Trolls World Tour: Forever My Queen

Ch. 14: No choice

I stood on the beach, frozen in fear for the first time in years. Why now? I left Volcano Rock City years ago, so why would they bother coming here now to look for me.

I was so scared, but instead of showing it, I stood tall and confidently on the shoreline as the piranha bus screeched to a halt. Whoever came out of that bus, whether it be my father or my sister, I was ready for them. A few minutes passed, but nothing happened. Then, its zippered mouth opened and out walked my sister, followed by at least four other rock trolls. They were probably her body guards or something.

As she started to walk towards me, I couldn't help but notice how much my sister had changed over the years. Her once dark blue hair now contained streaks of dark purple that made the blue pop out more. She now wore heavy black eye shadow and eyeliner that was caked around her eyes which, from a distance, made her look like she hadn't slept in years. She now had her ears double-pierced with black hooped earrings, which meant that she was no longer a princess, but a queen.

I cringed to myself when I saw her outfit. So much skin was showing! She was wearing a black and purple studded crop top, a black and purple see-through skirt that had a large split in the front to show off her black shorts, and fishnet tights. From the looks of it, she also still had the spiked choker around her neck that father had given to her when we were kids.

I watched as Katheryn stopped walking and motioned for her guards to stay as she continued to walk towards me without them. I decided to save her some steps, so I began to walk towards her as well. We met halfway, staring at each other with unrecognizable glances as we silently judged the others appearance. She crossed her arms and snorted.

"Roxanne," she said in a confused tone. "What on earth are you wearing?"

I mimicked her stance. "It's called a dress, sister, and I like wearing it," I spat back.

"Jeez, I was just asking. There is no need to get all hostile towards me," she said as she threw her hands up in defense.

There was an awkward silence between us. We hadn't seen each other in so long that we didn't even know what to say next.

I started to bury my feet into the sand. "So..." I said. "How is dad?" I cringed wondering why I would even bother asking that question.

"Oh, father is dead."

I jerked my head up so quickly I almost gave myself whiplash. "Really?" I asked in disbelief.

"Yeah...he died about a week ago from...natural causes," Katheryn said as she lowered her head. "It was a sad day for all of us. However, because of what he stated in his last will and testimony, I didn't officially become queen until yesterday." She sure didn't sound very upset about the whole ordeal.

Another awkward silence. What a great conversation we were having! I sighed.

"Katie, why are you here?" I asked. "You obviously didn't come all this way just to chat."

Katie took a step closer to me. "I came looking for you...I figured this was the first place you'd be since...you know..." She cleared her throat. "I didn't come sooner because...father wouldn't let me...he thought you were a lost cause..." She was about three feet away from me now.

I kept a stern look on my face. "Well, you're wasting your time, sister," I said as I started to take a step back. "Although I love you very much, there is nothing you can say that will make me want to go back." I turned away from her and started walking back towards the ocean, hoping that she would get the hint and leave. Of course, my stubborn sister had never liked taking no for an answer.

"We were raised together!" I heard her shout after me. "We played together, we sang together! Do you remember none of that?"

I whipped my head back around and glared at her. "I remember nothing but a shadow...living in the shade of your greatness..." I started having vivid flashbacks to memories of my childhood when Katie wouldn't even dare be caught talking to me. I could feel years of pent up rage boiling in my chest just waiting to be released. "I remember all the years of embarrassment and shame that you felt whenever you had to be near me! I never, ever want to live like that again!"

"You won't have to, Roxanne," my sister smiled gently. "Now that I am queen, no one will ever hurt you again."

"But can you promise that?" I asked. Katie opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. I sighed.

"Katie..." I said sweetly. "Ever since I left Volcano Rock City, I've seen and experienced so many things. My love for music has grown so much over the years! Titus has shown me the true power behind all music, and when I listen to it-"

"Who showed you this?" Katie asked as her tone switched from loving to cross. "Who controls the would-be queen?"

I clenched my fists at my sides and scowled. How dare she say that to me! All of that pent up anger exploded out of my mouth as I started screaming at her.

"WOULD-BE QUEEN?!" I roared as I pointed to my crown. "I AM A QUEEN!"

"NOT HERE!" She shouted as she grabbed my shoulders and dug her sharp nails into my skin. "You give up this power, y-you give up this pointless dream!" Tears started to form in Katie's eyes as her voice started to shake. "Come home...please...I miss you..." I shook my head and stared deep into her red eyes.

"I am home," I said sternly as I removed her hands from my shoulders. "Now, you have overstayed your welcome. I think it's about time you left." The side of Katie's mouth started twitching as she slowly backed away from me and lowered her head to look down at her shaking hands.

I thought she was going to start crying, but instead she started...laughing. This wasn't the kind of laughter I've ever heard come from my sister's mouth before. Oh no...this laugh was maniacal.

Out of fear, I kept my eyes on her and started backing up until I was about ankle deep in the water. Then, I made the mistake of turning around to look at Titus and Trollex, who were swimming in place a few yards away. I'd figure I would just wait in the water with them until Katie and her crew left. Besides, I was the only rock troll who knew how to swim.

"Young lady..." I heard a deep voice growl behind me. I froze. The hairs on the back of my neck began to stand up straight as a chill went up my spine. I cautiously turned around and covered my mouth in horror at what I saw. My sister's eyes had turned as black as coals.

"I never said you had a choice," Katie continued to growl. Suddenly, she threw something at me from behind her back, creating a dark cloud of smoke around me. The smoke blocked out the sun as everything was shrouded in darkness.

"Roxy, look out!" I heard Titus yell.

I turned around just in time to see my sister lunge towards me from the darkness. With one swift motion, she grabbed the front of my crown and tore it off my head, snapping it in half and scattering pearls into the water and sand around us.

Katheryn...what have you become?