Author Note: This is the last chapter of my story. I don,t have much to say expect I love how this story turn out. This story called Princess Bubblegum and Marceline on there actions without bashing them. I like to thank Red Witch for inspiring me to make this story and MegLikesCookies who bring this story to life. Enjoy the last chapter and enjoy this story.

Chapter 4: Fire and Ice Cubes

Princess Bubblegum and Marceline were close on Finn's heels as they rushed through the castle's twisting hallways, doorways, and staircases, until they finally burst out into the cool evening. The sun had just dipped below the horizon, leaving them all squinting as their eyes struggled to adjust to the darkness. Their pace didn't slow for a moment as they ran, with Princess Bubblegum scanning the area in search of any sign as to where Ice King and the egg may have gone. They couldn't have been too far ahead, but… Where were they?

Finally, she spotted some bright bits of orange shell on the road. She skidded to a stop, glancing down the alley between two buildings to find the rest of the still-slick shell on the ground. Not far from it were clawed, reptilian footprints in the soil, as if something had attempted to take flight from that spot. The Princess quickly looked up to the sky, as a weak bellow from a distance away met her ears. Apparently, it had succeeded in taking off.

"Hey, wait up!" Bubblegum called out to the other two, rushing up to match their pace before grabbing Marceline's arm and pointing toward something big and dark flying over the wall separating the Candy Kingdom from the outside world. The dragon.

"Quick, head for the main gate! They're getting away!" Bubblegum called, gesturing for them to follow her as she took off down another pathway. "This way, it's faster!"

Without question, Finn and Marceline took off after her.

After they got out of the gate, they all slowed to a stop. Bubblegum was panting hard, but kept her eyes fixed to the skies as she began pacing frantically on the spot.

"Where are they? I can't see them anywhere!" Marceline hissed between gasps. Finn would have had to agree; he couldn't see any trace of them.

"He probably went toward the Ice Kingdom. Unless… What if he's taking it to the forest to hide it? But, we can't check both. If we're wrong, then…" Bubblegum trailed off, anxiously raking a hand through her hair, "We could split up, but pitting only one of us against Simon and a dragon? That wouldn't work!"

Before anyone could reply to that, Finn straightened up. "… Do you guys hear that?" He asked. Rhythmic thudding reached their ears from… somewhere nearby. It wasn't wing beats. It sounded more like… footsteps?

"Hey! Guys?! What's goin' on?" A voice echoed, from the same source as the footsteps. Finn turned quickly, searching for whoever it was. Soon, he spotted Jake running toward them from the general direction of Lady Ranicorn's house.

"Jake!" He sighed in relief. He and the girls rushed out to meet Jake halfway, and as soon as he was within earshot, Finn explained in a rush, "Dude, we need help! I took Simon to the castle, and the egg started hatching, and then he just snatched it and now he's gone! We gotta get it away from him before he turns it into a dragocicle, or worse!" He paused, taking a wheezing breath, "But, first, we've gotta find him! Did you see him on your way over?"

"No, no, but I heard him hollering! That's why I came runnin'! Hold on, hold on, I think I can find him." Jake said, standing up a bit taller as he shut his eyes. As a strong wind blew by, Jake sniffed the air deeply, apparently focusing on whatever scent he found. Finally, his eyes flew open and he pointed off toward the hills, announcing, "He went that way, toward the river! He's REALLY sweaty, and possibly on fire!"

Marceline glanced off in that direction, then gave a swift nod as she scooped up Princess Bubblegum naturally. "C'mon, let's go! No time to lose!" She said, pushing off hard and flying off. Finn started to run after them, but before he could get far, he felt Jake pluck him off the ground and plop him onto his back.

"Hold on tight, buddy!" He called, stretching his legs out as he charged after the girls. Much faster.

Within a few short minutes of riding with Jake's guidance, the group caught sight of the Ice King. He was down in a valley, not far from the river, cowering behind a little wall of ice with his back to the approaching team. Behind that wall, Finn could just make out something big and very purple spitting a weak stream of flames at the ice, slowly melting it. The four of them slowed to a stop a safe distance away, allowing Bubblegum and Finn to quietly hop to the ground. The Princess gingerly edged around to get a better look at the purple dragon, and seemed relieved as she softly murmured, "Oh, thank glob, she's okay. It looks like she managed to hatch fine."

