Day 037

[allthekeys]

|| Day 037: GENERAL Light slowly floods its way into the houses as the sun rises, sending the rats scurrying back to wherever they came from. Shadows seem to move in time with their owners again, and whatever was unnerving about the mirrors appears to have resolved itself. Guests will find that their clothes have been returned, cleaned and left beside them in neatly folded piles. With the coming of day, the temperature has also risen -- and as the hours wear on the heat in All Houses begins to rise to uncomfortable levels. The air becomes thick with humidity, and clothing becomes a little damp with it and sticks to flesh. In the Second House within the Wallpapered Parlour the sound of children playing can be heard -- although they cannot be seen no matter how hard one tries. They seem to be chanting a rhyme, although upon anyone over the age of 18 walking in they quiet to nothing more than faint giggles. If someone were to try and concentrate on listening they could make out the following: I know a man, not far from here Dressed all in black, and no-one goes near, Some say he comes to you in your dreams, And if he catches you he'll make you scream Maybe now he's waiting under your bed, Hiding in the shadows, ground stained red Maybe he's behind you -- One, Two, Three, you're dead! The Priest has vanished from the Chapel, but so has the blood. Inside, it appears to have been cleaned and re-decorated. The doorway down into the Catacombs has been unlocked and propped open. Walking through the Chapel gives guests an odd feeling, as if they are being watched. Movements seem to catch their attention, but when they turn nobody else is there. Something cold brushes past them, but nothing seems to have been the source. Sensitives will quickly realise the Chapel is far from as empty as it seems. The decorations bring to mind harvest. Small piles of fruit and vegetables adorn the altar next to fresh bread and neatly twined stems of corn made into dolls. Similar piles are by the door down into the catacombs, and venturing in reveals the same has been done here to a greater degree. The catacombs themselves feel emptier, quieter today than previously. Someone has been through and tidied up a little, arranged abandoned corpses that had yet to be mummified and laid to rest, dusted shrines and left harvest offerings. The torchlight does little to illuminate the darkness of the underground cavern, but but there is still the odd sense that someone else might be in there with them -- just around the corner. Anyone who takes a bite from any food in the Chapel or Catacombs will find it tastes like ash in their mouth, and that nothing else they eat for the rest of the day satisfies them. They know only increasing hunger and thirst. At the entrance to the stairwell sits an Albino rabbit. Those here long ago may remember it from when it carried the lantern. Crouching to touch it will cause a firm but kind voice to invade their mind. Rise respectfully, restless roomer, for diligent daredevils dither not in the darkness. Spirits seek sanctuary here, and stealing is short sense when surrounded as such. It is the only warning guests will get, and the rabbit seems eager to turn guests away from the Catacombs entirely. It thumps a warning when they try to descend the stairwell. For something so small, it appears to lack any fear. Trying to touch it with intent to cause it harm will cause a guest's hand to burn hot and the rabbit to back away. Anyone who is ill or in pain will find while they remain in contact with the animal they feel healthy once more. The feeling will remain for an hour or so after they have left its side. Although the Siren has vanished from the Playboy Bedroom the Third House does not seem as quiet as it should be. Anyone guest standing on the First Floor will hear the constant back and forth of loud footsteps from above them, as if someone is running up and down the halls, and the occasional slam of a door. Heading up the staircase and standing there, however, they can hear nothing at all. Which is strange, because anyone still on the ground floor will be able to tell them it continued. The Stalker room is firmly locked, but the soft sound of sobbing can be heard from within. In the Fourth House the sound of voices can be heard in every kitchen and store room, as if the guests are in the middle of a busy crowd. Individual conversations discerned seem to be nothing more than aimless gossip, or about food, and after a while it seems clear the voices they are hearing belong to servants of some sort. In the Servant's kitchen there appears to be a steady supply of apple pie and fresh bread. Standing by the Lake outside the Fifth House today gives a creeping, heavy feeling of loss. As if everything is for naught, and there is nothing left in the world worth fighting for. The water almost seems to call to them, encouraging them to step forward into it. In the Forgotten Nursery the soft sound of humming can be heard, absent and content, and every so often paint pots seems to move and drip as if someone is using them. In All Houses small dolls made from twisted and woven corn rest in every room and hall. Some are propped on tables, some laid on beds and some hung from a hook on a wall. There's something odd about them, although it's hard to discern. To look at they perfectly normal. They do not even feel wrong to the touch. Yet they nag at guests, particularly sensitives, with a sense of wrongness. Unfortunately, moving them seems fruitless -- they re-appear not long after taken away.