To reviewer Demonbloodfeeder: Just because she was in the kingdom doesn't mean Marceline ever went to their palace or met their royalty. All we know she did for sure was hula hoop in a field of flame. Let's not forget, Marceline is immortal. This could've happened at any point, even before Flame Princess was born. Your argument really just doesn't hold water. Also anonymous reviews are disabled so I can give replies like these in private.
Finn awoke with a start, a tremendous, bellowing voice echoing through the tree fort. "Daughter? Where are you? I wish to speak with you!" Looking around, Finn could see that it had likewise awakened both Edana and Jake. The Flame Princess rushed to the living room window, sticking her head out, and calling to her father.
"Everyone was sleeping, dad! Keep it down, I'll be right out!" She told him, as Finn and Jake peeked downstairs. She climbed down the ladder, and walked out the treasure room, looking up to her looming father.
"I've missed you, Edana." He told her, smiling. "Have you made many new friends?" He sat on the ground, the grass around him wilting from the heat. Edana sat next to him, and spoke of her time spent with Finn's friends, and even that she had been invited to join a band. "Really...I'll have to send a steward to bring you your flute when I return..." He told her, smiling. "I've heard news of a royal ball in your honor, and I just had to come out and see my beloved jewel." He patted her head gently, and stood back up. "I'm proud of you, Edana." He leaned down, and kissed her on the top of her head, before heading off towards the Fire Kingdom.
"BYE FLAME KING!" Finn shouted from the window. The king turned around, waving to the boy for a moment, before continuing on his way. Finn looked down at the princess, smiling. "Morning, Flame Princess!"
"Good morning, Finn!" she shouted back to him, stifling a giggle. She hurried up the ladder, and, in the privacy of the bathroom, changed into a light, breezy top and skirt for the day. When she was changed, she went back down to the living room, and from there, saw Finn, sitting at the kitchen table, drawing. She walked up behind him, her curiosity piqued, and she watched over his shoulder.
"What're you drawing?" She asked, pulling up a chair. Finn slid a piece of paper over to her. On it was a strange bulgy purple shape with a star on it.
"That's Lumpy Space Princess. She shows up at everything. Parties, balls, monster attacks... But I wanted to give you a heads up. Lumpy space people are really rude, but they always get upset when someone else is rude to them. If you talk to her at the ball, she may say something, and it might seem like she's trying to hurt your feelings. She's not." Finn explained as she studied the picture. Jake brought them their breakfast, and they began eating.
"So why did you decide to tell me about this?" She asked, between bites. "I appreciate you letting me know, but it's weird that all of a sudden you bring it up..."
"I dropped the jelly jar. He thought the jelly on the floor looked like LSP." Jake told her between heaping mouthfuls.
Finn was caught off guard, and couldn't take his eyes away from Jake's mouth. "Ugh..." he pulled the top of his hat down over his eyes. "Gross, Jake..."
After breakfast, they gathered up the targets Finn made, and headed out toward a lake, Jake planting each one in the soft mud of the lake bed. Edana formed a ball of fire in her hand, hesitating for a moment.
"Here goes nothing..." she muttered, throwing the large flame at a target, completely missing, the ball of fire falling into the water and fizzling out. "OWW!" she yelped in shock. Finn dashed to her side.
"Are you ok?" He asked, hand on her back.
"Yeah, I'm fine..." She took a deep breath, and stared at the target. "I can do this. It's just nerves..." She took another breath, focusing, as Finn walked back over to where he and Jake were sitting to watch her. She formed another ball of fire, throwing it at the same target, this time making a solid impact.
"YES!" She shouted, throwing her hands up in the air. She turned to Finn, excited. "I did it! I knew I could OWW!" She fell to her knees as the target toppled, all the fire that had spread across it falling into the water. She held up a hand toward Finn, breathing a bit heavily. "Hang on...I'm fine, just...ok. I'm ok now." She forced a ball of fire into her hand, throwing this one at another target, again, hitting it squarely. She nervously clenched her fists and teeth, focusing on the flames, pulling her magic out of them, and causing them to fade out of existence. She threw another fireball at a third target, this time just clipping the side of it. It burned quickly, but with the pain of most of her strike falling into the water, she couldn't focus, and once again a target toppled into the water, putting out her flames.
"I think that's enough for today." Finn told her, seeing her struggling to her feet. "I think you need to try to make smaller fireballs though." He helped her up, and as he smiled at her, she could see the worry in his eyes.
"You...You're probably right...I'm not used to having a limit on my power...I used it up too quickly...so stupid..." She admonished herself, head hung low.
"You're not stupid, Edana...We're here so you can learn to control it better. And next time, you've got an idea to help you do that." He gave her a charming smile, and put her arm over his shoulders, noticing the weakness in her step.
