At last the day of the Princess' birthday arrived. By 8am she was already downstairs, dressed in her party frock. She didn't know what time in the morning her dad was supposed to be coming home but she was willing to wait patiently until he did.
Time slowly ticked by as she sat in the kitchen with Eva who was adding the finishing touches to a raspberry tart. Eva looked up from her baking as she heard a small sigh.
"Is something the matter, your highness?" she asked. The princess absentmindedly twirled a lock of pink bubblegum hair around her finger.
"How much longer?" she asked. Eva didn't need to ask what the Princess meant, no elaboration was necessary.
"Well, Humbug said he'd be home in the morning," she replied, "And your birthday party doesn't start until the afternoon. So no need to worry. Why don't you help me put the icing on the cupcakes?" She made the suggestion as a means of taking the Princess' mind off her thoughts. She looked up at the clock where the candy cane hands were slowly ticking away the morning, silently hoping for the King's return.
Ten O'clock came and went, then eleven. What was keeping him? As the hands drew nearer to noon the Princess became more fidgety and less able to sit still. She had taken to pacing the main hall as that was to be where her father would arrive. "If he does," she muttered to herself.
The chimes of the large grandfather clock in the upstairs corridor reached her ears and her stomach sank a couple of inches. "I knew it," she whispered as a tear slid down her cheek, "I knew he wouldn't be here."
She looked up as she heard a sound like a soft gust of wind. Perhaps it was that strange shadow. Well, she wasn't in the mood for it right now. So far it had never helped her, only watched.
"What do you want?" she yelled at the room around her, "Who are you? Show yourself." But the room remained stubbornly silent as the Princess continued to weep.
"I think I saw her near the morning room," came a voice in the corridor, unmistakable as Humbug Butler's. Princess Bubblegum looked up sharply. They'd come looking for her.
'At least someone cares,' she thought bitterly.
"There you are, your highness," said Humbug breathlessly, "We've been looking all over for you. Your party's about to start." Princess Bubblegum merely nodded and allowed herself to be led out of the room.
"What were you doing all the way back here anyway?" asked Humbug.
"I...I was just taking a walk," replied Princess Bubblegum, keeping her eyes to the ground so that Humbug wouldn't notice that her cheeks were tearstained.
"Some of your guests have arrived already," smiled Humbug, "Your friends Haelei, Steph and Phoebe from school." Princess Bubblegum raised her head at this. Haelei, Steph and Phoebe were her best friends. They, like her, were Candy People. Phoebe, the youngest, was a quick witted bon bon with wavy candyfloss hair. She never failed to make her friends laugh with her quirky sense of humour and ever present smile. Steph was a quietly spoken Candy Cone with a love of all things videogame related. She had a kind nature and was always there for her friends when they needed advice. Haelei, the eldest of the trio, was also the most energetic with a bubbly personality which befitted her fizzy sherbert self. She always looked on the bright side of things and refused to let anything get her down.
They were waiting for her in the courtyard alongside some other guests that Bonnie recognised from her school. Some of them were the sons and daughters of dignitaries and had been invited purely to keep up good relations. Princess Bubblegum thought this was hardly fair as many of the dignitaries' sons and daughters were snobbish and rude. For this reason she made a beeline for her friends.
"Hey PB," said Haelei as she joined them, "Happy Birthday!"
"Yeah, happy birthday, Peebles," smiled Steph, "We chipped in and got you a little something." She handed her a present done up with a purple bow. Princess Bubblegum smiled, forgetting her worries for now.
"Thanks guys," she replied as she carefully undid the bow and unwrapped the present to reveal a rainicorn standing on a grassy green pedestal.
"The body lights up when you press the button on the tree stump," added Steph. She pressed the button and the rainicorn's body lit up in a plethora of colour.
"Wow, it's beautiful," gasped Princess Bubblegum as she admired the gift, "Thank you so much."
"So, where's your dad at?" asked Phoebe. The smile vanished from the Princess' face as though it had been wiped away.
"Oh," said Phoebe, realising what must have happened, "He's away on royal business, isn't he?" The Princess nodded.
"So, where's the food?" asked Haelei, hoping to distract the Princess from her thoughts.
"Oh, Eva's got the snacks over there," she replied, pointing to a long table groaning under the weight of pound cakes, raspberry cordial and puddings of various shapes and sizes.
