Take Me All The Way

[Trillian]

continued from Under The Bridge Downtown

Isabella was driving the stately car up the driveway to the Penbrook Mansion, with Helena and Ransom sitting in the back.  Helena had filled the silence on the entire forty minute trip, chatting about certain artists she\'d met and what they\'d talked about, as well as the exhibitions she\'d seen and set up lately.  If Ransom read between the lines, he\'d figure that she was a collector, and that she not only added to her own personal collection but also found things for other people.

At no point did she touch him, though her hands flitted about while she talked, demonstrating mutely and gesticulating grandly.  She was quite animated, opposite to the woman who silently drove them to their destination.

Isabella parked in front of the large building, in front of the stairs that led to the giant front door and got out.  Helena followed suit after declaring happily to Ransom how exciting this would be.  The two women headed for the stairs but waited at the bottom of them for Ransom to catch up.

The butler answered the door with a great deal more personality than was stereotypical.  He was dressed in a casual summer suit sans tie, and was requested to show them around the mansion by Helena.  She was afforded a deep nod of acquiescence, as though she was the madam of the place, and the three of them toured the ground floor with Helena constantly prompting Ransom for what he thought (after being introduced and spoken to as though he was Eric).  Even though the butler had all their names, he mostly ignored Isabella and Ransom in favour of speaking with Helena rather flamboyantly and excitedly, mimicking her body language as though he were the same character.

Throughout the entire tour, they didn\'t see a single person, though every fireplace was well stocked and roaring with a hearty fire, all the flowers in vases were fresh, and there wasn\'t a speck of dust anywhere.  The mansion did have a lived in feel, rather than presenting a facade, though it was difficult for the tourers to figure out how.  The butler would open a door with a flourish, inviting the threesome to wander around within, and Helena would chatter about any standout art pieces within the room, while Isabella hung back near the door with her arms folded and looking more like a bodyguard than a friend.

"How many rooms are there?" Helena asked finally as they began to explore the east wing.

"Miss Helena," the butler said warmly, who Helena had constantly referred to as \'dear\' and so Ransom had never got his name.  "The mansion has twenty bedrooms, a dozen with access to their own private bathrooms, the rest share a bathroom between two rooms," he said proudly, "so is it any wonder there are four sitting rooms, two libraries, a music room, an crafts room, four dens, four dining rooms, a massive kitchen (though that\'s in the basement), a ballroom, a great hall, the foyer and several bathrooms on the ground floor?"  He smirked.  "There are a few more rooms than that, also, for I haven\'t mentioned the conservatory, the courtyard-"

But they never found out what else he hadn\'t mentioned for he was interrupted by Isabella, who hadn\'t once spoken throughout their tour and so it was likely her flat tone and no-nonsense expression that had halted him mid-speech.

"A simple number would\'ve been fine."

The butler had two spots of rosy colour upon his cheeks and looked conflicted about replying when Helena\'s merry and tinkling laughter drew his gaze to her and he smiled as though nothing had happened.

"Thirty eight," he replied, and then, without looking at any of them, he turned to the closest doors and turned the knob, pushing it open (and all of the doors had oiled hinges thereby preventing any squeaking or clumsy shuddering) so the door swung smoothing inward, revealing the latest room.  Without waiting for anyone else, as she\'d done so previously upon every room shown her, Helena swept in while Isabella hung back with the intention of going in last, her gaze finding Ransom so she could watch the artist follow her mistress.

[skeggsismad]

Ransom had never been in a Manson before. He had had wealthy clients before who had amazingly expensive penthouses or homes that were lavished in antiques and the latest in technology of flatscreen HD television sets…but never this. Having grown up in poverty most of his life such grandiose was troublesome to process. Too, he had caught the briefest glimmer of recognition when he had stepped out of the car after Isabella and Helena, looking towards the distance where he could swear he saw the outline of a church he had gone to several times within the boundaries of the city. He couldn’t put the pieces together yet- that perhaps the people who owned the church lived on this estate behind it and that the two were somehow connected- but the looking itself was enough to set him behind the group, forcing him to scurry up the stairs in order to catch up. Luckily for him the group waited and thus began the adventure of exploring the monstrously sized building.  

He felt naked and exposed once he had reached the interior. Something about everything his eyes processed seemed so lavished and he felt considerably underdressed. Would anyone else notice how poor and grungy he looked in this sort of setting? On the streets, Ransom looked average if not a bit plain. In an area like this he assumed it would be obvious that he was downtrodden and worthless, living at the poverty line and a second-class citizen in the eyes of the rich. The fears subsided when Ransom realized no one else was here, save for the exploring group and the butler that was hosting the tour of the palace.

He was put on edge slightly when Isabella and the nameless house servant had their scuttle, but he had begun to notice that Helena was the turning of the tide: the one who loosened the tension and made everything feel pleasant again. As long as she was around, he decided this wouldn’t be all that bad. Nervousness never faded from the young man’s psyche but he was so much more relaxed that his normal twitching was practically nonexistent at this point.

Ransom’s eyes widened at the mention of thirty eight rooms. The more options there were the more he knew he was going to struggle with picking one and he recalled that Helena had only offered three suggestions which really was the maximum in his head that he thought he needed to be debating over. A certain pressure loomed over him to pick a room quickly before they were here all night and he never decided- and it had become apparent that it was his choice by the way the tour had been conducted and his facial expressions evaluated by the rest every time they entered a new one. Upon the latest door being opened, Ransom looked around intently.

It was the library, and he found that the description was matching up with what Helena had provided him, however brief it had been. From what he could tell, the room was expansive and almost a miniature public library in itself with the sheer size of it. The only thing that set it apart from a public library was the quality of items and decoration of the room; deep mahogany colored bookshelves covered almost every inch of wall alongside similarly colored wooden tables likely for reading with table lamps placed accordingly to where they would be used. Like Helena had spoken, high-backed chair scattered strategically across the tables, some sitting on their lone side by a fireplace or a standing lamp. There were other lighting fixtures besides the lamps but they were of dimmer quality than industrial fluorescent lighting. It brought an earthly, homey yet distinct and regal vibe to the library that made up Ransom’s mind. Perhaps it wasn’t the perfect room, but it was better than having to tour thirty-something rooms and sort through the details. Too, the stability of this room and his ability to manipulate light in his favor was preferable over the outdoor alternative Helena had mentioned.

After setting foot within the library itself following the butler and Helena, he tried to think of a word to explain he definitely wanted this room without a doubt.

“I…” He spoke softly, one of the few things he had said since they had arrived at the estate.

“I like this one,” He stated, wondering if it would be enough of an indication or the rest would think he was only vocalizing a compliment.

[Trillian]

Helena had taken several steps within the room and turned, but was still nowhere in the middle of it.  She was gazing at Ransom\'s face, watching his expression as she had in every room they\'d seen within the west wing.

When he spoke, Helena took his words literally and with the depth of meaning behind them.

"Then you shall have it," she declared, and moved towards the chair by the fireplace, gesturing with her head for Isabella to join her.  She sat gracefully upon the chair, much like a queen upon her throne, and Isabella dutifully moved to her right hand side beside her and placed her hand upon the back, elegant fingers visible to the artist.  They held the pose immediately, neither smiling outright for Isabella remained with her stoic expression and Helena had the barest hint of amusement playing around her eyes and lips.

"What do you think, Eric?" she asked, "Would you have us here, by the fireplace either lit or unlit?  Or perhaps another chair, in another part of the room?"

The butler had remained outside of the room, giving them their privacy as he had with every showing.