Warmth - A BFDI Puffball Fanfiction

~Starting~

"So who's the host gonna be?"

~~~

The teams were picked, new friends met, and the first contest completed. Sure, it was a bit unfair given the team sizes- Puffball didn't even NEED to help pull the rope for her team to win- but hey- at least neither her nor Fries had to worry about elimination, though her potato friend did seem a bit sad upon seeing his friend Pin up for voting.

But that wasn't important now. She had to focus on herself, and more importantly, staying in the game. She heard from Fries how horribly cramped the TLC was, and she did NOT want to end up in there.

"Are you excited to be competing?" Puffball's thoughts were cut off by a voice popping up beside her, and someone tugging on her fur to get her attention.

It was that Ruby who had visited them so many years ago. She had definitely grown quite a bit, but seemingly had the exact same impulsive personality.

"Oh? Yeah! It's been my dream to compete here...I always loved watching the show!" The furball responded delightfully, sparkling in excitement as she spoke. "And you? I haven't seen you since-" But before she could finish her sentence, Ruby was gone, off to chatter away with someone else.

Puffball sighed to herself as she floated over to Fries, gently nudging against his box. "Hmm? Oh- how are you, Puffy?" The fluff ball blushed, backing off a bit. "Hey! Don't call me that in public, it's embarrassing!" The potato object simply chuckled, reaching out to ruffle the fur on her head, earning a slight purr from his fuzzy companion. "So- are you enjoying this? Is it everything you dreamed of?" Fries questioned, sitting on the grass and motioning for Puffball to float down next to him. 

"Definitely! It's been so fun, meeting everyone, and getting to do the challenge, and we even won!" 

"You didn't even pull the rope! You just floated there!" 

"Hey, I was moral support!"

The two friends chatted and laughed together, watching as the sun slowly began to sink below the horizon. Although she brushed it off as a joke, Puffball would be lying to say she wasn't a little disappointed that she didn't actually contribute to the challenge.

"So...are we just like, living out here or what? No houses?" Match called out from nearby, seemingly annoyed at their lack of shelter for the night. "Hmm...seems like it to me. But don't worry, we have a campfire here!" Gelatin responded, eagerly motioning toward Firey who was badgering Coiny about his team's loss. "Yeah! I'll keep you all warm, just no one try roasting marshmallows on me, they get all gross in my flames!"

Soon, all of the contestants were gathered around Firey, chatting and getting to know one another. There were a few familiar faces to Puffball, like of course Coiny and Pin, but also Golf Ball and Tennis Ball, alongside a few others that she remembered from watching season 1. She never thought she'd be here, competing alongside the objects she fawned over on TV, not to mention chattering along with the previous winner! 

"Hey- you're like, a real puffball right? Like the endangered ones?" Firey had turned to her, asking about her excitedly. "Uh- I am..." Puffball shied away slightly, preparing for disapproval. "Woah! That's so cool! I've always wanted to meet a real puffball! You guys are super cool!" Some of the other objects chimed in, nodding and smiling at her. She didn't expect all this positive attention, in fact, she expected to be excluded and ridiculed for her species.

In the past, Puffball had caught some flak from objects for technically being an animal, such as certain restaurants not allowing her inside, and getting some rude remarks from objects claiming to be allergic to her. Nothing outright hateful, but it didn't feel great being looked at differently from everyone else. But here, the objects treated her as one of their own, eagerly accepting her into the competition, and evidently found her species fascinating. They kept asking about her and her experiences, even encouraging her to show off her color shifting and other abilities.