Oh wow, this story actually reached 25 chapters! Is…that's an accomplishment, right? Yes? No? …Well, it's not done yet, so either way, darn.

Anyway, spoiler warning: Characters sort of die in this chapter. Yes, sort of. It'll make sense as you read, but if you're not cool with death situations, I'd advise you to skip…pretty much every part from Mario. It's nothing major, but there actually is blood in his second segment. Again, nothing spectacular, but I figured to let those who are easily disturbed know about that in advance.

Good, now that we got that cleared up, you may now continue to read as a turtle monster panics over his sleeping boyfriend. That…it's better than it sounds, honest. Um…um…enjoy!

...

[Bowser]

Mario shuddered a bit, but otherwise remained silent and unconscious. I scooped him into my arms and hurried out from the break room.

"Sire?" A Goomba stared up at me. "What's—?"

"Go get Kamek and send him up to my room immediately!" I barked. "And if you don't, I'll burn you alive myself!" With that, I hurried off, surging through the halls and rushing back upstairs.

I kicked the door open to the corridor, thinking that I might have knocked it off its hinges, and then bashed my door open as well. Gently, I placed Mario down on my bed and carefully watched him.

"Papa?" I glanced back quickly to see Junior appeared in the doorway. "Papa, what's wrong? I came up to get my paintbrush and then I heard the doors…" He stopped behind me. "What happened?"

"No idea!" I burst out. "One minute, everything's fine and I'm just ranting to him about all of the little things that stress me out, the next he's slumped over and seeing things that aren't there." I clawed through my hair and tugged on it. "He was fine just this morning! I leave him for just part of the day, let him go alone through the castle, and this is what I get!"

"Wait, Papa—"

"It's not that I didn't see something like this coming, but so damn soon?!" My voice breaks, and I can't tell if it's from anger or anguish. "We just started to move past our fight, and now this! It's like the universe just doesn't want me to be happy, ever!"

"That…Papa—"

"So help me, son, I will find the blasted dissenters that did this to Mario and wring their necks until they—"

"Papa!"

"…What?"

"Was anyone else even with you?" I blinked and spun back to Junior.

"N…Not with us, no. But they wouldn't have to be!" I shook my head around and pulled my claws down the sides of my face. "Junior, I need something to punch that I won't regret later."

"Um…use a pillow?" I reached over and grabbed the pillow Mario wasn't on, throwing a punch that sent it flying against the wall. "…I don't think that's going to help."

"Maybe I should burn it instead!"

"Papa, that's not going to make Mario better, and it's not going to help you."

Again, I stared at Junior, who patted my leg. Slowly, I took a deep breath, exhaled, and nodded. Quietly, I turned to Mario again, and my shoulders dropped.

"Did you get Kamek?"

"I sent a Goomba to do it."

"Ok, I'll go get the Koopalings."

Junior hurried out as I silently nodded, and continued to helplessly watch Mario.

[Mario]

My eyes snapped open to the dark, midnight blue sky above me. Slowly, I went to push myself up, but stopped upon noticing the gravelly, purple ground around me.

Star Hill? Again?

"Mario, you're up." Bowser walked over from a few feet away and pulled me up to my feet. He smiled and rubbed my back, but I couldn't feel anything.

"I can't tell anymore." No kidding.

"Relax, you are." I turned to see Luigi join us. When did he…?

"Good, are we ready?" Peach?

"Don't be so impatient, Peach!" Daisy?

Both of the princesses walked over to us. No one started attacking Bowser and he seemed completely comfortable, not only around them, but with me. Confused, I wanted to ask them if they knew anything, but nothing came out.

"All right, the path ahead should lead us to the shrine," Luigi explained and started walking off. "Mario and I will keep you three safe." What? Bowser wouldn't need our protection. And Peach and Daisy should be—

"Bah, I won't need it," Bowser grumbled.

"Oh no?" Luigi smirked. "I thought you promised Mario." Me?

