Royal Halloween Hijinks
Summary: A month after their mystery adventure, the families of Enchancia are invited to spend All Hallows' Eve in another kingdom only to be apart of a celebration filled with tricks and treats. Co written once again with Jolly Roger Brat.
Disclaimer: We don't own Sofia the First, just our characters! And If you haven't read The Mystery of the Missing Mementos, I (And I suppose Jolly Roger Brat) would recommend you read that before coming to this one.
Chapter One
"Auntie Madeline, why are we so high up?" Elena asked, her face turning green as one of her eight year old aunts gently held the back of her hair.
"Because the horsies need the air to fly," Madeline explained as Elena started to throw up. "And that's how we'll get to Sandra and Zoe's castle."
"Boat better!" Elena pouted, finishing her throwing up as Gabby noticed in concern how pale she was.
It had been a month since their mystery adventure and the two families of Enchancia were invited to celebrate All Hallows'' Eve in Orillia, making Gabby and Elena a little scared to celebrate a holiday away from their only home that they had ever known.
"You got Mommy's seasickness?" Gabby asked in concern.
"Gabby, we're not on a boat sweetie," Miranda said with a smile. "We're in a carriage."
"It's okay, Elena; I know this will be a new experience for you, but you've been to different places before," Bobby Lee said as he gave her a bottle of water to rinse her mouth out, followed by a hug.
"You'll like Orillia, Elena," Sabrina smiled. "Sandra's a great cook. And besides, she did mention she had a kitty."
Elena smiled. Zoe and Sandra had mentioned her cat Ambre, and she was eager to meet him. She was also interested in meeting their brother Ezekiel and his dachshund Spike.
Gabby, on the other hand, was leery of dogs. Zoe and Sandra offered to watch Spike while they were there, but the dog usually did pretty well when he was watched.
"Just remember, girls, don't take any food unless Sandra says it's okay!" Nell spoke up, recalling that Madeline and Sabrina had shared an apple Danish that was for one of the knights. However, Sandra had assured them that there were plenty of treats she'd made to go around, and this sort of thing happened all the time.
"We promise we'll be good, Nell," Madeline promised, Sabrina nodding at her side.
"Just in case, girls, we'll be keeping an eye on you!" Bianca spoke up, Florence nodding at her side.
"But not just the children Bianca, but we advise a certain young married couple not to, pardon me girls for my next few words, horseplay during our stay," Florence muttered, much to the embarrassment of her son and daughter in law. "Robert, I know that I've been wanting a grandchild or two from you but Helen with child is not something that I want after Hallows Eve."
"Mommy and Daddy can play with horsies if they want too!" Gabby pouted as Elena started to turn green again.
"No horsies please!" Elena pouted, starting to not like being up in the air.
"It's just a figure of speech, sweetheart," Florence smiled, rubbing her back like she used to with Bobby Lee whenever he got sick. "But I also heard about how your sister rode a horse when she wasn't supposed to. Hopefully she won't do that again?"
"No!" Gabby shook her head. She still remembered the flying horse from Amber's party where James had to do a daring (and horrifying to him!) midair rescue.
"I think think beside your eyes and face like her twin, Elena's inherited your things that move sickness. Except with flying carriage Helen," Bobby Lee softly chuckled as Nell glared at him.
"Just because I accidentally threw up on you when we were eight, doesn't mean that you have to bring it up!" Nell shouted, gently patting Elena's back as the little girl just wanted off the carriage and to lay down.
To Elena's relief, the carriage landed a few minutes later. Robert, Patricia, Zoe, and Sandra were there to greet them. "Welcome to Orillia," Robert smiled. "We're so glad you could come."
"Where's your kitty?" Elena asked Sandra, who to her amazement was wearing a big apron over her blouse and skirt.
"The last time I saw him, Ambre was in my room," Sandra replied as she wiped off the flour on her hands. "Sorry I'm late, Dad; I just pulled dessert and some of the refreshments you wanted out of the oven."
"Don't worry, Sandra; we knew some of your treats weren't ready yet and we told you to take your time," Robert assured her.
"Where's doggie?" Gabby asked, looking around nervously.
"Spike?" Sandra looked around just in time to see a long black blur rushing toward them. She grinned as James intercepted the dog, who jumped in his arms and started licking him in the face. "He's right here!"
