Heidi looked around at the large area that Hecate had decided to stop in and tilted her head. "...You chose this room?" She asked with a knowing look.
"Duh. Plus it's the most open space I could find within a five minute walk." Hecate said as she flopped in a chair.
Heidi's eyes halved at her before she turned to look at CJ. "I'm going to ask her a few things...you go and round up the others and lead em this way." She told her with a smile.
CJ nodded at that, giving her mother a mock salute before zooming off in the section of the theater room. It nearly took her a whole second to reach the room. She was very impressed with her speed this time. The only problem was that she forgot to account for the first row of theater seats.
"Woah!" She said as she tripped over the seats, causing her to fly across the room. Thankfully, she landed on another row of seats, closer to the screen.
Ara walked over to CJ with amusement. "Where's a camera when you need one?" She said, holding in her laugh.
CJ, who was upside down in the seat from her landing, smirked. "Ah, shut up. At least I went faster this time." She stretched before sitting up. "I'm okay."
Ara shook her head. "I'm glad. Oh! That reminds me." Ara said, snapping her fingers and causing two shoes boxes to appear in her arms. "I got these for you. You might find running in shoes easier. You can go back to heels when you got the hang of things." She said with a smile.
CJ grinned at that. "You got me training shoes!?" She asked happily.
Ara nodded at that. "And a training outfit. Just don't kill yourself."
CJ smirked at that. "Ah. I'll be fine." She said, getting the boxes from Ara. "Thanks. By the way, Heidi sent me. I think it's time to leave."
Ara blinked at that. "It is? Alright. I'll pass on the message." She said, causing a few fluffy purple clouds to appear. "Help me get these guys on here." She said, referring to the boys, Hazel, and her father.
CJ nodded at that before getting to work. Ara went for the arms and CJ went for the legs of each person. Afterward, they'd just drop them on a cloud.
Ara nodded at that. "Alrighty, Audrey!" She called to the pinkette on the other side of the room.
Audrey looked up from her phone and nodded before she began wheeling herself over.
When Audrey was within range, Ara smiled at her, "We're leaving now. Have you seen Vetiver?" She asked with a tilt of her head.
"Uh…" Audrey blinked and looked around. "I was sure she was around here earlier." She said in confusion as she tried to get a better look.
While Ara began to grow exasperated, CJ straightened up and nodded. "On it!" She said before zooming off to find the girl.
Ara nodded at that, "While she's handling that, I can send a text to Mercury. I need someone to watch Scottay while I'm gone." She said, pulling out her phone. "You're all packed right?" She asked, seeing Chirpy walk up with her suitcase backpack.
Audrey nodded. "Knowing Hecate she probably put my stuff somewhere while she was running around earlier." She said with a small laugh.
"Whatever works." Ara said with a chuckle.
Chirpy smiled at that. "I don't mind that at all. Less things I have to carry!" She laughed and signalled the busy cat on his phone to come over.
"Don't say that around Hecate-she just might toss the stuff your way." Audrey said with a chuckle.
That's when Chester walked over. He looked at them all with confusion. "What? What are we doing?" He tilted his head.
Ara blinked before saying. "We're leaving, Chess."
He looked completely surprised at that. "We are? Okay." Chester said before hopping on the cloud Jupiter was sleeping on. After that, he went back on his phone.
Ara rolled her eyes at him. As soon as she had done that, CJ returned with...not only Vetiver.
CJ chuckled before saying, "Alright, I got Vetiver, Minty, Kirby, Glacier, Astrid, Amorette, and Chirpy's bunny Blossom." She said with a smile.
Vetiver blinked before smiling, "Hi, mom!" She waved at Audrey.
"Hi Veti." Audrey said with a giggle, inviting the girl over to sit on her lap.
Vetiver grinned before making herself at home on her mother's lap.
CJ handed Ara Astrid before saying, "I also had to get your mom. She was hiding under the bed."
Elsa stepped into the light with folded arms and a pout. "I was hoping you guys would look over me. Curse your high observational skills…" She grumbled the last part to herself.
Ara was about to question that before Chirpy whimpered.
"But...where is my Pinkypop? I can't leave without her." Chirpy asked, concern etched on her face.
Ara visibly cringed at that. "I'm sure she'll...yikes...turn up." She said, passing Chirpy her large bunny.
That caused the green haired woman to frown and make another sound of discomfort.
Ara facepalmed at that. "Fine, fine. You are welcome to go check her room." She said with a sigh. "I might as well send Terra a text while I'm at it."
"Yay!" Chirpy said before running herself and her bunny to Pinky's room.
