Chapter 3.
The climb up to the fourth floor was otherwise uneventful, the only sound being Neko's muted humming and the three's footsteps.
Kuroh didn't even bother to note how Yata kept his distance from them, awkwardly tense as he eyed the cat girl every now and then, jumping back whenever she got too close. Instead the Black Dog kept open keen eyes and ears towards the surroundings, tensing at every flicker of a shadow, keeping his guard up in case the Monster from earlier decided to reappear.
If he learned anything from their earlier battle, it was that that Shadow was something that shouldn't be underestimated.
It must be the same Monster Neko and Shiro ran away from earlier. This at least means that guy has an idea of what he's dealing with…
On that note, another thought popped in his mind, making him raise a brow. If such a thing happened, why did I not hear anything? It was true. The Kitchen had not been that far from the entrance hall; he should have at least heard something of the scuffle, considering how silent the whole place is….
As Yatagarasu had explained, all doors they've come across on their climb seemed to be either locked or jammed, making it impossible to inspect anything aside from the maze-like halls – some bare, others littered with odd paintings or sculptures. One hall in particular, hidden away at a dead end corner of what should still be the third floor, had only a table with a lone, beautifully blooming rose on it. Kuroh had to wonder how such a delicate thing could bloom inside such a gloomy place. Sometimes, he could even swear the halls were changing as they walked past.
He also had to take note of the obvious lack of windows in the Mansion; the handful they did come across boarded shut, and seemingly impenetrable.
Now that I think about it… what time is it now? Although it might not have been more than a few hours, somehow Kuroh felt like they'd been inside the Mansion for an eternity. The atmosphere near suffocating at that point.
A quick check at his PDA read 3:34 pm, barely a minute past the time they made it on sight, and that just couldn't be right. There was also no reception.
The lack of Natural light inside made it near impossible to tell the time. And the sudden realization that they just about had no way to even connect to the outside world only fuelled his anxiety.
This made it almost too clear that they were completely trapped.
…
"Okay! This is it" a click followed by Yatagarasu's exclamation snapped the raven out of his thoughts, the brunette cautiously pushing open a door and peering inside. Neko trailed past him hurriedly looking left and right. "Ack! Looks like no one's home…" the Vanguard announced, stiffening at the proximity before retreating outside while keeping the door wide open. "I'll stand guard out here!"
Kuroh sighed as he took his place, inspecting the interior of the room.
It looked to be a small office half the size of the bedroom they were in downstairs; this time looking very much abandoned, with a busted light bulb, thick coating of dust on the floor and cobwebbed bookcases lining the walls. There was no window, of course, shrouding the room in darkness; the only source of light being a lone lamp on a small desk by one corner.
One could immediately tell that this little detail was odd.
The lamp looked freshly lit, clear of the grease that usually accumulates with old burners, and one look at the desk revealed a small rectangular area free of dust, as if something atop it was recently moved. Someone was here…? Kuroh thought; however, aside from those, everything else in the room was untouched. Even the dust coating the floor looked evenly distributed, with only his own footprints visible.
"Achoo!" the Black Dog jumped slightly, turning around to find Neko covering her mouth, tears in her eyes. "Stuffy…" she mumbled out, and then paused. Slowly releasing her hands, she looked up and made a soft sniff….
She turned tail and ran outside.
"Ah, wait! Neko!" Kuroh cried, chasing after her on impulse, again ignoring Yata's exclamation in the background. "Where are you going?" he asked, turning the corner past the stairway to an area he doesn't remember passing before. A door was up ahead, where Neko seemed to be aiming for.
"Shiro!" she cried as she ran, making Kuroh stumble a bit. "Shiro! I can smell him!" the girl exclaimed happily. Skidding to a halt and practically knocking the door open –to think it wasn't locked— the raven wasn't at all surprised when she landed face first onto the floor.
Sadly, however, no one was there.
"But… Shiro's smell…" the cat girl trailed off, flitting about the room. Kuroh followed her example, looking around the room. It was another relatively clean bedroom, with two double beds side by side in one corner. Curiously, Kuroh approached the area, inspecting the small side table in between for any clues.
"Nya? What does this do?"
A clack was heard, followed by a soft whoosh and Kuroh barely had time to whip around, catching a glimpse of Neko holding on to a lever switch on a wall, before he was falling.
THUD!
"Ugh…" Kuroh groaned, head spinning from the impact. What just happened…? He thought, wearily opening his eyes to find Neko looking down at him through a rectangular hole on the ceiling. Huh? Is this the floor below? Rubbing his aching shoulders, he sat up.
"Kuroh…?" a voice called, and the raven was sure it was not from the two above.
Instantly, a new weight fell on top of him followed by an indignant cry, knocking the air from his lungs again before it immediately vanished as fast as it came.
"SHIRO!" Yes, it seems the cat-girl had indeed just jumped down from the floor above, landing unceremoniously on the poor raven before jumping right off.
Turning around trying to suppress a headache, Kuroh felt a sigh of relief leave his lips to see his white-haired friend looking at him, not even caring at this point that he'd just become a cushion. "Well, I'm glad to see you're alright" the Black Dog mumbled, head still aching from hitting the floor twice as he stood up to dust his clothes.
"Same here" Shiro replied, patting him on the shoulder with his free hand. "I was terrified when I saw that monster covered in blood! I thought you might've…" he trailed off, a pained look in his eyes as he stared at the raven's tie.
