Been away from this story for a while, so let's try making up for it with the longest chapter yet.

To sum up my feelings regarding things Mario related throughout the months:

Smash Bros Ultimate looks amazing as expected. ULTIMATE!

And...Bowsette. That is all. Bowsette. The one who took over the internet for a long while, complete with legit cosplay and some fanart...most not exactly family friendly.

Bowser: We do not speak of this here.

But-

Bowser: *Deep Blush* WE. DO. NOT. SPEAK OF IT!


Bowser and Daisy were grumbling even as they made their way from the beach, with the latter putting her dress back on, patting it down a bit before huffing and folding her arms. The former grumbled while folding his own arms and turning away from her. Their intense volleyball match ended in a draw, neither being the victor of their newly invigorated spat. Though at some point, they eventually decided to settle down and listen to their observers-only after they completely destroyed the ball, there's only so much that a combined assault of Daisy and Bowser strikes before it finally gave out and completely self destructs-and relax a little.

Everyone was more than a little bit relieved, yet also disappointed.

"That was far too intense..." Luigi shook slightly.

"We didn't even get to play..." Peach twitched her eye in slight annoyance while keeping her somewhat balanced smile.

"At least their destruction stopped before it escalated." I wanted to join in...Mario pouted.

"I for one had quite a fun time observing the two of them. They have quite a passionate relationship." Rosalina smiles calmly.

"I'm...well...passionate is definitely one way to word it..."

"What phrasing would you use, Mario?"

"I'd say a pair of Bo-ombs headbutting each other while arguing over who can make the bigger and louder explosion..."

"And may you mind, that is the TAMEST way for him to phrase it." Luigi sighed. "If it weren't for various different factors, I'd say Bowser hated Daisy more than he hated Mario, which would be a REALLY big accomplishment. I'm not even on that level despite always adventuring with Mario."

"He DID begin loathing you enough to properly remember your name, bro."

"Please don't try to make me feel proud of that..."

"You boys are overexaggerating things." Peach waved her hand. "As much of a troublemaker as he is, Bowser doesn't hate any of us. We just...have very different perspectives on how to go about our lives, is all. Would you invite him to alo of those go-kart races if you actually hated him, Mario?"

"...No." Mario dipped his cap slightly. He invited the Koopa King to these things so as to be polite. Those days are where the more intense parts of their rivalry takes a back seat so they can sit back and chill with their friends.

"Exactly. As much as our tendency to antagonize each other may make us consider otherwise, Bowser IS our friend. Mostly during the times he actually behaves himself, but he is our friend. Therefore, as much as most might disagree, Bowser deserves to have fun just as much as the rest of us."

"I agree quite highly." Rosalina smiles kindly.

"Okie-Dokie. I'm fine with it." Mario said with a thumbs up.

"So am I! As long as I'm...ya know...not within 'punching face' distance, I'll be fine." Luigi smiled a bit uneasily.

Within hearing distance, Bowser and Daisy heard the whole thing. Both of them were now pulling back and looking towards the ground in a slight bit of shame.

"Darn it. I feel like a jerk now..."

"Even more than usual?" Daisy scoffed. She yelped as Bowser hurriedly grabbed her by the sides and carried her a fair distance away, before setting her back down. "HEY! WHAT'S THE BIG-"

"A moment. Just for a Kooping moment, Desert Flower. I need you to ZIP IT." Bowser said, gesturing the action across his maw. Daisy harrumphed and folded her arms, waiting for him to continue. "Good. Now listen: This back and forth between you and me? At least for the duration of this trip, it's gotta stop. Seriously, both of us need to knock it off at SOME point."

"What's this 'both of us' nonsense?"

"I'm not as stupid as you might think I am. I KNOW you're getting a kick outta provoking me, but I'm not helping the situation by repeatedly responding how I usually do...which is volcanic rage that can level a mountain." Bowser huffed while folding his arms as well. "I brought my family along so they can have a good time on vacation, and I mean that with all my heart. Just like you wanted to go on vacation so you could spend time with your friends and your precious Green Stache, Luigi."

