Topic: Welcome to Castle Henheart. The home for the perminantly baffled!

[Maki-chan]

Maki hadn't quite reached the groundskeeper when he started in on her "Aye! Miss Lonliness, good mornin' to ya!" he greeted Maki in a loud voice thick with a Scottish accent.

She just stopped where she was, a few paces away, and sighed. "Please don't call me that Angus." she replied somewhat mournfully.

Seeing that she wasn't in a very cheerful state, Angus went straight to business. "I got your message last night and came out here first thing this morning Miss Maki. It's really true, I mean you found another one dead in the castle?"

"Yes, Angus." Maki answered, again with some regret in her voice. "This time it was a little different though, he was still alive when I found him. But just barely though and he passed away shortly afterwards." Maki cast her face down and finished "There wasn't anything I could do." Covering her face with her hands Maki began to sniff the tears welling in her eyes.

Angus saw that Maki was quite distressed over what had happened and began to regret his little teasing just a few moments earlier. Also his annoyance of being called out here to Castle Henheart on such short notice faded away as he remembered that Maki just needed him to do some work for her. She wasn't trying to intentionally cause him trouble. "I'm sorry Miss Maki. I'm sorry that you had to go through that." he tried to console her. Having lost family members himself over the years, Angus knew that experiencing the death of another person wasn't an easy thing. He put his hand on her shoulder and despite its large size and calloused fingers, the touch was surprisingly gentle.

Maki sniffed and dried her eyes before looking up at him again. The annoyed expression was gone from his face, replaced with concern. She wasn't really sure what to say next however. Explaining everything that had happened would require a lot of time even though Maki longed to do so. There would be a time for that but now there was work to be done so Maki summoned her courage and fought down the dreadful gloom that was trying to swallow her. "Thank you, Angus." was all Maki could come up with and then turned her eyes to the doorway of the shed. It was only a few paces away, so Maki went first and led the way.

The coffin was quite obvious in the center of the room on the floor and being a Christian man Angus signed himself when he first spied it. He was careful not to say anything that might upset Maki and just got to work. Angus lifted one end of the coffin as easily as Maki might pick up her purse and he dragged it out of the room to where his truck was waiting silently in the courtyard. The truck itself was a flatbed, stake body type with gate at the back. Having done this before, Maki quickly scurried ahead of Angus and opened up the tailgate for him. Angus set one end of the coffin upon the bed of the truck, then turned to pick up the other end. He lifted it easily and slid the coffin into the empty bed of his truck. Then he quickly closed and latched the tailgate again. At the same time, Maki locked up the door to the shed.

"There, I'll take care of this for now Miss Maki. It won't take long to get the grave dug and set the deceased in there, then I'll wait for you to come." Angus told her somberly.

Maki nodded and then she replied "Oh, please put him next to Miss Haggis in the cemetery. They were lovers at one time I believe."

Angus raised an eyebrow, but just acknowledged "Aye Ma'am" then he turned and went back to the truck. He climbed in and started it running again. Maki went back to the castle gate after him to see him out and once the truck had passed through, she closed the fortified gate again. Shivering with cold, Maki ran back to the main part of the castle to warm herself up again.

[Maki-chan]

The warmth of the hot tea felt wonderful as Maki gently sipped her cup and warmed her hands on the ceramic of the mug itself. Winter still hadn't quite released its grip on the countryside where Castle Henheart was located, but it wouldn't be much longer before Maki-chan would be able to enjoy being outdoors again. After coming back inside shivering Maki had warmed herself in front of the kitchen stove as she brewed her tea, and now Maki enjoyed every last sip. When she was finished, Maki took a long walk through the castle and back down to the dungeon room where she had found Cirdan. She retrieved the bundle of his clothing and took another long walk through a labyrinth of dungeon passages that would have baffled even a video gamer until she arrived at the furnace room. There, Maki took the bundle of clothes and incinerated them. There was nothing more meticulous about Maki than how she did her housekeeping so leaving such remains behind was thoroughly unacceptable. "Uggh, I'm really glad that's over with" she commented to the incinerator as she closed its door. At the same time Maki was reminded of how disgustingly filthy she felt personally. She had spent the whole morning handling the deceased remains of Cirdan Carnesir and now she desperately wanted to get herself cleaned up.

