week four | mingle

[showhost]

Welcome to your fourth and final week, teens!

There aren’t many changes around the house today: it seems everyone is dialed in on what needs to be done and the upcoming week. Everything that was on the fritz last week is now back to normal, aside from the Dress Up Your Blorbo curse. You can still do that at will.

Anyway, it's fine that all seems quiet.

There’s plenty going on anyway this week.

Dates | Embrace Space | Property Damage, etc | CR Event | A Thing
Truth Booth Voting | Match Ceremony Submissions

Comments

[hgeegh]

[In other words, Will can do a bit of everything. That's impressive. It's a level of flexibility not many can attain, never mind the fantastical nature of it all.]

Wait, does that have something to do with your travels?

[willandaway]

I think it does.

[lightly, but with thought behind his words]

After all. . . I started my journey seeking something.

[a way to break the Prince's curse, and restore his rightful place on the throne. that's a quintessential Seeker's journey, isn't it?]

[hgeegh]

[So it wasn't just to collect recipes . . . ]

Hmm . . . Have you found it?

[willandaway]

[no, that was just a DELIGHTFUL perk]

Not yet.

[hand against his chest, fingers curled into a fist]

But I'm so close I can taste it.

[hgeegh]

[Is this about food again?]

By any chance, does that have anything to do with you becoming king?

[willandaway]

[a. . . pause]

[Will looks up, gaze flickering around the room in search for any cameras or crew members. when he doesn't find any, he exhales. good. . . he had hoped he'd have a little more privacy in this strange place]

It does. But I have to be honest.

I'm not trying to become king for my own sake. I'm trying to pave the way for someone else to rule.

[hgeegh]

[Sanji waits, because it's not hard to see what Will is doing. As he does, he gives the cat some more attention before straightening his legs into a stand with a slight hunch in his shoulders.]

So you'll secure the throne, then pass on the reins to this person? That's awfully generous of you.

[willandaway]

[privacy is hard to come by in this place!! and the information he is sharing is so secretive that he can't risk anyone at home finding out. especially not. . . certain other candidates for the throne]

It's not generosity that drives me. I just believe he'll be a wonderful king.

[a small, fond smile]

. . . far better than I would ever be.

[hgeegh]

Really? . . . Well, coming from you, I'd believe it.

[It's good news for Will and Anna, too. At the very least, this indirectly addresses the latter's insecurities about her standing as a commoner if Will has no intentions of staying in power.]

Still, this sounds like a lot of work to claim a single throne. Where I'm from, most sovereigns are decided by their pedigrees and order of birth.

[willandaway]

[he has already talked to her about living on a cute li'l farm in the country. . . his commoner roots are shining through]

That's the way it has always been in my world, too. Until now.

[circumstances back home are a little. . . unique, he thinks]

But the most recent king died without a living heir. Or. . . so most people believe. And his dying wish was for the next ruler to be determined by popular vote. Not pedigree, not bloodlines. The will of the people.

[hgeegh]

[The picture's slowly starting to come together, albeit in fragments.]

The people's ruler, eh? It doesn't sound bad on paper . . . but I'm guessing the living heir complicates things, at least for you.

[willandaway]

[a wry smile]

The living heir. . . is who I am fighting for.

Not because he is the Prince, mind you. Because. . . despite his birthright, I truly think he will be a wonderful king.

[who forged a future of equality and happiness. . . a world where dreams can come true, regardless of tribe]

[hgeegh]

I thought so.

But why does it have to be you? Does that birthright preclude him from the vote?

[willandaway]

[aha. . . and here is where things get complicated. . .]

. . . twelve years ago, the Prince was attacked in the middle of the night. The assassins meant to kill him, but. . . failed. He escaped with his life in tact, but just barely.

[an exhale]

That night, he was cursed with a magic spell that slowly eats away at his life force. In order to protect him from a blackguard who might try to finish the job, his attendants stole him away from the palace in the dead of night. He was declared officially dead three years ago.

He has been hiding away in the elda village-- my village-- ever since then.

[. . .]

[Will shifts, before pulling what seems to be a pocket mirror out of his coat]

He's currently asleep, and he won't wake up until the curse is lifted. That is. . . my true mission.

To life his curse, and pave the way for him to reclaim the throne once he is awake again.

[hgeegh]

[Gaze falling on the pocket mirror, Sanji's brow pinches. The prince's predicament reminds him of the children mentioned by Kat. Of the sixteen people in the house, a good number seem to be here for another's sake, so they really have no choice but to win this.]

Twelve years is a long time . . . Is he gonna be all right once he wakes back up?

[willandaway]

[Will glances down at his mirror. . . and smiles, features oh-so fond (but not the same kind of fondness her shows Anna, not at all), before he lifts it to show Sanji. instead of his reflection, he'll see the image of a young man in white hair, dressed in a white tunic and black trousers, laid out on a table, fast asleep]

[he is surrounded by glowing purple thorns]

Yes. He will be.

[his grip on the mirror tightens]

Once the curse is broken. . . everything will be okay.

[is what he keeps telling himself]

[hgeegh]

[Sanji narrows his eyes at the image in the mirror. That does look cursed.

Just as Will's faith is awfully optimistic. The prince is going to have to catch up on all those missing years, to say nothing of the public's response to his sudden reemergence. Having said that, Sanji can't begrudge Will for having onto that belief as he straightens. It's important to believe, and he himself is a foolish dreamer besides.]

Then we'd better win and get that wish. Think that prince of yours will be hungry when he wakes up?

[willandaway]

[yeah. . . Will is at least not naive enough to believe that everything will be solved in an instant once the Prince awakes. but he believes enough in his best friend to trust that he'd be able to win over the public's favor just by being. . . himself]

[with a shake of his head, Will tucks the mirror away again]

I don't plan on using the wish to save him. I already know how to do that.

[soft, but firm. . . and then a more normal tone in response to the question]

And probably. Are you offering to make him something delicious?

[hgeegh]

[He nods. That's even better, then. Will just has to focus on publicity, for which he has Anna.

At the question, Sanji cracks a wry grin.]

What, you're not going to make him something yourself? How about that redgrass-roasted bidou?

[willandaway]

[oh! he looks surprised at that, before he laughs]

That's a good idea, actually. . . I'm sure he'd love Fabienne's signature dish as much as I do.

[hgeegh]

Right? You can share all the recipes you've gathered on your travels. If they're from you, there'll be no better meal for him.

[willandaway]

[OH. . . THAT'S SO SWEET. . . Will can't help the way his cheeks turn a light pink at the idea. making a meal for the Prince. . . ///]

We'd have to celebrate his return with a lavish feast. [so. . .!] I don't know if a dish with humble roots is really fancy enough for a Prince.

But I don't think that'd matter to him.

[not based on what he knows of the guy. royalty in bloodline, but commoner in actions and beliefs]

[hgeegh]

Of course it won't.

[Especially not for a prince with a friend like Will.]

It doesn't matter what kind of blood runs through your veins. Food is food. Without it, you're done for.

[willandaway]

Nobody can argue with that, can they?

[least of all the Prince, who probably has not eaten a warm meal in. . . years?? many years!!]