1887/Manor Meeting

Manor Meeting
Date of Scene:	29 August 2016
Location:	Plot Room #1
Synopsis:	Lacrima and Jiaying talk about Sora, Rituals, Hot Pants.
Cast of Characters:	Norie Okana, Jiaying Maki

---

Norie Okana has posed:
The mansion that the two explored overnight still stands. There's some small small fire damage. The rooms stand mostly intact. Someone (Or something.) has gone through and begun cleaning the manor. Jiaying will find the main hallways are cleaner, slightly restored.

She'll also notice the creepy weird faceless humanoid-like mahou shoujo like constructs walking around the main hallway. There's three of them. They seem to ignore Jiaying--- most likely because Lacrima said to do so. Lacrima would had warned Jiaying about 'guards'.

Lacrima herself is in that ritual room with the chinese-like symbols and circle as she taps her chin a bit.

There's some sort of weird thumming computer system in the corner now. There's some sort of weird domed sensors placed at each upper ceiling corner of the room. It appears to be measuring things.

To be honest. Lacrima doesn't even understand what it's measuring. She's just been told 'give these readings to someone who can anaylze them later'.

She sighs a bit and taps her bottom chin.

"I wonder what this room was used for..."

Jiaying Maki has posed:
Jiaying Maki walks through these halls, a cloth held over her nose as the smell of burnt house and old is nearing overwhelming now that she's not distracted with watching for ghosts, owners and killer cats. The faceless sentries get a weird look from her and she gives them a wide pass. Something uncanny about them, unlikeable kind of thing. "Norie!?" She calls out, trying to find out where she's at.

Behind her, are a pair of ghosts, lingering in her shadows, though Meifeng gets in the face of one of the sentinels and makes faces at it before catching back up to Jia. She eventually finds Norie and sticks her head in, half wondering what's going on. "Hi." she offers cheerfully.

Norie Okana has posed:
The guards don't respond. They patrol. They're really boring and more like magical robots. They're probably not very fun for Meifing to terrorize or troll with no response.

"Hi." she says as she turns back to the room.

"What do you think this room was used for?" she asks to her specficially as she taps her chin.

"Are you okay?" she asks. "After the other day?" she asks curiously.

Jiaying Maki has posed:
Jiaying Maki seems marginally happier than she did earlier. Then again, she's wearing a strappy top for the first time in a while, showing off a lack of bandages. "Three of the symbols had to do with cats, a few with control. They're using sloppy looking Chinese- I'm guessing it's the source of the cat. Or someone playing a really strange game of twister."

She finds a place to sit down, or if the bed's still there she just flops back against it. "How long have you been at this Norie?" She kind of puts that last question off for a little while. Eventually she says, "You know I ignored the signs, I ignored the way both of you were acting- I mean she was really guilty. I should have known- I should have caught it earlier." Sprawling out across the bed, enjoying resting her arms above her head briefly, "I don't know what to do. She went home like nothing happened after the prison. I want to tell someone, but I don't want to tlel anyone in case they hurt her."

Norie Okana has posed:
Lacrima head tilts. "Probably something to do with the cat then." she says as she nods a bit. She taps her chin a bit. "Hrmmm.. So it's a summoning or a control or a binding circle or something." she mutters.

She looks across the hall to the bedroom that Jia flops in on and she walks across the hallway--- the guard sort of marches behind as she closes the door.

"'Been at this'." she says softly. "What do you mean?" she asks. "Studying this place. Or. Being a monster." she says dryly.

"That's how it used to be for me- you go out. You drain people because you need to- or feel you need to. Then you come back and try to pretend to be human as much as you can until you need to do it again." she says flatly.

Jiaying Maki has posed:
Jiaying Maki rolls over on the bed and crawls over to the edge. "I want a bed I think. So soft." She may or may not be trying to keep the subject somewhat loose. "Maybe. The Chinese isn't quite right and Kanji's all borrowed Hanzi. Unless it's really ancient style and just looks funny. But those are more pictographs at that point."

"I meant been at the magical dolls that I want to blow up because-they're-creepy, the thingies on the roof and staring at the circle. You've said how long you've been a goo filled monster." What, if she's going to joke, so is Jia.

Then the last part gets a wince from her. Grabbing a pillow, she tugs it under her chin and props herself up while watching Norie. "So you think she needs to draing things by now? Or is she just convinced she needs to." There's a light tapping of her fingers, just visible. "I almost tried to find a way to imbue positive energy into her door handle wihtout being caught. I don't like that little voice that says to get them back. I've had to ignore it a few times now."

