An extraordinary creature was laying down in a glade. He appeared magically by a guiding presence. She kept a loving vigil over him since his creation. He used to belong in the imagination of a young child. In a grisly circumstance, he was forgotten, which meant that there was nowhere for him to go. As some would think. Instead, she took him. Not in the sense of stealing or kidnapping, for that matter, but it was a tough rescue. Now, he was an awkward fellow. As if pink elephants were insane enough. He was one except he was made up completely out of candy. The sugary pelt was soft and it sparkled in the gentle light of the surrounding quartz stones that littered the forest floor. He wore a checkered brown jacket and a pair of thick dark brown gloves over his sugary paws. He sported a trunk that was lain strewn about his head with a nozzle that seemed to take the shape of a candy heart. He seemed to sleep on even as his body was slowly appearing, ending at his colorful stout legs and lastly, his tail. Purple and soft, it curled over his feet as if he was trying to stay warm. He was going to wake up very soon now and she didn't want him to startle. She even tried to soothe his dreams a little. This place she chose was very quiet and peaceful. After a moment, he began to open his eyes … for the first time, to a new world.
"U-uhh…" he hoarsely moaned as he tried to move.
He blinked, trying to see where he was. The creature's green eyes widened before he struggled to get to his feet. He was in a great forest. It was nothing that he recognized.
"Oh gosh… oh dear! Where am I?" he spoke, softly, in a nasally, bright sort of voice. Fear did not suit it. It hurt to hear it twist and deepen with such unpleasant surprise.
With care, she had decided to come close to this newcomer. Right when he saw her in the form of a brilliant glowing orb, the lost creature had to take a couple steps back. Now she was able to see him completely. It was clear to her eye that he was imaginary. One that needed to stay safe and far away from the wrong hands. In his mind, he had trouble trying to remember anything that may have happened before this. He had no idea that she was his rescuer. He had one memory though. A vague one. He tilted his head a bit. "…j-joy…?" he spoke, timidly. As he whispered that name, he rose his trunk to her, slow and cautiously. Kindly, she responded by softly touching the heart shaped tip of his nose. Being a powerful Fairy, she was able to sense a lot of pain inside this creature. Being forgotten was a fate worse than death. It was something he was innocent to because he couldn't remember.
"Is… is it really you, Joy?" he asked her, sounding very confused. He found that he couldn't remember anything before now. What was he trying to remember anyway? Also, why did he feel so … so bad? It wasn't like being sick with a cold, but it was something that felt so wrong. He wanted to cry. Terribly… It all settled inside his chest behind his pink spotted bow. It was like the pain someone had when they had a bad tumble or got pushed down hard. It felt really heavy… He had never felt like this before. Even though, he was where he was afraid to be in, which was the dark, this… beautiful light stayed. It was such a wonderful thing for him to focus on, rather than this dark place. Wanting to be polite to her, he took his hat off while slowly standing up. The whole while he kept his gaze solely on her.
"I don't — I don't remember much…" he said, finding it even harder to try.
"I-I dunno why. But d-do I know you?" Soon after he asked her that, a voice came from this stunning floating orb. "Do you know me?" she asked in the most calm voice. "Is my name Joy?"
That planted confusion in him. Now he wasn't so sure. "Aw, I dunno. I-I thought it was…" he spoke, dragging his gaze down while twiddling his fingers. "I'm sorry." "Do not tell me that you are sorry, dear." the Fairy began with love in her voice. "Of course, you may call me Joy if you really want to. I believe it is a beautiful name." Being called dear was what struck him the most. She looked deep into his eyes which were overcome with so many emotions. He was scared but then he found her to be so beautiful that he had almost forgotten why he was scared in the first place.
"Your voice…" he expressed, with a soft look growing in his green eyes. "I think I know it."
"Just keep your eyes on me. I am here to help you." she reassured. "In time you will see true beauty in a world that will be entirely your own. I have given you life here because you've already proven yourself greatly. Even though you cannot remember it, you will understand my words soon. I see goodness in you. I am your friend, Bing Bong."
"Bing bong. Is… is that my name?" he asked, finding it oddly familiar.
"Indeed, my dear." she warmly replied. "For the now."
She felt deeply for this magical being, who was unable to recall his past, let alone his own old name. He was a lost child, now found. But of course this was not to last. In this form she was able to fly quickly around him to cast a protective spell. Imaginaries were such rare treasures in this world, which remained unseen to the human eye. For good reason. As ridiculous and bright he seemed, his face shared a sad story that she witnessed for herself in secret. He was a former imaginary friend. A child's creation. A child who had grown up so much that he became absolutely obsolete to her. Unwanted and cast out. It was the fact that he lingered like a distant memory for so long. If he didn't, she would have never found him. He was so young compared to his Imaginary brother, Figment. Figment was well known and stayed among the famous for over 30 years. Alas, he was the only one of his kind, protected by and loyal to the Dreamfinder. It would seem that Dreamfinder would have to meet another when the time was right.
Unlike Figment, who had so many magical abilities (almost too much to count), Bing Bong had no knowledge of magic or if he even was capable of it. This was a matter that had to be handled delicately. If he was to embrace what was new then he had to be around those who would help him see that. For that to happen during such a terrible time. The mission now was to find exactly who Bing Bong would be loyal to, first. Certainly, it couldn't be her. Of course, she would be considered as someone special to this Imaginary. Both Imaginaries were endangered now, being the only two currently in existence. Enemy forces knew of them as well and would do anything of obtain one. That was not an option. If only her magic was stronger... but her struggle was real and she needed to heal. Her rescued subject though clearly had no memories of anything previous and the anxiety was shining through, by how he moved with such caution and how his expression appeared uncertain and full of fright.
"Oh gosh! Oh gosh... I dunno where I am."
"You are in a new world, the Magic Kingdom." She answered, weakly. "From here on you will learn and you will meet those you will choose to trust. If you trust in me, I will take you to a new home."
"Home...?"
"Do you know what you are?" she asked, not to probe him but to get him to wonder.
"I-I..." With a mark of confusion, he looked over himself.
He was an elephant. One that was made out of cotton candy who wore a thick brown jacket covered in old patches. Looking over his gloved hands and his colorful legs, he shyly gazed up at the luminous orb above him. "You are an Imaginary." she continued, sensing the pain he must have been feeling. "A treasure in this world. And so, you must be protected. Guided... You need to befriend and trust the right people." He had an inkling that something terrible happened, but he couldn't find why.
"... I can't remember." he spoke, instantly sitting down with a heavy heart. "I don't feel okay. I'm feelin' a little scared..."
The forest around them was beginning to darken even more as this strange storm began to brew. "There is nothing wrong with that." she lovingly replied, soaring down to the tip of his gentle trunk where he could see her completely. The poor, lost and found Imaginary sniffled as his eyes began to well up with tears. When it would be funny or cute, as it were, these tears quickly formed into hardened candy as they came pouring out, forming piles in the grass. Bing Bong was baffled at first, then he was shocked and embarrassed before he covered his eyes while giving own a broken yelp. "What's wrong with me? I feel so wrong, Joy!" he sobbed. She knew he still felt the repercussions of being forgotten, but he too had forgotten everything before she took him. But the damage was there... This only proved that the enemy was impacting the young already with fear and depression. There was a way to heal him. It was going to take a journey though, until she healed up herself.
"Come with me?" she asked him. Softly, she touched his cheek to wake him from despair. With a couple heavy sobs, he fully gazed at her, nodding. He wiped his eyes before he slowly stood up.
"I-I will. I will." he choked.