[Deleted]

Air was running out and the Princess believed she had swam far enough but today luck was on her side. The ground was growing closer which meant the water was beginning to get shallow. That could only mean...she wouldn't have to swim much longer! She broke through to the surface for a sharp inhale of air before diving back going back under finding that land was closer than she thought...err cavern floor- land...whichever. She turned her body so she was upright, feet touching the ground as she then walked up and out of the water. "Haa!" she breathed out, chest heaving as she combed through her blonde hair in order to keep it out of her face. There was a pathway here. That's what it seemed like anyway.



Peach followed it, admiring the glowing crystals as she went. It took roughly 15 minutes until she actually made it anywhere but as she turned the corner just beyond a large crystal she found a room full of crystals.



They came from the ceiling, her left and her right! The ground was a bit rocky and it was fairly dark up ahead but she didn't mind walking in the dark. It could be such a calming venture at times. Walking into the darkness it felt like it had swallowed her whole. There was a smell in the air and it must've been the murky water around. The ground was wet, up to her ankles but as she kept walking she would soon stop rather abruptly when she ran into something solid. By feeling around it she would soon recognize it's structure. A pipe! She found a pipe! She had to get back and let Luigi know! though...it would be quite the trip. Going back to get her dress, turn it into love magic then swim all the way back and then either stay in her swimsuit or switch attire so she was back in her wedding gown. Going back to the castle in a swim suit didn't seem appropriate considering she had been kidnapped. One way or another it would be magically exhausting.

Turning on her heel the princess was back the way she came. Finding the very hard to see light reflecting off one of the crystals in the little crystal area that led to the dark room. She almost tripped over said crystals but she was quick to catch herself. With her legs bare getting scratched up was a lot easier. Fortunately she was fairly good at avoiding the danger. Better than she did with avoiding Bowser.  

[TartoonHand94]

Luigi combed the entire body of water in search of the princess’s body. Alas he found… nothing. Like nothing. No cheep cheeps, no bloopers, no electros and no eels. And especially no Big Bertha that gobbled her up. For once Luigi swam through enemy-less waters, but it was the one time he was looking for them. Good thing he and Mario are so good at holding breaths.
Seeing this as no reason to quit, Luigi swam on toward the shallow end to the water. Maybe this pool came out somewhere else on the other end. He swam till his feet touched the ground, and then ran.

Jumping out of the water, Luigi barely took a good gasp of air before letting out another “Princess Peach?” Still no sign of her. Only his echo. “No…” he sulked, hanging his still dripping wet head. That’s when he saw it: More foot prints! She had been here! And apparently still been barefoot. “Princess Peach!” He got up with a start, breaking into a full sprint to follow the foot prints. He took no time to wring his shirt or his overalls or his hat, he simply ran them dry. Time was still of the essence and running out like water down his brow.
“Princess Peach! Can you hear me? Hold on!” He continued to call out into the darkness hoping someone, anyone could hear him.

And then he tripped.

[Deleted]

A voice bounced off the walls and faintly to Peach's ears. It was Luigi! Had he come looking for her? It was the only logical explanation if he had come this far. she would have to move quicker so he would not lose hope. If they met in the middle perhaps everything would be alright? He must've been worried sick but all she really wanted to do was make some progress. He had carried her for what she assumed to be quite some time before he was down for the count. It only seemed fair she return the favor by looking more on her own and it came out a success. Remembering the turns and passes would be a bit hard but she was documenting certain things that stood out at each turn. Things that made symbols on the ground and even the different formations of the crystals form the ceiling. Mentally documenting each and everything significant to aid her when she was to return. a pen and paper would have been much easier but this would have to do.



The princess picked up her pace, setting into a comfortable jog. She looked down at the ground to watch for rocks. By avoiding them she was less likely to slip and fall and/or hurt herself by the sudden pressure through her form. If she were to step on one at the wrong angle she could truly hurt herself, not by slipping but by spraining something in her leg or calve and that would be a hindrance to the progress she made without Luigi. He had done so much while she was sleep and now that she had found the way out it would be absolutely shameful for her to hurt herself and have to be carried again.



Her eyes lifted from the ground and to the front of her. His voice had reached her once again except it was a lot closer. As if it was right around the-.... Just as the princess turned the corner she found Luigi face down on the ground. At first she wasn't sure what to think but if he had lost a life what would she do?! He'd have to go back to the check point and due to the progress he made she would no longer be in the cage. She'd be right where she stood now. There was no way Bowser was going to let him pass! She began to panic but eased her nerves and decided to walk up to the possibly deceased brother. 

