Author's Note: I hadn't originally planned to write an addition to Love Song, but it proved way more popular than I anticipated. Hopefully this chapter is just as enjoyable. I'm bad at prequels, but this idea popped in my head and I couldn't resist.
Bonnibel Bubblegum liked to think of herself as clever woman. A patient woman. A strong woman. A magnanimous woman. A woman whose strength was evident in her posture, her speech, her demeanor. In short, Bonnibel Bubblegum thought very highly of herself, and in her opinion she had every reason to. Not even two hundred years old and her accomplishments were staggering in number and magnitude. She had sewed life into existence with only her own mind and hands. She had founded - literally built - an entire kingdom from the ground up, and while it was still quite small that feat wasn't. Men, women, children, and everything in between across Ooo knew all about her.
Well, not all about her. One did not keep a tactical advantage by exposing all of one's secrets. Secrets were the most precious of treasures. Properly wielded they were the most devastating of weapons, capable of bringing the most powerful to their knees. Like any other treasure they were something to be hoarded, guarded closely, displayed privately for the trophies they are. They represented contingency plans. Implicit threats to discourage would-be enemies of the state. Spoils of war. In a word, they were power, and Bonnibel Bubblegum loved power. She savored it. The thrill of the control it granted her. The elation of knowing that it makes her effectively untouchable. It made even a woman made of candy both intimidating and, she liked to think, awe-inspiring.
Bonnibel Bubblegum knew all sorts of secrets. She even had many of her own, of course, though good luck finding them, because the woman who recently crowned herself a princess was disciplined, a trait she found lacking in so many others. To divert suspicion she would, on occasion, strategically "let slip" a secret, usually a pretty little lie meant to divert attention from her machinations. Because if Bonnibel Bubblegum was anything, it was a machinator. And a scientist. And a princess. In that order.
Her demeanor was carefully crafted to disguise all of this, all of her. She walked with immaculate posture, head held high. She never fidgeted. Her voice was always carefully controlled, even when she was angry. Especially when she was angry, because mastery of the self was a perfect strategy to display one's power. It was essential that she display this power, both subtly and often, because unlike some other kingdoms and monarchs she could mention her power was no illusion; she could, and would, demolish anything in her way.
The wall was the first thing she ordered the construction of for her fledgling kingdom. Before anything else she needed to draw the line in the sand and tell the world that everything that lied within was her's , and her's alone. Not even two hundred years old, Bonnibel Bubblegum knew she was already making enemies, just by virtue of her success. Her palace wasn't even fully operational yet and she already heard the rumors that spread to all corners of the continent. Obsession was a growing force, and some wanted her, be it as a trophy or just dead. But she wasn't scared. Not by a long shot.
So fearless was she that she confidently strolled through the streets of her new kingdom in the dead of night. Even now she was plotting, though this time it was rather innocuous, only deciding the layout for her new world. These things required careful planning. Should residences be spread throughout the kingdom, or clustered conveniently in one area? How far should the market be from the groves? Did the kingdom need a dedicated hospital, or would a clinic suffice? Would these decisions be sustainable in the long-run? For that matter, how large should she allow her kingdom to grow? These were just some of the many thoughts that plagued her, but no one was around to see her utterly focused expression, and she felt more than secure in letting herself block out the world in ponderance. And so Princess Bonnibel Bubblegum found herself strolling the 'streets' of her home, clothed in her magenta dress, form-fitting lab-coat, hair tied back, glasses folded securely in her pocket.
Her pace was leisurely. Around her the wall signaled the size of her domain; she had had it built well-beyond what was realistically necessary, but she wanted to allow room for growth. For now the area was largely empty, save for the construction equipment. She had designed that as well. She had designed everything. Around her castle caramel and toffee cranes rested with the rubble, sugar cube bricks lay in way waiting to be made useful. Rudimentary rope and pully systems hung from wooden rafters, which in turn were covered by sheer black cloth for the express purpose of blocking out the sun. Her private rooms were the second to be completed and featured a spacious bedroom, an equally spacious bathroom (complete with hot tub), and a wardrobe already filled with clothing from across the continent. There was also a back room, hidden behind the wardrobe, which featured no windows and was bare, but only she and one architect were aware of its existence, and he was sworn to secrecy. Although not even halfway constructed it was evident that the castle was going to be large. If Bubblegum's calculations were correct it would be the largest castle of any kingdom, which was hardly an accident. After all, some displays of power needed to be more obvious than others.
