Chapter 31: Abadeer's Legacy

Peppermint Butler had sold his soul to the harbingers of death. He had done it at a young age and, upon reflection, the little candy man had realized that it had been a huge mistake. True, it had given him the power to cross the bridge between worlds, but he hadn't read the fine print. When he had sold his soul to the Cosmic Owl, Ghost King, Death, and Hunson Abadeer, he'd done it without hesitation or remorse. He'd signed his name, his life, his very existence to these beings. Soon after, he realized he'd done it all so he could be their personal servant. To wait upon them whenever need be.

Now, his soul had been divvied between three common place rulers of the dead, and a Demon King of torture and ruin. The Cosmic owl and Ghost King rarely called upon his services. And as for Death, he treated Peppermint Butler as an equal, a friend, a companion in a realm of the dead, rather than a servant. Sure, he brought the skull tea and whatever else he desired, but he was treated with dignity and respect.

Hunson Abadeer was a horrible being. Dragging him around as his caddy in golf games, kicking him, terrifying him, and making him get food and beverage and demon women and all sorts of terrible and unmentionable things. Peppermint Butler was a good man. However, soul very much sold, the essence of each ruler of death rubbed off on him. And Hunson Abadeer was very much evil, very much cruel, and very much a demon. Suffice to say, when Peppermint Butler was at home waiting upon his princess, he was glad to be free of the realm of the Night-O-Sphere. He didn't know that that realm would plague him for many years. He was beginning to get strange cravings, and he felt himself falling further and further into darkness. He was sure his aura would frighten anyone away.

Still, the little man was happy with his Princess. Reading to her and putting her to bed, doing all the things entrusted to him by the former King and Queen of the Candy Kingdom. All of that changed when, at five, the little princess went missing and returned with her. Peppermint Butler would have recognized that face anywhere. The face of demon. The face of a monster. The face of a cruel and heartless master and user. The face of Hunson Abadeer. Suffice to say Peppermint Butler was having none of that. There was no way he was going to let his foolish mistake corrupt the life of one of the sweetest candy people he'd ever met. He was entrusted with the safety of the Princess, ad he would do all in his power to ensure that the demon spawn floating before him would stay out of her life completely.

He most definitely did not expect the little princess to have taken so fondly to something so evil. Something that had come from his master. She was a vampire, for goodness sake! A blood-sucking, mischief-causing, ruffian and hooligan who would use any opportunity to take advantage of those weaker than herself. And in this realm of existence, in this world, everyone was weaker than her. Marceline the Vampire Queen, he scoffed at the title. Queen of what? A bunch of wild hungry, blood-starved animals that were locked away in cages. Demonic forces in case the Night-O-Sphere ever went to war. They were mindless, savage things with jutting angles and bones, teeth falling out of their skulls, saliva dripping in front of them. Fingers too long and nails sharp clawed at the metal bars that kept them at bay. Rows and rows of them, leftovers from a crueler time and a crueler existence, lined a hall in the Night-O-Sphere. They were filthy animals who needed to be put down and this Queen, no matter how intelligent, deserved to go down with him.

His anger seethed as the beast returned time and time again. How dare she interact with Princess Bubblegum? She was a monster. She should be chased down and tied to a post to burn in the sun. He didn't much pay attention that the Vampire Queen came so consistently at the Princess' insistence. For all he knew, she could have brainwashed the little one into these thoughts and feelings. After all, she could do such things.

She had the nerve to defile the Princess. He ground his teeth in disgust of her as he entered the room slowly, not caring to notice how happy Bubblegum was or how she seemed to float along on a cloud of joy. "Hello, miss. Are you all right? I thought I heard strange noises last night…was that ruffian here?" He could only imagine what that monster had done to his young princess. If Hunson Abadeer was anything to go by, he was lucky Bubblegum was alive at all and not disemboweled and dead on her bed.

Bubblegum scowled, her cheeks reddening slightly. "I am fine, Peppermint. And how many times must I tell you not to call Marceline names? Besides, she wasn't here last night. Now if you'll excuse me, I must get ready. I'll be down in a bit."

He knew she was lying. He could sense her essence in the room, on the princess. It was evil. It permeated through the walls and through the floors and through souls, just as Abadeer had done to him. While he hated to see his princess upset, he couldn't help but inwardly scoff at her taking to the creature. A creature, she was, and nothing more. Nothing more. Nothing more. He couldn't tell if he wanted to yell it out, or if he was convincing himself. Still, sticking true to his duty, he said, "Yes, Princess…but be careful. Your people might not take too kindly to one of her kind being close to their princess." And he scurried out the room.

Again, she had come in late, too late for the princess, and he was determined to shoo her away. She had floated in like she owned the place, and he was none too pleased. "Excuse me!" He hollered with venom at the floating girl, "And where do you think you're going?" he seethed, stepping in front of her.

"To see Bubblegum, okay? Don't play dumb, Peppermint, you know why I'm here." She replied with a sigh.

He puffed up his little chest. "Yes! Yes I know why you're here, Marceline Abadeer! You're here to take advantage of her! You are nothing but a demon's spawn and a creature only worthy of being put down!"