In the servant's quarters there was a good sized locker room where they could change and store their uniforms but Maki normally didn't use it because she now occupied the major domo's quarters which had private facilities. However, today Maki didn't feel like bringing her filthy uniform into her own living quarters and used the locker room instead. Once she had removed her uniform and deposited it in the laundry, Maki went to her own quarters to shower. Since no one else was present in the castle she had no trouble taking the short walk in just a slip and her undies although the floor was a bit cold on her bare feet.

Maki's quarters were actually a quite beautiful set of rooms. The main living room was made with well cared for nineteenth century oak paneling and furnished with a sofa, some chairs, a coffee table, floor lamps, and some bookshelves of similar vintage. There was also a modern flatscreen TV which seemed distinctly out of place. Maki's bedroom was also similar in design, however the bathroom was a bit more modern since it had been renovated a number of times over the years. After showering, Maki dressed herself differently than usual. Instead of her uniform, Maki put on some of her "civilian" clothes - a simple, knee length black dress that fitted attractively, but not tightly, stockings, and a modest, but beautifully polished pair of black heels. Maki also took the time to sit down and make herself up which she normally didn't do either, but Maki didn't normally attend funerals. Once Maki had picked out her jewelry and tied her long, emerald green hair back with a barrette, she was ready to go. In the living room there was a small closet next to the door and from there Maki retrieved a lightweight, charcoal gray, wool overcoat and a black, wide brimmed hat. She put these on and then went over to the bookcase. From the top shelf Maki took a flat zippered pouch which she looked at for a moment and sighed. "I really thought that I would never have to do this again." After tucking the pouch in her arm, Maki opened the door and left.

[Maki-chan]

Castle Henheart was set upon the top of a very large, round hill which gave it a commanding and picturesque view of the entire valley region. The base of the hill was pretty much the same as the rest of the valley lowlands and here the castle grounds and Henheart Estate extended about kilometer, give or take, in every direction from the castle hill. In medieval times these grounds had been protected farmlands that had supplied the needs of the Estate and all of the surrounding region that the Henhearts had been lords over. But in modern times the agricultural activities had ceased and the lands given over to woodland growth and it was here that Maki-chan now strolled casually.

She had always liked taking walks in these woods because Maki found the surroundings both peaceful and comforting. Now, in the early spring the calls of several different species of songbirds could be heard in the trees, some close by and some off in the distance. Frequently, she saw squirrels gathering nuts from the ground and they would eye Maki warily but flee only if Maki approached them too closely as she followed the path through the woods. The path itself was very nicely graded and the fine gravel scrunched softly under Maki's shoes with each step. Eventually the path led Maki to a wrought iron gate supported by two masonry piers on either side of the path. She lifted the hasp, pushed the gate open, and walked into a large clearing. In the middle of the clearing was an ancient and ponderously heavy structure built of granite - the Henheart family crypt, and the clearing was of course the castle cemetery. There were hundreds of grave markers, of all, shapes, sizes, and age. Some were so old and worn that they were no longer legible, leaving the history of those buried underneath lost to the endless march of time. Maki had only been inside the main crypt once when Mistress Washu had taken her there and she'd found it to be such a dark and creepy place with all of its tunnels and passages under the ground that Maki was terrified to ever go down there alone.

One quarter of the cemetary was still an unused open field, and it was here that Maki was bound. As new graves had been added adjacent to the older ones, they slowly, over time, continued to consume what was left of this empty space. Angus was already there waiting for her. His small Kubota backhoe was silent alongside a sizeable mound of freshly dug brown soil and upon one of its treads he sat, drinking what looked like a bottle of ale. Seeing her approach, Angus stood up. All dressed in black, Angus found the lonely housekeeper to be strikingly beautful as she walked across the green lawn towards him, but it was her somber expression that set the tone for what would happen next.

"Hello Angus" she greeted him as they met "is everything all ready?"

"Aye Ma'am" he answered "just got him set down there a few minutes ago."

"Okay" she sighed in acknowledgement "let's get started."

