Chapter Thirty-One
By the time Peach finished the story and closed the book, all of the Koopalings had fallen asleep. She smiled at them and rested her head against the headboard of her hospital bed. As she looked around, she noticed a shadow in the window of her door. A bashful smile spread across her face and the shadow flinched.
The doorknob turned slowly. Peach's smile tensed a little when Bowser stepped into the room. He cringed a little as the floor squeaked under his weight.
"My apologies, Princess," Bowser whispered as he stood by the door awkwardly.
"No apologies necessary… It is your home after all," Peach answered softly. Bowser scratched his head self-consciously.
"… I mean… I'm..." he winced at the taste of the words on the tip of his tongue and hoped to the Stars that the princess would finish the sentence for him, but she remained completely silent. "Suuuwrrw..."
"You're... what?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at him. Bowser made a noise that sounded like a mixture between a huff and grunt.
"I'm SORRY," he blurted out in frustration. He glared at the ground and stomped his foot with a mixture of embarrassed shame and anger on his face.
Peach watched him for a moment and then clicked nails together. Bowser's fists clenched as the silence grew longer. Was she really not going to answer after...
"What are you sorry for?"
A look of shocked incredulity washed over his features. "For not throwing you in the dungeon and letting you starve!" is what he wanted to say... but he clamped his mouth shut and continued to stare at the floor. Only when the rumbling anger in his chest died down did he trust himself to speak.
"I... regret scaring you, Princess. It wasn't my intention," Bowser said as convincingly as possible. He even looked up at her as he spoke in order to make it seem more meaningful. But his words didn't have the effect that he had been hoping for. Instead, the polite smile that the princess wore after he spoke made her look... distant.
"Thank you for your apology, your Grace. We have both had a rough time recovering."
His discomfort grew more after she spoke. She hadn't forgiven him...
"Kamek told me you lost a lot of your memories. Have they started coming back yet?" Peach asked him quietly, averting her eyes from his face. Bowser noticed that she drew her hands closer to herself and fidgeted with the fingers of the hand she had touched him with a few days ago.
"Not much. But I do remember the first time you read that book in my castle," Bowser muttered as casually as possible. Her eyes flicked back up at him.
"I don't remember reading this while you were around. I only ever read it to the Koopalings when they couldn't sleep," Peach said, slightly bemused.
"You didn't know I was there," Bowser stated simply. "But it was then that I realized how much you…" His voice caught in his throat. He didn't quite know how to explain what he had realized. What had he realized?
"Princess, I…" he took a small step forward and the floor let out a loud *Creaaaaakkkk!*
At that moment, all of the sleeping Koopalings began to stir and both of the royals froze. Luckily, none of the little ones opened their eyes and they drifted back into a heavy sleep. Bowser gave a sigh of relief and looked back up at Peach giving her an apologetic smile.
"I'll text Kamek and have him send them to bed," the princess whispered.
"When did that old coot get a phone number? And why do you have it?" Bowser asked, raising a skeptical eyebrow at her.
*click, click, click*
Peach smiled and sent the text.
"I'll bet he doesn't even know how to open the messa…" Bowser mumbled.
*Vppp*
She grinned and turned the screen of her phone towards Bowser triumphantly. The message said, "Brt."
"My gods… he did it," Bowser muttered.
Only a moment later, Kamek appeared with Kammy. Almost as quickly as they had come, they disappeared along with all of the Koopalings.
"I'm still not impressed. That dingbat still doesn't know how to send you a proper message. Just nonsense letters," Bowser scoffed, happy to finally be able to speak at his usual volume.
"Bowser, 'brt' stands for 'Be Right There'. He knows perfectly well how to text," Peach scolded him light-heartedly.
"Holy hell… Kamek's secretly a millennial," Bowser muttered in disbelief.
Peach tried to fight it by pursing her lips, but a small smile tugged at the edges of her mouth. The look on her face only made Bowser want her forgiveness much more. He didn't want her to hold back her smile.
"I really am sorry Peach," Bowser mumbled. "I honestly didn't know...well... I didn't remember who you were at first. It took me a couple days before I started..."
Something in Peach's demeanor changed as he spoke. A timid but genuine smile crossed her face.
