The Despicable Murders On Blueberry Lane

Chapter Two: Dinner With A Twist

As everyone files into the mansion, they take in all of the designs and decor. It was a long hallway, with extraordinary trinkets and objects on the walls. It opened up into a large circular room with shiny wooden stairs that wind up along the rounded wall, leading up to the second floor. The left side of the circular room led to a sitting area, with tons of books in color order in a clean black bookshelf. It had small leather chairs for sitting, next to marble tables with fancy lamps.
The right side led to the kitchen, where savory and tangy aromas wafted from it, their invisible bodies dancing around the noses of the dinner guests. Black and white tiles lined the floor, and the mahogany cupboards and drawers were lined with the finest cutlery and cooking utensils you could find. Atop the glossy stovetops were scattered bowls and containers filled with substances and concoctions of culinary joy. Towards the back, there were all sorts of expensive French wines lined neatly in wine racks, waiting eagerly to be paired with the sharpest cheese you could find.
The man proceeds to point forward towards the room ahead. "There are cards with each of your names on them at the dining table. Find your name and sit there. Dinner will be served momentarily."
As the guests make their way forward, Beatrice takes off her fur coat and shoves it into the arms of the man. "Treat it with care, will you darling?" She snootily remarks. The man, though, remains silent and hands the coat back to her. "Hang it at once!" She was met with the same response. "HANG IT!" She yells, starting to get flustered. They went back and forth like this a couple of times, before she finally simmered down. She puts her coat back on and walks towards the dining room, grumbling with every step.
Ivy and Prince look at each other for a brief moment, having watched the whole ordeal. "Someone needs to relax," Ivy whispered. "Um..yea! I know right?" Prince shyly whispers back. Beatrice, hearing light snippets of their snickering, turns sharply and stares daggers at them. They quickly look away, pretending to be interested in the house decor, before Beatrice turns back around and huffs. They broke out into small laughter, before continuing into the dining room.
The dining room was the definition of elegant. It had a big golden chandelier hanging above, fancifully swooping and curving in several ways, with lights that looked like candle flames. The walls were olive green, and were covered with replicas of well known paintings. The rounded rectangular dining table matched the cupboards and drawers, its mahogany body cut and sawed in a way to make the table look fit for royalty. There were ten seats, one seat at the end of each short side of the table, and they were cushioned with velvet padding. Every other seat was occupied with a nametag, so no two individuals were next to each other. The name tags were atop gold-rimmed ceramic plates, next to different forks, spoons, and knives.
As everyone was making their way to their seats, the man in black bows once more. "Forgive my rudeness. I am Gunther. I hope you enjoy the food me and my fellow chef have made." With his deep voice making his frowning mask look even creepier, he stepped into the kitchen.
Momentarily, everyone got seated and awaited the food. A few seconds later, Wendi was bouncing up and down in her seat.
"Oooh these seats are so soft, I have got to get these for my place! Let me take a reference pic." As she reaches down, she stops. "Almost forgot that they took our phones along with our belongings. I sure hope I get mine back soon," She giggles nervously.
Bliss shoots Wendi a judgemental glance, probably annoyed with all of her energy, before going back to mind her own business.
Beatrice slams the table and rolls her eyes. "They should have the food already on the table by the time we got here! Talk about poor etiquette." Beatrice says grumpily. "At least they were kind enough to drive us all the way here, and by the way things smell, it seems like they're practically done." Ivy says, trying to reason with Beatrice. "Try to be a bit more patient-" But Ivy was cut off by a loud groan from Beatrice. "Impatience is my personality trait. Take it away, and I have nothing! Let me complain in peace, will you blueberry?" Beatrice snaps back, clearly making fun of Ivy's blue garments. Ivy looks as though she's about to say something, but lets out a small sigh and continues to wait for the food.
After a few minutes, Wendi decides to break the silence. "I have a fun idea! The invitations already gave a brief description of who we are, but we should get to know each other on a more personal level!" Wendi looks around, but no one responds.
"Haha...I guess I'll start! Have you guys seen the recent movie I was in?"
For a second, it was quiet, but then Beatrice pipes up. "That horror movie, "The Beloved" I believe?" Wendi nods enthusiastically. "Yes! Even though I was the main character, watching it through still gave me the chills." Small laughter emerged into the thick silence, as Beatrice began to entertain Wendi's get-to-know-everyone idea.
"I hope you guys have checked out the new release of my Fall Fabrics, they are absolutely splendid if I do say so myself." Beatrice brags. "Oh yea, I saw this cute sweater in one of your ads. Might have to take a look," Bliss says coolly. For a brief second, Beatrice lights up, but then quickly hides it. "I would definitely recommend it, the cotton is quite comfortable."
