(A/N: Well, it turns out that "Super Mario Odyssey" was more inspiring than I thought. I got this idea from it (and slightly from a fanfic called Distance by 1TGN), and it's part of my "Super Mario" timeline, taking place long before Mario and Peach's wedding.)

It was a happy day in the Mushroom Kingdom. There were a lot of people from the different kingdoms outside Princess Peach's Castle, all celebrating and having fun with several Toads.

The Princess herself was out on her castle's balcony with her new friend, Tiara, the little sister to Mario's new ally, Cappy the Bonneter. The girls had just come back from a world tour of their own. Sure, they'd been through all the different kingdoms before, but with Bowser, so their memories of that world tour were not good.

But on their way back to the Mushroom Kingdom, after they were rescued by Mario and Cappy, the girls had discussed going on another world tour, to give themselves better memories to replace the bad ones Bowser had given them. They agreed to set out early the following morning.

Upon waking up the following day, the girls set off on their new world tour, with Mario and Cappy following them through the numerous kingdoms. Mario and Cappy saw and did more than they had the first time they visited each kingdom, and the girls were having a fine old time, basking in the knowledge that they didn't have to worry about Bowser dragging them along, yelling at them, and making them sad as the Broodals stole things he wanted for his sham wedding.

Still, their own world tour had come to its end, and Peach had returned to the Mushroom Kingdom with happier memories of the kingdoms she'd been to. Right now, she and Tiara were talking and laughing about some of the things they'd experienced on their world tour.

A few minutes later, Mario and Cappy (in Bonneter form) showed up.

"Hey, girls!" Cappy greeted, but Mario was quiet.

"Hello!" Peach greeted the boys.

Cappy and Tiara were happy to see each other again, and while the siblings celebrated the fact that they were together again, Peach noticed that Mario looked... unhappy. In fact, she had noticed that he'd been rather quiet since he'd rescued her from a fate worse than death.

"Mario, are you okay?" Peach asked, concerned about her red-capped beau.

Mario shook his head no.

"What's the matter? Can you tell me?" Peach asked in a gentle voice, kneeling before him.

"Can we talk?" Mario asked, looking at Peach.

Surprise flashed across Peach's face. Mario hadn't said a word to her since they took the Odyssey back to the Mushroom Kingdom after Bowser was defeated. He didn't even talk to her when he'd meet up with her during the world tour she and Tiara had been on. Cappy had done all the talking. If he'd spoken to anyone at all since the whole thing, she didn't know.

"He's talking again?" Tiara asked her brother. She had also noticed Mario's silence and was concerned about him.

"Actually, he has been talking to me, Tiara. He spoke to me when I told him where you and Peach ran off to upon finding out she wasn't here when you girls left on that world tour that made up for the one Bowser took you on." Cappy replied.

"Come again?" Peach asked Mario. She was so stunned to hear him talk again that she hadn't quite heard what he said.

"Can we talk, Peach? Please?" Mario asked.

"I don't see why not." Peach replied.

"I was hoping that we could talk... alone." Mario said to Peach, his gaze turning towards the Bonneter siblings when he said that last word.

"Oh! I guess we'd better make ourselves scarce, then. Come on, sis!" Cappy said, motioning for Tiara to join him and stay close to his side. After the whole ordeal with Bowser, he'd become a lot more protective of his little sister; he really didn't want to let her out of his sight again.

"Coming!" Tiara called as she followed her brother into the crowd.

"Okay, Mario. I think we're alone now." Peach said as she watched the Bonneters disappear into the crowd below.

"Actually, Peach, when I said 'alone', I meant maybe somewhere a little more... private..." Mario explained.

"Oh. Very well, then. Let's go inside, where's it's quiet." said Peach, understanding that whatever Mario needed to say must be pretty important if he wanted them to talk alone, in private.

So Mario and Peach entered the castle together.

"Perhaps we could talk in the castle's sitting room. Will that suffice?" Peach asked Mario as she closed the castle doors behind them.

"It'll do." Mario replied. He was sure that the sitting room would be nice and quiet, and private.

And so Mario and Peach walked to the sitting room, which was on the first floor of the castle, and down the hall on the left.

Once they entered the sitting room, Mario sat down on the sofa while Peach closed the door to ensure their privacy.

"So, Mario, what is it you want to talk about? What's on your mind?" Peach asked as she walked over to the sofa and sat down next to her hero.

"(sigh) I think you already know the answer to that question, Peach." Mario replied, looking uncomfortable as he looked at Peach.

It didn't take long for Peach to figure out what Mario was talking about, and it didn't please her.

