This is the true story of seven semi-strangers, picked to live in a house, duel together, and have their lives taped.
Tune in to find out what happens when people stop being polite... and start getting real.
[]Note: Most posts are written collaboratively between teammates.[]
Real World: Real RhyDin 2017 (The Show)
Moderators: Gren Blockman, JewellRavenlock, Hope, Eden Parker
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JewellRavenlock
- Legendary Adventurer
- The Empress
- Posts: 2473
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Real World: Real RhyDin 2017 (The Show)
Last edited by JewellRavenlock on Sun Nov 19, 2017 3:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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JewellRavenlock
- Legendary Adventurer
- The Empress
- Posts: 2473
- Joined: Thu Apr 13, 2006 5:26 pm
- Location: Little Elfhame, Old Market
- Contact:
Episode: Move In Day
Move in day happened on the first day of the IFL season: Monday, October 30th.
Outside the bedrooms…
Jewell was busy elsewhere (there were problems in her magical faerie kingdom), so she sent Ishmerai in her place. The knight’s brow was furrowed as he wandered from room to room with a checklist and notes in hand. “My lady has ‘shot-gunned’,” he made air quotes as instructed, “whatever room Lord Blockman is in. I believe that would be the green and blue room?” He looked around for the ranger. “She wanted me to reassure you, sir, that she would protect you from Lady Tahlia, who,” he glanced around for Tahlia, looking apologetic, “apparently cannot keep her…” he stumbled, leaving out part of what the note said (re: dirty tramp hands), “hands to herself.”
Tahlia took a slow walk through through the available rooms, debating. Her first choice was obviously the red room, but that seemed to be off limits, so she went with her second choice (seeing as the green/blue room was already taken) and went with the purple. Two room-mates, but then, who knew how often she’d be sleeping in it? Hearing the Faerie Knight stumble, she snickered, and blew a kiss in his general direction. She could guess that whatever Jewell had written hadn’t been remotely complimentary. It was fine, really - it wasn’t exactly wrong, and the feeling was mutual. She might have to make a stop at the supply closet next time she went to work. Besides, at least the house guy looked like he’d be some fun.
Hugo threw open the scarlet-curtained french doors into his bedroom, took in the sight of the king bed he’d have all to himself, and let out a happy sigh: “Ahhhh!” More than loud enough for the people who’d be bunking together to hear him and scowl at his back. He threw his leather suitcase (property of one R.S.V., probably stolen) into the corner, draped his immaculately maintained weapons belt across a velvet ottoman, and fell backwards onto the bed. “Ha! Ha ha ha ha! Hugo Ferdinand Durant, you lucky son of a bitch!”
After spending weeks on the run and on the street, he’d stumbled back into the lap of luxury, a lover he kept finding himself back in the arms of despite falling out of their favor so very many times. It was an event worth celebrating, possibly with a good screw. He picked his head up off the mattress to peer down the hall at the source of a deep male voice, narrowing his eyes at poor Ishmerai.
“Hey, you! The one with the pretty hair!” His face broke into a winning smile. “You single?”
Ishmerai took one look at Hugo and, having absolutely no clue who he was, gave him a very succinct response. “No.” Then, thinking better of it, he narrowed his eyes at Hugo. “Who are you?” He flipped through the stapled stack of papers in his hands containing bios of everyone who was supposed to be on set for security purposes.
“Hnh. Not an insurmountable obstacle.” Hugo pumped his legs back, then forward to spring up off the bed and onto the floor in a display that was made a little less impressive by the way he stumbled towards one side of the doorway, coming within inches of breaking his nose before changing course. He looked like he’d had a bit to drink already. “I am Hugo Ferdinand Durant, master duelist and house monitor, at your service,” he said proudly, stepping back into a very formal bow that he ended with a roguish smile and a wink. “And who are you, my charmingly brooding friend, and who is your lady? So I know who to apologize to, later,” he added in a lowered voice behind his hand, with a conspiratorial nod.
The knight stared at Hugo, unimpressed by his moves and unmoved by his charms. “I see.” He took a deep breath, holding back his long-suffering sigh. “My lady is Jewell Ravenlock. I am sure she will be pleased to take your apology,” now he sighed, “and your attentions.”
Hugo took three steps forward, angled his head to stare at Ishmerai… and patted him twice on the cheek. “I have a feeling… that you and I are going to be great friends.” With that he began to hum cheerfully, pirouetting around the hapless knight and sliding down the hall, wiggling his fingers at Tahlia as he passed by the door to the purple room.
Ishmerai hung his head as Hugo departed. “She is going to be the death of me.”
*****
In the pink room…
“Is the pink room for me!?” Eden shouted it into the house, her bags already on one of the two queen beds. It was the only room not already saddled with luggage. Hopping up the stairs and through the hall, she stuck her head in each room, noting where it looked like people had moved in and where they hadn’t. Then hurrying back down the stairs, she tore a lined notebook page from her school things and jotted down in bright purple handwriting, RESERVED FOR KHELDAR, and stuck it in on the second bed in the pink room. There. Now she had the perfect roommate!
Move in day happened on the first day of the IFL season: Monday, October 30th.
Outside the bedrooms…
Jewell was busy elsewhere (there were problems in her magical faerie kingdom), so she sent Ishmerai in her place. The knight’s brow was furrowed as he wandered from room to room with a checklist and notes in hand. “My lady has ‘shot-gunned’,” he made air quotes as instructed, “whatever room Lord Blockman is in. I believe that would be the green and blue room?” He looked around for the ranger. “She wanted me to reassure you, sir, that she would protect you from Lady Tahlia, who,” he glanced around for Tahlia, looking apologetic, “apparently cannot keep her…” he stumbled, leaving out part of what the note said (re: dirty tramp hands), “hands to herself.”
Tahlia took a slow walk through through the available rooms, debating. Her first choice was obviously the red room, but that seemed to be off limits, so she went with her second choice (seeing as the green/blue room was already taken) and went with the purple. Two room-mates, but then, who knew how often she’d be sleeping in it? Hearing the Faerie Knight stumble, she snickered, and blew a kiss in his general direction. She could guess that whatever Jewell had written hadn’t been remotely complimentary. It was fine, really - it wasn’t exactly wrong, and the feeling was mutual. She might have to make a stop at the supply closet next time she went to work. Besides, at least the house guy looked like he’d be some fun.
Hugo threw open the scarlet-curtained french doors into his bedroom, took in the sight of the king bed he’d have all to himself, and let out a happy sigh: “Ahhhh!” More than loud enough for the people who’d be bunking together to hear him and scowl at his back. He threw his leather suitcase (property of one R.S.V., probably stolen) into the corner, draped his immaculately maintained weapons belt across a velvet ottoman, and fell backwards onto the bed. “Ha! Ha ha ha ha! Hugo Ferdinand Durant, you lucky son of a bitch!”
After spending weeks on the run and on the street, he’d stumbled back into the lap of luxury, a lover he kept finding himself back in the arms of despite falling out of their favor so very many times. It was an event worth celebrating, possibly with a good screw. He picked his head up off the mattress to peer down the hall at the source of a deep male voice, narrowing his eyes at poor Ishmerai.
“Hey, you! The one with the pretty hair!” His face broke into a winning smile. “You single?”
Ishmerai took one look at Hugo and, having absolutely no clue who he was, gave him a very succinct response. “No.” Then, thinking better of it, he narrowed his eyes at Hugo. “Who are you?” He flipped through the stapled stack of papers in his hands containing bios of everyone who was supposed to be on set for security purposes.
“Hnh. Not an insurmountable obstacle.” Hugo pumped his legs back, then forward to spring up off the bed and onto the floor in a display that was made a little less impressive by the way he stumbled towards one side of the doorway, coming within inches of breaking his nose before changing course. He looked like he’d had a bit to drink already. “I am Hugo Ferdinand Durant, master duelist and house monitor, at your service,” he said proudly, stepping back into a very formal bow that he ended with a roguish smile and a wink. “And who are you, my charmingly brooding friend, and who is your lady? So I know who to apologize to, later,” he added in a lowered voice behind his hand, with a conspiratorial nod.
The knight stared at Hugo, unimpressed by his moves and unmoved by his charms. “I see.” He took a deep breath, holding back his long-suffering sigh. “My lady is Jewell Ravenlock. I am sure she will be pleased to take your apology,” now he sighed, “and your attentions.”
Hugo took three steps forward, angled his head to stare at Ishmerai… and patted him twice on the cheek. “I have a feeling… that you and I are going to be great friends.” With that he began to hum cheerfully, pirouetting around the hapless knight and sliding down the hall, wiggling his fingers at Tahlia as he passed by the door to the purple room.
Ishmerai hung his head as Hugo departed. “She is going to be the death of me.”
*****
In the pink room…
“Is the pink room for me!?” Eden shouted it into the house, her bags already on one of the two queen beds. It was the only room not already saddled with luggage. Hopping up the stairs and through the hall, she stuck her head in each room, noting where it looked like people had moved in and where they hadn’t. Then hurrying back down the stairs, she tore a lined notebook page from her school things and jotted down in bright purple handwriting, RESERVED FOR KHELDAR, and stuck it in on the second bed in the pink room. There. Now she had the perfect roommate!
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JewellRavenlock
- Legendary Adventurer
- The Empress
- Posts: 2473
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Later that day…
The front door of this shared house burst open hard enough to bang against the wall on the other side, bouncing off until Kate caught it with her hand. "What up, bitches??" she yelled by way of introduction.
Tahlia looked up at the commotion, since she'd just gotten the room the way she wanted it. Dropping the stuffed seal onto the bed she'd claimed for her own, the blonde sauntered out to see what the fuss was about
Ambient noise skittered through the house but Kate didn't see anyone to identify as the source. In fact, it was kinda quiet. "Hello? Did I bust into the wrong house again?"
"No idea - you looking for the house full of people who like to punch people?" Leaning against the wall, Tahlia shot a smirk at the newcomer.
She chuckled and nudged the door shut behind her. The digs were pretty swanky and Kate appreciated that. She deserved no less. "Something like that. Is this the IFL world house or whatever they're calling it?"
"I thought there was going to be a pool!" Hope shouted into her phone as she wandered about the house, her voice echoing. "No, I saw the pool table." She reiterated as she seemed to be navigating the not-so labyrinth of a house. "No, I did not look out back." She paused and let out a sigh and hung up.
"Hey, I recognize that voice, though it was usually screaming my name." With a smarmy grin, Kate cast about for Hope.
"Real World...yeah...like that means anything here..." Shaking her head, she nodded as Hope came into view. "Heya Coach..."
Fingers wiggled in a wave to the Unknown. "I'm Kate."
"Hi Tahlia, hi Kate." She looked down at her phone and tapped a few more times then looked back up in a bit of shock. "Kate?! You're already here?!" She shoved it in her pocket and walked over.
"Yours too?" Pushing off from the wall, she grinned, and gave a half-wave. "Tahlia. Nice to meet you. Her Highness already claimed some guy named Gren and the green room..."
