justonetruth | (no subject)

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[You can smell smoke.

This is not usually a good development, so it's natural that no matter where you are in the mansion, you'd stop what you're doing and look around. Maybe glance towards the open window and catch sight of a plume of grey smoke in the distance. Glancing out of the window, you can see that there is a small -- shed? shack? At this distance it's hard to tell -- building erected on the lawn.

In front of it a small campfire is burning brightly. There's no sign of anyone tending it. Do you invest--

Sorry. Silly question! Forgot who I was talking to a moment there.

Of course you investigate.]

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Well, that's where they live, of course.

[The sight of the luxurious foyer is momentarily daunting, but Conan relaxes somewhat as he realises that there is no one there. It's reassuring ... but not so reassuring that he's going to stop walking close enough to Ran that he accidently bumps into her occasionally.]

They?

[going slow enough for him to catch himself every time he trips into her, heading for the dining room first]

[Well, at least the slow pace allows Conan plenty of opportunities to assess the organic nature of the interior of much of the mansion, notice smells and traces that don't fit what he knows of Inside and really notice that the mansion is not as inhabited as it should be.]

Them. They don't really have a name, I don't think. At least not one we can say. Is it always quiet like this?

What are they like?

And no, not always. There doesn't seem to be many people about today. Or they may be on the higher floors.

We're not going up there, right? [Reassurance comes before explanation.]

The centaurs are pretty scary. You only see them when something's gone wrong. They're really big, and they've got two really big claws out front -- like pincers. They can go outside if they have special equipment. The nurses are smaller. They're not as scary. They took care of me at first, before I had Kaa-chan.

[Ran's hand gets squeezed again.]

The spiders are the smallest of all and they're everywhere. It doesn't matter if you step on them, more come. [Pause.] I don't see any here and that's weird because no matter where you go Inside, there's something.

Not if you don't want to.

[...wh...at... slowing even more at all that]

Centaurs with claws? And— nurses?

That's the names people gave them, 'cause they had to call them something. I think there might be other types too, only not everyone gets to see them.

I don't know why though. Spiders make sense -- they're little and have lots of legs too, and they climb anywhere. But I haven't seen a real nurse, and Kaito-nii says that centaurs aren't real.

What in below are they?

Isn't that rude?

They don't sound even remotely human, or like anything else I've ever heard of!

But when I asked Ran-neechan, she told me off!

[props free hand on her hip!]

I still look like a lady, don't I?

Very much like a lady! You've even got a bonnet.

[Shyly]

It looks really nice!

[mollified! good going, conan]

And that's why it was rude to ask.

[continues on to the dining room]

... [Conan's still unsure about this logic Ran.]

I'm not.

It's not rude to ask what something is if it doesn't look human and you are wholly unfamiliar with their species.

[come on, basic etiquette. most people don't give the rubbery men even that much[

But what about things that look human but aren't? That's when you need to ask the most.

Look human but aren't?

[Conan nods.] Like me.

[visibly surprised!]

Then what...?

And that's not rude?

I hadn't thought such a thing was possible. Even devils have their differences.

What's a devil?

A creature of Hell. We often do business dealings with them. They can be very suave and polite... but they aren't to be trusted with souls.

That seems logical.

What's a soul?