minute… So, Bowser wants to marry this Peach?” Daisy nodded. “Ewww! A turtle and a human?! That’s disgusting!”
“Ugh! Tell me about it!” Daisy agreed.
“Absolutely!” The Penguin King also agreed.
After another few seconds of pause, Daisy kept going with her conversation with Luigi. “So, what’s your story?”
“I was separated from my brother while we were fixing a pipe in my world,” Luigi answered. “I hope I can see him again. He probably would’ve known what to do in this situation. He was always the guy taking charge while I, being shy and scared, did nothing but watch him.”
“Awww,” Daisy reacted with sweet sadness. “That’s so sad. Well, if you ask me, I think you need to step up a notch. I’ll tell you what… If you step up and do something heroic for a change…” She, then, started talking seductively. “...I;ll go on a date with you.”
Daisy’s bargain made Luigi perk up a bit. “Okay, you got a deal.” He proceeded to shake Daisy’s hand which is covered in a short white glove. He, then, looked around the dungeon. “There’s gotta be a way out of here.”
“There is no escape,” Lumalee replied suddenly. “The only hope… is the sweet relief of death.”
Everyone, except Luigi, groaned in total frustration. “You’ve gotta be kidding me!” The Penguin King exhaled in fury.
“Ugh! This annoying star!” Daisy followed. She, then, turned back to Luigi. “Then again, I’m afraid there is nothing we can do at this point. In case you’ve already forgotten, there’s a boiling lake of lava below our feet and our cages are locked tight.”
Luigi looked crestfallen. “I see.”
“But, don’t you worry,” Daisy responded with confidence. “I don’t think we are going to perish just yet. Knowing my BFF, she’s probably coming up with a plan to finally defeat Bowser and save us all.”
“You really think so?”
“I know so,” Daisy replied. “Peach is like me. At camp, we were a team, we kicked butt and stuff. Why, she even went through a dangerous obstacle course and beat it right away. It took me two tries to beat that obstacle course.”
“Wow!” Luigi reacted in amazement. “You two are amazing! I’m so jealous!”
Daisy giggled. “Don’t worry, Luigi. I;m sure you’ll find your time to shine. You just need to find it. That’s all.”
“Thanks, Daisy,” Replied Luigi. He, then, gasped as he realized Daisy is a princess. “I mean… Your Grace.”
Daisy giggled. “You don’t have to be formal. You’re my friend. And friends call me Daisy. What do friends call you, Luigi?”
“I don’t have many friends,” Luigi replied, “but my brother calls me Lu.”
“Lu, huh?” Daisy repeated the nickname. “Hey, I’ver got it! I’ll call you… ‘LuLu! What do you think?!”
“Oh!” Luigi gasped. He had never received such a sweet pet name by a beautiful girl before. “I love it!”
Luigi and Daisy laughed together. Their bond is growing every second. In fact, there is a strong chance that the friendship will evolve into something romantic.
