Alrighty, getting two chapters up in two days isn't bad, at least we're starting a journey in a new world :D:D:D
I hope you guys enjoy the new chapter!
...
...
...
Chapter 14: Fearful Denial, Part 1
...
...
...
It was the first time since the start of the trip that Toony had woken up on her own, feeling completely refreshed and ready for the day. Unfortunately, Cheo and Hiromi still beat her too it, but they were a bit too preoccupied with their breakfast of grapes and orange slices downstairs to get around to waking up their creator.
Marie wasn't inside, so that must have meant that she was still up on deck steering the Phoenix to their next destination. So after she had dressed out of her night cloths, she took her time making her own breakfast of eggs and toast; sharing some fruit with her fluffballs until she suddenly heard a knocking sound over her head that must have been Maire stomping her foot on the deck to signal that Toony should come on deck the second they finished eating.
"I'll see if she wants me to make her something a little later." Toony said to Cheo and Hiromi as the three of them started towards the door.
But as soon as she stepped outside, she was surprised to see that instead of going through the swirling pink and purple ties, they were sailing through an open sky that was dotted with stars.
"Are we already in the next world?" Toony asked, walking up the steps to stand beside her guide.
"J'yep, passed through a little bit ago." Marie affirmed.
"Awww, but I like watching when we go through the star..." The fox tailed woman said, pouting a little bit that earned a short laugh from her guide.
"Alright, next time I'll be sure get you up here before then." Marie promised
"So how's it looking out here?" Toony asked, shrugging off her slight disappointment as she went to the side and peeked over the rail; The clouds were a bit thick and hid away most of the view down below, but as the Phoenix continued on and the clouds thinned out, she then began to make out what looked like a castle thanks to the light of the full moon that was out.
A big smile spread across her face as she began to wonder what world they could be in that had castles. Maybe Snow White or Tangled, even Brave or Cinderella! She kept her eyes locked on the castle as the view started to grow sharper, anticipation growing and growing...until she suddenly lost her smile and she took a step back in horror when she finally saw what castle it was...
"Toony?" Cheo asked as he was the first to notice her abrupt change in demeanor.
"This was the only water source I could find nearby, and I didn't want to waste pixie dust to find another." Marie started, unaware of her charges shift in expression. "I already cloaked the Phoenix on account of that castle, but it looks like it might be abandoned to me..."
But Toony barley registered what she had said, her heart beating fast as she stared at the huge, dilapidated fortress as it stood surround by water and jagged rock with only one narrow path that led out the front gate, adding to it's intimidating appearance; And although it's rough, unkempt state made it look like it may have been deserted, lite torches both on the outside and shining in through some of the narrow windows only proved that it was occupied by those Toony already knew were there...
"Oh you gotta be kidding me!" Toony whispered, pacing a bit as she suddenly began to feel a bit nauseous as they got closer and closer.
"What? Do you recognize this place?" Marie asked, a little surprised at how different Toony sounded. Usually if she recognized a place, she would get so excited she could hardly stand still. But her surprise quickly turned into concern as Toony staggered past her and down the steps to the lower deck. "Hey, you don't look so good."
"I'll be fine, I-I just need to sit down for a minuet." Toony started, heavily plopping herself down on the bench and put her head in her hands. "We have to be in Prydain."
"A land from 'The Black Cauldron'."
"Toony doesn't look like she feels very good..." Hiromi whispered to Cheo who just gave a nod before they flew over and perched on her shoulders in order to try and comfort her.
"Alright, this is a good start if you know where we are." Marie stated, looking a little pleased before she braced herself a bit. "Hang on now, we're about to hit the water!"
Toony held on to the rail, flinching badly when the Phoenix finally descended in the water, hoping that the crashing sound of the of the waves only sounded louder than it really was because of the excellent hearing her fox ears provided. But even when they finally came to a stop near the beginning of the path to the castle, she still wasn't able to calm her heart rate.
"Alrighty, nice and smooth." Marie said, proudly dusting her hands off as she stepped down to the bottom deck before she looked down at Toony. "So, any idea who you're supposed to find here?"
