((so, just to let you guys know, Marceline is gonna be singing a song that kinda has meaning to the story, but for the avoidance of copyright issues, I can't have her actually sing them. so if you want to hear the song (which I really recommend you do) head over to my profile for the link. owo p.s. this might be considered as the last "regular" time these two meet. as in, from now on, things are going to start changing up so please brace for it. =v=; ))

It was night. Bonnibel hadn't shown up in a couple days longer than she normally would, which didn't bother Marceline very much. A few weeks, or possibly even another month, had passed since her little panic attack, and Marshall and the farmer were nowhere to be found. So Marceline had virtually nothing to worry about. Though, now she was only left with the confinement of her own thoughts.

Marceline lied high amongst the treetops, unable to sleep. The night sky was a deep black with slight tints of red and blue infused, making the perfect contrast to the shining dots of light endlessly sprawled across the dark canvas. The moon was full and beautiful. Bright enough to illuminate the world a shade of blue far below her. The elegance of it all is what had made the nighttime her favorite time of day, ever since her mother taught her how to climb trees as a child.

Her mother. Marceline's heart ached at the thought of her. As she reminisced over the days when she was still around, Marceline looked up to the stars, as if her mother was watching over her. Tears began to form as she remembered the song her mother used to lull her to sleep with. She closed her eyes and began to sing.

Marceline's voice echoed throughout the wood. Angelic, yet sorrowful in every way. Crickets chirped and the wind howled, complementing her song. She missed her mother and she missed Simon and she missed the pack. Although Bonnibel made everything better for a while, she knew that she would have to leave her too someday. She poured her feelings into every word she sang. Music was one of her favorite means of escape from the emotional exhaustion she'd feel at the end of almost every day.

Though the song also had another meaning to her. It was her secret way of expressing how she felt towards a special someone. Of course, that someone would be Bonnibel, but Marceline would never have the courage to admit that.

After singing the lullaby's bridge, she stopped. She stared up at the stars again and continued to lose herself in thought as a couple last tears streamed down her pale face.

"Why'd you stop?" a voice yelled from below, almost startling Marceline enough to make her fall off.

"B-bonnie!" Marceline reacted, clutching onto the branch, "What the hell?!" Catching her off guard again, Marceline hadn't even felt her hybrid form return. A veil of darkness from the shadows hid her heavy blushing. The only other person to ever really hear her sing was Simon and her mother.

Bonnibel snickered. "You know, you have a very beautiful voice! It's a shame you don't use it very often!"

Marceline jumped down to prevent straining her voice. "Well not with any people around." She was still red. "Anyways, why the hell are you out here so late anyways?" she asked in an attempt to change the subject with a stiffened tail.

"Your alluring serenade led me here, m'lady," she answered sarcastically.

"No, seriously, Bon," Marceline smiled. "What's up? You know how dangerous it is to be out at night, especially in a dark, empty forest."

"Not completely empty."

Now she received a glare. "Booon?"

"Alright, alright," she laughed. "But, what, is there something wrong with wanting to hang out a little with my um, best friend?"

'Best friend…' Marceline was happy to hear that they weren't strangers anymore, but was still slightly disappointed with the title she'd been given anyways. But she shook off the thought. "If it's in the middle of the night on a full moon then, uh, yeah?" she stated obviously. "But... since you came all the way here… I guess we can hang out," she allowed. She could make out a smile on Bonnie's face despite the darkness.

"Come on. I know where we can get a good view of the stars," Marceline mentioned.

She led her to a hill in the opposite direction of the river. After a bit of hiking (and catching Bonnibel whenever she almost fell, even though she could handle herself), they reached the highest point of the grassy mound. It was truly breathtaking for the both of them. Bonnibel had never seen the radiant stars so clearly before and Marceline hadn't seen such a view in quite a while. They sat down before the grace of the moon and atmosphere.

"Wow," Bonnibel was awestricken. "Never seen my buddy Orion up so close before…"

"Ori-who?" Marceline laughed in confusion.

"My favorite constellation. Read about it in some books. Thought you'd know since you get to see the stars every night. Plus, giant huntsmen sound like something you'd be familiar with."

"Ohh, you mean that," Marceline pointed in the direction of said pattern. "Hah, yeah that's what I saw it as first. Just never knew what it was called," she smiled.

They both continued to gaze up for a while, until Bonnibel began to speak again. "Y'know, I haven't talked to a girl around my age in forever. Most everybody in my village is either old, or a guy."

