Foreword: Dear me, I haven't updated in forever, and I'm not even completely happy with this chapter! What a disappointment, you all have my sore apologies.

I'm not completely happy because these seem to be drabbles with no connection. I just recently rearranged the order of these things, so I hope its a bit better. And also, a note to you, my dear readers!

This is the chapter to celebrate 100 reviews+! I have a cameo section with a good deal more than one cameo. ;) One cameo is Mary, the name of a character in Miss Lia's story, "Rebirth of a Star". Everyone else is named after their...namesake. :) I wish I could have fit you all in there, but I couldn't...I love and need you all though, so thank you! And I hope you enjoy the chapter regardless.

Disclaimer: Nintendo doesn't get everything this time! Cameo characters property of their namesake, plzkthx

Peach woke up, finding her silken pillow damp with tears. She sat up and put her hand to her head, moving her hand through her bed-head as she tried to remember why she had been crying. Oh yeah.

Through the night, Peach had been constantly pestered by horrid dreams. In actuality, she loved the dreams; for the first half of the night, at least. They had been filled with feelings of love, laughter, family, and the touch of another. But somewhere through the course of the night, Peach began to get a hold of her dreams and her feelings. She realized the man offering her so much love was not the one she should be dreaming about. The man who she was ecstatic to be dreaming about was the one she was supposed to be having nightmares about.

The rest of the night she had been restlessly sleeping, apparently crying, as she knew her dreams were guilty dreams, ones she shouldn't be dreaming of, but enjoying them and desiring them too much to wake herself up.

Peach swung her legs over the side of the bed and frowned. She rubbed her crusty eyes, the eyes of one who cries without admitting it, and stood up. She carried herself to the floor-length mirror, torches on either side, and grimaced. She was not beautiful; not even presentable. She looked as if she had been swallowed and spit out, not only because of her morning appearance. Her face was lank and frowning, her eyes dark and mournful. Peach was miserable, and it wasn't only because she was making herself feel miserable.

She lifted her chin and sniffed loudly, feeling a fresh tear trickle down the side of her face. She deserved to feel miserable. She had been enjoying herself and wanting more of something forbidden. Something she knew she could never have, whether it was because the right man wouldn't give it, or because the only one who would was wrong. It was something that made her giddy by day and sob by night.

She had been a traitor last night.

And oh, how she wanted to be a traitor again.

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Ludwig was arguing with Morton, Ludwig keeping his cool and using educated rebuttals and insults while Morton was in hysterics, repeating himself in a futile attempt to understand Ludwig's insults. Finally, Morton snarled, "You're just a big, stupid, giant, show-off!"

Ludwig was taken aback. "A show-off? What on earth are you implying?"

A grin spread across Morton's face as he noticed the smirk leave Ludwig's. "You're a show-off! A big, fat, stupid, show-off, with your big, stupid, big words!"

Ludwig gasped, and spun around on his heels to face his father, engulfed in a rather large breakfast sandwich. "Father! Do you think me a pedant?"

Bowser stopped chewing and raised an eyebrow. He had droned out the argument, and scanned Ludwig's face for any sign of what "pedant" meant. He could tell it upset Ludwig, and Ludwig was rarely upset. "You…tell me," he cautiously ordered.

Ludwig crossed his arms, furrowing his bushy eyebrows. "I most certainly do not think I'm a pedant, not at all. Just simply better educated! I am not a pedant."

Bowser took his sandwich and shook it at Ludwig, a piece of lettuce falling out from doing so. "Not many people go around insulting themselves. Maybe you are a pedant and you just don't want to think about it." Bowser took another bite and proudly declared, "I, for one, know I am not a pedant."

Ludwig glared at his father, choosing not to shoot back the reply he had. Instead, he snarled, "So you both think I'm a pedant?"

Morton grinned, bellowing, "Yeah! A big, fat, stupid, pedant!"

"You know what?" Ludwig shouted, "I'm going to abscond from this horrible, degrading atmosphere, and work on my musical auto-biography! And in case you cared, this next movement is completely in minor!" Cursing and hollering words he figured his father and his brother didn't know anyway, Ludwig stormed off.

