The Adventures of Pupu The Bubble Witch

Chapter 14: Stowaway or Be Stowed

"You will ALL go to hell!!" Screams a distant voice barely audible to Kala, Punkin, and La Gateau.

Startling from what sounds like movement on nearby ships, Punkin panics as she looks around for Kala. Seeing Kala in the same chair as she was before Punkin fell asleep, Punkin's fear of being alone eases.

"What was that?" Whispers Punkin, as she tries not to wake La Gateau.

Chuckling, La Gateau acknowledges Punkin's attempt to be considerately quiet. "Don't worry, I am already awake."

With her eyes still closed, Kala responds without looking up, "I don't know. But it's been going on all night. They can't hear us or they don't care we are here. Or maybe they don't know we are here. Whatever is going on, nobody has come knocking on our door just yet."

"Baba, is Hell close to home? I wanna go home... I don't wanna go to Hell." Punkin whispers quietly, still afraid someone or something might hear her.

"Darlin', we can't go back to Haeven. It isn't safe for us. We aren't going to hell. For some people, home is hell. For others, hell is home. But not for us, we don't have any business with hell and it certainly is not where you need to be.

La Gateau, we need to find another place to go. Did you eat and rest enough yet? Take us out of here as soon as you can."

Getting off the bed to stretch, La Gateau responds almost seemingly unconcerned. "So we might have a slight problem. It really hasn't happened before whenever I visit the Valkyrie, but I can't port anywhere right now. I can see where I want to go, but nothing is opening up and I can't feel the port. Something is blocking me."

Hearing La Gateau's predicament, Kala stands up abruptly and begins to move the chair from blocking the door. "Well, we need to find a safe place to go and that means we really can't stay here and wait for safety to come to us."

"We gonna explore?!? Like an adventure?" Screams Punkin as she jumps up off the bed, no longer trying to remain quiet and hidden.

Sighing, La Gateau leaves the bed reluctantly to follow Punkin towards the door.

As they open the door to leave the cabin, a cool breeze passes them and a sense of calm washes over the air.

Remaining cautious and aware of Eve's abilities, Kala weaves a protective aura using her beaded bracelet. Is this an enchantment in the air? Is Eve trying to put us under a spell. Brethren, watch over us.

Stepping out of the cabin, Kala notices hard-to-miss details that she did not observe when they first arrived. The odd decor of the ship surprises Kala, filling her mind with more curiosity of Eve's growth and trajectory as a witch.

Being her first time on a ship or anything outside of Haeven, Punkin wells up with excitement. Equally fascinated by the strange decor, Punkin screams gleefully and runs around the deck while proclaiming the misunderstandings of a three year old.

"This is my balky-ray now. It's so prettttttty. It is my ghost shit. You are my stow-away-ways," screams Punkin as she runs into a large greenhouse surrounding the center mass on the main deck.

Busting through the greenhouse doors, Punkin screams more excitedly upon recognizing some of the plants that Kala taught her about, " Shepard hydra! Hedera hell-ix. Nightshade! Angels Trumpet 'toot toot'. It's a magic garden for me! Calla-lilies!!!

Running out of the greenhouse, Punkin runs towards the rails of the ship, reaching for the vines intertwining across the rails to the taffrails. "Weeeee!!! Swing me!"