"...What's your point...?" Daisy grumbled childishly, mildly blushing at the last part.

"What we need to do, is agree to a truce." Bowser muttered. "Because if we keep coming at each other like we did with the volleyball thing, the likely scenario is that they're gonna ditch the both of us for a couple days until we cool off. I don't have the time or patience for that, and neither do you. But most importantly, it would mean that we'd both ruin this trip for everyone. And since I'm not feeling very evil today, I don't wanna be the cause of that."

"So...what do you suggest?"

"Hate each other...silently."

"What?"

"We don't directly antagonize each other while they're within hearing and seeing distance. It's just as obvious that we can't force ourselves to like each other, but we CAN hold ourselves back so we don't ruin everyone else's fun. We don't bicker, we don't fight, we don't do ANYTHING that might give them the idea that we could ruin all of this for them." He lowered his eyes. "I ain't a completely bad guy, ya know. I DO want the others to enjoy themselves. Don't you?"

Daisy thought it over for a moment, and then a moment more since she saw that the look in Bowser's eyes and the tone of his voice both indicated that he was serious. As such, she sighed in resignation. "Peach did want to show me why she enjoyed Isle Delfino so kuch after your defeat...I haven't really been doing much to honor that wish. Dang it now I feel terrible too..."

"Whaddya say, Desert Flower? Truce?" Bowser said gruffly while holding out his larger paw.

Daisy would gaze at it, then back into Bowser's eyes. With another reluctant sigh, she reached out and grabbed his larger paw, both of them shaking in unison. "Alright, we have ourselves a truce."

"Hm." Both of them nodded as they both turned and made their way back for the others, Bowser's thundering steps greatly contrasting Daisy's more delicate steps.

"...Soooo...I'm not the only one who noticed how plump Peach's butt is, right?"

"It's rather hard not to, with the outfits she occasionally wears to emphasize it."

"I know, right?!~"

Peach, currently not within hearing distamce, didn't understand why she suddenly felt like crying out in complete embarrassment...


"Mama!"

"Mama..."

"Mama!~"

"Mama Rosalina!~"

Rosalina was met with quite a flurry of Lumas that reached out towards her in a very affectionate manner, with Junior finishing with a jump and a hug, which she gently caught him, and patted his uead, as well as the other Lumas, with a warm and welcoming warm smile.

Ludwig raised an eyebrow in suspicion as he saw Bowser and Daisy eventually come back in, both seeming to have calmed down. In fact, they didn't seem as virtriol as they were several moments before. But he then took a look towards their eyes, and could see that the fire aimed towards each other was still very much there...but they have apparently decided to push it aside. He could deduce that they were doing so for their sake. Sake of Bowser's children and sake of Daisy's friends. Not to mention their dates.

Yes, this was a date at this point. Bowser could fool the others, but he and Wendy catch on quickly to these kinds of things. Because the former is smart like that and Wendy is a self-admitted sucker for things of this nature.

Ludwig hummed as Rosalina eventually came over to pat his head a little. He chuckled while looking up to her. "It seems that those two have made up for the most part. I don't think that we'll be experiencing any more serious interruptions from them, I don't think."

"Ah. I suppose that's a nice change of pace. They don't seem to hate each other, as Peach suggested. Simply a difference in perspectives." Rosalina smiles politely while another Luma flew close to her and nuzzled her cheek. She gently pats their head in response. "Anyway, it's lovely they're on friendly terms now. I can understand their fiery competitiveness. They don't seem to enjoy losing."

"Not even a little." Lemmy bounced a bit on a summoned yellow star ball.

"Pops havin' been bested by the stache duo for so long has left em' with a very immense drive to win over em' at somethin'. After all, they've been at each other for quite a while." Roy huffed while adjusti g his shades. "Pride is a bit of a big thing for him, ya see?"

"Indeed I do." Rosalina smiled in amusement.

"If anything, that's what they most have in common. They hate to lose." Morton added with a slightly tilted head. "Maybe they came to an understanding over that?"

