Sebastian: "... I... guess," Sebastian replies, still not meeting her eyes... or trying not to stare at other places on Fiona's body, "B-But only for a little bit. I probably should search around here a little... later." He winced before adding, "And please... don't bother the prince. He's... weird." _________________________________________________________________ Kelsa: A chill ran up Kelsa's spine and she fought to keep her nose from twitching as her sixth sense went off. On a certain level, it made sense. Given how much her feelings were tingling about this whole place, it would have been only natural to draw in more people who had a similar... feel for things. Still, on another level, this guy did not seem even REMOTELY the type to really be into that kind of thing. Still, this made her all the more eager to try and figure out what was going on here and why she was feeling so strongly about it. "I was. It's... frankly a lot cheaper than the resort buuuut..." She paused for a moment, both for dramatic effect and to make one last internal debate over if what she was thinking was a good idea. Ah, what the heck. It would be interesting to see if he was actually aware of what she was feeling from him or not and he certainly was not UN-attractive if he really wanted to be dedicated to be hitting on her. She stuck out her hand as she smiled... and maybe bent forward ever so slightly to put her cleavage more on display. "... I certainly wouldn't mind a dashing, professional sort to keep me company and compare notes with."
"Heh. I can straighten him out....well...Erin can." Fiona mentioning her reminded Sebastian that he never saw the princess gathered with the rest of them. If Fiona had any thoughts on what her friend may be up to, it wasn't obvious as she began to float upward simply phasing through the ceiling. It was easy to follow along to her back to the bar area. The music becoming more audible along with the lights of a properly light area. It didn't seem like anyone else was currently around. Probably all off with preparations for the next wave of guests, or whatever games they were planning. It wasn't surprising for the bar to remain normal. Fiona never seemed particularly interested in scaring anyone at minimum, let alone, killing them. It didn't take her much effort for her to pick up an empty glass and place it in front of Sebastian. Pointing her fingers to the glass, a transparent blue liquid appeared. Nobody was exactly sure, how she could do it, but they were grateful she could. She gave a cautious look over the ghost though. "Just this once. Let's not make this a habit, alright?" With no real customers to distract her, she took the seat in the booth across from him as she rolled her eyes up, thinking. She didn't seem to realize how it looked from his where he was sitting. The fidgeting blond didn't notice how it gave him an easy view of her cleavage and how her bunny girl uniform hugged so tightly and snuggly against her breasts. "So...why do we need keys? We can just go wherever we want...." ________________________________________________________________ Kelsa: "Sounds like a plan to me. I'd love to show you the place they have me put up. But later. We shouldn't be the last ones to arrive after everyone else has picked up all the good evidence."
Louise is conflicted, happy that Silas doesn't seem to want to take advantage of her daughter, but a little mad that he apparently doesn't think Amanda is good enough for him. The reporter moves forward to squeeze her daughter's hand, as Silas leads them to a table. "I have no doubt." She smiles politely. "My mouth is already watering."
Yseult, Castle: If her darling wanted to stay inside this castle forever then she would too. But if it came down to sacrificing another person's life to roam these halls forever so she could be free then the choice was clear. Although Yseult wasn't versed in the subject, everyone had told and knew that ghosts each had their resentments that kept them strongly chained to this world. She floated over to Anita, embracing her fellow maid, holding her head tightly between her impressive bosom. "Our dreams which we suffered for in life but never reached are out there. And not found dusting in this room for the ten-thousandth time." Tenderly stroking the back of the woman's head with a hand. Anita had sounded uncertain while she spoke, her speech slow and disjointed as if she was searching for reasons not to go through with whatever her heart ached for. The former head maid could be wrong, of course. Yseult cupped and tipped her chin, brushing away a few strands of Anita's golden threaded hair before placing a matronly kiss on her forehead. "In your heart," tracing a line down the top of her head to her chest with her hand, "I know you'll do anything to escape. Like we all will." There was no room for wavering, no matter their distaste for the King, he united them under a common banner and they would follow. At least until a better capable person seized the crown. Then their place was to follow him or her even if a few had a heavy heart. Johannes, Town: "Scouting it out. Sounds like a plan." Johannes was quick to agree, turning to look at the castle. Sent shivers down the spine from here. "So once they're the most active we'll be trapped inside with them. Huh." Retreating was usually the sensible option and one Johannes frequently, pointless heroics without a life on the line meant little, and if you died it meant you couldn't come back to try again. "As I mentioned, warding isn't my specialty. Still, I know a few protective summoner circles that might hold up for a bit, even if done hastily." If they were at the levels of imps and quasits, didn't sound like it here. "But while we're inside we should start finding and preparing locations we can retreat to if things go badly." The American Scouts had a motto: "Be prepared." Applied just as well to hunting ghosts as wilderness survival. Just left the most important question before they set off. "Do you prefer if I call you Kasumi or Arya?"
