bury the castle

"Not entirely. But i'm too prideful to give up at this point. My mom didn't raise a quitter." She sighed as scrambled to put the stakes back into place before it lifted off again. "So? Think that'll stay?" Harper huffed before placing her hands on her hips to look over her work. "Oh, look at you, with all your cool guy connections. How about we pretend like this might actually work out for me for another hour and I call you upl when I eventually need saving?" She laughed. "Is the festival going better for you?"

"Respect." Franco said with a nod. He didn't know a lot about setting up tents, even if he'd been to a handful of festivals in his lifetime. "Hm, I think so. Here let me just...reinforce the stakes a little." He grabbed the tool she'd been using and tried to get the stakes even tighter, looking up to see if her tent looked sturdy enough and moved to stand next to her to get a good look at it. "Hey, if I have them, why not use them, right?" Franco laughed and then nodded, because he couldn't complain. The festival was great for him, he'd even enjoyed some time with his parents too. "Oh yeah, we got one of those luxury tents since my girlfriend is performing, I've barely moved a finger if I'm honest. Was just on my way to get something to drink when I saw you, you want anything?"

"I don't know if there's such a thing as too nice. Should I ask who else is making the cut? Right now I'm mostly living this out through you so I'm ready for all the details." Cory's shoulders sagged but it had more to do with her words than the weight of her hands. "Good. I didn't want to share your attention with anyone else. I'm working with limited time so... I should probably make the most of it.." He cleared his throat, almost immediately averting his gaze from hers as he looked over her shoulder. "Hey, did you ever think that maybe I like having you spell things out for me? It usually makes my life a lot easier. But I'll keep that in mind and if I ever need a new drummer I'm prepared to come begging. And I'll make sure you get a decent bunk on tour. That's my gift to you."

"I don't know about that, you were looking a little too nice up there." Afra mumbled, clearly not having any filter because of the mix of weed and alcohol in her system. "Hm, I'm seeing PinkPantheress, Joji, Young Miko and Tinashe. I really want to catch Sabrina Carpenter and Chapell Roan, too. Are you gonna be stuck here all weekend?" She smiled widely, tilting her head to the side. "So make the most of it." Afra shook her head right after that. "Ah, okay. So you're just trying to get me to pull all the weight here." She had no plans of ever touring in any bus ever, not even if it meant spending all that time with Cory. "A bunk? Be ready to share whatever bed you have. I know I always say I don't live up to people's expectations for the Chadwell's, but I am a little high maintenance when it comes to sleeping arrangements and other things."

"A little help here?" Harper hollered out to whoever was around, holding down one of the legs of the canopy she had set up over her camping spot, clearly trying to keep it from flying away in the wind. "I don't know why I thought it would be a good idea to try camping for the first time at a music festival. You think it's still too late to put money down on one of those luxury tents?"

"Are you, like, sure this is safe for you?" Franco asked with a raised eyebrow as he moved to help her get the leg in place almost effortlessly and then moving to get another one in place without her asking for it. he rarely ever did any manual work these days but Franco didn't mind it. "I mean, I could pull some strings for you if you really want one. If my name gets us nowhere, I can ask Daisy to ask for an extra one for her team or something."

Louise was taking deep breaths, as Prince's timeslot was only drawing more and more near and yet he was nowhere to be found. Sure, everything that could be done had already been done. His looks for his performance were hanging perfectly steamed, done up to perfection. As was the De La Renta way, of course. But she just wasn't going to be happy until she saw them on the guy proper. "Everything is going to go amazingly." She repeated to herself, until the tent opened and there he was. No, not Prince of course, but the love of her life. Who's mere presence truly did put her at ease. "Just you being here is enough." She confided in him as she let out a soft sigh. "Everything's going to go great. I know, I know I know it. I just want to... well... know."

J smiled warmly back at her, moving closer to place a kiss on her forehead. "It will. You got everything ready, Prince will step in here, you'll get him ready and he'll make it to the stage on time. Just be patient, he's a busy guy." J reminded her slowly. He knew how Louise could be about punctuality, he'd learned it the hard way but didn't regret it. It mattered to her so he could adjust very easily. "Do you want to eat or are we waiting until you're done?"

"I don't think you're lying, I just think you're sweet. You're nice. You've always been nice, so even if you saw something you hated I'm sure you would find something decent to say about it instead of ripping it to shreds. Or maybe I've just been watching you with rose tinted glasses or whatever the friend version of that it." He shrugged one of his shoulders before shoving his hands in his pockets. She had to know he adored her. He thought he'd done a decent enough job of making that clear. Cory's eyebrows furrowed but once he realized he was making a face he forced himself to stop. "Right. Right, you came to see the drummer. I can- I'm not a great wingman or anything so I can't actually do much, but I can introduce you if I have to. If you want me to, I mean. He's... he's okay."

