#peach x toadette

[badnewsmouse]

tagged by @orla-mccoolgirl!!

Three Ships: Marceline/Princess Bubblegum, Sonic/Amy, Peach/Toadette

First Ship: Ash/Misty

Last Song: "The Deal" by Mitski

Last Movie: "The Faculty"

Currently Reading: "Mexican Gothic" by Silvia Moreno-Garcia; "Frieren: Beyond Journey's End" by Kanehito Yamada & Tsukasa Abe

Currently Watching: someone playing "Super Maro Maker 2"

Currently Consuming: water

Currently Craving: breakfast sandwich

I'm tagging @foxgirlmilf, @its-wormtrain, @koopadumpling, @jhenne-bean, & whoever else wants to do this!

[daisysrose]

they’re having a beach day because I’m going to da beach soon

[mikibaby94]

Always Peachy In Brooklynn masterpost. Currently working on chapter 5, Ill update this as time goes on! Hope you check out my fanfictions (there will be another story coming after this one is done!)

[bberetd]

If you were the wedding planner of a Luiasy wedding how would you arrange it? What would the location be? What would the theme of the wedding be? And what extras would you add towards the outfits of the bride and groom?

Aaaaahhh this took me forever to get to 😭 @kelbreyworshipper I’ll be real with you, when you sent me this ask, I was walking to my chem final, and I read your prompt and I was like “ummmmm 😳”

Buuut I think it’s safe to say I had enough time to cook, plus it was a fun challenge, so I hope you enjoy this! It's pretty long, so read at your own pace hehe

@peaches2217 (hopefully this lifts your spirits <3) @vulpixfairy1985 @itsavee4117 @supergay-64 @pepperycar @silenzahra, I think you guys may also like this! And @artycomicfangirl you as well!

First of all, I’ve chosen this day in particular to post the becaaauuuseeee…

Today (or yesterday wherever you are) is/was the one-year anniversary of my very first Luaisy drawing! BOY how far we’ve come. Now without further ado…

= LUAISY WEDDING =

This wedding was months in the making. Peach and Mario self-appointed themselves (even though it was obvious from the get-go) to the maid of honor and best man, so they worked tirelessly to ensure everything was perfect and better.

Each Mario lady had an essential part to play in this wedding:

Peach Maid of honor. Her role was to find the best venue for the wedding and send out invites to the Mushroom Kingdom and the other kingdoms within Sarasaland. But Peach being Peach with her overenthusiasm for weddings, carried 95% of the wedding planning and wedding day on her back. Of course, everyone gave her her flowers in the end. Mario definitely made sure she knew she was appreciated

Daisy was a 5'11" sack of nerves for her wedding, so Peach took it in her hands to calm her down, assuring her that it was completely normal to feel that way, and had to keep reminding her of how much Luigi loved her and that he wants this as much as she does. She also reminded Daisy that she should be elated because this is her special day. Peach would know all about it. ;)

Peach ran through the wedding, had multiple (maybe more than needed) rehearsals, and coordinated the wedding dinner that Daisy and Luigi would have.

Pauline Bridesmaid, wedding designer, and performer. I headcanon Pauline to be the most fluent in fashion and designing among the Mario ladies, and it was her who Peach took sewing up. Peach invited Pauline to a lot of her and Daisy's shopping trips for wedding dresses, getting her advice on what would suit her and Luigi's taste for their wedding day.

Pauline also performed at their wedding, doing solo performances, and then concluding with her band.

Rosalina Bridesmaid and vow writer. Even though Rosa is not a woman of many words, when she does have something to say, people are listening.

Out of the ladies, she's the biggest bookworm, spending time in her observatory reading and writing when she can. This makes her an amazing poet. All her close friends find it hard to believe that she doesn't have a significant other. She has shared some of her poems with her friends, and it was a wonder how none of them fell in love with her.

But Daisy called her up (or down) to help her write her vows, and Rosa was more than happy to help. She helped her organize her thoughts and feelings for Luigi and what their relationship truly meant to her. Rosa also helped to plan, outline, revise, and maybe wrote some parts of it herself.

She oversaw all parts of the writing process, yet, when Daisy recited those words back to Luigi on their wedding day, she reacted as if it were her very first time hearing it; tears in her eyes and hands clasped together. She was so proud.

Toadette Bridesmaid and master chef. And even better... free of charge! She was cooking up a storm with the help of other Toad chefs for Daisy and Luigi's special day. The two still provided her and her crew a very generous tip (Luigi is loaded here).

=====

Mario

Best man. With Mario and Luigi, it was pretty much the same story with Peach and Daisy, except Luigi was ten times worse. It took Mario a great deal of effort and convincing Luigi to not call off the wedding, just because of the mere thought of Daisy possibly having second thoughts.

Mario did everything a typical best man would do at a wedding and more, making sure everything was in order, and not a single detail was out of place. Right before, during, and after the wedding, he used at least 3 full rolls of tissue paper.

Another thing on the performance line-up... I'm gonna go ahead and yoink @silenzahra's musician bros hc and say that Mario does a surprise performance for Luigi and Daisy. It’s a song that is a testament to his and Luigi’s bond, which obviously immediately gets Luigi choked up.

As Mario was singing and playing the guitar, it felt so wrong for Mario to be singing their song on his own, so Luigi joined him on the stage, grabbing a mic left behind from Pauline's band group and singing alongside him. Cue forehead touches, and lots of hugging, crying, and ‘I love you’s.

====

Wedding Location and Theme

I 100% believe that their wedding would take place outside. Daisy and Luigi wanted a large, open space with a nice landscape view with not too many manmade buildings. So uh, Brooklyn was out of the question, not that they minded. Daisy decided to make use of the Chai Kingdom (one of the four Kingdoms in Sarasaland) and its naturistic feel.

And then the post-wedding dinner and performances would all take place here:

(Basically, just imagine all of this but green and orange-themed lol)

As for the theme, I feel that they’d go with a fairytale-themed wedding! That, or a forest-themed wedding; green and orange are earthy colors, so I want their wedding to reflect that.

Again, yoinking @silenzahra's Luigi the bookworm hc, I’d like to think that one of the ways Luigi and Daisy grew closer was from reading together, and the National Book Days in Sarasaland. Once Daisy got more into reading, Luigi encouraged her to venture out in her castle’s library and find some genres that she liked. They both noticed that she seemed to gravitate towards stories that were more adventure-packed, as well as fairytales, mythological, and fictional stories. Daisy has a very active imagination and loves otherworldly visuals, so Luigi was more than happy to incorporate that into their wedding theme.

The bridesmaids and maid of honor are decked in golden dresses (for ya girl), and the groomsmen and best man are decked in emerald green (for ya boy). For the wedding guests’ attire… there is not a single trace of black to be found! The wedding looked like a rainbow that threw up all the colors in the visible spectrum.

