XX. Operation Sleepover
Time finally caught up with Diana. When it did she was sitting in her last class of the day on a rainy Friday afternoon. It had been a review of the material of the week and Diana was half listening.
She had been lost in thought either staring at the back of Akko's adorable head or out the window into the coming night. Today had been a constant celebration of her victory over Ellen.
Hannah and Barbara took it upon themselves to tell the whole school about it and treat her like a queen. The red and green teams both were there to congratulate her and sing her praises. Akko had gone overboard with praise, adoration, cuddles and hugs. Diana loved that part, the way Akko always wanted to be affectionate with her. That was the best part and she even found herself holding hands with Akko.
Even in those happy moments she had to stop herself. She wasn't exactly free, Aunt Daryl could still have eyes in Luna Nova watching. That reminded her of her recent revelation after the duel. Her hunch that Aunt Daryl was secretly gay herself. She tore her eyes away from the rain stained glass of the window and glanced at the clock at the head of the room, less than a minute until class ended. She had thought long and hard about what she was going to do for the weekend since everyone was constantly asking her, especially Akko.
Her plan was to go back home for the weekend and try to dig up dirt on Aunt Daryl. She suspected that her Aunt's room as well as the attic would hold the secrets she could use to win her independence. This would work in her favor, her Aunt would feel in control of her and let her guard down. She sighed as looked over to Hannah and Barbara. She knew they would force themselves along with her, so Diana decided to invite them over for the weekend. This would keep them out of trouble and where Diana could see them.
The same couldn't be said for Akko. She would try to force herself along too. Diana sighed a little louder as her teammates looked over at her. What to do with Akko? Diana had no idea, Akko would make things worse if she got in Daryl's face or got too affectionate in front of her. She would have to convince the others to help distract Akko and keep her out of the way.
The bell finally rang and the room started to shift and move with people gathering their things. Hannah and Barbara spoke up undulled excitement over Diana's victory.
"Okay, Diana the Destroyer, where to now? How about some cake from that bakery in town?" Hannah asked gathering all of her books in hand.
"Hey, I thought it was Diana Dynamite Cavendish. Plus it's raining who wants to fly to town in the rain?" Barbara said scooting in her chair.
"We don't have to do it today! I was just thinking about this weekend." Hannah remarked back at Barbara.
Diana cleared her throat causing both of the girls to look at her. She started to lead both of them out of the classroom toward their room.
"On the contrary, I was planning to return home for the weekend." Diana said, the possibility of finding out secrets about her Aunt was opportunity she couldn't pass up.
Hannah and Barbara looked at each other both clearly dismayed. Diana knew they were planning something for the weekend, she had seen them talking to the rest of their friends without her in the hallway.
"What!? Why would you want to go home now?" Barbara asked walking closer to Diana talking toward her.
Diana quickly glanced around. "I was hoping to find some information about my Aunt. Information that would help me against her. Beside we haven't made any progress on the subject and to be honest I don't know how much longer I can keep pretending that I want to be cured."
Hannah was about to say something but Diana interrupted her. "I was going to invite the both of you over tonight and tomorrow to assist me in my search."
As they reached their room Diana opened the door and went inside. Hannah and Barbara both followed in disbelief. They both stood in the room for a few moments before looking at each other and getting excited.
"So what you're saying is...!" Hannah started with hardly contained excitement.
"...we're having a sleepover at your mansion!?" Barbara said with excitement that over flowed.
"Yeah! Sleepover! Sleepover!" Cheered Hannah and Barbara hugging each other and jumping up and down.
Diana groaned and massaged her temples. Well, there was no going back now.
"This is not a sleepover. This is a delicate operation to retrieve sensitive information about my Aunt." Diana said with an annoyed look on her face.
Both Hannah and Barbara hugged Diana. They each grabbed one of her arms and started to dance around in circles.
"Okay Diana. You got it!" Hannah said stopping her dancing with a wide smile.
"Yeah, Operation Sleepover is a go!" Barbara said stopping and giving Diana a thumbs up.
Diana sighed. "I also need you both in case Akko shows up unexpectedly. You need to keep her away from Aunt Daryl and my cousins. Don't let them see her or find out about our relationship. Understand?"
Hannah and Barbara smiled confidently.
"I mean the best place to keep Akko out of trouble is in your arms…" Hannah said slyly.
Barbara elbowed her. "We heard you. Keep Akko away and out of sight."
"Good. We need to leave soon, grab anything you'll need for the weekend. We'll leave in 20 minutes." Diana announced in a voice that her teammates knew well. It was a voice full of determination and they remembered why Diana was their team leader.
They packed their things quickly and quietly. At the end of the 20 minutes they each left the room with a singular suitcase that varied in color. As Diana locked their door, Hannah looked over at Barbara and rolled her eyes.
"Did you have to bring your fat plushie turtle?" Hannah asked looking at the blue turtle that was as big as a standard pillow.
Barbara narrowed her eyes and gripped it tightly.
"His name is Henry and he's self conscious about his wieght!" Barbara retorted.
Diana cleared her throat. "The four of us need to get going. We need to arrive before my Aunt gets home." Diana led the way to one of the balconies on their floor. They all took off on their brooms and followed Diana to her house. The whole way Diana tuned out their conversation, preoccupied with the details of her plan.