"And you wonder why I'm always so hesitant about visiting my dad," Marceline chuckled, continuing onwards as Bonnibel hung hesitantly behind. She had always imagined that Marceline just exaggerated towards her father's acts, that she was just being overemotional. But after meeting him in person, Bonnibel realized that Marceline had run away from home for a good reason. She was being force to become something she didn't want, to become the Queen of the Nightosphere rather than simply Marceline.
"I'm sorry," Bonnibel breathed as Marceline brushed her hand against the X she had drawn on the wall earlier. A quick glance up and she smiled at the swirling purple that would take them back to Bonnibel's closet.
"Don't worry about it, no one believes me until they actually see it." Marceline shrugged, but Bonnibel wouldn't take the cast aside comment as she shook her head.
"But I shouldn't have just assumed, Marcy. I…I should know you better than that," she admitted, startling both Marceline as well as herself. The vampire had been right. She had changed, and not for the better. Before she was always conscious of the happiness of those around her, of ensuring their peace of mind and feeling of safety. But at some point she had decided that sweeping it all under the rug was easier. A woman like Marceline didn't deserve that sort of cast off.
"Well, why don't we get out of here before things get too sappy and they realize we're not on the street anymore." Marceline urged, holding out a hand with a sheepish smile. Maybe this was good for Bonnibel, for both of them. With their budding friendship Marceline had started to think back more to when they had first met. She had envied Bonnibel so much in those days with how excited she was about the world. There could be nothing wrong and no sadness wherever Bonnibel was. But Marceline had started to notice the princess drifting from that state of mind and it had truthfully started to worry her. Only, Marceline had assumed the princess's growing closeness to her had been a result of the issues in Ooo, when in fact it had been the other way around.
Bonnibel took her hand, gripping Marceline's shoulders gently as they drifted up into the portal and back into the safety of her home. The pink was shocking to her eyes and she stepped away to allow Marceline to close the portal and wipe away any remnants. "Why did you run away all those years ago?" Bonnibel questioned, the flashbacks making it impossible for her to ignore the thought. Marceline paused, staring at the faded pink carpet for a moment.
"Because…because you didn't need someone like me hanging around and holding you back," she breathed, surprising Bonnibel. "I dunno. After everything I had done to you, you didn't seem bothered by it at all. I…I wasn't used to such acceptance. I didn't think I deserved it." She admitted as Bonnibel's mouth fell open, staring at the anxious vampire like she had grown a second head.
"Didn't deserve it? What sort of craziness it that, Marcy?" Bonnibel exclaimed, throwing her hands into the air after dropping her duffle onto the floor. "You deserve just as much as the rest of Ooo," Bonnie explained, making Marceline nervously smile and kick at the rug.
"Yeah, yeah, you're just saying that," Marceine remarked, waving off the comment and moving towards the door. But Bonnibel reached out, gripping her shoulder tightly to keep her still.
"Don't run away from me again, Marcy. I spent years searching for you after that day," she continued. "You were my inspiration for the Candy Kingdom. It was built to be a haven…in hopes that one day you would come back. Maybe it worked?" She questioned as Marceline turned towards her, seeing a look from the princess that hadn't appeared in ages. Hope rested in Bonnibel's blue-eyed gaze, making Marceline's hollow chest swell.
Emotions slowed time around them as Marceline surged forward. Lips pressed against lips, their breathing simultaneous as the two women finally embraced one another. The final wall holding them at bay had been shattered. Almost a millennium of friendship (sort of) and their care towards one another had boiled over. Marceline had wanted nothing more than to come back to Bonnibel after all of that time, but she couldn't just appear and apologize. It didn't make sense to the vampire. But now she felt like a fool for waiting for so long, for pretending that a woman like Bonnibel would so easily cast her aside.
Bonnibel felt her body melting under the vampire's grasp. Eyes closed as her remaining senses fell into the sensations of the kiss, wishing for it to never end. This was what she had wanted. Bonnibel had never been able to explain her infatuation with the vampire from such an early time in their past. She wanted to be the one to help her, fix her, make her better, and make her smile. But as she drifted further and further away from her innocent past self, Bonnibel found she simply wanted to be close to Marceline. Because Marceline had never changed. The vampire might state otherwise, but every moment she saw Marceline the vampire was nothing more than a gentle soul with a hard exterior. She cared greatly and worried constantly and Bonnibel needed to be around someone that reminded her that it was okay to be weak for once.
Days could have passed before the pair finally pulled away, their lips parting with a soft smack. Bonnibel was out of breath, the half-demon showing no change except for a gentle flush on her cheeks. "Wow…" Marceline exhaled, tongue running over her lips out of habit. For all of the boys that she'd dated and been with, she'd never felt so blown away from a simple kiss.
"That was…more than I could have ever hoped for," Bonnibel admitted, leaning her face into Marceline's hand on her cheek. The princess had never experienced such sensations before. Certainly she had been swooned and flirted with by suitors, and then there was that entire Finn situation. But Bonnibel had never truly seen herself with anyone other than Marceline. For the longest of time Bonnibel assumed it was for the length of their friendship. Only, all of her fantasies of the future were not as two friends, they were as partners, side by side till the next millennium and another after that. She wanted to be able to hold Marceline without the worries of that day or the next. To just enjoy the present for once.
"We should probably keep moving," Marceline giggled, the laugh making Bonnibel smile and return with one of her own. "I don't think my dad is going to wait till we get everything out of our systems." Marceline nudged at Bonnibel playfully as the princess's face fell. Intercourse, she was referring to intercourse and immediately Bonnibel's entire body turned a scalding red. She muttered something about needing to change and Marceline politely excused herself from the closet to wait outside. For a moment Bonnibel felt she might panic, but a quick glance in the mirror reminded her that time was not exactly in their favor.
"Ready to go," Bonnibel whispered, toying with her cropped strands of hair. It always felt weird for her not to wear her crown, and it was a continuous reminder of what they were facing.
"Great," Marceline grinned, looking far too excited for the issues at hand. But she couldn't help herself. With all of the commotion created by her bringing Bonnibel to the Nightosphere, it had all turned out fantastically. Yes, they still needed to deal with her father, but Marceline couldn't ignore how nice it was to no longer feel hesitant around Bonnibel.