It was a huge fortress. Skrika had flags and murals painted across the giant walls depicting a sun over rolling hills.
“Oh, pretty,” Dan said.
“Seems nice,” Sage agreed.
Ron nodded, but was lost in thoughts. How had he not noticed Dan’s suffering before? How could there people out there that hate puppets? Should they just focus on traveling around the world and not look for ways home?
“Halt!” A voice snapped him out of his thoughts. “You four are at Skrika! State your business!”
It was a tall bird puppet similar to Forgie. He held a long spear and wore many bracelets, necklaces, and loose clothes. Dan blurted out in a loud whisper, “The Bobbie! Ron, remember?”
He couldn’t forget. “You wouldn’t happen to be Bobbie, would you?” Ron chanced, shouting across the gap between them. The bird raised his spear and asked, “Why? You here to collect a bounty or somethin’?”
“N-no, no we knew your brother Forgie briefly. He kinda threw us into this world.”
“Fuck me,” the puppet spat. Then to the other guard - a fully armor clad person, “Alright, I think these four are clear. Puppets can’t lie.”
The two sounded a whistle together and somewhere the gears started to turn with a thunder. The metal doors emblazoned with a sun opened outward. The guards approached the four waiting.
“Yeah, I’m Bobbie,” the bird said with a bob of his head. “My brother is Forgie. Welcome to Skrika. Sorry for the hostility - can’t be too careful these days.” He leaned on his spear. “What are you here for, just outta curiosity.”
“We’re just traveling the world right now and thought we’d start here. It’s been an interesting ride so far.” Dan said.
Bobbie laughed. “Interesting! That’s the half of it! Come on in! I think you four might have found your home!”
Dan looked to Ron with mixed excitement and worry. Ron shrugged and whispered, “Can’t be sure, so let’s just focus. We’re here for a visit for now.”
Dan nodded and answered, “Yeah, I get it. I just …”
Want a home. Somewhere stable, Ron guessed. I know you say that home is with me, but I know constantly traveling doesn’t agree with you. Ron asked in backlang, “You want to stay here?”
“Let’s see this place first,” Dan answered. “I don’t want to settle so soon!”
Sage’s brow wrinkled as they tried to understand. They started to say something but was caught off guard by the bright and colorful surroundings.
Buildings were painted reds, yellows, blues, and pinks. There were storage buildings and silos, a few free-roaming farm animals.
The buildings at the center of town faced the town square, where a park was errected around a circle pond.
Children both human and puppet alike played there, a few adults joining in races or games of tag.
Amongst the adults was a large, yellow puppet that had the head of a sun and a huge face. His clothes were simple tunic and pants with a few straps wrapped around his waist.
“That’s Charlie,” Bobbie said. “He’s the leader of the fort. I’ll let you folks go talk to him.” Before anyone could ask why let them on their own, Bobbie was halfway to his post.
The group dismounted and let the donkeys off at the stable next to the gate. Bevel kept carrying Sage as the group walked to the park. “This place seems nice,” Sage said. “Bright, happy place.”
“Seems like it,” Ron agreed, a seed of hope sewing in his chest. Maybe this could be home? Ugh, it’s too early to know. We’ve hardly traveled and we’re planning to settle already? Part of him wanted to see more of the world.
As the four approached, the sun-headed puppet waved to them, his grin getting big enough to make his eyes squint. “Well what do we have here?” he asked as he met them halfway. Children and adults alike gathered to gawk at Bevel, who waved shyly.
“We’re travelers come to see Skrika and get our bearings on where to head next,” Ron answered when the others didn’t speak up. “A beautiful place you have here.” The three of them gave brief introductions.
“Thank you! I’m Charlie, he/him. You have come at a great time! We’re getting ready for our little summer festival! Would you be interested in staying?”
The other three nodded. “Of course,” Ron answered. “Do we need to bring something or do anything for the festival?”
“Of course not! We’ll provide you with housing, as is our way, is it not Dan and Ron?” He grinned, making his eyes squint again.
“Sure,” Ron agreed as neutrally as possible. He didn’t like Sage was getting left out.
“Go on and my assistant will take you to the visitor apartments.” Charlie motioned to a wooden elephant puppet who nodded and motioned for the four to follow.