Maki walked over to the foot of the grave where she could see the coffin sitting at the bottom, six feet down. Silently she prayed for a moment "Dear Lord, please bring his lonely soul home to yourself in Heaven." and then Maki unzipped the small pouch she had carried from the castle. Inside was a thin, hardcover book with the title Funeral Rites of the Church of England printed on it. Maki had no idea what religion Cirdan Carnesir practiced, if any at all, but the Church of England was what she belonged to, and the best she could do. Getting a minister or anyone from the village to come out to Castle Henheart was practically impossible these days because of the rumours, so recently Maki had had no choice but to do the funerals herself.

[Maki-chan]

Opening up the book, Maki signed herself, Angus followed, and Maki began to read aloud:

"'I am the resurrection and the life,' says the Lord. 'Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.'"

she began and then continued the service. Maki wasn't a minister of any kind, but she had enough faith to know that God wouldn't hold it against her if she wished to honour the dead. Every Sunday she always attended church service as she had done since childhood. Her parents had come to England from Japan, but Maki herself was born here and lived her entire life in the British Isles, so despite her name and physical appearance Maki was just as British as everyone else, and this included her religious affiliation as well.

After the burial of the second body Maki had found in the castle, all sorts of wild gossip and rumours surrounding Castle Henheart erupted in the village and surrounding region. Of course Mistress Washu wasn't exactly your everyday run of the mill aristocrat. Her penchant for throwing wild parties with disastrous consequences became well known, and thus the local populace had begun to shun her and the Henheart Estate out of pure fear. Then one day two years ago Lady Washu suddenly dismissed the castle staff and vanished. Shortly thereafter the bodies started to show up and then fear of the castle evolved into full fledged terror. All sorts of wild theories erupted about how Lady Washu fled to evade the consequences of whatever unholy deeds she had done in the castle. The villagers now saw Castle Henheart as a brooding omen of death overlooking their town, waiting to descend upon them. Most of them no longer went anywhere near the castle and very few, like Angus, would even enter the grounds. And so this was the sort of social environment that Maki encountered anytime she needed to go to the village. It didn't matter how nice or friendly she tried to be, all she could see in their eyes was fear when she had to purchase groceries, post mail, or any other errands. Even though Maki had never harmed anyone, everyone was deathly afraid of her and this was why she was so lonely and why no one except a few hardy souls like Angus would even dare meet or speak with her.

A short time later Maki finished the service:

"May God give you his comfort and his peace, his light and his joy, in this world and the next; and the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you always." Slowly she closed the service book and looked down and the coffin one more time. Inside, she struggled mightily against the tears that were fighting to get out, but this was the reason Maki had made herself up beforehand - an ante for the challenge to keep her composure.

"You did beautifully as always" Angus commented. "Maybe if you ever get yourself out of this castle, you ought to consider becoming a minister for real Miss Maki." he suggested.

"Thank you Angus" Maki replied and with a tiny glimmer of hope added "believe it or not, I've actually thought about doing just that." She really appreciated his tact at distracting her mind from the burial, but it didn't last long. "I'm sorry, but I shouldn't keep you from your work Angus. Please excuse me now" Maki requested politely. But before she turned to go, she left an invitation "Please come back up to the castle when you're all finished. I'll have some tea and snacks ready for you."

"Aye Ma'am, that I'll do!" he replied enthusiastically, knowing how delicious Maki's tea service would be. And with a smile Angus waved her off and then Maki turned and began her walk back. About the time she reach the gate, Maki heard the Kubota grind and chug to life to begin its work again.

[Maki-chan]

Leisurely, Maki walked through the woods, back along the path she had come down just a short time ago. Even though it was cloudy with a chill in the air, Maki was genuinely pleased to be outside.

"Angus is right." she thought to herself. "I really do spend too much time all cooped up in the castle all by myself. But I never thought that Mistress Washu would have been gone for so long like this. What if she never comes back? With Castle Henheart's reputation as of late, who knows if I could ever find a replacement for myself? I don't want to spend the rest of my life here all alone"

And at the end of that thought, Maki stopped walking and let out a huge sigh. Again she felt the moisture start to well behind her eyelids as she looked down at the path in front of her. Not only was the burial of Cirdan Carnesir still fresh in her mind, but the circumstances of her own life began to make her feel increasingly wretched. Soon she looked up again and in the distance Maki could see the spires of the castle above the treetops.

