I'm sorry I haven't been updating as quickly as I've wanted to. I've been busy with a lot of stuff... But! I'm on Spring Break for the next week so I'll be busy with this instead. Yay for me, you, you, and you!
What about me?
No... not you.
This chapter is full of Charlie and Fionna. We'll be taking a deeper look into Charlie's past so, for those of you who want to write a song about Charlie, here's a little help with that.
Which leads me into: I am still taking song and headcannon requests. Shoot me a PM or review and I'll make it so in the story, your name on it.
Disclaimer: What? You're kidding right?
They were camping out by the side of a broken road leading to a crumbling freeway. The closer to two of them traveled towards the crater, the closer they got to what used to be civilization. Cities upon cities were spanned across the path they took. Buildings were toppling over one another and cars were upturned. It was a dangerous place to be trekking but what choice did they have? There was no other way. Fionna had built a small fire out of piece of old homes and furniture and was poking at it, making the flames crackle. Charlie was staring into a book, humming softly to himself as the skies above sparkled with stars. The silence was weighed with a question that Fionna desperately wanted to ask Charlie. It had been a week since they traveled around the city full of those monsters and Charlie was doing his best to avoid touching her swords in fear that he would harm her again. Her wound had fully healed by this time but he was still so touch about it.
She wanted to ask him why he didn't like swords and how he was able to survive this horrid world without any protection. But she just couldn't in fear that he would take it personally or he wouldn't answer her and just ignore her. Charlie had yet to be dishonest with her so what was the harm in asking? He noticed her shifting uncomfortably in her spot and he questioned her attitude. Fionna didn't answer right away. This was exactly how she felt before asking Marshall Lee about the war and we all know how that turned out. Fionna, of course never really learning from her mistakes, asked anyway in a quick tone, not meeting his eyes.
Charlie understood why she asked this so he closed his book and placed it inside his bag. He drew his knees up to his chest and wrapped his arms around them, resting his chin atop them.
"Well... I'm against violence. That's just how I was brought up. My mother would tell me that things like swords and stuff were dangerous," Charlie said.
"She wasn't wrong," Fionna said. "If you don't know how to use them, you're putting your life at risk. My adoptive parents were always telling me to be careful with swords and boy... did I learn my lesson. I almost cut off Cake's ear."
"But you were trained in the way of the sword," Charlie pointed out. "You mastered it and are able to slay any monster or whatever that comes your way. You're a hero. I'm not... I'm meek and all brain, not brawn. I don't have any useful weapons to our adventure."
"Charlie, your weapon is your brain," Fionna said with a smile. "If it weren't for your smarty-pants ways, we'd be dead by now."
"Not true. You'd save us both with your strength."
"What's with you? I don't think you've ever acted so insecurely."
"It's because all the boys in my village were tough and played a lot of sports," Charlie explained. "They were these mutant humanoids who were far stronger than me and basically shunned me inside the library. That's why I've become so knowledgeable. I didn't have anywhere else to go." Fionna stared at him, her mouth hanging open a little. He went on, "I was a victim to their bullying so I was secluded from everyone else. I left when I was ten not only to find out if there were anymore humans but to escape all that bullying. But when I met you, I felt... I dunno, respected. You treat me like I'm just as strong as you are."
"And you treat me like I'm just as smart as you are," Fionna said, standing up to sit beside him. "Humans should treat one another as equals. And all we have is each other out here so there's no point in fighting over who is better than who. That's just wacked up." She wrapped an arm around his shoulder and gave it a little squeeze. "In my world, we don't do that driz."
Charlie was quiet for a moment. Then, "You're the first friend I ever really had, Fionna."
That just about broke Fionna's heart in two. He wasn't looking at her. His green eyes were staring into the flames, tears dancing behind his glasses. All she could to was envelope him in a bear hug and reply,
"If it's any consolation, I think you're pretty great."
Charlie laughed into her shoulder and said, "Likewise."
Fionna didn't think any less of Charlie after that confession. In fact, she respected him for it. He bettered himself and, if Fionna knew those jerks, she would have kicked their faces in for making fun of her friend. Now that he was with her, she would take him back to Aaa and he would have more friends than he could count. It occurred to her that he liked hearing about having friends like Marshall, Cake, and Gumball because he didn't have any friends before. This just made their mission all the more important to return home and give Charlie the friends he deserved.
Being the only human in a small place full of mutants and talking animals is hard and Fionna knew exactly what he had gone through. She was bullied but Aaa practically covered half of the world so it was hard. Secretly, Fionna was jealous of Charlie's vast knowledge, wanting to be as smart as him so she could understand more. And Charlie was a little jealous of Fionna's strength. They were both envious of qualities that the other possessed.
After breaking the hug, Fionna jumped up and grabbed her two swords. She handed him the Golden Sword and smiled at him.
"Your training starts now," she said.
He gave her a questioning look and she grinned and said, "If you're gonna come back to Aaa with me and be an adventurer, you gotta learn how to fight. C'mon, Charlie. We're gonna make you as strong as me." He reached up to grab the sword but she pulled it out of his reach. "On one condition." He paused and blinked. "You tutor me in everything you know."
