T - Lucca, Lauryn, Nako, Harps, Spidey

[Kitty]

She felt the tiniest glimmer of a warm, happy feeling when the doe she had been hiding behind so much already leaned back into her for what she fully believed was support. There was someone here she could trust that wasn't going to judge her and give her the looks everyone else did. Except maybe the Torquehelm doe, she seemed the least fearful of them out of the group.

And on top of that the strange, crazed Jack wasn't giving her too much more then a passing glance. Perhaps she didn't quite meet his tastes, and that was perfectly alright with her. She rose up onto her paws and nudged the Madame as she went to move toward the kitchen as well, leathery wings tucked close to her sides. She glanced back at the strange Jack, pity briefly flitting through her heart before she looked away.

He was probably just another pawn in this game as well, only his case was a little more unfortunate. He didn't get the swift death that her mother had, he was suffering for who knows how long. He seemed like he might have been a rather nice gentleman before misfortune embraced him.

[Lucca]

Shelby didn't know whether to be unnerved or relieved when the Jack seemed to glance right over him. He was a Leveret and it was expected, yes, but this whole situation just seemed so...wrong. He swallowed and followed Maeve into the kitchen, tail twitching. His nose wrinkled and he sneezed a bit at how dusty it was. This Jack had obviously been here far too long...possibly with no Does for company. Oh, now that was a rather disturbing thought...Shelby hoped the stove would work correctly and they could make the tea quickly, so as not to walk in on...anything unpleasant.

He turned when Maeve spoke to him, and nodded, heart beating fast. He didn't like the reminder that they were in danger. He nodded, slowly, to her plan. "A-all right," he said nervously, setting the letter opener down to search for a tea set. He found three cups and a teapot, one of them chipped but all functional, and then another cup of a slightly different pattern in the sink. He turned the water on, and it ran brown for a moment with a gurgling noise before coming out clear, and rinsed the cup, setting it with the others. "What kind of tea would be best?" Shelby asked, fishing around in one of the cupboards and pushing jars gently out of the way to find the containers of dried tea leaves.

The motions were slightly calming, familiar. He'd prepared tea a million times under his mother's patient eye. If he closed his eyes, letting the smell of mint, tea, and chamomile wash over him, and the sound of the water reaching boiling on the stove fill his ears, he could almost pretend he were back in his own Warren.

[Nako]

Aleah responded immediately to Dafina's frightened shivering, leaning into her physical touch. This was almost.. treacherous, but the leveret found himself caring very little about such sentiments as this -deranged- Jack found his way toward the group. Aleah met the Jack's own stare with his own tired, bloodshot one.. but the Jack seemed to have little interest in him, seeming more interested in the Does.

When the leverets were dismissed, Aleah did not leave. "Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere." For now he'd wait and watch; perhaps the Jack Anubis would return and make it a more even fight. If not… his paws flexed. It wasn't as if he was ill equipped to defend himself. Magic… well. That made things a little more difficult.

He surveyed the area somewhat, making note of the apparent disarray of the area. Trailing behind Dafina with his head down so as to make himself less noticeable, he snuck along after them toward the sitting room.

----

Layla probably should have expected -something- was going to come of being splashed with all that gore… When the pain hit her, Layla thought that she would surely die as all the others; she hardly noticed the actual creature, a card.

Horrified and oblivious to the goings on around her, she'd carefully pick herself up, realizing she was not dead. Someone was talking. The Jack Anubis? No… no. This one was frightening in appearance and trembled strangely. He was ordering the leverets into the kitchen. Numbly, she followed them, unsure of what else to do.

Her tail… it had lengthened, curling about her hind leg and nearly tripping her up. She was keenly aware of new appendages that were strange and made of bone. And her feet… for a moment she'd thought her rot had suddenly gotten worse and eaten through most of her flesh. But… that wasn't the case at all.

She sat on the kitchen floor dumbly as the other leverets worked on their plots, taking note of the distinctly clean seam between animate bone and flesh. No rot at all. No smell. She'd never been -ashamed- of her rot, but the often leaking wounds were something to be upkeep. Now it was gone. She wasn't entirely sure how to feel about this.