Originally Maki had come here to Castle Henheart for work experience, more specifically housecleaning experience. When she was in high school, Maki spent the vast majority of her labors studying and working in her parent's bookstore in London, where she lived at the time. Her mother took care of the housecleaning so Maki's father had highly valued her as an employee in their store. Maki also felt a certain sense of responsibility towards her family and so her work was a contribution towards the family finances. When Maki graduated from high school and reached adulthood, her own future became very important to her at the time, because now she herself would be the primary builder of that future. Thoughts of marriage and family had made her painfully aware that Maki was a poorly skilled home maker despite her business acumen. She knew that at some point she wanted to get married and as a wife, Maki would be expected to take care of the household chores as her mother did. Feminism had come a long way in England, but that didn't prevent Maki from being a realist and so she took a job at Castle Henheart to develop her skills a housekeeper and cook. Maki had only expected to stay there one or two years before resuming her studies in a university, but that was seven years ago. Because Mistress Washu paid her very well, Maki stayed on and saved her paychecks for her university costs. Mistress Washu was so impressed with Maki's work that even when all of the other staff was laid off, Washu chose to keep Maki as the property caretaker in Washu's absence. Initially Maki was overwhelmed by the great faith her Mistress had placed in her, but now the pendulum had swung the other way.

What was initially a challenging responsibility had now become a soul crushing burden for poor Maki. She was never one to abandon her responsibilties, so here she was, almost three years later, still doing her work and waiting for her mistress to return. At the same time the years of her life had gone by. With her savings Maki could probably pay the tuition for a doctorate from Oxford by now, but unable to leave the castle, her university dreams, along with all of her others, were fading away.

Still looking up at the castle she murmered quietly "When are you coming back Mistress? Are you alright, have you forgotten about me?" Then she looked back down at the path and resumed walking again.

[Anselle Burgundy]

Anselle the Third, more commonly known as Diamond, stood on the doorstep of Castle Henheart. She had come here years ago for a party, fallen asleep, and woken up miles upon miles away with a horrible headache. Now she was back, looking for answers.

Her black wool coat and tight, dark-wash jeans accentuated her newly developed curves. Way back then, she'd been a skinny teenager, now she was a fully-built woman, and not afraid to show it. Her grey eyes brightened as she saw a figure approaching in the fading evening light.

"Hello there!" She called out happily. "Do you happen to have a warm fire and a hot cup of tea for a lonely traveler?"

[Maki-chan]

By now Maki-chan had worked herself up into such a state that she no longer desired to go back to her work right away. Self pity and genuine grief over the death of Cirdan Carnesir had drained the life out of her and Maki turned aside from the path she was on that led back to the castle. There were many circuitous paths that wound through the woods and fields of the Henheart Estate and Maki began to aimlessly wander these almost as if she wished to become as physically lost as she was emotionally and spiritually. Long she contemplated her past life and the road Maki had taken to get where she was now.

"What did I do wrong?" Maki asked herself in her thoughts. "I didn't plan for things to happen like this, how did my life turn out this way? Where did I go wrong?" she lamented miserably. And as such her thoughts continued, searching for answers that didn't come.

Even though the day was overcast and cloudy, Maki eventually noticed that the sky had begun to darken. Alarmed by this, she checked her wristwatch and noticed that it was about 5:30 in the evening.

"Oh no!" she realized apprehensively "I've spent the whole afternoon out here, I must get back before dark!"

Maki quickly looked around to see where she was and get her bearings and figure out the best way to get back to the castle. There weren't any real dangers on the estate that Maki was aware of, but the estate was large and the pathways were not lighted. Since she came outside in the morning, Maki did not have a lantern or flashlight with her and she would easily become lost after darkness fell. In a way this was a good thing because this sense of urgency had jolted Maki out of the pool of misery she had spent the whole afternoon drowning in.

