***
They came in the dead of night.All the other humans in the house were asleep, doors closed and lights off, like they should be. That was us, too, the dolls in She's room, only She was missing, and had been since the afternoon. By now it was past ten o'clock, and we were still waiting for our human so we could properly go to bed. Since we still had to pretend to be posed in the same ways She left us in case a human came in, we were all still standing while sleeping. Needless to say, it was very uncomfortable. But while most dolls had found a way to get some rest, sleep was impossible for me unless I was laying down.
I remained awake, my brown eyes now adjusted to the fuzzy darkness, but I was restless not only in lack of sleep, but in anxiety. Not that I was nervous. I wasn't. But I never realized all that I missed when I was asleep. Nothing at all, for now. What if something came along and I wasn't there to be a part of it? That also kept me up.
It was around 10:45 when my eyelids were starting to feel heavy. The room started to sway from side to side, as things often did when you tried too hard to stay awake. Okay, fine, I told myself. I'll sleep standing up and suffer the numb legs tomorrow. But wait... a wayfinder can't sleep!
And just when I was telling myself there was no reason to be a wayfinder right now, it came to me.
Like Maui being knocked out of the sky, there was a knock on the front door.
Huh? I rubbed at my eyes. Nobody came to the door at this time of night. Unless it was... She!
"She's home!" I almost shouted, before remembering everyone else was asleep. With my oar in one hand and my flower crown in the other, I hopped from the dresser and onto the doorknob, twisting it open and hitting the ground. This was exciting! She was back, and past curfew, no less! I had to find out what kept her so long.
I approached the balcony just in time, hanging onto the banisters so I could lean forward for a better view. She crept in through the front door, eyes darting this way and that in paranoia but thankfully never to where I was. There was a bag in her hands, and when she started unloading it, I noticed a few interesting things. A ball of wrapping paper, so maybe She went to a birthday party? A pack of tissues, so I guess she was preparing to catch a cold, and... two small, human-like figures.
The light flicked on in a room I couldn't see, but I knew to be the laundry room in the house. The sound of two weights being placed on the floor, and then, just like that, She closed the door and left whatever it was behind. When She crossed the floor in front of the balcony again, the dolls were gone. The light to the kitchen flicked on, and it sounded like She was going to prepare herself a midnight snack before going to bed, so I had time to get back into the room.
Unfortunately, I found I was not to be the only awake on in there anymore. "Moana... what are you doing? It's late." Nessa's groggy voice broke the white noise, and the sleepy ornament started to sit up. She flipped on She's bedside lamp, which lit the room enough for us to see each-other, but nobody outside would be able to.
"You tell that to She!"
"You mean She's finally home?"
"That's right. And She brought... a few things back."
"Ooh, what is it?" Nessa pushed her cape behind her again, which she had been using as a blanket.
Elphie was still sound asleep next to her, also using her cape, instead placed close to her head to block out all the little noises of the night. Nessa was already pulling herself out of their shared box-bed, eager to hear the news.
"But you shouldn't get too worked up about it." I finished.
"Why shouldn't I? You are."
"Yeah, but you're smaller than I am. You need more sleep."
Nessa stuck out her chin at me, unhappy that I mentioned her size. "Listen, I know I'm small, but that doesn't mean I can't know the same things bigger dolls can."
"Sure, I didn't say that, but it's late. You still need to go to sleep."
"I don't care. Sleep isn't important. Tell me."
Fine. Nessa wanted to know, I would tell her. "There's two malihini in the house."
"Oh, okay... a mali-what?"
"A visitor. A newcomer. Two of them."
"What about She?" Nessa asks, fully standing now. "We've been waiting for hours."
"They're with her. Sort of."
"Not really," I admitted. "She'll be coming upstairs for sure, but I thought I saw the malihini being put into the laundry room downstairs."
"No biggie. We'll see them in the morning."
Nessa smushed herself back in bed. Elphie groaned and moved closer to the far side. Nessa might have been relaxed at this, but I wasn't. These were new dolls, and their first day in the house, or first night, should not be spent in a laundry room. That didn't feel right. And it had been months since my last real heroic feat, whenever I saved Elphaba at Christmas. Maybe if I could bring the two malihini into a better place, I could prove my worth again?
