Chapter 26 Mushrooms Mushrooms Everywhere

She did it. Peach actually did it. She made it to the Mushroom Kingdom. She had overcome every odd that had piled up against her, and now she was actually in the Mushroom Kingdom. Hallelujah!

Well, maybe not Hallelujah quite yet, as she still had to get to Toad Town. That town was in the very center of the Mushroom Kingdom, if the geography lessons she took were to be believed. And obviously, since she was technically on the edge of the kingdom, he had a lot of ground to cover if she wanted to get there. But… that didn't bother her. She had climbed Hoohoo Mountain, gotten across Stardust Fields, and braved the treacherous World 5. Walking across a grassy plain to get to President Mario? Peace of cake!

So, Peach put on a smile as she continued on her merry way. Within about half an hour, she got to the first Mushroom Kingdom town. According to the sign that greeted people who entered aid town, this place was called Mushroom Village. And what a fitting name that was. The houses resembled mushrooms of a variety of different colors, and the people who lived here resembled mushrooms too! Of course, Peach wasn't surprised by this; she had come across Toads before, so it wasn't like this was news to her. But even still, it was nice to see these people. They were so jovial. Each one of them wore a smile on their face. Each one of them walked around the town with the strongest form of gusto.

And to make thing better, one of the Toads even came up to greet her. "My my my. A beanish person! We don't get a lot of those around here!"

Peach chuckled as she came to a stop. "I can imagine." She extended her hand. "Princess… Er, Queen Peach of the Beanbean Kingdom."

Those words had a WILD effect on everybody. Not only did this Toad's eyes grow wide, but all the other Toads in the vicinity stopped what they were doing and gasped. They all looked upon her, all while Peach's face grew warm. This… it wasn't embarrassing, but… actually, Peach had no idea how to describe the way she felt.

"Are you serious?" The original Toad asked, his black eyes shining like the night sky. "Are you really the Queen of the Beanbean Kingdom?"

Peach curled a strand of her hair back. "Yes. Yes I am."

And with that, all the Toads surrounded her. Taken aback, Peach gawked at them as they talked to her in the most excited way possible.

"That's so cool that you're the queen!"

"Do you have servants wait on you hand and foot?"

"What does your crown look like? Do you have it with you?"

"What are you doing in the Mushroom Kingdom?"

Their voices blended together in a sea of excitement. Peach tried not to cringe, but she really did feel a little uncomfortable as they talked to her in this way. Seriously, who knew that Toads could be so excitable?

"Okay, okay!" Peach heard an older voice call out from the edge of the crowd. The Toads, gasping, cleared a path for an elderly Toad. Peach stared at him, at his tan mushroom cap, snowy white mustache, and an air of wisdom and experience that trumped any wisdom anyone else in this town possessed. Tightly gripping his cane, he made his way up to the queen. The silence was so prevalent, filled only by the sound of the Toad's careful steps and Peach's own heartbeat.

When he got up to her, he adjusted the monocle he wore over his left eye and smiled. "Welcome to the Mushroom Kingdom, Queen Peach." He bowed. The Toads followed his example, which Peach found strangely adorable. The tan-capped old Toad lifted his head. "I am Toadsworth. I formerly served as an advisor to King and Queen Toadstool; you know, before the monarchy was demolished." He chuckled and rose to a standing position. "I have decided to spend my retirement here."

"I… I see." Peach gave Toadsworth a smile. "Well… it's very nice to meet you."

"No no, the pleasure is mine, Your Highness." Toadworth's eyes twinkled. "Beanbean royalty is very much respected in this Kingdom, considering that your kingdom is one of our strongest allies."

"Very true!" said one Toad.

"You have every ounce of respect I could possibly give you!" said another.

Peach blushed again. In fact, not only did her face grow warm, but it felt as though her entire body was blazing hot. Fortunately, it was in the best way possible. She didn't feel uncomfortable while interacting with these Toads. She felt as though she had come across kind, compassionate people. Considering that was what the history books painted Toads as, she had to say she was profoundly grateful she had gotten a chance to meet any of them in her lifetime.

"Thank you. Thank you all of you." She gave them a sparkling smile, one that mirrored their expressions. "I have had a long, grueling journey, and I am grateful that you have accepted and welcomed me so enthusiastically." The Toads beamed, with some of them giggling at her compliment. They sounded overjoyed like every word the queen spoke brought them up from a horrific pit of despair.

"But alas, I am afraid I cannot stay here for long." She put on a serious face. "My kingdom is in danger. An evil witch has enslaved my people." The Toads whispered amongst each other, making Peach's heart feel heavy. "I need to get to Toad Town. My goal is to meet President Mario so that he could potentially provide me and my people some aid."

The Toads exchanged looks. Toadsworth stroked his mustache, the gears in his head turning.

"That is quite a dire situation, Your Majesty." He tapped his cane on the floor a little bit before looking back up with her. "If that is the case, you need our assistance."

Peach smiled. "That would be beneficial. Thank you." She paused. "How exactly do you plan on aiding me?"

Toadsworth chuckled and gestured for her to follow him. "I'll show you."

