Vanessa walked down the dark path to Castle Bleck with her rolling suitcases behind her. She had a handle in each hand, the suitcases holding all of her belongings. She was officially moving into Castle Bleck and couldn't be happier. She let go of one suitcase to open one of the large, ominous doors. She walked in and closed the door behind her. As she turned back around, she felt someone grab her arm with one hand and cover her mouth with the other. The unknown person quickly pulled her into a nearby supply closet, shut the door, then let her go. The light came on, blinding her for a moment and revealing the face of Mr. L. "Excuse my language," Vanessa began, "but what the hell would make you think this damn idea was a good one?! And why hell am I in a damn supply closet with you?!" Mr. L tried to keep a straight expression on his face, but he couldn't help but let a mischieveous smile appear; a smile that made Vanessa uneasy. She raised an eyebrow and said, "If you plan on doing what I suspect, you won't live to see the light of day again. So please tell me it's not what I think and I don't have to murder you." Mr. L's smile only grew. "I don't think it's what you suspect. But, it's funny that you mentioned murder." he replied. Vanessa only seemed more confused, and even a bit scared. "Ok, so here's the jist; Dimentio and I are planning a very big prank tomorrow night and we want you to help us. But you can't tell anyone. Will you help us?" Mr. L explained. Vanessa smiled and nodded. "I'm in."
"Ok, they should all be here very soon. Most likely within the next five to ten minutes." Mr. L said. He was dressed in black pants, a black suit jacket, a green shirt, black shoes, a black tie with a backwards L on it, his mask, and the same hat he wore all the time sat atop his messy brown hair. Dimentio, who was walking beside him, wore his normal attire. "Great, it's all going as planned. Speaking of which, where's Vanessa?" Dimentio asked. "She's in the library pouring champane for the guests. And since Mimi is underage, she'll probably get fruit punch or something." Mr. L answered. He opened the door to the library and they saw a woman pouring champane. She wore a long, sleeveless purple dress that nearly reached the floor and had a slit that went up to her knee, a pair of black heels that had straps up to her ankles, and her purple hair was pulled back in a waist-length braid with a black streak through it. Behind his mask, Dimentio's jaw dropped, and so did Mr. L's. At the sound of the door closing, the woman picked up two glasses of champane and turned around. "Good evening Dimentio and Mr. L, how are the hosts of tonight's dinner doing?" Vanessa asked, her voice smooth as silk. She handed each of them a glass of champane. They'd both composed themselves, but hadn't replied, which caused Vanessa to ask, "What's wrong? Cat got you tongue?" They shook their heads and just stared at her. She rolled her eyes. "You two told me to dress nice, so I did. Don't act so surprised." she said. "We just didn't expect you to dress this nice. I must say, It certainly does suit you." Dimentio stated. Vanessa smiled. "Thank you, Dimentio. At least someone has something to say." Mr. L just kept staring. Vanessa walked up and smacked him on the side of his head. "Sorry, I kinda zoned out. At first I was shocked by how you well you dressed, and then I spotted a whole section of books on mechanical engineering over there." he apologized, pointing to one of the book shelves. Vanessa only rolled her eyes again and went back to pouring champane. "You two might want to get to the foyer to greet the guests, they should be arriving any minute." she said. Mr. L and Dimentio left. Once they were far down the hallway, Mr. L asked, "So what'd ya think?" Dimentio raised an eyebrow. "About what?" he replied. "About Vanessa. I could see it in your eyes, man. You thought she was pretty." Mr. L clarified. "Pretty? Mr. L, there are many words to describe how she looked, and pretty is not one of them. She was beautiful, gorgeous, amazing, but not just pretty." Dimentio answered. "Irresistable?" Mr. L suggested, nudging him in the arm with his elbow and arching an eyebrow suggestively. Dimentio pushed Mr. L's arm away and pushed his hat over his face, causing him to run into the wall as they rounded the corner. "Not in that way, L." he replied.
They made it to the foyer and waited a few minutes before the other members of Castle Bleck arrived, as well as the heroes. "Everyone please go to the library and everything will be explained shortly." Dimentio told them. When everyone got to the library, Vanessa warmly greeted them and handed each of them a glass of champane, except for Mimi, who got soda. "So, Vanessa, I hear you're a new resident in Castle Bleck." Peach said. Vanessa nodded. "Yes, and I love it here already. I can't thank Lord Blumiere enough for allowing me to stay here." she replied. "But what about...the jester. Doesn't he scare you?" Peach asked. "Pssh, Dimentio? I've seen scarier." She looked down for a moment and muttered, "Much scarier than him." She rolled her shoulders and smiled again. "Bottom line, Dimentio doesn't scare me." Vanessa stated. "Oh I wouldn't be too sure about that." Dimentio whispered in her ear, causing her to jump. She turned to see said jester, floating upside down, right behind her. "Are you sure you aren't afraid of me?" he asked, his voice dangerously low, and his grin malicious. Blumiere stood up and was about to intervene, but Vanessa said, "You don't scare me Dimentio. You can startle me, but you can't scare me." Vanessa looked Dimentio in the eyes. Everyone in the room was staring at Vanessa, shock written all over their faces, except for Dimentio. Something about her fearlessness intrigued him. He wanted to know more about her past. But what Vanessa did next truly took the cake in shocking them all; Dimentio was now standing on the floor, his face very close to Vanessa's, still holding the stare, when she placed a hand on his chest and pushed him back. "Stay out of my personal space, please." she said, before turning to walk out of the room. "I'm going to check and see if Dyliss and Saffron are done cooking. Ciao!" she said before closing the library door behind her. Everyone sat or stood in pure shock. Even Dimentio couldn't believe what had just happened. Mr. L asked, "Great Grambi, did that just happen?" Everyone else nodded. Dimentio's fists were clenched by his side, and he seemed ready to explode. But he calmed down, took a few deep breaths, and said, "Who's ready for dinner?" Everyone agreed that they were hungry, and Dimentio and Mr. L led them to the dining room.
