Now, I don't normally write AU stories. But I've been meaning to put this one into words since... well since a while ago (probably around the time I saw What Was Missing). In my mind it seemed like a fantastic idea, but we'll see. I'd love to say what it's going to be about, but that would ruin the surprise. So I won't. Instead, let me just tell you that it's a challenge a friend gave me a few years ago.

My friend doesn't watch Adventure Time, but this is just the perfect opportunity to do this. Seriously. I'm so excited. :D

I apologise in advance: updates will be sporadic at best. So if you get into this story, BUG ME about it. I respond well to being pressured.

It was a quiet evening in the diner, other than the cashier, just one person remained. She sat in the corner booth underneath the air conditioning vent so the cool air blasted her from above. It wasn't a particularly warm evening; she just preferred the cold to the heat. She sighed into her teacup; fingers splayed around the glass, eyes closed, and the sound of the spring storm pattering rain against the roof nearly enough to put her to sleep.

"Are you feeling ok, Bonnie?" Peter, the cashier asked. He had a red and white checked towel over one shoulder and a tray in his hands, still cleaning up the last of the tables. "You need a lift or something?"

She shook her head tiredly. "No thank you, Pete. My car's at the curb."

"Alright," he said with a shrug and a wan smile. "Much as I'd love to let you sit there all evening though, I do have to shut up soon."

Bonnie nodded, slumping forward in her seat, arms stretched out across the table. The phone in her bag on the seat beside her beeped once but she ignored it. It was probably just her brother again, asking if she was coming home for the weekend. She still didn't know if she would or not, it was just so hard to juggle everything.

The door to the diner blew open and slammed against the wall, bouncing it hit so hard. Cold air rushed in and brought with it a few drops of rain. Those few drops turned into a puddle as a woman stepped inside. She had a bright red knapsack slung over one shoulder, one hand clasped around the handle of a wheeled suitcase, trailing behind her and also a crimson colour; and her other hand clutched a third bag that looked like an instrument case of some kind. It too looked like a tomato. She stepped in and closed the door behind her, shaking raven hair pulled up in a rough ponytail. Wet strands hung everywhere, across her face, down around her shoulders, curling across her neck; it was a bedraggled and pitiful sort of hair style. And, from her knee high belted boots, to her frayed skinny jeans, to her tattered shirt and partly unzipped leather jacket, she was dressed all in black.

"Sup, yo?" she said to Peter. "Mind if I stop here a moment? It's a bit wet out." She grinned lopsidedly and sank into the closest chair.

"I was just about to close up, ma'am," Peter informed her. He had a wary look in his eye and Bonnie didn't blame him. She dressed like a punk rocker.

She waved him away. "Nah, don't worry about it. I just need to sit for a bit. New to town right? I've got no idea where I'm going. It's changed so much since I passed through last time." Her grin turned into a wry smirk and she swept her dark eyes across the room. They landed on Bonnie and she positively beamed.

Bonnie sank away from the stare, trying to make herself as small as possible. She wasn't precisely afraid of the darkly clad woman, but she didn't trust her either. She decided it was past time for her to be gone. Her phone beeped again just as she snatched it off the chair and slid out of the booth, cup in hand. Bonnie swirled the dregs a few times before placing it gently on the counter, she could still feel dark eyes on her back.

"You off, then Bonnie?" Peter asked, dragging the cup towards him and adding it to the pile of still dirty dishes.

"Yes, I think so." It took a superhuman effort to keep from glancing over her shoulder anxiously. "Thanks for the drink."

He smiled, wiping red hair out of his eyes. "Any time, dear. You be careful. Have you found a tenant yet?"

She shook her head and hitched her bag higher. "Still looking. It's prudent to be careful about sharing living space with someone. I wish Robert would move back in, it was so much easier with him." She sighed, her brother had moved out of her apartment and across town to be closer to his job. Bonnie missed him.

Peter gave her his best reassuring smile. "Yes well… I'm glad you're being careful. Take care of yourself, Bonnie. These late nights can't be good for you."

Bonnie smiled at his concern, lifted a hand in farewell and exited, ducking her head against the rain blowing in under the awning. She made a point of ignoring the smiling stare shot her way by the dark woman. Peter would kick her out shortly, or he'd call Billy down from upstairs. No one said 'no' to Billy.

She drove slowly through the downpour, wipers going like crazy across her windshield and by the time she finally got home (about thirty minutes thanks to wet-weather-traffic) all she wanted to do was sleep. Still, knowing it was a bad idea to be so negligent – and with Peter's warning fresh in her mind – she made sure to eat and shower before collapsing on her bed. Bonnie pressed her face into her pillow thanking all the gods in the world that tomorrow was Friday.

It was the infernal knocking at her door that woke her, not the alarm as she'd expected. Groaning groggily, she rolled over and peered blearily at the clock on her bedside table. The little glowing numbers read 9:14am and it was with a swift curse that she bounded out of bed. She must not have set it the night before; it should have woken her two hours ago.

Practically falling out of bed, she snatched her glasses off the table and slipped them over her ears. She paused only long enough to throw on a coat before hustling out to the door. The knocks came in clusters of three she noted.

Knock-knock-knock

Curious, Bonnie paused in the act of sliding back the deadbolt. What an unusual habit this person had. They were also incredibly determined; the banging didn't let up once.

Knock-knock-knock

Knock-knock-knock

Knock-knock-knock

She tilted her head to one side, thinking with her tongue pressed between her teeth. Not just collections of three, but the grouped knocks were also bracketed in larger groups of nine. After each third pound was a slight pause before the next three, then after the ninth a somewhat longer pause before they resumed again. Fascinating.

