As evening fell, Marshall Lee, Fionna, and Cake lounged beneath a gnarled oak tree watching the stars come out. Cake was already sound asleep, purring with content next to Fionna's head. Her backpack lay at her feet, filled with trinkets and memories of today's adventure.
Marshall Lee rested in the shadow of the tree in the safety of its darkness as the Sun slowly set. He hadn't really watched many sunsets, being a vampire and all, but when he watched them with Fionna it was the best part of his day. He enjoyed hanging out with her, especially when they bickered back and forth playfully. She was so cute when she got all mad and huffy.
"Hey Marshall?" she nudged him out of his thoughts.
"Yeah Fi?"
She paused before continuing, "Do you remember anything from before the Great Mushroom Wars?" her blue eyes stared into his black irises. She was only a baby when it had happened, but he was just old enough to have memories of it.
However, they weren't exactly pleasant, "No, not really." He shrugged, "Why?"
Fionna rolled onto her stomach and closer to him, her pale blonde hair falling from her bunny hat, "I've always wondered what it was like back then…when Aaa wasn't filled with monsters and stuff…"
"Mmm…I imagine it was pretty different…" he sighed knowingly. It was different indeed, especially the 'monsters'. Different yes, better…not so much, "I personally like this world better." He smirked. The Sun finally vanished, leaving them in the beginnings of twilight.
"Why's that?"
"Well you're here, first of all." He jerked her hat down over her eyes jokingly. She swatted at him blindly until he fixed it for her, "And secondly, there's much more freedom than there was then. No hiding from everybody because I'm different. No more crazy laws or big wars. Just a…sort of…normal life." Marshall brushed some of her hair out of her eyes, letting his grey fingers rest on her warm pink cheek. He though she was blushing for a moment, but then he thought he was imagining it.
"I guess you're right…" she leaned into his hand.
"Oh!" he pulled his hand away and sat up, "I just remembered…I found something last night and I thought you might like it…" he dug around in the pocket of his skinny jeans and pulled out a rather clunky, but very pretty necklace.
Her jaw dropped, "Where…where did you find that?"
"In an old building not too far from here. I guess it used to be a store or something…there was a bunch of cool stuff in there." Marshall Lee unclasped the hook and put the chain around her neck. Though the gem was light lavender, the color didn't clash with her sky blue shirt and navy skirt. It actually looked good on her, or at least he thought so, "You wanna go see it?"
Fionna nodded, admiring the jewel, "Sure! Let's go." She grabbed Cake and stuffed her into her bag, still out like a light. She pulled him to his feet and asked which direction to go.
Not even thinking, Marshall Lee swept her up and leapt into the air, taking flight with Fionna in his arms. At first, she flipped out, nearly strangling him when her arms wrapped around his neck, but she eventually calmed down and began noticing the beauty of Aaa at night.
"So this is how you usually see everything?" she rested her head in the crook of his neck, her forehead pressed into the bite marks just above the collar of his shirt, "In the dark…under the starlight."
"Yeah…but I don't usually have anyone to look at it with me." He held her a little tighter.
Her eyebrows creased together, "Marsh, you've been acting kinda odd tonight…is everything ok?"
He nodded, lowering her to the ground in front of a dilapidated building. An illegible sign hung over where the door once was, and every window was completely gone.
"Wow…you sure it's safe to go in?"
"Would I take you somewhere dangerous Fi?"
"If I asked you to."
He rolled his eyes, "Yeah yeah…" and led her in cautiously by the hand. Dust swirled around their feet, and cobwebs hung from the rafters, All manner of junk and hidden treasure lay around them, waiting to be sorted through.
"Hey! What's this?" Fionna shoved a pile of rubble off of an unopened box, and then let out a squeal of delight, "Oh my Glob! It's a radio with a CD player!"
"See if you can find any CDs to put in it."
They sifted through piles and piles of moldy and broken clothes and furniture for what seemed like forever until they stumbled across some that weren't scratched or broken into a million pieces.
