~ Luigi POV ~

"WOW," I excitedly shouted, running away from Mario's castle as the rain fell all around, dripping off my crown and face. "I'VE NEVER DONE ANYTHING LIKE THAT BEFORE!"

"Yeah, yeah, it's great. Just keep running before you get caught!" Mr. L urged, his ghost seeming to run next to me.

"Right, right, right!" I replied. "...Where exactly are we running?!"

"Castle Bleck!" Mr. L stated.

"Cool! Castle Bleck!!! ...What's that, and how do I get there?"

Mr. L seemed to roll his eyes as we continued running when he started floating along with me, searching his back pockets for something.

"Wait, if you can float why were you running?!" I questioned. Why would he waste energy pretending to run with me if he could have floated instead?

"Makes me feel human," Mr. L replied sounding casual, but I could hear a small hint of disappointment hidden in his tone as he explained that. I was going to ask him about it, when he suddenly pulled out a small black pipe, only like himself, it was slightly transparent. "This is something I used to get to and from Castle Bleck. It's how I got from place to place since I couldn't flip or teleport."

That was fascinating... it was like he had his own warp pipe! "Awesome, only one problem, how do you expect me to use that?!" I frantically asked, hearing the sounds of guards in the distance starting to chase after us.

"I'm... figuring that out..." Mr. L mumbled, looking behind us to see a group of toadettes catching up.

"Well, y-you better figure it out fast," I urged, looking behind myself as well. "I don't think I can outrun all of them..."

"YOUR MAJESTY!!!" A guard called, causing me to skid to a halt as a group of guards circled us.

This wasn't good.

"Oh, no no no," Mr. L muttered, clinging onto the pipe with a worried expression.

"Your Majesty, what are you doing?" A toadette asked, slowly approaching.

I nervously looked around, seeing as there was no escape. I let out a small nervous laugh and scratch the back of my neck, feeling the rain start to fall harder and harder. I was completely soaked. It was wonderful. I mean, yes, it was scary, but that scared feeling also made me feel somewhat alive. "I.. uh.. really wanted to see the rain, eheh," I lightly laughed as Mr. L kept rambling to himself, trying to figure out a solution.

"Ugh! How do we get out of this?!" Mr. L exclaimed, clearly stressing out.

"Come on, Your Highness. Let's get you home-"

"JUST GIVE ME THAT!" I shouted, panicked, snatching the return pipe from Mr. L's hand, which immediately made his eyes go wide. I don't think either of us knew I could do that. I watched as the pipe seemed to turn into solid matter as soon as I grabbed it, no longer being transparent like Mr. L.

It was like I made it real!"How... how did you do that?!" Mr. L questioned with wide eyes.

"I-I don't know!" I shouted when I looked up at all the toadettes, who all looked a mixture of confused and terrified. 

"Magic..." One mumbled. "He's some kind of sorcerer-"

"Luigi, listen to me. Get in the pipe!" Mr. L cried before the toadette could even finish her sentence.

I listened and immediately jumped in before any of the toadettes got me, leaving the Mushroom Kingdom behind.

That's right! Me! Prince Luigi! Finally getting to go on an adventure.

____

We both suddenly appeared in a large, black castle. Overall, it gave off an incredibly unsettling vibe. I jumped out of the pipe, then brushed myself off. "...This is Castle Bleck?" I questioned, readjusting my crown so it was slightly straighter. I was lucky it didn't completely fall off during all the madness. I mean, adventure!

"Yes," Mr. L replied. "It's... home."  He muttered, sounding almost relieved. He seemed to pause, turning around himself and looking at the dark interior. I didn't really feel quite as much awe at the sight of it all. It was a little too dark and creepy for my personal liking.

Then, the ghost floated in front of me, a confused expression on his face. "How... how did you do that?"

"Do what?" I replied, cocking my head to the side.

"Take my return pipe? How did you do it?" He clarified. "It wasn't real. Not from this world. You shouldn't have been able to touch it..."

"Oh," I replied, shrugging at his question. "I mean, I just... took it, I guess."

"You made it real..." He muttered, clearing his throat and looking at me. "Can you... do you think you can do that to me?"

He almost sounded hopeful when he asked that. 

"I mean... maybe. It's worth a shot!" I chimed, reaching for his arm.

Only, instead of feeling solid matter, my hand completely phased through him. 

If there was any hope in his eyes a second ago, it was all gone. He left out a defeated sigh as we both looked at each other with disappointed expressions. "... That's what I expected," He breathed in an almost defeated tone. "I-"

"HECK YEAH! Just send me in and I'll show these other Juniors how to REALLY take down a hero!" Chimed a familiar voice, echoing down the hall.

I jumped at the sound, immediately freezing up and falling silent, not even allowing myself to breathe.

"Golly, you're sure excited about this. I'll just getcha your return pipe and you can be on your way," Came another voice, only this one wasn't familiar to me. It sounded almost like a teenage girl.

"What the..." I started when Mr. L immediately seemed to panic.

"Quick, hide below those stairs!!!" Mr. L whisper/screamed, pointing to the set of stairs in front of us. I nodded and quickly dashed over, skidding to a halt and hiding below them as two people walked down the hall. I could only see their feet, so it was hard to identify who they were.