The delayed reaction from Hope earned a snicker. "It would seem I am. Why, you want me to go somewhere else?" A glance back to Tahlia with a twitch of manicured brows. "Her Highness? Gren?" She didn't know those titles but figured it would be made apparent at some point.
"I hadn't realized how quickly we nailed down your contract." Hope had left her bags by the front door all this time and had taken a personal tour on the search for the pool. "Please, like you could leave. Not even you can evade that legal team."
"Is that a challenge? Accepted." Kate’s lawyer was going to call some other lawyers and start a fight. "I also resent the implication that I'm a quick nail. That downright hurts."
"You'll get it when you meet her." Shrugging, since she didn't know Gren either, Tahlia looked over the other two women, and headed toward the bar. Because of course there was a bar. "Drinks, anyone?" Smirking, there was a little more bounce in her step - things were looking up.
"No, not really. I've got my own Gym now and I have some killer deals with advertisers but I'm not like.. Lebron James rich." Hope dismissively waved off the idea of a legal battle with whatever cartel money Kate had. "Sure, how about a Jack and Coke to break in the house?" She grinned.
"Jack and Coke coming up - taking it easy on me, huh?" Hope had mixed Hope drinks more times than she cared to count. "It's a good contract...not unbreakable, but..." catching her bottom lip in her teeth, she didn't bother to mention she'd taken it to a team of her own...well, one she had access to, anyway.
If they were breaking things in... "Oh, do we have a bottle of champagne?" Kate wandered toward the bar, trailing after Hope. "You're a real working woman now, huh? No more extracurricular games?" Hope got a pointed glance, a smile dancing on her mouth, remembering a certain mutually known thug.
"We must...and if we don't...we can send a PA. Pretty sure that's what they're for." A bottle of Jack was already on the bar, and the petite blonde was looking for something celebratory. Coke, Tahlia assumed, was in the fridge. Working without taps was going to take some adjustment.
Hope shot Kate a glance, having seemed to let that particular side job slip her memory for quite some time. "It's been a while. I wouldn't mind catching up but I haven't heard since then." She didn't like how that simply evaporated, but that was the nature of that business wasn't it? No one was in it for friends.
It was the nature of the beast called Life - one rode the wave wherever it took them, sometimes ebbing and flowing back to certain people and sometimes not. Besides, phones worked both ways. "But we're here now so let's make the best of it, yeah?" Kate sat on a stool at the bar, leaning over to nudge Hope with her shoulder. "Where's my bed? Is anyone else here?"
"Now, back to the champagne. We need to find a whole bottle."
"Only two reasons I'm here and I intend to see both of them through." Hope replied with a smirk before rolling her neck and shrugging. "I don't know, wherever the last one is. I'm totally claiming the one by the window." She called dibs, that's how it worked right?
"Working in it!" Tahlia slid the drink toward Hope, and sauntered off looking for someone vaguely gopher-y. "There's two beds in the purple room left - the one with the stuffed seal is mine...."
"Yeah? What are your two reasons?" Kate’s gaze followed Tahlia, studying the other woman while she was being helpful. Sputtering out a laugh, she turned to grin at Hope. "Three people, two beds, huh?"
Hope raised a brow and leaned back with her hands up, one occupied with the drink that she was now sipping. "Don't look at me, I've got more game than that. I don't go sabotaging beds." She let out a laugh and held up two fingers. "Have fun and win."
"Hey, I'm just saying, if we have to share a bed then I've got the 'having fun' part covered." Brows bobbed at Hope.
It didn't take long before Tahlia came sauntering back, looking like the cat that ate the canary. She'd found some young frat boy, and it hadn't taken much to convince him that they desperately needed champagne. The good stuff, of course. "Bottle service should be incoming...and there's two beds left...you ladies don't have to share if you don't want to. I claimed mine already." Winking, she held up three fingers, then dropped one.
"Sure, gives us room for more bodies." Those cameras were going to get an eye full sooner or later. "Did I hear mention of a pool? What's the closet situation like? Where are these servants you found?"
"You know you can take your time to find these out right?" Hope smirked and sipped a nice long thing along the drink, feeling it seep down her spine. "Apparently it's out back. I was hoping we'd have an in-door one but oh well." Too much time in New Haven.
Hope fielded the pool question, which was helpful...since Tahlia hadn't done more than vaguely noticed the hot tubs. "Closets are nowhere near big enough, but I guess they'll have to do. And I do like the way you think!" Giving Kate a thumbs up, she kept half an eye out for the boy. "PA - so...TV servants? They're working for experience, or something. I dunno - I saw a frat boy, batted my lashes, and champagne will be here....now!" Ask and ye shall receive.
Boy servants, even better. Some tall drink of water with a vaguely attractive frame walked into view, holding a bottle of champagne and three flutes. "You stick around," Kate murmured to him, batting her lashes as Tahlia suggested.
Scoffing at Hope, Kate waved a hand dismissively. "Sure, but why wait when I don't have to?" After setting the bolly of bubbly on the bar, Kate climbed up onto it, standing on the glossy surface before brandishing it over her head like a club. "Maybe this was already done but I missed it so..." Heaving the bottle back, she threw it as hard as she could to the floor, appeased when it shattered abruptly. Glass and foaming wine splashed in a wide pattern across the floor. "I christen this house as IFL World!"
"Sugar, get us another bottle, would you?" Tahlia barely managed between snickers, fluttering her fingers at the newly-elected errand boy. She'd convinced him to get a case delivered. With any luck, there would be a lot to celebrate. Bringing her hands together, she applauded Kate's display and general joie de vivre! "And a clean up crew!
"Shirtless clean up crew!" she added.
Spinning back around to face the bar, Kate cupped her chin in one palm. "So, Tahlia...what's your story?"
"Jesus!" Hope jumped startled and looked around before giving Kate an 'are you serious?!' look. "What the hell?! Aren't we supposed to do that with the whole team present?!"
"I'm sure there's more," shrugging her shoulders at Hope. "We can always do it again. Should I warn you next time?"
Setting her elbows on the stained wood, she quirked a brow, and rested her cheek on her fingers. "Me? Oh, not too much...I train with Hope. Make my way best I can. Try to keep busy and keep my nose clean. You?" Hope got a dismissive wave. "So we'll do it again...see? Kate gets it."
Kate patted Hope's knee while nodding at Tahlia. "Mmhm, mhm. How'd you get here? You a native?" Not many people were. "How do you keep busy normally?
"Yeah give me a solid five minute warning please. I should have known when you asked for Champagne. That's got too much class for a broad like you." Hope snickered and gave Kate a gentle punch to the shoulder.
It was an excellent question, and Tahlia let out a laugh before answering. "Someone told me this place was a lot of fun. And not big on rules. So here I am." She took another moment, idly reaching for a bottle of bourbon. "Bartending. Dancing, sometimes, although I'm guessing that's going to have to wait til this is over. But Jerry was good about letting me work around this..."
"Hey!" Kate swayed with the punch. "I'll have you know I'm fucking classy!" Hmph! "So you're not from RhyDin? What place spawned you, if you don't mind my asking?" Always a fun game to see if she'd been to someone's home world before. "What sort of dancing? Who's Jerry? Where do you work?"
Glancing from Hope to Kate, she poured herself a healthy shot. "She always this nosy?" It was said with a smile though. For now. "I'm from Earth, originally. All over. Moved around a bunch." Raising the glass with a toast, she considered the rest. "I think they call it exotic, to be classy. And I work over at The Line. Jerry runs the bar. Not dancing. Bartending." To stave off the follow up. "You from here?"
"It means she likes you. If she didn't she'd just tell you to fuck off or she'd just ignore your existence. If you're lucky." She smiled at that caveat and imagined the times she'd seen Kate punch. "Yeah you're super classy, they named clubs after you." She pat Kate's head and prepared herself to get hit.
"We're going to be sharing a room, apparently. Perhaps even a bed. Is it so wrong to want to get to know my housemates?" Innocent bat of her lashes. "I already know a lot about Hope, she gets a break because there's fresh meat here." Beam. One arm hooked around Hope's shoulders to pull her close in a rough hug.
"Not wrong...you're just more interested than most." Jade green eyes sparkled with amusement, and she took a sip of bourbon. "And no offence, but if I share a bed with either one of you...Simon's gonna want to watch. Or join in." Setting the glass on the counter, she leaned forward, and smiled sweetly. "And you haven't answered any of my questions...so, lets fix that, shall we?"
"I'm a lot more things than most people. Extra is what I do." She preened, smoothing a palm over her hair. "OOoooh, who's Simon? Male or female? Got a pic or holo?" The potential was mouth watering. "Oh, no, not from here. Farrrrrrr far away, many planets and moons. I took the scenic route but it's about two light years and a few hyper jumps from this planet to the place I was spawned."
"Extra is good." A warm smile curved the corners of her lips, and she ducked her head, reaching into her back pocket for her phone. "Male - definitely male." Tapping at the screen, she slid the phone in Kate's direction. "We just got a place in Old Town when they dropped off the contract. Hadn't seen him for two months before that so he'll be around. A lot."
Leaning forward to check out the pic, she picked up the phone to inspect him a bit closer. "Mmm, he's a tasty treat. He can come over and watch all he wants. Is he allowed to join in?" she asked Tahlia, giving the phone back to its owner.
"I've got a grumpy demon in my back pocket. He doesn't seem impressive at first but I tell you what, that demon has stamina."
"Hey let's just get it straight, if I've got a fight you can take Simon and Kate out for drinks. I'd like to get my sleep, that's all. The couch is fine for me on nights when I'm not fighting but for realsies." Hope knew how to have fun but she took it for realsies when it came to the business.
"Awwww, Hope, you're not going to join in?" Kate made a sad puppy face at the other woman.
Tahlia gave a little shrug, and blew a kiss at Hope, with her best innocent look. "I'd never interfere with your beauty sleep, Coach. You could probably join in too, if you're around..." She and Kate had the same idea, and she let out a laugh. "See? And yeah, why not...I mean, its just sex, right?" She seemed a little wistful, and took an extra long swallow of her bourbon. "He's wanted a threesome for ages...four? He might die of joy...."
Canting her head, Kate gave Hope a searching look. They really did need to catch up.
"There are certain things I won't do." She said with a curt smile and shrug. "I'm not saying you can't enjoy your fun. I'm just a little particular."
"No worries, we don't judge here." With a wide smile, she squeezed Hope's knee. "So, who's going to give me the two cent tour?"
The answer didn't seem to surprise her. Nodding, Tahlia knocked back another swallow, and glanced at her watch. "I'll let you two catch up - I have to run over to The Line and get a few things..."
"I happened to get lost a little before I realized you two were here. If you've got nowhere to be, we could take a lap around and eventually find the pool?"
The front door of this shared house burst open hard enough to bang against the wall on the other side, bouncing off until Kate caught it with her hand. "What up, bitches??" she yelled by way of introduction.
