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((Lucette - School buses))

Lucette got off the bus, rummaging through her bag looking for her mirror. The bus ride was awfully bumpy, and most definitely messed up her hair. Thankfully she was wearing her 'comfortable clothes', which consisted of a simple white button-up shirt that was rolled up to her elbows, her favorite pair of high-wasted shorts, and her pair of flats (which still needed to be broken in, much to her dismay) so her outfit was alright for the most part. She held up her mirror, angling it in all sorts of different directions and was glad to see that her hair was a-okay.

She smiled in satisfaction, though she realized her lips were looking a bit chapped. Lucette quickly pulled out her lip balm and was applying it liberally to her lips when she noticed a girl in a long red dress bump into another girl, who was dressed quite...interestingly, and Lucette couldn't help but stand there, holding her mirror up to see what was going on, mostly interested in the girl's fashion sense. It was colorful, with the charming mis-matched socks (though Lucette herself would never do something like that), her dark skin with her bleached blonde hair, it was quite fun to look at. Though she was curious as to what the gigantic pink sparkling thing the girl was holding in her hands.

[ zoë whiteflower ] - on the sidewalk, near to the food and craft stands, with her little brother

"Zoe, Zoe, stooop!!" A kid said, pulling on his sisters arm as hard as he could. The girl pursed her lips and frowned at him, taking out her notepad and scribbling a few words on to it. Passing the notebook to him, she looked around, trying to find somewhere she could stand without being pushed around like a doll. What is it, Alto? She had written, her expression seemingly annoyed. They had arrived there on time, as one must always be, and unfortunately, it looked like they should have arrived earlier— by the time they got there, the place was packed. The boy looked up at his sister, and immediately started whining. "I wanna play some games! It's boring here. I'm hungry!" Zoë rolled her eyes, grabbing the notepad again and scribbling a few more  words on it before handing it to him and trying to stand on her tippy-toes. 

Just wait longer. Later we'll go get our faces painted and, just to please you, we'll go apple bobbing. I'm just trying to see if there's any way to get out of this confined space. She had explained. Alto huffed haughtily and nodded. "Fiiine. Just make sure you make time for us to go, okay?" Her thumb and index finger joined as her other three fingers pushed up, signaling that yes, she'd find time. She took the notebook from her brother again, putting it in her bag for safety. Although her brother could understand sign language, she told him she wanted him to improve his reading, as it took him more than a few minutes to read a simple paragraph. He just huffed at her. When did he get such an attitude?

Zoë tried to push through the crowd, but well, it didnt go as planned. She was pushed back, so she tried to slip through another way— and thankfully it worked. She stopped and turned toward Alto, taking out the notebook again and scribbling on it but... Someone in the crowd pushed her arm, making her fling the notepad to the floor. Her eyes went wide, and, turning towards Alto, she started quickly motioning the words, 'Don't let go!' He rolled his eyes and nodded. She grabbed on to him again, ducking down and desperately looking for the notepad— she couldn't loose it! She liked to write in it sometimes! If someone read that...

She continued looking for it, hopeful no one stepped on or looked through it.

(( Jin Ae Lee - Sidewalk, near Food & Craft stands, with her friend Kalina Denisova and her sister ))

Jin Ae Lee blushed as Kalina expressed worry about her, and touched her hand. That's all that matters, right? Jin Ae was glad her hair mostly covered her face so Kalina couldn't see how red her face had gotten. She merely nodded quietly in response, glad Kalina didn't think anything strange of her silences.

Suddenly Kalina was picking up a notebook off the ground. "Hey Jin, doesn't this look like Zoe's handwriting? You don't think she dropped it, do you?" Kalina asked her, and Jin Ae peered over at it. It did look like it was their friend's, so she nodded. "Yeah..."

Jin Ae looked up, staring into the crowd that surged with people. "Zoe...?"

((flora gandy- school buses))

Flora Gandy did not so much step as scooch off the bus of Teufel Town Middle School students, looking back instantly as if she had a thousand regrets for doing so. She had already lost her friends in the crowd, and, not sure if they had wanted to be with her anyway, had not bothered to seek them out again. She had promised the UMA exhibits that she would tell them about the festival when Augustu- Earl Derby had inevitably wheedled the fact of its existence out of her, but she was looking no more forward to it in spite of that. Since making her contract, it had become even more difficult to speak to and be around flesh and blood people. Her habit of anthropomorphizing things, already a distracting crutch before her wish, had become impossible to overcome now the things she knew were actually anthropomorphized. Flora's hands fluttered near her face for a few seconds in the lively din before clutching themselves together against her chest, as if in some kind of fervent prayer or self defense. She had made a promise to enjoy this festival, or to at least be present, and she was sure her father would care what she thought about it too, so she was going to try to have a good time. It was that simple. Still, she needed something to keep her feeling safe, so she dove into her bag and pulled out a flower hairclip, tucking it behind her ear a tad rebelliously. It was jolly and feminine against the decidedly sober and tomboyish sweatervest and dress shorts her father had sent her out in that morning, and she felt a burst of pride in her own initiative that was perhaps undeserved. Feeling somewhat more chipper, she set off to find her friends.

She found that, despite the hairclip, she lost her nerve regarding that particular errand the moment she saw them in the distance, laughing near a candy apple vendor. They didn't seem to notice she had gone, and she felt a great pang of jealousy that wasn't very grown up at all and forced her legs to move her to the side, out of sight. She ended up somewhere near a funnel cake stand and, standing on her tiptoes, waved money at the staff behind it, asking for extra sugar on top. Drowning her sudden sorrows in greasy pastry, she didn't realize until after she'd finished that the powdered sugar had been a bad idea. There was a mess all over her, and with a cry, she fumbled for a napkin, dabbing at her sweatervest and her hands, but it just left white streaks where she wiped it off. Where was the bathroom? Even a drinking fountain?? She walked a ways into the crowd, but was unable to see any landmarks in the press of people. Wishing, not for the first time, that she was more grown up, she cursed her tiny legs, standing on tiptoe to no avail. She finally gave up the quest, and settled on a girl with light blue hair, relenting to the sheer embarrassment of having to ask where the bathroom was because she certainly couldn't walk around like this. She covered her powdery chest with her arms as best she could, and interrupted the girl and her companion with an "Uhm, excuse me--!"

