Dizgaia ~ The Dreamfinder's Daughter

Chapter 17 ~ Whistle While You Work

Blair was the first to awaken the next morning. Mia was lying on her stomach with her head turned to the side. Her arm hung off the bed as she snored in a very unladylike manner. Figment lay on his back with his arms and legs spread out to four corners, as though he were doing his best impression of a starfish. His mouth was agape with his tongue lolling out.

The Dreamfinder's boisterous laugh awakened both his sleeping companions. The confused expressions on their faces only made him laugh harder. After dressing for the day, the three soon realized, with bellies grumbling for breakfast, that they still had nothing in the way food.

"Well, I suppose Figment and I could get something to eat at the Institute's cafeteria, but then what will you do, dear?"

"Is Tiana's open for breakfast?" Mia asked.

"I do believe so, yes. They have a little café-style venue during the mornings."

"Then if you just leave me a bit of extra money, I can get breakfast there when I go into town to get groceries."

Blair gave Mia what she assumed was a generous amount of money – though she still hadn't quite learned how currency worked in this world – before giving her a kiss on the forehead and bidding her farewell.

"Okay. See you tonight!" she called as he mounted Figment and took off for the Institute.

Mia drove the steam car into town. It wasn't very fast, but it ran deceptively smoothly. The controls were very old fashioned, but she had a crash course in driving it – quite literally, as at one point she had a little fender bender with a tree. But by the time she descended Tomorrow Hill and reached town proper, she'd gotten the hang of it.

The first stop was Tiana's Palace. For breakfast, the restaurant was a lot calmer. Today things were slow enough that Tiana handed the maintenance over to Naveen and her mother so she could sit and chat with Mia while she ate.

"This place is positively jumpin' at night, but in the mornings it's slow and quiet. It's nice to stop and take a bit of a breather," said Tiana over a cup of coffee.

"I like it," said Mia. "You know, you should make use of the veranda during the slower morning hours, Tiana."

"Hey, that's not a bad idea! We could set up a sort of al fresco brunch. People would enjoy eating outside on a beautiful day like this. You sure you don't want a job here, honey? You could make for a good consultant."

"I don't know," said Mia, laughing. "I think taking care of my father is gonna be a full-time job for a while."

"I don't doubt it. Naveen tells me you and the professor have moved back into your old house. I'm so happy to hear it. How are you liking it? Do you need anything at all? Anything we can help with?"

"I'm sure we'll manage. At the moment, I'm on a mission to stock the house with some groceries. Know of any good places?"

Tiana recommended a local market and gave Mia directions on how to get there. After procuring enough groceries to get them through the week, Mia headed back to Tomorrow Hill. With the refrigerator now fully stocked, it was time to tackle the next big task – cleaning the house.

Sadly, Mia had no clothes she considered expendable when it came to such a filthy chore, but she found an apron in a kitchen drawer and tied it around her neck and waist. Hopefully, this would at least keep the bulk of the dust and grime from dirtying her clothes. Pulling her hair back in a ponytail, it was down to business.

Hoo boy, thought Mia as she started wiping down the kitchen counters. This is gonna be a lot of work for just little ol' me.

She decided what she needed right now was some good tunes to make the otherwise daunting task more enjoyable. She found her phone in her backpack. It was still juiced. The battery wasn't too low, as she'd not used it since Disney World. Though she supposed after listening through her music library, it may very well die.