Tale as Old as Last Wednesday [Maid IC]

[Deme]

OOC Thread (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?t=245432)

Episode 1: It's Been Years Since We've Had Anybody Here And We're Obsessed!

A long, long time ago...Well, maybe not that long ago...


The gates of a half-ruined palace swung open. In the distance, down the path lined with orange trees, was the shape of the palace with its looming tower. It must have been an elegant building once, and the gardens around the front seem to have been somewhat brought to some order. And today, this strange place was welcoming new maids, to tend to it and its cursed prince.

Of course, this could only be noticed in passing by the maids who were just now being allowed into this yard. In front of them was something much more urgent: a tall young man in a blue suit, sizing them up through his single monocled eye. His hair was neatly tied in a low and slender ponytail as was the fashion of young men at the time, with bangs to cover the eyepatch he wore over his missing eye. He greeted them with a very stiff and formal posture, but the young man's expression was welcoming.

"Hail and Well-Met, fair maidens. I am Terran, the Prince's man. I have come to welcome thee into His Majesty's employ, and to offer forth my hopes that thy time here will be...Longer than that of our previous maids. Might thou favorest me with thy names?"

It's apparently time for introductions.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki stands at attention, listening to what the man in charge had to say. She was fully focused on doing this job right; her current track record for assignments was less than favorable. It wasn't that she was bad at her job. She'd managed to complete all her missions, either assassinating or preventing the assassination of her target each time. But in the process, she'd accrued a rather bad collection of wounds and scars, including the loss of an eye, the loss of an arm, several bullet and knife wounds, a burn or two, and a few surgical scars. Her superiors had decided that she needed an assignment that was less dangerous, but still worthy of an assassin of her caliber. So, here she was. Posing as a maid, in order to protect a prince. Shouldn't be too hard...

Appearance wise, Yuki has short, slightly wavy blonde hair which partially frames her face, and her right eye is emerald-green. Her left eye, or lack thereof, is concealed by a black eye patch. Her features are attractive, despite her constantly stern and dour expression. She's slightly tall compared to most girls her age, but her weight is about average and gives the impression that she is at least relatively in-shape. Her build is slightly curvy, with the width of her hips and the size of her chest (size C and proud of it) accentuated by the tightness of her uniform.

The uniform itself is deep blue with white stockings, apron, and headdress, though it slightly varies from standard maid attire in a few ways. Specifically, the sleeves of the blouse are long and extend all the way to her wrist, and her skirt could easily be qualified as "short," though it still leaves something to the imagination. The top couple of buttons on the blouse are undone, so that a tasteful amount of cleavage is visible. And in addition to black shoes, she also has on a pair of black leather gloves. Whether or not they matched didn't matter to her; black gloves were her thing.

She had reasons for these variations, of course. The short skirt and loose buttons were comfortable and offered less restriction to her movement in case she had to spring into action, and they would likely prove distracting to anyone who she had to deal with, violently or otherwise. The long sleeves and gloves were more than just a style and comfort choice, though. They helped to conceal the fact that her left arm was a complex prosthesis, comprised of a brass framework filled with a myriad of springs, cogs, and whirling clockwork. Granted, the arm subtle clicked with every movement, but walking around with visibly clockwork arm was sure to raise more questions than the occasional tick-tock.

When spoken to by the butler, Yuki stands at rapt attention, arms folded behind her back. When he asks for introductions, the assassin thinks for a moment before answer. "My name is Yuki," she states factually. "Pleasure to meet you." Her tone may be somewhat lacking in sincerity, but at least she's trying to be proper and cordial.

[Trobby]

A blonde-haired girl stepped forward, her golden locks hanging over her ears and neatly combed...save for two long strands that seemed to stick up all on their own. Her hands held in front of her politely, she held her skirt and curtsied to the Head Butler, rising up to look at him through brown eyes that seemed to have a slightly unnatural shine. She wore a dark uniform, nearly black but just barely tinted with a bluish purple, which made her already thin frame seem even more slim. She had a slightly nervous look about her, as she spoke to the butler in a surprisingly smooth voice.

"I...am Ante Hanaba. I come to you from far away, wishing to serve the prince of this kingdom. I...am but a novice in the ways of household service, but I shall endeavor to be a most adequate servant."

Having had her say, she gave the butler another small curtsey, before stepping back in line with the other maids.

First Impression, Affection Roll: [roll0]

[Atreli]

Before the gates had begun to swing open a young girl had myteriously appeared in the beach' surf. Like some ghostly apparition she came forward, one step in front of the other. She was clothed in the simple uniform of a sailor, a lace up brown peasant top and torn pants at the knees to match. The girl did not seem to be wearing any boots. The closer she came, the more her features came into much clearer focus.

Big bright green eyes were partially hidden on her pale face by waist length curls of pink hair. Small elf ears poked out from beneathe the curls. By the time the gates were open and the butler and maids assembled she had walked almost completely to them. Once she was just a few feet away, she stopped, smiled and said in a delicate voice:

" Hello, my name is Lune. What is yours?"

[Benson]

A young looking maid stood at forced attention, partially listening to what this Terran was saying. She was much too busy noticing how familiar this Ante Hanaba woman looked, and the name too, she felt like she heard it before. She immediately felt herself not liking them and momentarily glowered during that girl's turn.

Anyways, this young girl who donned a mostly basic sky colored maid's uniform that went just above the knees, but not in a provocative manner, was named Meridith, or rather that was the name she adopted. She was a short lithe girl with pale skin and small boobs, but that latter thing didn't concern her that much, since, smelling the brimstone took priority, something she was rather self conscious about. At the moment she probably smelled weird to others, having had put a lot of perfume to mask her smell of brimstone. Whatever. She also had herself classic 'tsurime' pink eyes, and not the disease mind you. As for her hair, 'twas pink tied into two pig tails that defied gravity, much like possibly, Yuki's boobs. But it helped in hiding her pointy devil ears. I guess. All in all she was your token cute, 'hard around the edges' devil girl in disguise, lolita bodied girl. Say that four times fast.

Anyways.

She idly scratched her nose with her index finger before realizing she was up for introducing herself.

She nearly stumbled in her footing as she stepped forward and forced an adorkable one fang grin. "H-hello..." She bowed and curtsied mimicking that Ante girl's action, she had to right herself from tipping over and falling on her face. Nerves, man, just nerves. And she had right to be nervous, it wasn't every day you signed up to be a maid for the boy you used to be the imaginary friend of, in which you coerced them do naughty things, and then disappeared without telling them, essentially abandoning them. *exhales* I forget where I was going with this. Oh yes. Right. Introductions.

"My name is...M-Meredith Liliths, I too come from far away and feel it to be an honor...and stuff to work here, as a maid, for the prince. IhopethatIcanbeworthyofsaidhonor,pleaseconsiderme." She sharply bowed her head again almost giving herself whiplash.

[Trobby]

Ante tilted her head a little, trying to get a good look at the maid introducing herself. She could swear she'd heard that voice before...

But from where she stood, she could not get a good view of her, and she dare not step out of line. That would be asymmetrical. And that's just...WRONG!

So she stood firmly in place, attempting to keep the line as symmetrical as possible.

It didn't help that they were all different heights, and that they hadn't lined up in any sort of order from tallest to shortest...

...This was going to bother her. It was already bothering her. A torrent of bother had washed over her, and no force on the planet could hold it back now.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki idly studies the other maids around her as they make their introductions. Then some random girl in ragged sailor attire randomly walks up out of the surf. Yuki raises her right eyebrow as she observes the girl, and notes that she has pink hair just like one of the other maids, and pointed ears, just like Yuki. Her's looked natural, though, while Yuki's were... not. She preferred not to dwell on that experience.

At any rate, Lune was clearly not a maid, unlike all the other girls present. Strange. Why was she here, then? "One of these things is not like the other..." Yuki idly observes to no one in particular.

"My name is Yuki," she factually tells the new arrival. "Are you here to apply for a housekeeping position as well?" she asks, her expression neutral aside from her slightly quirked right brow.

[Atreli]

Lune turned to Yuki a little startled at being noticed but then flashed a brillant smile, making her features even more adorable.

" Hello!"

She paused at the maid's question then said quickly. " Yes, yes I am! I believe I would be a good maid too. I am eager to work, especially here."

[Lycan 01]

Yuki stares at the sea-girl for a moment, blinking a few times. This Lune girl seemed to be quite chipper and cheerful. 'Bubbly' was probably a good word to describe her. Yuki didn't do bubbly.

The assassin idly raised her left arm from behind her back, and pointed a finger at the butler. A serious of mechanical clicks and ticking noises accompanied the movements. "You may wish to speak with him, if that is the case."

[Trobby]

Ante bites down on her lip, trying to not speak out at the two girls who are being so very...very...asymmetrical! So blatantly and utterly asymmetrical! And instead tries to focus on the very young catgirl standing beside her.

I do hope she is not too young for this... She thinks to herself. But then...she had nowhere else to go when I found her...so what other choice did I have? Little sis...for your own sake, I hope you are ready for this.

[Hawkflight]

A blonde-haired girl stepped forward, her golden locks hanging over her ears and neatly combed...save for two long strands that seemed to stick up all on their own. Her hands held in front of her politely, she held her skirt and curtsied to the Head Butler, rising up to look at him through brown eyes that seemed to have a slightly unnatural shine. She wore a dark uniform, nearly black but just barely tinted with a bluish purple, which made her already thin frame seem even more slim. She had a slightly nervous look about her, as she spoke to the butler in a surprisingly smooth voice.

"I...am Ante Hanaba. I come to you from far away, wishing to serve the prince of this kingdom. I...am but a novice in the ways of household service, but I shall endeavor to be a most adequate servant."

Having had her say, she gave the butler another small curtsey, before stepping back in line with the other maids.

First Impression, Affection Roll: [roll0]


Ante bites down on her lip, trying to not speak out at the two girls who are being so very...very...asymmetrical! So blatantly and utterly asymmetrical! And instead tries to focus on the very young catgirl standing beside her.

I do hope she is not too young for this... She thinks to herself. But then...she had nowhere else to go when I found her...so what other choice did I have? Little sis...for your own sake, I hope you are ready for this.

The young kitty-girl was not in fact beside her older sister, but hidden partially behind her. As onii-san turned her attention to he kitten, she looked up, gave a small nod, and shyly peeked out at the waiting butler.

The girl was young, around nine years in human terms, but appeared even younger than that. She wore a cream-colored uniform and had mid-length orange hair, contrasting sharply with Ante's colors. She had the ears and tail of a tiger cub, and wore a ribbon in her hair and another larger one on her tail. She also wore a bell collar, which made a light tinkling noise as she stepped forward, clutching Ante's shirt tightly in one tiny hand.

"Um, m-my name is Hani-chan," she said quietly. "I-It's a p-pleasure ..." The rest was just a squeak.

Affection roll to make a first impression: [roll0]

[Deme]

The butler smiled at the two maids who made an effort to impress him, accepting the kitten's strangeness and the demoness' disguise without too much bother. He dropped to a one-kneed bow for the little tiger.

"A pleasure to meet thee, Hani-chan. Is she thy sister, Miss Hanaba?"

To the rest of them, looking up from his bow...Well, he looked them over again. Meredith Lillith...The name rang a bell, but he could not place it. It had a nostalgic sound. And, of course, there were two other maids... It didn't occur to him that the girl in the sailor suit was not a maid. It just sort of happened. He continued his speech.

"The next few days shall't be a...trial period for thee, to determine if thou all art truly suited to positions here; this household and his royal highness Prince Leon hath specific needs of its staff, and we have yet to keep maids that meeteth them."

[Lycan 01]

"Understood," Yuki replies to the butler in a crisp, professional manner. "May I ask what the staff has specific need of, exactly?" she asks, standing straight at attention, her arms folded behind her back.

[Trobby]

Ante listened carefully to Terran's words, and kept her sister within arm's reach of her. Her desire for perfect symmetry was partly overrun by her desire to treat her 'little sister' with love, and right now she looked like she needed some.

"You did great, sis." She said softly, patting the tiger girl's head.

[Atreli]

Since the main butler had done nothing to stop her or question her, Lune slid into line with the others. It was then she noticed how differently she was dressed compared to the girls. If she was to work and be here she would need a uniform. Perhaps there was an extra lying around inside...

She waited for Terran's words eagerly. What would their jobs be she wondered as how did they say it...maid?

[Deme]

He was still waiting for a response to his question from Ante or Hani, and still on his knee, but he replied to the question from his position with as much decorum as he could muster.

"The standard services one would expect of maids, of course, apply, though, of a level suiting for His Highness... But parts of this place require restoration, which shall be amongst thy undertakings..."

Here, he faltered, seeming to try and figure out what his master would like him to say when it came to...The ultimate reason they were here. Not that they expected thing King and Queen's plan of "throw girls at him until one breaks the spell" would work, but...

He settled on the broad strokes version. Not too personal.

"This manor recieveth little contact from outside: only us, acquiring supplies, and never once have we recieved visitors. As a result... Thou must beeth suitable as companions, as well... My hopes, in this, are low; I am praying to be proven wrong. Any questions?"

[Lycan 01]

"Standard maid services will prove to be no problem," Yuki states factually. With a slight smirk, she adds: "Repairs and renovations should not be too much of a challenge, either. I know my way around a hammer and screwdriver." She gave a subtle flex of her artificial fingers behind her back. She was quite experienced with mechanical repair and tinkering. Architecture shouldn't be too much different.

She then raises her eyebrow at the butler's last remark. "Companionship, you say? You do not think the Prince will like us? Hm..." Her eye narrows, and her smirk deepens. "Challenge accepted."

Yuki doesn't actually expect to earn the Prince's friendship, of course. She doesn't need to, really. She just needs to be able to get in a position where she can be close to him so she can properly keep and eye on him and perform her bodyguard duties. It didn't really matter to her how she got there, be it through respect, friendship, or affection.

[Trobby]

"I and my sister are ready to take on any task that you may have for us." Ante says with resolution. She holds onto Hani a little bit tighter, to affirm to her that they are together in all of this.

[Hawkflight]

The butler smiled at the two maids who made an effort to impress him, accepting the kitten's strangeness and the demoness' disguise without too much bother. He dropped to a one-kneed bow for the little tiger.

"A pleasure to meet thee, Hani-chan. Is she thy sister, Miss Hanaba?"

To the rest of them, looking up from his bow...Well, he looked them over again. Meredith Lillith...The name rang a bell, but he could not place it. It had a nostalgic sound. And, of course, there were two other maids... It didn't occur to him that the girl in the sailor suit was not a maid. It just sort of happened. He continued his speech.

"The next few days shall't be a...trial period for thee, to determine if thou all art truly suited to positions here; this household and his royal highness Prince Leon hath specific needs of its staff, and we have yet to keep maids that meeteth them."


Ante listened carefully to Terran's words, and kept her sister within arm's reach of her. Her desire for perfect symmetry was partly overrun by her desire to treat her 'little sister' with love, and right now she looked like she needed some.

"You did great, sis." She said softly, patting the tiger girl's head.

Hani again hid partially behind Ante with a slight blush. It was then one might notice she was carrying a fairly large teddy bear, albeit old and ragged, with soft golden fur. She did let out a slight purr when Ante pet her on the head.


