When Luigi at last opened his eyes he no longer saw the floor beneath him.

   Instead it was something like a black void; and abruptly the mirror he'd been leaning on gave way, sending Luigi falling forward through what felt like some curtains before hitting the hard floor, full force.

Only upon impact did his senses truly return. Pain. "Oww," he groaned as he brought himself to sit up yet again, putting a hand to his aching head. Why can't I stop doing that?

   His head throbbed, his joints were shot -

Then Luigi took one glance around – and blinked.

...I don't believe it, he thought, discomfort forgotten. I don't believe it!! He began counting off on his fingers. Two, three... How many times had this happened to him now; how many times had he woken tonight to find himself - once again - in the foyer??

   The foyer... There could be no questioning the time-defying chandelier that hung above him now.

It... it worked, Luigi thought in disbelief as he got to his feet. I'm free!! ...How -?

Suddenly he stopped. Turning around in breathless awe, he stared with shock at the upright mirror which had always stood by the grand staircase. It had remained covered over with that sheet all night; Luigi had never given it much thought. Now he approached it with wonder and flung the sheet to the floor.

His surprised reflection stood there staring back at him. For once the sorry image did little to incite disgust.

   Slowly, almost afraid to touch it, Luigi brought a hand up to its smooth surface.

   It couldn't be...

In only a fraction of a second he began to feel the same warmth beneath his fingers; his eyes widened as he stared with awe at the purple sparkles that began to surround his touch. With a gasp, Luigi quickly snatched his hand away and the connection died.

   Mama mia!! He stared at his hand and back at the mirror.

Then it was true, it was amazing; it was enchanted!

Breathless, Luigi glanced around, as if to make sure no one had been watching. All this time - all this time...

   That mirror had been a portal; a pathway, right under his nose! Now he saw what had happened, and it made enough sense for once: he had fallen out of the mirror!

I don't believe it, he thought again. And yet...

I should've expected!

~

As Luigi quickly made his way back up to the third floor, he found himself nearly breaking into a run. Newly liberated, it was a welcome journey: up the stairs, through the halls... everything he passed seemed so quiet and empty now, at least on these floors. But until he found enough boos, he would keep searching that faraway corridor on the third floor.

There was no time to gape over the magic mirror he'd discovered. He'd asked for a chance, and the mansion had granted it: no questions asked. There just wasn't time for questions anymore.

   It reminded him briefly of that thing the professor had mentioned not too long ago: You get used to this sort of thing when you get into studying haunted houses for a while.

   True indeed, Luigi thought.

He was fairly certain that there were still a few more rooms upstairs that he hadn't yet explored. The third floor wasn't very big, but his work there wasn't quite done yet.

Just as he reached the last staircase which would lead him up to the safari room - eyeing the boarded door as he passed - Luigi remembered something else and skidded to a stop.

That last locked door by the staircase – Luigi had never opened it. He thought he had tried it once, earlier; there were so many fakes around here that it was hard to keep track of which ones to ignore.

But in any case, he had a key now, and Luigi knew that the number of available locked doors left was quickly diminishing; so it came as no real surprise that he was now able to get in.

   Just a quick side stop, he told himself as he went inside. I can't take long.

Luigi found according to the map that the place was called the sitting room, whatever that meant; indeed, it looked quite suited just for sitting and chatting. Comfortable-looking armchairs and a loveseat were arranged in a tight circle around a coffee table that took up most of the room. With a flowery wallpaper and a homey pink and yellow theme, it was one of the most inviting little rooms Luigi had found.

Huh. It's almost weird.

It was quiet - too quiet. He was pleased to realize that there were no ghosts in there, except for some water elemental ghosts lingering around a pot of water on a pedestal in the corner. Luigi wondered what it was for.

Not hesitating to take some for his reserves, he stood for only a moment, looking around at everything so nice and still and proper. Why couldn't his whole mansion experience be this pleasant?

   Why was this experience this pleasant?

So... nothing? It was almost eerie. Without any boos and no apparent objects of importance, Luigi realized it was time to go. There was one more door on the left; one last room on the second floor left unexplored. Sighing with despondence, he forced himself to turn away from the setting which was so inviting. Can't sit down... can't rest...

It was nearly killing him.

More, more... there's always more!

He was more right than he knew. When Luigi opened the door into the next room, at first he was so surprised he stopped and blinked.

