WWXXVI - Vannacutt Point

[Gryphon]

Seeing Vinka looking in their direction Brad waves her over.

 

"Come on Vinka, we're going to hit one of the intermediate slopes for a warm up run... then maybe you and I can shoot up to one of the runs thats a little more..."

 

Brad pauses to give Vinka a big smile, remembering her skills from previous years on the mountain.

 

"... more challenging. Come on, I know you like a bit of a challenge."

[Tanuchan]

Co-written with Panther. Thank you!

~~~~~

 

 

With his mind much clearer, and the first run of the day under his belt, Charles made his way down to the chair lift once again, to try more remote trails, and trails he had had to attend injuries last year, to inspect any trouble spots.

 

Charles slid into what would be the lift lines, if this had been a regular day, his mind already on the next descent down the mountain.

 

"Charles?"

 

The soft voice interrupted his thoughts, and only the fact that it was a girl's made him stop and turn. He didn't really want to waste more time now that he was in the mountain.

 

"Yes?"

 

The tall elegant girl that faced him at the foot of the lifts, also in her full skiing gear, caught his attention immediately. He saw her sparkling green eyes, and couldn't avoid a smile. A new instructor, then - and a pretty one... but her next words almost made him groan.

 

"I was assigned to you as intern."

 

Annelise kept her calm countance, though the words grated at her. Not so much because she had already been an instructor - but because she was interning in the wrong path with the wrong guy.

 

Charles just stared at her. So, this was the rookie he'd have to get rid of... it was a shame, since he liked pretty girls. But not ones that would come between him and the mountain. He eyed her critically, trying to assess her from the way she stood and dealt with her equipment - which he recognized as good.

 

"Name?" Charles almost growled, frowning. "How long have you been skiing?"

 

"Annelise. Since I was 9." She declined her last name, immediately deciding that she wasn't going to try to make Charles remember her. He had always been a prick, and the years apparently hadn't helped him any.

 

"Then you're pretty old to be interning. Why?"

 

Because I cannot be what I was! Her eyes got shadowed, but she forced out other words calmly. "Because I had to stop for a while against my will."

 

Charles wasn't so stupid as to not notice the coldness in that Annelise girl. And a hint of defiance. That was really unfair for him... of all things, an intern who wouldn't recognize rank...

 

"Well, and why ski patrol, girl?"

 

That tone was too much for Annelise, who glared at him and replied icily. "Because some stupid guy assigned me to you."

 

It wasn't the answer Charles was expecting, and for a second his surprise showed. Annelise's lips thinned in a suppressed smile.

 

"Don't try to be clever with me, girl. You'll never survive the mountain by trying to be smart. Ski patrol is a serious business. We save lives. I might have yet to save yours, if you keep this insolent attitude. Mark my words." His voice was stern, and intended to humiliate that upstart girl.

 

Charles turned and pushed himself towards the lift. He climbed on the chair quickly - but Annelise was as quick to sit beside him.

 

"I have a name and you will use it." It was a statement, and not a bit less icy than her previous words. "As for my views of ski patrol, I'll give them to you when I think you're ready to listen to them."

 

It wasn't a lie - Annelise wouldn't let this guy know that she certainly owed her life to some dedicated ski patroller. And that she had a great deal of respect for their work. It was only that respect that had kept her from storming into Vannacutt Point's management to demand internship with the right person. That, and the fact that she couldn't leave the mountain until the roads opened.

 

But, for the lord's sake, why had it to be Charles Montaigne?!

 

 

Charles pointedly ignored her. So, this girl already had a couple strikes against her. She, obviously, didn't respect his authority, nor did she even want to be doing this serious job. Though Charles didn't really complain to himself about the second strike, as he would be just as happy, if not happier if she were not stuck with him either.

[yochva]

{{Well, since Elwen hasn't responded yet, I'll pretend he ignored me. This is right after the briefing.}}

 

Shayna shrugged as the blue-haired man ignored her, then went to her bags. They had been shoved in a corner at some point, but weren't cornered, and easy to get to. Grabbing for her skiis, she hesitated and went to look out the window. The lift was working, a few tracks had already been made, and people were moving up and down. But... Shayna didn't feel in the mood to feel the wind in her face, wasn't in the mood to race down the hill. Not right now, anyway. Besides, she didn't know where the moguls were yet, and she didn't want to go downhill until she had some moguls under her belt. She came to a decision and went over to the door, pulling it open and walking outside, turning to see if anyone was coming, then stepped into the fresh powder.

 

Cold hit her like a slap in the face and took her breath away, making her grin. "Ah, I love winter!" she said, spinning in place, braid flying around behind her. Then she headed for the chair-lift. As she went up, she studied the track and all the off-shoots, watching it in overview, trying to catch as many unique elements the first time around as she could. At the top she got off and stood for a while, tracing the trail with her eyes. After about fifteen minutes, she nodded decisively and went to go back down the lift, intending to head back to a good book in front of the fire until the others came back in.

 

 

 

{{Now anyone at the top of the hill can say anything to her, or interact.}}