"Um...It uh...it was Aurora last time," She said, finally sitting back up and brushing back her bangs uneasily. "So if I'm supposed to be finding main characters, then it's Taran I'll need to help next."
"Oh good, very good." Marie said, happy that they were getting off to such a good start this time; Since Toony already knew where they were and who they were supposed to find, she was bound to get through this even faster than last time. "Then you should get ready to-"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold on a second, I never said I was going to do it..." Toony interrupted, abruptly standing to her feet and taking a step back. "There's no way I'm stepping a foot off this boat!"
Marie blinked, not really able to say anything at first because she wasn't sure if she had actually herd what Toony had just said...
But before she could finally find her words, Toony then got up and went into the cabin before coming out with the sack of pixie dust in her hands.
"In fact, why don't we just get out of here and find a different world, sound good?" Toony suggested before she was stopped in her tracks by her guide.
"That's not how it works and you know it!" Marie told her firmly, taking the sack from her and putting down on the deck and going over to the door at the side of the boat. "You can't just decide that you want to go to a different world, you have to do what's needed of you here before we can leave."
"So come on, off you go."
"Nope!" Toony said, crossing her arms and planting her feet. " It's not happening."
"It is, it has to!" Marie told her as she pointed back out towards the outside of the door. "Now go!"
"Nu-uh!" The fox eared young woman said, turning her nose up in the air.
"Toony-" The guide started before she was interrupted.
"No! " Toony almost shouted. " No! No! No! "
"Alright, that does it!" Marie said angrily, stomping up to her charge with the intent to drag her to the door. But once she started coming, Toony instantly grabbed onto the mast tightly and held on for dear life as Marie took hold of her tail and started pulling.
Even her own fluffballs were going against her as they started tugging on her sweater.
"Toony, we gotta go!" Cheo grunted as Toony wouldn't let up on the mast.
"No! I'm not doing it!" Toony yelled, digging her nails into the wood as far as they would go. "You can't make me!"
"Sakes alive, why?!" Marie demanded, letting Toony go and throwing her hands up in a huff. "It's just an old castle, and if this Taran is really in there, then you have to go in and find him!"
"Give me one good why you shouldn't!"
" I can give you three!" Toony stated hotly, "The. Horned. King!"
"Well, first of all, that's still just one reason," Marie stated. "And second, if it's just one guy, then what's all the fuss about?!"
"...Okay, since it's obvious that you haven't watched this particular movie, I'll refrain from hitting you." Toony stated dryly. "That 'one guy' was enough to give me nightmares for a month straight when I first watched it! Even to this day I still have trouble looking at him on the screen and you want me to waltz right into his strong hold?! No thank you!"
"Oh he can't be that bad..." Marie started with a roll of her eyes.
" Can't be that ba- wait right here!" Toony said as she went to the cabin door and threw it open before ran up the steps to her loft and over to her desk where she pulled open the deep, bottom left drawer; And just as she hoped, there was the tall stack papers with pictures she had printed out to use for reference when she was a freshman in high school and getting back into drawing.
As she pulled them out, she was met with images of characters from 'Yu-Gi-Oh' to 'Batman', 'Spiderman', 'Transformers' and 'Sonic the Hedgehog'; As well as tons of pages of hands, feet and eyes since those were always the most difficult for her to do until she finally reached the pages near the bottom of the pile were she kept most of the Disney pictures she had collected.
" 'Little Mermaid', 'Darkwing Duck', 'Beauty and the Beast', 'Gargoyles'..." she murmured flipping through them. "Geeze, how did I accumulate so much freaking-Aha! Here they are!"
It was probably the smallest stack she had, where the majority of them consisted of Gurgi since he was her favorite character, but she soon found a picture of the figure that still managed to haunt her dreams even now in adulthood.
With picture in hand, Toony hurried back down the steps and outside the cabin where she then thrust the paper close to Maries' face, who took it from her and visibly grimaced at the sight that met her eyes.
