Six months had passed since the Ice King's attack. So far, he had listened to the warning of ignoring Princess Bubblegum, mainly out of fear. He had been focusing a lot more of his efforts toward attempting to kidnap various other princesses, though only to be stopped within a short time span.
Finn was currently travelling during a fairly late night. He had snuck out of his home while his brother wasn't awake and was making his way toward a cave. Entering inside, he could see a decent sized home waiting ahead. He walked up to the door and knocked loudly, fully aware the home owner was awake. He waited patiently. "Huh… maybe she's having a long sleep," he thought to himself knowing his friend to sometimes sleep for a full twenty four hour period. Finn turned around, planning on coming back later, but then he saw something jump at him, growling with red eyes and sharp teeth. Finn screamed, jumping back and hitting his back on the door, forcing it open and falling inside.
Finn laid on the floor, groaning, hearing the familiar laughter of his friend. "H-Heh. Good one, Marcy. I think I hit the doorknob…" he complimented, having gotten somewhat used to being scared like that. The black haired grey skinned girl approached him and helped him up. "You make it too easy. So what's up, Finn?" Marceline the Vampire asked while closing the door, letting him come to the living room to take a seat, knowing his late night visits had been frequent lately. "I need some help…" he started while rubbing his sore side from where he had hit the doorknob.
"Well, I do owe you one for helping me finish that song last week. So what is it you need?" the vampire queen tried to cut to the point, more than willing to help a close friend whom she had been on many adventures with him. Finn didn't know exactly how to word it, but he was glad that she was all ears. "Do you know anything about babies or children?" Finn simply asked. A shrug came from his friend. "There isn't much to know. I know some stuff about children. Why?" she answered, though she was more curious about why he was wanting to know. He knew Marceline was a good friend of his, so he presumed the information would be safe with her. "I'm going to be a dad," Finn simply stated. This made her go silent for a brief second before shaking the initial shock off of her.
"Really? Glob… well congrats! Who's the mother?" Marceline couldn't help but query at Finn about who he was that close with. Finn was aware that she was good friends with Bubblegum too, so he didn't see any harm in sharing. "It's Bubblegum," he then saw her eyes widen at the news of two of her close friends having become this close themselves. "Um… wow… Finn, I don't mind helping you, but why aren't you asking her about all this stuff, then?" she responded, still trying to get over the surprise. Finn stared at the floor. He had gone behind the princess's back to learn about children himself from what he could on some books left over from the great mushroom war. "Because she knows it's different to raise a human child instead of a candy child. That's kind of been our biggest worry," he explained that he wanted to be ready for in case the child resembled him more. "Alright! Well you've got a lot to learn, then…" Marceline started. Finn knew he was going to spend the rest of his night learning from her.
The next morning at the Candy Hospital, Princess Bubblegum was in one of the rooms on one of the higher up floors. She was lying alone in a medical gown, reading a book. She heard a sudden knock at the door, and she saw Peppermint Butler enter the room. "Hello, Princess. How are you doing?" he greeted her happily. She had informed him of the pregnancy about one month ago, and since then, he had been assisting her in keeping it a secret, having had to pull a few strings with some of the hospital staff. "I feel awful right now…" Bubblegum moaned a bit, and her loyal servant went to take a seat by her bed. "I'd imagine so. I just talked to doctor, princess. She said you might go into labor today or tomorrow," he told her what he heard from the doctor. The princess slowly nodded, understanding.
"I owe you for all your help. I don't know how you set some of this up," Bubblegum had to admit. She didn't know how he arranged any of this, but Peppermint Butler had a dark side to him to either communing with the literal dark side or good negotiations. "Princess, are you sure this is the best course? Keeping secrets are one thing, but keeping a child secret is even harder. I know you're worried about safety, but Finn can protect you," the butler had to complain. This plan seemed ridiculous and pointless, though he was unaware that lately the princess had been having nightmares, all of them involving the Ice King harming her or her child in some way, and even her child getting some form of illness from the cold environment.
"I-I know Finn can protect us. But what if he's too late? What if he doesn't get to us in time?" Bubblegum rubbed her forehead. Peppermint Butler gave a raised eyebrow. "But Princess, if you're worried about him not being around, you could announce the truth and marry him," he recommended, knowing that route of option was still available. It wasn't too late for the truth. "Peppermint Butler… I need to take care of an entire kingdom and the trouble around it. I know me and Finn could do Tier 13 of marriage, but we skipped it to 15. I just think it'll be safer for him to handle raising our child," she was getting stressed, just thinking about it, but she groaned, feeling the baby kicking inside her stomach, forcing her to calm down. "Oww… it's been kicking a lot since yesterday. It's bursting to get out," she tried to make light of the situation. "If that is the decision you wish for…" he nodded, respecting her decision and understanding her fear and concern. He knew that they were to find some way to work it all out.