When the Lights Go Out

[Lillian Gray]

"So I see you've made it then?" A curious looking maid smiles politely at the crowd gathered at the door.

​

"All of you have been selected to join us for the evening, welcome, and we offer our congratulations to you." A man in a suit bows his head with utmost respect, a practiced smile follows as he extended an arm towards the room behind him. "Please, allow me to take your coats and personal belongings."
​

The hour is late, and an array of applicants, that being each and every one of you, has been selected among various others for a particular reason. Each of you want this prize, this inheritance, for one reason or the other. That is yours and yours alone, if you wish to share your desires, that is entirely up to your own free will. There will be a feast, while all will be encouraged to become better acquainted. When the time is right, Lord Taylor Upton will grace us all with his presence, and speak to each of you individually.

That being if he gets the chance.

Storms have ravaged the area for quite some time now. Thick snowfall covers the dense evergreens that surround the property. Escape is impossible, and if the bridge to the main road goes out, one has to make their way across the icy surface in order to get back into town. It is not recommended you attempt this feat, as death is most likely imminent, and we would hate to see you leave so soon.
​

"Welcome. Let us have a most pleasant night together."
​

"Welcome, sirs and madams alike. Take a seat, introduce yourself, and come in from the cold."
​

On the first floor, let it be known that Lord Upton's chambers are off limits. His study is not to be disturbed by anyone. Consequences of entering the room are terms for expulsion from our evening of entertainment. They can be found to the left of the library, which is of course, available to everyone's use.

The bedrooms can be found on the second floor, as is most of the available housing for guests. The servants rooms will also be on this floor, and it is asked that you not disturb them during the work hours unless necessary.

The third floor is the top most floor, only covering the middle section of the house. While not technically off limits, it is advised that you tread carefully when venturing into the attic space. The dust has grown, and is long overdue for a good cleaning. However, it does boast a magnificent view of the surround forest, and lake just a mile behind the manse.

Welcome to the manse of Lord Taylor Upton. From all of us to you, we hope you find your stay to be most enjoyable.​

Character Signup can be found here.
OOC Thread can be found here.

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Posting Order: Rainjay (Zena and Mariona), Justice_20 (Damon and Shawn), Total Anarchy Beastmode (Gigi and Leo), Krimp (Devon and Cassidy), The Gil, Polystical (Annie and Imogen), Zora18 (Sabina and Ricardo)

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As requested, here is the map.​

 

[Rainjay]

Zena Rush

Zena had tried, over and over again, to work herself out of this horrid arrangement. She had no desire to go to some old goons ancient mansion, didn't particularly want to reschedule her girls night out, and definitely did not want to have to meet the wrinkly guy, nor shake his hand. She'd barely visited her grandparents in the past few years, particularly those from her mother's side, who were definitely old, definitely wrinkly, and were living in nursing homes an hour away from home. The trips interrupted everything, threw off her schedule, and drove her nuts with boredom. Her grandmother never remembered who she was, anyway- so why did she have to go visit?

But her aunt insisted, and so did her parents, and when she finally asked what all the fuss over it was about- they hadn't made her visit her own family at Christmas last year, so why did she have to go to some random strangers house for a party?- they fell over themselves explaining.

Lord Taylor Upton was the owner of this estate. It was a grand estate, much better than the large family home that her father had recently inherited, and was rather isolated, but still desirable. The visit would be for a feast, a banquet of sorts, in his lovely mansion, and discussed would be Lord Upton's inheritance.

At this, she'd gawked and then her mother continued on excitedly: "There will be others there, of course, but the Lord- the Lord- will be picking just one of you to hold the inheritance. Can you believe it? Dear Mariona was invited, too. Double the chances! So please, darling, just go. Your aunt will take good care of you, and I'm sure you'll have plenty of fun!"

And that was that. Zena found herself bundled up and packed away into her aunt's tiny car and off they went to this Lord Upton's mansion, with little knowledge of what was in store. At least, she thought, there would be free food. The chances of her winning this inheritance was slim to none, she reckoned, but free food, and perhaps whatever she could find in that mansion- mansions had to have plenty of good loot in them, and with so many people there, she might just have her pick of a little something or other- would be worth at least one night of her time. And, she'd have a decent story to tell when she returned home to her friends.

Or at least she thought.

Mariona Mauve Nighman

Zena didn't really seem interested in talking, no matter how much her aunt attempted to try. The drive to the Lord's mansion was silent until she realized that Zena had put on headphones, and was studiously ignoring her aunt's presence; at that point, Mariona gave up and put in her own CD into the stereo, a Shakespeare audio. She rarely had time to read on her own these days. The audiobook would relax her mind before they arrived at this strange banquet.

It wasn't long before they'd turned down the street, and drove down the way until they could see the estate looming overhead. It was an impressive home, and Mariona took a moment to stare before she parked her car, and climbed out, nudging Zena on her shoulder. The teenager roused herself from her music induced stupor before climbing out of the vehicle, pausing to gape the same way Mariona did herself.

"Wow," the girl muttered as she pulled the headphones off of her ears. "Old place, but still. So much better than mum's place." She shrugged and trooped off towards the door before knocking loudly, perhaps one too many times.

Mariona sighed and followed the teenager up the front steps. She was in for a long night if she were to be handling Zena's antics. They were only beginning to show in her impressive rudeness. Hopefully she would realize that she should behave better once they met people of the house. It wouldn't attract the Lord's attention, she could tell Zena that.

A butler answered the door. He was a dashing young man despite his job, and quickly proffered an arm to take their coats and other belongings, although Mariona clutched onto her bag, offering a loose smile. If this dinner really was as boring as Zena expected it to be, she'd like to know where her books and things were, rather than having to go fish through the house later to find them. Zena did the same, clinging to her phone and iPod with an unearthly obsession, although they both shrugged off their coats and gave them to the man.

Mariona thanked the butler before the two were ushered inside the warm home, which while was not lavishly decorated, was elegant and nice on it's own. They stood near the door, where the butler informed them they would wait for others to arrive before continuing onto the meal.

"Oh come on. I've been in a car for hours and now I have to sit and stand here?" Zena griped, shifting from foot to foot as though she were tired already.

It would be a long night indeed.