"I guess they could have. Or they might soon. Who really knows but then?" Iggy shrugged. "Whatever whatev's, with a hint of ever whats! Let's keep going!~"

"None of that made since, you doofus." Wendy rolled her eyes.

In the meantime, Luigi sighed while temporarily removing his hat from his head. "Even in the cool evening it's still kinda hot. That's kinda unfair..." Luigi grumbled while scratching his head. "I wonder if-"

"LUIIIIGIII!"

"Wa-"

Boing~

Daisy had went ahead and glomped Luigi unexpectedly, pulling his ahead against her chest. The suddeness of it all greatly caught him off-guard.

BWAAAH?!

"I'm so sorry, Luigi! I kept letting my grudge-making competitiveness get in the way of our fun times together! That is a massive 'my bad' for me!" Her lips quivered and her eyes shined a bit. Her tears seemed genuine. "Can you bring yourself to forgive me, Luigi? I'll do better, for reals. I promise..."

"I...I...I...I know you will..." Luigi muffled slightly while patting her shoulder. "It's alright, really. I'm not mad about it or anything, just worried. It's fine." Choosing between staying within this amazing comfort or simply moving on with their day, Luigi pushes on and chooses the latter, pulling away from Daisy we we she wiped away the tears that almost fell. He was a bit relieved to see her quickly dry them away. They weren't like her, not over something like this. She was much stronger than that, so much stronger.

...That didn't mean he didn't find it cute, however. Just unlike her.

"D-Daisy! For goodness' sake, you're a Princess! A proper lady!" Peach sputtered, pointing at Daisy with a blush of embarrassment. "You cannot simply go smothering Luigi into your bosom so nonchalantly without considering the implications!"

"Hah? Why not?"

"W-Well...because...um..." Peach deflated slightly, pressing her fingers together. "Look, we just can't, alright?! You didn't even give him the courtesy of a fair warning!"

"I refuse to believe that surprise hugs are an inherently bad thing." Daisy shrugged. "Relax, Peach. Say if you were to do the same kind of thing to Mario, I don't think either of us will be put off enough about it to actually complain."

"I...gah...ugh..." Peach pouted, slightly slumped over in surrender. "I suppose you have a point...I apologize for my ignorance. I did not mean to disrupt our fun time with something so miniscule."

"Forget it, it's fine. I know how you tend to get sometimes, so expecting it cushions the blow." Daisy jokingly waves it off. "Now then, we have a lot more agendas to attend to. What's gonna be our next thing, now that beach time's done and things are cooling down a bit?"

"Well, it apprars we've had our fill of the beach for the time being." Toadsworth informed while rubbing his precious mustache. "I'd say that it's a pretty good time for us to receive some high-quality food, for everyone."

"Ya know what, I'll really have to agree with mushroom head here.~" Kammy chuckled as she flew around the group slightly, briefly confusing the toads but making the Lumas laugh and fly about with her. "There ain't nothin' like having a nice big meal with friends and loved ones to really demonstrate how deep a bond is! There ain't many ways to better demomstrate such things than sharing food with someone ya share a connection with! Am I right, kiddies!?"

"Yeah!" The Koopalings all shouted gleefully.

"Weee!~" The Lumas all cheered while swirling around the room with a trail of stars following them the entire time.

"Alright, you're actually speaking sense this time, Kammy!" Bowser grinned, which was quickly wiped away by the menacing, potent glare she sent his way. He held is paws up in surrender. "I swear I was kidding."

"Mmhmmm..."

"Geez, it takes just about anything to set you off if it comes from my big mouth."

"That's only because I care about your growth, my Boarishness.~"

"Hey, who you callin' a boar!" Bowser pointed dramatically. "Don't compare me to Mr. Icy Pig! I'm BBB than him! Bigger, Badder, Better!" Bowser blinked and folded his arms, tapping his foot. "What was his name again...Pigby? No...Boarby? Nah..."

"You mean Blizzard Midbus?" Luigi deadpanned.

"Hmmm...that can't be it."

"You fought him when he was juiced up on ice power!"

"I'm pretty sure I would remember someone like that. And what kind of a stupid name is Blizzard Midbus? Who was he again?"

