Making presents

(Maria POV)

Maria woke up slowly. She really didn't want to leave her bed. It was so comfortable. It felt like a cloud.

"Maria" she heard her whisper in her ear.

"Five more minutes," she growled.

"You already said that to me fifteen minutes ago," said Abigail.

"Mommy?" said Maria, finally realizing who was talking to her.

_"Yes, darling, I'm here," _said Abigail.

Maria sat up slowly, rubbing her eyes.

"Hello, Mommy. What time is it?" asked Maria.

"It's nearly 8:40. We have to hurry if we don't want to keep the others waiting" said Abigail.

"Yes, I understand. I can't wait to talk to all the members. Do you think they'll like me?" asked Maria.

"But of course, I'm sure they'll all like you. I'm more worried about Olivia," said Abigail.

"Oh. Are you worried she'll try to seduce you? Don't worry, you know Olivia, she'll be able to control herself," says Maria.

"I know, but let's just say I'm upset that she didn't tell me. And I'm upset that I didn't see it. I should have understood. She never talked about boys, she never had a boyfriend. The signs were there," Abigail said.

"Don't worry it's nothing serious. Let's go and see her. You can talk to her," says Maria.

"Otherwise you've got your new suit on the dresser," says Abigail.

_"What? Really? Show me." _said Maria, who was now excited and fully awake.

Abigail showed her the costume, which Maria hastened to put on.

"So how do I look?" asked Maria.

"You're beautiful. Let's go. The others must be waiting for us," said Abigail.

They left the room and headed for the dining room. They were obviously the last to arrive. Discussions were in full swing.

"Leo, can you explain why you thought it would be a good idea to make me run for 3 hours?" asked Daphne, who didn't look happy.

"Maria, Mum Good morning. Did you sleep well?" said Olivia, who had realized that Maria and her mother had arrived.

Leo decided to take this exit suggested by Olivia in an attempt to change the subject.

_"Good morning, Abigail. Hello Maria, I think it's been years since I've seen you. The last time I saw you, you must have just been in 6th grade," _Leo said, rising to his feet and holding out his hand.

Maria wasn't one to shake hands, however, and threw herself at Leo to give him a hug.

1 VP for hugging the Master for Maria.

"Oh, it's that easy to win VPs?" gasped Maria.

_"No, but Nola is kind enough to make the first VP practically free," _said Daphne, who didn't seem to be in a good mood.

"Oh, I see, in that case I'll make an appointment with Leo for our date," said Maria with a smile.

They sat down around the table and began breakfast.

"Your suit is very nice, and the blue star matches your eyes," said Felicia.

_"Did you notice? I must thank Nola for choosing such an appropriate costume. I hope tomorrow's will be just as beautiful," _says Maria.

_"You know you can probably spend your BP on your costume," _says Eric.

_"Really?" _says Maria.

_"That's probably the case. If you need help with your BP don't hesitate to let me know. I've got to spend my BP before the end of the round," _says Abigail.

_"Thanks Mum, but I wouldn't want to deprive you of it," _says Maria.

_"Don't be silly. Just because I've gotten younger doesn't mean I can't give gifts to my beloved daughters." _says Abigail.

_"Okay, but you have to give Olivia a present too," _says Maria.

"Hey, don't get me involved" says Olivia.

"Don't worry, I'm sure Mommy will find you a nice present," says Maria.

_"But I'm wondering if I can get you some BP or buy some things that are only on your shelf. You'd have to ask Nola," _says Abigail.

"Are we talking about me?" said Nola, who had just appeared.

The others present were just as surprised as Maria at the appearance of the hostess.

_"Yes, we had a few questions," _said Abigail.

"Yes, I heard. And to answer your questions, no, you're not allowed to spend your BP on anything other than what's offered on your tablet," said Nola.

"Nola, can you explain why the audience would be interested in me running for 3 hours?" asked Daphne, who still hadn't gotten an answer from Leo.

"Oh, you'd have to ask Leo, but I know he didn't feel like answering you. Then on the interest of the audience, the audience and I thought that you weren't doing enough sport and that it was showing on your physique. So, in view of your future place in the harem, I thought you should start running. Then, if you prefer, I can modify the obligation so that instead of running for 3 hours today, you must run for 1 hour every day until the end of the round. Do you prefer this option?" proposed Nola.

Daphne seemed to hesitate. She had to think about the pros and cons. Didn't she like sports? Maria mused.

_"No, that's all right. I'd rather just suffer today. I suppose the alternative would have been worse," _said Daphne.

"My only other option was that you had to kiss everyone present on the mouth," said Leo.

Oh well, it wasn't that bad. Maria wasn't a lesbian, but she didn't find it too difficult. Maybe Olivia would have appreciated that.

"Do you want me to run with you? It'll give us a chance to talk," Maria offered.

"Thank you very much, I appreciate it and I accept," said Daphne.

Well, Maria had just found something to keep her busy today. Maria then noticed that her mother was on her tablet looking at possible purchases with her POs.

"I've found it!" shouted Abigail.

_"What did you find?" _asked Felicia.

"I have a purchase that allows me to impose a hero disguise on Maria," said Abigail.

"All Maria has to do is tell you what she wants for her date," said Jessica.

Maria rushed to her mother's ear to tell her her idea. She preferred to keep the information secret, as she didn't want to spoil the surprise for Leo.