Candela

And with a flash of spectrum of her wonderful beam being divided by the shards of ice that decorated his body, she had been reduced to something she would have never been able to see.

She never knew the tears could blind you…

They called her the "Flicker Princess", and rightly so. She was now nothing more than a wavering form of light staying still on a short and continuously disintegrating piece of wicker. The wax has melted… she had lost her candle that once made her feel complete. That made her feel whole.

She had lost him the moment he consumed himself for her.

And that was the moment they had first met.

You're willing to defy nature for me?

He gave a sincere nod to that question. And then sealed it with a gesture that she never could exist in her sick, drastic world.

A hug.

Something far brighter than she was. Something far warmer than she was.

Something… something new.

Maybe it's too much for us to be together, Finn?

She remembered how heated he was for hearing such nonsense. He said that it was foolish of her to think such things. He would be there, he said, and would still be hers no matter how many burn marks he gets from her. He said he'd do anything to protect her.

He said he loved her.

Don't leave, Flame Princess. I need you…

He needed her. At least, that was what he had claimed the moment he had so bravely attempted to revive her when he himself was running out of breath. Now that she thinks about it, what could he need from her that would push him to go to the ends of the world for her?

He was wrong…

She needed him more than he needed her. As a matter of fact, she needed him more than anyone needed anything in this world.

She needed him like she was her flame, and without him there would be no flame.

There'd be no Flame Princess.

Don't worry, Flame Princess… As long as I'm here, you'll never return to your cage. You'll always be free.

He was the freedom he had sought for. For so many years, she was locked up tight physically and even tighter internally. She had spent half of her life inside that glass cage, watching the world from a third point of view, never being part of what was out there; always the one inside looking out.

But when he came, he had broken the glass and cut off the restraints that reverted her again and again to instability, and set her free

Free to do what she wants.

Free to be who she is.

Free… to be with Finn.

The Flicker Princess has released another set of tears that soon stung her eyes even more.

It's amazing how pain pulls you so harshly back into reality.

She moved herself a bit, only to hear more clanking and feel more solidity around her.

Who could have thought that after all those wonderful reminiscences of soaring high and burning brighter, she'd be back to those shackles that she had long despised and forgotten?

Woe unto her, the brightness was now smothered. She could see no more. Everything was dark.

Her hands move slightly to feel the small, tender fabric that rested on her lap that day she was thron in here. It didn't burn upon contact, attesting to her now extremely diminished power.

She was now weak and harmless.

"Oh, Finn," she choked, stroking the white fabric that once bested his head like a crown.

His own white, cloth-like crown.

"Flame Princess!"

The flickering young dame moved her head around her small prison-like chamber. She'd recognized that voice anywhere.

"Finn…?"

"Over here, Flame Princess!" He was standing against the bars that constricted her, sticking his face to whatever gap that cage allowed just to be closer to her. She could hear him breathe.

"What are you doing here, Finn?" she cried, feeling her way towards him. "I thought you could've gone by now? Hurry! The Ice King might find you!"

"I'm not leaving without you, Flame Princess!?" Finn protested. "Not again!"

"But, Finn, I…" To her surprise, Finn grabbed both her arms. She could feel him tremble from the pain.

"Listen to me. I love you too much to let you be just some accessory for anybody, especially not Ice King!" He turned to his left. "Jake! Hurry up with the unlocking!"

"'M trying, man!" the dog replied. "The lock's too complicated!"

"Finn, please save yourselves… If the Ice King sees you, he…"

"This time, I'll be ready for Ice King, Princess. Just trust me."

"No, Finn, you don't understand. Ice King's powers have heightened after absorbing the life out off the Princess of Candy Kingdom…"

"You mean…" Finn's eyes grew large at that given moment." Princess Bubblegum is…? Oh, Glob…" He absentmindedly grasped tighter her warm hands, only for it to sputter, burning his two hands once more. She immediately let him go.

"I'm sorry, Finn… Go. I can't watch you consume yourself for me anymore. Please, leave…"

"No!" Finn's voice was rising beyond a whisper, destroying the silence that kept them to some extent safe from being caught. "I won't let you suffer the same fate as Bubblegum!"

"Finn, keep it down!" Flicker Princess warned him. "Please! You'll wake him—"

"WHO DARES DISTURB THE ICE KING'S SLUMBER?!"

"It's the Ice King…! Finn, go!"

"Jake!"

"There, there! It's open, man!" There was a loud clanking of metal, and soon, Finn and Flicker Princess were riding a giant Jake as they pushed through the Ice Armies that stood on their way. Flicker Princess clutched onto Finn's shredded hood for dear life, while Finn tried his best to keep her warm.

"Look, man!" Jake pointed out, gesturing at the light with a third hand. "It's the exit of the Ice Kingdom! We're home free!"

"Awesome!" Finn cheered, only to be disturbed by the slew of Ice Arrows that targeted towards them. Ice King had caught up.

"Jake! It's the Ice King, man! Hurry!"

"Sorry, Finn! This as fast as we go!"

"Finn clenched his teeth and pulled out his sword to ward off the arrows from hitting the princess. But the weapon was not enough to face the then powerful Ice King. Soon Finn started losing steam, and one arrow got through his defence and almost reached Flicker Princess if it weren't for Jake's third arm. Finn ran to her aid and started shielding her with his body. The princess' heart was breaking at the sound of his own pained voice.

"Finn!" She could not do anything but listen to him. The Ice Kingdom's atmosphere was weakening her.

She was nothing more but a flicker.

Finn's sword slid towards her and she felt its smooth, metal surface beneath her pallid, almost purplish skin. She was aware of the small amount of heat that escaped her, but it was enough to burn Jake's skin. The metal was conducting heat like crazy. She picked it up and wondered…

What if…?

"Stand back, Finn," she warned. She limped forward and aimed the sword at the Ice King. "Let me have a shot…"

She brought out as much as heat as she could and let the metal absorb it. When she felt like she could let out no more, she handed it to Finn, and used Jake's tail to catapult it to Ice king.

Flicker Princess last heard of the cheers of both Finn and Jake and the crumbling of the cave before she heard her own flames gradually go off in to thin smoke.

Did you know that wax, when melted, can be remodelled back to its original form…

"Flame Princess!"

…with the help of fire…?

She opened her eyes and found that she could see again. The tears that once aggrieved her and made her blind were now relieved from her.

"Thank goodness, you're alive, Flame Princess! I thought I'd lose you again…"

She looked around, and found her own skin has finally grown back to its original colour. Her warmth was back too.

Everything has relapsed.

"Flame Princess?"

"Finn…" She was to wrap her arms around him, but when she found how bruised he was, she repressed.

"Oh no, you're hurt…"

"They're just scratches, Flame Princess, I'll be fine. Here let me help you up." He reached for her, but she didn't reach out.

"But, Finn, I might burn you."

"Let's just try, Flame Princess. Here," he smiled. "Take my hand, and together, let's hope that it won't hurt again… Not this time…"

She nodded, and carefully reached out for his out held hand. They touched, and for the first time, he didn't pull away. Instead he pulled her closer, and let her lips touch her as she stood up.

The touch was neither hot nor cold.

It was just right.

-FIN-

Not my best shot, but close enough.

Thanks for reading!

LoveLots~