From the corner of his mouth, Bowser asked if Morton knew what "pedant" was. Morton shrugged and Bowser chuckled. "Neither do I. But if it's an insult, I know I'm still not one."

Ludwig stormed into his room and grabbed his "musical autobiography". It was a rather thick packet of music sheets, most of it illegible and in very informal musical format, as they were all spur of the moment, sometimes almost "diary" entries. Sometimes in happier, major tones, others just rantings-turned-song. Today was certainly a ranting day. He marched off with it into a nearby bedroom, as his was due to be cleaned that day.

Ink spattered around as Ludwig furiously began filling the staves with notes and chords. He shouted his feelings out loud; his head overflowing as he mentally played the music he was writing. He cursed, complained, growled, snarled, and accidentally punched quite a few holes through his composition.

Soon, he found himself not ranting anymore and grinned. He had struck gold. Ludwig pushed the music aside and began writing on a clean, new sheet, filling in annotations of entrances, chords, and dynamics. Diminuendos, crescendos, solos, and all sorts of embellishments dotted the sheet as he composed, loving the thrill of a new stave, key changes, time signatures, and instruments. A descending scale gave his piece a wonderful entrance to a brand new section, and he composed for so long, he lost track of time.

Ludwig's face was so fixed in a grin, he looked almost eccentric. Ink was spattered everywhere, even on his teeth, but he didn't seem to mind. His hair was erratic, his eyes darting from measure to measure as he willed his quill to keep up with the symphony in his head. Ludwig dramatically added chord after chord, spectacular rests, and fermatas as he grew to the finale. Finally, the composer finished his piece, and leaned back, grinning at his work of brilliance. The first stage in many to creating a spectacular symphony was complete, and Ludwig hoped it would be legible enough to continue work.

The door squeaked open and a maid gasped, dropping her cleaning utensils. The maid shook her head as she saw what Ludwig had done. She glared at the koopaling and sternly reprimanded, "Ludwig Von Koopa! Those were my best linens!"

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Enwrapped in a trench coat, Roy leaned against the wall, grinning. He looked out the corner of his eye and saw his sister sauntering down the hall. Her eyes were clenched shut as she silently danced along to some music only she could hear, mouthing quite ridiculously along as she walked. While she passed, Roy stuck out his claw and pulled a long black cord from her ears. Wendy's face fell, and as she realized what had happened, she spun on her heels to face Roy. "What the heck was that for?"

Roy grinned, letting the cord fall, music just barely easing out of the headphones at the end. "Whatchu' listnen' to, Wen?"

Wendy O. scowled while she grabbed the cord and paused her song. "That's, like, none of your business. What the heck didju take it out for anyway?"

Roy stepped off the wall and raised an eyebrow. "You interested in some cold-hard cash?"

Wendy crossed her arms, the cord just hanging down from between her claws. "Roy, if you haven't noticed, we're like the richest koopas, like, ever. I don't need anymore cash…why?"

Roy grinned again. "The boys and I have a nice li'l bettin' pool set up I thought you might want in on." Wendy glared at Roy, but the smooth-talker kept going. "The topic at hand is sumpin…I tink you may wanna look inter."

Wendy tried to mask her curiosity behind a scowl. "What's this…topic you're betting on?"

Roy stopped grinning, glancing at his hands as casually as I could. "We jus' bettin' ter see who kin make Peach and Pops get tagether fastest this week."

Wendy's eyebrow lifted. "Like a cupid-contest?"

"You ked call it that." Wendy squealed in delight, jumping up and down and clapping her claws. Roy glared at her, clenching his own claws to his ears. "'Ey! Crazy lady! You tryin' to make me go deaf or sumpin'?"

Quickly regaining her composure, Wendy scowled at Roy. "No, I was just excited."

Roy rolled his eyes. "I could see dat." He opened his jacket to reveal a complicated chart with names and bets. "So you in?"

