Flumbaline Picnic

"Here," Finn said cheerily, passing a small spoon to Flame Princess, the spoon bearing the finest charcoal he'd been able to locate when Bubblegum had arranged this little picnic for him and Flame Princess and Marceline and herself ("We really ought to get together more often," Bubblegum had said, putting enough emphasis into 'we' for Finn to know just how important the relationship between the four of them was becoming to her. It made him smile just thinking about it.)

Flame Princess took the spoon; the flames of her body dampened to safe levels by various methods that were largely restricted to the most powerful of her kingdom's royal family, but the spoon was still made of mere metal, and Flame Princess was still having trouble coming to grips with the danger she could pose to everything around her. She was fire incarnated, and fire's nature was to burn.

(Marceline had told Finn once, after he had broken down and told her all about that awful, wonderful day, "Burning doesn't just mean things get hurt. Passion's like fire, too." It had made him feel better; it was the first thought that had made him feel unambigiously good all day.)

Flame Princess started to lift the spoon delicately, stole a glance at Marceline chewing the red from a strawberry under her umbrella (all the better to protect her in the mid-afternoon light), stole another at Bubblegum's easygoing attitude and stole a final glance at Finn, who had been throwing his face into an entire pie and chewing before he had thought to offer her the coal. None of them were as stringent with manners as she had supposed such people of import would from all the stories she had read; even Bubblegum, privately considered a figure of ultimate decorum and steely resolve, didn't have much truck with table manners apart from a small measure of daintyness and reserve. Flame Princess hesitated and then shoved the coal-laden spoon into her mouth and chewed, savoring the earth-sweet taste of the coal as her inner fires gratefully took the fuel offered.

She paused, noticing off about the taste, and a blush spread over her face when she realized what it was. Finn blinked cluelessly, Bubblegum looked curiously at Finn for explanation, and MArceline clicked her tongue impatiently. "Own up, sparky," she said, plucking the spoon from Flame Princess' suddenly shy fingers, and took away a piece of metal with a sharply bend end; the fire elemental princess had accidentally bitten and eaten most of the spoon without meaning to, or suffering any ill effects. (Fire rarely cared what it consumed.)

Flame Princess took one look at what was left of the spoon, swallowed, and ducked her head down awkwardly, flames dimming noticably. "Sorry," she mumbled.

She had known them long enough to feel a sense of…of closeness to the boy and the two women, a closeness that she KNEW was odd to have grown so fast. And yet it hurt when she thought of how easily it might be lost, and of how badly she wanted to be liked. It hurt even worse when she did something to embarrass herself, or did something to hurt the good image she hoped to show people.

She needn't have worried. "You ate a spoon?" Finn said. He grinned. "Cool!" Flame Princess wiggled in place, not quite looking at him, and yet her flames grew a bit brighter.

Bubblegum giggled, and Flame Princess looked at her with mouth slightly open. "It's just a spoon, silly!" The Candy Princess chided the younger fire elemental. "This is a friendship building exercise, it does us good to be together when we can! No need to worry about little things!"

Marceline rapped her knuckles on Flame Princess' skull, elicting an indignated 'Ow!' from her. "You REALLY need to loosen up, sparky," she said, grinning wide and easy and a small light of nearly delirious delight at having so many people that were all her own, loved and willing to be loved.

Flame Princess knew the feeling. "'Kay," She said meekly. "Um." Her fingers pressed together, a brief gesture of insecurity, and a sudden flare of confidence compelled her to say, "I, I…I really think I like you guys!" She nearly squeaked in shock at her own bravado when Bubblegum and Finn looked at her expectantly, happily, and she hastily said, "I mean, I mean! Being TOGETHER like this." Another error that was far too close to the truth of them being around each other like this (and they all dance around the issue, parts of their minds knowing perfectly well what was growing between them, a peculiar four-way romance between the boy and the three women and between them as well, flowing and redoubling and swelling into something greater than the sum of it's parts and so good it HURT sometimes, and it was a good pain). "I mean! Hanging out like this. It's…" She tried to find the words and simply managed, "It's nice."

Finn and Bubblegum shared a look, a secret and special look as if between long time friends. "I think I know what you mean," Bubblegum said tactfully. She smiled, and Flame Princess' flames were brighter than ever, and she dared a little smile of her own.

Finn just smiled, as bright and clear as thunder cracking open the clouds to bring the sun, and Marceline looked like she wanted nothing more than to grab her three friends that were rapidly becoming rather more than just friends but contented herself with just saying, "Aw, shut up and eat your munchies."