Alright, I've kept you waiting long enough. Sorry. I have finals this week and then I'm officially a senior and I'm having summer break so I'll have plenty of time to work on this. :D So lucky you guys.
So Fionna and Charlie met up with the Aaa Simone, who is now helping them try to find a way home. Fionna is going on a date with other world Marshall Lee. Let's see how that plays out.
Still accepting songs but this is almost over so not that many will make it in.
And I'm still saying no about alternate endings because... well, I just feel like it defeats the purpose of the storyline. Like, I once watched an alternate ending for a movie I really liked and I couldn't deal with that one because it was so out of place with the storyline and the book it was based on so. I mean maybe I'll write one but I dunno.
I will put the poll back on soon for one last vote that will go down on Thursday. This chapter might turn a lot of people around so it's just a double check. Your old votes will still count so if you already voted, no need to do it again. So GO ON MY PROFILE AND VOTE! After that poll is closed, I will write the next chapter after this one. That vote matters the most to the story.
Disclaimer: No. Sorry. Pen Ward is the great mind behind AT.
Fionna had never felt this nervous before. She was waiting in front of her dorm, tucking her hair behind her ear that refused to stay put. She didn't dress all fancy for Marshall Lee because she had a feeling that this one was just like the other one back home. If anything, he'll show up in a hoodie and ripped jeans, his MP3 in his pocket, grinning widely at her.
And as soon as she thought this, there he was. Just like she imagined. His hoodie was on and his hair looked like it was combed hastily, which didn't do it much justice. But he was smiling at her like she knew he would. She smiled too and leaned off her door, waving at him. Even though Fionna just wanted to know about this world, she couldn't help but to feel like she was intruding on the other Fionna's life too much. Charlie had even tried to prevent her to go, Simone too, saying that this could interfere with their return home. But Fionna had a code of honor and kept her promises even though they were a little rash.
"Hey, you ready?" he asked her.
"Uh-huh," she responded with a nod.
They walked down the hall and outside to the small school plaza where there were several little venues for students to go to and enjoy. Marshall took them to get some ice cream and they took to walking around campus. This was the first time Fionna really saw the beauty of the Academy. It was beautifully built with lovely, Spanish style tiling. The grass around the plants was a pure green and blew peacefully along with the breeze. Marshall said something but Fionna didn't hear him. He cleared his throat and she perked up, surprised.
"Oh. I'm sorry," she said, blushing a little. "What did you say."
"I wanted to say thanks for coming out with me tonight," he said.
"Oh- uh... thanks for taking me," she said.
"What's with you, though?" he asked, tossing his empty cup. "You seem really off and spacey lately."
Fionna threw away her cup too. She had to sound like this world's Fionna. "Have I?" She cringed a little. What was that?
"Yeah. What's up?"
"I guess a lot's been on my mind." She put her arms around her head, closing her eyes and walking a little ahead of him.
"Like what?"
She paused, not knowing how to respond to that. What would this Fionna have on her mind that would make a good excuse? "Duhhhh... homework? School. Y'know." She looked behind her to see that he was unimpressed and didn't buy the little white lie.
"What's really wrong with you?" he said, crossing his arms.
Fionna bit her lip. "The truth?"
"Of course. Since when don't you trust me?"
The two of them were facing one another. Marshall leaned on a light pole as she stood before him. The sky was still semi-bright outside, the sky a wondrous shade of orange. A warm breeze fluttered by, making her long blond hair pass in front of her eyes. How was she supposed to tell him without sounding crazy?
"Let's just say that I'm not from here," she said.
"Then where would you be from?" he pressed, raising his eyebrows. "You've lived here since you were a baby."
Aw, nuts, Fionna thought. "Would you call me crazy if I told you I'm from another dimension? Or another universe?" Part of her was hoping that Marshall would perk up and grin, saying that he was from that same universe and wanted to be sure it was the Fionna he knew but that didn't happen. He simply chuckled.
"Yeah. I would. What have you been eating?" he said, shaking his head.
"Marshall, I'm not kidding," she said seriously. "Ask me anything I would know. That your Fionna would know."
"What's your last name?" Marshall said at once.
Fionna blinked and then shook her head at him with a shrug. "Sorry."
He looked genuinely concerned. "Really? It's Mertens. Fionna Mertens." That made sense since he had called her that in the library the other day. "Um, okay," he said. "Birthday?"
