#Since the Birabuto Kingdom is what most people think of when they think of Sarasaland I leaned toward something somewhat desert-themed

[pianokantzart]

Caved and made an outfit redesign for Princess Daisy. Wanted to give her something tomboyish, but still princessy and floral.

[classicdaisycalico]

For the two sentences thing: "Hey, Luigi!" Daisy called out to him through the rain. "Come dance with me!"

Send me 2 sentences and I’ll continue it like a fic

HOLY HELL THIS GOT LONG. (Both the fic itself and the time it took to make it took way too much time.) But I think it ended up being some of my best work. Hope you like this! Oh, and here are a few brief Italian translations. There isn’t a lot of Italian this time around, but it’s worth looking at:

Sto bene = “I’m fine”Principessa = “Princess”Baciami = “Kiss me”

“Hey, Luigi!” Daisy called out to him through the rain. “Come dance with me!”

She twirled around, her arms spread wide, laughing as the fat water droplets fell en masse from the greying skies. Lifting the skirts of her dress, she let her feet tread across the green grass with light footfalls, her long brown hair billowing gracefully as the wind picked up around her.

The green-clad plumber she just called to chuckled softly to himself. Though they had only known each other for 5 days at most, he could think of no one else who could find light and beauty even in the darkiest, dreariest situations. Not even Mario, with his near-perpetual chipper demeanor, could make this optimism look so effortless.

If Luigi were by himself on the way home from a walk through Toad Town and it started raining, it would have definitely dampened his mood, figuratively and literally. Today, however, was an exception. Somehow, watching the princess of Sarasaland dance in the rain made him forget how foolish he felt that he forgot to pack an umbrella for this afternoon walk today. Was this cheerful nature of hers already rubbing off on him after such a short time?

In this brief moment of reflection, Luigi hadn’t noticed Daisy practically skipping in his direction to grab his hand. “Are you gonna join me or not?”

Surprised at such a bold move, the flustered young man spluttered helplessly, “Are people watching?”

This, of course, was a dumb question to ask. They were mere feet away from the warp pipe that lead them back to the bottom of the hill where Peach’s castle was located. Beyond that, the expanse that lay ahead contained mostly grass, as well as a hilltop that lead into Goomba Woods. Almost no creature between 2 and 3 feet tall ever dared to walk through this forest, likely because of the sharp-toothed creatures that these woods were named for.

But she only giggled in response as she lifted his arm. “Nobody is,” she said, spinning underneath. “That’s the best part.”

Somehow, hearing her confirm it herself was enough to mollify his concerns. The two of them were indeed safe from snooping eyes, hidden by the rain that pattered rhythmically against the earth. Even the drops that fell against the metallic surface of the warp pipe helped to drown out any other noise.

It almost sounded...musical.

Suddenly Luigi could understand Daisy’s rationale behind this spontaneous dance in the rain. This was confirmed even further with her free hand guiding his up to her waist while she let her other one rest on his shoulder. In that moment, he felt even clumsier than usual. He was not lacking in this sort of expertise, by any means; Peach had taught him and Mario how to dance in high society settings when the three of them were growing up.

But with friends, it was different. Now, here was a beautiful young lady whose presence clouded his mind ever since he first saw her 5 days ago. Just looking at her now, with her captivating green eyes and the dimples in her smile, was enough to throw all notions of dance-related coordination out the window. How long had it been since he lead a quickstep? Did he even know the basic for a foxtrot? He felt his heart rate speed up. Could he remember anything at all?

“Hey.”

He felt her hand squeeze his shoulder reassuringly. “Don’t think too much,” she whispered. “You’ll be okay. Just look right at me.”

In the cold rain, Luigi suddenly felt his cheeks heat up. She was right. He was being too cautious, too safe. He couldn’t quite put his finger on why exactly, but the idea that Daisy, of all people, could break down those walls just...felt right, somehow. Besides, she wouldn’t trust him if she didn’t think he could keep up, and from the looks of it, she trusted him completely.

His heart raced even more at the thought, not out of nervousness, but rather in excitement, instead, as he started with a slow step forward on his right foot. The princess followed, backwards, with her left. They resolved with two more steps to the side. Together, they repeated the same motion twice, but backwards. It was a simple box step, nothing fancy, but just enough to get things going. After staying in place for a while, they eventually started turning.