   Come on now - how many times do you have to test me like this?

   Carefully stepping inside, flashlight trained on the ceiling, he quickly realized his eyes hadn't been playing tricks on him – the room was upside down!

Or was he standing on the ceiling? Looking down in wonder, Luigi stamped a foot on the floor, testing the gravity – but everything seemed normal this time. So he wasn't hanging; the room really was backwards!

Goodness gracious, it's cuckoo crazy.

A big light fixture rose out of the middle of the floor, and stuck to the carpeted surface above was a dresser, chair and bed against the far wall. Luigi would have guessed this was a guest room - and a good one it would have been, if it was right-side up.

The other thing that bothered him right away was the creepy dolls that sat hanging about; about two or three of them were perched on every piece of furniture, staring at him upside down with frozen, intimidating expressions that seemed to whisper of doom untold. Luigi shuddered and tried to ignore them.

Dolls... they don't do anything, they don't see anything, they don't feel anything. They're just... toys. Still, it was hard not to feel their button eyes silently watching his every move.

It all had the feel of one of those big funhouses, complete with upside-down rooms, 'magic' mirrors, and fake décor. It could have even passed as one, if it weren't for the fact that all of this was... real.

For a moment all was still as Luigi scanned the entire room, distrustful of the reigning darkness. Slowly he fingered the Poltergust's nozzle. Come on, I know there's something here.

   His passive acceptance of that knowledge was nearly terrifying.

Then, so suddenly that it almost hit him in the face, when Luigi looked again at the ceiling a flash of color and movement caught his attention from the other side of the room - just out of the corner of his eye. I knew it-!!

   Snapping his stare to the hanging bed, he was hardly surprised to see the telltale spectral mist of a nearby ghost; and an unusual one on closer inspection. He saw pink and orange, faintly - and then it was gone.

Swallowing down his jitters, he ventured a step forward. His heart beat tirelessly against his chest - for some reason, he was getting a really bad feeling about this room.

Near the light fixture he paused, waiting; unaware of the supernatural staring down from above.

Until she spoke.

"Do not try to wake me..."

With the trauma of a heart attack Luigi jumped; and upon first glance not finding his undead visitor, he nearly tripped over the chandelier.

For a second he whipped in every direction, reckless abandon surging through his veins. Where is-???

In one instant he froze like one in a trance.

"You have disturbed my eternal sleep," her soft voice wavered at him from all sides, discombobulating him. Her mouth didn't move; still she spoke.

The startled human raised his eyes upwards  - and scrambled back, flesh crawling in horror.

She was above him: right above him. The apparition that now plagued him appeared to be none other than a little girl; or at least what once had been one. She had orange braids that dangled down like ropes towards the ceiling proper, only inches from his head; and that was what disturbed him: she was 'lying' upside down, hovering under the floor as if incapable of touching it.

In another sense, she was sprawled on the ceiling.

"Go awaaaaaaay," the girl let out a half-dead moan.

At the sight of her, Luigi sprang backwards like a terrified cat and shrieked. "Aahh-!!"

Her soulless green eyes never left him. "You won't know how hard it is to sleep... until it's all there is left to you," she murmured, turning a hint angry.

Luigi gripped the Poltergust and watched her. Aside from her freakish unearthly position and uninviting tone, from afar she actually looked kind of cute; in a similar way that Chauncey did, at least. The little girl wore a pink nightgown - undoubtedly she'd been in bed - and looked to be no more than about seven or eight years old. What could've caused...?

Just like that she was gone.

Gasping in uneasiness, Luigi fumbled the Poltergust and cautiously started forward. What... where...?

Then he turned again - and glued his eyes to the bed.

She hovered under its surface upside down, apparently in sleep, if her gentle rising and falling was any indication. The silence returned as he stared at her, wondering what kind of game this really was.

He wasn't sure if a ghost had ever actually told him to just go away, which he gladly would have done; but remembering Madame Clairvoya's words, and the professor's entreaty that he find the remaining portrait ghosts, Luigi made himself go nearer.

He couldn't see the girl's heart, but he had no doubt she was a portrait ghost; her pale greenish complexion instantly gave that away. She had said not to wake her... Luigi paused near underneath the bed, thinking.

   How to wake her up?

