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The sound is unlike any Bowser has heard before. Sobs, interrupted by frequent overwhelmed hiccups incoherent shaky whispering. A far cry from the laughter and joy of the New Years celebration he's just stepped out of.
The Koopa king sighs heavily, stopping in his tracks as he listens. He was once something so mighty and powerful, everyone feared him— Though it wasn't the healthiest situation to be in, he at least had the façade of confidence, he knew how to be bad and how to do it well.
He's still learning to be good, head angling carefully to figure out the source of the distress. That's when he sees it; A familiar silhouette hugging its knees by the lake. Luigi.
Glancing over his shoulder, Bowser's tail flicks with uncertainty as he considers fetching Mario, pulling the same cowardly move he had at Christmas, but when he sees him wrapped up in Peach's arms, well… He knows better than to interrupt. So, this will be a solo battle— Ehh, helpful conversation to someone he totally doesn't look out for.
Making his way over, he takes note of how Luigi seems to tremble more, gloved hands covering his ears.
"Greenie?" He questions as he leans down, brows furrowed at the scent he's met with. He's more used to smelling pure fear, but this… This is just plain anxiety, Luigi's positively riddled with it.
"I'm sorry," Luigi gasps through tears, voice wrecked. "Too much noise, I can't— I can't…"
Bowser can't say that he truly understands what's at play here, but that doesn't mean he won't attempt to help in what little ways he can. He settles down beside the human, careful not to land too loudly on his behind, before nudging those tiny hands away to be replaced with his own much larger ones.
Luigi's brows knit together tight at the new sensation, stilling as he processes and adjusts to it, before finally his shoulders lose their tension and his crying is reduced to sniffling.
All of that music and chatter is now completely sealed out, replaced by his own thundering heartbeat and…
"You sound like— a crackling fireplace."
Bowser gives a soft chuckle, amused, that only has Luigi melting further into his touch.
"I am a dragon, Greenie."
"I know that!" Luigi retorts, taking his gloves off to wipe his eyes now that his hands are freed up. "I'm not that stupid…"
"I didn't say you were." Comes a hum in response.
Luigi peeks his eyes open now that he's able to without them stinging too badly, surprised to find Bowser patiently staring right back at him, attentive ears angled down in his direction. Listening, waiting.
"… You came."
"So did you." Bowser purrs, leaning down to have Luigi right at the end of his snout. "You don't seem to enjoy these things, it surprises me to see you."
He's not wrong. Anything that's classified an 'event' out of select sports, Luigi could happily do without. "Where else would you see me?" He muses as he rubs his hands off on his overalls, simultaneously drying them and sensory seeking to keep himself grounded.
Bowser isn't sure that he has an appropriate answer to that question, especially when he notices twitching fingers, equally uncertain hands in front of his snout. He could easily bite them off. Hell, even with how they already are, he could crush Luigi's head like a grape— But he doesn't, instead mindfully nudging forward into shaking palms.
"I don't know," He begins, thoughtful. "But wherever it could be, I'm sure we'd both prefer it if you didn't have a mental breakdown."
Luigi manages a smile at that, eye contact breaking momentarily to observe the scales under his hands. Funny, he thought they'd be rough and hard, but they actually have some give to them, fair smooth…
"How have you been?" Bowser tries, gaze glued to the man as he self soothes.
Shoulders pull up into a shrug at that, head tilting to one side and large hands following suit. "Tired, mostly. These months mean a lot of socialising, and I'm… not made for that."
"Why come to these things if they hurt you?" And God, isn't that the million coin question? Social obligation for people who couldn't care less, Mario wanting him to become more comfortable— But some things, you just can't adjust to, he's learning that.
"Do you like them?"
Confusion doesn't take long to cross Bowser's face. Why is he being asked how he feels? He's not the one who'd been sobbing his eyes out a minute ago!
"I tolerate them. I'll admit, they're easier to deal with when you're around." When met with his expression mirrored back to him, he chuckles, snout scrunching just a touch. "It's easier to worry about someone else than yourself— I think you understand that feeling."
Luigi hums his confirmation, content to stare up to the Koopa king. Who knew this would be the person to treat him so gently, to supposedly take an interest in him?
"We aren't so different, really…"
Bowser doesn't seem so sure about that, gaze dropping as his hands lift from the human's ears, only for Luigi to quickly hold them in place. Well, in truth, his strength doesn't compare to Bowser's, but the gesture carries enough weight on it's own.
"You shouldn't compare yourself to me," He begins carefully, previously wagging tail now reduced to a slow sway. "I'm a monster, Greenie—"
"Luigi."
Pausing, he nods. "You aren't a monster, Luigi."
"I know that… But I'm different, and for some humans, that's as good as being a monster."
Brows shooting up in surprise, Bowser tilts his head. "Is that true?"
"Humans aren't all as nice as Mario or Peach." Luigi confirms with a nod, freeing his grip on one of the king's hands in favour of nuzzling against the other.
"Who has spoken so badly of you that you think this way…?" It's puzzling, heartbreaking. Luigi is inoffensive, as a person. He keeps to his own, offers help where he can, never says a bad word against anyone— He's having a heart-to-heart with Bowser, for God's sake, it wasn't so long ago that he was… in a cage… in his castle. Okay, he's having regrets.
"It doesn't have to be said for me to know." Luigi admits, moustache twitching. He looks like he might cry again. "But that's not for everything, sometimes I don't know the obvious, I do have to be told…"
Frowning, Bowser runs a large thumb along the human's cheek. "I think you must be tired and it's getting to you… Would you like me to carry you home?"
"I can walk, I don't want to bother—"
"That's wasn't my question."
Bowser does end up carrying him home, the human slumped over his shoulder and still tracing along fascinating scales.
He learns that if Luigi hadn't become a plumber with his brother, he would have gone with being a florist— And that dream hasn't entirely died, it's now a sort of Plan B for is he can afford to give up plumbing.
He learns that every flower has a few meanings related to it, and that this can branch off even more specifically into the different colours they can be. Peonies, Luigi's favourite, promise good fortune. And, he admits bashfully, a long and happy marriage in some contexts.
He learns that they're both hopeless romantics, and as he picks up a falling-asleep Luigi to reach up and place comfortably in his bed through that slanted window, he learns that the human's a snorer, and that there's always further to fall when you're in love.