Tense Introductions

Thunderous laughs, alien in nature, echo around the arena. Thousands of red eyes gleefully watch a certain scene playing out at the center.

A helpless lakitu dangles from a thin rope. And the gaping mouth of a monstrous piranha plant awaits him below! Compared to the usual species, this one has legs and petals surrounding its eyeless face.

His situation is hopeless but the lakitu struggles against his restraints. Though shaking in fear his eyes remain defiant.

"Never! You'll never get it out of me!" he shouts. "I'll never betray His Evilness!"

At a distance, an amused Princess Shroob chuckles. She speaks to him in his language. "Won't snitch, huh? Like all the others before you."

The lakitu kicks his feet in the air as the rope lowers. The piranha laughs and growls as it awaits its meal.

"How did you discover our network?" the lakitu demands.

"Any powerful ruler would also have their own spies. Your buffoon of a king believes H.E.R.O is working for us. He doesn't know they're the 'good guys'. Once Bowser takes them out, the shroobs will only have him to worry about. And this cold war finally ends."

Lakitu shouts, "Bowser's fury will come down on you once he knows what you've done to his spies!"

Princess Shroob rubs her claws together and cackles. "Seems more like a doting family man lately."

For a moment Lakitu is not focusing on the piranha. His eyes stare out at nothing. "If you value your existence …you will want it that way! Our king is hard headed and clumsy. But once he decides to get serious, he's terrifying to behold."

Princess Shroob gives him a thumbs down. The rope gives and the lakitu plummets into the gaping mouth of the piranha.

As the jaws snap shut, Princess Shroob laughs gleefully. "I never get tired of that!"

She begins to cough from a dry throat. On cue a servant shroob presents her goblet. She snatches it off the platter and downs its bitter contents. A smirk slowly appears on her face.

Nothing brings the princess more joy than the suffering of others. If she must live in misery, so must everyone else. And one person she's keen on tormenting is Peach. Her insufferable kindness makes Princess Shroob gag with disgust. Peach's attempt to give aid to the shroobs was a slap in the face. That little pink lady will be fed to Petey Piranha if it's the last thing Princess Shroob does.

A guard approaches Princess Shroob and bows. "Your Majesty, Elder Princess Shroob wants to tour the new planet you seized."

Princess Shroob laughs, "Of course. She'll love it and then I will arrange for her to meet my ally."

Bowser runs his claws over the golden mask. Earlier, his general had presented it to him. His mind counted all the bounty hunters he had hired before. And none wore masks like this. Not even the Nimbus chancellor recognized it. Bowser is certain it is connected to H.E.R.O. If only he knew where his lakitus are!

Peach whispers, "Bowser, he's here."

Hearing her, Bowser hides the mask and rejoins his family.

Prince Mallow approaches. He nervously greets the Koopa Clan and Daisy. "Hi! I'm Prince Mallow of Nimbus Land. It's a pleasure to meet you!"

He gently grabs Peach's hand to shake it. Peach and Apricot then curtsy before him.

Mallow turns to Bowser and waves nervously.

Bowser shrugs, "Hey shrimp."

A nervous chuckle escapes the cloud prince's mouth and he greets Junior. "And you're the future King of the Darklands? It's so nice to meet another prince!"

Bowser realizes this is a good way for Junior to make another friend! He faces Junior to see how he'll react to Mallow. But Junior has his eyes on his phone. His eyes were lit with delight.

"She answered back!"

Junior does a spin and begins to text Marilyn back. He completely ignores Mallow's outreached arm. Humiliated, Mallow's eyes water up and he cries. Clouds form overhead and everyone is soaked from a downpour. Bowser elbows Junior in the shoulder.

"Sorry…!" Junior mutters.

Peach walks pass Junior. "I have this." She embraces Mallow to calm him down. Soon the indoor storm abates.

After several apologies, the clan agrees to a castle tour with Mallow. But they had to keep pausing as Mallow's prone to tripping over his feet. Junior was feeling on edge. But he worked hard to copy Peach's relaxed demeanor.

At one point, she compliments the castle. "This is a lovely castle you live in. I can't imagine the skill needed to make it."

Mallow turns and spreads out his puffy arms. "It was built by my great-great-great grandfather!"

As Mallow rattles on with Peach, Junior looks around. He's now panicking as he still must meet the Nimbus King and Queen! He dreads that Mallow may reveal his earlier folly.

Junior holds his head, trying to cook up another apology. He doesn't even realize they are in the throne room, until Bowser coughs.

Junior looks up and sees the King and Queen of Nimbus. He stumbles toward the front of the party to introduce himself. But King Nimbus is not looking at him. His focus is on Bowser.

