DISC: I DO NOT own any of the chars from BSC. They belong to Ann M. Martin. I Do however own anyone you don't recognize!
Enjoy!
"Kristy's Big Decision"
CHAPTER 17
Meanwhile, Claud was over with the Perkins girls, watching Mariah try to win something for Gabbers. The two sisters were really close.
As for Sari, she was playing a game of goofy golf with Claire.
As Mariah put her quarter in, she crossed her fingers as she watched the hand descend into the machine.
She had her eye on a plush Rajah for her sister. She had already won a plush Abu for herself.
As both girls watched, their eyes lit up as the machine started blinking rapidly and genie's voice was heard.
"We have a winner!" He said.
"Yes! Yes! Yes!" The girls cheered.
Gabbi looked at Claud with a grin.
"See, Claudia Kishi?"
She asked. "My sister's good!"
"She sure is. " Claud agreed.
Genie interrupted them.
"Now, grab that prize!" He instructed.
Mariah did just that.
As she pulled out the plush Rajah, she got a second surprise.
Someone else was attached to his tail.
Mariah handed Rajah to her sister and held Jiminy Cricket close to her.
She had always liked Jiminy ever since she first saw "Pinocchio."
"All right you guys," Claud said. "Why don't we go over and play some ski ball."
Both girls agreed.
"Wanna play some more, Claudia Kishi." Gabbi said.
"You do huh, Gabbers?" Claud asked.
"Yes, please!" Gabbi said.
Just then, Genie's voice could be heard again.
"Wanna play again?"
"How does Genie know I wanna play again?" Gabbie asked.
Mariah shrugged.
"He's magical." She replied. "He knows everything."
"Bye-bye, thanks for playing." Genie said.
Gabbie waved to him.
"Adios." She said as she followed her sister and Claudia over to the ski ball game.
A little ways away, they heard Claire throwing another tantrum.
"Goofy's stupid!" She declared. "This game is rigged."
"Do you even know what that means?" Mal asked.
Claire nodded.
"Goofy cheated! I want my money back."
"Goofy didn't' cheat." Mal said. "He's just not strong enough to hit the ball in the hole."
"Or smart enough." Margo muttered.
Just then, Emily's shrieks of laughter could be heard to their left.
"Kristy, I did it!" She said.
"You sure did." I said. "Let's go collect your prize."
"I get prize?" Emily asked.
"Yup." I replied. With that, I led her over to the counter. "What would you like?"
Emily scanned the shelves before her eyes landed on something I couldn't see at first.
"Dumbo!" She said. "I want Dumbo, please?"
"Sure." I said. I indicated one of the large plush near the front of the display.
As Emily watched the cast member take him down, she shook her head.
"No." She said.
I looked confused.
"I thought you wanted Dumbo, Em?" I asked.
Emily nodded. She pointed to a small one that was all alone.
"I want him!" She said.
"But wouldn't you rather have a bigger one?" I asked.
Emily shook her head.
"No." She replied.
"Why not?" I asked. I was aware due to Emily's slight problem with English, I wouldn't' get a straight forward answer.
But she surprised me this time.
"He's alone." She said. "He needs a friend."
I smiled. My sister was something else all right.
Once she had Dumbo safely tucked under one arm, I guided her back to the others.
The next day, we headed for Fantasyland. The kids wanted to ride It's a Small world.
Claudia had issues with the ride, so I ended up going, along with Mal.
We ended up taking Karen, Margo, David Michael and Emily Michelle. I asked Alex if she wanted to go, but she said she wanted to hang out with her mother.
As we boarded the boats, David Michael started ramming a pair of swords on the side of one of them.
"Be careful." I warned. "Remember what happened to Pluto."
David Michael glared at me.
"What are you doing with those swords anyway?" Karen asked.
Our brother gave her a look as though it were obvious.
"I'm going to catch Tick tock." He answered.
Karen giggled.
"There aren't any clocks in the river." She said.
"The crocodile, stupid." David Michael retorted.
I let the two kids work it out. I knew Karen could hold her own.
As we started moving, the song started playing.
I heard Karen start to sing along and I tried to get Emily to do the same.
I was really hoping the ride would end quickly. After all, it was a kids' ride. How long could it really last?
By the time the ride was over, I had come to a realization of my own.
It was a small world, but the time in which it lasted was anything but small.
"Can we go again?" Emily asked.
"Tomorrow." I replied. "We'll get Anya to take you."
