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Chapter Text

Chapter Text

"Please excuse me, princess but you've been in there for a half hour! Dinner is nearly finished and if Mario's indeed coming, he'll be here soon! I advise you to be out soon, dear." Toadsworth called out through the bathroom door, as he slightly knocked on it.

"I'm so sorry, Toadsworth! I didn't realize the time!" Peach called out, surprisingly and glancing up at her bathroom wall clock. "I'll be ready soon! Just give me 5 to 10 more minutes!"

Toadsworth mumbled something that Peach couldn't quite make out as his footsteps quieted when he got further and further away. Peach could hear the sound of her bedroom door closing with a firm shut.

She was in her own personal bathroom that was inside her room and she decided to take a bath to freshen up for dinner. She was relaxing so much, that she nearly forgot the time!

"Ugh, I really don't want to get out..." The princess grumbled quietly to herself. "This bath is too relaxing. I should've got into the bath sooner or extended the time for dinner, but oh well. It's too late now..."

She got out and dried herself with the towel before proceeding to wrap it around her. She unplugged the tub and watched the drain suck up the bubbles and water for a few moments before opening the bathroom door, revealing her room.

The princess then got dressed into a nice dress. This wasn't her usual pink dress, either. No, it was indeed a pink dress, but this dress wasn't as frilly and puffy. It was a nice, short, mini dress that went up to Peach's knees. It was sparkly and sleeveless. Peach put on matching earrings and pink high heels. She also reapplied her makeup, but didn't worry about it too much because it wasn't like she was going on a date or anything. It was just a nice dinner for her and the kingdom's hero. Lastly, she made sure to fix her wavy blonde hair and throughly brush it.

"Princess!" Toadsworth called out, knocking on her bedroom door, slightly. "Master Mario is here and the dinner is all set up. I advise you to not take much longer. You don't want to keep him waiting because that is very rude and I taught you better than that."

Dang it, I forgot about the time... again!!! Peach thought. How oblivious can I be?!

"I'm so sorry again, Toadsworth! I'm heading out now!" Peach called out after him, grabbing her crown and placing it on her head.

"Okay, then. I'll update everyone." He replied as he left once more.

Peach then looked at herself in her vanity mirror one final time, making sure that she looked alright.

I hope this dinner goes well and nothing terrible happens. I don't want to make a fool out of myself in front of everybody. Including Mario...

The princess blushed a bit just at the thought of it. In fact, she never told anyone this, but she really had a soft spot for Mario. Who wouldn't? I mean, his adorable, wavy brown hair with the three locks in front and four in the back, his shiny child-like eyes that never faded of happiness, his black moustache that was incredibly soft as a feather when touched, made Peach dreamy.

Besides his handsome looks though, Mario had an amazing personality. She loved him for that the most. He seems to be so energetic even if he was exhausted, he never whined or complained about anything, he would help out and care for people as best he could, that Peach wondered if he ever remembered to take care of himself too. She laughed, shaking her head as she thought more and more about that plumber.

She suddenly snapped out of her trance as she remembered that Mario was now here and waiting for her along with everyone else. They couldn't start dinner without her and wouldn't, anyway even if they all had the choice to.

Oh no! I'm getting distracted by him once more! Great, I'm so screwed from Toadsworth after this dinner...

The princess quickly opened her bedroom door and headed out of the bedroom to greet Mario and everyone else for dinner.
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"I'm so sorry, everyone! I'm here!" Peach cried out, as her high heels loudly and quickly clicked on the marble floor as she entered the grand dining room.

Everyone stopped talking and turned to face the princess. They then stood up and bowed, including Mario.

"Oh, it's alright everyone. You didn't have to do that this time. You all may be seated. It's on me." Peach blushed, turning her head away, shamefully.

Everyone seated except for Mario who just walked up to the princess.

"Don't worry about it, princess. We weren't in any rush. We were able to pass the time." He smiled, reaching a gloved hand out to her.

The princess placed her gloved hand in his and Mario then walked with her to her seat. He generously pulled her chair out and helped seat her. He then pushed in her chair.

"Thank you, Mario. You are such a gentleman." The blonde princess beamed.

It was Mario's turn to blush a bit.

"Well, I just know how to treat a lady." He replied, beaming as well.

Soon after, everyone was served and respectfully digging into their food. Peach had made a nice, giant Italian dinner of fettuccine with seared scallops and prosciutto, along with some red wine. Her fellow Toad assistants, including Toadsworth helped as well.

"This dinner is amazing, princess! I really like the nice Italian themed dinner you got going!" Mario beamed after taking a few bites. Everyone else respectfully agreed.

Peach beamed back. "Why, thank you, Mario. It was especially for you, of course and I figured that it was the least I could do."

Mario nodded, and continued to eat. Same with the princess, Toadsworth and the Toads. Dinner also went by pretty quickly. Everyone chatted amongst themselves and were dainty. However, the princess still had to have a talk alone with Mario, so she excused herself as she and Mario respectfully left the table. The Toads and Toadsworth left to go to the kitchen to clean up after the dinner.

Princess Peach led Mario by the hand as she made her way to the balcony. The plumber watched her close the glass doors behind him, as he grew anxious, waiting to see what Peach possibly wanted to tell him.

She let go of the door handle and sighed to herself, as she slowly walked out to the edge of the balcony and placed her hands on the cool railing. Mario hesitated as he watched her, slowly following and standing beside her.

"Nice night, isn't it, Mario?" She asked, staring into the cool, evening sky.

"It sure is, princess." The man replied, gazing into the night sky and putting a hand on the banister as well. "It's not too hot nor too cold, either."

"Yeah, I miss nights like those. You have to cherish them while they last." The princess agreed, chuckling softly to herself.

"I agree." Mario nodded, turning to give the princess a smile.

Peach smiled back.

"You also look wonderful tonight, princess. I mean, you always do, but-" Mario started.

"It's okay. I know what you mean, haha. I don't get offended for things like that, but thank you, Mario. You look very handsome and stylish tonight. I usually don't see you dressed up besides going out to dinner sometimes."

"Yeah, I am aware." The plumber replied, chuckling. "I'm not always one for dressing up, but thank you as well."

Peach nodded in response, not saying anything else because of what was on her mind.

"So, um, Mario... As you can probably figure out from the letter and coming to the balcony, that I have something to tell you, right?"

"Y-Yes, princess. That's correct." Mario replied, now slightly unnerved to find out what the princess wanted to talk about. "Excuse me, but before you tell me, I just want to get this out of the way; I-I am not in trouble, am I?"

The plumber slightly fidgeted with his hands and looked at the princess, nervously, waiting for her response.

"Oh, goodness no, Mario!" She laughed, shaking her head, slightly. "You didn't do anything wrong. Not that I know of, anyway... Why do you ask?"

"Erm, it's nothing, princess. I guess it was just a silly thought going through my head." Mario chuckled nervously, excusing and dismissing himself.

"Oh... Alright, then."

The princess then turned her whole body and looked at Mario. Mario respectfully did the same thing back. He knew that with her body language, that she wanted to have a deep conversation so he got more nervous.

Peach sighed and took a deep breath.

"Well," She started, awkwardly. "I just wanted to ask you if you were available this weekend to... I don't know... Hang out with just the 2 of us? We don't really get that much time to spend together, and when we do, it mostly just involves me getting kidnapped by Bowser with you taking me home in the end. The walk home is all we really get. Maybe a few dinners as well together, but that's about it."

The plumber relaxed and nodded, understandably. "Believe it or not, princess, I feel the exact same way. I wanted to know the same thing with you and I was actually going to ask you that eventually. I was... just to shy to say anything..."

He blushed, and turned his gaze away from her, clearly embarrassed, but relieved that she felt the same way.

"Oh! Wow, haha!" The princess nervously chuckled, blushing a bit as well. "So will the weekend be alright for you?"

"Yes, princess. It will." The man smiled. His big, blue eyes seemed to glow and sparkle under the moonlight, making his smile seem even more sweet. "Where will we be going to?"

"Oops, I completely forgot about that... My bad." The princess laughed and slightly scratched the back of her neck in embarrassment.

"It's alright, princess. It happens to me too. Heck, I believe it happens to everyone!" He replied, giggling a bit.

Peach joined him until Mario starting to fully laugh. Peach began fully laughing as well.

"Well," She began, finally calming down and catching her breath. "I don't know how that became the most hilarious thing tonight, but I'm glad we both had a nice laugh."

"You know what, princess?"

"Hm?"

"Me too." Mario beamed.

Peach beamed back. "Anyway, where would you like to go this weekend?"

"Oh! Me? Uh, you can choose, princess."

"It's alright. I chose the last few times. Besides, it is my treat, after all."

"Thank you, princess. You are so kind." Mario bowed, making the princess put a hand over her mouth to hide her quiet giggling.

"Of course." She smiled. "I want to be equal and treat you fairly too."

Mario turned his head away from Peach, wondering what her reaction will be when he spoke.

"You already do, princess." Mario beamed as he faced her once more, looking into her blue eyes that matched the plumber's.

Peach blushed, making Mario blush as well.

Just then, before the plumber knew it, the princess had smiled and slowly leaned forward to his height level, closing her eyes.

Mama mia! D-Does she want to kiss me?! He thought, excited, but really nervous. He had never had a kiss on the lips from Princess Peach before. It was just either the nose, head or cheek.

Mario closed his eyes and leaned forward to kiss her back. They kissed for a few seconds before Peach pulled apart and chuckled a bit.

"I-I don't know what came over me. I'm so sorry about that..." She said, embarrassed and blushing, heavily.

"Don't be." The plumber remarked, smirking and pulling her in. He held the princess close to him as they kissed once more under the moonlight and starry sky.

Peach was shocked and speechless, but it was alright because it's not like she could talk, anyways. She didn't even want to. She was just glad that they both returned each other's feelings. She wanted this moment to last between them forever.

Mario slowly pulled away and let go of Peach. They both blushed and smiled at each other before awkwardly chuckling to themselves.

"S-Should we keep this between the two of us, princess?"

"Yeah, I think it would be best to. For now, anyway. I don't know what Toadsworth would say or think at the moment with him being overprotective of me and all, heh heh. Besides, rumours spread around fast in this kingdom. I mean, if that's okay with you."

"I'm good with any of your decisions, my love."

Peach blushed so much, she basically turned into a tomato, which made Mario giggle.

"Well, alright then, hun." Peach smiled.

It was Mario's turn to become a tomato, but he smiled back, nevertheless.

"Well, uhh..." Mario started, changing the subject. "Back to ideas for the weekend, I guess, haha... I suppose we can do something else besides going out to dinner since we have done that a lot. I mean, just to switch things up, if that's alright with you, princess."

"Of course." She nodded. "It's your decision, after all."

"Don't get me wrong, though! I will never and I mean NEVER get tired of food! Heh heh!"

Mario chuckled while Peach began laughing a bit again.

"Me neither." She replied. "Food's everything!"

"Agreed!" Mario laughed. "Although, maybe next weekend maybe we can go to that Milli Vanilli concert?

"Yeah, sure!" The princess piped up, excitedly. "I'm such a huge fan of them! However, how come I know of this at the last minute? I never heard about it... I guess I must have been so busy, that I never heard or paid any attention." Peach said, solemnly, while shaking her head, softly.

"It's alright, princess." Mario said, reassuringly, taking Peach's gloved hands together in his and kissing the tops of both of them. "I understand. Don't stress yourself on little stuff like that. At least we can go. Besides, this is why I wanted us to go together. I know how special it would be for you."

"Awe, Mario. Thank you, you're such a sweetheart!"

"Thanks, Peachy. But in my opinion, you are the sweet one, here." The plumber smiled at her and winked.

Peach giggled. "Alright, alright, you win! And Peachy? Well, that's a cute nickname for me. I like it."

"Heh heh. Why, thank you, princess. Glad you do. Oh! And before I forget, what time do you want me to pick you up at when we go to the concert?

"That depends. What time does it start?"

"8pm and it's until 12am, I believe."

"Alright. Will 7:30pm work for you to pick me up at, then?"

The plumber respectfully nodded. "Yes, that works for me just fine."

"Okay." The princess smiled.

She kissed the plumber on his nose, which made Mario return the smile back at her.

Just then, there was a slight knock on the glass door as someone slowly slid it open.

Mario and Peach both turned to see Toadsworth there, standing in the doorway.

"Please excuse me, princess and Master Mario, but the princess must come inside now. It's getting late, after all, and I'm sure you have to get home now. Am I right, Mario?"

The plumber nodded. "Yes, sir. Luigi must be waiting back at home for me as well. I shouldn't keep him waiting."

Toadsworth stepped in front of the balcony door and moved to the side, giving Mario enough room to pass through.

"Hm... No, I suppose you mustn't. Say 'hi' to your brother for me will you, please, Master Mario?" Toadsworth asked, raising an eyebrow slightly as he leaned on his mushroom cane.

Mario walked to the balcony doorway and turned his head to look over his shoulder. "Of course. Goodnight, Toadsworth. And goodnight to you too, princess."

"Goodnight, Mario." Peach smiled and waved.

"Goodnight, Master Mario."

Mario turned around fully to look at the two one final time for the night. "Thank you both for everything tonight. I had a wonderful evening. I appreciate you all for having me over. Please give the Toads my thanks, as well."

"Will do, Master Mario." Toadsworth nodded, respectfully.

Mario turned his back on the two and walked away from the balcony and into the castle walls once more. Toadsworth and Princess Peach walked with him out of the castle to show their respect and manners.

They all waved to each other as Mario then ran and jumped into a green warp pipe. Sighing with exhaustion, Toadsworth turned around to head back inside the castle.

"Come, princess." He said, with his back facing her. "It is late and a princess needs her rest. You didn't have much of a nap after your rescue earlier today. You must be exhausted."

Peach nodded, even though Toadsworth wouldn't be able to see it.

"Yes, Toadsworth. I understand. However, I am quite fatigued, indeed. I'm just glad this night went well and everyone had a dainty time, though."

"As do I."

Peach walked up to Toadsworth's side. Together, they headed inside the castle doors and locked up for the night. They exchanged 'goodnight's' and headed up to their rooms to bed.

Toadsworth, being an older Toad and getting exhausted quite easily, (especially after a long day), fell asleep within a minute after putting his head on the pillow.

Peach changed into her pj's and removed her makeup as she turned off her light and crawled under the covers of her bed. Snuggling, she replayed the whole night in her mind once more.

It felt so much like a... a dream! Especially the kiss that Mario and I shared. But I'm so glad it wasn't all a dream. I had a fantastic night and definitely another memory that I'll always cherish. Especially since that was Mario and I's first REAL kiss. Peach thought, dreamily.

She wished that Mario and her could've announced that they were together soon, (aka the next day), but that will have to wait until the future, just at the perfect timing. She didn't want it to be too soon or too late. The time will come when it's ready, and Mario and the princess will be prepared.

Drifting around in her own thoughts, the exhausted kingdom ruler soon fell asleep after 5 minutes.
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The hero himself had just gotten into his pj's and into bed as well. Luigi snored softly from across the room, clearly unaware of his brother's return. Mario chuckled to himself as he watched the blankets that covered his twin brother's body rise and fall with each snoring breath.

He must have had a long day and night, too, huh? The plumber thought, smiling. Too bad I can't tell him about Peach and I at the moment... Oh, well. Stuff happens when it does for a reason. Speaking or rather THINKING of the princess, though...

Mario closed his eyes and re-lived the whole night again, just as Peach did. He couldn't get over the fact that he and the princess actually kissed. Especially since he was in love with the princess for years.

Honestly, it's about time, though... Mario thought, a bit bitterly. He thought this was kind of selfish, but I mean, can you really blame the poor guy?

Since he knew that they both fell for each other, Mario thought that she would most definitely say, 'yes' to his future proposal now. Just thinking about it, gave the plumber nervous and excited butterflies that flew around in his stomach.

He opened his eyes and tried to calm down, though as to not wake up his brother. However, Mario doubted he ever could wake him up easily because Luigi seemed like he was knocked out, cold, as if someone had drugged him or something.

I'm just glad this night went smoothly. Everything turned out better than expected! Mario thought, happily.

Yawning, Mario closed his eyes once more and peacefully fell asleep not that long afterwards, just thinking about him and Peach.

Chapter Text

"Maaarrriiiooo, wake uppppp!!!" Luigi cried, jumping up and down onto the plumber's bed.

Mario just grunted in response and rolled over, trying to get into a more comfortable position, but to no avail. The vibration and sag of the mattress with each jump, made Mario go - as he liked to call it - 'cuckoo crazy'.

"Mama mia! Can't a guy catch any sleep around here?! Luigi, get off my bed before I make you get off!" Mario hissed, squeezing his eyes shut as he flung his red blanket over his head.

Luigi stopped jumping and crossed his arms.

"Well, I did try to repeatedly whack your face with a pillow, but that didn't work. Anyway, I'd like to see you try!" He taunted, rolling his eyes.

That did it for Mario. With a smirk, he sat up.

"Okie dokie, then. It's your funeral!" He laughed, shoving Luigi off his bed.

"WaAaAaAaAaAaAaHhHhHhH!!!!!!" Luigi screamed as he crashed to the floor.

Mario exploded with laughter and looked over the side of his bed to catch a glimpse of his brother.

Luigi sat on the floor, clearly unamused. His famous green cap with his 'L' initial stitched onto the front of it was tipped to the side, nearly falling off his head. His brown, wavy three front locks of hair stuck out and his right overall strap wasn't even on his shoulder anymore. It slid off. His left big, brown boot was nearly slid all the way off as well. You could see Luigi's sock.

"Hahaha! You look like you just came back from wrestling with chickens! How on Earth did you become like that when all I did was push you off my bed?" Mario giggled.

"Well, I'm glad you found that amusing, Mr. Giggles-A-Lot!" Luigi frowned.

"Oh, lighten up, Weeg!" Mario chuckled, wiping away a tear. "I barely touched you. Besides, you honestly had this coming!"

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Luigi admitted, standing up and brushing himself off. He fixed his cap, boot and overall strap, then looked at his older bro with an mischievous grin. "Let's see if you had this coming, though!"

Luigi snickered and lunged forward at his bro, grabbing his arm and yanking him towards him. This caused the plumber to fall out of his bed and crash to the floor face first. Luigi exploded with laughter.

"AHAHAHAHAHA!!! Look who's laughing now! Luigi is! Oh yeah, he's number one! Yahoo!" Luigi cried, doing a strange victory dance.

Mario groaned, lifting his face up of the ground. He sat up, while he rubbed his large nose in pain. "Okay, okay! Fine, you win, bro." He cried, shaking his head. "I am no match for the one and only Weegster."

Luigi chuckled at the nickname his brother gave him. "Well, I appreciate your surrender."

Mario rolled his eyes. "Can we just call it a truce now?"

"Of course." Luigi grinned. "We're now even, after all."

Are you kidding me? Not even close... Mario thought, annoyed. He didn't dare tell Luigi that, though. He just woke up and didn't need another wrestle mania to happen.

"Well, now that we are done with that and I've succeeded my mission in waking you up, how about we go get some breakfast?" Luigi asked, happily.

Mario perked up. "You know I could never say, 'no' to free food!" He laughed. "Just let me get dressed and I'll meet you downstairs in the kitchen!"
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Mario was sitting at the kitchen table, sipping a mug of coffee and reading a newspaper. He was now back in his usual attire of a red, long-sleeved shirt with his blue overalls and brown boots. His famous red cap with the letter 'M' on the front of it, was perched on his head.

Luigi served his brother some bacon, sausage, eggs and toast before putting some on his own plate.

"Thanks, Weeg." Mario said, not looking up from his paper and taking another sip of his coffee.

"Yeah, it's no problem, bro." Luigi replied as he sat down. "Anything interesting going on today in the paper?"

"Hm?"

Luigi glared in annoyance at his brother. "Mario...!"

Mario put his newspaper down and sighed. "Sorry, bro. And no, nothing's really going on. Just boring stuff." He placed his mug with coffee still in it onto the table and dug into his breakfast.

"Oh... Well, are you feeling alright?" Luigi asked, concerned. He noticed that Mario wasn't quite being as happy and energetic as he usually was in the mornings.

"I'm fine, Luigi. Why?" Mario asked, raising an eyebrow at his brother when he finished swallowing a mouthful of food.

It was Luigi's turn to sigh. "You just don't seem like your usual self in the mornings. That's all. Is there something on your mind?"

"Well, can you really blame me if my sleep got attacked?" Mario snorted.

"Well, sorRY. Like I said, I tried to wake you up a different way."

"It's whatever."

"Were you thinking of last night? I remember you saying yesterday that you were going to the princess' castle for dinner."

Mario froze and calmly put his silverware down. "What do you know about last night?" He hissed.

"Whoa! So defensive... Wait, so does that mean that something did happen, then?!" Luigi asked, excitedly and suddenly interested.

"What's it matter to you?" Mario asked, clearly getting a bit annoyed.

"I just want to know."

"No, nothing happened. Just a nice dinner, that's all."

"I have a hard time believing that."

"It's true!" Mario insisted.

Luigi chuckled. "Are you SURE?"

"Yes!" Mario cried, throwing his hands up in the air. "Mama mia! What do you want from me, Luigi? Just get to the point!"

"Oh, come on, bro! Don't act like you don't know."

"I really don't."

"Most dinners like that usually end up with a 'goodnight kiss'." He giggled.

Mario blushed. "Well, a goodnight kiss didn't happen..." He replied, going back to enjoying his breakfast.

"Then why are you blushing?" Luigi snorted.

Mario ignored him.

"Did my bro get his first kiss?" Luigi snickered, teasingly.

"Oh, shut up before I throw you out the window."

Luigi laughed and ate his breakfast.

Well, that went well. He thought, sarcastically. Welp, the beans will spill soon, heh heh...
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Meanwhile, Princess Peach was taking her morning stroll with Red Toad, Blue Toad and Yellow Toad around her kingdom. She was back to her regular attire of her fluffy pink dress, blue earrings and red high heels. It was a bright, sunny day and it was the perfect morning to go out and get some fresh air. The Toads accompanied her to protect her in case Bowser showed up again and just to get some air and exercise as well.

"What a lovely morning it is today, isn't it, princess?" Blue Toad asked.

The princess nodded. "Yes, Blue Toad. It sure is." She smiled.

"I just love the warm weather!" Yellow Toad added.

"So do I!" Red Toad exclaimed, beaming. "There's so much things you can do in warm weather, rather then the cold. Plus, you don't have to worry about dressing warm just so you don't freeze to death!"

Everyone laughed, including Princess Peach.

"Awe, you Toads are so silly. I just love your company, though." She smiled.

"We love your company, too, princess!" All three Toads said at the same time. They all looked at each other in shock and confusion before laughing again. Peach joined in.

"Well, what should we do now?" Blue Toad asked everyone as they continued to walk.

"How about seeing how fast we all can eat ice cream? Kind of like an ice cream eating contest." Toad (Red) suggested.

Everyone stared at him for a few seconds like he was crazy and blinked, concerned for him. Although, nobody was surprised at his comment.

"Umm..." Peach began, slowly.

"Don't be stupid," Yellow Toad snapped. "Nobody wants to do that for many reasons, despite the warmth outside."

Blue Toad just rolled his eyes at the two of them.

"How about cloud gazing?" Peach suggested. "I haven't done that for a while and today's a perfect day to relax and look at clouds."

"I think that's a great idea, princess!" Blue Toad piped up, before Toad could suggest any more ridiculous things.

Yellow Toad nodded in agreement. "So do I! I love cloud gazing!"

"Awe, do we have to?" Toad whined. "Cloud gazing is soooo boring that I always fall asleep..."

Blue Toad gave him a death glare, while Yellow Toad knocked him upside his head.

"Stop being rude." Yellow Toad hissed. "Cloud gazing is so fun. The reason why you want to fall asleep is because it's so relaxing, you dummy."

"Well, if you don't want to do that, we can do something else." The princess sighed. "At least you're being honest, Toad."

"No, no. It's alright, princess. Toad's just being a jerk." Blue Toad said, reassuringly. He gave Toad another serious glance before calmly looking up at the princess again.

"Awe, but I don't-"

Yellow Toad covered his mouth before he could say anything else.

"Want me to knock you upside the head, again?" Yellow Toad hissed, whispering in his nonexistent ear. "Just suck it up. It's only for a little bit. You won't die."

"Yes, I-"

Yellow Toad whacked him again.

"Owwwww!!!" Toad complained.

"That's what you deserve. Serves you right." Blue Toad snickered.

"Guys, please don't fight..." Peach interrupted, placing a gloved hand on her face and shaking her head, slowly.

"Sorry, princess." Blue Toad and Yellow Toad said in unison.

"It's alright. Let's just go to my favourite cloud gazing spot." She smiled.

Blue Toad and Yellow Toad nodded. Yellow Toad grabbed an unamused Toad by his hand and dragged him until they all came to the princess' favourite cloud gazing spot.

It was on top of a large and wide grassy hill, not overly far from Peach's castle. Everyone climbed it and sat on it, making themselves comfortable. They then proceeded to lay down and start their cloud watching.

They laid down beside each other with a bit of space between them. From left to right was Blue Toad, Princess Peach, Yellow Toad, and lastly at the end was Toad. Yellow Toad wanted to be beside him to keep an eye on him and whack him again if anything. He actually enjoyed it maybe a little too much.

Toad just rolled his eyes at this "patheticness of cloud gazing" and yawned. The warm sunlight was making him drowsy, as usual. Blue Toad looked up at the bright, blue sky and crossed his arms, resting them behind his head. He then crossed his right leg over the left in relaxation. Princess Peach and Yellow Toad just laid down flat on the grass. However, Yellow Toad looked like a snowflake because his arms and legs were spread open like he was making a snow angel.

Princess Peach breathed a sigh of enjoyment and relaxation. She smiled as she happily gazed up at the white, fluffy clouds, slowly passing by overhead.

"Can any of you see what a certain cloud looks like yet?" She asked her fellow assistants, not turning her head away from the sky to look at them.

"Hm..." Blue Toad pondered, squinting his eyes hard in deep concentration as he tried to make out what the clouds looked like. Finally, he gave up. "No, not yet, princess." He sighed.

"It's alright, Blue Toad. How about you, Yellow Toad?"

"Well," Yellow Toad started, "To me, that cloud looks like a mushroom! Kind of like those mushroom power ups that Mario and Luigi use!" He exclaimed, pointing.

Everyone looked in the direction Yellow Toad was pointing.

"Wow, it actually does!" Peach exclaimed, excitedly.

"Yeah, I can see it, too!" Blue Toad added.

Toad said nothing. He just grumbled.

"Oh, quit being so miserable. It's not that bad." Yellow Toad said, rolling his eyes.

Toad just ignored him.

"Wait!" Blue Toad suddenly squealed, excitedly, which made everyone jump out of their skin a bit. "That cloud there looks just like horse!" He giggled and pointed as well.

"Indeed it does." Yellow Toad smiled, as he gazed in the direction of Blue Toad's pointed finger.

"Squeal again like that, and you'll kill everyone with a heart attack!" Toad snapped.

"Oh, Toad..." Peach sighed. "I know you don't enjoy cloud gazing, but why do you have to be so grumpy about it?"

"I know, right? It's ridiculous." Blue Toad nodded.

"Yeah, you really need to chill, dude. We're just having fun." Yellow Toad replied, turning his head in Toad's direction.

Toad just rolled his eyes again.

"Why don't you try it, Toad? Just once. You never know, you might like it." Peach said, calmly.

Yellow Toad and Blue Toad reluctantly agreed.

"Ugh, alright, fine. I guess I'll try it..." Toad huffed.

He looked around, searching for clouds that looked like certain shapes to him.

"Wait!" He said.

"What is it, Toad?" Peach asked, excitedly.

"That cloud looks like Bowser's clown car! In fact, it looks so real that it blends perfectly with the sky!" He cried, pointing. "You're actually right, princess. Cloud gazing is fun! Never doubted you for a second!"

"Yeah, suuureeee..." Blue Toad snorted.

Yellow Toad squinted to get a better look. "Hey, you guys... Is it just me, or does that cloud look like it's getting closer to us?"

Everyone looked.

"Indeed it does..." Blue Toad announced, slightly unnerved.

"Ooo! I can finally tell everyone that I touched a cloud!" Toad cried, sitting up and reaching his arms out, excitedly like he wanted it to come to him.

"No one would believe that without proof..." Yellow Toad replied, annoyed.

Toad ignored him.

"You guys..." Peach cried, suddenly sitting up in concern. "That's no cloud! That's actually Bowser's clown car!"

"Oh, no wonder it looked so real. Dang it." Toad frowned, snapping his fingers in front of him as he became bummed out.

"Toad, run to the castle and warn everyone that Bowser is here and that I sent you! Hurry!" Peach cried. "The rest of us has to run and hide, quickly!"

Toad did what he was asked. The rest of the three all stood up and ran.

There was a deep throated roar of laughter as the sound of a whirling propeller got louder and louder. Peach and the Toads hid behind a large bush nearby.

"I'm gonna go and try to stop him!" Yellow Toad announced. "You guys stay here."

"You're crazy, dude..." Blue Toad said, shaking his head in disbelief.

"No!" Peach cried, eyes large in concern. "You can't! It's too dangerous!"

"I'm not gonna let him hurt you again, princess! I've had enough." Yellow Toad replied, eyes gazing into hers. "I'll be fine. When I distract him, you guys run back to the castle as fast as you can!"

Before Peach or Blue Toad could try and protest, Yellow Toad went out into the open.

"Hey, you big disgrace to the reptile race!" He screamed out, waving his arms back and forth. "Over here!"

Bowser turned his large head over to the small Toad that made all the racket. He snarled. "You're gonna regret insulting me, you little shrimp! Soon, you're gonna wish you were never born!"

Yellow Toad gulped, but remained calm. Bowser was a really intimidating creature and definitely not one to mess with. All the Toads in the Mushroom Kingdom, including Toadsworth, were deathly frightened of Bowser, which is why they also looked up to Mario and appreciated him for his braveness.

"O-Oh yeah?" Yellow Toad replied, trying to not show any signs of fear. "Well, I'd like to see what you could possibly do!" He mocked.

He regretted saying that, but if it was to make sure that the princess can arrive to her castle safely, then it was worth it.

Bowser exploded with laughter. "Gladly!" He glared with a toothy grin. "This will show you never to mess with the one and only king of Darkland!"

Princess Peach and Blue Toad tried to sneak past and run to the castle. However, when the reptile's clown car activated its punching gloves, Peach couldn't help but gasp.

"Yellow Toad, look out!" She screamed. She quickly covered her mouth, but it was too late.

Bowser turned his head to see who said that, and snickered with amusement as he saw that it was Princess Peach. Turning back to Yellow Toad, Bowser used the punching gloves to punch Yellow Toad.

He flew into the trees with massive force. (Because I mean, he is really tiny compared to those massive gloves). The sound of his screaming and cracked branches were heard in a distance.

"Noooo!!! Yellow Toad!!!" Blue Toad yelled. He angrily turned to Bowser. "That was my friend!" He hissed.

"Who cares?" Bowser snarled. He took this as an opportunity to target the princess. With one swift glide of his clown car, he launched at her.

Peach screamed and tried to run away. Blue Toad angrily picked up a large rock nearby. With one swift throw, he managed to hit the side of the car with a loud CLUNK and it tilted.

Bowser let out a yell of surprise as he tumbled face first out of his clown car. It clumsily tumbled beside him, but no damage was done besides a dent on the side of it from the rock. The reptile face planted in the grass and dirt.

"Run, princess! Now!" Blue Toad ordered.

Peach ran with all her might, but stumbled a bit, as she was in her high heels and had to hold the end of her dress to avoid tripping on it.

Bowser took his face out of the Earth's soil and grumbled, angrily. He roared loudly as he realized what happened. He ran towards Blue Toad who stood there in shock, too afraid to do anything and not knowing what else to do.

Bowser angrily scooped up the poor mushroom fella and dropped kicked him long ways off the hill. Peach kept running, frightened and not looking over her shoulder. She promised in her mind that she would come back for them if they were still like this after her return to the Mushroom Kingdom.

That was way too easy! Pesky Toads didn't know what hit them! Anyway, that was fun, but now it's time for you, princess... Bowser thought, getting back into his clown car to chase the princess.

He easily approached her. Peach screamed and ducked down as Bowser made an effort to try and snatch her with one of his giant claws.

Darn, she got lucky. Bowser growled in his mind. No worries, though. Let's see her get past THIS!

Peach ran the opposite way from her castle in desperate hopes to try and lose him, but it looked like that evil reptile wasn't giving up so easily. She was running out of breath, but she kept pushing forward.

I have to get away. Even if I die trying. Peach thought, determinedly as she huffed and ran faster.

Ugh, she's gotten faster at running... Bowser clenched his teeth, in annoyance. He put more speed on his clown car and tried to go lower to the ground. That way, if Princess Peach tried to duck down to dodge him, he could still grab her, easily.

All I wanted was a nice morning to chill with the Toads, but noooooo... Of course that can't happen. Peach couldn't run anymore. She collapsed on the ground in defeat, trying to catch her breath.

"Gwahahahahaha!!!" Bowser laughed. He knew he won. Peach was out of breath and done for. Nothing could save her now.

Peach gasped in horror as she turned and saw the clown car coming at her in an alarming rate. She tried to get up once more, but her legs gave out from exhaustion and she tumbled back to the ground. She ducked and covered her head, but Bowser knew that wouldn't work this time.

He grinned a toothy smile as his victory was only a matter of seconds away.

Reaching out a large claw, he scooped the princess up as she tried to quickly crawl away. However, it was pointless as the reptile could easily get her. She thought it was still better than sitting around doing nothing, though.

Peach screamed as she kicked and flailed her arms and legs everywhere. Bowser just laughed.

"Looks like I have you once more, princess!" The reptile chuckled. His voice was really deep and sinister. "It's game over for you!"

"No!!!" Peach cried, gritting her teeth. "Let me go, right now! You're hurting me with your tight grip!" She pounded her fists onto Bowser's large, scaly hand, but of course, that didn't do anything to Bowser. He could barely feel it.

"How pathetic." He chuckled, not loosening his grip. "Your Toads couldn't even help you! What kind of bodyguards are they?"

"Leave them out of this!" The princess hissed.

"Oh, princess, princess. That isn't any way to talk to your future husband! What kind of manners is that?" He laughed, mockingly.

"You'll never be my husband!" Peach cried. "I'll never marry you in my whole entire life!!!"

"Well, we'll certainly see about that, shall we?" Bowser sneered. "Especially when I finally kill that no good, pasta eating plumber!"

"You'll never kill Mario! He's been beating you for years!"

"Yeah, well now the tables will turn! I finally have a good trick up my sleeve this time!" With this, Bowser cackled.

"Leave him alone! Don't you dare touch him!" Princess Peach shrieked.

Bowser ignored her. "Let's go back home now, shall we? Darkland is where you really belong!" Bowser announced. "Oh, and do enjoy the nice view and ride!" He snickered as he drove the clown car way up in the air. Together, they headed away from the Mushroom Kingdom and towards Darkland.

"MAAARRRRIIIOOO!!!!!" Peach screamed as they disappeared into the clouds.

Chapter Text

Toad had finally managed to approach Princess Peach's castle on his small, stubby legs. He huffed and panted as he approached the two Toad guards that stood there. Looks of confusion swept across their faces as they both raised a concerned eyebrow.

"Heeyy, you alright there, buddy?" The first guard asked, snickering a bit.

"Yeah, you look like you just ran a marathon!" The second Toad guard joined in.

"T-That's... because.... I... t-technically did..." Toad gasped, in between breaths. He bent over a bit and placed his left hand on his knee. With his right, he placed it on his heart to feel his heartbeat. It was beating so fast against his chest, that Toad was afraid it was going to rip right out.

"Wait, what do you mean?" Guard #1 asked.

"Did something happen?" The other questioned.

"Yeah!" Toad nodded, looking worried. "Yellow Toad, Blue Toad, the princess and I went for our usual morning walk when we decided to go cloud gazing. All was going quite well, too, when Bowser came with his clown car! He was first mistaken as a cloud, but that's besides the point... Anyway, the princess ordered me to run back here to get help, but I think those three are in immense danger! Especially the princess!"

"Oh no!" The second guard cried. "You must alert everyone at once!"

"Yes! Spread the news amongst the kingdom. I recommend going to Toadsworth, first though. Our beloved princess must be saved once more from the clutches of that monstrous creature!"

Toad nodded. The guards quickly let him in Peach's castle. There wasn't anyone in sight, so people must have been busy.

"Toadsworth! Toadsworth!" Toad called, jumping up and down while flailing his arms everywhere in alarm.

A few seconds later, there were the sounds of footsteps approaching and a cane being tapped on the ground with each step.

"Good heavens!" Toadsworth cried, pushing up his glasses and hobbling as fast as he could down the stairs. "What seems to be the matter, Toad?"

"I'm afraid that no-good evil monster, Bowser, has kidnapped the princess once more!" He shrieked. "Yellow Toad and Blue Toad were with her, and I'm afraid that they might've gotten hurt!"

"No!" Toadsworth gasped. "This can't be true! Master Mario just rescued her yesterday! That reptile never comes back that quickly!"

"Well, I'm afraid it is in fact, true..." Toad frowned. "What are we going to do? Oh, our poor princess!"

"We need to update Master Mario, immediately!" Toadsworth cried. "Go inform him, Toad! Don't waste another second! The longer we wait, the worst the situation will be for poor Princess Peach."

"Yes, sir!" Toad nodded. He quickly dashed out of the castle and jumped into a nearby warp pipe, heading towards the Mario Brothers' house.
*******************************************
"Are you seriously gonna do that all day?" Luigi complained, crossing his arms and giving his older brother a hard stare.

Oblivious to the stare, Mario was sitting on the floor in front of the television set, playing video games. Namely Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. He was staring deeply into the TV screen, surrounded by a large bag of chips and a can of pop with a straw. A few candy and chocolate wrappers were strewn around him as well. Luigi just rolled his eyes in disgust.

"What does it look like?" Mario replied, sassily, not looking at his brother. "Of course I am."

Luigi sighed and threw his hands up in the air. "When are you are you going to come off of that? You've been playing all morning! It's now going into the afternoon!"

"And when are you gonna stop being such a bambino about everything? Come on, Weeg. You gotta toughen up."

"Says the one who recklessly screams at the TV in defeat when he loses in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe." Luigi sneered.

"That's different." He replied, rolling his eyes once quickly before jamming more buttons with his thumbs and fingers on the controller.

"Oh, for pasta's sake, Mario! You are such a-"

Luigi was soon interrupted by Toad who came barreling through the door, crashing it down.

Mario paused his game and whipped around. "TOOOAAD!" He screeched so loud, that Luigi's eyes widened and he had to jam his fingers in his ears. "LOOK WHAT YOU DID!!! DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH TIMES I HAD TO KEEP FIXING THAT DOOR?!"

"Nope," Toad shrugged, clearly not caring.

"Mama mia, Mario! Shut up!" Luigi hissed, opening one of his eyes that was squeezed shut. He still had his fingers in his ears, but when he saw that Mario stopped screaming (at least for now, anyway), he slowly put his arms down and opened both eyes.

Mario let out a loud groan from Toad's smart aleck but honest response and stood up, placing his controller on the stand that the TV was on.

"What are you doing here, anyway?" He snapped at the small mushroom. "You nearly made me lose my game!"

"It's just a game, bro. Chill." Luigi said matter-of-factly.

"Don't care." Mario snapped. "You know how competitive I can be!"

"Clearly." Luigi snorted.

Mario gave him a warning glare.

"Anyway," Toad interrupted, feeling a bit hurt from his lack of attention. "I can tell this is a bad time, but there's been an emergency concerning the princess!"

Mario quickly calmed down and went from angry to worried. "What?!" He cried. "Is she alright?!"

"Mama mia. I hope nothing bad happened to her..." Luigi added, looking quite concerned as well. Not quite as seriously concerned as Mario, though.

"Well, since you are both busy, I'll be taking my leave now." Toad announced dramatically, turning around and walking towards the outside morning-afternoon sunshine.

"Oh, no you don't! Not so fast!" Mario hissed, grabbing Toad and spinning him around to face him. "You can't just leave like that! You need to tell me what happened to her!"

Toad didn't say anything at first as he just continued to blankly stare at Mario.

"Tell meeeeeee, please!!!" He cried, shaking Toad a bit.

"Be careful that you don't hurt him, bro. He's only a small mushroom boy and is very fragile." Luigi warned, sternly.

"Gee, thanks for that." Toad replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "And for your information, buddy, I'm a fully grown adult.

"No problem!" Luigi snickered.

Toad ignored him and proceed to tell the Mario Bros everything that happened from the very beginning. "...and since I don't fully know what happened, I fear that Blue Toad, Yellow Toad and the princess are in trouble! Especially Princess Peach because who knows what could've happened to her if she was close to that evil Koopa!" He concluded.

Mario's eyes enlarged in fear and anger. "B-But I just defeated that rotten Koopa yesterday!" Mario protested. "How did he come back so quickly? He usually takes some time off to heal and plot his next evil scheme."

"Even I don't understand it." Toad admitted. "But regardless, I feel like the princess is in more danger than usual!"

Mario looked at Luigi and nodded towards him. "Well, then we better save her - and fast!" Mario cried, grabbing Luigi's wrist.

"W-We?!" Luigi's jaw dropped as he pointed to himself.

"Yes, Luigi. Us! Who else?" The plumber laughed.

"Wow, bro! It's been forever since I last went on an adventure with you! Are you for real?" Luigi asked, still dumbfounded.

"Of course I am, Weeg. But if you don't want to go, just say so." Mario replied, getting a bit annoyed. Luigi's shock was already starting to get old for him.

"No, no! I want to go!!!" He cried, throwing his arms around his brother and giving him a big hug. "Thank yooouuuu!!!"

"Ugh, Weegie..." Mario groaned, getting suffocated by his tight hug. "Yeah, yeah. It's whatever."

"Well, it's settled as usual, then." Toad said, enthusiastically. "You two go rescue the princess while I go back for Yellow Toad and Blue Toad. I hope Bowser didn't kidnap then as well."

"Alright," Mario nodded. "But Luigi and I will go with you, first, just in case anything is a trap and Bowser's minions are there."

"Okay."

"Wait, Mario!" Luigi suddenly shot out.

Toad and Mario looked at the tall man in green with confused looks on their faces.

"Yeah, bro?"

"What about the front door?"

Toad chuckled, awkwardly. "Oh yeaahhh... About that..." He started.

"Toad will fix it before we go." Mario cut in, with an unamused look on his face as he looked at the small mushroom.

Toad blushed.

"Heh heh, sorry..." He muttered.
*******************************************
The Mario Brothers and Toad finally made it to the large, wide hill that the attack took place at. Of course, nobody was in sight. The only thing in sight were some deep forestry, surrounding the two sides of the hill. The hill was so big, that it was half the height of both forestry. However, the hill wasn't that steep. It was perfect to go hiking up to and feel the sun (if it was out), on your face.

The three of them climbed to the very top and searched around for any signs of clues as to where Blue or Yellow Toad might be.

"Too bad I wasn't here to see what happened." Toad said, glumly. "Now we don't know even know where those two could possibly be!"

Mario put a hand on Toad's shoulder. "Don't worry, Toad," He said, reassuringly. "We'll find them."

"Yeah, I'm sure they haven't gotten very far." Luigi chimed in.

"Hmmm... Where do you guys suppose they could be?" The small mushroom asked, looking around at his surroundings.

The two plumbers looked around as well.

"Well, it seems like the only possibility that we can start with for now is through these forests." Mario replied, with a gloved finger and thumb on his chin in thought.

"The f-forests?!" Luigi asked, quivering. "I don't want to know what's waiting for me in there!"

"C'mon, Weegie. It's not like we have a choice. Besides, you wanted to come with me to save the princess. We have to do this together. For her!"

Luigi sighed and nodded. "Yeah, you're right, bro. Let's do this!" He smiled.

"Attaboy, Weeg!" Mario grinned, slapping Luigi playfully on the back.

The three of them then proceeded to walk down the hill towards the forest. Luigi stumbled a bit, nearly falling and face planting himself down the hill. Toad just rolled down it, like the child at heart he is, while Mario just did jumps and flips, being the energetic one as always.

"Yahoo! Yippee! WAHAA!" Mario yelled, happily as he finally reached the bottom of the hill.

"WaAaAuUuUgGgHh!!!" Toad screamed excitedly, rolling faster than Donkey Kong's barrels that Mario used to have to jump over back in the 80's.

"Guys!" Luigi cried out, trying to walk down the hill carefully. "Wait for me!"

He started to run but that was a mistake as he tripped over a small hole of dug up Earth and tumbled in every direction down the hill.

"AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!! MARIO, HELP ME!!!" Luigi screamed as he tried to stick out his arms to break his fall. However, it was futile. He just kept rolling.

"That's the spirit, Luigi!!!" Toad yelled out to him, clapping his hands and jumping up and down way too excitedly like a child having a sugar rush.

Before Mario could react and get out of the way, Luigi crashed into him, making them both go flying backwards and crash into a tree.

"AARGGH!" Mario screamed, squeezing his eyes shut and then groaned as he felt the hard wood smack into his spine. "This adventure to save the princess hasn't even begun yet and I think I already broke my back..."

Toad came running up to them, (even though it looked more like waddling), looking shocked.

"Mario! Luigi! Are you guys alright?!" He asked. "I certainly did not expect that to happen...!"

"Ugh... You and me both, bud..." Mario mumbled, rubbing his back.

Luigi peeled off his brother like some sort of cartoon and fell backwards. "I-I think we are alright, Toad. Thank you." Luigi replied to the mushroom, answering his previous question.

"Mama mia, speak for yourself!" Mario gritted through his teeth. "You're not the one who's spine got crushed in between wood and another person..."

Luigi stood up, quickly. "I'm so sorry, bro! Here, have this. It should make you feel better in no time." He said, pulling a 1-Up mushroom from his overall pant pocket.

Mario, hunched over like an old man without a cane, promptly took the green mushroom out of his brother's outstretched gloved hand.

"You sure you don't need this for later, Luigi?" Mario asked, looking up at him and then wincing from the pain as he continued to rub his back.

"Nah," Luigi dismissed, waving a hand at him. "You need it way more than I do. I can't stand to see my brother like this."

"Thanks." Mario smiled, weakly. He ate the mushroom with no further hesitation and waited for the vegetable to work its charm. The green mushroom healed the plumber within a matter of seconds.

"Ah, that feels so much better." Mario smiled, breathing a sigh of relief and straightening up. "Thanks again, Luigi."

"No problem, bro."

"Well, now that we all don't want to rip each other's heads off, do we all agree on how that our rolling and jumping down the hill was actually quite fun?" Toad grinned.

Mario and Luigi glared at Toad, warningly.

"Or, ya know... I can just shut up..." Toad slunked down, awkwardly smiling. "That works too!"

The brothers just rolled their eyes at him.

Suddenly, there was a brief rustling sound of some nearby bushes before it abruptly stopped. Toad and Luigi got so freaked out, that they hid behind Mario.

"Who's there?!" Mario barked out. "I'm not scared! Show yourself at once or I'm coming after you!"

There was no reply, so Toad and Luigi hid even more. (If that was even possible at this point).

"Heh heh, maybe it's just a wild animal like a squirrel or something?" Toad chuckled, starting to sweat bullets.

Mario was not going to be so easily convinced. He was positive that there was something or someone somewhere in those bushes and he was going to find out who it was. He wasn't about to have some stalker ruin their adventure and also put Princess Peach's life at stake. Besides, if it was really a wild animal, they would have ran away already since they're terrified of humans, right?

Toad and Luigi hung back, hugging each other as Mario slowly approached the bush that was rustling.

"Mario, be careful!" Luigi warned. "You don't know what could be lurking behind there!"

"Oh, please." Mario snorted, rolling his eyes. "I've been through things MUCH more intimidating than just a rustling bush...You both are overreacting."

"Well, at least we'd be the ones to live." Toad muttered. " 'Curiosity killed the cat'."

Surprisingly, Mario actually heard that, but he just ignored him.

With one quick swift motion of pulling the bush's leaves apart with his hands, Mario gasped at what he saw and jumped back.

"YELLOW TOAD?!" He cried out, relaxing.

Luigi and Toad gasped as well and ran up to where Mario and Yellow Toad were at.

"I most definitely didn't expect you to be in there!" Toad cried, hugging him. "But thank goodness we found you!"

"Are you alright?" Mario asked, helping Yellow Toad up.

He nodded, picking some branches and leaves off of him and brushing himself off. "Y-Yeah, I think so. Just a little shaken and beat up, but I'm fine." He groaned as he touched his head. "Ugh, my heads hurts a lot. Bowser really did a number on me..."

"Yeah, no kidding." Luigi replied, casually. "You even have a black eye."

"I do?!" Yellow Toad gasped, eyes widening.

Everyone besides Yellow Toad nodded.

"Wow! That's so cool! I can tell everyone that I'm a hero now and stood up for the princess against Bowser!"

Mario chuckled and pat Yellow Toad's head.

"We'd better find Blue Toad so Toad can take you both back to the castle to get cleaned and healed up. Luigi and I still need to go and rescue Princess Peach. Toad feels like she could be in more danger than usual. I weirdly have the same gut wrenching feeling..." Mario announced, biting his bottom lip.

Just the mention of Princess Peach in even more trouble made his heart sag in his chest. He wanted to get there asap. He didn't want anything bad to happen to her, or else he'd never forgive himself. It was his job to protect his (and the kingdom's) princess with all of his life.

"Do you have any idea where Blue Toad might be?" Luigi asked Yellow Toad.

"Unfortunately, no." Yellow Toad sighed, shaking his head in dismay. "All I remember is Bowser coming when the princess, Blue Toad, Toad and I were cloud gazing. I also remember standing up for her and distracting the reptile, allowing Blue Toad and the princess to sneak back to the castle. However, Princess Peach screamed for me to look out, and before I knew it, Bowser's clown car punching gloves launched me all the way into these trees and this bush. I then black out and sorry, that's all I can tell you..."

"That's alright, buddy. You were a big help." Mario smiled, looking down at Yellow Toad.

"Mario, there's no doubt now that Bowser kidnapped Princess Peach." Luigi cut in, looking worried.

"You're right..." Mario nodded. "We have to search around for Blue Toad and quick!"

"Yellow Toad and I can do that. You two just rescue Peach! We have no time to lose!" Toad said.

"Are you sure?" Mario asked, raising an eyebrow. "We want to make sure you guys get back to the castle safely."

"We'll be fine. We will all have each other." Toad reassured.

"Yeah, I guess that's true." Mario sighed. "Just please get back to the castle soon before everyone starts to worry even more, okie dokie?"

Yellow Toad and Toad nodded in confirmation.

"Okay, then. Let's go, Luigi." He said, as he turned to his brother.

"Okie dokie. See you later, Toads." Luigi waved.

They all exchanged their farewells and went their separate ways. Mario and Luigi made their way out of the forest and hopped into a nearby warp pipe labeled, "World 1" sketched into it like it was some sort of art piece at a museum. The two Toads just yakked up a storm like nothing ever bad even happened as they disappeared further into the trees, searching for their missing friend.

Chapter Text

The giant reptile had arrived back to Darkland in his clown car. He had still firmly gripped the princess in his giant claw as he held her over rivers of lava and grounds made up of volcanic rocks and obsidian.

Darkland was a sinister land that looked highly similar to the underworld with its intimating lava and fire, along with its dark atmosphere that included evil monsters. The monsters, in this case, was indeed Bowser's minions since he was the king of Darkland, after all. Even the lava (the Magmaarghs, Podoboos, etc) seemed to be at the reptile's commands, as well. The air in this kingdom seemed to be thick and ashy, since the whole kingdom was surrounded by deadly, hot substances. Not a single stream of sunlight nor green grass sprouted anywhere. Bowser absolutely detested happy, cheery or "nice" things, which made sense in a kingdom like this.