"Right, okay. So what I'm getting from this if that I have been a little too nice to you this whole time. I'll have you know I am extremely picky about who I see at these events." Afra snickered, rolling her eyes fondly at him. Sure, he was right, Afra knew exactly how to deliver her message without coming off as a bitch. But she was also extremely picky when it came to the music she listened to and the artists that she collaborated with. She was kind of biased when it came to Cory because he was special to her in more ways than one, even if she hadn't found a way to let him know it yet. She watched his reaction to her comment intently, a small smirk showing up on her lips before she placed her hands on his shoulders gently. "I was joking. I mean, sure, he's a really great drummer. I mean, he isn't me or anything. But I came to see you and you're ruining the moment by making me spell it out for you, so relax."

Daisy listened to Franco, allowing his words to shake off any self doubt she might have had in that moment. None that should have any reason to exist as he'd been right and she knew it. Tonight had been really amazing for her. Everything that could have gone right, went right. Hell, better than right. Perfectly. His lips soon found hers, her arms drapping around Franco's neck to hold him close for as long as she could. "Uhm, there's quite a number of places I can think of but I am happy you're here." Daisy thanked him for the water, taking a long sip as she took his hand to led him towards her tent so she could change into something less... pop star-y. "Stop it, oh my god. You know, I've done this in front of them god knows how many times now but they always cheer me on like it's the first one." Daisy told him, making a mental note to give her parents the biggest hug. "I, personally can't wait to hear how your parents enjoyed tonight." Daisy let him know with a raise of her eyebrow.

"No place better than this." Franco said easily as he followed her into her tent, letting go of her hand only to take a seat so she could change into more comfortable clothes. "They were acting as if this was the first time they were seeing you, honestly. It was adorable." He chuckled at her question, nodding his head. His aprents had watched the show with him and had loved it, they'd listened to her music before and had liked it. Even Damon, who rarely ever listened to new music. "Oh, they had the time of their lives, dancing and everything. I kind of felt like I was third wheeling them a little bit, which is an awful feeling when it comes to your parents." Franco admitted playfully. "I'm sure my mom is dying to tell you how much she loved it."

Yves took a small bite from the treat he'd been given by Afra Chadwell, a happy hum leaving him as he now understood the cause for the ridiculous line besides them. "Well, that definitely explains the line." He let her know, before taking another small bite. "Me?" He asked, as he chewed before pondering on his answer. "Oh, I've got it. PinkPanthress, for sure. I'm obsessed, there's no other way to put it. Obsessed." He said with a nod of his head. "We're literally witnessing the rise of a superstar in like real time. And of course, I want to see Cory. Love his music and he's pretty cool as well."

"Ugh, I know, they're so crunchy." Afra mumbled dreamily before taking another bite of her own pastry. "Oh, your taste. She's a genius. I'm really hoping I can meet her before she leaves Rosewood, if I'm lucky I'll get her in the studio at some point. That'd be a dream come true." She admitted, although the chances of that were very slim. If she got lucky a mutual friend would help her get there though. "Cory is pretty cool. I can't miss that set, I love a good excuse to make him shy. Do you know who I really want to see? Sabrina Carpenter."

"No, not scary at all." Lyrica laughed, shaking her head. "This is all fun, Jimi. Plus I think they really loved what you just did there." She nodded over at the crowd in front of them, all who were having the time of their lives. Something she was trying to live in the moment for, she'd made it here... so now, the sky was truly the limit. "Well, behind the scenes or right by my side, I'm just happy you're here with me." She confessed to him over the loud music, meaning that wholeheartedly. They'd gone through a lot to get to this place, but they were finally here. No more petty arguments, or fights just to fight. They'd been encouraging and kind to one another, it was nice. "Okay, this is my last track, Rosewood. You've been an amazing crowd." She said as she cued up Disclosure's 'You and Me'.

"They loved what you just did, actually." Jimi said with a wave of his hand. It wasn't everyday that they shared this type of conversation but ever since they had decided to become an official couple, but he always wanted her to know that he was proud of her and all the effort that she put into her career. He wasn't great at showing her or anyone how much he cared, but Jimi tried. "I'll be here for a slong as you want me." He slipped his arm around her shoulders after she announced her last song, grinning widely and swaying a little bit to get her to dance with him if only for the last few minutes of her incredible set.

"Pretty sure you don't want to be the guy everyone thinks pisses on walls, bro," Tino snorted a laugh. "And that's gotta be a symptom of something. Like, oh yeah, that's my boy Jimi with the enlarged prostate." Swinging the passes absentmindedly, he shrugged, "Get some free shit? Sell half a sandwich someone famous took a bite out of?"

"It's not really the worst thing anyone has ever called me, actually. I could live with that." Jimi shrugged, clearly already on his way to being drunk and not caring. "Chapell Roan famous or Mike Shinoda famous?"

