venice ♔ the piano keys are black & white but they sound like a million colors in your mind

[romanticidal]

♬ Spider's Web - Katie Melua

WHO || Rafael Giovanni, Isabella Alessandro, Hiro, Kat, Gar, Buffy, Myri [closed]
WHAT || Kat, Gar, Buffy, and Myri spend the night at Rafael's.   Nothing of consequence happens at all.
WHERE || Rafael's villa, an hour outside Venice, Italy
WHEN || July 6-7, late night.
HOW || Actionspam, NO TAG ORDER

After returning from her interrogation date? outing with Rafael, Buffy was ushered back into the girls' shared rooms, where Gar and Kat and Myri have set up shop. Myri and Gar both spent most of that time on the phone: Gar with Wynn and Myri with Finnick, and Rafael dropped by to wish all the girls a good night before retiring and leaving them alone with Buffy.

As the household settles into sleep, maybe now is the time they can get some serious snooping done... 

Comments

[slay]

[ buffy's taken the liberty of hopping in the shower while they wait for everyone else in the house to sleep, and when she comes out, she's towel drying her hair. ]

Sorry for the bailage earlier, guys. But, I'd hoped getting Rafael away from his harpy of a manager might get him chattier.

[witchwoman]

[Myri is in the best mood ever so when sits calmly on the bed with a smile on her face.]

No need to apologize. It was a good plan. I just wish we had been able to find more here while you were gone. But there's still time.

Were you able to learn anything?

1/1

[shootfirst]

[ yeah that bathroom was like something out of a home design fairy tale.

kat lowers her tablet from where she's been... literally sitting on the bed all this time and looks between them ]

And what are you two all so smiley about?

[slay]

Nothing. [ it's said quickly to kat in an almost sheepish way. then as if to cover it up by making it sound like she was addressing myri, she continues. ] I mean, not much. Isabella's his manager, hence the serious spaz attack every time we mentioned him signing with Nova.

And he really didn't like the idea that we'd talked to Angelo about Shadowkind operating in Italy. [ she stops, turning away to lower her towel, thinking. ] ... Actually, the Shadowkind thing in general seemed kinda personal. What do we know about Rafael's background? Where he's from, his family. That stuff. [ because if he were the harder to notice kind of Shadowkind, like her or Myri, who liked human, and he'd had a bad dealing experience with Nova ... ]

1/2

[shootfirst]

[ kat pulls her legs up underneath her as she sits up straight at attention ] Oo, me, me! [ she taps her tablet, and then looks over at gar's speculative expression ] What, did you think I spent all this time playing Sudoku?

[ she waves the tablet a bit to indicate it ] Surprisingly little on this guy. And not because my hacker-fu wasn't strong. I'm talking suspiciously little.

[ she grins abruptly ] Not that that really stopped me.

[ she pulls up a document ] He's been working for Angelo since at least 2003, graduated from high school in 1999 with less than impressive marks, lived in Venice since 1995, blah blah blah... [ she stabs the screen with dramatic effect ] First began attending school in 1986... as a high schooler. And then changed schools at least three times. I mean, the names are all spelled slightly different, but basic information's the same, so I'm 95% sure it was the same guy.

[ she scans the doc and then seems to find what else she was looking for ] Oh yeah! And his parents were Lucrezia and Elorn Giovanni, though I can't find any actual birth records. And his birthday seems to list a different year almost everywhere I found him. I found funeral dates for his mom from 2000... and his dad from 1996, although it lists his name as Elorn Cilriond-Giovanni.

[ she looks up ] And that's as far as I got. Oh! And that he was Isabella's legal guardian from 2002 to 2004, when she must have turned 18.

[rationalizes]

[ gar's leaning against the window, arms folded ] If he were Shadowkind, it might be difficult for him to maintain his status as a performer in this country. I could see why he may have concealed his records or heritage - and it would explain Angelo's long term interest in him.

SNOOPIN A SNOOP | MK COLLECTION

[shootfirst]

[ time for move silently checks yo. kat is... not really being quiet as she tromps out into the hall with her partner. ] So where are we startin'?

[witchwoman]

[Myri is serious business right now. She's walking with a Move Silently of 19. She even gives Kat a look at her unstealthy movements, but won't SAY anything about it. She just wants to do this and do it right.]

We left off at the kitchen and only really got a look at one other room before that. If only we knew where he had his computer...

[shootfirst]

If only there were a spell for 'discern wireless hotspot'. [ sigh ] Well, let's head kitchen-ward and try the opposite direction this time.

[witchwoman]

[Myri is keeping a moderate ear out for any signs of life in the house (other than Buffy and Gar, obvs) with a Listen check of 11. She remembers the path to the kitchen fairly well and since there's no better plan than to go with Kat's suggestion, she just keeps on chugging until they are near enough to the kitchen to get their bearings.]

[shootfirst]

[ she might pick up the distant strains of music, which will be a good sign to avoid that section of the house for snooping purposes. as they head through the kitchen, kat scoops an apple off the counter for good measure and takes a bite, nodding down the opposite hall. ] What's the plan of action if we open Isabella's bedroom door?

[witchwoman]

The plan is to not do that. [Myri tosses back, joking. Sorta.]

Perhaps I will let you handle that one. When Hiro came upon us earlier, I was not so quick on my feet.

[Okay, maybe Wynn's lack of faith is eating at her a little.]

