*three days later*

"What is it with Peachy's getup?" Dixie whispered to Toadette, who shrugged.

Peach's appearance that day could be accurately described as unusual. She wore a plain pink shirt, jeans, and sapphire blue flats. She seemed to not be wearing any makeup and her hair was not in a fancy hairstyle. She wore less than half of her usual amount of accessories and jewelry. Peach looked so simple... And no one was used to it.

"Peach!" Toadette called. The blonde girl turned around to face her friends.

"What?" she replied.

"Why are you wearing that?" Dixie questioned.

"I guess I felt like wearing something different today," Peach shrugged. "It's nice to have some variety once in a while."

"Peach," Toadette said slowly. "You NEVER say that. You HATE change."

"Can't a girl just experiment for a day?" Peach sighed. "I don't know about you two, but I'm going to class now. See you there."

Peach then walked away from the two shocked girls.

"Something is definitely wrong," Toadette murmured.

"Yep," Dixie agreed. "But before making any assumptions, let's wait and see how this day goes."

*at dismissal*

"One more day..." Daisy sighed with relief. 

"This school year was so stressful," Rosalina stated.

"You don't say," Toad replied.

"Hey, guys!" Peach waved and smiled at the unpopulars.

"Go away, Peach," Mario said. "We're not in the mood."

"Don't worry, I'm not here to bug you," Peach handed Mario a piece of paper. "You all won't regret going."

"Going where?" Luigi questioned.

"Just read the paper!" Peach called over her shoulder as she left the group.

"Should we?" Mario gestured at the paper.

"Peach has been acting different lately," Boo stated. "Maybe the paper will explain why."

"Umm, Peach made it sound as if she's inviting us to something," Birdo pointed out.

"Well," Mario said. "There's only one way to find out what the paper says."

He unfolded the paper and everyone gathered around him to read it.

Please go to the auditorium asap. I promise you won't have to stay there for too long. Your presence there is really important for this matter.

- Peach

"This isn't a prank," Birdo stated.

"How would you know?" Mario asked.

"Peach doesn't usually give her victims handwritten letters. That is something she only does when she's serious about something. I was her friend for nearly two years, I should know," Birdo explained.

"Okay then," Daisy said. "So, should we go to the auditorium?"

"I think we should," Toad replied. "Whatever Peach is doing that we need to be there for can't be that bad."

"Now, let's go," Yoshi suggested. The group began heading towards their destination.

Meanwhile, Peach was backstage at the auditorium.

"I'm a little nervous," she said to no one in particular. Peach took several deep breaths before going onto the stage. She was quite relieved that all of her classmates were in the audience.

Peach got a microphone and began to speak.

"Hi, everyone," she said. "First of all, I'm so thankful that you came. And I know all of you are wondering why I need you here. I decided to make a move before it's too late. I decided to swallow my pride today. I decided to give each one of you what you deserve- an apology."

"What's happening?!" Dixie whispered to Toadette. "What is she apologizing for? Her tacky outfit?"

"I need to tell you all something that no one knows except myself," Peach stated. "Ever since 8th grade, I have owned a book that was full to the brim with negativity. I wrote bad things, both big and small about each and every single person in this room. Just recently, I began to get sick of writing in this book and I began to feel guilty. So, I have spent the past few days ripping the pages out of the book and tearing the pages into many small pieces. I know, at least some of you might be pissed at me."

"Is this legit?" Rosalina asked Yoshi quietly.

"Apparently," Yoshi answered. "Now, be quiet. I want to see where Peach is going with this."

"Now, I would like to apologize to each of you individually... In front of everyone," Peach started. "DK, I realized how demanding I am to you. I know that you are reluctant to me most of the time. I'm sorry for being so obnoxious and oblivious. I hope you can forgive me."

Most of the people in the audience glanced at Donkey Kong, who didn't know what to say.