====

Have some drawings of the important people! (and my wacky attempt to shade gold material)

Bridesmaids: Pauline and Rosalina

To honor Pride Month… let’s just say Rosa is looking for that special someone… right beside her ;)

Lumas

I’m adding the Lumas (plus Lumalee of course!) to be the flower children! The wedding would be decked with 75-100 lumas of all different colors and purposes. They would be the ambiance for the wedding, especially when the sun sets, and at nighttime. The wedding would still use fairy lights in case the Lumas didn't cooperate (was never an issue). But... just imagine dozens of bright moving lights with sparkles trailing behind them in the night sky.

Groomsmen, Ring Bearer, Maid of Honor and Best Man (tumblr has me on a pic limit here 😮‍💨): Wario, Waluigi, and Toad; Yoshi; Mario and Peach

Yeah, Wario and Waluigi were invited, as long as they promised to behave. And if not, Daisy and her family will set em straight… and Mario if they even dare think about ruining his baby brother’s day. The two weren’t so fond of the dress code at first, but they sucked it up. Eventually, emerald green grew on them.

Wario: I look like a leprechaun!

Waluigi: Wah! How bad can this possibly be? (Iykyk)

Also, the tie Mario is wearing was handcrafted by Luigi when they were kids. ;’)

And of course…

Bride and Groom: Daisy and Luigi

She on dem high heels 🤭

I also really wanted to draw Daisy’s dad sending her off. I absolutely LOVE @itsavee4117’s interpretation of him (aka King “Marshmallow” Cris), so I’m yoinking him here toooo~

====

Post-Wedding

Like I said earlier, plenty of food will be provided by Toadette and her crew, and there will be endless games. They would mostly be Mario Party-styled, but there would also be some sports like tennis or mini-golf. That all happens after the newlyweds have their dance and cake. Let’s just say for an itty-bitty second of time, they recreate the dance of all dances.

After all the fun has been had, the two are driven into the moonlight by Toadsworth with a “JUST HITCHED” sign on the back of his Parade Kart from MK Double Dash. They’d be transported in this very familiar fashion.

;)

====

And that’s it! Hopefully I didn’t make the wedding seem too boring or sane for them, or made anything out of character for them. I know I did a lot more than you asked for, but I had way too much fun with it lol. Wanted to do our beloveds justice to the fullest. Let me know what you guys think, and feel free to add on to it!

[peaches2217]

Untarnished

Chapter 2 (TW: Brief but graphic descriptions of burn injuries)

AO3 Link | Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

~~~

Bright lights. Distant beeping. Something soft beneath her head, silky and downy and pleasantly cool. Peach’s first conscious thought was a timid prayer of gratitude. She was dead, or she was dreaming a new and unfamiliar dream; both prospects filled her with a peace deeper than she’d felt in months.

Dead, she decided when she opened her eyes and found Toadsworth at her bedside. The strain of her abduction and taking charge of the kingdom in her absence must have killed him. The thought didn’t bring her as much sadness as she felt it should have, because her slender hand in his small, wrinkled hands felt just as it had in life, and fat tears of joy and relief rolled down his round cheeks and dripped from the tips of his mustache, and if only she had the energy, she would have cried too.

No — dreaming, she amended when Toadette joined him. Her lady-in-waiting was still far too healthy and young and feisty to have dropped dead suddenly, unless by some great coincidence. Peach was laying at a slight angle, her legs straight out but her upper body inclined; Toadette climbed up into her lap (which Toadsworth objected to vehemently, but his protests, naturally, went unheard) and threw her arms around her neck, and suddenly she was crying too. Yes, this was certainly a dream. Since when did Toadette cry?

“I made wishes for your safety every single day!” she said between hiccuping sobs. “And I kept your room dusted and aired it out every day and had the maids change the bedding every week because I knew you’d be coming home! But I’m— oh Peach Pit I’m so happy you’re alive!”

Peach's throat suddenly felt tight, almost suffocating. She’d never dreamed about going home. In her dreams, she simply hadn’t been abducted to begin with, or else her abduction was treated as a memory so distant that it scarcely crossed her mind.

She didn’t dare let herself believe this might be real; perhaps waking up would be even harder now, and perhaps it would finally sap the last thread of hope she uselessly clung to, but for now, what was the harm in enjoying this strange dream? False happiness is still happiness, however temporary. So she let herself hug her dear friend back, and she let herself reach out and find Toadsworth’s hand once more, and she let herself feel present in their company and protected by the plush blanket tucked around her. It all felt so fuzzy and surreal and good.

And then the screaming began.

Instantly Peach’s blood froze in her veins. Her surroundings didn’t shift or go dark, as they usually did when she was startled out of a dream, and though she felt cold, everything around her remained warm. Even her illusionary Toadsworth and Toadette reacted to the sound, twisting their necks in alarmed horror in its direction — some room to the left of where Peach lay, it seemed.

By the second scream, a nagging sense of familiarity kicked in. She knew the wall she and her steward and lady-in-waiting stared at, recognized the muted pink wallpaper with white and dark pink accents. Didn’t the castle infirmary have that same wallpaper? She rarely had need to visit, lest she might have been able to place it sooner.

And she knew that voice. She couldn’t quite place it, since the cries were wordless and muffled by a layer of dressed stone, yet it made her stomach turn all the same. It was guttural, it was heart-wrenching, it was—

By the third scream, it all came flooding back.

“Y-your Highness, please—”

“Peach, hey, it’s okay, lay back down—”

“Princess, you mustn't—!”

More familiar voices surrounded Peach, voices she should have been happy to hear, but she paid them no mind. Something was holding her back. A blanket. A body. A wire taped to her hand. She winced as she ripped herself free, her feet moving independently of her mind, which assaulted her with vision after vision after terrible vision.

Mario, collapsing to the cobblestone streets of Toad Town in pure exhaustion, fate catching up to him once more. Mario, his face strained and his spine slumped but his eyes ever sure, wincing and hissing through his teeth but soldiering on anyway, stopping only to ensure that she was able to do the same. Mario, a broken heap at her feet, scorched to the point of disfigurement and motionless in a pool of his own blood.

Mario, screaming in unbearable pain, just out of her reach.

This was no dream.

Something caught her right hand just as she reached the door.

“They’re taking care of him!” Toadette cried somewhere behind her. “You’ve gotta let us take care of you, too!”

Some job “they’re” doing, Peach wanted to snap back. She could help him. How long had she been unconscious? Surely she had enough magic back now — she could continue mending the worst of his wounds, or she could help “them” fix him more quickly, or at the absolute least she could rearrange the receptors in his brain and make him think he wasn’t in pain. 

She tried to yank free of Toadette’s grasp, but she only held on tighter.

“I can help him.” She tried again, throwing her body forward against the much smaller girl’s weight, but it still wasn’t enough. “Just let me help him, and then I’ll return.” 

Then her left hand was seized, just as she tried reaching for the door. “You’re not helping anyone in this state.” Toadessa, head of the castle’s medical staff. She didn’t actively try pulling Peach back as Toadette did, but she remained firmly planted and unmoving. Something hot burned in Peach’s chest and throat, bitter like bile, and though the room was beginning to spin and her legs were already shaking, she tried once more to throw herself forward.

“Let me help him!” she cried. “Please!” She could have easily ordered them to let her go; she was their Princess, and no matter how they wished to help her, her word was still law. But this never crossed her mind. Those agonized shrieks drowned out every last rational thought, and all she could muster were futile efforts to break free and pleas that went unheeded.

Two Toads. It took all of two Toads to hold her back. One more effort was all her body could take before it failed her, and she fell to the infirmary floor with a startled yelp.

By the time she went slack, the screaming stopped.

All Peach could hear now was panicked murmurs behind her and the sound of her own breath, gasping and rapid. Air came too quickly for her lungs to absorb any oxygen. Her hyperventilation only exacerbated her dizziness, and that in turn nauseated her beyond measure, yet she knew vomiting would be of no use, because there wasn’t even anything in her stomach.

Silence rang in her ears. The silence was even more oppressive than the screaming. At least if Mario was screaming, she knew that he was alive.

Not that she could help him anyway. Not if she couldn’t even breathe properly. Not if it only took two Toads to hold her back.

“Your Highness…”

Her hands remained seized, as though she might actually try to escape again. As though she could.

The small but strong hands holding her back were real. The chill where stark tiles met bare skin was real. Mario’s screams, and then his silence, were real. 

Peach’s gasps gave way easily to sobs, yet she couldn’t even do that properly; they came in quiet, punctuated whines, the kinds of sounds an injured animal might emit. She doubled over there on the floor, making her best effort to fold in on herself to stave off the cold and the wooziness and the sheer helplessness that threatened to crush her alive. 

If only it would.

