Scene 2: Cursed blood

@Cettish,@Squadfather44
Though Elias is used to some discomfort, it is clear that Claire doesn't really enjoy much of the travel back home. Despite the carriage's quality, last night's storm left the roads soggy, the wheels constantly sinking into the mud, forcing the wagon to shake strongly and irregularly. You even get stuck one or twice, but manage to get free easily enough to continue! Overall, you actually manage to travel surprisingly fast and arrive just as the sun is highest.



As you move past the Town and start making your way up the hill, your eyes are drawn to the monolithic and imperial estate. As you approach, you get the strange feeling that the Manor is slowly stretching and growing into an immense construction of surreal size, its shape twisting to slowly embrace you with its shadow. For a brief moment, you get the feeling that even the rays of light are somehow drawn into the massive building, bending to its gravitational core, only to be snuffed into complete darkness. You quickly realize it's probably just a mind trick, played by the moving clouds high above. However, this feeling lingers as you too feel drawn to the place. In comparison to the sheer grandeur of the Manor, you suddenly feel your own insignificance, just another one of the many cogs who have turned before you to keep this family running. It's strange to be back home.

The carriage stops, and the driver opens the doors to let you out. The man quickly takes your luggage to the main door. Once done with his task, he bows, and after the usual courtesies, makes his way back to the carriage, preparing to leave.

---

Surely it is a bumpy morning ride. Muddy trails, rocky roads. A carriage shaking Claire and Elias all up. It's hard to focus and to have a chat if you're all stammering when the carriage is bumping around.

"How...ow...ow have your tra... travels been?" Claire asks as the carriage shakes her around. How she hates this. She is used to the comfort of luxury mansions. It is especially annoying when the carriage gets stuck in the mud, and the one time she actually needed to help to push! But at the smoother part of the paths, more near the manor, it was a more comfortable ride. Claire watched the landscape go by.

Until they finally made it to Rookwood Manor. Claire allowed herself to be guided out of the carriage, her hand held, as she slowly stepped down. Like a true lady. Right... Much less like a lady she cleaned her glasses on the sleeves of her dress as she looked at the manor.

It had been quite a while since she had last seen it. Somehow, it felt like coming home again.

"It's been a while, right Elias?" she asked. "I wonder if we are the first, and who all has been invited. You'd think Alexander would come?"

Roderick spies the carriage arrival from a high gable window.

Here they are, we are gathering here like black clouds ready for unleashing the storm of the century upon these blasted lands... He thinks grimly, a heavy burden on his heart.

Then he sees Claire and Elias are the only carriage passengers, and the sight is a relief. Good. The more tolerable of the Rookwood are first here, it might be a promising omen.

His gaunt figure stays at the window, looking down as if he were a stone gargoyle forever sculpted there...

@Dr_B

Having noticed the strange way in which the chain links had detached, Roderick decided to go back to the Manor. That would have to wait for the next day as he had not prepared for such a cold and humid night. His return to the Manor seemed to take longer than he expected. Besides the occasional distorted cawing from a nearby bird, the freezing winds also made it harder for the old man to move. The constant waving of the fog also created many illusions of movement among the gravestones; but Roderick knew better than to believe his eyes in such conditions. Even so, the moment he crossed the gates, he felt compelled to look back, as if just to check it one last time.

And that was when Roderick noticed it.

A shadow of some sort of deer, half hidden behind one of the many small angel statues. It's antlers rose above the wings of the divine being, Roderick's eyes slowly following the curved shapes to the animal's head... which seems to stare right at him. The creature held Roderick's gaze almost with a magical fascination. It may have been a moment; it may have been an hour. Time meant nothing as the fog whited out all the references the old man could use to estimate its passing. He knows only that it lasted until the creature turned its back and disappeared into the mists... With the forest nearby, this would have been normal, except Roderick could swear it was standing... and walking upright...

He didn't sleep well that night, the strange image running over and over again in his mind. When he woke up, the sun was already high, something which displeased him much as he prided himself of being a most efficient morning person. As he readies himself for the new day, he notices the carriage approaching the Manor. Maybe it was all just a bad dream. After all, these have been some stressful days...

---

@Cettish,@Squadfather44

As Claire turns to ask her older brother what he thought, she notices a shadowy figure staring down at them from one of the windows in the Manor...Players Waiting:

Roderick leaves the gabled room he was watching from, in search of the Caretaker.
I will ask the old fool why he wasn't available all yesterday, and to explain once and for all what's behind this gathering, He broods walking the ancient, echoey hallways of the Rookwood's ancestral home.

Elias laughs at his sister's obvious discomfort from the trip. This was nothing, try staying on the back of a horse, for a full day and night, while doing, maneuvers. That'll make you sit funny.

For a while Elias goes silent as he looks out the window and watches the scenery go by. The closer they get to the manor, the more Elias begins to recognize where he's at. The closer we get the more I recognize and remember...both good and bad memories. Have I really been gone this long?

As the carriage stops at the front of the manor, Elias steps out, momentarily ensures it's safe, then turns and helps Claire down from the carriage. See..the worst is over. Now that we've arrived there's nothing to worry about.

"I kinda do like riding horse..." Claire said. "At the stables and the meadows... for an hour or so... I'd bet you'd been riding quite differently, haven't you?"

She takes Elias's hand as she strides out of the carriage and looks around at the magnificent sight the manor is.
"I am not worried... much... I just sincerely hope that grandfather is doing OK."

She then notices a figure at the windows. "Look!"

She gives a little wave, but the figure is already gone. It was grandfather, right? It had to be. Who else would it have been?

@Dr_B Roderick walks the empty hallways of the Rookwood Manor looking for the Caretaker. The building has virtually been abandoned by now, with only a skeleton staff still maintaining it. Although the old man initially found this perfect to have some peace and quiet, he is increasingly frustrated about how tiring and time consuming it is to find anyone in these many empty rooms.

After searching for a moment, he finds himself back in the hallway where he met Gunther last night. He walks past the painting of his brother and decides to take a moment to breathe, looking out the window. That damned bird is still standing on the same tree. As you look at it, it looks back at you; it caws three times and then flies away...

.. and from behind that tree, the Caretaker is revealed. It looks like the man just left and may be walking deeper into the Manor's grounds.

---

@Cettish,@Squadfather44

Elias is too late to notice anyone where Claire pointed. Whoever it was, they may have not seen you, as it doesn't look like anyone is coming to the main door to greet you. Players Waiting:

What the devil? The old fool is in a hurry to get somewhere... Now, that tree... Could it conceal a passage that the Caretaker uses to get in and out of the Manor unobserved? He thinks.

Only one way to find out...
He hastens towards the Pantry, remembering there is a door to the grounds the servants used to get supplies in. The shortest route to go and check that strange tree.
The Pantry hits his senses with its stacks of of boxes and jars playing tricks with the shadowy cirners, its smell of spices and cured meats, the rough surface of its shelves against which he has to lean to get through the room.
He reaches the grounds door and opens it silently.

Once reasonably sure he is not observed (this wing of the house being not in sight of the main entrance) he starts pursuing the Caretaker, taking a good look at the crow tree as he passes it.

"Come on," Claire said, taking steps forward, heading toward the big frontdoors of the manor. "Let's go find grandfather and offer our condoleances with the loss of... his... wife?"

She looked a little uncertain at Elias, still not entirely sure who grandmother Rookwood had been anyway. She already made her way up to the strais, leading to the big double doors. The manor sort of felt like home, although she'd been calling another place home as well lately.

It was... weird being back, still she was quite glad to be back, even though it was a grim and sad reason to be here right now.

Elias nods his head and follows Claire up the stairs. Pausing long enough to motion at the driver to unload the bags, Elias grabs the knocker and raps it against the door. Standing beside his sister, Elias felt an odd mixture of hesitation and joy at being back at the ancestral Rookwood home.

@Dr_B


Even though the Caretaker doesn't seem to be hiding or in a hurry to get anywhere, Roderick is a suspicious man... and yesterday, he couldn't find the servant! He can always get the man later, but for now, there is only one question on his mind: Why does it look like the Caretaker came from the tree? If there is a secret way in and out of the Manor, he should know about it!

This is another thing he enjoys about the Manor being understaffed... he can easily sneak around unnoticed. Using the servants door through the Pantry, a place a man of his standing should not be seen in, Roderick is standing in front of the dead tree in no time. As he turns to see if there is something about the old tree, he is stunned to notice that the tree seems to be happy about seeing him too. He rubs his eyes in disbelief. The lack of sleep from the rough night is probably starting to get to him. Though he is clearly imagining things, he does notice the "mouth" of the tree can fit a person...

---

@Cettish,@Squadfather44


Elias, knocks once, then again. No answer. However, the third time, the door seems to move slightly. Could it be that someone left it open? He decides to try and open it, revealing the old richly adorned entrance to the manor. As if time doesn't move forward in this place, it is exactly as you both remember it, its impressive states and paintings arranged in the perfect fashion to highlight the family's wealth and influence. Players Waiting:

Claire looks around while standing at the entrance. It had been a while, but so much seemed just like she had remembered. The staircases, the rich chandeliers, the art work of Rookwoods long gone. She wondered if one of them was grandmother in her younger years. Probably not, she would have heard about it.

Still, it was strange that none of the servants nor grandfather welcomed them here. She would have expected Gunther at least. Not that she liked the man much, he always gave her a bit of the creeps. But still... where was he?

There is not even a servant to carry her luggage to her old room. She kinda felt like doing that herself, looking up the stairs.

As her footsteps echo through the hallway, it all feels quite a bit spooky.

"Where is everyone? Where is grandfather? Where is Gunther?"

Roderick looks closely at the gnarled roots of the ancient Ash tree. He has to crane his neck into what his senses read as the tree's mouth.

What is this?... he thinks, squinting his eyes at the sight of stonemasonry peeking through the roots. Man-made structure... They seem like steps going deep down! The stone looks ancient, and the steps show the erosion of centuries of use.

Another detail catches his eye. A deeply engraved symbol carved at the centre of one of the steps.

His curiosity piqued, he pushes further into the hollow, when a sound startles him.

With a horrific creaking sound, the vault of roots above him is slowly moving! The vein-like tendrils of dead wood are tightening from all directions, like long, grotesque skeletal fingers intertwining in a deadly grip.

Feeling the panic surge within him, he scrambles quickly backwards and away from the narrowing mouth among the roots. He falls backwards on the soil just outside, in time to see the living roots sealing the passage below the tree, relentlessly animated by a mysterious force. Soon all is silence, and the roots are still, once again, showing no trace of the mysterious passage.

As his heart rate gradually calms down, he ponders on this new mystery. He tries to memorise that symbol he has glanced. Perhaps it is meaningful.
One thing is certain. The Caretaker knows how to get through that passage. There is more to the old man than meets the eye...

He struggles to his feet and turns in the direction the Caretaker was last seen heading to.
He hastens to see if the man has left footprints in the muddy soil that one could follow.

@Dr_B


Roderick barely has any time to make out the symbol drawn on the stairs before the vein-like tendrils seem to purposefully push him away from whatever secrets lie within the dead ash tree. The surreal experience left the old man struggling to calm his breath. First the letter, the invitation for the Ceremony, then... this tree. He looks at his still shaking hands, the skin hardened by the age. He can feel it in his bones. Something old, maybe even something unnatural...

Last night's storm turns out to be useful, as the grounds are still wet and soft. Roderick hastens to follow the muddy steps into the graveyard... To his surprise, he finds more tracks that could have possibly been done by one man. Perhaps, some are of his own making, from his last night's wonderings... perhaps some are from what he assumed had been only a nightmare....

Roderick's thoughts are interrupted by the unexpected voices of someone talking nearby ...

---

@Cettish

As Claire takes some time to look at the old portraits of Rookwoods long gone, a few of the women in the family capture her attention with their almost unnatural grace. She is however, disturbed by the fact that she doesn't recognize her own parents in any of the paintings... It strikes her as strange at first, like the unsettling feeling the memory of her own parents slowly fading.. but then she finds a much more logical explanation: maybe her parents simply didn't have a portrait done before their tragic disappearance.