Tahlia looked up at the commotion, since she'd just gotten the room the way she wanted it. Dropping the stuffed seal onto the bed she'd claimed for her own, the blonde sauntered out to see what the fuss was about
Ambient noise skittered through the house but Kate didn't see anyone to identify as the source. In fact, it was kinda quiet. "Hello? Did I bust into the wrong house again?"
"No idea - you looking for the house full of people who like to punch people?" Leaning against the wall, Tahlia shot a smirk at the newcomer.
She chuckled and nudged the door shut behind her. The digs were pretty swanky and Kate appreciated that. She deserved no less. "Something like that. Is this the IFL world house or whatever they're calling it?"
"I thought there was going to be a pool!" Hope shouted into her phone as she wandered about the house, her voice echoing. "No, I saw the pool table." She reiterated as she seemed to be navigating the not-so labyrinth of a house. "No, I did not look out back." She paused and let out a sigh and hung up.
"Hey, I recognize that voice, though it was usually screaming my name." With a smarmy grin, Kate cast about for Hope.
"Real World...yeah...like that means anything here..." Shaking her head, she nodded as Hope came into view. "Heya Coach..."
Fingers wiggled in a wave to the Unknown. "I'm Kate."
"Hi Tahlia, hi Kate." She looked down at her phone and tapped a few more times then looked back up in a bit of shock. "Kate?! You're already here?!" She shoved it in her pocket and walked over.
"Yours too?" Pushing off from the wall, she grinned, and gave a half-wave. "Tahlia. Nice to meet you. Her Highness already claimed some guy named Gren and the green room..."
The delayed reaction from Hope earned a snicker. "It would seem I am. Why, you want me to go somewhere else?" A glance back to Tahlia with a twitch of manicured brows. "Her Highness? Gren?" She didn't know those titles but figured it would be made apparent at some point.
"I hadn't realized how quickly we nailed down your contract." Hope had left her bags by the front door all this time and had taken a personal tour on the search for the pool. "Please, like you could leave. Not even you can evade that legal team."
"Is that a challenge? Accepted." Kate’s lawyer was going to call some other lawyers and start a fight. "I also resent the implication that I'm a quick nail. That downright hurts."
"You'll get it when you meet her." Shrugging, since she didn't know Gren either, Tahlia looked over the other two women, and headed toward the bar. Because of course there was a bar. "Drinks, anyone?" Smirking, there was a little more bounce in her step - things were looking up.
"No, not really. I've got my own Gym now and I have some killer deals with advertisers but I'm not like.. Lebron James rich." Hope dismissively waved off the idea of a legal battle with whatever cartel money Kate had. "Sure, how about a Jack and Coke to break in the house?" She grinned.
"Jack and Coke coming up - taking it easy on me, huh?" Hope had mixed Hope drinks more times than she cared to count. "It's a good contract...not unbreakable, but..." catching her bottom lip in her teeth, she didn't bother to mention she'd taken it to a team of her own...well, one she had access to, anyway.
If they were breaking things in... "Oh, do we have a bottle of champagne?" Kate wandered toward the bar, trailing after Hope. "You're a real working woman now, huh? No more extracurricular games?" Hope got a pointed glance, a smile dancing on her mouth, remembering a certain mutually known thug.
"We must...and if we don't...we can send a PA. Pretty sure that's what they're for." A bottle of Jack was already on the bar, and the petite blonde was looking for something celebratory. Coke, Tahlia assumed, was in the fridge. Working without taps was going to take some adjustment.
Hope shot Kate a glance, having seemed to let that particular side job slip her memory for quite some time. "It's been a while. I wouldn't mind catching up but I haven't heard since then." She didn't like how that simply evaporated, but that was the nature of that business wasn't it? No one was in it for friends.
It was the nature of the beast called Life - one rode the wave wherever it took them, sometimes ebbing and flowing back to certain people and sometimes not. Besides, phones worked both ways. "But we're here now so let's make the best of it, yeah?" Kate sat on a stool at the bar, leaning over to nudge Hope with her shoulder. "Where's my bed? Is anyone else here?"
"Now, back to the champagne. We need to find a whole bottle."
"Only two reasons I'm here and I intend to see both of them through." Hope replied with a smirk before rolling her neck and shrugging. "I don't know, wherever the last one is. I'm totally claiming the one by the window." She called dibs, that's how it worked right?
"Working in it!" Tahlia slid the drink toward Hope, and sauntered off looking for someone vaguely gopher-y. "There's two beds in the purple room left - the one with the stuffed seal is mine...."
"Yeah? What are your two reasons?" Kate’s gaze followed Tahlia, studying the other woman while she was being helpful. Sputtering out a laugh, she turned to grin at Hope. "Three people, two beds, huh?"
Hope raised a brow and leaned back with her hands up, one occupied with the drink that she was now sipping. "Don't look at me, I've got more game than that. I don't go sabotaging beds." She let out a laugh and held up two fingers. "Have fun and win."
"Hey, I'm just saying, if we have to share a bed then I've got the 'having fun' part covered." Brows bobbed at Hope.
It didn't take long before Tahlia came sauntering back, looking like the cat that ate the canary. She'd found some young frat boy, and it hadn't taken much to convince him that they desperately needed champagne. The good stuff, of course. "Bottle service should be incoming...and there's two beds left...you ladies don't have to share if you don't want to. I claimed mine already." Winking, she held up three fingers, then dropped one.
"Sure, gives us room for more bodies." Those cameras were going to get an eye full sooner or later. "Did I hear mention of a pool? What's the closet situation like? Where are these servants you found?"
"You know you can take your time to find these out right?" Hope smirked and sipped a nice long thing along the drink, feeling it seep down her spine. "Apparently it's out back. I was hoping we'd have an in-door one but oh well." Too much time in New Haven.
Hope fielded the pool question, which was helpful...since Tahlia hadn't done more than vaguely noticed the hot tubs. "Closets are nowhere near big enough, but I guess they'll have to do. And I do like the way you think!" Giving Kate a thumbs up, she kept half an eye out for the boy. "PA - so...TV servants? They're working for experience, or something. I dunno - I saw a frat boy, batted my lashes, and champagne will be here....now!" Ask and ye shall receive.
Boy servants, even better. Some tall drink of water with a vaguely attractive frame walked into view, holding a bottle of champagne and three flutes. "You stick around," Kate murmured to him, batting her lashes as Tahlia suggested.
Scoffing at Hope, Kate waved a hand dismissively. "Sure, but why wait when I don't have to?" After setting the bolly of bubbly on the bar, Kate climbed up onto it, standing on the glossy surface before brandishing it over her head like a club. "Maybe this was already done but I missed it so..." Heaving the bottle back, she threw it as hard as she could to the floor, appeased when it shattered abruptly. Glass and foaming wine splashed in a wide pattern across the floor. "I christen this house as IFL World!"
"Sugar, get us another bottle, would you?" Tahlia barely managed between snickers, fluttering her fingers at the newly-elected errand boy. She'd convinced him to get a case delivered. With any luck, there would be a lot to celebrate. Bringing her hands together, she applauded Kate's display and general joie de vivre! "And a clean up crew!
"Shirtless clean up crew!" she added.
Spinning back around to face the bar, Kate cupped her chin in one palm. "So, Tahlia...what's your story?"
"Jesus!" Hope jumped startled and looked around before giving Kate an 'are you serious?!' look. "What the hell?! Aren't we supposed to do that with the whole team present?!"
"I'm sure there's more," shrugging her shoulders at Hope. "We can always do it again. Should I warn you next time?"
Setting her elbows on the stained wood, she quirked a brow, and rested her cheek on her fingers. "Me? Oh, not too much...I train with Hope. Make my way best I can. Try to keep busy and keep my nose clean. You?" Hope got a dismissive wave. "So we'll do it again...see? Kate gets it."
Kate patted Hope's knee while nodding at Tahlia. "Mmhm, mhm. How'd you get here? You a native?" Not many people were. "How do you keep busy normally?
"Yeah give me a solid five minute warning please. I should have known when you asked for Champagne. That's got too much class for a broad like you." Hope snickered and gave Kate a gentle punch to the shoulder.
It was an excellent question, and Tahlia let out a laugh before answering. "Someone told me this place was a lot of fun. And not big on rules. So here I am." She took another moment, idly reaching for a bottle of bourbon. "Bartending. Dancing, sometimes, although I'm guessing that's going to have to wait til this is over. But Jerry was good about letting me work around this..."
"Hey!" Kate swayed with the punch. "I'll have you know I'm fucking classy!" Hmph! "So you're not from RhyDin? What place spawned you, if you don't mind my asking?" Always a fun game to see if she'd been to someone's home world before. "What sort of dancing? Who's Jerry? Where do you work?"
Glancing from Hope to Kate, she poured herself a healthy shot. "She always this nosy?" It was said with a smile though. For now. "I'm from Earth, originally. All over. Moved around a bunch." Raising the glass with a toast, she considered the rest. "I think they call it exotic, to be classy. And I work over at The Line. Jerry runs the bar. Not dancing. Bartending." To stave off the follow up. "You from here?"
"It means she likes you. If she didn't she'd just tell you to fuck off or she'd just ignore your existence. If you're lucky." She smiled at that caveat and imagined the times she'd seen Kate punch. "Yeah you're super classy, they named clubs after you." She pat Kate's head and prepared herself to get hit.
"We're going to be sharing a room, apparently. Perhaps even a bed. Is it so wrong to want to get to know my housemates?" Innocent bat of her lashes. "I already know a lot about Hope, she gets a break because there's fresh meat here." Beam. One arm hooked around Hope's shoulders to pull her close in a rough hug.
"Not wrong...you're just more interested than most." Jade green eyes sparkled with amusement, and she took a sip of bourbon. "And no offence, but if I share a bed with either one of you...Simon's gonna want to watch. Or join in." Setting the glass on the counter, she leaned forward, and smiled sweetly. "And you haven't answered any of my questions...so, lets fix that, shall we?"
"I'm a lot more things than most people. Extra is what I do." She preened, smoothing a palm over her hair. "OOoooh, who's Simon? Male or female? Got a pic or holo?" The potential was mouth watering. "Oh, no, not from here. Farrrrrrr far away, many planets and moons. I took the scenic route but it's about two light years and a few hyper jumps from this planet to the place I was spawned."
"Extra is good." A warm smile curved the corners of her lips, and she ducked her head, reaching into her back pocket for her phone. "Male - definitely male." Tapping at the screen, she slid the phone in Kate's direction. "We just got a place in Old Town when they dropped off the contract. Hadn't seen him for two months before that so he'll be around. A lot."
Leaning forward to check out the pic, she picked up the phone to inspect him a bit closer. "Mmm, he's a tasty treat. He can come over and watch all he wants. Is he allowed to join in?" she asked Tahlia, giving the phone back to its owner.
"I've got a grumpy demon in my back pocket. He doesn't seem impressive at first but I tell you what, that demon has stamina."