"I and my sister are ready to take on any task that you may have for us." Ante says with resolution. She holds onto Hani a little bit tighter, to affirm to her that they are together in all of this.

"'My sister and I', onii-sama," Hani corrected softly. It appeared some of Ante's OCD was wearing off on her. Whether she spoke loudly enough for even Ante to hear her was ... debatable.

[Trobby]

"...Yes, sweetie. Thank you." Ante says in reply, trying not to inwardly chastise herself too hard for being corrected on her grammar by a 9-year old.

[Benson]

.

"Any questions?"


"When's lunch time?" Merry asked as her stomach growled loud in an exaggerated manner that echoed across the heavens, where time itself stopped long enough for a large sweat drop to develop and stay in place for a short moment. Plenty of tact here.

[Hawkflight]

"...Yes, sweetie. Thank you." Ante says in reply, trying not to inwardly chastise herself too hard for being corrected on her grammar by a 9-year old.

It was even worse than that to the others, if they overheard. She was 9, but looked closer to 5, maaaybe 6.

"S-Sorry, onii-sama," she apologized, blushing.

[Atreli]

Lune laughed, clearly delighted at the thought of a maid.

"It sounds so exciting! I promise I will do my best!"

But first order of business. Maid outfit search.

[Deme]

"It's not necessarily that he may not liketh thee... But if it suits thee to see it as a challenge, so be it."

Terran replied. He wanted very much to not expose too much of the...sadder goings-on around here. So let her think what she will.

"Lunch will happen once I've shown thee to the kitchen...But first, dropped off thy things and gotten Miss Lune her own uniform. This way."

He walked them down the path towards the manner, and up its great steps.

"To either side of the manor is the rose and hedge maze... And the formal gardens where at times His Highness taketh his tea. There's a lawn for games, but with but three players, we don't play often."

He repressed a little sigh at this. Once, they had played, for a while. He led them into the manor's central hall.

It bore an oddly-proportioned portrait in an oddly-made frame. The portait was a little too narrow, was the thing. It showed a regal-looking man with very fair curly hair (if one knew their politics, clearly the king), a dark-haired woman (Queen #3, if you followed the past politics), and a very young boy with dark, curly hair. There was a hand on the boy's shoulder, but it vanished out of the cropped image.

The portrait was flanked by two double-doors. Stairs went to the left and right of the wall with the portrait to the open second-floor.

"We are now in the Great Hall. Through those doors are the Ballroom, through which we can access the dining hall and kitchen. To the east is the part of the mansion in which everyone lives, and it includeth thy quarters, the work-room, and the prince's rooms. To the West is the West Wing. Thou must'nt ever goest there."

[Lycan 01]

Yuki walks along behind Terran, listening to him explain their surroundings. "Does the Prince have any specific preferences for lunch?" she asks factually, quirking her eyebrow aloofly. Might as well get into character, she figures. If she's going to be posing and acting as a maid, she should do a good job of it. And finding out the Prince's likes and dislikes as soon as possible would likely prove invaluable in the long run.

When told about the gardens and games, Yuki asks: "What sort of games? Does the Prince have any favorites?"

As Terran shows Yuki and the other maids around the mansion, she idly calculates possible escape routes and shortcuts. Just in case. And when told not to go into the West Wing, Yuki nods solemnly. "West Wing forbidden. Understood."

[Trobby]

Ante glances up at the picture, canting her head to the side as she looks at it intently. She wonders about the master, and why he hasn't yet shown himself to the maids.

"When shall we meet our master, Sir?"

[Benson]

The West wing? Meridith scratched her chin and glanced up at the castle, her eyes going to the direction of the west wing. Forbidden places she shouldn't ventured to?.....good gravy biscuits, it was very tempting to be naughty and break that rule. She was now curious, like, deviously curious.

To anyone else who looked at her she looked to be twiddling her fingers as if she were plotting something, very hammily I might add.

She snapped out of her silliness and put on a serious business face.

"Yes....uh....Sir, when do we get the...honor, to meet him?" She partially parroted Ante.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki notices Meridith quite obviously acting devious. Not even ten minutes into the job, and already she knew there was going to be trouble. And considering they had only just been told to never enter the West Wing, it was quite obvious what the other maid was plotting. Yuki mentally sighed. She would have to keep an eye on her, and make sure she didn't do anything to get the rest of them in trouble, through force if necessary.

Her disapproving stare is probably quite obvious.

[Deme]

He was a little impressed by all these questions. Having come to a pause in his tour anyway, he could answer them and still take a moment for more before moving on.

"The prince hath a fondness for pasta, though for lunch, something light is always best...And what he liketh best is to have something at least somewhat new."

He said, trying to think of how to explain it. As a whole, he found his companion to be restless in his tastes, particularly now, when a new recipe or a new game was the only thing seperating him from total boredom.

"And in lawn-games, he particularly liketh croquet...Or any new game we can devise."

For the record, he liked dominos for indoor games, but had never once learned the rules for dominos. Yup.
As for when they'd meet him....There, Terran smiled very awkwardly, then gave it up, sighed, and smiled the smile of someone dealing with someone frustrating who he loved.

"An excellent question. When he hath satisfied his nerves with preperation, or I can convince him in spite of that...That is when thee will have the opportunity to meet him...I think one at a time would be best,"

He mused, clearly trying to figure out how to make introductions go smoothly.

[Atreli]

Lune's smile had shifted considerably in the last few minutes from bubbly to curious. Inside the place was incredible. She couldn't wait to start making this place shine.

" Will we have select duties like one does the cooking, the other fixing or do we just all work together in general?" She asked Terran firmly.

[Lycan 01]

"Teamwork would likely be the best strategy," Yuki states factually. "If we work together on a specific task and focus our efforts, we can accomplish our goals more effectively, and in a much more timely manner. Why?" the assassin turns her piercing green eye towards Lune. "Is there some you wanted to do by yourself?"

[Trobby]

"Ah...is the prince perhaps shy of new people?" Ante suggests, knowing how hard it can be to make new friends...well, for her it was at least. Not many mortals were keen on befriending demons. Something about their reputation preceded them.

"Perhaps, if that is the case, a bit of individual work would be best, Miss Yuki." She says to the other maid. Or at least, forming into teams so that we might work on multiple tasks at once, yes?"

[Benson]

"Yes, teamwork/working in teams, cough, we should totally do that," Merry nodded her head vigorously for a few seconds.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki turns her gaze to the other maids, and studies them for a moment. "If someone wishes to work as an individual, I won't stop them. I was merely offering a suggestion for the most effective strategy," she shrugs at Ante.

She then turns to Merry and narrows her eye. "Can you cook?" she asks suspiciously.

[Atreli]

" Nothing really Ms. Yuki, I was just quite eager to get cleaning. " Lune thought a minute before speaking again.
" I guess it's decided then! We will work in teams!" She was beyond excited to get started but that would have to wait.
" Mr. Terran? Will you be putting these teams together or will we?"

[Benson]

She then turns to Merry and narrows her eye. "Can you cook?" she asks suspiciously.


"Huh?...Oh yea, sure. I mean of course! I am a maid and stuff...! I have......training?" Meridith/Merry said quickly trying to look like she was paying attention to Terran and a few of the other maids. But mostly she was thinking about the forbidden wing.

[Deme]

Terran stood back and listened to the maids discuss teamwork for tasks they hadn't exactly been given just yet.

"I shall leave arranging how thou tend'st thy duties in thy care... But, before lunch, perhaps thou should determinest quarters and fetchest for Miss Lune a uniform pro --"

There was a sound that stopped Terran still. It was the sound of 3 notes, played together like a very short roll, played on the piano, followed by a sound of two objects (Hands? Elbows? Something like that) hitting the keys once and remaining there.

Terran immediately looked worried, and began dashing away towards the inhabited end of the manor at full speed, bumping into whatever was in his path ((Roll to determine if you are in it: default is luck, but you can think of other ideas)). Over his shoulder, he called,

"Excuse me! There is an emergency of small proportions, please go about thy business!"

Leaving the maids, whether or not they were knocked over, to their own devices.

[Lycan 01]

Normally, if Yuki were knocked down, she'd be able to roll across the floor and deftly spring back to her feet, or something like that.

But Terran catches her completely flat-footed. Before she can even say anything, the butler mows her down and tramples her underfoot.

Yuki is left sprawled out on the floor in a tangled heap, her eye spinning and her limbs twitching. After a moment of staring at the ceiling, she snaps back to her senses. "Wait!" she barks, leaping to her feet. She then sprints after Terran, a look of fierce determination on her face. "Do you require assistance? Is the Prince in danger?" she asks as she tries to catch up to the butler.

[Trobby]

Ante, to her fortune, had her eye on the butler when he began his reckless careen down the hall, and just barely managed to step out of the way in time to avoid him, her dress playing in the wind caught by the sheer speed at which he ran.

She watched as Terran and Yuki ran off together, and snatched up her sister while she had the chance.

"Come on, girls! The master needs our help!" She shouts, as she marshals the rest of the maids to action.

[Benson]

"Waaah!" Merry yelped as she pivoted rather gracefully on her right foot and avoided getting barreled over by Terran. She let out a sigh of relief and neatly removed any wrinkles from her uniform.


Any whom.


"Huh...oh right...yea...!" Merry sprung into action, the chains part of her uniform ensemble rattled a bit. She ran after them. Shenanigans, sure to ensue.

[Atreli]

Lune manages to jump out of Terran's way like a bolt of lightning. After a moment of quick recovery she joins in the mob of maids running after the head butler to help the master.

[Deme]

Terran skids to a halt at an intersection, creating what will probably be a small (but not needed to roll-for) pile-up of people halting suddenly. He turns around.

"Ladies. I appreciate thy enthusiasm... But this is not an external crisis, no need for swords-a-waving and flags-a-flying! Leon requireth my services as his heartfelt comerade first, and brother to his soul. Please: go to the rooms at the end of that hall, and select thy rooms, and equip Lune in all due propriety...And then, perhaps, he'll be willing to greet thee for lunch if my job is done well."

His face was pretty stern about this... But when he turned back around, he smiled and shook his head, and continued straight down the hallway, after directing the girls to the south side of the intersection.

[Trobby]

"...I suppose we were a bit hasty, weren't we?" Ante says, pressed against the throng of maids at her back. "What say we go do as he suggests, and pick out our rooms right now? Maybe there will be a spare change of uniforms in one of the rooms for you, Lune?"

[Benson]

Curses! Merry was conflicted here, would she follow Terran anyway, albeit sneakily then. Curious devil girl was curious. Or would she join the others in selecting rooms? Clearly she had to be around to get dibs on the best room here. Like she could let the other girls get the better room! Though they were probably just all the same, but she didn't need to know that.

Curses. She put on a smile and nodded her head. "Yes, perhaps we should go along and select our rooms. Igetfirstdibs."

[Lycan 01]

Yuki sighs, folds her arms, and leans casually against the hallway wall. "Well, this job is certainly off to an interesting start..." she mutters once the butler is out of sight. "Well," she turns her eye towards the other maids, "I suppose we should do as he says." She steps away from the wall, and begins to casually walk off towards the bedrooms. As she walks, she gestures over her shoulder for the others to follow.

[Atreli]

" Yes, let's hope so." She said quietly to Ante. " Oh I do hope it's blue. " Blue was and had always been her favorite color which wasn't a big shock to anyone if you thought about where she came from.
Her own room....how strange a thought. Her old room had to be shared with a very large octopus leaving her with very little space. She hoped with her all her might that she would not have the same fate on land.
" Ante, are there any octopus in these rooms?" She asked softly.

[Trobby]

"...Um...I think we can find one for you, if you need one?" Human sleeping habits sure are a lot different than she expected. Ante finds herself wondering if she'll have to bed with an eight-tentacled beast.

"...I tell you what, if there is a room with an octopus, you can have it. Okay?" Ante says, trying to sound as generous and polite as possible.

[Hawkflight]

Hani-chan, meanwhile, had curled up and fallen asleep on Ante's shoulder. Then the mermaid girl spoke.

"'Octopi'," she sleepily amended, fidgeting into a more comfortable position.

[Deme]

When Yuki and any maids who are following her reach the end of the hall, they find a little mini-hall connected to it. There are 4 rooms in that hall, though one of them is politely labelled "Terran's Room" and only the two in the middle are open, and appear uninhabited at a quick glance.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki opens the door to the left open room, and steps inside. "Hm..." the muses aloud, surveying the room. She doesn't really car how luxurious or paltry the furnishings and comforts are. She's slept in much worse conditions. Like rain-filled trenches. Or with a roommate who had very bad taste in music. Very bad taste, indeed.

[Atreli]

Lune smiled brightly at Ante and went to open up one of the other rooms to Yuki's right. The room had been done in white and light blue. There were no octopi but it already felt alot like home.
" Is it okay if I take this one? I like it so very much." She said with a laugh.

[Deme]

The room Yuki opened was designed with 3 beds. Furnishings were clean, but impersonal. Each bed had a chest and a nightstand, and there was a large wardrobe in one corner and a small desk in the other. It was also done in shades of blue, like the room next door.

The room Lune opened up was very much the same, but designed to hold two, and as a result, each person got much more space...Which means, of course, that it'd be the nicer room to stay in, if anyone's going to put up a fight about that.

[Trobby]

"Hmm...a three-bed room and a two-bed room...well, Hani and I are going to stay together of course, so I suppose we'll be bunking with you, Miss Yuki." The "brown-eyed" maid says, gently setting the little tiger girl on an empty bed.

[Benson]

"You, whats yer face," She pointed at Lune while having her other hand on her hip after having had followed her into the two bed room, since she did not want to have to sleep in one with three others. "You and me, we're gonna share this room, but I'm takin' a bigger half, because I need more space, its a personal thing."

[Atreli]

" Lune." She said a bit firmly. Her expression then returned to it's normal position: a bright smile. " That's fine Miss Merry."
This place was turning to be just like home. The octopus was greedy with their space too...

[Lycan 01]

"Fine with me," Yuki says with a small shrug, in response to Ante. "I do not think we will have any issues with these arrangements." She begins to walk around the room, examining it and studying it. "Blue. I like blue..." she muses idly.

She chooses not to comment on Meridith's rude treatment of Lune, for now.


Are there any closets, windows, trap doors, or other noteworthy features? :smalltongue:

[Deme]

There's a large wardrobe in both rooms. A person could fit inside... I'm also going to add a small wall-mounted candlabra in each room.

[Benson]

" Lune." She said a bit firmly. Her expression then returned to it's normal position: a bright smile. " That's fine Miss Merry."
This place was turning to be just like home. The octopus was greedy with their space too...



There's a large wardrobe in both rooms. A person could fit inside... I'm also going to add a small wall-mounted candlabra in each room.



"Oooh, I claim the wardrobe...!" She yelped happily and hugged the wardrobe, though she really didn't have any other clothes than her maid uniform, and pajamas.

[Deme]

The wardrobe shakes, ever so slightly, when she hugs it.

[Benson]

Out of curiosity, Merry opens the ward robe.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki drags her suitcase into the room and places it next to the bed at the far end of the room. She opens it up, and begins riffling through it. First she takes out a pair of black combat boots, followed by a full-face gas mask. Then she pulls out a serrated combat knife, the sort you'd expect a commando or something to carry.

She studies the knife for a moment, then looks at the other maids in the room, who are probably staring. "......cooking," she deadpans, before returning her attention to the contents of the large suitcase.