"By the stars! It's King Bowser!"

The king runs down past Junior. Kings usually have a look of apprehension when they see Bowser. Not King Nimbus. He looked like a child in a candy store! "It's really him! The infamous Bowser! I've heard so many tales about you!"

Queen Nimbus lifts a finger. "Ummm….Dear…"

But the king keeps talking. "Come on! Bowser is a rebel! He didn't care what the stars thought of him!"

Bowser puffs his chest out and steam spills from his nostrils. King Nimbus turns to Peach. He begins to hop up and down. "And Queen Peach! What a day! So kind and beautiful. You were the center of the thousand year war between ten emperors that fought for your love!"

Daisy raises an eyebrow. "Ummm….. how did the story get exaggerated….?"

Bowser blocks Daisy and points at himself. "And she chose me," he brags.

King Nimbus squeals, "How could I forget! You survived 500 stabs from a jealous man!"

"It was 10,000."

Apricot frowns at her father's response. "Papa, you punished me for lying about breaking Iggy's goggles!"

Peach folds her arms and faces Bowser. "Bowser!"

Bowser throws his hands up, his eyes now sheepish.

Sighing, Peach looks over at Mallow. "I'm surprised he is a fan of Bowser…"

Mallow whispers to Peach. "My dad's a total fanboy for heroes and anti-heroes."

King Nimbus pulls out a piece of paper. "Can I have your autographs! I already have one of the famed Mario! And I put all my autographs in golden frames for display in my gaming room!"

Bowser's shoulders drop and he rolls his eyes. "Do I have to keep hearing about this guy!?"

Queen Nimbus approaches her husband to gently chide him. "Dear, we can worry about autographs later. Today is about entertaining our guests. Also you overlooked Prince Bowser the Second."

The king looks down and notices Junior standing awkwardly.

"I'm so sorry Prince!" he cries out and moves to shake Junior's hand.

"It's no problem really," Junior lies. He looks at Mallow now feeling guilty. His big moment and he's already being overlooked.

Peach moves to rub Junior's shoulder as if reading his thoughts. Junior feels the tension leave him and he relaxes.

Still ever cheerful, King Nimbus motions for the group to follow him. "Come enjoy the banquet we've planned."

The banquet was hosted on top of a large cloud. All sorts of nimbus delegates were invited. During the feast Junior manages to befriend King Nimbus, by talking about their favorite superhero shows.

Once the orchestra begins, Mallow offers to dance with Peach. King Nimbus chooses Apricot as his partner. And Queen Nimbus accepts to be Junior's dance partner. Junior stiffly escorts her onto the floor and turns to face her.

"Young Prince, we appreciate your efforts," the queen compliments.

Junior slowly nods and turns in a circle with her. He notices other nimbuses begging Mallow to switch partners with them. Eventually, one man spins away with Peach. Mallow runs off crying. Peach chides the man as he attempts conversation.

Distracted by the events, Junior steps on Queen Nimbus' foot. She cries out in pain. "Yow!"

Junior stammers, "Shoot! I'm so sorry!"

The guards surround them. "What's the matter, Your Highness? He's hurting you?"

Junior snaps at the guards. "Don't you touch me! I'm the ..."

The queen quickly waves them away. "It was an accident," she assures. Not believing her, the guards reach for her. She smiles apologetically at Junior as she is escorted away. Some observers begin to whisper among themselves. Once again, Junior feels small. Embarrassed, he goes to take a seat near his father. Currently, Bowser is munching on a drumstick.

While chewing, Bowser's red eyes shift towards Junior. "Son, did you just give up dancing?"

"I just…"

Before he can finish speaking, Junior feels a raindrop on his head. It's raining.

Mallow runs up to Bowser and tells him what happened. Bowser's lips tighten and he jumps up. In a surprising gesture he pets Mallow's head. He then marches in Peach's direction.

Knowing to keep distance, Junior goes to pour himself some punch.

"Prince, is everything okay with the queen?"

Junior groans as Breeze walks up. Junior's aware she is not concerned with Queen Nimbus. She's just looking to point out his mistake.

Junior ignores her as he takes a sip of punch to watch his father.

Bowser and a whining Mallow are now facing Peach and a guy. Peach had been in the process of declining the insistent man.

Bowser whispers something in Mallow's ears. The little guy puffs his chest out and tells the man off. The man promptly leaves. Mallow then gives Bowser a thumbs up.

Pleased, the Koopa King wraps an arm around Peach. He begins a slow dance with her, holding her tightly.

"Bowser, my partner was Mallow," Peach teases.

Bowser groans, "I know. I know."

