Fionna could see all around her, but something told her it wasn't right. It was bright like she was in the sun, and she was floating like as if in a river. She looked around finding it was peaceful, but it was as though her ears were not able to pick up sounds.
'Why do I feel like a cluster of poo brain? What was I just doing? I don't think I should be here..' she thought as she drifted. The harder she tried to hear the louder her surroundings started to become.
"Fionna! Fionna, can you hear us? Open your eyes!" Flame Prince practically screamed.
'Hmm, that sounds like FP. Where is he and why does it sound like he is screaming? I'm going to pound his cheek meat! My head kinda hurts.'
"Bring me some water immediately!" PG demanded.
'Where are they?' Fionna looks around herself trying to come out of her daze.
"Fi, get up or I will personally fly you to the ocean and literally drop you in! Come on bunny, come back to Aaa!" Marshall shouted.
Fionna felt dread causing her to pull from her daze. She began to recall arguing with Flame Prince, and the party. Everything in her background began to speed past her as a bright blur and then dark.
"Ugh, my head….." Fionna felt her body heavy with a throbbing headache. Her eyes fluttered open as she realized she was laid out on the floor.
"Are you okay Fi?" Marshall asked worry clearly in his voice.
"If you drop me into the ocean… I kill you." She said as her blurry vision adjusted to his face giving him a faint smile. He smirked back at her. "Dude, why do I feel like a train hit my head?" She whined moving her hand to her head and wincing from the light.
"You passed out and hit your head on the floor." Prince Gumball stated before Marshall could respond. Fionna tried to get up, but Gumball pushed her down to keep her still. "I think we should have Dr. Ice Cream check to see what caused you to pass out like that. To at least make sure you're okay… please?" He changed his voice softer towards the end. It was well known how much the human hated the hospital.
Marshall slid his arms beneath her to carry her to the hospital ward inside the castle. He lifted her with gentle ease floating up into the air.
"Be careful to not jostle her." Gumball growled out at Marshall with a glare. Marshall ignored him and gazed down to the human girl in his arms, he could see her irritation.
"He's not Gumball!" she snapped. "Calm down.. And I don't need to go, I'm fine. I just got a little… um-"
"You blacked out, so you need to get checked Fi. It'll only take a few minutes." Marshall plainly stated.
"I agree with the demon." Flame Prince chimed in from behind the moving group his tone concerned yet agitated.
Fionna did not want to go. "But-"
"We're already here. Might as well." Marshall smirked trying to sound nonchalant.
They stood in front of the archway that connected to the medical waiting room and check in/out counter. The walls of the room are a soft light pink, and twenty white candy chairs in neat rows. Behind the small counter sat a purple gumdrop nurse greeting them with a smile. Marshall floats Fionna up to the counter with FP and PG on either side of them. Fionna pouts out her lips.
"How can I help you all today?" the candy nurse asks eyeing the group ending on the candy prince.
"Fionna fainted a moment ago, and I would like for her to have a cautionary exam." His voice pleasant with a smile.
"Of course, right this way." The little gumdrop rises from her seat to lead the way, and pauses when she noticed the whole group moving.
"Only one person can accompany a patient at a time." She says in a sweet voice but firm. Everyone stops and looks at the human girl, who noticeably turned red for the millionth time that day.
"Uh…. I'm gonna go alone." Fionna says looking and feeling awkward. "It shouldn't take long." She said as she started walking into the hall holding the few exam rooms. She could feel the three guys watching her.
"You go into room three, dear. I will be there with Dr. Ice Cream in a minute." She said pleasantly.
Dr. Ice Cream and the nurse walked into the room and Fionna told them what happened. After drawing blood, running labs, and an exam the conclusion was made. Fionna fainted due to having too much stress and anxiety of emotions.
After she thanked him being thoroughly embarrassed she walked back out to the guys to check out. The guys were all standing watching her walk out and she blushed seeing their faces in anticipation.
"It's nothing guys, I just had too much blood pumping and I was a little stressed. That's all. Gosh, I'm not going to break. It's not that big of a deal." Fionna was handed a paper from the candy nurse and she waved good bye walking from the waiting room into the hall.
They all paused in the hallway and nobody spoke. It was an uneasy silence full of unasked question and unspoken remarks. Fionna fidgeted feeling uneasy and still embarrassed from passing out. Someone finally broke the silence.
"Perhaps it would be a good idea for you to not be by yourself tonight. You are more than welcomed to stay the night here. I can have Peppermint maid prepare a room right away." Prince Gumball said in the most charming caring way possible.
"I think she would rather stay with me. This candy stench along with all the pink is sickening." Marshall remarked in a tone making sound as though he was becoming sick. He and the candy prince shot each other irritated eyes.
"Um… I-" Fionna started but was interrupted.
"What if she doesn't want to be with either one of you right now?" Flame Prince interjected.
"How would you know?!" Marshall and PG snapped at the same time.
"Hey! What the flip guys… I'm right here ya know? It's not up to any of you what I do!" Fionna yelled before turning around her back facing them. That grabbed their attention and they all looked down. She was right after all and they were acting like a bunch of kids.