"He worked with Fawful to basically steal your Kingdom." Mario sighed. "You know? The bean citizen that worked with Cackletta? Who ALSO possessed you? Mr. 'I HAVE CHORTLES!', that guy?"

"..." Bowser hummed for a bit, before a lightbulb went off and fire streamed out of his mouth. "GRAAAAAWWWWGH!"

"WOAH!"

"That's right! That stupid pest, Fawful!" Bowser growled while stomping the ground, smoke emitting from his nostrils and maw. "I HATED that little jerk! Kept shoving his conquest of my Kingdom and my prior inability to reconquer it right in my face every chance he got! Every time I saw his stupid grinning face I wanted to punch it and turn him into bean paste!" He blinked. "And just how many times did I get possessed or copied by somebody and you all had to fight me or that copy?!"

"Far too many..." Luigi sighed.

"Oh my. Truly so many possessions and copies of King Bowser." Rosalina hummed.

"...We got used to it." Peach said with a serene smile yet also a dull look in her eyes.

Bowser sighed as he voluntarily calmed himself down, taking deep breaths, before letting them out slowly. Not gonna lose my top over a memory. I'm just not. I'm gonna take a chill pill, embrace the breeze of an Ice Flower, and just relax...Fawful was still a big beanish jerk though.

"Now then..." Rosalina smiles as she tenderly wraps her arms around Bowser's right arm. The look of surprise on his face was quite obvious, and a quick starlight sparkle across her eyes told him that she found it amusing. "What do you say we head to Delfino Hotel? Getting nust a tiny bit late, after all. What better place to rest after such an intense volleyball match?'

I coulda won... Daisy muttered under her breath.

"Uh...sure. No problem at all." Bowser mumbled while blushing and anxiously looking upwards.

Rosalina enjoys teasing him far too much...


"And here you go, good man!" Kammy smiled as she casuslly casually drops a bag of gold on the counter of a nearby Pinata, who simply gasped at the huge amount of gold coins presented. "Thay should just abut cover everyone's expenses for the night and then some!" Kammy even took their potential room service requests that might be made later.

"I'm surprised you're willing to pay so much." Toadsworth raised an eyebrow.

"Bah! Lemme tell ya something important, Mr. Toadstache."

"Now see here-"

"Villainy is all well and good when you're going to be serious and follow through with it. That's fine. But we're kind of on a vacation. We're taking a break from all that noise. Which means it would be much quicker to just pay for what we want and be on our way than make a hassle of trying to aggresively strongarm them into doing what we want. Am I wrong?"

"Well...I would say that's not entirely incorrect..."

"Very good very good!" She snatched him up by the arm, grinning with glee. "Now let's go check out the sights!"

"Wait a moment! I did not agree to-" Toadsworth was already lifted up by Kammy and flown away via broom. "PRINCESS, HELP ME!"

"I'm sure he'll be fine..." Peach said hopefully, though Mario snorted at the concerned look in her eyes despite her words.

"Probably. But just in case, be sure to check on them in two hours...maybe two and a half." Lemmy tilted his head.

"Kammy is a wild one, ya see? Ain't got no idea what goes on in her head." Roy says while lightly lifting his shades. "It's one of the main reasons we're kinds of terrifed of her, yeah? Makes Iggy seem a little bit sane-emphasis on little bit-sometimes. Don't wanna set off a bo-omb that can explode whenever it wants. That won't be good for us in the slightest." He let them drop back down and grinned. "But enough of dat for now! Room service!~"

"I'm gonna order everything!" Junior threw his paws in the air.

"Nu-uh! I'M gonna order everything!" Larry said with his own fists in the air.

"Back of the line, fellow brothers. It's quite obvious that I shall be the one who orders every food item here." Ludwig shuts them both down with a smug wave. "You two probably won't be able to fully comprehend the lists given to you."

"Grah! Buzz off, Ludwig!" Larry huffed.

