Christmas Time

December was a beautiful time in the Land of Ooo. It was when snow coated all of Ooo and made it sparkle, everywhere except the Fire Kingdom that is. It is December 23 in Ooo, and we find our young hero Finn, his best friend Jake, and all their friends, Princess Bubblegum, Lady Rainicorn, Lumpy Space Princess, Cinnamon Bun, Peppermint Butler, Shelby, and Tree Trunks, are all outside bundled up enjoying the snow. Finn is putting the finishing touches on a snowman he started building, with the help of Bubblegum and Cinnamon Bun. Jake; however, begins forming a snowball, chuckling to himself.

"Heheh, wait 'till Finn gets a load of my super packed snowball," Jake says to himself. He looks toward Finn and sees his back turned. Jake winds up and chuckles the snowball with great force. However, Finn ducks without realizing a snowball was thrown at him. Instead, the snowball hits Bubblegum right in the face. Jake gasps, his mouth hanging open. Finn looks up and sees Bubblegum's face covered with snow.

"Princess, are all right?" Finn asks, concerned about the princess. She wipes her face clean of snow, glaring at Jake.

"You'll pay for that, Jake!" she cries, forming a snowball and throwing it at Jake. He quickly ducks and the snowball ends up hitting LSP. "Sorry LSP," Bubblegum calls.

LSP growls in anger and forms and throws a snowball, missing Bubblegum completely and hitting Finn. This quickly turns into a snowball fight with Finn, Bubblegum, Cinnamon Bun, and Peppermint Butler as one team, while Jake, Rainicorn, LSP, and Shelby are the other. Tree Trunks stays off to the side and watches for obvious reasons. The teams might be uneven since Shelby doesn't have any arms, but with Jake's stretchy powers, he is able to throw multiple snowballs with great force. And Cinnamon Bun isn't much of a fighter, but he makes a great wall.

In the end, both teams put up a great fight and agreed to call it a draw. Shortly after the fight, everyone had to take their leave.

"See you guys later!" Finn calls out as he and Jake wave after them. "I like our friends," he says, turning to Jake.

"Yeah, they're a real bunch," he replies.

Finn brushes some snow off his winter gear, a look of confusion on his face. "Hey Jake, did everyone end up showing up?"

"All but Marceline," says the yellow dog.

"What? Did she call to give a reason?" asks the hero.

"No, never called."

Finn looks off toward the distance. "Come on," he says, motioning Jake to follow him.

"Why; where are we going?"

"To Marceline's to ask her why she didn't show up."

Jake shrugs and grows in size, putting Finn on his back. The two rush toward Marceline's place, cold wind blowing in their faces along the way.

"I wonder why Marceline didn't show up; I hope she's all right," says Finn, worrying about his friend.

"Maybe she got sick and couldn't make it," suggests Jake.

"Can vampires even get sick? I never really thought of that."

"I don't know man, it's just a theory; I'm sure she has her reasons." They walk for a little while longer. "But I will say this: I know we've only known her for about a year or so, but we never saw her around this time of year."

"Now that I think about it, you're right Jake; we never saw her at all around this time of year."

They stayed silent on the rest of the trip. Finn kept thinking of reasons why she wouldn't come. Does snow make it too bright for her? Finn figured that with clouds covering the sky, she'd be fine. They eventually reach her cave and head over to her house. Jake shrinks down and Finn rushes up to the front door, knocking on it repeatedly.

"Marceline, open up!" he cries.

"Finn, Finn, cool it," says Jake, restraining Finn from pounding Marceline's door. A grunt is heard from the other side. Finn and Jake look at each other, confused looks on their faces. The door opens and Marceline appears in the door way. Her hair is nothing but a mess, and she is only wearing a gray T-shirt with a strawberry on it and a pair of black panties. A glaring frown is plastered on her face, but quickly turns into a normal frown when she sees Finn and Jake.

"Oh… hey guys," Marceline says nonchalantly. She motions them inside. As they walk in, they see shriveled up grey strawberries, apples, jelly donuts, and basically anything red all over her floor. Marceline shuts the door and floats over to her couch, floating just above it in a position to make it look like she's lying down. "Sorry about the mess," she adds.

"Uh… we came to see why you didn't show up at the tree fort today," says Jake.

"But a better question is… are you okay?" asks Finn.

Marceline stares up at the ceiling for awhile, and then sighs. "This… just really isn't my favorite time of the year," she says.