The apartments were a pair of humble duplexes that were butted against each other at the far end of the fort. The elephant bowed to the others and said, “Smiles for miles.” And left without another word.
“Miles?” Dan asked. “What does any of that mean?”
“Travel with a smile?” Sage suggested.
“Let’s check out the apartment,” Ron suggested.
Bevel shrunk down as the group went into the apartments. They were fully furnished with a banner of the sun over the hills like outside.
“What kind of crest is that?” Sage seemed to ask the air as they approached the banner hanging over the fireplace.
“I don’t know,” Dan answered as he sat on one of the plush chairs. “This is nice.”
“I’m not sure about this place,” Ron said. “Something feels … off.”
Dan stood and glanced at the room. An empty shelf remained in the corner. “It seems alright to me. Did you pick up on something earlier?”
Ron crossed his arms, reviewing things.
“I’m absolutely shocked we found Bobbie. I hope he doesn’t ask about Forgie,” Dan admitted, fiddling with his fingers together.
Something about the way Charlie smiled and the phrase “smiles for miles” didn’t sit right with him. He scanned through his knowledge of history - surely he heard that phrase before? Something similar?
Sage went to the kitchen and opened the cabinets to find they were fully stocked with dried and canned goods. “Oh, wonderful.”
“I wonder what the bedrooms look like,” Dan said. “Although I suppose you and I will have to share a bedroom while we’re here.”
“It won’t be long,” Ron answered, deciding the memories would return later. Maybe it wasn’t anything to worry about. “We’ll stay for the festival and leave in a week from now.”
“Sounds great!” Dan said. “I could use the rest.” He yawned. “I might go to bed now.”
Sage and Ron yawned as well. “Ah, maybe so. That sounds good,” Sage agreed.
Ron and Dan found the bedroom was furnished with a full size, a bit small for the duo. “We treat it like a long sleepover,” Dan said, climbing on the bed and striking a pose. He sighed heavily and fell back. “Nevermind. Too tired, ugh.”
Ron smiled. He unfastened and unbuckled his overalls. He climbed on the bed. “It’s a squeeze, but we can make do.” He crawled over Dan so the small puppet laid underneath him. “Maybe we could have a little activity? Might help us sleep better.”
Dan grinned and stretched to grab one of Ron’s horns to pull Ron down for a passionate kiss.
Ron dreamt about his old Survival Scout Leader, an alligator puppet with floppy spikes. “Ronnie,” said the Scout Leader as he looked up from the cloth flames and paper mache wood, “you got good instincts. Keep it up.” He pointed a stick at Ronnie with a nod.
A bell somewhere on the fort woke Ron and Dan. Both groaned as their sleep was interrupted. “What is that?” Dan groaned.
Ronnie sat upright and slipped out of the bed.
“Ugghh,” Dan groaned.
“I’ll check it out,” Ron whispered and patted Dan on the shoulder. The puppet rolled over with a sigh.
Ron put on his overalls and trekked to the front door. There was a sound like singing or chanting that caught his ear right away.
He followed the sound and it wasn’t long before he found a huge crowd gathered at the central park. Charlie stood on a crate at the center, raising his arms and coaxing the crowd on.
“Smiles for miles,” the crowd half-sang, half-chanted. “Smiles for miles!”
Ron’s brow wrinkled. This didn’t seem right. Ron tiptoed closer to a house and pressed against it to watch. Charlie stomped his feet and shouted, “We’re one big happy family!”
Gotta trust my instincts, Ron thought as he made his way back to the apartment. We get what we need and continue on our journey.
Pancakes. Ron woke craving them. There were many things he knew he couldn’t make here due to a lack of know-how or availability - tofu sushi, certain fried vegetables, or some baked goods. Surely pancakes are possible.
He walked into the kitchen and rummaged around. One thing that proved difficult was the inability to read the language here. Everyone spoke the same language as Ron and Dan, but he figured that was some blessing from Glitter.
Sage stumbled into the kitchen area, rubbing an eye. They were dressed down to their boxers. “What are you doing?” they asked.
“Can you help me? I want to make pancakes.”
“What?” Sage asked, rubbing their face vigorously now. “Give me a second.” They pulled out the tea and messed with the oven to stoke the embers. They whispered words of encouragement to the flames. Then to Ron, “Let me have tea first and then I’ll help you make your … whatever it was.”