Again, Fionna stared at him. Was it the same as her birthday? "Uh... I don't know if I would have the same birthday as this Fionna."
"It's July 27th," he responded automatically.
Fionna nodded. "That's mine but I guess that's a connection." She glanced up at him. "You still don't believe me."
"No," he said. "Are you toying with me?"
"No! I swear, Marshall," she said. "I'm from a world where fantastical things happen. You're there and you're the coolest guy around. You're a vampire with awesome musical abilities. Cake is a magical cat who lives with me and out video game system BMO. Gumball is the prince-well the king now- of the Candy Kingdom and Charlie and I are the last humans in existence!" It was killing her not being able to tell anyone. But now that she started talking, she couldn't stop. "And I'm an awesome adventurer who goes on daring missions. We live in this world called Aaa which was a creation of the Mushroom War, the war in which all humans were extinct except me and Charlie and we were traveling around the world to find out the answer to our species' extinction but we came across this giant crater and were sent here after getting into a big blast of a dimension bomb or some weird gunk and... now I'm here and we're trying to get home."
"So that's why you're hanging out with Charlie so much," he said. Marshall still didn't look convinced but he seemed intrigued at the most. "I just thought you had a crush on him or something."
"What?! No... at least... I don't think so," she said. "We kissed in the other world but now I'm so confused. I also like the other you a lot in my world and now... I'm just stuck. I want to be with you but I really like Charlie too." She closed her eyes and sighed. "I guess I only feel obligated to like him because he's the only other human besides me."
Marshall didn't say anything so she moved on. "But at the same time, I think I'm in love with Charlie. Like... I like, like him. More than a friend or brother or whatever. That time out together alone in the world was a wake up call to me. Without him, the human race is gone but with him, I can't be with you." She clutched her head with a groan. "Sorry, I'm venting. I should stop."
"I guess you're right," Marshall said. Fionna looked up at him in surprise. "You're not from here."
"What made you realize that?" she said.
"Because you and I were dating before this started to happen," he said. "This meaning you ditching me to hang with Charlie."
"Ditching is an ugly word," she said acidly.
"Sorry, you're right," he said.
"Wait... I was dating you?" she said, bewildered.
He nodded. "Two weeks ago we made it official. But then you started acting weird this past week and I was concerned that you had forgotten and wanted to run off with Charlie." He smiled weakly. "But I was just being jealous. This isn't my Fionna. I see that now."
"You're taking it so calmly," she said, playing with her fingers. "How can you believe something that sounds so farfetched."
"Because I trust you," he said. "No matter what Fionna you are, I trust you."
"But I just admitted to you that I was in love with Charlie... at least I think," she said softly, her cheeks glowing pink. "And you're technically dating me."
"That's a different world altogether," he said, walking up to her. "Fionna, if you really love him in your world, who am I to stop you from pursuing that love?"
Fionna smiled. "You're definitely like my Marshall Lee."
He grinned. "Hey, just do me a favor and get on home safe, okay? No offense, but I want my bunny back."
She laughed. "You'll get her. Charlie and I will be gone and everything will be back to normal for you. I promise."
"Now, I'm still having a hard time accepting this but, ah, I guess I'll see what will happen once you figure it out."
She punched him in the shoulder playfully. "I'll leave you the hey alone soon."
He walked her back to her dorm, the two of them talking and laughing about nonsense. As he waved her goodbye, Fionna paused and called his name. He turned and she smiled gently.
"Don't get freaked out or anything but... she loves you," she said. "Your Fionna does."
He smiled and didn't say anything. But she could have sworn, as he turned away and walked down the hall, just before he turned the corner, he threw his fists up into the air in victory.
Again, on a cold rainy day, Fionna and Charlie were in the corner table of the library, their noses in books, Charlie scribbling down notes and formulas. Fionna was flipping through books on ancient machinery while Simone was skimming the book shelves, a stack of books in her arms that could help the three of them. Fionna noticed something odd out of the corner of her eye and looked over the top of her book to find Marshall Lee reading a book on dimensions. He glanced at her and winked before returning through his reading. She grinned and went back to her book.
A few days went by but they all turned out empty. Fionna was close to tears and Charlie was growing frustrated. Simone was a little upset but she kept her head, going into deeper research online. Marshall even rounded up Gumball and Cake to help, saying that it was for a science research project that would help Fionna's grade. Even with all of the help that the two travelers were getting, they couldn't find anything that could possibly help them.