"I figured it'd be one of your favorites since the sun doesn't come out much," says Finn.

"Yeah, I know, but… Christmas just brings back bad memories for me," she replies, closing her eyes.

"Christmas, what's that?" the two adventurers ask in unison.

Marceline's eyes shoot open in shock. She quickly gets in a sitting up position and looks at them. "You two weenies have never heard of Christmas?" Finn and Jake shake their heads no, causing Marceline to only sigh. "I thought you guys, of all people, would know what Christmas is. You guys are always jolly; just add the holly, and it's like Christmas everyday with you two."

"Well… we don't know what it is, so can you tell us about it?" asks Jake, hoping she'll say yes.

Marceline sighs, shaking her head. "Well, I guess it makes sense that you don't know because this was a holiday before the Great Mushroom War. But if I tell you, it might only exacerbate my deal with Christmas, and you two are probably going to beg me to tell you if I don't, so… grab a seat," she sighs. Finn and Jake gasp with excitement and move some shriveled up food out of the way to sit down in front of Marceline, who is still floating above her couch. "You guys ready?"

Finn and Jake nod their heads excitedly. "All right…" Marceline takes a deep breath and begins. "Christmas was a time of giving and being with family and friends. Sometimes, gifts were bought and exchanged between everyone. Kids were the ones who got it made though. Their parents bought them gifts that the kids asked for and surprise them on Christmas Day with gifts under a Christmas tree. But, what makes this holiday special is that the parents told kids that a fat, jolly man dressed in red named Santa Claus would come down the chimney and give you presents if they were good."

Finn and Jake lean in closer, obviously enjoying Marceline's story. She continues by telling them what special types of food and candy were served, when Christmas was celebrated, and how Santa would deliver all the presents to the boys and girls of the world in one night. Then, she sighs a heavy sigh. "Now that you know all about Christmas, it's time I told you why I'm so depressed around this time of year." She hesitates, but finally speaks. "When I was young, I never really had great Christmases. With my dad being a demon, he was rarely around, and my mom tried the best she could to spread some Christmas cheer, but it never really worked out the way she wanted it to. I never had any friends to spend Christmas with either. The only gift I remember getting that put a smile on me and my mom's face was Hambo. I got him for Christmas when I was three years old. Other than that, Christmas was never that joyful for me. At five, my mom had died of a disease, and it's also when the Great Mushroom War began. So every year at this time, I'm always sulking because I'm always reminded that those four out of five years of Christmas sucked," finishes Marceline, her face hidden by her hair. A tear rolls down her face, and only Finn sees it, putting a frown on his face.

"That's some heavy stuff, Marceline," says Jake. "So what's with all the shriveled up food?"

"Oh, that. I get lazy and just throw the remains everywhere; too depressed to do anything other than eat shades of red and sulk," she says, answering Jake's question.

"Well, thanks for telling us about Christmas, Marceline. Sorry if it brought back any bad memories, we were just curious. Come on, Jake, we better get going," says Finn, getting up.

"Later, Marceline," says Jake as he and Finn walk out the door.

"See you guys later," she says silently. Two more drops of tears roll down her cheeks, leaving a trail behind them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was silent on the way back to the tree fort. Finn and Jake literally had nothing to say about Marceline's story on why she isn't her usual self around Christmas. Finn and Jake were coming up to the Grass Lands, and Jake was heading for the tree fort. However, Finn quickly jumped off his back and was rushing in a different direction.

"Finn, where are you going?" asks Jake, who is surprised to see the distance Finn made between the two of them all ready.

"I'm heading to the Candy Kingdom!" Finn calls back.

"Why?"

"I'll tell you later!"

Jake sighs and heads to the tree fort. Finn, on the other hand, is only minutes away from the Candy Kingdom. He rushes through the gates, ignoring the hi's and hello's from the Candy Citizens. He reaches Candy Castle and rushes right past the two Banana Guards, who chase after him. Finn rushes up some stairs and knocks on a door, completely out of breath. The door opens and Princess Bubblegum is seen wearing her usual attire.

"Oh, hi Finn," she says sweetly.

Before Finn can say anything, the two Banana Guards grab him by the arms.

"What do you want us to do with the intruder, Princess?" asks one of them.

"Oh put him down and get back to your posts," she says, a bit annoyed that her guards would actually try to stop Finn. The guards release him and head back to their posts. "Sorry about that, Finn. Anyway, why are you here?"

