"Alright, Thunderbolt, are you ready?" Jupiter said to the young girl that was bouncing around the clearing.
The grass charred under her feet as she ran around the clearing. She paused immediately when he called to her. "Thunderbolt?" She repeated with a growing smile forming on her face.
He blinked before smiling and said, "Yeah. It's a nickname. Do you...not like it?" He said with a raised eyebrow.
Ara shook her head vigorously. "NO!" She paused before looking around the silent clearing. She nervously smiled. "I mean...no. I really like it. I don't mind if you use it." She smiled widely.
"Her name is Ara." Her mother intervened. "And I would prefer if you called her by her name."
Ara rolled her eyes in irritation before sighing. "OOOhhh, mom…" She groaned.
Jupiter gave Elsa a questioning look and asked her, "What's wrong with giving her a nickname?" He motioned to Ara as he spoke.
Elsa scoffed. "I don't mind her getting a nickname. I mind who is giving her the nickname. I am sure you understand." She glared at him as she spoke.
At that, Jupiter felt a bit...offended. Well… more than a bit. He was beginning to lose his patience with the woman. Of course he couldn't blow up on her because of this, but come on! She is mad at him for giving her kid a nickname!? If I recall, it is an honor to receive a nickname from a god. So what's the problem!?
Before he knew it, he was glaring back at the woman. He perfectly met her heated gaze. "Maybe we should just head straight into the training, shall we?" He said walking off and leaving Elsa dumbfounded.
"Training?" Elsa questioned. "I thought you said-"
"I said that I was interested in her magic. On the way over here I was thinking and I thought that training would be awesome." He said nonchalantly. "Besides, who wouldn't want to be trained by the god of the sky?" He smiled proudly.
Elsa was about to protest until Ara jumped up in absolute joy. "You are going to train me!? You're joking!" She bit her lip in an attempt to hide her growing smile.
"Of course I am!" He said happily, ignoring Elsa's glare. "A little thunderbolt like you needs to learn how to defend herself. You know, just in case a random lightning strike from ol' Zues comes your way. Always be prepared."
Ara electricity flew from her body, feeding off of her hyper emotions. Her body trembled as she tried not to squeal.
Elsa sidestepped a passing lightning strike as Jupiter laughed. He said, "Okay, calm down, Thunderbolt. Wouldn't want to cause a forest fire, right?" He said with humor.
Ara shook her head. "Yes sir! Uhh...I mean...no sir!" She smiled and folded her arms behind her back.
He laughed and said, "Alright! Let's get started!"
Elsa groaned, seeing that she lost the argument. She conjured herself a chair of ice and flopped down on it in an unqueenly fashion.
The two blue haired people stepped into the middle of the clearing. Jupiter looked over Ara briefly before saying, "Your clothing is hindering your powers."
Ara blinked a couple times before saying, "Uuhh...what do you mean?" She looked down at her current clothing. "What's wrong with it?"
"Your current clothes hinder the travel of energy through and over your body. It takes extra energy for your aura to protect your clothing from damage. Thus wasting energy that you could utilize or dispell." He explained thoroughly.
She blinked once again. "So, what do you suggest?"
He smirked and snapped. His common clothes disappeared to reveal a more special outfit. He wore a navy blue tunic with dark jeans and a knee length cloak with gold embroidery on his sleeves. If it weren't for the fabric being made out of electric energy, Ara would say that the outfit was completely ordinary. All she could do was stare in awe at the glowing fabric with her mouth agape.
"Maybe something like this?" He said while looking her over.
The girl gave him a blank look. He tilted his head a bit before saying, "Hmm...let me try something." He snapped his fingers, changing her outfit.
She gasped when she was covered in a large dark blue cloak. She couldn't see the rest of her outfit due to the cloak and laughed because she couldn't see anything else. "I don't think this is my size." She said as she lifted up her floppy hood
He chuckled and said, "I think you're right. Hold still." He snapped repeatedly, trying to think of something that would be good for her.
There were many different (terrible) styles that come and go. Every second, a new outfit was poofed onto her body and replaced with another. Eventually, Ara had gotten bored. "Have you found something yet?" She asked him, keeping one eye open.
He shook his head. "Not yet. Just keep still." He continued to change her outfit around, but he was close.
