(A/N: Those of you who read Bowser's Been Had! before I revised it will probably remember this being the 4th chapter of that story. Well, you'd be right, for this used to be Chapter 4 of the aforementioned fanfic. However, I thought it might work better in this fanfic, since this story shows what went on between Mario, Peach, and Cappy while Daisy is with Bowser. Now it's time to start this story with a new first chapter!)
"Peach, how is Tiara doing? Did you manage to calm her down before you left Bowser's airship?" Cappy asked in concern as Mario quickly recovered from his lovesick daze so he could make ready to head on home to the Mushroom Kingdom.
Princess Peach was a little startled at the sound of the new, unfamiliar voice, but when she looked in the direction it came from and saw Cappy hovering near her, she relaxed a little.
"Oh, hello, Cappy. It's nice to finally meet you at last." Peach said, smiling at the Bonneter.
"Wha-?! How did you know who I am?!" Cappy asked, surprised.
"Tiara told me all about you during our time together. She even pointed you out to me when we were on the deck of Bowser's airship." Peach replied.
"Oh, right. I should have known she would do that." Cappy said to himself.
"And I'm pretty sure Mario told you everything about me, since you addressed me by my name." Peach said.
"I did. You're always on my mind, mia principessa, my princess." a blushing Mario replied.
"And while it's nice to finally meet you, Peach, I have to ask: did you calm my sister down? Is she okay?" Cappy asked.
"Don't worry, Cappy; I calmed her down. I even sang a little song to help comfort her. Tiara is much calmer now, even though she really misses her homeland, and you." Peach said. She hoped that her look-alike, whoever she was, would be kind to Tiara. The poor Bonneter had been through a lot since Bowser attacked.
"No surprise there. I know Tiara misses me, and I also knew that she was going to feel homesick for Bonneton sooner or later." Cappy said.
"What about you, Cappy? Are you feeling homesick, too? I was just about to set a course for the Mushroom Kingdom, but I can easily set a course for the Cap Kingdom first if you really want to go home." Mario said.
Cappy thought for a moment, before saying, "I can't deny that while I am missing Bonneton, I think I'd much rather be in your company until I know that my sister is safe, and free from Bowser's evil clutches. If I go home now, I'll be all alone and sick with worry about Tiara until she comes home, and I really don't want to feel that way. Who knows how long that's going to take?"
"I understand, Cappy. You can stay with us until then." Peach said, giving Cappy a hug to comfort him, like she did for Tiara when she needed comforting. The hug did help Cappy feel a little better, but it wasn't enough to stop him from worrying about the well-being of his poor baby sister.
"What song did you sing to Tiara, Peach? Was it a Beatles song?" Mario asked, curious as he set a course for the Mushroom Kingdom.
"You know, Mario, I actually thought about singing a Beatles song to her, like maybe "Blackbird", but I decided against it." Peach said.
"Really, Peach? Tiara's a big Beatles fan, so I'm pretty sure a song of theirs would've calmed her down fast. Especially the one you named off. In fact, I usually sing that one to help her out when she's feeling discouraged." Cappy said.
"Whoa! Did you just say that Tiara is a Beatles fan?! She never told me that! Why didn't she open up and tell me about her interest in them?!" Peach asked, surprised.
"There's a good chance she would have spilled if you told her first. Tiara made it a point to never tell anyone what her interests are unless they bring it up first. She can be very defensive of the things she loves, so she's pretty shy when it comes to telling people about her interests, especially when it comes to her love of the Beatles." Cappy explained.
"Luigi can relate. He's the exact same way." Mario said, recalling how much his brother used to get teased when they were younger. If it wasn't for his shyness, insecurity, and awkwardness, it was for the things he liked, so he started keeping his interests bottled up. Until they came to the Mushroom Kingdom, Luigi only shared his interests with Mario.
"All you have to do is mention to Tiara that you like the Fab Four. That'll be enough to help her open up and talk with you about them. " Cappy told her.
"I can understand that. I opened right up about my interest when Mario told me that he and Luigi are Beatles fans. Even Daisy had the same reaction when she found out. I think Tiara would be great friends with all of us if she knew that we all share her love of the Beatles." said Peach.
"So, Peach, what song did you sing to Tiara if it wasn't a Beatles song? Sono solo curioso. I'm just curious." Mario said as the ship's engine roared to life and began to take them back to the Mushroom Kingdom.
"And so am I. What was the song?" Cappy asked.
"I sang "You Are My Sunshine", and that did the trick." Peach smiled.
When Cappy heard that, his eyes widened in surprise, and he said, "Holy... Peach, how did you know that's the only non-Beatles song that works best at calming my little sister whenever she's frightened and/or upset?!"