"You're right, Fi. Sorry." Marshall spoke up first.
"Yea…" Flame Prince huffed out.
"Yes, please forgive me. I only intended to offer help." Prince Gumball said in his prince charm.
"I know you guys are trying to get me to choose one of you to stay with, and I am not going to do that. If I stay with one of you, then we all stay." She said firmly turning back around crossing her arms.
"I don't think it would be a good idea to stay here. I will go now to the house you made me in the grasslands." Flame Prince looked Fionna in the eyes. "Will you talk with me tomorrow? I guess there's more to discuss…" he said now looking down.
"I can do that." Fionna replied quietly. Marshall and Prince Gumball both look at her with wide eyes; dislike of the idea clearly striking their features. Flame Prince smiled and his flames burned brighter.
"Thanks, see you tomorrow." He said happily giving a small bow before leaving.
Marshall and Gumball turned to Fionna when Flame Prince was out of sight. A look of total concern plastered onto their faces.
"You can't be serious Fionna. What are you thinking? You could get hurt again. There's no telling how it will go. Flame Prince is entirely unstable."
"Gumbutt is right Fi. It's dangerous, and I am not looking forward to you being hospitalized again."
"Look, I know you guys are concerned, but I am not a child. I am an adventuress, and I handle myself all the time. You two will not speak to me like I am a child." Fionna was beyond irritated at this point. "He and I have unfinished business, and it does not include you two." She said that harsher than she meant to, and she realized it when both of them changed their expressions to hurt. Gumball stood there with the same expression, but Marshall's changed to a mixture of angry and defensive.
"Oh yea? It doesn't include us? I think it included us after you stayed in Gumwad's hospital and me staying with you every day after that bastard left! How can you say that to us? We were here for you when he wasn't." Marshall's words were filled with emotion. Fionna realized she hit a cord that wasn't a good one. Her mood softened
Fionna looked down ashamed of how she just behaved. If the roles were reversed she would probably reacted the same way. PG and Marshall were just worried and she should have been more understanding. BUT with that being said they should still be respectful of her decisions.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have talked to ya'll like that. I appreciate you guys always being there for me. You have to understand though. I make my own choices, and this is something that I have to do." She said softly.
"At least let me go with you." Marshall requested, back to his normal tone.
"If you go with me you will start a fight with him. Plus, this is something he and I need to talk about privately."
"What if Marshall went with you and stood at a distance. At least then we would be reassured that if you need help you'll have it." Prince Gumball suggested.
It was quiet as Fionna thought it over. Marshall was caught off guard by Gumball's suggestion, because he didn't suggest going himself. He looked over to Gumball, and the candy prince blushed. It was a very settle blush, and if you didn't know him you would not even notice. Seeing Gumball's little blush gave the vampire king a small butterfly feeling and he had a settle blush of his own. Marshall ran his hand through his hair and looked to the side. Gumball lowered his eyes feeling a bit shy.
"Alright, I guess that'll be okay on one condition. PG has to go, too, and we'll have a picnic after my talk with FP. That way it won't be weird that you're there."
Gumball and Marshall looked at her and then to each other. Fionna looked at them questionably due to their expressions. Marshall caught himself and floated himself into the air leaning back like in a chair.
"Pft, whatever." He replied in his cool normal tone. PG collected himself as well.
"That's fine. I will bake us some treats for the picnic. Oh, and I'll be able to test out one of my new inventions!" He ended it in a girlish squeal of excitement. Marshall and Fionna laughed. He smiled at them.
Abruptly Fionna stops laughing with an upset expression making them look to observe her.
"Guys.. where's my guitar?" she asks worried.
"Oh, it's leaning against the wall you fainted by." Marshall replies. "I'mma go get it." She runs off to get her guitar.
The two stood there quiet until Fionna was out of sight.
"Um, yeah, thanks for having my back about lame flame." Marshall said in a surprising nicer voice than usual. He looks over to Gumball his eyes half lidded. "But, why didn't you offer to go with her yourself?" he asks with genuine curiosity. PG put his hand on the back of his neck blushing again.
"I think you'd be able to protect her better than I would." He admitted and continued to say, "I remember how protective you can be, too." Moving his hand down he looked away.
"Yea, until the person tosses you to the side like a used boring plaything, and makes you feel worthless. I should have known better than to think you wouldn't be ashamed of us." Marshall replied with venomous bitterness.
"It wasn't like that, Marsh." PG defended
"Sure seemed that way to me!" Marshall snapped back.
"Well, you never gave me a chance to explain before you ran away to the Nightosphere."
"What was there to explain?"
"Marshie, I had too much on my plate. My-"
"Yeah, that was clear. It was cruel to not even take time to explain."
"I couldn't… I tried to but you were gone. When you got back you wouldn't even talk to me."
"Well, now you know how it felt. It doesn't matter now, does it?"
"You chose for it to stay this way. I didn't make us enemies."
"What?! How did you not cause it?" Marshall leaned forward to Gumball.
"I tried to apologize and talk it out. You refused. That's how. Instead we relentlessly insult each other. Now look what has happened: we both love the same girl."
