It was much later that I learned the gut wrenching, heart thumping news.
Prince Gumball, heir of the Candy Kingdom, was dead.
In my haze of emotionless emotions, when I had first discovered Cake on the floor cold as ice, I failed to spot the patches of red covering the bright pink skin of Gumball. Failed to hear his panted breaths and spits of blood.
They said that after Marshall had carried me away from that room, Gumball dropped there on the spot-begging for help but not receiving it in time.
After getting me some much needed fresh air, (even though there wasn't a ray of sun in sight and was beginning to sprinkle), as well as a hand to hold and shoulder to cry on, Marshall carried me once again into the hospital room I was all too familiar with.
"You aren't completely healed yet." he whispered, leading me to my bed and calling for a nurse.
"Speak for yourself." his leg was wrapped in bandages-from being broken or not, I couldn't tell. It's not like it would hurt him anyway, he always had floating.
"Are-do you want to tell Lord M or sho-?" he began, trying to sound comforting but really-it definitely wasn't the best time.
"Me." I hummed. A tear slipped past my cheek, and as Marsh brushed it away, his cold hands didn't seem as cold.
"Fionna, I should tell you something, you know, before the doctors do." he paused, sitting down in the chair next to my bed as I sat up. I nodded for him to continue but he did so with caution. "After your accident-you didn't have enough blood. I had to...supply you with some."
Thanks, but why is this a big deal?
"And uh, well because of that... you won't be able to go into the sunlight-I mean, of course unless you have the gel, which I have plenty we can share, you know?"
Oh. Another tear down my cheek.
"Hah, at least it saved me right? Thank you...Marshall." I smiled a sad smile, looking away from his piercing eyes before closing mine entirely.
"I'm... sorry, Fi."
"I told you to quit saying that. I'm... I'm sorry too. For not listening, I mean. And not calling you sooner. And now, now Cake s-"
"Fi, you know you still have a family. I'm here, and your nieces and nephews and Lord M and Fionna I'm just so glad you're alright." He paused to take a deep, shaky breath, running his fingers through his slightly damp hair.
"I just, Fi, I just love you so much and I'm so sorry that I had to leave you alone but I swear, you won't be alone anymore, not at all, and," he sniffed, quickly wiping away the tears that spilled down his face, "and you're just my world Fionna." and he wanted to say more, I could tell by the way his lips remained parted, begging for words to come out, yet all that escaped him was a sob.
By this point though, I was crying as well.
"I love you," I muttered, reaching up and pushing his head down against my chest. "so much, Marsh." I laughed a little, remembering when I was scared to say these words, but now they were his oxygen, and his "I love you's" were mine.
And even though some of my bones were still broken, my sister no longer breathing, and the kingdom without a ruler; all was good.
Because Marsh was here.
All was good.
It was a few days later that Lord M and his kids came to visit. One of the nurses had gotten the news to him before I had the chance to, so he spent those few days telling his kids and preparing himself to face the outside world once more.
With Cake's passing, there's nothing I could really do. Sure, I could cry, I could shout, I could curse everything and everyone- but where would that get me?
Only a path of more pain, I think.
So with a smile on my face and arms outstretched, I greeted the rest of my family. Cake had had five kids in all, three girls and two boys, because of course, females were the dominant gender.
The girls included: Cara, pronounced CAR-ah. Nickee, with two 'e's. And Abha, pronounced AH-bah and meaning brightness. Boy, she was bright- smart as well as sassy, she reminded Fionna of her toddler years.
The boys included Fai, pronounced FIE, and meaning 'beginning.' And Ace who was already showing signs of becoming the typical bad boy. Perhaps from spending a little too much time with Marshall, I guessed.
They made me smile with every word they spoke and I taught them as much as I could teach a toddler from a hospital bed.
After another week or two, I was released from the hospital with only a few bruises and stitches to show for my adventure. I didn't have much of my personal belongings in the hospital, but everything I did have, Marshall took out in advance.
I waved goodbye to the gentle, older nurses as I made my way down the hallway, being careful to avoid any windows. There was no longer a limp in my step, I'm proud to say.
Marshall met me at the beginning of the staircase, a beautiful black umbrella in hand. "Sorry I had to bring this. I don't have enough of that gel left but I'll get some more soon." he smiled, opening up the sun shield, even though it was inside and I always believed it to be bad luck opening umbrellas up inside.