Bowser and I glanced at one another, with him nervously smiling. "W-Well, I…uh, all right."

He took my hand and we followed Luigi up a trail, past a large stone star embedded into the ground. Only two ends of it were fully out of the ground, with two more half buried and the last end of it underground completely. I squinted and noticed the right side was chipped a bit.

"Keep moving, Mario!" I shook my head as Bowser playfully tugged me after him.

While we wandered along the cliffs, I watched as flaming bird flew overhead, and then away from us.

"That bird, again…?"

"Mario? What is it?" I turned back to Bowser, who was watching me, but puzzled.

"Didn't you see it?"

"No, what?"

"It…" I whirled around and tried to find the bird again, but all that I saw was a steep drop down. "Never…mind."

The king laughed. "Maybe you woke up too soon."

"Was I really the only one who saw it?" I turned to the princesses, who both shook their heads.

Luigi shrugged. "Don't worry about it, bro. Come on."

We pressed onward as the trail began to narrow, with another mountain wall appearing behind us. Ahead, the path led behind a powerful waterfall.

"Pretty romantic, huh?" Bowser nudged me, and then tugged me closer with a wink.

"All right, kiss and make out later, boys." Peach waved her hand to send us forward.

"Jealous much?" Bowser teased, and we moved after Luigi.

"Daisy, can you pass the pack?" Luigi called back as he walked near the waterfall.

"Sure, hang on!" Daisy hurried after him and handed an Item Bag over. "Be nice if we had some power-ups in there instead."

"Says you," Luigi laughed and took out a canteen.

"You're not going to fill that up, are you?" I shouted, nervously eyeing the waterfall as Bowser and I passed it.

"What? No, it's full already."

Luigi went to take a sip from it, but spat the water back out as Daisy shouted. Bowser and I spun around and saw the trail behind us give way, with Peach falling from the cliffs. Her hands flew out and she grabbed the ledge.

"Peach!"

Quickly, I dove down to catch her, but a cracking rock was all I needed to hear. She screamed as she fell through the air, down into the murky abyss below.

"PEACH!"

Water splashed into my eyes and I cried out as Bowser pulled me back. Everything faded from around me, until all I heard was the crashing waters beside us. Then nothing.

[Bowser]

Slightly, Mario shook a little in his sleep and winced a few times. I covered his legs with the blanket, but I wasn't sure if he was too hot or too cold.

"Mario?" I touched his head, which burned, and I dragged the blanket back off. He shivered and I sighed, pulling it back over his legs. "Even when you sleep, you can't make up your mind."

Studying him, he continued to have slight movements for a bit, but then stopped. His breathing was a bit tense briefly, but he seemed to relax now. I tried to shake him, but he wouldn't get up.

"Hey!" I shouted near his face. Nothing. With a grunt, I sat down on the floor beside him. "Can I bribe you up with a kiss?" No answer. Still, I chuckled. "Didn't think so."

All I wanted was for Mario to at least acknowledge that someone else was with him, even if he didn't understand whom it was. Gently, I rubbed his stomach with one hand, and gripped his hand in my other.

"See? I should have spent the day with you." I chuckled again. "Because we ended right back in the bedroom anyway." If only he could actually laugh with me.

Another minute passed before I heard the stairwell door squeak open. I watched the doorway as Kamek shuffled over, panting.

"Wow, did you actually run?"

"Couldn't…find broom." He heaved deeply, and then straightened up, walking over to Mario. "When did this happen?"

"A little after I pulled him inside, after my troops brought him over by us."

Kamek studied him quietly, trying to discern his symptoms from normal problems. "It's certainly not anything normal, such as a cold or exhaustion. If it's a spell, I should be able to get rid of it."

He slipped out his wand and waved it around, as it glowed with a colorful cloud over Mario. I watched Kamek move his hand in odd gestures as he shook the wand. Glancing at Mario, I couldn't see any visible changes.

"Well?"

"If this is a spell, it's a powerful one." He shook his head. "I can't detect what it is or how to remove it."