The fire slowed to a stop as the dragon's head turned at the sound of her voice. Finn's hand reflexively flew to his sword in his backpack as the dragon took a step toward her; its yellow eyes fixed to the Princess. Er… at least, one of its eyes did. The other one just seemed to laze around and look at whatever it wanted.

"Finn, wait!" Bubblegum gasped, grabbing his arm to hold him back. "It's okay, she won't hurt me! Just, trust me, alright?"

Begrudgingly, Finn stepped back and left his sword in his bag. Not that he let his guard down, of course. He kept a close eye on them as the dragon stepped in closer on its shaky little legs. Being a freshly-hatched baby, it was barely taller than she was, but despite that, it was still big enough to make Finn sweat. It tilted its head this way and that, blinking slowly as it examined her. The Princess smiled, slowly offering it her hand. "Hello, beautiful." She cooed, wiggling her fingers.

Before she could touch the beast, however, a blue blur staggered between them. Ice King pushed the dragon away from her, yelling, "Hey, don't touch it! The dragon is mine!"

Princess Bubblegum seemed stunned into silence. The dragon stepped away from him in repulsion, letting out a snort of annoyance. Though, as its tongue flicked out of its mouth, it seemed clear that it was resisting the urge to flambé him as it looked between the back of his head and Bubblegum's face. Finally, she scoffed, "Uh. No, she's most certainly not yours."

Jake stepped up behind her, crossing his arms sternly as he added, "Yeah, we've been working on hatchin' that thing for weeks, dude! Step off."

"So? The dragon is mine now, and there's nothing you can do about it! And she likes me~!" He said, grinning as he reached back to rub the dragon's snout. It hissed and nipped at his hand, but missed by a hair's breath. He retracted the appendage, chuckling, "Ooh! Heh, well, she sure is feisty… She's gonna be great at helpin' me keep princesses!"

Marceline let out a long groan, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Simon, come on. You're not being serious, right? You know that you can't keep princesses against their will. Or anybody, for that matter! We've been over this, dude."

He scoffed, folding his arms across his chest as he practically pouted, "Why not? That's what Princess Bubblegum does. She has hundreds of sugar-persons, and they're all in her kingdom all the time! And I bet they're all against whoever Will is, too!"

Princess Bubblegum laughed sharply, glancing behind him as the dragon stepped back further from him, gently lowering itself onto the grass a good distance away. It kept its eye trained on the action, though, as Bubblegum spat back, "I don't force anybody to stay in the Candy Kingdom! The Candy People are free to come and go as they please. I don't keep them in friggin' cages or whatever!"

Finn and Jake traded looks. Quietly, Jake asked, "… Wait, they can leave? I haven't ever, uh… really seen anyone take advantage of that. I just figured they, uh… weren't supposed to."

The Princess's cheeks grew noticeably pinker. "Of course they're allowed to leave. I do… discourage it, of course, but I won't throw them in jail for trying to go on a walk or anything. You know how naïve and fragile they can be! So, I mean, it isn't exactly safe for them to go out on midnight strolls, you know?" She said, glancing over to the smugly grinning Ice King. Bubblegum cleared her throat awkwardly, "Maybe now isn't the time for that kinda stuff."

"Ohoho, no way, Princess! You ain't gettin' out of this!" He said, rubbing his hands together. "Finn, you were right about what you said earlier! Bubblegum is a totally control-freak!"

Princess Bubblegum's mouth fell open as she turned to give Finn a look. He looked away quickly, his face flushed down to his neck as the Ice King continued, "You know what, Princess? You're getting mad at me for keeping this iguana, but I know that you were planning on keeping it for yourself! Usin' it for conquering new lands and stuff, probably. Right, Finn?"

She was positively fuchsia by now, her hands balled into fists at her sides as she struggled to formulate a response. But, before she could get a word out, Marceline quickly floated between the two and said, "Okay, both of you need to calm down! Simon, no one is going to keep the dragon, okay?" She said, letting out a confused laugh, "Finn wouldn't say that. Come on, do you really think that Bubblegum would do something like that?"

