Work Text:
A few weeks have gone by since your successful rescue mission. The boos have taken well to their new home and to you. It wasn’t uncommon for them to greet you with a chirp or wave of their nubby arm nowadays. And, of course, you always made sure to respond in kind.
Today, you were out in the back garden, enjoying some breakfast beneath the thick canopy of a blooming tree as a handful of boos chased each other around in the maze of your carefully grown plants. The ghosts were very energetic, having successfully regained their strength, and to your pleasant surprise - so far - none of the colorful flowers and such had died from their presence. Excluding some new thorns and sharper edges, the garden was more lively than ever.
The forest, on the other hand… Well, it hasn’t perished quite yet, but you could see some of the leaves on the trees starting to wither. It was a bit disappointing, but you shrugged it off in the end. You still had your garden, at least.
You watched the playful boos with a smile and didn’t miss the fond look your ‘breakfast buddy’ had on his own face too. When you originally came out here to eat, you were gleefully surprised to see King Boo join you. He sipped on a cup of black tea, idly floating near the table and watching over his fraid. The two of you had gotten onto more… friendly terms, dare you say, though you doubted the boo would ever say it outright.
“Human,” he eventually spoke, garnering your attention. You turned to him with an inquisitive hum as he asked, “Why are you so welcoming to us?”
You sipped on your drink as you pondered on how to answer, and an idea graced your mind as you leaned back in your chair. Letting out a wistful sigh, you responded, “I died once.”
The ghost stared at you and blinked. You burst out laughing. “Sorry, sorry!” you apologized between your giggles. “It’s true, but I just couldn’t help myself!”
The boo went back to drinking his tea, though his eyes held a look of curiosity. “So, how did that work?”
“Hm?”
“You coming back to life?”
“Ah, well…” You sheepishly glanced off to the side, the fork in your hand scraping against the plate as you moved it back and forth. “I’m not really as alive as I seem. I’m… somewhere in between, you know?”
“Well, you don’t look too much like a rotting corpse, so not a zombie, I’m guessing?” King Boo muttered with a slight grin, making you chuckle.
You huffed playfully at him. “No. In all honesty, I’m not sure what I am. But I believe it is something close to a ghost.”
As you said the last word, a gasp sounded off to the side, drawing the attention of both of you. A small boo had floated over and was looking at you with stars in their eyes; familiar but faint scars littered their tiny body.
“Hello, Boolossus,” you greeted, watching as their little tail wagged behind them. “I see you and the others are split up today?”
“Yup! Yup! It’s so fun to chase each other around!” they said, flying a few circles around you before getting right up in your face. “But! BUT! More importantly!” They pointed a nub straight at you, poking your nose and making it scrunch. “You’re a ghost too?!”
You grinned. “Sorta. I’m like, half ghost, half human.”
“Woah!” The boo turned to their king, vibrating with excitement as they asked, “Can we make them an honorary ghost, boss? Can we?”
King Boo hummed in thought, rubbing a nub against his chin and really playing up his consideration as he eyed you. After a moment, he shrugged. “I suppose.”
“YAY! Thanks, boss!” the tiny boo cheered and excitedly flew off to tell the others.
You and King Boo watched them go before you turned to him with a teasing smirk. “So, does that mean I’m part of the team now?”
The other huffed and finished off his tea in one gulp. “I suppose I owe you that much.”
As you finished up your own breakfast, you waved a dismissive hand. “Nonsense. You don’t owe me anything. I only did what I felt was right.”
“It’s still more than any other human has ever done for us…, even if you are an honorary ghost now,” he said with a smirk.
You gave a sad smile but snorted in amusement at the joke. “Yeah, I figured.”
There was a bit of peaceful quiet before you decided to change the subject. “On a lighter note, I have a question.”
“Yes?”
“Are there two of you?”
The boo cocked an eyebrow at you. “Why would there be two of me?”
“Well,” you started, “In the past, I’ve seen a handful of those go-kart races the Mushroom Kingdom holds every year, and you don’t really seem like the type to participate in those. So…?”
“Ah…” King Boo grimaced with a both pained yet fond expression. “That would be my brother.”
“Oh?”
“Yes. He deals with whatever I don’t want to, such as ‘socializing’ with those mushroom buffoons.” King Boo rubbed a nub over his temple to soothe his growing annoyance while you tried and failed to hide your giggles behind a hand.
