Welcome to Gaia! ::

-The girl smirked a bit, her head shaking.- I was nothing more than a freightened kitten the last time I was here.... Lets just say my eyes had not exactly opened yet. -As she spoke, she flicked a hand back as if shoving an ethereal being from her shoulder. Damn thing was beginning to play with her ears and it was getting annoying.-

But it seems off somehow... It remins me of the time when-- -Her voice trailed away and her skin acquired a nice ivory shade. When the spectre ran rampant and killed Sirus. And that only happened because Midori hadn't been present.- s**t.

-So her steps hurried, a slight hint of desperation in her haste.-

-Before she knew it, she'd made her way through the cemetary and into the monolithic-like building in the center of it that doubled as Midori's house. A quick flick of the wrist and she found out the door was locked. Grumbling, she stepped back, purple eyes looking for a window. Nothing. Just when she thought breaking down the door would do, she remembered where the spare was kept (beneath a fallen tombstone next to the door) and opened the door.- Midori? Midi? Its me, Mimi.

-Oh, it was pointless. The place had been abandoned. A few sheets covered the furniture and cowebs had taken over the place. If Mimi knew a thing or two about her best friend it was on how fastidiously clean Midori could be. Still, she hoped against hope that there was a clue as to where the little bat-person had vanished.

She wondered into the office for a second, drawn to it for some reason. In the end, all she found was the dusty old brandy bottle that had been laying on the floor for a long time. She wiped the bottle for a moment to check its contents and all she found inside was black smoke.- At least your'e still in here..

-The bottle in her hand seemed to shake and tremble in anger.- And I bet you want to get out of here don't you? -How long had Midori had been gone? Too long, obviously. The seal on the bottle was beginning to get weaken... now who was going to keep it from breaking?- Damnit.

Midori's presence as the ground keeper keeps the evil spirits of the place in check. - She quietly tucked the brandy bottle under her arm, a delicate hand on its neck.- If Midori were to stay away for too long, the seals placed around the hotel and theme park weaken-- it is obvious that the seals were strengthen before Midori left, almost as if he knew it would be a while before he came back.

- The girl shook her head, violet eyes glancing about the room.- However, I don't Midori meant to stay away for so long... the seals are weakening and this one wants to escape again. -Perfectly manicured nails drummed on the glass.- And this one has already killed friends of mine.

(( I know, its irritating.))

I'm not entirely sure. - She said, looking down at the thing in her hand- It could be months. perhaps another year... As for this piece of s**t here. -Ooh, Mimi using bad words? Most definately.- Consider it prison.. perfect punishment for one who desires its freedom so badly. Isn't that so?

-The jar simply rumbled, and trembled. Obviously, her mocking him got on the specter's nerves.- Now, if you don't mind.. it seems like a pair of old dogs out there want to learn a few tricks.

-As she spoke, she extended a finger into mid air and cut a pocket where the brandy bottle was promptly placed in. With age and experience came certain abilities-- like being able to pull and put things away in her den realm. She then offered the strange man a wicked, catty little grin before leading them on out of the house. Apperantly, she'd just slipped into her Bagheera skin.-

Last year, things were a lot different. -She said, quietly, those plump twins curled in enough of an angle to let a fang show. Yeah, last year I was afraid of my own shadow... - Besides, I owe them something, don't I?

-From over head one of the lycanthropes jumped, his elongated snout sniffing at the neko's aura. It was a rather handsome looking wolf, white fur and bright blue eyes. By all comparison, the neko was nothing more than a little mouse, her build and size several times smaller. Despite it all, the wolf remained at a cautious distance, his fangs bared.- You were one of them....

-Mimi shrugged and rolled her eyes, her softened features hardening to resemble marble. - Who was it-- the red one that got himself caught in my sister's trap last year?

-There was a reason why Xalan stayed away from the one called Mimi. He had witness her finish off his brother last year, and the tiny little nekojin fit description of the same Bagheera that had terrorized the Lycan lands for the past eleven months. He had lunged, intent on striking the girl down when the ground beneath rumbled and he was knocked out of sight by the popping of a.. zombie?-

-Mimi grumbled, jumping back and out of the way in the nick of time. What the hell was that? Death. The smell of death wafted up her nostrils, freshly decaying. Something was a miss. Elongated claw-like fingertips dug themselves into the concrete of the house walls to keep her from falling off the room. Zombies? Zombies weren't native to the Hyde..... - This isn't right..

(( stupid gaia!! ))

{Eep! I missed a lot...}

Blankets, sheets, and pillows were strewn across the floor. Moaning and half-screams echoed through the dark room. All this was generated by the lone creature lying atop the now stripped bed.

Even in her sleep, Cerise seemed gripped by hysteria. Her arms and legs flailed about wildly, causing the sheets displacement, as she tossed and turned about her bed.

But, oh, the dreams!

Dark images, flashing incessantly in a phantasmagoric display. She hardly had the time to absorb it all, let alone find some sort of meaning. None of it made sense in sequence, yet the prevailing emotion conjured was fear. Each image shown more horrific than the last.

Blood. Spectres. Black. White. A face, a hand. A person she did not know. . .

Crash! Cerise fell off the bed. Had anyone been around to hear, her piercing screams would have immediately alerted danger. Such was not the case. When at last her screeching died down, she could only pant. She drew her knees to her chest, shaking. Never before had a dream been so...graphic.

Yet she understood none of it. It seemed that everything was a riddle. She had returned to the Hyde in hopes of finding answers to those riddles, but the mysteries were only deepening. It was absolutely infuriating. No, not infuriating. It was frustrating. Slowly, slowly, Cerise stood from the floor. She absent-mindedly brushed the red hair from her face, tucking it safely behind her ears.

Without even bothering to change, Cerise padded out the door. Her pink silk shift fluttered with her every movement, but she hardly noticed. Her body quivered in the fear common to those awakening from the throes of a nightmare. Nightmares are especially horrifying when they are true.

As she entered the lobby, the only thought in Cerise's mind was to avoid sleep by any possible means. She needed to think.