Finn sighed heavily, rubbing his neck as he mumbled, "No, but… She was going to keep it to, uhm… protect the kingdom?"

Both of the girls looked back at him. Marceline made a face, "Dude, no. Why would you-?"

"He's right, Marceline." Bubblegum cut in, her tone as flat and unreadable as her expression. "He's right. For a while, I was thinking about, maybe… keeping the dragon. I thought that, if I could tame her, maybe she could help keep the kingdom safe."

Marceline seemed dumbfounded. "… What?! Bonnie, you have Finn and Jake! The Banana Guards! The Gumball Guardians! Why would you think you need a dragon?!"

Bubblegum winced, looking at the ground. "It was a stupid idea, okay?! For a while, I felt like I-…" She paused, looking back at Finn, before quietly mumbling, "… I felt like I couldn't trust Finn."

"That doesn't make it okay! It's one thing to keep an eye on the people you made, but her?" Marceline cried, gesturing toward the dragon. It blinked at her, tilting its head. "Look at her! If you kept her locked up in the castle, it would mess her up so bad. We don't know anything about what she might grow to be!"

Bubblegum clasped her hands together tightly in front of herself, and focused her attention on her laced fingers as she struggled to think of a way to respond. Marceline let out a soft sigh, shaking her head as she glided away from the Princess. As she turned away, she found her gaze settle on the dragon.

Marceline thought for a moment, then gently outstretched her arm toward it as she drew near. The dragon examined her for a moment, then, apprehensively, leaned forward to smell her hand. Marceline smile slightly, letting out a soft sigh. "… Look at her. She's so calm, even though we're out here screaming at each other." She murmured. Apparently, it deemed that her scent was acceptable, as it soon lowered its snout for her to stroke. She grinned widely, gently rubbing its scales with her fingertips.

"You guys have to let her go free." She said, "It's the only way she can grow up healthy and happy. She'll find her people, and…"

"And then you'll all feel better! It isn't good to bottle stuff up. You just gotta, like, let that stuff go!" Ice King said, nodding knowingly. All four of them stared at him blankly, and were all equally confused. He chuckled nervously, "… What? Isn't that what we were talking about…?"

"… Uh. No. But, I mean… if the shoe fits." Marceline said with a shrug. She turned her attention back to the dragon, folding her legs under herself as she slowly floated down to sit on the grass. Its head followed her down, resting on her lap after she settled down.

Princess Bubblegum slowly stepped toward the two of them, her hands still clasped in front of her as she sucked in a slow breath. "… You're right, Marceline. I can't keep her. I won't. That'd be an awful thing to do to her. To anyone." She said, bending down to pat the dragon's long neck. It let out a soft purr, and she finally cracked a smile as she arranged her skirt to sit down beside Marceline.

The vampire looked up, flashing a grin to the remainder of the group. "… Well, don't just stand there. Do you guys wanna miss out on petting a freakin' dragon?" She called.

Jake seemed to like that idea, treading over the soft grass to stand beside the beast. After a brief moment of deliberation, he gently sat down beside it. "Alrighty, pleeeaaase don't bite my head off, pretty lady…" He mumbled nervously, slooowly leaning back against the dragon's scaled side. It didn't even budge, letting out a soft breath as he snuggled up next to it. "… Heh, she's a little cold. I guess I can let you leach off me for a while..."

"Man, that looks good!" Ice King giggled, scampering down to the dragon's rear-end and lying down in the curl of its tail. The dragon snorted in discomfort, kicking him just a bit to push his cold body away from its legs. He giggled obliviously, "Hey, no tickling, missy!"

"Come on, Finn, this thing's comfier as a sack of marshmellows!" Jake called, gesturing for Finn to join them. Hesitantly, the human came closer and finally sat between Marceline and the Ice King. He kept his eyes fixed to the dragon's spiny back in front of him, giving it a few gentle pets as a peace-offering.

Princess Bubblegum pulled her gaze away from her hands, instead looking over at Finn. "… Hey, Finn?" She asked softly. Finn looked up quickly, and she could tell from the tension in his shoulders that he was worried about what she was going to say. She took a breath, then asked, "Did you, uh… really say that I was a control-freak? Like Ice King said?"

