Chapter Text
“We need to determine how to handle the next succession Father.”
“It’s Junior. Final.”
“Father…you know well that’s not what I meant - ”
“Look at these kids! Thinking they’re grown-ups, ordering their King around. If I weren’t your Dad, I’d have your heads for treason!”
A problematic section in the orchestra here or there wouldn't break the stoic composition of the Dark Lands Royal Orchestra's maestro. Not even a kid learning an instrument for the first time could bring that same involuntary twitch in his eye as his father did. At least the kid would be more understanding.
“Polpettone. Let our son finish please.”
“Yes, Sweetie. So you were saying, son?” Ludwig would have to thank his stepfather later, as Luigi gave him a light nod to continue.
“Father, you must know by now, that none of us ever had the thought of objecting to your decree of Junior’s eventual rule.” Ludwig ignored the light scoff that came from one of his siblings, a simple grace note, “But the problem comes after Junior. We all know that the Stars used to bless the Dark Lands with a royal egg in Grumble Volcano every generation, declaring the kingdom's next ruler. But there hasn’t been a single note or cue of that happening.”
Now his father sang the same tune.
“Let’s face the facts. Even if we are more than thriving with our newfound alliance with the Mushroom Kingdom, and I can attest to that with the collaboration between the wonderful composers at the Toadstool Conservatory and myself…” Another flat groan came from the ungrateful audience as he sustained, “...we still need a Power Star and ever since King Morton’s past transgressions, it disappeared from our Land."
“Lud, are you done yettt - ”
He swore that if this were the Dark Lands Symphony Hall, he’d have the ushers kindly kick his siblings’ thankless behinds out.
“And Father we are ever grateful to you for bringing the Dark Lands to a prosperous state without it. But, without a declared heir from the heavens, and more importantly a Koopa whose disposition can’t protect the Kingdom.” Ludwig muttered the finale of the dreaded tune. “The Kingdom will fall.”
He would’ve welcomed it if any of his siblings complained at that point, as the quarter rest became a measure too long.
“Well, we haven’t tried marriage.” His father mused, rendering his stepfather incapable of holding back the Koopa King now. Thankfully though, Bowser persisted with the point.
“What does Kamek have to say about this?” The King squeezed his love’s hand, with said love sobering up, patting back. Lately, their grandfather had been bedridden as of late more than usual. And when their stepfather insisted on helping out the family even when they all insisted back that he didn’t need to work for a place to stay, that his presence alone was more than enough, he brushed them all aside. Perhaps, stubbornness ran in the family, or worse, contagious.
Despite the ego duel, their grandfather caved and began lessons on how best to advise the King from the bedside. And when Kamek hacked away, trying to get up for this particular meeting, Ludwig watched as Luigi insisted the poor Magikoopa stay in bed, that Luigi could handle it after learning from the best Darklandian teacher’s lessons to which Kamek couldn’t deny.
“A-About marriage?” Maybe his stepfather couldn't handle it after all.
“Grah, no Love. The Star. And he probably already approves of that. Not that I need him to.”
“Well, what if I need him to?”
“What was that?”
“Ahem. Let’s-a see…” Luigi looked down at scribbles on his hand, “...Kamek said to use your alliance with the Mushroom Kingdom to ask if their libraries have any clues or if their scientists have any capacity. Not that my brother and sister-in-law would ever say no but still. Also, to send General Paraplup’s troop to scout out other potential areas of interest, and that marriage was a fairy tale solution, but that he did…a-APPROVE?!? I-If we-a explored that o-option.”
“See Pistachio? Told ya so.” His father placed the stuttering mess close on his lap.
Ludwig agreed with his siblings’ groans for once as Luigi giggled away at Bowser’s attempts to smooch him all over, leaving a slobbering mess on center stage. Until his father said, “So kids. Let’s turn this meeting into a wedding planning party instead.”
“Oh, oh! Can I pick out the outfits? Please? Pleaseee~” His sister, Wendy, skipped towards the couple and clasped both hands kneeling. “PLEASE. Like this is why I was born.”
“Sure, but your Papa over here has to approve.”
“MORTON WANT TO BE A BOUNCER.”
“It’s not a club.” Iggy briefly remarked, before leaving the Koopa family at it to derail the conversation, engaging himself with some foreign device on the table.
“Nah Morton’s got the right idea. We can be security detail.” Roy punched Morton’s mood up.
“Then Larry and I want to be the *master of ceremonies*.” Lemmy waved his hand, leaving an arc of glitter.
“What even is that?”
“I don’t know. But it sounds cool right?”
“It would be pretty neat though to plan how the fiesta would go. We could bring the troupe. Do cool tricks. And the music.” There Larry went planning things again before they even happened…wait music? No, no, no! If his brothers, those dastardly twerps who only knew raucous, abrasive garbage as ‘music’, were in charge, it’d be an insult to their fathers and the occasion itself.
“Hold on. I’m the one in charge of music. And that’s finale.”
“EW. Says who?” Larry shot back.
