(A/N: So now we've come all the way to Chapter 8. Our friends should be in the Sand Kingdom right about now! Let's start this chapter and find out!)
The following morning, Mario and Cappy awoke to find themselves in the Sand Kingdom.
"Thankfully, it doesn't look like it's going to be freezing cold out there this time." Cappy said as he and Mario looked out the window at the Sand Kingdom.
"Yup. But even if if was cold, I've got several warm outfits to choose from so I don't freeze my buns off again." Mario said, looking happy.
"Let's see what the temperature is like first, shall we?" Cappy suggested.
So Mario got out of bed and walked over to the door of the Odyssey. He opened it, and was greeted with hot weather.
"Now that's how the Sand Kingdom should feel. It's-a time to change into something more suitable for the warm climate." Mario said. So he walked back to the bed, picked up the shoes he had worn with his Caveman attire, and walked over to the wardrobe to put them away and find something more suitable to wear.
"So, what are you going to wear? Not only the boxers, I hope." Cappy said.
"No, that was alright when Peach was still in Bowser's clutches, and no one in Tostarena Town even knew who I am! I'm going to blend in this time." Mario said, producing his Sombrero and Poncho from the wardrobe.
"Oh, so you're going to be a Mexican today?" Cappy asked.
"Sì!" said Mario, and as he changed into his colorful Mexican outfit, he was singing the "Frito Bandito" song very loudly, and it made Cappy laugh.
"If Peach heard you right now, I think she'd be laughing so hard she'd probably bust a gut!" Cappy said.
"A woman appreciates a man who can make her laugh." Mario smiled.
"Perhaps she still loves you." Cappy replied.
"I hope she's still in love with me. Because I'm still in love with her. Even if she falls out of love with me, I'll never fall out of love with her. She's that special to me." Mario told his Bonneter friend.
"I know, Mario. Now let's go out there and see what the Sand Kingdom has to offer, and while we're at it, we'll look for Peach and Tiara." Cappy said as he took control of Mario's Sombrero.
Then the pair disembarked the Odyssey and walked into Tostarena Town. The place looked a lot better, now that those horrid posters for Bowser and Peach's wedding were gone.
"Good, those horrible posters are all gone." Mario said.
"I also noticed that they were no longer in the Cap Kingdom, too." Cappy said.
Mario's mind took him back to when he started his adventure in the Cap Kingdom, when he first got Cappy as a companion. Yes, there had been wedding posters around there, and he also saw quite a few of them at the base of Top-Hat Tower.
"Oh, right. I almost forgot about that detail. And you're right. I didn't see any posters there this time around." Mario said, feeling a little dumb.
"It's okay, Mario. I'm not going to hold it against you. You helped me rescue my little sister, and you even rescued me from that creepy condor in the Lost Kingdom." Cappy said.
"Hey, you wanted to rescue your sister as much as I wanted to rescue Peach, and Klepto's just a jerk." Mario replied.
"Should we go look for the girls now?" Cappy asked.
"You're right. Let's-a go." Mario said.
They went to the Round Tower in the desert and took a shortcut to get to the top of the Inverted Pyramid. When they were there, Mario was looking around, remembering when he first made it to the top of the Pyramid.
"I remember this. I went to the top of this thing, because Bowser was up here with mia dolce principessa, my sweet princess, in his clutches, and what happens next? Bowser runs off like a frightened little girl, leaving me to deal with that little rat-faced git!" Mario said, thinking about Hariet. He wanted to grab her by her long, blonde hair and shave it off when he had to fight her.
Just then, something interrupted his train of thought. A sweet voice was calling out to him, "Hey!"
Mario turned and saw Princess Peach waving to him. Tiara was right by her side, calling out to her brother, "Cappy!"
"Mia principessa! My princess!" Mario exclaimed, hurrying over to Peach. He noticed that she was dressed differently today. She now wore a white, short-sleeved blouse, a knee-length pink skirt, white high heels, a pink mini-scarf with tiny white polka-dots, and a white and pink sunhat.
"Wow, Peach. Sei adorabile. You look lovely." Mario smiled.
"Thank you, Mario." Peach replied.
"So, what brings you up here to the top of the Inverted Pyramid, principessa?" Mario asked.
"I wanted a better look at it. To think this huge, stone thing could float! The world is full of wonders..." Peach said.
"How does it float? Why is it inverted? So mysterious!" Tiara added happily.
"It is mysterious, 'cause I haven't a clue why it floats, nor why it's inverted." Cappy replied to his little sister.
"I even found a Power Moon in the sand! Take good care of it." Peach said, handing Mario the Power Moon.
