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It had been nearly a month since Marshall had attacked Abyssinian and there was no sign of the Shadow King the whole time. Leo and Gumball had both been asking about where the man was and at first, Marshall lied to them about what had happened. About a week after the attack however, he couldn't hold it in anymore and broke down to Gumball and told the Candy Prince everything. Gumball looked at Marshall in shock before growing angry with the vampire for not telling the truth to him at the very least, then insisted that Marshall tell Leo.

With a heavy heart, Marshall agreed and went to Leo's room, only to see that Blake was there as well. The two young boys were playing in a blanket fort and when Marshall asked Blake to leave for a moment so he could talk to Leo, the boys refused to leave one another. Sighing, Marshall frowned and decided that Blake should hear as well, this way the young flame hybrid could help comfort Leo. After telling Leo and Blake what had happened, his son was of course upset with him for attacking 'Uncle Aby' and hadn't really talked to him since.

Now, the Vampire King stared out the window of the Candy Kingdom as he floated in the air by the glass barrier, watching the moon move higher into the night sky as Gumball spoke in the room. His words were more of a murmur however, as he had been toning out the Candy Prince because Gumball was talking to some of his subjects in the throne room. Leo was in the room as well as he sat in the throne behind his Daddy, watching and learning what he would one day have to do as well.

The sound of the doors opening however snapped Marshall out of his daze and he looked over, seeing a hooded figure whose entire body was covered with a dark purple cloak with silver edging entering the room and taking a place at the end of the short line to talk to the Candy Prince. They walked with a hunched back and used a cane to support themselves, the hard wood making an audible 'thunk' each time it struck the tile floor. When it was finally their turn to speak to Gumball, the hooded figure walked forward and slightly bowed. The Candy Prince smiled softly to the figure so as to make them feel welcome.

"Hello there. How can I help you this evening?" Gumball said warmly, watching the cloaked figure. The hidden person lifted their hand and motioned towards Leo, making the young boy blink in confusion. Gumball looked behind himself and motioned for his son to come stand beside him. "I think they want to talk to you, Leo."

Leo blinked once more before nodding and standing, walking over to stand beside his Daddy and looked at the hooded figure. Marshall and Gumball both watched quietly, both men ready to leap forward and protect Leo if needed as the hooded figure pulled out a scroll from their cloak and offered it to the young Candy Vampire Prince. Leo cautiously walked forward and took the scroll, seeing the words 'Read Me Aloud' on the edge before he moved back to stand by Gumball as he opened the parchment.

"'Hello my little bubblegum bat'," Leo started before widely smiling. "It's from Uncle Aby! 'I'm sorry I've been away for so long. After recovering from the incident with your father, I needed to head home to the Shadow of Aaa for a while to make sure everything is still running smoothly in my absence. It is taking much longer than anticipated. As I explained to you once before, a day to you in Aaa is a week for me in the Shadow of Aaa. So, as of right now, a month for you has been nearly a year here. Which also explains why I have been gone for so long. As time goes here, I have been gone for nearly 5 years! Luckily for me, a lot of the "problems" here have been minimal and have not really needed my authority. I will, however, need to be sure that I come back more often then I have been so that I don't have so much paperwork to do! I'm sure Gumball knows what I'm talking about'." Leo paused and looked towards Gumball when the Candy Prince chuckled.

"That is very true... Just a day of paperwork is a LOT already, so he must be drowning in backed up work." Gumball said with another chuckle. Leo weakly smiled before looking at the letter once more and continued.

"'When I come back, I promise that I will try and make up for some of the time I lost with you. Until then, please be patient. Also, could you do me a favor? Please tell Marshall'..." Leo blinked in confusion as he looked at the letter.

"What's wrong, Leo?" Gumball asked the young prince.

"It just cuts off..." Leo answered as he looked up at Gumball. The Candy Prince, along with Marshall, blinked in confusion before he took the parchment from his son and quickly read over the letter. Gumball looked up at the hooded figure as if asking what he knew about the letter. The person spoke, his voice sounding old and weak.

