It was a beautiful, sunny afternoon by the time they were well into Pennsylvania, the car still chugging along on dangerously low levels of fuel. Rolling hills were visible in the distance as far as the eye could see, the sun's glare reflecting off the window and causing Peach to have to squint slightly as she looked down at the map. Mario had pulled his visor down, and had somewhat grudgingly pulled on the red (or orange) sunglasses in the glove compartment. The four in the back were still dozing, the lucky pains in Peach's backside, whilst Luigi split his time between observing the scenery and chattering on and off to either Mario or herself.
He really was an absolute sweetheart, she could see that now. Every bone in his body was earnest and helpful to the core. He contrasted so much with his brother that it was almost laughable, and he was definitely someone Peach could see becoming a good friend, given time. He was already seemingly on his way with Daisy, and from their chatter over the dinner table last night, with Rosalina too. Maybe this car journey would have put them on an equal playing field, though. They might not have much in common, but that had never stopped the social butterfly that was Peach before – after all, she and her two best friends were all as different as night and day, and yet their friendship worked unfalteringly. If she could make that happen…then she could befriend the younger, socially awkward Jumpman sibling. She was determined.
The aforementioned younger brother sat up straighter in his seat, accidentally jostling a sleeping Yoshi. He grimaced and spared a glance down at him, but the little boy simply scrunched his face in his sleep, sleeve covered hand reaching up to unconsciously scrub at his eyes in an admittedly adorable fashion, before he slumped back down against Daisy, slumbering on obliviously. This movement, however, did rouse Peach's redhead friend, eyes blinking blearily as she straightened slightly, yawn escaping her. Luigi glanced over at her and pulled an apologetic face.
"Sorry," He said, voice hushed slightly as he spoke over Yoshi's head, "I didn't mean to wake you."
She waved him off, shooting him a quick but tired reassuring grin.
"s'all good," She said groggily, "How long did I sleep for, anyways?"
"About four and a half hours," He replied, "All of you have, which is…actually pretty impressive."
"All of us?" Her head craned back to look at the back seat, before swerving round again to look at the front, seeing Peach still wide awake and clutching the map.
"Almost all of us," Peach said wryly, "Some of us have been on navigational duty since someone decided he wanted to sit in the middle row."
She sent a pointed look to Luigi, who had the decency to look sheepish. Daisy leaned forward in her seat, careful not to jostle the sleeping boy next to her, and tapped the top of Peach's head encouragingly.
"Cheer up, Peachy," She said, "We must be nearly there, huh?"
"Actually, yeah," Luigi confirmed, "I recognise this place – we're only about ten minutes away, I think."
"Which means you can put the map away," Mario chimed in dryly from the driver's seat, "And stop your truly exceptional navigational skills."
Peach whirred round defensively, momentarily overshadowing her joy at being able to stop staring at that accursed bit of paper (which had frankly been giving her a massive headache and REALLY hurting her eyes; it's not like her kidnappers had been considerate enough to grab her glasses when they snatched her from her apartment).
"Excuse me?" She spluttered indignantly, "Have I, or have I not, got us where we're meant to be?"
He pitched up his voice into a shrill impression of her.
"'Oh, er, left up here I think? No, right? And then you want to take the second exit…or maybe the third?'"
He snickered at her dour expression.
"That sounds nothing like me," She huffed, glowering at him. His lips twitched into a slightly amused smirk, raising his fingertips from the wheel briefly in mock surrender.
"Okay, okay. I'll admit it, princess, you did not bad getting us here," He conceded, and Peach blinked. There were several strange things about this interaction, namely the way he had given up so easily and actually paid her a compliment (and it didn't look like it caused him physical pain to do it?), and that's without even mentioning the nickname. Which, to be fair, could be kind of a patronising nickname but she got the feeling that, at least in this case, it wasn't actually coming from a negative place and was in fact a genuine one. Were they seriously about to start getting along, just like that, out of nowhere? Or was this just a one off because he was tired and his guard was down? He did seem to have less of a filter right now, laughing easier at his brother's conversation in a way that made his face seem much kinder and much more like a guy Peach's age, one elbow hanging out the open window, looking oddly relaxed. It was a pretty compelling picture, Peach would admit, and if she were a weaker willed person it might even send a funny flutter in her stomach. But she wasn't, and she was still adamant that without an apology from him for his dismissive behaviour, she was not going to let him just slide into her good books.
