Blackberry's Second Journal: Chapter 1

[Blackberry Bun]

This, is the beginning of my second journal. A journal written from a twist of fate. A journal which is not supposed to exist because I was supposed to be already dead by the time the events written in this journal happen. However, a second chance at life has been given by Him so I could exist within them and write this second journal.

Before I begin for real, first I have to say that I will never figure out what actually had happened to Black Currant after the explosion hit me. My memory of that accident has been replaced with Black Currant sacrificing his life to save mine. After that accident I buried him at the backyard and I mourned for nearly a week. Another point is that the event where I had healed my past self from the fatal wound has never happened. After leaving the alternate Strawberryland the chapter skipped straight to the end. Also, this might sound weird, but the time spent in the Land of Oz was not six years. It was actually only four years. Other than those, along with a few moments of recalling Black Currant, the rest of the first journal still remains correct.

Now where should I start again...? Okay, I think I will start from the beginning of the first journal's epilogue.


Chapter 1: False Epilogue


Like how it had disappeared, Albatross reappeared with a flash of light. Below, I could see that we were flying above the wood between my house and Huck's fort, and the wood had become creepy and scary like how I remembered, which meant that we had arrived in the past, or maybe I should say the present. I then piloted Albatross to land on the outfield of Strawberryland. Coincidentally, two friends we knew were walking there when we arrived. They were Blueberry and Rainbow, and they remained unchanged although noticeably taller.

"Alright, welcome to the present," I said. Opening the hatch. "We have been missing for four years, so prepare for a reunion."

All of us then jumped out from Albatross, and as expected, the two girls looked at us in disbelief.

"Strawberry Shortcake...?" Blueberry asked.

"Is that really you...?" Rainbow asked.

"Why yes, it's me!" Strawberry said. "Have I been missing for so long?"

"Long? Four years is absoloo-tely long!" Blueberry said, jumping to Strawberry to hug her.

"You sure have changed, mateys," Rainbow said, looking at Strawberry and the others.

"Yep, a lot of things have happened and I bet we all can't wait to tell everyone about it, am I right?" Ginger said. "Let's call everyone to the clubhouse for a huge big reunion party, shall we, huh everyone?"

"That's a nice idea!" Angel said.

"Yeah, I agree with that," Orange said.

"Well, why not?" Peppermint said.

"Apple Dumplin' likes to tell stories!" Apple said.

"I'll park Albatross at my home first then," I said. "I'll meet you later."

"Okay, see you later," Huck said as I rode into Albatross and flew away.

"Well, maybe you can start telling us some stories while walking?" Rainbow asked as the group started to walk towards the clubhouse.

"Well, it all started when Blackberry made another new flying car," Angel said.

"Is that the one he just brought away?" Blueberry asked.

"Well, not exactly," Huck said. "It has the same name, though."

"Save that for later, matey. For now I want to know where you have been missing," Rainbow said.

"Well, we have been staying in a place called The Land of Oz," Strawberry said as the group kept walking.


Meanwhile, I arrived at my home to park Albatross near the spots where I believed Falcon and Blackbird were parked. I landed it successfully and jumped out from it. However, before walking towards the clubhouse, I walked towards a patch of land a few steps away from the back of my house. On the ground there, there was a small mound covered in green grass and on top of the mound there was a small gravestone with the words "Black Currant" carved on it. I kneeled with one knee in front of the gravestone and mused for a few seconds.

"Hi, Black Currant." I said. "It has been a very long time since my last visit," I continued, changing my stance from kneeling into sitting cross-legged. "Sorry that I have been missing for so long," I paused for a few seconds. "I have been staying in a place called The Land of Oz. There were so many things happened during my stay there, and I met a lot of new friends!" I paused again. "But I still didn't forget you..."

There was another pause for some seconds. "I'm still very grateful for what you did at that time. Without your sacrifice, I wouldn't be here now, and I wouldn't have met my friends."

I mused again, and then I stood up. I looked at my watch and realized that I had spent too much time visiting Black Currant's grave. My friends were surely waiting for me to come, and I must not waste any more time. So, I immediately went into my house and picked a familiar wing-shaped badge from my shelves. I then put the badge on my shirt and jumped out from the window. The badge still worked well in making my body lighter, and with ease I jumped high and fast towards the clubhouse.