Before long, they were circling around the warp pipe like it was second nature. Every so often, they would try a new maneuver, sometimes slipping in the wet grass and clutching at each other in laughter before starting over. There was really no style that they followed, just that they were dancing slow, savoring the closeness the two of them held.

After a while, they were back where they started, dancing in place. “Do people do this often in Sarasaland?” he asked.

“Do what?”

He lifted his arm for her to twirl underneath. “Dance in the rain like this.”

She smiled warmly. “Well, not everybody...but people in Birabuto do, during the first rainfall of the rainy season. It’s so nice to watch,” she gushed. “Everyone is outside enjoying themselves, the rivers flood over and the soil on the floodplains is healthy enough for crops to grow again...you’d love it.”

Daisy felt his arms wrap snugly around her waist, gently pulling her closer. He hadn’t seen her blush at the contact. It was strong but gentle, and as always, careful. She was just about to rest her head against Luigi’s shoulder when she suddenly felt herself lifted into the air. She gasped in shock, grasping at his shoulders in an almost frantic gesture while trying to contain her laughter.

Afters spinning her around, he slowly brought her back down. For a while, they stood there, soaked to the skin, brown eyes staring into green, not wanting to look away. Only then did he realize just how close the two of them were, holding each other the way that they did.

A fleeting thought raced through his head: he could just kiss her, right now, in the middle of the rain. Just tilt his head and meet her halfway...

But he couldn’t. No matter how much those feelings bubbled inside of him, he couldn’t let that impulse take over. He had to be logical; she was nobility, he was not. On top of that, nobody was supposed to know she was here. If word got out, her safety would be at risk...

Still, it looked like Mario and Peach were making that sort of thing work. Granted, the three of them had known each other since they were in diapers, so it had been a long time coming. Conversely, Luigi had only known Daisy for 5 days, and she was from a kingdom in a whole other hemisphere. Even though his own parents met in a similar way, he knew such love was very rare. They never had to deal with class divides and distance separating the two.

On the other hand, he was exhausted from dancing around these feelings (literally, in this particular case), and he was certain she was, too. For once, he didn’t want to play it safe. He wanted to loosen up and let things go...within reason, of course. Even if things went a little too out of hand, she seemed level-headed enough to rein him in.

Or what if that wasn’t what she wanted? He couldn’t read her mind. Just going all in like that would be incredibly disrespectful, especially since she was a princess. He had to make sure she was comfortable with this first.

Luigi sighed, dejected, letting his head hang low. With half-lidded eyes, he took her in. It was quite easy to do, since he was a head taller than her, maybe more. Her hair, though sopping wet, still blew in the wind, flyaways whipping around in her face even in the pouring rain. He brushed them aside to get a better view of her wide-set eyes, her little nose...

His gaze lingered momentarily on her lips. He had never imagined yearning for something like this as badly as he did now.

But it wasn’t right. It just wasn’t.

“Luigi?”

Daisy’s eyes looked upon him inquisitively, her own hand tilting his chin up. “Are you okay?”

Despite his sadness, he smiled, knowing at least she cared about him and his well-being. “Sto bene, principessa.”

The plumber took the hand resting on his cheek, raising it close enough for him to see the embroidery on her gloves. His eyes narrowed in annoyance. Curse these things...

She gasped as he slowly removed the fabric barrier from her hands, letting it slide smoothly over her fingers. He then removed a glove of his own, taking her own gloveless hand in his. The rain was like ice with night fast approaching, but her hand was warm. He raised it, letting his lips brush against her fingers.

Apart from removing the gloves, this particular gesture wasn’t anything new. He always kissed her hand, usually just before they parted ways, as a polite show of gratitude and respect. This, however, carried a slightly different meaning, one of deep reverence and even deeper love. For all he had, and what their circumstances were, it was the most that Luigi could offer without giving in any more than he wanted to.

And he did. Badly. He kissed her hand again, a little longer this time.

“Do you love me?”