"Lord have mercy!" the dark haired woman exclaimed. " He could scare a buzzard right off a gut pile!"
"Yeah!" Toony said. " See why I don't want to go in there?! And the dude is as cruel and cold hearted as he is freaky!"
"Alright, granted he's, ahem, a sight to behold..." Marie started slowly. "But the fact still remains, you have to find Taran and get another diamond glowing before we can leave."
Toony wanted to argue more, but deep down, she knew that Marie was right. She couldn't pick and choose which worlds she visited, but that didn't mean she had to like this situation.
"Fine..." Toony said in exasperation before a small smirk appeared on her face. " But you're coming with me!"
"Excuse me?!"
"You said, and I quote...'Only if you really need my help, then I promise I'll go with you.' and I do need your help!" Toony said after imitating her companion as best as she could. " You promised Marie!"
Marie's mouth opened and closed, like she wanted to say something against it, but she couldn't because she did promise that she would help if Toony needed her to; And after a while, Marie only let out a defeated growl as she walked towards the cabin door to gather some things to take with them.
"Oooh! You're lucky I value a promise!"
...
...
...
...
...
It was amazing how fast this adventure went from easy and relaxing to down right scary and nerve wracking; And as the two woman waded through the cold water of the mote to find the area that Taran had gone up to get inside the castle in the movie, Toony couldn't help but dart her eyes left and right and jumping at every sound that reached her ears.
"For goodness sake, relax!" Marie whispered when Toony was actually starting to twitch from stress. " You're gonna give yourself a stroke."
"Well sorry if I ain't exactly 'giddy' that we're here!" Toony grumbled. "As much as I like this movie, it was high on my list of places I'd rather not visit!"
"And if the master of this castle, or any of his goons finds us, you can bet we'll be thrown in the dungeons if we're not killed on sight first!"
"Okay, time out for a minuet..." Marie said, stopping and putting her hands on Toony's shoulders before she looked her squarely in the eyes. "You need to get your mind off this."
"How?"
"I don't know, either talk about yourself or talk about how nice the nature life is." Her guide suggested before she curtly turned back and started walking. "Just pick something."
At that, Toony gave a rueful snort, what nature life? Almost everything near this castle was either dried up or dead; but...Marie did have a good point, she really wasn't doing herself any favors stressing herself out like this.
"How come your cloths didn't change like mine?" she finally asked, allowing her annoyance at having her sweater and jeans yet again be traded in for a white top with puff sleeves that were ruffled at the ends with a brown ankle length skirt and a black corset that had gray lace along the top of the bust line to slightly ease her rattling nerves.
"Because I'm not the one wearing the bangle, so you're the only one who would be affected by its magic; And also for those who share a special connection to you like Cheo and Romi, but only in certain circumstances." Marie answered. " As for me, I chose an outfit that would be efficient, comfortable, and not too modern so I could explore different worlds safely without drawing too much attention to myself if I had too."
"Well why couldn't I do that?" Toony asked. "Not that I mind wearing dresses or anything, but just having my cloths up and change on me every time I leave the boat is very uncomfortable..."
"Don't you have extra cloths like yours? We look close to the same size."
"It really wouldn't matter, as long as you continue to wear the bangle, it'll always change your cloths to better match the world we're in." Marie told her.
"Then I may just have to take it off sometimes..." Toony said, mostly to herself. "At least then I can wear my jeans in case I ever-"
But she stopped short when Marie suddenly whirled around and and looked Toony in the eyes with a rather serious light.
"Never take it off!" the guide told her, her tone sharp. "Toony, I can't stress enough how important it is that you keep that bracelet on at all times when you are outside the cabin of the phoenix!"
"Promise me, right here and now, you'll never take it off for such a silly reason as clothing or anything else!"
"Alright, okay, I promise I won't take it off!" Toony assured, slightly taken aback at how insistent Marie had been about it. But she figured it was because the bracelet was her only means of getting home once the quest was over, and it would be really stupid to have it lost or stolen because of cloths of all things...