"Yeah, Ludwig, emphasis on the wig." Roy smirked, lowering his shades a bit. "How long are ya gonna think yours is cool?~"

Ludwig gasped, horribly offended. "How DARE you?! At least I HAVE hair on my head, brute!" He muttered, blushing slightly. "I work really hard to make my hair look presentable, I shall not allow you simple-minded comments to take away from the effort..."

"Effort that belongs to Kammy and Wendy since they are the ones that help condition it and such. Right?" Iggy pointed out, which Wendy confirmed with a confident nod.

"..."

"You can scheme a big scheme but you can't even do your own hair, bro." Roy laughed. "And don't even get us started on what was essentially the WACKIEST hair day of your life."

"We do NOT mention that incident in public..."

"Circus Polka Dot Afro!~" Lemmy giggled.

"WE DO NOT SPEAK OF IT!"

"I dunno, talkin' wbout it actually feels nice.~"

"Alright alright, let's not veer off topic too much." Rosalina said ws a wave of Lumas flew over them and allowed a few raining glittering stars over them, surprisingly decreasing all negativity for the moment, leaving room for positivity to grow. She smiled while clasping her hands. "Now then, it would be quite disadvantegeous for any of you to order everything from room service. After all, it would leave less for you to order tomorrow. Think about restocking, costs, management, the seemingly miniature parts of a body that keeps it functioning." She says while going over to pet each of their heads. "You should follow the example your father presents when ruling his Kingdom."

The Koopalings looked at Rosalina in confusion, and even Bowser raised an eyebrow. Rosalina gently sits before them as Lumas gathered around them.

"Bowser is many things when it comes to his conflicts with other people. But within the Kingdom he rules? He commands genuine respect, loyalty, and love. And do you know why? Because he is kind." She nearly giggled at Daisy's rather audible snort, and was happy to see that she retained the Koopalings attention. "I know it is difficult for others to believe, but he is truly kind, even if he himself does not completely admit it aloud. A King of his stature is beloved by all of his citizens bcause he treats them with kindness, including his minions. Sure, he can be rather quick to punish them for failure, but never focuses on it because he wants them to do better. That, and given the opposition, he's more prone to, how you say, 'cut them a break'."

"That...that is true..." Wendy hums.

"I believe the biggest example of this was the time when he once found defectors of his army, and was simply happy for their new lives rather than forcing them back under his command. Or calming down a painfully shy female Chain Chomp with surprising tenderness. I heard these not from Bowser himself, but from Mario." Rosalina smiled. "It was their adventure with Smithy that he witnessed this, and both he and Peach were reaffirmed that he wasn't as evil as he paints himself to be. And it's acts of genuine benevolence like these that makes Bowser king. While afraid of him due to his temper and low tolerance for failure, their love, respect, and admiration of him surpasses that fear immensely. It makes them happy to serve him."

"O-Oh..." Morton pouted, lightly rubbing the back of his neck.

"Wait, that's where that Chompetta came from?" Iggy asked while turning towards Bowser. "You told us stories about your adventure with Mario against Smithy, and that a Chain Chomp was your first weapon. You do so a lot, but you actually kept Chompetta!"

"You even gave her a cute white bow!" Wendy cooed.

"...The darn chomper grew on me. I couldn't bring myself to just abandon her after fighting by her side in such tough times." Bowser pouted with a light blush.

Rosalina smiled. "And just now, Bowser managed to convince the ever-abrasive Princess Daisy to tone down their hostilities so that the rest of us can simply enjoy our time here." Both gasped as Rosalina mentioned this so casually, turning to Bowser with a smile. "I didn't need telepathy to tell that's what you did. Simply deducting who's more reasonable between the two of you and figuring that's the person who will put their squabbling on hold."

I'm less reasonable than BOWSER? Daisy thought rather shyly.

"Stupid Space Princess..." Bowser grumbled, blushing brighter.

"Ah, there it is. Retreating back into his shell after mentioning him being so sweet." Rosalina smiled. It was honestly incredibly cute that he reacts in such a way. She couldn't help but push for more reactions like that. It's warmly amusing. "So what I am trying to say, children, is to treat those who serve you with kindness. They should be happy to do so, not because they're afraid of you, but because they love and respect you. You show that you care for them, and vice-versa. You'd be surprised what that does for their effectiveness in their occupations."