"It is supposed to say... 'Please tell Marshall to stop frowning. Otherwise his face will get stuck like that'." The figure said with a chuckle that sounded much younger than their earlier voice. Leo blinked before walking to the figure, the cloaked man kneeling down to be eye level with the boy before his hands moved up to pull back the hook, revealing the smiling face of none other than Abyssinian himself! Compared to usual however, his hair was now longer and went just past the top of his shoulder blades. "Hey there, my little bubblegum bat~"

"Uncle Aby!" Leo cried out before quickly leaping forward, tightly hugging Abyssinian's neck as he began to softly cry in relief. The Shadow King smiled more and gently shushed Leo as he hugged the boy close while standing up, the cane falling to the ground before becoming pure black and melting into the shadows, revealing that the cane itself was made of shadows. Gumball and Marshall both blinked in shock as they looked at Abyssinian, the Shadow King using his left arm to support Leo's rear as his right hand gently and soothingly stroked the boy's dark pink hair.

"Shh, it's okay Leo. Everything's okay." The man said softly before kissing Leo's head then gently nuzzled the boy's hair, smiling softly as Leo buried his face into the man's shoulder. Gumball looked at the Shadow King and was the first to snap out of his stunned stupor while Marshall remained at his spot by the window, still too guilt ridden to move closer to Abyssinian.

"A-Abyssinian! A-Are you okay?!" The Candy Prince asked in shock as he moved to hug Abyssinian, slightly sandwiching Leo between them. The man chuckled and nodded as the large cloak became black and slid off him, going into the shadows like the cane before it and revealed the Shadow King's royal attire. Gumball felt Abyssinian's right arm wrap around his shoulders as the man hugged his friend in return.

"I'm alright Gumball." Abyssinian said with a soft smile before pulling back so he could look at the Candy Prince, noticing Gumball's look of worry. "I promise, I'm alright."

Abyssinian looked down at Leo and softly smiled before beginning to lightly purr, knowing that usually soothed the boy when he was upset and purred even more when Leo looked up at him and nuzzled his shoulder. He gently kissed the Candy Vampire's forehead before gently handing him to Gumball then turned to look at Marshall. The Vampire King blinked before looking away from Abyssinian's eyes, guilt still heavy on his mind. The next thing Marshall knew, he felt a weight on his back and nibbling on his neck which caused him to VERY deeply blush before jumping away.

"G-Glob dang it, Abyssinian! The the lump is wrong with you?!" Marshall yelled as he whipped around to glare at the Shadow King, the man grinning like a Cheshire Cat which revealed his new, sharper fangs as he floated behind where the vampire was standing before. Marshall was about to yell at him once more before sudden realization hit him. Abyssinian was SMILING at him. He had no tinge of fear like when Marshall attacked him. The Shadow King smiled more when he noticed the vampire's look of realization and moved so he stood on the ground from his floating position, walking over to Marshall and hugging the younger man.

"I don't blame you for what happened, Marshall. I should have listened and left when you told me to. That and you're a Vampire. You NEED to drink blood, it's what you do. So... Please don't feel so guilty for attacking or feeding from me. I don't blame you for it." Abyssinian said softly as he hugged Marshall close, the vampire standing tense in his arms.

The Vampire King stood in silence before he slowly moved his arms to hug Abyssinian back and pressed his face into the older man's shoulder, tightly clutching the shadow entity's cape in his hands as he let out a shuddery sigh. The Shadow King softly smiled and gently squeezed Marshall as he rest his head on the vampire's, soothingly rubbing the younger man's back. They stood like this for a few moments before separating and softly smiling at one another, the King of Vampires and King of Shadows now having a deeper understanding and bond with one another, before both looked over when Gumball walked over with Leo in his arms.

Leo immediately floated out of Gumball's embrace and went to Abyssinian, the Shadow King softly chuckling and hugging Leo close while purring loudly as his feline tail swished happily. Suddenly, Leo jumped in surprise when he felt something gently nip at his hand that rested on Abyssinian's shoulder and he timidly withdrew it. The shadow entity blinked in surprise before he looked at his back.

"Noapte, no nipping. These are my friends, you can trust them." He said softly yet sternly, a small chirp sounding after he spoke. Leo, Marshall, and Gumball all blinked in confusion before seeing a strange creature move out from under Abyssinian's hood of his cape as if it had been hiding there. The creature looked almost like a dragon and was mostly purple and black but it also had blue stripes along its body that slightly glowed. Leo blinked and looked at the creature in awe while Gumball and Marshall looked at it in shock.

