Super Smash Bros adventures chapter 6
On the outskirts of Delfino Plaza, Mario is engaged in a heated conflict with his brother. It only gets hotter when Luigi throws Fireballs at Mario.
Mario jumps over Luigi's green flames and lands a Flying Kick. Grunting, Luigi stands again and throws a flurry of Rapid Punches at Mario, doing minor damage, though it was enough to send the red clad plumber flying.
Mario lands in the ocean with a splash and quickly swims back to the sandy beach where the platforms had temporarily dropped the fighters. Panting from exhaustion, he hurries up to Luigi and lands two Punches and a Kick.
Luigi puts up his shield, knowing that one hit from Mario's Fiery Palm would get him knocked out of bounds. But, instead, Mario grabs his brother, reaching through the energy shield to do so, and throws him into the air.
The platforms have reappeared and taken the fighters over the town now, so Luigi must land on one of them to avoid losing the match. He launches himself through the air, thinking he would actually make it to safety.
However, at the last second, Mario jumps out towards his brother and spins his Super Leaf Cape, stopping Luigi's ascent and sending him falling down into the void, where the recovery light snatched him up.
Suddenly, Mario is transported to the winner's pavilion, where he poses by waving a flaming fist in front of him. Luigi is standing behind Mario, clapping for his brother's victory. Then, the two plumbers are transported back to the Smash mansion in a jolt of blue static.
"That was a really close one." Mario says, trying to catch his breath.
"Good fight, Mario." Luigi congratulates his brother as they high-five each other, and they walk out of the room, leaving the computer ready for the next set of fighters.
"What do you want to do now?" wonders Mario.
"Hmm. How about we go to the training room?" Luigi suggests. "I could really use some practice fighting."
"That'll be great!" replies Mario enthusiastically.
Mario and Luigi arrive at the training room, which is only a few doors down from the main brawling rooms. The room isn't very full most of the time. When Mario and Luigi enter, Captain Falcon is punching a Sandbag, Sheik is practicing on gymnastic bars, and Robin and Lucina are locked in a fierce swordfight.
Mario walks up to the training computer and inputs a few commands. A minute later, a clone of him appears, ready to do battle with him. Luigi does the same, and the two of them begin sparring with their clones.
After awhile, the clones prove to be a tough match for Mario and Luigi, having been designed to learn a person's fighting style and fight a level just above theirs in order to challenge them to get better.
"So, how'd your training go?" Mario asks his brother, wiping the sweat off his forehead.
"It went great, I feel like I'm getting stronger already!" replied Luigi. "How did yours go? Did you figure out any new combos?"
"I'll show you during our next fight." replies Mario, a mischievous smile on his face, the man not wanting to give away his secret.
The two brothers exit the training room and Luigi turns to Mario. "I actually have to go now." The tall plumber said.
"Oh?" Mario wonders. "Where are you going?"
"I'm going to meet up with Marth and Shulk. We're going to go on a mission at Guar Plains," informs Luigi. "to stop some metal faced monster."
"Oh. Good luck. Be careful." says Mario, wishing his brother success.
"I will." Luigi replies, and hurries to meet up with the two swordsmen.
Mario continues walking around the mansion when a succulent aroma drifts on the air towards him. Mario sniffs the air and recognizes the unmistakable smell of chocolate. Curious, Mario follows his nose to the kitchen, where he finds Princess Peach stirring a bowl of cake batter, a bowl of thoroughly mixed cookie dough on the counter beside her.
His heart sinking, Mario is about to leave when Peach turns and notices him. "Oh Mario! Hi!" she says before the plumber could slip away.
"Hi, Princess Peach…" the plumber says awkwardly. "I was just…" But, before Mario can utter an excuse, the Mushroom Kingdom ruler speaks.
"Oh, wait, Mario!" Peach calls out to him. "Could you please help me, if you have time? I'm making a cake and a big batch of cookies for the Smashers to help celebrate the first major tournament. That's coming soon, don't you remember?"
Mario stares into the princess's sapphire eyes, and finds that he is unable to refuse. "Oh, sure, Peach." Mario answers. He puts on an apron and joins her at the counter.
Mario watches Peach as she begins scooping out spoonfuls of cookie dough, her dainty, delicate hands shaping each blob into perfectly round balls before placing them gently on the silver pan. Mario pours the bowl of cake batter into another pan and the prebaked goods are put in the oven.
There is silence as the princess and the plumber are waiting for the sweets to finish baking. Then, Peach looks at Mario and clears her throat to speak.
"Mario, I just want to say sorry." says Peach, her hands fidgeting with the silk apron she was wearing.
"For what?" asks Mario, slightly confused.
"For what happened… on our last date." Peach responds slowly.
Mario really didn't want to talk about this now. He feared he wouldn't be able to contain his emotions, sadness and regret now threatening to burst like a fountain from within. But, feeling it was impolite to walk away now, Mario listens to the princess.
"Mario," the princess began, choosing her words carefully. "When we first met, I fell in love with you. You were always so nice and helpful, and you saved me from Bowser more times than I can count."
Peach pauses and Mario looks at her, interested in what she has to say. Peach is worried that she has hurt Mario's feelings by bringing this up, but she knows that it has to be done, to clear the air, so she continues speaking.
"After a few years, I told my parents that I want to marry you, but my parents won't let me. I tried convincing them, but… but… they say I have to marry… a Prince, who was my friend when I was a child.
Mario stares at the princess, shocked and bewildered. "So, an arranged marriage…" he says, partially to himself.
"Yes." Peach says, sniffling and wiping away a tear that escaped her eye. "I tried convincing my parents to change their minds and let me marry you, but they won't listen to me." The princess explains. "I'm so sorry, Mario."
"So that's why you didn't accept my proposal." Mario says, sadness and understanding growing inside him like a balloon. A memory of an Italian restaurant flashes inside his head. "I-I thought you didn't love me."
Little did Mario know that Peach is thinking of the same memory, wishing to the Stars that it could have gone differently. "Mario, I love you a lot. I wish I can marry you, but I can't. I'm really sorry." The princess apologizes.
Suddenly, the timer goes off, startling them both. Mario and Peach hurriedly take the treats out of the oven, and now there is no more time to talk because the two of them must put all of their effort in decorating cookies and cake with Smash symbols for the tournament celebration.
"Thank you for helping, Mario." Peach says when the last of the cookies is decorated. "Why don't you stay and have sweets with everyone?"
"That's Okay. I'm… not hungry." Mario responds quickly, and heads to his room, leaving a forlorn Princess Peach behind him.
Peach sighs to herself and shakes her head sadly. Unfortunately, there is no time to dwell on this because she has an entire dining room of Smashers to feed, and they could be pretty cranky when they didn't get their sweets. The princess puts on a smile and goes to greet everyone.