Vanellope Von Sniffles
It was another wonderful day in Sugar Rush, candy people and racers alike just BURSTING for the next race to begin. Everyone sat in the stands, cheering as loudly as they could! There hadn't been such an excited crowd!
"On your marks! Get set! GOOOOOO!"
Off like lightening the racers went, driving as fast as they could. Down through the ice-cream tunnels and over the blueberry muffin hills they went, each one trying to gain the lead!
Pumpkin bombs were launched, ice-cream canons were shot! It was a candy-eat-candy race but this was just how the racers LOVED it!
Vanellope Von Schweetz headed the pass, going neck and neck against Taffyta Muttonfudge, the strawberry racer catching up.
"There's no way ya can dodge this one, Schweetz!" the other racer grinned.
"Not if I can help it!" shot back Vanellope.
The two were getting closer and closer to the finish line but no one could see who was in the lead! It was just too close!
"I see 'em comin' up the tracks, folks!" the announcers shouted, standing on the edge of his candy toes "Von Schweetz! Muttonfudge! Who knows who it will be! IT COULD BE-"
AAAAH…
CHOOOOO!
*GLITCH!*
With a sneeze and a glitch, Vanellope suddenly warped BEHIND Taffyta!
"What the-?!"
AAAH-CHOOOO!
*GLITCH!*
Then she was in front of Taffyta!
AAAH-CHOOOO!
*GLITCH!*
Upside down?
"It's a-! Tie?" the announcer said, watching as both Vanellope and Taffyta crossed the finish line, Vanellope somehow able to do so even though her kart was clearly driving in a way that next to impossible!
As the racers all came in, they gathered around Vanellope, looking a might worried.
"Are ya okay?" asked Rancis.
"That was rather weird!" said Jubileena.
AAAAH-CHOOOO!
*GLITCH!*
Vanellope ended up ATOP the stands, everyone looking in shock from her sudden teleportation!
"That looks kinda bad…" said Taffyta, her hands on her hips "Ya keep sneezin' like that, who knows where you'll end up!"
Vanellope glitched back down to the ground, giving the girl a smug grin "Taffy, Taffy, TAFFY. This isn't anything! Just a case of the sniffles, that's all!"
"I dunno, Vanellope!" Swizzle said "Ya might wanna go see a doctor. Ya could be headed for somethin' a lot worse than the sniffles!"
Vanellope tried to hide a sniffle, her nose itching and twitching "Guys, I'm fine! As PRESIDENT of the game, I can't let anything get to me! Even somethin' as small as a sniffle!"
"You sure about that?" asked Minty, crossing her arms against her chest "Or should we be worried that you'll end up OUTSIDE the game next time?"
"Guys! C'mon! Ya know me!" Vanellope smiled "Besides! I have too much work ta do! I'll be fine in the mornin'! You'll see!"
And with trophy in hand, Vanellope trotted back to her kart.
A kart that was still upside down.
"Um…." She glanced at the others "Anyone wanna help me flip this over?"
After getting her kart back into place, Vanellope went back home, feeling happy that she had won another golden trophy.
AAAAH-CHOOOO!
*GLITCH!*
But her happiness didn't last for long when she ended up in the clothes hamper!
"Ms. Vanellope…" Sour Bill said in a low, worried voice "Are you feeling alright? You look a bit less bright than usual!"
"I'm fine, Billy!" Vanellope said as she hopped out of the basket "It must be somethin' in the air today! I'll be right as rain in the mornin'!"
"But Ms. President, perhaps I should call a doctor, just in case?"
"Now, don't fret over lil ol' me!" Vanellope grinned as she petted Bill on his head "I'm the PRESIDENT! Nothin' gets to me!"
But when Vanellope awoke the next morning….
She found that it wasn't just a small sniffle anymore.
AH-CHOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
Vanellope Von Schweetz awoke feeling horrible, her little body feeling chilly but that wasn't the worst of it.