Wendy smiled. "Better. I'm competing."

Roy smiled. "Thought chu'd be." He took a notebook out of a pocket in his jacket's innards and handed it to Wendy. Eagerly, she filled in the needed information and handed it back. "Tanks. Dis should be good."

Wendy smiled again, clasping her claws together. She squealed in reply and ran down the hall. Roy shook his head after her, not even trying to understand the bipolar attitude of girls.

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All through breakfast, Bowser's mind was racing. After breakfast, it was racing even more. He knew that Peach hadn't left her room since she entered it the night before, and so he had sent Valkoopy in with breakfast almost an hour ago.

Finally, Valkoopy wheeled her empty cart out of Peach's room and down the hall, almost being run over by Bowser. It was obvious his mask of calmness was down. Frantically, he demanded, "How is she? Did she eat? How's she feeling? What's going on?"

"Calm down, your majesty! One question at a time is the best I can do for you, but I'm afraid I won't be that much of a help."

"Why? I sent you in there to help her help me!"

"She wasn't feeling top-notch, sire, and wasn't willing to talk about it. She seemed miserable."

Bowser's eyes bulged. "Why was she miserable?"

Valkoopy tried not to laugh. Bowser always inspired so much revered fear in his maids and workers, that such a fearful king seemed bizarre. "I don't know, sire, she wasn't talking."

Bowser growled, "Well if you weren't talking to her, then why were you there so long?"

"You told me to make sure she ate her breakfast. She wasn't eating until I told her I wouldn't leave unless she did. Something's tormenting her, sire, and I don't think sitting in her room is going to do her much good."

"What do you mean?"

Valkoopy patiently explained, "Whatever is wrong with her is distracting her from everything else and she's just sitting there, feeling sorry for herself. If you get her involved in something new and interesting, she may forget whatever's bothering her."

"What's bothering her?

Valkoopy sighed, adjusting the dirtied plates on the cart. "Sire, if I knew, I'd tell you. But as I've said, she wasn't talking to me."

Bowser glared, snarling, "Then why didn't you talk to her?"

Valkoopy shook her head. "You don't get it, sire. She's upset. I 'counsel' through guilt. Peach is miserable right now, I think my silent comfort did a lot more than any talking could. You need to get that through your head, sire, especially if you ever try to pursue a relationship with anyone. Silence can heal more than words, especially if you aren't good with words in the first place."

Bowser frowned, looking away from Valkoopy. He sighed before saying, "Then what should I do for her?"

"I don't know, sire, I'm not the best of counselors. All I can be is a friend. Now if you'll most graciously excuse me…" Valkoopy carted the dishes away, leaving Bowser alone in the hallway.

Bowser glanced towards Peach's door. Cautiously, slowly, he inched towards it, pressing his ear against the door. Most doors in the palace were soundproof, but not the guest bedrooms. Bowser heard water hitting the bathroom floor and realized Peach must be having a shower.

He froze. Standing stock still, perverted, love-struck thoughts started flashing through his mind. The splash of the water dulled and Bowser realized Peach must have stepped into the shower. His head hurt from a storm of thoughts.

Soon, Bowser was sweating. He shook himself and cursed himself, leaving the hall as fast as he could. Bower knew it wasn't Peach's personality to ever appreciate anyone having such thoughts about her and that she would go ballistic if he ever mentioned it to her. As Bowser moved through the hallway, he desperately tried to remember his recent conversation and get his mind off…other things.

He planned, best he could, what he should do for Peach. But even once his mind was clear to focus on simply helping her, Bowser was dumbstruck. He turned down a few halls and stepped up to an intercom system hanging on a wall. After finding the desired button, he said into the machine, "Kammy? I need your help."

Within a few seconds, a puff of sparkling smoke appeared and Kammy stepped out. "Yes your majesty?"

"I need help with Peach."

Kammy rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "What do you need my help for?"

"You're a girl."

"What an observation." Kammy sarcastically droned.

Bowser glared, sparks flipping from his mouth as he snarled, "Are you being snarky with me, Kammy?"

