KazAlkemi

✨ Under Black Stars ✨

”Oh! Can you pick up doughnuts?” Annika wasn’t a big sweets person, but there was something about the doughnuts on Earth that Annika couldn’t get enough of.

The mention of being home alone didn’t even phase Annika. Jack often left for adventures or to help others, so she was used to it. Besides, Annika never felt alone or afraid in the Everdark. It was her protector as much as it was her home.

Annika quickly finished her food before she kissed her dad’s cheek. ”Okay, see you later, dad! Come on, Nochella, adventure awaits.”

Hidden Among the Shadows - A Supernatural Inspired RP

Christian chuckled while Penny walked him through fire safety, giving him the task of ensuring they didn’t light the forest on fire.

”Yes ma’am. I’ll probably stay out here for a little while longer. Good night, Penny.” Christian smiled at her and watched her walk away before he returned his attention to the fire dying down.

Christian ended up staying outside most of the night. He wandered through the campsite and the forest, getting himself familiar with the area. Instinctively, he looked for signs of the supernatural and found there were a few ghosts and lost spirits haunting the area, but they seemed to shy away from Christian. They also seemed harmless.

A couple of hours before dawn, Christian returned to the camper and teleported inside to keep from disturbing Penny. He sat down at the table after checking on Penny and settled into place.

Château de La Lune

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Rihannon Linx

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Location: Lounge/Bar/Rec Room (whatever it is)
Skills: N/A
Fit

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Rhiannon had started to walk over to the corner Lena Luna had claimed as her own when a rather heated exchange started between Lawrence and Renee. Rhi stood there, watching the chaos unfold with a slightly amused expression on their face, but if one looked closely, Rhi’s eyes had this glazed look about them. Like she was there but not really paying attention.

Rhi seemed to break out of the trance when they heard the sickening crack of bones breaking (again), followed by angry shouts. They glanced around the room to see Lawrence storming off and Renee coming to sit down in one of the vacant chairs Rhi was near. Rhiannon claimed another and watched Renee before looking at Lena and nodded at her laptop.

”What’s your take on ghost hunting?” Miguel was still in his room, likely feeling under the weather still, Rhiannon assumed, now would be a good time to do a little more digging. Rhiannon wasn’t completely sure why they couldn’t let the Miguel thing go. Maybe it was because they found that piece of information at the same time they found the info on them. It was likely someone was blackmailing them, and maybe it was the same person.

Rhiannon didn’t know of any ghost hunters, other than the ones they had met here, but maybe there was someone from their same circle. Of course, all the people that Rhi knew that Miguel knew were now in this room.

Hidden Among the Shadows - A Supernatural Inspired RP

Christian scrubbed most of the sticky confection off his hands while Penny cleaned up. He watched her work and wondered if they should set up some sort of camping rules, so that Penny wasn't doing everything.

He found his way on the ground next to Penny and looked up at the sky with her. He wondered what she could see looking up at the sky. Christian could see galaxies, other planets, and glimpses into the other side. It was something he could turn off if he desired, but most of the time, he enjoyed seeing beyond.

Penny's question brought him back to the present, and he looked at her, contemplating an answer. He really wanted to give her something specific, something easily attainable, but he couldn't decide on just one thing.

"Everything." He watched Penny for her reaction. There was so much about humans that he found fascinating, so much that he wanted to experience. He felt it would help him understand the souls he encountered better. He also hoped it would fill the emptiness he felt.

✨ Under Black Stars ✨

Annika's mouth began to water even before she walked into the kitchen. She was rewarded with rewarded with seeing that breakfast was already prepared for her. It was a bit of an odd choice for a breakfast food but for Annika it was normal. She hoped up onto a stool and immediately stuffed her face with the bread.

"Noch n I wamp to exmplor," Annika said around a mouth full of toast. She quickly swallowed and had some orange juice. "It seems like it would be a good day for it," she declared while her mouth was free of food.

If her Jack didn't want her using any powers today then exploring was probably the safer option. Like her father, she couldn't sit still--unless she was deeply immersed in a book.

Château de La Lune

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Rihannon Linx

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Location: Dining Room —> Lounge
Skills: N/A
Fit

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Once the meal concluded, Rhiannon excused themselves from the table and left the room to find a washroom before making their way to the lounge. They didn't find much point in exploring, not if the weather was turning outside.

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Rhiannon walked into the lounge, looking forward to having something a little bit stronger than wine. Rhi made their way to the bar and ordered a Yuzu Lemonade made with Empress Gin. It was a hometown favourite that Rhiannon liked to get when they were away.
After taking a healthy sip, Rhi stirred their drink with the cocktail stick before glancing around the room. Sam was standing near by, reminding Rhi of the note they found in their room. Rhi walked over and leaned into Sam’s space.

