Hey sorry for the delay Fiolee shippers! But I finally managed to upload the chapter! Enjoy~
Chapter 2: A Whole Other Level
Naturally, Marshall rejected the idea.
"It's too dangerous, Fi," he said. "You could get hurt. No, you are going to get hurt."
Fionna scoffed; irritated that Marshall could even say that. "I've faced a lot of demons on missions before and Cake got even captured by one! I know how to handle them!"
"Do you really, Fi?" asked Marshall.
He handed Fionna the paper. She examined it. It was an invitation. An invitation to a ball. Hannah Abadeer was hosting one in the Nightosphere inside her palace.
"A ball?" Fionna was perplexed. "I didn't know that your mom was into that kind of junk."
"She's not," replied Marshall. He flew to the kitchen, grabbed two strawberries from the fridge and sucked out the colors. He threw them in the trash and went back to Fionna. "The ball is just a political opportunity for my mom to control the different demon clans."
"There are demon clans in the Nightosphere?" Fionna asked in amazement. "I didn't know that."
"No, you don't and neither will anyone else. The demon clans are exclusive and secretive. And very territorial."
"But how come we never came across them when we were in the Nightosphere?"
"Because the demon clans are placed in different parts of the Nightosphere, away from where my mom lives," Marshall replied. "Plus, I told you. The demon clans in the Nightosphere are secretive and not everybody knows them. I don't even think that Bubba even knows."
Something that not even Gumball knew? And the Prince of the Candy Kingdom practically knew everything!
"Anyway Fionna, you still can't come. My mom rarely hosts a ball. This isn't like the Biennial Gumball Ball. Not everyone is invited."
"But that lady said that you could bring a friend," Fionna protested.
"I don't think she meant my human friend. Besides, you don't even know if I'm going or not."
"But you are, aren't you?"
Marshall sighed. "Unfortunately I have to. I hate to admit it, but I am still the Prince of Demons and heir to the throne has to show up." The way that Marshall said it made Fionna think that Marshall didn't like being the son of a demon that ruled the Nightosphere.
Fionna remembered what Marshall had said long ago: I'm the son of a demon and the Vampire King.
For the first time, Fionna wondered what Marshall was before he became the King of the Vampires.
"I'm still going Marshall," she insisted. "You can't stop me."
Exasperated, Marshall grabbed Fionna's shoulders. "Listen, Fionna. I've seen you battle monsters and demons and you always win and there is no one that I would want in my side to fight monsters better than you, but this is something that you will never ever be ready for. The demon clans are whole different kind of demons, another level. They can easily kill you."
This was the first time that Fionna had ever seen Marshall Lee so serious before. Usually he was so flippant, a bit of a party boy and a womanizer. His dark eyes held no trace of humor in them and Fionna desperately searched for them as she held his gaze. But she couldn't find anything. Marshall Lee was intent on Fionna not going.
"Ok," she relented. "I won't go."
Marshall released her shoulders. "Good. Now, I want you to promise me not to tell anyone about this invitation or the fact that you know about the demon clans. Got it?"
Fionna nodded. "I promise."
Marshal gave her a small smile. "Thanks, Fi."
"No problem, dude," she said. "So, when is the ball?"
"In two weeks." Marshall sighed. Even though it hadn't even started yet, Fionna could tell that he was already dreading the whole event. "Man, I hate socialite events. So stupid and they're only good for the aristocrats to gossip about each other and hopefully worm there way into another powerful one."
"Seems a lot different from what Gumball hosts."
Marshall smirked. "When it comes to political warfare, Gumball's parties are tame."
He floated to the ladder that leads to his bedroom. "Anyways, I have to make a few calls, so I'll see you later, Fi."
"Oh. Ok." Fionna was disappointed that she didn't get to hang with Marshall. "See ya."
She closed the door behind her.
The morning after, Fionna was in the Royal Kitchen along with Cake. Both of them were waiting on Prince Gumball as he was finishing the placing the icing on the chocolate and vanilla cupcakes for the kids in the Candy Orphanage. Both of the heroines were assisting the Prince in passing out the sweets to the children.
"So how was your date with Lord?" Fionna asked.
"Sweet babies, it was fantastic." Cake sighed, no doubt recalling the date that she had with her boyfriend. "He even gave me catnip." Her eyes got wide in mentioning the treat that was her weakness.
