(Chilli)
This Chapter of Bluey's Kaleidoscope is called:
•[Unexpected Times]•

>*•*<

The Heeler's house looked like a vacation home and the cul-de-sac was perfectly on a hill where you could see everything. Unfortunately, it all seemed too good to be true. It's scary not knowing how a family reacts to a random kid in their home.

Chilli parked into the driveway and immediately noticed your tight grip on your bag. "We've made it this far, so I'm gonna give you a few heads up, alright?"

You tilt your head in confusion, "Meaning?"

"Well, we love to play games. It's our special thing we do everyday and it's fun." She relaxes into the seat. "It's okay if you're still not comfortable with everything, sweetie. All of us will understand."

Both of you wince at a very loud screech of laughter from somewhere in the backyard.

Chilli facepalms and shakes her head, "Can't tell if they're behaving correctly or not, but it seems like dessert after dinner is waning. One more thing, always expect the unexpected with us around." She chuckled when the kids and her husband burst out the front door, tackling their dad to the ground.

"I've got the xylophone stick!!!" Bandit raises the stick and turns to his daughters. "Now. All I need is the xylophone itself."

"No!!" The girls shouted while trying to pull the xylophone away from their dad.

"Uh oh. Seems like it's getting a bit intense. Time for my grand entrance. Look at who's back!!!" Chilli stepped out of the vehicle.

"Mum!!!" Bluey and Bingo dropped the xylophone, so they could run into their mom's arms. "You're back from work?!" Bluey sounded happy but confused.

"Yeah! Very early." Bingo agreed.

Your gaze meets the young blue heeler's stare.

Bluey's tail began to wag excitedly and she immediately crawled into the car. "Hi! My name's Bluey! How old are you? I like your buttons." She pokes your pins. "Are these the things you like? I'm very certain you can collect more for ALL the things you like in the WHOLE world! Right, Bingo?"

Another small heeler hopped into the jeep, "Absolutely. We've got a lot of toys. Do you want to see them?"

Kids. Always asking one question after the other and you didn't really mind, but they didn't give you time for a response.

"Oh, yeah. That's my sister, Bingo."

The three of you turn your attention to the back where the rear back door opened up to reveal the older blue heeler. "It's getting around to making dinner, kids. How about we help our new mate get settled in?" He picks up your two luggages.

Bluey crawled out the back before her dad closed the door, "Can I help, Dad? Oof!" A large duffle back is placed in her arms, but she nearly toppled over. "This bag is HEAVY."

"If it's too heavy, then let me—"

Bandit reached for the bag only for Bluey to turn away, "—No! I've got it."

Bingo follows while Chilli nods her head at you. "Let's head inside. You'll probably feel more comfortable sitting on a couch than in the car."

"Mum. Can I help carry your bag?" Bingo asked.

"Aw, sorry, Bingo. I think my satchel might be a bit too heavy for ya."

You step out onto the green lawn as Bingo looks down sadly. "But I want to help too."

This made you smile slightly and you adjusted the strap on your bag, so it could fit perfectly around the heeler's shoulder. "Excuse me, Miss. I think I'm in need of a Bellhop for carrying such a very important bag to my room. Do you know anyone who would be up for the job?"

Bingo gasped and her tail started to wag, thrilled to hear that she could help. "I will! I mean-" She tries to calm down, "Of course, dear guest. I shall let the front desk know of your arrival." She hugs your bag close to her before running ahead of her dad and sister. "Bluey! I think I know what we can play?!"

"Great work, kiddo. It seems you'll be their new favorite." Chilli complaints kindly.

Your ears flatten with slight embarrassment. The two of you make it to the front door, where Bluey had set up a small side table and her dad and sister stood beside her. "Hello! How may we help you today?"

Well, it seemed you made yourself a part of this family playtime. They REALLY love to play pretend. Hopefully, you don't do anything wrong, because sometimes....grown ups know how to pretend too well. Meaning, you have an extremely hard time trusting them. Kids are more honest, sometimes too honest.

"Oh, hello! I believe one of your colleagues recommended I stay at this family lodge." You take a glance at Chilli and grin. "You guys must be the Heeler's who own this amazing lodge. I was also told I would like it more than I have ever known, that I might stay FOREVAH."

The family giggles in amusement. "Well, I believe Mum has a room booked for you. What's your name, Love?" Bluey asked and you gave her your name. "Splendid! Let's take you up to your room, shall we? Hey Bellboy! Hurry up, mate!" Bluey and Bingo rush to a set of stairs.

