"Oh, bother," Kyriel muttered to herself, wincing slightly at Kai's tone. Controlled or not, she could quite literally feel the emotion behind it. "I'm terribly sorry," she said, louder, sincere and earnest. "I forget sometimes that phrases like that have different meanings than what I'm used to. I meant that literally, he seems like an intriguing young man." She sighed and looked down, absently placing a hand to her head. She wanted to say something else, but was afraid of making the situation worse. Probably it was best to just keep herself in check; she really would start talking too much, otherwise, and make more of a nuisance of herself that way than with poorly-conceived comments.

At first Cin began to object to Kyriel’s notion that they wouldn’t be able to see Jaxon in person. He not only sold the man the majority of his minion-nip seeds, Cin was also considered an almost friend, an annoying little brother type thing. Something else was beginning to catch more and more of his attention. When Kyriel made mention of Kai’s yet absent sister, Cin became not only attentive but somewhat suspicious. Not everything was always as it seemed, especially this time of year in Shadowglen. Whatever prompted her to remark on the missing parties personal notions Cin must have missed amidst the muddle of his own swirling thoughts.

Dismissing the comment as it had nothing to do with him, he paused a moment and considered Kai’s theory. He wasn’t positive but as far as he could recall Jaxon hadn’t ever mentioned having an assistant. In all reality Cin’s memory wasn’t the best, so he supposed it wasn’t totally out of the question. Could demons catch colds? Absentmindedly Cin rubbed his nose while going over all the young people he knew of with quote ‘vibrant’ hair. Some of his face paint was smudged in the act but he didn’t seem to notice.

“Heh, yeah investigate. That sounds way cooler. Wana come?” Secretly he hoped someone would join him, how would he handle himself if he walked in on a dead guy. Living demons were one thing, corpses were another.

Kia chuckled and rested her head against Lucas' shoulder. "You are a bit of a workaholic, seems like most of the men in my life are to some degree," she chuckled and pulled her head away. "But you will be able to help them soon, once you get through school I know they will be more than happy to have your help. Father already says what a help you are around the office." Of course he could just say that because Kia asked him but it was difficult to tell with her father at times.

She glanced up towards the gate, seeing Kai with some other people. "Hmm looks like my brother has found some acquaintances. Shall we go make sure that they are of the friendly sort?"

[img align=right]http://i1180.photobucket.com/albums/x416/kibu_subeta/darkright.png[/img] "I know. I keep reminding myself that I just have to get through this and then I won't be completely useless." He grinned, making it a joke rather than serious self-deprecation. If Mr. Ashworth hadn't seen something in Lucas that he liked, he wouldn't be going through the trouble of helping him get better in the field. "Considering that it's Kai, I'm sure they are," Lucas assured her.

[img align=left]http://i1180.photobucket.com/albums/x416/kibu_subeta/violetleft.png[/img] "I accept your apology. However I daresay I advise you to be a bit more careful; my sister's temper burns stronger than my own and has been known to strip paint at forty paces." Kai watched Kia and Lucas as they headed up the path from town, waving them over when Kia met his gaze.

"I see you found the coffee," Kai said with a smile. The anger that had been rolling off him in quiet waves seemed almost to evaporate. His speech relaxed as well. "Some you didn't even have to make for once, eh, Lucas?"

[img align=right]http://i1180.photobucket.com/albums/x416/kibu_subeta/darkright.png[/img] Lucas laughed. "Yeah, yeah. Tease the former barista and current office gopher. I'm an easy target." He finished his coffee, chucking the empty cup into the nearby trash before settling his arm (and along with it, part of his cloak) around Kia's shoulders. "I see you've made friends, like always."

[img align=left]http://i1180.photobucket.com/albums/x416/kibu_subeta/violetleft.png[/img] "Previous acquaintances," Kai corrected easily. "Lucas, Kia; this is Cin and this is Kyriel. You may or may not remember each other," he said by way of introduction, rubbing the bridge of his nose awkwardly. "Kyriel, Cin; my sister Kia and my good friend Lucas."

Noted, Kyriel thought in response to Kai's comment about his sister, though she didn't say anything aloud. She was still a little on edge, but a genuine smile appeared on her face, and she gave a friendly wave to the new additions to their little group. "Pleased to meet you," she said. "Well, more than just in passing, and without all the masks and such, anyway." Amazing how you could come to know a group of people over the course of a few years without ever having an extended conversation with some of them. Then again, it helped that Kyriel had the ability to pick up on the feeling of a person's mind, as well as their physical appearance, and the things that went with it.