Luigi looked pleased at the lack of an argument (to be fair, he had been dealing with them for the better part of two weeks nearly), leaning back into his seat with a small grin. Mario caught his eye in the mirror and rolled his eyes at him, which only made the younger brother's smile widen. Daisy twisted round in her seat, reaching her arm awkwardly to poke Rosalina in the arm.
"Yo, Rosie. Look alive, we're almost there."
Their friend's eyes wrinkled as she hummed in acknowledgement, batting at Daisy's arm absently. She didn't appear to have been sleeping particularly deeply, considering her level of awareness, and considering how fast her blue eyes opened, wincing as the sunlight shone directly into them before she could adjust to it. Daisy's administrations also inadvertently woke up the slumbering teenage boy who was sat next to Rosalina, who also jumped into awareness remarkably quickly, turning his attention to the view outside the window.
"We're almost home!" He cried eagerly, eyes bright as if he hadn't been sound asleep not thirty seconds previous. Still, a smile tugged onto Peach's lips at his obvious happiness. It was sweet to see the clearly homesick boy getting to see his family, and not for the first time, she wondered why he was even with the brothers if he had a home and family waiting for him. She often wondered why Yoshi was with them too, mind, but the answers had not been offered as of yet and she had not asked for them. It just felt, well…too personal, she supposed. The lives of these boys were complete mysteries to them; they knew some basic information like their ages and birthdays – but really, what did it matter that she knew Mario was a Taurus when she couldn't even say where he came from, where he grew up, who his parents were?
It was a little infuriating at times, she could admit, and this was something she knew Daisy agreed with. Rosalina not so much, but then she had always been far better at minding her own business than them. But then, they all had their secrets, Peach supposed. Things they wanted to keep close to their chest, herself included.
They just happened to have a lot more of them than your average person.
By the time they had pulled into the street that apparently housed Toad's home, Yoshi had been gently shaken awake, although his awareness was still somewhat iffy, eyes hanging half shut, chewing sleepily on the drawstring of his sweatshirt, ginger curls even messier than usual. But her eyes weren't on the adorable nine year old boy right now. They were on the house they were approaching.
"You've got to be kidding me," Daisy said out loud, voicing Peach's opinion pretty perfectly. Luigi and Mario both cracked grins at this, while Toad shot her a mildly offended look.
Like the Kong's house, the place they were approaching looked utterly out of place. Not because it looked peculiar this time, however, but because it thoroughly outshone the other places on the street.
It was a neat looking bungalow, whitewashed and gleaming in the sunlight proudly, rooftop lined with picturesque red slats. The windows were lined with lush flowerbeds sprouting plants of all different colours of the rainbow, from a vibrant yellow to a deep violet. The large white porch was similarly spotless, not a scuff in sight, with an elaborately designed porch swing swaying gently in the barely-there breeze. However, all of this truly paled in comparison to the garden.
The grass looked straight out of an infomercial, straight and orderly and looking as though it had been carefully cut with a ruler. Along the cobblestone path even more flowers sprung from the ground, orderly enough to look deliberately done but not so much as to take away from their natural beauty. Along the front of their lawn, lavish, thick deep green bushes grew up to waist height, interrupted only by a silvery metal gate that Peach just knew would creak in exactly the right way to suit the aesthetic when pushed. Aside from this, one side of the garden held a real, running fountain, rustic and worn, base covered in ivy, while a large apple tree grew on the other side. A tall gate by the side of the house was latched, most likely leading to an equally stunning back garden.
They pulled up in front of the house carefully, and immediately Toad flung himself out the door with a loud cry of, "Grandpa!"
He threw open the gate without preamble and jumped over the flowers, running over the grass and trampling it in a move that seemed morally wrong to Peach considering its beauty, in the direction of a man that Peach had not even noticed was there until now.