"You're the grandmaster sorcerer," I argued. "If you can't, then who can?"

"Probably no one." Annoyed, I smacked the back of his head. "Sorry! I didn't…" He shook his head and loosened his grip on the wand.

"Do you know for certain that it's magic related?"

"To be honest, no, I'm not sure," Kamek murmured. "It's…it doesn't seem like the spells that I'm used to."

"Those damn rebels must have conjured something up." I growled.

"Maybe." His tone didn't sound convinced.

"Papa." We turned to Junior and the seven Koopalings in the doorway.

"Come in." They each made their way inside and took turns looking at Mario and one another.

Larry stepped forward. "What happened? He was fine before."

"Were you with him?"

"Uh…not really, but Morton and I saw him."

The youngest Koopaling turned to Morton, who nodded. Turning to Iggy, Morton asked, "Wasn't he with you?"

"Yes, while we worked in the lab." Iggy adjusted his glasses. "Wendy and I babbled over him and other nonsense."

"He was fine while we were in there," added Wendy. "I even talked to him while I argued with Iggy."

"Me too!" Lemmy chimed in. "Oh, but before he left, he complained about the lights being too bright."

"Right, there was that." Wendy tapped her fingers together. "But, otherwise, he was fine when he left. At least…he seemed it."

"He complained about that with me too," I recalled. "Did he hallucinate around you three?"

"What? No, not at all." Iggy stared at Mario, and tilted his head. "He escalated."

"Roy, he was with you too," Morton piped in. "Did we miss something?"

"No, I don't even know what this is about." Roy shrugged. "He talked with me the whole way to the lab and didn't complain about anything once."

"When was he with you?"

"After Ludwig and I stopped some idiots trying to kill him." Ludwig nodded.

"So, they were after him." I grumbled.

"We stopped them, sire," Ludwig contested. "Roy and I showed up just as the lot tried to corner Mario." He folded his arms. "There were two Magikoopas, but Mario didn't show any signs of taking a hit from their spells. Nor did he show visible damage from other attacks."

"If this were Magikoopa magic, I'd have it cured already," Kamek concurred. "They couldn't have used normal spells on him."

"Could they have learned something else?" Ludwig questioned.

"Not under my watch." Kamek thought for a moment. "They couldn't have picked anything up quickly, either, not of this level." He adjusted his spectacles. "No one knew about the relationship until Bowser let it out a few days ago. Even if anyone disagreed with him prior to that, we didn't have the insurrection issues that brewed over the past few days. They wouldn't have thought about learning something that I couldn't detect, let alone developing the proficiency to do so."

"So…what?" Roy glanced at Mario, and then turned to Kamek. "They didn't do it?"

"The dissenters? I'm highly doubtful of it." Kamek sighed. "But that only makes this more difficult and frustrating to understand."

"Well, we brought our wands," Lemmy sounded and brought his out. "Should we try something together?"

"Yes, that's a good idea."

Junior and I watched as the seven Koopalings took positions around Mario with Kamek. Each of the eight twirled their wands around and began casting different spells to see what they could do.

[Mario]

My eyes snapped open to the dark, midnight blue sky above me. Quickly, I jumped to my feet and stared ahead. Bowser turned and walked over to me, with Luigi and Daisy behind him. None of them seemed bothered by the fact that the princess had just fallen to her death just minutes ago.

"Mario, you're up." Bowser smiled, but I shook my head.

"Peach."

"Huh?"

"How did that even happen?! It was fine when we went over it!"

Luigi put his hand on my shoulder. "Mario, are you feeling ok?"

"Ok?! Not even close!" I batted his hand back. "Didn't you see what happened to Peach?!"

"You too, Mario?" My head jolted at her voice. Bowser and Daisy stepped aside as Peach walked over to me, arms folded. "Honestly, I tripped one time too many, and suddenly Toadsworth has everyone having heart failure over me."

"Tripped?" My mouth dropped in disbelief. "You…you fell!"