"Now where did I put that return pipe..." The young-sounding girl asked. She seemed to pause for a minute, then made a soft 'huh?' sound, kneeling down to where I left the pipe, picking it up and eyeing it.

"Oops," I whispered, looking at Mr. L's ghost. "I left the-"

"Shut up and pay attention," Mr. L hissed, interrupting me and pointing forward. I'm not one to fight, so of course, I obeyed and looked forward, watching as the girl observed the pipe. 

"Strange..." The girl noted. "Why would I leave this in the middle of the-"

"GIMME THAT!" The familiar voice urged. I couldn't see, but judging by their feet, I could assume that she had taken the pipe from the other girl and started walking off. "Thanks, Ms. SpiderLady. I'll have those heroes turned to dust in no time."

Wait a minute... I knew that voice. 

I knew her!

'I know her,' I wanted to say, but Mr. L immediately shushed me once I opened my mouth to talk. We both waited in silence as both girls left. Once we were sure they were long gone, Mr. L allowed me to step out from my hiding place and into the light.

"Who was the other girl... the young one." I muttered once I was sure they couldn't hear. Mr. L didn't shush me this time, so I knew we were safe.

"Well, if I remember it correctly, that should have been me and Nastasia just before I confronted the heroes in Outer Space. But judging by the familiar shrill voice, it's safe to assume that he switched Nastasia and Mimi's roles. And knowing what we know, we can also assume that the other person is... whatever she calls herself now. Ms. D, I'm guessing." Mr. L sighed. 

Daisy. It was Daisy. I knew it was Daisy! I'd recognize her voice anywhere! But... her manner was a little off. "Cool. So what do we-"

"Who the heck are you?" Came another girl's voice from behind me. This one wasn't Daisy's voice, but it wasn't the super young-sounding voice either. It was a new one.

Mr. L's ghost and I immediately tensed up, feeling as if an ice-cold presence had entered the room. A predator ready to snatch its prey at any moment. I didn't want to move or turn around to face it. Just standing still like that had almost made me feel invisible. It was like, if I didn't move, maybe she'd leave. 

But, of course, that wasn't the case. Standing still did NOT make me invisible, and I knew it.

"...Dang it," Mr. L muttered. 

Why was HE upset?! It's not like she could see him!

I was beginning to panic.

"I... uhh..." I trailed off, slowly turning and nervously laughing when I made eye contact with the blue-skinned girl with pink hair. It was an odd color compilation, I noted. I couldn't recall ever seeing someone look quite like that.

"Umm, this is the Nastasia person you told me about, right?" I asked Mr. L, trying to hide the nervousness.

"Yes. Her thing was hypnosis," Mr. L replied. "It was actually how I was... wait..."

The girl gave me a weird look, but I hardly noticed because with the way Mr. L had trailed off I could tell he was onto something. "This is actually PERFECT!" Mr. L beamed. "If she hypnotizes you, then I can basically squeeze my way back into this world and talk to him for real!! Luigi, tell her to hypnotize you!"

"Excuse me?!" I demanded, nervously laughing. "I'm not gonna tell her to-"

"Mimi! Someone seems to have flown under the radar!" Nastasia shouted, bringing her hands to her mouth as if she was trying to amplify her voice. "I'll have him turned in no time!"

"Wait, huh-" I started, when she grabbed my arm and started pulling me along. "Come on, sir. We'll get you taken care of."

Mr. L pumped his fist in victory as I struggled against her grip, trying to resist to the best of my ability. "Wait, h-hold up now! I never agreed to this! Stop!" I cried.

"Relax, Luigi." Mr. L assured me, seeming somewhat excited. "Your part will be done soon. I can take over and take care of everything!"

Um, had he not met me?! I didn't want that!! I was finally a part of the adventure. I couldn't be done already!!

"What?! No! I don't want to do that! I want to be involved! I want to help! I've spent my whole life stuck in a palace, missing out on the adventure. I don't wanna miss out on this too!" I begged as Nastasia seemed to grumble and roll her eyes.

"Yeah, you talk to yourself a lot, don't you?" She observed.

"Hey! I talk to myself the right amount!" I retorted. "And please don't do this. I-I command you not to do this!"

"Oh? And who are you, let me ask, to command such things of me?" Nastasia questioned. "I only take commands from one person, and that's the countess."

"I-I am prince Luigi of Sarasaland! Now unhand me!" I cried, desperately thrashing. 

Mr. L wasn't much help anymore. He was just beaming and mumbling to himself about how great and convenient this was. I didn't have the same outlook.

"Prince Luigi, huh?" Nastasia laughed. "I don't like it. It's a little formal. We'll be sure to fix that name for you too."

Not good. NOT GOOD!

She snapped her fingers, making a whole line of boos come flying. Then, they all grabbed ahold of me and held me in place while I desperately thrashed, trying to get loose. "Boos?! Where did you find there?!" I questioned. "Is King Boo here?!"

"Shhh..." Nastasia hushed, adjusting her glasses.