​

 

[Mr.Scales ⚖]

Damon, Red

Damon had been alone most nights, eating dinner by himself or would go to the bar for a drink. Damon had most of his life excitement at the force but some days it would be quiet and he would have to work in his office, his preference was going out on missions then sitting at a desk. When David got the invitation he thought he was chosen because he had been in the force for twenty years. But that was as far as he knew of why he was invited for dinner, otherwise he didn't really have any answers. Damon had every night ate alone and watched t.v, it wasn't the most entertaining being alone mostly every night, it was really depressing, he wished he was with his family.

As Damon was in his ford F-150, the rain began to pour, he moved his hand to start the window wipers and they immediately began to soak up the water pouring on the windshield. Damon had been separated and wasn't allowed to see his two kids, a girl named Sarah and a boy named David. He kept a photo on his dash, thinking about them everyday. The man had one hand on the wheel and one hand near the radio and other appliances, his eyes steady on the road till he finally got to the mansion.

Damon parked the car outside the mansion, the man stood in the car and closed his eyes for a minute then got out. When Damon stepped out of the car, he closed the door behind him and turned around to see the huge mansion in front of him. "Wow" Damon stood in awe, staring at the huge rich mansion standing right in front of him. Damon locked his car and put his keys in his trench coat, he then walked over to the mansion still in the pouring rain outside. When Damon got to the door, he knocked three times then waited for someone to welcome him in. A man opened the door looking quite fancy, well good thing he wore a suit and not something like jogging pants with a muscle shirt.

Damon walked in and stopped on the mat where he saw the inside, it was quite spectacular of how nice the house looked especially the dining room with the beautiful glass chandelier. He noticed that two more people come in, one looked middle aged while the other looked as a teenager. Damon stood near the door but out of the way so other people could come in when they arrive.

Shawn, Green

Shawn had drove in his Nissan to the mansion, the building was further away but he couldn't pass up having a dinner with Mr. Upton. He hoped that the man would complement him as he was working in the MLB, but had broken his arm and couldn't play. Other then that, their wasn't any other reason he could think of why he would invite him. Shawn was excited but hesitant that somebody their would mention how bad his injury was and that it ruined his career, or say he was a terrible player.

When Shawn arrived, he parked behind a ford truck. Shawn stopped the car and looked up at the mansion, it wasn't his first mansion he was in. He had been in a few mansions with several different baseball players which was incredibly cool, maybe it could be even cooler then other mansions he's been in, the boy could only hope. Shawn got out of the car and closed the door behind him, he then made his way to the door and knocked three times till a man with a suit let him in.

​

 

[Justin]

, purple

At first Gigi taught this whole "Lord Taylor Upton Inheritance Thing" was obviously a hoax. Once she told her friends about the inheritance they told her that she should go. If her parents weren't going to help with her modeling and acting career this would be a great opportunity. Quick money. Gigi knew that she had this in the bag, no one could resist her charm and beauty. Once the Taylor guy saw Gigi he would be putty in her hand.

Gigi drove her Cadillac CTS (one of her sugar daddies bought her) up to the mansion. Gigi thought it was ok, she has seen better of course. Before Gigi walked to the door, she fixed her hair up and put on some more lip gloss and blush. Gigi wouldn't show her true colors at first to anyone. She would act like a nice girl, like she always did in new situations. Gigi didn't want anyone to use her real personality against her. She was an actress it wouldn't be that hard to play a nice city girl.

Once she made it to the door, she gave a light knock. A man, who Gigi guessed was the butler let her in. Gigi notice that there was four other people already here. There was a girl that seem to be around Gigi's age, maybe if she was good enough Gigi could manipulate her...become friends with her. There was an older lady, a older man and another guy. Everyone was so different here, wow this Taylor guy sure can pick them. Gigi put on a big smile and introduced herself. "Hi everybody my name is Gigi Vanderpump! Nice to meet all of you." Hopefully no one could detect her sarcasm; it just slipped out not on purpose.

, green

Leo was in his Toyota Camry driving to the Upton mansion. Once he got the invitation he was all for it. He didn't care about nothing else. Even if he didn't get the inheritance he would still get something out of this. Most rich guys like Taylor had jewelry all around their estates. Leo was bound to find something of value. Either he would find something in the house or maybe from one of the other guests. Once he got to the mansion Leo eyes almost popped out of his head. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Leo was going to get lucky today.

Leo made it to the door and gave a big knock. The butler opened the door. Leo gave a sarcastic grin to the butler's outfit. He looked ridiculous. Once Leo got into the mansion he could see that some guests were already there. There was two girls a brunette who looked like a twelve year old and a beautiful lovely blonde girl. Leo was bound to get to know her no matter what. Then he saw an old lady, a guy, who in Leo's line of side work could tell he was an officer of sorts. Leo would have to watch that guy, he couldn't do his "business" if he was around. Then Leo saw Shawn Hernandez, Leo loved baseball and he knew all the teams and players. Leo wondered if he should ask Shawn about his injury that got him canned. He shrugged it off, he would ask later.

​

 

[Krimp]

Devon

The cabbie looked up at the manse and let out a slow whistle.

"Not too bad for a country shack, huh? What is it, your parents' winter retreat?"

Devon's pale blue eyes looked appraisingly at the driver. He grinned. "I wish. No, I've never even met the man who lives here. But if his personality is as big as his house," his eyes flicked quickly to the sprawling manse, "then I'm sure I'm in for an interesting time." The cabbie chortled, and a smile flashed across Devon's face.

"Anyway, thanks for the ride." He passed over the fare, as well as a little extra for the entertaining conversation the driver had provided. Devon got out of the car and hoisted his bag onto his shoulder, giving a brief wave to the driver as he backed down the snow-covered driveway.

For a long moment, Devon stared up at the large structure that stood before him. When he left that building, it could be with a fortune beyond his imagination, enough for him to live in the lap of luxury for the rest of his life.

He sighed as if he was bored, his breath forming a cloud in the cold air.

"Might as well head in," he muttered as he started walking slowly towards the door.

Cass, orange

Cass' first thought upon entering Lord Upton's manse wasn't of the modest but blatantly expensive decorations, nor was it the thought that if she won, this could all be hers. Of course these things mattered to her - she desperately needed money, and this was a chance to get out of the vicious cycle of poverty her family had been trapped in for generations - but they did not immediately spring to mind. No, her first thought was one more of surprise.