Finn winced, gesturing vaguely as he stammered, "I-I… I mean, that's really harsh. I wouldn't… say that-"

"Mmm, but you did, thoooough." Ice King said sing-songily. Finn shot him a look, but Ice King went on anyway, "You know, earlier today, when you came over? You were talkin' about how Marceline was projecting stuff about ashes on you, and you agreed with me about how mean PB and the other princesses are! And then, on the way here, you were telling about how much of a control-freak she is, and the dragon thing, and how sometimes she's a huge b-"

Finn quickly leaned over and smacked a hand over the Ice King's mouth, laughing forcefully. "AHAHAHA, Simon! You're so! Funny! Such a funny joke!" He said, eyes wide as he looked between the girls. Obviously, neither of them bought that.

Princess Bubblegum sighed, her expression shifting to resignation as she said, "Finn, it's okay. … Well, maybe not that last one. But, the other stuff, I completely understand. I know that I can be mean, and bossy, and controlling. I haven't really been… myself lately."

"Bonnie, are you seriously going to let him talk about you like that?" Marceline asked sharply, looking between her and Finn. She did not look happy.

Bubblegum put her hand on Marceline's arm, rubbing it gently. "Come on, Marcy. He's well-within his rights to be upset with me. With both of us. Finn has been under a lot of stress, and… most of that is because of me." She said, her tone solemn as she looked down at the softly snoring dragon in Marceline's lap. "… I've been letting my pride get in the way of, ah… everything, pretty much. Do you remember that a while ago, Finn and Jake and I all got thrown into wizard jail? Just because I wouldn't just say two flippin' words! It doesn't matter if 'wizards rule' or not, I shouldn't have put my own pride before my friends safety. That was so… reckless, and flat-out stupid."

Marceline's expression had softened as Bubblegum spoke. With a more soothing tone, she said, "Bonnie, it's okay. Seriously, I do stuff like that all the time."

Bubblegum shook her head, "But, it isn't okay. I've been making Finn think that I don't want him around! A-a while ago, I told him that he couldn't ever handle a real relationship! What kind of friend does that? I keep saying and doing stupid, hurtful things, and I don't know why! I mean, yeah, of course I had reasons to be upset when Finn put people in danger, but he did his best to make up for it! I mean, I've put people in danger, too!" She said, glaring at her lap, "If I had just said, flat out, 'Hey, don't kiss Flame Princess or she'll explode!', everything would have been fine! But no, I put the whole world in danger because I couldn't figure out how to say it right!"

"Woah, woah, woah! Princess, it's okay!" Finn said quickly, his expression surprised and slightly relieved. "Seriously, I'm alright! I… I didn't know you were so messed up about that stuff. Look, I'm really sorry if I made you feel like garbage about that junk. I totally forgive you, dude."

"Finn, I really don't expect you to forgive me all that stuff. You don't have to pretend everything is okay if it isn't." She said gently.

"No, I'm not pretending! I'm not mad at you, seriously! I kinda like having you as my friend, Peebs, and I wouldn't throw that away for anything." He said, then gave her a little grin as he added, "If it makes you feel any better, you won't have to worry about Flame Princess stuff for a long while. I'm definitely taking a break from dating. N-not because of you or anything! I just, y'know… I'm not emotionally ready for all that stuff again. With anyone."

She nodded, some of the tension leaving her body. "Alright, that's… good. Thank you, Finn."

Marceline put her arm around Bubblegum, giving her a comforting squeeze. "Alright, that's enough of that sad junk. Everyone does stupid stuff sometimes, even super rational geeks like you. Seriously, Bonnie, you could ask anybody, and they'd tell you that you're almost always the most rational, level-headed person around."

Bubblegum relaxed into her touch, letting out a slow breath. "I know, I know… I just wish it wasn't 'almost always'. I lead an entire kingdom, you know? I can't afford to mess up."