[Trobby]

"..." Says Ante, who is the only other maid in the room who is awake. And she's a bit thankful that her little sis was not awake for the very dangerous...."cooking knife".

She sighs, and sets her own bag down beside the bed. It's a small bag, and even then it appears to be fairly empty, but she begins unpacking it anyway. She very quickly puts whatever clothes she has away before Yuki can see them, as well as what appear to be a few pictures. She does not put any of her pictures on any shelves or hang them from any walls.

"So, um...Yuki...since we're going to be rooming together, perhaps you could tell me a little about where you're from?"

[Deme]

Benson

There is a skeleton in the wardrobe.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki continues to shift through her suitcase. "No." Her statement is aloof and factual, not rude or standoffish; it sounds just the same as someone telling what time it is or something akin to that.

She then pulls out a small black box, and pops it open. There are two matching flintlock pistols nestled snugly into the box, along with over a dozen lead bullets and maintenance tools. The handguns are rather high quality, with the wood parts polished with a nice finish, and the metal pieces covered in fine engravings. She studies the pair of weapons for a moment, before snapping the box shut again and setting it on her pillow. "Did I forget the throwing knives?" she mutters to herself as she resumes digging through her suitcase. "No, that's underwear..."

[Benson]

Meridith

Ooh, a skeleton, lots of those back home, mostly used in home decor. She smiled and touched the skeleton in the ward robe. It was just like home.

[Deme]

The skull rattles its jaw around, making clacking noises. While before it was a simple, pure-white and cleaned-up skeleton, now that it has moved, it's clearly more than that...It is some sort of animate skeleton, and it lives in your wardrobe for everyone (Read: Lune as well as Meredith) to see.

[Atreli]

Lune glared at the skeleton. If it would've been just a decoration that'd be fine with her. But an animated one? No thank you! She whirled around to face it, hands spread out in front of her. It only took her thinking of his name to summon him to life.
Rivarian.
A large, very angry, aquatic looking scorpion sprang to life from thin air. It was entirely black with what looked liked ancient writing down it's back and large red eyes. It clicked it's claws togther threateningly and readied itself for attack on the skeleton.

[Benson]

Merry herself was distracted with the moving skeleton and toothily grinned at it. It looked like her old pal Skelly from home. Her eyes were glued on the skeleton that she had yet to register an aquatic scorpion, since Benson is assuming this is happening simultaneously.

"Heya there, do ya have a name?" She asked the skeleton, expecting for a shake or nod.

[Deme]

The skeleton just clacked his jaw a bit. It's not as if he had a tongue or lungs or, in fact, most of the organs needed for speech. He did, however, see the giant beast and scootched himself back further into the wardrobe, cowering in fear.

[Benson]

Well, she wasn't expectin' him to talk, hence the expected head nod or shake. She frowned seeing the skeleton react that way, she didn't think she was scary, in this form at least. It was then Merry turned around and saw the aquatic scorpion. "Hey, you're scarin' the little fellow, shoo your creature away." Then something occurred to her. "Wait, ya can summon monsters? Oh."

[Lycan 01]

Yuki finally finds her throwing knives - three small serrated blades - and sucks them under his pillow. She then finishes unpacking in silence. Once she's done, she takes the combat knife and slips it up her left sleeve - it disappears into the fabric, and a series of mechanically clicks and whirs are heard. After that, she turns to the other maids in the room and flatly states: "Do not touch my things."

That was not a request.

She then decides to head next door. "I wonder how our aquatic associate is doing...?" she idly muses aloud. Once she gets to the other maid quarters, she raises her right hand and knocks on the door, rapping it a few times with her knuckles.

[Trobby]

Ante watches as Yuki walks out of the room, standing up at her bed to straighten out her sheets.

She then walks over to the other side of the room, bends over Yuki's bed, and begins straightening hers out as well, taking care not to touch the knives under her pillow. She then looks over to Hani's bed, which is currently occupied, and therefore cannot be made more tidy.

With everything tidy without touching things she cannot, Ante finally turns her attention to the large wardrobe at the far end of the room.

Curiosity bites hard at her, as she carefully wanders over to it, takes a hold of both handles, and pulls it open.

My luck is zero. Do your worst, storyteller.

[Deme]

The wardrobe's doors turn into wood-fanged jaws that try and snatch at her; the carvings take on the look of an angry face...It appears that rather than a wardrobe, what we have here is some sort of wardrobe-mimicking monster. It wants her inside of it.

[roll0]

[Trobby]

Not wanting to be on the menu today, Ante attempts to jump back out of the Wardrobe before she becomes a splinter sandwich.

((Athletics: [roll0]))

[Deme]

Ante is now inside the wardrobe. It seems to be saving her for later.

[Atreli]

Lune pats Rivarian on the head and it makes a strange sound that would be seen in the same light as a purr.
" Well at least that musty old skull knows not to bother me from now on unless it wants to ash. "
She said with emphasis to the skeleton.
Upon hearing the door she yelled over her shoulder " Come in!"

[Lycan 01]

Yuki opens the door. She takes one step inside, and immediately pauses upon seeing Lune petting a giant scorpion thing, and Meridith standing next to a wardrobe with a skeleton in it.

"I'll come back later," she flatly states, before turning on her heel and walking out.

Returning to her own room, Yuki immediately pauses once again, after only two steps into the room. Ante was gone. She hadn't followed her out the door, and there were no windows for her to clamber out of. So that meant she was either trying to play Hide and Seek, or something was amiss.

And considering that the other room had skeletons and monster scorpions in it, the latter option seemed very likely right now.

"Ante?" Yuki asks aloud. "Ante, where did you go?"

[Deme]

The Two-Person Room
The skeleton nods in terror.

The Wardrobe

The inside of the wardrobe is very dark -- it appears the back is relatively flimsy, and could be pushed through. There's a bar to hang clothes on above Ante.

[Trobby]

Well, for lack of wanting to physically damage the prince's property, Ante decides to take the relatively flimsy backside as her means of escape, attempting to push on through to the other side.

[Deme]

Ante ends up...In another wardrobe. This one spits her out, ripping her skirt on the way to a much shorter skirt, though still serviceable if she's very careful with her legs...

She is also in a strange and decrepit room. There is a large cauldron in the center, and a long table. Around the room are mysterious items and there's one of those Tesla coils and some odd Rube-Golberg devices and various odd clockwork doohickeys... And a large metal cabinet of some sort, with runes on the outer edges of the door. No one has been here for a long time.

[Lycan 01]

"Ante?" Yuki asks, growing slightly more concerned. She begins to pace the room, looking under the beds. She ignores the sleeping catgirl - she doesn't want to interrupt her sleep, especially since she might freak out about her missing sister. She then checks each of the chests in front of the beds, just in case Ante is hiding in them.

Once she has determined that the other maid is not under a bed or in a chest, the assassin slowly turns her eye towards the wardrobe. "Ante?" she asks, cautiously approaching the large piece of furniture. "Are you in there?"

[Trobby]

As Ante's skirt rips off into a much shorter affair, her long, spaded demon tail pops out from underneath. She looks down, and curses inwardly to herself. Not only is this terrible form for a Maid, but now part of her disguise has been ripped right off!

She tugs the tattered part of her skirt out of the Cabinet door, hoping to salvage it later, and begins wandering around the Lab. Rather than taking a chance with the Wardrobe again, which may or may not be magical as far as she's concerned, she is going to seek out another exit.

[Deme]

The Room

The Wardrobe hungrily opens and tries to nibble at Yuki's hand.

[roll0]

The Lab
There is, in fact, a door. It's a fairly ordinary-looking door, and does not appear to be locked.

[Trobby]

Deciding not to take any more chances in the secret lab, Ante takes her exit and runs with it! Er, out of it, rather. You get the point!

[Lycan 01]

Yuki pulls her hand back, and arches her eyebrow. "Oh," she aloofly observes, looking up and down at the apparently sentient furniture. "You ate her, didn't you?"

A few ideas and facts briefly flicker through Yuki's mind. Stabbing it, shooting it, or other violent methods might work, but they'd probably also get her in trouble. Running away was simply not an option - she wasn't a coward, and she wasn't going to leave that poor little catgirl here to be devoured. She also hated the idea of calling for help - she was a bit prideful. But she had one idea she felt would almost certainly work.

"Oh. Oh my," she suddenly steps forward, actually getting closer to the beast. Her eye goes wide, and she begins to almost obsessively look the wardrobe over. "How fascinating. Are... are you mahogany?" A smirk spreads across her face. "I love mahogany."

"And... your finish..." she purrs huskily, raising her left hand towards the side of the wardrobe. "Your lacquer is simply so... alluring..." she purrs huskily, before lightly tracing a fingertip down its side.

"Oh, the things I could do to a piece of furniture like you," she whispers, an almost predatory grin on her face. "Or rather, the things I could do... for you," she winks. "Why don't you give me back my associate Ante, hm? Or at the very least, don't try to nibble on me. If you're nice to me, I'll be nice to you..."

She then leans in very close, and whispers seductively: "After all, I've got to change clothes somewhere. In front of or inside of a wardrobe seems like the best place, does it not...?"


Cunning to seduce the wardrobe.

[roll0]

[Deme]

Ante
She finds a dark and winding passageway on the other side of the door.

If She Takes It

She eventually comes to a small cellar-type door leading upwards. Assuming she goes up that, she comes out... To what appears to be the outdoors, in a beautiful garden full of roses. There are hedges everywhere, and it appears to be...Forming a maze.


Yuki

...Welp. She has just seduced a wardrobe monster. It wiggles and turns away shyly, and then opens up...To reveal its backing opened and the lab, presumably with Ante about to leave the door, unless my timing is wrong ((Troby's call.))

[Trobby]

Ante is not going to take a chance with the wardrobe. Not now, not ever again. She hurries up the stairs, closing the door behind her. Her spaded tail swishes through, it being the only thing Yuki sees upon entering the lab before the door closes.

Once she reaches the top, and spies the hedges that surround her, she takes a moment to reconsider the merits of being swallowed by a wardrobe.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki smirks. "Thank you," she says to the wardrobe, before leaning in and giving it a quick kiss on the side, which should hopefully be the equivalent to a peck on the cheek.

Her expression then grows very grave and stern. "It seems a demon is pursuing Ante, wherever she is," she mutters to herself. "I should probably stay here, but I can't just leave her to a potentially gruesome fate."

She then looks back up at the wardrobe and smiles innocently. "Hold this portal open for just a moment, please."

She then scurries back across the room, over to the storage chest in front of her bed. She opens it up, and begins to dig through it - making sure that she bends over with her butt facing the wardrobe, giving the wardrobe a reward for its niceness. She even gives a nice shake.

A short moment later, she pulls the pair of dueling pistols and a matching holster from the chest. She quickly straps the holster around her waist and slips both pistols in, before running back over to the wardrobe. "Please don't eat the catgirl, or any other maids who come in. They're my associates," she factually states. "Be back shortly."

And with that, she leaps through the wardrobe portal, and promptly gives chase.

[Deme]

Ante

She hears a voice a hedge over, where the top of a gazebo can be seen over the hedges. The voice is male, pleasant and warm... And in song, at the start of a refrain.

"I have found her, she's an angel
with the dust of the stars in her eyes..."

It drifted out over the roses.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki strides through the lab, intent on pursuing the pursuer.

But then she slows down when her eye falls upon the rune-engraved cabinet.

"Please have some sort of magical anti-daemon weapon," she flatly asks no one in particular as she walks over and flings it open.

[Deme]

The doors remain solidly closed. In fact, somehow they seem less open than before, resisting all attempts to be moved. The runes glow strongly, and a message appears on the cabinet.

Only to the Hand Regal; Only for the Lord who dwells; Only this hand may pry open This Protection; Until the End of Time

[Lycan 01]

Yuki scowls. "Naturally."

She then quickly glances around the room again, just to be sure she didn't miss anything that could be useful. A hammer, a sword, vials of hydrochloric acid, a small death ray, a blessed crossbow of banishment...... y'know, useful stuff.

[Deme]

Well, there appear to be a wide variety of vials full of who-knows what, and that tesla coil is still full of electric magic... Who knows? If she looks into some of the non-magical drawers and cabinets, there may be a small death ray.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki ponders for a moment. "If I were a useful item - preferably a small death ray - where would I be?" she aloofly asks aloud. She then scans the room with her eye, trying to best calculate where something important would go. She analyzes how the room is organized, and using her own organization skills, tries to determine where an important or useful item would be stored.

She then tries her luck, and checks the best location she can think of.


Skill: [roll0]

[Deme]

She finds, in a small cabinet, a beautiful rose under glass. In a different sort of Beauty and the Beast story, this would be some sort of magical charm tied to the Master's condition.

Instead, it is politely labelled
Weapon-Grade Pyrenean Rose: Think Thorns to Activate Thorn-spray, Think Petals to activate Petals (Great for Housework. Must Document.)

[Trobby]

Ante meanwhile hears the sound of music coming out from over the hedge maze. She attempts to get a better look at the gazebo and its occupant, but can't quite see that high.

Times like this made Ante wish she had proper, functional wings instead of the little ones that were hidden under her blouse. Though they were much easier to hide at least.

Lacking any sort of vault or method of scaling the hedge directly, and not wanting to damage it in any case, Ante attempts to navigate the maze, using the voice and the Gazebo top as a guiding point.

Cunning - [roll0]

[Lycan 01]

Yuki frowns. A rose in a glass case seemed rather interesting, but she wasn't sure how easy to carry it or how effective in combat it would be. So she decides to leave it for now. "I'll come back for you later," she flatly states, before turning to the Tesla Coil and adding: "You as well."

And with that, she scurries out the door, and tries to catch up to Ante and/or her hunter.

[Deme]

The Maze

Luckily, the gazebo was just a turn away, so it didn't really take any effort to find it...Thank goodness. The gazebo was surrounded on all sides by red and white roses, with a little path clear around the steps leading up to it. In the center of the gazebo was a small table and some chairs, though none of them were occupied.

Standing there, lost in the song...Was a monster in elegant blue and silver clothing, tailored to accomodate unusual features, such as his lion-like tail or his gold-and-cream feathered wings, large enough to be functional. On his head curled creamy hair, textured differently than the same-colored fur that thinly coated his body. A pair of small spiraled horns on top broke through his hair -- big enough that they'd be tricky to disguise. Ante couldn't see too many features of his face or arms to tell what they were like from this angle, though his head and shoulders were human-shaped...If one cut from the equation his floppy, goat-like ears. His pants were cut to end above the knee, where the fur thickened and obscured the nature of his knees and ankles...The best one could see, he stood on dark cloven hooves.

The creature was man-shaped, roughly-speaking, slender and fine-boned, and turned away from her.

"We are dancing, we are flying
And she's taking me back to the..."

Then he turned his head and opened one silvery eye. His features looked human, though his nose was a little bit flatter and broader at the bottom than was normal -- it had to be, to accomodate the soft little pad of the nostrils, like an animal's. By the shape of the brow and the jaw, the set of his cheeks and his eyes...He'd have been very handsome, perhaps.

He also looked very surprised. He looked her up and down without moving an inch, like a creature frozen and ready to bolt.

"...Ah. Oh, don't be alarmed. Please."

[Trobby]

Ante was very, VERY alarmed. Though for a very different reason...

