#wocrp open

With the ball only a couple of days away, the castle was beginning to overflow with guests from all the neighboring kingdoms. One could hardly step out into the hallways without being forced into drastic maneuvers in order to avoid getting caught in a conversation of small talk, or running into a servant on their way to complete the extra chores they had for the time.

Eugene, not exactly a fan of the constant business and buzzing which he found himself in the middle of, took it upon himself to help out the kitchen staff by making a run to the market for produce. There seemed to have been a miscalculation somewhere in the number of guests, and the kitchen found themselves with a severe lack of potatoes and carrots -- an important piece to the banquet dinner planned for that night.

Carrying the empty basket which had been shoved into his hands immediately upon accepting the task, he stepped out of the castle and towards the marketplace. Breathing in the fresh air, he let out a small sigh of relief. Too long he had been holed up in that castle filled with stuffy guests. It was a nice change to be alone.

Now Attina had to decide if the risks were worth it. She was next in line to the throne, her youngest sister lived on land with a Prince, she knew all her sisters would want to visit Ariel. Knowing the young redhead, she was likely to drag them into some sort of adventure before they even knew what was happening. This made her want to make sure that they would be safe, and that peace could easily work between Atlantica and the kingdoms on land. 

Taking a deep breath, Attina nodded to her father, who had agreed to her idea with only a few misgivings. Her tail separated into legs and she took a few unsteady steps towards the shore. Legs were so strange and they didn't bend as much as a tail did. They didn't feel right to her. 

Staggering, Attina made her way to where Ariel promised to leave clothing for her. Attina didn't think her shells looked bad but apparently people on land wore more. Much more. After getting the clothing on she felt stifled by the huge, warm clothing. At least Ariel had brought her something in orange so she didn't feel completely out of her element.

Every other off day of so, Hades's favorite past-time was watching mortals do whatever it is they do. And today he had a small inkling to do just that. He'd gotten bored with Greeks recently, so he decided to check out a few of the neighboring countries. After all, it should be a nice change with none of them knowing much about Greek gods. Perhaps he could convince them he was the only one. This idea had great potential.

Staying in the shadows, Hades watched a few people wonder by here and there, and eventually, he picked out a target. It was one of those people that looked a little too noble for their own good. Perfect. He loved getting them all worked up over some tiny, itsy, bitsy detail. 

Hades waited for the right moment, when his victim was closer to the shadows. He stepped out ever so slightly. "All these sane people just make me go nuts. It's a wonder your brains not spinning as much as they are, huh?"

Merida sat in the grass, bow in hand as she looked over the land with a smile on her face. She'd been out riding with Angus, shooting arrows and just enjoying the day. She would have to return home soon, she'd promised her mother that she would be cleaned up and dressed properly for dinner. She still wasn't overly fond of her princessly duties but she and her mother had reached an understanding now. There was a balance between them now. 

It was a quiet day so she was quick to hear the sounds of footsteps disturbing her peace. Merida turned her head to see who approached, knowing it wasn't Angus by the sound. He was in the opposite direction grazing. 

Ariel clutched her small purse tightly, her eyes wandering from shop to shop, yet not spotting the one she was looking for. She only had a small amount of money with her, in order to prevent herself from buying too many things. Because, if past experiences were any indication, she had an extremely difficult time saying no to persuasive shopkeepers.

"Bruno!" Cinderella called admonishing the older bloodhound. "Bad dog!" Bruno stood at attention, barking at a stranger whom he believed to be a threat to both him and Cinderella. She thought that if Lucifer hadn't been such a pain to Bruno this morning, teasing him relentlessly, that Bruno wouldn't be so ready to fight now. 

They had been out on a walk, Cinderella was gathering some ingredients that grew wild in the forest. It was one way of saving the money her father's estate didn't have. She had to keep it quiet from her stepmother, she preferred to pretend there were no financial issues, that the chateau wasn't in a dilapidated state. 

Bruno stood down, coming to sit at Cinderella's side but continuing a low growl. Cinderella put her hand on the top of his head to try to calm him but also to be able to grab hold of him if he lunged towards the stranger again. 

"Oh, great!"

Something Jim learnt at the academy was advanced astronomy, and he focused especially on the study of other planets with life. He knew enough of Earth to make a safe joruney. He knew it would be hot, but not that hot.

He had to remove his jacket and roll up his sleeves. The place was closer to the sun than Montressor, which favored its biodiversity and also the unbearable heat that he was feeling. He wiped the sweat from his brow.

“Crap,” the word came out as a whisper. Earth being closer to the sun was a great opportunity to do some solar surf. It would have a lot more power and he could also use it to explore the place. But he wasn’t counting on what he just saw.

He wasn't the most organized person and his luggage came all rumpled. His solar board was at the bottom of everything and when he took it out he noticed that the fabric was torn. Like a kite, the board could not lift with a hole.

However, it would not be difficult to make a patch. His board itself was a big patch of various mechanisms and fabrics he had found. The problem was to get a fabric with solar crystals. He held his solar surfer at his back and walked to the nearest village. Jim only spoke to strangers when it was really necessary. If he could solve his problem alone, he would. But he didn't know where to get what he needed.

It put Cinderella in a bind because they didn't actually have any money to be able to buy what she needed from the village. She'd brought along a basket of eggs laid by their chickens, hoping she could barter those. Lady Tremaine also wanted brand new linens fro the table but Cinderella was going to have a hard enough time getting this dinner planned before the end of the week. Maybe she could find some old fabric and sew them up in her spare time for the new linens her stepmother required.