(A/N: Boy, Mario found out that Peach suffered pretty badly during her time with Bowser in the Sand Kingdom. We knew he was a monster, but I think he's taking his villainy to a whole new level of cruel! Let's start this chapter and see what we'll see!)
It was daytime in the Wooded Kingdom, but in the Deep Woods, you couldn't really tell if it was day or night... unless you were wearing a watch, or had a cell phone to tell you the time.
Mario, clad in his explorer ensemble (with Cappy as his pith helmet), was cautiously walking through the Deep Woods, looking around fearfully.
"Y-you don't s-suppose... the girls... came to th-this area of the kingdom... do you, M-Mario?" Cappy nervously asked Mario in a whisper.
"N-non sono sicuro... I'm n-not sure... B-but it w-wouldn't hurt to f-find out, Cappy." Mario whispered back, sounding more nervous than Cappy was.
Just then, Mario spotted something lying on the ground up ahead. He hurried over to the object and picked it up. The object turned out to be a pith helmet, much like his own. But this pith helmet was a little different, and familiar, somehow.
Then Mario recognized the head gear! This was the pith helmet Peach was wearing when he found her at Fossil Falls! She must have been wearing it here, and lost it!
"Mama-mia!" Mario exclaimed in a whisper.
"What's is it, Mario?" Cappy asked in a concerned whisper.
"It's-a Peach's pith helmet! You know what this means, don't you, Cappy?" Mario asked in a panicked whisper.
"Yeah. Either she is, or was, here in the Deep Woods, or it fell down here and she doesn't know it!" Cappy whispered.
"I-I'm going to suggest... we keep l-looking... around the area, j-just to make sure... that she and Tiara... are n-not here; that maybe... it blew off of P-Peach's head... and landed down here..." Mario whispered.
"All we can do right now is hope that they're okay..." Cappy whispered.
A few minutes later, Mario heard a sound that made his blood run cold! He heard the sound of a familiar, feminine voice letting out a shriek of terror!
"Mama-mia! It's-a Peach! She's in trouble!" Mario thought, and he ran off in the direction he heard the shriek from, but Cappy had no idea what was going on!
Before long, Mario found himself staring at the back of the dinosaur that he had seen patrolling the area the first time he and Cappy were here. And he saw Peach's suitcase. But he didn't see any sign of Peach, or Tiara. Where were the girls?!
Then the dinosaur burped... and out of his mouth came... a tiny silver tiara...
"No..." Mario gasped, hands over his mouth.
Cappy was equally shocked! That tiara was his sister! If she was dead, he was going to kill that dinosaur!
After the dinosaur walked off, the tiara took the form of a young Bonneter with purple/pink eyes with long eyelashes. It was Cappy's little sister, Tiara! She looked scared... but she was alive!
Relief washed over Cappy like a tidal wave when he saw his sister.
"Tiara! I was so afraid that you were...! Oh, thank goodness! I'm so glad that you're okay!" Cappy quietly exclaimed as he left Mario's head and hugged his little sister tightly.
"Cappy..." Tiara replied, her voice quavering as she felt her brother hugging her. Then she got really upset. She was crying as she hugged Cappy even tighter than he had been hugging her, and she wailed, "No, I'm not!"
"Why? Wha-what happened?" Cappy asked, giving his baby sister a concerned look. Something really bad must have happened for Tiara to be this upset. Cappy had seen her upset before, but not like this.
"Th-that... that d-dinosaur... I-it came out of... n-nowhere and... and it a-attacked us..." Tiara began, shaking like a leaf in her brother's embrace.
"I wish we had gotten here sooner. If we had, we could have warned you about this area of the Wooded Kingdom..." Cappy told Tiara.
"O-or that we had d-done so... before we l-left the S-Sand Kingdom..." Mario said, nervous that the dinosaur might come back.
"And Peach... sh-she lost her hat... s-so I turned into a t-tiara... for her to w-wear... and so I c-could hide..." Tiara said.
"I-is Peach...?" Mario asked, barely able to get out the rest of the sentence.
