Categories > Games > Mario > Complications
Chapters 5, 6 and 7
0 ReviewsAs if constant kidnappings and conflicting emotions were not enough, Peach's life is about to get even more complicated. BowserxPeach, LuigixDaisy, later MarioxPauline.
Complications: Chapters 5 to 7
"Peach was kidnapped again?" It was logical for Mario to think that was the reason for the distressed phone call.
"Oh, no Her Highness is fine, we're just having a ghost invasion." Toad paused. His voice had become calm when he happily informed Mario that the princess was safe; then realized that this was no time to remain calm. With an invasion of ghosts threatening to take over the Mushroom Castle, and for all he knew the entire kingdom, it was the perfect time to panic. "Ghosts! We're being attacked by ghosts!" He stopped once again realizing that just because Peach had not been kidnapped by Bowser, it didn't mean she was safe. What if the ghosts kidnapped her? "Sir Toadsworth! The princess!"
"Princess Peach!" Mario and Luigi heard Toadsworth's worried voice, followed by the sounds of the phone being dropped and frantic footsteps rushing away.
"Ghosts?" That was certainly a surprise for Mario, but it seemed that there were few things that were impossible in their world.
"Ghosts?" Luigi repeated in a very alarmed tone quite different from Mario's surprised and slightly confused question. He didn't like ghosts, then again who did? But Luigi had a very strong dislike for them, his brother even went as far as to call it a ‘phobia’.
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Away from the chaos of the Mushroom Kingdom, Peach, Daisy and Lavanda were enjoying their walk deep into the Forest Maze. They were perfectly fine until Peach was separated from the group.
One moment Lavanda and Daisy were just a few steps ahead, picking wild mushrooms, and the next they were nowhere in sight. Peach searched her surrounding area didn't see Lavanda or Daisy.
Peach somehow had a feeling that she was no longer in the same area of the forest, yet the thought made no sense save for that odd feeling she got a few seconds ago. She had no idea she had been teleported but she knew she wouldn't find anyone by simply standing there, so she started walking. "Daisy! Lavanda!" No one answered.
Peach, Daisy and Lavanda were together then Peach realized she was alone. It was the beginning of Lavanda's plan. She teleported Peach away while Daisy was distracted, then teleported herself to meet Bowser and continue with their plans. Not too far from Peach, hidden by the trees and tall bushes, Lavanda and Bowser were discussing the next part of the plan. "Now it's time for you to rescue Peach so she will start to see you more as a hero than a kidnapper."
"I have to rescue her from Mario?" Bowser wasn't sure how that would work. From his point of view he was rescuing her, but the way she always saw it, he was kidnapping her. "I do that all the time."
"No, not from Mario, from the wolves," Lavanda clarified. There were no wolves in the Forest Maze and when Bowser reminded her of that, Lavanda replied with a simple "yet". With a wave of her want she transformed two mushrooms into ferocious looking wolves.
"Isn't this dangerous for Peach?" Bowser wanted to impress her but not if it meant putting her in danger.
"Don't worry; just remember they're actually mushrooms. The wolves will only give her a scare, they won't hurt her. Then you can make your heroic entrance and save her!" Lavanda transformed a few dry leaves into a bouquet of roses and handed them to Bowser.
"Right, then I give her the flowers." It seemed like the logical thing to do but Lavanda was shaking her head. "I don't give her the flowers?"
"The roses are your weapons, to rescue her in style!" After Lavanda's announcement, Bowser blinked and looked confused. "Let me elaborate, girls like roses. This will be a bit different from your usual strategies or from what I've heard about them. When the wolves corner Peach, throw a rose in front of them and make your dramatic entrance. Throw the remaining ten roses to drive them away, give the last rose to Peach and say /welcome, Princess/."
"I have to drive the wolves away by throwing flowers at them and welcome Peach before she even gets to my castle? That’s just stupid! Besides, it's better to just breathe fire on them." Honestly, were did she get those crazy ideas?
"Your majesty, that's not the point." Lavanda was starting to feel frustrated but she tried to hide it. "You need to appear dreamy and heroic to Peach. Please accept my advice. it's easier to come up with these ideas from a girl's point of view."
"Kammy never said I should anything like this," Bowser pointed out.
Lavanda sighed in frustration. "Kammy is old, her methods are outdated. I'm pretty sure Peach is nearby. The roses are enchanted so just throw them like kunais."
"Kunais, those little ninja knifes?" He threw one against a tree to try it out. The rose was quite sharp and got stuck on the tree. "It's like throwing darts at a picture of Mario!"
"If that image will motivate you and help you focus then yes, it's just like throwing darts at Mario's picture. Places everyone, Peach approaches!" Lavanda teleported Bowser and also disappeared into a different location.
"Daisy? Lavanda?" Peach thought she heard something but still, no one answered. She stopped, frozen, when she saw two ferocious-looking wolves. One of them was a pale grey and the other black. Both were quite large, bearing their fangs and growling at her. She backed away slowly, fearing that if she screamed for help or made any sudden movements the wolves would attack. The black wolf howled and started running towards Peach, followed by the gray one. That was her cue to drop her mushroom basket and run for her life screaming at the top of her lungs.
While Peach ran for her life, Bowser held on to a tree branch also fearing for his. Lavanda had teleported him there so he could make his heroic entrance by jumping down from the tree, but she didn't warn him about that detail. While he thought of ways to teach the magikoopa that no one abandons King Bowser stuck in a tree and gets away with it, his plotting was interrupted by a familiar voice. "Help!"
"Peach!" The branch gave out under his weight and the Koopa King went crashing down. He threw the roses into the air as he fell and when he landed on his shell he watched as they fell towards him. For a moment he panicked and struggled to get up before he ended up like that picture on his dart board.
He was unable to get back on his feet, but fortunately the roses landed in a pattern around him. He breathed relieved but the feeling was short lived when he remembered his situation. Luckily, it seemed that his sudden fall was enough to scare the mushroom wolves away, although it was not the heroic entrance he had in mind.
Peach stood a few feet away, completely perplexed by Bowser's sudden appearance and unusual entrance. She thought about running away before he had a chance to kidnap her, but he did save her from the wolves, so she at least had to make sure he was alright. "Bowser, are you okay?"
"Yes, I'm fine," he grumbled. At least she was showing concern for him, it was a good sign. He struggled to get up but it seemed like the force of the fall had made the spikes on his shell get stuck on the ground. "I'll be with you in just a second, Princess."
He was stuck, that was her chance to get away, but she couldn't bring herself to run and leave him there. "I'll give you a hand if you promise not to kidnap me."
"I promise not to kidnap you if you promise to come with me." It seemed he wasn't able to get up without help as hard as he tried. How frustrating- and it happened in front of Peach!
"Promise not to kidnap me and keep that promise or no deal. You're not in the best position to make demands..." She was smiling. At least she was somewhat amused now that she realized he wasn't hurt, just stuck. Seeing the princess smile gave him a happiness that nothing else could bring him.
High above, sitting on a branch of a tall tree hidden by its abundant leaves, Lavanda watched the scene. "As I thought, he needs a lot of help." But instead of using her magic to help Bowser get up, she gave Peach a little push. The result was the princess falling on top of the king. "Now that they're more comfortable, things should start to move in the right direction…"
Peach quickly got up and stumbled backwards. She didn't notice there a low hollow tree trunk behind her and fell in. "Peach!" Bowser tried to get up and see if she was alright but he was still stuck.
"That was not supposed to happen." Lavanda shook her head and this time used her magic to free Bowser and teleport herself down from the tree.
Down the tree trunk in an underground cave, Peach had landed on top of a weeddle. The flower on his head fell off and his yellow skin turned red in anger. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to fall on you. Please don't be angry!" Before she could get off, the weeddle started running wildly. "No! Stop! Ahh!"
Bowser suddenly found himself on his feet, with Lavanda standing next to him. She looked down the three trunk were Peach had fallen, there was an underground cave there, but the princess was nowhere to be found. "Where did she go?"
For all he knew, Peach could be in danger. There was no time to waste, he would deal with Lavanda later. Without a second thought, Bowser dived into the tree trunk and got stuck.
Lavanda sighed; this was not going according to her plans. She addressed the ground since Bowser head was below. "Your majesty, do you need help?"
"What kind of a stupid question is that? I don't need any help, I can-" Before he could finish, the space in the tree trunk was magically stretched enough for him to easily fall in face first.
"Are you alright, your majesty? You didn't get stuck on your shell again, did you?" Lavanda asked with a tone of amusement hidden behind innocence. She was quick to jump back when fire erupted from the tree trunk as if it was a volcano. "If he's well enough to do that then he's fine."
The many underground passages were connected by the hollow trees. In his wild rampage with Peach still riding on him, the weeddle came out on the other side of the forest where Daisy was searching for her companions. "Daisy!"