Gabby hid behind Nell's skirt as Nell knelt down to her level, gathering her up in a hug.
"I don't like doggie Mommy," Gabby said, feeling tears in her eyes. "He's scary."
"Aw... Baby, you like little doggies don't you?" Nell asked with a smile as Gabby nodded her head.
"But I'm not Elena! She likes all animals!" Gabby pouted, seeing her sister pet Spike.
"Spike's not so bad once you get used to him," James assured her, carrying him over and letting him lick her hand.
"Can we see Sandra's kitty now?" Gabby asked.
"Sure," Sandra agreed as she took off her apron. "Ambre's in my room, but don't be upset if he runs away or hides. He's kind of skittish around strangers."
"You hear that, Elena Lydia? Be gentle around Ambre, just like you are around Snow White," Bianca murmured.
"Okay," Elena smiled. She turned to Sandra in excitement, jumping up and down. "Kitty now!"
"Elena gets happy around animals," Gabby explained as Elena flapped her hands. "That means she's super happy."
"Hand flaps?" Zoe wondered, confused with what Elena was doing. "You're used to it aren't you, Gabby?"
"It takes time to get used to," Gabby admitted.
"I don't mind Elena doing this, but don't let Zeke see it," Sandra whispered, seeing Elena flapping her hands. "He comments on everything, and if he sees Elena acting like this, he'll have a field day."
"He like Jack?" Gabby asked, thinking of the boy in the village who teased Elena.
"I don't know who Jack is, but he'll be sure to say something about this," Sandra whispered as Bianca tried to get Elena to calm down.
Elena groaned, gently being told to stop as Nell and Bianca knelt down beside her.
"Love Bug, we're used to what you do but some people, like Jack for example, won't understand," Nell explained with a smile.
"I bad girl?" Elena asked, starting to cry.
"No, baby, you're not bad at all," Bianca murmured. "It's just that here, in a new place, some people won't know what you're doing and they might say something."
"We know what you're doing, sweetheart, but other people might not," Florence agreed as she gave her a hug.
"Thank you Grand Mommy, Miss Bianca," Elena sniffed, burying her face in Florence's blouse.
"You're welcome sweetheart. You up for a kitty visit?" Bianca asked with a gentle smile.
"Kitty visit?" Elena asked in confusion.
The group paused outside Sandra's room. Sandra took her apron off and laid it in her hamper. She led the group inside, motioning for them not to get too close.
Elena smiled when she looked in the room. On the chair near Sandra's desk, a yellow tabby cat was curled up taking a nap. "Kitty!" she whispered.
"That's right. That's Ambre," Sandra nodded. "Let him come to us when he's ready, Elena. For now, let's let sleeping kitties lie."
"He was a girl first?" Gabby asked.
"What?" Bianca asked.
"How could he be a girl?" Florence asked.
"Because his name was Amber when I first adopted him," Sandra explained. "The royal vet proved me wrong, so I changed the name to Ambre, which is pronounced like the Spanish word hombre, which means male."
"Good thing we checked Snow White!" Bobby Lee recalled with a chuckle.
"And the talk about girls and boys afterwards," Nell lightly groaned as Elena and Gabby giggled.
"So what we do now?" Elena asked as they left the room.
"You have Mr. Magic Man here too?" Gabby asked.
"Who?" Zoe asked.
"Do you have a Royal Sorcerer or Sorceress here?" Nell explained.
"Oh! Yes we do," Sandra nodded. "Her name's Aleena, and her tower's right this way."
"She have pet like Mr. Magic Man's birdie?" Elena asked.
"Yes she does," Zoe nodded. "She has a phoenix who lives in her tower, and a Pegasus who lives in the royal stable."
"I've always wanted to see a phoenix," Nell smiled.
"Well, now all of you will get the chance," Sandra said as she and Zoe led the way to Aleena's tower.
"I'm sure she's probably festive about All Hallows' Eve! It's her favorite time of year!" Robert explained with a chuckle.
"It's Helena's favorite too. As children we often dressed up as a duo," Bobby Lee explained before hearing his wife sigh and slump her shoulders. "Helen, what is it?"