”So, have you seen many spirits in your work?” Rhi honestly didn’t know how the whole “ghost” thing worked. They were genuinely curious about it, but Rhi’s tone came across more cutting and abrasive.

Sam felt shivers run down his spine as Ralph whispered to him. Every word having invited him back, yet leaving him wanting more. Sam stood from his chair, the suddenly rise giving way to a bit of dizziness from all the wine he had drank, or we'll chugged down really. He hadn't been too good at maintaining the pace of drinking along with the courses too well. Yet he managed to walk his way over towards the lounge, wondering if he should get another drink or allow himself to sober up a smidge before his encounter with Ralph again.

As he stood there, leaning against a wall, debating between the two, a woman walked up before him and very bluntly asked him a question. Instantly shivers ran down his back again, but unlike with Ralph's words, these were cold and accusatory. He felt a bit defensive as they were spoken. Especially the use of the word “Spirits”. Not ghosts as most people referred to them, but the wider range of potentials. ”Yeah, why? Your dance studio haunted?” He tried to joke.

Rhiannon laughed and shook their head. ”Oh, no, no. I'm just wondering how you prove to your audience what you see is real. I mean horror movies are fake, right? With all the CGI and things, seems like that would be something you and other ghost hunters would have a problem with,” Rhi said, sipping their drink.

Sam thought on it for a moment before answering. ”I guess you can't. There's always going to be skeptics out there who don't believe. I started off as a skeptic, but grew to realize just how real it all is. Some fans watch for entertainment, others because they truly believe. In the end I can't convince people it's not fake, but I do show the set up and everything so that they can see there's no wires or speakers hidden around. I also usually break down videos in a separate video, responding to comments and ideas that people placed on the last Hunt. But spirits? They're very real.”

”Hmm, interesting. So, as an expert then, how can you tell if someone is faking it in their videos?”

”I don't usually go about trying to debunk others videos but…I guess if I had to, I'd check for obvious and repeated sounds. Things that sound ‘canned’ versus natural based on the environment. In a similar strain similar visual markers, like if they tried faking ghost orbs but every orb looks exactly the same or has no distinctive marker. Sometimes the reactions also happen a bit before the actual audio cue or visual cue but that's bad editing all around.”

Rhiannon sipped their drink while Sam spoke, trying to absorb the information. It made sense to them. It was almost like hacking or coding. Not quite, but almost.

”Well, that's interesting,” Rhi said, finishing their gin drink. ”If only we had decent service here. We could debunk some videos together,” Rhi smiled mischievously. ”Want a drink?”

”I've been debating that since I walked in here. Had quite a bit to drink at dinner and im sorta meeting someone in a bit…so I don't know if I should wait or…” Sam said as he shrugged sheepishly.

”That's fair, but just one drink? I didn't get a chance to talk to many people earlier,” Rhi said and ushered Sam to the bar. ”My name is Rhiannon by the way.”

Sam followed behind Rhiannon as they made their way over towards the bar. ”One drink. Gin and Tonic please?” He'd have asked for a Pimm's Cup but he doubted they carried it or knew what it was. So as simple G&T would have to suffice. ”So what do you make of all of this so far? People included.”

Rhi got the same as before, and leaned against the bar next to Sam. ”I'm not sure. I was excited before getting here, but since then. I don't, something seems off. I feel like we are on reality TV with all the strange family drama happening. You?”

Sam took a sip of his beverage. ”I'm liking it so far. Staff is extremely nice and helpful, families a bit odd but what family isn't? And some of the guests aren't too bad.”

Rhiannon shrugged. ”Ya, I suppose. A little bit more eccentric than I'm used to, but I guess that's what happens when you're loaded.”

Sam laughed, raising his glass to cheers to that. If she hadn't said it he would have. He always figured the more money people had the more Eccentric they would be. ”Got a variety of people here too. Dancers, doctors, pilots, and investigators. Even a magician should the festivities dull down.” He said with a chuckle.

”A very interesting mix of people. But I guess that's why this award is a general achievement of excellence thing. Still, I hope I win,” Rhi declared, not at all ashamed to admit their ambition.

Sam bit his bottom lip. He wanted to say he hoped she did too, but he also wanted to win himself. So he just sipped at his drink in silence. ”Suppose everyone here would kill to win this award. Its a good amount of money to help jump-start a career. To truly make a name for oneself.”

Rhiannon sighed wistfully. ”You have no idea.” Although, perhaps Sam did. Rhiannon glanced over at Sam and did something they never did, especially with strangers. Maybe it was the alcohol.

