(A/N: Now it's time for our friends to make their way to the Moon Kingdom. I'm kinda worried for Mario, since this is where his heart got broken. Will it be mended? Let's get this show on the road so we can find out!)
After celebrating the fact that Peach had kissed him on the lips not to help him feel better or to warm him up, Mario was ready to go to sleep.
"See you in the morning, Mario." Cappy said as he curled up on his chair and started to go to sleep.
"Buona notte. Good night, Cappy." Mario said, and he took off his shoes, laid down on the bed, and went to sleep.
But sometime after midnight, Cappy woke up and heard something he didn't want to hear. It sounded like an upset Mario.
"Oh no, not again..." Cappy said to hismelf as he flew to the bed, where Mario lay, with his face buried in his pillow. It was obvious that Mario might have awoken in tears.
"Poor guy..." Cappy thought, before giving Mario a little nudge, while saying, "Mario, are you awake?"
Mario instantly sprang up, looking around in the thin light.
"Oh! I'm... I'm on the Odyssey..." Mario said.
"Yeah, you are. What happened?" Cappy asked.
"I... I was h-having a... a n-nightmare about that... that m-moment..." Mario said.
"Which one?" Cappy asked, although he pretty much knew what moment Mario was referring to.
"The one where I ruined everything!" Mario exclaimed, getting upset again.
"Mario, it wasn't completely your fault! Bowser was doing it, too, and Peach turned him down for it!" Cappy said.
"But I got turned down as well, Cappy! You have no idea how much that..." Mario started sobbing again.
"I can't say I know exactly how you feel, but I do know that I wish I could do more to take away the pain you're in." Cappy replied, putting a comforting hand on Mario's shoulder, which shook with sobs. He hated seeing his friend like this.
"I... I need to g-give her a... a full apology, C-Cappy. I know I t-told her... I was s-sorry at... at the Wooded Kingdom... while we were l-looking at the... the Soirée Bouquet... a-at the top of Sky Garden Tower, b-but... questo non è abbastanza! Th-that's not enough!" Mario said.
"So you can give her the full apology tomorrow when we get to the Moon Kingdom." Cappy said.
"If I don't... l-lose my cool first..." Mario muttered to himself.
"Aw, man... He's really upset about this..." Cappy thought. He knew what to do, though. He made himself comfortable on the bed and told Mario, "Here. You can hold onto me if you need comfort."
"Grazie, Cappy. Thank you..." Mario said, holding the Bonneter like a stuffed animal. This was so odd, because he stopped sleeping with stuffed animals when he was 7. Luigi waited another year or two before he finally got around to sleeping without stuffed animals.
"Oh, boy... Another sleepless night for Mario..." Mario thought.
Only it wasn't. He did fall asleep, because the next thing he knew, Cappy had wriggled out of his hold and started to nudge him awake again.
"Come on, Mario. It's time to wake up..." Cappy said as he nudged Mario's head.
"What...?" Mario asked as he opened his eyes.
"It's morning now, and we're at the Moon Kingdom." Cappy said.
"Okie-dokie..." Mario replied as he yawned and stretched.
"So, what do you want to wear?" Cappy asked.
"Let me see..." Mario said. He briefly thought of wearing the Black Top Hat and the Black Tuxedo, but he decided against it. It looked too much like an outfit he didn't think he could look at right then, and if Peach saw him in it, she might not like that. She might think he was trying to propose again, and marriage was most likely the last thing on her mind at present.
"There's got to be something nice in here for me to put on..." Mario said to himself, looking through the outfits, wondering what he could wear.
Then he found the Space Helmet and Space Suit.
"Okay, I'll dress like un astronauta, an astronaut." Mario said.
"That's the perfect outfit to wear when you're going to sing "Rocket Man" by Elton John. Remember how we sang it on the way here the first time?" Cappy asked, and it seemed like he wanted to start singing it right then.
"Cappy, I don't feel like singing that song right now. I'm not exactly in a singing mood. Non iniziare. Don't start." Mario said as he started getting ready for the day.
"Maybe you'd be in the mood to watch "The Martian" instead, but then again, that guy was left for dead on Mars, and this isn't Mars." Cappy said.
