𝔽𝕠𝕣𝕘𝕖𝕥 {𝕍𝕒𝕣𝕚𝕒𝕟 𝕩 ℝ𝕖𝕒𝕕𝕖𝕣}

-Chapter Twenty-Four- Viva La Vida

/i used to rule the world/ seas would rise when i gave the word/ now in the morning i sleep alone/ sweep the streets i used to own/

-viva la vida, coldplay

Y/n couldn't quite tell what she was looking at for a moment.

At first, it appeared to be a mighty wooden ship, like something from one of Y/n's novels, something that pirates would sail the seas on.

But, after a second glance, she could see massive swaths of magenta fabric lying across the deck of the boat, which was perfectly perched in the middle of the field.

Balloons?

She leaned on a large tree beside her and pinched the bridge of her nose. Out of all the stupid-

"Clementine!" a new, more feminine voice cried.

Y/n looked up to see a tall, dark-skinned woman, clad in orange with long, beaded hair, running over to the two that she had been tailing.

The new character ran over to the two and wrapped her arms around them, pulling the pair into a hug. She let go with a wide grin and put her hands on her hips. "Finally! You have no idea how awful it was to leave me with Juniper- he is such a buzzkill!"

"Hey!" shouted a voice in a pretentious accent, something similar to Nigel's. "I merely requested that you didn't set fire to the local wildlife!" Y/n glanced over to the balloon-boat- an airship, perhaps?- seeing an older man in a gray-blue hat and tailcoat- presumably Juniper- striding to the group that was assembling by the edge of the woods.

"See?!" the taller woman- who Y/n guessed must be Maisie- cried dramatically.

"Aw, save the fire for Corona." the purple-haired woman- Clementine?- replied with a smirk.

Y/n straightened up, her interest piqued. She was just about to declare this endeavor a lost cause- but setting fire to Corona?

Maybe this wasn't a waste after all.

"Now, Maisie-" the red-haired man from before began, "you know we believe in you, but I just have to ask- you did get our ride all patched up, right?"

Maisie laughed. "Come on, Kai, did you really doubt me? Yeah, I got it patched up! We can leave whenever!"

"Excellent!" Clementine exclaimed excitedly, glancing up at the dark sky above her. "We can leave first thing in the morning!"

Juniper wrinkled his nose. "Wait, we're staying the night here? We're supposed to have reached Andrew by now!"

"Come on, June." the final member laughed. Considering that all other options were ruled out, this must be Kai. "He can wait one more day."

"We sail for Corona in the morning!" Maisie cried, raising one fist in the air, and the others joined her, before heading for the ramp of the airship.

Y/n stood back up, realizing that she had been leaning all the way down, supported only by the tree branch she was holding.

This was... interesting, to say the very least. A group of people, who weren't afraid of more unsavory activities, traveling by what appeared to be a flying boat to Corona for what seemed like nefarious purposes.

Y/n wondered if she could manage to stow away on the boat in the morning, or perhaps convince them that she needed a ride. She'd had no idea how to get into the palace and free Varian- but if she'd ever seen a sign, then this had to be it.

She sighed. If the group was staying the night in the clearing, Y/n would have to do the same- if she wanted to keep an eye on them, that is.

After much deliberation, she decided that she'd sleep where she was, the spot where the woods gave way to the open clearing, just barely concealed by the trees around her. Hopefully, she'd wake in the morning with enough time to make a plan.