I do not own any of these fantastic characters. They were all born from the mind of Pendleton Ward. So all thanx should go to him. No profit was gained from the writing of this story.

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Chapter One A Brave man's Tears

Humming to herself a young woman walked briskly between tables while gathering an assortment of vials and powder, "A brave man's tears... a brave man's... Where would I... Oh crumpet... Peppermint? Ohhh!" Putting everything down on a shelf she stuck her head into the hall, "Hello? Pep..."

"Yes, your Majesty." Spinning around, and nearly knocking over a stand of jars, the Princess shrieked in surprise. Stepping closer, the small candy butler offered his hand, "Princess?"

"How did you do that? I did not see you walk past me..."

"Princess Bubblegum, I never left the room, you called for me an hour ago. You never told me what you needed, so I have been waiting."

"I did? Oh yes, I must have, yes. Alright... I need you to send for Finn if you could please. Tell him it is urgent."

"Yes Princess, at once!" Before leaving he offered a few more words, "A rest before tonight's party may do your nerves well Princess." Nodding, her servant and friend quickly departed the room as she went about her work.

"If I can't do it on my own, I will create something that will help me. And help me it will, or at least I hope. Oh sticks... I don't have time for hope. It will work...or...or..." she let her words fade as she returned to collecting her vials.

"Lions blood, check. Clippings from a sharp tongued figure, check...A brave man's tears is all I need and I will have the last of the ingredients. I have to finish this tonight!"

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Hovering by the window, Marceline watched as the Princess frantically buzzed around her lab mumbling to herself, 'Heh, I wonder what she is working on now. Something for her stupid party I bet. Whatever. Guess I should leave her to her experiments. ' Taking one last look at the Princess she sighed, "Don't go to crazy this time Bonnibel."

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A shiver ran down her spine as she turned to look at the window. It couldn't be. Her heart started to beat faster as she neared the window. She leaned out, but there was no one there. "I was sure I heard my name just now."

A sudden crash bought her attention back into her lab as Finn kicked open the door and came barging in with Jake. Striking a pose and slashing the air with his sword Finn smiled, "What is it PB? What is wrong? Does the Ice King need defeated again? What adventure is calling for us Heroes today?"

"Oh Finn, you silly silly boy. Who I needed, was you. I am so glad you are here. I couldn't do this without you." With her hands behind her back she walked over to Finn giggling.

Blushing Finn walked closer to the Princess. "You...You need me? I am glad I am here for you too, PB. I mean, Princess."

Closing the distance between them, she leaned in and whispered, "Finn, I need you to close your eyes for me." Obeying her request Finn closed his eyes and leaned in. Without warning, a heavy object slammed against his head as his eyes began to tear up.

"What in the...Princess?" He felt glass press against his face as his tears were collected.

"Thank you Finn. Thank you! You are no longer needed. Sorry for the whole 'close your eyes' business, but I needed maximum tear output, couldn't have them wasted, now could I? All I needed was the tears of a brave man. Well, you might not be fully grown, but if my calculations are correct, all I need to do is double the amount of tears I am using if I am using the tears of a brave boy. That should do it! Thank you! Now off with you boys! Thank you for the help. See you at tonight's party. Bye!" Pushing them quickly out the door she offered no explanation.

Planting her back firmly to the door she held the vial to the light and smiled. "Finnally... hehe Finn-ally. I crack myself up. Lets do this."

Gently she pulled all of the other elements down. Closing her eyes tight, she focused her mind and then got to work. Ounce for ounce she measured and remeasured every liquid, every powder. This potion had to be perfect. Nothing about it could be wrong. Even the smallest error in her calculations could mess it up. That didn't matter to her, it was worth the risk. She was always honest with her thoughts. However, this time she was scared to share them. So, what better remedy than liquid courage. Now, with everything measured she carefully mixed them together, stirring it slowly till all the ingredients were dissolved. Once the contents settled, the potion gave off an eerie purple glow. Picking it up she stared at it and noted that the potion felt like it had a small pulse. She would check into the pulse later, all that mattered was the potion was finally done.

Looking at the clock she realized it was still early, "Peppermint was right, I should rest before tonight's events." Neglecting her cleaning for now, she left the lab and made her way to her bed, "You, my dear potion, if done correctly will change my life forever. Here's to us, bottoms up!"

Kissing the potion and hugging it one more time Princess Bubblegum took a large sip and waited. Expecting an immediate reaction she braced herself, but nothing happened. Frustrated she took another mouthful and continued to wait. Tears of anger welled in her eyes as she drank the entirety of her courage concoction. Still nothing happened. Words could not describe the feelings pouring from her as she threw the glass against the wall.

"A waste! An afternoon of waste. Ohhhhhhhh." Flinging herself on her bed she allowed her pillow to absorb her tears as she fell asleep. She would have to wait another day.

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Back in her home Marceline ran her finger around the sides of her invitation. Princess Bubblegum always insisted that she be sent one, even if she rarely attended. This time, however, the Princess handed this invite to her in person. She even had a dress sent to her with a message pinned to it saying, "You simply must wear this dress to the party. Though I know you have a fondness for jeans, it is just unacceptable that you would wear them to a Candy Kingdom event. Thank you. See you there ~ PB." Resting her head on her table she sighed in defeat. Floating to her closet she opened it and looked at the dress. There was no way she was going to wear it in the current state that it was in. Alive, or even now dead, she would never be caught in pink. Lucky for her she had time to make alterations. She would show up all right, even in the dress, but it was going to be a little more her style by the time the party started.