He held it for me as we made our way down the stairs and to the castle entrance. Only, we were leaving now, thank Glob.
"Hop on my back, you shouldn't strain yourself." he commanded.
"You make me sound weak." I mumbled, but did as told anyway. I always enjoyed a free ride.
The wind whipped my hair every which direction, and even though it's short, it can still be just as annoying when it gets caught in your mouth or eyes.
I observed the landscape but furrowed my brows when I realized Marshall had made a mistake. "Uh Marsh, you passed the tree house..."
But he didn't reply, unless you call a wink a reply, so I didn't push it, closing my eyes against the breeze.
We arrived at Marshall's house, of course, and as I climbed off his back I grabbed the umbrella from his hands so that he was able to dig his key out and unlock his door.
Yes, in the time that I had been helplessly locked away in the death smelling room, Marshall and some friends had been busily working away at his house, trying to restore it to it's former glory.
They sure did it.
It was a medium sized cottage, not unlike what he had before, but this time it seemed bigger. It was painted yellow, with white trimming and a picket fence to top it all off. Not the manliest of houses, but it suited Marshall, and it was lovely.
"Voila~" he hummed, as he opened the door, ushering me inside before him. I had a small glimpse of blue walls before my vision was cut off from those cold, yet warm hands.
I laughed as he spun me around, kicking the door shut and leading me to "the best room" as he put it. I had a feeling it was his bedroom, and he was trying to lay some moves on me, but honestly I didn't care because I wanted it.
The door creaked open in the blackness in front of me before the hands over my eyes removed themselves and oh, I was right.
Only... It wasn't just his bedroom anymore.
"Welcome home~" he purred, a hint of nervousness intertwined with his words.
But I had no words to say. A smile graced my lips and my heart hammered in my chest in a way it never has before. I could feel my pulse in my throat, where my words were choked up but I didn't need words.
I was practically oozing happiness.
Everyone loses things, and everyone gains things, that's just how life is. You won't always lose bad things though, and likewise, you won't alway gain good things. I've lost Cake, yes, but really I haven't lost her.
And now, when it seems like nothing can get better, because being alive right now is good enough, Marshall is offering to share his home with mine. To make his home, our home, and I love it.
I'm still so young but so old as well. The things I've been through, the adventures I've experienced- have taught me so much. Things that I could never forget.
And Marshall, this idiot, who twirls around the room with me as we both laugh and smile, landing on the bed we will share from now on. He's the scary, blood sucking monster, and I'm the hero who is suppose to slay him. But this monster has saved me, yet he'll never let anyone know just how kind he really is.
Not anyone but me, that is. Well, maybe our future kid too.
But that's perfectly fine, because I like it this way. I like him this way.
No, I love him.
And as we lay side by side on the light blue quilt of our shared bed, I smile once again, and in the comfortable silence I speak my first words since being shown the room.
"Marsh?"
"Hm?" he looks at me with those calming brown eyes I know will never grow dull.
"I love you."
And we kiss. And everything is alright.
And everything always will be alright when I'm with him, I just know it.
End.
A/N
AFTER 46 CHAPTERS... it's really the end
oh man im tearing up
thank you all so so much for sticking through with my horrible writing, my late updates, my spelling errors, and everything in between. I know this story wasn't the best but from the beginning it was always just a story made "for fun".
I never wrote out a plot, or really thought through the story more than one chapter at a time. That got me here.
This has been a 7 month piece of work and I'm so relieved that finally-it has ended. I'm sad as well but I just feel so happy and accomplished.
Thank you for always reading and commenting and voting. You regular commenters, whether you knew it or not, always sparked my mind and inspired me- even if your comment was just complaining to a character about how they need to get their shit together, haha.
I'm going to do a really short epilogue, though, so be looking for that sometime soon :) this isn't the complete end, not yet
Again, thank you, and I sincerely hope you had a joy reading this, because it was an absolute joy writing this. I think after this is completely over though, I'm not going to really be regular on wattpad anymore so if you still want to read some of my works (not from the adventure time fandom) you can find me here: http://archiveofourown.org/users/c_hristine_s
Well, thats it for now.
As always, not edited
Thank you again, and goodbye,
xoxo
Christine