[Mynx]

Stomping the snow off her boots, Dana entered the lodge with a windswept but happy expression on her face. She loved the first run of the season! Seeing that she was the first one back, Dana went upstairs to change her clothes before returning to wait for the rest of the group.

Half an hour later, everyone had arrived and was taking advantage of the fire's heat, talking in animated tones about the various runs they had acomplished. Dana watched them all with a smile but couldn't fight a slight tinge of worry - Seth wasn't back yet. She'd asked the rest but no one had seen him since that morning.

Dana tried to kid herself that she was being silly, but still couldn't help feeling nervous.

 

A clunk outside - the familiar sound of a snowboard hitting the lodge's deck - brought a wave of relief to Dana's face as she excused herself and went outside to see her boyfriend.

Everyone within the lodge jumped at the shrill scream of terror that followed shortly after.

Running outside, the instructors found Dana kneeling in the snow, shaking as she held something in her hand.

Next to her was Seth's snowboard, his boots attached. And his feet within the boots. The rest, it seemed, had been sawn off below the knee.

Before anyone could truly react beyond shock, Dana was on her feet and shrieking at them.

"Who did this? Which one of you did this!" All at once a babble of voices broke out.

"Someone get the radio"

"What's that in her hand?"

"Oh my god!"

"Who in the hell -"

"Is that a note?"

"The radio's been smashed!"

 

All hell broke loose, until finally some level of calm was able to be restored and Dana was ushered inside, sobbing hopelessly as she struggled weakly. It wasn't until Dana had been forced to sit down that the note in her hand - stained with her boyfriend's blood - was pried from her fingers and placed on the table for all to read:

 

Your little friend Seth climbed to the top

To enjoy his way back down

Sadly, he got lost upon his way

Till only his feet were found

 

You know we’re alone on this mountain

And now you’ve no way to leave

We’ve already killed off one of you

But you shall have no time to grieve

 

We’re going to have some fun with you now

We’re going to kill the rest

Unless you can find us two from the twelve

It will be only us that is left

OOC: And so it begins. Day Phase ends in 48 hours.

[Elwen]

((ack! Sorry about that...wasn't able to get on until today.))

 

Stefan read the note silently, lips moving to echo the words, and green eyes widened in shock. Who...who in the Goddess's name...

 

A second later, as the full implications hit him, damn it.

 

He tugged nervously at a lock of his blue hair, and looked at Dana: he knew perfectly well that he was terrible at the sympathetic words thing (not that she'd likely accept them from anyone), before looking back at the note. ...this morning, I was worried about somehow surviving this winter and not freezing to death. Now...

[Sweetcherrie]

From her spot all the way in the corner Tina coudn't see what had happened, but she did hear the screams and the anger and fear in the voices. It was probably best that she didn't see what was happening, the snow was red all around, and she already felt dirty enough, after having cleaned her room inside out, and having disinfected the toilet twice.

 

Who would ever want to create such a mess? No, if she were to ever kill someone, she would make sure to do it a lot cleaner. What a waste of this nice clean snow. It would be a dirty job, but they would have to find out who had done this, and find out fast before more accidents happened.

[Gryphon]

Brad was sitting in the corner talking with Vinka about the morning's boarding when Dana started screaming.

 

Going over to see what had happened Brad found out far more than he wanted to know. Turning a pale shade of green he ran outside and was violently ill in the snow at the sight of what was left of Seth.

 

A few minutes later a little pale and shaking he re-entered and joined those reading the note, only to move off in a state of dazed shock. Who would do such a thing...

[Tanuchan]

Thanks for the help, Panther

~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

 

Vannacutt Point's possible paths hadn't changed in what they were best - the amazing variety, the different ways one could choose to run them, the challenges even in the easiest of them. Challenges that were adequate to all levels, but also dangerous for the unwary. Annelise's instructor's training and spirit quicked in fast, and even in the first runs a part of her mind was analizyng how to best take advantage of nature's quirks for instruction.

 

But either at the bottom of the descent or back in the lift, she had to deal with the fact that she wasn't going to instruct - not this season, not even as an intern. She'd be skiing and keeping an eye on the public, but not in the way she loved most. Worse, she'd be doing that while partnering with Charles.

 

Charles. If she could get her hands on the guy who had decided to play that joke on her... management or not, he'd know what an angry skier could do with bare hands.

 

She was forced to tag Charles in some runs. He made a point of pulling rank on her in all possible ways, specially near other instructors. She didn't mind that terribly, since as a child she had learned how to deal with the teasing of those who had better skills than her and, later on, with demanding teachers who wanted to bring out the best from her. And as apparently no one had recognized her yet, she just hid her increasing frustration behind a mask of icy calm.

 

Not frustration at the sharp words or subtle hints on her lack of more developed skills... but at not being free to roam the mountain as she would.

 

Annelise tried wilder paths a couple of times - or tried to try. The first time, Charles saw her and surprisingly sped after her, stopping her at the top of the descent.

 