But thankfully, the conversation was ended when Toony finally spotted what they had been looking for.
"Okay, I think that's is the spot that Taran scaled up in the movie." Toony said, pointing to an area that had a gap in the large throne bushes that grew around the base and frowning deeply at the fact she would have to climb this rickety old castle...
Nodding, Marie led the way, taking care not to make too much noise when the water suddenly got deeper until it was p to their waists.
"Ugh! Why can't this thing ever give me boots?" Toony asked, grimacing as her feet sank into the mud and felt slimy water weeds lick around her ankles and calf's for the hundredth time since they started walking in the mote. " Why does it always have to be slippers?! "
"Don't ask me." Marie said as she looked up the side and let out a whistle at how high it was. "So should I go up first, or..."
"I can go, I'm pretty good at climbing and I think I remember where the hole that Taran used to get in is." Toony offered, eager to get out of the water already. "Just be careful, this fortress is old, and some of the stone is super brittle."
Since Cheo and Hiromi had wings, they hovered above Toony and helped her out by testing the stones they would be able to grab onto and they were making pretty good progress. Marie tried her best to follow where Toony would go, but when she lifted a foot to another edge that she didn't realize had not been tested, she gave a gasp when the brick suddenly crumbled and broke away under the weight she put on it, very nearly taking a fall into the mote if she hadn't manged to grab onto something and regained her balance.
...Which, unfortunately, had been Toony's tail as it happened to wave within her reach at that exact moment.
The fox eared young woman had been in the middle of reaching for another protruding brick when she suddenly felt something grab and pull on her tail. And at the unexpected extra weight, she lost her grip and fell straight down into the cold, murky water with a loud cry that was cut off by and even louder splash.
Marie had managed to stay in place as she looked down at the ripples where her charge had disappeared with wide, hazel eyes before she shared a grimacing, regretful look with Cheo and Hiromi.
"Oops..."
Seconds later, Toony finally resurfaced, covered in water weeds and mud and making such a racket as she coughed and spat out foul tasting mote water before she sent a heated glare up at her guide.
"What the flip Marie?!" She demanded with a yell. " That hurt!"
"I'm-I'm sorry!" Marie began, trying to keep her voice quiet as she started to climb down, her eyes going back and forth as she hoped no one had hear that. "It was reflex!"
Cheo and Hiromi tried to help her calm down too, but Toony just wasn't paying any attention to them as she seemed to have completely forgotten where she was and continued to rage over her situation, pulling at the weeds and wiping the mud off of her.
"Yuck! Ew! I got slimy ick all over me!" she griped in disgust. "It's in my hair, it's in my ears! Pft! Pffft! Ack! it's in my mouth!"
At that moment, Marie hopped down into the mote and quickly wadded over to her with an urgent expression on her face.
"Toony, keep your voice down! " She hissed. " Making all that racket, you're going to...to..."
Toony wanted to yell at her again, but when Marie just suddenly trailed off and was looking at something over her head behind her, she cocked her head to the side in confusion before when the sound of gravel under something large and heavy reached her water logged ears; And she turned towards the bank and a cold spot stabbed in the pit of her stomach to see a band of the Horned Kings' huge, hulking soldiers, laughing and grinning like someone had just given them a pot of gold.
Or stolen it, more appropriately.
"Well, well, well, wot 'ave we got 'ere?" the largest ruffian began as he lightly taped a big club on his palm. " Looks like we got us a couple 'o spys, lads."
Marie quickly took Toony by the arm, pulling her up and running towards the bank on the other on the far side of the mote to get away, but just before they reached the shore, they immediately came to a stop when more large, rough looking men came out of no where armed with arrows.
Pretty soon, they were surrounded by soldiers.
"The Horned King don't like trespassers, but maybe he wouldn't mind seeing two pretty little things like yerselves..." the brutish leader of the gang spoke again, earning sinister chuckles from his comrades.
"Maybe he can even get somthin' outta the red head," Another stated. "Them ears and tail she has ain't natural, and those creatures, she has ta have magic in 're!"
