Bubblegum Witch

Obstacles

Meanwhile

The boys have arrived at their next destination, the springtime meadow. "We're in luck, Paul! There are plenty of trees with cherry blossoms around here, and the next ingredient we need for the antidote requires cherry blossom petals." Said Derek. "Um, that's great and all, but..." Said Paul as he trailed off. "But? Why does there always have to be a 'but' in every sentence?" Derek asked. "Derek, I don't wanna worry you, but I think we have company." Paul said.

Coming in their direction are the bubblegum minions. "What are those things?" Asked Derek. "Whatever they are, they're coming for us!" Said Paul. "Wait, they must be Sugar Pink's minions! They're probably here to stop us from getting everything we need for the antidote!" Derek said. "In that case, we better show them they messed with the wrong men!" Paul said.

Putting on brave faces, the boys battle the bubblegum minions. Though they're icky and sticky, the brave heroes manage to avoid getting any on their clothes. One begins to blow a bubble in front of Paul. He backs away, but the bubble keeps getting bigger and bigger.

"Paul, remember what the girls said! The bubbles spray acid, and avoid breathing it in at all costs!" Yelled Derek. "Kinda hard to avoid it when the bubble grows rapidly!" Said Paul. Right then, the bubble pops. Paul covers his mouth and nose with his arm, and Derek does the same thing as some of the acid spray comes in his direction.

The minions start to retreat as they realize they can't slow the boys down. "Sugar Pink is playing dirty, and she's determined to slow us down!" Derek said. "Well, we won't let her! Once we have everything we need, we'll finish her off once and for all!" Paul said. "I like your determination. Now come on, let's grab those cherry blossom petals." Said Derek.

Though there are a lot of petals in the trees, the boys know they don't need all of them, just enough to put in the antidote when they make it. "Okay, this should do it. What's next?" Asked Paul. "You said the next ingredient was the wing of a moth, right?" Derek asked. "I did." Paul said. "So our next stop is the Evergreen Overlook. I'll need you to navigate our way as I drive, I can't read the map while my eyes are on the road." Said Derek. "Understood. Now let's move." Said Paul.

Returning to the carriage, Derek hands Paul the map to navigate his way while he drives. It took three minutes to reach the next place, and the first thing they saw was a line of pink gum, bubbles growing slowly. "Looks like Miss Not-So-Sweet As Sugar figured out we were coming here next." Derek said. "Heh, that's a good one." Paul said as he couldn't contain his laughter. 

"We're gonna have to slowly sneak past the bubbles, but we can't risk popping them or else they'll spray more acid." Said Derek. "Or worse, we might breathe it in by mistake. How will we manage that without inhaling the acid?" Asked Paul. "Let's just wing it." Derek said. "Uh, Derek? Were those there before?" Paul asked. His eyes are on the floor of the carriage.

Derek looks to where Paul is looking, and there were two objects. "What are these?" Asked Derek. "Masks. They can protect us from the acid in case the bubbles pop." Said Paul. "How did they even get here in the first place?" Derek asked. "No idea, but it doesn't matter. Put them on so we can keep going." Paul said.

The boys put on their masks, then once they start stealthily moving, the bubbles have grown to the size of boulders and start popping one by one. "Run for it!!" Yelled Derek. He and Paul charge through the popping acid spraying bubbles, but with their masks protecting them, they're able to avoid inhaling the toxic stuff. 

Once they reach the end of the line, they notice a tiny limp object on the ground. "I think we found what we're looking for." Said Paul. Derek picks up the item. "Yep, this is it. Good thing it's from a dead moth, because I'd feel bad for ripping off wings from one if it was alive." He said. "Me too. Come on, let's get back to the carriage." Paul said.

Five ingredients down, five more to go. But Sugar Pink will stop at nothing to make sure the boys fail their mission.