It only took him a minute to decide upon the only course of action immediately available to him: spray her with water. If I was asleep a blast of water would give me a pretty good jolt, Luigi thought, switching to blow. Unless... what if I was...

But sure enough, almost like a guilty prankster, he got the reaction he'd been hoping for.

"Eww!" the girl cried as soon as his blast hit her. Sitting 'up' in the bed, the little ghost squirmed with disgust at the wet sheets and pajamas that now plagued her. In that act of surprise, it also revealed what the assaulter most wanted to see: her heart.

Unfortunately, Luigi hadn't really been thinking about the aftermath of shooting water directly up at the ceiling; so when it hit her, most of it fell back down and nearly gave him another shower. Jumping ungracefully out of the way, Luigi looked up to see the upside-down girl glaring at him again with those unholy sockets.

"I warned you-! Why did you do that??" she hissed angrily, like a monster roused from the cave. "I promised I wouldn't wet the bed and look what you did... you bad, cursed man!"

"W-Well, at least you didn't wet the bed," Luigi answered her nervously. He let out a faint laugh of embarrassment. "I did."

The girl grew rigid, staring down at him spitefully. "You filthy mortal, they were right. They were right... you have no respect for those trying to get eternal rest!!"

The furniture on the ceiling above him suddenly began to shake, rattling against the walls as if activated by the girl's fury rippling through the air. With a gulp, Luigi clenched the Poltergust. Even her... even the child was calling him a mortal! No turning back now.

Luigi versus creepy ghost girl, go.

In the following scuffle that could only be described as a twisted circus act, he attempted to control the stubborn ghost. His ankle didn't appreciate his antics - nor did the chandelier which he nearly smashed several times. He did easily manage to pull the girl down from the ceiling and out of her bed; but it was made difficult all the while by her unmerciful toys and dolls, which suddenly decided they were sentient after all. They came to life at once and attacked him, some of them launching from their shelves to distract his attention; others merely shook in place like something risen from the dead - although they were likely being manipulated by the girl. At least, he hoped so. I don't need more household terrors to worry about.

Luckily, it didn't last too terribly long. When that escapade was happily over and the sleeping child taken, everything calmed down. Silent dolls strew the floor, the lights had come on in the middle of it, and she had even dropped a key for him... except it fell up to the ceiling.

Not fazed, Luigi turned the Poltergust on it to try to pull it down – but this time it wouldn't come. It was as if it had been stuck there by its own gravity.

Surprised, Luigi tried harder, but it soon became apparent that it wouldn't be coming down. I've got to find a way to reach it myself, he thought. Glancing around, there was nothing available to stand on, but maybe there was something in the previous room. Trying to stay optimistic, he promptly turned to check.

As soon as he stepped out into the sitting room, the door flew shut with a slam behind him.

   Wait-! Heart lurching, Luigi spun around: only to be startled by a strange sensation, an ominous trembling, a sudden vibration that took hold of his very bones. What - huh??

   It took him a second to realize that it wasn't he who was shaking; it was the walls themselves, and the very floor he stood on. Suddenly everything was vibrating; the huge rumbling sound seemed to be coming from behind the door, but the whole mansion rattled with the force of it.

The first thought that flashed across his mind was terrifying: Earthquake!!?

But he was quickly disproven. As abruptly as it had happened, the room again fell silent and the tremor calmed, leaving a panicked Luigi standing there speechless. In another moment he flung the door open again and looked in... to a perfectly normal bedroom.

What...? Astonished, Luigi returned inside, staring with incredulousness at the upright dresser and bed that had been flipped just moments ago. Even the chandelier was in its proper place, and the key now rested before him on the floor; the entire room had been switched.

Unblinking, Luigi snapped his fingers. Mind fumbling for an explanation, of which there was none, he went forward and retrieved the key. I guess... this might be useful upstairs, he thought.

But before he could even turn around, a familiar chuckle sounded from the doorway. "Hey Boodacious! Look, we've got a little trespasser!"

Another cackling voice responded. "Yeah, and all alone! Won't the boss be pleased to hear about this?"

Luigi almost jumped before his face hardened into a dirty frown. With careful movements he turned to face the boos.

   "The 'boss' already knows I'm here," he informed them.

The two identical friends glanced at each other and chuckled again. "You think there's anyone here who doesn't? We boos can smell fear, you know."