Her nose itched.
Her throat hurt.
Her head pounded.
AH-CHOOOOOOOOO!
And her sniffles were still there and they were worse than ever.
She sat up in bed, looking at the clock; it had just struck ten. She had so many things to do today that there was no time to waste!
At eleven she had to go help her friends repair a small candy village that had been damaged by the sugar-crystal hail storm.
At noon, she had tea with several dignitaries.
At two there was the marshmallow parade and at four….
There was this, there was that.
So many things to do.
AH-CHOOOOOOOOOOOO!
But not enough energy to do them.
"Young lady, why don't you tell everyone you're sick?" asked Sour Bill "They will understand, I am sure!"
"But I promised them I wouldn't miss out on anything!" the little girl coughed "An' besides! I can't let a little case of the sniffles get to me!"
A LITTLE case of the sniffles?
AH-CHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
There was nothing LITTLE about this!
With another sneeze came another glitch and this time Vanellope ended up under her bed, the dust doing nothing to ease her sneezes.
AH-CHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
"I sure hope you know what you're doing…." grumbled Bill.
At eleven on the dot, Vanellope arrived at the candy village where a few of the other racers were waiting for her and to her dread, the work had started without her.
Some president. First a cold, now she was LATE!
"I-! *Huff!* Here!" the little racer panted, the running making her quite dizzy.
"There ya are!" said Taffyta with a bucket of paint "Some of the guys have gotten started already but there is still a LOT to do!"
"No problem!" said Vanellope "Just let me-!"
Uh-oh.
A twitch.
An itch.
AAAAAH-!
"Vanellope?"
CHOOOOOOOOOOO!
*GLITCH!*
Vanellope sneezed and ended up INSIDE a box of gingerbread wood, some of the boards breaking as she sat on them! The racers gasped; they had grown used to seeing Vanellope glitch but not in such a clumsy way!
"Vanellope, are you o-?"
AAH-CHOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
*GLITCH!*
This time, Vanellope found herself high upon a roof, her hood caught on the weathervane!
"Vanellope! Come down from there!" called a rather worried Candlehead "The candy people won't like it if ya sit on their roof!"
"I'LL GET A BLANKET!" shouted Crumbellina.
"N-no! I can get down!" cried a flustered Vanellope, reaching up with her tiny hands to free herself "J-just stay-!"
An itch.
AAAAAH-!
A twitch.
Taffyta's eyes widened, stepping back a bit "Oh dear…."
CHOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
*GLITCH!*
Then there was a CRASH.
Then there was a SPLASH.
And then there was a SHOUT.
With the next glitch came a dreadful sight! Vanellope had landed atop Taffyta, resulting in them BOTH ending up covered in BRIGHT BLUE PAINT!
"Sniff…" said Vanellope.
"My dress!" said Taffyta.
It took a while but things were quickly put back together but this did not help the two racers who were not covered from head to two in blue.
"Wow! Ya should REALLY go to a doctor!" said Snowanna as she handed Vanellope and Taffyta a towel.
"Yes, you should!" fumed Taffyta, not enjoying the idea of being bright blue "Aside from the mess, you're starting to look worse than before!"
Vanellope looked down at herself; Taffyta was right. Aside from being covered in paint, the little racer was starting to feel like she shouldn't have gotten out of bed.
But still, she made a promise and it was one she intended to keep.
"Er, sorry about the mess guys…." Vanellope said as she blushed "I'll get some others down here ta help you! I must be off!"
"And where are YOU going?" asked an annoyed Taffyta.
"I have other things ta take care of! Ta-ta!"
Vanellope rushed back to the palace but found that she had no time to wash the paint off so she had no choice but to go to the tea party still sloshed with paint and a sniffle in her nose.
Thankfully, the dignitaries understood that she was busy and didn't seem to mind the rather odd fashion statement she was making and before long, the party was going off without a hitch!
Until….
