[IC] Discovery- character development rp

[Amithea]

Serene clumsily got to her feet and flexed. It had been a long, hard day of meditation for her, and her muscles were stiff from the lack of activity. Sighing slightly, she opened the conservatory door and stepped outside. She paused for a moment to appreciate the crisp autumn air.

[Gentlemanvaultboy]

"You seem to have gotten into the swing of it already." Called a boyish looking man from a nearby patch of gnarled and dead trees. He was dressed entirely in evening wear, half-cape and top hat and everything, all accentuated with garish green and purple patterns of pumpkins and moons and screeching cats. Laid casually across his shoulder was an umbrella decorated much the same way. Everything from the tip of his hat down to the buckles on his shoes was unreal and fanciful.

"I'm sorry, was I not supposed to respond to that part?" he asked, smiling warmly and scattering the contents of a packet held in his other hand around the forsaken grove around him. His canine teeth were pointed. "Lovely evening, isn't it?."

[DriveEMOut]

A teenager stood to the left of the man, a bit behind him and his red hair covering his eyes. His fair skin was covered by black jeans, a grey button shirt, and leather gloves. He wore combat boots, and a black hoodie, unzipped and the hood down. "You're quite a creep, if you don't mind me saying so, you sorry bloke." He rasped, his sharklike teeth in a menacing smile that looked more like a grimace. "And your outfit is horrid. The pattern doesn't look like something a posh person like you would wear. I'd think you would have a better fashion sense than an amateur vigilante detective." He observed the girl casually, as if she was a bag of chips in one of the aisles in a grocery store. "Interesting."

[Gentlemanvaultboy]

"Ahh, my shark faced friend, I wouldn't expect you to understand." He said tucking the umbrella under his arm and wagging his finger in the air. "If my costume was any less audacious it would start looking too real, and if it starts looking too real it might become too real. People could end up mistaking me for some sort of ghastly creature of the night."

He shook the packet until it was empty, crumpled it in his fist, and replaced it in his jacket pocket. He rubbed his hands together in anticipation. "Right, now I just have to wait for the sun to finish setting."

[Rusalka]

Watching the whole scene unfold over the rim of her dark glasses, a woman, appearing to be around her early thirties, sat casually at a nearby table sipping form a long stemmed glass a bit of Pinot Noir, her favorite wine. She smirked, listening to the insults being spat about, a soft, sultry giggle escaping her as she uncrossed her legs and stood placing her wine on the table. ~"My my. I see you two boys are well acquainted."~ Her lips, christened with Chanele Rouge No. 3 lipstick, parted giving a warm, mischievous grin, her rose colored eyes sparkling.

She tipped her shades looking up and down the smaller man's...interesting attire, snickering as she passed, her black stilleto heels audibly clacking against the floor, ~"Mmm, sorry honey, but Halloween's long past. A cute outfit though."~

[Amithea]

'Who-?' She looked from the strangely dressed man to the annoyed redhead in confusement. 'I don't think we've met?' taking a step back, she began to question her sanity a little- what an odd pair.

[Rusalka]

@Amithea

The woman then noticed the girl among the rabble. A charming face she was. She approached the seemingly confused young lady, a soft smile of sorts forming. ~"Oh my, you are certainly the cutest little thing I've seen here." She held out her hand in a friendly gesture, but that tiny glint in her eyes displayed a few...more than friendly intentions. ~"The name's Claudia, darling. A pleasure to meet you."~

[Amithea]

@Rusalka

'Nice to meet you too.' Her gaze hardened as the woman came closer. Where exactly were all of these people coming from?
But the woman seemed to be sane enough- more so than the other two at least, so she grasped Claudia's hand, shaking it firmly.

[Rusalka]

@Amithea

Claudia smiled warmly, leaning down and planting a gentle kiss on the girl's hand. My word, her skin was smooth as porcelain. ~"Charmed."~ She gave a soft chuckle quite enamored. ~"I must say, my dear, this is all rather strange, wouldn't you agree? I was just minding my own business enjoying the fresh autumn air, when out of nowhere these two buffoons began bickering."~ She sighed a bit irritated. ~"Honestly, it would have soured my lovely afternoon had you not arrived. Tell me dear, what is your name?"~ Claudia asked removing her sunglasses. Her rose eyes, they practically shimmered like precious rubies amidst the warm glow of the sun upon her fair skin, her long, auburn hair flowing gracefully caught in the cool breeze.