“So if you don’t want to do your job, you just send your brother to do it for you?” you asked and only laughed harder when the ghost scowled at you.
“I still do my job!” he barked in offense, holding a nub to his chest. “I simply have priorities! Taking care of my subjects is much more important than playing whatever childish games the mushroom princess wants me to waste my time on!”
You nodded along and leaned forward curiously. “Riiiight, but I gotta ask.” In a stage whisper, you questioned, “Does Princess Peach even realize that’s not actually you in those events?”
The ghost’s frown split into a shit-eating grin, and your laughter bounced across the garden. “R-Really?” you heaved, struggling to catch your breath. “But you look so obviously different!”
King Boo shrugged, smugly looking off to the side. “Clearly more proof of my superior intellect.”
Your giggling continued into the hours as you conversed with the king of boos, the two of you eventually moving back inside the house once the sun had fully come out. The time was spent chatting away about whatever came to mind, a few random boos occasionally popping in to give their two cents on the topic. Though eventually, you were interrupted by the unexpected ringing of the doorbell.
You jumped where you sat on the living room couch and held a hand to your startled heart once you recognized the noise. Confusion soon settled over your face as you stood up. Who could possibly be coming all the way out here? A suspicious twinge in the back of your mind certainly gave you an idea.
Exchanging a glance with King Boo, you muttered, “I’ll take care of it,” and began making your way out of the room. Even so, you could still sense him and many of the others silently following you. The action brought a fond smile to your lips. And once you reached the main entrance, your little entourage turned invisible as you steeled yourself and opened the door.
Instantly, you were startled by another loud noise and an additional gust of wind. However, the air wasn’t pushing against you; quite the opposite, in fact. You stared at the familiar man on your doorstep; he was holding a giant vacuum and sucking up air, making your clothes billow with the breeze.
After a sparse second of silence, his face lit up bright red in embarrassment as he tried to stutter out an apology. You cut him off with a curt “Luigi.” and crossed your arms. Looking very displeased now, you questioned, “To what do I owe this visit?”
“Ah! H-Hello again! I apologize. I was- uhm. I was expecting a ghost, you see…” he explained, looking nervous under your glare.
“A ghost, huh?” You leaned against the doorway, blocking his way inside. “And why would that be?”
As you studied the shivering man in front of you, you could feel the entire fraid behind you boiling with a menagerie of intense emotions. Everything from rage to disgust to fear filled the house like a roaring sea, the ghosts openly vexed by Luigi’s presence.
The man started sweating as he tried to explain. “W-Well… Remember how there have been no ghosts here for a couple of years now?” he asked to which you silently nodded. “Right, so… There may have been a little bit of an accident and the, um- And the ghosts are back now.”
“Oh, I knew that already.” You waved a dismissive hand before studying the nails on it.
“That’s good- W-Wha?” Luigi paused, confused by your answer. “So you… know they’re around?”
“Oh, yeah!” You lazily gestured through the air again. “They’re a swell bunch; we had tea together this morning.”
The man paled and backed up a step. “Y-You… What?”
“Look, pal.” Standing up straight, you towered over Luigi as your eyes glistened in the shadows of the doorway. “Just ‘cause you sold me this house last year doesn’t mean I’m gonna let you in.”
“Y-You don’t understand!” Luigi frantically shook his hands back and forth. “W-Whatever they told you- They’re dangerous!”
“Buddy.”
Your eyes narrowed as you grabbed him by the collar and pulled him closer. He yelped at the sudden hostility and flinched as your free hand sparkled to life with white, glowing energy. You snarled in his face,
“Bold of you to assume I’m not dangerous.”
A few seconds of death-glaring the man later, you let him go and watched as he stumbled backward and tripped down the stairs. He fell on his ass with an oomph and stared at you in shock. You gave him a moment to absorb everything before asking, “So? Are we doing this the easy way or the hard way?”
Despite the tremble in his limbs, Luigi got to his feet. A glint of determination shined in his shivering expression as he stood his ground. “I-I’m sorry. But I need to get inside.”
Tense silence fell as you both studied one another, waiting for someone to make the first move. And making up your mind, you gave a curt nod and spun on your heel, going back in. “Come in, then.”
