Chapter 29 President Mario

And with that, after everything that happened, after everything that went wrong and everything that caused the Beanbean queen pain, she was here. She was finally at President Mario's castle. Peach had gone through so much just to get here, and while some of the wounds she acquired might take forever to heal, she still felt an overwhelming sense of satisfaction right now. She smiled as Luigi opened the door to the castle. She smiled as he gestured to her to follow him into the main hallway.

And her sense of pleasure only grew stronger when she saw the interior of the castle. It was NOT what she had expected at all! The walls were mostly painted sky blue, depicting white fluffy clouds and the green, silo-shaped hills that Peach had seen a good number of in this expansive kingdom. To say that the queen was charmed by these sights would be an understatement. She only felt more charmed as she saw various Toads, making their way to and fro. The Toads didn't look up at her, as they were clearly thoroughly dedicated to their work, but that didn't detract from anything in the slightest.

"Wow," Peach said as she and Luigi made their way down the hall. "This place is beautiful."

"Isn't it?" Luigi laughed. "The walls were painted this way during King George and Queen Rosemary's reign. They were a little faded when Mario came into office, but he wasn't satisfied with that. He and I organized a project to restore the castle to its former glory. After all…" Luigi chuckled, scratching the back of his head while he did. "This building is a symbol. It shows the Mushroom Kingdom's strengths in their purest form."

"That makes sense," Peach said. She giggled. "Kind of makes me think of the Beanbean Castle where I'm from." She felt a pang before she cleared her throat and pushed some hair out of her face. "Anyway, we should probably go see the President."

"Yes, yes, of course. We can't lose track of the mission."

With that, they continued their walk, neither one of them talking to each other as they did. This wasn't a detriment necessarily, as Peach had more than an ample opportunity to take in more of this castle's amazing sights. Of course, after a while and once she got the jist of what she was seeing, her mind went back to her problem. Would she ever escape from the worry and sorrow that her problem caused her? Would she ever feel better; would she ever be able to hold her head up high as the queen the people of the Beanbean Kingdom needed?

Well… there was only one way to find out.

The two walked down a particularly long red carpet before coming to a set of brown doors with a star symbol on them. Luigi stopped, gave Peach a smile, before sliding the doors open. What met Peach's eyes was possibly the most beautiful sight in the entire castle, which was saying A LOT. The walls, instead of being painted to depict the clear blue sky, were now painted with murals showcasing what were no doubt important events in the Mushroom Kingdom's history. Peach was able to recognize some of them, like the Koopa Mushroom War, thanks to her history lessons with Lady Lima. They were not only historically significant, but they also had the most gorgeous colors Peach had ever seen. Seriously, the artist had a real eye for color. The ceiling was also really high up, with a crystal chandelier constructed out of gold hanging down and casting a warm glow over the entire room. Peach was absolutely blown away by this sight.

But as beautiful as this room was, what excited Peach the most was seeing who was in it. At the end of another red carpet, sitting at what looked like a wooden desk (as someone who was used to seeing thrones in these kind of rooms, Peach found this incredibly strange), was President Mario. Peach IMMEDIATELY picked up on the resemblance between Mario and Luigi, even from so far away. Same mousy brown hair, same round button nose, same incredibly well-groomed mustache. He… there was something about him that activated some… very interesting emotions in Peach. She couldn't really put her finger on why. This went beyond just relief that she was finally getting a chance to see President Mario in person. This… this was….

"Your Majesty? Are you okay?"

Peach blinked and cleared her throat. "I'm fine."

Luigi nodded, and together they walked up to the desk. When President Mario saw Peach, she couldn't help but notice that he looked slightly more interested than he had before. Despite not wearing a dress at the moment, Peach curtsied. She didn't know if the same etiquette required for interacting with royalty still applied when interacting with a president, but… eh, it didn't hurt to be safe. And polite.

"President Mario," Peach said. She saw a glimmer in his crystal blue eye, which just made the weird emotions she had felt before even more pronounced. Her face growing warm, she smiled. "I am very pleased to see you."

"As am I, Queen Peach." Mario leaned back in his chair with the most casual yet most profound smile on his face. "I have to admit, I didn't expect to see Beanbean royalty come to see me. Especially today."

Peach suppressed a smile at his voice. She couldn't quite pinpoint which accent he was using, as it sounded nothing like the various accents she had heard around the Mushroom World. But whatever it was, it was… pleasing to the ears. "Well, a few days ago, I wouldn't have expected this either." Her face fell. "On that note, I apologize. I know it's proper etiquette during meetings like this to send a letter in advance, but due to circumstances… I didn't have the opportunity."

"Oh, that's fine!" Mario let out a hearty laugh that tickled Peach's heart. "I would've seen you even if there was no letter." He leaned forward, his face all at once looking more serious. "But with that said… I understand that you have a pretty major problem."

Peach nodded. She swallowed a lump before launching into the explanation of how she ended up here. Mario and Luigi listened with the utmost interest and even looked a little saddened when Peach mentioned what happened to Peasley. She didn't blame them; she almost cried when talking about it, only stopping herself at the last possible second. And all honesty, as bad as that event was to recount, doing so was necessary when portraying the seriousness and severity of the problem of Cackletta and Fawful taking control of the Beanbean throne.