The princess continued to squirm and tried to pull herself out of the reptile's grip, however, it was still futile as always. She then realized that it was a good thing that Bowser didn't drop her after all, because if she fell, she would either be plunging into the magma or fall to her death onto the volcanic rocks and obsidian. She still hated to be in the reptile's tight grip, though. It was so uncomfortable that being a cage was more comfortable. Well, for a certain time, that is.

Peach slightly turned her head to get a glimpse of Bowser. He seemed to not pay any attention to her as he continue to stare ahead at whatever was in front of him. He tightened his grip a little bit more as he felt the princess squirm around in his grip, even though there was no way of the princess escaping, anyway.

If he tightens his hold on me anymore, he might break my spine and crush me to a bloody pulp! Princess Peach thought, horridly as she imagined the horrific scene. With fear, she just stayed limp in his hand as she frightenedly and briefly looked around Darkland, waiting to return to Bowser's dark and evil castle. That way, Mario can come and rescue her quickly and everything can hopefully be over in a flash.

Nothing was heard during the flight except for the deep plopping and sizzling sound of lava everywhere and the rapid heartbeats that the princess had. Her deep breathing could be heard as well as she listened to the rapid winds that the propeller sliced in the air underneath them.

The clown car then came down slowly and at first, Princess Peach was confused until she realized why. Bowser and her were in the clown car, hovering above a large, dark bridge that crossed over a large river of lava. The bridge lead up to the one and only King Koopa's (Bowser's) evil and dark castle. Peach knew that castle anywhere.

Bowser then hopped out of the clown car and came crashing on the bridge with his giant, heavy feet. Princess Peach let out a small shriek of terror and covered her ears as she felt the vibration of the bridge shake, unsettlingly. The princess slowly uncovered her ears and wondered how this bridge never collapsed from the giant reptile king's stomping around.

Bowser paid no attention to the terrified princess in his massive claw as he turned around to face the clown car.

With one swift motion, it lifted back up in the air and flew around somewhere to the back of the castle. When it finally disappeared, Bowser began clomping his feet towards his giant, front castle doors. Since the princess was so tiny compared to the reptile, the vibrations shook her like a pop bottle experiment with Mentos. She felt like her head was going to explode, so she grunted a bit and squeezed her eyes shut in pain, while holding her head.

Bowser raised an eyebrow at her in concern. He tried to stomp a bit lighter, but everything still shook, so she'll have to deal with it until he put her in a cage.

Bowser stomped past his castle doors. They closed with a firm 'thud' and mechanisms behind him hissed as they clicked and locked into place. The door was now secured with locks and bolts of all sorts.

Bowser had always been overboard with security. Especially when Mario kept coming back to rescue the princess. He wanted to make sure that the pesky plumber couldn't get her easily and he enjoyed setting up traps to slow him down and hopefully kill him once and for all. Unfortunately, for him though, the man in red seemed be able to dodge and get past all of his traps, hence why he kept on coming back and successfully saving the princess all over again.

This time was going to be way different, though. There's no WAY in Darkland that Mario would be able to get past his gruesome, mischievous plan now! The plumber wouldn't know what hit him. He just couldn't wait to put it into action at the right time... The thought of Mario finally losing made his heart race with excitement and his toothy grin form across his face.

"KAMEK!" He suddenly boomed with great force, nearly making some items knock off of their shelves. Some evil paintings started rocking and shaking from side to side, but then slowly stopped.

Peach squealed and covered her ears again, but of course, Bowser paid no attention to her once more.

I'm surprised that I haven't lost my hearing yet from Bowser's roaring all the time... The princess complained in her mind.

She removed her hands again as she saw Kamek fly quickly on his broomstick towards them.

Kamek is a wizard-like koopa with a silky blue gown and a matching blue, silky hat. He wears large dark orange boots, that resemble the Mario Brothers'. He also has giant glasses with thick lens, that make it impossible to see his eyes. He has been a parental figure in all of Bowser's life, so Bowser highly looks up to him.

"Yes, Master Bowser? What seems to be the matter?" He asked, tilting his head slightly in confusion. He was used to Bowser's screaming and yelling, but still wondered what on Earth he could possibly want at this time.

"Don't tell me that you've forgotten already!" The reptile replied, rolling his eyes and groaning loudly.

"I'm sorry, Master Bowser," Kamek replied. "But it appears that I've been so busy, that I have. Being your main assistant and second ruler does become quite frustrating and chaotic. Not that I overly mind, it's just that-"

"AAARRRGGGHHH!!!!!" Bowser screamed so ear damaging loud, that Peach whimpered in fear and Kamek held onto his broom for dear life.

It was a good thing he did though, or else he would've gotten blown away by Bowser's forceful breath!

"Just shut UP! I don't need to hear you blabbering on and on for eternity!" Bowser screeched.

Kamek nodded, respectfully and did what he was asked. He fixed his glasses that were nearly falling off his face and trembled.

"Anyway," Bowser continued, calming down. "I've kidnapped the princess again for like the third or fourth time this week. I need you to lock her in a cage while I go and set up the diabolical plan that is SURE to kill that no good, red tomato, pasta-eating plumber once and for all!"

You say that for every time you kidnap the princess and look how much times those failed... Kamek thought, rolling his eyes.

Luckily, Bowser couldn't see it though because of his thick lens, covering his eyes.

"Alright." He nodded, with a toothy grin, similar to Bowser's. "Pass her over!"

"No!" Peach cried, squirming around and flailing her arms and legs once more. "Stop it! Let me go this instant!!!"

Bowser ignored her cries and placed her near Kamek. Kamek tried to quickly snatch her, but Princess Peach thought ahead of time and ran as quick as a flash as soon as her red high heels hit the floor.

Bowser roared and the whole castle shook, violently. Some objects fell off of their shelves and crashed to pieces onto the tile floors. Paintings even fell off their nails that held them in place and tumbled to the floor with a 'clatter'. Glass portraits cracked as they hit the ground.

Bowser turned sharply in anger towards Peach and stomped his foot towards her. This caused an earthquake and made Peach lose her balance. She screamed as she hit the deck and crashed to the floor, stunned.

Bowser roared with laughter as it deeply echoed in his throat. Kamek joined in, only his laughter was high pitched and cackle-like.

"And just where do you think YOU'RE exactly going?~" He taunted in a sing-song.

Princess Peach groaned and rubbed her head. She quickly got up and started to make a run for the castle doors again.

"Home! What else?!" She yelled in irritation, looking over her shoulder as she continued to run.

When she turned her head back around, the princess gave a sharp gasp in surprise. Kamek had blocked her way, wearing that same toothy grin as earlier.

"Sorry to cut in on you like this, princess, but I'm afraid you aren't going anywhere anytime soon!" He cackled, as Bowser snatched her up from behind her.

"AAAAHHHH!!!! Noooo!!! Please!!!" She begged, near tears.

They both ignored her pleads as Kamek took out his long, yellow wand magically from behind his back and waved it around. Bowser let go of Peach and stepped back to let Kamek do his thing and so he didn't interfere with his magic. Both evil koopas grinned as Kamek shot some magic, colourful, dust shapes onto her. Peach just stood there, frozen in fear. She also knew that there was no point in trying to escape again, anyways. The shapes slowly faded as thick ropes began to appear around her body, wrists and ankles.

She squirmed around for a bit and tried to use her teeth to pull the ropes off of her wrists, but it was futile. They were too thick and strong. Plus, they were tied very tightly all over her.

"Ha, nice try, love!" Bowser remarked, snatching her up before she lost her balance and crashed to the floor, unable to break her fall. "But I just can't let you go. You see, you're the main attraction of the cruel plan towards Mario, after all. You're the most important part; the bait! I can't wait to see that nincompoop's facial expressions when he finds out what I have in store for him!" He snickered, imagining the scenario as he pleased.

"I will never EVER in my whole entire royal life help you hurt him!" The princess yelled angrily in his face. "You can't make me! Mario is going to come and destroy you all over again!!!"

Bowser exploded with laughter like he just heard the funniest thing on Earth.

"Maybe you don't think so, princess, but you'll just have to wait and see the plan for yourself!" He chuckled and whispered harshly in her ear. "And nothing will be able to stop me. Not even that fuzzy-lipped freak!"

"You better leave him alone!" Princess Peach snapped. "Or you'll be sorry! ALL of you will!" Her gazed hardened as she turned to glare at Kamek.

Kamek just stared at her and remained motionless for a few seconds. He then snickered.

"Yeah, suurrreee, princess... Like your empty threats scare us! Puh-LEASE, darling. You can't even stop yourself from getting in Master Bowser's clutches! Plus, your Toad guards aren't very useful, so I don't think you'll be able to do much to us."

"I mean, he does have a point, hun," Bowser smirked, gazing into her eyes. Peach just turned her head in disgust. "You seriously need better guards. I mean, look at us compared to you."

Although it was kind of true, Peach denied it and scowled at the both of them. She then was about to defend herself when Bowser suddenly cut it.

"Well Kamek, let's teach this beautiful lady that it's impolite to mess with an evil king and his best assistant, shall we?" He grinned.

Uh oh. What do they possibly want to do to me? Peach thought, getting worried and frightened. Whatever it is, it doesn't sound good...

Kamek nodded, gleefully and waved his wand in the air again.

"NO!!!" Peach shot out. "Not the wand! Please! I-I'm sorry, just please don't hurt me! I beg you!"

"Relax," Bowser snorted, rolling his eyes. "It's not gonna hurt you."

"Well, these ropes do!" Peach hissed.

Bowser and Kamek ignored her as the colourful dust shapes flew at the princess once more. Peach was about to cry out in surprise, however, she suddenly realized that she couldn't speak at all.

When the dust cleared, her eyes widened in surprise as she realized that her mouth had been tied shut with a black handkerchief. Not only that, but it was as tight and uncomfortable as the ropes. She prayed in her mind that she wouldn't faint from lack of oxygen in her brain and lungs or even die.

"There," Bowser sneered, as Kamek put his magic wand behind his back. "That should keep you quiet until I am ready to put my plan in action!"

Kamek cackled, making Bowser roar with a deep laugh.

"Kamek," The reptile began, panting when they were finished. "Lock her in a cage and take her with you wherever you go. I will be too busy with my plan to watch her. Keep the ropes and hanky tied to her, though."

"Yes, Master Bowser. Will do!" Kamek replied, saluting with one hand, while the other was busy holding the broomstick he was sitting on.

He was actually glad to be able to take the responsibility of watching the princess for once. It meant that Master Bowser had put his full trust in him to do some of his dirty work, and he didn't want to let him down. Especially since he knew that the reptile never let anyone watch the princess besides himself because of overprotectiveness, lack of responsibility, etc from others. Kamek knew how much the princess meant to the king of Darkland.

He then scooped up a seething, petrified Princess Peach and took off with her to find her a cage, so he didn't have to use his right arm to carry her forever.

Bowser watched Kamek until he and the princess disappeared around a corner. He then proceeded to stomp (because Bowser literally never walks) back to his room that he liked to call, "His evil lair". He wanted to begin to start plotting his plan before Mario came. That way, when he did come, everything goes according to the plan, perfectly. Plus, Bowser can double check everything now so he himself doesn't mess things up, too.

Meanwhile, Kamek soon came across a cage that Mario never destroyed or dented while freeing the princess from Bowser's clutches. It was in the same small, empty room with the cage that Mario rescued the princess from the previous day. In fact, there were now a few cages strewn about everywhere, as if they have been tossed aside in a hurry or kicked over. Kamek had no idea how they got there.

Hovering and inspecting some cages, Kamek just sighed and finally went with the one that Mario had rescued Peach from yesterday. It wasn't dented or seriously damaged, after all. It had just been the lock that needed to be replaced and Kamek could do that easily. The thick, strong, metallic chain that it was connected to, still even hung from a large metal hook on the ceiling.

Shoving the pink damsel-in-distress inside, the magikoopa closed the cage door, holding the princess hostage until any further notice. He then took out his wand for the third time and proceeded to cast a spell on the cage, placing a firm lock on it. Kamek also made sure to put extra locks onto it and turn the whole cage fireproof so Mario couldn't try to use a fireflower to burn through the metal bars in an attempt to free the princess.

He thought this would all do for now. It's not like Mario would succeed this time anyway, right? Well, hopefully not for Bowser and his crew. But it's just in case... That plumber in red is quite a strong, smart and determined man, after all.

"Heh heh, let's see that troublemaker get through THAT!" The wizard giggled, mostly to himself.

"MMMPPPFFFHHH!!!" Peach muffled angrily through the handkerchief.

"Sorry, princess. Can't hear you!~" Kamek taunted, cackling.

Boy, did she want to teach him a lesson than to mess with the princess of 'The Mushroom Kingdom'! However, Mario probably would, anyway if she didn't.

The magikoopa then took the cage off its hinge and hung it up to the back of his broomstick. The broomstick was strong enough to hold it, and surprisingly, the cage wasn't overly heavily. Magikoopa secured the hook tightly with some more magic to make sure it wouldn't come off his broom.

He then flew out of the small room and out of the battle room with the flattened, red button. Along with the bridge that crackled and crumbled to pieces into the lava during Bowser and Mario's fight, of course.

Oh, Mario... Please hurry! I don't know what they're planning on doing to the both of us... The princess thought worriedly, fighting back tears and feeling her cage swing side to side as Kamek flew throughout the grand castle walls.
*******************************************
"...annnnnddd that's the story of how my I lost my precious cat, Buttons." Yellow Toad finished.

Toad, instantly bored out of his mind at the start of Yellow Toad's story, just rolled his eyes and sighed.

"Wow, I never knew you had a cat. You never told me until now. Kind of reminds me of my old cat, Pop Tart. Man, she was a handful..." Toad replied, pretending to be intrigued in his story.

"Yeahhh..." Yellow Toad admitted. "I just thought that now was a good time to bring him up just in case Blue Toad is lost too..." Yellow Toad sighed.

"Umm... Okay, then...?" Toad said, blinking his eyes, slowly in confusion on why Yellow Toad would say something like that. "Speaking of Blue Toad, we should actually try to find him now. We've been looking everywhere for like ten minutes and we've been so distracted."

Mainly because of you, though... Toad added harshly in thought. However, he dared not say it to Yellow Toad's face.

"Yeah, I actually forgot about him until now, to be honest."

Toad had no words for this.

Thank goodness he brought Blue Toad up, then or else they'd be in the woods forever and Yellow Toad probably wouldn't even have noticed.

"You WHAT?!" A muffled voice behind Yellow Toad and Toad cried out.

The two Toads whipped around in shock. There stood a figure about their size, covered in mud, leaves and sticks.

"WAAAUUGGGHHHHH!!! IT'S A FOREST MONSTER!!!" Yellow Toad screamed.

"RUN FOR YOUR LIVES! IT'S GONNA EAT YOU WHOLE AND THEN YOU'LL BECOME ONE OF THEM!!!" Toad screeched.

The two of them screamed and ran for their lives, looking for a place to hide. They first ran around in circles with their arms up in the air and then crashed into each other in panic. They then both screamed more and hopped into the bush next to them.

"You moron! This is my hiding place! Go find your own!" Toad hissed, in a whisper.

"Nu-uh! I was here first! You get out!" Yellow Toad harshly whispered back.

Before Toad could argue, the two of them heard a twig snap a few feet away from them. Instantly shutting up, the two of them held their breaths and prayed in their minds for the creature to go away.

Footsteps began to grow louder as they drew closer and closer to Yellow Toad and Toad's hiding spot. Their hearts beat at an alarming rate in their chest and they both felt as though they might obtain a heart attack anytime soon.

Just then, the sound of the footsteps stopped.

"I-I think it's gone." Toad whispered.

"Peek your head over and see." Yellow Toad whispered back.

"Are you out of your mushroom mind?!" Toad squeaked, quietly. "I don't want to die!"

"Well, you said it was gone!" Yellow Toad huffed, quietly.

"What if it's not, though?"

Yellow Toad's eyes widened. "Go check!"

"No way! You do it! You're the one who suggested it!"

"I'm not the one that wants to die, though."

"Bruh, I never said that I wanted to die!"

"Don't care! Still look!"

"If you're that concerned about it, YOU do it!"

"Just make the sacrifice and hurry up with it!"

"Why me?" Toad whined, softly.

"Cuz I said so." Yellow Toad replied, grinning.

"Nobody made you boss." Toad snorted, rolling his eyes.

"Shut up! You're gonna get us killed!"

"Well, at least we'd both make the sacrifice."

"I ain't making no dumb sacrifice. That's your job!"

"Says who?!"

"Me!"

Toad facepalmed at Yellow Toad's response.

"Don't worry, though," Yellow Toad added. "I'll make sure that you have a great funeral and everyone will remember you as a hero. Including the Mario Brothers!"

"Yeah, gee, thanks!" Toad replied, sarcastically.

"No problem!" Yellow Toad cheered, quietly. "Now go!"

Toad facepalmed again. He was about to just peek over the bush to stop all of this arguing when suddenly a loud rustle of leaves and twigs being snapped were heard right above them.

As you guessed (probably), it was the sound of their bush being pulled apart with a force just like Mario's from earlier. This time, though, it wasn't the moustached plumber in red.

Quickly but nervously looking up, Yellow Toad and Toad gasped in shock at what they saw.

It was Blue Toad.

Yellow Toad and Toad breathed a sigh of relief and quickly stood up. They squeezed him into a group hug before yelling in his face. Well, Yellow Toad did, anyway.

"WE HAVE TO GO BACK TO THE CASTLE!!!" He shrieked, shaking Blue Toad back and forth.

"Why?!" Blue Toad asked.

"BECAUSE THERE'S A CRAZY, MUSHROOM FOREST MURDERER ON THE LOOSE!!!" He screamed.

Blue Toad blinked slowly in disbelief at the both of them.

"HUH?!"

"It's true!" Toad nodded so vigorously, that Blue Toad was worried that his head might roll off. "He tried to eat us whole and turn us into forest monsters just like him!"

"Also, the reason that we have to go back to the castle is because Princess Peach has been kidnapped. Don't worry, though! Mario and Luigi are going to save her." Yellow Toad added.

"I know she got kidnapped! I was there cloud gazing, too, ya know!" Blue Toad snapped. "Remember?!"

"Oh yeah! I forgot!" Yellow Toad giggled.

Blue Toad and Toad facepalmed.

"And I thought I was terrible at remembering stuff..." Toad muttered in his hand as he slowly shook his head back and forth.

"Anyway," Blue Toad sighed. "That "monster" that you speak of, he-"

"You saw him too?!" Toad asked, gasping as his eyes widened.

"Well, yes, but actually no."

Now it was Yellow Toad and Toad's turn to become puzzled.

"What do you mean?" Yellow Toad asked.

"Yeah, man. Explain!" Toad huffed, crossing his arms.

Blue Toad rolled his eyes and started to explain.

"That "monster" was actually me. I was just covered in all that get up because of that rotten reptile, Bowser!"

"Wait... You mean to tell us that YOU were the monster this whole entire time?" Yellow Toad asked in disbelief.

"That's what I said, did I not?" Blue Toad remarked, flatly.

"But how come you have no more twigs, leaves and mud on you?" Toad asked, suspiciously.

"I went to go wash it off in a nearby river. Don't worry, it was already kinda filthy anyway, so I hardly polluted it."

"Don't worry about pollution, we have bigger problems!" Toad cut in, grabbing Blue Toad's wrist. Blue Toad slapped his hand away.

"OWWWWWW!!!!!" Toad complained. "What was that for?!"

Yellow and Blue Toad ignored him.

"Actually, pollution IS a big problem, but it's not something we have to worry about at the moment. We both promised Mario that the three of us will hurry and return to the castle safely when we find you." Yellow Toad explained.

Blue Toad nodded. "I see. Well, let's get going, then. Toads never break their promises! Mario and Luigi will have everything under control like always."

"Yeah, you're right." Toad nodded, in agreement. "Now let's all get out of this creepy forest!"

Chapter Text

After some time, the three Toads finally approached Princess Peach's castle. They were all huffing and puffing from how exhausted they were, but they were just relieved to get back to the castle safely.

Toadsworth approached them as they came into the castle.

"Master Mario! Thank goodness you-" He abruptly stopped as he saw that Mario wasn't here with the princess and instead, it was Yellow Toad, Toad and Blue Toad.

"Umm..." Toad began, awkwardly, shifting from side to side on his feet. "Sorry to burst your bubble, but we aren't Mario..."

"Yes, I see that now..." Toadsworth replied, reddening a bit from embarrassment and sheepishly scratching the back of his neck with one hand. "My apologizes, you three. I thought Master Mario made his return with the princess..."

The three of them just awkwardly stared and said nothing. Toadsworth just cleared his throat.

"Anyway, what are you all doing here?" He asked, leaning on his cane. "I mean, I sent Toad to go tell Master Mario that the princess has been kidnapped, but I didn't expect to see Blue Toad and Yellow Toad! Not that it's a bad thing, of course." He quickly added, slightly pushing up his glasses.

"It's a long story..." Toad chuckled, nervously. "But long story short, we found Yellow Toad, first. I then told Mario and Luigi to go rescue Princess Peach while Yellow Toad and I look for Blue Toad. Mario agreed to, but as long as all three of us returned to the castle safety after we found him. Now, the Mario Brothers are out on their adventures while we are here."

"Ah, I see," Toadsworth replied, intrigued in Toad's story. "Well, it's a good thing you are all safe and sound, nevertheless. The three of you should get cleaned up and back to work, though before Master Mario returns with the princess."

The three of them nodded in agreement.

"Sure thing, Toadsworth. I think that's a good idea. I've been covered in forestry and its scent for too long!" Blue Toad nodded. He then hurried out of the main lobby in a flash.

Toadsworth blinked in confusion then slowly turned around to watch him disappear. He then turned back around to face the other two Toads. The older Toad opened his mouth to speak, but then thought the better of it and just shook his head, slowly instead.

"Yeeaaahhh... That's another long story, too." Yellow Toad giggled, quietly.

"I think I'm alright to not hear that one, though!" Toadsworth remarked, playfully as he began chuckling and waved a dismissive hand in the air.

"Haha, fine with us!" Toad laughed.

"Well," Toadsworth began at last. "I still have some work around the kingdom to do, and I'm afraid that you two do as well, correct?"

"Yes, Toadsworth." Yellow Toad and Toad nodded and said in unison.

"Very well, then. Take care, you two. I'm glad you three are back safe and sound. I'll see you all later." And with that, Toadsworth turned on his heel and began to head towards some large brown doors.

"See you later, Toadsworth!" Toad called after him, waving.

"Take care as well!" Yellow Toad added.

They both watched him leave until he was fully out of sight and they both exchanged their "see ya later"'s to each other. With that, Yellow Toad and Toad went their separate ways to get cleaned up and do some unfinished work around the castle.
*******************************************
"Bro, are you absolutely CRAZY?!" Luigi screamed out as he watched his brother in horror.

Mario had practically launched himself across a large, wide gap of Earth and landed on his feet on the other side. The gap was way too wide than the regular platform jumps that the plumber usually performed on his adventures. Mario had risked it, nevertheless though, and successfully landed across, just barely reaching the edge of it. The plumber stumbled forward, trying to balance himself as some dirt and grass that he just stepped off of started to crumble and fall into the deadly, rocky abyss below.

Mario turned around and peeked down over the edge. He then straightened up and looked back up at Luigi from the other side of the edge. A bragging grin of amusement stretched across his face as he hardly paid attention to his brother's words.

"Would ya look at that, Weeg?" Mario yelled happily, throwing his arms up in the air and hopping back and forth from foot-to-foot. It looked like he was doing a really weird rain dance. Well, over from Luigi's perspective, anyway.

Luigi cupped his hands around his mouth, even though they could still hear other with the given distance between them and the echo that sounded throughout the rocky abyss. "YOU IDIOTIC DAREDEVIL! YOU COULD'VE GOTTEN YOURSELF KILLED!!!" He hollered.

Mario stopped dancing and laughed. "C'mon, Weegie! Your turn!" The plumber waved over to him.

"YOU'RE OUT OF YOUR PASTA MIND IF YOU THINK I'M TRYING THAT!!!"

"Hey, it's not as bad as it looks. Besides, you're the highest jumper in the family. You should have no trouble at all."

"But still! What if I don't make it during the jump or I slip and fall? O-Or-"

This time it was Mario's turn to holler.

"WEEGIE! LET'S GOOOOO, YOU DEFICIENTE!!! PRINCESS PEACH NEEDS US!!!"

Luigi gave his brother a dirty look from the Italian insult, even though he knew Mario couldn't really see it from a distance.

Finally, he sighed. Mario was right, but butterflies crept and flew around in his stomach, nevertheless. Luigi never seen Mario try and jump a gap like that. He was surprised that he even survived that. However, he was extremely grateful that he did, though.

"Okay," He called over to his brother. "I'll do it, but just for the princess!"

"Of course, bro. That's why we are doing this after all, right?" He laughed. "Anyway, you got this!"

Mario gave his brother two thumbs up in encouragement.

Luigi turned around and nervously jogged a few meters away from his brother to get a running start. He then turned around, heart beating so fast, it was if he just ran an entire marathon. He felt his throat go dry and he wiped the sweat off his brow with his arm.

Mario, I swear on a plate of pasta if I fall...

Now wasn't the time to think about him failing to make the jump. It would make everything worse and he might end up falling because he's so focused on it. I mean, yes, Luigi was a high jumper, but even he wasn't crazy enough as his brother to attempt anything like that. Luigi knew better than that. Besides, just because Luigi was a high jumper, didn't mean he could jump across a large, wide gap without any effort.

Mario, however, was a different story. He loves to take risks so much, that Luigi worries that Mario forgets about any sort of danger that goes on around him. Yeah, Mario was used to it because of his adventures, but Mario wouldn't even sense danger in front of his face. Because of this, Luigi was deathly worried about his brother's safety, which is another reason why he's a nervous wreck a lot of the time. Someone had to be conscious of the dangers in the world and it wasn't going to be Mario.

He needed to keep his brother safe at all times. He can't lose him. He just can't!

Shaking away all the unnecessary thoughts that haunted his mind, Luigi gulped. He tried taking deep breaths. He better hurry, because Mario wouldn't wait for him all day. Maybe Luigi should've stayed home. Maybe he should've went with the Toads. Too late now. His brother and the princess was counting on him. Luigi couldn't just fail them.

"Here I go..." The plumber in green muttered under his thick, black moustache that was shaped differently than his brother's.

He began to lightly jog towards the edge of the cliff. His breathing quickly sped up in fear, but Luigi tried to control it. The plumber would give it all he got when the time came to leap. He had to time it perfectly and nothing must distract him or else.

Luigi squinted under the sun, sweat starting to appear all over his face again. There was no time to wipe it off. He must focus.

Luigi slowly increased his running speed as the edge of the grassy platform started to come into view.

Here it comes. Not too far now...

Mario stood on the other side, not saying a word to distract his brother. He just watched in silence as he bit his bottom lip, hoping in his mind that Luigi would make it. He just had to!

Luigi finally released all of his leftover energy that was saved into his body. His arms and legs pumped with anticipation the closer and closer he got to the edge.

He then finally came to the ledge. Holding his breath, Luigi stuck his right foot on the ledge and pushed off as hard as he could onto it. He sprung like a bunny as his arms shot out in front of him in an attempt to hold onto something in case he didn't make it fully across.

Mario stared in awe, too frozen in fear and amazement to step back. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion.

Luigi then yelled in surprise at the top of his lungs as his fingers held onto the edge of the other side.

He had made it! Well, if he could get pulled up, that was.

Just then, the dirt and rocks started to crumble underneath Luigi's gloved fingers. He lost his grip on his right arm, and nearly fell to his death into the dark, rocky abyss below him.

"N-No!" Luigi gasped. "MARIO, THE CLIFF IS STARTING TO CRUMBLE AGAIN! HELP ME!"

Mario quickly snapped out of his trance and looked down in fear.

"Luigi!!! Don't worry! I got you, bro!" He cried, kneeling down and reaching an outstretched arm towards his brother.

Luigi tried to grab his brother's hand, but missed. Their arms weren't long enough to reach each other.

"WEEGIE, GRAB MY HAND!!!" Mario hissed.

"CAN'T YOU OPEN UP YOUR EYES AND SEE I'M TRYING?!" He shot back.

Mario didn't want to argue with him. He was too worried about saving his little brother's life.

They both tried to stretch their arms farther, but they only managed to reach each other's fingertips.

"M-Mario, I'm losing my grip!" He cried, slipping a little bit as he struggled to hold on for his dear life.

"Just hang on, Weegie! I got you!" Mario called out to him, reaching his hand out more.

Mario's heart was racing in fear of not being able to save Luigi. Mario then shifted himself and went as close to the edge as much as possible.

The cliff then cracked and crumbled, and Luigi fell to his death into the abyss. Mario screamed his brother's name at the top of his lungs and cried for hours.

(No, I'm just kidding, lol. I could never do that in this story).

Some more dirt and rocks were starting to break apart as they grew weak from Luigi's grip. Luigi then slipped and screamed, but Mario lurched forward at the last second and snatched him by the wrist.

"I-I got you, bro! J-Just hang on while I pull you up!" Mario breathed. He was quite relieved, but he wouldn't be fully if Luigi wasn't up on the other side with him.

"Hurry, bro! I don't know how much longer I can hold on for!" Luigi quivered from down below, looking into the abyss and back up at his big brother with a worried expression.

Mario carefully stood up, grunted and pulled Luigi's arm with both hands as hard as he could. He walked backwards like he was playing tug-of-war.

Luigi was slowly ascending to the ledge. He tried to grip his left hand firmly onto it (because Mario was pulling his right), in an attempt to try and pull himself up.

Both brothers struggled for a minute before successfully being able to pull Luigi up. Once his feet were safely on solid ground, Luigi cried out of happiness and kissed the ground in relief.

"Mama mia! Oh, thank goodness!!!" Luigi breathed out, as tears started to stream down his cheeks.

He then stood up and gave his older brother a bone-crushing bear hug.

"T-Thank you, bro! You saved my life!" He happily whispered in his brother's ear as he started to cry more.

Mario weakly smiled as tears started to form out of his eyes as well. He quickly blinked them back to hide them and hugged his brother tightly. He didn't like to be caught crying and upset people. He liked to stay strong for his loved ones, even though he knew it was unhealthy to keep his feelings in.

"Of course, Weegie. It's my job to protect you." The red plumber whispered back. "I love you, bro. I don't know what I would have done if I had lost you..."

"I love you, too, Mario and I'll always be here for you as well."

The brothers pulled apart and playfully smiled at each other. Then Luigi snatched Mario's cap and gave him a noogie.

"Argh! Noooo! Don't mess up my hair!" Mario yelled, laughing.

"Why? Trying to keep it neat to impress the princess?~" The plumber in green giggled, tauntingly. He gave a wink and wolf-whistled.

Mario turned as red as his shirt in embarrassment.

"Weegie, shut up!" He yelled, snatching his cap back from Luigi's hand and putting it back on his head. "That's so not it!"

"Awe, c'mon. You two are so perfect for each other. It's adorable! You really need to ask her out more often, man."

Mario said nothing. He just bit his bottom lip. He wanted to tell his brother that he did, in fact, ask her out to go to her favourite band's concert, but he wouldn't hear the end of it from Luigi, so Mario decided not to.

Luigi snickered at his brother's silence. Mario just glared at him.

"But seriously, though. Does she like you back?"

"H-How do you know that I have feelings for her?!"

Luigi rolled his eyes. "I'm not stupid, bro. It's really obvious... Plus, being your twin makes us highly close to each other. We really know each other like crazy."

Mario blushed a bright shade of pink this time. "Well, i-it doesn't matter either way." He replied, pulling his hat over his eyes to cover his flustered face.

"Why not?" Luigi asked, tilting his head a bit. "I totally ship you two!!!" With this, he gave a sly smirk and playfully nudged Mario with his elbow.

"Just never mind. And for the love of pasta, PLEASE don't ever wolf-whistle for Peach and I again! It's incredibly weird and will make the princess really uncomfortable. Not to mention, it's highly disrespectful."

"Haha, alright bro. Whatever you say. Also, don't worry. I'm not going to do that to your little girlfriend."

"Thank you, Weeg." Mario's eyes then widened as he realized what Luigi just had said. "Wait, my WHAT?!"

"Well, let's go save Princess Peach. She's waiting for us." Luigi grinned, quickly changing the subject. He then proceeded to hurriedly make his way further and further away from Mario.

"Mama mia... Wait until I get him back, someday." Mario muttered, rolling his eyes and then beginning to chase after his brother.
*******************************************
Some time later, the brothers finally came to Bowser's Castle in World 8. Looking up at the giant, steel front doors, Luigi gulped.

"Well, we finally made it, Weegie. Now it's time to get past all of that koopa's traps and defeat him!" Mario said in determination as he put his battle face on and punched his right fist in his open left hand.

Luigi nodded. "Y-Yeah! Let's-a go save Princess Peach and show Bowser who's boss!" He agreed.

"That's the spirit! Now c'mon!" Mario gestured over his shoulder as he began to run into the castle doors that were opening with a heavy force.

Luigi followed his brother. When they both came into the castle, the doors slammed shut and locked, making Luigi nearly jump out of his skin in fright.

Kamek then zoomed towards the Mario Brothers onto his flying broom with the princess still in her cage. She appeared to be unconscious because she was limp and her eyes were closed as she leaned against the cage.

Upon seeing this, made Mario upset, of course.

"Princess!" He cried out, worriedly, reaching his hand out to her. "No!!!"

He then glared at Kamek and gritted his teeth. His hands then balled into fists at his sides as he growled at him.

"WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?!" He screamed.

Kamek cackled. "Don't worry. She's just unconscious. Wouldn't stop screaming for help, so Bowser told me to give her a sedative to calm her down. It was getting extremely annoying, but it shouldn't be too long before she starts to wake up again."

"I SWEAR ON A PLATE OF PASTA IF YOU HURT HER, I WILL-"

"You'll what?" The wizard sneered, cutting the plumber off. "Throw me into a pit of lava? I mean, no offence to Master Bowser, but I'm smarter than that. Now calm your moustachioed face down. Like I said, she's fine. Just tied up a bit more than usual, but it's all part of the plan."

"Plan? What plan?" Luigi nervously piped up. Mario was shocked to hear Luigi talk to Kamek, but Mario himself was equally as curious.

"It better not involve her getting hurt!" Mario snapped.

"Nah," Kamek dismissed, waving an empty yellow claw at them in the air. He shook his head. "If the princess got hurt, King Bowser would never forgive himself or anyone that hurt her. As you already know, he likes her as well."

The brothers said nothing for a moment until Mario spoke up.

"Well, where is he?!" He growled.

Kamek broke into a toothy grin.

"Glad you asked!" He replied. "I shall take you to him straight away. There's no need to go through all the usual traps to get to him because he just wants to cut right to the chase, heh heh!"

The brothers watched as the wizard pulled out his wand and flung some of his colourful dust shapes onto them. There was a blinding area of white where the brothers stood, and when it faded, Kamek saw that they were gone. Snickering, he disappeared with the princess to follow them and meet with Bowser.

Chapter Text

"Mama mia, Mario. You just had to ask, didn't you?" Luigi grumbled, facepalming.

The brothers soon found themselves in a tiny, closed-in room with no source of any kind of furniture in sight. In front of them, stood two bright red, large doors. The black silhouette of Bowser's face were permanently etched onto both of the entryways. Razor sharp spikes surrounded the door frame of the room. If either one of them touched it, they'd be toast for sure.

Mario gave his brother a hard stare and then rolled his eyes.

"Quit complaining, Weegie. We had to find a way to get to Koopa, eventually."

"Ah, I suppose that's true..." Luigi sighed. "But how are we going to get out of this cramped room?"

"Isn't it obvious?" The plumber in red replied, raising an eyebrow and jerking his thumb over towards the doors.

"But Mario! Those doors could possibly be a trap! Don't you think it's kind of suspicious that those are the only thing in sight? I mean, it's like it's begging us to go in there!"

"You're overthinking it, bro."

"Mario, you have to be cautious! Especially in Bowser's castle! Don't you know that already from all the times you saved Princess Peach?!"

"Yeah, I guess so... But what other choice to we have?"

"I don't know, but I have a feeling that the doors aren't safe. Especially with those spikes around the frame."

"Well, if you really think it's unsafe, I'll go and try to open it to test it out. I'll tell you if it's clear or not, okie dokie?"

"No! Not 'okie dokie'! You don't want to take that chance!"

"You know I'll always take the chance for my friends and family, Weegie." Mario replied, giving a comforting and assuring smile. "Besides, I've already taken plenty of chances throughout my adventures."

"True, but still, Mario! I don't think you should-"

But it was too late to try and persuade Mario. He had already started slowly walking towards the door, cutting the plumber in green off.

"Mario!"

Mario ignored him.

"MARIO, ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME?!"

Clearly he wasn't because his gloved hand had already wrapped itself around the doorknob and Mario was slowly turning it.

"Mario...?" Luigi's voice was a terrified whisper now. All he could do was watch in silence. Mario wasn't listening to him. There was no point in trying to convince him anymore. Luigi watched in horror as his brother pulled the doorknob towards him, opening the door.

Surprisingly, it was unlocked. Then again, where would a key or anything really be in a room like this?

Mario's head peeked out of the doorway as he looked left and right. He took a few steps out and turned back around to face a worried Luigi that was still in the room.

"There's just a long, dimly lit hallway here, bro. I think it's safe to- WAHHHHHHHH!!!!!"

Mario was quickly cut off as the sound of trap doors opened and he plummeted into the darkness below.

"MAAAARRRRIIIIOOOO!!!!!!!!!!" Luigi screamed at the top of lungs, his eyes wide from the horror he had just witnessed.

He ran as fast as could out of the room and quickly knelt down on both of his knees. He placed his hands on the ground as he frantically looked into the abyss where Mario merely fell seconds ago.

"MARIO! MARIO, CAN YOU HEAR ME?! MARIO, SAY SOMETHING, PLEASE!!!" Luigi yelled into the darkness. He couldn't see anything at all. It was pitch black. He couldn't even hear Mario's screams anymore.

Had Mario made it to the bottom? How far down did the abyss go? Was his brother perhaps unconscious which is why he couldn't hear his brother's frantic cries? What was going on?! Was Mario okay?!

A million questions spiralled into Luigi's mind. He began to sob and get anxious.

What if Mario was dead?

No, he couldn't think like that. Mario was strong and he always figured something out. Even if he was hurt.

But what else could possibly have happened? There couldn't just have been a trap door over an empty pit, could there be?

No, knowing Bowser, he would've put something evil in there. That's just kind of the guy he was. Unless that no-good Koopa wanted to see Luigi have a mental breakdown and embarrass himself when Mario really was okay.

Luigi didn't know anymore. He didn't care. All he wanted was his brother.

See? Mario couldn't even sense danger even if it was right in front of him.

If only Mario had just listened to me... Luigi thought, bitterly. Then none of this would've happened... I'm a terrible brother. I should've tried harder to get Mario away from the door. Like forcing him away physically. Now he's gone because of me... What have I done?

Luigi couldn't take and hold back the pain anymore. He took off his famous fabric cap and screamed as loud as he could into it. He began to scream his brother's name over and over again until his throat hurt. His eyes were red from his crying and he could no longer see properly. He kept wiping his tears away with his sleeve, but more always seemed to flow back even more than before. Luigi's heart ached with sorrow. Every piece that was ever left of him, was gone. He could never be the same again.

Why? Just why?! What did any of them do to deserve this?

There was one thing Luigi knew for sure, though...

He was going to get his revenge, no matter the cost.
*******************************************
"NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!" Princess Peach had screamed. She began to cry the hardest she could.

Kamek and Bowser had made her watch the live security camera footage on Bowser's large TV screen that he kept in his control room. He was finished double checking his plan for the Mario Brothers and was now watching the small traps that were set up for them in the hallway.

Kamek was along his side, watching with amusement. Peach was still in her cage on Kamek's broomstick. The handkerchief that was gagging her, was removed so she could breathe a little better and so they could hear her helpless pleads.

They weren't necessarily planning to put traps, like usual, though. They wanted to cut right to the chase, but Bowser changed his mind. He wanted to at least put a few traps to make Mario and Luigi grow weaker at the last minute, right before the big fight. That way, Bowser had more of an advantage.

Kamek thought it was rather clever and loved the idea, so he had used his wand to create hidden traps.

"Hahahaha!" Kamek cackled with glee. "That doofus never even saw it coming! Hehehehe!"

"I know, right? Should've listened to that brother of his." Bowser smirked, crossing his arms over his chest in amusement as he knew that the Mario Brothers will finally never stand a chance against him now. Bowser had too many tricks up his shell, and he wasn't going down so easily anymore.

"Rotten work, Kamek!" He added with an evil wink and a toothy grin. "I can't wait to see what will happen to that stupid green cucumber next!"

"THAT WASN'T FAIR!" Peach continued to scream, angrily at Bowser. "You can't do this!!!"

Bowser chuckled. "This is my castle," He grinned. "I can do whatever I please!"

"YOU'RE WRONG!" She snarled, squirming around, but remembered that she was tied up. Tears continued to flow down her cheeks as rage raced throughout her body. "You'll be stopped just as you always have been! You won't get away with this for much longer!"

"Oh, princess," Bowser tutted, shaking his head as he still smirked. He leaned down towards her cage to face her better. He then whispered to her in a dark voice.

"This is where you're wrong!~"

Peach gritted her teeth. If she wasn't tied up, she would've slapped his nasty reptile face out of her space.

"Just wait and see, princess. You'll see the show soon enough. And guess what? You get the front seat!" Kamek cackled.

Bowser roared with laughter. Peach winced and squeezed her eyes shut since she wasn't able to cover her ears.

"No..." She whispered in a harsh voice to herself. "You BOTH will see! You two are the clowns that run this torturous circus, after all..."
*******************************************
Luigi whimpered and trembled as he buried his face into his tear soaked cap. He slowly rocked himself back and forth as he mourned the loss of his one and only brother. He wished he saved him. If only he was quicker...

"I-I'm sorry, bro... I-I'm s-so sorry I couldn't s-save you..." He whispered under his breath, into the green cap. "P-Please f-forgive me..."

Suddenly, Luigi felt a tap on his shoulder from behind him.

"Not now!" He hissed to who or whatever it was, not bothering to turn around or remove his face from his cap.

The tapping continued, but a little more aggressively.

"Leave me alone! I'm not in the mood..." The plumber in green sulked.

The hand now rested on his right shoulder.

Furious at whatever it was that wasn't listening and bothering him, Luigi put his cap back on his head and stood up. He whipped around, only to give a sharp gasp in surprise.

What Luigi saw, completely vacuumed every word out of his body.

"...Mario?!" He finally croaked.

"No, it's Santa Claus!" The plumber in red giggled. "Of course it's me, Weegie! Who else would it be?"

"B-But... I- You... Y-You were..." Luigi babbled, remaining frozen to the spot, astounded.

Mario sighed and looked down at his brown boots. "I-I know..." He whispered.

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath before looking back up at his little brother. "I'm sorry you had to see that, bro. It hurt me so much to see you cry and scream for me like that..."

"I... How did you get out? I mean, I'm so glad that you did and you are alright, but I'm really curious."

"Well," Mario bit his bottom lip. "There were spikes in that pit... I got badly impaled and died, of course. However, I did have an extra life, so I resetted back into the room we were just in. I then saw and heard you screaming and crying so I came up to you to comfort you. I wanted to see how long it would take for you to notice me. As I can see, it didn't take very long. Heh heh..." Mario sheepishly scratched the back of his head, ruffling his wavy brown hair and making his red cap slide off a bit.

"MAAARRRIIIOOO!!!" Luigi cried, happily. He threw his arms around his brother and gave him a bone-crushing hug, causing Mario's cap to fall off of his head. "DON'T EVER LEAVE ME LIKE THAT AGAIN!!! YOU NEARLY GAVE ME A HEART ATTACK!!!"

"Ah!" Mario cried out in surprise as he became suffocated. "I... can't... breathe!!!"

"Oh! Sorry, bro!" Luigi giggled. He gave Mario some more space to breathe and released some pressure off of him, but still hugged him close.

Mario chuckled and hugged his brother back. "It's alright, Weegie." He smiled at him.

The brothers hugged for a few more seconds until they pulled apart.

"Well, clearly we can't go down the rest of the hallway. There will definitely be more traps and I only have two lives left. We'll have to think of another way to get to Bowser." Mario explained as he picked up his cap off the ground and adjusted it back on his head.

"I hate to say 'I told you so', but I did warn you that it would be a bad idea to go through those doors, Mario..."

"I know..." The hero in red nodded. He sighed. "Sorry, I didn't listen listen to you, Weegie. From now on, though. We'll be more cautious and get through this together. We have to! For the princess and her kingdom!"

No, YOU need to be more cautious... Luigi thought. He would've rolled his eyes, but Mario would think that he was rolling his eyes because of having to save the princess. It would be highly disrespectful towards the whole situation and towards Mario, so he just nodded instead.

"Yeah, you're right, bro."

Mario nodded in return and looked around. "Hm, it seems like there are no other options in sight, though. Maybe we should go back into the room and see if there's another way to get to the princess."

"Okie dokie, but Mario, we already saw that there's nothing in the room we can use! There's not even any other doors along the walls."

"Unless... there was..." Mario grinned, snapping his fingers, excitedly.

"Huh?" Luigi blinked in confusion.

"Luigi, there might be a hidden passageway! There's no other option!"

"Hey, you could be right! Let's go check it out and see!" Luigi grinned.

The brothers quickly ran back into the small room, looking for any possible giveaway of a hidden passage.

"See if you can find any hidden buttons along the floor, Weeg. I'll search the walls."

Luigi nodded and did as he was told. The brothers searched for five minutes before Luigi began to lose hope.

"Mario," He frowned. He stopped searching as he looked up at his brother.

"Hm?" Mario replied, not glancing at his brother. His eyes traced every inch of the wall as he ran his gloved hand over the stones, looking closely for anything unusual.

"We've been searching for like five minutes and we haven't even found anyth-"

"AHA!" Mario yelled so loudly, that it made Luigi jump a few inches off the ground.

"Mama mia, Mario! Would you stop trying to give me a heart attack?! That was like the third time, now!"

Mario turned around to face him. "Heh heh, sorry, Weegie. But come over here! I think I found something!"

Luigi hurriedly walked to his brother in excitement.

"Oh? What did you find?" He asked as he stood beside his brother facing the wall.

Mario looked too and pointed.

"There's a tiny stone in between these big stones and it's kind of popping out a bit."

"Well, what are you waiting for, bro? Let's give it a go!"

Smiling with glee, Mario pressed the stone. The brothers waited to see what would happen.

Nothing happened for a few seconds until a loud shuffling and scraping sound was heard as the wall shook.

"Whoa!" Luigi gasped.

Mario quickly stepped backwards a few steps and grabbed his brother's arm. He yanked him backwards beside him so he was out of the way of any potential danger.

The plumbers watched in awe as the wall slowly and shakily shifted to the side, revealing a dark corridor.

"Wow! It's like we're in some kind of puzzle escaping video game!" Luigi cheered, jumping up and down, excitedly.

Mario gave him a weird look and rolled his eyes.

"Alright, I'll go first."

Luigi quickly grabbed Mario's arm and pulled him back this time.

"No way! I'm not losing you again, bro. Besides, you have only two lives left. Don't waste them! I'll go first this time."

"Uh, no, you are not!" Mario snapped, instantly getting overprotective.

"Yes, I am and there's nothing you can do about it, bro!"

"Oh yeah?" Mario asked, half serious-half jokingly. He leapt forward as Luigi walked away from him, heading into the dark corridor.

Mario managed to dive down onto the floor and grab Luigi's leg like a child not wanting to be separated from its mother.

"What about this?" Mario grinned, knowing that there was now a chance Luigi would finally give in. Victory was his.

"Mama mia, Mario. Stop acting like a bambino and get off of my leg!"

"Not unless you don't go in there."

Luigi rolled his eyes and groaned. "Ugh, fine. Whatever makes you get off of my leg..."

Mario stood up and brushed himself off.

"Okay, bro." Luigi started, turning back to face his brother. "How do you want to do this, then?"

"Hmmmm...." Mario pondered. "Oh! I know!"

"What is it?"

"Rock, Paper, Scissors!"

Luigi gave the loudest facepalm ever. The sound echoed throughout the room and down the corridor.

"This is weird coming from me instead of you, but... STOP BEING SO IMMATURE!!!" Luigi yelled.

Mario just giggled like a little girl. "Okie, okie! Hee hee."

"Did you honestly bump your head or something because you're acting extremely weird."

"N-No..." Mario chuckled.

"Okay?"

Mario wiped away the tears that were starting to form in his eyes. "Okay, back to all seriousness, though, heh heh. If we're both concerned about each other going in first, maybe we should just go in together."

"Good idea," Luigi nodded. "And thank goodness you aren't acting like Mr. Giggles anymore."

"At least for now, anyway!" Mario winked.

"No... Just... Please no...." Luigi frowned. "Now let's go!"

The two of them cautiously made their way into the dark corridor. It was cramped, but it was just able to fit the two brothers as they stood side by side, slowly walking further into the darkness. Their only source of light was the entryway that guided them.

Suddenly, a sound of shifting was heard. It was the same sound that was made earlier when the door was opening. Only this time, it sounded way quicker than before.

The brothers turned their heads towards the sound.

"Where's that sound coming from?!" Mario asked, frantically.

"Mama mia, Mario! The door!" Luigi cried out, pointing his finger towards where they had come from.

Mario glanced in the direction of his brother's pointed finger and let out a sharp gasp.

"...Mama mia...!" Was all he managed to respond with.

The door was closing in on them!

Mario tried to sprint towards the door, but he wasn't able to catch up to it in time. He face-planted right into the stone wall, injuring mainly his nose.

"OUCH!" He cried out, pinching the bridge of his nose. He then rubbed it frantically, hoping to soothe the pain.

"Mario!" Luigi yelled out to him. He was still in his spot, unable to move because of how dark it was. He wasn't very fond of the dark, so he just blindly called out for his brother. "Are you alright?!"

"Y-Yeah, I'll be fine, Weegie. Thanks."

"No problem, bro. What happened?"

"I-I face-planted into the door, injuring my nose a bit, but I'll be alright."

"And uh..." Mario added. "Do you happen to have a flashlight on you by chance? I can't see you!"

"I... I don't bro. I don't even have a lighter or any source of light... What about the power ups? I'm out of them for now, but you usually have a fire flower stored away in your overall pockets, right?"

"Yeah! I do!" Mario nodded, excitedly. He blindly patted and felt around his pockets, searching for a fire flower.

"I... I don't have one!" He croaked out, weakly.

"W-WHAT?!"

"I must've lost the power ups that were in my pockets when I died from that trap door earlier!"

"Well, that's just great, bro!" Luigi snapped. "Now what are we going to do?!"

"Well, it's not my fault I died!"

"Kinda was..."

"Nu uh!"

"Uh huh!"

"Argh! Let's just shut up and think!" Mario yelled, clearly annoyed as he gritted his teeth and balled his hands into fists.

"Yeah, you're right. Fighting won't get us anywhere... Sorry, bro."

"It's alright and I'm sorry, too." Mario sighed. "I just want to save the princess and get this all done and over with..."

"Yeah, me too."

"Wait! I almost forgot that I have my Firebrand!"

"Oh yeah! Heh heh! I guess being stressed doesn't cause you to think straight sometimes. I would use my Thunderbrand, but it's not really useful in this situation." Luigi chuckled.

"Yeah," Mario nodded in the dark. "However, with my Firebrand, I can use it to light our way through the tunnel, but it'll take up a lot of my energy since I have to summon it from my hands without a fire flower. So in the meantime, just bare with me."

"I understand, bro."

"Okie dokie, here I go." Mario said in concentration. Even though he couldn't see his hands, he brought his left one out in front of him with his palm facing up. Squeezed his eyes shut, he gritted his teeth as he tried to imagine and form his Firebrand in his palm.

Luigi listened in silence, not wanting to break his brother's concentration. All he could hear was Mario's heavy breathing that echoed throughout the corridor.