The weekend rolled around again and Fionna suggested she and Charlie, and the rest of the gang, head outside of school to visit the city it resided in. The others happily agreed and made their way out, showing their school IDs to the security in the main office. He let them out and they walked into the light of the city. As they walked by strip malls and coffee shops, Charlie felt strange. Like he had been here before. As Gumball, Cake, and Marshall Lee browsed at a window display, Charlie stopped Fionna and she turned, her eyebrows raised.
"What?" she said.
"Doesn't this place seem... familiar?" he pressed, waving a hand around to indicate the city.
"You're getting that feeling too?" Fionna asked, looking relieved. "D'you think it's Boston? Or that other big city we went to with those weird zombie things?"
"No... not those cities- that other one was New York- but I can't shake the feeling that..." He trailed off as he stared into an alley way. He started to move towards it and Fionna instinctively followed him.
"Hey, guys!" Marshall called. "Where are you going?"
"Hold on," Fionna said, turned slightly and shrugging.
The alley was dimly lit and dank. The dumpster that lined the wall smelled horribly of rotten Chinese food. But Charlie went to the way back of the alley where a chain-link fence was standing, rusty and old. He knelt down and turned to Fionna with a smile.
"We have been here before," he said. "This was our turning point... If my calculations are correct, Fionna, we found a way home."
Fionna crouched beside Charlie as he pushed a brick on the side of the building. It wobbled at little, showing that it was loose. He grabbed the edges and pulled it away. Fionna gasped and Charlie grinned in success. He reached in and took out the very same machine that sent the two of them here.
"It's... but how?" Fionna said.
"Ever notice that trophy room?" he asked her. "The one in the library? Well, years before us, there was a young students who attended this very academy and made this machine. She won second place to another student named..."
"Becky," Fionna said.
"I guess that other girl was the Lich, yeah? And this was her experiment that didn't end up working," he said. "She hid it here out of shame in hopes that it would someday work. Fionna, I still remember how to work this. We can get home."
"But why it's here doesn't answer anything," Fionna said. "Why this city?"
"This city... was the one that was destroyed by the Great Mushroom Bomb. The crater that created Becky and the Lich Queen was here, where our school was. Don't you see? It all makes sense now. That was why we were sent to this world, to this universe because there once was an academy here but it was for other people long ago before the war."
"But how did Simone get here? What about that? That couldn't possibly be chance."
Charlie smiled at her. "That's the thing. I'm not so sure about that one but I think she was meant to come here so she can escape with us. It may sound silly but I think a lot of things were meant to happen now."
"All we have to do now," Fionna said as they stood, "is get back to school and get Simone so we can go back to Aaa!"
Charlie grabbed a discarded bag and gingerly placed the machine inside before they joined their friends waiting for them. Fionna sent them all a smile and lied to them, telling them that there was a dog that Charlie wanted to see. He blushed a little and glared at her as they walked back to school making her laugh.
Simone was very surprised when Charlie and Fionna burst through her office door, panting and grinning, an odd object in Charlie's arms.
"We found our answer!" he said. "For once, books proved to be no help in a situation. Which is a big disappointment for me but-! Here!" He placed the machine on Simone's desk and pointed to it. "It sent Fionna and I here. It's sure to send us back."
Simone prodded it with her finger, pursing her lips. "Quite possible... but how did you know where it was? Or what it was?"
"It was in the same place it was back in our world," Fionna explained. "Charlie found it there and now he found it here. But the books did prove to be useful. The multiverse theory was correct in a way. This is still Earth, so was our world. That means that the... wait... never mind. I always overcomplicate things."
"I get what you're saying," Charlie assured her, sending a small shrug in Simone's way. The professor smiled and nodded.
"Let's go home then," she said. "And give this world their old Simone, Fionna, and Charlie back."
"You said it," Fionna agreed.
"Wait!" a voice called. They all looked towards the door to see Marshall Lee standing there, Gumball and Cake behind him. "I told them. I told them everything. They deserved to know.
Fionna laughed. "I was wondering when you'd spill. It's true. Sorry I didn't tell you guys. You two are more rational that Marshall is so I didn't think you'd believe me."
"Fi, you're my sister. This universe or not," Cake said, hugging her. "If you need to go, then go."
"You'll get your Fionna back," Charlie assured. "The one that knows what's going on in this world. Gumball, can you help me out here?"
