Chapter I, Unravel the Corpse

Bubblegum's mind was quite occupied during the last few hours. So were her hands for that matter. Her room was in a mess, as she constantly shuffled through numerous books and glyphs, papers and notes, still preparing herself for the things to come. Peppermint just stood in the corner and watched her closely, as she rammed through it all, tossing aside things she didn't need. He sighted, as he knew he will be the one to clean up the mess. As always.

"Almost all of my stuff is packed and prepared Peppermint." She nodded joyfully. "All the technology, technicalities, weapons, and above all else, science!" The mint candy just nodded as she spoke, hardly interested. "One would think that science will be enough, but you never know!"

"And where are you going your majesty?" He finally decided to ask. "What adventure will it be this time, that you need so many jun..." He looked at her backpack. "Things."

"Oh you know, need to check something. Princess stuff." She pondered. "Several things require my attention in fact." She started to count in her head. "Many things."

"And those things would be what exactly, if I may ask?" He began to question her, as he began to be more and more curious. "Last time you... hm, parted from this place with such baggage, you were rocking it out with the Screams..."

"No, no, nothing like that, I assure you. It's connected to... um. Our kingdom, obviously. Why else would I leave in such a hurry." She paused for a brief moment to catch her thoughts. "And I can count on you as usual during my absence, my royal butler?"

"That's goes without saying your majesty." He bowed down slightly.

"Good. Off I go then!" She nodded to herself and once again gazed briefly on her baggage.

"May I just know where are you going and what for?" His white, round eyes narrowed. "You still did not answered that, your grace. You know. I'd wish to inform the others..."

"Oh, it would be for the best if they didn't know. You know how they tend to panic around when I'm not... well, around. And blow up themselves. Silly sweets." She chuckled a bit. "But I can tell you, yep. " She sounded like she is proud of herself. "I'm traveling to the land of the dead. You know. The usual. I were in so many places that it should not surprise you."

That caught his attention in full. Since he knew Death very well and often visited his grim kingdom, he couldn't even try to comprehend why a person like Bubblegum would want to go near his realm. Surly it wasn't for the sightseeing, that he could tell for a fact.

"May I ask why?" He raised his candy eyebrow. "You still did not answered that. Ingredients for yet another experiment? I can assure you that..."

"That is... personal." The princess interrupted him almost instantly. "It should only take several days. Maybe months." She shrugged. "You'll do fine on your own for that time." Bubblegum grinned. "Your a sturdy little minty, aren't you?"

"You know princess..." He raised his little round hand and ignored her previous words. "I may know someone, who knows someone, who knows that one guy that can get you there. Fast. If you really must."

"Naw, the less others know, the better. You know how they all act dumdum." She poked him in the head. "Besides, the days that you baby-sited me all the time are long gone, you know that don't you?"

"Are you absolutely sure about that your majesty? You're stubborn as always." The candy smirked. "You know, when you were younger, you always said the same and I always ended up patching your knees..."

"You don't need to lecture me! I'm not a child anymore." She blushed a bit. "I'll do fine on my own."

"You still act like one at times, your majesty." He still smiled. "And the last time you said that your grace, if I recall correctly, was when you were ten and decided it will be a grand idea to eat worms, since they looked like noodles."

"Hey, I was a kid back then!"

"You are a bit now." He shook his round head. "Just stating the obvious."

"Totally not!"

"Ehm." The mint candy coughed loudly. "May I remind you that not further than a week ago, you had bit too many... stimulants in your drinks and you tried to 'conquer' the Candy Tower..."

"Well now..." She turned her sight away, blushing again. "It can happen..."

"...dressed only in sheets of paper with math signs on them, glued to your body because, should I quote you, 'the moon is hot during the spring, he will never see me coming.', right?" He chuckled. "Good thing it was dark so no one could see you..."

"Alright, alright already, sheesh!"

"Your grace?" The mint candy caught her hand. He was bit more serious this time.

"What Peppermint?" She rolled her eyes. "I really should go."

"Just try not to get killed, alright?" He started at her with his big, white eyes. "I promised to your folks that I will keep you safe. What they would say, should I failed to do so?"

She just sighted and patted him on his round head. And then, just like that, she ventured onwards, grabbing her tightly packed stuff. As she attempted to sneak out without much notion, she decided to take the path underneath the castle, leading straight through the dungeons. The tunnel was in a rather bad shape, obviously not used in many years. The cobwebs hanged down from ceiling and she could swore that the little spiders almost mocked her by their very presence.

"Need to send someone here to clean up a bit. This is just disgusting..." She sniffed around. "Ugh... and something needs to be done with the smell. It's smells worse than when Finn tried to cook. With the emphasis on tried."

She muttered to herself. With every step, she made a splashing sound. The princess decided not to look down for her own good, as she could only imagine what exactly she was walking into. When she finally saw the light at the other end of this long and foul tunnel, she felt relief. Out in the open, as the sun shined over her pink skin, her mood lightened up a bit.

