Dear Mordecai,

T̶̷h̶̷e̶̷s̶̷e̶̷ ̶̷p̶̷a̶̷s̶̷t̶̷ ̶̷f̶̷e̶̷w̶̷ ̶̷m̶̷o̶̷n̶̷t̶̷h̶̷s̶̷ ̶̷h̶̷a̶̷v̶̷e̶̷ ̶̷b̶̷e̶̷e̶̷n̶̷ ̶̷u̶̷n̶̷b̶̷e̶̷a̶̷r̶̷a̶̷b̶̷l̶̷e̶̷.̶̷ I can't begin to put into words how hard this has been on both of us. Lately I can see the strain you must surely be facing; through your words, your actions… No one can blame you for how things have turned out. But I can feel a singe of pain every time you give me that dead stare or whenever you mutter over my name until something jogs your memory. I can feel you moving further and further away and no matter how hard I try, I can't seem to pull you back.

The truth is Mordecai,

He stopped. Beside him sat the little girl keeping him alive as much as he protected her. She rested with her head on his knee. He could feel her light breathing and her slow heartbeat as she slept.

They were alone. They had been alone for a while now. He almost forget her name if it weren't for the letter he found slipped through the contents of his bag.

Mordecai looked at the unopened letter. He squinted to read just the first paragraph through the envelope through the dim light of the fire. His hand moved to tear it open and read the rest, to know what she was feeling, what she was thinking. He ached inside.

But he knew that if he slipped inside that note, he might not come back out.


Mordecai could feel his palms sweat as an unfelt chill crept up his back. It was his one year anniversary with Margaret. It was a hassle just to make the reservation, let alone build the courage just to plan this event. The restaurant was an old bistro with a satin floor and an overall elegant atmosphere. Rigby sat at a table on the other end of the room with Eileen. He was completely disinterested in her as he kept his attention fixated on his friend. Eileen was in on the surprise, and though she enjoyed Rigby's enthusiasm, she simply wished he could spent a little time with her.

"Wow…" Margaret said as she gazed around the restaurant. "I could have just settled for like a movie or something-"

"Y-You-Really?"

"Yeah, I mean you really didn't need to go out the way."

"You don't like it? C-Cause we can like go out to, uh, mini golf or-or-or-"

Margaret reassured him, "No, it's perfect. I mean just, wow…"

"Aha-… Yeah…"

Mordecai was sweating, badly. He loosened his collar and turned to Rigby who gave him a thumbs up.

With a stuttering excuse and knocking his chair on its back, Mordecai rushed to the bathroom. Rigby, fearing for his friend, followed suit. the avian was washing his face "I can't do it man! What if she says no? What if I do something embarrassing? Like I didn't think of anything cool or interesting and I'm plain and boring and-"

Rigby slapped him across the face, though rather pitifully. "Snap out of it man! Now you are going to go in there and you are going to do what you came here to do!"

"But-"

"NO! Just do it already!"

Mordecai and Rigby leaned their heads out of the doorway into the men's room and looked at Margaret across the room. She was preoccupied checking her phone while further ahead Eileen hid behind her menu. She crept out behind her menu and began signaling the two boys. Her hands moved in complicated motions, describing, in detail, all that was happening and questioning why the two were not back already.

"WHAT?!" Rigby motioned with his mouth.

Eileen tried again, using American Sign Language this time, thinking that it would somehow help. The two just stood dumbfounded. Rigby then replied, in confusion, by holding his left hand vertically in the air. With his right index finger, he poked into the center of his left palm and began rotating it back and forth.

Eileen grabbed her forehead in frustration and just blatantly started pointing at Margaret. She ducked behind he menu when the aforementioned Robin looked in her direction. "Ooooooh," he mouthed back. "Welp, now or never. Come on Mordecai."

"No. Just let me stick my head in the toilet and die."

"That's great," Rigby said as he moved to Mordecai's backside, "Now come on!" He began pushing the bluejay out.

"Dude, what the H?"

"Let's go!"

"No-dude-Stop pushing!"

They awkwardly fumbled their way closer and closer to the table. Meanwhile, Margaret gawked at the menu, "Five bucks for a lousy thing of bread? Really?" She was surprised by the sudden commotion to her left. "Oh, hey Mordecai and… Rigby… Hey-ey-ey… whatareyoudoinghere? "

"Uhhh," the two reacted. "Welp, you're on your own. Rigby out!" The raccoon then dove backwards across the adjacent table, spilling everything onto the floor in a loud crash.

"UHHHHHH…" Mordecai continued, now more terrified.