The table was already set, and Vanessa, Dyliss, and Saffron were walking out of the kitchen with plates of delicious smelling food. Everyone was seated, except for the chefs, who returned to the kitchen. As everyone began eating, they noticed the tension between Vanessa and Dimentio. "So, what's with the fancy dinner party?" Timpani inquired. "Wait, you don't know? But I thought this was you and your husband's idea." Peach replied. Timpani shook her head. Vanessa cleared her throat, getting everyone's attention. "Actually, tonight's dinner is being hosted by Dimentio and Mr. L. They thought we should all get together and make amends for what we've done, maybe even get to know each other." she explained. "Wait, weren't the hosts" Mr. L cut in, pointing at himself and Dimentio, "suppose to explain that?" Vanessa shrugged. "If you were, I beat you to it." she replied. "Anyways," Dimentio began, "as Vanessa said, Mr. L and I thought it would be a good idea to invite the heroes over so we could all make amends and talk things over. Afterwards, the heroes can go back home and we can go to bed." he said. Everyone continued to eat, and even made conversation. Suddenly, the lights turned off and a few screams rang out. The lights came on after nearly half a minute of screaming and panicking. "I'll go check on Dyliss and Saffron." Vanessa declared, running to the kitchen door. A moment later they heard Vanessa exclaim, "Oh my Grambi!" They all ran into the kitchen to see Vanessa, nearly crying, staring at the two dead bodies of Dyliss and Saffron lying the floor in a pool of blood, a knife in Saffron's chest. Vanessa backed away to the wall and sank to the floor, still staring in shock. Everyone let out gasps, and Mimi screamed a little. "They... they're dead." Peach choked out. "Not just dead," Dimentio said, walking forward to inspect the dead bodies, "They've been murdered. And that means there's a murderer in this castle." Dimentio gripped the handle of the knife and pulled it out of Saffron, which caused the others to cringe. "Apparently, someone came in here and stabbed them, then left them to die, leaving the blade in Saffron's chest." Dimentio observed, tossing the knife in the sink. "Come on, let's go back to the table." he told them. Everyone returned to their seats. "Ok, we need to split up-" but an angered Timpani interrupted the jester. "Split up?! Two people have been murdered and you want us to split up? Who's to say you aren't the killer?! You could be doing this so you can kill us off one by one!" Dimentio rolled his eyes. "There are a few things wrong with that. First of all, if I wanted you all dead I would've already accomplished the task." Dimentio paused for a moment as everyone just stared at him, a tensious silence setting over the room. He then continued, "And, wouldn't I have killed you all while the lights were out? Further more, if I wanted you all dead, then why would I help you all find the murderer so that you don't die?" he asked in a matter-of-fact tone. Timpani took a deep breath and sat back down. "Fair point, Dimentio." she said. "But who could it be if it's not you?" Every one's gaze moved to Vanessa. Noticing this, she held her hands up and said, "Woah, hold on a minute. You don't seriously think it's me, do you?" she asked. "Well you are the new girl around here." Mr. L pointed out. "Way to throw me under the bus, L!" she snapped at him. "Calm down and be quiet!" Dimentio demanded. Everyone immidiately went silent. "Now is not the time to jump to conclusions. That's only going to give the killer an advantage over us. We need to split up into pairs and search for evidence. Here's how you will split up. Blumiere and Timpani, Bowser and Peach, Mario and Luigi, Mimi and Nastasia, O'Chunks and Mr. L, and Vanessa and I. The first two groups will take the west wing of the castle, the next two groups will take the east wing, and the last two groups will stay here. Start on the first floor and make your way up. In about an hour, we'll meet up in the kitchen, where the murders first started. Let's go."
Blumiere, Timpani, Bowser, and Peach were searching the west wing, Mario, Luigi, Mimi, and Nastasia were searching the east wing, and O'Chunks, Mr. L, Vanessa, and Dimentio were searching the main area of the castle. An ear-piercing scream rang out causing everyone to run to the source. "What was that?!" exclaimed Bowser. Everyone was looking around the foyer until Timpani shrieked in terror. She pointed upward at the black crystal chandelier where Peach and Mimi had been hanged, their nooses connected to the chandelier. "Oh my Grambi!" Timpani cried. She began sobbing at the sight of the dead princess and shape-shifter. "But they were at opposite ends of the castle! How could the killer have gotten them both?!" Nastasia asked. "There's no telling," Dimentio answered grimly, "but now four people are dead. I'm guessing you all split up after you were assigned your section of the castle, didn't you? Whether or not you did, you shouldn't do it again. It will only help the killer. Let's get back to searching." Everyone split up once more.
A/N: I'M SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG, BUT THE NEXT CHAPTER SHOULD BE UP IN A COUPLE WEEKS!