~Crap crap crap crap CRAP how did they find me so fast?!~ She thought to herself as she tried to keep her spaded tail under control, wrapped behind a hedge bush...slightly painfully because of the rose thorns, but she had the will to bear the pain. Fortunately for her, in her mind, he didn't seem to realize it was her just yet. So maybe, just maybe, she could still play it off.

Still, he didn't quite look like any demon she had ever seen...but she couldn't imagine any other reason why this manlike beast would be lumbering about her master's garden.

Suddenly she realized he was expecting her to speak. Clearing her throat, and adding a slight squeaky falsetto to her voice, she said, "Ah...good sir, I am naught but a humble servant of this castle. If you come bearing ill will upon my master, I must ask that you leave immediately." She does her best to look doe-eyed and helpless.

[Deme]

He smiled, but it seemed... A little sad. He turned around properly now that he himself was no longer alarmed, and sat down, shifting his tail as he did, in one of the chairs, folding his hands out of sight and beneath the table.

He forced a laugh.
"I assure you, I'd do your master no harm... I'm really quite harmless, though I know a few overprotective brothers who'd disagree...
And as for being naught but a servant...Don't sell yourself short."

He smiled, and it lost its dissapointed air by a good deal.

"After all, you are a radiant sun that every flower in this garden would turn to, mistaking it for the real thing. How did you end up here, little sun?"

His silence had an almost...testing, quality. Like a lot rested on what she did now that he had reassured her...and complimented her.

[Benson]

The Two-Person Room
The skeleton nods in terror.


Merry glanced..or rather glared at Lune and then looked at the skeleton with a smile, who she decided to to rename Skelly II. She gave it her hand in invitation. "Come on, you don't have to be scared, I'll be your comrade so as long you don't end up trying to have my flesh for yourself."

[Trobby]

...~Ah, so he's THAT kind of demon.~ Ante thinks to herself with a little bit of disgust. The worst kind of demon, in her mind. At least the other kinds don't dance around the idea of being from the underworld and servants of darkness and depravity.

...Well okay, she's a demon too, but that's completely beside the point!

Regardless, she still has to play her part, lest he figure her out. Swallowing her pride, she bats her eyelashes and forces herself to blush by thinking of an embarrassing experience involving other demons of this sort and, thankfully, a rather large wooden mallet.

"Oh, good sir, you flatter me~♥" She says, pouring herself into her role. "It was mere chance that I happened upon this special spot. You see, it's only my first day here, and there are terrible traps leading to dank, horrible little places that I don't know about...but thank goodness I found my way here."

She pushes one foot into the other, while looking down at the ground demurely. "Thank goodness I'm safe now, here with you~"

[Deme]

[Mr. Skellophane Shoulda Been My Name, Mr. Skellophane...]

The skeleton eventually manages to flop one of its hands into hers, and shook its head to assure her he had no interest in that whole being encased in flesh nonsense again.

In the Garden

He rolls his eyes and shakes his head. It was a tired old game.

"Was this your plan for the unfortunate young man sequestered here as well? 'Oh, he's bound to be so lonely, and so fond of pretty girls, everyone knows that...' And you just thought you'd try it on the first man who looked your way?"

He asked, his voice polite and cold as the moon. He wasn't yelling at her -- he didn't even sound angry per se... Just... like he had lost all respect. He sighed and turned his head away.

His arms emerged from under the table, revealing that the fur gave way to scales like on the legs of the bird about midway down the forearms, and his hands were 3-fingered (and a thumb) things halfway between talons and hands. He curled one up and, with a motion that seemed practiced to avoid stabbing himself in the face with a claw, propped his chin on the back of his wrist.

[Trobby]

"...Ah...no...I'm...sorry but, I thought you...who are you?" Ante says. This is not the way a demon would act. Even if she were playing the part, he'd be all over her by now, well within range of a tactical kick to the voonerables.

And he was far too refined for a demon...despite looking like one.

Maybe a devil? No...unlikely.

Her tail shifts a bit, and causes the hedges to rustle conspicuously. She puts one hand behind her back to try and steady it.

[Deme]

He looks a little puzzled...And noticed the rustling. But he thought he'd play the mystery card a little longer. That, and he was a little suspicious.

"...What did you think?"

His tone had softened and he walked over to her. He tilted his head to try and see the hedges (and tail) better.

"Are you alright? Your tail's caught in the bushes." He paused for a moment, and gave it some thought. "Is that what this is about?"

Well, at least he's gone from 'totally disgusted' to 'somewhat amused.'

[Trobby]

"...Please don't tell anyone..."

Ante steps out from the rose hedges. Poking out from under her skirt is a bright, shiny red tail about three feet long, ending in a six-inch spaded tip, with an inward cut to make it look like an arrow. It sways back and forth idly.

She also, reluctantly, removes her headdress to reveal two six-inch long curved ivory horns poking out from her blonde hair, as well as five-inch long pointed ears that fan out behind her head.

[Deme]

At this, he seems to have gotten at the heart of things...And he smiles very gently. At this close distance, one thing is clear: his eyes are very human.

"Don't worry, I won't say a word if you don't wish me to. I'll keep this lovely little secret all to myself,"

He winks conspiringly, and adds self-depricatingly,

"I'm not a monster...Well, technically I am. But not so much to sell out a lady who probably has troubles of her own. Am I right, miss...?"

He's relieved to maybe get a chance to ferret out her feelings now that that's cleared up.

[Trobby]

There's one other thing he forgot to mention about his eyes.

They're really rather handsome.

"A-ante..." She says, tail still in her hand. "Ante Hanaba, sir. And thank you...I don't suppose...you work here too, sir...?"

[Deme]

They were indeed, and entirely focused on her.

"Well, something like that..." Since she asked directly, he didn't want to lie directly. He could work up to it delicately, though.

"This mansion is home to many things that are a little odd, and I happen to be one of them. Consider this rose garden a sanctuary, if you please...Oh, but... How exactly did you end up here, really?"

At which point, with him standing right in front of her, and her all nervous like this...
THIS is when Yuki comes in, though what Ante is doing relative to that depends on the timing of things.

[Lycan 01]

"Ante? Ante where are you?" Yuki cautiously calls out as she slowly makes her way through the hedges. She could hear voices from somewhere up ahead. It sounded like Ante... but who was she talking to. Was it the demon, trying to trick her? The assassin quickened her pace, and began to flex her hands and focus her senses, in case she had to reach for a weapon or defend herself.

[Trobby]

Ante's eyes widen, as all the gears click into place at once. In hindsight, she thinks it was probably pretty obvious, if she had been paying attention to the cues...

"My master..."

Of course all of that is interrupted at the sound of Yuki calling out for her. Her head darts in that direction, then back to her Master, showing an apologetic, and pleading look, as she tries to quickly cover her horns. She's too far away from the roses now though, and her tail has nowhere else to hide. Except...

She shifts herself closer to her master, and attempts to hide the incriminating red tail behind his body, hoping that he'll get the idea, and praying that he will go along with it.

[Lycan 01]

A split-second later, Yuki rounds the corner. "Ah, there you are Ante. I was-" she pauses, the creature next to Ante finally registering in her mind.

The assassin instinctively takes a step back, tensing up as if preparing to defend herself. She then visibly relaxes as she notices that he doesn't seem to be hostile, and he's also very nicely dressed. Yuki stares the the creature for a moment, blinking a few times, before looking at him from top to bottom a couple of times. She then leans to the side a bit, trying to get a better look at his tail. Upon seeing that its a lion's tail instead of a demon tail, she straightens her posture back up. "Hm," she muses.

Yuki then turns her attention back to Ante. "As I was saying, I managed to come after you with the wardrobe's help, but I caught a glimpse of some sort of demon chasing after you. So I've been trying to catch either it or you, since I couldn't just leave you to a potentially gruesome fate," she factually explains, completely ignoring the monster-who-is-actually-her-boss.

[Deme]

He did his best to give her a non-thorny way of hiding her tail, handily reaching a wing over to cover her back until she could turn around and hide it better. The effect was slightly embrace-like, and he braced himself for the likely volley of screams and maybe weapons or teapots, closing his eyes tightly.

...And it didn't happen. He opened an eye.

Given that she didn't immediately freak out, or even seemingly care... Well, he was a bit off his game. Of course, then she mentioned the wardrobe, which changed his focus.

Did that thing eat the wardrobe in one of the maid rooms and impersonate it? I thought it was content with table scraps..."

He meant, of course, scraps of table.

"Well, anyway...Her fate could be more horrible, I assure...This castle isn't short on strange but largely harmless things, maybe you saw one of them?" He offered, trying to conceal the maid's involvement and self-chasing.

[Trobby]

"Ah...yes, yes that's probably what you saw, Yuki...ah, thank you all the same for worrying about me so much, but as you can see I'm quite fine now...maybe they went that way?" Ante suggests, pointing in a direction that will NOT take her closer to seeing the demon tail she is trying to hide.

[Lycan 01]

"But I just came from that direction," Yuki deadpans. She then shrugs. "No matter. For now I shall stay here with you and the court wizard, in case the demon returns. Safety in numbers, after all."

At the mention of the wardrobe monster, she smirks. "Oh, you have no need to worry about the Mimic anymore, sir. I have dealt with it, and ensured that it will be of no danger to myself or any of the other maids." He doesn't need to know the details...

[Deme]

Court wizard?...What? There wasn't exactly a court here. Well, he'd let anyone believe what they want for now. It let them get used to the sight of him -- which she seemed to do immediately -- withough things like 'he's a prince' or 'he's my boss' getting complicated.

"Hmmm...May I ask what led you to your conclusion about my identity, miss?"

He asked. He was impressed, since she apparently handled the mimic, who was a perpetual thorn in the side.

[Benson]

[Mr. Skellophane Shoulda Been My Name, Mr. Skellophane...]

The skeleton eventually manages to flop one of its hands into hers, and shook its head to assure her he had no interest in that whole being encased in flesh nonsense again.



"Cool. Come one, yer now like my lackey friend, let's go explore, you don't have to worry about Loony here," She pulled the skeleton by the hand.

[Lycan 01]

"Four key pieces of evidence," Yuki shrugs aloofly, "Are your appearance, your knowledge, your clothes, and your diction."

"You are the most flawless example of a chimera I have ever seen," she factually states. "Such a transmutation is only possible with very powerful magic, and I've encountered a few mages and sorcerers who attempted to do such feats and experiments, though with far less success as yourself. Ergo, you must be quite powerful and skilled in your arcane abilities." It doesn't seem like a good idea to tell him that those wizards/chimeras were often targets she was sent to kill.

"You also know a lot about the monsters and dangers that exist here in the Prince's estate," Yuki explains. "Though, that could just as easily be from experience and a need for survival as it could be from knowledge and research."

"Your attire is very fancy and stylish, befitting somebody of high class, authority, or nobility. It makes sense that the Prince's arcane adviser would be clad in such a manner," she idly gestures.

Yuki momentarily looks back at Ante. "Also, on the subject of attire, I like the new skirt. It's a good look on you." She gives a playful wink, just to mess with her.

"And finally," she turns back to the wizard-but-really-the-Prince-dude, "Your manner of speech indicates that you are of high class or education. Such eloquence and diction would be expected of a scholar, noble, or member of the upper class."

Concluded with her explanation, Yuki smiles. "Forgive me if I was too analytical, good sir. My prior occupations involved a keen eye for detail and reading people..." She neglects to mention that analyzing those people often led to killing them.

[Atreli]

Lune smiled at the skeleton's fear and in a flick of her wrist Rivarian was gone as if he never was.

" No he doesn't, as long as he knows who's boss." She said with a smile.

[Trobby]

"...That's very astute, Miss Yuki. Your analysis is quite through and appears to be perfectly flawless in every way."

Ante considers the idea that this man might be a mage rather than the prince. The connection from the lab to the hedge maze would be another wonderful clue...but she also considers his reaction to Yuki's analysis, and that more than anything else dissuades her from being convinced.

"Yes, I would say that anyone looking at the situation from where you're standing would arrive at exactly the same conclusion. And, while I don't mind my new attire, I feel it is a bit inappropriate for a maid of the household, and I shall have to mend it at my nearest convenience."

She pitifully holds up the remnants of her skirt, which had been spirited away elsewhere during the confrontation.

"Sir...would you perhaps escort me back to the manor? With demons running about, I would be ever so grateful for your company."

[Deme]

In the Garden

Actually, the young man's reaction was a thoughtful laugh. Except for one small bit of information, that logic followed fairly well (A perfect specimen? That witch must have been stronger than he thought she was); yes, it followed perfectly...To a wrong conclusion.

"My, my...Brains, a cool head, and beauty. I'm very impressed...Though in my experience, I'm not sure I've heard too many maids argue the value of an analytical mind..."

He leaned forward and winked.

"But perhaps that gives you an edge I shall hope to see."

At Ante's comment, however, he nodded politely. It made sense that Ante would want to leave alone, and he had given his word to help her.

"Well, if the lady insists, I think I must, at least for...Part of the way. But don't think I'm done with you just yet... There isn't much room in the manor for people, so I do believe we'll meet again, my lovely snowflake."

He took Ante by the arm and began to escort her through the maze.

---

With Lune and Merry

The skeleton looked slightly taken-aback by Lune's comment, but did its best to get on its feet. It wasn't very good on it, being held together by magic and willpower, and a bone here or there popped off as it stood.

[Benson]

---

With Lune and Merry

The skeleton looked slightly taken-aback by Lune's comment, but did its best to get on its feet. It wasn't very good on it, being held together by magic and willpower, and a bone here or there popped off as it stood.

"Hey Skelly, you dropped your hand," She pointed to the other hand that she was not holding.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki gives a small, polite bow. "Thank you. I look forward to our next meeting, good sir."

One the 'arcane advisor' and Ante are gone and out of earshot, Yuki aloofly mutters: "I do believe he was flirting with me. Hm. Odd."

The assassin casually turns and begins to walk around the maze, not really heading in any particular direction. She has her left arm folded across her chest, propping up her right arm, which in turn is propping up her head. Thoughtfully resting her chin on the back of her right hand as she walks, Yuki idly muses and ponders the day's events. "First I seduce a piece of furniture, then I glimpse a demon and find a weaponized flower, and now the Prince's royal mage seems to have taken an interest in me. Pity it won't last once......... Ahem. At any rate, this job is certainly proving to be far more interesting than expect..."

As an afterthought, she adds: "I hope I don't lose a limb this time."


Just walking around the maze to kill time for a bit, and maybe stumble upon something interesting.

[Atreli]

Lune decides to leave the two alone and set off in search of her future uniform. She heads out of the bedroom and down the hallway to see if there is any room that can help her solve her plight.

[Deme]

Lune
To her left is a room with a sign that reads
Entereth here not! Ruines!

To her right is a room with a sign that reads
Servant's Worke Room.

Decisions, Decisions...

Merry

The skeleton tried to crouch down to pick it up...Causing his knees to go flying across the room. It's difficult moving without stuff holding you together. He looked up helplessly. Apparently there was a reason he was just curled up in the wardrobe.

Yuki

A few turns away was a set-up of tables and chairs, though sans gazebo. There was even a little pond over-run with koi...

And in the chairs was what was apparently a devil. He was looking at his watch.

"I don't get it! Her fate line said she'd be here and we could collect her any minute!" He wailed.