"She... sh-she tried to stay still when it c-caught up... b-b-but... the dinosaur... i-it saw her... sh-shaking... and s-so... she g-gave up and... she t-tried to run... but the d-d-dinosaur... was... well... he was f-faster... and... a-and..." Tiara started to cry even more.
"No..." Mario gasped, falling to his knees with his hands over his mouth. He couldn't believe this had happened. It was bad enough that he nearly died multiple times, trying to save Peach from a fate she didn't deserve, but now to have lost her to a T-Rex, something a princess definitely didn't deserve (except for the Shroob princesses, but that's another story)! This time, he truly had failed her!
And what's worse, Mario still hadn't been able to apologize to her! She died not knowing how sorry he was! He'd never know if she forgave him for what he had done! Mario was forever doomed to let the sun set on this unsettled argument until the day he died! His heart broke further than it had at Honeylune Ridge...
"NOOOOOOOOO!" Mario shouted as he sat up on the bed in the dark Odyssey, tears coursing down his cheeks.
"Huh...?! What?!..." asked Cappy groggily as he awoke. He had been sleeping quietly on one of the chairs and had no idea what was going on... until he heard Mario breathing hard. The sound told him that not all was well for Mario...
"Mario, what's wrong?" Cappy asked, turning on the lights and flying to Mario's side. When he saw the tears, he knew something really bad had to have happened. Only something serious could have Mario crying like this.
It took a few moments for Mario to realize that he was in the Odyssey with Cappy, not in the Deep Woods in the Wooded Kingdom.
"Cappy... wh-where's Tiara?" Mario asked nervously.
"She's with Peach." Cappy replied.
"Are they... in the Wooded Kingdom?" Mario asked.
"I'm pretty sure... That's where they were going, last I checked... Why? What's wrong? Can you tell me?" Cappy asked, really concerned as he flew closer to Mario.
"I... I had un incubo, a nightmare..." Mario said, the pain in his chest dying down as he realized that he'd only had a bad dream, that there was a good chance that Peach was still alive. He wanted so badly to call her on her cell phone to make sure of that fact, but it was late, and if she had it on her (he didn't know that she brought it), he didn't want to risk waking her up, which would give her a good reason to be mad at him.
"About Peach and the Wooded Kingdom?" Cappy guessed.
"Y-yes..." Mario said with a sniffle.
"I know this isn't going to be easy, but can you tell me what happened? It helps to talk about it, the way you and Peach have been telling each other what you've been through." Cappy said.
"O-okie-dokie..." Mario said. He took a deep breath and proceeded to tell Cappy all about his nightmare, leaving nothing out.
Cappy was horrified by the nightmare, especially when Mario got to the part where Tiara told them about the T-Rex attack.
"Tiara was okay..." Mario told Cappy.
"Oh, thank goodness..." Cappy sighed in relief.
"B-but Peach... she... sh-she was..." Mario couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence. He just burst into tears again.
Cappy knew what Mario was going to say, and he looked at his friend with sympathy.
"Oh, Mario... It's okay, buddy. Peach is fine. I'm sure of it..." Cappy said, giving Mario a hug as best he could. He was shocked at how bad Mario's nightmare had been. The poor guy had been through more than enough, as had Peach.
"I... I-I thought I... only got n-nightmares... after being t-trapped in... p-p-paintings by... v-vengeful ghosts..." Mario said as Cappy handed him a tissue box.
"What?! How can ghosts trap you in paintings? And even if they do, how do you get out of them?" Cappy asked in confusion as Mario took out some tissues so he could dry his eyes and blow his nose.
"Y-you don't... w-want to know..." Mario replied as he laid back down and tried to go back to sleep. But he couldn't sleep. He was afraid to, for he felt that if he closed his eyes for even a fraction of a second, he'd find himself back in the Deep Woods, and he'd watch the dinosaur turn him, Cappy, and Tiara into dessert!
"I'll help you..." said Cappy.
"H-how do you... plan to... to do th-that?" Mario asked, upset.
His question was answered when Cappy flew into Mario's arms and made himself comfortable there.
"There. Now if you have another nightmare, you can hug me for comfort; okay, Mario?" Cappy said.
"O-okay..." Mario replied, not sure if that was going to help.
