Before the kingdom (Bubbline)

Recap

"Simon...you promised"
Little Marceline was sitting in an abandoned car, sickly, wondering what got into her beloved Simon.

"Making your way in this world today
takes everything you've got!!"

The man of ice exploded pounds of ice from his bare hands, sending him into the air. He began to sing again:

"Taking a break from all your worries sure would help a lot!
Wouldn't it be nice to get away?"

He started to float downward.

"Where everybody knows your name.
Where everybody...
Everybody...
Everybody..."

By this point, he started to touch the ground. Marcy looked up, happy to see the zombies were blown away. However, she was disappointed in Simon.
Once the ice man took off his crown, Simon checked on the little demon girl. Seeing she was still sick, he remembered his main objective.
Find. The. Soup.

Coincidentally, Simon found a can of soup. He pulled it out of some sticky...pink...gunk...
And he could have sworn there was a face smiling at him through the...stuff.

The little demon girl had not noticed where he pulled the can, nor did she know how important that would be later.

"Here you go, Marcy," Simon handed her the soup with a spoon. "Eat up. It'll help you feel better."

"Simon, you promised" she coughed.

" I know but, I had to protect you"

Marceline ate her soup, feeling better almost immediately.

***

Simon and Marceline started to leave the alleyway, currently filled with snow that was almost two feet high, and zombie-like creatures, seemingly dead. Or, stuck at the most. Simon spoke. "C'mon sweety, lets get outta this dump." He started to pull Marcy out of the car. "Hey, this snow's pretty high. I'll give you a piggy-back ride." Simon put his back-pack over his stomach.
Too traumatized to object, little-miss-Abadeer let Simon carry her on his back.

They passed by the creatures with the green ooze, twitching in the snow. Simon's objective now was to find more food for later. Then a safe shelter. He hoped to find weapons on the way. Most importantly, he needed to calm Marcy down.

"Ok Marcy, we gotta find us some gruuuub."

Marceline giggled. " Grub-bubbla-bubbla-buuub!"

"Grubbity-grub-grubb!" Simon played along.

"Boo-boo-boo-naaa."

"Grub grub?"

"Boo!"

"Aaaaah!"

Marceline laughed. "Grrrr, I'm a monster!"

"Oh no! Not a monster!"

"Yes, a big scawy monster!"

" No no no!" he started to run. " I can't let it catch me!"

Marceline laughed again, " you got to put me down silly! I'm a monster, remember?"

"What? Aaaa-" Simon tripped over a small stone, sending Marcy flying. Simon fell, with his back-pack breaking his fall. Marcy, however, was not so lucky. Her arms broke her fall. She laughed at first. But, upon feeling a sting in her elbow, started to tear up.

"Ow, S-Simon it hurts," she sat up.

He got on one knee in front of her and inspected her arm. "Ooo, yeah that looks a little-" Simon saw a worried look on Marcy's face. "-a little, like a little problem! Nothing we can't handle together!"

"Really?" her face lit up.

"Yuppity-yup-yup!" He changed his voice to a 'serious' tone. "Nothing doctor Petrikov can't take care of!" He started to unzip his pack.

"Doctor pet-tet-trik-k-"

"Just call me doctor P, darlin' "

"Doctor P's back!"

"That's riiiight!" He pulled out his water bottle and looked for a band-aid. "Close your eyes."

She smiled and covered her eyes.

"No peaking over there ya sneaky little girl!"

Marceline giggled with anticipation.

Doctor P set down his water bottle and sadly could not find a band-aid at the bottom of his items. However, he had found packing tape. He stood up and started to look around. They were on the left side of a road, surrounded by a few buildings. One closest to them, about twenty stories high, crumbling day by day. He started walking towards it, turning around to check on Marcy. She started looking between her fingers.

"Hey! I said no peaking you stinky butt!"

She laughed and covered her eyes again. " But I wasn't! I wasn't peaking, I promise!"

"Oh suuure, riiiiiiight." He went behind the building, discovering two cotton plants. With cotton! soft, plushy cotton!

"What's the difference? does it matter?"

Simon eagerly picked the cotton, careful not to prick his fingers. "Oh, but it does matter! Don't you know, I'm a magic doctor!" He started to walk back to Marcy with a piece of cotton in his hands, the rest stuffed in his pockets.

Marcy gasped. "Really?"

"It won't work if you see!"

Marcy laughed, "cooooool!"

He knelt in front of Marcy again, and used his water bottle to dampen two of his fingertips. " How could you not know I was magical?" He dabbed his fingers on the tip of Marcy's elbow.

"How could I ?"

Simon held a cotton ball slightly above her olecranon, got the tape and wrapped it around her arm to hold the cotton in place.

"How couldn't you? The 'P' in Doctor P stands for magic, duhh."

Marceline laughed, "you're so stupid, Simon. "

"Oh yeah, and why's that, huh little lady?"

"Magic doesn't start with a 'P'! "

Simon made a face that appeared to have shock of sudden realization. "What? Oh! Silly me, Marcy!" He thought he had done his job, making this lonely child so happy. He pulled Marceline's hands away from her field of vision.

"And hey," he poked her nose with the last two words, " 'stupid' is a mean word."

"But I didn't mean it." She half-smiled.

"I know you didn't, but I'd rather be called silly."

"Okay Simon."

"Now, we still gotta find that grubby-gruuuub."

"Grubby-gr-wait,"

"What's wrong Marce?"

"I just ate soup. I don't need more grubbly-bubbly yet."

"Ah c'mon, you're gonna need some more later before that tummy," he poked her stomach "gets empty!"

He poked her tummy more, "that tummy."

She laughed, anticipating.

He started tickling her stomach. "Thaaaaaat tummy!"

She lay on her back until she laughed so hard she could barely breathe.

***

Simon stopped after about a minute of laughs. Simon stood up, giving Marceline a hand. "Now, lets go find some food, darling. "

"Okay, Si."