"Awe, meatballs!" Mario suddenly yelled in frustration as he dropped his hand back down. He let out an annoyed sigh as he was beginning to lose his patience.

"What's wrong, bro? Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, everything's fine," Mario lied, not wanting to worry his little brother too much. "I just have a bit of trouble starting up my Firebrand for some reason."

"Oh, I see... Well, maybe since you died recently, it died out right along with you, so it might take a few more minutes to fully recharge in your system again." Luigi guessed, shrugging his shoulders even though Mario couldn't see it.

"Yeah, maybe. But this is seriously bad timing!" Mario scoffed, crossing his arms.

"Tell me about it... Well, what should we do, bro? We can't wait around forever. The princess needs us."

"You're right. That's why I'm going to try again. I'm not going to give up! No matter what anyone says! Super Mario is no quitter!"

With this, Mario brought his left hand in front of him again and squeezed his eyes shut once more. He focused harder and struggled to maintain his thoughts.

C'mon, c'mon! Luigi and I need you to hurry up and work! Heck, the  princess  needs you! So does everyone in her kingdom and I can't let them down! Please just... please...

Mario bit his bottom lip. Suddenly, a bright glow of a spark flashed throughout the corridor, emitting it in dim light for a moment.

Luigi's eyes went wide with excitement. He opened his mouth to cheer for Mario, but decided against it for the sake of Mario's concentration. Instead, he closed his mouth and grinned.

You can do it, bro! I believe in you and so does the princess!

Mario let out a small grunt as he continued to force his Firebrand out once more. Soon, a warm, bright orange and yellow aura filled his left palm. It danced back and forth as it cast various shapes of shadows along the corridor walls.

Luigi could no longer contain his excitement.

"Mario! You did it!" He cheered, jumping up and down.

Mario opened his eyes to see for himself. As soon as he saw the fire gently burning his hand without any harm, he let a wide grin stretch across his face.

"So I did." He smiled, staring at the large flame in mesmerization. "And it's all thanks to your encouragement, Weegie."

Mario then looked up. He could see his brother clearly now. Luigi was waving over to his brother as Mario began to walk towards him. Mario keep his left hand out in front of him so it was easier to see his walkway.

The fire began to slightly warm Luigi as Mario came closer to him, the orange and yellow colours splashing across his face and body. It comforted him.

"Let's-a go now, Weegie. We have a princess to save!" Mario grinned.

Luigi nodded happily and the two of them began to walk deeper into the corridor, knowing that there was no point in trying to go back from where they came from. They most likely wouldn't be able to get through the door. There wasn't a handle and it seemed pretty firm in place. Besides, there were no other places to go besides the corridor, anyways. All they had was the corridor to lead them. They had to trust it.
*******************************************
"Ha! It seems like the Mario Brothers figured out your little passageway!" Princess Peach mischievously grinned.

"It's quite alright. It doesn't matter anyway, princess." Bowser sneered. "They're growing weaker, which is my main goal right now. Well, Mario is, anyway, but if Mario's weak, there's no doubt that Luigi will be, too! That coward couldn't even stay in a dark closet for a minute without crying like a little baby!"

"Leave Luigi alone! He's not weak at all! I'll have you know he's helped Mario defeat you in the past! Not to mention, he's definitely defeated King Boo and his minions a lot, too! So don't you dare say-"

Kamek lightly whacked the princess across her face with the back of his scaly, reptilian hand.

"Ouch!" She cried out, in pain. She would've instantly put her gloved hand against her cheek as the pain throbbed against her skin, but she was still tied up, so it continued to stay a bright red and leave a bit of a mark.

"There will be no talking back like that to Master Bowser, little girl!" Kamek snapped. "Let that be a warning!"

Little girl? Wow, he sure had some nerve! First he slaps her and then calls her a little girl? Well, he'll get what's coming to him eventually!

Princess Peach closed her eyes and swallowed the lump in her throat, trying her best not to cry. That was the last thing she needed to do in front of them. She couldn't imagine what would happen if she cried just because of a small smack. It would make her seem weak and give them more power. Besides, it would just prove Kamek's point that she was, in fact, a little girl.

"T-They're not weak..." She muttered under her breath, shakily.

Wait, was she shaking? Uh oh! She couldn't let them see her like this... It would be terrible. Despite Bowser and Kamek having seen her fear many times over the years, she couldn't let them know how weak she was getting this time.

Bowser let a deep chuckle. "Oh, but they are surely getting there, princess! Mario has already lost one of his lives and now used up a majority of his energy just to light his and his brother's way through the corridor! As for dorky Luigi, he can hardly fight in general, let alone without the help of his brother. He's just too cowardly! Plus, neither of them have any power ups on hand this time!"

"They don't need power ups to beat you..." Peach scowled. She kept her head down so she wouldn't make eye contact with the wizard or reptile king, but nevertheless, she was still extremely furious.

"Ah, you'll see. There's no use arguing with me, but you'll find out soon enough." Bowser dismissed, grinning evilly like he always did when he had a trick up his spiked shell.

Pfft. Yeah, right. Whatever you say... Peach thought, as she rolled her eyes in annoyance. She made sure nobody saw it, though and luckily, nobody did.
*******************************************
"It looks like we've reached the end of the corridor! There's only a stoned wall here! Now what do we do?!" Luigi asked, searching his brother's face for an answer.

"Keep calm, Luigi. We'll figure something out. We always do."

"B-But...!"

There was no time to argue as another trapdoor opened, making Mario and Luigi fall through it.

"NOT AGAINNNN!!!!!" Mario cried out, in fear.

"WAAAAAAUUUGGGGHHHHH!!!" Luigi screamed.

Luckily, the fall only lasted about ten seconds as the brothers soon found themselves back on solid ground.

"Owie!" The plumber in green sharply cried out as he landed roughly on the ground. "What a rough landing! My bottom hurts!" He gritted his teeth in pain.

"Tell me about it..." Mario replied, shaking his head slowly as he stood up and dusted himself off. "They should've at least had the curtesy to put pillows down or something! Then again, you can't expect much from that no-good Koopa King of Darkland..."

"Uh huh..." Luigi agreed, solemnly.

Mario grabbed onto his brother's hand and helped him up.

"You okay, bro?"

"Y-Yeah, I will be fine. Thanks."

"Of course." Mario smiled.

"I noticed that your Firebrand went out."

"Oh-" Mario replied, looking down at his hand.

The flame was gone.

"Yeah, I suppose it did. It's alright, though. I don't think we need it anymore. Well, not at the moment, anyways. It's fairly lit in this room."

"Yeah." Luigi nodded, looking around. He then spotted something black sticking out of the wall beside them.

"Hey, Mario," Luigi started, tapping his brother's shoulder and pointing. "Look, there's a warp pipe!"

Mario turned around.

"So, it is! But why is it black?"

Luigi shrugged. "I'm not sure, but I have a feeling that we're getting closer to Bowser."

"So do I."

Luigi then squinted as he walked closer and looked along the smooth sides of the pipe.

"Luigi, what on Earth are you doing?" Mario questioned with a puzzle face.

"I thought I saw something on here. It turns out, the symbol on those heavy, spiked doors earlier is also on this warp pipe."

"Well, that means we are practically at the battle ground, Weegie! Let's go! Princess Peach is close by!"

Luigi was about to say something, but Mario just quickly grabbed his arm in excitement. He ducked down a bit as he hopped into the pipe, dragging poor Luigi along.

"Mario, waaaiiiiitttt!!!" He cried out, quickly putting his hand on his green cap so it wouldn't fly off of his head. He ducked his head down as well. He nearly didn't duck down in time, though as he rapidly vanished into the warp pipe after his elated brother.

Chapter Text

After coming out of the warp pipe, the brothers found themselves face-to-face with Kamek.

Mario jumped backwards with him being startled out of his wits, which made him accidentally bump into Luigi, who just yelped in surprise.

"Mario, watch where you're going!"

"Sorry, bro. I-"

He couldn't finish his sentence. It was lodged in his throat as the wizard in blue let out a high-pitched cackle.

Luigi's eyes widened upon hearing that familiar sound.

"No! Not you again!" He wailed.

"Oh, yes! It's-a me, Kamek, and I'm here to inform you all that your doom is near! The princess will be Master Bowser's once and for all! Hehehehe!"

"D-Did you really try to steal my motto?" Mario asked, highly unamused as he facepalmed. "I can complain about copyright issues on that, ya know!"

Kamek paused. "I... Um.... ఠ ͟ಠ"

"He's kidding," Luigi chuckled nervously, grabbing onto Mario's arm before he did anything stupid. "But we... ah, we really do need to get to the princess..."

"Of course. I'm not stopping you, but heed my warnings - you won't make it out alive this time!~ Hahahahaha!"

Luigi gulped as the reptile-like wizard vanished alongside his broomstick with a grey puff of smoke. Mario just coughed into his arm and rolled his eyes when he was finished, all the while giving his little brother a small pat on the arm.

"Ah, don't worry 'bout him, Weeg. He's just trying to scare us like usual. We already know the drill."

Luigi nodded, but what if this time, Kamek was right for a change? He didn't want to think like that because he knew Bowser has been defeated thousands of times in the past by them, but even his attacks and security have dangerously upgraded. Just look at the hidden trapdoors with spikes and hidden tunnels, for example.

Did they really stand a chance this time, or were the famous Mario Brothers who always kicked Koopa's behind and saved The Mushroom Kingdom doomed once and for all?

"C'mon, Weegie. This way!" Mario cried out, interrupting the man's worried thoughts.

"Coming!" Luigi called, sprinting up towards his brother as Mario turned back around and raced down the long, depressing hallway. In no time, they both arrived closer to another red door with Bowser's black imprinted face on it. However, there were surprisingly no spikes around the edges of this one.

Well, this battle will determine our fate... Luigi nervously thought, taking a deep breath as the brothers entered the large door that was creaking open.

After entering it, the doors shut behind them with a loud and firm 'SLAM', enhancing the spooky atmosphere and in temptation to frighten the Mario Brothers, but to no avail, as they were already used to it.

(Well, Mario, of course. Luigi still jumped as he was more easily spooked rather than his older brother).
*******************************************
"Gwahahahaha! Well, look who's finally decided to join us, princess!~" Bowser smirked, as he impatiently tapped a claw nail on the arm of his throne.

On the reptile's left, Princess Peach's cage was hanging from the ceiling so she could watch the battle unfold. Ropes were no longer tied to her, but her cage was still heavily secured with the locks that Kamek had placed upon it, of course. Inside of the prison, the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom happened to lean forward on her knees to see what on Earth the reptile was talking about.

"Mario! Luigi!" The princess' eyes widened as she gripped the bars in front of her like a toddler would to its crib.

"Principessa! Don't worry, we'll get you out of there, mi amore!" The plumber in red cried out, reaching his hand out to her, even though it was impossible to reach the cage from the distance given between them.

"Aw, how cute..." Bowser rolled his eyes, sarcastically. "NOT! I think I'm gonna barf..."

"Then barf. Just leave when you do it, though."

Bowser practically launched himself forward right out of his throne, that the brothers thought that he would stumble and fall on his face.

"SHUT UP!" Bowser roared as he stomped his feet, causing an earthquake.

"We would if you would give us the princess, already," Luigi scoffed. "Just saying. We would've left by now and you wouldn't even have had to heard from us."

Mario chuckled and winked at his little brother as Luigi returned it.

Bowser clearly had had enough of their smart-aleck responses.

"THAT'S IT!!!" He screeched so loud, that Princess Peach had to cover her ears to avoid her eardrums bleeding, even though she knew it probably would be by now.

Bowser jabbed a sharp claw in their direction and his red eyes narrowed as it bore pure rage and hatred.

"I'M SICK TO DOUBLE DEATH OF YOU GUYS!!! I'M NOT PLAYING AROUND! THIS TIME, I WILL CLAIM VICTORY AS MY OWN AND THE MUSHROOM KINGDOM, INCLUDING PRINCESS PEACH, WILL BE ALL MINE ONCE AND FOR ALL! I WILL OBLITERATE THE BOTH OF YOU OUT OF PURE EXISTENCE!!!"

Just then, the brothers both looked at each other with widened eyes then dropped to the floor, laughing their behinds off.

"Kehehehehahahahaha! You think that scares us? Oh, please," Mario wheezed. "You always say that and look how much times you always fail. Every. Single. Time! It never fails to get old, and you should know by now that your empty threats have no impact on us, whatsoever!"

"I-I know, right? Plus, he even h-had the nerve to steal King Boo's line from my third game! H-How unoriginal is that?! Hahahahaha!" Luigi spluttered.

This made the both of them laugh even harder, which just made the king of Koopas more agitated, of course.

"LAUGH IT UP ALL YOU WANT, FAUCET FREAKS! BUT WE'LL SEE WHO HAS THE LAST LAUGH WHEN I'M THE ONLY ONE STANDING AFTER I CRUSH YOU BOTH INTO A BLOODY PULP, AND BURN YOUR REMAINS UNTIL YOU'RE NOTHING MORE THAN PURE ASHES THAT WILL BLOW AWAY IN THE AIR AND DISSOLVE INTO THE EARTH!!!"

"Whatever, Koopa," Mario huffed after the brothers were finished their little comedy act. He began to stand up and Luigi did the same. "Let's just get this over with already."

"Gladly!" Bowser snarled. He then turned around to face the princess' cage. His spiked shell now in front of the heroes.

With a quick snap of his raised claw, the reptile made the enclosed cage that held the princess inside, rise more into the air, so she was out of the way of the fight.

As the cage became higher, Princess Peach prayed in her mind that everything would be alright and as it should be - The bros defeating Bowser and safety returning her to her kingdom. However, even the princess herself knew that something felt a little off this time, although she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

Oh, stars. Please let it be something the brothers can easily recover from. I mean, maybe I'm overthinking things, but you should always listen to your instincts... r-right? And besides girl, the brothers always bounce back from Bowser. I'm sure it's nothing they can't handle. There is nothing to worry about.

But she couldn't be too optimistic, could she?

There wasn't much time to think about it, though, because all she could do now was watch the classic battle between the archenemies start.

"Mario, Luigi! Please be extra careful!"

"Don't worry about us, princess," Mario reassured, looking past Bowser and up towards her cage. "We will. Just hang tight. We'll get you out in a jiffy!"

Peach nodded, but didn't feel any more relieved to say in the least.

Bowser then began to stomp loudly in front of the Mario Bros. The force sent the both of them flying back and hitting their backs against the back wall and Bowser exploded with laughter.

"Pfft! I didn't know you both were that weak! That was too easy! I'm not complaining, though."

He gave a toothy grin and started stomping towards the brothers.

"No! Leave them alone!!!" Peach cried out.

Grunting, Mario started to stand up and went in front of his brother. He then reached a hand out towards him.

"You alright, Weegie?"

Luigi weakly nodded and groaned, taking Mario's gloved hand. He stood up and then his eyes widened.

"Mario! Look out! Bowser's-"

He was cut off as the back of Mario's head got clobbered from Bowser's fist.

"Gwahahahaha! Take that, you stupid plumber!"

Mario yelled out in shock and held his head, as he crumpled to the ground in enormous pain.

Infuriated, Luigi gave Bowser a hard, cold stare. Balls of lime green electricity then began to form in his hands and sparks of green lightning was radiating off of his body. His aura was also a dark green and heavy, dark grey lightning clouds were hovering around him, striking lightning everywhere.

"NOBODY. MESSES. WITH. MY. BROTHER!!!" He screeched, shooting powerful zaps after zaps of lightning towards the reptile.

Some were hitting him square in the face, and other times, it either hit his body or just missed him.

"No!" Bowser snarled, charging up a giant, orange and yellow fireball in his mouth. He spat it towards the green capped hero and it nearly hit Luigi if it weren't for another giant, red and yellow fireball colliding with it, making both of them dissolve into nothing.

Luigi turned and saw his older brother right behind him, with his Firebrand activated just as his Thunderbrand was. His body was set on fire and his aura was a bright red with a tint of orange in it. A large fireball was formed in his right hand and he smirked at Luigi.

"Let's do this, bro!"

Luigi winked at his brother and then turned back to face the reptile. The brothers charged at the Koopa King, hollering all sorts of incoherent jungle noises.

A crossfire of massive fireballs, lightning strikes, punches and kicks were being thrown this way and that between the three of them.

Bowser eventually had enough of this and used his spiked tail to trip the brothers. They cried out in confusion and before they could get back up, the Koopa had snatched both of them by the back of their overall straps with one swift claw.

"Aw, you both thought that you could get away with that? Well, let me teach you a lesson for messing with the King of Koopas!"

The brothers squirmed under Bowser's grip, but his hold was far too strong. The two of them even tried to use their powers, but it was highly difficult to activate under the given circumstances.

"See who they're dealing with, princess?" Bowser chuckled, looking up at Peach's cage and noticing her eyes starting to water. "Now you get to watch me permanently delete them from existence! Oh, and don't worry - You have the best view, so I do hope you're comfy enough!"

With this, Bowser absolutely exploded with tremendous laughter and made Princess Peach tremble in fear.

"S-Stop! Stop this right now!" She wailed, clutching her chest as tears started to roll down her cheeks. "Let them go!!!"

"Hahaha, no can do, love. I have other plans that I feel will be more fitting. After all, I'm the king, so what I say, goes!~"

"You're disgusting!"

"Thank you!" He smirked, turning back towards the heroes, making Peach scoff and shake her head slowly in shame.

The reptile then stomped over to a large lava lake nearby to drop the plumbers in there, when he suddenly heard something or rather someONE.

"🎶This is our house, this is our rules and we can't stoppp, and we won't stoppp!~🎶" The voice sang from who-knows-where's-ville.

"What in the world is that awful high-pitched screeching sound? And most of all, who's making it?!" Mario winced, rapidly covering his ears for dear life.

"Who knows? But it sounds a lot like Toad! I can't tell who's worse!" Luigi added, joining him.

They both squeezed their eyes shut, even though there was no evidence of that going to help block out any noise.

"🎶Can't you see it's WE who own the night? Can't you see it's WE who 'bout that life? And we can't stoppp, and we won't stoppp!~🎶"

Bowser irritably spun around, still clutching the back of the brother's denim overall straps.

"FOR THE SAKE OF OUR EARS, YOU BETTER STOP... THAT AWFUL SINGING!!! NOW WHO DARES TO INTERFERE WITH MY PLANS?! COME OUT HERE RIGHT NOW OR I'LL FIND YOU MYSELF AND IT WON'T BE PRETTY!!!"

"What do we expect? Nothing you ever do, has ever been 'pretty'. That's just the way you are." Mario snickered.

"Mario, don't make him more mad! You'll just make things worse!" Luigi gasped.

"You're lucky I haven't turned you both into chopped liver yet!" Bowser snapped, lifting them both up to his face so he could angrily burn his eyes into theirs.

He threw them against the wall again but with so much force this time, the wall cracked a bit behind them.

Luigi's head whacked against it, and he automatically fell limp as he collapsed on the floor with unconsciousness. Mario was just highly dazed, and he couldn't properly comprehend his surroundings, due to closely becoming unconscious himself.

Princess Peach screamed out for them, but she was too far away, so Mario could only hear her muffled cries.

"M-My princess. My sweet, sweet p-princess..." He whispered before tilting his head back to rest his head against the wall. His eyes fluttered closed and he slipped into an unconscious state, just like his brother.

"N-No!" Peach sobbed from her cage, gripping the bars in front of her, even though she had no idea what Mario had said. "You both have to get up! Please! You can't leave me here with him... Please..."

"🎶We run things - things don't run we, don't take nothin' from nobody! Yeah, yeah!🎶"

Princess Peach quickly turned her head to the sound of singing and the giant, red doors swinging open.

In flew none other than Kamek himself on his broomstick, jamming to one of Miley Cyrus' songs called "We Can't Stop". He had a walkman with him and he didn't seem to notice what just happened in here seconds ago. Or, he either did, but didn't react to it. Not that Peach could see of, anyways.

He paused his walkman and then slipped off the walkman's headset, resting it on top of his shoulders and around his neck. The wizard then gave a toothy grin and flew up to the princess' cage.

"Well, well, well," He grinned. "What do we have here? Did Bowser defeat your poor ol' boyfriend and his brother? Well, too bad! Hehehe! They were warned and didn't listen, so they got what was coming to them! Should've left while they had the chance! Hahaha!"

"Shut up," Peach snapped. "You don't know anything! They are just hurt, that's all! They'll get back up, soon!"

Kamek rolled his eyes under his thick glasses and pretended to yawn.

"Feisty one now, aren't ya? Well, it's fine. It's not like it matters, anyways. The boss can finally marry you without those scumbags in the way and I can just continue jamming to my tunes."

"Oh my stars, that was YOU that was singing?! I actually don't know why I'm surprised... Maybe drink some more water for that scratchy throat of yours and take some lozenges with that. I would also recommend practicing everyday or actually, for the sake of our hearing, not practicing at all!"

"ఠ ͟ಠ"

"And for mushroom's sake, get away from my cage!" The princess added angrily, slapping Kamek's face through the bars.

"OW!" Kamek hollered, quickly bringing one of his hands to his face to soothe the impact. "JEEZ, WOMAN! FINE! YOU KNOW WHAT?! I-"

He was quickly cut off as Bowser stormed back into the room and pointed one of his scaly fingers straight at the wizard.

"SO IT WAS YOU THAT DISTURBED ME AND ALMOST MADE ME DEAF WITH THAT AWFUL SCREECHING OF YOURS, HUH?!" He boomed.

"I, uh... Master Bowser, I can explain!" Kamek gulped. "You see, I didn't mean to uh- Well, I didn't know that-"

"ENOUGH OF YOUR PATHETIC EXCUSES!" The Koopa king interrupted flatly, running towards the wizard with his arms outstretched like he wanted to strangle the life out of him.

Kamek screamed and flew out of the room.

"Oh, no you don't!" Bowser sarcastically chuckled, following him out of the room and beginning to chase him. "You're not going anywhere when I get my hands on you!"

Princess Peach mentally facepalmed at this mess and looked over to the brothers. Mario began to stir a bit and then he groaned as he held the side of his head.

"Ah, what happened?" He muttered, wincing a little under the pain.

Peach's eyes widened with relief that he was alive and tried to call out softly to him because she didn't want Bowser to hear her.

"Mario...?" She quietly called again, but this time, with slight hesitation in her voice.

Mario blinked slowly and then his eyes shot wide open upon hearing his loved one's voice. He began to make a quick move to get up, but he almost fell over as massive pain flowed throughout his veins. He was about to wince, but he didn't want the princess to worry about him, so he stayed strong. Besides, he wasn't one that likes to show if he was in pain, anyways.

"Ah, princess! I'm coming!" He replied, exhaling heavily and finally succeeding to get himself on his feet.

"No, no, no! I don't want you to get caught by Bowser! Who knows when he'll come back for you and Luigi!"

Mario's brow furrowed a bit in concern and confusion, but he turned his head to find his younger brother slumped into a heap on the floor.

"L-Luigi!" He cried out, voice cracking as he hobbled towards his brother and painfully dropped to his knees beside him. "W-Wake up, bro. C'mon! We have to save the princess and get out of here!"

The plumber in green remained motionless and Mario's heartbeat grew intense. He made sure to listen for Luigi's heartbeat, and thankfully, there was one. Along with a pulse. However, Mario noticed an ugly, large purple and brown-ish bruise, forming on his forehead. His brother's breathing was growing a bit more shallow as well and it sounded a bit raspy.

"That monster," The hero hissed under his breath. "Don't worry, Weegie, you're going to be okay. I'll make sure of it, and if you're still unconscious when I get Koopa back for all of this, I'll make sure to avenge you. Te amo, fratellino. You're strong, I know you can pull through this."

With this being said, Mario kissed the tips of his two gloved fingertips and gently rested it on Luigi's forehead (not on his bruise, don't worry) for a few seconds before pulling away and giving a distressed frown. He then slowly came back upon his feet and turned towards the princess.

"I'm going to get you out of there, princess. Then I can grab Luigi and we can leave before Bowser notices that we're gone."

Mario then began to painfully hurry as much as he could towards the princess' cage.

"Mario, my cage hasn't lowered yet. How can you get up here?" Princess Peach asked, worriedly as she looked down at the hero who approached her.

"I, uh..." Mario looked around and realized that she did have a point. "I'm not sure," He admitted. "But I'll figure out a way to get up there or to help make your cage come down, don't worry."

The princess nodded.

"Okay, just be careful, love. Bowser could-"

Before she could say anything else, the two of them heard none other than Bowser's heavy feet approaching. They automatically knew it was him from the way the walls and floor shook with every step. Besides, who else would be able to do that?

"Mario, he's coming!" The princess announced, her eyes filled with fear. "You have to leave! Quickly!"

"No way! I'm not leaving you and my brother here like this! Especially not in his hands!"

"Mario, please! Maybe you can go and get some more help!"

Mario shook his head.

"Don't worry, princess. I have a better idea."

With this, the hero hid off near a whole bunch of junk that was hidden off to the side and tried not to let himself be seen.

Princess Peach was highly confused, but she didn't have time to question her beloved hero as the Koopa King had already entered.

"That's what Kamek gets for his foolish actions." The reptile muttered under his breath as he brushed his hands together. He then went to Princess Peach's imprisonment and snarled.

"Looks like your luck is turned the other way, princess. There's no way I'm losing now when I for sure have the upper hand! Besides, the brothers are knocked out cold and won't be waking up anytime soon. I suggest you say your final goodbyes before I make the lava incinerate them because not even prayers are gonna work! Gwahahaha!"

"You won't get away with this!" Her voice angrily stated. However, there was a slight sense of fear in it, and Bowser could easily sense it, hence him being used to it.

"Just watch me!" He snapped, stomping towards where only Luigi laid.

"What the-?!" The Koopa spluttered, ferociously whipping back towards the princess. She could clearly see the anger boiling off of him. "WHERE'S MARIO?!"

"....."

"ANSWER ME, PRINCESS!!!"

"How should I know? I never even seen him leave from that spot!"

"BULLOCKS!!! I KNOW YOU'RE COVERING UP FOR HIM! NOW TELL ME WHERE HE-"

"I'm right here, you selfish prick! And don't you ever talk that way to her again!!!" A familiar Italian-accented voice snarled from behind. The plumber jumped up and bashed the reptile's side of his head with a large, metal bar.

Bowser roared in pain as he held his head in his hands and hid under his spiked shell. Mario took this opportunity to run to Luigi and give him a 1-Up, so he could heal faster.

"Oh, my head..." He moaned. "What's going on?"

"No time to explain, Weegie! We have to defeat Bowser and get out of here! It's the only way Princess Peach's cage can be lowered so I can get her out, and it's the only way that we can get outta here!"

He pulled his brother to his feet and Luigi nodded.

"Okie dokie, but you sure owe me an explanation after this!"

"Yeah, sure. Of course. Now let's-a go!"

The brothers ran back towards the overgrown reptile and activated their Brands once more. Mario's aura was now an ice blue and he looked more ready for battle than anything.

"This is for Luigi," Mario hissed, throwing a large, blue and white fireball at the reptile's face.

The Koopa snarled.

"This is for Peach," The plumber continued, shooting another large one. "And this is from ME!"

With this, he created the largest fireball he could possibly make in both of his hands and then brought his hands together to his left side. With great strength and power, the hero shot the fireball in front of him and the fireball skyrocketed towards Bowser, acing him right in the face.

Bowser roared in agony and Luigi created multiple purple lightning strikes with tints of pink around them. His storm clouds were now pitch black and he helped his brother finish Koopa off by striking him everywhere.

Bowser winced and tried to trip the Mario Brothers with his tail again, but they thought ahead of time and were easily able to dodge it.

"Ha! We don't think so!" Luigi chuckled over the sound of all of their battle cries.

Bowser then stomped his feet repeatedly, causing a massive earthquake. The heroes shook and fell on the ground as they lost their balance. The Koopa King let out a thunderous laugh as he charged up a fiery blue and white fireball, similar to Mario's. Blue fire was way more powerful than red was, so that's why the two nemesis used it. Purple-ish/pink-ish lightning was more powerful, as well.

Mario blinked slowly and shook his head to clear away the dizziness, when Bowser's fireball nearly smacked him right in the face. Luckily, Luigi was able to strike it out of existence with his lightning before Mario could get hurt, but the contact made a small explosion occur, throwing the three of them backwards.

Bowser fell on his back and because he was a turtle, he couldn't really get back up. The brothers started coughing hysterically, and their clothing were now covered in lots of areas of soot, along with their caps and face.

"Oh, please get up, you two! You have to!" Princess Peach nearly sobbed from her cage. "You're so close... You can do this!"

"Don't worry, my love. We aren't giving up anytime soon!" The hero in red reassured, giving her a soft smile in which she returned.

Mario and Luigi then began to jump and get up, quickly. They then rushed towards an upturned Bowser and chuckled.

"Guess who has the upper hand now, Koopa?" Mario smirked down at the helpless reptile.

"ARRGG! You can't see me like this! This isn't fair!!!" The Koopa King complained.

"You snooze, you lose!~" Luigi taunted.

The brothers then gave each other a high five and grinned as Princess Peach's cage began to lower.

Excited, Mario wasted no time in racing towards it and tried to yank open the door, but to no avail. He then noticed the locks on it and chuckled, softly.

"Ah, it's no problem. I can burn through the bars like I usually do when I can't get the locks open. Please stand back, princess."

"No, Mario... You can't..."

He looked up at her with a confused and concerned look. Usually she wouldn't hesitate at all to let him free her. His moustache furrowed slightly above his frown and his blue eyes almost seemed to widen with curiosity and slight fear.

"What do you mean, love?"

"It's impossible to burn through the bars! Kamek placed a spell on the cage..."

Her voice cracked and she almost broke down completely in lost hope, as tears welled in her eyes.

"Hey, don't cry, my dear. I hate seeing you upset..." Mario whispered, squeezing his arm through the imprisonment to use his thumb and wipe away a tear off of the princess' cheek.

He looked upset himself and pulled his arm out as he saw his loved one in despair. She smiled weakly, but Mario knew her outside emotions didn't represent the ones she felt in the inside, which crushed Mario's heart. He had to get her out of there or die trying.

"Well, I'm still going to try to burn through the bars and melt them, anyways. I'll use my blue Firebrand so it's more powerful, but you'll have to stand back, okay?"

"I-"

"Everything is going to be alright. I promise you. I'm right here," The hero replied, giving a gentle smile. "You'll be able to get out of here, safely. Luigi and I will make sure of that."

She nodded, and stood back to the rear side of the cage. Mario then spawned his blue Firebrand and held onto the front bars of the prison, tightly. His blue aura was visible once more and so was the blue sparks flying around his sooted, gloved hands. He grunted and tried with all of his might to burn the bars, but it was futile. After the third attempt, Peach sighed and shook her head, sadly.

"W-What are we going to do? How will I ever get out of here...?"

"We'll think of ways to, princess. Not all hope is lost just after one strategy." The plumber soothed.

"Where's the key?!" Luigi's voice demanded sharply a little ways behind the two. "We all know you have it, so where is it?!"

"And why should I tell a weak, pathetic, good-for-nothing shadow like you?!" Bowser spat back.

"Funny how the one flipped helplessly on his back, is the one talking," Luigi snorted, shaking his head in disbelief and then giving the reptile a hard stare. "Guess my brother and I didn't kick your behind hard enough!"

"I'll come back, princess. I gotta deal with those two, first." Mario awkwardly chuckled.

"Alright. It's not like I'm going anywhere, anyways." The princess awkwardly laughed back.

Mario then left the princess and went to accompany his brother and his nemesis.

"What seems to problem here?" The hero questioned.

"I'm trying to get this idiot to tell us where the blasted key is, but he won't budge, even though I'm holding him captive!"

"Hey, I'm right here, ya know!" Bowser growled.

"And I care how?" Luigi hissed.

"Bowser, there's no point in trying to defeat us now. It's pointless. The battle is over, so tell us where it is so the princess can get out of that prison!" Mario protested.

"Never! Even if I'm like this, there's no way that I need to tell you bozos anything!"

"Suit yourself," Mario sneered. "We'll just find a way to rescue the princess ourselves, but don't think that anyone's gonna come and help you!"

"I have Kamek, you nincompoop!"

"I don't think he will come and help you so easily after what you've done to him!" The princess chimed in. "Besides, most of your other minions either don't have any arms, or they are too small to help you. Face it, Bowser, you may as well tell us how to get me out of here."

"I mean, she does have a point!~" Mario remarked, giving a smug look between the reptile and the princess.

"You and your brother don't even know what happened with Kamek and I! You both were knocked out cold, which you still should've been at this moment!"

The hero in red shrugged.

"I don't see how I can really care. It doesn't matter if I was knocked out or not. I will always take the princess' words at heart."

Bowser rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever."

Luigi then rudely cleared his throat and gave Bowser another cold stare.

"AHEM! The key?!" He pressed on, making sure that the Koopa King didn't forget about it. He stuck out his gloved hand towards him and made a 'give me it' motion with it.

There was a bit of a pause before Bowser smirked.

"Oh yeah, sure. I'll give you it. Because of the spells Kamek has placed on it, there's only one certain magical key you can use for the locks."

"And that is...?" The brothers asked in unison, clearly losing their patience.

"KAMEK! KAMEK, COME HERE RIGHT NOW!!!" The Koopa King hollered, making everyone nearly lose their hearing.

A few moments passed before the wizard in blue glided in on his broomstick beside Bowser, still a bit shaken up from his last encounter with the reptile.

"Y-Yes, Master Bowser?" He asked, readjusting his glasses with one hand. He then saw his master's unusual state and tried his hardest not to laugh.

"Unlock Princess Peach's cage for those morons."

"W-What?!" He gasped, clearly taken aback from Bowser's words. "B-But Master Bowser, are you sure you want- I mean, have you thought this through? I thought you had your 'giant plan' that you wanted to fulfill!"

"I know, you'll see soon. Just do as I ask of you." Bowser huffed quietly though his nostrils, making sure his voice was down to a whisper that only Kamek could hear.

Kamek nodded, and thought better than to question his master any further. He obeyed his master's orders and instead of getting a key, he just used his wand to undo all of the locking spells that were placed on the cage.

The cage's door swung open and Princess Peach happily walked out of it.

"Mario! Luigi!" She cried out, running to them with open arms.

"Princess!" The brothers laughed, returning her actions.

The three of them engaged in an excited group hug and pulled apart momentarily after.

"You two will always be my heroes!" She beamed, clutching her chest and giving a warm smile.

She then kissed both of them on the cheek, (for Luigi, it was just for an act of kindness and bravery), making the two of them chuckle and slightly blush.

"We should go, bro. Before they change their minds..." Luigi insisted, grabbing onto his brother's wrist for a few seconds.

Mario nodded and then scooped up Princess Peach in bridal style, who just wrapped her arms around his neck. She felt safe in his arms. His hold always seemed comforting to her.

They eventually made their ways out of the castle's doors and Peach began to start up a conversation.

"So, I had a star for my thoughts..."

"Oh, what is it, princess?" Mario asked, keeping a steady walking pace with Luigi by their side.

"How did you two manage to defeat Bowser when you were both badly hurt? You could barely get up! Was that all a part of your plan?"

"Oh," Mario chuckled. "That. Yeah, haha. I suppose I should tell you both. Especially since I owe Luigi an explanation for what happened anyways."

"You sure do!" Luigi laughed, making the other two join in.

"Well," Mario began. "You see, when I told you that I had a better idea and hid behind some of that rubble Bowser had nearby, I found a 1-Up and used it to heal myself, which is why I could easily fight that no-good Koopa. The one I used for Luigi, I found in an invisible power up block nearby. We got really lucky. And yeah, as you can guess, I ran to Luigi and used that on him, which allowed him to wake up and heal faster."

"Oh okay, that makes a lot more sense. Thank you." The princess smiled.

"Of course, princess!" The hero smiled back.

"Anything happen before then?" The plumber in green questioned.

"Not that I can remember, Weegie. I remember just waking up all terribly sore and injured and I tried to figure out a way to lower the princess' cage, but to no avail. Before we could think of any solutions, Bowser came and I activated my plan."

"Ah, okie dokie. Great job by the way, bro!"

"Thanks, bro! You did an amazing job yourself! I couldn't have done it without you!"

"Haha, I doubt that, but thanks."

"No, really! You're the one who helped finish that reptile off and you were determined to help us get the princess out of her cage. You're a real hero, but of course, we already knew that!"

"For sure!" The princess chimed in. "Thanks for both of your guy's help. You were really heroic and brave out there!"

"Of course, princess!" The brothers chimed in unison.

The three of them laughed until the princess suddenly frowned. Mario noticed it and raised a concerned eyebrow.

"Hey, princess, are you feeling alright?"

"Oh! Y-Yes, I'm fine, thank you. I just couldn't help but wonder how easy it was to convince Bowser to free me. I mean, I'm not complaining but something feels fishy."

"It does seem suspicious... I've noticed that too, princess," Luigi added. "Bowser's not the type to just do things like that. Especially out of the blue when we've known what he's been like for years. He must have a trick up his sleeve. Or, should I say, shell?"

Mario nodded.

"I agree with the both of you, but Luigi and I will keep our eyes out for any suspicious activity. Don't worry about anything, princess. Just relax, okay? Everything is going to be fine and everything will be under control. I mean, what could Bowser possibly plan that Luigi and I haven't beaten him at it before?"

The question barely finished escaping the plumber's lips when suddenly, a humongous shadow loomed over the small group.

"OH, BUT YOU HAVEN'T SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THIS YET...!!!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A/N: Hey, everyone! Sorry for the long chapter. I was originally going to include the next part in this chapter right here, but this whole part is already 41 pages long and over 6,000 words, so I'll continue chapter 8 in the next part! This long chapter can kinda make up for my absence. (Maybe. Depending if you want it to, lol).

Anyways, the song Kamek was singing, obviously does NOT in anyway belong to me, of course. I don't take any credit for it whatsoever! It belongs to Miley Cyrus. The song name is called, "We Can't Stop", so go support her if you like the song because it's not mine. Just wanted to point that out. The reference of the song is just for entertainment purposes only and is not intended for any sort of financial gain or anything. (Yada, yada, yada). You get the point, haha.

The lyrics to the song are here, but this isn't Miley Cyrus' video, (it's a fanmade one) so you'll have to search up the original song by her if you want the actual video. Enjoy!

But yeah, other than those things that I've cleared up, I'll talk to you all again soon! Have a great rest of your day/night! Peace out! 😄✌🏽☮️ 💖❤️💜💙💛💚🧡

Chapter Text

The battle was too much for the brothers. After what seemed like an eternity, they've finally defeated the giant reptile with success and maybe not so much surprise, but this battle in particular was one the heroes barely made it out alive from.

They were scratchy and all out of sorts, but even just seeing the princess safe at last - at least for now, anyways - made it all worth it in the end. It didn't make their sour mood treat the princess with disrespect, though, nonetheless.

Luigi had a few bumps, bruises, cuts and burns all over his body. He looked so exhausted, so incredibly exhausted in fact, that it looked like the poor man hasn't sleep in days. Mario was the same, but instead left with barely any strength to even walk. Princess Peach, on the other hand, remained unharmed, except for the fact that she will always stay mentally and emotionally scarred from her kidnappings. Especially this one in particular. Other than that though, she was just as she was when she first got kidnapped earlier.

Bowser had really done himself this time. After the three of them came out of the castle lowering their guards, Kamek relented himself in regards to his master's orders to help the reptile king up and carry on with the plan. Bowser just wanted to let them go at first so that it was easier to catch the three off guard. Precisely, the Mario Brothers, and well, it did.

All three of them never expected Bowser to  become the size of Godzilla. Not only that, but his features had changed as well. His usual green reptilian skin was now black and the other part of his yellow skin was now all white. His red, wavy hair was now ghostly white with some streaks of black in it. His eyes, no more than piercing black sockets, had a glowing red aura around them. His pupils were bloodshot red as well and gave off a terrifying appearance. Something straight out of a horror film.

Princess Peach had let out a terrified yelp in surprise and started trembling in Mario's arms, all the while on the brims of tears that had formed in her eyes. When the heroes had noticed her strange behaviour, they couldn't help but pique their interest and look at what she was staring at. Once they noticed, chaos had broken loose and even Mario himself had to restrain himself against having to become so startled that he dropped the princess. However, he managed to gain his composture, but Luigi on the other hand, was petrified just as much as Peach was.

And now, after nearly submitting themselves to death and defeat, the brothers were miraculously able to fend off against the monstrous reptile's attacks and find his weak points, resulting in another victory for the heroes.

The three of them were now trying to get safely back to the Mushroom Kingdom, however, as weak as Mario was, he wasn't able to walk well, let alone carry the princess back home no matter how hard he tried and persisted to. Luigi could, but then what would they do about Mario? It's not like any of them had the strength or energy to carry him and Luigi was as exhausted as his brother was. They couldn't let the princess walk back on her own, either, so Peach suggested finding another 1-Up, a warp whistle, or even a warp pipe.

It wasn't completely a bad idea, but then again, warp whistles were extremely rare and so were 1-Up's. There also didn't seem to be any warp pipes around that could take them to the Mushroom Kingdom at the moment, either. All that stood were the warp pipes that teleported them to other parts of Dark World, or anywhere BUT the Mushroom Kingdom.

Go figure.

Until Luigi had an idea.

Maybe they could get help somehow. It was worth a shot.

Mario perked up a little bit and said that whenever there was a time that they needed help, Yoshi was always there to save the day. All they had to do was whistle for him and because of his great hearing, he could come and help them. Plus, he could fly, so that would really benefit the small group.

Luigi nodded and replied with, "Yeah! It's worth a shot!", before taking off one of his sooted gloves and whistling as loud as he could into his fingers. There was a certain way the brothers had to whistle though, so Yoshi knew that they needed his help.

The sound wasn't too cheery nor gloomy, but it did have its perks. At first, it sounded like a regular screechy whistle, but then the mood darkened a bit as it suddenly sounded like a painful cry for help. The noise grew a little deeper, then right back to how it first was.

SCCCcccrrrRRReeeeeeeEEEEEEcccccHHH!!!

The other two winced a little upon their sensitive hearing at the moment, but it was worth it. Luigi then proceeded to put his glove back on and help keep an eye out for their lifelong pal. A minute later, Princess Peach caught Yoshi flying down towards them when she took a glance at the clear, blue sky.

"Yoshi, yoshi? (You called?)"

Luigi nodded. Even though Yoshi only spoke in his Native tongue, everyone could thankfully understand him just fine. Same with their other friends such as Donkey Kong, Diddy, Dixie, and more.

"Yeah, buddy. Sorry for bothering you. There seems to be a problem. Ittt'sss a bit of a long story, but erm, we could really use your help right now." Luigi sheepishly chuckled, scratching the back of his neck in embarrassment.

"Yoshi, yoshi, yoshi! Yoshi? (Don't worry about it! I'm here to help, remember?)"

Luigi nodded once more and proceeded to tell Yoshi what had happened along the lines of the fight with Bowser. The green dino listened attentively and nodded along to show he was following with what the plumber in green had said. When Luigi was finished, however, Yoshi couldn't believe his nonexistant ears.

"Yoshi, yoshi, yoshi, yo! Yoshi, yo, yoshi, yo. Yo, yo, yoshi, yoshi... (Wow, that's quite a story. I'm glad you all are alive, though! That must have been frightening!)"

"Yeah, it was..." Mario weakly huffed, closing his eyes for a few seconds as the princess put her arm around him to try and comfort him. "I'm just glad we all are okay. Especially Weegie and the princess..."

Princess Peach stroked and caressed Mario's face with her gloved hand as she kissed his cheek and muttered something in his ear.  Luigi nor Yoshi could quite make out what she said, but they both saw somewhat of a semi-smile form at the corner of Mario's mouth a little. The princess then straightned up and used one of her hands to smooth down her pink dress a bit more, before looking back at Yoshi.

"So," She hesitated a bit, while taking a steady breath. "I'm not trying to intrude or anything, but we should really be going back to the Mushroom Kingdom now. Not only do I feel unsafe here, but Luigi and Mario especially could use a good treatment and replenish their health."

"Yoshi, yoshi. Yoshi, yo, yo, yo! (Of course, princess. Climb upon my back, everyone!)"

"Thank you, Yoshi." Peach smiled.

"Yoshi! (Anytime!)"

Yoshi crouched down so it was easier for the three of them to climb aboard.

"Are... Are you really going to be able to carry all three of us, Yoshi?" The princess asked, with slight hesitation in her voice.

"Yoshi, yoshi, yo, yo, yoshi, yo. Yo, yo, yoshi! (Don't worry. I've carried way more things than the three of you before. Besides, they were heavier items, so I should be able to carry you all no problem. Just hang on tight!)"

Peach looked between the Mario Bros a final time, unsure of who should board first. Since Mario was the weakest, he could go in the middle so the other two can easily access and assist him if needed. Luigi boarded first so he was in the front with Mario awkwardly trying to climb behind him. Luigi pulled his brother up, and Peach was there to support her hero from the back. She then climbed up behind him and held him close with one arm while trying to hang onto the dino with the other.

Sighing with exhaustion, Mario leaned into her, resting his head on her chest. She smiled and held him a little tighter, but made sure he was able to breathe and not get crushed, for it was fairly squishy with the three of them jampacked onto the dinosaur's back.

With Luigi's confirmation, Yoshi accended into the sky and started to make his way towards The Mushroom Kingdom. He flew at a steady pace as to not disturb anyone or make them fall off of him.

Meanwhile, the plumber's eyelids grew heavy and were fluttering closed, but he fought to stay awake.

Princess Peach couldn't help but give out a small, quiet, heartiful laugh as she softly shook her head.

"That's okay, my beloved. You rest until we get there. I know how exhausted you must be. Especially from fighting Bowser and all," She said, returning Mario's words back at him from the previous day. "But don't worry, when we get back, I'll tend to your wounds and then let you rest for as long as you like."

"Mmffph..." Was all the hero managed to reply with. He tried to open his mouth to speak, but couldn't seem to get any words out due to his tiredness. Instead, he just shook his head slightly and tried to make a move to sit up and face the princess.

"Shhh, it's okay. Just relax, dear." Peach cooed.

Defeated, Mario slumped down a little more and finally gave into sleep. His breathing was shallow, but Peach knew that he would be okay. Nothing some good treatments and sleep wouldn't do for him.

"Oh, my hero. My sweet, sweet, hero..." The princess whispered, gently hugging him like a teddy bear. "Rest well before we arrive."

*******************************************

Mario slightly flinched under the princess' touch as she applied some rubbing alcohol on his wounds.

There were in Princess Peach's bathroom and Mario was sitting up onto the countertop while Peach was helping clean and tend to his wounds. Luigi was already done and chatting amongst the Toads, Yoshi and Toadsworth. He didn't have much to treat, but Princess Peach insisted on caring for him.

He reluctantly gave in when Peach joked around saying, "Are you really going to go back on a princess' orders, my second knight in shining overalls?" He blushed a little at her teasing and decided that it wouldn't hurt to try. After all, she's done the same for Mario countless times over the years.

"Oh, I'm sorry, love. I know it stings, but this will help you." She frowned, lightly dabbing at Mario's forehead for he had a bad cut above his eyebrow.

The slash was quite large and would have taken his right eye out, if the wound went right over it.

"I'm fine, princess. It doesn't hurt, anyways." The hero lied, trying to hide his embarrassment by coughing into his fist.

"Mario..." She scolded like a parent. "You don't need to lie to me to make me feel better. It's alright to show some pain, you know. It's completely normal. Nobody is here and I won't judge or say anything to anyone."

Mario said nothing at this and just avoided eye contact with the princess. He found himself glancing at his brown boots in shame.

Princess Peach, realizing this conversation wasn't going any further, just gave a tired sigh and went to the trash can to discard the cloth she was using to help clean up Mario's open wounds.

Mario watched her every step with curiosity and shyness like a kid at a new school.

"Just please let me continue helping you, at least?" She pleaded, turning back to face him and looked him in the eyes.

The plumber nodded slowly, and Peach, with a grateful and relieved smile, made herself back towards her beloved hero.

"Thank you." She said, quietly.

She then began to apply some medical crème, ointment and other medical supplies on where he needed it the most. Mario drew in quiet breaths when certain areas were the most sensitive and tried not to cry out. He was really sore. Being his number one target for years, Bowser went after him the most, but Mario didn't mind. He was just incredibly grateful that his little brother didn't have to go through all of this. It would kill him to see him like this and Mario would just prefer him going through this, anyways.

"Annnddd, done!" Princess Peach smiled, stepping back and stretching her arms out wide. "Soon you'll be good as new."

The hero's eyebrows raised and then he looked at the princess with hopeful but confused eyes.

"Thank you, princess." Mario replied, giving her a soft smile.

"Of course, dear. I always have to take care of you after your battles."

"As much as I appreciate it, you don't have to at all, love."

"Well, what kind of girlfriend would I be if I didn't take care of my babyboy?~" She smugly replied, giving him a playful but careful jab with her elbow.

Mario just blushed and began to grow restless with nervousness. His legs were bouncing a bit, feet were slowly swinging and he was wringing his gloved hands over and over again.

"Ahi, I-" He croaked out, respectfully clearing his throat a little.

The princess just giggled at the plumber's expression and winked.

"Just teasin' you, silly," She laughed. "I still love you, though."

Mario began chuckling softly.

"I love you too, princess."

Princess Peach then smiled and tilted her head down a bit as she used an index finger to lift Mario's chin up so he could look at her. Their sky blue eyes locked onto each other's for a few seconds before the princess smashed her lips against the plumber's.

Mario didn't know how to react at first. I mean, they did have their first kiss already on Princess Peach's balcony after the one dinner they had, but he didn't expect the princess to kiss him right then and there!

His eyes widened and then closed a few seconds later. Every part of his body seemed to stop and he couldn't think straight. Peach hadn't hurt him with him being sore and all, but he certainly had frozen up in shock, nonetheless.

Her hands then found its way towards his red, flustered face. She held it firmly, as she gently cupped his adorable, chubby cheeks that she had always loved. He let her embrace him for a few more seconds until he finally found himself enough to kiss her back. His warm, loving arms wrapped themselves around the princess' torso and he pulled her in close to him. They embraced each other for another minute before slowly pulling apart for air.

Peach straightened herself and smiled as she watched Mario's eyelids slowly open. His face was almost as red as his cap, but when he saw his lover smile at him, he couldn't help but give a loving smile back at her.

He loved her so much that he would do anything for her. Including sacrificing his own life just to make sure she was safe.

Peach giggled a bit seeing how red Mario became and he chuckled too, even though the form of expression made his bruised sides ache. He accidently let out a quiet groan and shifted himself a little so he would be more comfortable. It was also really awkward for him, since he didn't want to worry Peach.

The princess became alarmed and tried to reach out her arms to steady him.

"Mario! Oh, Mario, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to-"

"Princess, there's no need to apologize. You didn't do anything wrong. In fact, that laugh actually helped me relieve some stress a little. What does- erm, how does the saying go...? 'Laughter is the best medicine?' I think that is true, princess, because you are my laughter. My cure to all of my darkest times and pain. I love you even more for that. You always make my days and know how to cheer me up or anyone for that matter."

It was Princess Peach's turn to blush a little.

"M-Mario, I don't... I don't know what to say. Thank you, my love. You are my laughter and cures too. I always look forward to waking up each day, knowing that I'll be seeing you. You are everything to me."

"You are everything to me, too, princess."

The two of them happily exchanged loving hugs and laughs, all the while Peach making sure not to hug her hero too tightly and hurt him more.

"Here, let's get you to bed now. You could use some much needed sleep. It's getting fairly dark out." The princess announced, opening up her arms so Mario could use her as support to get down.

She noticed how he tried to stay energetic and positive for her, but deep down, she knew that he was dying to get some sleep. Some well deserved shut eye at that.

"Hm? Excuse me, princess, but I.. I don't understand...?" He mumbled as he made it off of the countertop, but then looked up at her with panic in his eyes. "I-I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to be rude, princess!"

