At Least Your Brother's Not Gonna Die Because of You!

Okay, So Luigi Lives, But For How Long?

"Talk to me, Lu." Mario asks as he fusses with Luigi's hospital bed for the umpteenth time. "What're you feeling?"

"Same as I was not even a second ago." Luigi replies dryly, fiddling with his nasal cannula.

"You get that you scared the hell out of me, right?" Mario says, stopping for a minute.

"Yes, I do." Luigi nods. "Thanks for getting me here so fast."

The radiologist enters the room. "Hello there. The ER staff just gave me your charts. All your vitals are normal."

"You call this normal?" Mario demands. "We were just hugging, you know, like brothers do, and he collapsed in my arms."

"Why don't you let the actual radiologist tell us what's wrong with me, bro?" Luigi chuckles.

"Well we can't deny that your collapse was related to the Floro Sprout." The radiologist continues. "What we don't understand is why, so we're getting you a few tests, with your permission, of course."

"I have no reason to say no." Luigi replies. "Test away."

"And Mario, I don't need to ask you to stay with him, do I?" The radiologist asks.

"You never did." Mario replies, sharing a smile with Luigi.

Later, it's a very dejected radiologist that comes back, even as Luigi asks, "You got the results?"

"I did." The radiologist confirms. "I had them rush it."

"I take it it's bad?" Luigi doesn't need to be a psychic to know that.

"It is." The radiologist confirms. "The Floro Sprout has grown to where it's pushing on the back of your head, trying to break out. I'm so unbelievably sorry."

"I don't understand." Mario says angrily. "How is this thing worse than a tumor?"

"Because it hasn't stopped growing..."

"It's about to take over my brain. Or worse." Luigi finishes. "That's what you're not saying, isn't it?"

"If we don't find a way to kill it...or at least find a way to make it wither..." The radiologist says slowly.

"What's my prognosis?" Luigi makes himself ask.

"We don't...know."

"You don't get to say that, not now." Luigi snaps. "You've followed my entire treatment plan. Do not tell me you don't know how long I have left to live."

"If we don't find something...less than a week." The radiologist finally confesses.

"No..." Mario's already shaking his head in utter denial. "Nonononononono."

"I think we're done here." Luigi's main doctor tells the other doctor. "I've poured over every last detail of our notes on Floro Sprouts. There's nothing. Guess we got too confident they'd never be a problem here."

"Was it too much to hope we'd find something that at the very least explained how the magic works and how to reverse it?" The other doctor asks. "I don't even like that we're looking into it. We're talking about a magic that takes over people's minds."

"Grabbed some food on my way back." Mario says when he comes back into Luigi's room, then upon noticing Luigi's got a pad and paper, he asks, "What's that?"

"Trying to write up an official statement." Luigi says without looking up.

"You're doing that here? Now?" Mario asks, stunned. "You can't be."

"Just got off the phone with my boss at the racetrack." Luigi keeps talking like Mario didn't say anything. "Apparently someone tipped them off about my illness, and they want an official statement."

"Lu, there's no way you can handle all that right now." Mario argues.

"Yes I can." Luigi says. "I can't just leave them high and dry, Mario. They were really understanding about backing out of full time to do only freelance work so I could stay with our company. This could be my only chance to tell the story in my own words before people tarnish my legacy."

He stops for a moment, sighing, "Ugh. This sucks."

Mario sits on the end of the bed. "What?"

"The word's right on the tip of my tongue, but my brain isn't offering it up." Luigi thinks on it, then says. "Unfortunate. That's it.", then he looks at Mario, "Go get me my computer so I can send it off the moment I'm done."

"Do I get a say in this?" Mario asks instead.

Luigi stops writing to say, "I think that would be pointless, but sure."

"Stop talking about your legacy." Mario requests. "I promised you weren't dying, and I meant it."

"I think we've finally reached the point where we have to admit you lied to me, Mario." Luigi says bitterly as he keeps trying to write. "The Floro Sprout is days away from bursting out of my head, and no one knows anything about removing or killing it before it breaks me."

Luigi's face softens, "Remember that brief moment when we were happy it wasn't a tumor? Who knew just how much worse this would turn out to be..."

Then he shakes it off. "Just go get my computer, Mario, okay? The radiologist gave me less than a week to live, and I refuse to let anyone talk about what happened until they know the real story."

"I got a better idea." Mario takes the pad. "You talk, I'll write, quitter."

"What, so I can waste what little time we have together?" Luigi asks, rolling his eyes.

"Oh I'm sorry, were you planning on leaving this hospital anytime soon?" Mario jokes. "Cause I'm not."

Luigi's mouth drops open, trying not to laugh, "Did you just--"

"Yeah, I did." Mario smiles. "Did it work?"

"Fine." Luigi hands him the pen.

"Okay." Mario looks over what's already written. "So what happened after the Chaos Heart appeared at the wedding?"

"We all got sucked into this void, and I landed at Bleck's castle." Luigi says. "I found some...uh...chestnut shaped guys with nubs for feet."

"Goombas?" Mario supplies.

"Yeah, thanks." Luigi nods. "I found two Goombas and we were trying to escape."

"Okay, and why didn't you?" Mario asks.

"Because..." Luigi trails off. "The uh...blue woman that used hypnosis on me?"

"Nastasia."

"Yeah, Nastasia, got ahold of one of the Goombas, named Gary." Luigi goes on. "And the other Goomba refused to leave him, and defected to Bleck's side willingly, handing me over to her."

"And that's when she turned you into Mr. L." Mario says for him.

"I know that!" Luigi snaps. "I was there, you weren't."

"Sorry." Mario backs off. "What if we talked about something we were both there for, so I can tell my side too?"

"Like what?" Luigi demands, glaring at Mario. "Like how you almost left me to die from this alone when I said didn't want us to be brothers?"