"Why, is something not to your liking? Looks can be deceiving, they are quite the treat." Candlewick does not seem overly hurt by your rejection, but the Chef appears a bit stifled, both of them apparently missing the point. Wisteria eyes you with suspicion, however.

"Uhh, okay, yeah, food," says James as he sits down, as far from the cook or Wisteria as he is able.

~SE++

Rebecca tries her hardest to ignore Mrs. Pith's repeated attempts to rouse them from their rooms. She waits until she hears the other three go downstairs before getting ready herself. Normally she liked waking up early, but being in an unfamiliar house with unfamiliar people made her feel a bit apprehensive. She dresses herself in the least girly clothes she can find in the closet before heading downstairs. As she enters the Dining Hall, Rebecca rubs the dried rheum out of her eyes and manages a very feint, "Good morning."

She takes a seat at whatever unoccupied place setting seems the most fitting and takes to eating a piece of bread with jam, ignoring the rest of the meal.

The chef is visibly disappointed, both at your late arrival, and your dismissal of his craftsmanship.

"Well, shall we depart then?" After you are done eating, Wisteria prepares for the escort.
Are you all going to follow, or is there something you would like to do?

Trying to maintain some illusion of a cheerful exterior, Zeke nods to her and pleasantly replies.

"Of course. I see no reason to delay."

Still, something seems odd in the behavior of the other new residents that keeps Zeke from being entirely at ease.

Vincent is unsure, but doesn't want to cause a scene so nods quietly. he tries to stay near the back of the group, keeping his distance from the others and especially from their guide.

James will follow along, but at the back of the group, preferably.

~SE++

Rebecca follows along as she finishes her last slice of toast. She remains unaware of their destination due to her tardiness, but tries to avoid showing it by maintaining a confident gait and not falling to the back of the group.

Wisteria takes posied steps throughout the estate as she leads you of the mansion, towards a ruined old building that seems to resemble an abbey. The run down crypts would be terrifying if the sunlight didn't shine through the opening. Ugh. Well, I warned you this place was unpleasant. She seems to shiver slightly as she moves further down the halls, soon only lit by jarring electric lighting carrying a sullen mood. Droplets of water echo in the distance behind the walls, and you can hear high pitched squeaks permeate throughout every now and then. Numerous steps eventually carry you to a sizable iron door. When Wisteria forces in the key and opens it, letting loose a rotten stench of alcohol, dust, cheese and... death? It's hard to be sure, but it is not unreasonable to expect vermin to proceed through the cycle of life in plethora down here. After waiting for all of you to get through, she closes the door again, locking it with the key. A number of spare ones hang to the right of the handle. "I see only mold and dust down here, but Dad is enamored with his 'treasures' in this place, and would be outraged if I let it accessible for a second too long. His obsession is way past something you can argue about." She rolls her eye with a sigh, and then moves further in.

Vincent looks around. he's always been comfortable in cellars: something about the dark and quiet appeals to him. plus there's fewer people around so the voices aren't as loud. he'll probably be spending a lot of time down here, he thinks. curious about what's down here, he begins to wander away from the group to explore on his own.

Zeke takes in the sights, attempting to commit this shadowy space more or less to memory

"What treasures would those be?" hoping for an answer but trying to continue to conduct himself with respect and deference.

Rebecca grabs a spare key when Wisteria turns her back and stashes it somewhere in her clothing.

Wisteria is mostly showing you the back as the talks about various immediate relevant topics, a lot of them boiling down to "It's been this as long as anyone here remembers" one way or another, but is aware enough to notice Vincent leaving. "W-wait! You can't just up and leave, I'm here to guide you! Further, this place is enormous, you will certainly get lost."

Rebecca will have to roll for that, which is probably Hands + Shop, but you could also try e.g. deception if you make an argument for it. You just need a basic success for Wisteria not to notice, but the rest of the group may do an opposed Notice roll if they want to.

James begins to poke around, opening boxes to see inside, poking the items on the shelves, and looks for insect friends who might be hiding in here.

~SE++

Vincent jumps, then shuffles back to the group with a quiet "...sorry."



OOC: I'm gonna roll to see Rebecca, but if I do I'm not gonna say anything.

As Rebecca reaches for the key, she notices a bottle of pinot noir with an almost familiar label and recalls herself staring at a glass of wine—perhaps poured from a similar bottle—from across a table, watching silently as water condensed on the outside of the glass.

---

Hands +3
Shop +0
Echo +1 (Condensation on a wine glass)
---
Total +4

You try to silently pull one of the keys from the wall plug while Wisteria is looking elsewhere, but an unexpected movement of her head causes you to accidentally hit one of the other keys, making a soft chiming sound. She turns her head in response, not seeming overly surprised. "I understand that you might find this place to your discomfort, but like I mentioned, Father is really particular about the cellar, and I don't want any of the keys to fall into disarray. It would please me greatly if you were to put it back in its place. Now, this shouldn't take too long, given that you just follow me." Assuming no further distractions, she then descends further into the cellar.

Wisteria takes you through winding paths further and further into the cellars. It feels longer than presented, but only to the extent of taking a good few minutes. Surroundings become slightly clearer as the eyes adjust to the darkness, and you can make out all assortments of miscellanea around you, from beverages to instruments to books to furniture to yet more beverages. You can also make out the footsteps of a variety of critters, but they have been consistent throughout. Some of the storage appears to be kept within smaller sections closed by stone walls and wooden doors, one of which Wisteria stops in front of. "Well, it should be in here, but they all look so alike it is hard to be certain. Allow me to retrieve them." She steps in and takes a turn around the edges of the door. Moments later, you hear the unexpected creaking of wood, quickly followed by a crack and a scream.

Zeke calls out quickly

"Wisteria? Are you Alright?"

he moves to look through the door after her.