"Just a lucky guess." Peach smiled at the Bonneter. In truth, she sometimes had dreams of her late mother singing that song to her when she was just a tiny little baby, and it always helped her feel good when she awoke. She thought that maybe it would help Tiara feel better.
It was then that Mario remembered something important, and he asked his girlfriend, "Peach, would you like to know who your look-alike is?"
"Oh yeah! Tiara and I were wondering about that girl when we saw her! Who is she? A friend, I hope, because the two of us were under the impression that that's what she was." Peach said.
"You're right on the money, Peach. The girl Mario found is definitely a friend. Someone you know and can trust." Cappy said, sounding happy.
"Splendid! But I really don't think it's Toadette in her 'Peachette' form because the girl I saw with you boys didn't look much like Toadette." Peach said.
"You're right again, Peach. The girl we brought along to take your place was not Toadette. She's actually tuo cugino, your cousin, Princess Daisy, using the Super Crown, which we're borrowing from Toadette." Mario replied.
"Daisy?! You got Daisy to come and trick Bowser?!" Peach asked, shocked.
"You don't sound very happy about this, Peach. Was it a bad idea?" Cappy asked, nervous.
"It sounded like una buona idea, a good idea, at the time..." Mario shrugged.
"That's because it is a good idea! Bowser is afraid of Daisy! He's been nervous about being around her ever since she slugged him!" Peach exclaimed.
"Wait! Bowser's afraid of her?! It's no wonder Mario wanted her to help us out! That jerk will totally get the shock of his life when he finds out that he gave up Peach for someone who scares him!" Cappy said.
"That's partially why I asked her to come and help us get you back from him. And she was more than happy to do so! However, when I told her what Bowser's diabolical plan was this time, it made her feel sick and she had to throw up." Mario said.
"I guess she didn't fancy the idea of Bowser trying to marry me. I didn't, either, considering what he did to me while I was his prisoner." Peach said, shuddering a little.
"Yeah... I noticed that you were wearing the Lochlady Dress when we finally caught up to Bowser. I can't deny that I almost forgot about the plan when I saw you, but I couldn't help it, Peach. You looked lovelier than I ever imagined you would in a wedding dress, like un angelo, an angel!" Mario said.
"Thank you, Mario. You're such a sweetheart." Peach smiled, blushing a little at his compliment, even though she hadn't been particularly thrilled with the idea of wearing the dress.
"But I must ask: why were you wearing the dress right then? I know that you were supposed to be wearing it for the wedding, but... doesn't Bowser know that it's-a sfortuna, bad luck to see the bride before the wedding?" Mario asked.
"Oh, I warned him about that, but do you think it mattered to Bowser?" Peach asked.
"Apparently not." Mario and Cappy said in unison.
"Of course it didn't matter to him. He's big, he's strong, and he's stupid." Peach said.
"Like a true villain." said Cappy.
"Of course." said Mario.
"Bowser said he didn't believe it was true because, according to him, Koopas don't believe in superstitions." Peach said.
Mario facepalmed. Apart from the time he lied to Bowser Jr. about his mommy, that had to be one of the most stupidest things Bowser had ever said to anyone.
"Exactly what happened? Tell us." Cappy asked.
Peach knew this wasn't gonna be easy, but she began, "Well, when the Broodals handed Bowser the Lochlady Dress, he praised them for stealing it, and then he went looking for me because I was hiding from him. I was hoping that I could get the drop on him the way I got the Koopalings that time I was being held prisoner by them."
"I would have loved to see you do that, Peach." Mario said.
"But Bowser unfortunately found me first, and when he did, he grabbed me by the arm and dragged me into the bride's chamber. Once inside, he told me that I had 10 minutes to put on the Lochlady Dress... or else." Peach replied.
"Or else what?" Mario asked.
"I found out what 'or else' meant when he came back 10 minutes later and saw that I hadn't put on the dress." Peach replied.
"So you didn't change into it?" Cappy asked.
"No, because I never wanted to wear it. First of all, it was stolen, and I don't want to wear stolen clothing. I don't mind wearing my mother's old dresses and jewelry because I know that if she was alive, she'd gladly let me borrow them. Secondly, if I changed into it, Bowser would think I was more than willing to marry him, but I'd much rather marry Mario." Peach said.
"What did he do when he saw that you weren't wearing it?" Mario asked, blushing, or was his face red with rage? While Mario was mad that Bowser might have done something horrible to Peach for disobeying him, he was pleased that Peach said she'd rather marry him. Then again, it was common knowledge that Peach hated Bowser with a passion.
"Should I tell him?" Peach thought worriedly. She could see that her man was angry, and the sight of an angry Mario usually frightened her and made her unsure of what her next move should be.