   Before Luigi could reflect on that much, one boo floated forward. "Pesky plumber!" she chided with a sigh of amusement. "We told you to leave, but the thrill of the chase... back for more, are we?"

   Luigi swallowed, trying to figure out how to answer. He almost had it too when she kept talking.

   "Of course, I am irresistible, they tell me. And let me just say that green is so your color! And say, who's your stylist? Because you should try washing that mop."

   Before the human could get any more confused, the second boo shoved himself into the picture. "Don't mind Booffant's rambling. She used to be a real trendsetter... anyway! We have found you, so you will hand over that Poltergust 3000... right now."

Luigi stood firm. "Yeah... I'm gonna have to say no."

   The boo, Boodacious, snorted like he'd said something preposterous. "Well look at that, the little thunderhead's got a mind of his own after all!" He nudged Booffant, who began to laugh alongside him. "Man, I'm saucy..."

   Luigi flattened his stare and willed himself to focus. "Well it doesn't matter what you do, because you know what? You can just tell your leader that I'll be coming right to him."

The boos looked at each other again before bursting into laughter. "Did you hear that? He's coming for the king!"

"That's hilarious," Booffant snorted. "He wouldn't last five minutes!"

"I bet one minute," her friend replied. The two looked again at an angry Luigi.

"Still, that's really... brave for someone as wimpy as him," Boodacious went on. "Yeah, I just went there. I'm cool like that."

Booffant rolled her eyes. "Aw, but you know he's just doing it for his brother," she snickered. "Just look at him. He's so worried it's almost making me sick."

The first boo grinned. "If you'd give yourself up it might make things easier for your brother, boy," he said.

Luigi didn't falter. "No! I know what you did to him." His eyes burned with fresh anger.

The boos seemed a bit surprised. "Oh, really," spoke up Boodacious. "So then I guess you understand that the more angry you make King Boo, the more he'll take it out on Mario."

Luigi didn't reply at first. The boos giggled at each other, knowing they had him now.

"That's right," Booffant said mockingly. "Big Brother's with us, and we're not afraid to play with him."

That broke it for Luigi. "You leave him alone!"

"Heh, I think he's getting mad," Boodacious said. "Poor thing, he looks terrible. Maybe we should put him out of his misery now."

"Nah," the other replied. "He won't leave. You know he won't. Let him just continue on; he'll either face the king or drop dead before he makes it there."

"Your mistake," Luigi growled, catching them off guard in one instant with his vacuum. The snarky Boodacious was caught in his snare, but the other managed to dart out of the way as her companion was consumed. Quickly Luigi turned for her.

   "Sweet on me, Green?" Booffant teased. "Come get me, already!" And with that she zig-zagged upwards and near the ceiling.

   "Enjoy your delusions of superiority," the human told her breathlessly. "Because it won't last!"

"You won't succeed," the boo informed him. "You may catch all the boos, but you'll never have what you seek!"

"You have no idea what I seek," Luigi seethed. And with that he ended the conversation.

   That had been something else.

Panting, Luigi slowly let himself relax a little. That's two more... two more...

This was good. The boos' numbers were dwindling... he'd be there soon. Don't listen to them, he told himself. Don't listen...

Turning away, he shuddered and rubbed his arms. He almost felt as if in that last moment the boo had struck him; as if he'd taken a blow somehow. His eyes fell now on the nearby bed and he felt his body almost melt.

"Man, I'm tired... that bed sure looks comfy," he mumbled to himself. No matter how much he argued, he knew the boos were right about his tiring. He couldn't keep going like this forever.

Not yet, he thought. Don't lie down. He gave a tiny lopsided grin as he headed out of the room. Besides, I already wet that bed anyway.

~

A few minutes and much too much walking later, Luigi was once again in the dark musty hallways of the third floor, parked outside the telephone room door and trying to catch his breath. He knew there had to be more to explore up here, so he'd been intending to return ever since he'd warped back to the foyer. Too bad I couldn't have warped up here, he thought. These long walks all over the place were starting to wear him down.

A quick check of his map showed him that the door beside him left two more unchecked rooms in this wing. It was locked... but thanks to the sleeping girl, he now had a way in.

I just still can't really believe how easy it was to move along like this, he thought again to himself as he let himself inside. Talk about a long chain of coincidences!

