Morning Stress and Activity Time!

There were many yawns heard throughout the room, after the session had reached its end; some loud and droning, others soft and meek. Regardless, everyone was feeling pretty exhausted and was eager to get a good night's rest. Among them was Leni, who claimed to have developed a "monster" of a headache after the session.

"That round was totes intense, you guys" grumbled the teen while she rubbed at her temples, "I haven't pushed my brain that hard since Exam Week at school." Some of Leni's fellow teens sounded off in agreement with her while also offering up many words of praise. Of course, they made certain to extend those same praises unto Lynn Jr.; who (in the opinion of the Game Masters) did relatively well on her first time.

"Thanks...I was a bit worried there for a bit, though" Lynn confessed, "I wasn't sure what Lucy's hex was going to do to my character, but I wasn't ready to find out." Everyone chuckled merrily at this statement, as they went about collecting their things; many other players claiming they took pictures of Lynn's fearful expression during the moment in question. Meanwhile, Lucy was suddenly approached by her fellow Goths; Haiku and Silas (the latter of which caused the young lady to blush slightly.)

"Excellent use of your in-game knowledge, Lucy" murmured the young Goth lad with a smile, "placing a hex upon the dagger and tricking your sister's character into catching it was most ingenious." Despite her Gothic nature, the blush on Lucy's cheeks grew ever so slightly due to the compliment but she did her best to hide it under her hood.

After taking a quick moment to compose herself, Lucy questioned why Haiku had yet to appear within any of the past sessions of their campaign. "Each of our characters has a specific moment within the campaign, young Kenku, where we might make our presence known" explained Haiku in a poetic tone, "have patience." Upon mentioning the "P Word;" not too far away, Lori Loud seemed to have become more tense than she already was.

Among other things, Lori felt that patience was something she was running dangerously low on (outside of her dignity, sanity and self-respect.) But each time these feelings tried to nag at her, the young lady felt something else gnawing away in her mind; something...slightly familiar.

But she had little time to think about that right now. After such a "stressful" night of roleplay, she was ready and willing to go back up to her room and take a nice long rest. As she collected her gear, Lori followed the rest of her family out of the room and made their way up the stairs.

But as she trudged behind her parents, she suddenly heard a voice whispering softly deep inside her mind. "Don't look so down in the dumps there, girly" it said with a coy tone, "you know full well that you had a boatload of fun tonight!" Lori let out a soft gasp of surprise, as if shaken out of a dream but no one seemed to notice.

For a moment, she assumed someone might've been trying to mess with her head; possibly Luan. But when she looked over her shoulder, Lori saw just how tired her sister looked and that idea flew right out the window. The same thing could be said with the rest of her family but after a quick inspection, she saw that each of them were busy with their own things.

Leni was humming soft melodies to the younger sisters, Lincoln was in the middle of a conversation with his guy friends and as for her parents, they were having a discussion of their own with their fellow Game Masters. "Could it be one of my friends messing with me" Lori whispered, "no...Carol and the others aren't like that." Upon mentioning their names, Lori cast a glance over towards Carol and her fellow Gal Pals.

Much to her mild dismay, she saw them chatting idly about the events of their session together. With all the possible suspects dismissed, Lori concluded that she was simply exhausted. "Just...Just focus on going to bed right now, Loud" she thought to herself, "a good night's rest will literally do you a world of good."

(Line Break)

The following morning, Lori awoke with a heavy yawn but felt much more relaxed than last night. She glanced over at the clock and saw that it was 7:45, fifteen minutes before everybody would be back downstairs for breakfast. "Better go and use the bathroom quick" she whispered, "don't want to have to wait literally forever for Leni to finish with her morning prep."

With these thoughts in mind, she carefully eased herself up out of bed and pulled her covers over with the same amount of caution. At one point, Leni gave a light moan and started to stir; causing Lori to freeze where she stood. But almost fifteen seconds later, Leni stopped squirming under her seats and was still once again.

With a soft yet silent sigh of relief, Lori tiptoed her way across the room until she finally reached the bathroom door. She then eased the door shut as slowly as possible until it finally snapped closed, which gave her the opportunity to turn the lock afterwards. "There...I finally get a moment of privacy" Lori said in a hushed yet relieved tone, "now to freshen myself up for the new day."

For the next few moments, the eldest Loud Child seemed to be more "in her element" than she felt since coming to this place with her sisters. Nothing helped put her mind at ease more than self-care and, boy did she feel in need of it today. First, she went about brushing her teeth; hoping to get the taste of some of Flip's "Fairy Ale" and "Cockatrice Wings" from last night out of her mouth.

Then, she gave her teeth a good flossing and after that, she turned on the hot water to help wash away her evening sleep mask. But after splashing some of said water on her face, Lori eased her head up and saw something that made her heart almost skip a beat. When she looked into the mirror, the face she saw was her own...but much different in many ways.

While this Lori had the same hairstyle, it was slightly frizzy and had a tiny red clip on the left side. This Lori also wore wide-framed glasses, braces and sported a reasonable amount of acne on her cheeks. But the most "shocking" thing about this version of Lori was her shirt.

While it still matched the same color as her current blue t-shirt, the one that "Mirror Lori" wore had buttons and a folded up white collar. To say the least, the real Lori was utterly shocked by what she saw but tried her best not to scream too loudly. "Heya there, me" the vision said with a nerdy giggle, "sorry for spookin' ya like that there." There was an uncomfortable silence between both girls for what felt like ages.

But then, the real Lori shook her head and assumed this was simply her mind playing tricks on her. "Yeah, you got a point there" said the vision, "stress and poor sleep would certainly make ya see things, won't it?" With these words, Lori glared at the mirror intently and suddenly realized she was having a conversation with her own reflection.

This was soon met with the same response as before, that Lori's stress was making her see and hear things. "And just what would I have to be stressed about...huh" the young lady prodded, "it's Summer Break, I'm not supposed to be stressed!" The reflection chuckled oddly with a nerdy snort, which made Lori openly cringe, and it told her that the answer was simple.

