Finn had continued his trek through the dense forest separating him from his long awaited treehouse.

He was exausted. If it weren't for the constant thoughts of his cozy bed with warm lit candles sitting next to it, he would have let his legs give out all on their own.

Stupid dragons. They don't even eat candy!

The thought of why the dragon he killed an hour prior had attacked the Candy Kingdom still boggled his mind. However, the fact he was even able to kill it in the first place made him even more amazed.

If it hadn't been for Jake's elastic assistance, he would have surely been dead. Not just dead; squashed in a pile of meat and bones against the candy pavement, burned to a crisp, or eaten were all possible ends to the hero, and he shuddered at the thoughts.

Jake wasn't having it, as he warped into a blindfold covering the beast's vision, giving Finn the opportunity of slicing off it's head clean, receiving roars of applause from the candy people as well as Princess Bubblegum. (And none from the dragon mind you)

"I'll see you around dude. Lady must be worried sick about me. We'll hang out next week!"

Jake...

The thoughts of the yellow kaynine filled Finn's thoughts with sorrow. He knew it was only a matter of time before he eventually had to make the move. He wasn't completely isolated from him, they still hung out every once in a while, but those periods were becoming far in between. Jake needed to move on from his bro's life, and dedicate it to his own path.

But Finn smiled. He smiled at those thoughts, because even if they were no longer as 'tight' as they used to be, he found solace in the fact that Jake had found love, started a family, and began a life of peace and comfort. Those thoughts overcame any amount of dread Finn had. He was happy for him.

I had that chance...

Finn quickly shook the thoughts out of his mind. He was over it, he was over the past. There was no use dawning on it now, it would only bring pain to his heart. But...

After three years... It... Why did I do something so dumb?

Finn slapped himself across the face.

"Ugh! I suck! Even after all this time, I still-"

Finn blinked.

He stopped in his tracks at what lay before him. It wasn't the most curious thing he had ever seen, he had lost track of the many wonders and discoveries Ooo provided for him. Nevertheless, what laid in his path mad him ponder.

"A... Book?"

It was sitting dead center on the path before him. It wasn't thick nor thin, it looked to be around two hundred pages. The color was a dark red with a darker red line forming a hollow square around the cover. It wasn't an old torn book equated to that of garbage or litter though.

It was nearly perfect. It was as if it was fresh off the press and just put on a shelf. Either that, or someone took really good care of it.

"What the... fudge?"

Finn's curiosity spiked and he knelt down to pick it up. There was a tad bit of dirt covering it, but he brushed it off with ease.

There was no title, which made him tilt his head and furrow his brows with a confused look.

He decided to open it from the middle and was greeted with writing. Before he looked on though, he saw dates on the top of the pages.

He quickly realized what it was and slowly shut the book.

"This is a journal! Or a diary... Whatever they're called."

I guess it depends on whether it's a dude or lady.

Finn pondered at the book for a second later.

Should I... Read this?

He thought to himself. He didn't really know what to do. Here was this book, supposedly containing closely held memories of the person who wrote it, just sitting out here in the middle of the forest.

Finn wondered if someone possibly misplaced it. The thought had crossed his mind that it could belong to someone long gone, but the state of the book and the date he read when he first opened it told him otherwise. He cracked the book open near the end to see it was incomplete, and that confirmed it.

This was definitely lost by someone... But who? He opened the cover but was just met with more writing. No name, no address, at least nothing that stood out to reveal who's book it was.

Finn felt responsible to return it to it's owner, but he was conflicted about opening it again.

What if this book belonged to someone he knew? What if he read something deeply heartwrenching, embarrassing, or anything else they wished to keep to themselves?

Even if he didn't know the person who wrote it, the act of opening it again felt... Wrong. But how else was he supposed to find it's true owner?

He sighed.

Okay. Time for ground rules.

Finn made up some 'journal reading' laws in his head to avoid him spoiling a well kept secret.

If he came across any words or phrases relating to love or any kind of relationships he would close the book immediately and find another page. He knew all too well how important that biz was to people, and he wasn't about to go meddling in that regard.

He also made sure to keep the amount he read on each page to a minimum, to avoid his eyes getting caught leading on and not forming any possible connections.

He breathed deep.

Okay.

Finn opened the book to a random page and his eyes began to wander.

How could I not realize it sooner? This whole situation is dumb. His stupid prank... How could my brother do something like that to me? I'm her sister for glob-

Finn closed the book.

So... Whoever lost this is a girl. She has a brother...

Finn knew countless people, dudes and ladies who had brothers. This information was broad... But it helped narrow down the search quite a bit.

He opened the book to another page and began reading.

Finn-

He gasped and immediately closed the book.

What were the chances!? Of all the words to be on the page let alone start with was his name!

This almost shook him out of his shoes!

Whoever owned this book knew him, or knew of him. He held his head in frustration, as he feared he was definitely crossing the boundaries reading this compendum of sensitive information.

But he couldn't help but wonder what was on the rest of that page!

Was this person in love with him? Madly in love with him? A stalker? Did she hate him? Was this just about a casual meeting between the two that the human had long forgot? His mind raced with questions, questions he forunately had enough integrity not to find the answers to.

He promised himself this was all for good intentions. This was probably really special to someone and he hated knowing the consequences of losing such an item.

What else was he going to do? Leave the book? Leave it for someone else with not so much integrity to crack open and laugh at? Would he just store it in his treehouse forever?

No... I'm doing the right thing.

Finn took another deep breath and opened the book again to a random page. He began reading... But was taken aback by the contents of the page.

This is all my fault. This is all my fault. This is all my fault. This is all my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault. All my fault-

Finn looked across at the next page and found it was covered with the same phrase. He closed the book, a bit disturbed by the contents. He then looked at it with a sense of calmness.

I know... It's okay.

Finn had actually come to a point where he wrote out all of his frustrations like this, the result of a mistake he made long ago. He knew what this person was feeling as he drifted across the page, and he couldn't help but feel for her.

He hoped that the rest of the entries weren't slathered with the same phrase. Thankfully, when he opened the diary to a period afterwards, it would seem the girl got over her guilt. At least on paper.

I miss the days when I was so carefree you know? I could just do whatever I want... Why does royalty have to be so stressful!

It's all worth it though, to see my people this happy and alive, my kingdom-

Silence.

This... This is... This...

Finn stuttered, even in his mind.

This is a princess's diary.

To say he was shocked was an understatement. The numbers were now in the single digits. He could count on one hand how many possibilities there were.

But that didn't even match the guilt he felt after this realization. He knew every single one of the princesses personally, and to think he just went snooping around in one of their diaries made him sad.

He would surely have to explain to the one what he did and accept the consequences.

But.

He must tread on. Better him than some dishonest raider or crazy wizard.

He regretted doing this, but he turned to the same page he read before.

If I'm going to find out who's diary this is... It has to be on this page.

He continued to read.

My kingdom is more important than my stupid personal struggles. I have to rebuild. I have to prove to them we're not monsters.

His heart skipped a beat.

No...

I have to show Ooo we can be trustworthy. I have to show them we can be honest.

Oh no...

I have to show them the right way. I'll show them. I'll show them fire doesn't just burn. Fire doesn't just breed destruction.

Please don't let it be-

I'll show them. I'll prove my father wrong. I'll prove I'm more than just a decoration stuck inside a lamp.

The sound of a loud clap filled the air, birds flew throughout the forest at the alarming sound. It had echoed for miles.

It was all too clear.

Deep in his mind, he wanted to believe, believe it wasn't her's.

"Flame Princess..."