And swiftly, before all hell could break loose at your words, you shouted, “BUT! Two rules.”
You pointed at Luigi. “You are leaving that stupid vacuum in the foyer.”
“B-But-!” he tried to argue.
“And you,” ignoring the man’s protests, you turned to the still invisible king of boos, “No eating the green twink until I’ve judged him deserving.”
The massive ghost hissed with a snarl you couldn’t see, the air turning freezing with his anger. “You think you can just–”
“Now!” you once again paid the complaints zero attention, baffling the boos who watched their leader silently seethe at being interrupted. You were completely ignorant to King Boo weighing his options of biting your head off as you turned to Luigi, waving him over. “Come on, green man! I may not like you currently, but I’ve gotta be fair and hear you out.”
Very, very hesitantly, Luigi thumbed the strap of his Poltergust as he stood in the doorway. “H-How can I possibly trust they won’t attack me?”
“Simple!” you chirped before giving a warning glare to the hidden ghosts. “Because this is still my house, and they have to follow my rules while living here!”
There was a final bellowing screech that rattled the floorboards before the tension begrudgingly faded from the air. Only a few sprinkles of frost hung in the air as Luigi doubtfully eyed the foyer, but seeing no other choice, he took off the Poltergust and set it down by the door. He already regretted his action as you wrapped an arm around his shoulders and started pulling him along. And not even two seconds after, King Boo made himself visible and crushed the vacuum between his teeth.
Luigi watched in horror as the ghost spat out the broken machine. The king’s piercing stare bore into the man’s very soul as he growled with all the malice his round body could muster before disappearing once more.
You looked over the slobbery pieces of metal and plastic, a little miffed. “Well… I guess I never said anything about eating that thing.” You shrugged. “Oh well!”
As you dragged Luigi along again, he struggled against his wobbly knees. Why did he agree to leave the Poltergust behind?! Why was he so stupid?! His panicked gaze kept jumping around the hallways, and yet none of the ghosts ever attacked him. It made him wonder just how much control you had over them.
Leading your guest into the nearest sitting room, you sat the nervous man on the couch and pulled out a small metal box from under the table. Upon taking off the lid, you revealed a batch of cookies you had made a while back, ones safe for regular humans to eat - you had made them just in case.
And just before you could sit down yourself, a chirp caught your attention. You turned to see one of the boos floating over with a tray balanced on their head, two steaming cups of tea ready for taking. You smiled and gratefully took the drinks. “Thank you, Booligan.”
The ghost nodded but didn’t leave right away, instead opting to stare at Luigi. The two eyed each other for a bit before Booligan rushed forward and jumpscared the man with a loud screech. Luigi practically hit the ceiling with how high he jumped, and the boo scampered off with a mischievous giggle. You tutted and sat down in the armchair.
“Sorry about that, Luigi,” you apologized for the boo before taking a sip of your tea. “But they don’t like you very much.”
“Yes, I’m aware…” the other nervously trailed off. His gaze kept flitting around the room, trained eyes easily spotting the faint, shimmering dust that boos gave off when invisible. Why were there so many?!
Before Luigi could stress himself to an early death, you grabbed a cookie from the box and pushed it toward him, urging him to take one too. As you bit into your treat, you asked, “So, why do you feel the need to capture all these boos? Any important reason?”
Luigi was just a tiny bit hesitant to speak about the ghosts’ misdeeds while they were around - what if they got mad?! - but he had to convince you somehow. “Y-Yes! They’ve done a lot of terrible things and are dangerous!”
You hummed. “Any examples?”
“W-Well, capturing my brother and friends and trapping them in paintings, for one!” Luigi huffed, letting some of his fear be replaced by protectiveness over his family.
You paused mid-bite. “I’ll admit, that is a little messed up.” You threw the rest of the cookie into your mouth. “But have you ever questioned why they do that?”
“I don’t see any good reason that would justify their actions!” Luigi scowled and sipped his tea, hoping it would ease his nerves. “This whole thing literally started with King Boo luring me and Mario to one of his mansions to try and capture us!”
You cocked an eyebrow at that and looked to the corner of the room. “Any rebuttals?”
