Your Choice

17 - Voices

This chapter is brought to you by: @Alextheplush !!!

A/N: WOAH WE JUST HIT 1K READS! LET'S GO BROS!

With no time to make a decision, you hastily pick the former of the two girls. "I don't want Ragatha to feel lonely, especially since we've spent so much time together today. You understand, right?" 

"Oh of course! Have fun! And it looks like Zooble and Gangle have paired up already, so I'll just duo up with Kinger," Pomni responded nonchalantly, pointing towards the lone chess piece using her thumb over her shoulder. Deep down, you could still hear the dejection in her voice though. 

"Oh... are you sure?"

"Totally! I'll see you two later!" Pomni exclaimed, sprinting towards Kinger. Not necessarily because she was excited, but because she couldn't face the confrontation of her melancholy emotions. She felt selfish. 

"Alright then...." you apprehensively turned towards Ragatha, who was looking at you with a smile on her face, happy that she could be with you. 

"Hi Y/N! Isn't this your first adventure?" she asked, excitedly. Ragatha was practically giddy with joy and could barely contain her enthusiasm. 

Overwhelmed by the doll's energetic personality, you reply, "Uh- yeah!" You shuffled nervously, somewhat failing at reciprocating her vibe. She squealed in response, spinning in a happy circle, her skirt twirling behind her. Then she grabbed both her hands in hers. 

"I know you've had a rough start, but this will totally stoke your mood! And luckily, you have the second oldest member of the circus to help you along the way!" 

You chuckled nervously, yet still feeling overjoyed about the whole situation even if it didn't show that well. Looking around, you noticed the other pairs conversing as well. You asked, "Shouldn't the carriage be here by-" 

"I AM BACK! I KNOW YOU MISSED ME, MY FRIENDS!" Caine's voice boomed, taking even the most mentally stable by surprise. "TIME TOOOOOOOOOOOO HEAD OUTTTTTT!" Then, with a quick snap of his fingers, you were all sitting in a carriage made of candy wafers. After the sudden shock of teleportation, everyone exchanged happy glances with each other. Your hands were still entwined with Ragatha's, but as you two were now sitting side-by-side it was a bit strenuous to continue the position. 

Looking around you, you recognized the scenery as the outside of the circus, however an unexplored area. Seemingly behind the tent. The green grass made way underneath the weight of the carriage's wheels as it rolled across the ground, and the clouds overhead slowly moved with the breeze. It was relaxing. You felt the most connected with your true inner self when you were outside the circus. Most people sat in silence, other than Ragatha next to you, who was having a conversation with Pomni. They were sitting across from each other. Staring at Kinger's soulless eyes, you wondered if he had even realized he had teleported. That question was soon answered by Kinger's screech. 

"WHERE AM I?!" he yelled. Everyone turned their heads to look at him, most with pity and others with straightforward confusion. You were one of the latter. 

Gangle answered quietly, "Caine teleported us, remember?" The mask she adorned was neither comedy nor tragedy, and it sparked your curiosity on how many masks she owned. Her current one seemed neutral, if not a little more on the inquisitive side. 

"Oh! Right! I thought it was the aliens again. Sometimes they speak to me." Nobody dared look at the delusional elder after that statement, almost as if they were afraid his insanity would spread to them. 

Looking around again, you took in the surroundings of the sky becoming less blue and more of a yellowish pink. It was beautiful, almost like a sunset in the middle of the day. The ground was no longer grass, but instead a firm type of dirt. The carriage continued its trek towards the kingdom of candy. Something you hadn't noticed before was the gummy... uh... animal, that pulled the cart along. It was unlike any animal you'd ever seen before, but its best comparison would be an anteater. With very long legs. 

Someone who you couldn't place whispered something in your ear. It didn't sound like Ragatha or anyone else who was sitting near you. It was too quiet for you to make out any words. 

"Ragatha? Did you say something?" you questioned. 

The rag doll turned towards you, briefly stopping her conversation with Pomni, and responded, "No? Perhaps it was just the wind, it seems to be blowing pretty hard over here!" Her answer confused you, as the wind was barely blowing, if it all. 

"Oh... alright then..." Your hands rested in your lap. Even if the noises had soured your mood slightly, you still felt ten times better than when you were stuck inside the stuffy circus tent. Then the cart hit a particularly large bump, startling most of the passengers. Kinger was the rare exception. Around a minute later, the effects of the bump hit him as if he was lagging, and he randomly bounced up into the air. This seemed like normal behavior to everyone else.

"...probably some small one she can..." 

You whipped your head around, a voice fading just as ominously as it had came. It was like the "wind" from earlier, except this time it was more distinguishable. Maybe you were as crazy as Kinger.

"Ragatha, please tell me you heard that," you said, worry present in your tone. 

"Heard what?" she responded, reciprocating your anxious feelings. While you were zoning out and having your little existential dread moment, everyone else had become silent. At least, until you started panicking. 

"I swear on Caine I heard someone speaking. Saying... something. I can't quite remember." 

"DON'T USE MY NAME IN VAINNNNNN!" Caine yelled, a minuscule version of him appearing and vanishing with just enough time to speak. 

"I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE THAT HEARS THE ALIENS! THEY'RE HERE!" Kinger shrieked. You buried your head in your hands in embarrassment. Were you already as crazy as Kinger was? Zooble held back a snicker while everybody else seemed a bit bewildered at the unfolding events. 

"Pretend I never said anything..." you awkwardly whispered. Ragatha continued to look at you with concern evident in her gaze, but after a minute looked away after deciding there was nothing she could do to help. 

You watched as far in the distance, a castle appeared. Or at least it looked to be a castle. It was too far away to really tell, but it could also be some type of fortress. And it was made completely of candy. Gangle was the first to point it out.

"Guys!" Her ribbon hand shot towards the direction of the wafer fortress, and everybody followed her stare. Everyone seemed content with the new adventure as you inched closer and closer. Even if it did look like you were close, it would probably take another hour or so until you arrived. And you obviously got terrible sleep the previous night. 

People always talked about how car rides could put you sleep, with the soothing feeling the small bumps in the road provide. And this carriage wasn't an exception. You could feel your eyes getting heavier, but it was up to you to decide whether falling asleep was a good idea. You'd want to be energized for your first adventure, but at the same time you could risk another nightmare. And you most definitely wouldn't deal with the reactions of everyone around you if you had a nightmare. 

It would be a risky decision to sleep, but the choice is yours. You do need rest after all.