( Sorry I'm late to the party... Here's to a new avatar. Let's see how this goes.)

Kuro walked along the moonlit paths of Shadowglen to Jaxon Skelly's manor. Having little to no social skills at all, it was hard for him to want to get out of his house. He kept to himself with his single pet and tried to avoid social situations. But Morostide was a holiday he enjoyed: he could go out in costume and no one would know him. But he, like the other residents of Subeta, grew concerned upon learning that Jaxson Skelly had disappeared and was leaving the manor affairs up to Ian. So here he was, going to the manor in full costume and expecting to be able to go in and out without talking to anyone.

The first thing he saw was a group of people standing nearby. A woman with lovely wings, a man dressed as what Kuro could guess as a pirate, a gorgeous woman with a shining knight at her side, and a handsome young man with a fluffy white tail. Kuro winced but he kept walking, keeping his head up and trying not to seem uncomfortable.

((Hey guys, sorry I'm late to the party. I've been out of town.))

Shylarah approached the group by the gates "Hello everyone!" she said cheerily, a bright smile on her face. "Is good to see you. You all doing good?" She was clad in vibrant fall colors, her outfit accented with leaves, twigs, and pinecones. She was happy to be seeing the friends she'd first met at the Masquerade once more. They tended to gather during various holidays, and it was always fun to spend time with them.

Cin turned to greet Kia and Lucas, bobbing a nod and smiling hello when his name was recited in turn. “Oh yeah, forgot you guys were twins.” Memories of last year suddenly became much clearer. Not long after the wayward group had been reunited it seemed to attract a woodland spirit. She matched the season so well, Cin had a hard time deciphering if she was wearing a costume, or if she really was the humanized energy of a wicked awesome tree somewhere nearby.

“Ah sorry, have we met? My memory isn’t so good. I’m Cin.” He smiled at Shylarah and held out a furry clawed hand to shake. “You wana come see Jax with us?” At the risk of being called out for staring he eventually pried his gaze away from her pretty wings and threw it back toward the mansion.

There on the path, he caught sight of something with a rather fluffy tail. Pupils narrowing he was able to focus properly, the momentary fear that had griped him fizzling away. Just another person, unrelated, but nice tail really. Now he really was staring. Looking around the group he cleared his throat. “So ah, that guy is guna beat us to it.” Without looking he shrugged indicating the direction of the stranger a bit farther up the road.

Kia leaned into the warmth of Lucas' cloak and nodded in greeting to everyone. "So what is this about Jaxson? She asked. "I've noticed that there has been a lack of of the Pumkin Lord this year."

(ooc: shuffles things along)

[img align=left]http://i1180.photobucket.com/albums/x416/kibu_subeta/violetleft.png[/img] "We're a bit of a crowd, aren't we?" Kai asked, noticing how much the group had grown. "Well, if we're going to bother Jaxon Skelly... it would probably be more of an imposition to have multiple individual callers than just one group, even if it is large." He turned to lead the way up to the mansion.

[img align=right]http://i1180.photobucket.com/albums/x416/kibu_subeta/darkright.png[/img] "Were you going to go see the Pumpkin Lord as well?" Lucas asked the purple-haired stranger, gesturing with his lance. "It seems like there are a lot of us concerned about him this year. It's weird that he hasn't been around."

[img align=left]http://i1180.photobucket.com/albums/x416/kibu_subeta/violetleft.png[/img] Kai knocked at the door, but no response came. He glanced over at his sister and shrugged slightly. "There is always a chance that he decided to take a vacation this year."

Oh good. They were only minimally interested. But they moved faster than he did to the doors. So Kuro paused and waited by the gates, tiny ears flicking back for a moment. No matter; he could wait if it meant he was spared scrutiny. But no, the man dressed as a knight addressed him and for a moment, Kuro froze up. "Er... Yes," he said in a tiny, rather squeaky and pathetic voice. He cleared his throat and tried again. "Yes. I had heard rumors so I came to see for myself." Hopefully that was enough?

(ooc: Anyone..? Anyone..? Bueller..?)

(( I have a blerb that includes Ian opening the door. Didn't know if Sun or Shy had anything to add before X3 I'll post today when I get home for werk ))

((OOC apology!! Hey, guys! I'm sorry, I've been so busy lately I haven't got the time to come online ç_ç not even during my second favorite event of the year! Now I'm trying to catch up with the plot to at least get some prizes (hehe), but I'm not sure whe I can get back~~ Wish you all a happy Morostide!!))