"Mordecai, what's going on?"

He breathed deeply and began, "Okay, so like, uhm, Margaret, we've been dating for like, a whole year now and that's been pretty cool. Yeah we had a rough start, like when I thought you cheated on me with your cousin and I went out with that cloud chick or the time we were in your apartment and let out a giant truth monster-"

"Wait, what?"

"Uh, nothing. Or the time we-" Eileen ran halfway across the dining hall until she was right behind Margaret. She was frantically motioning for him to cut it short for being an idiot. "Well, you get the point. But this has been the greatest year of my life. I love you so much, even before we started dating," Mordecai got on one knee, Margaret gasped. "So, like, do you want to get married or something?" Mordecai said as he pulled out a ring.

Margaret chuckled before replying, "Yes dude! Yes!" She hugged Mordecai and kissed him briefly as the other diners cheered. Rigby and Eileen slouched to the ground to catch their breath from the sheer awkwardness and second hand stress.

It was the happiest moment of Mordecai's life.


Later that night, the events at the restaurant finally had to come to an end. Rigby and Eileen went home a separate way, leaving Mordecai to drive Margaret home.

"Well here we are…" Mordecai said as he put the car into park outside of Margaret's apartment. He turned his head as Margaret immediately pressed her beak to his. Mordecai's heart began to race, he hadn't been this nervous yet excited since their first kiss.

"I love you Mordecai" Margaret said as she hugged her soon to be life-long partner.

"I love you too Margaret" Mordecai replied back. This was it for him. This was what he had always wanted for the past three years: Margaret's undying love.

As Margaret began to get out of the car, Mordecai said, "Wait! Let me walk you to your apartment." Mordecai got out and ran over to his love. He swiped the keys off of her and proceeded to open the door. "After you, your highness," comically said Mordecai as he bowed while Margaret walked through the door.

Margaret chuckled at this corny chivalry as she replied, "Ah, a real knight in shining armor. What's next are you going to swipe me off my feet?"

"You know that actually gives me an idea" said Margaret's new fiance before he quickly lifted her up at her waist and threw her over his shoulder. Margaret playfully struggled, but it was no use. Mordecai plopped Margaret down on her couch, but she pulled him down on top of her.

They both broke out into a fit of laughter. "That's so bad-ha-ha-ha. Oh my… hah… Don't you have somewhere to go?" Margaret challenged. The smirk on her face said everything that was on her mind.

"Benson said he could give me the day off tomorrow" Mordecai replied slyly. The laughter died down and the couple was left locking eyes with one another. The tension was heavy in the air. They stayed in each other's arms until morning came.


The following night, the guys at the park threw a party for the newly-engaged couple. The party was not anything special special, it was just a small get together in the house living room. But it was, in everyone's opinion, a better party than any other thrown at the park. There was a personal touch to it; it was genuine.

Of course, it kept some of the typical hallmarks; mountain of pizzas, a shirtless muscle man, noise complaints from the police, and the living room still miraculously looking as though a herd of buffalo charged through it.

The party dragged on for some time though and gradually its participants wore down. Benson went to office to finish last minute reports while Pops went to bed and everyone else gradually left. Eventually only Rigby, Eileen, Mordecai, and Margaret were left. Mordecai and Margaret were sitting over by the couch together. Feeling the awkwardness in the air, Rigby retreated to the kitchen to get another soda. "That was some party, huh?" Eileen said to Rigby, startling him for a moment. He hadn't expected her to follow him.

"Oh, yeah. Sure, i guess," Rigby replied impartially. "We have to work out those signals, though! Like, what was even going on back there?"

"I'm just curious as to what this was," Eileen replied while pulling the awkward finger-palm gesture from the previous night.

"Ughhh, shut up!" Rigby groaned.

"It's crazy, huh? Our best friends… getting married… taking the next step " Eileen said to Rigby as she inched closer towards him. Maybe there was enough magic in the air from Mordecai and Margaret to go around?

"Sure I guess, but come on Eileen, personal bubble here. Breaking it. Hello." Maybe not.

She knew she was losing Rigby's attention. At this point she was just desperate to keep the conversation alive. "Well, ha- have you been having a good ti-"

"WOAH DUDE!" Rigby exclaimed as he picked up the book bag Mordecai had found in the lake. He had just left it in the kitchen. Rigby was about to search its contents, but he thought it better to have Mordecai show everyone what HE had saved his life for with a heavy emphasis on the saving his life part.

"What is it?" Eileen questioned. But it was no use. Rigby had already ran back into the living room, leaving Eileen standing alone in the kitchen. She sighed and followed after him.