"Same difference." She rolled her eyes. "I'm a big girl, Mario. I'll be fine."

"Hey, lighten up," Bowser grumbled. "He's just making sure."

"No, but she…she…" My eyes traveled around the area wildly. Quickly, I ran ahead and up the pathway.

"Mario, wait a minute!" Luigi ran after me as I skidded to a halt. The stone buried in the ground was off to the side. Two ends visible, two only partially so, one not at all. Right side…chipped.

"That's too close to the one from before," I murmured.

"What one? We haven't seen a star stone like that for a while now."

Bowser, Peach, and Daisy came up the path and stopped near us. Everyone stared at me as though I had lost my mind.

"Is…everything all right, Mario?" Daisy slowly asked.

"Before, we had just passed…we…" I glanced back and forth between my friends and the rock. "We were here already. Just a little while ago."

"Was it in your dream?" Bowser inquired.

"No…it was…" I hesitated. Perhaps before was the dream. "Wait, maybe…now I'm not sure." But…if it had been…how did the details line up so well…?

"We'll be fine, Mario." Peach placed my hands in hers and smiled at me. "It was just a dream."

"I…I'm not so sure."

In spite of that, I followed everyone onward. The trail led the same way, growing narrow and with a deep edge to nothing right next to us. Luigi still led us forward, but the bird didn't show up this time.

Eventually, we reached the waterfall again. I stopped for a moment, nervous.

"Pretty romantic, huh?" Bowser nudged me, and then tugged me closer with a wink.

"All right, kiss and make out later, boys." Peach waved her hand to send us forward.

"Jealous much?" Bowser teased. He moved forward, but I froze on the spot. "Mario? What's wrong?"

"Daisy, can you pass the pack?" Luigi called back as he walked near the waterfall.

"Wait!" I shouted and stepped in front of Daisy.

"Why?"

"This…this is it!" I whirled around to Peach. "Before…in my, um, dream, you fell, no you…you died here."

Peach's eyes widened. "Right here?"

"No, as we went behind the waterfall." I bit my lip and glared at the raging water. "The path beneath you collapsed and we couldn't save you." Staring at her hands, I shook my head. "Where's your scepter?"

"Toadsworth has it right now," Peach explained. "I gave it to him and the others when we split ways." Not good.

"How did she fall on her own?" Bowser questioned.

"Well, Daisy went ahead to Luigi, we followed, and Peach was last…"

"Let's try to change the order then," Bowser suggested. "Luigi already went, but Peach and Daisy should go first. Then you, and I'll go last."

"No!" I firmly grasped Bowser's hand, but it barely felt like anything. "I'm not letting you do that!"

"It's probably a weight thing," guessed Bowser. "If all of you go before me, then I go, and it'll break once I'm across."

"We can't take that risk. I can't lose you!"

"Isn't there another way?" Daisy wondered.

"We don't have enough time for that," argued Peach. "Mario, we'll go first, and then you walk across with Bowser right after. If we're quick, we might all make it."

"That is not a smart idea!"

"We don't have a lot of options right now." Bowser shook his head. "Let's just try it."

Before I could argue further, both Peach and Daisy hurried past the waterfall. Bowser smiled confidently at me, and we charged after them. Crumbling rocks sounded behind us and I glanced back to the path break behind Bowser's tail. We hurried across and moved beyond the waterfall. Looking back, the others gazed in awe at the missing segment of the trail.

"What happened?" Luigi inquired. "I didn't hear anything you guys spoke about."

"Mario dreamt of Peach dying from the path breaking," Daisy explained. "So Bowser sent us first and we all rushed across just in case."

"And that turned out to be a very good idea," Peach joked. "But in all seriousness, thank you, Mario." Bowser cleared his throat. "Uh…I suppose you helped too."

"You suppose?" Bowser growled.

"Ok, you guys can thank me by not arguing." I ushered everyone forward and Luigi led the way onward.

As we approached a cave ahead, I saw the flaming bird fly over it. It seemed to wait around until we got close, but then flew off before anyone else could notice it.