'What an interesting group of people!' There seemed to be no rhyme or reason to the people chosen - her competitors, she reminded himself. They ranged from the young to the middle aged, from the glamorous to those who seemed just as hard-done-by as she herself was. The dark-skinned man standing alone caught her interest: had she seen him on TV? Perhaps in the paper? Trying to place where she had seen him before, she stared at him for what was probably a little too long to be polite. Fortunately, her attention was diverted when the one she had already classified as Blonde Bimbo No. 1 spoke.

She tried to repress her laugh - Vanderpump? Really? - but could not quite hold it back. She raised a hand to her mouth as she snickered, quickly covering it with a cough, before looking back at Gigi. She smiled herself, white teeth contrasting strongly with her dark skin.

"It's nice to meet you too, Gigi!" Her tone was so enthusiastic that some would probably think it fake, though it could just as easily be the girl's natural bubbliness.

As she spoke, the door once again opened and a boy with blonde hair and icy blue eyes entered the room. She smiled first at him, then worked her way around the room, her eyes once again lingering on the man she was sure she recognized. "It's nice to meet all of you too!" Her South African accent had faded over the years, but there was still an obvious edge to her speech. "My name's Cassidy - Cass, that is."

 

[MrSandman]

Hector Henson, BLACK

Hector looked at his watch. He was simply impatient with all that nonsense. His brother wasn't around, and that was only increasing his temper. "If they think I have time to spare, they are wrong", he thought. There was a company that he had to save from the hands of the vultures, the shareholders that laughed at him now. "Let's see who'll be laughing later". A bit nervous, he started to walk towards the house, knocking on the door. The butler received him quickly. The classic outfit the man wore surprised Hector for a while. He had been low on money for far too long to remember the eccentricities of the rich people that he once knew so well.

"Well, I'd be damned". The place was much nicer than he thought it would be. The suffocating air that usually presented itself at business transactions weren't there. Neither were the several accountants that were usually present in the stock market. This house, it simply had a better vibe. "Feels good to be here". He gave his coat to the butler and analyzed the people that were already in the room.

There was a pretty brunette, young. Perhaps too young. Now that he looked at it, they all looked a bit young compared to him. There was an older one, but she still looked younger than him. She had a teacher-ish sort of face, with curly hair and glasses. Finally, he took sight of someone who looked as old as himself. A soothing sight, as the man looked just as out of place as he was.

He considered making introductions, but he thought it just wasn't time. Not yet.

 

[Mundane Monster]

Annie Blake, white

Annie was feeling self-conscious, which she knew was completely outrageous because her circumstances should have overruled her anxiety. But still, she thought that maybe she shouldn't have brought her crutches. She didn't want to seem like some charity case, attempting to gain sympathy by displaying her disability. Even though she did need her crutches from time to time when her legs started wobbling and feeling weak. Even though she knew this, she wondered what others would think of her. They would probably sneer in her direction and avoid her. And Lord Upton…Would he judge her? Although he most likely already knew that she needed crutches to support herself.

"Annie!" The voice that intruded into her thoughts wasn't a yell exactly, but it held an exasperated tone. Annie looked up sheepishly at her mother who had turned in the front seat to talk to her. By the annoyed look on her face and the curl of her lip, she'd obviously been talking for a while before she realized that Annie wasn't listening. Annie felt bad and a little upset. Her mother hated repeating herself, but Annie hated talking to people when she was involved in her own troubles.

"I said," Her mother dragged out the vowels in 'said' "we're here."

That announcement gave Annie a start and she stared fearfully up at the mansion that although very pretty, looked like a looming structure of doom. Her mother helped her out of the car and her dad's friend, Tony got her fold-able crutches from the trunk.

Tony had come in place of her dad because her dad was having difficulties looking at Annie. It hurt to know that her dad suddenly didn't know how to act around her now that she had cancer, but she understood his difficulties and she didn't feeling any negative feelings towards him. She wished that he would have come though.

Tony handed Annie her crutches and she gave him a hug before approaching her mother who wrapped her in a warm that lasted well over a few minutes. All the annoyance that Annie had felt towards her mother dissipated in that instant.

When her mother finally let her go, she gave her daughter a kiss. "If you don't get the money, it's perfectly fine. We'll figure something out. So don't stress alright? This is an opportunity of a lifetime, and I want you to enjoy it, okay?" Annie nodded, afraid to speak because if she opened her mouth she knew she would start crying.

Her mother and Tony watched, Annie slowly make her way to the door, and only drove off when the butler and maid opened it. Annie entered the mansion and allowed the butler to take her coat, but she kept her tote bag because of the painkillers and other important items that it held.
When she was well situated, Annie glanced up at the others in the room and smiled, "Hello everyone, it's nice to meet you all. I'm Annie." If she didn't win the money, hopefully she would be able to make some new friends at least.

​

Imogen Whit, #F5A2EF

She hated asking people for favors. Especially since the only people she was around were scum balls and creeps. Dennis Mayer was by far the biggest creep that Imogen had ever met and had to service, but because he was so desperate for a woman's attention and 'love', he would do anything for her. Even if anything meant driving her to some rich guy's house and keeping his mouth shut in case Diego started looking for her. That last part had caused Dennis some worry, but Imogen had promised to give him the full package afterwards, whether she won the money or not. And of course that was a huge lie. Imogen had given Dennis the 'full package' before and it had been horrific. He was like most guys who frequented girls like her. Animalistic, putrid, violent and then afterwards apologetic and terrifyingly sweet. Imogen hated him, and whether she got the money or not she wasn't going to see him or any of her other clients ever again.
If she won the money, she would go to get plastic surgery and move to Canada. If she didn't win the money…Well, she knew where to get some nice cement blocks.

Imogen stared out the window, watching the trees past by at a rapid pace. Dennis was tapping his fingers on the steering wheel and glancing over at her every once in a while.

"You look really pretty in that dress." He blurted out, and she smiled at him and smoothed her hands over her midnight blue cocktail dress…Well it wasn't hers per se. But he didn't have to know that. However the fact that he didn't recognize the dress made Imogen ever more revolted by him. Before they'd gotten on the road, Dennis had brought her to his house, so he could pick something up. He'd left her unattended, and she'd helped herself to his wife's wardrobe.