"Grazie, Peach. Thank you. I'll take very good care of it. I'm always careful with things like this." Mario said as he accepted the Power Moon. Then he added under his breath, "E ti prometto di stare ancora più attento con una principessa come te... And I promise to be even more careful with a princess like you..."
"If you want, Mario, I can take the Power Moon to the Odyssey for you." Cappy offered.
"Would you, Cappy? That's-a so nice!" Mario replied.
"That's what friends are for." Cappy said. Then he motioned for Tiara to join him. She didn't know if she should, but Peach told her to go with him, so she did.
"Why do we have to leave them alone this time, Cappy?" Tiara asked as she followed her brother to the Odyssey.
"Because they really do need to work things out without us there to give our input. It might help them get back together a lot quicker, too." Cappy said.
"Okay! That makes sense!" Tiara cheered.
"So... would you like to hear about what happened... when Bowser and I... were here in the Sand Kingdom?" Peach asked nervously.
"Peach, I can tell this has got you feeling really upset, so it must be pretty bad. I can go first, if you want." Mario offered.
"No, it's okay, Mario. I really need to get this off of my chest." Peach said.
"Okie-dokie." Mario said.
Peach took a deep breath and said, "I was so upset, Mario. I had been captured by Bowser, I was being forced to marry him, I watched him practically kill you, and then he refused to give me your hat! After all that, I didn't think my life could get any worse... until it did..."
(Flashback...)
Peach was curled up in a tight ball in the bride's chamber on Bowser's airship, crying her eyes out into her hands. She couldn't handle what had just happened. It was bad enough that Mario was quite possibly dead (there was no way he could've survived what happened to him), but now for Bowser to not give her something that would remind her of him... it was despicable!
"I hope Mario lived, Peach..." Tiara said, leaving Peach's head, and attempting to give the Princess a hug.
"I... I don't want to... l-live without him, Tiara... M-Mario means t-too much to m-me... I-if I l-l-lose him... I... I-I don't know what I'll do!" Peach wailed.
"Were you really hoping to jump ship? Tiara asked.
"I-if Mario is... d-dead... th-then the answer is... y-yes." Peach replied.
Tiara gasped and said, "Wh-why would you...?!"
"Because... I c-can't live without him! B-besides... Bowser is just going to... k-kill me after the wedding... s-so I'll spare him the... t-trouble! A-at least that way... he c-can't rule my... my k-kingdom!" Peach said.
"But Peach! What about your subjects?! They'll need you!" Tiara said. She was surprised that Peach was a princess, but she couldn't believe that Peach would be ready to leave her subjects.
"Th-they'll be f-fine... I-I already appointed M-Mario and his brother, L-Luigi, to rule... in the event that I... I c-cannot... a l-long time ago..." Peach said.
"So... in this case, Luigi would be ruling your kingdom?" Tiara asked.
"Y-yes. He can f-fight Bowser... as g-good as... M-Mario could. I-I can... trust him..." Peach replied.
"Could he beat him?" Tiara asked.
"Y-yes." Peach said. She remembered that time he rescued her when Mario was unable to (New Super Luigi U). She also remembered when he told her about the time he thought he was fighting Bowser on the roof of that haunted mansion he'd 'won'. But he said that that didn't count because the Bowser he fought there was a costume worn by a vengeful ghost known as King Boo.
"But he doesn't know that you're here, and that Mario..." Tiara felt stupid for saying that, because Peach remembered the awful predicament she was in, and no one but Mario knew about it! She started crying again.
At that moment, there was a knock at the door, and Bowser opened the door.
"Hello, my lovely wife-to-be!" Bowser greeted Peach, a big smile on his ugly mug.
"AAAAHHH! It's the scary monster!" Tiara screamed, turning back into a tiara and landing on Peach's head a little lopsided.
Peach quickly dried her tears, straightened her friend on her head, and, glaring at Bowser, asked, "What do you want?"
"We're in the Sand Kingdom now! And not only that, but you have to come to the deck with me! I want you to see the sights of this kingdom!" Bowser told her.
"I don't want to be seen with you, Bowser! Nor do I wish to see any sights with you! I only want to see Mario! I want to see the sights with him by my side!" Peach told him.
"Guess what, Princess? He's dead, and you're just going to have to get used to it! Now come on up to the deck with me!" Bowser ordered, grabbing her by the hand.
"Let go of me!" Peach screamed, slapping his claw as hard as she could to try and make her let go of him. It didn't work.
"Resistance is useless, sweet-thing." Bowser started.
"Don't 'sweet-thing' me! I didn't even let Mario call me that!" Peach snapped.
"Oh, you didn't?! And I thought you said you loved him!" Bowser said.