"Wh-What is that?" Gumball asked as he looked at the creature.

"This is Noapte. He's my new companion from a friend of mine named Jīngshén. Marshall met him already." Abyssinian said with a smile as he looked at Marshall before speaking once more. "He's called a Løki, specifically a Løki dragon. Jīngshén can travel around different realms as he collects souls, helping them pass on if they are good or using their energy to power his own abilities if they were evil. While traveling around, he found the realm that the Løki species come from. He met Noapte and asked if he would like to travel somewhere new, which he agreed to. So, Jīngshén brought him to me and we became friends."

"Can I pet him...?" Leo asked as he looked at Noapte, softly smiling at the Løki. Noapte looked at Leo before looking at Abyssinian, the Shadow King smiling and nodding to the Løki who then looked at Leo and shyly nudged the boy's hand. The Candy Vampire smiled and gently pet Noapte's head between the Løki's ears, smiling more when Noapte began to softly purr. "Awww."

Hours passed and the group ended up in one of the guest rooms of the Candy Kingdom, Marshall, Gumball, and Abyssinian all talking as they watched Leo and Noapte playing. The Løki had grown in size from that of a cat to about a medium sized dog, Abyssinian explaining that his own powers and needs for Noapte effected the Løki's own magic. Therefore, Noapte could travel to different dimensions and teleport like Jīngshén could, had a slight ability to control shadows like himself, and could change his size.

"Noapte can actually get as long as 16 feet and 6 1/2 feet tall. However, with me needing him to be smaller than the 'smallest' Løki size, Noapte can shrink to 48 1/2 inches long and 16 inches tall." Abyssinian said with a smile as he watched Noapte and Leo playing, the Løki playfully bounding around the boy as the two played a game of tag. A sudden yawn made the three men look at Leo and smile before Gumball looked out the window and saw that the sun was beginning to rise.

"My goodness, we've been up all night!" The Candy Prince spoke before looking to Abyssinian. "You and Noapte are more than welcome to stay here for a few days if you want, Abyss."

"I'd really appreciate that, Gumball." Abyssinian said with a tired smile, looking over when Leo walked over and sat in his lap. This made the man chuckle and affectionately pet the boy's head. "You wanna lay down with me, my little bubblegum bat?"

Leo tiredly nodded before smiling as Noapte shrunk down and laid on the Shadow King's shoulder, the Løki yawning before curling up and sleepily purring as he rested. Abyssinian chuckled and pet Noapte's head before smiling at Marshall and Gumball as Leo rested in his lap.

"Is it okay with you two if he sleeps in here with me?"

"Of course we're okay with it, Abyssinian." Gumball said with a smile before standing. "I'll go and get Leo ready for bed." With that, the Candy Prince picked Leo up from Abyssinian's lap and carried the boy out of the room, leaving the Shadow King and Marshall in the room. There was an awkward silence between the two before the vampire spoke.

"I'm sorry, Abyss... I know you said you're okay with what happened, but..."

"Marshall, don't." Abyssinian interrupted the Vampire King, speaking softly though there was an authoritative and stern tone in his voice. Marshall was about to speak once more before Abyssinian flicked his forehead, causing the vampire to wince and rub his forehead before the Shadow King spoke. "Like I said before, you're a vampire and you were doing what vampire's do. During my time back home, I thought about what happened and I realized that you were starving yourself. I just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time, but I don't blame you for it. You tried your best and when you did regain control of yourself, you realized what happened and you saved me. I know you're probably thinking that you're a 'monster', but a monster wouldn't have saved me. A monster would have let me die then eaten my remains. You are not a monster, Marshall Lee. You're my friend. Don't ever forget that."

Marshall looked at Abyssinian in stunned silence before weakly smiling at the older man, chuckling before gently swatting away the man's arm when the Shadow King affectionately pat his head. The two smiled and quietly talked about things that had happened around Aaa while Abyssinian was gone before looking up when Gumball walked back into the room. The Candy Prince smiled at the sight before him, usually Marshall and Abyssinian were at each others throats long before now or were teasing one another, but now they seemed to be more friendly and closer than ever before. It really made Gumball happy to see this new relationship between the men, though it did sadden him slightly that it took Marshall attacking and nearly killing Abyssinian to do it. Marshall stood and smiled at Leo, the boy half asleep in Gumball's arms and kissed his son's head before turning to look at the shadow entity.