Elsa's voice carried through the clearing. "I thought this was training, not a fashion show!" She scolded while Jupiter shot her a glare.
"I'm working on it!" He snapped back, pausing his movements. When he looked back to the girl and smiled.
She now wore a midnight blue, short sleeved shirt dress with black lightning bolts patterned through it. She also wears black tights with golden, small lightning marks on them. Her usual golden and black boots were replaced by royal purple and gold ones. Her cape was also replaced by a royal purple cloak. You could tell that this was the statement piece of the outfit. The electric fabric glistened in the light and looked like a thicker version of glowing silk.
Ara removed her hood and looked herself over in confusion. "Is this okay?" She looked at him in expectation.
"Yeah...That's fine." He said, pleased with his (accidental) success. "Now that you don't have all of those hindrances, we can begin on the right foot."
Ara smiled before looking over herself once again. Her face fell once she made a certain discovery. "Um, okay. Let's do it." She said, hiding her dismay.
Jupiter thought nothing of it as he smiled at her. "First lesson. Let's go over the importance of the electro ball." He said, putting his hands in his cloak pockets.
…
Heidi clapped her hands together as they flew through the Underworld. "So! Hermes, do you have anything in mind for our...little, prank?" She asked, emphasizing the word 'little' with a mischievous smirk.
Hermes rubbed his chin as he effortlessly dodged several flying demons. "What if we were to manipulate Zeus's Masterbolt?" He asked before grinning. "Not only would it give him the shock of his life, but it would fry the surrounding area!"
Both skidded to a stop as a blast of smoke shot out of the lower levels. Heidi raised an eyebrow. "How are we supposed to do that?"
Hermes shrugged as he floated down to a lower platform. "Simple, we borrow a book from Hecate, find the spell, have you cast it and BAM! Thunder and lightning all the way." He gestured widely before marching into Hecate's section.
"Oh, okay-Wait," Heidi blinked and teleported in front of him. "I-I can't use magic. I'm horrible at it. You've seen me, I'm the worst!" She exclaimed, her voice laced with nervousness.
Hermes raised an eyebrow before smiling widely. "Yes, you can."
Heidi scowled and shook her head. "No, I can't."
"Yes, you can."
"No, I can't."
"Yes, you can."
"No, I can't!"
"No, you can't."
"Yes, I can!"
As soon as those words left her mouth, she quickly slammed her hand over her lips while Hermes laughed. The goddess shot him a glare, removing her hand from her lips to point at him. "You tricked me!"
"Ah, no, it's called reverse psychology...I think." Hermes looked a bit confused before chucking and walking over to a bookcase. "Anyway, the book is somewhere over...Here!" He zipped over to a different bookcase before plucking out a dusty black book. The god quickly blew all the dust off before opening it up, flipping through the pages as if he had done this very thing before.
Heidi shook her head, her lips curling into a frown. "I don't even know if I'll be able to cast it. The Masterbolt is...that thing is way above my level." She watched as Hermes stopped flipping through the pages and focused on one in particular. "Besides-That book belongs to Hecate-"
"Actually, it belonged to Athena. I borrowed it to pull this prank on Zeus when I was younger and Hecate took it away when Zeus demanded that it should not be in the hands of a young god." The god looked up with a smirk. "If I can cast it you can cast it."
Heidi didn't look any more confident after hearing that as she reluctantly joined him at a table. "...What do I have to do?"
Hermes smirk widened and he pushed the book over to her. "Just read those words, summon your magic, close your eyes and think of that lightning bolt." He assured her before mischief entered his eyes. "Do you want me to hold your hand?"
Heidi gave him the deadest look possible before looking down at the book. "And it's in ancient greek. Of course it is." She muttered before clearing her throat and peering at the words. "Kaló tis dynámeis ton theón-" She paused for a moment to summon her magic before looking back down at the page. "-anafléxte to óplo tou Día…" Closing her eyes, she heard Hermes let out a laugh for, seemingly, no reason. "...kai válte ti dýnami páno tou!" As she uttered out the last words, the page suddenly glowed blue before a beam of magic rocketed out of the library and out of the Underworld.