"Ana go on ride now?" Emily asked.
"Yes." I replied.
"I'm not going then. " Karen declared.
I let it go. I figured they would work it out eventually.
We ended up eating dinner at the Starlight café.
Anya and Alex ended up joining us and my sister shot Anya glares all through dinner.
Anya shook her head and mouthed to me that she would take care of it.
I nodded as I helped Emily put ketch up on her nuggets.
Karen and Hannie were deep in conversation on one end of the table, while Charlotte and Alex were discussing something a few chairs down.
As for the Perkins girls, Mariah was in a heated discussion with my brother about why Jesse and Woody should be together instead of Buzz and Jesse, while Gabbie happily colored on her menu.
Alex was eating a turkey burger and tatter tots while Charlotte had a chicken wrap.
As dinner was winding down, Mal tried to convince Claire that waving her magic wand around while people were walking by wasn't a good idea.
When Claire argued she was looking for a frog to turn into a prince, Mal convinced her to wait until we left the café.
As we reached main street, we saw Mickey, Donald and Goofy.
Sari grinned and practically pulled Claud over to where they were.
She broke free of Claud's grasp and ran for Donald. She threw her arms around his waist and hugged tight.
Donald hugged back before letting go.
Sari pointed to his head.
"Does it feel better?" She asked.
Donald pointed at his head and then hers.
Sari frowned.
"Magic show." She said.
Donald nodded.
Sari smiled.
"Good." She said.
Just then, Emily spotted Goofy.
She frowned and pointed at him.
"Bad doggie!" She exclaimed.
"Emily." I said. "That wasn't nice."
"Goofy bad!" Emily insisted. "Talk too much."
I giggled.
"He's different." I explained.
"How?" Emily asked.
"Well, he doesn't talk as much as the other Goofy." I explained.
"Good." Emily said.
I shook my head and bounced Emily on my hip.
Just then, Claudia glanced over at a few statues that were a little ways away.
I recognized the look in her eyes.
"Those would be perfect to sketch!" She shouted. "I gotta get a closer look!" With that, she took off with Sari in her arms.
When they got there, Sari squealed with delight.
"Goofy!" She cried. "You're my best friend."
Claudia frowned. She knew this could be trouble.
"Goofy?" Sari asked.
There was no answer.
Soon, she started to cry.
"Come on, Sar Bear." Claudia said. "It's okay. Let's leave these silly statues and go do something fun! Do you wanna visit Goofy's Candy Kitchen with me?"
"No!" Sari cried. "Wanna talk to Goofy!"
Just then, someone pointed at Claud and motioned for her to follow, but keep her distance.
Claud did so, hoping it would help Sari feel better.
As they approached the statue, Claudia hugged Sari to her, hoping to bring her some comfort.
Since Sari's face was buried in Claud's shirt, she wasn't facing the statue.
Just then, a familiar voice met Sari's ears.
"Howdy! I'm Goofy. What's your name?"
Sari started to perk up a little when she heard him.
"Tell Goofy your name." Claud prompted. "You can say your name."
Sari nodded.
"Sari." She said.
"Nice to meet you." Goofy said.
Sari reached her hand out to shake Goofy's hand.
"Goofy has his hands full." Claudia said.
"Yeah." Goofy replied. "I'm carrying the cake. You can't see it because it's invisible." He replied.
"I didn't mean to make you cry. I was sleeping. I had a long day. I'll bet you're tired too."
"A little." Sari said. "You're my best friend." She told him.
"Gorsh. You're my best friend too." He said.
Sari's face lit up.
Claud was about to suggest they go back, when she saw movement out of the corner of her eye.
This time, it was from the Mickey statue.
Claud moved over and made sure she shielded Sari from view.
"Hiya, Sari!" Mickey said.
Sari giggled.
"Hi." She said.
"Are you having a good time?" He asked.
"Yeah!" Sari replied.
"That's good. I got the park ready for you and your friends. I'm glad you're having fun."
Before they left, Claudia flagged the person down.
"Thanks. " She said.
"For what?" He said. "I don't' know what you're talking about. I'm jealous of the little girl. She got to talk to Mickey and Goofy. I never got to do that."
Claud nodded. She smiled and stuck out her hand. "I'm Claudia." She said.
The guy smiled at her.
"I'm Jon." He said. "It's nice to meet you."
Just then, Mal came upon them.
"I'll take Sari for a little bit." She offered. "Mrs. Papadakis wants her in bed anyway."