"Peach! Riding on a weeddle? Great idea!" Without a second thought, the Sarasaland princess jumped on the back of another weeddle who was just innocent passing by. Angered, the weeddle's flower fell off and her skin also changed from yellow to red as she took off on a rampage, Daisy laughing and having the time of her life.
Lavanda levitated in mid air, watching the show. "This is fun, but I really need to move forward now..." In a massive outburst of magic, the weeddle chaos was ended and new disarray was on its way.
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"Ugh... What happened?" Judging by the abundant trees surrounding her, Daisy was in a forest but it didn't quite look like the Forest Maze. She didn't remember falling off the weeddle but somehow she was thrown there and the weeddle was nowhere to be found. "Peach! Lavanda! Where are you?" A feeling of foreboding sunk into her heart and her stomach turned with worry. She wasn't in the Forest Maze anymore, but how?
She walked, walked, and walked for hours, yet it seemed that she always ended up where she started. The Forest Maze has its tricks and turns, but Daisy had learned them all. This sea of trees was unknown to her and clearly much more confusing than the maze. There were no weeddles or mushrooms anywhere, which were common in the Forest Maze and there was a heavy mist in the air that made it hard to see. "Where am I? Lavanda... does she have the power of teleportation? Was she hiding it? Why..."
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"Are you sure? Are you absolutely certain beyond the smallest doubt?" Toadsworth asked for what felt like the millionth time.
"Yes." Mario had arrived at the Mushroom Kingdom as fast as he could change his pajamas for overalls and drag Luigi out from under the bed.
The younger plumber was very relieved that the entire ghost problem had either been a false alarm or they were already gone. He was talking to Daisy like normal, but was shifting uncomfortably for reasons that his brother didn't understand. He put up a pretty good brave act for her so there was no need to be embarrassed, yet Luigi's discomfort was due to something else entirely.
"Do you give me your word on that?" Toadsworth asked one final time.
Mario was becoming frustrated after being dragged out of his home so early on his day off for no reason. "Yes, Luigi and I checked the entire castle and there are no ghosts anywhere."
"That is a great relief, but why were we attacked? This is a most unsettling situation." While Toadsworth exercised his brain trying to think of a possible explanation, Mario exercised his appetite.
Mario's stomach produced a loud growl in complaint for the lack of food. "I had to leave home without breakfast. Why don't we all have a big breakfast and relax?" The pasta had been left untouched on the table and it was most certainly ice cold by now. What a waste.
"I think it's a wonderful idea; and to celebrate that there were no ghosts after all, I'll bake a cake!" Peach cheerfully announced. She skipped out of the room humming a happy tune and giggling. Lavanda's copies were not quite perfect.
"Great idea!" Mario was quick to follow the Mushroom Kingdom princess. The thought of her delicious cakes made his mouth water.
Luigi gave Mario a worried look. Something felt out of place. It was an odd thing to notice, but Daisy's very presence felt different to him. It was as if the young woman standing before him wasn't Daisy at all. No, it was a ridiculous thought, of course she was Daisy, who else could she be? She had the same brown hair, the same blue eyes, the same yellow dress, everything down to the last detail was exactly like Daisy. Yet she felt different and it bothered him, her expression, her words, details that went beyond what he could notice with a quick glance. It was the kind of details that only someone who knew her very well would notice. He decided not to give it too much thought. He was probably still trying to recover from the fear of thinking he would be facing ghosts.
Not Mario, nor Luigi, nor anyone in the Mushroom Kingdom had found out yet that the Peach and Daisy in the castle were only enchanted dolls.
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Lavanda was usually very confident in her skills, maybe too confident, but today she had to admit that things were not quite completely under control. No problem, she just had to find Bowser and Peach, and then nudge them in the right direction. Daisy was already out of the picture so that was one less person to worry about. If only her head would stop spinning she could figure out a way to accomplish her plan.
She sat down under the shade of a tree for a moment, knowing all too well the headache that had settled in was not going to disappear any time soon. Her power wasn't infinite and nowhere close. Though sometimes she thought it was, that was just her over-confidence, something that, unfortunately, ran in the family.
There was some rustling in the bushes nearby as Peach emerged with mud on her skirt and leaves in her hair. "Lavanda!"
"Princess Peach! What happened to you? Allow me to help you get cleaned up." Even if she knew she was at her limit, Lavanda would not admit it. Besides, it would only take a small amount of magic to clean Peach's dress and hair. "Better?"
"Thank you, but we don't have much time. Bowser is in this forest; I only just managed to get away. Let's find Daisy and leave before he-"
"Peach!" It seemed that Bowser had slipped and fallen in a mud puddle while chasing after Peach. "Don't run away, I'm here to save you!" He knew it would sound so much better if he wasn't covered in mud. He gave Lavanda a deadly glare.
"King Bowser... It's alright Peach, my predictions never go wrong and this is as good a time as ever to show you the future!" An image appeared before them. Bowser and Peach were reflected in the magical picture projected from Lavanda's wand. They looked very happy together. A dizzy feeling rushed to the matchmaker's head and her face started to feel warm as if she had a fever. She made the mirage disappear and aimed her magic at getting rid of the mud that was all over Bowser. "Now the two of you can..." she collapsed.
"Lavanda!" Peach rushed to the magikoopa's side. Her forehead was warm and she looked pale.
"It's ok, Peach, don't worry about me, I'm..." Lavanda paused, the situation could work in her favor if she played her cards right. "I'm going to die soon anyway. I hoped I could live for another week or two. How I wish to see my king and his love together!" She was really weak from all the magic she used, but at least it helped her act.
She was dying? How could that be? Peach's eyes went wide at the revelation. "You can't be dying!" Even if it turned out that it was Lavanda who told Bowser where to find her, Peach couldn't accept the fact that someone so young was dying.
"I wish I had a good doctor, then maybe there could be a way to extend my life a little… if only a little...." Lavanda concluded her part of the drama and waited for Bowser to say something.
The Koopa King was feeling ignored with Peach tending to Lavanda's sudden illness and acting as if she didn't notice his presence. Lavanda was a lousy matchmaker anyway and Bowser didn't know how to take a hint.
"I'll take you to a doctor, you're going to be alright." Peach tried to help Lavanda walk while Bowser tried to think of what to say to direct Peach's attention back to him.
"A magikoopa doctor? I was hoping to find a specialist, but got a little sidetracked in my travels." The fortune teller was starting to feel a little better. Her magic had not yet fully recovered but she could walk on her own, she only let Peach help her to continue the act. If Bowser didn't take that clear hint she would seriously start to doubt his intellectual capacities.
"There's a doctor in my castle!" Bowser finally blurted out what Lavanda had been waiting to hear for what felt like so long.
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"Really I'm okay, you should spend some time with Bowser!" Lavanda gave Peach her sweetest fake smiled which looked almost real. "You two are so cute together!"
"Lavanda..." All in all, Peach was not happy. "You told Bowser that we would be at the Forest Maze, betraying my trust. I agreed to come to his castle so you could receive medical attention and as soon as you were strong enough to lift your wand you blasted the doctor out of the room screaming that you were fine and didn't need his help anymore. Daisy is probably wandering around the Forest Maze with no idea about where we are. She must be worried sick. This is not the kind of day I had planned. All of this... Why? Is it only because you have your mind set in making your prediction come true?"
Lavanda took a moment to let everything that Peach had said sink in. She wanted to carry out the plan in her own way, but her mission had been clearly explained and figured out.
After her father waited so many years for this, he was set in getting things done in a specific way, claiming that it would be the only worthy revenge for what happened years ago. She wanted to secure her place as the heir to her father's riches, so she couldn't disappoint him. It was her rightful place; she was the oldest even if it was only for two and a half minutes. "I apologize."
Many times Peach had been told that, sometimes, she was too soft, too forgiving. "I forgive you, since I know your intentions were good deep down." Oddly as Peach spoke those words she felt uneasy, as if it wasn't true.
"Thank you." Lavanda smiled for real this time, not because she was forgiven but because she still had a chance of getting her plans back on track.
"No more secret matchmaking?"
"I promise." Both Lavanda and Peach knew that promise would be broken.
"Get some rest; I'm going to try to call Daisy again." Leaving Lavanda to rest in a large bed covered in purple sheets, Peach walked to the window to make a call on her cell phone. The view of the Darklands was the same as usual, but the service coverage had improved considerably. Of course there were certain restrictions. Peach didn't know how, but Bowser always found out her phone number.
Other than sending her countless text messages, Bowser blocked certain numbers from being reached whenever the cell phone was in the Darklands service area. No doubt, he must have put a big budget into the technology. Peach could call Daisy, whom Bowser assumed would be in Sarasaland, and a few other people, but if she tried to reach the Mushroom Kingdom or the Mario brothers the call would be blocked. Logically she could simply call Daisy and have her call the Mushroom Kingdom, but it seemed that no one dared to point that out to Bowser in his attempt to make Peach feel more at home.