"For the past couple of weeks, now; you've been living in a total state of denial" Vision Lori said matter-of-factly, "anytime you found yourself liking the D&D game, you let your ego and pride get the best of you!" After taking a moment to collect herself, Lori let out a scoff and proclaimed she wasn't denying anything; insisting that she only stayed for the game because it was a punishment.

"Well...you and your sisters did leave the house without permission when this whole thing started" Vision Lori stated, "besides, you can't really call playing a game with family and friends a "punishment," can you?" Lori only scowled at her reflection, doing her best to ignore it while finishing up her primping. Sadly, no matter how hard the water poured out from the faucet, she could still hear her Vision Self speaking to her.

"Why you gotta be so stubborn about all this, girl" she asked bluntly, "your other sisters, your parents, your little brother...and even your friends are enjoying themselves." There was no denying that yet again, Lori's vision was preaching nothing but truths. Yet despite all of that, Lori still stuck to her guns and claimed she was only playing to satisfy her parents.

"UGH! I literally can't believe I grow up to become this stubborn" Vision Lori groaned, "I seem to recall many other instances where we indulged in some of your family's other 'dorky' interests and still had a good time!" Upon saying this, the reflection proceeded to list off all the so-called "dorky" activities she took part in with her siblings over the years; proclaiming that she never once worried about her pride then. There was the first time she took the Twins to see Blarney the Dinosaur, the time she watched Luan's first routine with Mr. Coconuts, the time she sat down to watch "VoM" with Lucy and Leni, she even found some enjoyment in reading Lincoln's comic books.

Yet even with all these examples presented before her; Lori insisted that this time around, things were "different." "I'm a young adult, now" she grumbled, "as such, I need to be a mature example for my family...which means I can't partake in anything silly like roleplay." As if expecting this sort of statement from herself, Vision Lori pointed out that even the adults were getting into the spirit; her parents especially.

"Again, this is different! My dad is a kid at heart" Lori insisted, "it's literally natural for him to be a part of this stuff." Just as the conversation was about to get a bit heated, there came a sudden knock at the door, startling both Loris. With a nervous stutter, she asked who was outside the door and a voice answered with "is this a trick question?"

If it were anybody else, such a question would have harbored a sarcastic tone. But Lori immediately recognized the somewhat naive innocence of Leni's voice the moment she heard it and sighed with relief. Meanwhile the young lady in question was frantically urging Lori to leave the bathroom.

"I drank too much water during the night and now, I gotta pee" she cried, "please, can I use this bathroom...I won't make it down the hall to Luna's in time!" For a moment or two, Lori did her best to steady herself; the sudden knock spooking her already frazzled mind. When she took a glance at the mirror, she sighed with relief when she saw her normal reflection looking back.

But before Lori had the chance to say or think anything else, Leni was knocking at the door once again; this time with greater force. "OKAY, LENI...I'M COMING OUT" the teen shouted, "just...stop pounding on the door or you'll literally wake everyone on the floor up." After hearing a strained yet soft murmur of agreement from her sister, Lori finally gathered up her things and left the bathroom.

A split-second later, Leni zipped right into the bathroom and shut the door. This gave Lori the chance to collect her thoughts and try and focus on something else...anything else besides the game. But the more she tried, the more her brain kept thinking about what she saw in the mirror earlier.

It was here that Lori recalled something she learned during her summer classes with Miss Rain, the Sensitivity Training instructor and Mr. Wheeler, the Anger Management Counselor. Whenever people tend to struggle with something, their emotions do something that plays tricks with their mind. In this case; it seemed that the more her mind was struggling to resist playing D&D, the more her emotions kept messing with her.

With a sigh, Lori fell face-first atop her bed with a groan and wondered what she did to deserve this stress. "What do you want from me up there" she thought pleadingly, "do you want me to literally sacrifice my pride to make all this stop...is that it?!" No sooner had she thought this, the voice of her "Awkward Self" whispered in the back of her mind saying "what's the worst that could happen?"

As this inquiry softly echoed within Lori's ears, Leni stepped out of the bathroom with a heavy sigh of relief. She dusted her hands slightly along her evening gown, removing whatever was left of the sink water that clung onto them. Afterwards; she finally caught sight of Lori's distressed facial features, cooed softly with worry and proceeded to give her the most comforting hug possible.

"I guess you had a rough night's sleep, huh" she asked, "thinking about what happened during the game?" Under normal circumstances, Lori would've responded with a sort of sarcastic remark like "what was your first clue" or something near similar. But due to her tired state of mind, all she could muster was a simple "mm-hmm."

Then, at that moment, both of their cellphones started humming on the nightstand between their beds. After removing them from their respective recharging chords, both sisters saw that they both had received a Dana; which claimed that the Game Masters had a big surprise waiting for everybody in the game room after breakfast. "A big surprise...EEE! Sounds so exciting" Leni squealed with delight, "what do you think it'll be, Lori?"

Although she was also curious about this "mysterious surprise," Lori proclaimed that all she wanted to think about was waking up and getting some breakfast. "OM GOSH! You're so right...everybody else is probably on their way to the dining room area" Leni cried in shock, "I hope Dad's making those Feywild Eggs with a side of mini-Bangers on the side." As she watched her sister take off down the hall with hunger, Lori stood frozen in place; utterly dumbfounded.

By this point, she had already learned that the Feywild Eggs were nothing but simple Scrambled Eggs mixed with flavored herbs and that the "mini-Bangers" were simply breakfast sausages. But instead of calling them as such, everyone (or rather she herself) was "forced" into calling the dishes by the more "fantastical" nicknames (as presented by a cookbook Grant bestowed upon Lynn a week or so ago.) With all of this in mind, Lori trudged her way down the hall behind Leni; all while wondering why she couldn't sit down for a "normal" meal in this place.