"I'll get you something to wear for pajamas, be right back." With that, Marshall left the room. Abyssinian smiled and gently smiled at Gumball and Leo, the two smiling back at him. Gently lifting his Løki companion off his shoulder, Abyssinian placed Noapte on the bed before standing and taking his cape off as Gumball placed Leo on the bed beside the Løki Dragon. Moments later, Marshall came in with a pair of black sweatpants and a dark grey tee shirt and handed them to Abyssinian. "I hope these fit."

"Thank you, Marshall. I'm only a little bit taller than you, so they should be fine." Abyssinian said with a soft smile before heading into the bathroom to change. Once he came out and was changed, he said goodnight to Marshall and Gumball as the two men left before he crawled into the bed with Leo and Noapte. The Candy Prince and Vampire King left to go get ready for bed as well, finishing their routine in mere moments.

The two decided to check on Leo and Abyssinian once more before going to bed themselves, so they headed down the hall to the guest room and opened the door slightly so that they could peak in, and both smiled warmly at what they saw. Leo was curled up in a ball and was sound asleep against Abyssinian's chest while his sleeping 'Uncle' hugged him close as he gently smiled, Noapte curled up in a ball above Abyssinian and Leo's heads as he too slept. The soft sound of purring could be heard in the room, one was distinctively Abyssinian's and the other they quickly figured out was Noapte's. Marshall and Gumball smiled before closing the door to let the trio sleep before once again heading to their own room.

"So..."

"So what?" Marshall asked as he looked at Gumball.

"How are things going to be now between you and Abyssinian?" Gumball asked as he looked at Marshall, clearly curious about the new standing between the kings. Marshall softly smiled as he walked with Gumball, gently draping his arm around the Candy Prince's hips.

"Better. Much, much better I think."

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It had been nearly a month since Marshall had attacked Abyssinian and there was no sign of the Shadow King the whole time. Leo and Gumball had both been asking about where the man was and at first, Marshall lied to them about what had happened. About a week after the attack however, he couldn't hold it in anymore and broke down to Gumball and told the Candy Prince everything. Gumball looked at Marshall in shock before growing angry with the vampire for not telling the truth to him at the very least, then insisted that Marshall tell Leo.

With a heavy heart, Marshall agreed and went to Leo's room, only to see that Blake was there as well. The two young boys were playing in a blanket fort and when Marshall asked Blake to leave for a moment so he could talk to Leo, the boys refused to leave one another. Sighing, Marshall frowned and decided that Blake should hear as well, this way the young flame hybrid could help comfort Leo. After telling Leo and Blake what had happened, his son was of course upset with him for attacking 'Uncle Aby' and hadn't really talked to him since.

Now, the Vampire King stared out the window of the Candy Kingdom as he floated in the air by the glass barrier, watching the moon move higher into the night sky as Gumball spoke in the room. His words were more of a murmur however, as he had been toning out the Candy Prince because Gumball was talking to some of his subjects in the throne room. Leo was in the room as well as he sat in the throne behind his Daddy, watching and learning what he would one day have to do as well.

The sound of the doors opening however snapped Marshall out of his daze and he looked over, seeing a hooded figure whose entire body was covered with a dark purple cloak with silver edging entering the room and taking a place at the end of the short line to talk to the Candy Prince. They walked with a hunched back and used a cane to support themselves, the hard wood making an audible 'thunk' each time it struck the tile floor. When it was finally their turn to speak to Gumball, the hooded figure walked forward and slightly bowed. The Candy Prince smiled softly to the figure so as to make them feel welcome.

"Hello there. How can I help you this evening?" Gumball said warmly, watching the cloaked figure. The hidden person lifted their hand and motioned towards Leo, making the young boy blink in confusion. Gumball looked behind himself and motioned for his son to come stand beside him. "I think they want to talk to you, Leo."