Claire looks up the stairs, remembering exactly where her old room used to be. She find it strange no one has come to welcome them yet, but she's a big girl and she can take care of herself, right? Claire makes her way to the room, her assumption that that's where she should be confirmed by the fact that it is ready for her to use, faultlessly prepared exactly as it used to be when she was a child.

---

@Squadfather44

You are at the entrance, reliving some old memories when you notice Claire going up the stairs, presumably to her old room.Players Waiting:

Roderick takes some deep breaths to regain his composure, then takes a last look at the uncanny ash tree.

He turns to the multiple tracks, and starts following them, towards the voices.
Calm down, you decrepit fool. Let us find out who these voices belong to, and present a first impression worth of a Rookwood...

Claire goes up the stairs and through the hallways, finally finding herself in her old room.
She gazes around. Someone had been keeping it clean.

So much memories... she took the old teddy bear that was reading at the pillow end of her bed. Held it a moment.
She no longer needed it to chase the monsters away. So she'd put it on top of a big closet, where it could watch over the room instead.

Opening her luggage, she put away some dressed into the closet.
She takes her notebook and puts it away somewhere safe.

She puts her encyclopedia on the shelf. Next to an old fairytale story book.
She flips it open, remembering mom reading at bedtime. She had always loved the scary fairytales.
She flipping through the pages, and looking at the colorful pictures of hags that looked friendlier than their fairytales suggested. She walked around her room a bit, looking at the memories in the pages, trying to recall mothers voice.

At the window she glanced at the graveyard. Always a happy sight from her bedroom...
Who was getting into the graveyard? Grandfather? Yes! It had to be him!
She looked down from the window, putting her storybook away. She looks at grandfather through the window. Should he look the right way, he would certainly see her.

It felt a bit awkward. She wouldn't want to think she'd be spying on him. But she wouldn't want to disturb him either as he probably was preparing... somehow... for grandmother's ceremony.

Elias watches his sister walk upstairs with only mild interest. Looking around the foyer and waiting for a servant to arrive, Elias finally gets bored and wanders off himself. Even though he's lived here his whole life, except for his time in the Army, the old house feels somewhat alien to him. That's when he finds himself in front of it. A old door adorned with a ornate plaque. A rather detailed carving of a pair of swords carved on it.

Opening the door, in an almost reverent manner, Elias finds himself in his favorite room of the house. The Rookwood hall of Arms. Filled with mementos of past Rookwood military men, Elias would spend hours in here as a young boy. Even now looking upon the armor and weapons..a flood of memories comes back at Elias. Walking farther into the room, Elias finds himself in a small library filled with all manner of books based on the art of War. Taking his hand and tracing the back of the books Elias loses himself in the moment and picks a random volume to read again.

@Dr_B Roderick, possibly hoping to catch those trespassers red-handed, decides to follow the voices. While he expected to find some annoying teenagers he could scare easily; he is surprised to find three women instead. At first, it would seem that they could be the youngsters that he suspected, but after a closer look, Roderick can tell they are probably older than they look, maybe late 30s or early 40s. Time has been surprisingly kind to them! Somehow, seeing these women has a calming effect on Roderick. It doesn't seem like they would be the ones turning statutes around or cutting chains now, does it?

They stop talking to each other and turn towards him, unsurprising by his sudden interruption. The red-haired woman smiles charmingly at the old man. She then speaks with her soft, melodic voice, her words and her looks giving away a foreign origin Roderick can't quite pin down. "Good day, man of the living. You must be the master of the house" she looks over Roderick's shoulder at the Manor. "Rookwood is the name we heard. Yes, it is our pleasure to finally meet you." She puts her ironshod cane on the ground to help herself move one step closer, her smile seemingly as bright as the sunlight, as she greets the old man with a kiss on his cheek... likely another foreign custom that catches the old man by surprise.

---

@Cettish




Claire takes her time to check out her old room, reliving some of her childhood memories. She grabs the old Teddy bear that used to keep her safe from the monsters she read in her old fairy-tale books putting it on top of a big closet. She won't be needing protection from monsters any longer, but for some reason, it is comforting to have it still watching over the room... As she thinks about it, she notices her favorite book, still on the shelf where she last left it. She takes it and browses through the colorful pages without paying much attention to the content, just remembering how she used to love those scary stories. As Claire finds places for the new things she brought from Riverlight Manor, she walks past the window and stops, taking in the view. Though as a child she made nothing of it, the view of the graveyard feels a bit more unsettling now that she grew up and understands better what that place means.

As Claire looks out the window, she finally manages to find someone else! For a moment it seemed like the Manor had been abandoned, so it feels good to know that they are not alone... While the girl is overthinking what would be best to do in case the old man notices her, she sees him with 3 very good looking ladies; one of which seems to be kissing him on his cheek. The old man still has his charms, she thinks, though the thought of it makes her giggle.

That is when Claire hears a noise from behind her, somewhere in the room. A sound like something cracking, but also... whispering... She turns to see what it was, but doesn't notice anything out of the ordinary.

---

@Squadfather44
Though Elias can't help but worry about his sister, she is at home now so she doesn't need his protection. The man insists on waiting for a servant to greet him, as it would be proper, but, seeing how that is not happening, he decides to wander off.

Despite most of the Manor being kept like it was before he left to join the King's army, Elias notices a few things here and there that are not exactly the same. Almost... but not quite the same. Somehow, these small changes make the Manor feel stranger. A feeling of being home, but not at home the same time. Maybe he has just gotten too used to the rough conditions of his training and will need to get used to the contrasting luxury of the Manor again...

Instinctively, Elias find himself wondering in front of a familiar old door. The Rookwood Hall of Arms, the place where he spent so many hours as a young boy. But now, after his battle experiences, this room takes on a different meaning. All the old armor and weapons in the room... he knows what they can do and how they are used. He moves deeper, sitting down at the small library, picking a book, and slowly flipping through it, reading some passages that catch his interest.

Time flies in this manner; but, having left the door open, Elias is interrupted by the giggling of a woman. As he takes his eyes off the book, he notices two shapes passing by the old door of the armory, in the direction of the great hall...

---

@KingHotTrash,@crazybirdman After their meeting with Guther, Alexander and Nathanial briefly comment on the strangeness of the the man's words. The old servant seems to talk about their grandmother as if there was nothing strange about it. But, as far as you can tell, the events he described happened decades ago. It's possible the man lost his sense of time, after all, at his age, it's not uncommon to mix up memories. But the fact none of you don't seem to remember your grandmother makes you even more uneasy about this whole Ceremony.

And then, there is that wolf story... Though wolves are not uncommon, that something like that would even bother the Knights of the Sacred Congregation is just baffling. The man could have lost it, or have some motivation to lie or hide something. After all, he did become suspiciously nervous when talking about the rumors...

As they walk up the hill, making their way to the Manor, the two cousins fall silent, trying to make sense of what is going on. On their way to the Manor, the cousins notice a small group of strange men walking into the woods. This would have gone unnoticed were it not for Guther mentioning the Hunters hired by the Reeve. Those strangers... they are definitely armed and hunting...

It takes Alexander and Nathaniel some time, both clearly wishing it would have taken them longer, but eventually they make it to the Manor's front. There, the two cousins notice the main doors are open; a small black cat rubbing itself on the edges while peeking inside.

Players Waiting:

History

KingHotTrash July 23, 2022 5:44 am

KingHotTrash July 29, 2022 8:46 pm

KingHotTrash July 29, 2022 8:46 pm

The silence that fell between Alexander and his cousin was not comfortable but not quite uncomfortable. There was a nagging strangeness that lurked in Alex's mind that demanded that answers be made. The focus at which these thoughts lingered made his injured eye ache, a dullness that made his mind pound lightly. What he wouldn't give for a bit more inebriation. His thoughts were only silenced by the motion of the strange men walking into the woods armed and ready for the hunt. Alexander watched as they disappeared into the thick foliage, the cracks of branches and crunching of leaves being all the betrayed them until that too went silent.

"Strange times, cousin, strange times..." Alex whispered, willing his feet forward towards his unpleasant destination. The manor rose before them, like a massive tomb welcoming them into the dark. It seemed somehow larger than what he remembered, an unsettling quietness surrounding it. Big buildings in the city were alive with sound, movement, and life. This place felt much more like a maw opening wide for its meal.

The main doors were open, unattended except for a small feline that had settled nearby. No memory of a cat struck Alexander but he had a fondness for the animals. Skilled ratcatchers when it suited them and lazy fools the rest of the time. How many hours had he spent obliterated with only the rumbling purr and the soft fur of a feline to keep him focused and seated in reality?

"Hello there little friend. I wouldn't go in there, nothing good comes in to it or out of it." Alexander whispers, crouching down and doing his best to not appear threatening. Offering his hand out, he quietly called for the animal's attention.

Roderick jolts back, stepping away from the red-haired woman as she leans in for the kiss. He will try avoid contact with this stranger, albeit a good-looking one.

"What... what are you doing?... Stay in your place, woman!" he barks annoyed, but wishing to sound less confused than he does.

Regaining composure and straightening, one step away from her, he continues sternly. "I have never seen you around these parts. Explain who you are, ladies, and what is your business trespassing in the Rookwood grounds. This is not some public parkland for you to stroll at leisure. You are fortunate our mastiffs were in the kennels. Were you in the family cemetery? "

Claire looks down at the little scene going on between grandfather and the three ladies.
What was goin on there? If she could only hear it.

She didn't recall these ladies. Had she ever seen them before? No, probably not.
Wait? Did the redhead just kiss grandfather? Did she see that correctly?
She rubbed her glasses clean on her sleeves and put them on again.

Without really intending it, she'd moved a bit. From standing fully visible in front of the window, to being half hidden behind the curtains.
Her eyes linger on the three ladies. Trying to remember them, should she ever meet them... The Raven haired... The Red... the Blonde... and the Raven haired...

As she hears the sound behind her... a whisper... she spins around. For a moment imagining that grandfather Roderick would have suddenly appeared behind her catching her on spying on him. Of course not... still... it gave her the creeps.

She knew it was dumb, and probably just imagination. But she couldn't help but say "Hello?"

"Hmm, I guess I was hoping the door would be locked and we could just give up on this whole ordeal. Yet the door is open, and there appears to be a feline doorman working here now." Nathaniel says with a half smile

@Dr_B

Roderick is taken by surprise by the woman's closeness and quickly avoids any physical contact. Anyone who has met the man knows how much he seems to despise any physical contact. The red-haired woman doesn't make much of it as Roderick orders her to stay away, simply looking at the old man, her face letting none of her thought escape.

"We are the sun, the moon and the stars. Dawn and Dusk, the Twilight" she answers Roderick's question, pointing at the others as she speaks.


The blond woman bows as the first one mentions the Dawn, and adds "We do not trespass, for the sun rises in all places"

The third woman bows as well, reacting when Dusk is mentioned, "And the moon shines upon all lands"








Roderick struggles to follow the women's words. That is not the sort of introduction he had in mind, though it would seem they don't really care whose grounds these are. They are either mad, heathens or both! It is even more clear to Roderick that they are not from this realm, as no heathen would speak so freely, fearing the retribution of the Puritans. His thoughts are interrupted as the red-haired woman continues to cryptically explains their reasons for trespassing. "We are here to see the dead. Tell us, man of the living. Are your dead at peace?"

---

@Cettish

Claire is distracted by the three strange ladies and, as she steps back, she hears a cracking sound and a whisper. She turns back, almost waiting to see Roderick mysteriously materialized out of her guilt in the room. Instead, there is no one there. For a moment, she looks around, unsure of what happened. Maybe it was just the creaking sounds of the old house. Maybe it was her brother walking on the wooden floor, looking for his room... She call out and gets no answer. Her heart beat is racing, and even the deep breaths she takes are not enough to calm it down. She looks at her teddy bear, instinctively looking for her guardian and protector, a childish reflex she assumed she had lost...

