summary: It's a running tradition in the kingdom, that when a girl turns eighteen, she is to be married. But when push comes to shove, Fionna is determined to prove that she is a strong, independent woman who don't need no man. And maybe start an assault of her own.

pairing: marshall lee ო fionna

notes: stumbled across this completely by accident the other day, but guys, this pairing is perfect. i'm not usually one for vampires, but marshall lee is all kinds of cool, so i'm willing to make an exception. also, marceline is my favorite regular adventure time character, even though i've only seen a few episodes.

disclaimer: if i owned this, adventure time with fionna and cake would be a separate show. which i would watch religiously.

please note: sorry not sorry.

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so you wanna play with magic?

boy, you should know who you're falling for

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i.

Fionna the Human did not wear fancy dresses. She rarely attend balls and galas thrown by the Candy Kingdom willingly. And even when she did, it was only for the cake and food, and maybe so she could spend some time with her favorite candy prince, but. So it was understandably uncomfortable for her when she found herself standing by the refreshments table in the Candy Castle's grand ballroom, surrounded by princes and princesses of every imaginable kingdom.

She shifted her weight from her right foot to her left, the frilled skirt of her turquoise ball gown completely unfamiliar to her. She looked down at the monstrosity of a dress she'd been forced into earlier that evening and shuddered. Okay, so maybe it wasn't that bad—it was pretty, and not really all that uncomfortable, and she did like pretty things—but it was still so foreign to her. Like an alien object made of the finest silks and satins and prettiest shades of blue, crafted by the best seamstresses in all of Candy Kingdom.

Perhaps maybe all of Aaa, she didn't know.

The blonde adventuress cringed at the thought of 'death by dress' and quickly averted her attention to some guests dancing a few feet away from her.

Here she was, dressed to impress but feeling awfully miserable about it, surrounded by royalty from all across Aaa. She'd spotted several princes that she was friends with and had rescued numerous times from the Ice Queen, waltzing the night away with pretty princesses, some she didn't even recognize. They all had titles though, and she knew it.

There was Wilberry Prince, Turtle Prince, Lumpy Space Prince, Slime Prince, Hotdog Prince, and so on and so forth. Her own title, however, was simply Fionna the Human. Her spirits deflated a bit more once she was reminded that she was the only human known to exist. She didn't mind her title at all, but sometimes she wondered if things could have been different, if she wasn't the only human in Aaa.

"Good evening, Fionna. Are you enjoying yourself?"

The blonde whipped around and almost tripped on her long skirts at the voice of her host. Prince Gumball smiled at her, and she brushed some imaginary dirt off her dress before clearing her throat.

"Yeah—yeah of course!" she limply fist-pumped the air. "It's er, totally mathematical! Y'know?"

The prince of the Candy Kingdom nodded. "I'm glad that you're having a nice time."

She gave him a thumbs-up and a weak smile. "Yep, no boredom over here! Promise!"

Gumball returned her smile. "Wonderful. I do have something I wish to discuss with you though."

"Anything." Fionna replied instantly, hoping that he needed her to go and defeat some monster, raid a cave, anything to get her out of the predicament she was in. "Like, seriously. I'll go and save some candy people in distress or something right now if you need me to."

He laughed lightly, not sensing the urgency in her tone. "No, no. That's not it at all. In fact, this is about something completely different. You see, it's actually about—,"

"Gumball!" Cake strode up to the two, Lord Monochromicorn at her side. "You're needed over there," she jabbed a paw over her shoulder and across the room, "some political debate or something." she smiled, noticing Fionna. "Oh hey babycakes."

The blonde waved and Gumball nodded. "Yes, alright, well I'll be right there I just—,"

Loud arguing suddenly erupted from the spot across the room, making Cake cross her arms.

"I say you better get over there before it turns ug-lay." the cat put extra emphasis on the last word.

Gumball turned to Fionna and raised his hands. "Excuse me please, Fionna. I must go and see what the dispute is about."

She nodded slightly, a half amused smile on her lips. "Sure, sure. If you need me, just call."

It was quiet for a few moments after the candy prince walked off.

Cake grinned slyly at her. "Sorry if I…interrupted something."

The blonde felt her cheeks grow warm and she coughed into her fist. "Erm, no. No. Why would you say that?"

"Looked like he was about to say something pretty important. Maybe confess his love for you?" if her sister had eyebrows, Fionna imagined she would have been raising them suggestively.

She scoffed. "What? No. Of course not. Like Gumball would ever—,"

"There was that one time." Cake cut her off, eyes narrowing slightly.

Fionna stared at her with an unimpressed expression and bored eyes. "Yeah, and it turned out to be the Ice Queen in disguise. And you wonder why I have trust issues."

Cake sighed and straightened the pink bow around her neck. "But what if it hadn't been the Ice Queen?"

The blonde smiled into her hand. "Then I would have had to drag you away before you tore PG apart."

"True, true." the cat nodded thoughtfully, eyes glinting dangerously at the thought. "Never thought I would be happier to see that cougar in my life. Don't want my baby girl growing up too fast, if you know what I mean."

Fionna smiled cheekily. "Well I am eighteen now and—,"

"That is not something we are ever, ever going to discuss." Cake interjected as the band struck up a slow song. "Oh! Excuse us, sweetie, but I think it's time to dance with my man now."

The adventuress watched as her sister and her boyfriend waltzed off to join the other couples on the dance floor. "We're going to have to discuss it sometime." she muttered. She sighed good-naturedly and turned to the extravagant sweets displayed on the table behind her. Her spirits instantly lifted and her mouth watered at the sight of all the sugary confections.

