He had been forgotten again. This was to be expected, day after day, month after month, year after year. But this year in particular bothered him. It was their 30th birthday, but they forgot his…and remembered his. His slightly older brother had received all the accolades and recognition and gifts, and the slightly younger brother was left on the wayside again: He hadn't even been invited to the main festivities. It was only talk of the red plumber's heroics in the Mushroom Kingdom, his constant felling of the evil Koopa King, his daring rescues of the woman in pink. The green plumber was never remembered in these adventures, even though he had done his fair share of work as well. Everyone praised the hero in red, while leaving out the man in green. It was never about them…only him. Alone he lay in his bed, wondering when his time would come.

She sat down on the grass, picking at the blades. The red plumber, the woman in pink, and her faithful retainer had gone off on another adventure in some foreign land. It sounded like fun. But fun would never be had by her in any major outings. It was only when they needed a second princess that she was allowed to join in. She had been deeply stung to find out that the queen of the galaxies had been joining in on newer adventures. Her, of all people! The flower princess held no grudge, but adventures were built for her! It had been the worst to find out that she would not be joining the gang in their latest Smash tournament. The queen of the galaxies had joined, and the woman in pink had asked to borrow one of her yellow dresses as an alternate costume. But this was the last straw. How long would it take for someone to recognize her worth, her value, her passion for adventure? Alone she laid her head upon the grass, wondering when her time would come.

He decided to take a walk to clear his head. He hadn't been watching where he was going, however, and tripped over something…or someone.

"Ouch!" she yelled.

"S-sorry," he muttered, picking himself back up. He looked down – it was the flower princess.

"Oh," he said sheepishly. "Hi."

"Hey."

A silence fell between them. He noticed that she was looking straight up at the sky, her eyebrows furrowed in thought.

"What are you thinking about?"

"Nothing important, really." She looked up at him. "Why aren't you at the party?"

"Oh…um…" He looked back at the castle, not wanting to tell her why. "It's not important, really."

Another silence passed. She sighed.

"I think I know why."

"You do?"

"Let me guess," she said, shifting her gaze towards the sky again. "No one remembered you, as usual, but they praised him, right?"

He looked at her, stunned. "How did you – "

"It wasn't that hard to guess."

"Oh…well…" He shifted his feet uncomfortably. "Yeah, pretty much…"

"I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault."

"I know…but someone has to apologize for their actions, right?"

He didn't say anything.

"Well, you should go anyway. It sounds like fun. Cake and games and everything. You should try to have fun more often."

Her voice sounded bitter; he frowned at her.

"What's wrong? You sound – "

"I'm fine," she said rather bluntly, closing her eyes. He narrowed his eyebrows; something was off about her. He sat down beside her; her eyes snapped open.

"Why are you still here? I said you should go – "

"Come with me."

"What?"

"I really don't want to go alone."

"Well, at least you got invited," she snapped. "Find someone else who also got an invite, at least you'll both have something in common."

The words had left her mouth before she had thought them through; she bit her lip, and he raised his eyebrows.

"So that's what you were thinking about?"

"…It's nothing, honestly. Forget I said anything."

"But – "

"I'm FINE!" she yelled, her eyes blazing with anger. "Just go to the goddamn party already and leave me alone!" She leapt up and sprinted away from the castle, leaving him behind. He stared after her sadly.

I know how you feel.

He found her, an hour later, sitting on an abandoned beach, her knees drawn up to her chest. She wasn't crying, but he knew that she still felt pain. She heard him approach and turned her head.

"…Hi."

She didn't say anything, but looked straight ahead at the horizon. The warm, orange sun was setting softly over the ocean.

"…Do you mind if I sit down?"

She shrugged. He sat next to her, also drawing up his knees.

"…I'm sorry," she mumbled.

"For what?"

"I didn't mean to get mad at you, especially on your birthday. I was just…frustrated at things."

"You don't have anything to be sorry for," he said, smiling a little.

A silence fell between them once again. A soft wind fluttered through the air.

"…Are you jealous of me?" he asked. She looked at him, surprised.

"Jealous? Of what?"

"…You know," he muttered. "Going on adventures, participating in tournaments…"

"No," she sighed. She frowned. "Well…maybe a little. I mean, I know that people laugh at you, and make jokes at your expense, but…" She hesitated before continuing. "At least you get to be there. Saving the Sprixie Princesses, fighting against Mega Man and Pac-Man, saving Pi'illo Island…you're in the midst of it all, even if you're not…you know…the leading guy."

She looked up at the sky again, a resigned look crossing her face. "I guess…if that's the way the world works, then so be it. I'll have to accept it."

He felt bad; what she had said had made him feel guilty about his own thoughts. His problems seemed miniscule to the pain she was going through. He knew he should have been grateful for at least being in the adventures; it was time for him to take the good with the bad instead of focusing on just the bad. He thought for a moment before speaking.

"…You don't have to accept the way things are."

She shrugged again. "It doesn't really matter – "

"Yes it does." He turned directly to her; she looked bewildered. "You're usually not this way. You're letting it affect you and it's bringing you down, I can tell." He raised her eyebrows; she sighed.

"I guess…but it's not like there's anything I can do about it. It's fine, I'll just – "

"Why don't you create your own adventure?"

"Huh?"

"Do something fun for yourself! Who cares what everyone else is doing? I say have fun on your own! Make them regret not inviting you!"

"...Yeah, maybe."

The sun continued to set softly into the horizon. She sighed and got up. He looked up at her.

"Where are you going?"

"Home."

"Now?!"

"It'll take me a while to get back to Sarasaland. I should get going." She looked down. "Why?"

A smile crossed his face. "Let's go to the party."

"Why? I wasn't invited."

"So?" he said as he stood up. "Neither was I. Let's go anyway."

She looked taken aback. "You weren't invited to your own birthday party?!"

"Nope," he said, still smiling. "So let's crash it!"

She couldn't help but laugh at his suggestion. "That's absurd! Crashing a party?"

"Come on! It'll be fun! Besides," he said, "I'm sure you'd say the same thing if you were in my shoes."

She hesitated. In her normal, non-depressed state, it would be more of her idea and his unwillingness to comply, not the other way around. She admired his courage. "You're probably right," she admitted. "That sounds like something I'd suggest and you'd refuse to do it."

He nodded. "Ready to play Party Crashers?"

An evil grin spread across her face. "Alright, you're on! Race you there!"

They started to run back to the castle. Halfway there, she suddenly stopped. He turned around.

"Um…"

"Yes?"

A hint of red formed on her cheeks as she stepped forward and hugged him, catching him off guard.

"Thanks."

He smiled and hugged her back.

"You're welcome."

A/N: This is my first dramatic fanfic; the idea just came to me about how these two get left out a lot. Rate and review please! Thanks!