It's a new day as Eden College and Damien, Emile and Ewen are all sleeping soundly in their beds in their dorm room when their alarm clock starts to ring. Ewen sits up as he pulls his sheets from his body, letting out a big yawn. Ewen's yawn wakes Emile up as he sits up as well, looking around the room.

"Lord Damien, if you don't hurry and wake up, you'll be late to roll call" Emile says as he gets out of bed, getting his uniform out of his bedding box.

--- one hour later ---

"As punishment for being late to roll call, you are to help the Dorm Mother" Master Henderson says as he looks down at Damien, "this is quite rare for you. Though it is not a school day, it is not elegant to live a slovenly lifestyle, Mr Desmond".

"I'll be more careful, Sir" Damien says as he looks at Master Henderson.

Emile and Ewen watch from the corner as the two of them look at each other worriedly.

--- three hours later ---

"Lord Damien, were you up late studying again?" Ewen asks as he and Emile join Damien in his tasks for the day.

"I need to hurry up and earn more Stella's" Damien says as he picks up a basket of wet and freshly cleaned washing.

"You're working way too hard" Ewen says worriedly, "oh, also! I hear our teacher is going to take us to the movies tomorrow. We might get to see the new 20,000 Steps Under the Sea!".

"And on our way back, we're going to have roast beef at Wimpsons!" Emile says happily, "let's finish up so we can meet up with everyone! Yay, roast beef!".

"I'm not going" Damien says as he starts to hang the washing up on the line, "I'm going to be studying in my room".

"What? But it's our day off today" Emile says disappointedly.

"I said I'm not going" Damien says as he picks the empty basket up, "I'm not changing my mind".

"But..." Ewen says as he looks at Damien.

While they're busy playing, I'm going to work hard to get to the top. That way... Father will praise me again.

Damien says as he walks past Ewen and Emile.

Damien, continue working hard as to not tarnish the Desmond family name.

Damien remembers his Father's words to him when he came to the school.

"You two!" the Dorm Mother says as she walks over to Emile and Ewen, "go over there. This is Damien's penalty".

--- the next day ---

Damien makes his way to the Dorm Mother's office as Ewen and Emile look at each other. They nod as they walk into roll call, Emile's jumper pulled up so his stomach is out, eating snacks, and Ewen's shirt completely unbuttoned, his hair messy. Master Henderson walks into the room and sees the two of them pacing around the room.

"Improper dress and eating outside of undesignated hours" Master Henderson says sternly as Emile and Ewen stop their pacing, "as punishment, go help the Dorm Mother". '

"Thank you very much!" Ewen and Emile say happily.

--- one hour later ---

"What?" Damien says as he walks out of the room, into the garden where he sees Emile and Ewen doing the chores, "what are you two doing here? Why didn't you go out with the rest of the class?".

"This is our punishment" Emile says as he places the basket down on the ground.

"Let's get this over with already" Ewen says as he starts to hang the washing on the line.

"I said that I'm not going to play" Damien says as he walks over to the two of them.

"Stop being so stubborn, Lord Damien!" Ewen says as he looks at Damien.

"You nerd!" Emile says as he points at Damien.

"Whatever. You don't need to hang out with me" Damien says as he gets to work, "you two go on and have fun".

"I mean, if you really think about it, those guys lack any taste if they're going to a movie on a beautiful day like this" Emile says as he and Ewen help Damien with the rest of his washing.

"Exactly. What's really in right now is doing laundry" Ewen says as he hangs a pillowcase on the line, "not to mention, look" he says as he ties one of the sheets across his neck so it looks like a case, "we can even pretend to be Imperial Scholars" he says as he starts to laugh, running around, "if you want your Stella's, come and get me!".

"Hey, that cape belongs to me, you jerk!" Damien says as he goes after Ewen.

"Come back here and work, you three!" the Dorm Mother says as Emile runs off as well.

--- a few moments later ---

Damien is looking up at the sky as a soft breeze flows through his cape.

"You look like you wanna go on a picnic, lad" one of the teachers says as he walks over to Damien.

"I do not!" Damien says with a slight blush.

"Hmm" Master Henderson says as he watches from the porch, "talking and messing around while you're supposed to be working... I have a new punishment for you three".

"What?!" Damien, Ewen and Emile say shocked.

"Go on the field research trip with Mr Green, our custos, and two of our Imperial Scholars" Master Henderson says as he gestures to Mr Green who stands next to Damien.

--- the next day ---

Damien, Ewen, and Emile struggle to control the boat as Isabelle and Demetrius use a paddle to turn, Mr Green sat in the back having no problem with all five up them struggling.

