Summary: Sick of being kidnapped and not being able to fend for herself, Peach goes with a well known Scholar in search of the Crystal Stars. But she finds out it's more then she bargained for. Takes place after Thousand Year Door. All details explained in the story! Dunno if I will have slash or not. Slash makes it fun, so... we'll see!
Disclaimer: I own nothing, except for Cumulo Nimbus. Creative name eh?
Peach and the Crystal Stars - Prologue
"Good morning Toad Town! This is DJ Ligh T. and it is a beautiful today here in Toad Town! Weather Toads predict a small chance of rain, so keep your umbrellas close when out today! Now for the news brought to you by Russ T. Russ, over to you..."
"Thank you Ligh, today..."
Scholar Cumulo Nimbus folded his the Toad Town Times on the table and took another drink of his coffee. It was indeed a very nice day out. He sat back in his chair and crossed his legs, reading the back of the paper. He was sitting outside of the recently opened Tayce T.'s Café. Scholar Cumulo was only a teenager, no more then 17. He had light brown hair which fell down covering his ears, but not so far as to reach his shoulders. He had soft blue eyes and strong facial features. He was incredibly handsome to many female Toads in and around Toad Town. It was just Toads, but many females. Many a time had Goombario's family come to Toad Town to shop, and Goomama had flirted with Cumulo. Incredibly embarrassed, Goombario rushed her off to the shops, leaving his tittering little sister behind to play with him. Many witnesses who did not know of the Scholar would greatly mistake him for not being one. He was muscular and defined body wise, not the thin and gangling nerd the stereotype brought onto Scholars. He was wearing dark blue jeans and tennis shoes which were worn out from his travels amongst the Mushroom Kingdom. He wore a black t-shirt which clung to him nicely, and a blue button up silk t-shirt which covered the black one. He looked more like regular teenage human than a world famous Scholar. He placed his newspaper on top of a large book.
"Good morning Cumulo! What brings you here today?"
The Scholar looked in front of him to see Princess Peach walking towards him. She had beauty long blonde hair. On her head rested a brilliant crown decorated with jewels. She wore a large pink dress with a blue oval brooch resting on her bosom. White gloves strolled up from the tips of her fingers and reached her elbows. She was accompanied by a Toad guard from the castle.
"The usual coffee and radio listen in. Not much news this morning I'm afraid," the Scholar told her as he smirked.
"Oh dear... Well, the Kingdom usually is very peaceful, so I'm sure there isn't much news," the Princess spoke as she sat in the chair across from Cumulo. "In fact, the only time there IS news is when Bowser kidnaps me."
"Indeed so," Cumulo chuckled. "I'm surprised he hasn't tried his usual schemes lately. Hasn't he realized that Mario will always come to rescue you?"
"Correctly put. Heck, I'm sure I could probably pay the two as it seems to be there jobs. Kidnapper and Rescuer," the Princess spoke nonchalantly as she took Cumulo's cup of coffee. "You don't mind, do you?"
"Not at all..."
"It was entirely sweet at first, Mario coming to the rescue, but it was just that he saw Pauline in me well and thought rescuing me would make him miss her less," Peach spoke as she placed the cup in front of her. "He's sweet, but he's missed Pauline ever since him and Luigi arrived here. Rather then being hurt, I invited the girl to move out here so they'd be together."
Cumulo smiled as he patted Peach's hand. "That's very sweet of you Peach. And hey, I'm sure you'll find your Prince Charming someday."
The Princess smiled as she rested her head on her hand as her elbow propped her up on the table. "So what's new with you Cumulo? Any exciting revelations or adventures to go on?"
"You know me too well Peach. The recent expedition with Kolorado was... most unfortunate," Cumulo said uncomfortably.
"That's what I heard. Did the Lava Piranha ever let him free?" Peach said as she chuckled. Cumulo cracked a smile.
"After a swift battle it did. I never rely on him too much whenever we go anywhere. Me and Kooper took care of the Piranha. He was more of a burden then help," Cumulo spoke as he covered his face with embarrassment. "We never did get to those ruins in Mt. Lavalava. He comes to help us fight, and lands right in the lava. And the Lava Piranha gobbled him right up." Peach started to laugh pretty hard as the Toad patrons looked over in curiosity as to why their Princess was laughing hard. She coughed and retained her composure.
"So, where are you off to next?"
"Rogueport. Me, 'Bella, and Vivian are going to excavate the Crystal Stars and the Shadow Palace. After the incident with the Shadow Queen, the Crystal Stars sealed the palace and took off back to where they were originally suppose to be stored," the Scholar spoke as Peach shifted in her chair.