"Too dangeorous, girl. You won't go there."

 

She started to argue, but then she saw something in his eyes - a second or so of true concern. He started to give her a lesson on how to recognize the trails that would normally be left a little longer into the season, as they would still have dangers coming out through the snow.

 

"The dangers will be closed, and the trails opened, with more snow. We are the first ones on the mountain, and the trails that would normally be closed are not marked off yet. It is part of our work here to find and mark them - but not at the expense of lives, specially from overeager guys. Can you remember that?"

 

Annelise, in spite of all dislike for Charles, knew when to respect him. She filtered out the tone, paid attention to content, and accepted his judgement. He might be an insufferable guy, self-centered and arrogant, but he knew his job. She didn't have any doubt on his competence and professionalism as ski patrol.

 

She just wasn't about to show that to him, not while he didn't learn to respect her as a person and fellow skier. She had dealt with him five years ago, and she would again. Even as an intern, she knew she had the knowledge if not the skill. She would use it, and the skill would come back in time.

 

 

The second wild track she tried was a mistake. At the top, she could see what she would have to do, where to go. The descent started slowly, quite gently, but there was a rather abrupt change in steepness some hundred meters down. She had recognized it before starting. However, when hitting the changing point, her ski caught on something. Instinctive skill saved her from a fall - though it wan't a perfect recovery; her mind might have known what to do but her body wasn't cooperative. But it was enough.

 

Then she froze. Sliding towards a tree stump a few meters downward, she sagged against it. Dizziness took hold of her, and all she was able to see and feel was the mountain going upside down, trees rushing on her, and pain. The memory of the accident hit her hard, and in that moment she knew she had made a mistake by trying a path so similar to the one five years ago. She tried to will herself to continue, as there was no other way out of a path but down. Not for her.

 

While she was breathing hard, fighting for control, a gentle hand supported her below the elbow.

 

"Are you alright, Anne?"

 

Annelise cringed, something in that voice carrying through the mist in her mind.

 

Anne! Annelise Berger, are you alright? Can you hear me?

 

She knew the voice had been strong, full of concern, and it had come from some point in the darkness surrounding her. She was sure there had been other words, too, but she couldn't remember which ones. Funny how that memory had surfaced right now - she had never remembered that distant, fuzzy voice, until then.

 

"Anne?" Johann's voice overrode the past one's, and Anne nodded slowly.

 

"Yeah... yeah, I am."

 

"That was a tricky spot that you hit... I wasn't far, and saw you stopping here..."

 

Johann couldn't avoid the concerin in his voice, and stopped talking before he ended up hurting Anne. He was almost sure that she was reliving her accident - he had seen how close she had been to doing a header into a rock - and he didn't know how to help her without giving the impression he was dealing with a student. He had noticed how that ski patroller had talked to her, and it galled him.

 

Annelise opened her eyes, her hand grabbing Johann's arm. She realized she needed help, but didn't dare to talk. Johann saw her look, and didn't need anything else.

 

"You can do it. You know how. Tell me how to deal with a slow descent in these conditions."

 

A part of Anne's mind smiled, recognizing instructor's sureness in his behavior and making her sure that she hadn't been wrong five years ago. She answered in a soft whisper.

 

"Well, let me think. Take it slow, make lots of turns, and keep the speed down."

 

"Good enough. So why not put that in practice?"

 

Johann's easy smile, coupled to the worry in his eyes, gave Anne the edge she needed. She nodded, and Johann took the lead.

 

At the bottom of the path, Anne finally breathed freely.

 

"Not too bad, was it?"

 

She managed a strained smile at Johann, who fought down an urge to hug Annelise. Stop that! You'll just hurt her more if you go all protective on her... even if you think she needs some comfort right now.

 

"No... thank you."

 

Johann didn't know what else to say, and the silence stretched for a few seconds while several thoughts crossed his mind - all of them circling around his wish to do something for Anne. He had just an idea of how badly the accident had affected her, from their talk the previous night, and had picked her uneasiness around the fact that she had never again gone down a slope similar to the fatidical one.

 

At the end, he just asked, "Wanna talk?"

 

"No." The answer was immediate, sharp.

 

Then Annelise regretted her tone, and added softly, "No, sorry, Johann... not now. I know you mean well. But I have to deal with this by myself right now. Thank you very much for coming."

 

If it had been Charles... She shuddered.

 

 

 

Later in the day, she joined the instructors near the fire. She kept to herself, in a somewhat shadowed corner, with Johann sitting nearest to her. She added her voice to the general talk from time to time, but kept mostly to herself, smiling and laughing at the stories being told. It felt good to be back, even if right now she didn't feel really as part of that group.

 

Then Dana screamed, and she ran outside with the others. Seeing what was left of Seth, she froze in her tracks. She didn't consider herself squeamish, but gore was something she loathed... she gagged, and fought the sickness without much success.

 

 