"Shhh, it's okay. You aren't being rude at all, dear," Peach smiled. "I know how exhausted you are. Come here, love." She announced, taking his hand in hers and slowly leading him out of the bathroom and towards her bed.

Mario walked at a steady pace, trying not to limp and wince as he did so. His breathing became shallow with pain and he huffed and closed his eyes to try and relax himself.

"Don't worry. Here, I'll help you up."

"O-On your bed...?"

Princess Peach nodded.

"Of course, you are in no condition to walk home like this and it's the least I can do for what you've done today. You need rest and I am here to care for you, love, like I usually do. All the medical supplies are here and I have assistants to help you as well if needed. I think it would best if you stayed with me. At least, just until you get better."

"But what about Weegie?" The hero asked as Peach helped him sit up on the bed and started crouching down to take off his boots. "I-I can also get Yoshi to fly us home. H-He's still here, right?"

"Yes, and don't worry. I can go inform the both of them on your current state."

The hero slowly nodded and then blushed slightly as he realized what Peach was doing.

"Ahi, p-princess. Y-You don't have to do that. I am able to."

"It's okay, dear. I know you are sore and everything. I don't mind helping you, y'know." She replied with a sweet smile as she slid off his last boot and put them neatly off to the side of the bed.

"Just relax," She added, standing up. "Feel free to lay down if you need to. I am going downstairs to explain the situation with Luigi, Yoshi, and Toadsworth."

"O-Okay. Can you please give Luigi and Yoshi my thanks for today, princess?"

"Of course. I'll be right back."

He nodded slightly as he watched his princess glide out of the bedroom door like a goddess. Only, she was his princess. His goddess, to be exact.

Exasperated, he sighed as he painfully brought his legs up on her bed and carefully laid down on the princess' bedsheets. They were so soft and warm, he became comfortable quite quickly. He didn't bother to pull the blanket up over him, though. Just being with the princess, even if she wasn't physically there, was decent enough for him right now. He inhaled the flower and perfume-like smell of her sheets. The same aroma he caught a whiff of whenever he hugged his beloved. The same, comforting smell he longed close to, like a small child with its mother.

As exhausted as he was, though, he couldn't seem to fall asleep. It wasn't just the pain, though. It was something else, but no matter how hard he thought, Mario just couldn't think of it. It was bothering him so much that Mario mentally cursed himself in Italian for it. The nagging feeling at him grew stronger and stronger until time some time passed. He didn't know how much, but eventually, he noticed as Princess Peach quietly came back into the room.

She glanced towards the bed and at Mario, who noticed that she was trying not to wake him up.

"Oh, I-I'm not sleeping, princess." He said in a low voice. So low, he wasn't sure if she heard him at first.

Smiling, she quietly closed the door behind her and glided towards Mario.

"Oh. Well, as much as you need your rest, I'm glad you're up because I brought something for you that I think will cheer you up."

She then set her small gift on her bedside table. Raising a curious eyebrow, Mario tried to make a move to sit up and Peach quickly rushed to his aid to help him.

The excited smile never left the princess' face which only enhanced the plumber's curiosity more.

And then it hit him.

Mario knew that aroma anywhere.

Glancing to the bedside table, he too, couldn't help but break into a wide grin as he realized what the princess had brought him.

A small bowl of none other than his favourite food - Spaghetti.

"Oh, princess! That wasn't necessary, but thank you."

"Nonsense," She replied, kissing her hero on the forehead. "Anything for you. You must be starving after all of that."

She then placed the warm bowl in Mario's lap and sat up on the bed beside him. She noticed him staring sadly at it in thought, before looking into her blue eyes that looked almost black as the darkness grew.

"Where's yours, princess?"

"Oh," The princess pondered, contemplating what Mario had just asked. "Why, it's just for you. I don't need a bowl, love. It's my treat."

She gave a small smile at the end of this, but Mario looked guilty. As if he been caught doing a crime that he couldn't get himself out of. He held out the bowl towards the princess with a small smile.

"Here, have some, princess."

"No, thank you, dear. I'm quite alright."

"Please... I-I can't eat unless I know that you've eaten too."

Blinking slowly, the princess gave in and softly took the bowl from Mario's hands.

"Thank you." She said in a low and soft voice.

"Of course. I have to make sure my princess eats." The red capped plumber smiled.

"This looks amazing. To be honest, I've never had spaghetti before." The princess said sheepishly as she settled the bowl comfortably on her lap.

"Really?" Mario inquired, raising an eyebrow and giving a small gasp. "No way!"

"It's true." Peach sighed, unsure of why she announced that. She took the fork and tried to softly stab at the spaghetti like you would do to a salad.

Mario chuckled a bit.

"H-Here, let me help you." He giggled.

He put his hand on Princess Peach's that was holding the fork and used his other as support to sit himself up. Confused, Princess Peach let Mario's hand be her guide as they used the fork together to twirl the noodles around in the bowl.

Peach watched with fascination as the noodles started to blur in with the tomato sauce, beef and even some mushrooms that were thrown in there.

A few seconds later, Mario stopped as he lifted the fork up by her face and smiled.

"Here you go, princess. For you."

Princess Peach smiled back and shook her head in disbelief.

"Wow, that was amazing! It's so cool how the noodles can just gather into the fork like that you you twirl it around in the bowl."

This time, Mario let out a weak, heartfelt laugh.

"Hehe, just wait until you taste the food itself!"

The princess smiled and let out a small hum in acknowledgement as she used her now free hand to eat a bite of the meal with such delicacy.

She closed her eyes for a brief moment to savour the taste. After she finished swallowing, she opened her eyes again and gave her hero another one of her smiles.

"I-Oh, my stars! That was one of the best foods I have ever tasted! No wonder spaghetti is your favourite! I-I don't know what to say!"

She would've jumped for joy if the bowl wasn't in her lap, so instead the two of them laughed for a while.

"Oh, by all means, have as much as you want then, princess!"

She shook her head.

"No, it's okay. I can always make myself some later. Thank you, though."

"Well, at least have a few more bites!"

"Only if you don't mind." She slightly blushed.

"Of course not! I'm so glad you love it princess, haha."

Peach then twirled her fork around the bowl and ate two more bites of the food before handing the dish back to Mario.

"Thank you, dear," She said once she was finished. "But I am alright now. You may have the rest. I don't want you to starve."

"Ahi, don't worry about me, princess. I'm just happy to see you having fun," The hero smiled. "But thank you, as well."

"My pleasure." She smiled as she watched Mario swirl the noodles and eat with such swiftness and perfection.

She noticed how easily and quickly he was able to take bites after bites of the food, but she knew that he was, of course, used to it and was highly familiar with the dish. She couldn't just watch him eat though. That would make him uncomfortable, or anyone for that matter. It would seem as if she were a dog begging for food and it would be impolite, so she turned her gaze towards her gloved hands instead and folded them in her lap. She fiddled with them, trying to find something to say amongst this awkward silence.

"I gave Luigi a container of spaghetti to take home. I made lots. So much in fact, that I gave Yoshi some too, and that seemed to make his day. I mean, we all know how he gets when it comes to food." She laughed softly, after finding her voice.

"Heh heh, yeah! Oh, how nice of you, princess. I'm sure that they are grateful for your gesture. I know Luigi loves spaghetti too. His most favourite foods though, are pizza and lasagna, but ah, yes, he doesn't complain when it comes to anything, really."

"Oh! Well, maybe I should invite you to anther dinner sometime, and Luigi can come too."

"Yes, he will like that," Mario nodded, after finishing the food. "I can talk to him about it when the time grows nearer."

He tried to get down off of the bed to put his empty bowl downstairs, but Peach stopped him and softly took the bowl from his hands.

"It's okay, we can deal with this in the morning." She soothed, placing the bowl on her nightstand.

Mario nodded and covered his mouth as he let out a yawn.

"Oh! Right, I won't keep you up much longer."

"You aren't... You aren't 'keeping me up', princess. I love talking with you."

She smiled and opened her arms up to him.

"Come here." She murmured.

Slowly, Mario obeyed and carefully leaned into her. The princess gently wrapped her arms around him to embrace him.

"I love talking with you too, my sweet hero."

Mario gave a happy but tired hum in response. They stayed like this for a few more minutes until Peach noticed that Mario's eyes weren't even closed.

"Hey, I thought you were getting some shut eye." She half-heartily joked.

"Can't rest... without you resting first..." Mario replied in a low voice.

"Mario, it's okay. Please sleep. You need to replenish your health and energy."

Mario just made a weak attempt to shake his head and gave a semi-smile.

"Can't rest... without you resting first..." He repeated.

Desperate for Mario to sleep, she slowly pulled apart from him.

"Okay," She finally sighed with a tired smile. "You win. Here, let's get you laying down."

Mario didn't respond, so she carefully laid his delicate head on one of her pillows and kissed it, which in return, Mario's ears and cheeks briefly turned pink.

She then began to tuck him in as Mario tried to shift and look at her.

"You don't... That isn't necessary for you to do, princess. I..."

"Shh, just relax. Everything will be okay, love." She soothed, smoothing down his blanket that covered his small body.

He did as he was told and sleepily watched as the princess took off her crown and heels. She put her crown on the bedside table upon a small pillow and her heels beside Mario's boots.

She then hopped into her bed to lay down beside him and made herself comfortable. The two of them laid on their sides, facing each other. They were so close, that they could hear each other's quiet breathing. It reamined silent for a few more seconds until the plumber broke the silence.

"I feel intrusive..."

"Pardon?"

"I feel intrusive," Mario repeated. "L-Like I'm not supposed to be here with you. In this room—erm, bed, I mean."

"Oh. Why? How come?"

Mario hugged the covers a little tighter to himself.

"Well, this is your room, right? And I feel... I feel like I'm taking over. If that makes sense."

He sighed, continuing once more when he realized Peach wasn't going to answer him.

"I-I guess what I'm trying to get at is that this is probably awkward for you, hm?"

"Well," Peach pondered, finally speaking up. "Is this awkward for you?"

"Ah, m-maybe a little, to be honest. I'm unexpectedly in your bed when I should be in my own and I feel like I'm a burden being here. This is your bed and I just come in and take over it. It doesn't feel right or fair to you."

The princess let out a soft chuckle.

"Mario, I'm the one who has invited you to stay here, remember? You aren't intruding at all. I want to make sure that you are well before you're off on your own again. So, please—don't think that you're a burden of any sort because that's not true whatsoever! I love you so much and just want what's best for you."

Sighing with relief, Mario began to relax more.

"Yes, you are right, princess. I'm sorry I didn't see this better. Thank you."

"You're always welcomed." She smiled.

They briefly smiled at each other before Mario slowly reached out towards her.

"Come here, my princess." He said just above a whisper, with those exhausted eyes of his.

Peach quietly giggled a bit as she heard her own words being thrown back at her. She caved in and slowly but carefully scooted over towards her beloved. This time, he wrapped his arms around her and held her close.

"Ahm," He smiled, giving a small hum. "Just close your eyes and think of something nice."

Peach barely nodded before obliging. She gently buried her face in Mario's chest, hearing his steady heartbeat and breathing. She longed for the day for her to be wrapped up in his arms like this. To hear his heartbeat and listen to his breathing. It was adorable. She felt safe and warm in his embraces, along with Mario in hers.

Soon, the princess felt her eyelids grow incredibly heavy and didn't realize how exhausted she was herself.

"Goodnight, my hero." She whispered.

"Goodnight, my princess." Mario whispered back.

Sleep quickly took over her and Mario gave a weak smile as he saw his beloved sleeping in his arms. Knowing she was alright now, he too, began to close his eyes and followed suit with Peach until the morning dawned on them.

*******************************************
A/N: Yeahhh, I know this chapter was really cheesy, but I couldn't help it. I love these two so freaking much and that's just me when it comes to my favourite Nintendo ships! 😂❤️ Also, this is in fact, a Mareach book, so what can I really do about it? Lol!

Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, nonetheless and I'll try to upload the next chapter asap. I hope you have a great rest of your day/night, though! Baiiii! Thanks for reading! 😄👋🏽💖✨

Chapter Text

2 months later...

Mario looked in the bathroom mirror and sighed as he adjusted his red tie.

"W-What if she says 'no', Weegie? What if it's too soon for her? I mean, after all she's been through and I'm still wanting to do this..."

"Hey, don't think that way, bro. You'll do great and I'm sure it's not too soon. Maybe she's been waiting for you to propose to her for a while now. After all, we have known the princess for years. It seems like she really adores and cares about you, just as much as you do to her."

"I guess so, but I don't feel like I've done enough to deserve her hand in marriage."

"You've already bought the ring and have came this far, Mario. Why quit now? Besides, you have done enough for her AND her kingdom. There's no way she'll turn you down, so don't think so negatively!"

Mario turned around to face his brother who was standing in the bathroom doorway.

"Well, what have I really done for her besides save her from Bowser?"

Luigi nudged his brother with elbow, playfully.

"Ahem, for one, you took her to that Milli Vanilli concert that she wanted to go to, despite the fact that you were still slightly recovering after the unexpected attack Bowser pulled. How could you forget about that?"

"Oh, yeah! I remember how overjoyed she was. She couldn't stop fangirling for the whole night! Especially after she got their autograph! It made me so happy just seeing her having a great time. There were so much lights, people, food, loud music and more. The princess and I were so exhausted after everything, but it was beyond worth it—I bet it was to her, too! I even made sure to get the front row for her. She couldn't thank me enough for that night, hehe."

"Exactly! And remember how you not only save her from Bowser, but you save her kingdom and citizens, too? You certainly know about that, bro. Including how the princess and everyone are always eternally grateful for what you've always done! You've taken care of her plenty of times when she has fallen ill and you always make her laugh. You two are so close. You do so many things together, that I'm sure you both practically are husband and wife already!"

With this, Luigi gave a loud chuckle at his joke, which caused Mario to give a reassuring grin.

"Ahi, yes. Thank you, bro. You're right. I shouldn't be overthinking this."

Luigi walked up to his brother and placed a hand on his shoulder, while giving him a cheeky smirk.

"No, you shouldn't. So, what are you waiting for? Go get her, tiger!"

*******************************************
Each minute that the date had passed, only made Mario more and more anxious. He was sitting in a nice, fancy restaurant in none other than New Donk City at a table for two. He reserved upon the back for more privacy. He was also meeting up with Peach in here but she hadn't arrived yet, so he went through the plan once more in his mind.

Okay, so when she gets here, we'll eat dinner together and chat for a bit. Then, afterwards, I'll say that I want to take her somewhere else for the night. She may ask where, but I'll just tell her it's a surprise. No big deal. Next, I'll take her to one of my favourite places to sit alone, and look at the city lights at night. A great view, by the way, for a perfect night like this will be.

Mario then snapped out of his thoughts when he heard footsteps approach him. He looked up beside him to see a fairly tall female waitress in a fancy black dress shirt and skirt with a white apron. A small white towel was carefully tucked over her right arm, along with a notepad in her hand. A pen was also sticking out of her breast pocket shirt.

"Hello, sir! Would you like to order something?" She asked. With her left hand, she now held the pen firmly, ready to scribble things down.

"Ah—No, thank you. I'm just waiting for someone, first."

"Alright, that's no problem. I'll come back in a bit."

Mario nodded and watched as she clicked her pen shut and turned on her heel, striding away from the plumber.

Turning his attention back to his table, he began to pick up the menu to act like he was going to choose something, but of course, he couldn't concentrate on any of the words.

With no hope, he quietly sighed to himself and placed the menu back down in front of him. Reaching into his right pant pocket, he pulled out a tiny black box. Way smaller than his gloved hand.

He stroked his thumb over the item softly, and bit his bottom lip.

After I take her to one of my favourite places, we may chat for a bit more. I'll slowly steer the conversation topic about her and how much she means to me. After that, I'll pull out the ring, get down on one knee and-

But no matter how hard he tried, Mario couldn't seem to finish the rest of the scenario in his mind.

Ugh, why do I have to be so-

"Mario!"

Another set of footsteps walked towards him. This time, though, they sounded hurried and Mario glanced up just in time to see Princess Peach waving cheerfully towards him.

Startled, he quickly shoved the small black box back into his pant pocket and gave a small wave back.

"Hey, princess!"

She took no notice of what he just did as she approached him.

"What did I tell you about calling me 'Peach' from now on?" She giggled, half teasing him as she kissed his cheek.

Mario slightly blushed a bit and let out a small, nervous chuckle.

She then made her way towards her seat to sit opposite of the hero, and Mario quickly stood up and helped her. Pushing in her chair, she thanked him as he went back to his seat.

"Of course, prin-Peach," He quickly corrected himself and smiled. "You look absolutely gorgeous, by the way. How have you been doing?"

Peach blushed.

"Thank you so much. You're really handsome tonight. You should wear your cap off more often," She smiled. "And ah, not too bad. How about you?

"I'm alright, thank you. And oh, I didn't know you liked me without my cap off a lot. Maybe I will take your suggestion into consideration, heh heh. Oh-! Erm, here's the menu if you want to look at it." The hero replied, handing the princess the menu.

"Thank you, love." She beamed while opening it and skimming through it with such delicacy.

"You're welcome, haha."

"Whoa! There's so many options! The Mushroom Steak with Gravy looks stunning, but so does the Bacon Wrapped Pork Tenderloin, along with so many other things."

Mario chuckled.

"Don't worry, Peach. I'm like that, too, haha. Just take your time, though. There's no rush."

After a while, Peach finally settled with the Chicken Cordon Bleu and Mario settled with Chicken Piccata. Both felt in a more chicken-based mood, for some odd reason.

The waitress that Mario had seen before, approached the two of them with a smile, her pen and notebook ready in hand.

"Hey! Are you two ready to order?"

"Yes," Mario smiled. "I'll take the Chicken Piccata and this lovely lady here will take the Chicken Cordon Bleu."

He nudged his head slightly towards Peach when indicating her and then looked back to meet her smile.

"Alright," The waitress beamed after she finished scribbling everything down. "Anything that you two would like to drink?"

"I'll take the white wine, please." Peach piped up.

"Okay, sure thing. And you?" She asked, looking up at Mario.

"I'll have what she's having." Mario replied, smiling back at the princess once more, who returned it.

The waitress nodded after writing that down, and clicked her pen shut once more. She then proceeded to place the pen back in her breast shirt pocket and walk away.

"So, um... Lovely lady, hm?" Peach blushed and gave a small laugh. "I appreciate the compliment."

"Of course, Peach. It is the truth, after all, haha."

Peach beamed and reached over the table to grab Mario's left gloved hand with her own before holding it. They looked into each other's eyes as Mario beamed back and put his right hand on top of hers. It was tiny compared to Mario's large hand, but it never bothered the two of them in the least.

A few minutes passed and the waitress came back with their drinks. After the two of them thanked her, they decided to chat some more, which somehow lead to Mario telling the princess some jokes of his.

"Okay, okay—Last one!" He grinned, making Peach cover her mouth and giggle from the previous joke about food. "So there's this one time I prank-called Luigi, right? And so, he picks up the phone with his usual, 'Hello?'. But then..."

Mario looks at Peach, who is trying her hardest not to laugh and choke on her wine. He smirks at her and continues.

"But then, I go, 'Hey, Luigi! Is the fridge running?'. He goes, 'I-I think so, why?' and then I promptly respond with, 'Well, then you better go catch it, hahaha!'"

Peach let out a heart filled laugh, but none too loudly, because she was mindful that they were still in a restaurant.

"What did he do next?" She asked, excitement dancing in her eyes as she took another sip of her drink.

"Haha, all he sarcastically replied with was, 'Haha, very funny, bro. You're such a comedian. I'm laughing soooo hard!' before hanging up on me, hehe."

Peach snickered a bit.

"Haha, that's pretty good."

"Hehe, yeah, thanks!" Mario beamed.

The waitress then came back with their food. The two of them exchanged their thanks and smiled up at her.

"Enjoy your meal!" She beamed back before leaving for the fourth time.

The two respectfully ate in silence and chatted here and there when times were appropriate to, all the while making each other laugh.

Before they both knew it, hours had passed and they've both finished their meals.

"Mmm, as good as that was, I don't think I can eat another bite!" Peach exclaimed, softly patting her mouth with a napkin.

"Me neither, hehe."

"All finished?" The waitress asked, nearly startling the two.

"Yes, thank you." Mario responded.

She nodded and took away their dishes.

"Would you like anything else or will that be all?"

"Um..." Mario quickly glanced at Peach who slightly shook her head to indicate that she was good. "No, thank you. We're alright."

"Okay, I'll be back to give you your cheque in just a moment."

Mario and Peach then watched her stride away as quickly as she appeared. They both made eye contact as they began to talk.

"Mario..."

"Peach..." He started with, although they said each other's names in unison.

"Oh!" Peach gave out a nervous laugh. "You can go ahead, Mario. I have to tell you something."

Mario's heart hammered in his chest and he could feel his face grow slightly warm.

Had it always been this hot in here?

"That's okay, Peach. I have to tell you something too, but you can go, first."

"Oh... Are you sure?"

"Yes." Mario nodded.

"Okay, I really don't mean to kill the mood, but it's something important I have to tell you, because I'm not sure when I'll get another opportunity to do this..."

Mario nodded his head slightly, to inform Peach to carry on.

"I'm all ears."

"Well, um, you've noticed how frequent Bowser had been kidnapping me lately, right? More than usual for these past two months?"

"Yes, of course," This time Mario was the one to reach and grab Peach's hand, firmly, and look into her eyes with such a concerned stare, that it gave Peach a few shivers down her spine. "But you do know that no matter what it takes, I'll always come to your aid. The last thing I want is for you to get hurt in any way."

"Yes, well..." She hesitated and looked away from Mario's gaze.

The waitress appeared once more and handed Mario the cheque, which he quickly signed and returned to the lady.

"Oh! Sir, this is $20 more than what both of your orders cost!" The waitress replied, a little confused on the plumber's actions.

"Yes, well, it's just a little something extra for your service. We both appreciate it very much, so consider it as a tip." The hero smiled.

"I-I... T-Thank you so much! You don't know how much this means to me!"

"Of course!"

She bid them both a goodnight, which they returned back to her, and she left for the last time.

"Sorry about that, love. Continue." Mario encouraged, giving Peach's hand a soft squeeze.

"I-It's okay," Peach replied, looking back at her hero. "I just..."

"Hey... you can tell me anything..."

"I know," She nodded her head and closed her eyes for a brief moment as she sighed. "It's just... Toadsworth..."

"What about him?" Mario asked, now gently rubbing his thumb over her knuckles in a comforting motion.

"Well, long story short, he had a talk with me last night in my room about how frequently Bowser has been kidnapping me. Way too much for the kingdom's and his' comfort. I agreed and said that I felt the same. However, he then proceeded to tell me that we are going on a vacation for awhile. It wasn't even suggested! He just told me dead-flat that we all needed an emotional and mental break from Bowser, and he was sure you did, too."

"W-What? How come he didn't let you decide this?"

Peach sighed.

"That's what I tried to ask him, too, because I was a little upset that he hadn't discussed the matters with me. He just excused himself as 'wanting to do what's best for me and everybody else'. I... I don't know what to do, honestly. No matter what, I can't persuade him to change his mind. He won't listen to me."

"Well, I can try and convince him, if you'd like, Peach."

"As much as I appreciate your offer, love, there's no point in wasting your breath. Toadsworth can be quite stubborn when it comes to my safety."

She sighed once more and shook her head softly before continuing.

"Nothing new, I'm afraid."

Mario couldn't believe his ears. He hoped this was some sort of joke, but seeing as upset as Peach's expressions were, he knew this was no laughing matter.

"W-Well, when are you leaving? And where to?" He forced himself to say.

"This weekend. Friday, we are leaving."

Mario's eyes widened a bit.

"But that's in three days!"

"Yes..." Peach frowned, closing her eyes for a brief moment as she spoke. "I know... it's last minute notice. I really don't want to go, either. That means I'll have to leave my kingdom behind and it would be way more vulnerable to Bowser..."

She then opened her eyes and continued once more.

"As for where I'm going, I'm not sure, but Toadsworth said that I'll be content there and won't have to worry about my troubles any longer. Lots of Toad guards and Toads are coming along too, while some others stay back to watch the kingdom, but... I still don't feel comfortable with this..."

Mario shook his head slowly, in disbelief and swallowed the lump in his throat.

"D-Do you know how long you'll be gone for...?" The plumber managed to stutter.

Peach looked down at their intertwined hands.

"Eight months," She replied, quietly, not daring to look at Mario's heartbroken stare. "That's what I've heard of, anyways. From now until April."

"W-What? N-No! This can't be possible! I- Eight months without you? I don't know how I'll manage... Princess, you are everything to me! P-Please, don't leave me!"

If they weren't at a restaurant, Peach was sure Mario would break down, but given that they were, he could only blink back his tears and steady his voice as best he could as to not arouse suspicion and concern other customers and staff.

"I-I'm so sorry, Mario... There's nothing I can do..." She whispered, tears filling her eyes as she quickly blinked them back herself. "I wish I didn't have to tell you here and like this..."

Mario said nothing and a few more minutes of awkward and heartbroken silence passed before Peach began to speak up once more.

"Oh, my ride is here to come pick me up. I should... I should get going now..." Peach fidgeted, biting her bottom lip and not caring anymore if she ruined her lipstick.

Mario let go of her hand and nodded, solemnly. He stood up to help Peach out of her seat, but she had already gotten up and sighed.

"W-What was it that you wanted to talk about, anyways, Mario?"

"Oh... Um, n-nothing, princess. I-I forgot about it..." The plumber lied.

He hated lying to her, but this was for their own good. Now was definitely not the time to be requesting her hand in marriage. All that months worth of planning a future with Peach, just got sucked down the drain. Just as Mario and Luigi did from a bathtub one time, right before they first stumbled upon The Mushroom Kingdom years ago.

"I'm sorry I made you lose your thought," Peach frowned, starting to walk with Mario up to the restaurant's doors. "I would've let you speak first, but..."

"No, princess, it's fine," Mario murmured. "It wasn't that important, anyways..."

"I-"

"It's fine," Mario repeated with a little more firmness in his voice, clearly wanting to push aside the subject. "Your ride's here, no? Don't want to keep them waiting..."

The two of them stopped in front of the glass doors and Mario opened it for Peach. The two of them walked out and saw a black limousine parked momentarily outside of the restaurant, its right signal flashing, indicating it's pulled over.

A Toad chaperone got out and waddled over to the other side of the vehicle, near the rear doors. Their footsteps squeaked and they were dressed in a small, black tuxedo themselves. He held open the door for Peach and she gave the Toad a grateful nod.

"Would you like a ride, too, Mario?" The Toad asked in his high, squeaky voice.

"No, thank you. I'll be fine."

"Are you sure? I don't mind and I'm sure the princess doesn't-"

"I'm good, Green Toad. Really. But thank you, anyways."

"Okay, and it's no problem. Princess," Green Toad looked at her with concern. "Are you coming?"

"Yes, just a moment," She announced, turning to Mario whose elated emotions have quickly been fizzed out. "Listen, I am so sorry for the way things have turned out this evening. I'm definitely not proud of it myself. I didn't want to tell you here, but who knows when the next time I'll be able to tell you is, and it might far already be too late. I..."

The princess' breath quickly caught in her throat and she managed to relax herself a bit more.

"Look—besides what had just happened, I had an amazing night with you, and I hope we can hang out again for a final time before I have to leave. I love you and I hope you have a good night, dear. Thank you again for everything."

With this, she gratefully kissed the plumber's nose and turned away from him to sit in the limo. The Toad closed it after her and Mario watched as he got into the driver's seat and drove away. Peach and him stared at each other for a few seconds in pity before the vehicle vanished quickly into the night.

Mario's brow furrowed as he looked up at the dark sky. Not only was it dark now, but heavy clouds came, along with thunder, threatening for a chance of a huge thunderstorm.

Mario didn't care, though. It matched his mood perfectly and just at the right timing, too. He figured he should be heading home though, as well and began to walk away from the restaurant.

There were a few warp pipes nearby that would take him back to The Mushroom Kingdom and he could just walk home, but he wanted to take the farthest one, which was a half-hour walk away.

He wanted the rain to drench him. Soak his clothes until they stuck to his skin so he could drown and sulk in his misery.

Nothing could cheer him up now, unless this was all a nightmare or wasn't realistically happening.

This wasn't fair.

Not to him.

Not to The Mushroom Kingdom.

And certainly not to Princess Peach herself.

The tiny box that held the ring, seemed to weight as much as a brick in his pocket, dragging him down and slowing down his steps even more.

Rain began to heavily pelt on him. First soaking his hair and bangs, which were matted to his forehead, and then his clothes, which quickly stuck to his skin.

He shivered a bit, but paid no attention, nonetheless. Nothing could be as cold as how his heart was feeling right then and now.

Not much thinking later, his designated warp pipe came into view and rather than hopping in it excitingly, he pulled himself up and dropped into it.

Not long after, he exited and walked a ways to his home as it came shortly into view. Pulling out his keys, he inserted them into the door and turned, listening to the soft 'click' of the lock.

He pulled on the knob but it didn't budge, so instead, he kept trying.

"Ugh, you seriously pick this time to be stubborn?" Mario huffed quietly under his breath.

He was starting to lose his patience when the knob rattled by itself and turned, opening the door. There stood none other than Luigi, who was heavily confused but then became quickly startled seeing his older brother in such a state.

"Bro! Come in, come in! You're soaked!" He exclaimed, quickly stepping aside to let Mario pass.

He did and Luigi closed the door behind him.

"So, how did it go?" Luigi grinned, but quickly gasped when he saw Mario fish the black box out of his pocket and throw it carelessly in the trash by the door.

"M-Mario...?"

Mario said nothing and just took off his wet shoes, while going upstairs.

Luigi chased after him and luckily since Mario was sluggish, he was able to grab his arm.

"What happened? Did she not...?"

"No," Mario replied, flatly. "It was something worse... I don't... I don't want to talk about it right now. I'm gonna go take a shower and go to bed."

"But..."

"I'll tell you tomorrow."

Luigi sighed and nodded, solemnly, releasing his hold on his brother.

"Alright, bro."

They stared at each other for a few more seconds until Mario turned and trudged up the steps.

Luigi shook his head, sadly and turned back to the trash can. Walking towards it, he looked down. The only thing in the trash was the ring box, so luckily, it wasn't ruined by the trash's filth.

The plumber in green bent down to take it out and opened it. Inside, held a pink sapphire ring. Even Luigi would admit how gorgeous it was. And to see his brother work so hard to get it and then throw it away like that, shattered his heart. Whatever happened, clearly upset his brother. Mario isn't one to get worked up so easily. Especially not like that.

Luigi closed the box and tucked it into his overall pant pocket. He would hide this for himself until Mario was ready to try again. After all, he said that Peach hadn't refused his proposal, so maybe he didn't get a chance to propose at all?

Well, no matter what it took, Luigi was going to help his older brother get back up onto his feet and reunite him with his loved one. The proposal needed to be done properly, and what better way to do it than having your own brother as the love doctor?

*******************************************
Mario sat with his back to the locked door since he came upstairs, not caring in the least that he was still in his wet clothes. The man was too numb to notice. He grabbed his pajamas, but just put the folded pile beside him as he had his knees up to his chest. He sat there, replaying the night over and over again in his mind.

Why? Out of all the times to... N-Nevermind. I was stupid. I should've known that it wouldn't have been a good time. Now, look what happened. You're sitting on the bathroom floor, hugging your knees to your chest like a two-year-old. W-What is wrong with you...?

Mario let out a shaky breath as he held back a few choked sobs. He didn't want Luigi to hear him, but he couldn't care less anymore. He wasn't only crying because of his stupid idea to propose tonight, but rather because of the fact that he wasn't going to be able to spend time with Peach or get another chance to do propose for a least another eight months.

And what happens if she loses interest in him as a friend or has found somebody else? O-Or even... not being able to see each other again at ALL after those eight months? He couldn't lose her! So much could happen in that time. So much different things could shatter Mario and cause him to break forever. Mario didn't know if he could handle all of that if it came to it.

So instead, he could only do the most logical thing he could think of at the moment - bury his face in his knees and cry. He cried and cried, blocking out the rest of his surroundings. He let out all of the built-up emotions that were eating at him ever since he heard the news.

Peach was going away for eight months, and there was nothing either of them could do about it.

The plumber didn't know how long he cried for, but he was highly aware that after he did stop, he kept his face buried in his knees and stayed like that for at least a good half hour. 

He all of sudden felt extremely exhausted. But nonetheless, he kept his back pressed up against the locked bathroom door.

He had never felt so empty in his entire life.

Chapter Text

Mario didn't know what time he went to bed at, but then again, it's not like he was paying any attention, anyways. He simply couldn't bring himself to care.

He awoke seeing his brother gone, his bed neatly made. The hook that was above the latter's bed wasn't hanging up Luigi's cap, so Mario figured that he must've went out earlier.

Grumbling quietly as he remembered last night, his eyes fell across his digital clock beside him. It was apparently a quarter to eleven, so Mario figured he better get up.

Whoops, didn't mean to sleep that long. Although, it did feel a bit more refreshing...

He stretched and yawned as he got out of bed and made it. He then went to the bathroom to use it and get dressed before heading downstairs to the kitchen to find something to eat.

However, before he could open the fridge, he came across a slip of paper. A magnet was stuck firmly to the top of it to hold it in place.

"A note?" He mumbled. "From who? Oh, probably Weegie without a doubt..."

Sighing, the plumber removed the magnet and took the piece of paper. In none other than Luigi's handwriting, the note read;

Hey bro,

Gone with Daisy to Mushville Park. She invited you and I there with her for something urgent that she wanted to talk about, but seeing as you were asleep, I didn't want to disturb you. Especially witnessing how broken you looked last night, you definitely needed your rest. Sorry, I didn't mean to bring it up, bro, but anyways, I really think you should come with us when you wake up. It will get you out of the house and I don't think moping around by yourself will do you any good.

Love, your little bro, Weegie :)

P.S. We really need to talk...

Ah, leave it to good ol' Weegie to write a handwritten note and put it on the fridge like that. Mario thought as he fixed himself a bowl of Frosted Flakes and dumped some milk in. At least he told me what's going on, though. Maybe I should go and catch up with them. After all, my little brother isn't wrong, is he?

After finishing up his breakfast, he quickly finished getting ready and made his way outside, heading to the park. Sticking his gloved hands into his overall pant pockets, his stormy thoughts began to cloud his mind.

What does Daisy even want to talk about, anyways? I'm hardly in a mood to do anything, let alone LISTEN to anyone's drama when I have some of my own...

No, Mario, The other side of his mind scolded. If someone has a problem, you help them out as best as you can, no matter how big or small, you got that? What happened to the old Mario that everyone knew and loved? That's what you always used to do, no matter what problems of your own you faced. I know it's easier said than done, but you can't let these negative emotions hurt you just because of what happened with you and Peach. You need to accentuate the positive!

Him and Peach.

Mario nearly choked up at the thought of him and Peach possibly never being able to see or hear each other ever again.

Maybe they should've never became an item. Maybe they should've never met each other. Maybe this was a sign that everything just wasn't meant to be and that Mario and Luigi should've stayed in Brooklyn, running their plumbing business in the real world, away from this Mushroom Kingdom mess.

No.

No.

No.

Mario, stop it.

Mario, cut it out.

Everything is going to be just fine with you and Peach. Just because she's leaving for a bit, doesn't mean she'll be gone forever, right? And maybe  you two  can still write to each other.

Yes! They could!

Now wipe away those tears!

Relaxing and feeling a bit more at ease, Mario came upon the entrance sign to the large park and weakly smiled.

Well, here goes nothing...

He walked past the sign, now entering the park. Paved roads and sidewalks stretched on past various types of flower beds and trees and grassy plains. Up ahead, there were a few small parking lots in case any citizens wanted to park and take their children to the large playground up ahead. A large marble fountain stood in the middle around stoned pathways, bearing streams of water. Quite a few gold coins were tossed into it and wooden benches were scattered around the park.

Its beauty made it become one of the top favourite parks in the Mushroom Kingdom, even for the Mario brothers and the princess themselves.

The plumber in red then continued to walk up ahead and soon saw his brother and Princess Daisy sitting down and chatting at a picnic table, underneath a tree. He approached them with a sheepish wave and Daisy looked up, abruptly to stop chatting with Luigi. Luigi turned behind him to see his bro, when Daisy suddenly gave a smirk.

"Ah, look who came to join us, after all! We thought you weren't gonna show up."

"Eh, sorry, I kinda overslept." Mario replied, swinging a leg over the seat of the bench to sit beside his brother, across from Daisy as well.

"That's alright, bro. We all knew you needed it," Luigi smiled. "Hope you are feeling more rested now."

"Yeah, the sleep felt good, actually."

"Great to hear, bro."

Mario nodded.

"Uh, yeah, so... I got Luigi's note, obviously, and I know that you have something that you wanted to talk about with us, Daisy?"

It was then Daisy's turn to nod.

"Yeah, it's pretty important and I think you both should know about it. Especially you, Mario."

"I see," Mario replied, putting his hands on the table. "Did you and Luigi talk about it already?"

"No, I wanted to wait until you arrived. Thought it would be more better that way and that way, I don't have to repeat myself twice for nothing, haha."

"Makes sense. So what's it about, anyways?"

Daisy took a small breath and gave Luigi a nervous glance to which he gave her a small, encouraging nod to continue.

"It's about Peach..." She replied.

Mario stiffened up a bit and gave Daisy a small stare. He then raised an eyebrow and frowned as he was not expecting this answer whatsoever.

"What about her?" He asked, dully.

"Well, for starters, her long vacation is in the Flower Kingdom, which is an unseen land and rare kingdom in the first place, so it's a wonder that Toadsworth even planned that as a first priority for a vacation spot. I mean, it's pretty weird, right?"

"Very," Mario agreed with a small nod as he bit his bottom lip. "Hold up, you said the Flower Kingdom, correct? As in the one Prince Haru is ruling?"

"Y-Yeah, I think he rules it. I mean, I don't know since I've never met or seen the guy, but Peach has talked about him once or twice to me years ago."

"Yeah, we met him before, Mario. Remember that one time years and years back when we were more new to the whole plumbing business thing before stumbling upon the Mushroom Kingdom? When we first arrived here, we obviously weren't all too familiar with Bowser at the time and he had kidnapped Peach in front of our eyes. A small blue dog embarked on our journey to save her and when we did, the dog transformed into a prince, who you can guess, was Prince Haru under Bowser's spell."

"Yeah, I remember that," Mario huffed. "At that time, she was engaged with him too, but I guess it didn't work out very well since they rule their own kingdoms now and don't talk to each other much."

"Aw, Mario! Don't tell me you're jealous of Prince Haru?" Daisy half-teased.

"Of course not! Peach can love who she wants."

Even if it's not me...

"As long as she's happy, I'm happy." Mario added rather quickly, which earned him a few side looks from his companions.

"But what I don't understand, is why this particular place?" Luigi questioned, banging his fist lightly on the picnic table. "And why did Toadsworth choose it? Another thing weird is that, like you told me Daisy, Peach didn't have any say in where to go at all. Toadsworth wouldn't hear of it, which is totally unlike him to go against Peach's wishes."

"Exactly," Daisy agreed. "And the fact that he wouldn't tell Peach where they were going is weird, too. Something's definitely going on and we need to find out what it is."

"Dio, this... this is so much to take in," Mario breathed, putting a gloved hand on his forehead and shaking his head slightly. "But you both are onto something for sure. Nothing adds up, but Toadsworth is behind something, just like you said, Daisy. I agree with that. The thing is," Mario questioned sitting up straight, raising an eyebrow. "How do you know this much information when hardly anyone, most certainly including Peach, knows themselves?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, bro! Are you saying that Daisy is behind something, too?" Luigi frowned, turning to give Mario a hard stare as he searched his face for an answer.

Mario's jaw dropped and he held up his hands in defence.

"That's not what I-"

"Hey, hey, hey -- it's okay, it's okay," Daisy assured the bros, giving a small awkward laugh. "Peach already filled me in with what she knew. She recently found out about where she was going for this so-called 'vacation' and chatted with me about it in person. She got quite worked up and I had to keep calming her down."

"But how come she never told me that much information?" Mario inquired. "I mean, she told me some of it during our recent dinner together, but..."

"Like I said," Daisy interrupted. "She recently found out about all of this. Given her mental state to wrap her head around all of this, she thought it would be better if I explained the situation to the both of you."

The tomboyish princess then gave a small sigh before adding;

"Poor Peach. She was probably too embarrassed to tell you both and she's... I'm gonna just say this bluntly: A mess. It was terrible..."

Mario kept his eyes on the table and refused to attempt any kind of eye-contact with his associates. He remained silent to the point where Luigi became a bit uncomfortable with his brother's lack of responses, so he cleared his throat and asked aloud to no one in particular;

"So, uh... What are supposed to do...? There's gotta be something we can do to help her, right?"

"I... To be honest, I don't know," Daisy frowned. "Though, the least we can do is be there for Peach if and when she needs us the most."

"I understand... I just wish..."

"I know," Daisy said softly, as she cut off Luigi's thoughts. "Me too."

She reached out towards Luigi's gloved hand in which he took it and held it in his. They were all quiet for a few moments, avoiding each other's gazes, until Mario abruptly stood up, only to swing his legs out of the picnic table seat and start to walk away.

"Hey, yo! Where are you going?" Daisy called out.

Mario said nothing as he continued to walk forward slowly. Daisy and Luigi got up as well and hurriedly followed him, the latter quickly grabbing ahold of his brother's arm.

This made Mario stop and turn to face them.

"Well, you said that there's gotta be something we can do to help her, eh, Capo?" Mario questioned. Turning to the princess in orange and yellow he added, "And you've been saying how Peach isn't doing so well even more so after the recent news, yes?"

Both of them nodded.

"Yeah, bro," Luigi started with slight hesitation in his voice. "But what does this have to do with anything? What are you getting at?"

"I'm going to firstly check up on Peach, considering she needs us and I need to make sure that she's alright. Secondly, I'm gonna have a chat with Toadsworth about all of this and try to figure out his reasoning behind all of this nonsense."

Without further ado, Mario turned his back to the duo and walked away once more, but with a little more force and hurry in his steps.

"W-Wait! Mario!" Daisy called out, only for Mario to ignore her and continue walking.

The couple looked to each other in concern before looking back at Mario as he inched away from them. Together, they must of thought the same thing because they nodded to each other before Daisy called out;

"Mario, wait! We're coming with you!"

Mario finally stopped, but didn't look back at the two. Instead, he smiled under his moustache, folded his arms and replied loudly with a;

"Okay, so, what are you waiting for? C'mon, then."

Grinning excitedly, the duo ran to catch up with the plumber in red.

"Thanks, man," Daisy beamed. "We wanna get in on the action too. We're curious ourselves and as her friends, Peach needs us as well."

Mario gave a small hum and another smile.

"Well, as they say, 'The more the merrier', after all."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

As the trio entered the castle, they searched around to see if Toadsworth was idling by, but unfortunately, he was nowhere in sight. Mario then spotted a female purple Toad holding an armful of kitchen supplies as she was heading in the direction of said location.

"Hey... Sorry to bother you, Elaina, but do you happen to know where Princess Peach or Toadsworth are at?" He asked.

"Uh," The Toad stated, trying to balance the supplies in her little arms. "Sorry, Mario, but I'm not sure where the princess is at since I haven't seen her yet today, actually. Toadsworth, though, on the other hand is in the back garden. Or, last that I saw him, anyways."

"Ah, I see. Thanks, Elaina," Mario replied with a nod. "And let me help you with those."

"It's okay, Mario. I got it. But thanks, any-"

Mario pretended to not hear her as he took some kitchen supplies out of her arms and walked to the kitchen with her.

"I'll be right back." He called over to Luigi and Daisy, who just looked puzzled as the kitchen doors lightly swung shut behind the two.

*~*~*~*~*~*

"Thanks a ton, Mario. You really are a lifesaver!" Elaina laughed as the last of the supplies were put away.

"Eh, it was nothing," Mario smiled. "Anytime. Do you need help with anything else?"

"Ah, no. Not that I know of. I got other tasks to do, of course, but it's nothing I can't handle."

"You sure?"

"Yup!"

"Alright, I guess I better get back to Luigi and Daisy then," the plumber chuckled. "We've got stuff to do ourselves."

Elaina nodded.

"Alright. See you, Mario, and thanks, again!"

Mario turned back to look over his shoulder. He then smiled and waved to the Toad girl before exiting the kitchen and heading back towards his allies.

*~*~*~*~*~*

"Ah, sorry, guys for the wait but now that I've finished helping Elaina, we should go to the garden since that's where she said she last saw Toadsworth, after all." Mario declared.

The couple nodded and then the trio then made their way to the back garden. They spotted Toadsworth by some bushes of flowers, sitting on a bench and feeding some colourful birds nearby, his cane leaning on the outer side of the bench.

"Pfft! Good ol' Toadsworth," Daisy snickered. "How classic of him."

Mario dramatically rolled his eyes and tried not to laugh as Luigi playfully elbowed the princess.

"Shh! Not so loud! He'll hear you!" Luigi gasped, a little flustered. "I don't want to get into any trouble because of you!"

"Oh, please," the tomboy teased. "His hearing's probably not what it used to be."

Luigi groaned.

"When on Earth did you get so rude?"

"Ever since he was the boss of Peach and became a kidnapper."

"How did he become-?"

"He's taking Peach from us, man!" Daisy dramatically sobbed. "If that's not kidnapping, I don't know what is anymore!"

Mario just laughed as he listened in on their conversation.

"Besides," Daisy answered smartly. "It's not being rude, it's just being truthful and sometimes the truth's gotta hurt."

She shrugged as she said this and before either bro could reply, she kissed Luigi's cheek and skipped up the path towards Toadsworth, leaving them both behind.

Luigi blushed slightly and tugged at the rim of his green cap, groaning once more.

"Bro, remind me again why we're dating...?"

Mario just let out a loud laugh and shook his head in amusement as he then grabbed his brother's arm and ran to catch up with Daisy.

"Hey, Daisy!" Mario called out, happily. "This time, wait for us, will ya?"

Luigi groaned for a third time and rolled his eyes.

I'm surrounded by a bunch of buffoons... He thought, with slight amusement in his head.

*~*~*~*~*~*

"Toadsworth," The brothers heard Daisy acknowledge as they approached the older Toad. "How are you?"

"Princess Daisy! Good, good... very good! Thank you! How about you?"

"Ah, to be honest, I could be better." The tomboy frowned.

"Oh, dear... I'm so sorry to hear that. Would you like to talk about it?"

"As a matter of fact," Daisy trailed off, giving the boys a smug grin before frowning and turning back to Toadsworth. "I think I'd appreciate that very much."

Toadsworth nodded to Daisy and invited her to sit down just as Luigi turned to whisper to Mario.

"I don't think this is going to end very well... Especially since you know how blunt Daisy is. She literally has no filter and doesn't care about what other people may think of her."

"I understand," Mario whispered back. "In a way, it's a blessing but also a curse."

They both snickered quietly until Toadsworth beckoned the plumbers to join the two of them as well, in which Luigi did. He sat beside Daisy while Mario politely refused and leaned against a tree a few feet away from in front of where the trio were sitting. The yellow dirt path was the only thing in between the two of them, seeming to separate them into two different sides.

"So," Mario heard Toadsworth start. "What's going on, Daisy?"

"Wellll..." Daisy hesitated, biting her bottom lip. "It's more a problem that Mario, Luigi and I have, which is why the three of us are here today."

"Oh okay... Go on."

"Did you wanna tell him, Mario?" The tomboy questioned, looking up towards the hero who had his arms crossed and one of his boots behind him, resting on the tree.

"Yeah, why not?" Mario replied with a smile, although this smile wasn't the famous one that everyone in the kingdom loved. It looked hurt and faked. "As for your question to Daisy, Toadsworth, I could ask you the same thing."

"W-Whatever do you mean, Master Mario? What is going on, everyone? Can someone please explain to me?"

"No, how about you explain to us?" Mario challenged as he stood up straight with a confused, angry and heartbroken stare. "Peach. That's all we wanna know. You need to start explaining to us right now because we don't get anything and we deserve an explanation."

Luigi casted a glance to his brother that read;

Easy, Tiger. Keep things together now. Slow and steady. We'll find out everything but you need to contain yourself.

Toadsworth cleared his throat and sighed.

"Ah, I was afraid this was going to happen, although I can't say I didn't expect it."

He paused for a brief moment before asking Mario;

"So, what would you like to know?"

"Everything. Why you are forcing Peach to go to the Flower Kingdom when she doesn't want to. Why you want to go there in the first place out of anywhere in the world. Why eight months specifically and where is Princess Peach herself? Nobody has seen her in sight yet today and I'm pretty concerned. Especially after what happened yesterday."

"Well, to answer your first question, I just want what's best for Princess Peach. Even though I'm not her biological father, I am still a father figure to her, hence me raising her. She needs to-"

"No!" Mario interrupted, trying so hard not to lash out at the older Toad. "Peach has a say in what she does or doesn't want to do. And that includes travelling. She's not a little girl anymore!"

"Master Mario!" Toadsworth snapped. "I'm just trying to protect her! If you were a parent yourself, you'd understand that you'd want what's best for your child!"

"Trying to protect her?!" Mario laughed sarcastically. "Yeah, you're doing a great job by traumatizing her and basically holding her hostage!"

"She needs a break from her kingdom! Travelling will do her more good than staying here all the time. It's not safe for her!"

"Oh, and the Flower Kingdom is just the perfect place for that? Please, give me a break! We all know you're up to something!"

"What I plan to do with her is surely none of your business!" Toadsworth argued, standing up and leaning some of his weight onto his cane. "Besides, she's in better hands with Prince Haru in his kingdom, rather than a... an average plumber! She doesn't belong with you! She's royalty and needs to be with someone on her level!"

Mario shook his head rapidly and tried his hardest not to cry, but everyone could see the tears welling up in his eyes. He said nothing for a few moments until lowering his voice to a mumble, but making sure Toadsworth, Daisy and Luigi could still hear him.

"Oh, so this is what it's all about now, huh? Well, I'm sorry I'm not royal or worthy enough to try and be your son-in-law. A part of your family, which I thought I already was... And most of all, I'm sorry that Princess Peach has to put up with this. For your information, you aren't doing what's best for her, you're doing what's best for you. If you really loved and cared about her, you'd see that and respect the fact of how much hurt she is going through... But no, you can't see that, or maybe you clearly just don't care. I really thought that you were better than this, Toadsworth. Clearly, you aren't."

"Again, I don't expect you to understand," Toadsworth replied, his voice as low as Mario's but equally ready to boil. "Maybe you should just go back to New York and run your now long-gone, out-of-service plumbing business or wherever you and Luigi came from through that warp pipe years ago, because you both don't have any business here anymore. Peach is going to permanently be living and running the Flower Kingdom with Prince Haru, whether she agrees to it or not. He is looking forward to this marriage and starting over with Peach and this way, because it's a hidden kingdom, Bowser won't be attacking this place or at least not continuously taking her. It will do us all good, and what will you boys do here, anyways while we are all gone, hm?"

"This is wrong, Toadsworth and you know it. Peach and Haru didn't make it for a reason. She doesn't want to be with him!"

"This is not her decision to make, and she's just going to have to accept that. We all can't get what we want all the time, now do we? Sometimes, things need to change for the better."

"Will it be better, though?" Mario inquired. "Will it? Because I care about Peach. So much, in fact, that it destroys me to see her like this and you aren't making things easier or better for her. You can ask her yourself. Or, wait, you don't even need to ask her because if you'd pay better attention, you'd already know that."

"See, this child-like behaviour, Master Mario, will most certainly not cut it. You said something about being my son-in-law, hm? Well, do you think my daughter would ever want your hand in marriage if her fiancé were to have temper tantrums? I certainly think not!"

"Hey!" Luigi suddenly snapped, getting up and narrowing his eyes at Toadsworth. "Don't talk to my brother like that!"

Daisy quickly stood up, grabbed Luigi's arm and then hugged him from behind.