Shylarah shook Cin's hand. It took her a moment to figure out who "Jax" referred to, but then she nodded. "Yes, I come with." She'd never met Jaxon, though she'd been to his pumpkin patch the previous year, but if the others were going to look for him she would tag along. Her attention turned towards Kuro when Lucas addressed him. The man seemed rather shy, so she decided not to say anything for the moment.

((Sorry about the avatar mixup. I will be putting the image in my post on the right from here on, though I'm not sure when the image in this post will update.))

When no one responded to Kai knocking on the door Cinder became fidgety, almost anxious. Squeezing past everyone so that he was face to face with the door he began to knock obnoxiously. “Hey Jax, it’s me Cin. You OK?” Ears pressed forward in hope of detecting someone on the other side. “C’mon man let us in. Whatever it is, I don’t get sick remember?” Shouting wasn’t working so Cin resorted to creatively beating on the door with both hands.

About a minute into it just when his fists were beginning to throb the door swung inward with such force that Cin leapt back, almost knocking over everyone behind him. There in the doorway instead of a disapproving Jaxon stood some guy with purple hair and glasses. Cin squinted up at the man, almost recognizing him but mostly just eyeing him suspiciously. “Sheesh, took you long enough. Interrupting something? Where is Jax?”

Ian frowned down at the large group, took a deep breath and reiterated everything he had said over the announcements that Cin had obviously slept through.

((Ack, sorry everybody, I got distracted by some stuff. I'm here now!))

Kyriel trailed along with the rest of the group, frowning to herself, lost in thought. She did spare a brief moment to wave at the new additions to the group, though. She kept her thoughts about the whole Jaxon affair to herself, though; she could sense more or less what the situation was, but didn't want to concern anyone, especially since most anything she could say would still be speculation anyway. She narrowed her eyes at the strange man that had appeared in the doorway, but said nothing. She was sure the others would, and too many voices all at once would just cause even more confusion.

Kia frowned as Cin slipped into the house uninvited. This whole thing about going into Jaxon's house just had her on edge, her heart beating frantically in a pattern of 'we shouldn't be here'. Even if she was wildly curious as to why the Pumpkin Lord wasn't around.

She stood closer to Lucas, throwing glances between him and her brother. "Should we go in after him?" She asked

The sound of boots on gravel came up the road behind them as Archer climbed up towards the house. He'd finally finished his buisness in the city for now and was free to join the others in the Morostide festivities. He had spotted Kia from the gates and figured that's where Kai would be as well. He adjusted the pirate hat on his head and smirked at the group as they came into view. "Is there a party at the Skelly Mansion that I'm unaware of?" He joked.

(ooc: for the record, I'd like to stick solely to plot text as much as possible for Ian since he is a standard NPC and none of us actually play him.)

[img align=right]http://i1180.photobucket.com/albums/x416/kibu_subeta/darkright.png[/img] "Probably not," Lucas said uneasily. "But that doesn't mean I'm not going to. What if something's happened? Besides, we don't want to let that guy go off causing trouble, right?" He followed Cin into the mansion, trying to keep that fluffy tail in sight so as not to lose him.

[img align=left]http://i1180.photobucket.com/albums/x416/kibu_subeta/violetleft.png[/img] There were a few ways to genuinely startle Kai. His boyfriend showing up out of the blue when he wasn't expected for at least a day or two was a good one. "Archer!" he exclaimed, reaching his hand out to him. "Lord Skelly left the opening of the pumpkin patch to a friend of his, which has Cin..." Kai looked up, realizing Cin was gone. "Uh oh." He grabbed Archer's hand and hurried in after Kia and Lucas, even if years of ingrained manners resisted entering a home without invitation.

Ian was trying, to no avail, to corral Cin and herd him back out the door.

When Cin dodged past and into the house, followed by the rest of the group, Ian stepped back and fiddled with a small device in his hands, looking very put-upon by the intrusion.

"My apologies," Kai said quickly. "Is there anything we could perhaps lend some assistance..."

The girl looked around the room, a faint frown on her face. "Something here," she said aloud, trying to identify what she was sensing. "Something strange." Shylarah moved through a doorway into the living room, and moments later there was the crash of breaking china. The girl reappeared, looking upset and frightened -- and with her long knife drawn. She was keeping her gaze fixed on the doorway, not turning around. "I not touch it!" she exclaimed. "Cup move on its own! I not like this. Is like spooky stories told about deep woods by the Rift, where bad things are!"