((Catherine Shepard-School Buses))

She could hardly hear anything her mother was saying over the cell phone. Something about the time and making sure not to eat too many sweets. Catherine was feeling safe to assume she was to march back when the festival was over and she was not allowed to spend her allowance on all things sugar. Sadly, mother was not with her, meaning Catherine could break a few of the rules. A quick 'I love you' from her mother, the phone was shut with a snap as purple like eyes gazed at the booths.

There was quite a lot to do but not a lot a lot of time to do it in. Just a few hours to have fun and enjoy the night that was so often shut from them and their youth. It was all very exciting and Catherine relished the idea of staying out after dark. Granted if was with the school, but it was still not an opportunity to pass up. The crowd just outside the bus had her excited as well, the sight of so many other girls and people making her smile involuntarily. Even if her mother and father were busy, she was going to have fun. They had work, she could have fun. Probably bring them back a thing or two as well. Just because they would miss it didn't mean that they might not enjoy some part of it after all.

Getting off the bus and listening to the role call, Catherine gave the 'here ma'am' like the rest of her classmates. The air was thick with anticipation as people milled about, the chime of vendors mixing with the laughter of other children. Eyes looking up rather than forward, she quickly found herself stumbling into [bb]another girl with hair and eyes as yellow as dandelions. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry." She dusted her skirt off before looking at the other girl for any scuff or such. "I should have been looking- Um, I didn't hurt you did I?"

((Lalita - School Buses, with her younger sister))

Kamala kept going on and on about all the things she wanted to do, and all that Lalita could really do was look around and wish there was a map or a guidebook or something. How was she supposed to know the best way to get things done if the only things around her were people as far as the eye could see? They were noisy people too, which made it even more difficult for Lalita to think. So she shut them out, and Kamala too, and tried to think of a way for them to efficiently do whatever it was that they were supposed to do. It was so much easier to focus when she didn't worry too much about other people. Easier still since Kamala was leading her by the hand, so all she had to do was follow and try to plan.

She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn't notice when Kamala stopped suddenly until she bumped into her. "What's wrong?"

Kamala was looking shyly at a girl about Lalita's age, with light blonde hair and a pretty dress that Lalita rather liked. "I'm sorry," Lalita said, frowning at her sister. "Please excuse us." Kamala stood on her tiptoes and whispered something in Lalita's ear. "What?"

Urgently, Kamala repeated herself slightly louder, so she could be heard above the din. "She wants help. But Mommy says we're not supposed to talk to strangers, but I don't want to be mean..."

Lalita raised her eyebrows. Kamala was not known for being particularly obedient, but she was occasionally shy around people she didn't know. "It's okay," she whispered back. "I'll take care of it." It would feel good to do something useful- if she could manage to help with whatever the girl needed help with. Which was a big if.

"I'm sorry," she said again. When she realized that she was repeating herself, she blushed, but pushed herself to continue. "What do you need help with?"

(( Audrey Starfield: Carnival Games -> Sidewalk near Food Stands ))

The balloon snapped with a quick pop! as Audrey's dart hit home. The purple-eyed girl nodded with a satisfied smile as the man working the game scratched his head and shrugged.

Anyone can get lucky, his gamin's eyes seemed to say. Audrey's smile dimmed a few watts and she remembered again that she was just a girl without a voice. Someone like Carly, sure, they'd be able to sink a shot like that no problem a few times in a row. She harbored no illusions about her luck: it was only with her when she really didn't need it.

She strung the prize (a necklace with a small, tin replica of Big Belle hanging from it as a pendant) around her neck and began to fight her way through the crowds again, occasionally checking her cell. Audrey tended not to pick up calls since her voice started to go, preferring to text instead. Still, nothing. What was up with Carly?

She kept walking until she come to a candy apple stand and looked up at the smiling girl behind the counter. A candy apple-- she hadn't had one in ages. It would probably keep her from talking to people if she ate something anyway. Audrey croaked out a few apologies and moved closer to the booth.

"Excuse me! What kinds of apples do you have?" She asked, trailing off a cough she buried in her sleeve.

(( Lucette: Barricaded sidewalk, watching Meilei and Shasta ))

Oh goodness. Oh goodness. Not only was this amusing to watch, but Lucette was comforted by the fact that the blonde girl spoke English much, much worse than herself. She frowned when she realized the girl in the crimson dress noticed she was watching them, snapping her mirror shut as she slipped the mirror and lip balm back into her bag, and slowly turned to face the two, but didn't bother to move any closer.

"You silly Americans.", she said in a heavy French accent, scanning them both up and down. She knew full well the mismatched socks girl was definitely not an American, but she looked so ridiculous she might as well be considered American. She was still very curious about what that sparkling object the girl was holding earlier, but it was gone now, and she didn't quite feel like asking about it. The other girl though, was wearing a rather pretty red dress with lacy accents. Lucette liked the dress very much, but it was something that she would never wear. Though she had to admit, the girl was pretty rude. She was the one that bumped into Mismatched Socks, and yet she didn't apologize.

"You always find a reason to be angry at something, do you not?" Lucette asked Shasta, very, very amused by her anger. But Lucette's eyes couldn't help but wander back to Mismatched Socks every now and then, constantly staring at her outfit. Those socks...