Hey you guys! Sorry to all that it took me this long to update. :/ I had to really work hard on this chapter because its a biggy. I really hope everyone enjoys this chapter.

To answer a question posed by a reviewer. In the summary it states that they are in Ashland; which for people who don't know is a town in Wisconsin. I had to pick a state that would have a nice snowy winter, which Wisconsin is FAMOUS for their snow days. Originally the story was to take place in Asheville North Caroline, but because of the lack of loads of snow. And as far as the arranged marriage goes, in most states in America it is illegal to "pay" for a bride or groom, which is what they use to do in some countries. However it is legal to encourage two people to mate. Hopefully that explains things. If not leave me a lovely review with any questions.

To answer another review question: No. Finn does not take part in any stalking to do with Fionna. In fact he had never met her until that day on the train.

Thank you guys for the reviews! keep them coming! Happy reading! Enjoy some feels!

Chapter 9: Almost Lover, Luckless Romance.

The word crashed into Fionna's mind.

Fiancé.

It made her numb. She saw her relationship with Marshal slipping away from her grasp, becoming farther from her reach. She saw everything she wanted slipping through her fingers until it was gone.

Her first night home she woke up from a nightmare screaming his name into the darkness of her bedroom. In her mind she had created her first day back at school, telling Marshal about Finn. He had immediately turned his back on her and disappeared. She tried to chase after him, but could never run fast enough to catch him.

Jenny ran into her daughter's room, flipping a light on. She sat with Fionna for hours, rocking the sobbing girl back and forth until she had fallen asleep again. It killed her to see Fionna that way.

"I'm so sorry Fionna…" Her mother's words seeped into Fionna's sleep. Her dream changed to earlier that night, being told everything her family had kept from her.

~Dreams~

'Excuse me?' she had said to her grandparents. Her mind did not wrap around what was being told to her. She had been roped into an arranged marriage. Fionna looked at her mother, her inability to understand the meaning spread across her features.

'Fionna… When your father died, your grandparents decided that they were going to find you a mate.' He mother's words slapped Fionna's face. She stumbled back a step, as though she had been punched in her gut. Jenny tried to comfort her, but Fionna moved out of her reach.

'You let them?!' Her mother shook her head, it didn't make a difference. Fionna had heard enough. Quickly she turned, running away from the people she thought wanted her happiness.

The moment Fionna woke, she was on her phone with Cake, filling in the details she knew.

Cake had nothing to say. She was at a lost. She felt hurt for Fionna, the same hurt Fionna felt herself. Fionna cried over the phone, talking nonsense about running away, going to Marshal, never seeing her family again. Cake stopped her; she asked the simplest question she could form without becoming an accuser.

"What about your mom?"

Fionna sighed, staying silent for a few minutes before giving an answer. "I still have to talk to her… I accused her yesterday of letting my grandparents arrange this… marriage"

Cake exhaled, switching the phone from ear to ear. "And you haven't spoken to her since?" The silence that came from the other end gave her an answer. "Fi, hang up this phone and go talk to your mom. Don't back talk girl." Fionna could not help but smile. She agreed to call back after talking to her mother. They said their goodbyes. Fionna closed her phone and lay back on her bed, pulling the covers around her. The thought of leaving the safety of her room dismissed.

Jenny opened the door to Fionna's room after Fionna did not surface that afternoon. Carefully she walked over to the large mound of blankets. She sat on the bed and began unwinding Fionna from the mess. Eventually she was greeted by the mess of blonde hair that always reminded Jenny of her husband.

Fionna looked up at her mother, tears filling her eyes as she curled herself up. Jenny brought the teen closer to her, wrapping her arms around the crying girl. Fionna sniffed, hugging her mother tightly. "Why did this have to happen?"

Jenny sighed, rocking her daughter gently. "Fionna… let me tell you the whole story."

Fionna looked up at her mother, waiting patiently.