"We fought the witch and her henchman right outside the castle, only winning thanks to us luckily having a mega mushroom on standby." Peach sighed. "And… as you can imagine, this leaves us a horrible hurdle that we need to overcome. Cackletta WILL come back. She'll come back even more powerful than she did before. When it comes to keeping the Beanbean royal family down… well, she will not hesitate to let ANYONE'S blood run." She let in a shaky breath. "Not even the blood of innocents."

Mario and Luigi exchanged a concerned look. There was something about that expression, a type of caring and empathy that Peach usually see from ANYONE, let alone someone in power. It floored her, it absolutely floored her. And the fact that Mario had the same empathetic hurt and concern in his eyes as he turned back around to face her only made her more intrigued and impressed.

"Well, Queen Peach, I must say I am extremely sorry that you had to go through that." He sighed. "And… you have my condolences about your brother. I remember meeting him, actually, and he was… quite the character."

Peach sniffled. "Thank you." She dried her eyes quickly, knowing that this wasn't very queen-like or professional. "I apologize, I'm just… I'm acting indecently."

Mario smirked. "You're not acting indecently at all, Queen Peach." He reached into his desk drawer, pulled out a box of tissues, and handed them to her. "We're all people, and we all have weaknesses. We shouldn't be afraid to show them."

"Exactly." Luigi put his hand on Mario's shoulder. "Besides, we completely understand how you feel. If either one of us lost the other, we would probably feel the same way you're feeling." He chuckled. "Even as people in positions of power."

Peach chuckled despite her eyes still being watery. "Thank you. That's… that helps me feel better."

"That's good." Mario stood up, still looking right at Peach. "Speaking of feeling better, you look absolutely exhausted! And after such a hard journey as you've had, I suppose that's only natural."

Peach did a double take. "Me? Exhausted? No, I'm… I'm…" she shrunk back as, all at once, a wave of fatigue overcame her. Not only that, but she finally noticed some things she had ignored during her journey here. The fact that she was doused in sweat. The fact that her hair was tangled and unkempt. The fact that the outfit Peasley had loaned to her was covered in dirt, and even wearing down in some places. She couldn't believe she hadn't noticed these details! She looked beaten up enough to resemble a homeless person! Not the queen of an entire kingdom!

Mario stepped around his desk. "Come with me, Your Highness. While setting up a plan to help you is important, we also shouldn't neglect your needs." He gestured for her to follow him. "Come with me; I'm gonna take you to a room you can stay in."

"Oh!" Peach held her hands up. "No, no, that isn't necessary, Mr. President."

Mario laughed. "If it involves your comfort, I think it's more than necessary." He gestured to her again. "Come on; let's a go!"

Peach giggled at that last phrase before following after the president. He led her down the various corridors, past several Toad servants who smiled at the two of them. As she followed the president, Peach had to admit that she felt a million times better. She didn't think she could feel this safe in a strange establishment with a person she literally just met.

"Uh… Mr. President?"

"Just call me Mario, Your Majesty."

Peach did a double take, her shock claiming her in the most surprising ways possible. "Oh! Okay, Mario. Th… thank you for taking your time to be so hospitable."

Mario turned his head, allowing her to see a smile forming beneath his mustache. "The pleasure is mine, Your Highness." He turned back around. "I'll also get the servants to prepare a meal for you. And for breakfast tomorrow, I am officially extending an invitation to you to join me and Luigi in the dining room."

If Peach was a little shocked before, now she was more shocked than someone strapped to an electric chair. "Wow. You… you're…" She smiled. "Thank you. You're really too kind." She paused. "Mario."

Mario chuckled and shrugged. "Thanks. I suppose you have my Mama to thank for that." He stopped at a door. "Well, here we are." He opened up the door, and when Peach stepped in, she was blown away. With the purple bedding, the beautiful pink walls, and a balcony that allowed her to see the whole of Toad Town beneath her… it kind of reminded her of her bedroom back home. As such, she felt more comfortable than she had in a LONG while.

"I think this is the best place for you to stay." Mario walked into the room, Peach following him in. "You have your own personal bathroom, and I'll get some servants to make you some outfits to wear."

"Oh, you don't have to do that!"

"Oh no, I think I do." He chuckled and scratched the back of his head. "I don't… have a lot of women surrounding me in this castle, so there aren't a lot of outfits available for someone of your gender."

Oh. That makes sense." Peach looked around the bedroom once more, letting out a breath as she did. "Still… thank you, Mario. I really appreciate this."

"The pleasure is mine, Queen Peach." He made his way toward the door. "I'll give you some privacy." He looked back at her from in the doorway, his magnificent blue eyes sparkling like… the broach Peasley gave her. On instinct, Peach raised her hand to the broach. Her mind filled once again with memories from him, distracting her for a minute so that she completely blanked out the words President Mario said to her.

"Queen Peach? Are you okay?"

Peach came back down to Earth. She saw Mario's concerned face, causing her to grin sheepishly. "Sorry. Just.. reflecting on the journey here."

"I see." Mario paused. "Well, if you need anything, don't be afraid to let us know. Oh, and don't forget about joining me and Luigi for breakfast!"

"Oh don't worry, I won't!" Both of them laughed before Mario finally closed the door and left. When she was sure she was gone, Peach put her hand back to her broach and gave it a squeeze. "Well, Peasley… I did it."