A twitch.
An itch.
Vanellope tried to fight it, she tried to hold the sneeze back!
But of course….
AAAAAAH-CHOOOOOOOOOOO!
*GLITCH!*
The poor racer glitched onto the table, the tea cups and snack tray clanging atop her loudly! The dignitaries were all a fuss when their favors were scattered all over the place but it was Vanellope who felt the worse of the lot!
Her sniffles were getting even worse than before!
And now the girl was not only covered in blue paint but blue paint with helpings of cookies, tea, and sweet whipped cream.
This was turning into a much larger mess than Vanellope could handle but the racer knew she couldn't fold now. She wouldn't!
She was PRESIDENT of Sugar Rush! What type of President would allow herself to be beaten by a cold?
AAAAH-CHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
*GLITCH!*
After ending up hanging from the chandelier, Vanellope decided that perhaps it was time to leave.
"Eh-heh….I have…I have a parade to get to."
Still covered in cookies and cream, Vanellope rushed off as fast as she could towards the marshmallow village where the parade had already gotten off to a start. Late again, the racer tried her best to weave in with the others, nearly knocking Rancis and Sakura down in the process.
"Hey!"
"Watch out!"
"Sorry guys!" Vanellope panted, wiping her brow (and getting more crumbs in her hair) "But you would not believe what-!"
An itch.
A twitch.
AAH-CHOOOOOOOOOOOO!
*GLITCH!*
A sneeze attack!
Vanellope began to sneeze one after another, her random glitching causing the entire marshmallow parade to spin around and around in circles!
No one knew where to head or where to go! It was as bad as being caught in a tornado!
Except that tornadoes usually happen because of bad weather.
NOT because someone has a cold.
"SNIFF."
It didn't seem to matter where Vanellope was or what she was doing. Just when things started to look good around her…
There was that twitch.
"Aaaah-!"
There was that itch.
"AAAAAAH-!"
And everyone knew what would happen next.
AAAH-CHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
And with a GLITCH, things only got more chaotic.
Vanellope would glitch everywhere, sometimes taking the other racers or a random citizen with her.
She ended up in the chocolate pond with Swizzle, she took a Peppermint Patty right through a gram cracker door.
She and Sticky ended up stuck in peanut butter biscuit batter and later on, she and several cookie cats wound up on the WRONG side of an animal cracker cage!
Hour after hour, sneeze after sneeze, things were quickly being turned upside down in Sugar Rush and by nightfall, the racers only had ONE thing to say.
"GO TO BED VANELLOPE!"
As sad as she was, perhaps it was a good idea to follow their advice.
By nightfall, Vanellope was EXHAUSTED. She could barely make it up the steps of the castle but luckily she did.
She threw open the bedroom doors, staggering to the bed before falling onto it with a FLOP.
"Vanellope, are you okay?" asked Bill as he tucked the girl in.
Vanellope said nothing, she was much too sick to do so but it wasn't because of her cold that she was feeling so down and bad.
She felt sick because she felt she had let everyone down; her friends, her citizens? They had all been counting on her to help them on this day but instead, she made EVERYTHING into a mess. A mess that only got worse the more she sneezed.
Maybe Bill and the others were right; maybe she SHOULD have stayed in bed.
Vanellope crawled to her blankets, a little tear running down her cheeks. She wanted the day to end and her cold to disappear but…
A twitch.
An itch.
AAAAH-CHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
And once more, another glitch.
Where did Vanellope end up this time?
*SPLASH!*
Right into the tub.
Considering she was still covered in all sorts of crumbs and paint, maybe landing in the bath wasn't such a bad thing.
The next morning Vanellope awoke but she wasn't any better. If anything, she felt even WORSE than before!
Her nose was stuffed and red as a beet, her head was pounding harder than ever and if she so much as ATTEMPTED to get to her feet it felt like the floor quivered like Jell-O underneath her.