"Aren't picnics fun?!" Mr Green asks entertained by the five of them, "you can go down the river while being on the premise! Isn't Eden grand? Don't you worry. I used to be in the navy! Just relax and have fun! Alright! Let's keep going until we hit the lake upstream! It's a great spot! Moderate exercise is good for the brain, too! Just sitting at your desk isn't necessarily the most effective way to study!".

"Well, this exercise isn't moderate!" Ewen says as he looks back at Mr Green.

"Come lads and lass!" Mr Green says happily, "you're going to have to turn left as hard as you can, or we're going to crash into that rock!".

The five of them manage to steer the boat to the left as they pass the rock.

"Sir! There's a waterfall right in front of us!" Damien says worriedly.

They go down the small waterfall as they land on the water below, Damien losing his balance in the boat as he falls into the water.

"Lord Damien!" Ewen and Emile shout.

"Save me!" Damien yells as he thrashes around in the water, "I'm the third son of the prestigious Desmond family!".

"We're coming right now!" Ewen says as he and Emile dive into the water after Damien.

"Hey, lads!" Mr Green says as he puts his hand out.

"I'm the heir to the Elman family!" Emile says as he begins to thrash around as well.

"I'm the successor to the Egeburg family" Ewen shouts as well, the three of them thrashing around.

"Lord Damien, you need to survive if no one else can!" Emile says as he holds Damien.

"Yes! Make your dreams come true for our sakes, as well!" Ewen says as he and Emile hold Damien up as best they can.

"You two..." Damien says sadly.

"Please hurry to the boat!" Ewen says as he tries to push Damien towards the boat, "before the last of our strength fails us!".

"Damn it!" Damien yells as he looks at Mr Green.

"I can see you're having fun out there" Mr Green says as he places the paddle in the water.

"Mr Green, are they not aware that the water here is barely a foot deep?" Isabelle asks as she looks at Mr Green.

"I don't think they know" Demetrius whispers to Isabelle.

"You can stand up" Mr Green says as he looks at the three boys in the water, "and the current isn't fast at all".

"Huh?" the three ask as they hold onto each other.

"It was only fast because Isabelle and Demetrius wanted to scare you" Mr Green says as he hits the bottom of the river with the ore.

The three of them let go of each other as they stand up, the water barely meeting their knees. Mr Green gets the boat to ground as Demetrius gets out, holding his hand out to Isabelle as he helps her out of the boat. Isabelle walks to the three boys as she takes her bag off her back, digging inside as she pulls out three spare outfits.

"Go get changed into these and bring me your wet clothes" Isabelle says as she passes the three the outfits.

"Thanks" Damien says as he takes his.

"Thank you very much, Isabelle!" Ewen and Emile say as they take there's the three of them running off to get changed.

A few minutes later, the boys come back, changed as they pass their clothes to Isabelle who walks to the makeshift washing line Mr Green set up.

"Come on" Mr Green says as the three boys walk over to him, Isabelle hanging their clothes up as Demetrius hands them all a towel so they can dry their hair, "you need to get some firewood so we can start a fire before you catch a cold".

"Yes, sir!" the three boys say as they run off.

A few minutes later, the boys come back with some firewood. Mr Green looks at Isabelle as he holds his hand out to her. Isabelle rolls her eyes with a sigh as she digs in her bag, taking out a tampon as she passes it to Mr Green.

"Would you rather have me say it in front of these three young, impressionable boys?" Mr Green asks as he unwraps the tampon, "anyways, a good tip for survival boys. Always carry around a tampon. They're a good start to a fire. Now, Isabelle".

"Ugh!" Isabelle complains as she takes her lighter out of her pocket.

"You're acting like the reason you're here isn't because I found you and Demetrius chain smoking behind the library!" Mr Green says as he snatches the lighter from Isabelle's hand.

"You smoke, brother?" Damien asks as he looks at Demetrius.

"If you tell Dominic or Father, I'll destroy you" Demetrius says as he glares at Damien, "that goes for you two, too".

"Yes, Demetrius" the three of them say as they look down.

Mr Green sets fire to the tampon which then starts a fire on the wood as well.

"It's so warm..." Ewen says as the three of them walk over to the fire.

"Now that I've calmed down, I'm kinda hungry" Emile says as he holds his hands out.

"Since you're already wet, why don't we catch some fish in the river?" Mr Green asks as he looks at the three boys.

"What? We don't have sandwiches or anything else like that prepared?" Ewen asks as he looks at Isabelle.