"It's about Marceline; I was hoping you could help."

Bubblegum raises a brow in confusion.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Oh, my glob, Finn, that is probably one of the saddest stories I have ever heard," says the princess, on the verge of tears. Finn had told Bubblegum what Marceline told them about Christmas and why she is always sulking.

"So, I was hoping we could use your castle as a location for a Christmas party so we can show Marceline that Christmas isn't bad and that she has friends to celebrate it with."

"Well, Marceline and I don't see eye to eye too much, but that story moved me. So, I think I can look the other way prepare a Christmas party," says Bubblegum.

Finn's eyes light up. "Thank you, Princess Bubblegum!"

"But I'll have to start right away. You said she told you that people usually throw Christmas parties on the day before Christmas, right?"

"Yeah, Marceline called is Christmas Eve."

Bubblegum nods. "I'll begin making preparations and send out the invites."

"Thanks again, Princess."

"No problem Finn. What should the time be?"

"Eight o'clock."

"Got it, see you tomorrow night."

Finn smiles and nods back, heading back outside. He goes to head for the tree fort, but remembers something Marceline had said. "Christmas was a time if giving." He quickly changes his course and sets off to a certain jerk's house.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It's almost midnight, and Jake is pacing back and forth in the living room, anxiously waiting for Finn's return and hoping he's all right. "Dang it, where is that kid? It's getting late," he says to himself. He continues pacing, then the door opens up with a banged up Finn standing in the door way. "Finn, you've been gone all day! Where have you been; I was worried sick!"

"Oh, just putting a plan of mine into action."

"What kind of plan?"

Finn begins telling him about his meeting with Bubblegum and the party he's throwing to show Marceline that Christmas isn't bad and she has friends to spend it with.

"Okay, that part I understand, but why are you all banged up?"

"Oh, I'm banged up because I was trying to get this," he says, pulling something out of his pack, which causes Jake's eyes to widen.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

December 24 arrives, and Marceline is sulking even more than she usually has been since Christmas is nearing. She is still wearing her grey T-shirt with the strawberry on it and her black panties; and her hair is still a mess. It's five in afternoon and she is seen floating in the same spot where she told Finn and Jake about Christmas. She then feels something crawling up her leg. She looks down and sees her bug phone crawling up her leg. She grabs it and crushes it in her hand, causing it to instantly turn into a phone.

"Speak," she says nonchalantly.

"Hey, Marceline, it's Finn."

"Finn, what do you want?" she asks in the same emotionless tone.

"Well, Bubblegum is holding a party, and I thought I'd invite you to it, you know, to help get your mind of some things," says Finn.

"You wanna invite me to one of Bonnibel's parties? Sorry Finn, but I'd just be sulking the whole time. I appreciate the offer though."

"Come on, Marcie, it'll be fun."

Marceline stays silent. No one other than Ash gave her a nickname, and she despised Mar-Mar. She actually liked the nickname Marcie.

After careful consideration, Marceline finally answers. "All right, I'll go. When is it?"

"Just come by Candy Castle at eight. I promise Marceline, you won't be disappointed. See you then," says Finn, quickly hanging up.

Marceline sighs and looks at a nearby clock. "Five after five? That gives me enough time to get ready," says the vampire queen, who heads up to her room to take a shower.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It is five 'till eight, and the Christmas party has all ready begun. All around the Candy Foyer, Christmas decorations are hung, a couple Christmas trees are seen, and Christmas themed sweets. The guests, who are LSP, Lady Rainicorn, Tree Trunks, the candy people, lumpy space people, Slime Princess, Wildberry Princess, Raggedy Princess, Engagement Ring Princess, Emerald Princess, and Dr. Princess, are all there having a good time. Finn, who is still a bit banged up from the day before, is seen with Jake and Bubblegum off to the side.

"I gotta say, this party turned out pretty well," says Finn.

"You said it, brother," says Jake.

"I'm glad you both like it," says Bubblegum. "But I think the real question is will Marceline like it?"

The clock strikes eight and on cue, Marceline enters the foyer. She is seen sporting a pink sweater, gray-blue jean short shorts, red boots, and her hair is tied in a ponytail. Finn smiles when he sees her enter. He walks over to her, trying to get through the crowd of party guests. Upon closer examination, he realizes that she's wearing the same outfit she wore when Finn and Jake were trapped in her closet. He didn't want to say anything in front of Jake, but he thought that the shorts complemented her big fat caboose.