And that's when her breath stops, a chill going down her spine as the room temperature suddenly feels both warm and cold!

Did she leave the teddy like that? No, she's sure it was not looking that way! Looking defiantly at the old standing mirror in the room...

---

@Squadfather44

The giggling continues, followed by happy chatter and... slow music. From your location deep in the armory's library, the sounds are faint and seem to come and go. The intermittence of the voices makes you think that something may be blocking the sound... Maybe those two shapes opening the doors of the great hall allowed the sound to escape from the room?

Could that be why the staff did not meet you at the entrance? But then... shouldn't you not have met at least someone, or at least notice something, on your way to the armory?

---

@KingHotTrash, @crazybirdman

Alexander and Nathaniel reach their dreaded destination, each with their own uneasy feelings and memories... and each hoping for a reason not to walk into the maws of the Rookhood manor. Finding the main doors open, they give up all hope of escaping the call back home and continue their automated movements towards it. And that's when Alexander finds the small black cat. Alexander, having developed a fondness for these creatures, offers his hand to the animal. They were only ones who always kept him company during his downward spiral into oblivion... maybe even somehow kept him from giving in completely into his own darkness.

The cat looks the young man in the eyes, almost as if considering his warning. He decides to take Alexander's hand, smelling it for a moment and then rubbing it as it gracefully moves around the man. It does not seem to have any identification, as Alexander had seen done in the City. But in remote villages, it is very common to have strays being kept by everyone, so it would not be surprising if the animal had no specific owner.

When Nathaniel catches up and jokes about the "feline doorman", the cat once again looks at the man as if to listen. It meows, and jumps away from the door, running to the corner of the Manor, where it stops, looking back at the two men, you'd swear almost with a smile on its face.

"I'm even less in tune with cats than I am with people, but does that cat want us to follow it?"

"Cousin...that is something I'd say while lost in the clouds." Alexander says with a grin that slowly died on his lips as he looked back at the still open door of the manor. "That said...something is askew. Come on." Moving his bags to the inside of the door before hoping down the way, Alexander would begin to follow the strange feline to the corner. Unlike what the Puritans would say, black cats weren't bringers of doom and curses. They kept the home free from rats, provided comfort to those without comfort, and warmth on the coldest nights. There was also something to be said about cats, something about their eyes. It was like they were all in on a joke that no one else knew; mischievous yet not unkind.

He would step through the dead leaves as the wind picked up and chilled his flesh, arms wrapping around himself as he stepped closer to the corner where the black cat waited.

Elias closes his book and sets it on the small table. Getting up, he straightens his uniform and makes to leave the armory. Closing the door he turns and starts walking towards where the noise came from.

Roderick casts quick glances around. Are these women crazy, hinting so blatantly at a strange cult? All it takes is the wrong ear within range, and they'll be burnt at the stake... Last thing we need is a witch hunt on our grounds.

"Know that you are on Rookwood land, and it is the Rookwood dead you are talking about!" he exclaims, trying to intimidate the three heathen trespassers, but clearly seeing his words do not cause a reaction.

Yet the women intrigue him... so fearless... so cryptic... I wonder what arcane knowledge these hags are masters of... "Answer me at once, before I set our mastiffs lose on you! What is it you want from the Rookwood dead??"

Claire looks at Teddy. It had certainly... moved? Had it? Did it turn? Rotate? Where were those bead-like eyes staring at?

Her mirror. It was quite like she remembered it. Mom always liked if she put on fancy dresses, and she looked pretty. And they looked in the mirror together. Claire was more a practical girl. A good dress was a good dress. Sure, Riverlight also cared about looking fancy. So she often did. But really, she didn't care much for it.

Slowly she stood in front of the mirror again. She looked at her own reflection. Straightened her glasses. Tied her hair a bit. Was she pretty? Not as pretty as some other girls she knew. Passable. She took of her glasses, holding them in her hand. Did that improve anything? She squinted her eyes to see. To see deeper into the mirror...

What was it what she was actually seeing?

Claire spit on her glasses, rubbed them clean on her sleeve and set them straight on her nose before staring at the mirror again.

@Dr_B

The women don't seem to react to Roderick's intimidation, which takes him by surprise. Usually, just mentioning the Rookwood name is enough to strike fear deep into anyone's heart. When did his name, his family's name, lose its commanding authority? Had they already fallen further than he realized? And why does it seem that these women feel no fear, even at the idea of being hunted down by the family's hounds? Somehow, this makes him even more curious about the forbidden cult they belong to.

The red-haired woman he now identifies as "Twilight" looks at the old man, disappointed, but also somewhat condescending. "All we wish if for the dead to rest in peace." She adds, touching one of the nearby graves with her cane.The dead? The dead? Her words seem to trigger something in the back of Roderick's mind. A memory, a rumor? Something,within wants him to know. He feels it, like an hardening inside. His heart perhaps? No, not just his heart, but his full body. He feels himself becoming slower until he can no longer move, his skin feeling as cold as stone, his eyes, blinded by a strange greyness. Paralised, powerless, petrified.

But he hears them, the whispers of centuries-old souls, all around him. He feels the spark of life in every stone, every rock. His mind bounces from place to place; his conscience expanding across the graveyard. He again focuses on his sister's statue; she turns and smiles to greet him. "It is time, brother. We will meet again soon" she whispers in her youthful voice. The night mists burst from the graves, engulfing her until she is dissolved into the moonlight. Only the shadow of the deer creature remains, standing in her place, defiant. "The dead must rest. The dead must rest. The dead must rest" it repeats itself as it turns its back on him and walks away, its distorted voice echoing in the old man's mind. Roderick is startled by a loud noise coming from the ground below him. He notices that he is standing on top of the grave Twilight pointed out with her cane, and watches as a rotten hand tries to push it open from the inside. As he tries to grab it, it quickly hides back, the stone slab too heavy for an old man to move.

Roderick hears the noise of someone approaching and at that moment, he sees Alexander and Nathaniel, apparently following a stray cat. He turns around and finds himself alone, the three women nowhere to be found... just one villager looking at him with a confused expression. The man quickly tries to pretend nothing happens and goes on his way.

---

@Cettish
Claire can't tell how her teddy moved or changed position. Maybe it simply fell out of place. She probably didn't put it down properly to start with. But something in the way it looked at the mirror... something was pulling her to look into it as well. As if some supernatural magic was controlling her body, moving her closer, somehow, willing her to see her own reflection. Forced to confront herself, she is taken by her doubts and insecurities, but the woman on the mirror, that woman, is pretty, is graceful, is sad...

Clair takes off her glasses and, surprisingly, she actually sees the reflection clearer. However, it was never her reflection in that mirror. The woman in it looks like her, but maybe a bit older... like a future version of herself; a prettier version of herself. The woman stares at Claire for a moment, before deciding to walk back to bed. Claire stands there, looking in the mirror. There is no reflection of herself. It is as if Claire was nothing but a ghost, a memory... Claire hears a familiar music playing softly in the background, and the pleasant perfume of roses fills the room. Instinctively she turns to see where the woman went, finding her otherself opening the window, opening the room to the dark moonless night. The cold airs sweeps in as white mists creep through the window.

The woman smiles and whispers to the invisible moon... and the moon... the moon whispers back from the darkness of the sky.

Suddenly, the scent of roses changes to something rotten. As the mists surround him, Claire notices a man sleeping in her bed. A multitude of shapeless hands grab him and drag him out across the floor to the woman. Her sweet smile twists into some macabre version of itself as that woman, the woman who looks like Claire, that is Claire... she... she... Her heart racing, Claire takes her hands to her eyes, trying to avoid seeing what happens next, but her hands turn invisible, refusing to protect her from the horror of that man's dead...

She tries to run, but there is nowhere to go. The teddy! Her guardian! She looks for him, finding it now standing between this her and the that other her. He points her to the mirror. The mirror! Of course, she puts her glasses on again and looks deeper into the mirror...

This time, all she sees is her mother holding a dead grey rose, smiling at her, dressed in her pretty pink dress ...

---

@Squadfather44

Elias, maybe bothered by the noises, maybe curious about what is going on, decides to stand up and walk up to the great hall next to the armory. However, as he touches the small side door to the room, he stops. Something is not quite right. The soldier suddenly gets the strange feeling that, being this close to the room, he should be hearing the noise from inside. The noise that got him here in the first place... Instead, he is surrounded by deafening silence. A silence that is broken, only by faint echoes of a cat meowing far inside the Manor. Probably another stray that found its way into the entrance hall...

---

@KingHotTrash, @crazybirdman

Unsure of what is going on, or simply still clinging to the hope they can avoid the impending family meeting, Alexander and Nathaniel decide to follow the stray black cat around the corner of the Manor and then to the back of it, passing the old dead tree and into the graveyard, where they lose track of the little creature. Once again, the idea that cats are all on to some joke comes to Alexander's mind, as he notices Roderick standing on top of a grave on his own, with a lost look on his face. Maybe the man has finally gone mad? As Alexander is trying to figure out what the old man is doing, Nathaniel also spots something a bit strange... the Caretaker working nearby, shovel in hands... Is he... digging a grave?

Claire gazes in the mirror. Her mouth hanging open in amazement.

She almost forgets to breathe as she looks at the scenes unfolding in front of her.

The woman that looks like her and seems to be from the future... really? Could that be? Was thet what she would look like? Quite pretty really. She never imagined herself to be really pretty. She followed the figure to the window. What was she doing? Talking to the moon? How? Why?
Claire doesn’t understand any of it. As she turns around and saw a man in her bed she yelped. What was he doing in her bed? Gross!

"Get out of there!" she commands in a whisper.

And she gasps as he gets pulled out towards… yes… it has to be future her…
She claps her hands against her head, holding her head. In front of her eyes... but she sees right through them.

Afraid that it might fall off. What is going on here? Who is the man in her bed? Why and how is he dragged off? And what is future her doing to him? Did she kill him in the future? Has she already killed him? Why? Would she become a murderer? Was she already one... no... she'd never. Right?

"No no no" she just repeats as a sort of mantra.

"Teddy?" is he actually standing there? Actually alive? That isn’t possible. Yet he points at the mirror. She looks.

Tears swell in her eyes.

"Mother…" Claire reaches out with her finger tips to touch the surface of the mirror. The reflection of mother. Holding her favorite flower a rose… a rose that has somehow lost its color. Another of the countless weird mysteries.

Claire recalled the dress. Mother wore it often when Claire was still very young. Claire had always loved it so much and hope that she’d one day grow into it and could wear it herself. Nowadays it was a dress that really wouldn’t be her style.

Claire stood in front of the mirror for as long as the image would last. The man in her bed… she hadn’t really forgotten him. But he was of less concern to her now. As the image of mother faded from the mirror, Claire stood there. In front of the mirror. Looking at the quite empty reflection of her room. She could see her room. The window, her curtains, her bed. All seemed quite normal… still a bit childish… but normal.

Until it dawns to her that she is looking in a mirror and misses something obvious. She looks again. Her own reflection seems to be missing. It is silly, but she looks behind the standing mirror. As if expecting her own reflection to be hiding there. No… of course all is it should be there. She looks in the mirror again. Still no reflection. She touches her face, just to make sure that she is actually there herself. She looks at her hands, her real hands, not at the mirror. They seem to be back again.

Another view at the mirror. Just her room. An empty room. She is not in it. While she actually is. But not in the mirror. Has the mirror just forgotten what her reflection looks like? Is she here but not here? Is she invisible to all but herself?

Her mind races. So many thoughts... Her future self killing a man in her bed... Teddy being alive... Mom with a colorless rose... her reflection.... She can't handle it anymore...

"AAAAH!!!" she yells louder than she has ever yelled before and rushes out of her room, down the stairs.