"… Whatever." Marshall floated back onto his back.
Fionna came back into sight again and they stopped talking.
"Yea, so most of the guests are gone. Maybe we should start cleaning up? The party ends in a couple of minutes."
"No, I will leave it to the staff tonight. I will get Peppermint maid to prepare rooms for you and Marshall, so when you're ready for bed you will not have to wait." Gumball pulled a cell phone looking device to give the maid the order.
"Oh.. I thought maybe we could all share a room. Like a hang out sleep over thing." Fionna said excitedly. The guys had hesitant faces. "Come on guys, it'll be fun." They both sighed.
"If that's what you want I will comply." Gumball replied. Fionna fist pumped with a "Yay!", and ran over giving him a hug. "Thanks gummies!" PG smiled. Marshall looked away not really putting any kind a reply to the situation other than huffing.
"I don't have any pj's, so I'm going to go home. It won't take but like thirty minutes to go there and back." She said looking to the guys. "I'd like to have my adventuring pack for tomorrow."
"Want me to go with?" asked Marshall
"Nah, it's okay. Ya'll can think of what we'll do tonight as long as truth and dare is thrown in there somewhere." She waved leaving in a sprint.
Marshall and Prince Gumball watched as she left both smiling.
"That girl is one of a kind." The candy prince remarked shaking his head.
"I can't argue with that." Marshall replied.
Prince Gumball pulled out the cell phone device to notify Peppermint Maid of the vampire and human staying the night, and to bring pink lemonade out to the garden. He put the device away in his pocket and motioned Marshall to follow him. Marshall complied as Gumball led him out into the garden.
"Nice night." Gumball remarked to strike up their conversation. He wanted to finish their discussion. The vampire did too, to be honest. Though he would never admit it, but it's the reason he didn't argue with the human girl about accompanying her.
"The stars are out." He said careful to not seem like he was giving in to talk about their past. If the prince wanted to talk about it, he'd have to say so. It sounds stubborn, but hey.. that's just how he is.
"A lot of memories in this garden… It's one of my favorite places at the castle. When I need a break from the stress I come out here to relax or clear my mind." Gumball said fondly as memories he had almost forgotten flooded his mind.
"I guess you did play a lot out here when you were younger." Marshall replied with no emotion the best he could.
"I played with a certain person out here a lot. Actually, we met out here in this tree." He pointed at the candy apple tree.
"What are you trying accomplish right now pinkie?" Marshall asked trying to cut the bs and get down to it. They only had around thirty minutes, and he wanted to get the blunt of it over with. Under all the walls and dirt he put over the relationship and it still kind of hurt. Time to bury the hatchet and get it closed or something.
"Marshall, I just want to tell you what was going on for me. I'm sorry, but you hurt me, too." PG said softly.
"You hurt me first." He simply stated.
Peppermint Maid walked in carrying a tray with a pitcher and three glasses and sat it down on the outside table. Prince Gumball nodded appreciation and waved her to leave.
"Look, my parents had just died. The counsel was threatening to take temporary control over the kingdom. They were going to send me away for a few years to some boarding school for royalty. I was trying to maintain my right to be here. If I had not I would have just been ripped away from everything while devastated over my parents. I may have not had the closest relationship with them, but my chance of ever having it was taken." He moved his eyes down to the ground at the memory.
"There were things about myself that I did not know. It wasn't until their death until I discovered that my mother was not actually my mother. My biological mother was a human witch. My father met my step mother while courting my biological mother. He refused to marry my biological mother when he found out she practiced witch craft. Instead he cheated on her and married my step mother. After my birth my biological mother was killed by my step mother. Since she was unable to bare children she kept me. Plus, my father refused to leave me because of needing an heir to the throne." Prince Gumball paused a moment to face Marshall directly.
"However, before my biological mother died she put a spell on me and cursed my father and step mother. That's why I have never aged past twenty one and can regenerate. This information I recovered from their journals, which I carefully hid from the counsel. The only other person who knows this is Peppermint maid."
This was not what Marshall was expecting to hear at all. His mouth opened with his jaw dropped.
"It was hard enough to wrap my mind around that my parents were gone. Adding in that discovery; it took everything I had to keep it together. My dedication to show the counsel I was ready for the kingdom took months. You have to understand my need to stay here to discover more about my true mother. Even now, five hundred years later, I don't know everything about the whole situation or what was in the curse." He paused and smiled. "In the words of you Marshall Lee, 'I had a lot of shit on my plate!'" He gave a small halfhearted laugh.
Marshall floated quietly staring at him. His eyes were glassy as if he was holding back tears. Gumball couldn't read his facial expression.
"Why didn't you tell me? I could have been there for you." His sincerity and softness surprised the candy prince.
"I… I couldn't. The counsel put up security cameras. They made sure security was tight, and locked all the doors and windows. Why else would everything be locked up like that? The counsel stayed on my every move."
Marshall didn't say anything, but his face showed his thoughts.
"In that point in time I had never been so alone and trapped in my whole life." Gumball said now choking back tears that threatened to fall.