Chapter 12 The President Can Help

Peasley stared at Peach as she smiled. Her mind celebrated this decision, for to her, it was the perfect solution. The ruler of another Kingdom was sure to take pity on and help out the residents of the Beanbean Kingdom. This was especially true seeing the two kingdoms were allies. Wouldn't it be stupid on President Mario's part to not help out? Wouldn't it be in his best interest to send aid to the struggling kingdom? That seemed to be the case to the queen.

Her brother, however, raised an eyebrow, his expression filled with skepticism. "I'm sorry. You actually think it would be a good idea to go to President Mario?"

Peach nodded. "I think it's a good idea. I mean, he has access to the Mushroom Kingdom military and, if we're lucky, probably has some fighting skills of his own. He would be an excellent resource when it comes to fighting a witch like Cackletta."

Peasely blinked. He averted his gaze away from Peach and just looked down at the surface of the table. "I can see why you would think that, but…"

Now it was Peach who raised an eyebrow. "But?"

"But how do you expect us to get an audience with him?"

Peach snorted, almost delving into a laughing fit. "Um, Peasley, I'm the queen. Requesting an audience with President Mario will be easy. Besides, you've said you met him before, so he obviously knows you."

Peasley cringed. "That was years ago, and I only met him once. I don't even know if he remembers me."

Peach snorted again. "Once again Peasley, forgetting someone like you is an impossibility."

Despite his doubt from before, Peasley snickered at that. "You know, that is true." He flipped his hair, grinning the most confident of grins as Peach giggled. Once he stopped smiling, however, he delved right back into wearing a skeptical frown. "But, I don't know Peach. The Mushroom Kingdom is very far away. We don't know how long it'll take for us to get there. And in the time it takes us to travel there, Cackletta could spread her influence even further. She could cast the land in darkness. She could even brainwash citizens!"

Peach felt her heart sink, but not because of discouragement. "That's just another reason why we should try this." She leaned forward, placing her hands directly on the table. "Our kingdom is in danger. Our people are in danger! If we just sit around, there is a very real chance that lots of people could die! And sure, is this plan a little bit of a longshot? Maybe, but it's also the only plan we have. Heck, even if we had other plans, this one would be the one that wields the highest chance of success!" She backed up a little bit, looking into the worried eyes of her older brother. "I want to help my people, Peasley. They deserve a good queen. And so far, unfortunately, I gave them enough reason to believe I'm not a good queen. I let my own cowardly feelings dictate my course of action, and look where that got us!" Her heart felt like it was tightening up, but she still continued speaking. "I want to do this, Peasley. It's the best way to help people, to save everybody."

Peasley put his hand to his chin. Peach watched as the gears turned in his head, hoping that he would see reason. Although, it wouldn't matter if he didn't. Peach was going to march down to the Mushroom Kingdom all by herself, with or without him. If he said no right now, she was going to head out immediately, preparations be damned.

Thankfully, Peasley eventually nodded. "I see what you're saying." He let out a breath. "Although I have to say, a trek from here to the Mushroom Kingdom will take a while; at least three days." He smiled again. "Luckily for you and me, I know exactly what to do to prepare."

"You do?" Peach asked, her excitement rising.

Peasley nodded again. "I've gone on more than enough adventures to know what to do." He rose from the table. "I'll get started on preparing for our departure." He looked at his sister, and his nose immediately wrinkled. "And, hopefully, I can get you into an outfit that is far more suitable for a cross-kingdom trek." He gestured to her. "Follow me."

Peach, her interest climbing, followed after. They found themselves back in the hallway, with Peach all of a sudden becoming increasingly aware of just how bad of a shape she was in. Her dress was so dirty that the natural blue color of the fabric was almost completely gone. Holes were scattered all over the dress, tears that would take quite a while for a skilled seamstress to seal. The diamond necklace was also nothing more than a few rogue gems clinging onto the thread for dear life. The only part of the outfit that wasn't completely ruined was Peach's sapphire broach (thank the Lumas). She realized that she desperately wanted a new outfit, one that would make her look less like a pathetic example of a queen and more like a queen who had an important mission.

When they got to Peasley's bedroom, Peasley rummaged around in his closet. Peach waited near his bed, not really knowing what to expect. When he emerged, he had both a beige adventurer's outfit and a hesitant, semi-embarrassed expression on his face.

"I don't… I don't know if this will do," he said. "I don't usually have women in the house, so I don't have any outfits that would be acceptable for them."

"Oh, that's okay." Peasley sighed in relief and handed over the outfit, all while Peach giggled. "Although, I will have to say that I was expecting someone like you to be more of a ladies' man. Hearing that you're not is… interesting."