She has to find Elias. Or grandfather. Or even the ravenhaired woman for all she cares. Someone!

"Damn thing has gotten away. I would've loved some kind of good company...no offense, cousin." Alexander offers to Nathaniel, a small smirk on his face. Turning around, he catches sight of a figure standing a distance away upon a grave within the family cemetery. The lost look on his face earns a momentary thought of concern before it is quickly replaced with anger then shame. The emotions only flutter across his face for a moment before he lets out a sigh.

"I'll take on the brunt of it." Alexander offers, stepping up towards his confused elder cautiously. Alex's head tilts slightly, studying the man carefully in case he had truly lost his wits. "Grandfather? Are you alright?"

"No offense taken. Looks like the cat has the good sense to leave after all." Still putting of talking to the old man even further, Nathaniel decides to check in with the Caretaker while Alexander checks on Roderick.

"Good evening, I don't suppose you've seen a little black cat, or know where it's headed?" he offers as a conversation starter.

Roderick turns at the voice calling him, the movement costing him a great deal of effort, as if parts of him were heavy weights to lift.

"Oh. It is you," he says to Alexander, making sure his disappointment transpires in his tone. "I thought you would come. I cannot say I am very pleased to see you. Very well. I will endure your presence here if I must, but... you stay out of my way," he says in no uncertain terms, coldly, laying down some clear boundaries for the fortune-squandering fool.

" Who else has arrived with you. I know as little as you, about this reunion," he then adds.

As Elias stands there, in front of the door, he raises his hand as if to open the door. Hesitating for a moment, Elias falters a bit finds himself unable to decide if he wants to open the door.

As he stands there, Elias finds himself and his thoughts drifting back to the lavish parties that were held in the very room he's thinking of entering. Steeling his nerves, Elias makes his mind up. Reaching out Elias grabs the doorknob and throws open doors. Moving with a purpose, Elias strides into the room as only a Rookwood can.

"Alas, it seems that dear Grandmother wanted my attendance as well. I shall work to make my presence...bearable for you." Alexander responds, his already growing irritation tinging his words but there was control in there as well. These were strange circumstances that had brought them together and perhaps, maybe, something better could come out all of this. Brushing his hair back, he gestured down the way where Nathaniel had walked off to.

"Cousin Nathaniel is here from his clinic. The front door was left ajar, I do not know if any others have arrived." His brow furrowed for a moment as he walked a bit closer. "What brings you here to the cemetary, Grandfather? And have you seen Gunther recently?"

@Squadfather44 Elias strides confidently into the room, only to find a big empty space, completely immersed in silence. He notices the wall candles are lit; the chairs are neatly placed in a circle around the room, and the floor is polished so well it mirrors the elaborately painted ceiling. The man continues walking until he stops under the old chandelier; his steps lazily echoing across the room. The way the room is set reminds him of the lavish parties he witnessed during his younger years. So lost in his memories, he can almost hear the faint humming of an old song coming to an end.

However, the more Elias looks around the room, the more he notices the small out-of-place things. The instruments are in the musicians corner as expected, but the violone is just... too upright for something laying on a chair. The air feels colder, but there all the windows are closed. The candlefire seems to be a shade bluer than when he entered the room...



And then, there is that old wall painting. The colors so vivid it is almost as if it is trying to get his attention. It's not that he isn't familiar with the Dance Macabre; after all, it used to be a well-known artistic subject across the realm...
No. It has always been about those strange writings in a language he could never identify.
And now, he can just read it as if it was written in his own language...


The dead long for the day they will dance with the living

"Ashes dipping the Rose. Beautiful isn't it?" an echoed voice asks from nowhere. Elias turns back, surprised to see a faded woman next to him. All around him he hears the chattering of the dancers; some he can see as insubstantial shapes; others only as shadows or reflections on the floor. Elias can even feel some through their lingering joy, or just somehow follow their invisible footsteps. The musicians return and take their place in the corner, slowly warming up and tuning their instruments. The woman bows as the music starts to play.

"May I have this dance?"

---

@Dr_B, @KingHotTrash, @crazybirdman

Roderick comes to his senses only to notice that Alexander has arrived for the Ceremony… with Nathaniel. The good news is that it seems someone else may have arrived before them. Maybe he will get to see Claire and Elias soon, instead of having to put up with these two for too long. Alexander, used to the old man’s mood, mostly ignores him and tries to direct the conversation into some neutral ground, hopefully avoiding more unpleasantries. As he points out Nathaniel not too far, the two men can see him moving closer to the tall, shambling and sickly pale shape of the Caretaker.


The Caretaker looks surprised as he hears someone talking to him. He drops his shovel and looks back to find Nathaniel. "Oh! Lord Nathaniel. You have arrived! Wasn’t expecting you… this... soon" he greets Nathaniel, looking around. "A black cat you ask? Mmm that bloody creature still around? The thing must be hiding a litter in the graveyard, but I can’t seem to find where"



Suddenly, you are all heard the yelling of a young woman from inside the Manor…

---

@Cettish

Claire runs down the stairs, panicking after her strange experience with the mirror. She has never seen or heard about anything like that. None of her books ever mentioned anything remotely similar… and everything can be found in books, no?

Someone. She has to find someone! Someone must know something!

"Sorry, but the cat hunt will have to wait" Nathaniel says as he runs off toward the sound of the scream

Claire rushes down the stairs.

Elias.... Grandfather... Anyone... Nathaniel!

As Nathanial runs towards the scream, the scream runs towards him.

Without saying much Claire just rushes towards Nathaniel and wraps her arms around him in a hug in the hallway.

"Nathaniel!" she says. "I think I am going insane!"

Nathan braces for the kid rushing towards him, but still recoils a bit with the impact; "Oh, uhm, Hello Claire. It's okay, I'm here, with Alexander and Grandfather just outside."

Claire looks suddenly a bit nervous. "Alexander has come too?.... I, I am sorry. I must look completely weird. I have just seen or not seen... uhm.... Hello Nathaniel!"

"Well, I've not been in town long, but so far, Alexander mistook a stranger for me, there's odd reports of wolves in the woods, a cat let us in the manor, and grandfather was standing on a gravestone. So If you say you've seen something odd, I'm inclined to believe you. Is your brother here? Maybe he can help us investigate." He stands back to get a good look at the cousin he hasn't seen in a while, and then he looks around for Elias. It wasn't like him to leave Claire in danger, if there was danger.

"Ajar you say... What is going on in this house?.."
He disregards Alexander's questions and walks up to the Caretaker. He notices Nathaniel running inside, but decides to stay behind and ask the Caretaker for explanations.

He addresses the man in a hushed, but terrible tone.
"Would you care to explain what the devil is happening, here? There were three strangers in the grounds, three women. The front door to the House was found open. And, last but not least, you knew of this blasted family reunion, and you didn't care to inform me?! Did you write those letters we all received? Speak up at once, old man, before what is left of my patience runs out! "

Claire had certainly grown into a bit more refined young lady the last few years. But she was still Claire, with a bit of a nerdy look and feel and her big round glasses. She seems to be catching her breath for a moment.

"Wolves? And a cat?" Claire says. She can't fully connect it with what she has seens. "I have seen grandfather talking to some strange women. And I have seen the ghost of a man in my bed. And I have seen mom in my mirror. But when she was gone, I did no longer see myself... It is so creepy."

She doesn't mention her olderself killing the man. That was just scary.
Nor did she mention teddy. That was just childish.

"I came here with Elias. He should be around sonewhere. Lets go find him shall we?"

His grandfather's silence to his questions was as irritating as it was expected. There was little time to consider as the scream of young girl erupted from within the manor itself.

"Claire..." Alexander murmured to himself, turning on his heel and forgetting his grandfather for the time being as he rushed inside a few steps behind his cousin. Getting lost for a moment in the labyrinthine hallways, he could hear the echoing of his cousins talking before he finally turned the corner and came across Nathaniel talking to his little cousin.

An honest smile spread across Alexander's face as he pushed back his hair, revealing the simple yet exquisite eyepatch upon his face. Stepping closer in a more controlled pace, he would quirk his head.

"Alas, who is this vision of beauty before me? My remaining eye must be going bad, it surely isn't the inquisitive girl with glasses like an observatory? He teased at first, his smile softening as he stood beside his cousin. The shortness of her breath was noticed quietly. "Are you alright? Where is your...brother?" There was no chance that Claire was here without the pride of the family being far behind.

Just as Claire had suggested to Nathaniel to find Elias, she hears a familiar voice.

"Alexander!" she yelps. She forgets Nathaniel for a moment as she rushes over to him and nearly knocks him over and wraps his arms around him in a big hug. A waterfall of words comes out of her mouth quickly. "How have you been? Are you okay? Are you looking after yourself? You are doing okay, aren't you? Please tell me you do."

Then she quite formally retakes herself.

"I just suggested to Nathaniel that we go find Elias."

There is that same charming laugh that Alexander had when he was younger, the kind that would make a crowd around him erupt with him at a sly joke or a witty comeback to an impetuous nobleman trying to make a mark on the Rookwoods. His arms wrapped around the excited girl, squeezing her as she nearly bowls him over with the tightness of her hug.

"My goodness! You would think my Mother had been reborn in this one, eh Nathaniel?" Alexander joked, patting the girl reassuringly on the back. When he was finally able to untangle himself from her hug, he would crouch down until they were both level. It was almost the same face that she had known years ago but time had done its work; the angles were sharper and more shallow. His skin, once porcelain and beautiful, had become a pale pallor that showed all was not well. Most strikingly was the eyepatch over his one eye, leaving him with a blue eyes that was glassy and just barely bloodshot. Alexander was not well.

"Life has not been kind but there are moment of sunshine even on a cloudy day. You are a bright ray, Miss Claire Rookwood. I am so happy to see you. Don't...mind the eye." He teased, standing up and brushing himself off. "I suppose we need to find your brother. Did you see where he wandered off to?"

Elias smiles as he hears the woman speak. Turning Elias smiles as he bows and offers the woman his hand. Moving with a practiced ease, Elias leads the way onto the dance floor, soon Elias and his companion are moving with the music.

@Dr_B

Mostly ignoring the presence of the annoying cousins, Roderick focuses on the Caretaker, the man he has been hoping to find all day. The family servant bows to greet him when he notices the old man approaching "Lord Rookwood, it is wonderfull to see you again. I'm afraid I am not sure what is happening here", he points at the open grave with his shovel. "It's strange. Grave robbers, maybe? They have been coming here for some time now but I never seen to find anyone suspicious on the grounds. So far, only Town's folk graves, the family is safe in the chainyard." He sounds almost proud that whoever is doing this is staying away from the family. The Caretaker seems to be mostly worried about his own little mystery, not paying much attention to Roderick, but slowly the old man's words start to hit him "Did you say three women? Here? Are they from the Town, maybe?"

"Oh the door is open? It was the young lords, maybe? You know how distracted they can be" he turns just in time to see Alexander and Roderick disappear around the corner. "Still running around like the old days I see" Smiling, he adds before looking around, searching for something, his eyes stopping briefly at one of the crows that landed on top of a grave stone. "Letters? Oh, I see. That's why the family is back, maybe? I have seen no letters my lord. It was a little bird who told me you'd be here soon and I prepared for your arrival. I hope your lordship is finding everything is to your taste so far. "

---

@KingHotTrash,@Cettish,@crazybirdman

Was that someone yelling from inside the Manor? Alexander and Nathaniel immediately knew that the odds were, being a girl, that it was Claire. Unless Roderick was hiding a secret lover, but no one would believe that right? Both men rushed back to the building to find out what was happening, quickly getting away from the moody, perhaps somewhat demented, grandfather. Who was either deaf already, or didn't seem to care much whoever was yelling.