This time, Chirpy didn't bother to knock. She entered the room quietly. She left the door open due to the situation and made her way to the blonde's bedside.
"Hey...Cookie? Wake up." Chirpy called as she shook the woman, trying to wake her up.
Pinky made a disgruntled noise and waved her hand with a grumble. "...Working. Come back in a couple." She said with a yawn before trying to roll out of reach.
Chirpy pouted at that with a whimper. "But I can't come back in a couple. It's time to go." She said innocently.
"Go for what?" Pinky grumbled back, clearly not planning on getting up anytime soon.
Chirpy blinked before saying, "Heidi's castle…" She said before sighing. "I'm getting Ara." She said before stepping out.
After five minutes, Ara came in there more than exasperated. "Oh for the love of." Ara said before making another cloud...and carelessly rolling Pinky on it. "Alright, let's go." Ara said as the cloud followed her out.
Chirpy blinked before following Ara out. She tilted her head at the cloud train that followed Ara and all of the sleeping people on it. "I...guess we're leaving now?" She asked.
"Yup." Ara said in reply. She nodded to Chirpy before walking back to the group of awake people. "Alright, CJ, lead the way."
CJ nodded at this, about to zoom off before remembering no one could keep up with her at that speed. She nervously smiled before walking back normally.
Ara decided to break the silence, saying, "Well, I tried but the pizza got the best of her." Ara told Terra, referring to the passed out Hazel floating nearby.
CJ nodded at that. "Ara tried really hard, but Hazel was fast." She shook her head. "There was almost no way to catch her and she was eating while running. Who does that?" She tilted her head.
Ara shook her head also. "Apparently, Hazel does that." She looked at her sister while CJ led them. "What is with her and pizza?" She looked back at Terra.
"She likes it?" Terra said with a shrug and a blank expression.
Ara smiled slightly. "Like is an understatement." She said with a chuckle.
After two more minutes, CJ led them right to the open area just as Heidi requested of her. She took them over to where Heidi was standing. "Mom, I'm back." She said with a smile.
Heidi looked much relieved at that as Hecate giggled about something in the background. "Good...I wasn't sure how long I could put up with her...not without punching her in the arm." She said in exasperation.
Freddie and Uma looked at each other in exasperation.
While those two did that, Ara said, "Speaking for the people who are asleep and awake, I think we're good to go." She said with a smile.
Heidi lazily looked at Hecate. "...Just do the thing. I don't want round two of this argument." She said with halved eyes as she rubbed her brow.
Hecate shrugged as she hopped up. "I won that...so don't go holding it to me when I get the TV room when you want it!"
"Oh my gods…" Heidi mumbled with a sigh as she clenched her fist.
"Because I, Hecate, have called dibs and that dibs is set in stone as soon as I open a portal!" The woman declared while Heidi facepalmed.
"Can we leave now?" Uma asked in exasperation, wanting to meet a bed soon.
"Only after she agrees to-" Hecate was shut up by a slap from Heidi. "I'll take that as the agreement." She said with a shrug before opening the portal.
Ignoring what just happened, Freddie looked at the portal in concern. "Uhh...I don't do well with swirly holes…"
Ara shrugged at that. "Ah. It's fine. It's like walking through a door." She said, before she walked through it with ease, "I'll be back, Italy!" She said before proceeding, the cloud train following her.
Freddie grumbled before saying, "Ugh. Here goes." She said before race walking into the portal.
Uma chuckled and followed her in without question.
Elsa, who was riding on her own frosty cloud, smiled before gesturing to Chirpy. "Come on, Chirpy. There's nothing to be afraid of." She said before going through
Chirpy looked at it before heavily sighing. "O-okay. You sure it's safe?" She asked Audrey as she prepared to wheel the pregnant woman.
"Oh, yeah. There's marble on the other side because the portal is linked up to the one we keep in the main entryway." Audrey reassured her with a smile.
Chirpy bit her lip and nodded. "Alright. Here we go…" She screwed her eyes shut before race walking into the portal also.
CJ looked at Heidi before chuckling. "You told me to follow you, remember?" She tilted her head.
"I remember...I'm just bracing myself for the Hermes who will take me out of commission with a crash hug. This portal is like a giant doorbell for him." Heidi explained with halved eyes.
CJ blinked before nodding. "Eh. Alright. That makes sense, well...can you brace yourself a taaad faster?" She nervously smiled, pretty eager to join her friends on the other side.