She took a deep breath before proceeding. "After your father… passed I was a mess. I tried my hardest not to let you see. Do you remember those first few nights, crying each other to sleep?" Fionna nodded. "Well, when your grandparents found out I wasn't doing so well, they said they would make a deal with me." She stopped, tears threatening to stain her cheeks. Fionna gave her mother's hand a squeeze of encouragement. She needed to hear the story as much as Jenny needed to tell it. "They promised to give us money, to stay on our feet. Your grandfather helped me get the job I have now. All they wanted was to be a part of your future. They had a contract drawn up… I didn't read everything… I… I just wanted you to have a good future. I-I…" She chocked back a sob, pulling Fionna closer to her. It was the first time Fionna had truly seen her mother break down.

The two sat there in silence for a while. When they did break the silence, it was humming. No words, just humming out songs they silenced to over the years together. The humming lasted for hours; somehow it turned into a game. One would hum something; the other would guess what they were humming. The day was spent that way.

Fionna loved it. She had apologized for the day before, sometime after the game had ended. Her mother just smiled and shrugged it away.

After that Jenny told countless stories of the trio from Academy; stories of Simon and Simone's awkward romantic relationship that never really blossomed. One story about her parents meeting for the first time.

"Believe it or not, your father and I didn't actually get alone our first months at the academy. We didn't even become friends until he drew my name in the New Year's ball. Back then we got paired up as couples." Jenny gave a shrug; they were looking through old photographs. "The theme was Under the Stars, I was in just a blue dress, sequence in places here and there. Somehow your father and I ended up matching in colors; we had reuse to see one another until the dance. It was magical."

Fionna looked through the photos as her mother stared off lost in her memory.

"Mom… Do I have to go through with this?" Fionna looked up at her mother. She was met with a sad, hurt, and desperate look. "It's just… There's this boy…" Fionna looked back down at her hands, various memories running through her mind.

"You really like him?" Jenny wrapped her arm around her daughter's shoulders, kissing her head.

"I really do…"

Jenny sighed; it killed her insides to see her daughter hurting. She was stuck between wanting her daughter happy and the laws that bound her to the contract. "… I don't know Fi… Let me talk to your grandparents… For now just enjoy your holiday. Please, I can't stand to see you miserable."

Fionna gave her mother a half-hearted smile. She dragged herself from her bed. "Maybe I should get out of the house…" Jenny smiled back picking up the pictures and albums.

"Go shower, then you can take some cookies to a new family" Jenny said as she left the room. Her reply was an extra-long groan.

Fionna wrapped herself, in her scarf. Cursing herself for forgetting her snow cap at school as her hair whipped around her face due to the winter wind. The start of the winter season had brought a thin blanket of snow. Her mother had picked the perfect time of day to have Fionna go out to meet new neighbors.

She was half a block from her destination; each step she had taken thus far had caused her to sink several inches. She cursed the entire way, focusing on her footing rather than what was in front of her. As she turned her last corner, she smacked into a solid object. The force caused her to fall backwards, sending the cookies flying into the snow.

"Ow! What the heck?!" Fionna looked up to see what she had collided with.

"Fi?" Marshal's voice washed over her. He bent, quickly helping her to her feet. She stared up at him, wiping piles of snow off her jacket.

"Marsh…" She blinked. Without saying anything she turned around and began walking off.

Marshal followed her. "Fionna?"

"Yes dream?" She looked at him, a smile plastered on her face. "What is it?" She had been pushed too far. She could not handle the thought of being so close to Marshal and being engaged to someone else.

"Fionna you aren't dreaming. I'm really here."

"What do you mean you're really here? Here as in my dream… Or as in…"

"As in my family just moved here." Marshal looked around. "Do you live around here? Can I see your room?" He smirked. Fionna blushed deeply, and nudged him.

"Marshal!" They had stopped walking; Fionna was staring at the ground, she was being overwhelmed. She asked the first thing that came into her mind, trying not to sound like a child. "Marsh… Why do you like me? I'm lame… Totally immature, and no talent… I have a stupid face…"

Marshal laid three fingers over her lips to stop her words. He placed his forehead against hers, looking deep into her eyes. "Your face is not stupid. I like it. And that's proof 'cause like… I never like stupid things."

