A/N: Sorry this took so long x.x I spent a few nights away from my laptop/fangirling over Thorin Oakenshield so updating took a back seat lol.
By the way, the fabulous Fabula et Dolum made (im)Perfect fanart. Go bask in its glory. Right now. fabula-et-dolum dot deviantart dot com /#/ d5o9s6b (replace 'dot' with '.' and remove spaces)
Tonight, everything would be perfect.
Prince Gumball oversaw the bustling kitchen and found himself stressing over every little thing. The head chef had been instructed to prepare only red foods; the Candy Prince would not deny his friend the delight of eating a single course of this glorious meal. And yet, as he watched all of the food being prepared, although he'd never had a qualm with the chefs before, he found himself becoming increasingly frustrated.
"No, no! The rubiyat apples go in the pie, not the pink pearl. There isn't enough beet juice, add another quarter cup. Where is the strawberry sorbet? Why is this green? I was very clear, the only red romaine was to be used in the salad! Who is preparing the peppers? Why aren't they finished yet?"
And on and on it went. Gumball fussed over garnishing and threw away entire courses that were deemed to have too little red or too much of another color. Didn't they understand what red was? Gumball let out an exasperated sigh and was ready to clear out the kitchen and prepare the food himself, when his mother entered and pulled him aside so that Gumball had an entirely different problem to stress over.
As she tugged him down the hall by the arm, Gumball wondered whether she'd taken him away to spare the kitchen staff his criticisms, or to chastise him once again. Gumball had heard enough on the issue; he knew his mother's opinion and didn't need to hear her scolding once again. She would not change his mind, but she certainly could make him feel guiltier. After having spent a sufficient amount of time in silence, Gumball asked, "Are you still cross with me?" From his small voice, Gumball sounded like a small child.
Queen Carmen slowed to a halt and let out a sigh. "Yes," she replied.
Gumball chewed on his lower lip. "Please try, Mother. I know you'd like him if you just gave him a chance."
She looked down at him, her violet eyes weary, and she brushed hair from his eyes with a gentle hand. "My sweet, it was against my better judgment to allow that fiend into our kingdom. Royalty or not, a vampire is a vampire. Someday, he will turn on you. You may call him your friend, and he may say the same words, but he will never mean them. Such a soulless creature could never understand the feelings of friendship or trust."
"Marshall Lee is not a soulless creature," Gumball snapped, backing away from her touch. "He sometimes has an odd way of showing it, but he does care. Please just try to see things from another perspective."
"How can I, when all I see when I imagine him is your corpse in his arms?"
To that, Gumball had nothing to say. He wanted to say something comforting, but Queen Carmen would not be swayed by words. Words meant nothing. They were just empty promises determined to chip away at her heart. And she'd heard too many meaningless words. Her husband's promises of feeling healthy, her son's reassurances that he obeyed her every word, her people's lies about everything under the sun. Gumball took her hand in his and kissed it, murmuring, "If you can't trust him, trust my judgment."
But the Candy Queen had had quite enough of words. She did not reply as she walked down the corridor to the dining hall, and Gumball watched her move with the poise and grace that any queen would want to emulate. He knew she still carried the burden of the kingdom on her shoulders, only partially relieved by her son, and Gumball knew the last thing on her mind should be his safety. He only hoped that tonight, Marshall Lee could show his mother she had nothing to fear.
Prince Gumball paced and paced. He kept checking his pocket watch every thirty seconds, looking to the sky, and pacing once more. It was three minutes until seven, and Marshall was nowhere to be seen. Stop, check the time, look up, pace again. Sweat started to form on his brow. Tonight had to be perfect. It had to be. Where was Marshall Lee?
"Boo."
Gumball jumped and spun around, almost tumbling down the stairs as Marshall Lee appeared directly behind him where no one had been standing only a moment prior.
"You scared - Where did you— how –" Gumball gasped.
Marshall snickered. " Scaredy cat."
"That would frighten anyone! You just appeared there!"
The vampire smirked. "I've been here for a while, you're just oblivious."