"What is it, Mario?" I looked back at Bowser, who had tried to follow my gaze into the sky.

"A bird. It flew off, though."

He nodded and we followed the others into the cavern. Though dark, it wasn't very long and we could see the exit a slight distance away. A few dripping noises sounded around the cave, but I couldn't quite tell where they came from.

"Hey, I think I see the shrine up ahead." Luigi jogged forward. "Come on, everyone!"

His words echoed through the cavern. A slight rumbling sounded and I heard something hard crash down next to me.

"What?!"

"Stalactites!" Peach shouted. "Hurry!"

Several more came raining down and crashed around us. Peach and Daisy cried out and I heard Bowser roar. His figure towered over us and hunched over.

"Bowser?"

"I've got you three covered, just hurry up! Go!"

Quickly, the four of us ran for the cave's exit. Luigi waved us on as we neared him, when a loud cracking snapped out over the quaking rumbles. Something heavy pushed the princesses and I forward. Stumbling, I spun around.

"No! Bowser!"

The Koopa king laid half buried under several rocks, dragging himself out from underneath them. Blood dripped across his body and his shell was shattered, with many of his spikes either chipped or broken completely. I ran back to him and tried to help him up.

"W-Well…what do you know." Bowser coughed. "Once upon a time, this…would have made everyone happy, huh?"

"Shut up." My heart raced and I fumbled as I held him up. The others ran over and tried to help Bowser to his feet, but it was no good. He crashed back down to the ground. "Bowser, please! Get up."

"Maybe…in a bit." He groaned. "Just…need to rest."

"You can't," Daisy shook her head. "Bowser, we need to get you over…" She gazed at the shrine, which seemed miles away.

"Mario…?" Weakly, he looked up at me. "Can you just…stay with me?"

"We need to keep going—"

"Please?"

Nodding slowly, I slumped down in front of him. Even if I couldn't feel it, I stroked my right hand on his cheek, running my left hand through his hair. He smiled and stared right into my eyes. Burning, beautiful red orbs locked onto me, and then slowly shut.

"Bowser? …Bowser, please!" I clutched his head tightly and wailed. "BOWSER!"

Trembling, I squeezed my eyes shut. The Koopa King gave no response.

[Bowser]

Mario began to quake in his sleep and looked as though he was in pain.

"Stop, stop a minute." The eight lowered their wands and watched as I checked on Mario. Placing two fingers onto his neck, I leaned back. "His heartbeat skyrocketed! What did you do?"

"Nothing that should have caused that." Kamek checked Mario as well, jumping back upon feeling the hammering heart. "That's not possible."

"Is he having a nightmare?" Junior's question made my eyes widen.

"The nightmares. They started before the rebellions did." I turned to Kamek. "Does this have anything to do with those?"

"They…could be related." Kamek muttered quietly to himself for a moment, working something out in his head. "What Mario had read, before…when he was in the Study, that is. He was looking something up, on divination and dreams." Kamek stared at Mario and focused carefully on him. "He mentioned researching a curse." He gasped.

"What? What is it?"

"Hold on."

Kamek whipped his wand around again, quickly casting a spell about and scanning Mario once again. The Koopalings exchanged looks of confusion, and lowered their wands, just as unsure of his actions as I was. Sparks flew from Kamek's wand, but he kept waving it around. He suddenly jumped and threw his wand to the ground, with red bolts running across the head's jewel. Angrily, Kamek shook his hand and held it up, rubbing it gently.

"Are you all right?"

He mumbled, "I'll be fine."

"What was that?"

Clearing his throat, Kamek turned back to Mario. "He's cursed. And he's been like this for a while now, long before anyone even knew of your relationship."

"Even before we started it ourselves?"

"It's probable, but I can't give you an exact estimate on time." Kamek studied his wand before he picked it up. "All that I was able to detect was that it was aged, well over a month. And it is very clearly not the work of a Magikoopa."