Claud nodded. She threw Mal a grateful look as she handed Sari over.
"That was really nice what you did for Sari. " Claud said. "I guess we have some time alone now. Wanna grab a bite?"
"Sure. By the way, what resort are you guys staying in?" He asked.
Claud thought for a minute. She gave him the name of it and the two grabbed an ice cream to chat.
A cast member passed by and asked what was going on.
Claud quickly explained and the cast member nodded. He moved on and they were alone once again.
After sharing a treat, Claudia left for the hotel.
The next morning, the Papadakis were woken up by the phone ringing.
Thinking it was their morning wake up call, Mrs. Papadakis went to answer it. But sari got there first.
"Hi." Sari said.
Mrs. Papadakis quickly took the phone from her daughter and put it on speaker.
"Howdy!" Goofy's voice said. "It's seven-thirty. I hope you're up and Adam."
Sari giggled.
"Goofy!" She exclaimed. "You're up early."
"Yeah. I'm up early getting everything prepared just for you and your pals."
"Thank you!" Sari said.
Just then, Emily ran into the room. It was a good thing Mrs. Papadakis and Hannie were the only ones there. The reason was, she was half naked.
"Emily, what are you doing?" Mrs. Papadakis asked.
"Kristy getting my bathing suit." She said.
"I was." I said as I came into the room. "Come here." With that, I picked her up.
Goofy talked a little more with Sari before saying he had to go.
When Sari asked him where he was going, he said, "I'm goin' on a picnic with Mickey."
"Why didn't' you talk to me when I said hi." Sari asked.
"Well sometimes I'm so Goofy, I forget how to move my mouth."
Sari giggled.
"I love you." She said.
"Gorsh. You're a real sweetheart."
With that, the phone call ended.
Sari was in high spirits the whole morning.
We decided to spend the day at Epcot.
When we reached Epcot, David Michael wanted to go on Mission Space.
I went with him, leaving Anya, Claud and Mal in charge of the others.
Surprisingly, I had a good time too.
Once we had gotten in line, I heard Alex tell Anya she was bored.
I had to give Anya credit, she didn't lose her patience with Alex too often. Come to think of it, she hadn't lost her temper with any of the kids, except for Karen that one time. And I couldn't blame her.
Anya spotted an arcade a little ways down the walk. She suggested to the others that they hang out there until we were done.
When Anya and the kids arrived at Advance Training Center, Karen uttered the three words Anya was ready for.
"Anastasia, we're bored!"
"We, huh?" She asked, winking at Alex.
Alex nodded.
"Well my cherina," she said, turning to her daughter, "what do you want me to do about it?"
Alex shrugged.
"Maybe this will help." Anya said. With that, she produced a box covered with stickers of butterflies and pictures from the "Anastasia" movie on them.
"Your kid kit!" Alex and Karen said in unison.
Anya laughed softly.
"Wonders will never cease." She said. "I have to remember to tell Kristy thanks for politely suggesting I bring it along."
Karen rolled her eyes. She knew exactly what Anya was talking about.
Alex looked at her mother wide eyed.
"She ordered you to do it?" The eight-year-old asked.
"Somewhat." Anya said.
"And you actually listened to her?" Karen said, surprised.
"Well, I'm slowly learning that when Kristy talks, people listen."
Karen and Alex giggled.
Just then, Claudia came over to them. She had a giggling Sari in her arms.
"Someone likes the ball pit too much." Claud informed them. "If it pleases You're Grace," she said, turning to Anya. "Would you mind watching her for a few minutes? I'm going to go after a Mickey bar."
"Sure!" Anya said. "Come here, Sar bear." She pulled the three-year-old onto her lap and started to tickle her.
"Ana, play!" Sari said through her giggles.
"I sure will." Anya said. "What do you wanna play?"
"The princess game!" Sari replied.
Anya frowned.
"We don't have the music for it, sweetie."
Sari shook her head.
"The princess game!" She insisted.
Anya sighed.
"Okay." She said. "We'll just have to do it without the music."
"No we won't!" Karen said.
"What do you mean?" Anya asked. "I know you brought your Anastasia CD with you, but we don't have a CD player."
"Oh, pardon me, You're Majesty," Karen said with a mock bow. "But I think you're wrong."
Anya smirked.
"I am, huh?" She asked.
"Uh-huh." With that, Karen reached in her fun bag and pulled out a CD player. IT was blue and had a picture of Ariel on it.
"Where did you get that?" Anya asked.