(Line Break)

After breakfast, Lori took a quick trip to the nearest restroom to brush her teeth...as well as clear her head of all the "nerdiness" she was exposed to. After spitting out the foam from her mouth, she looked up at the mirror and saw her own face looking back. But there was a moment (albeit a brief one) where she swore that she saw glasses appear on her reflection.

"Take it easy, Loud...keep it together" Lori murmured while washing her hands and face, "maybe this surprise of Dad's will help take your mind off things." With that thought in mind, she felt a bit calmer than she was earlier that morning and stepped back outside. When she finally rejoined everyone in the "King's Hall" dining room, they were already collecting their plates to be cleared off and stored aside for washing (something Flip was not very excited for.)

While doing her best to not look too conspicuous, Lori walked alongside her friends and smiled as charmingly as possible. "WOW! I can't wait for today" Becky chimed giddily, "I wonder what the Council has in mind for us in the game room?" With as much care she could muster, Lori dryly suggested that today's gathering might feel just the same as all the others over the past month.

That's when they caught sight of Mrs. Bernardo, no longer dressed in her Town Crier get-up but looking more like a theater usher. "Come along, everyone; don't dawdle" she urged slightly, "we mustn't keep the Council waiting!" Upon hearing the drama teacher address her parents' group as "the Gamemasters," Lori started to think her hunch may very well be coming true.

Little did she suspect that what awaited in there would not only take her by surprise but everyone else as well.

(Line Break)

The moment the children all entered the room, they noticed it was almost pitch-black inside. The only lights that they saw were the flame-style lightbulbs that were on the medieval-style sconces on the walls around them. Then, five more turned on slightly at the farthest side of the room...specifically where the Game Masters were seated.

As per usual, they were dressed in their "ceremonial robes" but some like Leni and Lana couldn't help but sense something different from the group. But before anyone had the chance to speak up, Game Master Acheron stood up from his seat. "Good morrow, members of Clan Loud" he said poetically, "I assume you might be wondering what we have in mind for today, correct?"

Whether it be due to their minds still feeling tired or their bellies grumbling for food, the Loud Sisters grumbled softly and gave a simultaneous nod. This seemed to please Acheron apparently and he gave his comrades each a nod, as if they were thinking the same thought. After that, Game Master Fastred stood up from his seat and proclaimed "CALA" as loudly as his voice would allow.

As a result, the torches on the walls suddenly turned on all at once; shocking the Loud Sisters slightly. Bear in mind, the torch bulbs didn't shine quite as brightly as normal ones, but their combined glow gave the girls just enough of a shock to wake them up. "What the heck are you guys doing" cried Lori indignantly, "are you literally trying to..."

Her train of thought came to a sudden halt, when she saw what the lights revealed. All around the game table, there were other much smaller ones set up in different parts of the room. Stationed at these tables were several groups of their friends, each one showing off the items presented there. One table had an assortment of art supplies, another one near Flip/Bojan's food station had an assortment of what looked like potion bottles and food coloring tubes.

At a booth nearby where the Game Masters sat was what looked like a laptop and some cameras. Seated at this laptop was Carol and Phoebe, who were in the midst of setting up some equipment there. As Leni looked at the back of the room, she saw her work friends and school friends working on some outfits.

Not too far away from them was a small, circular table; where the Loud Sisters could see their brother, Lincoln painting what looked like models alongside a few of his friends. Finally, Leni caught sight of her work friends and school friends; both of which were standing in the costume area of the room. To say that all of this left the girls feeling speechless would be a gross understatement.

"What the...Where did...How in the..." stuttered Lisa, "what in the name of the Periodic Table is all of this?!" In response to this inquiry, every one of the Loud Sisters' family and friends held their hands up in the air and proclaimed "SURPRISE!" Naturally, Leni found it all rather adorable but quickly revealed that it wasn't any of her siblings' birthdays yet.

"No-no-no, sweetie" chuckled Albert, "this is a different kind of surprise, one that your old man and I talked everybody into." Once again, the Loud Sisters were left rather speechless by this news; mostly for the fact they seemed too confused to speak. It was here that they were suddenly approached by a very surprising guest...Bobby.

"BOO-BOO BEAR...YOU'RE BACK" Lori cried while hugging her boyfriend gleefully, "don't tell me you're part of all this too!" With a bright smile upon his face, Bobby explained that he arrived at the castle an hour or so before Lori had woken up. "Before that, I got a call from your parents before they went off to bed" he stated, "they told me you had...for lack of better words, a pretty stressful game session that night."

While Lori felt quite touched by her boyfriend's deep concern for her, she also sensed a strong pang of guilt eating away at her; as if her belly were being tied up into a knot. But she did her best to hide it and urged Bobby to continue. "Right...So, your pops told me how stressful of a game session you had last night...real bummer" he said sympathetically, "I asked how I could help and they told me about all of this."

As she watched Bobby make a sweeping gesture at all the different tables, Lori's earlier confusion returned. Without further delay, she approached her parents and asked what sort of plan or scheme they had for everyone. "No schemes or plots here, Madame Elf" Rita said in her Eliana tone, "only merriment!" As if on cue, Lynn Sr. tagged in and asked for his daughters to follow behind him; single file, of course.

It was here that he explained how after everyone's stressful night at the game table, it was agreed by the Council that today would be a sort of...free day. "Today, we're putting a pause on our campaign and indulging in some other fun D&D themed activities" Mrs. Johnson chimed in, "these activities include crafts, music time, a cooking session and more!"

While the teacher's words helped to provide some explanation for what was happening, the Loud Sisters still felt confused. That's where Principal Huggins (while in character) offered up a tour to them that would provide a more in-depth look at the day's plans. "I can tell some of us may regret this idea" Lisa murmured, "but...it seems like we have no choice."

Not long after this, half of the Loud Sisters begrudgingly agreed with the young brainiac. As for the other half (namely Lana, Lucy, Luna and Lily) they were already standing at attention ahead of the others, appearing eager to see what surprises may lie ahead. "Very good, ladies...jolly good" Huggins said in his Fastred voice, "come along, then; we have much so much time and so little to do...no-no! Strike that, reverse it...we have much to do and so little time."

