The Unforgettable Taste of French Fries
"Simon, I'm hungry."
He hadn't even noticed that he had stopped hearing the child's small footsteps beside him in the past half-minute. Simon stopped, jerked his pack up onto his shoulders more comfortably and turned to see his much younger companion hugging her tiny arms around her stomach. Marceline peered into his eyes with her own, her uncomfortable expression silently begging him to let them stop exploring the city for now.
The man sighed, disappointed in himself that he had failed to realize how much time had passed since they had last eaten. Marcy was tough for her age, but she was still only a little girl. Simon gave her a gentle smile, walked back over to her and kneeled down to place a comforting hand on top of her head, letting his slightly chilled fingers gently ruffle her soft black hair.
"Sorry, sweetie, I guess I lost track of time," he said before straightening back up. His own stomach growled, and he pressed a hand to it in attempt to muffle the sound.
The noise failed to escape Marcy's acute hearing however, and she looked up at Simon worriedly. "You're hungry too!"
"No, no, I'm fine," he quickly lied. Marceline sighed and looked down at her shoes, scuffing the bottom of it against the concrete. Simon picked his head up and looked around at their desolate surroundings, then spied a few trash cans over next to what he recognized as a once popular fast food joint.
"Oh, we're in luck!" Simon said in an excited voice, grinning down at his little friend. "Marcy, Mickey D's has the most amazing fries you'll ever eat in your life!"
She gave him one of those little smiles of hers that never failed to melt his heart, and she reached up to grab at his hand. "Maybe the rats left us some!"
It killed him that Marcy considered rat-chewed food as 'normal', but he let his sadness slide so that she wouldn't notice. No sense burdening her with his emotional turmoil anymore than he already did.
Simon let out a laugh and scooped her up in his arms, making her giggle as he jogged to the familiar building that was decorated in red, yellow and white. Once upon a time, there would have been hordes of families here with their children dining in, but now it was as dead as the rest of the city. He pushed aside memories of how he and Betty used to drop by here after working long hours on their book.
"Put me down, Simon!" Marceline told him in a laugh once they were close enough. She didn't mind a little coddling now and then from her unlikely caregiver, but she liked to think she was a big girl now and didn't need it all the time.
"Sure thing, Gunther," Simon slipped out unknowingly once her little feet hit the ground. Marcy directed a hurt expression at him for calling her the wrong name (again), but she hid it quickly and ran over to the upturned trash cans that Simon had spied earlier.
With much gusto, Marcy threw herself into the task of digging around in the garbage, sadly being an expert at quickly separating the edible goods from the inedible. Simon looked on with a frown, wishing he could give her something better than garbage to eat.
"I can't find anything good," she pouted once she had exhausted five unproductive minutes on her task. "It's all nasty and moldy now."
"Aww, darling, don't be upset," Simon said in that soothing voice of his as he pushed his small glasses up further on his nose. He looked around wearily, desperate to find something for her to eat.
He gazed upon the abandoned eating establishment, then he walked forward to reach the front door. His arms reached out to grab at the handle to pull it, but like most everything else in this city, it was locked tight. The restaurant's mascot, an overly cheerful clown, appeared to mock him with his grin on the picture plastered to the door. Simon heaved a tired sigh.
"Marceline, cover your eyes."
She did as she was told, and Simon pulled loose the golden crown that always hung loosely at his waist. He wrapped his fingers around the cold metal and grit his teeth, then swung at the door with all his might. Glass shattered everywhere, sprinkling the ground below, and Simon used it to rake it against the sides to get rid of any more sharp points. He had to make it safe for Marcy to go through; he'd never forgive himself if anything happened to her.
"Remember what I said about vandalism, Marcy," he said once she uncovered her eyes and joined him at the door.
"It's bad," she recited promptly as she followed him through the busted door, her hand on his while he helped guide her. She looked at the crown with distaste while he attached it securely back to his waist, but her attention wavered as she looked around her new settings. "Wow, this place has a playground!"
"That it does!" Simon said with a wistful smile, remembering the days of old when children of all ages would go flying into the mesh pit filled with soft balls and chase each other through the large tunnels that surrounded it. He shook the thought from his head; he had to concentrate on feeding Marcy, not on how he wished that she could live a normal child's life.
Marceline didn't have such thoughts; she was more concerned about filling her empty stomach and wasted no time rushing to the nearest garbage can to dig around in it.
"I found some fries, Simon!" the little girl shouted victoriously, and he looked down at her to see her clutching a large red carton that bore the restaurant's iconic yellow "M" on it. To his surprise, it was more than halfway full of the golden stalks of fried potatoes. They weren't in the best of condition, given the circumstances of the world, but they looked readily edible.
"Haha, you certainly did, darling!" He smiled as he leaned down to pet her lovingly on the head. He felt his stomach clench up painfully, as he had not eaten since...he couldn't even remember. "Now eat up, got to have some strength in you so you'll grow up big and strong one day."
Marcy looked down at her prize, a thoughtful look on her face. She craned her neck up so she could look up directly at her friend, and said very firmly, "You have to eat too, Simon. I know you're hungry."
"I'm not, sweetie, really." His stomach betrayed him by issuing a low growl. Simon grimaced when he saw the look intense concern on the little girl's face.
"Here, eat something!" Marceline was clutching a few of the delicious fries in her hand, thrusting it up in his direction and beckoning him to take them.
"Gunther, will you quit-"
"Stop calling me that!" Tears began to spill out of her eyes, her mouth turned down into a sad frown.
He was absolutely mortified that he'd made her cry, his heart breaking with every tear that rolled down her face. "Stop calling you what?" he asked with a confused frown. "I didn't even say anything!"