Said man stood up slowly from where he had been hunched with a watering can, eyes - the same deep brown eyes as Toad - warm. His face was covered with lines, indicating his old age, but more than wrinkles, there was also creases clearly caused by smiles and laughter, and Peach immediately trusted this man. His head had a messy fuzz of grey curls, under a white and brown brimmed flat cap. Rounded black glasses perched on the end of his round nose, and he pushed them up with a short index finger, dusting his other hand on his purple waistcoat, which in Peach's opinion went perfectly with his white pants and the most adorable little bow tie. He held open his arms and allowed Toad to hurl himself into them delightedly, throwing his arms around the man who could only be his grandfather. The rest of them climbed out the car as well, Luigi pausing and tilting his head in the direction of Yoshi (who had seemed to have fallen back asleep) before heaving a sigh.
"I'm gonna need to carry him, aren't I?" He asked wryly, not waiting for an answer to the mostly rhetorical question before he crouched down and reached over to unbuckle his seatbelt, manoeuvring Yoshi with some difficulty before managing to haul him out and tug him into his arms with a slight grunt of exertion. The little boy's head slumped forward onto Luigi's shoulder peacefully, burrowing into his arms contentedly. It was a pretty lovable scene, painting the two as a caring older brother with his sweet younger sibling – which kind of was the dynamic, she supposed. Despite his huff, Luigi couldn't seem to fight back a fond smile, tightening his grip on Yoshi. Daisy spared the scene a glance, slight grin forming on her face.
"Okay," She conceded, "That is bordering on adorable."
His cheeks flushed slightly even as he continued up the path to greet Toad's grandfather.
Said man had managed to pry Toad off him by the time they all reached him, gaze kind and welcoming.
"Hello, boys," He greeted in a, surprisingly, somewhat posh sounding English accent, "Pleasure to see you again. Thank you, as ever, for bringing John back to visit."
All three girls blinked in confusion, brains pausing.
"John?" Rosalina asked curiously, and now it was Toad's turn to blush faintly.
"What, you didn't actually think his name was Toad, did you?" Mario asked, grin splitting his face. The three of them shared looks, and Peach was glad to see she wasn't the only one who seemed to think that well…yeah, she had thought it. They hadn't given any reason not to. Luigi hid his smile behind Yoshi's curls.
"It's a nickname," He elaborated, taking pity on them, "His full name is John Toadsworth, but-"
"But I hate the name John," The younger teen finished, frowning, "Only my grandpa insists on calling me that. And sometimes my sister. Which by the way, where is she?" He added as an afterthought, turning to face his elderly relative, trying and failing to conceal his eagerness to see his twin again. His grandpa didn't seem fooled, if his smile was anything to go by.
"Still at school, unlike you, young man. She should be home any minute," He replied. As if on cue, a sudden screech of excitement sounded from the pathway, and all of them spun on the spot to the source of it. Toad was already moving to meet her halfway though, the two meeting in an eager tangle of limbs.
The resemblance between Toad and his sister was striking – they shared the same round face, small nose and deep brown eyes, and the same bright smile shone on both their lips. Even their height seemed to be identical. The only way they differed – and quite drastically – was the hair, as hers was dyed a bright pink and tied into two long braids falling down her back. To match the hair, presumably, she wore a pink beanie not unlike Toad's, and a dainty pink sundress with a short red denim jacket over it to combat the slight April breeze. She was laughing delightedly, tears brimming in her eyes as she clung to her brother.
"I missed you so much!" She cried; voice muffled into his shoulder as she blinked heavily. Toad sniffed loudly, pointedly keeping his face away from the group as he softly replied, "I missed you too, Joan."
"Joan and John," Repeated Daisy quietly enough that the twins wouldn't hear, grinning slightly, "No wonder he prefers to be called Toad."
Luigi's lips quirked in response, arms still full of a slumbering Yoshi who showed no signs of waking despite the louder atmosphere.
"Yeah, uh, you'd think, but the thing is, we all just started nicknaming her, too, so now she's-"
"Toadette," Mario greeted with a slightly tired but genuine smile, "Good to see you, kid."
