T - Harps, Lucca, Callypso, Lauryn

[Lauryn de Vampyre]

((I AM SO SORRY IT TOOK ME SO LONG TO RESPOND!))
(Harps, really cool realization about the horns/antlers thing!)

There were people imprisoned in that room! Bristol had been preparing to respond when all of a sudden the first pair of eyes had been shoved aside and a different pair reappeared. But soon both pairs were gone and he could faintly hear a heated squabble coming from behind the door.

He took the opportunity to quietly return the vase back upon the decorative table. The young man hadn't realized until just now there was any reason to be quiet. Raising a paw to his head he massaged his temples and shook his head slightly. In any normal situation he wouldn't have gone blundering around an unfamiliar location in such a manner! What was wrong with him?

Finally, the first pair of eyes accompanied by the strong female's voice was speaking to him again. A doctor? Yes, that would most certainly come in handy. But... how could he trust them? What if the owner of this house had placed them inside that room because it was actually they who were the danger?

He tumbled and tossed this theory around in his mind for a few second, when he saw yet a third pair of eyes staring out at him. Innocent, young eyes. The daughter, Kendra perhaps? He simply couldn't let a child stay locked up. What harm could she do anyway?

Taking the chance, Bristol made his way over to the door and lowered his face to the keyhole to stare back at the two women. "My name is Bristol," he said in a hushed voice. "I'll get you out."

Looking upwards he spied the deadbolt and pulled it with his clawed paws. It came unstuck with a loud click. Without the doorknob, the door itself swung slowly forward, opening the room and letting the trapped inhabitants free.

[Nathalia]

The door is rather light, all thing in consideration, the deadbolt just seems to be on the correct crossbar to keep the thing from wriggling...
I suppose it really is a modified guestroom door, and not some barricade for prisoners.

The hallway remains as previously described, and completely Chrissie-free.
Wonder where she's got to?
Regardless, there are five other doors, each open and containing a room very much like the one they were contained in, minus the deadbolts, and the tables lining the halls.
A set of stairs leads up or down at the end.

[Callypso]

((Blargh... not a great post, but I'm feeling like a crabapple today!))

It was amazing, this man’s resilience. She was torn between admiration and irritation and settled for a mere sigh. Certainly the man was a bit dim – no one else would insist on chastising her so, given her rough response and the odd circumstances. Dim, but still, one had to marvel at the porcupine’s determination. He was absolutely set on admonishing her for her behavior. Iso supposed he did have a point – it wouldn’t do to create enemies or encourage hostility. She would have kept the thought to herself in favor of pleading with the man on the other side of the door – had it not been for the distinct sound of sniffle. Oh, dear.

The woman turned to find Felix attempting to hold himself together. She had certainly touched a nerve, hadn’t she? Ah. In her anger, she had hit upon the one subject that might have made him recoil as he did now, though she hadn’t purposefully brought up the Selkie devastation to hurt him. Chances were, he had lost everyone he loved – her fear for her own kin had caused her to remind him of that, which was terribly ungracious and cruel.

Felix, I apologize for being short with you. I am not always very… adept… at expressing myself… and didn’t know how else to make you understand. I don’t do well with surprises, and I let my fear for my family dictate my actions. I shouldn’t have said what I did… When everything is back to rights, perhaps you and I can work together to make sure that doesn’t happen again.

Iso knew she was skirting the specific subject at hand that had hurt him so, but even he couldn’t be dim enough to misunderstand what she was getting at. At least, she hoped so. Her stomach flopped uncomfortably – she herself had tended to a few Selkies in their last wretched moments on this earth – and couldn’t imagine what Felix had personally been through. Mayhap, when this was over, he would collaborate with her on finding a cure. She didn’t smile, but nodded encouragingly at him.

The deadbolt was released as she finished her thought – it was such a satisfying sound – and she made her way toward the door.

Thank you, Bristol.

