This choice: All four of them opened it at once • Go Back...Chapter #2Michelle, The Swing Vote by: Unknown You couldn't predict everything in life, but Robert sure had more than his fair share of surprises for one day. Yes, there was the always unpleasant surprise of having one's car break down, but there was also the luckier surprise of having it break down in front of one of the largest, most lavish houses he'd ever so much as dreamed about... And it was all his! This thing had to be worth more than the GDP of a small country!
As if that wasn't enough, he'd have one more grand surprise coming his way. Following the voice he heard from the inside, he approached the smaller doorway as the door slowly opened...
...Only to let loose an unexpected blast of multicolored confetti that hit him right in his face, followed by a loud fanfare of horns and drums that blared away as he vigorously brushed away the material. Once he was finally able to get a clear view, he was further disoriented by the sight of four women in maid outfits lined up in a row in front of him, each with their right arms raised. In one smooth motion, from left to right, each woman took a deep bow, one right after the other, and offered a cheery greeting:
"Hello there!"
"Hello there!"
"Hello there!"
"Wassup?"
"RIa!" The woman furthest left cried.
"What?" The one on the furthest right answered defensively.
"You ruined our routine on purpose, didn't you?" The one next to her said with irritation.
"Oh, forgive a girl for trying to stand out from the crowd!"
"Well... Anyway, welcome to your new mansion, Master Thronbear!" The youngest looking one, who had yet to speak independently, said cheerfully to Robert.
For a beat, Robert just stood in the doorway, a look of confusion mixed with slight agitation on his face. He took a brief glimpse around the room (which seemed unnaturally spacious to him, even though he knew little about how big mansion foyers were supposed to be) before blurting out the most appropriate response to what he just witnessed:
"What... The... Hell?!"
"Uhh... excuse me?" The youngest woman asked again.
"Who are you, what's with all this confetti, and... where'd that fanfare come from? Come to think of it, I don't see any big band around here..."
"Wait, you... don't know?" The maid furthest on the left, who looked to be oldest, asked.
"Don't know what?" he spat. He was trying hard not to sound venomous, but this was all starting to become too much.
"Oh... no, it appears you don't. Oh dear, this is no good... Maid huddle!" The oldest one cried, causing the other three to bunch up against her in a group that moved hurriedly into another room. "Please don't go away!" she pleaded as they left the room.
Once the maids had scurried into another room, the youngest locked the door behind her and joined the other three in a close knit huddle.
"I thought he mentioned our powers when he left that message in his will! How could he be so careless?" Ria asked.
"Ria, really! Show some respect for our dear, departed former master!" The oldest maid urged, "And think carefully for a minute: his will was read aloud in front of the rest of his family. Do you really think it would have been wise to let anyone else besides Master Robert know about our powers?"
"No, I guess not... Wait a minute, why didn't we think about this before we planned out that whole routine?"
"Carelessness." The red haired maid sighed as she shook her head, "We weren't thinking, it seems..."
"No, we weren't." The eldest maid stated firmly, "But that's not what matters most now. We've already aroused Master Robert's suspicions. I don't think he'll jump to conclusions yet, but he'll definitely ask us some questions, and it might be tricky to keep playing dumb if he grills us too much."
"Oh dear!" The youngest maid moaned, "I hope we haven't scared him off!"
"I hope so, too," the eldest maid answered, "And we have to be careful not to do just that."
"Maybe it would be easier to just tell him upfront about our powers." The red haired maid wondered aloud, "If he doubts us, we just give him a demonstration. Anyway, I don't think it's a good idea to keep secrets from your boss!"
"Are you crazy?!" Ria hissed, "That'll scare him off for sure! He'll be convinced that we're gonna try to turn him into a frog to steal the mansion from him or something crazy like that!"
"He'd probably find out eventually. He looks like the sharp sort to me." The youngest maid chimed in.
Ria sighed, "Well, sounds like we've got two votes for telling him, one for keeping it a secret..."
"Truth be told, I could probably be swayed. I suppose I'll go with whatever Michelle wants."
"Is that so, Erika?" Ria commented, "Well, ball's in your court, Mishy. Tell him or don't tell him?"
"Well..." Michelle exhaled as she considered her opinion. Once again, as the eldest maid of the house, she was left to do the heavy lifting when it came to decision making. This time, though, she'd have to think very carefully, as their livelihoods depended on the right outcome. The wrong choice might push Robert away, and a maid who worked in an abandoned mansion, no matter how big and opulent it was, wasn't a very valuable maid at all.  | Members who added to this interactive story also contributed to these: |
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