"Luigi?" she called softly standing only two inches away, bending her knees and placing her hands on them as she herself bent over to inspect the fallen body. 

[TartoonHand94]

“Puhiceh?” Luigi groaned groggily with his face still in the dirt. “Don’t-a worry! I’m-a gonna save you!” He reassured, lifting his head off the ground. But his nose was stuck. Promptly pulling his nose out, an act that required an embarrassing amount of effort, Luigi lifted his cap off his eyes to see a sight better than he could hope or imagine: Princess Peach safe and sound… and in a bathing suit.

“Princess! You’re fine!” Luigi cheered with great relief. “I-Uh I’m-a mean you’re Okay! I mean you’re more than okay, you’re really-uh.” Luigi stuttered and stammered switching and searching desperately for the politest way to say the obvious.
“…N-nice swimsuit.” He complimented with a nervous tug of his collar.

[Deleted]

"Fine I am and fine you are too I see." She chuckled in a light-hearted way. Peach tilted her head to the side as he began stuttering. It was cute and if she could she would tell him but the Princess wasn't fond of offending people. It wasn't in her nature much at all but either way she kept it quiet. Her lips pulled into a cheeky grin, eyes smiling just as she was. "Thank you! It was a last minute choice so sorry if it's a bit tacky. I just needed something to swim in. I also must apologize for giving you a scare." The princess lowered her head and bowed to the plumber. "I only intended to cover just as much ground as you had while I was sleep. It only seemed fair. You've done so much for me and I truly am grateful." Again she exhibited another bow.

"I must go back however. The wedding dress is still there and I seem to be the only one wearing swim wear." she said with a small giggle. Although he must've been used to this. Even she had been on underwater adventures with the Mario Bros. In her dress no less! It was somehow still loads of fun. "Here let me help you up." The princess reached for his hands, taking them in her own and moved back a bit to pull him to his feet and then she took that chance to give him a hug. Bending over a bit and making sure it was a tight one that showed she was being genuine. 

[TartoonHand94]

“N-No it’s not-a tacky at all! It’s…It’s-a…” Luigi tittered bashfully about the swimsuit she was wearing. She obviously had a famously beautiful face, but it was a little-known fact she had a beautiful figure too. All the sports they played together sure kept her in shape. It was easy to keep ogling but Luigi had to stay the gentleman and avert his eyes, the hard thing to do. “…Very flattering.”

“A scare? Wh-what? You scare me? Psh as if! Luigi’s not afraid of anything!” Luigi, still writhing in denial, shifted his denial to another, easier subject. It was a rather humbling experience, being bowed to by a princess. In a swimsuit. He wasn’t sure if at this point he had even woken up from that dream yet.

“No! I’m-a not letting you out of my sight again!” Luigi quickly snapped, almost getting up to one knee before realizing how sudden his movement was and tried to play it off. “I-I mean, I’m-a come with you. It’s-a better i-if we don’t split up again. E-even if one of us f-finds the way, the other would still be lost.” He elaborated his statement, even calming himself down in the process. The thought of losing her again scared him more than anything.

“Besides, these overalls are pretty good for swimming. That’s why we plumbers wear them all the time, even to the Olympics.” He chuckled, trying to lighten the mood with some levity as the princess helped him back to his feet. Feeling ready to go, Luigi was not ready for the sudden hug the princess gave him.
Peach could hear his heart beating louder now than ever. There was nothing he could do to stop it now short of killing himself. This was too much for him, and Luigi began to chuckle in a goofy swoon while little hearts bubbled around his head going pop, pop, pop.

[Deleted]

Peach slowly let her arms unwrap from the plumber with a bright smile on her face. "If you are to come with me then we should get moving right away," she told the plumber in that regal tone of hers. It was almost as if she were in her dress again, shoulders squared, posture straight and eyes up while her un-gloved hands were clasped together in front of her. The princess nodded at Luigi as if confirming his answer should he give one then proceeded to walk back in the direction Luigi came from. The easiest way back was to start back from where she originally got out. Attempting to find her way back through the other waters would most likely not come back with good results. This was a cavern with very many paths and loops. That could apply in the water as well and Peach did not wish to cut corners so riskily. 

