Chapter 6:

Fionna awoke blinded in the darkness, slowly recalling the events of the day before. She made little connections in her mind. How had she not known sooner that it was Marshall Lee? That dope… she should have recognized him in an instant! But she couldn't deny there was something different and strange about him. Why had he secluded himself in this place all alone? How long had he been here? The last she had heard of him was two years ago, and since then she had always imagined he was on a throne ruling over his bequeathed kingdom… begrudgingly. Because everyone knew that Marshall had never wanted to rule the Nightosphere. Perhaps he was running from his inherited responsibility.

I would have… thought Fionna.

She was jolted from her inner thoughts as a weight shifted beside her. Was Marshall there? She hadn't even remembered falling asleep… She stayed still and listened for any sign of stirring, but could only hear the tell-tale wisp of breathing. How strange that Marshall was there, just inches from her.

He was her childhood friend, a good buddy. And now that she knew who he was she thought that the strange feelings that had sparked yesterday would go away. But still they were there. She thought of how he had kissed her on the cheek, and turned red in the darkness. She couldn't picture Marshall being on the other end. And yet…

Silver eyes opened beside her. She watched them as they stared back at her.

"Hey." She started.

"Hey…" Marshall responded. "You're still here."

"Thought I would try to make a break for it in the middle of the night?" She joked.

"Yeah, kind of."

Fionna couldn't see him, but she imagined that he was smiling. She was accustomed to the nuances of his behavior since her childhood. It helped, a bit, to make sense of their interactions in the dark.

"Did you want to talk about it?" She offered.

"About… the kiss?" He asked.

"No. About what happened last night."

He shook his head.

"No. Not really."

Fionna reached blindly in the dark to grab his hand. She squeezed his shoulder instead.

"Okay. You don't have to. Let's do something fun instead."

He scoffed.

"Like what? Play truth or dare again? There's nothing to do here."

"We could… just talk. Get to know each other. Make breakfast for starters. I like waffles."

"I think the less you know about me, the better." He mumbled. "But I agree on the waffles." Fionna heard him get up to presumably make waffles. This was dead awkward. Should she just blurt out that she knew who he was? No, he would completely flip pancakes. She would have to go about this delicately… and in the meantime maybe there was something she could do to help her buddy. It wasn't just his physical self that had changed, his countenance had changed as well. Never had he acted so distant and guarded around her. In the past it had been fun times and bubble gum, although she couldn't deny there had always been a darkness lurking just below the surface, but he never let it come through. Was this what Marshall was like alone?

The smell of waffles began to fill the room. With the sword in her hand, she tried to walk towards the place where waffles were being made, but the sword seemed weak and almost useless. Maybe that big electric shock had tired it out?

"Careful." Marshall said, stopping her with his arm. "You'll burn yourself." A nerve twitched in her brow.

"I'm not a kid…" She began hotly.

"You're blind with a waffle maker in front of your face." He said flatly, taking her hand by the wrist and holding it an inch from the hot iron. She scowled at him, feeling the heat radiate on her hand. It didn't diffuse her annoyance. Marshall watched her pensively.

"It's okay to be helped sometimes. It doesn't mean that people think you're a kid, it just means they care."

"Oh, you care about me, then?" She teased.

"Why don't you ask me that in our next round of truth or dare?" He countered. Immediately they both thought about their almost kiss, and regretted the altercation.

"There won't be a next time…" She said, thinking about how he had chickened out in kissing her. "Ah!" She said out loud. "I just realized… Nevermind." Marshall eyed her inquisitively. She just realized, why he hadn't kissed her. The fangs would have been a dead give-away. If they had kissed, she would have felt…

Fionna turned progressively darker shades of red, thinking about locking lips with Marshall Lee. He watched with widening eyes as the shade of her cheeks appeared more and more delicious to him.

"The waffle!" Fionna cried, smelling smoke.

"Shit!" blurted Marshall, fumbling to pull the waffle from the iron. "Sorry, it's a little burnt…" He said passing her a plate. Fionna felt the waffle plop down on her plate.

"You're not going to make one for you?" She asked, still thinking of his vampire kiss.

"Nah." He said. Then Fionna felt his hand tilt her face towards his. His silver eyes traced her face before ducking down to kiss her on the cheek. She gasped as she felt the heat from her cheeks leave her face. "I'm not hungry." He said pulling away from her again.

Fionna nearly dropped her waffle.

"What was that for?!"

"I couldn't help it. I like you, and you were really cute just now." More like he couldn't resist that particular shade of red…

Her face blanked. If this was still Nemo the unknown dude, she would have become undone with butterflies. But now, now she was just baffled. It had just hit her that Marshall was being honest with his feelings, and he had just told her he liked her.