~~~

Peach still shivered as she stood beneath a rain of hot water. Her favorite soap had been brought to her, and while she wanted to revel in this small luxury, its flowery fragrance just made her dizzy. The soap also helped her identify every last scratch and sore on her body, burning with white-hot heat where it touched broken skin, and she wasn't quite sure if she hated the sensation or if she was grateful for it. Whatever the case, she took slow and deep breaths to refamiliarize herself with the way she used to smell, taking care to keep her eyes closed as she scrubbed off.

The lights were just as bright in the infirmary washrooms as they were in the resting rooms. Glimpsing her reflection had been bad enough. She couldn’t bear to look at herself any longer than necessary.

She was even worse off than she’d expected to be. In the first month of her captivity, she had done her best to spread out the single daily meal she was given, eat it slowly over the course of several hours. As despair slowly claimed her, she found she couldn’t even finish her meals at all, and there were days when she refused food outright in favor of curling up on her cot and letting gentler daydreams sustain her. By the time Mario reached her, her skin hugged the bones in her hands closely, and the dress that had been tailored to fit her perfectly hung loosely from her figure. So she had expected to look in the mirror and find herself frailer and paler. Even so, she hadn’t recognized the sickly and bruised figure that stared at her with dull, sunken eyes.

Feeble and filthy and poignantly helpless. She loathed to think that might be Mario’s final image of her.

Another shiver tore through her body. No, that wasn’t the case. He was alive. He was alive and if he was going to die, it wouldn't happen while she bathed. Toadessa had graciously checked and reported back to Peach, and she confirmed his relative well-being with such assurance that she was either telling the truth, or she had suddenly become a spectacular liar. Peach couldn’t afford the energy to suspect.

He was hurt. But he was alive. For now, that was enough.

Toadette was waiting for her when the water shut off, and Peach graciously accepted the oversized, fluffy towel she offered, eager to trap as much of the water and steam’s residual heat as possible. It swallowed her whole while careful fingers worked through her tangled hair, yet she shivered anyway. Still so cold. Why was she still so cold?

The nightgown she donned once her hair was presentable was only slightly better. It too hung from her more loosely than she was used to, but the feel of laundered silk against clean skin made the cold a touch more bearable.

“You oughta have a hot bowl of soup waiting for you by now,” Toadette said from where she knelt on the floor, wrapping the open sores on Peach’s feet in pillowy gauze. Her usually energetic timbre was far quieter, her bright smile more nervous. The brief glimpse Peach caught of her black eyes as she sat back to asses her work betrayed even more unshed tears.

Peach couldn’t blame her. She could hardly stand to look at herself. Toadette had no choice. She tried to thank her, or at least apologize, but the words wouldn't come.

She wasn’t hungry, somehow. Perhaps she had grown too accustomed to starvation. Perhaps she would feel differently in a moment’s time, when presented with her first hot meal in three months. She would at least make an effort, she decided, because seeing her eat would lift Toadsworth’s spirits. She owed him that much after the hell she had put him through.

But it wasn’t Toadsworth that awaited her when she was led back into her room. A much taller figure sat hunched over on the leather loveseat against the opposite wall, his knee bouncing frantically, his cap dangling in his hand by the brim; he looked up when he heard Peach, and for a moment she could do nothing but hold his eyes and hold her breath.

“Princess…!” A smile spread across his face, and he slapped his cap back on his head and held his arms out as he stood, and Peach found herself rushing into those arms before her legs could fail her again.

Luigi’s hugs were light but sturdy, his embrace a beacon of security in uncertain times. The embrace he welcomed her into now was no different, solid and gentle and warm, and for the first time, Peach truly felt that she was home.

“Oh, santo cielo!” he whispered into her shoulder. “Per fortuna stai bene…!”

Peach inhaled sharply. No more tears. She was already so sick of crying.

He never pulled away fully. He kept his hands on her shoulders even as their hug ended, beaming at her through misty eyes. “Th-the doctors say you’ll need to eat soup, soup, and more soup for the time being, but lucky for you, Mama knew a thousand ways to make a good soup! So we’re gonna keep ya well-fed, yeah? You’ll be feeling like yourself again in no time!”

He looked… disheveled, in a word. His neatly-styled mustache wasn’t neatly styled at all, fraying at the tips into a series of split ends, and the hair on his head didn’t look much neater. But most obvious were his eyes. The skin beneath them was dark, and his upper eyelids drooped as he spoke, as if he was struggling to keep them open. Seeing him in such disarray made that feeling of home a bit more distant than before.

It made perfect sense for him to be in such a state, Peach supposed. Between a dear friend being kidnapped and his brother…

Wait. Why was he here?

“What about Mario?” She finished her thought aloud. “Where is he? Is he alright? Has he eaten yet?”

“Oh, Peach Pit,” she heard Toadette grumble not far away. Peach couldn’t bring herself to be annoyed, not when she knew how deeply her friend worried for her, but it was still well within her rights to inquire about his health, and she had half a mind to say as much—

“No, no,” Luigi said quickly, leaning sideways so he could speak over her shoulder, “it’s okay! We'll get her fed! Gotta make sure she's comfortable first too.” Then his attention was back on Peach, and he dropped one hand but still kept a point of contact on her shoulder, and Luigi was notoriously squeamish when it came to extended periods of physical contact… 

The first stirrings of dread came alive within her, dark and heavy.

