With all the new knowledge about the competition fresh in your mind, you mull it over a bit. *if (background = "guard") Sure, you've been in the Guard for years, but being on the other side of things would be vastly different than protecting the Royals. You, with just a basic idea about how court politics works, will be competing with people who are about your knowledge level or even higher. You can dance to a degree, but nothing you’re sure the Royals are familiar with. However you aren’t totally alone though. “Oh, I have one more question. Can my roommate come with me?” You ask. “Oh definitely,” Ross says. “All contestants are allowed one guest for the competition. For morale boosts, help during challenges, all of that.” "Well, no so much allowed as…required. So it's your roommate, or we provide somebody for you," Ryr corrects. You glance over at $!{roommate_name} who gives you a thumbs up and a huge smile. Do you want your roommate to come with you to Dia? *fake_choice #Yes! I could use all the support I can get. *set roommate %+10 *set morale %+5 #Yes! This competition is a great way to get closer to ${roommate_him_her}. *set roommate %+10 #Sure, I don't mind $!{roommate_name} tagging along...it's me who doesn't want to take part in this! *set roommate %+5 #No, but having ${roommate_him_her} with me is better than being alone. *set roommate %+5 #No, I wish ${roommate_he_she} could stay here, but whatever. *set roommate %-10 *set rude +1 #No. I don't even want to go, much less want my roommate to! *set roommate %-10 “Alright. I’ll bring $!{roommate_name} then,” you say and you can tell that it takes all of ${roommate_his_her} power to not squeal with delight. Probably a dream come true for your royal obsessed roommate. Now you’ll have $!{roommate_name} and all of ${roommate_his_her} royal expertise and help, which you know will definitely come in handy. *page_break *if (family_relationship = "good") You’ll even have your family cheering you on, since you and your face will be blasted everywhere once the competition begins. “So, $!{player_first_name}, are you in?” The question comes from $!{roommate_name} and Ross and Ryr look at you expectantly. There seems to be no way of getting out of this, at least initially, but that doesn’t mean that you have to be happy or sad about it. What do you tell the two guards and your roommate? *fake_choice #“Hell yeah!” I’m excited to compete and I’ve been dying to leave my job anyway. Ross and Ryr grin and high-five each other. “Alright, $!{player_first_name}!” Ross exclaims. “That’s the spirit.” Ryr pulls out a tablet and starts tapping away on it, likely sending off messages to some other people. As he continues tapping, your phone starts to buzz. “Just sent you an itinerary. You have to be in Dia by the end of the week. The earlier the better though,” Ryr says. You open up the email, looking at all the details. There’s an address for a hotel, as well as local places to eat at and a list of names with various times next to them towards the bottom. “Some people are going to have to travel longer to get to Dia, so we’re putting the people that are closer to the capitol in a hotel for now,” Ross explains. “You’ll have a food and shopping allowance, but where most people’s itinerary stops, yours continues. See those names?” You look down at your phone again, paying closer attention to the names and times. [i] Meeting with Lyon and the Development Team - 13:00 until 14:00 [/i] [i] Meeting with Rumi, the Royal Dresser - 14:30 until 15:00 [/i] [i] Meeting with the Royal Family - 15:00 until 17:00 [/i] *page_break “These are a lot of people,” You say, eyes wide. “Yes,” Ryr says. “Half of the Court is buzzing about you, $!{player_first_name}." Ross nods with a smile, attention taken away when his watch starts buzzing. “Alright Ryr, we gotta go. We’ll be late for our next stop if we don’t hurry.” Ryr sighs and puts his tablet away, looking at you one more time as Ross heads towards the front door of your apartment. “Don’t worry, $!{player_first_name}. Just be yourself and you’ll be fine. See you soon," Ryr says, following after his brother. “Bye $!{player_first_name}! Can’t wait to see you in Court!” Ross exclaims. Ryr nods to you as a goodbye before shutting the door. For once, it’s completely silent in your apartment as you really try and come to terms with everything. Even $!{roommate_name} has none of ${roommate_his_her} usual quips. Finally, ${roommate_he_she} does speak. “Don’t worry, $!{player_first_name}. I’ll help you pack and everything! I can’t believe this is all happening because of a bet, though.” $!{roommate_name} sheepishly rubs a hand through ${roommate_his_her} hair. “Hope you don’t hate me too much for it.” “Well, I’ve been wanting a reason to leave my job for weeks and this gave me an out," you say. "Now, how about ordering that pizza?” $!