Day 10: Fangs
Luigi had a hard time with sleep.
It’s not that he can’t sleep, but…
Every time he sleeps, he dreams of… something dark. Something that almost seems alive but empty, feeling it gently envelop him and he just…
Sinks.
He wakes up gasping for air, heart pounding against his rib cage like a jackhammer, and he doesn’t know why.
(And after… after, his scar would throb too.)
Three weeks into his job as an Ambassador, that fact hasn’t changed.
Except…
Bowser has taken his new ‘task’ seriously, and Luigi was worried about falling asleep on him!
It didn’t help that the Koopa was so warm and safe (and that Luigi is so utterly doomed with Bowser)!
Regardless, his efforts were in vain, and -in the middle of a meeting- he dropped off into a catnap, cheek pressed against warm scales as he slept.
Then he woke up. Just, normally?
Sure, the large claw poking his cheek was annoying, but if felt like a fair trade off.
“Come on, string bean. Wake up.”
And then he opened his eyes.
Fangs.
Large, sharp fangs, barely two inches from his face.
Had he been scared, he would have flinched, or jumped, or yelled- something he could brush off as him being him!
Instead, Luigi sleepily reached up and stroked them with the same amount of self-preservation one has petting a cat’s belly.
He freezes.
Bowser’s staring. At HIM! With an indescribable look that nearly has him squirming.
This is worse.
This is so, SO much worse!
He wants the earth to swallow him whole.
AND WHY HASN’T BOWSER SAID ANYTHING?
…. Why hasn’t he said anything yet?
Braving the possibility of dying from embarrassment (and why is his hand still there?), Luigi drags his gaze back to Bowser’s red eyes.
...
He still doesn’t know what the Koopa is feeling, but at least he doesn’t seem angry?
Staring into his eyes was a bit like sinking into that dreamed blackness, but more... comforting? Maybe intense? Definitely something more- something that made Luigi forget to breathe-
…He, um, thinks he shocked him.
Bowser was aware that Luigi was as stubborn as he was sweet.
He knew that it meant that he was a wonderful friend, being dead set on learning whatever Bowser was willing to tell about himself.
He also knew that it meant that anything that made the human curious was met with zero self-preservation (seriously, how did the red menace keep him alive this long?).
So why couldn't he shake off this moment?
Why…?
Why did he like it so much?
Those were his teeth, his FANGS, one of the most deadliest parts of himself!
He couldn’t feel anything with them, and it’s not like there was a taboo of touching them (not like a tail, or neck-)! So why-?
He should start by closing his mouth, but with the human's hand still very much there-
Oh, right.
Bowser carefully leans away from the touch, almost feeling a sense of disappointment relief as Luigi seems to snap out of it with a yelp.
He does, however, take offense when Luigi tries to squirm out his grip, needlessly apologizing in rapid-fire words he can barely make out.
"Ah-ah-ah! You're not getting out from your sentence, Greenie!" He hooks a single hand around the human, careful to curl his thumb behind Luigi's head in fear of his claws. "I know I'm handsome, but I didn't realize you're into m-my teeth as well!"
No. The Koopa King did NOT stutter!
Still, Luigi's mortification is palpable in the way he turned fully red, blue eyes looking anywhere BUT the Koopa as his hands fiddled with each other.
"I-I'm s-sorry. I h-hadn't realized I was- sorry..."
Bowser frowned.
He hasn't heard Luigi stutter since... that library day, now that he thinks of it, and he honestly hadn't realized the significance of Luigi stuttering at all in his presence.
He finds that he doesn't like it.
"Doesn't matter." He'll.. deal with these thoughts later. First and foremost: "Now come on, we're going to be late for lunch!"
And no, Bowser didn't need to wake Luigi up to take him to the dining hall, but he did want to see Luigi's never-changing awe as they went inside. And he can't see that if the human is asleep now, can he?
"L-lunch?" He could feel the human shift in his grip as he turns his attention to opening the Meeting Room doors. "MAMA MIA! I SLEPT THAT LONG!?"
He couldn't help but snort. "You conked out during the boring bits. Trust me, you weren't missing much."
A glance towards the pouting human nearly has him snicker. "But that was rude! I was rude!" Luigi hung his head. "Ooohh. How am I supposed to face that Ambassador now?"
Something in Bowser's chest warmed, and he was barely aware of his expression when he replies "They gave you a break, Luigi."
The former(?) plumber peaks up at him. "But I-"
"Don't tell me that you haven't been 'doing as much'! You've been heading negotiations since day one!" Bowser is pretty sure that half of the petty arguments made by both him and the ambassadors would have been... messy if not for Luigi's interventions. "And don't dare tell me that you haven't been staying up late either!"
THAT gets the human to shut his mouth with a snap, looking away once more.
Even if Bowser wasn't as awesomely observant as he is, the other Ambassadors were nosey enough to inquire about Luigi's activities.
That is, the human had taken upon himself the task to not only study the Kingdom's history (which is required for all diplomats), but he has also taken the time to study Koopa inventions, methodologies, projects, and even past mechanical failures that could be used for The Plan.
More often than not, Bowser was 'babysitting' him at the library too, but ended up asleep at his favorite armchair after each visit. Stars know how long Luigi slept...
"So don't worry your pretty head about it!" As he opens the door, he barely catches a glimpse of surprise on Luigi's face before he started to take in the Dining Hall once more.
Bowser tries not to think about what he just said.
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