Heidi promptly moved the girl in front of her. "Well, if I get taken down by my cousin, you are definitely going down with me. Hermes would probably do it to you anyway." She said with a shrug before beginning to move.
CJ blinked at that. Then she sighed. After that, the girl began to brace herself as she went through the portal.
Heidi blinked a few times before glancing around at the marble hallway. "And...welcome to mi casa. AKA...pretty much second Olympus." She said with a shrug as she leaned over to flip a switch to turn on the lights.
While everyone else silently admired everything, Ara exclaimed, "HOLY SHOOT!" She said, looking up, down, and around at the temple-like area. "Someone hasn't heard of modesty...I like it." She smirked at that.
"Tell my dad, he did everything...extra. It's not as bad as his place since his is the same size...it's just made of gold." Heidi said as she scanned the wide entryway.
Freddie raised an eyebrow. "A house...made of gold?" She shook her head.
CJ looked at her before shrugging. "It's probably god stuff." She said, prompting Freddie to nod also.
"It's impressing his wife stuff. Not like she'd mind a normal castle, my dad is just above and beyond in designing." Heidi said with a shrug. She snapped her fingers and made what appeared to be a magical barrier form. "Sorry, Hermes is charging over here and is still crap at not hitting innocent people at high speeds." She said casually as there was a loud thud against the barrier followed by a comedic sliding sound.
"...And there's the bird." Chester chuckled to himself as he put his phone away.
"Hey! My wings are on my shoes! That doesn't make me a bird." Hermes protested while beating on the barrier. "Can you take this down? I wanna say hi."
"Are you going to crash hug me?" Heidi asked in a deadpan.
"It's not out of the...uh...question." Hermes said with a shrug.
"Then no." Heidi said with exasperation as the god began to try and figure out how to break through it.
Uma smirked before saying, "Why do I have a feeling this will be entertaining?"
Ara leaned over. "Because it most likely will be. Just watch." She replied, not taking her eyes off of Hermes.
Chester chuckled at that. "You don't have to tell me twice."
"Don't encourage him...you'll make his ego grow and it's already huge at this point. He has his own background, battle, and boss music now." Heidi said with a huff, subtly pointing out the music that had begun to play. "Like who needs music following them everywhere?"
Ara looked to the side at that. "O-kay. Everyone get on a cloud. This might take a while." She said, making a cloud of her own.
Heidi's eyes halved at that, but before she could speak, Hecate walked past her. "Nah, I got this." She said, smirking as she saw Hermes flying backwards so he could get a running start. Poking the barrier, she snickered as it fell and jumped back.
Elsa blinked at that before wincing, "Uhh...Heidi? You might wanna…" She stated from her spot on her cloud.
"I might wanna what-" Heidi asked before the blonde god in golden armor promptly smacked into both her and CJ.
The group hissed, cringe, covered their eyes, and some even turned away.
"Ooh...I felt that." Chester said and shook out his fur.
Freddie chuckled at that. "Mm, mm, mm, ain't that a shame." She folded her arms.
"I'm...okay." CJ managed out while she held her head in a dizzy manner.
After that, Hermes was launched into the nearby wall by a punch from a ticked Heidi. The bluenette managed to help get CJ up before she hopped up. "I...am going to kick your ass...so hard for that." She said with a twitching eyebrow.
Ara scratched her head before saying, "You wouldn't mind kicking his ass after you show us to our rooms, do you?" She asked innocently.
Heidi twitched once more before sighing deeply. "Fine." She managed out as she fired off a small zap of electricity that hit the god. "That's a warning." She said with a scowl before turning away as Hermes floated out of his imprint in the wall.
Chester chuckled at that before nudging Ara. "Heh, heh. Fried chicken." He said, still calling the god a bird. That caused Ara to have to bite a laugh.
"Not a bird." Hermes said in a deadpan as he tried to pat his hair down.
Ara shook her head at the both of them before saying, "Still getting fried, I see?" She folded her arms after nearly laughing at his hair.
"Not nearly as often lately." Hermes said with a shrug as he turned so he could float on his back.
Ara smiled at that before saying, "Nice to see you again." She said before looking around more.
"Same. Never thought we'd have to meet like this. With me fried and no Zeus in sight." Hermes commented with a smirk.
Ara just shrugged at that. "Eh. I'm used to seeing people get fried. It happened to Mercury all the time." She said with a wave of her hand.
"True. Just feels a little off not being fried by a massive lightning bolt thrown from Olympus." Hermes said with a shrug and a smile.
"Right." Ara replied as if it was casual. "I would usually be more talkative, but it's been…" She thought off all of the day's events. "A really long day…" She said, staring into space.