"I know, Bowser," she said simply.
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"Peach, I care about you,"
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Bowser laid in bed and idly searched the ceiling as he thought over what he had seen in his sleep. Had all of those dreams been memories? Kamek had said that the memory magic he used would be disorienting, but it was the quickest way of getting back all of Bowser's memories. Not only were the memories scatted and mismatched but the emotional baggage of each was the most confusing part. He had remembered Clawdia's funeral, the party Mario threw for everyone back in 2005 and some of his Council meetings. But most importantly, he remembered more about Princess Toadstool. Her favorite foods, her daily schedules when she was in the Mushroom Kingdom, the things she liked to talk to Daisy about over the phone and, even better, the night they KISSED!?
Bowser dragged both claws through his hair and yelled into his pillow. He grinned like a lunatic as he rolled around on his bed and kicked his legs giddily. His heart couldn't take the hype.
"Ahem!"
Bowser flinched and sat up in his bed to see Kammy the Magikoopa standing at the foot of his bed.
"Your Brutishness, the Council is waiting for you to start this morning's trial," Kammy announced plainly, obviously used to Bowser's erotic mood swings. "Here is the file for the case."
He took the envelope from her claws and set it down on his bed. "Start the trial without me. I'm going to visit our guest," Bowser decided with a grin.
"But you have to be there to give the prisoner a sentence!" Kammy exclaimed with a look of aggravation crossing her wrinkly features.
"The sentence will be… An eternity locked in the lowest dungeons of the castle! I'll sign the forms later," Bowser said impatiently as he got out of bed and slipped his shell on with a loud *thwa!*.
"Your Fierceness, this must be taken care of now," Kammy argued firmly. "Afterwards, you can visit Peach. Besides, I just checked on her and she is still asleep."
"But…" Bowser frowned.
Kammy shook her head and grabbed his beefy arm. In a blink of an eye, she disappeared and took Bowser with her to the courtroom.
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*knock, knock*
"Come in," Peach called.
Bowser opened the door and grinned. "Good morning, Peachy! Miss me?"
"Good morning, Bowser," Peach said with a tired but cheerful smile.
"Peach, I have a favor to ask," he said thoughtfully as he pulled a chair up next to her bed. She looked at him curiously and nodded. "Can you help me make sense of what I remembered last night?"
"I will try my best, but I might not be able to clear everything up," Peach answered simply.
"Okay! So... Mario! He is an actual plumber and he isn't just called that because he uses pipes to travel?
"Correct," Peach answered.
"Alright. What about our adventure together? The whole thing lasted about seven days, right? The first day I invited you to my castle and the eighth day was when Kamella attacked, right? What happened in between those days?"
The princess pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Actually, the whole fiasco lasted nine days. The first day, you kidnapped me and I left for Sarasaland. The second day, you..." Peach's face went a little red. "You found me and you made me drive the Koopa kart. The third day was all traveling..."
"And we almost smashed into a massive rock!" Bowser interrupted her.
"Yeah... Anyhow, the fourth day was mostly traveling but we finally made it to Sarasaland and you went back to the Dark Lands. The fifth day I stayed in a hotel but the sixth day I left in the evening to find Pauline, Mario's fiancé. That was also the night I left Pauline'shouse with you and stayed in a hotel. The seventh day we traveled for the Mushroom Kingdom and then stayed at another hotel. It was the eighth day that I finally made it back home, making it the ninth day when Kamella attacked."
Bowser watched Peach curiously as she lost herself in thought. There almost seemed to be a hint of sadness on her face but he couldn't understand why. Maybe there was a memory he was still missing. He vaguely remembered all of those days except the eighth. But that didn't really matter. There was only one question he had for her and it would put everything right again. With this one question, they could start back up where they had left off.
"What happened the last evening we stayed in a hotel together?" Bowser asked eagerly. The princess choked on her own surprise.
"What? (cough, cough!) I mean…" Peach's face grew bright red and she began to play with her hair nervously. "What do you remember about that night?"