"That didn't last very long." Jake said, helping them onto his back.
"Jake!" Finn glared at the dog.
"No, he's right. I tried to burn too bright, and I burned out too quick instead..." Edana frowned, staring at her hands. The gem on her ring was faded and pale.
Halfway home, they were stopped by a cry for help. Finn jumped to the ground, looking over his shoulder at Jake.
"You two head on home, I'm gonna go take care of this!" He dashed off into the woods, eager to see some action. Edana watched after him with worry in her eyes.
"You ok, FP?" Jake asked, as he began taking her back to the tree fort.
"I have a very bad feeling about this..." She scrambled up the ladder, her limbs weak, a sense of sourceless desperation driving her.
Finn ran through the forest, grinning. He loved to help people, short and simple. And if it helping them might mean he gets to punch some bad guys, all the better. Finally, he came to the source of the screaming. Wildberry Princess ran towards him, tears in her eyes, and hid behind Finn.
"Finn, thank goodness! Please, help me!"
"Sure, but...what's going on?" He asked, turning back to face the path she'd come from, the smell of burning wood heavy in the air.
"They sent another one!"
"Another what?" He couldn't see any smoke or fire, but he definitely smelled something burning.
"After you thwarted a second class assassin, they decided to send a master!" Finn's eyes went wide as a tall, lanky figure, wrapped in bandages over his head and forearms, walked onto the path, leaving whatever part of a tree he happened to brush against black and burnt as he went.
"Scorcher..." Finn clenched his fists, looking around. He knew he couldn't use his fists without getting severely burnt, and he had left all his weapons at home. Scorcher's eyes went wide when he saw the human boy in front of him. "Wildberry Princess...He was contracted against me way before you...Right, Scorcher? So you've gotta kill me before you can lay a hand on her!" He paused for a moment. "That's how it works, right?" Scorcher gave a curt nod, his eyes narrowing. "Run." He told the princess, who quickly complied.
Finn gave a startled yell as he ducked under a blast of fire. Rolling to his side, he picked up a rock, and whipped it right at Scorcher's face. The assassin, with a sense of serene focus, caught the rock in his hand with no effort, and began to walk slowly, inexorably towards Finn.
"Oh Gob." He said, looking for something else to throw at the tall, hunched figure. "You know what?" Scorcher tilted his head, still moving closer. "You got a job. I can respect that. But I can't let you hurt other people. So I'm just gonna have to not die, ok?" Scorcher gave a hissing crackling sound. Finn wasn't sure, but he could swear his soon-to-be murderer was laughing.
"FINN!" Edana cried, "CATCH!" She threw with all her might a weapon Finn had sorely wished he brought with him on his own. He could see the throw fell far short of him, and leaped into the air to grab the family sword, landing with the blade out to his side at arm's length, perched low, with his free hand on the ground. Jake shrunk, setting Edana down as he went.
"Yo, bro, you got my mitts?" He asked, staring at Scorcher. Finn reached into his pack, tossing a pair of boxing gloves to Jake. Not bothering to untie them, he shrunk his hands and slid them inside before returning them to normal size. Finn shot him a knowing glance, and Jake nodded. They both knew the gloves wouldn't hold up for long against Scorcher, but they didn't have many options.
The assassin glared at them, before dashing at Jake, clearly the weaker link in the chain. He punched, kicked, and jabbed at the dog. Each blow was dodged as Jake stretched and shrank and reshaped himself out of the way, but each one was getting closer and closer as well, his fur starting to get singed by the heat coming off of the enemy. After a few moments, he finally hit Jake, who stumbled backwards. Only then, with a wider view of his opponent, did Scorcher notice only one glove visible. The dog's other arm was stretched back into the trees. As he scanned the area for the point of attack, Jake struck, his gloved fist flying out of the trees behind his target, who spun quickly, and grabbed the glove, quickly burning through it, only to find the hand had already retreated back to its body.
Finn shouted as he charged, Scorcher turning to face him, and stepping out of the way of the human's blade. Turning to once more face the boy now behind him, he raised his hand, blasting a surging inferno at his back. The flames grew and grew as he poured more and more power into them, but his target was unscathed, as a young woman stood between them, breathing heavily.
Edana knew she was outclassed in control, and as long as she had the ring on, he was more powerful, too, but she still had a trick or two to call on, using every ounce of focus she could muster to pull his flames at her fireproof body. Scorcher was growing visibly enraged, and ceased his fiery assault, instead opting to grab the girl by the throat to get her out of his way. He held her up to his face, squeezing her neck, hissing at her.
"Won't...ghk...let you...hurt..." She lost consciousness, and he dropped her to the ground. Death would be unnecessary. She was an obstruction, not a target. He looked back to Finn, to find the dog in his place.
