Because you guys asked for it, here it is; a flash-forward followup to He Doesn't See Me and Incomplete Without Him starring Bowser Jr. all grown up...almost. Happy reading, you awesome fans, you.

Chapter 1

"You're what?"

I've grown up around Wendy's tantrums, so when I got up one morning to the sound of her carrying on about something, I didn't think anything of it. Not until I saw a bunch of shy guys running back and forth in the halls, shuttling luggage through the castle and out the front gates. "What's going on?" I asked curiously.

Roy was standing in the corridor with Ludwig, watching the procession go by. Wendy was with them and clutching her head like she felt faint. "Mom and Dad are going on vacation," Roy reported.

"Really? Where?"

Wendy let out a long groan; just what was her problem, anyway?

"We're going all over," Dad reported as he joined us, trailing behind the last of the luggage toters. "Your mother's never been to Rogueport before, and maybe after that we'll sail out to Lavalava island. Who knows? We'll decide as we go."

I could tell by the way he spoke and by the look on his face that this was definitely a 'mom and dad only' kind of trip. My first reaction would have probably been to say that he was nuts to take his pretty little wife to places like that, but...this was Mama Rosie we were talking about, here. So instead I felt a small twinge of jealousy, knowing that I was probably going to be pretty bored while they were gone.

I didn't bother asking when they'd be back; if they were making it up as they went along, then they wouldn't know. So all I asked was, "When are you leaving?"

Dad stopped grumbling orders at the frazzled shy guys and looked at me again. "In just a few minutes," he told me. Chuckling, he reached over and tousled my hair until I saw spots. "Which means you'll be in charge while we're gone," he added.

Wendy made that groaning noise again. I perked up. "Really? You mean, the whole castle?"

"And the kingdom," Dad added. "It'll be good practice for when you take charge for real."

Ludwig snorted and nudged Roy. "If we start running now, you think we can be in Nimbus Land by nightfall?"

I rolled my eyes; they weren't going to be gone that long. What could possibly go wrong in just a couple of weeks?

"Don't hurry back," I called, as Dad hurried down the corridor. Wendy trailed after him, her whiny voice echoing back long after the two had disappeared from sight.

A minute or so later Mama Rosie scurried into view, toting a slick black valise under one arm and carrying a beaded purse in her other hand. Her hair billowed behind her and her cheeks were bright with color...which told me that she was looking forward to this trip even more than Dad was.

"You kids be good," she told Roy and Ludwig as she kissed them both in turn. "And listen to your brother."

"Do we have to?" asked Roy, his groan matching Wendy's.

"Yes," Mama Rosie said firmly. "He's your future king, so you may as well get used to taking orders. No insubordination, now; it's tacky among family members."

Smiling, she turned and stood on tiptoe to hug me around my neck; laughing softly, I hugged her back. It wasn't like the old days where I was small enough for her to tote me around...not that I miss those days or anything. I wasn't as big as Dad yet - but hey, I'm getting there someday.

"Don't torture them too much," she advised, her dark green eyes twinkling with mirth.

On her wrist I caught sight of the old charm bracelet I had made for her, years ago. It was worn and tarnished, but she never went anywhere without it. "Don't you worry about a thing," I told her, smiling to mask the suspicious lump that was rising into my throat. "You just go have fun."

Behind her, Ludwig suddenly rolled his eyes and had a coughing fit, which didn't mask his gruff exclamation of 'mama's boy!' Not that it was supposed to.

Rolling her own eyes, Mama Rosie let go of me and turned to put her arms around Ludwig, whose sour expression was quickly replaced by a look of embarrassment. "I'll miss you too, you big lug," she told him, petting his tangle of blue hair. "We'll send you postcards and bring you back souvenirs."

Ludwig nodded mutely. He's much closer to her in height than I am, so he was able to rest his head on her shoulder as he hugged her back. Not that I'm jealous or something.

After they parted, she headed out front with Dad, so we all hurried outside to see them off - all ten of us. "Bye Mom, bye Dad!" called Lemmy, as Dad helped Mama Rosie into the clown car. "Have fun!"

"Don't be gone too long," added Wendy, sounding faint again.

"Yeah, we're completely okay with it if you decide to come home early," Larry put in.

I kept quiet as I waved farewell, while Elsie bounced up and down beside me, making her curls dance. "Conquer a kingdom for me," she called, before she turned and scurried back into the castle.