"Been there before. Today was mostly dodging arrows, trying to keep out dogs, attending to everyone's beck and call...and there was the incident with the person who is freeloading somewhere around here. Wish I could say that's enough, but I could still go awhile." Hermes said with a shrug and a tilt of his head.
Ara shrugged at that, "My day...or week has been weird. Eh. I'm still kinda troublesome after three years." She scratched her head.
Elsa scoffed at that. "Pfft. Kinda." She said with a roll of her crystalline eyes.
Ara looked over with irritation. "I heard that." She deadpanned.
"It's not like everyone here isn't a nightmare still. Skadi still wants to shoot me on an hourly basis, Hecate's kid keeps trying to turn me into a flying pig, Heidi threatening to probably kill me-"
"I didn't mention the words kill." Heidi said with a neutral expression, though her eyebrow twitched in annoyance.
"-There's Hades who is probably back to cursing souls already, Persephone making man-killing plants because she is saying she's fighting as well...Oh and Hecate actually hasn't changed one bit. She's literally the same crackhead." Hermes finished as he floated up next to the goddess.
Uma blinked at Ara before saying, "Ara, can I speak to you for a moment."
Ara nodded at that before walking over to her group. "Yeah, what's up?"
Uma tilted her head before folding her arms. "Uhh. Quick question. How are we going to...you know. Survive here?" She asked in a deadpan.
Ara blinked before looking to the side. "Well, staying together, never fails." She offered up.
"I'm staying in my room." Elsa said with a blank expression.
"Or you could do that." Ara responded in a deadpan.
Chester looked at them before saying, "The second option."
"Second." Freddie said in agreement.
Uma and Chirpy nodded in agreement as well.
Ara tilted her head at that. "Come on, guys. It's not going to be that bad. Just...stay out of the way. Out of sight, out of mind." She said with a reassuring smile.
The group looked at each other before nodding at that. Ara nodded in return, seeing that had been handled.
"Besides...Skadi only likes fast moving targets, Hecate's demon is locked in her cave, Hades and Persephone are elsewhere...and you already survived her...didn't you?" Hermes said while lazily jabbing his thumb at Hecate.
CJ looked to the side. "...Barely…"
"That's because she's a crackhead." Hermes deadpanned.
"A crackhead who has dibs on the TV room." Hecate said with a snicker before disappearing in a poof of smoke.
Hermes gaped at that before promptly zipping away down a separate hallway.
"...I'm not sure if I'm relieved or not." Heidi said with a sigh that she had been holding in.
Ara blinked. "I know I am. Too late at night. Too much talking." She said, her posture growing more droopy.
Even CJ began rubbing her eyes at that statement.
"Eh...Audrey you take half and I'll take the other. If those morons hadn't left I'd have told them to put on the signs." Heidi said with annoyance.
"Well, I'm not the one who gave Hermes the remote." Audrey said with a shrug before glancing over her shoulder. "I'm going to the upper floors...so if anybody remembers if they are up or on main floor follow either Heidi or me. She's sticking to main floor. If you don't know-we do provide maps." She said with a cheerful smile despite what time it was.
Ara blinked blankly. "Which floor is the water zone on?" She said with halved eyes.
"Main." Heidi said with a shrug.
"Alright, let's go." Ara said, walking over to Heidi. She rearranged the clouds to follow whoever knew where their room was. "Ready."
CJ blinked in confusion before saying, "Who do I follow? I'm getting another room." She looked to Heidi in confusion.
"Oh, you can follow me. I can take you to it after I get these guys at least in the right direction." Heidi said with a smile.
Ara nodded at that And motioned CJ to follow them. CJ walked up to them, accompanied by Uma.
The rest of the group followed behind Audrey.
Ara smiled at them before saying, "I'll see the rest of you guys tomorrow. I'll send texts." She waved, they waved back.
Heidi shook her head and yawned softly. "Just thinking about all the talking she is going to do...oi vey…" She said with halved eyes as she continued down the grand hallway.
Uma lazily waved her fist in the air. "Bonus points for missing it." She would smile if she wasn't so tired.
"She's going to go tour guide mode...so just be glad you have me who...doesn't really give a crap. There's a big room-we don't use it, end of story." Heidi said lazily as they passed by two large doors.
The trio cheered and clapped at that as if it was a speech.
Ara whistled with her fingers. "Encore! Encore!" She cheered with a smile.
Heidi smirked and shook her head. "There's a ball pit in the waterzone...so don't fall into it at night. I had to rescue Hermes from it." She said with a shrug and a roll of her eyes. "Feel free to fall into the pools though."