"Dude, you just lost." He told the assassin, pointing at his stomach. Looking down, Scorcher's eyes went wide with disbelief, the family sword extending forth from his abdomen. He lurched forward, smoke and heat spilling forth from the wound.
"Nooootttt...Ooooverrrrrr..." his voice was ghastly and distorted as he disappeared in a plume of fire. Finn rushed to Edana's side, yanking his hat off, and putting his ear to her mouth. He sighed in relief.
"She's still breathing..." He then froze, realizing something, his cheeks growing bright red as he stared. "So...I guess those clothes weren't fireproof." He added, intentionally putting his Awesome Hat on backwards.
"Nnn...Finn? FINN, WHERE'S YOUR FACE?" She shouted in panic, bolting upright, and immediately regretting it as she felt immensely dizzy.
"My hat's on backwards." He told her, his voice mumbled.
"Why...?"
"Because your shirt burned up." He told her. She gave a startled shout, covering herself, feeling incredibly embarrassed and exposed.
"Here." Jake said as he, avoiding looking at the princess, reached into his brother's backpack and tossed the yellow sweater in her direction. She quickly pulled it on, desperate to be covered.
"Ok, you guys can look now." She said, straightening it out. Finn tried to turn his hat around, but it was caught on the tufts of hair poking through the face hole. Finally, he just took it off, and put it on the right way. He grabbed hold of his sword, and plucked a leaf off a tree, wiping the soot off the blade.
"So that cry for help was a trap?" Jake asked, tossing aside his single boxing glove, having decided that it was useless on its own. Finn froze, suddenly remembering that Wildberry Princess must still be scared. He quickly explained that she had been running from the assassin, and Jake used his nose to track her down, finding her hiding inside a hollowed out log, trembling with fear.
"It's ok, Wildberry Princess. He's gone." Finn told her, helping her out of the log, and with Flame Princess, they climbed onto Jake's back.
"Oh, thank you, Finn." She clung to him, nuzzling his chest a bit. "This is the second time you've saved my life from those dreadful assassins... If there's anything I can do to repay you..." She smiled up at him, juice rushing to her cheeks. She was startled as she heard Flame Princess clear her throat. "Oh, who are you?" She asked, smiling cheerfully.
"I'm his girlfriend." She said flatly, staring at the other princess, who quickly backed away from Finn.
"Oh my! I'm so sorry! I didn't know Finn had a girlfriend! I promise you, I wasn't, um... oh dear, I've made a mess of things, haven't I?" She frowned, giving up on trying to explain. Flame Princess felt guilt welling up inside of her.
"Relax, it's not a big deal...I mean, even if that was your intent, I trust Finn." The boy blushed, smiling a bit, trying to hide his face from either of them. "And besides, like you said, you didn't know he was spoken for."
"Thank you so much for being so understanding. If we weren't moving so fast, I'd come give you a hug." She said, though Edana silently wondered if she wasn't just trying to make her hug to Finn seem like something very common. Jake slowed down when they entered the Berry Kingdom, the Wildberry Princess giving Edana a guided tour of her homeland. When they finally finished the tour, Wildberry Princess was left at her castle, as the others returned to the tree fort. Edana hurried upstairs, changing into a fresh shirt, and returned to the living room, walking over to the couch, and flopping down on it, head back, sighing.
"Is it even lunch time yet?" She asked tiredly. "This has been a big day..." Finn smiled softly at her, putting a hand on her shoulder.
"Do you need to take a nap, or lie down?" He asked, worrying that she might have overexerted herself.
"I think I'm ok...I'm all charged up again after that guy...Why was he trying to kill you, anyway? I know he was after the Wildberry Princess, but...why did he attack you?" She asked, leaning on him.
"You sure you don't want to lie down?" He asked, causing her to shift her weight, laying on her side, her head on his lap. He blushed heavily as she did the same, having misinterpreted his question as an invitation, and not exactly eager to decline.
"Will you tell me now?" She asked, thinking she'd fulfilled a prerequisite.
"It's kind of a long story..." She huffed at the answer. "What?"
"All of your stories are kind of long stories. I'm starting to worry I'll never hear any of them..." He stared into her eyes at an awkward angle for a moment, then smiled.
"Alright. It all started when I got a call from the Breakfast Princess." He then recounted the tale of the Ice King's grounding, and the hitman he hired as a form of tantrum, and his saving of Finn and Jake's lives by making them look dead.
"Wow..." She said, staring up at him in wonder, before a smile broke on her face. "Will you tell me another one?"
"Maybe later." Jake said, setting down two plates on the coffee table. "You don't want Finn talking with his mouth full. I made you love birds some sammiches, by the way." He stepped back, and stared at them.
Finn stared back, his cheeks getting hot. "Why are you looking at us like that?"
