"And this is your room." Alfred opened a door, and as I stepped inside, I felt my jaw drop. This room was huge! A large bed with gray blankets dominated one corner, a desk and chair in another. A door on either side of the room, one leading to a bathroom, the other a walk in closet. A long table took up some space in the middle, but there was still a lot of hard wood floor empty. The walls were painted a light blue, and a small couch of shocking orange was nestled in a corner, near a small T.V. set. "I hope this room is to your liking?"
"It's amazing!" I said, forgetting to act like a mopey teenager. Oh well.
"I will leave you to unpack. Shall I send lunch up?"
"Um sure. Thanks." I mumbled, setting my duffel on the table. Alfred nodded, and shut the door behind him. I began to unpack my things. The closet had enough space for the wardrobes of three people, so my clothes took up very little space. I pulled my laptop computer from my duffel bag, and set it on the desk. My stuffed monsters went on the bed, and my backpack of destruction went under it. My toiletries I deposited in the bathroom and the empty suitcases were stuffed in the closet. I discovered that dad had placed a rolled up wad of bills in my pocket. I stuffed them in one of the bags and decided not to use them. Right as I finished, Alfred brought me a lunch tray. "Thank you very much." I said, taking it from him, and placing it on the table.
"Please feel free to explore, but stay off the fourth floor." He nodded gravely, and closed the door behind him. I shook my head, and went to examine my lunch. A delicious looking BLT sandwich, and apple, a brownie, and a canned drink. I stuck the apple in my pocket, for fortification while exploring, and devoured the rest of my lunch. Marvelously prepared. I decided to take the tray with me, and a small pad and pen for map-making. Then I was off.
The kitchen was fairly easy to find. I placed my tray near the sink, and proceeded to get hopelessly lost in the maze of rooms. One drawing room in particular caught my eye. It had a piano, near a bookshelf. I resolved to come back, and made a little mark on my map. Crunching on my apple, I discovered a gymnasium in the side of the house. But not a school gymnasium with basketball hoops and bleachers. No this place had martial arts dummies, punching bags, even trapezes hanging from the ceilings! I decided to finish exploring for the day, and ran up to my room to put on athletic clothing. I was delighted, knowing that I would be able to practice fighting after all.
I had just finished my practice routine when I heard shoes clicking down the corridor. I froze, and then grabbed my water bottle and ran to the other side of the gym, where some doors opened to a different hallway. I spared no time running through them. I kept running until I reached a fork in the hall. Taking a right deposited me in the entry hall.
"Convenient." I muttered, running upstairs to my room, where I plopped down on the couch just before Alfred knocked.
"Miss Valery, it's almost time for dinner." Wow. Guess I'd trained longer than I thought. Figuring that I shouldn't show up for dinner in athletic shorts, I pulled on jeans and a hoodie. Not much better, but it was something. I brushed my hair out of its ponytail and checked myself in the bathroom mirror. Big green eyes? Check. Pale skin? Check. Hair still bright blue? You bet.
"This is as good as it's gunna get." I muttered, before rushing down stairs to the dining room. And there I would meet Cousin Bruce.