Chapter Text
Marking the end of their little adventure, the ride to Marceline's house went by peacefully. Finn and Jake never seemed to run out of things to talk about, and while Bonnie would engage every now and then, she mostly stayed silent. She cradled Marcy's unconscious body on her shoulders, gently running fingers through the sleeping girl's hair. She hummed a modified version of the song she'd written for Lemonhope, hoping it'll soothe Marcy the way Marcy's singing always did Bonnibel.
It felt good, having Marceline pressed against her like this. Since the incident with the varmints, they've been getting more and more comfortable with physical intimacy, and Bonnie couldn't be happier with that development. It was even during one of their recently-made-common cuddling sessions that prompted this whole adventure.
*****
Bonnie threaded her fingers through Marceline's black locks, the movie in front of her all but forgotten. Not just the movie, in fact. Her usurpment, her unfinished laboratory, the varmints that could come back anytime and wreak havoc on her pumpkin patch– Somehow, all the things that caused her worry and stress seemed so far away now. She knew the world was moving around her, that new problems could pop up at any time, that there might be things she hasn't prepared for–but somehow, it felt like the entire world was in her arms right now. As if everything else was just a distant echo to the girl nestled in her shoulders. As if hers were the arms that the whole world smiled into. As if–
Marceline turned to face Bonnie, and Bonnie's train of thought was no more.
As Marcy's eyes searched hers, she held her breath. Not in some deliberate anticipation, but because damn her eyes are so pretty I could just stare at her all –
"You think I could pull off blonde?"
Bonnie wheezed. She didn't think she'd be the kind of girl who wheezed, but apparently she was. The mental image of blonde Marceline came so far out of left field that whatever princess etiquette she knew just came flying out the window. When the laughter eventually subsided into giggles, she realized Marcy was pouting. Cutely. Positively adorable.
"You didn't have to laugh that hard, you know," Marceline muttered through her shoulder. She relished in the intimacy of it.
Her smile could only grow. "You could dye it if you want to, but don't expect my reaction to be any different than that. Anyway, what's this about? You want to change up your style?" She said as she poked her best friend's sides.
The vampire hummed, tightening– oh wow –her grasp on Bonnie's waist. "It's not just that," she sighed, pausing. "I feel… stuck, I think. Like the whole world has changed and I'm still the same person I've always been. Like I haven't really grown up since…" The vampire rubbed the two puncture wounds on her neck, "Since I got bit, I guess."
And true to her scientific nature, Bonnie's brain immediately went looking for solutions to the problem Marceline had expressed. The first thought was natural, logical, and so she blurted it right out. "If that's your marker, then I could just turn you back. To human, I mean. Well, not entirely, you'd still be half-demon, but it should be possible to get rid of your vampirism."
Marceline sat up straight, and Bonnie missed the arms that were wrapped around her. Marcy's eyes were wide and curious. "Really?"
Bonnie matched Marcy and sat up straight herself. "Yeah. I read a book about it before. All you have to do is isolate the vampiric essence. That shouldn't be so hard to do once I finish setting up my lab here," she said proudly, happy to begin a project with two of her favorite subjects: Marceline and science. She was already beginning to formulate certain methods of extraction when she felt a soft peck on her cheek, and once again, her thoughts flew out the window.
"Thanks, Bon. For doing this for me. You don't have to rush or anything. Take your time with it. Just knowing you want to help is more than enough for me," Marceline said as she smiled a soft smile that made Bonnie's heart skip.
She could not hide her blush or smile. "Of course."
They weren't quite back together yet, but at the rate things were going, that outcome seemed inevitable. They both danced around each other, poking and prodding and playing around with the idea but never actually taking a full step towards it.
Marcy would come over almost every week, holding some sort of food or trinket for Bonnie's new home. Sometimes, if the ex-princess had enough time, Marcy would even invite her on little adventures. Dates, Bonnie liked to think. And on her luckiest days, Marcy would bring her bass and sing to her. Her songs didn't sound the same as they used to, the punk rock anger element absent, but she loved this new sound just as much, if not more. She sang mellow songs, soft songs, and some of them one could even classify as love songs. Marceline always looked at Bonnie when she sang those. And good god did she have to exhaust all of her willpower to stop herself from kissing Marcy then and there.