Leo blinked once more before nodding and standing, walking over to stand beside his Daddy and looked at the hooded figure. Marshall and Gumball both watched quietly, both men ready to leap forward and protect Leo if needed as the hooded figure pulled out a scroll from their cloak and offered it to the young Candy Vampire Prince. Leo cautiously walked forward and took the scroll, seeing the words 'Read Me Aloud' on the edge before he moved back to stand by Gumball as he opened the parchment.

"'Hello my little bubblegum bat'," Leo started before widely smiling. "It's from Uncle Aby! 'I'm sorry I've been away for so long. After recovering from the incident with your father, I needed to head home to the Shadow of Aaa for a while to make sure everything is still running smoothly in my absence. It is taking much longer than anticipated. As I explained to you once before, a day to you in Aaa is a week for me in the Shadow of Aaa. So, as of right now, a month for you has been nearly a year here. Which also explains why I have been gone for so long. As time goes here, I have been gone for nearly 5 years! Luckily for me, a lot of the "problems" here have been minimal and have not really needed my authority. I will, however, need to be sure that I come back more often then I have been so that I don't have so much paperwork to do! I'm sure Gumball knows what I'm talking about'." Leo paused and looked towards Gumball when the Candy Prince chuckled.

"That is very true... Just a day of paperwork is a LOT already, so he must be drowning in backed up work." Gumball said with another chuckle. Leo weakly smiled before looking at the letter once more and continued.

"'When I come back, I promise that I will try and make up for some of the time I lost with you. Until then, please be patient. Also, could you do me a favor? Please tell Marshall'..." Leo blinked in confusion as he looked at the letter.

"What's wrong, Leo?" Gumball asked the young prince.

"It just cuts off..." Leo answered as he looked up at Gumball. The Candy Prince, along with Marshall, blinked in confusion before he took the parchment from his son and quickly read over the letter. Gumball looked up at the hooded figure as if asking what he knew about the letter. The person spoke, his voice sounding old and weak.

"It is supposed to say... 'Please tell Marshall to stop frowning. Otherwise his face will get stuck like that'." The figure said with a chuckle that sounded much younger than their earlier voice. Leo blinked before walking to the figure, the cloaked man kneeling down to be eye level with the boy before his hands moved up to pull back the hook, revealing the smiling face of none other than Abyssinian himself! Compared to usual however, his hair was now longer and went just past the top of his shoulder blades. "Hey there, my little bubblegum bat~"

"Uncle Aby!" Leo cried out before quickly leaping forward, tightly hugging Abyssinian's neck as he began to softly cry in relief. The Shadow King smiled more and gently shushed Leo as he hugged the boy close while standing up, the cane falling to the ground before becoming pure black and melting into the shadows, revealing that the cane itself was made of shadows. Gumball and Marshall both blinked in shock as they looked at Abyssinian, the Shadow King using his left arm to support Leo's rear as his right hand gently and soothingly stroked the boy's dark pink hair.

"Shh, it's okay Leo. Everything's okay." The man said softly before kissing Leo's head then gently nuzzled the boy's hair, smiling softly as Leo buried his face into the man's shoulder. Gumball looked at the Shadow King and was the first to snap out of his stunned stupor while Marshall remained at his spot by the window, still too guilt ridden to move closer to Abyssinian.

"A-Abyssinian! A-Are you okay?!" The Candy Prince asked in shock as he moved to hug Abyssinian, slightly sandwiching Leo between them. The man chuckled and nodded as the large cloak became black and slid off him, going into the shadows like the cane before it and revealed the Shadow King's royal attire. Gumball felt Abyssinian's right arm wrap around his shoulders as the man hugged his friend in return.

"I'm alright Gumball." Abyssinian said with a soft smile before pulling back so he could look at the Candy Prince, noticing Gumball's look of worry. "I promise, I'm alright."

Abyssinian looked down at Leo and softly smiled before beginning to lightly purr, knowing that usually soothed the boy when he was upset and purred even more when Leo looked up at him and nuzzled his shoulder. He gently kissed the Candy Vampire's forehead before gently handing him to Gumball then turned to look at Marshall. The Vampire King blinked before looking away from Abyssinian's eyes, guilt still heavy on his mind. The next thing Marshall knew, he felt a weight on his back and nibbling on his neck which caused him to VERY deeply blush before jumping away.