Truth be told, there wasn't much to look at in the outside world, but she had needed a break from her work. Although not much had been built outside yet the castle itself was a different story. Already it featured a state-of-the-art labyrinth of a laboratory of her own design, housing equipment and chemicals both rare and dangerous. Fully equipped, it featured almost half a dozen steel beds (restraints included, of course), over a dozen tables scattered across the room were almost overflowing with tools and machinery, a beautiful new chalkboard on the south side, countless white cabinets and drawers lining the walls, and a large all-purpose sink in the northwest corner. One small window above it acted as her only outlet to the outside world, and she predictably kept it locked at all times. On an isolated table in the middle of the room sat a massive computer, surrounded by ingot. She had taken her break while trying to create a brand new metal to be used in the construction of a gift of sorts. The process was promising, but slow, and her eyes had started to burn.
The outside world was quiet in the dead of night, but she was used to that. It reminded her of her beloved laboratory, and allowed her to bask in her continuing progress undisturbed. Here she was, the leader of a new world. " My world," she smugly remarked to no one in particular. This was always the remedy to her lab-related frustrations. Prowling the streets, appreciating not only her hard work but that of her creations as well. "My children," she continued to smugly remark to no one in particular. This was her ritual; exhaust herself in her lab, leave to appreciate her developing world, then return to the lab more determined than ever. Satisfied, she nodded to herself and made her way back to her castle. She was pumped, ready to unravel the mystery of how to construct a new alloy to her highly nuanced specifications. She expected a long night, perhaps dozens of failed trials, but she also expected to make leaps towards her goals. As she entered the castle, nodding to her fresh-faced private guard, she began to strategize. Oh yes, she had plans for triumph.
What she didn't plan on was the dead demon laying on the table once-bare table closest to her computer. When Princess Bubblegum saw it her lips pursed in a tight line and she stared at it accusingly. It was a stark red and smaller than she imagined demons to normally be (though, admittedly, she didn't exactly see them often), just a hair bigger than the large rodents that inhabited the nearby woods. It even had a long tail that terminated in three hooked tentacles hooked with tiny nails. It was scaled like the rest of the body, reminding her of a strange cross between a rat and a lizard. It appeared to have four eyes, two on each side of face, flanking a bulbous nose, but they were closed and blended into the flesh so well she wasn't entirely sure that was accurate. Its hands were humanoid, five pointed fingers, though comically short. At least two fingers looked broken, bent at odd angles. Based on its legs, which were also humanoid and featured two pointed toes, it was bipedal. Or at least, it would be, if one wasn't visibly crushed.
Its torso featured one large laceration. It was deep, and was still bleeding onto her nice, shiny steel table. As a matter of scientific curiosity she crossed the room to examine it further. The wound was almost surgical, stretching across its torso to reveal the humanoid entrails within. She could see what she assumed to be its stomach, possibly its intestine, but beyond that she couldn't hazard a guess. She only knew one demon's physiology, and that was under vastly different circumstances. Her thoughts strayed along these lines but were rudely interrupted but a soft groan. The demon was alive. Bubblegum took a deep breath to steel herself against this realization, eyes closing. She didn't need to look at the tiny window to know that it was open.
"What the flip, Marceline?!"
Without hesitation two garnet eyes, slitted against the laboratory's dim light, manifested in front of her, their owner lounging in the air, upside down, hands cradling the back of her head, less than an arm-length away. "You summoned?" It was a purr, she was smirking, and with a frown Bonnibel realized that, technically, she had. She didn't respond right away, taking a precious moment to gather her thoughts. At the far end of the vampire she could see red boots and solid black pants that were distractingly tight. As a top she wore a red and heather grey flannel shirt. Even in the dim light Bonnibel could see the small splatter of blood on her shoulder. Her hair was loose, flowing, and in clear disarray.
"Marceline, why is there a half-dead demon on what was previously my unblemished steel table?"
The vampire's eyes lit up, dilating when she met her princess's gaze. Her smirk became a grin. "I'm teaching my dingus to hunt!" Bonnibel blinked. Whatever she had been expecting, that certainly wasn't it. For a few moments they just stared at one another, giving the candy girl time to assess the woman in front of her. She was clearly pleased with herself, that much was obvious, but she also seemed… off, almost radiating eagerness. Her eyes seemed almost overly focused. Her fangs were clearly elongated, albeit slightly. Was she growling or purring? Her hands had been replaced with pointed talons, though she gave no indication that they were hurting her head. Her legs shifted anxiously. Even her hair seemed to twitch curiously.
"You're doing what ?"
Marceline rolled her eyes before her body fell suit, landing gracefully. How she could roll out mid-air Bonnibel wasn't sure, but that wasn't her concern at the moment. "I'm teaching you to hunt!" "You eviscerated a demon and left it on my desk." "Like a present," Marceline nodded, agreeing. Irritation crossed the princess's face. "Explain your logic, Marceline." At this the older woman seemed to beam, clearly taking it as praise.