Norie Okana has posed:
Lacrima mmmms. "Well." she says. "I've had a crew redo the hallways downstairs. Upstairs is tommrow. Then the rooms-- lower. Upper." she says. "I've been studying this since... the day after?" she asks. "I only got the okay to borrow some equipment and guards to keep people off the premises recently." she says.

"Oh. These are. Things Riventon-san made to act as guards and security and things like that." she says. "They're not 'people'- they're constructs. They just follow orders. Don't mind them or give them reason to bother you." she says.

She shrugs. "I don't know." she says. "She obviously thinks she needs to punish people- which seems to involve draining or cursing them." she says. "I'm finding Dark Energy seems to effect everyone differently. It likes to dull positive emotions and thoughts while expressing the negative ones and it likes to feed off that- turning it into power. Riventon explained to me."

She shrugs. "The desire for justice and attacking people already being 'punished' suggests she may be powering herself off vengence or wrath or something like that."

"That is full conjecture. I don't actually know many specifics. I'm probably wrong." she says.

Jiaying Maki has posed:
Jiaying Maki watches the door while she says, "Those things are creepy and I wouldn't be surprised if they weren't recording everything they see. Creepy creepy." The fact that she's got a 'crew' working means she's also somehow claimed the house in Jia's head. Then she asks, "Do you really get paid that well?" Sounding incredulous. Especially since she's been spending time in a living room on a futon with that much money.

Back to the important subject though. "She thinks she's doing something great- that she'll save the world in the end. I don't know if it's vengeance. I think it's justice taken to the extreme. The kind of thing that makes those weird vigilantes in comics, you know?"

She scowls and says, "Maybe wrath maybe. The cape people were discussing her too. By the way, it's a very bad sign that she's attacking friends and her date." She says the last one with same way she'd describe grabbing and throwing something hot.

Norie Okana has posed:
Lacrima blinks. "Cape people. Do you mean Kunzite?" she asks with a frown. She head tilts. "Oh, it was easy to claim the property." she says matter of factly. "As I said, it'd been abandoned and the city was happy to be rid of it." she says. "Besides. All vampires must have a creepy manor and/or castle. It's in the handbook, you know." she says dryly and straight faced, though it's clear the last bit is an attempt at humor.

She purses her lips. "I'm paid well enough." she says flatly.

She turns back to matters of Shiniko quickly though. "It's possible she thinks she's doing good or deluded herself into thinking she's doing good because otherwise she confronts she's hurting people because she just wants to." she says flatly.

"So what did they say about the situation?" she asks.

Jiaying Maki has posed:
Jiaying Maki nods and says, "Yes, that was one of them there. They all had capes- which is weird even by my standards- so they're cape people." It's easier that way. "I was there last night to finally uh, take care of my back." The note that the building was abandoned and all, she asks, "Really?" at the statement that vampires need a creepy manor. "I'm calling the Belmonts first things first if you're going with that joke."

The flat response gets a shrug and she says, "Well, enough for a car- that you never mentioned. I /walk/ everywhere!" she sounds like she's still teasing. She likes walking.

She buries her face behind the pillow, talking with some careful maneuvering to actually be heard. "They think it's bad that she's attacking friends, that hse can go to the dusk zone freely and that she's far enough gone to attack you and me. Not that I said it that clearly."

Norie Okana has posed:
Lacrima frowns. "Not my car. Company car." she says flatly. "I wasn't at the prison responding to the attack initally. I was there on other bussiness. A rumored vampire attack that was not me. If there's somebody else like me, I wanted to meet them. Sadly. It was just some crazy person." she says.

"It was just timing on my part." she says.

She head tilts. "You got yourself taken care of? Good." she says silently. "...No scarring, right, then?" she asks.

Jiaying Maki has posed:
Jiaying Maki watches Lacrima and says, "Uh huh, sure it wasn't your car. I bet it even hard AC!" She reaches back and touches her shoulder and says, "It uh, I don't think it left a scar. I haven't had the heart to look. I don't think so though."

Then she sits up and holds the pillow in a hug, her chin still resting on it.

"What are we going to do about Sora. You don't want her being like you. I don't want her tripping into that and I think... you were right in saying there's two personalities, I don't want her posessed. Could we maybe burn, break or seal whatever's posessing her? I mean she's low enough power, maybe if I put a seal up in a room then kicked her out the door, she'd go through, but the whatever wouldn't?"