Even with this new freedom, the Mushroom Princess was not allowed to leave Lavanda's room unless it was to go to Peach’s own room. Bowser was taking precautions to make sure she didn't escape, preparing his army for when the Mario brothers arrived and all the usual business. Peach waited for Daisy to answer. She had called countless times to let her know what happened but received no answer. After the seventh ring the sound of someone accepting the call was finally heard. "Daisy, I've been trying to call you for over half an hour. I'm at Bowser's castle with Lavanda-"
"You're in danger..." Peach was certain she had dialed the right number. She had it saved on her cell phone and the name displayed on the little screen clearly read 'Daisy'.
"Who is this?" A heavy feeling of foreboding hung in the air as the sound of a dropped call was heard and the words 'call ended' appeared on the screen.
"Peach, is something wrong?" Lavanda got out of bed with her wand on one hand and a fluffy purple pillow in the other.
"It's nothing. You shouldn't be up so soon," Peach made herself smile, there was no need to worry Lavanda over what could be a joke. The voice that answered the call was obviously not Daisy, Peach was certain it was a man's voice but he didn't sound familiar at all. Her only explanation was that Daisy dropped her cell phone and the one who found it decided to play a joke on the next caller. But if that was all there was to it, then why couldn't she stop feeling as if something was very wrong?
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Daisy glared at the oddly shaped rock in frustration, the one that looked like a mushroom. It was the third time she walked past that rock. At first she thought it was a coincidence and that there were more than one large mushroom shaped stone in that strange forest, but after placing an earring on it for the sake of marking her path, she knew she was going in circles. Two rocks that looked the same was a possibility, but it would be too much of a coincidence if someone had the same earrings as her and decided to leave one on a mushroom shaped rock. Someone better have an explanation for all of this when she got back home... With a firm pace, Daisy marched deeper into the forest searching for any signs of civilization, or a way out, or anything at all that wasn't rocks, trees and leaves.
She suddenly heard a noise as if someone had stepped on a branch. When she turned around, however, there was no one there. She noticed that something was different; her earring was missing. She walked back to the mushroom shaped rock next to the large tree. With another unexpected sound the tree trunk revealed a secret door and for a moment, Daisy thought she was saved. Then she realized this could only mean she was in even more danger.
"I think you've ran around enough, miss," a young man with black hair and forest green eyes spoke. His clothes were darkly colored, a little dirty and old. "You really shouldn't leave your jewelry behind and expect to find it again later."
"You were watching since before that..." Daisy had thought she felt a presence but didn't see anyone until then.
The young man stepped out of the tree hideout as his companions surrounded Daisy. "I won't deny that I've been watching you for a while. It's not every day that such a lovely lady ventures into the forest. No need to be afraid, just leave all your money and valuables here and you can go."
Daisy really wasn't in the mood to negotiate but she had no choice. "Do you have a phone?"
"What?" That was the first time his gang of thieves surrounded someone and they didn't appear to be scared.
"Do you have a phone?" Daisy repeated slowly. "I'll pay you if you let me use your phone, deal?"
"There's no need for me to make a deal with you..."
"Just let me use your phone! For all I know my best friend is in danger, a new friend betrayed us and I'm lost in an unknown forest. Don't make it worse. One little phone call is all I need, then I'll give you some money and we can go our separate ways!" Daisy snapped. Her patience had run dry.
The thief leader laughed. "Fine, fine, I'm not an evil thief. I'll let you make one phone call… but if I hear anything suspicious you have to hang up; don't try anything funny. I expect all your money and jewelry in return. After that, my men will take out to the edge of the forest and you're free to go, speak of this to no one."
"You have my word, I only have one more question." The young thief watched Daisy with curiosity wondering what her question would be. It wasn't what he expected. "Where am I?"
Daisy waited for an answer as the leader handed her a cell phone and realized she was serious about her question. How could she now know where she was? There were no other easy to get lost in, misty forests in that land. "Lost Woods."
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"You're in danger..." Peach couldn't get those words out of her head. Her thoughts continuously returned to them, even if she tried not to think about it. Those words held a certain indisputable truth that she could not explain. This wasn't about Bowser and it wasn't a mere joke, it was something else... One thing was for sure, Peach could not sleep.
She threw a pink robe over her pale pink pajamas and put on a pair of fuzzy white bunny slippers. At least she had a change of clothes prepared for her, these last few times she got kidnapped. Peach was in Bowser's castle so often she practically had her own wardrobe. She looked at the remote control and thought about watching TV, but decided didn't feel like it. She wanted to talk to Daisy and make sure she was alright. She wanted Mario to save her...
"On the job, sleeping? Naughty, you are!" A familiar voice was heard behind the door.
"Lavanda?" Peach didn't know why Lavanda was speaking so strangely.
The door was opened to reveal the matchmaker wearing purple pajamas and fluffy black kitten slippers. "Greetings, Peachy! For the party, to kidnap you, I have come!"
The peculiar invitation was followed by a fit of giggles which made Peach blink and wonder what was wrong with Lavanda. "Are you okay?"
"Great, I feel!" Lavanda cheered and giggled. "Brave man, that doctor was. Came back, he did." Lavanda hiccupped, accidentally zapped herself with magical electricity and giggled for a good ten seconds before continuing. "He say medicine make me feel like drunk but no hangover in morning. He say take for recover magic. Me not drunk, me happy! Lavanda very happy! Me want party! Come party, Peachy! Party! Eat! Dance! Fight! Fun!"
"Fight? Maybe its best if you get some sleep until you fully recover…" Peach noticed that Lavanda's wand was producing little violet sparks. It looked like that medicine worked fast, but it wouldn't be good to have all that magic at her disposal in her current condition.
"No sleep! Party!" Lavanda rushed down the halls, followed anxiously by Peach.
"Wait! Lavanda! Stop!" As she ran after Lavanda, Peach noticed that the guards in front of her very own door were asleep. Lavanda must have done it.
Finally, after a few minutes of nonstop running, Lavanda had reached Wendy's area of the castle and stopped in front of her door. "Koopa Princess! You awake?"
Wendy nearly jumped out of her shell at the sudden voice. The late night romance-horror movie she had been watching was at its most suspenseful moment. "Go away, I'm watching a movie!" There was no way she was going to miss the ending, especially since it was only a few minutes away.
"You finish what doing. We get things for party!" Lavanda did a military style salute and hit herself on the forehead with her wand. "Ouch! Boo-boo!" She rubbed the spot on her forehead and smiled sheepishly.
"Lavanda, I think it's best if you get some sleep. You haven't fully recovered yet and- Lavanda!" Peach ran after the magikoopa. She had run away laughing hysterically while the princess was still talking.
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This time Peach followed Lavanda to the kitchen. "Peachy, help get snacks!" Lavanda cheered while throwing magical triangles, circles and squares at the cabinets and refrigerator.
A variety of snacks came dancing out, knocking things over and making a mess, while Peach unsuccessfully tried to put everything back where it belonged. "Stop!"
Lavanda froze in place. "Why?" Her eyes became shiny with tears. "Why? Why? Why?" In an unexpected mood swing she went from sad to angry. "Meanie!"
Peach was quick to evade the spell that was thrown at her. A box of cookies that was floating behind Peach was hit by the magic and transformed into a bird, which quickly flew away. Honestly, a drunken magikoopa was the worst, and she wasn't even drunk due to alcohol but a medicine's side effect. Peach didn't want to think about how much worse it could be if Lavanda was drunk 'for real'.
Sighing, Peach said, "Alright, we'll have a slumber party!"
"Yay!" With another drastic mood swing, Lavanda gave Peach a hug.
Peach did not waste the opportunity and took Lavanda's wand. "I'll carry this for you, so you can carry more of the yummy snacks. It's more fun that way."
Lavanda nodded in an exaggerated way, making her light purple hair fall on her face. "Thankies!" She picked up a bunch of snacks in a large bundle in her arms. "Cookies, chocolates, candy, chips... drinks! We need drinks!"
"I'll bring the soda." Peach knew that if Lavanda carried the blue cans she would shake them so much on the way, the liquid would burst out like an explosion when they were opened.
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Peach and Lavanda returned to Wendy's room. By then, the Koopa Princess had finished her movie and was about to get ready for her 'beauty sleep'. Wendy heard a knock on her door, followed by an impatient voice. "Gotta knock a little harder, Peachy!"
The request came as a challenge, because Peach had her hands full. Luckily, she didn't need to knock on the door again since Wendy opened it, looking very annoyed. "It's late and I totally need my beauty sleep to be even more beautiful!"
"Party!" Lavanda tossed the snacks she was carrying into Wendy's arms and pushed her out of the door way. She hopped on Wendy's bed and started jumping. "Party! Party! Party!"
"Get off my bed!" Wendy roared. She dropped the snacks into Peach's already full arms and tried to chase Lavanda out.
