Phillip Broughton (phillip_bringit) wrote in lockwood_manor, @ 2008-08-27 17:47:00 |
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Entry tags: | ha-neul, lloyd, phillip, quinn, sebastian, susan |
First Arrivals
Who: Phillip, Susan, Ha-Neul, Sebastian, Quinn and Lloyd.
Where: Throughout the house.
When: Late afternoon.
"Excuse me for waking you, sir, but we've arrived."
Phillip snorted, arms flailing as he tumbled awake. Gunther sat up sharply from where he'd been in Phillip's lap, looking around with ears perked, displaying a sort of hyper-alertness that betrayed how he, too, had been sleeping. Scowling at the light pouring through the limo's open door, Phillip pulled himself from the vehicle, blinking around at the clear mountain air.
He never slept in cars. Gunther never slept in cars. Yawning and grabbing his overnight bag from the seat, Phillip hefted it over his shoulder, blinking to make his eyes adjust faster. He'd just gotten out of an intense performance schedule, and granted, Gunther had never been on a car ride that lasted more than a couple of hours, so both accounts were probably easily explained.
"Nice place," Phillip said, cocking an eyebrow at the three stories of Tudor mansion in front of him. Gunther whined up at him, questioning, and Phillip nodded, patting his head. "Yeah, sure. Go play." A moment later and the dog was gone from his side, shooting off across the lawn in pursuit of a distant rabbit. He tilted his head back at the limo driver, a nondescript, curt fellow of forced politeness. "Will anyone mind if he...?"
"I doubt it. The entrance is there around the back of the house, sir, have a pleasant evening."
"Yeah," Phillip agreed, mouth curving down as he watched his transportation turn around and drive away. Probably a good explanation for that, too. Not like there's enough room for fifteen limos in the gravel parking area out front. There's probably a garage somewhere out of sight on the grounds. Phillip sighed, smirking to himself, and called out for Gunther. "Rich people are crazy," he confided, when the dog returned to his side.
Striding around the side of the house, Phillip whistled in admiration as he passed through the two-story wooden gates that opened on a cobblestone courtyard. The place was eerily empty, the grounds completely silent, but three colorful helium balloons bobbed next to an open door across the courtyard, falsely cheerful indications of a nonexistent party.
"Do you suppose we're early?" he asked the dog, with the casual tone of a bachelor long accustomed to having one-sided conversations. Gunther eyed the courtyard and whined, trotting obediently after him.
The Great Hall was impressive, but empty, tall ceilings arching above a second-floor balcony, comfortable couches with an antique feel and time-worn hunting trophies on the wall.
"Hello?" Phillip called, repeating himself a few times, projecting the shout as loud as he could manage. It echoed off the tall ceiling, but garnered no response. No muffled rustling, no distant openings or shuttings of doors. Silence. The mansion was empty.
"Maybe we're very early," Phillip suggested, though the explanation sounded weak. Still, it wasn't any more likely that he'd intentionally been dropped off at a huge mansion in the middle of nowhere and then abandoned, for no reason, all alone. "Very early."
The coffee table in the center of the room held an array of white envelopes, which looked like a good sign, and he crossed to sit on the couch, opening the envelope with his name on it. Inside he found a brass key with the a small tag attached, bearing the label "Princess."
"Princess," Phillip repeated, eyebrows raising, opening the attached papers. He found a rough map of the house, with one room on the second floor highlighted, and a letter.
Dear Phillip,
Welcome to Lockwood Manor! We do hope you will enjoy your stay. Your room assignment is going to be the Princess Suite. It's a lovely room, really, just up these stairs. A tower room, as well. Aren't you lucky! Now is probably as good a time as any to inform you that your stay here is likely to be a wee bit longer than expected, but maybe you'd already found that out from your fellow guests.
Your host is going to be running just a little bit late tonight, but never fear! There are hors d'oeuvres in the dining room and plenty of food laid out in the kitchen, please help yourself if you get hungry. The wine cellar is just downstairs, we're confident that you'll be able to find it.
Enjoy!
Sincerely,
Your Keepers.
"Our keepers," Phillip echoed, folding the letter again. "Well, that can't be a good sign."