Week 5

[grimgrinningghosts]

[Five deaths in one week, and almost half of the guests have died now. The Narrator is now claiming that the man who's trying to save all the guests is a cold-hearted killer, and he doesn't seem to be lying about this. But on the other hand, that doesn't explain why he continues to do any of this, or if he's even an entirely good guy here.

Whether you like it or not, tension is becoming unusually high in this hotel now.

But hey, at least you get a nice new floor to tide you over.

13 guests remain]

[SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY]

{ooc: Don't forget to fill in this week's Activity Check! The deadline is 11/01 @ 1 PM EST!}

Comments

[greatwidesomewhere]

[Belle finds it harder than usual to sleep on Sunday night, for reasons pertaining to the spear and the letter still sitting in places of honor in her bedroom. Which is why she's up early, inspecting the newly revealed gym. She sits in the center of the room, turning the spear over in her hands, when she notices the mechanism on the side that she'd missed before. Standing up, and holding the weapon well away from her body, she triggers it, and is surprised when the thing collapses into a canister of some sort—similar to the ones she's seen in the cleaning supply room. The canister gets a thorough inspection, and then after a few minutes, she's pressing the trigger on top, holding it out in front of her and watching with delight as the spear extends outward from it once more.]

Incredible!

[It's...just too bad she's never used a weapon in her life. But that's not stopping her from swinging it around experimentally, as if to confront an attacker from behind, jabbing it forward inexpertly, but not without enthusiasm. It seems Thalia's final gift to her was more than just protection. It was stealth, too. She'll learn to use it, if it's the last thing she does.

Later, she tucks the canister into her dress pocket and retreats to the dining room, where she settles at one of the tables with some of the items she'd received from the penny press the week before. It reminds her of what Thalia had always done, actually, but her main purpose in bringing everything out is not only to hopefully find their owners, but to catalogue them in her notebook, too. If she ever makes it home...she'd quite like to remember some of the incredible things she's seen.]

Dining room

[darnsitall]

[Sally emerges from the kitchen sometime after Belle has set out all of her prizes. She's carrying a tea set that might look familiar.]

Hello, Belle! I didn't know you were here. I was just about to have some tea, care to join me?

[greatwidesomewhere]

[Belle glances up, and is about to open her mouth to accept Sally's offer when her gaze lands on that tea set. The words die in her throat, and a gasp comes out instead, barely covered by her fingers.]

Chip...Mrs. Potts?

...Did those come from the machine?

[darnsitall]

They did! I haven't had a chance to try them out yet- oh! They must be yours, right?

[greatwidesomewhere]

[Slowly, Belle's fingers lower, and reach over to pick up the little teacup with the chip in its rim. His face is...blank. Her heart plummets. He's just a teacup.]

They're friends of mine. Or...were. Their time ran out.

[She sounds resigned. Tired.]

[darnsitall]

Their time ran out? Is that like dying? But they're right here!

[greatwidesomewhere]

[With a sad, wistful sigh, Belle cups the teacup between her two hands, turning it over gently between them.]

Sort of. They were human, once. A mother and her son. They were cursed by an enchantress, only to turn human again if their master found true love.

[She's trying so hard to keep it in, but she can't help the single tear that escapes her eyes.]

Except he died, before he could.

[darnsitall]

[A horrified gasp escapes Sally.]

O-oh no, I put tea in her!

[What does she do now? Dump it out? While she's fretting, she looks over and sees how upset Belle is getting.]

He died? Well, that's a shame... but he might not be gone forever. Just look at the Narrator.

[She's helping??]

[greatwidesomewhere]

I-it's alright. She was always happiest when she was making tea.

[She wipes hastily at her eyes.]

N-no, I don't think that's possible. I watched him, he...he died in my arms. And time had run out.

[darnsitall]

[Sally wants to argue, that the Narrator was living(?) proof that the dead weren't just gone, forever, but she feels like that's just not appropriate here.]

You really care about him, don't you?

[greatwidesomewhere]

[Belle nods, her hands falling to her lap, still cradling Chip.]

I loved him. I...I still do.

[darnsitall]

[Sally is fairly certain that if she had a heart, it would be breaking. that's how it works, right? It occurs to her that she has no idea how to deal with this sort of grief. There's no dying or running out of time where she comes from.]

...These must be really upsetting you. I can- I can put them away...

Gym

[coulombslaw]

You ever used that spear before?

[It's a bit surprising to see Belle with a weapon like this one. She looks so unassuming, not the kind to use a spear]

[greatwidesomewhere]

[Belle straightens up, looking a little sheepish as she glances at the newcomer, and then shakes her head.]

No...nor any other. It was Thalia's, she...she left it to me.

[coulombslaw]

Ah...I think I get it. You're trying to honor her memory by learning how to use it.

[greatwidesomewhere]

That's exactly it. She left me a note, and told me 'fight with all you have.'

[She holds up the spear.]

So I intend to do just that.

[coulombslaw]

[That's rather nice of you. Virgil is silent for a moment. Thalia would have wanted Belle to be able to use that spear properly, so maybe...]

I don't know much about spears, but I can teach you a thing or two about defending yourself with that thing. Want some help?

[greatwidesomewhere]

[She blinks up at him with wide eyes:]

Really? That would be wonderful, Virgil, I'm...a bit lost.

[coulombslaw]

[Virgil looks around, finding a punching bag on a side of the gym. He approaches it, beckoning Belle]

Let's see you stab this punching bag. Go ahead, do your best.

[Assessing her strength, yep]

[greatwidesomewhere]

Right. Right, okay.

[She can do that. She approaches the punching bag, steadies herself on her feet, and thrusts the spear forward—

and though the punching bag sways quite a lot, the point of the spear doesn't penetrate the thing. Odd.]

[coulombslaw]

[Huh...]

Okay, you made it move, that's good. Give me a sec...

[Maybe if he holds the punching bag she'll be able to pierce it. Virgil grabs a side, leaving ample space to thrust the spear into the bag]

Give it a try again. You're doing well.

[greatwidesomewhere]

[Belle's certain that she must have hit it hard enough to at least pierce the fabric a little bit, but...perhaps she's overestimating her own strength. She nods, backs up, and then goes in for another sharp jab.

And still, nothing. The bronze tip of the spear certainly meets the punching bag as hard as she can manage, but won't go through.]

...Strange. It looks plenty sharp.

[coulombslaw]

[You may have overstimated your strength, yeah]

...this may be for the better, you wouldn't want to hurt someone too much with that thing. You still can defend yourself, though.

gym

[anasty]

[ Ursula is just here in the process of exploring the new floor, having needed Sunday to recover.

She flinches at the door, seeing someone wielding a spear. Recognizing that it's Belle, however, she decides to go ahead and enter. ]

Where in the world did you get that?

[greatwidesomewhere]

[She whirls, clutching the spear close to her, and lets out a nervous laugh.]

—oh! It was left to me, actually. By...by Thalia.