[Trobby]

Ante

Once they are well out of earshot, Ante relaxes herself a bit, and detaches herself from the Master as well.

"Thank you so much, Sir...Leon." she smiles a bit at this secret bit of information. Not that she plans on abusing it for anything, but it is nice to finally meet her new Master. "I'm not entirely sure how she would have reacted if she knew that I was the demon 'sneaking about'...but I believe it would have involved bullets. You are very much my savior today."

She says all this with a small smirk as they walk. The somewhat awkward situation has, strangely enough, put her more at ease with the Prince.

[Benson]

"Hmm, I think we're going to have problems here," She looked at the crumpled skeleton and thought about how lousy the magic was that was keeping him together. He probably forgot to renew magic subscription. "Oh! I got it. I'll find a cart and wheel you around, better than being cramped up in the wardrobe."

"Okay, you...uh...stay there, good job, I'll go find a wooden cart...or something," Merry nodded at the skeleton. She then set off in search of a wagon or some such. Exploration!

[Atreli]

Lune opens the door for the Servant's Work Room.

" Please let something useful be in here."

[Lycan 01]

Yuki's instincts and training kick in. She crouches low, and begins to slowly sneak her way towards the devil. Years of training as an assassin had honed her skills at moving quietly and keeping her balance. And her recent crash-courses in maid work had also helped. Emphasis on the crash, because she'd been forced to carry platter's of food and other delicate items without losing her balance or breaking proper posture. She'd also been taught how to walk softly and quietly around the house, so as not to disturb the master or guests.

Somehow, becoming a maid had made Yuki an even more effective and deadly assassin. Or at least, she hoped that was the case. Time to find out...

If she's successful, Yuki wants to sneak right up behind the devil, and observe him for a bit before she decides what to do next.


Skill to be sneaky: [roll0]

[Deme]

[With Ante]
This time, he could tell her gratitude was sincere, so he just smiled.

"Oh, I doubt she'd go that far... She didn't seem the sort to act on first impulse...And, of course, I could never allow someone in my employ, however short or long, to do harm to a lovely girl."

He commented as they walked through the maze. He looked at his arm as if he considered offering it to her, with a slightly troubled expression, and then simply folded his hands behind his back. He looked a little uneasy on that.

"Though, out of curiosity, if it's not too much to ask...Are you...Actually a demon?"

He didn't seem nervous about the possibility, just wondering.

---
[Meanwhile, the other demon...]

The skeleton nods as she goes. She finds her way to a cellar, but there's no cart in there...However, there are other things, if she cares to look.

---

[With Lune]

The servant's room is, in fact, a mess of half-done laundry. A pile prepares to collapse on her the moment she enters the room...
On the only folded pile of clothes in the room is a sleeping man with black hair, black cat ears, and a white-tipped cat tail.

----
[With Yuki]

The devil doesn't notice her and continues waiting. His tail looks identical to Ante's, by the way. He sighs.

"I always get the bad jobs. Drawing in souls is all fine and good, but I'm a fiddler! I like to fiddle away souls, not abduct girls!"

He waves his hands.

"Especially when they never show! I done been stood up!"

[Benson]

Merry

"Oooh....I could make this my lair...." She said distractedly before shaking her head and reminding herself of the task at hand. "Right....wagon...cart...thing...something." She starts to snoop around, looking around everything, even impossible things where one could not hide a wagon or cart, like a wine bottle.

[Trobby]

Ante

She hesitates for a moment to respond, actually pausing in her step, wondering just how far she can trust the prince...

But then...he already knows...so she might as well.

"...Yes...yes I am a full-blooded demon. Born and raised in the underworld which, despite the stories you may have heard, are a lot less lovely than they sound...I'm on the run, in fact...I never intend to go back. And the reason I am hiding my identity is because I am wanted back, and they would drag me back there if they caught me."

She steps back into pace with the prince after she has revealed her whole true story.

"I do apologize for not being forward with my appearance or my background. I've found that mortals tend to look unfavorably upon demons. Fortunately, I don't think they know I am here. I've been very careful to cover my tracks."

[Lycan 01]

Yuki leaps into the demon's lap without warning, straddling him so that they're face to face. "HI!" she proclaims with a massive, cheerful grin. Her voice has lost its typical factual aloofness, and is instead now bubbly and playful. "I've never seen around here before!" she observes in a rather 'chipper' fashion, her eye wide with playful glee.

"Whatcha doin'?" she asks in a playfully curious manner, before her eye locks on his goatee. "Oooooh, nice beard." Her eye then drifts up and she 'notices' his horns. "Oh!" she gasps, recoiling back just enough to accentuate her cleavage. "Horns?"

An almost predatory grin spreads across her face. She leans in close, almost face-to-face with the demon, and purrs in a cheerful-yet-seductive manner: "You know... I love a bad boy..."


Cunning, because she's trying to be deceptive and manipulative: [roll0]

[Deme]

Merry

She finds some spools of wire, and some wine in the wine bottle, and a large scythe, and a few interesting boxes...


Ante

He listened to it all before his expression settled into a relaxed one.

"Don't worry -- I think I understand, well, better than most, I suppose. Nothing torch and pitchfork bad, but..."

He shrugged and tried to smile, but it looked a little pained.

"Well, no matter. I will keep your secret...And let's hope our best against the forces of hell. You've arrived here, and it's a pity to see you go."

He seemed to give the subject some thought and added,

"You know, they say that all the best musicians are bound for hell. Is it so?"


Yuki

He smiles, clearly flattered by the attention...And then goes to grab her arm, fairly hard.

[roll0]

"Well, you're not what I came here for, but...I like a girl who throws herself at a demon. Besides, maybe I'll give you to the boss instead, and that'll do for a while."

In this case, it seems, the question isn't 'does he see through the trap' but 'can he spring his own trap before she springs hers'...

[Trobby]

Ante

"...Hmm...you know, I can't really say. I haven't yet had a chance to hear any music from the mortal world."

She considers the music of the Underworld. True, there are some fantastic musicians...but also some really terrible ones. Possibly they were sent to hell as penance for their crime against harmony.

"It would be a nice change of pace...to hear what beauty comes from the mortal coil." She looks out towards the surrounding forest with what could only be described as admiration. "For all the trouble it has caused, there is no Hell but the cage in which we trap ourselves."

[Lycan 01]

Yuki's expression goes neutral for a moment. With a shrug, she says in her normal aloof voice: "Good, I was growing tired of talking like that."

She then looks down at the devil's hand gripping her arm. "My, what a strong grip you have." She then looks up at him, locks eyes, and smirks.

With speed to rival a striking cobra, her left hand suddenly lunges up to the fiend's neck, and latches around his throat. She squeezes just enough to hamper his breathing, but not enough to completely strangle him. "Mine is better," she confidently states.

Her smirk then disappears, and her expression grows stern. Her eye burns with annoyance, as she flatly growls: "Now let go."


Using Artificial Arm to succeed at first attack of the Battle.

Athletics: [roll0]

[Benson]

Merry

She ooh'ed curiously over the scythe, her mouth making a cute little 'o'. She reached over to grab it and gripped it in her hands. It was just like her's back home named Etna, but it was a sentient weapon, an annoying one, the kind you want to throw into a volcano. Anyways, holding it with two hands she did some practice swings and then posed with it, she thought she looked damned sexy. Get it? Damned. HAHAHAHAH. *beat*

Merry felt the urge to slice at the fourth wall here in the cellar for some reason.

Anyways. That too she was going to claim as hers. Just like the bigger side of the room, the ward robe, the skeleton, so why not a scythe? It was then the pretty boxes caught her eye as she dropped the scythe and walked over. She picked up the smaller box and opened it up to see what was inside.

[Deme]

With Merry

Inside the box is... a very nasty looking semi-spider thing. And it jumps at her face. Because everyone needs some conflict!

[With Ante]
"Ha, then you came to the right man! Well, man-thing...While I admit that I could show you more under better circumstances, I can at least show you a little...Perhaps."

That was at once a spirit-lifter and a mood-dampener, it seems; he started out clearly pleased, and, like that consideration to give her his arm, seemed lonelier at the end than he had before. He shook his head, thoughtfully and sadly, his ears flopping this way and that.

"I'm no expert in hells, though there are times I'd disagree with myself on that...Have you been out of yours long?"

[With Yuki]

"Alright! Alright! I give! D-don't hurt me! I like this body!"[/color]

He broke down and wailed like a baby, completely surrendering his dignity before the terror and might of Yuki.

[Benson]

"Waaaahaaa!" She yelped in surprise as she tried to duck and tumble and pick up the scythe. The spider was going down. No one takes Meridith...uh Liliths by surprise in attack and gets away with it! Overkill time! Oh yea, also her chain accessory rattled dramatically and stuff.

Athletics to, well, the above. [roll0]

[Trobby]

Ante

"Oh...about two months now...I've been trying to find a place where I can serve mortals and not draw too much attention to myself...but for one reason or another..."

She lets it trail off, looking down at the earth intently.

"Well, I met up with Hina, my now-adopted little sister, about a week ago. Poor thing, all alone and afraid...and with this castle so near..well, I thought if there was any place in life where I could serve mortals, it would be as a servant myself. So, here we are."

"And...Master Leon...you must never give up your passion. When you want something, with all of your heart, with all of your soul, then there are no demons, no devils, no angels or mortals that can keep it from you. The will of the heart...that is stronger than any steel, harder than any forge. It...may sometimes be hard. Circumstances may make things difficult, but if you want something hard enough then...well then you reach out and take it!"

Ante attempts to inspire the Prince with the sheer force of her Will.

[roll0]

[Lycan 01]

Yuki tries to maintain her stern expression. Rather than let her confusion and surprise be apparent, she instead smirks almost sadistically and purrs: "I like this body, too. Which is the only reason I haven't destroyed it yet."

She slightly eases her grip on his neck so that he can breath, but she doesn't let go. Leaning in close, she growls: "Now be a nice little demon, and tell me who it is you're after, and why. Or else." She wasn't entirely sure what 'or else' meant, but neither did he, and that's what mattered.

[Deme]

Merry

Huzzah! The bug is squished! The music box clatters to the ground and begins to play a sweet and sad little melody that fills up the dank room. There's a miniature portrait, in a very old style, of a regal-looking man, woman, and child...Though, before you ask, they're clearly a different set of people from the ones in the portrait upstairs.

----

Ante

He listens to he speech and smiles. Even if it wasn't entirely useful... To hear someone outside of the three people who lived here saying 'don't give up' like they meant it (which was not exactly how his father or step-mother wrote it)... It was nice.

"I never said I had given up hope, Miss Ante. I'm not sure what I'd do if it ever seemed really hopeless to me, though I've given it some thought..."

A lot of thought. A lot of late night staring at the wall 'well, darn, it may actually be hopeless. what do I do?' thought. He pulled a hand out from behind his back and flexed it in front of her, turning it this way and that as he examined it, and allowed her to examine it.

"But for the moment, there are certain practicalities that make the arts a little difficult to enjoy. For starters, I don't know yet if angels fear to tread where you rush in, but I will say that most tradesmen do."

He left the stuff out that he found honestly depressing. If everything else about the situation had been OK, he still would find it depressing...So it was hardly good conversation with a lady.

As they reached the edge of the maze, he bowed and kissed her hand. His lips, it seemed, were fully human, and very soft.

"...But....Thank you, very much. I really do appreciate the sentiment. I was right in my first estimate -- like a golden sun, you brightened my day considerably."

He straightened.
"Perhaps I'll sing for you another day, so you'll know what music from this world sounds like...But I suppose you need to go and repair that skirt, and I need to go figure out how to introduce myself to the rest."

He waved her off before heading off in his own direction.


[roll0] Favor gained

---
Yuki

"Anything, anything!" He wailed. "I'm not like mortals! I don't like pain; it hurts me..."

He whimpered.

"I'm here hunting a demoness who went rogue and escape -- her name is Ante. She owes us souls! She was on soul-tending duties and let them escape! My job is to bring her back down!"

He forced a smile and tried pleading.

"See? Not so bad? Just collecting an evil from this world..."

[Lycan 01]

Yuki narrows her eye at the demon, scrutinizing him and his words. "I see..." she mused.

A wistful smile spreads across her face, and she lets out a soft, almost melancholy laugh. "Well, lucky for you, I know what it is like to do evil deeds for the greater good. So, I will not hurt you for doing your job."

She then arches an eyebrow. "But you may want to take a warning back to your associates. Whether or not this 'Ante' is here, hunting for her in this area is probably a very stupid idea. This estate is protected by monsters, sorcery, mad science, dangerous people like myself, and lots of political red tape. So you may want to rethink hunting for that demoness, or anyone else for that matter, around this estate and the surrounding areas. Unless, of course, you want to die or cause a diplomatic incident between dimensions..." she factually states. "Just a bit of friendly advice."

[Trobby]

Ante

The demon maid, who may or may not be here at this very moment, gives a small curtsey to Prince Leon as he wanders off.

It only occurs to her a few minutes after he has gone that she could have taken the chance to ask him what he would like for lunch...or to suggest ways to introduce himself to the others.

That can wait though, as right now her chief concern is getting her skirt sewn back together before anyone sees her walking up a flight of stairs. So she hurries back to her room to mend the damaged uniform.

----

[Benson]

Merry

Huzzah! The bug is squished! The music box clatters to the ground and begins to play a sweet and sad little melody that fills up the dank room. There's a miniature portrait, in a very old style, of a regal-looking man, woman, and child...Though, before you ask, they're clearly a different set of people from the ones in the portrait upstairs.


Merry set the scythe down and picked up the music box and held it up to her. She tilted her head curiously at the small portrait inside. For some reason she felt sad inside, she didn't know why, but she did, maybe the bittersweet had an effect on her. Nonetheless, she put closed the music box and put it back on top of the medium box on top of the big box. She would come back to these later, but right now, she spent too much time not doing what she had set out to do.

So left the cellar and roamed the halls, she had a destination in mind, back to the room to keep Skelly in the know so that he doesn't think she abandoned him. That's how she thought of it. Who knows who'll she run into, which maids, NPCs, etc.

[Trobby]

As it so happens, Ante ran into Merry.

Literally.

"Oph~!" The maid says as she crashes into her co-worker, having heedlessly careened into her while trying to rush through the manor holding the shreds of her skirt.

She quickly tries to wrap the shreds around her tail before Merry can see it, though only after she and Merry disentangle from each other.

[Benson]

Merry

"Aafh..!" She yelped and fell on her back finding a bosom on her face for a few seconds. Ante herself would find her nostrils getting a whiff of brimstone peeking though the perfume Merry tried to cover it with. She sputters angrily, her eyes closed as she tried to regain her bearings and scrambled a foot away. She growled opening her eyes. "You, watch where yer going!"

[Trobby]

Ante scoots back even quicker than she would've intended. Being stuck inside another girl's busom isn't the most embarrassing thing that's ever happened to her, but the whiff of brimstone triggers her paranoia.

Though a second later it reminds her of something...familiar...and for a moment she gives Merry a very confused look indeed.

Before she shakes her head of that thought and hears what she has to say.

"Ah, sorry Merry, I wasn't looking where I was going. Are you okay?"

That whiff of brimstone...and something about this girl seems very familiar...

