Royalty VS Royalty ~Marshall x Gumball x Reader~ (NEW CHAPTERS!)

CHOICE: Search for Marshall

The hues of green and yellow from her eyes struck fear and panic into your heart. You watched carefully as she slowly made her way down the etched chocolate staircase. She turned the corner and it triggered your flight response. You ran down the stairs with the bottom of your dress clenched in your hands.

You stormed out of the castle doors, the fire still in sight burning brighter than it ever has. You ran towards it. The pain in your feet from the pebbles and sheer force slamming into the ground to run as fast as you could didn't matter. Some of the observers were still lurking about. An elderly couple who were discussing how awful it is for criminals to commit crimes because crime is illegal. Sweet souls.

You didn't take a minute to catch your breath. "Excuse me!" You huffed while approaching them. "Have you seen the ghastly fellow with dark hair?" The couple looked at each other in surprise. "You talkin' death?" They stared at you with curious intent. "Erm... no...?" You took small shallow breaths.

"The man who was here a moment ago, floating, wearing a black shirt?" "Oh!" The elderly woman clapped her hands on her cheeks in surprise. Her long eyelashes rubbed against the inside of her glasses from her surprised look. "I thought you were taking us to the light!" The old man patted what you assumed to be his wife's back. The awkward silence lingered in the air for a moment. "Heh." The man laughed softly.

"Think he went into that soda bar there but my eyes ain't what they used to be." His gentle withered finger pointed towards a sketchy looking building with a neon sign in the front reading "IF UR READING THIS WE'RE OPEN" You thanked the man with your head still examining the strange building. You made your way over. 

It smelled of root beer. The saloon style doors swung open with ease. The curious looking characters inside all seemed to turn their heads towards you when they heard the squeaking sound of the bolts. You looked innocent enough in your slightly tattered royal garments. You looked around for the king, he was easy to spot, now wearing black plastic sunglasses.

He didn't notice you, or if he did through his sunglasses he made no effort to acknowledge you. You walked past the sitting customers at the bar all the way to the end where Marshall was sitting on a stool. He rotated in it slightly back and forth. With his finger tapping the neck of his bottle, a glass one with a cherry label slapped lazily on the sides.

"Marshall?" You stood beside him. He turned his head your way and flipped up his sunglasses with his finger at the end of the band. "Y/N! Look at you, I was expecting you to come out of that fire well done." He gave you a toothy grin, his fangs peeking out slightly. You could almost roll your eyes at his casual comments. "Why did you leave the crowd?" You placed your hands on the counter.

"I knew you were fine. Gumball wouldn't have let me enter anyways." Marshall swished his bottle slowly in his hands. He watched the liquid inside swirl around. "How was it, anyway?" Marshall pulled off the sunglasses and set them down on the bar. His eyes were that enchanting shade of crimson that seemed to glow if you looked hard enough.

You stared down into your lap. Your eyes were tracing every stitch in the fine fabric. The patience it must have took to make this dress, all the others, it only took seconds to be destroyed by the fire. "My room was destroyed. I don't have anything left and I don't know when I'll make it back home." Marshall leaned up in his seat. His hands were on his knees, you could see his frown in the corner of your eye.

"Are you serious?" He asked softly with his head tilted to the side. "Yeah..." your voice was barely above a whisper. Marshall kept the silence as a way to show his condolences for your loss. "Where are you gonna go?" Marshall scooted his stool closer to yours. "I don't know. Gumball wants me to stay in the castle. He's going to give me a new wardrobe and everything . . . but . . ." Marshall's ears perked up when you trailed off.

"But?" You took a moment to think about what you should say. You stared at your hands, etching the lines on your palms with your eyes. Butterscotch Butler, her glowing eyes, some sort of strange magic? Is it evil? Would it be safe for Marshall to know... what you don't even fully know yourself. "But I don't know if I'm comfortable there." Marshall's own thoughts swirled around his head, you both let your silence speak for you.

"Gumball makes you uncomfortable?" You thought about what he said. All the negatives from earlier about Gumball's current persona not being his own, how he changed after taking royal responsibility. You saw snippets of Gumball's personality that didn't connect to his sweet bubblegum persona yet none of that made you weary of him. "No, it's not that, I just . . . I don't feel comfortable sleeping under someone else's roof. Even if it's a castle."

"They got mad rules there." Marshall took a swig of his drink. "Do they?" Marshall was sitting back with a sly smile. "Well they're okay. I don't like any sort of rules. If I want to put my goblin feet on a table then I'm doing it." He was doing it again. Making you laugh in a time you needed it most. You almost forgot about everything. The fire, Butterscotch's eyes, the kiss, you were laughing out of pure joy.

"Hey listen," He turned his body completely towards you. "If you ever get too uncomfy and need a way to escape it for a bit, you know where to find me. My door is always open." You felt your smile grow. "Okay. Thank you. I should probably head back now, I'm supposed to meet with the tailors. I just wanted to know how you were and where you went."

That took Marshall by surprise, his expression said it all. "Thanks, Y/N. I appreciate that. You should go now before Bubba has a blowout." Marshall snickered to himself and took another sip of his drink. You smiled to yourself even though Marshall was the one who caused it to happen. Again. You said your goodbyes to Marshall and headed out of the candybar building. The fire was burning out now, slowly but surely. 

You didn't rush back to the castle. You enjoyed each and every slow step in your stroll back to the enchanting sugary sweet structure ahead.