Without her dress she felt a bit less restricted in leg movement. Despite the wedding dress being comfortable it wasn't something she'd work out in. Swim wear was snug on her body and pretty stretchy. She could see herself doing squats in them so it could be used as workout wear. Though she didn't plan to start wearing swim suits to workout. The sway of her hips felt oddly...free. Getting out of dresses for this long was a lot of fun. Sure in the past she had worn shorts and other things similar and nearly just as versatile but this swimsuit was different. Even if it was just the only one she could come up with it fit her well and her hips and legs felt completely weightless. Though she was slightly thicker than her counterpart. At least around the waist area...perhaps a bit top heavy too but how that happened she left to those up above. She liked the extra weight if anything. 

So in a mini celebration to herself she began twirling like she had done with her dress hours ago except it was more free form. She would twirl around like a ballerina and jump while she spun around as if it were a gymnastics tournament. Living just felt so right and it made her happy to feel like a bird free to fly anywhere no matter how far. With a sudden turn of her heel the princess then looked to Luigi who was behind her and began walking backwards so he knew she was intently looking at him with a big smile. She knew the way from here so walking backwards at worst would only lead to her misstep-ping and falling but with her flexibility it wouldn't be too hard to stop herself and without the weight of her dress it would be a lot simpler too. 

[TartoonHand94]

Whatever part of Luigi was still awake moved his hand to give himself a much-needed slap back to reality.
“I-Aye aye, Princess.” Luigi dutifully saluted as if he were one of her Toad knights. He could only hope to do a much better job than them. Following the princess’s lead, he proceeded to march like a soldier behind her, eyes focused not just at her but all around her for signs of trouble.

…Well, not so much around her anymore. It was hard to keep his eyes off that hip sway. And almost as if to make it harder to focus on looking around her and not at her, the princess began to dance in her stride. Twirling and jumping as if they were at a dance recital and not spelunking in a cave.

Try as hard as he might to resist, Luigi was hooked and mesmerized by the sight. She looked so happy, so free, so at peace with her existence. The feeling was contagious. This was what he was what he strove for. This was what he fought to protect.
He felt compelled to break his march and join her with a pirouette too since she wasn’t looking at him.

Strike that, too late, she was looking right at him. Those gorgeous blue eyes that seemed to sparkle in the dark like pools of water. He didn’t know what to do. Walk faster and join her? Keep pace and respect her space? Applaud her dancing? Do anything at all instead of just fawning over her with that goofy smile of his?

Guess the answer was not look where he was going and trip, knocking both himself and the princess into the water.

Smooth.

[Deleted]

The princess was happy to have Luigi look back at her but that smile of hers was wiped off as surprise hit when Luigi tripped and although she had stopped since the water was nearby it was all in vain. Luigi had fallen into her chest and took her with him. Due to the position the water wasn't forgiving to the Princesses back as it slapped against the water's surface but it was a temporary pain. A slight sting as if a hand had slapped onto her whole back. It would go away with time. Instinctively as if protecting a child Peach's arms had wrapped around Luigi and although they were under water she still spoke, several bubbles coming out as she released the air to speak. "Are you alright Luigi?"  She asked still holding him to her. Though as she thought about it he probably wouldn't be able to speak or breathe if his face was buried into her chest. She gently pushed at his shoulders to remove him from the decently sized marshmallows she had. It seemed to have slipped her mind that without her royal servants to help fit her into her dresses and swim wear her chest would be less restricted along with the rest of her body to show a much slimmer figure. She had to be careful now that she was relying only on her body and love magic to get herself through the lot of this.

In order to not waste any more air the princess thought for a moment on how else to communicate. The first thing that came to mind was swimming up to the surface. The water was still a bit shallow although Luigi's trip somewhat launched them far enough that they could stand at the bottom without their heads being too close to the surface of the water. Gingerly, the princess pulled Luigi up to the surface with her so she could speak properly. "I hope you are not hurt. I did not mean to distract you if I did so," she spoke with clarity but her tone was quite bashful. 

[TartoonHand94]

Oh great Luigi! Just great! Now you’ve done it! Thanks to your clumsy double left feet, not only did you trip in front of the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom, you tripped and fell into her, And knocked her into water! You’ve brought dishonour to the entire Mario bloodline with your carelessness.
What’s worse is you couldn’t even flip mid-air and take the fall for her. Her poor fragile body broke your fall. Her body’s so soft too… and nice…and jiggly around his nose… Hold on a sec…

Opening his eyes underwater he timidly looked up at the princess expecting her to be scolding him. It was muffled and obscured by bubbles, but he could make out that she was asking if he was alright. Ever the merciful ruler she was. Luigi didn’t feel like he deserved to be, but he was alright. In fact, he was better than alright. He was super. It wasn’t until he lowered his eyes to the end of his nose did he realize why.

