acrookedchild: (He found a crooked sixpence)
Abigail Widdowson ([personal profile] acrookedchild) wrote in [community profile] undergrounds2015-07-01 07:21 am

Stroke of Midnight [OPEN]

Miss Abigail Widdowson cordially invites you to Geap Manor on Wednesday, July 1st at 19:00.

Food, drinks, and music will be provided.

All are welcome, but individuals are to be aware that any hostilities during the evening's festivities will not be tolerated.


It is the first time in at least a generation that the doors of Geap Manor have been opened to the general population. Or, at least, as general as the supernatural community could be considered. Some invitiations were made personally, but most were formally sent to the higher ranking members of the various factions.

Dinner is announced precisely at 19:30. The small, intimate eating area for the family has been turned into a buffet room. The caterers Abigail hired have obviously been paid well to make sure there is something for everyone. Rich meat dishes, hearty vegetarian dishes, light fish dishes, plenty of accompaniments and finger food. There is also plenty of fairly fresh blood for vampires. For the others, there are wines, water, and tea available.

The grand dining room has had its large table removed, replaced, instead, by small tables that can comfortably hold four. They can, of course, be pushed together to allow for more room.

The ballroom is open to the guests, and the DJ has also been highly paid to make sure the music played is precisely to the hostess's tastes. There is plenty of modern music, good for dancing, as well as older classics. However, interspersed are classical pieces meant for waltzes and foxtrots and other such ballroom dances.

In the sitting room is a drink cart with wine, tea, water, and blood. Chairs and divans are available, as the room is a quiet place, a little away from the ballroom, so conversation can be had with ease. There is an unlit fireplace, and a portrait of Abigail a few years younger than she is now hangs above it.

Most of the rest of the house is locked. One can wander the hallways, but it may prove ultimately fruitless. One who simply walks up the stairways will find the walls of each lined with the Widdowson family portraits of every generation, starting with one of a ten-year-old Abby, her parents, and her six-year-old brother. As one takes in all the paintings, a pattern presents itself. Every Widdowson woman featured is pale, thin, and blonde.

The grounds are beautifully maintained and fenced in by wrought iron on top of stone. A very traditional look for such an imposing manor. On the path from the street to the house, there's little remarkable, save the knocker on the door. Behind the house, however, if one ventures away, one might get the keen sense of something from inside the house watching, waiting, and hungering. On the ground floor, the locked rooms are mostly unremarkable, save for the study at the back of the house. Linger too long near there, and one might hear a sound coming in a pattering set. It isn't a knock against the door, no. Instead, it is the sound of something hitting the wall. If someone were to force their way into the nursery on the second floor or the attic several stories up... Well. They likely won't be coming back to the party. Or to anything.

Wandering, of course, isn't a suggested enterprise. The old house doesn't like people poking around and trying to find its secrets.


(Everyone who has at least a familiarity with the supernatural is welcome, as the invitations were distributed widely. Mingle, make your own top comments, enjoy the food, etc!)
emotioneater: (Let me explain)

[personal profile] emotioneater 2015-07-02 01:56 am (UTC)(link)
"Never let 'em see you sweat. This crowd can smell fear." Literally, in the case of the vampires and werewolves. He was immensely proud of Abigail and standing up for what she believed in. At the same time, now was the time to begin the worrying game. She was going to be up in a David-versus-Goliath situation with the covens of Circle Daybreak. He hardly needed to mention that to her. She could spend tomorrow and every day after that looking over her shoulder. Tonight was a night for celebration.

"Islington's decided t'remain neutral on this. I think Millicent is afraid of losing the support of the Night Council if the nest tosses their hat into the arena." His mouth twisted in a crooked line. He clearly didn't agree with the Duchess' ideas. "As for me, I'll do what I please."
emotioneater: (Like a puppy)

[personal profile] emotioneater 2015-07-02 02:25 am (UTC)(link)
"Wouldn't have missed it for the world. I've got a soft spot when it comes t'supporting causes that look like they're impossible from the outside. It's how I ended up the way I am." He wouldn't tell her the story of how he'd ended up a vampire right here and now with so many people around. Maybe some other time when they were alone and he could be sure that he could trust her completely.
emotioneater: (Head and shoulders)

[personal profile] emotioneater 2015-07-02 03:36 am (UTC)(link)
"People tend t'respect the rules of neutrality, especially when it's in someone's home." It stemmed from the time when breaking bread at someone's table meant that they were under the protection of hospitality until they had left the home. "Just come find me if someone starts anythin'. I make an excellent bouncer." A ridiculously tiny bouncer, but he's got the vampire strength to back him up.
emotioneater: (Different)

[personal profile] emotioneater 2015-07-02 04:15 am (UTC)(link)
"The house?" He echoes. He glances around as if something might be happening right at that very moment. The old place has an austere and slightly oppressive air, but he can't sense anything out of the ordinary. "What's wrong with the house?"
emotioneater: (Really two-hundred and thirty four)

[personal profile] emotioneater 2015-07-02 07:22 am (UTC)(link)
Cooper looks from side to side, half-expecting the carpet to jerk out from under his feet and a hole to appear in the floor to swallow him whole. She couldn't have had a nice, normal house, oh no. It had to be a creepy, possibly sentient house.

He eyes Abigail, trying to figure out how serious she is. "Note to self: Don't wander around the house."
emotioneater: (Uh...)

[personal profile] emotioneater 2015-07-02 08:21 am (UTC)(link)
"I hope so. Send a search party for me if I disappear for more than an hour at some point during the night." He's quite serious about that. Vampires are used to being on top of the food chain. It's an unnerving experience to be on the other side of the equation.
emotioneater: (Default)

[personal profile] emotioneater 2015-07-06 07:26 am (UTC)(link)
"I'll keep that in mind," he says quietly. Glancing around at the people still waiting to talk to the young woman, he gives her a polite tilt of the head. "I think I've proven myself a distraction for long enough. I'll let you get back t'playing the gracious hostess."