Chapter 1
Prince Gumball was pacing the dinning hall at a rapid pace. He was rubbing his chin with his free hand, his brow furrowed in concentration, the other behind his back, clenched in frustration. Peppermint Maid watched him anxiously. She was one of the only ones who new why the Prince was in such agitation.
"Sir, are you quite sure you wouldn't like a bit of tea?" she asked cautiously.
"No." he said flatly. "We must wait, everything has to go perfectly."
Peppermint maid nodded and left the room, leaving the Prince to think over the situation again.
He paced for 10 minutes straight, all the time thinking the plan over and over again in his mind. He was so focused on what was in his head that he didn't even notice Marshal Lee floating just inches behind him.
"Sup." He said, making Gumball jump spastically.
"Where have you been!?" Gumball said through clenched teeth. The prince was frustrated by how casually Marshal Lee was taking this. His eyes examined the Vampire King's attire.
"I told you over the phone to dress like a king." Gumball said angrily. Marshal Lee was wearing what looked like a faded red cloth and a black cloak. He could tell that the fabric had at one time been a very fine material, but was incredibly worn now. He had a crown on his head that was apparently gold, but was so tarnished with age that it appeared grey and rusty.
"This IS formal clothing, if you haven't noticed Gummy, this clothing has been in my family in generations. It was passed down to me when I first became King." Marshal Lee seemed to have taken offense to the remark. He lifted his head and righted his crown, which he was clearly not used to wearing.
"Well it looks like it's been in the family one generation too many." The Prince huffed. He didn't have time to deal with this.
"Well if you think I'm just not presentable enough mister pink-pants, I guess I'll just go." Marshal turned to leave but Gumball grabbed his shoulder.
"Wait! You can't go! You're a key part to this plan!" Gumball said desperately. He was frustrated and angry and very, very, worried. He just wished Marshal Le would cooperate for once.
Marshal turned back, his arms crossed.
"I remember that you said it was important that I come because all Aaa royalty must attend and that I was technically royalty and blah blah blah." Marshal Lee said in a bored voice. "But I never heard your plan, or why we even need a plan. In fact," he looked at Gumball accusingly, "I don't even know why I'm here wearing my great, great, great, great grandfathers clothes, so explain. Now." He commanded.
Gumball had hopped this wouldn't come up until later. He didn't want to explain everything just now, he needed more time. But with Marshal threatening to leave he only had one choice. He had to do whatever he could to make him stay.
"Alright. I'll tell you." Gumball said defeated. He took a deep breath and turned away from the vampire king.
"Long ago, my grandfather, King Chewy the third, made a pact with the King of Veggies, Lord Celery. The pact was that the daughter of his daughter would marry the son of Lord Celery's son, and thus forging a solid peace between the two kingdoms." Gumball finished. He turned around to Marshal Lee.
Marshal Lee starred at him with a blank face.
"Um….." Marshal Lee began. "So the daughter of his daughter….wait! You don't have a sister!" He suddenly exclaimed.
"Congratulations. You figured out the problem." Said Gumball rolling his eyes.
"So you're saying," Marshal said, ignoring Gumball, "that because you had the mistake of being a boy there's no peace treaty? You brought all of Aaa's royalty together to tell them there's going to be a WAR?" Marshal Lee gapped at Gumball.
"Will you let me finish!?" Gumball shouted. He was incredibly frustrated. No one knew how much pressure he was under, how much power he held in his hands. He was only 23 and already he was dealing with the possibility of attack.
Gumball took a few deep breathes to calm himself before returning to Marshal Lee.
"The son of Lord Celery's son-
"Just say his grandson dude." Marshal Lee interrupted.
"Fine. His grandson will be attending the meeting of royalty tonight, where we will discuss the situation. The reason why its important for you to be here is because even though we will be discussing methods of peace, the Veggie Kingdom need to understand what they would be facing if they were to attack the Candy Kingdom."
Marshal Lee took a few seconds before putting all the information together.
"So, you want me, to be here with all your other supporters, to show Veggie-Head that you have a bad-ass vampire King as your ally." Marshal summarized.
"More or less, yes. We need you to appear in control, determined, and if so, menacing. And I beg you Marshal Lee, and I mean I really beg you, you MUST be respectful." Gumball finished. He studied Marshal, waiting for any sign of disagreement or doubt. Marshal Lee surprised Gumball however, because he held out his hand.
"I will show my loyalty to the Candy Kingdom." He said in a perfect impersonation of a gentleman. "If," Gumballs heart sank as Marshal Lee pulled his hand away from Gumball's. "You refer to me as 'Your Majesty' the entire time." Marshal Lee smiled widely as Gumball begrudgingly held out his hand. Marshal grabbed the hand and shook it hard.
"Gumball, you have yourself a deal."
Just as their hands parted, a loud trumpet rang throughout the halls.
"He's here! Hurry! We must meet the others in the grand hall!"
And without waiting for Marshal Lee's answer, Gumball grabbed the King by his cloak and began running down the corridor, dragging a very unhappy floating vampire.