'... Another head aches, another heart breaks
I'm so much older than I can take
And my affection, well, it comes and goes
I need direction to perfection...

Help me out, yeah
You know you gotta help me out, yeah
Oh, don't you put me on the back burner
You know you gotta help me out, yeah...'

Marshall played with his bass pensively, giving his fingers something to do while he waited for Doctor princess to finish with Fionna. He remembered the song from somewhere but he couldn't think where (or when). He had loved this song when he was half the age he was now, because by then the verses already applied to him. Immortality had always been a drag, and it had been the fucking pits when he realised it wouldn't end. That apathy and then the subtle pleading mixed with entitlement was how he had always been and probably how he still was. He would look back and think gob, I was such an ass but now he was smart (experienced?) enough to realise that in a hundred years or so, he would look back now and think exactly the same. You never stop changing and learning so the old you will always seem small-minded and ignorant by comparison.
He really hoped she wasn't pregnant.

But he also knew he wouldn't find that out today. It had been three days, if she was pregnant the foetus wouldn't have even begun to form yet. Doctor Princess would need to check her out again in a couple week's time to confirm that. Although it seemed impossible, Gumball was made of candy. How could candy have working reproductive cells? In spite of that, it was what he was stewing about the most, even more so then how she was coping now. Finding out that she was going to be a mother would be... Fuck, how would she deal with that? And what the hell would happen to her kid? It would be half royalty, but illegitimate. If she decided to keep it and not take it to the candy orphanage, how would she explain what happened between her and it's father?
Then on a deeper and much more selfish note, did that change how he felt about her? If he knew, that by being with her he would become a defacto father for the child of a man who raped her, would that change how much he wanted her? Was he prepared to take on that kind of role? That kind of... responsibility?
Fuck responsibility, man. He hated that word, hated the way it felt in his mouth and the weird taste it left behind when he spat it out. It was commitment's sister, and she was almost as bad flavour-wise. As cliche as it was, he didn't like knowing that he was taking an option that shut off ever other. Once he became that kid's dad, there was no way he'd be able to bring himself to leave. He knew what that felt like, and it fucking sucked.
But that flexibility was an integral part of how he had kept himself alive once he'd figured out that life was a commitment he had no choice in. Keeping all his other choices open had helped him maintain the impression he was still an independant free-thinking man who could change his own fate. He had never and would never tolerate being forced into something.
Maybe that had also contributed to the seething fury he had felt when he realised that Gumball had taken away Fionna's freedom to choose.

He didn't need to decide now, though. He didn't even know if she was pregnant and beyond that, there was absolutely no guarantee she'd even want him. He needed to remember that, regardless of how close she was staying to him now. She was vulnerable at the moment, and there was no reason she ever would've said what she had said and done what she had done under normal circumstances. He could hear their conversation from upstairs, and had realised that somehow he had become what Cake had been trying to be. A rock for her to cling to in the middle of an ocean. And that feeling wasn't the same as just... realising, one day, that you couldn't really see yourself waking up next to anyone besides the person asleep in your arms.
Somehow he had... He really couldn't deny that he had fallen, or was in the process of falling in love with her. Now it became a matter of just how much he would take to have her.

'Marshall-lee?' Marshall jumped slightly at his name, shocked out of his rather deep (embarrassingly so) and internal thoughts back to reality. Doctor Princess's backside could be seen coming down the ladder, and Marshall put the bass down on the couch and resumed a vertical position as she reached the floor.
' Um- Yeah?' He replied after a moment, habitually running his fingers through his hair. Doctor Princess removed her latex gloves- Marshall could smell blood, which increased his anxiety about Fionna tenfold- and dumped them in his rubbish bin. He resolved to burn that trashbag later.
' Fionna is going to remain upstairs. The examination went well, but I'm sure that she'd prefer to tell you what she wishes you to know herself. All I have to inform you of is that she'll probably have some questions for you- she seems to prefer discussing with someone she knows intimately over professional but alien company- and that I will return in two weeks to remove her stitches and to give her a pregnancy test. ' Doctor Princess adjusted her glasses and walked smartly over to the door, turning the handle and opening it, but she paused just before she left and leaned back in.
' To be entirely honest, I have no idea whether it's even scientifically possible for her to be impregnated by a candy person. But if they are capable of doing it to each other than there is a chance, however small, that their DNA is compatible. Oh and I've left my kit behind, just in case anything happens. I have several of my own. Until then, Marshall-lee.' She said, before exiting with as much dignity as one person was probably capable of commanding.

Marshall-lee stayed in place for a moment, stunned into submission by the enigma that was Doctor Princess, before floating up into his room slowly. He hesitated just before going through the trapdoor, caught between masculine possessiveness that said this was his house and he could do whatever he damn well liked and the feeling that he shouldn't go in without letting her know he was going to.
' Fionna? You okay?' He called out as he floated through, compromising with his warring personalities. She'd let him know very quickly if she wanted him out.