Performing in Rosewood always felt different from being anywhere else. It wasn't that Cory still considered the place home but it had been once. It was where he'd started, and going back to it always reminded him of just how far he'd come. It made him more proud of himself than he ever typically felt and it showed throughout the night. Spotting Afra backstage was enough to make him practically beam as he smiled. "This might've been a little bit better than usual. But from the look on your face I don't think it would take much to blow you away right now." He shook his head, stepping close enough to offer her a one armed hug. "Please tell me you watched someone else tonight."

"Hey, watch it." Afra smacked his shoulder playfully when he was close enough, hugging him gently right after. "I'll have you know I am incredibly hard to impress, you'd know this if you realized that I am not lying to you everytime I try to compliment you." She knew how shy Cory could be sometimes, which was kind of endearing in a lot of ways, quite strange in other ways giving his successful career. "I've watched so many bands already, decided to stop by yours for a little. To catch a glimpse of your drummer, of course, I barely even noticed you were on the stage as well."

Daisy found herself laughing as her boyfriend let her know how well a job she'd done. "And more?" She asked, teasingly as he was exactly who she needed in that moment. Franco had this ability to bring her back down to earth post those insane moments. He reminded her that that was just a moment, but this was her life. Her, being in his arms, laughing. "I do feel really good about that one. But there was no way I was going to fuck up here. It's Rosewood. I fuck up here, I don't think I would have heard the end of it. We live here." She joked, before holding his face in her hands for a moment. "Thank you for being here. Seriously."

"Like you could ever fuck up. You're a natural." Franco told her easily. He'd been at most of her performances recently and Daisy always gave her 10%. Franco didn't know much about music or choreography, but he felt like she knew what she was doing. She didn't give herself enough credit. Franco leaned down to press a soft kiss to her lips, slipping his arms around her waist in a tight hug. "Where else would I be, huh?" He grinned at her, offering her an unopened bottled water he'd grabbed for her. "You should've seen your parents' faces while you were up there. They looked so proud."

"Oh, I've noticed." Yves said with a sigh, as he had actually been a tennis aficionado before well, everyone else decided to give it a go which now caused him to have to wait for courts. Something, he'd like the record to show, he'd never had to do before Luca Guadagnino decided to put hot guys and Zendaya on a court on screen. "I didn't think it'd also be affecting the churros business." He smiled as she spoke of his luck. "I'd say that I'm forever now in your favor. Because this line is ridiculous."

Afra knew herself too well. She'd already started smoking and food and water were key to stay under the sun and to enjoy her ride. So not only did she have extra churros, she also had a few snacks in her belt bag. "Oh, I don't know if it's affecting it, but these are incredibly good for a festival, in my opinion." She handed one of the churros over to him with a smile, glad that she decided not to work the festival this year as she rarely ever got to just enjoy the music since she began working with different artists. "Who are you dying to see this weekend? Any of your favorites hitting the stage?"

'You." Lyrica confirmed for her boyfriend, with a nod of her head. It'd really meant the world to have Jimi by her side during this monumental moment in her career. This was by far the biggest crowd she'd ever played with and just seeing how they reacted to her taste in music, it was everything and she was sharing it with him. "You've got this. Just like you've done it before, okay." She said, as she motioned for Jimi to transition the track and he did it seamlessly. "See, that wasn't so scary was it?" She asked him, before leaning over to press a quick kiss to his lips. "Thank you." She mouthed as she got back in the zone, as they only had ten more minutes to the set.

Jimi smiled widely as she seemed more than content with what he'd done. He wasn't much a music person, that was all Lyrica, but he loved hanging out with her at her shows, so there was no way that he would miss her set since he was aware of how big of a deal this could be for her career. "Not scary at all, just a little nerve-wracking. I thin I'm gonna stay behind the scenes for the rest of your career." He told her with a soft laugh. Kissing her cheek right after she kissed his lips, Jimi smirked back at her kept trying to rile the crowd up from where he was standing next to her, her spare headphones over his ears.

"I'm gonna look like such a tool," Prince mumbled to himself as the helicopter that had picked him up from the airport was currently finding a spot to land at the festival. He was supposed to be there an hour ago but when his travel plans home got completely derailed, including his usual pilot getting food poisoning and unreasonable amount of traffic, this was the only way he'd actually make it out of that airport and to his set on time. Once it landed and he walked out onto the grass, fixing his hair a bit, he laughed as he caught sight of someone nearby. "Best or worst entrance you've seen today?"

"Let's just say, if you wanted to get everyone's attention, you definitely got it." Afra said with raised eyebrows as she looked back at his ride from afar. It wasn't like she wasn't used to over the top entrances, her aunt was Tinsley Chadwell, after all. "Wait, aren't you supposed to perform today?"