"I still do love him... But I told him that I don't like being called 'sweet-thing', so he never called me that!" Peach said.
"Well, it doesn't really matter, because time's a-wasting! Now come with me!" Bowser said.
"I won't look! I refuse to look! You can't make me look!" Peach said, shutting her eyes tight and putting her free hand over them.
"Oh, that's what you think! I advise you to think again!" Bowser said. He grabbed her other arm and wrenched both her arms behind her back!
"OWWWW! Let go of me! You're hurting my arms! Stop it!" Peach cried.
"No! Not if you're going to cover your pretty little eyeballs, or keep them closed!" Bowser said.
"Do my eyes look pretty to you right now, because I don't think so! They're red and puffy because you make me cry!" Peach said. It was true. She had caught a glimpse of herself in a mirror in the room, and her eyes did not look as pretty as they normally did. They were red and puffy from all the crying she had been doing.
"They look fine! And now to make sure you keep them open..." Bowser said. He then whistled and said, "Broodals! Get in here! I need your help!"
In came the Broodals.
"You called, Boss?" asked Topper, the squat, green-clad Broodal.
"Yes! Have you guys got some tape? We're going to need two pieces of it!" Bowser said.
Peach realized what Bowser was asking, and she was horrified! Those two pieces of tape would be used to keep her eyes open, and he was asking the Broodals to do it while he held her arms behind her back!
Peach struggled hard to get free from the Koopa King's grasp, but she was afraid to struggle too hard, or else her arms might get pulled out of their sockets! She didn't want that to happen, because it would hurt like holy heck!
Then she had an idea! She thought, "Perhaps I should've tried doing what I'm about to do to Bowser when he attempted to kidnap me in the past! He'd never be able to put up with this for long!"
The Princess tried screaming so that the Broodals couldn't get too close to her.
"Oh, shut up, already!" the female Broodal, Hariet, said in annoyance, slapping a hand across the Princess's mouth, shutting her up.
"Okay, guys! She's quiet now! Do it!" Hariet said over the muffled screams coming from the Princess.
"No! Please don't do this!" Peach begged, although the Broodals ignored her, for they couldn't understand what she was saying because her voice was muffled by Hariet.
The tall Broodal, Rango, pulled out a tape dispenser and pulled off two pieces of tape. The blue-clad Broodal, Spewart, took the pieces of tape and used them to keep Peach's blue eyes open.
Tiara felt sick. She couldn't bear to watch what they were going to do to her friend! If only she were big enough to fight back! But she wasn't! Tiara did not know what to do, because if she tried to do anything, Bowser and the Broodals would do something to her! And she didn't want to know what! All she could do was shut her eyes tight, but that didn't block out Peach's muffled screams and cries. She felt like crying herself, but she couldn't do that. Her tears would dampen Peach's hair.
"There we go! Now those pretty little peepers will stay open!" Spewart said as Peach's eyes were now being held open by the tape.
"Great!" said Hariet, removing her hand from Peach's mouth.
"Don't do this! I need to blink! Please!" Peach begged, getting ready to cry again.
"Too bad! You didn't want to keep your eyes open, so now they're going to stay open until I say you can close them!" Bowser said. He then sent the Broodals on their way.
"Please, Bowser! Have a heart! Remove the tape! My eyes really hurt!" Peach pleaded, tears welling in her eyes again.
"No way! I don't need to have one!" Bowser said as he led the crying princess to the deck, satisfied with himself.
(End flashback...)
Mario was completely gob-smacked when he heard what Bowser and the Broodals had done to Peach, who was crying as she remembered the torturous pain she had been through.
"Ma stai scherzando?! Are you kidding me?!" Mario asked, in complete shock.
"I... I-I wish I was, M-Mario... but I'm... I'm n-not..." Peach sobbed, falling to her knees and burying her face in Mario's Poncho.
"Oh, dolcezza..." Mario said, holding Peach close as she cried. He even rubbed her back, since she hadn't gotten upset at him for doing that to her when they were in the Cascade Kingdom.
Peach didn't need to ask Mario what he called her. She knew he called her 'sweetie' in Italian, despite the fact that he was dressed like a Mexican.
"I don't want to talk about that anymore! All Bowser did after that was make me look at the Binding Band, telling me that he was going to put that on me at the wedding!" Peach wailed.
"But you didn't let him. I saw you pushing it away at the wedding." Mario said.
"I didn't want to wear it! He couldn't make me wear it with you around! If I wore it, it would link me and him forever...! I-I don't want to be linked to Bowser! Plus, that ring would never fit me! It was too big!" Peach said.