“!” Luigi gasped underwater, forgetting he was underwater. He began frantically flailing, one for air but more importantly to get away from the princess’s chest. Not that he didn’t want to be there, but not only was that totally inappropriate, she wasn’t just any classy lady, she’s the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom! And he was a lowly plumber. He had no right to ever be there! He’d have gotten off her by now if she weren’t still holding her close. Why was she holding her close? Did she… want him there?

He didn’t have much time to think about that before Peach finally let him go. Out of air and about to lose a hit point, Luigi was dragged by this same merciful princess to the surface. After a comical bout of gasping for air and calming down, he figured now was the time he’d be punished.

“P-please Princess! I’m-a so sorry! Please have mercy on-a me! It’ll never happen again!” Luigi begged and grovelled before realizing She was apologizing to Him. What for?
“Eh? Oh No Nonono, princess! You did not-a thing wrong.” He insisted with a shift in tone of voice from apologetic to comforting. “I’m-a the one who got distracted and knocked us both-a down. Besides, I’m fi…” He was nowhere near as bold to say he was okay nor why.
“M-More importantly, a-are You ok-kay?” Luigi asked urgently with his priorities back in order. Before noticing something white hanging on the shore behind Peach.

“Hey princess! Look! It’s-a your wedding dress!” Luigi pointed out with a hint of relief.

[Deleted]

Peach wanted to tell Luigi that she was alright an he had nothing to worry about but it was rude, especially for a princess, to interrupt another while they were speaking. Even if stuttering as they did so. However even after he was done speaking he spoke up once again. He claimed to have seen her dress but they had just gotten into the water. It was impossible to already be on the other side when her swim took at least a good long while. Just in case she whirled her head around to look for her dress but...there was just a bunch of water and cavern walls. Let us not forget the blue crystals either. Those were everywhere. There were even some under the water.

"It's on the other end of this little water way here. I wouldn't think it would teleport to me. That however would be very convenient." she said with a small grin. "Also do not worry. It was an accident. Accidents happen. Now let's swim yes?" She didn't stay for an answer, she turned herself around and dove under, already kicking her legs and cycling her arms to keep moving. 

[TartoonHand94]

“Hah?” Luigi honked in confusion, squinting his eyes for a sharper look. As it turned out, that wasn’t Peach’s wedding dress, but just the right amount of crystal reflection and distortion to make it look like it was at that angle. In all his desperation to change the subject, he couldn’t take a closer look before pointing the mirage out. So that makes how many slipups in under a minute?

“Oh... uh… yeah. J-just an accident.” Luigi shrugged embarrassed all over again.
“Y-yes. Let’s-a swim.” Holding onto whatever face he hadn’t lost with the princess yet, he took a deep breath, shut his mouth and dived down to follow her under water.

Following her under water would have been way easier if Luigi didn’t have her beauty and all these feelings it caused distracting him. Like if his heart rate were normal instead of beating per minute like a song. If the bubbles he exhaled from his nose were shaped like hearts, would anyone be surprised?
Look at the way she swam. When not paddling for an Olympic medal, she stroked with such a graceful, elegant arc. Like a Lochlady with legs, while he floundered behind like a Blooper.

[Deleted]

After roughly 5 minutes  with small air breaks in between the Princess disrupted her graceful swimming to look back and make sure Luigi was still behind her. He was! He seemed to be keeping up quite well. Even though she had made sure to take smaller movements in order to not race ahead she was still going at a moderately fast pace. With one last glance she turned back to face forward, cheeks puffed out slightly to hold in her air. She resumed her swimming with a thought resting in her head. Why did Luigi look...strange? There was nothing truly out of the ordinary but something about him seemed a bit odd. A good looking fellow yes but there was just something Peach just couldn't put her delicate, little finger on.

It could've been because she only gave herself two glances but at the same time...'I must stay focused.' In the end she decided it was nothing to wrap her head around. It could've just been the water. Peach refocused her attention on her swimming style and posture. Her arms and legs carried her like a dolphin through the water. The work between arms and legs even yet still weighted differently. Her mind was on nothing but the crystal blue water.

15 minutes soon passed and Peach was met with a wall. As she swam up to the surface she would find a familiar sight. The area she had left Luigi to sleep and not to far from it was her dress on a rock! Luigi must have put it there. So very kind. The princess pulled herself out of the water and turned around with her hand held out to Luigi to help him out. If he chose to take her hand she would pull him out, smile and then proceed towards her dress. She would gently pat her hands against the cavern walls to dry them before picking up the beautiful wedding gown. Her ocean blue eyes fell shut and within a few seconds a pink glow would emit from the palms of her hands, little hearts flowing around before fading into the air. Soon the dress would begin to turn into fading hearts and the pink glow would be gone.