~~~~~~~~

OOC: no vote yet.

[JDRollins]

Gregor walked in and saw the scene. Bile raised in his throat and he ran to the nearest garbage. Luckily he had eaten nothing so far that day and nothing could come up.

 

He walks back over to the scene.

 

"I come from a religious state. Things like this just don't happen. What could or would do this?" He gags again and looks around knowing that there are two monsters in this group of people that he has, for the most part, known a long time. Yet now he wasn't sure he knew them at all.

 

Vinka? Annelise? Charles? Johann?

 

Any of them, his friends, could be a killer.

 

"Jesus people! What could do this? What in the world?" He interrupts himself with more gagging and runs to the trash can again.

 

OOC: No vote yet.

[Lord Panther]

After steering his oh-so-wanted intern away from a run that would be closed, if this were into the regular ski season, Charles saw her speed off in the direction of another less than easy slope. After cursing the ski gods for placing him with an obviously oblivious skier for an assistant, he makes his way in the direction after her.

 

Upon reaching the top of the slope, he looks down towards her. She has stopped mid way down the run, and is leaning against a stump, breathing hard. Obviously she got herself in too deep. But, on the bright side, according to Charles, there is an instructor there with her, so he's off the hook, for now.

 

Taking this as his chance to slip away and do some skiing alone, Charles makes his way down a trail to another of his favorite runs before making his way back to the lodge for some refreshment and chit-chat with the others.

 

On his approach to the lodge, Charles notices quite the group on the deck and wonders to himself what could be so interesting, or if he is really that late coming back that someone was worried for him? But when he gets closer and steps out of his bindings, Charles notices Dana clearly distraught and the bloody stumps sticking out of the board boots, still strapped into the bindings.

 

Quickly he finds out from the others that Seth was killed, the radio smashed and a very disturbing note left with what's left of Seth.

 

Not liking the sight of death, Charles clears the snow off of his equipment and makes his way to his room to change out of his ski gear, and into something more appropriate for sitting infront of a fire. All the time he thinks to himself, at least it wasn't me and well, it was only a snowboarder, they do nothing but shave off all the good moguls.

 

(OOC: no vote yet)

[Vahktang]

Brad was sitting in the corner talking with Vinka about the morning's boarding when Dana started screaming.

The morning _had_ been good.

She remembers:

 

Gregor looks around for Vinka as he finds her he catches her eye and winks slightly.

She gives a smile back and an encouraging twist of her hips as she walks away.

She notes and nods to the others through the lodge as she makes her way through it, then catches site of Brad and comes over to his wave.

"... more challenging. Come on, I know you like a bit of a challenge."

‘Challenge can be fun,’ she thinks.

“You know I’m there.

“Let me just get my boots for my short skis,” and she runs back to her room, giving a glance to

both Brad and Gregor as they plan their day.

‘Challenges can be very fun.’

 

She passes Evangaline on the way to her room, as Evangaline is on her way out.

“Hey, tell Gregor & Brad I’ll meet them in the kitchen, OK?“

She nods as Vinka passes her.

In her room, Vinka gives herself a once over in the mirror, and does a touch up.

‘Get them to see my eyes. I have pretty eyes.’