"Thanks." Imogen murmured and trailed her hand down his leg. Dennis blushed and cleared his throat awkwardly, Imogen turned back to the window.

They arrived rather quickly, but as Imogen started to get out, Dennis grabbed her by her arm and Imogen resisted the urge to elbow him right in the nose. The feeling of his hand on her arm made her skin prickle and she wished she could shed like a snake so she could forget his touch. "Hey, since I won't see you for a couple of hours…How's bout we have a quickie?" He suggested in a sickeningly sweet voice.

Imogen glanced at Dennis and then glanced at the mansion door. She could make a break for it, but then Dennis might phone Diego and even though Lord Upton sounded delightfully powerful, Imogen doubted that he could withstand the hellfire that Diego and his boys would rain down on the mansion. So Imogen smiled at Dennis for the last time and got back in the car.

~

Imogen strode through the entrance of the mansion, and shrugged her jacket into the arms of the butler before leaning against a wall and fishing a mint out of her purse.

​

 

[Zora18]

Dr. Sabina Konstantinova
One of the last ones in the door, Sabina mostly witnessed the backs of the ominous crowd. Like young vultures, they gathered in something of an unconscious circle formation, centering in on the maid and butler, representative of Lord Upton and ultimately, the money. She would have time to psycho-analyze her competitors and surroundings soon enough, but for right now, she had to situate herself. Her slender body freezing from the cold, she pulled her mahogany coat tight around her, leaning against the wooden panels. In this way, she felt she blended into the scenery, safe to observe..everything. The inside of the manor had an austere decadence to it. Rich, but, lacking soul or glitter. This quality matched the weather, and it in fact felt colder to her inside than outside. She shivered uncontrollably. The cold, the vultures, the immense greed, servitude, the menacing look of the whole place.. Could anyone else feel the evil of the place or was it just her? The servants shut the doors. The windows were all a bleak white. There would be no escape. Her anxiety started rising with every gust of cold air, every shrill laugh heard, the pounding chandelier lights turning on as night would befall soon. She stood plastered to the wall behind her, leaning against it so tightly as to hope to permeate through it to the outside. "You must calm down, Sabina. Your imagination is getting the better of you." She thought to herself, deciding to take her pills now. She reserved pills for moments of absolute necessity, such as now because how could she talk to Lord Upton or anyone in this kind of state. Her hands shook as she fumbled with her purse to take her pills discreetly. She would need a drink of water too. Oh, who could she ask, how could she ask, she shook, what will she do, ah anxiety, can pills be swallowed dry, Sabina, Sabina, you're a doctor, you should know this, ah what kind of doctor are you when you've barely practiced, dumb btch, you can't even help yourself, you can't even- The pills spilled all over the floor.

Ricardo "Ricky" Serafim
Standing with his hands in his pockets, no baggage to carry or anything, Ricky felt out of place. Although he usually felt out of place, it did not resemble this-this-this uneasiness. He had difficulty pinpointing what it was as everything essentially blurred around him. People rushing about, mindless chatter, creaking footsteps, the maid and butler were saying something but he couldn't concentrate enough to understand it despite knowing English fluently since birth almost. He just couldn't get his head right in this place and didn't know what it was, or how to describe it, or how to describe anything he felt in general. So he ignored it and figured maybe it came from him being so poor among so many rich people. Yeah, class divides are uncomfortable. The crowd looked so rich. Models, spoiled looking kids, men in business suits.. He scoffed. What could they need this money for? As he looked around, he saw a woman visibly shaking as she bent down to the floor to pick some things up. Mixed concern and curiosity, he came closer to see. Once he saw, he decided he could turn his head and pretend that this rich woman's pearl necklace broke and that her pearl beads sprinkled the floor. His conscience wouldn't let him do so. Despite his shyness, he offered to help. Her eyes flashed with horror once she realized he noticed. "It's o-ok, I uh picked most of them up already." She stuttered in an unusual slight accent. "I'll get you some water." He said, gesturing for her to stay. "I'll be right back." He went up to the butler and asked for a glass presumably for himself making sure to not direct any attention towards the woman. The butler returned promptly with a glass. Ricky could feel the butler eyeing him to sip it, so he did, before lingering a minute or two, and then taking it back to the woman. "Sorry, the butler pressured me with his eyes to drink some." He nervously laughed, wondering how much sense that sentence made and handing the class to her. "I know what you mean. As if you put him through such a hassle to get the glass." She smiled. "Thank you." She took a pill and drank it with the water. "Wow, you didn't mind my contamination." He blurted out, scratching his head. "I mean, I feel like such a street urchin in comparison to everyone here and- I'm Ricky, by the way." He felt like he sounded stupid, but when you're a bit depressed, you don't really care so much. "Don't worry, Ricky. I don't mind at all." She looked into his hazel eyes for a slight second, calm and confident unlike before, and walked away, leaving Ricky in a typical haze.

 

[Rainjay]

Zena Rush

Gigi Vanderpump? Vanderpump? What kind of a name is that? Zena would have laughed if the girl in question hadn't been in the very same room. The girl was so obviously dripping sarcasm, although others in the room didn't seem to note it. The dark skinned girl- Zena couldn't help but think her skin was lovely, somewhat staring before ripping her eyes away in hopes the girl hadn't noticed- laughed and introduced herself as Cassidy, acting very much in the same fake manner. Zena supposed it was a given. Young girls, and of course they wanted the inheritance. Although she hated the idea of sitting through dinner previously, she would have tolerated it. She'd thought it would be full of old men and aging woman. Now... She was ready to walk out the door and leave. Girls like this nauseated her. Could they at least try to be more subtle?

Everyone seemed to be introducing themselves now, so when there was a pause in the conversation, she offered her own name, leaning coolly against the wall. "Zena."

Beside her, her aunt remained silent, looking about the room, but not with scrutinizing eyes. She was probably trying to think up dinner conversation, while all these girls were already fighting for the money. It made Zena amused. She'd be happy enough to nab something from the upstairs bedrooms. Still, leaving with the inheritance would be nice. She could get her aunt a new car, repair up their old family home, get some new clothes. It'd be nice.

Then some woman dropped something all over the floor in the other side of the room. Mariona moved to help, but some random stranger stepped over to help, and her aunt let it drop. What did she drop all over the floor? Pills? God, a druggy too? Great. Just great. I should have brought crazy-family-holiday bingo cards with me.