Charlie grinned and agreed with a nod.
The two of them spent a week in that camp, training one another in several different things. Fionna was able to get Charlie trained well in hand to hand combat rather than sword fighting but he was trying hard to use the sword often as well. And Charlie was able to teach Fionna a lot of history and mathematics to the point where she was shouting more slang relating to smarts. Boy, was she gonna surprise Gumball when she got home.
They decided it was time to move on and gathered up their things one evening, traveling at night once again. They moved along the streets and up the freeway ramp, meandering their way through cars, buses, and other motor vehicles. Fionna was suddenly fascinated by an old vespa scooter that still had some gas in it and was examining it. She asked Charlie, who was looking into an old Toyota, whether or not she would be able to drive this.
"It's not a good idea since you usually travel by other means," Charlie said. "And neither of us have ever driven anything... well I drove a car once for about ten miles but it started smoking so I got out."
"What was it like?" Fionna asked, sitting on the seat and resting her hands on the handles. "I mean, I've sat in old cars before but they were all dead."
"It was... it... hm," he said, putting his thumb to his chin. "Free? I guess that's the right word for it. Mind you, I crashed like a billion times so... it was a little tough."
"But what's a car compared to this thing!?" Fionna said with an excited grin. She turned the key and the scooter vibrated with energy. "Duuude! C'mon, lemme ride it!"
Charlie bit his lip and shrugged. "Go ahead I guess. I dunno why you're asking me permission."
" 'Cause you're smarter," Fionna said simply.
"You're smart too."
"Not as smart as you."
"Just try it Fionna and stop it with this silly argument."
She grinned and him and kicked the scooter into life, a natural feeling flowing through her body as if she was born to ride this vehicle. The next thing Fionna knew, she was driving through the empty freeway, speeding past the other overturned cars and chunks of buildings. Charlie watched her as she drove the scooter so skillfully as if she had done it before. She turned the scooter around gracefully and stopped in front of him, brushing her windswept hair out of her eyes.
"We should take this with us. Find a place to fill it up and ride our way to the crater," Fionna said, her eyes gleaming. "There's even a place we can put our bags. It'll be awesome."
"So where would we find a gas station around here?" Charlie wondered aloud, looking around the area. "There's nothing but freeway for miles."
Fionna squinted and pointed towards a city not too far away. "How about over there?"
"Alright, then. Let's go," he said. He got on the scooter too and Fionna sped off in the direction of the city, a newer way to travel in her hands.
How she was able to drive it so easily, Fionna was unsure. It was like she had driven something like this before. She was so used to traveling by Cake's back, in Marshall Lee's arms, on Lord Monochromicorn, or smaller means. But a scooter? Never in her life had she driven. It felt human.
They stopped by a gas station after a couple of small crashes that confirmed that Fionna wasn't all that experienced in driving and after Charlie stopped laughing, they figured out how to fill up the gas and kicked off again, driving down the streets and back onto the freeway towards the crater.
Charlie clutched his stomach as he laughed on the ground, Fionna a few feet away from him, laughing too. The vespa was lying on its side, a skid mark leading towards it. They had driven far from the city and were now in the middle of nowhere, riding on an old road, when the vespa had swerved out of Fionna's control and failed on them, stopping and sending the two of them flying. It had taken them both a moment to realize what had just happened and now, they were laughing.
"So much for a new mode of transportation," Fionna said, standing up and dusting herself off. She touched her cheek, which suddenly had hurt for half a second. She drew her hand away and saw small streaks of blood on her fingers. Three fresh, long cuts from her fall were along the left side of her cheek. They reached parallel to her nose and trailed down to her cheek bone.
Charlie didn't make it out unscathed either. He had a gash on his shoulder, where his shirt had spilt open. After they gathered themselves, Charlie tended to their wounds, bandaging his own cut and cleaning hers. He said they would be very thin scars and would fade over time so she shouldn't worry about it.
"This was pleasant," Charlie joked with a smirk. "I don't think we'll be driving that anymore."
"Meh, it was getting boring anyway," Fionna said.
"Uh-huh," he said with a knowing smile. Charlie shook his head. "Let's stick to our own two legs."
"Agreed."
After patching themselves up, and after Fionna kicked the vespa hard, they proceeded down the road, a few new scars on their bodies. They wandered around a bit until they came across a lone tree near the side of the road. And atop the tree was a large bird, singing into the air. It noticed them and, to their surprise, greeted them.
"Travelers! What ho! We don't get many 'round these parts!" the bird said.
"You can speak!" Charlie said.
"Way to point out the obvious, Sherlock," spat the bird, rolling its eyes.
"What are you doing all the way out here?" Fionna said.
"Oh, flying around. I'm the fastest bird there is. Or, at least, I think I am," the bird said. "Never met another as fast as me." He bowed his head at them. "The name's Adam."
"Hello, Adam," Fionna said pleasantly.
"What are you really doing out here?" Charlie asked, crossing his arms and examining the bird.