"Waluigi, I have to apologize to you for the many times I humiliated you without feeling any remorse whatsoever," Peach continued. "The way I've been treating you for the past two school years is one of the many things that prove how inconsiderate I am. I always refused to put myself in other people's shoes."

"That's true," Waluigi muttered under his breath.

"Wario, I'm sorry for treating you like dirt on the ground and still expecting you to put up with me," Peach apologized. "I know you just wanted to be accepted as a popular and I didn't make it easy for you at all. I sometimes acted as if you didn't exist and I regret doing so."

Wario simply nodded, but no obvious expressions were shown on his face.

"Diddy, I have to confess something. Back in 8th grade, you were dating Dixie and... I am the person who is responsible for making you and her break up. It was not your fault or hers. I am the only person to blame. Had I not interfered with your near-perfect relationship, you two would have definitely been together for a longer time," Peach admitted.

Dixie gasped and Diddy looked as startled as Dixie sounded. Both of them seemed to be deep thought.

"And Bowser, I'm sorry for being such a spoiled, bratty girlfriend," Peach said. "I have no clue how you were and are able to deal with me. A girl like myself doesn't deserve to have anyone as her boyfriend. But, I wish you can forgive me nonetheless. If you choose to keep me as your girlfriend, I will be much more pleasant to be around... I promise."

Bowser smiled a little, willing to give Peach another chance.

"Dettie... Wait, I'm not sure if I have the right to call you that. Toadette, I'm SO sorry for being the worst friend you could ever have. I didn't act like we were friends, I acted like you were my servant. I really hope you can give me a chance to redeem myself. Because you're a really kind friend and I didn't realize that until recently," Peach stated, making eye contact with Toadette.

Toadette had a big grin on her face once Peach said the last sentence.

"Dixie, I have been nothing but selfish towards you. I broke you and Diddy up because I was getting annoyed that you weren't spending as much time with me as I wanted you to," Peach confessed. "I never treated you the way someone is supposed to treat her best friend. But despite that, you've always been so sweet to me. You shower me with compliments and are there for me no matter what. Thank you so much for putting up with how annoying I am."

"You're welcome," Dixie said softly, although she looked quite sad.

"Boo," Peach continued. "Honestly, it's my fault that your school year turned out as stressful as it is. No new student should be treated the way I treated you. I never knew you well and I was quick to judge you. If you forgive me, I would like to get to know you better. From here, I can't get any worse than I already am."

Boo turned red at the mention of his name and kept his mouth shut the entire time.

"Luigi, I'm sorry for being so inconsiderate," Peach apologized. "I've made you and Mario drift apart, made big deals out of little things you did, and treated you like a wimp. I guess I assumed that you were a big coward... But, I stand corrected. Your ability to deal with me without being scared of me is amazing. Luckily, I will make sure you can stand around me without getting laughed at one way or another."

Luigi was happy that Peach actually complimented him. He no longer thought that this was a trick because the other populars weren't in on it.

"And don't deny it, Toad," Peach began. "I know it's mostly my fault that you left our group. I know that even when we were friends, you wanted to show some kindness to the unpopulars. That's why you invited them to your party five months ago, right? Well, I totally ruined that party for you and you didn't even do anything to deserve that outcome! I'm glad you came to your senses and didn't continue tolerating me. But, I wish you can forgive me... Even if I don't really deserve your forgiveness."

Toad didn't know how to feel and he remained silent, not wanting to miss a word of Peach.

"Rosalina... I miss you so much. You were one of the best friends I've ever had and for the longest time, too," Peach said. "I guess I should admit that I have always been jealous of you. Who wouldn't be? You're tall, pretty, strong, smart, kind, talented, the list goes on. But, my jealousy is a bad excuse for treating you so badly. I'm really sorry for breaking your phone, by the way. If you want me to buy you a new one, I'm willing to. I also want to apologize for exposing your blog. There's nothing wrong with having one and that move of mine was a big-time invasion of privacy. It would be a miracle if you could forgive me at this point..."