But Luigi’s face remained cheerful, and though his smile softened, it wasn’t sad. “He’s out cold right now. The doctors gave him the good stuff, so he’ll be out for a while, but I’ll bet the first thing he asks for when he wakes up is a big plate of carbonara, and we’ll take care of that! So don’t you worry.”

The corners of his eyes creased, and not just from his smile. These reassurances were as much for his own sake as for Peach’s. Suddenly her tongue felt woolen in her mouth.

“May I see him?” she somehow managed.

Luigi didn’t break from her gaze to seek Toadette or Toadessa or anyone else who might have been in the room’s approval. He nodded without hesitation. “O-of course. Of course.”

She tried not to hold her breath as she was led to the next room over, focusing on her breath and the grounding sting of each footstep. Growing faint or passing out wouldn’t improve his condition.

Not that his condition could get much worse, she realized upon seeing him.

He’d been stripped and washed at some point, but that still didn’t give Peach much to look at. Whatever wasn’t covered with a blanket was swaddled in gauze. Layer upon layer wrapped across his chest and arms and hands, around his midsection, over his shoulders, and their sterile white made the angry red splotches and scratches that peeked from beneath them look that much more painful.

All she could see in full was his face. Aside from a wrap around his head, partially covered by his hair, it remained unobscured. And the absence of soot and dried blood gave Peach a good idea of what the rest of him looked like: wrecked, his skin dark with bruises or else bright with first- and second-degree burns.

In spite of this, he looked… peaceful. His expression read as neutral and his mouth hung loosely open, the gradual rise and fall of his chest assuring Peach that he was breathing. It was even more obvious in this state that he hadn’t touched a razor in days, if not weeks; the stubble on his cheeks and chin had grown out enough that it looked almost like a proper beard. He looked handsome, even now.

Peach exhaled shakily. The picture of serenity on the brink of death. She wanted so badly to take his hand in hers, yet she feared to find it cold to the touch. She feared for the first time that a single touch might break him.

“It looks a lot worse than it is,” she heard Luigi assure beside her. “You shoulda seen him after this scrap he got into with Scapelli back in high school, or the first couple times he tried parkouring through an active construction zone. He didn’t look much better then than he does now!”  

Peach tore her eyes from one unnerving sight to set them upon another. There was concern in Luigi’s tired eyes, concern and fear and uncertainty, and his shoulders slumped under the weight of those burdens. Yet his voice was friendly, his smile kind, and he regarded her with every bit as much fondness as always.

Why? He should hate her. It was for her sake that Mario was like this in the first place. And if he didn’t pull through…

Her vision went unfocused, and she ducked her head and squeezed her eyes shut, as if that alone could stop the guilt that overtook her, or better yet, make her invisible. One less pitiful sight Luigi would be forced to endure. Hadn’t she already put him through enough?

“Hey.” He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and drew her close, and she selfishly accepted his embrace, slumping against him. “Hey, h-he’s gonna be okie-dokie, Princess, you know that! He’s a tough cookie. This is hardly all it’s gonna take to keep him down.”

She wanted to believe him. She wanted so desperately to believe him. But she’d never heard Mario scream like she had today. “He sounded like he was in tremendous pain.” She could barely utter the thought above a whisper.

A pause.

“Well... y-you know how Mario is with doctors,” Luigi eventually answered. “He can get the stuffing beat outta him and walk away just fine, but the second a doctor touches him it’s ‘Oh, the pain! The agony! Mamma mia, make it stop!’” And he laughed, just genuinely enough to fool anyone else, but not well enough to fool her. 

The remnants of a smile still lingered on his lips when she found the nerve to look at him again. How could he smile through all of this? How could he smile at her, the one responsible for his brother's potential demise?

“...They put something really strong on the worst of his, uh… everything,” he finally confessed. “Cleaned ‘em real good then slathered ‘em in some mix of Mushroom tonic and crushed Flowers and…” He laughed again, even less convincing than the first time. “The anesthetics had kicked in just enough to make him kinda loopy, but not enough to knock him out. I’ll bet it wasn’t nearly as bad as he thought. He probably just panicked.”

Or he was well enough out of it that he couldn’t hide how badly he hurt any longer. This went unspoken, but the thought hung heavy in the air above them nonetheless. Peach’s mind conjured up a disturbing image: Mario thrashing in agony, his brother pinning him down so the doctors could work, meeting his cries with reassurances stuttered in their shared tongue.

She did her best to force the image from her mind, replace it with the image of Mario resting peacefully before her. She didn’t need to know any more than she already knew. What mattered was the here and now, and here and now, he was alright.

“...I honestly thought it was gonna be a lot worse.” Luigi’s voice was quiet, the slightest bit slurred with exhaustion. “I’m just… happy he’s okay, for now.”

Mario, hurt but clean and on the mend, dozing restfully beneath comfortable sheets— Mario, his face melted and blistering, charred skin sloughing from every exposed plane and floating atop the viscous scarlet that flowed without end—

Peach balled her hands into fists and squeezed until her arms trembled from the force. She had put the younger brother through enough heartache. She alone would bear the truth. It had been worse. So, so much worse. Getting him to the state he was in now — getting him home alive, if only barely — had nearly killed her twice over.

And until she saw him back on his feet, she would continue to wish she had succeeded in giving her life to him. At least then his recovery would be guaranteed.

It should have been her. Why wasn't it her?

Luigi jostled her out of her ruminations, letting go of her shoulders to clap a hand gently against her back.

“How about this: we let him rest, you get some rest too, and I'll come get you when he wakes up. Sound good?"

Peach thought to protest, but she knew any objections would be pointless. Denying herself the chance to heal wouldn't help Mario any faster. She nodded in reluctant agreement, an action which Luigi mirrored.

“Then let's get you some’a that soup, yeah? Toadsworth will have my head mounted on the wall if I let you starve. For that matter, I don’t think Mario would be much happier.”

A new image cut through the morbid memories and visions that weighed heavy in Peach's mind: Toadsworth, chasing a screaming Luigi through the corridors of the castle with a halberd twice his weight and three times his height, a scuffed-up but otherwise healthy Mario looking on from a doorway in some mix of exasperation and amusement.

For the first time since awakening, laughter bubbled in Peach’s chest, fleeting but joyously light.

“‘Ey,” Luigi cheered, his own expression perking up, “there’s a smile! Oh, it’s so good to see you smile again, Princess! C'mon.”

She let her muscles loosen as he led her back towards the door, already prattling on about the hearty tomato soup waiting for her, and his newfound pep made her feel just a bit less heavy. No, martyrdom would benefit no one. To let herself curl up and wish for death, no matter the reasoning, would be to spit in the face of all that Mario had fought so hard for. All that he had nearly died for, too.