When Maeve directed a question to her, she blinked widely. "Oh? Biscuits… yes." She stood up and staggered off, opening pantries mechanically as she searched for some bread type foods. Her new horn knocked some things off of a counter, nearly falling on her head. She felt at the new growth. A horn? Really? What was she going to do with such a thing?

----

What a delusional newborn; Banvyne seemed more preoccupied thinking of her own name instead of the situation at hand. Walking curiously after the Jack, her ears swiveled to and fro in deep thought. Yes… it suited her. A good name. The Jack liked the name, and even liked her Did that mean this was her Jack?

But everyone seemed rather afraid of him, and the Jack truly seemed like he wasn't quite all there. Wait.. speaking of names, the Jack had never given her one. Should she ask? Was it a proper thing to do? Surely it was; if anything, the Jack had been terribly rude not to give them one. She certainly hoped this wasn't to be her Jack if he were so lacking in manners.

"I… do not believe that you gave us your name, good Sir." She made a note not to sound testy; after all, he was being civil and offering them tea.. even if the place was a mess. Did she truly wish to eat anything that came from such a wreck of a Warren? Too much for her new mind to take in, surely.

[Dark]

Maeve crinkled her nose in thought, “I’m not sure. Perhaps the spiced black variety, if they have it. The Jack should enjoy it.” And as he was the one they wanted to drink…it was to his tastes they would defer. (Regardless that the concession was a normal state of affairs, anyway).

Maeve found a tea caddy tucked away in the pantry, and shook the dust from the moth-eaten lace skirt. The teapot, and the mismatched cups, and a plate for the biscuits that would hopefully be discovered were arranged neatly on its surface.

As soon as the others finished with their tasks, it would be time to face the Jack and his unwilling guests.

“We can do this,” Maeve muttered determinedly under her breath, barely aware that she had spoken. The plan was spotty, at best. It should work, accept for several things that could ruin the whole affair entirely: the Jack could have an ability that allowed him to sense drugs/poison; or was so distracted in his addled state that he didn’t drink a sufficient amount of tea; or, when Maeve tried to warn the Does off--they could be dragged to safety, she supposed, but Maeve would much rather not have that particular honor--they could grow hysteric at the prospect of voices in their fluff-filled heads, and give the plot away.

Maeve was trying not to think about it in any manner but positive.

[Spiderfly]

When the crazed Jack addressed her Dafina's wings flared a little bit before tucking back in towards her sides.

"My name is Dafina, Sir." With a small quiver she nodded to him.

The words that she heard Aleah speak comforted her significantly. She could do this. Just. . . act, until Father got back to save them all. That's all she had to do wasn't it? It wasn't as if this Jack seemed particularly violent towards them. She was scared to see what he'd do once Anubis was back though, as she had heard many stories from her Father about what a proper fight was like. Fina wasn't really sure she wanted to see that, even if it got her out of the Warren safely.

---

Anubis perked when he finally heard something, and it wasn't in front of him down the tunnel. .. it was behind him.

"Dafina. . ." He whispered before sprinting back the way he had come. Had he been tricked to leave the weaker ones behind? The Jack cursed under his breath and ran faster towards the entrance to his tunnel. He was almost there. .

[Nathalia]

((The Jack stumbled a little as he walked, as though unused to his legs...or ill, and encouraged them all into the dusty sitting room...after walking them by the open door to the Does chambers...awful smell of blood coming from in there.
The Jack doesn't seem to notice.

After all had begun to seat themselves among the ruined finery; the Jack patted a spot on the couch next to himself.
"Madame...um, Banvyne? If you would come and...sit with me, please." The Jack asked, eying her with a sad sort of desperate hope as his eyes raked the rest of the group.
"Such beauty, to all have come here to me...really, um, lovely. What is that drew you here?"
He crosses a leg and jiggles the foot nervously, fingering the pockets of his tattered coat and shifting a little every few seconds, as though uncomfortable in his very skin.
"Perhaps I can help you, ladies? To feel more at home? What do you wish for?"

---------------------------

In the kitchen, the Leveret's searches have turned up some odd things indeed:

Packet of Silver Dust: This little packet of fine dust is pure silver and seems to tingle when touched...I wonder what it does?