Bowser leaned forward to watch her closely as he sat by her bed. Peach tilted her head down more and a veil of blonde hair covered her face slightly as she fidgeted with the stands anxiously. He smirked and said, "We were fighting about… something when we got to the hotel. I don't really remember what, but then we…"
"King Bowser!" Kammy shouted as she opened the door to Peach's room. Both Bowser and Peach jumped a little in surprise at her sudden appearance. "The council is in an uproar! I am sorry, but we need you to come back and finish the trial."
"Can't you see I am busy? I'm talking to Princess Peach! Besides, I already finished the trial," Bowser growled.
"Sir, in most instances I would agree but in this one…" Kammy began.
"What trial?" Peach asked curiously. Bowser rarely had to sit in the judgment seat unless something affected the royal family directly.
"The trial was for Kamella Koopa," Bowser grumbled in frustration.
"Bowser sentenced Kamella to spend the rest of her days in the castle's underground jail," Kammy answered matter-of-factly. "But then he decided to skip the rest of the trial, leaving Kamek in charge. Who, by the way, is now trying to get a unanimous vote for Kamella to be set free."
"WHAT?!" Bowser shouted. He got up and ran out the door but looked back at the princess. "I'll be back." Before Peach could answer, Kammy waved her wand and they vanished.
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The courtroom was filled with boos and jeers by the time Bowser showed up.
"Kamek! What are you doing?" Bowser snarled. He had been so close to having his golden moment with Peach! So. Damn. Close.
"Apparently wreaking havoc, as usual, your Highness," Kamek said thoughtfully as he stood at the podium. Kamella was quietly standing in the middle of the courtroom floor with chains hanging from her wrists and ankles while the rest of the room fell into chaos.
"Why are you trying to free Kamella of her life sentence? After everything she has done?" Bowser asked angrily.
"Because Kamella has already been given a sentence by Peach herself," Kamek stated.
"Peach slept for ten days straight and is still recovering from two broken ribs and multiple bone fractures, you old kook!" Bowser snarled.
"Your Nastiness, I was there when the Judge of Magical Law allowed Peach to sentence Kamella," Kamek explained. "If you don't believe me, ask Peach."
Bowser's anger was quickly replaced with confusion as the courtroom around him continued to rage with yells of objections and arguments.
A new collection of memories started to tug at his mind, but he couldn't think with everyone screaming.
"Enough!" Bowser shouted. The room silenced immediately and all eyes settled on their King. "This trial will be postponed until further notice. Take Kamella back to her cell and lock her up tight for the time being. Make sure she's NOT comfortable." Though the courtroom filled with groans of protest, the crowd began to disperse.
"Take me back to Peach's room, Kamek," Bowser ordered irritably. Kamek nodded and waved his wand.
In a blink of an eye, they were both standing outside of Peach's hospital door. Bowser knocked on the door and opened it to find the princess where he had left her only moments ago. She remained quiet as both the Koopa King and the Magikoopa made their way in.
"Princess, I am sorry to disturb you while you rest. In truth, it is Bowser's fault. Heeehehe," Kamek said mischievously.
"Yes, I gathered as much," she chuckled and winced as the pain in her side increased.
"You better watch yourself, old man," Bowser growled warningly when he saw the pain on her face. "Princess… the Court of Magical Law. What was Kamella's sentence and who gave it to her?"
"The Judge of Magical Law allowed me to pick her sentence. I chose for Kamella to fulfill all of the promises that she has not kept," Peach stated honestly. Kamek coughed into his claw trying to hold back his laughter. Bowser ignored him and continued to look at Peach seriously.
"Was the judge dressed in red?" Bowser asked.
"Yes," Peach answered, feeling some hope rise in her chest. Bowser's face became unreadable, but he kept his eyes locked on hers as if looking for something. Peach held his gaze and kept her breath even, trying to keep her face from changing colors. "Does he remember?" For a moment Bowser looked like there was something he wanted to say but then he decided against it.
"Kamek," Bowser said, looking away from Peach for a moment to get the old Magikoopa's attention. "Call the jury and take me to the courtroom." Kamek wiped his eyes as he chuckled and pulled out his wand.
"Princess, I didn't get to say it before, but you couldn't have given her a better punishment. Heeeehehehe!" With that, both of the Koopas disappeared leaving Peach alone to her thoughts once more.