"Hey, hey, hey, Luigi - everything's going to be fine, okay? It's best that you don't get involved too..."

"He's my brother..." Luigi nonchalantly replied with a frown, shaking his head softly. "I need to protect him!"

Mario's blue eyes softened as he looked at his little brother. He put up a reassuring hand to signal he was alright.

"It's okay. I'm okay. Everything's okay, bro. You don't need to worry about anything."

Luigi looked ready to cry at any moment.

"Mario..."

The plumber in red just turned back towards Toadsworth.

"C-Can I just please request two things?"

"What is it?" The older Toad asked, skeptically, with a small, tired sigh.

"One, that I get to see her on Friday before she leaves."

"Fine, that's fair enough," Toadsworth replied with a slight nod. "And what's your other request?"

"It's the most important one," Mario answered, staring at Toadsworth sternly, his brows furrowing. He paused for a few seconds before speaking, his voice slightly quivering. Taking a deep breath and in fear of having a breakdown, the hero closed his eyes and asked;

"C-Can you please, for the love of everything, take care of her? I just want to know that she's going to be alright before she leaves and during your stay. Please, I just... you have to... I don't want her hurt in any way o-or, or-"

It was Toadsworth's turn to take a deep breath.

"Master Mario," he started, giving him a soft, reassuring look, which surprised the other three. "She'll be in amazing hands while we're away. You don't need to worry about anything. I fully reassure and promise you, she will be taken care of, okay?"

Mario looked away and nodded slowly. With a soft, 'Thank you, that's all I wanted to hear...', he left and walked back towards where he came from. Luigi and Daisy watched him and then they walked towards Toadsworth.

"Where is Peach right now, anyways?" Daisy asked him.

"She's out spending the day with Toadette and few other Toads today. Why?"

"Eh, no reason. Just wanted to know since Mario was curious himself. Nobody in the castle really saw her today and we wanted to make sure she was good."

"I see."

"Well," Luigi started. "We should probably catch up with my bro before he wanders too far on his own."

With this, he gave a small, sheepish chuckle and rubbed the back of his head while adding;

"Ah, you know him. He can be very stubborn, but I don't think it's a good idea for him to walk back on his own."

Daisy nodded and Luigi took her hand, leading her away from Toadsworth and in the direction Mario went moments ago.

Toadsworth watched them leave before going about in his business, heading the opposite direction as the trio and further into the back garden.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Mario sat at the small kitchen table inside of the brother's home, Luigi and Daisy standing at either side of him. Although he wasn't crying, Mario's face was burrowed in his gloved hands and the pair were trying to comfort him.

"I-I really don't know what came over me," the hero gasped. "The way I spoke to him... The tone, the voice, the everything, I... I honestly didn't mean to... I really do owe Toadsworth a sincere apology..."

"It's not your fault." The couple said in unison before giving each other a small, sad smile.

"Honestly, you know me, hun. I would've been all out!" Daisy chuckled while Luigi rubbed the small of Mario's back. The plumber in red's cap lay in front of him, slightly crumpled up from the anger and aggression in Mario's fists a while earlier.

"I mean, he did have it coming and I don't care if he felt like family all those years," Luigi agreed. "When he spoke to Mario like that, I just kinda... lost it, y'know?"

"Understandable," The tomboyish princess stated. "I just didn't want things to get more ugly then they already were."

"Felt like family," Mario muttered, repeating his brother's words as he stared blankly at his red cap. "I guess that's what stings so much, overall. I just wish things didn't have to be this way... I wish there was something just anything we could do to change this..."

The other two agreed, solemnly.

"Hey, Mario," Daisy said after a brief pause, causing the mentioned one's name to cast a curious glance up at the Sarasaland princess. "What are your plans for tomorrow?"

"Uh, don't think I have any because I'm spending the day with Peach on Friday instead. Why?"

"Oh, well, you know, because Luigi and I are planning on-"

"GOING GO-KARTING!!!" Luigi finished with a cheer.

"Hey! I was gonna say that!" Daisy announced, sassily, putting her hands on her hips and pretending to pout.

Luigi laughed and kissed Daisy's cheek in which Daisy returned a playful punch to Luigi's arm and laughed herself.

Mario watched them and gave a small smile out of the corner of his mouth. He would definitely miss moments like these with Peach, and thinking about it, made his heart sting again. To avoid his thoughts, Mario told the duo;

"Ahm, that sounds fun, but I'm going to be busy tomorrow, actually."

"Liesss. You literally just said you were free tomorrow!"

"Yeah!" Luigi agreed. "And what are you gonna do? Mope around again? C'mon, bro. It's been so long since we've been go-karting!"

"Love, this man doesn't even have a choice." Daisy snickered to Luigi.

"Yeah, you're coming whether you like it or not. Besides, you love racing, bro, and it's not the same without your competitiveness!"

"Exactly!" Daisy chimed in. "Now are you really going to go against your brother and I's requests? This is a limited offer, hun, so speak soon!"

"I-I'll think about it."

Both brothers watched intently as Daisy then strode over to the refrigerator and yanked open the door. Her eyes wandered inside of it before shortly coming upon a small leftover batch of lasagna with a label in front of it that read; Mario.

"Mmm, y'know what? This leftover lasagna is looking good right about now. How about I just 'think about it' and help myself to that?" She smirked, not looking up from the fridge door.

"Ugh," Mario sarcastically groaned with a quick roll of his eyes. "You're the worst."

Luigi chuckled as Daisy then asked;

"Soooo, what's it gonna be?"

She finally looked over past the fridge door for Mario's reply. With a small smile and a shake of his head, he finally answered her.

"Fine, fine. I'll go. It's whatever. Sounds like fun."

"Ha!" Daisy laughed, slamming the fridge door shut which made the brothers jump a little. "I knew that would work!"

She grinned like a child and skipped over to the boys who just laughed.

"I hate you. I hope you know that." The plumber in red stated, matter-of-factually.

"The feeling's mutual," Daisy retorted, sticking out her tongue playfully like a child. "Anyways, I better go. It's getting late."

"Wait!" Mario insisted as he held up a hand. "I don't think any of us had lunch or dinner today, so we might as well eat. Why don't you stay for dinner, Daisy? It's the least I can do."

"Hm, alright," The tomboy princess smiled. "I'll stay. Thanks."

"It's nothing," Mario dismissed with a wave of his hand, getting up from his seat. "And how about we share that batch of lasagna? Don't think I'll eat that all by myself tonight, anyways with too much going on."

"Perfect, because if I'm staying for dinner, I'm eating that either way!" Daisy laughed, which made the boys join in.

"Classic Daisy." Luigi grinned.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Mario sat once more at the table, his signature cap now back onto his head where it should be. He was going through tons of photos of him and Peach, looking back at the times they shared together.

Luigi was out, taking Daisy home via the warp pipe routes and making sure she got back safely. He had been out for a bit, so Mario estimated he could be back home anytime now.

Just as he thought about this, Luigi had come through the door with a tired sigh and whistled.

"Mama mia, that woman talks too much." Luigi chuckled.

"Yeah, sounds like Daisy," Mario replied, not looking back to face his brother. "How was the uh, walk or trip or whatever?"

"Good. Was tiring, though, because Sarasaland is far as heck."

"Makes sense."

"Yeah." Luigi agreed, locking the door and then taking another glance at his brother. He noticed the tons of photos scattered about onto the table with various scrapbooks and walked up to the plumber curiously.

"What are you up to, bro?"

"Mmm, just looking at some pictures is all."

Luigi joined his brother and sat down in a chair beside him. He looked at his brother again before glancing down at the photos and hummed to himself.

"Ah, I thought they were our childhood photos, but they're the ones with you and Peach, I see?"

"Yeah, just re-living our moments together because I know I won't get to have these moments again with her for a while. Or, never again, anyways."

Luigi sighed.

"I mean, I don't know what to say..." He started. "Honestly, I don't even know if there's a way out of this, after all. We just have to let her go on that long vacation and just hope for the best. I'm really sorry, bro, but even I can't seem to reassure you when I've lost a lot of hope myself."

"I know," Mario mumbled, reaching for a photo of him and Peach laughing as the plumber used F.L.U.D.D. to playfully spray attack the princess. "There's nothing we can do at all. You heard Toadsworth yourself. He wants Princess Peach to live at the Flower Kingdom and get married to Prince Haru. She's gone forever."

Luigi said nothing at this, painfully knowing that his brother was right. Silently, he reached for a photo as well. This one showed Mario in front of the camera, flipping up his signature peace sign with his right hand and possibly holding a selfie stick with his left, hence the way his left arm was extended.

Mario's left eye was squinted closed and he was laughing as Peach's arms wrapped around Mario's neck from behind. She was looking up at the camera and laughing as well. Luigi recognized that they were at a beach, as they were both in their bathing suits. Sand, along with a sunset and clear sunset-reflected water, were behind them. Luigi noticed the Glass Tower behind the duo as well, from Mario's Bubblaine trip in the Odyssey to save Peach back in 2017.

(Quick A/N: Okay, I know this is really cringe but I just  had/wanted  to draw a description of this! Yes, there are many mistakes within this photo/art, but I gave up being an artist because of a lot of negativity towards my art/art style (teachers included...), so I'm a bit rusty. However, I know it looks like Mario's left arm is cut off, but Luigi's thumb is covering the rest of it, hahaha. Just wanted to point that out. (And yes, I'm the type that draws with paper and pencil because I suck at digital art. Laugh at me all you want. I won't and don't care at all, lmao). Anyways, back to the story...! :'D )

"This is a very beautiful picture," The hero in green stated quietly, trying to break the awkward silence. "Looks like you both had a great time here."

The plumber in red took a quick glance past the photo in his hands and turned to Luigi's. He gave a small, sad smile and a brief chuckle.

"Yeah, we did. Peach wanted to go back to all of the kingdoms she visited with Bowser but on her own terms. She claimed that she wanted to replace all the bad memories of her in each kingdom with fresh, new and better ones. Cappy and I decided to tag along with her to keep her occupied, despite Tiara being with her. She loved the idea, and so, that's what all four of us did. Surprisingly, she even wanted to go back to Bowser's Kingdom as well, which did make me skeptical, but I made sure to protect her with my life and we still got to collect some more Power Moons and everything along the way."

"Well, I'm glad you both got to make some better memories. Every little thing like that counts and can make a huge difference." Luigi smiled.

"Agreed," Mario replied, smiling back with a twinkle in his eyes. "And that has to be one of my most favourite photos of us." He continued, while looking back down at the photo in his brother's hands.

"Oh, here," The younger brother offered, reaching his hand that had the photo out over to his brother. "Sorry, d-did you want this...?"

"No, it's okay. You can look at it, but thanks, bro. I'm probably gonna pack this up and put it back where I got it from. That way, they can remain safe and sound. Besides," He said with a yawn as he stood up from his seat and pushed in his chair. "I'm getting tired so I'm going to take a shower and head to bed. It's getting pretty late, and after all, we do have that go-karting place that we're going to tomorrow, so we better get some proper rest for that."

"Yeah," Luigi chuckled as he helped Mario put the pictures away. "Don't want to be falling asleep behind the wheel!"

"How noble of you to bring something like that up, considering that's something you'd totally do, by the way!" The plumber in red laughed.

"Che cosa?! Non c'è alcun modo! What?! There is no way! That's totally on you, bro! You could hardly even last staying awake getting your driver's test done when we were teens! Mama recalls nearly fainting and papa was cursing at you in our Native tongue in fear that you'd kill us all!"

"Wellll... to be fair, I was studying all night for my licence so I could pass, and I did, so it still paid off, didn't it?" Mario grinned.

Luigi facepalmed and snickered.

"You're hopeless, y'know that?"

"Sure." Mario chuckled.

"All in all, don't fall asleep behind the wheel because we certainly don't need you crashing and getting hurt or killed. Va bene, Capo? "

"Va bene, va bene! Just don't worry about me. I'll be fine, coniglio."

"You'd better." Luigi scolded with a wag of his finger, which made Mario think of their mother, making both brothers laugh. "Anyways," He continued. "Now that we've cleaned up and safely put the pictures away in the boxes of scrapbooks and whatnot, you'd better take your shower before I steal the bathroom and take one myself. I'm getting pretty tired too and like you said, it's getting pretty late."

Mario nodded and started towards the stairs leading to the upper floor of their home.

"Okie dokie. Night-night, bro." Mario waved with a smile.

"Night-night." Luigi replied as he stood, watching the plumber in red and mirrored his brother's actions.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Luigi fell asleep before Mario, which wasn't a surprise at all. Especially given Mario's mental state among his relationship with Princess Peach. He laid awake on his back, softly tossing up a tennis ball and catching it as he gazed up at the ceiling, hoping sleep would overcome him sooner than later.

The plumber tried to not think about the princess, but obviously, it was easier said than done and as the days grew nearer to her departure, he couldn't help but feel scared. Towards himself, towards what the Mushroom Kingdom would be like without their ruler and most importantly, towards none other than Princess Peach herself. Surely she felt the same, considering she didn't even want to leave her home in the first place.

Mario once more caught the ball in his hands, and using this moment, he glanced towards his digital clock. It was only 2:43AM, though each excruciating minute felt like an hour had passed.

Should I even go go-karting at this point? I know I told Luigi and Daisy I would, but I just... Who knows when I'll be able to fall asleep? Certainly if I stay up all night, I won't be in the proper state to function, let alone drive, but argh, I can't sleep knowing that today is now Thursday and Peach is leaving tomorrow... I'll attempt to persuade her not to leave, despite a fat chance of that happening...

Mario sighed and started his tennis ball throwing back up again.

Fine. I'll go kart racing with my bro and Daisy. They are right, after all -- I DO need a distraction and it's better than moping around on my own. Hopefully the air will help me too. Hehe, they have no idea who they're challenging, though. It'll just be like old times with the gang, except there'll only be us three, but that's okay. More track room for us and maybe I can find some cool shortcuts!

Mario chuckled quietly as he pictured various scenarios for tomorrow in his mind, contemplating on all the different ways he could win the race or even lose, but still be able to have fun regardless. He eventually stopped tossing the tennis ball up into the air and proceeded to place it on his nightstand. It slowly rolled off and landed on the soft carpet with a quiet 'thump'.

Mario winced as he watched and heard the impact, horrified that even the slightest sound might disturb his brother's peaceful slumber, however, the younger twin remained unresponsive to the scene. Mario gave a relieved sigh after seeing Luigi's untroubled presence but gave a quick roll of his eyes towards the ball's stubbornness.

Ugh. Stupid ball. Whatever, I'll worry about it tomorrow.

He covered his mouth and yawned, sleep finally creeping its way towards him. With one hand, the plumber pulled the covers up over him as he turned onto his side, facing his bedside table. It was now 3:22AM.

Already? Wow, that sure was quick. Ah, I'm still looking forward to this day, though. Can't wait to destroy those two but most of all, I'm grateful for the time I get to spend with them.

Turning to his unconscious brother, the hero smiled.

Buona notte, fratellino and buona notte to you as well, mia dolce principessa. My sweet princess. Sogni d'oro. Sweet dreams.

Thinking about the two people who matter the most in his life, Mario quickly fell into a peaceful slumber.

Chapter Text

"Princess Peach, the flight is tomorrow so I advise you to start packing asap, please!"

Toadsworth and Peach were in the latter's bedroom, both of them preparing and discussing their upcoming vacation the following day. Due to her stubbornness and commitment to fulfill other duties, the princess hadn't started her packing yet, much to the steward's disappointment and frustration.

"I just see no point in all of this still, Toadsworth!" Peach huffed like a child, plopping herself down on her bed and folding her arms. "Anything can happen in the Flower Kingdom just as much as it can happen here in the Mushroom Kingdom! You know that! It doesn't matter if Bowser is here or not, we have Mario and Luigi and-"

"Well, what if one day we didn't, princess?" Toadsworth interrupted. "What then?"

"Whatever do you mean?" Peach inquired, raising an eyebrow. 

"Do you really think that Master Mario and Master Luigi will stay in this kingdom forever? I mean, they can't protect us for eternity - we barely have any strong forces, let alone any at all as it is! With the Flower Kingdom, we don't have to worry about such things, princess. We'll have troops and can train many Toads if push comes to shove with their forces, army and more! They have a lot of things that we lack and isn't the main priority to be safe?"

"Of course, Toadsworth," Peach sighed. "But isn't happiness a priority as well? Nothing means anything to you if you are unhappy."

"I promise that you'll love it in the Flower Kingdom, princess. It may take some time to adjust, but you will be happy with Prince Haru and his royal subjects and citizens. I know you will. Prince Haru is an amazing guy and a polite and well-spoken gentleman."

Shortly after the steward spoke, he smiled, which made Peach tense up a bit.

And Mario apparently isn't?! Why doesn't he understand? I don't care if Bowser attacks us forever and kidnaps me. At least I'm with the love of my life, his brother who I think of as my own as well, my friends - my actual family who loves and cares about me as I do to them and so much more. This has always been my home for past generations and generations more to come... How can he just permanently leave it all behind with ease like my kingdom is nothing?!

Just then, there was a small knock at the door. Toadsworth looked back at Peach for permission to open it and Peach softly nodded and stood up, following the elderly mushroom to the door. The steward did, and there stood Toadette and Elaina, the girl in pink pigtails holding towels, shampoo and other bathroom supplies, while the latter had a basket of laundry at her small feet. Surprise was written on both of their faces as they hadn't expected Toadsworth to answer the door.

"Oh! Umm, s-sorry if this is a bad time, princess. Would you like us to come back later?" Toadette asked.

"No, no, no! You both may come in. Please don't let us stop you." The princess half-heartedly smiled, beckoning them inside as she was grateful for the interruption. 

"Welllll," Toadette started, glancing around nervously. "Okay, if you say so. Thank you."

Peach nodded as the two girls made their way into her room and to their designated places. Toadette to Peach's bathroom and Elaina to Peach's dresser.

Toadsworth seemed a bit impatient and annoyed that he couldn't do anything about the interruption but the feelings were quickly brushed aside and vanished.

When both mushroom girls were finished, Toadsworth went up to the girls and asked them something that Peach couldn't hear, hence her still standing by the door and the fact that the steward was speaking in a hushed whisper. The ruler saw as the two looked to her, sympathetically, and nodded, sadly, which slightly alarmed and worried the princess.

What in the name of this kingdom is he telling them?

When he was finished, Toadsworth turned around and eyed the princess suspiciously before leaving out the door. He mumbled something to himself but it was barely enough for Peach to make out. However, she could swear she heard him clearly say;

"It's for the better."

The door closed behind him and Peach immediately turned back towards the two, who were standing there awkwardly, shifting their weight around on their small feet.

"So? What did he say to you two?" Peach asked, hastily.

There was a brief, awkward pause as the two girls looked at each other. Elaina was the first to speak, respectfully clearing her throat and speaking in a voice lower than usual.

"Toadsworth urgently requested that the both of us help you pack your belongings for tomorrow since he revealed that you weren't able to do so yourself, princess."

"It's not that I'm not able to," Peach replied with slight annoyance towards her father figure. "I just refused to. Why am I going to pack for a trip that I'm not even looking forward to going on and didn't want to in the first place?"

"Yes, princess. I see what you're saying," Elaina agreed. "However, Toadsworth has been very firm with his requests."

"Nothing too extreme I can't handle, I presume."

"I mean, I know we need to follow his orders, but seeing as you are royalty, we absolutely must follow yours as well," Toadette piped in. "It's just all too confusing. I'm sorry, princess..."

Toadette gave a soft shake of her head and a small frown.

"It's not any of your girls' faults," Peach assured with a warm smile as she approached the two and knelt down to both of their heights. She placed a hand on each of their shoulders and gazed back and forth into their eyes. "You both are just doing your jobs and being helpful, which I'll forever appreciate. You both are very loyal, respectful and great friends to me and everyone around you. Toadsworth usually is as well, but lately on the other hand, he's just something else. Another story, I suppose you could say."

She sighed before getting up and taking a step back.

"You may follow through with his requests, if you wish. But I very well, can handle the packing myself. Do not be forced by him to do so if you have other duties to fulfill, first. I'll just get this done and over with if it makes him happy."

Both the girls nodded again.

"We'll help you, princess. It's not trouble at all." Toadette smiled.

"Yeah," Elaina replied, mirroring her friend's actions. "That way, it'll go by quicker for all of us. The sooner it's done, the better."

"Aw, I really don't deserve you two. Thank you so much." Peach beamed, giving both Toad girls a hug in which they happily returned.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Mario's kart flipped backwards before landing right-side up again. He had been hit by a red shell. The man gasped sharply and turned his head to see his attacker, which was none other than Princess Daisy. She sped past him wearing a smirk and laughed as she caught up to him.

"I got ya, Romeo! Hahaha!"

Before Mario could say anything, she revved her engine, sped off and drifted her kart down a corner before vanishing. 

Oh, it is so on!

Mario stepped on the accelerator harder to catch up to her, but within a few seconds of moving, Luigi had caught up to his bro before smirking.

"Oh no - not you too!" The older brother replied, eyes wide with horror.

"Don't worry," Luigi chuckled as their karts chugged beside each other's. "I have a trick up my sleeve that she'll never see coming!"

Mario watched as his younger brother took out a fairly large item with a dash of blue and white.

"A blue shell?!" Mario squeaked out. "Wow, you really are nasty, bro!"

They both laughed as Luigi then released it. It soared instantly at high speeds and they didn't have to wait long until they heard a high-pitched scream followed by a loud 'No, no, no, no, no -WAIT!'. An explosion was soon heard after and it didn't take the brothers long to catch up to the Sarasaland princess who was stuck in a bush, her kart flipped upside down nearby.

"No fair!" Daisy whined playfully, as she got up and brushed the leaves and dirt off of her dress. Her hair was now a disarranged mess, along with her makeup and dirt-smeared face, although being a tomboy, she didn't mind getting her hands dirty if it meant she got to enjoy her life or protect her loved ones. That was just the way she was ever since she was a child. Feisty, competitive, but also sweet. It didn't even come close to how much things Luigi loved about her. He could go on forever with a list.

Both boys laughed again as she pulled a small twig out of her hair. She then picked up and dusted off her crown, readjusted it on her head and straightened up her kart, quickly climbing into it.

"Like the little gift of mine, Daisy?" Luigi snickered, a glove hand over his mouth.

"I think she loved it so much that it was to fall for!" Mario chortled, wiping away a tear which made both brothers wheeze up a storm and nearly fall out of their karts.

"You two won't be laughing for long once I get you! As for you, Luigi, you better sleep with one eye open tonight!" She hollered, raising her fist high above her head and shaking it, friskily.

Daisy then stepped on the accelerator towards them, quickly shutting the brothers up. Their eyes widened as the princess shouted a battle cry and tried to run them down.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa - hold on! This isn't bumper cars, Daisy!" Mario gasped, raising his hands up in protest.

"Quit talking, bro and let's scram!" Luigi yelled, stepping on the gas and zipping down the track.

Mario whipped his head to look in his brother's direction before looking back at Daisy and him again. 

"Wait for meee!" He cried out, quickly dashing after his brother.

"You can run, but you can't hide!!!~" Daisy sang with a small laugh, leaning forward in her seat and gripping the steering wheel, tightly. 

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The three laps around the track was fun, but after the race, the trio began to stop and grab some lunch at a local café called, "Toadbucks". It wasn't a very big or fancy place, but it was still a common go-to for lots of people, along with high accessibility. The three of them sat at a dark-wooded booth with dark green, padded cushion in the back corner of the shop. They were eating sandwiches, soups and bread sticks amongst each other to their heart's or rather stomach's contents while they conversed upon their lives. It was a basic lunch, but they couldn't complain hence it being able to feed their famished stomachs and spend some more time with each other. 

They were all currently laughing about a recent joke Mario had made about their go-karting scheme as they somehow managed to swallow mouthfuls of their sandwiches, trying not to choke and minding their manners all at the same time.

"Yeah, yeah, continue laughing it up and making more jokes, boys," Daisy replied with a smirk on her face. "But as it was Luigi's idea to throw that stupid blue shell at me in the first place during our little race, I only think it's fair that he gets the bill!" With this, she stood up in her seat, snapped off a piece of her bread stick and waved it around once before pointing it at Luigi, but still turned her head towards the older brother, nonetheless.  "Whaddaya say, Red?"

Before he could contain himself, Mario completely lost it and would've most likely spat out his spoonful of soup if it weren't for them being out in a public café. The spoon clinked against the bowl as he giggled up a storm behind his gloved hand and watched his younger brother's reaction.

"Why, Daisy," He smirked, playing along. "I think that's a great idea. After all, it's not like Daisy should pay, anyways - she won the race fair and square!"

"Exactly," Daisy chimed in, as Luigi, who finished his meal surprisingly quickly, was now the one to hold up his hands in defence and disbelief. She then put some butter on her bread and sat down, dipping it lightly in the soup and taking a bite. After she was done swallowing her food, she began speaking again. "And Mario here got second."

"CHE COSA?!" Luigi nearly hollered, but was aware of where they were, so instead just raised his voice a little bit. "Non è affatto giusto!"

"Sì, sì! Sono d'accordo con Daisy!" 

"Perché devo prendere il conto?!"

"Because Daisy has made fair points." Mario chuckled as he finished up his food and wiped his moustache, mouth and hands with a sanitized napkin.

"Ha! You wish!"

By this point, Daisy was mad confused as both brothers continued to playfully argue back and forth between Italian and English, but to be fair, she thought it was entertaining. She listened and watched intently as she finished up her meal as well.

"Ah, c'mon, Weegie. It's not like we're in a fancy restaurant and ordered buffets of meals." Mario gently reasoned, back in English.

"Easy for you to say!"

"It could've been worse."

"It was your idea to come here for lunch, in the first place! If you suggest it, then you should have the money to pay for it!"

Well, that is a really fair point... Daisy thought to herself. She was about to announce this when Mario responded.

"Didn't mean you had to order anything."

"Now you're just talking nonsense! What kind of logic even is that?! Daisy would've still eaten, just the same!"

Dang right I would!

"Oh, whatever! I usually do pay. You know that, bro. Plus, you owe me from awhile back and did lose the race, soooo.... bill's on youuuu!~"

"Argh, I forgot about that favour," Luigi mumbled. "Okay, fine -- you win! Happy?"

"Very." Mario grinned.

Luigi shot his brother an 'I-Can't-Believe-You' look, to which Mario just laughed.

"You both are such children buuuut that's why I love you guys!" Daisy smiled.

The brothers looked to each other, laughed and exchanged 'we love you, too's' to the princess as well before they tidied up the table and organised the dishes as best as they could. Luigi then fished out his wallet, placed down the right amount of change for all three of their meals - including leaving a small tip! - and the trio then left the building.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Exasperated, Princess Peach had just finished packing her luggage, along with Elaina and Toadette's help, of course. 

"Thank you both so much once again. I just can't seem to show you two my gratitude enough for everything that you do for me. Really, I do appreciate it!"

"Of course, princess. It really isn't a problem at all. Honestly!" Toadette chimed, happily swinging her arms back and forth, her pigtails slightly bouncing.

"Yeah," Elaina agreed with a smile, looking around the room. "Just look how much faster that was now that you got the extra help! We sure couldn't have possibly let you do that all on your own. Especially the lifting!"

"Exactly," Toadette added. "We're just glad we could help you out. Royalty, friend or both."

Peach happily dove forward and practically scooped up the girls in her arms as she hugged them again, to which the Toad girls ecstatically returned once more. 

Once they were finished, Peach was unsure of what to do now, but Toadette suggested a couple matches of tennis, since she was in a sporty mood. The princess and Elaina agreed, so they both got dressed in their sports attire, stocked up on water, snacks, towels, etc in a duffel bag and headed out onto the princess' tennis court. Elaina, however, didn't really want to play, so she portrayed the role as the score-keeper/referee off to the side and watched Toadette verse Princess Peach. Plus, she didn't find a 2-v-1 game to be very fair, even though Peach had insisted that it didn't bother her -- they were just playing for fun and her competitive side revealed that she would still beat them anyways. Nonetheless, the princess and Toadette took about a half hour to warm up before beginning their match.

The tennis ball gave a small roll in the princess' left hand before she purposely dropped it onto the court ground. She made sure to bounce it a good few times with the aforementioned hand, her other firmly gripping her pink and white tennis racquet that matched her sleeveless, high-collared mini dress that resembled her usual gown.

"I hope you're ready, Toadette, because here it comes!" Peach yelled, throwing the tennis ball up in the air before whacking it with her racquet, the ball making a loud cracking noise before it sailed over the net to Toadette's side.

It bounced once before Toadette caught up to the ball on her stubby little legs and jumped up into the air, returning the swing. They rallied for a bit and were scoring multiple points on and off before Peach started to get a bit more competitive. The game score so far was 3-2, Toadette winning by a single full-matched game.

"No way you're going to get six full games in before me!" Peach playfully shouted as she set her tennis racquet down and re-fixed her ponytail as some of her long, loose hair was getting in her face.

"Well, I guess we'll just have to see about that, won't we, princess?" Toadette smirked in reply.

"I guess we will," Peach returned with a smile. She then picked up her tennis racquet again and got into her readied game position. "Ready!" She called, with a wave of her hand.

Toadette nodded and served, to which Peach automatically ran and produced a Lob Shot, trying to get the ball to go over Toadette's head and reach the baseline. Toadette tried to jump up and make her racquet return the ball, however, given her height compared to Peach's, it was proven difficult, and so, the ball flew over her head. In desperation, the mushroom girl turned around and tried to chase it, but it was futile as the ball continuously bounced away from her and rolled out of bounds.

"That's another fifteen-pointer for Peach, making this game now officially 3-3!" Elaina announced. 

"Dang it," Toadette huffed, trying to catch her breath. "Well played, princess."

Peach laughed.

"Thanks, and you know you don't need to address me so formally. Especially if we're not around Toadsworth and just spending time with each other. You're getting just as bad as Mario with that!"

Toadette laughed in return. 

"Sorry, Peach. Just a habit." She replied, sheepishly.

"No worries. Do you need to take a break?"

"Um," Toadette blinked, eyeing their belongings and then back to Peach. "Sure. I could use some water and food to fuel me up before we continue."

"So could I." Peach smiled as the two of them left their racquets and the ball on the court and went to sit amongst the high, metallic fence. Elaina happily jumped off of her Toad-sized referee stand and joined them.

Toadette set up their lunches while Peach wiped the sweat off of her face with her towel. She couldn't wait to jump into a nice, cool shower afterwards. The August heat was starting to catch up to her. 

After distributing the food prepared by the castle's chefs, the three of them began to chow down on it and reflect back upon the tennis game until the conversation turned into plans for tomorrow's trip.

"Did Toadsworth allow you both to come with us or are you two staying back at the kingdom a bit before meeting us there?" Peach had asked the two girls as she still searched for a better understanding of what was going on.

"I'll be going with you." Elaina replied.

"As for I, I'll unfortunately have to stay back with some of the others until everyone else has travelled to the Flower Kingdom, first. I'm amongst the last group, along with multiple other guards and citizens, to leave the kingdom for good."

"I see..." Peach responded. "Although, it won't be for good."

"What 'chu mean?" Toadette asked, in curiosity and confusion before reaching for a slice of watermelon.

"Because in case Toadsworth has forgotten, this is my kingdom, not his," Peach answered, challengingly, raising an eyebrow. "And before that, it was my parents', then my mother's parents, then those before them, and so on. The point is, this kingdom and that specific castle has held countless generations and memories in it amongst the Toadstool name and now it has been passed down upon me ever since the death of my parents. Good heavens! Even a glass portrait of me has been made for the front of my castle's exterior above my balcony, along with a stoned statue of me down at the Toad Town Square. Despite apparently not having a say in going to the Flower Kingdom, I have a right to come back to my kingdom whenever I please. If not, at least to visit. I believe it's fair to say that he owes me that much."

"She does have a good point." Elaina agreed.

"Yes, she does," To the princess, Toadette added, "You stand your ground, princess, although you know that if were up to me, you wouldn't have to even go in the first place."

"I know," The princess sighed. "What's done is done and it can't be changed, but we can learn to improve from it and still make changes for the future, after all."

"You're right, and we'll all be in this... together."

"Together." Elaina and Peach both echoed in unison, smiling.

"PEEEAAACCCHHH!" A high-pitched voice loudly squealed out, suddenly startling the girls from their conversation.

The three of them turned to see Daisy holding up the end of her orange and yellow dress and sprinting towards them like she was in the 100m relay race in the Olympic Games. 

"I could never understand how she could run in heels." Peach laughed, to which the Toad girls began giggling.

"Well, she's always been the athletic and sporty type." Elaina mused.

"Yeah, and kicking and chasing people's butts does have its advantages." Toadette chimed in, which made everyone laugh even harder.

"Huh? What's so funny?" Daisy huffed as she approached the trio. "Ooh, food! Thanks, Peaches. You're the best!" She grinned, taking some desserts and instantly beginning to munch on them.

"Well, hello to you, too, Daisy." Peach replied, rolling her eyes and shaking her head in amusement. She stood up and noticed Mario and Luigi approaching as well, but they were behind as keeping up with Daisy was nearly impossible unless you were someone like Sonic with insane amounts of adrenaline and speed. 

"Yeah, nice to see you haven't changed." Elaina smirked, as she and Toadette began to pack up their leftover food.

"No, no! Don't touch that!" Daisy nearly shrieked, rushing to the Toads. "I'm not finished yet!"

Shocked at the sudden outburst but not her behaviour, the mushroom girls backed away from their little picnic and let the Sarasaland princess help herself to her heart's content. By this time, the Mario brothers joined them and glanced at Daisy and then everyone around them in slight confusion, but equally unfazed.

"Daisy..." Luigi groaned. "We literally just had lunch! Don't take theirs!"

"It's quite alright, Luigi. We were just finishing up and couldn't eat everything, anyways. You boys can help yourself as well." Peach replied.

"Well..." Mario smirked, eyeing Peach out of the corner of his eye and then to the food, which Daisy was still eating from. "Don't mind if I do!"

He approached Daisy, to which she started hissing like a cat and swiping at Mario. 

"This is miiiinnneee! Mine! Not yourssss! Go away!"

Mario's eyes widened and he took a few steps back, raising his hands, defensively.

"On second thought, I think I'm good, princess. Thanks, though."

"It's okay, love," She replied, walking up to his side and holding his hand to which he lightly gripped hers. "We can get the chefs to make you something if you'd like, or even better -- we can all make something ourselves!"

"I'm quite alright, princess," He chuckled. "It was more in the sense to bug Daisy, anyways. Thanks again, though."

He smiled and kissed her cheek, to which she blushed, slightly. 

"O-Of course." She managed to stutter, quickly smiling back at him.

"Ahh, young love." Toadette whispered to Elaina as they both were fangirling internally. A small, quiet squeal in reply managed to leave the latter's small mouth, but then she quickly redeemed herself.

"I know, right? Especially with these two, it's so cute! I'm glad the princess found someone she can love and that equally loves her back, if not more."

"Me too. However, it won't last very long..." Toadette frowned.

"Oh..." Elaina muttered, suddenly realising what Toadette meant by that. "Yeah, you're right... So let's enjoy these last moments while we can."

Toadette nodded.

"Maybe not last, as Peach had stated before, but yes, I get what you mean."

"Can you two get a room?! Like honest to good God!"

The Toad girls suddenly turned their attention to Daisy and then to Luigi who doubled over in laughter. They looked over to Mario and Peach who were engaged in a passionate kiss, hence them being madly in love and missing each other, but mostly to spite Daisy, which seemed to be working.

"Ugh, never mind. I already lost my appetite..." She groaned in defeat, packing the little rest of the food as Mario smirked and continued kissing the woman he loved and cared about so deeply. 

When Daisy was finished, she stood up, saw Mario's sly smirk and began to get annoyed that everyone had ruined her perfect feasting.

"I know you aren't in a full-on make-out session here, but can you guys even breathe?! Goodness! I-" 

Hearing Luigi wheeze up and storm, she marched over to him and pulled his ear down, making Luigi duck his head down to her eye level.

"Yeowwwch!" The man in green cried, frantically trying to escape Daisy's grasp. "Daisy, let go!"

"Say you're sorry, first, and I'll maybe consider it!" 

"Wait, what?! Why do I need to apologise when you-"

Daisy pinched his ear. 

"Okay, okay! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!!! Hahehe- ow, ow, ow, ow..."

Daisy let go of him and Luigi began rubbing his ear. 

"Dang, you're crazy..." He muttered, although Daisy was obviously still in earshot to hear.

"Darn right I am!" She smirked. "And don't you ever forget it!" 

With this, she quickly kissed Luigi herself and then noticed the tennis court surrounding them and Peach (who was done mildly making out with Mario, much to Daisy's relief), along with Toadette, in their sports attire. Then it all clicked in her head.

"Peachy, you've been playing tennis and didn't think to invite me?!" She shrieked, playfully. "How dare you! Next time we play, I'm going to go even harder on you with my impeccable skills!"

"In your dreams." The blonde princess replied, going over to her.

"In your nightmares!"

"I would invite you to play, but seeing as you don't have your sports attire with you..." 

"Yeah, yeah, it's fine," Daisy quickly interrupted. "I don't want to play with a full stomach, anyways. Cramps, y'know?"

"Yeah, good idea," Peach replied. Turning to Toadette and Elaina, Peach asked the former; "Hey, Toadette, since it has been a little while before we ate, would you like to continue our match in a bit?"

"Princess," Toadette replied, excitedly. "I thought you'd never ask!"

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

After cleaning up and dealing with all of the picnic/lunch stuff inside the castle (excluding the large duffel bag which now just had the water bottles and towels in it), along with updating Toadsworth about a lot of things, the six of them properly sat down back outside to re-say their hellos and catch up amongst themselves, chatting excitedly about a variety of things.

Before everyone knew it, an hour had already passed and Toadette and Peach had resumed their tennis match, with Elaina refereeing again, of course. The score was now 5-4, the princess in the lead. Sitting at the sideline bleachers, Mario, Luigi and Daisy were all cheering like crazy for the both of them, although it was clear that Mario was rooting for Peach more, hence him celebrating a little more loudly and enthusiastically whenever the princess scored points. However, Toadette was a great team player and it never bothered her in the slightest. She understood his side and viewpoints completely and she was still grateful for all three of their supports, nonetheless.

"5-5," Elaina had called as Toadette scored multiple points on her part and Peach kept missing her shots. "I believe it's now time for a tiebreaker!"

Both girls paused and switched sides, Toadette now serving. 

"Seems like you're slacking a bit, princess," The mushroom girl smirked. "Had enough already or are you ready to feel my wrath?" 

"I could ask you the same thing," Peach huffed, blowing some of her bangs away from her face as she gripped the tennis racquet harder with both hands. "I'm not going to be at your mercy -- no way!"

Toadette chuckled, knowing that Peach was getting rather hot and tired the more mere minutes of them on the court passed. They were both eager to win and Toadette knew that Peach was trying not to let her heat exhaustion and fatigue show, although it was clear to see on her face as she squinted.

Peach bit her bottom lip in anticipation and fidgeted with her pink and white sports wristband on her right wrist, all while keeping her stare upon Toadette. She knew that this wasn't a real  tennis game competition, of course, but she couldn't help but still feel like she was in one. Maybe it was that she was just competitive? I mean, yes, but she never got like this and still was playful about something like it, nevertheless, which always made her less worked up. Was it because three of her closest loved ones were there on the sidelines, cheering her on? I mean, they have done so countless of times before and it made Peach's jitters go away before any game, but this time, it weirdly didn't. Peach didn't know anymore but it was only when Toadette smacked the ball in her direction, that she came to realise the intense breath she was holding, along with the firm hand grips on her racquet.

Acquiring the said racquet now in her right hand firmly, she made an attempt to swing at the ball, however, it ended up as a Body Shot because the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom got hit with it before she could return it, to which gave Toadette a quick fifteen points. Another fifteen was also granted to Toadette when Peach accidentally tried to jump up to perform a Zone Shot, but due to her low energy, the racquet fumbled and slipped out of her hands when she tried to do so, resulting in the tennis ball hitting the net.

Well, that was embarrassing...

Peach couldn't even dare to look at her friends. She didn't need to in order to feel their concerned and uneasy stares flying in her direction. But she wasn't about to give up so soon. No way! She could still beat Toadette. There was still a chance! All she had to do was focus.

Maybe if she could perform her special Heart Shot like she did in the tournaments and managed to destroy Toadette's racquet, then it could be possible to win by that! After all, there were no rules against it and the girl simply couldn't play without one, of course.

Yes! That's what she'd do, but first, she needed to build up as much energy as she possibly could because this was going to take a lot out of her.

The ball made another crack as the princess returned it to the opposite side, re-directing her focus on Toadette, the ball, her swings, and most definitely, her plan. Toadette raised an eyebrow as she continued to aggressively whip the ball to the princess' side of the court, yet she, almost with any struggle at all, continued to rally it like it was nothing. Even if the mushroom girl had performed lots of tricky, nearly out-of-reach moves, Peach still swooped, spun, ran, jumped, whacked, rallied, you name it.

"Yeah!!! That's my principessa!" Mario whooped with joy, as he stood up, cupping his hands around his mouth. He then laughed, to which Luigi and Daisy supportingly clapped in excitement, yelling all sorts of encouraging words and waited in anticipation via the results of the game.

Toadette was getting fed up with the rallying. You could start to tell. The game just wasn't fun to her anymore. It was like she was a robot programmed to physically and mentally destroy her opponent at the tennis game as if she was in a real-life competition. She was that zoned out, and Daisy was the first to notice.

"Hey, guys... Don't you think Toadette is getting a little too aggressive and much for something that those two are just supposed to be playing for fun?"

Luigi turned his head to Daisy with wide eyes.

"Yeah, thank goodness it's not just me. I've noticed that, too... I think we'd better tell Mario."

With this, Luigi reached up to tug his brother's arm like a toddler, trying to get the red-capped plumber's attention over his own yelling.

"Huh?" Mario questioned, looking down at his younger brother and Daisy. "What is it?"

"Come sit," The Sarasaland princess insisted, firmly, to which the hero did in confusion, turning his body slightly towards the duo, but still watching the game with a half-smile. "Listen -- we need to tell you something about Toadette. I don't think she's playing around anymore. Peach could be in trouble."

At the mention of Peach possibly being in trouble, Mario turned his full attention towards Daisy and Luigi with a frown.

"I beg your pardon?" 

"You heard me," Daisy replied, a little impatiently. "I'm telling you, haven't you seen the way Toadette's been acting? I mean, that's totally unlike her adorable and innocent little self!"

"The way Toadette's been acting...? I don't... I don't understand what you mean, Daisy."

"I mean, that this girl over here is acting way too competitive for a game in which they're supposed to play for fun only! Do you not see it?!"

"So Toadette's playing a little unlike how she usually does... so what? We all get competitive in games. Even Peach is a bit. You should know all of this yourself, Daisy. After all, it takes one to know one."

"What?! I-!"

"Peach is not in trouble," Mario insisted, narrowing his eyes. "She's just playing a competitive tennis game with Toadette. There's nothing fishy about it. Peach is perfectly fine. Trust me, if she was in danger, I'd know."

"Mario, you don't understand-"

"That's enough!" The plumber snapped. "I don't have time for your pranks and little games. It's one thing to lie about Toadette, but another about Peach's safety. I won't have any more of this!"

Mario stood up to walk away to another section of the bleachers, when Luigi quickly snatched his brother's wrist and held it, tightly.

"What the-?!"

"Mario, for once just hear Daisy out! She's not lying! I can see it for myself! Why would we lie to you about something like this? Even if we wanted to prank you, we would never go this far and you'd know that! So, please, just... listen to what Daisy has to say. Please..."

Looking over to the two competitors and back at his accomplices, Mario sighed and sat down once more.

"Alright, fine. I'll at least hear you guys out. After all, I do trust you both and have been doing so for years, so tell me everything. But, please start at the beginning so I can understand this better." 

Daisy nodded as they both thanked him and began to speak. She informed him of her suspicion and even Luigi had chimed in explaining his concerns as well. Mario listened intently and the more reasons they presented and expressed to him, the more Mario started to believe them. Things were slowly starting to make sense as he watched Peach and Toadette play. He noticed Toadette starting to get exhausted from trying to keep up with Peach and vice versa. However, he noticed Toadette now seeming to aim the ball purposely at Peach, instead of away where she would think to hit it.

He discussed this with Daisy and Luigi, to which they both agreed it was very odd.

"I mean, if it wasn't for that girl's behaviour, I'd think that she was just trying to break Peach's racquet so it could give her an automatic win, but she appears to be trying to injure her to gain the win!"

Mario quickly stood up.

"We have to stop her!" He growled. "This has gone on for far too long!"

"Agreed," Daisy huffed as she and Luigi got up as well. "Luigi and I will try to stop Toadette. You get Peach."

Mario nodded. He didn't need to be told twice.

He continuously leaped and hopped down onto a few rows of bleachers before jumping down to the ground. He stumbled forward and nearly fell down from his balance being off. However, the plumber wasted no time and instantly began running towards the tennis court, screaming out Peach's name. He had to get her attention and warn her!

Daisy and Luigi weren't far behind him, trying to do the same with Toadette. 

"Peach!" Mario gasped out, finally approaching her, although they were still at least a good 30 ft apart.

The princess turned her head in shock.

"Mario? What are you doing on the court? You're going to get hit with the ball!"

"Peach, please," He began. He tried to stay as calm as possible, while steadying his hands out in front of him, to reassure the both of them. "You're going to have to listen to me -- you need to get off the court immediately and stop this game with Toadette."

"What?!" She asked as she continued rallying with Toadette, despite Luigi and Daisy's efforts of desperately coaxing the mushroom girl out of it.

"I'm not trying to order you around or anything, so I deeply apologise if it seems like that, princess, but you have to trust me on this."

He kept a steady gaze on her, along with Luigi and Daisy's progress with Toadette.

It didn't seem to be working.

Toadette started yelling at the couple that was with her, but it was incoherent to Peach and Mario.

"Mario," The princess said in a calm but firm voice, quickly side-eyeing him before re-focusing her gaze on the ball. "Toadette and I are in the middle of game here and-" 

She was cut off as she slipped away to provide another Lob Shot towards Toadette, who, surprisingly this time, was able to jump up high enough to save Peach from gaining another point. The game was 6-6, but they were at the point where the next point wins the game, so competition was even more high.

"Sì, principessa," Mario tried once more but in a louder voice. "And trust us, we're terribly sorry, but we believe that Toadette is getting a little too competitive for our liking. We think instead of trying to gain a couple of points, she's trying to hurt you."

"Toadette? Hurt me? Mario, you're not... you're not making any sense."

"I know! I know how it sounds, but-"

"Mario, please..."

"When Luigi and Daisy first told me, I didn't believe them, either. I didn't think that Toadette could or even would do such a thing, but it's true!" The red-capped hero insisted. "Don't you see that instead of attempting to knock the ball off to the side, out of your reach, which would make the most sense to try and obtain points, she's just aiming the ball at you now? Not to mention, and I hate to say this, but her attacks are getting more powerful, Peachy. You can see it in her attitude towards this game."

"Mario, if you wanted to play a round, you could've just simply asked me instead of-"

"No, no! It isn't anything like that! I'm not doing this for attention, I promise! I would never! And why would Luigi and Daisy be acting like this as well, then?" 

Peach didn't have an answer for him as she struggled to keep up with Toadette's aggressiveness. She gasped as she just managed to save herself from getting a forceful Body Shot, to which Toadette responded with a frustrated and annoyed growl to herself.

"O-Okay," She heaved, trying to catch her breath. "I believe you."

Without any hesitation, Peach quickly dropped her racquet and put her hand on her chest, trying to compose herself and steady her breathing. Mario tried to hurry over to her in concern and to take his princess off of the court, but before he could move his feet, it appeared that Toadette had already conserved the last bit of energy that she had.

"MARIO!" Luigi screamed out in concern. "IT'S TOADETTE! SHE'S-"

But before his brother's warning could fully come and register, Toadette had already let out a whoop and cheer as three floating, pink mushroom platforms with white spots appeared around her.  One to her left, the second behind that one but raised a bit higher and spaced apart from the first, and then the third. It was basically the same as the second, however, that one was ascended even more than the previous two and was diagonally left of the second mushroom. In other words, the mushrooms portrayed the roles as three separate, curved steps that Toadette could use to climb up upon to gain a higher stature of the tennis court and produce more accurate and dynamic strikes with the ball. 

As everyone had their own special moves when it came to sports and in this case, tennis, Toadette's was called "Hop, Skip, and Jump" as Peach had her "Heart Shot", which she unfortunately didn't have the current energy to produce.

Mario gasped out, realising what this meant, but Peach was far too exhausted to notice. She collapsed upon her knees as the heat bore down on her. He finally found the strength to move his feet to run to the princess as if he were in baseball, trying to make it to a home base.

However, Toadette was far too quick.

"HOP, SKIP, JUMP!" She hollered, indeed just that as she hopped, skipped and jumped up onto the mushrooms. 

"TOADETTE, WAIT -- NO!" Luigi yelled out, trying to stop her, Daisy attempting to do the same as she hollered out more aggressive and angry sentences to the girl.

Toadette paid no mind as she was on the highest mushroom. She jumped up in the air with her racquet, attempting to aim at Peach's head, which was down, clearly unaware of the situation.

If she can't gain a Body Shot, she'll have to do a head one, which would still count as a Body Shot, nevertheless. And say if Princess Peach did manage to try and defend herself with her racquet, Toadette's force and the lack of the princess' strength would make it break, causing a "KO" and resulting in Toadette automatically winning.

She smirked, knowing it was a win-win situation for her either way.

But that's what she thought, anyways.

Once again, like many of the other previous times, the ball soared towards the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom as Toadette deflected and hurdled it towards her direction. 

Mario's blue eyes went as wide as dinner plates and massive amounts of adrenaline washed over his body like a wave.

"NOOOOO!!!!!" He howled, pumping his arms and legs faster, but no matter what, Peach was still so far from his grasp. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion.

He knew he wouldn't be able to reach his beloved princess before the ball did, so he did the only thing he could think of to save Peach from a terrible fate; attempt to knock the ball/danger away from her.

While sprinting, he clenched his right hand into a fist, concentrating with all of his might. Sparks and flames immediately roared to life and engulfed the plumber's hand. Gritting his teeth, he pulled his arm back and threw it forward, creating a large fireball to shoot out of his hand.

It made contact with the tennis ball, but instead of knocking it out of the way, it just ignited it instantly.

Mario muttered in frustration to himself and out of his panic and instinct, he screamed for his little brother.

Luigi sensed what Mario was doing and instantly reacted. He quickly ran, leapt forward and out of his right hand as well, shot out a large lightning bolt at the ball. It exploded into multiple pieces and showered upon the ground, much to Mario, Luigi and Daisy's relief.

Toadette, however, was quite upset about the anticlimactic outcome that had bested her out of her glorious win, yet she did well not to show it.

"Peach! Peach!" Mario yelled, finally reaching the said princess and collapsing in front of her on his knees as well. "Peach, can you hear me? Are you alright?!"

"Mario...?"

Mario held her closely and stroked the loose tendrils of hair out of her face. Luigi and Daisy had arrived, worriedly asking the same thing.

"I-I'm fine," She managed to say in a low voice, trying her best to get up. "I was just tired, is all."

"We're not buying that," Daisy replied, folding her arms across her chest as Mario helped Peach stand, getting up himself. "C'mon, we're taking you to see your physician. What was her name again?"

"Dr. Amethyst. Although, since we've grown closer, I've called her 'Emmy' now. Plus, it was easier for me to say and remember as a kid." Peach replied, back to her regular voice volume.

"Right," Said Daisy. "And like I said, we're taking you to her."

The brothers nodded their heads in agreement as Mario helped support Peach, who slightly had trouble standing.

"But I'm-"

"Hey," Luigi cut in with a smile, resting his hand on Peach's shoulder. "Whether you like it or not. We're your family, and families always look out for each other, yeah?"

The princess of the Mushroom Kingdom gave a small smile in return.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Thank you all..."