"For how long?" She whispered under her breath.

"Eat your waffle…" He said avoiding the peculiar question. He silently berated himself for being an insufferable dope.

There was no table, so she ate on the floor, criss cross apple sauce. Forks were no use in the dark, so she just picked up the whole thing with her hands and ate it like a sandwich.

He watched her in silent thought. It had been too careless to suck the red from her cheeks. At this rate he was bound to reveal himself. Worst, still, it was delicious. He was almost in ecstasy recalling the tangy flavor of her blush. It was too close to the natural taste of blood, and as much as he hated it, he was still a vampire.

He wrestled with his self-loathing as he imagined her, bare skinned and flushed. Meanwhile, Fionna thought of Marshall, and how best to tease him out of this pit of a room. The best way she could help was to perhaps free him from whatever was keeping him hiding in here.

"Will you ever… let me see you?" She asked.

"Maybe… but I am almost certain that you will run away screaming."

"Don't think so little of me. I'm a heroine, remember? I can handle it. I already know that your name's not really Nemo."

Marshall thought for a while.

"If you tell me why you came here, I will give you a hint." He offered.

"I told you, I'm not telling you that until you kiss me for real." She retorted.

"And I told you that I can't because it would… freak you out."

"I thought you said you trusted me?" She leveraged. Marshall kept quiet. Trust her? To not run away screaming when she finds out she's been canoodling with the Vampire King? It wouldn't happen… unless perhaps if she really fell for him. He nearly laughed out loud at the impossibility of it, but then he recalled her face when she had asked him so shyly for that kiss. The memory nearly destroyed him. Was it possible? Could he make her fall so deeply in love that she would overlook everything? His vampirism, his demonic nature, his weird psychodrama outbursts, and even the betrayal of hiding his identity? Unlikely. But Marshall had to admit, to delve deeper into those waters, and to have the chance of having his feelings returned were probably enough for him… even if things went south afterwards.

"Fine. Go ahead and kiss me for real. But not unless you mean it. If it's the only kiss I ever get from you, I want it to be honest, even if it doesn't last."

"Geez, that's morose… you're that sure that I will reject you?"

His silver eyes pierced hers.

"Yes."

She stared at him, challenging his conviction. He either had no trust in her whatsoever, or believed himself completely unlikable.

"I guess until then you're going to have to woo me the old fashion way." She teased.

"What? Like with spaghetti dinner?" He asked, groaning.

Fionna laughed, imagining the strangeness of a formal dinner with Marshall across the table.

"Ah, forget it. I don't think I'm the wooing type."

"Oh, I think you are. I wooed you once, remember? You asked for a kiss…" He said pulling her towards him. "I'll never forget your face when I leaned in..." He bopped his nose against hers and she gasped. That wonderful blush covered her face again, and his fangs ached to bury itself in that chroma. Just a couple shades darker and she would be perfect… ripe.

Fionna's heart picked up pace, and she felt Marshall's breath brush by her mouth. Kiss him for real, huh? It was so tempting… but if he wanted an honest kiss, with feeling behind it, Fionna still had her doubts.

Again, Marshall moved to kiss her on the cheek, and her doubt slowly started to melt. He held his face to hers, and inhaled her human scent, sucking that delicious red from her in the guise of a kiss. She shivered as the sudden heat left her cheeks, and felt it gather elsewhere in her body.

Her breath hitched as her hands clutched the sides of his T-shirt. They hadn't even gone to tier two and she felt… she felt… the last of her doubt frizzled away, giving way to her guts. And her guts? They wanted him. They pooled warmth in a way she had never experienced before and coyly she wondered if Marshall could suck the heat from here there, too. It was a scandalous thought. She'd never thought of her friend like that. But Marshall was no longer a friend to her… he was an object of desire. He was a boy with devilish eyes and gnashing teeth, and a carnal part of her wanted him to devour her.

Oh glob, Fionna had never wanted to kiss anyone so much as she wanted to kiss Marshall Lee right now. She slid her hands around his neck, and it seemed to do nothing but entice him further. His face buried itself beneath her ear and she heard an erratic hissing come from him. The sound was like purring in her ear and she tilted her head to give him access… Then suddenly, he pushed her away. She fell back dumbly on her butt. The hissing didn't cease. Marshall was desperately sucking in breaths, trying to regain his sanity. Glob, but she affected him. He had nearly…

"I'm sorry…" He managed. "I lost my head… I'm sorry."

"It's okay." She said, standing to face his quivering silver eyes. Her face felt cold where his skin had left it, and she wanted to remedy that as soon as possible. Closing the distance between them, she reached out to cup his face in her hands. It was strange, she had the impression that vampires were always cold, but he was warm beneath her palms.