After placing an assortment of a dozen or so strawberry cream puffs, lemon bars, and a couple small slices of chocolate cheesecake on her plate, she turned back to the other guests. It was getting late—about an hour and a half past sunset—a quick glance out the balcony doors told her. Her initial excitement brought on by all the sweet refreshments that were being served at the party had almost worn off, and she sighed. With a shrug, she took a bite out of a lemon bar and resolved to try and have a good time.

About an hour later though, she wasn't really feeling like trying anything. There was an old, old saying that went something like, 'boredom is dangerous to the mind' or something similar to that, and she could really sympathize.

As the night had worn on, and the time had gotten later, she'd shared a few dances with some resident princes from around the area, and talked with Lumpy Space Prince for a few minutes. But now, another slow song was playing, and couples had paired up again. She frowned in distaste. She wasn't very good at dancing, but most of her partners had refrained from saying anything about her two left feet.

Slow dances, the blonde decided as she dejectedly stared at the remaining crumbs on her plate, were also not her thing. They took too much time, the couples were dancing too close for her comfort, and it just made her cringe for some unknown reason. She didn't dislike slow songs in general per say, just instrumental ones with no voices, and couples dancing close enough to kiss.

"Look alive, sunshine. You're throwing off my vibe."

Fionna jumped and whirled around, almost throwing her fine china plate somewhere into the crowd. Unfortunately, in her haste she completely forgot about her dress, and consequently one of her white heels caught in the skirt. Her sapphire orbs widened as she went down, face forward into the marble floor. She closed her eyes tightly, preparing for the undoubtedly hard impact she was in for.

Only it never came. Instead, there was an exclamation of surprise and the feeling of two arms wrapping around her waist. She didn't open her eyes until she felt herself being lifted and lowered onto her back. She cracked one eye open, and turned to see her body levitating just a few feet from the ground. She blinked, then looked up.

Marshall Lee grinned and gave her a mock two-fingered salute, keeping one arm wrapped tightly around her waist to keep her from dropping. "Sup, Fionna? Were you so surprised to see me that you literally tripped over your own feet?"

Fionna scoffed and attempted to cross her arms, only to find it uncomfortable. "In your dreams, maybe."

A light smirk replaced his grin. "So? Do I get anything in return for saving the damsel in distress?"

"I won't punch you if you put me down." the blonde deadpanned, poking the vampire's arm that was wrapped around her waist. "I wouldn't exactly call this position comfortable."

Marshall's smirk didn't falter. "Alright, alright. Guess I can do that."

He pulled his arm—and her—back and set her on the floor. She smoothed out her skirts and poked some stray golden strands back into her bunny hat before adjusting it. Then, she turned back to him.

"Thanks. This night already blows. I didn't need a broken nose added to that pile of suck."

The vampire laughed and offered her a grin. "What? It can't have been that bad."

Fionna rolled her eyes and picked a wildberry tart from the tray behind her before tossing it into her mouth. "Anyway, what're you doin' 'ere?" she swallowed. "You don't usually come to these things."

"The manners of a lady." he grinned and poked her cheek. "You don't either, Fi. Speaking of, that's some dress you're wearing tonight. I take it Gumwad didn't pick that out, or else it'd be pink."

She punched him lightly in the arm. "Yeah, and you made such a great effort to dress up." she glanced at his trademark red and black plaid button up shirt, ripped black jeans, and red high tops.

"Excuse you, how rude. I made an enormous effort to, what were Gumball's words? 'Look presentable', I think." he smirked and pointed to the black tie hanging loosely under his collar. It was tied with extreme slack, hanging about two inches under the collar of his shirt.

Fionna's lips drew into a thin line as she tried to suppress a smile. "Yes, I'm sure you did. And anyway, don't change the subject. Why'd you come?"

"I was told there'd be red velvet cake. If you're gonna be forced to come to one of these things, you might as well get something out of it. I," he pointed to himself, "am here solely for the cake."

The blonde was about to reply, when Peppermint Maid cleared her throat, drawing the attention of everyone in the ballroom. Fionna closed her mouth and Marshall Lee raised a brow, and they turned to see their host thanking his servant.

"Ladies and gentle…beings," he paused and cast a glance over the mixed crowd, "tonight I have gathered you here to announce some very important news."

There were not-so-subtly 'hushed' whispers, and someone coughed. Fionna and Marshall Lee cast a quick glance at one another.

Gumball continued.

"As you well know, our very own adventuress and citizen of the Candy Kingdom, Fionna the Human, recently turned eighteen." some candy people who were standing fairly close to Fionna and Marshall cast a conspiratorial glance back at them before breaking out into whispers. "You are, I'm sure, happy to have her as one of us, as am I. She's saved me countless times," at this, Marshall snickered, "and I most assuredly wouldn't be here to rule you and this kingdom today without her. She is kind, caring, strong, and quite friendly with most of you, I'm sure. And, as is law in the Candy Kingdom, she will soon be required to marry."

Fionna dropped the golden-rimmed plate she had been holding. The piece of fine china broke immediately on impact and shattered into a thousand pieces at her feet. However, her attention was focused completely on Gumball, so she didn't notice. "Wait, what?"

"I am proud to announce that, exactly a week from today, Fionna the Human will start accepting suitors! And I am going to be the one to formally pick her future husband!"

The room rang with his words, before falling into dead silence.

Then—

"WHAT?!"

end notes: i am well aware that there are other fics out there with a similar plot to this one, but i can almost guarantee you they're not the same. i have so many plans for this, guys. so many plans. and yeah, there will be plenty of fiolee to go around, you just have to be patient.