[Midnight Hotel] July catch-alll

[gistful]

Characters: Anyone, everyone.
Date: Month of JULY, 2016.
Location: The Midnight Hotel.
Situation: Catch-all post! Feel free to use this post for anything that happens within the Midnight Hotel during the month, using the subject header to label specific rooms or for specific people. See also the OOC note at the bottom.
Warnings/Rating: Mark your threads if content warnings become applicable, please!

Though the attack on Anton and Jintou occurred outside of the Hotel, its effects can nevertheless be seen on the Hotel’s runnings during July. Jintou is absent, in the first place, though Anton keeps his room in the event he’s found.

For the last few days of June and the first couple days of July Anton is preoccupied with rebuilding the shops he damaged in his attempt to stop Jintou from being taken, and therefore a good deal of the Hotel’s daily running is in the hands of his staff and a handful of trusted ex-gang kedan.

Within the first few days of the month Anton’s health takes a nosedive. Though the chronic condition discovered by Raine and Tony wasn’t previously active, the poisoning attempt apparently changed that and for the rest of this month Anton is under enforced bed-rest—or if not bed-rest then an enforced holiday. For that reason, any and all offers to help out with maintenance, cleaning, cooking, accounting and other daily chores at the Hotel will be welcomed.

Provided, that is, that no one minds the Hotel proprietor hovering over their shoulders—when he isn’t being sat on by a giant wolf to make sure he doesn’t overtax himself.

Hotel rules are, obviously, still in effect.

[ooc: The Midnight Hotel’s status page is available here, with the rules at the top and ongoing status at the bottom. PLEASE POST TO THE STATUS PAGE IF YOUR CHARACTER WOULD LIKE A ROOM, JOB OR AREA IN THE GARAGE, OR ARE MOVING OUT. Anton will manufacture means of payment until Foreigners are able to properly offer recompense or choose to move out.]

Comments

Anton, Erskine, Open | July 21st

[purered]

It was nightfall by the time Klaus got to the hotel. He hadn't meant to take so long in arriving, truly. There were just a lot of sights to see, and though he already missed his teammates profoundly, it was a nice change of pace being in a city where several hours could pass without something blowing up, falling down, or going on a rampage. He'd stopped at a few shops for necessities - a change of clothes, some toiletries, a comb. Klaus felt he had exercised remarkable self-control in not purchasing that cologne that had some strange, but oddly pleasant and subtle notes.

The money he'd gotten for the coins in his pocket was not much but he'd added it to the small stipend from the welcoming center. He could get by for a couple days if he was frugal. He'd have to avoid giving in to temptation- which meant no sweets. He wasn't sure how his poor heart could stand it.

Ducking a bit as he stepped through the door out of the wind, he peered around curiously at the lobby. It had that modern rustic feel, with its wooden supports and marble floor and illuminated in yellow light. It looked, for all intents and purposes, quite inviting.

Shutting the door behind him with a soft 'click', Klaus strode through the lobby, past the fireplace and to the front desk. He didn't see anyone around yet, but that hardly meant anything. A run to the back room or something might have been necessary. For now, he took a seat on one of the couches, going through his notes and maps, and notes on maps for places to explore. He wasn't sure what he was looking for, but it kept his mind off things he couldn't do anything about for now. He hoped what was said about time not passing was true, but still, he worried. He always worried. It knotted somewhere in the pit of his stomach until everything felt terribly tangled.

No, it was best to focus on other things for now. Even if time wasn't stopped, Libra could get by without him for a little while.

July 22nd, after the 21st's meet n' greet

[skeletonenigma]

It was strange for Skulduggery, walking into the Hotel and not immediately bracing himself. A feeling he'd have to get used to, if recent events were any indication.

The lobby was empty. In any other hotel, that would have been a sign of the early hour of the morning. In this Hotel, it was another reminder that Anton wasn't at his full strength, and Ravel was running things in his absence. Not that Ravel wasn't doing well; he was actually doing significantly well for a man who mere months ago was scrubbing toilets for the first time in his life. But he wasn't Anton.