Marcy only became more frustrated, her hands now hanging limply at her sides as she sobbed. It made her terribly upset every time he had a memory failure, no matter how small, especially when he couldn't even remember her name. Worse was that he didn't even realize it was happening.
Simon didn't understand why she had grown so upset, but he lowered himself down on his knees regardless and put his hands on top of her heaving shoulders. "Honey, just eat the fries. You'll feel awesome, and then we can camp for the night."
"I don't want them," she told him stubbornly, her nose beginning to run from having cried so hard. "I'm not eating unless you do."
"Marceline..."
"I don't want you to die!"
She shoved the food at his chest then, forcing him to instinctively pull his hands away from her and towards the fries so that they wouldn't fall onto the floor. Before he had a chance to conjure up any words to say, she bolted away from him and ran out through the restaurant's lobby.
"Marcy!" Simon called out in a panic as she disappeared out of sight. His adrenaline kicked him to life, and he forced himself off the floor and ran after her. He kept the fries tucked to him as he used his height to his advantage to scout the building. He saw the back door open and shut, and he knew that she'd gone out to the small play area connected to the main part of the restaurant.
He jogged over and exited the establishment also, listening for the muffled whimpering that would lead him to Marcy. A sigh escaped him, and he slowly walked towards where he found her sitting on the bottom part of the large yellow slide. She was hunched over with her head propped on her knees, her arms wrapped around in a way that kept her face hidden. Simon carefully sat down beside her on the rough flooring that encompassed the entire playground.
"Marceline," Simon said quietly, staring down at the carton of fries he still held in his hand, "you're a little girl. You need food more than I do. You have a better chance of surviving than I do."
"I don't care," she told him as she picked her head up to wipe at her tear-stained face with her palms. "I don't want you to die."
"Baby, I'm not," he said in response, though he knew that there was a great chance that he would at this rate. His skin grew more cold and frail every day, his gaunt form displaying a pronounced rib cage.
Simon placed the fry carton down between his feet and laid a hand gently on her back to pat her comfortingly."Please don't cry," he begged her softly while digging a handkerchief out of the small pocket on his jacket. He used that hand to pick her chin up and wipe her face with.
She sniffed and leaned towards him to wrap her little arms around him, her face pressed against the crook of his neck. His long white beard tickled, and she could feel his bones through his jacket. She pressed her lips together as she tried to stop her crying.
"I love you, Simon," she said in a muffled voice as he hugged her back. "You're my best friend. If you die, I'll be all alone again."
The man let out a heavy sigh, wrapping the tiny girl in his arms tighter. "Same goes for me, kiddo," he said. Having Marcy around was without a doubt what kept him going every day in this godforsaken place. "You'll still have Hambo to keep you company though."
"Hambo can't tell bedtime stories and sing silly songs like you do," Marcy said of her beloved teddy bear.
"True," he had to admit, "but you could always tell him stories and sing for him instead. And maybe give him a few tickle attacks."
Marceline squealed when he dug his fingers into her ribs, and she tried to push away from him to no avail. The two of them laughed together, the only happy sound the city had anymore. Simon ceased the friendly assault and gave Marcy a fatherly kiss on the cheek.
"I love you to pieces," he said to her as he released her from his hold.
"Good, that means you'll eat some fries."
Simon wanted to protest, even opened his mouth to do so, but he thought better of it and closed it. He knew that eating a few fries wasn't going to be enough to keep him alive, but Marcy was a child still and if his eating of some fries with her would keep her happy, then he'd do it.
"All right, Marcy, you win."
She watched him pick up the fry carton and take a few of the potato snacks in his fingers before he stuffed them into his mouth. She made sure he swallowed before she grabbed a few of them for herself. Once she tasted the salty goodness, her eyes went wide and a big grin spread on her face.
"Mmm these are good!" she said with her mouth full.
"Told ya Mickey D's has the best fries," Simon told her with his own smile. He had to admit that it felt good to be putting something in his belly, even if it was just a few little fries.
"This is the best thing I've eaten in forever!"
"Maybe one day we'll find some more, eh?" Simon hoped that Marcy wasn't noticing that he was purposely taking the shorter fries so that she could have the bigger ones for herself. She didn't comment though, apparently happy that he was eating anything at all.
Marcy finished the last few morsels before she stood up and wiped her fingers against the bottom part of her jumper. She gave Simon another hug, and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.
"Thank you for bringing me here."
"It was my pleasure, darling," Simon said with a smile that radiated of fatherly affection. Even though she wasn't biologically his own, he still felt that parental tug around her as if she were his. "Hey, here's a crazy idea! Let's camp out in the playground tonight!"
Marcy's face brightened. "Really? Woohoo!"
Simon took his pack off and unclasped the top of it, pulled Hambo out and handed him to the ecstatic child. Marceline gleefully hugged her bear to her, which had started showing the signs of wear and tear, and took off running for the entrance to the large ball pit encompassed in safety mesh. Simon supervised from the sidelines, a bit too large to comfortably chase her through the elaborate playground equipment. For just a moment, he was able to enjoy seeing the little girl have a semblance of normal childhood, and it did his ever-growing cold heart good.
In a few months time, Simon would forget this day entirely, among many others as the Crown took his memories and sanity. Even as an adult, however, Marceline always looked back on that day with a fond memory, remembering the day as both a fun one and a somber one...and also of the unforgettable taste of french fries shared between best friends.
A/N: I just recently got into this show (watched all 5 current seasons in one month!), and I absolutely adored the Simon and Marcy backstory segments. I saw a piece of fanart floating around on tumblr one day, and it was of a starving Simon giving Marceline a carton of fries and lying about being hungry himself. I thought it was a great headcanon for why Teenage Marceline later gets so dramatic about her father eating her french fries, because they meant more to her than anyone else would realize.