Chapter 7: The Sourness of Lemon!
As the air grew colder and the trees became bare, the tennis team didn't practice outside as much, and Sugar was no closer to figuring out the Scent of Crème's sister Meringue. Now that they were certain she was the last Soldier they needed to awaken, Sugar tried to find her at every possible free moment during school. But unfortunately, male admirers always surrounded her, including Duke, and Sugar wanted to avoid him as much as possible. So when Thanksgiving break arrived, Sugar resorted to asking Crème if she could come to her and Meringue's apartment for the holiday.
"My parents said it was ok," Sugar said assuredly.
"It's not getting your parents' permission that worries me," Crème said, looking down at her bracelet with miniature vanilla flowers. "It's my sister…I'm not sure she'll like you."
"What makes you think that?"
"She gets very sensitive around strangers, and if they make her feel uneasy, she'll immediately distrust them."
This made Sugar flinch. "That explains why she always rejects her admirers."
A few days later, it was Thanksgiving Day, and Sugar was riding the bus to a station that was near the apartment. She felt disappointed that Aroma and Pepper couldn't come, but that would've looked suspicious to Meringue. It was also for this reason that she didn't bring Hershey along either. At the bus-station, Crème and her sister, who was driving a white Nissan Versa, were waiting there. But she discovered upon entering the car that she wasn't alone.
"Surprise!" Pepper shouted.
Unintentionally, Sugar froze mid-way getting into the back seat.
"Are you getting in, or not?" Meringue asked, looking back from the driver's seat. She had a small, oval-shaped face with a sharp nose and almond-shaped eyes with light-brown pupils to contradict her long blond hair, which was the same shade as her sister's.
Sugar said nothing, and got in. The drive to the apartment was a silent one. When they got there, the two sisters immediately started making the dinner, while the other girls sat in the living room on the couch. Assuming that neither of them were listening, Sugar spoke to Aroma and Pepper in whispers.
"You know, I could've handled this myself," Sugar said.
"We're sorry, Sugar," Aroma apologized. "Pepper thought it would be a good idea for us to come with you in case any monsters decide to attack this house."
"But why would they? Realistically, I think they would be attacking other places right now."
Pepper sighed. "I know, but I've noticed that every time a Soldier is about to awaken, a monster decides to show up."
This didn't make Sugar feel any better. "Maybe for you and Aroma, but not Crème! The monster appeared a few hours before she awakened, and it wasn't even in the vicinity!"
"But it showed up regardless! And if there were monsters roaming around, Hershey would've let us know by now."
"How? I left her at home."
Just then, Sugar's cellphone rang. After glancing at the kitchen where Crème and Meringue were still occupied, she picked it up and answered. When she heard the other person's voice, her heart pattered.
"Hello, Soldier Candy! It's Commander Dandy, and Hershey wants to talk to you!"
"A-About what?" Sugar asked.
There was a shift of movement heard through the phone and some loud crashing noises, but Hershey managed to get on the phone. "Sugar! Get down to your house! Something strange is happening!"
"Well, Aroma and Pepper are with me, and we're kind of about to have dinner with Crème and her sister…"
"Oh, good! If you can awaken Crème's sister before you get here, that would be great!"
"Did you hear what I said? We're about to have dinner, and I think it would be rude if we just left!"
"Make up an excuse, for Caramel's Sake! Think about what happened to Miloe when you hesitated to do your duty! The same thing could happen to your parents if you don't do something about it this instant!"
An image of Miloe lying in the wreckage of the candy-store flashed in Sugar's mind. The thought made her heart feel heavy, and knew there was no way of getting around it. She stood up from the couch, which surprised everyone, and walked to the door.
"I'm sorry, Crème and Meringue, but I…think I forgot something at home," Sugar said turning the door handle.
"Would you like me to drive you?" Meringue asked.
"That would be nice, but not for this trip." And upon saying that, Sugar opened the door and closed it behind her.
Outside the apartment, she saw a strange storm was brewing overhead, and it seemed to be coming from the northern part of town where her house was. She contemplated taking a bus, but looking at the nearest bus stop told her that by the time they arrived, it would be too late. Then just as she was about to walk, someone tapped her on the shoulder. It was Pepper, and behind her were Aroma and Crème.
Sugar was perplexed. "What are you guys doing?"
"We're coming with you," Pepper said blatantly.
"Friends always stick together," Aroma said, stepping forward.
"And I figure that wherever you're going, there's trouble involved!" Crème proclaimed.
"What is going on?!"
The four girls looked behind, and saw Meringue storming towards them.
"Where are you girls going, and Crème, you should be helping me out in the kitchen! The Thanksgiving dinner isn't going to cook itself!"
"Calm down, sis," Crème said. "It's just macaroni & cheese."
Meringue didn't budge. "You made a big deal about it the other day, but clearly, you guys want to be somewhere else, and that pisses me off after all the preparations I've made."