They run from hell to heaven as they meet the "not so little Claire anymore", one of the few cherished moments they manage to take back from any family meetings these days. Nathaniel tries to reassure the poor girl, and he briefly shares their knowledge of the strange rumors in Town. But it is when Alexander arrives that his old charms seems to dissipate young girl's worries like the sun-rise cleansing the world of the shadows. As if premeditated, when Alexander asks Claire about her brother, they all fall silent, just long to hear the faint echo of a door closing coming from the corridor to their left... The corridor that leads to the Hall of Arms, a place you all know Elias used to spend a lot of his younger days admiring...

---

@Squadfather44

Elias takes the woman's hand and it feels... warm, real, human. He looks at her, and she looks flesh and bones now, not the strange insubstantial shape he thought he saw before. But of course she does! What else would a person feel and look like? As they start to dance, the voices around him became louder, deafening almost. Distorted sounds overlapping, gossip, rumors, politics, the weather... The room itself feels as if it is somehow slowly fading, a claustrophobic sensation of the walls' shadows closing in, the candlelight frequently flicking, failing into instants of darkness.

But he barely pays any attention to it; his mind is on the unknown woman. Such a skillful dancer like no other he has met before. The music gains momentum and she flawlessly keeps up the pace. She smiles, clearly impressed with him as well "Have you been practicing recently, dear Elias".

In fact, he hasn't. Not much dancing is done in a military training camp. Though one could consider the army drills, somewhat similar. The exercises, the coordination... maybe he could even see the gracefulness of the company's planned movements. But he soon finds himself struggling to keep up. The floor has been perfectly polished to be almost friction-less; it is like dancing on ice, and his army shoes are definitely not suitable for such a floor. Elias wonders if he can keep up with such skillful precision if they don't slow down soon. If only all those distracting voices in his head would give him a moment to focus ...Players Waiting:

"Oh no! Alexander," Claire says in a little shock as she looks closer at him. "What happened to your eye? Are you okay? Will it heal?"

She hasn't finished asking it yet or she hears the echo of the door in the hallway to the left.
She turns and looks instinctively at the sound.

"The hall of arms is that way, isn't it? Would Elias be there?" she looks at her feet for a moment. "Or, well, he could also be upstairs. But I am not too sure anymore of all the things I have seen or heard in my room."

Elias does his best to keep up with the his dance partner. Despite being a skilled dancer, Elias finds that, in this instance, practice makes perfect. Refusing to give up, Elias pulls from a hidden reserve of energy he developed from spending hours on the drill field.

Despite concentrating on his partner Elias can't help, but to hear some comments from the ghostly spectators.

I say...young Rookwood is not giving up. Reminds me of myself all those years ago.

Are you comparing yourself to him? Now who's getting delusional in his old age...

"My eye? Oh...yes...a duel gone bad. I'm afraid I was just too handsome and it had to be taken away by God's will. I don't think that even Nathaniel could save it." Alex says, looking back at his cousin for a moment. "You've done eye surgeries before, yes? Do you think I'm doomed? There was still that nagging thought that for as much as his cousin had accomplished, you would swear he would want to impress the family with his doctorate. Yet it was never brought up.

"The Hall of Arms? Of course, he'd be there." Alexander said with a sigh, making his way towards the closed door. Stepping into the hall, he would cup his hands over his mouth and call out. "Dear cousin, you left your little sister alone! Cousin Elias!?" There was no sign of the man as he stepped curiously amidst the honors and regalia that their family had collected over the many decades. As he approached the grand hall doorway though, a noticeable chill began to sink into his bones.

"Do either of you feel that?" Alexander asked, fearing that he was somehow on the downward slope from the sweet touch of opium. The thought brought the craving to his mind, his body itching in need. It couldn't be that. Alexander reached for the door but when his fingertips touched it, he pulled them back harshly and jumped back.

"By god, that's cold! Nathaniel, come here!" Alexander shouted, his other hand reaching back to keep Claire away from the door. "W-what do you think is happening here? You're an educated sort, right?"

"to my taste?" he snorts at the Caretaker. "There are strangers roaming freely in our grounds, and someone unknown is taking the liberty of summoning the family with anonymous letters... And you ask me if this is to my taste? OF COURSE NOT, YOU SENILE FOOL!" he escalates to an angered shout.

" I want the fencing around the grounds checked, and the dogs released every night from the kennels, " he commands.

He turns back towards the Manor.
He follows the sound of voices indoors, to see what those pesky young Rookwoods are up to.

Nathan cautiously approached the door to see what Alexander was talking about. Even for the Rookwoods, this was very strange and beginning to be too much for an 'educated sort' to just explain away. "Well, I have some theories, and there are some test we could do, but the simplest way to get an answer is likely the best here. We should open it"

@Dr_B

The Caretaker's expression turns into a strange mix of surprise and worry as Roderick snaps back at him. "The fencing and the dogs yes. Tonight." He apologizes a few times as the old man turns his back on him to figure out what is happening at the Manor now. It's like the whole place has gone to hell in his short absence... to think the family staff is supposed to be the most competent!

The Caretaker leans his weight on the shovel for a moment, looking confused as Roderick walks to the Manor looking confused "Someone unknown?" He turns to look in the direction of the family's mausoleum. "What does he mean? He surely knows you well" he asks, as the crow that stood on the nearby gravestone flies off...

---

@KingHotTrash,@Cettish,@crazybirdman

In the meantime, Claire, Alexander and Nathaniel decide to follow the sound of the closing door, which leads them to the old family's armory room, the obvious place to find Elias. However, he is nowhere to be found. As Alexander leaves the room, he feels a strange chill coming from the great hall. Maybe it's just his cravings. How long has he been... clean? Too long, that's for sure! As if to make sure he is not going crazy, he tries to open the door and is surprised when his skin burns on the almost frozen handle.

Nathaniel is intrigued by the temperature of the handle. It is an uncommon phenomenon, but there are possible explanations, of course. Unfortunately, rigorous testing would be impossible without proper equipment. Maybe the Guild would have something he could use later? For now, the only sensible things is to open the door and actually see what is going on inside. It seems returning to this place is an uncomfortable experience to everyone, maybe someone has to keep it together.

---

@Squadfather44Elias, distracted by the comments, looks around, trying to figure out who is talking. It's not unusual to comment on the dancers, but it's generally rude to not be discreet. But it's not exactly what is bothering him... no, it's more the strange way it they talk, maybe an old way they pronounce some words... It feels, from another time.

"You must be so proud of him." Someone starts whispering somewhere else. "I hope he makes the right choice. It's difficult, but someone has to lead the family again".

And that's when he loses his focus.Players Waiting:

Claire has not much to do at this moment. As Alexander keeps her safely away, she just stares at Nathaniel going for the door.

Roderick follows the voices breaking the sacrality of the silent hallways of the Manor.

He finds the younger Rookwoods gathered in front of the Armoury door, intent on looking closely at the door handle.

"An unusual gathering spot... But it will have to do." he says a little louder than necessary, hoping to startle the trio.

"Just arrived, and already eavesdropping?" he says in an Amused, yet accusing tone, stopping behind them. "Old habits are hard to die, it seems..."

He takes stock of the three. They have much grown, since their last encounter. Particularly Claire, no longer the child he remembers.

Claire looks up excitedly.

"Grandfather!" she yelps. And, assuming Alexander won't stop her, she rushes towards Roderick. For a hug.
Not the I-almost-knock-you-over kind she gave Alexander. Afterall, she should consider grandfathers old and brittle bones.

"I am so sorry for you about grandmother," she says. Mostly because it is the polite thing to do, not because she vividly recalls grandmother.

Roderick tries his best to detour Claire's hug, only managing to invite her towards his right side in a stiff half-hug.

He pats the youth on her back in a cautious greeting. "Sorry?.. Whatever for?... Let's have a look at you... You are fifteen now, I believe..."
He keeps his hand on her shoulder, pushing her slightly away to take a long look at her.

"Yes... You have the Rookwood pride shining in your gaze. That is good," he says nodding slowly.

Then continues, as if answering an unasked question. "You are not here by my will, should you be wondering. I, like you, know very little of this gathering. I find myself at the receiving end of a mysterious letter, not having penned it as would befit the Master of the Manor."

He scrutinises the trio with cold eyes. "I find such predicament distasteful in the extreme. Perhaps one of you is the source of this insufferable prank? Speak freely."

Elias conscious to dance, but also tries to figure the voices out. Getting into a rhythm with the music, he continues to try and keep up.

Nathaniel is ignoring the old man, not out of rudeness, but because he is trying to find another way into the room, or possibly opening the door some other way then the knob.

@Squadfather44

"Did you see that?" Elias hears the surprised gasps as he manages to rescue his accidental slipping by turning it into an advanced move he still remembers from his lessons as a child, leaving his audience breathless as he dips the lady with a swing for the grande finale. In the silence that follows the spectacular end of the music, Elias can hear the rain starting to fall outside. It is going to be another rainy night, it seems.

As the loud applause start, Elias' eyes scan the room, finally finding the couple he was looking for. "When is the moon again?" The old aristocratic man asks the woman standing next to him, too lost in the conversation to have noticed the dance. He does stop talking as he notices the woman's gaze fixed on Elias. A gaze that he recognizes. The same gaze that would often watch him during his dancing lessons. And that look, the constant sadness of that look. It could only be... Aunt? The one person who took care of your two of them when their parents disappeared? What is she doing here? Didn't see...?

And that's when the noise of something big trying to ram the door behind Elias startles him!

---

@Dr_B, @KingHotTrash, @Cettish, @crazybirdman

Nathaniel considers the door for a moment as Alexander and Claire wait, curious about what strange science the man would have learned during his time away. He touches the door slightly to confirm it is cold. Too cold to touch safely, in fact. But there is little that can be done in these circumstances, so he does the one thing that comes to mind. Though not elegant, it should do the trick. And yes, it is a demonstrable mathematical possibility! He kicks the door as hard as he can, just as Claire shouts "Grandfather!".

Nathaniel slowly turns back, hoping that is not what she really meant to say, but he quickly finds himself facing the clear disapproval on the old man's face. Luckily, Roderick is too busy avoiding too much physical contact, even with his grand-daughter. After explaining he had nothing to do with the invitations, and seeing how none of the potential pranksters dared to speak, he simple takes the knob and opens the door with that smug face that is silently really just saying "This is how doors open"

As they all walk into the great hall, they are faced with Elias staring back at them, standing surprised in the middle of the empty room, the place so silent that the rain drops outside almost echo through the walls.

Nathaniel was a bright fellow for certain; a doctor if one was to believe his word. He had a sharp mind and quicker wits. So it was quite the surprise when the man of science went with kicking the door as hard as he could to try and gain access. The well-made frame held solidly against the attended rupturing and there was certainly a grin spreading across Alexander's face. Despite how he despised most of the family, he was a Rookwood through and through. Seeing a family member embarrass themselves, when it was not him being the disappointment, was quite the thrill.

Alexander's head turned at the sound of his grandfather's voice, the smile dying a little as he condescendingly approved of what he assumed was their eavesdropping. The old man stepped forward, reaching for the door.

"Grandfather, the door is-" Unlocked. It opens easily and there is no cry of pain from the man when he holds onto the doorknob. A curious look came across Alexander's face as he stepped closer, his head tilted in query as the door opened to show Elias standing alone in the great hall.

How...strange. It was as cold as death a moment ago..." Alexander murmured to himself, walking beside Nathaniel. "Next time you're just going to kick a door, leave it to the disreputable rake doctor." Alexander chided, following behind their grandfather.

"All I know is that a message found me in the f-" Alexander caught himself, quickly correcting his words. "...in the city. I assumed that there was no prank. Maybe Gunther went mad, he was calling you and grandmother as if you were children." His attention then turned toward Elias, a man who was so well put together and organized. It was this same man who looked positively flabbergasted.

"Cousin Elias? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"Elias?" Claire asks and steps inside the room, slowly approaching her brother. "Are you okay?""Something creepy is going on here," Claire says quite convinced. "Creepy invitations, which grandfather didn't send." she counts the evidence on her fingers. "A frozen door... creepy although pretty women talking to grandfather outside... and ghosts, Alexander? Yes. I have quite the reason to believe that there are ghosts."

