Been a while, right? My bad. Lack of motivation and loss of writing abilities. The usual.
Marceline stood awkwardly as grateful Fluffy People crowded around her and hugged her legs. She wanted to move, but she was afraid she'd step on one of the living cotton balls and Finn would probably never let her hear the end of it.
Lately, his hero lessons had been tough. He pointed out her mistakes like he took pleasure in doing so; he seemed angry with her. Negative emotions were not Marceline's thing. She hated it when people she cared for were genuinely annoyed or upset with her. Not that she'd ever admit to caring about them, nor willingly reveal that she was concerned. And, despite her dislike of emotional confrontation, every time she tried to bring it up with Finn, he'd get all moody and start telling her she was meant to be doing this instead of that, or helping someone make this instead of destroying that.
Teaming up with Finn and Jake was starting to become extremely frustrating. Jake wouldn't stop talking about guys he knew, about how right they were for her, and Finn was a brat. He obviously didn't want her on their adventures, so she decided it would just be best to stay away from the two for a while. She was better off alone. Always had been.
"Guys… could you… you know… make way?" she said, shifting her leg so they'd take a hint. Thankfully, after about ten minutes of endless hugging and thanking, the Fluffy People stepped back and allowed Marceline to leave. All Marceline did was yank one of them out of a hole. It wasn't as if they were being attacked by a Cyclops or a carnivorous phoenix like they were last week. But she understood that every society had its own customs and different ways of showing appreciation for heroes. The ones that hugged were the worst.
Her sleeping habits were still very askew, so it was pretty late. By this time, a lot of day walkers would be asleep and the nocturnal creatures would just be rising. This thought deterred Marceline from her plan to visit Bubblegum at her castle, but she hadn't spent time with the princess as a friend since the witch cursed her. But, even before she was human, amiable moments were fleeting between them. They often fought and disagreed, but Marceline liked it somehow. She enjoyed having someone who wasn't scared to speak against her, but there were times the mock fights became real. Those were the ones Marceline wished weren't apart of their relationship. They made her second guess herself, feel inadequate in comparison to Bubblegum, feel truly like a monster. Her standard response was to lash out, and one time, she went a little too far.
They were having a debate about the value of life. Marceline wasn't alive, so she didn't value it at all, but Bubblegum thought that approach was "barbaric". She was furious with Marceline for being so careless, for believing that killing someone who was a problem was the right way to fix things. That was the fight that broke their friendship, or whatever they called the thing they had.
Now that Marceline was mortal with a chance of dying, she was able to see where Bubblegum was coming from. She'd selfishly separated families, heartlessly let people die, all because she didn't have the option to die; she took life for granted.
But she'd watched how happy the people she saved were, how relieved their loved ones seemed. Their appreciation for Marceline was fervent. These reactions had affected her to some degree, unravelled some type of compassion within her. She didn't want to care about anyone more than the select few who had wormed themselves into her heart, but becoming human messed up her emotions. It was like they were more powerful now, awoken after a thousand years of sleep.
Consumed in her reflections, Marceline was unaware that she had entered the Candy Kingdom, had walked to the castle and been allowed in by the Banana Guards. Well, not necessarily, since they had fallen asleep at their post, but the human thought it best not to announce her presence. She'd always had a knack for sneaking around in people's homes without them realising. It would just be more challenging with her lack of vampiric powers, and that only made it more exciting.
There were a number of close calls, though Marceline made it to Bubblegum's room without being detected. She tested the handle and it was unlocked. She pushed open the door slipped in through the crack.
Bubblegum wasn't asleep yet, and the creak of her door had drawn her attention from the book she was reading.
"Marcy? What are you doing here?" she asked, closing the book and setting it aside.
Marceline studied her, noting the shirt she'd gifted the princess all those years ago serve as a pyjama top. The garment was rare. The band it was for only had a limited amount of shirts which they shot from canons on stage during one of their few short-lived concerts they'd put on before disbanding soon after. Marceline managed to catch one and Bubblegum was a little sad that she didn't have a unique souvenir from her first rock concert, so Marceline had kindly, with a flushed face and mumbled excuses, given Bubblegum the shirt as a memento.
"Nothing really. Are you busy?"
"Not anymore."
"Wanna hang out?"
"And do what exactly? It's a little late."
Marceline grinned and swept across the room, joining Bubblegum on her bed. Her chipped tooth gave her smile a mischievous edge and she moved closer to the princess. Brown eyes striped with gold gleamed in the lamplight like stars. She drew towards Bubblegum's ear and gently said, "Sneak out with me and I'll show you."