"Ah, yes..." Peach said a bit uncomfortably, remembering the incident all too well. She crossed her legs and sat there thinking for a moment. "Cumulo..."
"Yes?"
"Do you think that, I could come along with you?"
The Toad Guard looked absolutely mortified at this thought, but a sharp glare from Peach set him back in his place. "Why's that Princess?"
"I've been thinking. Ever since that incident, I really am just a helpless whelp. I figured maybe I should go out and rough it up a bit. Get rough around the edges, learn to protect myself..."
"Your Royal Highness, if I may interject," the Toad Guard spoke frantically as Peach frowned. "This is out of the question! What if Bowser comes to capture you? What happens if you get captured again! The Minister won't here of this!"
Peach frowned heavily and Cumulo knew the guard was in for it. "What happens if I'm captured again, from the safety of my room? It's happened time after time! And Mario won't save me forever! He has to get on with his life! He has Pauline. He can't just leave her every week to come rescue me from wherever I may be!" Peach spoke angrily. "I need to do this for myself. The castle life is great, and I love my people. But... how am I suppose to rule over them if I'm being kidnapped left and right? I need to do this..."
The guard looked taken aback, but nodded none-the-less. "You know Toadsworth won't stand for this."
"Well, that's too bad. Besides, I have Cumulo with me. He'll protect me if I can't protect myself. And besides, I'll get to see the world outside my castle doors!" the Princess said excitedly as Cumulo chuckled.
"I guarantee she'll be fine with me. Promise," Cumulo said, holding up his hand. The guard frowned in Cumulo's direction.
"Well. I must be back to the castle. Would you like to accompany me?" Peach said as she got up and stretched. Cumulo nodded as he stood up and grabbed his book. He waved to Tayce before the three of them headed off towards the Castle grounds.
"Cumulo... Can you teach me to fight?" the Princess asked as they pass through the town heading towards the large castle in front of them.
"Of course. I can give you tips. But most of the fighting will be relying on your inner power and dodging attacks," Cumulo said as he closed his eyes. "Anyone can fight. But it takes a lot of practice to become a good fighter."
The Princess smiled and nodded. She looked around the square in front of the castle gates. She spotted Parakarry leaving the Post Office. She nodded to him as he flew into the air, ready for his day's route around the Kingdom. They passed Merlon's house and its spinning roof before the three entered the castle grounds. Cumulo's gaze lingered to his right as he saw Shooting Star Summit off in the distance. He loved it there. It was his favorite place to go when he needed peace and quiet. He knew that the Summit led to Star Haven via the Star Road. He had always wanted to go the Star Haven to see its wonders and its beauty, but the road was never open unless it was to Mario or his friends. Cumulo could only agree as they had saved the Star Spirits which lived in Star Haven.
"ABSOLUTELY NOT!" Toadsworth's voice rang throughout the castle grounds, bringing Cumulo back. The Peach crossed her arms in anger.
"Why not!" she demanded. Toadsworth started to go into a long, detailed explanation as the Princess uncrossed her arms and covered her ears while closing her eyes. Toadsworth got even more angry until he started jumping up and down in anger. "Look!" the Princess yelled in a loud voice, much unlike her delicate self. "I'm sick of this and this is something I need to do! And as such, I'm not asking, but ordering this! I need you to sit in for my royal duties while I'm gone, including all meetings, visits to foreign lands, and other things. The visit to the Beanbean Kingdom is tomorrow. The tickets are in my drawer in my room." Toadsworth looked really angry and glared darkly at Cumulo.
"If anything should happen to her! It's on your head! OUCH I say!" Toadsworth cried out as Peach's fist hit the top of his head. He groaned in pain and clutched his old spotted head. Cumulo bit his lip as to not start laughing hysterically. This was a side to Peach nobody had ever seen, except maybe Toadsworth.
"I guarantee you I will come back more experienced and delicate as ever," Peach said as she frowned heavily. "I'll be fine. Cumulo is an excellent fighter. He's not called the Scholar Mage for nothing you know." Cumulo blushed heavily at the compliment and mutter incoherently under his breath. "And also... if I find anyone following me, I'll make sure they get their rightful butt kicking!"
Cumulo grinned widely at the Princess's spunk. "Yes yes... But Peach, you aren't going to be fighting like that are you? In dress and heels?" Cumulo asked as he scanned Peach's outfit. "The only thing I recommend is that you keep your crown." Understanding Peach's curious glance, the Scholar Mage grabbed the crown by the bottom and smashed it against a Guard Toad's shield. It was left with a large dent while the middle of the shield started to crumble. He spun the crown on his finger.