"I was just thinking of the All Hallows' Eve treats that Mama liked me helping her bake with and Papa's freshly cut marigolds alongside the berries he liked nice and cold that he and I often fought over the last one," Nell recalled nostalgically before she sighed. "The girls are older now and I just don't want them to think any less of me by doing old traditions that mean so much to me. I want them to know about their grandparents."
"I'm sure they'd love any traditions you tell them about," Bobby Lee assured her. "We can even start some new traditions with them."
"Like what?" Nell asked.
"Didn't you and Lydia bake all those treats when we were kids? I remember we had a Foreign Foods festival at school one year when we were kids, and you brought in an entire box of...what were they again? The rosettes!" Bobby Lee smiled at the memory.
"Oh yes. The rosettes," Bianca smiled. "Helen told me that the teacher told her that several of the older students came in the room and were helping themselves. Fortunately, there were several treats to go around."
"I still remember their reactions to finding out that a little kid made the treats that they like!" Nell laughed with a smile, gently patting Elena and Gabby on their backs. "Girls would you like to help me do something?"
"Is it yummy?" Elena asked with a giggle.
"Yes it's very yummy!" Bobby Lee laughed, picking her up.
"Spider bad!" Gabby wailed, hiding behind Sofia who chuckled.
"Gabby, it's just a toy spider," Sofia assured, gently taking off the stuffed spider from its web for her to see.
"Gabby, if you don't like spiders, take a look at all the cats," Sandra smiled, pointing toward some plush cats on the windowsills.
"Kitty!" Elena cheered. She looked up at Sandra. "You still have your kitty Fig?"
"Yes I do," Sandra smiled, "When he's not in my bag at fencing matches, he lives in my room on my bed. Do you still have your Kitty?"
"She wouldn't leave without her," Nell chuckled.
"Mommy, Kitty wanted to come! Sides she no like being without me," Elena muttered, snuggling Kitty close.
"You sure it's not the opposite?" A female voice chuckled with a smile as Elena looked up, seeing flower petals.
"Pretty!" Elena yelled, taking one of the petals for herself.
"Thank you, sweetie," the group looked up to see a girl around Nell's age behind them. She wore flowing turquoise robes and had her long blonde hair tied back. "I hope you don't mind that these are silk flowers; Princess Sandra's so sensitive when it comes to smells."
"Don't worry, Aleena," Sandra smiled back at Orillia's Royal Sorceress, "This way they last longer."
"That's true, Princess," Bianca agreed. "But are you all right with dried flowers?"
"I'm okay with dried flowers, but the real ones have always bothered me," Sandra replied.
"Why?" Elena asked.
"I don't really know; I just know that I've always felt that way about certain smells and loud sounds," Sandra explained.
"Like me?" Elena asked, looking ready to cry.
"Elena, I like when you're loud," Gabby muttered, hugging her sister close.
"I do like you, Elena," Sandra tried to explain, "When I say I don't like loud noises, it's like...remember the loud noises we heard with the smoke before we found each of the scrolls for the treasure hunt?"
"Oh yes..." Bobby Lee nodded, recalling how Sandra had collapsed on the floor with her hands over her ears, "But I take it you also don't like it when people yell in your ears?" he added, recalling that Sandra had cringed against a wall when Elena was having a meltdown and screaming close to her ear.
"Like I said, I meant no offense or disrespect to you or Elena," Sandra said as she drew Elena into a hug.
"And no offense was taken," Bianca assured her.
Nell handed Elena a tissue as she wiped her nose on it before patting her back.
"She has autism," Nell explained with a smile, showing Kitty as an example. "Kitty, a flying jaquin toy given to us by Princess Elena of Avalor, is our Elena's favorite and her comfort toy. Though she sometimes feels bad when she makes others sad."
"So she understands them in a way?" Alenna guessed, seeing Elena look interested in her.
"Yes, she's gotten very good at understanding people's feelings," Nell smiled.
"And all you can do is take it one day at a time," Aleena agreed.
"That's what we always tell her, Miss Aleena," Bobby Lee smiled.
Aleena smiled as she showed everyone around her workshop. Her pet phoenix watched everyone from her golden perch. "You can pet her if you want," she said, seeing Elena's look of curiosity. "She's very friendly."
Even though Nell was terrified of birds, she smiled as she heard the phoenix's musical cry. "I've never heard anything so beautiful," she murmured.