[Benson]

She narrowed her eyes and stared at the other maid. "I'm........okay, hmmph." She fixed herself up, straightened her head piece, skirt, apron etc. "Why are you in such a hurry anyway? Do something wrooong?" Her tone taking a sing songy teasing-ness.

[Trobby]

"...My skirt was damaged. I wish to fix it as soon as possible." This is self-evident enough, and in all manner of speaking is technically true. "I should have a bit of spare needle and thread in my room."

Ante's ripped skirt wriggles a bit, as she tries to keep her tail under control, and out of sight of the girl who smells of brimstone.

[Benson]

Merry, who just came under realization that her perfume wasn't working when she caught a whiff of herself, flushed pink in the cheeks in her own embarrassment. Too busy fretting over herself to catch a glimpse of Ante's wriggling tail even by chance.

She scooted herself several feet away from Ante, a gesture, along with Merry's facial reaction that could be misunderstood.

[Trobby]

"..." Ante instantly pushes her legs together and scoots away. "Um...so....how about we go our seperate ways...and not tell anyone that this happened...okay?"

Blasted wardrobe. It just HAD to do that to her skirt...topped off with being pressed into the girl's breasts, she'll likely think her some sort of pervert now. Ante's face is just as red for entirely different reasons.

[Deme]

Yuki narrows her eye at the demon, scrutinizing him and his words. "I see..." she mused.

A wistful smile spreads across her face, and she lets out a soft, almost melancholy laugh. "Well, lucky for you, I know what it is like to do evil deeds for the greater good. So, I will not hurt you for doing your job."

She then arches an eyebrow. "But you may want to take a warning back to your associates. Whether or not this 'Ante' is here, hunting for her in this area is probably a very stupid idea. This estate is protected by monsters, sorcery, mad science, dangerous people like myself, and lots of political red tape. So you may want to rethink hunting for that demoness, or anyone else for that matter, around this estate and the surrounding areas. Unless, of course, you want to die or cause a diplomatic incident between dimensions..." she factually states. "Just a bit of friendly advice."

"Oh, she's here!" He paused.

"Well...She's...Supposed to be here." He admits, since after all, he was expecting her when an assasin showed up. "Listen, I can just...Go home, and talk this whole mess over with the bosses, and this pretty little mess of rot won't suffer at all, right?"

The devil asked, with a pleading smile.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki dismounts from atop the demon, though she keeps her grip on his throat. "I suppose that will do for now. Though if I catch you around here again, I won't hesitate to put a bullet or blade through one or more of your extremities. I haven't forgotten what you said about giving me to your boss; the only reason there's not a hunting knife planted between your legs right now is that I'd rather not deal with the attention your screaming would attract," she says, glaring intently. She then releases his throat, pushing him back slightly as she does so. "Now get out of here."

[Benson]

Merry

"Agreed. You keep your mouth shut and don't bring it up, and I'll keep my mouth closed," She was almost close to saying that she don't make a stink about it. But yea.

[Deme]

"Thank you!"

He obediently vanishes in a puff of smoke, leaving no trace that he was ever even there.

[Lycan 01]

With the devil gone, Yuki pauses to dust herself off and make sure her uniform is in proper order. She then decides to return to the forsaken laboratory, in order to retrieve the weaponized rose and analyze the tesla coil.

Whether or not she bumps into anybody or anything along the way, though, is up in the air.

[Trobby]

"Good...good...that's us not telling anyone about anything we saw...well then...goodbye!"

Ante runs off, still trying to hold her tail under control beneath a bundle of fabric.

~Great...~ she thinks to herself. ~Now not only does the prince know my secret, but so does the closet lesbian! Well...not that there's anything wrong with that...she doesn't seem a bad girl...and I swear I recognize her from somewhere...!

These are Ante's thoughts as she goes rushing back to her room to fix her uniform in private.

[Atreli]

As much as she would've loved some company that didn't hate her it was probably best that she not wake him. Reaching up she grabbed an extra maid outfit (Yay blue!) and headed down the hallway after donning her new apparel.
' I wonder what the others are up to...' She thought to herself. ' I hope they haven't started work without me. I do so want to be a good maid.'
When Lune reached the bedrooms no one was in sight. She called out a few names of the maids but no answer, it was then that she heard a noise from the other room in the wardrobe.
" Hello?" She called aloud as she stepped inside it.

[Deme]

Lune, of course, ends up in the lab. She may feel some laquer drop on her head like saliva in transit, but the wardrobe is polite.

[Meanwhile...]

The man asleep on the laundry pile woke up, and noticed Lune's retreating back. She'd not have heard him, but he mumbled after her...

"Hmmm.... So they're here, huh? Well, that person's probably sulking...I sense a situation that could use a certain tomcat's loving attention."

He got up and stretched, doing several moves only vaguely possible for the human spine. And then, as his eyes narrowed with deep contentment, he smiled.

[Lycan 01]

When Lune enters the lab, she sees Yuki standing near the tesla coil. Yuki has managed to gather together several tools, spools of wire, pieces of scrap metal, and other items for tinkering on a nearby table. The weaponized-rose-in-a-glass is also on the table. The assassin has a sketchbook in hand, and is idly making diagrams and blueprints for what looks like a portable death ray.

When she hears Lune's footsteps, Yuki looks up from her work. After a moment's pause, she simply states: "This is exactly what it looks like."

She then goes back to sketching and analyzing.

[Benson]

Merry felt so embarrassed about the whole incident. Stupid perfume didn't work, last time she bought a product from an underworld dealer. Hmmph!

"Darn it....to home," She huffed as she hastily made her way back to the room.

---------------
She wearily smiled at Skelly. "I couldn't find a small wagon or cart....but...I won't stop looking. Though, I think right now...I oughta' start doing actual maid work.......or risk being given the boot."

[Atreli]

" I have no doubt of that Ms. Yuki." Lune said with her usual smile. " Just let me know if you need any help. " She kept out of the other's maid's way and decided to poke around the rest of the lab. The large runed cabinet caught her eye and she walked over to it. Running her hand along it's edge she asked quietly. " Ms.Yuki do you know what this is? " She cleared her throat. " Have you opened it yet?"

[Lycan 01]

"The one with the wards?" Yuki asks. She walks over to a nearby desk, and begins to root through it. "Yes, but it cannot be opened. At least not by any of us. Ah, here we are," she says, pulling out a pair of tinted goggles.

She then pauses for a moment, before shrugging. "Huh. I guess the Mimic stuck to our bargain." She then looks over at Lune. "The wardrobe monster didn't give you any trouble, did it? I told him to eat anyone else, and you seem to have gotten here in one piece..."

[Atreli]

" Too bad." She mumbled as she glanced at it again.
" It feels so familar even though I've never seen it before in my life."
She shook her head almost like she was brushing cobwebs away. For a second she thought she'd been hearing things when Yuki spoke again.
" Wait, wait they're BOTH monsters??!! You humans are such strange creatures! Why on earth would want to stick something so horrible in your bedroom?"

[Deme]

Merry felt so embarrassed about the whole incident. Stupid perfume didn't work, last time she bought a product from an underworld dealer. Hmmph!

"Darn it....to home," She huffed as she hastily made her way back to the room.

---------------
She wearily smiled at Skelly. "I couldn't find a small wagon or cart....but...I won't stop looking. Though, I think right now...I oughta' start doing actual maid work.......or risk being given the boot."

The Skeleton nods thoughtfully. He seems to have pulled himself back into a sitting position at the foot of her bed.

..Though he made a little hand gesture with both hands... It was sort of like...One hand was some sort of...4-legged animal, maybe? A table? And the other sat on top of it. Both hands bobbed up and down together. Then he pointed to somewhere outside the window, inquiringly.

[Benson]

Merry stared dumbly at the Skelly as it took a while for her to process this. The pointing at the window she got, that was easy. "You want me to look outside the window? Okay.."

So she walked over to the window and peered out of it.

[Deme]

Mr. Skelly shook his head, clacking his jaw a bit for her attention. He pointed again to the window...But then moved his hand in an arc, turning it like a path heading East for a bit, then turning north. He repeated the 'man on something' gesture, and then added a new one: the 'man' hand in the cupped other hand.

If he was losing bones from this, they were just part of his sitting-pile anyway.

[Lycan 01]

"No, only the one in my room is a monster, to my knowledge," Yuki aloofly replies in response to Lune's freakout. "Its a Mimic. It copies the form of a piece of furniture somebody would be willing or liable to open. Typically, it matches its surroundings, or poses as something interesting to a specific person. A reliquary or coffin to trick a graverobber, a treasure chest to trick an adventurer, and apparently a wardrobe to trick a maid."

She then smiles. "But as I said, he has been dealt with. I don't think he'll be causing any further problems, especially since you didn't even know it was a monster."

Yuki then hands Lune a fire extinguisher, before walking back over to the Tesla coil and putting the tinted goggles and some padded work gloves on. "Read the instructions on that. If either this machine or myself should happen to burst into flames, use it quickly."

Yuki then tries to dismantle the Tesla coil.


[roll0]

[Deme]

It does not burst into flames. Instead, as she accidentally messes with it, everything metal in the room clings to the ground as if magnetized....And then the coil burst into flames.

[Benson]

Merry was growing agitated from her lack of understanding and tried to clear her mind. She was going try to focus her mind on trying to figure out translations on what Skelly may be trying to say. She took a deep breath and zen-ly inhaled. Power of will, roh roh.

Will: [roll0]

[Deme]

He appears to be trying to tell her that there is somewhere outside she can get a cart, but that's as much as she can figure.

[Lycan 01]

The sudden magnetization of the room is quite unfortunate for Yuki, due to the fact that she has a brace of pistols strapped around her waist, and the fact that her left arm is completely made of metal.

With a loud metallic clang, her left arm completely detaches at the shoulder, and slams down to the ground, taking the sleeve of her uniform with it. At the same time, the holster of pistols is forcefully dragged down her legs, yanking her skirt down with it. A pair of lacy blue panties that match her uniform are revealed, and somewhere in the distance a wolf whistle can be heard. And then, most terribly of all, the Tesla coil explodes into flames.

The assassin stands in silence for a few seconds, her gaze slowly drifting down from her severed arm, to her lack of a skirt, and then to the blazing hunk of technology. "Hm," Yuki muses aloofly, her thoughtful expression illuminated by the warm glow of the fire. "Well this is certainly not one of my proudest moments." The robotic arm on the floor twitches a few times, for emphasis.

[Benson]

He appears to be trying to tell her that there is somewhere outside she can get a cart, but that's as much as she can figure.

'Sooo...outside.....the outside of the mansion? The side of the mansion you pointed at with the the window?" She asked Skelly.

[Atreli]

Lune doesn't waste any time and uses the fire extinguisher to put out the flames. She smiles a moment before reaching down and grabbing Yuki's severed arm. Her questioning eyes watch it twitch. " You are most peculiar one Ms. Yuki but that's okay so am I." Lune's gaze flickers back to the tesla coil and the surrounding objects. "I suppose we should get to cleaning all this up soon. It looks absolutely dreadful."

[Deme]

'Sooo...outside.....the outside of the mansion? The side of the mansion you pointed at with the the window?" She asked Skelly.

Skelly nods. Good enough, anyway.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki raises her eyebrow. "Hm. After your reaction to the Mimic, I expected you to 'flip out' over the fact my arm fell off." She then takes the severed cybernetic from Lune's grasp, though not forcefully. She then attempts to work the limb back into its mechanical housing, which had thankfully stayed connected to her shoulder. The force of the magnetization had only been enough to de-socket the limb, rather than entirely rip it from her body.

Still, Yuki suppressed a shudder, thankful that she'd decided to have a few annoying pieces of shrapnel and bullet fragments surgically removed just before beginning this assignment.

After a moment, a series of clicks are heard, and her left arm begins to flex. "Ah, there we go. Pity about the sleeve, though..." she mutters, yanking the severed sleeve back up to her shoulder and pinching it between the metal joint so it stays in place for the time being. "Shouldn't be too difficult to fix."

She then kneels down to grab her skirt and gun holster, and promptly pulls them back up. "My apologies for the free show," she deadpans.

Once her body and attire are back in order, Yuki looks around the room. "Yes, I suppose we should try to clean this place up. It doesn't look like its been used in many years, but the Prince may still appreciate our efforts."

Yuki then begins to clean and organize. As she works, she asks: "So, how are things between you and that other maid? Meridith, I believe her name is?"


Skill to clean: [roll0]

[Deme]

Well, that's not very clean at all; Yuki caused several avalanches of strange magic crystals and odd devices when trying to put things away, and now it's sort of unorganized chaos. Can Yune save the day?

[Benson]

Skelly nods. Good enough, anyway.

"Alrighty...I'll be right back and stuffs," She nodded as she hastily made her way from the servant's quarters...or whatever, to outside the mansion, presumably behind the mansion.

[Deme]

She finds a building with horses grazing in small-fenced in areas that are connected to their stalls. It's a nice-looking stable, with enough horses for all the residents in clean stalls. The smell of hay fills the air. There's a small carriage-house attached, and it would likely contain a small cart.

[Benson]

Merry found herself distracted by the horses for a moment, it reminded her of home, except without the flaming mane and tail, and smell of brimstone, which that there she did not miss. The smell of hay and manure was more welcoming. She hung on the fences and reached her hand forward and tried to call a horse to come over so she could pet it. She smiled at them and used a sweet tone to her voice.



Affection: [roll0]

[Atreli]

Lune shrugs. " At home I've seen many strange things like that." Instead of going into detail she immediately jumps into Yuki's question about the roommate situation and brushes off the subject of home.
Lune shudders. " There is a place where I am from where some of the most poisonious fish around go to swim in the morning, I would rather try to swim through there instead of rooming with that woman. But..." Lune gave one of more brillant and innocent smiles. " ...I'm sure she'll come around."
She began to clean as she said this.

[Deme]

Merry
One of the horses, a pale buckskin mare, walked over and cautiously gave her a sniff.


The Lab
It may be a good idea to stop before the wardrobe is completely lost in the chaos of the room. As it stands, it's about as messy as before, just moved around.

[Benson]

"Hiya, aren't you a perty horse, heheh," And then the horse gave her a whiff and she face faulted. Oh gosh...its going smell my brimstone stink and run away....!

[Atreli]

" Okay so not my best work." Lune sighed. " Maybe I'll try again tomorrow. Ms. Yuki are you ready to go? We should go meet up with the others to begin our tasks for the day."

[Lycan 01]

Yuki claws her way out from under some strange crystals and other odd devices. "Right. Still not one of my proudest moments."

Dusting herself off, the assassin-turned-maid picks up her glass-encased-rose-of-doom, and turns back to Lune. "If she gives you much trouble, let me know, and perhaps I can do some talking with her. When I need to be, I can be rather... convincing..." she muses, idly flexing her left hand.

"At any rate, lets get out of here before we make things worse. This room has been untouched for years; I doubt anyone will care we didn't get it cleaned, or that we made it slightly worse..." she states, walking back over to the wardrobe portal. "Besides, we probably need to start making lunch soon."

Yuki proceeds to walk through the wardrobe portal and return to her bedroom.

[Deme]

Luckily, it was just a wierd smell for a horse, but not a scary one. What do horses know of the underworld? It just sniffed her for a while longer, hoping to find that under the odd smell and the person smell was a treat smell.

