At the moment, it was generally accepted by the citizens of the Mushroom Kingdom that Mario and Peach were going steady. "Aw, it's so perfect!" they gushed. "Mario has Peach and Luigi has Daisy!" Indeed, it almost seemed too good to be true…

It was. While everyone was under the impression the Peach was in love with Mario, she had actually been arranging for Bowser to kidnap her. Occasionally, she would go to see him on her own, but people would become suspicious if she were to leave the castle unescorted more than once a month. Therefore, on the appointed days, Peach would work it so that she would be alone in her room for an extended period of time. This made it easier for Bowser to pick her up in his Clown-Copter and fly her away to the Darklands. Then the two lovers would have a few hours (or a few days if they were lucky) to be together before the Mario Bros. would burst into Bowser's castle and take Peach back to the Mushroom Kingdom.

This arrangement worked well for Bowser. As a Koopa, he was used to secret plots and deception (no offense to Koopas). Plus, he knew he would never be accepted by the Mushroom Kingdom, so he figured it was better to just keep the naïve population of Toads in the dark. Peach was happy as well… for the most part. She wasn't comfortable with hiding their relationship from her people… or Mario.

That was the worst part for Peach; lying to Mario. In the beginning, she truly had loved him in the romantic way. He was kind and sweet and thoughtful and brave. Not to mention his cute Italian accent. It wasn't long before they were on their first date, and then one thing led to another. Of course, this all changed when she met Bowser.

It was the one and only time Peach had been kidnapped against her will. The first time she heard him speak, she realized she had a deep and powerful passion for bad boys. Or, in this case, bad Super Koopas. But he wasn't evil like most people would have you believe. Oh, no. He was a little selfish and had a tendency to brag, but underneath his hard, spiked shell, he truly loved Peach. Bowser was also strong, romantic, gentlemanly, daring, and a loving father of eight. Really, you couldn't blame her for falling desperately in love with him.

But she couldn't break the news to Mario. Though she no longer cared for him in the romantic way, she couldn't bear to hurt him like that; to tell him that he had lost to Bowser. But it was just as painful to hide it from him. She still loved Mario, but not enough to change anything. Peach wished that, in some way, she could keep both Bowser and Mario. Bowser would stay the love of her life, and Mario would be… her best friend. Her very best friend. They could laugh and joke and go on picnics, just like old times. And now and then, she would allow him to give her a chaste, brotherly peck on the cheek. And perhaps she would return the favor. But nothing more. This is what Peach wanted more than anything in the world, but she knew it would never happen.

Imagine, for a moment, that you are the ruler of a large and powerful country. Imagine having everything you could possibly need at your fingertips. Imagine wanting just one, simple thing, and knowing that you could never, ever have it. Peach knew very well that Lumas don't grant wishes having to do with affairs of the heart. That, they said to themselves, would be cheating.

Which is exactly what Peach was doing. Cheating. On Mario. With Bowser. It was almost ridiculous. And Peach was beginning to think that Mario was starting to suspect what was going on. Surely he had noticed that she didn't want to make out all the time anymore. Maybe he had realized that she didn't stare at him with the right amount of passion in her eyes. There was a slight chance that he had noticed how shyly she touched him now, as if that kind of physical contact was foreign or taboo. And though 

Peach was terrified of telling Mario what was going on, she was even more scared of what might happen if he found out the full extent of her betrayal on his own.

One day, Peach put on a dark hooded cloak and called a cab. "To the Darklands, please," she told the cabbie. When they arrived at the border, she paid her driver and continued on toward Bowser's dark palace. The guards let her in at once. If Bowser used up so much time trying to kidnap Peach, surely he would want to see her if she came on her own free will, they reasoned. Bowser met her in the entrance hall, unsurprised but enthusiastic.

"Peach!" he cried with a wide grin upon his face. "It's wonderful to have you here!"

Peach ran to his waiting embrace and kissed him full on the mouth. She loved to feel his muscular arms wrap gently around her slight frame, adored the heat of his chest against hers, and ached for the soft caress of his lips (he did actually have lips).

When they broke apart, Peach whispered, "I'm glad I'm here, too."

She fleetingly wondered if anyone had noticed that she was missing from her castle yet. Hopefully not. If they had, Toadsworth would jump to conclusions and have everyone in an uproar. "Why would Peach leave without telling anyone?" they would wonder. And everyone would point the finger of blame at Bowser. Wasting no time on inconsequential things like "evidence" and "facts", someone would call up a hero to save the day. It was always an Italian plumber wearing overalls, a red cap, and a determined expression.

Mario…

It pained her to think of him worrying about her. Or worse, knowing exactly what she was doing.

"What's wrong, love?" Bowser asked, concern written over his every feature. That was one of the best things about Bowser, really. He was so aware of things. He always knew exactly how she felt. Not to say that Mario disregarded her feeling or anything, he was just happily oblivious.

"Bowser… I think… we need to stop seeing each other for a while," Peach told him haltingly. "Just for a little while, you understand."

Pain and disappointment briefly flickered across Bowser's face before he composed himself. "Why?"

"Because… I can't keep deceiving Mario like this. It's wrong for me to let him believe that I'm still in love with him when… things are different now. I know you don't like him, but try to understand that what hurts him hurts me too. It hurts, Bowser."

Bowser deliberated for a moment. Then, he spoke. "When you put it like that, I can't exactly say no, can I?" He sighed heavily. "Ok then. But once you've… sorted things out… you… you'll come back, won't you?"

Peach could see something in his eyes that was so helpless and child-like that it made her heart tremble. "Of course I'll come back. Nothing could make me stay away forever." She leaned into him, burying her face into his burning chest. For a moment they stood like that, clinging to each other.

Finally, Peach sighed. "I suppose I really ought to be heading home now. They're probably looking for me."



Bowser sighed as well. "Very well, but first…" And then he gently tilted her face toward his, and tenderly kissed her good-bye.

As Peach walked to the border, she tried not to think about what she had to do. All her life she had told the truth, and all the lies she had been telling recently were weighing down on her. She had to tell Mario. And she had to tell him tonight.