”Or maybe you did, if you came from a rough beginning like I did.”

”Maybe I did what?” Sam asked, confusion written all over his face.

Rhiannon looked at Sam, bewildered that he didn't understand. Rhi laughed and shook their head.

”Nevermind. Go find that friend of yours,” Rhi said and asked for a glass of water. Perhaps that was a sign it was time to sober up.

”Riiiiight… I'll see you around then.” Sam said before finger gunning towards Rhi as he walked away with his drink.

Hidden Among the Shadows - A Supernatural Inspired RP

Christian happily took the finished s’more from Penny. He inspected the creation closely while Penny worked on cooking more marshmallows for herself. He tried to focus on what she was doing, so he understood the technique for next time, but he was more preoccupied with tasting.
The s’more was rather messy. When Christian bit into it, the graham crackers crumbled slightly, and he got some of the goo and chocolate on his fingers. However, Christian was surprised that he could actually taste it. It must have something to do with the high sugar content. Out of the foods he had had so far, only the ones with high sugar seemed to tickle his taste buds.

Christian finished his s’more rather quickly, licking his fingers to get every last bit of marshmallow and chocolate off his fingers. He was just finishing when Penny finally got to enjoy hers.

He looked over at her and chuckled, wondering if he looked like a disaster like she did. ”I can definitely tell,” he teased her. ”You’ve gotten some on your face.”

✨ Under Black Stars ✨

"Thanks, dad." You're a good teacher... She thought about saying it as she snuggled down into her bed after drinking the tea that waited for her, but did it matter? Jack knew he was a good teacher. Probably the best one, and Annika was going to do her best to learn every lesson and become better.

It was the whole point, wasn't it? To surpass her father and learn the things he learned later. Things that would have saved him or others.

Annika drifted back to sleep after she finished her tea, making her wonder if her father had put something in it. Annika slept soundly, dreaming only of floating chairs, cats, and books. She had the strange impression she was in Wonderland when she woke the following day, Nochella pawing at her.

"Mmm, I'm awake, I'm awake." She scratched the cat's head and pulled them in close for a morning kiss before releasing them. Annika sat up and stretched. Feeling more awake, she looked at the cat and smiled. "Should we find the rabbit hole today?" she asked, feeling adventurous after nearly twenty-four hours of sleeping.

Annika tossed off her covers and pulled on slippers before she left her room and padded down the hallway---straight into the kitchen. Annika paused for a moment before she set about making something for her breakfast.

The kitchen wasn't normally readily available for her. It shifted and moved often, but clearly the house wanted her to go on an adventure today as well. Annika sat, drinking her juice and eating her eggs, trying to decide if that was a good thing or not.

Hidden Among the Shadows - A Supernatural Inspired RP

”I cashed in some favours and made deals with a few others,” Christian said vaguely. He was glad to do this for Penny and would do it a hundred times more if it were required. Part of her training would be learning to make some of the items in the duffle bag on her own, or making the connections needed to obtain specific supplies, but this would set her up for a while.

Christian blushed when Penny kissed his cheek. Even after she pulled away, the area tingled and felt warm. He resisted the urge to touch his cheek and shoved his hands into his pockets.

”It was no trouble,” he insisted. ”You need to be ready to take on the supernatural world, and I won’t always be around. These items will keep you safe when I can’t.” He watched her prepare the supplies needed to make the dessert, conscious of her every movement and every breath. Even after Penny started the fire and sat down, Christian continued to watch her from a distance. It wasn’t until Penny talked about the art of marshmallow cooking that Christian moved to join her by the fire.

Christian quickly realized he was horrible at the task. He burnt two marshmallows quickly, and on the third attempt, the white, round confection fell into the fire. Christian stared at the coals that burned any last remnants of the gooey substance away before he looked at Penny and handed her his stick.

”Help.”

Château de La Lune

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Rihannon Linx

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Location: Dining Room
Skills: N/A
Fit

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”Two ghost hunters? Well, that’s interesting,” Rhiannon mused before listening in to the conversation Sam started to have with Millicent. A magician piqued Rhi’s interest. A magician could sneak into someone’s room and leave incriminating evidence. Rhi watched Millicent closely, trying to get a vibe check from them.

Rhiannon listened to Sam’s fears and finished their wine before the next course. They chuckled slightly and shook their head. ”It’s all about making the audience think your mistake was intentional. The real trick, I would think, is convincing your audience that what you do is real. I mean… There are a lot of ways you could fake paranormal phenomena, performing on stage, though? Can’t really fake that.” Rhi figured if they couldn’t talk to Miguel about faking it, maybe they could talk to Sam about it.