He never did find out if it would help him, because he didn't go right back to sleep like Cappy did. He was awake for the remainder of the night. He was still wide awake at dawn, when they finally arrived in the Wooded Kingdom, where he knew he could get the answer to the burning question on his mind. Was Peach okay?
When the Odyssey landed in the Wooded Kingdom, Mario immediately got off of the bed, ran to the wardrobe, and quickly found his explorer garb.
"This will be the perfect thing to wear here." Mario said as he changed into the outfit.
"You think maybe Peach will wear her explorer garb, too? I saw her wearing it when we visited Fossil Falls, and she looked like she was ready to spend the day at Jurassic Park." Cappy said.
"Probably. It's a good idea to dress like this here." Mario replied, now dressed for the day.
As they disembarked, Cappy took control of Mario's pith helmet, and they set off into the Wooded Kingdom together.
"Okay, if I were a princess in a kingdom containing all sorts of beautiful flowers that you can't find anywhere else in the world, where would I go first?" Mario asked as he walked around.
"Probably the Secret Flower Field. You saw how lovely that place looked after we took care of Torkdrift. And we both know that girls are crazy about flowers." Cappy suggested.
"I know, Cappy, but I don't think Peach even knew about that place. It's-a called 'secret' for a reason, and also, she was shut up inside of Bowser's airship most of the time, and she wasn't able to jump ship." Mario reminded him.
"Tiara could've left, but I don't think she wanted to do that until she saw me coming to save her, but even when she did see me, I could tell that she didn't want to leave Peach all alone. She wanted to make sure Peach wasn't lonely and sad." Cappy said.
"Your sister has a heart as kind as Peach's." Mario said.
"Let's go looking for the girls." said Cappy.
As they searched for Peach and Tiara, Mario prayed to the Star Spirits that Peach and Tiara hadn't gone to the Deep Woods. He couldn't handle it if he found out that he failed his princess for real! And of course, there's no way Bowser would've been able to save her from that beast! He would've said, "He who Koops and runs away lives to Koop another day!" And then he'd run off like a frightened little girl, the way he often would whenever Mario defeated him in the past. The worst part is, he'd leave Peach to fend for herself against the monster.
(A/N: For those of you who haven't seen "The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!", that's where that quote from Bowser comes from! He would say that upon being defeated by Mario and Co. every now and again.)
"Spero che voi ragazze stiate al sicuro... I hope you girls are safe..." Mario said to himself as he started making his way to the Secret Flower Field.
It was at the observation deck en route to the Secret Flower Field where Mario began to breathe easily again. Peach and Tiara were there, safe and sound. And Peach was dressed in her explorer outfit as well, so she and Mario matched each other perfectly.
The relief that filled Mario's body was immense. The part of his heart that broke from the nightmare was mended, and he was so glad to see that his lovely princess was happy and safe.
"Oh, Peach! Grazie al cielo sei al sicuro! Thank goodness you're safe!" Mario exclaimed as he ran to Peach and gave her a big hug.
"Aww..." said Peach, but right before she could hug Mario back, she was surprised to find that Mario was dipping her and giving her a passionate kiss on the lips!
"Uh-oh!" Cappy and Tiara thought when they saw what Mario was doing to Peach. That kiss might have been way too soon, and to their knowledge, Mario and Peach still hadn't worked out the problem!
Peach was dizzy with passion when Mario ended the kiss. She hadn't expected him to do something like that to her, but boy did she feel happy that he did. He still loved her! And then she realized something about the way Mario kissed her, and what he said.
"Mario, are you okay? You're acting like you nearly lost me to death!" Peach replied, looking stunned as the plumber pulled her back upright.
"Because I did... in un brutto sogno, a bad dream that I had last night..." Mario explained.
Peach was shocked! She knew Mario had nightmares every now and again, usually about being captured and put in paintings by vengeful ghosts, but she didn't know that he was going to have a nightmare that involved her getting killed!
"What... happened to me?" Peach asked, scared for her life.
"I... I can't tell you... It's-a too sad..." Mario said, feeling sad.
"I told you about the things I've been through, no matter how sad I get telling you. I'll comfort you the way you do me." Peach assured him as she knelt down, looked into his eyes, and placed her delicate hands on his shoulders.