"Did she make those really nice coconut squares?" asked Steph.
"Yeah, I saw her put them out a few minutes ago," replied Princess Bubblegum. They made their way over to the snack table where they grabbed a paper plate each from the stack near the end of the table. Phoebe wasted no time in searching out the biggest, most cream covered cupcake she could find.
"So, wanna play some party games after this?" she asked.
"Sure, Humbug's been setting up a game of pin the tail on the rainicorn and there's pass the parcel and duck, duck, goose," replied Princess Bubblegum.
"I love that game," smiled Haelei, "We sometimes play it with music at my parties."
"We played pin the tail on the rainicorn at my last birthday," added Steph, "I really wish you could've gone, PB." But Princess Bubblegum had been ill with the flu that week. Her friends had come up to visit her whenever they could and on the day of Steph's birthday they brought her up a slice of glowleaf berry cake.
Suddenly they heard a lofty voice behind them and they turned to see the Archbishop of Cranberry's son standing behind them. On either side of him were the Duke of Nougat and the Princess of Peanuts.
"I see your dad's missing the special occasion," the Archbishop's son said sarcastically, causing his two companions to snigger. Bonnibel's brow creased with irritation.
"It was important royal business," she replied crossly, folding her arms.
"It can't have been that important," the Archbishop's son commented sniffily, "He had time to drop by my dad's palace on the way there. He can't be that bothered by his daughter's birthday."
"You shut up and leave Bonnie alone," snapped Haelei, Phoebe and Steph backing her up.
"So is that it, Princess?" scoffed the Duke's son, "Are you just going to let your three playmates do all the fighting for you?" The Princess said nothing but stepped forward. She pulled back her fist and punched the Duke of Nougat's son square on the nose. He fell back in surprise, nearly knocking over the Archbishop's son and the Princess of Peanuts.
"You shut up about my dad," yelled the Princess, instantly forgetting everything she had learned in her classes on etiquette. Haelei and Steph held her back, stopping the Princess from taking another swing at the Duke's son.
"You won't forget this, you pink twerp," growled the Duke, sugar dripping from his nose as his two friends led him away.
"Good punch," commented Phoebe as Steph and Haelei let go of the Princess' arms. But she got no reply as the Princess began to walk away. Haelei made to go after her but Steph stopped her.
"I think she needs some time alone," she said.
The Princess sat alone in her room. She had taken off her tiara and was now studying it, looking at the blue jewel set in the top of it. Is that what being a royal meant? Missing the most cherished moments of those around you and getting caught up in all manner of duties? Is that what her dad had meant when he said, 'You only have a little time as a child. There's plenty of time to be an adult. Enjoy yourself.'?
She tossed the crown onto the bed and got up, crossing the room to her closet. She remembered what the Archbishop's son had said and she felt her chest tighten as she suppressed a sob. She pulled off her dress and swapped it for more practical attire, a purple jersey with a rainicorn embroidered into the top corner of it and a pair of pink jeans. She put on a pair of trainers and packed together a few items: her doll, a torch, some biscuits and a book on camping Steph had lent her a few weeks ago. She tied them up in a piece of cloth and left the room.
She made her way hastily down the corridor and made for the kitchen. She knew about an old disused passage next to the pantry. According to one of the books in the library she had once read, it used to be used to bring food into the palace in the event of a siege.
She hid in the shadow of a barrel, waiting for her chance to slip unnoticed into the room where the passage opening lay. Humbug Butler hurried past, carrying a tray of drinks in flute glasses. She held her breath until he was out of sight, praying that he wouldn't spot her.
She slipped out of her hiding place and darted into the room, closing the wooden door slowly behind her and sliding the metal bolt home. She turned and stooped to open the trap door, huffing with the effort. It teetered for a moment before falling back onto the flagstone floor with a crash. The Princess was silent for a moment, listening for any change in the babble of activity beyond the door but so far it seemed everyone was too busy to notice.
She descended the wooden stairs and hurried along with earthen tunnel. Her footsteps echoed on the compacted earth and her heart thumped in her chest at the thought of what she was about to do. But the words of the Archbishop's son and the words of her father echoed in her head, pushing her onwards.