"Hey let's just get it straight, if I've got a fight you can take Simon and Kate out for drinks. I'd like to get my sleep, that's all. The couch is fine for me on nights when I'm not fighting but for realsies." Hope knew how to have fun but she took it for realsies when it came to the business.
"Awwww, Hope, you're not going to join in?" Kate made a sad puppy face at the other woman.
Tahlia gave a little shrug, and blew a kiss at Hope, with her best innocent look. "I'd never interfere with your beauty sleep, Coach. You could probably join in too, if you're around..." She and Kate had the same idea, and she let out a laugh. "See? And yeah, why not...I mean, its just sex, right?" She seemed a little wistful, and took an extra long swallow of her bourbon. "He's wanted a threesome for ages...four? He might die of joy...."
Canting her head, Kate gave Hope a searching look. They really did need to catch up.
"There are certain things I won't do." She said with a curt smile and shrug. "I'm not saying you can't enjoy your fun. I'm just a little particular."
"No worries, we don't judge here." With a wide smile, she squeezed Hope's knee. "So, who's going to give me the two cent tour?"
The answer didn't seem to surprise her. Nodding, Tahlia knocked back another swallow, and glanced at her watch. "I'll let you two catch up - I have to run over to The Line and get a few things..."
"I happened to get lost a little before I realized you two were here. If you've got nowhere to be, we could take a lap around and eventually find the pool?"
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Eden Parker
- RoH Admin
- Posts: 545
- Joined: Thu Mar 05, 2015 8:35 pm
- Location: Old Market
Around 1 in the morning, Eden crept quietly up the stairs and paused outside Gren and Jewell's room.
She turned to the camera, squinting at its bright light, and whispered, "Can you please turn that out?"
"Uhh--" the camera operator leaned out from behind the camera, "--sure." Flipping off the light, he engaged night vision mode.
Eden appeared in night vision green, smiling brightly in the frame. "Thank you!"
Then, as silent as she could manage, she nudged open the door. Peeking her head in, she confirmed that Gren and Jewell were both asleep. So she nudged the door open farther.
At the foot of their beds, she positioned the cardboard cutout of bikini-clad Lisa Takamine.
She took a step back, assessed it, then twisted the angle of the cutout to make sure Lisa was facing both of their beds directly. Pleased with her handiwork, she bounced back into the hall, shut the door, and then turned to the camera and whispered loudly, eyes wide with excitement, "They're gonna love it!"
She turned to the camera, squinting at its bright light, and whispered, "Can you please turn that out?"
"Uhh--" the camera operator leaned out from behind the camera, "--sure." Flipping off the light, he engaged night vision mode.
Eden appeared in night vision green, smiling brightly in the frame. "Thank you!"
Then, as silent as she could manage, she nudged open the door. Peeking her head in, she confirmed that Gren and Jewell were both asleep. So she nudged the door open farther.
At the foot of their beds, she positioned the cardboard cutout of bikini-clad Lisa Takamine.
She took a step back, assessed it, then twisted the angle of the cutout to make sure Lisa was facing both of their beds directly. Pleased with her handiwork, she bounced back into the hall, shut the door, and then turned to the camera and whispered loudly, eyes wide with excitement, "They're gonna love it!"
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Gren Blockman
- Expert Adventurer
- Posts: 743
- Joined: Thu Jun 19, 2008 9:00 pm
- Location: The forest, the woods, the trees
Gren had gone with Hope after his fight with Izumi, and filled his belly with as much veggie sushi and Broot as he could eat. Happy that he had gained a win for his team, he retired to the bedroom that he reluctantly shared with Jewell. He had put up a string and blanket to screen off his bed, thinking he was being a gentleman. Getting into his Arachnid Man pajamas, he curled up in his bed to enjoy some much needed sleep.
The faerie slept poorly lately, but she was out cold when Gren came in after taking some mixture from the apothecary, which tasted like mud. She had a fight tomorrow night and needed to be in top form! The most she did was mumble something and turn over when the door opened and closed, clutching her pillow tighter to her chest.
Three or so hours passed when Gren was suddenly awaken by the fact he had to pee something fierce. It was all those Broots he had drank in his celebration. Setting his blankets to the side, he tried to slip off his bed and tiptoe across the room so as not to wake Jewell. Unfortunately that's when he saw the life-size cutout of Lisa standing in front of him. At first he thought it was one of his roommates. In a whisper, while turning on the light, he said. "Hey! What are you doing in . . . . . AAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!" The light revealed his bikini-clad nemesis.
"AHHHHH!" Jewell echoed, shooting upright in bed and firing off three quick blasts of mana energy with her left hand while her right produced a dagger from under her pillow, which she swung wildly at the air in front of her.
"AAAAAAHHHH!!!!!" Gren continues screaming as mana bursts shoot off around him. He ducks his head and falls forward, into the cutout of Lisa, which he begins to flail around with on the floor of the bedroom.
Bleary eyed, Jewell stopped firing long enough to squint through the smoke and find Gren on the floor with... "Gren!" she snapped, irritated and only half-awake. "I thought we worked out a system. If you want your girlfriend in here, just tell me." She was already settling back down in bed, though the dagger was still in hand. She used it to cover a yawn. "I'd just go sleep with Hope or Hugo." Jewell pulled her blanket up and snuggled down. Then she pushed herself up on one elbow, thinking of something. "And really, I've been with some loud men, but if you're screaming that loud every time you have sex? You really need to go to therapy. There is absolutely--" she yawned again, settling back down in bed once more as the sleeping draught from the apothecary did its work, "nothing scary bout... vaginas."
Gren rolled onto his back and turned beet red after Jewell spoke. "Jewell! How could you think I would do such a thing like that here in front of you? Look, it's a cardboard cutout! Of Lisa Takamine! Someone just played a prank on me!" Gren then suddenly gets self conscious about holding it since Lisa was in a bikini. Pointing Lisa's face at the wall, he tried to prop it up there to get it away from him.
"Whaa?" she opened her eyes and glanced towards Gren. "Ugh fine." Groaning, she sat up and grabbed her pillow. The dagger was still in her hand. "I get it. You want some alone time with..." she leaned forward. "Is that Lisa?" Jewell blinked rapidly, fully waking up. "Gren, are you pleasuring yourself to a Lisa cardboard cutout!?"
"No I am not! I would think that I would control myself concerning such . . . personal things in the presence of a lady!" He started jumping around in place. "Man I have to go to the bathroom! Can you give me five minutes and we can continue this discussion?" Gren got a hopeful look on his face.
"Sure..." Jewell looked highly amused now and not at all upset that she had been woken up so rudely, "pee. Right. Go for it. I'll just be here." She curled back up in bed. "Try not to use all the tissues though! And try not to scream again! You'll wake everyone else up!"
"Right!" That part of the conversation goes right over his head in his rush to get to the bathroom and relieve himself.
After he was gone, Jewell crept out of bed, grabbed the cardboard cutout, and positioned it in front of the door so Gren would come face-to-face with it when he walked back in. Then she tried to catch a few more minutes of sleep before Gren started inevitably screaming once more.
The faerie slept poorly lately, but she was out cold when Gren came in after taking some mixture from the apothecary, which tasted like mud. She had a fight tomorrow night and needed to be in top form! The most she did was mumble something and turn over when the door opened and closed, clutching her pillow tighter to her chest.
Three or so hours passed when Gren was suddenly awaken by the fact he had to pee something fierce. It was all those Broots he had drank in his celebration. Setting his blankets to the side, he tried to slip off his bed and tiptoe across the room so as not to wake Jewell. Unfortunately that's when he saw the life-size cutout of Lisa standing in front of him. At first he thought it was one of his roommates. In a whisper, while turning on the light, he said. "Hey! What are you doing in . . . . . AAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!" The light revealed his bikini-clad nemesis.
"AHHHHH!" Jewell echoed, shooting upright in bed and firing off three quick blasts of mana energy with her left hand while her right produced a dagger from under her pillow, which she swung wildly at the air in front of her.
"AAAAAAHHHH!!!!!" Gren continues screaming as mana bursts shoot off around him. He ducks his head and falls forward, into the cutout of Lisa, which he begins to flail around with on the floor of the bedroom.
Bleary eyed, Jewell stopped firing long enough to squint through the smoke and find Gren on the floor with... "Gren!" she snapped, irritated and only half-awake. "I thought we worked out a system. If you want your girlfriend in here, just tell me." She was already settling back down in bed, though the dagger was still in hand. She used it to cover a yawn. "I'd just go sleep with Hope or Hugo." Jewell pulled her blanket up and snuggled down. Then she pushed herself up on one elbow, thinking of something. "And really, I've been with some loud men, but if you're screaming that loud every time you have sex? You really need to go to therapy. There is absolutely--" she yawned again, settling back down in bed once more as the sleeping draught from the apothecary did its work, "nothing scary bout... vaginas."
Gren rolled onto his back and turned beet red after Jewell spoke. "Jewell! How could you think I would do such a thing like that here in front of you? Look, it's a cardboard cutout! Of Lisa Takamine! Someone just played a prank on me!" Gren then suddenly gets self conscious about holding it since Lisa was in a bikini. Pointing Lisa's face at the wall, he tried to prop it up there to get it away from him.
"Whaa?" she opened her eyes and glanced towards Gren. "Ugh fine." Groaning, she sat up and grabbed her pillow. The dagger was still in her hand. "I get it. You want some alone time with..." she leaned forward. "Is that Lisa?" Jewell blinked rapidly, fully waking up. "Gren, are you pleasuring yourself to a Lisa cardboard cutout!?"
"No I am not! I would think that I would control myself concerning such . . . personal things in the presence of a lady!" He started jumping around in place. "Man I have to go to the bathroom! Can you give me five minutes and we can continue this discussion?" Gren got a hopeful look on his face.
"Sure..." Jewell looked highly amused now and not at all upset that she had been woken up so rudely, "pee. Right. Go for it. I'll just be here." She curled back up in bed. "Try not to use all the tissues though! And try not to scream again! You'll wake everyone else up!"
"Right!" That part of the conversation goes right over his head in his rush to get to the bathroom and relieve himself.
After he was gone, Jewell crept out of bed, grabbed the cardboard cutout, and positioned it in front of the door so Gren would come face-to-face with it when he walked back in. Then she tried to catch a few more minutes of sleep before Gren started inevitably screaming once more.
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Eden Parker
- RoH Admin
- Posts: 545
- Joined: Thu Mar 05, 2015 8:35 pm
- Location: Old Market
Eden was pretty quick to settle into the pink room. After years of sharing small spaces, she really wasn't a bad roommate! Her roller skates and skateboard were neatly lined up against the wall (out of tripping range). Her clothes were hanging in exactly half of the closet. Her school books were piled on her dresser. And she had all of her toiletries organized into a bamboo shower carrier.