Bubblegum tried to subtly shimmy away from the hot breath upsetting her skin, but Marceline only mirrored her movements. The shifts in the human's behaviour were nothing new. At times, she was shy when Bubblegum showed her kindness, reluctant to accept praise or affection, but then there were times, when in a more intimate location, usually by night, when Marceline was a confident flirt. The princess never retaliated, because she wasn't sure if it was part of some twisted one-sided game and her participation would cause Marceline to become withdrawn or repulsed. Bubblegum couldn't afford to put their slowly rekindling friendship at risk for the sake of exploring something that might not even be there.
"Oh, no… I couldn't. What if Peppermint discovered that I was gone? He'd panic and the castle staff would follow suit," the princess demurred lightly, though she was very tempted to see where the human wanted to take her. In the past, Marceline wouldn't have given her an option. It seemed gaining humanity had turned her gracious.
"They won't find out," Marceline urged, seductive gaze morphing into an eager smile. The human leapt to her feet, still on the bed, and thrust out her hand. "Trust me."
This was more than an offer to spend time together. This was clarification. Marceline had infiltrated the castle, which was her usual habit when they had been friends, barged into Bubblegum's chambers, again, as had been usual, wanting the princess to join her in her shenanigans. By relapsing into past routines, maybe Marceline was hinting that she wanted things to be that way again. The princess was positive that that was her reason for being there.
And, although Marceline was a troublemaker and had gotten Bubblegum into some unwanted situations, she could never say no to an adventure with the former vampire queen. She couldn't deny that she often had fun during their outings and she hadn't done anything thoughtless or on impulse in a few months.
She took Marceline's warm hand and welcomed the kidnapping.
Bubblegum clutched the Morrow's feathers with brutal force. She didn't intend to hurt the bird, but he was flying so fast (under Marceline's instruction) that her crown, which she'd failed to remove beforehand, had been knocked off and had fallen somewhere in the castle gardens. She feared she would fall off if she loosened her hold in the slightest.
Marceline was shouting directions, avoiding naming the destination, so the alleged surprise wouldn't be spoilt. She hoped it was somewhere secluded, as Marceline hadn't even allowed her to change into something more publically appropriate.
"How much further?!" Bubblegum called over the rush of the wind as Marceline pumped her fist in the air, cheering as she recklessly mounted Morrow's neck and sent him into a startled nosedive. The human cackled manically and Bubblegum reached around her and grabbed Morrow's head, lifting it before they crash-landed. The large eagle shot upwards and at Bubblegum's desperate command, slowed down.
The princess' cheek had been squashed against Marceline's back and her arms were loosely circling the human's waist, but now that Morrow had steadied, she sat up straight. However, she didn't release her grip. She slid her hands back to rest on the human's belted hips.
"You gonna let go any time soon?" Marceline asked, turning her head, smirking tauntingly at the monarch.
"No way. I need to keep you from trying something like that again."
"Don't lie. You just wanna hug me," Marceline teased.
"Don't act like you don't want me to," Bubblegum countered.
Marceline blushed and she whipped around, hoping Bubblegum hadn't seen the bright scarlet colouring her cheeks. She grumbled inaudibly, hating that the princess had such an impact on her. No matter how much time she put between them, or what kind of relationship they shared, be it enemy or friend, Marceline's feelings never changed.
With a huff, she pointed Morrow down to a forest just west of the Candy Kingdom. The eagle fluttered through a parting in the thick canopy of leaves and landed. Marceline jumped off and helped Bubblegum down.
The forest was alight with fireflies. They danced and buzzed and Morrow hopped around, trying to snap them up. Bubblegum laughed as Marceline tried to catch some, too. She clapped her hands, trying to cage the bugs within her fingers, but they slipped away and the human soon tripped over a branch and landed in front of Morrow. He looked at her as she stood up and took a step closer. He then pecked at one of her pockets. She curiously stuffed her hand in it and pulled out whatever had attracted the bird. It was dirt. The three stood in the shadows of the trees, watching the pile of earth as it started to tremble.
A worm popped out.
Morrow greedily swiped it and launched into the air, leaving the way he'd come with his meal.
Marceline stared at the dirt crumbling through her fingers.
Bubblegum slapped the human's arm and knocked the dirt to the ground.
"That's disgusting, Marceline!" she exclaimed, wincing when she thought what else might be hiding in her pockets. Marceline only shrugged.
"Being a hero can get… dirty," she joked lamely, grinning.
Bubblegum rolled her eyes, unamused. A lascivious seductress one minute, and a goofy child the next. Sometimes Marceline really was a mystery wrapped in an enigma, coated with a layer of obnoxiousness.
"Are you going to tell me why you brought me to a dark forest in the middle of the night?" she asked impatiently.
Instead of answering, Marceline tilted her head back and howled.
