You all follow the driver away from the car, your footsteps crunching in the gravel beneath you. It only takes a few minutes until you are all climbing the small staircase that leads to the yard directly in front of the Manor, which rests on its own little balcony separate from the rest of the grounds. The building itself towers over you, blocking out the sun setting behind it, although the decorative lamps and lights leading the way to the front entrance give more than enough light.

As the group nears the large archway in the center of the mansion, four figures come into sight, all but one standing and motioning in welcome: The younger of the two males at the front, leading the pack; the elder, sitting in a wheelchair just a foot behind him; a woman with a charming smile hovering between the two; and the female standing a few feet away from them whose expression was unreadable, though hardly threatening. All four are dressed sharply, as if they could have just stepped out of a catalogue. Four pairs of eyes examine you all as the driver leads you to a halt before them, then goes to take his place beside the woman standing a little away from the other three.

"Welcome!" booms out the younger male as he throws his arms out wide in greeting, "Welcome, welcome! How happy we all are to finally meet our new guests!" Standing at a height of 6'1", his chipper attitude seems at odds with his appearance. He smiles, large and genuinely enthused, as he steps forward and reaches out a hand to each of you in turn. His grip is firm but amiable as he shakes your hands, then steps back into place and continues. His accent is noticeable, but not incomprehensible. "Yes, yes, welcome! I hope you all know by now that this," he gestures around him to the house and the grounds, "is the Woll Manor." He shoves one hand into his pants pocket casually while the other motions to himself. "My name is David Woll, and I'm head-honcho of this lovely estate."

The older man beside him gives a little joking cough then, and David chuckles and goes over to lightly clap a hand on his shoulder. "Of course, this old fart still has some say in matters. Everyone, this is my father, Liam. Previous owner of the Manor. And this here is my younger sister, Nathalie." David gestures to the woman on Liam's other side, and she wiggles her fingers at you all in a flirtatious wave. Nat is a whole head shorter than her sibling, and although she has yet to say a word, her presence fills the sphere just as much as her male counterpart.

David then goes to the two standing behind the family, jerking his thumb back to them. "You've all already met Felix - I hope he didn't give you any trouble on the way here. He's the man to go to if you've a need." The driver, around the same height as David, finally breaks his stoic streak and flashes a shy grin, reaching up with a hand to tilt the brim of his cap politely. 

"And this," Dave gestures to the woman beside Felix, "is my angel in flesh." Beaming, he swings an arm around the woman's waist and pulls her to him. She laughs under her breath, fixing black, thick-rimmed glasses on her face to hide the tinge of pink that is creeping onto her cheeks. "Ingrid Olson: the legend herself. Best secretary in the world, probably. I believe you should all recognize her. Er, or at least, her handwriting. She was the one that wrote all of your invitations." Ingrid nods her head in greeting to the group at large, her gaze lingering on Ericka for a second longer before she turns her attention back to David, who comes back to the head of the group.

"Well, I think that's it for introductions," David says, and he claps his hands together before pointing back towards the entrance. "Let's all head inside, shall we?" Gesturing for you all to follow, he strides through the two open front doors, his sister wheeling their father along behind him. Felix bows his head to inform you all that you should follow behind the family, so that he and Ingrid brought up the rear.

Upon entering, the group immediately finds itself in a massive entrance hall, and above your head hands a massive, glowing crystal chandelier. The floors and walls are a gorgeous ivory and golden marble, polished enough so that it might have been easy to think that they were glowing, as well. Your footsteps echo throughout the room, and only when the group stops again does David speak up. Turning to face you all, he says, "Soo, we are having a ball tonight, as a celebration of you all joining us here at Woll Manor." He pauses, a smug smile on his face as he watches his guests drink this surprise in. "Yes, it's going to be just wonderful. Everyone will be dressed to the nines, the band will be swinging, and the drinks will be free, of course." David chuckles and winks playfully, then points to his left. 

