Leading the four into an extravagant lounge, the maid had them take their seats on the luxurious furniture scattered about. Rick stretched out on a leather couch, Tim sat in a chair near the fireplace, and Stanley plopped himself down in a large armchair near the door. Only Sara didn't take a seat, her inquisitive nature sparked to life by the strange appearance of the maid, and instead she approached the odd cat-lady to question her.
"Your... masters, you called them, what do they do?"
The maid became slightly flush, barely containing her anger. "Well, I think it would be rather improper of me to pry into their lives, wouldn't it? I am, after all, a servant, not a detective!"
"Right... sorry. I was just curious. But... um... how long have they been out, exactly?"
"Well, I'm not sure. I can't recall ever seeing them during my employ here, but I couldn't tell you how long that's been - time does fly, as I'm sure you know. But- oh, dear me! I should be fetching you all some tea, not chatting about! Please, do excuse me!"
The cat maid rushed out of the room in a hurry while muttering something about how long it had been since they'd had guests and how much needed to be done, leaving the friends alone in the lounge, only the flickering light of the fire keeping them company. Once again, Sara was the first to speak.
"Guys, something is wrong here."
"No, really?" The sarcasm in Rick's voice was thick. "Half-cat maids in rubber skirts tending to abandoned mansions are so completely normal! Why, I see them every other day!"
"Okay, okay, sorry for stating the obvious, but this is really weird. We've got to get to the bottom of it. But how to do it..."
Rick leaps from his seat. "I'll tell you how we do it: me and Tim go and look around, while you and Stan stay here and keep the anime reject busy. If she asks, tell her that we were looking for the bathroom or something."
"I d-d-d-"
"Shut up and come on, Tim, we don't have all day!"
"O-okay."