The truck stopped, and a cab door popped open. It sounded like the middle act of a drama, without an opening number to establish the characters, but Anthony didn't mind. He dug inside a pocket on the violin case and pulled out a crumpled sack. 

"Anybody want popcorn?" he asked, taking a generous handful for himself and offering the sack around to the other passengers in the truck bed. He kept an eye out for dramatic developments beyond the immediate back-and-forth between inside and outside. Thinking of drama reminded him of a small detail, and he clarified, "Actually, it's caramel corn; fresh this morning. Highly recommended for munching while watching anything."

"Oooh, me!!" Kaelin exclaimed, leaning over the wheel well to grab a handful from the proffered bag.

Maeve stood and leaned against the cab of the truck.

"What're we stopping for this time?"

To Moira's intense relief the roaring, rattling, swaying, bouncing beast's motion began to subside and then stopped. She took a few deep breaths and opened her eyes. There was an oddly shaped mirror by her feet and she toed it gingerly, curiosity briefly overriding other less pleasant feelings. Where had that come from? she wondered.

Posted by: @mel
"Anybody want popcorn?"

Moira shuddered, curiosity forgotten again.

"I do!" shouted the Bull, leaning forward to catch a sniff of the proffered bag.

How could he even think of eating? I hope he chokes. Or, rather, that he finds it thoroughly disagreeable, she amended after a moment's consideration. More charitable thoughts aside, she didn't want to see a choking bovine, much less share a space with one.

Jeff slid out the halfway out of the driver side window, doing his best emulation of a racecar driver, exiting their car after a long racd. It wasn't for show though, his door just didn't work. 

"Well, I thought the dude behind us wanted us to stop." He said, responding to Maeve's inquisition as the red SUV pulled to a stop behind them and then just sat there, menacingly.

"He's giving me the hebijebees. Ainsley, Delia, would y'all put that kid back in it's box already so we can get to space camp? I've been looking forward to this for months." 

Maeve glanced back at the SUV and nodded. 

"Kid's probably new to Ditto Town and hasn't seen the circus act yet."

Posted by: @jackalopeofevul

"Ainsley, Delia, would y'all put that kid back in it's box already so we can get to space camp? I've been looking forward to this for months." 

Delia made a face, shifted the child to her hip, snapped her fingers, and disappeared. She reappeared a moment later, sans child.

"Awesome!" Jeff slapped the roof of the truck and slid back into the driver's seat. 

"Now let's go do space things."

"Do you even know what this camp is about? Or did you just sign us up because it said space?" Ainsley asked as she readjusted into the middle seat. 

"Yes."

"That... That doesn't really answer- actually nevermind. Also, Delia, why are you even riding in this truck? Can't you just, you know, poof?"

“What, I can’t spend some quality time with people?” Delia asked, looking a little hurt. 

Anthony grinned as his stash of caramel corn was rapidly depleted by his new friends. He gave the driver a thumbs-up when he appeared half-in, half-out of the truck window -- "Ten out of ten!" Anthony called, approving the maneuver -- and braced himself with his knees as the truck rattled on down the road. 

There was a glint on the truck bed at the quiet girl's feet. "Is that yours?" Anthony asked, though for all he knew it could be a clever patch over a large rust hole and part of the unique charm of their ride.

Moira's relief was short-lived as their ride started again before she had sufficient time to recover and climb out of the things. Adding to her disappointment was the Bull's evident enjoyment of his treat - after his first taste, he had consumed a huge mouthful and now was making very loud noises of what she supposed was contentment.

Posted by: @mel
"Is that yours?"

Moira spared a glance down at her feet and saw the man was referring to the odd mirror she had noticed a few moments previously. She shook her head.

"I don't know where the mirror came from."

The beast gave another jump and she bit back a whimper - in addition to the unsettled stomach, her tailbone was now starting to be sore.

The truck topped a rise, and on the vista that appeared before them could be seen several buildings and a spot that was shiny in the afternoon sun--Anthony couldn't quite make out the details, though he squinted and tried, but he was sure it was the famous Sojourner waiting for their arrival.

"Hurrah!" he cheered. "Not too much farther now, and they'll be welcoming us with freeze-dried ice cream and anti-grav suits!"

"There she is, what a beautiful beast." Jeff said as they pulled into the parking lot. Just then the truck shuddered and with a pop of smoke from the tailpipe, the engine died. Luckily they had jusr enough forward momentum to coast the final few hundred feet into a parking space.

"Nicely done." Ainsley smartly commented, patting Jeffery on the knee. 

"Hey, we made it didn't we?" Jeff replied, laughing as he slid out of his window and began to unstrap his bags from the roof rack. 

Ainsley giggled before following him out the same exit point. 

"Everyone out of the pool!"

"Oh, my joints aren't cut out for this anymore," Maeve groaned, standing up and stretching her back.

Kaelin tumbled out of the bed of the truck and bounced from foot to foot. 

"Let's go, ya slow pokes," she cheered. 

Delia waited a moment for everyone to stretch, then gave a quick whistle. 

"Alright folks, grab your bags, and let's head over toward the camp. If you follow the left path, it'll take you down to the lake, the right path leads to the cabins. Dinner is a 6, bring your own marshmallows to the fire pit afterward!"

Delia continued, giving a tour of the camp, sure to point out where the telescopes, horseshoe pits, anti-gravity chamber, constellation guide, space arcade, movie theatre playing reruns of Spaceballs and Galaxy Quest, early settlers' exhibit, and, of course, the re-enactment quarters of the first known survivors on the planet's surface, were located. 

Hello, my bella donnas! Feel free to explore the camp and do as you wish for the next while, but keep in mind that our three hour tour on the the replica of The Sojourner, the first known ship to land on the planet, will take off promptly on July 28. 

Poisoned kisses,

D. Death

The sun was just setting when a gray sedan rolled into the parking lot. It had barely come to a halt when the right side doors opened and two blonde-haired, blue-eyed girls burst out, holding an assortment of brightly-colored camping supplies, pillows, and well-loved stuffed animals. A half-minute later, Ian clambered out of the driver's seat, simultaneously beaming and squinting as the sun landed right in his eyes. Much more stiffly, Lauren got out of the back seat. 

"We made it before nightfall! Can you believe it?" Ian said. "Wow, I didn't think it was possible to arrive so early!"

"If by 'early' you mean almost four hours late, then sure," Lauren said sourly. Her heart wasn't in it though. Ian was right: both he and Lauren had such uncanny talents for getting lost, four hours late to the right location smashed all their previous records to pieces. She glanced at the two little girls, pointing at the various buildings they saw and chattering to each other. "I think we can thank Amy's navigation for it."

Hearing her name, the taller of the two girls looked up. "Which cabin is ours, Aunt Lauren?"

"I'm hungry," the other girl said. "What's for dinner?"

Ian looked to Lauren. "Divide and conquer? Audrey and I hunt for sustenance while you and Amy secure our belongings?"

Lauren rolled her eyes. "Sure. Just don't get lost."

"Like that could ever happen," Ian scoffed. 

(ten minutes later)

"Are you sure it's this way, Uncle Ian?"

"You know, it's not very polite of you to doubt your elders so obviously. I'd offer to teach you subtlety if I knew the meaning of the word. Let's see if we can find someone to give us directions, huh?"