Even as the three girls burst into quiet laughter at her nickname, the smaller girl looked up and let out a slight squeaking noise, face flooding with colour as she shoved her brother forcefully in front of her to hide behind.
"M-Mario!" She squawked, flapping her arms in distress, "H-hi!"
"She also has a huge crush on Mario," Luigi added, smiling sheepishly, "Since he was like sixteen."
Mario looked slightly bemused as this tiny girl attempted to hide herself behind the equally small Toad, but seemed to take it in stride, indeed implying that he was well used to this behaviour. Their grandfather approached with surprising grace and steadiness for one so old, regarding the scene warmly and with obvious amusement before clearing his throat.
"Why don't we continue this conversation over a cup of tea? Perhaps in the back garden?" He suggested, tone polite and measured. Peach perked up slightly at the mention of tea, even as Mario and Daisy's smiles became slightly more fixed and Toad rolled his eyes slightly. Seems not everyone was as big a fan of tea as Peach was – ridiculous, in her opinion, as tea was one of the best drinks about, but whatever.
The group followed Mr Toadsworth around to the side gate and to the back yard, which was just as stunning as the front – a viewpoint Peach was not alone in thinking if Rosalina's sharp sudden intake of breath beside her was anything to go by. As if he had been pre-prepared for them, a picturesque picnic blanket was already spread out, a basket sat on one corner just waiting to be opened. Toad fidgeted as he looked at it, and Toadsworth chuckled fondly.
"Oh, go on then, my boy. Tuck in, all of you. You must be peckish."
Needing no further encouragement, the group approached the blanket and collapsed onto it, Toad obediently dishing out little triangle cut sandwiches and cans of soda, as well as little scones that Peach would bet her family's fortune were homemade by the elderly Toadsworth himself. It was all delicious, and filled a gap that Peach hadn't even realised was there, even without the tea he had mentioned. It was nice to be able to stretch her legs out in front of her, and despite herself she felt her eyes grow somewhat heavy from a long day of travelling. She stretched her arms high above her head with a contented hum, blinking deeply to wake herself up a little. A little to her right, little Yoshi had finally awoken, rubbing his eyes as he groggily nibbled on a ham sandwich upon Rosalina's insistence, even though he looked as though he would rather be asleep again.
It was something about this garden, this place of peace, that lulled her into a sense of homeliness and comfort. She felt safe and relaxed, more so than she had in weeks. Perhaps it was the faint floral scent invading the air, or the quiet rustling of the plants in the weak breeze, or even the soft drone of conversation as the Toadsworth family caught up. Whatever it was, it made for a very serene setting that Peach was in no hurry to escape. The others were uncharacteristically quiet as well, equally engrossed in this enchanting place. Daisy had stretched herself out next to Peach, arms above her head to cushion it, face relaxed but eyes wide awake as she lazily observed the passing clouds. Rosalina was quietly fussing over Yoshi, and Luigi seemed perfectly content to allow her to take over from him as he sat crosslegged, hand's fisted into the grass absently, listening to the quiet conversation. Mario was also sprawled out, arm over his eyes, seemingly only half awake.
Some few minutes passed, and Peach had still seen no opportunity for conversation, and as such she found herself absently lacing together daisies into a long chain. Yoshi, now more lively, leaned over to her, head tilted in curiosity.
"What's that?" He asked inquisitively, nose crinkling in confusion. She smiled lightly at him.
"It's a daisy chain," She explained, "Look, you just poke a hole through the stem and put another daisy through that, and-" She held it up to show the way they connected, and his eyes lit up.
"Daisy chain…just like Daisy!" He observed brightly, looking over at Peach's redhead friend who lazily raised her head and grinned at him.
"That's right, buddy. That's where my name comes from."
"Oh! Where does your name come from, Peach? The fruit?" He asked curiously, peering up at her. She couldn't help but smile again.
"Sorta. When I was born, see, the nurse that held me told my parents that I was the most stunning baby she'd ever seen – 'Pretty as a peach', she said. The name ended up sticking, and here we are," She explained. Yoshi's mouth moved in a wowed expression, before he scrambled up to his feet, seemingly done with the conversation and sick of sitting still, rushing off to collect more flowers for her to chain together. Luigi craned round to look at her, lips quirked slightly.
