(no subject)

[nitro_is_ace]

When they get back to their bedroom, all evidence of an attack is gone. There also appears to be a duplicate hand mirror, matching the one Ace took with her up the stairs.

Ace fails to be surprised, at this point. Sighing, she puts her hand mirror near the bed so she can grab it if necessary, and flops onto the mattress.

"Nothin' good has ever come of Victorian mansions. They should all be torn down."

Comments

[there-is-a-me.livejournal.com]

"Not going to argue." Spoon says, curling around her, "Also not leaving this bed again until dawn. No matter who dies."

[nitro-is-ace.livejournal.com]

So they don't.

This is made easier by the fact that there are no more piercing screams, no blood scenting the air, no mysterious crashes or bangings. A few hours later, a storm rolls in, dumping rain on the mansion and making Ace very glad they're under cover (even if it's exceedingly strange cover).

There is an odd sort of whistling a few hours after that - thin, almost tuneless, like the whistling of someone who's only just got the hang of the trick, but whoever's doing it doesn't stop at their door, and continues on down the hall and off to where-ever he, or she, is bound to.

A few hours after that, enough sunlight filters through the clouds that it might reasonably be called morning, though the rain hasn't let up one bit.

Ace, being completely unconscious, fails to recognize this. Spoon makes a fantastic pillow.

[there-is-a-me.livejournal.com]

Spoon's first thought upon waking is goats. His second one is Ace smells good.

Sometime around fifth he realizes that he doesn't actually have to get up and deal with the goats, and thus crawls back into bed and sticks his nose in Ace's neck.

[nitro-is-ace.livejournal.com]

Ace squeaks a bit, because cold noses do not belong on necks. Brr.

Spoon, on the other hand, is welcome even if he is a bit chilly from being out of the bed.

"Mmmmmm, g'mornin'. Still alive then?"

[there-is-a-me.livejournal.com]

"Last I checked." Spoon says, reaching under the blanket to grope her, "Yup. Still alive."

[nitro-is-ace.livejournal.com]

Ace is about to respond in kind (because, really, she's got her husband alone in a room in a whole empty wing of a mansion and you better believe she's down with taking advantage of that) when there's a heavy knock at the door.

"Breakfast is in ten minutes!" It's Marchley, sounding about as happy as he has ever sounded, and who doesn't stick around to wait for an answer, thumping off down the hall.

[there-is-a-me.livejournal.com]

Spoon says several improbable things revolving around Marchley's ancestry and cows. Then he sighs, rolls onto his back, and says, "Where are me pants?"

[nitro-is-ace.livejournal.com]

"Prolly under the bed with the mirror. Hope that whole seven years bad luck thing doesn't apply, y'don't need any more." Ace points out, rolling out of bed and padding off towards the bathroom to do something about the massive knots in her hair.

[there-is-a-me.livejournal.com]

Spoon snorts a little, then digs for his clothing. His hair just needs to be flipped back into place, so he's dressed long before the ten minutes is up.

[nitro-is-ace.livejournal.com]

Ace reappears, looking as presentable as someone who doesn't have fresh clothes or a full kit can look. She already knows she isn't going to win on style points here.

Down at the breakfast table, a full English breakfast is being served - eggs, rashers, bacon, beans, toast, fried tomatoes, and fried mushrooms. Everyone is helping themselves - including the mysteriously disappearing Dora.

[there-is-a-me.livejournal.com]

Spoon takes a merely human sized portion of all the vegetarian stuff and does his best not to obviously sniff everyone else.

He's a good sniffer.

[nitro-is-ace.livejournal.com]

Beyond the clink and clatter of silverware and plates, the table is silent. Marchley looks like he wants to interrogate Spoon and Ace, but other than glaring at the pair of them, he doesn't go any further. Ace is fairly sure she attended a more awkward meal, but she certainly can't think of it off the top of her head.
Finally the matron of the house pushes away from her place at the table.
"Now, I'm sure your boating friends won't be out to look for you in this weather, so you'll just have to stay here today. We have important research to conduct, so if you would be so kind as to limit yourselves to your wing of the mansion, and the sitting room, we might stay out of each others' way."

Ace in no way believes this is a request.

[there-is-a-me.livejournal.com]

Spoon keeps his mouth shut and nods. Almost keeps his mouth shut, there is some SERIOUS eating going on here.

[nitro-is-ace.livejournal.com]

Ace waits until the house's occupants have scattered off to their usual occupations before muttering, "Yes ma'am, delighted ma'am, three bags full ma'am." That sort of attitude just rubs her the wrong way, even if it is to be expected.

"Want t'go explorin'?"

[there-is-a-me.livejournal.com]

"Yes." Spoon says, "After I finish the breakfast bar." There is still food there.

He is a werewolf.

With the exception of the meat, he's going to eat it all.

[nitro-is-ace.livejournal.com]

"Right. I'll go upstairs an' try t'get the rest of the mud off m'boots, an' I'll be back so we can go on explorin', a'right?" She says as she scoots away from the table, swanning off towards the door.

Ace sometimes forgets her own advice.

She also doesn't come back.

[there-is-a-me.livejournal.com]

Spoon finishes eating, frowns, and heads after Ace. He's following his nose, not calling out for her.

Silly cat. Always getting lost.

[nitro-is-ace.livejournal.com]

It's a great plan. A fantastic plan. Spoon is the tracker, after all.

But what do you do when the trail disappears halfway up the stairs?

[there-is-a-me.livejournal.com]

Panic. That's what you do. You panic.

And in an attempt to keep the panic manageable you sit on the stairs with your head between your knees reciting things in Greek while attempting to not panic badly enough you're likely to eat someone.

[nitro-is-ace.livejournal.com]

Downstairs, though somehow later in the day (or perhaps on another day entirely) Ace wanders back into the dining room, and wonders where her husband has wandered off to now.

Seriously. Victorian mansions. She's so not a fan. Muttering, she tromps off towards the kitchens to see if he's gone to look for more food.

[there-is-a-me.livejournal.com]

Spoon heads all the way back to their room, avoiding calling out for her by sheer force of will.

"Aaaace? Ace where are you?"

[nitro-is-ace.livejournal.com]

Not there, is the answer. Her coat is lying on the bed though, with one of the patches off the front missing.




"Spoon! Oi, Spoon..." Ace sighs, and glares up at the dead cow head. "Seriously mate, if Spoon's right, I'm so blowin' you up."

[there-is-a-me.livejournal.com]

Missing patch? MISSING PATCH? Spoon picks the coat up and goes running off into the house, "ACE? AAAACEEE?"

[nitro-is-ace.livejournal.com]

These sorts of buildings are decidedly maze-like, so there's always another room to run into, and thus far, he hasn't repeated himself. Hallway to conservatory to library to servant's stairwell to kitchen (the dead cow looks on blankly) to dining room to sitting room to gentleman's drawing room to...


Ace, grumbling, sets off on an exploration of her own, finding a doorway into the cellars. It's all rather musty down here, but oddly free of cobwebs.

[there-is-a-me.livejournal.com]

To a different library, and somehow he's managed to find the servant's quarters. The whole time he's clinging to the coat and bellowing helplessly for his wife.