"G-Glob dang it, Abyssinian! The the lump is wrong with you?!" Marshall yelled as he whipped around to glare at the Shadow King, the man grinning like a Cheshire Cat which revealed his new, sharper fangs as he floated behind where the vampire was standing before. Marshall was about to yell at him once more before sudden realization hit him. Abyssinian was SMILING at him. He had no tinge of fear like when Marshall attacked him. The Shadow King smiled more when he noticed the vampire's look of realization and moved so he stood on the ground from his floating position, walking over to Marshall and hugging the younger man.

"I don't blame you for what happened, Marshall. I should have listened and left when you told me to. That and you're a Vampire. You NEED to drink blood, it's what you do. So... Please don't feel so guilty for attacking or feeding from me. I don't blame you for it." Abyssinian said softly as he hugged Marshall close, the vampire standing tense in his arms.

The Vampire King stood in silence before he slowly moved his arms to hug Abyssinian back and pressed his face into the older man's shoulder, tightly clutching the shadow entity's cape in his hands as he let out a shuddery sigh. The Shadow King softly smiled and gently squeezed Marshall as he rest his head on the vampire's, soothingly rubbing the younger man's back. They stood like this for a few moments before separating and softly smiling at one another, the King of Vampires and King of Shadows now having a deeper understanding and bond with one another, before both looked over when Gumball walked over with Leo in his arms.

Leo immediately floated out of Gumball's embrace and went to Abyssinian, the Shadow King softly chuckling and hugging Leo close while purring loudly as his feline tail swished happily. Suddenly, Leo jumped in surprise when he felt something gently nip at his hand that rested on Abyssinian's shoulder and he timidly withdrew it. The shadow entity blinked in surprise before he looked at his back.

"Noapte, no nipping. These are my friends, you can trust them." He said softly yet sternly, a small chirp sounding after he spoke. Leo, Marshall, and Gumball all blinked in confusion before seeing a strange creature move out from under Abyssinian's hood of his cape as if it had been hiding there. The creature looked almost like a dragon and was mostly purple and black but it also had blue stripes along its body that slightly glowed. Leo blinked and looked at the creature in awe while Gumball and Marshall looked at it in shock.

"Wh-What is that?" Gumball asked as he looked at the creature.

"This is Noapte. He's my new companion from a friend of mine named Jīngshén. Marshall met him already." Abyssinian said with a smile as he looked at Marshall before speaking once more. "He's called a Løki, specifically a Løki dragon. Jīngshén can travel around different realms as he collects souls, helping them pass on if they are good or using their energy to power his own abilities if they were evil. While traveling around, he found the realm that the Løki species come from. He met Noapte and asked if he would like to travel somewhere new, which he agreed to. So, Jīngshén brought him to me and we became friends."

"Can I pet him...?" Leo asked as he looked at Noapte, softly smiling at the Løki. Noapte looked at Leo before looking at Abyssinian, the Shadow King smiling and nodding to the Løki who then looked at Leo and shyly nudged the boy's hand. The Candy Vampire smiled and gently pet Noapte's head between the Løki's ears, smiling more when Noapte began to softly purr. "Awww."

Hours passed and the group ended up in one of the guest rooms of the Candy Kingdom, Marshall, Gumball, and Abyssinian all talking as they watched Leo and Noapte playing. The Løki had grown in size from that of a cat to about a medium sized dog, Abyssinian explaining that his own powers and needs for Noapte effected the Løki's own magic. Therefore, Noapte could travel to different dimensions and teleport like Jīngshén could, had a slight ability to control shadows like himself, and could change his size.

"Noapte can actually get as long as 16 feet and 6 1/2 feet tall. However, with me needing him to be smaller than the 'smallest' Løki size, Noapte can shrink to 48 1/2 inches long and 16 inches tall." Abyssinian said with a smile as he watched Noapte and Leo playing, the Løki playfully bounding around the boy as the two played a game of tag. A sudden yawn made the three men look at Leo and smile before Gumball looked out the window and saw that the sun was beginning to rise.

"My goodness, we've been up all night!" The Candy Prince spoke before looking to Abyssinian. "You and Noapte are more than welcome to stay here for a few days if you want, Abyss."