Looking into her eyes told Mario that she was sincere. They say the eyes are the window to the soul, and the case was true with both Mario and Peach.
"Okay. I'll do it." Mario said.
"Should we leave?" Tiara asked.
"No, I asked Mario tell me what it was about, and when I heard it, he badly needed comforting. I think Mario's going to need comforting from you too, after he tells Peach." Cappy replied.
"Was it really that bad?" Tiara asked, concerned for the plumber.
"Just listen, Tiara." Cappy told her.
Then Mario slowly told the princess all about his nightmare, explaining things about this kingdom to her as well so she could understand. Peach nodded as she listened to him, feeling bad when she saw tears in his eyes. Mario was hugging Peach tightly and crying when he got to the part before he woke up.
Cappy felt bad when he listened to what happened in Mario's nightmare again, but Tiara was beyond horrified when she heard Mario tell Peach what had happened! The younger Bonneter flew to Mario's side and hugged him.
"Mario! Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry!" Tiara gasped as she hugged the plumber.
"I-it... wasn't y-your fault... T-Tiara..." Mario replied, tears streaming down his cheeks. He returned her hug and repeated, "It wasn't your... f-fault..."
Peach gasped in shock when she heard what had happened to her in Mario's nightmare. She felt so bad for him, seeing how upset he was by it.
"Oh my goodness! You poor baby!" Peach exclaimed as she hugged him back. And without even thinking, she gave Mario a kiss on the cheek, something she would always do to comfort him whenever he was upset.
"It's going to be okay, Mario. After what you just told me, I won't go into the Deep Woods." Peach assured him.
"You promise?" Mario asked, as his sobs began to subside. That kiss was working its magic right away.
"Cross my heart." Peach smiled.
Mario relaxed and smiled back at the princess. He felt a lot better, knowing that Peach was just fine, and that she wouldn't go to the Deep Woods. After hearing what happened to her in Mario's nightmare, she had no desire to visit that area.
"So, there's not really much that happened when we were here. When Bowser showed me the Soirée Bouquet after the Broodals brought it to him, I turned it down flat. The bouquet might be sought after, but it was stolen; I didn't want it." Peach said.
"Lo capisco. I understand that. Plus, didn't you notice the Piranha Plants in it? Aren't those things dangerous? I saw a bunch of them in the bouquet you held at the wedding where you were brainwashed." Mario said. (A/N: See the "Super Mario Adventures" comic for details.)
"I wish I'd thought to tell Bowser that I'm allergic to Piranha Plants, but I don't think it would've worked. For one thing, he most likely wouldn't have recalled the wedding where I was brainwashed, or that little detail because I think he not only pays no attention to details; he probably forces himself to completely forget the failed attempt before he tries again." Peach said.
"You're probably right. But if he had remembered that attempt, and paid attention to details, he might have tested you to see if you really were allergic. If he did that, then you'd have to sell it, Peach!" Mario said.
"You mean, pretend to be allergic to them?" Peach asked.
"Yeah! All you have to do is sound molto convincente, very convincing." Mario said.
"I don't know if I could. I might not be good at that, because when I faked being sick as a young girl, Toadsworth never fell for it. He wanted proof that I was sick when I told him I was. Bowser probably wouldn't buy it, either, and make me carry the deadly plants around anyway." Peach replied.
"While we're here, would you like to see if the Soirée Bouquet has been put back, like the Binding Band in Tostarena?" Mario asked.
"Oh, we could do that." Peach said.
So before they went to the Secret Flower Field, Peach agreed to go with Mario to the Sky Garden, where the famous Soirée Bouquet would be found.
Sure enough, the Soirée Bouquet had been returned to the top of Sky Garden Tower, which is where it belonged.
"Oh, it has been returned. Good." said Peach.
"Yup. Bowser can't use it to propose to you anymore." Mario said.
"Wait a second; that's what he was using to propose to me at the Moon Kingdom?" Peach asked.
"Oh yeah, he did. But that wasn't the worst part, Peach. When he did that, you... looked at him." Mario explained.
Cappy realized what was going on.
"Let's go..." said Cappy to his sister, starting to lead her away from Sky Garden Tower.