[Atreli]

" I'll remember that. You're very kind Ms. Yuki." Lune said with small laugh as they headed back.

[Trobby]

Once Yuki *and probably Lune as well* walk up into the room beyond the wardrobe, they will see Ante sitting on her bed, a blanket half-wrapped around her, and a skirt resting on her lap. She is diligently putting needle-to-thread and mending her skirt. Her back half is quite generously covered, though her front half is not, a flash of red panties peeking out from under her blouse.

Once she sees the two maids enter, she scoots back a bit and pulls the blanket over herself. "Ah...Yuki, Lune, I...did not expect you to take that rather temperamental pathway back into this room."

Sewing (Skill) - [roll0]

[Benson]

Merry


She was pleasantly surprised that horse didn't react weirdly or whatever she was thinking. She smiled and carefully petted the horse's head, standing on the lowest plank on the fence, holding the top plank with one hand, leaning in close.

"Mmm, I wonder what your name is," She mused to herself as she continued to pet, looking at its big 'ol eyes.

[Lycan 01]

Upon reentering the bedroom, Yuki immediately notices Ante, but her expression remains neutral. However, when she sees the other maid is repairing her skirt, and catches a glimpse of her underwear, the assassin decides to mess with her a bit.

Yuki smirks mischievously, and lets out a loud wolf-whistle. "I must say, Ante, red looks quite nice on you," she states, her smirk deepening.

After a long enough pause to get a reaction out of the other maid, she waves her right hand dismissively. "I jest, I jest. You are not my type."

She then looks at Lune and factually states: "Neither are you, before you start to worry."

Looking back at Ante, she shrugs. "I apparently have quite a way with furniture. It didn't give me much trouble, and I have taken steps to ensure that it will not be problematic for anyone else. Thus far, it seems to have lived up to its end of the bargain, so I will be do the same." She looks back at the wardrobe, and winks.

[Deme]

Merry
Sadly, her name is not visible from outside here.

Ante's sewing...
Goes very well! The skirt is good as new.

[Trobby]

"...I don't like red that much...it...doesn't suit me." She says, trying to hide it a little more. Red is, in fact, her favorite color. But lately it has felt like more of a sign of her secrets than something to appreciate.

She does smirk though when Yuki informs her that she was jesting. "Oh? I didn't know you had a type in that way...how very curious." She teases. She isn't sure if she's serious or not, but would tease her either way.

Though her eyebrow raises a little bit at the comment about the furniture. "...What a unique piece of furnishing...I hope it doesn't cause you troubles for it, Yuki."

with that, she slips her finished skirt back up over her legs, taking care to tuck her tail in behind the blanket, so as not to expose it to the other maids.

[Benson]

After Merry had her fill of petting she gave the horse a slight nod. "You were good company, but I must finish this task, maybe later more petting can be had." With that she hopped off the fence and made her merry way to the carriage house to search in there.

[Atreli]

" Of course it does! No need to be shy." She says casually. Completely ignoring the topic on types she asks instead,
" May I ask what happened to your skirt Ms. Ante? Did you run into any trouble we should know about?" Lune asked sweetly.

[Deme]

After Merry had her fill of petting she gave the horse a slight nod. "You were good company, but I must finish this task, maybe later more petting can be had." With that she hopped off the fence and made her merry way to the carriage house to search in there.

She happens to find a small handcart and an even simpler little wagon; they're not hidden, so it wouldn't take much luck.

[Trobby]

Despite herself, Ante lets out a small giggle at the situation. It is nice to be seen as something other than a harbinger of evil, and a little funny given the situation.

She hops up, and straightens out her uniform. "Oh, it's nothing Lune....just the wardrobe. It caught on my skirt. I'm quite fine now."

[Lycan 01]

"Nonsense, red is a perfect fit for someone... such as yourself..." Yuki purrs, a somewhat wicked smirk flickering across her face for a brief moment.

She then raises her eyebrow, and her expression becomes one of curious confusion. "What do you mean that way? What sort of type do you think I mean?" Yuki knows exactly what she means. But she thinks it will be amusing to see if Ante will actually admit to what she meant, or find some way to weasel out of it.

"Oh, and don't worry about the wardrobe," she says aloofly, before turning to look back at the wardrobe and smirking. "It will be no trouble at all," she croons with a smirk, her tone briefly sounding almost seductive. Everyone in the room, the wardrobe included, may feel kinda awkward at this point.

[Benson]

She happens to find a small handcart and an even simpler little wagon; they're not hidden, so it wouldn't take much luck.

She opts for the little wagon, she' figured Skelly wouldn't care too much or at all. "Huzzah....and now Skelly can, in theory, be mobile." It didn't even occur to her to ask if she could use this anyway, 'twas 'hers' now.

She began to pull it and made her journey back to the mansion, back to the room, leaving her open for something to happen, or not.

[Trobby]

Ante's eyes widen at Yuki's wicked little comment. She is momentarily stunned, and therefore can't come up with a reply to her comment, nor her second comment right away.

"Ah...well...not ever story beings with "when a man and a woman love each other"...there is the option of two women." She had hoped to be more teasing about this, but is still a little offset by Yuki's comment...does she know? Or is she just trying to tease her more?

Ante certainly feels awkward now...wardrobe or no.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki pretends to be taken aback, her expression become one of hurt offendedness. Putting her hands on her hips, she says: "Oh, Ante! Are you implying that I find the fairer sex to be sexually or romantically appealing? How could you say such a thing?"

Her expression then switches to a smirk, and her hands drop to being relaxed by her sides. "That was a joke. I knew what you meant. Unfortunately, while I hate to be a disappointment, I do not actually find women attractive. My type is, generally speaking, men," she states factually.

"Though..." she arches an eyebrow, "I suppose that if you really wanted, you could try to convince me to take such an interest in women. Of course... you'd have a devil of a time doing so," she shrugs aloofly.

A twisted smirk spreads across her face, and with a wink she purrs: "But you're welcome to try."

[Atreli]

Lune shakes her head at all this talk and tries to get the girls focused in another direction.
" Goofing off like this won't get any work done, we should go and get started on our tasks." As soon she said it, it sounded bossy so she added a little sweetly, " Okay?"

[Trobby]

"...Yes! We need to get the master's lunch ready! We've wasted enough time already!"

Ante totally agrees with this sentiment and it is not at all connected with her desire to change the subject swiftly. Nope. Not at all.

[Deme]

Merry, for the record, doesn't encounter anything interesting on her way back.

Dat Plot

Terran entered the servants' quarters hallway, pricking his ears for fighting, screaming or fire. He opened the door to the 3-person room.

"Ah, I hoped to find thee here...I trust all goeth well, and the rooms hath been divided up in accordance with thine wishes?"

[Benson]

"Alright, here Skelly, here's the wagon....though right now I don't think I can cart you around, I gotta go do maid stuff, the wagon, I guess we'll use for ya on off time," The devil girl nodded at the skeleton. She then adjusted her maid uniform again, dusting off imaginary dirt.

[Trobby]

"...ah, yes! In fact we were just getting ready to start on the Master's lunch." Ante says, turning around and fussing at her bedsheets, suddenly feeling an onset of maid duty strike.

"I believe we three are settled and ready to being...um...and I think the trip may have tired poor Hani out...but she will be ready soon, I assure you!"

[Deme]

"Very well; I shall go forth and retrieve Miss Merideth, and thou shalt awaken Miss Hani, and at that time I shall escort thee to the kitchen so that lunch preperations may begin..."

He nodded. Yes, this seemed to all be doing well....Except...Was the back-board of the wardrobe gone? Well, he could see to that later.

"And perhaps during that time, I shall pull some of thee aside to meet his highness; his spirits are much repaired from before, and it would be better not to gaze upon him for the first time when thou art carrying hot food or cutlery or silverware. Or teapots, with or without tea. So before lunch would be best."

He delivered this as levelly as possible, but...Those seem oddly specific examples. He goes to knock...

The Double

Skelly nods as Terran pokes his head in.

"It appeareth that the other maids are to their duties assembling, and... Oh, so this is where you went!" Terran crossed the room towards Skelly.

"We were beggining to feel the prick of concern in our hearts, because he was not to be found...Hath he been behaving himself, Miss Merry?"

[Benson]

Merry froze in surprise at the sudden appearance of Terran in the room. But when he reacted to the situation the way he did, she went along with it.

"Oh, u...yea, he's behaving himself, losing himself to pieces though," She laughed, thinking her joke was funny. She then coughed into her hand. "Anyways, I went to find him a wagon, so uh, he can be pulled around, so that he doesn't have to stay as a pile of bones in here. Mobility, yeah, that, give him mobility."

[Deme]

"He can getteth around, but the process is full of delays, and standing, it seems, lieth beyond his capacity... But he will generally get one of us to move to him about..."

Terran apparently didn't seem to question why she was so nervous about this.

"But it is a comfort to hear that thou art taking him under thy protection. I hope you will be good friends."

He adds to Skelly, who nods and gives him a wave.

[Lycan 01]

"Ah yes, everything seems to be going well," Yuki informs Terran when he enters. "We are all getting along, and the maid-eating wardrobe has been peacefully dealt with," she states casually, deciding to leave out the lab and the wizard and the demon for the time being. "I will be ready to begin preparing lunch momentarily; I just need to put a few things away," she explains, giving an idle gesture to the brace of flintlock pistols hanging around her waist.

Once Terran steps out, Yuki walks over to her storage chest and begins to put away her pistols. "I will be a moment, girls. My sleeve was damaged, and I need to change into a new blouse. Can't have the Prince noticing something like that," she says, plucking a pristine article of aforementioned clothing from the chest. "I will just step inside the wardrobe for a moment while I change; I'm shy," she lies with a neutral expression; they didn't need to know the real truth about why she wouldn't undress in front of them.

Walking over to the wardrobe, Yuki looks back over her shoulder. "Lune, you may go on without me, preferably taking Hani with you. Ante, if you don't mind, I'd prefer if you stuck around for a moment. I need to have a word with you, in private. It will only take a second," she explains casually, before looking back at the wardrobe. "You can stop being a portal now. I need to change..."

Once the Mimic is back to being a wardrobe, Yuki steps inside and shuts the door behind her. A few seconds of thunking, thudding, and a few yelps of "ow!" follow; despite being an expert assassin, Yuki is no pro at changing clothes in the dark. The wardrobe may or may not enjoy the experience.

Once she's done changing, Yuki steps out... and completely expects Ante to be gone with the others. If the other maid is still there, she will be pleasantly surprised.

[Trobby]

Ante nods to Terran. She wishes she could tell him that she had already seen the master, but can't quite think of an excuse for how she would have done this, and before she can, he is already gone.

She nods to Yuki when she makes her request, and promptly waits right in the room for her to return.

...What? You expect her to run away just because the girl is teasing her about devils? Hardly seems like the heroic thing to do.

Besides, this will give her a chance to dissuade her of any sort of crazy theories she may have come up with in her head, like say, her being a devil of some kind.

Because that would clearly be ridiculous.

[Atreli]

Lune just nodded quietly as Yuki stepped into the wardrobe. There was lunch to be made so Lune decided to make her own way to the kitchen. She couldn't take putting off maidly duties any longer. Her fingers fiddled with the trim of the dress as she pondered what the master wil be like when she met him.

[Benson]

"He can getteth around, but the process is full of delays, and standing, it seems, lieth beyond his capacity... But he will generally get one of us to move to him about..."

Terran apparently didn't seem to question why she was so nervous about this.

"But it is a comfort to hear that thou art taking him under thy protection. I hope you will be good friends."

He adds to Skelly, who nods and gives him a wave.

"Right, Skeletons are like people too you know? They have feelings, poor communication skills, and need friends." She wanly smiled and nodded her head and looked at Skelly. "Does he have a name, because I just keep calling him Skelly?"

[Deme]

He raised an eyebrow.

"I am somewhat dubious about the emotional qualities of inanimate and mundane skeletons... But he, certainly, possesseth many an admirably quality in spite of his advanced decomposition."

He patted Skelly's back, dislodging a rib. Terran looked slightly emberassed about that, but Skelly did not appear to mind. To the second question, he sort of looked askance.

"Sadly, we have been unable to ascertain his true identity; it may be that the flow of history hath taken his recollection of it from him, or it may be that our own efforts have not chanced upon the right name. We know him to be of the Line of Osha, so he is family to his highness... But that's about it."

[Lycan 01]

Upon seeing Ante, Yuki folds her arms behind her back and assumes an astute posture. "As entertaining as it is to make jokes at your expense, I believe it would be better if I went ahead and got straight to the point," she states factually.

"I ran into the devil who was hunting you," she says, tilting her head slightly to the right, studying the other maid's reaction to the revelation. "I honestly expected him to put up more of a struggle, but the moment I began to strangle the life out of him, he began to sing like a canary. A demonic canary," she aloofly observes, a small smirk forming on her face.

[Trobby]

Ante at first was totally relaxed in her bed, looking up at Yuki with casual interest.

That casual interest became morbid terror as soon as she mentioned another Devil. She shot back to the wall with alarming speed, and far less composure than she'd hoped. She only relaxed when she was told how easily he'd been subdued.

"...What makes you think he was after me?"

...No, I'm not going to bother rolling for that. It's quite obvious to even the casual observer that Ante is playing an incredibly bad bluff.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki's smirk fades, and she somewhat snarkily states with a neutral expression: "Oh, I don't know, perhaps the fact that he spilled his weasely black guts about the fact that he was hunting a demoness named Ante, and that his sources said she would be here, and that he was supposed to bring her back for not doing her job and going rogue, or something along those lines."

She then aloofly adds: "You should really work on your poker face, by the way..."

[Trobby]

"...It was hearing you mention another Devil that did it." She says remorsefully, looking down at her lap. "I had thought I'd eluded them at last, and that Hani and I could settle down here, away from them all...and of course they would say I owe them."

"Despite decades of unpaid overtime, working through vacations, insisting time and time again that we needed a new supervisor, or at the very least an assistant, and for all that time getting no respect for any of the work I did sorting through the souls of the damned...of COURSE they would be too incompetent to regulate it themselves, so of COURSE they now think that I owe them for all the souls they lost. That is just. Like. THEM."

Balls of fire form in Ante's fists as she hisses through her teeth, slight pointed canines showing through as she grits them in rage.

[Lycan 01]

"Calm your tits, woman," Yuki aloofly states, giving another dismissive handwave. She doesn't even seem to care or notice that Ante is going into some sort of crazy demon mode in front of her. "The problem has been dealt with. For the time being, at least."

[Trobby]

"..." Strangely, or perhaps owing to some sort of secret military training, that actually seems to work, as the flames die down almost immediately from her hands.

"The prince already knows about it. He was kind enough to try to help me hide it as well. So don't feel like you need to go warn him about there being a devil in his midst." She says, still feeling a little bit bitter.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki scoffed, rolling her eye. "Oh yes, like I'm going to go tattle on you like some bratty little schoolgirl. If you are in trouble with the devils for not doing bad things, I don't exactly have much reason to expect trouble from you, do I? Though it is nice to know you have made previous arrangements and agreements with the Prince," the assassin shrugs aloofly, completely missing that potential source of conflict and confusion.