I arrived at the front of the clubhouse in the next minute. I then took the badge off from my shirt and put it into my pocket. After that I opened the door of the clubhouse and saw that the rest of Strawberryland kids were already there. The ones who had not been gone has not changed much, they had become noticeably taller but none of them changed their outfit. I could notice that the ones who had been gone has reunited with their pets and were overjoyed.

"You're late, Blackberry. What took you so long?" Peppermint asked. "We've spent a lot of time with our pets. We're so happy that we can meet them again."

"Peppermint!" Strawberry said, gently hitting Peppermint's arm with her elbow.

"What's the matter?" Peppermint asked. She then looked at me and her face expression suddenly changed. She seemed to realize something.

"Oh..." she said. "I'm sorry... I really forgot about Black Currant..."

"That's fine, never mind. So, now what are we going to do?" I asked.

"How about telling us all about The Land of Oz?!" Raspberry asked.

"Well, I guess it's Blackberry's turn to tell the tale then," Huck said.

"Huh? Why me?" I asked.

"Well, you see, each and everyone of us didn't get to know much about the whole land because we are so busy leading our people, am I right? Okay, I have been in some amazing places, Huckleberry has seen other amazing places, Strawberry and Apple has seen some other amazing places, Angel Cake has seen yet some other amazing places, Orange Blossom has also seen other amazing places, and Peppermint has seen other amazing places, am I right again?" Ginger said.

"Yeah, that's true..." I said.

"But you're the only one who has been everywhere!" Angel said.

"I have seen the Rainbowberry Lake, but I have never seen The Sun Temple," Orange said.

"I have been in Tropical Island, but I have never been in The Raining Woods," Strawberry said.

"Okay, I get the point," I said. "Indeed I have been everywhere, but I went everywhere mostly because I was looking for special materials to make Albatross what it is now. The sceneries were nice indeed, but those were not my main focus so I don't remember much."

"But you do know a thing or two about those places right?" Peppermint said.

"That's true," I said.

"That's why you are the best to start telling tales. You know about Oz as a whole!" Huck said.

"Don't worry, Blackberry. Just tell the basics and the rest of us will cover the details," Apple said.

"Okay, I will try," I said. I then sat on a nearby sofa and took a deep breath. "It all started when I made Albatross, a new flying car or airship or whatever we usually call it. I made it to travel to outer space."

"Is Albatross the one I and Blueberry saw just now?" Rainbow asked.

"No. Albatross was destroyed in The Land of Oz. The one you saw was the new one I made," I replied.

"Destroyed? How come?" Lemon asked.

"We got sucked into a Black Hole," I answered and everyone gasped, except those who had experienced it.

"Did you just say Black Hole? The mysterious hole in space which sucks anything nearby, and those who enter will never get out?" Blueberry asked.

"Yes," I answered and everyone gasped again. "With some luck we managed to get out from it. However, the engine exploded because of overworking."

"What happened then?" Plum asked.

"No choice other than crash landing to the nearest planet," I answered.

"I suppose you landed in The Land of Oz, right?" Apricot asked.

"That's right. Remaking Albatross took four years, but we got to meet many of the inhabitants there, and everyone except me ended up becoming a leader of a region," I said.

"What took you so long?" Raspberry asked.

"I didn't bring my handy tools, and the technology in Oz is too limited," I said.

"Okay, I see that. So, what kind of inhabitants live there?" Raspberry asked again.

"Well, besides the few humans there are berrykins," I replied. "Strawberry and Apple lead them."

"Berrykins?" Rainbow asked. "How do they look like?"

"Well, think of our berry ball with two small arms, two small legs, and a head," Strawberry said.

"The berrykins are so cute Apple Dumplin' loves them berry much," Apple said.

"Then, Angel Cake lead the berry fairies," I said.

"Berry fairies? Like the ones living near Strawberryland?" Raspberry asked.

"Not precisely the same but... pretty much like those," Angel said.

"Ginger Snap got to lead the berry sprites," I said.

"There's almost no difference between the berry fairies and berry sprites! Yep, almost none at all! The only way to know the difference is that the berry sprites have pointy ears while the berry fairies have round ears just like us, am I right?" Ginger said.

"That's right. Then, Orange had the berry elves under her command," I said.

"The berry elves are larger than berrykins, berry fairies, and berry sprites, but still smaller than us. They are playful and lively, but many of them are ignorant and love to play pranks," Orange said.

"But thanks to you they no longer do those mean pranks anymore, Orange Blossom," Strawberry said.