Skulduggery paused for a moment just inside the threshold; then he took off his hat and made his way through the Hotel to the garage in the back.

July 22nd, after the 21st's meet n' greet

[purered]

Klaus was seated in the dining area, pouring over one of the more recent books. He was quite hopeless with some of the languages, but his native tongue was German and he was fluent in English, and his Japanese and Spanish, while mostly at a conversational level, were good enough to handle accounts.

He made little notes in the margins, and occasionally took a sip of tea. There was a half eaten biscuit beside the cup, and an empty plate that had formerly held his breakfast.

When he heard footsteps, he looked up from the records.

"Good morni- ah-"

He paused. That was a walking skeleton.

...Well Klaus wasn't a man to judge.

"Apologies. Good morning. I thought you might have been Mr Shudder."

[skeletonenigma]

A new face, coupled with a familiar voice. That had happened often enough that the dichotomy wasn't strange anymore. Skulduggery took a moment to examine the man, the open book in front of him and the expression on his face. There wasn't any fear in that expression, a result of either experience or the fragile calm preceding a breakdown. On top of that, he'd only just arrived, but was already in the middle of engrossing work.

He and Anton must have gotten off to a good start. That alone told Skulduggery most of what he needed to know.

"Klaus von Reinherz, wasn't it?" Skulduggery nodded to him. "No offence taken, but I don't think Anton's gotten quite this bad yet. He still has skin, for one thing."

[purered]

Klaus stood, and gave a courteous bow. He'd recognized the skeleton's voice, and any lingering apprehension was put to rest.

"You're correct. And you're Mr Pleasant if I'm not mistaken?"

He straightened, wondering if he should inquire about Anton's well-being. As far as he'd heard, the man was simply ill. But Klaus was prone to long bouts of fussing.

"It's a pleasure to meet you at last. Is Mr Shudder feeling better today?"

[skeletonenigma]

Experience. Definitely experience. Even the most stubborn fragile calms usually subsided in the wake of hearing a skeleton talk. But that only piqued Skulduggery's interest; he hadn't yet come across anyone who had proper experience with living skeletons. Hawke sprang to mind, but he'd only experienced them as magically controlled enemies in need of dismembering.

Klaus's world, if Skulduggery was right, sounded much more civilised.

"At your service," he answered, echoing the words and intonation of their earlier conversation on the network. "But please, call me Skulduggery. I don't actually know. I haven't seen him yet today. That either means Ravel succeeded in getting him to sleep, or he's dead. Since I have yet to come across anything mundane capable of killing Anton, he's probably asleep."

[purered]

It wasn't necessarily that Klaus had experience speaking with a talking skeleton per se, but a number of Beyondians certainly had a skeletal appearance. Or an exoskeletal appearance. Or faces with six eyes and tentacles for ears. Abnormal was the norm for Klaus.

There was a small twitch at the corner of his mouth. Almost a smile. He wondered if Skulduggery was a punny nickname or truly the name of this man.

"Hopefully asleep. I've been looking over his books and... well, it's a bit of a mess. How are you this morning, Skulduggery?"

[skeletonenigma]

"If those are the same books Ravel's been in charge of," said Skulduggery, "then I'm not surprised."

A little unfair, given that Skulduggery didn't exactly have reason to believe Erskine wasn't proficient with numbers. But he stood by the statement anyway. Either he hadn't quite worked over his grudge yet, or - and the thought was a frightening one - he'd slipped back into the old Dead Men habit of teasing whoever possible at every opportunity.

Perhaps not such a frightening thought.

"Couldn't be better," he answered automatically. "You wouldn't happen to know if Ravel's moved the polish, have you? It should be in the garage, but he might have hidden it to spite me."