"Well. Off I go..." She said once again to herself. "Weird. Usually someone is around to hear me out... No matters! We have science!"

The road was clear and the day passed quickly as she playfully whistled to herself. As the evening came almost out of no where, she reached for her map to search for a hideout. It would seem that a nearby cavern would be simply perfect. As she entered the place, she noticed that the inside, while quite dirty, was still tidier then her own dungeon. She sighted once more.

"Cave, cleaner then my own castle, what a disgrace..."

Bubblegum prepared her sleeping bag and quickly jumped in, looking like a huge pink caterpillar. She closed her eyes, counted to ten and... she wasn't sleepy at all. As she thought about pleasing things, as she started to sing herself lullabies, nothing seemed to work. And she wasn't the type that enjoyed failures.

"Bah. All the time just when I need to get some sleep. Think, think, think..."

Princess started to stare at the ceiling in vague hope that something will appear to occupy her mind. Nothing like that happened however, so she started to count the field of the ceiling, it's thickness, it's humidity, and all other things which someone in his right mind wouldn't even paid attention to.

"What am I doing here exactly..."

She stood up and looked around. In her backpack she found various colorful flash-lights, which were quickly lit all around the room.

"At least those useless things will come in handy this one time..." She muttered to herself, and started to look around again through her junk, throwing things left and right. "Must occupy myself with... With something. Doink. Should had asked BMO to come. I'd watch something, or... or..."

She talked to herself as she searched her bags. There were some books that she grabbed from the shelf. Old romances and other nonsensical stuff that she used to read in her free time to have a laugh. Sad thing was, that she knew them almost word by word, so they hardly provided any kind of entertainment.

"Why did I took those? Doh, I don't have time for snuggling and love." She scratched her chin. "But apparently I have time to talk to myself. Figures."

She thought about it and chuckled a bit. Ever since she was little, the person that always occupied her the most was herself. Why should it be otherwise, especially since there was no one smart and wise like her? There was only one exception to that rule. One, that she tried to avoid in her thoughts.

"Well, at least talking to myself keeps me somewhat occupied and... what's that?"

As she shuffled through the bags, she eventually found a shirt. Nothing special. Black, not really her color, with some rather random and obscure drawings over it. It did bare some memories however. Not necessary the ones that she wanted to turn to at this very moment.

"Why did I took this again?"

She thought for a while and further gazed at it. As she grabbed it into her pink hands, as she caressed it with her little fingers, as she smelled it, she noticed that the scent of a person that once wore it is still present somewhere, lingering deep in it's fabric.

"Do you think about me sometimes, out there, in your cove? Do you dream the same dreams as I do?" She asked out loud. "Are you all alone right now, like me? Are you smiling? Or are you sad perhaps? Sad because of me? I gave you a couple of reasons to be sad, haven't I? But I like to think that I gave you some things to smile about as well... I hope that everything worked out for you, you know?" She sighted. "If it was just as simple as to turn away from it all and just... like old times. I miss you..." Bubblegum started to stroke the textile, closing her eyes. "I miss you so much, you know that? I miss your hair, waving playfully in the wind. I miss your voice, singing songs just for me... Just for me. Your skin next to mine." She sniffed a bit. "Your hand on my hand. Your lips on my lips." She caught the shirt tighter in her fingers. "Maybe one day, huh? Maybe one day it will all change. Maybe one day we'll sing all night long again." The princess opened her eyes, just to gaze on this special piece of clothes once again. "And after that we'll just lay on the ground, looking at each other. And I'll see you smiling again. Without thinking about the day after that. Without running away. I'd like that... would you?"

And as she placed it close to her chest, as she cuddled it a bit, she calmed down and her eyelids soon began to feel heavy.

###

Bonnibel woke up, as the sunlight gently found it's way into the cavern. As she stood up, at first she wasn't sure where exactly is she. It took her a while to remember why exactly she spent a night in a dusty place like this.

"Silly me."

She smiled. Various memories appeared in her head. She remembered the days in which she felt asleep in all the wrong and weird places. Her company was more pleasing as well. Hardly ever she thought back about them, but when the thoughts came around, she missed the old times greatly. She felt somewhat younger then. More vigorous perhaps.

"Wonder how all of them are doing..." The princess quickly shook her head. "Matters not, I have a world to save!"

She grabbed her stuff and began to venture onwards. The sun quickly disappeared behind the clouds as the downpour began. It slid down her pink skin as she struggled to avoid all the puddles and mud on her way. Eventually, she reached her destination. It was a small town, by sight and by numbers with a large graveyard right next to it. Almost too large. The place seemed to be abandoned at first, but eventually she saw one commoner, swooping the path right before the entrance. Why he did that in the middle of the pouring rain, or who exactly was he, that remained uncertain. He was rather tall, bit skinny with a hat that had way too many things just taped to it. His eye sockets however seemed to be empty. As a matter of fact, his whole face looked like a mask. When he saw her, he bowed slightly and showed his pointy teeth.

"What a fine, sugar miss looks at the place like that, eh?" The water tapped over his round hat.