Hermes let out another laugh before patting her on the shoulder. "See, I told you." He told her as she opened her eyes. "Let's do another fly through before we head back up to see the fireworks."
Heidi raised an eyebrow and stood up. "...Why do I have a feeling we will be facing a smiting?"
Hermes was already floating as he grabbed her by the wrist in order to get her moving. "Smiting? Only if we get caught!"
The goddess shook her head in exasperation before beginning to float on her own. "And I was enjoying the lack of smiting." She mumbled before the duo took off into the lower levels of the Underworld.
…..
Heidi's gone. Kirby's gone. She has the house to herself and what does she do? She gets out and goes shopping.
Hazel or "Audrey" discovered that they were pretty much low on everything edible in the house. It's not very surprising considering that Heidi hasn't been home in a week and the real Audrey has been a hermit. Because of this, Hazel, in her true form, seized the day and went on a mission to fill the kitchen. The fridge, cabinets, counters, you name it! She made sure they were all filled with foods that could make amazing dishes.
As usual, she added a touch of style to whatever she touched. Everything was organized based on category. She even arranged a bowl of fruit; decorated still life art, yet still edible.
Speaking of edible, it was now the early evening and nothing was made. Of course she had bought some frozen dinners, but she wanted to make Heidi something especially special (and do way better than the original Audrey, in turn making Heidi fall in love with her). She blinked at her thoughts and shrugged.
She skipped to the kitchen, Vetiver on her trail. The sound of a dry meow reached her ears and she turned. "Seems like I am not the only one who's hungry." Hazel said to the waiting animal.
She thought for a few seconds before saying, "Now, what would you feed...something like you…" She looked to the side before clapping. After rummaging through the fridge, she returned with a tomato, baby carrots, and a bell pepper. "There you go." She placed them in a bowl for the cat.
Vetiver looked at them warrily before meowing in delight. She ate them gratefully while Hazel smiled at her. "Now that I have you covered, what about me?" She said, going back into her thought process.
She turned to her car and asked, "What do you think she'd like, Vetiver?"
Vetiver chewed while looking at her with a confused expression.
"The blue haired lady, Vetiver." She stated flatly.
Vetiver nodded in recognition before going back to her food.
Hazel rubbed her chin in thought before saying, "What about...lasagna? I know a recipe that she would love." She grinned as she spoke.
Vetiver shrugged as Hazel began to get her supplies together. She had also taken the liberty of getting more cooking utensils. "To finish things up, strawberry shortcake for dessert! Flawless." She said. "Once things are done, I will have to deliver some to Audrey to keep her...alive." She thought to herself before getting to work.
After a couple hours of cooking, the cake was baking, but the main dish was complete. She looked over her dish with pride and sighed at the smell. "And pepperoni goes on top." She said as she scattered the smaller pork slices declaratively. "Finished."
Then she called her cat, that was on the floor chasing a centipede. "I will be right back. Let me know if Heidi returns before I do." She said.
The cat nodded and went back to it's game while Hazel took a portion of the food and placed it in a plastic container. After that, she went over to the workshop's door, unlocked it, and let herself in. She checked to make sure she was in her true form before continuing. Seeing that she was, she continued until she saw the passed out princess snoozing on the ground.
Hazel summoned a cup of lemonade and said, "Hey! Are you still alive, princess?" She looked at her warily.
Audrey awoke almost immediately and shot the girl a glare. "Very much so. I'm surprised to see you are still here considering how you pretty much tied me up and left me here." She spat, reaching to rub at the massive bags under her eyes until the chains stopped her. "Most villains would just leave the princess to die."
Hazel chuckled dryly for a couple seconds before using her magic to place the plate beside her. She snapped and a fork appeared. She did the same with the lemonade and paper straw. "Congratulations. You're not going to die today." She smirked.
Audrey looked at her with a dead expression. "Yay me." She rolled her eyes and looked away, choosing to stare at the several crowns lying around the room.
Hazel raised an eyebrow as she checked her cake timer. Fifteen more minutes, it read. She should smell it soon. That's when it would be ready to add the finishing touches. Until then… "Soo...how have you been holding up?" She asked, reading from a list that said "questions to ask the prisoner".