I looked around the dresser to see if anyone would be bothered if I left. Anna and Elsa were leaning up against the wall, eyes closed, their long legs buckling in from standing so long. Olaf had one hand curled around Sven and the other around Idina, all three of them dreaming blissfully. Loki and Magneto were both turned away, their chests falling and rising. Everyone was sound asleep. Surely I could make a little noise.
"I'm going after them." I decided, taking up my oar again.
"Ooh, a midnight adventure. Can I come with?"
This was tough to say. "Sorry, but no. I'd rather you stay here. Just in case I don't make it back."
Nessa looks disappointed but laughs it off. "Why wouldn't you make it back? But go ahead. Have fun without me."
I trusted Nessa with my necklace before climbing down the dresser and opening the door as quiet as I could be.
"Don't worry, I'll bring the dolls home." I promised.
I lost track of time for a while, darting in and out of shadows, the sharp end of my oar at the ready, sneaking down the stairs, and through various rooms. I was so in my element, I hardly realized I was standing right in front of the laundry room before I pressed a hand and an ear against the door. There were no sounds on the other side, and no sounds at all, except for She cutting up an apple some distance away in the kitchen, the lights bright enough to reach me but not enough for me to be noticed. It would make sense the dolls were being quiet in there since a human was nearby... unless there weren't any dolls in there to begin with.
Still, I couldn't return empty-handed. I had to try.
"I am Moana of Motunui!" I announced. "And I'm here to rescue you."
I counted the seconds of silence before someone or something in there had the courage to speak up. "Are you... a doll?" It was a female's voice, one that sounded similar to Anna's but had a different, softer cadence.
What a relief, they really were dolls! I wasn't lolo like Magneto. "Yeah. Don't worry, all the humans should be in bed by now." Except She, but I decided not to tell the newbies that or they might not trust me.
Another voice from inside, this time a male's, spoke up. "Alright, so how are you gonna get us out of here? Neither of us can reach the door handle. And I'm assuming you can't, either."
"Oh really?" I raised a brow in challenge. "Nothing has ever stood in my way before. Much less a door handle."
"Ooh, I like her," said the male. There came the sound of a slap soon after. "Hey, relax, okay? I like her because she's helping us. That's all."
I wasn't sure what was going on behind the door, only that I had to get the dolls out, being as sneaky as possible as to not alert She. I bit my bottom lip. This would be tricky, but not impossible. I noticed that there was a small bathroom right across the way, with extra hand towels in a basket on the floor. If I could swing it up and over the door handle, then pulled back on it, it might open. Worth a shot.
I replaced a missing towel with my oar to grab later and did exactly as I had mapped out in my mind, and it worked. Victory! The handle turned and the door slowly gave way. I tossed the towel behind my back and dashed inside, almost running into two awaiting dolls.
Now the female was someone I definitely recognized. It was a twelve-inch version of Anna, with a sparkly rhinestoned bodice and opaque sleeves instead of Anna's sheer aqua ones.
"Be nice," the Anna doll warned. "Hi, thanks for the rescue. My name's Anelle. And this big brute beside me is named Kristoff."
"Kristoff, that's right! You must both be from Frozen. We have a lot of Frozen dolls already, but I've never met a Kristoff." I said."We?" Kristoff questioned.
"There're more dolls upstairs. One of them is an Anna doll, actually."
"Gee, hope you'll be able to tell us apart."
"We will. Our other Anna is sixteen inches tall."
"Wow." Said Kristoff enthusiastically.
"Yeah, and if worst comes to worst, Kristoff and have have these winter accessories. I have a cape and hat, and Kristoff has a hat and mittens. He has them tucked in his boots for now since it's summer."
"Smart," I said. "Now let's get you two out of-"
But I didn't get to finish my sentence. We suddenly heard footsteps. Anelle was the first to react.
"Eep!" She squeaked, pushing the two of us out of the way of a light coming in from behind the door. A large shadow passed shortly after, and She's hand reached over and shut the door on us, leaving us trapped inside.
"Well, we're stuck," Kristoff said in his defeatist attitude. "And you're stuck on the ground."
