Author's note: Here's chapter 8 ^_^ I want to thank Dragonbornmatt, Odradem, Soloeater and everyone else who reviewed, favorited or followed. You guys give me the encouragement to keep writing this story amongst my busy schedule (I'm lying, I'm quite lazy.). I haven't had any contact with lizzyleefree since December last year so it looks like I'm alone now D: Having a mentor to talk to really does help.

Anyways, Enjoy!

Finn stared at the sword in his chest, not believing it was really there. He glanced up at Billy's visage and at his girlfriend over his assailant's shoulder, her eyes wide in shock, mouth slightly agape. He briefly wished he could kiss those luscious dark pink lips one more time, a single tear crawling its way out of his eye. Then his mind exploded in pain, he didn't scream because he didn't want that to be the last thing to escape his mouth. Black spots danced before his eyes, the pain so intense that his knees buckled. Billy chuckled, pushing him lightly with a finger. He didn't have any strength left to resist, falling backwards onto the red stained carpet.

He fought to keep consciousness, 'Damn, going down like this... I should have told Peebs how much I loved her, maybe even proposed...' His eyelids dropped slowly like curtains over a stage, until he faded into darkness.

"FINN!" when he opened his eyes slightly, he saw the pink face of Bubblegum, face wet with tears. For a moment he thought that he'd died and was in Glob's realm, the place he'd read about in some book. "Please! Wake up!" she pleaded, shaking him again, he took note of his surroundings as best he could with his condition.

"Everything hurts, I just want to go back to sleep." he half mumbled.

"No! Just hang on, stay with me..." She cried back, tearing out a piece of her sleeve to haphazardly bandage his chest. She then moved her arms beneath him, lifting him bridal-style while grunting with the effort.

Finn chuckled inwardly, just realizing that he was almost a head taller then her. All this while he'd always thought of her as the older and bigger one of them. Tears ran down her cheeks freely as she turned to the door, lurching forward with Finn in her arms. When she turned, Finn could see behind them and what he saw shocked him.

The Ice king was battling Billy in a desperate bid to buy time for Finn and the candy princess to escape, hurling bolts of Ice furiously at his foe.

"Ice king..." He wanted to shout but his voice came out in a hoarse whisper instead.

"It's going to be okay, just stay with me... stay with me." Bubblegum muttered, refusing to answer the human in her arms. Finn looked up at her, they both knew that the Ice King couldn't win but his girlfriend was continuing to walk away, leaving the Ice King to hold off his impossible foe.

"What I shame that I have to kill you Ice-mage, you could have made a powerful ally. Ice and shadow go well together, but now you've chosen to defy me and there can be none who live that do so." Billy's voice echoed to Finn's ears. He saw the Lich's greenish unholy flames clashing with the Ice King's frost magic. The wizard looked deep in concentration, muttering a forgotten language while still holding the green flames at bay. He began to chant louder and louder, reaching the apex of the spell.

"What are you... NO!" Billy screamed, the flames emanating from his hands slowly beginning to creep backwards on to his forearms. He roared in fury, throwing his sword at the Ice King, narrowly missing his target's head and striking the Ice King's crown instead. He screamed again before being engulfed by his own flames, vanishing in a blaze of conflagration.

Finn cheered lightly, prompting Bubblegum to turn around. She gasped, running over to the Ice King's side, placing Finn next to him on the ground.

"But.. How?" She whispered, dumbfounded at the old blue man.

"I-I used a banishment spell I learned at wizard-con, he won't fall for it twice." He heaved, shaking with the effort. He broke into a series of nerve-racking coughs. "I don't have long to live don't I?"

"Huh? What? Why?" Finn questioned while clutching his chest. Bubblegum walked over to the Ice King's crown, bringing it over for them to examine. It was broken. One of the jewels was shattered, the golden metal around it twisted and deformed. "Oh..." Finn murmured, looking up at the old man before him grow ever so slightly older with each passing second. The Ice King's features were softening, his skin growing warmer and less blue, his long pointy nose shortening. He began to sob into the wizard's shoulder, crying at the unfairness of everything that had happened that day.

"No, no. Don't cry Finn, it feels good to have it off." His eyes were coming into sharp focus as he spoke, a tinge of intelligence in his now non-nasal voice. He turned to regard the candy princess "The Ice Magic will wear off in a few hours, then I will revert to my current age."

"I'll have peppermint bring you to the guest room. Would you like to see anyone before..." She trailed off unable to meet his bright blue eyes.

"Yes, please. I would like to see Gunther and..." He hesitated before continuing " Marceline."

"That... Can be arranged." She curtly replied, running off to find the butler who'd mysteriously disappeared through the whole ordeal. Leaving the two wounded next to each other.

"I'm so sorry. I wish it was me, you shouldn't have to die like that man. You really were a good man." Finn muttered, an occasional tear still falling from his eyes.

"Even after everything? I kidnapped princesses, annoyed you almost daily and even killed your girlfriend twice. Even after all that?" He replied, scratching his beard.

"Especially because of all that." Finn laughed, until he coughed out a handful of blood. "Why am I not dead yet?" He asked himself, not expecting the Ice King to answer.

"The princess pulled some gizmo out and placed it on your chest for a moment, it didn't work. So I fed some of my magic into you, it's whats keeping you alive, don't tell the princess. It will also keep the lich's magics at bay, consider it evening the scales against the Lich." The Ice King breathed "I wanted to give you something to say I truly am sorry for everything."

The two men fell silent, finally at peace with one another. They simply enjoyed the fact that the storm had passed and waited for the princess to return with help.