Here is chapter 2. Sorry it took so long to write it. Hope you like, read on…
Fionna was awakened by a yell from upstairs. "Dang it, I knew I should have back stitched that last seam!" Cake's voice exclaimed. Fionna shook her head and stretched, groaning as she reached for the ceiling.
Cake had been in their shared room all night working on Fionna's new dress. She had insisted that Fionna stay down stairs and wait for her to finish the dress. "I want it to be a surprise," she had said when Fionna had asked if she could go to bed.
"And how much longer is this going to take you?" Fionna had asked while Cake had shoved a pillow and blanket in her arms. Cake had just shrugged her shoulders and slowly climbed the ladder again.
Fionna had slept on the couch with having nowhere else to go, and now, for the second time that night, she had been awakened by Cake's frustrated shout. She yawned and rubbed her eyes, wondering what time it was.
The clock across the room read six in the morning. Glancing at the window Fionna realized that the sky outside was lighter than it had been. The sun was coming up, and it was now officially the day of the party.
Even though there were still elven whole hours to fill, Fionna felt as though her stomach was doing flip flops nonstop. She was nervous and she didn't even know why. Fionna mentally tried to shake off the anxiety.
She uncovered her legs, and threw the red blanket aside. Leaning over, she heaved herself up onto her still sleepy legs, and stretched yet again hoping that they would wake up soon. She walked over to the ladder.
"Cake!" she yelled up, "Are you done yet?" Fionna heard footsteps cross the floor above her head, "Hold on, putting on the last touches! You can't rush perfection." Fionna, rolling her eyes, yelled back, "I'm coming up!"
"No, wait, not yet! Fionna, hold up girl." Fionna was already half way up the ladder, and she didn't try to listen to Cake's warning. She reached the top just as Cakes shouted, "Ok, you can come up!"
"Bout time, thought you would never finish. So where is my new dress?" Fionna asked looking around the messy and cluttered room. Almost every drawer was open with cloth, thread, and needles sticking dangerously out.
Strips of stray cloth were strewn on the floor, and a pair of scissors lay on Fionna's bed. Cake stood across the room from Fionna, adjusting a plain off-white cover over something that was a little taller than Fionna herself.
Fionna turned her head to the side, trying to get a good idea of what was under the sheet. She knew it was the dress, or course, but what would it look like? Would she like it? Would Gumball like it?
Cake turned to face Fionna with a smile plastered on her face. She swished her tail back and forth, he paws on the blanket. She was obviously waiting for Fionna to say something, for she cleared her throat.
Fionna couldn't help but smile, "OK, what does it look like." Cake's grip on the cloth tightened as she prepared to pull off the sheet, "Presenting, my masterpiece!" She gave the cover a hard yank, and it fell cascading down to the floor.
Fionna felt her jaw give way, and found that she couldn't keep her mouth closed. All she could do was stare at the spectacle in front of her.
The dress was made from all different hues of blue, although the darkest was no more than a deep ocean cerulean. It was a strapped dress, with a beautiful flowing bottom. A sort of netting was sewn onto the foot, creating a glittering, almost wave-like end. It had a slightly fluffed up appearance at the bottom, like a ball gown, but it was formal and slim at the same time.
The top was created with a design that Fionna could only describe as intricately woven dark blue flowers and leaves with thin vines connecting them. There was a tight necklace of cloth that looked like it had been made with jewels around the neck of the manikin. A blue flower hung down from it, vines seeming to grow from its petals.
Leaves stuck out from the short vines, and one connected to the middle of the neck line at the top. As if that one touch had started it, a small trickle of greeneries covered about an inch or so of the top, and then started to flow down the right side of the dress.
The design then did a sort of turn and started to go across the stomach and around the hip of the dress. It ended lower on the left leg and started a ruffle. From the hips of the dress up, it was a sapphire color.
Tiny star-like spots dotted the top like starlight in the night sky. They became lighter and scarcer the farther down they went, until there was nothing but a light blue color. Below the design of leaves and flowers, the dress was a white tint, but then deepened to a dark sea blue at the bottom.
But what really caught Fionna's attention was the glove-like sleeves. They weren't connected to the dress, but seemed to slip onto the arms like gloves. They covered the arm from above the elbow down to the top of the hand, but that was all. They were the same sapphire blue as the dress, with the flowery design on the last half of the gloves.
Fionna couldn't help but smile as she slowly rounded the manikin. She wanted to see the back. The back of the choke necklace had the same flower and vines as the front of it. The only difference was that the vines and leaves were longer, and didn't connect to the dress.