Audrey shot the girl a glare before scoffing. "Let's see here. Between the fact that Heidi disappeared in Hell for a second time, I have had less then ten hours of sleep all week, and, oh, the chains! Can't forget the chains and the prisoner thing." Her scowl deepened. A dark look entered her eyes before she shook her head and returned her gaze to the wall.
Hazel flipped her notebook over and crossed out prisoner. Then she replaced it with "House guest with special restrictions". "Better?" She smirked.
Audrey didn't even look at her this time, balling her hands into fists as she closed her eyes. "I'll be better once I'm out of here and you are getting the book thrown at you." She hissed out, her voice dangerously quiet as if she was holding back some sort of uncontrolled anger.
Hazel chuckled getting a kick out of pissing the chained princess off. She gasped and held her chest dramatically. "The book!? Why would I get the book thrown at me? Besides locking you in a shop, I have done nothing wrong." She said calmly strolling around, dragging her fingers on the jewelry she passed.
"I'm sure I can pass this off as kidnapping." Audrey muttered, her darkened gaze landing on the girl. "Among other charges, at the end of the day you'll be the one locked away."
"I'd like to see you pull all of that off." She smirked waved her hands with bored eyes. "Almost makes me want to release you right now, but...nah. Not yet." She shrugged.
The princess let out a breathy chuckle. "The thing is...You can pull off the impossible when you have someone who is connected with the gods. If Heidi wanted to, she could ask a favor of one of them. Athena is like her mother...Hermes can find out anything...and Hades? Well, if Heidi was truly angry, she'd allow her father out to handle you. She's threatened someone else with that and did it work well." She stated with a smirk.
Hazel was sitting at a table eating popcorn. "Woah...cool stuff, but how are you going to prove it? This kind of sounds...loco." She popped another piece in her mouth.
Audrey kept her gaze on the girl as she clicked her tongue. "Let's just say I have a few things on my side that will prove everything. Heidi is paranoid, incredibly so, and she's set up several countermeasures to make sure I'm safe. She doesn't even know that I know about them, so I doubt you could find them."
She smiled. "Sure. Let's go with that. Besides, I am leaving in a couple days anyway." She shrugged. "And I have my ways to make sure you wouldn't remember a thing." She popped another circle in her mouth.
"I don't need to have my memory to make sure you can't come back here. Countermeasures." The princess said before closing her eyes. "I know how to make it so that you won't even be able to take a step here without getting swarmed by guards."
Hazel blinked before saying, "That's...not what I meant...exactly. I mean, I will wipe your memory so you won't remember-" She waved her hands around. "Any of this. You will wake up and everything will be magical and normal again." She said in her mocking fairy-tale voice.
Audrey scoffed. "Oh and erasing my mind will make your little thing okay? You are insane." She spat before shaking her head. "This will be remembered no matter what you do. I can promise you that."
"Wait...so you sick your demon dog on your friends and it nearly ate someone...then I'm the one who's crazy? I think we're tied, chica." She said nonchalantly. "Anyway, that whole thing you just said...yeah. That was cute. So, gotta go. Same time tomorrow?" She said standing and using her magic to send the remainder of the popcorn to her. "That stuff is good. I recommend it." She said with a thumbs up.
Audrey let out an uncharacteristic growl. "Mal isn't my friend. She doesn't deserve that title, not after she destroyed and stole everything that ever mattered to me. The only title she deserves is Villain. That's all she'll ever be." She all but shouted, her face turning red in her rage while she tugged at the chains. "If Kirby had gotten rid of her then and there perhaps I'd finally have a sliver of my life back."
Hazel blinked for a moment before saying, "Well...he didn't. I must say that your mighty hound is kind of a wimp around water." She shrugged. "Another thing. Who do you hate more? Me or Mal? I am getting some serious hate vibes right here. She stole this one, pretty stupid, guy that turned out to be your whole life and I chained you in a workshop and gonna wipe you like an old computer. Take you pick." She asked casually.
Audrey paused in her tugging before looking up at the ceiling. "If only you knew...I have no one. No family, they basically screwed me over when I began dating Heidi. No friends because they ran to Mal and the other VKs. The only person I had was her and even she is gone. You have more than me, even if it's just a few friends." She muttered out harshly before shooting a glare at her. "Starting new doesn't always fix things. In fact, I'd say it ruins things. So, go ahead, erase my memory like it's nothing. Go ahead and live knowing you chained someone up for a couple days if that will help you sleep at night."