Quickly Maki walked the best route she could find back to the castle, but even so it took quite some time for her to get back. By then there was little light left in the sky and the deepening chill of the night began to close around her. Soon Maki reached the brow of the hill upon which the castle stood and as she pulled her keys from her coat pocket Maki jumped and let out a loud gasp. The cheery greeting of a woman's voice so startled her that Maki dropped her keys and service book on the ground.

At first she didn't know what to do. Maki placed her hand on her chest and felt her heart beating feverishly. The woman was standing at the castle gate, a silhouette in the lamplight so Maki didn't recognize who she was. Her voice seemed friendly, but Maki still felt a great deal of apprehension at the sudden appearance of this stranger. However, Maki remembered that most likely this person was here to see Mistress Washu and should thus be treated accordingly. Maki-chan did her best to be cordial.

"Oh, you scared me ... I'm so sorry" she apologized and immediate went to pick up the items she had dropped on the ground. Then Maki approached the stranger and when she was close enough to see her face, Maki had a faint moment of recognition, like she had seen this person before but couldn't remember her name. But Maki greeted her just the same.

"Welcome to Castle Henheart Ma'am" Maki tried to sound normal but didn't quite succeed. "I'm afraid the mistress of the house is not in and if you've traveled far to see her I am truly sorry. Please let me help make up for my mistress' absence any way that I can."

[Maki-chan]

Quickly Maki realized that she hadn't introduced herself properly

"I'm Maki Tokitou, the caretaker of Castle Henheart and ..." Maki's voice trailed off quietly as she finished "... the castle's only resident I'm afraid."

Then she took her bundle of keys and as soon as she found the right one, Maki unlocked the gate and opened it. This gate was rather like a doorway through which people would enter unlike the monstrous main gate that Angus had driven his truck through earlier. The door was large and heavy, but its iron hinges were well oiled so that it opened easily without creaking.

"Please come inside Ma'am." Maki asked politely and ushered Miss Anselle through.

Once they were both in, Maki closed the door again and locked it. As she did so Maki remembered something nearby.

"Oh, please excuse me for a moment." Maki asked and then turned to a brown, bronze panel in the stone wall near the gate that they had just entered. With yet another one of her numerous keys Maki opened the panel and reached inside. When her hand came out, it clutched a number of letters - the day's mail. Maki then closed up the letterbox and returned to where Miss Anselle was standing.

"I'm sorry about that." Maki apologized and continued "Please let me show you inside." and she motioned for  Miss Anselle to follow her.

Maki of course didn't show her mistress' guest to the back door Maki normally used, but took her around the front of the castle where they entered through the grand main portal and lobby. It was dark and deserted and filled with silence, but that quickly changed when Maki found the light switch and illuminated the chandelier in the lobby. The place was spotlessly clean as Maki had always kept it, but it was devoid of any signs of use. There were corridors that led off to the right and left, and two staircases that led up to the next level above. Maki motioned for Miss Anselle to follow her down the corridor to the right. A few doors down the hallway, Maki turned to the right and entered a very elegantly decorated sitting room.

"Please have a seat ma'am and make yourself at home. I can take your coat if you wish." Maki requested and indicted a large and very comfy looking Victorian sofa.

Maki also went to the fireplace mantle and turned a valve hidden behind it. Instantly a vigorous fire burst to life on the hearth.

"I'm sorry about not having a real wood fire but Mistress had much of the castle fitted with modern amenities and this one should still give plenty of warmth."

[Anselle Burgundy]

Anselle looked around. "It's quite all right, a gas fire is just as good as a wood one." She smiled, thinking to herself that the castle didn't seem to have been used in a very long time. "Do you take car of this place all by yourself, Maki? It must be a lot of work..." Anselle took her coat off and sat down on the sofa. She'd have to take things slow if she was going to ask Maki to go into the history of the place, and what happened those years ago at the party, as well as what had happened since.

[Maki-chan]

The warmth of the fire felt so good after almost an entire day outside in the chill that Maki had hoped she would be able to linger awhile even though Maki's responsibilities told her to go prepare refreshments and dinner for Miss Anselle instead. Some polite conversation would be quite welcome but Maki suddenly felt a twinge of angst when Miss Anselle inquired of Maki's affairs rather than discussing her own; which Maki would have found far more interesting. Normally Mistress Washu would have entertained any guests visiting the castle and so Maki felt quite uncomfortable taking on this responsibility herself given her inexperience in such matters.