Kammy blinked nervously. She had almost forgotten that Bowser was still…Bowser. With or without Peach. "No sire, not intentionally, sire. I-"

"Just help me, okay?" Bowser stared down Kammy, who sighed before finally nodding. "Good. Valkoopy said I should…distract her. Because she's upset. I don't know why she's upset, but whatever it is, we need to distract her. What should I do?"

"Distract her, maybe?" Kammy seethed under her breath. She looked up brightly at her king and pulled a rather fake grin. "Perhaps get her out of the palace. Take her somewhere she hasn't seen; show her something to get her mind off things. Bring your kids- they'll like it and she likes them, so it works well."

Bowser grinned. He lifted Kammy up and pulled her into a hug. "That's a great idea!"

Rather surprised at Bowser's out-of-character act, Kammy couldn't suppress an "oof" as she was squeezed, dropping her wand. For a few seconds, she let herself enjoy the welcome hug, the first she had ever received from her king, before loosening her grip and allowing herself to be let down. Adjusting her horn-rimmed glasses, she said quietly, "You're welcome, sire. I'm glad it pleased you."

Bowser grinned again, showing off his fangs. "Anything that pleases Peach pleases me."

Kammy stiffened. "Of course," She walked over and picked up her wand, waving it so a door formed, leading her to her room via instantaneous transportation. "Now if you'll excuse me…" Kammy opened the door and stepped through, the door disappearing instantly as it swung shut behind her.

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Mario followed his brother as they zoomed up a pipe, landing squarely in a room with a night-club like atmosphere. All around them, fellow plumbing-convention goers leapt out of pipes of their own. Koopas, toads, goombas, even some humans and unrecognizable creatures followed each other out, most finding seats.

Luigi rubbed the back of his neck as he saw everyone rush to places; they all obviously knew where to go. "Mario, do you-a know what to do?"

Mario glanced about and shook his head. "But they-a said we'd have-a fun here. I'm-a hungry. Think they've-a got pasta?"

A rather tall woman approached the brothers. Upon further examination, they realized she was a magikoopa, but in a simple red dress and without glasses, she looked nothing like the magikoopas they knew. The magikoopa folded her arms and smirked. "You boys been here before?" Both brothers shook their heads, examining the lady. Her name tag, reading "Seena", gave away her occupation to them both, and they could tell she was experienced at whatever it was she did. "I didn't think so. You from the plumbing convention?" The brothers nodded, prompting her to continue.

"Not much of talkers, are ya? Well the convention comes here, to good ole' Blastos' X and 4, every year about this time of the week. I'm gonna be really busy all night, but I'll try and check on ya both. Until then…" Seena called a name out and a koopa rushed to her side, proudly sporting simple jeans and a T-shirt. "This is Mikari. She's been coming here on the plumbing convention day every day for years. Sweet girl, she should be thrilled to show you around."

Mikari grinned and shook each hand in turn, asking their names politely. Seena smiled and waved as she left to assist a lost-looking toad. "So," Mikari started, "You two are plumbers?" The brothers nodded yet again. "I'm actually not, but I live near here. I'll show you two around. You boys hungry?" Once again, all they did was nod. "Spiny got your tounges? Come on boys, you can't have come to a place like Blastos' to go the night without talking."

"Sorry," they mumbled, making Mikari laugh.

"Well maybe your tounges'll loosen up over some dinner. Whatchu guys like? They have some of the best frozen pizza, and melted ice-cream is half-off today!"

"Just Pasta," they both answered in excitement. Mario grinned at Luigi when Mikari sighed. "They have that too, but it's boring." He was hungry enough to eat the entire place, so Mario didn't really care. They followed Mikari over to a large window where one bought food and ordered pasta.

Spotting a brown-haired human drinking alone, Mikari rushed over, sitting next to her. "Hey Mary! These guys are rookies on the scene; wanna help me warm them up?"