"But they're the only…wait." I shook my head. "You're not suggesting—"

"No, I'm not suggesting. I'm outright stating it."

"What?" Junior piped up. "Who did this?"

"It's the spell of a Shaman." Kamek's face contorted as if he had spat venom from his mouth. "Bowser, where do Mario's dreams take him?"

"Star Hill…son of a—"

"Wait, wait, why is Star Hill important?" Roy questioned.

"Shamans were once more common around the Mushroom Kingdom," explained Kamek. "However, their numbers dwindled heavily over time, to the tiniest bit they're down to today." He shook his head. "They're gathered in a small colony on Star Hill."

"Then we should pay them a visit," murmured Ludwig. "Perhaps terrorize their home a little until they send someone to help us."

"If it were that easy, I'd advise it." Kamek sighed. "But it's not. They hide deep within the mountains and cast numerous protection incantations to keep themselves distanced from travelers."

"We need to do something," protested Wendy.

"And we will." He shuffled back to the door. "You seven, with me. We're going to the Study to learn more about them."

"What about Mario?" Larry asked. "We can't just leave him. I mean…we can, but, uh, Lord Bowser's right here and that really wouldn't be a good idea."

"Actually, we do need to leave him."

"What?!" I snarled and glared at Kamek.

"Sire, please, after what we discussed earlier?" What we…oh geez. My cheeks burned up a bit as I relaxed and nodded. "Mario will wake up from that in a matter of time. However, this curse will not subside, even as his symptoms disappear."

He beckoned the Koopalings to follow him and they slowly poured out from my room. Junior watched them go, and then turned to me.

"Papa, are you going to be ok?"

"As soon as Mario wakes up, or once Kamek finds answers, I'll be just fine, son."

Junior waited a minute, and then hugged me tightly. My arms wrapped around him and I squeezed him back.

"Can I do anything else?"

"This is all I need for now." Slowly, Junior pulled away and gazed up at me. I forced a smile and nudged him. "Go, you went to get your paintbrush. I can stay here alone. We'll be fine."

Though he didn't look convinced, Junior nodded. He walked over to Mario and patted his arm gently. Looking at me once more, the boy walked out from the room.

And I shuddered as a tear slipped down, quietly watching over Mario.

[Mario]

My eyes snapped open. Dark blue sky was above me. Quickly, I jumped up and my eyes barely registered the purple ground beneath me. Bowser turned around and smiled.

"Mario, you're—"

"You're alive!" I ran over to Bowser and dove into him. Slowly, he wrapped his arms around me and held me.

"Um…yeah." He chuckled, but I couldn't feel him vibrate. "Why…wouldn't I be?"

"This…wait." I moved away from him and studied his body. No wounds. I shook my head and noticed Luigi, Peach, and Daisy staring at us. "Not again."

"What's wrong?"

"Nightmare." I tugged my hat over my head. "Peach died while we passed the waterfall, and then you died from a cave-in."

"Waterfall?" Peach asked.

"Cave-in?" questioned Bowser.

"It all happened while we were going along that path." I pointed ahead. "There has to be another way we can go." I looked around, but there was only one other trail that led out of the area.

"We can't go back that way," Luigi explained. "We split up from the others for the royals' protection."

"Luigi, there must be some other way we can go!"

"Mario, I don't know where else to go." He shook his head. "You told me that this was the best route for us to take."

"Me?! I just told you Peach and Bowser died going this way!"

"But…that was a dream, or…two," Daisy pointed out. "They're fine now."

Wildly, I shook my head, but Bowser rested his hands on my shoulders. "Mario, we'll be careful. I promise."

My shoulders dropped and I opened my mouth to argue, but the others had already started walking ahead.

"Come on!" Luigi called and waved us on to follow.

Bowser pulled me close to him and we joined the others. Passing the buried stone, I shivered. Not long after, we reached the waterfall.

"Huh. This would have been more romantic if it wasn't destined to be a graveyard," joked Bowser.

"So…what happens here?" inquired Peach.

