allthekeys (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
allthekeys) wrote2011-08-02 01:37 pm
allthekeys) wrote2011-08-02 01:37 pm
Entry tags:
[Third House: Floor One]
First Story
1. Wind Tunnel Hallway:
Though this hallway at first glance appears rather normal, everything seems to be bolted down. Twice a day, rough, gale force winds rush through this area, buffeting anyone who tries to walk through it. It is quite impossible to cross the hall when the winds are blowing. The hallway slopes downward and there are no windows. Back through this tunnel, one can return safely to the other houses.
2. The Front Door:
Unlike the other house, this door stands wide open. A small bell sounds the moment someone steps inside, as though they have just entered a shop. The door is bright red and the entry way is incredibly modern, very welcoming, and startlingly clean.
3. The Sitting Room:
The room has changed from the last time anyone saw it, the plain couches exchanged for more ornate, clearly hand crafted pieces. Each has been polished, and smells very clean, though a casual observer may spot the occasional forgotten scarf over the back, or a pair of earrings that seems to have been removed and left on one of the side tables.
A small wet bar offers a very classy array of wines and bourbons, and a few tasty morsels to tempt the taste of those who visit, though they seem to lend themselves to fancy mouthfuls rather than anything filling. The floor beneath the feet of the guests is polished wood, free of scuff marks.
The faint aroma of perfume lingers in the air, intoxicatingly brief. The scent is otherworldly, and seems to entice those that catch a hint of it. They might find themselves searching for the person who wore the scent without thinking of it.
A piano has been tucked into the corner of the room, almost as though it were an afterthought. The keys are dusty and it has clearly never been used, though the exterior has been polished to a fine sheen.
Off the westernmost wall is the staircase to the second floor.
4. Leather Study:
Unlike the Study in the first house, this room has a very masculine feel. The wood paneling covering the walls is a very dark mahogany, and the furniture is all leather and wood. There are no traces of children ever being in this room, of course, as it’s far too fine to risk the expensive furnishing to dirty hands.
The desk is heavy, seemingly crafted from a single piece of wood, and is richly embellished with hand carved details. Everything about the room feels restrained, serious, no-nonsense. Paintings of neatly dressed gentleman stare down at you, as if judging your every move, and the shelves are lined with thick leather-bound texts on history and architecture. The desk is covered with an array writing implements -- and a single letter. Who it was to is hard to say, as the envelope simply says My Beloved, but the contents are somewhat alarming. In it, a female writer details heavily her lust for a man and how she can't bear to be apart from him a minute longer. The language she uses is certainly colourful and graphic enough that one can imagine the two have been kept apart for quite some time.
Tucked away in one of the drawers is a finely crafted leather paddle, clearly made for some form of punishment. Next to it is a bound pile of more letters from the female writer, all equally erotic and detailing the finer details of the affair she was having with her married beloved. Reading them seems to stir an oddly playful side in guests, an urge to be rebellious -- or perhaps even to live out a fantasy.
5. Gentleman's Lounge:
This room has been decorated in dark woods and gold, and there is a well-stocked bar against the far wall. Often the clinking of glasses can be heard, as though a faithful bartender stands just behind the polished wood washing a glass while waiting for an order. The soft rumble of male voices regularly permates the room, and the entire place reeks of cigar and cigarette smoke -- a few ashtrays even hold the smoking remains as if someone has only recently left.
A stage in the corner seems perfectly situated for nightly entertainment, although if one ascends the steps to investigate it they'll find access to the backstage area blocked off. The door is firmly locked, but traces of glitter decorate the wooden floor as if elaborate costumes have been worn across it recently. At the edge of the stage, a pair of long gloves lay forgotten -- as if discarded by whoever wore them. If one examines the bar itself a poster can be found advertising Burlesque Dancing, with a black and white illustration of a woman wearing an elaborate corset and a feather boa.
6. Diamond Dining Room:
The room has been re-arranged to the eyes of anyone who saw it previously. Gone are the mirrors behind every red and black chair, aside from a large one hanging the other end of the table from the fireplace the opposing end. Instead the walls are now adorned with black and white prints, photographs of the dining room in use. Attractive women and men lay across the highly polished glass table, naked aside from a few pieces of food artfully arranged on them. Their eyes are distant, glazed, while the guests around them appear content to serve themselves and chat. The highly polished surface of the glass table has a few smudges here and there, warm to the touch if one bothers to test, as if a hand or other body part has recently been pressed there. On looking up the ceiling is one large mirrored surface -- reflecting back the glass of the table. It's almost tempting to sprawl across the table and stare at your reflection, the way those who lay here in the photographs must have. The diamond chandelier adds a twinkling sparkle to the room as light glints off all the glass, almost hypnotic. A diamond-encrusted wine glass sits below the chandelier still, slowly filling with liquid dripping from the jewels above.
7. Professional Kitchen:
Though most of the other kitchens seem almost communal, inviting anyone to use them and examine their contents, this room seems almost closed off from the other house guests. There is the feeling that anyone who is less than proficient at cooking is unwelcome, as though a chef lingers just out of sight, judging them for doing it wrong.