A glance at the door showed that they had indeed been in just a regular room. Someone had made quick work to ensure they were kept secured. That bolt was very out of place. Odd. A cursory glance in the other rooms proved that they were alone, at least, on this floor. Interesting. Were they the only ones “rescued” from the gas? It didn’t sit well with her – there had been so many others in the market at the time. Perhaps some further investigation would illuminate anything about their captor?

It seems we haven’t any company. Perhaps we ought to scour the rooms for any information? I should also like to try the next floor to see if there are any other “guests” being held against their will. In the meantime… Bristol, you seem to not belong here, either. Do you remember anything about how you arrived here, or what you were doing before?

[Lucca]

Felix tried for a smile at Kendra, but it was a rather watery one--it seemed he couldn't quite manage that whole not crying thing right now. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to relax. He hated being so sad, letting things get to him, but not thinking about it only got him so far. Once he started thinking about it, the memories came in a flash, whirling around in his mind like raindrops in a storm. His Mother, weak and strange and small, thrashing in her bed, feverish and unknowing. His Father, screaming incoherently and throwing things about the house, completely unaware of what he was doing. His parents' bodies, being carried out of their former house by a pair of Selkies who themselves had dingy fur and ink leaking from their eyes. The once-busy lakefront as quiet and still as a ghost town.

He shoved his paws against his head and made a quiet, whimpering noise, trying to get the images to stop. Ears perked as he heard Iso was speaking to him, and he tried to focus on the words. An apology? He blinked and looked at the Ferret in surprise. That was the last thing he'd expected from her. "We'll find your family," he promised her, eyes wet and large and honest.

The click of the deadbolt being removed had the Porcupine turning around, smiling his thanks at the odd young Card standing there. He did have rather nice black stripes, though. And he was purple! And on closer inspection...those were, indeed, eyes on his legs. How cool was that! Oh, wait, he should be paying attention to what Iso was saying. "You mean look in the other rooms around here? Sounds like a plan." He took a few steps out of the room they'd been in and into the hallway, spending a moment to marvel once again at how incredible this place really was.

[Harpsdesire]

If Kendra was surprised to see her mother so angry, she was astonished to see her so apologetic. Things with Iso and Felix were getting either more uncomfortable or less with every passing second, and the girl couldn't really determine with any certainty which. Her little wings rustled fitfully, spreading a cinnamon fragrance through the room. She didn't like to feel like she had no control of her destiny... the way she felt now.

Happily, the surprisingly beautiful sound of metal on metal announced that they were free. When the door opened, Kendra took a moment to study their odd-looking savior. He had a rather incredible and odd mix of features. He had way too many eyes, large reddish ones in strange places, and twisted antlers. He was a couple years older than her. He... smelled amazing, for some reason. Kendra tried to ignore this last part as she followed Felix out into the hall. "Thanks for letting us out. I'm Kendra."

She glanced up and down the hall, which was empty but for decorative items and fragile-looking furniture of expensive make. The only interesting things to be seen were the steps at the ends of the hall and the several doors of elaborately carved and glossy-varnished wood. In spite of herself, she indicated the nearest door and asked Bristol, "Want to help me search this one for clues or something?"

[Lauryn de Vampyre]

Bristol's eye spots, with actual eyes instead of the usual markings, were rolling every which way with his fear and confusing. At least no one was likely to sneak up on him this way. He watched as the others, one by one, stepped out of the room and joined him in the hallway.

He bowed his head slightly at Dr. Price. "You are most welcome, Lady. And, unfortunately I don't remember much. I do remember being chased down the streets of the capital, but by what or whom..." he paused to shake his head, "I have no idea. I could barely see where I was going with all the blasted fog. But I do know with almost utter certainty that whatever was chasing me had no good intentions."

The Chamelion/Tiger Mix remembered the feeling of dread as he was pursued, and gave a small shudder. First the Day of Sorrows, and now this? What in the Suits was this world coming to?!