"Hah, same here. Last time I talked to a girl my age was when I was eight," she chuckled.

"In fact," Bonnie added, "I don't think I've ever had a real friend. Work, reading, and my brother was all I ever really had."

"Guess we've got a lot more in common than I thought," Marceline noted as she looked towards Bonnibel with a small grin.

Bonnibel smiled loosely in return. "So," she continued the conversation, "got a story behind that song you were singing earlier?"

"What makes you think that?" Marceline nervously asked.

"I don't know, Marce. It's just… you sounded really sad… I heard it in your voice…"

"That obvious huh?" Marceline sighed and prepared herself to have to recall her own tangled emotions.

"Well… first of all, that's just the song my mom used to sing to me whenever I had a hard time sleeping. She said that it's also the song my dad apparently sang to her as a method of 'wooing' her." She let out a giggle. "And where he got it, I have no idea." At the back of her mind, Marceline was thinking of how she connects it to her current situation with Bonnibel.

"Did you miss them then?"

Marceline paused. "Yeah. I miss them a lot," she said, using her looking up towards the sky as a motion of clarification as to what had happened.

Bonnibel was quick to understand. "...O-oh my god… I'm so sorry…"

"Just my mom though. Killed by wolf hunters. I never really knew my dad." Her ears were low.

There was a silence. Bonnibel wondered what she should be saying next. Marceline just continued staring at the moon high above the treetops. "My um…" Marceline turned to Bonnie as she started to speak. "My parents both died in a fire… But I was too young to even remember. So my Uncle Spalding took my brother and me in as kids and had us continue his business as carpenters/wood vendors."

Marceline only felt in necessary to talk more about herself, since Bon had shared more than she really needed to. "Y'know how I said I was a lone wolf, but I'm always talking about my pack?"

"Yeah?"

"Well that's 'cause I only used to be a part of them… but I left the day I found out my mom and sister were killed. I was just really—scared… lost… wanted to just run away forever… and so I did…"

Bonnibel felt the heavy pain clouding Marceline's mind. "…Do you regret it? Running away?"

Marceline thought for a moment, then shook her head. "No," she responded, "if I stayed, they'd only try to pressure me into killing people just to avenge my mom. Hell, if I refused to eat any of the disgusting, raw meat they'd hand to me, what makes them think I'd want to get any of that stuff on my own?" Marceline ranted as her ears perked in irritation.

"You've… never killed anybody before?"

"It's supposed to be in my nature, I guess. But you know what? To hell with that! My mom loved everybody and everything. Why would I want to destroy any of the things she lived and cared for?"

"Marceline…" Bonnibel sighed. She moved closer. "I'm sorry for everything," she whispered.

Marceline began to feel her emotions of flooding and her heart began to race, being reminded of her past and now being with Bonnie. She closed her eyes and lazily rested her head on Bonnibel's shoulder semi-subconsciously. Bonnie lowered her head as well, examining the moon. Full and beautiful.

It was morning. The night prior, spent watching the stars with Bonnie, ended with her promising she could find her way home on her own and Marceline's reluctant approval. Marceline felt oddly refreshed as the sun rose, despite her minimal amount of sleep. Though she was thirsty.

She hopped off the branch she'd found herself sleeping upon after concluding that she'd somehow climbed up half-asleep sometime during the last night. She slowly made her way to the sound of the river with her tail swaying behind. After reaching the foot of the water, she crouched down, taking sips of it and splashing her face in an attempt to wake herself up. As she widened her eyes and allowed her vision to clear, Marceline noticed something sitting next to her.

'Huh… what's this?' A dirty straw hat. 'How'd this get over here…?" she wondered. In her slight boredom, she decided to pick it up and try it on. It felt uncomfortable on her head and was rather large. Her ears felt especially itchy.

She looked into the water to see how ridiculous it must've looked on her. The reflection, although distorted, proved to be the opposite of her expectations. In fact, she judged the straw hat to be rather attractive on herself. 'Whad'ya know? Maybe I'm a hat person,' she joked to herself. 'Wow,' she noticed something, 'this hat's actually big enough to cover up my ears without looking any awkward…'

At first she considered taking the hat to try flaunting it off to Bonnibel the next time she came around, but another thought had come time mind. 'Wait a second… covering my ears up with a straw hat… I've only seen farmers wear straw hats…' Marceline gasped, 'Oh my god, what if the farmer is— Damn, I need to find Bon!' Marceline dropped the hat and ran.