Roderick holds his breath at the sight of Claire not reflecting on the polished floor. She... she is different... he thinks, realizing there is much more to the girl than meets the eye. Best to keep that knowledge for myself, he ponders, eyeing the others.

Claire looks at grandfather's look. He looks at her... then the floor... then at her...
A little confused she looks down.She looks down. She sees the magnificent ceiling reflected in the floor, but it does not connect in her mind that she should be there herself as well. She looks at her shoes. They are tied, they are clean.

She shrugs at grandfather and continues her approach to Elias. "Brother?"

"Dear Claire, I wish just..." His cousin's tone though stops him from continuing. She was not some little child anymore and there was a concern in her eyes that was disconcerting. He looked back to his cousin, waiting to see what the pride and joy of the family would say.

He stops though and quickly looks back at his cousin, his eyebrow raising as he studies her for a moment. Something was wrong, terribly wrong, and he only noticed it when Nathaniel came in beside her. His little cousin's reflection was gone, entirely nonexistent. Everything else in the room reflected beautiful, a polished mirror for grand dances. Claire simply was gone from there.

His eyes looked over and he could see the look in his grandfather's eyes. The man had noticed as well, maybe even a moment or two before he had, but he had not said anything yet. There was a subtle shake of his head; too much strangeness had occurred and to make his little cousin panic would only exacerbate the situation. From that glassy, addicted eye, he would pick up the cue.

"We must talk."

Alexander looks once again at the floor. What is happening? He feels dizzy as his mind races, jumping from place to place. All those memories of something not quite right. Did anyone else ever notice it? He remembers the rumors in the City. Whispers of a Rookwood curse. He thought they meant it figuratively. A reference to the family's slow decay. But could it be... real? And, why doesn't Roderick look more disturbed? What sort of soulless, stone-hearted man can just see his grand-daughter like that and be as if nothing is happening?

Suddenly the wall candles explode into a fiery brightness, burning deep into his soul. He takes his hand to protect his eyes from the blinding light, only to notice his own skin darkening, a strange inky ooze leaking out from under his skin. Is that blood? He feels the darkness within him, that same darkness he tried not to get lost in all this time. It grows unbounded, it rises to challenge the purifying light that strikes him, consuming it in a desperate hunger, until only a faint twilight makes it through the windows from the outside.

He notices everyone around him, his family, slowly becoming nothing more than twisted shadows, corrupted by his own demons. Ever-changing nightmares, dancing imps, mocking him, torturing him. Then his own shadow languidly stands up from the floor and stares at him. Alexander can't avoid the stare; something in it pulls him. He looks into his own shadows, into his own eyes, deep into the endless pit of empty void of his soul.

His shadow smiles. A wicked, evil, smile that sends shivers down Alexander's spine. Then, it pushes him back and he trips, losing balance and falling into the bottomless abyss that opens in the center of the room. Falling, again. Now, before, forever.

He gasps for air as he opens his eyes to see Nathaniel holding him. He wasn't sure what happened; maybe the withdrawal was worse than he expected... but this was worse than any of his previous "trips"...

Nathaniel pauses for just a fraction of a second, the embarrassing ordeal with the door gives him a moment of doubt, then rushes oto his cousins side. "Are you well cousin? Seeing the family all together again appears to have made you light headed."

Alexander's anger was slowly growing as he stared at his grandfather's impassive face. Something was wrong with Claire, wrong with this whole damn family. He meant to take a step forward but the lights in the room began to grow in brightness. They seared into his eyes, burning brighter than the sun. His family turned into shadows, shadows eclipsed by an all-consuming light. His hand lifted up to try and blot out blinding blaze before he could focus on the growing darkness that slide out from under his sleeve. An oily blackness oozed over his flesh like spilled ink, grasping and covering his skin.

"Wha-what? No...get off!" Alexander tried to wipe his hands clean, to pull the offending material away, but it spread faster and faster. It felt like a lump moved in his chest, a strangeness that was familiar and yet foreign all at once. It brings the young man to his knees and he stares down at the shadowed face and starlit eyes that were now his own. From his hands, the darkness spread. It coiled and covered everything around him, seeking tendrils wrapping around his family and turning them into mockeries of themselves. The shadows clung to the walls, the windows, and smothered that purifying light that was smothered until they twinkled like dying stars. He existed in a darkened hell; monstrous forms dancing around him while caricatures of his family danced about before him, taunting his failures and weaknesses.

"It isn't true! I...I am not a failure! I've lived free of this damn family! Damn you! Damn you all!" His anger was stopped as his shadow began to rise before him and looks into Alexander's eyes. Within it was all of his faults, his hatred, his fears, and his weaknesses. It smiled a devil's grin as it reveals the awful truth; he was as wicked as any one of them. With a push, Alexander fell back to the floor and into the darkness. He sunk away from the world, struggling for the light, as the vile ink poured through his tear ducts, his ears, his mouth, his nose, and his torn eye to choke out the very last bit of light within him.

Alexander comes to a moment after Nathaniel speaks, the young man grasping onto him like a life reserve. He jolts, looking around with an honest look of fear upon his face. He swallows hard, looking between them all and expecting them all to still be in their hideous forms.

"Did...did no one see..." Alexander's words die on his lips as he realizes that they're the ramblings of the mad. Withdrawal was known to be hellish and he had suffered from its chills and aches before but nothing was like that shadowy hell. Rising up, he brushes himself off. "I...I am going to get my luggage." His head pounds feverishly as he walks, his hand rising to his missing eye to press against the eyepatch.

A moment later, his shadow follows.

"Alexander!" Claire yelps. "Are you alright?"

Claire stood confused on the ballroom floor. Looking at Elias at her one side and Alexander at her other.

"Stay please! No one said you are a failure... I..."

She takes a deep breath. What she is going to say could make a lot of sense, or it could throw everyone's opinion of her straight back to that of a scared little girl.

"I don't know why, but I think the house is haunted. I have seen strange things... Elias is acting weird... so is Alexander..." she starts talking faster and faster, taking no time to breathe. "And grandfather doesn't know who send the invitations. And there are weird women in the backyard. And grandmother is dead, and I can't even properly remember her. I think we should all go sit down in the living room right now and talk about this! And haunted or not, I am staying. I don't want to go back to Riverlight just yet!"

Quite surprised by what she just all said and her quite directive tone as well, she repositions herself a bit, as if making herself a bit smaller.

"If that is okay with you all." she adds timidly.

Alexander did not stop as Claire called to him, the strange sight and the feeling of wrongness still lingering in him. It was like something had come awake inside of him and was filling him out, travelling down his limbs to his very digits. He could feel it exploring the hidden crevices of his mind and of his body.

The young man stopped at his luggage, taking a moment to breathe as he grabbed what he had brought for this strange occasion. Yet his eyes lingered on Nathaniel's bag. It was a proper doctor's bag. Perhaps he had some...medicine...within it? Something that could clear his mind for the moment?

With shaking hands, he would look over his shoulder once more towards the room. He'd have precious time but he could feel the need for the needle's loving oblivion growing. Crouching down with his back against the door so no one could easily see him, he pried open the good doctor's bag and looking for sweet relief.

Despite Claire's plea, Alexander storms out of the room, ignoring Nathaniel's worries about his state. He needs to be left alone, and no place is better than his own room. However, as he grabs his luggage, it is almost as if something else is calling him. He feels his veins pulsating as he looks at the Doctor's bag. Alexander knows what is wrong with him and he is going to fix it. Nathaniel must have brought some opium with him. He always does!

Shaking, he opens one of the sides of the medical bag. He finds all sorts of strange medical tools. Ignoring them, he opens the other side, where the strange powders and tinctures are kept in badly labeled vials. There! He just knew what he was looking for once he saw it. Barely had to figure out what the hand-written label said. It is then, with his mind at ease, knowing he would be able to tend to his needs, that he notices a letter. A letter from the local Physician's Guild. He grabs it almost as a reflex; no real reason to do it. It was just there...



"Oh hello master Alexander. You boys found your rooms already? Master Roderick asked me to prepare them. Yes yes. They are ready. Would you like me to show you to your room?" Gunther appears from the main door, having returned from the Town at the worse possible time.

Roderick comments on Alexander's behaviour. "I can see that today's man has just as despicable impulse control as yesterday's boy. What a disheartening sight. Clare, if you should ever think to look to him as an example, make sure that you read his acts as what a Rookwood should not be," he adds, for the edification of the young girl.
"The man is a disgrace. His debauchery and acquaintance with the wrong drugs are no doubt sufficient explanation for his strange symptoms."

At hearing Clare's plea for a moment of common discussion to figure out what is happening, he says "yes, not all is what it appears to be. There is a grander design a work, that deems our presence necessary under our ancestral roof, so to speak. Time to piece together what we know."

He points at a door through which he knows a comfortable sitting room awaits. "Hopefully those useless servants will have stoked the fireplace for our comfort."
He steps to the doors, guiding the others to the adjacent, more comfortable room.

Alexander's favorite sin is quickly taken, a small smile spreading across his face as he imagines the release it could give. There was something else though; a letter within the bag that quickly earned his attention. He read the writing upon it, his sweaty brow furrowing slightly as he read it. Something was off there, more so than he imagined. He was about to quietly close the bag when Gunther's voice catches him off-guard. The man jumps, his shadow jumping the other way, as he turns towards the servant.

"By God, you scared me Gunther..." Alexander mumbles, rubbing his chest and slipping the needle underneath his jacket. "Our rooms? Yes, yes, please show me to my room." He was ready to indulge and be free of earthly concern for a time when his mind went back to that strange sight; poor Claire's missing reflection. As much as he wanted to savor the dragon's sweet bliss, he would wait. "Gunther? The family library? Could you prepare the candles there? I think...there is some reading I wish to indulge in..."

@KingHotTrash



Gunther nods and guides Alexander upstairs to the large library room. The sun seems to be slowly setting in the horizon as the dark clouds continue to engulf the Town, foreboding another stormy night.

Gunther immediately moves to prepare some candles so Alexander can read quietly, but, while he waits, the man can help but browse the books casually looking for anything that looks interesting.

The dark library welcomed him in with its tall, dark oak shelving and royal red carpeting. It exuded wealth, prestige, and knowledge but when one looked closely, they could see the wear and tear of time upon it. Cracked paint, old cobwebs, dust here and there. In truth, it looked remarkably nicer than what Alexander had imagined it would look. Someone had been through recently, the candles melted with burnt wicks here and there.

Alexander remembered the place in its prime; daylight shining through and illuminating the many walkways within. There were countless places to hide as a child within the library and when his parents disappeared, it became a place of solace. Now it was a place of hope the quell the awful wrongness that stirred inside of him. As Gunther lit the candles, their brightness was like a memory coming back to him. The many months hiding away in here came back to him and his mind could almost remember it like a map. If there was anything to be found, it would be here in The Grand Rookwood Library.

"Thank you, Gunther." Alexander said, showing the old servant a small bit of kindness as he moved towards the darker parts of the library. His shadows, dozens of them cast by candlelight, gleefully watched him walk into the darkness before him. In there, he knew that there were answers waiting.Alexander's eyes scanned the dark titles, quickly abolishing the more common titles away. What he was looking for would not be some prim and proper Imperial text. They were old, lovingly made and crafted by hand rather than mechanically upon the printing press. They were old things of art and beauty and Alexander knew how to identify them as he moved.

@Dr_B,@Cettish,@Squadfather44,@crazybirdman

As Claire shares her suspicions that the Rookwood Manor may be haunted, she invites the others to just take a break and discuss all the strange events that have happened. Roderick seems to partially confirm that he believes there may be some grand design at work, and that they were summoned to be a part of, or at least, witness it. He guides Nathaniel, Elias and Claire, out of the great hall and upstairs, to the family's library, where he recently spent some of his quiet nights. Elias stops just before leaving the room and looks back, as if trying to listen to someone, before silently catching up with the others.

