Chapter Text
Princess Shroob doubled over, dropping her gun.
“The winner is Mario!” the Shy Guy announced.
“You did it, young feller!” E. Gadd exclaimed.
Mario stepped over to Princess Shroob.
“You…” Princess Shroob growled, “Why didn’t you kill me?”
“Because… I’m not stooping to your level, ever again,” Mario said, looking down at her, “I’ve never once wanted to kill any of my enemies. That’s why I spared Bowser so often, over the years. Of course, there came time when killing was necessary, but… after this game? Not again. I’m never stooping to your level again. You will be tried under the full might of the Mushroom Kingdom.”
“You…” Princess Shroob growled, “Damn it… All I ever wanted was for my people to prosper… All I ever wanted was for them to live happily… and you stomped all over their dreams…”
“I get it,” Mario said, “I really do. Back when we defeated you and your sister the first time, we never wanted to hurt you. But it was us or you. You were hell-bent on destroying us, and there’s nothing we could do to reason with you. We were just like you, in a way… Fighting for our survival. At least, back then. None of us would… do something like this.”
“You know, you could have just asked me,” Rosalina smirked, “There’s plenty of planets in the universe. I’m sure there’s one that’s uninhabited that we could have moved you to. It didn’t have to be Mario and everyone’s planet.”
“Hmph,” Princess Shroob growled, “I… never thought of it that way. I saw the prosperity that the Mushroom planet had, and zeroed in on it. Well, it’s too late for that now.”
“Well then, a promise is a promise!” Wario grumbled, “Let us out of here already!”
“Yes, I need to get to that,” Princess Shroob said. She snapped her fingers, and everyone’s PartyWatches broke! Suddenly, from Mario’s PartyWatch, the seven Star Spirits burst from it, regaining their physical forms!
“Mario, young lad!” Eldstar exclaimed, “You did it!”
“And you didn’t even need our help!” Mamar added.
“Now then, let’s get out of here!” Skolar said.
In a flash of white light, the group, including Princess Shroob, were teleported back to Peach’s Castle.
“...I’ll tell the rest of the Shroobs to release your friends from Bowser’s Castle too,” Princess Shroob said, “I never explicitly said that was part of the deal, but… Hmph.”
Mario said nothing.
“Hey, so, is it really possible to revive everyone that’s died?” E. Gadd asked.
“Well, yes, but it would require an immense amount of Wishing Energy to revive even one person,” Muskular said.
“And the amount of positive emotions in the world is rather low, for obvious reasons,” Misstar added.
“You could use some of the Nightmare Energy I’ve gathered,” Princess Shroob offered, “Fat lot of use I have for it now that I’m in your custody.”
“Not a chance,” Mario said, “There’s no way we’re bringing back Antasma.”
“I’m sure with your survival that Wishing Energy will be able to be gathered sooner rather than later,” Klevar said.
“The Mushroom people will be so happy that at least some of you survived!” Kalmar said.
“Wait, so, we can only revive one person at a time, right?” Wario asked, “Who are we reviving first?”
“Well, obviously, it’s got to be Lord Bowser!” Kamek said.
“No way!” Mario replied, “The Toads need their ruler back too! And I’d like to see my Bro again.”
“Nope! I’m going to revive Bowser first!” Kamek shouted, blasting Mario backward with magic, before flying off on his broomstick.
“Here we go again…” Mario grumbled, chasing after him.
A week later, Princess Shroob stood in the Mushroom Kingdom’s courthouse. Toadsworth sat in a large chair, looking down at her, with Mario, E. Gadd, and Rosalina nearby. There were plenty of Toads in the gallery, watching.
“Princess Shroob, you stand here after causing the death of the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom, along with many others. Normally, this would mean life in the Mushroom Kingdom’s prisons for you,” Toadsworth said, “However, as acting ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom, having polled my people, and considering that the people you killed can be revived, we are willing to make you a deal.”
“Princess Shroob, how far are you willing to go for your people?” Mario asked.
“As far as necessary,” Princess Shroob said, “I’d do anything for them.”
“Would you be willing to forfeit your crown to the Mushroom people in exchange for being able to live peacefully on this planet?” Toadsworth asked, “As such, you and your people will be forced to do labor for the Mushroom Kingdom, pay taxes, among other things. Furthermore, you will lose sovereignty over your people, as that will revert to me, until Princess Peach is revived, when it will be her.”
“...” Princess Shroob remained quiet. While she did care for her people, she wasn’t expecting this level of mercy. Furthermore, she was hesitant to give up her crown.
“Are you all idiots?” Princess Shroob asked, “I killed your people! Even if I agreed to work for you, I could easily betray you.”
“Yeah, and then we’d beat you, like we always have,” Mario replied, “And, by betraying us, you’d lose that peace for your people that you already had. So, no, I don’t think you’d betray us.”
“Furthermore, your people will be forced to do community service as reparations,” Toadsworth said, “The Mushroom Kingdom has been low on workforce recently, so we need as many workers as we can get. We see this as a way to punish you that we can actually get something out of, whereas simply killing or imprisoning you wouldn’t benefit us in any way.”
“Hm, you’re smart,” Princess Shroob said, “...Very well. For my people, I accept your offer.”
Princess Shroob took off her crown, and placed it onto the desk in front of her.
“Very well. As of now, the Shroobs will now become Mushroom Kingdom citizens, and be forced to do community service for the Mushroom Kingdom for the foreseeable future,” Toadsworth said.
“Hm… Is this what peace is…” Ex-Princess Shroob said, “Hm. You all are beyond comprehension.”