"Miracles happen," Rosalina said quietly, ready to forgive Peach.

"Yoshi, I'm sorry for playing with your feelings, even though I wasn't the girl who was dared to date you. I'm the girl who dared Birdo to date you," Peach stated. "I'm also sorry for all of the times I ever embarrassed you and treated you unfairly. What I can't believe is how you remain so nice and forgiving to everyone around you. I need that gift. Birdo is one lucky girl."

"Thanks, Peach," Yoshi's response was barely audible.

"Birdo... I don't know if you can forgive me after everything that I've done," Peach continued. "You're right-  it seemed like you were my servant. I no longer blame you for not wanting to be friends with me. I was too bossy and demanding. And in addition to that, I practically forced you to play with someone's feelings! I'm glad that you found new friends that treat you the right way. I'm also happy that you and Yoshi are together for real now."

Birdo was speechless. She was unsure of how to react.

"Mario, I know how much you wanted to be in our group but we never made it easy for you to get what you wanted. My actions towards you are yet another example of how inconsiderate I've been. I'm sorry for being so fake and for pretending that we were in love. You deserve the friends you currently have. You also deserve a beautiful girlfriend who is kind and genuine. If you forgive me, I'd owe you forever," Peach stated.

Mario was not ready to hear what Peach had just said. But, he didn't fawn over her voice this time- he was no longer in love with her.

"And lastly... Daisy," Peach took a deep breath. "It's because I ditched you in 7th grade that this entire mess occurred. I was nothing but an obstacle in your life ever since that day. Whenever I had the chance, I made things harder for you. If I apologized for every single thing I did to you, you'd all be sitting here for at least three more hours. So, I'll cut it short. You were such a good best friend to have. I miss all of the fun we had together. I want to start fresh with our friendship. But if you don't want to, I understand. I just want to show you that from now on, I will change for the better."

Daisy gasped and her eyes nearly welled up with tears of happiness. She looked at her seatmates as if she wanted to say, "Is this real?".

"I've been acting different over the course of the past few days because I've been acknowledging everything I've done wrong in the past two years," Peach continued. "If you found freshman year hard, it's because of me. I made things harder for everyone because I enjoyed doing so. But, that was wrong of me. From this moment on, I will shape up. I want to try to be friends with everyone now. That is something none of us could do before."

"To be honest, I'm kind of looking forward to the next school year now," Boo whispered to Yoshi.

"I am, too," Yoshi whispered back.

"It is my fault that we were in a war with each other- populars vs. unpopulars. But, forget that those words ever existed in our class. We are equal. I am called the queen bee of our grade, but all I really am is the queen bee of making others miserable. However, I am ashamed of that. This is a problem I will fix myself," Peach told everyone.

Some of the students glanced around to see everyone else's reactions. Most of the people in the audience looked quite happy.

"I will only demand one thing from all of you now- that we end this grudge against each other. I assure you that if we do that, our school lives would become at least a little better," Peach said. "I can't do anything about the past, even though I wish I could. I don't know what will happen to me after today. I don't know who still wants to be friends with me or who will forgive me. But, I am now willing to befriend everyone if possible. I don't even know some of you that well and I want that fact to change. I want a different personality, a better one. And I will work towards getting that better personality. I know I don't have the ability to make things perfect, but I do have the ability to become a kinder person. I hope the next school years I spend with you will have less drama. Thank you so much for coming here and listening to my words."

The entire auditorium became quiet for at least ten seconds. Then, the audience began applauding. Peach smiled at everyone before leaving the stage.

*twenty minutes later*

Peach was peacefully taking things out of her locker, ready to bring them home. Suddenly, someone approached her from behind.

"Hey, Peach," Bowser said. Peach was a little startled, but she turned around.

"Hi," she smiled.

"I'm really proud of you," Bowser told his girlfriend. "What you did awile ago takes a lot of courage to do. And your words were really meaningful to most of us."