"Toony, I'm scared..." Hiromi said in a hushed, fearful voice; She and Cheo were both huddled at her shoulders and trembling as they hid underneath her long red hair.
" It...it'll be okay, guys, don't worry..." she whispered, trying to keep it together for them; But she felt just as terrified as they were and couldn't help herself as she hugged Maries' right arm tightly as the brutes started closing in on them.
"Somehow, it'll be okay..."
...
...
...
...
...
The only thing that was 'okay' about being caught was the fact that the soldiers hadn't killed any of them...yet, but that little bit of good news paled in comparison as Toony and Marie were forcefully 'escorted' into the castle by dozens of crude, smelly Neanderthals.
Cheo and Hiromi were put in a rusted cage that was almost to small for them, and while Toony wasn't exactly treated like a princess, poor Marie seemed to be getting more unwanted attention from her own captor as well as the other animal men who would eye her with seedy looks and send out a series of wolf whistles and cat calls.
It wasn't long before they came to a stop did Toony wrench away from him when he suddenly released her arms. But immediately after, he painfully grabbed hold of her tail and started dragging her along further in.
"OW! Hey! Hey!" Toony snapped, barley managing to regain her footing before she grabbed her tail and yanked it away from his grasp. "Hands off the tail!"
"Just because you're a brute doesn't mean you're allowed to man handle a lady!"
But as she began to smooth out the fur, she suddenly noticed that all of the soldiers had taken a step back from her; And she soon found out why as she looked behind her, her eyes taking in the sight of a set of stairs that led up to a throne that rested in the shadows; And through the dim lighting, she could still make out the figure that used to regularly haunt her nightmares as a child, a black fur cape draped about his shoulders and dress in a long, blood red robe, those trade mark horns protruding from the hood that just barley managed to hide his terrifying, skull like features...
The Horned King himself.
"And to what do I owe this...pleasure, of such lovely company?" the terrifying man finally asked, almost with a sarcastic and dismissing air; But as he took a closer look at Toony, he suddenly began to grow a bit more interested.
"Out of my way wench!" a voice ordered as something small raced passed her left leg, making Toony let out a cry as her skirt was nearly flipped up before she saw that it was the Creeper as he ran up the steps to the throne.
" Please don't be too angry, your majesty, this wasn't my fault!" Creeper groveled at his masters feet. "I know you abhor unexpected guests, but the men felt that you could find these women useful to your cause!"
"Just look at that one sire, she or the strange creatures she has must be able to offer assistance to you!"
Toony had never felt the need to run and hide behind something more than when Creeper had pointed right at her. And she did try at first, but one of the soldiers just took her arm and threw her back to towards the throne and she fought against letting out a pitiful whimper as he slowly stood to his feet and made his way down the steps.
"Well...she certainly appears to be able." he stated as he finally stood a mere few inches before her.
He was considerably taller than she was, and as she looked up into his face, taking in how tight his skin stretched over his noseless face and his hi fanged teeth along his mouth where lips should have been, she was vaguely aware that she was quivering; And when he suddenly lifted a hand with long, claw like finger nails towards her, she couldn't let out a breath she didn't even realize she was holding in an audible whimper and lent away from it at first. But it was rather pointless as his fingers took hold of on of her ears, and although he was gentle enough, it still made her shudder at how deathly cold his touch felt even under the fur.
"Very peculiar..." He commented, his graveled voice making her shudder. "Even in this land of magic, never before have I heard of a woman quite like you."
"W-well I should hope you haven't." Toony started, her voice sounding tiny and meek a she chose her words carefully. She felt a small sense of relief as he finally released her ear, but it was quickly squashed when he started to circle around her; And although his eyes were so sunk in that she couldn't see them in the darkness, she could still feel his piercing gaze upon her as though someone were dragging the tip of a knife along her skin. " I've had..had t-to do a good deal of hiding because of these."
