Chapter 2 – The Elections.
Caramel, Rex, and Floxy were sitting in the house of Rex his gang, or whatever was left from that. Rex and Floxy were the only ones that were still living there. Well, and Maxine, but she didn't come home very often ever since the others left. Not too long ago, Narcissa had married Preston, the elf brother of Sapphire, and the couple went to live far away from Pixieville, in a village for elves only.
''Any idea of who the new successor is going to be?'' Caramel asked the two guys. ''Who do you think? Me, of course'' Rex answered with a grin across his face. ''Everyone will vote for me once I reveal my plans about locking up every single pixie and gnome in Pixieville…'' He paused for a second, just to look at Caramel and add: ''Aside from you, of course''. ''…And turn Pixieville into a city just for elves. I'll call it: Rexville!'' Caramel started to laugh. ''Of course. There's finally peace between the pixies and elves, and then you want to conquer the city again''. Rex sighed and fell down on his back on the couch while mumbling: ''I'm just going to try it… I think it's a good idea''. ''Hey… What do you think about this all?'' Caramel asked Floxy kindly. Floxy looked very distracted, and only seemed to notice her question until a little later. ''Hm, those stupid elections are a waste of time'', was what he finally answered. Just when Caramel wanted to respond, the doorbell rang. No one seemed to take any course of action to open the door, so eventually Caramel went to open it herself. Someone had to do it, it wasn't going to open by itself.
Once Caramel opened the door, she saw a person who she recognized all too well. ''Sapph!'' In front of her was her best friend. She immediately proceeded to give her best friend a big hug. ''Where have you been? Didn't you hear the announcement Nymphea gave?'' They went back into the living room together while talking. Sapphire waved cheerfully once she saw Rex and Floxy in the room. ''My manager didn't let me go… but I heard everything! About the elections, and…''. She couldn't finish her sentence, as Floxy stood up from where he was sitting and immediately went upstairs. With a loud noise, he threw the door between the living room and the stairs shut. ''He's been in a bad mood all day'' was what Rex said while watching him. ''It's my fault, isn't it?'' Sapphire asked. She knew he was feeling like this because she was gone so often. Her cheerful mood started to disappear. ''Well, actually…'' Rex began but didn't finish what he was saying as Caramel was staring at him with her 'don't say it' glance. ''I'll talk to him''. Sapphire sighed and subsequently walked towards the stairs. ''So much drama''. Rex grinned while watching her. Sapphire couldn't hear him anymore. Once she was gone, Caramel sat down next to Rex. Finally, they were all alone. The moment where Rex had waited for all this time. With the moment finally being there, he was at a loss for words. He tried his best to come up with something to break the silence.''Hey, uh, Caramel..?'' Caramel waited with replying until he finished his sentence, and thus just stared at him. ''Once I win the elections tomorrow, let's go out for dinner together''. It was supposed to be a question, although it didn't really sound like that. He didn't tell her that he had rent the whole restaurant for this special occasion. He even worked for it as a fair person, which wasn't exactly a thing elves would, and should, do. Caramel began to laugh. ''But what if you don't win?'' Rex hadn't thought of that yet. He just used the elections as an excuse to ask her for dinner, the real reason was far different. Of course he wanted to win, but that wasn't the main reason. ''Well, I… I'll win, don't worry!'' he said, sounding way more confident than he was actually feeling about it. ''I'll take your word for it'' Caramel laughed, even though she didn't believe a word of it. His plan was way too ridiculous to actually work. She then stared at the door between the stairs, there was no sign of Sapphire or Floxy. It actually made her a bit worried. ''I'll go check on Sapph'' she said, then also went upstairs. Besides checking up on her, she could also tell her about her upcoming date with Rex. Thinking about it made her even more excited for it. ''Hey Sapph, Did you kn…'' she didn't come any farther than that. Sapphire sat on top of the stairs, being busy with a cellphone call. ''You don't understand! I can't…! Something important happened … But … Okay, I'll understand…'' With a deep sigh, Sapphire ended the call. It was only until then that she noticed Caramel standing across from her. ''My manager called… he wants me to come to an interview right now…'' ''I understand'' Caramel nodded and gave her friend a quick hug. ''Are you going to watch the elections tomorrow? Rex will be taking part aswell''. ''Of course!'' Sapphire replied. ''I definitely don't want to miss that!'' She smiled, and proceeded to go downstairs but paused once she saw that Caramel wasn't following her. ''Aren't you coming?'' Caramel shook her head. ''I still have to do something.'' Sapphire shrugged and just went downstairs, she didn't have any time to spare for waited until Sapphire was downstairs before knocking on the door of Floxy's room. ''Floxy?'' she asked. No response. ''Are you there? It's me, Caramel. I came checking up on you''. After a few seconds, the door opened.''Sorry, Caramel. I don't really feel like talking right now'' answered Floxy with a gloomy voice. ''Why don't you come with me to the Molly Moo? I'll bake you one of your favorite pies to cheer you up!'' Caramel offered. She knew how much Floxy loved her cooking. ''I'm not hungry. I just want to be alone right now, Sorry Caramel''. ''But…'' Caramel tried to protest but before she knew it Floxy had already closed the door again. She sighed. She really wanted to try her best to solve the problem between Sapphire and Floxy, but it was a lot harder than she thought. And aside from that, she also didn't have any time yet to tell her best friend about her date with Rex. She took one last glance over her shoulder to see that Floxy's door was still closed, then gave up and also went downstairs.
