#bdaopen

For the amount of food Bluebelle ordered for lunch one would think she had ordered for another person, but when she sat down and began chowing down on everything she ordered almost simultaneously, it took her a moment to realize she had company. “Oh I’m sorry, did you want something?”

“All right, sorry, that wasn’t working for me... Try me again. What were you saying?”

Quinn sat on the bench, she was deep in thought. A book on how to care for plants sat on her lap. It would be her first winter without her mother, and she had always been the one to keep their garden in top condition and care for the plants over the winter months. Even before, it took her life she always made sure she and Quinn had enough to keep them going. Something the girl had been struggling with recently. 

Back when Gideon was king the first time around, he often found himself cooking for himself. He had tried to surround himself with people he trusted. As most knew, that never worked out particularly well for him. Especially now with the sickness still in the air, Gideon had forbidden anyone else in the Palace from making food for him and his family. They couldn’t risk being confined to their beds when they still had a war to win.

Telling Thea to fill in while a switchboard operator was running late was a bad decision on her father’s part. “Viagra customer service line, my name is Tammy, how can I help you keep it up today?” She was very bored.

It started with one innocent drink to take the edge off and then another and another and all of the sudden she had lost count. Cadence rarely drank but the pressure finally caught up with her. She didn’t care much for the rest of Wonderland but the thought of losing her family was enough pressure to force a bottle of wine down.

Standing on the edge of a field, Laurie studied her handiwork for the day. Wind rustled the crop that was just starting to reach her chest. The crisp, clean air brought a small smile to her face. Hearing someone behind her, she spoke, “This area should be fine. The far side, though, it needs more attention. Uneven feeding, I’m wondering if a flock of birds is helping themselves.”

First it was the increased attacks, and then it was the people falling sick.  Mirabel didn’t find herself out of the castle much, out of precaution, although she didn’t know much about either outside of rumors from women who were known to exaggerate their gossip.  While she didn’t take anything these women said at face value, she wasn’t about to risk anything either.