itscurtains | week 1

[Well, all escape attempts have failed thus far. None of you have seen the Phantom since his brief appearance on Sunday, or heard from him at all. It looks like, for the time being, you’re all going to be stuck here.

You're free to continue exploring your surroundings to your hearts' content. The only real restriction on your movements is that the kitchen is closed between the hours of 10 pm and 7 am. Better make sure to grab any midnight snacks you may want ahead of time. Also, remember to label any investigation toplevels!

The Merchandise Booth is now open for business as well! The Phantom hasn't deigned to explain how it works, but...well, some of you will start to find mysterious coins in your rooms, and the Booth's got a place to put coins. You'll figure it out.

Should you wish to engage more with your host, you're welcome to drop letters in the box office slot. There's no set way to converse verbally with him, and he's certainly not guaranteed to respond if you just yell at the walls - but that doesn't necessarily mean he isn't listening. Just something to keep in mind.

Enjoy your first week, everyone.]

Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday

(( OOC: This will be the last mod post for this week! Feel free to start submitting regains for any threads that aren't with the Phantom. Remember, song threads mean an extra coin! This is a peace week, so get all that CR while you can! ))

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[There is something about a child curtsying with a knife. it is not a good something.]

Passages? As if someone is creeping about being our mirrors?

[He definitely looks a little unnerved by that.]

Yup! The Phantom is!

[That is not at all reassuring, Christine. At least as she walks into the room, her ADD gets the better of her, and she gasps.]

Oh, shoot! I almost forgot! We were supposed to meet up for acting lessons today! Maybe I should take care of the mirror later.

The Phantom. [There's a dryness in his voice. He looks toward the mirror, makes a face, and then quickly looks away.]

I'd much rather not find him lurking about, if you ask me. But I would hate to distract you from such an important search.

[Is this an out from these lessons? He'll take it.]

Mmm...

[She looks between him and the mirror, obviously hesitant.]

Well... do you think it would be worse to open the mirror and find him back there, or just leave it sealed and imagine he might be back there? It's... like Schroedinger's Phantom.

[The reference is clearly lost on Ariel. He is the embodiment of the '???' bird]

Suppose I find him back there and he strikes me down. I would hate for you to find my body strewn about somewhere.

Well, that's why we should check together! I'll open it, and you watch my back to make sure I don't get stabbed!

[Christine, why do you like the Phantom?]

Right. [He glances between Christine, the knife, and the mirror.]

Do you have a second knife on you? Or any other method with which to defend ourselves?

Oh, uh... I could go see if there's another knife in the kitchen?

[She didn't think the 'defending herself' part through earlier.]

[Ariel looks between Christine, her knife, and the door. He ponders a moment, before shaking his head.]

I will manage, I think. I'd rather not leave you be after this investigation.

Psh, it's fine! It'll be fine.

[She hasn't hurt herself yet! Anyways, she moves to the mirror, tongue sticking out as she slides the knife into the spot behind the frame, listening for the chnk.]

[Ariel moves in behind her, posting up so that he can see both the mirror and the door. He balls his hands into fists and holds them out rather awkwardly.]

You're certain that they're behind every mirror?

Mm, well, I've checked a couple, and every mirror I've checked so far has one! There usually only a couple feet wide, though. Looks like they've been bricked up pretty recently.

[Still, maybe the Phantom missed one?]

And the brick you discovered -- how did it feel? Was the material real, or was it perhaps some sort of prop? [He motions to their surroundings] We're surrounded by things both real and fake alike -- we can never be too sure that anything is as it appears.

It felt real. I even tried to chip away at the mortar and it wouldn't budge. I still think there must be a way to get past it, some sort of secret door or something, but I couldn't find it.

A puzzle? Did any of the bricks feel loose? As if you could press them in the right order?

Hey! Trust me, I know my secret passageway checks. I checked for any loose bricks and pushed on any I could find. Maybe there's an order and I just couldn't feel it out, but it all felt sturdy to me...

Of course, of course. I did not mean to imply otherwise. [He mulls it over for a long moment.]

Perhaps there is a switch on the other side? A one way entryway. Of course... You would then have to wonder how this Phantom is able to escape back through. Unless he is simply just timing it all expertly.

That's definitely possible. Maybe he just leaves it open when he enters through and does what he needs to do fast enough to escape without getting caught. But... to be honest, that doesn't really sound like the Phantom I know.

[Christine, you don't know a Phantom.]

And what does the phantom you know do?

Usually he plans ahead a lot more than this! He's very methodical. I don't think he'd leave a secret passageway up to just moving fast enough. He's smarter than that!

So... He has a less adept ally, then? [His head tilts to the side.] This phantom you knew -- did he have someone that he worked with?

Hmm... well, there's one character in the play known as The Persian, and really, he just exists to be an unfortunate stereotype... he knows of the Phantom, and must have been friends with him, but he turns on him in the end. And from what is said, I'm pretty sure the Phantom builds everything himself. Apparently in the play, he's the heir of a construction company, so he knows how to build secret passages and hideouts.

We can only hope that whatever theoretical allies the Phantom has, they, too, will turn on him.

[If he does have them. He isn't certain]

But I think someone who knows how to build secret passages would be less reliant on good timing, just as you said.

Usually people turn on him if bad things start happening. Like, um...

[She trails off nervously.]

Well, like that sign said. [But she knows that isn't real. It can't be. It's just a bad joke.]

Do you suppose he is a scapegoat? A recognizable figurehead to take the fall for something more malevolent?

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