Sebastian: Sebastian took the glass, holding it in both hands as he looked at where his reflection would have been on the surface of the blue liquid if he had been still alive. "Never much of a drinker anyway," he mutters. "M-Maybe," Sebastian started to say before pausing to take a sip of his drink, "It's a place that's warded to keep ghosts out unless you come through the doorway?" Good GOD, the view of her tits was incredible. So large and full and shapely and she was putting them on full display like that right in front of him! He was not sure if it was just his imagination, but he could swear that he even saw the faint outline of her nipples poking through the material. He crossed his legs under the table, trying to ignore how... tight his pants felt, even though he logically knew that it was more in his metaphorical head than an actual physical reaction. He took a deeper sip of the blue liquid, hoping it would dull the part of himself, the part he tried so hard to keep locked away, that had started to whisper to him that he should... respond to the bar whore's offer, even if it was not an intentional one. ________________________________________________________________ Kelsa: "Ack!" Kelsa replied, gathering up what few things she had brought with her (a small suitcase with a week's worth of clothes and a duffel bag with her laptop, space for her camcorder, battery and memory card back-ups, and all the different cables necessary to navigate keeping them charged and allowing data to flow between them), "You're right! Let's go!" She starts moving before her new companion can, suddenly a bundle of nerves as she tries to catch up with the flow of the crowd. Due to the... regularly explicit nature of her material, Kelsa did not usually find herself in the company of a large number of fellow ghost hunters and she did NOT want some of them to think they were justified in labeling her as some kind of "lazy slut"! Not if she could help it!
Silas calls out to his staff, which alerts two very bored looking waiters to snap to attention and hand out the menus, everyone placing their orders, leaving the reporter with her daughter to talk. Silas, looking at Louise with a cheeky stare. "Well, you wanted to know all of the hotel's secrets, right? But then, it's only fair that we give a question for a question. Let's start with mine. Are you currently seeing anyone?"
Louise frowns, looking towards her daughter to see if the young woman is uncomfortable, before looking back at Silas. "Well, no. I was married, but not anymore. What does that have to do with anything?"
Yesult: Anita jumped a little at the sudden embrace, her face flushing with embarrassment, but not pushing her away. "Ma'am?" The stoic blond was clearly uncomfortable with the attention that she wasn't used to. "Ah..um...we should be getting back to work with the other rooms." The blonde's attempts to look around for some proper excuse were cut short by the sudden draft pouring into the room. There was the sound of rushing water as the wooden flooring began to peel, cracking out into water underneath, bed fabric there were sitting on feeling much more fragile and soft until it recolored into petals. The whole room rearranging itself bizarrely which gave Yseult enough forewarning to his approach. Anita sat on the flower bed as the distortion carried on and rippled. "Ah..no. We just cleaned that." Her voice was incredibly soft and quiet, just more annoyed at this point than surprised by any of it's changes. "Never mind that. We'll have guests soon to greet." His tone was as cheerful as ever before he forcibly stiffened his face and began trying to adjust the pitch and tone practicing over words. "Pardon me. ParDON mE. Pardon me, sir-That's it! That's the one." Whatever appearance he took on, it was hard to mistake him for anyone else, Anita getting up to curtesy before him. "We were done cleaning, my lord. Well..that is...until.." "Ah, never mind that. It will work itself out. Now, we got to introduce ourselves." Trying to force himself in character, he practiced a few more lines before giving himself a slight British accent, eyeing Yesult. "Shall we away to the entrance hall, my dear? We mustn't keep our guests waiting. Depriving them of such a woman's presence would be a sin, after all." Johannes/Daylan: @Daylan "Whichever works." Ayra didn't seem especially interested in upholding honorifics, but it wasn't especially unheard for modern Japanese to do while in other parts of the world. She was more focused on what she was hearing. "Yeah. Setting up a safe room would be a good move. Better sooner than later." Soon enough, they find their way to the courtyard, but Ayra didn't seem to be the only with the idea to move in before the rest, as they walk into the courtyard, seeing two others join from the opposite direction at the same time, a blond man in an expensive suit...doubtful he's a witch or an exorcist. The girl with him didn't look too magically impressive either just from looking. He remembered seeing them in the town square. As far as he could tell, they weren't exorcists, just journalists. Ayra eyed the two, wondering if she should say anything before deciding to acknowledge them. "...you understand this isn't fake journalism, right? These are actual ghosts. If you just want a story to make up, there's easier ways to do it without just getting yourself killed."
Fiona thinks for a moment, oblivious to his stares. "There might be something like that. If there is a mystery though, that might be fun!" She perks up considerably as she deliberates on it. "It's not like there's really anything better to do here anyway. Alright. I'll explore too. But still...you think everyone would have gotten everywhere here by now." Trying to think of it, she idly grabbed a glass and started to magically pour herself a drink, taking a sip. "I guess, we're going to be having more people here soon. I don't really want to bother though. Pranking mortals is fun and all, but I don't really want to have to kill anybody or anything."