"Thank you," Peach blushed a little. "I tried to make my words meaningful."

"By the way, I'm not mad at you or anything," Bowser stated. "I think you deserve another chance. We can restart our relationship."

"That's exactly what I hoped would happen," Peach wrapped her arms around Bowser. "Thank you so much."

"No problem, Peachy," Bowser said. Once Peach's arms dropped from Bowser's torso, Bowser walked away... But, not before waving back to Peach.

It was not long before someone else approached Peach.

"You know," Donkey Kong started. "I really appreciate what you did up on that stage. I'm glad you recognized your mistakes."

"Yeah, I did," Peach replied. "And thank you."

"I'd be realy guilty if I didn't forgive you after all the effort you put into making that speech," Donkey Kong said. "So, I forgive you. What you said made me actually look forward to sophomore year."

"I'm looking forward to that, too," Peach stated. "Well I'm glad you approached me, DK."

"I'm glad I did, too," Donkey Kong smiled a little. "I guess I should be going now. See you tomorrow."

"Bye," Peach said as Donkey Kong left. Soon, Toadette went to Peach.

"Hi," Toadette said. She sounded a bit shy.

"Hey, Toadette," Peach responded.

"Please call me Dettie again," Toadette requested. "I'm not used to you calling me Toadette."

"Okay, Dettie," Peach laughed a little.

"I really want to thank you for saying what you said earlier," Toadette stated. "I really want to continue being your friend, now that you're gonna shape up. Honestly, I was kind of tired of your old self."

"I certainly was," Peach replied. "And yes, I really will change for the better. Thanks for staying by my side."

"You're very welcome," Toadette giggled. "See you tomorrow, Peachy!"

"You too," Peach grinned before Toadette walked away. A pair of brothers walked up to Peach next.

"Hey, so we heard that cheesy talk of yours," Wario started.

"I am aware," Peach replied.

"So, we forgive you for all of your deeds," Waluigi stated.

"Oh, thank you-" Peach was interrupted.

"Nah, just kidding!" Waluigi laughed.

"You were pretty harsh on all of us. We need some time to get used to you becoming a different person," Wario explained. "Damn, that didn't sound like me at all." Peach just smiled and nodded.

"Okay, that makes sense," she said.

"Gad you're not shedding tears or anything," Wario responded, grinning smugly. "Come on Waluigi, let's go." The two brothers ran off. Peach couldn't help but giggle a little.

Who else will talk to me about that now? she thought.

She quickly got her answer when Luigi, Yoshi, and Boo approached her together.

"Thank you, Peach," Yoshi said. "We all really appreciated what you did."

"You're welcome but again, I'm SO sorry," Peach apologized. "I was an absolute monster. I'd really like to try being actual friends with you." The three boys glanced at one another before turning back to Peach.

"We'd really like to try being friends with you, too," Boo spoke quietly, but Peach heard him nonetheless.

"Awesome!" Peach grinned.

"This year ended pretty nicely, didn't it?" Luigi said.

"Yes, it definitely did," Peach replied.

"We're going home now," Luigi responded. "See you tomorrow." 

"Bye," Peach smiled at the group. Next to approach Peach were two of her former friends, Toad and Birdo.

"I hope you know how amazing of you it was to take responsibility of your bad actions and tell us of your attempt to become a better person," Birdo stated.

"Thanks a lot for getting up on that stage and making that speech," Toad added.

"You're very welcome," Peach replied.

"However, Toad and I feel that it is best to wait awhile before befriending you again. The way you treated me kinda scarred me, to be honest," Birdo explained. "I think the whole summer vacation would be long enough to wait before restarting our friendship."

"I understand," Peach stated. "I really do."

"Well, that's all we wanted to tell you. Bye, Peach," Toad said before he and Birdo walked away.

The next person who talked to Peach was one of the people she had treated the worst- Mario.