"Is that true?" He asked, looking as if he were trying not to laugh. She winked at him brightly.
"Not one bit, I've no clue why I'm called Peach. But I can't have Yoshi thinking I'm boring, can I?"
He did laugh, now, and so did the others, Daisy reaching above her head to bat Peach's leg absently.
"You're so full of it, Peachy."
Peach giggled softly, accepting the huge pile of daisies that Yoshi dumped in front of her before rushing off to collect more. When he returned a second time, Peach paused him to lightly place a flower crown atop his unruly curls.
"Aw, it suits you! You look adorable, Yosh," She cooed, slightly surprised at herself as the font nickname slipped out unconsciously. But his face had lit up, either from that or from the new accessory he had, and he immediately sat down to assist her in the creation of crowns for everyone else. It took nearly twenty minutes, but between the two of them they managed, and all nine people present had a crown perched atop their heads – even Mario, who Peach had thought would protest it, had accepted it without complaint, further solidifying Peach's theory that it was literally impossible to say no to Yoshi.
Toad reclined back with a contended sigh, his family's conversation finally reaching a brief lull.
"It's good to be home," He mused happily, adjusting his own daisy crown and taking a swig from his bottle of water. Mario raised an eyebrow, glancing at Luigi who tentatively spoke up.
"Not that we don't love having you with us, Toad, but you know you could stay here all the time. There's nothing stopping you," He pointed out. Toadette snorted in a most undignified way, exchanging amused yet resigned looks with her grandfather.
"He won't," She remarked knowingly. Peach frowned.
"How come?" She asked, somewhat cautious, sparing a glance at the two brothers, "If you have such a nice home here for you-" Here, she traded smiles with Mr Toadsworth, "-And family, how come you go around with these guys?"
Toad hummed thoughtfully, looking up at the sky.
"I like to help them," He replied, shrugging, "It's a more exciting life. My parents always helped them out when they could, and when they were gone, I wanted to keep doing it. So, I did. Staying at home, and going to school, and stuff, it's all great, but…this kind of life, it's the kind of one nobody else can say they have."
Peach sat back, frowning softly. She had never thought about that. She had spent the past two weeks thinking only of how awful their fortunes had been to end up this way; only thinking about the negatives, the constant moving from place to place, looking over their shoulders, having to rely on others for help. She had never really stopped to think about the positives that came with it – enough that someone like Toad would even choose this life, willingly. A never-ending freedom to go and do what you wish, meeting so many new people, forging close bonds with people in the deep danger you find yourself in…it wasn't all bad, she supposed.
"Besides," Toadette chimed in, "We trust the guys to look after my brother. We've known each other most of our lives, after all."
Daisy sat up in interest, casting a small, undoubtedly curious, frown over at the younger girl.
"You have?" She enquired. Toadsworth let out a warm chuckle, a happy sound with a hint of a wheeze that indicated his age.
"Indeed, our family and the Jumpman family go back many years. I knew their parents when they were just children, you know. So, I know the boys well enough to know they'll keep my John safe."
Luigi's cheeked pinkened slightly at the praise, head ducked down in embarrassment. Mario gave a somewhat wry smile back at the older gentleman.
"Way to remind everyone how old you're getting, Mr T," He teased mildly, face relaxed and eyes holding a somewhat impish glint that screamed of teenage mischief. It made him seem younger, more like a normal person somehow. Like someone Peach would actually want to hang out with willingly. It was certainly more handsome than the scowl he so frequently wore. But more than anything, it spoke lengths about the bond he held with Toad's grandfather. He may have only been Toad and Toadette's grandparent biologically, but considering their long history, she got the feeling that Mario and Luigi may as well have been his grandkids too.
She smiled slightly at the thought. It was nice to consider that possibility, that Mario and Luigi weren't really alone in this world, even if their parents weren't around anymore.
She leaned back again and closed her eyes, inhaling the fresh scent of nature, and allowed a small, serene smile to form on her lips.
And, for now, all was calm.
"Come on, Daisy, here, here! Please!"
