What Once Was Mine (Marianas Trench Ever After Album fanfic)

What Once Was Mine Chapter Four

Chapter Four-Truth Or Dare

But what the Queen saw was not a little boy. No, to the Queen, the boy was a threat, even if he was merely a lost fourteen year old looking for the way home. The Queen could not risk letting the boy go home though. She had locked away the way to his home along with the hearts of the Toys. If she were to free the path, she would free the hearts of the Toys as well. And so, she decided to trick him.

[“I dreamt I was asleep. Carolina came to me in the night. I couldn’t make out what she looked like, her form changed from second to second, but she radiated power. She asked me to join her. No one would have to know, it would be our dirty little secret. I could have everything I’d ever wanted, but I would never go home again. The factory would be my new home, and I could be her new king. Although I considered it, I turned her away and she vanished.]

Josh’s P.O.V.

I continued to trek through the forest. Through the tops of the trees I could see light seeping through, so I guessed that it was morning-possibly approaching noon. It was not as bad as it seemed the first day. I could hear noises coming from all sides of the me. Today, it was silent, but not the eerie type, like the quiet before the storm. Maybe whatever is in here decided not to bother me, since I wasn’t much of a threat. If the peace kept up like this, I would find the princess in no time. Or so I hoped.

Porcelain’s P.O.V.

I woke up sometime in the day. At least.... I think it was day. It was still sort of dark though some light could be seen seeping through. I was starving and though I was very weak, I knew I needed to find something to eat. I wandered around for some time and finally found a berry bush. Purplish berries grew from the stems of the plant. They looked delicious.

And so I picked some and stuffed them in my mouth hungrily.  They tasted as good as they looked, like a peppermint mint.

Suddenly I felt dizzy. Images started to appear before me. I was hallucinating. I had eaten Hiazze Berry.

Josh’s P.O.V.

The forest was getting darker. I knew I had to make a fire and set up camp. It was going to get colder, and I was getting tired. I would be hungry too, if I hadn’t found a piece of bread in my pocket and some strange looking pink berries to snack on. I sat down on the hard ground. I made a pile from the sticks around me and took out a piece of flint I had found lying on the ground and a piece of metal I had in my pocket and began to strike them together. The likeliness of a fire starting was unlikely, but I had to try. After all, since when did toys talk? The fire began slowly at first, then started growing bigger. It was warming, and when I was nice and comfortable, I fell asleep.

I had a strange dream that night. A woman in a long flowing ball gown appeared. She had black hair, like a raven’s feathers and came to me with a welcoming smile that did not reach her eyes.

“Hello Joshua,” she said, her voice sickeningly sweet. "Welcome to my realm."

I looked around me. We were standing on what looked like wisps of clouds. The atmosphere was dark, however, unlike whatever afterlife paradise was taught to children.

“You aren’t dead, Joshua,” the woman said. “You are merely dreaming.”

I looked at her, dumbfounded.

“I know you wish to find the Princess. I know you plan to help the king return to his throne. But you don’t know the whole story.”

She shook her head sadly.

“That poor fool could not rule own castle, let alone his people. Getting rid of him was the best choice for the kingdom.”

I considered her words.They had a certain truth to them. The king had been manipulative. He was also weak and seemed unstable.

“Those are all valid points.”

I stared at her.

“Are you reading my mind?” I asked her, defensively.

“Hon, you're saying it out loud.”

For once, her tone was matched by the look in her eyes. For once she wasn’t lying?

“I can tell you are a smart boy. You are quite competent, being able to make it all this way,” she studied me closely. “ I want you to rule with me.”

“And would I be able to go back home? To my real home?”

“No!” she said a little too forcefully. “I mean, no. It’s impossible.”

How strange. The king was not crazy. He was no liar. There was a way back to my home, and she just confirmed it. She didn’t want me to go back, because that would mean releasing the hearts of the other toys.

“I will never join you. I will come and destroy you if I have to,” I declared. “I will free the toys from your rule, and I will return to my home.”

And with those last forceful words, I woke up.