On the way up, they notice Gunther in the corridor, the servant confirming that he is already setting up the library for Alexander; and he can see wood is brought up for the fire place.

@KingHotTrash

As soon as Gunther leaves, Alexander slowly moves along the shelves of old books, quickly checking for anything that could be interesting. He knew that, whatever was going on, be it a haunt or a curse, it would have to be something ancient, maybe even heretic. For a moment he thought it was hopeless as it is clear such knowledge would not be something a proper family would be displaying... Definitely not something old Roderick would be likely to allow, since a word of it could spell the family's downfall in the current times. However, as he is about to give up his crazy quest, he notices one small, old book, its pages yellowed by the time. It was almost imperceptibly hidden among the shadows of more modern prints. He takes it carefully, almost expecting it to crumble in his fingers. That not happening, he takes a better look at the perfect calligraphy of the hand-crafted book, exactly as he imagined it would be. Alexander struggles to read the title, written in an archaic form of the language but he finally settles on "The sleeping legion". He manages to browse a few pages as he walks to a nearby armchair. But, as he sits down, he hears the door open, seeing the others come in...

The sight of Alexander sitting in an armchair reading as if he owned the place annoys him no end.
He keeps his stern gaze on the man, even as he sits at the head of an ancient oak table.

"Are you choosing rare books to sell, to pay for the latest debts caused by your usual debaucherie? Show some respect to this honourable collection of tomes," he calls out to the man.

"You may sit," he tells the others, as if granting permission. "This is a sacred place of knowledge, that has seen generations of Rookwoods perfect their education."
He glances at Claire, as he says, "I am sure you all have memories of this place... Good memories, I hope..."

"Despite how you may feel about me, grandfather..." The word drips with annoyance as he closes the book, standing up from where he was and moving towards the ancient oak table. "...I am, by right of blood, allowed within this library to do as I please. And what pleases me is to try and help this family." He places the ancient book upon the table, sitting at Roderick's left side. His blue eye, though still glassy from his vice of choice, remains keenly focused on the man before him.

"Something strange is happening here. I-I had a vision in the ballroom. A darkness overwhelming everything and everyone before it swallowed me whole. An abyss of endless black. Since then...I...I have felt wrong. I know that you know this, grandfather. I saw what you saw in the ballroom, even if you won't admit it." Alexander flips open the book now, turning to the page the detailed an ancient cult.

"Claire, you said grandfather was speaking to women in the backyard, yes? It wouldn't have happened to have been three women, would it?" Alexander points for his grandfather's benefit to the passage that detailed the local cult of some trinity that worshipped an ancient and dark force that fed upon the dead. As he did, the candles flickered and his shadow paced behind the seated man."Who were those women, grandfather? Why were you so confused in the graveyard when Nathaniel and I found you?"

"A 'Haunted manor'? Alexander doing research? . . . I think I will take a seat Mr. Rookwood." Nathaniel never did feel right calling him 'grandfather'

"Yes there were three women out there. Trespassers. Surely beggars, or whores." he says sharply. "I was not confused. I was annoyed at our sloppy servants, our grounds seem to be at the mercy of anyone who wants to take a stroll... They will be met by the bite of our mastiffs, next time."

He runs his rheumy eyes over the book, then points at the passage on the page. "That text means nothing. Ever at a glance I can tell that is a bastardized vernacular derived from Old Highlandic. The word you read as trinity means 'Many scores' and what you read as worship is talking about wheat crops. We are reading a peasant's ledger book, a record of a bountiful crop. "

A look of exhaustion spreads across his face as the usual array begins; disbelief from his cousin and a talking down from his grandfather. Rubbing the bridge of his nose, he sits back in his seat and sighs.

"If you say so, grandfather, if you say so." The events of the day weigh on him; too much has happened today and the Alex could feel that his patience was at an all-time low.

Roderick’s rebuke forces Alexander to back down as, by now, he knows better than to oppose the old man. However, unsettled by the strangeness of her experiences, and feeling Alexander may not be wrong, the young girl takes a peek at the book as she instinctively exclaims "But grandfather! You kissed!" immediately blushing at the idea.

"Of course he did. Lecherous old bastard. Guess I didn't fall far from the tree." Alexander mumbles, settling back in his seat. His fingers clasped in front of himself as he eyed the old man. "So what is the plan then grandfather? Shall we explain the strangeness we've seen or am I on my own once again?"

"Mr Rookwood! You old fox! Courting women in the cemetary eh? Cant say I care for the chosen locale, but who am I too argue with quantified results?"

"What? You... are mistaken. The wenches did try to get close to me, but I pushed them away, and told them to never come back." he says, not sounding as firm as he wished.

"The plan? There is no plan. I can tell you that the servants don't seem to know anything about the letters we all seem to have received. And they do not come from me. Someone else wanted us gathered."

He turns to look at Claire, "I initially thought this might be because the youngest among you is now reaching an age where discussing eligible suitors to her hand, worthy of the name of the Rookwoods, might be in order."

"But perhaps I am mistaken."

"Gunther is losing his coherence. He spoke about you and Grandmother as if you were still children when we accosted him at the inn. We thought that perhaps this was some ploy of yours, though to what end, neither Nathaniel nor I could fathom what." Alexander said, stretching out comfortably in his chair. His facade of indifference was betrayed by the pacing shadows that moved out of sync with the candle's flickering.

"An invitation after a family member's death? Strange way to start the usual courting rituals, I must say." Alex say with a mirthless laugh, shaking his head slightly. "No. No, I don't believe that any of us are the reason we are here. Like you said, someone brought us all here." The thought was unnerving; what did someone have to gain by gathering this specific group of Rookwoods together? Grandfather had the liberty of keeping an eye on the estate but the rest of them had done only a little to have a name for themselves. Claire was just barely old enough to be considered her own person by "proper" society's count.

"Let us focus first then on what brought us here first then; the news of Grandmother's passing. Grandfather, you knew her best of all us. What can you tell us about her?"

Nathaniel perks up at the chance to learn more of grandmother, and why they are all actually here.

Roderick takes a deep breath, a faint pained expression rippling through his mask-like countenance.

"You are all wrong in the assumption it is my spouse that we are gathered to mourn." He glances around the room to see their reactions.

The one you call your grandmother, is actually my sister. And her passing is not a recent thing. Far from it. It happened... " he frowns for a moment, "fifty six... no! fifty seven years ago. When she was sixteen."

He rests his left hand heavily on the wooden table, as if he felt the weight of their past.
"Lilith. That was her name. My junior by quite a few years. A lively, curious girl, always exploring the nooks and corners of the woods in our grounds. Curious, inquisitive. Fascinated by nature's mysteries." A smile almost tries to surface on his face, but does not seem to reach his facial muscles.

He continues, "Then she fell ill from a mysterious disease that no man of science could fathom. It changed her. She became a recluse, avoiding to show herself. The family colluded, they secluded her away from the public eye. For the good of the family name, you see..."

"I was maybe 25, when they announced her death. I had not seen her for weeks. I did not see her dead. Just her casket, in a solemn family funeral. No outsiders were invited."



He looks up from a distant place within him. His gaze rests on the Rookwoods gathered around the table.
"So you see... somebody wants us here: not to mourn a recent loss. But to honour a long-lost ancestor... I am in the dark as to why, just like you are."

He focuses on Claire. "When you saw me from the window, I was by her grave. To think, to try understand. The three wenches you saw interrupted me. But I feel there is something we can learn from her resting place. There must be..."

He descends into a brooding silence.

"I didn't know you had a sister," Claire says, her expression gentle as she looks at her grandfather. "I'm really sorry." Then her face turns thoughtful.
"But I don't understand. Why now, fifty-seven years later? And who sent us these invitations?" She's not addressing anyone in particular until she, at this point, turns her eyes to Roderick again. "After these women interrupted you, grandfather, did you still get a chance to look at the grave? Maybe we could all go there and pay her our respects."

"Ah yes, that nasty business. Very unusual of us to have picked a side rather than try to play it out." Alexander said as he inspects his nails for a moment, looking over at his cousin. The man was broad-shouldered, athletic, a true and tried hero. He had discipline, a sharp mentality, and a complete lack of an addiction. He loathed his dutiful cousin.

"There is also rumors of some great beast in the woods. The Knights are here investigating it. Must be something juicy." He added, frowning for just a moment before he looked over at Nathaniel once more. The memory of the hunter who had looked just like him came to his mind. Something was strange here, truly.

"It isn't even all of us. It is just...us. You might have a place in the military but Nathaniel's a doctor, I'm a...gentleman scoundrel. Claire has just barely become a woman in society, and grandfather stays here at the manor. We're practically nobody of actual importance."

He nods in Claire's direction, "Yes, Lilith's grave might reveal something. I haven't had a chance to examine it. Maybe your younger eyes will see more than mine. We should go."

"A trap? A rebellion?" he repeats, looking at Elias. "I don't believe that. If I made enemies during my long life, those are not your enemies."

He listens to Alexander's reasoning, and perks up at the mention of a beast. "the only beast I have seen, if one might call it that, is an unusual black bird around the Manor. Even in the graveyard, it seemed to... observe me."

"Let's not speculate about what the knights might be doing," Claire replies quietly, though her thoughts also wander to the three strange women she saw with Roderick earlier. "We should go and take a look at the grave before it gets even later."

"So, it's decided then? We'll explore the gravesite. Then if time allows, we'll investigate the beast in the woods. Good to be back eh?"

"Yes. The graveyard awaits," he says, standing up heavily from the Library table.

He leads the way out of the room. "It awaits all of us..." he adds

"Right then, let us go." Alexander says, standing up and following his family. His eyes linger on Claire, out of concern and worry. The man's shadow walks beside him against the light, curious to what its host hopes to achieve.

You all stand up and follow Roderick outside. Having no real leads to help you figure out what is going on here, you decide to look for something in the only place that seems to be tied to the person you all agree was mentioned in the letter: Roderick's sister, your grandmother Lilith.

As you leave the Manor, you are instantly greeted by the smell of wet soil. So far, the rain didn't turn into the anticipated storm like last night, dissolving instead into an ever-present humidity. However, but the entire world seems to have been plunged into darkness by the slowly rolling mass of dark clouds, powered by the chilly breeze that you all can feel in your bones.

Claire makes herself as small as she can and wraps herself tight in her coat to ward of the gross, thin rain and the cold accompanying the wetness. She keeps having to take off her glasses and rub them on some piece of clothing that's not yet drenched in rainwater just so she can see. "Maybe we should have just stayed inside," she mutters quietly to herself.

As the group approaches the gravesite, Claire's eyes move over to the spot where she saw her grandfather earlier, talking to those three mysterious women. She tries to see if the rain has left any traces of them, footprints or anything they might have left behind.

The old man leads them to his sister Lilith's grave. It is a funerary monument, with a marble sarcophagus sculpted with ornate motifs.
He inspects the old stone, comparing it to his memory of it, to see if anything seems out of place.

He steadies himself in the bitter wind, and hesitantly puts his right hand on the metal letters:

L I L I T H
R O O K W O O D

Raptus Cito A Iuventute Et Vita
He waits there as if listening, almost expecting some otherwordly voice to communicate with him through the cold metal and stone of that somber resting place.

I am here sister... speak to me...

Alexander's injured eye aches from the cold, a light grimace coming across his face as they move out into the graveyard. At Claire's muttering, Alex steps closer and puts a hand on her shoulder to pull her a little closer against him.

"Stay close, stay warm." He whispers, staying respectfully back from his grandfather as he stands at his sister's grave.

Claire flinches back from Alexander's touch, then she takes a breath and hesitantly leans into him, accepting the little bit of shelter he can provide from the rain and cold. He does notice that she doesn't completely look comfortable with it, however.

