Guest: Thanks for the heads-up! It's strange that I forgot that, I guess it slipped from my mind since I was writing the first chapter at like 2am in the morning. I've corrected it in the first chapter now.

The next morning, Princess Rose knew exactly where she was going. Dressed in a beautiful sundress-style gown, she quickly made her way over to the train station hoping that she wouldn't be recognized. Her parents had given her permission to leave the castle for the day, and even without an escort (which Rosie found strange, considering that they had just told her yesterday night that she was in danger), but she did not want to be mobbed by paparazzi or adoring fans, and so she almost ran into the train car to Sarasaland.

Yes, Sarasaland was her destination. It seemed that whenever Rose needed help or advice on top of her mother's, she would go to visit her aunt and uncle in their Kingdom. It was curious, to view them like this. They had always been somewhat the "second-best" of the group - the "other" Mario and the "other" Peach. They had gotten so used to it that it didn't bother them anymore, and they always had good advice to share when she felt left out, neglected, or, in turn, overly glamorized. It was lovely to visit them, and because they lives were quite leisurely the past few years, Rose was always welcome to come over for as long as she wanted.

It was not long before the train reached the sandy hills of Sarasaland. The desert world's hot sun almost burned through the windows, and Rose was extremely glad to have worn something light for clothing. She stumbled through the announcement of the train's arrival and crept away from the busy area of the station, praying to remain unrecognized. In Sarasaland that risk was lower than in her own home, but she was quite well known here as well, and she needed to make sure she didn't draw too much attention to herself.

The Castle was not too far away from the Train Station, and she soon found herself at the gates. There were two Toad guards at the door. They did not look too intimidating, but it was clearly evident that they were trying to look as scary as they could, even if they were only a few feet tall.

"What do you come here for, Miss?" one asked.

"Hello, I am Princess Rose Maria of the Mushroom Kingdom," Rose said. "I am here to visit the King and Queen."

The Toad's eyes widened when he realized who he was talking to.

"Ohh, uhhh, y-yes, Princess, I'm s-sorry I couldn't recognize you without y-your c-crown ... Of course, of course, I'll ... l-let the King and Queen know you're coming and I'll-I'll l-let you in ... " he hastily opened the mighty gate. The young Princess thanked him and entered the Castle.

The Castle was just as someone would imagine it - styled in desert-style and with citrus colors, seemingly glowing with joy and freedom. Rose sighed with pleasure; she loved it here. She could almost smell the juicy, fresh oranges and lemons that grew in the royal gardens.

She was greeted many times, sometimes as Rosie, sometimes as Rose, and sometimes just as Princess. It all depended on how everyone knew her. Some people would whip around and call out, "Hey, Rosie! That's our girl, showing up to visit like she promised! High five!" while others would say something like, "Good morning, Princess. It is a pleasure to see you again." No matter who said it, however, Rose would smile and nod, sometimes laugh, at her friends. She was glowing with joy and relaxation.

"Excuse me, Lara, do you know where the King and Queen are?" Rose asked a maid that she was somewhat familiar with.

"Yes, Princess, they're currently in the Throne Room. Do you know where that is?" the maid, Lara, responded.

"Of course. Thank you," Rose said with a nod and started of towards the Throne Room.

The Throne Room was in, obviously, the most prominent part of the castle. It was, in fact, on the very upper floor, right next to the Royal Rooms and the Royal Balcony. The hot early-summer sunshine filled the Throne Room, and sparkled on the citrus-colored, elegant thrones. Rose was almost there, she only needed to pass another set of Toad guards at the door.

Before they could say anything, she hastily introduced herself.

"Greetings, I am Princess Rose Maria of the Mushroom Kingdom," she said. "I wish to enter the Throne Room, if that is possible."

"Yes, of course," the guard responded in a similar official manner. "The King and Queen have been alerted of your visit and cannot wait to see you again. Please, welcome."