Ring of Fever: Once a week, the owner of this fine; copper ring (in the shape of a Diamond, no less) will be able to cause one other creature to suffer from an exaggerated fever; hallucinations and all, for a full 5 minutes. Though stronger creatures can fight their way through still; they will be highly weakened, suffer delusions, and be quite overheated or cold, and off-balance.
Using this ring on a Queen or a Jack will cause the caster to feel the effects as well.

Old Stained Teacup: This teacup tingles a bit, maybe you should just take it with you? This item does not have to be assigned and can be traded away later. If broken, the person who broke it can forever call forth a full pot of their favorite tea, whenever they want it.))



~Nathalia

[Lucca]

((I'm claiming the ring. If anyone has a problem with that you can PM me and I'll change it. <3))

Shelby nodded, shakily, to Maeve and continued searching the cabinet. "I-if I can find some in his Warren, we can assume he does," Shelby responded. After all, why would a Jack have something in his Warren he wasn't fond of? Well, unless he was just trying to indulge the wants of one of his Does. Some Jacks were prone to dote, after all. But then, this Jack didn't seem like he'd had any Does for a while, so perhaps that wasn't a concern?

He made a small, triumphant grunt as he came upon a tin of the proper tea, and pulled it out, something small and hard jarring loose from behind it and hitting him on the paw. Shelby blinked, looking at the small, copper-colored ring, and unthinkingly slipped it onto the paw it hit. He carefully carried the tin over to the stove and steeped the leaves in the now-boiling water, pouring the resulting tea into the pot and helping Maeve to arrange it all on the tray. He tried a smile, but it looked tired. "That should do it?" he asked, the end seeming more questioning than he'd meant it to be.

He went back for his little weapon, and frowned, thinking. It would be nice to have something to tie it with, so his paws would be free. A small search revealed a bit of string and he tied a makeshift sword belt, hiding the letter opener carefully on his side and trying to bury it slightly under his short fur, getting nicked for his trouble. Luckily, it drew little blood, and Shelby tried to just ignore it. He really didn't want to deal with any more of the stuff today, if he could help it.

[Dark]

((I’d really like the silver dust, but PM me if ya wanna deal. <3))

Maeve flitted nervously around the kitchen while the others finished with the tea and procuring of biscuits—which hopefully weren’t too stale, and if so, it might be better to forgo their addition, but the spread wasn’t complete without the things—briefly considered the addition of cream—an idea that was quickly discarded; it was off—and began to rummage through the drawers in hopes of finding—something. The tiny packet, yellowed with age, was at the bottom of one of the drawers and tingled when her paw brushed it; magic, but what kind? It didn’t feel malevolent, at least… Maeve opened the package, examining the silver dust, carefully stirring the contents with a nail. Something to consider later, she supposed, and pocketed it.

Maeve returned to the caddy, grateful for the help with arranging the items, and gave her own weak smile when Shelby spoke, “Yes, that will do it.” Everything was ready, and if they were luckily—which was unlikely, considering the flow of events thus far—the Jack would quickly succumb to the massive amount of opium they had put in the tea. “I’ll push the cart, if you like.”

She remembered her way to the lounge, unfortunately; it took an extraordinary amount of will to voluntarily place herself once again in the presence of the deranged Jack.

“Your tea is ready, Sir,” she spoke softly. She was confident that her fellow conspirers would not give the plot away as they helped serve the tea; she had to be confident, or she might very well give it away herself.

The trickiest part would be warning the Does, though, and Maeve was leery about attempting it, considering the gender’s propensity for dramatics. They had little choice, though; they couldn’t all be carried. Maeve would lie, flatter, and threaten then into submission.

’Dafina. Do not react, as it would upset the Jack. The tea has something in it to help the Jack relax—he’s very ill just now, and it’s very important he drink the tea--but you mustn’t drink it. Pretend to drink to keep him at ease, but you must not ingest it. Anubis will arrive soon; all will be well.’

’Madame Banvyne. Please do not be upset at the intrusion, but I must apprise you. The Jack is very ill right now, though he’s uncomfortable acknowledging this fact. His medication has been placed in the tea, so as to ensure he take it, but it would be ill-advised that you partake yourself. However, please feel free to keep him at ease, at your discretion.’

’Do not drink the tea. Act as if nothing is wrong with the tea, but do not drink it yourself. Do not draw attention to yourself, or it will be to the effect of dire consequences.'


