Notes: Until Nintendo gives us an official in-game explanation about what really happened to the mother of Bowser's children, us fans are left to speculate...and pull scenarios such as this one out of our butts.

Chapter 14: Didn't Know What A Good Thing You Had When You Had It.

I made good on my promise and started packing immediately. I also made good on the promise to myself not to cry; I was far too angry to so much as tear up. I grabbed a suitcase and started placing my things into it with unnecessary force, muttering to myself all the while.

I couldn't believe I had been so stupid, so blind. Every one of his soft kisses, his gentle touches, had been a lie. I wasn't the girl he wanted, just like I wasn't the girl he saw when he held me in his arms. It had never been me.

"No," I snarled, teeth gritted as I tossed my dresses into the suitcase with a bang, "all he sees is that brainless, pink-loving..."

All I turned out to be was a little doll he could hug in her place. I had succeeded in convincing him that he would never have her - or at least not until he came up with the right scheme - so in the meantime, I got to fill the void in his life, to be hugged and kissed and petted, until the real thing came along. Then I would be thrown away. Forgotten.

I wasn't going to play that game. I refused to be second in his heart. I refused to be anything less than first-and only. If he still longed for her, then...

Well. There was no point in me wasting my time a second more.

My packing was almost finished when the wall sconces rattled a little. I set my jaw and placed the handful of gifts Junior and the koopalings had made for me into the suitcase as the rattling continued, followed by heavy footsteps. I closed the suitcase with a bang just as a tapping sound came on my door.

It was such a tiny sound, he must have used the tip of a single claw to make it. I scowled. "I don't want to see you," I snapped.

Silence followed, during which I took one last look around the room. I hadn't missed anything, so, with a heavy heart, I prepared for the journey home. I tugged on a cloak the seamstress had made for me and fastened it with numb fingers. The footsteps slowly retreated and silence mounted again.

I would need food and supplies, but I only planned to grab a little before I fled. I couldn't bear to stay here a moment more; I could buy more things later.

As I turned to grab my suitcase, something on the floor caught my eye. A folded note sticking partway under the door. I bent to retrieve it, unfolding it slowly. The message within was long and sloppy, as if it had been written in extreme haste. I almost didn't read it, thinking it cowardly of him to put his words on paper instead of saying them to my face, but the first line grabbed my attention.

'My sweet little Rose,' it began, 'I know you're mad at me and I don't blame you. I'm not all that good with words but I'm going to try anyway, because you deserve to understand why I can't say what you want me to say. It's a long, painful story but I'll try to sum it up; I only said those words to one person in my entire life. I said them because that was how I felt, and I thought she felt the same way about me.

'I was wrong. I was crowned king and we married, enjoying life as King and Queen. Then the koopalings came, one after another after another after...

'Wait, how many are there again? Oh yeah. Seven. Shoot, did I actually write that?

'Anyway, with all those kids and all the fun we had making them (this line was scratched out and replaced with 'all the fun we had being a family') I thought my life was just about perfect. But then I started to suspect that my queen didn't care about me like she claimed to. She started taking trips without telling me and I soon heard about things she was doing in my name without my permission. She ignored me and our kids and took money and other things, all while using my name and influence to gain friends and lackeys in other kingdoms.

'I got angry and demanded why she married me if all she wanted was to start some other career - she laughed in my face and said she needed a leg-up to do it. That was all I was to her; a means to get her somewhere she wanted to go. Nothing more.'

As I read, my heart grew tighter and tighter in my chest, my breath held. I was starting to think I might have made a big mistake.

'We fought about it for a long time. The really sad thing was I still (a word here was scribbled out so hard the paper had torn) cared about her, and I didn't want her to leave me. Or our kids, who were all too small to understand what was going on. Ludwig was a few years old by now and is the only one who remembers her. To this day he refuses to talk about her.

'We all meant nothing to her. She was already involved with someone from another kingdom, and one day she up and took all the wealth she had made as my queen and left. She later sent me a formal letter of divorce, which I signed. I never saw or heard from her again.'