Taking one last glance at him as she left the room, she let herself believe for the time being that everything had worked out exactly as it needed to.

As it stood now, they both held a fighting chance for normalcy. Though Peach would have happily given her life for his, she much preferred the thought of them both living, rediscovering their own normals side-by-side, reveling in all of life’s little pleasures together. And if that was selfish of her, well, maybe she could afford to be a bit selfish for now.

~~~

Sleep eluded Peach, which she counted as both a blessing and a curse.

She was tired, so utterly tired, and yet she couldn’t get comfortable. The lights in her room were dimmed, but not turned out entirely for the sake of sporadic nurse visits, confusing her already ruined circadian rhythm. She hadn’t struggled to eat as much as she feared she would; the soup she’d been promised was tangy and sweet and the slightest bit acidic, and she’d scarfed it down while Luigi and a slightly more upbeat Toadette entertained her with lighthearted stories. They’d even managed to draw a few more laughs out of her.

But now her belly felt uncomfortably heavy, and the silence felt heavier still. And she was still so cold. Laying on her back, she couldn’t breathe properly, not helped by her constant shivering. Laying on her side, she could at least pull her blankets tighter around her own huddled form, but curling into herself agitated her full stomach and nauseated her. She'd only had one meal. She didn't care to lose it.

The blessing part of this struggle came from the simple notion that she’d already slept enough. There was little to do in her dungeon but pace and brood and sleep, and she hadn’t even done much of the first two in the past several weeks. No, she decided, folding back her blankets and finding unsteady footing, there was no point tossing and turning. If she was going to remain awake, the least she could do was use her time productively.

This was how she found herself back at Mario’s side in the hour before dawn.

As she approached his bedside, she glanced over at the loveseat against the opposite wall. Luigi was sprawled on its cushions, his cap pulled over his eyes and a thin stream of drool dripping from the corner of his mouth, his legs dangling over the sofa’s arm. How many sleepless nights had he endured in these past months? The room was silent save for his soft snoring and the steady beeping of a heart monitor, and Peach intended to keep it that way. Stars knew she owed him that much at least.

Kneeling beside Mario, she hesitantly reached for his hand, steadying her breath before touching his wrist. A sigh of relief forced its way past her lips at their contact. Her fears were unfounded. He was warm.

She spent a moment tracing her fingers over the back of his hand in contemplation. The dark hair that normally covered his skin had been shaved in the name of finding a good vein for an IV drip, and a piece of medical tape beneath a thin layer of gauze held the needle in place, delivering much-needed fluids to his system. A perfect entry point. Though her magic could penetrate even covered skin easily, she found it was most potent when concentrated directly into the bloodstream. Right now, she needed as much potency as possible.

Resting her palm atop that spot, she closed her eyes and focused. Surely there was enough by now. Maybe not enough to heal, but at least enough to ease the pain, or maybe even seal up some of his lesser injuries. 

But even conjuring her magic in the first place proved a great struggle. Her muscles constricted as she called it forth, a dull ache which grew into sharp, stabbing surges, and she dug the nails of her free hand into her thigh to keep herself focused. No matter how she tried, nothing came of her efforts. She willed it forward once, once more, once again, as if dragging a barbed hook through layers of sinew; she sniffed and gasped each time, biting into her tongue to keep any further noise reigned in, and still nothing came of it.

Only once had her own magic caused her such pain: reviving her dead hero, what felt like weeks ago now. But it worked. Her pain bore fruit, and her efforts were rewarded with renewed life. Why wasn’t it working now?

The ambience of the heart monitor came into the forefront of Peach’s senses, its once-steady tone picking up in tempo and compromising her already fragile concentration. 

Her body relaxed against her own volition, and she cursed beneath her breath. Yet as oxygen poured back into her lungs, as blood flow returned to her brain, her frustration morphed into hope. Increased heart rate. If his heart was beating faster, that meant something was happening. That meant her magic was coursing through him, no matter how little, and his body was repairing itself again. Right?

With one last deep breath, she lifted her eyes to his face.

His eyes were already fixed on her.

Peach yelped out in shock before she could stop herself, slapping a hand over her mouth moments too late. That shock was reflected in Mario’s eyes, already wide when their gazes met, growing wider still as they stared one another down; the brilliant blues of his irises caught the blinking lights of assorted medical equipment, cloudy and drowsy but awake and aware.

The monitor hooked to his pulse went haywire, but its frantic beeping faded into ambiance once more.

“Hey,” he whispered. His voice was hoarse from exertion or disuse or some combination of the two, but it was his, and that single word set Peach’s pulse racing every bit as quickly.

“Hey,” she whispered back. He smiled weakly at this, and somehow, she smiled back.

Peach had never been the impulsive sort. As a politician, she made sure to consider her every move deliberately before acting, a habit that had been drilled into her while she was still in high chairs. So she wasn’t quite sure what force compelled her to climb into his bed, nor was she quite sure what force compelled him to make room for her. Whatever their reasoning, three minutes and several careful adjustments later, they laid facing one another, their heads sharing the same pillow, their bodies separated only by her gown and his blanket.

Peach knew well enough how improper this was, and still she didn’t care. Not with Mario so close, so present, so alive. The exertion of rolling onto his side and scooting a few inches back had exhausted him; with his last ounce of physical strength, he draped an arm over her side, weakly flexing it forward, as if trying to pull her closer. She would have happily met him halfway if it didn’t mean losing her line of sight. She wanted to look at him just a moment longer, just to make sure he was really here.

She drew her hand up slowly, careful not to agitate any of his numerous wounds, until at last her fingertips rested at his jawline. That seemed the safest place to touch. Perhaps the only safe place to touch for now.

Mario muttered something beneath his breath, too quiet for Peach to hear, and she feared that even this gentle touch was too much for him.

“Beg pardon?”

“Sorry about the beard,” he repeated, and though his eyes remained closed, he smirked. He was joking. He was awake and aware and alive and cracking jokes. He really was going to be okay.

Though she lay exposed above the blanket, the bitter cold she had grown begrudgingly accustomed to melted away, and warmth penetrated to her very bones.