As he approaches her, Finn notices that Marceline slowly begins frowning. Finn quickens his pace, trying to get to her faster. She goes to leave, but Finn quickly grabs her wrist.

"Glad you made it," he says.

"Finn, I think you left out one crucial detail when you were telling me about Bonnie's party… it's a Christmas party!" she cries.

"Look, I know what I did, but if I told you, you wouldn't have come."

"Why is she throwing one anyway?"

"All right, this wasn't her idea… it was mine." Marceline stares at him, dumbfounded. "After we left, I saw Bubblegum and told her about Christmas, and why you aren't a big fan of it."

Marceline gets wide eyed and quickly grabs Finn by the arm with a tight grip. "Why in the world would you do that?!" she asks angrily.

"Because I did it for you," Finn quickly says.

Marceline's grip loosens up. "What?"

"Yeah, I can't stand to see you depressed, and I know you and Bubblegum don't see eye to eye, so I told her the story and she was moved. Anyway, I threw this party to show you that Christmas isn't all bad and that you have friends to celebrate it with."

Marceline stares at Finn calmly, and then pulls him in for a hug. "Thank you, Finn."

Finn smiles and returns the hug. He looks up, noticing something hanging above them. "Hey Marceline, what's that?"

She comes out of the hug and looks up. Above them is mistletoe. "That's a mistletoe Finn; whenever you are caught under one with someone, you have to… kiss them."

Finn begins blushing madly and notices the mistletoe is being held by a stretched out yellow arm. He looks back and sees Jake and Bubblegum laughing uncontrollably.

"Jake!" Finn cries out, shaking his fist at him. Marceline giggles and turns him around, planting a nice kiss on his lips. For some reason, Finn doesn't want to pull away, causing the kiss to last longer than it should have. They come out of the kiss, both blushing.

"Uh… I think I'll go mingle," says Marceline.

"Yeah, me too," says Finn. They go in opposite directions, Finn heading back toward Jake and Bubblegum. Turns out, the party was a blast. Everyone had a great time, even Marceline. Eventually, the clock struck midnight, and everyone was taking their leave.

"Hey man, I'm gonna head out, see you back at the tree house," says Jake.

"Later man," says Finn as he watches his friend leave with everyone else.
Bubblegum approaches him. "I think this party turned out rather well," she says. "Anyway, I'm gonna call it a night."

"All right, I better get going anyway. Thanks again for letting me use the castle for the party."

"No problem, Finn; see you later," she says as she heads up the stairs to her room.
Finn lets out a sigh and heads outside, where he sees Marceline staring up at the sky.

"You're still here?" Finn asks. Marceline turns around, smiling.

"Yeah, I wanted to thank you again for throwing this party, Finn. This got me out of my depression funk because now I know I have friends to spend Christmas with."

"That's what friends are for."
Marceline stares at him for awhile, and then finally speaks. "I almost forgot, why are you a little banged up?"

"Oh, well, I got a little beaten up while trying to find this," he says, pulling out a box wrapped with red wrapping paper and a green bow on top from his pack.

"Finn… is that… for me?" asks Marceline, floating over to him. Finn nods and she slowly takes it. She rips the wrapping paper off and opens the box. She gasps, nearly dropping the box. Inside sits Hambo, Marceline's old stuffed teddy bear. She lifts him out; amazed to see he's still intact. "Finn… how did you…"

"After my meet with Princess Bubblegum, I went over to Ash's place to find out where I can find the witch that sold him that wand. I had to beat him up, which would explain the bruises on me. So after he told me, I found the witch's hut easily. I'm just lucky she wasn't home at the time, so I managed to swipe Hambo easily."

Marceline's eyes begin filling with tears, which eventually trickle down her face.

"You okay?" asks Finn, concerned.

Marceline smiles at him. "Yeah Finn, I'm fine."

"That's good, because-" He was quickly cut off when Marceline planted another kiss on his lips. This kiss lasted a lot longer than the first one. "There… there wasn't mistletoe," says Finn.

"I know," says Marceline, blushing and smiling. "Merry Christmas, Finn," she says,
kissing his check and flying off back to her place. Finn stands there, smiling.

"Merry Christmas, Marceline," he says as he watches her fly off into the night.