Gumball's heart was still racing, and he tried to retort, but he was struck by Marshall's appearance. Perhaps the vampire hadn't dressed as formally as Gumball would have liked, but it was passable. He wore a dark gray pinstriped vest over a white button up, but kept his faded red canvas shoes and his hair was still a lazy mess. If he was honest with himself, Gumball expected the vampire to show up in a T shirt and ripped jeans, so the fact that his clothes were all intact was a definite plus. He inwardly breathed a sigh of relief that at least his mother couldn't slight the vampire for his wardrobe. Well, as long as she didn't look at his shoes.
"I'm glad you came," Gumball said.
Marshall lifted an eyebrow. "Why wouldn't I? You invited me."
Gumball just smiled and opened the doors of the castle to escort the vampire inside. Marshall glanced around and tried not to look overly impressed by the décor. Candy royals didn't skimp on luxuries. Everything from the elaborate tapestries to the ornate china to the spun sugar busts looked expensive. All down the hall, Gumball chattered about particular relics or paintings on display while Marshall Lee listened quietly. Gumball was in his element. Bragging about his family's history and all of his home's fine furnishings was as easy as breathing. Perhaps his lessons in public speaking were beginning to develop his skill at hosting. Marshall Lee listened with mild amusement until they reached the dining hall where the queen had already been seated.
Gumball smiled as he announced, "Marshall Lee, allow me to formally introduce you to Queen Carmen, my regent and mother. Mother, this is Marshall Lee the Vampire King."
The queen did not rise, but inclined her head ever so slightly in Marshall Lee's direction. Marshall, in turn, bowed low at the waist and replied, "It's a pleasure to meet you under more civil circumstances, Your Grace."
"The pleasure is all mine," she replied.
Whether or not Gumball noticed that the tension was thick enough to cut with a knife, he bounced his toes and said, "Let's begin the feast, shall we?"
Marshall Lee took his seat and observed the courses as they came out. He was surprised to see that every item on every plate was some shade of red. It was impressive that Gumball had gone to such lengths, and he idly reached for a wine glass in the middle of the prince's discourse on his day's events. Just as he brought the glass to his lips, Queen Carmen cut across her son.
"I must apologize for this inconvenience, but that is only wine."
Marshall looked up at her over the wine glass and slowly lowered it. "I'm aware."
The queen's smile did not touch her eyes. "I was under the impression that your kind was fond of something a bit thicker."
Gumball chuckled nervously. "I must have forgotten to explain. It's only an old wives tale that vampires live solely on blood. They sustain themselves off of shades of red. Right, Marshall?"
"You got it, kiddo," Marshall replied. He picked up the glass of wine once more, and slowly, all of the color drained from the wine. When he placed the goblet back on the table, the liquid within was clear.
Gumball grinned. "Isn't it fascinating, Mother?"
"Quite."
Marshall tried to focus on the herb stuffed cherry tomatoes on his plate rather than the queen. Gumball eventually engaged the vampire in a conversation about Queen Chicletta, one of Gumball's ancestors, whom Marshall Lee had met at one point in his life. The prince tried to pull his mother into the chatter at various points, but she would only nod politely or say a word or two before returning to her plate. She barely touched her food.
Marshall Lee was feeling sufficiently sated until the dessert course was announced and the table was lined with more pastries than the vampire had ever seen. Tarts with red apples and pomegranate, raspberry gelato, cherry cheesecake, meringues in shades from scarlet to coral, a massive strawberry cake stopped with fluffy pink buttercream and dripping with syrup. There were turnovers and cupcakes, ice cream and pies, puddings and gelatins, and so many other things that Marshall Lee couldn't even name. He tried to rationalize that, being in the Candy Kingdom, of course they would take pride in their pastry skills above all else, but even this was excessive. There were only three of them; Queen Carmen hardly ate, Marshall could only drain the color, and Gumball seemed to be the only one with a bottomless stomach. The vampire would have refused more than a bite or two of dessert if only the queen wasn't watching him like a hawk. Like she was waiting for him to screw up. Marshall would not give her that luxury. He deliberately took a helping of everything within reach even if he'd end up regretting it later.