She was also pretty quick to personalize her space. A TRASH poster was pinned to the wall next to her bed. Also tacked to the wall was a picture of Tinkerbell, and a cover of Decks magazine featuring Enid Sharpe, Rhy'Din's own professional skateboarder! A little photo of Eden and Cory, a selfie of the pair of them, sat on the nightstand.
Last, but not least, she posted a sign on the door!
She was also pretty quick to personalize her space. A TRASH poster was pinned to the wall next to her bed. Also tacked to the wall was a picture of Tinkerbell, and a cover of Decks magazine featuring Enid Sharpe, Rhy'Din's own professional skateboarder! A little photo of Eden and Cory, a selfie of the pair of them, sat on the nightstand.
Last, but not least, she posted a sign on the door!
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JewellRavenlock
- Legendary Adventurer
- The Empress
- Posts: 2473
- Joined: Thu Apr 13, 2006 5:26 pm
- Location: Little Elfhame, Old Market
- Contact:
Bye-Bye Bye Week BBQ
After Kheld had suggested on the fridge that they have a BBQ to celebrate (commiserate?) the end of their IFL bye week, Jewell immediately ordered several of the camera workers and an intern out of the house on a food run. Despite their objections of, "That's really not what we're here for..." they were soon on their way to the supermarket to buy any additional foodstuffs the team needed to make this BBQ happen: meat, buns, salad fixings, side dishes, corn, condiments, and s'mores supplies for the fire pit.
After successfully bossing them around, Jewell dashed over to the Red Orc Brewery to buy a keg or three of Badsider.
Before she got back to the house with the orcs delivering the kegs, another item made a mysterious appearance: a jello wrestling ring. Actually, it was just a baby pool full of lime-green jello. Jewell was heard later explaining that they couldn't take the whole day off! They needed to practice a little too.
Someone also dragged the ping-pong table from the rec room outside for other shenanigans.
After Kheld had suggested on the fridge that they have a BBQ to celebrate (commiserate?) the end of their IFL bye week, Jewell immediately ordered several of the camera workers and an intern out of the house on a food run. Despite their objections of, "That's really not what we're here for..." they were soon on their way to the supermarket to buy any additional foodstuffs the team needed to make this BBQ happen: meat, buns, salad fixings, side dishes, corn, condiments, and s'mores supplies for the fire pit.
After successfully bossing them around, Jewell dashed over to the Red Orc Brewery to buy a keg or three of Badsider.
Before she got back to the house with the orcs delivering the kegs, another item made a mysterious appearance: a jello wrestling ring. Actually, it was just a baby pool full of lime-green jello. Jewell was heard later explaining that they couldn't take the whole day off! They needed to practice a little too.
Someone also dragged the ping-pong table from the rec room outside for other shenanigans.
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Eden Parker
- RoH Admin
- Posts: 545
- Joined: Thu Mar 05, 2015 8:35 pm
- Location: Old Market
Eden was stoked for the barbecue (like hello, lots of food!) but she was pretty unclear on the purpose of all the jello. After finishing setting up her own contribution to the party (ice cream sundae bar!) she grabbed a ladle, stuck it in the jello pool, then set a stack of plastic bowls and spoons next to it. Please with how helpful she was being, she stuck a post-it note on the bowls reading, Help yourself! :DDD
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JewellRavenlock
- Legendary Adventurer
- The Empress
- Posts: 2473
- Joined: Thu Apr 13, 2006 5:26 pm
- Location: Little Elfhame, Old Market
- Contact:
Episode: Through the Doorway
Jewell covered a yawn. "I'm gonna go get dressed in the closet Gren so I don't upset your sensitivities when you accidentally walk in on me again!" She practically shouted it into the hallway so no one would get suspicious. Then she wandered into their joint walk-in closet. Fortunately, she was small enough to scoot around her dresses and his ranger cloaks to get to the back of the closet. Touching the wall, it slowly melted away and Jewell stepped through into a long hallway on the third floor of the old sanatorium she had recently occupied. She had something to discuss with her knight.
"Good! You do that!" Gren called from the kitchen. "Look at this. Fruity Flakes. Chocolate Sugar Crunchies. There's too much soup in this house!" That was a long story regarding the definition of cereal and soup, but Gren huffed his way from the kitchen and down the hallway back to his bedroom. He had called a duel for IFL that night, and shared some donuts with a Giantess. Just your average night in the Annex. Peeking in to see that Jewell was safely in the closet, he slipped behind his curtain that covered his side of the bedroom. Pulling off his cloak and clothes, he put on a comfortable pair of his Danger Ranger pajamas and sat down on the edge of his bed.
It was incredibly quiet in the room. Perhaps too quiet. Jewell tended to hum and even sing when she got dressed, but there were no noises coming from the closet. There was no Empress either. It didn't usually take her this long to pull on a pair of shorts and old t-shirt to get ready for bed. Gren fingered a few of his comics, then after a few minutes, he perked up when he noticed Jewell hadn't emerged, nor had she made any sound. Very slowly he peeked around his curtain to see if she had exited the closet, but he saw she wasn't there. "Hey . . . uh . . . Jewell? You alright in there?" He waited a while and there was no answer. He cleared his throat, then tiptoed over to the door of the closet. Gingerly he laid his ear against the door to see if he could hear anything.
There were multiple voices, one of which may have been Jewell, filtering back through the closet since someone had forgotten to close the doorway behind her. They were becoming more distant as Jewell met her knight on the other side and they headed downstairs in the sanatorium to check on something below.
Gren yanked his head back from the door and turned red in the face. "Miss Jewell! You shouldn't bring your dates back to our room! There are cameras everywhere!" When Jewell didn’t acknowledge him, he pressed his ear to the door again. Getting a stern look on his face, he grabbed the handle of the door. "I'll put a stop to this . . . " Opening the door, he noticed there was no one inside. Getting a bewildered look on his face, he pushed into the closet, past the cloaks and dresses, and noticed the portal. "Nyaaaah!" Gren slapped his hand to his face as the image of a portal to what was possibly another world caused him to exclaim in fear.
One of the cameramen crept up behind him in the closet, holding one of the portable cameras. They didn't have cameras in the closets, so when two of the housemates disappeared into one? He was supposed to do his best to follow. "Hey buddy, where'd she go?"
"NYAAAAHH!!" Gren leapt up and whirled around as the cameraman spoke. "How should I know where she went?" He answered in a strangled whisper. Then he thought about it. "Hey, wait a minute. Maybe she's been kidnapped! Some evil demon has created this portal and captured her against her will! It's up to me to save her from an untimely demise! Maybe you should come with me. We can document the evidence for the proper authorities with your camera!"
"AAH!" He jumped back, flailing with his camera. "Dude, don't DO that!" It took him a moment of deep breathing and the potential for capturing a live rescue on camera to get his heart rate under control. "No way! I saw an episode just like this on Monsters of the Great Beyond! We could be heroes, man! Let's do it!" He nudged Gren forward, "But you first."
"Don't worry! I'm a trained professional!" He nodded emphatically, and pointed his index finger to his own chest. Never mind the fact he was still wearing his Danger Ranger pajamas, he crept forward cautiously towards the portal, and stepped inside.
The cameraman followed him. They came out in a long hallway, and the portal door swung shut behind them. Unfortunately, it looked like all the other doors in the hallway! The walls were the soothing cream color of a hospital ward. From behind one of them, music was playing. There were voices down the hall, or was it from another floor? It was unclear.
Jewell was not in sight, but another young woman with a long blonde braid and slightly pointed ears was coming towards them. "Hey! What are you doing in here?" She fingered a dagger at her side. "INTRUDERS ON THE FLOOR!" She shouted.
The ghost of a woman in a hospital robe floated through one of the walls nearest the cameraman, causing him to shout and drop his camera. One of the doors further down the hallway opened and two women, clearly twins, came out. One had a whip in her hand.
"AAAAAHHHHH!" So much for tact, the sight of the woman with the dagger, the ghost in a robe, and the twins with a whip caused Gren to shift his gaze around rapidly at the threats closing in around him. "Quick! Run!" Gren grabbed the cameraman and fled down the hallway, looking for a quick exit.
The man left his camera behind, running alongside Gren. "Stairs!" he shouted breathlessly, terribly out of shape.
The ladies were not far behind them. "We've got 'em Lavanya!" The one twin shouted while her sister put on a burst of speed, lashing out with that whip to wrap around Gren's legs and pull him down. He was the better victim as the cameraman was already stopping, hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath from the insanely short sprint.
Gren yipped as the whip wrapped around his ankles and he unceremoniously landed on his face on the floor of the hallway. Grabbing his nose, he tried to twirl around and defend himself from the women who were closing in on him. "What have you done with Jewell, you kidnapping villainesses!"
"Whoah! Easy killer," the twins laughed as Gren attempted to defend himself. They were hovering over him, grinning down at the ranger.
"Nice pajamas," the one girl commented.
"Hey Lavanya," one of the twins called to the blonde, who was busy tying up the very willing cameraman with some sort of magic rope. "He wants to know what we've done with Jewell!"
She smirked, "Maybe we should show him, huh?"
"Yeah!" The twins chorused, reaching down to lift Gren up. "Come on pajama guy, we'll take you to Jewell."
"Hey wait a minute! Take it easy! I've got Geminiphobia! And Mastigophobia!" Gren still thought the twins were part of the vast evil plot to kidnap Jewell and do him harm. He allowed himself to be lifted up, but cringed in fear thinking they were going to attack him at any moment.
Other doors along the hallway opened and more young women emerged, some with weapons. Together with the twins, the one called Lavanya, and the cameraman, they jostled, lead, pushed and pulled Gren along. They whispered and giggled amongst themselves.
"What's a Geminiphobia?" one asked.
"Sounds like he should probably see a doctor."
"Shouldn't we blindfold them?"
"Nah, she can just make them forget what they saw if needed."
In this manner, they descended two flights of stairs, passed through a large foyer. Outside the front doors and windows, it was dark but the edge of a dense forest could be seen.
"Geminiphobia is fear of twins! Like the zodiac sign! I thought everyone knew that! Hey, where are you taking us?" Gren winced as he saw the forest appear before him. Not because he was afraid of the forest, but because he was still barefoot. These particular jammies didn't have footies on them.
"Don't want to go outside, big boy?" one girl with nut brown hair and skin tinted green leered at him.
The poor cameraman was of little use to Gren by this point! He was on his own. The man had fallen into a sort of stupor, either from all the women or some sort of magic cast upon him.
"Don't worry!" the freckled blonde from earlier chimed. "We're almost there. Then we'll figure out what to do with you after."
Swooping past the door, they pushed down the hall and into... dun dun dun! A large dining hall. Jewell was sitting at a table with Ishmerai, her knight, at her side. She was eating a bowl of ice cream. Both Jewell and the knight looked up when the entourage entered. "Gren!" she gasped, knocking her chair over as she stood. "What's going on here?"
"Jewell! Oh God, they did kidnap you! Don't eat that ice cream! It could be laced with poison! Or Truth Serum! They've got whips and daggers and blindfolds!" Gren rapidly looked at his captors as if they were somehow multiplying.