"Moving on, Huckleberry took care of the berry dwarves," I said.

"Man, those dwarves sure are tough, even though they are only half our size!" Huck said. "Not to mention that they are so short tempered!"

"And it was thanks to you that they learned to control their temper," I said.

"Hey, I didn't do much. They learned it themselves!" Huck said.

"I don't think so. Anyway, last but not least, Peppermint became the leader of berry spiders," I said.

"Spiders?" Plum asked.

"Yes. Spiders," Peppermint said. "They are just like the spiders we see here in Strawberryland, but they are as big as the berry ball and they are as colorful as berries."

"That sounds... strange," Apricot said. "I don't really like how it sounds."

"Why strange? They are friendly and helpful!" Peppermint said. "Not to mention that the place where they live is very fun!"

"She's afraid of spiders. We can't blame her," Plum said.

"Hmph, alright then. Fine," Peppermint said, and I could see that she was a bit upset.

The storytelling continued for a very long time because there were so many things to tell about. Without our knowing, it was nightfall already.

"Well, now that we have told you everything, it's your turn to tell tales," I said.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Plum asked.

"Anything special happened while we were away?" I asked back.

"Well, nothing happened actually," Blueberry said. "Without Strawberry, Strawberryland doesn't feel like... Strawberryland."

"Yeah, there hasn't been anything special," Lemon said.

"If this counts, sometimes the friends from outside Strawberryland came to visit," Raspberry said.

"But there was nothing much to do," Apricot said. "Strawberryland has been so uncool without you, Strawberry. And everyone else as well!"

"Alright, everyone. We're sorry for being away for so long. It was all my fault," I said.

"No, it was not your fault!" Peppermint said.

"Yes it was!" I replied. "I brought you into all those."

"Stop blaming yourself, Blackberry. The most important thing is that we are here now, safe and sound. Nobody is going to blame you, right everyone?" Strawberry said, and everyone replied with a sure nod. I was speechless for a moment.

"Thanks everyone..." I said.

"Oh yes, I want to ask about this too," Huck said. "Have Purple Pie Man and Sour Grapes ever come here again while we were away?"

"No, we have not seen them since the last time they were here. Wasn't that the time when he held me in my own boat?" Rainbow said.

"Heh, I would rather not remember that," Peppermint said.

"Me too, that was so uncool," Apricot said.

"That's a relief," I said. "But that's also a bit strange. I mean, he wants the berries here so badly so it sounds strange if he never came here for four years."

"I get what you mean, but we shouldn't worry about that no good Pie Man," Peppermint said.

"Okay, maybe you're right," I said.

"Look at the time! It's almost bedtime already!" Plum said, looking at the clock within the clubhouse.

"You're absoloootely right. I think it's time to go home," Blueberry said.

"I think so too," Lemon said.

"I believe we all have told our tales anyway," Raspberry said.


Soon, with proper farewell everybody in the clubhouse left the place. I walked together with Strawberry, Apple, Angel, Orange, Ginger, Huck, and Peppermint.

"By the way, Strawberry. Do you have any plans for tomorrow?" I asked.

"Well, not yet. Why is that, Blackberry?" Strawberry asked back.

"I'm thinking of visiting some other friends we have not met yet tomorrow. Do you want to come with me?" I said.

"That's a berry great idea! Of course I will come with you!" Strawberry said in excitement.

"Others can come with me as well," I said, looking at the others.

"Sure! I will go too!" Angel said.

"Hey hey hey! Count me in, will ya?" Ginger said.

"Why not?" Orange said.

"You won't need to ask me twice," Huck said.

"Apple Dumplin' wants to go too!" Apple said.

"That sorta sounds interesting," Peppermint said.

"That's settled then," I said. "Meet me tomorrow morning at my house. See you tomorrow."

After I said those, I put the wing badge on my shirt and jumped away from the group. I arrived at my house within the next minute and soon I went to sleep. Before falling asleep, I wondered for a while. My house had been deserted for four years, but there was no sign of such thing such as dust or spider webs. It seemed that someone had been taking care of my house while I had been away.

At the next day, I woke up in the morning. After having breakfast I went to the backyard where all my vehicles were parked. Using the remotes I brought along, I put all my vehicles out from their invisibility, except Albatross which didn't have invisibility to begin with. As expected, Falcon and Blackbird were covered in dust, but Arrowhead, which also had no invisibility, was clean. That meant someone indeed had been taking care of my house while I had been away.