"I'd really appreciate that, Gumball." Abyssinian said with a tired smile, looking over when Leo walked over and sat in his lap. This made the man chuckle and affectionately pet the boy's head. "You wanna lay down with me, my little bubblegum bat?"

Leo tiredly nodded before smiling as Noapte shrunk down and laid on the Shadow King's shoulder, the Løki yawning before curling up and sleepily purring as he rested. Abyssinian chuckled and pet Noapte's head before smiling at Marshall and Gumball as Leo rested in his lap.

"Is it okay with you two if he sleeps in here with me?"

"Of course we're okay with it, Abyssinian." Gumball said with a smile before standing. "I'll go and get Leo ready for bed." With that, the Candy Prince picked Leo up from Abyssinian's lap and carried the boy out of the room, leaving the Shadow King and Marshall in the room. There was an awkward silence between the two before the vampire spoke.

"I'm sorry, Abyss... I know you said you're okay with what happened, but..."

"Marshall, don't." Abyssinian interrupted the Vampire King, speaking softly though there was an authoritative and stern tone in his voice. Marshall was about to speak once more before Abyssinian flicked his forehead, causing the vampire to wince and rub his forehead before the Shadow King spoke. "Like I said before, you're a vampire and you were doing what vampire's do. During my time back home, I thought about what happened and I realized that you were starving yourself. I just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time, but I don't blame you for it. You tried your best and when you did regain control of yourself, you realized what happened and you saved me. I know you're probably thinking that you're a 'monster', but a monster wouldn't have saved me. A monster would have let me die then eaten my remains. You are not a monster, Marshall Lee. You're my friend. Don't ever forget that."

Marshall looked at Abyssinian in stunned silence before weakly smiling at the older man, chuckling before gently swatting away the man's arm when the Shadow King affectionately pat his head. The two smiled and quietly talked about things that had happened around Aaa while Abyssinian was gone before looking up when Gumball walked back into the room. The Candy Prince smiled at the sight before him, usually Marshall and Abyssinian were at each others throats long before now or were teasing one another, but now they seemed to be more friendly and closer than ever before. It really made Gumball happy to see this new relationship between the men, though it did sadden him slightly that it took Marshall attacking and nearly killing Abyssinian to do it. Marshall stood and smiled at Leo, the boy half asleep in Gumball's arms and kissed his son's head before turning to look at the shadow entity.

"I'll get you something to wear for pajamas, be right back." With that, Marshall left the room. Abyssinian smiled and gently smiled at Gumball and Leo, the two smiling back at him. Gently lifting his Løki companion off his shoulder, Abyssinian placed Noapte on the bed before standing and taking his cape off as Gumball placed Leo on the bed beside the Løki Dragon. Moments later, Marshall came in with a pair of black sweatpants and a dark grey tee shirt and handed them to Abyssinian. "I hope these fit."

"Thank you, Marshall. I'm only a little bit taller than you, so they should be fine." Abyssinian said with a soft smile before heading into the bathroom to change. Once he came out and was changed, he said goodnight to Marshall and Gumball as the two men left before he crawled into the bed with Leo and Noapte. The Candy Prince and Vampire King left to go get ready for bed as well, finishing their routine in mere moments.

The two decided to check on Leo and Abyssinian once more before going to bed themselves, so they headed down the hall to the guest room and opened the door slightly so that they could peak in, and both smiled warmly at what they saw. Leo was curled up in a ball and was sound asleep against Abyssinian's chest while his sleeping 'Uncle' hugged him close as he gently smiled, Noapte curled up in a ball above Abyssinian and Leo's heads as he too slept. The soft sound of purring could be heard in the room, one was distinctively Abyssinian's and the other they quickly figured out was Noapte's. Marshall and Gumball smiled before closing the door to let the trio sleep before once again heading to their own room.

"So..."

"So what?" Marshall asked as he looked at Gumball.

"How are things going to be now between you and Abyssinian?" Gumball asked as he looked at Marshall, clearly curious about the new standing between the kings. Marshall softly smiled as he walked with Gumball, gently draping his arm around the Candy Prince's hips.

"Better. Much, much better I think."