She grabs her boots and a small backpack, makes sure the water bottle is in place and rushes to the kitchen.

In the kitchen, the boys are standing, talking. And that’s all.

She sighs before she enters, then gives them a broad smile.

In a simple tone, as a suggestion, she says:

“Anybody want to make lunch so we don’t have to come down to the lodge?”

The boys are smart, catching on, and quickly make dagwoods and snag soft drinks.

Vinka includes some fruit. There are so many fun things one can do with a banana to tease guys and

make them think that you don’t know exactly what you are doing.

 

The make their way from the lodge and to the main lift, overhearing Charles and the new girl.

“Don't try to be clever with me, girl. You'll never survive the mountain by trying to be smart. “

Vinka tries not to giggle, but brings the boys close to whisper to them:

“But you will survive by being dumb and doing stupid things.”

They indulged her in a smile.

 

The slopes were good, and so were they.

Cautious in these early hours, the fresh powder invigorating, the company more so.

For lunch the brushed off a table and ate quickly, going over plans for the afternoon.

To her disappointment, Gregor and Brad were going to separate to track their own trails.

She hid a frown and said she’d better go over some of the cross country trails, too.

“The owners let me name some of the trails I blaze,” she mentioned.

-------------------------

But the scream brings her back.

She rushes outside to see the crowd.

'Where is what's their name, the thought passes as she glances over the people.

Then she sees it.

And joins in on the barfing.

Soon it is dry heaves.

She can't help but look.

'Corn? When was the last time I had corn? What is that doing there?'

She covers up the mess, puts some (_clean_) snow in her mouth to rinse out.

"Get me out of here."

Somebody, she doesn't remember who, possible several people, help her up and back into the lodge, setting her in an over stuffed chair next to the fire.

"Who could have done this?

"This doesn't happen in real life.

"This is like, the movies, or something.

She looks up and notes everyone's face, looking for guilt or some sort of sign.

But no, anyone who had done this, then made it 'fun' with the note, would not look guilty.

-------------------

OOC: no accusation yet

[Gryphon]

Still feeling ill Brad sat back down by the fire, trying to get a grip and stop shaking without too much success.

 

"The mess... who could do such a thing..."

 

Lost in his own thoughts he misses the starting arguements and accusations, seeing once again the legs... the bloody legs...

 

"Who?"

 

Snapping his attention back to the room Brad looks wildly around in a panic going paler and suddenly shaking even more.

 

"One of them... that's who."

 

"Does Charles look a little less shocked than he should be? That girl sitting so quietly in the corner... Tina? Could it be that she already knew about the radio being smashed? What about Stefan? He doesn't really seem to enjoy being here, but does he hate it that much?

 

Trying to stem the rising panic in his own head Brads eyes flicker over each of the resident instructors, trying to tell who's acting and who's not, the silent litany repeating in his head: "Who could it be? Who?"