After pondering Rosalina's words for a few moments, the Koopalongs settled down and nodded to each other in agreement. Ludwig clapped his paws. "Alright, fellow siblings. We shall all share one room. Be light on what you order for room service, because we won't be able to fall asleep if we overdo it. And be sure to tip."

"Uhhh...what he said! All of what he said!" Junior said quickly, with two Lumas happily sparkling next to him. He then blinked and stomped. "Wait a minute! Something's not right here! We all have to share a separate room?! No fair! I wanna sleep close to Mama Rosalina!"

"That's obviously not going to work. Why should she pick you over all of us?"

"...I never said that." Junior grumbled, briefly surprising the Koopalings. "I said that I wanted to sleep close to Mama Rosalina. I never said that you all couldn't join us..."

"...Oh. My apologies, I assumed too quickly."

"That's what happens when yer heads' too big, Wiggy." Roy smirked and playfully patter his head, not minding it being slapped away moments later.

"Unhand my hair! I don't know where your paws have been!"

"I guess we gotta get our things ready, huh? Gotta take baths and all that. Brush our fangs, set up our beds, read ourselves a story, tell more stories..." Morton rambled for a little.

"I for one, would love sleeping with Rosalina so close by! Gives us a sense of safety, you know?" Wendy smiled as she turned to Bowser with a clap. "Will that be alright with you, Daddy?~"

"...Fine." Bowser grumbled as he folded his arms and sighed. It wasn't like saying no would actually stop the Koopalings. They were clever like that. If it would make them happy...then he would allow it. He didn't miss the knowing smile on Rosalina's face. There was no telepathy involved, she just knew from his eyes. Considering that greatly unfair, he closed them and turned away, his boush getting brighter.

Troublesome Space Princess...


"Haaaaaaagh! Welp, time to hit the hay!" Daisy squealed as she landed back first on a bed, bouncing several times before stopping and sprawled lazily upon it.

"Daisy! For Star Spirit's sake, close your legs when you're wearing a nightshirt!" Peach admonished her while patting down her own pink nightshirt, her royal garbs neatly put up and placed on a dresser, including her crown. "Honestly, times like these I tend to forget that you're an actual princess. Can't you be a bit more self-conscious?"

"Why?" It's just us and the Bros." Daisy shrugged. "Isn't that right, Luigi?"

"I swear I didn't see anything..." Luigi looked away, still as a statue while blushing brightly.

"And on top of that, yout hair! You haven't even bothered brushing it! Now it's all unkempt and wild!"

"I'll worry about that later. Right now, I just wanna sleep..."

"By the Stars, Daisy..."

"...So...hey." Daisy slowly sits up, sitting on her knees and placing her hands on her lap. "How long will this break last, huh? And I don't mean the vacation, I mean Bowser." The trio was surprised by the lack of malice in her voice this time. Did she calm down? "He's willing to behave now, sure. Though how long will that last exactly, before we get into another fight with him?"

"We'll probably do just that, look back on the battle, laugh a little, then save the next big encounter another day." Mario stretched with his hands behind his neck.

"I would think you of all people would be a bit more worried about this..."

"All I'm saying is that worrying about it nonstop won't do us any good. If it happens, then it happens, and we'll deal with it. Right now, it's NOT happening. And I'm willing to count that as a pretty big positive, if you don't mind."

"I mean...all those bad days we had with Bowser just means we enjoy the good days even more." Luigi twiddled his fingers. "Sure, he might never cross into bonafide good guy territory, but it also means that he's considered the choice, and doesn't want to go too far into the other direction." Luigi nodded. "That's something to be happy about...at least I think so."

"When we're not at odds with him, Bowser is actually very fun to have around." Peach said as she sits upon her own bed while finishing up brushing her hair. "There's a reason why Rosalina is so relaxed around him."

"Rosalina doesn't count for obvious reasons. Of COURSE she's not worried." Daisy sighed. "But regardless, I'm outvoted, so I guess I can ease up on him a little."

