Everyone says having children is a miracle. It is a big life accomplishment that deserved the grandest of fanfare and is an absolute dream come true. there is nothing like raising a child of your own. Those people clearly are pretty stupid.

I have eight kids. EIGHT kids. A magical journey of self discovery resulting in endless amounts of love and gratitude my ASS. Sure, i love my kids. I have had many great memories with each one of the little buggers. I honestly can't say i regret fathering them. Even if i give them a hard time on occasion, i just care about my future land rulers.

But there has never been a job more difficult than raising all those damn kids. And though i am a tough shelled king, being a single parent is scary as hell at times. I can not tell you how many accidents my sons have gotten into and have been injured. I swear, my heart can not take much more of this.

but the number one fear i have is for my only daughter. She is a spoiled brat, but i guess i have myself to blame for that. I can't help it though, she is my little girl and i hate seeing her disappointed. plus she throws the worst tantrums. i guess i am going a bit soft.

I chuckled to myself as i stomped down the hall. Ever since i had my kids, practically all my life and thoughts were devoted to them. It was kind of sad. My face suddenly went into it's oh so familiar scowl. My fears came back and began to cloud my mind. The only reason i was in this wing of the castle, the one that held my children's rooms when they visited, was because i was full of worry today.

Ludwig, my oldest, came to me a few days ago and shared his concerns about his younger sister. She had been a bit disconnected from the group lately. All she did was hide out in her room all day and when she did emerge Wendy acted very strangely. I expected him to say she was acting snappy or quickly changing moods since that is what most girls her age experience. And yet he mentioned how kind she was being.

I know my Wendy, and she is the most stubborn and unforgiving girl i have ever encountered. Honestly, i have NO idea where she gets that unique ability to hold grudges for years on end. Never moving from her objective, repeating the same mistakes for the longest time even if there is no point anymore and possibly hazardous to her health. yeah, no idea. So hearing about how out of character she was being made me wonder if i should be relived with the behavior or worried.

I decided not to dwell to much on it. At first. Then my son Roy brought it up. Well, more like he was complaining about how 'weird his stupid sister was being'. That raised some red flags. Now, i was reduced to a mess of worry for my wonderful daughter. Roy whined about how loudly she played her music and how disconnected she was being. In the most gruff and manly way possible of course.

so now, i was thinking about the possibility of Wendy being in some sort of trouble. Maybe she was getting into drugs, that would explain the off behavior. That thought made my stomach drop and i hurried my pace. Maybe it was something worse, something i couldn't help her out of. I was practically running now, the halls shaking loudly under my heavy footsteps. It was at times like these, where my heart was so heavy with fear that it seemed to slow me down further, that i wondered why i had kids in the first place. and why i had such long hallways.

I heard the thumping beat of loud music before i even approached her door. I cursed myself for not noticing the changes in Wendy before, but i always figured if something was bothering her she would tell me. i guess i was wrong. I came to a screeching halt in front of her door and grabbed the doorknob. I pondered why having a daughter had to be so complicated as i rushed into her room.

Wendy was shocked to see me, gasping in mortification. I froze, unable to move a single muscle. She was sitting on her bed with one of my soldiers in her lap. He was a very young koopa troopa that i was unfamiliar with, suggesting that he was new. He had lipstick marks on his face that was the exact same shade as my daughter's. She was holding him to her tightly, they were obviously very close.

I felt the cold chill of absolute horror wash over me. For like one second. Then I found myself stomping forward suddenly, the young disgusting troop hassling my little girl quickly trying to scramble away. I picked him up by the shell and brought him up to my face. "Daddy! Stop!" Wendy screeched. The plea fell on deaf ears as a burning hot rage began to fill me. I felt my face turn red in anger as i glared right into the terrified eyes of the solider. The koopa troopa was shaking, absolutely terrified.

"How DARE you put your filthy hands on my baby girl!?" i said through growls and roars that i knew any member of my military could decipher. "I...I...Um...D-Don't hurt me!" The solider gulped. "Oh, you don't even know the MEANING of pain! Just wait 'till i'm done with you!" I yelled. The young man looked like he was about to piss himself.