"The ground breaks away and you fell before anyone could grab you." I shook my head. "If you three go first, while Bowser and I go last, we should be able to make it. But we need to move quickly."

Everyone nodded and approached the waterfall. Luigi and the princesses ran across first, and then Bowser and I raced after them. We turned around and stared at the trail. At first, it remained in tact. After a minute, however, the trail cracked and parts of it broke away.

"That's the best version I've seen." I exhaled deeply.

"Best?" Peach raised an eyebrow. "We did this more than once?"

"Yes, we made it through in the second dream, but barely," I explained. "Come on, the cave's ahead."

Everyone followed me along the path that led us to the cave. I stopped and stared above the cave. No firebird came by this time.

"So, now what happens?" asked Luigi.

"It's not a very long cave, but you shouted at the end of it, which must triggered the cave-in. Bowser gets pummeled from falling stalactites while protecting us, and crushed by boulders just before he can escape."

"Ouch." Bowser chuckled nervously. "But please, Mario, tell me how you really feel."

Sharply, I stared him in the eyes. "If you die again, I'll go berserk."

"Uh…ok then, no heroics for me." Bowser grinned. "Good to know you care, though."

"So, we'll just go through silently," decided Daisy. "Should be easy enough."

"Unless Luigi didn't trigger it," I observed. "If that's the case, it could just happen anyway."

"Well, we can't move too quickly, or we'll all cause enough sound to start it," contested Peach.

"Carefully and quietly it is."

Slowly, everyone crept through the cave. Again, I listened to the dripping echo around us and watched the stalactites. Nothing seemed to budge.

"Easy enough," whispered Bowser.

We were about halfway across when I heard something snap. Spinning back, I watched a stalactite shatter as it hit the ground. The sound vibrated across the cave.

"Oh…that's not good," murmured Luigi.

"Run!"

All five of us ran for the exit as the stalactites began to crash down around us. I grabbed Bowser's hand and surged forward with him. Altogether, we dove out of the cave as the rocks crashed down behind us. Alarmed, I shot up, and threw myself onto Bowser.

"Are you ok?"

"I'm fine."

"Let me just check—"

"Mario." Bowser lifted my chin and stared calmly into my panicked eyes. "I'm alive."

My lips quivered and he kissed me softly. Everyone stood up and gazed at the silver shrine in the distance.

"We're almost there."

Luigi led us forward and we made our way to the plateau. Something bright shined from it, but faded as we approached. In front of us stood a shrouded figure that turned away from an empty column.

"What…who are you?" Peach demanded.

No answers were given as the figure stared at us. It looked like a robed person, but I couldn't tell if it was even a living being.

"We don't want any trouble." I raised my arms up and tried to approach in a non-threatening manner.

Suddenly, four more just like it stepped out from a line behind the first figure. They lined up and stared us down. They each readied what I assumed were battle stances.

"Well, that's…terrifying," muttered Daisy.

"Everyone, take one and take them down," I instructed.

Each of us spread out as the figures leapt at us, practically whizzing through the air like spirits. One tackled Luigi to the ground, while Bowser spat fire at another.

Daisy threw a punch directly at one that went after her, but it went straight through the shroud.

Peach ran off, looking for a way to stop her opponent from chasing her, while I jumped away from mine. I tried to throw a kick, but it simply dissipated into the air when I attacked.

Before I could assess anything else, a sharp pain rose up through my back. Slowly, I turned back and looked behind me. The figure had appeared right there, somehow. It backed away as I dropped to the ground.

"NO!" Bowser roared and rushed over to me. Luigi tried to make his way over, but was kept away, along with Peach and Daisy. Past them, past the shrine, I saw the flaming bird flutter in the distance, as if it were too late to reach us.

The Koopa King crashed down beside me and breathed fire through the air around us, in a futile attempt to retaliate. My vision faded as Bowser looked down at me.

"Mario, hold on!" Bowser pleaded. "Stay with me! Don't go!"

