Finn arrived at the palace to discover that there was a trail of frozen banana guards in his way. He looked down in disappointment and let out a deep sigh, "Dang it, Ice King."
Suddenly, he heard a few more guards shouting at Ice King in the throne room. As Finn arrived at the scene, he noticed the crazy wizard was surrounded by 10 banana guards while an irate Bubblegum was taking cover in a corner.
"Give up, Ice King! We have you surrounded!" a guard shouted. Seconds later, the Ice King effortlessly used his magic and froze all the remaining guards. He looked over at PB and said, "Well, now that they're taken care of. I have you all to myself." Before he could make his way towards PB, he felt a sharp blow to his head knocking him out cold.
PB smiled at her hero in relief, "Thanks for saving me again, Finn. I almost thought for a moment you weren't going to make it."
"No problem, Bubblegum. Although I must admit, Ice King's kidnappings are getting old real fast," Finn said as he withdrew his baton.
"That makes two of us. I have got to find a way of improving security around here. As a matter of fact, I think I'll go to the lab and see if I can engineer better guards."
Finn frowned, "Maybe you should get some rest first, PB. It's already late and you just went through a lot of stress from another attack."
She groaned in reluctance and said, "Very well, I probably wouldn't be productive with my work anyway since I can't think straight."
"Before you go, do you need any help with the cleanup," Finn asked sincerely.
Bubblegum smiled at the courteous gesture but shook her head, "You've already done enough, Finn. Peppermint Butler and the others will handle everything."
"As you wish, goodnight your majesty." Finn bowed to her and made his way to the exit. PB watched him leave with concern on her face. "He certainly has changed," she thought to herself.
The next day, Finn traveled over to the Breakfast Kingdom. He thought it would be neat to treat himself for eating at a place that specialized in breakfasts. He went over to the local buffet and viewed his choices. The restaurant included everything from pancakes, breakfast burgers, burritos, skillets, omelets, hash browns, beef hash, and much more. After making his selections, he proceeded to eat his food fast in record time. His early morning training and exertion to travel a long distance to the kingdom made it possible for him to have a huge appetite.
Finn then waited nearly half an hour for his food to digest until he got to the counter to pay the bill. The clerk was surprised that he pulled out a large gold bag containing 300 pieces. "This is too much, Finn! Let me give you the proper change." the clerk said.
Finn shook his head and insisted, "Keep it, consider it a generous tip for your services and food."
"Thank you, Finn. We are most pleased to have you as our best customer."
Finn wandered around the kingdom's Central Park greeting the locals. Then, he decided to sit down on one of the park benches surrounding a water fountain. He enjoyed the serene sounds of the birds chirping until someone approached him.
"Mind if I join you?" Breakfast Princess asked sweetly.
"Not at all, Princess." Finn scooted over so she would have room. He then asked, "So, you came here all by yourself?"
"Of course not, I have my royal escort overlooking the park. I just simply told them to give me space so I could talk to you."
Finn chuckled, "I see, I bet I would have assumed you were here to arrest me if your guards were closer by."
Breakfast Princess laughed, "What?! That's crazy! Like I would ever arrest you for protecting my kingdom countless times. Yeah, that makes sense." The two laughed for a while until Finn asked, "So, what do you wish to discuss?"
"Well... I've been thinking, since there hasn't been any serious trouble lately. Don't you ever feel like settling down and hanging out with anyone after a while? Don't you ever feel tired of being alone?"
Finn thought for a moment until he said, "Nope, I don't have time to worry about personal relationships. This job that I've committed myself to will only make things more complicated."
BP was saddened a little and hung her head in silence.
Feeling awkward, Finn checked his phone for the time, "I, uh have to go soon. My break's almost over and I need to finish my patrol with the other kingdoms."
After a while, she asked softly, "Is it also because you still care about Flame Princess?"
Finn froze in his tracks as she asked such a question. His mind was bottled with stress on the matter that he knew he had release it. Finally, he resigned and said, "I do, BP. Very much. But I know I've lost my chances with her after being so foolish from all those years. It's very hard for me moving on but I've placed my love life aside so I could focus on being a full-fledged protector."
"Finn, you've managed to maintain peace in Ooo for the past four years. You have sacrificed so much to achieve a better future for all of our kingdoms. We are all in your debt and we cannot repay you enough. But, don't you think you should give yourself a try and just see her? Even though things didn't work out then, at the very least you could try talking to her," she suggested.
He sighed in acceptance, "I know, I've told myself countless times I would try but I would never feel like I'm ready to do so."
BP shook her head, "You can't expect everything to be perfect all in one go. Besides, life is short. If you keep on waiting, it may be too late. And then, before you know it, you'll be tormented with regret for the rest of your life. Trust me, Finn. I've witnessed some couples experience similar pains in the long run that I don't want you to suffer the same fate."
"I appreciate your concern, Princess. Maybe I'll just do that. I think I have waited too long to..." Suddenly, his phone rang. "Yes, this is Finn...Alright I'll check it out." Finn put away his phone and began to don his hood and mask.
"Who was that," BP asked.
Finn answered, "It was Bubblegum. She told me there was another disturbance at one of the kingdoms."
"Which one?"
Finn stood up with a hardened expression, "The Fire Kingdom."