The girl looked over her drink, still sipping from the straw, until it finally screeched with the 'empty' noise. She smiled, and shook their hands. "I'd love to. I'm Mary, what are you guys' names?" Strangely, the girl looked quite a bit like Mario. Without the mustache, of course. She even had overalls on.

Mario and Luigi answered politely, Luigi cupping his hand and saying out of the side of his mouth, "Quanta gente dovremo venire a contatto? (How many more people will we have to meet)"

Mario was about to shrug when Mary interrupted. "Oh, probably one or two more. The sooner you loosen up and enjoy yourselves, the sooner we can have fun!" Mary laughed at their shock and explained, "My assistant, Miss Lia, taught me some Italian. So you boys are Italian?"

Soon they were all talking, Mary, Mikari, Mario, and Luigi. They had moved from the discussion of Italian language, to favorite vacation spots, to holidays, to chocolate preferences, to allergies, to pets, to Yoshis, and were talking about one of Mario's latest adventures when Seena came up to them again.

She smiled. "I see you boys loosened up, that's great. Are you up for some classic gambling, Blastos' style? Blastos is supposed to award the winner the prize in person."

The girls all brightened, clearly either thrilled by the idea of gambling or meeting Blastos, the namesake for the night-club. Luigi grinned, saying, "I'd-a go for a good-a game of cards."

The girls all instantly began betting on Luigi, not even knowing who he'd go against. Finally he arrived, Mario following along with Mikari, Mary, and Seena. A rather large and robust-looking penguin began smirking at Luigi. The penguin was flocked on either side by two boos, each hovering near piles of chips. "So, are you mah competition then?" the penguin said, its voice crisp and a bit nerve-racking.

Seena leaned over and whispered in Luigi's ear, loud enough for Mario to hear, "They call that penguin over there "Mystical Tears". Mystical because no one ever sees her moves coming. Tears because she always wins with great expense to the other player. But you can beat her."

Luigi smiled. He didn't brag often, but he hardly ever lost a game of luck when he was trying. "Si, I'm-a your competition. But don't-a worry, I won't-a make you look-a too bad."

Within minutes the game was underway, bets being made all around the table. Kitty boos passed out drinks to the spectators, and Mario found himself a great seat to watch his brother wipe the over-confident smile off the penguin's face. "He's-a gonna win."

"Who? Green man?" the goomba sitting next to him asked.

Mario nodded. "He's-a my brother. Luigi."

The toad on the other side of Mario squealed. "You guys are brothers? That's so cool! I bet you're both popular at home."

Mario shrugged, smiling a bit. "Well-a, we are the famous Mario and Luigi. So-a, you could-a say that."

The toad and goomba gasped, the toad fervently shaking his hand, the goomba obviously upset she couldn't. "My name's Casiana, and that's my friend, Kari." The toad told him, readjusting her mushroom cap, dotted with blue specks. "I'm a big fan, Mario! Wow, never thought I'd say that. What are you doing here anyway?"

"We're here for-a plumbing convention-a."

Kari smiled. "Did you know there was a night-club deal with it?"

Mario shook his head. "Luigi and I are-a not much-a party people."

"Oh come on, Mario Parties are the biggest things, like, ever!" Casiana laughed.

Mario laughed. "I-a meant night-a clubs."

"Well, Blastos' is a great place, I don't even consider it a club. More like…a community. Great place, I met half my friends here," Kari told Mario. "So what do you do at home?"

It didn't take much else for Mario to branch into more of his stories. Casiana and Kari listened intensely while Luigi gambled away, 'Mystical Tears' slowly loosing the smile on her face. Finally, the game was called with Luigi as the winner.

A large black, cat-like creature stepped forward to shake Luigi's hand. "Congratulations," it said politely, careful not to scratch his glove, "you've beaten one of our best competitors."

Mystical Tears nodded. "You not bad, not bad t'all. You comin' back?"

Luigi shrugged. "I-a need to-a call my girlfriend."

The cat smiled. "You certainly do. Here's your winnings, Luigi. Congratulations again, from one talented fellow to another. Call me Blastos."

"Graci, Blastos," Luigi stammered, staring at the pile of winnings.

