Earlier that day, Virginia and Selene had come up with a brilliant idea to skip school. Marina was up for it, and I, of course had to agree as well. So, par for Ferris Bueller, we called in sick and took off for the park. Why the park? Well, Marina is a little weird about these things—hates all modern, faddish, that involves multiple miscreants (i.e., hormone-driven teenagers) such as malls, movie theaters, concerts, school…so we hang out at this park near all of us, removed enough to be exotic, close enough to be home for dinner. Looks like something right out of Lothlorien if you ask me. Oh yeah, did I mention we're all LOTR freaks? Well, some are hardcore fans, others just well, love Orli.

But I was on track to describe that day we decided to gallop off into the horizon in a flurry of tardy notices and detention slips.

So yes, it was all pure coincidence, exam week was coming up, and all extra curricular activities were cancelled, which is the only reason we show up for classes anyways. That morning, Selene and Marina walked toward those wrought iron gates shuffling their feet with impending dread. I had found my way to Virginia's homeroom and we had commenced to singing Ataris songs at the top of our lungs. Yes, it did scare a few people away, but honestly, is there anything better to do at 7:30 in the morning? Marina and Selene eventually trudged in, looking for all the world like they had braved a blizzard (unlikely in our land of Mickey Mouse)—hunched over, arms folded across their chests, highly disheveled (actually, Marina was the only disheveled looking one, seeing as she tends to forget to brush her hair.)

"Good Morning, Sunshine!" Virginia chirped to our cheerful amigas.

"Merry, what right do you have to be merry? You're poor enough." Uhoh. Bad sign if Selene quotes you a response this early in the morning. Marina simply continued munching her granola bar as Sel moaned about being in school. Virginia and I looked at each other as Selene continued her tirade that finished with something along the lines of "I wish I was a vampire." I raised my eyebrows at this, but Virginia mouthed the works 'underworld obsession' and I understood. Marina had been methodically chewing the entire time, and now added her two cents.

"it's Friday the 13th, it's over cast, warm, and valentine's day is tomorrow—why are we at school?" good point. I mentioned Marina hates being indoors, right? It has something to do with the fact that she is obsessive about rowing, or that blue mutant teddy bears are taking over the world.

Virginia had just seen Ferris Bueller's Day Off and was inspired… "we could skip…" she mused.

"Good, sounds like a plan, let's leave." Selene had her backpack on and was halfway out the door with Marina following suite. I shrugged noncommittally and we headed out the door.

Upon leaving the foreboding gates of our prison Marina whipped out her cell phone and was calmly explaining the situation to her mother, who empathized and said she would call us in sick provided we worked in the shop for two hours.

So we walked off, Selene practically skipping with joy as we went into the local doughnut shop, "sprinkles! Must get the ones with sprinkles!" Marina loudly proclaimed. We took the doughnuts with us to Marina's mom's shop. We walked to the quaint "downtown" area of College Park, our home city. The wind was rustling in the trees, a few leaved blowing here and there along with the occasional Big Mac wrapper. The slate gray sky matched the cold concrete and gave the world a slightly metallic feel, almost as if it was afraid to show color. My bright red boots stuck out like a sore thumb in this hematite world. I looked back and saw Selene and Marina demonically plotting something, gesturing to the doughnut bag Virginia was carrying. Marina caught my eye and winked, they were plotting hostile takeover of the breakfast (well, second breakfast.) knowing that if I helped, I could get an equal split of the plunder I met her eye with an imperceptible not. With that, I walked up to Virginia who was staring off into the sky talking to herself.

"I want to change the world…" and launched into the Japanese/anime rap that I know would bother Virginia enough to distract her.

"AAAAHHHH! Stop that!" Virginia yelled, startled out of her mind. Behind me, Selene started to count under her breath, and on three, they ran past on either side of Virginia, Marina plucking the bag from Virginia's outstretched and. A bewildered Ginny and I found them a block later, doubled over laughing between bites. Selene had powdered sugar on her nose, and Marina had some chocolate on her chin.

"Yummm…" Selene gave a jelly smile as Virginia lectured us on the fact that we were all in conspiracy against her…I was offered an apologetic smile from Leenie and a warm glaze doughnut—heaven. Midway through her tirade about our attention spans of three year olds, Virginia looked expectantly at Selene—"Leenie?" and she begrudgingly handed over a crueler.

"Muchas gracias."

And so we continued to walk the streets, passing cottage shops and cute storefronts, streets paved in cobblestone and bustling with people picking up last minute gifts. We stopped in front of the brightest shop of them all. Marmee's Attic. Marina's mom's shop cut a pretty picture: bright white paint with a crisp blue trim, flow pots in the front and an attractive window display of exotic wares; urns, lamps and Bangladeshi saris. The shop itself was an eclectic mix of new and antique, bright and drab, unique and daily needs all wrapped up in the perfume of incense and old books. We've all been coming there for years, as a playplace, for service hours, as a job, and a means of escape into the fantasy world of pirate treasures and gypsy caravans.

