Conundrum in the Candy Kingdom

NOTE: I DO NOT OWN, NOR DO I CLAIM OWNERSHIP OF THIS SHOW OR ANY OF THE CHARACTERS MENTIONED HERE! THIS STORY IS PURELY FAN-MADE!!!

    "What'cha doin' there, Bonnibel...?" Marceline asked inquisitively. She hovered over to Princess Bubblegum's (PB) desk as she was hurriedly rustling through old documents. "Oh, nothing. Just throwing papers around!" PB turned around with papers in hand and tossed them up into the air while making unsettling "blooping" noises before quickly turning around again to continue shuffling through papers. Marceline looked on in confusion and with an ever so slight air of worry. "Uuuuum... Are you okay?" "NOPE! I am totes not alright!" Her voice was raised and Marceline noticed she was shaking a little. PB had stopped rummaging through papers and had found whatever she was looking for. She tossed the note to Marceline. Marcy read the note: "Hello Princess of the Candy Kingdom. I regret to inform you that I, the notorious Tickle Monster, will seek an audience with yourself. I look forward to seeing you. Hugs and tickles, T. Monster <3" Marcy giggled silently at the note and her eyes kept darting between it and the table PB sought refuge under. Then, Marcy slowly glided over to the table and reached her hand through a hole in the bottom of it. She pinched PB's side, which caused quite a loud reaction. "EEEEP!!" PB sprung out from under the table, violently slashing the air with a candy knife. Marcy started to have a laughing fit. "HAHAHA! Oh man, Bonnibel," she wiped a tear from her face as she went on, "you can't really be scared of the tickle monster," Marcy pronounced the name of the infamous monster in an over-the-top mocking tone as she continued to laugh. "ARE YOU GLOBBING KIDDING ME?!" PB became hysterical. "OF COURSE I'M SCARED!" She calmed down a little before going on. "Look," she began, "I HATE being tickled. It's a friggin' nightmare! That's why I made it illegal in the kingdom." She moved in closer to Marcy. "And if I ever find anyone tickling anyone, it's off to jail. No trial, instant dungeon!" Marcy might not have been laughing anymore, but she was having trouble taking this seriously. "Alright, look. You're tough, Bonnibel. There are bigger things to be scared of. Like Flame Princess losing control and setting the planet on fire. Wouldn't you rather obsess about that?" Marcy's attempt at "comforting" was not going too well. "Marcy..." PB began, "Stay over tonight." "I'd love to, but I've gotta do some jammin' back at my house." Marcy answered, hovering her way over to the window. "Oh no you don't!" PB pulled a bottle out of her pocket and tossed the contents on Marcy, who promptly plummeted to the floor of the room. "Ahh Glob! Is this Holy Water?!" Marcy hissed. "Oh relax ya ding-dong." PB said. "I wouldn't douse you in Holy Water. This is Diet Holy Water. From a sugar-free candy priest. It'll keep you from using your powers so you can't leave." PB walked over to her closet, stepped in and stepped back out in her pajamas, a white t-shirt and pink sweat pants. She was holding another pair of the same pajamas out for Marcy. "Looks like we're having a slumber-party!" PB shouted and moved over to Marcy, who was shooing away the pink pajamas. "Just hold still!" The two wrestled for a while.

    After PB had forced the pajamas on her friend, they both laid themselves down in PB's bed, awkwardly staring at the ceiling. "You feel better now, Bonnibel?" Marcy asked her friend. "Totes." PB smiled. Suddenly, Marcy jumped on her and pinned her down. "HEY! What the Glob! Get off me!!" PB tried to push Marcy off, but Marcy held her hands together and above her head. "BOOOOOOO! I'm the tickle monster, coming to get youuuu ~" Marcy teased and started tickling her friend's belly with her free hand. The reaction was immediate. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! MARCY! STAHAHAHAHAHAHAP!" PB rattled around, trying to push off her friend. "Coochie coo, princess." Marcy continued in her mocking tone. She wiggled her fingers all around PB's belly. "HEY! I'LL KIHIHIHIHIHIIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHILL YOU!" PB threatened through her fits of laughter, still struggling against Marcy. "Not so threatening when you giggle like that, Bonnibel." The mocking continued, "Tickle tickle tickle!" Marcy slid her hand under PB's shirt and circled her belly-button with her index finger. "KYAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! STAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAP IT!! I HATE TICKLING!! HEEHEEHEEHEEHEE!" PB shook her head around and kicked with her legs, all in an effort to shove Marcy off, but the vampire was proving to be quite a challenge, even without her powers. "HIHIHIHIHIHIHIHI! NOOOO!!" Marcy moved her hand down PB's side, scratching lightly all the way. "Come on, Bonnibel. It's just a little tickling. You'll need endurance training before the tickle monster gets you!" She teased, causing her friend to buck violently. Marcy was pushed back and PB had her hands free. She put Marcy's feet in a "headlock." "I ain't gettin' tickled again!" PB declared. She began to viciously scratch her fingers against Marcy's soles. "HAHAHAHA! HEY! QUIHIHIHIT IT!" Marcy laughed and tried to kick herself free, but PB was in no mood to become the victim again. "How does it feel, Marceline..." PB asked, not a hint of mercy in her voice. "AW- AWFUL! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! STAHAHAHAHAAP!" Marcy shook her body while PB began a more torturous method of tickling. She turned and stared her giggling friend coldly in the eyes as she moved one finger slowly down her soles. "Yeah... I bet it sucks..." "IHIHIHIHIHIHIHIT DOES!! GYAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA!" "I bet it sucks a whole lot..."