Jake rested his chin on the dragon's side, piping up, "Everyone is allowed to make mistakes, my dude. I mean, I know that you might, uh, be able to blow us all up with certain science-y mistakes, but… other than that, it really doesn't matter too much. You can't be holding onto so many negative feelings. That stuff isn't good for anyone, especially yourself."

"Yeah! I mean, look at me!" Marceline laughed, "My whole life is a mistake, but I'm still cool as a cucumber!"

From the tail-end, Ice King giggled. "I think you're doing a pretty good job as king, Princess! Maybe even better than me!" He said, then paused for a moment. "… Well, maybe not that much better. I've never hatched a dragon, but I've hatched a bunch of penguin eggs! You can't top that."

Princess Bubblegum laughed softly, shaking her head. "Jeez, you guys are trying way too hard to cheer me up, I swear… "

"Yeah, but what else do we have to do? Save another dragon?" Marceline teased, poking her side. The Princess squeaked, swatting her hand away with a grin. Meanwhile, Finn looked away as he pretended not to notice that little display.

Marceline glanced over at him, then paused for a moment. "Hey, uh… Finn." She began, clearing her throat stiffly before going on, "I just wanted to say that, uh… I'm sorry about comparing you to Ash. That was really messed up of me. I think I just… wanted to be angry, you know?"

He blinked slowly, seeming to have frozen in shock. After a moment, he shook himself back to life and coughed, "… Wow. Uh… Yeah, it's totally okay. Well, it was messed up, yeah, but…" He chuckled softly, "I forgive you. Definitely."

The two shared a grin, and it seemed like Marceline was about to thank him for accepting her. Well, until Jake ruined the moment by blowing a raspberry into the air. "Oh, come on! You two haven't noticed him groveling at your feet for approval for weeks?"

Finn went a bit pink in the cheeks at that, but Marceline just grinned as she pushed him playfully. "Oh, you dork! Why would you beat yourself up over that junk? I'm the one who needed to get over myself. But, uh, maybe I'd have noticed you groveling at my feet if you grew a foot or two!"

"Hey! I'm not that short!" He laughed, pushing her in return.

"Dude, you're like, a foot shorter than me. You have no idea how hard it was to resist flipping you upside-down by your ankles when you were ragging on Bonnie and I back at the castle. Heck, I'm still considering it! Even shrimps don't get a free-pass on picking on my closest dude."

Bubblegum sniggered, "Your 'closest dude'? Man, Marcy, that's a weird way to put it."

Marceline's pale cheeks flushed pink as she looked away, shrugging it off as casually as she could manage. Jake giggled stupidly, hooting, "Someone's embarraaaased~!"

"Oh, shut up!" She grumbled, shoving him off of the dragon's side. Jake fell onto his back with a soft thud, laughing along with the rest of them.

The dragon whined softly, picking its head up to see why the source of its warmth moved. It blinked tiredly, watching Jake giggle on the grass as it shook the sleep out of its head. Finally, with a big yawn, the creature began attempting to push itself up to a standing position.

"Woah, give her some space, guys!" Bubblegum said, scooting back and standing up quickly. Everyone else followed her lead, letting the dragon have some room to rise to its feet. With a groan, it stretched its legs and wings out completely, showing off its full wingspan. At their angle, they could see the way its scales shimmered iridescently in the moonlight. Finn whistled in admiration, "Wow. She's so different from any other dragon I've ever seen. A lot smaller, too… But, still a good lizard."

Princess Bubblegum nodded, her expression just as soft as her tone as she said, "Yeah, she's definitely small. Though, she is a baby, so that should be expected…" She mused, "She must not be from this area. I haven't seen any other dragons like her, either… I hope she finds more of her kind out there."

Now down with its stretch-session, the dragon shifted its attention to Princess Bubblegum. It stepped in close, tilting its head to get a good look at her as she reached out to stroke the rough ridge of its brow. It seemed to enjoy that, as it shut its eyes while she smiled contentedly. Slowly, though, her happiness seemed to fade. "… I guess you're ready to go, yeah?" She said softly, pulling her hand away.

The dragon whined, leaning in to nuzzle her palm. She giggled softly, "No, no, I can't keep petting you forever. I'm sorry, sweetie… I can't keep you."