Ron sat at the table instead, instinct telling him to steer clear of the fire. Everything here was so different than home, even the fire acted different. He and Dan suffered enough singed fur by now to know - fire here caught on their fur with ferocity.
Sage sat across from Ron and asked, “What is it, again?”
“Pancakes. Flapjacks? Uh, flat cakes fried on a pan?” With each suggestion, Sage shook their head. “Okay, then. I need you to read out the ingredients for me and I’ll measure them out.”
Maybe this would be a good time to bond, Ron pondered. I don’t think I’ve had much time with Sage by myself.
The two went to the kitchen. Ron explained the ingredients, which he thankfully had memorized. During his bachelor days, pancakes were just about the only thing he ate. Once he got good at making them from scratch, he wanted to perfect it and found recipes for making different kinds.
Some ingredients he never worked with or really knew about, like oatmeal flour or dried goat’s milk. “We usually have soy milk,” Ron suggested.
“I don’t know what a soy is,” Sage answered. “But I can help with the hydrating the milk.”
Ron measured out the ingredients in Sage’s alchemy equipment. Unfortunately, kitchens here didn’t use measuring equipment. The duo had limited success over the month trying to understand “pinch” and “some” measurements the people told them.
This required precision. “And a boop of flour on the nose,” Ron said and stuck a finger to Sage’s nose. The witch flinched, but realized what happened. They started to laugh and sneezed instead. “Your fur tickles!”
“Whoops!” Ron said and handed them a handkerchief.
Dan’s giggle met Ron’s ears and Dan asked, “Is it pancake time?”
“Yes!” Ron said. “If we can get them made! Its been hard to get everything right.”
“And what am I doing?” Sage asked with a laugh, “Blowing spit bubbles?”
“You’ve been a big help, of course.”
“Do you want me to join in?” Dan asked.
“Me and Sage can take care of it,” Ron answered.
“Alright. I’ll sit in the nice chair then.”
Ron guided Sage over how to pour and flip the pancakes. As the two waited for the pancakes to cook, Ron said, “Did you ever cook with your family?”
“No,” Sage answered. Melancholy took over their expression, but they perked up a little. “But Soren taught me how to cook over a flame and a stove like this.”
“I love cooking,” Ron said. “Sometimes I think Dan married me for my good dishes.”
“Not just your good looks,” Dan called from the living room. “But your cooking too!” The two in the kitchen laughed.
There was a knock at the door. Dan got up to answer it. It was Charlie. “Hello, my friends! Settling in well?” Charlie asked as he wedged his way in past Dan. “Hope you don’t mind me coming in! I have a lot to do this morning!” He smiled wide as usual.
“Oh, uh, you’re already in,” Ron said, trying to be polite. “Do you want to join us for pancakes?”
“I couldn’t possibly have the time! Oh! Well! Yes, I can have a moment of breaking fast, hm-hm!” His laugh was a high pitched hum, like a suppressed chuckle. Ron hoped it would only be the four travelers. But Charlie had a lot of questions and wanted to be thorough, which he said as much as he sat at the small dining table.
The pancakes were delicious. Even Bevel ate some, even though it didn’t need them. Maple syrup, goat butter, and powdered sugar was passed around to top the fluffy cakes.
“... And you four are traveling since?” Charlie asked as the three finished telling their story. “My, how inspiring!” He took a massive bite of pancake. “To see the world and find yourselves as well as grow into your own as witches!”
“Yes,” Sage answered in a flat voice.
Charlie chuckled to himself as he ate away at the last of the pancakes. Everyone had two and Charlie was on his fourth. “I would encourage you three to get on as quickly as you can! I’ll have our cartographer draw up maps for you.”
“That would be most helpful,” Ron agreed.
Charlie finished off the pancakes with a few bites. “Well! I need to get going!” He wiped his mouth with a handkerchief and stood up. “No need to see me out.”
No one moved and watched the sun-head puppet leave as he waved to them. They waved back politely.
“I don’t like him,” Sage said as soon as the door was closed. “He reminds me of, well, most nobles I knew back then. Thinks he owns our space.”
“Just ate all the pancakes without a care,” Dan said in a mournful tone.

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