"Uh, Mario, you do realize that Peach can see how mad you are, right? And you know as well as I do that a girl might not want to tell her man what she's been through when he's getting as angry as you are." Cappy said.
"You don't need to be afraid, Peach. I'm not mad at you. I could never be mad at you. It's-a Bowser that I'm angry with. Now can you please tell me what he did?" Mario asked his girl.
"Only if you promise not to get too mad." Peach said, almost inaudibly. But Mario still heard her.
Mario thought for a moment. If it was as bad as Peach was implying, he wasn't sure if he'd be able to hold back his anger when he heard it. But he had to do it for his princess. With a heavy sigh, he said, "Okie-dokie. But mind you, my anger is directed towards that fathead named Bowser, not you."
Peach giggled when Mario said that Bowser was a fathead, but then she remembered what had happened to her. She got nervous again as she said, "Well, before he left the room... I asked him if he was absolutely sure I had to change into the dress right then, because everyone knows that it's bad luck to see the bride before the wedding. But he said, 'Don't be stupid. That's not true because Koopas don't believe in superstitions'."
"What a moron." Cappy muttered, wishing he could facepalm like Mario and Peach could.
"When Bowser returned to the room and saw that I hadn't changed into the dress... his reaction was... frightening..." Peach said, getting upset.
"He didn't beat you, did he?" Mario asked.
"Don't worry, Mario. Bowser didn't beat me. He wouldn't do that if he wanted me to look pretty when I walked down the aisle with him." Peach said.
"Well, that's good news. He didn't want to make himself look like someone who would actually try to commit domestic abuse before the wedding." Cappy said.
"It would be almost domestic abuse, because we weren't married yet. But if we actually planned on getting married, and he did that to me, I would've changed my mind and called the whole thing off. And he'd get life in the dungeon if he actually did it." Peach said.
"As long as he didn't hurt you, I'm okay, cara mia, my darling." Mario said, giving Peach a hug.
"He still hurt me, though." Peach started.
"But you just said-" Cappy began.
"Not physically, Cappy, but emotionally." Peach replied.
"Oh, I guess that does make a difference." Cappy said.
Mario hugged Peach a little tighter and asked, "What did he do to you, Peach?! Please tell me!"
"Well, he... he yelled at me, saying, 'Wh-what's the m-matter with you?! I was sure 10 minutes... was enough time for you to... to put on that dress!' ...I tried to reason with him... that I could not do it... because I knew... it really would be bad luck... if he saw me in the dress... before the wedding... and Tiara was trying to... to back me up..." Peach said, tears filling her eyes.
"At least you had some support from my little sister. I'm glad you and her were friends, Peach." Cappy said. He felt glad to know that Tiara and Peach had each other's backs during their time together.
"But Bowser... well... he didn't take too kindly... to the fact that Tiara... was on... on my side. He... he back-handed her into the wall and... and he... he knocked her unconscious." Peach said, getting even more upset as she remembered seeing Bowser hurt her sweet little friend like that.
If Cappy was livid when he saw his sister cry, hearing that she had suffered a physical injury made him irate!
"HE DID WHAT?!" Cappy shouted, madder than Mario had ever heard him. It kind of scared the plumber, but Mario wasn't nearly as scared as Peach was. She was so scared that she buried her face in Mario's chest and started crying for real. Realizing how frightened Peach was gave Mario the courage he needed to get Cappy to cool his jets.
"CAPPY! Calmati! Take it easy! You know that your sister must have recovered quickly if she was out there on the deck with Peach when we caught up to Bowser and saw them!" Mario said to the furious Bonneter as he wrapped Peach in a protective embrace.
"But where does Bowser get off...?! If I had known what he did to her before now, I would've helped you beat Bowser within an inch of his life! He can't do things like that to Tiara and expect to get off scot-free! She never did anything to hurt him! She wouldn't even hurt a fly!" Cappy shouted. He was so angry at what happened that he couldn't discuss the matter calmly.
"I know, Cappy, I know! I'm furious at Bowser, too, but you're really frightening Peach!" Mario said, rubbing Peach's back, trying to calm her down.
"I'll... I'll go and... vent out on the deck... if you really want me to." Cappy said, starting to calm down because he felt bad when he finally saw and heard Peach sobbing into Mario's chest. She really sounded upset.
"No, you're calmer now, so you can stay in here with us. How about you try and help me comfort Peach some?" Mario suggested as he stroked Peach's long, golden hair.
So Cappy flew closer to the couple. He felt the need to apologize to Peach, and he felt ashamed as he said, "I'm sorry for snapping like I did, Peach."