Making an inhuman effort not to drop anything, Peach walked to the nearest table and set the food down. The night had turned into chaos, but maybe, just maybe, she could stop the war going on between Wendy and Lavanda before someone got hurt. "Please calm down!" Peach cautiously approached the battle arena that was once Wendy's bed. "Wendy! Lavanda!"
Lavanda was hitting Wendy with a pillow and giggling to her heart's content. "Stop it! Stop it!" Wendy yelled in annoyance and frustration because the apparently crazy magikoopa wouldn't leave her alone. Wendy grabbed a pillow and swung it at Lavanda as hard as she could. The momentum made her spin as she missed her target, who had ducked at the last second. The pillow slipped out of the cover and went flying towards Peach, hitting her square in the face.
"Ow!" Even if the pillow was soft, Wendy had a mean throw. That was it, Peach had enough. While Wendy accused Lavanda of cheating and threw a very loud tantrum, Peach picked up the pillow that hit her and joined the battle. Maybe she could knock some sense into Lavanda and at the same time get back at Wendy. They were the ones who started it, and they were about to find out how lethal Peach could be with a pillow. All those pillow fights with Daisy were about to pay off.
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"Mario! Mario, are you awake?" Luigi shook his brother's shoulder. Mario mumbled something about pasta and cake in his sleep and threw the covers over his head. "Mario!" Luigi called louder.
Mario peeked out from under the covers, half asleep. "Did you have a nightmare?" That was his guess, judging by Luigi's expression.
"Something isn't right. I was worried about Daisy so I went to check on her, but she isn't in her usual guestroom. There was only a doll... I searched the entire castle but she's not here." Luigi had a bad feeling since he and Mario arrived at the Mushroom Castle earlier. Peach invited them to stay over and baked dozens of delicious treats. The entire time Luigi was with Daisy, but it didn't feel quite right. First there was that attack by ghosts, and now Daisy was missing.
"She's probably with Peach, go back to sleep." Mario's stomach was still full from the big dinner and even bigger dessert he ate. All he wanted to do was sleep and digest, having sweet pasta dreams.
"Peach is missing too. I thought Daisy was with Peach. Daisy told me that sometimes they stayed up late talking. Peach's door was open but there was no one in her room. I think something bad happened!" The thought of Daisy being secretly abducted by ghosts terrified Luigi, but even with his phobia he would stop at nothing to save her.
"Luigi, calm down, you're overreacting." Mario sat on his bed and yawned. He knew that Luigi wouldn't stop insisting so easily. "Maybe Peach and Daisy went out, you know a girl's night out..."
Luigi's cell phone suddenly rang. He rushed to the other side of the large room to answer it immediately, it could be Daisy. Luigi only wanted to her voice telling him everything was alright. He wanted to feel like he was talking to the real Daisy again. Luigi didn't recognize the called ID but he answered anyway. "Hello?"
"Luigi! It's me, Daisy! You're not going to believe what happen. Let me start by saying that I'm in the airport right now, the Hyrule airport! I was thrown in the middle of Lost Woods this morning without an explanation or anything. I think Lavanda might have been working for Bowser but at the same time this doesn't feel like something he would do. Where are you? Do you know if Peach ever returned home?" Daisy delivered the news so quickly that Luigi barely had time to react. She was lucky that she knew the princess of Hyrule and remembered her number. Daisy would be on her way home soon; but what about Peach?
"Daisy..." Luigi finally managed to speak. His thoughts were going a mile a minute putting all the pieces together. The Daisy that was in the castle earlier was a fake. "Are you alright? You were here; I mean there was another you, and a fake Peach too."
"I'm fine, the fakes must have been the dolls," Daisy remembered. "Peach, Lavanda and I were going out and didn't want to be followed, so Lavanda made copies of us from dolls; she's a magikoopa. Luigi, you and Mario have to make sure Peach is safe. I have a really bad feeling about this. Everything points to Bowser, but I don't think that's all there is to it. I don't know what's going on, but I'm worried!" Daisy felt a strange pain in her heart, as if someone dear to her was in grave danger. She had never felt such intense worry and pain when Peach was kidnapped by Bowser before.
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Bowser yawned and grumbled. He was trying to remember the name of the servant who was supposed to refill the refrigerator in his quarters. Whoever it was, it was in trouble, because Bowser didn't have easy access to his nightly snacks. He could call a maid to bring him something, but part of the satisfaction of having a midnight snack was getting it himself. It just wouldn't be the same if anyone found out. There was a certain secrecy to it that made it more delicious. Of course, the Koopa King ate whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted, but that wasn't the point.
As he marched down the empty halls towards the kitchen, he realized that the reason he could not remember the servant's name was because he didn't know it in the first place. Naturally, he couldn't waste his time and memory remembering the names of unimportant people. Another thing that came to Bowser's attention, as he walked near the area that led to Wendy's room, was that she was being very loud. He stopped in his tracks and turned towards his daughter's room to tell her to shut up.
The door was opened just a couple of inches, letting a thin line of light escape into the dark halls. Bowser could clearly hear giggles and laughs coming from the room and he knew that not all of them belonged to Wendy. He pushed the door completely open, causing it to collide with the wall; it was a miracle he didn't knock it down. He was about to scold Wendy for being noisy, but stopped when he saw Peach. The sight of his beloved beating Wendy and that magikoopa matchmaker with a pillow was just priceless.
"Bowser!" Peach was the first to acknowledge Bowser's presence, after the loud noise of the door crashing against the wall announced his entrance.
"King Dad, Mama Peach is cheating!" Wendy whined, pointing an accusing finger at Peach and holding a pillow as a shield with her other hand.
"Peach can cheat as much as she wants at whatever it is you're doing." As Bowser approached, Wendy grinned mischievously and made good use of the moment. Peach was distracted, so it was easy for Wendy to catch her off guard and hit her with a pillow on the back, hard enough to send the Mushroom Princess falling into Bowser's arms. Normally, Bowser would be angry if anyone did anything that could upset Peach, but this wasn't so bad, so he would let it pass.
Peach once again tried to get on her feet as quickly as possible. She apologized for falling on Bowser again and quietly thanked him for catching her, even if it was obvious he didn't mind. In fact he had enjoyed it.
Lavanda snuck away to avoid getting into another pillow fight and crawled to the snack table. She reached up, feeling for the cookies in the table's surface and knocked down her wand which hit her on the head and zapped her again. "Ouchy..." Her voice sounded more childish now. She sat there sleepily sucking her thumb then looked towards Peach, Wendy and Bowser. Lavanda observed him, tilting her head left and right; then suddenly came to a realization. Her eyes went wide, her mouth hung open and she stopped sucking her thumb to point. "Boy!" A short moment of silence passed as everyone gave the magikoopa puzzled looks. "Cooties, boy, cooties!" Lavanda hopped off the bed and hid under it.
"I think you scared her," Peach told Bowser with an amused smile.
"She should be scared, not doing her job like she should and-" Bowser stopped, he had said too much and Peach caught it right away.
"So she was working for you all along? I should have known she wasn't acting on her own with the matchmaking plot." Peach already know about the matchmaking plan, but decided to forgive Lavanda.
Bowser put his arm around Peach's shoulders and tried to change the subject. "Mind if I join the party?"
"Yucky boy! You have cooties! Go away!" Lavanda yelled from her hiding place under the bed.
Seeing Bowser's angry expression, because no one spoke to the Koopa King like that, Peach decided to intervene. "The medicine Lavanda was given to recover her magic made her a little drunk. She isn't herself right now, so please don't be angry at her." Peach slowly slipped out of Bowser's hug as she explained.
Bowser tried to speak but his voice was lost in Lavanda's cries of fear for cooties, while Peach tried to listen to Bowser and calm Lavanda all at the same time. "Shut up!" Bowser roared and in an instant, everyone in the room fell silent.
"But King Dad-" Wendy started to whine.
"Shut up!" Bowser didn't like repeating himself.
"Bowser," Peach spoke.
"Shu-Yes, Peach?" In split second Bowser's voice changed from loud and angry to a normal volume and almost cheerful.
"Don't talk to him, Peachy! Cooties have boys! No! Boys have cooties! Yes!" Lavanda warned her while still hiding under the bed.
"Shut up!" Wendy yelled just like Bowser did before, only a lot more high pitched. She shook her head as if silently saying 'Lavanda is so totally dead'.
Peach couldn't help it but to laugh at the irony. Lavanda had been playing matchmaker for her and Bowser not too long ago, and now the magikoopa wanted Peach to stay away from his cooties.
"Your majesty, I've been searching for you." Kamek was now standing at the door. "I don't mean to interrupt but-"
"This better be important!" Bowser didn't like it when anyone interrupted his time with Peach.
Kamek knew Bowser wouldn't like the news, but he needed to know. "The paratroopas that were out on patrol spotted the Mario brothers heading this way."