 

~~~

 

OOC: No accusation yet - see OOC thread.

[Akallabeth]

Johann was sitting in front of the fire, staring at the flames when Dana screamed.

 

He rushed outside with the others, sucking his breath in upon seeing the bits of Seth and his snowboard.

 

His bloody snowboard. . .

 

'Ah crud,' he thought, ' this is awful, worse than that historical spot in Thunder Bay.'

 

At least then he wasn't seeing the blood, just imagining and being told what those horrid mechanical leeches and tooth instruments would do. That had nearly been enough to get him to pass out.

 

Seeing those bloody stumps. . . Johann reeled into a snow covered chair on the deck trying to remain concious enough to control his churning stomach.

 

No sane person could ever do this to another human, he thought. There's just no way. . .

 

(OOC: No vote)

[Sweetcherrie]

In the comforting solitude of her own room Tina started thinking about who could possibly have been responsible for this horrible act of cruelty. She went over the people that had arrived today, and decided that the killer had left remarkably little evidence.

 

In her mind she went over the possibilities. Could it have been Gaby? The girl had a talking, and ‘I’m here to save the world’ attitude, but would she be able to kill? Tina didn’t think so. Vinka was a different story of course, she was more your usual killer kind of type, the way she had worked with that ski lift was rather aggressive.

 

Tina decided that she would have to keep an extra eye on Vinka, and make sure that even though she wasn’t certain about her being the killer, at least if she would be watched she wouldn’t be able to kill.

 

OOC: Bah, all no votes yetters, I'll vote Vote for Vinka, Vahktang.

[yochva]

Shayna swallowed when she caught sight of the board, but resolutely turned her eyes away and knelt down beside the weeping Dana. She pulled the woman into her arms, rocking her like a child and crooning in her ear. She refused to get sick, refused to let anything affect her until Dana was under control. The note had been placed on the table, but now it fluttered to the ground, landing by her knee. She looked down at it, read the words, didn't comprehend them. A death... two murderers?

 

By this time Dana had curled up on her side with her head in Shayna's lap, still sobbing quietly, but nearly exhausted. Shayna looked around and saw Johann struggling to get control of himself. Not willing to leave Dana, Shayna called out to him.

 

"Johann!" He didn't respond. "Johann!" When he turned his head, she looked straight at his glassy eyes and said, "Get a blanket to cover that up, and a towel to wipe up the mess. DO something, and you won't fall apart at the seams. We can't afford that now, we have to take care of things as they happen." She turned to Dana again and shook her shoulder slightly.

 

"Dana? Dana honey, I think you should go lie down, where's your room? Dana?"

 

 

{{OOC: EDIT'd after JD, but I was gonna vote for Charles anyway.}}

Edited March 9, 2006 by Evangeline

[JDRollins]

Gregor looks at all of the people again. Then he remembers the attitude on Charles. It seemed almost inhuman.

 

OOC: Okay fine, I'll be the second to cast my vote. I vote for Charles )

[Elwen]

Stefan frowned, biting his lower lip tightly, and began pacing back and forth nervously, his delicate features showing that he was not only worried, but deep in thought. Who could have done this...

 

His eyes swept across the room, resting on each person in the room, on the other instructors, quietly thinking, evaluating. Who could possibly be capable of such a thing?

 

Logic, for now. Shock could set in later.

 

((No vote yet.))

[Tanuchan]

Annelise listened quietly to the comments around her, feeling drained of all energy. Spending half her time on the mountain with Charles, then getting too close to a header on a rock... and a murder. She shook her head, trying to keep panic at bay.

 

As she just stood up to leave for her rooms, she heard again whispers and a name. She frowned, not happy with herself but having to be fair.

 

Charles? No, I don't believe in it for a moment. He might be a self-centered arrogant prick, but he's Ski Patrol. I know what I saw in those eyes - he save lives.

 

Another voice reached her ears - a giggling, and more whispers, and even something very close to simpering.

 

Vinka... how can someone act so... foolishly. Pretend to, too - she knows how to get what she wants.

 

The thought followed her until her room. Vinka knew how to use her "attributes" for her own ends. Would she do more?

 

~~~~

OOC: Vote for Vinka/Vahktang

[Lord Panther]

After getting changed into some more appropriate clothes, and stowing his gear safely in his room, Charles makes his way down to the main room to lounge in front of the fire and drink something hot.

 

Once getting himself a good hot chocoate, spiced up with a little irish cream, Charles sits himself down in a comfortable chair to observe the scene. There were obvious signs of panic and distress on everyone's faces, and rightfully so, there had been a murder.

 

Taking his time and studying the faces of the different people around, Charles wonders who would have done such a thing. Who was putting on the act? His eyes finally settled on Vinka. She was definatley putting on an act, and had the two guys completely wrapped up in it. If she was acting in that way, could she not be acting to cover up the murder as well?

 

Charles decided to himself that he would like to see how deep Vinka's act really went...

 

(OOC: Vote for Vinka/Vahktang)

Edited March 9, 2006 by Lord Panther

[Vahktang]

Vinka noticed the looks.

She had been looked at before and enjoyed it, but not like this, not under these circumstances.

Annelise?

Tina?

Charles?

Charles.

He just came in.

He must have done it.

If not, cutting feet off and pushing them down the hill on a snowboard isn't easy.

He must at least have heard or seen something.

 

"Charles.

"What do you know?"

 

 

____________________________

 

I accuse Charles Montagne - Lord Panther

[Gryphon]

Brad slowly gets his shaking under control, it's not so bad if he doesn't think about the legs...

 

Looking around he sees signs of the shock and panic that he's experiencing on the faces of everyone except... Charles?

 

"Man, he looks so... cold about this, and I know he was off on his own for a fair bit of the day."

 

Brad steps up just as Vinka speaks up asking Charles what he knows.

 

"Dude, how can you just sit there?? Unless you already knew..."