"You don't understand!" Crème cried. "This is really important!"
"What's more important than having Thanksgiving dinner with friends and family? That so-called thing Sugar left at her house?"
"Not really," Sugar said, stepping forward. "I got a call from my parents, and they sounded like they were in serious trouble, so I thought I would go check it out."
Meringue shrugged. "Can't you just call the police?"
Suddenly, a strong scent came into Sugar's nostrils, and she knew that this was definitely a magical Scent. She didn't smell it anywhere else, except on the person standing in front of her. It was sour, but sweet, like a fruit or something.
"The police…can't handle this situation, so I think it would be better if I took care of it." Sugar replied, and turned away. "As for my friends and your sister, they just want to help me out. It's nothing to get worked up about, Lemon."
This surprised Meringue. "What did you call me?"
"You have a lemony scent, and I couldn't help but notice that bracelet you're wearing with the lemons on it. It's similar to the ones we're wearing, so my guess is that you've already awakened."
"She's got us there, Meringue." A life-sized chocolate bunny suddenly appeared out of the bushes near the apartment, surprising everyone as it got on its hind-legs and sniffed the air. "Yep. These four are definitely members of the Candy Brigade, including Soldier Candy. This indicates that Hershey finally did make it here, but the Princess isn't among them."
"Who are you, and how do you know Hershey?" Sugar asked.
The chocolate bunny got back down on all fours and started to scratch its ears.
"I'm Kit Kat, another messenger for the King and Queen of Candyland, who was sent here a year ago when a Candyland portal opened in the house of Meringue and Crème when they lived in Canada. Upon orders, I awakened Meringue, giving her the powers of Soldier Lemon in order to fight the monsters that had escaped to roam Quebec City, and then we came down here to find the rest of the Brigade, and Princess Lolly."
"But why didn't you awaken me along with my sister?" Crème asked.
"Because I'm the leader of the Candy Brigade, it only seemed logical that I should be the first to awaken without Soldier's Candy's recognition," Meringue answered. "You remember that, don't you?"
Crème thought about it, and then she nodded.
"I also recall what the Princess looked like after we sealed her powers."
This got the other girl's attention.
"But it may surprise all of you, especially Sugar."
Sugar was puzzled. "Why?"
"Do you want to know now, or wait till the crisis at your house is figured out?"
"Oh, yeah," Sugar considered the choices, and then she said, "Let's wait until after we've investigated what's going on at my house. Do you want to help?"
"No, I'll just wait here."
"Suit yourself, fearless leader," Pepper snorted.
Then as Meringue stood there, the four girls changed into their Soldier uniforms, and flew into the air with Crème holding her sword skyward while the other girls were holding the ribbons attached to it. But a sudden flash of lightning came from the source of the storm, making Kit Kat grow nervous, so Meringue picked him up and they went back into the apartment building.
"I don't think that was a wise decision, Meringue," Kit Kat said as they climbed the stairs. "What if Lord Licorice has finally decided to begin conquering earth?"
"But I closed the portal me and the Candy Brigade made when I defeated the monsters back in Canada," Meringue interjected. "So someone must've reopened it from this world, and the only ones capable of that are the Princess or the Duke of Swirl."
"Are you nuts? The Duke of Swirl swore to protect the Princess upon his engagement to her, and he would never do a thing like that! Plus, the Princess doesn't know her true heritage, having grown up in the human world, so if she did, it was probably by accident."
"Then why did the Duke of Swirl follow us when he should've been helping the King? And the only way the Princess could've opened the portal by accident is if she played the Candyland board game, and what are the chances of that happening?" Meringue opened the window blinds, and watched the storm in the north as it was getting bigger and the lightning became more frequent. "Nevertheless, I do not wish to get involved in another fight, because I went through plenty of those in Canada. My only concern is protecting the Princess, who has yet to show herself."
"How can you say that when you know perfectly well who the Princess is?"
"The 'Princess' that you're referring to is merely a façade. I want to see the true Princess underneath, before I take command of the Candy Brigade. However, looking at the storm those girls are heading towards, I can't help but wonder if the Princess will appear there, and if she does, I don't want to miss it."
Kit Kat sighed with relief, and watched as Meringue changed into her Soldier Lemon outfit. Her hair grew longer and more yellow, and it was tied into a ponytail by a white ribbon. Like the other girls, her outfit consisted of a yellow military short-sleeved shirt, a white tie and gloves with lemons on them, yellow shorts, white stockings, and yellow military boots with white lemons. Her weapon, which formed from her bracelet, was a whip made of white leather strips with a yellow handle. When she opened her eyes, they had gone from light brown to bright yellow. After the transformation, Kit Kat hopped onto her shoulder as she opened the window and jumped from rooftop to rooftop in the direction of the unusual lightning storm.
End of Chapter 7