[DriveEMOut]

Jack glared at the man. "Oi! Who do you think you are to call me a shark! Outrageous, I'll say! Didn't ye mother ever teach you proper manners, mate?" He pulled out a small handgun and disassembled it, before reassembling it and putting it back in his pocket. It seemed to calm him down. He then turned to the woman. "I doubt someone like you has been in the slums, if you were you'd be throwing around insults too." He then turned back to the man and grinned. "Name's Jack, by the way. You?"

[Rusalka]

@DriveEMOut@Amithea

Claudia shot the red haired boy a look putting her sunglasses back on. What a surly little cunt he was to say she had never experienced the harsh reality of the world. Why, she had half a mind to storm over and backhand the bastard, but she kept her composure. She was more refined now than her haughty, youngr self. A brief bought of laughter and sass, she turned to him with a hand on her hip, ~"Honey, the slums would be a cake walk compared to what I have experienced. Try being a scared little girl running from a mob of knights during the bloody Crusades, or better yet, hiding from the Nazis in the Warsaw Ghetto."~

Dark times she spoke of indeed, and oddly as though....she had experienced them firsthand.

Impressed she was no less with the boy's knowledge of firearms, raising an eyebrow as he disassembled the small pistol then put it all back together, not a piece out of place.

[Gentlemanvaultboy]

"And," the gaudily dressed man added, tapping sharkface playfully on the chest with the tip of his umbrella. "Shark face is a compliment." He leaned back, resting up against one of the trees. "You know, this whole situation brings to mind a particularly experimental episode of The Twilight Zone. Group of eccentric strangers, nondescript area, general mystery, all we'd need is a fifth for the comparison to become slightly ominous."

[Rusalka]

@DriveEMOut@Gentlemanvaultboy@Amithea

~"Mmm yes, it is quite the oddity."~ Claudia agreed nodding to the extravagantly dressed fellow. ~"But the place is rather charming, if I do say so myself."~ She turned toward the elegant Victorian mansion standing before them. Claudia wasn't too certain who, or possibly what, brought these strangers together here, but at least they had nice tastes.

It stood tall and proud, like the majestic castles of Olde England, amidst the beautiful countryside, well...most of it beautiful aside from the forest of withered and gnarled rooted trees that encompassed much of it.

Claudia yawned giving a light stretch. ~"This has been all and well, my dears, but I believe I must retire for the evening. It's getting late."~ And with that, she turned on her heels and casually walked towards the mansion, all the while happily humming to herself and swaying her hips. She paused at the door however, a sly smirk creeping as she glanced over her shoulder at the three. ~"You know....I wouldn't be surprised if one of you cheeky little things had something to do with this. C'est la vie."~ She jested with a giggle then slipped through the door.

[Gentlemanvaultboy]

"My, my, stately secluded manor house, attached conservatory, foreboding woods," He said, surveying the house that he was positive had only just come into view. "Certainly seems like my sort of haunt. Tell me, young lady, are you the proprietor of this charming estate? Or have you too only just appeared out of the mists?"

@DriveEMOut@Amithea

[Amithea]

@Gentlemanvaultboy @DriveEMOut

Serene could hear the man speaking, but she wasn't truly listening. She was looking up at the mansion. 'I don't think-'
She turned and began to walk towards it.

[Rusalka]

Claudia had some time earlier to scope out the mansion before she decided to enjoy the view, and a lovely glass of wine, from the patio. The place was indeed gargantuan, but didn't feel so overbearing and sparse. She could tell whoever owned the place before had put alot of work into it, and good on them for that. Everything was just so extravagant and beautiful, from the plush crimson rugs lined with gold accents, the black and white tiled marble floors, to the dazzling chandeliers made of pure crystal glass and the large pillars carved so ornately that stood rank and file, and that was just the main foyer.

There were all the other ammenities one could think of for an elegant and cozy abode such as this, including the attached conservatory. As many bedrooms as one could imagine being in this place, all so artfully decorated with priceless paintings and lavish curtains and sconces, a kitchen downstairs next to a lovely dining room with a long pinewood table, a fairly spacious common room with many chairs and plush, comfy leather couches and loveseats and a grand fireplace already crackling with a few cedar logs, giving the room a pleasant, warm aroma, a study with bookshelves stocked with all manner of books, easy chairs and a glass cabinet filled with various whiskeys, scotches, and ales, and a lounge with a billiard table, a few antique flintlock rifles and medieval swords donning the burgundy painted walls, along with a few animal heads, some deer, some mooses, even a bear or two. there was even a bar in the corner, well stocked with booze and cigars.