 

~~~

OOC: I accuse Lord Panther - Charles Montagne.

[Lord Panther]

Off in his own world, Charles is shaken free to the real world by Vinka's question, and then even more so by Brad's.

 

"Hmm, sorry, I was just thinking to myself what kind of person would do these things? What are they wanting to accomplish? Are they wanting the mountain closed? That would be death! Can you imagine a winter without skiing? without Vannacutt Point? I know I can't.

 

As for what I know, well, all I know is that someone has been killed. As everyone has noticed, I was late getting back, and came into the middle of this mess. It is a sad and scary incident indeed, but it is something that I have no control over, so my biggest worry still is getting the mountain set for opening on time. I just have to keep the events out of my head so that I can concentrate on my job. And as cold and disconnected as it sounds, maybe more of us should be of the same mind."

 

His piece said, Charles looks between Vinka and Brad's faces, looking for something, anything...

[Akallabeth]

Johann sighed as he slowly glided down one of the long Green Circle trails. It wasn't anything hard, but it was one of the longest trails on the mountain, and one that he had been told beginners liked. With its twists and turns and long length it did make for an enjoyable and easy ride.

 

And also it allowed some thought.

 

Back at the lodge, many of the other instructors were incredibly worried and panicking, a combination that Johann believed to be inferior to quiet thought and contemplation. Clouded and troubled minds would not help them find the killer.

 

Johann thought through the names and the people there. . . Tina had seemed to be genuinely concerned, genuinely wishing to help Dana. That brought a feeling of shame to him, as he had been too queasy to even help Dana walk inside. Fortunately he wasn't on Ski Patrol.

 

That brought Charles to his mind. He was on Ski Patrol, and he had an odd feeling that there might be something familiar about him. Surely a killer wouldn't also save people, it wouldn't be logical. He may be a self-centered jerk, but that was probably all.

 

He immediately threw Annelise out of the remaining group of possible killers and moved on.

 

Brad? Well, Johann hadn't gotten to know him too well. He was just another one of those that followed that little, well, Johann didn't want to think about her.

 

Or was that her idea?

 

Vinka. . . it reminded Johann of a certain furry little creature that could be found in the wild. The mink. It rather amazed him that some people would wear these cute looking little bloodsuckers, which most likely had just finished sucking the blood out of some duck before being caught, killed, and skinned. The vicious little things. . . and their wail. . .

 

Almost like her laugh. . .

 

Johann skiied on, annoyance clouding his mind enough to almost upset him as he came over the largest bump on the slope at a fair speed.

 

He coasted over to the chairlift, and got on for a ride to the top.

 

Perhaps one little bloodsucking creature could be gotten rid of. . .

 

(OOC: Vote for Vinka/Vahktang)

 

EDIT: for color

Edited March 9, 2006 by Akallabeth

[Gryphon]

Brad stares at Charles, disturbed by his attitude and not sure if he believes what he's hearing.

 

"Man... that is harsh.

 

Trying to sort out the termoil inside Brad turns and stalks away from the fire and Charles both mainly to put some distance between himself and someone who he finds so... distasteful.

 

Remembering the note that said there was more than one killer involved Brad looks around hastily and notices that Johann seems to have vanished and so instead of putting the termoil to rest more questions keep on stacking up in his heart.

[Azuran]

OOC: Written along with Tanny; many thanks

 

 

She’d known it! Evelyn had just known something horrible was going to happen! And now, as she heard faint whispers and furtive glances from the other instructors, she was just sure they were all going to think she had done this.

 

Running over numerous worst-case scenarios in her mind, she mistakenly walked towards the wrong room, clearly preoccupied with the gruesome state of affairs.

 

Annelise, meanwhile, had left her door slightly ajar while she grabbed the jacket she’d left draped over a chair. She wanted to go outside again for some fresh air to clear her head. She had slipped one arm into the jacket already when the noise of the door being thrown open made her jump. She turned to find Evelyn Thorp standing on the doorway with a most surprised face.

 

"Oh... sorry... wrong room... "

 

"Ah... " Anne tried to calm her racing heart, at the same time quickly placing the girl among the instructors. "... Evelyn, right? Next door... ?"

 

Evelyn nodded a bit nervously, with a glance to the corridor - how she could have walked past her own door was right now a mystery to her.

 

"Yeah... and you're Annelise... we haven't really talked before... " Evelyn had only been an instructor at Vannacutt Point for the past 3 years, and had only heard stories of Annelise—at first she hadn’t even been sure it was the same person as the one she was talking with now. "Well, nice to meet you, Annelise."

 

Anne returned the handshake, and shrugged. "Same here... I was going out for some fresh air... "

 