Fionna's blush deepened further, a smile playing at her mouth. Marshal moved his hand so it cupped her face. She leaned up, pushing any thoughts of her arranged marriage out of her mind. Marshal pressed his lips against her, igniting a flame in Fionna. The flame propelled her to grab Marshals jacket, pulling him closer to her. Her arms wrapped around his neck, as she moved into the kiss. The small readjustment caused the kiss to deepen.

Marshal moved his hands down Fionna's sides, placing them on her hips. A groan escaped from her lips as he did so. Marshal smirked slightly; the action resulted in a light nip on his lip before Fionna broke the kiss. She was in over her head, with no intensions of stopping.

Fionna stared down at her feet, face red, as she tried to even out her breathing. Marshal was having his own troubles calming down. With every breath Fionna took, her body pressed itself against his. It furthered the problem when he realized that the sweater she wore rose with the lifting of her arms. His hands were resting on her soft warm skin. Almost immediately, Marshal brought his hands up, working to unwind Fionna's arms from around him. "Fi you're gonna catch a cold…" His voice was husky.

Fionna's face reddened greatly when she realized what was going on unspoken between them. She took a step back, smiling as she fixed her sweater. "So… You must be my new neighbor then…" Marshal grinned, giving a shrug.

"Looks like it."

Fionna bit her lip. She did not want her surprised time with Marshal to end. Once again she said the first thing that popped into her mind. "Do you wanna meet my mom?"

Being nervous was not something Marshal Lee was use too. He had agreed to meet Fionna's mother, they had set up a date a few days after their second kiss. He was sitting on the couch, wide eyed, waiting for Fionna's mother to attack him. Fionna and her mother were in another room, he could not hear anything that was being said. He had a nagging suspicion that they were talking about him. Marshal wanted Jenny to like him; he wanted permission to date Fionna. More importantly, he wanted Fionna to come back into the room and tell him there was nothing to worry about.

Finally after twenty agonizing minutes, Fionna and her mother walked back into the room. Jenny nudged Fionna forward, crossing her arms. Fionna shifted, she looked back at her mother a few times before walking over to Marshal, and she sat next to him, turning so she could face him.

"Marsh… There's something I have to tell you… After my father passed a deal was made… My father's parents made a legal arranged marriage for me." She paused, waiting for Marshal to say something in reply; when he stayed silent she continued. "My mother is looking for some kind of loop to the legal side. But as of today I am being forced into an engagement with a guy named Finn Dawg."

"What… You're engaged…" Marshal got up. He knew Finn, not personally but well enough. Thousands of thoughts whirled through his mind. "You knew that when we kissed didn't you?"

Fionna rose to her feet, taking his arm. "Not the first time. I didn't find out until a few days ago." Fionna stared up at him, hurt apparent in her eyes. Marshal shook her off and headed for the door.

"You've known for days?!" the sound of the door closing hard behind him left Fionna's heart guts aching.

Fionna looked at her mother, Jenny gestured her to go after him. Quickly Fionna grabbed a jacket, running out the front door after him. "Marshal Lee! Stop!" Fionna caught up to him, grabbed his arm trying to pull him to a halt. "Let me explain."

Marshal took a final step before becoming immovable; a sign for her to explain.

"I didn't know how to tell you… Marsh I really care about you. How would it have come off if I had just all of a sudden texted you 'hey how's your break, by the way I'm engaged to be married.'?" She found herself becoming more defensive. "Can't you understand I didn't want to see you hurting?"

"Why Fionna!?" Marshal snapped. Fionna recoiled from him, stepping back as her hands let him go. "Why did it matter to you?! How could you kiss me the other day knowing all this?!" Marshal turned and began walking off toward his house.

Fionna watched him; she turned back to her own home, looking over her shoulder once to see Marshal disappear around a corner.

Fionna slumped down outside her home, leaning against the front door. She cried, it took her five minutes before she could answer what Marshal had asked her.

"Because, I love you…"