He paused and nodded with a smile at Kendra, "It is a pleasure to meet you as well, Lady." Bristol paused after she asked him to join her in their Search, looking towards her mother for approval. "And I would be most honored to accompany you." She really was a pretty thing, he found himself thinking. The lovely colors of purple, those adorable wings...

The Mix physically tried to shake those thoughts out of his head. That wasn't gentlemanly at all! Clearing his throat, he passed by Kendra and to the first room she had indicated. The door had no deadbolt like the previous, and swung open with ease.

Inside was a bed just as lavish as the one he'd woken up on. A quick glance of the entire space gave proof that they seemed to be alone here at least. Glancing back once to make sure the young woman was still with him, Bristol let himself further into the room and towards the far wall where a chest of drawers stood.

"What can you remember, before you ended up here?" he asked as he stood on his hind legs, using his tail for balance, and opened the drawers one by one to rifle through them. The items inside seemed generic; items a guest might need. A rectangular, silver brush with very detailed carvings on the back was accompanied with an equally decadent mirror. There were objects he could only guess were for personal use; he'd never seen such things before. As he continued to open drawer by drawer, he realized the owner of the house surely wouldn't keep any important documentation in areas where just anyon could find them.

Leaving the drawers open for now, he made his way over to a one door closet, and slowly opened it...

[Nathalia]

The hallway itself offered no obstacles and there was nothing that seemed out of the ordinary; save the deadbolt installed on their door and the lack of any windows.
Bristol managed to locate an ancient fountain pen...still full of old ink, and an oddy shaped Silver trowel.

Silver Trowel: Why would anyone make a trowel out of silver?
If they have that much money to pitch, they should toss some over here, am I right?
Regardless, it tingles when you touch it, so at least it's been enchanted. Careful though, if you hit someone with it...there's no telling what might happen.[/color]

The closet door opened onto an old set of guest bathrobes, of very fine material, but they seem rather normal.
The stairs remain at the end of the hallway.[/i]

[Callypso]

Iso nodded, giving permission for the others to begin investigating the room, but not before giving Bristol a carefully blank face. She had noticed both he and Kendra eyeballing one another, and the fellow did smell ridiculously wonderful. What on earth was he, anyway?

The doctor had seen her fair share of unique realm-dwellers and interesting combinations thereof. Were those eyeballs decorating his flanks? How bizarre… she wondered briefly whether they were actually functional, and what a fascinating musculature system he must have…

She shook her head. There was no time to be suspicious of young crushes – that was certainly the least of her worries at the moment. Better her daughter always had someone with her. For now, she would permit them to join up. Besides, there were only five rooms, and between the four of them, they should make quick work of their search.

Felix ambled toward another open door as the ferret made her way into its neighbor. Iso found this somewhat frustrating, as they hadn’t enough information to really know what they were looking for. All they knew for certain was this Mellowthorpe fellow was apparently disgustingly wealthy and had a least a couple Cards in his service, and quite possibly some delusions of grandeur. She still wasn’t completely sure if Chrissie had been telling the truth in its entirety.

Lifting back some silk cushions from yet another plush bed, Iso mulled over what she knew of herself and her companions. Two males, two females, two Corvies, one Selkie, one… Spades knew what. Two ferrets, a porcupine and… a possible feline/lizard mix? Snake? She wasn’t sure. She suddenly realized they all had horns – which were unusual for all the species. Mutations? Curses, and genetics, in the ferrets’ cases, rare Selkie mutation… and. Again, Bristol was the odd one out. Was his genetic? She needed to find out more about him…

Iso sighed as she opened another desk drawer – not even stationary to give her a better clue! No notes, nothing! Well, if this man was as wealthy as they thought, perhaps this was simply a guest corridor. Simply furnished (ha!) as would befit visitors. She ran her paw along the doorframe, slightly disappointed, then drifted back out into the main hallway.

Have any of you found anything of interest?