"It will be held tonight in the Great Hall, through those doors. They'll be open at 8 o'clock sharp, so please don't be tardy to your own welcoming party. In fact, in order to entice people to come early, we've set up a cocktail hour right here in the Entrance Hall, to begin at 7." Looking satisfied, David flashes another wide smile and checks the watch on his wrist. "It is currently 4:26 PM. That should give you all enough time to clean up and pull out those suits and gowns, yeah?" He glances over the group towards Ingrid, who nods at him before he turns back to you. "Alright then, I'm going to hand this show over to my girl, who'll give you a little rundown of the Manor. I've got some pre-party preparations to attend to, so I hope you'll excuse me. I look forward to seeing you all at your best." And with another warm smile, David leads Nathalie and their father away towards the elevator, into which they disappear.

Ingrid steps forward now and clears her throat, adjusting the glasses on her face once more as she holds her hands behind her. Felix hangs back and merely watches, running a hand through his hair after having removed his cap. "Hello, everyone," she begins awkwardly, and you're surprised to hear that her accent is French. "Again, welcome to the Manor. We are all so happy to have you." She offers a quick smile before pressing on. "This is the Ground Floor. There are four floors total within the Manor, including this one. All of your rooms are on the second floor," she makes a motion towards the two spiral staircases, "which are accessible through either staircase. Unfortunately, the elevator is only to be used by family and staff, so you'll have to bear with a bit of exercise for the next two weeks." She grins almost apologetically at her joke, then goes on.

"The numbers on the keychains that you had all received with your key correspond with the numbers of your rooms. You will find that all of your belongings have already been sent up ahead of you." Taking a step or two back so that she was again beside Felix, she tilts her head slightly towards the stairs and clasps her hands together. "And of course, please feel free to make yourselves at home. We'll see you all later, in the Hall. I am sure you will all look stunning."

She and Felix watch you all as you traipse upstairs to find your respective rooms.
---
As you all clamber up the stairs to the second floor, the oddity of just how quiet the entire house seems to be settles in. You might have expected to see maids and stewards rushing around, readying the Manor for the party, perhaps stealing glances at their new patrons as they hurried past. But the mansion seemed to be strangely empty. Perhaps the house was just so big that they might have just been in another part preparing for the festivities, and you just hadn't heard them. Regardless, you push this observation out of your mind as you arrive in front of your room.

Slipping the key into the knob, you unlock the door and head inside, closing it behind you. The room is simply amazing, very large and luxurious, comprised of a bedroom, private bathroom, and a living room, in which you are currently standing. There is a little square box on the wall beside the door that you understand serves as an intercom, which you may use to call the kitchens, if you're so inclined. You see that your luggage has been deposited just on the inside of the door, safe and untouched. 

As you step further inside and scrutinize the room, you realize something. Is it a coincidence that the room seems to be so tailored to your taste? Are you so overwhelmed by the grandeur of the Manor that you just think this is your dream room? Maybe not... It looked as if you yourself (or at least, a more expensive version of yourself) had come and chosen the furniture and its arrangement.

Walking into the bedroom, you spot a basket full of your favorite snacks waiting for you atop the bedspread with a little notecard that says, "Welcome, ______!" Beside the card, there is a pamphlet of a map of the manor, only showing the rooms accessible to you, such as the halls, lounges, cinema, library, and backyard.

You then proceed to do whatever you wanted and/or needed to do in order to get ready for the big celebration.
----
You arrive in the Entrance Hall, which is now positively filled with chattering people, clinking their glasses and laughing about who knew what. By now, the sky outside of the large windows at the front of the Manor is dark. Waiters and waitresses were buzzing around with platters, offering food as the celebrity-esque guests wait for the Grand Hall to open. Everyone and everything looks absolutely beautiful, and you find that you are interrupted from your staring by a waiter. 

"Excuse me, mam/sir, would you like anything to drink?"