(A/N: Here's a story I've had in my head for a while now. This one is pretty much an AU for the opening of the video game "New Super Mario Bros." for the Nintendo DS. I'll start it now so you can find out how it goes!)
It was a peaceful day in the Mushroom Kingdom. Everything was calm and quiet, and it looked as though nothing bad was going to happen.
...But hold everything! Hiding in a bush a fair distance away from Peach's Castle was none other than... Oh no! It was Bowser's naughty son, Bowser Jr.! Aw, crap! That kid's gonna ruin everything and make me look like a liar to you guys!
Jr. was quietly peeking out of the bush, keeping his eyes and ears open for any signs of Mario and his sweetheart, Princess Peach of the Mushroom Kingdom. You see, Bowser Jr. had recently come up with a pretty good plan to capture Princess Peach, and today, he was bound and determined to easily snatch the princess from Mario's side, take her back to Bowser's Castle, and make his papa very proud of him.
Jr. had promised his father that his plan was going to work, and when Bowser heard how the plan would go, he figured that it could work, since his own flesh and blood had done such a good job at tricking almost everybody on Isle Delfino into thinking that Mario was a bad guy. And if that wasn't enough, he even managed to snatch up Princess Peach without getting blamed by anybody (except Mario, Peach, and the Toads).
After breakfast that morning, Jr. left Bowser's Castle, ready to go and carry out his big plan. And on his way out the door, Bowser wished him good luck. Jr. assured him that the plan couldn't possibly fail, and that he'd be back shortly, with the princess in tow.
So here Jr. was, quietly sitting in a bush, waiting for the kingdom's favorite couple to show up, which was not exactly an easy chore for him, given that he's just a child and has precious little patience when it comes to waiting for things he really wants. But his papa told him that his patience would pay off in the end. So as Jr. waited for Mario and Peach, he went over the plan in his mind one more time...
When Mario and Peach walked by Jr.'s hiding spot, Jr. would be ready to push the button on his new thundercloud generator. He got the generator a couple of months ago, as a birthday present from his older adopted brother, Iggy Koopa. Iggy made the generator himself, and even explained how it worked. The generator would cause a giant thundercloud to appear over anything you pointed it at. And when the cloud appeared, lightning would strike the object the cloud was over.
The other Koopalings quickly set up a Mario scarecrow outside the castle for Jr. to test his great birthday present on. To the birthday boy's delight, it worked, and why wouldn't it? Iggy had tested the generator himself on a dummy of Mario the other day to make sure it worked perfectly before wrapping it for his baby brother.
Jr.'s intended target was none other than Peach's Castle. He could hardly wait to see the big thundercloud appear over the castle and see lightning strike it. The Toads that lived in there with Peach would come running out of there like a swarm of rats when the lightning struck! And if Jr. was lucky, the Toads might be so afraid, they'd wet themselves!
Since Mario and Peach would not be far from the castle when this would happen, Mario, being the good guy he was, would tell Peach to wait for him while he went to see if the Toads were all okay, and he'd probably try to get rid of the cloud over the castle. And Peach, being the obedient little princess that she was, would do as Mario said and wait patiently, yet nervously, for her beau to return to her side and let her know if all was well.
While Peach watched her boyfriend run to the castle to get rid of the cloud, reassure the Toads, and right the wrong, Jr. would quietly get out of the bush, nab the princess, and make off with her, because Mario would most likely be too far away to do anything by the time Peach was grabbed.
Even though Jr. intended to carry out his plan when Mario was too far away, he was also hoping that maybe he would even get to fight Mario, and if he did, he imagined himself winning easily and stepping on Mario as he triumphantly made his way back to Bowser's Castle, where Bowser would be so proud of him for successfully getting Princess Peach away from Mario's side!
All of a sudden, a voice was heard, interrupting Jr.'s thoughts. Someone was coming. The voice he heard sounded very familiar, soft and sweet.
"That's Mama Peach!" Jr. thought in happiness.
Then he heard another familiar voice answer Peach. The other voice sounded like a male's voice, but to Jr., it was offensively cheerful, and it had an Italian accent.
"And sure enough, she's got that pesky Mario with her! Boy, am I going to make him pay for taking her away from me again!" Jr. thought as he watched the pair pass by his hiding place.
Even though Jr. knew that his father said Peach wasn't really his mama (which is also what Peach claimed), Jr. didn't care. He figured that if he could bring her to his father, then Bowser could marry her, and then she really would be his mama! He was still calling her 'Mama Peach' in preparation for the big day when it finally arrived.
At that moment, Jr. saw where Mario and Peach were. It was finally time for Jr. to put his plan into play! He quickly aimed the thundercloud generator at Peach's Castle and pushed the button without a moment's hesitation.
Mario and Peach were standing there, looking at the castle when they suddenly saw something odd: a big thundercloud appeared over the building that Peach called 'home'. And if that wasn't bad enough, lightning struck Peach's Castle! The Toads who had been inside the castle immediately ran outside, panicking.
Jr. put the generator in his shell, then turned his attention back to Mario and Peach, waiting to see their reactions. In a few short seconds, Peach would be his for the capturing!
