Have you checked out my pa t re o n yet? You should! It's where you'll find all sorts of art and extras for this story and all my other stories! I just posted a ton of public stuff there! And you'll see even more if you choose to donate!

Please consider donating! It will allow me to keep my stories public!

Also, sorry for the recent delays. My friend of many many years was in the hospital recently, and it kind of threw off my entire schedule. I'm back on track now, though! So please read, review, and enjoy!

Chapter 10:

As Luigi did his best to try and explain to Yoshi the unbelievable incident that had left Mario in the form of a gigantic monster, The Royal Toad Guards gently guided Princess Peach past the plumber and into the castle walls. Though they knew she was interested in hearing the entire story in detail again, they also knew that she had royal duties to perform. And her senior attendant was counting on them to make sure she got things done. They would leave Luigi some space to bring Yoshi up to speed, knowing he would accompany them inside once he was finished.

As soon as the elaborately decorated mahogany door eased shut with a dull, echoed thud, a short and frazzled form appeared from one of the far rooms down the great hall. It took the aging toad less than a second to recognize the three royal figures who had entered unannounced. With a weary yet overall relieved sigh, Toadsworth hurriedly hobbled down the hall with the help of his knobby walking stick to meet up with the returning Princess and her guards.

"Your majesty! Thank heavens you're back." The elder toad wheezed. "I know you were only a few minutes later than what we agreed on, but I couldn't help worrying you had run into trouble somewhere along the way." Toadsworth came to a stop in his standard position just beside his Princess. "It's a good thing your first foreign representative today is so understanding. I trust Master Luigi made it home safely?"

The two Royal Soldiers standing opposite the Princess and her attendant shared a solemn glance. Peach, too, was overcome with renewed sorrow for the heroic brothers predicament, and she lowered her head to her chest in despair. Toadsworth, baffled as to what the others seemed to know that he did not, nervously looked about and waited for an explanation.

"It's Mario, Toadsworth..." Peach brushed a lock of golden hair from her face. "Luigi was right. Something... Something terrible has happened to him."

"Ah ah! My dear Princess! I'm afraid you'll have to stop there!" The senior steward interrupted with a shake of his hand, setting himself between the elite guards. "I understand your concern, but these meetings of yours are simply too important to our alliances to be missed. The first representative has already been waiting for you, and I must insist that you see them immediately. I will have the Royal Guards fill me in on the details of Master Mario so that, once you have time, I can make certain we get whatever problems he has taken care of."

Peach opened her mouth to protest, but ultimately decided against it. Explaining what they had witnessed on their brief journey would take more time than she was willing to spare. And he was right; these meetings could not be missed. She had enough to worry about without piling on the fear of a newly destroyed alliance. Besides, Peach had arrived just as Mario had taken off again. The Soldiers had arrived there before her, and so had more to tell about the nightmarish situation.

Mentally steeling herself, the Princess gave her adviser a quick nod of affirmation.

"The foreign representative is waiting for you just up the stairs." Toadsworth gestured with his cane. "I've left your papers up there as well, in case you needed them. I'll be sure to join you as soon as I can."

With that, the three loyal toads bowed to their Princess before heading off down another hall in the labyrinthine castle. Peach drew in a deep breath in an attempt to steady her frayed nerves. Though her mind was littered with thoughts and concern for her beloved hero, it would have to wait. This was her job; her price to pay for her royal blood. She just hoped her first royal meeting wouldn't be too stressful.

Finally, Peach made her way up the shimmering marble stairs to the patiently waiting representative.

She just barely crossed the final step when she heard a familiar voice echo through the halls.

"It's about time you got here! Don't you know you shouldn't keep royalty waiting?"

Peach was instantly aware who it was behind the bold voice and snarky humor. It was a voice she had heard many times in the past, and she was all too happy to hear it now. The first foreign affairs meeting she had been silently dreading now seemed so much less stressful. For this wasn't just any representative; it was someone to whom Peach was very close.