"Whoa! I didn't think of that!" Peach said brightly as Cumulo rolled his eyes. "But, I'll go change! I've had an outfit PERFECT for this occasion!"
"PRINCESS!"
Peach had dashed off up to her room leaving Toadsworth in a frantic. He didn't say anything to Cumulo, but glared heavily at the Scholar. A few minutes later, Peach returned wearing an adventurer's outfit. The Princess had put up her hair into a ponytail, leaving her quite funny-looking without her crown. She was wearing a green, button up shirt which clung to her nicely. Over it, she was wearing a long sleeved beige raincoat. and over waist hung a large brown belt. She was wearing a deep green skirt which fell to her knees, meeting up with her socks. Cumulo looked quite impressed.
"Princess! You can still stay here! Let some sense come to you..." Toadsworth pleaded with his Princess as Cumulo attached the crown to her belt for easy attacking access.
"Do we need supplies?" Peach asked looking down at Cumulo, completely ignoring Toadsworth.
"Princess! Please! You must stay here! Your Kingdom needs you!" Toadsworth tried, starting to panic.
"We have everything we need inside my book. Tents, food, sleeping bags, everything," Cumulo told her as he fiddled with the crown some more.
"Princess! Don't go!"
Peach turned and looked at Toadsworth, glaring very heavily. "Toadsworth! I'm going, whether you like it or not. And I said, you're not gonna convince me otherwise! So just deal with it! When I come back, I'll be a whole new Peach!"
Toadsworth sighed as a mortified look filled his face. Peach planted a kiss on the Toad's cheek and bade her farewell to her loyal companions. With that, the two walked out of the palace. They walked out of the gates and stood next to Merlon's house.
"You know... I can't just rightly attack with my crown. I mean, I need some sort of weapon..." Peach said. "Like Mario's Ultra Hammer! That'd be fantastic to use, but I'm afraid it'll be to heavy."
Cumulo stopped and paged through his book. Peach peeked over her shoulder, staring at the book. It wasn't very thick, but the pages seemed never ending. He flipped through until he landed on a page decorated with weapons. "We need something... that's perfect for you..."
"Oh! Something pink!"
Cumulo looked to the Post Office and rolled his eyes. Even in kick-butt mode, Peach still loved pink. He looked over the variety of weapons. Though they were not pink, with his magic it would be simple to have them pink. The parts that were not made of steel at least. "Hmmm... These all seem very, very advanced for you," Cumulo stated as he turned the page. "AH! Here we go! These will be perfect!" Cumulo set down the book and brought his hand from the page upwards. Fifteen different key chains floated from the book and landed on the ground next to Peach, who kneeled down.
"They're... Mario's partners?" she asked slowly as she picked up a key chain that resembled Bombette. Its tiny feet were moving and the turn dial on her back was spinning.
"Precisely. These key chains give you the one move that each has respectively. So... in order from first met... You'll have Goombario's ability to Charge, Kooper's ability of Fire Shell, though it will make you dizzy. You also gain Bombette's Bomb attack, Parakarry's Air Raid, Lady Bow's Outta Sight, Watt's Turbo Charge, Sushie's Water Block, Lakilester's Cloud Nine, 'Bella's Tattle with a book, Koops's Shell Shield, Flurrie's Lip Lock, Spike's Stampede, Vivian's Fiery Jinx, Bobbery's Bomb Squad, and last but not least, Ms. Mowz's Kiss Thief." Peach looked a bit dazed as she held the 15 key chains in her hand. She nodded slowly trying to comprehend the amount of information given to her. "They... won't be powerful at first," Cumulo told her as he helped attach the key chains to her belt. "But, they will grow in power sometime afterwards. And eventually, you can learn the attacks without the aid of the key chains."
Peach furrowed her eyebrow. "How can I do that? I mean... Isn't everyone's ability their own?"
"Anyone can learn anything they set their hearts content to. If you work hard, you'll be rewarded well. Goombario and 'Bella have the same attack: Multibonk. Goombario's Grandfather knew it as well," Cumulo explained to her as she nodded in understanding. Cumulo checked his watch. "We better be going. The ship to Rogueport leaves in 15 minutes."
Cumulo grabbed his book and tucked it under his arm. The two quickly made their way to the Port, Peach's key chains dangling from her belt. She felt uneasy about the hardships she was going to face, but the excitement buried the uneasiness in a heartbeat. She wasn't going to be a dainty Princess anymore. She would come back stronger and more knowledgeable then ever. And when the time would come for her to be kidnapped, she would definitely fight back, and succeed in winning.
"Are you Peach?" Cumulo asked as he boarded the small boat. Peach's eyes flashed with a determined looked. She confidently strode onto the boat.
"Try and stop me!"