She ignored as the woman got some water and downed a pill, and instead turned to look around at the girls who had spoken. "I don't suppose anybody knows who Lord Upton actually is? I've never heard his name before, and didn't have time to search it up. Or perhaps someone knows about what's being served for dinner? I'm absolutely starved," she said, her stomach providing a helpful grumble as she spoke.

Mariona Mauve Nightman

There seemed to be quite the odd collection of people in this room now that most everyone seemed to have arrived. Or, at least she hoped everyone had arrived. Did this Lord Upton expect to pick someone to receive the inheritance if he invited half the world into his mansion? It would have been a blind pick, although she supposed that his lack of appearance so far meant that the decision would be mostly blind anyhow.

She kept quite while people offered introductions; she simply felt it to be out of place, and none of the adults in the room offered hello's anyway. Even though she was an adult, she didn't want to be the odd one out, here. Her mind was starting to set in on the idea of the inheritance since she walked into this building, and she'd try her hardest to win it. She didn't want to make herself come off as odd before the dinner had even begun.

She tried to ignore Zena's remarks and simply stood next to the girl, trying not to look towards the clocks that adorned the walls. She just wanted the dinner to start, although there was nothing she could do to speed it up.

​

 

[Lillian Gray]

"My, my, what a talkative bunch." One of the maids exclaims with a slight hint of sarcasm in her voice.

"Dinner will not be until six o'clock sharp. Please, allow one of us to escort you to your respective guest room where you are welcome to change into something more comfortable. You will be staying with us for some time, and are welcome to use the space however you need."​

Welcome to all our guests.

You're encouraged to move into a guest room, as well as get to know the men and women around you. While you don't have to say much, you may want to get to know your competition!

Remember, dinner is at six o'clock, and you will all be able to meet the infamous Lord Upton. What would you like to say to him if you had the chance? Would you ask for his inheritance off the bat, or try to disguise your greed as something else, something pleasant and sweet on the surface?

















Good luck.
​

 

[Justin]

The Model Mystery, purple

Gigi could tell that the girl named...Casket? Something like that didn't like her. She could really careless, she wasn't here to make friends; she was here to win money. When the new "arrival" dropped her pills, Gigi couldn't help but laugh a little. ~Nice we even have our very own druggy to look after.~ She couldn't help but notice the sketchy looking guy staring at her, he defiantly wasn't her type. She would stay far away from him, he might try to steal something from her. No one in the house was at all interesting, the only one that was a little interesting was the druggy girl. Gigi wondered what kind of drugs she was on, if she knew her weakness it would be easier to make her run home crying. When the maid came back telling everyone that dinner would be at six o'clock, Gigi was pissed off. She hadn't eaten all day. Most models didn't eat anyway but Gigi was blessed with a fast metabolism; she could eat as much as she wanted and never gain a pound. "Do we really have to wait that long?" The maid just ignored Gigi. Gigi just flipped her hair. ~Remember don't go into bitch mode just yet." Gigi walked over to the girl named Zena. "Nice to meet you...Zena, cute shirt." Then Gigi walked into the living room to sit down and wait...for whatever was next. "Anyone else want to join? Or are you going let me just sit here by my sad lonesome self?" Playing the nice girl/sex kitten was Gigi's favorite.

The Sneaky Blue Eyed Bandit, green

Leo watched as everyone introduced themselves...well except the old people. Leo cleared his throat. In his thick German accent, "Hi...I'm Leo...Leo Clooney." Usually Leo wouldn't give away his name so easily, but to gain trust you had to give it first. The blonde girl named Gigi was looking right at him. She gave him an ugly death stare. ~She'll grow to love me.~ Leo believing that no girl could resist him, he would get her. He also had his eyes on the black girl, Cassidy. She was pretty and she had a nice personality too. Leo walked over to Cassidy. "Nice to meet you Miss Cassidy, we should go to the living room to get to know each other better." Leo gave his blinding white smile, if his German accent didn't do it, his smile and his game would have to do it.

 

[Krimp]

Cass, orange

"We should go to the living room to get to know each other better."

Cass easily repressed the shudder she felt from Leo's words. She couldn't stand this type of guy: the one who thought that he deserved you as seen as he decided you were 'worthy' of his time. As a waitress, being hit on was a part of her job. How she handled such situations determined how well she was tipped, and therefore how well she ate that night.

So despite the fact that just listening to him speak made her feel slimy, despite the fact that his smile hurt her eyes, the grin she sent back was just as charming as the German's.

"Leo, huh?" She looked him up and down deliberately before grinning again. "Lead the way." As they walked towards the room she continued in that same bright voice as before, "By the way, I love your accent! Where are you from? It's such a nice change from the usual, a breath of fresh air, you know?" She smiled again, her dark eyes twinkling up at the German.

Devon

Devon didn't understand why there was so much going on straight away. It was a little overwhelming, really. His eyes kept flicking rapidly between all the little interactions going on in the room, but it was like trying to keep track of raindrops falling on a lake. There was simply too much; even his sharp brain couldn't keep hold of all the connections, of who seemed to like whom, or the opposite.

So when one of the maids interrupted the commotion with an invitation to find their rooms for the evening, it was like the clouds were clearing. "I'd like to see my room, for sure," he said as he stepped towards one of the maids. He may have been stepping into the middle of the room, but already people were going their different ways - there was little chance of him becoming the centre of attention at this point.

And that's exactly the way he wanted it - these people seemed desperate, seemed like they would do anything to get that fortune. The less attention he got from this pack of wolves, the better.

Wow. As Devon let his head sink back into the feather pillows, this is all he could think. He'd grown up in a well-off family, and thought he knew luxury. But this? This was simply... Next level. The four-poster bed, the no-doubt antique drawers and cabinets... Whoever earned Upton's favor really would be set for life - and then some.

But for know, Devon didn't think about that. Dinner wasn't till six, and the ride had been a long one... Besides, the bed was so comfortable...

 

[Lillian Gray]

"It would seem that both Hector Henson has decided to leave the manse before having the chance to meet with Lord Upton! A pity, really."

"As well as Mister Hector, Charles Henson never seemed to have arrived...I wonder if he's still here somewhere, lost in the snow?"​

From this moment on, both Hector and Charles Henson are assumed to be either missing or having left. That being said, you may still reference to their only actions and/or missing presence.