"I-it's not... your f-fault, Cappy... I-I was only... t-telling you and M-Mario... what h-happened to me... a-and Tiara... I-I can't... b-blame you for reacting like you did..." Peach wept, her face still buried in Mario's chest.
"Andrà tutto bene, mia principessa... It's-a going to be okay, my princess... You're safe here with us... Shhh..." Mario whispered to Peach as he continued to rub her back.
"I know, but I shouldn't have yelled like that in front of you. I really didn't mean to frighten you and make you cry. It's just that Tiara is so little and delicate, and when somebody hurts her, physically or emotionally, it really ticks me off! I go into my protective big brother mode whenever she's scared or hurt, but I think I overdid it this time. I'm really sorry for flying off the handle and frightening you, Peach." Cappy said.
Mario understood what it was like to be a protective big brother. Even though he and Luigi were twins, Mario was the older one, and he took that role seriously, keeping a protective eye on his little brother as often as he could.
"I-it's okay... C-Cappy... I accept... your a-apology... You're f-forgiven..." Peach said.
"Thanks, Peach." said Cappy, giving Peach a hug as best he could. That helped the princess feel a little better, and her sobbing began to subside.
"I don't blame you for reacting that way at all, Cappy. I get the same way about Peach whenever I find out that she's in Bowser's clutches, but she's il mio vero amore, my true love." Mario said as he held Peach close, wanting to help her feel better.
"And you're my true love, Mario. I'll always love you for that." Peach replied, finally having recovered and relaxing in his strong, loving arms.
"Glad to hear it, amore mio, my love. Now, what did Bowser do after that?" Mario asked as Cappy brought over a box of tissues.
Peach grabbed some tissues from the box and took a deep breath and continued her story, "When I saw Tiara... hit the wall and... and drop to the floor... I-I was in shock! I... I screamed her name and ran to her side... to make sure that she wasn't dead... But while I was... checking her for... for signs of l-life... Bowser came up behind me... and he snatched me away... from her still form..."
Peach was trying hard not to cry, and Mario noticed. He held Peach even closer now, knowing that whatever she had to say next was going to be awful.
"Ooh, I could just belt him into next year for doing that to my baby sister..." Cappy muttered to himself, still very angry at the thought of Bowser hurting his little sister, physically and emotionally.
"And then... he... he... he t-tore off my dress!" Peach wailed, burying her face in Mario's chest again. That had to be, without a doubt, the most shocking moment of her young life! Bowser had done some pretty mean things to Peach when she was his prisoner in the past, but that was going too far!
"He put you in the wedding dress himself, didn't he, Peach?!" Mario guessed. He tensed with anger, but he didn't want to show it to Peach. But she probably sensed it.
"He did, M-Mario! He most... certainly d-did! I was... s-so shocked, scared... and e-embarrassed... when he undressed m-me... that I c-c-completely blacked out!" Peach burst out.
Mario wanted to break Bowser's arms for that. How dare he do such an awful thing to Peach!
"W-when I finally came to... I s-saw a very worried Tiara (who must have regained consciousness at some point)... h-hovering over me... and I was w-wearing the Lochlady Dress!" Peach sobbed.
Mario was ready to hit the roof, but he stopped himself. He knew that Daisy was with Bowser now, and there was no doubt in his mind that she could, and would, make him suffer for every bad thing he had done to Peach and Tiara. So after comforting Peach some more, he said, "I hope Daisy bites off his head."
"Ditto..." said Peach, agreeing with Mario. She wanted Bowser to be sorry for what he did to her and Tiara.
"I'm hoping that after she bites off his head, she sends him to the 9th dimension, where the giant monkey men will make short work of what's left of him!" Cappy said.
(A/N: I got the thing about 'giant monkey men in the 9th dimension' from "Big Pink Loser", an episode of "SpongeBob SquarePants". Patrick said he wanted to defeat the giant monkey men and save the 9th dimension.)
"Or maybe they'll cook him and eat him for dinner. Then he'll never bother you, me, Peach, or Tiara ever again." Mario said, holding Peach close to him.
"I just want Daisy to work him over good. As much as I want Bowser to leave us alone, what you guys were starting to want is a little too violent and macabre for my liking." Peach said.
"Sorry about that, Peach. Tell you what: if Daisy teaching Bowser a lesson without too much violence is good enough for you, then it's-a good enough for me, too." Mario said.
"Me three." Cappy agreed.
"Thank you..." Peach said. Boy, was she glad to finally be away from Bowser and with two boys who actually cared about her and her feelings.
Well, this is where this chapter ended when I first wrote it! Now you might want to stay tuned for Chapter 2, which was where the original story began. It picks up where this one left off!