Marceline growled low in her throat. "Look, Peppermint, that isn't even my last name! I don't know what you're issue is with me but-"

"Issue?" He yelled, "Issue? You're a blood sucking demon! A monster! You're over a thousand years old and have killed and maimed hundreds no doubt! And if that weren't issue enough, you're your father's daughter! His legacy!"

Marceline's eyes flared red briefly. She was trying to keep her temper. "So all this amounts to my Father then? You hate me for him? Awfully biased of you, Peppermint." She spat, "After all, we all aren't like our parents. I could have told him of you and he could have called you away to serve him for eternity. To torture you for eternity. To do whatever he pleased. But no. So tell me, Peppermint, what have I ever done to you? To the Princess? I've done nothing wrong. Now let me pass."

"Absolutely not! Nothing good could ever come of Hunson Abadeer! Besides, it is far too late and you may not see the Princess now!" He yelled, blocking out the fact that she could have indeed done that, and hadn't for all these years.

Marceline lost her temper, as usual. Flaring up and hair flying wildly, Marceline exclaimed, "Look buddy! I've just come back from a tough few days in the lumping Night-O-Sphere, okay? I told Bonni I'd be here today and she'll be up, now let me pass little man!"

Peppermint puffed up a little. "I know what you savage things are like! You most certainly will not be seeing her Highness tonight! Come back tomorrow morning! When the sun can burn the rest of life right out of you!"

This made Marceline furious, though she held back a transformation. "IT isn't like I need your permission now do I?" Marceline's voice echoed inexplicably ominously through the hall, sending chills up both Peppermint and Bubblegum's spines. Marceline floated up, curling over the much shorter man in front of her. "Let me pass. Now." She demanded threateningly. Peppermint gulped audibly.

"F-fine!" The candy man said, and let Marceline pass.

He hadn't known the Princess had eavesdropped that night. He hadn't known what it would lead her to. The demon had gone. He was happy. Bubblegum should have been happy as well. It was the right thing. The good thing. Wasn't it? He heard a yell and a loud thump coming from the Princess room and Peppermint Butler went running into her room, fearing the worst. Fearing the vengeance of a monster upon his princess. He found a fuming Bubblegum staring at a book that lay next to the door. "Princess?" The man asked cautiously.

"This book! Who wrote it! Where does the information come from! Tell me right now, Peppermint!" She yelled at the little man.

He shied back slightly, having never seen the princess angry at anything before like she was now. "It-it-it's widely regarded as the truth by Ooo." That was right. It was regarded as truth, and he had never seen anything or heard anything to contradict it.

She jumped on his words. "Regarded as the truth? Regarded as the truth? What the lump does that mean!"

He backed further away from the girl, who had taken a few menacing steps towards him. "W-Well I believe m-most of it to be h-he-hear-hearsay, Princess." He stammered out the word, fearing the wrath of his master for the first time in her life.

As he should have. Bubblegum exploded. "Hearsay? Hearsay? You're telling me that all the information we have on this is hearsayand regarded as the truth? It's a lumping gossip rag! Why was this sinister thing sitting in the non-fiction history section, Peppermint! Who in the name of Ooo put it there! Tell me right now so I can have them banished or strung up or something! Tell me!" She grabbed at the small man's collar and raised him high of the floor to face-level.

"I-I-I don't kn-know, Princess! Honestly! I-It's a-a-always been there!" He managed. She dropped him to the floor and threw the book at him.

"Take this filth and get out of my chambers!" she yelled at him. He scampered away with the book and she slammed the door behind him.

For six months the Princess was so sad and lost. Peppermint wondered if the banishment of Marceline really was for the best.

It had been years since he had seen the Princess so happy. She was always smiling and seemed to float from room to room. He wondered why and, acting out of turn for once, he had asked.

"Just an old friend, Peppermint." Came the princess' vague reply. But he knew then and there that the old friend was Marceline. He'd heard she was back in town for several years now, he just supposed that they had made up or some such. He felt so happy for his princess. Perhaps the vampire wasn't so bad after all. Still, he couldn't decide if he approved or not.

Hunson Abadeer had called for him. "I heard through the grape vine that you have been causing my daughter much discomfort in Ooo."

Peppermint ground his teeth at the patronizing tone. Hunson Abadeer may well be several thousand years old, but Peppermint was no child, nonetheless. "This is true, sir." He gritted.

The demon looked at him hard for a few moments. "Know that she is nothing like me, then." He said flippantly, and Peppermint found himself back in the Candy Kingdom an instant later.

When the announcement was made, and he saw the look of love and adoration on Marceline's face directed at the Princess, he decided that Hunson Abadeer may have been right after all. And that while the man may have been the stuff of nightmares, Marceline the Vampire Queen was the stuff of his Princess' dreams. And that was good enough for him.

A/N

Peppermint's chapter. The Abadeer/Peppermint/Marceline dynamic was requested by Blue Larva and That Weirdo. Pretty satisfied with it, actually. May I just say, thank you for all the reviews and suggestions and love. It means a lot, particularly throughout my sporadic updates. Thank you all so much.

-JD