A note, Hector had arrived, and will be presumed to have left upon entering, deciding to turn back.

Charles will be presumed to have never arrived.





















We will miss you, The Gil, and thank you for your participation!​

 

[Mundane Monster]

Annie Blake, white

Annie noticed the younger guy going to see his room and she desperately wanted to go too, so she could rest. But she also wanted to get to know people and knew that if she separated from the group now, that when she came back everyone would be in their personalized clusters and she would be left out. So instead of listening to her steadily aching legs, Annie turned to the girl leaning against the wall behind her and grinned. The blonde girl in turn, cocked a doubting eye and stalked up the stairs, with a mutter of "I'll check out my room too."

A little disheartened, Annie turned to the next person who was 'unclaimed' and found herself looking at a pretty brunette with curly brown hair and glasses. Annie hopped over to her, and balanced herself on one crutch as she stuck out a hand for the woman to shake. "Hi there! I'm Annie! I said that before, but I guess I should make the introduction more personal if we were to start talking. If you wanted to that is?" She said, with a smile. "I'm a high school student, but I'm really very mature." She added, hoping the woman would take her word and indulge her in conversation.

Imogen Whit, #F5A2EF

She was not here for conversing and getting some new buddies. Although the stuck up blonde girl, might have been a good ally to make just in case she was stuck up and rich, but Imogen just didn't have the time or patience to pretend to like her or anyone in this glorified shit hole.

Well…It wasn't really a shit hole, in fact it wasn't one at all. Imogen was just upset that on the day that marked her freedom, she had had to give some sleazy, probably disease ridden dirt bag, a quickie. She needed a shower to wash the dirty feeling off of her skin and she wouldn't be in a better mood until she did.

Imogen approached one of the maids, stated her intent and was soon taken to a beautiful- no gorgeous bedroom. "Holy shit." She murmured as she looked at the area. There were huge windows, an intricately decorated mirror sitting over a vanity, and the bed…Imogen suppressed a squeal of excitement. It wasn't everyday that a girl like her was given use of a room like this with a bed that looked like it was made out of clouds. It probably felt like a cloud too…Imogen thought as she stepped towards it then stopped abruptly. She needed to take a shower first. A hot one preferably. She didn't want to spread Dennis' germs to Lord Upton's stuff. Lord knows she needed to be on that man's good side.

There was a large bathroom attached to the room and this time Imogen didn't waste any time marveling at its splendor. She wanted to get in that bed, pronto. She took a shower and cranked up the pressure and made it as hot as she could stand it. She washed and rewashed herself, even triple washing her hair, before she truly felt clean. She ignored the 'heavenly scented rose water body wash' bullshit and instead used a nice soap. As a sex worker, her boss always had the girls use body wash to smell like a field of damn daisies, and be as slick and as oily as a freaking fish and Imogen was tired of it.

When she was finished with her shower, she dug into the dressers, which had already been packed with the things in her bags, and found herself a nice green dress and yellow pumps, which she set aside for dinner. She shimmied into her pajamas and flopped back onto the bed, her eyes closing and soon she was snoozing away.

 

[Zora18]

Dr. Sabina Konstantinova
A placid calm flowed through Sabina as the pill took action and would continue holding for the rest of the evening. She glided instead of walked, and kept her head high, despite the buried anxiety clawing in the subconscious with questions of "What if they noticed? What if they noticed?" She could not hear these questions with the effect of the pills, but it was almost as if Ricky could. As she started up the stairs, he offered to carry her luggage. "I do not have any of my own, so I might as well carry yours." He smiled. She could see that his poverty and lack of belongings were something of a complex for him, but she wondered if he realized what an advantage that could be in the eyes of Lord Upton. "Thank you so much." She warmly said, with the authenticity that comes from being surprised by someone's kindness. "No problem, and also, don't worry about anybody noticing what happened, half of these people seem to do drugs themselves anyways." He cocked a goofy smile, amusing the subconscious questions she wasn't aware of. She couldn't help but smile, "You don't seem to think much of these people." She noted, adding coolly "They sure are tacky, aren't they?" He nodded. "They're like bad jokes." She playfully smirked, "Like the kind you make, Ricky?" His eyebrows jumped "I gave you water, am carrying your bags, am tired and nervous myself, and now you expect me to make good jokes on top of all that? Being demanding, hmm?" He teased, as if unconsciously sensing an insecurity of hers. "Ah, seems like you have a chip on your shoulder. Toss it off." She smirked. "First I can toss your bags over the staircase railing!" He joked, dangling them. "No, no!" She jumped playfully, knowing he wouldn't dare but playing along for the fun of it. "You're lucky others are watching or I would." He laughed, placing the bags down at the top of the stairs. "Thank you for all the help though, I thought I was a goner earlier. I really appreciate it. I'm Sabina, by the way."

Ricardo "Ricky" Serafim
Whoever this woman was, it was certainly nice to have a friend here. Before they were to go there separate ways at the top of the staircase (because their guest rooms were on opposite sides), she stopped him. "Hey, do you have anything to wear to this dinner by chance? Because I have some men's clothes..from an old friend, that I've been trying to get rid of and I think they're your size. Think of it as my way of repaying you for all your kind help." Ricky was never one to reject free anything, so he took the light blue button down shirt and navy slacks. "Wow, thanks, Sa-Sa-S-" "Sabina." She corrected him. "Sabina, thanks, I'll definitely wear this." Originally he was planning on just wearing what he came in, some old cargo pants and a warm sweater that's seen better days in the wash. But now he'd look much more presentable in front of Lord Upton. Being escorted by some random butler, Ricky simply walked into his guest bedroom. It smelled like vanilla candles, yet the room retained the smell of the crisp frost, giving it an ice cream feel overall to match the cream-colored sheets. Despite this welcoming scent, Ricky still did not feel at ease no matter what. He thought it was because of the people, but now he was in the room by himself feeling just as- restless. He decided to take a quick shower before the dinner, it's been a couple days, and get dressed in the new clothes Sabina gave him. As he undressed, a sudden gust of cold air caused his scrawny, but toned muscles to tense. Goosebumps spread throughout his olive skin while his lean body fidgeted and his teeth chattered. "What is going on? Maybe I'm hungry.." He wondered as he couldn't quite recall what was the last thing he ate, but maybe that was just due to a brain freeze in this moment. He started fantasizing about dinner and felt more excited for the food than for seeing Lord Upton. As he showered, his muscles remained tense and he felt weak, but the shower's warm water somewhat rejuvenated him and he felt better afterwards. He then got dressed in the new clothes, buttoning up the shirt while his fingers graced his diminishing six pack as he looked in the mirror. He sighed deeply, along the way inhaling the shirt's smell. It smelled strongly like men's cologne, but he did not have any. The pants smelled the same. Hmm, no complaints though. He didn't think much of it.