"We keep?" Elena asked with a smile.
"No! I mean no Love Bug. She needs to stay here," Nell explained, trying her best not to freak out. "Stay here and away from me."
"Pardon me but you have a fear of birds?" Alenna wondered in surprise.
"Geese mostly ever since I was four but yes all birds and admittedly I tried to use our sorcerer's wand once to make them all disappear," Nell explained, looking embarrassed as she covered the scar she had received fourteen years earlier with her hand. "Of course it was after my rescue that I did it. Cedric wasn't pleased."
"You don't have to worry," Aleena assured her. "Sinistra's very sweet. She'd never hurt anyone. And don't let her name fool you; she's named after one of my favorite teachers."
"She's a magnificent creature, Miss Aleena," Roland smiled.
"Thank you, your majesty," Aleena curtsied, then she turned to Nell. "I understand how you feel. I've always been uneasy around water birds. Swans, I don't mind so much. I've always thought they were so pretty, and I even conjure one as my Patronus."
"Can we see it?" Florence asked.
"Of course," Aleena smiled. "Expecto Patronum!" Everyone watched as the swan flew around the room, and even Nell was amazed.
She had only seen magic at celebrations and maybe a few snooping into Sofia's lessons with Cedric out of the concern of Baileywick, Nell softly smiled at the act, actually glad that someone understood her fear.
Most people that she remembered from childhood would often laugh at her fear before being pulled out of her thoughts by the bird landing on her shoulder.
"Easy, Sinistra, that's a good girl," Aleena murmured, extending her arm. "Come back over here, sweetheart."
Sinistra flew back to her perch and watched as Aleena showed everyone around her workshop.
Even Sofia was amazed. The only other workshop she'd ever been in was Cedric's. Aleena's workshop was more organized, but she knew Cedric did his best, and she was always there to help straighten it up. Suddenly, a gold fountain in the back of the room caught her eye. "Look at that!" she gasped. As everyone watched, a spray of perfumed water shot out of the fountain and swirled around the room.
"Brilliant!" James smiled as the water made contact with everyone, giving them a little squirt.
"Forgive me for sounding like Hildegard, but I have to say it: Daddy, I want one of those!" Amber grinned.
"Me too!" Elena squealed, Gabby nodding in agreement.
"That's one of my favorite things to use when visitors come or there's a feast," Aleena smiled. "I also heard of your sorcerer's Morph-o-Mirrors, and I was wondering if he could help me entertain the guests at the All Hallows Eve party tonight."
"He would love too!" Sofia suggested with a smile.
"Meanie Mr. Magic man!" Elena pouted, holding Kitty close to her. "He take Kitty!"
"It was all for fun, Elena," Nell explained again. "He wanted to lead us on a treasure hunt, and he thought Kitty would like to participate. He never meant to be mean, and he did apologize to you that night."
"Can't you forgive Mr. Cedric, Elena?" Sofia asked.
"I forgave him for taking Fig," Sandra added.
"I forgave him for taking Little Rex," James agreed.
"I forgave him for taking Lamb-Lamb," Bobby Lee said as he hugged her.
"And I forgave him for taking my necklace," Nell finished. "Everything turned out fine in the end. Our missing items were found, and we all had fun looking for them."
"Okay. Mr. Magic man good now," Elena said, rubbing something rub against her legs. "Kitty?"
"Kitty?" Gabby wondered, looking at the ground.
"You're right; it is a kitty," Sandra grinned as she picked him up. "Ambre! But why don't we take him out so he doesn't aggravate King Roland's 'allergies,'" It was a little hard for her to make the air quotes as she was speaking, but Elena giggled as she knew what Sandra meant.
Robert smiled next to her. "Hey, buddy; did we wake you up?" he said as he petted him. When Sandra and Elena took Ambre out, he smiled at the rest of the group. "Ambre has another room a few doors away from Aleena's tower. When he's not in Sandra's or my bedroom, I've often seen him playing with some of her little trinkets as she's working. And most importantly, he knows not to knock over her potion ingredients. But the room I'm talking about is where he goes when he wants to be alone."
"A Fortress of Solitude?" Bobby Lee suggested.
"Exactly," Robert chuckled, since he was also a fan of the movies and got the reference.
