Things had gone rather smoothly, after the coronation. The people largely accepted Queen Peach, out of what she felt was a mix of empathy over her non-existent plight, and glee that their leader was going to finally really stand up to Bowser. In the last few days she'd used her power to build up their defenses, train their troops better, instruct their generals on better tactics against the koopa threat. Peach had still had enough time left over to enjoy life, eating a lot more meat than she used to, and training for the day that the fool of a king tried to take her again. In was during her training that morning that a courier had come up to her, panting in exhaustion. It was a missive from Mario, who would be returning to the castle later that day.

Peach smiled at that. She'd actually been missing the mustached hero, and it would be good to see him again. Then, she started to wonder. She'd spent all this time and energy building up the Mushroom Kingdom, trying to break the status quo. But there was something about him, something about Mario that seemed to make change impossible. Something had to be done. Peach sighed, but resigned herself to the idea. It was necessary, she told herself. At least they'd have one last dinner together.



Mario sat at one end of the small table, in one of the smaller dining rooms in the castle. He's been told Peach was going to be their soon, and he tried to wait as patiently as he could. The guards had called her a 'queen', and he was interested in asking her exactly what they meant. Had Peach finally stood up and taken the power that had been hers all along? It seemed so unlike her.

"Ah, Mario, it's good to see you again," came a voice from behind him. It sounded like Peach, but it was off somehow, a little more guttural and deep. He turned around to see her, and was shocked to see Peach as a koopa, in the same red dress she'd worn to her coronation. "I bet you're wondering what this is about."

He had to pause for a few seconds before responding. "Princess, is that really you?"

Peach seemed to think about the question as she walked over to her seat. "Yes and no. Yes, I'm Peach Toadstool, the same woman you've known for over a decade now. No, I'm not a Princess anymore. I'm Queen."

There was a thick silence while Mario thought. "What happened?"

"..." Peach's instinct was to lie to him, to tell Mario what she'd told everyone else. But Peach couldn't do that, she owed him more than a lie, especially considering what was coming later. "I found an old, discarded block while walking a few weeks ago, and inside was what looked like a 1UP mushroom. After eating it, I started changing." She paused, then took a bite of the steak being served for supper. Her sharp teeth tore through the tough meat with no difficulty. "It wasn't just my body that was different, it was my mind as well. I've become quite a bit smarter than I used to be, and more cunning to boot. My morals haven't changed, but I know now what I must do to be a strong ruler. I know my responsibility."

She stopped, as if expecting Mario to chime in at this point, but instead he nodded for Peach to continue. "I researched the mushroom in the library, and after many hours of looking I found the answers I wanted. What it did...is permanent. I'm stuck like this." Peach took a deep breath, then continued. "And that's okay. Mario, I know this is hard to accept, but I'm better off this way. The kingdom is better this way. Can you accept that?"

He smiled at her, and Peach felt butterflies flap in her stomach. "Of course, Peach. I trust you more than anyone. If you think you can handle this, you can."

Now came the part that the Queen wasn't looking forward to. "Mario, I'm very sorry, but...we're going to have to deport you." Mario's eyes widened, and she hastily continued in an attempt to cover the problem over. "I'm trying to reinforce our kingdom, shake up the status quo, and make sure my people aren't hurt any more. I'm rebuilding our army, working on the technology so we can have an air force and navy that rivals Bowser's. But if we're going to move forward, we can't have you here. It'll be too easy, if every time we're in trouble you come in and save the day single-handedly. The Mushroom Kingdom needs to stand strong, but we need to do so without you." She paused, before speaking in a small, scared voice. "Do you hate me?"

Mario looked up at her, his eyes sad but understanding. "I could never hate you, Princess. And you're right, the Mushroom Kingdom doesn't need my help anymore." He turned and looked out the window, wistfully. "I suppose I'll travel more, help out where I can."

She smiled, then passed him a package from across the table, his hand briefly holding her claws. "One last thing you need before you leave: it's a key. It's one-of-a-kind, and can open any lock in our kingdom. If something goes wrong, if we fail, or if this change starts twisting me, making me more like...him...I want you to come back. I want you to help us, if you feel you need to."

It was clear to Mario the level of trust Peach was showing him, by giving him this key. "I'll be sure to write," he said, before leaving later that night.

The Queen wiped tears from her eyes. "You do that."



It was later that night when she received another missive, this one much more dire than the last. The king of Pipe Land had seen Bowser's Airships flying towards the west. Bowser was invading.






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