Fionna was sitting in his bed, the covers pulled up to her waist and a clean white tank top on her upper half. Her knees were draw up under the duvet and she had her arms crossed behind them, staring intently at the tops of her thighs. She looked up when Marshall appeared though, but her expression didn't change. It was blank but slightly questioning, the face you have when you're trying to decode instructions.
' Uhm, yeah. I'm okay.' Marshall stayed floating at the foot of the bed, wary of how Doctor princess had gotten blood on her gloves.
' Are you bleeding?'
' No, uhm-' Fionna looked down again and started playing with the edge of the duvet, avoiding his eyes.
' Doctor Princess had to put some stitches in my p... pe-rin-ne-um, I think she said. Because it was torn. But I'm not bleeding.' Marshall narrowed his eyes then went and sat down on the bed beside Fionna. That meant the sex had to have been pretty rough on her, for one reason or another. That fucking bastard.
' Did it hurt?'
' Sort of. It wasn't worse than when you were stitching me up earlier.' She said, still talking to her knees rather than looking at him. Marshall could tell that the doctor had been right, she did have some questions for him but she just didn't know how to go about it. He shifted himself on the matress slightly, getting comfortable and preparing himself for when Fionna found the silence too awkward and decided to blurt out whatever was on her mind.

' Uhm, Marshall?' she said suddenly, looking up and leaning back against his headboard. Called it.
' Yeah?' Her courage appeared to falter and she blushed, then scratched the back of her head awkwardly.
' You can say anything to me baby, I don't judge.' Marshall reminded her gently after a moment. The endearment felt so natural when he looked at her and said it, because he couldn't help but want to look out for her, cute little thing she was (and he had noticed with a quite sense of smug victory that she didn't protest when he called he baby anymore). But Gob knows she would never let him look after her, and for all intents she probably didn't need him too either. It was only temporary, her needing him. Only temporary.
' W... What's the point? In what he did to me. Why did he do it?' Marshall looked at her very carefully for a few moments, trying to gauge how she was feeling. He didn't want to upset her again, 'cause when they'd tried to talk about this the night before it hadn't really gone that well. Emotions and exhaustion had gotten in the way of a clear explanation. He'd tried, but it was just.. euugh. He didn't want to give someone he was friends with the sex talk. Especially when it was all wrapped up in bad feeling.
Fionna met his eyes after a few moments, and he was kind of surprised to see that she looked entirely calm, just a little displaced. She seemed to be recovering much faster than he thought she would. He hadn't given enough credit to how much mental fortitude she actually had because of how fragile she seemed. She wasn't, really. But what had happened to her fucked with his head, and his image of her along with it.
' Doctor Princess said that he uhm... the pain I had felt, that would've been because he-he put his thing in me and because I'm still young, m-my body wasn't um, prepared for it. And because I wasn't into it, like you said, so I got hurt. But why would I be into it, ever? Why would anyone ever want to do that to somebody?' Fionna had stumbled and tripped through her clarification, clearly mortified by the subject matter. You had to admire her determination though, even though it wasn't surprising. That was one of her trademark characteristics. She just kept on keepin' on, no matter what happened. He'd only seen her come close to giving up yesterday, and today somehow she had changed again and decided that she actually did want to- and had the capacity to- understand and accept rather than forget.

' Sex... Well, sex is for making babies; that's why it's a thing. You need a mom and a dad to make a new person, and sex is the way your parent's DNA was put together to make you. But when it's actual sex between two fully involved people and not rape, which is what that fucking-... which is what happened to you-' Marshall paused for a second and collected himself. Gob, he hated Gumball with every thread of his non-existent soul. Every strand of his person reviled him. And that made him a little sad, really. It was Gumball, after all.
'... Because that needs so much trust and care and intimacy and other junk like that, it's a way to show someone you love them and think they're beautiful or hot or whatever. because when you do it for love, it feels incredible. For both of you.' Fionna looked like she was about to ask something, but Marshall held up a hand then put it on her shoulder. He had to say this, he had to make sure she understood.
' Fionna, what Gumball did to you was wrong in so many ways. He abused you and your trust. I mean hell, I'm no saint and that is way, way over the fuckin' line. No-one should ever take advantage of you or your body or have access to you like that unless you give them your permission. What he didn't wasn't from love, it was from wanting that feeling without having to bother with any of the hard stuff first. And none of this, absolutely none of it is your fault, okay?'

