Private Tales The Grimere Manshion

[Nidraak]

Act 1: The Mansion. Urchin 's quest

At the edge of grimere, an old village belonging to an old noble bloodline stood an even older villa, abandoned for as long as most people imagined.
From its appearance alone, it was clear that its architecture was severely antiquated and the building was some two stories tall, featuring a large veranda in its south-eastern corner.

All the windows were bolted shut and barred with planks... all windows but one.
There, an outset window on the southern side appeared to be hanging open, if only just slightly, clapping against its wooden frame every time the wind passed by. A small person could easily inch themselves inside if they wanted to.

Well... nobody was looking, and that one window was beckoning in such a welcoming way. What harm could it even be to just take a brief step inside?
Certainly, there were souvenirs to take from that place. Whatever that old-borne family left behind.
Well, only if one seizes the opportunity to get them.

 

[Urchin]

"Nah, honest, it's legit!" Urchin assured Charity. "Dun nobody never go near the place 'cos the villagers say it's 'aunted an' all. Gotta 'ave all kinds o' goodies inside! Portraits an' statues an' silverare an' that. All the stuff what rich folks got. An' the best part is, it ain't even stealin'! All the folks what lived there is dead, so the stuff dun belong ta nobody. We could walk right outta there with a big old sack o' swag in each 'and, an' ain't nobody gonna call the guards on us, 'cos it ain't their loot. It's the perfect job an' ain't nuthin' ta get in our way... 'Cept maybe ghosts," the lad joked, but of course he wasn't afraid of that at all. The boy didn't believe in ghosts.

As he scouted around the perimeter of the old, abandoned villa, he was pleased to say that all the grass and weeds were completely overgrown, which meant the place really was completely abandoned. Not a soul to disturb them. Unfortunately, it looked like the place had been boarded up tight. He should really have planned for this job better and bought an axe or something. Luckily, he eventually found a window that not only wasn't bolted up, but was open, with just enough room for a little guy like him to squeeze through. He wouldn't even have to break it! What kind of idiot had missed that?

"Hey, Charity, gimmie a leg up, will ya? Reckon I could squeeze through that gap. Then I could open it up an' pull ya in."

 

[Charity Briarthorne]

Charity had once again been roped into another one of Urchin's "jobs". She had been at the Ravens Club when the young lad burst through the front door shouting excitedly about an old abandoned house. She didn't even have a chance to ask him what he was talking about, befofe he grabbed her hand and dragged her outside and down the street.

She held onto his hand tightly as he led her out of the city to an rundown village. Thay followed a dirt road up to a large villa. "You sure about this, kid? Looks kinda... haunted." Charity squeezed Urchins hard harder. Though she would never openly admit it, she found places like this extremely unsettling.

Charity lifted Urchin up to squeeze though a window and followed him through. Whoever had lived here must have been super rich. Even through a thick layer of dust, everything in the room spoke of luxury. She grabbed Urchins had again as they began to explore the house.

Urchin
Nidraak

 

[Nidraak]

Charity Briarthorne Urchin
An intellectual would call this room a Parlour.
In its day it might have been a room of prestige, now it was just a room of filth and despair.


As charity was the last to pass through the window, it slammed itself shut and no budge or hit with the fist would ever pry it open again.

Urchin going first in would be met with a small obstacle of a pink ottoman seat and just beyond it a grand music instrument. While it appeared largely intact, it was only covered in a white drape, while the ottoman seemed to be...ruined at the edges with stuffing falling out.


There were two doors on each side of the opposing wall as well as plenty of seating areas and storage space. At first glance, it was unclear what they held.

 

[Urchin]

At the slamming of the window, Urchin practically jumped out of his skin. "What the?" the lad asked himself, heading back to the closed window and attempting to open it once more. After struggling to shimmy it open again, then putting all of what little physical strength he had into trying to force the window back up, the lad eventually gave up with a sigh of annoyance. "Bugger me, bloody thing's stuck," Urchin complained, an eyebrow raised in confusion. What the hell did the window shut for? Charity hadn't closed it, and there wasn't any strong wind to disturb it. Eventually though, the boy just shrugged it off as a mild inconvenience.

"Dun worry, sure we can find some other way out," the lad assured his companion. "Or maybe we can find summin' ta smash it open. Will worry 'bout that after we loot the place." First of all, Urchin inspected the damaged ottoman seat to see if it had a hollowed out center. Sometimes ottoman seats had secret storage compartments in the middle where rich people hid their valuables.

After that he took a brief look around the room's storage spaces for any potential loot that was worth steal, ending his search when he grabbed hold of the white sheet and pulled it away, assuming there would be a nice pianoforte underneath. The Honey Pot used to have one of those to keep the patrons entertained while they waited. In his youth, Urchin learned to play a few simple tunes on the instrument and wondered if he could remember any of them.

 

[Urchin]

"So, Charity, I were thinkin'..." the lad piped up as he searched the room for trinkets. "Mr Briarthorne, 'e took ya in when you was little, right? Like, real, real little. But I were wonderin'... What were yer name before that? 'Cos 'e said 'e named ya Charity, so ya must've 'ad a different name before then. I mean, I understand if ya dun wanna talk about it none, I'm just curious, is all." Of course, there were many aspects of the boy's past that were a sore subject and he didn't particularly want to share with others, but it didn't stop him from prying into other people's lives.

 

[Nidraak]

(i guess it's just us then) Urchin ?

 

[Charity Briarthorne]

I still want in too! Kinda forgot about this thread Sorry

 

[Charity Briarthorne]

Charity stayed close to Urchin as possible while they searched the room for loot. She really didn't want to be in a spooky place such as this alone.