“Snooze-fest.” Today Ludwig tried to hold back. He really did. He begged the Stars for mercy for what he was about to do to Lemmy’s stupid snout, which fake-snored away like an idiot. As he just about gave the duo a piece of his mind, about how the composers in the Mushroom Kingdom would be more than sorely disappointed in the choice of music at the joint wedding between Kingdoms, Roy slapped Junior’s shell with an audible smack.
“And since Junior’s our little babyyy, he has to be the ringbearer!”
“I’m not a baby anymore guys!”
“Awww Junior, c’mere. You’ll always be my baby.” Much to his baby brother’s dismay, their father picked him up and ruined his hair with smooches.
“DADDD.”
"Grah. You're really getting older Junior. Might've pulled my back on that one."
One section stayed silent among the cacophony of Koopa noise, an impressive orchestral piece of its own. Papa Luigi looked down, not saying a single word throughout the whole antiphony, the chaotic back and forth. Ludwig knew his Papa was of quiet disposition, but he would have usually made at least a remark here and there of importance. His Papa usually thought before he spoke, which he admired since most of his family flipped that order around, and some didn't even bother with the latter. Yet, his Papa didn’t even crack a smile.
He reached out, “…Father?”
“S-Si?”
“I apologize if we made you feel…uncomfortable, with such talks.”
“MORTON NOT WANT PAPA TO BE SAD.”
“Ugh, like, Dad~ What did you do this time?”
“ME?!? You little twerps, you suspect your Dad first? Treason. TREASON I tell you.”
“Do you not want to be our Mama?” The room fell silent at Junior’s remark.
“Wait. Wait! Hold on bambini. You all know very well that your Zio Mario and Zia Peach have their own marriage coming up soon! And it’d be rude to stress them out when they’re already stressed out enough!” Not used to speaking all at once, his once guaranteed, now potential stepfather took a breath, “And I will always be your Mama. Only, if you all want me to be of course.”
“Well duh! Haven’t we made that clear?” Lemmy said.
“It’d also be a good idea to take notes of their wedding. See how we could proceed.” Iggy said.
“MORTON WANT MAMA. BUT ONLY MAMA LUIGI.”
Ludwig offered a handkerchief to his stepfather who now turned his head for a different reason. Only when Luigi finished blowing his nose into the handkerchief, did Ludwig conduct the chaos back on track.
“Alright! That’s enough. We’ve derailed as it is.”
“Ugh, total buzzkill.”
“Just like his wedding music.”
Ludwig gave a death stare to the duo. He’d prove them oh so very wrong by presenting Papa Luigi with an absolute masterpiece first. Then there’d be no room for debate, not that there should’ve been any, to begin with.
“Ahem right. Thank you, bambino.” The twitch in his eye diminished as Papa Luigi’s soft hands patted down his gelled hair. Taking comfort in the fact that his trusted Papa knew how to do so without ruining his hairdo, he purred as his Papa’s pianissimo voice continued, “Kamek said he provided notice to Toadsworth already that we'd be sending Junior, Iggy, Ludwig, and myself to the Mushroom Kingdom. Aw, how nice.”
“Wait, why? I wanna see Auntie Peach.”
“Yea no fair!”
“Bambini. It’s not supposed to be a family vacation. It’s a political trip. Besides, Junior needs firsthand experience on such, as do I, Iggy needs another scientific perspective, and the masters at the Observatory requested Ludwig’s presence. And! Hm…” His stepfather paused for a moment, before whispering something to the King. Only when did Bowser nod, did Luigi speak up again,
“Kamek’s not gonna like it, mi amore.”
“I know, but since when I have listened to him in the first place.”
“Ay. Terrible son.”
“Tell me something I don’t know.”
“Fine, you’re a great son and a potentially even better husband.”
Ludwig noted that only Luigi had the power to render his father speechless, making him a great, necessary asset to the family. This proposal needed help pushing along fast.
“Iggy, Ludwig, Junior!” His father’s soft voice called out. “Let’s get ready to go tomorrow morning. Si?”
“Ugh, like 12 pm early?”
“Junior.”
“Okay, okay! Fine, but you owe me a game of Kart Racer then.”
“Well if you insist on your tail being whipped so badly by your old man…”
“Oh, you are so dead.”
Ludwig would’ve joined the Koopalings that paraded over to Junior’s room, no doubt to celebrate their stepfather’s eventual win and jeer at Junior's 1,276th loss, but the thought of adding some finishing touches to works that he’d like to share with other respected composers proved too much of an opportunity to miss. Before he could scurry off into the wonders of a piano, his father called out.
“Ludwig.”
“Yes, Father?”
“If you could ask your friends at the music place if they know any healing tunes for our hag…”
“Of course.”
“Great, and one more thing?”
“Father, with all due respect, please make it quick.”
Bowser hunched over and put a claw to his ear,
“Could you bring some of those snacks they have at that music café? Without erm, Luigi noticing?”
“I’m telling Papa you’re cheating on him.”
“WAIT! SON, PLEAS-!” Ludwig ran off with an evil grin, as his claws tingled with an itch to meet the black and white keys already. He’d be busy after all, preparing a piece called, “The Couch”.