Shortly after, everyone is lively, conversing about certain topics. "Yea! That song that goes "I'm gonna hold you until you pass out in my A-A-Arms." Ivy sings to Bliss, weakly harmonizing with the lyrics. A small smile appears on Bliss, as she grabs a fork, mimicking a microphone. "Let me show you how it's supposed to go." Bliss replies. She clears her throat, and performs the lyrics wonderfully, her smooth angelic voice resonating with everyone at the table. Small applause erupts, and Wendi interjects with "Bravo!" and "Fantastic!" every chance she gets.
As the conversation continues, Beatrice shoots a quick glance over to Prince, who has been absent the entire time, twiddling with one of the spoons in his hands.
"Hey you! Mr. Paxton! Conversation is missing some gentlemanly input." Beatrice says with a wink. Prince, seemingly in a trance, snaps out of it. "Sorry..uh...what was everyone talking about?" He says uneasily.
"Where. Have. You. Been. This. Entire. Time?" Wendi says, fiercely clapping in between pauses. "Sorry..I'm not really...good at talking to people." He chuckles nervously, avoiding eye contact with everyone in the room.
"He can choose if he wants to talk or not. Let's not pester him." Says Bliss, defending Prince. "Dinners are SOCIAL events. Not ANTISOCIAL events. He should've thought about that before accepting the invite." Says Beatrice.
Wendi vigorously nods in agreement, which was met with an icy glare from Bliss, while Prince's face drops.
"I...attended this in hopes to get out of my shell. Sorry for...um...being rude." He nervously says. Ivy takes a good look at Prince, and her face softens. "It's ok Prince, just take things at your own pace." Prince looks at Ivy, and smiles a very dopey smile. "Why..uh..thank you! Ivy right?" Prince stammers. As they looked at each other, their eyes lingered on each other for a little too long, before Prince quickly looked away.
Slowly but surely, Prince made his way into the conversation, answering questions and responding to people. "My favorite animal...would have to be the kinkajou. They're so small and cute...and their...uh...names! It's so fun to say! Kinkajou Kinkajou Kinkajou." He proceeds to say it over and over without fail. "HAHAHAHAHAHA" Wendi heartily laughs, as everyone looks at her in bewilderment.
"Which platforms do you use to share your animal videos?" Bliss asks with a hint of interest. "Uh...usually Clocktok or.. Picturgram." Prince answers.
Bliss is taken aback slightly. "My feed on Clocktok is crawling with all sorts of cute animal videos and posts. Why have I never seen you?" Bliss says aloud, although it was directed at herself.
"Yea! I've vaguely heard about the people at this table except for you Prince. You been hiding under a rock?" Wendi says. Beatrice nods in agreement while looking at the invitation card. "Yea! I should've at least seen one animal vid, considering you have ten million followers on well known platforms."
Prince starts to quiver, seemingly overwhelmed by all of these statements and questions. "Well- Yea.... I wonder... the thing is that...um-" But his fumbling words were thankfully interrupted by Gunther, pushing a cart filled with all sorts of meals and goodies, hidden by various covered bowls and silver platters.
Helping Gunther with all of the food, was a shorter, skinny woman, also wearing the same style of black apparel as Gunther. Her mask, though, was bent into a crooked, angry, snarl.
In a strong British accent, the woman spoke. "A pleasure to meet you all. I am Andria. We are very pleased to have you here. I hope you enjoy the food we have prepared for you." She takes a small bow, then along with Gunther, places the food in the middle of the table. One by one, they start removing the tops, to reveal a wondrous world of delectable cuisine.
Placed in the middle of the table was a beautifully roasted duck, golden brown and dripping with succulent juices. Surrounding the roasted duck were small brown potatoes and sweet carrots, making the entire platter look stunning. Next to the duck platter, was a bowl of crab meat croquettes, fried to scrumptious perfection, as well as salmon mousse cups filled with fluffy salmon cream filling. There was a large bowl of eggplant pasta, topped with parmesan and truffles to make for an inviting meal, as well as deviled eggs swirling about, sprinkled with bright orange spices. For dessert, there was fruit salad, composed of apricots, peaches, strawberries, and diced melons, tossed around in a tangy, velvety yogurt, and a pineapple upside down cake, with its glimmering body practically asking to be devoured.