Much like the Blue Kitchen in the first house, a pot of stew sits bubbling on the stove. The aroma is strong and spicy, and the texture odd -- generous amounts of meat are interspersed with coarse-cut chunks of vegetables, along with some odds and ends that are harder to place. A keen eye may be able to identify yams, irregularly shaped dumplings, and half-disintegrated slices of banana, as well as some pieces that may be organ meat. The flavor is tangy and exotic, strongly spiced; only someone familiar with such meat would be readily able to tell that it's goat. Whether a guest knows the ingredients or not, though, anyone who eats it finds a feeling of well-being and warmth lingering with them for several hours. Anyone who eats in this kitchen may find themselves with a renewed sense of confidence as they explore the rest of the house.
Teapots take up the other burners, water just on the edge of boiling. The cupboards are filled with packages of herbs and spices, seeming to wait for the proper hand to turn them into something new and amazing. Most of the contents are completely unrecognizable, and all are unlabeled, but an observant guest would easily be able to pick out ginseng and expensive bottles of saffron from among the other items.
The fridge holds a large bowl of raw oysters, carefully covered to keep them from making the rest of the fridge smell. Several types of chocolate, ranging from melting chocolate to fine truffles, occupy one of the shelves. A fruit tray covered in chunks of watermelon and perfectly ripened strawberries and cherries sits on the bottom shelf, as though waiting for someone to take it. A bowl of fresh whipped cream sits covered next to the fruit, and two whole watermelons sit chilling on the the shelves. Everything is arranged for the easiest access and arranged according to the chef’s liking, though their sense of organization appears chaotic at best.
A drawer is filled with several strange looking types of squash, avocados, asparagus, broccoli, peppers, and other fresh vegetables. Waiting to be turned into an expensive meal. Fresh fish has a habit of appearing in the fridge, sliced to be eaten raw or seared and served. The occasional person might even find a few steaks sitting on a tray in the fridge, waiting to be cooked. Many other exotic ingredients can be found amid the tangle; it would be more difficult to find a simple can of raviolis in this kitchen than it would be to find the making for bird's nest soup.
8. Stable:
Through a door in the kitchen, a stable is accessible. There are seven stalls, one significantly smaller than the others, perhaps the size for a small pony. A room on the other side is full bridles, saddles and other riding tack. A few of the pieces seem oddly small for a horse.
There are no horses in any of the stalls, though all have been freshly cleaned and tended to. They smell rather pleasantly of straw and feed. In the furthermost stall, the edge of what looks like a door can be seen in the floor. It is currently half covered by straw and dirt.
The doors at the far end, where one might lead a horse, allow access to the Greenhouse, though at the moment it is impossible to make your way to the other houses through it on foot.
9. Locked Door
10. The Orchard:
Unlike much of the Greenhouse, this area seems surprisingly free from fog. The air is clear and seems warm and comfortable, in spite of the weather in the rest of the glasshouse. Here, the main feature seems to be the trees -- in fact it is better described as an orchard than anything else. Numerous apple-bearing plants dot the premises, their fruit seeming just ready to pick. The entire space is open and inviting, like a relaxing summer day.
At the edge of the area there are brick walls lining the field. They are sturdy, just too tall and smooth to climb successfully. Over the lips of the divider the heavy mist can be seen, looming and waiting, seemingly stopped despite easily reaching above the height of the barrier and completing the blockade.
11. The Hanging Tree:
Down a path and nearly a mile from the house is a tall tree. The top of it cannot be seen, and though no wind blows it seems to sway, as though moved by an unseen force.
Hanging like gruesome ornaments are corpses, each with a noose around their neck. They sway with the motion of the tree, but otherwise the dead are completely limp and colorless. Their clothes have been exposed so long that the fabric has gone gray, but the bodies do not seem to have rotted on the ends of their leashes. Their eyes are open, and those on the lowest branches can be examined, mouths gaping and empty gazes fixed on nothing. The branches moan under the weight of the corpses, the only sound that makes itself known in the otherwise silent courtyard.
On the lowest branch an empty noose hangs over a three legged stool. It seems to be waiting.
The yard around the tree is filled with trash, bits of weather beaten paper, gone blank with age. Empty wallets made of rotted leather. Bits of tarnished jewelry and rusted watches. The entire clearing reeks of despair and loss of hope.
12. Hot Springs:
This room smells thickly of sulfur and is very warm. Deep, seemingly natural pools dot the room, some modestly shielded with screens and others open for viewing. The pools are quite warm, and perhaps it might be nice to settle in one for a little while at least. Robes and towels sit on benches surrounding the pools, and lockers for holding any gear are easily accessible. A few of the lockers are rusted closed, and not even a sharp blow seems to convince them to open. A few towels have been piled neatly by them, ready for use by the occupants. They are all warm, and soft to the touch -- pristine white and freshly laundered, save for the bottom most, which is stiff and stained in places with something dark and red.
Occasionally quiet voices can be heard from behind the screens, laughing and socialising, and glimpses of silhouettes can be seen through them. However, there is never any sign of anyone on the other side to explain the occurrence. Sometimes the scent of burning hair marks the room, strongest at the back of the room and making the pools closest to the wall almost impossible to enjoy.
13. Locked Door
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This may or may not apply, idk.
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