"For you, Dolcezza, it's nothing," Mario reassured, picking her up in bridal style, to which Peach didn't bother protesting about. "We just want to make sure you're okay."

The four of them were about to head off back to the castle when Elaina interrupted them. 

"Your duffel bag with your stuff, including your tennis racquet, princess..." She announced to Peach.

Daisy irritably tried to take it, but Luigi beat her to it.

"Thanks." The green-capped plumber responded, dully.

"I'm so sorry," She said, turning to Peach. "I don't know what came over her like that, I-"

"It's not your fault," Peach interjected. "Like us, you couldn't have known or stopped it..."

"Unless she did and didn't want to." The Sarasaland princess mumbled.

"What was that, Daisy?"

"Nothing."

Peach raised an eyebrow.

"What?!" Daisy asked, incredulously. "I'm just saying!"

"Don't pay her any mind, princess. I'm surely not." Elaina retorted, rolling her eyes.

"Why, you little-"

But the small girl in purple had already bounded off and out of the tennis court area, into the direction of the castle.

"Princess! Are you okay? What happened?"

Everyone turned to see Toadette approaching them, huffing as she caught her breath. It took all of them, minus Peach, all of their willpower not to lash out at her. Daisy, however, didn't care as she was just being herself like usual.

"What happened? What happened?!" The tomboy nearly shrieked. "We could ask you the same thing!"

"Yeah," Mario agreed, narrowing his eyes. "What on Earth was your problem back there, Toadette?"

"What are you all on about?!" She proclaimed. "Peach and I were just playing tennis and next thing we know, you three," She pointed at the mentioned. "Were acting like a bunch of vultures who spotted their prey! You guys ruined our game and we were nearly finished!"

"Is that all you care about is a stupid tennis game?" Luigi snapped. "We three were like that for a reason, and that reason was because of you!"

"Luigi..." Peach began, but Mario held her a bit tighter in reassurance and gently interrupted her.

"Princess, she needs to hear this..."

"Oh, yeah? And what did I do to make you all act like this?" Toadette challenged.

"You KNOW what you did!" The green-capped man shouted.

"Yeah! Play an innocent tennis game with the princess. If you guys were so jealous, which I don't get because you can play a match with her anytime, then why didn't you just ask to play?!"

"Buon Dio, Toadette! Have you not listened to a single word Daisy and have blurted to you back there?! It wasn't jealousy!"

"Oh, that's right. You were mad at me because I was competitive, wasn't that correct? So what? We all can be in games and you lot should know that!"

"We do," Daisy agreed. "And at first, we thought it was just competitiveness as we watched you both play. However," She tried to bite down on her tongue to keep from screaming but still bellowed out at the girl, nonetheless. "We saw you try to hurt Peach because of that getting to your head! Did you know that if Luigi and Mario didn't stop the ball, she could've been injured or killed from how powerful that shot was?! No, of course not because you don't care about anyone or anything if the result is a win via a tennis game that was only meant for fun! Not to mention, you were aiming at her head! Her head!"

"Toadette..." Peach faintly spoke out, tears in her eyes. "Why...? I thought we were friends... We even felt like sisters."

"We are, princess! I would never try to kill you -- never! Why would you believe something like this?" The girl asked, her voice cracking a bit.

"But everything they're saying adds up," She answered, doing the same. "I... Okay, you said we are close like sisters, right? Then answer me this, and answer me honestly; did you try to kill me?"

"NO! NEVER! I WOULD NEVER!"

"LIAR!" Daisy yelled, but Peach shushed her, much to her shock and slight annoyance.

"Then what happened back on the court before and after I collapsed? You were so aggressive with the ball and like Mario told me, you were constantly aiming for me, instead of away to gain points."

"Well, yeah. Truth was, I tried to get to you through your racquet," Toadette admitted sadly, shuffling her feet. "That's why I kept aiming for you. It was so I could break it, but you were just too good. So good, in fact, that I thought it was okay to break it using my 'Hop, Skip, and Jump' shot on you to do it that way..." She gave a small, awkward half-laugh at this.

"But why her head?" Mario questioned, raising an eyebrow skeptically, which made Daisy and Luigi nod in equal confusement. "You could've aimed at her racquet or even on another part of the court where Peach couldn't reach, just as we do in the tournaments. You could've gained an easy win that way, but you didn't, so WHY?" He demanded, angrily.

Toadette flinched a bit under Mario's sudden aggression and began to weep a bit.

"I-I don't know!" She wailed, throwing her small hands up into the air. "It was a heat-of-the-moment thing and I know that's not an excuse, trust me, I know that, but I don't know what I was thinking! I wasn't right in the head and was so absorbed in my winning that I didn't put Princess Peach's safety as a first priority. I'm sorry, okay?! I'm sorry to you all and especially to you, princess..."

"We don't need your pity party or crocodile tears," Daisy began. "That still didn't give you the reason-"

"Daisy," Peach interrupted as Mario set her down upon request. "She knows. I believe she has learned her lesson, haven't you?" 

Toadette nodded as Peach turned to her.

"Yes, yes! I have, princess, and I promise it won't happen again!"

"I sincerely hope not," Peach acknowledged, steadily walking up to the girl, automatically making Mario rush to her side to help and protect her if needed. "But if you really do mean what you say, then I do indeed forgive you, Toadette."

"Thank you, princess..." Toadette smiled through her tears as the princess gave her a hug.

"Hey... what did I say? You can call me 'Peach', y'know." She laughed, which made Toadette do so as well and the others smile.

"If it were up to me, you wouldn't be so easily forgiven, Toadette, but because Peach is scaring and silently threatening me with her glares right now, I do."

Peach smirked as Daisy continued.

"It was a nice speech and all, but this is something that you'll have to earn my trust for again, despite you not even inflicting this situation upon me. I can be forgiving, but I won't forget and I still don't one hundred percent forgive you. But for the sake of us moving forward and trying to put this behind us, I do. I don't know if that makes sense or what, but-"

"It does," Toadette uttered. "Thank you, Daisy and I understand your reasoning. It's more than fair."

The tomboy princess nodded as Luigi spoke up.

"I'm with Daisy on this one," He agreed. "I'm sorry, Toadette, but it's true. You're very lucky to have someone as easily forgiving and kind as Peach. Don't let your foolishness make ill decisions because you never know who you could've lost just by doing that. You nearly lost Peach and if you lose her, you lose all of us, do you understand?"

"Yes. You're crystal clear."

"Good." Luigi said with a half-smile.

Mario turned his head over to the mushroom girl who was prepared for a seriously long lecture, but instead, got none of that. Although, she did receive a cold stare which made Toadette shiver slightly. 

"Don't take advantage of us and especially not Peach herself. What you did back there can possibly be forgiven by the right people, but like my brother and Daisy, it will need time for me as well. Even more so in regards to the fact that she's the love of my life and nearly lost her due to your selfish actions."

Toadette nodded in understanding.

"But for now, we've wasted enough time as it is. We need to get Peach checked out by her physician to make sure she's okay." He announced, sternly. Then turning back to the princess, his eyes and voice softened.

"Here, I'll carry you back to the castle." 

"But Mario, you've already-"

"I don't mind," He smiled, scooping her up once more. "I love having you in my arms and plus, you're in no shape to walk to the castle like this."

Peach blushed and put a gloved hand on his cheek. 

"Thank you, Mario."

"Of course."

Turning to the others, he grinned.

"What are you all waiting for? Let's-a go!"

Without further ado, Mario began sprinting cautiously towards the castle, with the other three close behind.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Unlike the other Toads, Dr. Amethyst was pretty tall for a Mushroom Kingdomer. Slightly shorter than Peach who stood at approximately 5'7" but taller than Mario who stood at around 5'1", she stood at 5'4".

She resembled an outfit like Dr. Mario's, although her tie was amethyst purple, resembling her name, along with the spots atop her mushroom-like head. She was dressed in a white gown, white slacks and gloves with brown boots. She had a visor and a stethoscope as Dr. Mario had, although, unlike the aforementioned, she also had small, black framed glasses on her non-existent nose. She had short, very curly hair that went down just past her shoulders and soft hazel-brown eyes.

The princess was laying down on the high bed after telling Amethyst her symptoms and running some diagnostics on her. Peach had recently fallen unconscious due to her exhaustion, but was resting fine. After making sure she was, Amethyst had left the room momentarily to return with some results that may take between a half hour to an hour, which, conscious or not, Peach didn't mind. She knew that the doctor was trying to help her and all. After all, she's been doing so ever since she's been born and has always been loved and appreciated by it. Moreover so considering the fact that Amethyst always had the kindest and most forgiving heart. Mario had made many jokes to Peach in the past, asking her if she's sure that she's not biologically related to her since the two were close as well and had very similar personalities.

As Amethyst left the room, the party of four had got up from their seats in the waiting room, nearly tripping over their own feet to get to her. 

"So, is she okay?!" Mario blurted out before the others had a chance to ask.

The others were all asking multiple questions and all murmuring and exclaiming at once.

"Quiet in the waiting room, please!" Amethyst insisted, raising a hand as she had her clipboard in the other. "And for the love of this kingdom, one at a time! I can't understand you all at once!"

The chatter instantly died down, to which Amethyst thanked them and began to speak again.

"Yes, to answer your question, Mario, Princess Peach is fine. However, she is resting, so please try to keep the volume to a minimum. I've just finished running some tests on her and have to leave for a half hour to an hour or so."

"Can we go see her?" Daisy urgently asked.

"You could, although like I said, she's resting so if you don't mind that, then..."

"We don't mind," Mario quickly interrupted, hastily. "We just want to see her."

Amethyst hesitated, looking cautiously at the group for a few seconds before blinking and saying;

"You know what? I think it would be good to. Especially with her symptoms and me running out for a bit, I don't entirely feel safe leaving her alone."

The four of them exchanged quiet cheers.

"But," Amethyst began.

"Oh no. There's a catch. When is there never?" Daisy muttered, despite everyone hearing her and Luigi holding her close-by by her waist. 

Amethyst just looked at the princess.

"But," She repeated. "I would only say up to two visitors in the room at a time. This is to avoid any sort of over-stimulation that Princess Peach can get after waking up, along with high amounts of confusion and anxiety. Plus, the room isn't very big, so space is a problem along with the noise levels. Do you all understand?"

They all nodded.

"Good. Now, I trust you all to behave like proper adults. I hope I don't need to have someone monitor or referee you people, who I assume are perfectly capable of looking after yourselves and each other."

They all nodded again and exchanged 'yes's.

"Thank you. I'll be back as soon as I can. Until then, if you need anything, don't hesitate to ask someone or just... I don't know. I know you can figure something out."

With that, Amethyst smiled before departing. When she wasn't in ear or eye-shot anymore, Daisy asked;

"So, who wants to go see Peach first?"

The other three all clamored at once.

"SHHH!!!" The Sarasarian hissed. "Okay, dumb question. Let's take this slowly. SLOWLY, I SAID!"

They all stopped to look at her.

"Well, I'm going to see her first, whether or not you all like it," Mario declared. "I think I have the right to, given that she's the love of my life, no?"

"That's a fair point," Daisy started. "And I agree. I want to see Peach with Luigi, so you two can go together to see her and us two afterwards. Sound good?"

Mario stared at Daisy and then Toadette who just gave him a cold, blank stare.

"Mario scares me," Toadette protested. "Since you two are the closest to Peach, why don't you two go in together?"

Mario scoffed and rolled his eyes, giving a small sarcastic laugh and a 'thanks', while Daisy replied with; 

"Because I already said I'm going with Luigi and no offence, but nobody trusts you on your own with her right now."

Toadette looked around for any back-up. Mario just shrugged and awkwardly re-adjusted his cap while Luigi turned his head to look away, whistling and pretended to be interested in something else.

"Ugh, fine! Whatever! Let's just go, Mario..."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Dr. Amethyst wasn't lying when she said that the room was small. As soon as Mario and Toadette had stepped in, they noticed how cramped and cluttered everything seemed. To the right was the bed that Peach was lying on and a stepping stool at the side to help assist people to get up. To the left, counters and see-through cupboards with medical items were distributed in it, along with some medical things like tongue compressors that were atop the counter in a clear, plastic cup. The counters also withheld a sink and in the corner closest to the door was a trash bin. The walls were decorated in funky and colourful designs like swirls and polka dots, along with some paintings of landscapes and posters of other health information.

Furthermore, Mario wished he could just have some time with the princess alone, but no, Toadette had to pull her little stunt on the tennis court like that and now he was stuck babysitting due to lack of trust.

Oh, well. We can't always get what we want in life now can we? The best we can do is make-do with what we have and get over it. Besides, he couldn't really complain -- he and Peach were going to spend tomorrow together before she left afterwards, anyways. 

That is, if she was feeling better, of course. But Peach is a strong woman, despite a lot of people who may disagree with that statement. Mario, Luigi, Toadsworth and more have all seen her different forms of strength multiple times. If anyone can get through this, it was her. 

Toadette looked around, taking in her surroundings, but the plumber wasted no time in hurriedly going over to the unconscious princess. He gently felt her forehead, noticing how warm it was and listened to her steady breathing.

"Oh, Peach," He mumbled, kissing her cheek. "What happened to you?"

Toadette slumped down in one of the chairs against the far wall that was in between the bed and the counters. The other was at the foot of the bed, but Mario was too concerned with Peach at the moment to sit. She glanced up at the clock above the wooden door, ticking annoyingly loud for her taste. She then sighed, already bored out of her mind.

"Can't you just sit?" Toadette huffed. "I'm sorry, I know you're concerned and all for her and I am too, but your restlessness is driving me up the wall!"

Mario kept his hand rested on Peach's forehead to resist the temptation to ball his hands up into fists.

"The reason why I'm concerned for her is because of what you've done -- remember that," Mario sharply turned, slightly gritting his teeth. "I can sit just fine, but I still don't trust you near her."

To prove his point, Mario momentarily left Peach's side to grab a rolling stool from by the counter and dragged it closer to her, sitting on it. 

Toadette said nothing, but just rested her elbow on the plastic armrest of the chair, resting her cheek in her hand in the process and rolled her eyes.

"I already told you lot -- I wasn't trying to kill her or anything!"

"Still doesn't change the fact that you wanted to hurt her just for a stupido win."

"Ugh, what's it gonna take for you people to forgive me?"

"Time. Lots and lots of it, although time won't ever reverse what you tried to do. You would also have to prove yourself worthy enough for Luigi, Daisy and I to trust you again, like we said before. I don't know how yet, but we'll cross that bridge when we get to it. Right now, I'm just worried about Peach."

Toadette nodded.

"I'm sorry."

Mario scoffed, not looking back at the girl and instead gently held Peach's right hand.

"The future will determine that."

"Really! I am!" She cried out. "I know I shouldn't have tried to hurt her for a dumb win!"

"It's a little late for that..."

"I know. I really do."

Mario gave a small, unamused hum in reply.

"What I just don't know is why you'd want to harm her when you two are so close. You're never like that at all and we've all played so many sports in the past with each other. Why now? Is it secretly built up anger?"

"No."

"Jealousy?"

"Not at all! I mean, I admit, I am jealous of her lifestyle and heart, but then again, who wouldn't be?"

Mario had to agree with that. Toadette was right, which was why he loved the princess. She was gorgeous inside and out and treated others with the utmost respect and love.

"Although," The girl continued. "That would never make me want to hurt her. Ever. And everyone knows that, including you, Mario."

"I know, but nothing makes sense, still."

"Well, I'm sorry that I can't give you the answers that you need."

"But you have them, though. Deep inside you do."

"Who knows? Maybe I do, maybe I don't."

"And maybe you just have something that you don't want to admit to Luigi, Daisy and I's faces." The plumber challenged.

"What on Earth are you going on about, Mario?!" Toadette yelled, standing up instantly. "Are you suggesting that I did this out of jealousy or anger?!"

"I don't know if you did!" Mario growled, letting go of Peach's hand and doing the same. "It's possible, although I'm trying my best not to accuse you of anything when I could."

"Well, what do you expect me to do for you, Mario? Bake you a dang cake and give you a stupid kiss on the nose?!"

"HEY! THAT'S ENOUGH!" Mario boomed, narrowing his eyes and taking a step closer to Toadette. "Disrespect me all you like, but do NOT do that to Peach! She doesn't deserve that!"

"Whatever!" The mushroom girl huffed, storming past him and to the door. "I'm out of here! Have fun with your little girl toy!" 

With that, she flung open the door and bolted out, not bothering to close it behind her. Mario watched her and said nothing, dumbfounded and angered, as it built up inside of him.

How DARE she?! How actual dare she?!

Mario took some deep breaths, trying to calm himself down for him and everyone else's sake. Daisy and Luigi stood in the doorway, looking confused and concerned.

"Do I even want to-" Daisy began.

"Toadette and I just had a small argument. That's all." Mario replied.

"Should I get Dr. Amethyst?" Luigi asked in concern.

"No, don't worry about it, bro. Let her cool off."

Luigi nodded.

Just then, the three of them heard small whimpering and rustling coming from the bed. In concern, they all looked towards it. Peach's body was slightly trembling and she was tossing and turning.

"I think she's having an episode or nightmare of some sort. But in case it's something else, now you can get Dr. Amethyst, Luigi." Daisy gasped.

Luigi nodded again.

"I'll be as quick as I can!" He announced, dashing off to get the said doctor.

Meanwhile, Daisy and Mario hurriedly rushed to Peach's side, Mario grabbing onto Peach.

"Peach?! Peach! Can you hear me?!" He cried out, desperately. "Wake up!"

"Peach, you have to wake up!" Daisy yelled, doing the same. "You're just having a nightmare!"

"No! Noooo!" She wailed, tears flowing down her cheeks.

"PEACH!" Mario screamed. "COME ON! SNAP OUT OF IT!"

Daisy shook her harder. 

"GIRL, WHATEVER IT IS, IT'S NOT REAL!"

"Help me! HELP ME!!!" The blonde princess sobbed.

"PEACH, WE'RE RIGHT HERE!" Mario hollered, gently holding both sides of her face with his hands and starting to sob himself. "YOU JUST NEED TO WAKE UP!"

"FOLLOW OUR VOICES!" Daisy demanded, the urgency in her voice increasing. "C'MON, PEACH!"

"Where is Luigi with the doctor?!" Mario asked, hastily, while gasping.

"I don't know," Daisy admitted. "Hopefully they're here soon and fast!"

No later than she said those words, the mentioned duo arrived.

"Move! Move!" Amethyst yelled out, dashing into the room while some medical supplies, which she put on the counter.

Daisy and Mario quickly moved away from Peach and stood where Luigi was. He stepped inside the room, but didn't go much farther than that.

"Do you need us to leave?" The tomboyish princess asked as Amethyst quickly prepared a sedative for Peach.

"Usually, yes, but in this case, I don't care. Although, the support and presence of her peers may comfort her a bit." She replied, quickly as she plopped stuff down with multiple 'clacks' onto the counter tops and rushed around the room.

The three of them made their way towards Peach but still made sure that they gave Amethyst enough space to work. This time, Mario held Peach's left hand in comfort and gave it a soft squeeze to reassure her that he was here with her no matter what.

"Okay, Peach," She started quietly as she sat down on the rolling stool. She then wiped Peach's right arm with a disinfectant wipe and prepared the needle. Peach had already stopped thrashing about and screaming at this point, although she was still trembling, muttering pleads and crying. "This is only going to sting for a couple seconds, alright?"

Mario couldn't dare to watch. It hurt so bad to see her like that, but yet, he couldn't look away. Same with Daisy and Luigi. 

Amethyst slowly pushed the plunger down and Peach's quiet mumbles and trembling ceased until they quickly stopped completely. She shuttered and instantly relaxed, her hand releasing its hold with Mario's, but the plumber still held onto it in fear that if he released his hold, then he would lose her or something bad may happen. Plus, it gave him more comfort and strength for his princess.

"Won't putting her to sleep make things worse? I mean, if she was having an episode or horrific nightmare of some sort, then wouldn't it be wise to wake her up to get her out of it?" Luigi questioned.

"Not necessarily," The physician nonchalantly replied, getting up and properly disposing the wipes, needle and heading to the countertops. "It's best if she wakes up more relaxed and calm. Her anxiety has been off the rails lately. Especially after seeing the diagnostics that I performed on her not long ago. Which reminds me that the results are nearly finished. I just have to go back and grab the papers to see them."

She finished cleaning up and threw her Latex gloves in the trash as well. She then washed and re-disinfected her hands, and grabbed her medical supply kit.

"I'll be right back." She said with a nod, while the others did the same in return.

"What in the world is going on with her?" Daisy asked in concern after Amethyst had left. "I mean, one minute Peach was fine, the next she's like this!"

"I know," Mario murmured. "But when Amethyst comes back, we'll hopefully be able to figure out everything."

"Yeah." Daisy agreed.

"I swear, though -- if Toadette had something to do with this..." Mario uttered, voice going quickly unsettling.

"It could be because of the changes with the move as well, bro," Luigi cut in, not wanting his elder brother to finish his sentence. "After all, Peach has been stressed about it lately and Amethyst did say that her anxiety has 'been off the rails', yeah?"

"Yeah, you're right," Mario acknowledged. "Then that means Toadsworth is responsible for this!" He suddenly snapped, eyes glaring daggers.

Daisy and Luigi were both caught off-guard by this and Daisy was quick to interject.

"Now, now," She jumped in, hastily, putting a hand on his shoulder. "We don't know anything for sure. Like you said, we'll be able to figure out everything when Amethyst comes back."

"She's right, bro," Luigi added. "Jumping to conclusions and thinking about things with an unclear mind, won't solve anything."

Mario muttered something to himself that neither Luigi nor Daisy could make out, but he gave in and sighed.

"You're right. If not for us, then for Peach, right?" He asked, turning to her. He kissed her hand and gently placed it down onto her chest. Turning back to the duo, he added; "I'm sorry."

"Hey, it's okay," Luigi smiled. "We're here for you. Just try to hang in there, alright? After all, you aren't alone."

"Yeah," Daisy chirped with a smile. "You got us!"

"When did I ever get so lucky to have you three in my life?" The red-capped plumber beamed, embracing his brother and the Sarasaland princess into a hug, to which they laughed and returned.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Peach's examination and medical results came back. Dr. Amethyst had revealed that Peach had obtained a heat stroke and anxiety attack which likely could've led to her little episode. It was required that she get as much rest and fluids as possible and that it would be best to come back tomorrow to see how she was doing. 

It was difficult for the trio, especially Mario, but they understood completely. Saying their farewells to Peach who was still unconscious, they left the castle. (But not before Mario gave Peach's forehead a kiss and whispered a promise that he'll return again the first chance he got tomorrow).

"So..." Daisy trailed off, awkwardly as they walked down the path and hill. "What do we do now?"

"I don't know," Luigi answered, honestly. It's almost the evening but still the afternoon, so maybe we can do something before it gets too dark."

"Good idea," Daisy nodded. "Any suggestions?"

"No, not really. You, Mario?" The green-capped plumber asked, turning to his older brother.

Mario shook his head.

"How about we go get ice cream?" The tomboy princess asked, blue eyes twinkling like a child's.

"You don't need anymore ice cream!" Luigi huffed, playfully. "You already had a whole buffet of desserts and such back at the tennis court!"

"But I'm still hungry and want ice cream!" She pouted, giving Luigi puppy-dog eyes.

"How can you still be-? You know what? Never mind. You want ice cream? Let's go get ice cream. My treat."

"YESSSSS!!!" Daisy squealed, pumping her fist up in the air. She gave her green plumber a bear hug. "Thank you!"

"Ugh, y-you're welcome but I c-can't breathe...!"

"Oh! Sorry!" Daisy giggled, releasing her hold, to which Luigi rolled his eyes and chuckled.

"You guys go on ahead. I have something at home that I just remembered I need to attend to." Mario stated.

"You sure?" Luigi asked with a concerned raise of an eyebrow.

"Yeah." Mario confirmed, plastering a small smile. "Have fun and good luck. Don't let that woman run you down too much!"

"Hey!" Daisy protested. "I heard that and I certainly do not!"

"I beg to differ..." Luigi whispered to Mario.

"What was that, Luigi?"

"Nothing, Daisy! Let's go." He said, quickly, giving his flower princess a quick kiss on the cheek and waving to Mario. "See you around, bro!"

"Yeah, you too." Mario replied, waving back with a small laugh.

Once they were not in his eyesight anymore, the portly plumber made his way back home. Once inside, he sighed to himself. He didn't really have anything at home to attend to. It was just an excuse, of course, but he needed some time alone to clear his head. 

He disappeared upstairs into his and Luigi's room, coming back down into the living room with a boombox, along with a small box of cassette tapes that the brothers kept over the years, back when they lived in Brooklyn. Placing it on the coffee table, Mario fired up a tape, pressed 'Play' and then turned up the volume. As nostalgic tunes washed over him, the hero smiled, rolled up his sleeves and started to get to work on cleaning the house. 

When he was finished, he cleaned himself up, put away his tunes and started to prepare dinner which was homemade mac-and-cheese with crusted bread crumbs on top of it, along with a caesar salad on the side. Just something simple for a long day. He put the macaroni in the oven and since it was going to be awhile, he made his way towards the futon and plopped himself down on it. Reaching for the remote on one of the end tables, he pulled up a TV show On Demand he was currently enjoying and started resuming watching it.

The hero didn't know how much time had passed. He watched three episodes and they were about a half an hour each, so an hour and a half had gone, supposedly. Luigi had come through the door, exasperated and starved after the outing with the Sarasaland princess.

He looked to his right, seeing what appeared to be an orange glare in the oven window. He looked over to his left, Mario still slumped on the couch, clearly engrossed in the show and oblivious of everything around him.

"Hey, bro," The younger brother smirked. "What are you making over there? Fire? Looks delicious."

At the sound of 'fire', Mario paused the TV, whipped his head back over the couch and cursed under his breath in Italian. He stood up and leapt over the couch, hurriedly making his way over towards the kitchen that was conjoined with the living space.

"No, no, no, no, no!" He gasped as he grabbed oven mitts and rapidly took out what was once the homemade mac-and-cheese while putting it on the stove top with a sigh. Turning off the oven, he turned to Luigi who couldn't stop giggling.

"Glad you found this amusing," He announced, distressfully. "Now I'll have to start all over!"

"Well, why didn't you use our kitchen timer? The mechanical one that winds up and looks like a Bob-Omb?"

"Didn't we lose that one?" The older brother asked, now fanning the burnt dish and oven door with a dish towel to clear away the smoke.

"Nope. Well, yeah, for a bit... but then I found it recently."

"Glad I knew that."

Luigi sighed at his brother's sarcasm.

"Well, why don't we make something else, then? I'll help you."

Mario got up, closed the oven door and looked at his little brother. 

"There's a caesar salad in the fridge. Maybe we can do something with that?"

"Chicken caesar salad wraps?" Luigi suggested with a grin, eyes shining.

"Sure thing! We just have to prepare a chicken or get chicken strips or chicken nuggets or something, though. We already have the tortillas and salad dressings."

"That's no problem! I believe we have chicken strips we can heat up, although we don't need the timer. I'll personally make sure you don't burn those as well or else I'm eating a dinner of my own without you!"

Mario laughed.

"It's a deal." He beamed.

Chapter Text

⚠️(Quick Disclaimer: This "chapter" is not affiliated with my headcanical storyline of this book, whatsoever! It's just an announcement, which I hope you can please take the time to read so that way you can better understand these last few chapters ahead).⚠️

A/N: Hey, everyone! Aaliyah here and welcome to "Choose Your Own Ending!" Now, I know what you may think and let me just say that this isn't one of those things that you choose which page to go on and it leads you through a series of stories and weird page orders that eventually determines your results. (If you know what I mean). Nope, this is a simple "Choose Your Own Ending" that's only going to be made up of 2 chapters -- the Bad Ending and the Good Ending. (The former will be published first, although I will post both chapters on the same day when I finish them). (Whenever that will be... 😂 But as soon as I can, I assure you, so please be patient). 

Anyways, you can choose to either read the Bad Ending if you want a heart-wrenching/sad ending for this book or the Good Ending whereas it's obviously the opposite. (Happy/heartwarming). OR, if you can't choose a side to read, you're more than happy to read both! I don't care! I just decided to give you all that option because everyone has different opinions for book endings and I personally couldn't decide if I wanted a happy or sad ending to this novel. I have such great ideas for both a good and a bad ending which is why I decided to go about this way. (And what better way to end this book than to do this? Haha).

Nevertheless, I hope you enjoy the last chapters for this book and I couldn't be happier for you all supporting it! I've come a long way with this book and to see people actually enjoying this cringe makes me smile, lol! 😝 So, it's the least I can do for you all. And one more thing: If you do read the chapters and others have commented before you, I would suggest treading the comment section carefully in case of any spoilers in them. 😅 But yeah, enough of me rambling and getting anymore cheesy! It's time to get reading/writing those chapters! Thank you so much for your time! Much love and peace to you all! 🥳💕

                                                                 -AaliyahCurzon/ThatOneMarioFangirl

Chapter Text

Mario awoke early the next day, looking forward to checking on Peach's condition. He showered, got dressed in his usual getup (minus his red cap) and made his way downstairs to see Luigi dressed as well, but equally without his green cap. He sat at the round, wooden kitchen table, munching on a piece of toast and looking at the morning paper.

"Mmm, breakfast," Mario hummed happily, clapping his hands together. "Thanks, lil bro -- I'm starved!"

"Yeah, it's nothing," Luigi shrugged, now sipping some orange juice. "You're always starved, so what else is new?"

Mario scoffed sarcastically and headed to the stove.

"What do we got here?" He asked, enthusiastically.

"Food."

"Well, no duh. But what kind?"

"Open your eyes and look, lover boy."

"Ugh, what got you in such a bad mood this morning?"

"Me? Oh, I'm not in a bad mood. Only a playful one!" The green-capped hero laughed.

"Oh, yeah? And why's that?"

"Well, while you and Peach are out spending the day together, Daisy and I are going on a little outing!"

"An outing? You mean like a date?"

Luigi blushed. 

"N-No, not really. It isn't anything like that. It's not fancy or anything." He spluttered, twiddling his index fingers around.

"It doesn't have to be fancy to be a date, Weegie! Where are you two going?"

"The movies. But in one of the theatres in her kingdom."

"Not the one in her castle?"

"No, she wants to get away from it for a bit. Said her parents are driving her crazy and she wants and needs a break from helping her parents rule."

"Understandable," The older brother responded with a nod. He then grinned and added teasingly; "But still sounds like a date to meee!~"

"Oh, just shut up and eat your breakfast before it gets cold, which it probably already has!" Luigi groaned, trying his best to hide his flushed face behind his newspaper. 

Mario picked up a tater tot from a baking pan and popped it into his mouth.

"Nope," He chewed with a smile. "Still warm."

Daisy, for the sake of my sanity so I can somewhat prepare for this day, please pick me up...

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

After breakfast, the brothers brushed their teeth and hair, combed their moustaches and finished getting ready for the day ahead. Placing their signature caps upon their heads, they grabbed their own set of house keys and cellphones, shoving them into their overall pant pockets. 

"Call me if you need anything or, y'know, use our fraternal telepathic communication like we always used to." Luigi chuckled, giving his brother a bear hug after they stepped outside and locked the door. Mario didn't notice that Luigi had snuck something out of his own pocket and put it into his brother's.

"Urk-! Y-Yeah, s-same to you!" Mario smiled, trying his best to hug him back. "Have fun!"

Luigi let go and the brothers started walking down the stone and dirt pathway.

"We will! And you both have fun as well if you go out. Daisy and I won't take up too much of the day for she'll want to see Peach before she leaves, too, along with me."

"Understood." Mario nodded. 

"What time is she leaving?"

"6pm. A personal plane is going to come to the kingdom to pick her and loads of others up. She's going to have an early dinner around 5pm, so I'll have to bring her back to the castle at around 4:30pm. It's about 10:30am right now, so I'm afraid I'll only have a few hours left with her..." The red-capped plumber hastily rambled (mostly to himself). He then abruptly stopped walking with worry.

"Okay, well... make them all worthwhile, yeah?" Luigi asked, doing the same. He turned and clasped a hand on his brother's shoulder while saying this and looked into his twin's eyes with determination.

"Oh, yeah. I will." Mario half-heartedly smiled, doing the same.

"You okay?"

"Yeah..."

"You sure?"

"Mhm, why wouldn't I be...?"

However, Luigi could easily see right through his twin and felt a bit uneasy. He wasn't sure where the feeling suddenly came from, but he had a hunch that something wasn't going to be good. Either with Mario and his plans, with Peach's departure, with the kingdom, or something else entirely. However, he just shook it off as the paranoid and protective little brother he was and dismissed it as that, along with the fact that he might have pre-outing jitters with Daisy since it's been awhile since they've been out. He was also a bit nervous for Princess Peach herself via the move and everything and hoped it went smoothly and everything would turn out right in the end. 

So, what was his exact feeling? Luigi didn't know, but he sincerely hoped it wasn't bad.

"Well, it just seems as if you're... Oh, never mind. It's nothing..." He dismissed with a small shake of his head. "Love you, big bro."

"Love you too, Weegie. See ya later."

"Okie dokie, see ya."

Without anymore hesitations, they both waved farewell to each other and went their separate ways; Mario to Peach's castle, and Luigi to Sarasaland.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

When Mario was let inside of the castle, the first thing he noticed was the chaos hustling inside of it. Toads were running around every which way -- most contained luggage and personal items, others were helping out with any last thing needed in the castle to ensure that everything was well before they left.

The man could barely hear over his own thoughts and nobody seemed to notice him. However, he remembered why he came here in the first place and went to see Dr. Amethyst, wondering if Peach was still with her.

He made his way towards the castle's infirmary and towards the direction of Dr. Amethyst's area. He was making his way past her main office and was going to go towards the waiting room where the quartet were the previous day, when he bumped into something or rather, someone.

The plumber gasped in shock as he tumbled upon the ground, his red cap falling down upon his face, covering his eyes. Objects clattered as they fell to the floor and a small, bewildered cry rang out somewhere in front of him.

"Oh, my-!" Mario heard the voice utter and he instantly recognised who the voice belonged to. "Mario! I-I'm so sorry! I didn't see you there! Here, let me help you up!"

Mario lifted his cap and placed it back upon his dark brown hair. Chuckling, he got up with the help of his companion and brushed himself off.

"No, no, Amethyst. There's no need to apologise. I'm the one who wasn't looking where I was going." He blushed. "But thanks for the help, anyhow."

Amethyst nodded in spite of his gratitude.

"Well, that makes the both of us then, I suppose," She exhaled as she fixed her glasses. "I got out of my office too fast and didn't bother to check if anyone was passing by, first. Speaking of, are you alright? I didn't hit you with the door as well on my way out, did I?"

"No, no," Mario chuckled once more with a wave of his hand. "You didn't. And yes, I'm alright. I was just more surprised than anything."

"Well, that makes the two of us." The physician laughed.

"Oh! Forgive me and my manners," Mario exclaimed, picking up the objects Amethyst dropped and handed them to her. "I believe these belong to you."

Amethyst nodded.

"Indeed they do. Thank you."

"Anytime. Oh, and Amethyst?"

"Yes?"

"Is Princess Peach with you? It's uh... kind of the reason why I came here looking for you in the first place." The man awkwardly asked, rubbing the back of his neck and head.

"As a matter of fact, you just missed her," Amethyst warily stated, noticing Mario's quick disappointment. "She was here for her morning check-up, but she should be in her room getting ready. Well, as she has told me, anyway."

"Oh! Okay, well, thank you," Mario smiled, with a wave. "And good luck with the move as well, whether you're on this first trip or not." 

Amethyst nodded, thanked him and waved back as the plumber and the physician went their separate ways.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Ah, princess?" Mario gently knocked on the aforementioned person's door, blushing a little. "Are you in here?"

"Oh, Mario! Yes, I'll be out in a minute!"

"There's no rush," Mario smiled. "I'll wait for as long as you need me to."

Idiota.  Listen to how cheesy and desperate you sound for her! I wouldn't be surprised if she no longer wanted to hang out with you today...

Mario lightly smacked his forehead with the heel of his hand and gave a small groan.

"Are you okay, love? You aren't feeling ill, are you?"

Mario quickly looked up to see Princess Peach slightly leaning over him, a concerned look painted across her small face. Because he had zoned out for a minute, he hadn't even heard or realised the door had opened.

She wore her summer outfit back on her odyssey adventure which contained a mini-dress that went just past her knees. The top half was a white blouse with short puff sleeves, the bottom a skirt in the princess' favourite and usual shade of pink. Just above her waistline bore some kind of a belt in the colour rouge and a round yellow clip with a pink (the same colour as the bottom of the dress) gem in the centre. Around the princess' neck was a small, light pink scarf with small white polka dots on it, along with the white heels on her feet that replaced her usual red ones. Finally, to top off her outfit, Peach decided to wear a white sun hat with a pink ribbon instead of her usual golden crown.

Mario thought she looked absolutely gorgeous, but to be fair, he thought that with any outfit she chose to wear.

"N-No, I'm fine, princess." He managed to say when he found his voice.

"You sure?" She asked, placing her right hand on his left cheek. "Because your face is a bit red."

Upon hearing that, the plumber nearly became even more red in embarrassment but despite this, he loved feeling her soft skin against his, although he didn't know if he was going to be able to do so ever again. He quickly pushed those feelings aside to answer Peach.

"Oh! I-I... Uhm... Sì, principessa. Don't worry about me. I'm not ill or anything." He chuckled, softly placing his hand on top of hers and looking his princess in the eyes with a soft smile. He wanted to make sure that she knew that he was telling the truth.

"Okay, if you say so. I just wanted to make sure you were alright." She smiled, removing her hand and then kissing Mario on the cheek.

The plumber this time allowed his face to become as red as his cap and rubbed the back of his neck slowly, while momentarily looking down to his right like a shy schoolboy. He then held out his arm for Peach to take, which she gladly linked her arm with his with a small giggle. 

"So, how have you been? Have you been feeling alright? You gave us all quite a scare yesterday..." Mario started, as he and Peach made their way out of the castle.

"Oh, did I...? I-I'm sorry! I really didn't mean to. I mean, one minute I was fine on the tennis court, the other I... I guess I passed out."

"It's not your fault, Peach. A lot is going on right now for all of us, but especially you. I can't begin to imagine what you must be going through..."

Peach nodded and sighed.

"Yeah, you can say that again. What's worse, is that I hardly remember anything from yesterday. My head's still fuzzy..." She put a hand to her forehead and squinted her eyes shut.

"Well, there's no need to worry about anything. You didn't miss much. And besides, you have enough on your plate as it is. If this will cause you a headache, then it's not worth it."

I want to spend every last minute with you and focus on just us. Before you're gone from my sight and presence forever and I'll never be able to do so again... It hurts, Peach. It really does and I'm sorry I cannot do anything. I'm sorry I failed you when I promised I'll always be there for you and guard you with my life. I'm sorry you had to meet someone like me... I'm sorry. I feel so worthless, but I hope you know that I've tried to fight for you and all of these years and days a-and hours and minutes  and even seconds with you have been worth it. I'll keep fighting for you and I'll never forget you. Ever. I'm sorry I-

"Mario? Are you sure you're alright?"

Mario blinked.

"S-Sorry, princess. I just spaced out for a minute..."

"Oh! It's quite alright, dear. It happens to us all." She smiled as they walked together through the Mushroom Forest.

"Anyways, how did your check-up go with Dr. Amethyst?"

"Ah, it was good," Peach replied, clapping her hands together. "She told me what happened to me. Medically, of course with the whole heat stroke and anxiety attack thing."

I wonder if she knows about her little freak-out during her exam...?

"I also heard about what happened to me while I was unconscious..." Peach added, quietly, not daring to make eye contact with her beloved plumber, as if to read his mind. "I'm sorry you all had to witness that. I don't... I don't really know what came over me. Goodness, I don't even remember that, either and this is all so embarrassing..."

"Hey -- it's okay, it's okay. What matters now is that your health seems to be improving for the most part, yes?" Mario asked, reaching for her hand to which she accepted.

"Yes, of course." Peach agreed, plucking a fallen green leaf off of her blouse with her free hand. She held onto it for a few seconds, admiring it and twirling it around by its stem before letting it go in the gentle, warm breeze.

"I also have something to ask you, but I don't want to upset you by bringing it up..." Peach quietly added, looking down at her heels as they continued to walk hand-in-hand.

Nothing could upset me more than knowing that you're going to be leaving me forever...

"Oh, princess..." He breathed out. "You can tell me anything, you know that. I promise, whatever it is, I won't get mad at you. I mean, how can I even get mad at someone like you, anyways? I love you too much for that." He flashed her a cheeky little grin after saying this to which she gave a little giggle.

"I love you too, my little plumber," She beamed, rubbing the top of Mario's cap. "Okay, well, it's about what happened with Toadette and you yesterday..."

"Huh? How'd you know about that...?" Mario inquired, raising an eyebrow in surprise and embarrassment.

"Well, I don't know what exactly happened between the two of you, but Daisy had written a letter to me and at one point, it got to saying that you two had a bit of an argument."

"Something like that... yes..." Mario mumbled, tilting his head down a bit. He didn't feel this shameful in a long time. 

"Hey, tell you what; There's another part of the Toad Town coming up here after these bit of trees, and I know there's a nice diner there. Wanna talk about it over some fries and a milkshake?"

Mario raised his head and gave a small smile and a nod.

"Sounds good, princess. Let's-a go."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The duo sat at a table-for-two, a large paper basket of fries covered in a drizzle of ketchup sitting in between the two of them, along with a large chocolate milkshake with two plastic straws.

"...and then... that's when I snapped at her by telling her not to disrespect you like that. Toadette gave even more attitude and said a few nasty words about you being my 'girl toy' and then she ran out of the room. That was the last time I saw her," Mario explained, quietly. "I know I shouldn't have gotten that angry with her. It was wrong of me. I just... I just couldn't believe she'd say those things about you and well, I..."

"You were just protecting me and I'm forever grateful for that," Peach assured him with a sad smile after she finished her sip of the milkshake. "Besides, Toadette had no right acting like that. I don't know what's come over her lately, to be honest. Maybe it's the move?"

"I don't know... But I suspect something's off with her."

"What do you mean?"

Mario popped another fry into his mouth before swallowing and said; 

"Well, before I found out about how Toadsworth was behind the whole move thing, I had a hunch that something wasn't right behind all of this. Nothing added up -- why you were particularly going to the Flower Kingdom, why for that long, et cetera, which is why I spoke a lot with Daisy and Luigi, actually. Together, we found out about Toadsworth, which did make sense after all, especially after you told me this was all his idea in the first place. Not to mention how persistent he was."

Mario took a sip of the milkshake before continuing, while Peach feasted on the fries with mild interest.

"Anyways, I'm getting off topic here... The point is, we were right about Toadsworth and after speaking to him in the back garden of the castle, we understood more of his reasoning. Not that we agreed with him, of course. Ugh, I'm doing it again, aren't I? Rambling?"

"It's okay -- really! Please, take your time. I'm still listening."

"Well, what I'm trying to say about Toadsworth and Toadette is that my hunch was right with him and now that I'm having a hunch about Toadette, I just..." The plumber let out a deep breath before speaking again. "Just... Please be careful around her, princess. I still don't fully trust her..."

"Is this hunch still because of what happened yesterday?" Peach asked, raising an eyebrow. "Because Mario, you need to tell yourself that you may just be being paranoid and-"

"But my hunches are never wrong, princess and I'm getting a strong feeling about this. You have to trust me..."

"I do, it's just..." It was her turn to sigh. "I don't know what to think anymore. This whole thing has been a mess that needs to be cleaned up, pronto."

"I know, but..." Mario reached for Peach's hands across the table and looked into her eyes with worry and sincere determination. "Please... Please promise me that you'll be mindful around her and what she may say or do. I'm just worried that..."

Something bad may happen and I won't be there to protect you. And if something did, then I'll never be able to forgive myself. 

"Mario," Peach gave a small laugh and a smile. "I'll be careful. I promise."

"T-Thank you..." He mumbled.

"Of course. And I'm feeling pretty full. How about you?"

"Yeah." Mario nodded, patting his overall pant pockets to search for his wallet. He remembered putting his phone and keys in his right one, but the left contained something. Confused, he slowly reached in his left pocket and felt a small but dense, solid object. Closing his hand around it, he instantly knew what it was and tried not to gasp in surprise.

How and when in the Inferno did that get there?!

Sensing that he didn't have his wallet and remembered that he forgot to bring it, Mario slowly extracted his hand and gave a small chuckle at the princess.

"Is something the matter?" She asked, a worried look perched upon her face. "Are you alright?"

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine," The plumber blushed. "It just seems as if I forgot my wallet, that's all."

Peach smirked.

"Good, because I'm paying for all of this, no matter what you say! It's my treat, after all and you don't need to be stuck with the bill most of the time that we go out."

"I really don't mind."

"Well, I do. It's not fair to you and I need to pay more. I'm perfectly capable of doing so."

"Well... thank you, princess."

"Don't mention it. Anything for you." She smiled.

Mario blushed once more and to a waiter walking by, he waved and called to him. Peach paid for the small meal and then the two of them were out of the diner nearly as soon as they entered.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

During their walk back through the forest of which they came from, the couple came across a couple bike trails and a small path that led up a wide and giant hill a lot of people liked to host blanket picnics, toss a ball around, or just enjoy the scenery in general on. (Also, to toboggan and ski via the colder months and many more!)

The duo made their way to the top after some time and sat down with their legs stretched out before them, admiring the multiple sceneries surrounding them, along with the smell of fresh flowers, pine and other forestation. They began to happily converse, tell each other jokes and at one point, Peach decided that it would be amusing to steal Mario's cap and run with it.

"H-Hey!" Mario exclaimed, getting up and chasing the princess. "Come back here with my hat!"

Peach just laughed.

"Well, then you're gonna have to catch me, first!"

"You're gonna regret saying that, princess!~"

With a smirk, Mario began to run faster. He did a couple of flips, somersaults and jumps in the air and upon obstacles to gain momentum and speed. Peach's peals of laughter continued to ring out into the air while she tried not to trip on her heels. 

She stopped momentarily to catch her breath when she couldn't hear Mario anymore. Confused, she whipped around, but he was nowhere to be seen. However, she appeared to not be paying any attention, when Mario suddenly leapt behind the princess and tackled her. The two of them fell forward and tumbled a bit, Peach crying out in shock and Mario laughing, gleefully.

The princess lay sprawled upon her back, the plumber rising slightly above her, his gloved hands pressed firmly on the grass on either side of her to keep him from accidentally falling atop of the girl. Peach's sun hat had come off during their tumbling and Mario's cap had laid to the right side of the former.

Seeing Mario eye her, playfully and with slight curiosity, Princess Peach then also noticed him looking down to his left. Following his gaze, she realised that she no longer had the famous cap in her hand and turned her head to see it beside her. She tried to scramble up and reach to grab it, however, Mario did as well.

Mario was quick, but the princess was quicker. She smirked as she held the article of clothing high into the air, noticing the Italian New Yorker's surprise and slight amusement.

"Ha!" Peach beamed, with a smug grin. "Looks like after all of that ambushing, I still have your cap!"

"Not for long!"

Smirking once more, Mario attempted to take it out of her hand, but Peach kept holding it out of his reach. With a back-up plan, he started tickling Peach under her neck and under her ribcage. She instantly began squirming and burst out laughing, much to Mario's amusement. Within seconds, his plan had worked as Peach let go of the cap and protested his mercy. Mario stopped, took his cap, dusted it off and placed it back upon his head.

He got off of the princess and helped her sit up. She sat down, leaning her weight into her left side as her hand was planted firmly to hold her up and her legs were extended to her right, neatly folded together and slightly bent. Mario sat on his knees and gave the princess a sly grin.

"Hehe, I knew I'd get you."

"Me too, but I wanted to try and see how far I could get. Especially in these heels as I tend to forget that I wear them sometimes," With a small laugh before a sigh, she added; "That's how much I wear heels. It's so tiring, but I eventually got used to it. I had to, being a princess and all. Sometimes I wish that I don't have to be royal for a day and wear much more comfortable clothing. Because trust me, I do love my dresses and heels and all, but it gets so tiring! If I could wear comfortable clothing all day, I'd love to do so. I envy you and Luigi, Mario. You guys don't have to worry about your looks all day and etiquette and other boring royalty things."

"Even though I'm not royalty, I understand where you're coming from. I'm sure that Daisy feels the same way, if not, more as she's in that position as well."

"Yeah," Peach agreed. "Although, she gets laid off a bit more than I do. I'm not trying to whine or complain or anything, it's just that Daisy has more of a boisterous nature than I do and you know how she is. She can get loud, outgoing, bossy, and just plain terrifying. She isn't afraid to show her true self nor speak her mind, but she's just Daisy. That's who she is."

She gave a cheeky smile at Mario and they both laughed a bit.

"I see what you're saying, princess, but maybe... maybe with this new move, that can change a bit more. Your lifestyle and feelings towards your comfort, I mean."

"I sincerely doubt it, but I hope so, too."

"Your feelings matter. Everyone needs to hear you out, especially as you are a princess."

"Yes, but I'm afraid that until I'm queen, a lot of decisions will still be made for me..."

"Well, I'll always have your back, either way. It doesn't matter if we are far away from each other, on the other side of the planet or galaxy or even in the afterlife, I will."

"I know, Mario, I know. And I will, too. No matter what."

Mario nodded his head and then began to frown.

"Peach..." Mario started, slowly with a bit of hurt in his small voice. "M-May I ask you a question...?"

"Of course you can, Mario," Seeing his uneasiness, she then asked; "Why? What's wrong?"

"I don't mean to hit this upon you so suddenly, but truthfully, this has been on my mind for awhile. Since you gave me the news that you were moving, actually, and I just... Ahi, this is gonna sound silly..." The plumber slightly blushed and rubbed the back of his head.

"Mario, you can always tell me anything. You're always here for me, and I want to be here for you, do you understand?"

"Yes."

"Okay, so please, tell me. No matter what, I won't laugh or anything. You have my word."

"I-I just wanted to know..." He took a deep breath. "Will us being away from each other ruin our relationship...? I know it's a stupid question but I-I just can't help but think this and keep it in for so long that it's been eating me up inside. I just thought I'd ask, but please be honest with me, princess. I want to know the truth..."

Peach immediately looked surprised as she was definitely not expecting that question. She fidgeted a bit with her hands and looked down in pity before biting her bottom lip. She paused, unsure of what to say at first because Mario did indeed have a valid question. She took off her heels, placed them beside her and sat up on her knees as well.

"Mario, if you want my honest answer, I don't think things can ever be the same between us, anymore," She said, quietly, but loud enough for the plumber to hear. Looking him into his eyes, she knew that she had struck a sensitive nerve in him by saying that as the guy slightly winced and gripped onto one of his pant legs, however, things needed to be said that he needed to hear. "I-I mean, let's look at the facts here; once I leave, we won't be able to communicate in person or text because Daisy and I don't have cellphones like you boys do. Not to mention, I'm not aware if such gadgets are allowed or even used in the Flower Kingdom overall, so there's that other factor to consider, too."

"I-I-I can get you one if you want one! I'll buy it for you myself!" Mario protested. "O-o-or even if you're right with the whole technology-and-gadgets thing, what about writing letters? Can't we always do that back and forth, the way we always did in the past and still sometimes do?"

Peach put her face in her hands and gently shook her head.

"No, no, no, Mario, you don't understand..."

Mario looked at her, quizzically. 

"We can't write to each other, either! The Flower Kingdom is a secret and rare place, remember? They don't accept mail! They don't even have a post office because why would they need one when they aren't writing to anyone or expecting any messages in return?"

"W-What?! H-How will we...?"

"We won't, Mario! We won't! We'll never be able to see or talk to each other again! W-Well, at least not until I come back to the kingdom..."

"Wait, y-you're coming back here...?"

"I plan to. Well, to visit, anyways. Toadsworth and Prince Haru will have to owe me at least that much for all of this, right?"