Uma shrugged at that. "Eh. Why not?"
Ara tilted her head at that. "Sounds like it will be cool to check out tomorrow." She said with a nod.
"Totally." CJ said with a smirk before she looked back at her mother.
"There isn't really much on the main floor. Random rooms, like two living rooms, an oversized version of most normal rooms...there is a garden though." Heidi said, finishing with a head tilt.
Ara nodded. "Where Hazel will be. Got it." She said, taking a good look at the halls.
Heidi clicked her tongue as the walls began shifting to blue. "Anyway, this hall is a straight-way to waterland and there's only a few suites plus the pools and that ball pit." She said while gesturing to the subtle change in colors and designs.
Ara nodded before she, out of nowhere, grabbed Uma's arm. "...I think Uma and I got it from here." She looked down the hall. "We know what our rooms look like."
Before anyone could protest, Ara zipped off with Uma saying, "I'llseeyoualltomorrow! Iloveyouguysgoodnight!" As she dashed off.
Heidi stared before shrugging and doing a 180. "Fine with me. We'll be heading towards where my room is. It's a different wing with the bigger rooms." She explained, not appearing that bothered by what just happened.
CJ shrugged the matter off as if it were normal before looking at Heidi with a nod. "Okay. After you." She said as she began to follow her mother.
Heidi was mostly silent before she turned a corner into a warmer colored hallway. "Big Room wing here we are. Far away enough from the water but close enough so I don't have to teleport there." She said with a shrug and a yawn. "I have a room adjoined to mine that was meant for my sister, until she ditched and chose a different area, if you want it. Otherwise there's a few empty ones across from me." She pointed to three clearly marked rooms before turning to look at CJ.
CJ looked at the rooms before making a decision. "I can take the one that I think you want me to have." She smirked, referring to the one Mal didn't want.
Heidi tried to look innocent at her claim as she quickly turned away to go to a white door with gold trim. "Whaaat? No. Heh...eh...eh." She said with a nervous chuckle before immediately opening the door.
While Heidi shuffled into the room, it was easy to see that Heidi had indeed wanted Mal to have this room as the rooms colors were mostly purple with a bit of gold trimmings on some of the furniture. The marble walls carried in and gave the room a grandiose feel with a large diamond chandelier only enhancing it. In the middle of the room sat a massive bed with purple and gold comforters while there were extra blankets neatly folded at the end of the bed. The room had a large painting above a beautiful fireplace while a walk in closet was at the right of the room.
CJ took a moment to admire the room before she playfully rolled her eyes in amusement. "Mooooom." She said, wanting her to cough up the truth.
Heidi tried to hide it before giving up and dramatically sighing. "Fine. I want you to have it. But only because I clearly worry!" She said with a huff as she pouted.
CJ looked at the beautiful room with interest before saying, "You don't have to worry, you know." She said, walking up to Heidi.
"I..have my reasons." Heidi said with a small sigh.
CJ sat her suitcase down before asking, "It's because of what happened, right?" She asked her with a small frown.
"Little bit of everything. My dad tried so hard...so what's saying he wouldn't try again? Not to mention my other parent...which is self-explanatory." Heidi said while folding her arms as she looked rather unhappy at the thought.
CJ was silent for a bit before walking up and embracing her mother. "It'll get better." She said as she patted Heidi's back.
"I hope so…" Heidi said with a soft sigh as she shook her head and closed her eyes.
CJ tightened the hug before finally releasing her. She gave her parent a kiss on the forehead. "Goodnight, mom." She said, walking to her bed. That's when she noticed Heidi's expression. "Is there something else, mom?" She asked with amusement.
Heidi rubbed her arm as she inched forward a bit. "I...uh…" She trailed off while her eyes drifted over to the bed.
CJ glanced at the bed as well before smiling wider. "Would you like to...stay for a bit?" She said, sitting down on the bed.
Heidi nodded and made her way over. "I'd...like that." She said softly.
CJ shook her head at that with another smile. "Come on." She gestured to the bed with a chuckle as she kicked off her boots and dove under the covers.
Heidi smiled a bit as she removed her leather jacket she had put on and slipped off her own boots. She gently got on the bed before getting comfy under the covers. "...Thanks."
CJ chuckled at that. "It's nothing. Goodnight, mom." She snuggled up to Heidi, burying her face in Heidi's neck.
"Goodnight, baby girl." Heidi mumbled back with a smile as she closed her eyes.