[purered]

"I was at least given some forewarning before Mr Shudder showed me the books," Klaus remarked. "Though if you find any receipts from the last three weeks around, I'd greatly appreciate if they were brought to the front desk."

At Skulduggery's question, Klaus looked around the dining hall as if it would pop into view any moment. You never know.

"Ah, I'm afraid not. Though, I didn't know there was a garage at all."

He wondered what could possibly in it. Tools perhaps. Unused tacky lawn ornaments? Maybe. Anton seemed the type.

[edgeoftheknife]

Ravel had only stepped away from the desk for a minute to get himself a cup of tea, honest.

He didn't like leaving the desk when he was the only one covering, even when it was later in the evening and it was a particularly slow night like this one, but he hadn't been able to locate anyone else to bribe for that cup of tea and he wasn't going to bother Anton. Besides, he'd only be gone for a few minutes and the caffeine would help keep him awake for the rest of his shift. It was particularly frustrating that it took so much effort on his part to get more than a few hours of unbroken sleep at night and yet he found himself dozing when he was meant to be working.

Shortly after Klaus settled himself on the couch, a man who could best be described as beautiful appeared from the direction of the kitchen, heading back toward the front desk. There was a half-eaten piece of toast in his left hand and his right hand was stretched out in front of him, palm upward. Roughly six inches above that hand floated a mug of hot tea. Somewhere along the way he'd become accustomed to levitating his tea rather than risk spilling it in shaking hands. It was just easier this way.

The floating mug kept pace with Erskine perfectly... or perhaps vice versa. He'd just taken a bite of his toast when he noticed someone sitting on one of the couches nearby. Without more than that cursory first glance, Erskine nodded and gave a little grunt of acknowledgment--yes, I'll be right with you. Sorry. Mouth full.

He rounded to the other side of the front desk and floated the mug of tea gently down to the desktop.

[purered]

Klaus looked up from his work and for an instant, felt a rush of envy over the man's almost supernatural good looks. The giant half wondered if it was some kind of glamour in place. He barely registered the floating tea, dimly speculating if the man had some manner of telekinesis or if it was some other force at work.

Shaking himself as though from a daze, he gave a small gesture of his hand.

"Take your time, sir. There's no hurry."

He was well aware how taxing the work place could be. Far be it for him to deprive someone of a well-deserved break.

[edgeoftheknife]

"Mmph." Ravel bobbed his head slightly, that almost done chewing gesture of impatience, and then wrapped both hands securely around the mug of tea so he could lift it for a sip without spilling.

"Sorry about that," he said at last, once the toast had been washed down properly. He sat the mug down again, carefully, and rounded back to the front of the desk. His steps slowed just slightly as he caught a look at the fangs on the man he was speaking to, but it was only for a moment. Fangs on the lower jaw? Not a vampire. Ravel wasn't even sure what sort of person or creature would have fangs like that. He'd met a lot of odd people so far in Keeliai, though, so it was probably nothing to worry about. Probably.

Erskine turned, unfastened the last button on his suit jacket with one hand, and unceremoniously hopped up and backward to sit on top of the desk with his legs swinging below.

"What can I do for you?"

[purered]

Not quite a vampire. He was a step away, but a crucial one. One that meant he still retained his will. Klaus was, however, abundantly fond of liver dishes. He waited for the gentleman to finish his meal before finally standing.

Klaus was slow, careful, and very deliberate in his movements. It was clear he was aware of his size and appearance and did what he could to mitigate his more imposing features. He gave a bow to the man.

"Klaus Reinherz. Mr Shudder and I spoke over the console- I'm looking to take a room in exchange for doing the books until I have some steady form of income," he explained, and straightened his back.

[edgeoftheknife]

That last step was definitely an important one. Otherwise they were going to have some massive problems, and sooner rather than later.

