#and the mario microwave one on the second is inspired by a mario and luigi humor video lmao

[mety-zah-potato-knight]

the bros doing bro things + some expressions

[classicdaisycalico]

The Final Hour...(before the new year, that is)

HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE! In the spirit of the event, I wrote an obligatory New Year’s fanfic, now with 66.7% more Italian lessons for the first time in...well, fuck. Has it really been almost 6 months?

“Per favore” = “Please” “Grazie” = “Thank You” “E” = “and” “Mi dispiace” = “I’m sorry” “Felice anno nuovo” = “Happy new year”

Here’s to a better year in 2017 than the 366 days of certified bullshit that was last year’s Year Of Murder. I hope this lifts everybody’s spirits a bit, and as always, let me know your thoughts!

11:00 The giant clock tower in Toad Town signaled an hour before the new year. People and creatures of all kinds crowded Main Street as they anxiously awaited the ball drop. Some were brandishing goofy hats and noisemakers. Others were happily chatting away with friends and discussing their New Year's resolutions. However, one individual wasn't quite feeling the spirit of New Year's Eve. Over by the park off Main Street, Luigi sat on a bench, watching the annual New Year's Open Mic Night. The least he could do was get out of the house at some point, so he wasn't feeling completely isolated. Of course, he wasn't alone the year before. That year, he and Mario watched a New Year's special on TV with Toad and Yoshi at their house and welcomed the new year by singing a rather loud rendition of "Auld Lang Syne". But this year, Peach invited the brothers to join her on Main Street where all the festivities were held. Normally, Luigi wouldn't mind much, since he hardly ever felt third-wheeled by the two of them. Then he remembered: it was a tradition for couples to kiss on New Year's Eve. And there was no way he was getting in the way of his brother and Peach, especially since they were basically a thing already. In the meantime, Toad was trying to find Dr. Toadley's intern somewhere in the crowd back on Main Street, after crushing on her for months. Yoshi wasn't even in Toad Town this year. Instead, he opted to stay back on the island where he resided with the rest of his kind, though he did say something about Birdo stopping by. Even Peasley had finally found a steady boyfriend in a Beanish citizen named Lenny Till over in the Beanbean Kingdom, according to the Prince's latest letter. As for Daisy, she was in Sarasaland, in a completely different time-zone, 5 hours ahead, to be specific. And given Luigi's status as a seventh (potentially ninth) wheel, he missed her terribly.

***

11:10 The least he could do to keep his mind busy was focus on the current performers on the park stage. Right now, a few Toads and a Shy Guy in soda tab chainmail were shuffling along to a musical number from "Spamalot". Suddenly out of the corner of his eye, Luigi saw Mario, Peach, and a familiar figure in a light blue, Middle Ages-inspired dress behind them...

"Guess who just poofed into the middle of Main Street to visit us on New Year's?!" Mario asked as he finally reached his brother.