"This is about what happened at Honeylune Ridge, isn't it?" Peach asked, not too amused.

"Oh yeah." said Mario, looking sad. He knew that this wasn't going to be easy, and knowing that Peach wasn't happy about it just made the whole thing even more difficult.

"What about it?" asked the Princess, noticing that the thought made Mario seem rather upset, but she knew the reason why.

There was a slight pause as a clearly nervous Mario tried to figure out how to put his thoughts and feelings into words. He decided to start off with something easy to say.

"I got my wedding outfit as Cappy and I were leaving Bowser's Kingdom, ready to make our way to Honeylune Ridge to save you and Tiara. I honestly never thought I'd live to see the day I would be dressed in such finery." Mario said.

"I'm not going to lie; you looked incredibly handsome in that tuxedo, Mario. That's partially why I was glowing when I saw you arrive at the Wedding Hall." Peach said.

"You really thought I was handsome?" Mario asked, feeling a little happier but still unable to smile.

"Mm-hmm..." Peach nodded, which had Mario blushing a little. But Mario's blush quickly faded as he asked, "What was the other reason why you were glowing?"

Peach looked a little upset as she remembered, but she started, "Well... Mario... on our way to Bowser's own kingdom... Bowser told me and Tiara how he... shot down your ship... with his new friend."

"He told you about that?" Mario asked, clearly peeved.

"Yes... but that's not all he told us. He said that... it didn't matter whether or not you survived... because you wouldn't be catching up to us... for his new friend was a dragon... and you were as good as dragon chow." Peach added.

"Why, that miserable son-of-a..." Mario thought, wishing he'd known about this sooner so he could've pounded Bowser into Moondust!

"Mario, If you thought I was hurting the other times I saw him send you away... the pain was NOTHING compared to what I felt when he said that... The thought of never seeing you again and losing you forever... it hurt me more than the other times I saw him send you away..." Peach said, feeling sad.

Mario wanted to take her into his arms and comfort her when he saw how upset she looked. It took every ounce of willpower he had to stay put and not move a muscle.

"I was relieved when I saw you in Bowser's Kingdom, alive, but I was at my happiest when I saw you come into the Wedding Hall. You'd caught up to us in time; to save me from a fate I didn't deserve. That's mostly why I was glowing at the sight of you, Mario." Peach said, smiling slightly as she remembered the moment when Mario and Cappy crashed the wedding.

"If that's the way you felt, then why did you do what you did to me?!" Mario thought. He didn't say the words, even though he felt like doing so. But he wouldn't say them. Not to Peach. And he knew he could not say them because he already knew the answer to that question, too, loathe as he was to admit it.

"I'm not planning on dying for a long time, Peach. And I wasn't going to give up and die when your life was in danger. I don't stop until I know you're safe and sound." Mario said, resisting the urge to reach up and stroke her long, silky, golden tresses, which was something he liked to do when he was reassuring Peach.

"You're so sweet, Mario." Peach replied with a sweet smile.

"Are you sure of that?" Mario asked.

"Sure I'm sure." Peach said.

"Even after what I did to you?" Mario added.

"What did you...? Oh, right..." Peach knew what he meant.

"I should tell you that there was a reason for it, even though it's not a very good one." Mario replied.

"I'm willing to hear it, no matter how weak it is." Peach assured him.

Mario took a deep breath and said, "Well, you might have already figured it out by now. Yes, I was planning to ask you to marry me. When I saw you in the Lochlady Dress, you looked more lovely than I could ever have imagined, and I figured that since we were both in wedding attire, it wouldn't hurt to ask you the big question. Plus, I really love you, Peach, and I would love to have you as my wife someday."

Peach blushed a little at Mario's explanation.

"I kind of guessed that you were planning to propose to me, and because of the love I felt for you, I was more than ready to say yes." Peach replied, looking into Mario's eyes when she said it, indicating that she was telling him the truth.

Mario blushed a little, but it didn't stop him from frowning as he said, "You know what happened next: Bowser pushed me down and tried to offer you the Soirée Bouquet as a last-ditch marriage proposal."

"I remember that." Peach said, also frowning.

"I freaked out when that happened. And the reason I was freaked out was not just because he was still trying to propose to you; it's because of what you did when he did that." Mario explained as the blush disappeared from his face.

"What I did...? What did I do?" Peach asked, confused.

"You looked at him." Mario said.

"What's so bad about looking at him? I do it all the time." Peach said, still confused.

"It was the way you looked at him when he held out the flowers to you. You gave him that look." Mario said.