    PB's single finger moving up and down Marcy's sole was torture. It got worse when PB started adding in little wiggles with her finger, like a worm was crawling slowly up and down Marcy's foot. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! STOP! I GIVE, I GIVE! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Marcy pleaded. "Alright. But you have to promise not to tickle me again." PB said. She continued to tickle until Marcy offered her compliance. "OK, OK! I PROOOOMISE! HEEHEEHEEHEEHEE!!!" "Good. So when you learn your lesson in another 20 minutes, I'll stop." PB continued to tickle. "HEY!! HIHIHIHIHIHI!" Marcy got mad and kicked reached for PB's sides, managing to get in a couple pinches. "EEEEEEEP!" PB squeaked and her grip loosened, giving Marcy a chance to take control of the situation. She pushed PB down on her stomach and sat on her back, bending her legs up so she could reach her feet. "HEY! You promised!!!" PB shouted, furiously. "Yeah, but I wasn't gonna wait 20 minutes. Besides," Marcy went on, "I was gonna keep tickling you anyway." Marcy held PB's feet close with one arm and used her hair to brush her soles. "TRAITOR! NYAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" PB screamed as the individual hairs struck her feet with ticklish elegance. Her toes wiggled as some strands of Marcy's hair touched down in between them. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! NO MORE TICKLES!!! STAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAP!!" Marcy laughed maniacally. "Mwahahahahaha!" Marcy dropped her hair and danced her fingers over PB's feet and on her toes. "Coochie coo," she teased. "HEEHEEHEEHEE! NOT MY FEEEEET! HEEHEEHEEHEEHEE!!!" PB grabbed a pillow and laughed and screamed into it. "HMMMHMMMMHMMMMMMM!!!!" "Just a few more, Bonnibel. Then I'll give ya a break and we can call the tickle fight off." Marcy reassured her friend that the tickling would end soon. PB was not in the mood for waiting though. With what little strength she had, the slammed the scream-pillow into Marcy, catching her off guard and knocking her down. PB jumped on her and immediately got to work tickling her sides. "The fight's not over yet, foo'" PB's tone intensified. Marcy, meanwhile, was giggling uncontrollably. "Hahahahahaha! Take thihihihihis!" Marcy, whose hands had not been held down, began poking PB's belly. "Beep, boop, boop." Marcy teased her friend with robot noises through the giggles. "Heeheeheehee! No faiir! Hahahaha!" PB couldn't hold herself upright and fell onto Marcy, who still occasionally poked her friend's sides. "Hihi! Stop!" PB giggled softly and set herself back up. Marcy did the same.

    "That was one tough fight, Bonnibel." Marcy congratulated her friend on a valiant battle. "Yeah, it was." Both girls smiled at one another. PB lightly jabbed Marcy in the stomach. "Do that again and I'll lock you in the dungeon!" They looked at each other for a moment, then laughed. "So, now you're prepped in case the tickle monster comes." Marcy teased. But PB still seemed rather concerned. "What is it? Still worried?" PB moved closer to Marcy and grabbed her arm, placing it over herself as a kind of shield. "If that monster comes," PB started, "the tickling won't be like this. It won't be... fun." Marcy asked what she meant. PB began to explain.

    Meanwhile, in a castle not too far from the Candy Kingdom, the Tickle Monster roamed the building. The halls were inconsistently lit. The monster went into a room. The room was bathed in an orange light. There were expensive ornaments decorating the walls, and drawers in every corner. In the center of the room was a magnificent bed with four large pillars at every corner and a drape overhead. At each pillar were a set of cuffs pointing inwards, perfect for restraining a person at the foot of the bed. The monster walked into a corner with a desk which had several pictures of Princess Bubblegum placed all over it. Each one was a photo of the princess smiling or laughing. Above the desk was a huge picture with a golden frame. It depicted PB in her lab-coat and goggles. Her hair was in a ponytail. The monster laughed devilishly. "HmhmhmhmhmmwahahahahaHAHA! Oh, your highness, I can't wait to see you again. It's been so long, I wonder if you still laugh the same way. HAHAHAHAHAHA!" The monster darted out of the room and the door slammed shut behind it.

TO BE CONTINUED...