To be Continued
Many thanks to Razzi (ebtwisty9) for beta reading and giving me advice.
"Peach was kidnapped again?" It was logical for Mario to think that was the reason for the distressed phone call.
"Oh, no Her Highness is fine, we're just having a ghost invasion." Toad paused. His voice had become calm when he happily informed Mario that the princess was safe; then realized that this was no time to remain calm. With an invasion of ghosts threatening to take over the Mushroom Castle, and for all he knew the entire kingdom, it was the perfect time to panic. "Ghosts! We're being attacked by ghosts!" He stopped once again realizing that just because Peach had not been kidnapped by Bowser, it didn't mean she was safe. What if the ghosts kidnapped her? "Sir Toadsworth! The princess!"
"Princess Peach!" Mario and Luigi heard Toadsworth's worried voice, followed by the sounds of the phone being dropped and frantic footsteps rushing away.
"Ghosts?" That was certainly a surprise for Mario, but it seemed that there were few things that were impossible in their world.
"Ghosts?" Luigi repeated in a very alarmed tone quite different from Mario's surprised and slightly confused question. He didn't like ghosts, then again who did? But Luigi had a very strong dislike for them, his brother even went as far as to call it a ‘phobia’.
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Away from the chaos of the Mushroom Kingdom, Peach, Daisy and Lavanda were enjoying their walk deep into the Forest Maze. They were perfectly fine until Peach was separated from the group.
One moment Lavanda and Daisy were just a few steps ahead, picking wild mushrooms, and the next they were nowhere in sight. Peach searched her surrounding area didn't see Lavanda or Daisy.
Peach somehow had a feeling that she was no longer in the same area of the forest, yet the thought made no sense save for that odd feeling she got a few seconds ago. She had no idea she had been teleported but she knew she wouldn't find anyone by simply standing there, so she started walking. "Daisy! Lavanda!" No one answered.
Peach, Daisy and Lavanda were together then Peach realized she was alone. It was the beginning of Lavanda's plan. She teleported Peach away while Daisy was distracted, then teleported herself to meet Bowser and continue with their plans. Not too far from Peach, hidden by the trees and tall bushes, Lavanda and Bowser were discussing the next part of the plan. "Now it's time for you to rescue Peach so she will start to see you more as a hero than a kidnapper."
"I have to rescue her from Mario?" Bowser wasn't sure how that would work. From his point of view he was rescuing her, but the way she always saw it, he was kidnapping her. "I do that all the time."
"No, not from Mario, from the wolves," Lavanda clarified. There were no wolves in the Forest Maze and when Bowser reminded her of that, Lavanda replied with a simple "yet". With a wave of her want she transformed two mushrooms into ferocious looking wolves.
"Isn't this dangerous for Peach?" Bowser wanted to impress her but not if it meant putting her in danger.
"Don't worry; just remember they're actually mushrooms. The wolves will only give her a scare, they won't hurt her. Then you can make your heroic entrance and save her!" Lavanda transformed a few dry leaves into a bouquet of roses and handed them to Bowser.
"Right, then I give her the flowers." It seemed like the logical thing to do but Lavanda was shaking her head. "I don't give her the flowers?"
"The roses are your weapons, to rescue her in style!" After Lavanda's announcement, Bowser blinked and looked confused. "Let me elaborate, girls like roses. This will be a bit different from your usual strategies or from what I've heard about them. When the wolves corner Peach, throw a rose in front of them and make your dramatic entrance. Throw the remaining ten roses to drive them away, give the last rose to Peach and say /welcome, Princess/."
"I have to drive the wolves away by throwing flowers at them and welcome Peach before she even gets to my castle? That’s just stupid! Besides, it's better to just breathe fire on them." Honestly, were did she get those crazy ideas?
"Your majesty, that's not the point." Lavanda was starting to feel frustrated but she tried to hide it. "You need to appear dreamy and heroic to Peach. Please accept my advice. it's easier to come up with these ideas from a girl's point of view."
"Kammy never said I should anything like this," Bowser pointed out.
Lavanda sighed in frustration. "Kammy is old, her methods are outdated. I'm pretty sure Peach is nearby. The roses are enchanted so just throw them like kunais."
"Kunais, those little ninja knifes?" He threw one against a tree to try it out. The rose was quite sharp and got stuck on the tree. "It's like throwing darts at a picture of Mario!"
"If that image will motivate you and help you focus then yes, it's just like throwing darts at Mario's picture. Places everyone, Peach approaches!" Lavanda teleported Bowser and also disappeared into a different location.
"Daisy? Lavanda?" Peach thought she heard something but still, no one answered. She stopped, frozen, when she saw two ferocious-looking wolves. One of them was a pale grey and the other black. Both were quite large, bearing their fangs and growling at her. She backed away slowly, fearing that if she screamed for help or made any sudden movements the wolves would attack. The black wolf howled and started running towards Peach, followed by the gray one. That was her cue to drop her mushroom basket and run for her life screaming at the top of her lungs.
While Peach ran for her life, Bowser held on to a tree branch also fearing for his. Lavanda had teleported him there so he could make his heroic entrance by jumping down from the tree, but she didn't warn him about that detail. While he thought of ways to teach the magikoopa that no one abandons King Bowser stuck in a tree and gets away with it, his plotting was interrupted by a familiar voice. "Help!"
"Peach!" The branch gave out under his weight and the Koopa King went crashing down. He threw the roses into the air as he fell and when he landed on his shell he watched as they fell towards him. For a moment he panicked and struggled to get up before he ended up like that picture on his dart board.
He was unable to get back on his feet, but fortunately the roses landed in a pattern around him. He breathed relieved but the feeling was short lived when he remembered his situation. Luckily, it seemed that his sudden fall was enough to scare the mushroom wolves away, although it was not the heroic entrance he had in mind.
Peach stood a few feet away, completely perplexed by Bowser's sudden appearance and unusual entrance. She thought about running away before he had a chance to kidnap her, but he did save her from the wolves, so she at least had to make sure he was alright. "Bowser, are you okay?"
"Yes, I'm fine," he grumbled. At least she was showing concern for him, it was a good sign. He struggled to get up but it seemed like the force of the fall had made the spikes on his shell get stuck on the ground. "I'll be with you in just a second, Princess."
He was stuck, that was her chance to get away, but she couldn't bring herself to run and leave him there. "I'll give you a hand if you promise not to kidnap me."
"I promise not to kidnap you if you promise to come with me." It seemed he wasn't able to get up without help as hard as he tried. How frustrating- and it happened in front of Peach!
"Promise not to kidnap me and keep that promise or no deal. You're not in the best position to make demands..." She was smiling. At least she was somewhat amused now that she realized he wasn't hurt, just stuck. Seeing the princess smile gave him a happiness that nothing else could bring him.
High above, sitting on a branch of a tall tree hidden by its abundant leaves, Lavanda watched the scene. "As I thought, he needs a lot of help." But instead of using her magic to help Bowser get up, she gave Peach a little push. The result was the princess falling on top of the king. "Now that they're more comfortable, things should start to move in the right direction…"
Peach quickly got up and stumbled backwards. She didn't notice there a low hollow tree trunk behind her and fell in. "Peach!" Bowser tried to get up and see if she was alright but he was still stuck.
"That was not supposed to happen." Lavanda shook her head and this time used her magic to free Bowser and teleport herself down from the tree.
Down the tree trunk in an underground cave, Peach had landed on top of a weeddle. The flower on his head fell off and his yellow skin turned red in anger. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to fall on you. Please don't be angry!" Before she could get off, the weeddle started running wildly. "No! Stop! Ahh!"
Bowser suddenly found himself on his feet, with Lavanda standing next to him. She looked down the three trunk were Peach had fallen, there was an underground cave there, but the princess was nowhere to be found. "Where did she go?"
For all he knew, Peach could be in danger. There was no time to waste, he would deal with Lavanda later. Without a second thought, Bowser dived into the tree trunk and got stuck.
Lavanda sighed; this was not going according to her plans. She addressed the ground since Bowser head was below. "Your majesty, do you need help?"
"What kind of a stupid question is that? I don't need any help, I can-" Before he could finish, the space in the tree trunk was magically stretched enough for him to easily fall in face first.
"Are you alright, your majesty? You didn't get stuck on your shell again, did you?" Lavanda asked with a tone of amusement hidden behind innocence. She was quick to jump back when fire erupted from the tree trunk as if it was a volcano. "If he's well enough to do that then he's fine."
The many underground passages were connected by the hollow trees. In his wild rampage with Peach still riding on him, the weeddle came out on the other side of the forest where Daisy was searching for her companions. "Daisy!"
"Peach! Riding on a weeddle? Great idea!" Without a second thought, the Sarasaland princess jumped on the back of another weeddle who was just innocent passing by. Angered, the weeddle's flower fell off and her skin also changed from yellow to red as she took off on a rampage, Daisy laughing and having the time of her life.
