Change of Heart
is a Super Mario Bros. fanfic written by ebtwisty9.
Change of Heart follows the story of Princess Peach as she comes to grips with love and the two men in her life. The fanfic is set just a short while after Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door while the cast going about their lives outside of the typical routine we're used to in the Mario games.
Predictably this does not last very long.
Bowser's birthday is coming up but the Koopa King himself is looking less than stellar despite this big day drawing close. His children see this and form the well-intentioned if nutty idea of bringing the princess to celebrate his Birthday with him!
Meanwhile the Princess herself is dealing with her love life. She's feeling that her relationship isn't going anywhere with Mario. With nothing but her friend Daisy's super saccharine relationship with Luigi in full view Peach is left feeling as if she's missing something about being in a relationship.
When a romantic week with Mario falls through she concocts a new scheme to take a personal break from being the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom. This does not go unnoticed by the eager Koopalings as they form their own plans for her.
Change of Heart, while constructed as a Shipping Fic between Bowser and Peach, has a few notable features to it. For one thing is endeavors to showcase varying kinds of relationships and dynamics that exist within couples as well as different kinds of "loves." It also paints all of it's characters as people rather than villains. It delves into the layers of each characters personality quite effectively over its 52 chapter long run.
This fanfic provides examples of:
- Buffy Speak: Bowser refers to Ludwig's baton as a "stick control thingy".
- Missing Mom: Klawdia, Bowser's first wife, is deceased. She was inside of a castle during one of Mario's adventures which he blew up...
- Shipper on Deck: The Koopalings for their father and "Mama Peach". They adore her and want a mom in their life, since their own left them. Their desire for a mother is so strong they start a little competition amongst themselves to get their "parents" hitched.