"You might be surprised." With a wide breath of his arm he gestured to the whole castle, Louise quietly noticing Amanda staring at him with a little surprise, apparently the initial charm starting to wear off. "The story of this place is all about love. If the locals are to be believed, a princess once fell for a stable boy. This was centuries ago, so a daddy's rich girl, marrying some working class stiff was a lot bigger of a deal. Of course, her daddy said no. But that wasn't enough to get him to give up. The king back then was...a ruthless bastard. King Erik Karman. The guy was a real piece of work." "Karman? Like I'm going to kill all the Serbians" Karman?" Amanda was studious enough to have heard the name, and Silas flashed a smile. "Yeah, him. You really studied up on all this stuff hard before coming here, huh? Anyway...so while he hated just about everybody, he did love his daughter enough he didn't want to be directly responsible for killing the kid, so he decides that he'll appoint this stable boy as a knight and send him off to war to get him killed while acting like there was nothing he could do to his daughter. This kid wanted to prove his worth though, so he jumped at the chance. Of course, princess told him not to go. He told her he'd back one day....he did. During a fight with the Serbs that nearly wiped out all of the regiment he was in, the Turks decided working for the king was just not worth it and decided to desert. But the boy...he still needed to become a hero. He couldn't do the smart thing and just run. He had to fight to the end. After the dust was all clear, he was about ready to drop dead, but he still had a report to make. The story goes, he went for days without food and water or any sleep, just to deliver his message back to the king. Then a snowstorm hit. He made it all the back to the castle. Right up the castle door, but the exposure to the elements finally did him in. He delivered his message, and then he died not even six hours later in the same night. The king was forced to acknowledge him as a hero publicly, so that's what's with that statue out front, if you ever saw it on your way in. Anyway...that's the legend from the castle. At least the ones the locals talk about. If there's more than one ghost, there'd be others, I guess? But that's the most famous one. That and his daughter probably killed the king out of revenge...but nobody really cared enough to look all that hard for his killer."
Louise takes out a notepad and pen, writing down the story in shorthand. "Interesting. So, you think this is behind the castle's haunting?"
Amanda waited for him to finish and her mother to finish writing, but giving a nod. "That's a sad story." Listening the two, he gave a slight puzzled look of his own. "If there's dead people around here, then you think I would have seen them by now. I think that's what the locals think. I think the more obvious answer is this land if a piece of shit and constantly breaking down. Our maintenance department has a really high turnover rate."
"It wouldn't be the first time I've come across a place like this, but I don't know..." She purses her lips. "I have a feeling about this place. I'd like to take a look around, in some of the more accident prone areas."
"Well...you already signed the waiver. So I guess...the place you want to check out is the boiler room and dungeon? No one likes being on the basement floors, if they don't have too, but we got a top notch bar there. After we get our food, we can think about that. There's also the upper castle floors. I don't really let people touch the stuff there. I don't know if it has curses, but it still has historical value....so just watch what your poking around in if you want to explore the actual castle instead of just the hotel area." They didn't need to wait long before the waiter game to deliver their meals. Much like how the place looked, the scent and appearance were appealing. Amanda was the first to take a bite of hers, which she responded by almost immediately wolfing her food down. The guy took a bite from his steak, but looked more focused on other things. "Of course, I'm sure if you really wanted to, you could find ways to convince me to letting you take stuff there pretty easily."
Louise chuckles as her daughter begins to eat, before taking a few bites, herself. "My compliments to the chef, Mr Barnett." She smiles, before tilting her head in confusion. "Find ways to convince you? What do you mean?" She seems genuinely unsure of his meaning.
"I'm sure, you'll figure something out." He didn't expand on what he meant, but Amanda shot Louise a look. "Mom. It's for the case. You can't be a top notch reporter without finding ways to deal with people. You'll manage." It was unclear why Amanda was so supportive of this guy, but she remained a fan apparently. The meal ended soon enough, Louise thoroughly satisfied with it, leaving them to head back out into the hall. Silas, looked at the halls, seeming curious of where Louise would decide. "Well, if you want to get a head start, the places people complain about the most are the actual castle itself and the upper floors where the nobles used to live. The basement levels like I said. Sometimes I hear people complain about hearing weird things from the second level of rooms in the hotel area, and..." He stopped for a moment. "Well, it's nothing really major, but I remember hanging out in the garden area one day and, I'm not kidding. The entire garden without any warning, just froze over. In the middle of the day. In August."
Louise looks at her daughter in confusion for a moment, before looking back to Silas. "I suppose I'll be heading up to the upper floors of the castle, though the gardens are certainly interesting. Thank you very much for the meal. If I might have a moment with my daughter? Thank you." Louise takes hold of Amanda's shoulder and leads the younger woman out of Silas' earshot. "What was that about? What does he mean by 'convince'? He doesn't mean...that? Does he?"
"Let me know how that works out. My office and personal room are on the same floor, just above yours." Letting them be on their way, he goes off to do whatever else he needs to as Amanda looks to her mother. "Come on, mom. You're hot. He knows it. You can't seriously be surprised that guy was hitting on you."
Louise gives her daughter a disapproving look. "Amanda Barnett! I am not some...some...prostitute! How could you ever think I'd do something like that?"
Hearing her full name made her shrink a little. "Ah, I didn't mean it like that. Sorry. But really...like what? Are you just never going to look for another guy in your life? Shouldn't you be trying to explore your options while you got them?"