"At any rate," she idly waves her hand, "I told him that even if there was a demoness named Ante here, looking for her would be more trouble than it is worth, what with the monsters, killer maids, and diplomatic issues surrounding this place. So he scurried off, saying he would talk to his bosses about leaving this place alone. Hopefully, you will not have to worry about them for some time, though you may not want to let your guard down completely, just to be safe," she muses.

[Trobby]

Ante stares at Yuki for a moment, like she's just told her that an elephant was in the room asking for directions to Sesame Street. Her eyes wide, locked on the other maid as she searches for a hint of...something...and doesn't find it there.

She blinks, her ears twitching as she scoots closer to the edge of the bed.

"...Why tell him that? Why not just hand me over to the devils, and save yourself the trouble of keeping me here when I'm a wanted woman?"

[Lycan 01]

Yuki shrugs. "I need a reason?" she asks flatly.

She then looks over to Hani, slumbering peacefully. "I have done some horrible things in my life. They were always for a reason, mind you. Damning my soul for the greater good, that sort of thing. But what reason would I have to do something like that? Split you apart from your sister, condemn you to God-knows-what sort of punishment or torture, just because why? You didn't drag some unlucky bastards to Hell, and now some demons are perturbed about their evilness quota being unfulfilled? Hah..."

A wistful smirk crosses the assassin's face. "Like I said, I have done some horrible things. My hands are stained with innocent blood, many lives left damaged or destroyed in my wake, and my soul tainted by countless sins..."

"But I am not evil."

[Trobby]

"...No...you really aren't." Ante says, a grin forming across her face. "And I think I'd know."

She stands up, and seems to consider something for a moment...and extends her hand to Yuki.

"Had he gotten to me first, it would have been very bad for me, Yuki. For that, I owe you one."

[Benson]

He raised an eyebrow.

"I am somewhat dubious about the emotional qualities of inanimate and mundane skeletons... But he, certainly, possesseth many an admirably quality in spite of his advanced decomposition."

He patted Skelly's back, dislodging a rib. Terran looked slightly embarrassed about that, but Skelly did not appear to mind. To the second question, he sort of looked askance.

"Sadly, we have been unable to ascertain his true identity; it may be that the flow of history hath taken his recollection of it from him, or it may be that our own efforts have not chanced upon the right name. We know him to be of the Line of Osha, so he is family to his highness... But that's about it."

"So Skelly it is, or rather what I've been calling him," She coughed into her hand and patted down her skirt. "So uh...what were you saying earlier? Something along the lines of maid duties, mister Terran."

[Deme]

"Oh, yes. It is time to regroup and for thee maids to begin preparing lunch...And to prepare to meet His Highness as well. I will show thee to the kitchen."

He bows to Skelly and asks his leave politely before waiting in the hall for all the girls.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki extends her right hand, and accepts the handshake. "I will bear that in mind, Ante. Now, I believe we should hurry to prepare lunch. Do you have any ideas?" she asks as she begins to head for the door. "Perhaps sandwiches..."

The assassin pauses at the door. "Oh, what of your sister? If you need to remain behind a moment to wake her or write a note, I will wait outside for you." And with that, Yuki steps outside into the hall.

"Sorry," she bows respectfully to the butler upon seeing him. "I had to take care of a few things of varying importance. My apologies for wasting time."

[Trobby]

"Yes, or something simple like that. Let's not make things too complicated for our first day." Ante nods as they walk towards the door.

"Ah, and yes, I should try to wake her. I'll be but a moment, hold on."

Ante walks over to Hani, and gives the girl a gentle shake.

"Hani, sweetheart, wake up. It's time for us to work."

[Atreli]

Lune came around the the corner and into the hallway to meet Terran and Yuki. " Hello there Mr. Terran, look I found a uniform, isn't it darling?" She did a little twirl and ended it on a small laugh.
" By the way, have you decided which maid will be first to meet His Highness?"

[Lycan 01]

Yuki smirks wickedly, her eye drifting up and down Lune's figure as she twirls around. "Oh, I don't know if 'darling' is quite the word I would use..." she purrs, her voice practically saturated with lust.

She is, of course, joking. Lune will hopefully realize this, as Yuki just got done saying she's straight.

Terran, on the other hand, has no such warning. The assassin looks forward to his reaction with sadistic mental glee.

Yuki then raises an eyebrow and casually asks: "Are we to meet him individually, or as a group?"

[Deme]

Terran...Well, he's not sure what to think about this. It certainly could be less likely to be good in the long run, that's for sure.

"Individually. We've found that in groups, mob-thinking taketh over."

It seems he's had a lot of experience in this. Lots of experience, most of it bad. He taps his chin thoughtfully on the subject of who goes first, however.

"I have not exactly, and he hath not determined it; perhaps it shall be left to thy discretions?"

[Benson]

After Terran left, Merry glanced at Skelly and patted his boney head. "Well, I'm off to go do maid stuff, see you later." She then dug through her bag and pulled out a perfume bottle. She spritzed herself a bit in an attempt to re-cover her smell of perpetual brimstone.

She then stepped out to join the other maids, becoming guarded around them.

[Lycan 01]

"Ah, Meridith," Yuki turns to acknowledge the newly arrived maid. "We were just discussing how best to introduce ourselves to the Prince," she factually states. "We were also discussing whether Lune's new uniform is 'darling' or... something else..." she leers with a wink.

Hopefully her reaction will be more amusing than the butler's, or rather, his lack of one.

The assassin then looks back over to Terran and arches her eyebrow. "How exactly will the Prince be taking his lunch? Will he be dining privately, or will we also be serving the rest of the estate's residents?" She is, of course, referring to the 'arcane adviser.'

Despite being a highly-skilled killer, Yuki sure can be oblivious sometimes...

[Benson]

Merry at the moment is feeling aloof to others, focusing her attention on herself and fretting about her brimstone odor. She gives Yuki a momentary glance, missing the leer, and straighten out her maid apron again. "Um, sure, I guess that's nice...or something." To note, she was also standing the farthest she could from them. Blargh, it was easier to be around the dead and animals for her. She didn't even really know how to address her fellow maids. The chains around her waist and shoulders, rattled a bit in her moment of fretting with her apron.

[Deme]

"Ah, yes. I think how things are arranged will depend on how matters goeth; I hope things goeth well enough that we may all enjoy lunch together."

He sighed slightly. He really didn't *like* things being so disorderly.

"I apologize. This hath all the qualities of a fine mess, I know... It hath not been an easy few years for him; nought once hath things gone well. Just once, just now... I would have it go well."

He sounded just a tiny bit defeated, there, though determined in the way of someone faced with a long and difficult struggle.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki tilts her her to the right slightly, and shifts her gaze back and forth between the butler and the maids. "Actually, I do not think you have much to be worried about. Things have gone rather well so far. We all seem to be getting along quite well. For the most part. We've all settled in and quickly gotten our bearings, and are fully prepared to begin our duties. The wardrobe monster has been dealt with successfully, as have a few other smaller issues. Ante and I have already met the Prince's arcane adviser in the gardens; in fact, I apparently made a good first impression, judging from the conversation. And we all seem to be looking forward to beginning our jobs and serving His Highness. So, really, all the current evidence seems to indicate that you have nothing to worry about. Things haven't gone wrong yet - why should they now?" she shrugs aloofly.

[Deme]

"Thou shat serve lunch for all in residence, regardless of whether we eat with his Highness or not; all of the maids, and 3 others. Most of the maids we try to employ experienceth no problems... Until they meet His Highness. And..."

He paused. His brow furrowed as he listened to what she was saying... And facepalmed.

"There is no arcane advisor in residence here; the only man who'd goen through the trouble to impersonate one...If he hath a good impression of thee, it is because he thinketh thou makes a fun new toy to manipulate."

Terran pouted, still clearly furious about this turn of events. He did not have a good opinion of Mozart.

[Lycan 01]

Yuki stands with a neutral expression for a moment, seemingly pondering the butler's words. At first, she is silent.

Then her eye twitches.

"So," she states flatly. "That... mongrel..." she growls, irritation slowly rising in her voice. "Lied to me?" she asks, hatred burning in her eye.

Rage almost seems to radiate off the normally cool and aloof maid; the others can almost feel the heat of her anger, and they made feel inclined to take a few steps back just to be safe.

"Oh... Oh, he thinks he can make me look like a fool, does he?" she snarls, punching her right fist into her left palm. "I could care less about him flirting with me! That doesn't bother me! What upsets me is that the scoundrel actually made me explain why I thought he was a damn wizard, when in reality-" she growls fiercely, "He's... He..."

A twisted grin spreads across the assassin's face. "He thinks I'm a 'lovely snowflake,' does he? I'll show him how much of a lovely snowflake I am when I've got him by the horns..." she glowers.

[Benson]

There so much gum flapping and talking that Merry sorta tuned out half the conversation, mostly on Yuki's side :P But once in a while Yuki would say something moderately worthy of listening to that Merry had to react, particularly about a ward robe.

"Ward robe?....What do you mean by that?" She eyed the maid suspiciously.

[Hawkflight]

"Yes, or something simple like that. Let's not make things too complicated for our first day." Ante nods as they walk towards the door.

"Ah, and yes, I should try to wake her. I'll be but a moment, hold on."

Ante walks over to Hani, and gives the girl a gentle shake.

"Hani, sweetheart, wake up. It's time for us to work."

Hani yawned and rubbed her eyes as she woke up, the bell on her collar tinkling slightly as she sat up. "Onee-sama?" she questioned.

[Trobby]

Ante smiled. It never got old when she was called that by this little tiger girl. No matter who said what about anything, as far as she was concerned, she was her little sister.

"I hope you had a good nap, Hani. Because we have to get to work now. Remember? This is our new home. We are maids now."

It was a sort of bittersweet manner in which she said this...she honestly wished her little sister didn't also have to work here, but it was either that or giving her up...and from where she was before, this was a far step up.

"Come on, sleepyhead, let's go with the other maids." She says, giving Hani one hand to hold to walk her out into the hallway.

[Deme]

Terran listened to this ramble...Until he got to the end. Then, several thoughts occured at once, starting with the fact that the person he was thinking of never used weather-based imagery to hit on a girl, much less affectionate nicknames. The one person who did...

"Wait, I fear thou misunderstand'st, if thou wouldst listen for just a..."

And then there were questions about wardrobes and Ante stepped into the hallway as well. Explaining the matter would have to wait. Until later, perhaps. After all, his internal clock was ticking, and his stomach growled audibly.

"Well, we are all assembled, so now I may show thee yonder to the kitchen."

He began to escort the maids down the hallway, through the great hall and ballroom, and into the kitchen. It was a large room, with far greater capacity than for just these maids, with doors to attached pantries and larders. Odds are, it had exotic supplies as well.

...And waiting there was the cat-man from the work-room, leaning on a counter.

"Hello there, ladies. I'm Mozart....And I've got a slight change in orders."

[Lycan 01]

Yuki somewhat curtly informs Meri: "Maid-eating furniture. I dealt with it. Much like I will deal with that scoundrel, only with less flirting and more violence..." she growls, bloodlust burning in her eye. She ignores Terran's attempt to calm her down.

When Terran tells them its time to go, though, Yuki coughs and regains her composure. "Yes, sir, lead the way," she nods respectfully. She seems almost entirely calmed down, except for the occasional eye twitch.

When they arrive in the kitchen, Yuki arches her eyebrow at the crypic kitty-man. "Orders, you say?"

[Benson]

Merry cocked a brow, didn't seem like the ward robe she was aware of....maybe there were two? This..this was interesting, but she'd sate her curiosity about it later. At the moment she and the others were being escorted off, she puffed out her chest ready to take on real maid duties, even if she didn't really know what she was doing. Play it by ear she'd try, in a manner of speaking. All she really wanted was to see the Prince after all these years, even if he wouldn't recognize her without the mask. But, even with time, she wasn't brave enough to show herself to the boy she left behind. But this, as Meridith Lilith, she felt she could be brave.

She blinked her eyes in minor surprise at the cat boy butler.

[Hawkflight]

Ante smiled. It never got old when she was called that by this little tiger girl. No matter who said what about anything, as far as she was concerned, she was her little sister.

"I hope you had a good nap, Hani. Because we have to get to work now. Remember? This is our new home. We are maids now."

It was a sort of bittersweet manner in which she said this...she honestly wished her little sister didn't also have to work here, but it was either that or giving her up...and from where she was before, this was a far step up.

"Come on, sleepyhead, let's go with the other maids." She says, giving Hani one hand to hold to walk her out into the hallway.

Hani-chan held Ante's hand as she followed her out into the hallway, and they were led to the kitchen. She got a worried frown on her face as she realized she was to be expected to cook.

[Trobby]

Ante leads her sister out through the hallway and into the kitchen. She gives Hani a reassuring squeeze of the hand as they enter, and gives the cat man a quizzical look.

"Change in orders? Of what sort?" Ante asks the catty gentleman as he appears.

[Atreli]

Upon seeing Mozart, Lune recognized him as the sleeping boy from the laundry room.
" It's you again. I should've known you were a butler." Lune said with a polite smile.

[Deme]

"Are these orders from Leon?" Terran asked, glaring at the cat-man with barely-disguised dislike.

"I've just spoken with him, I'll have you know... And down the pipe these orders come. The score," he threw out a hand dramatically. "Is that since this is a trial period, we should have...SOME TRIALS! And so we come to the dramatic realization... Of the Iron Maid competition! Each maid doing her best to assemble the finest lunch experience!"

He grinned, his green eyes closing as he smiled.

"As the challenge goes on, you'll be asked to encorporate ingredients and surprises into the lunch!"

Terran blinked.

"And when in that will they meeteth him, huh?"

"We'll tag them out during the challenge, of course. Would you girls like to decide order yourself, or draw straws?"

[Trobby]

Ante stepped forward, staring Mozart square in the eye.

"This...is an entirely pointless charade!" She declares, throwing her hands up in disgust. "Why should we compete with one another, when we should be working together as a group? Surely, the finest experience we could produce would be as a team, no?"

She pokes Mozart square in the chest, her other hand resting on her hip as it shifts to the side.

"And another thing, how do we know that these instructions came from the master at all? These hardly seem like the sort of thing we would be forced to do on our first day. Particularly, when we are only meeting him for the first time today at all!"

Which reminds Ante, she has already MET the master...she would be mentioning this to them, so that they might run the introductions a little more smoothly, but she's too busy challenging Mozart on his authority.

"And I would like to know," she says, stepping back from him to strike a proper intimidating stance. "How you interpret testing our skills as maids to mean 'competing with one another', when surely the greatest test would be to cooperate. Surely,you can see the wisdom in that?"

[Deme]

He waggled a finger, chuckling. Apparently this sort of thing didn't bug him in the slightest.

"All this teamwork talk won't do you any good if we only keep one of you. We're not deciding if you stay here as a group, you see... Maaaaybe all of you will make it, but I doubt it. Heck, if any of you make it, it'll be a fun change of pace."

He shrugged.

"So we need to see how each of you works individually, see? Just a little display of skills... No need to be agressive about it if you don't like, etc... Teamwork'll come in a later round."

He looked at the relative postions of the maids and smiled a bright, fang-y smile.

"...Oh, but the boss says that the little kitten can work with you, if that's how you want to play it...If you think she can't pull the work on her own."


Terran narrowed his eyes and sighed.

"Since lunch requireth preperation regardless, I'd play along... I will consult his Highness to ensure these are actually his orders."

He quietly left the room before this got silly.