The walls of the room began icing over as the temperature dropped. You could hear Luigi’s teeth chattering before King Boo hissed venomously, “So Gadd kidnapping all my ghosts and shoving them into portraits wasn’t important enough to mention, Greenie? ”
Gaining an unimpressed stare, you looked back at Luigi. The man flinched under your gaze and tapped his fingers against the cup in his hands. “A-Ah. T-That’s- Uhm…”
You sipped your now iced tea. “Yes?”
Luigi averted his gaze with a frown, stuttering, “E-E. Gadd was only catching them to p-protect people. T-They were malicious…”
The entire room hissed, displeased by his words, and you had to raise your arms and motion for everyone to calm down before continuing. “So, did anybody ever die?”
“H-Huh?”
“During any of King Boo’s stunts - did anybody ever die?”
Luigi straightened up, ready to answer before faltering after a second of thought. “Ah… N-No…?” he said, confused by his own response. He went over the memories in his mind but couldn’t remember such a time. “I… don’t think so?”
“Right.” You sipped your tea. “And has Bowser ever killed anybody?”
Luigi cringed where he sat, fidgeting a little.
“Exactly. Think you can guess why?”
The man eyed you, perplexed. He never could understand what went on in King Boo’s mind, so he shook his head ‘no’. You studied his unsure but curious form and quietly whispered, “Do you know you have death on your hands?”
Luigi startled at the idea. “I… I haven’t killed anybody…”
You raised a brow. “Nobody ‘living’.”
There was visible distress overtaking the other’s expression as he silently watched you. His mouth opened and closed a handful of times before he gulped and rasped, “W-What do you mean?”
“The undead are complex creatures,” you started, “They are beings of pure energy and magic, powerful but sensitive to things of similar origin. A simple knife wouldn’t be able to harm a ghost, but a fire flower, for example, is a whole different story, isn’t it?”
“B-But how can you kill something that’s already dead?” Luigi muttered, perplexed.
You tsked. “I just told you, they are un-dead. They have lost their lives at one point but regained them in another form.”
Luigi stared at the carpet, lost in thought. An unpleasant idea crossed his mind, and he couldn’t fight off the urge to ask. “Do- Do ghosts bleed?”
“Ever seen that blue, glowing stuff around E. Gadd’s lab?” you questioned back instead, making him pale.
“I- H-Hold on!” he stammered, shaking his head to clear his thoughts. “H-How do I know you’re not just making all of this up? E-Even if I don’t think anybody ever died during those fights with King Boo, he was still out to get me and the others!”
“To put you in paintings.”
“T-That doesn’t make it any better!”
“But helping Gadd stuff the ghosts into frames was fine?”
That shut him up. Luigi glared at the floor as you softened your tone and said, “Do you realize this is going to go on forever unless you stop helping E. Gadd and catching every random ghost you see?”
Luigi huffed. “I can’t just do nothing when my family gets threatened.”
“So you understand that King Boo can’t do that either?”
The man looked up at you, confused. You elaborated, “E. Gadd threatened his family first, and then you joined in.”
As he sat back and blinked, Luigi seemed to finally realize something. His face scrunched up as he wasn’t very thrilled about what he finally figured out, but it was still important. He turned to you again, voice tired from the years of fighting ghosts. “What do I do then?”
“Well, first, I’d suggest grilling Gadd for answers and seeing whether I’m bullshiting you or not.” Luigi choked on a half laugh as you continued, “And then… I don’t know; try to get the mad scientist in jail for experimenting on people?”
Taking his hat off and running a hand through his hair, Luigi sighed. “I… Alright, I’ll go figure out what E. Gadd does down there whenever I’m not around. And then… w-we’ll see, I guess?”
Finally, after this entire conversation, you gave Luigi a smile. “Sounds like a plan.”
Rearranging his hat back on his head, Luigi muttered, “Just…” He gazed at the corner of the room for a moment. “If King Boo does something, I’ll have to intervene.”
“I know.” You nodded in understanding. “I’ll be talking with him too later, don’t worry. For now, how about we wrap this up?”
Mentally drained by the influx of new information, Luigi gladly agreed and let you lead him back to the front entrance. The walk back was calmly silent, and once you reached the doors, Luigi picked as many still-moist pieces of the Poltergust as he could before going out the door. You leaned against the doorframe as he idled on the porch, nervously picking at his gloves. After a while, he said, “Thank you for the talk. It was… helpful. I think.”