"I just want to find Peach and make things right between us again. (sigh) I hope you still love me, Peach." Mario said as he put on the Space Helmet, which Cappy took control of.
"Are you ready, Mario? Or do you want to go by an astronaut name while we're here? I could call you 'Rocket Man'. Or, here's an even better one: Buzz Lightyear!" Cappy suggested.
"No, and I don't want to be called 'Froot Loops', either." Mario said, referring to the astronaut name given to Howard Wolowitz from "The Big Bang Theory".
"Okay, no astronaut name." said Cappy as they disembarked.
Mario still couldn't believe he was on the moon, and that people could actually get married here. He looked and saw the Wedding Hall on Ever-After Hill.
"I wonder if Peach is nearby." Mario said. He was glad that he wasn't hearing the wedding bells ringing. He heard them the first time he was here, and it scared him to death. If the wedding bells weren't ringing, then Bowser obviously wasn't here, trying to marry Peach again. At least, that's what he was hoping.
After testing his jumping skills in a place where gravity was nonexistent, Mario was more than surprised to find a frog on the moon. He captured the frog, which helped him jump so much higher than normal, and before long, he found Peach in the belfry of the Wedding Hall. She was standing just below the bell.
"There she is, mia dolce principessa. My sweet princess. Time for us to talk." Mario said as he ended the capture. He then walked over to Peach.
"Ciao Principessa. Hello, Princess." Mario said to Peach.
"Mario! It's so good to see you." Peach replied, happy to see him.
Mario noticed that Peach was wearing her winter outfit again. He knew that the Moon Kingdom could be pretty cold, but Mario couldn't help feeling nervous because here they were, at Honeylune Ridge, at the top of the building in which Bowser almost made his evil dreams come completely true.
"She thinks of him... and so she dresses in black..." Mario thought sadly as he gazed at her.
"How beautiful..." Peach began.
"You are bellissima..." Mario said to her.
Peach giggled, feeling flattered, and said, "Thanks, Mario but I was referring to the view from here. See? Our entire world...right there in front of us." She gestured to the sight of the planet.
"Oh, right. It does look bellissima, doesn't it?." Mario asked. He remembered feeling amazed by the sight of the planet when he came here for the first time.
"I wonder where Bonneton is... It must look so small from here!" exclaimed Tiara.
"I bet it does. It's probably no more than a dot from our vantage point!" Cappy replied to his sister, leaving Mario's Space Helmet and becoming a Bonneter. Now he was hovering right alongside his sister.
"Oh, and this Power Moon came flying in from outer space. Would you like it?" Peach asked Mario as she handed him the Power Moon she spoke of.
"I would. Grazie, Peach. Thank you." Mario replied.
"Our planet is so lovely, don't you think?" Peach asked.
"It is... but I think you're the loveliest sight on it, even though we're not on it right now." Mario told her.
"Mario, you're making me blush..." Peach said, and it was true. Her face was currently Mario's favorite color.
"But I mean it, Peach. You really are..." Mario said.
Mario and Peach stood there at the top of the Wedding Hall, looking around. Mario had a hand on Peach's back, and she placed a hand on his shoulder.
Cappy and Tiara were having a quiet chat, talking about how the tour had been for both of them so far.
That's when Mario's gaze fell on a particular spot, and his face went as white as a sheet under his Space Helmet. He also went pretty stiff.
Peach felt Mario stiffen, and she realized that something was wrong.
"Mario, are you okay?" Peach asked, concerned.
Mario turned to look at her, and it worried her to see that he looked rather upset. She knew that something was hurting him, and she wanted to know what it was.
"Possiamo parlare? C-can we... t-t-talk?" Mario asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
"We can talk in the Odyssey if you want." Peach replied, knowing that the way he said that indicated something bad.
"That's... g-good." said Mario. He picked her up in his arms and said, "Okie-dokie... I-I'm going to... jump down now... A-are you ready?"
"Go for it." Peach replied.
So Mario jumped down from the Wedding Hall, keeping a tight hold on Peach. And Peach wound her arms around his neck, holding on tightly as Mario jumped to the ground.
"Thank you, Mario. I'd kiss you, but I can't exactly do that when you're wearing a space helmet." Peach explained.