Now, even though the girls' collective minds were still hazy from not having waking up yet; they couldn't help but snicker at the usually strict school supervisor show such silly mannerisms. But they did their best to hide this from everyone else's view...save for maybe their brother's.

(Line Break)

After a "brief" fifteen-minute tour from Huggins, each of the Loud Sisters were given freedom to explore the different activity stations. The first to do so was little Lily, who made an immediate beeline towards a table where some of the younger players were seen using paints. At the head of this table was Lincoln, who decided to give his youngest sister the "downlow" of what they were doing.

"At this table, Lily, we're making our own shields made of cardboard" he said while showing off his own creation, "once we cut out the shape we want, we get to paint whatever designs we like for the emblem...you wanna try?" Lily gasped in awe at her big brother's words before her eyes eased down towards her tiny hands. To a child her age, the very idea of having creative artistic freedom was music to Lily's ears.

After giving her older brother a very enthusiastic nod, she took a seat beside him and made a "gimmie" gesture towards a collection of fingerpaints at the edge of the table. Once those two got themselves settled, the rest of the Loud Sisters ventured off to the other activity areas; hoping to find one that best caught their collective interests. "I'm gonna go hang with Sam and the crew eastside" Luna stated, "wonder what they got up their sleeves."

Lori offered no reply, she seemed too focused on making sense of the whole atmosphere of the room. How could everybody go from playing a tabletop game one day and by the next, decide to do a bunch of Arts & Crafts instead? Lori was so caught up in her own thoughts that she didn't realize the fact that she was making her way towards where Carol was seated.

"LORI! Hey, girl; glad you decided to join me" chirped the teen, "I was just telling my viewers on my blog how our campaign's been going so far." Upon hearing this suggestion, Lori's anxieties suddenly flooded back in full force. It was one thing to already be playing this "nerd game" with friends, family, neighbors and peers; it was something else entirely to talk about it online.

Still, on the other hand, Lori found herself feeling equally bothered by the idea of possibly refusing her friend's request. In her mind, Lori felt that doing so might cause Carol to think less of her or maybe call her out on whatever shallow feelings were holding her back from actually enjoying everything. In the end, she decided to meet her friend "half-way" and turn down the offer...for the moment.

"I'll, uh...I'll join you later, Care-Bear" Lori said with an awkward smile, "I just want to...take a look at what else we've got going on here." This answer seemed to please Carol, who responded with a most cheerful grin and a simple "okay, catch ya later." Once that was settled, Lori speed-walked away from Carol as fast as she could without raising too many concerns from those around her.

That's when she soon caught sight of Bobby, who was near the food station with her father. This filled Lori's heart with such joy, it didn't matter who saw her smiling like a goof or heard her squealing like one. "Just...go over and talk with him, Lori like you usually would" her brain murmured, "I'm sure your parents will be okay with that." With that decision made, Lori puffed out her chest and marched her way towards the table.

As she drew closer, Lori's mind kept telling her to focus purely on the company of her BF. She hoped that Bobby wouldn't bring up anything about the game or question her if she was enjoying her time at the "castle" with everyone. But as she got closer to the food table, something happened that pushed all these thoughts right out.

Within seconds, Lori's nostrils were filled with all sorts of alluring aromas and scents. Some were sweet, some were zesty, some were rich with flavor and others were soft yet pleasant. It was as if she wandered into one of her favorite restaurants (like Jean Juan's or Lynn's Table) and all the food was almost ready to serve. Within seconds, Lori found herself floating towards the food table and noticed that one of these delightful smells was coming from a pot where Bobby was working at.

"Boo-Boo Bear...what are you doing here" she inquired, "I never knew you had a love for cooking." Bobby chuckled softly, gave his girlfriend a loving peck on the cheek and revealed he was but "a mere apprentice to the master" (whom she could guess was her dad.) "When I heard that one of the activities we're doing today involved cooking, I thought I'd give it a shot" he explained, "abuela says I gotta know how to cook good meals if I plan on being a good husband one day."

While she did not question him about his statement, something about it made Lori feel a bit curious. Since the first time she saw both Santiago siblings (and even their mother) play alongside them just weeks ago, she wondered if any of the Casagrandes knew about what was going on every weekend. But before Lori could ask him about this, scooped something out from the pot he was stirring from and popped it into Lori's mouth, asking her to taste it.

"It's a little something your dad's been teaching me to make" Bobby explained, "don't worry, it's a stew." At first, Lori was prepared to give her boyfriend an earful for stuffing a spoon in her mouth without consent. But those thoughts quickly faded away the moment she felt the rich, juicy flavors of his stew touch her taste buds.

She let out a soft chirp of delight, as she chewed the bits of meat and potatoes in her cheeks; appearing pleased with it. Upon swallowing it all, Lori sighed heavily with utter bliss; which didn't go unnoticed by those around her. When Lori saw all the knowing looks everyone was giving, she quickly regained her senses and complimented Bobby on his handiwork.

"Thank you, milady" he said with a light yet respectable bow, "although, I fear my skills at crafting Red Dragon Stew have yet to reach your father's level." Upon hearing the name "Red Dragon Stew," Lori's face suddenly flushed with a mix of pale white and sickly green while her stomach churned with discomfort.

But before she could make a beeline for the nearest restroom, Bobby quickly stopped Lori in her tracks; assuring her that there was no actual dragon meat in the stew. "It's just a fun nickname we gave it, much like the other things on the menu" Lynn Sr. explained, "the dish is actually Beef Stew mixed with some diced tomatoes, potato cubes, some Thai peppers and some slices of Lucy's blood sausages to give it that red look."

After taking a moment to let all this info process, Lori took a gander inside of Bobby's stewing pot and sure enough; the stew juices had just the faintest color of red to it. Of course, she soon realized that it may have been the Thai chilis that was making her stomach churn, but she kept that to herself.