8888888
After a night filled with pleasant dreams, CJ woke up with a start. She could immediately tell her environment was different than what she was used to waking up in. Then, she opened her eyes and was immediately flooded with memories from the previous day. At that, she grinned. She was fully ready to explore this new, massive territory...but there was something she had to do first.
"Mom...mom...mom...moooom." CJ said as she persistently poked at her mother. "Wake up!" She smiled eagerly.
"Too...early." Heidi mumbled with a yawn as she tried to snuggle back under the blankets.
CJ pouted at that. "But mooom. I want to explore!" She said before looking at the clock. "And it's going on two o'clock!"
Heidi sighed at that and opened her eyes. "Fine…" She said with a matching pout.
At that, CJ's pout disappeared and was replaced by a grin. She hugged Heidi before rushing to the bathroom. "Ready!" She said after a few seconds. "Really nice bathroom, by the way." She commented while glancing back to admire the luxurious bathroom.
Heidi yawned again as she grabbed her jacket that was on the floor and stretched. "Yeah...that was Audrey." She rubbed at her eyes and shook her head as she woke up.
CJ shrugged at that. "Huh. I can see that." She said as she admired her yellow hoodie dress and red tights. "Don't mind me. I'm just taking this outfit Ara got me for a spin. She said it should make me go faster. Oh! And she said not to kill myself. I think I got that covered." She said with a wave as she tried to choose between her two new shoes.
Heidi tilted her head as she slipped into a pair of sandals she made appear. "Looks nice." She said as she stretched her arms.
CJ had decided on the knee high convers this time before saying, "Thanks. I like 'em too. Now I'm all set." She said, putting her hands in her hoodie pockets.
Heidi nodded as began heading for the door. "I'll take you over to the kitchen...got a bunch of stuff to choose from." She said as she appeared to be fully awake now.
CJ nodded at that with a smile. "Alright! Lead the way." She said before walking up to Heidi.
Heidi nodded as she stretched her neck and looked around the hallway. It was mostly empty, as per usual, except for Hestia, Hera, and a redhead she hadn't seen before. "Huh, and here I thought Hermes said there was only one freeloader." She commented as she raised an eyebrow at the three chatting women as she passed by.
CJ looked at Heidi in confusion before looking at the three women. Then she looked away. However one of those three made her double take. The redhead was one of the most beautiful women she had ever seen. CJ's eyes followed her to the point where she was nearly walking backwards. "...huh?" She responded to...whatever Heidi said.
"I'm just wondering who the actual freeloader is. Can't be that chick since those two know her...they wouldn't know a random freeloader." Heidi said with a shrug and a look of confusion.
CJ was eventually able to snap herself back into reality. "Ah...maybe we'll come across the freeloader...eventually…" She said, trying to get back into her right state of mind.
"I'd rather it happen sooner or later...I'd be more than irritated if it was someone like Loki hiding in my attic." Heidi said with halved eyes.
CJ tilted her head at that before nodding at that. "I guess you're right about that. We'll find 'em soon." She said in a reassuring manner.
Heidi nodded and sighed a bit before shaking her head as she turned a corner. "Normally I could care less, but right now...a freeloader is more likely to be someone bad than someone good." She explained with a small frown.
"And we'll find them." CJ said, giving her mother a side hug.
Heidi smiled and hugged her back before she looked up as they walked into a large kitchen. "You'll help me?" She asked with a chuckle.
CJ blinked in shock. "Uhh, yeah. It's shocking to me that you'd even ask that question." She said, growing a smirk.
Heidi shook her head in amusement as she went over to a large kitchen island. "Next time I'll just drag you along." She said jokingly with a smile.
CJ chuckled at that. "You have my permission for any future dragging." She said with a mock bow as she followed her mother to the island.
Heidi laughed before leaning her elbows on the white marble countertops. "Got an idea for food?" She asked with a head tilt.
CJ blinked before tilting her head at that. "Let's see. We woke up at one fifty…time for breakfast!" She said with a chuckle. "I could teach you that pumpkin spice waffle recipe if you want." She smiled at the thought.
Heidi rubbed her chin before gesturing the blonde to join her on the other side of the island. "Alright, you get to teach me so I don't somehow add the completely opposite of ingredients." She said with a chuckle.
CJ grinned at that. "Alright then. We start off with basic batter, but we will need a few extra things. We need cinnamon, all spice, cinnamon sugar, and vanilla extract." She said, holding up her fingers as she listed the ingredients.
Heidi nodded before she began moving around to find the ingredients. "Mixing bowls are in that...that area." She said while pointing with her foot to a set of lower cabinets while reaching for something.