"D-don't worry... P-Peach. I'll t-take it off... when we g-get in the... the Odyssey. You... can k-kiss me there." Mario told Peach as he set her on her feet. Then they walked hand-in-hand to the Odyssey, with Mario feeling more pain in his chest. In his mind, he was reliving the incident for the umpteenth time.
"Mario, what's wrong?" Peach asked, noticing that he really didn't look so good.
"N-nothing." Mario lied.
"No, it's not nothing. You did not just look sick for no reason, Mario." Peach said.
"You're right... I'll... I-I'll tell you when we're... in the Odyssey." Mario promised.
When they got there, Mario opened the door and gestured for Peach to enter first. She did, and then he followed her in, closing the door behind him.
"What's up with Mario? Is he sick?" Tiara asked as she and Cappy watched the couple from under the Wedding Hall's bell.
"In a way." Cappy replied.
"What caused it?" Tiara asked.
"My guess is that he saw the spot where he and Bowser... you know..." Cappy said.
"Oh yeah. That..." said Tiara. She felt bad as she remembered how upset Mario looked when he got rejected.
"And when he saw it, his mind must have taken him back to that awful moment. I think he was seeing it play out again in his mind's eye..." Cappy said.
"Poor guy... I wish I could give him a hug. I owe him one. Not just because he's upset, but because I should've given him one at the end of the adventure, for saving me and Peach. I bet that would've cheered him up a little." Tiara said.
"Tell you what: you can give him one after he's done talking with Peach." Cappy promised.
"I will." Tiara said. Then she sighed and said, "I hope they get this whole mess straightened out, and that they are still boyfriend and girlfriend after all is said and done."
"Me too, Tiara. I hate seeing Mario upset, the way you hate seeing Peach upset." Cappy responded.
Now let's rejoin Mario and Peach. They were in the Odyssey now, sitting on the bed. Mario had taken his helmet off, and Peach could clearly see that he was very upset about something.
"Mario, sweetie, can you tell me what's bothering you?" Peach asked, concerned, as she gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek.
That kiss was all it took. Mario buried his face in his hands and started crying in front of Peach. Now she was really worried about him.
"What's wrong, sweetie? Please tell me." Peach said, even more concerned.
"I... I don't w-want to... to l-lose you, P-Peach... Mi dispiace t-tanto... I-I'm so s-s-sorry..." Mario sobbed.
Peach now realized what was upsetting him.
"Mario, would this have anything to do with what happened when you and Bowser were forcing me to pick one of you?" Peach asked, making sure.
"S-sì! I-I feel s-so... so b-bad! Wh-when I made... that d-d-decision... to f-force you... Ho r-rovinato tutto tra n-noi! I... I-I ruined e-everything between us!" Mario sobbed.
"But from what you told me in the Wooded Kingdom, you were scared. I can't blame you for being scared." Peach said, pulling him into her arms and giving him a much-needed hug.
"Vorrei e-essere stato p-paziente... I... I w-wish I had been... p-patient... M-maybe then... my heart wouldn't be... b-b-broken!" Mario wailed.
Peach realized that Tiara had been right about Mario being heartbroken. She hadn't thought much about that since she heard it, but now that she heard it from Mario himself, she remembered how upset he looked when she turned him down, and she felt like an idiot for not having realized it before.
"Mario! You're heartbroken?! Honey, why didn't you tell me sooner?!" Peach gasped, hugging him tighter.
"Because... m-my broken h-heart is my own... f-fault! N-not yours... and not B-Bowser's like I... I previously... th-thought. I-I'm the one... to blame for this... this whole mess!" Mario wept into Peach's shoulder.
"Mario, please don't blame yourself..." Peach said.
"Ma io f-faccio! B-but I do! I-I just know... i-it's my fault ! I-I'm sorry I didn't... apologize for f-forcing you... until we g-got to the... the Wooded Kingdom!" Mario said.
"Why did you wait?" Peach asked.
"B-because my heart... hurt! E tu... eri p-pazzo! A-and you were mad at me!" Mario explained.
"I was mad at Bowser, too." Peach reminded him.