"Oh no! My castle is under attack! And look at the Toads! They're all so scared!" Peach cried in alarm.
"Come on, Peach! We'd better go over there and make sure that everything is gonna be okay!" Mario said, lifting the princess into his big, strong arms and carrying her to the castle, bridal style.
Jr.'s mouth fell open when he realized that his plan wasn't going the way it was supposed to anymore, for something he hadn't foreseen just happened! Mario wasn't supposed to carry the princess over to the castle! He was supposed to leave her standing there by herself so he could take her back to his papa! Because he didn't plan on this, and had no back-up plans in mind, he did the only thing he could think of, which was...
"You idiot! You put Mama Peach down right now!" Jr. yelled at Mario, leaping out of the bush in anger.
At the sound of his voice, Mario stopped dead in his tracks, and Peach's eyes widened in shock. They both heard that voice before, and they knew of only one person who ever referred to Peach as "Mama Peach".
Mario slowly turned around, and sure enough, he and Peach saw the youngest of Bowser's children standing there, looking at them like a starving hyena!
"Bowser Jr.?!" Mario and Peach exclaimed in shock. What in the world was he doing here? Then again, it was awfully convenient that he appeared right after that cloud did, so he must have been the cause of all the trouble.
"Put. My. Mama. Down!" Jr. demanded, slowly and dangerously.
"I'm not his mother, Mario, and you know it. Don't put me down." Peach whispered to Mario in a worried voice, hugging him out of fear.
Mario tightened his hold on Peach as she hugged him. No way was he about to give in to Bowser Jr.'s demand! Did that kid think Mario was born yesterday? Mario was smarter than this! He knew that if he set Peach down, Jr. would immediately take her away and run off with her. Mario wouldn't allow that to happen to his girlfriend. It happened too many times on Isle Delfino, and after that, he vowed not to leave her side again.
"I'm not stupido, Peach. I'm not putting you down for anything." Mario whispered into Peach's ear, to assure her that he would not let her be taken from him.
"Are you deaf, Mario, or are you just plain stupid?! I told you to drop her, now do it! And be quick about it!" Jr. yelled.
"I'm not deaf, nor am I stupid. What you need to do is learn to rephrase your sentences, kiddo. You see, you told me to drop your mom. This lovely lady isn't your mom. She is the princess." Mario replied.
Peach quietly giggled at Mario's reply. He could be so silly at times, and if there's one thing Mario knew, it was that a princess appreciates a man who can make her laugh. Mario never failed to make her laugh when she needed a good one.
"You do realize that while she may be the princess, she's also my Mama Peach, but she'll soon be the Queen of the Koopas." Jr. said, not thinking what Mario said was funny because he hated Mario for being the guy who won the heart of the princess.
"Oh, for crying out loud! How many times am I going to have to tell you that I'm not your mother, Jr.! If you really think I'm your mother, then you would treat me with respect, and by that, I mean that you would not add my name to the 'Mama' title! Everybody knows that children are never to add their parents' real names to the title they're given!" Peach yelled.
"That's true. Luigi and I simply called our parents 'Mama' and 'Papa'. We didn't add their real names to their parental titles. We knew what their real names were, of course, but they firmly told us that we were not allowed to call them by their real names. So we didn't." Mario said.
"Well, I want to do it. My older siblings all call Papa 'King Dad', and guess what? He never seems to complain, the way you always do when I call you 'Mama Peach'." Jr. said to the princess.
"And do you know why your father doesn't complain? I'll tell you why! Because they don't use his real name in the title, and they're just adopted! So how about you stop using my name when you're going to call me 'Mama'?!" Peach demanded.
"No way! I like using your name, and Papa said I could do it. He said that you'll get used to your new title in time, so you'd better start getting used to it now, Mama Peach!" Jr. said.
"Mario, next time you see Bowser, do something to make him tell Jr. to stop calling me 'Mama', or to quit adding my name to the 'Mama' title, because I'm sick and tired of it! I'm not Jr.'s mother, I never was his mother, and I'm never going to be his mother! I do not want to be his mother! Ever!" Peach said to Mario in an upset whisper.
"Don't worry, Peach. I'll put a stop to that." Mario promised Peach in a whisper, holding her close and sharing a loving kiss with her. And that kiss turned into a make-out session.
Jr. acted like he was throwing up when he saw Mario and Peach kissing not just because Peach was kissing with Mario instead of his papa, but because he thought the sight of adults making out was sickening. He unfortunately caused Mario and Peach to stop kissing, and they were both looking at him with annoyance.
"Please make him stop that." Peach whispered to Mario, very annoyed.
A clearly annoyed Mario then said, "Jr., if you think adults making out is gross, then you should be happy that Peach isn't your mama. When your dad finds someone who loves him and isn't Peach, then he's going to make you learn that adults making out isn't such a bad thing after all if he hears you complain."
"It's only gross when you're the one who's kissing with Mama Peach! Now do the right thing for once in your life and put her down! You're getting on my last nerve!" Jr. yelled at Mario.