"W-what are you doing?" He asked, still trying to catch his breath. Her fingers moved over his face, and this time when she traced his mouth with her thumb, he did not stop her. He was frozen in her hold and he watched as her face began to close on his.

"Don't. Stop…" He warned, yet his hands spread over the sides of her waist, and slid to her back pulling her closer. Fionna's heart was in a flurry as she pulled his face down towards hers. He watched her lips part before him and her breath was on his. His countenance shattered. Marshall no longer cared about anything anymore, except that he might die if Fionna didn't kiss him for real. "Don't stop…" He said, remedying his earlier warning.

Fionna brushed her lips against his, luxuriating in the satisfying tingles it shot through her core. She felt the dart of his tongue press against her lip, and she finally took his mouth between hers. The taste of her hit him like lightning. Her mouth was sweet and bitingly acidic. It was human. Glob, but he hadn't tasted a human in so long. Her mouth moved against his, shivering when she felt the sharpness of his fangs graze against her lower lip. He pulled back to gauge her reaction, fear building up quietly inside of him. It only caused her to close the gap between them, and pull him back down to her. Did she understand? Had he been unveiled? Perhaps not yet, maybe he had just a bit more time. If he could keep her mind clouded for long enough…

Voraciously his mouth founded on the flesh of her neck. Whose mind was clouded in the situation was highly up for debate, as his fangs skittered across her skin. With his last drop of control, he pressed his tongue against her skin, instead of his teeth and sucked. Hard. It issued a moan from Fionna. Marshall became completely undone. His hands clenched as his demon escaped him. He fell to his knees on the floor, pulling Fionna down with him, and predatorily, he pushed her to the ground. It knocked the breath out of her, but her mind was swimming with desire, her strength numbed with want. Was this the effect of a vampire? His eyes had turned golden and warm as they surveyed their prey below him. He was hissing again, trying to regain his breath and control. Fionna watched his eyes darting over, his hands, which were so endearingly on her waist, pushed themselves up, gathering flesh on the way. Finally they pushed down against her arms to trap her thoroughly under him. The sword, silent and weakened all day began to throb at her side, but she would not draw it. She could not draw it.

A quick thought flew through her mind; Tier 15. Oh my glob was he going for it? She wasn't… She had only just gotten to tier two with him. He couldn't possibly… but as she looked at his golden eyes, she could see that he was thoroughly lost to his senses, and she was trapped below him. It excited her in ways she never knew possible.

"M-Marsh-"

"Shut up!" He growled, pushing his mouth down onto hers again, muting the sound of his own name inside of her mouth. "Shut up…" He whispered again. "Don't say it…" His desire ebbed as sadness and shame filled him, and he felt heavy. He kissed her one last time, which did not go unreturned, before he flopped over onto the floor next to her. Marshall covered his face with his arm, and waited for the sky to topple onto him.

Fionna's desire, on the other hand, had yet to wane, and she pressed herself onto him, pushing his arm away from his face, and kissing him longingly on the cheek; the neck; then finally she kissed his mouth. Weakly, he returned it, and she felt his lip tremble below hers. Was he crying?

"Marshall…" She started. "It's okay."

He nodded, trying to swallow a lump of emotion that had built in his throat.

"I'm sorry…" He managed to squeeze past the lump. Fionna felt a hand reach up and bury itself in her hair. "But now that you know…"

"I knew already…" She confessed. Tears finally did fall from him, and they pooled uncomfortably in his ears.

"You're so smart…" He said, choked up. "Does that mean… you'll stay?"

"Well… if you remember, now I have to tell you why I came here in the first place…?" She said enticingly.

"Why, then?" Marshall asked, hope slowly starting to rise within him.

"I came here looking for love." She admitted. Even if they had done all that kissy stuff, it was damn embarrassing to say things like that. "I… heard about this place from a psychic. They told me you would the person in this place would be… a love match…" She nearly died saying those words. He chuckled.

"So that's why you came in here, trying to play truth or dare? Then you have to deal with the fact that it's me? Rough gamble. Sorry about that, Fionna."

"Shut up you stupid vampire." She said, squeezing him hard. "I'm glad that it's you. I missed you so much…"

And it was true. She had missed him so much. Much more than she had realized before. This was what missing before… Marshall had been missing. And now that she had him back, she was reluctant to let go.

"I miss you too, dumb human." He said smiling. Marshall awaited for happiness to flood him. This was an amazing thing to have happened to him! All sadness, all negativity and darkness should leave his body to be replaced with glowing happiness. But the feeling sat still on the surface, unable to penetrate into the void of his being. Oh well, he though, holding onto her. At least he felt something.