Chapter Text
Only the sound of the siren roamed the corridors of the castle as Princess Bubblegum left her room in a hurry, putting on a sweater on top of her nightgown while she rushed towards the security room. She crossed path with a few Banana guards who seemed both sleepy and confused, and so she solemnly ordered them to keep their post until further notice. It took her exactly fifty-four seconds to get to the control panels of her newly installed security system – not a personal best. Disappointed, she still managed to focus on the crisis at hand.
She pressed on a complicated series of jellybean buttons before twisting an orange lollipop, successfully unlocking the screen of the console and silencing the alarm. Then, she stared at the green screen, hands on her thighs, her mind quickly interpreting the information given to her. On what probably looked like an indecipherable map to anyone else, she noticed a red sparkle and frowned.
“Go, and regroup your men in the Candy Hall”, Princess Bubblegum ordered to the Banana guard posted at the entrance of the security room. She turned her attention back to the glowing dot as she whispered to herself; “it seems we have an intruder on our hands.”
The leader pushed another series of buttons, locking away the security screen before she left the room and proceeded to meet her army. She feared for the worst as she saw the fatigue in her soldiers’ eyes; the Candy people needed their rest more than most creatures, and being under attack in the middle of the night meant dramatically decreased efficiency. She could only hope the crisis was nothing more than a mere glitch in the system, but somehow it felt unlikely; Princess Bubblegum had created the entire network herself, and she knew it was sound.
Whispers of panic already filled Candy Hall when she arrived; therefore it took several minutes to silence everyone and allow her to address her troops. As she mentally prepared her speech, the pink monarch fought against the feeling that something – someone – was intently watching her. No time for paranoia, she told herself as she cleared her throat.
“Guards! Tonight, the Candy people need you. We are facing a great threat, as I have just been informed that, a few minutes ago, a portal to the Nightosphere has appeared in the vicinity of the castle.”
The information spread a new wave of murmurs and worries through the crowd as the Princess continued.
“Although it was open only for a few seconds, it is very possible that something came through.”
A Banana guard stepped out of the group, awkwardly holding onto his spear.
“Maybe someone left the kingdom to go there”, he suggested. Many other guards naively agreed, their voices becoming a blur as they melted into a flow of impossible explanations for tonight’s events.
The Princess crushed her fist against her palm in a decisive manner, as if ready to lead them into war, successfully regaining her guards’ attention. With a dark voice, not unlike the one she used to tell horror stories to the Marshmallow kids by the camp fire, she stated: “No Candy in their right mind would go to the Nightosphere! They’d melt in a matter of seconds.”
Her answer sent waves of fear across the army’s ranks, but before she could continue, an unknown female voice interrupted her.
“You’re globbin’ right, Princess.”
The Banana guards dispersed themselves in the room, nervously throwing looks everywhere in hopes of locating the origin of the voice. As they turned around and searched their horizontal perimeters, the pink royalty instinctively raised her head, her eyes locking onto dark orbs that seemed to pierce through her soul. She shivered, congratulated herself that she had put a sweater on earlier and, after what seemed an eternity, finally opened her mouth.
“Who are you”, she asked defiantly.
Above her, the greyish silhouette hovered, its identity protected by the shadows of the night. The Princess cursed herself, for she should have invented of a better way to light up Candy Hall by now; surely there were too many places where a creature could hide in this castle, and she would definitely have to think of a way to increase security in that regard. In the meantime, though, she would also have to deal with this intruder herself, it seemed, as her guards had started to panic, regrouping against the walls in terror.
The creature slowly floated down in the empty circle that had formed in the middle of the crowd, seemingly triumphant as she smiled to the pink monarch.
“Wouldn’t you like to know”, the girl enigmatically answered. Now that she bathed in the moonlight, Bubblegum could see that the intruder was, in fact, a girl not much older than herself. Relieved, she took one step forward and crossed her arms in front of her, as if she was not impressed by the other teen’s stunt.
“You crossed over from the Nightosphere”, the Princess spoke, her mind trying to unfold the situation laid in front of her. “What do you want?”
The question was meant as an olive branch, an honest and simple way to inquire about the intentions of the stranger. Instead, the words rushed out of the Princess’ mouth with intent of their own, and in the dead silence of Candy Hall, sounded incredibly rude. The pink girl blamed the lack of sleep, really. It had a direct effect on her diplomatic abilities; she would have to study it sometime.
“Well now, that’s not very polite. Aren’t you supposed to be hospitable, and offer your guest a good meal and a night’s rest?”
There was something about the way the stranger toyed with the word meal that made every guard in the room shiver, despite the girl’s non-threatening appearance.
“Where are your manners, Princess?”
As she spoke, the dark figure transformed itself, gaining height and upper muscles as its face twisted, eyes glowing with red. A few Banana guards screamed in horror as they rushed to the windows and jumped outside, running for their lives through the sleeping streets of the Candy kingdom.
“You’re a demon”, Bubblegum tried, her scientific mind suddenly very intrigued by her visitor, although she still remained entirely focused on the threat the creature currently presented.
“Half-demon”, the figure replied with a strange voice, darker than the one it had before. “But don’t worry; I’m not here to suck out your souls.”
The intruder winked at the princess, sending a shiver down her spine and reminding her of the way the creature had suggested having a good meal. If there was something that her people were known for, more than any other race on Ooo – apart from humans, of course – it was being tasty.
“What do you want”, Bubblegum questioned again, taking another step forward, hoping to send the message that she wasn’t intimidated by the creature, even though her own army appeared paralyzed by fear.
“A girl’s gotta crash somewhere”, the grey stranger shrugged as she studied her surroundings. “This castle’s gonna do the trick.”
Princess Bubblegum threw her arms up in the air and waved, as if trying to get the creature’s attention.
“Hey! This is my castle, my home! You’re not welcomed here!”
Her protest was only met with a long laugh as the tall, dark creature grabbed a Banana guard, picking it up as if a flower in a garden. She held him between two fingers, balancing him from left to right, and back again, like he was nothing else than a mere toy.
“I do whatever I want”, the stranger replied before she started to playfully throw the guard from one hand to the other. “Get out, or I’m going to eat every last one of your subjects.”
When the Princess did not budge, the creature opened her mouth, dangling her prisoner right above it.
“Alright, alright”, the pink monarch shouted. “We’re leaving.”
The half-demon laughed again, the prisoner still secured in her grasp as the cavalry ran away, barely listening as the Princess ordered them to leave at once. In the middle of their chaotic escape, the pink monarch remained still, her hands on her thighs, staring at the intruder disapprovingly.
“What”, the creature asked with annoyance as it slowly retracted into its original form.
“Let him go”, the Princess ordered in a calm, decisive voice.
“Like I would eat that anyway”, the girl answered as she let her prisoner fall onto the ground. He ran away the second he touched the floor, so terrorized that he did not think about looking back to his sovereign, even as he abandoned her behind, alone with the evil creature.
In the empty Candy Hall, under the pale moonlight, both girls stared at each other for a few seconds before Princess Bubblegum started to walk towards the exit. The sound of her footsteps echoed on the walls as she passed beside the intruder, her shoulder hitting her along the way; one last gesture of resilience.
“I’ll be back”, the pink monarch declared when she reached the door, her words being met with another confident laugh that somehow sounded warmer this time.
“I don’t doubt that, Princess.”