"Where are we going?" Tiara asked.
"Away. Mario and Peach need their privacy, so come on." Cappy told her, pulling her away from Mario and Peach as fast as he could.
"Mario, I look at Bowser all the time, but I certainly don't do it by choice. He never gives me a choice." Peach said.
"It was the way you looked at him, Peach. You gave him that look." Mario said.
"What look? I'm not quite sure I follow..." Peach said, hopelessly confused.
"Like this." Mario replied. He demonstrated 'that look' for Peach by making his eyes big and batting them at her in a flirtatious way.
(A/N: I got Mario's dialogue about 'that look' and the look from the 2012 "TMNT" cartoon, when Donatello was venting to the soon-to-be Mutagen Man about how his crush, April O'Neil, was looking at Casey Jones.)
Peach recognized that look! It was the same look she would give Mario whenever she was feeling flirty. And she had looked at Bowser that way? That wasn't good!
"Oh no! I looked at Bowser like that?!" Peach asked, feeling upset.
"Umm... if I say 'yes', do you promise not to be too upset...?" Mario asked nervously.
"What in the world was I thinking?!" Peach exclaimed, still upset.
"Aspetta un secondo! Wait a second! I'm not blaming you for this whole mess, Peach, because it's not your fault! None of that mess was your fault! It was all mine!" Mario said, realizing that Peach was feeling bad.
"But if I hadn't done that... I now remember that I also thanked him for the bouquet, but... I didn't even want it in the first place! What came over me?!" Peach asked. She felt like an idiot now.
"Peach, don't blame yourself. I'm the idiot who messed everything up! I'm the one who grabbed up that Rocket Flower! I'm the one who used it to propose! I'm the one who tried forcing you to accept it! Therefore... I-I'm the one who doesn't deserve your forgiveness..." Mario said, his voice breaking as tears welled in his eyes during that last sentence.
Peach realized that Mario was feeling incredibly guilty about what had happened, and that he blamed not her, not Bowser, but himself. This was not going to end well.
"No, Mario, please don't blame yourself..." Peach tried to comfort him, but... Mario was crying again.
"I-I could've... d-done it differently! I... I c-could've waited... for you to... to r-realize what... what Bowser was... d-doing! I could have... w-waited for you to... to turn him d-down!" Mario said between sobs.
"I could've turned him down flat, so then we could make our way back to the Odyssey, and we could've talked there. I think it would've been a much better option for both of us." Peach said.
"That... th-that would've worked, too... But it was m-mostly... my fault! I... I-I stooped to B-Bowser's level; something I v-vowed I would never... d-do!" Mario moaned, looking at the ground.
"Mario, were you afraid that I was going to pick Bowser?" Peach asked, lifting his chin with her finger so she could look into his eyes. She felt sad upon seeing how upset he looked. The tears in his eyes were definitely not crocodile tears. He looked truly, sincerely sorry. Seeing that made her own heart ache as she thought about how she rejected his proposal.
"I... I-I was out of my mind... when I s-saw the way you l-looked at him... and I heard you th-thank him. I was... t-terrified that he was going to... to win you, P-Peach!" Mario explained.
"But I would've come to my senses sooner or later... And I would've set him as straight as the straight and narrow path Jiminy Cricket mentioned in his song 'Give A Little Whistle'!" Peach said.
"I-I hope you can... f-forgive me, dolcezza... even though I... I don't... d-deserve to be... f-forgiven..." Mario said.
"You do deserve to be forgiven, Mario. I can forgive you for this, because I can see how sorry you are. The only one who isn't sorry is Bowser, so he won't be forgiven." Peach replied.
"You... you f-forgive me?" Mario asked, starting to calm down.
"Yes. Because you apologized to me, and you meant it, too." Peach smiled.
"Grazie mille, principessa! Thank you so much, Princess!" Mario exclaimed, giving Peach a big hug.
"You're welcome, Mario, you big sweetie." Peach replied, returning the hug.
Cappy and Tiara returned by then, and when they saw Mario and Peach in an embrace, they couldn't help going, "Awwwww..."
"Oh, you're back..." Mario said, turning and seeing Cappy and Tiara.