"Hey," Peach decided to start the conversation.

"Hi," Mario responded. "I just wanted to say, good job on the speech. Hearing your words was certainly worth my time."

"Thank you," Peach replied.

Just making eye contact with Mario reminded Peach of the nightmare she had recently. She remembered how she was homeless and how Mario refused to give her food because of her actions. Peach would have cringed if she thought about it for too long.

"I've been thinking about whether I should forgive you or not," Mario paused.

"Go on..." Peach said.

"I don't think I will forgive you just yet. You were quite cruel to me plenty of times," Mario stated honestly. "I suppose I can tolerate you for now, but I don't think I'm ready to become friends with you."

"It's okay, I understand," Peach responded.

"So, I guess I'll see you tomorrow," Mario said.

"Yeah," Peach nodded. "Bye."

"Bye, Peach," Mario continued down the hallway and soon disappeared into the crowd of students.

Shortly after Mario was gone, Diddy and Dixie approached Peach together. They seemed to be on good terms and because of that, Peach smiled to herself.

"Hey, guys," Peach nodded at the two former populars. "How are you?"

"We're good, thanks," Diddy grinned. "Dixie and I decided to get back together."

"I'm really happy for both of you," Peach stated genuinely.

"Okay, let me explain," Dixie started. "Right after we left the auditorium, I talked to Diddy. We both realized that we never really meant to break up in the first place. Therefore, we're back together now. However, I came to my senses because of you and I realized that we weren't truly best friends. I was more like your shadow or your slave. But, I am willing to try having a real friendship with you... Just not yet."

"That's fine with me," Peach replied. "I know you need a little break anyway. Do you feel the same way as her, Diddy?"

"Not really," Diddy admitted. "I mean, I'm game with befriending you already, even if you're the one responsible for messing up my initial relationship with Dixie. But hey, the past is the past and I'm just glad you're willing to become a better person."

"Thanks again," Peach said. "I wish that both of you enjoy the rest of the day."

"Don't worry, we will," Dixie assured. "I wish the same to you, Peach."

"Actually, Dixie and I are about to go for some ice cream," Diddy stated. "Want to join us?"

"No, but I appreciate the offer," Peach responded. "I'm simply in the mood to go straight home today."

Peach truly didn't want to go because she knew she would be the third wheel. She figured that Diddy and Dixie deserved to have a date and she didn't want to ruin their quality time alone together. But, Peach knew that Diddy and Dixie didn't realize that she would be third-wheeling and that their intentions were good.

"Okay then," Diddy replied. "See you tomorrow."

"Bye," Peach said to the couple.

Peach noticed that only two people had yet to talk to her- Daisy and Rosalina. They were two thirds of the original trio and Peach was the other third. Just remembering their fun moments from first to sixth grade made Peach miss the two girls so much.

"Peach!" a familiar voice exclaimed, distracting Peach from her thoughts. She looked behind her and saw  Daisy and Rosalina. Daisy was the person who had called her.

"Hi," Peach said.

"I have high hopes for the next school year," Rosalina stated.

"I do, too," Peach agreed.

"Oh, I missed you so much," Daisy sighed happily. "I missed our trio. These two years without being your friend have been really hard. And now, we can be a trio again! I mean... If you're okay with that, obviously."

"Why wouldn't I be okay with that?!" Peach grinned. "I'd love to be part of the trio again!" Daisy and Rosalina smiled at each other.

"So, I guess it's official. You're our friend now," Rosalina said.

Peach, Daisy, and Rosalina did a group hug before saying goodbye to each other and going their separate ways.

That day, something extremely rare had happened- each and every Mushroom High freshman student ended the school day in a great mood.

This chapter is 3953 words. I'm pretty proud of myself in all honesty. Please give me feedback on this chapter! And also watch out for the next chapter, which will be the last "official" chapter. Anyways please add, comment, vote, etc. Thanks!

- pinkandpeachy