Gunther helped to pass out everyone's meals, cutting and scooping things onto everyone's plates, while Andria was passing out polished wine glasses and taking drink orders. After everyone had their drinks and food, Gunther and Andria bowed, and simultaneously said "Bon Appetit." They then exited the room, leaving everyone to delve into their food.
Wendi takes a big bite into her duck meat and lets out a satisfactory moan. "Ooooh boy. There may not be shrimp, but this will do nicely." As she begins to stuff her face, Bliss and Ivy clink their wine glasses together. "Cheers." Bliss says, taking a small sip of her wine. "Cheers." Ivy says back, taking a bigger swig and leaning back into her seat.
Beatrice, trying her hardest not to appear impressed, takes a bite into the pasta, squirming slightly in her seat. "My personal chef makes better pasta than this, but I'll have to deal with it for now." She says, as she begins to eat the pasta faster, picking up speed with every bite.
Prince had only desserts on his plate and was eating it messily, like a boy at a birthday party. "Thish fruit shalad... hash gotta come home wiff me." He says in between chews. Everyone eyes him, and he stops mid chew, and looks down nervously as he begins to wipe his mouth.
Ivy takes a slice of pineapple upside down cake, and takes small bites. "The chefs have outdone themselves. Marvelous."
Bliss, who was eating some deviled eggs, laughs softly as she licks her lips. "Where is the host of this though? I would love to meet who organized this."
Beatrice, who was going for her second helping of pasta, interjects. "I would love to meet them too, because I have a few critiques. What is the theme anyways? 1920s fashion or a sorry excuse for a Halloween party?" She drags her eyes down with her fingers to mock Gunther and Andria's masks.
"I think it's creepy, but it makes for a fun dinner!" Wendi exclaims.
After light conversation, followed by happy bellies, Gunther and Andria return to the room, with Gunther holding a black electronic tablet. "What's that for? Ooh are we about to take a really cute picture?" Asks Wendi. Ignoring her, Gunther turns on the tablet, to reveal a pure white background. Momentarily, someone appears on the screen.
It was the upper half of a man, wearing a light blue suit, with crinkly white gloves. Atop his head he wore a black top hat, and covering his face, was a mask twisted into a sinister permanent smile. In his left hand, he held a wooden cane with a metal top, and in his right, a phone. Using the phone, he presses a button, and a goofy, eerie, high-pitched, voice rings out from it.
"HeLLo to all of my SpeCTACular guests, who showed up to my esteemed dINNer ParTy." He takes a little bow, making sure to not drop his hat. "I aM the GLOOORiOUS hoSt. My name is APathalamioustarica the First." He takes a pause, hoping for it to be received as a joke, but is met with freaked-out glares. Unaffected, he presses on. "I kid, I kid, I MerEly joke aboUT. I do love A goOd joKe noW and theN, HEHEHE! My name is Apathy. EVER so pleased to make your acquaintance." He dances about the white background, revealing him to wear fuzzy black socks.
He runs back up to the front of the camera, inching his dark smile closer and closer to the screen. "SiNcE wE hAve WraPPeD uP diNNer, I sAy wE play a game!"
"Games? I hope it doesn't involve too much movement because I just ate for a whole family." Ivy says, rubbing her belly.
Apathy, completely ignoring her, begins to clap at rapid speed, before stopping and standing dead still. "LetS play a SillY game, ThaT deterMineS thE liVes of FILTHY sinners."
And with those words, tension started to creep in.
"Sinners?" Bliss questions.
Speeding up his voice, he starts aggressively stomping. "LETs PLAY A GaME WhERe ThOSE WHO hAVE DECEIvED thE PubLIc have a chance To pAY." At this point, some people were scared and alarmed. Finally stopping, he looks at the screen and whispers. "LetS plAy a GaMe of OPPORTUNIty." He presses pause on his phone, and the moment Apathy finishes his last words, the tablet abruptly turns off.
Everyone at the dining table looks at each other in slowly-rising fear. Prince starts to shake intensely, while Ivy looks as though she's about to pass out. Bliss is completely frozen, making an odd face as though she's about to throw up. "Sinners...? What do you mean by that?" Wendi shakily asks, starting to get up from her table.
Noticing the slight movement from Wendi, Andria proceeds to reach for her pocket. Moments later, she pulls out a shiny black gun to match her outfit, and points it at Wendi, who eyes widen.
Beatrice, who was showing little to no fear, confidently gets up from her seat and starts to approach Andria and Gunther. "Wow this was great fun! That gun looks real and everything!" Beatrice says, starting to look around. "Where are the cameras? This is clearly a prank show." As she starts to approach the front door, Andria cocks the gun and with a loud "BAP" shoots at Beatrice.