Marshall Lee could have sworn Gumball had eaten at least a third of the entire five tiered strawberry cake himself, in addition to at least one of every other dessert in the spread, before the Candy Prince leaned back in his chair and sighed happily. "I believe I've had enough. Was everything to your liking Marshall?"
Marshall lowered his forkful of pastry and replied, "Yeah, it was great. Especially that tart thingy. The one with the pomegranate."
"Ah, yes! That was my own personal recipe. Rubiyat apples and pomegranate seeds, along with sugar, crème fraische, a bit of—"
"I do hope you're not still hungry."
Both Marshall and Gumball turned to the queen at her words. Marshall replied, "Nah, I'm stuffed. Thanks for-"
"Wonderful. If you would be so kind as to accompany me to the gardens, I would be most appreciative."
"Oh, yes! I never gave you a tour of the gardens!" Gumball exclaimed. "It will be lovely, let's go!"
"It's late, my love. Return to your room," the queen said.
Gumball's face fell. "But, Mother—"
"Do not object. Go to sleep. I will give our guest a tour of the gardens myself."
Marshall Lee rose but did not immediately follow the queen. He looked over at Gumball, who was apparently horrified, and then to the guards who made to follow the queen. The vampire was not surprised. Perhaps this was the queen's plan all along; to play along that Marshall Lee was her dinner guest only to send Gumball away and have her guards murder him once outside. He would play along as well. If the queen wanted to play dirty, fine. He would just kill her entire guard. That would be the last time she ever thought to back stab a dinner guest. But he was surprised when she waved a dismissive hand at the guards and said, "No. We will go alone. See to it that my son makes it to his bed room."
Marshall shrugged at the little prince and followed the queen on foot. She never spoke a word as they wove through the hallways of the castle until they arrived at the rear entrance to the gardens. Marshall had seen them before whenever he snuck into the castle to see Gumball; after all, the prince's balcony was right above the gardens. Marshall Lee looked up to see if they were under his bed room, but the queen had purposely taken them to the opposite side of the castle. He listened and watched, expecting a trap or an ambush, but he was alone with the queen. She turned to face the vampire, her chin held high and a fire in her eyes. Marshall had to commend her for her bravery to fearlessly stare down a night creature.
"Thanks for inviting me to dinner," Marshall said, attempting to break the tense silence.
"You know very well that I did not invite you," she replied coldly. "I would never willingly let scum of the Nightosphere into my home."
Marshall grinned. "What makes you think I'm from the Nightosphere?"
Her tone was ice. "Don't take me for a fool. Not even my son knows the intricacies of my information network."
"And why would the queen of a peaceful place like the Candy Kingdom need a network like that?"
She laughed bitterly. "My late husband spent a decade in a state of mental decay and my son has several years yet until he takes the throne. To keep this kingdom peaceful, and to protect my family, I've had to take certain precautions. My informants are the best in the land. Possibly in the world. There is little I don't know, Marshall Lee Abadeer."
The use of his last name sent a flare of anger through him, but he had to admit, it was amusing that the queen was so bold. "You're not in the mood for bullshit, huh? For the record, I prefer Evans to Abadeer."
"Is that so? Then I suppose my informants should have dug a bit deeper to find out why. Is that your way of dissociating from your mother?"
Marshall had never wanted to hurt a woman, but the queen was pushing him too far. "Who the fuck is your informant?"
"No one you know. A lesser demon that you never would have looked at twice," she replied, a grim smile on her face. "There are more creatures than you know who despise you, Marshall Lee. Many are willing to sell information about you."
As disconcerting as the thought was, it was nothing Marshall hadn't already known. What bothered him was that someone was far from the Nightosphere dimension as the Candy Queen had so easily found someone who knew about him and possibly spied on him.
"What's the point of all of this? Are you trying to blackmail me or something?"