"Whoever did this, I must say thanks," I said to myself.

"Good morning, Blackberry!" a familiar voice greeted from behind.

"Good morning, Strawberry, and everyone as well," I greeted back, seeing that she came together with the others.

"Have you been waiting for us?" Orange asked.

"No, I was just looking at all my vehicles," I replied.

"Oh yeah! I remember that you had two other flying cars other than the new one you made in Oz, am I right? What was the name of the other two? Falcon and Blackbird, am I right again?" Ginger said.

"So, which one we're gonna use?" Angel asked.

"Albatross is the only one having enough seats for all of us, so Albatross it is," I answered, and all of us went onboard Albatross.

"Where are we going first?" Huck asked as I started the engine.

"Well, I'm thinking of visiting the closest one first," I said. "That means Coco Calypso."

"That's a berry nice idea!" Strawberry said.

"I second that," Peppermint said.

"Apple Dumplin' likes to visit Coco!" Apple said.

"Others agree?" I asked, and everyone else replied with agreement. "Okay, let's go."

I then flew Albatross towards the Seaberry Shore where Coco Calypso lived. The flight only lasted for a few minutes, and soon I landed Albatross on the beach near Coco's house. After I turned the engine off, I opened the hatch and jumped out, followed by everyone else.

"Coco Calypso!" Strawberry shouted, calling in excitement. However, there was no answer.

"I think we should just walk there and knock the door," Peppermint said.

"Yeah sorry, I was berry berry excited," Strawberry said. So, we all walked to Coco's house and knocked the door. Once again, there was no answer.

"Maybe she's visiting Seaberry?" Orange said.

"I don't think so," I said. "We all know that it is impossible for anyone other than Seaberry herself to go there, except if we use my Falcon."

"Coco, are you there?" Strawberry said, knocking the door again. She then tried opening the door, and it turned out that the door was not locked.

"Shall we go in?" I asked.

"Let's try it," Huck said. Strawberry then opened the door wide, and we were shocked by what we saw next. The room inside the house was a complete mess. The sofa was flipped over, the table was not much better, fruits on the table had been thrown all over the place. It seemed that there had been a fight or such in there.

"What happened here?" Angel asked.

"Whoa, the house is a very very very big mess! Yep it sure is!" Ginger commented.

"Hello, anybody home?" Strawberry shouted.

"The fruits thrown around are still fresh. Whatever happened here, it happened not long ago," I said.

"Hey, I found someone!" Orange shouted from behind a flipped sofa.

"Coco?" Strawberry asked.

"No," Orange replied. "It's Papaya Parrot."

All of us immediately went to Orange and found Papaya Parrot lying on the floor, fainted. We then put a sofa back into good position and put papaya there. A few minutes later, the parrot woke up.

"AARGH! HELP!" Papaya Parrot jumped and shouted in panic.

"Calm down, Papaya Parrot! It's me! Strawberry Shortcake!" Strawberry said.

"Strawberry Shortcake? The others too! Am I glad to see you all again!" Papaya said.

"What have happened here?" Peppermint asked.

"It was so scary! Me and Coco were having our breakfast, and suddenly it came! We thought we were in danger, and we were! See what I mean?!" Papaya said.

"Uhh, not exactly, not precisely..." Strawberry said.

"Not at all," Peppermint said.

"She's been kidnapped!" Papaya shouted, which shocked all of us.

"Kidnapped? Who kidnapped her?" Angel asked.

"It was a man!" Papaya said.

"Purple Pie Man?" Angel asked.

"Tell us how that man looked like," I said.

"Ohh that man was scary! I remember his tall hat and long black coat, and I was so scared! Coco struggled against him and I also tried to stop him, but with just one hit from his hand I got thrown to the wall and I don't remember anything more!" Papaya said.

"Tall hat and black coat? That doesn't sound like Pie Man," Peppermint said.

"That's because he is not Pie Man," I said. "He is worse than Pie Man."

"What? Who?" she asked.

"Don't tell me that Coco has been kidnapped by..." Strawberry said.

"I'm afraid it's true, Strawberry," Orange said.

"Licorice Whip!" I shouted. "You will not get away with this!"

--End of Chapter 1--

[Stella Grapes]

I have no idea what I said about this chapter. Some punctuation is off, with a period where there should be a comma and other such small errors. It's a good chapter and it leaps right into a new adventure, which is also good.