“Actually, I quite like it,” she found the strength to tease back, and she swore she felt his skin grow hot beneath her fingers.

“Y’do?”

“Mmhm.”

“Mm. Think I should keep it?”

“I think you should do whatever you want for the rest of your life.”

He chuckled at this, deep in his chest. “I like the sound of that.”

Her touch remained light, just in case, but if his facial hair hid any additional injuries, he wasn’t showing it. He looked peaceful beneath her touch, smiling softly as she stroked her thumb along the curve of his jaw. Had he gone without food, too? His face seemed sharper, his cheeks less plump than she remembered. 

She didn’t have very long to muse on this notion. When he eventually peeked his eyes open, they pulled her back into the present moment; they were heavy with impending sleep, and the pain she feared would remain etched into them eternally was nowhere to be found. All she could see in those eyes was adoration. Adoration so strong and pure that it made her feel impossibly small yet equally unstoppable, so obvious that she wondered how she hadn’t seen it before.

Perhaps she had seen it. Perhaps she had convinced herself it was all in her imagination; perhaps she was too afraid to let herself hope that he might return her affections.

He returned her affections. He was alive, and he would be okay, and he loved her just as deeply as she loved him. The rush that overtook Peach would have easily brought her to her knees, and she thanked the stars that she was already laying down. 

Their words of mutual confirmation comprised the second of two mantras that kept Peach going, even when she was certain she could go no further, and in her fear for his life she hadn’t let herself dwell on them any further. But they’d exchanged that mantra back and forth even as their already limited energy dwindled, even when collapse and failure and death felt inevitable, filling the air between them when all other words failed: I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you…

“I love you,” Mario said now, in that same hoarse whisper as before.

Peach inhaled sharply, and suddenly the tears she’d so valiantly fought off stung at the backs of her eyes. He’d told her those three blessed words ten or twenty or fifty times in the past day, but this time was different. There was no desperation or disbelief in his voice, no heaviness of affliction or regret or uncertainty, no exhaustion holding his tongue. He said it quietly but unwaveringly, unapologetic.

How else had he said it? At multiple points in their journey, he couldn’t find the strength to translate his thoughts into the common tongue, and so he would squeeze her hand and utter a pair of foreign words to her, the same two words, over and over and over.

“Ti amo,” Peach echoed now. Foreign or not, those words felt right on her tongue, effortless.

Mario’s face changed, suddenly more alert than before, and for a brief instance Peach felt cold again. Had she misremembered or misspoken? Just as quickly as he’d reacted, though, he closed his eyes and pushed his cheek deeper into the pillow, that breathtaking smile returning in full force.

“Noooo,” he whined, the syllable broken up by a breathless laugh, “don’t say that, Princess! I’m not ready to wake up yet.”

The arm draped over her flexed again, and his bright smile morphed into something darker, sadder. Something like bleak resignation.

He thought this was a dream. Nothing but a pleasant and misleading dream, perhaps one of many, just as she’d thought her own awakening to be. The first of a new wave of tears forced their way past Peach’s defense, and she swallowed thickly to rid the lump in her throat.

“Then don’t.” She obliged his nonverbal request this time, scooting closer until their bodies were flush, ducking her head beneath his chin. Warm. So present and real and warm. “Just— just sleep for now. Rest with me.”

Mario hummed, and she felt it reverberate in his throat, the vibrations and unshaven scruff tickling her cheek. “Will you… be here?” he managed after a moment. “When I wake up?”

Peach sniffled. He no longer smelled of burnt skin and fresh blood. Medicinal salve filled her olfactory senses now, sharp and clean. “They’ll have to drag me out kicking and screaming.”

This earned another laugh from her hero, her closest friend, the love of her life, and he nuzzled his chin into the crown of her head with a satisfied sigh.

They lay together in comfortable silence after this, and while Mario dozed, Peach took the opportunity to ground herself. The twangy aroma of salve; the rise and fall of his chest against hers; the weight of his arm holding her close; the beep-beep-beep of a heart monitor gone steady once more. She buried her face into a thick patch of gauze on his shoulder and let her tears flow freely, content to tremble in the safety of his embrace.

This was real. She was home. 

She was home.

[the-kitchens-on-fire]

The au

[ask-rosalina-and-her-family]

Thanks for requesting @princessrosalinasuperstar

And sorry this took forever. Getting the characters in was hardd. And I made the princess a little too short rip ;-;

Art is mine !! Don’t copy/repost

[gingergari]

me when i wrote a quick toad!peach fic taking place before mario Knows

Toadstool Chatter

Toadiko curtsied, and Mario performed a quick head bob as he lifted his hat off his head.

“Luigi said you would be coming this way, is everything alright?”

He nodded rapidly. Toadette tilted her head.

“Do you need an audience with the Princess? She shouldn’t be too busy—”

“No!”

The two Toads jumped, and an apology spilled out on the heels of the outburst.

“It’s…about her.”

Toadiko and Toadette exchanged looks before Toadette gave a mischievous grin.

“What about her?” Toadiko asked.

To the surprise of both Toads, Mario’s face started to get red as he fanned his face.

“I—ehm—what are the rules for the Princess to…to date?”

At this, Toadette gasped.

“Wait, don’t tell me you—“

“I just—I’ve felt this way for a while, and—“

“She’s betrothed,” Toadiko said, her expression somehow flatter than her tone. Toadette swatted towards her.

Mario blinked. “Be…trothed?”

“Set to marry,” Toadette chirped.

“To who? Bowser?!” Then he clamped his hands over his mouth as the two frowned. “Mi scusi, I was thinking too fast.”

“Oh, nonono. To Prince Peasley! You’ve met him, right? Such a dreamy man.” Toadette swooned.

Mario cocked his head to the side a little. “…No?”

“Really? He’s come to visit at least twice since you’ve arrived in our kingdom.”

“He was away that first time,” Toadiko reminded Toadette. “And I remember Master Luigi sent word that Master Mario was sick the second time he visited.”

“Oh, right…” Toadette looked a little upset.

“He’s—“ Mario’s voice hitched. “Sorry, I—“

“Nono, it’s okay! Prince Peasley’s amazing, but look at you!” Toadette grabbed his arm with both hands, and his eyes flitted to how her tail excitedly waved around. “You’re the hero of our kingdom! You make our princess laugh. I know she would accept your hand if you offered it.”

“But…you said she’s betrothed…”

Toadette brushed it off with a wave. “They can call that off! I know she’s getting cold feet—“

“Toadette!”

She flinched away. Toadiko looked flustered on the princess’s behalf.

“Sorry, Toadiko. You’re right.” Toadette looked back to him. “Just…don’t count yourself out, Mario, alright?”

Mario looked a little less hesitant, and gave her a thumbs up.

“I won’t.”