It had a low back, and an elegant look. Fionna took it all in at a seconds glance. It was long, lushes, and beautiful. She couldn't help but love it. She especially liked the ruffles. She turned away from the dress and grabbed Cake into a tight hug.
"Oh my glob, Cake, this is…AMAZING!" Cake let a loud purr and nodded her head approvingly. "I knew you would like it." Fionna let Cake go and clapped her hands together, "Forget like, I love it!"
She couldn't hold in her excitement. No one would be able to take their eyes off her tonight, not even Gumball. She couldn't help but let her mind wander around the idea of his asking her to dance, them strolling through the castle garden in the moon light, him kissing her hand goodbye…
She shivered at the thought. Maybe there was hope after all. Cake elbowed Fionna in the ribs, "You'll be the star attraction at the ball." Fionna blushed slightly, remembering it was Gumball's Sweet Sixteen Ball, and that he should have all the attention.
Oh who cares Fionna thought boldly He gets enough attention as it is, time for me to get some as well. Cake started to pull the dress off the manikin. "Well, what are you waiting for? Try it on!"
Fionna reached out to take it, "Ok, but don't rush me. I don't want to jack it up before we even get to the party." Cake gently handed it to her, and Fionna in turn laid it on her bed as she started to strip.
When she was finally down to her underwear and bra, she slowly and carefully slipped on the dress, with Cakes help of course. Fionna liked the feel of the dress, and how it felt like nothing was there at all.
She swiftly walked to the mirror across the room and looked at her reflection, a smile on her face. It fit like a glove, clinging to her curves and emphasizing her slim but full figure. The gloves gave a nice look to it all, and the ruffles in the front made the dress seem puffier than it really was.
Fionna looked in the mirror and saw someone who was not Fionna the Adventurer. She saw Fionna, the Princess. She heard a sniff from behind her. Turing, she found Cake in tears. "Oh, Cake what's wrong? Did I mess the dress up?"
Cake shook her head and smiled a watery smile. "No baby cakes. It's just, you look so beautiful in the dress." She pulled a tissue out of thin air and blew her nose. She wiped a hand across each eye and tried to stop the water works.
Fionna stepped over a mound of cloth that separated them and hugged Cake. "Thanks Cake. It really is a pretty dress." "Yeah, but you made it beautiful," Cake sniffed. Fionna laughed, feeling her own eyes water up.
She tried to distract herself. Glancing around the room, her eyes landed on the old wooden clock in the corner of their room. She quickly started to slip out of the dress. Cake jumped back watching with a surprised expression.
"Fionna honey, what is your problem?" Fionna threw the dress to Cake and started to hurriedly pull on her skirt and shirt. "I had forgotten that I had promised Gumball me and you would go over and help set up the party this morning."
Cake also glanced over at the clock. It read seven o' clock. "Yeah, we had better start heading over there." She gently slid the blue ballroom dress back over the manikin. Fionna ran down the ladder with Cake after her.
"What's your hurry Fionna? We'll get there with plenty of time to help." Fionna nodded but kept walking across the threshold of the tree house at a fast pace. Cake shrugged her shoulders, deciding to just go with it.
Fionna hopped on Cakes back as the feline stretched up to new heights, putting one huge paw in front of the other. They would soon be at the castle gates, and in Gumball's presence.
Fionna took a deep breath, trying to get rid of the nervous feeling she was still having. It hadn't gone away, and if anything, it had worsened. She didn't know why she felt this way, but she knew it had something to do with Gumball.
She decided not to think on it any more than that. She and Cake rode on in silence until they came to the Candy Kingdom.
Before long they were both in the castle helping alongside all the other candy castle residents, putting up streamers, setting up tables and chairs, and even taste testing some of the pastries and foods that were to be served at the ball.
Fionna especially enjoyed that, in which she was the expert in. It was nearing one in the afternoon when things started to speed up. Everyone was scrambling to get things done for the ball, and really all that was left was setting tables and icing the huge sixteen tear cake.
The entire day Fionna hadn't seen Gumball, which filled her with a mixture of relief and sadness. No one seemed to need their help anymore, so Fionna set out to roam around the castle grounds while Cake finished talking to Lord Monochromicorn.
She walked out to the maze-like garden, picking a deep purple flower and sniffing it while walking leisurely past candy bushes and trees. She trailed a finger across a yellow flower petal of a daisy before picking it off.
"He loves me…" she said quietly.
