Gale was still reeling when the man's voice penetrated his perception.  Gale turned toward the man in the hat and swung his leg over the cycle's seat, standing up.  He let his cousins go and glanced from Ember to the man, focusing on the man finally.<br/><br/>"Hang on, what's going on?"<br/><br/>The man raised an eyebrow at Gale's question.<br/><br/>"If you would let me continue, Mr. Wyndham, I will answer the questions that need to be answered at this point in time and then let you and your cousins discover the answers to any other questions you may have on your own time, through your own effort.  I am busy after all."<br/><br/>Gale felt the presence of the man squash the further questions he had.  The man had the feel of the hardest, most severe building site supervisor Gale had ever worked under.  He gave a slight shrug and murmured an affirmative sound.<br/><br/>The man's eyebrow lowered and then he reached inside his coat, presumably going for the inner pocket.<br/><br/>"Now then, as the duly selected representative of the Hamamelis Trust, established at the behest of your grandmother, Hazel Southeil, it is my responsibility to pass along to you three the keys to your grandmother's former residence."<br/><br/>He took out three key rings, each with three keys on them.  The only distinguishing item on each key ring was a small leather tag that had stylized letters on them.  He handed the one with the 'G' to Gale, the one with 'E' to Ember, and the one with the 'R' to Raine.  The man pressed each  one into their palms with slightly more pressure than normal.<br/><br/>He continued to speak.  "Now, the terms of your grandmother Hazel's will stipulates that the property shall become the joint possession of all three of you in the event that you all satisfy the requisite conditions."<br/><br/>He reached into his coat again and pulled out a clipboard.  Gale frowned slightly at the sight.<em>How was he holding that inside the coat?</em><br/><br/>The man ran a finger down the page on the clipboard and muttered to himself before nodding.<br/><br/>"Ah, here it is.  Yes, you three are required to appear at the house on this day, at this time, and then enjoined to take up residence here for the following two weeks.  Also, it is your responsibility to be on the premises for the entire 24 hours on the date of the Summer Solstice.  This shall refer to the hours of daylight from dawn of that day until dawn of the following day.  Since the Solstice occurs within the upcoming two weeks, I will be checking on your progress three times.  Once at dawn of the Solstice, once again at dawn of the next day, and then at the end of the two weeks."<br/><br/>The man glanced up at the three of them.<br/><br/>"I trust that is understood?  Good."<br/><br/>He flipped up a page on the clipboard and continued, not waiting for a response.<br/><br/>"Upon completion of the requirements and acceptance by yourselves of the responsibilities of residence at this location, all titles and legal rights to this property as well as any and all esoteric gifts and benefits shall be transferred to joint custody amongst you, to be shared and enjoyed by all of you."<br/><br/>The man, who Gale had decided must be a lawyer, reached again into his coat and pulled out a slim, stick like thing.  Gale was about to ask how in the hell that the guy had hidden that along with the clipboard when he realized that the item was a pen.  At least, it had the appearance of a pen, especially when the man pressed on the side and a metal tip slid out the bottom end with a soft click.  But Gale had never seen a pen with a feather on it.  Well, he had seen them in movies set in old times.  Also, he suddenly recalled, his grandmother had one in her study, a quill she called it, but it wasn't like this, one that combined modern and old style.  As a pen for day to day use, this was unusual.  The man held out the pen, the feather shifting in a sudden breeze.<br/><br/>"Sign here, please."<br/><br/>Gale turned toward his cousins and then back to the man.<br/><br/>"Hold up, you mean to say that...the house?  Is ours?!"<br/><br/>Gale's voice was incredulous.<br/><br/>The man focused on Gale.  The pen was held still.<br/><br/>"No, it isn't.  Not unless you three satisfy the conditions laid out by Hazel.  However, if you can do that, you may accept the house under your own free will."<br/><br/>He moved the pen and the clipboard slightly, as if to draw attention to them.<br/><br/>"So, sign here please.  This is acceptance of the conditions and indicates your understanding in how to satisfy them."<br/><br/>Gale glanced back at his cousins.  He couldn't believe what he had just heard, but for some reason it didn't surprise him.  This sounded like something grandmother would do, some weird challenge in order to teach a lesson.  He also remembered that his mother had told him that the old house had been set aside for some reason, but she hadn't told him about this.  Maybe she didn't know?<br/><br/>"I...what do you two think?" he asked his cousins.<br/>