Her twin brother wasn't taking the sudden separation into stride quite so well. He stayed out front longer than anyone, waving and sniffling through the tears the rest of us had managed to avoid amidst frequent calls of 'Bye Mommy!' And Ludwig has the nerve to call me a mama's boy.

I headed back into the castle and into the foyer, where my seven siblings known as the koopalings were milling around and chattering a mile a minute. It was something that only sounded like random gibberish to the untrained ear, but I was easily able to pick out one rapid voice from the next.

"I think now would be a good time to lock myself up in my lab for a while," Iggy mused, while Wendy took a few quick breaths that came out high-pitched and squeaky.

"This is going to be a total disaster," she moaned. "I just know it!"

"Ah, relax," Morton told her, "what could possibly happen?"

"I'd really rather not think about it," said Larry crisply.

"Wendy, would you stop breathing like that?" Roy complained.

"Just so long as they only come back with the two of them," Ludwig said casually. "Instead of, you know, number eleven. Or maybe twelve."

Wendy made a shrieking sound. "Ludwig, oh my gawd! Did you just jinx them? You totally did, didn't you! If Mom comes back pregnant, it is so your fault!"

"How would it be my fault?" Ludwig asked dryly. "It's Dad's, um...never mind."

They all continued to prattle on together, but after I while I stopped listening. I wasn't really included in this conversation. Which was nothing new; they had always been a close-knit group, and having three other siblings hadn't changed that. It didn't bother me; I was used to it, and I wandered out of the foyer and down the winding corridors until I reached a set of bedchambers.

Elsie and Rue used to share a room, but when they got a little older, Elsie insisted on being moved into her own room. How can I best describe my little sister Rosella, affectionately known to all as Elsie? To put it mildly...she's a real trip.

She has Mama Rosie's natural air of grace and refinement, along with her ear and talent for music...and her old habit of wandering clear out of her home kingdom. From the moment she first learned to walk, she had made a beeline for the boundaries of Darkland, wanting to see everything and anything that lay beyond.

All this was mashed together with both her and Dad's looks - and her most distinctive feature; Dad's desire for world domination. As I invited myself into her room, she was sitting on her bed surrounded by a pile of papers and maps while scribbling something in a book in her hands. She perked up when she saw me, her black-streaked red curls bouncing against her dark maroon shell as she straightened up. "You know what we could do while Dad's gone that would really make him proud?" she asked eagerly.

"No idea," I said, even though I had every idea what was on her mind.

She snorted and blew a curl away from her amber eyes. ""We should go conquer something, of course. Someplace nice and close by."

"Like the Mushroom Kingdom? Newsflash, baby sis; if Dad hasn't conquered it in all these years, what makes you think you can do it on a whim?"

"No, not the Mushroom Kingdom," she muttered, wrinkling her stubby nose at me. "I was thinking about something nice and small, like Yo'ster Isle. Come on, let's go storm the place and enslave all the yoshis. It'll be fun."

"It'll get you grounded," I corrected. "You know how Mama Rosie feels about Mooshi and his family."

She muttered something under her breath and went back to her writing, while I turned and surveyed her bedroom. Like Mama Rosie, Elsie likes dark colors best, and she decorates mostly with black and deep blue. It would look a little masculine at first glance if it wasn't for all the white lace on everything. I went over to the vanity table, nudging aside the cherry wood stool with my foot as I looked myself over in the mirror.

I had changed a lot in the last few years, but one thing remained the same; I still looked like a miniature of Dad. But aside from still not being as tall as him, the horns on my head and the spikes on my shell were noticeably smaller than his. And I still haven't quite managed to achieve the same booming voice, the larger than life presence that makes little toads run for the hills with high-pitched squeals - but I'm working on it.

I ran my clawed fingers through my red-orange hair, spiking it out even more than it already did, then cupped my chin in one hand and tossed myself a wink. "Oh yeah - who's the stud?"

Behind me, Elsie made a gagging sound. "Boys."

Snickering, I turned away from the mirror, just as Rue wandered into the room. He might be Elsie's twin, but appearance-wise, he could easily pass for Mama Rosie's younger brother. He has the same black hair, the same green eyes, the same pale, delicate skin. Personality-wise? Now that was a different story. Mama Rosie claims he inherited his behavior and mannerisms from his grandparents. Whatever the cause, Rue has always been shy, reserved, cautious. Not at all like his jump-in-with-both-feet twin...yet for some reason they never argue about anything.