"Howdy Mom," Marina called out as we dropped sweatshirts, books, and backpacks onto a warn recliner. Mr. Rimiel came out from her office rubbing her back with one hand and clutching a coffee cup in the other.

"Hello girls," she yawned, "we just got a new shipment from that museum that recently closed—some jewelry, paintings, journals. The caretaker was a bit scatterbrained though, so everything is packed rather haphazardly, I need you to take inventory for me.

We traipsed to the storage room and flipped on the light, a harsh fluorescent glare quickly filled the room as us four dispersed to various corners.

"Here's the list of possessions left to the Attic," Marina said, holding up a few photocopied sheets of paper, "why don't we just start unpacking and check off items as we find them?"

"Sounds like a plan…ready, break!" Selene clapped her hands and grunted as we all shot her a quizzical look:what?" she shrugged, "football teams do it all the time."

So we set to unwrapping bundles, systematically marking things off with comments of 'cool' or 'dude! I want one!' Virginia and I started singing "you spin me right round…baby right round…baby right round…like a record, baby...right round…"

"Houston, we've found the missing Von Trapp children," Rina quipped.

Lunchtime rolled around and found us otherwise occupied, Selene was reading some dusty novel and Virginia waltzed with an invisible partner , she was garbed in an array of gauzy fabrics and had an old fashioned crown on her head. Marina whiled toward me, tricorn hat perched precariously on her head, eye patch on and brandishing a cutlass, she tossed me a second and with a "let's see what yer made of landlubber," began to dual. Happily, with the clang of swards, Ginny's background hum and Marmee's phonograph we passed a few minutes before Marina abruptly stopped.

"yeesh Rina, I was two seconds away from disemboweling you"

"If only I had a penis to worry about."

"Shuddup guys…it's the last box" Leenie whispered, revering it as if it was sacred.

"aww…come on, open it, I'm hungry!" Virginia said, and Marina quickly pulled out the packing paper. We checked off the items and at the bottom there was a beautiful necklace. A teardrop shaped, amber colored stone hung on a liquid chain made of mithril. "stop it!" I thought to myself, "this is simply silver, not…"

"Hey Marina! You forgot this!" I tossed it to her.

"it's just an old watch, Brit," my face must have reflected some disbelief because I knew I had seen a necklace.

"try and fix it if you want," she tossed it back, "it's not on the inventory." With that, we all stretched and went on our merry way.

"I want hot dogs."

"Cookies."

"A smoothie."

"Hot dogs, cookies, and smoothie!"
So we headed outside, to the now sunny Orlando day and down to the smoothie shop—Planet Smoothie—home of the Mr. Mongo, my personal favorite. Selene grabbed a Clif bar and Virginia ordered a PbandJ smoothie. Marina just kinda bounced around in the back for a second before bursting out "S'Mores!" the guy behind the counter gave her a quizzical look as she began to describe what she wanted in her smoothie: granola, vanilla, chocolate. Afterward she tasted it and declared the concoction delectable as we walked toward the hotdog stand in the park.

"Pickles, ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, relish," Virginia said.

"Relish and pickles are the same thing," Selene calmly stated. What ensure was a long "no they're not! Yes they are! battle."

Marina watched in amused as she finished her drink and tossed it in the trashcan. "Ketchup, por favor." And she began eating the foot long frank, smirking at Leenie who had lost the shoutfest and was now sulking.

"Chocolate syrup please…" I checked his nametag, "Ed."

"yeh concoctions get crazier every week lass," he said in an Irish burr, "wait til something truly exotic happens and then you'll take everything plain jane."

"or end up criminally insane, " Selene added, "Hey! That rhymes!" And so we talked along the foliage dense path, ignoring the afternoon joggers, mothers pushing baby carriages, and inevitably, our topic led to LOTR.

"Orlando Bloom is so freakin' hot!"

"ehh….he seems like a pansy," that was Marina, "the Legolas of the books is pretty cool though."

"I still can't believe they cut Tom out of the movies…"

we went on, finishing our lunch and bantering back and forth until we came to the wide open field where some guys were playing soccer. Carefully skirting their game, we walked to the lakefront's edge. Everything was serene—sun dancing picturesquely on the water as a symphony of crickets chirped.

I was standing there, toes in the water, when a round of laughter and a cry of "look out!" was heard, I began to fall forward as I felt a searing pain in my back. The water had ripples in it and looked like a reflection of broken glass.