Chapter 11: Nightmare

Disclaimer: I don't own Adventure Time. This story is for fun.

Taking place after Chapter 7

The peaceful silence was disturbed by the sound of Simon muttering in his sleep. Betty's eyes fluttered open, feeling her fiancé's body tossing around beside her.

"Simon?" she said sleepily. She carefully unzipped her sleeping bag so she could prop herself up on her elbow. Simon was having a nightmare, which was something she was used to by now. She couldn't make out what he was saying, but he sounded scared. She placed her hand on his shoulder and shook him gently.

"Simon, honey, wake up," she said softly. She shook him again. "Simon…"

Simon's eyes snapped open, and he shot up and looked around him, panicking. "Marcy!" he choked out. "Marcy, where is she? Where's Marcy?!"

Betty reached over and took his hand, using her other hand to stroke his hair soothingly. "Simon… Simon, honey, it's okay," she said gently. "Calm down, you just had another nightmare."

Simon's head jerked toward her, his face still full of terror. As Betty looked into his eyes, she saw that he didn't recognize her. "Where is she?" he demanded.

"She's safe," Betty reassured him, indicating over to her right. "She's still asleep." Simon's gaze followed where she pointed, and saw Marceline laying in her sleeping bag a few feet away from them. He looked relieved, and his panicked breaths eased back to normal.

"Thank God," he whispered, rubbing his eyes.

Betty creased her brow with worry. She touched Simon's face, but he flinched away from her. She then grabbed his face with her hands, pulling it towards her. He tried to jerk away, annoyed.

"Let me go!" he hissed, but she patiently held him as he squirmed.

"Look at me," she said firmly. He grabbed her hands, but she moved forward and pressed her lips to his. Simon made a surprised noise in her mouth. After a few moments she pulled away from him, looking him straight in the face. "Simon Petrikov, look at me. Do you know who I am?"

He blinked, confused. Soon after, however, his mind seemed to clear, and the confusion on his face turned to pain.

"Yes," he whispered guiltily. "Yes, I do. Y-you're my…my Betty. You're my princess."

"That's right!" she said with relief, feeling a small weight lift off her chest. "I'm your Betty, and you're my Simon." She held his hand to her face, kissing it. She looked up to see tears in his eyes.

"Oh, honey!" she gasped. "Simon, listen, it's okay." But he turned away, hanging his head in shame.

"It's not…it's not okay, Betty," he said, covering his face. "I'm so…I'm so s-sorry! Betty, I'm sorry…"

Betty let out a small sigh. She brushed his hair out of his face and kissed him on the cheek. "Oh, Simon… I'm not mad," she soothed. "You don't need to apologize. It wasn't your fault." She pulled down his hands, wiped off his tears with her thumb, and kissed him again.

Simon slowly turned to her, and in his face Betty could see how worn and tired he suddenly looked. His eyes, which used to be so warm and kind, now looked dull and lifeless. Dark bags hung under his eyes from lack of sleep, which she could attest to. Most mornings, he was almost always awake before her or Marceline. Though he would always greet them with a smile, Betty knew it was forced.

"The dream…" she said uncertainly, smoothing his hair, "do you want to talk about it?" His only reply was a small shake of his head, not meeting her eyes. His eyebrows furrowed, and she could see that he was lost in thought, so she waited patiently.

Simon opened his mouth to say something, but then thought better of it. Instead, he reached for her hand and held it to his face, feeling her warmth. His eyes met with hers, and he saw her smile. Her smile was warm and inviting, so unlike his, and he saw in her eyes how much she loved him. He couldn't fathom how she could still be in love with something like him, and he didn't know how much of her affection was sincere, or was simply out of pity, but he was grateful nonetheless.

Finally, Simon found the words he had to tell her. "Betty, listen. I…I'm going to need you to promise me something, okay? It's very important."

Betty looked puzzled, but she nodded in reply, so Simon continued, "I'm not… You know I'm not…well, stable." He let out a bitter laugh despite himself. His eyes fell on Marceline, who was still sound asleep, completely unaware of what was happening around her. "Marcy…she's still so young. She needs someone to take care of her. Someone dependable."

Betty's heart sank. She knew what Simon was going to ask of her, so she touched her hand to his lips to silence him. "Simon, stop," she said gently. "Don't you dare talk like that, not yet."

Simon gazed back at her pleadingly. He took her hand and held it. "No, Betty, I need to say this," he said, his voice more firm. "When the time comes…when I'm no longer safe for Marcy to be around, I need to know that you'll take her and get far away from me. No matter what it means for me, her safety comes first. I'm counting on you to protect her. I need you to swear to me you'll do that, Betty!"

She was silent for a long moment. Betty could see that his words had sparked a strong determination in his tired eyes. There was only one reply she could give him.

"Okay," she said, squeezing his hand. "I promise, Simon. But…" She leaned forward and kissed him. After a moment he returned the kiss, caressing her cheek.

When she pulled away, Betty added, "It's not going to go that far, Simon, do you hear me? We can't let it. So don't you ever lose hope, okay, sweetheart?"

Simon nodded. "I won't," he said softly. "I love you, Betty."

Betty smiled. "I love you, too." She wrapped her arms around Simon and hugged him, hoping he didn't notice the fear in her eyes.

Author's note: Want to see more Meltdown AU. Then go to my deviantart account at "CommanderMs", go check it out.