[LEFT UNFINISHED] Another Castle (Bowser x Luigi)

Signed, Sealed, Delivered (unfinished)

The king, as a king does, lived lavishly. Unlike what kings often do, Bowser defined his own image of what a lavish castle looked like. While they were more than present on the outside, gone were his inherited castle's frills and classical designs. Instead, he went for his preferred style of decor: plain, yet sleek, in all-black. What he kept in terms of design aspects, though, were the spikes. He did like spikes, at least enough to wear a collar and bracelets with them.

With the alert of his clock, he growled himself awake in the later morning, and stretched in his sheets. His defensive shell, shaped to him naturally, lied at the bedside, though Bowser knew he wouldn't need it for anything today. There was no provocation, no need, and no boredom enough to prompt him to put it on and nudge his way into the kingdom today. For now, he determined, he would enjoy the typicality of the morning. Getting into some shorts and a tank top, he trudged out of bed for the cup of coffee he craved.

"G'mornin', dad," his youngest son beamed.

"Hiya, Junior," Bowser greeted his son, the Prince of Koopas, in return. Bowser Jr. wasn't the tike he was the first time they encountered the Brothers, but the fatherly beast knew he was still looked up to all the same.

"Everything been alright this morning?" warily asked the larger Koopa, who had slept in a bit. "Siblings aren't giving you trouble?"

"No, dad," Junior confirmed, "they've all been off doing their own thing in their fortresses for a while now."

"As they should. They're getting older," the king yawned. "And you, what've you been up to?"

"Just doing stuff around the castle," described the prince. "Making sure everything, and everyone, is up and running as it should be."

"And they listen, right? You're my successor, after all. It's good to practice being large and in charge," Bowser explained.

"It's fun, too," Junior enthusiastically said.

"If it's that fun for you, heh, maybe I can retire early," laughed his father. "Sometimes I get tired of it all."

"As if you have to do much anyhow! I'd get as big as you if I feasted and sat around as much as you did!" the younger Koopa poked fun.

"Oh no you wouldn't! This? This is muscle," said Bowser, and flexed, making his son eyeroll.

"I'm sure the princess loves that," the junior turtle sarcastically said.

"Hey. I only kidnap her to send the message to her regime and her people," Bowser began to remind.

"—that Koopas are to be respected. I get it," assured the younger Koopa. "Especially to stick it to that mean old plumber Mario, and his plucky brother, too."

"Mario, yes. You know my reasons as well as I do, Junior," sighed Bowser. "Luigi... I don't know about for sure, but you can only assume."

"Better safe than sorry," Junior reasoned.

It was with stunning haste that Kamek flew in from the window on his broomstick, waving his arms and hanging sleeves in a flurry and speaking flabbergasted nonsense.

"Okay, Kamek, I'll excuse you for not using a door, but for goodness's sake, calm down before you speak," an astonished Bowser said. "What could possibly be the matter?"

"'Tis a letter from Peach!" the bespectacled wizard cackled, and pulled out the envelope from his azure cloak. "Read it at once!"

"What?!" the Koopa King gasped, and snatched the letter. He opened it, and, unfolding it, read aloud:

"To His Highness King of Koopas:
It has been quite some time since I'd last seen you, and in that time, I have been thinking of you. Never have we gotten to know each other, having never seen each other for long enough to. Yet you seem nicer than most would think. I doubt either of our kingdoms would be fond of us connecting, but I would appreciate further of an opportunity to do so.

...and it's signed off with only an initial, a P!" he said, astounded. "It must be Peach."

"Does this mean we're about to steal her away again?" precariously asked Junior.

"Now more than ever! We must deploy our retrieval units to the Mushroom Kingdom once more!" commanded the older turtle. "Everyone to their stations."

"Yessir!" cackled Kamek, and flew back out the window, carrying the word of the King to the faithful masses.

—

"LUIGI, WAKE UP!" shouted Mario, and the younger brother could already tell that he was in for another one of those wild adventures.

"Oh-o, nooo, did the princess get nabbed by King Koopa again?" Luigi strenuously asked to confirm his suspicions, raising himself out of bed and yawning.

"It was just this morning. You'd have seen it, had you not slept in!" Mario frantically shouted from the other room, as he got his best pair of overalls on.

"Yet again," the other sighed, putting on his Lincoln green outfit. This was so similar to how it started last time, though at least that time he had gotten a little more rest beforehand. Not that it'd matter; he'd be so tired by the end of the journey that he'd sleep for a day or two straight afterwards. At least it kept him fit.