Hazel's eyes varied in colors as she looked to the ground in thought. Then she approached the princess and sat a little ways out of her reach, her eyes unmoving and shifting in hues. "If your life is that bad, why not forget? No memory, no problems."
"How would you feel waking up one morning and walking out only to see everyone ignoring you like your a ghost? Like you don't even exist. That's how I'm treated now and I'd much rather know why I am being treated this way rather than have no memory." Audrey muttered, hanging her head as she settled back onto the floor. "At least I would know why they all think I'm nothing more than Heidi's girlfriend. The bewitched princess under a love spell."
Hazel looked to the side with a raised eyebrow. "Hmm, seems like we have more in common than I originally thought…" she uttered partially to herself and to the princess.
"I doubt that. Nobody in Auradon is treated quite like how I am. It all started with Chad and his insane rumors and now it's led to me being looked at with pity by the older people. They all believe I am not me and I have no free control." The princess mumbled with a small sigh. "Even my Grammy believes Heidi did something."
"I always did want to prank the pants off of that guy." She said in thought. "Nah...it may be too risky...but if I could do this I definitely can do something like that…" She said to herself in thought once again.
Audrey seemed to ignore her for a moment before she looked up. "...That person who Heidi threatened to sick her father on was Chad. She went all crazy on him, lots of fire, she had to be teleported away by, shockingly, Fairy Godmother. He's been scared of her ever since." She admitted with a slight smile at the thought.
Hazel looked at her with her arms folded. Her eyes glowed as she scanned the princess and sighed. "I have a proposal." She said without variation in her voice.
Audrey's eyes narrowed as a look of confusion crossed her face. "What might that be?" She asked, voice filled with suspicion.
She blinked as she kept her gaze on Audrey's. "I get rid of Chad's rumors; you keep quiet."
The princess appeared surprised before looking at the floor. "You would have to erase the memory of almost every individual in all of Auradon. The only people who don't know reside past the Great Wall." She said with a frown.
She shook her head. "Not exactly. Chad is the one who started the rumors in this area. He is the main ring leader here. If I can turn the tables, then…" She blinked before summing things up. "Ok basic summary. If I make Chad go back on everything he said, he will no longer be reliable and no one will believe him. Kinda like politics...and business." She shrugged.
"But that won't stop the lingering of those rumors. Even if you get rid of Chad there's still a few people who believe him. Yes, most people would stop calling Heidi a dead goddess, Hades' Incarnate that is planning to blow up Auradon, I could go on for a while-but the point is, there is no way to clear the rumors. It's been tried before." Her voice went quiet at the end as she looked back up.
"Rumors...are like eczema. Yes, that's gross, but hear me out." She started. "You can try to get rid of the by ignoring it, but if you do that every day it gets worse. There is another option. You could keep it lotioned and soak it to keep it hydrated. It keeps down the itch and makes you feel better. Better enough to continue the day." She explained while looking elsewhere. "If you keep doing this, you will cause it to disappear. Unfortunately, there is no cure for eczema, so inevitably, it will be back again." She turned her gaze back to the princess. "The point is that there is no "cure" for rumors. Only time and getting help from others, your "ointment", can give you temporary relief. Hey, life goes on, and things might get itchy, but the important thing is to keep going. Someday you will be able to laugh it this. I can help with the vast majority of the rumors and I will even video the whole thing. Whaddya say?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.
Audrey appeared slightly confused at the end before slowly nodding. "I...suppose it is better than nothing. I'm sure Heidi would appreciate the lack of rumors, or at least a lesser amount of them." She said before looking down at the necklace around her neck. "And all I have to do is stay quiet?"
Hazel blinked. "Yeah...basically forget without me having to erase your memory. You take care of me, I will take care of you. That's my policy." She shrugged.
The princess was silent for a moment before sighing. "Then...I guess I can follow through on that." Her eyes lingered on her necklace before she looked up. "You need to take this necklace though. Heidi put a camera in it. She'll search it as soon as she spots it." The princess looked on the walls. "I doubt she would check those, though." She said to herself before shaking her head. "As long as I have this on I'm not truly silent."
