Aru Shah and the Soul Trident

Mother Knows Best...(Like, For Real)

A/N: So a lot of you asked for what Mini saw when she swallowed the Living Key, and I was considering on doing like a special on that or something. But I honestly don't think I have the time to do that, so I sort of hinted what she saw in this chapter ;)

On that note, enjoy this unusually long chapter!

Aru stared at her sister. Parvati?! The goddess of power, the lord of destruction's wife...that Parvati?! Boo had once told her that Vishnu, Brahma, and Shiva and their wives didn't involve themselves in 'mortal matters'. So why would they now?

The others looked equally stunned, but they didn't get the chance to question Mini, because the door glowed and white light shone forth from it.

"Step inside, Pandavas, if you dare." The ancient voice paused, then continued, "Know that this is a great honor. You will treat the visitation as such as well."

Aru gulped and resisted the urge to check her reflection on her glaive. If she had known that they were going to see such an important goddess, maybe she should have brushed her hair back in their room. She didn't think it would be such a good idea to go meet the goddess with her hair sticking up everywhere.

"Yes," agreed Mini. For some reason, Mini seemed different. Her eyes flashed with pure determination, and Aru admired that. She wondered what the key had unlocked in her sister, and what it had seen in the depths of her soul.

They all prepared to step in, when Aru hesitated. She whirled around and looked at the Palace's walls. "Thank you, Palace," she said. "We couldn't have gotten this far without you."

"Yeah, you're awesome," agreed Brynne. She grinned and said, "The cloud bed I slept in was the most comfortable thing ever."

"And your crystal collection was amazing," added Rudy, patting his orange messenger bag. "I took a couple, hope you don't mind."

"Of course not, princeling," the Palace crooned, obviously pleased.

"The books you put in my room were so interesting," said Mini dreamily. Ah. There was the old Mini.

"I really liked the camera models you put in our room," said Aiden kindly. "They were pretty cool."

"We'll come back," promised Aru. "I don't know when or how, but...but we'll make it somehow."

The whole room seemed to go up a couple degrees, as if the Palace were blushing. "It was my utmost pleasure." The walls leaned in around them, like it was giving them a hug. "Good luck, Pandavas and Pandava-adjacents. You have my whole faith that you will succeed in your mission. Be sure to visit!"

"Bye, Palace!" they chorused, as they stepped into the light.

Aru opened her eyes to whiteness.

Literally. All she could see was a blinding, white light as the door transported them somewhere. But where?she wondered as she closed her eyes one more time.

When she opened them again, she was in a lush garden. A fountain with sparkling, golden liquid shimmered, touching the wings of birds as they flew past it. Flowery scents wafted through her nose, and she took in a deep breath, breathing in the freshness. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mini whip out a tissue from her backpack and cover her nose.

"Allergies," she explained, when she caught Aru looking at her. "I don't think it would be a good thing to sneeze in a goddess's face."

"Probably," agreed Aru. They traveled down the stone path as shrubs and greenery surrounded them.

"This place is beautiful," murmured Aiden, his hands going down to his side where he usually kept Shadowfax, but he quickly retreated his hands, but not before Aru caught him. She patted his shoulder, and he glanced at her gratefully.