Twisted Silver Earpiece:
A small tingle runs through the new owner of this earring when it was placed on and, within an hour, the Leveret wearing it will become aware that they now have an imbued magical ability. Once a week, they are able to communicate telepathically with three other creatures for up to 5 minutes. The people they are conversing with must be people the caster is already acquainted with and has spoken to at least once. This spell does not work on proper Cards (though it will work on Aces...) and other Leverets can hear, but not respond to their thoughts. Jacks can hear and respond, and Does can respond for the first minute, after that they can only hear.

[Spiderfly]

Anubis slowed as he drew nearer to the exit of the tunnel. Nervous habit had him wanting to readjust his grip on the knife in his hand, but it sat comfortably exactly where it should be. His ears dropped down low, and the Jack crouched. Perhaps if whatever had threatened the group earlier was now within the Warren he could manage to sneak up on it. Slowly he exited the tunnel and took scope of the situation around him before heading quietly towards the noises he had heard.

---

Dafina let out a quiet rush of air. Her eyes took in the Jack in front of her. Driven mad by lack of Does was her best guess, and a small bit of pity wove it's way through her chest. Perhaps he was no more dangerous than a scared child, then again, he may be as dangerous as a rabid Card. She shivered lightly at the thoughts in her head, praying for her Father to return soon, as she was sure he would.

"Wish for?"

She questioned silently. Fina was surprised she was even offering conversation to the madman. She stopped, uncertain whether she should really voice her wish as it could be taken as a come on. To be needed by a Jack No, certainly she wouldn't say that out loud in this company.

"To be valued, . . " She cut herself off mid-thought, surprised the words had even come from her mouth. The Doe readjusted nervously and watched the crazed Jack and his odd movements, and then, the leverets returned.

To her surprise she heard one of them in her head, she blinked rapidly. The leveret was trying to play her for a fool surely. This little one had no good intentions for the Jack, but she didn't care! Whatever the guise of this ill-move, it might just give them the time they needed. She nodded in thanks, and understanding, to the leveret before lifting the tea delicately to sniff at it's fragrance. Why they wouldn't just put something in the Jack's cup alone made her question the validity of any plans the servants had made.

[Nako]

He'd remembered her name, if just barely. She'd forgive him for that indiscretion because of how very insane he seemed. She gave him a wary gaze before finally deciding upon sitting next to him. The room for the Does had stunk to high hell. What had happened to his Does? She was hard pressed to believe he'd actually done it himself. What sort of Jack would kill Does? Still… she couldn't help but have that worry in the back of her mind.

The hair on the back of her neck stood on end when she heard a voice. She glanced around hastily and realized just who it was. Her eyes narrowed dangerously, but her mouth stayed closed. She'd give that leveret a talking to, for sure.

But if it was medicine.. was it truly all that bad? Once again, Banvyne did not think too much of maliciousness. What sort of lowly, stupid leveret would do anything to harm a Jack?

With a snort, she straightened up in her seat. "About time. Our dear Jack seems like he's quite desperate for a cuppa' right about now."

--

"What is that supposed to mean?" Aleah all but clipped out the words behind Dafina. For some reason, he looked genuinely perturbed.

She didn't think she was valued? What sort of tripe was that? Sounded like Torquehelm depressive talk for sure. This was -not- the place or time to be calling the Doe out on such a comment but.. Aleah couldn't help himself. Nor did he quite understand the gravity of the situation. Even more desperately, he feared that her silly outburst would attract unwanted attention. Having been under her father's care she was safe.. virginal. Had he been a Jack now he might have very well boxed her ear for saying such a foolish thing in a bad situation.

Bah. Thinking like a Jack… in the body of a leveret. This limbo was torture. He hissed the next words through his teeth in a low voice.

"I don't know why you feel like you have no value all of a sudden, but I resent that remark."

--

Layla blinked as a teacup slowly made its way down her horn, spinning down it before settling at her forehead. Huh. Well, might as well keep it. It was such a pretty little teacup.

She hopped obediently after the other leverets, blinking with curiosity. They'd done -something- to the tea. It made her nervous.. but they didn't seem keen on giving her the details with how intent they appeared. They seemed older and wiser than she anyhow; it was probably best to trust them.

((I'll take the teacup if that's alright I'll have her break it if nobody else cares for it.))