The Toad opened the gates, and there, in the Throne Room, sat King and Queen Luigi and Daisy. They had such grand titles, yet they, and Rose thought this in the best way possible, did not fit them. They both had such comfortable, warm personalities - Daisy never was the "perfect princess" that Peach was, and never would be. That was one of the things Rose had always loved about her. She had two seeming mother figures; her wise, regal actual mother and her fun-loving, tomboyish aunt. She cherished them both equally; it was impossible to choose one, it seemed. But then again, who would want to choose and pick apart their family by rankings?

"Rosie!" her aunt and uncle exclaimed. "It's so great to see you again!"

"I heard that you were coming and I made arrangements for you to have lunch here," Luigi said, smiling. "There's pasta in the adjoining kitchen, if you would like some."

Rose's eyes lit up instantly. Somehow, she had inherited her father's love for Italian food - and, well, just food in general.

"I would love that," she said.

"I'm sorry to leave, but I have some deals to fix," her uncle said. "I'll be back soon, I promise, but you two can hang out just fine together, am I right?"

Rose and Daisy laughed and nodded. Once Luigi had left the room, Daisy said eagerly, "Come on, Rosie, let's get the pasta while it's hot! And you can tell me just why you came over here."

"Can't a niece miss her aunt?" Rose giggled.

"A niece misses her aunt for reasons," Daisy replied, grinning.

The two young women were eating the pasta in the adjoining kitchen of the Throne Room (which was basically just Luigi and Daisy's private kitchen. Daisy had it installed because she said she didn't want to be seen running around in her pajamas in the middle of the night looking for the castle's kitchen because she needed a drink of water) when Daisy asked the question.

"Rosie, don't get me wrong, I love having you here, but you always have one specific reason to come and you never tell it to me straight out," she said. "Now might be a good time."

Rose sighed. "Aunt Dais ... there's problems. Have you heard the rumors?"

"What rumors, specifically? As a Queen, you hear a lot of 'em," Daisy said leisurely, focused on what was left on her plate.

"The rumors about Bowser ... and Bowser Junior."

Daisy's attention was noticeably caught.

"I've heard something ... " she muttered. "Your parents must be so worried about you."

"Yes, they really are. I'm worried about myself. I've been trained for this kind of thing my whole life, but now that it's happening-"

"Now, hold on," Daisy interrupted gently. "Nothing's happening yet. Just try to think like one of the Mushroom Kingdom's residents."

Rose raised an eyebrow. "Meaning?"

"To most of them, the whole Bowser rumor is just a petty, well, rumor. All they know is that they have one grand Princess that they're proud of, who is doing a magnificent job ruling the kingdom alongside her parents. They don't think anything's 'happening' yet, is that not so?"

"You're right," Rose added slowly. "I think I should just go with the flow and see what happens, or something. After all, there's not much that can be done right now."

Daisy's facial expression brightened, though her eyes still showed a hint of worry.

"Good girl," she smiled. "See, I've told you before, you can figure out these things on your own."

"But it's so much clearer with you," Rose pouted jokingly. "I get it now. Thanks, Aunt Dais."

"No problem. Just remember, one day you'll be giving this kind of advice," Daisy said.

"That's why I need to be prepared," Rose responded.

It was at that point that Luigi came back to the Rooms. The three had a good time playing board games together, telling jokes, and laughing heartily. It almost made Rose forget her worries. When she was in such a peaceful state, it was hard to think about being kidnapped or forcefully married, or being at the stake of death. It was hard to remember that she was a Princess - a Princess in possible danger. When all was said and done, Rose hurried back home in the trains, luckily avoiding too much attention yet again.

When she made it back home, she hastily, yet respectfully greeted her parents and ran up to her room to relax as yet another beautiful sunset started to seep into her windows.

The days are getting longer and longer, Rose allowed herself to peacefully think. This summer, I'm going to have so much fun . . . . I'm going to go swimming with my friends, and roll around in the grass, and laugh so much. I'm going to have so much extra time to unwind, and it's going to be so memorable. She gleefully closed her eyes, and let the sunshine stroke her skin. This summer was going to be amazing . . .

. . . If only nothing went wrong.