For a few moments Maki didn't know what to say. Even though she didn't really want to talk about herself and her problems, Maki knew that not answering Miss Anselle in some way would be impolite or worse Miss Anselle might become overly concerned and want to ask a lot more questions. Growing more nervous by the second, Maki just decided to keep it simple.

"It is a large place to look after, but I try my best." Maki answered a little sadly. At the same time though an odd feeling of comfort came over her. Deep inside, Maki had a desire to just blurt out all of the dreadful feelings that had been accumulating within her, to unload all of her burdens. But, her head told her, such an imposition on Miss Anselle would be inexcusable and Maki knew it.

"Mistress Washu laid off all of the staff when she went away on hiatus three years ago. I am the only one left I'm afraid" Maki continued trying not to sound shaky.

"Unfortunately, Mistress never told me where she was going or how long she would be absent." Maki said but then became apologetic again "I'm so sorry. You must have come a long way to see her. I don't know when she will be back." Maki finished dejectedly, certain that Miss Anselle would be disappointed with the news.

[Maki-chan]

About an hour or so later, Maki was walking down one of the corridors towards the kitchens of Castle Henheart. She and Miss Anselle had chatted for a little while of which most was simply small talk, but somehow these little distractions had gotten Maki's mind off of the rather depressing day she had just had. Since there were no other staff available, Maki had excused herself to prepare some tea and supper for the two of them. At the same time Miss Anselle had gone to one of the guest rooms to settle in for her stay. Later they would meet in the dining room for supper. As she walked along carrying her coat folded over on one arm, Maki flipped through the mail to see what had arrived that day. It was rather mundane stuff - bills, advertisements, some reminders to renew magazine subscriptions, and of course no personal correspondence. Mistress Washu seemed to have no friends outside of the castle that were concerned about her absence, and if there were they did not communicate by the mail.

One letter did grab Maki's attention however, and it was enough to make her stop in her tracks. The letter was addressed to her - to Miss Maki Tokitou rather than the lady of the house or the estate in general as all of the other mail was. In the village post office Maki owned a post box to which she had all of her personal mail sent. Never did Maki have personal correspondence sent to the castle, so this letter worried her. The return address made her worry even more: it was sent from Sir Charles Martin, Esquire - Lady Washu's attorney. In the past he had periodically sent letters to the castle so Maki had a very good idea of what this was all about. A few minutes ago Maki was feeling rather okay, but now she hung her head and groaned. For some unknown reason the Henheart Estate was being sued again, and maybe even Maki herself this time since the letter was addressed specifically to her. Now rather concerned, Maki hurried off to the kitchen.

As soon as she entered the room, Maki put her coat and the other mail down on the table in the middle of the kitchen. Immediately she saw that someone had already left a note there for her and again Maki groaned as soon as she realized who had left it. "Oh dear, I'm so sorry Angus" Maki lamented at breaking her promise to make tea and snacks for him after the burial earlier in the day. There was nothing in the note to indicate that Angus was upset over it and in fact he was very understanding and merely indicated he would look forward to their next meeting. If you were to stand Angus and Maki next to each other, on the surface there would be absolutely nothing in common with them, yet there was a very gentle understanding between the two of them. Maybe in another life they could have been more than just friends, but Maki was happy just to have one person she could count on. After the note from Angus, Maki opened the letter from Mr. Martin. Unlike his previous correspondence, this message was rather vague and mysterious:

"Dear Miss Tokitou,

There is a matter of importance that I must discuss with you. It concerns Lady Washu Hakubi, Mistress of Castle Henheart. Please make an appointment to meet with me on Thursday, the 9th of April. You may RSVP via telephone. Thank you for your kind attention.

Sincerely,

(signed) Sir Charles A. Martin Esq.

Overcome with dread, Maki dropped the letter on the table. Maki had often wondered what had become of Mistress Washu in her long absence, but now Maki feared the worst.