The mustachioed young man could barely hear her over the rain picking up. Still, he couldn’t help but ask, “What?”

“You’re so...cautious,” she said hesitantly, almost bitterly. “...You shouldn’t have to be...”

She knew. It hurt her just as much as it hurt him. She was right. “Princess...”

“I know 5 days isn’t much. I know it’s crazy. I really do...but this...what I feel...what YOU feel...”

“Daisy--”

“It feels so real! You think I’m not aware of how real this is?!”

She placed her bare hand on his cheek. “Trust me. I don’t know how to go through this, either. But we can find out together. It’s less lonely and a lot less difficult that way.”

Luigi was speechless. How had she managed to articulate his feelings so well? The fact that she basically confessed that she loved him back surprised him just as much. She wanted the same things he did. What was he supposed to do? What could he say next? Should he say anything at all? His thoughts were spiraling out of control.

“Baciami.”

Her eyes widened in surprise. Realizing what he said (out loud, no less), his hand flew over his mouth. Regardless of whether it was in Italian or English, both of them knew what it meant.

Kiss me.

There was no turning back now. “Would you?” he asked after she removed his hand. Meanwhile, his hand snaked back around her waist.

Slowly, she nodded. “Would you?”

He had to answer before he choked on his own words. It practically spilled out of him, his voice shaking. “Absolutely.”

Their foreheads were almost touching now. In the closeness, Luigi could see just how wide Daisy’s eyes were, more out of curiosity than fear. In a hushed whisper, she asked him, “Right now?”

Their lips were mere away from each other now as Luigi shoved the discarded gloves into his pocket. Closing the distance between them was painstakingly slow, especially since Daisy had to stand on the tips of her toes just to reach Luigi. Eventually, however, they shut their eyes, tilted heads, and met halfway, just as a bolt of lightning cracked through the air. 

It started out uncertain, but gentle, as first kisses often do. Eventually, Daisy’s arms eventually made their way around his neck while the plumber’s ungloved hand nestled itself into her hair. 5 short days of unresolved tension brewing under the surface finally spilled over the surface as he lifted her off her toes and into the air, prompting her to cling to him tighter. At some point, they backed up against the warp pipe. Nobody dared venture further than what they were doing now; their only concern was happily accepting whatever they denied before.

A deafening crack of thunder booming through the night sky was enough to remind them to break apart for oxygen. When their eyes opened, Daisy couldn’t help letting out a small laugh. “How long have we been here, anyway?” she asked.

Luigi blushed, setting Daisy back down on her feet. Between dancing and kissing in the rain, he had lost track of time completely. By this point, Mario must have already finished dinner! “Maybe we should get you back to the castle,” he suggested, scratching the back of his head. “Peach wouldn’t want you coming back with a cold.”

The princess smirked in reply, standing on her tiptoes again, pressing her forehead against his. “Well, it was worth the wait.”

He rolled his eyes, knowing full well she was right.

The two of them finally made their way back to Peach’s castle by the time the rain stopped. Their goodbye, however, would be a lot different tonight.

[classicdaisycalico]

Daisy! OwO

Send Me a Character

YEEEEE okay here we go!!!

First impression:Okay so I was 7 when I got my very first Mario game (Mario Kart: Double Dash, to be specific). So when I picked a pair of racers for the first time, my eyes drifted to Peach and Daisy, but out of the two, I really liked Daisy more because I saw myself in her a lot more (brown hair, big eyes, loud voice, really excited about lots of things)!

Impression now:14 years later I still adore her and she remains, to this day, my favorite character in the Mario series. However, since learning about her classic look around the same time I think I prefer it to her modern, kind of. But that doesn’t mean I love our current Daisy any less. (I mean, SOMEONE has to if Nintendo won’t put her in anything outside of spin-offs…)

Favorite moment:I literally have way too many, tbh, but I think my current favorite is her victory animation from “Mario Power Tennis” since I think it best showcases her personality best (or at least, whatever shred of personality Nintendo cared to let Camelot give her).Loud and proud? Check.Showboat? Check.Still very much a princess despite this? Well, we’ve got a slow-mo of her gracefully catching a trophy in mid-air like the champ that she is, so check.And finally, an adorable ship-tease with Luigi (she calls him sweetie. And he stares at her in slow-mo as she catches the trophy. I love how Nintendo ships them as hard as I do. #LegitCouple)

