allthekeys

As the night falls the chimes of the clocks are once again joined by the distant toll of the bells. Nicholas begins to cry, hands balled up near his face as he screams. Anyone near the Basement doors will hear another child join in his wail but despite the infants distress, and the overwhelmingly loud noise, everyone in the house sleeps once more.

Those who woke in the morning with a red cord around them find themselves falling into a strange dream. Something is watching them sleep, leaning over them. The feeling of safety returns, as though the person above them is someone they love. Each will experience the brush of a gentle hand against their face and have the sense that they were soothed by the figure, encouraged to rest. They might have even heard the person say something to them, caught deep and comfortingly within their minds.

Those who rejected the voice will find themselves trapped in a different dream, one of the figure they hate the most leaning over them as they lie still, helpless to stop the other from doing anything. The person does not touch them, nor do anything to bother them at all, but they do indicate that they shall return.

The dream shifts, someone curled up in a corner of what seems to be a cell. A sense of restless longing hangs heavy over the dream, though the person does not pace or rise to study the bars holding them. A journal lays open in their lap, and the writer fills the pages with words, observations that none of the dreamers will remember when they wake. They seem engrossed by this; no voices intruding on their solitude. The cell itself is scattered with small bits of a life: a tipped over bag holding a stuffed monkey and other writing materials, a nest of blankets pushed against the wall allowing the author to rest. All these details seem to blur as the dreamers wake, though the emotions stay with them.

The note-taker's restlessness lingers with the the dreamers, guiding the houseguests through the night and making it impossible to stay in one place for very long. The parents of the house will find it difficult to let their children out of their sight. Gripped by some strange, stomach twisting notion that the children might vanish if they let them go for very long at all.

As night falls a storm begins to brew over the house, the sky is darkening and often cut by forks of lightening. Thunder rumbles through the disjointed building, adding another layer of noise to the construction. In the Open Hallway the snow has mostly melted away, leaving only the occasional pile of slush to darken the paving stones beneath it. It smells like rain and the atmosphere feels charged. Though the air is heavy and damp the storm seems to still be building, and not a drop of rain can yet be seen.

Agito, Bobby, James, Leon, Luke, Niall, and Raven will wake to a surge of pain, as though something is bitting into their spines, digging and chewing through their bodies. The agony lasts for several long minutes before it fades. With it goes something else, inhibition fading to apathy. It as though something has been unlocked within them as they rise. Though they will still recognize those around them, it will no longer matter. There is only the hunt, the thrill of the kill, and the longing for their prey. They will attack both friend and foe with the same vigor, and no pleading will dissuade them. The compulsion will be completely unavoidable until they make the first kill, after which those who try to fight will still find themselves with the desire but will be able to squash it enough to prevent themselves causing harm. Those with no desire to struggle will find each kill becoming easier and easier.

Everyone wakes in a different place than where they started. Those in the First House wake in the Attic. Those in the Second House will wake in the Open Hallway. Anyone who dies throughout the night in the second house will wake in the Bell Tower. Though the radios will work between the houses, the Floating Hallway is completely closed. The Greenhouse is thick with fog, discouraging anyone from attempting to get to the other house that way.

The Hellhounds stalk the halls of both houses, only beasts upon the scent of injury and blood. They pace from top to bottom in each building, completing circuit patrols from floor to floor.

The Frogs has begun to move of their own accord whenever their owners are not looking. They hop away at the first chance available, but never far enough to be missed or to escape from view. Strangely, if the children follow the pattern and direction of the frog's apparent escape route it will loop around the most dangerous hauntings, eventually leading to a safe room.

First House:

Lock has reappeared, sitting cross-legged on the counter in the Blue Kitchen he seems content to be left in silence and focused on eating. For as long as Lock remains in the kitchen the room is Safe, although the Hellhounds seem willing to try to challenge the barrier. Unlike the other safe rooms, those who were altered by the experiment will not enter this room.

In the Glass Bathroom the Drowned Woman has appeared once more. She stands perfectly still in the middle of her circle of water, head lolling to the side as though caught in deep contemplation. Rotting hands reach for anyone that passes, almost desperate as she tries to grab them. Her movements are are slow, as though caught deep under water and searching for the slightest hint of light as she drowns.

In the Parlor the Burning Man has appeared once more. He is heat triggered tonight and will hunt anyone who makes a fire within the house. He seems unusually hostile, attacking anyone who steps foot in the room and chasing them until they reach the next. He will not respond to any attempts to communicate with him this night; in fact he will not speak at all. Whatever strength of will that seemed to allow him words before has faded.