"I-I thought... if I t-tried to talk to you... o-on the way h-home... you would... sh-shoot me down and... and h-hurt me even more!" Mario said.
"Actually, sweetie, I did calm down by the time I reached your airship." Peach said.
"I w-wish I'd had the c-courage to... to sp-speak to you... to tell you how I f-felt..." Mario replied.
"But I should've known you were heartbroken. I was, too." Peach said.
"No... I didn't w-want you to... to know... and I c-couldn't... t-tell you..." Mario said.
"Why?" Peach asked.
"Because... I-I thought you might like that... that I was... h-heartbroken... Non r-riuscivo a gestire il p-pensiero... I c-couldn't handle the thought!" Mario said.
"No, I wouldn't be happy... If I had realized it, and I should have, I would have tried right then to help you feel better..." Peach said, giving him a kiss on the nose. Then she added, "And now that I do know, I want to help you."
"I... I just h-hope you can... f-forgive me for... e-everything I did... Non ho m-mai... voluto t-turbarti... I n-never wanted to... to upset you! And... I-I'm sorry I didn't... tell you any of this s-sooner! I never, ever... w-wanted the sun to set... on an unsettled a-argument... between us! And now... because of my f-fear... I let the s-sun set on it... t-too many times!" Mario exclaimed, and he began to cry again.
"It's okay, Mario. All is forgiven. And now that you know, maybe we should discuss everything that happened to us here..." Peach suggested.
"L-like what?" Mario asked.
"Well... don't you want to know what happened when I got here with Bowser?" Peach asked.
"Oh, right... Sorry, P-Peach..." Mario replied, sniffling.
"It's okay, honey. You were upset, and you needed to talk. I'm glad you got all that off your chest." Peach said, giving him a gentle kiss on the lips, which helped him to feel a lot better.
"Okie-dokie. What happened to you before I got here?" Mario asked.
Peach took a deep breath as she got ready to tell Mario what happened.
(Flashback...)
When Bowser's airship landed at the Moon Kingdom, Bowser went to the bride's chamber and knocked on the door.
"Peach, it's time for the wedding! Come on out!" Bowser said.
Peach did not respond.
"Peach! We're at the Moon Kingdom, which means it's time for us to get married! You need to come out of there now!" Bowser said.
Still no response.
"Princess Peach! Are you deaf?!" Bowser yelled, banging on the door harder.
Peach still didn't respond.
"Peach, you answer me right now or I'll... I'll break down the door!" Bowser shouted.
He wasn't getting a response.
"All right! That's it! I'm going to break the door down!" said Bowser, and he used his fists to break down the door. When he did, he stepped into the room to see something rather shocking. He saw Peach lying on the floor, motionless, with a sad Tiara hovering over her.
"What the...?! What's going on here?! Why the heck is Peach lying on the floor like a bump on a log?!" Bowser asked.
"She's... sh-she's dead... Bowser... P-Princess Peach is... g-gone..." Tiara said, sounding like she was crying.
"Dead?! How can she be dead?! Last I checked, she was the picture of health!" Bowser said.
"Th-that's... what you... th-think!" Tiara said, weeping.
"Then maybe you might know what killed her, because I can't wait for an autopsy to be performed!" Bowser said.
"Oh, th-that's easy! The... the c-cause of her death... is all your f-fault, Bowser!" Tiara exclaimed.
"My fault?! I didn't do nothing to her, except try to prove to her that she's supposed to be my girl!" Bowser said.
"No, y-you proved to her... that you don't l-love her... or c-care about her feelings at all... you... y-you ingrate!" Tiara snapped.
"Who are you calling 'stupid'?! I'm far from it!" Bowser snarled, getting up in her face.
Tiara looked nervous, but this time, she refused to back down. She continued, "When you killed Mario, you broke her heart! In fact, every time you tried to kill Mario, you broke her heart! And you put her through more abuse than she can stand! Her heart couldn't take much more pain and suffering, and now she's... sh-she's gone! You k-killed her, you jerk!"
"Yeah, right! I know the both of you are faking it! Watch as I bring Not-Sleeping Beauty back to life!" Bowser said, and he walked over to Peach, picked her up.