Finn and Jake traded expressions. Both of them were pained to see Bubblegum struggle, but knew that there was no other way to go about this. Finally, Marceline stepped forward and put her hand on Bubblegum's shoulder. "Come on, Bonnie. You've gotta step back and let her go. She won't leave until you do."

Princess Bubblegum sighed heavily, hesitating for a moment before nodding slowly and letting Marceline pull her away. The dragon followed her for a step or two, but seemed to get the hint as she shook her head. A low sort of purr emanated from its throat as it turned its attention turned toward the sky, sniffing the air and stretching out its wings as it prepared to take off.

"Be safe, okay?" Bubblegum said softly, a lump forming in her throat. "And, if you ever find yourself in the area, remember that you'll always be welcome to return. Just, be careful with the landing, okay? And-"

The Ice King cut her off with a loud groan, raising his hands in exasperation. "Oh, come on already! If I can't have the dragon, at least let me get back in time for my soaps!"

The dragon's wings twitched as the group gasped at the distinctive sound of Simon's ice-powers charging up.

"Woahwoah, Simon WAIT!" Finn shouted, diving to push the Ice King away from the dragon. He was just a little too far away to make it in time, and before he could lay a hand on him, the Ice King used his power to… launch a singular, small ice cube hit the dragon's rear-end. That's it. Nothing more, nothing less.

It seemed to have the intended effect, at least, as the dragon squeaked and jumped into the air with one powerful flap. If the Ice King hadn't already been on the ground from Finn's too-slow shove, then the blast of air from the dragon's wings would have put him there.

"Ice King! What the nuts, man?!" Princess Bubblegum shouted, rolling up her sleeves as she began charging over to smack the snot out of him. She didn't get far, though, as Marceline grabbed her arm tightly to hold her back.

"Wait. Bonnie, look." She said softly, pointing up at the sky. The Princess looked up, and it seemed as though all of her anger left her in an instant as she saw the dragon struggling to stay in the air.

Its wings flapped frantically as it fought to gain altitude, but seemed to realize quickly that it was better to slow down a bit and focus on powerful, smooth motion. After it found a good rhythm, it only took moments for it to rise far above their heads. With a victorious trill, it did a quick circle and then looked down to the people below.

"Goodbye, uh… Miss Dragon!" Ice King called, waving from his position on the ground. Princess Bubblegum waved as well, Finn noticed, as the beast turned its gaze toward the horizon and kicked its legs in the air. Its body tilted, and, almost gracefully, it headed off toward… who knows what. Bubblegum sniffled softly, and for a moment, Finn could have sworn she was tearing up.

For a long moment, all was still and quiet as they all watched the purple shape grow further and further away. The atmosphere was sober, and yet subtly, strangely… optimistic? As Finn glanced around, he took note of the fact that no one seemed as upset as he'd imagined they'd be. But, it was clear that they were all processing this development in their own way. … Other than Ice King. He was just lying on the grass, spacing out.

Beside him, Jake was definitely the most relaxed. Eventually, he broke the silence with a yawn and a stretch. "… Man! Was that exciting or what?" He asked with a grin, "Can you guys believe that I got to take a nap with a dragon?"

"… Mm, yeah, that was pretty cool." Marceline smiled back, kneeling down for a moment to help Ice King back up. After he was standing on his feet again, she added, "But not quite as cool as me taming it."

"That actually was rather brave, Marceline." Princess Bubblegum remarked, finally pulling her gaze away from where the dragon had been flying. "Despite being a hatchling, she still had a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth. If she wanted to, she could have taken your whole arm off."

Marceline snorted, waving her hand dismissively. Though, at the same time, the Ice King gave a nervous chuckle, glancing back at the slowly melting ice-wall he'd been hiding behind when they found him. After swallowing thickly, he said, "… It's a good thing she liked me, huh? I guess I'm just that charming!"

"… Eheh… Yeah. I guess so." Finn said sheepishly, pulling at his collar.

Ice King smiled proudly as he added, "Hey, speakin' of charisma, do you dudes wanna hang out after this?"

Finn and Jake both paused hesitantly, until they heard Marceline clear her throat sharply. Jake's ears twitched as he quickly said, "O-oh, yeah! For sure! At the tree house, or…?"

