Luigi would wake up in a cold sweat, quickly gasping the moment he gained consciousness. Panting heavily, he quickly looked around the room, taking in his surroundings. He was home. Everything was okay.
He had another nightmare about King Boo. This time, a nightmare where King Boo ripped Mario's painting in half while Luigi watched in horror, unable to move or do anything to save him. All they both could do was call out to each other.
Then Mario stopped calling Luigi's name.
Everything was alright now, so it seemed. It was quiet in the bedroom. The sunlight was coming in through a nearby window. It was daytime. After taking a few moments to realize he was awake, Luigi took a deep breath to calm himself.
The muffled words came from outside the room. It was Mario. It immediately set Luigi into a panic. His brother was in danger. He had to help. Quickly, Luigi would rush out of bed and would open his door, running through the hallway while trying not to slip on the wooden tiles (he was wearing socks).
Once reaching the noise, Luigi would come to a sudden stop. Looking in the room where Mario's voice came from, he saw Mario was laughing. Daisy was there as well; she came to visit. They were having a fun, casual conversation. Nobody was in danger.
Luigi stood there by the entrance to the living room, trying to take everything in while having a visual look of concern on his face. He was still in his pajamas. He had no time to prepare. After Mario collected himself, he would notice his brother at the corner of his eye.
"Oh, morning bro!" said Mario casually. "Daisy came over to visit."
"Hello Luigi!" said Daisy cheerfully as she waved to him.
Upon looking at Luigi, Mario could almost immediately tell something was off. His brother looked clearly frightened, like he'd seen a ghost. Luigi was trying his best to silently calm himself down, but he still looked visibly distressed.
"H-Hey, Daisy..! Hey bro!" said Luigi shakily. "Good morning."
"Are you alright?" asked Daisy. She started to feel that something was wrong too.
"Yeah, I just...woke up not feeling the best," said Luigi. "Just wanted to say hello."
Mario could see right through it.
"Awe, I'm sorry Luigi," Daisy said sadly. "I hope you feel better soon!"
"Thanks..!" responded Luigi with a forced smile. "Well, I'll just...go back to my room then. Don't want either of you getting sick."
Before Mario could speak, Luigi turned back into the hallway to return to the bedroom. He didn't want to make a bigger fool of himself than he already did. Mario couldn't shake the feeling that something was definitely wrong. Luigi wasn't sick. He'd know if he was.
After a few moments, Daisy would say goodbye and would leave the house. The moment the door closed, Mario made his way straight to the bedroom.
"Weegee?" said Mario. "Can I come in?"
There was silence for a few seconds, but it was broken by Luigi humming a quiet 'mhm' from inside the room. Mario would open the door and would spot Luigi sitting on the edge of the bed, with his arms crossed. He kept his gaze at the ground, occasionally giving quick glances at Mario whenever he made any movement.
"You're not actually sick, are you?" asked Mario.
"N-No..." muttered Luigi.
Mario would sit next to his brother.
"I...had a bad dream again..." Luigi said shakily.
"King Boo..." began Luigi. "He ripped your painting in half...a-and I couldn't do anything..."
Tears would start to form in Luigi's eyes. Mario would then put his hand on Luigi's to comfort him.
"Then I woke up, and then I heard you say you couldn't breathe, and I just..."
Luigi couldn't finish his sentence. He was too choked up. He would look away from Mario; he didn't want him to see him cry.
"Lu..." Mario said sadly.
He would cup Luigi's cheek with his hand as tears rolled down it, turning Luigi's head back around to face him.
"I'm sorry, everything is okay now, alright?" Mario said gently as he put his forehead against his brother's. "Nothing's happened to me. I'm okay. King Boo's not here anymore."
Luigi would hold onto Mario's arms with his trembling hands.
"You made that happen, remember? You stopped him and saved me. Multiple times," Mario added. "I'm okay, you're okay."
Listening to Mario's words would be a bit soothing to him. Luigi would start to steady his breathing, albeit rather shaky still. The tears would begin to slow down.
"I don't want you to get taken again..." muttered Luigi.
"I'm not going to be taken again," assured Mario. "You know why?"
"Because I have a super awesome little bro who's here to make sure that doesn't happen."
Mario would give a tight embrace to his brother, confirming that he was indeed still here. This was real. Taking everything in for a few seconds, Luigi would return a tight embrace of his own. He chuckled a little as tears rolled down his face.
"Everything will be okay, Weegee," said Mario. "I promise. It was just a bad dream. It's not gonna happen."
"Thanks, Mario..." said Luigi with a smile as he closed his eyes. He felt comfort being in Mario's embrace. He felt safe.