You hummed and offered him a wave. “See you around, Luigi. Let’s hope our next meeting will be more friendly.”
Luigi waved back. “Yes, let’s. U-Until next time then.”
As he descended the steps and walked down the dirt path, you silently watched with the ghosts floating over your shoulder. Once Luigi disappeared amidst the tall trees and snow, you retreated back into the house. With a relieved sigh and slump of your shoulders, you turned to the boos. “Thank you for behaving. I’m sure it wasn’t easy.”
King Boo, visible once more, was glaring at the door. He looked lost in thought as he muttered, “Did he really not know?”
You shrugged and began walking down a random hall with the king trailing after you. “I’m pretty sure he wasn’t lying. He never seemed like a bad guy; definitely biased against you because of his fears, but I think he just needed a little guidance and new perspective.”
King Boo grumbled something under his breath and opted to change the topic. He side-eyed you with a glare. “You were going to talk to me?”
Cautiously, you said, “I know it’s not easy, but you’re gonna have to stop going after them too.”
The ghost instantly snarled and hissed, the sight of his massive fangs so close to your face making your heart skip a beat. “I know, I know!” you conceded, lifting your hands in a placating manner. “But the guy is gonna realize how much he’s messed up soon enough.” You stopped walking for a moment and gave the other a slight frown of your own. “Someone has to be the bigger man and end this back and forth. This morning, you said you cared about your subjects, right?”
“Of course I do! ” King Boo growled, gnashing his teeth together with a loud clack.
“Then stop chasing endless revenge plots and realize that they don’t even want to go after Luigi and the others anymore.” You pointed with a jut of your head, making the king turn to look down the hall behind you two. There, the other boos were peeking their heads out from behind the walls, looking at their leader unsurely. The sight gave King Boo pause. His snarling, panting form calmed as he looked away to stare at the floor.
You lowered your hands and quietly offered, “I know the brothers hurt a lot of your people… but they are kinda gullible.”
The big boo snorted as you continued, “There’s a lot of misconceptions about ghosts and the undead in general. Throw a crazy scientist into the mix and you’re bound for disaster.
“But maybe, this could be a chance to clear things up?”
King Boo finally looked up at you, his scowl looking more exhausted than anything. “How?”
“Well,” you began walking again, the boo following, “getting on better terms with the Mushroom Kingdom could be a great first step; make friends with their people, work together, and correct all the lies about ghosts that are festering over there like weeds.”
He merely hummed in thought, a twitch appearing in his thick brow that showed he wasn’t quite sold on the idea. Deciding to lighten the mood, you said, “Look, we’ve got time until Luigi comes back, so you can worry about all that later.”
“I suppose,” he grumbled before frowning deeply as he remembered something. “Also, don’t order me around ever again. Telling me not to touch the stupid plumber! Preposterous!”
You grinned, glad he was getting back to his usual, dramatic self. “Who said I was giving out orders? I told you to play nice, yes. But you still could’ve just ignored me.”
The boo huffed loudly and turned away with a cross of his nubby arms. The attitude made you chuckle as you suggested, “How about we forget about all that and do something fun instead?”
The ghost eyed you from the corner of his eye. “Fun? Like what?”
“Well, I could destroy you in a game of chess, for one,” you teased and only grinned wider when he took the bait and whirled around to face you.
“I would not lose to the likes of you!” he hissed, offended by the mere suggestion.
“Oh? Prove it then.” Your expression turned daring. “If I win, I get to wear your crown for a day.”
King Boo bristled and accepted the challenge without a second thought, confident of his abilities to beat you. “Very well! But if I win…” he pondered for a second before his toothy smile split his face in half, “...you’ll have to call me Master for a day!”
You huffed in amusement. “Damn, didn’t know you were into that kinda stuff.”
The ghost looked confused at your words, only making your grin widen more. “What the hell does that mean?”
Behind you two, some of the other boos laughed at their boss’s cluelessness, though he was quick to turn around with a scowl and shout, “And just WHAT are you lot giggling about over there?!”
The boos scattered with more laughter, the air taking on a lighter feeling with their glee. You chuckled along with them, and just barely caught the momentary smirk on King Boo’s face. Once he turned to you again, the annoyed scowl came back to his features, but you could tell he was looking forward to wiping the chessboard with you.
You grinned. What a disappointment he was in for.