Bandit dramatically gasped in offense, "Bellboy?! Why am I the bellboy?"

"You have the luggage. It makes sense." Bluey smirked.

Chilli snickered and slipped her bag around her husband's shoulder. "Careful with my bag, Bellboy." She teased and bumped her hip to his side as he nearly toppled over.

You shake your head at their playfulness and follow behind the two kids. "So far so good."

"Indeed. Now, we have two meals a day."

Bingo smiled. "Brekkie and our evening tea."

"Or on weekends we also have a small afternoon tea. There are tons of fun activities to keep your stay absolutely exciting." Bluey continued on about all the rooms upstairs and downstairs, not giving much time to look at them, so you would have to do that later. "Now for your room. Hm...it's a bit boring, but I'm sure you'll fix it up to your liking."

As you take a glance into the room you'll be occupying, you feel a firm paw on your shoulder and you immediately tense up. Barely pushing back a defensive growl with a loud throat clear. "I-I sure hope so..." You move away from the older blue heeler.

Bandit blinked back in surprise and glanced at Chilli who smiled to reassure him of the sudden action.

"So, what sort of currency will you give for our services?"

"Bluey!" Chilli slightly got after her.

"What? It's just a game." Bluey pouts.

"Ah, yes. For such amazing services so far, how about...." You dig through one of your luggage bags after the "Bellboy" placed them on the bed. "...A puffy sticker pack? Good for sharing."

Bluey and Bingo screamed so loud with joy that you, Bandit and Chilli flinched.

"We'll accept. Thank you and we hope you enjoy your stay!" Bluey and Bingo's tail wagged excitedly as they looked at the different kinds of puffy stickers in the small pack.

"Okay, kiddos. Mum's gonna start dinner." Chilli beamed at you, "Feel free to hang out anywhere. The grown ups will be downstairs in the kitchen." She pulled Bandit along with her as the blue heeler complained about not getting to properly greet you. With Chilli's soft reply of later.

"Here you." Bluey holds out the packet of unopened stickers. "The game is over for now."

You hum and grin, "Keep it. I'll get more later."

Bingo squealed. "We can keep it all?"

"For real life?" Bluey took the stickers back.

"For real life." You say and dig through your satchel, checking your phone. Seeing a text message from Ms.Sadie, but chose to ignore it until later. Bingo said your name as you acknowledged her.

"Why are you staying at our house?"

"Your mom and dad are..." You didn't want to explain details of adoption to them, nor did you want them asking too many questions about what happened. "...They're babysitting me." The three of you walk out into the hallway as they show you their room.

"Oh! Okay. I'm so happy you're staying with us.We can have lots of fun together." Bluey throws her paws up. "This is our room where we sleep and sometimes play. We also have a balcony."

"And this is Floppy and Grey-Dancer." Bingo held up a pink bunny and a lilac dolphin plush.

You pat the two plushies on the head. "Hello, Floppy and Grey-Dancer. It's very nice to meet Bingo's special friends. If you'd like, you can come along on the tour. The more the merrier."

Both the girls giggled and they took both your paws. "So where are your parents?" They nearly fall backwards after you stop walking and they look up at you, confused. Noting the troubled expression upon your face.

"They're....on vacation. A grown up vacation, so I couldn't come with them." You continue at an easy pace with them now.

"Aw. That's too bad. Maybe next time you guys can have a family vacation!" Bingo said happily.

You shrug. "Maybe."

"Are they going to be contacting you? I want to meet them." Bluey said.

Honestly, you hope not. "They're traveling too frequently, so they'll be too busy to check up on me. BUT I do hope to have fun of my own. My own vacation with my little sisters." Of course the traveling part was a lie because you know very well, you were the one doing the traveling too much.

"Wait. Sisters?" They squeezed your paws and jumped up and down. "Really?"

You gently twirl both of them and feel a little better. "I mean, if I'm going to stay for a very long while. Why not? I'm going to be your older sibling." You declare then pick them up. "I'll try to be, anyway."

"Hooray!!! An older sibling!" They laughed and held on as you began spinning around.

>*•*<

Bandit and Chilli heard their daughters laughing before getting back to the video call with Bandit's younger brother.

"How are they so far? Are they settling in well with you guys?" The multi blue/brown haired heeler asked.

"The kids have taken a liking to them. It's still only their first day here, but we want them to be very comfortable. Hopefully they'll be able to trust us more." Chilli said while cutting up vegetables.

"Yeah. I think the other families they've been with were not....very pleasant. They're extremely tense around adults." Bandit stopped cutting the meat. "Actually, more tense around me."

