All of the World (ARCHIVED & LESS BAD)

Part Eleven

Frances was alone. He knew that he should be worried, but something prevented him from feeling it. It may have been the landscape, similar to that of Muffle Mountain, but coated in a golden glow. He inhaled slowly, the feeling of pure, fresh air filling his nose. He became aware of a pair of buffers in the distance, growing closer as he floated towards them. He didn't want to leave the peaceful valley. Why should he care about other people's problems when he was perfectly content in this place?

It turned out that a single person wasn't enough to halt the will of a mysterious godlike entity, so Frances emerged from the buffers unhappy, but unharmed. Pip was a few feet away, looking more anxious than ever.

"Emma ran off! I knew that I shouldn't leave you, so I waited here, but she hasn't come back!" Frances was terrified, terrified of being caught, terrified of getting hurt, and he wished with all of his heart that he was home. He started crying, stifling his sobs with his arm.

"We can't give up now! Come on, get up, and let's go find my sister!" Pip demanded, her voice shaky with determination.

She squeezed his shoulder. The way that Dawn did. She needed his help. Everyone did.

"Ok. Which way did she go?" Pip pointed over a hill, where the sea was visible. Frances realized where they were as a familiar pair of engines puffed down the distant seaside line.

"We're near Bluff's Cove, I'm sure of it! Come on, Pip, we can find my friends!" And he charged through the marshy brush.

His heart pounded as branches scratched at him, shrieking as he half-tripped over a root.

"Frances? What're ye doin' here?" Donald asked in disbelief, hurrying down the hill with his brother close behind.

"We're ending this shit, boys!" He cheered, overcome with adrenaline.

"And we're looking for my sister. Speaking of which, have you seen her? Tall, curly blonde hair, really annoying. Ring any bells?" Douglas shrugged, preoccupied with something in his pocket.

He pulled out his pendant, looking it over. Taking a deep breath, he clutched it hard, snapping it in half. In a second, he collapsed, coughing as gold dust poured from his nose and mouth.

"Dougie, what're you doin'?!" Donald cried, shaking his brother roughly.

"Ach, stop it, you're tickling me!" Douglas laughed, looking up at them with a slightly guilty look on his face. Frances gasped.

"Douglas, your eyes! They're- they're human!"

The gold shimmer that normally covered Douglas' raven eyes was gone, and his veins had lost their golden glow.

"Do you realize what this means?" Frances asked, his hands shaking.

"We can be humans. Like, real humans." Pip gasped, grabbing her own necklace and crushing it, sneezing uncontrollably.

When the process had finished, she hugged herself, then Frances. Donald followed soon after, giggling with joy. Frances looked at his own pendant, slipping it into his pocket.

"I want to wait. I know it sounds stupid, but I'd like to do it when all of my friends are safe. We're stronger like this."

Pip nodded, looking at the twins with a small smile on her face. "They remind me of Emma. She'll like them."

Upon saying that, she looked behind her, narrowing her eyes as she looked at the forest. Out of the blue, Emma burst through the undergrowth, followed closely by Duck, Oliver and Toad.

"I found the important guy!" She called, embracing her sister as she picked sticks out of her hair.

Duck and Frances stared at each other for a moment, taking in the sight of one another. Frances rushed forward, hugging his friend tightly.