"You wouldn't happen to know the shortcut to the mistress' chambers would you?". It was worth a shot. What kind of enchanted mansion didn't have hidden passageways?

She was young, like the rest of them, even matching in the mousy brown hair pulled back into a loose braid. Her big brown eyes set against the hulking man, a crinkle rose in her brow. She could get the whip for this, if it came to it ... if she survived ... and if she didn't... well... Without any words, the girl nodded and headed back towards the guest quarters. She led him to the grand hallway where they had all once stood, even his door was still ajar, the pitter patter of rain drops echoed through the void that was this side of the cottage. 

On the wall, just across from one of the doors was an odd tapestry. It was gold and gaudy just like the rest of them, but there was a pattern within the cloth. The girl waved her hand over the tapestry and like magic, a door knob appeared. From the folds of her dress, she pulled a key and quickly unlocked the door. Stairs led down to a dank and narrow hallway and a rotting stench seeped from every shadowy corner. Yanking a torch from the wall, she handed it to him along with the key. "This will lead you directly to her room, this key will give you access to anything you need. She must be stopped. Now go!"

[center]~~~~~ * ~~~~~ [/center]

She wasn't ready for the blow to the wall, despite his warning to step aside, and she clearly wasn't ready for the power in his swing as the wall collapsed beneath the force of the punch. Stone and wood splintered everywhere and the floor grumbled beneath her feet. Such a movement might have easily knocked her into the shadow realm. It had indeed become that easy for such a thing to happen. But she didn't. It was her chance at escape, but there was something inside her edging her to stay. She wanted desperately to see them all, tell them all to leave now. This was not their battle, and only more blood would be shed should they get involved. She didn't have much time to think about anything thought. A loud swing knocked at the door was her cue to leave, and so she did. Quickly scaling the stone siding of the building, she made her way back down to the muddy pavement below. 

Curses slipped from her mouth as she trudged through the rain, rounding the side of the house to the front. And then she felt him. [color=darkseagreen][i]"That dirty rat!"[/i][/color], she spat, [color=darkseagreen]"He could've at least told me .... "[/color] But the more she thought about it, the more she understood. She let out a heavy sigh before tracing his steps into the cottage. [color=darkseagreen]"May the gods see me struck down before he lays a hand on any one of them ... before this gets too out of hand"[/color]