"What look?" Peach asked.

"Like this." Mario said, and he demonstrated by making his eyes big and batting them at Peach in a flirtatious way.

(A/N: I got the idea for that part from a funny scene in the 2012 "TMNT" cartoon.)

Peach instantly realized what Mario meant.

"I did that... to Bowser?! Oh my goodness; what in the world was I thinking?!" Peach gasped as she recognized the look Mario was imitating. That was the look she gave Mario at times, just to see how he'd react. It always made him blush like a madman.

"Don't get upset with yourself, Peach. Remember, I was the one who wasn't thinking." Mario said.

"But I looked at Bowser the way I'm supposed to look at you! How could I have done something so stupid?!" Peach asked, upset.

"You're not the one at fault, Peach. It was my fault!" Mario said, feeling stupid for making the woman he loved feel like she was the one to blame for this whole mess.

"So, you don't blame me?" Peach asked, faintly surprised and feeling a little better that Mario was not mad at her; that he wasn't blaming her. It was big of him to take all the blame for what had happened.

"No, Peach, I don't blame you, because I was the idiot who screwed everything up!" Mario said.

"Mario, you're not an idiot. Bowser is." Peach reminded him.

"But Peach, I could have handled the whole thing differently. I didn't have to go and force you to pick me. I could have reminded myself that you hate Bowser; that you would turn down his last-ditch proposal." Mario said.

"In fact, that's just what I was planning to do to him. I was going to turn him down and leave him flat." Peach said.

Mario felt even worse when he heard that. His face turned pale, his eyes filled with tears, and he got a lump in his throat as his guilty conscience took Peach's words as the final nail in the coffin.

"Well, that proves it." Mario said in a barely audible voice. It was a wonder he'd been able to speak with a lump in his throat.

"Proves what, Mario?" Peach asked, having heard him. This made her a little worried about what Mario was going to say next, and she wasn't at all prepared for it.

"Princess Peach... you deserve better than me!" Mario cried, unable to hold back the tears any longer.

(A/N: Forgive me if it seems a little OOC for Mario to be this upset. But there's a reason for it. You'll see why.)

Peach was shocked to see Mario burst into tears! She could see that he was very upset, but she never wanted to see him cry!

"Mario! That is not true!" Peach cried, pulling Mario into her arms and giving him a hug, and while a hug from Peach would usually help Mario feel good even when he was feeling really low, it did little to comfort the red-clad plumber this time around.

"Yes, it is! If I had just waited for you to turn that stupid Koopa King down... none of this would've happened! We could be married... or at the very least engaged... by now if I had been smart! I'm so sorry, Peach!" Mario wept into Peach's shoulder.

"Mario, you were afraid, and when we're afraid, we tend to act without thinking! I understand that, and you even said yourself that you weren't thinking." Peach said, rubbing Mario's back in a bid to calm him down. At least, she was trying to rub his back. It wasn't a very easy thing to do when his body convulsed with sobs.

"If I had just thought ahead... I-I wouldn't be... heartbroken right now!" Mario explained, tears coursing down his cheeks.

Peach got really upset when she heard Mario say that he was heartbroken. It was one of the last things she ever expected to hear from her favorite man.

"You're heartbroken?!" Peach asked in concern, holding Mario at arm's length.

The way Mario looked at Peach then told her that he wasn't lying. His tears were very real, and he was more upset than the Princess had ever seen him.

"Oh no! Being turned down really did break your heart, didn't it?!" Peach asked, feeling sad herself. She hated seeing Mario like this.

"When you turned me down... I felt really awful... but I knew why you did it... loathe as I was to admit it to myself... I knew it was my fault! I should have known better than to force you to choose me... because Bowser had been forcing you into marrying him the entire time! Plus... I knew from that moment on that... that I ruined everything between us for good!" Mario wailed.

"How do you mean?" Peach asked, wishing Bowser had died before Mario could propose.

"Not only did I ruin my chances of ever having you... the woman I love... as my wife... I ruined our relationship... as well as our friendship! I'll never be able... to repair the damage! Ever! That's why my heart is broken! And it's... it's my own fault that my heart is broken! I have no one... but myself to blame for this whole mess!" Mario said, still very sad.

"Mario, you didn't ruin anything between us. If you did, I wouldn't be talking to you right now." Peach said as she started rubbing his back again, hoping it would calm him.

"But Peach, you... you didn't even... talk to me... when we were on our way back... to the Mushroom Kingdom! I saved you... and you wouldn't talk to me!" Mario wailed.

"You didn't talk to me, either." Peach recalled.

