Well this is it! The last chapter. I posted this early because unfortunately, I will not be here on the Super Maria's birthday. *Sob * I have planned this story for about 2 years before I finally pieced everything together. There are still some weak parts, but I think I have improved. Thank you guys for being so supportive and patient. I wouldn't be anywhere without you.

Hey, even after this story is over, I still own Maria and Luciano. NAAAAAAA :P

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Black.

Again, she tried to open her eyes, to see the colors of the world. To see Junior.

Black.

This time, however, it wasn't a fearful darkness that consumed her. It was one of waiting…one of unknown, the future.

"So this is what it means to be dead," she thought.

Maria floated in the empty nothing peacefully. She couldn't possible tell what day it was or how much time was passing by in the Mushroom World. The princess did not even have the slightest clue as to what happened to her family or Junior. Surprisingly, none of that bothered her. She was dead. You can't change that.

A yawn escaped Maria's lips. She couldn't be she was tired! "You would think once you're dead, your soul shouldn't get sleepy" Another long sigh. "Ah well. I have plenty of time to sleep. I don't need to worry sleeping in late. Haha"

---

After what seemed like hours (Or maybe weeks?) the princess awoke with a strange sensation overcoming her. She was still surrounded by darkness, but the floating feeling was gone. It was as if she was lying on the ground. And the more Maria stared into the darkness, the more she realized it wasn't a pure black. She could see hues of blue and green…even yellow.

Finally, after an eternity of silence, Maria opened her mouth and whispered ever so softly,

"Hello?"

With that, the girl's dark environment changed. It was as if someone had placed a flashlight in a hole, showing the princess what was surrounding her. At once, the faint colors grew brighter with each second, forming familiar shapes. A tree hung over Maria, making sky and sun an intricate pattern between its leaves. Fingers curled around the lush grass and finally, she sat up staring at the landscape. One word came to mind.

Heaven.

Everything was…perfect. The rolling hills stretched for miles. Even the stream, a clear crystal, flowed perpetually and Maria's eyes followed the river until she…

Someone was at the edge of the stream. She quickly rubbed her eyes to make sure she wasn't imagining the person. No, they were still there. Someone Maria had not seen in a very long time.

"Mom," the princess heard herself say and with that darted across the fields.

Like a small child, she ran fearlessly and cried out to her mother. Maria could feel the tears falling as the mysterious figure turned her. That unforgettable smile warmed the girl's heart. It was her mother.

The Queen of the Mushroom Kingdom said nothing, but held her arms open and embraced her daughter joyfully. A serene silence descended upon mother and child. One that was filled with so many years of lost affection.

"Maria," Peach finally spoke, her voice as vivid and radiant as it always was, "My dear…it has been so long. I have missed you so much."

The princess snuggled closer, "I missed you too…"

"My goodness," the queen whispered, holding the girl's hands, "You have grown so much. Mario must have been so proud of you. A strong, independent woman."

Must Have Been rang through the princess's thought and she decided it would be better to ask what had happened.

"Mom…am I dead?" Maria said dishearteningly, "Everything went black in the Mushroom World…and you don't seem like an illusion so..is everything…over?"

A bittersweet smile spread across Peach's face and she gave a soft sigh. "You aren't exactly dead, sweetie, but you may not be alive much longer. Right now, you standing between life or death…and the choice is yours to make."

"I-i can choose to pass on or not?!"

Her mother nodded gently and continued, "Many unfortunate and unforeseen things befell upon you and your time came too quickly; therefore, the Afterlife has decided to give you a choice: You may return to the world of the living and finish out your life or remain here with me in the Overthere."

Maria remained quiet for a moment or so, to process what she had just been told. She could choose her fate! Never once in her life had she been given a choice without suffering horrible consequences… The princess of the Mushroom Kingdom finally had what she had desired for so long: Freedom. Yes, she could feel the pain that her family would suffer once she passed on, but…

"Mother," she began, "this place is paradise and I want to stay by your side bu-"

"Maria!"