"That's all right, but how does Aleena's phoenix see Ambre?" Bianca asked.
"Ambre and Sinistra get along very well," Robert smiled. "Sandra introduced him to her the day she adopted him."
"So they friends?" Gabby asked with a gasp. "Like Snow White and Jagger?"
"You can say that Gabby," Robert muttered, messing up her hair. "Do you know what you're going to be for All Hallows' Eve?"
"No. But Elena wants to be Elena. Mommy's been trying to make her night light thingy just right," Gabby explained with a little giggle.
"If she needs help, I'll be more than happy to help you," Aleena volunteered. "I've seen pictures of Princess Elena's scepter, and I can help make it light up for you."
"I'd like that," Nell smiled. She shook Aleena's hand. "It's been difficult to do that costume but thanks to Sofia, I've had some help sewing it up piece by piece and Bianca and Florence recently have taken all of our measurements so luckily Elena won't be too big or too small for her costume."
"And Mr. Cedric has made a growth spell. So it grows in size as Elena gets older," Sofia explained before she laughed. "Though Elena as a teenager in this costume is a bit of a scary thought."
"She could still use it for a formal event," Patricia suggested. "Sandra did that with one of her costumes for a few years before I had her get a new dress."
"Really?" Elena asked.
"That's right," Sandra nodded. "Like Mr. Cedric did with your costume, Aleena put a growth spell on it, so it would grow with me for as long as I had it. But one day, I saw Zoe going in my closet where the dress was. Since she liked it so much, and I didn't wear it anymore, I gave the costume to her. Aleena reversed the spell she put on it, so it would return to its original size and fit Zoe, but she told me that she'll put the spell back on it for Zoe for as long as she has it."
"That's an interesting idea," Bianca smiled. "We'll have to look through some of Helen's old dresses and see if Cedric can do that for Madeline Elizabeth and Sabrina Marie. And we'll look through some of their old dresses and see if he can do that for Elena Lydia and Gabby Anna."
"Yucky!" Elena and Gabby yelled over getting their aunts older dresses as Nell couldn't help but chuckle at her sisters nodding in agreement.
"Helen Genevieve, it seems like the girls don't like the idea," Bianca said with a soft chuckle. "Even when they share everything else!"
"Give them time," Nell smirked. "We'll go through their old dresses when we get home and see if any of them catch the girls' eye."
"Just like playing dress-up?" Madeline suggested.
"I like dress-up!" Elena cheered.
"Yeah!" Gabby agreed.
"Kind of like that!" Sofia laughed with a smile, gently smiling at Elena.
"It'll be like doing your own fashion show!" Amber encouraged the girls, having them look up at her before Elena yawned.
"Is it someone's nap time?" Alenna wondered, not a mother like Nell was but knew children when she saw them.
"I think you're right," Nell smiled. "The girls didn't want to sleep on the way over here."
"Well, we'll have Nigel take you to your guest rooms and let you rest after your journey," Robert offered.
"Bailey's brother's here?" Madeline asked.
"No, sweetheart," Patricia smiled. "Nigel is our own steward. He and Mr. Baileywick's brother just happen to have the same first name."
"Like Daddy?" Gabby asked with a yawn as Florence picked her up.
"Yes. Just like your daddy!" Florence chuckled softly, rubbing Gabby's back to get her to sleep.
"And me!" Elena giggled, jumping up and down before stopping herself. "Sorry?"
"It's okay, we know you're tired but we know what you mean; you also share someone's name," Bianca smiled. To her Elena was a innocent gifted child, picking her up in her arms. "Let's have Mommy and Daddy get some time alone okay?"
"But they love us! Don't they?" Elena asked with a quivering lip.
"Of course they do," Miranda assured her with a smile. "But like most Mommies and Daddies, they just want to play their own games and do their own things."
Elena was about to protest again when a huge yawn stopped her. Bobby Lee took her in his arms and followed Nigel to his and Nell's guest room.
"And after you've all rested, please feel free to look around the castle," Robert added.
"And while the girls are having their naps, we can play some games, if you know what I mean!" Bobby Lee whispered to Nell.
"Sounds like fun," Nell whispered back before catching Bianca's suspicious look. "But maybe we'll rest ourselves first. We barely slept on the ride over here too."
"That's what I thought you said," Bianca smirked.