Ace the Brave

Ace barely stopped to ask for directions and powered on ahead of them.

Hooter only managed to catch her up as she waited for everyone at the lift. "Ace," he said gently, "you've had a big fright."
"I'm alright now." Ace said quietly.
"There aren't any talking machines where we're going." Hooter offered with certainty.
"Okay." Ace answered in a mild voice.

"But you liked your aeroplane and motorcycle friends, didn't you?"
"Yeah," Ace agreed quietly, "that's true."
Hooter tried again. "Did you have any fun up here?"

"Yes," Ace answered quietly, watching everyone else piling into the lift first, "but the other machines kept spoiling it. Beaker and the test tube army. All they do is work and they don't think of doing anything fun."
"They come from a grown up's world, it's true." Hooter agreed, "They and that ... rather unpleasant Refrigerator fellow."
"Work machines have servers and not hearts." Ace declared and stepped into the lift.

"I did quite like that motorcycle fellow though." Hooter sidetracked her thoughts as he stepped in alongside her, "He worked quite well and, server or not, he had a lot of heart." Hooter chuckled, "your father would be impressed with the mess he made of all those test tubes, don't you suppose, Ace?"
"Yeah, he would," Ace giggled, "and the crash; oh, he went flying so fast across the room!" Ace smiled.

"Ace," Hooter hesitated, "I feel I should tell you that you weren't fighting a normal house fridge."
"No, you're right." Ace said, "I saw that when he was on the floor."
"What did you see, Ace?" Hooter asked tentatively.
"Oh," Ace shrugged, "He had his door at the top of his head. I should have guessed he was a dead body refrigerator like at mum's work. No fridge that ever had cake in it could ever be that cross."

Hooter pressed the ground floor button on the lift again. If they were going to get out of this imaginary realm he knew it was going to take a bit more effort than just a quick snap of the fingers.

The lift opened and they all stepped out to the view of Morgana's tea table.

"Food!" Ace sniffed appreciatively, "I'm so hungry!"
"Guests!" Morgana said happily clasping her hands, "please, come and sit down! Help yourselves! I'll go fetch some tea."

"Thank you!" Ace chimed and raced to the table. "Hello!" She said, climbing into the chair opposite the two imps. "My name's Ace, do you have hearts?"
"Yes."
"Yes." The imps replied in delayed stereo.
"Good for you." Ace replied to the imps, fetching a piece of raspberry crumble and munching into it.

Hooter made his way to Archie's end of the table but this time he sat beside the imps so he could keep an eye on Ace. Honker and Q sat at the end of the table near Ace. Simon and little Darkwing sat down opposite Hooter between Ace and Archie.

"I wonder what this would taste like in reality." Hooter eyed the cakes and cookies. In the face of all this drama, he spooned himself a helping of custard pudding. After all, he needed to let Ace have some time to recuperate from her ordeal up in the clouds and if she was going to have dessert, well, then so would he.

"I keep thinking back to Raya's Garden of the Realms." Hooter commented to Archie. "She certainly warned us that we would need our wits about us."
"Was Cloud City really as bad as that?" Archie raised his eyebrows. "It all came from Ace's head; no other."
"It was scarier than my dad when he thinks one of us kids have caught a cold!" Simon declared. "That Refrigerator beast wanted to cut her up and make her Normal. It was horrible." Having said his bit, Simon slouched back in his chair.
"But this only translates to the reasoning that Ace doesn't think of herself as Normal." Archie stated.
"Or perhaps that she simply doesn't feel herself fitting into that world of beakers and Bunsen burners." Hooter mused. "She is quite certainly her father's daughter."

Morgana came around with the teapot. "Thank you, Morgana." Hooter blessed her, "you work such miracles with your teapot."
Morgana beamed at him. "You are very welcome," she blushed and continued around the table with the teapot filling up more cups.

Hooter sipped his hot drink, feeling himself relaxing. "The fact that she knows about such things is simply Ace learning about her parents' work." He said decisively. "It's no different than ... oh, say Simon being able to give a microbiology lesson, or Raya a dissertation on security networks."
Simon shook his head, his leafy fingers around his teacup, "but Director Hooter, if everyone is just being normal then how come we missed dinner?"

"We can't know that for certain, Simon," Hooter marvelled over how hopeful Simon's expression suddenly was, "we are just imagining this tea party." Hooter reminded him, "As we imagined a left way to turn or a right way to turn, so too could we be imagining the passage of time."
"I sure hope so." Simon stated, "I really like Mrs. Mallard's dinners."

Simon did have a point though, Hooter mused, there didn't appear to be any grand master plan or third party intervention whatsoever. Getting out of here truly seemed to be a matter they had to resolve amongst themselves.

"Oh, I'm so glad you're enjoying the food, Ace." Morgana's voice interrupted from overhead, drawing Hooter's attention. "Is there anything you think is really particularly good?"
"Well," Ace answered with a crumb-flecked smile, "the raspberry crumble has to be my favourite," she declared unabashedly, "followed shortly by cherry slice and then everything else!"
"Oh, thank you, Ace. If you like it, that's what I'll make for the school fete."