From behind Peach, Rosalina floated over to the bench. "Hello, Luigi. It's nice to see you. I was looking forward to coming down here tonight, though I was not expecting there to be so many people here..." "I see the Open Mic Night is in full swing," Peach observed as she sat next to Luigi on the park bench. "What's going on right now?" "Some 'Spamalot' number with lots of tap-dancing," he answered. "Is that real chainmail those Toads are wearing?!" the Queen of the cosmos gasped. "It must be incredibly cumbersome to waddle around in something so heavy..." "Oh, no, it's just soda tabs," Mario replied. "Hey, I think Toad has a friend performing in this later. Why isn't he here?" "Maybe he's still looking for Dr. Toadley's intern," Luigi said as he got off the bench. "I'm gonna try and find him. Hopefully he hasn't lost track of time..." As he sprinted away, Peach called out to him, "We'll save your spot on the bench!" *** 11:30 Twenty minutes passed by, but after barreling through the crowded Main Street, there was no sign of Toad anywhere. As Luigi sat on a bench at a nearby bus stop, the phone in his pocket vibrated. It was a text from Peach. No, Mario. It read: Forgot my phone at home! Can you pick it up, per favore? Grazie, M. E mi dispiace :( Well, at least it gave Luigi something else to do besides worrying about being a ninth wheel. Off he went in pursuit of the pipe that lead him back to just outside their house, all the way at the other end of Main Street. Thankfully, the pipe wasn't far, as long as he ran and not walked... *** 11:40 The clock on the microwave in the kitchen greeted Luigi with 20 minutes left until the new year. He quickly glanced over the countertop only to find no phone, so he walked into the dining room. Sure enough, it was on the table next to a red mug. A little white light near the top of the screen was blinking. He pressed the power button, and the screen lit up, revealing 5 missed calls. As Luigi put the phone in his pocket, the landline began ringing back in the kitchen. He dashed back over and checked the caller ID. It was Daisy! "Hello?" "Luigi?" Daisy's voice rang through the phone. "Is that you? Wow! What an awesome surprise!" "What are you doing calling 20 minutes before the new year?" "Well, I tried calling Mario several times, but he never picked up, so I tried your home phone, instead!" "He asked me to get his phone for him. Everyone else is on Main Street in Toad Town about to watch the ball drop." "You guys have a ball drop?" "It's not as huge as the one in Times Square, but it exists. It's just smaller, and it has a 'disco ball with Christmas lights' thing happening." "Christmas lights AND a disco ball? That sounds a bit superfluous." "It's actually not! The glass is recycled. And the glowy crystal thing is a little pricey, so we went with Christmas lights, instead. I'd show you, but–" Luigi's eyes widened as the realization hit him. If she stayed up for the festivities back in her own kingdom, why would Daisy call him close to5 am where she was and not even sound tired? "Daisy, why did you call Mario?" he asked. There was a brief silence on the other end. "...Well," she finally replied, "I wanted to surprise you guys by dropping by to ring in the new year with all of you!" "But I thought you already did that back in Sarasaland! You're not tired, are you?" "They were broadcasting our New Year's Eve special in the airport." "But you're a five hour flight west of us! There's no way you would have gotten here by midnight!" "Not if you take a Concord. They get you wherever you need to go in half the time. It would have left earlier, but there were a few delays, including my flight." "But you've definitely touched down by now, right? Where are you?" The line went dead, but someone knocked on the door. Luigi's phone suddenly vibrated in his pocket. What greeted him was a message from Daisy: Check your front door :) He hung up the landline and sprinted to the door. When he opened it, there she was with the biggest grin on her face. "I told you," she said. "I wanted to surprise you!" "And you did," he exclaimed, with a grin equally as big. "Everyone else is in the park off of Main Street!" He locked the front door and grabbed her hand. "Wait until they hear about this!" *** 11:50 According to Peach's phone, ten minutes remained until midnight, but Luigi was nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, her phone began ringing. She checked the caller ID, and sure enough, it was him! "Hello?" "We're just outside the park," Luigi began. "Are you still at the bench?" "We were about to head back out to Main Street before you called," she answered. "And what do you mean 'we'? Is somebody else with you?" "Did he find Toad?" Mario asked. He stood up on the bench. "Rosalina, you're really tall. Do you see Luigi anywhere in the park right now? And is anyone with him?" She floated up just a little. "I see him," she replied. "And...is that Daisy with him?!" "WHAT?! Daisy's here?" Mario stood on his tiptoes. Making their way through the park, hand in hand, was his brother and a brown-haired girl in an orange dress. "I see them!" "We should meet them by the stage," Peach suggested. "It'll take less time to head back out to Main Street from there!" The three of them sprinted away from the bench toward the stage, stopping Luigi and Daisy in their tracks. Peach continued surging forward and nearly knocked her best friend over as she tackled her with a hug. "I had no idea you were coming," she said. "This is such a nice surprise!" "That was the whole point," Daisy giggled. "Did I miss anything big?" "Well, the annual New Year's Open Mic Night just wrapped up," Mario answered, "and now everyone's heading over to Main Street." "Well, what are we waiting for?!" *** 11:58 The clock tower read two minutes before the new year. The friends finally found a place to stand to watch the ball drop, and somehow reunited with Toad in the process. His search for Dr. Toadley's intern was unsuccessful, but he was still glad to be in their company. "I did find my sister, though," he recounted. "Toadette was with some tiny Hammer Bro named Hammy. He seems like a nice guy." "How tiny?" Mario asked. "Like, an inch or two taller than me, nothing more. Apparently he's just shorter than average. Anyway, Hammy said he and Toadette were gonna head over to Club 64 after the ball drops and wanted us to meet them there." "What for?" "You know, meet-and-greets, discussing New Year's resolutions, reflecting on the past year, maybe ordering a few things off the dessert menu since we probably haven't eaten anything since 6 pm...that sorta thing." "Sounds like a plan." "Look!" Rosalina exclaimed. "The ball just lit up!" "It lights up at 11:59," Peach added. "When the clock reaches 30 seconds, everyone's going to start counting down!" "Look at how excited Luigi and Daisy are," Toad observed aloud. "They haven't let go of each other's hands since you guys left the park!" Mario laughed. "I think I know what that's about," he said as he elbowed his brother's arm, making both Daisy and Luigi blush bright red. 48 seconds. "Ignore that," Daisy said to him. "He's just teasing you." 46 seconds. "I know," he replied. "Still...that tradition is hard to ignore when it's being shoved into your face every New Year's." 42 seconds. "Well, he's not forcing you to do it, right? He wouldn't do that. And neither would I. Or anyone else, for that matter." 37 seconds. "I guess I just worried too much about almost being ninth-wheeled." 35 seconds. "Well, Toad never found Dr. Toadley's intern, but that hasn't gotten him down, right? And I think Rosalina has been doing fine on her own for a while." 29 seconds. "The point is, everyone's surrounded by friends!" Daisy exclaimed. "That's why I flew here! No one should feel alone on New Year's. Not even you." 23 seconds. The countdown was growing louder as time ticked away. Luigi smirked and looked at Daisy. "Or you, Miss 'I-flew-in-via-Concord-because-I-missed-my-friends'." 20 seconds. "You're forgetting when I showed up at your door like a scene from 'Love, Actually'," Daisy retorted playfully. "Your hat's a bit lopsided, by the way." She readjusted the cap on his head. 15 seconds. "Well, your hair's almost in your eyes. And I haven't seen them in so long." He pushed some stray bangs away and looked into her eyes. Those beautiful viridian irises never ceased to leave him speechless. 10 seconds. People were shouting at the top of their lungs, but the two of them weren't paying attention. 9. 8. "Felice anno nuovo, Princess," Luigi said as he took Daisy's other hand. 6. She stepped closer, the distance between them lessening. 5. 4. She stood on her toes and let their foreheads touch. "It's gonna be a great one," she whispered. 3. 2. 1. The gap between them closed the second the clock struck midnight.