RAFING A RAF | THE NOTORIOUS B-G

[rationalizes]

I hope we won't be waking him. [ she leads her out and down the hall annnnd do a listen check ]

[slay]

What, at this time a night? How could we possibly? [ it drips sarcasm, but she quiets to listen in for sounds, because honestly she hopes they don't wind up jumping him in his pjs either. awkward much? listen 16. ]

[rationalizes]

[ ♬ Sleeping With Ghosts - Placebo

There's the unmistakable sound of piano music coming from one of the rooms way way up the hall. The same room Gar, Kat, and Myri had checked out earlier, actually. Gar doesn't seem to hear a thing. ]

[slay]

Gar. [ buffy tugs her shoulder. ] Come on. I hear something. [ she navigates the halls quietly (move silently 12), and pushes open the door to the room that the piano music seems to becoming from. it's gotta be him, of course. there's not a doubt in her mind for even a second that it might not be, because it's beautiful. ]

Rafael?

1/2

[rationalizes]

[ the music gets louder as she pushes the door open, to the point where the word is swallowed by the fact that he's starting to sing.

it's a large room and he's seated at the piano in the farthest corner of it with his back to them, apparently lost in his own little world.

♬ To Where You Are - Josh Groban

the music is arresting, hauntingly beautiful but with a sadness to it that seems so much more personal and intense than his performance before the crowded hall, or his jovial rendition of caruso in the gondola.

instinctively, gar puts a hand on buffy's wrist, as if to stop her for a moment, just so that they can listen.

something small sits on top of the piano as well, facing him. ]

[romanticidal]

Who can say for certain
Maybe you're still here
I feel you all around me
Your memories so clear

Deep in the stillness
I can hear you speak
You're still an inspiration
Can it be
That you are mine
Forever love
And you are watching over me from up above

Fly me up to where you are
Beyond the distant star
I wish upon tonight
To see you smile
If only for awhile to know you're there
A breath away's not far
To where you are

Are you gently sleeping
Here inside my dream
And isn't faith believing
All power can't be seen

As my heart holds you
Just one beat away
I cherish all you gave me everyday
'Cause you are mine
Forever love
Watching me from up above...

Cellar

[shootfirst]

[ kat leads the way to the cellar doors, and glances around wildly before going to yank on them...

and they don't budge.

because they're locked. ] Oh sonovabitch.

The Attack

[inevitablekungfumoves]

[ meanwhile, as buffy heads back around the corner to the front of the house, there's now a visible line of knocked out dudes littering the lawn, and hiro's still going... but yet another van pulls up, spilling forth another four guys.

One of them sees Buffy, and a spray of bullets heads her way, but they all slam into the side of the house (atk 9) ]

[slay]

[ the bullets sail over her head as she all but scurries in a crouched run. when she's in range, she straightens up and delivers a spinning quick squarely to the center of one of the four guys' chest (atk 32, dmg 15) which sends him sailing backwards. she doesn't waste any time looking wildly around for rafael after that, rather than fixing her attention on the guys she's dealing with (spot 15). ]

[romanticidal]

[ one down, three more to go. buffy would spot rafael through the shattered glass doors of the house, leaping over the kitchen counter and sending several bullets flying at the few soldiers actually making it around hiro and into the house. two more soldiers fall, and the others uselessly pepper the counter with bullets, which pwing off from pans hanging above it.

meanwhile, the three other dudes on buffy back away from her, and one sends a bullet that goes sailing a little too closely to her shoulder (attk 11). the second shoots her in the thigh (attk 17, 6 dmg), and the third stands his ground, whacking her with the end of his weapon on the back of the head (attk 16, 6 dmg).

rafael appear not to notice her, but he's a little busy right now, k. ]

[slay]

[ maybe this wasn't such a great idea after all.

realizing that now's too little too late, though, and she only even considers it because she swings her next kick at the guy who barely misses her shoulder and screws up the whole thing, her hit going nowhere near the guy's face because she just got shot in the thigh. again (nat 1 atk). she instead winds up carrying the kick through which spins her around and slams the side of her thigh against some landscaping tree, which sends tremors of pain (dmg 2) through the fresh bullet wound as the metal tears up muscle inside. ]

Note to self: don't get distracted. [ looking for rafael wouldn't do her any good until these guys were taken care of -- in fact, it'd apparently get her shot. and possibly killed. she limps back against the tree to make sure they at least can't surround her, and presses a hand over the bullet wound in her thigh to try and compress it. ]

attempting to tag on phone while on break (unsure)

[witchwoman]

[Myri only makes it halfway to the cellar before she stops dead in her tacks, a short cry escaping her before her breath is taken away. She's not in any actually pain, but her Gift refuses to let her continue moving forward while she knows that someone has been hurt.

No. Not just someone. Buffy.

She doesn't have time to call out to Kat, who seems to be unable to open the cellar door. She just turns around and runs at a full sprint. Each step makes the choking feeling ease just slightly. She can take full breaths just as she realizes how close she is to the fighting. She's nothing more than a scared rabbit, isn't she? But there's no room for feaer when her friend's life is on the line.]

Buffy! [she shouts, not caring if it draws attention to her. But there's no time to start the healing after a run like that.]

so proud 1/-

[romanticidal]

[ ♬ no light, no light - florence + the machine

well, rafael still misses all of this. because the bad guys are directing a giant spotlight into the house off the back of the truck, and as he comes out from cover again to take aim, it blinds him from seeing anything that's happening outside, period. he squints and holds one arm up to shield his eyes... and then shoots out the spotlight with a nat 20 and it shatters into a million pieces in an epic manner.

so much for THAT.

also they keep shooting at him but lol no one can hit him suckas ]