But the room that caught Claudia's eyes the most was the breath taking Roman bath. Two large wooden doors led into the room, the inside so lavishly decorated, paying fair tribute to its ancient roots. The bath itself was quite large, almost like a swimming pool with its rectangular shape and cerulean tiles. Wisps of steam danced upon the sheen, crystal surface of the water, sparkling from the pleasant light of chandeliers and torch sconces. Lining the bath were great columns carved from the finest marble holding up the open air balcony and the roof above, painted with a lovely scene of cherubs frollicking in the clouds.

The air inside was so warm and soothing and smelled so clean with the scent of fresh mineral water.

A pleasant smile crept across Claudia's lips as she closed the door behind her gently and wasted no time undressing and wading into the soothing hot waters, melting into the bath with a relaxing sigh, ~"Ahh...I do enjoy a nice, hot bath."~ Pleasantly she mused, taking a cloth from beside the bath and a glass vial of chamomile body wash. She bathed herself, quietly humming and enjoying the delectable scent of chamomile.

[Gentlemanvaultboy]

He watched her until she slipped into the mansion behind that other women, Claudia. Far be it from him to break such an entrancement. "Curiouser and Curiouser." He said, thoughtfully rubbing his chin. The last light of the twilight sun was fading fast, casting the whole world in shades of orange that almost reflected off the mans wide smile. "Tell me Jack, in your professional opinion as an amateur private dick, for what reason is a group of strangers brought together to a secluded mansion under mysterious circumstances?"

@DriveEMOut

[DriveEMOut]

"My opinion? I'd say that this person either lured us here to kill us, or he has a special favor or message he wants us, and only us to know about." He touched the revolver in his pocket. "Frankly, I don't trust it a bit."
@Gentlemanvaultboy

[Gentlemanvaultboy]

"My feeling exactly." he replied. The sun dipped lower, the sky going from orange to soft purple to deep dark black. The moon rose high into the sky. He leaned his umbrella against a tree and pulled off both his gloves, tucking them into his front jacket pocket. He turned to face the forest, rubbing his hands together. "If I'm going to unmask this monster, first I'll need to do some landscaping!"

As he rubbed his hands together they started to give off an eerie green glow as something like a see-through liquid began to float up off of them and waft lazily about the treetops. He pulled his hands apart and spread them wide, the stuff now gushing out between them like fog. For a brief moment the cloud seems to coalesce into the shape of a clattering skull, then the man slams his hands into the ground and pumps the stuff into the earth.

The effect is instantaneous. Long green vines burst forth from the pumpkin seeds he'd scattered earlier, winding their way across the ground sprouting orange gourds, bug and small as they went. Some of the vines wound their way up the trees, depositing pumpkins high on their branches. The trees themselves began to shake, becoming twistier, more old and gnarled if that were even possible. Every knot became part of a face, every crack and cranny a line of jagged teeth, every branch a grasping claw. The pumpkins began to stretch and squash, ripping open mouth and eyes in comically ghoulish configurations. There was no pulp inside, however, merely a solidly burning flame of the same eerie color as the strange substance the had birthed them.

He lifted his hands up off the ground and placed them on his knees, breathing in and out deeply and deliberately. The whole patch of trees was now positively haunted, but was oddly more illuminated now by the green light given off by the Jack-O-Lanterns. A thick fog, like that caused by dry ice mixed with water, drifted over the forest floor in a milky soup that came up to your ankles. Nothing moved, but somewhere off in the distance a lonesome howl rang out over the forest.

"That always happens." He said breathlessly. "There isn't a wolf." He pulled himself up to his feet to admire his work with pride. "The don't call me Baron Halloween for nothing. Normally it would take days of work to get it to this state, but I've been marinating those seeds for a while now in case I needed something like this on the double." He wiped the excess green stuff from his hands, it lazily listing away to join the blanket of fog, and re-gloved.

[Amithea]

@Rusalka
Serene was making her way through the entrance hall as they spoke. She let out a small gasp, having not been prepared for the grandeur she was confronted with. The place itself had a peculiar charm to it. She didn't know whether it was the warm candlelight or the care with with which everything had so clearly been placed, but she realised that whatever it was, it was there.