Lavanda levitated in mid air, watching the show. "This is fun, but I really need to move forward now..." In a massive outburst of magic, the weeddle chaos was ended and new disarray was on its way.
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"Ugh... What happened?" Judging by the abundant trees surrounding her, Daisy was in a forest but it didn't quite look like the Forest Maze. She didn't remember falling off the weeddle but somehow she was thrown there and the weeddle was nowhere to be found. "Peach! Lavanda! Where are you?" A feeling of foreboding sunk into her heart and her stomach turned with worry. She wasn't in the Forest Maze anymore, but how?
She walked, walked, and walked for hours, yet it seemed that she always ended up where she started. The Forest Maze has its tricks and turns, but Daisy had learned them all. This sea of trees was unknown to her and clearly much more confusing than the maze. There were no weeddles or mushrooms anywhere, which were common in the Forest Maze and there was a heavy mist in the air that made it hard to see. "Where am I? Lavanda... does she have the power of teleportation? Was she hiding it? Why..."
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"Are you sure? Are you absolutely certain beyond the smallest doubt?" Toadsworth asked for what felt like the millionth time.
"Yes." Mario had arrived at the Mushroom Kingdom as fast as he could change his pajamas for overalls and drag Luigi out from under the bed.
The younger plumber was very relieved that the entire ghost problem had either been a false alarm or they were already gone. He was talking to Daisy like normal, but was shifting uncomfortably for reasons that his brother didn't understand. He put up a pretty good brave act for her so there was no need to be embarrassed, yet Luigi's discomfort was due to something else entirely.
"Do you give me your word on that?" Toadsworth asked one final time.
Mario was becoming frustrated after being dragged out of his home so early on his day off for no reason. "Yes, Luigi and I checked the entire castle and there are no ghosts anywhere."
"That is a great relief, but why were we attacked? This is a most unsettling situation." While Toadsworth exercised his brain trying to think of a possible explanation, Mario exercised his appetite.
Mario's stomach produced a loud growl in complaint for the lack of food. "I had to leave home without breakfast. Why don't we all have a big breakfast and relax?" The pasta had been left untouched on the table and it was most certainly ice cold by now. What a waste.
"I think it's a wonderful idea; and to celebrate that there were no ghosts after all, I'll bake a cake!" Peach cheerfully announced. She skipped out of the room humming a happy tune and giggling. Lavanda's copies were not quite perfect.
"Great idea!" Mario was quick to follow the Mushroom Kingdom princess. The thought of her delicious cakes made his mouth water.
Luigi gave Mario a worried look. Something felt out of place. It was an odd thing to notice, but Daisy's very presence felt different to him. It was as if the young woman standing before him wasn't Daisy at all. No, it was a ridiculous thought, of course she was Daisy, who else could she be? She had the same brown hair, the same blue eyes, the same yellow dress, everything down to the last detail was exactly like Daisy. Yet she felt different and it bothered him, her expression, her words, details that went beyond what he could notice with a quick glance. It was the kind of details that only someone who knew her very well would notice. He decided not to give it too much thought. He was probably still trying to recover from the fear of thinking he would be facing ghosts.
Not Mario, nor Luigi, nor anyone in the Mushroom Kingdom had found out yet that the Peach and Daisy in the castle were only enchanted dolls.
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Lavanda was usually very confident in her skills, maybe too confident, but today she had to admit that things were not quite completely under control. No problem, she just had to find Bowser and Peach, and then nudge them in the right direction. Daisy was already out of the picture so that was one less person to worry about. If only her head would stop spinning she could figure out a way to accomplish her plan.
She sat down under the shade of a tree for a moment, knowing all too well the headache that had settled in was not going to disappear any time soon. Her power wasn't infinite and nowhere close. Though sometimes she thought it was, that was just her over-confidence, something that, unfortunately, ran in the family.
There was some rustling in the bushes nearby as Peach emerged with mud on her skirt and leaves in her hair. "Lavanda!"
"Princess Peach! What happened to you? Allow me to help you get cleaned up." Even if she knew she was at her limit, Lavanda would not admit it. Besides, it would only take a small amount of magic to clean Peach's dress and hair. "Better?"
"Thank you, but we don't have much time. Bowser is in this forest; I only just managed to get away. Let's find Daisy and leave before he-"
"Peach!" It seemed that Bowser had slipped and fallen in a mud puddle while chasing after Peach. "Don't run away, I'm here to save you!" He knew it would sound so much better if he wasn't covered in mud. He gave Lavanda a deadly glare.
"King Bowser... It's alright Peach, my predictions never go wrong and this is as good a time as ever to show you the future!" An image appeared before them. Bowser and Peach were reflected in the magical picture projected from Lavanda's wand. They looked very happy together. A dizzy feeling rushed to the matchmaker's head and her face started to feel warm as if she had a fever. She made the mirage disappear and aimed her magic at getting rid of the mud that was all over Bowser. "Now the two of you can..." she collapsed.
"Lavanda!" Peach rushed to the magikoopa's side. Her forehead was warm and she looked pale.
"It's ok, Peach, don't worry about me, I'm..." Lavanda paused, the situation could work in her favor if she played her cards right. "I'm going to die soon anyway. I hoped I could live for another week or two. How I wish to see my king and his love together!" She was really weak from all the magic she used, but at least it helped her act.
She was dying? How could that be? Peach's eyes went wide at the revelation. "You can't be dying!" Even if it turned out that it was Lavanda who told Bowser where to find her, Peach couldn't accept the fact that someone so young was dying.
"I wish I had a good doctor, then maybe there could be a way to extend my life a little… if only a little...." Lavanda concluded her part of the drama and waited for Bowser to say something.
The Koopa King was feeling ignored with Peach tending to Lavanda's sudden illness and acting as if she didn't notice his presence. Lavanda was a lousy matchmaker anyway and Bowser didn't know how to take a hint.
"I'll take you to a doctor, you're going to be alright." Peach tried to help Lavanda walk while Bowser tried to think of what to say to direct Peach's attention back to him.
"A magikoopa doctor? I was hoping to find a specialist, but got a little sidetracked in my travels." The fortune teller was starting to feel a little better. Her magic had not yet fully recovered but she could walk on her own, she only let Peach help her to continue the act. If Bowser didn't take that clear hint she would seriously start to doubt his intellectual capacities.
"There's a doctor in my castle!" Bowser finally blurted out what Lavanda had been waiting to hear for what felt like so long.
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"Really I'm okay, you should spend some time with Bowser!" Lavanda gave Peach her sweetest fake smiled which looked almost real. "You two are so cute together!"
"Lavanda..." All in all, Peach was not happy. "You told Bowser that we would be at the Forest Maze, betraying my trust. I agreed to come to his castle so you could receive medical attention and as soon as you were strong enough to lift your wand you blasted the doctor out of the room screaming that you were fine and didn't need his help anymore. Daisy is probably wandering around the Forest Maze with no idea about where we are. She must be worried sick. This is not the kind of day I had planned. All of this... Why? Is it only because you have your mind set in making your prediction come true?"
Lavanda took a moment to let everything that Peach had said sink in. She wanted to carry out the plan in her own way, but her mission had been clearly explained and figured out.
After her father waited so many years for this, he was set in getting things done in a specific way, claiming that it would be the only worthy revenge for what happened years ago. She wanted to secure her place as the heir to her father's riches, so she couldn't disappoint him. It was her rightful place; she was the oldest even if it was only for two and a half minutes. "I apologize."
Many times Peach had been told that, sometimes, she was too soft, too forgiving. "I forgive you, since I know your intentions were good deep down." Oddly as Peach spoke those words she felt uneasy, as if it wasn't true.
"Thank you." Lavanda smiled for real this time, not because she was forgiven but because she still had a chance of getting her plans back on track.
"No more secret matchmaking?"
"I promise." Both Lavanda and Peach knew that promise would be broken.
"Get some rest; I'm going to try to call Daisy again." Leaving Lavanda to rest in a large bed covered in purple sheets, Peach walked to the window to make a call on her cell phone. The view of the Darklands was the same as usual, but the service coverage had improved considerably. Of course there were certain restrictions. Peach didn't know how, but Bowser always found out her phone number.
Other than sending her countless text messages, Bowser blocked certain numbers from being reached whenever the cell phone was in the Darklands service area. No doubt, he must have put a big budget into the technology. Peach could call Daisy, whom Bowser assumed would be in Sarasaland, and a few other people, but if she tried to reach the Mushroom Kingdom or the Mario brothers the call would be blocked. Logically she could simply call Daisy and have her call the Mushroom Kingdom, but it seemed that no one dared to point that out to Bowser in his attempt to make Peach feel more at home.