"That sounds like a good idea... I'd have gone myself, but being alone at night out of the lodge doesn't seem safe. Even with the illumination, some shady spot might be tricky, we could step on a hole and injure ourselves, you know... and there is that faulty step on the stairs... Would you mind if I went with you? "

 

"No... not at all." Anne blinked, and remembered that she had heard Evelyn's worries throughout the day at several points in the mountain. How could an evidently paranoid girl get to be an instructor? Though it would give her some very good traits - caution was never too much. Not in the mountain.

 

Both girls left the lodge, and the chill air greeted them outside. They both carefully avoided the spot where Seth's remains had been found, and walked slowly towards one of the lower slopes.

"You know... I've heard about you… you worked here some years ago. I'm sorry about your accident. "

 

Annelise didn't answer immediately, drawing in a sharp breath. Though she did wonder at the lessening of the usual pain she felt every time that accident was mentioned.

 

”A few of the instructors were talking about you last year…or maybe it was two years ago. I’m not totally sure, but then also there was one skier here during my first season as an instructor, and she asked if I knew you, but of course I didn’t yet at the time. But she said you’d been the instructor for her friend before and were really good! So I did a little bit of asking around, you know…I have to admit I was worried that maybe what had happened to you was a danger I didn’t know about. There are all sorts of dangers up here, you know…”

 

Evelyn's voice was at first just a bur, but then Annelise forced herself to actually listen to her. Something she had said registered, and she turned to her in genuine surprise.

 

"You looked for info on my accident?"

 

“It just goes to show how important it really is to be extra careful when you’re on the slopes! It’s one of the first things I try to teach a new skier—never get in over your head, and remember that as fun as skiing is, you can’t get careless or something terrible can happen. Actually, last year a guy told me that I was just trying to scare him and that nobody ever really gets hurt…I don’t think he really understood the dangers. But I told him the story of your accident and that even an expert skier can make a mistake when she’s not careful, so he’d definitely better be less headstrong--”

 

Annelise looked at Evelyn, so surprised that her face must have shown it as Evelyn abruptly stopped talking. "So you're saying... that carelessness is what was involved..." Annelise's voice was soft, but her eyes were bright with mixed surprise, anger, and pain.

 

“I know!” Evelyn misunderstood Annelise’s comment completely, but continued to explain nonetheless. “And I just know something like that might happen to me too if I’m not careful!”

 

"Hold on." Anne's sharp voice actually took some seconds to register, but Evelyn did stop taking. "So I was careless and brought it upon myself?" There was again an icy calm around her - the same one she used to shield Charles away from her.

 

Evelyn finally realized what she had implied and hastily tried to mend the situation. “Oh, I didn’t mean it like that really… Just that it could happen to anyone you know? We all need to be careful…”

 

After a moment of silence, Annelise nodded slowly, and Evelyn decided to just change the topic.

 

“I wonder who could have done that to Seth…” Evelyn spoke as much to herself as to Annelise. “I just can’t see any of us doing something like that!”

 

"I wonder... " Anne didn't want to admit, but she had come to know human nature. "That's insanity, and insanity hides in unlikely places. There is no one but us here..."

 

“Maybe it really is Vinka.” Evelyn couldn’t tell if it was just her paranoia, or logic speaking though.

 

On the way back to the lodge, Annelise still wondered about Evelyn. She didn't really like all the paranoia, but she had to admit to herself that, given the circumstances, the girl had some good points. As for who the murderer could be, and who could have had the chance to kill Seth... she only knew that anyone really could have been alone for long enough. They would maybe ski in couples at the most dangerous trails, but nothing of the kind was really required on their off-duty skiing.

 

At her side, Evelyn kept talking, only a word here and there registering in Anne’s mind. Anne wasn't absolutely sure she liked Evelyn, but she had been one of the few people who knew about her accident and hadn't tried to smother her in pity and sympathetic words. Though implying that she had been careless had been almost as bad as that.

 

Anne wondered if the accident had really been her fault. She knew that accidents happened, that sometimes even the most skilled and careful skier couldn't do a thing to avoid them. But she felt - and she had to face it now - that she might be responsible for at least part of her own injuries. She knew she would never be sure... and she at the same time wanted and didn't want to know exactly what had happened.

 

She just hadn't dared to ask Evelyn if she somehow knew who had rescued her. A ski patroller for sure - no one else would have dared to touch her, and more than that, no one would have been there faster. Not in that difficult trail she had been in. That ski patroller might have known what had happened... but Annelise dreaded the answer. She knew that was one reason she didn't really want people recognizing her and remembering the accident.

 

OOC: Vote for Vinka.

Edited March 10, 2006 by Azuran