"I can't look..." Tiara thought, covering her eyes as Bowser violently shook Princess Peach, giving her a rather rude awakening!
"Leave me alone!" Peach exclaimed, not expecting him to do that to her!
"Got you, you faker!" Bowser shouted triumphantly.
"Crap! I thought I might really get him this time! But let's face it; he doesn't think a broken heart is something you can die from..." a frustrated Peach thought as Tiara sheepishly turned into a tiara and landed on her head. She didn't know if playing dead would work, but since Bowser decided that he had to marry her, she hoped that maybe, if he thought she was dead, he would give up.
"Since you're alive, Peach, you're going to have to marry me! Here's your bouquet!" Bowser said, handing her the Soirée Bouquet.
"Don't give it to me! I don't want it!" Peach said, trying to give it back to him.
"Too bad!" Bowser said as he forced it into her hands, then threw her over his shoulder and carried her out of his airship and into the Wedding Hall.
"Put me down! I don't want to get married! Not to you!" Peach screeched.
"You could've made this a lot easier on yourself if you simply agreed to marry me, but it looks like you want to do this the hard way!" Bowser said.
"What hard way?! I don't want to marry you!" Peach shouted.
"Hey, you really think I'm going to just let you go because you think you don't want to marry me?! I didn't go to all this trouble for nothing, you know! And if you want to misbehave, then you might as well let the wedding guests see me carry you in like this!" Bowser said.
"This is not dignified! Put me down!" Peach cried, beating on his shell with small, ineffectual fists before screaming in anger!
As they entered the chapel, Peach heard the sound of wedding bells ringing. She didn't want to hear that sound. With Bowser, the sound she was supposed to hear was bats in the belfry.
Before entering the main room, a completely exasperated Peach said, "All right, all right! If I agree to follow through with this, will you please put me down?!"
"Do you swear it?" Bowser asked.
"Cross my heart and hope to die." Peach replied.
"Forget the last part, and I'll put you down." Bowser promised.
"Okay..." Peach said. She wasn't going to forget the last part, because she knew he was going to kill her anyway.
"All right." said Bowser, and he set Peach on her feet. Then they entered the main room together. There they saw a lot of people, obviously the wedding guests, and the wedding feast. Peach felt sick. She just couldn't go through with this. She didn't love Bowser, not after the way he treated her...
"Okay, here we go!" said Bowser, and he went over to the Binding Band. He removed it from its place and got ready to place it on Peach's hand.
"NO!" Peach screamed, pushing the Binding Band back at him.
"Don't you 'no' me! You said you'd follow through with it!" Bowser said, trying again to force it on her.
"Yeah, well... I lied!" Peach said, pushing the ring away again.
"You can't lie to me!" Bowser said, not giving up.
"You always lie to me! So how come I can't do it to you?!" Peach raged, refusing to let Bowser marry her.
"Because I'm a KING, and you're just a princess! I outrank you any day!" Bowser said triumphantly as he tried again.
(End flashback...)
"And then you showed up, ready to save my life." Peach said, smiling a little as she remembered.
"I noticed that you seemed to be glowing when you saw me." Mario replied. His mind took him back to that moment. The smile Peach wore when she saw him made his heart sing... Beatles songs.
"I was. Not only had you shown up to save me from a fate I didn't deserve, you looked more handsome than I could ever have imagined." Peach said.
"You thought I was... handsome?" Mario asked, blushing a little.
"You were. And I kept meaning to ask, wherever did you get that dapper, white wedding tuxedo you were wearing? Such finery couldn't have come from the Crazy Cap, and even though the Lochladies of Lake Lamode are experts at making beautiful clothing, I don't think they could make a tux as elegant as that one was." Peach said.
"You're right, Peach. I didn't get my... wedding... tux... from the Crazy Cap... and the Lochladies... didn't make it either." Mario replied. Hearing himself call the outfit a wedding tux reminded him of what had happened.
"So, where did you get it?" Peach asked.
"Questo è facile. That's easy. Cappy gave it to me... as we were leaving... Bowser's Kingdom..." Mario said, feeling sad as he thought back to when he saw his outfit change to the finest clothes he'd ever worn in his life.
"Cappy gave it to you?" Peach asked.