He lets go but whispers into her ear. "You owe me a dance later, Beautiful."

Bowser then reluctantly hands her over to Mallow.

Junior chuckles at the moment. Despite his lack of confidence, Junior still looks up to Bowser.

"I want to inspire others like Papa…"

Had Junior looked, he would have seen Breeze's stern face falter for a second.

Bowser gazes at his reflection in a cloud trimmed mirror. He flexed his arms, admiring the way his muscles stretched his heart shaped pjs.

The outfit was a matching set with Peaches. Home stitched with lots of love. Despite its color, Bowser wore it often. But only when he was not in the Darklands.

Bowser smirks, "Can't be caught in this in front of my men."

Bowser then looks to find his black cuffs. But he can't find them. So he decides to call out to Peach.

"Peaches! Peaches!"

She answers and Bowser finds her in the guest kitchen. Her back was facing him as she was enjoying a cup of tea at the table.

"Bowser, what's wrong?" she asks.

"Do you know where my cuffs are?"

Peach giggles and she sets her tea down. "Silly, I threw them away!"

Bowser's grin fades as his eyes bulge. "Woman what!?"

Peach doesn't answer. Bowser presses for an explanation. "Peach, why? You know those are my signature gear!"

The queen sighs, "I don't like bad boys anymore. It's all about the nice guys."

Bowser steps closer and bends on one knee to beg. "But I am nice! To you that is."

Peach shrugs as Bowser reaches out. She then scolds, "I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about a mustache. It's time you grow one."

Bowser jumps back. She assured him she was not interested in Mario! Why is she insisting on her husband growing a mustache?

Bowser fears her reaction if he says no again. But he must stick to his principles! No matter what! Bowser folds his arms, determined to stand his ground. "Never! I told you I don't want one!"

Peach huffs and turn around. Bowser screams.

She had a huge blond messy mustache on her face. Her beauty, assaulted by fiendish facial hair! She was now looking like Mario!

Bowser wails in agony. "No! Not my Peaches!"

Peach stands tall. "What's with that tone!? Is your love for me conditional!?"

Bowser begins to stutter, hoping to salvage his outburst. "Peach, I adore you no matter what! But…!"

"Then join me! Or we're getting a divorce!"

Bowser felt his heart plummet. It can't be that serious! "I…"

Bowser looks around. "Junior, come help your old man!"

To his relief his son answers. Unfortunately, Junior enters …. wearing a red mustache. Then Apricot and Lemon enter: both sporting mustaches. Then the koopalings come in…. all sporting mustaches. (For some reason Lemmy's one was rainbow colored.)

Bowser falls to his knees as his large family surrounds him.

They collectively shout, "Either join us or we're leaving you!'

"Noooooo!"

Bowser jumps up out of his sleep. He frantically touches his nose. He then breathes a sigh of relief.

"That was the worst dream I've ever had!"

Peach stirs next to him in the bed. She groans and wipes at her eyes. "Bowser, why are you shouting?"

Bowser reaches over for Peach and pulls her into his arms. "Peaches, look at me!"

"What?"

To his relief there was not a strand of hair under her nose. He cups her face and breathes a sigh of relief. "My lovely wife…."

Peach lightly laughs to hide her bashfulness. "Why are you so clingy?"

"A nightmare…" Bowser runs his claws through her unpinned hair. It was unkempt and soft to the touch. "Beautiful…."

Peach leans into his touch with a sigh. She begins to scratch his chin and Bowser purrs. Bowser then rests his head against her stomach.

Peach runs her fingers through his mane. "There. There," She coos.

To Bowser, Peach was the kindest soul he knew. That angry person in his nightmare was not her at all. There was no way he ever wanted her to change.

"Tell me about your nightmare," Peach implores.

Bowser brings a lock of her hair towards his lips. He lightly kisses it. "I was getting ready for the day. And well, you'd grown a mustache."

To Bowser's surprise, Peach pulls away. She jumps up and grabs a pillow. Her face is now red with fury!

"Excuse me! Your nightmare was about me looking unladylike to you!? I terrified you!?"

Bowser's eyes turn round and he covers his mouth. Peach can work hard and is willing to get messy to get a job done. But she still has the heart of a princess. A princess that takes her appearance seriously.

"Wait! I didn't mean it like that!" Bowser defends.

"Then would you be okay if I actually looked like that!?"

Now confused, Bowser purses his lips and gives Peach a hard stare. "Peach, I'm not going to lie to you. I love you too much so I'm telling it to you straight: No!"

"Why I never…..!"

Peach sticks her hand out at him and throws her chin up. She then marches out of the room. "I'm leaving!"