I had hardly noticed what had happened to Anelle when she had saved us from being seen. The Anna doll had faceplanted into the floor of the laundry room, trying in vain to reach a tired hand upwards. Kristoff did not hesitate to scoop her up, and it was the first time I'd noticed a pink casing coming out from Anelle's waist and connecting to a flat disk that stood her upwards again.
"I'm okay, thanks for asking." She glared Kristoff's way.
"Um... what's the pink stand for?" It felt almost wrong to ask.
"Oh, right," Anelle looked at the ground, trying to hide an embarrassed blush. "Since this is our new home and you're living here, too, you should know before too long," she looked up again, her annoyance with Kristoff now replaced with hopelessness. "I've always had bad legs," Anelle said sadly. "I was just made that way. They're frail and flimsy, but I think the weight on my legs just added to their weakness. I could never walk or even stand by myself. Kristoff has been my legs, as well as this pink doll stand. Without them, I couldn't do anything."
"No, no. I was sat on."
Kristoff rubbed his nose. "Our original finder was MyLittleMegara. But seeing as she was trying to downsize her Disney collection, we were given off to a friend. That'd be your human."
"That makes sense." I was gathering the pieces to a puzzle of a mystery little by little.
"...And on the car ride tonight, we were put on a seat, and She sat on Anelle's legs the whole way here."
"That sounds awful."
Anelle shrugged halfheartedly. "It's a good thing I could never feel them, but still. Now I doubt I'll ever get better now. Not like I was getting any better before."
I thought about this. "Tell you what. When we get out of here, there's a chair upstairs you can use. It's Elsa's, but I'm sure she'll let you use it. That might make it easier for you to get around."
Anelle's face lit up. "That sounds wonderful! And you have an Elsa, you said? I'd love to meet her."
"Yeah, me too. Let's hope she doesn't sing 'Let It Go' as much as kids in the Disney store do." Kristoff rolled his eyes.
"Wish I could say no, but then I'd be wrong," I joked. "But no, she's lovely. And we have lots of other sentient dolls in this house, too. I've heard some good things from Elsa and She about MyLittleMegara, but I think you'll like it here, too."
"Yeah, well, I think we would, once we get out of this laundry room. There's not much to see here."
Kristoff was right. There was gray stone floor, a washer and dryer set, and hooks on the wall to hang coats and hats. Not very interesting. And extremely lonely.
"I'll get us out." I said, but I wasn't being honest. The handle looked farther away than I could remember it being when I had the hand towel... and my oar. But I'd left both of those behind. I could climb up to reach it, but nothing worked the same as a scarf or a shoelace. As a last resort, I thought of calling the ocean to help me, but the washer was off, and I didn't know how to activate it. We were hopelessly stuck. I was frustrated, but happy that I'd told Nessa to stay if I hadn't made it back. At this rate and with Kristoff's pessimism, it didn't look like we getting anywhere fast.
***
"Elsa! Elsa! Wake up!"
"Mmfff...noooo."
"It's important."
I raised a heavy, sleepy arm and tried to swat Nessa off my back. "Goway. Sleep is more important."
I opened a bleary eye to see Nessa place her tiny hands on her hips. "More important than Moana?"
"I never said that."
"What do you mean, is Moana in trouble?" Anna, sounding more awake than I, was stirring into action next to me. I had the sense, but not yet the queenly elegance, to get up as well.
"When is she not in trouble, honestly?" Said Nessa.
"Good point." I yawned.
Anna wasn't having any of it. "Nessa, is this serious? Is something wrong with Moana?"
Nessa anxiously began to twist her cape around in her hands. "Probably. It's been nearly a half an hour and she hasn't come back yet."
Anna forced Nessa to tell us exactly all that had happened, from She coming home to Moana trying to rescue two new dolls from the laundry room.
Anna was obviously distraught by this. "You don't think they broke the Code of Dolls?"
"Moana wouldn't do that," I insisted. "She knows better than to do that."
"But Elsa, what if Moana didn't mean to break it? What if it was an accident? She's still down there and for all we know, She has all three of them pinned down and-"
"She wouldn't do that, either. Come on. They might not be fine, but they're definitely not in danger."