She emerged some distance from the palace. She turned and looked back one last time, a lump forming in her throat. She shook her head and set off.
"I wonder how long before they notice I'm not there," she mumbled miserably to herself as she crested the first hill. After the first hill came another, taller hill and after that another still taller.
At last she reached the forest as the sun was setting. She shivered, wishing she had picked something warmer to wear. Her breath came out in puffs of vapour and she hugged herself in a vain attempt to keep out the cold. She continued onward into the leafy undergrowth. Gradually the light faded and eventually not even the bright piercing light of the full moon shone through the heavy canopy above. She heard the sounds of the night creatures around her, calling out to one another as they clambered through the branches and darted between the bushes.
The Princess pushed back a branch and stepped through, letting go of it as she did so. She heard a whoosh behind her and the next second she was thrown forwards onto her stomach as the branch whipped back, swaying to and fro from the momentum. The Princess got up, rubbing her back where the branch had struck her. She stooped to gather together her things which had tumbled out of the cloth when she fell. Suddenly a sharp shriek rent through the air and the Princess dropped the biscuits in fright. She made to pick them back up when another shriek joined the first. What if it was the vampires she had heard about? She picked up the torch and her doll and ran.
She crashed through the bushes, brambles and creepers catching at her legs and branches whipping back into her face, the smell of bruised leaves filling her nose. The shrieks seemed to be following her, never getting any closer to be sure, but never falling behind either.
"Leave me alone!" she yelled into the darkness and the shrieks seemed to increase in pitch as though in response. She cried out as she tripped over a tree root and was sent tumbling down a hill.
Battered and bruised she reached the bottom where she crawled up onto her hands and knees. She looked around but her vision was slightly blurred, more than likely from the fall she had taken. She spotted what looked like a cave and she made for it, crawling inside. It wasn't a cave, it was a gap in the roots of a gnarled old oak tree but it served as well as any cave. The floor was covered in leaf litter which rustled beneath the Princess' hands and knees. She huddled near the back of the hollow, as far away from the outside world as she could manage. She hugged her knees to her chest. Her limbs ached from the fall and her heart thumped so loudly she thought it must attract the attention of some predator or other. She cried piteously, small scared sounds escaping her. She looked so vulnerable in the dim light, a small pink figure in amongst the dense black forest. The back of the Princess' neck prickled unpleasantly as she felt a new feeling; the feeling that someone was watching her.
Something floated above one of the branches, silhouetted against a patch of sky just visible in amongst the dense branches. Bright red eyes glowed in the near darkness and pointed ears picked up on the small sounds coming from the tree hollow. The being was curious yet cautious in the extreme. It vanished from sight before diving down out of the canopy, the only thing betraying its presence was a soft gust of air and scattering of leaves as it landed. It crept closer to the hollow, moving on silent feet. It saw the Princess huddled in the dark and it waited for a few moments, quietly observing. Yes, it was undoubtedly the same girl. But what was she doing out here? Didn't she know how dangerous these woods were?
A howl sounded in the distance. The wolves were calling to the being, asking if she wanted to run with them but she did not answer. The Princess looked frightened enough as it was without a howl coming seemingly out of nowhere. At last the being felt it was safe to let her presence be known, if only partly. But she wondered how best to do so without scaring the Princess. At last she decided that no matter what method she chose, the Princess would be frightened.
"Hello," she said softly. As she had predicted the Princess looked sharply about, trying to search out the source of the voice.
"Who's there?" she asked, her voice quivering.
"A friend," replied the being. When she said no more the Princess continued to look around, pressing herself up against the back of the hollow.
"Come out where I can see you," she demanded.
"I can't," she replied, "You'd be scared."
"I'd be much less scared if I knew who you were," said the Princess, trying to steady her voice with some effort.
"Don't you know these woods are dangerous?" asked the being, ignoring the Princess' last remark.
"I do now," replied the Princess, shivering. Another shriek echoed through the air. "What's making those noises?"
"Oak spirits," replied the being without hesitation. She knew most of the wood's inhabitants by name, "They're not dangerous. The dangerous things here don't make much noise, well, not until..." She left the sentence hanging but the Princess caught her drift.
"Are you one of those things?" asked Princess Bubblegum. The being hissed in irritation, making the Princess flinch.