The white princess turned to see a small figure…a koopa child crying out her name. The boy had a spiky green shell…and a red ponytail- Could it be?

"Is…that Junior?" the girl whispered.

"A figment of your imagination," Peach smiled, "A symbol of what you want in your life…"

Maria turned to her mother and was ready to open her mouth, but the queen continued, "Maria, my darling, I know he is the one you love and…"

"You should return to him."

The princess could only stare as her mother chuckled lightly and grabbed her daughter's hand, "No one blames you for falling in love, Maria. Even Luciano realized that. As long as you were happy, he understood, and I wholeheartedly agree. True love is something you get once in a lifetime, and everyone deserves a chance at happiness. Even if it's deciding between life or death."

"But Mom, I don't want to leav-"

"Maria, I will always be here. When you die, we will meet again, but you have the right to enjoy life and death with Junior." Peach gave the princess a persuasive push towards the boy, "Go," she whispered, "Go and be where you truly belong." With that Peach slowly walked away leaving Maria to ponder her fate.

"Wait!" the princess cried out to her mother, "I can't go back to the living world!"

The queen stopped dead in her tracks and turned with a serious look upon her face, "Why is that my dear?"

"Because…" Maria said, tears already forming in her eyes, "I never got the chance to tell you something…"

Suddenly, the body Maria transformed in the image of a small girl of four years old, her cheeks stained with sadness and rushed over to her mother who grabbed and held in her arms.

The little girl whispered as her mother hugged her and listened to the soft words that echoed across the land.

"I never said good-bye…"

Tears fell from Peach's face. After twelve years of guilt and sadness the queen and princess of the Mushroom Kingdom, mother and child, were finally at peace, and Peach held Maria for what seemed like eternity before the little princess said gently, "I have to go." The pain was evident from their expressions, but each knew in their hearts, it was for the best.

"I understand," her mother replied and placed Maria back onto the ground and slowly released her child's hand. Waving one last farewell, the girl turned toward the koopa boy and rushed forward, never looking once back. Peach smiled and preferred to have it that way. Maria had no need to dwell on such sadness anymore.

She was free.

A glorious energy burst inside the princess as she tackle-hugged Junior to the ground. They both got up with wide grins on their faces and dashed across the land. Maria wasn't sure as to where she was going, but Junior was leading the way. Everything would be ok.

Abruptly the koopa prince stopped, and Maria nearly crashed into him as he pointed to object in front of him.

It was a door. A large oak door with a handle perfect for the girl's short stature.

"This is it," Maria whispered, but smiled as she felt Junior gently squeeze her hand. "Thank you," she continued with a carefree laugh, "I'll see you on the other side."

Not another word was spoken as the child lifted the handle and pulled back. Inside seemed dark, but Maria simply nodded and walked in. The door closed behind her. She suddenly felt scared. Alone.

"Please…" she thought to herself.

"Please, let me wake up."

---

She felt sore. Everything was tender. Even the light hurt her eyes…

"Light?! Oh my gosh..." Maria's eyes flashed opened as she carefully sat up to look around. She was in a hospital bed, her body was in bandages and all sorts of confusing machines were hooked up to her. She could see the brown hair that fluttered at her shoulders and stared at her feet while she wiggled her toes.

"…I'm alive," she finally breathed.

As her gaze continued upward she noticed someone sitting across from her bed. The young man was snoring heavily, large bags curled under his eyes. He reminded Maria of a famous Mushroom hero she was related to, the only exception was the light brown hair.

"Luciano," the princess said loudly, hoping to wake him up. With her luck, the prince slowly yawned and turned his bloodshot eyes to the girl in bed. It took him a mere three seconds before he jumped out of his seat and grabbed his beloved cousin with all his might.

Checking to see what the commotion was, a nurse peeked inside the room; only to rush back out with joy and quickly announced that the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom finally had awakened.