After more compliments and more talking, Mario and Luigi left the party. None of their new friends, Mikari, Mary, Kari, Casiana, Seena, or even Mystical Tears and Blastos were happy to see them go, but Mario and Luigi were too tired to even think of staying longer. When they arrived at their room, Mario fell onto his bed, letting his hat fall off his head.

"Did you-a have fun?" Luigi asked.

"Si," Mario sighed, "But I can't-a wait to get-a home." Mario thought of the friends he missed, his own bed, and most importantly, the better flavored pasta.

"I-a know. I-a miss Daisy." Luigi said as he fell onto his own bed. He looked over at Mario, picking at his mustache. "Do you-a think Daisy's asleep? I-a want to call her." Without getting an answer, Luigi rolled over and grabbed up his phone, holding down the speed-dial button. As he pressed it, he asked, "Are you-a gonna call Peach?"

Mario shook his head and rolled over again, pressing his face into his sheets. "She's-a on vacation," he told Luigi with a muffled voice.

Luigi shrugged as the phone rang. "She might-a miss you."

Mario sighed. "She's-a on vacation. I-a told you."

Luigi rolled his eyes, waiting for Daisy to pick up. His face brightened when he heard a voice pick-up on the other end and left Mario alone in the room.

Mario rolled over onto his back and picked at his mustache, not sure what else to do. Next week…I'll figure things out…Next week we'll be back on track.

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Peach finished drying herself off and put on her pink dress. Slowly, thoughtfully, she dressed, thinking quietly to herself. Peach looked at her reflection and did her hair and make-up.

She wasn't planning on going out, or even leaving the room, but Peach knew that when she looked her best, it was easier to feel her best. She knew that if she was confident in her appearance that she would have one less thing to worry about.

As she applied eye-shadow, she started to smile. It was just like a quiet day at her own castle; getting up late, being undisturbed, and yet knowing she was being worried about. Her unofficial days off were becoming more and more rare and she knew at the moment, the castle staff must be worried to bits.

Laughing inwardly, she opened her mouth just a bit to better apply mascara. She was on vacation. There was no need to feel upset, vacation was meant for enjoyment. The matter which she found it didn't and shouldn't matter. What mattered was that she felt confident and happy.

Peach blinked a few times as her eyelashes separated and she grabbed her gloves, pulling them on delicately. Today would only be a good day if she let it be.

Curiously, she thought about Mario. The convention must be boring, sure to be full of meetings, seminars, and workshops. The company must be dull, composed of smelly, overweight plumbers hoping to make their nitch of business. He'd be thrilled to see her again, and he'd have enough miserable stories to keep her occupied, surely.

Her stories…she still wasn't sure if she wanted him to know. Peach stepped into her tiny, pink heels and stepped around the room to the window. She pulled it open and looked out, expecting a dank, dark world of rock and lava. It was a welcome sight to instead see clean city streets with children of all sorts playing and a park nearby. It wasn't a sweatshop or a torture zone, but a regular world, almost like her home.

Standing framed in the window, Peach began to be noticed. Children stopped their playing and pointed. Although the windows were soundproof, Peach felt a blush creeping up her cheeks as she saw- they were cheering. Why would Darkland children be cheering for Peach, she didn't know. But it certainly gave her a boost she needed.

Peach started to laugh, thinking of how refreshing her shower really had been. She had almost forgotten when she woke up that everyone in this palace, especially Bowser, adored her. And she enjoyed that.

She was revered yet respected, loved, yet left to herself. She was finally happy to be on vacation.

Author's Note: I'm so sorry you had to wait so long for such an unsatisfactory chapter. Next chapter...ooh I wrote it in one day (a record!) and goodness knows I love it! I think you all will enjoy it as well, so please, review!

I know you've all been waiting much too long, but I've been horribly busy with finals, Christmas, (and the Wii...) and such. So here's to a shorter wait between chappies next time, aye? You all truly deserve a million chapters, I can't imagine a better crew of reviewers and readers. :)