"Kidnapped..." she repeated slowly and then glanced aside to Ishmerai.
He took the hint, set her chair up, and then pushed her down back onto it. "Sit down! Uh.. captives only speak when spoken to! Bring that one here!" He gestured to the girls. "I shall take care of the um.. questioning of him! And then you all may depart."
Jewell couldn't quite keep the grin from her face as she retook her seat. It pained her though when she glanced down at her ice cream, "I already ate some so do you think I could have a little more?"
"You'll never get anything from me, you vile evil-doers! They haven't harmed you, have they, Jewell? Don't worry, at some point someone will realize we're missing and they'll come for us!" Here he glared at Ishmerai. "So you know about my fear of Rum Raisin, do you? Well after months of intensive psychotherapy I can now control the flop sweat and hives. So do your worst." He tried to put on a brave face, but he was rapidly glancing between Jewell's bowl and Ishmerai.
"It is chocolate chip with mint." Ishmerai stated dryly. Just then, a house elf dashed out of a door and delivered a bowl of ice cream in front of Gren. It was not Rum Raisin. It took off just as quickly.
"Uh.. no, I think I'm okay." Her conscience was getting to her a little here, but she couldn't help herself: "How did you find me? I uh.. thought no one ever would."
Gren's nostrils flared as he sniffed at the bowl put in front of him. "It . . . . doesn't smell like bitter almonds." A few more furtive glances at Ishmerai before looking back at Jewell. "They left the portal they used to kidnap you open in the closet. I went through it when I didn't hear anything from you for a while."
Ishmerai gave Jewell a look and she blushed. "Oh..."
The knight cleared his throat, "Listen Mr. Blockman, correct? If you swear not to tell anyone about this place or the portal, we will..." he jumped. Jewell had kicked him under the table. "I mean I... me and my minions, we will let you go free. With Ms. Ravenlock. Yes yes! You can eat your ice cream and no harm shall come to you."
Gren eyed Ishmerai. "So . . . you know I'm Gren Blockman? Former Overlord and multiple Diamond winner?" Gren suddenly brightened and straightened his shoulders. "That's right! I'm Mister Blockman! So, my reputation precedes me. I suppose I can accept your offer of mine and Jewell's freedom." He gave Jewell a little nod and big smile. "I'll just pretend like all this never happened." He then took the spoon, and even though his hand was still shaky, he managed to place a spoonful of the ice cream into his mouth.
"Yes, Mister Blockman. Former member of Team Fist and now currently fighting for Real RhyDin. I have heard of you. We have all heard of you."
Jewell picked her spoon back up, "Thanks Gren! You're a champ. We can just eat our ice cream and go then, huh?"
They had all forgotten the poor cameraman, who was sitting on the floor in the corner of the dining room, drooling. The fae knight looked at him now, "And what shall we do with that one? Did he record any of this?"
"Shoot. I forgot about the cameras. And they'll probably notice we've been gone so long too." She sighed, dropping her spoon back into the bowl. "I told you the closet portal was a bad idea."
Ishmerai laughed, forgetting his role. "You told me? I think not, dear lady."
"Okay, new plan!" Jewell turned to Gren. "I'm going to need you to pretend that we were making out in the closet so no one finds out there's a portal there. Otherwise, my evil doppelganger will probably attack the house, kill everyone, just to get here. Okay? Also, I guess I'll have to glamour the cameraman to alter his memory..."
Gren looked confused between Jewell and Ishmerai. Wait, she knew about the portal? "Making out in the . . . NO! I can't do that! What if Izira finds out? She's already upset with me that I'm sharing a room with another woman! Waitwaitwaitwait . . . let me think . . . . " He covered his face with his hands. "Just bust the guy's camera up! Into little pieces! Then noone will ever know! You've made him catatonic, he'll probably just think this was a bad dream! And I . . . . I won't say anything! That'll be the end of it! Whatever this place is!" Gren's mind was spinning as he was trying to process what all Jewell was saying.
Jewell sighed. "Will she really be that upset? Because I feel like it's the easiest explanation. Otherwise everyone is going to wonder what we've just been in the closet for twenty minutes doing."
"He can perhaps make an oath?" The knight offered since the game was up.
"Oh yeah! Gren, swear an oath on your like... ranger cloak or something that you won't tell anyone about this because otherwise I'll probably be dead in a few days and do you really want that on your conscience? I mean, just think about it. Tara will come after you for sure for starters."
"NO! We definitely don't want that!" He raised his right hand as if he was in court. "I solemnly promise to tell noone about this place, the portal, or what just happened during the last twenty minutes! I was just taking a nap behind my curtain in my Danger Ranger pajamas is all!"
"Oh yeah, I forgot about the curtains." Jewell smiled, suddenly cheerful. "Great! That settles it, right?" Ishmerai just shrugged. "Let's finish our ice cream and we can go."
"Yeah. Sure." Gren rapidly scooped the ice cream from the bowl, still giving Jewell and Ishmerai looks. His cheeks flared out as he burped when he finished.
In the time he took to finish his, Jewell was only halfway done. She sighed though and pushed it towards the knight. "I'll come back tomorrow and we can talk, okay?"
"Very well, Mira."
She leaned over, smooched the knight on the cheek, and then stood. "All right, Gren. Let's go. The girls will all be sad you don't want to stay long enough to officially meet them though." She crooked her finger at the cameraman, who stood up at the gesture, eyes glazed over. "You too. Come on."
"Yes yes yes. Let's go." He hovered behind Jewell, giving the girls the same nervous glances. They giggled and waved.
She lead the way out of the dining room and back up the stairs. The cameraman tottered behind as if in a dream. "I guess it'd be easier to just alter your memory, but that's not a nice way to repay your kindness. Did you really think I had been kidnapped?"
"Well, yeah. I mean, you told me you were going to get dressed. I didn't think you were going to disappear like that. You didn't tell me about the portal. So it looked like you were taken against your will."
She smiled, wrapping her arm around his to give it a quick squeeze. "You're so gallant. Sorry I disappeared. It's the easiest way to get to this place in a hurry. And I really didn't think you'd dare to peek into the closet if I was in there!"
"Well . . . I was just doing . . . .what I thought was right." He is silent as he as they made it back to the third floor together. "So what is this place anyway?"
"Mmm.." she considered whether she should say or not, but since he had found it, "I had to leave my house and move all my stuff here because... well, I have an enemy in town. It's someone I did not kill when I should have. So I found this place. It's rather far away though, so the door makes it easier to get to, you know? You'd probably like it outside. Lots of trees."
"The evil doppelganger you were talking about. Oh yeah, I noticed the trees. I was afraid they were leading me out there." He tried to hold up one naked foot. "Would have been a bit awkward."
She laughed, "Never leave on an adventure without your slippers!" They made their way down the hallway, passing numerous doors. "Now this one... right. This one. I think." There was no difference between the doors, but Jewell was pretty sure this was it. "And yeah, she's giving me some trouble these days. Instead of fighting though, I thought I'd bide my time. Trying to be smart. For once." She pulled open the door, revealing their closet and clothes on the other side. "After you, Mister Blockman."
"Thank you, Miss Ravenlock." He moved through the door with an explosive sigh, happy to be going back home. Or in this case, the room that was going to be his home for the next several weeks.
She grinned, following behind him and turning (in the tight confines of their closet) to close the portal behind her properly this time. "Oh.. whoops!" She opened it right back up, yanked the cameraman through, and then closed it. "Off you go, guy. Remember, you came in, found us reading comic books. Got it?" She sent him on his way as they emerged from the closet.
"Great. Well, I think I'm going to sleep for the next twelve hours or so. Have a good night." He shuffled through the closet towards his bed.
"Night," she covered a yawn, "Gren." She had forgotten to change, but it didn't matter. She headed towards her bed and flopped down on it. "Oh and don't worry. Pretty sure the girls won't come through in the middle of the night unless there's an emergency or something."
Gren's eyes widened at that. "Uh, yeah. Good. Great." He scratched his head, went behind his curtain and laid down in his bed, finally glad to be getting to sleep.
[]Note: This didn't actually air so the portal/doorway isn't public knowledge. Many thanks to Gren for playing this out with me![]
Jewell covered a yawn. "I'm gonna go get dressed in the closet Gren so I don't upset your sensitivities when you accidentally walk in on me again!" She practically shouted it into the hallway so no one would get suspicious. Then she wandered into their joint walk-in closet. Fortunately, she was small enough to scoot around her dresses and his ranger cloaks to get to the back of the closet. Touching the wall, it slowly melted away and Jewell stepped through into a long hallway on the third floor of the old sanatorium she had recently occupied. She had something to discuss with her knight.
"Good! You do that!" Gren called from the kitchen. "Look at this. Fruity Flakes. Chocolate Sugar Crunchies. There's too much soup in this house!" That was a long story regarding the definition of cereal and soup, but Gren huffed his way from the kitchen and down the hallway back to his bedroom. He had called a duel for IFL that night, and shared some donuts with a Giantess. Just your average night in the Annex. Peeking in to see that Jewell was safely in the closet, he slipped behind his curtain that covered his side of the bedroom. Pulling off his cloak and clothes, he put on a comfortable pair of his Danger Ranger pajamas and sat down on the edge of his bed.
It was incredibly quiet in the room. Perhaps too quiet. Jewell tended to hum and even sing when she got dressed, but there were no noises coming from the closet. There was no Empress either. It didn't usually take her this long to pull on a pair of shorts and old t-shirt to get ready for bed. Gren fingered a few of his comics, then after a few minutes, he perked up when he noticed Jewell hadn't emerged, nor had she made any sound. Very slowly he peeked around his curtain to see if she had exited the closet, but he saw she wasn't there. "Hey . . . uh . . . Jewell? You alright in there?" He waited a while and there was no answer. He cleared his throat, then tiptoed over to the door of the closet. Gingerly he laid his ear against the door to see if he could hear anything.
There were multiple voices, one of which may have been Jewell, filtering back through the closet since someone had forgotten to close the doorway behind her. They were becoming more distant as Jewell met her knight on the other side and they headed downstairs in the sanatorium to check on something below.
Gren yanked his head back from the door and turned red in the face. "Miss Jewell! You shouldn't bring your dates back to our room! There are cameras everywhere!" When Jewell didn’t acknowledge him, he pressed his ear to the door again. Getting a stern look on his face, he grabbed the handle of the door. "I'll put a stop to this . . . " Opening the door, he noticed there was no one inside. Getting a bewildered look on his face, he pushed into the closet, past the cloaks and dresses, and noticed the portal. "Nyaaaah!" Gren slapped his hand to his face as the image of a portal to what was possibly another world caused him to exclaim in fear.
One of the cameramen crept up behind him in the closet, holding one of the portable cameras. They didn't have cameras in the closets, so when two of the housemates disappeared into one? He was supposed to do his best to follow. "Hey buddy, where'd she go?"
