Four x Reader [BFB]

Chapter 13 - Gathering

The return to Goiky is swift and comes as a surprise to you and many of the contestants around you. With just a snap of his fingers, Four instantly transports the group off of the island and into the strange pink-skied place that you were in before. The contestants gawk at their new environment, some of them already starting to explore the weird place. Squeaking sounds can be heard as Gelatin digs his heels into the grass while Leafy uncomfortably moves closer to Four, lifting her hand to question him.

"Umm...so is this where we'll be competing, Forty-Four?" She asked. "Yeh. This is it." Four replies nonchalantly. "Contestants! I'd like to welcome to fourteen of you to the-"

They're swiftly cut off by Flower, who glances around. "Fourteen? There's not nearly that many! I was honestly hoping there would be less people..." She complains, folding her arms and snootily staring off. "And why would you want that, Flower?" Taco raises an eyebrow. "What...so you could have a better chance at winning? Worried about the viewers favoring others over you, huh?" She smirked smugly, Flower scrambling as Taco seems to have seen right through her. "Wha-?! No! It's not like that! It's just- It's-"

"Grr, knock it off! I can't think with all this fighting!" Four snaps. "X, did we- leave any contestants back...somewhere?" Four asks and X shrugs, uncertain. You don't really mean to interrupt, but you feel that you don't have any choice, wanting to spare Four from any further agitation. "W-we...we didn't leave anyone behind, I don't think. But some people definitely died along the way. Could you recover them?" You ask, almost timidly, though Four seems very pleased to have someone who was paying attention and could give him a concise answer. "Sure thing! Who are we missing?"

"Ruby and Blocky...umm...I think we lost Bubble...oh, right- and Balloony." You list the names, Four recovering them swiftly as you mention them. The four of them appear a little confused and disgruntled at first, the others quickly approaching to share their joys of being reunited once more. "Oh, man...we're back on Earth? Awesome." Blocky says, rubbing his hands together with a smirk. "The Blocky Blog Squad has been dying to get some new content."

Balloony seems to feel quite awkward, looking to Gelatin nearby. "Uh...I've been gone for a while. What did I miss?"

"Eehhh...I don't know, really...I just got back, too. We're battling for both the BFB and the BFDI so...that's new!" He explains. Balloony scratches the back of his head, a light rubbery sound heard as he does. Seeing how happy everyone was to be together again...it's humbling. He blinks as he sees a figure move close to him, glancing up to see Bubble standing there. Her expression is filled with hesitation and concern and the memory of Bubble tearing her hand across his head comes to his mind instantly and he cringes, failing to meet her eyes. "Balloiny...Oi'm sorry about what hoippened back at the castle...I just felt oiverwhelmed and-..." Her voice wavers, her lack of confidence apparent. Balloony sighs, holding up a hand to stop her from going any further. "No, I deserved it, honestly. I think having all that power went to my head. It feels kinda...different without the crown and the cape and all that."

"So...you're ready to compete with us again?" Bubble asks, her eyes lighting up and a small smile tugging at the edge of her lips. Balloony looks around to the others, noticing Firey, his previous royal guard that he brutally extinguished in his final moments as a king. He turns from his joyful conversation with Lollipop and waves to Balloony with an uncomfortable smile. Even after what he did to Firey, he was still being welcomed as a fellow contestant with open arms. "You know what...I sure am." He says in response, Bubble eagerly hugging him with a joyous "Oh, yoylecake!"

While the contestants get reacquainted, you and Four spend your time idly chatting and observing this strange territory. The landscape feels somewhat treacherous to you, the jutting pillars of stone towering over you. You're awestruck, this place with its dilapidated structures shrouded in haze and mystery urging a desire for exploration, while Four scoots closer to you. They're silent as their pinky finger brushes against yours, an indication that they'd like to hold hands with you again while not being forceful. Without even thinking, your hand accepts and folds with his. "This place is incredible. I'm honestly pretty excited to see how the show unfolds here. I've never seen anything like this in my own world...but then again, I never explored too much of it."