Even with this new freedom, the Mushroom Princess was not allowed to leave Lavanda's room unless it was to go to Peach’s own room. Bowser was taking precautions to make sure she didn't escape, preparing his army for when the Mario brothers arrived and all the usual business. Peach waited for Daisy to answer. She had called countless times to let her know what happened but received no answer. After the seventh ring the sound of someone accepting the call was finally heard. "Daisy, I've been trying to call you for over half an hour. I'm at Bowser's castle with Lavanda-"
"You're in danger..." Peach was certain she had dialed the right number. She had it saved on her cell phone and the name displayed on the little screen clearly read 'Daisy'.
"Who is this?" A heavy feeling of foreboding hung in the air as the sound of a dropped call was heard and the words 'call ended' appeared on the screen.
"Peach, is something wrong?" Lavanda got out of bed with her wand on one hand and a fluffy purple pillow in the other.
"It's nothing. You shouldn't be up so soon," Peach made herself smile, there was no need to worry Lavanda over what could be a joke. The voice that answered the call was obviously not Daisy, Peach was certain it was a man's voice but he didn't sound familiar at all. Her only explanation was that Daisy dropped her cell phone and the one who found it decided to play a joke on the next caller. But if that was all there was to it, then why couldn't she stop feeling as if something was very wrong?
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Daisy glared at the oddly shaped rock in frustration, the one that looked like a mushroom. It was the third time she walked past that rock. At first she thought it was a coincidence and that there were more than one large mushroom shaped stone in that strange forest, but after placing an earring on it for the sake of marking her path, she knew she was going in circles. Two rocks that looked the same was a possibility, but it would be too much of a coincidence if someone had the same earrings as her and decided to leave one on a mushroom shaped rock. Someone better have an explanation for all of this when she got back home... With a firm pace, Daisy marched deeper into the forest searching for any signs of civilization, or a way out, or anything at all that wasn't rocks, trees and leaves.
She suddenly heard a noise as if someone had stepped on a branch. When she turned around, however, there was no one there. She noticed that something was different; her earring was missing. She walked back to the mushroom shaped rock next to the large tree. With another unexpected sound the tree trunk revealed a secret door and for a moment, Daisy thought she was saved. Then she realized this could only mean she was in even more danger.
"I think you've ran around enough, miss," a young man with black hair and forest green eyes spoke. His clothes were darkly colored, a little dirty and old. "You really shouldn't leave your jewelry behind and expect to find it again later."
"You were watching since before that..." Daisy had thought she felt a presence but didn't see anyone until then.
The young man stepped out of the tree hideout as his companions surrounded Daisy. "I won't deny that I've been watching you for a while. It's not every day that such a lovely lady ventures into the forest. No need to be afraid, just leave all your money and valuables here and you can go."
Daisy really wasn't in the mood to negotiate but she had no choice. "Do you have a phone?"
"What?" That was the first time his gang of thieves surrounded someone and they didn't appear to be scared.
"Do you have a phone?" Daisy repeated slowly. "I'll pay you if you let me use your phone, deal?"
"There's no need for me to make a deal with you..."
"Just let me use your phone! For all I know my best friend is in danger, a new friend betrayed us and I'm lost in an unknown forest. Don't make it worse. One little phone call is all I need, then I'll give you some money and we can go our separate ways!" Daisy snapped. Her patience had run dry.
The thief leader laughed. "Fine, fine, I'm not an evil thief. I'll let you make one phone call… but if I hear anything suspicious you have to hang up; don't try anything funny. I expect all your money and jewelry in return. After that, my men will take out to the edge of the forest and you're free to go, speak of this to no one."
"You have my word, I only have one more question." The young thief watched Daisy with curiosity wondering what her question would be. It wasn't what he expected. "Where am I?"
Daisy waited for an answer as the leader handed her a cell phone and realized she was serious about her question. How could she now know where she was? There were no other easy to get lost in, misty forests in that land. "Lost Woods."
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"You're in danger..." Peach couldn't get those words out of her head. Her thoughts continuously returned to them, even if she tried not to think about it. Those words held a certain indisputable truth that she could not explain. This wasn't about Bowser and it wasn't a mere joke, it was something else... One thing was for sure, Peach could not sleep.
She threw a pink robe over her pale pink pajamas and put on a pair of fuzzy white bunny slippers. At least she had a change of clothes prepared for her, these last few times she got kidnapped. Peach was in Bowser's castle so often she practically had her own wardrobe. She looked at the remote control and thought about watching TV, but decided didn't feel like it. She wanted to talk to Daisy and make sure she was alright. She wanted Mario to save her...
"On the job, sleeping? Naughty, you are!" A familiar voice was heard behind the door.
"Lavanda?" Peach didn't know why Lavanda was speaking so strangely.
The door was opened to reveal the matchmaker wearing purple pajamas and fluffy black kitten slippers. "Greetings, Peachy! For the party, to kidnap you, I have come!"
The peculiar invitation was followed by a fit of giggles which made Peach blink and wonder what was wrong with Lavanda. "Are you okay?"
"Great, I feel!" Lavanda cheered and giggled. "Brave man, that doctor was. Came back, he did." Lavanda hiccupped, accidentally zapped herself with magical electricity and giggled for a good ten seconds before continuing. "He say medicine make me feel like drunk but no hangover in morning. He say take for recover magic. Me not drunk, me happy! Lavanda very happy! Me want party! Come party, Peachy! Party! Eat! Dance! Fight! Fun!"
"Fight? Maybe its best if you get some sleep until you fully recover…" Peach noticed that Lavanda's wand was producing little violet sparks. It looked like that medicine worked fast, but it wouldn't be good to have all that magic at her disposal in her current condition.
"No sleep! Party!" Lavanda rushed down the halls, followed anxiously by Peach.
"Wait! Lavanda! Stop!" As she ran after Lavanda, Peach noticed that the guards in front of her very own door were asleep. Lavanda must have done it.
Finally, after a few minutes of nonstop running, Lavanda had reached Wendy's area of the castle and stopped in front of her door. "Koopa Princess! You awake?"
Wendy nearly jumped out of her shell at the sudden voice. The late night romance-horror movie she had been watching was at its most suspenseful moment. "Go away, I'm watching a movie!" There was no way she was going to miss the ending, especially since it was only a few minutes away.
"You finish what doing. We get things for party!" Lavanda did a military style salute and hit herself on the forehead with her wand. "Ouch! Boo-boo!" She rubbed the spot on her forehead and smiled sheepishly.
"Lavanda, I think it's best if you get some sleep. You haven't fully recovered yet and- Lavanda!" Peach ran after the magikoopa. She had run away laughing hysterically while the princess was still talking.
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This time Peach followed Lavanda to the kitchen. "Peachy, help get snacks!" Lavanda cheered while throwing magical triangles, circles and squares at the cabinets and refrigerator.
A variety of snacks came dancing out, knocking things over and making a mess, while Peach unsuccessfully tried to put everything back where it belonged. "Stop!"
Lavanda froze in place. "Why?" Her eyes became shiny with tears. "Why? Why? Why?" In an unexpected mood swing she went from sad to angry. "Meanie!"
Peach was quick to evade the spell that was thrown at her. A box of cookies that was floating behind Peach was hit by the magic and transformed into a bird, which quickly flew away. Honestly, a drunken magikoopa was the worst, and she wasn't even drunk due to alcohol but a medicine's side effect. Peach didn't want to think about how much worse it could be if Lavanda was drunk 'for real'.
Sighing, Peach said, "Alright, we'll have a slumber party!"
"Yay!" With another drastic mood swing, Lavanda gave Peach a hug.
Peach did not waste the opportunity and took Lavanda's wand. "I'll carry this for you, so you can carry more of the yummy snacks. It's more fun that way."
Lavanda nodded in an exaggerated way, making her light purple hair fall on her face. "Thankies!" She picked up a bunch of snacks in a large bundle in her arms. "Cookies, chocolates, candy, chips... drinks! We need drinks!"
"I'll bring the soda." Peach knew that if Lavanda carried the blue cans she would shake them so much on the way, the liquid would burst out like an explosion when they were opened.
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Peach and Lavanda returned to Wendy's room. By then, the Koopa Princess had finished her movie and was about to get ready for her 'beauty sleep'. Wendy heard a knock on her door, followed by an impatient voice. "Gotta knock a little harder, Peachy!"
The request came as a challenge, because Peach had her hands full. Luckily, she didn't need to knock on the door again since Wendy opened it, looking very annoyed. "It's late and I totally need my beauty sleep to be even more beautiful!"
"Party!" Lavanda tossed the snacks she was carrying into Wendy's arms and pushed her out of the door way. She hopped on Wendy's bed and started jumping. "Party! Party! Party!"
"Get off my bed!" Wendy roared. She dropped the snacks into Peach's already full arms and tried to chase Lavanda out.