(Line Break)

In another corner of the game room, Luna joined some of her fellow musicians; who appeared to be tuning up their instruments. This gave her the impression that they were prepping for a sort of jam session together, which seemed like the perfect thing for Luna to focus on besides the game. With this thought in mind, Luna plonked herself down beside Sam and gave her a friendly (if not also coy) peck on the cheek in greeting.

"Hey-hey! Great to see you, Lunes" chirped the young blonde, "or...would you prefer it if I addressed you as Madame Spring-Stepper?" Although it wasn't spoken out of mockery or spite, Luna couldn't help but blush slightly at Sam for calling her by her character name. This didn't go unnoticed by her other bandmates, George and Ruth, who couldn't help but giggle softly at Luna's expression.

"So, uh...what's the haps, dudes" murmured the pixie-cut rocker nervously, "or...should I say, 'how goes it, fellow bards?'" After letting out another mild giggle fit, George explained that the three of them were about to participate in a Bardcore session together. Of course, he wasted no time in asking Luna if she wished to join but the poor girl looked utterly clueless at the mention of the word "bardcore."

As if expecting this, Sam explained that Bardcore was a new style of music that had only come out just a year ago. "I first got introduced to it by Simon just last year" she added, "of course, it was the time where you and your family had that...thing going on and...well..." Without saying a word, Luna silenced her after tenderly placing her index finger atop Sam's lips.

This coupled with the mildly forlorn look in her eyes clearly showed that she understood where Sam was going. "Right...so, anyway...during one of those bad days we were apart, Simon introduced me to some musicians he discovered on the internet" she explained, "apparently, they did medieval-style remixes of already existing songs from just about any genre of music out there." Much to Luna's surprise, this brief description of the Bardcore style greatly intrigued her.

Yet there was still something about the word that just made her feel...well, she couldn't quite place it. Luna couldn't decide if the term "Bardcore" made her want to laugh, cringe, groan in disapproval or some combination of the three. "Maybe it would be best if we show you what it's about" Ruth suggested, "just lemme pick up the Hurdy-Gurdy over here and we'll show you how we jam here in the castle!"

Now, Luna admitted to being both knowledgeable and rather skillful in playing many kinds of instruments over the years. She was able to play her first guitar before she was even potty-trained, as a baby. But she only had sparce bits of knowledge, when it came to the different types of medieval instruments that exist. As such, Luna felt just as clueless about what a Hurdy-Gurdy was as she was earlier about Bardcore music.

But rather than say that out loud to her friends, she chose to remain silent and watch them instead. It was here that Luna saw Ruth pick up what looked like a lute with a crank on one end. Meanwhile, Sam and George looked rather excited about what was to come.

"Now, Lunes; watch carefully and pay close attention" Ruth said firmly, "playing this kind of instrument is far different from the stuff the four of us are used to." With that said, everyone took their seats and waited for the "master" to begin her work. First, Ruth started spinning the odd crank with one hand; which caused a soft humming sound to ring out from it.

Then, Luna watched closely as Ruth started pushing what looked like a series of keys with her free hand. The combination of these two things resulted in a series of musical notes. Sadly, Luna thought it all sounded like the sounds of distorted car horns.

"We know, Lunes...we felt the same way when we first heard this kind of stuff" Sam admitted, "but trust me when I say it's actually beautiful, once all the notes come together." With that said, she gave a nod to Ruth and the young rocker started playing another series of notes through the instrument. This prompted Sam and George to collect their own instruments as well and they urged Luna to do the same.

"We know you can rock a guitar, Lunes" Ruth stated, "but let's see how you rock out with...a mandolin!" With that statement, the teen plucked said mandolin up off the ground and handed it to Luna. Now, some people would think that a rocker like her wouldn't be able to make heads or tails of such an instrument.

Those poor fools don't know what they're talking about. Even in these surroundings; if it's an instrument, Luna knew she could play it. With mandolin in hand, she watched as the rest of the group readied theirs. Much to her surprise, though; they were suddenly joined by Benny Stein (Luan's BF.)

"Grrrreetings, my fellow bards" he said with an exaggerated roll of the tongue, "mayhaps I might join thee on your musical merriment?" With great fervor, the Moon Goats welcomed Benny's assistance and offered him access to any of their instruments. Out of all of them, Benny claimed that the flute was one of the most musical (and easiest) to play and picked it out of the instrument case.

Once everyone was properly equipped, Ruth resumed playing the notes she used in her demonstration to Luna. But then, almost seconds later, Sam started plucking another series of notes off her lute's strings. Next, George held up a tambourine and began softly striking it up against his palm in a slow rhythm alongside the others.

As Luna listened to the melody closely, something in her mind felt that it all sounded rather...familiar to her. It wouldn't become fully clear to her until she finally heard Benny give his flute performance almost thirty seconds later. The instant she heard the first few notes of the song, Luna instantly recognized it.

"Dude, no way" she gasped mentally, "that's that ol' Metallica tune, Nothing Else Matters from the 90s...that's, like music from my dad's day!" Before today; if you were to tell Luna about anything Bardcore related, in the past...she would likely think you've gone "Caca for Cuckoo Puffs." But after hearing the skills of both her bandmates and school-friend just now, she found herself wanting to try her hand at the style solo.

At that moment, Luna was suddenly shocked out of her stupor by the sound of a loud "THUMP!" With a yelp, Luna looked around and saw that it was coming from a table closest to where she sat. Apparently, a group of teens had overheard their music and were thumping their hands lightly atop the table; as if it were a drum.

"Looks like we're a hit, Madame Spring-Stepper" Sam said with a lyrical tone, "wouldst thou like to sing this fine melody alongside with us." After taking a moment to collect herself from her earlier scare, Luna remained silent for a few moments; as if unsure of what to say. It was here that she suddenly felt a spark ignite somewhere deep inside her heart, which seemed to send a warm feeling flowing through her.