In the Basement the Doctor and his twisted Nurses have returned once more. Anyone requiring treatment tonight shall be admitted and tended to, though anyone attempting to remove someone from the Basement will be attacked by the nurses. Any former patient will once again be allowed access to the doctor tonight and will not be harmed or prevented from leaving.

Above the Study the Spider is once more lurking, clinging to the walls and watching the passage of those beneath him with attentive eyes. He is hostile, but seems only inclined to attack adult males, women and children will be allowed to pass quite possibly without ever knowing he was there. He is, as always, highly contagious to those he manages to injure. The Hellhounds will not bother his victims, in order to allow them time for the infection to take hold.

Within the Day Room the tea party is finally drawing to a close. The seated mannequin now stands, hands on the back of the chair the Doll from the bathroom has been positioned upon. It seems prepared to chivalrously aid her to her feet as their meeting concludes, some form of agreement having finally been struck by the group at last. As the night progresses, anyone paying attention may notice as they pass by that they shift positions -- although never while anyone is watching. The doll to her feet finally, the mannequin bowing to her in a display of... perhaps, gratitude? Or could it be respect? Then, several of the other dolls form a neat parade line either side of the doorway. With them are the statue from the statuary, one of the adventurous fairy figures, a porcelain frog and the mannequin. She stands between them, and if anyone catches this moment it will feel strangely regal. Ceremonious. All of the inanimate companions have one hand, or appendage, coated in a layer of blood. Several of them, the mannequin included, are armed with knives.

They form a united front, or for everyone else outside it -- a militia.

The Dolls seem unwilling to return to their bathroom. Any Doll that has been given a name remains close to the person who named it. The others remain scattered about the first house, seeming to move when nobody is looking at them, and lingering close to those who have caused them harm. Often the sound of giggling can be heard and the occasional children's song seems to start, though there seems to be no source to the music.

The open Ballroom has been filled once more with the pleasant sound of music, the Dancers spinning their way across the floor. There seem to be fewer now, and those that remain are in a less festive mood than before. They glide slow and elegant to the sound of a stately waltz, holding each other close and occasionally even resting a head on their partners' shoulder; as grand as the Ballroom is, the scene seems soft and warm, strangely intimate to be found in the terror of the night. The occasional dancer pauses to offer their hand to the house guests, and those that join the macabre scene will find it difficult to leave again. The opulent men and women no longer hold any resemblance to those the house guests would like to see.

They have been rejoined by the Piano Player, though their presence is difficult to spot from the vantage point the guests have. They can catch a glimpse of blond hair and fine clothing, an almost unnaturally pristine white in such a hellhouse--but beyond that, and the nimble dance of fingers over the keys, there is no more that can be seen. The Piano Player remains bent over their music, obviously focusing intently, and will not be disturbed.

Anyone who makes their way into the hallway beyond the Ballroom will hear the soft sound of a baby crying, often obscured by the sound of whispering. Anyone entering the Oak Hallway will feel as though they are being watched by someone just out of sight, though no watcher makes themselves known.

In the Theater the lamps have all been lit, leaving the room in a dim, half light that seems to add more shadows than it dispels. The bodies on the stage are twitching, writhing in remembered pain. Some seem close to clawing their way to their feet, those that have feet. Others, simply parts, grasp and kick at anyone that passes. There is no real sound to the macabre display, not voices to speak of the torment, only the wet echo of rotting flesh smacking against wood.

The sound of the baby crying seems clearer in the theater, carried by the acoustics of the environment.

Anyone brave enough to cross Backstage will be able to trace the sound to one of the dressing rooms. In the most central of them is the source: the baby clutched in the burned figure's arms crying, burnt arms waving and legs kicking as though it struggles to live despite its condition.

The safe rooms in the first house tonight are the Observatory, and the Study.


Second House:

Anyone attempting to enter the Floating Hallway will find that the way has been blocked and that they are unable to enter. Though the radios still work and can be used for communication, none can physically join anyone in the other house for the duration of the night.

The Lady In White has returned once more in the Wallpapered Parlor as always. Her beauty is captivating, causing those who see to pause and feel drawn to her. She will not attempt to escape, but those who approach will find that she is very difficult to attack. She seems almost familiar, like a lost love they have longed for, and her smile seems to welcome them. Rather than inspiring avoidance, she encourages them to step closer, to embrace her. She's been waiting for them.

