The sun hadn't even set when I heard a pounding on my door.
"MARSHALL! MARSHALL LEE YOU COME HERE AND OPEN THIS DOOR THIS INSTANT!"

It was Fionna. And if my intuition served me right she wasn't happy. I rolled out of bed, threw on some jeans and a t-shirt, and floated downstairs. Fionna continued to yell and pound on the door. What in Aaa is she so pissed off about? I wondered. I shrugged as I floated across the living room towards the door.

I opened it to see a fuming Fionna on my doorstep. I floated backwards a bit as she marched inside. She slammed the door behind her.

"You...You..." She was shaking she was so angry.

"Use your words, Fi."

"You...You Jerkwad!" Fionna exclaimed. She swung her fist at my face, but I caught her wrist. I pinned it against the door next to her head.

"You wanna try that again, sweetheart?"

Fionna glared straight into my eyes."Let. Me. Go."
"Not if you're going to try and punch me again, Little Bunny." I always enjoyed taunting Fionna with cutesy nicknames, especially when she was angry.
"After what you did to Flame Prince?! Of course I'm going to punch you!"

Wait. What?

I have to admit that statement flat out shocked me. "What I did to Flame Prince? Fionna, what about what he did to you?"
"It was just a burn!"
"Yeah! Just! Do you realize what would have happened to you if you had jumped back a moment later after that first burst? He would have burned you alive!"
"But he didn't! He doesn't mean it, Marshall! Why don't you and Gumball get that!"

I was almost speechless. Almost. Did she seriously not get it?
"Fionna," I said as calmly as I could. "Whenever he burns you, whenever you get hurt, what does he say to you? Afterwords?"
Her aggressive posture relaxed slightly, and she looked away from me. "I don't know. He says he's sorry. He says he didn't mean it. Stuff like that."

"Y'know, somebody smart told me once that if somebody apologizes, but makes no effort to make sure it doesn't happen again, they don't really mean it."
"I know, but-"
"No buts, Fi." She looked at me. I sighed, and released my hold on her.

"Look, ok? This guy, he's got problems. He's controlling, possessive, and has some major anger issues. You deserve better than that."
"I know..."

"So why do you put up with him?" I seriously couldn't understand this. It seemed simple to me. Dude's got issues and treats her like glop, so don't put up with him. Simple. Then again, Fionna tended to be anything but simple.

"I...I don't know," she stuttered. "I guess it's because...because I love him, and because I hoped he'd change. I hoped I could help him somehow."

I smiled. Now I understood. Or at least a little bit. Classic Fionna. "Look, Fi. I know you want to be everybody's hero, but some people...I don't know, some people just need more help, or maybe a different kind of help, than you can give them. And some people don't even want help. Sometimes we just have to accept that there's nothing we can do for them."
Fionna wiped her eyes as tears started to form. "I know, I just...I just wanted to help."
I carefully put my arms around her. "I know, Fi. But don't be so hard on yourself, ok? You didn't do anything wrong. He's just a total jerkwad."

Aaand cue the waterworks.

Yes, I was the Vampire King. Yes, I was half demon. Yes, I was the most powerful being in all of Aaa. But handling a crying girl, let alone a crying Fionna? I felt helpless. Fionna was one of the toughest people I knew (which, being familiar with the Nightosphere, is saying something) so seeing her in such a state was...unsettling.

Oh Glob, now what? I thought to myself. Do I say something? What am I supposed to say? Who am I kidding I'll just say something stupid and make it worse.

I looked down at Fionna, whose face was buried in my chest. I carefully lifted her into my lap as I began to float (I always found just floating to be quite relaxing, so I hoped it would help). I tightened my hold of her, bringing her even closer.

"Don't worry, Fi, he's not going to hurt you anymore. I promise."
"...Thanks Marshall..."

"Any time."