"So, Charity, I were thinkin'..." the lad piped up as he searched the room for trinkets. "Mr Briarthorne, 'e took ya in when you was little, right? Like, real, real little. But I were wonderin'... What were yer name before that? 'Cos 'e said 'e named ya Charity, so ya must've 'ad a different name before then. I mean, I understand if ya dun wanna talk about it none, I'm just curious, is all."

Oh thank the gods! Something to take her mind of the eerie silence around them.

"Yeah... I was pretty young... I think I was around five years old. Don't know if I had a name before that. Not one that I can remember at least... What about you? I find it hard to believe that your mother named you Urchin."

"Umm... H-Hey... Let's grab the loot and get out as quick as we can okay? This place is giving me the creeps!" Charity stood close behind Urchin and wrapped her arms around him while looking about fearfully. "So... Uh... Which door do you suppose leads out?" she asked tightening her arms around Urchin.

Urchin | Nidraak

 

[Nidraak]

Urchin The ottoman proved to not be hollow, but Urchin was greeted with a prick on the finger when rummaging through it!
The object in question was a thin and stiff wire made out of copper. It was quite bends and feet long when uncoiled.

The room was presented with three tall storage units, the first to the right was a tall and imposing bookshelf, clockwise from it on the other end of the room was a tall glass vitrine, locked. The porcelain within seemed pretty valuable though.
The third unit across the window had a counter and a floating cabinet above it. Too high for Urchin to reach.
On a quick inspection, there was nothing valuable that was quick or easy to grab from any of the three places.

Charity Briarthorne At the opposite end of the room from where they came, two intricate doors stood, one on the left end, one on the right. The left end's handle seemed more worn than the right one. Both were locked.

 

[Urchin]

"Ow!" the lad squeaked when he cut his finger on the wire, immediately bringing it to his mouth to suck on the little cut. "Bloody thing. Nuthin' worth takin' in 'ere," he said dismissively, not stopping to think that maybe the wire might come in useful some time later.

"Hmm," the lad mumbled thoughtfully as he looked around the room. Didn't seem to be much for the picking... Except maybe... "Ya reckon we could break that glass without breakin' all the stuff inside?" Perhaps it would be more prudent to search for a key first.

"Yeah... I was pretty young... I think I was around five years old. Don't know if I had a name before that. Not one that I can remember at least.

"Really?" Urchin asked, sounding a little surprised. "Ya dun remember nuthin'? Not even what yer name was?" That was really sad. Perhaps she'd just been too young to remember... Or perhaps her early childhood was so bad that her brain subconsciously blocked it out. "What 'bout yer parents? Dun ya ever wonder what 'appened. Maybe they're still alive out there somewhere."

What about you? I find it hard to believe that your mother named you Urchin."

Ah, and there was the rub. Charity was his best friend, and as such he wanted to know everything there was to know about her. And yet he couldn't offer the same in return. "Red," the boy lied easily. "Ma' called me that 'cos I 'ad a big ol' 'ead of red 'air right from the day I were born. Ain't no one called me that in years though. Zilvra dun like us usin' our real names. Says that people 'ave power over ya when they know yer name. Says that folks are tied to there names. Some kinda magic or other. Names can be used ta manipulate folks. Summin' like that. Is why we all use pretend names like Urchin an' Honey an' Mute... Not that Mute could tell us 'is name if 'e wanted to... I dun mind you knowin' my name though. Yer my best mate after all. I trust ya!" And that was the sad part. He did trust her. So, why did he still lie? ... Even he wasn't sure anymore.

"So... Uh... Which door do you suppose leads out?"

"Dunno," Urchin replied, walking over to the door on his left and trying it. He then tried it some more, jiggling the doorknob and tugging it with all his strength. "Well, not that one apparently. Is locked," he informed Charity before trying the other door. "Oh, bugger, this one's locked too!" he declared... Well, they were fucked. Window slammed shut behind them. Doors both locked. Looked like they'd have to smash their way out. Unless... That wire he found in the ottoman. "'Ey Charity, 'ow are yer lock pickin' skills?"

 

[Charity Briarthorne]

"Really?" Urchin asked, sounding a little surprised. "Ya dun remember nuthin'? Not even what yer name was?"

"Nope. Nothing. I do remember things people would call me but most of them weren't very nice. There was one young woman that always gave me food. She seemed to know me personally, though I had no idea who she was. Always called me Elise. So maybe that was the name I was given at birth... I don't know..." Charity sighed. Talking about her early life was always something she dreaded.

"Daddy and Gwen took very good care of me so I didn't really think about who my real parents might be. They still might be alive, but I honestly think my parents are dead. Or maybe I was just abandoned. Who knows."

"Red," the boy lied easily. "Ma' called me that 'cos I 'ad a big ol' 'ead of red 'air right from the day I were born.

"Sure she did runt." Charity said dismissively as she looked for the door that lead out. She wasn't sure why he would feel the need to lie to her, and it stung. The entire time Charity had known Urchin she had been completely honest with him. Why couldn't he do the same for her? "I can tell when you're lying to me ya know." she snipped, her tone a touch angrier than she had intended.

"'Ey Charity, 'ow are yer lock pickin' skills?"

Finally! Something to distract her! Charity snatched the wire out of "Red's" hand and quickly approached to two doors. The handle on the left door was worn so it was a commonly used door. Must be the way out!

It had been a while since Charity had used a piece of wire as a lockpicks. She usually had a locksmiths kit on her but Urchin had dragged her out there before she could get it. Abandoned mansion probably meant locked doors and she chastised herself for not making a stop at home first.

"So what was your mother like?" she asked Urchin as she worked on the lock.