Marion turns and gives Stewart a relieved, but slightly guilty smile. Anyone who'd known Marion growing up would recognize that expression as meaning, 'whew, you almost caught me' when she was up to something.

"We're all right, Stewart. Nothing to worry about."

When he's retreated, Marion shakes her head ruefully and says to no one in particular, "Well we can't just leave it there..."

She bends down to scoop the obsidian chunk up out of the box.

Marion retrieve the object finding it to feel no different than expected. Somewhat cool to the touch with smooth sides and sharp edges it could be anything that was picked up near a volcano or found in a geologist's office. She holds it up for the others to see and revel in the anticlimactic reveal.

Catori stared at the obsidian Stone and then to Marion. "We've released it... whatever was inside. The box was its prison and now we helped it to escape. You must've felt it too!", Catori voice was slowly rising a demeanor very unusual for the Apache woman.

Daphne ducked as if Catori's invisible prisoner were swinging at her; from her crouched position on the floor, she gave a sharp whistle. As Spot came running from the other room, Daphne prepared herself for an attack.

Janos' hand tightened on his sword.
"A warning like that would have been nice," he grinds out between tightened lips. He takes a step toward Marion and seems to relax once more.

"Okay, what was just released, what does it want, and how do we get it back in ... if this is how these haunting visitations go."

"Everyone stay calm, please," Marion said. "Yes, this stone aided the spell that opened the box. What that means, we don't know yet. Lets not jump to conclusions and get upset. It seems quiet again, for now."

She places the box on the library desk, and the obsidian shard in the box...but leaves it open.

"Determining what this is, and what it can do, is the next step." Marion eyes the others with her steely gaze. "If anyone here doesn't wish to continue, now's the time to say so."

"We don't have much of a choice. We are responsible for this, we need to fix it to keep the balance... and I don't think that whatever was locked inside is still around here. It has fled once it was freed.", Catori looked determined and was slowly calming down again.

"We had to act in haste and now we pay the price for our audacity. Wisdom and patience would've been the better counselors."

Ben quietly replied, "If it had not been us to release it now, chances are spectacular someone else would have taken the box from us and released it themselves, and we would have had no clue at all what was going on. By acting now we have the benefit of knowledge, which we would not have had if we'd waited."

"Now," Ben said with a more powerful voice as he walked towards the stacks of books, "I think we should start the journey of knowledge. Guardian! Find me books on Grigori Rasputin, and recent Russian history. I may not be an occult wonder, but I know how to research!"

Arch sighs "I agree with Catori. As upset as I am about things earlier, I can't see us just dropping this and going back to our daily lives. We've got to focus now on fixing our little problem."

"Ben I'll give you a hand on the research."

"I'm in," is all the tall Hungarian says. His face is grim and certainly many matter weigh on his mind.

Daphne stood up slowly, uncertain the threat was done. "I help," she stated. She grinned and leaned against Arch, a casual gesture that didn't exist in this era, among members of this society. "Help Ben and Arch research?"

Both Marion and Ben knew that Daphne wasn't that good at research; her reading speed was slow. Though if they had to read something about daemons, she could provide a colorful commentary.

"Of course!" Ben said. Daphne may be slow at research, but he was always happy to help Daphne improve her reading - after all, it was an important part of any woman's education. It broadened the mind and, more importantly, it gave her something to do. Ben was all for it.

"Come along, we'll see if we can't find a few good books for you!"

"'Course I'm in. You think I'd pass up a story like this? This is something amazing and no mistake."

The Guardian begins to glide through the library searching for books about Rasputin and Russian history focusing specifically on the recent forty odd years. Slowly a small pile is formed on one of the many tables in the room. The information is scant to say the least. A couple of books that are nearly twenty years old contain only brief mentions of Rasputin. Little more recent is uncovered. A few books on the history of the Tsars are also provided as well as history of "modern Russia" that is already ten years out of date.

As you all sit faced with innumerable pages of material the grandfather clock chimes three a.m. Realizing that a little sleep will do more to speed the research than plowing through in an exhausted state you all decide to get some rest and attack the books in the morning.