On the next day, everyone arrived early at the PixiePlaza hotel. Rollo, the owner of the hotel, was waving at cameras and enjoyed all the free publicity for his business place. Sapphire and Caramel stood at the front of the audience. It made Caramel happy that Sapphire didn't break her promise to come watch the elections with her. ''Look! It's Amore!'' Sapphire pointed at Amore, who came walking towards the two of them holding a huge, white banner in her hands. ''You're right… but what does she have with her?'' Caramel asked Sapphire, but when she turned to face her, she had already disappeared and had left Caramel alone with Amore. ''Hi Caramel! Did you also come here to cheer Robinson on?'' Amore asked. She was now standing next to Caramel. ''Uh… what?'' Caramel didn't understand what she was saying. Amore showed the banner to Caramel. ''Look!'' She proudly held it above her head so Caramel could read what it was saying. It said: ''Robinson, you're the best!'' Under the text was a small drawing of two pixies in love, surrounded by a huge heart. The pixies probably were supposed to be Amore and Robinson. ''I made it myself!'' she added proudly. ''Uhm… looks great, I guess?'' Caramel said, sounding very distracted. Where did Sapphire suddenly disappear to? And why? ''If you don't like it, you can just tell me!'' Amore took her distraction quite personally and sounded very irritated. ''What? Of course not! I'm just a little distracted'' lied Caramel. She looked at the banner once again. ''I think it looks amazing!'' she added. ''I know, right?!'' Amore beamed. Caramel nodded. ''Robinson is really lucky to have someone like you supporting him!'' She always knew what to say in situations like this, and how to cheer others up again. It was one of her special charms.
It was at that moment that Nymphea arrived. The elections would finally begin! Nymphea took place on the stage that had been put there specifically for the elections. ''Welcome everyone, at the elections to choose my successor!'' she announced. With a bit of magic she made a list with all the participants' names on it appear. ''Good luck everyone!'' She scanned the list. ''Our first participant is our very own forester, Robinson!'' Everyone in the audience along with Nymphea clapped their hands. Afterwards, Nymphea took place behind the table for the jury aside from the stage. ''I love you, Robinson!'' Amore yelled loudly when Robinson came standing on of the stage. Robinson gave her a shy smile and then began his speech. ''Hello everyone! I… er…'' he stammered. It was obvious that he hadn't prepared his speech well. Amore probably made him take part last minute. ''If you'll vote for me, I will make sure Pixieville will become a city where everyone will be happy. A city with lots of love! Thanks for listening to me!'' He made a deep bow and then got off the stage. ''He was so amazing, don't you think so?'' Amore said while looking at him lovingly. ''Uh… yeah'' Caramel lied. Not that far from them, two elves were imitating Robinson's speech. One of them made puking noises when the other began to talk about love. Luckily Amore didn't hear it. ''Our next participant is Mr. Grind of our very own Pixieville bank!'' announced Nymphea. Grind went on top of the stage. ''I didn't want to participate, but I had no choice!'' was what he started with. His voice took a very dramatical tone. ''When I thought about all the poor money… I mean…! The wellbeing of this city, I had to! Which is why you all have to vote for me! Your money wants it! Just think about how your money feels!'' he yelled. With those words he got off the stage. No one believed him. They all knew he just wanted their money. He would probably raise the taxes too. After Grind, others tried too, but without any succes. Valant pleaded for the freedom of pirates, Martino would hand out –with the protest of Caramel- free drinks at the Molly Moo for everyone who would vote for him, Cherie was convinced that everyone would vote for her and the speech of Arsenio wasn't very different either. There didn't seem to be any good candidates at all.