The brighter this spark burned; the more Luna's earlier inhibitions seemed to melt away until finally, she puffed out her chest and proclaimed "yea, verily." The Band of Bards cheered loudly with joy upon seeing their comrade's show of spirit and Sam swiftly handed her GF her mandolin (but not before giving her a quick peck on her cheek.)

As the next stanza of the song played out, Luna's voice soon mixed in with that of everyone else's. To say that their combined tones harmonized so well to the ears of all who heard it would be a gross understatement. Among them was Luna, who found herself swaying side-to-side in place like a hypnotized cobra.

"Just when I thought my Benny-Boo couldn't get any dreamier" she swooned, "I gotta sit down before...before." It was too late...with a quivering sigh, Luan's legs finally seemed to give out and fell backwards to the floor like a falling tree. "Uh-oh! Looks like we got ourselves a fainter" Flip said at the snack table, "any of you cleric types think you can help her out?"

(Line Break)

As we leave Luna and Luan behind for the moment, we join Lola over by the costume crafting area; where she and Leni were in the midst of what they called a "costume project." With the aid of Miguel and Fiona, both sisters gathered every piece of colorful material they could find and were thinking up ideas on fantasy-themed attire.

"Here's what I was thinking, everybody" Lola began, "after looking at some character designs in that Monster Manual, how about we do a combo dress!" While no one was dismissing the idea, at first; neither Miguel nor Fiona understood just what the wee pageant princess was suggesting. It was here that Lola decided to show them what she was thinking of.

She made her approach towards the main game table, picked up the Monster Manual, flipped through its pages at a near blinding speed and found what she was looking for; a page entirely dedicated to creatures of the Fey Realm. "See...when my sisters and I were told to research this manual way back, I found myself captivated by this particular set of pages" Lola explained, "especially the one about these Eladrin thingies."

Upon examining the page for himself, Miguel gave a light nod of agreement to the young lady's words. Meanwhile, Fiona still questioned what Lola meant by doing a "combo dress" (as she called it.) "I'm getting to that, trust me" the wee blonde assured, "as I read further, I found myself also intrigued by these lil' faerie dragon things...but mostly their wings."

With that, she went on to explain how her plan involved making versions of the Summer Eladrin's attire and a set of Faerie Dragon wings. "We could make the wings Fall colored" Lola chirped giddily, "I think they would mix in well with the Summer colors of the Eladrin dress and tunic, don't you?" Upon taking a moment to let the idea process, a quivering gasp of joy passed through his lips and his eyes were practically glowing with anticipation.

"Oh, my God...yes" he decreed, "yes, YES! YES! LET'S MAKE THAT! YES!" This response caused not only Fiona to giggle but Lola as well before they set out to collect the necessary supplies for their project. The whole time they were prepping, Lola took a glance behind her and wondered if her other sisters were having just as much fun as she was.

(Line Break)

In another area of the room, we find Lincoln sitting alongside his youngest sister; Lily. They were in the process of cutting out two shields from a few pieces of cardboard and once they'd made the proper shapes, Lincoln pulled over a collection of paints. "Now, Lily comes the real fun" he said with a smirk, "you remember those cool shields those knights in fairy tales have, right?"

Whether it was her brother's words or the sight of the paint, Lily couldn't help but clap and giggle with excitement. She then watched in awe as her brother took out two bottles of paint and squeezed their contents onto a paper plate. Next, Lincoln offered up a choice to Lily; she could try her hand at painting with a brush or she could go with finger-painting.

In response, Lily simply chanted "FINGUH PAINT! FINGUH PAINT! LILY WANNA FINGUH PAINT!" "Okay, sis; I hear ya" chuckled Lincoln, "and to tell you the truth...I kind of wanted to do that too." These words filled Lily with so much joy, she looked ready to burst in an explosion of confetti.

But...after she took a moment to breathe, she calmed her enthusiasm down a scooch and gestured for Lincoln to slide the "paint plate" over. Soon, both Big Bro and Lil' Sis were happily working on their creations; giggling and humming happily to themselves. At one point, this caught the attention of the Game Masters and they couldn't help but gush at them; even Principal Huggins.

(Line Break)

Four hours passed by and the time came for everyone to take a break for lunch. Of course, everyone had to get themselves cleaned up first; specifically, those who worked in the art or cooking areas. Sadly, this meant there would be long lineups for the bathrooms; in spite of the fact there were several stationed within several buildings on the grounds. While everyone waited, they used this time to share what each of them had been doing most of the morning.

"Silas has been teaching me how to write in the Drow Elf language" Lucy said with a soft yet gleeful tone, "now...I can take my poetry skills to a new level." Several people in the line gasped softly in amazement at the Goth girl's reveal, a few family members among them. This prompted Lynn to step in, where she revealed how Margo explained to her the kind of fighting style Loxodon were known to have.

"Maybe I could try a few moves the next time I have a wrestling tryout" she pondered, "anybody wanna spar?" As expected, many of the kids in the lineup openly denied Lynn's request; using the rule that nothing from the game should be used to willingly endanger others outside or inside the castle walls. "An interesting idea...but I'm afraid most of us will pass on that, Sister" Lisa interjected, "meanwhile, Miss Paige and Stella have been showing me how to make my own army of fantasy warriors with naught but a collection of building block figurines?"

With this revelation, everyone let out soft gasps of surprise; mostly for the fact that Lisa Loud willingly partook in playing with "children's toys." Upon seeing everyone's expressions, Lisa mentioned that she had taken the liberty to "immortalize the moment" by taking pictures of her creations. "Would anyone like to see them" she offered, "I guarantee you'll be left breathless."

For a split second, everyone felt unsure of how to respond to such a request. Granted, they knew these creations were made from simple assembling block toys. But because young Lisa had a rather...eccentric mind for her age, people wondered what sort of things she built and just how she went about doing it. As if sensing their thoughts, Lisa gave a little headshake of annoyance and assured everyone all was well.