"Yes, I suppose one such as you would inspire questions to be raised among mortals, perhaps even fear." she winced when he felt her take hold of her tail, inspecting it closely before he slowly dragged his hand along to the stark white end and released. "Tell me, child, are you an enchanted being of sorts?"
"I...I'm sorry?" Toony asked, a bit confused by his question as he kept walking about.
"There is an item of great power I seek, I'm sure you know of the tales..." the Horned King spared a look to Marie for a few seconds as she glared up at him, but ultimately he passed her over, obviously uninterested in his prisoners dark haired companion. "A king so evil, that even gods feared his might."
"The Black Cauldron." Toony said, she really wished she knew where in this story she was, but she decided to take a gamble and hope that they hadn't captured a certain future telling pig before already...
"But...that's all just a scary bedtime story." the fox eared woman began slowly. "What's someone a-as powerful as the Horned King doing wasting his time chasing a fairy tale?"
"It does exist, that much was made clear to me due to the most 'generous' aid of a previous informant before it...lost it's way." the skeletal man stated as he sent a glare in the direction of the Creeper who only chuckled nervously and hid himself from sight behind a soldiers leg. "Since, I am in need of another to assist me on my quest."
"So, is it you that is endowed with magical properties or is it your...pets...whom possess the power I require to locate that which I desire?"
Cheo and Hiromi cowered together as far back in the cage as they could, whimpering in fear as he ran his hand along the thin wires and his pointed nails clinked against the cold iron.
Well nuggets, there went the hope that he hadn't managed to capture Hen Wen yet; And of course she already knew where he could find it, but she had to do her best not to let him know that...
"N..neither, sir." She felt a huge lump in her throat when he turned back to face her with a sharp jerk of his head, and the air seemed thicken with sense of wrath as she struggled to keep speaking. "I-I'm just a simple mortal woman who somehow managed to anger a particularly spiteful witch...and those two were, uh...were just my pet mice that got caught in the crossfire."
She couldn't even look at him as the Horned King then slowly stepped up to her and she tensed, wondering what he was up to, but blinked in surprise when he only took a lock of her damp hair in his fingers, moving it from her face and behind her right shoulder, almost as if he were a father that was giving a child tender attention as he just silently stood there looking down at her with those gaunt eyes.
But it only proved to be the calm before the storm as his hand lurched forward in the blink of and eye and wrapped itself around Toony's neck in a vice like grip.
"Toony!" Cheo and Hiromi cried out, rattling against the bars of their small cage and watching powerlessly as Toony's light green eyes widened before she latched onto his wrist and struggled to pull his hand off of her; But it only proved to be a less than futile endeavor.
"You are a terrible liar, my dear." he said, as his grip tightened on her throat before he lifted her high off her feet with a strength that seemed impossible for his thin frame to posses. " And I truly dislike being lied to..."
"Let her go!" Marie yelled as she made a move to rush him, but the Horned Kings' men held her firmly, laughing at her attempt either because they were having fun taunting her for throwing orders in her position or because the very thought of a woman fighting their king was outrageously funny.
"You'll kill her! Stop it!"
All the while, Toony was fighting to get air into her lungs, but after a few moments of dangling from the horned kings' grip, her mind soon began to grow fuzzy and her vision started to blot with the lack of oxygen until she was just about to pass out as the one suffocating her watched carefully.
"Hmm..." he hummed in thought before he finally released her, making Toony fall into a heap on the ground before she started hacking and coughing and trying her hardest to take in ragged breaths of sweet, sweet air.
"Toony, are you okay?!" Marie called, struggling against her captor once again. "Answer me!"
But before she could try and wheeze out a word, or even offer a feeble 'thumbs up', she flinched as strong, gnarly fingers clasped around her jaw and forced her to slowly look up to his grotesque, skull like face.
"You are either very brave, or very stubborn, but make no mistake... I will get the truth from you." the Horned King. "Once my prior engagement is taken care of, we will be seeing each other again; I do hope you will be more cooperative, otherwise, it will be necessary for me to use a more...forceful means of interrogation."