 

[Rainjay]

Zena Rush

Well, if dinner was going to take that long, she might as well explore or something beforehand. Maybe she could find some little glass bowl of candy or something to sate her hunger. Gigi walked past her towards the living room, offering a just-as-fake sounding compliment on her shirt, before declaring that she wanted company. Somebody else turned to follow her hungrily into the room, and Zena thankfully left them to work out their own amusement before turning to explore the building.

There were tons of rooms on the first floor, none of which proved interesting to her. None were very populated, either, with items nor people, so she returned to the main hall and went up the stairwell to the second floor. They weren't to bother Lord Upton, but were free to explore the guest rooms, and so she did so and staked one out for herself. She spent some time rummaging around in the room, which was lavish and beautiful and definitely up to her standards, and then staked out the bathroom, which was filled in the way a hotel bathroom would be, with soaps and towels and even a bathrobe.

Unfortunately she found little in the way of snacks and less in jewelry or other items to snag, although she supposed it was good for her; if she found something to steal before they even met Lord Upton, and he found out... They'd be on bad terms. She'd rather the inheritance than whatever bits and bobs she snagged from his house. It felt... wrong, somewhat, even to her.

However, it didn't stop her curiosity. There was always the attic left to explore.

So she made her way to the stairwell and began to climb.

Mariona Mauve Nightman

Everyone seemed to be scattering- great. Mariona could find plenty to do- the Lord's library probably was filled with classics and books she would love to read- and was about to head towards the stairs to search for said library when somebody approached her, perched on crutches. The girl was young, but had beautiful dark skin that Mariona had seen Zena observing earlier, and bright eyes. She looked intelligent and smart, and although Mariona knew not to judge a book by it's cover, she was intrigued enough and hoped for good conversation with this young girl.

"Hello, Annie. I'm Mariona." she replied, smiling in a friendly manner, taking the offered hand and shaking it, although in her professional-college-teacher way. "High school student, hmm? I'm a literature professor. You hoping to use the inheritance for tuition maybe?"

​

 

[Mr.Scales ⚖]

Shawn noticed that a man he didn't know who he was and a girl introduced herself as Cassidy walked to the living room, he had barely no interest of seeing his guest room he will be staying in for very few nights, he wasn't expecting to staying more then a night so he decided to talk to some people. Shawn followed them to the room and pushed his hands in his leather jacket, making his way over to a leather seat and sitting comfortably on the seat, one of the butlers came up to him and asked if he could take his coat. "Thank you." He gave the butler his jacket and the man walked out of the room. He looked over at Cass and Leo and decided to introduce himself.

"Hi I'm Shawn, your Leo right? But i didn't get your name miss...?" He sat up on the chair resting his arms on the rest of the seat, he found the women quite beautiful but wasn't the kind of guy to start hitting on a girl right when he sees someone, he doesn't even know her personality she could be very mean and pushy, which was the worst thing he found in anyone. Shawn never met a girl that dated him for anything but his fame and his earlier fortune but who knows maybe their will be someone out their...Someday.

He then heard another man introduce himself as Damon, finding it weird that he has such a big beard but shrugged it off trying not to be mean and stare at it all the time. "That's a cool name man" He added before the man asked a second question, which had him thinking, what is his occupation? You know what, I'll just tell them during dinner if it comes to it, let's just hope nobody judges me about it. "Well it's very confusing, it's a long story...Well how about you two, what do you guys work as?" Shawn asked Cass and Leo their occupation as he smiled brightly with his teeth showing.
____________________________________________________________________________

Damon stood at the door as everyone else went and explored the huge mansion, it was quite huge and he was happy to be accepted with the rest of these people, some looked really young but he didn't bother questioning it. Damon began to wonder when Mr. Lord Upton would get here or if he's upstairs, he couldn't wait to see the man and why he chose him from all the other officers on the force. He noticed A maid standing their and decided to ask her when Mr.Upton is going to get here. "Excuse me Mrs. do you have any idea when Mr. Upton will get here?" He smiled at her. "He will be here shortly would you like to see your room?" The maid asked. "I'm okay thank you though."

Damon then noticed three people go into another room and decided to see occupy himself and see why they all were brought here. He followed the last man seconds after to see why they thought the rich, powerful and respected man asked them to come to the mansion. As he walked through the door way he saw the three sitting and talking so Damon walked over to another chair and sat down, it was a brown very comfortable. "Hello I'm Damon, nice to meet all of you." Damon laid his leg on top of his thigh and rested his hands on it.

"So what are all of your jobs? I'm a police officer in north Carolina, chief actually." Damon didn't wanna just come out with it and asked why they were all here, that would be very impolite and would sound like he was the only person that deserved to be here, but if he asked what their jobs were maybe he would get a sense of why Mr. Upton invited them. He always kept his beard just to show that he was tough, but found the whole beard thing ridiculous, but on the other hand the beard is really cool.

 

[Justin]

The Model Mystery, purple

Gigi at first was pissed that no one followed behind her. These "people" if that's what you want to call them, were not like her friends. Whatever Gigi did or said her friends were right behind her. Gigi then saw the German boy Leo flirting with Casket, wow this boy just doesn't know when to stop. Gigi then saw a dark skin man...Shawn was it? He looked liked this baseball player her father use to talk about. If anything other then his work, Gigi father loved to talk about baseball. Gigi walked over to the crowd of four. "Hello...your Shawn Hernandez? My father knows all about you...say what happen to your career. I heard you got kicked off the team or something like that." Of course Gigi didn't know anything about baseball, but she just wanted to start trouble, she wanted to see the true colors come out of these people.