My mouth opened, but no words came out. Everything began to go dark as I concentrated on Bowser's shining, splendid red eyes.

"Mario!" Tears welled up in his eyes as mine shut. "Please…!"

Though I wanted to answer him, everything around me fell silent instead.

Gasping, I shot up. Bowser jolted back from me, but leaned forward right after.

"Mario? Mario, you're awake!" He wrapped me into a tight hug, his warm body soothing me. I blinked and looked down. Red sheets. His bed. As Bowser pulled back from me, I quickly took in the sight of his bedroom.

"Real." I smiled weakly. "It's all real again."

"What is?" Bowser tilted his head in confusion. "Are you all right?"

I shook my head and forced my lips against his. It wasn't exactly a kiss, but I needed to feel his breath pour into my mouth and his rough lips against mine. Bowser had moved his hand against my cheek, but I had pulled away just as he touched me.

"Not that I'll ever complain to that," Bowser chuckled, "but…what happened?"

My mouth opened and moved to answer him, but nothing came out. Instead, I just shook my head and tightly gripped the sheets.

"It's ok," soothed Bowser. "You're here, I'm here. You're safe."

Still, I shook my head and shivered as I held my arms against my body. Bowser wrapped his arms back around me and quietly rocked me in them, rubbing my back and softly hushing me.

If only he could fix everything, just like that.

...

Bold and caps lock indicate extremely loud screams of anguish, in case you were wondering. What's that? The chapter ended? Whoops.

But hooray, answers! Mario's cursed! Who saw that coming?! …All of you, huh? Yeah, well…bet you forgot about the Shamans! (…Shut up, I can surprise people. Whatever.) Anyway, yes, his nightmares were repetitious, purposely so, as he tried to fix his friends' fates. Too bad he died in the end himself, oh, whoops again. If you're lost, yes, people died in Mario's dreams and not in real time. So, yes, everyone is still alive, which is why I was all, "they sort of die, it'll make sense!" Hopefully it actually did, unless I really suck at this.

Meanwhile, yes, the Koopalings all still do magic! I think Ludwig's the only one who consistently used his wand so far, but I wanted to make sure that they all still did use their magics. Yes. And Kamek is a master practitioner, surprise. (Bet you didn't see that coming! …You did? It was already stated and known? Yeah, well…whatever.)

At any rate, Shamans! Yes, those are things from Mario! They're spell caster folks from Super Mario RPG and because of issues that Nintendo had with Square, they never really appeared again. Except they did! Via Paper Mario! Remember that dude Merlon? Yeah, he's possibly one of them! That, or…just some old Toad that's tripping on future sight, in which case, everything I'm about to get into is completely non-canon. Whoops, already went there! (See: Chapter 1.) But yes, I do enjoy digging around and pulling out obscure species to utilize in this story. Just…not too obscure. Shamans aren't that…ok, they are, but…shut up.

With that, Bowser and Mario get to be traumatized for a little while, and the next chapter will go back to Peach and friends. Oh hey, Peach was traumatized too, when we last left her! Wow, so many main characters are emotionally damaged! Isn't this story just the most uplifting thing?! (See: Title.) But yes, more from Peach, Luigi, and their crowd next chapter.

Before I conclude, I want to leave an extra shout out to my Favorites and Followers on this story! I checked recently, and it is now possible to find this story on the first page when filtering by most Followers, which means that this is one of the 25 most followed stories on the Mario archive! I know that can change at any time, but while I have it as of writing, I just wanted to thank you all again, very much, for following this story! It's really exciting to see it on the first page through filters, so that way I can pretend it will never be forgotten.

All right, I'm talking to much again, so let's cut it off here. Any questions or comments, just send them my way via message or review, I love those too. And thank you all, once again, for reading this story! Yes, guests included, don't forget yourselves! You don't need to be a member to enjoy this story, I hope. But yes, thank you again! My new name should really be EternallyGrateful with all of the thank you messages I spam, but I can't stop, so…sorry, not sorry.