But that was neither here nor there, because to Erskine's way of thinking a couple of fangs on the lower row of someone's teeth did not a vampire make--and he'd already moved past that part anyway, because as Klaus drew up to his full height Ravel had to actually adjust his posture to look the man in the face. The fact that Ravel was seated really didn't help, but even at his full height (of slightly less than six feet) he tended to look about throat-level at Anton... and this man dwarfed even Shudder. Erskine tried not to let his surprise show, other than that bit of movement and a slight widening of his eyes.

He'd met someone taller, but that was... an unpleasant association. Better not to think about that.

"Ah... you've talked with Shudder already?" he asked, keeping his voice even. Like Anton, Erskine had an Irish accent, somewhat muddied by travel but still recognizable. "And you're going to be doing the books?" A slow smile dawned across his face.

"Erskine Ravel." He held a hand out--angled upward--in an offer to shake. "And you've just made my night. One more day of those bloody books and I think I might've lost what little of my mind is left."

[purered]

There was a low rumble from the upper slopes of Mt Reinherz as he gave a small chortle. Thankfully, he covered his mouth when he laughed. He didn't want to make a terrible impression.

"They're that bad, hm?"

He took the extended hand and gave it a careful shake.

"It's nice to meet you Mr Ravel. And I'm glad to help where I can."

Standing back, he gestures to the lobby. "The architecture here is different from what I've seen in the city. Was it built recently?"

[edgeoftheknife]

"If they weren't that bad before I got to them, they certainly are now," Ravel said, grinning. In all fairness he hadn't done that poor of a job, despite having no training whatsoever as an accountant. Nowhere in his many job descriptions over the many long years had accounting come into the picture, but he had a fair, if somewhat basic, grasp of arithmetic.

The books might just be a little more... creative than when Anton had reluctantly handed them over. (Gaeilge footnotes, Klaus. Gaeilge footnotes.)

After the handshake he twisted in his spot on the desktop, pointed the first two fingers of his right hand at his mug of tea, and levitated it over to himself. He was just wrapping both hands around the mug again when Klaus asked about the Hotel.

"Mm? Oh no, the Hotel isn't originally from Keeliai." Ravel paused to take a sip of tea. "It's from our world. Anton built it just after the war, about... a hundred years ago, now?"

[purered]

A feeling of dread washed over Klaus, and he wondered just what exactly he'd been roped into. He gave Ravel a worried look, his brow creased almost to the bridge of his nose.

"I doubt they can be that bad. It's just simple addition and subtraction."

Klaus had no idea. He truly had no idea.

He watched the mug levitate curiously. And he arched a brow.

"A hundred years ago... then that would mean..." He hesitated, and looked at Erskine more severely. None of the unearthly palour, nor the elongated and uncanny anatomy. Obviously no fangs either. And though Anton had seemed a bit gaunt, the man had looked entirely human. If they had the shapeshifting abilities of some of the older vampires, they were certainly very good at hiding their nature. But Klaus doubted that was the case. They weren't Blood Breeds.

The dark expression passed, replaced by a more benign curiosity. "Mr Shudder is looking well for being over a century old. I doubt he owes it to a particularly good moisturizer."

After Erskine's welcome, same night

[gistful]

With how much sleeping Anton did these days and how frequently Erskine had accidentally woken him in the night previously, Anton's sleep schedule was haywire. He had to rest, yes, he knew, but while he'd learned to sleep at every opportunity during the war, now he found he had too much opportunity.

The result was that he'd slept away the late afternoon and early evening, and sometime between then and midnight he came out of his bedroom to find a place by the fire in the common-room, his bag of knitting cradled in his arms because his fingers wouldn't have the strength to carry them by the strap.

Re: After Erskine's welcome, same night

[purered]

Klaus had been making note of his current funds and expenditures, to get an idea of how long they'd last. He was happy doing the books here for room and board, but he'd need something a bit more steady if he wanted to do more than scrape by on the skin of his teeth.

Looking up at the sound of footsteps, Klaus stood and gave a small bow. He recognized the man from the console almost immediately.