Bowser calls after her. "I answered truthfully! Where are you going Peaches? I'm supposed to be banished to the sofa! Like on those sitcoms!"

Peach answers, "Why would I do something so mean!? And I'm going to sleep with Apricot! Goodnight! I hope I'm prettier for you in the morning!"

"Oh come on, Peaches!"

Peach slams the door and Bowser falls back on his pillow. "She wanted to know, didn't she!?" Bowser whines. He was now mad that she was mad with him. There's no way she would want to look like that so why is she mad!? Well he did like her catching attitude with him. But she did not have to get that mad! Bowser covers his face with his claws, looking for someone to blame for his marital argument. Only one person can be responsible for this.

"Curse you Mario!"

Daisy calls her mother while sitting with Peach in the guest dining area.

"So, you and Bowser got into it?"

Peach sits across from her, hunched over a cup of coffee. "He thought I was ugly in his nightmare!" Peach complains.

Daisy snorts.

Peach frowns at her response, "This is serious Daisy!"

"My parents argued over weird stuff too…."

"I was hurt, Daisy!"

Daisy sighs and pats Peach's back. "Okay. Okay….Sorry…."

Peach smiles at her reassurance. But a look of hurt then forms on her face. "Oh Daisy, if I look ugly to him, I don't know what he would do. And I'm sure he would be mad if I made a fuss over his looks!"

Daisy points her phone at Peach. "Whoa! Hey now…. Peachy, Bowser loves you. All of you. You know that."

Peach's eyes cast to the side. "I know. I'm just older now…And I've been wanting him to compliment me more."

Daisy takes a bite of her half eaten danish. "But he did."

Peach looks up at her and clasps her hands together. "But not just about my looks…"

Daisy closes her eyes and leans back on her chair. "Okay ... .I think that conversation brought out some insecurities you're having."

"..."

"But if his love was superficial he would not have done all he has."

Peach reflects on Bowser's efforts and promises of time spent with her. "You know…. he even planned that dinner for me! It was interrupted but I loved it."

Peach now feels awkward making a fuss. She sighs, "We've been busy and intrusive thoughts would enter my mind. I know he loves me but I was beginning to think Bowser's love cooled for me. So, I made sure to keep up my appearance. Oh…. I'm just talking nonsense…Besides he was probably thinking about ...never mind…"

Daisy winks, "Hey. It's good to talk about things. Help you clear the jumble in the brain."

Peach looks into her coffee cup and smiles. "Yeah, I was being overly dramatic. Bowser loves me ….for being me. Daisy, you are such a good friend."

"No problem." Daisy slams a fist down on the table. "Seriously, I want to know who thinks they can keep messing with ya….. Oh, my mom is on."

Daisy talks to her mother at length as Peach continues to sip her coffee. Meanwhile, Peach thinks of how to make up with Bowser.

Suddenly Bowser enters the room with the kids. They were carrying take-out. "Peach! We're back!"

Apricot and Junior sit down to eat the breakfast burritos Bowser purchased.

While holding Lemon, Bowser presents a single red rose to Peach. "To my sweet little Peach."

She nearly laughs at the puppy eyes he's making. "Bowser…I …sorry I ran out."

Bowser grins, "I love you Peach."

She accepts the rose and slowly brings it to her nose. She enjoys the sweet aroma while feeling Bowser's eyes on her.

Though happy she and Bowser made up, Peach can't shake a feeling of sadness. At the moment, she wanted him to compliment some aspect of her personality. A well meaning, cheesy, and sweet declaration. "Even if you had a mustache, I know your heart is golden, Peaches." Something like that. But it didn't come.

She now wants to call Bowser a big meanie. But then Peach shivers as she finally visualizes herself with a mustache. No Bowser's right, her having one would be a nightmare. But Peach won't tell him that. She's too stubborn at the moment.

Unaware of Peach's crisis, Bowser takes a seat and notices Daisy checking in with her mom about her flowers.

"Hey, Daisy. Is Dragonzamasu in the background?" he asks.

Daisy grunts, "Why do you need to know?"

Bowser sheepishly opens up his take-out bag. He couldn't admit that the Sarasaland vassal kings begged him to look out for Luigi. He had said he had no time to fix their problems. But they were adamant.

"If he lays a finger on her, take him out. And I'll build you an underwater palace in my kingdom." Dragonzamasu had declared. Bowser did not need his land. But the offer was tempting, besides protecting Daisy from a decision she will regret.