In the Plain Kitchen, something is moving in the Well. Her breath hisses between her teeth and her eyeless face turns in the direction of anyone that moves within the confines of the Pantry. The Needle Woman has returned, and she seems to be willing to take that return out on anyone who lingers too long in the kitchen. She is incredibly hostile, the acid on her hands dangerous to anyone it comes into contact with. This one is better avoided than bothered.

A woman has appeared at the desk in the Blank Library. Dark hair hangs about her face and she is dressed in a simple, if somewhat cobbled together outfit. She seems to be writing, a journal spread over her lap. Despite this she stays alert and watchful, peering around at any sound and checking to make sure that nothing has managed to sneak up on her. This paranoia does not seem out of place in the house, and she seems to fit in rather well with the environment. On occasion she hums to herself, seeming inclined to stay a while and strangely familiar to those who have spent a few nights in the house. Not seem hostile or threatening, she will speak to any who approach. Much like Lock in the first house, her presence signifies that this is a safe room. The Hellhounds may try to enter, but even the experiments will stop at the door.

In the Photography bedroom the Photographer has appeared once more. He sits on the bed, almost relaxed as he fixes something within his camera. Completely devoid of the restless and frantic pacing of his previous searches, now he is almost still save for the workings of his hands. Any guest, however, may notice his eyes lifting when they enter -- the almost white irises boring holes into them and following their passage through the room. While he seems at ease he will nonetheless attack anyone who tries to take anything from the room, possessively guarding it from leaving his sight.

In the Chapel the Vampire Hunter has appeared. He sits on the alter, and tonight seems to be waiting for something. In his hand is a silver knife, working an otherwise innocent piece of wood into a sharp point. He mutters to himself constantly, snatches of Latin and recognizable verses. The hunter is hostile to any Nonhuman or Sensitive but any normal human will find him almost protective of them. There is blood on the alter, seemingly fresh and oozing down the sides to pool on the floor. The smell of it adds to the otherwise unpleasant atmosphere of what should have been a safe place. None of the other monsters will enter the Chapel.

The Rose Garden is locked, and no one will be able to enter. A man lays writhing in the dirt and melting snow, screaming until he has no breath left for it. His arms end in bloody stumps, and something has ripped the skin from his face, leaving him to thrash in ineffective misery on the filthy ground. He begs at times for mercy, but the gate is locked none can aid him.

Upon one of the trunks in the Shelter Bedroom sits the Mute Ghost Girl, staring intently at the stuffed rabbit in her lap. She barely moves when alone, staring down at her companion and picking idly at something stuck in its fur, completely absorbed in the task of cleaning the stain. When she notices a guest come near, however, she will jump off of the trunk and take shelter underneath the nearest bed to watch them in silence.

Under the bed directly across from her lurks the Crawling Boy. He hides out of view from the doorway, waiting until someone has approached and frightened off the girl, before he moves. He surges forward once a guest has come close enough, skittering across the floor to prey upon them.

The Kitten has once again joined the ghost child, darting between the two with little care for the boy’s current condition. She mews constantly, the only real warning that the other child is there at all, butting against him for attention and purring softly when acknowledged. She seems unusually pleased with herself for an animal that seems to be dead, though she is just as cautious as the girl about newcomers. Together, this strange trio holds control of the room, and it is ill-advised to linger for very long at all.

The safe rooms in the second house tonight are the ??? Room, and the Viewing Room.

( Threat Down )

((ooc: The division of the house guests is as follows--
First House:
Abigail, Agito, Akito, Arthur, Ben, Bianchi, Cale, chaos, Chrome, Darcy, Davesprite, Dean, Dib, Don, Eight, Elena, Eli, Estella, G, Gabriel, Glenn, Himawari, Kohaku, Laura, Lelouch, Leon, Lexaeus, Lily R, Light, Liz, Loki, Mary, Mukuro, Nate, Niall, Nina, Piper, Rachel, Rose, Sephiroth, Shadow, Shisui, Shouichi, Silver, Spanner, Tim, Tino, Ten, Toboe, Tsuna, Ulquiorra, Vivien, Zion

Second House:
Ai, Anastasia, Arlen, Belphegor, Bobby, Byakuran, Carl, Castiel, Charles, Claire, Cynder, Dino, Ed, Fran, Giotto, Gokudera, Jack, James, Jamie, John E, John W, Kaitou, Kari, Kate, Laufey, Legolas, Lily B, Luke, Maia, Maurice, Mello, Misa, Mogget, Naoya, Orihime, Paige, Peter, Puss, Raven, Reynard, Romano, Rufus, Sam, Shizuka, Shizuru, Sif, Sunny, Susan, Terezi, Wufei, Zexion))