"That's all we ask for."

"Yeah yeah. I'm gonna go to sleep now." Daisy yawned, before her arms slid around Luigi, and he gasped as he was suddenly pulled onto the bed, with her tightening her hug around him. "Well, g'night."

"H-Hey hey hey! Daisy, what are you doing?!" Luigi sputtered while blushing brightly, his face pressed into the sleepy Daisy's bosom.

"So sleepy..." Daisy muttered drowsily, pressing him deeper within. It did not help his embarrassment in the slightest.

Mario and Peach both sighed while gently facepalming, before looking at each other and noticing they did so simultaneously; they soon laughed heartily from this, as both of them laid on the bed on their backs, staring at the ceiling, with the latter's hair gently sprawled out. The former noticed this, raising an eyebrow.

"What about alo alo talo about brushing hair?"

"Daisy exhauasted my care for it tonight."

"Mama Mia..."

"Indeed." Peach sighed. "...Mario?"

"Hm?"

"Hypothetically. If Bowser wereto truly stop kidnapping me and stopped harassing the Mushroom Kingdom...do you believe we could still be friends?" She asked sincerely, turning towards him with her blue eyes gently glowing int he dark, which Mario s did the same. "No matter how mu h he has troubled us...Bowser is a major part of our lives. No part of me wishes for that to have never been, nor do I want him to stop seeing us. A peaceful coexistence between the Darklands and Mushroom Kingdom sounds like a faraway dream...yet I still want to make it real. As much as I can."

Mario listened intentively, seeing how sincere Peach was being about this. Taking a moment to process this, he smiled and stared at the ceiling. "I wouldn't worry too much. It's Bowser, after all. Whether we fight or not, he always finds a way to make life interesting. So no, I don't believe that the more malevolent parts of our feud would mean the end for any possible friendship. If anything, he'd just channel all of that pent-up expression in extreme sports or multiverse tournaments. Bowser's a surprisingly good sport when he wants to be."

"...Yes. I suppose he is." Peach smiled warmly, returning her gaze to the ceiling as well. Silently, they both reached for each other's hand, and held them softly. They soon fell into quiet slumber.

"...Mario? Peach? Helllooo?" Luigi muffled as Daisy quietly and cutely snored while keeping his head firmly against her chest. Then he wondered: Was calling for help from a position like this reasonable because he's having a hard time breathing, or insensitive because Daisy's being affectionate?"

...I'm confused. So VERY confused...


Junior was the only child still hopping on the bed with gleeful joy. Bowser sighed while gently massaging his face, while Rosalina softly giggled at the scene, wearing a glittery, slightly transparent blue nightshirt with shining stars all over. The Lumas were swirling around and raining starry glitter as well, cheering softly.

After enough bounces, Bowser caught Junior mid-jump. "Alright that's enough bed-bouncing for one day. Bedtime."

"Waaaaah, so soon?" Junior pouted with folded arms and puffed cheeks. "I don't wanna go to bed yet..."

"Now now, Junior. Be reasonable." Rosalina smiled softly. "It's important for such an esteemed prince like yourself to have your rest, so you would be plenty prepared for the next day. Have more energy to play, to eat, and to prank your siblings."

"I can prank my brothers and sister?!"

"So long as it doesn't involve actually hurting them." She added softly, with only a hint of firm sternness. It got through, and he lowered his head with a nod.

"Okay, Mama Rosalina..." Junior nodded as Bowser sets him down on the rented bed, proceeding to gently tuck him in. Bowser sighed softly as he turned to Rosalina for a moment, before he stood up and began moving around the room.

As the Koopalings were descending into slumber, Bowser intended to approach each of them. The first he approached was Larry; he leaned down and gently kissed his forehead. Nooding to himself, he proceed to do the same for Morton. Then for Wendy, who smiled rather warmly at the feeling. Bowser smiles back, before he proceeded to do the same for Iggy, Roy, Lemmy, and Ludwig.