"Ah, it seems like your charm isn't working, brother." The heeler jokes.

"Really, Stripe. Still jealous, mate?" Bandit smirked.

"Nah, mate. You're just getting old."

"Hey! Why you—"

"Okay, boys. Enough squabbling." Chilli chuckled. "We were hoping to have a BBQ next weekend for them. Unfortunately, Nana and Bob won't be able to make it."

"Oh yeah. They're gonna visit, Radley." Stripe added. "Well, we'll see ya mates next weekend. I've got to help Trixie with dinner and I hope my little girls will like the new addition to the family."

The call ended with the Heeler's farewell and a scream from one of Stripe's daughters.

"Don't get me wrong, Chilli, but....why are we doing this? The whole adopting thing. Especially an older pup."

Chilli slowed the cutting of vegetables and she stared off to the side. "We'll..." She takes a deep breath and exhales before dumping the vegetables into the pot. "The girls need someone older than themselves to be around. Having an older sibling is good for them, besides, I think (Y/n) needs a family who will be there for them as well."

The atmosphere grows silent with just the sound of the stew brewing in the pot. There is faint laughter and small talk from upstairs with you and the girls.

"By any chance...." Bandit hesitantly asked. "Does this have to do with missing your sister?"

Chilli calmly closed the dishwasher after putting in the used utensils. She stayed silent, though gave a melancholic sigh and leaned against her husband as he pulled her close.

>*•*<

Upstairs, you finally got the gist of the upstairs room. It was odd that the toilet had its own small space while the shower, bathtub, and sink were in its own room. Maybe it did make a little sense. Other than that, there was Mr. and Mrs. Heeler's bedroom and Mr. Heeler's study which you would come back to later. A balcony also looped from Bingo and Bluey's room to their parents along to a decent sized upper deck patio that overlooked the backyard.

Bingo and Bluey also explained the photos of who was who in the hallways and such. Their dad, his brothers, his mom and dad, then Chilli's family photo. Apparently, Chilli only visited her father every once in a while.

Downstairs, you end up giving each of the girls a piggy back ride.

Laundry room, connecting to another small restroom and the living room that leads to a sunroom. That one was nice. Another living room where the front door was at, then the kitchen and the playroom.

"Don't mind the mess. It's a playroom, you know." Bluey kicks a random block and it hits a block tower, causing it to tumble.

You knew cleaning up was hard, especially when you try to get kids to pick up their mess. It's probably a hassle with a playroom this big, but sometimes cleaning can be fun. "What was that Floppy?" You hold the bunny to your ear. "You and Grey-Dancer want to play a game? I have an idea. Are you guys up for a game?" You ask the two small heeler's.

"Yeah!"

"Great! This is kinda like I Spy and Hide-n-Seek." You explain to them about the game. "Let's try a round and you gotta stay downstairs. Floppy, you first." You turn the plush bunny away. "She says she's thinking about something soft."

Bluey and Bingo giggle and rush around the room to gather up all the plush toys as you move Floppy side to side, like they were counting.

"Floppy is almost done counting. Run!" You snicker while the girls run out of the room after placing the plush toys into a basket. "Floppy said ready or not, here she comes!"

>*•*<

Bingo tried to catch up to Bluey, who zipped into the kitchen, but she ended up sliding and running into the couch. "Uh oh." She just laid down and tried not to make noise.

Chilli and Bandit nearly jump when Bluey skids into the kitchen and sits behind the counter. "Bluey?"

The little blue heeler waved her paws to keep silent and she went still. "I'm a toy that can't be found." That was it.

They see you step into the living room, where Bingo is there laying on the couch and you groan. "Floppy. You've got to stop leaving your toys everywhere!" You grin at Bingo's soft giggle. "Hopefully, you didn't wear out her batteries. Let's take a look." You make Bingo stand up and move her arms, ears, and head gently from side to side. "Nothing broken. Click." You pretend to open a small hatch on her back. "Batteries still inside. Click."

Floppy waved her arms.

"Ah. Be my guest, Floppy. See if the tickle sensor is working."

Bingo screamed and cracked up laughing as you made Floppy tickle her belly, then you got her sides. "FLOPPY NO!!!!"

"Yep! Bingo is still full of energy." You pick her up and look around. "Now, are there any more toys to take back to the playroom? Oh yeah, Bingo has a sister. That means she can't be far and, luckily, Bingo can track her sister." You boop Bingo's nose. "When I'm getting closer to Bluey, beep, okay?"

