[center][i][h1]ALL THE WORLD’S A STAGE[/h1][/i][/center]
The town of Stratford-upon-Avon could not have asked for more beautiful weather for the annual Midsummer Festival. The sun was just drawing up on the horizon, painting the cloudless sky with brilliant pinks and oranges, when families began the yearly march to the town square for the night’s entertainment. Stratford didn’t have many terribly outstanding qualities (besides the river walk, which was second-to-none amongst the little villages on the Avon), so the town went all out for the one festival of the year. That weekend, shops stayed closed on their own little holiday as parades promenaded down the river and children participated in any of several activities, all run by the town hall. At night, fire-breathers, acrobats, magicians, and musicians set up along the banks of the Avon and in the town center, wowing those out for a stroll.

The first night of the festival, that Friday, was traditionally kicked off with a fireworks display, followed by a masquerade in the town center. It wasn’t really a masquerade, more of a dance recital for the ever-popular Stratford Steppers, who took over the square with glitter, costumes, and mask making tables for the young and young-at-heart. The real masquerades began later that night, at parties thrown by the rich and powerful of the town. The noise, booze, and (more often than not) conflict kept the police on their toes, but it provided an outlet for those who needed it, and it wasn’t that difficult to not get caught—if you were clever.

This is our scene, and here we begin. Seven o’clock. Midsummer. The air is heavy with anticipation of the festival, and perhaps things further off. Love, betrayal, murder… who’s to say, until we step out on that stage?

[i]Lights up.[/i]

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[i]Enter [color=lightsteelblue]Lavinia Andronicus.[/color][/i]

Lavinia stepped out of her house with a backpack on her shoulders and her stump hidden in the sleeve of her jacket. It was almost too warm for a jacket, but Lavinia had gotten good at making excuses for wearing them — surely, it would get colder as the sun set, and she would regret not wearing a jacket then, wouldn’t she?

Slowly, she started making her way to the town square, where a few other people seemed to be migrating. Honestly, she wouldn’t be going to this thing if her brother and her nephew weren’t in town. Her dad had made her promise to go meet Lucas and Lukie before the fireworks display, though, and she wanted to be there for Lukie’s first real Midsummer Festival. She’d pull through this, and hell, she might even enjoy it, because she was on her way to recovery. 

The square was bustling, full of people, chairs, food, and some early-arriving performers, around which people flocked. Music blared and people chattered, and the place just looked so alive. Lavinia searched, but she couldn’t find Lucas, at least not in the spots where people weren’t swarming. He was probably just running late — classic Lucas. She decided to wait for him around the fringes of the crowd, where she could be alert but still enjoy some people watching. A three-piece band was set up not too far from her, playing a song she recognized. Liv was happy; she hummed along.