There was more, but I understood now. I understood why he said 'I can't' and not 'I won't.' Tears filled my eyes as I read on, but as heartbreaking as I found the story so far, the next part was like a slap in the face.

'Months went by and it was like we had never been married at all. Aside from the koopalings, she had left me with nothing. No achievement that allowed me to say, 'at least this made it worth it'. I know I don't look like a guy whose heart can break, but it did. She had broken it to tiny pieces, then stomped on them for good measure.

'I spent most of my time trying to figure out how to recover from such a pathetic marriage and prove to my underlings that I was still the baddest thing around. Then one day a basket was left outside the castle. Inside it was an egg, and a note that read, 'This is yours, so I sure as hell don't want it'. Junior, of course.'

Tears spilled freely down my face now; who was this bitch, anyway? How could she throw away that sweet, lovable little kid? She better hope I never got my hands on her, or else...

'I was desperate for anything to take my mind off it all, and kidnapping a helpless princess seemed like a good idea at the time. Mario and his brother rescued her easily - I was new at kidnapping and hadn't come up with more elaborate schemes yet - but it didn't matter. Battling them gave me something to do, a goal to accomplish, so I kidnapped her again and again.

'I don't remember exactly when I started seeing Peach (this was scratched out and replaced with 'her') as more than a screaming captive, but...I realize now just how dumb that was. You're absolutely right; I am the biggest dolt in all the world. I went from a woman who never loved me to begin with to a woman who never will, and I almost didn't see a wonderful, beautiful woman who was right under my nose.

'But I do see you now, and I would be more than just a dolt if I let you get away. If you really want me, then I'm yours. But I hope you understand why I can't say what you want me to say. I know it's pathetic, but I'm too scared to say it. After what happened the last time I said it...

'Please don't think that I don't say it because I don't feel it, because I do. And I'll spend the rest of my life proving it to you. So please don't run away from me. I don't think I could stand it if this turns out like...that time.

... ... ...

'Well, maybe it won't hurt if I write it. Writing is different than saying it out loud, right? Okay. Here goes.

'I love you, my sweet little Rose. Now please stay. Marry me.'

The letter slipped from my trembling fingers. I didn't bother to wipe my teary eyes, or check if my hair was straight. I yanked the door open and raced down the hall, calling his name.

It was a huge castle and I didn't know where to begin looking. I asked a guard, but he didn't know, so I ran on, nearly running over Iggy as I turned a corner. "Have you seen your father?" I asked breathlessly.

"I think he's with Junior," he responded, looking puzzled by my tears.

He continued to scratch his head as I raced by, heading for Junior's room. When I got there Junior was kicking around his favorite ball, all smiles. Bowser sat near the toy box, absently poking a rocking horse and looking as droopy as can be.

He stood, looking surprised and hopeful, as I came rushing into the room. He was barely on his feet before I threw myself into his arms, where I clung to him and sobbed. "I'm sorry," I whispered. "I'm so, so sorry."

I was sorry I ever doubted him. I was sorry his heart had been so mistreated. I was sorry for it all. I wanted - needed - to make everything right.

"I'll love you forever," I whispered as I pressed my face to his chest. "And I'll never, ever leave you. I'll spend the rest of my life making you happy."

Bowser grabbed my waist and lifted me so we were eye-level. I smiled through my tears; his own eyes glistened with joy and delight. His face was aglow as he spoke, breathless. "You mean you'll stay and marry me?"

I nodded as I put my arms around his neck. "Yes. I'll marry you. Make me your wife and queen."

He let of a sigh of happiness and hugged me tight, and Junior hopped up from his toys with a happy squeak. "You're going to be my new mom?" he asked excitedly. "Really? Awesome! I'm going to go tell everybody!"

He ran, giggling, out of the room. Bowser and I didn't follow right away. Instead, we stayed in each other's arms and enjoyed our first kiss as husband and wife-to-be.