Fionna's large blue eyes traced over his for a few moments, and then she nodded slowly and blinked, unfocusing and putting on her thinky face. Marshall leaned back against the headboard and huffed out a heavy sigh, letting his hands fall limply into his lamp. He hadn't realised he felt so strongly on this topic. But then again, it all related back to choice and independence and freedom an' all that, so guess it made sense.
' Why does it feel so good?' She questioned after about a minute or so, and Marshall took a second to gather his thoughts. Oh gob, he was gonna have to give Fionna the sex talk, the proper one, not the 'rape is wrong' one. Jeez, how did this happen?
' I guess, why is because everything needs to have babies if they want their species to survive. if it felt bad or even just meh then it wouldn't happen as much and everyone would die. I've never really questioned it, It just feels good so you do it.'
' Oh.' Marshall decided it was probably now or never, so why not just let her know everything ? It couldn't hurt. It really couldn't.
' See, when you're having sex with someone and they know what they're doing or if just a bunch of things happen right, you get this feeling that just kind of builds and gets bigger and bigger until you let it go. And that's the feeling that I'm talking about, and it's the feeling he was after. It's indescribable, apart from the fact that it feels really, really... good. It's called orgasm but most people just say cumming because it's like you're going, going, going and then you cum. Make sense?' Marshall ended rather bluntly, trying to get the awkward part out of the way before he could embarrass himself and thus end up making Fi feel even more so. He was the experienced one, she was the one who was learning from him. Gah, he should've phrased that differently. One day. Maybe. Don't think about that now, Cheesus.
Fionna didn't seem to notice his discomfort, a rather cute look of comprehension passing her features.
' Oh. Okay... and that's why people have sex even if they don't want a baby?' Marshall nodded, not trusting himself to speak without saying something weird and ending up making both of them feel awkward. Fionna thought on this for a few moments, then she frowned.
' Uhm, I was... gonna say this before but- If what Gumball did to me was still sex but not sex, that means we didn't make a baby, right?' She asked worriedly, and he sighed, torn between being relieved the topic had changed and saddened that it had changed to this. Gumball had really screwed up her life (and Marshall's too, because his was becoming rather involved with hers). Fucking Gumball. Die in a hole.
' See- Well... Oh, baby. I wish I could say yes. Thing is, I really don't know. Nature's a sneaky-ass bitch, she wants everything to have as many babies as possible. So even though it was wrong, there's still a chance that yeah, you guys made a baby. But we can't know for sure for another few weeks, because if you have then it won't have even started growing yet, and DP isn't even sure if your DNA would fit together. But... It's possible, Fionna. Maybe.'

'...Oh.' She said, looking down at her stomach. Marshall watched her for a few seconds, then heard her give a stifled little sob and he instantly reached out for her, his reaction close to instinctual. Fionna didn't stop him when he crushed her against his chest, murmuring soothing words and rubbing her back.
' Look, even if you are, we'll figure something out. I'll go talk to that... to him about how he'll help make sure the baby has a good life, and you can keep it if you want, or you can give it to him to raise, or there's the Candy orphanage. It's not your fault, so you don't have to deal with it if you don't want to, honey. I swear to gob Fi, it'll be okay. I won't let you lose, promise. I mean it.' Fionna wasn't crying like she had been yesterday, her shoulders only trembling slightly and then jerking every once in a while with a jagged breath.

' I... I don't know if I'm ready to be a mom, Marshall-lee.' She murmured unhappily, and Marshall shook his head, his hair brushing against her cheek.
' Then you don't have to be, got that? You're only fifteen, you're still a kid yourself-'
' Don't say that!' She shot back immediately, struggling out of his hold and glaring at him.
' Whoa.' Marshall said involuntarily, and Fionna growled disapprovingly in the back of her throat.
' Even if I'm still young, that doesn't make me a kid! Kids need to be minded and watched and looked after, I don't need that. I'm big enough and strong enough to take care of myself, this was just a... Like you said, this wasn't my fault! Just because I'm young doesn't mean I'm... incapable or-'
' I-I wasn't saying that! Listen to me, Fi, Just listen.' Fionna shut her mouth reluctantly, her eyes cold and disapproving. Marshall sighed and touched his middle and index fingers to his temple. Ugh.
' What I meant was... becoming a parent is not something that should happen by accident. That's a whole person's life riding on you. If you screw up, there's no take backs. And pretty much the only way to make sure you don't screw up too much is to have experience with life and living so you can pass on what you've learned to your kid before they make the same mistakes as you. Being a mom is a big deal, Fionna, and if you're not ready for it 'cause you haven't lived your own life enough to take on someone else's, Gob knows there's nothing wrong with that.'
Fionna had quietened down properly by now, and actually seemed a little embarrassed by the assumption she had made. She kind of wished Marshall would stop now but on the other had, she liked hearing his thoughts about this, seeing as he was incredibly old but didn't have any kids. Or did he?
' Fifteen is pretty young to be a mum, Fi. And y'know, I reckon it's not fair on her to give up the rest of her childhood, and it's not fair on the kid to be raised by someone who isn't even fully grown yet themselves. I'm not saying you're not capable of taking care of yourself, 'cause you are. But there's so many miles between yourself and yourself and another person.'
' O-okay. I get it. I'm sorry I yelled at you.'
' Don't mention it. But also, don't do it again. 'Cause then I'll get pissed, regardless of the reason.'
' Y-yeah.' She muttered, pink-faced again. Marshall laughed once at how quickly her mood had changed and reached across and put his hand on the side of her face, smiling to himself when he felt the heat suddenly increase at his touch. Fuck, this was so bad for him. It made him feel like she actually felt the same way he did. That would only make it hurt more when he hit the ground but falling was exhilarating in the worst and best way.
' Anything else you wanna ask me?' He questioned easily, and Fionna began to shake her head, avoiding his eyes before she stopped, thinking for a minute.

