Looking into a mirror [LE, D1] (closed)

[Samantha Hayne]

She had expected something different. Secret plans of evil intent. Blackmail. Perhaps even a will; although with what the family had become, she didn't expect her nephew to be the kind of man who divided his belongings to his next of kin in anything approaching a fair manner. This. This was not any of those things, was it?

Photos. She went through them one by one, taking careful note of the details. It didn't take long to realize the significance. After all; her father had died in the war, and yet this man in the pictures, he looked the same in those pictures with her father as he did in the one dated just a few years ago. There were a couple of explanations that she could think of; though why on earth would her nephew have these? Samantha took the knife, and carefully carved a small 'x' in the bottom of the drawer, before placing all the pictures back into envelope, and pocketing it along with the knife. Then she carefully placed the drawer back into place, as if it had never been opened at all.

It was a mystery to be solved. But she still had a different purpose here. A more important one.

She went through the process of standing very still in a corner again, before the magic of the contract enveloped her once more. Then she started moving through the hallways again; in search of the room where a certain... thing... made its nest. She considered the possibilities; trying to search her memories to see which room would be the most likely to house the old woman.

[Mirachaya]

It didn't take long to hear a raspy croaking voice. 'Simon, is that you, Simon?'

The servant had just passed back through the hallway, after all. He was still carrying that platter of cheeses with a determined and almost frightened look on his face. The creak of the stairs had alerted the elderly lady.

Upon seeing her, Samantha will see that her eyes are cloudy.

[Samantha Hayne]

She slipped into the room and went to stand in the corner; unseen and waiting for the servant to come and answer her call.

There had been an almost instinctual revulsion upon seeing her. An urge to take that knife and plunge it into those clouded-over eyes. But she didn't. Not yet. Not tonight. There was a rhyme to things that had to be obeyed. A pace that must be observed. Tonight was just the start of the funeral dirge; not its crescendo.


((I was assuming she'd be calling from a room, or did she come out into the hallway? If so, adjust this post slightly for that))

[Mirachaya]

(She is calling out from a chair in the room.) A tv is on in the corner, playing a black and white movie softly.

The servant continued to move past with grim purpose, his fingers clenching the tray so tight his knuckles were turning white.

[Samantha Hayne]

She waits, and watches, even as the servant's footfalls grow distant. The woman's eyes might be clouded over, but if she watched the television then that means she can still see. Samantha also looks around the room, looking for any mirrors to be found.

[Mirachaya]

There is a mirror, setting on the dresser, covered in dust. Whatever had befallen the family, the servants seemed to be slacking a bit on some of their tasks.

The women's eyes seem unfocused as her head swivels in the general direction of the tv.

[Samantha Hayne]

The next part might be a bit tricky. She needed that mirror to reflect her face. And to do that she needed to end the contract once more; and that might have her get noticed before she wanted to be noticed.

Fortunately, the small darkling didn't have to rely on magic to stay hidden. Using her natural abilities, she tip-toed around the room ever so quietly and unobtrusively, she dropped the magic hiding her, and looked into the mirror as she traced her finger across the edges; after which she would stand quietly in a dark corner again, hoping she might again reinvoke the contract without spending the cost.

Dexterity + Stealth + Small Framed: 8d10o10h8 5

[Mirachaya]

She managed to invoke the contract again easily. Despite Samantha not appearing to be noticed, the old woman's head swiveled back suddenly. 'Why aren't you answering me?' Her croaking voice was raised in anger. After a pause, a pathetic "I'm hungry, Simon... hungry," emitted from her lips.

[Samantha Hayne]

How feeble the thing had become. How broken. Yet still so demanding. She hated it. Hated what it had done to her family. Even as age wrought its way across its body, it still had to suffer in ways it could not yet imagine.

She was about to do something, and and wasn't quite certain of what it would do. She knew the shadows stopped hiding her should she shout, or take acts of aggression. But a whisper? Would a whisper keep her hidden? She hoped so, and crept forward, behind the thing. The creature. The fake.

Samantha leaned in, and whispered soft words into her ear.

"Simon, he not be comin' to bring de food no more."

[Mirachaya]

The thing's blank eyes widened with horror. "I-is it time?' It croaked softly, recognizing the whispering voice, knowing what became of its kind.

It was one of the lucky ones. It was able to lead it's twisted life in relative peace. The thing had worked it's magic and corrupted generation after generation twisting an entire family into the image the Fae had wanted. Yet, it knew what fate likely awaited it. It too dreamed of Arcadia and the truth behind it's existence.