Idea for a story:Literally just…….give Daisy a prominent role in main Mario title……..like if we could have a game set in Sarasaland again with all the enemies from there that’d be fantastic (preferably if it were a game in the “Mario and Luigi” games, so you could give enemies more personality, too!).Or you could put her in a Luigi’s Mansion game since Daisy has a close relationship with him. Maybe King Boo could put HER in a painting instead of Mario and have Luigi rescue her instead? Okay so I think it could be kinda like “Dark Moon”, where you could traverse various haunted “mansions” of Sarasaland (like a pyramid in Birabuto where you could take down mummies or a pagoda in Chai where you can defeat all those Jiangshi), culminating up to Daisy’s castle that was taken over by King Boo and you face off with him in…idk either a ballroom or a garden out back.Or perhaps we could properly introduce Daisy to the Paper Mario-verse? Again, put Sarasaland in there and maybe Mario (or Luigi, or Peach, or whoever) could explore it!Or what’d be awesome (but kind of a stretch) would be if we saw Sarasaland in some vein as Super Mario Odyssey DLC! But that game’s looking pretty solid about now, so…a girl can dream. Anyway, as you can see, I’ve got a lot of ideas. #DaisyForSmash

Unpopular opinion:As I mentioned a while ago, I like her classic look better than her modern. But I’m also kinda angry that they did away with her personality from then, too, because I think Nintendo was really on to something with portraying Daisy the way they did back then, but then they just kinda gave up and gave her a complete reboot in the GameCube era. I liked how even though she was more extroverted than Peach we knew for sure that she could still be a cutie. Additionally, the GameCube reboot kinda seemed to do away with all of her backstory, which definitely upsets me. Pre-GameCube Daisy had so much lore attached to her, and now the Daisy I was introduced to when I was 7 practically has no new stuff about her. People can’t learn more about this cutie through spin-offs alone, you know! I want something with more substance!

Favorite relationship:Daisy’s friendship with Peach is honestly the cutest. That LINE sticker GIF of the two of them taking a selfie together is the most adorable thing I’ve ever seen. But I’m also sad because we never see that friendship seen elsewhere outside of spin-offs. I’m sure the Mushroom Kingdom and Sarasaland are close allies as far as kingdoms go! I would especially like if more main Mario titles expressed this!

Favorite headcanon:

Wowowow I have too many headcanons that I like of her, but here are a few (I’ll try not to make this too long):

Luigi fell in love with Daisy literally the very first second he saw her. He was taking the long way home through the woods one day when he heard a girl singing to herself, so he followed the voice and fell even more in love when he finally saw who it belonged to.

Their first “date” was a walk around Toad Town the next day after they met for the first time. They ended up going on a similar “date” the following day (they didn’t really put a name to what they did, but it was definitely a date.)

When they’re apart, they write letters to each other, and they can get pretty sappy.

Mario and Peach set up Luigi and Daisy as tennis partners.

Ever the optimist, Daisy strives to see the good in others where her friends can’t.

When she’s bored, she’ll sing or hum to herself to lift her spirits up.

She’s also very ticklish, something Luigi has learned very early upon meeting her…

She has dimples.

Daisy has an excellent green thumb. Like, SUPER excellent. She inherited a strong power over plant life from her mother.

Actually, every firstborn daughter of Sarasaland’s queen has this power, which makes them eligible as first in line to be the next queen, which is why Sarasaland has a matriarchal ruling system. The system itself goes back centuries. Additionally, every firstborn daughter with this power has been named after a plant of some kind.

Sarasaland as a single kingdom came to be after Daisy’s parents got married. Before, they were next in line for the throne of their own separate kingdoms, but the kings hated each other so much that they went to war. Unbeknownst to their fathers, Daisy’s parents fell in love. But after both kings died in battle, her parents took it upon themselves to end the war by merging the 2 kingdoms through their marriage. Daisy was born about 10 years later, when everything was more stable.

Okay, that’s enough headcanons. Thank you for the ask, Anon! :D