Luigi paused in the darkness and flashed his beam about, taking in his new surroundings. This room was small and filled with stuff: mostly old crates and trunks piled about, assorted as in a castle's hold among nearly a dozen full-size, complete suits of armor that appeared straight out of the Middle Ages.

   Whoa... for real?? Momentarily distracted from his thoughts by the grand sight, Luigi came forward slowly to look at them all: perfectly still soldiers, with shiny armor that glistened silver in his flashlight and huge cudgels and clubs still positioned in their hands. It was enough to take his breath away – but he quickly withdrew a safe distance. He was well aware that they might not be as empty as they seemed.

Maybe... maybe it's so easy for me because I'm meant to find all these places, Luigi thought carefully, coming back to his former thought. Maybe someone's leading me... Maybe I'm supposed to do this.

He noted with no surprise that there was another door in the back of the room, guarded on both sides by two impressive knights. He gulped and slowly advanced towards it. Why are they even here? he wondered. Is the mansion really that old, that it would have an armory? Where'd these guys come from?

He glanced cautiously at the silent helm of each one he passed by, equal parts admiration and dread. Their picturesque figures were frozen like statues, proud and tall, a relic of an older time. Still... I bet I'd look pretty tough wearing one of these, he thought, just barely resisting brushing a hand on the metal breastplate.

Luigi had to admit it was something he'd thought about once or twice; what it'd be like to be a knight. Probably much more glamorous than exploring dusty old houses.

Still, being a knight took a lot of bravery... something Luigi knew he didn't have. Mario, on the other hand... Mario was practically a knight already. Castles! Princesses! Adventure! Was Luigi really cut out for that sort of thing?

In the few adventures he had been on, he had encountered plenty of roadblocks – more trouble with his own confidence and fears than actual obstacles. He had likely been little more than a nuisance to Mario; so why did he still want to go with him sometimes?

His age-old question was lost in a second. Just as Luigi was about to cross into the next room, a sound of metal squeaked in the silence and suddenly, an iron hand wielding an enormous club swung down in front of him, barring his path. Nearly frightened out of his skin, Luigi jumped backwards, startled but not entirely unsuspecting. Scrambling for his vacuum, he faced the suit of armor that had attacked him.

I knew there were ghosts in here. Backing towards the wall, he began to work once again at the one job it seemed he could do right: clear the room of ghosts. It was ironic, really; Why did it have to be ghosts? Why did it have to be me?

Luigi pulled in a gold ghost with little difficulty and turned his attention to a red grabbing ghost that had appeared nearby. He supposed that he should learn a lesson from all of this: Be careful what you wish for. He had long wanted an adventure of his own... and now he'd finally gotten it.

As the ghost gave way to the Poltergust, Luigi stepped back a few paces and bumped into something; a suit of armor had stuck out its leg at the last second behind him, causing Luigi to trip and fall to the floor. With a strange growl of frustration, he picked himself up and moved to the center of the floor, away from all the knights. He did not want one of those upraised cudgels to fall on his head.

Unfortunately, the ghosts seemed to think this was all a very clever game of hide and seek, and they wouldn't come out until Luigi had rattled the suits of armor with a strong gust of wind. It almost felt like they were the spirits of the knights who had lived long ago, still inhabiting their armor.

After repeating the process for what seemed like a dozen times, the room at last lit up. None of the rooms on the third floor had very good lighting, but Luigi was so exhausted and his eyes so shot at this point that he didn't care.

Before he slipped into the neighboring room, however, he did notice a wall mirror hanging near the door, covered partially by a moth-eaten cloth. That might be a good thing to remember later.

The new room was even smaller than the armory. Luigi found it quite similar to a storage room; more old crates and boxes filled the corners, and arranged on nearly every flat surface sat numerous fancy vases and jars. Some were huge, like giant stone basins; others were tiny, little more than goblets, with delicate carvings and designs. They all looked pretty expensive – and strangely, they weren't even covered in dust.

Remembering to consult his map, Luigi found that this tiny place was in the farthest back section of the west wing – a ceramics studio. Yet another weird and obscure room, he thought.

As soon as he took a step forward, Luigi heard a tiny sound – something rattling against the floor, perhaps. Freezing instantly, he caught sight of one of the vases on the farther side of the room move, if only a tiny bit.

   What now? Holding his breath, Luigi stood still and watched as a small, pink... thing materialized in front of him.