Peasley's face turned pink. "Well… the call of adventure is too strong to resist, you know?"

Peach laughed. "I know, I know." She looked down at the outfit. "Still though, I think this is perfectly fine. Can you direct me to the bathroom so I can change?"

"Yeah, it's the door at the end of the hall."

Peach thanked Peasley and made her way there. Once she was in the privacy of a closed room, she removed her ruined attire. It felt so good to do so like she was shedding off a layer of old, unwanted skin. And putting on the adventurer's outfit… it was somehow one of the most liberating things Peach had ever done. She felt so free in it, like she was a completely different person. No longer was she Peach, Queen of the Beanbean Kingdom. She was Peach, an expert adventurer and grand explorer. Just by wearing this, with its breathable fabric, boots constructed exclusively for the worst kinds of biomes, and all of its giant pockets, she could see why Peasley would choose the explorer's life. It seemed to be an exhilarating experience. Sure, Peach felt that it would be best if she stayed Beanbean Kingdom royalty, but part of her brain was tempting her to find out more about this lifestyle. To test it out, to see what exactly it had in store for her.

She sighed. No, no, she wasn't going to do that. This lifestyle might fit Peasley, but not her. She was a queen. She served her people and did it to the best of her ability.

Putting on her sapphire broach, putting her golden hair into a ponytail, and leaving her old outfit discarded on the floor, she made her way out of the room. She took note of how comfy this outfit was, how smooth it was to walk in, and how it breathed. This just made her excited about the journey she and Peasley were going to go on. With this outfit, she could conquer anything, from the scorching desert to the harshest tundra. She felt a kind of courage fill her, spreading throughout her being. Her kingdom would be saved within no time. She was sure of it.

She found Peasley in the kitchen, murmuring to himself as he stocked some items into two backpacks. Peach watched him do this, taking note of everything she saw. There was a flashlight. There was a pocket knife. There were two pots and two pans, along with lifejackets and all sorts of pre-packaged food.

"We're going to need all this stuff?" Peach asked.

"Not necessarily. However, it is always a good idea to be prepared." Peasley looked through the bag once again, turning things over as he checked everything. "I don't think I'm forgetting anything…" he frowned. "Wait, I should probably restock on water." He made his way over to the kitchen sink. Pulling two water bottles out of the cabinet, he got to filling them up. He had a serious face on as he did, and he did the task with equally serious actions.

"How will we get to the Mushroom Kingdom?" Peach asked. "Like, what regions and worlds will we have to go through?"

Peasley chuckled. "And here I thought you would've retained information from your geography classes." He turned the water off. "We will have to make our way to Stardust Fields, first and foremost." He put the bottles into the bags. "And to get there, we'll have to climb Hoohoo Mountain."

"Hoohoo Mountain…" Peach shuddered just thinking about that. She had never been there, but she had stories about how treacherous it was and how rocky the terrain could be. She looked over at Peasley, praying in her head that he knew exactly what to do in situations like that.

"And once we get out of Stardust Fields, then we will be in World 5. That place… while not as dangerous as World 8 or even Soda Jungle, it still isn't what I would call a cakewalk. There are dozens of creatures in there; wigglers, bramballs, walking piranha plants…" he frowned, looking over at his sister. "This isn't going to be easy, Peach. Like, seriously; the road to the Mushroom Kingdom will present us with a lot of challenges. I barely got out with my life when I went to some of these worlds." He leaned in closer to her. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

Peach tried not to whimper. The way Peasley looked at her, the way he told her about all the risks… on some level no, she didn't want to do this. She didn't want to trek through a jungle with more beasts in it than the entire Beanbean Kingdom combined. Even the fact that she would be with her older brother wouldn't do much to comfort her when every last little thing had the goal to kill her and kill her painfully. So no, she didn't want to do this. She wanted to crawl in bed and sleep all her troubles away.

But then, she once again thought about her people. The same people who had shown up for her coronation, the same people who she had sworn that she would serve. She thought about them, all happy and innocent. They didn't deserve what happened to them, what Peach allowed to happen to them. They needed help, they needed her to right her wrongs and be the queen that they needed her to be. That was the least they deserved. She had felt as though she hadn't done a good job serving them, so doing this was not only necessary, it was required.

She took a deep breath before looking Peasley right in the eye. "I do want to do this." She gripped her hands into fists. "I don't care what dangers there might be, I will get President Mario's help. I will save the Beanbean Kingdom if it is the last thing I do!"

Peasley grinned. "Well, good." He handed her one of the backpacks, which she strapped on her back with an air of confidence. Once Peasley had his own backpack situated, he faced the door that would lead outside. "Well… let's get going, shall we?"