{roommate_name} grins back and leans back on your couch, stretching out ${roommate_his_her} legs. “Yep. Our usual.” *page_break *goto_scene chp2_fairyintro #“Yeah, I’m in. For now.” There might not be a way out of this competition at the moment, but I’ll be looking for the first opportunity to get out once I get there. Ryr chuckles and nods in your direction. “Hey, as long as you say you’re in, that’s fine with me.” Ross starts to tap away on his phone and soon enough, your own phone is buzzing. “Check out the itinerary I just sent you.” You oblige, quickly scanning through the whole email before a list of names and times catches your eyes. [i] Meeting with Lyon and the Development Team - 13:00 until 14:00 [/i] [i] Meeting with Rumi, the Royal Dresser - 14:30 until 15:00 [/i] [i] Meeting with the Royal Family - 15:00 until 17:00 [/i] You chuckle a bit in disbelief, looking up from your phone at Ross and Ryr. Those were a lot of people to meet an re-meet. “Lovely,” you murmur. *page_break After Ryr and Ross explain a bit more about what to do once you get to Dia, they say goodbye to the two of you. Once they're gone, you find yourself able to breathe again. “Wow, $!{player_first_name}. I swear, had I known that signing up for a dating website would’ve turned into all of this, I would’ve made you sign up for something else,” $!{roommate_name} says, messing around with ${roommate_his_her} phone. You shrug, getting off of the couch and making sure the front door was locked before heading over to the kitchen drawer that held all the brochures from local restaurants. “The first chance I get, I’m going to try and get out,” you say, finding the brochure for your favorite pizza place. “Oh c’mon, $!{player_first_name}, you might have fun!” $!{roommate_name} exclaims. “If you don’t, at least you’re in what looks like the nicest hotel in Dia, plus you don’t have to pay for anything for a few weeks. Might as well enjoy that, right?” You nod. While you’re not over the moon about being invited into the competition, you’ll definitely enjoy the perks of it for now. *page_break *goto_scene chp2_fairyintro #“Yeah. Nervously in, but yeah, I’m in.” I’m already calculating the number of things that could potentially go wrong, but we’ll see what happens. “$!{player_first_name}, you have nothing to worry about. Seriously,” Ross tries to assure. “Take a look at this email.” You wait a moment before hearing your cell phone’s notification sound go off. After grabbing it, you head to your email app and read the email from the top. *page_break [i] Welcome to The Odessa Dating Games, $!{player_first_name}! We are thrilled to have you in the competition. [/i] [i] You’ll be staying in Cape Odessa, Dia’s premier hotel just minutes away from the Palace. You and your guest will have amazing amenities at your fingertips and will want for nothing the entire time you are in the competition. [/i] [i] As some of the contestants have days and even weeks of travel ahead to reach Dia, you’ll be stationed here, getting ready to meet the contestants and getting to know the capital city. Again, in your case, $!{player_first_name}. [/i] [i] For now, please let us know if you need any help moving or if we can be of any other assistance to you and your guest. [/i] [i] Godspeed, [/i] [i] The Royal Family [/i] *page_break “Oh wow,” you say, about to exit out of your mail app when you notice a schedule after the letter. “Yeah, so, you’ll be meeting with various people when you get settled in Dia. Some people in charge of the website, people to measure you-” “Wait!” $!{roommate_name} exclaims, interrupting Ryr who was in the middle of explaining the schedule to you. “So $!{player_first_name} is going to talk basically all of-" “Court? Yes, that’s right,” Ross interrupts, much to your roommate’s dismay. Ryr smirks a bit, likely seeing it as comeuppance for being interrupted earlier. “Hey, $!{player_first_name}, you’ll be alright. Everything will be great!” $!{roommate_name} exclaims, wrapping an arm around your shoulders. “Yeah, your roommate has the right idea, $!{player_first_name}. We have to go, but just let us know if you need anything else, right?” Ross says and you nod with a bit of a smile. “See you soon!” Ryr adds before he and his brother leave. There’s a period of silence after the boys leave. Eventually, your roommate gets off of the couch and rummages around in a nearby drawer where the two of you kept menus from local food places. “Okay, $!{player_first_name}, I feel really bad about all of this. I swear, I’ll help you out as much as I can. I’ll even buy dinner tonight. God, I’m excited for you but mad at the Crown but-” “It’s fine, $!{roommate_name},” you chuckle, interrupting your roommate’s rambling. “Look, I’ll see how this whole thing goes. My nerves are out of this world, but everything will be fine. Hopefully.” You turn around on the couch and watch as your roommate flips through a brochure for a sandwich shop. “Make my apology dinner a large pizza though,” you say, with a smirk as $!{roommate_name} quickly drops the sandwich menu and picks up the pizza shop one instead. *page_break *goto_scene chp2_fairyintro #I definitely don't want to go, but what choice do I have? I just shrug in Ross and Ryr's direction. "Hm, well. Guess that's a yes," Ross says with a shrug. "It's not a no, so works for me." Ryr, to your surprise, smirks. "Well, Brother, it is a no, but not enough of a no to fight what will happen anyway," Ryr translates, perfectly, you might add. "Oh! Alright then," Ross replies, pulling out his phone from his back pocket. All of a sudden, your own begins to buzz. "Now in your inbox…a letter!" He continues with a playful bow. "If you could be so kind as to read it!" *page_break [i] Welcome to The Odessa Dating Games, $!