She picked another off, "He loves me not…"
Fionna continued through the petals, and one by one they were plucked off. She had often seen Cake doing this with other flowers. She would always pick the last flower petal and say, "He loves me!"
Fionna wondered if her luck would be the same, but unfortunately it wasn't. The last petal she plucked came with a sour, "He loves me not." Fionna sighed, dropping the stem of the now naked daisy.
Her luck would never change with Gumball she thought to herself as she sat down on a small wooden bench. She put her head in her hands and sat in silence, trying not to think about how lonely she was without anyone around.
A bird overhead tweeted before flying down in front of Fionna, pecking at the ground. She looked down at the fowl, smiling as it looked back up at her with its head turned. Fionna was about to reach out for the small feathered friend when a small note of a guitar echoed through the garden.
The bird flew off with a small chirp, leaving Fionna alone once again. But the noise had got her attention. Standing, she creeped to the edge of the bush and peeked around the corner.
To her surprise, Marshall Lee sat underneath the shade of a broad limbed apple tree, his axe bass in his hands, and a small book and pencil by his side, and an umbrella laying against the tree trunk. He strung some chords, stopping only long enough to write something in the book before starting all over again.
At times he would scratch his head and look frustrated, but then he would play some more and write it down in his book. Then, after a few minutes of silence, he started playing. And with his guitar, he sang.
"Imagine a place you can always escape to
An island off the coast of nowhere
A new destination of your own creation
Just waiting till you chose to go there.
Blue tree tops and velvet skies
Ohhhh, ready to blow your mind
Ohhhhh oh oh oh ohhhhhh
This is the place where your mind can escape
All the problems today will go far far away
This is a town with no history
Welcome to mystery."
Marshall Lee nodded his head, looking pleased with himself. Fionna found herself wanting to hum the song, but refrained herself, not wanting to be caught. She didn't know why, but she didn't want Marshall to see her.
After a few minutes of mindless bass playing, Marshall Lee picked up his umbrella, and floating up, started to leave. But before Fionna had time to turn and disappear, he suddenly stopped by the rose bushes. Fionna guessed he would want a snack, but thought he would suck the red from an apple instead of a rose.
She shrugged her shoulders. Red was red she thought. He picked one up and sniffed it, exhaling softly. Fionna waited for him to bite one of the petals and suck up the color, but instead he held it out as if giving it to someone.
She saw his mouth move, but was too far away to hear what was being said. Curious, Fionna stealthily squatted down and slipped through the first two rows of flower hedges. She came to rest just a few feet away from Marshall Lee.
His next words came loud and clear. "…I know it's hard, but I really do love you. I think we should be together, but if you need time… ugh, that's terrible!" He said running a hand through his raven hair. "Love sucks," he mumbled frowning.
Fionna stared at her vampire friend. Did Marshall just say what I think he said? Fionna thought frantically to herself. All of a sudden, she didn't want to be in the garden anymore. She wanted to be as far away as possible from Marshall Lee.
This is his biz! I shouldn't be listening to this, he'll kill me if he finds out I was here. What to do what to do… Thankfully she was saved the planning when Marshall Lee silently flew off over the last of the garden hedges and towards his cave, the rose left behind white as a ghost.
Fionna crawled out of her hiding spot amongst the flowers, and stood brushing the grass and leaves off her skirt. She watched as Marshall became a small dot in the sky. An icy sad wave of anger and nervousness came over her.
Fionna didn't recognize this feeling, and could only guess from what Cake had told her that it could only be jealousy. Fionna was confused. Why would she be jealous of Marshall? Because there is someone else… a voice in her mind said.
She shook her head. Her be jealous of another girl, the very one he was talking about? It was so ridiculous and unexpected that Fionna couldn't even take the feeling in her gut seriously. But still…
Walking over, she picked up the rose. She sniffed it and touched it. It was just as velvety soft as the others and hadn't lost its sweet fragrance.
The only difference was that it was white instead of red. Fionna felt the sudden urge to pick the petals off, like she had done with the daisy. But instead of thinking of Gumball, she thought of Marshall.
"He loves me, he loves me not, he loves me, he loves me not…" Fionna pulled the last petal off and whispered, "He loves me."
She stood there in the garden, looking at the rose with no petals. Eventually she shook her head and turned to leave the flower forest. "Marshall is right," Fionna said letting the rose stem drop to the ground, "Love sucks."
Cake waved to Fionna across the Ball room. Fionna waved back and made her way through the candy people, barely missing a chocolate covered strawberry balancing a silver tray of fresh cream puffs.