"That's rude," she replied bluntly, "Whether I am or whether I'm not. Anyway, it depends what way you look at it." The Princess didn't quite understand what the being meant.
"Anyway, it's too dark to take you home now," continued the being, "We'll wait until morning." The Princess felt movement next to her and she guessed the being was sitting next to her. She reached out and her hand collided with what she guessed was the being's arm. Her skin felt like her own except it was cold, as though there was no blood running through it. She reasoned she must be something cold blooded or something.
"What are you doing?" asked the being. The Princess let her hand drop to her side, blushing a little with embarrassment. The being laughed. It was a soft sound and somehow it made the Princess feel less afraid.
"What's your name anyway?" asked the being.
"Bonnibel, but everyone calls me PB or Peebles," replied Princess Bubblegum.
"Bonnibel, that's a nice name," replied the being.
"And what's your name?" asked the Princess, curiosity replacing fear.
"Marceline," replied the being, "Or Marcy if you prefer." The Princess got the distinct impression the being was grinning at her and she giggled.
"So, why are you here if you don't mind my asking?" asked Marceline. The Princess stopped giggling.
"I ran away from home," she replied.
"How come?" asked Marceline, pulling her knees up against her chest and resting her chin on her hands.
"Everyone thinks it's so great being a Princess, well, it really isn't," replied Princess Bubblegum, "My dad, he's the king, and he's always away on some sort of royal business or other. He never spends any time with me and today it was my birthday. He was supposed to be home this morning but he never showed up. I don't think he cares. Running the kingdom is more important to him." Marceline was silent for a moment. A lot of the things the Princess had just said echoed what she herself had said on several occasions. She didn't really know how to respond so she settled for resting one hand on the Princess' back.
"I'm sorry," she said softly. The Princess looked at her, or where she guessed her face was. She smiled. "I was silly to come out here though," she continued, "I guess I acted too quickly." She laughed and Marceline laughed too. "Can I at least see your face?" asked the Princess.
"Haha, I'm not so good with the whole invisibility thing yet," replied Marceline, "I can be entirely invisible or visible but not halfway. I could turn into something else though. Something I know you wouldn't be frightened of."
"Are you a shapeshifter then?" asked the Princess.
"Sort of," replied Marceline. A moment later a wolf cub appeared next to the Princess. It had dark grey fur and amber eyes with red rings around the pupils. "How's that?" asked Marceline. The Princess giggled.
"You look cute," she replied. Marceline laughed, a rather strange looking thing for a wolf to do.
"Well, you'd better get some sleep, we've got a long day ahead of us tomorrow," she continued.
"What about you?" asked the Princess.
"I'm a night creature," replied Marceline, "So I'll keep watch." The Princess nodded and leaned back against the wall, watching the wolf sitting in the mouth of the hollow. She wondered to herself what manner of strange company she had found herself in. Slowly her eyelids began to droop and she found herself nodding off.
The next time she opened her eyes she saw that the wolf had disappeared from the mouth of the hollow. Had she imagined last night's events? A cold nose nuzzling her hand told her otherwise and she looked to see the wolf cub balancing a large flat leaf on her nose. On the leaf was an array of berries of differing colours and shapes.
"Here, I got you some breakfast," said Marceline, "Don't worry, I know the plants of this forest like the back of my hand." The Princess lifted the leaf off the wolf's nose and began eating the berries. Some were sweet, others were bitter but, most importantly, all were edible.
"Thanks Marceline," she said once she had finished.
"We'd better get moving," replied Marceline, pacing to the mouth of the hollow and looking out. "This way," she said after a moment. The Princess followed her and they began to make their way back through the trees, keeping to a path that apparently only Marceline could see, or rather, smell. The Princess noticed that wherever the sun shone dappled through the branches, Marceline appeared to shy away from it, preferring to keep to the shade.
When they reached the edge of the forest Marceline came to a halt, apparently at a loss.
"Come on, we must be nearly there," said the Princess eagerly.
"I can't," said Marceline, "I can't go out in the sun. Do you have something that I could sort of drape over my fur or something?"
"Are you a vampire?" asked the Princess, putting two and two together, suddenly realising Marceline's reluctance to both show herself and step in the dappled light back in the forest.