"Hmm… Well, I haven't cleaned up in a while, so… Yeah, the tree house! I'll race you guys there!"

"Uh… How about I let you guys get a head start? I gotta stretch first." Finn said with a pointed look to Jake, giving a subtle nod back to the girls. Jake's eyes flicked between him and them, then a silent understanding seemed to pass between them.

"Sure, sure. Don't take too long, dude." Jake said, dropping to all-fours and turning back to the Ice King. "Ready, IK?"

"Heheh, you know it, J-Dawg!" Ice King cackled happily, picking up the ends of his tunic as he ran off down the hill. Jake made a face of disgust at seeing his chicken-legs, but raced off after him anyway.

Finn waited until they were a good distance away before heaving a sigh of relief and turning to see what the girls were up to. The two were standing by the indentation in the grass where the dragon had been resting, both appearing content and relaxed as they spoke quietly.

As casually as he could manage, Finn approached them. When he was within a comfortable range, he cleared his throat to get their attention. Bubblegum and Marceline looked at him expectantly as he began, sheepishly, "So… We're all okay, right? Y'know, friendship-wise? No hard feelings?"

The two looked at each other, snorting to restraining a laugh. Bubblegum giggled softly as Marceline gently punched him in the arm. "Dude, relax. Yeah, everything is fine! We all traded our 'I'm sorry's and 'I love you's and all that junk. I thought we, like… just did that."

"… Well, I don't know if those were our exact words, but… I am really, really sorry about being so harsh lately, Finn. I shouldn't have doubted your loyalty for a moment." Princess Bubblegum said, smiling warmly. "The next time something like this happens, assuming it does, let's just… talk about stuff. Y'know, sit down and hash it out over tea and biscuits. No brooding, no yelling, no shoving matches. Alright?"

Finn laughed, rubbing his arm as his face burned. "Uh, sure! I mean, I'd probably just be in it for the biscuits, but… Yeah. I don't wanna go through this again. I'm sorry about all the stuff I said, and… the shoving match. Especially the shoving match by the egg."

"Don't worry about it, dude. I'm sure we'll have plenty of time to beat each other up later." Marceline said with an evil grin.

This got another laugh out of him as he said, "Y-yeah, definitely. Uh… So, if I didn't forget anything in the lab, I'm gonna head out. I gotta save Jake from Simon, so..."

Marceline grinned, stepping a bit closer to give him a quick noogie. "Alright, kid. Good luck. And take good care of Simon, alright?" She said, patting his shoulder before nudging him off.

"Heh, I gotcha, Marceline!" He called, taking a moment to readjust his hat before giving them a wave and heading off.

"Have a good night, Finn." Bubblegum giggled, waving back.

With a contended sigh, Bonnibel and Marcy turned to each other once more. Princess Bubblegum thought for a moment, then asked, "So… Wanna watch a movie back at the castle?"

Marceline seemed a bit surprised by the question, but quickly smiled. "Oh. It's been a while since we did that. But, uh, yeah! Sure! I'm down."

"… Mind flying me back?" She asked shyly, glancing between Marceline and the castle far off in the distance. "It'll be forever if we walk. Er, if I walk."

Marcy rolled her eyes, scooping the Princess up in one practiced motion. "Yeah, yeah, I gotcha. But, in return, I get to pick the movie."

"Fine, fiiiine… Can I pick the genre?" She asked, wrapping her arms around Marceline's neck to help support herself.

With a strong push, they rose into the air. Marceline considered the request, then said, "I suppose so. What did you have in mind?"

The Princess took a moment to soak in the view as they breezed over the treetops. Finally, with a little shrug, she suggested, "Maybe a comedy?"

Then, with a look toward the direction the dragon had gone in, she tightened her grip as she looked toward the castle and added, "Nothing medieval-themed. I've had enough dragons today."

"Yeah. I think we could both use a good laugh." Marceline chuckled softly, glancing toward where Bubblegum had been looking. For a brief moment, she could have sworn she saw a tiny purple figure break through the clouds in the distance. Though, she pretended that she didn't notice that, as she muttered, "… And maybe a nap."