Hazel looked at the necklace dryly. "Figures…" She took a deep breath before shimmying closer to the necklace and poking at it. "If this does get found I wanted to record my last words. Oh! And my will. I have it memorized due to my sister always getting me into trouble." She said, looking up at Audrey.
Audrey smiled softly before looking away. "There are other cameras scattered over the property. She mostly just ignores them, unless she's trying to find something. The necklace though...It's been on for months, that's how she's been able to get after Chad within seconds and how she's managed to find me. Not to mention the beacon…" She trailed off while her smile dropped.
"How reassuring. Okay, first matter of business." She said, backing up. "I am gonna have to knock you out." She said plainly.
Audrey's eyes halved when she heard that. "Lovely. Anything else you want to do?"
She chuckled. "Ahhh, your reaction was priceless. No. I meant put you to sleep. My magic told me that you are in bad shape and very sleep deprived." She explained, "So, I will put you asleep so you can catch up."
Audrey's eyebrow flew up before she searched the room, her eyes landing on a pillow on the far side of the room. "Can I have that at least?" She asked before blinking. "Why would she have a pillow down here?" She asked herself in mild confusion.
Hazel looked at the pillow with confusion before snapping back into reality. She smirked at the princess and said, "Hmm...no."
"Great. I'll be awakened with a headache." The princess said dryly before rolling her eyes. "Whatever."
Hazel rubbed her hands together, sparking up her magic. Her tongue poked out of her mouth as she began to work. She flicked her wrist and an entire memory foam bed appeared under Audrey. Hazel smirked and added a large tv and a stand along with it. She even added a nightstand beside the bed. "You didn't let me finish. Who needs a pillow when you have this?" She put Audrey's plate on the bed, reheating it with her magic. "I am surprised the tv works. What about you? And instead of being chained to the floor you're chained...to a...bed. Heh, I still don't trust you." She chuckled.
Audrey was blinking owlishly as the girl talked before opening her mouth to say something, until she didn't and she just continued the blinking in a completely dumbfounded way. After a minute or two, the princess finally managed to regain her thoughts and shook her head. "You magic users…" She mumbled to herself, looking away as the smallest of smiles appears on her face.
Hazel grinned and said, "It's all part of my policy." Then, a thought ran through her mind before she began to take her leave. "The tv runs on voice control. Make sure you eat before I put you to sleep and...don't die. I gotta go." She said hurriedly.
Audrey stared at her as the girl left before looking at the food with a scrutinizing gaze. Finally, she let out a sigh and reluctantly took it and began eating as if she hadn't been starving. She was still a princess.
Hazel scrambled to the kitchen, hoping a full blown fire hadn't erupted from the cake being left in the oven top long. She tripped over things, ran to the oven, ripped it open to reveal...nothing?
Hazel blinked repeatedly before scratching her head in confusion. "Did I not...put it in the..?" She asked herself. That is when she heard a meowing sound coming from the other side of the kitchen.
She turned her head to see Vetiver sitting on the counter with the cake! She came over to look it over and what She saw completely surprised her. The cake was perfect! It was a wonderful golden shade, ready for the toppings.
She gave a sigh of relief. "Good cat, Vetiver. Good cat." She scratched behind the grassy feline's ears.
She purred heavily, fully enjoying her reward.
88888888
"Am I doing it right?" Ara said as she tried to form a simple forcefield around herself. To her dismay, she couldn't seem to get it exactly right and most times completely wrong. "This is impossible!" She complained as she tried to expand the small sphere in her hands.
Jupiter looked to her in amusement. "Have you forgotten your electro ball lesson already?" He asked her.
Ara shot him a look of pure confusion. "I know how to make electro balls. I just can't make force fields!" She said in frustration as her ball dissipated. She folded her arms in irritation.
Jupiter walked over to her. "Hey, it's really not that hard. It is also a good protection and can help you to expand your magic in many other ways." He called on his magic and formed a small electric sphere with his hands. "Do you see this?"
She nodded, forgetting her anger and looking at his small, blue sphere. He continued. "All you have to do is take this ball-" He put his other hand on the other side of the sphere. "And extend it. Imagine it taking shape around you. You may also need to use a bit of your magnetokinesis for this one." He said nonchalantly.