"Beep-beep!" Bingo lets out more beeps in the direction of the kitchen before beeping non stop near the counter.

Unfortunately, you were still unsure of Bandit and placed Bingo on the stool. "The kitchen is a very dangerous place to leave your toys laying around, Floppy."

Bluey covers her mouth to keep from laughing. Suddenly, Floppy hangs upside down in front of her face. "AHH!" She screamed and laughed.

"Found you, Bluey! Hey!"

"Run, run as fast as you can!!! You can't catch me, because I'm Bluey!!!" Bluey takes off running.

"Totally unfair, Bluey!" You laugh out and run after her. "Bingo, freeze tag! Help me tag your sister!"

"Okay!"

The parents watch as you and Bingo head in different directions to try and cut off Bluey. "The kids seem to be having more fun than usual." Bandit says before giving Chilli a kiss on her muzzle.

"I'm faster than you, Bluey!" You yell out.

"Nah, mate! I've got more energy than you!"

"Clearly!" You hold back on coughing. "But I also have backup! Uh oh. Bluey slow down!"

Bingo jumped out in front of her sister, who tried to slow down, but she panicked at the closeness of her little sister.

Immediately, you slide across the floor like a player head for home base and snatch up both the girls into your arms. "Ha! I've got both of you now, you Little Tykes." You tickle them for the scare.

"Ah! (Y/n)! That's not fair!"

"It's totally fair, Blues. If you're caught cheating, you get punished." You ruffle the top of her head and finally lay on the floor. It's been awhile playing around like that and it was actually fun.

"Bluey. I think we ran out their batteries."

"Mmm. Yes, maybe we should check to see if they're still working." Bluey said mischievously.

Your eyes widen and you sit up, "Not gonna happen." The two girls stop their reach from tickling your side. "I'm watching you two." You point accusingly at them as they laugh in their hands.

>*•*<

The playroom was cleaned up after another few rounds of your game, which was enough time for dinner to finish.

"Yummy tummy food is ready!" Bandit called out.

Bluey and Bingo quickly run off, leaving their drawings behind.

You follow slowly and peek into the dining room to see Mr. Heeler dishes up the girls. Your stomach began to churn suddenly and the nervousness picked up. What would you talk about at the table? Your interests were boring, well, that's what some of the other families had told you. Would it be weird to stay silent when this family is used to extrovert interaction?

Chilli watched you reach out to touch a chair only for you to run upstairs. "Oh dear."

"Mum. Are they okay? Did we upset them?" Bluey asked sadly.

"No, Sweetheart. We just have to give them some time to get used to staying here." Bandit gave her head a reassuring pat.

Bingo looked worried, "Is it because they miss their family and they can't talk to them?"

Chilli nearly lost her composure at the question, seeming to pull at her heartstring. She grew worried as well and Bluey noticed. The little blue heeler gave a confident glare, "Mum, can you help me write a note? Dad, Bingo, I need help carrying some things upstairs."

>*•.•*<

The door to your room is closed and you're sitting on the floor, leaning against the bed. You were hungry, but you were scared to go back downstairs to face the Heeler's. You're supposed to be old enough for self control.

Right?

[There should be a GIF or video here. Update the app now to see it.]

A knock disturbed the thoughts from going crazy and a note slipped under the door. "Room service!" Bluey called out.

"Dear, (Y/n).
We hope you feel better and if you give us a chance, we can help make your stay feel like you're part of our family.
Eating helps Dad feel better too, so be sure you eat as much as you can.
OXoxOOO."

For some reason, you can hear Bluey say; "Big hug, big kiss, small hug and a small kiss, and MANY big hugs!"

Bluey's signature was a big blue heart. Bingo has a small yellow heart, while Mr. and Mrs. Heeler had red hearts. This made you chuckle breathlessly and smile at the warm stir inside you.

It was very unexpected.

Curious, you open your door to see a tray with tonight's dinner and dessert, and a small juice box. Most likely Bingo.

Across the hallway, you notice the door to Bluey's and Bingo's room is closed. Small shadow moves behind it. Heading back into your room, you dig for a marker in your satchel and use notebook paper from your luggage.

>*•*<

Bluey waited anxiously until there were two knocks and a note slipped under the door. She raised a brow at the words, still unable to read. Although, when she turned the paper around, she grinned and her tail wagged happily.

The giant O drawn was something she understood and Bluey hugged the paper tightly.

"Thanks. I'll be sure to eat as much as I can.
Giant hug.
- (Y/n)."