"When we return to the Game Hall, I can show you exactly what I mean" she said bluntly, "some of you may actually find it rather educational." Many children groaned loudly at the mentioning of the "E Word," mainly because it was Summer Break still and everyone preferred to focus on relaxation. Meanwhile, just a few paces up the line, Lori happened to overhear what her sister was saying and couldn't help but growl under her breath.

It was already a month and a half into Summer Break and she spent most of it in this place. Granted, it was only on the weekends but to Lori, it felt much longer. It was times like this where she wished to be back at Fairway U; listening to one of her teachers discussing the "science of sand traps."

Lori was so caught up in her own thoughts, she didn't realize someone in line was trying to get her attention. It wasn't until she felt someone tug at the hem of her pajama shirt that Lori finally snapped out of her bored state of mind. With a tired grunt, she looked down and saw that it was Lily tugging at her clothes.

"Wha 'bout you, Lori" inquired the toddler, "are you having fun?" Truth be told; if it were anyone else asking this sort of question, Lori would've told them outright she was not having fun. But in this present situation, standing alongside so many familiar faces, something in the back of her mind seemed to be blocking out her original thoughts. While she still wanted to tell the truth, Lori couldn't seem to do that with someone like Lily (or Bobby, if he were with them.)

So, she went with the only other option left...and told what she called a "half-truth." "The thing is, Lily...I really like being here with all our friends and stuff" she started hesitantly, "but I literally just can't seem to get as into the game as the rest of you." For a second, Lily offered no reply; leaving Lori to think she couldn't quite understand what she was talking about.

But then, she felt her tiny hand patting against hers lightly; which may have been the little one's way of saying "it's okay." Surprisingly (or unsurprisingly, depending on your view,) Lincoln overheard Lori's little "confession" and offered up a bit of encouragement to her. "Don't worry, Sis; it happens to all of us, one time or another" he stated, "I remember in one of Ronnie Anne's video chats where she said it took her time to enjoy one of those Telenovella things on TV."

No sooner had he mentioned this, several of Lincoln's peers in line felt intrigued by this reveal and asked to hear more. Meanwhile, Lori shuffled forward slowly in line while contemplating what her brother had just said. She also remembered Bobby telling her the exact same story during one of their chats, at the time. In some small way, their situations seemed rather alike.

But Lori's pride suddenly intervened and reminded her of a "glaring difference" between both situations. "A telenovella can actually be fun to watch, depending on the story" she thought to herself, "but this is a board game, one specifically made for nerds...or at least, it should!" Once again, Lori found herself swept up into another mental debate and she was utterly oblivious of the world around her.

She was so deep in her own mind that she didn't realize she was holding up the line behind her. This time; instead of Lily gently tugging at her clothes, it was the blare of a horn that caused Lori to come back to her senses. "AHH! AW, JEEZ...WHO'S THE SMART ALECK BLARING THEIR AIRHORN" she roared in irritation, "ARE YOU LITERALLY TRYING TO BLOW OUT MY EARDRUMS!?" She on both sides of the line, hoping someone would speak up and confess.

But as it turned out, the culprit had been Lynn all along...but it wasn't an airhorn she used. Instead, she had what looked like a Viking horn in her hand (where she got it, no one knew.) "Sorry, Sis...but you were holding up the line" Lynn grumbled, "best get movin' and have your turn in the bathroom...I can't yo-yo this turd in me for much longer." As expected, this comment caused everyone (Lori especially) to grimace loudly with disgust.

Ironically, it also seemed to push out any other thoughts Lori had about the game. All she could think about now was reaching the bathroom before anyone else in the line-up made similar disgusting outcries.

(Line Break)

Sometime later, everyone finally had their time in the restrooms and returned to the Game Room for lunch. During the meal, everyone used this time to share all the things they've worked on during Activity Time. "You guys like my Paper Plate Mask" inquired Lana, "it's an Owlbear head!" No sooner had she said this, she held the mask up to her face and started making all sorts of monster noises; none of which seemed to resemble what an Owlbear sounded like.

Regardless, not only did everyone find her antics amusing but many thought her design job with the mask was well-done. "That is really cool, Lana" praised Clyde, "I tried doing something like that for a dryad mask, one time...but I overdid it on the glitter and had a sneezing fit." After this, Lily went about showing off her own artistic creation; a shield with a dinosaur-like creature in the center and two of her handprints on both sides of it.

"Aww! That's totes cute" gushed Leni, "speaking of, wait till I show you guys this adorable dress Lola and I made with Miguel and Fiona's help!" Without hesitation, both Sisters rushed over to the dress-making area and brought back both of their creations for all to see. There were gasps aplenty from everyone at the table, even Lori herself was momentarily awestruck by both pieces.

"Whoa...that's actually really good" she whispered softly, "I didn't think people made that kind of stuff for this game." Just then, Lucy and Silas suddenly appeared beside Lori; causing the poor girl to almost fall from her seat. They promptly apologized for their sudden intrusion and proclaimed that their eyes had also been opened.

"This day alone has opened new avenues of poetry writing to me" murmured Lucy with a mildly chipper tone, "as we speak, I am learning all the Drow terms I need to create a new poem." This announcement caused many players to murmur with intrigue, especially the Game Masters. Principal Huggins in particular was rather curious about Lucy's idea...while also wondering if she remembered his lessons from the Writing Club at school.

"Me and the Moon Goats have been doin' some writin' ourselves" Luna interjected, "some song writin' that is." Everyone chuckled at this news, thinking that song writing was to be expected of the young musicians. Yet at the same time, many questioned them about the sort of music they were working on. "If it's anything like that stuff we heard earlier, I say keep at it" Mr. Grouse said with a grin, "it's a lot quieter than your usual noise."

The Moon Goats chuckled softly at one another, finding relief that this place didn't change the old man too much. But at the same time, they assured everybody that rock would forever be their main musical rhythm. Yet Luna confessed that being here opened her eyes and mind to new forms of music she never knew existed.

