Yes, this is late. It's very late. However, I'm not going to abandon the story. I made a promise to myself that I would never abandon a story on after I got annoyed about so many of my favorite stories being abandoned (I originally promised myself that I wouldn't start uploading a story until I had finished writing it to make sure there was no risk I wouldn't finish it but that didn't quite work out). So, there WILL be another update, even if it takes another six moths to appear. I feel I'm in a position right now where finding the time and brain space to produce good writing is difficult and I would rather take longer and do a good job than rush it. I hope that makes up for the slowness a little.
Peach fidgeted uncomfortably as the measuring tape was pulled tight around her waist. A group of toad seamstresses were busily measuring her for her wedding gown...just as they had been on and off for the past week and she was growing increasingly tired of dealing with wedding preparations. All she wanted to do was forget that this was even happening. Crossing her arms in frustration, she stared out the window, searching for something to alleviate the boredom.
"Is something wrong, princess?" asked one of the maids, not looking up as she measured the hemline.
"Why would you think something was wrong?" Peach used her best princess voice and kept her face frozen in the hopes that they wouldn't find out what was in her mind. In some ways, this was even worse than the looming wedding itself, this having to pretend that it wasn't a problem. The strain was making her feel sick and the angry feelings and restlessness she had felt while she was kidnapped became stronger and stronger as she felt her life like a cage closing in around her. "I'm not a good person anymore," Peach thought with shame. "I lie all the time and after I'm married my entire life will be a lie." But she couldn't think of a way to escape.
She no longer read Bowser's book. Reading about the beautiful romance that she now knew she would never have was just too painful, though she still kept it close to her in case she got the chance to return it. In fact, she found herself wishing that he would come kidnap her again as a way to escape, at least temporarily, from everything that she was going through right now. It would be so wonderful to not have to eat sleep breathe and think wedding even for a day. One of the maids pricked her with a pin as she tried to fasten the tissue paper patterns around Peach's body and the princess winced but said nothing. Sometimes it frightened her, this ability to suffer in silence. She didn't know where it had come from and, now that it was here she didn't know how to get rid of it
Preparations continued day after day, seemingly endlessly. When it wasn't dress fittings it was cake tastings. Peach found herself gagging at the thought of eating anything sweet, even though she had formerly loved such things. To make matters worse the bakers all felt that they need to make their cakes peach flavored or decorate them with peaches made of frosting or sugarcoated peaches or the very least peach blossoms. Plainly, they thought it was cute and, once upon a time, Peach would have too. Now it just wore down her nerves even more. But still she nodded and smiled politely, doing her best not to grimace when eating her fifth peach flavored cake in half as many days while, all the while, she kept an ear tuned listening for something beyond the bakers' chatter, looking out the window with half an eye.
Gradually, to her horror, it dawned on her that she was straining for sight or sound of the Klown Kar. She wanted to get kidnapped. But, for once, Bowser declined to accommodate her and Peach decided she deserved it for having horrible thoughts like these in the first place. If she were kidnapped, she wondered, would Mario come to rescue her? But that thought made her angry. She didn't need rescuing from Bowser who had never done her harm. She needed to be rescued from this horrible marriage and Mario wasn't willing to save her from that. Bitterly, Peach decided he couldn't be a real hero. It was the real hero's job, after all, to rescue the princess from her unwanted match. And then Peach thought about what it would mean to be married to Peasly, she thought about having to kiss him at the wedding, how he would flip his hair and make it clear that nothing could be more perfect than the union of two such perfect people and, at that thought, Peach felt like she was going to gag and quickly excused herself so the bakers wouldn't think she was gagging over their cakes though, of course, she wanted to do that as well.
Bowser fumed to himself, drumming his fingers on the arm of his throne. The preparations of the army for the assault on the Mushroom Kingdom was progressing at an agonizingly slow pace. He had secretly had his number changed to avoid any calls from King K. or other unwanted persons but that has provided only a momentary diversion. Of course, he could've just gone and kidnapped Peach again. It would have been much faster. But then, that pesky plumber would just come rescue her again. Besides, simple kidnapping would not suffice this time. He wanted to make a great example, to show everyone once and for all that Peach was his one true love.