"We should still do something." Anna said.
"Yeah, but what?"
"I've got it!" Nessa snapped her fingers. "If they aren't up yet and they didn't break the Code of Dolls, they're probably stuck in the laundry room. That door has always had a stubborn lock. Loki has been reading a lot of books in the library lately on how things work. He was explaining to me one day how a lock works, and if it's simple enough for me to understand, then it is for you, too."
"Okay...?" I wasn't sure where this was going.
"Elsa, if you can freeze the lock, the ice will expand inside of it, and once it melts, it might loosen if we're lucky."
I raised an eyebrow. "And if we're not lucky?""Then we've got to try it anyways," Anna grabbed my arm. "Elsa, this is Moana we're talking about. She can do basically anything, and if she can't get the laundry room door unstuck, then we've got to help her."
I was tired, and my spot on the dresser was so comfortable, but my sister was right. Moana was in trouble, and I was never one to leave a friend behind. "Okay. Let's do it."
"Nessa? Want to come?" Anna asked before dragging me out of the Room She Lives In.
"Yeah! But then nobody will be staying behind to ensure that we come back... oh well."
"Oh, great. Why did you have to say that?" I muttered, following Anna all the way to the laundry room, a place I'd never been, nor did I know anything about, with a human right around the corner.
Needless to say, it was not the most peaceful night of my life.
***
So far, I was liking Anelle. She had a sweet face, a spunky streak, and she was willing to talk about anything, even uncomfortable subjects like her disability. And she wasn't making a big deal out of our situation, despite me saying I could rescue them and not being able to.
But I couldn't really say the same for Kristoff.
"You sure we can't just use brute force? Like, can I ram my shoulder into the side of this door a bunch of times and see if it pops open?"
"Sure, go ahead." I said, smiling in remembrance of the time my character did the same thing to escape Maui's cave, but to no avail. I'd like to see Kristoff try.
"No way! Do you want to break the Code of Dolls? If you run into that door, the human outside will hear you and we'll all get caught!" Anelle hissed, before turning back to me will all the warmth of Te Fiti.
"Have long have you known Kristoff?" I whispered.
"Too long," Anelle laughed. "We've been together a while. We were bought separetely, as Disney classics dolls, wave two of the Frozen series, and we were put together back in MyLittleMegara's house. It was a given, seeing as our two characters in the movie are sweethearts, but it didn't work the same between Kristoff and I."
Even though I wasn't experienced nor interested in love, I had to ask Anelle another weird question. "Did you ever like him?"
She pushed her bangs back, even though they looked perfectly fine. "Yes, I did. Once, when we first came together. But when he wasn't returning my feelings, we just became friends."
"It doesn't seem like you're very friendly to each-other."
"No, sometimes we're not. That's because we have more of a brother-sister relationship. You'll know what that means if you have a sibling."
"I don't, but I know lots of dolls who do. Anna and Elsa, are, obviously, and then we have two ornaments Nessarose and Elphaba, and the nutcracker brothers, Napoleon and Benny, and a week or so ago, we met Olaf's brother, Gad."
Anelle looked wistful. "That's a lot of dolls. I can't wait to meet all of them."
"Probably not as many dolls as MyLittleMegara has."
"Probably not as many dolls as MyLittleMegara has."
"No. But that's okay, we'll be happy here, too. Even if I do miss my old home already, and Kristoff is acting like a bit of a jerk. But he's just tired. If we're able to get any sleep tonight, he'll be in a better mood by morning."
"Let's hope so," I looked to the floor, embarrassed that I couldn't be heroic enough tonight. "I'm sorry to say this, but we had better get comfortable. It looks like we're all going to be staying the night in here."
"That's okay. Even if you couldn't save us, at least we're not alone in here anymore."
I managed a weak smile before Kristoff gave up his attempts to climb to slippery washer and help Anna up from the ground while I laid down dusting rags as makeshift sleeping mats. Aside from the strong smell of lemon, they were very cozy.
But sleep still did not come for me.
I was thinking I deserved my own restlessness until I saw a mysterious blue glow appear from underneath the door.