Then finally, it was Rex' his turn. ''I… had a dream'' he began his speech. ''I dreamed of a big kingdom''. Everyone silently stared at Rex, this began really well. ''…A kingdom consisting of elves only! It shall be named Rexville! All of the pixies and gnomes will be locked away so our own folk, the elves, shall reign over this place!'' Everyone stared at him in disbelief. ''What? We just made peace between everyone!'' Someone in the audience yelled. ''Go away! No one wants you here!'' Someone else replied. ''You just can't appreciate it!'' was what Rex yelled back to them. ''Just you wai…'' He couldn't finish what he was saying as a tomato hit him right in the face. ''Throw!'' Someone yelled as more of the tomatoes followed. Even for Rex this was a bit too much, and he quickly fled off the stage. Nymphea sighed. ''So… that was our last participant..''. It didn't look as if there was a good candidate at all. Nymphea already wanted to stand up from behind her table when suddenly a gnome came walking up on the stage. ''The elections are already over…'' she protested but the gnome ignored her and proceeded to stand still on the middle of the stage. ''Good day, everyone. My name is Vikus. I just moved to this city and I have to say…'' He glanced at Nymphea, and then stared back at the audience once again. ''A lot has to change''. Everyone got silent. Even Nymphea held her mouth closed. Even she wanted to know where this was going. ''I want equal rights for everyone!'' he proceeded. ''There might be peace here, but it doesn't show a lot of that. I want a peaceful and rightful place for everyone, and if you will vote for me, I will definitely make that come true! I will not let you down!'' Everyone started to rejoyce. ''Vikus! Vikus!'' the audience screamed. Rex charged at the stage. ''That's not fair!'' he proclaimed. ''He's not even participating!'' ''Shut up! We don't want you and your stupid Rexville here! We want Vikus!'' Someone in the public yelled at him. ''Yeah! Go away or we will throw tomatoes again!'' Rex growled, but didn't say a thing. He already had enough from those tomatoes from earlier. Nymphea walked up towards Vikus. ''I think it's clear now. The public has made their vote'' she said. ''And I also agree that you're the best participant! Vikus will be my new successor!'' she confirmed. Vikus smiled. ''You won't regret this!''
Almost everyone had gone home after the elections had ended. Caramel was still there however, searching for Sapphire. Not only was she worried about her sudden disappearance, in a few hours she would have her date with Rex, and she still didn't know what to wear! Not far from her she noticed a pixie with a tidy suit on. He looked as if he was also searching for someone. Wasn't that Sapphire's manager? She had seen him once during one of her concerts. What was he doing here? ''Can I help you with something?'' she offered. The man looked up. ''Yes. I'm looking for Sapphire Maeve. Do you know her?'' Caramel nodded. ''She's my best friend''. The man looked relieved once he heard her say that. ''Good… Maybe you can convince her…'' he started. ''I'm her manager''. He showed her his business card with his name on it. So she was right, he was Sapphire's manager after all. ''She was supposed to give an interview yesterday but then told me she wanted to quit performing. She didn't give me any reason, but I must find her and take her back!'' The man started to sound desperate. ''I don't know where she is now, but I'll see what I can do to help'' Caramel offered, whereafter the man couldn't stop thanking her. She sighed once he was gone. Now she had to deal with this too. She didn't have time for this, it only started to get later and her date with Rex was soon. She decided to go back to the Molly Moo. She had to choose her outfit, with or without help from Sapphire.