"Look nerd, you're a smart woman, but being a brainlord isn't going to help you against what goes bump in the night."
"And you would know because you're one of those things?"
"Exactly."
Bonnibel sighed, pinching the spot where her nose met her face. "You're giving me wrinkles, Marceline. Right here." She shook her head, dropping her hand in the process. "Let's look at this logically." The vampire opened her mouth, but closed it again when she was shot a pointed look. "I know, not your strong suit, but focus." When the half-demon didn't respond Bonnibel was satisfied to continue. "What would possess you to suddenly drop a half-dead demon on my desk in the middle of the night?" The smirk returned. "Well, they're harder to find during the day, and I'm usually asleep." "You're not helping, Marceline." "I'm not trying to, Bonnie."
The princess closed her eyes, took a deep breath, exhaled, and opened them again when a thought suddenly struck her. "...Marceline, where did you get a demon?" The smirk dropped, and the vampire almost seemed to freeze. "Uh…" Realizing she had no response, it was Bonnibel's turn to smirk. Her tone became syrupy sweet. "Marcy, tell me where you got the demon." Now she squirmed. "...Would you believe that I found him in the woods?" "No." The tone was kept syrupy sweet. She knew how it unnerved her, evident when the vampire's claws returned to hands.
"Would you believe-"
"I would believe the truth." The truth. Marceline's one non-solar weakness.
"Well…" She glanced away, scanning the lab with her peripheral vision, looking for anything to distract the other monarch.
Caught her. Bubblegum's smirk became smug. She reached out and took the taller woman's chin, turning it until they faced one another. Realizing that she was still avoiding her gaze she sighed. "Look at me, Marcy." Never one to refuse a direct command the vampire gulped lightly, doing as she was told. "Good. Now-" She was interrupted when Marceline suddenly whipped her head to the table, a low growl in the back of her throat. Before she could admonish her Bonnibel saw why; the small demon had regained consciousness and was pitifully attempting to drag itself away.
With no hesitation the talons returned and she slammed a clawed hand down onto her victim. She squeezed, quickly flipping him over to meet her eyes, once again slits. Her grin was predatory, her voice a controlled, dangerous warning. "Did you just move ?" The demon, frozen in obvious terror, didn't respond. "Why do you think I broke your leg? It's so you don't move ." She didn't wait for a response. In an impulsive act of anger she squeezed, dragging her claw slowly down his chest, fresh blood flowing freely. She traced the talon to his arm. Her eyes flashed and the arm was ripped off, slowly. The sinew stretched, breaking inches at a time. The bones, petite as they were, snapped loudly. The fingers spasmed as the nerves were severed. Despite the demon's small size and previous wounds its screams were loud and desperate. In a mocking gesture Marceline laid the arm across the demon's lower eyes, taking care to make sure they were covered entirely. The remaining arm reached, but the shock paralyzed it.
Princess Bubblegum watched, fascinated. She knew Marceline's half-demon heritage and vampiric nature meant she had the potential for violence, but she had always been so careful to keep it out of view of the princess. The fact that she was lapsing was striking, and she watched the exchange. "Is that why you broke his leg?" The vampire didn't look away from her prey, nor did her expression change. Focusing now on her lover, however, her tone normalized. "Well, yeah Bon. You've never hunted before. I can't have him getting away from you, can I?"
The younger woman placed her hand on the tense claw. "Marceline, put him down, I doubt he's going anywhere, and I'm not done with you." The demon was dropped, the claw once again becoming a hand. "Good. Now, where did you get him?" Marceline groaned, having hoped that line of conversation had been dropped. Realizing that stalling was getting her nowhere she looked around the lab, trying to pick her next words very carefully. "Well… it's like this…" Once again, Bonnibel took her lover's chin, turning so that red eyes met green, but said nothing to interrupt.
"...I went back to the Nightosphere."
"Willingly?"
She squirmed. "Yeah."
The candy monarch moved her hand from her girlfriend's chin to cup her cheek. The vampire closed her eyes, leaning into the touch. "Why did you go back?" She nuzzled the hand, her discomfort overpowered by the sudden affection. For a long moment she didn't respond. When Bonnibel didn't push the issue she lifted her head, meeting her eyes willingly. "To send a message." The pink princess raised an eyebrow, a silent inquiry for clarification. "You're building one wild kingdom here, Bon, and I know you're getting off on your power trip, but you're playing with some dangerous forces. You're young, you don't know what's out there. I do, and I've seen some stuff that would really make you say 'like what?' Dude, I've seen a guy turned inside out. I can't let something like that happen to you."