"You guys are really cute together." Jake replied, grinning a bit. "I'm gonna go hang with Lady, give you two some privacy." He stretched out the window head first, his rear following him out once his front touched the ground.
Edana sat up and grabbed her sandwich. After sniffing it, she took a large bite. They ate in silence, flashing small smiles at each other every so often. After a moment, Finn stood, and walked into the kitchen. "You want some juice?" He offered as he poured himself a glass.
"Yes, please." She asked, smiling toward him. She had spent half her life locked away, two barriers, one of glass, and one of rage, preventing any kind of meaningful connection with someone else. And now, here she was, sitting in a little room in a tree, eating a sandwich, as if she had lived her life as a normal person. Thinking back on her solitude and isolation, she almost couldn't believe it had happened to her. She took the glass of juice, bowing her head a bit in gratitude, and took a small sip before having another bite of her sandwich.
She felt weird about saying anything, but she felt she had to let him know. "I really like this..." She told him, blushing.
"Yeah, Jake makes great sandwiches." Finn replied as he finished his off.
"No, I didn't mean the sandwich..." The human boy gave her a look of confusion.
"You don't like the sandwich?"
"I do...but what I meant was I really like just sitting here...with you..." She placed her hand on his, smiling. She finished off her food and drink, and looked into his eyes, which she noticed were lingering a bit lower than they should have. She put her arm over her chest, blushing hard. "What are you doing?" She glared at him despite herself.
"I-I'm sorry! I just...it's...I was surprised, when it happened, and, uh...I was just thinking about how, y'know, you saved my life, and then what happened just after that, and...I'm sorry." He bowed his head with a sense of defeat.
"And what did happen right after?" She asked. She knew they had gotten out of it alive, but that was about all she did know about it. Finn explained his impaling Scorcher on his sword, his vanishing in a burst of fire, and lastly, what happened when he made sure she was breathing.
"Well, I guess that's ok...at least I know you weren't staring when I was unconscious... Not that I thought you would, just..."
"Yeah, I get it." He responded, smiling at her. "And I'm sorry, I'll try my best not to do that again...the staring, I mean..." His face shifted to one of deep remorse. He clearly believed that he had upset her far more than he actually had. She grimaced a bit, feeling uncomfortable.
"I wasn't that mad. I mean...it's understandable with a boy your age...I was just surprised that you of all people..." They were unable to even look at one another, caught in a tense, uncomfortable silence. Two young people in love, both too ashamed of their follies to express forgiveness for the other person's mistake.
Eventually they both pushed the shame and embarrassment into the back of their minds, and opened up to each other once again, both hiding feelings from the other. Edana was the first to speak.
"Can you tell me another story?" She asked, sitting as far down the couch from him as she could, unable to bring herself to look at him. Finn thought for a moment, trying to remember something he could talk about that wouldn't involve feelings for any members of candy royalty.
"...Ok. So, me and Jake woke up real early in the morning. This HUGE monster was stomping around outside our house. At first, we thought he was just some kinda dream or something." Edana smiled, scooting closer to her. By the time the tale of Party Pat was concluded, they were sitting close together again.
Hesitating out of nerves, Edana sat silently for a moment, blushing. Before Finn could ask her if something was wrong, however, he found her lips on his, her arms around his neck. He placed a hand on her hip, kissing back for a moment, before she broke contact and laid her head gently on his chest.
"I wasn't that mad...and I'm sorry I made you feel so bad for it." She told him, hiding her face against his shirt.
"No, I'm the one that's sorry..." She reached up awkwardly and tried to put her finger to his lips to silent him, but with her eyes still hidden from him, she wound up groping at his face. He took her hand from his eyeball and held it gently. "What do you say we just forget the whole thing every happened?"
"Ok..." she mumbled into his chest. "I love you..." she added, letting herself enjoy the embrace.
"I love you too, Edana..." He reached down, cupping her chin with his hand. He gently guided her face up to his, pulling her into another kiss. After a moment, they broke apart, their faces flushed.
"Wow...I..." Edana cleared her throat, walking to the window, and opening it up. "I think this might be the first time I've ever felt overheated..." Finn chuckled, then walked up behind her, putting his arms around her waist, and smelling her hair. She turned around, hugging back, smiling at him, then pulling away again.
"is something wrong, Princess?" Finn asked. "I'm not making you uncomfortable, am I?" He took a step back, trying to give her space. She tugged her shirt down a bit, absent mindedly, and shook her head.
"Quite the opposite...A bit too comfortable...it's nice to be alone, and have no supervision, but...I don't trust myself right now..." She rubbed her face, and shook her head. "I just...I...My thoughts keep drifting, and I catch myself going places I'm not ready for...I'm sorry, Finn, I just...I..." He took her hand, and stared into her eyes, just smiling innocently.
"Wanna play some Beemo?" He asked.
"I'd like that."