"There we are. We should head back now. I have been counting as we swam. It is a 20 minute trip too and from the other side. If we swim fast enough with little breaks as I had done my first time we could possibly dock off 5 minutes. What do you think Luigi?" The princess questioned, eyes averting to the plumber as her hands came together in front of her.

[TartoonHand94]

Luigi did his utmost to keep the feelings in his heart off his cheek bloated face. Try as he might, the little signs of fluster continued to leak like bubbles from his nostrils. He hadn’t been this alone with princess Peach for this long before, and the longer it lasted, the harder it became to hide how it made him feel. He had to surface a few more times often than she did, just to keep just to keep oxygen flowing to his constantly pounding heart.

After 15 minutes that felt like 15 hours to Luigi, princess Peach abruptly swam up, leading him to the surface. After taking a comically large breath to refill his air gauge, the first thing Luigi saw was the same white from before. Rubbing and drying his eyes for clarity this time, a second look confirmed that it was indeed the real deal this time.

As sure as he was that it was her dress this time, Luigi didn’t open his mouth about it, seeing as she clearly already noticed. And then he clearly noticed her, climbing out of the water. Water which then ran down her soaked but yet still luxurious hair, down her poised and postured back, across her sierras and down the curvy slopes of her legs.

And then she turned around, ocean blue eyes glistening in the reflection of the pool like those of a river goddess, and offered her divine hand. A humble mortal like himself couldn’t possibly take it.

“N-nah, you go ahead, princess. I’ll-a just wait here.” Luigi played it off with a cool shrug. “We’re going back this-a way anyway, right?” And the dress wasn’t far enough away for someone to swoop in and snatch her in that small distance, right? …right?

Luigi was impressed at Peach’s little magic trick. He even took a second to applaud it, before self-consciously stopping himself. It hadn’t crossed his mind how they were going to keep the dress dry as they delivered it across of water. His mind was preoccupied. Luckily for them, Peach had it covered.

“Quick maths. That sounds-a good to me.” Luigi nodded without question. Any math he tried would’ve drifted out of alignment in the alphabet soup between his ears.
Luigi was ready to follow Peach back to the pipe she found.
“Let’s-a go.”

[Deleted]

With a simple nod of her head the princess dove into the water, arching like a dolphin. Her legs glistened much like the blue crystals as their light reflected off of her royally smooth skin. Her smile seemed to fall naturally on her plump, pink lips while her eyes sparkled like diamonds. Like a giant precious jewel harboring smaller ones to make it shine even brighter. As she hit the water she let her body spear into the water and go deeper into the water before she picked up her swimming formation. A mass amount of air was deep in her lungs an she held it strong without giving way for error as her legs began to kick while her arms began to swing, upper body turning with the same direction as each arm as they came forward to slice through the crystal clear water. When as focused as she was it came off as quite majestic. It was as if the princess was aquatic in nature...naturally! Almost as if she belonged in the waters but it was merely the fact that she loved to swim and with not being able to do so often it was a great opportunity. 

Her form as she swam was absolutely marvelous, a feat achieved with such strong concentration and repetition in body movement. Of course as the strain grew and tiredness came along she would have to swim much harder. The air breaks in between came and went for her, she wished to not waste time. The cavern was beautiful, yes but they had spent enough time down here and it must've been what had made Luigi so strange before. She knew of his fears, his worries and what she assumed to be his anxiety. Her memory of the tales of Luigi's Mansion were still fresh in her mind. His braveness then had added to her pain later on as she left her own planet. It was when she mourned her Mario Bros. and their Bowser did she remember that adventure. Luigi had used a special vacuum cleaner to suck up ghosts that scared him half to death to save his brother. Facing his fears head on all for his brother. Then in the end he had died for that same brother.

The bond they shared was strong and his braveness in the face of danger was truly endearing. This cavern was quiet and they were possibly the only two here. It must've been getting to him. Of course this was what she had taken from his behavior earlier on their way back to her dress but she wasn't absolutely certain what had gotten into him. It's what helped her focus. She wanted to get him out of here. He had helped her escape Bower's clutches and even carried her like-well a princess! Keeping him here any longer would be...it'd be horrible of her. With her determination set in place she picked up the pace, her legs moving a bit faster and her forward strokes were even stronger. Truly like a torpedo in the water this time around.