"I guess we can go for proper picnics when I turn human again. With actual food. Oh my god, I've forgotten how food tastes like. I wonder if anything has changed with the taste compared to centuries ago. Hm, what else? Oh! I can watch the garden with you in the morning without all the heavy clothing. I can actually stay in the sun without just evaporating. Wow. How long has it been?"
"Considering you were already a vampire when I met you, a few hundred years, I suppose." She reached for Marcy's hand, "And yeah, we can go for day picnics anytime you want. I'll have you carry all the food though," she teased as Marceline's fingers interlocked with hers.
The vampire only laughed. "Actually, you might need to start bringing The Morrow on our little outings. I can't shapeshift if you get rid of everything vampiric in me." Marcy frowned to herself, "Or float or turn invisible. Man, I'll be all boring, won't I? Laaame."
Bonnie tensed, her grip tightening on the vampire's hand, a morbid realization finally seeping in. It had slipped her mind for some reason. How did she not see it? How could she not have thought of that? "You'll age," she half-croaked half-whispered, somehow losing her voice at the mere thought of what that implied.
But Marceline grinned. Grinned. "Yeah, I'll get all wrinkly and white-haired. Would you still like me if I weren't this pretty, Bonnie?"
Of course she would. It's not even a question. Why was Marceline playing around right now? Doesn't she understand what that means? "Marcy, you'll turn mortal. You'll die someday." Her chest tightened as she uttered those words, suddenly not caring about picnic dates under the sun, about feeding Marceline home-cooked meals, or any other perk that comes with being human. What use is all of that if she'll lose Marcy in the end?
But the vampire simply hummed in thought. "I will, won't I? I wonder how that'll go."
She could only gape. She hoped for at least some hesitation. Some "actually maybe I'd like to stay a vampire" so Bonnie could go back to never having to entertain the idea of Marcy dying again. But the vampire seemed ready, accepting even, and that meant: "You've already thought about this before."
Marcy rubbed circles on the back of Bonnie's hand, and her heart both calmed and broke at the sensation. She would lose this someday. There will come a last time for everything. The last time she holds Marcy's hands. The last time she hears her sing. The last time they look at each other. The last time she smiles. This isn't just breaking up and not speaking for years. The next time she loses Marcy, she loses her for good. Forever.
"Yeah. For a long time, actually. But I don't think I was ever really ready until recently."
Bonnie bit back her response: I'm not. And I don't think I'll ever be.
*****
Marceline stirred beside her, snapping her out of her contemplation. Immediately her grip tightened on the girl she loved dearly. "Hey, don't push yourself too hard. You just took on the dark cloud alone," she said softly, hoping that the vampire would heed her words and relax back into her arms. For both of their sakes.
"Nah, Bon, I wasn't alone. You were there."
Bonnie sighed with Marcy as the older woman let her body fall into Bonnie's again. This really did feel right. Being with Marcy like this. No physical sensation could compare to Marceline's touch.
"We're almost home. Just rest for now."
Marceline let out a yawn, then cradled her face into Bonnie's neck. "Alright."
Bonnie blushed, initially startled because wow Marceline's breath and lips on her neck, until she finally smiled and kissed the top Marcy's head. Comfortable silence filled the air. She loved this. Just being with Marcy. She loved her, after all. If she could, she would make time stop here. Together with Marcy underneath the stars. Maybe then she wouldn't have to think about the future. Maybe then she'd never have to lose Marcy.
But for all the power she had in the world, equipped with her kingdom and technology and intelligence, there was no stopping the passage of time. She was bound to surrender Marcy to death someday.
I'll see her through. I'll be there when she breathes her last. At least I can do that.
And Bonnie thought back to their first relationship, to the amount of times she'd blown off Marcy in favor of building the Candy Kingdom. She already apologized for it, and Marcy did simply laugh and say it was water under the bridge, but now it seems as if she had to ask for her own forgiveness too. Because now, even if she spent every day with Marcy, it wouldn't be enough.
I was sure there'd be time for us again. But then you were gone, and time seemed finite again, and I was afraid. She'd confessed these words to Marceline before, back when she'd blasted Marcy off to space. Except then, she managed to get Marcy back. And their time was infinite yet again. But now…
Now Marcy was finite, but Bonnie remained infinite. Someday she'll outlive Marcy, and she couldn't think of a crueler fate than that.