"Humans!" I gasped, beckoning Anelle and Kristoff close so I could protect them.
But humans couldn't make the visible chill in the air. I only knew one person who could do that.
Ka-chunk."That's okay. Even if you couldn't save us, at least we're not alone in here anymore."
I managed a weak smile before Kristoff gave up his attempts to climb to slippery washer and help Anna up from the ground while I laid down dusting rags as makeshift sleeping mats. Aside from the strong smell of lemon, they were very cozy.
But sleep still did not come for me.
I was thinking I deserved my own restlessness until I saw a mysterious blue glow appear from underneath the door.
"Humans!" I gasped, beckoning Anelle and Kristoff close so I could protect them.
But humans couldn't make the visible chill in the air. I only knew one person who could do that.
***
"Great job, Elsa!" Nessa cheered quietly, watching as I made my magic by turning on my switch and humming "Let It Go" only loud enough for myself to hear.
We were still trying to be mindful of She, who had finished eating an apple and was now brewing some bedtime tea. We only had minutes before She'd finish and be upstairs, wondering where half of her dolls had gone.
I first had to start out by making an ice droplet small enough send a gust of wind to insert it into the keyhole, then figure out a way to layer more ice on top of it to somehow get the lock to give. When the ice expanded to its full potential, the stubborn door should give under the pressure. It was crazy, it was weird, and it was working.
I first had to start out by making an ice droplet small enough send a gust of wind to insert it into the keyhole, then figure out a way to layer more ice on top of it to somehow get the lock to give. When the ice expanded to its full potential, the stubborn door should give under the pressure. It was crazy, it was weird, and it was working.
"Ooh, that's it! The door should open now," said Nessa. "Anna, lift me up so I can reach the knob."
I held my breath as Nessa had to near twist her full body to grab hold of the knob, and when there was another sound, the door gave way. Anna pushed it open cautiously, and I tried to mask the glow of my hands as not to disturb the new dolls inside. Unfortunately that already seemed to be the case, as I saw two pairs of eyes flashing from the darkness behind the door on the inside.
Moana wasn't afraid, but she never was. She rushed out to us, hair flying, and yelling in decibels soft enough for dolls but not humans to hear, "Elsa! Anna! Nessa! You've saved us! Mahalo! Mahalo!"
"You're welcome," said Anna. "If 'mahalo' means thank you, that is."
"Where are the new dolls?" Nessa asked. Now that she has rescued Moana it was immediately on to the next biggest thing.
"They are hiding because I thought you were humans coming in here. Kristoff! Anelle! It's safe now. It's just a few of my friends from upstairs."
At last the timid dolls emerged.
They were both twelve-inch Disney classic dolls, a kind we'd never actually had before, since Moana was eleven inches. Another version of Anna appeared first, a bright pink plastic doll stand holding her aloft, and a sandy-haired Kristoff doll behind her, trying to steady her stand with a hand. They both looked exhausted, but happy to see us.
"Moana's told me about you." said the third Anna. She had an ordinary voice, but not a bad one.
"Sad to say we cannot say the same for you," I began. "I'm Elsa, and this is my sister Anna and my soul sister Nessarose."
"My name's Anelle. And this is Kristoff. Sorry, he's in a bad mood."
Kristoff rolled his eyes. "I am not."
"Hey, I don't blame you is you are. Being stuck in the humans' laundry room is not a great first day in a new place, nor a great way to spend a finding day."
"Yes, you should come upstairs with us." Anna agreed.
"But... the humans." Anelle pointed out.
"Won't see us," Moana began to roll up some dust rags which had been laid on the floor. "Kristoff, can you carry Anelle? I'll get her stand, but first I need my oar."
Moana grapped her paddle from the bathroom across the way and we followed her through the darkened dining room to the staircase.
But Kristoff and Anelle paused feet from the first step, and the four of us turned back, thinking something was wrong.
"I don't think I can carry Anelle up these stairs. When I bend my legs, I'll kick her back."
"Okay, that's fine, we can just carry her." I said, volunteering Anna and I.
But Moana was biting her lip. "Hold on. I hear something."