"I'm trying to protect my son," she snapped. "He is the last of his line. He is all I have left. He is all this kingdom has left. He may believe that you're different from the other monsters, but I never will. My son has a kind heart, but he's young and naïve. He doesn't know how the world works. He doesn't know that the man you call your friend today might drive a knife into your heart tomorrow. That is why he trusts you and calls you his friend. But listen well, vampire. If any ill befalls him, I will come for you. And you will rue the day you decided to betray my prince."
"And when that day comes, I'll gladly offer up my head for the chopping block," Marshall Lee replied with a malicious smirk.
"It won't be your head I'm after," the queen replied. She closed the distance between then and placed the tip over her finger on Marshall's chest. "It will be that cold dead thing you call a heart."
Queen Carmen left him alone in the gardens, and he heard her footsteps trail away as she walked down the long hallway. For a long while, Marshall wasn't sure what he wanted to do. Deep down, part of him wanted to tear the queen into a thousand little pieces. How dare she spy on him? To make assumptions about his nature and personality was one thing. But this was quite another. He wanted to terrify her. To transform and morph into some grotesque creature that would send her to an early grave. That would teach her better than to pry into the Vampire King's past.
Marshall Lee was surrounded with beautiful flowers and elegant pathways and fountains. And yet, he could see nothing but ugliness. He loathed how she had toyed with him, and yet, he had to commend her for her bravery. She'd gone to great lengths to protect Gumball. Marshall didn't want to hurt the little prince, but nothing he'd ever say would convince her of that. And yet she'd had the guts to face him alone and threaten him. All for the sake of her son. Marshall couldn't slight her for that. And yet he couldn't help but to be furious.
That was when he heard someone rustling around behind the shrubbery. He wasn't sure whom or what he expected to see, but it certainly wasn't Gumball. The prince was watery eyed and looked terrified. Marshall's eyebrows flew up his forehead.
"How long have you been there?" Marshall had been so sure that he was alone with the queen. Perhaps he was just so accustomed to Gumball's presence that he didn't even notice him.
The prince looked down at his feet. "A while."
Marshall ran his fingers through his hair and let out a sigh. Vague as it was, his tone spoke volumes. Gumball had heard enough to know that his plans to make his mother accept Marshall Lee had failed.
"Listen, Gumball," Marshall started, but he had no idea what else to say.
"You're not going to leave, are you?" the prince asked, meeting Marshall's gaze anxiously. "I mean, we're still going to be friends, right?"
"What? Why wouldn't we be?" the vampire asked.
Gumball fidgeted and walked closer to Marshall Lee. "I… I was afraid Mother had scared you off. I'm so sorry, Marshall. I had no idea she… It was only for my sake, but… Marshall, I'm sorry. Please don't be angry with her. She just doesn't…"
"She just doesn't like me. Or trust me. And she won't, ever. But as long as you want me to, I'll stick around."
The little prince looked up at Marshall, his childlike eyes so round and innocent. Queen Carmen was right. He was young and naïve. It was dangerous for someone in a position of great power to be so innocent. And yet, Marshall Lee hoped that the prince would never lose that innocence. He tried hard to smile at Gumball, but Marshall found it difficult with the weight of Queen Carmen's threats on his mind.
Gumball walked closer to Marshall, opening his mouth a few times as if waiting for words that couldn't come. Then, a few teardrops overflowed, and just like that, he was a sobbing mess, throwing himself around Marshall Lee's waist, splattering hot tears all over his shirt.
"Promise me, Marshall," Gumball hiccupped. "You won't ever leave."
Marshall hated it when people cried. Normally he'd just make a few faces, drop some kind of a silly joke or something, and the problem would go away. People would smile again. But he had a feeling that wouldn't quite work this time. He hesitantly returned Gumball's embrace.
"I promise," the vampire said.
"We'll be best friends forever, right?" Gumball asked. He looked up through a haze of tears, desperate for comfort.
Marshall couldn't stand to see him cry. His smile came more easily and he affectionately mussed up the prince's hair.
"Of course we will. Now turn off the waterworks. I'm going to teach you the proper names of the constellations."