"I wanted to, Peach... but I was afraid to." Mario admitted.

"Mario, you shouldn't have to be afraid to talk to me." Peach said.

"But after I behaved the way I did... I feared that if I tried speaking to you again... your reply would be a 'shut up' gesture... or a 'talk to the hand' gesture... Either one would mean... you didn't want to hear anything I had to say... and you weren't speaking to me... But all I wanted was to... apologize... for behaving like I did... and to beg you for your forgiveness... even though I know I don't deserve it..." Mario said, pain in his voice.

"Oh, Mario, I would never tell you to shut up. I'd let you talk if you wished to speak to me. I'd be willing to listen to your piece." Peach told him, before adding, "Then again, I didn't exactly hear you reply to me when I bid you good night after you took me home."

"I replied with a meek good-bye wave. It was all I could do because I knew if I opened my mouth, I'd start crying like I am now!" Mario replied, feeling embarrassed and ashamed. He hated that he broke down just like his brother would, and in front of Peach, no less!

"Oh, Mario..." Peach said, feeling bad for him as she pulled him into another hug.

"I was so scared that I completely ruined it all... when I went to see you the following day, Peach. When the Toads told me you were gone, I was afraid that... you knew I'd be coming to see you... to work this whole thing out... and you left because... you didn't want to talk to me... and you didn't want to see me... because it was all over between us..." Mario said, more tears welling in his eyes as he remembered how awful he felt when he heard that. His heart ached really badly when he learned that she had left without telling him beforehand.

"Mario, that isn't true! And I never said nor hinted that I didn't want to talk to you. I told you that I said good night to you before I entered the castle. That proves it." Peach said, wishing she knew how to comfort Mario better. How does a princess comfort her plumber boyfriend when he's suffering from a broken heart?

"I know. I heard you say those words. But when I heard that you were gone, I was out of my mind!" Mario said.

"But you found out where I'd gone, and what I was doing." Peach added.

"Thanks to Cappy. When he saw me... leaving the castle after the Toads told me that you were gone... he quickly flew over to me... and told me why you left... and that I wasn't the cause... He told me that he overheard you... and Tiara... discussing another world tour... when we were on our way back home. If he didn't know about your plans... I don't know what I would've done." Mario replied.

"Cappy was right about what Tiara and I did on the way home. I didn't know if you heard our discussion or not." Peach said.

"I didn't... My guilty conscience... blocked it all out." Mario admitted, trying hard to stop crying, but he was powerless to stop the tears.

"Cappy had a good feeling you were going to show up, and if you found out that I wasn't around, he had a good idea that you'd think you were to blame for my leaving. That's why he stuck around, Mario. He wanted to make sure you knew in case you hadn't heard us. And he wanted to see if you were up to having more fun in the kingdoms with him." Peach said.

"Cappy is a good friend, Peach. If it wasn't for him... I would've lost you forever; in more ways than one, too..." Mario moaned.

"Now, let's go back a bit. You think that I deserve better than you?" Peach asked.

"You do! After what I did!" Mario said, wiping his eyes with his gloved hand.

"I don't think I can do better than you, the one man who immediately leaps into action as soon as he hears that I'm in trouble." Peach said.

"Yes. Because I... I..." Mario couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence.

"Because you love me." Peach finished for him.

"That's right! I do love you!" Mario wailed. It pained him to say the words he knew Peach would never say to him again.

"Mario, you're the best man I know. You know as well as I do that I can't possibly do better when I already have the best." Peach said.

"You really think I'm the best?" Mario asked, feeling a little better.

"I don't think, Mario. I know you're the best." Peach replied.

Mario started to calm down a lot after hearing that. He even gave Peach a slight smile, which she returned.

"Now, correct me if I'm wrong, but did I hear you say that you ruined everything between us, and that you don't deserve my forgiveness?" Peach asked.

Mario's smile disappeared as he said, "I know I ruined it all, Peach... I was... s-so certain that when you... turned me down like you did... you no longer wanted to be my girlfriend... let alone my friend. And forcing you to pick me... when Bowser had been forcing you into marriage from the get-go... I don't blame you if... if you never forgive me for doing that!"

And... Mario was crying again.

"Mario, look at me." Peach said.

Mario looked at the Princess, but it was hard for him to see her with his eyes full of tears.

"Have you ever done anything bad to me or the Mushroom Kingdom?" Peach asked.

"No. I couldn't... and I wouldn't. I've been saving you... and your kingdom... from the very beginning." Mario said, telling the truth.

"Have I ever said I was unhappy in our relationship?" Peach asked.