' Have you ever been a dad?' Marshall-lee blinked at her for a few seconds, completely taken off guard. That had not been the question he expected.
' Uh... Uh, no. Mm-mm, no I haven't. Don't plan to be anytime soon. Whoa, um. Y-You listen to what I just said, Fi? I'm like, the most unreliable person you could ever meet, no way am I gonna be responsible for a kid. I'd be a terrible father.'
' I don't think you would, and I don't think you're unreliable either.'
' Please don't think I'm talking down to you here Bunny, but you've only known me for a couple years, I've been alive for hundreds. You don't know me well enough to tell.' Fionna studied him for a few moments, seeming more contemplative than offended.
' I think I do.' She replied rather confidently. Marshall almost laughed at her, but he stopped himself. Doing that wouldn't do him any favours. Let her believe she knew- Though... Actually.
She kind of had a point.
Even if she hadn't known him for long, she still knew him better than almost anyone before her. Knew more about who he was through having experienced so many of his moods, and discovering things about him he didn't necessarily flaunt. She called him on the stupid things he did, and recognised when crap actually meant something to him.
Before he could dissect it anymore however, Fionna asked him another question.

' But then, if you've never been a dad, you can't have had sex before.' Fionna pointed out, her logic perfectly sound considering the gaping holes she still had in her knowledge of how the whole business went down.
' Uhm, not quite. Even if you're trying, you won't necessarily make a baby, and there are ways you can have sex without the girl ending up pregnant. I've never tried to be a dad, but... I'm the furthest you can get from a virgin, baby. A thousand years without ever doing it would be pretty lame.' He said, trying very hard not to be condescending and failing ever so slightly in his final sentence. He couldn't help it. It was the only way he could deal with how inherently ridiculous this was, having to explain this concept to someone who really should've known about it by now.
' Oh. Like what?' She replied. Marshall puffed his cheeks out and popped his lips, taking on a mildly complacent manner.
' Uhh... well, there's pills the chick can take that kills off sperm, which is the stuff that carries the dad's DNA, or pills the stop her body making eggs which hold her share of it. Or there's condoms, which go over the dude's dick and stop anything from getting in to her in the first place. Though it doesn't feel as good.' Fionna blinked at him for a few seconds, her cheeks turning a violent fuschia colour.
' Oh. Uhm. O-okay...' Marshall laughed at her, unable to resist teasing her.
' Are you embarrassed?'
' No! Why would I be?' Fionna retorted defiantly, contradicting the bright colour on her face.
' Because you're thinking about me having sex, aren't you?' Marshall smirked in satisfaction when Fionna changed from pink to red and hid her face in her hair, mumbling incoherent mortified protest from behind her knees. After letting her squirm for a few seconds, Marshall decided it was enough and put a hand on her back.
' Hey, it's okay. You're curious, it's only natural. And you need to know that sex is pretty great, even if your first sexual experience was... terrifying. I reckon you've got the cojones to stand up for yourself and show him and everyone else that you can get along with your life, fuck Gumball.' Fionna became quiet, then flicked her hair off her face and balanced her chin between her knees. She looked vaguely sick, her eyebrows pulled together just the tiniest fraction. Marshall rubbed up and down between her shoulder blades.
' But you don't need to prove anything to anyone right now. You gotta let yourself heal, and I'll help you out when you want it. Or when you'll let me, more accurately.' Fionna looked over at him, and Marshall almost expected her to roll her eyes. Instead she just gave him a small, slightly tired smile then tipped over so that her head fell into his lap.
' Thanks.' Marshall hesitated for a moment then moved the hand that had been on her back into her hair , stroking and pressing apart a curl just in front of her ear.
' No problem.' Fionna smiled, and stared at the folds in Marshall-lee's jeans under his knee, completely comfortable with where she was.

Author's note: So the title song makes it's first appearance. It'll probably crop up a couple more time, but idk, haven't decided. I don't really have much to say about this chapter, however, the next one may be interesting, depending on whether I decide a particular event will happen. Again, haven't decided yet. Must be annoying for all you guys huh? :P

-WRA