A surprise awaited her once she arrived at the Molly Moo. Sapphire was sitting behind Martino's bar, enjoying one of his special drinks. ''You're finally here?'' she sounded bored, as if she had been waiting for Caramel all this time. She pointed at Martino. ''He said it was free''. Caramel stared at Sapphire. She only started to get more annoyed. ''Where were you?! I was searching all over for you, and…'' she paused, then sighed. ''…Whatever, let's go upstairs!'' She grabbed hold of Sapphire's arm and shoved her towards the stairs. Before going upstairs, she turned around just to look at Martino with a strict look on her face. ''And no free drinks!'' she snapped at him. ''So moody again…'' Martino mumbled, but closed his mouth quickly once Caramel looked at him with an angry glare. ''I can't ever leave without everything turning into a disorganized chaos!'' she murmured, still being irritated. Sapphire casted a last guilty glance at Martino, she was feeling really sorry for him right now.
Once upstairs in Caramel's bedroom, Caramel closed the door and stood in front of Sapphire. ''And?'' She crossed her arms. ''Where were you?'' Sapphire seemed to think about this. ''Well, I…. was worried about Floxy, and I…'' She was interrupted by Caramel. ''No excuses! I know you're running away from your manager!'' Sapphire gazed at Caramel with big eyes from disbelief. ''How did you know?! You know everything!'' Caramel sighed. ''I know because I'm your best friend. And because your manager explained it all to me. Why did you quit? I thought it was supposed to be your dream?'' Sapphire also gave out a sigh. ''It is, but if this continues, I'll eventually lose you all''. Caramel pulled her into a hug. ''You will never lose me. I will always support you, no matter what you do. We're friends. Just follow your heart''. Sapphire nodded. ''I know where my heart belongs. It's with Floxy. I would do everything to be with him. But…'' She paused. ''Can you keep this a secret for now? Once he finds out I quit singing, he will probably do everything to convince me to go back. It's not what I want''. Of course Caramel couldn't turn this request down. She thought about it for a second, then nodded. ''Okay… I won't tell him. However, you have to promise me that you'll eventually tell him yourself''. All she wanted was that Sapphire would be honest. ''Okay, I promise'' Sapphire let out a relieved sigh. ''What are you having for dinner tonight? Maybe we can…'' She couldn't get any further than that. ''Dinner? Oh no!'' Caramel turned to look on the clock. It was already a quarter to seven. She had agreed to meet Rex at the restaurant at seven. Due to all of this she had completely forgotten about it. ''I promised Rex to meet him at the Golden Gnome at seven!'' ''What?! The Golden Gnome?! But that's the most expensive restaurant in the city!'' Sapphire almost couldn't believe what Caramel was telling her. Caramel nodded. ''I know, and I have no idea what to wear!'' She slowly started to panick. ''Don't worry! I'll help you with that!'' A grin appeared on Sapphire's face as she ran towards Caramel's dresser. One by one she threw various clothes out of it. ''Boring… old-fashioned…. Too normal…'' Caramel was too stressed to even react to Sapphire's insults. ''…This one is pretty!'' Sapphire eventually held a long, gold-coloured dress in front of her. It was Rex his favorite color, gold, the color of money. ''You think so?'' Caramel sounded uncertain. ''It's the dress I wore to our first date''. She took the dress from Sapphire and held it in front of her while looking in the mirror. ''…He then told me my normal clothes suit me better''. She added while sighing. ''Well… it needs a little adjustment…'' Sapphire quickly took the dress from Caramel before it would make her feel even worse. ''A little magic will work!'' ''Are you sure? You're not Plisse…'' Caramel protested, but it was already too late. Sapphire had already changed the dress with her magic skills. ''Voila! It looks a lot better now!'' She proudly held the dress up high. For once, Caramel agreed with her. Sapphire made the dress shorter and also added more details. ''Even the ugliest pixie would shine in this one! You're beautiful already though'' she quickly added. Slowly, Caramel tried on the dress and stared at herself in the mirror. It indeed looked beautiful on her. ''Now… just a few accesoiries….'' Sapphire searched through Caramel's dresser once again. Finally, she took out a matching hair pin. She took hold of two of Caramel's curls and pinned them down at the back. ''It's perfect! Don't change anything!'' Caramel looked at herself in the mirror once again. ''I don't know… isn't this too much…?'' She still wasn't sure. Sapphire shook her head. ''No! And you have no choice! It's already seven o'clock! You have to go!'' She pushed Caramel towards the door. Caramel sighed nervously. ''You're right. Wish me luck!'' she yelled to Sapphire whilst running off the stairs.