Norie Okana has posed:
Lacrima frowns. "I'll tell you that the idea of widespread attacks by these things she's unleased--- right."

"So those raven shadows are going around attacking people." she says.

"The fact there's so many of these Shadow Ravens may be proof she isn't as weak as you think she is." she says flatly.

She frowns. "I dunno what to do about Sora." she says. "I literarly can't help you with the positive energy aspect of any plans. It's poison to me. You know that-- and Dark Energy vs. Dark Energy is just a battle of who's willing to sink deeper into thier negative emotions to outdo the other." she mutters. "Which isn't good for Sora."

Jiaying Maki has posed:
Jiaying Maki scowls at the fact that the ravens are attacking people. "So- I'm going to work on- she doesn't feel them anymore. I need to stop them anyway. Maybe I can send the two ghosts out at nights to chase them down. Or I can try and see how they're made?"

She's clearly just trying to stop the spread of damage at this point since she's sure that eventually, Sora's name is going to come out of this. She blinks a few times then hides her face in the pillow again.

"You know things that I don't, you know what might work better than I do and most importantly, you're probably better at being able to find her than I am. I doubt texting her with, 'Hey where u at' will work anymore."

Norie Okana has posed:
Lacrima frowns. "I know very little. But I'm learning still." she says. "I'm trying to make myself useful to who I work for, besides just a 'field agent'." she says. "I'm finding 'being able to exist in the dusk zone for an indefinite period and still be an intelligent.. something.' is a rare skill, so I'm using it to study things there." she says.

"Apparently, no one thought to do such a thing yet. Study the.. 'enviromental side' of the Dusk Zone like someone might study a rainforest or something like that." she says.

She frowns. "In terms of.. telling people who Shiniko or Sora is. It's probably not a good idea. That'll make people go after Sora. People like... /Kukai/ approaching her about it is going to make it way way way worse and drive her deeper into whatever she's doing most likely to escape it."

"Once again. Conjecture."

Jiaying Maki has posed:
Jiaying Maki sprawls out on the bed as she listens. "I'm stealing this bed okay?" She's not sure how she'd fit it in her room or how it would work. Or get upstairs or anything else. But she'll make it work.

"Or I need a new futon... maybe I should do that."

"So- I want to say I prefer you doing research for them than you trying to help with some random attacks. The one that cut me was offered work for your boss. It would be... less than good if you got hurt doing those jobs right?"

Hand over her eyes after, she says dryly, "Yes, that's why I haven't said it. I don't even mention my name when I say she's attacking friends, dates and probably family given the choice.- Ayana doesn't count in the last."

Norie Okana has posed:
Lacrima purses her lips. "You can have it if you want. There's other bedrooms up here with similar beds that just need cleaning like this one got." she says.

"This manor has a lot of fancy rooms. Bedrooms. A Study. A Sitting Room. I wonder why it's been abandoned." she says.

She sighs and just sits down on the bed.

"I'm only not aware of who I'm attacking if I'm 'starved'. Luckily. I haven't been that way for a good few months now." she says.

Jiaying Maki has posed:
Jiaying Maki shakes her head and says, "I wouldn't be able to get it in my room, it would take up mostof my room and it's so comfy, I don't know if I would get out of bed reliably in the morning."

Looking around the manor, she says, "The laptop was on, have you gone poking for secret rooms? Maybe they're still here. Or maybe they're dead. WooooooOoooO"

This gets Meifeng making a racket behind her, but Jia ignores it for now. She nudges Norie with her foot and sys, "I didn't say you have. She knows who she's attacking too- which is something I don't understand. She knows, she won't say why though."

Norie Okana has posed:
Lacrima frowns. "Probably because she doesn't know either, I bet. Why." she says.

"No, the person who was here in this place last is dead. Very very dead. She died 'recently' in the past few months." she says. "I know enough know after some research and looking into Eclipse Archives." she says. "But there's still things I don't know." she says.

"I'm looking to see if this place has anymore 'secrets'. But can't find any. I don't think they intended this to be permenantly home." she says. "Just a respite."

Jiaying Maki has posed:
Jiaying Maki sits up and runs her fingers through her hair, holding it in both hands. "Maybe if I confronted her she'd say it. Or I could just give her a hug and hit her with a dose of yang." This doesn't sound like a plan she'd go over though. Not really.