Appearing from the side hall, the overly energetic royal waved excitedly at her fellow Princess with her standard cheery smile. "Surprise!" She exclaimed, throwing her hands into the air. "Didja miss me?"

"Daisy!" Peach couldn't help but return the infectious smile. "You're the foreign representative?"

Princess Daisy faked her best 'angry' face, placing her hands on her hips. "Whatever happened to 'hello'? Sorry to disappoint you, but yes, I am the foreign representative. So I guess you'll just have to put up with me." Daisy sauntered to the nearby pink and white chair and flopped down, gesturing towards the other seat and letting her smile show through once more.

Peach placed her dainty palm on her chest, moving towards and sitting in the chair Daisy had motioned her to. "No, I didn't mean it like that." She quietly giggled. "I just... I was expecting your generic irate monarch deciding to pile their troubles on to my own. There have been so many as of late. But after the morning I've had, I just... I really..." Peach batted her eyelashes in an attempt to mask her crumbling facade, but a single tear managed to break through. She gently wiped her cheek with a gloved hand. "I'm just so happy that its someone as understanding as you."

Noting Peach's sudden duress, Daisy's smile quickly fell into a more sympathetic expression. "Hey, hey. It's alright." The orange clad Princess reassured, leaning forward to place a hand atop Peach's. "What kind of morning did you mean?"

Taking Daisy's hand in her own, Peach breathed a long and shuddering sigh. "I'm not sure you'd believe me if I told you." She solemnly shook her head.

Daisy retracted her hand with a scoff. "With the insanity that's been taking place in my kingdom?" She laughed. "I'm not sure anything can seem far-fetched to me now. So what's going on?"

Reassured, Peach lifted her gaze to the ceiling, trying to remember every detail of this waking nightmare. "Well..." She began, daintily folding her hands in her lap. "Things first started when Mario had this angry outburst at the officials meeting yesterday. Later that night, Luigi burst into the castle unexpectedly, and he just looked awful."

Daisy's eyes widened slightly. "Luigi? Was he okay?"

Peach nodded. "He was fatigued but he was alright. We let him sleep in a guest room. And when he woke up this morning, he started raving about how Mario had become a monster." Peach picked up the pace slightly, not wanting to be dismissed despite how crazy her story was becoming. "I thought maybe Mario had just been in a bad mood that day and Luigi had had a nightmare as a result. And since I wanted to check up on Mario anyway, I offered to take Luigi home.

"But he wasn't mistaken. It hadn't been a nightmare. I saw him myself, and I swear you that Mario was a monster; a huge beast with horns and claws and a thousand sharp fangs." Another tear broke free despite Peach's efforts to hold her sorrows back. She once more gracefully ran a palm over her pink tinted flesh. "I know it sounds crazy, I know it's impossible to believe, but I assure you that it's the truth."

Fearful of Daisy's reaction to her claims but curious nonetheless, Peach glanced at the woman opposite her. For a moment, Daisy didn't say anything. Instead, she furrowed her brow in thought, her eyes darting about the room but looking at nothing.

"So it's happened here, too..." She spoke at last in a surprisingly serious tone. "And to Mario, no less."

Peach could feel her pulse quickening as she took in that last statement. "What do you mean? Where has this happened before?"

Growing more restless by the minute, Daisy took to her feet and began pacing back and forth with nervous energy. "That's why I came here for this meeting." She explained. "It's happened in Sarasaland. A famed geologist suddenly went missing. At the same time, we started receiving reports that a dark, 11 foot tall, raven-like monster was terrorizing the towns nearby the geologists residence. At first, people started to assume that the monster must have killed the older man. But then others started claiming that the beast was missing a finger on one hand; the same finger the geologist had lost years ago after a mining incident. That's when the rumors started spreading that the monster hadn't killed the man, but rather was the man himself."

"Wait a minute!" Peach leapt to her feet. "There are other people out there transforming into these creatures? But why? What's causing this? And why did it effect Mario and this geologist specifically?"

"There's another monster like Mario?" A far more meek and reserved voice rose from the stairs behind the princesses. The two royal figures turned just in time to see the younger hero limping up the final few steps, wincing from the pain in his mangled leg.