Toadette clapped her hands together.

“Yay! Toadiko, don’t you think they’re a great match?”

Toadiko stared at Mario before averting her eyes and swallowing.

“I believe Princess Toadstool…may share your feelings.”

Mario blinked. “Mama mia, I thought I was imagining it.”

“I will ask that you understand what this may mean for you before you continue. Our princess isn’t just an object of affection.”

“Of course.” Confusion leaked into his voice, but no question followed.

Toadiko looked to Toadette. “Maybe he should talk with Toadsworth.”

At this she fully turned to face Toadiko. “Stars above, Ko, you’re trying to set him up to fail! Let them think about courtship first.”

At ‘courtship,’ Mario’s face started to get red.

Toadiko frowned. “He should know that our Princess isn’t a fling.”

“It won’t be!” Toadette turned towards him. “Right?”

“R-Right. Have I—“

“See! It’ll all be fine.”

“What will be fine?”

They all turned to see Princess Toadstool, who looked rather amused. Toadette and Toadiko quickly curtsied, with Mario awkwardly doffing his cap in a bow. The princess smiled.

“Oh! Mario, what a pleasant surprise! Was there something you needed?”

“Princess, I…” He cleared his throat. “You will be hosting a party soon, correct?”

“Yes. I assume you and Luigi have received my invitation?”

“Yes, thank you. We will be there.” He opened his mouth again as if to add something else, but shook his head and closed it.

“Mario, didn’t you have something to say?” Toadette looked a bit coy.

His face turned a mottled red and he found a sudden interest in the castle tiles.

“No,” he squeezed out. “Not now.”

Toadette gave a disappointed sigh. “Alright…”

Princess Toadstool looked between Toadette, Toadiko, and Mario with an arched brow.

“I’ll let Mario tell me what he wanted on his own time.” At this he visibly relaxed, and she could properly address him. “Could I interest you with some tea while you’re here?”

“Oh—ehm—sure.” Mario tugged a bit at the neckline of his shirt.

She clasped her hands together. “Wonderful. Toadiko, Toadette, do you want to join us?”

A sudden overlapping “yes” from Toadiko and “no thanks” from Toadette startled her. An awkward beat followed for a tad too long.

“Thank you for your generosity, Princess,” Toadette recovered, “But we don’t want to intrude on your time with Mario.”

Toadiko said nothing as Mario and the princess both started to blush.

“My time with—Toadette! This invitation was for both of you to relax.”

Mario looked away from the trio as Toadiko frowned at Toadette. Toadette did not seem to notice.

“I just…wanna get on top of things for the party! Reduce the work for you, my princess. We can take a break later.”

Princess Toadstool seemed to hesitate.

“Are you sure? I don’t want you two to overwork yourselves.”

“I’m sure!” Toadette gave a smile. “Have fun! Don’t waste Mario’s time! We’ll see you later, Princess!”

Toadette quickly curtsied, yanking Toadiko down with her into a more sloppy one. Princess Toadstool returned the gesture a bit hesitantly. Mario weakly raised his cap at them.

“Excuse us, your Highness. Master Mario.” Toadiko bowed again before Toadette lead them away. It was only when they were presumably out of earshot that Toadette began to speak again.

“What was your problem?”

[kuramirocket]

The fact that Mario reacts when he hears Luigi's cries and he goes to rescue his little brother first before everyone else, even Princess Peach ❤💚

[gee-arid]

Observe: my blorbos.

I have many thoughts.

Mario and Luigi would be considered the player characters/heros/agents, that makes sense.

Peach and Daisy would be Idols, think Squid Sister vibes-

I dont have a concrete story line but eventually Peach and Daisy retire or quit, taking up their own things, probably Turf war or anarchy.

After them comes Rosalina as an Idol, she and Luma (fishie :) ) i suppose take over Off the Hook.

Something something- she hangs out with Geno.

Outside of timeline stuff- Toad and Toadette run the general store together, they alternate on the day they work. During Peach and Daisys Idol time they can be found helping them out in the set on their off days.

Also Polterpup is a ghost shrimp :) He probably sticks with Professor E. Gadd most days.

Since this i have designed Yoshi, Birdetta, Bowser, and Geno... and this doesnt even include Peasley, Junior, E. Gadd, or Peach and Daisys alt. designs (non idol outfits)...

[dragon-fly34]

The protective group of Mareach AU (Episode 1, part 1)

It was a beautiful day in the Mushroom Kingdom, it was like a normal day, but it was about to change, Mario and Peach were in the garden, they were both sitting in the garden looking at the sky, when Toadette arrived with a tray of tea:

“- Hello princess! Do you and Mario want a tea? said the little mushroom"

"-Of course my friend, let's go Mario?" asked the princess, getting up from the garden

"Of course princess!" replied the plumber, getting up

The two sat at a table in the castle's courtyard, Toadette served tea for the princess and the plumber, but she noticed a green cap and orange glasses in a bush, she was so close to the bush that she didn't hear Peach:

"-Toadette? Can you hear me?"

"- What? Yes, I'm sorry, I was thinking about some things and I didn't even listen to you"

"- Alright my friend, now you can leave" Peach said, taking the cup of tea

Toadette took the tray and went to the castle kitchen, she was still wondering what was that she had seen in the bush and remembered that days ago she saw a crown appearing Daisy's and a Toad spying on Mario and Peach.

After she left the kitchen, she went out a little and saw Luigi and Yoshi looking at some photos, she got curious and decided to go and see.

“-Hi boys! What are you looking at?” asked the little mushroom

Yoshi and Luigi were scared by Toadette and hid the photos.

"-Anything!" Yoshi replied

"-We're just looking at some photos of Peach's castle" Luigi said, putting the photos in his pocket

"-We have to go now... bye!" Said Yoshi almost sweating

the two left leaving Toadette curious and wondering what they were looking at, then followed the two, destiny arrived at Yoshi's house, the two boys went in, but Toadette managed to get in and hid under the table.

The boys were getting ready for a date at Yoshi's house, Toadette continued to see what they were doing, after an hour, Daisy , Donkey Kong and Toad arrived

"-Welcome to TPGM!" Said Luigi "Let's set up a meeting because we have something very important to talk about!"

"Luigi and I discovered that Bowser sent some koopas to disrupt Mario and Peach's meeting" Said Yoshi, showing some photos

"So that's what they were looking at in the photos!" whispered Toadette while listening to everything under the table "So they were the ones watching Mario and Peach today"

"-Then we have to stop the koopas!" Daisy replied, getting up "We have to do everything to make sure they stay together!"

At that time Toadette got a little too close to hear the conversation that she didn't even notice that she was almost being seen by Donkey Kong

"- Guys, that's under the table , isn't that Toadette?" The monkey asked, leaning over to the sofa

Curious Luigi got up and cowered under the sofa and saw Toadette, at that time the mushroom came out of the table.

End of 1º part of 1ª chapter!

[soundvikk]

Super Mario Addams Family

[thatmutantcat]

Rubs hands together deviously

[peaches2217]

A Call from the Balcony

AO3 Link!