A clicking noise, like something sharp against the wood floor, was growing closer to us. We all pressed our bodies against the railing, but Kristoff and Anelle were helpless. Suddenly, a furry gray face emerged from around the corner.
"A monster!" Kristoff gasped.
Anelle laughed. "No, it's a dog," she rolled out of Kristoff's arms and approached the animal, weakly moving along by her hands. "I've heard some humans speak of these. They're supposed to be very affectionate creatures," Without any fear whatsoever, Anelle lifted a hand towards to dog's snout, who looked at her in curiosity, then sniffed the whole way down her arm and licked her face. Anelle ecstatically rubbed her hands all over the dogs neck and face. It obediently laid down before her.
Anelle looked back at us, smiling. "Come on, guys. She's friendly."
"She? How do you know it's a she?" Kristoff scoffed, warily coming up to stand next to Anna and holding out a hand for the dog to sniff. Instead, it licked his shoulder, leaving a huge wet stain.
"By her collar, of course. See? It's a pink heart." She pointed to a tag that hung down from a thick red necklace the dog wore.
"Doesn't mean it's a girl."
"Fine then. Let's read the name. It says...C-H-L..."
"Chloe." Moana finished. I was thankful for all the blogging lessons I had given her.
"Such a pretty name. It has to be a girl."
"Oh, like guys can't have pretty names."
"No, Christopher, they can't," Anelle mocked. "Can you help me stand again?"
"I dunno, can I?"
"Just... please."
Kristoff groaned dramatically and helped Anelle to her feet, pulling her into the bridal carry again. He tilted his head at Chloe like she could understand Dollspeak.
"What say you, dog? Have you got a solution to this?"
Chloe just stood there, watching.
"Can you help us or not?"
Chloe's plain brown eyes began to stare Anelle's way.
"I think she wants to carry me." She said.
"You've got to be crazy. Dogs can't talk."
"No, but her eyes do. She wants me to ride on her back."
"Definitely crazy," said Kristoff, but he let go of Anelle so she could crawl up onto Chloe's back and grab the red collar around her neck as the reins. "There, you're riding a dog. Happy?"
"Very," Anelle looked ready for anything. If you looked at her, you never would have guessed she had bad legs. "Do you know the way, Moana? Maybe Chloe will follow you."
She nodded. "I always know the way. And she will, as long as I have this." There was one other thing we knew about the laundry room besides that was where the humans' washer and dryer were kept. They also had a stash of dog treats there, in the cupboard closest to the ground. Moana palmed a biscuit and waved it front of Chloe's face to get her attention, then took off at a quick and quiet pace upwards. Anna resumed perfect riding posture atop the dog's back, and Kristoff could do nothing but tag along behind, clueless and dog-less.
But then Chloe was done with us. I was surprised she even lasted that long obeying commands from humans a foot tall. Anelle slid off her back and Moana tossed Chloe the treat, which she took happily.
"Looks like you made a friend." I said.
"Yes, I did." Anelle said, smiling Chloe's way as the tired puppy curled up in a ball near the edge of the steps. I'd never been able to get close to one of the dogs before. It's not like they avoided us or vice versa, we just didn't think to use them for anything. Anelle must have been really special to be able to even touch a dog.
"Is it much farther?" Kristoff asked.
"Just ahead," Moana promised. "Second door to the right."
Nessa assisted Anelle as she crawled across the floor, with Nessa rambling on about all the cool things they were going to do come morningtime. I couldn't help smiling a little to myself. We now had three Anna dolls, and I was already sure they were all going to get along swell. And it felt good to get back to my roots with causing mischief and dodging humans for once.
Moana stopped short of the door, and there was no hiding her own smile. Despite her failure to get out of the laundry room alone, she wasn't letting one failure stop her heroic attitude. With her paddle back in hand, she was ready to lead the new dolls into their new life. I stepped back respectfully, letting Moana take charge.
"Anelle and Kristoff of MyLittleMegara... welcome to the Room She Lives In!"
We pulled Anelle to her feet and clipped the stand in, Kristoff at her side to give her hand a little squeeze. Ready.
At last, the door opened.
***
Ioihi makamaka and so long, friends,
Moana of Motunui and Queen Elsa
Moana of Motunui and Queen Elsa
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