Ara blinked at him. "Magnet...that's what I've been missing!" She exclaimed as she hurriedly formed another sphere in her hands.
He smiled as he watched her fluently expand the compressed energy.
"You said to imagine it taking shape, right?" She asked while focusing on her magic.
He nodded. "Yeah I did…" Until he realized that he was in her forcefield range. "W-wait! Give me time to m-"
He was cut off by the forcefield developing and bumping him like a beachball. He slid on the ground with a dry look. He blinked. "Well, I should've seen that coming." He stated.
Ara ran over to him. "I am so sorry! I had no idea it would work that well." She apologized rapidly.
He stood up and dusted off his outfit. "Don't worry about it. That was one of the best force fields I have ever seen! Maybe now I can teach you how to discharge!" He said in excitement.
Ara beamed at him before asking, "Is that when you store a ton of energy until you explode and just...blast it all out!?"
Jupiter shrugged. "Yes, but more dignified." He grinned and Ara readied herself, "Okay, the first thing you do is-"
There was a bit of a rumble before the ground opened nearby and out came Heidi and Hermes. Hermes was dragging Heidi out in a rush before they zoomed up into the sky. The god looked beyond excited while Heidi looked at him in question. "Um, Hermes? How are we supposed to know if the spell worked?"
Hermes shrugged and looked at Olympus in the distance. "Wellll, all you have to do is snap your fingers and BOOOOM! A lightning bolt so strong it may destroy just a bit of the meeting room. Oh, and last time it hit a few gods. Good times."
Heidi jawdropped and looked down at her hand. "That is one hell of a snap." She murmured, turning her attention to Olympus as well, completely ignoring the group beneath her.
Jupiter chuckled and said, "They really know how to crash a party, don't they?" He said, looking up at them. "You wanna see what's up?" He asked Ara.
"You read my mind." She said as she laughed herself into the sky before her mother could complain.
Jupiter smirked and followed the kid up to where the two gods were talking. "What did you two do, Hermes and "Partner in Crime"?" He asked with a smirk.
Hermes grinned and looked at the two who had joined them. "While we were down in the Underworld, we decided on a payback prank for how rude Zeus has been to Heidi. Basically, we cast a spell on Zeus's Masterbolt that will cause it to expel a huge lightning bolt that will then strike the area Zeus is in. In other words, Olympus is going to get quite the shock when Heidi snaps her fingers."
Heidi shook her head in exasperation at the pun. "We need to get you better puns." She told him, looking at her hand in thought.
"Wow. Sounds like there are going to be a few deep fried gods." Ara thought aloud. "Sounds like fun! At least fun to watch." She smirked.
Jupiter chuckled and said, "I can't wait for the fit that Zeus is going to throw. This prank gets five stars in my book." He folded his arms together.
"Everyone loved it the last time it was pulled by yours truly. Everyone except Zeus of course." Hermes said before shrugging and looking at Heidi. "Doooo it." He told her, drawing out the word.
"You do know we are going to get smited, right?" Heidi asked him, hoping to clarify that he was prepared for such a response.
"Ah, but it will be worth it." Hermes assured her before laughing. "Besides, he'll only smite us if he catches us!"
Heidi looked at him with a deadpan before lifting her hand. "Okay, well, I am using you as a shield if he catches me." She told him before snapping her fingers.
At first nothing happened...until there was a loud crack before a massive bright blue lightning bolt hit Olympus dead on, resulting in another boom along with a quickly forming storm. The two tricksters looked at the scene almost in disappointment before a second bolt struck the mountain, prompting the two to laugh in shock.
"I didn't even know you could cause two to strike!" Hermes exclaimed, turning to Heidi who looked just as excited as they exchanged a high five.
Ara blinked while Jupiter chuckled. "You guys might want to start getting prepared to blast off. Have you done your stretches, yet?" He asked Hermes playfully.
Hermes, who had already grabbed Heidi by the hand so they could escape faster, let out another laugh. "Oh yeah, we did a few extra laps around the Underworld." He looked at Heidi with amusement. "We've got around a minute until we get the signal."
"The signal? What's the signal?" Heidi asked, looking a tad confused as she looked back at Olympus.