~~~

“Ah, your highness!” Toadsworth greeted. “You’re in a bit late, aren’t you? No matter! Before you retire to your chambers there’s a few things I wanted to— y-your highness? Your highness!”

His voice quickly faded behind Peach as she passed him, her pace quickening into a brisk walk, then a light jog, then a run. She would apologize later, she decided. Toadsworth was never very far. There would be plenty of time to explain away her actions and listen to whatever it was he intended to yammer on about.

She didn’t have the same luxury at her disposal right now. This mission was time-sensitive. She hiked her skirts up and ran as quickly as her shoes would permit, the heels clacking frantically against the marble floors; she thought for a moment of kicking them off so she could sprint, but she would lose as much time in the act as she would gain from the additional mobility.

And anyway, the next corner she rounded brought her face-to-face with her target destination. She burst through the entrance to her drawing room, stumbled into her bedroom, and threw aside her balcony doors, rushing to the railing and praying she wasn’t too late.

The darkness outside made color difficult to perceive, but she recognized the red-and-blue silhouette crossing the bridge over the castle's moat all the same. A grin split her face from ear to ear.

“Mario!”

He startled, as though her call had pulled him from some deep train of thought, and quickly turned to face her. She swore his eyes lit up at the sight of her, and that filled her with an unprecedented joy, so intense that her head buzzed and warmth blossomed in her chest.

She paused then, fighting back a sudden wave of panic. She hadn’t thought of anything to say.

In truth, they had only parted ways a few minutes earlier. Today had been a rare and wonderful day in which they’d never once left each other’s side. A meeting with a foreign diplomat that morning meant Mario had arrived bright and early to serve as her guard; the uneventful meeting ended just before 1:00 in the afternoon, so she had invited him to share lunch with her before she had to bury herself in administrative paperwork. Mario himself had offered to keep her company and make the tedious task more bearable, and thanks to the constant joking and frequent mental shifts from the topics they were supposed to be focused on, the sun hung low in the sky by the time she finished. She had then offered dinner for his troubles, and he agreed on the condition that they take a short walk afterward — “Nothing worse than being cooped up like that all day,” he’d said, rolling his shoulders and cracking his neck, and she couldn’t help but agree.

An hour after the sun had gone to bed, she finally and reluctantly bid him farewell, because she had already taken up his entire day and he didn’t seem willing to leave without her permission. Yet she missed him as soon as they parted, and by the time she was inside, she made up her mind that she needed to see him one last time.

Now Mario was staring up at her, clearly expecting a reason for being stopped so soon after being excused, and Peach could think of nothing but Every moment with you never feels like enough.

What would he say to that? Would he laugh? Would he be embarrassed? Would he feel the same way?

“I… forgot to tell you!” she finally said after what felt like an eternity of wracking her mind for excuses. “The main fountain in the garden has sprung a leak. I fear it will face irreparable damage if it isn’t fixed by about 2:30 tomorrow afternoon!”

Another pause, this time as Mario processed her announcement, and she witnessed the exact moment he realized it was actually an invitation — his eyes widened in understanding, and then he gave a single, firm nod. “You can count on me, Princess!” he called back.

Already Peach’s heart felt lighter. What would she invite him to do? She could get up early to bake his favorite coffee cakes and they could share them in her favorite gazebo. Or perhaps she could pack them and a bottle of wine into a wicker basket and escape the castle grounds with him for a few hours. Tomorrow’s weather was supposed to be lovely, perfect for an impromptu picnic. Or they could always just do as they had done tonight, pacing about in the fields behind the castle as they discussed any and every topic that ran through their heads.

She supposed she had a bit of time to choose. It would be rude to keep him waiting in the meantime.

“Forgive me for holding you up,” she called.

“Never!” he called in return. “It’s always a pleasure!”

“Then I’ll see you tomorrow?” She backed away from the railing, giving him silent permission to break away, and she noted with a pang of amusement that he took a single step back as well, as though mimicking her.

“Of course! Can’t have that fountain breaking down, now, can we?”

She took another experimental step. Mario followed suit. Did he even realize he was doing it?

“Then stay safe going home!” Another step.

“Oh, I think I can manage!” The same step, mirrored.

“Sleep well!”

“May your dreams be sweeter than cannoli cream!”

“And may your night be equally pleasant!”

“Buonanotte, amabile principessa!”

“You too! I think!”

Mario laughed, and considering they were still calling out to one another while Peach’s back was inches from the doorframe, she laughed as well. She never wanted this game of call-and-response to end. But what other choice did they have? Mario pulled his cap from his head and waved with it, one final, wordless farewell, and Peach scrambled for her handkerchief to return the gesture. Like a noblewoman seeing her lover off, she couldn't help but think.

Eventually, Mario turned in the opposite direction, though his actions seemed slow, almost thoughtful, and he kept his eyes on her until his body’s change in position forced his head forward. Like a noblewoman’s lover desperate to drink in her image one last time. The thought made Peach’s throat feel tight.

If only…

She watched in silence as Mario walked out of sight, his cap seemingly forgotten in his right hand. She absently clutched at her handkerchief in her left and sighed. “Goodnight, Mario,” she whispered into the night.

~~~

“Guys don’t just stare at girls until they physically can’t anymore if they don’t feel something for them,” Toadette weighed in half an hour later, brushing the last of a handful of tangles from Peach’s hair. Peach just sighed for what must have been the hundredth time that night.

“Something about my posture must have been amusing to him,” she reasoned. “Or I was simply imagining it. You know how time slows when he leaves.”

Toadette stepped down from her step stool to set the ornate hairbrush on the vanity, and Peach tore her eyes from her own miserable reflection to watch as she fetched a bottle of argan oil, only to disappear behind her again. 

“You of all people have no reason to sell yourself short.” Tiny fingers massaged her scalp as Toadette worked the oil through her hair. She closed her eyes and relaxed at the familiar sensation. “You’re a princess, for crying out loud! You know how many men dream of becoming your suitor? What makes you think Mario’s any different?”

The answer was obvious, Peach felt, but tonight she felt more tempted than ever to think maybe her lady-in-waiting had a point. “Because I’m not just a princess to him,” she said, more to herself than to Toadette. “I’m a cherished friend, a trusted confidant, an equal.” 

“And nothing’s going to convince you otherwise.”

“Nothing short of him saying any differently himself.” When Peach opened her eyes, her reflection looked tired, sad. She couldn’t help but smile bitterly. “It’s a bit cruel, honestly. Knowing one of the reasons I love him so much is one of the very same reasons he could never return those affections.”

Now it was Toadette's turn to sigh.

That night, Peach settled into bed and fell asleep quickly, an overstuffed pillow hugged tightly to her chest. She remained blissfully unaware of the scuffle just outside of her door.

“I’m telling him everything!” Toadette cried, writhing in vain against Toad’s grasp on her wrist.

“Don’t you dare!” Toad pulled with all of his might, managing to drag her a few inches back before she lurched forward again.

“I can’t take it anymore!”

“You think I don’t get an earful of lovesick rambling every day too?!”

“By the stars, if they can’t take a hint, I’ll make them see the light myself!”

“This has to happen organically! On its own! You can’t rush love!”

“I can and I will!”

On the opposite side of the door, Peach dreamed of a warm summer day sharing coffee cakes with the man she loved more than life itself. She smiled in her sleep and hugged her pillow closer.

[misscalming]

AYOOO if you're an artist who makes any sort of Mario related merch reblog with with a link to ur redbubble store, etsy store etc. <333 I'm struggling to find any artist merch for the franchise :( SO promote urself pls for me and any others who want some sweet designs to stick to their laptop or hang up on their walls <33

[ramen-flavored]

You could cut the tension