"Sì. He landed on my head as a... top hat... and my outfit changed into... the tux..." Mario said. He remembered looking in the mirror on the Odyssey after that happened. He had been thinking, "I think Peach is going to find it hard to resist!"
"I never saw you look so handsome in my life..." Peach smiled.
"I... I-I never thought I'd l-live... to s-see the day... I would w-wear... such f-finery..." Mario replied, starting to tear up as he realized that he could never wear such finery again.
"Mario... do you remember when we escaped from the Underground Moon Caverns, and you were approaching me while Cappy and Tiara had a happy reunion?" Peach asked.
"Y-yes, principessa... I-I wanted to... p-propose to you. I didn't h-have a ring... but I was h-hoping... that you... wouldn't m-mind... That you... m-might say 'y-y-yes'... to me..." Mario continued, tears falling from his eyes.
"And you know what? I was more than ready to give you the response you craved." Peach told him as she handed him the box of tissues.
"You... you were...?" Mario asked with a look of astonishment on his handsome face, but that wasn't enough to stop his tears.
"I was... but... we know what happened next..." Peach replied.
Mario didn't answer. He just grabbed a bunch of tissues out of the box and buried his face in them, sobbing.
Peach put an arm around him and said, "But if you think this ruined everything between us, I'd like for you to think again..."
"Wh-what do you... m-m-mean?" Mario asked.
"I now realized something: you think that because I turned down your marriage proposal, I fell out of love with you." Peach said.
Mario hugged Peach tightly, saying, "Don't l-leave me... Peach! P-Please... don't leave... m-me! I... I-I know I said you were my f-f-friend, but... s-sono a-ancora innamorato di te! I-I still love you! I c-can't... lose you!"
"It's okay, Mario. I didn't fall out of love with you." Peach assured her beau, returning his hug.
"You... y-you didn't?" Mario asked, looking at her.
"No. I didn't." Peach told him.
"Oh right. You did say that I'm your friend..." Mario said.
"You're more than just my friend, Mario. By that, I mean that I'm still in love with you." Peach said, pulling him closer and giving him a loving kiss on the lips.
Now that he knew that Peach still loved him, Mario eagerly returned Peach's kiss, feeling better than he had in a long time. The love he felt from Peach was slowly beginning to mend his broken heart.
When they broke apart, both of them had turned bright red.
"Wow... you don't know how happy I am that you finally returned my kiss..." Peach replied.
"I... I wanted to... the other times... b-but I... I couldn't..." Mario said.
"Is it because you didn't think I still loved you?" Peach asked.
"Sì. I thought if I started kissing you back... I'd screw up worse than before, and you'd never... want to see me again..." Mario said.
"Not true. Seeing you is enough to make my day brighter. You're like a ray of sunshine in my life, but seeing you sad worries me. I want to help you feel better, because you always help me feel better when I'm feeling blue." Peach said.
"Having you in my life is all I need to be happy..." Mario said, before kissing her on the lips again.
"However, Mario, as much as I'd love to marry you and have you as my husband, there's just one thing." Peach said.
"It's not anything b-bad... is it?" Mario asked nervously, his heart thumping.
"Not exactly. I just need time to recover from the adventure and all the torture Bowser, his rotten, ungrateful kids, and the Broodals put me through before I'll even want to think about marriage again." Peach said.
Mario thought for a moment. After everything Peach told him, he knew that this wasn't something you could easily get over in just 2 weeks' time. Especially when you're a princess being put through absolute hell by a stupid Koopa named Bowser.
"Okie-dokie, Peach. Take as much time as you need. I'll wait for you." Mario assured her as he gave her a hug. Then he whispered into her silky, golden tresses, "Vale la pena aspettare. You're worth waiting for."
"You're the best man I've ever known, Mario. I'm glad to call you my boyfriend." Peach smiled, hugging him back.
Hearing Peach refer to him as her boyfriend surprised Mario greatly.
"So... we're still a couple?" Mario asked, pulling away slightly.
"I never said we weren't." Peach replied.
"You never stopped loving me?" Mario asked.
"After the way you've been treating me with love and respect, the way you've been gentle with me, and the way you wanted to protect me from any possible danger... I'd say that if I had any negative feelings towards you, they're completely gone." Peach said.