{player_first_name}! We are thrilled to have you in the competition. [/i] [i] You’ll be staying in Cape Odessa, Dia’s premier hotel just minutes away from the Palace. You and your guest will have amazing amenities at your fingertips and will want for nothing the entire time you are in the competition. [/i] [i] As some of the contestants have days and even weeks of travel ahead to reach Dia, you’ll be stationed here, getting ready to meet the contestants and getting to know the capital city. Again, in your case, $!{player_first_name}. [/i] [i] For now, please let us know if you need any help moving or if we can be of any other assistance to you and your guest. [/i] [i] Godspeed, [/i] [i] The Royal Family [/i] *page_break "Done," you say and the two brothers nod. "Good. Make sure you also look over the attached schedule. You'll be meeting with the Royal Family, Rumi, the Royal Dressser and Lyon, the individual behind your dating profile in the Games. See you later!" In the blink of an eye, both Ross and Ryr are gone. You smile a bit to yourself, glad to see your old Guard mates again, before it slowly drops. Sure, everything was easy and calm now, but there was no telling what the next weeks and months would hold. “Okay, $!{player_first_name}, I feel really bad about all of this!" You turn around to see $!{roommate_name} on ${roommate_his_her} knees in front of you. "Look, I'll help you out as much as I can. I’ll even buy dinner tonight. God, I’m excited for you but mad at the Crown but-” “Get up, $!{roommate_name},” you sigh, trying to keep a smile off of your face, but you just couldn't manage it. It reminded you of being in the Guard too much to take seriously. "I don't want to go, but there's no point in whining about it too much, especially to you, since I know you'd kill to be in my position right now." $!{roommate_name} gets up with seemingly superhuman speed and nods. "Right. Of course. Well, as long as you're truly not mad…" $!{roommate_name} stretches ${roommate_his_her} legs before making ${roommate_his_her} way over to the kitchen to look through your drawer of pamphlets, boasting dishes from every cuisine known to man. "Lets go with a large pizza," you suggest, knowing the two of you could get a couple of meals out of it at least. "On it. I'll get our usual," $!{roommate_name} replies with a grin before setting to work ordering the meal. *page_break *goto_scene chp2_fairyintro #“No. Ha! Just kidding, I’ll go.” What do I have to lose? “No thanks,” you say, crossing your arms and staring at a far wall in your apartment. It’s silent for a long while, but Ryr’s nervous laughter eventually breaks the silence. “Ha. You’re kidding, right, $!{player_first_name}? Please tell us you’re kidding,” he says, running a hand through his hair. “I already have an email addressed to you, instructions for you upon arrival and…” You begin to laugh and face the two brothers again, who seemed as if they were bordering on hysterics. “Yes, totally kidding. I’m going. I’m going!" Ross and Ryr visibly relax. *if (background = "guard") "Sheesh, I thought working together for years and years would've clued you into when I was joking!” "I…well…" Ryr stammers out, attempting to recover. Ross recovers much quicker and takes over the briefing. “You'll get an email in a second," Ross begins. "It’s just formalities, really. Where you’ll be staying upon arrival, who you’re meeting with, things like that." Sure enough, an email does make its way into your inbox. *if (background = "guard") "Many of these people and places you've been before, but might have changed since you left." You open it as your roommate reads the email over your shoulder simultaneously. $!{roommate_he_she} gasps once ${roommate_he_she} sees the schedule. “You’re meeting the who’s who of royalty, $!{player_first_name}. Wow, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t jealous,” $!{roommate_name} says. You chuckle and put your phone away for now. You likely wouldn’t be leaving for days and you tell Ross and Ryr this, who understand. “Gotcha, $!{player_first_name}. Whenever you’re ready to leave, just shoot us an email so you don’t suddenly appear in Dia with no guidance," Ross says with a wide grin. *if (background = "guard") Ryr nods. "We know you know the city like the back of your hand, but still." “For now, we’ll leave and let you enjoy the last few days of freedom. See you!" Ross exclaims. Once the brothers leave, you turn to $!{roommate_name}, who is busy tapping away on ${roommate_his_her} phone. “Sheesh $!{player_first_name}, there’s so much you have to do before we leave. You have to pack, practice your flirting…" You groan, rubbing at your temples while your roommate rattles on. "Maybe after dinner?" You suggest, successfully interrupting your roommates reverie. *page_break *goto_scene chp2_fairyintro