"At last!" Archie exclaimed quietly from Hooter's side. "Ace has solved our problem." He looked at Hooter, "Morgana's mind is free to return to reality."
Hooter looked around at everyone still seated at the table. "Perhaps we have a couple more stones to pry loose before we can all get through."
"Then let us make haste." Archie stood up and the table vanished between them. "Uch, it is good to be free of that candy-filled table."

"Oh, Archie," Morgana clasped his arm and cooed down to him; "it's just a little school fete. It's not that big a deal."
"Ye-es..." Archie said solemnly back to her, petting her hand, "as you said last year, my child; as you said last year."

Hooter shook his head and looked about for Simon and Ace. Simon was already by his side. "Come along, Ace," Hooter rounded her up, "we've got a few more people with problems like Morgana's that need our help." He said gently and offered her his hand.
"Okay!" Ace chimed and took his hand, "I like to help."
"That food seems to have done you a world of good." Hooter smiled down at her.

The red-curtained shortcut appeared in front of them and Hooter led Ace and Simon, followed shortly by the others, through into the Land of Derring-Do.

It was dark on this side of the curtain and the sounds of fighting on the chessboard nearby made Ace hold Hooter's hand tighter.

"What are they fighting about?" She asked.
"None of us are really quite sure." The Director led her out into the clearing so she could have a better look.
"It's a chess game." Ace frowned, "that's too hard. Director Hooter, can't we try an easier problem?"
The adult glanced around the group and then back to Ace. "Certainly we do have another person to help nearby," he answered, "We can come back to this one later."

They skirted around the chessboard and up the embankment of trees.

Ace struggled up the hill and got to the top. "I can see a castle." She said, "What sort of castle is it? It's not another Refrigerator problem, is it?"
They all looked out from under the umbrella trees to the rolling grassland and the four turrets of the castle in the distance. "No, it's just guarded," Simon answered, "We can't get near it. Director Hooter, this one isn't any easier than Mr. Mallard's chess game."
"You might be surprised, Simon. Ace has an entirely different way to look at things. What do you think of this, Ace?"

"Why do we need to get into the castle?" Ace asked, "What's in there?"
"Catlyn's in there." Simon answered weakly.
"So we just have to rescue her, right?" Ace decided.
"Yes."
"So what's it guarded by?"
"A big fire breathing dragon," Simon answered halfly.
"A dragon!" Ace said in amazement, "Like as in a giant pterodactyl?"
"Maybe we can talk to her." Simon decided and stepped out into the meadow clearing. "Catlyn, won't you come out to play?"

The dragon let out a warning roar from the castle and Simon stepped quickly back into the umbrella tree line.

"Oh, dear," Morgana interjected, looking back at Gosalyn, "what could possibly have caused this? She's far too young."
"With youth comes inherent mental flexibility and we are in the land of thought." Archie answered. "This is a useful learning experience for her."
Ace stared at Archie for a moment and all his long words. "Aren't you supposed to have eight legs and be all small and stuff?"
Archie frowned, "Only insomuch as reality dictates, Ace."
"What's that mean?"

Archie sighed, "Yes."

"Archie," Simon asked, "you're not scared of a dragon?"
"It's all to do with how you see yourself in relation to them." Archie answered, "A dragon has an uncomplicated mindset equal to a small child. I, on the other hand, am an adult."
"But I want to help her." Simon argued. "I'm not being complicated."

"You're confusing me, Simon! So maybe you 'are' being complicated," Ace lectured. "Are you helping the dragon or helping Catlyn?"
"Dragon?" Gosalyn repeated, "Let's not get carried away here, kids."

"Ace," Simon answered her sadly, "Catlyn 'is' the dragon. This whole world is made of thoughts and Catlyn thinks she needs to protect herself from us."
"What for?" Gosalyn huffed. "We're her family."

"I know that one." Ace declared, "She's protecting her broken heart." Ace stated flatly, remembering what her aunty would say to her mum about these things: "It's all very irrational and not in the least bit surprising." Ace folded her arms and turned to everyone standing there. "Catlyn needs her daddy to rescue her ... because she thinks he doesn't love her."

"Oh, no, oh no!" Gosalyn cried into her hands. "Catlyn, baby, I'm so sorry!"

Ace was curious and went to Gosalyn's side, "are you her mummy, Gosalyn?"
"Yes," Gosalyn croaked. "Oh, Ace," she sobbed, "Catlyn doesn't have a daddy."
"Yes, she does, Q." Honker hugged Gosalyn. "I'll go talk to her."

Ace watched as Honker started building a ladder. He built it to stretch all the way over the meadow and up to a castle turret. Honker climbed up and across it and disappeared inside the window.

It wasn't very long and Honker came back down the ladder with a very un-dragon-like Catlyn in his arms.

Feeling jealous and not liking it, Ace dismissed Catlyn and Honker. She turned back to Director Hooter, "can we play a different game now, Director Hooter?"
"Yes." He answered, "I think we really must find a way to help Mr. Mallard with his chess problem now. He is quite trapped inside it."