Yoshi's voice seemed far too loud in the otherwise quiet of the surrounding neighbourhood. The little boy was running around the front yard in the dim light of the evening, throwing a ball around with the others, sans Toad. The teenage boy in question was indoors with his family, catching up, while the rest of them had retreated outside to give them some space.
Peach wasn't currently partaking in the impromptu ball game. She had joined in, but frankly, that sort of play just wasn't for her anymore, so she had bowed out gracefully and retired to the porch swing to watch. She loved the swing anyway; the Toadsworth family had put several comfortable, plush cushions propped up on the seat of it, and it made just the perfect quiet creaking noise as she pushed it lightly back and forth, enjoying the gentle breeze on her face. She could honestly see herself dozing off on the spot, with the ambient background noise of her friends enjoying themselves.
Until she was interrupted, of course.
"Can I sit here?"
She started, looking up and, to her genuine surprise, meeting the deep blue eyes of Mario. She blinked at him, unsure if this was some kind of trick question or something, but she slowly nodded her head anyway, shuffling along to the very left side of the seat. He sat himself down at the very right, and while there was still a good foot between them in the middle, it was the closest proximity they'd been in, willingly…ever.
His forehead was glistening with sweat from the extreme workout that was keeping Yoshi occupied. His eyes were tired, his face holding a stark weariness that Peach knew if he were more awake, he would have been concealing. Over on the ground in the garden, Luigi spared a glance up at them, looking faintly pleased, as he paused for a breath, allowing Daisy to take control of Yoshi.
She remained silent, waiting for him to speak. He must have wanted to say something, after all, or else why would he be sitting here? He didn't strike her as the sort to sit so close to someone, at least someone he didn't know well, without a good reason. But he didn't say anything for several minutes, and her social attitude could finally not stand the silence any longer.
"You must be tired from all the driving today, huh?" She ventured. It was the only main explanation she could have for his bowing out of the game, after all. Their swing moved back and forward slowly, and he hummed his agreement.
"Well, I've definitely felt more awake," He said dryly, and she felt her lips twitch at the sarcasm, something she tried to fight before giving up and letting a small huff of laughter escape. He glanced at her out the corner of his eye, looking slightly pleased.
"I mean, I love the kid, but Yoshi's energy enough on a normal day, never mind one where I drove for over six hours," He went on warily, "I had to tap out."
She nodded her understanding, feeling as though she were treading on a minefield trying not to set off an argument between them. Both Luigi and Rosalina were watching them (and trying to pretend that they weren't, the snoops), and she really wanted to prove that they were capable of not bickering for once.
"Yeah, it had been…a long time since I played soccer. It's really more Daisy's thing than mine, I'll let her take charge," She replied, leaning back in the swing, "Besides, I'm pretty tired too."
He glanced at her again and there was something almost sly in the look.
"From all your amazing navigation this afternoon?" He asked, and she was shocked to realise that he was teasing her. He must have been a lot more tired than she thought, if his guard was down enough to be this friendly with her. It was an insult, kind of…but a well-natured one, and instead of setting her feathers ruffling it almost made her smile, even as she huffed in (almost entirely fabricated) offence.
"Again, I reiterate, I got us here, didn't I?"
"With a few unplanned detours," He pointed out, voice shrewd, even as his own cheeks twitched with the urge to smile. She rolled her eyes, folding her arms.
"I think unplanned detours are part of the road trip experience, personally," She commented, and a small, sceptical laugh escaped his throat.
"Is that so?" He asked, snorting, and Peach found herself momentarily in a lot of trouble because so reclined and relaxed on the chair, hands stretched above his head and expression open as he lazily uttered those challenging words in such a drawling tone…It was unfairly hot. She felt her heart do a funny dance in her chest even as she firmly looked away, refusing to entertain this line of thought. Not with HIM.
"It is so," She confirmed firmly. He shrugged.
"If you say so," He conceded, "Nah, I'm just messing. Honestly, I'll admit it. You done good today, Peach. Navigating isn't the easiest thing at the best of times."