CJ nodded before tilting her head and digging in the lower cabinets. She only took a few minutes before picking the perfect bowl. "This one should do. Do you have a whisk?"
"Should be one of those drawers above the cabinet where you found the bowl." Heidi said as she balanced something on her head for a minute before putting it elsewhere.
CJ sent her a thumbs up before poking around in the drawers. That's when she found a silver whisk. "I got it." She said, observing the utensil.
Heidi set a bunch of ingredients down as she closed a few cabinets. "And I think I got everything." She said with a nod.
CJ looked over them before nodding in approval. "Awesome. Now we need to make the batter. Then I'll tell you how to portion the ingredients." She looked to Heidi with a smile.
Heidi nodded with a smile as she went about adding in all the basic ingredients before she started stirring it. "And people wonder how I keep my arms like this-just make pancakes and waffles constantly." She said in amusement as she glanced down at her exposed arms.
CJ laughed at that as she watched Heidi stir the basic ingredients. That's when CJ's eyes caught something reflective passing by. She looked up and smiled, seeing a familiar face. "Oh, hi, Elsa."
Elsa, who was currently creeping about the kitchen, jumped when she heard her name. When She saw who called her, she relaxed. "Oh. It's just you guys. Good afternoon. Good afternoon to you also, Heidi." She said, approaching the two.
Heidi smiled and waved. "Hey. I hope the first night wasn't too off for you?" She asked with a head tilt.
Elsa smirked before saying, "There was no time to think about how odd it was. I passed out as soon as I wrapped myself in blankets."
Heidi chuckled at that. "It was pretty much the same for us." She said with a small shrug.
"It had been a wild day." Elsa said, straightening her starry shirt. "I wouldn't be surprised if the others had a similar experience."
"Well, I didn't hear about anyone walking and falling into the pool or the ball pit, so I assume it went smoothly." Heidi said with a small laugh.
Elsa smiled before walking about in search for food. "I would like to think so. This morning, however, I had a panicked Trip come to me claiming we had been abducted by aliens." She said with amusement.
"Heh, there's too much marble here to mistake it for that. If anything, I'd think that I'd have been kidnapped by one of my relatives or I got a free night at a 5-star resort." Heidi said with a chuckle and shook her head as she set the mixed bowl on the countertop.
Elsa smiled when she found a pear. She turned to Heidi. "When it comes to that boy, I have no idea. He has a...big imagination." She shrugged, taking a bite.
"Bit of an understatement." Heidi said with a raised eyebrow.
Elsa chuckled at that before saying, "Well. I'll leave you two be. Catch up with you later?" She glanced at Heidi on her way out.
Heidi nodded with a smile. "I'll probably have Hermes round everyone up when dinner comes around. Otherwise just feel free to call me." She said with a shrug.
Elsa nodded at that, gave them a wave, then exited the kitchen as fast as possible. Thankfully, she remembered the way back to her room. It was nothing to get back at this point. The goal was to not be seen by anyone she knew. She glanced around before taking off in the direction of her room.
Things didn't turn out as planned when she turned a corner. Apparently, someone had the same idea of blasting through the halls. They weren't expecting anyone either. This resulted in both of them bumping right into each other, causing Elsa to stumble. Due to her balance being thrown off, she roughly sat on the floor, trying to get her thoughts back together.
Elsa shook her head. "I'm so sorry. Are you alright?" She asked the person she had run over. What she didn't expect to see was a splitting image of her, but shorter. The girl appeared to be only 4'7.
The girl pushed her long blonde hair out of the way so she could see before she let out a frightened squeak and quickly scooted back. "M-M-Mom what a-are you d-doing here?" She asked, her words tumbling out while her severe stutter became only more apparent with how nervous she clearly was.
Elsa blinked blankly at that. The woman looked around for a moment. Seeing no one else, she blinked once more, but in confusion. "Oh...are you...talking to me?" She asked, pointing to herself.
The girl shivered as she continued to back up at a rapid pace. "A-A-Are you here t-to take me back?" She asked as she gulped and blinked a few times.
Elsa frowned at that before saying, "No...I-eh. I don't even...know who you are…" She looked down before looking back up. "Have we met?" She tilted her head, causing her earrings to dangle.
The girl paled at that and nervously fiddled with her fingers. "G-Good going, W-Winter, n-now she's trying t-to trick y-you into talking." She said to herself with a frown.
"W-what?" Elsa said, clearly confused. "No, I'm not. I really don't know you."