Claire tries to follow Roderick's lead with unsure steps, doubting the whole idea as she is confronted by the rain and cold outside. Still, she is driven forward, either by curiosity, a super natural force, or simply to make sure Roderick doesn't get lost. Her eyes are instinctively attracted to the place where the women were. She stops for a moment, rubbing her glasses. It seems there are some marks left on the muddy soil, but she can't tell what they are without inspecting them more closely.

As she considers if the women's footprints could have lasted the entire day, Alexander catches up and puts a hand on her shoulder to shelter her a bit and keep her warm. Elias doesn't hide his disapproval; after all, he is the big brother who should take care of his little sister, not Alexander. Even so, he seems distracted by something in the distance. "Did you see that?" he asks them, pointing towards the direction of the mausoleum where Roderick.

Claire considers walking closer towards the tracks in the mud to take a better look but decides it's not worth it to step out of the half-shelter from the rain that Alexander provides. Instead, she turns to where Elias was pointing. "What did you see?", she asks him. "Is someone there?"

A strange tremor pervades the old man's body. He curls up as if in pain.

When he straightens up, his face seems fixed in a grotesque, mask-like grin.

Nathaniel figures he should do something while they are out here. But he's not a leader, and the doesn't believe in curses and otherworldly gobbledygook (Although being at the Manor with his family might be changing that). So he sticks with what he's good at; detailed observation. He starts examining what he can see around him, looking for anything odd or out of place.

@Dr_B

Roderick looks at the perfect replica of his sister laying on top of the smooth marble sarcophagus. He grabs the metal handles as if to open it, but then stops. Completely motionless, his breathing so weak he could be taken as a statue himself. Luckily, none of the others seem to have notice it as they were distracted by Elias.



You are abruptly brought back by the sound of barking dogs. It looks like the Caretaker did take care of it as you asked.

---

@bowlofspinach,@crazybirdman

Elias looks surprised as Claire asks him about what he saw. It would seem he expected everyone to have noticed whatever it was. He starts talking but makes not sounds, his usual confidence shaken by the recent events. Before he manages to speak, Nathaniel gasps in surprise. Observant as always, he paid close attention to how Elias moved his finger, drawing a line in the direction away from the mausoleum. When you hear the dogs starting to bark, Nathanial is already running. Stopping close to an open grave, he jumps inside and starts digging the earth looking for something, anything, but there is nothing in there.

Claire pulls herself out of Alexander's arms and runs after Nathaniel, stopping at the edge of the open grave. "Nathaniel, what are you doing?", she asks him, her voice sounding slightly panicked. "Is something wrong?"

He painfully straightens, turning in the direction of the barking to scan for intruders coming from that direction. He strains his eyes to pierce the darkness of the night.

"Wha, what do you mean 'Is something wrong'? Mr Rookwood looks as if . . . . and Elias looks to have . . ." Nathaniel looks to Elias, as if to confirm he is in the spot his cousin was pointing to. Only then does he fully realize he is waist deep in a grave looking at a gravestone for someone that shares his christian name. "I suppose the simple answer to your question is that 'Yes', something, likely many things are wrong" he adds before climbing out of the grave to look around, making one last futile attempt to try and see whatever Elias did

Claire and Alexander run after Nathaniel finding him waist deep in a grave. As he climbs out, Nathaniel stops, almost frozen in panic as he stares at the tombstone in front of him. Though Nathaniel himself didn't find anything in the dirt, something else seems to be catching Alexander's attention...

Elias stays behind, looking surprised as he talks to himself.

Recognizing the dog's back, Roderick immediately suspect that his plans to catch whoever the trespassers are worked. After his unsettling experience, he decides to focus on finding out from which direction the dogs are barking.

Nathaniel tries in vain to dust himself off as he peers into the dark. Hoping to see something that proves he and Elias aren't mad.

Where are the noises coming from... He thinks, turning this way and that.

Claire feels something tingling at the edge of her mind. What could it be?

Alexander feels himself jolted from a stupor. He casts his gaze this way and that trying to make sense of the situation.

His voice bellows, echoing like thunder in the still night of the Graveyard, "I demand that you make yourselves known, intruders!! Don't be fools, we are the Rookwood! You know we WILL find out who you are, one way or another! Our influence stretches wide and large, we have eyes and ears over the entire region and beyond!!!"

Nathaniel sees Elias, who stayed behind, apparently talking to himself. However, in his confused state, he isn't able to focus. Though he tries, his attention is soon caught by a thud behind him. He turns to see Alexander lying prone inside the grave, mumbling something.

As the cousins are looking around the open grave. Roderick challenges the trespassers to show themselves, making them aware that they have already been found and would not escape from the Rookwoods. He notices the dogs slowly moving backwards out of the shadows, menacingly surrounding two weirdly walking shapes.

"Miiiloooooorrrrd. Apoooooloooogeeeeee" one of the half-decomposed peasants that just walked into view grunts as it awkwardly bends to pay respect to Roderick. "Faaaarrrrmmm muuusst"

He widens his eyes in surprise, and horror. What on Earth are these... things??
Then he sees the dogs have cornered these strange beings, who address him as Milord, and seem to show deference.

"How can you... move, and talk?? Wh-What are you doing here?? Answer at once!" he says, but his voice does not sound as firm as he'd wished.

Claire struggles in the grip of whatever it is that's suddenly grabbing her. She tries to scream or fight herself free but it's too strong and keeping too tight of a hold over her mouth. In a last desperate attempt to at least make herself noticed, she kicks at the dirt under her feet, throwing a clump of soaked, muddy earth in the direction of the closest family member to her. She actually manages to hit and the earth hits his thigh with a wet smack.

Alexander recoils from the horrific statue he's uncovered. Some sort of pagan god with a goat's head and a horrific grimace.

The two farmers look as confused, as much as the remains of their facial muscles allow them to, when Roderick asks them how can they move and walk. They bow again, never looking Roderick directly when speaking "bleeeeesssssseeed... leeeeggsss. Weeee farrrrm" It looks like they are not entirely sure what Roderick is asking. They are just going for a night's work as usual.

---

As Alexander recoils at the sign of the horrific blood-stained statue, he is suddenly startled by some flying mud from outside the grave. When he looks up, to make sure he is not being buried alive, he sees Claire's feet kicking in the air and the same black cat as before sitting on the other side of the grave, staring away. When he climbs to check what the cat is look at, you see Claire being taken away




Nathaniel seems to be in some sort of shock state and Elias is wondering the graveyard on its own, but nearby.

Maybe it is a disease of the flesh, they suffer.... Roderick shoos off these dim-witted, decomposing labourers.
"Off you go! Get out of my sight before I order the dogs to tear you apart!! I do not want to see your filthy presence on Rookwood land ever again! You hear?? NOW, GO!!!! "

He turns his back to the withdrawing things, his heart thumping much faster than he wished, in his old chest.

Walking back towards the graveyard, he sees some commotion ahead, near a freshly dug grave. What now? are the young Rookwood making a show of their ineptitude already??

"Alexander?... Claire?... stop frolicking like children! Show some respect for our ancestors! This is a sacred..." he stops in his tracks, spotting Alexander down in the grave, with a strange statue!

Can that be? How? Why here??!!

The others see the octogenarian turn a whiter shade of pale.

Alexander continues hauling himself up from the grave and points toward the strange figure absconding with his cousin. "That... thing has Claire! Stop right where you are, you lowborn miscreant!"

Roderick turns to look in the direction Alexander is pointing at, and sees something dragging Claire away among the grave headstones!

"Claire! No!!"

As he calls out the name of Claire in an alarmed desperate tone, Roderick instinctively stomps the ground with one foot. His face becomes ashen and immobile for a brief moment, as if it was a mask made of stone. From under his foot, a strange vibration propels forward, causing the soil to bulge slightly, as if a subterranean creature was moving from his foot towards the kidnapper.

The vibration advances fast zigzagging among the gravestones, eventually reaching an ancient marble statue depicting an angel, that adorns a tomb.

The stone angel cracks at its base with a deep grinding noise, and it topples, its heavy mass falling at the passage of Claire's kidnapping creature! Its stone wing smashes hard against the creature, who loses its footing at the tremendous impact, letting go of Claire.

Roderick straightens, his countenance returning normal, in time to see the creature falling under the statue, and Claire being released!

Claire scrambles away from her would-be kidnapper, crawling in a panic on all fours through the mud to put any distance between herself and him. Once she is a bit away from him, she struggles to her feet and throws herself into Elias' arms, tears of fear streaking down her face.

Nathaniel step between Claire and the creature "She will do no such thing!" He says, not sure what's goin on, why the creature thinks Elias is Claire's nephew, or where this sudden surge of bravery came from

Alexander stands up slowly to his full height, keeping the pagan bust in both hands until slowing letting it fall to one side. With the creature's gaze falling on the statue, he narrows his own eyes. "Time to teach this interloper what it means to cross the Rookwoods..."

As this is going on, Claire just slowly steps backwards, trying to fade from the attacker's immediate attention...

Nathaniel looks at the creature in horror, and realizes he has to do something to help. He looks around for anything he can use as a weapon, when his gaze falls upon the cat. He raises an eyebrow "Time for an impromptu expiriment into the hypothetical supernatural properties of this feline." he quickly says before attempting to hurl the cat at their enemy.

Somehow Roderick senses the century old stones of the graveyard... even below the graveyard.

He now calls upon these ancient stone guardians to stop this blasphemous creature, to protect the youngest of the line.

Roderick leans against a gravestone to catch his breath. His left arm is limp, and a fixed wince on his face seems to indicate he is in some sort of pain.
Too spent to be able to speak, he tries to make sense of what just happened.
The creature... addressed me directly, twice... It called out Brother... what is the meaning of all this...

He tries to remember Lilith's voice, from decades before.

Alexander catches his breath. "What the Devil just happened?" He lets the pagan bust drop to the mud at his feet. "And what is this... thing I found?"

"I have no idea." Nathaniel is staring at his arm, which after letting that cat fly, has gone limp. His immediate assessment is that while the skin and possibly the muscles are still there, there isn't any bone. 'Fascinating as this is, it's going to make life difficult.' he thinks

Roderick starts at the thump made by the bust Alexander dropped. His eyes widen as he looks at the sculpture in the mud. A horrified expression distorts his features. It cannot be...

"Where... where did you find that?" he whispers pointing a shaky finger at the muddy pagan bust.

Since Claire was never there, nobody is surprised that she's not participating in the conversation right now... She's probably just peacefully sleeping in her bed right now.

Alexander shrugs at Roderick's question about the bust. The younger Rookwood flinches at Roderick's reaction to the bust. Is it... ire? "That statue was in the grave I fell into. Do you recognize it? The thing I clobbered with it seemed afraid of it, so maybe that will give us some clue who or what that thing was."

Even considering the most chaotic day at the hospital, this is the most Nathaniel has had to deal with at one time. The creature seemed to be dealt with, but did it say the statue or old man was its brother? The undead help seemed to have sorted themselves out. Alexander is now a grave robber, or a cemetery archeologist? Also, he's pretty sure he made an enemy of that cat.
But the most pressing matter for him right now is his arm. He was smart, but had no idea what caused it. Could it be whatever caused the ground to tremble has also caused this? It just didn't make any sense. None of this did. Maybe one of his three cousins could provide answers. No wait, two cousins. He knew how many family members there were. Maybe one of the guys could explain this. "I know I haven't been to the manor in some time, but is this a normal occurrence? Also or concern . . . " he goes to raise his arm to show them, but can't, so raises it with his good arm.

Roderick sits heavily on the icy ground, as if burdened by a weight much too heavy for his elderly frame.
"I... I..." he blabbers incoherently. Then a thought forms in his mind, perhaps triggered by Alexander's words. "It was afraid of the statue... it... called me brother... " he whisper hoarsely. Then he looks at the cracked ground under which the stones trapped the creature. "Zacharias?... Was it you, Zacharias?..." he murmurs, almost to self.In the pale light, Roderick's face looks like it is made of stone. His body is limp, but one of his arms is rigid as if paralysed...