She joined her sister and they began walking to the front door. "Where did you disappear off to?" Cake asked curiously. Fionna just shrugged her shoulders, "I roamed around the castle garden, smelled some flowers, got some fresh air."
Fionna didn't say a word of Marshall Lee to Cake. She didn't feel it was important to tell her friend that she had overheard his proposal to a mystery girl she was all of a sudden jealous of. Instead she directed the spotlight on Lord M and her.
Cake smiled when Fionna asked what the two had been talking about. "Well honey, he asked me to the ball with him, and he said he had a big surprise for me." She hugged herself, "I can't wait to find out what it is!"
Fionna laughed at Cakes giddiness. She looked ecstatic at the moment, and Fionna was happy for her. She smiled down at Cake and congratulated her. Cake just nodded her head, "Thanks honey."
The duo arrived at the tree house with four hours to spare. The party was nearing faster than Fionna had expected, and she found herself trying to push the unsettling feeling out of her gut. Cake on the other hand felt that time had stopped to a standstill.
"Uhggg, it'll take forever for the Ball to get here at this pace. We still have another two hours to kill before the party. I can't wait any longer!" Fionna patted her friend on the head, "Hey, calm down. It's just two more hours."
"That's what I just said." Cake said grumpily. Fionna shook her head. Cake could get a little annoyed when she was waiting for something to happen. She especially couldn't wait to find out what Lord M. had in store for her that night.
Fionna wanted to help get both of their minds off the Ball at the moment. And even though she didn't really want to, she decided it was for the better. "Cake," she said giving in, "do you want to fix my hair?"
Cake smiled, "Really, you'll wear it down tonight?!" Fionna nodded giving a small smile. Cake instantly began pushing Fionna towards the ladder to their room. "Well, come on! We have work to do."
It took a whole hour just to brush out the knots in Fionna's long golden hair. The other was spent adding a few curls while straightening others. Cake said that it would give it a nice edge if she made it curlier at the end. Fionna didn't argue, since she had no idea what Cake was talking about.
When it was all said and done, Fionna was amazed. Her usual unruly curls were now put into assorted places and such. Her part had been moved to the side of her head so that some of her hair fell across her face hiding her eye on the opposite side.
While Cake had been styling she had also been cutting. Fiona's hair now fell elegantly down to her knees instead of past her feet. She stood and walked around the room to see if it kept out of her way enough.
It did, and she felt lighter now that a good bit of her massive hairdo was wacked off. She walked back to Cake and grinned, "I like it." Cake looked at her thoughtfully. "Hold up girl," she said grabbing a pair of scissors.
She gently seized a piece of Fionna's hair and snipped a little away, "There, much better." Fionna rolled her eyes. She would never understand why Cake enjoyed going through all the trouble of fixing her hair.
But right then, Fionna decided she kind of liked it. Cake quickly shooed Fionna over to change into her dress. "The Ball starts in ten. We need to go soon, hurry." Fionna nodded and stripped down as fast as she could.
"I'll be waiting down stairs. Call me if you need me." She slowly climbed down the ladder. Fiona looked after her. She had expected Cake to help her into her dress since it was so much.
But none the less, Fionna managed to shimmy into the dress. She stood in front of the body length mirror and admired herself. She actually looked beautiful, and she hoped Gumball liked the way she looked too.
Fionna slowly and carefully made her way back down the ladder and into the living room where the waiting Cake stood. She shyly walked away from the ladder when she reached the bottom.
Cake smiled so wide Fionna thought it wouldn't have been possible unless you had stretchy powers like Cake. She looked away, heat coming to her cheeks. "Do I look ok?" Fionna asked.
To her surprise Cake shook her head, and said, "Something's missing." She ran up to the perplexed adventuress and stuck something in her hair. "There, perfect." Fionna walked over to the small mirror on the other side of the room.
Cake had stuck a large blue flower in her golden hair. It really did complete the ensemble, and added something else to gawk at. Fionna turned around and hugged Cake. Cake hugged her back.
"Time to go baby cakes," Cake said glancing at the clock. Fionna nodded, and smiled, "I'm ready." Cake, who was wearing a big blue bow, pulled at it. They walked out the door together.
Cake transformed into a horse and Fionna sat side saddle on her. With a playful neigh, the two rode off into the night, making their way to Prince Gumball's Sweet Sixteen Ball.
Tell what you thought about this chapter. PLZ REVIEW! chap 3 will be completed and posted shortly. Also the song that Marshall Lee was singing is called Welcome to Mystery by the Plain White T's. Hope you liked. Cheyenne out, PEACE!