Winter raised her hands. "I-I am i-innocent!" She exclaimed as she scooted back until she hit her head on the wall. "O-Ow…" She mumbled, caught off guard by the fact that was already scooted up to the wall.
Elsa's expression of confusion morphed into one of concern. She adjusted herself to where she was sitting on her legs, resting her hands on her liquid-like silver pants. "I'm not sure why you are so afraid of me, but I do know that I'm not crossed with you in any way. I don't see why I would be mad at you already. This is my first time meeting you. I came from Italy only yesterday." She said innocently, also showing her palms.
Winter shook her head. "N-Nuh-uh. M-My mom, w-who is you, said s-she'd come a-any day n-now to d-drag me away j-just because o-of the boy I l-like." She said with a sniff.
Elsa tilted her head before saying, "Oh. You must be the one whom Hecate was referring to. Don't be afraid. You are mistaken. I am the other Elsa from the other world." She explained, resting her hands again. "I am Queen Elsa of the Roman gods and of Italy. I also go by the Roman goddess of winter." She explained, hoping to calm the girl down.
Winter sniffed and shook her head. "T-That still m-means she's c-coming to take me away...All b-because of the boy I l-like. S-She hates h-him." She managed out while frowning.
"Why does she hate him?" Elsa asked with a raised eyebrow.
While Winter continued to shake, she shook her head a second time. "S-She hates h-his d-dad and sister." She said with a sigh as she puffed out her cheeks.
Elsa tapped her chin at that before asking, "Really? Huh...who is he?"
"H-Hadie…" Winter said while trailing off and looking to the side.
Elsa snapped her fingers at that. "Okay. I've been there before. I'm over that, though. They grew on me." She said with a shrug. "So, the other me doesn't like him very well?"
"S-She hates a-anybody with purple or b-blue hair...The only purple-h-haired person she s-still likes is M-Mal." Winter said with a sigh.
Elsa frowned at that before sighing. "Well, you don't have to worry about that with me. My daughter and my husband have blue hair. Their friends have blue hair. Now that I mention it, my friend has blue hair. Hades is kind of a friend. I just find it fun to pick with him." She said, remembering she had to return his wallet before shrugging it off.
"S-She'd probably h-hate them t-too. It's l-like she w-was dumped by someone w-with that h-hair color or something and n-never moved on. It's d-dumb." Winter said with a pout. "S-She doesn't tell me a-anything, s-so I doubt she'd explain t-that." She said as she folded her arms.
Elsa's frown deepened before she looked at the girl again. She really should be going, but she didn't feel right leaving her like this. "I...have some spare time. Is there anything I could do to make you feel better?" She asked, glancing around first.
Winter rubbed at her eyes. "C-Can you r-replace m-my mom so she d-doesn't break me up w-with Hadie?" She asked with an innocent look as she sniffed.
"Uhh…" Elsa said with a blank expression. "That seems like it would be really hard to pull off…" She stared into space as she spoke.
Winter subconsciously put on her puppy dog eyes at that as her lip trembled. "B-B-But she's going to tear u-us apart. S-She knows I l-love him but d-doesn't care...all because of his h-hair. N-Not to mention s-she doesn't let me see m-my grandparents...because s-she's just...j-just really mean!" She said with a huff as her cheeks burned red with anger.
Elsa hissed as she ran her hand through her hair, nearly knocking off her crown. "...I don't know-I already have two and...this is pretty big and…" She said, trying to avoid the eyes.
"B-But...you're s-so much n-nicer." Winter said as her lip trembled even more. "Please?"
Elsa frowned deeply and twiddle her fingers as she thought about it. She not her lip before looking to the side. She hummed for a bit, obviously warring with herself as her cheeks puffed up with air. "Okay!" She blurted out with a smile that looked more like a wince.
Winter sniffed and smiled before getting up and hugging her. "T-Thank you!" She said with a happy smile.
Elsa took a moment before warmly smiling. "...Your welcome." She said, hugging her in return.
Winter held on for a few more seconds before she pulled away. "Y-You'll handle my m-mom?"
Elsa nodded despite the mixed emotions she was feeling on the inside. "Of course. Don't worry. I...got this." She said dramatically.
Winter smiled and nodded. "I-I'll go t-tell Hadie. C-Can I c-come visit after I d-do that?" She asked with a head tilt.
Elsa smiled at that and nodded. "Sure. I don't mind. You may go." She said, standing and regaining her composure.
Winter smiled and waved before running off down the hallway.
As soon as the girl was out of sight Elsa released a breath she didn't realize she was holding. "...What have I done?" She asked herself with exasperation.