Rosalina watched Bowser give goodnight kisses to the Koopalings, and couldn't help but silently smile at how adorable it was. So much, that it spurred her to do the same. She would get up, push her blond hair from her face, then lean down and gently give their heads and occasional cheek a kiss, which resulted in a gentle sparkle that made each of them giggle to themselves.

The last was obviously Junior. He lies back while pulling the covers over himself. Bowser and Rosalina both proceeded to lean forward and kiss his cheeks from each side. Junior smiles widely as he snuggles the covers slightly. Bowser and Rosalina gently caressed his cheeks, and his smiles widened further.

"Papa...Mama..."

The words gently reached out to both of them, smiling quietly as they both pulled back. Bowser gestured for her to follow him outside the room. He gently closed the door behind him as he soon looked Rosalina in the eye.

"You sure talked me up back there." Bowser hummed.

"I simply heard stories from our friends, and came to my own conclusion." Rosalina replied.

"And you truly agree with what you said?"

"If you were truly a dragon turtle with no positive qualities to speak of, and you have plenty, then Mario and Peach wouldn't be so determined to reach out to you when the flames died down. And I'd like to believe those are acts they decide with their hearts."

"Yeah, their annoyingly big hearts..."

"You appreciate them for it though. You learned from them. Your own heart grew along with theirs."

"No it hasn't. I'm still a cold-blooded dragon whose heart doesn't bleed for others."

"Evidence points to the contrary.~"

"I don't have to acknowledge it, though."

"Hmhmhm...you are indeed stubborn, Bowser."

"Course I am. If I wasn't stubborn, I wouldn't have won/survived half of the scraps I'd get into that don't involve Mario. If there's a trait I can freely admit to sharing with him, is that we never give up when the chips are down." Bowser closed his eyes. "I have many ways to insult that stupid plumber, but I've grown to appreciate and respect his sheer guts. It's something we can connect over...I really do like that about him." Bowser smiled.

"I see..."

"...D-Don't tell him I said that!" Bowser sputtered towards her with a blush.

"I would never.~"

Bowser sighed as he folded his arms, tapping his foot softly as he looked around, reprocessing the fact that they were alone. "So...um...wanna just hit the hay?"

"Perhaps. But both of us lack a goodnight kiss of our own." Rosalina smiled at the sudden redness on his cheeks, which grew steadily worse.

"Haaaaaaaaah?!"

"I do not see why not.~"

"Quit messin' around, Space Princess!"

"It's only fair to give one to each other after giving some to the children."

"How does that..." Bowser sighed as he pinched his nose. "...You know what, fine. Let's go along with this just so you don't find a way to embarrass me further with it."

"I assure you, I know not what you mean.~"

"Troublesome Space Princess..."

"Prideful Koopa King." Rosalina leaned forth and kissed his nose, startling him. "There. I spared you the embarrassment of going first.~"

"Why you..." Bowser snarled with a deep blush, which Rosalina continued to smile. "Alright, fine. I can't just leave it at that, I guess..." Bowser leaned forth and lightly kissed her cheek, which recieved a pleased hum from her. "There, you happy?"

"Quite." Rosalina reached for his paw and warmly caresses it. "Come. Time to tuck ourselves in as well."

Bowser grumbled under his breath, but didn't disagree as they both retreated back into the room with the Koopalings, quietly losing the door behind them.

The night passed by peacefully, to everyone's surprise...and relief.


Overall a nice little vacation. But what awaits our groups next? Perhaps some more silly shenanigans?

...Wonder if I can make a chapter or two regarding Bowsette...

Bowser: DON'T YOU DARE!

It would definitely be...an interesting experience, if only for humor's sake. I probably shouldn't, though.

Still, a very surprising turn of events I'm glad to have discovered, if only to laugh myself silly snd to be intrigued by how immense it was. I don't think even Nintendo saw that coming, though I believe early artwork of Super Mario Odyssey suggested that it was somewhat considered. Welp, it's out in the open either way.~

Bowser: *Whimper* My cred's never gonna be the same again...

Plus let's not forget that Smash Bros Ultimate is finally here, looks amazing, and is definitely gonna be worth buying...so you can understand why I am very much cursing my current inability to own a Switch. ;-;