Disclaimer: I do not own Adventure Time.
Finn sighed, gently pushing open the door to his room. He had sent that talking cat away and now he could finally think in peace. Unfortunately he couldn't think on an empty stomach. He hadn't eaten since... since he'd last seen Prince Gumball.
Goodness. That seemed like so long ago. The boy paused for a moment; he wouldn't deny that he missed the prince. He didn't miss the way the red-head would assume that the world and everything in it was his but he did miss some of the quieter moments. Times when the prince was kind and would sit and stare at Finn as if he were a priceless jem. Finn blushed just thinking about it before shaking his head. He was no damsel; he would not let himself be wooed by a man who thought of him as nothing more than a prize. He sighed. Back to the task at hand.
Finn looked around the hallway, luckily finding it empty. He smiled and stepped out of the room, tattered satchel held close. The crown hummed softly and Finn found himself running his fingers across the crown through the bag. He relaxed slightly and moved as silently as he could through the hallways. The castle was like a maze and each hallway looked exactly like the last. He tried to remember which way he had taken when the Ice King had led him to his room but still ended up lost. He huffed slightly and turned another random corner. He froze staring at the sight before him. There were two women kissing against one of the walls in the hallway. Two women. He'd heard of relationships between men and men and women and women but he had never actually seen it. It was surprisingly relaxing to see these women kissing so openly. To know that maybe, just maybe, he could be accepted here. He cleared his throat; not to catch the women's attention but to breathe at the sudden weight that had been lifted off his chest. Still their attention turned to him. One of the women had pink hair and soft pink skin and was blushing brightly, trying to release herself from her dark haired lover. The dark haired woman smiled revealing fangs and pulled the pink woman closer.
"You are the Master's guest?" The dark haired woman spoke, her red eyes never leaving Finn's face. The blonde flushed under the intense scrutiny and coughed.
"Prisoner, really." He saw something flash in the dark haired woman's gaze. Sadness? Regret? He didn't know and it was gone before he had the chance to figure out what it was. The dark haired woman, he was pretty sure she was a vampire what with the teeth and red eyes and seemingly dead skin, smirked at him and released her girlfriend. The pink woman straightened her dress before looking up at Finn.
"I'm sure you'll come around, the Master's not all that bad." Finn rolled his eyes but kept his mouth closed. He didn't want to get into a debate over how nice the Ice King could be.
"You wouldn't happen to know where the kitchen is, would you?" The grin the dark haired woman gave Finn made him shiver.
"Come on, BMO. It's time for bed." BMO pouted but left his toys to get into bed.
"But I'm not sleepy Momma." Tree Trunks sighed as she tucked BMO into bed. The boy smiled sleepily up at her and Tree Trunks pressed a kiss to his head.
"Yes you are. Off to bed." BMO shut his eyes, knowing better than to try and fight his mother on this. The woman gently shut the door behind herself as she stepped out of her and her son's bedroom in the servant's quarters. She made her way off to the kitchens, rubbing her neck tiredly. There were still dishes to clean after the large banquet she had prepared. The one that had been unattended. She huffed, all that work and no one had even tried her food. She had ended up handing out the meal to the people in the lower parts of the citadel, knowing that food was scarce in this freezing cold. As soon as she entered the kitchen she spotted Flame standing next to one of the cooks. His face was a mask of indifference but the woman could see the soft fear in his eyes. She pulled the mage over from his conversation, concern filling her.
"Flame? Is everything alright?" The mage sighed and Tree Trunks was suddenly hit with how old the man looked. The weary lines in his face and eyes were out of place on the young man's face. He had only come of age a few years ago and already he looked as old as her.
"The rose. I- it- there are only one or two petals left. It will have wilted in a few days' time and we are nowhere near finding someone to love the Ice King or having our guest love him." Tree Trunks took in a sharp breath. She had not known things were that bad.
"What can we do?" Flame sighed and ran a hand down the side of his face.
"I don't know. What will the king do? What about the people? There are some who don't care, they love the magic the curse has granted them. Others are waiting for the day they are free. The citadel has become a beacon of hope for those with magic to flee to. If we change things back what will happen to them?" Tree Trunks nodded. While she had been at the castle since the very beginning when the curse had been cast, there were many in the castle and citadel who had migrated there over the years. She remembered Flame's own family, who had fled to the citadel after being forced from their home in the eastern mountains. Even her son was a result of the curse. A young boy with no home and nowhere to go, she had taken him in as her own. She loved BMO more than life itself but would he be allowed to stay if he wasn't human? Flame seemed to sense her distress and placed a hand on the woman's shoulder.