Mario didn't dare put his princess down. He wasn't going to put her life in danger because you are never supposed to put the person you love in harm's way. Mario also knew that Jr. was itching for a fight, and while he wanted to fight Jr., he couldn't do it when he was holding Peach, and setting her down wasn't going to help because Jr. would grab her up and make off with her as soon as her feet were on the ground. What could he do?
That's when Luigi came running up to the pair, looking really concerned.
"Mario! What's... going... on... at... Peach's... Castle?!" Luigi asked in concern while panting, trying to catch his breath. He had just seen the attack on Peach's Castle on the news and quickly hurried over there to find out what was going on and hoping that he and Mario could do something to help out with the trouble.
"Luigi!" Mario thought as he looked at his panting brother. A big smile spread across the older plumber's face as he realized that he now had some help so he could set things right.
"Luigi! I'm so glad you're here! You're just the man I wanted to see!" Mario exclaimed.
"You are? I am? What do you mean?" Luigi asked, a little surprised, having caught his breath.
"Help me out, here." Mario said, placing Peach into Luigi's arms. Once Peach was safe in the arms of her boyfriend's younger twin brother, Mario whispered instructions to Luigi, "I want you to take Peach to your mansion, and when you get there, call the Professor. Ask him to help us get rid of that cloud over Peach's Castle. I'll come to your mansion for Peach when everything is all right."
"Okie-dokie. You can count on me, Mario." Luigi replied with a big smile. He wanted to salute his brother, but he couldn't do that when his arms were full. The younger plumber looked at Peach in his arms and said, "Let's-a go, Princess!" And then he ran off, carrying Peach to safety.
"Thank you, Luigi. It's a very good thing you showed up when you did. Jr. was telling Mario to put me down, but he couldn't do that. Not when he knew what would happen if he did." Peach replied as Luigi carried her away.
"Wow, Mario! You're even dumber than I thought you were! When I told you to put Mama Peach down, I didn't mean that I wanted you to hand her off to your stupid brother and have him run off with her like the coward he is!" Jr. exclaimed in fury.
"Hey! Listen up,kid! Nobody, but nobody, calls my brother stupid, or a coward, and gets away with it!" Mario yelled back, furious. On the other hand, he was glad that Luigi wasn't here right now. If he heard Bowser Jr. call him those things, it would only take him back to their school days, when he was being picked on by other kids for all sorts of reasons. And when those memories came back to him, poor Luigi would fade away for sure.
"Oh, is that so? Well, guess what?! I'm going to keep it up, and there's nothing you can do to stop me from saying what I want about him!" Jr. said.
"You wanna bet?" Mario asked, cracking his knuckles.
"Your brother is a stupid, stupid, stupid dummy, and a little 'fraidy-cat who really sucks, like you!" Jr. said. He kind of sang the taunt, just to be annoying as heck, figuring that Mario couldn't think of a good enough way to make him stop.
That did it. Mario couldn't handle hearing that kid say untrue things about him and Luigi like that. He'd heard more than enough from this brat who caused so much trouble for him and Peach on Isle Delfino.
"Well, Jr., if it's a fight you want, then I'll give you one!" Mario decided as Jr. continued to insult the Super Mario Bros. calling them the 'Stupid Mario Bros.' And when Jr. said that insult, he stopped his taunting long enough to say, "Ooh, that was a really good one! I'll have to remember to tell it to Papa!"
Mario decided to start this fight by doing exactly what Princess Daisy would do to shut Jr. up if she was the one hearing this. It was also the same thing he wanted to do to a certain king of Boos, who thought it was really funny to trap him in a painting and lie to Luigi about winning a mansion.
POW!
Mario socked Bowser Jr. right in the kisser as hard as he could!
"OWWWWWW!" Jr. cried out in pain as he brought his hands to his mouth and staggered back a couple of feet. He had no idea that Mario could pack a really painful punch! Why didn't his papa ever tell him that?!
"I warned you, Jr., but you were the one who chose not to listen to me! Let that be a lesson to you from now on: next time I tell you to shut your pie-hole, do it while you still have the chance." Mario replied.
"You... you're a big meanie! You can't talk to me like that!" Jr. yelled, trying not to look so hurt.
"And you think you should be allowed to mouth off to me the way that you do?! I don't think so! You really need to think twice before you speak!" Mario replied.
"That's it! I've had enough from you! I'm telling Papa on you, you big bully!" Jr. whined.
"Go ahead and tell him!" Mario said, not at all concerned about what Bowser might say when he found out what happened to his son.
"You're going to be sorry when he hears this! I guarantee it!" Jr. declared as he ran in the direction of Bowser's Castle.
"Sure, I'll be sorry... in a parallel universe where bad ideas really work!" Mario thought as he made his way over to Peach's Castle to try and calm the Toads while they waited for Professor E. Gadd to arrive and see if he could do something about the thundercloud that showed up out of nowhere and attacked the castle with lightning.
And so ends Chapter 1. What's gonna happen next? You're just going to have to stay tuned if you want to find out the answer to that!