Exiled Villainess Becomes Ruler (Incomplete/ Still Editing)

Strange Fruits (Edited 1/17/24)

"W-what?!" Kyle stutters, not sure if he heard right.

"I said that I'll give you guys another chance," Eve repeated, looking serious at them. "I forgive you for your previous behavior, so I will continue to train you all as we normally do. But I must warn you, this will be your last chance. Do not behave rebelliously like that ever again," she finished sternly.

"I..." Kyle couldn't believe that his older sister figure forgave him after the way they acted. Or more like the way he acted.

Mason and Julia felt the same way. They colluded with Kyle after all and followed his actions.

"I don't think we deserve forgiveness, Eve, but thank you for forgiving us," Kyle finally says gratefully with a feeling of relief.

"Yes, thank you for forgiving us, Eve," said Julia and Mason also gratefully.

Eve gave a sigh of relief.

"Okay, thank you guys for listening to me and apologizing. Remember to pay attention to your own behavior from now on. You guys want to become someone people can look up to, right?"

"Yes!" The three kids nodded, hanging on to her every word.

"Then make sure to correct your behavior if you fall out of line. The two of you will enter your teens soon. Hell, before you know it, you will all be adults. You need to be prepared for that. So get used to thinking before you act, understand?" Eve continues.

In this world, the kids need to grow up fast, Eve thought.

"Yes, we do understand!" The kids say.

"Good!" Eve nodded. "Now this discussion is done and over with; let us all head back to the camp."

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Jon had just woken up. He gave a loud yawn and stretched his arms over his head before he saw Eve and the three kids return to the camp.

"Eve! Where have you guys been?! You guys woke up before the rest of us!" He said in surprise. Zeke and Melody had also just woken up and started to fold their mats. They heard Jon and turned to see the four appear from the trees.

"I am an early riser and just did a bit of exploring in the forest," Eve replied.

"We just couldn't sleep," admitted Kyle, being the voice for the other kids, "So we went to talk somewhere and eventually met with Eve."

"Oh okay," Jon said with a shrug. "Wait, what is that you are holding in your arms, Eve?" Jon asked with a weirded-out look at the sight of the strangely shaped fruits in her arms. He still hadn't gotten up from his mat.

"These?" Eve looks down at the different fruits she carries in her arms, "These are some of the fruits that I found and plucked from the trees of this forest." She answered him.

"You are not planning on trying to eat those, are you?" Jon said apprehensively, pointing at the fruits. "Those fruits are unfamiliar; they could be poisonous and kill you."

"What? Have people who ever entered this forest before never tried to taste these fruits?" Said Eve in shock. She suddenly remembers that when she first arrived at the village, Arlene told her that no one touched the fruits of the Kooky Forest as they were thought to be dangerous.

"Yes." It was Zeke who spoke up. " The past explorers of the forest say that many of the fruits they saw have surfaces that are too spiky, bumpy, or even hairy. None of the fruits here are as smooth or round like apples or oranges, so nobody wants to risk eating fruits that look like that," he explained.

"But..." Eve took out one of the fruits in her arms. This one actually looks like...

A dragon fruit.

It might actually be one with the coloring and shape.

She even has fruits that look like a pineapple, rambutans, and durian.

The others she has, she doesn't recognize, but Eve has a theory that all these fruits she has are like the ones on Earth.

"No, I disagree Zeke. I think we can eat these fruits," Eve said confidently.

"You think so?" Zeke asked in uncertainty.

"NO, DON'T!" Jon immediately cuts in, finally standing up, " If you eat those, you might die!"

"Look Jon, people can't just think something is poisonous just from the way it looks!" Eve said with an irritated look.

"I think she is right," Melody pipes up, " You can't think that something is bad just from the way it looks!"

"Yes! Thank you for backing me up, Melody!"

"No problem, girl!"

"How about I try one of these fruits right in front of you? Here Kyle, carry these for me for a second." She handed the rest of the fruits to Kyle, who stood next to her.

The durian gave most of the weight as it was the largest fruit and made Kyle wobble a bit.

Eve only kept the pink dragon fruit and began to peel it.

"Wait! Don't eat it!" Jon ran towards her and tried to hit her hands away to drop it.

He was too late as Eve skillfully dodges him and scooped up the white flesh with tiny black seeds inside.

She ate it.

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Later:

"Oh my god Zeke! Stop eating that fruit! I can smell its disgusting stench from here!" Jon complains sitting across from his older brother on the camp ground.

"But it tastes so good Jon! I can't help it! I'm addicted to its taste!" Zeke replies happily as he indulged in the flesh of the durian.

Out of the rest of the group, he is the only one that enjoys eating it.

The group shared the dragon fruit, pineapple, rambutans, and the other fruits with each other. They also caught small animals to eat as well.

Basically, it is their breakfast.

All those fruits turn out to be edible.

"If your breath smells bad, it will really turn me away from kissing you, Zeke," said Melody as she ate more of the rambutans. She enjoyed those the most.

"Don't worry Melody my sweet! I think I can find some herbs in this forest that will freshen my breath!" Zeke replies cheerfully.

Jon really enjoys the dragon fruits. Eve and the kids share a pineapple.

What a discovery! The people in the village will be in for a surprise! Eve thought.

Note: I don't know how long they will remain in the Kooky Forest but it will likely have a lot of parts so that it will lead to something major. It will be something that suprises everyone.