"Yes, I am," replied Marceline, her voice suddenly taking on the same cautious tones she had used the night before. "That's why I didn't show myself. People are scared of vampires. You would've been scared too."
"Well," began the Princess, looking awkward.
"Wouldn't you?" pressed Marceline.
"I guess I would've been, yes," replied the Princess hesitantly. If she was honest with herself this news still unsettled her though she was careful to hide it.
"Are you still scared of me?" asked Marceline. The Princess shook her head.
"I have a piece of cloth, would that do?" asked the Princess, hoping to change the subject and lighten the heavy atmosphere that had settled over them both at this revelation. She held out the cloth she had used to tie up her belongings the previous night. Marceline looked at the cloth.
"That'll do fine," she replied. Princess Bubblegum knelt down and fastened it around Marceline's neck like a cloak, pulling one part up over her pointed ears to form a hood.
They continued like this, Marceline leading the way across the grasslands. They talked little during this time, the Princess still feeling a little uncomfortable from Marceline's reaction. She had looked genuinely hurt.
"Marceline," she said.
"Yeah," replied Marceline, looking back over her shoulder at the Princess.
"I'm sorry," said the Princess. Marceline wagged her tail and smiled.
"Come on, let's get you home," she said, her tone of voice rather than her words giving the impression that all was forgiven.
When they reached the walls of the Candy Kingdom Marceline turned to Princess Bubblegum. "I think if you walked in through the front door it would cause a bit of a stir, am I right?" asked Marceline. The Princess nodded. "So we'd better take to the skies for a bit." The vampire changed before her eyes, morphing into the form of a young teenager. She had pale grey blue skin and raven hair tied back in a ponytail. The makeshift cloak still covered her, shielding her from the sun and she was wearing a dark grey T-shirt and ripped denim shorts.
"Ready?" she asked with a fanged smile. Before the Princess had time to ask what she was supposed to be ready for Marceline had swooped forwards and scooped the Princess up in her arms, flying up towards the palace with her. The Princess gripped Marceline's shoulders tightly as her stomach dropped and she buried her face in the vampire's raven hair.
"Don't worry, I'm not going to drop you," Marceline reassured her, "Anyway, we're here." The Princess looked and saw the familiar balcony of the royal nursery. Marceline lowered her gently onto the balcony and it was then that the Princess realised something.
"Wait a minute," she said, "How did you know where I lived? And where I slept?" Marceline chuckled.
"I've been watching you for a quite a while," she replied, "I got curious so I kept a little eye on you. Hope you didn't mind."
"You're the shadow I kept seeing," said the Princess.
"So that's what you've been calling me until now," laughed Marceline, "The Shadow. I like it. Sounds vague and mysterious. I think I annoyed you this morning though." The Princess remembered yelling at the shadow. At Marceline as she now knew.
"Sorry, I was...well, you know now, right?" she replied. Marceline nodded.
"I'm sure he'll come home soon," she said. She looked up at the sun. "I guess I'd better go now."
"Wait a minute," said the Princess before dashing over to the wardrobe. Marceline watched her with a puzzled expression on her face as she opened the closet and rummaged through the drawers at the bottom. She returned to the window carrying a wide brimmed sunhat with a blue ribbon tied around it.
"Here, this should protect you from the sun better," she said, handing the hat to Marceline. Marceline put on the hat which slipped down over her pointed ears. She smiled.
"Thanks Bonnie," she smiled.
Just then they heard someone call the Princess' name. Whoever it was they sounded worried.
"Sounds like they're looking for you," observed Marceline, "I'd better go, but I'll see you around, Bonnie. And thanks again for the hat."
"See you, Marcy," replied Princess Bubblegum, "And no problem." She watched as Marceline disappeared from view and the shadow, now not so mysterious, flew away from the palace. Princess Bubblegum turned and headed for the door, hastily making up a story to explain her absence.
"I knew it," said Simon, "The shadow was Marmee all along."
"That's right," smiled Princess Bubblegum, "Looking back now it was a good job I ran away from home that night."
"It certainly put a lot of things in motion," said Marceline, putting her arm around the Princess.
"So what happened then?" asked Winona.
"It's a little late to now, children," said Marceline, looking up at the clock, "We'll continue the story another night, right Bon?" The Princess nodded.
"Okay," said the children in unison.
