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Letting Barth be in charge of anything that required lifting was maybe not the best plan. Sandcastles were an interesting result of certain kinds of physics. He had some relatives that were Sand demons. The soggy, tense bond of broken rocks, shells, and water created an ooze not dissimilar to mud.

He just wasn't keen on hauling it.

"Err, yes, just sort of...pile it up a bit, I suppose. This starfish is friendly-looking, isn't he? It's a shame they don't supply hammocks."

Barth looked out into the crowd relaxing and chatting under the tent. Siddie was a few lengths down the beach. If her parents were in the crowd, he should err, probably be on his best behavior, although...he looked at Christof. They probably wouldn't be too impressed at the group's choice of leader.

He stifled a smile.

"Barty!" a smiling green face decorated in an abundance of ruffles and an oversized sunhat waved enthusiastically from the crowd.

"M...mum?" he waved timidly back, and muttered to his teammates, "...Turned into sort of an event, hasn't it?" It wasn't just friends and family out there. The mayor was here. News crews. And if his mum came over... He felt conscious of the scars puckering his torso, and fumbled with the buttons of his cotton shirt. If she saw them...he couldn't let her see them.

Calder was dressed in nothing but a pair of shorts and a few flowers he had found at the beach before the event. It was nice to be outside, but the sun bothered him a bit. The smell of water was in the air, but not one he was familiar with. Too much salt. Still, when it came to challenges, sand castles, a practice he never really tried, was at least safe in appearance. No running into buildings with strange rooms or going on ships. Just solid earth and spectators who wouldn't let anything bad happen to them.

His eyes looked at the crowd with a sense of safety. Barth was fumbling around him, and he noticed the green woman waving at him. "She seems excited." He teased, and then noticed Christof being rather quiet (well, more quiet than someone with a closed mouth could be) and looking nervously at the crowd.

Following his gaze, he tensed. Barth and Calder both knew the dark figure of Dr. Fell and he tried to offer an assuring smile to Christof - but something caught his own eye.

Well, somethings. It came as a loud neigh from the crowd, and ears up, he looked over to a couple sitting in the crowd, looking well dressed in a simple dress and tunic top. His smile stretched, and he gave a neigh back in return, tail flicking and brushing sand about. His stomach twisted as his nerves got to him. He had to make them proud.

Then he noticed someone nearby, and his ears dropped and he sank, going still and quiet. Murchadh was here. The starling, beautiful eyes of the kelpie stared directly at him, yet he gave no noise to show he was here. He knew that Calder knew.

Ears down, Calder turned about and started to help with the castle, taking some seaweed and using it to wrap about the sand as a sort of siding. "I didn't know we would have this many people here." He could feel those eyes searing through the back of his head. He made some towers, trying to imitate the castle he saw Dr. Fell and Chrsitof live in - as it was his only mental example of what a castle should look like.

Amrita had actually paid no attention to the crowd whatsoever. In fact, it was very likely she didn't even notice them, despite how loud they were. She was focusing entirely too hard on building a sandcastle, which...she had never done before. Ever. It was a simple enough concept; castle made out of sand. Easier said than done, really. Several towers on her side ended up sad and broken, but the one she was working on now...wasn't doing too badly! Maybe, just maybe she could do this!

It wasn't until she heard a certain word several times did she look up from her work, pushing up her hat to wipe her forehead, dressed in a simple burnt orange one piece that really...was not special in any way whatsoever. "...Event?" She repeated, sounding as perplexed as she looked. Well yes, this was an event. A trial was an event, right? A questioning search to her classmates finally drew her attention towards the crowd, and after she pieced together what was happening and made an understanding 'Oooooh'.

She scanned the crowd herself, but she knew there'd be no one there for her like her team mates had for them. Anyone who was in those stands knew her as a friend or acquaintance only, and that was just fine by her...though there was a tiny pang of jealousy to see so many supportive guardians out there. She didn't know what to say to the more uncomfortable looking groupmates, so she avoided the subject altogether..for now.

"What?" She stared hard at Lizzy AS man chests were brought up, wondering what that had to do with anything. Wait... "...And who is Patrick?" Clearly, she was missing something.

Calder looked to Lizzy, at his own bare chest, at Amrita, back at his chest, and then frowned. "What's wrong with my chest?" He moved his flower necklace, along with a glimmering, silver necklace he was wearing, and touched his chest. "I'm still working out." He grumbled and then continued to work on the castle on his side.

As he patted a wall, he leaned to Barth to whisper. "Barth.." He swallowed and felt his mouth go dry. The sand and sun made him feel as if he was stranded at a desert. "Murchadh is here."

"Yeah. He's near my parents. All black hair. Tartan." He glanced in Murchadh's direction but didn't point. That was just too disrespectful, and instead he hunched a bit as he worked on the castle. It was almost done.

As Barth then reminded them that they could not act like a couple, he sank a little more, his ears practically pressing down, but he nodded. "Yeah. Better not." They had images to uphold after all. Still, while he didn't expect to be holding or hugging or kissing Barth during the event, the fact there was a restriction in place made him frown. Barth, playing his part, mentioned he should go and talk to Siddie.

"Yeah. I'll........I'll be here." He patted the castle in a attempt to show he was very busy, but he only watched as Barth got ready to go. "Take your time." Not that it was needed to be said.

"NothingnothingiswrongCalder," She couldn't help looking when he shifted the flowers away, but then felt like a terrible person, and went back to staring at the side of the sandcastle that she was putting up, "Itsaverynicechest." She muttered awkwardly before looking at Barth when he mentioned Patrick.

"Oh! Uh, right!" She nodded and carefully dug a shallow hole - just large enough for the not-very-large starfish - near the top of the sandcastle, before placing him inside, so that he would have shade. Besides, that would help him keep him nice and moist, right?

[entering]

Walking up to the first sandcastle in his path, Valentino was still muttering to himself. He was thinking of the troubles related to the connective tissues of different species. They all had there little quirks and Valentino would need to poke and prod his subjects to find out all of ways he clue make the subjects twich. It was rewarding work, too bad fish can't catch themselves however. Seeing a few contestants working on the castle, Valentino wandered up to them.

"hello strangers!" Valentino waved. "are you pacing that starfish a dungeon?"

Maybe the starfish could be a new test subject...