Gumball eyed the machine with a nod and started, with the help of Charlie and Simone, to boot it up. Fionna took Marshall Lee over to a corner and stuck out her hand.
"It was nice to know that you're you no matter where I go," she said. "It felt like home again."
"Just make it back in one piece, okay?" he said, taking her hand and shaking it with a grin. Fionna looked closely at his teeth and noticed that his top canine teeth were a little longer, if not sharper, than most normal teeth were.
"I promise," she said. "And you'll get your girl back."
"Just do me one more favor."
"What's that?"
"If your universe Charlie makes you happy, be with him. Knowing myself, heh, I'll find someone else. Hell, if I'm a vampire, I'll be able to find a girl in the next thousand years!"
She smiled. "No one as cool as me though!"
He laughed and they exchanged a hug. "Sorry this got all crazy," Fionna said.
"Hey, it was sure interesting," he said as they dropped the hug, walking back to the machine where Simone and Charlie were waiting.
"Ready?" Charlie asked, taking Fionna and Simone's hands. They both nodded. Charlie turned to the others. "This won't effect you. I made sure it sends only other worldly minds back home."
The other three nodded but backed up slowly, just in case. Simone reached over and pressed the button for home. The beam shot through Charlie's chest harmlessly and expanded, catching the two girls in the blast. The other three watched, amazed as the machine sucked three blue forces inside itself and then vanish. The three figures before them all collapsed. Marshall ran over to them, Gumball and Cake in tow. They gently shook the three awake and Fionna was the first to open her eyes. She saw Marshall sitting over her and she rubbed her eyes.
"What happened? Did I miss an exam?" she said.
"What's your last name?" he asked quickly.
She was completely befuddled by this question. "It's Mertens. Why?"
He smiled as the others came to. "No reason," he said, helping her up. "I'm just glad you're awake."
"Oh dear! I seemed to have passed out," Charlie said, scrambling to his feet.
"What are you guys doing in my class now?" Simone said, standing and shaking her head. "And how did I end up on the floor? What's going on?"
"Nothing, Professor," Cake said, brushing off Charlie's back of the dust. "Just a little accident."
"Everything is fine now," Gumball agreed, handing his teacher some water. "That's what matters."
Marshall smiled down at Fionna as he helped her to her feet. She hugged him at once and said, "For some reason, I feel like I missed you a lot."
"Heh, if it's any consolation, I missed you too," he said, kissing her head, feeling relieved as she gripped his shirt a little tighter. He rested his chin on top of her head as he watched Charlie pick as his shirt. I just hope that you're happy with him. And that you got home safe... all of you.
-0-
She opened her eyes to see a pearly grey sky, her right shoulder stinging with a dull pain. Her blond bangs were in her face and she made to move them away but... she couldn't feel her right fingers or move them in any way. Fionna sat bolt upright but someone pushed her back down.
"Don't move," she heard Charlie gruffly say. "You're losing too much blood as it is."
"What?" Fionna said weakly. She turned to see Charlie hovering over her, blood on his jeans and his face sullen and pale. He looked like death itself. "A-are you oh-okay?"
"Well, I feel like I'm about to collapse but..." He managed a painful smile. "I guess I'm 'okay.'"
"My arm?" she gasped, feeling like she was about to collapse herself.
His smile vanished. "I guess the blast that sent us to the other world managed to take a piece of you after you tried to save me from getting killed from it... Fionna... your arm is... well..."
Fionna sat up again with the help of Charlie and her eyes widened as she saw that her shoulder was there with no arm. Tears spilled out of her eyes as the pain of it fully effected her. Her shoulder was bandaged up and bloody. She looked at Charlie helplessly but he was swaying on the spot, holding his head. The effects of the Lich still not completely gone. Wherever she went, Fionna didn't know or care. Because the next thing she knew, Charlie did collapse, out cold.
"Charlie!" Fionna cried.
Sooooo? How was it? Crazy huh? Sorry it's taken me so long to actually write a chapter. Summer break now so woo! More time to write!
The whole losing her arm thing was kind of a lead on for her robot arm so bravo to those who figured it out. To those of you who didn't: now you know where I'm going with that.
And oh no! Charlie! What's wrong?! Well, you'll just have to find out next chapter. GO AND VOTE FOR FIONNA'S LOVE AGAIN (this one really matters so DO IT!)
See you next time!