Blinking, Peach did as he told her. The Toads whispered amongst themselves as Toadsworth led her through the town, as if they were just as curious about what Toadsworth was going to do as she was. This didn't discourage her though; she had a feeling the elderly Toad would provide her with something invaluable, something that would help her in an amazing way. Sure, the two of them literally just met, but… Toadsworth just gave off that type of energy.

Due to Toadsworth's need to walk with a cane, the two of them moved at a relatively slow pace. Peach was tempted to feel antsy about this, but she decided that she wasn't going to complain. This Toad was helping her out of the kindness of his heart. He didn't need to give her assistance; he didn't even need to spare her a second thought. She didn't have any right to complain about anything.

Finally, the two of them arrived at… a post office? That was what Peach assumed it to be, as there was a picture of a letter with wings above the door. Puzzled, Peach followed Toadsworth as he entered the post office. The Toads behind the desks smiled when they saw him.

"Toadsworth!" One of them said. "I haven't seen you in a week! How are you?"

"I am doing well." Toadsworth's eyes glittered. "You could even say I'm doing… peachy." He laughed, but the other Toads gave him confused looks instead of joining in. When he stopped, he cleared his throat. "I guess I should explain." He gestured to the queen. "This is Queen Peach of the Beanbean Kingdom!"

"Oh!" The first Toad said. They started to laugh. "That makes sense; I see what you did…" They stopped. Their eyes grew wide, and they gawked at Peach. "Wait, seriously?"

"Seriously," Toadsworth responded. "She has come to our kingdom because she is in desperate need of assistance." He hobbled over to the desk, placing his hands palms down on top of it when he got there. "Do you have some paper and a pen?"

The Toad nodded and gave him the items he requested. Toadsworth thanked them, uncapped the pen, and began to write. Peach watched him do this with wide eyes, wondering what he was writing and who he was writing it for. It had to be someone who could help her, right? It had to be someone who would understand her situation. Ooh, maybe it was someone who could guide her to Toad Town!

"And… there," Toadsworth said after a few minutes of writing. "Post T? May I have an envelope?" They handed him an envelope, and he chuckled. "Thank you." He folded the letter up and stuffed it in. When he closed it, he turned it over and wrote on the front. "I will make thai letter out to… President Mario Jumpman Mario."

Peach gasped. "Wait. You're… you're mailing the president?"

"Indeed I am!" Toadsworth chuckled. "Believe it or not, Your Excellency, I got to know President Mario when I was serving as the royal consort." He grinned, an almost nostalgic look appearing in his eyes. "He even saved the royals from certain doom on several occasions. That was why they entrusted the Kingdom to him when they died."

"That's… that's amazing!" Peach said.

"It is. And even though I am retired, I am still in contact with both the president as well as his advisor." He beamed. "So, I am sending them a letter telling them of your arrival. They will be able to prepare themselves for a meeting with you."

Peach's heart skipped several beats. "Toadsworth… thank you!" She felt countless forms of positive emotions at this moment. "Thank you so much!"

"Your welcome, Queen Peach." Toadsworth slid the letter across the desk. "Now, Post T, can you make sure that this letter gets delivered?"

"You know it, T-Worth!" Post T chuckled as they took the letter. "I'll have Parakarry deliver it. He's our best mailman; he should be able to hand the President the letter within the hour."

"Excellent." With that, Toadsworth walked away from the desk and looked into Peach's eyes. "I hope that will be helpful, Your Grace."

"Oh, it's incredibly helpful!" Peach's mind went into overdrive. President Mario being aware of her arrival, and thus having the foresight to plan out the deals they could make with each other and how exactly they could take down Cackletta… this was a dream come true. There was no other way to describe this; Toadsworth had been a GODSEND! It was amazing how many kind things a kind person was capable of doing so soon after meeting somebody new. "I can't thank you enough!"

"No need to thank me, Your Highness," Toadsworth said. "I just hope that you're able to find what you're looking for when you meet the President."

"I do too." With that, the two of them exited the post office. As Peach let out a breath, she looked down at Toadsworth yet again. "Now… which path should I follow to get to Toad Town?"

Toadsworth pointed up the road. "Follow that path and don't stray from it. There aren't any branching paths off this one, so if you'll just go straight, you'll be at Toad Town withing two shakes of a Koopa's tail."

Peach felt all warm and fuzzy on the inside. "Oh, thank you so much." She adjusted her backpack and waved at Toadsworth as she began walking away. "Farewell, Toadsworth! You will be remembered for years to come!"

Toadsworth smiled and waved back before going in the opposite direction as her. As she followed the path, Peach once again thought about how fortunate this was. A Toad, taking precious time out of their day in order to help her. That was amazing. It was so kind on Toadsworth's part that she kind of had trouble thinking it was real.

"WOO!" One Toad called out from their front porch. "QUEEN OF THE BEANBEAN KINGDOM; YEAH!"

Peach chuckled. Even if things didn't work out, there was one thing she could say definitely. Her stay in the Mushroom Kingdom has gotten off to an AMAZING start.