"NO! DON'T DO THIS!" I cried. "I-I'm not ready to not be a part of the adventure again!"

"Yeah, that's not really your choice. K?" Nastasia replied.

"Don't fight it..." Mr. L gently whispered. "You've done enough now."

"NO! Please! I want to be part of this story!" I begged. "I want to be a hero! I can be a hero! I can help! Just let me!"

"Quit complaining," Nastasia hissed, adjusting her glasses. "Now hold still while I scrub your-"

I winced when there was suddenly a strange chime.

I waited like that, squeezing my eyes shut and waiting for something to happen. Anything to happen. 

But nothing did.

"Wh- Dimentio. Can you get out of the way?" Nastasia calmly asked. 

I blinked my eyes and looked forward to see a weird jester standing between us with his back to me like he was... protecting me from getting brainwashed.

"DANG IT, DIMENTIO WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Mr. L cried.

But of course, Dimentio couldn't hear him. No one could hear him, no matter how loudly he yelled.

"Oh, Nastasia," Dimentio teased. "Nastasia, Nastasia, Nastasia. You mustn't waste energy on this prince."

"Dimentio, get out of the way," Nastasia repeated, this time with a harsher tone.

"Did the countess instruct you specifically to do this?" Dimentio asked with a tone that was close to the opposite of Nastasia's. It was cheery almost.

"Well... no. But-"

"Well, she told me SPECIFICALLY that we no longer have a need for more minions. Especially with Ms. D on our side now." Dimentio chimed. "So we needn't waste our energy on this prince character. Judging by his small arms and the shag hanging upon his lip, he'd make a questionable minion at best!"

"HEY!" Mr. L shouted as if Dimentio could hear him. "SHAG?! AT LEAST I DON'T COVER MY ENTIRE FACE LIKE A COWARD!"

"Well... you cover half of your face," I whispered to Mr. L as Dimentio shushed me.

"She thought it would be best if I simply locked the remaining prisoners up. I, of course, thought it was unnecessary. After all, you could never have too much backup, but who am I to disobey her orders~?" Dimentio beamed. "There's no need to tell the Countess of this. I'll make sure to notify her."

"Ohh, that little manipulative snake," Mr. L hissed, narrowing his eyes and crossing his arms.

"Ummm, K? So what do I do with him?" Nastasia questioned, gesturing to me, who was, not gonna lie, beginning to feel left out of the conversation.

Dimentio turned to be and firmly grabbed my wrist, making me jump and yelp a little bit. How could a hand so small have a grip so strong?! 

"I'll take care of the royalty. You run along now." Dimentio chimed, glaring at me with an icy, mismatched gaze which immediately made the world around me feel colder. I've never even actually met this guy, and he already hated me. Great.

But... he also saved me from being hypnotized.

I didn't know what to think.

But Mr. L sure did. "No, no, NO!" Mr. L cried. "Dang it, Dimentio. We were so close!"

"Hmm, well, guess I'll be on my way then." Nastasia shrugged, turning and walking off. "K. Bye."

Dimentio and I both remained silent for a moment until she was long out of sight when we both seemed to let out a sigh of relief. "I-I wanted to thank you for-" I started when Dimentio suddenly yanked me forward.

"WHAT. IN GRAMBI'S NAME. ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" Dimentio suddenly hissed, gripping my wrist tighter, making me yelp, not quite in pain, but in shock since I didn't expect his grip to tighten quite like that.

"H-Honestly, I-I don't really know!" I cried. "I-I came here to Castle Bleck, u-using the return-"

"Castle Bleck?!" Dimentio demanded, somewhat shocked. He seemed to be lost in thought for a moment, but he quickly covered the thoughtful expression with a humorous one. "Aha ha ha ha ha, Castle Bleck? There is no such place. You must be confused."

"Excuse me?" Mr. L questioned, as Dimentio began pulling me along down the halls. "What does he mean by that?!"

"M-maybe I am..." I muttered. "Actually, I know I am. But, I-I thought-"

"You don't belong here, L." Dimentio interrupted, his voice sounding empty now.

"O-Okay, I-I get that, b-but I was actually h-hoping to talk to you!" I stuttered when he got to the bottom of the castle where there seemed to be a few small cells.

Dimentio didn't reply this time. He just seemed to completely tune me out. Great.

"...Well this is a lovely place. I-I like the black walls." I nervously laughed, trying to make this whole situation seem less grim. "I-It really brings out the... darkness. Heh... why are we down-"

He suddenly shoved me into the nearest open cell and slammed the door shut, locking it.

"OW!" I cried as I landed on the hard, cold, stone ground, before immediately sitting up and rushing to the now locked door. "Wait, wait, wait, what are you doing?!"

"Locking you away," Dimentio stated, turning and leaving. "I know what you're doing L... and I hate to break it to you, but I won't let you mess this up for me again. Not this time."

"T-this time?! What?!" I questioned. I looked to the side at Mr. L's ghost, but he was being awfully quiet. He just seemed focused on Dimentio, an expression on his face which I couldn't quite read. He just floated there, softly shaking his head.

There was definitely something he wasn't telling me. And I intended to find out.