Before Maria had a chance to catch her breath from Luciano's bear-grip hug, her aunt and uncle clobbered her with overjoyed affection, they too, had exhaustion painted across their face.

"Oh sweetheart," Daisy mumbled over the persistent sniffles, "…we really thought we lost you honey…oh my god…I thought I was going to lose you…just like Peach!"

Nothing more to say, Luciano's mother broke down in heavy sobs while her husband held her and whispered softly to her. Maria simply sat there watching everything with amazement, but a uncomfortable feeling was rising in her stomach and she need she had to get to the bottom of it.

"Is the war…over?"

The prince looked up at his cousin with wide eyes, even her aunt and uncle glance over slightly surpried. "You mean don't know what happened?" Luciano said,
"You don't remember anything?"

The princess shook her head. She didn't like the tone of his voice.

"Well," the boy let out a sigh, "There was a huge battle at the border of the Mushroom Kingdom and so many soldiers had died, on both sides, we thought we had lost practically everyone. But that fight between the dragon and Shadow Queen, well, that shook up everything. No one is sure what happened but the for some reason they charged at each other, and BOOM!" The prince made a large clapping noise with his hands, "Everything was swallowed in a white light then…the battlefield…"

"What happened, Luciano?" Maria leaned in closer.

"All the blood and damage…was gone. Apparently someone saw something fall from the sky so each went to go check out what it was while the generals assessed the totality. No one died."

"W-what?!"

"Yeah. Exactly. No one knows what that light exactly did, but no one died. A few injuries, but nothing more. It was the weirdest thing in the world."

"Well what fell from the sky?" Maria asked excitedly, to hear this wonderful news…surely the war would have to end soon.

But her cousin's face grimaced every so slightly, that nervousness came back full force.

"Your father and Bowser went to the spot where it landed," Luciano began, pausing with a large sigh, "They saw you and Bowser Junior…in each other arms. Your father thought that the koopa kid-"

"HE DID NOTHING TO ME!" Maria spit out hotly; this could mean anything…more violence, another long war!

"I know…" Luciano whispered averting his eyes, "Your father and the entire kingdom knows too…"

The princess felt her blood run cold and she held for breath for moment and whispered, "How?"

"Luciano and Toadette had-a very interesting story for me," a voice cut in.

Maria knew who it was without even making eye contact with them. Somehow, she knew this moment would come. It just was a matter of when. There was no way to back out now. No more lies or secrets. Fearlessly, the princess locked eyes with the very person who could carry her to the top of the world, but catch her when she wasn't looking.

Her father, Mario.

----------

Junior frowned at the sight before him. Today was never going to end.

He breathed in deeply not only to help the chest wound he had received from the Shadow Queen, but to steady the beating of his own heart.

All seven of his siblings had come to the castle. No, not to check on his health, but the rumors that had surfaced from the war.

The Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom and the Prince of the Koopa Kingdom were together.

Oh boy.

Actually the koopa prince corrected himself. They really weren't rumors, but the truth that had spread like wildfire. Who had revealed the secret of his relationship? Junior himself. After waking up in the hospital, (again), the koopa was confronted by Kammy who had questioned Junior on everything that had happened in the recent months. He was so tired and mentally exhausted, he simply decided it was for the best and spilled the beans.

It had helped Junior though. A great burden was lifted from his chest and he wasn't the one to tell his father everything. Kammy was. The poor assistant had tried her best to keep everything hush-hush, but…

There was a leak. A huge one.

Well, all gossip broke into chaos and grabbed the attention of all seven koopalings who dashed back to Papa K.

A sigh brought Junior back to the present. Wendy, his only sister, filed her claws impatiently before quickly flipping her fake orange hair back onto her shoulders.

"Soooo," she said coldly.