"Much too big for your small, delicate hands, with those long fingers, perfect for playing il piano..." Mario said, taking her left hand in his own and admiring it. He said, "I could've picked out a better ring for you. It would be lovelier than the Binding Band, though I would say that your hand is more becoming than any ring you would wear on it."
"You... you really think so?" Peach asked, looking at Mario's hand as it held hers. His hand was so warm, but that probably had to do with the fact that he was wearing gloves.
"Lo so bene. I know so." Mario smiled, bringing her hand to his lips and giving it a gentle kiss. He was not afraid to do that, because princesses appreciate politeness, and he was being polite, to stop her tears.
That made Peach feel a whole lot better. He was such a sweet gentleman, and that's what she wanted more than anything.
"So, what happened when you were here? Can you tell me?" Peach asked her beau.
"Oh yeah, that's easy enough. When I got here, the kingdom was downright freezing!" Mario told her.
"I noticed that the place was getting cold, thanks to Bowser stealing the Binding Band. He made me look at it, and I didn't even want to!" Peach wailed.
"I saw a lot of posters for the 'wedding' all over Tostarena Town, and some Tostarenans referred to you and Bowser as un paio, a couple. The thought really made my blood boil!" Mario said.
"The day I want to be a couple with him is a sunny day in the Underwhere, Mario. I hate him!" Peach said.
"That's what I told them whenever I heard them say something about you and him as a couple. So yeah, I set them straight, and they apologized for saying such things." Mario said, before adding, "I also saw Bowser's footprints in the sand. His actual footprints, not ones that were shaped like the shoes he was wearing with his tux."
"Yeah, he did take off his shoes when he walked around in the sand." Peach remembered.
"Guess he didn't want the sand to muss them up before the event, or perhaps he hates the feeling of sand in his shoes. I know I do..." Mario muttered, realizing that he too had sand in his shoes. He quickly took off his shoes, walked to the edge of the pyramid, on a side where no Tostarenans stood, and emptied his shoes of the sand, putting the sand back on the ground, where it belonged.
"Those reasons are probably why he went through the sand in his bare feet. Or maybe he just wanted to wriggle his ugly toes in it." Peach sighed.
"Also, when I saw his airship circling over the Inverted Pyramid, I heard you calling for help." Mario said as he put his shoes back on, now that they were emptied of the sand that had been in them.
"You heard me?!" Peach asked.
"I did! I know that part of the reason you wanted help was because of him, but now that I know what the other part was... oh, mia povera principessa! My poor princess! I wish I'd been able to jump on that deck again, get you down, and ruin Bowser's plans for real!" Mario said.
"I know you would've. You've done it often enough." Peach said, hugging Mario.
"When I got to the top of the Pyramid, I tried shouting to you, to let you know I had arrived. I was shouting, "Don't worry, Peach! I'm alive! And I'm going to belt that brutto vecchio barracuda, which means 'nasty ol' barracuda', into the next millennium!"
(A/N: In reality, Mario doesn't use Italian words in front of Bowser, but he was really angry, and Bowser didn't hear him anyway, so it doesn't really matter that he did.)
"Did you really just call Bowser a nasty ol' barracuda in Italian?" Peach asked, giggling at the thought.
"Sì, because he is." Mario said, which made Peach giggle even more.
"Oh, Mario. You're so silly." Peach smiled, before frowning and saying, "I only wish I could've heard you, but I didn't because my eyes hurt from the fact that I couldn't blink, and Bowser's airship was too noisy. I think he made his airship as noisy as it was on purpose."
"I know. And then that wimp flew away, so I had to deal with his wedding planners again. This time, I had to deal with the girl, who said that I wasn't invited to the wedding. Ooh, I was so mad at her, I wanted to grab her by her long hair and shave her bald. Then I might just go the extra mile and shave her fur." Mario said.
"She had you that angry?" Peach asked.
"Well, yes. I was so angry that I told her that she was lying; that I was so invited! I told her that you were the one who invited me!" Mario explained.
"You knew?! I didn't know if you were still alive at the time, but on the off-chance that you were, I was inviting you mentally!" Peach exclaimed in surprise.
"You did invite me?!" Mario asked, equally surprised. Then he added, "Well, okay, I had a pretty good feeling that if you felt I was somehow still alive, you would invite me, no matter what Bowser and his rodent henchmen said."
"You're really smart, Mario. I like smart men. Bowser's so stupid, he belongs in pre-school." Peach said.
"Yeah, that's just at his low level." Mario said.
The two smiled at one another, before Mario said, "After dealing with that lei-demone, that she-demon, the sun went down, the Inverted Pyramid rose up out of the sand, and the temperature got even colder than it was!"