The fact that the prior occupant is dead gets a lok from Jia that hints she doesn't fully believe that. "That laptop was running recently and the cat was still around. Maybe someone else moved in after she died?"

She pokes the bed idly a few times. "Can you think of how we'd move a bed? I can't think of any way that isn't expensive, annoying or awkward and likely to break things." Pointing behind her, she makes a gesture, sending the librarian one way, then Meifeng the other and says, "I'll have them look around just in case. They're testing for wards more than anything else though."

Norie Okana has posed:
Lacrima shakes her head. "The laptop was most likely magically powered, considering- so it'd 'never run out'." she says. "Given it cast a spell that blew it up into fire." she says. "The cat was probably a guard left behind. Without a master." she says.

She head tilts. "I can always shove it through the Dusk Zone." she says matter of factly.

"I can't promise it comes out the otherside as a Bed Youma though." she insists. "I could always shield it. Probably."

Jiaying Maki has posed:
Jiaying Maki looks at the bed and says, "I hated that movie, the dub was so bad." Then she looks at the bed curiously. "Have you taken anything else through there- people aside- that turned into whatsits?"

Propping herself up, she looks at Lacrima to ask, "Are you going to be staying here, or at the apartment?"

Norie Okana has posed:
Lacrima speaks. "With you. For now." she says silently. "I don't think I'm ready to be alone. Honestly." she says matter of factly. "And I want this place restored before I live in it. Places still smell like must and rot." she says.

"There's a wine cellar in the basement." she says. "There's still corked bottles in it. I'm wondering if it hasn't turned to vinegar yet." she says.

Jiaying Maki has posed:
Jiaying Maki shakes her head and says, "Vinegar requires a specific... microrganism. I don't remember, but they call it a mother. It's neat!" She then looks over at Lacrima and nudges her with her foot again. "Why not use this place as a 'secret' base and just stay at the apartment. You need someone to talk to so you don't turn into Carmilla."

Sitting up, she asks, "Have you been up to the attic yet? Or raided other closets since we were both kind of looking at the dresses I noticed."

Norie Okana has posed:
Lacrima shrugs. "I need a place to study. So yeah I'm defintly gonna 'base' out of here." she says. "Actually I did raid all the closets. The only one that had anything was this room." she says. "All the others were bare, or the clothes looked like moths had a feast quite a long time ago." she says.

"This person only used a few rooms." she says. "It seems."

Jiaying Maki has posed:
Jiaying Maki throws a pillow at Lacrima, the one she had been hugging, which immediately makes her realize the problem and she chases after it. "That didn't answer my question! Are you staying at the apartment?" Then she stops. "Well, you didn't acknowledge if you'd stay at the apartment. I think contact is good for you." Beat, then she adds, "And myself probably." Definitely.

"You're not going to wear those pants right? Because I'm totally going to tease you about it if you do! The dresses were rather cute though."

Norie Okana has posed:
Lacrima frowns. "I did say I was staying at the apartment." she says. "Are you okay?" she asks. Then a pillow. Pop. She blinks once. Yeah a non-response. Not surprising.

"Huh? I'm going to try them on." she says. "Maybe Natsumi-chan might like to see me in them." she says in a deadpan tone.

"But maybe in purple..." she says quitly.

Jiaying Maki has posed:
Jiaying Maki leans back on her hands and says, "No, I'm not. I'm going to keep smiling and trying not to simultaneously break down and try to get revenge out of spite over being... betrayed." She flops back on the bed and closes her eyes. "I want to think that it's something else controlling her and she wouldn't think this way without that corruption. Because it means that she can be saved and I haven't been tricked."

"Purple would look alright. I feel bad enough wearing a qipao without bike shorts."

Norie Okana has posed:
Lacrima nods. "Well. You can stay here until I'm told you can't." she says softly. "Remember, I'm conducting research operations right now. It's why the guards are here." she says softly.

"Speaking of which I need to get back to that ritual room and finalize my notes and see if that system has finished it's scans." she says softly. Magic is weird." she says softly.

She says. "Oh right..."

"The kitchen is gutted for renovation. I don't want to talk about the old refridgerator that was there." she says. "But there's a new one and it's stocked, if you're hungry." she says pointedly. "But there's no other furinishings." she says. "And the Dining Room isn't cleaned yet." she says.

She says. "Just. Relax. I guess." she says as she begins to walk back to the Ritual room.