All that running around she had done the previous day proved to be her downfall.
She covered herself back with her blankets, wanting no one to see her.
"Maybe if I hide until my cold is gone, my friends won't be so angry at me…" she whimpered, feeling much too embarrassed to get out of bed.
She sniffed again, finding it hard to smell but upon a second SNIFF, something did hit her nose.
Something…FAMILIAR.
Something….SWEET.
Something like….
"Pancakes?"
Vanellope blinked. She usually went down to fix her own breakfast but who in the world could be in the kitchen now?
In only a few seconds she was about to find out.
"Good mornin'!" smiled Candlehead, the girl walking into the bedroom with a tray of hotcakes and oranges.
Vanellope nearly leapt out of the bed in shock, "Canadlehead?! What are YOU doin' here?!"
"Well, since ya were sick…" the ditzy racer smiled as she placed the tray on the bed "We decided to help ya out!"
"Wait….WE?"
Without even giving breakfast a second thought, Vanellope HOPPED out of bed, threw on a robe and tore down the halls to the main throne room.
She was in AWE!
"Alright, so we have one shipment of blueberries going to East Village and one shipment of blackberries going to Pie Place?" said Taffyta, talking to one of the castle helpers "Make sure that those pineapples are picked right on time or you KNOW what will happen!"
"Can someone help me with this?" asked Ranics, the boy trying to fix a little candy girl's broken bike "I need a spare wrench an' a jar of clover honey!"
"Why thank you darlings! Tea was so wonderful today!" said a Biscotti business woman, waving her hands at a daintily dressed Snowanna.
"We HAVE to do it again!" sang Snowanna as she returned the wave "Perhaps on Sugar Shores? It's WONDERFUL this time of year!"
Vanellope rubbed her eyes, watching as each and every one of her friends were all taking turns getting work done not only in the palace….
But other places as well!
Swizzle was helping the marshmallow people on a second go of their parade, Minty and Crumbellina were assisting some old Candy Folks on their trip to the park, and even Gloyd had found a way to use his pranking for GOOD, using them to scare some annoying gummy crows from a poor famer's candy corn patch.
"W-Why are you *sniff!* doing this?" asked a stunned Vanellope.
"Why not?" smiled Jubileena "You help us, WE help you and since that cold of yours REALLY got ya, it looks like ya could use our help more than EVER!"
"But guys….I'm the president! I can take care of things here!"
"Vanellope….who's going to take care of Sugar Rush when YOU'RE not taken care of?" asked Taffyta "Even if you are president, that doesn't mean you have to FORCE yourself to do work when you're this sick!"
Vanellope began to realize that her friends were right. She might have had responsibilities….
But she also had to take care of herself and running around all day with a cold was not helping.
In fact….
AAAH-CHOOOOOOOOOO!
*GLITCH!*
Into the throne she ended up this time.
"Nice place…" laughed Taffyta "Maybe you can get some rest there."
Sour Bill brought Vanellope a nice warm quilt and big fluffy pillow, wrapping her up in both.
"There President Vanellope." The little candy man said "I'll give you updates on how the others are doing. And perhaps when they are finished, we can throw a small dinner for them."
Vanellope took a handkerchief and blew her nose, "Th-that sounds like a good idea…"
The little racer couldn't have been happier at what she saw. Everyone was working together and keeping Sugar Rush in order. It was at that moment that the young girl realized something, something she hadn't thought about for a long time.
She had friends.
And all of them were more than willing to help her, much like she was willing to help them.
The other racers continued to go about their jobs but then Sour Bill arrived, carrying the tray of pancakes Candlehead had made earlier.
"Vanellope, perhaps it would be best to eat these before they got cold….."
Sour Bill waited for a reply….
But there was no answer.
"President Von Schweetz?"
"Zzzzzzzzz…"
As everyone worked around her, Vanellope had dozed off but she couldn't have been in a better place or happier.
At least she knew she had friends to count on.