Chapter Text
Bill, junk, bill, grocery store advertisement… Victoria tossed the unopened mail onto the kitchen table one by one. The last envelope in her hands appeared to be a letter, and the neat handwriting in pen made her pause. It was 2020; who sent letters anymore?
It was…
Interesting.
She pulled up a chair and sat, reading over the sender’s name and address. Tepig Cathun. There was a name Victoria hadn’t heard in a while. She had been invited along to a casino or two on occasion- it seemed like gambling was Cathun’s favorite pastime and for Cathun's credit, she were damn good at it. Even if the two didn’t talk as much as they used to, at least the trips weren’t boring. Made for pretty good stories, too.
So to get a letter in the mail from them was already a little strange. The handwriting did match what Victoria remembered seeing a handful of times, but why send a letter? Victoria turned it over, finding a seal on the back. Real official, she mused. Real weird.
The brunette slid a fingernail underneath it and opened the envelope. Enclosed was the letter itself, as well as a smaller scrap of paper that fell out when Victoria opened the letter. She decided to read over the letter first.
“Dear Victoria,
A close friend has recently given me a house and is planning to give me the deed on Thursday night, so I invite you to a dinner party to celebrate.”
She drummed her fingers on the tabletop, thinking. How rich would you have to be to just give a house to someone? Still, “give” might not be the whole truth of it. There had to be a catch somewhere. There always was. She kept reading.
“Although there is something strange about the house. It only exists in the 1920s. And as such, to enter the house's grounds you must be dressed in apparel from the time period and have the personality of the era.”
“Only exists in the 1920s, yeah, sure,” she muttered. If this was an actual invitation to something, it was probably to a prank, rather than a dinner party. Victoria couldn’t say she wasn’t interested in the idea, though. A dinner party themed around the 1920s- now one hundred years ago- was pretty unique.
“If you try to bring any items from the present age, the house will simply never appear for you. I have added some extra information for the party, with your 'role' or personality and where to find your rental clothes (as well as an image for assistance),” Victoria read. She glanced at the scrap of paper that had been left untouched. If being told how to dress and what to do was already provided, then that meant less work for her. The idea of having to leave her phone behind was less appealing.
“The butler of the house, Stu, will come to your home on the night to escort you in their mysterious time traveling car, I hope to see you all Thursday,” she raised an eyebrow. How confident was Cathun that everyone she invited would say yes? Besides, a ‘mysterious time traveling car’... yeah, right. They probably hired Stu and some others for the whole charade. And more than that…
Cathun was not the kind of person to save money. She had a tendency to lose her winnings not long after gaining them, that much Victoria knew about her old friend. So where did she get the money to hire a butler?
Victoria checked the time on her phone. She still had a few days until Thursday, so if she was going to go, she would have enough time to find the clothes and get ready. “It'll be a night to remember. Sincerely, your friend Tepig.”
At best, her old friend was completely serious, and had somehow come into ownership of a house stuck in time. There would be a dinner party with Cathun and probably some people she’d never met before.
At worst, it was all a joke and she’d spend her night on that instead of drinking at home or watching movies again. But either way, it would make for a compelling story.
Victoria tossed the letter onto the table and reached instead for the smaller paper. She skimmed the party information before the image of the 1920s attire caught her eye. Tonight, it seemed like she would be trading out her beanie, t-shirt, jeans, and sneakers. According to the picture, she was to be dressed in a dark gray suit with a tie and lighter gray slacks, alongside a newsboy cap and saddle shoes. A vintage pocket watch on a chain was also included in the image.
The address of a few local clothing stores were included. Below that, four words were penned in dark ink.
The Radio Show Host
Interesting… very interesting, indeed.