Making an inhuman effort not to drop anything, Peach walked to the nearest table and set the food down. The night had turned into chaos, but maybe, just maybe, she could stop the war going on between Wendy and Lavanda before someone got hurt. "Please calm down!" Peach cautiously approached the battle arena that was once Wendy's bed. "Wendy! Lavanda!"
Lavanda was hitting Wendy with a pillow and giggling to her heart's content. "Stop it! Stop it!" Wendy yelled in annoyance and frustration because the apparently crazy magikoopa wouldn't leave her alone. Wendy grabbed a pillow and swung it at Lavanda as hard as she could. The momentum made her spin as she missed her target, who had ducked at the last second. The pillow slipped out of the cover and went flying towards Peach, hitting her square in the face.
"Ow!" Even if the pillow was soft, Wendy had a mean throw. That was it, Peach had enough. While Wendy accused Lavanda of cheating and threw a very loud tantrum, Peach picked up the pillow that hit her and joined the battle. Maybe she could knock some sense into Lavanda and at the same time get back at Wendy. They were the ones who started it, and they were about to find out how lethal Peach could be with a pillow. All those pillow fights with Daisy were about to pay off.
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"Mario! Mario, are you awake?" Luigi shook his brother's shoulder. Mario mumbled something about pasta and cake in his sleep and threw the covers over his head. "Mario!" Luigi called louder.
Mario peeked out from under the covers, half asleep. "Did you have a nightmare?" That was his guess, judging by Luigi's expression.
"Something isn't right. I was worried about Daisy so I went to check on her, but she isn't in her usual guestroom. There was only a doll... I searched the entire castle but she's not here." Luigi had a bad feeling since he and Mario arrived at the Mushroom Castle earlier. Peach invited them to stay over and baked dozens of delicious treats. The entire time Luigi was with Daisy, but it didn't feel quite right. First there was that attack by ghosts, and now Daisy was missing.
"She's probably with Peach, go back to sleep." Mario's stomach was still full from the big dinner and even bigger dessert he ate. All he wanted to do was sleep and digest, having sweet pasta dreams.
"Peach is missing too. I thought Daisy was with Peach. Daisy told me that sometimes they stayed up late talking. Peach's door was open but there was no one in her room. I think something bad happened!" The thought of Daisy being secretly abducted by ghosts terrified Luigi, but even with his phobia he would stop at nothing to save her.
"Luigi, calm down, you're overreacting." Mario sat on his bed and yawned. He knew that Luigi wouldn't stop insisting so easily. "Maybe Peach and Daisy went out, you know a girl's night out..."
Luigi's cell phone suddenly rang. He rushed to the other side of the large room to answer it immediately, it could be Daisy. Luigi only wanted to her voice telling him everything was alright. He wanted to feel like he was talking to the real Daisy again. Luigi didn't recognize the called ID but he answered anyway. "Hello?"
"Luigi! It's me, Daisy! You're not going to believe what happen. Let me start by saying that I'm in the airport right now, the Hyrule airport! I was thrown in the middle of Lost Woods this morning without an explanation or anything. I think Lavanda might have been working for Bowser but at the same time this doesn't feel like something he would do. Where are you? Do you know if Peach ever returned home?" Daisy delivered the news so quickly that Luigi barely had time to react. She was lucky that she knew the princess of Hyrule and remembered her number. Daisy would be on her way home soon; but what about Peach?
"Daisy..." Luigi finally managed to speak. His thoughts were going a mile a minute putting all the pieces together. The Daisy that was in the castle earlier was a fake. "Are you alright? You were here; I mean there was another you, and a fake Peach too."
"I'm fine, the fakes must have been the dolls," Daisy remembered. "Peach, Lavanda and I were going out and didn't want to be followed, so Lavanda made copies of us from dolls; she's a magikoopa. Luigi, you and Mario have to make sure Peach is safe. I have a really bad feeling about this. Everything points to Bowser, but I don't think that's all there is to it. I don't know what's going on, but I'm worried!" Daisy felt a strange pain in her heart, as if someone dear to her was in grave danger. She had never felt such intense worry and pain when Peach was kidnapped by Bowser before.
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Bowser yawned and grumbled. He was trying to remember the name of the servant who was supposed to refill the refrigerator in his quarters. Whoever it was, it was in trouble, because Bowser didn't have easy access to his nightly snacks. He could call a maid to bring him something, but part of the satisfaction of having a midnight snack was getting it himself. It just wouldn't be the same if anyone found out. There was a certain secrecy to it that made it more delicious. Of course, the Koopa King ate whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted, but that wasn't the point.
As he marched down the empty halls towards the kitchen, he realized that the reason he could not remember the servant's name was because he didn't know it in the first place. Naturally, he couldn't waste his time and memory remembering the names of unimportant people. Another thing that came to Bowser's attention, as he walked near the area that led to Wendy's room, was that she was being very loud. He stopped in his tracks and turned towards his daughter's room to tell her to shut up.
The door was opened just a couple of inches, letting a thin line of light escape into the dark halls. Bowser could clearly hear giggles and laughs coming from the room and he knew that not all of them belonged to Wendy. He pushed the door completely open, causing it to collide with the wall; it was a miracle he didn't knock it down. He was about to scold Wendy for being noisy, but stopped when he saw Peach. The sight of his beloved beating Wendy and that magikoopa matchmaker with a pillow was just priceless.
"Bowser!" Peach was the first to acknowledge Bowser's presence, after the loud noise of the door crashing against the wall announced his entrance.
"King Dad, Mama Peach is cheating!" Wendy whined, pointing an accusing finger at Peach and holding a pillow as a shield with her other hand.
"Peach can cheat as much as she wants at whatever it is you're doing." As Bowser approached, Wendy grinned mischievously and made good use of the moment. Peach was distracted, so it was easy for Wendy to catch her off guard and hit her with a pillow on the back, hard enough to send the Mushroom Princess falling into Bowser's arms. Normally, Bowser would be angry if anyone did anything that could upset Peach, but this wasn't so bad, so he would let it pass.
Peach once again tried to get on her feet as quickly as possible. She apologized for falling on Bowser again and quietly thanked him for catching her, even if it was obvious he didn't mind. In fact he had enjoyed it.
Lavanda snuck away to avoid getting into another pillow fight and crawled to the snack table. She reached up, feeling for the cookies in the table's surface and knocked down her wand which hit her on the head and zapped her again. "Ouchy..." Her voice sounded more childish now. She sat there sleepily sucking her thumb then looked towards Peach, Wendy and Bowser. Lavanda observed him, tilting her head left and right; then suddenly came to a realization. Her eyes went wide, her mouth hung open and she stopped sucking her thumb to point. "Boy!" A short moment of silence passed as everyone gave the magikoopa puzzled looks. "Cooties, boy, cooties!" Lavanda hopped off the bed and hid under it.
"I think you scared her," Peach told Bowser with an amused smile.
"She should be scared, not doing her job like she should and-" Bowser stopped, he had said too much and Peach caught it right away.
"So she was working for you all along? I should have known she wasn't acting on her own with the matchmaking plot." Peach already know about the matchmaking plan, but decided to forgive Lavanda.
Bowser put his arm around Peach's shoulders and tried to change the subject. "Mind if I join the party?"
"Yucky boy! You have cooties! Go away!" Lavanda yelled from her hiding place under the bed.
Seeing Bowser's angry expression, because no one spoke to the Koopa King like that, Peach decided to intervene. "The medicine Lavanda was given to recover her magic made her a little drunk. She isn't herself right now, so please don't be angry at her." Peach slowly slipped out of Bowser's hug as she explained.
Bowser tried to speak but his voice was lost in Lavanda's cries of fear for cooties, while Peach tried to listen to Bowser and calm Lavanda all at the same time. "Shut up!" Bowser roared and in an instant, everyone in the room fell silent.
"But King Dad-" Wendy started to whine.
"Shut up!" Bowser didn't like repeating himself.
"Bowser," Peach spoke.
"Shu-Yes, Peach?" In split second Bowser's voice changed from loud and angry to a normal volume and almost cheerful.
"Don't talk to him, Peachy! Cooties have boys! No! Boys have cooties! Yes!" Lavanda warned her while still hiding under the bed.
"Shut up!" Wendy yelled just like Bowser did before, only a lot more high pitched. She shook her head as if silently saying 'Lavanda is so totally dead'.
Peach couldn't help it but to laugh at the irony. Lavanda had been playing matchmaker for her and Bowser not too long ago, and now the magikoopa wanted Peach to stay away from his cooties.
"Your majesty, I've been searching for you." Kamek was now standing at the door. "I don't mean to interrupt but-"
"This better be important!" Bowser didn't like it when anyone interrupted his time with Peach.
Kamek knew Bowser wouldn't like the news, but he needed to know. "The paratroopas that were out on patrol spotted the Mario brothers heading this way."
To be Continued
Many thanks to Razzi (ebtwisty9) for beta reading and giving me advice.
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