"NYAAAAHH!!" Gren leapt up and whirled around as the cameraman spoke. "How should I know where she went?" He answered in a strangled whisper. Then he thought about it. "Hey, wait a minute. Maybe she's been kidnapped! Some evil demon has created this portal and captured her against her will! It's up to me to save her from an untimely demise! Maybe you should come with me. We can document the evidence for the proper authorities with your camera!"
"AAH!" He jumped back, flailing with his camera. "Dude, don't DO that!" It took him a moment of deep breathing and the potential for capturing a live rescue on camera to get his heart rate under control. "No way! I saw an episode just like this on Monsters of the Great Beyond! We could be heroes, man! Let's do it!" He nudged Gren forward, "But you first."
"Don't worry! I'm a trained professional!" He nodded emphatically, and pointed his index finger to his own chest. Never mind the fact he was still wearing his Danger Ranger pajamas, he crept forward cautiously towards the portal, and stepped inside.
The cameraman followed him. They came out in a long hallway, and the portal door swung shut behind them. Unfortunately, it looked like all the other doors in the hallway! The walls were the soothing cream color of a hospital ward. From behind one of them, music was playing. There were voices down the hall, or was it from another floor? It was unclear.
Jewell was not in sight, but another young woman with a long blonde braid and slightly pointed ears was coming towards them. "Hey! What are you doing in here?" She fingered a dagger at her side. "INTRUDERS ON THE FLOOR!" She shouted.
The ghost of a woman in a hospital robe floated through one of the walls nearest the cameraman, causing him to shout and drop his camera. One of the doors further down the hallway opened and two women, clearly twins, came out. One had a whip in her hand.
"AAAAAHHHHH!" So much for tact, the sight of the woman with the dagger, the ghost in a robe, and the twins with a whip caused Gren to shift his gaze around rapidly at the threats closing in around him. "Quick! Run!" Gren grabbed the cameraman and fled down the hallway, looking for a quick exit.
The man left his camera behind, running alongside Gren. "Stairs!" he shouted breathlessly, terribly out of shape.
The ladies were not far behind them. "We've got 'em Lavanya!" The one twin shouted while her sister put on a burst of speed, lashing out with that whip to wrap around Gren's legs and pull him down. He was the better victim as the cameraman was already stopping, hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath from the insanely short sprint.
Gren yipped as the whip wrapped around his ankles and he unceremoniously landed on his face on the floor of the hallway. Grabbing his nose, he tried to twirl around and defend himself from the women who were closing in on him. "What have you done with Jewell, you kidnapping villainesses!"
"Whoah! Easy killer," the twins laughed as Gren attempted to defend himself. They were hovering over him, grinning down at the ranger.
"Nice pajamas," the one girl commented.
"Hey Lavanya," one of the twins called to the blonde, who was busy tying up the very willing cameraman with some sort of magic rope. "He wants to know what we've done with Jewell!"
She smirked, "Maybe we should show him, huh?"
"Yeah!" The twins chorused, reaching down to lift Gren up. "Come on pajama guy, we'll take you to Jewell."
"Hey wait a minute! Take it easy! I've got Geminiphobia! And Mastigophobia!" Gren still thought the twins were part of the vast evil plot to kidnap Jewell and do him harm. He allowed himself to be lifted up, but cringed in fear thinking they were going to attack him at any moment.
Other doors along the hallway opened and more young women emerged, some with weapons. Together with the twins, the one called Lavanya, and the cameraman, they jostled, lead, pushed and pulled Gren along. They whispered and giggled amongst themselves.
"What's a Geminiphobia?" one asked.
"Sounds like he should probably see a doctor."
"Shouldn't we blindfold them?"
"Nah, she can just make them forget what they saw if needed."
In this manner, they descended two flights of stairs, passed through a large foyer. Outside the front doors and windows, it was dark but the edge of a dense forest could be seen.
"Geminiphobia is fear of twins! Like the zodiac sign! I thought everyone knew that! Hey, where are you taking us?" Gren winced as he saw the forest appear before him. Not because he was afraid of the forest, but because he was still barefoot. These particular jammies didn't have footies on them.
"Don't want to go outside, big boy?" one girl with nut brown hair and skin tinted green leered at him.
The poor cameraman was of little use to Gren by this point! He was on his own. The man had fallen into a sort of stupor, either from all the women or some sort of magic cast upon him.
"Don't worry!" the freckled blonde from earlier chimed. "We're almost there. Then we'll figure out what to do with you after."
Swooping past the door, they pushed down the hall and into... dun dun dun! A large dining hall. Jewell was sitting at a table with Ishmerai, her knight, at her side. She was eating a bowl of ice cream. Both Jewell and the knight looked up when the entourage entered. "Gren!" she gasped, knocking her chair over as she stood. "What's going on here?"
"Jewell! Oh God, they did kidnap you! Don't eat that ice cream! It could be laced with poison! Or Truth Serum! They've got whips and daggers and blindfolds!" Gren rapidly looked at his captors as if they were somehow multiplying.
"Kidnapped..." she repeated slowly and then glanced aside to Ishmerai.
He took the hint, set her chair up, and then pushed her down back onto it. "Sit down! Uh.. captives only speak when spoken to! Bring that one here!" He gestured to the girls. "I shall take care of the um.. questioning of him! And then you all may depart."
Jewell couldn't quite keep the grin from her face as she retook her seat. It pained her though when she glanced down at her ice cream, "I already ate some so do you think I could have a little more?"
"You'll never get anything from me, you vile evil-doers! They haven't harmed you, have they, Jewell? Don't worry, at some point someone will realize we're missing and they'll come for us!" Here he glared at Ishmerai. "So you know about my fear of Rum Raisin, do you? Well after months of intensive psychotherapy I can now control the flop sweat and hives. So do your worst." He tried to put on a brave face, but he was rapidly glancing between Jewell's bowl and Ishmerai.
"It is chocolate chip with mint." Ishmerai stated dryly. Just then, a house elf dashed out of a door and delivered a bowl of ice cream in front of Gren. It was not Rum Raisin. It took off just as quickly.
"Uh.. no, I think I'm okay." Her conscience was getting to her a little here, but she couldn't help herself: "How did you find me? I uh.. thought no one ever would."
Gren's nostrils flared as he sniffed at the bowl put in front of him. "It . . . . doesn't smell like bitter almonds." A few more furtive glances at Ishmerai before looking back at Jewell. "They left the portal they used to kidnap you open in the closet. I went through it when I didn't hear anything from you for a while."
Ishmerai gave Jewell a look and she blushed. "Oh..."
The knight cleared his throat, "Listen Mr. Blockman, correct? If you swear not to tell anyone about this place or the portal, we will..." he jumped. Jewell had kicked him under the table. "I mean I... me and my minions, we will let you go free. With Ms. Ravenlock. Yes yes! You can eat your ice cream and no harm shall come to you."
Gren eyed Ishmerai. "So . . . you know I'm Gren Blockman? Former Overlord and multiple Diamond winner?" Gren suddenly brightened and straightened his shoulders. "That's right! I'm Mister Blockman! So, my reputation precedes me. I suppose I can accept your offer of mine and Jewell's freedom." He gave Jewell a little nod and big smile. "I'll just pretend like all this never happened." He then took the spoon, and even though his hand was still shaky, he managed to place a spoonful of the ice cream into his mouth.
"Yes, Mister Blockman. Former member of Team Fist and now currently fighting for Real RhyDin. I have heard of you. We have all heard of you."
Jewell picked her spoon back up, "Thanks Gren! You're a champ. We can just eat our ice cream and go then, huh?"
They had all forgotten the poor cameraman, who was sitting on the floor in the corner of the dining room, drooling. The fae knight looked at him now, "And what shall we do with that one? Did he record any of this?"
"Shoot. I forgot about the cameras. And they'll probably notice we've been gone so long too." She sighed, dropping her spoon back into the bowl. "I told you the closet portal was a bad idea."
Ishmerai laughed, forgetting his role. "You told me? I think not, dear lady."
"Okay, new plan!" Jewell turned to Gren. "I'm going to need you to pretend that we were making out in the closet so no one finds out there's a portal there. Otherwise, my evil doppelganger will probably attack the house, kill everyone, just to get here. Okay? Also, I guess I'll have to glamour the cameraman to alter his memory..."
Gren looked confused between Jewell and Ishmerai. Wait, she knew about the portal? "Making out in the . . . NO! I can't do that! What if Izira finds out? She's already upset with me that I'm sharing a room with another woman! Waitwaitwaitwait . . . let me think . . . . " He covered his face with his hands. "Just bust the guy's camera up! Into little pieces! Then noone will ever know! You've made him catatonic, he'll probably just think this was a bad dream! And I . . . . I won't say anything! That'll be the end of it! Whatever this place is!" Gren's mind was spinning as he was trying to process what all Jewell was saying.
Jewell sighed. "Will she really be that upset? Because I feel like it's the easiest explanation. Otherwise everyone is going to wonder what we've just been in the closet for twenty minutes doing."
"He can perhaps make an oath?" The knight offered since the game was up.
"Oh yeah! Gren, swear an oath on your like... ranger cloak or something that you won't tell anyone about this because otherwise I'll probably be dead in a few days and do you really want that on your conscience? I mean, just think about it. Tara will come after you for sure for starters."
"NO! We definitely don't want that!" He raised his right hand as if he was in court. "I solemnly promise to tell noone about this place, the portal, or what just happened during the last twenty minutes! I was just taking a nap behind my curtain in my Danger Ranger pajamas is all!"
"Oh yeah, I forgot about the curtains." Jewell smiled, suddenly cheerful. "Great! That settles it, right?" Ishmerai just shrugged. "Let's finish our ice cream and we can go."
"Yeah. Sure." Gren rapidly scooped the ice cream from the bowl, still giving Jewell and Ishmerai looks. His cheeks flared out as he burped when he finished.
In the time he took to finish his, Jewell was only halfway done. She sighed though and pushed it towards the knight. "I'll come back tomorrow and we can talk, okay?"
"Very well, Mira."
She leaned over, smooched the knight on the cheek, and then stood. "All right, Gren. Let's go. The girls will all be sad you don't want to stay long enough to officially meet them though." She crooked her finger at the cameraman, who stood up at the gesture, eyes glazed over. "You too. Come on."
"Yes yes yes. Let's go." He hovered behind Jewell, giving the girls the same nervous glances. They giggled and waved.
She lead the way out of the dining room and back up the stairs. The cameraman tottered behind as if in a dream. "I guess it'd be easier to just alter your memory, but that's not a nice way to repay your kindness. Did you really think I had been kidnapped?"
"Well, yeah. I mean, you told me you were going to get dressed. I didn't think you were going to disappear like that. You didn't tell me about the portal. So it looked like you were taken against your will."
She smiled, wrapping her arm around his to give it a quick squeeze. "You're so gallant. Sorry I disappeared. It's the easiest way to get to this place in a hurry. And I really didn't think you'd dare to peek into the closet if I was in there!"
