#1: Peach's Cake
By Emerson Kluge

The cake. The cake. The cake was almost ready.

Princess Peach darted about Mushroom Castle's spacious confectionary as mushroom people swarmed at her waist. She wrung her hands and clenched the front of her white ruffled apron scrunching her gown underneath as two mushroom servants applied pink frosting to the fresh triple-layer cake. A piping bag sat ready, filled with white icing sugar.

"Be careful, please," she urged.

The exhausted pain on the decorator's faces matched only their concern for the Princess's well being. They saw a sparkling hope build in Peach's eyes, but toiled in futility, needing no prophet to see her dreams would be crushed and their work amount to nothing.

Perched on a dustbin - without lifting a finger in assistance - Toad looked on in wry amusement. This cake Peach baked for Mario was the eighth in as many days. Her love for Mario drove her to insanity; repeating the same thing over and over all the while expecting a different result. She would do the same with this cake as with the others: a procession to Mario's room where she would present it to him and then attempt to slip inside before Toad could stop her. He knew she wanted only a few seconds alone and nothing could happen in that time, but he was King Toadstool's chief advisor and he controlled the Princess. She was an asset that needed to be preserved and couldn’t be wasted on a strange man from a strange land. Besides, her desperation and pathetic attempts at the only form of affection she could muster amused him, and he had so little to be amused by.

"It's done!" Peach's soft, lyrical voice filled the room as she pressed a candle into the generous top layer of frosting.

Mushroom people around the kitchen fell to their knees and cried to themselves in relief - not that Peach noticed. She stood glowing in delight at the cake and thoughts of Mario.

Four unsteady, dwarf-sized mushroom people transferred the cake to a silver platter and hoisted it above their heads, following Peach towards the living quarters.

"Hurry, hurry. We must catch Mario before he leaves for the day!" Peach urged, her attempt to sound cheery betrayed by the strain in her voice and her otherwise graceful footsteps gained a halting edge.

The procession made their way from the basement, up the candle-lit spiral stairs to the upper level hallway that accessed the servant's - and Mario's - quarters. They left in their wake a trail of worried looks and whispered rumors; innuendo about Mario and her, and the senile King Toadstool.

Past the armored suits that lined the red and gold carpeted hall, Peach stopped before Mario's door and folded her hands.

Toad sauntered forward, doing his best to look bored, and banged twice on the door with his diamond-topped scepter.

The room behind the door remained quite at first, but then a thump and grumblings emanated from within, before heavy footsteps and the sound of locks.

The door ripped open, revealing the hulking red overalls and mustache of Mario. The brim of his hat shadowed his eyes and he held his free hand clenched in a fist.

"Who is..." he rumbled as the door swung aside. "Oh! Peach!" He glanced at Toad. "I... mean uh... Princess Toadstool." He snatched the hat from his head and wrung it in his hands as he talked. "What can I do for you?"

Toad stood by, watching with a smirk.

"I have baked you a cake!" Princess Peach announced.

Mario's eyes softened. "Why... oh... Thank you Princess. It's um... very nice, thank you." The words gave only a formal face to the deepness of his affection.

Mario accepted and admired the gift before placing it on a table just inside. "It really is a wonderful cake, I... thank you." He stared at her eyes as the mushroom people at her feet shuffled around. "Um... would you... uh... like to have a piece?"

Peach's face brightened. "That's very kind of you, Mario. I would love to!" the Princess gushed.

She prepared step forward before Toad pushed his scepter across the doorway, clanking it against the frame and blocking the way.

"There are more pressing issues, Princess." Toad reminded.

Mario glared at the diminutive advisor. He clenched a fist as tears well in Peach's eyes.

"We have to go now, Princess." Toad said before turning to Mario. "Shoo shoo! Don't occupy the Princess needlessly." He turned his back and walked toward the stairs. "Come now, Princess," he prodded.

Mario hand shook on the doorframe as he watched Toad lead Peach away.

The smirk on Toad's face would remain for the rest of the day. Their longing for each other was so obvious and so very amusing. It was enjoyable for the moment but was not destined to last. Seeing that nothing very notable ever happened in the Mushroom Kingdom, amusement would have to be sought elsewhere. Toad detested boredom, and tomorrow would be exceedingly boring, unless, of course - Toad smiled to himself - Peach could be prodded into baking another cake.