If her heart had previously done a dance, now it was doing a full on samba routine, because that was, she was sure, the first time he had ever addressed her by name. He had said her name when introducing her, or talking about her, but he had never called her it to her face. And she was loathe to admit just how much she liked the way his mouth formed the word.
No, she instructed her mind firmly, he was still awful to us at the start, and he still acted like you were lesser than the others. Until we get an apology, no feeling a single thing for this guy. I mean it.
As if on cue, he heaved a sigh, looking out at the sky and up at the few stars that were beginning to dot it.
"Look, I…I guess I owe you an apology," He grudgingly stated, scratching the back of his neck somewhat awkwardly. Peach felt like a record suddenly coming to a screeching halt at the hands of a needle.
Wait…what?
She simply blinked at him, unsure what to say, and he sighed once more, shifting in his seat.
"I, uh…I wasn't the nicest to you," He admitted, "To any of you, but especially you. Truth is, I just totally underestimated you. I figured you would just be some rich damsel in distress and…well, I was wrong. You're not so bad. You…you didn't deserve the way I treated you, so…"
He finally forced himself to meet her gaze fleetingly.
"I'm sorry, okay?"
He looked away again as soon as the words were said, which Peach was infinitely grateful for because all she could do was gawk at him, opening and closing her mouth like a landed fish. Because for all she had said she wouldn't forgive Mario without an apology…she had never actually expected one. Not in such firm, uncertain terms, anyhow. She had figured maybe she would get a vague, reluctant one, probably forced by Luigi. Maybe. Although, for all she knew, this was forced by Luigi. How would she know?
But…it did seem sincere enough. And he had acknowledged what he did wrong, which was more than more guys ever bothered to do.
She cleared her throat, looking steadily ahead.
"Well…thanks," She said at last, "I suppose I'm sorry, too. For always trying to pick a fight."
He snorted softly.
"I think we'll probably still try and pick a fight pretty often, knowing us."
She laughed softly, knowing that this was likely true. It was in both of their natures to clash frequently, after all, and while the apology was a nice start, it wouldn't magically erase any and all animosity between them. But for now…
"Maybe. But at least now it won't be so mean-spirited."
She paused somewhat hopefully, before venturing.
"So…can we try again as friends, then? Like we all are with your brother?"
Mario glanced at her out the corner of his eye again, expression unreadable, before he rolled his eyes somewhat playfully in a show of mock resignation.
"I suppose so," He uttered.
The two of them lapsed into silence, but it felt peaceful once more, not so loaded with tension. They watched quietly as Yoshi urged Daisy to climb the tree on a dare, and Daisy, literally unable to ever refuse a dare, do so, only to end up stuck, suspended 12 feet above the ground. They laughed together amicably as Rosalina scrambled toward the house to fetch a ladder to help her, and they laughed even harder when Luigi climbed up the tree to try and help before the ladder arrived and ended up just as stuck as Daisy was, getting chewed out by the redhead while they waited for Rosie to return, whilst Yoshi paced around the tree, distressed.
They could have got up to help, probably. But something about her was reluctant to break this peaceful truce they had found themselves in. And anyway, she was actually enjoying this time with him, to her surprise. She glanced over at him mid laugh, and saw his own eyes lit up with humour, teeth bared in a genuine grin. He met her eyes for a second, corner of his mouth quirking in acknowledgement before he returned his attention to calling jeers and jokes at his younger brother.
Okay, she conceded to herself, NOW, you can let yourself crush on him. Just a tiny bit.
Although admittedly, she thought as she watched Rosalina haul a ladder from the backyard, flocked by Toad and Toadette, she wasn't sure she rated her chances of only crushing on him a little bit.
But again, that could be her little secret.
Thank you for reading, and apologies for the long wait; life, as you can imagine, got pretty hectic over the festive season! Thank you especially to pinzariouvidiu2016 for all your kind reviews! To answer one of your questions; Yes, the intention WAS to imply that the Koopalings are all illegitimate kids of differing women within the gang, none of whom stuck around. It was the only way I could think of doing it so they were all partially related, but without the need to create a mother character.
See you all soon (hopefully I will not take as long a break this time around!), and please keep reviewing, following and favouriting.
Stay safe, all!