"I told you, flying around. I just came from a beautiful land a few miles away," Adam said, gesturing with his wing towards Aaa. "It's amazing. Candy People and what not."
"You've been to Aaa?" Fionna said, beaming.
"I have. Many times. I was just taking a trip around the barren lands to see if I could find a nice place to settle down," Adam said. "Where are you folks heading?"
"The crater," Charlie said.
Adam frowned. "Best of luck to you then."
"Why is that?" Charlie said.
"Well, I should be on my way," Adam said quickly, spreading his wings.
"Wait! Please, I need you to deliver something," Fionna said. "It's for a friend."
After tying the gift to Adam's leg, he took off and soared towards Fionna's home, opposite the direction Fionna and Charlie were going. Fionna hoped to Glob that Adam was able to deliver it. Just in case she didn't make it home, she wanted to send it. It was lucky she found Adam. She had been looking for a way to get it to her friend.
Miles and miles away, Aaa was still in it's "Fionna is gone" gloom. Cake, Gumball, and Marshall were yet again sitting against the wall of the Ice Palace, watching Ice Queen fight to take off the cursed crown on her head. She was biting her tongue between her teeth in concentration, her white eyes looking up to see if her hands removed the tiara. Marshall was watching her intently, his pale fingers crossed in hope. Cake had her legs drawn up to her chest, her arms wrapped around them, watching Marshall Lee with slight worry. Gumball was leaning against the wall, standing, with his hands out in front of them, his fingers wiggling as he did some calculations, muttering softly to himself.
"What if..." he said aloud after another ten minutes of this. "What if Simone's mind wasn't lost... but transported."
"What the ball are you talking about?" Cake said, glancing up at the King.
"Bear with me here... but I've heard of dimensional planes... kind of like where you and Fionna went during your chase with the Lich," Gumball explained. "Perhaps the crown had some sort of ability, since it has a gem of power, and slowly drained away Simone's sanity and memories. But not enough... or not completely."
"So you're saying that she might still have her mind but somewhere else?" Marshall said, raising an eyebrow.
"Not quite... but close. There's another Simone out there with Ice Queen's memories. And if we can find a link, we can easily trace it and take it back," Gumball said.
"That's impossible," Cake said.
"How so?" Gumball demanded.
"Fionna broke the old Enchiridion years ago. She took the only pages left with her so we can't look it up," Cake said. She turned to look at Ice Queen, who was staring at them with a little confusion.
"It's just a theory," Gumball said quietly. "But you're right, it's impossible."
"Nothing's impossible," Ice Queen spoke up, making the two boys look at her. "It's a... well, an interesting theory. But it's not likely to happen. My mind just lost itself and now it's controlled by the tiara."
Marshall Lee jumped up and pointed at her. "There! Right there! That was Simone Petrikov talking! Ice Queen, no offense, never speaks so intelligently. I do believe we're getting somewhere." He turned to Gumball. "Bubba, do you think that we'll be able to find the planes?"
"It's hard to say. Again it's just a theory," Gumball said. "And would you stop with calling me Bubba? My name is Benson."
"Whatever," Marshall said indifferently with a shrug.
Gumball was about to argue but a giant bird suddenly swooped in and landed on the icy floor. Cake stood up and Ice Queen moved back, surprised, and they all stared as Adam, dusted himself off with a wing.
"Ah, yes. Two day trips really make me dirty," he said. "Lucky for her I was up to the task. I might just go back and-."
"Who the junk are you?" Marshall snapped.
"That wasn't very nice," Adam said, eyeing the Vampire King. "My name is Adam and I have a few deliveries for, ah, let's see. Cake the Cat, King Benson Gumball, Marshall Lee Abadeer the Vampire King, and Simone Petrikov/Ice Queen. All from a Miss Fionna the Human." The others exchanged excited smiles as Adam stuck out his large leg and a smile graced his beak. "I do have the right address right? I've checked the Candy Kingdom, the treehouse, and the cave but no-one was home. I was hoping at least one of you would be here."
"That's all of us," Cake said. "Fionna's our friend."
"Well, she's a sweet girl. I'll tell her that you say hello. I do believe I like those two," Adam said after Gumball detached the gifts from his leg.
"Those two?" Marshall said, narrowing his eyes.
"Adios!" Adam chirped and took off.
"Wait, hold on!" Marshall yelled but Adam had already left, on his way back to Fionna and Charlie. The vampire growled and turned towards Cake, who was shifting through the many packages that Fionna had placed on Adam's leg. "What did she send?" Marshall asked.
You'll find out in the next chapter! Adam was kind of a weird character but I liked him so I placed him in. He'll be really important in later chapters and you'll see why. Kind of convenient but, hey, why not?
And Fionna's vespa thing? I don't even wanna begin to explain why. But she and Charlie are going to find a lot more about the human race in the next few chapters, experiencing human things and towns and stuff.
Hopefully for those of you who want to make a song for Charlie, you can get some more material from this chapter. More about him is coming your way though but I would like one for the next one or two chapters.
Thanks for reading and reviewing. And, as always:
See you next time!