His sunken eyes then gleamed with a burning red glow, emphasizing his sinister threat and making unable to look away from him.
"Until then, I am sure our young prisoner would appreciate a bit of company while he still lives to enjoy it." he said before he finally let her chin drop and she was roughly grabbed about her arms and hauled to her feet as the dark sorcerer king turned and started back towards his throne.
"Take them away."
No sooner did the king say that, the Creeper was barking his orders to take the two women and the fluffballs down to the dungeons and they were forced down the corridor and through the halls to the bowls of the castle until they reached a barred door at the very end of the vault-like prison.
And after it was opened, Toony was pushed into the cell by her escort, just barley managing to catch Cheo and Hiromi's cage before it hit the stone ground after he tossed it in; But as he left, Maire's escort still held her by the arm as he had something more to say...
" Come on now, love, how 'bout a kiss?" the brute asked with a sleazy grin. " I'll make it worth yer while, How does a bite 'o grub sound? Pretty good in return fer one li'l smooch, don't it?"
He then puckered his lips and made gross kissing sounds at her before Marie yanked her arms out of his grasp and glared daggers at him.
"I'd rather starve, you pig!" She snapped angrily.
"Aww, such a shame ta see somethin' so pretty be such a prude." He said, laughing as he wasn't all that fazed by her put down. "But, maybe you'll change yer mind soon enough, I'll be seein' ya my lovely."
And with that, the man left the room and closed the heavy door behind him. Only when they heard the loud clanked of it being locked and the sound of his footsteps getting further away did Maire hurry to Toony's side to look her over.
"Are you alright?" the guide asked as she moved away Toonys' hair to inspect her neck, there was a dark bruise beginning to form; there were even small, bleeding puncture wounds from where the Horned Kings' nails had dug into her skin.
But Toony pushed her hands away and offered a half hearted smile.
"Marie relax, it was just a little asphyxiation, nothing I couldn't handle." Toony told her waving it off.
An outright lie on her part because even as she said that, her throat still felt a little hoarse as she spoke and her hands trembled, making it a little difficult to use them when she started working at the cord that was tide at the door on Cheo and Hiromis' cage.
"Don't you dare!" Marie said, seeing through her fib and feeling a bit angry that she would even try to play it off as though it were a joke. "You very nearly died back there!"
The fox tailed woman opened her mouth to tell her guide to calm down again, but at Maries' concerned, and surprisingly almost tearful expression, she decided against it.
"I know, you're right, I'm sorry..." Toony said, finally getting the little door open and letting her terrified fluffballs fly into her arms and holding them close. " But really, I'm okay... it only hurts a little bit."
"Who's that?" Came a voice from inside the dungeon, making the two women turn to see a young boy with brown hair and dressed in a green tunic looking at them with fearful brown eyes.
Toony recognized him immediately as Taran, the young assistant pig keeper who was thrown into the dungeon after he helped Hen Wen escape to safety; So hopefully, this meant that Princess Eilonwy wasn't too far behind to arrive.
"Relax, hun, we're no friends of the Horned King if that's what you're afraid of." Toony said as she gingerly rubbed her tender neck. "Not in the least!"
"I-I wasn't afraid!" Taran said, puffing his chest out to make it seem like he was bigger and stronger than he really was before he almost immediately relaxed and walked over to be closer to them. "But, it is good to see friendlier faces rather than the Horned Kings' soldiers..."
" My name is Taran, how did you get captured?"
"We were just passing through the area when those rocks for brains picked us up." Marie answered, wiping the mist from her eyes as this was the boy they had been searching for. "What about you, Taran?"
But before he could answer, the three of them jump when they suddenly heard the sound of stone scraping a ways behind them, and looking around, Toony inwardly sighed with relief to see part of the floor moving up before a familiar figure who had long blonde hair popped out into view with a floating ball of light following in suit.
Princess Eilonwy had finally arrived.
"Hmm, I thought I heard a noise in here..." She told the glowing bauble before she glanced around, her blue eyes lighting up when she saw the two women, the young boy and two small, furry creatures staring at her.