"I agree." Mario replied, looking down and narrowing his eyes a bit. He sure hoped to the Star Spirits that they would at least listen to her for this. If they cared that much about her, they would.

"Anyways, that's not all... Another reason that our relationship won't work is because while I'm at the kingdom, I'm going to eventually be forced to marry Prince Haru whether I like it or not, Mario... It's not right to have two relationships or a side-relationship or whatever you want to call it when I get married."

Mario swallowed hard.

"I-I understand..." He managed to croak out, fidgeting with his shirt collar.

"Listen..." She sighed. "I love you, I really truly do with all of my heart and soul, it's just... being long-distance and all isn't going to work out. Especially if I have no way to keep in touch with you. I'm going to be off marrying a prince to become his queen, rule his kingdom and most likely bare his children. I can't have us together at the same time. Especially if our relationship is basically going to be flushed down the drain. W-What I guess I'm trying to say is..."

Peach began tearing up.

"I-I'm breaking up with you, Mario Segale "Jumpman" Mario... The sooner we cut off our relationship, the better. It already hurts as it is and it's just going to hurt even worse if we act like this wasn't ever going to happen... It's better that we both know now before we think otherwise..."

Mario's blue eyes went wide with horror and pain as the realisation hit him harder than a speeding truck.

"Y-You're breaking up with me...?" He croaked out, eyes equally tearing up, his bottom lip trembling.

"I'm sorry!" She gasped out, hands covering her face and spluttering like a child. "I really don't want this as much as you, but we have to, Mario... I'm sorry, I'm so, so sorry! I wish it didn't have to be this way!"

Mario just glanced down and shook his head, in the utmost disbelief. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. This had to be some sort of nightmare. It had to be! Peach couldn't possibly say that, she wouldn't have! Especially with what they had going. 

But she had.

Of all the slashes, beatings, bumps, bruises, broken bones, burns and more done to him by Bowser over the years, it didn't hurt as bad as this. Nothing ever could.

He wept bitterly to himself. Peach wrung her hands and sniffled softly. He didn't realise that she had made her way closer to him and wrapped her arms around him in a gentle but firm embrace. However, he leaned into her on his side and she took off his cap. She placed it next to her and gently rubbed his brown locks and the crown of his head, in an aid to comfort him, although she knew that he was beyond inconsolable. 

Was he upset? Of course he was, but was he angry at her? Never in a million years. He understood where she was coming from, although the break-up didn't hurt him any less. She was the only person he ever looked forward to spending the rest of his life with after Pauline had dumped him years and years ago. Now, besides his brother, nothing mattered to him anymore.

The lifestyle and all the things he wanted to do with Peach was burnt to ashes, stamped upon and blown away in disheveled wind. Everything just evaporated into thin air.

No marriage. No children. No growing old and dying together. Nothing. Just a tremendous punch in the gut and a heartbreak left in the wake. The once lively and cheerful Jumpman that became everyone's hero didn't even want to be in a world where his Peach wasn't with him. He wanted to curl up somewhere where no one could ever see or hear him and scream and cry for the rest of his life. This was even worse than how he felt when Peach first announced that she was leaving and that said a lot for him.

Peach's usual embrace would have immediately soothed Mario, but not anymore. She felt just as bad as he did, although she knew his condition was way worse. They loved each other with all of their hearts and souls but she knew that as much as she did, she could never love him as hard as he did to her. That's why she knew it was double, if not triple, times the amount of pain for him.

Despite their breaking up, Peach's love will never truly burn out for Mario and she knew that his love for her would forever be the same as it was as well.

They slowly pulled apart and got up, Mario still helping Peach rise and then turning to his cap to pick it up, brush it off and place it back upon his head. She thanked him for his help and they stared at each other awkwardly amongst the brief silence.

"Hey, Peach...?" Mario asked, hesitantly, fidgeting and tugging with the rim of his glove a bit.

"Yes, Mario?"

"I-I don't know if this is too much to ask, but... d-do you think I could... I mean, do you think  it's possible if I could have one last kiss? Like a final goodbye one?"

Mario immediately looked down in embarrassment after he said this and Peach's steady breathing didn't help at all.

"Of course." She replied, sadly, cupping her warm hand on his left cheek and stroking her thumb over it.

"Close your eyes..." She added with a whisper, which the plumber slowly gave way to. 

Not long after, Mario felt something warm and soft press against his lips and moustache. Peach pulled away as he opened his eyes and then Peach had slowly done the same thing.

Remember, it was just a goodbye kiss and nothing more. It didn't mean anything.

She straightened up and then carefully smoothed down her summer dress. They both exhaled a bit and glanced at each other once more before Peach had asked;

"Hey, do you got the time on you?"

"Yeah," Mario replied, digging into his right pocket, pulling out his red-cased phone and glancing at the time on the screen. "It's already ten after four. We better get going back to the castle, princess."

She nodded.

"Oh! And don't forget your sun hat," He added with a small smile, going over to it, picking it up and giving it back to Peach. "Here you go."

"Thanks," Peach returned with a small smile of her own as she picked the grass off of it herself and placed it back upon her blonde hair. "You're not mad are you?" She added, as the two of them began walking. "I mean, I completely understand if you are but I just didn't know if..."

"At the situation? Yes. At you? Never. I don't blame you, whatsoever. I know it's not your fault. This whole thing is beyond your control and honestly, I'm pretty furious at Toadsworth, but mainly at myself. But either way, no, princess. I'm not mad at you. Please don't worry about that. I could never..."

"At yourself? You never did anything, Mario."

"Exactly. I never did anything when I could've, Peach."

"Whatever do you mean? What could you have possibly done?"

"Well, that's simple -- I didn't try hard enough for your kingdom, your citizens or even you..."

Peach suddenly ran ahead and spun her body in front of Mario, quickly stopping him in surprise and confusion.

"Mario, look at me," She faced him, placing her hands on his shoulders and looking him in his eyes. "Just because of what had happened back there between the two of us, doesn't mean I still don't care about you deeply. Please, don't ever think that way! That's not true! You've done more than enough for my kingdom and my citizens over the years. You've done more than enough for me and I don't care what you say! You..." 

Tears started to well a little bit back into her eyes and she tried to blink them back, but they still rolled down her cheeks, anyways.

"You... don't even deserve someone like me for the ways I've treated you. Someone with a big heart and a warm, loving soul like you shouldn't be with a spoiled, rich, bratty princess, anyways."

Mario grabbed Peach's hands and stared back with determination at her, along with a raised eyebrow.

"You really think that's true?" He asked, quietly. "You say that I've done a whole lot for you and your kingdom, right? Well, that's because ever since Luigi and I first mistakenly came to the Mushroom Kingdom, you've treated us with nothing but kindness right away. You gave us a place to stay, food, hospitality and so much more. Not only that, but you became our best friend. Our famiglia. What more could we have possibly asked for? And for that, we thank you so, so much, princess. Don't you think otherwise."

Mario gave a small smile at the end and Peach returned it.

Despite them recently breaking up and never going to be able to see each other again, Mario knew one thing for certain -- that besides their love still going strong, they would still have that close relationship amongst each other, even if they were just simply close friends now.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Shortly after the two of them arrived at the castle, Mario was invited to come over for dinner at 5pm, which he agreed to as he had nothing better to do and didn't want to be rude. Plus, it gave him some more time to spend with Peach for a bit in the meantime. Not to mention, he felt pretty famished just thinking about all of the dishes that were going to be laid out amongst the large, outstretched dining table.

They played table ping-pong for a bit in one of the dark party rooms with LED lights before playing a quick game of pool on a billiards table. They didn't have to wait long for dinner and the two of them enjoyed a hearty meal with the princess' staff and Toadsworth, chatting and catching up on a variety of different things.

Time went by quicker than expected, however, and it was time for the first round of Toads and such to leave for the Flower Kingdom which, of course, included Peach and Toadsworth as well.

Everyone gathered outside the castle to say their farewells to family members and friends until the next time they met. Mario saw at least two different large but personalised planes, wondering which one was Peach's.

"Hey, bro!" The plumber heard a familiar voice call.

He turned to see Luigi linking arms with Daisy and walking towards him, the both of them smiling and waving, to which Mario returned. 

Daisy was wearing her regular attire, however, the bottom part of her dress was changed. Her skirt instead was an orange and yellow floral pattern that matched the same design as her white shirt collar and instead of her usual orange heels, she had on white socks with orange and yellow trainers. Like Peach, she also didn't have any gloves on and her usual white daisy with a green gem in the centre of her top-half was still present, along with her matching earrings. However, instead of a sun hat like the Mushroom Kingdom ruler, Daisy still had her signature crown placed upon her auburn hair.

"Hey, Weegie! Hello, Daisy." Mario nodded towards the princess.

"'S'up, Red? How are you doing?"

"Fine," He lied. "How about you guys? How was your little outing?"

"It was great, actually! We had a lot of fun!"

"That's great to hear." The plumber in red beamed.

"Where's Peach?" Luigi questioned.

"Dunno. I think she's getting ready to leave soon. I haven't seen Toadsworth since dinner, either."

"Mario! Luigi! Daisy!"

The three aforementioned turned to see Peach coming up fast towards them, still in her attire from the day that she spent with Mario.

"Peaches!" Daisy squealed, running towards her best friend and enveloping her into a hug to which Peach happily returned after meeting her halfway.

"Hey, girl! How are you?" The blonde princess laughed.

"Pretty good! Luigi and I had gone on a little outing. We watched a couple movies at the theatres. Not the one in my castle because I wanted to take a break from it, but elsewhere and we also went to this fair thing and we ate soooo much cotton candy and popcorn, despite having some popcorn and sweets at the theatres! Then we had hot dogs and fries for lunch and we shared this humongous thing of pop - Peaches, you wouldn't believe me when I say the cup for the drink was humongous! Luigi and I couldn't even finish it all - and we also went on a whole bunch of rides but before we ate, of course, although Luigi protested on a lot of them but I still forced him to go on them with me and guess what? He also later won a cute little orange teddy bear for me at one of those game stands and it's actually holding a daisy! What a coincidence, amirite? But yeah, there's more, but I don't want to bother you with the rest. It would take too long and-"

Daisy had to briefly pause to catch her breath and Peach was almost wondering when she was going to.

"Sounds like you both had a great time, though!" The latter beamed as the two of them began walking back towards the brothers.

"Oh, for sure! I could tell Luigi was, especially and I was wondering when the last time he had that much fun was. I wanted to get him out of the house more, and not just to help Mario save you... Erm, no offence or anything...!" She blushed.

"None taken," Peach dismissed with a wave of her hand. "Besides, at least on the bright side with this move, Bowser won't be able to kidnap me anymore and Mario won't have to keep saving me. I honestly have always felt terrible about it and I never understood why he repeatedly kept coming back..."

Daisy gave Peach a hard stare.

"It's obviously because he deeply loved and cared about you, Peach. He still clearly does. That's never changed. I mean, why else would he be willing to go through all of that torment over the years to save you? He doesn't just do it for the sweets and kisses, nor for the fame. Yes, he does it for your kingdom, but he does it especially for you. He loves being around you everyday and everyone can just see the way his eyes light up every time you're around him. It's so adorable, really!"

Peach weakly smiled as she recalled the memories of her and Mario. From the time she first met the Mario Bros, from the times they went on their dates, concerts, balls, festivities, and so much more. Daisy was right -- for mostly everything, Mario was usually by her side and was always there to support her. She suddenly felt a twinge of pain in her heart and throat and quickly covered her mouth as she choked out a sob.

The Sarasaland princess instantly reacted with her arms outstretched to Peach to steady her, a look of absolute concern perched across her face.

"Peach! What's wrong, hun?! What happened?! Was it something I said...? I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to upset you!"

Peach tried to shake her head and assure her that everything was alright, although the sounds of her sobs grew louder and she started to crumple to the ground before they even reached the brothers.

Mario and Luigi saw this and with equally worried looks as Daisy, they rushed over to the girls, calling Peach's name desperately and asking a variety of questions.

"Guys, I-I'm fine..." Peach tried to protest in embarrassment, trying to viciously wipe away her tears. She was thankful for her large sun hat at least somewhat covering her small face.

Mario steadily helped Peach up.

"You don't look fine, princess. Are you sure you're okay? What's wrong? What happened?"

"N-Nothing," She sighed. "Nothing important. I just got worked up a little is all."

"You know that you can tell us anything." Luigi interjected, to which the other two agreed with a nod.

Peach looked at the three of them before biting her bottom lip a little bit.

"Well," Peach gave in. "The truth is..." She looked to Mario and mouthed quietly;

Can I tell them?

Mario instantly knew what she was talking about. With a determined look in his eye, he nodded his head once to encourage her to follow through with it and gently placed his hand on her arm.

"The truth is..." She said again, closing her eyes as she couldn't bare to look anyone in the eye. With a heavy sigh and uneasiness in her voice, she painfully continued. "Is that Mario and I... decided that it would be best to break up, so we did. We are no longer together, but we still remain as incredibly close friends."

Well, Luigi and Daisy certainly did not expect that news. 

"WHAT?!" They both exclaimed.

"I-It's true..." Mario stated. "It's not that we don't love each other or had a really bad argument or anything like that! It's just..."

"Our relationship won't work because while I'm at the kingdom, I'm going to eventually be forced to marry Prince Haru whether I like it or not... Just as I told Mario, it's not right to have two relationships or a side-relationship or whatever you want to call it when I get married. Besides, we won't be able to remain in contact with each other, and I won't with you both either, so it's not going to work out. We are both absolutely as shocked and heartbroken as the both of you, if not more, but please understand that this is for the best. We ask that despite our feelings towards this choice, you respect our decisions and not be angry towards us. We don't want this as much as you do, but seeing as I am leaving shortly, we have no other choice..."

Daisy and Luigi just stared at each other in bewilderment and heartbreak as they knew how much the two meant towards each other and loved seeing them together. There was an awkward silence for a brief moment before Daisy spoke first.

"Hey," She said, softly. "I understand completely. If that's what you must do, then so be it, but I just hope Luigi and I can still be close friends with you as well. The move doesn't change anything, does it?"

"Of course not," Peach assured. "I'd never want to lose my closest friends and family. Especially if it involves you three."

"I understand as well," Luigi piped in. "And I'm not mad at you both whatsoever. Am I upset about this? Well, yes, but I see where you both are coming from and as you said, you have no other choice. I'm just glad we can still maintain that level of closeness, despite not being able to ever see you again."

Not being able to ever see her again... Mario repeated bitterly into his mind. That's what was causing my mixed feelings about this in the first place. Knowing that I won't be able to see her again in person and remain that contact with her is going to destroy me most of all. I'll have pictures, of course, and I'll keep them and cherish our memories, but it'll never truly be the same...

"I'm going to miss you guys soooo much, you don't even know..."

"We're going to miss you too, Peaches. A whole lot. I mean, now what are we supposed to do with you gone?"

"I'm sure you'll figure out something. You have a brain, Daisy, and you're very smart. I mean, even though you only use it half of the time." Peach tried to laugh a little to lighten up the mood, but she knew all four of them were close enough to start bawling all over again. However, they chuckled and gave a small laugh along with her and then they all fell into a tight group hug.

"We should get going now. There's no doubt that Toadsworth must be wondering why I'm not over at the plane by now." Peach explained when they departed.

"You mean, both of these planes over here aren't yours?" Mario questioned.

Peach shook her head. 

"No, mine's the light pink and white one. See that hill over there with the narrow dirt pathways on it?" 

She pointed and the three turned. They could see it was a little in the distance, but still close-by enough that it wouldn't take them too long to walk to. The three of them nodded as they could faintly see the smaller plane on the other side, behind the hill and then they turned back to Peach.

"That's where it is. It's on the other side. There's a large gravel path behind there for the plane to run on before takeoff and there are multiple nature and bike trails over in that direction through those trees and beyond that. Toadsworth, I guess, thought it would be a good place to depart from."

"Well, I guess we should start heading over there now, then." Daisy sighed.

"Yes," Peach agreed with a small frown. "Let's go."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Ah, princess. You're just in time," Toadsworth smiled as the four of them made it up the hill. "Toadette and a few other Toads are just helping organise your belongings and loading them into the plane down there behind me."

"Thank you." The blonde princess replied, with a small nod. Toadsworth returned it.

"Well, c'mon, princess. There's no time to waste. The sooner we can take flight, the sooner we'll be able to arrive, after all."

"Of course, Toadsworth. May I just take a moment to say my final goodbyes, please?"

"Sure, I'll wait for you, unless you would like to be alone."

"No, it's okay. I don't mind you staying."

The older Toad slightly nodded. 

"Oh, goodness," The princess then breathed to herself. "Where do I even begin? Daisy..." 

The auburn-haired princess looked at her, quizzically, as Peach turned to face her. 

"You've been such an outstanding person to be around. Maybe not a great influence one-hundred percent of the time, but a great person, nonetheless and I wouldn't change a thing about you. Despite your fierceness, you have a heart of gold and would be willing to do anything to protect those you love, just like you boys," Peach smiled, turning towards them. The brothers smiled back as Peach then turned back to Daisy. "Daisy, you're a warrior. You're strong, independent, boisterous, comedic and so much more. You've not only been a friend, but family since we were young. Not to mention, but despite the fact that we aren't biologically related, you've shown and proven to everyone in our lives that we're sisters and stick together in the end, no matter what. And for that, I thank you so, so much for being a part of my life and everyone else's. Nothing would be the same without you, Dase. I love you and I'll miss you more than you could ever know. I'll keep the memories of us close to my heart, of course, and I'll never let them go. Goodbye, Daisy. Keep up with the headstrong mind that you have and follow your heart and dreams. I wish you nothing but happiness and health."

With this said, she gave Daisy a big hug. The only one that she'll ever be able to give again and then they let each other go.

"Hey, stop that. That's totally not fair! You're gonna make me cry! How dare you?" Daisy laughed, wiping a few tears away and playfully and lightly slugging Peach in her side.

Peach laughed with her and turned to Luigi who was standing beside her.

"And Luigi," She began, getting Luigi's heart pumping. He was already close to tears himself. "No words can describe how grateful I am to have had you in my life. Ever since you first came into the Mushroom Kingdom, you've shown me nothing but respect and diligence. Despite your shyness, you're such a sweet and funny man and Daisy is lucky to have you by her side, along with your brother. Although my words can not show or prove anything, I am forever thankful for your services and heroic deeds in the kingdom. From helping Mario on his journeys to save me, to just simply helping a staff member with a small task, your selflessness has really taken a toll and impacted us and our perspectives on things. And not to mention, your protectiveness towards those you love, especially with Mario, is extremely admirable. Nothing warms my heart than seeing how much you fight for him and love him every single day. The brotherly love and closeness between you two is incredibly adorable and breath-taking. I'm not going to name any names, but the horrible things that you went through to save Mario three times now from those vile... creatures  over the years, is beyond courageous. Despite the fact that you were traumatised and harassed many times by those ghosts, yet you still pushed on to save the ones you loved... Luigi, you're a huge role model and influencer. I'm proud to say that I look up to you. Not only that, but I'm proud to call you my unofficial and non-biological brother because that's who you felt like to me everyday. You still feel like brother and always will. I love and care about you a lot, Luigi. Do not change who you are. It's hard to find people with a heart as genuine as yours nowadays. I wish you nothing but happiness and health as well. Take good care of yourself and everyone else, okay?"

"You know I will." Luigi winked, giving the princess a sad but sincere-and-determined smile.

"I know," Peach beamed, giving Luigi a hug as she did with Daisy. "Goodbye, Luigi. Thank you... for everything."

"Anytime, princess."

"Hey, it's Peach! Don't be like your older brother!" She laughed, playfully tugging his green cap down a bit over his forehead.

Luigi chuckled and readjusted his cap.

"Okie dokie, Peach."

"And Mario," She gushed, putting her right hand to her right cheek. "You've always been my knight in shining overalls since Day One, haven't you?"

The plumber blushed and briefly looked down to his right, rubbing the back of his head and neck.

"I-I guess you could say that..."

Peach gave a small, fluttery laugh.

"Well, of course you are. You're my little superstar. And despite us being far away, you'll always be my 1-Up boy. I'll never forget the way that you looked at me when we first met all those years ago via the first time you battled Bowser to save me. Even though I was frightened out of my wits and thought nobody was going to come to my aid, you looked at me in a way that made everything alright again. Even though at the time I had no idea who you were, I knew I was going to be safe amongst your care. As weird as it sounds, just seeing your bright blue eyes, gave me all the strength and sanity that I needed. It was that determination, loving, and reassurance that gave me hope and comfort. Your bravery never fails to amaze me, Mario. You saw yourself as nothing more than a mere plumber from Brooklyn, unworthy of my trust or friendship because I was royalty. Well, over the years, I hope you can realise now that that's definitely not true. You're much more than that. You mean so much to everyone more than you can ever know. You're not only heroic but also a funny man that constantly makes me laugh, even if your jokes are so corny!"

She playfully jabbed Mario with her elbow and Mario chuckled and then gave the princess a wide grin.

"Speaking of laughing, you always cheer me up when my days are down, you're a shoulder to cry on, you're so quick to assist if someone or I is hurt, even if you are badly injured yourself and goodness, Mario! I could just ramble on for hours or even days about how much you always put others before yourself and that's a very honourable and noble thing to do. Not many people nowadays do so, so therefore I thank you in advance. I know you'll go far and do great things in your life because of your warm, welcoming and fond heart. Speaking of, just like I mentioned to Luigi, your brotherly love and closeness to him is admirable. To be honest, I've observed your relationship over the years to try and make a sisterly-like impact on Daisy. Not with everything between the two of you, of course, but I may have picked up a few snippets here and there, hmmm~ Anywho, the fiery determination and protection in regards to your loved ones in your eyes, never fades out. Anyone who can not see that concerns me because it's quite obvious that no matter what, you have proven that you do not need to be royalty or of high-class to be a strong, adorable, loving man. There's nothing more than I could ever want of a man than what you've already have. I wouldn't change you for the world, dear. I love so, so much and I wish you nothing but health and happiness just like Daisy and Luigi. Thank you for being a part of my life and thank you for everything in general. You forever have my gratitude, along with the Toads', I'm sure."

With that being said, Peach hugged Mario tightly, buried her face in the crook of his neck and whispered;

"And I'm really going to miss you most of all, my beloved hero..."

He firmly hugged her back as she raised her face up and weakly smiled. Mario noticed she quickly blinked back tears and looked down at the ground as she stepped back from him to give him a bit of space.

"Are you ready, princess?" Toadsworth asked a slight waver in his voice. 

̶P̶e̶r̶h̶a̶p̶s̶ ̶a̶ ̶r̶e̶c̶o̶n̶s̶i̶d̶e̶r̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶w̶h̶o̶l̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶n̶g̶?̶

"Yes, Toadsworth. I am," Turning back to Mario, she kissed his nose. "Goodbye, Mario..."

"Goodbye, princess. S-Safe travels..." He slowly waved.

Toadsworth began walking down the hill to the plane and Peach followed close behind.

"Goodbye, everyone. I'll miss you all!" She waved and looked over her shoulder. The rest of them echoed her before the princess sped up a bit to catch up with the older Toad.

Within a few seconds, they were both loaded into the plane, everyone frantically waving to each other and tearing up as they saw Peach sadly smile in one of the windows. It appeared that the plane had already been packed with as much Toads and luggage as it could manage.

A couple loud whirls of a propeller and engine soared overhead of Mario, Luigi and Daisy as the two other planes, also loaded with Toads and luggage, already began their takeoff and were on their way towards the Flower Kingdom.

Peach's plane followed suit shortly after and the trio continued to stare out at it until it disappeared amongst the clouds and they couldn't see it anymore.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

It was highly quiet in first-class. I mean, the princess was, in fact, pretty much alone, aside from a few selected Toad retainers who were either asleep or listening to something via the use of their headphones.

Princess Peach gazed out the window, lost in thought and already missing her home and friends.

"Why the long face, princess?" A high voice piped up, nearly startling her.

The princess glanced over her left shoulder in surprise, (as she was on the right side of the plane), and towards where the sound was.

She noticed Toadette standing there by her, staring straight at her. Peach was startled as she hadn't heard anybody enter the first-class area, even though truth be told, her daydreaming cancelled out any sort of noise, really.

She was certainly the last being the princess expected to be talking to. Especially under the given circumstances and previous encounters.

Oh, well. Things happen for a reason and it gave her someone to talk to at least, right? I mean, Peach had only been on the flight for approximately three hours now and the most productive things she had really ever done was drink a glass of water, half-read-half-skimmed through a gossip magazine about the typical celebrity break-up, marriage/engagement, or a new baby that has been added into the family. If not that, then other things that Peach couldn't draw her attention to. Not one good article about any interesting latest news or any sort of drama. Not only that, but Peach's other productivity mainly consisted of staring out the painfully small window and she had about another three hours left before they arrived at the kingdom.

It was a wonder how Peach's eyes hadn't grown sore yet and made her lull off to sleep, especially since she was already terribly exhausted and that wasn't even including the jet lag. However, Peach knew that she needed to get up and walk around a bit and getting up to use the loo every now and then didn't count. 

Despite this, Toadette had actually spoken to her and she figured she might as well answer her as she had nothing better to do.

"U-Uhhmm... Oh, I just..." She stammered. "I'm just thinking about home and my friends, I guess. I miss them already..."

Without asking, Toadette promptly strolled over and plunked herself down in the unoccupied seat beside the Mushroom Kingdom ruler and hummed while looking at a small, powered off telly that was attached behind every navy blue cotton-and-fabric seat on the plane.

"Well, I wouldn't give 'em too much thought, love. After all, there'll be plenty of time to make new ones back at the Flower Kingdom, yeah?"

"It's not the same though, Toadette. And how can I just forget about them? They're family to me and have been so for so long..."

"Yes, well, don't worry. Before you know it, you can have your own family after marrying the prince and ruling a new kingdom together with a king by your side! Isn't that exciting?"

"Yes, Toadette. It's all I've ever wanted as a kid. In fact, it was my dream as I'm sure it is for every little girl out there to get married but it's supposed to be with your special someone. Not arranged or forced. It isn't right."

"Prince Haru is your special someone! Remember how much you used to love him before you met those plumbers? You two were inseparable as you dated and now his spark for you has returned! It's so cute!"

Peach tried not to cringe, but still ended up doing so, anyways.

"Key words, Toadette - "used to" and 'were'. That was in the past! Just because he may have reignited his old flame with me, doesn't mean I have as well. I'm not trying to be rude or ungrateful or anything and I know he's a great guy and all, but he's just... not for me... That ship has long sailed and been sunk. Does that make sense?"

"Yes, but don't you-"

"And if he felt that way towards me, why didn't he speak to me about it, first? Why just assume that I automatically still like him back? What made him think that was okay? To control me when I'm a ruler myself. Just because I'm a female, doesn't mean I don't have a say in things, too, Toadette. This isn't just about him. I-I'm so lost... I just don't understand anything! The point of all this, this sudden change in relationships. I mean, I had to break up with Mario for mushroom's sake! Doesn't anyone have any idea how difficult and heart-wrenching it was, especially for the both of us?!"

Toadette sensed Peach's frustration, but they couldn't go back now. Not after everything they've achieved with this move. Besides, this could be a chance for everyone, including Peach, to gain a fresh start to life and just living in general. Stars know they all need it.

The pink mushroom girl turned to look at the princess after a brief pause.

"You hungry or thirsty? Want anything to eat or drink?"

Peach shook her head in dismay, once again looking back out the window. Her small, button nose scrunched up as she squinted, possibly the only thing stopping her from bawling right then and there.

"Wanna watch the telly? Maybe we can find a nice film to watch...?"

"No, thank you." Peach replied, firmly, still not glancing at the girl.

Toadette sighed, starting to get beyond annoyed with the princess' child-like behaviour. She's only been putting up with it for so long. Toadsworth, too.

"Listen, princess. We've only got just under three more hours to go until we get there. Toadsworth is right about everything you know - the fresh start, the sense of security, and so much more. Lots of folks would kill to have what you have, including an easy and well-manageable relationship and riches, so quit being an ungrateful little brat, ya hear?"

"Excuse me?" Peach whirled around, raising an eyebrow. "I really hope I've heard you wrong, Toadette."

"I'm so sick and tired of your constant whining and complaining. So is Toadsworth! Honestly, this all would've been so much easier if the ball hit you in the head back on that tennis court and knocked you out. But no, Mario, Luigi and Daisy just had to intervene! Such frustrations. Toadsworth wasn't very happy either..."

Peach could hardly believe what she was hearing. This wasn't the Toadette she knew and loved at all.

"W-What do you mean? Just what exactly are you getting at?" Peach asked, raising an eyebrow. Her heart began to pound in her chest.

"Ugh, do I have to spell everything out for you? I wanted this the whole time! It was my idea! Not Toadsworth's! He just agreed to everything that I rearranged. It makes me sick to have had to see a princess bond over a mere commoner such as himself over the years. That was never how the tradition went, princess!"

"How dare you?!" Peach yelled, and she hardly ever did. Forgetting and caring less about her manners, she strictly pointed towards the mushroom girl. "What went on between Mario and I in regards to our relationship is certainly none of your business! Besides, I never heard or see you complain about Daisy and Luigi!"

Toadette glanced away from the ruler and dryly chuckled. It appeared to be sunless and unwelcoming.

"What goes on between them is none of my business," She waved around. "You, on the other hand, are my business and Toadsworth's, actually. It was assigned by your parents for us, though mostly Toadsworth, to take care of you. Besides, I need to make sure us Toads are being ruled over and taken care of properly by royalty. Not a stupid plumber who can barely take care of himself or his younger brother."

"Don't you dare speak ill of Mario like that!" Peach snapped, narrowing her eyes. "You know that's not true whatsoever! You've seen how he was over the years in regards to those factors. He would make an outstanding king for the Mushroom Kingdom if only I had the chance to marry him. Now because of self-regarding people like you, I can not! Mario has been constantly taking care of others before himself and that has included beings such as I! Has it ever occurred to any of you that I wouldn't be here in the kingdom nor even alive for that matter if it wasn't for him and Luigi?! No! I bet you haven't! The amount of times you wouldn't even have me here is surreal. Bowser Koopa may as well as take over the kingdom and make you all do Stars-knows-what. So can't you give the brothers some credit? Yes, they are plumbers but what occupation they have doesn't determine their personality. It doesn't matter what job it is, Toadette. You already know it's the inside that counts and all this time, I thought you've accepted that. You've said the same thing many times before, too. Surely you can not misjudge them because they aren't royalty, right?"

Toadette clicked her tongue and folded her arms.

"It's just the way it's always been. I'm sorry, princess but rules are rules and traditions are supposed to be kept," She then turned to look at Peach with a sarcastic puppy-dog look and pout. "I'm sure you understand though, right? I mean, if you had kids, you'd want them to grow up marrying royalty too, now, sweetheart."

"Not at all!" Peach interjected. "Again, you and Toadsworth know nothing about me. I never cared about royal status. In fact, growing up, I've always been jealous of the other children who weren't royal and were able to have a childhood, live more freely and dress and talk the way that they appropriately pleased. After the brothers fell down that warp pipe and came into the kingdom, royal status and tradition just furthermore proved its worthlessness. As a matter of fact, most princes that constantly came to see me for those future wedding arrangements, Prince Haru included, have been nothing like the brothers. Most of them are rude, greedy and have had little to no manners whatsoever when being introduced to me. They never cared for me about who I am. Not like Mario had, anyways."

"Well, it doesn't matter," Toadette sneered. "We are all going to the Flower Kingdom and you are getting married to Prince Haru and assisting with the ruling of his kingdom either way, so you may as well forget about anything else besides your new life and future!"

"No!" Peach cried, standing up and clenching her fists at her sides. "I want to go home!"

"You are going home!" Toadette snapped, doing the same.

"The Flower Kingdom is NOT my home!" The princess argued, close to tears. "You don't understand! For generations the Toadstool name has ruled in the Mushroom Kingdom! It's held so many memories and we can't just throw it all away!"

"It's. Not. SAFE THERE!!! If you really cared about your citizens, you'd realise that and try to do what's best for them. Not you! Don't you see how much more powerful and vicious Bowser and his minions are getting?! The Toad soldiers can't continue to fight him like this without losing lots of blokes in the process! Do you just want your guards to continue to fight to death every week trying to defend you? Not to mention, don't you think they're getting tired of this? For years this has been happening, princess. It's not fair to them and certainly not Mario and Luigi as well. Haven't thought about their feelings amongst this case, have you? I thought not, now sit down and we'll arrive at our destination soon."

"You have no right to demand orders from me," Peach scolded, her hands planted firmly on her hips. "And of course I thought about my citizens and safety, along with Mario and Luigi but running away and acting so childish about our circumstances isn't the way to handle things around here. Moreover, given the fact that none of you, you and Toadsworth precisely, have not requested permission or spoke things out with me, first. Don't you think that's the first thing you both should have done, given me being ruler and all? What you both have done was very sneaky and it disgusts me more that Haru knew about this and agreed on behalf of you without regarding other factors. I do not wish to further discuss these matters, anymore. Now, if you will please excuse me, I must speak with Toadsworth and get him to speak to the pilot about returning us back to the Mushroom Kingdom. Our first three flights are going to be cancelled and nobody is going to the Flower Kingdom!"

Peach tried to step around Toadette, but the girl blocked her. 

"I don't think so," She hastily spat. "You really think Toadsworth will do as you say, anymore? He's not going to listen to you, so I suggest you sit down, princess."

Peach held her breath and calmly but firmly glanced at Toadette.

"Toadette," She warned. "Please move out of my way."

"I can not do that."

"Toadette, by order of the Princess of The Mushroom Kingdom, I demand you stop these antics right now and heed my warnings and requests!"

"No." She responded, narrowing her eyes.

Peach bit her lip.

"You are really going to regret this right now if you do not-"

"Sorry, princess, but it looks like we're going to have to do this the hard way." She interrupted.

 Pulling out her phone and immediately calling Toadsworth, she spoke with a sharp edge to her voice.

"Yup, we're going to have to do this the hard way. She knows and- uh-huh? Okay, you all know what to do."

Hanging up, she smirked at Peach and the princess just looked at her, quizzically.

"Toadette, what did you do? Who did you speak with?" Peach asked, calmly.

"You'll find out, princess. For now, just hang tight."

"No!" 

And with that, Peach tried to push Toadette out of her way, but to no avail. The girl was surprisingly strong for her height and she roughly pushed Peach to her seat. Her sun hat swayed gently to the floor. Peach cried out in confusion and suddenly heard multiple fast footsteps approaching.

She brushed some of her golden locks out of her face and glanced up. Toadette stepped to the side to allow others to pass. Peach could spot Toadsworth there, along with the pilot who was from the Flower Kingdom himself. (He had gotten his assistant to help him fly the plane). Two Flower Kingdom citizens that were in on the plan as well, approached the ruler, too.

"Wha-?" Peach gasped in surprise, trying to get up. "What are you all-"

But she didn't have time to finish her sentence as the two Flower Kingdom citizens held her down in her seat. Peach squirmed and tried to break free, but they were too strong and only seemed to hold and squeeze her harder. The princess slightly cried out in pain and bewilderment upon feeling their strength and stopped struggling.

"What is going on?! Let me go right now!" The blonde princess snapped.

"I'm so sorry, but it appears that we can't do that, dear," The pilot replied with slight remorse in his voice. It was clear that he had a Scottish accent. "You see, you had the opportunity to play nicely and cooperate, but instead, you did not. Now, we have to do this the difficult way."

"Difficult way? I beg your pardon...?"

"You need to relax, princess," Toadsworth spoke, quietly. "Too much stress isn't good for you and how do you expect to rule under these circumstances?"

"I-I'm only in these circumstances because of you all!" Peach gasped out. "And can you please not hold onto my arms so tightly?" She asked the two doing so.

They looked at Toadsworth and he nodded once for approval. They instantly let go a little more to give Peach's arms a bit more breathing space, but still held on firm enough so she couldn't easily escape.

Toadette sighed and turned to the older Toad.

"What must you think we should do with her?"

"Turn this plane around!" Peach cried. "I don't belong at the Flower Kingdom! I-"

"We're just going to settle her. If she doesn't want to behave like a proper adult, then we must treat her like she's a child once more. Luckily, we have this. It'll give us all some more peace around here."

With that, he held out a white cloth and some liquid in a small, dark bottle. He then tipped out its contents onto the cloth and Peach had wide eyes.

"I-Is that chloroform?" She squeaked out.

Toadsworth chuckled. 

"No, dear. Chloroform is hardly used now. It doesn't work as you may think it does in the movies. This is Fluothane or Halothane, if you'd prefer. It'll just help you sleep a bit. You need the rest."

"N-No, I'm fine! I swear it! I just want to go home!" She sobbed, but everyone ignored her.

Toadsworth came closer holding the drenched cloth and gently shushed her.

"You've all gone mad! What happened to you guys?! These aren't the people I know and grew up to love!"

Toadsworth handed the cloth to the pilot as the older Toad still had to balance on his cane.

"Everything is going to be alright now, princess," The pilot assured. "We just need you to stay still and the quicker we get this done, the better it'll be for all of us."

"N-NO! LUIGI! DAISY! MARIO! SOMEBODY, ANYBODY... HELP ME!"

"Nobody can hear you," Toadette piped in. "There's no use screaming. The walls of this plane are soundproof so not even the Toads can hear you, either. The ones in the first class here all have their sound-cancellation headphones on, too, so good luck with that."

"This has to be a nightmare!" Peach raspily breathed out. "This can't be happening!"

With all of her might, Peach squirmed free as the hold on her arms was more relaxed, but as soon as she got up from her seat, the two citizens from the Flower Kingdom shoved her back down. They growled a bit and held her tighter than last time.

"Ow! Stop it! You're hurting me!" She cried out angrily, narrowing her eyes. "What is wrong with you all?! When we get off of this plane, I'll see to it that Prince Haru punishes you five and if not, then I'll do so myself!"

Toadette rolled her eyes. 

"Yeah, we're so scared. Luckily, that won't be a problem for us as Prince Haru has some experted and highly-trained staff to assist with some things like with people who are struggling with memory and want to remember specific things. Not to mention, they can even help others out with memory loss and do the opposite if the said people want to forget certain times of their lives. It's costly, but boy, does it actually work for people! It's pretty neat, if I do say so myself."

"Memory loss?! You mean..."

"No more Mario, Luigi, Daisy or anything you've ever come to know about the Mushroom Kingdom. That way, it'll be better to rule the Flower Kingdom without getting homesick," Toadsworth added. "It will be better this way, princess. It'll be healthier for you as well."

"N-No! I can't lose my memories of my family, friends and my home! I won't-!"

"By the time you wake up from this, we'll already be at the kingdom and the process will already be done. Everything's already arranged. Those two didn't tell you before as you'd definitely not get onto the plane and go on with the move if you heard about it. That's why it was secretive," The pilot explained. "Don't worry, the whole process is harmless."

"MARIO! Mario! No, please! Mario, help me!!! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!" 

Peach was in hysterics at this point as she kept calling out the name of her beloved and occasionally Luigi and Daisy's. To her surprise, she had even called out Bowser's name once or twice due to her desperateness. The pilot didn't take long to press the cloth roughly to her face as Peach's muffled screams, crying and resisting died out after about five minutes and she fell limp due to her unconsciousness.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The bridge railing felt slightly cold to touch as the red-capped plumber's rolled-up shirt sleeves exposed his arms and he rested them upon the said railing, but Mario paid it no mind for he was fair too busy in his own thoughts to care. The sun was starting to set early and the light August breeze gently ruffled the man's moustache and blew against the nape of his neck. He closed his eyes and slightly hummed as it felt nice, hence the August heat that brutally bore down on everyone earlier that day.

The Brooklynite sighed and glanced down at the choppy waters as he stood on a bridge not far from where the plane took off at. Luigi, Daisy and him were walking together as the trio wanted some time to kill and had nothing better to do. That way, they could also chat and catch up with each other and possibly speak of the happy moments that they shared with Peach. However, right now, the Italian plumber was alone as Daisy and Luigi went on ahead to give him some privacy and some time alone for his own thoughts.

He leaned over and steadied his weight amongst the railing, looking out in the distance and trying to accentuate the positive.

It's okay, she's going to be taken care of. Toadsworth promised me that and she's in good hands... But if so, why do I have this heavy feeling in the pit of my stomach that I can't ignore? No, Mario. Don't think of that. It's probably just your nervousness and you getting emotional over her leave. You're fine. She's fine. Everything's fine. Here; how about you think of some private memories with you and her? That oughta help you relax a bit more and get your mind off of your uneasiness.

Mario nodded to himself and took a deep breath. Closing his eyes, he exhaled and tried to clear his mind and just focus on the happy memories of his beloved.

The first memory he immediately went back to was the time where the two of them were sitting out in a giant field full of multi-coloured flowers. 

There was a gentle breeze amongst them and the sun wasn't beating down on them as it was late-afternoon/early-evening. The sky revealed a light orange, pink and purple fluorescence that reflected on the duo. Mario thought Peach couldn't look any more beautiful than she already was. He knew it was incredibly impolite to stare, but he couldn't just stop marvelling at her aura. It was like looking at an angel, although he already knew she was one to him.

"Mario, what do you think?"

The hero quickly snapped out of his thoughts and slightly blushed in embarrassment as he rubbed the back of his head and neck.

"Ahi, ah... could you please repeat what you were saying, princess? I didn't quite hear you..."

Instead of getting mad, Peach just giggled at his cuteness.

"I wasn't really saying anything in particular, Mario. I was just wondering what you thought of this."

She held up a headpiece that consisted of some blue, red and white cornelius flowers, held together by the stems and a couple of vines. In other words, a flower crown.

"Oh, wow," Mario breathed, staring wondrously at it and then up at Peach. "You made that?"

"Yeah," The princess smiled. "Pretty cool, huh?"

"Yeah! What's it called?"

"A flower crown. There are many different types you can make. Not just with these flowers or materials."

"Ooh, I saw them in movies before but could never put my finger on what they were called. They look way better in person, though. More beautiful, too!"

"I know, right? And they smell lovely! You can't really do that when watching movies, haha."

"That's true." Mario hummed with delight.

"Close your eyes."

Mario raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"I have a surprise for you." Peach elaborated.

"Oh. Okie dokie." The hero replied, doing so.

Peach took off Mario's cap, put it down next to him and placed the flower crown on his head.

"There! You can open them!"

Mario did so and tilted his head back, trying to look up at the crown.

"Aha, that is very cute. Thank you, princess." He chuckled.

"Of course. Now you look like a little flower prince!"

Mario blushed, gave a small laugh and then asked;

"If it's not too much trouble, can you teach me how to make one?"

"I'd be delighted to. It would be my honour," The ruler beamed. "But let's start with three colours to make things more simple."

"Okie, which three colours would you like?"

"Hm," Peach pondered, momentarily looking around. "How about pink, white and yellow?"

"That's perfect," Mario grinned. "Those colours it is!"

Peach laughed and Mario joined in.

Another memory consisted of the aftermath of a rescue mission, however, it was more cherishable than grim.

Mario, Peach, Luigi, Daisy, Yoshi and m̶u̶l̶t̶i̶p̶l̶e̶ ̶T̶o̶a̶d̶s̶ all of the Mushroom Kingdom  were celebrating Princess Peach's safe return as usual. However, the quintet and multiple Toads in particular all gathered around a large pink Frosted cake at the large dining table, other baked goods, desserts and pastries, and even bottles of  champagne.

Peach had stood up from her seat and begun to make another speech about how she was grateful for Mario and Luigi's help, while the Toads tried to keep Yoshi at bay from eating all of the sweets. Thankfully, he composed himself as Mario, Luigi and Daisy listened attentively.

When Peach's speech was done, she grabbed a handful of cake, much to everyone's surprise and leaned down towards Mario. In a quick motion before anyone had time to process anything, she laughed and had already shoved and smeared the frosting and such all over his face, most of it getting in his moustache.

"Mamma mia!" 

Everyone gasped as Mario tried his best to wipe the contents out of his eyes with his gloved finger and shirt sleeves. He blinked a few times, smirked and uttered;

"You shouldn't have done that, princess~"

Standing up, he grabbed a few tarts and threw them back at Peach. She squealed and laughed and their war continued. Daisy and Luigi quickly joined in, along with the Toads and Yoshi (who just mostly ate the food being thrown at him).

This caused Toadsworth, Toadette and few other toads to come in, hence the ruckus and long story short, Toadsworth wasn't very amused at the state of the room nor anyone's behaviour, more so Peach's since she started it. Peach defended herself quietly saying that she meant no harm and was just having fun and mostly took the blame for the way everyone else acted, but everyone was still punished for the time being, nonetheless.

Instead of the usual Toads cleaning up the dining room, the five of them and the Toads did, which everyone agreed was fair. However, Mario and Luigi were on temporary prohibition in regards to visiting the castle and most areas of the Kingdom (as they lived in the Mushroom Kingdom and could not go elsewhere, otherwise they wouldn't be allowed to visit). The brothers were only able to access joints essential to survival or basic needs. (Such as supermarkets and such). Peach was grounded for the time being and could not visit nor talk to the brothers or Daisy. She couldn't go out, either, except for going on her balcony. Daisy was on prohibition in regards to going to the Mushroom Kingdom so she had the same punishments as Peach. Her parents did not ground the flower princess, but she was still scolded and punished for her actions, nonetheless. The Toads, well, they had the same treatment. Those Toads were replaced with other servants for the time being so they had to stay home and not visit the castle, along with Yoshi, so they were in the same boat as the Mario Brothers.

Despite the consequences, one thing they could all agree on, though, was that none of them regretted what they did.

Mario chuckled at the memory and knew he could go on forever dreaming up memories of his beloved. He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn't hear his younger brother come up towards him.

"Hey, bro. You okay?" Luigi asked, putting a hand on Mario's shoulder.

"Y-Yeah, sorry. I got a bit lost in my own thoughts."

"It's no worries. Daisy and I were just getting a bit concerned and wanted to check up on you to see how you're doing."

"I-I'm fine."

Why was he stuttering?

Luigi raised an eyebrow. 

"I don't even have to be your twin to know that you're lying. Daisy and I both know that's not true and it's okay not to be alright, y'know? You're human. You can only take so much."

"I know," Mario sighed, looking down at the ground awkwardly, and tried to swallow the lump in his throat. "It's just... I'm gonna miss her so much, y'know? I-"

"Hey, you don't have to say anything -- I'm right here, big bro."

Mario tackled Luigi into a hug and started sobbing, uncontrollably. Luigi rubbed his back in soft circles and gently shushed him, reassuring that everything was alright and to just let it out. Mario started blubbering in Italian and English and Luigi whispered to him in their Native tongue.

"Te amo, fratellino. Te amo tanto." Mario sobbed, tightening his hold on his brother, afraid to let go.

"I-I know, Mario. I know. I love you, too. F-Forever and always." Luigi choked out, tearing up also.

They stayed like this for a couple more minutes until Mario stopped crying and the both of them were feeling better. Mario thanked Luigi and Luigi in turn replied that it was nothing and he was glad to be able to console him as he knew he needed it most of all.

"Oh, no! I forgot about Daisy. She must be waiting for us, right?" The plumber in red asked, looking at Luigi awkwardly.

Luigi nodded and looked back.

"Yeah, she's waiting at the other side of the bridge, but I'm sure she doesn't mind. After all, she knew I was coming up to see how you were doing and talk to you."

"I see... Erm, i-is it okay if I have a couple more minutes to myself? No more than five but possibly less than that."

"Of course," Luigi nodded. "Daisy and I will be waiting for you at the end and then we can head back to where the castle is together to see if the rest of the Toads need any more help. Only if you're feeling up to it, of course. If not, I'm sure they'd understand."

"No, that sounds good." Mario agreed, not wanting to ignore someone if they needed assistance.

"Okie dokie." Luigi smiled, patting Mario's shoulder and then leaving.

Mario watched him go for a few moments before turning back out towards the waters and the distance ahead of him. He reached into his left pocket and pulled out the object he knew so well. The one he found out that was in his pocket back at the diner with Peach -- the black box containing the ring for the proposal the plumber so badly wanted to ask the girl of his dreams.

He raised it up in front of his face and gently opened the box to see the ring inside it. It still gave off a glow that seemed to never have died. Studying it in his hand for a few moments, he sighed.

"It seems like we've come a long way, but it looks like I don't need you, anymore. It was fun while it lasted, but this is goodbye now..." He mumbled to himself.

Talking to a ring box? You've really lost your mind now, haven't you?

Mario ignored the voice in his head, closed the box and clasped his hand around it. He gave a grunt as he pulled back his hand and tossed the ring box into the rushing river. He heard a small splash and plop as it vanished quickly amongst the water.

I'm sorry, Luigi, but I don't have a chance, anymore. It's better to let things go. To let her go, even if it hurts. After all, she's not fully gone, is she? She'll always be with us in our hearts and memories.

Darn, right, bro. And don't you ever forget it. 

You know I won't.

Now c'mon -- Daisy and I are getting old over here!

Mario chuckled and made his way over towards the duo.

Yeah, yeah... Don't get your overall straps in a knot! I'm coming!

Turning around one last time towards the bridge, Mario gave a small smile and whispered;

"Take care, princess. I'll love and miss you more than you could ever know, but it's time to let you be free. I know with whatever you do, you'll make all of us proud. We'll never forget you."

~END~

Chapter Text

Mario awoke early the next day, looking forward to checking on Peach's condition. He showered, got dressed in his usual getup (minus his red cap) and made his way downstairs to see Luigi dressed as well, but equally without his green cap. He sat at the round, wooden kitchen table, munching on a piece of toast and looking at the morning paper.

"Mmm, breakfast," Mario hummed happily, clapping his hands together. "Thanks, lil bro -- I'm starved!"

"Yeah, it's nothing," Luigi shrugged, now sipping some orange juice. "You're always starved, so what else is new?"

Mario scoffed sarcastically and headed to the stove.

"What do we got here?" He asked, enthusiastically.

"Food."

"Well, no duh. But what kind?"

"Open your eyes and look, lover boy."

"Ugh, what got you in such a bad mood this morning?"

"Me? Oh, I'm not in a bad mood. Only a playful one!" The green-capped hero laughed.

"Oh, yeah? And why's that?"

"Well, while you and Peach are out spending the day together, Daisy and I are going on a little outing!"

"An outing? You mean like a date?"

Luigi blushed.

"N-No, not really. It isn't anything like that. It's not fancy or anything." He spluttered, twiddling his index fingers around.

"It doesn't have to be fancy to be a date, Weegie! Where are you two going?"

"The movies. But in one of the theatres in her kingdom."

"Not the one in her castle?"

"No, she wants to get away from it for a bit. Said her parents are driving her crazy and she wants and needs a break from helping her parents rule."

"Understandable," The older brother responded with a nod. He then grinned and added teasingly; "But still sounds like a date to meee!~"

"Oh, just shut up and eat your breakfast before it gets cold, which it probably already has!" Luigi groaned, trying his best to hide his flushed face behind his newspaper.

Mario picked up a tater tot from a baking pan and popped it into his mouth.

"Nope," He chewed with a smile. "Still warm."

Daisy, for the sake of my sanity so I can somewhat prepare for this day, please pick me up...

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

After breakfast, the brothers brushed their teeth and hair, combed their moustaches and finished getting ready for the day ahead. Placing their signature caps upon their heads, they grabbed their own set of house keys and cellphones, shoving them into their overall pant pockets.

"Call me if you need anything or, y'know, use our fraternal telepathic communication like we always used to." Luigi chuckled, giving his brother a bear hug after they stepped outside and locked the door. Mario didn't notice that Luigi had snuck something out of his own pocket and put it into his brother's.

"Urk-! Y-Yeah, s-same to you!" Mario smiled, trying his best to hug him back. "Have fun!"

Luigi let go and the brothers started walking down the stone and dirt pathway.

"We will! And you both have fun as well if you go out. Daisy and I won't take up too much of the day for she'll want to see Peach before she leaves, too, along with me."

"Understood." Mario nodded.

"What time is she leaving?"