"So what?" Junior curtly replied, every scale in his body cried for freedom. He didn't despise his siblings, but he knew they didn't come all this way just to check on him. Just his love life. He wished he could just run away, maybe find Maria and take her too. Though he hadn't heard anything of her safety…which made him worr-

"FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!" Wendy slammed a fist on the table, "Junior! Say something!"

"What do you want me to say?! Frankly, it's none of your goddamn business what's going on in my life!"

"But Junior!" Morton interrupted, still short and pudgy and yes, still a loudmouth, "This is absolutely, positively, serious! We thought you could trust us. We're your brothers -and sister-, we are bound together through an unbreakable bond! Why couldn't you have turned us! Your dearest trustworth-"

"OH SHUDDA UP!"

With one swift punch, Roy, thankfully, silenced the beast and quickly summarized, "Wha chatterbox over here is sayin' is, why didn't youze turn to uz? King Dad is ragin' mad. We could have helped."

"Oh really," Junior snapped back, "What was I suppose to say? 'Hey, I'm in love with the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom.' That sounds so much like Dad with Princess Peach and looked how that turned out…"

An awkward silence descended upon the table. Morton was just returning to his seat and opened his mouth to say something, but a quick glare from Roy, prevented him from saying a word.

Larry, the closest in age to the koopa prince, broke the silence, "Junior, it's the same thing. We all know why we helped King Dad with our schemes because we wanted him to happy."

"Wow. That got him everlasting happiness," he replied harshly.

"So you think we shouldn't have tried at all?!?" Iggy snarled.

"Dad did so much for this kingdom!" Lemmy barked, "After what happened with Mom, he deserved to be with someone again. So should you!"

"THERE IS NO DIFFERENCE!" Junior roared and crashed both claws onto the table and the anger that echoed in the room, silenced the group. "Dad never got what he wanted the most! After all we did for him…every evil scheme…every kidnapping…None of it made a difference! Why do you think you can change anything now!?"

"But she adores you ever so much, doesn't she, Junior? That's a pretty big difference"

Every single head turned to the voice that shattered Junior's logic. Ludwig had remained quiet and calm while the rest of his siblings bickered and argued at the table. It was the usual. After all these years, the koopalings realized when Ludwig talked, he had a pretty good idea what was going on. No one dared to interrupt him.

"If you both cared equally about each other, you should have a right together. Yes, we all have felt the bitterness when reminded of failure to bring Father and Queen Peach together. I would be lying if I said I was just trying to bring you and Princess Maria together, so you may be happy. All of us want to erase the painful mistakes that occurred with Father's heartbreak. Your union with her would resurrect that success."

Junior could only look at his brother with sadness. It figures they would all to help if they themselves could gain something.

"But," Ludwig interjected, "That doesn't mean we don't care about you."

"Yeah," Wendy spoke up, "Junior, you're like our little brother. We all share a bond that parents don't quite get…we don't like to see you depressed."

"What she said squirt," Roy interrupted," Don't get me wrong. I lovez a good fight with youze, but doesn't mean I hate ya. I'll be with ya to da bittur end."

"So even if this means we get a good smack down from King Dad-," Iggy began.

"-We'll stand by you," Lemmy finished.

Junior was absolutely stunned. Somehow during all of this, his heart rate was beating at a normal speed. He wasn't afraid anymore. He was felt like he could conquer the world.

"So," Wendy asked once more.

"So what?" Junior retorted, a smirk on his face.

"Do you like her or what?!" Morton shouted excitedly.

"…yeah I do."

His siblings released a loud sigh unanimous sigh.

"Like thank goodness," Wendy said, "We're happy you like actually had a girlfriend all along."

Larry started with a snort," Yeah, for awhile we all thought you were gay."

The gloomy atmosphere that surrounded the family erupted into a loud collections of laughs, giggles, guffhaws and snorting. Things seemed almost normal…

There was a sudden knock at the door.

A servant walked in and bow.

"Prince Bowser Junior?"

"Yes."

"Your father would like a word with you."