Bonnie pushed back the deadbolt and yanked the door open. Hand still upraised to knock; the woman's eyes took a moment to focus on her face. Bonnie very nearly asked if the person knew about their curious knocking habits. Then she squinted through her glasses, brow pulled down in a frown and she gasped in surprise, stepping back.

"Morning sunshine," said the woman happily. She was wearing the broadest grin of anyone ever coupled with a red and black striped pullover, scuffed denim jeans and black buckled boots. The woman who'd burst into the diner yesterday, her hair less dishevelled than it had been and her clothes somewhat more presentable, but still her.

"Hello…?" Bonnie said warily. She might look cleaner this morning, but the other woman still dressed like some sort of punk rock fan. She shouldn't be judging, she hated when people judged her so it was only fair she reserve her opinions. For the moment at least.

The woman waved a piece of paper in the space between them. "You got space to rent, yeah? I need a place to crash while I'm in town."

Bonnie crossed her arms but stepped back, a silent invitation for the woman to come in. "How long are you staying?" She didn't mention that she was picky about roommates, but from the sly glance she got, the woman had already guessed as much. The woman didn't move at first, and Bonnie had to say, "Come in," before she did.

She shrugged, dragging her belongings through the door and leaving them in a messy pile. "Indefinitely I guess," she said, still grinning. Bonnie didn't trust her smile; it reminded her of a Cheshire cat. "Got some family business to sort out. I'd stay with my brother across town, but he's already got a roommate. And he uh… gets up to some things I don't need to know about." She waggled her eyebrows in a way that made Bonnie even more uncomfortable.

Her mind whirled; thinking through all the possible reasons to say 'no' to this chick. Despite her appearance though, she seemed friendly enough and didn't have a ton of belongings to leave lying around everywhere. She opened her mouth to say that she wanted to ask a few questions, but the woman cut her off.

"Look," she began, smile fading somewhat. "I know you're one of those suspicious people who probably wants to control every little thing. And you don't trust me. That's fine." She raised her right hand and placed her left one over her heart. "I promise not to bring boys over or have parties. How's that?" Her smile was cheeky again, but she seemed sincere. Bonnie couldn't argue with it.

She sighed. "Fine. You can stay. Just don't trash the place."

That blinding smile burst back onto her face and she stuck out one pale hand. "Sweet. I'm Marceline Abadeer."

Bonnie eyed the hand with its black nail polish and leather wrist bands, but eventually took it. "Bonnibel Bubblegum," she replied softly.

She hadn't thought it possible, but the smile widened. "Bubblegum? Weird name. I'll just call you Bonnie." Marceline winked.

She blinked. Nobody really called her that. All sorts of other names, yes, and she tended to think of herself as 'Bonnie' but… most people called her Elle. She didn't mind so much. In spite of herself, she smiled back.

That smile faded when Marceline headed for the kitchenette and pulled open the door. She rummaged around for a few moments then backed out, grimacing. "You don't have any strawberries," she accused softly with a shake of her head. "What kinda person doesn't have strawberries?"

Bonnie bristled. "Let me show you your room," she ground out between clenched teeth. So she hadn't shopped in a while, life had been busy. Infuriating woman. Bonnie hoped she didn't regret agreeing to this. Although she probably would, her brother said that despite her obnoxious intelligence she was the most indecisive person he knew.

Her apartment wasn't anything fancy really, only five rooms. The entrance, lounge, kitchenette and dining room were all one large space and the dining table didn't even get used that much. Mostly it was just where she dumped her bags after an overly long day and was too tired to be neat. There was a short hall by the lounge area that branched off into a bathroom, two bedrooms (one of which was empty save for a bed) and a study room. The study room was the largest of all of them and was initially meant to be a bedroom. Bonnie didn't need a great deal of space to sleep in though and the desk in her bedroom hadn't been enough for her to work with so her stuff had spilled into the study. Where she'd permanently set up an array of computer screens, a desk and several bookshelves. All of which was messier than she would like to admit.

Of course, when she told Marceline she'd show her the spare bedroom, what the other woman had heard was 'take a look around'. So she stuck her head in every doorway to investigate. She cackled when she saw the study. Bonnibel was not in any way amused.

"This is your space," Bonnie said tartly, throwing open the door. Marceline bounced through and flopped down on the mattress. There were no sheets on the bed, she'd never thought to worry, but Marceline smiled anyway.

"Awesome, this is great, thanks." She collapsed back on the bed, arms spread out, with palms flat. "Yeah… I like it." She rolled onto her feet in a surprisingly graceful movement and flounced out the door. Bonnibel followed her, somewhat apprehensive, but all she did was grab her bags and heave them through the door. Well, she heaved the rucksack, the suitcase she rolled to the corner and the instrument case (Bonnie thought it might be for a guitar of some kind) she laid gently on the bed.

"Oh!" Bonnibel had just recalled one very important detail. She hurried to her room, ignoring Marceline's curious expression. Digging through her bedside table she came up with what she was after, letting out a satisfied grunt. Back across the hall, she tossed the key to her new roommate. It flashed in the low light shining through the curtains and Marceline snatched it one handed from the air.

"A spare key," Bonnie told her. "You'll need it I suppose. I'm going out. Don't break anything."

Marceline smirked. "Dressed like that?" She eyed Bonnibel pointedly and it was then she recalled she was still in her pyjamas.

Bonnie's cheeks heated somewhat. "Obviously not," she snapped, storming back to her room to change. When she emerged (dress, stockings, shoes and thick coat later), Marceline was still lying on the mattress with a smile on her face. "Now I'm going out," she declared and stalked to the door. She made a point of shutting it just a little bit too hard.