"6pm. A personal plane is going to come to the kingdom to pick her and loads of others up. She's going to have an early dinner around 5pm, so I'll have to bring her back to the castle at around 4:30pm. It's about 10:30am right now, so I'm afraid I'll only have a few hours left with her..." The red-capped plumber hastily rambled (mostly to himself). He then abruptly stopped walking with worry.

"Okay, well... make them all worthwhile, yeah?" Luigi asked, doing the same. He turned and clasped a hand on his brother's shoulder while saying this and looked into his twin's eyes with determination.

"Oh, yeah. I will." Mario half-heartedly smiled, doing the same.

"You okay?"

"Yeah..."

"You sure?"

"Mhm, why wouldn't I be...?"

However, Luigi could easily see right through his twin and felt a bit uneasy. He wasn't sure where the feeling suddenly came from, but he had a hunch that something wasn't going to be good. Either with Mario and his plans, with Peach's departure, with the kingdom, or something else entirely. However, he just shook it off as the paranoid and protective little brother he was and dismissed it as that, along with the fact that he might have pre-outing jitters with Daisy since it's been awhile since they've been out. He was also a bit nervous for Princess Peach herself via the move and everything and hoped it went smoothly and everything would turn out right in the end.

So, what was his exact feeling? Luigi didn't know, but he sincerely hoped it wasn't bad.

"Well, it just seems as if you're... Oh, never mind. It's nothing..." He dismissed with a small shake of his head. "Love you, big bro."

"Love you too, Weegie. See ya later."

"Okie dokie, see ya."

Without anymore hesitations, they both waved farewell to each other and went their separate ways; Mario to Peach's castle, and Luigi to Sarasaland.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

When Mario was let inside of the castle, the first thing he noticed was the chaos hustling inside of it. Toads were running around every which way -- most contained luggage and personal items, others were helping out with any last thing needed in the castle to ensure that everything was well before they left.

The man could barely hear over his own thoughts and nobody seemed to notice him. However, he remembered why he came here in the first place and went to see Dr. Amethyst, wondering if Peach was still with her.

He made his way towards the castle's infirmary and towards the direction of Dr. Amethyst's area. He was making his way past her main office and was going to go towards the waiting room where the quartet were the previous day, when he bumped into something or rather, someone.

The plumber gasped in shock as he tumbled upon the ground, his red cap falling down upon his face, covering his eyes. Objects clattered as they fell to the floor and a small, bewildered cry rang out somewhere in front of him.

"Oh, my-!" Mario heard the voice utter and he instantly recognised who the voice belonged to. "Mario! I-I'm so sorry! I didn't see you there! Here, let me help you up!"

Mario lifted his cap and placed it back upon his dark brown hair. Chuckling, he got up with the help of his companion and brushed himself off.

"No, no, Amethyst. There's no need to apologise. I'm the one who wasn't looking where I was going." He blushed. "But thanks for the help, anyhow."

Amethyst nodded in spite of his gratitude.

"Well, that makes the both of us then, I suppose," She exhaled as she fixed her glasses. "I got out of my office too fast and didn't bother to check if anyone was passing by, first. Speaking of, are you alright? I didn't hit you with the door as well on my way out, did I?"

"No, no," Mario chuckled once more with a wave of his hand. "You didn't. And yes, I'm alright. I was just more surprised than anything."

"Well, that makes the two of us." The physician laughed.

"Oh! Forgive me and my manners," Mario exclaimed, picking up the objects Amethyst dropped and handed them to her. "I believe these belong to you."

Amethyst nodded.

"Indeed they do. Thank you."

"Anytime. Oh, and Amethyst?"

"Yes?"

"Is Princess Peach with you? It's uh... kind of the reason why I came here looking for you in the first place." The man awkwardly asked, rubbing the back of his neck and head.

"As a matter of fact, you just missed her," Amethyst warily stated, noticing Mario's quick disappointment. "She was here for her morning check-up, but she should be in her room getting ready. Well, as she has told me, anyway."

"Oh! Okay, well, thank you," Mario smiled, with a wave. "And good luck with the move as well, whether you're on this first trip or not."

Amethyst nodded, thanked him and waved back as the plumber and the physician went their separate ways.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Ah, princess?" Mario gently knocked on the aforementioned person's door, blushing a little. "Are you in here?"

"Oh, Mario! Yes, I'll be out in a minute!"

"There's no rush," Mario smiled. "I'll wait for as long as you need me to."

Idiota.  Listen to how cheesy and desperate you sound for her! I wouldn't be surprised if she no longer wanted to hang out with you today...

Mario lightly smacked his forehead with the heel of his hand and gave a small groan.

"Are you okay, love? You aren't feeling ill, are you?"

Mario quickly looked up to see Princess Peach slightly leaning over him, a concerned look painted across her small face. Because he had zoned out for a minute, he hadn't even heard or realised the door had opened.

She wore her summer outfit back on her odyssey adventure which contained a mini-dress that went just past her knees. The top half was a white blouse with short puff sleeves, the bottom a skirt in the princess' favourite and usual shade of pink. Just above her waistline bore some kind of a belt in the colour rouge and a round yellow clip with a pink (the same colour as the bottom of the dress) gem in the centre. Around the princess' neck was a small, light pink scarf with small white polka dots on it, along with the white heels on her feet that replaced her usual red ones. Finally, to top off her outfit, Peach decided to wear a white sun hat with a pink ribbon instead of her usual golden crown.

Mario thought she looked absolutely gorgeous, but to be fair, he thought that with any outfit she chose to wear.

"N-No, I'm fine, princess." He managed to say when he found his voice.

"You sure?" She asked, placing her right hand on his left cheek. "Because your face is a bit red."

Upon hearing that, the plumber nearly became even more red in embarrassment but despite this, he loved feeling her soft skin against his, although he didn't know if he was going to be able to do so ever again. He quickly pushed those feelings aside to answer Peach.

"Oh! I-I... Uhm... Sì, principessa. Don't worry about me. I'm not ill or anything." He chuckled, softly placing his hand on top of hers and looking his princess in the eyes with a soft smile. He wanted to make sure that she knew that he was telling the truth.

"Okay, if you say so. I just wanted to make sure you were alright." She smiled, removing her hand and then kissing Mario on the cheek.

The plumber this time allowed his face to become as red as his cap and rubbed the back of his neck slowly, while momentarily looking down to his right like a shy schoolboy. He then held out his arm for Peach to take, which she gladly linked her arm with his with a small giggle.

"So, how have you been? Have you been feeling alright? You gave us all quite a scare yesterday..." Mario started, as he and Peach made their way out of the castle.

"Oh, did I...? I-I'm sorry! I really didn't mean to. I mean, one minute I was fine on the tennis court, the other I... I guess I passed out."

"It's not your fault, Peach. A lot is going on right now for all of us, but especially you. I can't begin to imagine what you must be going through..."

Peach nodded and sighed.

"Yeah, you can say that again. What's worse, is that I hardly remember anything from yesterday. My head's still fuzzy..." She put a hand to her forehead and squinted her eyes shut.

"Well, there's no need to worry about anything. You didn't miss much. And besides, you have enough on your plate as it is. If this will cause you a headache, then it's not worth it."

I want to spend every last minute with you and focus on just us. Before you're gone from my sight and presence forever and I'll never be able to do so again... It hurts, Peach. It really does and I'm sorry I cannot do anything. I'm sorry I failed you when I promised I'll always be there for you and guard you with my life. I'm sorry you had to meet someone like me... I'm sorry. I feel so worthless, but I hope you know that I've tried to fight for you and all of these years and days a-and hours and minutes and even seconds with you have been worth it. I'll keep fighting for you and I'll never forget you. Ever. I'm sorry I-

"Mario? Are you sure you're alright?"

Mario blinked.

"S-Sorry, princess. I just spaced out for a minute..."

"Oh! It's quite alright, dear. It happens to us all." She smiled as they walked together through the Mushroom Forest.

"Anyways, how did your check-up go with Dr. Amethyst?"

"Ah, it was good," Peach replied, clapping her hands together. "She told me what happened to me. Medically, of course with the whole heat stroke and anxiety attack thing."

I wonder if she knows about her little freak-out during her exam...?

"I also heard about what happened to me while I was unconscious..." Peach added, quietly, not daring to make eye contact with her beloved plumber, as if to read his mind. "I'm sorry you all had to witness that. I don't... I don't really know what came over me. Goodness, I don't even remember that, either and this is all so embarrassing..."

"Hey -- it's okay, it's okay. What matters now is that your health seems to be improving for the most part, yes?" Mario asked, reaching for her hand to which she accepted.

"Yes, of course." Peach agreed, plucking a fallen green leaf off of her blouse with her free hand. She held onto it for a few seconds, admiring it and twirling it around by its stem before letting it go in the gentle, warm breeze.

"I also have something to ask you, but I don't want to upset you by bringing it up..." Peach quietly added, looking down at her heels as they continued to walk hand-in-hand.

Nothing could upset me more than knowing that you're going to be leaving me forever...

"Oh, princess..." He breathed out. "You can tell me anything, you know that. I promise, whatever it is, I won't get mad at you. I mean, how can I even get mad at someone like you, anyways? I love you too much for that." He flashed her a cheeky little grin after saying this to which she gave a little giggle.

"I love you too, my little plumber," She beamed, rubbing the top of Mario's cap. "Okay, well, it's about what happened with Toadette and you yesterday..."

"Huh? How'd you know about that...?" Mario inquired, raising an eyebrow in surprise and embarrassment.

"Well, I don't know what exactly happened between the two of you, but Daisy had written a letter to me and at one point, it got to saying that you two had a bit of an argument."

"Something like that... yes..." Mario mumbled, tilting his head down a bit. He didn't feel this shameful in a long time.

"Hey, tell you what; There's another part of the Toad Town coming up here after these bit of trees, and I know there's a nice diner there. Wanna talk about it over some fries and a milkshake?"

Mario raised his head and gave a small smile and a nod.

"Sounds good, princess. Let's-a go."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The duo sat at a table-for-two, a large paper basket of fries covered in a drizzle of ketchup sitting in between the two of them, along with a large chocolate milkshake with two plastic straws.

"...and then... that's when I snapped at her by telling her not to disrespect you like that. Toadette gave even more attitude and said a few nasty words about you being my 'girl toy' and then she ran out of the room. That was the last time I saw her," Mario explained, quietly. "I know I shouldn't have gotten that angry with her. It was wrong of me. I just... I just couldn't believe she'd say those things about you and well, I..."

"You were just protecting me and I'm forever grateful for that," Peach assured him with a sad smile after she finished her sip of the milkshake. "Besides, Toadette had no right acting like that. I don't know what's come over her lately, to be honest. Maybe it's the move?"

"I don't know... But I suspect something's off with her."

"What do you mean?"

Mario popped another fry into his mouth before swallowing and said;

"Well, before I found out about how Toadsworth was behind the whole move thing, I had a hunch that something wasn't right behind all of this. Nothing added up -- why you were particularly going to the Flower Kingdom, why for that long, et cetera, which is why I spoke a lot with Daisy and Luigi, actually. Together, we found out about Toadsworth, which did make sense after all, especially after you told me this was all his idea in the first place. Not to mention how persistent he was."

Mario took a sip of the milkshake before continuing, while Peach feasted on the fries with mild interest.

"Anyways, I'm getting off topic here... The point is, we were right about Toadsworth and after speaking to him in the back garden of the castle, we understood more of his reasoning. Not that we agreed with him, of course. Ugh, I'm doing it again, aren't I? Rambling?"

"It's okay -- really! Please, take your time. I'm still listening."

"Well, what I'm trying to say about Toadsworth and Toadette is that my hunch was right with him and now that I'm having a hunch about Toadette, I just..." The plumber let out a deep breath before speaking again. "Just... Please be careful around her, princess. I still don't fully trust her..."

"Is this hunch still because of what happened yesterday?" Peach asked, raising an eyebrow. "Because Mario, you need to tell yourself that you may just be being paranoid and-"

"But my hunches are never wrong, princess and I'm getting a strong feeling about this. You have to trust me..."

"I do, it's just..." It was her turn to sigh. "I don't know what to think anymore. This whole thing has been a mess that needs to be cleaned up, pronto."

"I know, but..." Mario reached for Peach's hands across the table and looked into her eyes with worry and sincere determination. "Please... Please promise me that you'll be mindful around her and what she may say or do. I'm just worried that..."

Something bad may happen and I won't be there to protect you. And if something did, then I'll never be able to forgive myself.

"Mario," Peach gave a small laugh and a smile. "I'll be careful. I promise."

"T-Thank you..." He mumbled.

"Of course. And I'm feeling pretty full. How about you?"

"Yeah." Mario nodded, patting his overall pant pockets to search for his wallet. He remembered putting his phone and keys in his right one, but the left contained something. Confused, he slowly reached in his left pocket and felt a small but dense, solid object. Closing his hand around it, he instantly knew what it was and tried not to gasp in surprise.

How and when in the Inferno did that get there?!

Sensing that he didn't have his wallet and remembered that he forgot to bring it, Mario slowly extracted his hand and gave a small chuckle at the princess.

"Is something the matter?" She asked, a worried look perched upon her face. "Are you alright?"

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine," The plumber blushed. "It just seems as if I forgot my wallet, that's all."

Peach smirked.

"Good, because I'm paying for all of this, no matter what you say! It's my treat, after all and you don't need to be stuck with the bill most of the time that we go out."

"I really don't mind."

"Well, I do. It's not fair to you and I need to pay more. I'm perfectly capable of doing so."

"Well... thank you, princess."

"Don't mention it. Anything for you." She smiled.

Mario blushed once more and to a waiter walking by, he waved and called to him. Peach paid for the small meal and then the two of them were out of the diner nearly as soon as they entered.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

During their walk back through the forest of which they came from, the couple came across a couple bike trails and a small path that led up a wide and giant hill a lot of people liked to host blanket picnics, toss a ball around, or just enjoy the scenery in general on. (Also, to toboggan and ski via the colder months and many more!)

The duo made their way to the top after some time and sat down with their legs stretched out before them, admiring the multiple sceneries surrounding them, along with the smell of fresh flowers, pine and other forestation. They began to happily converse, tell each other jokes and at one point, Peach decided that it would be amusing to steal Mario's cap and run with it.

"H-Hey!" Mario exclaimed, getting up and chasing the princess. "Come back here with my hat!"

Peach just laughed.

"Well, then you're gonna have to catch me, first!"

"You're gonna regret saying that, princess!~"

With a smirk, Mario began to run faster. He did a couple of flips, somersaults and jumps in the air and upon obstacles to gain momentum and speed. Peach's peals of laughter continued to ring out into the air while she tried not to trip on her heels.

She stopped momentarily to catch her breath when she couldn't hear Mario anymore. Confused, she whipped around, but he was nowhere to be seen. However, she appeared to not be paying any attention, when Mario suddenly leapt behind the princess and tackled her. The two of them fell forward and tumbled a bit, Peach crying out in shock and Mario laughing, gleefully.

The princess lay sprawled upon her back, the plumber rising slightly above her, his gloved hands pressed firmly on the grass on either side of her to keep him from accidentally falling atop of the girl. Peach's sun hat had come off during their tumbling and Mario's cap had laid to the right side of the former.

Seeing Mario eye her, playfully and with slight curiosity, Princess Peach then also noticed him looking down to his left. Following his gaze, she realised that she no longer had the famous cap in her hand and turned her head to see it beside her. She tried to scramble up and reach to grab it, however, Mario did as well.

Mario was quick, but the princess was quicker. She smirked as she held the article of clothing high into the air, noticing the Italian New Yorker's surprise and slight amusement.

"Ha!" Peach beamed, with a smug grin. "Looks like after all of that ambushing, I still have your cap!"

"Not for long!"

Smirking once more, Mario attempted to take it out of her hand, but Peach kept holding it out of his reach. With a back-up plan, he started tickling Peach under her neck and under her ribcage. She instantly began squirming and burst out laughing, much to Mario's amusement. Within seconds, his plan had worked as Peach let go of the cap and protested his mercy. Mario stopped, took his cap, dusted it off and placed it back upon his head.

He got off of the princess and helped her sit up. She sat down, leaning her weight into her left side as her hand was planted firmly to hold her up and her legs were extended to her right, neatly folded together and slightly bent. Mario sat on his knees and gave the princess a sly grin.

"Hehe, I knew I'd get you."

"Me too, but I wanted to try and see how far I could get. Especially in these heels as I tend to forget that I wear them sometimes," With a small laugh before a sigh, she added; "That's how much I wear heels. It's so tiring, but I eventually got used to it. I had to, being a princess and all. Sometimes I wish that I don't have to be royal for a day and wear much more comfortable clothing. Because trust me, I do love my dresses and heels and all, but it gets so tiring! If I could wear comfortable clothing all day, I'd love to do so. I envy you and Luigi, Mario. You guys don't have to worry about your looks all day and etiquette and other boring royalty things."

"Even though I'm not royalty, I understand where you're coming from. I'm sure that Daisy feels the same way, if not, more as she's in that position as well."

"Yeah," Peach agreed. "Although, she gets laid off a bit more than I do. I'm not trying to whine or complain or anything, it's just that Daisy has more of a boisterous nature than I do and you know how she is. She can get loud, outgoing, bossy, and just plain terrifying. She isn't afraid to show her true self nor speak her mind, but she's just Daisy. That's who she is."

She gave a cheeky smile at Mario and they both laughed a bit.

"I see what you're saying, princess, but maybe... maybe with this new move, that can change a bit more. Your lifestyle and feelings towards your comfort, I mean."

"I sincerely doubt it, but I hope so, too."

"Your feelings matter. Everyone needs to hear you out, especially as you are a princess."

"Yes, but I'm afraid that until I'm queen, a lot of decisions will still be made for me..."

"Well, I'll always have your back, either way. It doesn't matter if we are far away from each other, on the other side of the planet or galaxy or even in the afterlife, I will."

"I know, Mario, I know. And I will, too. No matter what."

Mario nodded his head and then began to frown.

"Peach..." Mario started, slowly with a bit of hurt in his small voice. "M-May I ask you a question...?"

"Of course you can, Mario," Seeing his uneasiness, she then asked; "Why? What's wrong?"

"I don't mean to hit this upon you so suddenly, but truthfully, this has been on my mind for awhile. Since you gave me the news that you were moving, actually, and I just... Ahi, this is gonna sound silly..." The plumber slightly blushed and rubbed the back of his head.

"Mario, you can always tell me anything. You're always here for me, and I want to be here for you, do you understand?"

"Yes."

"Okay, so please, tell me. No matter what, I won't laugh or anything. You have my word."

"I-I just wanted to know..." He took a deep breath. "Will us being away from each other ruin our relationship...? I know it's a stupid question but I-I just can't help but think this and keep it in for so long that it's been eating me up inside. I just thought I'd ask, but please be honest with me, princess. I want to know the truth..."

Peach immediately looked surprised as she was definitely not expecting that question. She fidgeted a bit with her hands and gazed into Mario's eyes before biting her bottom lip. She paused, unsure of what to say at first because Mario did indeed have a valid question. She took off her heels, placed them beside her and sat up on her knees as well.

"Mario, if you want my honest answer, I think that we can work something out and manage. Just because we'll be far away from each other, doesn't mean our love will die out now, will it?"

Mario shook his head.

"Of course not. I'll always love and care about you, princess. You know that."

"As will I. I mean, I don't think that there's much familiarity with technology and gadgets like cellphones and things like that, so we won't be able to communicate that way, but..."

"Hm, I see," Mario pondered, briefly pausing before adding; "What about letters?"

"What do you mean?" The princess asked, raising an eyebrow. "Are you suggesting that we..."

"Write letters to each other?" Mario finished with a small smile. "Yes, princess. We already do that, anyways. Why not just continue doing them?"

"It's a lovely idea," Peach agreed with a small frown. "However, you are forgetting an important thing - the unforthcoming and rarity of the Flower-koku or Flower Kingdom, if you'd prefer. It's a secret and rare place, remember? They don't accept mail. They don't even have a post office because why would they need one when they are writing to anyone or expecting any messages in return?"

"W-What?! H-How will we...?"

"We won't, Mario! We won't! We'll never be able to see or talk to each other again! W-Well, at least not until I come back to the kingdom..."

"Wait, y-you're coming back here...?"

"I plan to. Well, to visit, anyways. Toadsworth and Prince Haru will have to owe me at least that much for all of this, right?"

"I agree." Mario replied, looking down and narrowing his eyes a bit. He sure hoped to the Star Spirits that they would at least listen to her for this. If they cared that much about her, they would.

"But don't worry, Mario," Peach assured once more, lifting up his chin with her index finger and looking into his eyes, much to his surprise and confusion. "I'll try to visit as often as I can and I'm sure Prince Haru will understand and acknowledge the fact that our love for each other will never die. I just hope he respects it but if not, then that's his choice."

Mario nodded and blushed a bit.

"Y-Yeah, but what if...?"

"Hm?"

"What if..." Mario began again. "You marry him? I mean, you'll have to, right, in order to rule his kingdom alongside him a-and... bear his children...?" 

The last part was a mumble and Peach sighed.

"I'm not going to marry him, let alone rule the kingdom and bear his children, Mario. Don't worry."

"B-But..?"

"I'm going to have a mature and private talk with Haru about everything. How I no longer return his feelings and the fact that we're together, Mario. Not to mention, other relationship things and I'm going to have to try and reason with him. Whether or not he'll react or feel a certain way is not in my place to say, but I'll still have to communicate either way. It's part of being an adult and is especially important in regards to royalty."

"That makes sense but what if he doesn't listen, respect or force you into things?"

"Well..." Peach pondered. "I'll cross that bridge when I get to it but I'm sure I'll be fine. I'll think of something."

It was Mario's turn to sigh.

"If you say so," He replied, still sounding uneasy but could no longer press the matter. "Just please be careful, okay?"

"I will," Peach smiled. "I promise."

Mario felt slightly better after hearing that, but only slightly.

"Well, then..." Peach began awkwardly, briefly gazing down at the grass and biting her bottom lip. Mario gave a small, attentive hum. "Hey, uhm, do you got the time on you?"

"Yeah," Mario replied, digging into his right pocket, pulling out his red-cased phone and glancing at the time on the screen. "It's already ten after four. We better get going back to the castle, princess."

She nodded.

"Oh! And don't forget your sun hat," He added with a small smile, going over to it, picking it up and giving it back to Peach. "Here you go."

"Thanks," Peach returned with a small smile of her own as she picked the grass off of it herself and placed it back upon her blonde hair. "You're not mad are you?" She added, as the two of them began walking. "I mean, I completely understand if you are but I just didn't know if..."

"At the situation? Yes. At you? Never. I don't blame you, whatsoever. I know it's not your fault. This whole thing is beyond your control and honestly, I'm pretty furious at Toadsworth, but mainly at myself. But either way, no, princess. I'm not mad at you. Please don't worry about that. I could never..."

"At yourself? You never did anything, Mario."

"Exactly. I never did anything when I could've, Peach."

"Whatever do you mean? What could you have possibly done?"

"Well, that's simple -- I didn't try hard enough for your kingdom, your citizens or even you..."

Peach suddenly ran ahead and spun her body in front of Mario, quickly stopping him in surprise and confusion.

"Mario, look at me," She faced him, placing her hands on his shoulders and looking him in his eyes. "Just because of what had happened back there between the two of us, doesn't mean I still don't care about you deeply. Please, don't ever think that way! That's not true! You've done more than enough for my kingdom and my citizens over the years. You've done more than enough for me and I don't care what you say! You..."

Tears started to well a little bit back into her eyes and she tried to blink them back, but they still rolled down her cheeks, anyways.

"You... don't even deserve someone like me for the ways I've treated you. Someone with a big heart and a warm, loving soul like you shouldn't be with a spoiled, rich, bratty princess, anyways."

Mario grabbed Peach's hands and stared back with determination at her, along with a raised eyebrow.

"You really think that's true?" He asked, quietly. "You say that I've done a whole lot for you and your kingdom, right? Well, that's because ever since Luigi and I first mistakenly came to the Mushroom Kingdom, you've treated us with nothing but kindness right away. You gave us a place to stay, food, hospitality and so much more. Not only that, but you became our best friend. Our famiglia. What more could we have possibly asked for? And for that, we thank you so, so much, princess. Don't you think otherwise."

Mario gave a small smile at the end and Peach returned it.

Despite them hardly going to be able to see each other again, Mario knew one thing for certain -- that besides their love still going strong, they would still have that close relationship amongst each other and that's what mattered to him the most.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Shortly after the two of them arrived at the castle, Mario was invited to come over for dinner at 5pm, which he agreed to as he had nothing better to do and didn't want to be rude. Plus, it gave him some more time to spend with Peach for a bit in the meantime. Not to mention, he felt pretty famished just thinking about all of the dishes that were going to be laid out amongst the large, outstretched dining table.

They played table ping-pong for a bit in one of the dark party rooms with LED lights before playing a quick game of pool on a billiards table. They didn't have to wait long for dinner and the two of them enjoyed a hearty meal with the princess' staff and Toadsworth, chatting and catching up on a variety of different things.

Time went by quicker than expected, however, and it was time for the first round of Toads and such to leave for the Flower Kingdom which, of course, included Peach and Toadsworth as well.

Everyone gathered outside the castle to say their farewells to family members and friends until the next time they met. Mario saw at least two different large but personalised planes, wondering which one was Peach's.

"Hey, bro!" The plumber heard a familiar voice call.

He turned to see Luigi linking arms with Daisy and walking towards him, the both of them smiling and waving, to which Mario returned.

Daisy was wearing her regular attire, however, the bottom part of her dress was changed. Her skirt instead was an orange and yellow floral pattern that matched the same design as her white shirt collar and instead of her usual orange heels, she had on white socks with orange and yellow trainers. Like Peach, she also didn't have any gloves on and her usual white daisy with a green gem in the centre of her top-half was still present, along with her matching earrings. However, instead of a sun hat like the Mushroom Kingdom ruler, Daisy still had her signature crown placed upon her auburn hair.

"Hey, Weegie! Hello, Daisy." Mario nodded towards the princess.

"'S'up, Red? How are you doing?"

"Fine," He lied. "How about you guys? How was your little outing?"

"It was great, actually! We had a lot of fun!"

"That's great to hear." The plumber in red beamed.

"Where's Peach?" Luigi questioned.

"Dunno. I think she's getting ready to leave soon. I haven't seen Toadsworth since dinner, either."

"Mario! Luigi! Daisy!"

The three aforementioned turned to see Peach coming up fast towards them, still in her attire from the day that she spent with Mario.

"Peaches!" Daisy squealed, running towards her best friend and enveloping her into a hug to which Peach happily returned after meeting her halfway.

"Hey, girl! How are you?" The blonde princess laughed.

"Pretty good! Luigi and I had gone on a little outing. We watched a couple movies at the theatres. Not the one in my castle because I wanted to take a break from it, but elsewhere and we also went to this fair thing and we ate soooo much cotton candy and popcorn, despite having some popcorn and sweets at the theatres! Then we had hot dogs and fries for lunch and we shared this humongous thing of pop - Peaches, you wouldn't believe me when I say the cup for the drink was humongous! Luigi and I couldn't even finish it all - and we also went on a whole bunch of rides but before we ate, of course, although Luigi protested on a lot of them but I still forced him to go on them with me and guess what? He also later won a cute little orange teddy bear for me at one of those game stands and it's actually holding a daisy! What a coincidence, amirite? But yeah, there's more, but I don't want to bother you with the rest. It would take too long and-"

Daisy had to briefly pause to catch her breath and Peach was almost wondering when she was going to.

"Sounds like you both had a great time, though!" The latter beamed as the two of them began walking back towards the brothers.

"Oh, for sure! I could tell Luigi was, especially and I was wondering when the last time he had that much fun was. I wanted to get him out of the house more, and not just to help Mario save you... Erm, no offence or anything...!" She blushed.

"None taken," Peach dismissed with a wave of her hand. "Besides, at least on the bright side with this move, Bowser won't be able to kidnap me anymore and Mario won't have to keep saving me. I honestly have always felt terrible about it and I never understood why he repeatedly kept coming back..."

Daisy gave Peach a hard stare.

"It's obviously because he deeply loved and cared about you, Peach. He still clearly does. That's never changed. I mean, why else would he be willing to go through all of that torment over the years to save you? He doesn't just do it for the sweets and kisses, nor for the fame. Yes, he does it for your kingdom, but he does it especially for you. He loves being around you everyday and everyone can just see the way his eyes light up every time you're around him. It's so adorable, really!"

Peach weakly smiled as she recalled the memories of her and Mario. From the time she first met the Mario Bros, from the times they went on their dates, concerts, balls, festivities, and so much more. Daisy was right -- for mostly everything, Mario was usually by her side and was always there to support her. She suddenly felt a twinge of pain in her heart and throat and quickly covered her mouth as she choked out a sob.

The Sarasaland princess instantly reacted with her arms outstretched to Peach to steady her, a look of absolute concern perched across her face.

"Peach! What's wrong, hun?! What happened?! Was it something I said...? I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to upset you!"

Peach tried to shake her head and assure her that everything was alright, although the sounds of her sobs grew louder and she started to crumple to the ground before they even reached the brothers.

Mario and Luigi saw this and with equally worried looks as Daisy, they rushed over to the girls, calling Peach's name desperately and asking a variety of questions.

"Guys, I-I'm fine..." Peach tried to protest in embarrassment, trying to viciously wipe away her tears. She was thankful for her large sun hat at least somewhat covering her small face.

Mario steadily helped Peach up.

"You don't look fine, princess. Are you sure you're okay? What's wrong? What happened?"

"N-Nothing," She sighed. "Nothing important. I just got worked up a little is all."

"You know that you can tell us anything." Luigi interjected, to which the other two agreed with a nod.

Peach looked at the three of them before biting her bottom lip a little bit.

"I just... I'm really going to miss you guys is all... You don't even know. I guess I've just been getting emotional as the memories are flooding my mind and-"

"We're going to miss you too, Peaches. A whole lot. I mean, now what are we supposed to do with you gone?"

"I'm sure you'll figure out something. You have a brain, Daisy, and you're very smart. I mean, even though you only use it half of the time." Peach tried to laugh a little to lighten up the mood, but she knew all four of them were close enough to start bawling all over again. However, they chuckled and gave a small laugh along with her and then they all fell into a tight group hug.

"We should get going now. There's no doubt that Toadsworth must be wondering why I'm not over at the plane by now." Peach explained when they departed.

"You mean, both of these planes over here aren't yours?" Mario questioned.

Peach shook her head.

"No, mine's the light pink and white one. See that hill over there with the narrow dirt pathways on it?"

She pointed and the three turned. They could see it was a little in the distance, but still close-by enough that it wouldn't take them too long to walk to. The three of them nodded as they could faintly see the smaller plane on the other side, behind the hill and then they turned back to Peach.

"That's where it is. It's on the other side. There's a large gravel path behind there for the plane to run on before takeoff and there are multiple nature and bike trails over in that direction through those trees and beyond that. Toadsworth, I guess, thought it would be a good place to depart from."

"Well, I guess we should start heading over there now, then." Daisy sighed.

"Yes," Peach agreed with a small frown. "Let's go."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Ah, princess. You're just in time," Toadsworth smiled as the four of them made it up the hill. "Toadette and a few other Toads are just helping organise your belongings and loading them into the plane down there behind me."

"Thank you." The blonde princess replied, with a small nod. Toadsworth returned it.

"Well, c'mon, princess. There's no time to waste. The sooner we can take flight, the sooner we'll be able to arrive, after all."

"Of course, Toadsworth. May I just take a moment to say my final goodbyes, please?"

"Sure, I'll wait for you, unless you would like to be alone."

"No, it's okay. I don't mind you staying."

The older Toad slightly nodded.

"Oh, goodness," The princess then breathed to herself. "Where do I even begin? Daisy..."

The auburn-haired princess looked at her, quizzically, as Peach turned to face her.

"You've been such an outstanding person to be around. Maybe not a great influence one-hundred percent of the time, but a great person, nonetheless and I wouldn't change a thing about you. Despite your fierceness, you have a heart of gold and would be willing to do anything to protect those you love, just like you boys," Peach smiled, turning towards them. The brothers smiled back as Peach then turned back to Daisy. "Daisy, you're a warrior. You're strong, independent, boisterous, comedic and so much more. You've not only been a friend, but family since we were young. Not to mention, but despite the fact that we aren't biologically related, you've shown and proven to everyone in our lives that we're sisters and stick together in the end, no matter what. And for that, I thank you so, so much for being a part of my life and everyone else's. Nothing would be the same without you, Dase. I love you and I'll miss you more than you could ever know. I'll keep the memories of us close to my heart, of course, and I'll never let them go. Goodbye, Daisy. Keep up with the headstrong mind that you have and follow your heart and dreams. I wish you nothing but happiness and health."

With this said, she gave Daisy a big hug. The only one that she'll ever be able to give again and then they let each other go.

"Hey, stop that. That's totally not fair! You're gonna make me cry! How dare you?" Daisy laughed, wiping a few tears away and playfully and lightly slugging Peach in her side.

Peach laughed with her and turned to Luigi who was standing beside her.

"And Luigi," She began, getting Luigi's heart pumping. He was already close to tears himself. "No words can describe how grateful I am to have had you in my life. Ever since you first came into the Mushroom Kingdom, you've shown me nothing but respect and diligence. Despite your shyness, you're such a sweet and funny man and Daisy is lucky to have you by her side, along with your brother. Although my words can not show or prove anything, I am forever thankful for your services and heroic deeds in the kingdom. From helping Mario on his journeys to save me, to just simply helping a staff member with a small task, your selflessness has really taken a toll and impacted us and our perspectives on things. And not to mention, your protectiveness towards those you love, especially with Mario, is extremely admirable. Nothing warms my heart than seeing how much you fight for him and love him every single day. The brotherly love and closeness between you two is incredibly adorable and breath-taking. I'm not going to name any names, but the horrible things that you went through to save Mario three times now from those vile... creatures over the years, is beyond courageous. Despite the fact that you were traumatised and harassed many times by those ghosts, yet you still pushed on to save the ones you loved... Luigi, you're a huge role model and influencer. I'm proud to say that I look up to you. Not only that, but I'm proud to call you my unofficial and non-biological brother because that's who you felt like to me everyday. You still feel like a brother and always will. I love and care about you a lot, Luigi. Do not change who you are. It's hard to find people with a heart as genuine as yours nowadays. I wish you nothing but happiness and health as well. Take good care of yourself and everyone else, okay?"

"You know I will." Luigi winked, giving the princess a sad but sincere-and-determined smile.

"I know," Peach beamed, giving Luigi a hug as she did with Daisy. "Goodbye, Luigi. Thank you... for everything."

"Anytime, princess."

"Hey, it's Peach! Don't be like your older brother!" She laughed, playfully tugging his green cap down a bit over his forehead.

Luigi chuckled and readjusted his cap.

"Okie dokie, Peach."

"And Mario," She gushed, putting her right hand to her right cheek. "You've always been my knight in shining overalls since Day One, haven't you?"

The plumber blushed and briefly looked down to his right, rubbing the back of his head and neck.

"I-I guess you could say that..."

Peach gave a small, fluttery laugh.

"Well, of course you are. You're my little superstar. And despite us being far away, you'll always be my 1-Up boy. I'll never forget the way that you looked at me when we first met all those years ago via the first time you battled Bowser to save me. Even though I was frightened out of my wits and thought nobody was going to come to my aid, you looked at me in a way that made everything alright again. Even though at the time I had no idea who you were, I knew I was going to be safe amongst your care. As weird as it sounds, just seeing your bright blue eyes, gave me all the strength and sanity that I needed. It was that determination, loving, and reassurance that gave me hope and comfort. Your bravery never fails to amaze me, Mario. You saw yourself as nothing more than a mere plumber from Brooklyn, unworthy of my trust or friendship because I was royalty. Well, over the years, I hope you can realise now that that's definitely not true. You're much more than that. You mean so much to everyone more than you can ever know. You're not only heroic but also a funny man that constantly makes me laugh, even if your jokes are so corny!"

She playfully jabbed Mario with her elbow and Mario chuckled and then gave the princess a wide grin.

"Speaking of laughing, you always cheer me up when my days are down, you're a shoulder to cry on, you're so quick to assist if someone or I is hurt, even if you are badly injured yourself and goodness, Mario! I could just ramble on for hours or even days about how much you always put others before yourself and that's a very honourable and noble thing to do. Not many people nowadays do so, so therefore I thank you in advance. I know you'll go far and do great things in your life because of your warm, welcoming and fond heart. Speaking of, just like I mentioned to Luigi, your brotherly love and closeness to him is admirable. To be honest, I've observed your relationship over the years to try and make a sisterly-like impact on Daisy. Not with everything between the two of you, of course, but I may have picked up a few snippets here and there, hmmm~ Anywho, the fiery determination and protection in regards to your loved ones in your eyes, never fades out. Anyone who can not see that concerns me because it's quite obvious that no matter what, you have proven that you do not need to be royalty or of high-class to be a strong, adorable, loving man. There's nothing more than I could ever want of a man than what you already have. I wouldn't change you for the world, dear. I love so, so much and I wish you nothing but health and happiness just like Daisy and Luigi. Thank you for being a part of my life and thank you for everything in general. You forever have my gratitude, along with the Toads', I'm sure."

With that being said, Peach hugged Mario tightly, buried her face in the crook of his neck and whispered;

"And I'm really going to miss you most of all, my beloved hero..."

He firmly hugged her back as she raised her face up and weakly smiled. Mario noticed she quickly blinked back tears and looked down at the ground as she stepped back from him to give him a bit of space.

"Are you ready, princess?" Toadsworth asked a slight waver in his voice.

̶P̶e̶r̶h̶a̶p̶s̶ ̶a̶ ̶r̶e̶c̶o̶n̶s̶i̶d̶e̶r̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶w̶h̶o̶l̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶n̶g̶?̶

"Yes, Toadsworth. I am," Turning back to Mario, she kissed his nose. "Goodbye, Mario..."

Toadsworth and the princess turned to leave, just as Mario suddenly reached down into his left pocket and clasped his gloved hand around the object he knew so well. The one he found out was in his pocket back at the diner with Peach -- the black box containing the ring for the proposal the plumber so badly wanted to ask the girl of his dreams. 

Would now be appropriate to...?

Sensing his brother's uneasiness, Luigi turned and gave him a look that read;

What are you waiting for, capo?! Now's your chance! 

Were you the one that...?

Yes, but that's not important! Get her now before she leaves! This will be your only chance. Fight for her, bro! Don't let them take her away!

You're right. Thanks, Weegie.

Luigi nodded and Mario's heart thumped in his chest. He could hear the blood roaring in his ears, turning them a shade of red, close enough to the colour of his cap. He took a deep breath.

It's now or never, right? So go get her, Mario! He urged himself.

"WAIT!" He screamed out, reaching his right hand out towards Toadsworth and Peach who both had their backs turned and who almost started to descend down the hill. Confused, they both stopped in their tracks and turned around.

"What is it, Mario?" Peach asked, confused.

We still have a chance. She assured me that herself. After all, it's not like she wants to marry Prince Haru, anyways, and as far as I know, we're still in a relationship so... 

"I-" He swallowed hard. "I have something to tell you..."

"Master Mario, the plane is going to be leaving quite shortly and-"

"Yes," Mario interrupted, forgetting his manners. "But I'm sure that they won't mind waiting a little more for this. T-This is important."

"It's okay," Peach assured her steward, briefly resting her hand on his shoulder. "We can let Mario speak."

Peach and Toadsworth came closer to Mario, although the latter strayed and lingered a bit back than Peach did.

"P-Peach..." He began. "P-Princess Peach."

Peach looked at him, curiously.

C'mon, you can do this. Don't be a coward and back out now! Just speak from the bottom of your heart.

"There are no words to describe my love for you, princess. It's time I told you how I really feel about you because I believe you deserve to know."

He sighed and bit his lip before slowly removing his cap and studying it in his hands. He dully stared down at it, awkwardly, for a brief moment - perhaps figuring out a way to choose his words - and continued to speak.

"Ever since I first laid my eyes on you, you took my breath away," He placed his cap back upon his head and gazed into her eyes to let her know that he's being straight-forward and serious now. "The feeling just grew stronger the more I spent time with you and realised just how special and treasured you are to not only others around you, but even to I as well, despite my title as nothing more than a mere commoner. One by no means raised from here, no less."

He gently grasped both of the princess' hands in his own before continuing.

"But besides that, I knew you were the only woman I was going to love for the rest of my life. I got to know you as a friend and a girlfriend and with that, I've learned that you are the loveliest woman I've ever known, inside and out. I feel like the luckiest man alive because of this and I feel so blessed. I want you to know that I'll never give up on you, princess. Either with Bowser or just any of your life problems in general. I can't thank you enough for being in my life. I love you so much, Princess Peach and over time, I've come to realise that you're more than just my best friend and girlfriend... you're the love of my life."

Daisy, Luigi and Toadsworth all stood in dumbfounded silence as they listened, Peach included. However, Peach's eyes were getting a little watery and Daisy and Luigi could feel the excitement and anticipation building in their bones and coursing throughout their whole bloodstream and body.

Still, the red-capped plumber paid them all no mind and got ready to ask the big question.

"But because of these strong feelings towards you, I just want to ask you one thing..."

It's now or never!

Daisy and Luigi were trying so hard not to fanboy and fangirl squeal as they held each other's hands, tightly and squirmed about.

Mario carefully let go of Peach's hands, stuck his hand in the left pant pocket of his overalls and got down on one knee, all the while slowly taking the small black box out of his pocket at the same time.

He took a deep breath and swallowed the lump in his throat, trying his best not to tremble in fear and speak with a shaky voice. However, he succeeded in not revealing the fact that he was incredibly nervous.

"Princess Peach Blossom Toadstool," He began with a masked confidence in his voice as he opened the box's lid, revealing the same shiny, pink sapphire ring that it had always held since the plumber bought it. "Will you do me the honour of becoming my wife?"

Peach was in shock, her hands flying to her mouth. It was clear that tears began to well in her eyes more than ever and fall down her cheeks. She was unable to move. To properly breathe. To say anything until Toadsworth did.

"Master Mario!" He demanded. "This is outrageous and inappropriate! We are leaving and she is getting married to Prince Haru! To do this is just a waste of yours and everyone else's time and-"

A stone-hard and ice cold glare from both Luigi and Daisy quickly shut him up.

"Princess Peach," He shook his head and tried to inch himself closer towards her frozen stature. "Come now, at once! We must get going."

However, she ignored him and so did Mario.

"A-Are you asking me to..." She whispered and then realising how quiet she was, she removed her hands and spoke louder. "Oh my stars... Are you asking me to marry you?"

"Yes, princess," The plumber replied, suddenly becoming a lot more uneasy as he was unsure of what she was getting at. "I-I know I'm incredibly short... and a bit chubby and in no place to marry royalty but-"

"YES!!!" She shouted, startling the other four.

"Wha-?"

"YES, BY ALL MEANS I'LL MARRY YOU!!!"

"You will?!" Mario and Toadsworth both equally exclaimed.

"Yes, of course I will, Mario! I love you so much!" She cried out, unacknowledging her steward.

Mario, with him still holding the box, jumped up in the air with delight.

"WAHOOOO!" 

He began running around atop of the hill and shouting happy sentences in both English and Italian and eventually found himself close to Daisy and Luigi who were both equally happy and excited for the newly engaged couple.

"Luigi! She said 'yes'! She said 'yes', Weegie!" He grinned and paced around like a child on a sugar rush.

"I know, I know! I heard!" He laughed. "Congrats, bro! And congrats to you too, Princess Peach!" He called, as Peach began giggling and laughing as she made her way up to the trio, leaving Toadsworth behind.

"Thank you!" She beamed.

"Yeah, congrats to the both of you! I'm so happy for you guys and I already can't wait for the marriage ceremony!"

"Thanks, Daisy!"

The three of them suddenly turned to hear Mario exclaim to Toadsworth in the distance;

"SHE SAID 'YES'!!! YIPPEEE!"

Peach rolled her eyes and Luigi chuckled.

"Yeah, we're gonna have to live with that for a bit, especially me until he moves in with you after the two of you are married but we'll live."

"Yeah, I mean, it's Mario we're talking about here." Peach laughed.

"Yeah..." Luigi nodded. "Y'know, princess, he's been waiting a while to do that. Propose, I mean. He's always thought about marrying you, but never quite had the courage to do it. You must've given him a lot of strength and hope."

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah, for sure. Thanks for looking out for my bro." He smiled, holding Daisy with one arm by the waist.

"Of course. I'll take care of him, I promise."

"Haha, I'm sure you will."

"Unless Mario takes care of you, first. You know he will, more." Daisy chimed in.

"Yes, but at this point... I think it's safe to say that Mario needs someone besides me to help him out in life. Especially with him being all... as he likes to say; 'Cuckoo-Crazy'. I know it'll hurt since we've been used to staying by each other's side since before we've been born, but I know that's life and it's great to see he found someone he can trust. I trust you too, Peach and I'll know you'll make a lovely wife and influence for him."

"Thank you, Luigi. Those words will mean a lot," The princess smiled. "And don't worry, you and Daisy are more than welcome to visit the castle at any time you desire."

"Thank you." The couple said in unison.

"Of course! Now, let's get Mario before he gets his overalls way too twisted and finds himself lost." Peach laughed.

"Agreed." Luigi laughed. Then cupping his hands around his mouth, he shouted; "BRO! COME BACK HERE!"  

Mario bounded over, a huge grin still plastered across his face.

"Mhm?"

"You should try the ring on Peach."

"Oh, yes!" He exclaimed, suddenly calming down a bit more and getting the engagement ring out of his pocket. "My bad."

He gently took the ring out of the box and stuffed it back into his left pocket. Then, holding Peach's right hand with his left, he held the ring in his right hand and held it up. It shimmered in the early sunset light.

"Ah, may I...?"

"Of course." Peach responded, holding out her left hand so Mario could slide the ring onto her ring finger, to which he did with ease. It was a perfect fit and everyone else thought so, too.

"It fits her perfectly, bro!"

"Yeah," Daisy chimed in. "And it looks lovely too, but even more so when she's wearing it!"

"Of course because she's la mia adorabile principessa. My lovely princess." The red-capped hero translated with pride.

Peach gushed and kissed Mario to which he happily returned back.

"Do you have a wedding ring for when the two of you make it official-official yet, bro?"

"No," Mario replied after he pulled away from Peach. "I've only gotten around to getting the engagement ring so far."

"No worries," Peach assured her fiancé, placing a hand on his shoulder with a smile. "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it. This engagement ring is absolutely splendid either way, anyways."

"Glad you think so, my love."

The two of them shared another small kiss as Toadsworth approached the four of them, looking quite unhappy and confused. Two other figures were by his side as well - Toadette and one of the Flower-koku/Flower Kingdom citizens. The four of them were so caught up in their own worlds, they didn't see Toadsworth leave or notice the other two join him until they all came up to the quartet.

"Princess Peach, this has gone on for far too long. You are to come with us at once!"

"I'm not going anywhere with you!"

Toadette narrowed her eyes.

"I'm so sick and tired of your constant whining and complaining. So is Toadsworth! Honestly, this all would've been so much easier if the ball hit you in the head back on that tennis court and knocked you out. But no, Mario, Luigi and Daisy just had to intervene! Such frustrations. Toadsworth wasn't very happy either..."

Peach could hardly believe what she was hearing. This wasn't the Toadette she knew and loved at all.

"W-What do you mean? Just what exactly are you getting at?" Peach asked, raising an eyebrow. Her heart began to pound in her chest.

"Ugh, do I have to spell everything out for you? I wanted this the whole time! It was my idea! Not Toadsworth's! He just agreed to everything that I rearranged. It makes me sick to have had to see a princess bond over a mere commoner such as himself over the years. That was never how the tradition went, princess!" 

"How dare you?!" Peach yelled, and she hardly ever did. Forgetting and caring less about her manners, she strictly pointed towards the mushroom girl. "What went on between Mario and I in regards to our relationship is certainly none of your business! Besides, I never heard or see you complain about Daisy and Luigi!"

Toadette glanced away from the ruler and dryly chuckled. It appeared to be sunless and unwelcoming.

"What goes on between them is none of my business," She waved around. "You, on the other hand, are my business and Toadsworth's, actually. It was assigned by your parents for us, though mostly Toadsworth, to take care of you. Besides, I need to make sure us Toads are being ruled over and taken care of properly by royalty. Not a stupid plumber who can barely take care of himself or his younger brother."

"Don't you dare speak ill of Mario like that!" Peach snapped, narrowing her eyes. "You know that's not true whatsoever! You've seen how-"

But Mario cut her off and boy, was he angry! However, he still tried to hold onto the little bit of sanity he had left. Same with the other couple.

"Don't you ever dare speak about me like that when you know nothing! Nothing at all and especially do not in any way speak to my fiancée like that! You have no right!"

"And Mario can take care of me and everyone else! He's the best big brother anyone could ever ask for!" Luigi snapped.

"Well, it doesn't matter," Toadette sneered. "We are all going to the Flower Kingdom and you, little Miss Peach, are getting married to Prince Haru and assisting with the ruling of his kingdom either way, so you may as well forget about anything else besides your new life and future!"

"No!" Peach cried out, balling her hands into fists. "I'm staying here and cancelling this trip at once! Mario and I are engaged and we are getting married whether anyone likes it or not!"

"That's right!" Daisy agreed, firmly. "And it's not up to anyone besides those two, anyways!"

"Looks like we're going to have to do this the hard way..." Toadsworth sighed.

The Flower-koku citizen and Toadette tried to grab Peach, but Mario shoved them back, trying his best not to attack or use any source of physical violence unless absolutely necessary. Luigi and Daisy tried to intervene as well, but nobody was making it easy.

A small fight over Peach broke out until she screamed, "ENOUGH!", making everyone stop what they were doing. 

"This is ridiculous! We shouldn't be treating each other like this! We're supposed to be a team! Not working against each other! Why can't you all just understand that?"

"You're right," Toadsworth sighed. "But we wouldn't have resulted to this if everything was done the much simpler way and by that, you know what I mean."

"Run away with me." Mario suddenly urged Peach, quietly, as he gently grabbed one of her hands.

"What?" Shock and confusion filled her face from what she just heard.

"Run away with me," He repeated. "I-I know it sounds crazy but just for a little while, okay? Somewhere with just the two of us to clear our heads out from all this madness. You clearly don't belong at the Flower Kingdom and your acceptance of my proposal just confirms that."

Peach looked around at everyone and back at Mario.

"But what about Daisy and Luigi and the rest of my citizens?"

"We won't be too long. We'll come back. We'll tell them the flights are cancelled and about our engagement after we return, I promise. As for my bro, he suggested it to me and he'll inform Daisy if she doesn't know already."

Peach took a deep breath.

"Okay," She announced aloud. "I've made my decision..."

"You're coming with us?" The Flower-koku citizen asked, hopefully.

"I-"

She looked at Mario and he glanced at her in return.

Suddenly, she broke out in a sprint, despite her nearly fumbling and tripping over her heels.

"HEY!" Toadette yelled. "SHE'S GETTING AWAY!"

Mario smirked and ran after Peach. Because he ran faster than the princess did, he quickly caught up to her and scooped her up in his arms, to which she squealed and laughed with shock and delight at the action.

"My ruler needs a wife!" The Flower-koku citizen huffed, crossing his arms. "No fair, that was a real sneaky move!"

"AFTER THEM, THEN!" Toadette screamed.

"Toadette, we're never going to be able to catch up to Master Mario and the princess. You already know that. Especially in regards to an older Toad such as I." Toadsworth sighed.

Toadette screamed in frustration and then noticed Daisy and Luigi still present.

"What are you looking at?!" She snapped.

"A two-year-old brat." Daisy remarked to which Luigi and her both laughed.

Toadette growled.

"I think that's our cue to leave as well." Luigi smirked.

Daisy nodded.

"Definitely."

The two of them began to laugh and run away as well, Luigi scooping up his own princess and leaving the three of them behind to hear the echoes and laughter of the couple in the distance.

~END~