Hall of Doors: Ace, Riley, Lesley, Toby and Amiel:"Very impressive, Ace." Riley clapped her hands and grinned. "Those bunny guards will have a hard time catching up, their stubby legs don't look ideal for this sort of thing." She wondered how they did much guarding, they looked too cute to be threatening. Really, any thief or criminal with a bit of experience beneath their belt could easily scoop a bunny guard into their arms and chuck it far, far away. The queen needed better security. "That way, huh? Let's hope the queen doesn't have a man-eating guard plant."
"Aah, so these are your friends, Ms. LaBelle? They're quite lovely as well." Amiel gave them both a gentlemanly bow. "Haha do not fret, ladies. As far as I know, the queen does not keep any sort of carnivorous plant life. However, if perchance dangers arise, I'll assure you. I know my way around a sword and shall not let a single hair on your heads be harmed. 'Tis my word as a gentleman."
Riley jerked her head in the voice's direction. For a moment, she wondered who the pretty lady with pink hair was, and then he spoke and she realized that it wasn't a woman but Lesley. "Oh gosh! Lesley, you're rocking that dress." She elbowed Ace in the ribs and spent a moment gushing. Oooh, Lesley looked more ladylike than some of the queen's guests, it managed to make Riley a tad jealous but she laughed at the thought. "Thanks Les, and I see you've managed to nab yourself a date." Riley's expression turned mischievous. "He's a looker isn't he, Ace?"
"My, my, if anyone's stunning tonight, it's Ms. LaBelle and you humans." Amiel laughed heartily at the compliment, but waved it off.
Riley nodded before putting on a serious expression. "Lesles is definitely a delicate flower, so you, sir! You better take care of our friend or Ace and I," she was trying hard to look intimidating. "We'll kick the crap out of you."
Amiel was turning red with laughter, "you definitely have caring friends, Ms. LaBelle, I'm rather envious." The young nobody fidgeted with his collar before he noticed a young human several tables away. He was by himself and consuming unhealthy amounts of sugar. "Hmm, isn't he one of your friends? Perhaps he'd like to join us on this tour of the castle? We'll be seeing some fantastical sights."
"Huh? Oh, that's Toby. He's one of the new humans." It would definitely be a chance to get to know their new companion more. "Hey Toby!" The girl waved an arm in the air then grinned. "You should join us, we're going on a tour." Riley didn't even wait for him to respond and as soon as she was in arms-length, she grabbed the poor boy by his sleeve and charged forward. "Amiel, we're all set."
"Perfect, though you might want to let go of the poor lad." Riley did as suggested and he began walking down the hallway. "Now, if you'll follow me, I can give you all the grand tour." His eyes flitted towards Lesley and he gave the pink-haired human a rather flirtatious wink. "Perhaps when this is all over, we can watch the stars on the rooftop. I'll grab a bottle of the finest champagne and it'll be marvelous." He held out his hand then began leading them towards a hall of colorful doors.
"Dang, the queen's castle is bigger on the inside." Riley peered at all the doors.
There were old wooden doors that smelled of moss and rain. There were blue doors, red doors, and doors that looked like portals to different realms. Some doors were big, some were small and others were made of mirrors. One door, even had a magical blue glow.
"These doors lead to different places within the castle." Their guide strode confidently towards a cold steel door. "For example," Amiel wrapped his fingers around the doorknob and pulled. Slowly, the door opened with a creak and inside it revealed a room covered in snow. "This door leads to the snow room. Usually, you can tell the theme of the destination depending on how the door looks, so what shall it be?" A playful smile tugged on the corners of his lips, "the choice is all yours, my friends, and the possibilities are endless."
Dance Floor: Ran, Jasper, Inadi, Harper, Leila, Brandy, Songbird, Cello, and AnnaSlow Dance Time 8D"And now, ladies, gentlemen, cheesecakes and apple biscuits. It's time for couples to hit the dance floor!" The Jellyfishes went from a cool and relaxing blue to a more passionate red, and suddenly, the music went from lively violins and drums to a soothing piano solo. "Party goers, you better find that special man or lady! In a few moments, we'll be starting our dance competition, and the lucky couple that knocks our socks off will win 5,000 stars and five barrels of Mr. Cuddle's strawberry tarts!"
"Do you hear that, sweetie?" Anna leaned in so she could rest her chin on Ran's shoulder. "We should join the competition, don't you think so?" He struggled a little to learn the steps, but watching the man flounder around as he tried to dance was just so
adorable.It was clear that he didn't want to mess up, but to be honest, she wouldn't mind if he did. Seeing him apologize and get all flustered would definitely be a sight to behold. Hmm, maybe he was too suave and cool to stutter and blush, maybe he was the sort of man that would apologize coolly. Aah, she was dying to find out. "You're not the best dancer here, darling, but you're not half bad. Niran, was it? We might actually stand a chance." She whispered the last part, her breath warm against his neck. "So what do you say? Will you be my partner?"
"Hey Anna," Cello stood by the pair with an amused expression. "Sorry to interrupt such an intimate moment, but could I borrow the human?"
Anna scowled at the fellow nobody. Oh how he had broken her heart! That wretched five-timer! "I'm sorry, I never knew you were into men, Cello." She looked absolutely furious. "This human is my dance partner, and I suggest you find your own."
"Yipes, yipes, hell hath no fury like a woman scorned," he raised both his hands then backed away. "Celery! Good luck human." Damn, Martini had been pretty upset for the past few days, so he was hoping he could find some of the humans to help cheer her up. Cello looked around the room, that pink-haired human was her favorite, right? It was a shame he couldn't find the boy. Errrr, he was a guy, right?
Oh well, his eyes landed on a hideous yellow suit and he laughed. This was the next best thing.
"Oiiii, lovebirds." He waved at both Inadi and Jasper then placed one hand on each of their shoulders. "Would you two mind doing me a little favor? I can't find that Lesley person and Martini's been really down in the dumps lately." He heard the young man call the girl exotic and his serious expression changed. His lips quirked up into a knowing smile. "Oh, I see what's going on." He placed a firm hand on Inadi's shoulder. "Sorry to interrupt your date humans. Were you guys going to slow dance, cuz, y'know, I won't interrupt." Cello was grinning from ear to ear now. "But yeah, I really, really need your help." He nodded at the two of them, "I'll ask your other friends to pitch in too...er, like her!" His eyes landed on Leila and before they knew it, he was scrambling towards one of the buffet tables.
Cello grabbed as much plates as he could and practically dumped them into Leila's arms. "Songbird and Brandy will go with ya, right guys?" He didn't even wait for a reply. "You'll find Martini's room at the end of the west hall." The Nobody was now in front of Jasper and Inadi, shoving all sorts of desserts and meals into their arms. "Make sure she eats okay? She's lost her color and that really isn't good. Hey if you hurry," he leaned in and laughed. "You two might still be able to join the dance competition." He saw Harper walking away and was about to call out to the boy, but before he could say anything, the human left through one of the doors.
Oh well, the human was looking irritated and gloomy, so maybe some time alone would help the kid cool his head.