Bubblegum, befuddled, waited silently for a proper reply. Things were becoming stranger and stranger and Marceline's responses so far hadn't been the least bit helpful. The human continued to ignore her as she howled again. Then she crouched down low to the ground, snatching the princess' hand and dragging her into the same position.
"Don't move," she demanded quietly.
"What-" Bubblegum was cut short as a huge blur burst from the bushes and ploughed into Marceline. She tumbled back into the grass as more and more dark flashes emerged from other directions and lunged for the human. When they stopped, Bubblegum was shocked to find Marceline covered in wolves, licking her face and whimpering and wagging their tails.
Marceline laughed and sat up. She shoved a hand through the crowd of fluff and waved Bubblegum over. The princess nervously shuffled closer to the wolves. When one caught the movement, he turned around and stared at Bubblegum, hackles raised. Bubblegum froze as the pack stopped greeting Marceline, six sets of golden eyes now trained on her. The human crawled past them and joined Bubblegum's side, sliding an arm around her shoulders to indicate their friendship. She beckoned the wolves with a hushed voice.
And soon, the pack leader, a large black wolf Marceline had named Tank, stepped forward. He cautiously sniffed the princess, who fell back from her crouch and landed on her butt, trying to form some kind of distance between her and the invasive creature. She was very frightened as she had a bad experience with wolves before. She'd almost been killed.
Tank glanced at Marceline, who nodded, and then he licked Bubblegum's cheek. The princess' fear began to ebb when the rest of the pack joined the alpha and timidly licked or nuzzled her, tails swishing.
"I knew they'd accept you. What do you think of them?" Marceline wondered, lowering her arm from Bubblegum's shoulders so she could stroke two of the six wolves that collapsed to the ground and rested their heads in her lap.
"Oh, Marcy, they're spectacular. I've only ever read about wolves interacting this way with their own pack."
"I'm part of the pack… and now you are as well," she said fondly, her lips arched in a soft smile Bubblegum had seldom seen. It was one of her favourite expressions. She returned it.
"Thank you."
The princess scanned the wolves in the glow of the fireflies and noticed one was limping as he chased one of his pack mates. He stopped occasionally and peered at Marceline, as if he expected her to join the game. She didn't.
"What happened to him?" Bubblegum pointed to the wolf in question.
"These poor guys are always being hunted. That's Buster; he was shot with an arrow a couple months back. I got it out for him, but I think he might always have that limp," Marceline explained sadly. It was clear that she cared for these animals.
"That's terrible."
"It's because everyone thinks wolves are savage and wild, something to be afraid of. But they're just misunderstood. They are actually really sweet," she said, scratching a grey wolf behind the ear lovingly.
Something brushed through Marceline's hair and she turned, thinking it was one of the wolves preparing to play tug-of-war with her scalp, but discovered that it was Bubblegum running her fingers through her trimmed locks tenderly.
"Like you," she whispered.
Marceline froze.
Did Bubblegum really just say that?
"Huh?"
The princess giggled, leant over and kissed her cheek. The wolves had settled down and rested either on or around the two, and Bubblegum reluctantly shifted Buster's head, which was heavy on her leg, and climbed to her feet.
"It was fantastic meeting the pack, Marcy, and I hate to cut it short, but the sun is rising and I need to get home before someone realises I'm gone. Let's do this again."
Marceline was still paralysed from the kiss, but she managed a small, "Yeah."
Bubblegum summoned Morrow and said goodbye to the wolves, petting them and hugging those that were willing to jump up and dirty her nightshirt with their paws. They all whined when Bubblegum mounted her bird and waved. The human returned the gesture robotically and watched the mighty eagle flap its wings and disappear through the canopy.
Marceline sighed and Tank worriedly pressed his snout against her arm. She lifted it and curled it around the wolf's back.
"That's her guys; the one I told you about. It's hard not to like her, right?"
Buster whimpered.
"She'll never feel the same," she muttered bitterly.
Elena, a sandy coloured wolf, growled, nudging the human's foot in disagreement.
"Shut up," she snapped, shifting her foot away and burying her face in Tank's neck. "It's not gonna happen. She's too good for me."
Marceline, now miserable despite such a magical, albeit brief, time with Bubblegum, didn't go home. She stayed with the wolves. She loved roughhousing with them and terrorising strangers on occasion, but the pack was also like a family to her. They knew when she needed a calm night to set her head straight, and they shared her pain and expressed it exactly the way she did: through song.
No one in Ooo noticed how much more mournful the wolves' howls were that night.
With this development, how will Marceline deal with the following dates Jake sets up for her? And will Finn crack now that he has competition (in more ways than one)? Only I know and only by sticking around can you find out, not that you have to.
Thoughts?