"Dude, you still never showed me what was in this!" Rigby exclaimed as he slammed the heavy bag onto the coffee table. A loud bang erupted from this which startled both Mordecai and Margaret.

"What is that?" Eileen asked as she entered the room.

Rigby answered, beaming with pride, "Yeah, Mordecai, what did I save your life for?" with a smirk.

Mordecai got up and bumped Rigby out of the way, "Yeah, sure. Whatever you say Rigby."

Rigby crossed his arms, "Hmmm Hmmm Hmmm"

"Any way, I found this bag of junk at the bottom of the lake."

"Oh. Wooooow. The excitement you guys have in your lives is unbearable," Margaret sarcastically teased.

"Yeah, but I was looking inside earlier and I found this!" Mordecai said as pulled out the object in question. It was a three pointed gold crown with encrested rubies on it.

There was a unanimous murmur of "Woah's" coming from the other three.

"Dude, that's awesome! You could sell it and make like tons of money!" Rigby yelled excitedly.

"Dude, we don't even know what it is. It could like really old and really valuable."

Eileen interjected, "Or it could just be a pyrite copy that would actually be worth only a couple of-"

"OR we could make tons of money and go to space or something!" Rigby yelled excitedly. "WO-OOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHH" Mordecai and Rigby said in unison.

" Put it on." It was never so much a voice that spoke. It was something more subtle. There was just this wave, this idea that shot through Mordecai's head. "I should probably try it on," Mordecai concluded out of nowhere.

He instantly broke his laughter and, just like that, lifted the crown and put it on his head.


Mordecai blinked his eyes open. He swore that all he did was blink an eye. But the crown is always unkind on its first visit.

Mordecai looked around. There was snow all over the living room floor, the couch was torn in the middle. The crown had fallen onto the floor. The was a pounding in the side of Mordecai's face and into his chest. He turned to see Rigby holding a baseball bat in a position as if he had just swung. That wasn't all, Rigby was shaking with a terrified look in his eye. Mordecai turned to see Eileen against the wall, almost cowering in fear. This activity had also alerted the others in the house as Benson and Pops stood on the stairs, stunned at what had occurred.

But that was far from the worst part. Margaret was staring at her lover with a deep discontentment on her face. There was a cut on the side of her face and a look that seemed to shun him.

"What happened?" Mordecai asked, now worried and as discomforted as the rest. No response. "What happened?!"

Margaret simply shook her head and walked out the door as tears began to fall from her eyes with Eileen behind her. "Margaret! Wait!"

Mordecai began to motion towards her, but Rigby grabbed his arm to stop him. "Dude, you do not want to make things any worse for yourself. Just let it go."

Mordecai yanked his arm free and proceeded forward. Once again, Rigby tried to stop him, but this time Mordecai punched Rigby right in the cheek, knocking him to the ground. "MARGARET!" He screamed again. "Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh no, oh no oh no oh no." Mordecai was on the porch but it was too late, Margaret had already driven off. "What happened!?" He asked again to the three staring at him.

Rigby could taste the blood in his mouth. "I… I don't even know…"

Mordecai was in a fret. His fiance, the love of his life, was gone… just like that. He was light headed and his temples were constricting and pressing against the sides of his head. He retreated up to his room and locked the door.

Rigby was about to follow but Benson stopped him. "Let him be alone for now," Benson said to Rigby. He went over to pick up the crown. His attitude was not the same as usual. Benson picked up the crown, "I'm going to show this to Skips tomorrow. If there's anyone who knows what to make of this, it's him." He looked around. He sighed saying, "Rigby: clean up this mess, you know… or you're fired…" Benson walked out.

Rigby was all alone in the living room now, still in shock. He took a minute to gather everything that happened in.

Rigby.

"Who said that?" Rigby responded. There was no one else in the room, and he knew he heard something. " It's okay, just in your head. Just get back to work" Rigby thought to himself. But something caught the corner of his eye for a second. It was the book bag, still in the corner.

Rigby walked over to it, not knowing what to expect from it. He knew this was a stupid idea, but a force drove him forward.

He opened it up and looked inside. He could not believe his eyes. Inside was perhaps the lamest looking book he ever saw in his life. There was a sword on the cover adorned with a vine of grapes on the left and a skull and crow on the right. It seemed like something straight out of the Realm of Darthon. However, this one looked old, very old.

Rigby read aloud " The Enchiridion, the Book of Dark Magic…"

::Yes I know the Enchiridion in Adventure Time is the "Book of Heroes"::