Peach sighed. She looked around the cold, stone walls of her prison for the umpteenth time, searching in vain for some glimmer of hope. She had been raised on stories of the Chosen Ones; heroes who would come from another world in her kingdom's darkest hour. In fact, according to stories they had not long ago been born in this world, but were sent away when their lives were threatened by the caretaker of the Koopa King. Apparently, even as a baby Bowser had been a threat to the kingdom, for if the fated heroes died, all would be lost.
Of course, this prophesy seemed like merely a nursery story to the princess, who sat alone in the cold dark cell. Outside the heavy door she knew that Bowser sat in wait, not willing to risk the possibility of the heroes actually arriving and stealing his stolen princess away from him. Peach sighed. Her kingdom was in ruin, thanks to the armies of Bowser Koopa, and there was nothing she could do to stop it. The frustration of this helplessness was maddening for her.
Suddenly, from outside of her prison a horrible roar tore the silence, and the sound seemed to quiver with rage. Peach stood and rushed to the door, quickly pressing her ear to it to try and hear what was going on. "What do you mean, they're here?!?" Bowser's voice thundered, making the fortress shake. The princess didn't catch the reply, but it obviously enraged Bowser even more, because it was quickly followed by another roar and an agonized scream.
He's killed his own man, she thought, and shuddered. The Koopa King was a cruel and ruthless leader. What did he mean by "They're here"? He couldn't have meant…She shook her head. No, it wasn't possible. That was just a silly story, no one was coming. She'd long ago lost all hope of a miraculous rescue.
Just then, she heard another sound. A shout. A challenge. Wait… no, it was two voices, very similar but clearly belonging to two different people. She pressed her ear to the door again, straining to hear what was going on. Bowser was growling menacingly; he seemed to be replying but she couldn't make out what he said.
There followed the sounds of a long and fearsome battle; roars, shouts, and the loud, whoosh sound of Bowser breathing fire. When these happened Peach could actually feel the heat through the door, and her heart pounded; she was terrified for their lives. For of course it was them. The heroes spoken of long, long ago, the heroes said to have been born just over twenty years ago in the Mushroom Kingdom, the heroes destined to return.
They had finally come, and soon the Mushroom Kingdom would be freed.
After what seemed like hours there came one final roar, an angry, agonized cry of defeat. The captive's heart skipped a beat, and she stepped back from the door, dumbfounded. Bowser was gone. They had defeated the horrible menacing beast, just as the prophesy said they would. It was incredible.
Just then the heavy iron door began to slide- not to the side, but downwards, into the floor. As the entrance was opened, Princess Peach Toadstool looked for the first time into the faces of her heroes.
The first person she saw was Mario.
Of course, she didn't know his name yet, but at the moment she didn't care. All she knew at the moment was that the man was young, probably only in his mid-twenties; he was somewhat short; had a slightly rounded face; a large round nose (which was complimented by a thick black moustache); bright blue eyes; and curly brown hair, which was for the most part covered by a bright red cap with a broad brim and a white patch on the front, which had the letter "M" stitched in it in red. He wore a long-sleeved red shirt and denim overalls, white gloves and brown shoes. He was a little pudgy as well, but the princess didn't notice. Mostly she was focused on the brave-looking face. She blushed slightly when she realized she thought he was, in a charming way, very handsome.
Behind this man stood another; he was taller and thinner than the first, but obviously his brother: he had the same round nose, a similarly thick black moustache, blue eyes and wavy brown hair which peeked out from under a green cap. On the patch on his hat was a green letter "L". He was clothed the same way as his brother, only his shirt was green.
But mostly, Peach was focused on the first. She blushed even more when she noticed that he was gazing into her eyes with wonder, with an expression that she imagined matched her own.
It was love at first sight, and Luigi, the younger brother, realized this immediately and stayed in the doorway respectively, while his brother stepped into the prison.
For a moment the two looked at each other in silence, until Mario finally said softly, "Are you all right, princess?"
"Yes, I'm fine now that you two have come," she replied, and though she said 'you two', it was clear that she was speaking solely to Mario. "What is your name?"
"Mario," the young man replied. "And this is my brother, Luigi." He added, suddenly remembering that his twin was still standing in the doorway. The taller brother waved slightly, and Peach smiled and nodded acknowledgement.
"Thank you, Mario and Luigi," she said. "I knew in my heart that you'd come, even when my mind lost hope." She took a small step closer, feeling shy but bold at the same time. "And," she said, a little awkwardly. "I-I want you to take this, as a token of my gratitude." And with that she bent slightly and kissed her hero tenderly on the cheek.
Whoo! Second fic in one day! Yay! I thought it'd be neat to do a fic from Peach's point of view for once. I kinda like the way it turned out, really. I like doing these one-shot fics! Oh, and I don't own anything from Mario. How sad.