Houses of the Holy

As we pulled into Henderson Collige, the first thing that struck me was the medieval castle positioned in the center of the lot. I knew it was a manor and nothing more, but coming from a person whose only lived in apartments point of view, it was a gray brick castle fit for a romantic.

The castle was surrounded by a mass of trees that stretched for kilometers and over the hills in the distance. It was a dark day, adding to the erie appeal of the place. A gray brick fence was pitched around the place, and the fences out front were a black wrought iron. The gates were open and the limo driver pulled in without hesitation.

There was a large, long circular gravel drive surrounding a huge decorative fountain with a guitar statue on top. Bianca glanced at Jimmy and he responded simply, "David Gilmour used to live here."

I nodded in understanding and excitement, being a fan of Pink Floyd. The limo stopped before the house's front doors and the driver hopped out, making his way around the automobile. He opened the door and Bianca crouched through the door and into the disgusting weather outside. I followed closely behind, trying to maintain some modesty as I crawled out with my butt raised high in the air. Jimmy crawled out after the two of us and stood, giving the driver a nod before walking up the steps and to the large dungeon-style front double doors.

The handles were guitars-- very fitting to be quite honest-- and the large bronze knocker on the right door was a soldier's drum. All in all, the outside of the house was pretty overwhelming and slightly intimidating. Jimmy threw the left door open and held it open for Bianca and I. We hurried inside to escape the terrible weather and were amazed, even more so, at the foyer.

The ceilings had to be a million meters high, and a marble staircase curved up to a second floor balcony. The entire place had an open-floor plan and to the left of the foyer was a giant living room with ginormous lattice windows that belonged in a church on the wall facing the limo outside. Off of the living room was a professional kitchen with a bar that separated the dining room, living room, and kitchen. On the other half of the house was a large study and one of the eight bathrooms.

"The bedrooms have already been completed," Jimmy explained as Bianca and I explored our new castle. "Save for paint, of course. But I figured you two would want to decorate it. But I've had a fourposter put in both rooms for your bed. Driver; could you please unload the luggage the girls left in the limo? The van with the moving things will be here soon and I'll unpack that. Thank you."

I raced up stairs and leaned over the balcony to see Jimmy starring up at me. "What bedroom is mine?" I asked.

"Bianca's is the first one to the left. Yours is the one opposite hers. I hope I chose the right color fourposter for you two."

I ran to my room and Bianca followed. I swung my bedroom door opened and was surprised at what I saw. It was nothing special, but the fourposter Jimmy had mentioned was... flabbergasting. Lavished grey silk drapes hung over the bed in a canopy. A single gold curtain was dangling from one of the posters. I walked to the bed clumsily, my legs shaking in joy. As I plopped down on the bed, I noticed myself on the ceiling; a mirror had been inlayed with the silk fabric and I smiled at myself.

Jimmy you dog, I thought. I jumped when I heard a voice at the door. It was Jimmy and he was smirking deviantly. "I remember you saying how much you loved grey, so I scoured the market places for grey silk. It's hard to come by, did you know?"

At first I scowled at him, upset that he had purposefully gotten me to color I had conceded wasn't my favorite, but I ended up laughing. He laughed too and I hopped off the comfy bed to invite him over for a hug.

Slowly but surely, Jimmy trudged over and I pulled him into a thanking hug. We couldn't stop laughing and it wasn't until we separated that he grew serious. Without a word, he left the room and made way for Bianca.