Twisted Wonderland

Return of The Morays

After drinking your last potion, you and the others stand in front of the museum. But you find a sign on the path to the entrance.

"It's closed?" You say in disbelief.

Jack rubs the back of his neck. "Are you kidding? What awful timing."

"Is that why the Leech brothers haven't harassed us at all today?" Deuce asks. "Because they knew?"

Ace tilts his head. "I dunno about that."

Jack folds his arms. "Are we really turning tail and going back empty-handed after coming all this way?"

"Hold up." Ace points to the guard at the door. "I've got an idea."

"Mragh!" Grim finally notices the guards. "Guess I shouldn't be surprised that merfolk society would have merfolk security guards."

Deuce rolls his eyes. "I mean, duh?"

"Okay. I'm gonna distract the guard." Ace continues. "In the meantime, you guys sneak in behind him and borrow the photo."

Jack looks to Ace curiously. "Are you sure you can handle this by yourself?"

Ace folds his arms. "You're honest to a fault, and Deuce would give himself away within minutes. Don't worry. I got this."

Ace swims to the guard, making the most disappointed expression you've ever seen. "Awww, MAN! For realsies?"

The guard looks to Ace. "Hm? Is something the matter?"

"Is the museum really closed today? I can't believe this." Ace slumps his shoulders. "I was super pumped for this visit..."

"Are you a land-dweller? Did you come all the way here by yourself?"

"Yes, sir! I've always admired merfolk society, ever since I was a kid." Ace lies flawlessly. "I scrimped and saved, got myself a magic potion, and now I've finally made it here! Duuude, a real live merman! This is SO COOL! Can I touch your fins? Can I have your autograph?"

"Umm, sure? Would you like to see my dorsal fin, too?"

Grim scoffs. "That guy can lie like nobody's business. He ain't even battin' an eye!"

"The guard's totally distracted." Says Jack. "Let's move!"

You sneak into the museum. There's display cases full of various objects the sea princess collected. Plaques telling the history of the objects and what the princess thought they were used for. A familiar looking statue of the mer-king stands in the middle of the room.

"This is the place Azul mentioned, right?" Jack swims over to photos hanging on the wall. "Here's a photo commemorating the visit of Horatio XII, court musician... Here's one of a fourth princess..."

Jack looks at all the different pictures. "There sure are a lot of these. I can see why he said nobody would notice if we borrowed one."

"Where's that commemorative photo of Prince Rielle from ten years ago?" Deuce glances over the pictures. "Ah, here we go. This is it, right? A visit from Prince Rielle and his schoolmates... Looks like a photo of an elementary school field trip"

Grim swims over. "There's a bunch of tiny merfolk in this pic."

Jack tilts his head. "Of all the pictures here, why would he ask for this one specifically?"

Deuce shrugs. "I couldn't say... But lets just grab it and let's go already."

Deuce takes the frame off the wall. You all pause, expecting an alarm to go off.

Jack looks around. "Huh. It's not even rigged with an alarm. I guess it really is just a commemorative photo. This is kinda underwhelming."

You swim out of the museum and see Ace still talking with the guard.

"...And I just loved that story my Grandma read me about a human prince and a mermaid princess."

The guard nods excitedly. "They made a movie out of that, you know. I saw it with my girlfriend when I was younger! That was just about thirty years ago. No matter how many times I see it, that scene of the princess hugging her father gets me every time."

"I know, right?" Ace easily agrees. "That's, like, THE scene!"

"I'm surprised a kid your age has even watched it."

"Oh, my brother's a huge movie buff. That flick's top-tier. Soundtrack's legendary, too. Oh yeah, speaking of which, is it true that all merfolk are good singers?"

The guard laughs. "Oh, far from it. That's an old urban legend. One of my own classmates is so tone-deaf, their singing is like nails on a rockboard."

Grim chuckles. "Ace is still goin' strong!"

"I'm impressed he can carry on a conversation with a complete stranger for so long." Says Deuce.

"We got what we came for." Jack holds your hand and helps you swim. "We need to go, pronto."

Ace sees you and the others swimming away. "Ah, look at the time. I think I'd better get going."

"Aw, are you sure?" The guard asks. "Seeing as you're such a big merfolk fan and all, I wouldn't mind giving you a little sneak peek at the museum while it's closed."

Ace shakes his head. "Nah. That'd be cheating, and cheaters never prosper. I'll be sure to check the museum hours before I mosey down here again. Later, man!"

"Feel free to come back anytime!" The guard waves as Ace swims away. "It's not every day you meet a nice young fellow like that."

Ace meets up with you. "So, how'd it go on your end?"

"Photo acquired!" Grim laughs. "Couldn't have been easier."

Ace grins. "Great. Let's head back to campus, then."

"Right." Deuce smirks. "I can't wait to shove this picture right in Azul's smug face."

You feel a shiver run down your spine. It feels like someone is watching you. You see two very long shadows creeping towards you. Turning around, you see the twins above you.

"Theeere you are, Little Shrimpy." Floyd grins at you.

Jade smiles. "Greetings, everyone. I see you've already forgotten your previous lesson and decided to try your luck in the deep again."

Jack growls and stands in front of you protectively. "It's the moray brothers!"

Jade glances at Deuce holding the frame. "You appear to have gotten ahold of the photo."

"Nice, niiice! That's real smooth." Floyd swims around your group. "But we wouldn't want you bringing it back so soon. Why don't we play a game of tag until sunset?"

Ace rolls his eyes. "Typical. I knew we wouldn't make it home without a fight. Lemme guess, your plan is to stall us in the water until sunset, then beat us up and snatch the goods. Then you'd get the photo AND you get to have Y/N's dorm!"

Jade chuckles. "Using minimal labor to achieve maximum profit is just good business sense."

"Wh-" Jack growls. "You guys really are crooked to the core!"

Ace stands next to you. "Well, Y/N? What's your call?"

Deuce stands to your other side, putting a hand on your shoulder. "Knowing you, there's no way you came this far without accounting for them."

You nod. "Just hold onto the photo and play keep-away for a while." You lean in to whisper. "I need to sneak away from the twins and get back to Octavinelle."

"Okay. Simple enough." Deuce sighs. "I don't know how long I'll last with these guys, but..."

"We've come this far." Jack glares at the twins. "We don't have any other choice!"