"I'm sorry, I did not mean to worry you." Tree Trunks shook her head and smiled.
"No need to be sorry. Now we have work to do." Flame groaned but trailed after the green skinned woman none the less.
Finn sighed as he followed the two women, Marceline and Bonnibelle he had learned, through the castle. They conversed quietly in a language he could not understand and that only served to add to his agitation. He huffed softly and his hand sought out the crown from the outside of his bag. As soon as his fingers brushed across the crown his annoyance subsided and calmness washed over him. Marceline seemed to notice his sudden change in mood as the vampire turned around to look at him. He gave her a calm smile as she floated in place and the frown on her face deepened. Bonniebelle gave him a confused look from her place next to Marceline and Finn almost felt concerned before calm washed over him again. His fingers dragged lazily over the outline of the crown through his bag and Marceline's eyes snapped towards the movement.
"What's that?" Finn pulled the bag closer to him, eyes narrowing.
"Nothing. It's not for you." A dark gleam entered the vampire's eyes and she lunged forward. Finn immediately rolled out of the woman's way, pulling the bag to his chest tightly. Bonnibelle cried out for her lover to stop but Marceline ignored the other woman. She launched herself at Fionna again, this time managing to scratch the girl's cheek. Finn cried out and a sudden cold swept over the hall. The two women froze, looking around for the Ice King while Finn mumbled thanks to the crown. It pulsed slightly and Finn nodded, before running off while the others were distracted. He ran as fast as he could, ignoring the servants he passed and going where the crown directed him. He finally came upon a large set of wooden doors and shoved them open at the crown's request. He shut them behind himself and slid down the doors in exhaustion. The crown gave a small cry and Finn pulled the golden object out of his bag.
"Thank you." The crown preened and Finn pressed a soft kiss to its face. They sat in silence, the crown letting out calming soft trills now and then. Finn finally looked up to see where he was. Another long corridor stretched before him, this one however had frost scattered about in random places along the walls, ceiling, and floor. There were patches of ice along the floor that the boy slipped on every now and then. There were more sculptures in this hallway and Finn smiled at a few of them. They were so beautiful. He walked to the end of the hall and stared up at the large open doorway. He poked his head into the room only to freeze, almost literally. It was snowing inside the room as the boy looked around. He cautiously stepped into the room, feet making tracks in the snow. The room was modest, with few personal artifacts but there was no doubt that this was the Ice King's room.
Finn had pushed himself halfway through the room before a soft groan stopped him. He looked over towards the bed, eyes widening as he realized that the Ice King was resting under the mound of snow covered blankets. He finally reached the bed and looked down at the man who had terrified him not hours ago. The Ice King looked so peaceful in his sleep, scowl gone and face seemingly soft. Would it be hard like cold marble or soft like fresh snow? The urge to find out overpowered him and Finn ran a gentle hand down the Ice King's cheek. It was soft though chilled like ice. The man snuggled closer to his hand and Finn smiled brightly. His hand moved upwards, burying itself in the man's white hair. It was so soft, Finn could hardly believe it. His fingers moved deftly, carding through the man's hair and massaging his scalp. Finn's eyes glazed over as he smiled down at the Ice King, hand still moving.
Ice King groaned softly and his eyes flickered open. He hadn't slept that well in ages and that was only supposed to be a short nap. He felt a hand moving through his hair and assumed Tree Trunks had come to check on him. The woman had been like a mother to him and always comforted him when he was ill or sad and always managed to calm him down. He opened his eyes, expecting to see his surrogate mother. Instead it was Fionna who was running her fingers through his hair, soft smile in place. The man sat up, dislodging the fingers and waking the girl from her trance. It would have been wonderful, this sudden show of affection, if the Ice King had better control over his temper.
"What are you doing here?" Finn flinched at the man's harsh tone. He backed away from the man, scooting back into the snow.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean any harm." Ice King growled and the girl flinched once more. How dare she come into his rooms!
"I told you not to go into the West Wing!" Ice King reached out, hand grabbing the girl.
"Let me go! Let me go!" She let out a scream and Ice King reflexively released her. He watched in horror as her skin blackened where he had touched her. The girl cradled her worsening arm, whimpering, as she scrambled away from the Ice King.
"I'm sorry I-" Before he could finish the girl had already fled.
A/N: Alright I finally got my life together and will actually be making updates. I'm sorry for how late this is and will endeavor to make regular updates.