Kuroh recalled feeling something similar, and huffed. "I am a Vassal of the Former 7th and Colourless King, Miwa Ichigen-sama. Are you saying that you underestimate me?" he glared, although it was actually more of a pout, as he crossed his arms.
This earned a relieved chuckle from the albino, lightening the tension he felt himself. "I'm sorry. My mistake"
"IT'S SHIRO! SHIRO! NEKO KNEW IT!" Neko sang, clinging to his arm rather tightly as the teen smiled brightly, patting her hair.
"OY! You guys alright down there?" another voice resounded from above, breaking the warm reunion.
Kuroh looked up to find Homura's Vanguard regarding them all with slight contempt. "Yes. The fall wasn't so hard" he explained, moving aside in case the brunette decided to land on him as well.
He didn't have to worry, though, because the Red Clansman made for an easy landing on his feet -if not a little hesitantly, casting an uneasy glance around.
Eyes pausing on a spot just out of Kuroh's field of vision.
"Yatagarasu-san!" Shiro greeted immediately, earning a confused look from the three. He gulped. "I-I met him earlier… while I was roaming the halls…" he trailed off in explanation…
As if triggered, the brunette's eyes lit up in recognition. "Ah. Yeah…" he trailed off, a troubled expression molding on his face as he mumbled inaudible things under his breath. "GAH! Who cares! Anyways we found you… so now what?" he asked.
Kuroh's eyes narrowed in suspicion at this, feeling as if something wasn't quite right…
"Neko's tired from all the running! And this place is scary! Shiro! Let's go take a nap!" the cat-girl suggested, snapping the raven out of his thoughts. She yawned, and Kuroh barely caught himself before he did the same. He had to admit, he was a bit tired… it felt like it's been hours, and a lot has happened since they came… some rest would be good…
Yata stuttered out in response, eyes flitting nervously again, stopping at that point Kuroh had yet to see. "A-ah… w-well, that doesn't sound like such a bad idea but…" he trailed off. But everyone knew what he was going to say.
It's not safe to let your guard down. Not with that monster lurking about.
"Well… we're all together now so isn't it okay?" It was Shiro who broke the tense silence, although his smile looked slightly nervous. Neko, through this atmosphere, was almost half asleep on his arm.
"Yeah… but it's still kinda risky…" Yata supplied, gripping his board and bat.
"…" Kuroh remained silent, opting to inspect the room they were in for a moment first before making a decision. It was barren except for a couple of bookshelves along the far wall, an Ebony Grand Piano standing at the center a stark contrast to the pale coloured walls. It seems this was what had been catching the Red Clansman's attention, and for one thoughtless moment, he approached it, playing a few keys by instinct.
"Hey! What are you doing? Don't touch that!" the Vanguard immediately panicked, making the raven flinch slightly, fingers trailing over the keys until…
Clink.
"Huh?" he mumbled, ignoring the Red Clansman's outbursts and Shiro's attempts to pacify him. Pressing the same key a couple more times made it clear that the piano was indeed out of tune –or rather, that it was jammed, and Kuroh curiously lifted up the piano's lid to investigate…
And found another room key. 2F Engraved on the head.
"NYA! Don't bully Shiro!"
"GYA! DON'T COME NEAR ME!"
"Oh come on! Calm down you two! No fighting!"
"SHIRO!"
"Hey, maybe we can use this?" Kuroh called in a tone that was both calm and authoritative at the same time, stopping the three in their squabble as he held out the key for all to see.
Shiro stared at him for a fraction of a moment before he gave a thumbs up. "Ah! Good job Kuro!" he exclaimed, taking the key from the raven's hand. "If we have the key and can lock the door, it should be okay right?" he explained cheerily.
Yata frowned, still a little cautious. "I guess… that makes sense…" he mumbled out. The only other keys they had was one for the 1F Library and 4F Study, and those rooms didn't really pose for a safe place to rest, not that they knew if this 2F would be any better but it was either that or an unguarded room… "Meh, it's worth a try" he huffed, mindlessly swinging the door open to step out...
"Ah wai—!"
Shiro wasn't able to finish his sentence as the room was immediately engulfed in a frighteningly malicious atmosphere. The Red Clansman frozen on his spot, barely concealing the figure beyond.
"No…"
Everyone was silent as they stared the door, unable to move out of shock and dread.
A deathly grin glared down at them from the open entrance before razor sharp shadows immediately invaded their vision, ripping away all light.
And the paleness of the room was soon covered with a splash of dark Red.
~.~.~
tick
No…
tock
Mistake…
tick
again…
tock
I …
~.~.~
Hello everyone ^^ Sorry for the late Chapter! (I know I said I'd post it after I get to 5 reviews, but I wasn't able to get any access to my computer till 20 minutes ago Dx) But I'm really glad people are reading this XDD Thank you very much!
So anyways! The Plot progresses and the Characters are finally coming together! Shiro is Back and Misaki is Misaki XDD Who's next ;P
Sarumi's Fan-san: I'm sorry to say but there won't be any SaruMi scenes for at least a few more chaps yet ^^; But it will come! XDD
I Hope you liked this chapter ^^ Please look forward to the next chap too XDD (In the end I'll put this in ^^; )
NEXT CHAPTER: 10 reviews (pretty please?)