"Mr Shudder, good evening."

He cast a glance to the knitting bag and repressed a smile.

"How are you feeling?"

[gistful]

"Master Reinherz," Anton said as he stopped beside Klaus's chair and bowed shallowly. Now that he was seeing the man in person, there were a few more details Anton could pick up. Klaus wasn't quite as broad as Ghastly, but getting there, and from the way he folded into the chair ... he could well be taller than Anton. That would be interesting.

"Spectacularly unweary," he said, and put his knitting bag by his chair. In spite of having come so recently from bed, and it being so late, he had bothered to dress--at least as far as his waistcoat, though he had for once left note of the tie and jacket. When Anton lowered himself to sit it was a little more heavily than was due to a man who walked with the sort of fighting grace that Anton had. When he clasped his hands, elbows on his knees, Klas might see the faint tremble in his fingers.

"Has Erskine already got you doing his work for him?" Anton asked, nodding toward the papers.

[purered]

Klaus made a mental note of Anton's symptoms as the tall man sank into the chair. Tall and lean with such an angular face, Klaus was put in mind of what Steven might look like in about ten years. He repressed the urge to fuss.

"I'm pleased to hear it, Mr Shudder."

He gestured to the stack of papers nearby. "And not yet, though he was delighted to hear that the books would no longer be his responsibility. These are just my own budgeting."

Sitting back down, Klaus folded his hands in his lap. "Do you knit?"

[gistful]

"He hasn't let me peek at them in three weeks," Anton warned. "I cannot, unfortunately, vouch for their accuracy or cleanliness." It wasn't that Anton didn't trust one of his best friends with the Hotel's accounting. It was just that he didn't trust Erskine Ravel with the Hotel's accounting. The man's attention span hadn't been good two centuries ago; he was just good at pretending it was better than it was.

At the second question Anton smiled. "I do indeed. Until one has sat in a trench for five days, one cannot overestimate the value of a good pair of socks."

Although he had been doing so much knitting in the past three weeks that he had actually moved on to scarves and sweaters.

[purered]

Klaus adjusted his tie, trying not to let his apprehension show.

"I'm sure I'll be able to make do."

The hulking giant was quite delighted to hear this. "Mrs Prisby back home showed me a bit of knitting at the gardening club. I confess, it's quite relaxing." He didn't add that it had helped him on long, sleepless nights. He wasn't much good at it but something to occupy his hands and keep him from pacing the corridors had been a godsend. "Mr Ravel mentioned you'd built this hotel around the time of the war. Were you a soldier?"

[gistful]

"It is that," Anton agreed, and though he didn't light up, because Anton Shudder wasn't the sort to get overly obviously passionate about much at all, he was most certainly paying attention. "If you wish to borrow some yarn and needles until you've more an income, I can certainly obliged. Or I can direct you to the kedan who sell it."

The yarn here was more of a kind of some centuries ago, which was nice. Although there wasn't much of a difference, in practice, it was still oddly comforting. Or maybe Anton was just a purist.

"Yes, I was," said Anton. "Erskine and I, and Skulduggery, were in the same unit together, along with four others." Eight, if one included them all together, but only seven had been in the field at any given time, with the eighth in reserve. ... For the most part.

He didn't ask which war Erskine might have stated. There had been several.

[purered]

Klaus doubted he'd be getting much sleep tonight, knitting or no. The sudden change in surroundings and the nagging concern for his friends and teammates back home would not make for easy rest. "Ah, the kedan if you will? I already owe you a great deal for your kindness. I don't want to impose further."

He listened to Anton's explanation, rapt with attention. It was fascinating, though he noted Anton avoided mentioning which war. From what Erskine had said, Klaus could already guess, but he wasn't about to press the matter. He could respect a need for privacy in that regard.

"The heat of battle forges some very strong bonds," Klaus remarked. "Though it's a silver lining to a very dark cloud."