"You'll know it when you hear it." Hermes told her before looking back at the other two. "Zeus will just be after us, good ol game of cat and mouse, so to speak."
Jupiter shrugged. "This is not the first time you pissed him off. I know the process by now." He gestured to Ara. "I guess this is a good time for us to take a break and pick up for training tomorrow." He said as Ara nodded.
Just as Hermes was about to respond, there was a loud boom of thunder followed by a loud roar. "HERMEESSS! HEIDIANAAAAA!"
"That's the signal." Hermes said simply before waving the two off and zipping off into the sky at light speed as they barely escaped a blue lightning bolt hitting nearby.
"Well that was...something you don't see everyday." Ara said with a chuckle.
Jupiter smirked at her and said, "It is when you hang around Hermes." He looked down at the ground below and said, "You wanna go get a milkshake or something?"
Ara's eyes lit up immediately. "Wait, what? Really?"
He shrugged. "Yeah, really. You did good at training so...why not? My treat." He smiled at her and began to fly off in the direction of the restaurant.
"Yes!" Ara exclaimed. "Hold up." She said as she blasted back down to where her angered mother waited for her return. "Hey mom. Jupiter and I are going to get milkshakes. We will only be a second. Bye!" She said before blasting off in a blast of energy.
Elsa could just blink after a while before her expression turned to one of pure anger. She looked back at the sky one last time before heading back to the hotel room. Her eyes watered and she headed to the hotel alone.
Off in another portion of the forest, the two tricksters landed looking like they had been hit with lightning already, despite the fact that it had only been mere minutes.
Heidi looked herself over before shaking her head. "Dude, we didn't even last five minutes."
Hermes shrugged before looking up at the sky as he saw a blue lightning bolt traveling towards them. "Annnd it would seem he has found us."
Heidi facepalmed as the angered god appeared in front of them, thunder booming around them while a storm began to form. As soon as she looked up, however, her frown was instantly replaced with a wide smile as she noticed just how...singed Zeus was.
Hermes also noticed and choked on his laughter before bellowing. "L-Look at his face!"
Heidi was no better and began laughing as well. "H-Hey, Zeus, I thought lightning bolts were your thing, how'd that happen?" She asked between her laughs.
Zeus didn't look one bit amused, in fact he looked even more angry, as he looked between the two. "Which one of you did this?" He demanded, a lightning bolt, thankfully not the Masterbolt, appearing in his hand as lightning struck the ground nearby.
The two forced themselves to stop laughing as Hermes cleared his throat. "Wellll, you see…" He looked at Heidi before grinning. "We both did it! That's why there were two strikes!"
Heidi glanced at him in surprise before quickly nodding. "Yep! It was most definitely both of us." She said innocently, tilting her head a bit.
Zeus looked between them before his blue eyes narrowed. "Hermes. You already know of the punishment you received."
"There was a lot of lightning." Hermes commented with a shrug.
Zeus shot him an annoyed look before continuing. "You two shall share the punishment-"
"Oh just smite us already, old man!" Heidi said before smirking at her words. Hermes also looked highly amused but refrained from laughing.
Zeus looked quite offended to say the least. "Old man?" As he repeated the words, a large lightning bolt struck Heidi, prompting her to stagger a bit while blinking.
"Yeah...I didn't miss that." She muttered, silently thanking Hermes for holding onto her so she hadn't fallen over.
Hermes simply shrugged before letting her go, right in time too as he faced a similar strike, only he didn't react as much as she did. "Okay, we got the smiting down. Now you can go return while I return my partner to her home before she falls over."
Zeus peered at them before vanishing as a lightning bolt struck where he was standing. The two tricksters let out a sigh before laughing.
"Y'know, I was really expecting a bit more-" Before she could finish her sentence, a second smaller bolt hit her in the back. The goddess looked up at the sky, appalled and irritated as she folded her arms. "Seriously? Come on!"
Hermes chuckled and stopped her from provoking Zeus further. "He let us off easy, he was distracted. Take this as another chance at life because next time he will fry you." He whispered before smiling and patting her gently on the shoulder. "Anyway! I should be dropping you off. Come on." He didn't wait for her to agree as he took her by the hand before zipping off into the sky.