Iso pursed her lips in thought… she wondered. Could there be a servant’s service elevator somewhere? A large manor such as this, and perhaps it would give them access to areas of the mansion they might not otherwise have privilege to see.

I should like to see whether those stairs are a main thoroughfare of they might lead to a servants’ lift.

[Lucca]

Felix's nose twitched as first the scent of cinnamon mysteriously came from Kendra, and...for some reason the newcomer smelled wonderful, as well. He closed his eyes for a moment, feeling...odd, and his tail wagged a bit. He was almost about to follow the two lovely-smelling teenagers into the room they were searching, when he realized in a rush that if they all searched the same room, it would take forever. Besides, he could see the way the two were looking at each other. He shot Iso a sly 'would you look at that' smile and then changed direction and waddled towards a different one of the rooms lining the hall.

He poked his head in first, not entirely unsure there wouldn't be someone else sleeping in this one. Finding the large, comfy-looking bed empty, he walked inside, feeling his paws sink right into the plush carpet once again. He gave the room a quick search by turning his head back and forth (and ignoring the slight headache he'd had ever since hitting his horns on the bottom of that bed). He pawed through the drawers in the large dresser, finding them for the most part empty despite the fancy decoration.

Shutting them again with unhurried care, Felix made his way over to the bed, where he briefly looked under the pillows, and briefly considered lying down on it. But he'd already promised to be useful, and that wasn't particularly a good way to spend the day, even if it would be pleasant. Was it even daytime anymore? Stopping dead in the middle of the room on his way to examine the bureau with the mirror on the far wall, Felix came to an abrupt realization. "There aren't any windows." He could vaguely recall Chrissie saying something about sealing the house, but could that really just...get rid of them all? And what harm were windows, anyway?

[Harpsdesire]

Kendra gave Bristol a slightly odd look and followed him. She had never met anyone who spoke like that before, and she wasn't sure if she should find it charming or horribly pretentious. She shrugged to herself. She could puzzle that out later. It really wasn't relevant, for all that it would be more pleasant to consider than their current frustratingly strange situation.

In the meantime, it seemed that Bristol had questions of his own. "My mom and I were just shopping. We happened to see Felix, and then I heard a funny papery noise, and that's it until I woke up here. Locked in. It's a good thing you came along, or we'd still be in there." She started sorting through the nightstand drawer as she did so. That mister Oglethorpe or whatever seemed to be a gracious host, at least-- the room was spotless and stocked with everything an ill-prepared guest could possibly need. She pushed aside a small stack of clean, folded white handkerchiefs and many small bottles of bath lotions, shampoos and other assorted toiletries. There was even a silky eye mask in deep blue provided for the particularly light sleeper. That hardly seemed like something that would be required in a room that didn't even have windows, she thought, replacing a tiny bar of lilac-scented soap.

"Lots of stuff, nothing useful." She commented as she shut the drawers and crouched to check under the bed. Wow, there was not a single dust bunny in this place! Even the crystal water glass and matching decanter on the dresser gleamed, unmarked by fingerprints... well, except hers, now. She cringed a little at the mark and did her best to wipe it off, with moderate success. Shrug. At least she hadn't broken anything.

"Nothing that looks particularly special." Kendra told her mother, emerging from the well-searched and largely empty bedroom. "Should we try another room before we go?" The teen didn't hold out an enormous amount of hope that there'd be some sort of fabulous clue in a guest room, of all places, but she was having a good enough time poking around and seeing how the 'other half' lived that she would happily cooperate if that's what her mother wanted.

It seemed Felix had belatedly noticed the lack of windows. That guy... wasn't the brightest bulb. Kendra decided against commenting to that effect (she remembered how bad she had felt when she saw him almost cry just a few minutes before, and she rather liked his style at any rate), so she just said, "Yeah, weird, huh? Chrissie didn't come right out and say, but I think it's part of the sealing spell."