"You poor thing! I wish I could've been back in your arms so I could warm you up in the best way I knew." Peach replied, giving Mario another hug, which he happily returned.
"I eventually found out what caused the drop in the temperature. This giant stone creature was mad about the Binding Band being stolen, and it was like the trial at Isle Delfino all over again." Mario said.
"He accused you of stealing the Binding Band with no proof, didn't he?" Peach guessed.
"Sì. And not only that, the stone-guy wanted to kill me as well." Mario said.
"Oh my word! I'm so relieved that the Piantas didn't plan on punishing you like that when they blamed you for polluting their island!" Peach said, horrified at the thought.
"But don't you worry, Peach; I showed him who was boss! I got his Multi Moon, which was probably giving him a headache, and the temperature went back to normal, the way it feels now." Mario said. Then he remembered how hot the temperature was, and he asked her, "Did you remember to...?"
"Yes, Mario, I am wearing sunscreen. I made sure to put some on before Tiara and I came out here." Peach smiled.
"Okie-dokie. I was just making sure. I don't want you to get a bad sunburn, like you could've gotten in Corona Mountain. I'm glad that you only ended up with a very minor burn that took only a couple of days to heal." Mario said.
"Don't worry, Mario. I'm okay. I also packed a bottle of aloe vera, just in case my sunscreen doesn't work as well as it should." Peach replied.
"Ohh, I forgot to get sunscreen, but I didn't know I was going to be visiting this place again after fixing things here. What if I get sunburned?" Mario asked.
"Then I'll give you my aloe vera to rub on your sunburn the next time I see you." Peach smiled.
"Grazie, principessa. Thanks, Princess." Mario replied.
"You're welcome, sweetie." Peach said, which had Mario blushing. Hearing her call him 'sweetie' helped his heart even more.
By then, Cappy and Tiara reappeared, and Tiara asked, "How are you two doing?"
"Stiamo andando bene. We're doing fine." Mario replied.
"We sure are." Peach smiled.
"You want to see more of the kingdom, Peach?" Mario asked.
"I'd love to, Mario. In fact, I want to try riding on a Jaxi again!" Peach replied.
"You were riding on a Jaxi, Peach?" Mario asked.
"Yes. Have you ridden on one before? I thought it was a lot of fun!" Peach said.
Mario looked her in the eyes and said, "We can do that, Peach, but when we do, you promise me that you'll hold on tight. You'll hold on very tight, you hear me?"
"Don't worry, Mario. I was holding on so tightly that I didn't fall off." Peach replied.
"Ragazza in gamba! Atta girl!" Mario smiled.
They checked out other places in the kingdom, and they were more than surprised to see that the Binding Band had been returned, and that it was back where it belonged.
"It belongs here, not on your hand." Mario said when he saw the Binding Band in its proper place.
"I agree." Peach said.
They also went to this room that Mario could get into as long as he was dressed in his Mexican outfit. Peach got to go in, too, and she watched as Mario joined some Tostarenans on the stage in there. He pulled out a Spanish guitar and jammed with them.
"I knew Mario could play guitar, but I didn't know he also played Spanish guitar." Peach said with a loving sigh. She thought Spanish guitar was muy romantico.
"When I saw him play the Spanish guitar, I thought he was just playing it for the heck of it. What kind of guitar does he play, Peach? Do you know?" Cappy asked.
"Mario plays a Rickenbacker, like John Lennon played." Peach said.
"Really?! That's so cool!" Tiara cheered.
"It is." Peach replied.
When Mario rejoined Peach, Cappy, and Tiara after getting a Power Moon, Tiara told Mario how cool she thought it was that he played a Beatles guitar. Mario just smiled at her for that.
They visited other parts of the kingdom, and rode a Jaxi, and had a fine old time, something neither of them had the first time around, thanks to a certain Koopa King.
Before the day was over, Mario asked Peach where she was planning to go next.
"Well, truthfully, we went to the Lake Kingdom after Bowser finished up here, but I was just thinking about that place with the beautiful flower fields... I'd like to see them again." Peach said.
"Oh, that's the Wooded Kingdom. Is that where you're going next?" Mario asked.
"I'd like to." Peach replied.
"Cappy and I will go there next. We can talk more over there." Mario promised.
"Okay, Mario. I'll see you later." Peach said. She gave Mario a good-bye hug, which he was only too happy to return. Then they returned to their modes of transportation, ready to set off to the next kingdom.
In the next chapter, they'll be in the Wooded Kingdom. Not one of my favorite kingdoms, but I do know that it would probably be Princess Daisy's kind of place, and the ideal vacation spot for every botanist in the world. Stay tuned!