"Ah, was that you?" she asked as her bauble zoomed through the air and gave them some light, whirling around Toony and Marie before it went up to Taran.
"Yes, I..." Taran started, ducking his head as the orb zoomed around him before it finally came to a stop. "I mean, we.."
"You're being held a prisoner, aren't you?" Eilonwy continued, as she helped herself up from the hole in the floor.
"Yes!" Taran said as he looked down at the bauble with wary curiosity.
"I'm being held against my will too." the princess told him as he hesitantly touch it with a finger and jumped back as it startled him a little when it suddenly light up brightly.
"It lights up!" he exclaimed, obviously not having seen anything like it before.
"Why of course, it's magic." Eilonwy giggled before she let out a grumbling sigh and started dusting off her rose pink skirt. "Oh I hate this place, I do hope there aren't any rats in here..."
"Not that I really mind them, you know, but they do jump out at one so."
"Forgive me for interrupting this thoroughly interesting conversation about rats..." Marie finally started after a while of just listening to the surprisingly casual banter between the two young ones, considering that they were still locked up in a dungeon. "But who exactly are you?"
The young girl moved her gave over to Toony and Marie before she gave them a big, sweet smile, most likely happy to see that there were other girls here besides herself.
"Oh yes, do forgive my rudeness, I'm princess Eilonwy." She said with a small curtsy before she looked back to Taran with hopeful expectancy. "And you, could you be a lord? Or a warrior?"
"Uh, no..." Taran began, hesitating to tell the truth to someone as important as a princess. " I...I'm an assistant pig keeper."
"Oh what a pity...I was so hoping for someone who could help me escape." Eilonwy said with slight disappointment, but it didn't really seem to bother her all that much as she had already come this far in finding a way out on her own.
"Well, we might not be warriors, but we could still help each other." Toony said. "I'm Toony, and this is Marie and Taran, I'm sure we could find a way out of here if we all worked together."
"Why yes, that's very true!" Eilonwy said with a smile as she stooped back down to the hole. "If you want to come with me, you may."
"Can we?" Taran asked, grinning at the thought escaping from this terrible castle.
"Why yes, I said you could." the princess assured with a half smile as though she found his question a bit silly before they all followed after her through the floor.
"Oh that wicked, wicked king! You know he stole me!" Eilonwy said, a distasteful frown on her face as she told them how she came to be a prisoner here. "He thought my bauble could tell him where some old cauldron was."
"Ha, yeah, he is pretty obsessed with finding that thing." Toony said, taking care not to slip as she and her fluffballs made it down first beside the princess. "He thought I was magical and that somehow I, or Cheo and Hiromi here, could help him find something he wanted; But needless to say, he was a little disappointed that he was only dealing with a cursed woman and her friends who weren't able to tell him what he wanted."
"That's what he wanted my pig for!" Taran stated, helping Marie down before he quickly jumped in himself.
"Oh yes, your pig." Eilonwy said with a laugh, obviously thinking that the horned king troubling himself to steal a simple pig was a little bit of a joke. And it would have had Hen Wen not been so special.
"But my pig can tell the future!" Taran explained, peeking the young princesses interest a she looked looked back at him with a smile.
"Oooh, how interesting." She said, giggling a bit more before she started on down the dilapidated hall. "Well, you all better stay close, or you'll get lost."
She didn't need to tell them twice as they let Eilonwy lead the way down down the dark path with her magical bauble being their only source of light while they all held on to the hope that they could make it out of here as soon as possible without running into any more danger...
...
...
...
And there we go, *shudders* really didn't look forward to trying to keep the Horned King in character on account that he seriously does terrify me even to this day, but I hope I did an okay job regardless XP
A little heads up now, I'm not exactly sure when the next chapters will be done, but I will try my best not to make it too long a wait. No promises though. and if your interested to see what kind of dresses I'll be wearing or what worlds you can be looking forward to, you can always go to my DA account under the same name as my FF :) just type in 'THP outfits' in my gallery.
Thanks so much! :D:D