The Sneaky Blue Eyed Bandit, lime

Leo started to give a bigger sly smile, this girl Cassidy was falling for him quick. He walked over to the big lush couch in the living room. Cassidy asked him where he was from with the accent and all. "Well...my family immigrated from Germany when I was little. I was the only one that knew enough English. I did everything for them." Everyone loved how Leo made it seem like he was the caretaker for his foreign non English speaking family, it was somewhat true but not all of it was sweet and innocent. Leo moved closer to Cassidy, he held her hand. "You have an exotic look about you, where are you from. Your probably from some land of beautiful people. I bet your like a secret princess or something aren't you?" Leo grinned again, showing off his perfect white teeth.

Leo stopped talking after he saw the cop and the baseball player come over. The baseball player was getting in Leo's way trying to flirt with Cassidy. Then the cop and the baseball player asked his and Cassidy's jobs. He couldn't say he was a pizza boy in front of her...but he also couldn't say he was a professional thief in front of a damn cop. "Yeah well I'm a Professional...Artist. Yeah I'm a Professional German Artist." Being a thief was kind of like an art, creativity and finesse was in the same things. Leo sat back and watch as Gigi the hot blonde came over. He started to laugh when she asked Shawn about his baseball career. All Leo's friends laughed about what happen to Shawn it was funny to them. "Yeah Shawn what did happen to your career?"

 

[Krimp]

Cass, orange

Hah, he thinks he can get me with something as pathetic as that story? It sounds even more slimy than his smile looks, and I didn't even think that was possible.

Despite her less-than-kind thoughts about the man, Cassidy managed to keep her smile steady, not a waver to be seen. No point alienating the competition this early - if she could get him eating out of her hand, she would.

Still, the hand was almost too much.

She delicately extracted her hand from his as he continued talking, smiling once again in an effort to show no offence. "Exotic?" She laughed. "Exotic makes it sound so... glamorous. I'm from South Africa. Cape Town."

Cass was about to continue along the lines of 'If I was a princess then I wouldn't have be sitting here dealing with your shit, would I?' - in her head at least - when the strangely-familiar man she had noticed upon arrival also came over. She flashed him a smile. Unlike the one she had dazzled Leo with, this one was a little warmer, a little more genuine. This guy hadn't revealed himself to be a sleaze. Not yet, anyway.

"I'm Cass. It's nice to meet you, Shawn."

Before she could continue the conversation - and she was really dying to work out where she knew his face from - two more entered the room, one of them Mrs. Blonde Bimbo from before. Cass rolled her eyes. She'd already worked out that where Bimbo went, bitchiness inevitably followed. Sure enough, she revealed Shawn's career for what it was in the nastiest way possible. In a way, though, Cass was glad: not only had Bimbo answered the question of where she recognized Shawn from, she'd also taken the attention away from Cass before she had to talk about her own less-than-glamorous job.

"At least he's had a career." Cass's eyes glinted nastily as she looked Gigi up and down. "You know no matter how much you starve yourself the agencies aren't gonna hire you, right?"

Devon

Stars exploded in Devon's vision as he opened his eyes. Shit, how long had he been asleep for? He frowned, his forehead creasing into well worn lines as he did so. And he'd left the light on - his parents would have gone off at him for that. A waste of power that we have to pay for, they'd say. As if they couldn't afford it.

Devon rose to his feet, stretching sinuously to get his blood flowing again. Lord Upton wouldn't mind; lords had bigger things to worry about than power bills, he had no doubt. He padded over to the en suite, gasping at the shock of cold water as he splashed his face. Invigorated once more, he stepped back into the sprawling corridors of the manse.

Rather than heading down the stairs, towards the sounds of voices and the smells of a great feast being prepared, he made his way to a staircase he had noticed on his earlier journey to his room. This was a big house - and big houses held lots of secrets. While he had the time, he figured, he might as well check out what was around the place.

Devon was so engrossed in his own thoughts that he didn't notice the girl in front of him until he had bumped into her, giving him such a fright that he leapt back several stairs - nearly slipping and falling down the rest of the way while he was at it.

"Oh god! Sorry. I didn't see you there." He had a hand clutched to his chest as if he was about to have a heart attack, but the grin that played around the corners of his lips suggested otherwise.

 

[Mundane Monster]

Annie Blake, white

Annie beamed at Mariona, as she'd never met a professor before. She was diagnosed right before she was invited to tour one of the colleges that were interested in her, so she was never able to make the trip. She wondered if Mariona would mind her inquiring about college life. If Annie was chosen for the inheritance, she would use the money for her procedure and if there was anything else left she would put it towards attending college.

"No, actually, I have osteosarcoma and I need money for the surgery." She answered, then laughed nervously. "But please don't let that deter you from interacting with me!" She said in an almost pleading voice. She had lost many friends when her condition became public. Even though cancer wasn't contagious, her friends had slowly but surely dropped all contact with her. Some of them had had the courtesy to continue speaking with her for a short while, but after a few days they too had stopped hanging out with her. Annie understood that some of them were just uncomfortable dealing with the subject and the fact that her cancer could cause her death, but...She had just hoped that at least one of her friends would stand by her side..

In an effort to change the subject Annie inquired on what Mariona wanted the inheritance for. "If you don't mind sharing that information, that is."

Imogen Whit, #F5A2EF

Imogen was rudely awakened by the twisting and growling of her stomach. She suspected that she'd only been napping for a short while, but she was ravenous. She hadn't eaten since the other night, and during the car ride when Dennis offered to get her some food she had declined, saying that she had already eaten, when really she just didn't want any food from him. Dennis was the type of guy who constantly tries to feign suaveness and being a jack of all trades, so he often boasted about his cooking skills. Imogen under no circumstances wanted to consume anything that was alone with, ever.

Sliding out of bed, Imogen got dressed in the outfit that she had set out, and returned to the first floor where most people had gathered in the living room. Already there was a group of people consisting of a two girls, one being the snotty and rich blonde, and two guys, one of which was a baseball player. Err...A former baseball player. The only reason Imogen knew about that was because Diego was an avid baseball fan and constantly talked about his favorites.

Still not very willing to jump in and start talking, Imogen took a seat on a sofa and began watching the interaction between the snotty blonde girl and the African American girl. Imogen wondered if the evening would kick off with a fist fight...That sure would be interesting.