"No... I don't think so..." Mario said.

"Did I ever once tell you we were through?" Peach asked.

"No..." Mario said.

"There you have it. I'm still your friend, as well as your girlfriend." Peach assured him as she handed him a tissue to dry his eyes with.

"You are? You still love me, Princess?" Mario asked in disbelief as he wiped his eyes.

"I'm still in love with you, Mario." Peach replied.

"Does that mean...?" Mario asked, hoping against hope that this was true.

"I already forgave you for what you did because you do deserve my forgiveness. I really think I should've told you sooner, though, for that would've spared you a lot of emotional pain." Peach said.

"Yahoo!" Mario cheered, looking happy for the first time in a while. He was about to throw his hat in the air out of excitement, but he stopped, looked Peach in the eyes, and asked her, "Can I please kiss you, Peach?"

"We have to officially make up for what happened at Honeylune Ridge, so yes, Mario. Let's seal the deal with a kiss." Peach said.

Mario and Peach shared a kiss, which helped Mario feel more like his old self. He felt a lot better now, knowing that Peach didn't hate him, that she forgave him, and that she was still in love with him. That last bit made him wonder, though...

"Do you...?" Mario started, not wanting to finish the question. He hoped Peach knew what the question was ('Do you want to marry me?'), but that she wouldn't turn him down like she did at Honeylune Ridge.

"If it's okay with you, Mario, I'd like to wait a little while before thinking of marriage again." Peach told him. Apparently, she knew that he was going to try and propose again, and even though she had forgiven him and still loved him, she wasn't ready to get married just yet.

Mario was a little sad that Peach turned him down again, but he was glad that she did it lightly this time. It wasn't like she said she never wanted to get married again. After what she'd been through, he could understand why she wanted to wait. Besides, this time it was just the two of them, without Bowser. And so...

"I understand, Peach. I'll wait until you're ready because I love you, and because I don't ever want to risk losing your love, or your friendship again. You mean more to me than you'll ever know." Mario told her.

"See? That's why I love you so much." Peach said.

"From now on, I'll make sure to think before I act, because if I show that I care about you and your feelings, I'll be able to beat Bowser in more than one way." Mario said.

"You already have." Peach smiled.

"I have? How did I do that?" Mario asked.

"You proved that you're a better beau than he'll ever be. You not only save me and my kingdom, you took responsibility and apologized for what you did. That's really why you deserve my forgiveness. Plus, I don't ever recall getting an apology from Bowser, and I probably never will. He has never apologized for anything before, and I don't think he's going to start now. And remember this: Bowser should share the blame, too. You're not the only one who was at fault, Mario." Peach reminded him.

"Thanks, Peach. You're so special. Thank you so much for forgiving me, and for letting me know that we're still a couple in spite of a stupid move on my part." Mario replied as he gave Peach a big hug.

"Thank you for finding the courage to talk to me, Mario. I too hoped to work this out, but I didn't bring it up because I wasn't sure if and when you wanted to discuss this, or if you would ever be willing to talk about it. I'm wishing we'd talked about this when we were on our way home, or that we had done so before Tiara and I set off on our own world tour." Peach said, returning Mario's hug.

"Yeah, that probably would have been best." Mario agreed.

(A/N: If they had, it would've been pretty similar to "Odyssey's True End".)

"And Mario, I want you to know, if I can forgive you, then you're worthy of my friendship, and my love." Peach smiled.

"You always know what to say, Peach. I'm really, very sorry for doing what I did." Mario said.

"But I know why you did it, and I forgave you for it." Peach said. Then she broke off the hug as she suddenly remembered something and said, "Come to think of it, I never did thank you for saving me from a loveless marriage."

Mario was silent for a moment as he thought back to when he saved Peach, and then he said, "You're right. You didn't."

"Then let me say thank you, Mario, for saving me from a fate worse than death." Peach said, and she kissed Mario on the nose, which made him blush like a madman.

"You're welcome, Peach." Mario replied in a lovesick daze.

"Now that we've worked this out, can we put it behind us and keep moving forward?" Peach asked.

"Of course we can. You're the best girlfriend in the world, Peach. I love you so much." Mario said as he hugged Peach again.

"I love you, too, Mario, my sweet boyfriend." Peach replied, happily returning the hug.

Then they shared another kiss before going back outside to join everyone else, feeling more like celebrating now that they had the knowledge that everything was okay between them.

The End

Boy, did I feel bad for Mario when I wrote this. Still, I had this idea in my head for a good while, but it took some serious brainstorming to get it right. Hope you enjoyed it!