"I'm an... um... researcher, yes!" She tried to come up with a fast excuse, as she wasn't the one that was skilled in lying into someone's face like that. At least, not too often. "Here to... here to... to scribe about the old temple, which seem to reside in this place, yes, yes! The monumental one so I'm told!"

"Oh. That thing? Well, well now. If you wish sugar sweet. It's here alright." He clucked with his teeth. "Right there dulcet cake, beyond the gate, beyond this world."

"So this is the right place, I knew it!"

"Of course." He raised his eyebrow and looked at her suspiciously yet with some dose of curiosity. "No one really cared about it however, sugar b... lady. Or rather, cared but didn't want to go close. Feel free to if you wish." He chuckled with a weird, hoarse voice. "We... they don't have many visitors there."

"That I will do, thanks... um, who are you anyways?"

"De... voted. Yes, I'm just devoted to this place, sweety. I take care of the dead, one could say. But go, go inside sweet sugar. I'm sure they strive for a company like you out there."

Was she so good at laying, or did he simply did not cared? One way or another, he did not question her further. As she entered the fields of death, as she circled around various tombs of things that died in what would seem eons ago, she felt chills running down her spine. Eventually, she reached the center of this graveyard, in which a huge temple stood, surrounded by monumental statues of great skeletons, holding candles and other useless contraptions.

"Someone compensated for something." She giggled. "Not sure why, but..."

As she took a glimpse, the shrine looked even bigger on the inside. The numerous carvings on the walls indicated that this was the right place. The further she went, the more she saw and what she saw, amazed her. This place was like a riddle and she liked mysteries, since she was so good at unraveling them. In the middle of all that, a stone altar stood and two emeralds inside of it, looking at her almost menacingly. It also had two sculptures, resembling hands with eyes in their palms. Inside of them, there was a circle that looked like a convoluted spine.

"That's not freaky at all. Nope."

She sighted and began her preparations. All the scrolls, the books and the devices she brought with herself, now were meant to show their usefulness. She started with the basic incantations, even though she hardly believed in magic to work. Most of the time.

"Ra-da-ere-maae!" She screamed, but nothing happened. The stone remained in it's place. "Of course it does not work. It never does!"

As her next try, she took one of the books and a piece of chalk, drawing exactly what the pages told her to draw. But ever after some more incantations, it presented to be futile.

"Why am I even trying that. This is nonsense! Screw magic! Time for science!"

But the other methods failed her as well. No matter how many things she poured on the stone, how many devices she attached to it. It all failed. All the magnets, drills, clever mixtures of survey and measuring tools, even the usage of leaf and square. Nothing.

"Bullgunk! Nothing seems to work. Why... What am I missing here... I thought I were prepared enough for this, think Bonnibel, think!..."

She thought further. Thought so much that her head began to hurt. But as she was considering to just punch and kick the thing until it will eventually work, as violence is sometimes the answer, she heard some rumbling around the entrance. Soon a small, brown figurine descended through the frame, landing gracefully on it's fours. It was a rather odd looking fellow. A lion, but with wings, and something that looked like a human head with a lot of facial hair. His little green constantly twitched. He seemed to be quite proud of himself, as he flew towards her. It dropped a small package by her legs and coughed.

"The one that goes by the name of Peppermint sent me to give you this. It's such a shame, from servitude within the grasp of one lunatic to another. SHAME!"

"What's... Why?"

The thing shrugged and after that closed and opened it's eyes several times. He looked like as if he was disgusted by her very presence.

"He said you'll figure. I would assume just that. Now my bounds are set off by my motion. This is no longer my prison. I shall departure from you, you little pitiful thing."

"Um... Bye?"

"You, you are the real brave one." The manticore muttered to himself. "As I am just but a spark, lingering in this world with events set in motion, a creature that lives and just lives, not thinking beyond living. You, you are the brave one, struggling against the lord of darkness deep within your head, who's craving through the walls of your mind... MY PRISON IS STILL SHAME!"

The creature disappeared in a puff of smoke. Bubblegum just looked at the things the fiend brought her. A scroll with a simple spell. The one that was meant to open those certain doors.

"Still trying to babysit me, huh?" She sighted. "Thanks..."

The next object the monster brought to her was more enigmatic. It looked like a nicely graveled pendant, that shimmered in numerous colors. It's destination was unknown however. She just put it on her neck, figuring out that whatever purpose it holds, it will reveal itself in times of need.

"Right. Let's see what Peppermint cooked up for me."

She read the scroll out loud. To her, those were just random letters and words. When she finished, the circle started to glow around and water-like wall with numerous reflections appeared inside the stone frames.

"Wunderbar! It worked! " She paused and shook her head. "I need a friend..."

Taking a deep breath, she went through the portal. Bleached out colors sprout all around, blooming and passing by, as her body drifted around in vague and mysterious space. Eventually she was cast out on the other side. As she stood up, dazzled a bit, she looked around the place. The walls seemed to be made of bones, with a mixture of something that looked like flesh.

"Cute..."