"The fact that you're looking directly as me pisses me off beyond imagination" Isabelle says as her eye twitches.

"We don't have anything fancy like that" Mr Green says as he stands up, "you're Eden students! We'll get what we need right here!".

"Huh? But..." Emile says confused.

"I'll get you some string and nets" Mr Green says as he walks towards the boat, "you figure out the best way to use them!".

"What?" the three boys say, their energy slowly being drained from their souls.

The three of them work together as they do their best to make some makeshift fishing poles. Once they have, Mr Green, Isabelle, and Demetrius help them catch some fish. The three boys each catch a fish, Isabelle having a go, nearly taking all of the fish out of the river. The three boys watch in shock as Isabelle puts them all into a box. They then cook the fish over the fire on sticks. They all pick a stick from the fire with the fish on the end. Emile, Damien and Ewen watch as Mr Green, Isabelle, and Demetrius all dig in. The three of them look at each other and nod as they all take a bite out of their fish.

"It's so good!" Damien says as he looks at the fish.

"Indeed!" Ewen says as he looks at Damien.

"Ain't it, though?" Mr Green says with a smile, "the roast beef at Wimpsons isn't that bad, but nothing beats prey you caught yourself".

"It's good. It's so good!" Emile says happily.

Why am I having fun right now? While I'm messing around here, others are studying...

Damien says as he looks down sadly.

"Doesn't the gentle breeze feel nice, lad?" Mr Green asks as he taps Damien's shoulder, "the sound of the fire popping as the flames dance... the rustling of the trees and the smell of the dirt... relaxing and letting your five senses take control ain't half bad, is it?".

"I won't become an Imperial Scholar just by spacing out here" Damien says as he looks at Mr Green.

"Oh? But Demetrius and Isabelle spent a lot of time here through their years at Eden and they're both Imperial Scholars" Mr Green says as he hits his hand on the back of Demetrius' back as he folds over, "did you know that the most recent studies in neuroscience suggest that your brain feels really revitalised when you're spacing out? Apparently, it affects your imagination and memory. So famous creators and athletes make sure to give themselves time to space out. While you're spacing out, you might be able to get all eight Stella's before you know it".

"No way" Emile says as he looks at Mr Green.

"Space out..." Damien says as he thinks it over, "space out, space out, space out".

"You don't need to space out. You're just a dumbass" Isabelle says as she looks at Demetrius.

Demetrius looks at Isabelle as he puts his hand to her forehead, pushing her backwards off the log they're sat on.

"Asshole!" Isabelle yells as she kicks him in the back, Demetrius falling forward.

"Lord Damien, I don't think that's really spacing out..." Emile says as he looks at Damien.

"He might be more simple minded than I thought" Ewen says as he looks at Emile.

--- two hours later ---

"Alright, your clothes have mostly dried, so let's make our way to the river" Mr Green says as the bots put their clothes back on, "apparently, the students call this "Stella Lake"".

"Stella! Let's go!" Damien says excitedly.

"Lord Damien, you're way too obsessed with Stella's" Ewen says as he looks at Damien.

"Pic-pic-pic-pic-picnic!" Mr Green sings as they make their way towards the lake, "oh, yeah. Lately, people in the South have been using the code word "picnic" for defecting to the West through a third country".

"Sir, are you trying to sell us to the West?" Damien asks as he, Ewen, and Emile all stop walking.

"You can't defect just by walking a couple of kilometres" Mr Green says with a chuckle.

"I wonder why they go to the West" Ewen says as he looks at Emile.

"I wonder if the facts just taste better in the West" Emile says as he looks at Ewen.

"Who knows?" Mr Green asks as he tilts his head, "just look at how beautiful the night sky is in Ostania".

"There's nothing to worry about" Ewen says happily, "once Lord Damien becomes an adult, he'll make Ostania even better!".

"Yeah!" Emile says with a nod.

"Hey!" Damien says as he looks over at Ewen and Emile.

"Oh? Do you wish to be a politician in the future? That's admirable!" Mr Green says as he looks down at Damien.

"Well, my Father is one, so..." Damien says as he looks down.

"You've got to get through me and Dominic first if you wanna get there" Demetrius says cockily.

"You're a dumbass. Damien's already smarter than you and he's only six. You're nineteen. That's scary" Isabelle says as she looks at Demetrius, "Dominic is quite smart though". '

"Don't talk about my twin like that" Demetrius says as he looks at Isabelle, "you know he has a crush on you, right?".

"Well, at least I know I'll be marrying rich!" Isabelle says happily.