But such things take time. All the forges, foundries, and mad scientists labs in Bowser's domains were working overtime to ensure his troops were supplied with the most state-of-the-art weapons possible. All the armed forces were out and drilling every day, learning new maneuvers, and being constantly reminded they must keep the power-ups that they were issued on their persons at all times so Mario would not have a chance to steal them. Bowser enjoyed watching his troops marching in formation but it was getting a little old. Likewise, it was usually fascinating to hear about the new spells that Kamek and his magikooas were trying to develop in the sorcerer's laboratory. But never before had Bowser realized how incredibly slow magical research was. Normally, they only came to him when they had something exciting to report but now that he had ordered them to report every day he only got the minutia of complex experiments that were incredibly boring and impossible to understand or nothing at all, which was worse. Bowser was not a patient person but it was worth it for Peach. He would have to learn to be patient.
As he sat there, trying not to fidget, one of his paratroopa spies came hurrying in. "Lord Bowser," he cried, out of breath. "I have important news."
"Well, hurry up about it," cried Bowser, before the paratroopa had a chance to say anything further. "I can't believe how you come in here just to stand around and waste my time."
"Of course, Lord Bowser," the other mumbled apologetically. "I have discovered that the princess is to be married to Prince Peasley and, therefore, the wedding will take place in the Bean Bean Kingdom.
"The what?" cried Bowser in frustration. "Are you trying to tell me that all of the battle plans I've made for attacking the Mushroom Kingdom are useless now?"
The soldier looked around nervously. "Uh… what's going to happen if I say yes?"
"Oh never mind." Browsers gripped the arms of his chair in frustration. "Just get Kamek in here." As the paratroopa hurried away, Bowser put his hands to his skull, detecting a headache already beginning and concluded that he should be careful what he wished for. Now he had plenty to keep them occupied: he had an entirely new battle plan to write from scratch. It would have been so much easier to just kidnap Peach instead of wasting time and resources planning and all out attack. Nevermind the fact that, despite Kamek's best efforts to reassure him, he was paranoid they would take too long and the wedding would be over before they arrived. But he couldn't do it. Peach deserved better than just being kidnapped again. This wasn't just an insult to his own honor but to hers as well and, in order to be worthy of her, he must show he was willing to stand up and defend it, even if that meant doing horrible things like learning how to be patient.
As he was contemplating these noble, yet painful, thoughts, Kamek arrived, the dark circles under his eyes and greenish cast of his skin indicating his overworked status. "You don't look so good," said Bowser uneasily. "Are you sure you're getting enough sleep?"
Kamek exploded. "No, I'm not getting enough sleep," he cried in exasperation. "How could I when you have me slaving day and night to make one-up mushrooms that are toxic to humans but not to koopas? And now, because I've had to leave the potion I had brewing, it will probably be ruined and I'll have to start all over. What was so important anyway, that it couldn't wait?" Bowser kept his temper with difficulty. Kamek was insulting of course but, right now, there was no time for putting his advisers in their proper places. Instead, he contented himself with speaking as if he were explaining things to an ignorant child while he brought Kamek up to date on his most recent intelligence.
"The problem," said Kamek, after he considered the situation for some time, "is that our army's greatest advantages come with secrecy."
"I know that," fumed Bowser, who had been about ready to burst with impatience during his adviser's deliberation and now had an unpleasant suspicion that Kamkek was talking down to him. "Are you implying I don't know how my own army works?"
"No, just that we have to cross a lot of ground to get from the border mountains to the Bean Bean capital. It will completely blow our cover." Bowser sat with his arms folded, muttering bitterly to himself as Kamek continued to expound on all the new difficulties this change of location would involve. If only he could just kidnap her the normal way. He could fly in his Klown Kar to Bean Bean Castle or pretty much anywhere else to grab her up before anyone was the wiser. Too bad his army was too big to fit in the Klown Kar. Even the Koopa cruiser couldn't hold much more than a single battalion. Still, attack by air was the way to go for secrecy. Gradually, Bowser began to get an idea. "I do have the best mechanics and engineers in all the Mushroom World, do I not?" He said and almost laughed at the look of utter horror on Kamek's face as realization dawned.
Next chapter (whenever that is) will be the wedding. Also, the koopalings will probably make an appearance for those of you who like that kind of thing.