"Luigi!" Peach's voice suddenly became far more empathetically concerned. "Goodness, what are you doing? You shouldn't be walking up stairs on a leg that hurt!"

Still cringing from the ever worsening agony of his own stubbornness, Luigi gently shook his head. "I know, Peach. I'm sorry..." He spoke in a voice that conveyed his pain level. "I just... I heard you talking about Mario. And that there might be other monsters out there besides him."

After taking a moment to breathe, Luigi finally lifted his gaze and opened his tightly clenched eyes.

Luigi suddenly stood more upright with a surprised expression. He knew Peach had been talking to someone, but he hadn't been expecting to see the energetic Sarasaland Princess. A wave of anxious energy washed through him and he could feel his chest tightening.

"Daisy!?" He shouted, instantly embarrassed by how loud his voice had come out. Flustered, Luigi could feel his cheeks heating up dramatically, and he nervously coughed as a way to restart his thoughts. "I-I... I mean..." He stuttered, quickly snatching the stacked hats off of his head. "Hi...- Hello Princess Daisy... I didn't know you were here."

Though both Daisy and Peach were of the same high level of royal importance, Luigi had always felt compelled to act differently towards the two. Peach was someone he viewed as a close friend. Over time, he became comfortable speaking to her in a more informal manner. She, in turn, reciprocated the friendship. She was more than happy to invite him over alongside Mario for tea, and the two often shared gardening and baking tips.

But something was different about Daisy. He felt compelled to act his best around her, almost as if it was imperative that he prove himself to her. He had brought up this feeling of intimidation to Mario in the past, and his older brother had found it humerus. Why, he had wondered, would Luigi see the laid back, less than lady-like Daisy as the one he had to impress? Mario had always had the exact opposite feelings; where it was Peach who deserved a more royal treatment and Daisy was someone he could easily joke around with as a friend.

Daisy smiled, rocking her hips and folding her arms across her chest. "How many times do you have to see me before you just start calling me 'Daisy'? You don't address Peach by her formal title." She had always found Luigi's nervous antics amusing, and this display had been no exception. Still, her brighter expression hadn't lasted long, quickly falling back into a more concerned gaze as she noted the size of the ruby stain decorating the white bandages around Luigi's left leg. "Oh my gosh, Luigi! What happened to you?"

The young mans mind flashed with memories of being pinned to the ground by his monster of a brother, gigantic claws impaling his extremity. Kneading the hats in his hands, he quickly turned away. "It's... nothing..." He mumbled.

Knowing not to venture into a sensitive area, Peach was quick to change the subject. "Luigi. Daisy says there have been reports of a second giant monster in Sarasaland. One that had been a person until they suddenly transformed."

Just as she expected, Luigi instantly perked back up. "Then it's not just Mario!" he exclaimed. "There's something that causes this! Professor Gad just has to know about it!" The young hero, his hope growing by the second, energetically flipped the red and green hats back onto his head. "I'll go ask the castle doctors if they can do something about my leg, and then I'll find the lab in Maple Wood Fields!"

"Hold on. Don't get too excited." Peach warned. "I still have several representatives to meet with. I can't leave until I've spoken to all of them, or Toadsworth will have a fit. Even though I'd like to hear from the Professor as soon as possible..."

"Actually, I was thinking of taking Yoshi. I'll explain things to Gadd and get him on the same page for when you meet up with us after your meetings."

"And maybe..." Daisy eagerly joined in, happily getting caught up in the excitement. "We can use these meetings to see if any of the other Kingdoms have been seeing these monsters. Maybe one of em even knows more about the whole condition in general!"

Luigi looked to the foreign princess with a surprised yet subdued smile. "You... Want to help too?"

Daisy, ever enjoying Luigi's shy responses, threw her hands to her hips and laughed. "You think I'm gonna let you, Yoshi, and Peach hog all the excitement? This is Mario we're talking about! I'm with ya all the way!

"Now hurry up! The sooner we get things moving, the sooner we fix this whole monster mess!"