"Well . . . I was just doing . . . .what I thought was right." He is silent as he as they made it back to the third floor together. "So what is this place anyway?"
"Mmm.." she considered whether she should say or not, but since he had found it, "I had to leave my house and move all my stuff here because... well, I have an enemy in town. It's someone I did not kill when I should have. So I found this place. It's rather far away though, so the door makes it easier to get to, you know? You'd probably like it outside. Lots of trees."
"The evil doppelganger you were talking about. Oh yeah, I noticed the trees. I was afraid they were leading me out there." He tried to hold up one naked foot. "Would have been a bit awkward."
She laughed, "Never leave on an adventure without your slippers!" They made their way down the hallway, passing numerous doors. "Now this one... right. This one. I think." There was no difference between the doors, but Jewell was pretty sure this was it. "And yeah, she's giving me some trouble these days. Instead of fighting though, I thought I'd bide my time. Trying to be smart. For once." She pulled open the door, revealing their closet and clothes on the other side. "After you, Mister Blockman."
"Thank you, Miss Ravenlock." He moved through the door with an explosive sigh, happy to be going back home. Or in this case, the room that was going to be his home for the next several weeks.
She grinned, following behind him and turning (in the tight confines of their closet) to close the portal behind her properly this time. "Oh.. whoops!" She opened it right back up, yanked the cameraman through, and then closed it. "Off you go, guy. Remember, you came in, found us reading comic books. Got it?" She sent him on his way as they emerged from the closet.
"Great. Well, I think I'm going to sleep for the next twelve hours or so. Have a good night." He shuffled through the closet towards his bed.
"Night," she covered a yawn, "Gren." She had forgotten to change, but it didn't matter. She headed towards her bed and flopped down on it. "Oh and don't worry. Pretty sure the girls won't come through in the middle of the night unless there's an emergency or something."
Gren's eyes widened at that. "Uh, yeah. Good. Great." He scratched his head, went behind his curtain and laid down in his bed, finally glad to be getting to sleep.
[]Note: This didn't actually air so the portal/doorway isn't public knowledge. Many thanks to Gren for playing this out with me![]
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JewellRavenlock
- Legendary Adventurer
- The Empress
- Posts: 2473
- Joined: Thu Apr 13, 2006 5:26 pm
- Location: Little Elfhame, Old Market
- Contact:
Episode: A Real Thanksgiving
Two years ago, Jewell had been educated about the Terran holiday of Thanksgiving and had thereafter thrown a rather eccentric Thanksgiving for the Royal teams. This year, with the Real RhyDin team cohabiting, she approached Hope with the idea to host Thanksgiving at the Real World: Real RhyDin house.
The post-it note went up on Tuesday. All housemates were invited and encouraged to invite friends and family over for a celebration lasting all day. There was also a list for who was buying/bringing/making what.
On Thanksgiving day, there was plenty of entertainment to be had! Board games, decks of cards, boxes of jenga, and three TVs in addition to the usual house entertainment of a pool table, ping-pong, the hot tubs, and the pool. One TV set was dedicated to replaying past IFL fights on loop with some hilarious extra close-ups of people getting punched and the faces they made as a result. The other two TVs were up for grabs. Whoever got to the magical channel-controlling stick first won!
Since Thanksgiving was supposed to involve turkeys, a whole flock of live birds were imported to the backyard early Thursday morning. The guests and housemates were offered non-lethal bow and arrow sets to “hunt” the turkeys with.
There was gigantic dinner table set up on the patio (the backyard was climate controlled for their convenience) with enough room for as many people as decided to come. The outdoor bar was fully stocked with more than enough alcohol to keep everyone happy and inebriated for the day-long festivities along with Broot and stuff for Broot Floats for Gren.
Of course, there was also food. Near the dining table was a buffet with a very weird array of delectables, including but not limited to:
Later in the day, there was maybe even a turkey to eat…
Two years ago, Jewell had been educated about the Terran holiday of Thanksgiving and had thereafter thrown a rather eccentric Thanksgiving for the Royal teams. This year, with the Real RhyDin team cohabiting, she approached Hope with the idea to host Thanksgiving at the Real World: Real RhyDin house.
The post-it note went up on Tuesday. All housemates were invited and encouraged to invite friends and family over for a celebration lasting all day. There was also a list for who was buying/bringing/making what.
On Thanksgiving day, there was plenty of entertainment to be had! Board games, decks of cards, boxes of jenga, and three TVs in addition to the usual house entertainment of a pool table, ping-pong, the hot tubs, and the pool. One TV set was dedicated to replaying past IFL fights on loop with some hilarious extra close-ups of people getting punched and the faces they made as a result. The other two TVs were up for grabs. Whoever got to the magical channel-controlling stick first won!
Since Thanksgiving was supposed to involve turkeys, a whole flock of live birds were imported to the backyard early Thursday morning. The guests and housemates were offered non-lethal bow and arrow sets to “hunt” the turkeys with.
There was gigantic dinner table set up on the patio (the backyard was climate controlled for their convenience) with enough room for as many people as decided to come. The outdoor bar was fully stocked with more than enough alcohol to keep everyone happy and inebriated for the day-long festivities along with Broot and stuff for Broot Floats for Gren.
Of course, there was also food. Near the dining table was a buffet with a very weird array of delectables, including but not limited to:
- *pizza
*mashed potatoes
*spaghetti and meatballs
*cupcakes
*pumpkin pie
*other assorted pies (including chicken pot pie since that was a big hit previously)
*pineapple
*curry
*french fries
*milkshakes
*shredded pork tacos
*pretzles
*short ribs
*nachos
*queso
Later in the day, there was maybe even a turkey to eat…
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Eden Parker
- RoH Admin
- Posts: 545
- Joined: Thu Mar 05, 2015 8:35 pm
- Location: Old Market
Eden looked at the plastic bow and arrow, brow furrowed in confusion. "I don't get it." She pointed the arrow's suction cup end towards her face, then experimentally touched it to her nose. Then her eye. "Do you go for the eyes?" That seemed like a very small target. She watched the turkeys milling around the half-frozen lawn. With a shrug, she notched the plastic arrow and aimed it at a bird.
The arrow landed harmlessly on the lawn while the startled birds scattered in confusion. Eden huffed and dropped the plastic bow. Then she went running into the flock, arms out. The birds chortled and danced away. Eden giggled, separating one from the flock and herding it towards the corner of the yard.
Nowhere to go, the bird came to a stop and turned to look at Eden. She looked back. "Well..." She tipped her head at the turkey. "You're not the smartest meat bird, are you?" He tipped his head back at her.
When she returned towards the house, she had the turkey in her arms, its head flopped over on its snapped neck. "I got one!"
The arrow landed harmlessly on the lawn while the startled birds scattered in confusion. Eden huffed and dropped the plastic bow. Then she went running into the flock, arms out. The birds chortled and danced away. Eden giggled, separating one from the flock and herding it towards the corner of the yard.
Nowhere to go, the bird came to a stop and turned to look at Eden. She looked back. "Well..." She tipped her head at the turkey. "You're not the smartest meat bird, are you?" He tipped his head back at her.
When she returned towards the house, she had the turkey in her arms, its head flopped over on its snapped neck. "I got one!"
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JewellRavenlock
- Legendary Adventurer
- The Empress
- Posts: 2473
- Joined: Thu Apr 13, 2006 5:26 pm
- Location: Little Elfhame, Old Market
- Contact:
Jewell buzzed around the house all day in her slipper booties, nibbling on food and pretty willing to play any game with anyone. She was annoyingly good at most card games (possibly cheating at them all, but no one caught her even if they tried) and a bit of a poor loser at an early game of Monopoly. "This is not what it's like to build a real business monopoly. I think this game is rigged."
She tried "turkey hunting" too, but all they did was squawk around with suction-cup arrows stuck on them. "Who is thankful for these loud birds? I'm going to get another drink." She tossed the bow down and wandered back to the bar and food. "I want another taco."
Mid-day, she commandeered one of the TV remotes for a while, getting the assistance of one of the camera workers to turn it to the Grand Thanksgiving Turtle Racing marathon. She then sat on the remote so no one could change it and cheered on Freddy the Turtle for a good half hour as he crawled away from the starting line.
And she was both impressed and more than a little surprised with Eden's turkey. "Now what do we do with it?"
She tried "turkey hunting" too, but all they did was squawk around with suction-cup arrows stuck on them. "Who is thankful for these loud birds? I'm going to get another drink." She tossed the bow down and wandered back to the bar and food. "I want another taco."
Mid-day, she commandeered one of the TV remotes for a while, getting the assistance of one of the camera workers to turn it to the Grand Thanksgiving Turtle Racing marathon. She then sat on the remote so no one could change it and cheered on Freddy the Turtle for a good half hour as he crawled away from the starting line.
And she was both impressed and more than a little surprised with Eden's turkey. "Now what do we do with it?"
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Tahlia Faras
- Adventurer
- Posts: 63
- Joined: Thu Mar 02, 2017 6:24 pm
- Location: Probably at the Golden Pearl
Tahlia showed up late, with Eddie in tow. If anyone thought about it, they might realize she hadn’t been seen since the day before, but this was hardly unusual - the blonde had been sneaking out of the house almost as often as she’d been in it. Still, the choice of workout gear, and Eddie’s seal-skin jacket, wasn’t exactly holiday wear, and there was the slightest squelch to her sneakers as they headed in.
She’d caught Eden’s shenanigans with the turkeys before she’d left on her run, and was appropriately impressed with the results, and even managed a tight, small smile for Jewell for putting it all together. Or commandeering the production team to put it all together.
Not one to ignore the holiday spirit, Tahlia tried a bit of everything, in between whispered conversations with Eddie, and was thankful she’d missed the turtle races.
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ShiftingSands
- Junior Adventurer
- Posts: 10
- Joined: Wed Oct 07, 2015 11:01 pm
- Location: on the Southern Wind
- Contact:
It was an interesting ritual to watch, considering most of the people (if not all) in the house were not even from Earth. Still, why not jump on a reason to celebrate? This one came with a themed hunt!
Kate spent most of her time targeting her housemates and asking Jewell if they could be cooked as sacrifice to the turkey gods. Later, as she bounced from group to group in the house, she live-streamed a few of the games and took bets online from gambling junkies that would bet on anything if it meant another hit.
Later, the Arachnid Man porn was looping on one of the televisions even though the DVD was nowhere to be found. No one could seem to change the channel.
Kate spent most of her time targeting her housemates and asking Jewell if they could be cooked as sacrifice to the turkey gods. Later, as she bounced from group to group in the house, she live-streamed a few of the games and took bets online from gambling junkies that would bet on anything if it meant another hit.
Later, the Arachnid Man porn was looping on one of the televisions even though the DVD was nowhere to be found. No one could seem to change the channel.
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Eden Parker
- RoH Admin
- Posts: 545
- Joined: Thu Mar 05, 2015 8:35 pm
- Location: Old Market
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