"Hey, Ruby-Roo," Elsie greeted cheerfully. "Wanna help me plot to take over the world?"

"Maybe later," Rue mumbled, as he took a seat at her writing desk and glumly propped his chin in his hands.

His eyes were red-rimmed, the only sign of color in his ivory face. I made sure not to tease him about it - Elsie would spit fire at me if I did. Rue has always been small, looking almost lost in the black-and-scarlet robes he wore, and as a result everybody babied him even though, technically, Elsie was the youngest. That was what Kammy had told us, anyway. Not that anyone wanted to stick around to hear her describe how she had put Mama Rosie into a stupor before pulling the twins out 'the easy way,' since she claimed that Elsie's shell would have made normal delivery too risky.

Elsie was busy scribbling in her book while Rue continued to stare gloomily into space when a flapping sound made me turn around. "I hate to disturb you, your Majesties," said the paratroopa hovering in the doorway, "but we have a...guest."

Guests were actually fairly common around here these days. Mama Rosie's brothers and sisters stop by frequently with their families - and even a few of our neighbors come in once in a while when they feel brave enough. Not to say that Dad has behaved himself in the last few years, but...Mama Rosie has an amazing knack for sending off heartfelt apologies and gifts that soothe over any feelings hurt after Dad is done trampling through someone else's kingdom.

Neither Elsie or Rue looked interested in seeing who our visitor was, so I went on alone with the paratroopa to the foyer, which had emptied since the last time I saw it. There was no one in sight except for a small figure standing in the middle of the room - a small figure in a red shirt, a denim-colored diaper, and a glossy red cap that hung lopsided on his round head. He had short black hair and a chubby nose that looked kind of like someone had glued a smooth potato sideways to the middle of his face, and he had a ratty stuffed cloud doll tucked under one arm while he placidly sucked on his thumb.

I'm not sure how long I stared before I managed to pick my jaw up off the floor and turned to the paratroopa, who bore a bland, bemused expression on his face. "Um, what the heck is Mario Jr doing here?" I asked in a hasty whisper.

Sure, we'd all been on much better terms with the Mushroom Kingdom ever since Dad married Mama Rosie and Mario helped out with that weird kidnapping incident from years ago, but did that mean his parents would be comfortable with their baby boy being over here in our castle by himself? I don't think so.

I also didn't think he could have possibly come here all by himself, but after taking a quick look around and asking the paratroopa, I came to the conclusion that he was definitely alone. Which was about as strange as the fact that a Mario Jr even existed - something that might never have happened, if the last chancellor of Mushroom Castle didn't suddenly up and keel over one day. His replacement was supposed to be ultra-mellow and didn't believe that being born royalty was important; Mario had rescued the kingdom and its citizens a thousand times over, and that was good enough for him. If he was king, that would mean that everyone would be safe for as long as he reigned.

The citizens had all agreed, and so the princess and the plumber had married and gotten straight to making babies. Yeah, I totally don't care to try and visualize that either.

Trying to look as non-threatening as possible, I cleared my throat and bent over a little. "So, little guy," I began casually, "just how did you get all the way over here?"

The stubby thumb came out with a 'pop.' "Rode," Mario Jr informed me, sounding proud of himself.

"I see. All by yourself?"

"Nuh-uh. Came with Popo."

Ah, yes. Mario Jr's little sister Portabella, who'd been given a baby yoshi to ride around on for her first birthday. "I see," I said again. "You two rode here together? Where is she?"

I sure hoped she was somewhere close by, like playing out front. Uh, not that the thought of a little pink-skinned baby playing over a moat of lava was very reassuring.

Readjusting his hold on the cloud toy, the miniature plumber turned and pointed vaguely. "Got lost."

I felt something a little like a cold rock dropping into my stomach. "Um...define lost."

"Out there. Yoshi ran off. Didn't find 'em so I come here."

He smiled and put his thumb back into his mouth. I straightened with a quiet groan and rubbed my eyes for a moment. Let's see if I understood this right; the helpless baby daughter of our closest ally/greatest enemy was currently outside roaming the wilds of Darkland, where she could easily fall into a pool of lava, drown in a pit of quicksand, or get eaten by any number of our exotic local wildlife?

Whimpering, I placed my face in my hands. "I want my Mommy."