Speaking of palaces, Bowser has been thinking of a place to retire to with Peach. A small spot for him and her. He thought of using a section of Peach's old home world. But Peach had ruled that one out. She felt no real ties to it. Thanks to Bowser's efforts, she reconnected with her distant relative, Rosalina. Peach even found out her parents' names through the luma caretaker. Rosalina knew because she was the one that buried them. But that was all she knew of them as Rosalina was a traveler. And the little planet only reminded Peach of the terror Antasma unleashed on her.

Bowser's disgust with his former vassal remains. Every so often Bowser returns to his grave to spit on it. So, that spot is definitely off the list for retirement. What would be a perfect plot of land for his Peach?

Bowser could brainstorm all day but he realizes it's time for a last visit to the Nimbus Royal Family. "Well, we need to move on. Let's go say our goodbyes."

In the main hall, in front of an audience - King Nimbus and Junior walk onto the stage together. Junior looks out at his family sitting in the back of the throne room. They wave at him and Apricot squeezes through the crowd. She wants to be as close as possible to see Junior. Filled with courage Junior begins his speech.

"On behalf of the Mushroom Kingdom Alliance and the Koopa Empire, I thank King Nimbus for this opportunity."

"Yes it has been quite pleasant."

King Nimbus pulls out a photo of his family. "We would like you to have this."

Junior reaches out for it. He studies the picture with a smile. "Thanks. And I …."

Suddenly, the lights cut.

Junior leaps off the stage to grab Apricot. She's already panicking in the dark. Once she realizes Junior's near, she wraps her arms around him.

"BJ, what's going on?" she wails.

A portal opens up on stage. A deep but feminine force seems to echo all around. "The stage is set!"

A laugh follows and a tall woman spins out the portal. She wore a skinny top hat and a golden masquerade mask. She had no visible limbs and face. Only a pair of vibrate green eyes and curly purple hair. It was as if her outfit was held together by telekinesis.

Bowser and Peach make it to the front to grab Apricot and Junior. The woman floats towards them.

"King Bowser. The star of my show!"

Bowser lifts an eyebrow. "Who are you!?"

The woman curtsies. "The ever magnificent Grape!"

Mallow gasps.

Peach presses him for an answer. "Mallow?"

Mallow swallows hard and narrows his beady eyes. "I'm familiar with the name. In the book store I always see a particular series. The manager kept trashing them but they would reappear overnight. No one had seen the author but her books were so morbid. Her protagonists always suffer unimaginable horror!"

Grape points at Mallow. "That's me! I publish but I'm actually a director and screenwriter for my traveling theater. I do bounty hunting on the side."

Bowser pushes his family behind him. "You're the big cheese of H.E.R.O?"

Grape snickers, "Quite …perspective…"

Bowser folds his arms. "Look. Whatever your client is paying, I'll double it."

Grape's eyes narrow. "No. I'm not really in it for the money. I run the guild for artistic purposes."

Peach bites her lip and digs her fingers into Bowser's arm.

Bowser repeats, "Artistic?"

Grape rises into the air. She thunders, "Creativity needs inspiration! And all forms of art are a reflection of life. I love tragedy and you'll find a lot of that in the dark underworld. The world ….is my muse!"

Peach jumps out from behind Bowser. "So you're toying with peoples' lives ….for inspiration!?"

Grape waves her hands dismissively, not even acknowledging Peach's existence. "I was suffering writer's block on my latest script. I had even torched a town but even that didn't work."

Bowser spits a fireball at Grape but she blocks by creating a round shield.

He wants to lunge at her. But the last time Bowser started swinging he was unprepared for how tough his opponent was. He decides to wait.

Grape floats into the portal, her eyes still on the family. "Then one day… a new customer gave me a mission that blew my mind. My thoughts came back... So I decided to rewrite the whole thing!"

Grape points at Bowser. "My new script is about a reformed doting husband and father that faces an unimaginable tragedy."

Bowser's eyes shrink and he bares his teeth.

Grape continues as the portal closes. "Each of your train stations is either under my control or dangerous to traverse. Can you save your koopalings? Until next time!"

"Bowser go faster! We have to get to the station!"

Bowser groans as he pushes his clown car at top speed. "The general went ahead of us! Lemmy and Toad are going to be fine, Peach."

Junior trails behind with Apricot, Daisy, and Yoshi in his car.

Peach rocks Lemon and looks out towards the horizon. "Oh Bowser, this was supposed to be …. What a terrible woman."

Bowser glances at Peach. "Peach, it's going to be okay. We'll take care of this together… okay?" He lowers his voice to a tone he knows eases Peach's anxiety.

Peach wipes a tear out her eye. "Should we send the children back home?"

Yoshi raises his hand to volunteer.

Bowser shakes his head. "I would feel better if they stayed with us. Now just hold on. We're almost there!"