"I never bore you any ill will for turning me down, because I knew I was at fault. I'm honored to know that you're still my girlfriend." Mario said, giving Peach a hug.
"You really are sweet, Mario. I truly am blessed to have you in my life." Peach said, returning the hug.
"Ti amo principessa. I love you, Princess." Mario said, looking Peach in the eyes. He was feeling much more relaxed, knowing that he still had Peach and her sweet love. His heart felt a whole lot better, and his heartbeat was stronger than ever.
"I love you, too, Mario. I would've said it to you in Italian, but I kind of forgot how to say it." Peach replied, feeling a little nervous, but smiling as she looked into his blue eyes, which sparkled with happiness.
"Anch'io ti amo. That's how you say 'I love you, too' in Italian." Mario said, helping his princess.
"You know, I always used to think that French was the most romantic language in the world. Now that I know you, I think Italian is the most romantic language." Peach said.
"You... do?" Mario asked, blushing.
"Yes. You're always calling me these sweet names in the language as well." Peach smiled.
"Because you're worthy of them, and not just because you're a principessa. It's-a because you're mia ragazza, my girl." Mario replied.
Peach blushed and said, "So, maybe we should go and see what Cappy and Tiara are up to?"
"We should. They're probably wondering if I'm all right." Mario said.
"Let's go find them." Peach said, getting ready to stand up.
"Wait." said Mario, taking her hand, preventing her from getting up.
"What is it?" Peach asked.
"Just this." Mario said, and he was giving her another kiss, which she was gladly returning.
While he was kissing her, they heard a couple of familiar voices from outside the Odyssey, going, "Awww..."
Mario recognized those voices instantly, and he abruptly stopped kissing Peach, exclaiming, "I knew they were gonna do that!"
Peach looked out the window and saw Cappy and Tiara there, watching them.
"I didn't know they were right outside!" Peach said.
"Neither did I. Not until I heard them." Mario said.
"Well, we should go and talk to them." Peach said.
"You're right. We should." said Mario. After he put the helmet back on, the couple exited the Odyssey.
When they got out of the Odyssey, the first thing Tiara did was give Mario a big hug.
"Grazie. Thanks, Tiara. What's this for?" Mario asked, returning Tiara's hug.
"I should've given you this hug two weeks ago, when you saved me and Peach from Bowser's evil clutches." Tiara replied, still hugging Mario.
Peach gasped as she realized that she hadn't thanked Mario for saving her life.
"Thank you, Tiara! I completely forgot!" Peach said.
"Forgot what?" Mario and Tiara asked.
"To reward you for saving me." Peach replied.
When Tiara finished giving Mario a hug, Peach asked Mario to take off the helmet.
"Okie-dokie." Mario said, and he did.
Now that he wasn't wearing the helmet, Peach pulled him into a tight embrace, and gave him a passionate kiss on the lips, which he immediately began to return.
Cappy and Tiara watched happily. It looked like Mario and Peach were once again a happy couple.
"So, how are you two doing?" Cappy asked when they broke off the kiss.
"Meglio che mai. Better than ever." Mario replied.
"Can we look around the Moon Kingdom?" Tiara asked.
"Sure! Let's see what we can see!" Peach smiled.
They did look around, but they did not enter the Wedding Hall. Also, they didn't see Bowser's airship.
"Maybe he left already." Peach said.
"Good. Then he can't marry you." Mario said.
"Right. And that's good, because I don't want to see him in that stupid wedding tux of his ever again." said Peach.
The Moon Kingdom didn't really give the group much to do or see, but at least Mario and Peach had replaced their bad memories of the Moon Kingdom with better ones, now that they knew that they hadn't lost the love spark. It was still there, and as strong as it ever was.
Cappy and Tiara had been happy to see that Mario and Peach got everything straightened out. They were slightly disappointed when Peach told them that she and Mario were not engaged, but they didn't see why they couldn't hold on to the hope that someday, Peach and Mario would get engaged, so they could marry and live happily ever after.
And there's still another chapter to come! Yeah, the story isn't quite done yet, so if you crave more, then stay tuned!