"That's the beauty of the game, kids" Rita stated, "playing it introduces people to new ideas, new experiences, new ways of practicing teamwork and so much more." After hearing their mother say these words, the Loud Sisters unanimously agreed that they wished they knew the game existed sooner...all but one. Even now, after everything she had seen and heard from everybody around her, Lori still couldn't bring herself to be as open about the game as the rest of her family.

However, her pesky teenage pride didn't seem quite as stubborn as it was when this all started. Maybe it was all the activities she saw everybody taking part in, maybe it was the soothing tune Luna's band played earlier or maybe it was the bowl of stew and honey-drizzled cream puffs that Bobby helped her dad make. Whatever the case may be, Lori's walls seemed to be lowering ever-so slightly but she wouldn't tell anyone here that.

Instead, she openly confessed that today was actually fun and hoped they could do it again sometime. "Thank you, honey; we couldn't agree more" Rita gushed happily, "but enjoy the peace while it lasts...come next week, things are really gonna get wild." With these simple words, Lori's appetite suddenly disappeared, and she was prepared to push her plate aside.

Instead, she swallowed her shock (as well as her food) and questioned how things could become wilder than the Arena Fight. "Don't ya know, Miss Lori" inquired Liam, "you and your posse are nearin' the end of your journey." This reveal came as a shock not only to Lori but the other six sisters in her Adventuring Party.

Since last week, the girls all knew they've been at this game for a while. But after hearing that the end of their quest was (seemingly) a hop, skip and a jump away; it felt as though they'd just started. "Come next week, young Adventurers; your quest shall resume once again" Huggins decreed in his Fastred voice, "furthermore, your party shall soon have not one but two new additions to it."

Much to her own surprise, Lori couldn't help but ask who would be joining their group soon. Alas, the Game Masters refused to answer her; proclaiming that doing so would ruin the surprise. "YOU MEAN I HAVE TO WAIT ANOTHER WEEK TO FIND THAT OUT" cried the teen, "it'll be worse than the seasonal hiatus we got from Dream Boat." Rather than make good-natured jabs, several of Lori's fellow players soon surrounded her and each offered up a hug or words of encouragement.

Among them was Carol, who claimed to be in the same boat as she was. "Why bother staying and waiting for something to happen" questioned Lori, "what else is there, if you can't play?" With a smile on her face, Carol pulled her bestie to her side and made a sweeping gesture at everyone around them. Sadly, Lori wasn't able to put the pieces together yet; so, Carol decided to tell the truth right out.

"It's all of this, girlfriend" she said matter-of-factly, "being here in this place, watching our friends play, hearing them laugh, cry, cheer...this is what makes the experience so memorable." At first, Lori offered no reply; no snarky comeback, no complaints, no whining or anything of that sort. Instead, she took a moment to scan the whole game room; taking in everything Carol had just described to her.

She saw a Lily gigging happily while showing off a finger-paint portrait she made of her wolf character, Lupa. She saw a group of kids gathered 'round Lucy while she was reciting a new poem (one written in a foreign language unknown to her) and the last thing to catch her eye was Bobby, who was asking her dad for a copy of the recipe they made together. He claimed that his friends and family back at the apartment complex would certainly enjoy it.

"Of course, my young Elven friend" Lynn Sr. said in his normal voice, "anything for a budding chef in the making." After this, the two gents shared a laugh and a quick high five before joining the others; leaving Lori to continue observing everyone's business. The more she watched them, the more her inner child seemed to be glowing with delight.

Unfortunately, her teenage pride was far too strong for this sense of bliss to fully show itself on the surface. So, instead; Lori rested her cheek upon her left hand and gave the crowd a smile. "Maybe Carol's right...I should give this game a little more of a shot" she thought to herself, "we'll see what happens in the next session, I suppose."

(First AN: Aaaaand that should do her. *phew* Man! I did not think a chill chapter like this was going to be so long. Then again, I wanted to make certain that every one of the Loud Sisters got a chance to experience some of the other aspects of D&D fandom and tabletop culture. Come the next chapter, though; it's back to business again.

What sort of adventure awaits Lori's group in the next session? Will their characters be able to find their way to the Bloodstone Keep and stop Melaena before she corrupts anymore of the game's world? Tune in next time, to find out)

(Second AN: Part of the idea for this was inspired by the South Park episode, Board Girls. When I saw all the female Elementary students doing all their activities like minifig painting, running a gaming channel and other examples; I wondered if D&D players actually did this sort of thing in-between sessions of their campaign? If any of you reading this chapter ran campaigns of your own, kindly give your opinions on this inquiry in your reviews. Thanks in advance)

(Third AN: For those wondering; yes, Bardcore is a real form of music. It first appeared around 2020, during the time of the Pandemic and everybody had to remain at home. A lot of people felt anxious, depressed and lonely during the lockdown; they needed something to take their mind off it all. That's when a YouTuber named Corneilius Link did a "Medieval Version" of a song called Astronomia. The soft melodies and aesthetic of it touched the hearts of those who listened to the song and soon, more and more people started doing their own kind of Bardcore tunes.

With this in mind; I thought that, in honor of the D&D gathering, the Moon Goats could take a crack at it themselves)

(Fourth AN: Once the next chapter starts, Lori's group will have two new members; thus giving her a full D&D Party. You've got a mage in her character, you've got Lola the Rogue, Lana the Druid, Lucy the Witch/Ranger, Luan the Bard, Lynn the Barbarian and finally, Leni the Cleric...oops, and also Lily the wolf pupper)

(Final AN: I wanted to make certain all the activities had something that would draw each of the Loud Sisters to them. I know I've succeeded with Lola wanting to make dresses, Luna playing tunes with her group, Lucy writing poems in some of the game's racial dialects and Lily wanting to make shields and paint them with Lincoln. But do you think I did okay with the rest of the girls as well?)