Fionna smiled. "Sounds like it was mathematical."
"All right, you two," said Gumball. "I'm done. Fionna you carry the one with the white icing and Cake you get the gold one."
Of course, the Prince carried the tray with the pink icing.
The three of them made their way to the orphanage and the candy kids instantly flocked to the sweets. Cake's was especially popular and she had to morph to a giant size so the orphans wouldn't trip the tray over. Fionna laughed most of the time but she couldn't get her mind out of the invitation to the demon ball.
Over the course of the next week and a half, Fionna went on missions with Cake, most from Gumball and some from the other princes. It was a good way to burn some time and to distract her mind from the ball that was coming up, but whenever she came home, her brain would always go back. The heroine was getting really annoyed and her curiosity couldn't be satisfied with missions, even if some of them involved demons. When she encountered them, she was so tempted to ask if they knew anything about the demon clans, but Fionna remembered her promise to Marshall that she wouldn't mention this to anyone, so she kept her mouth shut. Besides, Cake would get suspicious.
Fionna heaved a sigh and laid her head on the kitchen table. Breakfast wafted into the air to fill her nostrils. But even the scent of eggs and bacon couldn't fix her mood. It was the week of the ball and Fionna's anxiety grew. She didn't know what the exact day of when the dance was going to be held, but she knew that it was just the matter of time. Marshal told her to not worry about it and he could handle himself (that she believed) but the heroine was so desperate to find out who the demon clans were.
"Something the matter, Fi?" Cake asked, sensing her friend's disposition.
Fionna lifted her head. "Nothing. Just a little tired, that's all." It wasn't exactly a lie. She was tired of feeling ignorant about the whole demon clan thing, plus they came home late last night from the Candy Kingdom.
"Well, some eggs and bacon will do you some good," said her best friend.
Cake carried the still-hot pan and dropped the eggs and bacon onto Fionna's plate. The three strips of meat were a little sizzling but they were a nice reddish-brown color and they were crispy as Fionna placed them in her mouth.
"It's awesome," she said, bacon still in her mouth.
Fionna gobbled up the rest of her breakfast and drank her orange juice. Cake's breakfast did improve her mood a bit, but it couldn't sate her curiosity of the demon clans. Fionna wanted to know about them, but how could she do that without breaking her promise to Marshall? There has got to be someplace where she could find information on them. Where, though?
Fionna glanced at Cake, who was washing the pan. She didn't want to ask her best friend, but she had to take a chance.
"Hey, Cake?" Fionna asked.
"Yeah?"
"Where would you go to find information?"
"Uh…the library?"
Fionna felt dumb, all of a sudden. "Oh."
"Why are you asking?"
Instead of answering, Fionna got out of the table and walked to the ladder that leads down to the front door of their tree house.
"Where are you goin', girl?"
Fionna stopped, suspended at the ladder. Cake had stopped washing the pan to stare at her roommate.
"The library?" Fionna slowly answered.
"What for?" asked Cake as she moved closer to the heroine.
Fionna shrugged. "Just some light reading."
"Light reading?"
Nuts. Cake was getting suspicious. Of course, Fionna couldn't blame her. She wasn't known in the land of Aaa to be a bookworm. However, Fionna really needed to get to the library ASAP. She really needed some info about those demon clans and maybe people would call it lying but, technically, she was still doing some reading, right?
"Cake, I have to do something today," Fionna said. "And I don't think that were going to receive any more missions from Gumball or the other princes."
"Since when do you go to the library to go do somethin'?" Cake asked.
Fionna shrugged again, trying to appear nonchalant. "I could use the change of pace."
"Well, then I'll go with you." Cake turned around to the sink. "Let me finish this pan-"
"No!" Fionna panicked.
Cake turned around, eyebrows raised quizzically at Fionna. "No? Are you feeling ok, Fi?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." She waved her hand in the air as if to wave away the panic that she had felt seconds ago. "I'll be fine by myself. I'm not going to be gone long. Just stay here and watch the house in case I could be wrong about the whole no mission thing, then you can come back and get me."
Fionna then descended down the ladder, not giving Cake any more chances to comment about her strange behavior this morning.
Next Chapter: The Library