As she approached Myrtle Hall, her pace slowed. The lights seemed somewhat dimmer in this area of the hotel, the air a little heavier. She wondered if that was the sort of 'weird stuff' Mary would want her to pay attention to, and how much of it was just her overactive imagination at work. The doors to the other rooms were closed, triggering the realization that she had no idea how to pick a lock. Her investigation could be over more abruptly than she originally expected.

She couldn't decide if it was good or bad when she found the door to her destination slightly open. She took a quick look around before ducking inside, expecting to be immersed in darkness but instead finding it to be surprisingly bright. After a momentary panic that she'd crashed someone else's wedding reception, she realized she was alone.

The room didn't seem any different than any other hotel reception hall she'd ever been in-- larger than most and smaller than others, with the same overly-patterned carpet and wooden dance area. The tables were set up yet void of decoration, giving the room an even more generic feel. The only part of the room that differed was the small stage area in front of the dance floor, where a wide assortment of equipment was set up. Emily cautiously approached, looking for any odd symbols or strange vibes.

Emily: "Oh sure. Right. No wonder I ended up in therapy for months and months."

She reached out hesitantly, lightly touching one of the amps nearest the edge of the stage. It didn't seem to be giving off any vibes of any sort.

Emily: "I'm clearly insane. It's the only reason I'm not in an institution."
Tristan: "What did the amp say to you?"

Emily did her best to stifle a scream, not wanting to bring even more attention to her illegal wanderings, quickly spinning around.

Emily: "That's it. I'm giving you my collar with the bell on it. I can't handle another series of elaborate heart attacks."
Tristan: "Ooo belled collar! It would go along rather nicely with the 'violent love' we've been making. And I didn't mean to scare you; I thought you'd heard me. Anyway, what are you doing here?"

Emily: "You know, when I go to say it out loud to anyone other than Mary, it sounds completely crazy."
Tristan: "Try me."
Emily: "I'm looking for clues that this wedding is a complicated demonic ritual to achieve eternal youth."
Tristan: "It's your wording-- the basic idea is probably quite sound."

Emily: "Wait. Why are you here?"
Tristan: "I'm getting the stage set up. There's no time to do it before the reception tomorrow night, and since none of us can make it out here during the day we arranged to get it done tonight."
Emily: "You're doing it alone?"
Tristan: "Markus is working and it seems James bailed on me."

Emily: "I'd offer to help, but I think I'd just end up breaking something."
Tristan: "I'm just about done. I think things ended up being easier this way. James usually wanders off after five minutes, so really it wasn't that much more effort than usual."
Emily: "Don't you guys have roadies or something to do that for you?"
Tristan: "We'll never be that successful."

Emily: "Really? I think you're flat out amazing, seriously."
Tristan: "Thanks, but it's by design, actually. James and I can't exactly afford to become superstars unless we plan to fake our deaths before too many decades pass. That can just be messy and generally unpleasant for everyone involved."
Emily: "Oh, I guess that does sort of put a damper on things."
Tristan: "You get used to it."

Emily watched quietly as Tristan effortlessly pulled himself up on the stage, disappearing behind one of the larger speakers. She took another quick look around the room, trying to work out if the tables were set up in a demonic pattern or if the wood of the dance floor spelled out any ritualistic words. Nothing seemed to jump out at her-it seemed like your every day run of the mill reception hall.

Emily: "So she's probably planning on doing whatever she's going to do at the altar, or the ritualistic stuff doesn't get brought in until tomorrow. Damn."
Tristan: "Pardon?"
Emily: "Oh, nothing. I was just talking to myself again, like all good insane people do."
Tristan: "Did you find what you needed?"

Emily: "Nothing, but that could be a clue about something."
Tristan: "Your logic is dizzying. Did you want to jump up here and see if maybe a different angle might reveal something?"
Emily: "Yeah, that may help actually. Just don't laugh at my complete and utter lack of grace."
Tristan: "You're hardly graceless, Emily. Yours is just a special sort of elegance. Here, let me pull you up."

Emily reached up, gritting her teeth against a sudden burst of pain from both her arms. In one swift movement she was suddenly face to face with Tristan, the pain momentarily forgotten. She hesitated, wavering slightly.

Tristan: "You ok? Not going to fall over?"
Emily: "I think I'm steady."

Emily turned around, facing the room. A dozen tables covered with simple white tablecloths spread out in equal distances from the dance floor, with one larger table set up at the far end of the room for the bridal party.

Tristan: "See anything unusual?"
Emily: "Nothing at all. It's just so… generic. It actually looks even more generic from up here. If anything's going to happen at the reception, they haven't brought in any of the ritual whatevers."
Tristan: "So, have anywhere else you need to break into tonight?"
Emily: "To be fair, I just walked through an unlocked door. Technically there wasn't any actual 'breaking in'. But no, I'm free to go home and go to bed now."

Tristan: "Did you drive yourself here?"
Emily: "Mary dropped me off on her way to the church. She was going to meet me out front at 3:00, which gives me just under 45 minutes to wait. Want to keep me company?"
Tristan: "Let me drive you home. You can call Mary and save her a trip."
Emily: "That works, too."
Tristan: "Fantastic. Just let me lock up here and we can be on our way."