Chapter Five

Peach covered her mouth in horror and disbelief. Before she knew what she was doing, she ran down the steps and made her way to the middle of the hall where Mario was lying on his face, motionless and bleeding. Despite knowing the Magikoopa was still there, Peach knelt down beside Mario and turned him over onto his back.

"Please, Mario. Please. Please be alive." Peach opened her mouth to say her thoughts out loud but no sound came out. As she held him, she saw his eyes were still rolled back but open and, though his body was still warm, he wasn't breathing. She put her hand on his neck and felt nothing. He had no pulse and the blood from his back had started to dry. "No. No, you can't die, Mario…" she sobbed quietly, taking him into her arms, weeping as she rocked back and forth.

Kamella smiled deviously as she landed next to the princess and pulled out a pink note from her robes. "I found this in his hands..." Kamella started to say, but Peach screamed at the Magikoopa with rage and sorrow. In that moment, Kamella felt a static blast rush through her body. The note fell from her claw to the floor as she stood completely paralyzed from head to toe. Peach laid Mario's body on the floor and stood, capturing Kamella with a furious unbreakable stare. The room went cold and, though the Magikoopa regained control of her body, she didn't dare move. Peach came to stand directly in front of Kamella and raised her hand to the Magikoopa's throat when a familiar voice came from the back of the hall.

"Peach…?" Toadsworth called in a shaky voice. "Are you there?" Peach's consciousness started to trickle back to her as she looked around. She watched as Toadsworth braved his way into the main hall with a curtain rod clutched in his shaky little hands. She blinked once and then turned around to look back only to find that Kamella was gone. Lowering her eyes, she saw the paper the Magikoopa had dropped into a pool of Mario's blood. Peach's heart stopped and her stomach curled. It was her letter to Mario.

"It was my fault," she thought and then her world went black.

. . . . .

Everything around her was soft but red. Very soft and very red. Why red? She was supposed to be wrapped in pink. But red… red was everywhere and it made her itchy. Even the skin on her arms was red. Why did it feel like the red was crawling on her? She tried to rub some of it off but it wasn't working. Instead, the red was spreading and making its way up her arms, over her shoulders, and onto her neck. The sensation made its way to her face, covering her eyes and nose until it started making its way down her throat.

Peach let out a scream that ripped through the air as she flung her sheets off and dug at the skin on her arms. Her skin was burning!

"Peach!? Peach! I'm sorry! It's okay! It will all be okay! Peach? Can you hear me?" Daisy grabbed Peach's arms to stop her from scratching herself.

"Daisy? Where's Mario!? Is he okay? Why are you here and… why are my sheets soaking wet?" Peach asked, practically pulling Daisy off the chair she had perched herself on.

"Peach, it will all be okay! I got a call about what happened so I came to check on you. Listen, you have been out for almost 5 days! I will explain everything, but I need you to calm down," Daisy said as she brought Peach into a hug. "Also, about your sheets… I may have tried to give you some luke-warm tea, but I didn't do a good job of keeping it in your mouth…"

Peach pushed out of the hug to look at Daisy, "Where is Mario?"

Sadness rose in Daisy's eyes as she opened her mouth to answer, "I'm sorry, Peachy. He… was already gone when they found you."

Daisy and Peach embraced each other and cried. No one knocked and no one intruded, but there was an old Toad pacing outside Princess Peach's door with tears in his eyes.

. . . . .

1 month later

There was a soft knock on Peach's balcony door. "I am the princess. I must always be a good host for the people that need my assistance. Having said that, kidnappers don't need assistance," she grumbled sleepily to herself as she looked at the time and then rolled herself back up in her blankets. It was 5 am in the morning.

The visitor knocked again with some hesitance. Receiving no reply, the unwelcome guest picked the lock and tiptoed, or attempted to tiptoe, quietly into her bedroom and made his way to Peach's bedside.

"Psst...Princess? I have come to… invite you to my castle," the intruder whispered.

Peach squeezed her eyes shut in quiet exasperation, wondering whether or not she should answer or pretend to sleep. She remained silent.

"Prinnncessss... I havvve commme tooo inviiite youuu tooo myyy caaastleee," the figure whispered louder.

…No reply…

The intruder sucked up as much air as possible and whispered, "PRINCESSSSS… I HAVVVVE COMMME…"

"BOWSER," the princess whispered loudly, interrupting him. Flipping back the bed sheets from her face with a huff, she said, "If you whisper any louder your throat will pop."

"Then it's a good thing you answered," Bowser answered, a chuckle rumbling through his chest. "Ready to go?"

Peach shook her head. "I haven't even answered whether or not I have accepted your invitation."

"Of course you have! And don't worry about packing, I have everything you need at the castle," Bowser whispered proudly. Before she could refuse, Bowser took hold of her waist and pulled her out of bed, sheets and all.

"Bowser let go of me!" Peach whispered loudly in his ear as he draped her over his shoulder. She pounded her fists on his shell, but nothing could be done. He walked to the Clown Kart floating beside her balcony and set her down in the back, tucking her sheets around her gently.

"Why don't you scream, Princess? Don't you want your hero to come and save you sooner rather than later?" Bowser teased with a maniacal cackle as he jumped into the driver's seat.

Peach wrapped herself in her blankets and covered her face. "What's the point? No one is here stop you and you will do as you please regardless," she muttered bitterly.

Bowser chuckled evilly but couldn't shake a small feeling of concern. She always made a fuss, always had a stubborn yet powerful optimism about her. This wasn't like her at all - and he should know!

"What is wrong, my Princess?"