Blessing or curse

"I don't think that's going to happen Annie, right Matty?" Maddie smiled turning to Matt.

"Yes, Annie you should relax, Maddie and I won't argue with each other, we're better that now." Matt laughed.

"Oh okay then, if you say so." Annie said shaking her head.

"I think we should just leave those two alone Annie, they'll fix their issues themselves." Ollie laughed.

"You're right about that, let's just leave them be." Annie concluded.

"Mhmm, mhmm, today has been the best breakfast I've had in a long time." Maddie groaned.

"I thought you said my mom's breakfasts were the best?" Annie asked as Maddie smiled sheepishly and looked at her.

"Well... technically, they are... but this is just a different kind of best breakfast." she said trying to cover her tracks.

"Mhmm, right, I'm going to tell my mom you've been lying to her as soon as we get home." Annie said. 

"No, no you're not going to tell your mom that, I'm telling the truth, this is a different best breakfast, can't you see? I got to eat ice cream for breakfast, which is a first." Maddie argued.

"You know what, go ahead and report me, I'm innocent after all." Maddie concluded.

"Right... well I won't waste my time like you do." she said as Maddie scoffed at her.

"Are you done eating yet Maddie? Cause all of us are already done, we're just waiting for you." Matt pointed out.

Maddie looked down at the table and truly they were all done with their meals, she was the only one left.

"Oh alright, fine, I'm full already, let's go." she said finishing her toast.

"Are you sure about that?" Ollie asked.

"Because, we're not rushing you, we can wait if you still want to eat some more." he said.

"No blondie, you guys don't have to wait for me, besides, if you're truly a good host as you say, you will provide snacks while we are bored in your library." Maddie said getting up.

"Right..." Ollie laughed, he had expected her to say something like that to him, oh well, it did not change anything, of course he was going to get them snacks.

"Great, let's go, which way to your library?" Maddie asked, the sooner they spent the entire day there, the sooner all the babies in the group could get out all their sadness and they could go to sleep and leave first thing tomorrow morning.

"You would think that considering it's his library, he should be leading the way." Matt said as Maddie walked ahead of them.

"Ha, ha, right, but well, you know I'm always the first, never the last." Maddie winked.

"That has nothing to do with anything." Annie replied.

"Oh but it does, believe what you want to be and you will be it, and I want to be first, which I always am and always is." Maddie replied.

"I don't know if your confidence is a blessing or a curse." Annie said.

"Of course it's a blessing, a very wonderful blessing, now blondie, where exactly are we going?" Maddie asked.

"I would lead the way if you allowed me to." Ollie smiled.

"No, no, can't we just convey over there?" Maddie asked.

"Well we could, but there is a barrier currently enforced on the castle, so there might be a little mishap if we try to convey." he said.

"Why is there a barrier on the castle?" Matt asked.

"Today is Saturday, it's just a constant security defence drill to make sure the castle's defences are in perfect working order." Ollie replied.

"So they do this every Saturday?" Annie asked.

"No, not every Saturday, just every second and last Saturday of the month." he replied walking side by side with Maddie.

She seemed unready to let him lead the way, and somehow they found themselves following her aimless direction.

"That makes sense, of course you want to make sure your home is always protected." Maddie said.

"Yes, that's right." Ollie agreed.

"But don't you have like dozens of guards that protect the castle?" Annie asked.

"We do, they are always around." Ollie replied.

"Wait now, that reminds me, I never see the servants moving around, like never." Maddie said as Ollie laughed.

"That's the point, you're not supposed to see them." he replied. "They either convey, or use secret passage ways to get around the castle efficiently without us ever crossing paths."

"Wait, secret passageways? The castle has secret passageways?" Maddie asked as Ollie nodded.

"Yep, it does." he replied.

"Why didn't you tell us that earlier blondie? Do you know how cool it would be to explore all the secret passageways? That is definitely more interesting than spending an entire day in your boring library." Maddie exclaimed.

"Well, let's see... maybe if you guys come back another time we can explore the secret passageways." he said.

"Ahh, I see, you're trying to get us to come back here." Maddie exclaimed.

"Can you blame me? You would definitely do the same if you wanted me to return to your house." Ollie laughed.

"That's true, Maddie would definitely do that, or even purposely hide things just to make sure you have to come back." Annie laughed as Matt agreed with her.

"If she really didn't want you to go, she might even steal some of your belongings and call you back later that you forgot them at her place forcing you to come back then she would try to make you not want to leave." Matt said.

"Okay, firstly, I'm not that dubious, I might be dubious yes, but not that dubious." she replied.

"Secondly, if this was my house, I wouldn't even let you guys leave in the first place, I would probably cast a sleeping spell on you all and tie you up in the dungeons so you can't leave." she said casually.

"That's really sick Maddie." Annie frowned.

"I know right, but that's what I would do, but the blondie over here is just too much of a goody two shoes, he would never have the heart to trap us all here, which is a good thing." Ollie smiled hearing Maddie say that. "Weak yes, but a good weak thing." she added as he frowned.

By now he should have anticipated an insult tied along with the good things she was saying about him.

"The fact you just told us the twisted thing you would do to keep us." Ollie said.

"Yes, I did, because I am an honest person, mean, but honest." she replied smiling.

"That you are." Ollie replied.

"But I'm being serious, I prefer exploring through secret passageways, moving through creepy secluded spaces." she said.

"And now you're making us worry about you more." Annie said shaking her head.

"You can't blame me, I have a good sense of adventure." she replied.

"Says the girl who hated every single moment on Caligo." Matt scoffed.

"You can't hold me on Caligo, did you forget that we were literally powerless!" she said.

"I like adventure yes, but not when it's at the detriment of our lives and we can't even use magic!" 

"Did you even forget how we all almost died, especially the blondie, I saved his life when we were on our way to rescue you from Lilith, who by the way kidnapped you." Maddie reminded; they all laughed at her.

"Stop laughing you guys, we all almost died up there." Maddie said.

"That is true, but you just truly hated everything from the moment we stepped foot on the base of the mountain." Annie replied giggling.

"Yes, from the first second we got on that mountain and couldn't use our powers, you were already done." Matt laughed.

"Yeah, but I have to admit, she did save my life." Ollie said.

"Only because I didn't want to be locked up in prison when we returned without the heir to the throne." Maddie scoffed.

"True, true." Ollie replied.

"No one would have believed us if we said you had an accident on the mountain, especially not me, I am sure if Maddie and Matt were left to go free, I wouldn't be." she scoffed.

"Don't say that." Ollie said.

"It's the truth." she replied.

"I'm the least person to be trusted." she said.

"I don't like it when you say that, I trust you, Annie and Matt trust you, and that's all that matters." Ollie said.

"You guys are unfortunately not the rest of the world so..." she shook her head. She did not like talking about this, she wanted them to move on from this matter that upset her.

"Anyway, I don't know why you want to spend the entire day in a boring library." Maddie said as they stopped in front of two huge doors. 

"Boring is the wrong word to use for my library." Ollie simply replied as he threw the doors open and Annie, Maddie and Matt looked in awe at the library before them.