Wendy stood and waddled as best as she could over the soft mattress towards me. She grabbed my arm and started to yank on it. Furious shouts and curses were sent my way as Wendy tried to save the koopa. Yet she was so tiny compared to me and pulling on my arm was obviously not doing much. i walked away, heading towards a window in her room. She continued to screech, but i was kind of preoccupied with being engulfed in absolute fury. I held the koopa out of the room, dangling who knows how many feet above the stone courtyard.

The young solider began to scream loudly, begging for his pathetic life. "please s-sir! Wendy is... i mean... i-i...um..." the koopa, despite the situation, began to blush. This only provoked me further. "I am going to KILL you!" I hissed. "DAD! PUT MY BOYFRIEND DOWN RIGHT NOW!" Wendy ordered angrily, stamping her little high heeled shoe on the ground out of frustration. I turned towards her immediately, surprise evident on my face.

"b-boyfriend!? you are too young for that!" i spluttered. She continued to glare at me, a blush of embarrassment covering her cheeks. "That's none of your business daddy." she grumbled, looking away sheepishly. i took a few steps toward her, flinging the poor koopa in my hand around even more. "You bring some pathetic wimp into your room, without my permission, and let him put his hands on you! I can not believe you would do that Wendy! i should ground you for the rest of your life!" i roared.

"You would have NEVER let me date dad, and you know it! you are a stubborn old fool." she shot back, beginning to pout a little. I knew a temper tantrum was about to ensue, but i kept on pushing it. "Well, since you didn't ask first, I am definitely never going to let you date now. I NEVER want you to see this pathetic koopa" i pointed at the solider in my hand to emphasize my point, "ever again." i finished.

I saw an immediate flash of pain go through my daughter's eyes. Her bottom lip began to quiver slightly as she clenched her fists tightly. She was about to throw a tantrum, a big one by the looks of it. Yet i did not waver, i felt so betrayed by my own daughter at that point. Couldn't she see i just wanted her safe? But then Wendy took a deep breath, and calmed down. She looked at me, so much raw adolescent pain in her eyes. "Fine dad, ground me. do whatever you damn well please! But there is NO way you are keeping me from him. Or, god forbid, any other man i date. I am not your little girl any more dad, but i still am going to get my way whether you like it or not." She said very calmly.

My heart shattered at her behavior and words. The koopa in my hand had stopped struggling, and was now frowning at that hurt look on Wendy's face. he began to soothe her softly with sweet words. She looked up at him and smiled lovingly. I suddenly dropped the koopa,and he was surprised but expertly landed on his feet. "Get out", i growled gesturing to my daughter's door. He began to walk off, but then quickly gave my daughter a gentle hug. He then ran out quickly, which was good because i started lunging at him.

I looked at my daughter, "We will talk about this later." She sniffled, tears welling up a little in her eyes. She turned away from me, "Whatever. just leave me alone." Wendy was obviously hurt and wanted some time to herself. I sighed in agitation and stormed out. I slammed her door shut childishly and rubbed my temples to ward off my growing headache. "whoa", i heard someone say. I looked up to see my seven sons gathered in the hallway, obviously drawn in by the sounds of an argument. There was a drawn out silence between us. None of my sons knew what to say, having absolutely no experience with this situation.

Ludwig decided the best thing to do right now was to leave me alone. i gratefully watched him as he walked towards his room. The others followed suit, and soon it was just junior left standing there. My youngest walked up to me and pat my knee. "Sorry papa." he said. He then ran off to his own room. The apology just made me feel worse as i too stomped off. The sound of loud music flowed out of Wendy's room and chased me down the hall. I sighed, my worst fear was coming true. i knew it was bound to happen, but not so soon.

My little girl was starting to grow up.

- A/N-

Hey everyone, i hope you like this one shot i whipped up. I do not own the Mario franchise. if i did i am pretty sure i wouldn't have any free time to write fanfictions. That's all, until next time!

p.s. screw diamonds, reviews are a girl's best friend!