#taledstarter

"Yep, just squeeze on in. Big smiles, big smiles! C'mon, big smiles for the paper! Got it!" William chimed above the heads of fellow attendees. He winds the gear on the top of the camera, feeding the belt of film across the camera before lining up another shot of the party-goers. He gives a nod to the little gathering of people he's sequestered for a photo before tucking his camera under his arm, his beady brown eyes watch the crowds, scanning for the perfect impromptu photo op. He had initially traveled down to the celebration to get a few drinks in him, but an interrupting phone call later, his boss made the festivities into an opportunity to get the latest scoop.

Figuring he could just snap a couple pictures, jot down a couple descriptions on the refreshments, give aliases to any interesting company that had a loose lip to potential secrets - William was sure to have an inverted pyramid written up before the night was done. Deciding to take a short respite by the bar, William looked around at the other townsfolk drinking with him. Plenty of them caught William's eye and the glint of his cellulite camera in the dim bar lighting brightening a mischievous idea in his mind.

"The mix any good?" He began to ask the person next to him, offering an innocent smile.

@talednewsletter / love me pls open to: all you lil rascals location: luna's diner when? during curse

morning  rush  had  come  and  gone,  leaving  the  diner  in  that  lull  where  the  air  still  smelled  of  coffee  and  bacon  grease,  but  the  booths  were  quiet.  zeke  stood  behind  the  counter,  wiping  down  the  same  spot  on  the  surface  for  longer  than  necessary,  restless  energy  twitching  in  his  shoulders.  wild  curls  fell  into  his  face,  hoodie  sleeves  shoved  up  to  his  elbows,  and  every  so  often  his  eyes  flicked  toward  the  door  like  he  was  waiting  for  it  to  bite  first.

the  bell  above  it  jangled  once,  sharp  against  the  low  hum  of  the  radio  playing  somewhere  in  the  back.  zeke’s  head  lifted,  dark  eyes  narrowing,  the  weight  of  his  stare  settling  heavy  on  whoever  walked  in.

“grab  a  seat  if  you’re  hungry.  or  don’t.”  his  voice  carried  that  low  rumble,  not  unfriendly,  not  exactly  welcoming  either.  one  corner  of  his  mouth  tugged,  halfway  to  a  smirk.  “coffee’s  hot,  food’s  decent,  and  i  ain’t  got  patience  for  complaints.”  he  tossed  the  rag  aside,  leaned  on  the  counter  with  both  hands,  and  waited  to  see  if  whoever  had  wandered  in  was  here  to  eat,  talk,  or  start  trouble.  maybe  he'd  get  lucky  today  and  option  three  was  on  the  table. 

Above all else, Ariel could be described as a free spirit. So uninhibited, so unafraid to live in the moment regardless of potential consequences...

Naturally, this meant Ariel loved to swim in the nude. And why wouldn't he? With such a gorgeous body, rippled with toned muscle and sun-kissed skin, catching Ariel in his natural environment would have been a sight for any lucky man to gaze upon him...

Such as the one Ariel just caught in the corner of his eye, watching. How long had this person been there?

"Oh, I am so sorry," Ariel chuckles, blushing through his effervescent facade. So carefree, in fact, that he nearly forgot all of him was on display for the other, leaving no ambiguity as to what laid beneath his clothes — or, sometimes, his fins.

Reaching for a towel that was not there, all he could do was cover his modesty with his hands. As free as he could be with his body, he didn't go out of his way to expose himself like this to a perfect stranger. What kind of prince would he have been in that case? Certainly not one his father would have been proud of it.

location: cauldron bubble setting: after the party

"you know, the worst part of all of this--" jackson blurted out, his right hand gripping onto the neck of the bottle he'd been drinking from; though now he was swinging it about between them as he spoke to the man near him. "--they didn't even bother to give me a better life. some of you assholes got to be doctors, lawyers, mayor's, and-- and-- happy, or whatever."

despite his current ranting, and the way he was moving, jackson wasn't drunk. well, he wasn't sober either, but he still had control over himself; for the most part.

"--and instead of getting to be something cool they made me a washed up, retired way-to-young athlete that teaches ice skating? oh, and i get to be a counselor for summer camp too? i mean, come on." he groaned out before bringing the bottle he was haphazardously swinging about to his lips to finish it off in one final swig.

"don't get me wrong, i love my kids-- and i guess i should be greatful they didn't make me the owner of an ice cream parlor or something-- but they still could have let me be something, i don't know, cooler."

"who wants to fuck a washed up athlete, right?"

Takes place during the party

"This…This   doesn't   make   any   sense."   Soren's   lips   turned   down   in   a   frown.   His   mask   was   still   on   his   face   as   he   took   a   moment   to   himself.   Or   at   least,   he   thought   he   was   by   himself.   Slipping   away   from   the   party   to   breath.   “There's   no   way   something   like   that   could   happen.   Magic   is   just   a   myth.   Stories   that   adults   tell   their   kids   to   inspire   them   to   do   good   things,   or   to   not   do   bad   things.”   Soren   has   always   prided   himself.   He   was   a   logical   guy.   Once   someone   became   his   friend,   he   would   do   anything   for   them.   But   he   can   often   times   come   across   cold   and   stoic.   So,   to   no   one's   surprise,   he   doesn't   exactly   have   a   large   amount   of   friends   and   companions. 

“Just…Mass   Hysteria.   That   has   to   be   it.   We   probably   all   heard   something   and   our   minds   are   just   treating   it   like   it's   real.   Only   a   fool   would   think   it   was.”   And   yet,   his   voice   didn't   hold   the   convinction   in   it   that   it   did   when   he   talked   about   things   in   the   museum.   When   he   talked   about   things   that   he   knew   was   true.   Because   there   was   still   a   piece   of   him   that   doubted   it.

Where: Out in the streets near Tiana's restaurant

One of his very favorite places to visit was the lively town near Tiana's restaurant (which had really good food, honestly). Parin never really considered himself to have a home, but if he did, it would certainly be there. He loved the music, the colors, the atmosphere! It was everything he could have wanted. Plus, he could play his pipe and lute without the (potential) worry of annoying people. Not that Parin ever really cared about that, but he supposed that if given the option to annoy or not annoy people, he'd choose the latter.

Strolling through the cobblestoned streets, Parin strummed his lute, singing proudly and garnering himself a fun little crowd. It was exactly what he wanted. He walked around the crowd, dancing to the beat of his own lute, before he paused and held up a hand, "I believe I am in the need of an assistant for this next part of the song." The bard announced with a smile and walked around until he stopped before a man, holding his hand out towards them, "How about you? You look like someone who has musical talent." Parin grinned.