------

Maria walked slowly amongst the white cherry trees, each petal fluttered away aimlessly and beautifully covered the pathway that she followed.

She was not alone.

Her father was by her side.

Neither had spoken a word.

It had been a few days since she was released from the hospital. Everyone knew the story now even part where King Boo attacked her. She did, however, omit her mom's secret grave. Fear of another war stricken her mind so she remained quiet about that.

She had not spoken to her father during those few days. The castle was tense and what was to come. Maria didn't like this wait. She wanted the yelling to be done and over with.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Mario spoke to her for the first time in days.

"I don't know, Dad," Maria said shortly, "Maybe it's because you would be furious at me?!"

"You could always come to me!" he said back, "When have I ever not be there for you?!"

"Every other day for twelve years when you were cursing Bowser's name! You have no idea what I was going through dad! You never understood me! All you wanted to do was play war with Bowser and guess what? YOU GOT IT!"

Mario acknowledged defeat.

He stopped and closed his eyes. The princess stood there and watched him sadly.

"Maria," he said quietly, "I didn't a mean. A lot of things happened at once. Your mother's a death. Your detracting health. Bowser was the last straw that day. Twelve years is a long time. I was a-lucky. Very few people died. But all this time, I grew away from you. Just for pride. I know you won't forgive me. Rightfully so…"

"But I am sorry. For everything I did. I failed you…as a father."

Maria witnessed the same event she saw twelve years ago. Her father was crying. Not small little tears, deep mournful sobs. But she didn't need to see that. All she ever wanted was a true apology. She finally got it. Yelling now would be pointless.

Maria hugged her father dearly.

"Thank you. That's all I wanted to hear."

Mario gently nodded and carefully grabbed his daughter's hand.

"I have decided something, Maria."

"What is it?"

"Besides the welfare of my people, I want to dedicate my life to something important: your happiness."

"That's a large declaration," Maria laughed, "How do you propose on achieving that?"

Without even realizing, the princess had arrived at a small grove in the forest. The petals scattered across the grass making everything a snowy white, but in the middle of the winter wonderland was the koopa himself.

Bowser Junior.

He wasn't alone. His father was by his side talking to him. The prince hadn't noticed Maria yet.

"You mean?" Maria turned to her father surprised.

Her father gave her a smile and nodded.

At that moment Junior, who seemed to have the same conversation with his father, saw Maria.

Their eyes met.

Shaking her head, the princess charged forward and enraptured by the koopa's massive arms.

"Have we met before?" Junior said.

"Maybe once or twice," Maria replied back.

"Well, I'm never letting you out of my sight again."

"Sounds good to me."

Their lips clashed together and neither cared that their parents were looking at them happily.

Mario walked over to Bowser casually. The koopa king smirked at the sight of his son.

"So I a-guess this is it," Mario stated.

"I suppose so," Bowser replied nonchalantly.

A momentary pause.

"Good, Imma gonna retire," The Mushroom King laughed.

"Well I wouldn't say that," Bowser said eyebrows raised as if he knew something else."

"Hm? What do you a mean?"

"Well, they're gonna have to get married now. Who's going to help them? Then they're probably gonna have kids. I don't want miss that for retirement."

Mario rolled his eyes and chucked lightheartedly once more.

"Mamma mia, the story never ends."

"You're righ on that one," Bowser continued, "…but I don't want anymore fights. I want my grandchildren to know that I care for them…So truce?"

The Italian hero took the extended claw and firmly shook it, breaking away all the hatred and pain that was chained to them.

"Truce."

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That's it. Wow. That's it. Oh my gosh. This is definitely my longest and best chapter. I'm very proud to end this story on such a good note. (Though I felt the end was a little rushed…) Thank you Thank you. Thank you. You all have been so wonderful. I really was lucky to get such a great bunch of readers. Your reviews were so encouraging. I probably wouldn't have finished this story with you. THANK YOU!! I don't know when I'll post another story, but I definitely have some in the works. Yay for one year!