"Maroon 5…ever heard of them?" she held up a cracked case.
He grinned, all canines, "They're only one of my favorites! What album is it?" he took the plastic box from her, but the cover was so faded that all he could see was the band name and about four songs. It just so happened that a particular one was one of those that he could read, and it gave him an idea…
Setting the CD down on top of the radio, he pulled her to the section where some clothes had managed to survive. He insisted that she find something fancy to wear, but didn't elaborate as to why. After rummaging through several racks of dresses, she found an intact one that would fit her, and Marshall found a black suit jacket, a red tie that was ripped in half, and a fedora with a hole in it.
Fionna didn't want to admit it, but he looked really cute.
Marshall Lee dared not say that he thought she was pretty.
"C'mon, put the CD in! Let's dance!" he urged.
She hit a button to pop open the tray, and slid the CD in. The volume was almost all the way up.
As she stepped back to admire her work, a hand wrapped around hers, and she felt a cold tingle up her spine, "Dance with me." A voice beckoned.
She complied, turning so that she was face-to-face with the Vampire King as the song began…
Here I am waiting…I'll have to leave soon.
Why am I holding on?
We knew this day would come, we knew it all along.
How did it come so fast?
This is our last night, but it's late…
And I'm trying not to sleep,
'Cause I know when I wake, I will have to slip away
Her arms were around the back of his neck, while his rested on her waist. They were the king and queen of the post-apocalyptic prom in their faded and war-torn formal wear.
And when the daylight comes I'll have to go,
But tonight I'm gonna hold you so close.
'Cause in the daylight we'll be on our own.
But tonight I need to hold you so close…
Oh-whoa, oh-whoa, oh-whoa oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh-whoa, oh-whoa, oh-whoa oh oh oh oh oh oh
She let him take her hat off, feeling her almost floor-length golden hair spring free. He tossed the white garment on top of Cake, who stretched and rolled over. They pressed their foreheads together, her breath making up for the absence of his, the heat from her body combating the coolness of his.
Here I am staring at your perfection in my arms,
So beautiful…
The sky is getting bright, the stars are burning out,
Somebody slow it down.
This is way too hard, 'cause I know when the Sun comes up
I will leave…
This is my last glance that will soon be memory…
Marshall Lee pushed her hair back, caressing her neck with his spindly fingers. He kissed from her cheek to her collarbone, making her gasp in surprise. It made her feel all tingly and jittery, and she wasn't' sure if she liked it or not. He went all the way up to her ear before jumping to her lips. It felt like she was kissing a spoonful of ice cream; cold and smooth. That she did like.
And when the daylight comes I'll have to go,
But tonight I'm gonna hold you so close.
'Cause in the daylight we'll be on our own.
But tonight I need to hold you so close…
Oh-whoa, oh-whoa, oh-whoa oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh-whoa, oh-whoa, oh-whoa oh oh oh oh oh oh
He pulled away and whispered, "Is that what you want Bunny?"
"Huh?" she tilted her head.
"To be alone every day. To not be with me?"
She was still confused, "Of course not! I'd love for you to be around more Marsh, but you can't 'cause-"
He put his finger to her lips to silence her, "That's all I needed to hear." And before she could ask what he meant, his fangs had sunk into the curve of her neck. She couldn't scream, or breathe.
I never want it to stop because I don't wanna start all over,
Start all over…
I was afraid of the dark, but now it's all that I want…
All that I want,
All that I want…
He held fast to the back of her head and the small of her back until she didn't try to wriggle away. Before her life could fade too much, he scraped his lip to let his venomous blood mix and change hers. Fionna was still while the transformation took place; his only chance to get her home. He grabbed her bag, but her hat was left with her cat. As they flew out the window, the radio played one more chorus before a fuse blew;
And when the daylight comes I'll have to go,
But tonight I'm gonna hold you so close.
'Cause in the daylight we'll be on our own.
But tonight I need to hold you so close…
When the electricity died, Fionna's heart stopped beating, and Cake awoke to find herself alone.