venice ♔ to remove the stain of my love

[romanticidal]

♬ My Confession - Josh Groban

WHO || Rafael Giovanni, Kat, Gar, Buffy, Myri [closed]
WHAT || Invited to the home of the talented singer, the Knights attempt to learn more about his connection to NOVA Records.
WHERE || Rafael's villa, an hour outside Venice, Italy
WHEN || July 6, evening.
HOW || Actionspam, NO TAG ORDER

With Dumage MIA and not responding to her phone, the girls quickly got ready for an evening at the home of the exceptionally talented singer who had dragged them in front of the audience at Notturno. Gar looks nice, if subtly so, in a mid-length red dress and simple make-up (11 Disguise check which is what I use for people prettyifying up). Kat's own attempts to do her make-up when left unaided in the bathroom left her coming out looking like Rocky Raccoon, unhappily smeared in blush and metallic eyeshadows (crit fail :( ), but after the other girls helped salvage her (15), she looks really pretty, though still not wearing anything remotely close to a dress. Ever.

The girls take a ride outside of town, driving through Veneto at breakneck speeds, because someone let Kat drive (check 17). What should be an hour's journey takes them half that time, and they pull up to the impressive sight of a dual story white and red villa that all but screams luxury.

Comments

1/2

[shootfirst]

I'm all for snoopage. Beats hanging around on Animal Farm.

[rationalizes]

I can't say I expect to find much evidence that would assist us, however... [ she hesitates ] It does seem... odd, don't you think? Just how welcoming Signor Giovanni has been...?

[witchwoman]

Perhaps it is just his custom? [He keeps mentioning that they are American. Even if she doesn't really get what that means, it clearly doesn't mean he is as well. Different people act differently, Gar.]

I was thinking that perhaps he has a... library or office? A computer? [She looks at Kat. She's watched her Knight research enough to know that it's a decent place to start.]

1/2

[shootfirst]

I like the way you think. They don't do things that differently here. There's got to be at least one place wired in this house. [ She gets to the back door and puts a hand over her eyes, pressing up to the screen to make sure the coast is clear before yanking the door open ] Anyone asks, we're looking for the bathroom.

[rationalizes]

[ uncertainly: ] All of us?

[witchwoman]

Of course. We didn't want to get separated. It's such a large house. [Myri actually smiles at Gar. She's getting the hang of this.]

1/2

[shootfirst]

That it is. I'll bet Isabella has three bathrooms just for her ego.

[rationalizes]

Shh, she might be listening! [ gar puts a finger to her lips, but she's smiling behind it at both girls, her eyes shining, and it's clear that no matter how cautious she might be, she's also having a bit of fun with all this. She nods to the hallways to the left. ] Shall we?

[witchwoman]

[Myri heads in the direction Gar motions to, trying not to laugh. At least this mission seems low-danger... so far. She continues down the hallway until she reaches a door. She steps close, holding up a hand to the two Knights and listening close (Listen check 23) to see if she can hear anyone behind it. They still haven't seen Hiro, after all.

If it seems quiet, she'll open it.]

1/1

[shootfirst]

[ that it does, and the other girls stand on tip toes to poke their heads in as well.

the room is large, and mostly white, with hardwood floors and a large piano in the far corner.

on the walls hang several decorative crossed swords, and there's also a rack of fencing foils and various other gear in here. ]

[witchwoman]

[Well, it isn't an office, but they may as well have a look around, right? Myri begins looking at the walls, the swords- she even makes her way over to the piano, even if she's never seen such a thing before. Even if she doesn't know exactly what she's looking for, she's looking (Search 17).]

Is Rafael a swordsman?

1/2

[shootfirst]

Fencer, maybe. The snooty rich person's version of a swordsman. [ she draws one of the weapons right off the rack and gar goes running right over to her to make her put it back. ] What? I'm just looking.

[ Meanwhile, Myri would uncover under the piano lid a whole bunch of sheet music, scrawled all in the same frenetic hand. Not all of it's in Italian, actually, and it seems like lyric sheets, piano scores, guitar riffs, etc. etc. Most of it's slapped inside a leather padfolio thing. Buried in some of the bottom pages would be lyrics written in a completely different hand as well, which has also left commentary on the sidebars of some of the top sheets - along with little drawings and smiles and >:( faces and other adorable things. ]

[rationalizes]

Kat, don't touch those! [ Gar frets, looking over her shoulder towards Myri ] Did you find something?

[witchwoman]

[She's got the leather binder in her hands, leafing through the pages. Anything in Italian is lost on her, but once she spots a few doodles, she stops. With a confused face, she walks over to the others.]

Our Rafael is an artist as well? [She's clearly confused.] It seems... young.

[shootfirst]

[ kat puts the sword down reluctantly and glances over at them ] Looks kinda girly, if you ask me.

[witchwoman]

Isabella? She does not seem the type.

[rationalizes]

She certainly doesn't.

Perhaps some friend of Rafael's? I am sure he has a great deal of ... er, friends.

[witchwoman]

Another musician, then. [It's not a question. She can see that it looks like two different hands wrote these papers.] But if she was here, he would have introduced her. [That one, she's less certain of.]

1/2

[shootfirst]

Maybe it was Britney Spears.

2/2

[rationalizes]

Some of the language makes it seem rather... intimate. [ kat's disgusted face prompts her to expand on that ] Not-- not that kind of intimate.

[witchwoman]

[Unfortunately, Myri is still operating under the assumption that Isabella is ~involved~ with Rafael, so this all make her brows furrow.] A lover?

[rationalizes]

Y-yes. [ she rifles through the pages, then points something else out. ] Although these seem to be dated to well over a year ago. ... All of them, actually.

[witchwoman]

Interesting. {Except that it doesn't tell them much about what they came here for- which was information on Nova and the sorts of things that Nassi brought up, right?]

Perhaps the next room will shed some light on this. [And she heads for the door.]

1/2

[rationalizes]

[ gar moves to make sure to put those back where myri found them lest anyone realize they were spying. then drags a reluctant kat away from the sharp things. ]

You're right, of course. [ she flushes a bit ] We probably shouldn't pry into Mr. Giovanni's personal life.

2/2

[shootfirst]

If it means avoiding any more awkward surprise orgy moments? Maybe we should be. Just sayin'.