"You didn't go to the Secret Flower Field without us, did you?" Peach asked the pair.
"No, Cappy only showed me the way to get to the Deep Woods, but we didn't go there. After hearing what happened to you in Mario's nightmare, I didn't want to see what they looked like. I might have seen his nightmare play out before my eyes if we did that." Tiara replied.
"But we didn't go to the Secret Flower Field because we didn't want to see it without the two of you." Cappy explained.
"How nice!" Peach said.
"Let's-a go there, shall we?" Mario asked, holding out his hand for Peach's.
"Yes. Let's!" said Peach, placing her small, delicate hand in Mario's.
As they walked to the Secret Flower Field, Peach was in such high spirits that she began to sing "The Happy Wanderer". Mario was feeling so mellow after being able to apologize that he sang along. Even Cappy and Tiara knew the song, and they joined in, too!
As they looked at the flowers in the Secret Flower Field, Peach said, "The flowers in this kingdom are so lovely. I wonder how they grow them?"
"I have never seen so many flowers!" Tiara excitedly exclaimed.
"And I almost forgot! A Power Moon popped out of a flower! I hope it helps you in your travels." Peach said, handing Mario a Power Moon.
"Grazie, Peach. Thank you." Mario said as he tucked the Power Moon away.
The two continued to explore the kingdom for the rest of the day, going nowhere near the Deep Woods, because Peach didn't want Mario to be as upset as he was this morning. They even went back to look at the Secret Flower Field at the end of the day.
"No matter how often I look at it, the flower field takes my breath away." said Peach with a sigh. The field was a thing of beauty, and she took lots of pictures from this place, knowing that it was something she would have to show Daisy.
"It sure is lovely, but it's even more bellissima when you're in it." Mario said.
"You're so sweet, Mario, do you know that?" Peach replied, her cheeks turning pink.
"You're sweeter." Mario told her.
"You know, I think if Daisy sees the pictures I took of this place, she might say that she'll have to come out here and see it for herself." Peach said as she scrolled through the photos of the Wooded Kingdom on her digital camera.
"I think you're right. Maybe she'll want to come visit this kingdom, but she can't go to the Deep Woods. I don't want her to try her hand at beating up un dinosauro. Bowser is one thing, but a T-Rex is another. Plus, if something like what happened to you in my dream really happened to her, Luigi would die of a broken heart." Mario said.
Peach looked sad at that thought. Daisy was like the sister she never had, and she loved Luigi like a brother.
"I could go along with her, just to make sure she doesn't try to do such a thing. I know she's a tomboy, but I think dinosaurs are something not even a tomboy like Daisy can manhandle with ease." Peach said as they left the Secret Flower Field.
By then, the sun had set, and the day was over.
"I guess we should call it a day, huh?" Mario asked.
"Yeah." Peach said.
"Where are you planning to go next?" Mario asked.
Peach thought for a moment, and then she said, "I wonder how the people in that underwater town spend their days... Maybe I'll ask them!"
"That's the Lake Kingdom." Mario replied.
"I'm going there next. I know Bowser took me there before he came here, but I wanted to see this place before I went there." Peach replied, adding in her mind, "And I'll be able to return the Lochlady Dress, too. Thank goodness!"
"So I'll meet you there tomorrow?" Mario asked.
"Yup. Tiara and I will set off now, and we'll see you tomorrow." Peach smiled.
"Buona notte, principessa. Good night, Princess." Mario said.
"Good night, sweetie. Pleasant dreams." Peach said, giving him a kiss on the cheek to ensure the fact that he would have good dreams that night.
Mario felt so good after that kiss, he gave Peach a kiss on the cheek as well, to ensure that her dreams were as sweet as she was.
After getting back to their respective modes of transportation, Mario and Peach set a course for Lake Lamode. They would travel there overnight. And they settled down to sleep as they flew to the Lake Kingdom.
Wow, Mario was able to apologize to his girlfriend for stooping to Bowser's level, and she forgave him for it! Sorry for scaring you guys at the beginning of the chapter, though, but that just goes to show how guilty Mario was feeling. Anyway, the next chapter's going to be pretty interesting, so stay tuned!