"So you brought a demon back to Ooo as a lesson in self-defense. That's quite a bit of forethought, especially for you." Marceline rolled her eyes. "Come on Bon, I'm not always an impulsive idiot. I can have my moments." Bonnibel nodded absently. "I suppose I'm rubbing off on you." Before she could fully appreciate the double entendre her lover grinned, her hand twitching. When she realized why her eyes narrowed. "Marceline, don't be distasteful." "But I'm so good at it." Fair enough. "So why this demon in particular?" The half-demon tilted her head to the side. "Oh. Well…" She nervously rubbed the back of her head. "I was kind of hungry and almost lost control…" The shame obvious in her voice, she couldn't meet the princess's eyes. "After I slashed him I remembered that I promised you, so I thought, 'hey, might as well make the most of this', brought him back, and here we are."
Bonnibel frowned deeply, and in response Marceline's eyes darted to the window. But she wouldn't fly away. They both knew that despite her growing panic Marceline had one specific order: Do not fly away without Bonnibel's leave, and so even though every instinct told her to make herself scarce she could hear the firm command in the back of her mind. Stay put. She never was sure if it was her voice or her lover's, but she supposed it didn't matter.
"Your new diet is proving difficult?"
"It's just… an adjustment. You were right that I can get all of my nourishment from drinking red, but it's a hard habit to break, Bon."
"Didn't you stake all those vampires for doing exactly that?" It was less of an accusation and more of a question.
"Well, yeah, you know my vow. I couldn't let them hurt the humans. But there aren't any humans anymore, and demon blood…" Her gaze turned back to the demon. Her eyes dilated, her hand twitching to a claw and back. It was still alive, and though her candy sense of smell picked up nothing she imagined that Marceline's heightened sense were all too aware of the fresh blood. She could see it in the breath she didn't need, in her unblinking stare, in the soft growl. Bonnibel admired her restraint.
"Marcy, look at me." The demon slowly turned, and she continued once she saw her eyes focus. "I think I see what's happening here. Do you know what catharsis is?" Marceline shook her head. "Catharsis is the process of releasing repressed emotions, thereby providing release." When her girlfriend stared blankly she considered the most delicately way to phrase her thoughts before continuing. She knew the queen well, and especially enough to know how sensitive this topic was. To help ease the conversation she kept her tone controlled, calm, and gentle. "I have an idea." Her hand came up again, cupping her cheek. When garnet eyes slid shut she moved her hand slowly to trace her ear, eliciting a shudder.
"I understand your concern for my safety. Were our roles reversed I imagine I would have the same trepidation. I respect that you've seen and experienced things I can't imagine. You want to protect me, and I appreciate that fact. We both have our strengths, and one of the things I admire most about you is your loyalty." When she scritched behind a grey ear she heard a soft purr. Stay with me, Marcy. Calm. "...But you can't change what you are." Her eyes slid open and she tensed, but didn't move. "So I have a proposition." A raised eyebrow. "You're not going to be happy unless I'm safe, are you?" Bonnibel didn't wait for an answer, the question was purely rhetorical. Instead she offered a soft smile, followed by a soft kiss. Marceline blinked.
"...So keep me safe."
Marceline blinked again. "...What are you asking me to do, Bon?"
"I hypothesize that you need to purge your more violent urges. I'm not sure if you've even realized it Marcy, but you've been twitchy all night. If I didn't know you as well as I do I'd go so far as to call you unstable. You're clearly anxious, you've either been staring or avoiding staring at the demon all night, and I can see the way you've been looking at me. You've been quicker to shapeshift than is typical for you, and your canines are quite apparent. In short, at this moment, I'm very aware that you are both half-demon and queen of the vampires." Marceline stiffened, immediately alarmed. "Bon, you know I wouldn't-"
"I know you wouldn't hurt me Marcy, don't worry. That's not my point." She relaxed, slowly. "The solution is simple. You can keep me secure in a way I doubt any person or creature in Ooo possibly can. In the process, you'll rid yourself of your more… destructive compulsions. I imagine it will also help you adjust to your new diet as well, by curbing your bloodlust." And no one will know you're safeguarding me. The most precious of secrets. The princess paused, letting the weight of her words settle on the other's shoulders. "What do you think?" The pause was long, heavy. Finally, at last, the vampire smirked. "Well, you're the brainlord. If it keeps you safe I'm game." They both relaxed, unaware of how tense they had become. "Good girl." Princess Bubblegum turned her back to her lover to fetch cleaning supplies when her gaze travelled back to the poor demon. When she realized he was still alive she smiled slyly, the syrupy sweet tone returning to her voice.
"Oh, and Marcy?"
"Yeah?"
"The demon is red."
Bonnibel didn't see her girlfriend's eyes light up. But she did hear her fangs plunge into her victim, the strangled gasps of her victim and, finally, the silence return to her precious laboratory.