"Daddy bought it for me. " Karen replied.
Anya nodded.
"Okay." She said. "Let's do this you two."
The three girls were soon awash in giggles as Anya tried to teach Sari the Romanoff way.
After the three were busy coloring in a coloring book and scribble pad Anya had put in her kid kit, Claud returned. She not only had a Mickey bar in her hand, but she also bought a lollipop shaped like Goofy and something called "Oliver and Company Crunch."
"Did I miss anything? " Claud asked as she stuffed some crunch in her mouth.
Anya shook her head.
"Not much." She said.
Just then, sari reached for the lollipop.
"Goofy!" She said.
"You're right." Claudia told her. "You can have it, but you need to be really careful."
Sari nodded. She waited for Claud to open it for her and promptly stuck it in her mouth.
"Yum!" She declared.
"I'm glad you like it." Claud said with a smile.
"Talk to Goofy again, Claudia?" Sari asked as she finished up her treat.
"I don't know." Claudia said. "Maybe."
"What are you talking about?" Anya asked. "When did she talk to Goofy?"
Claudia leaned over close to Anya's left ear and started telling her what happened.
Anya listened intently. She hung on Claud's every word and found herself blushing by the end.
"So did you get his name?" Anya asked once she was done.
Claudia nodded. She told Anya and the slightly older girl nodded.
"Would you mind watching the girls?" She asked. "I wanna take a little walk."
Claudia agreed without any hesitation. She knew Anya was still trying to heal from Zoe's death, so she figured she just needed some time.
"Mama, where are you going?" Alex asked as she gazed up from her picture.
"I'm just going for a walk." Anya replied. "I'll be back. Be good for Claud. I love you. " With that, she kissed her cheek and ruffled her hair.
"Hey!" Karen said indignantly. "What about me?"
"I love you too." She said. She patted her shoulder and then left.
Heading out of the center, Anya took a left and walked down a path lined with little shops.
She had been walking for a while when she started to get hungry.
Ducking into a sweet shop, she bought a piece of pound cake and a small iced tea.
Sitting down to relax and enjoy a little time alone, she started to eat her snack.
Once she was done, she threw away her trash and picked a treat up for Alex.
She was just about to leave, when she heard a familiar voice off in the distance.
Smiling to herself, she followed it, not caring that it lead into a forbidden area for tourists.
'Gotcha.' She thought triumphantly to herself.
"Howdy, Sari! I hope you're having a fun time in the park! We and Mickey were talking' about how fun it was to meet you. We hope we see you again real soon. Bye now!"
"So here you are." Anya said with a grin.
"Can I Help you, young lady?" He asked.
Anya nodded.
"You can call me Anastasia." She replied.
"It's nice to meet you, Anastasia." He said. He then added, "That's a really pretty name."
"Thanks. " She said.
"I don't mean to be rude," he said, "but this area's not for guests. However, if you wanna talk, I'm on break. Why don't we sit outside?"
"Okay." Anya said. With that ,she followed him out of the sweet shop and over to a bench.
"Were you looking for me? " He asked.
Anya smiled at him coyly.
"Maybe. Maybe not."
"How come?" He asked.
"What can I say? I'm a cuprous sort. All joking aside though, we have a mutual friend in common."
"Uh-oh." He said.
"Calm down, tiger." She said. "Claud doesn't bite. Unless you were a Mickey bar."
"Is she the one with the cute little girl who wanted to talk to Goofy?"
"Yeah." Anya replied. "Her name is Sari."
"As far as you know, that never happened."
"NO worries. " Anya said. 'I know how to keep a secret. Believe me."
"You seem really nice." He said.
"That's what most people say who know me really well. My daughter would tell you the same thing."
"How long are you here for?" He asked.
"A week." Anya replied. "We're going back home next Friday."
"Maybe I'll see you again sometime." He said.
"Not if I see you first. " Anya said.
"If you're looking for me, I have a date with someone blue and magical."
"Stitch?" She asked.
"I'd love to tell you, but I can't tell you everything. But I can be found at world's showcase and I'm allowed to talk."
"Good enough. " Anya said. She glanced down at her watch and realized it was getting late. "I'm glad we got a chance to talk." She said. 'But I need to get back to the others now. Dosvedanya."
"If you're gonna be here for a while, I'll give you one more hint."
"Give away." Anya said.
"There's nothing in the world quite like a friend."
"I agree." Anya said with a smile. With that, she was gone.