*haunted house scenerio*

[soldier_blade]

If Sonya rolled her eyes any harder she'd swear they'd roll right out of her head. This whole situation with seeking shelter in the rain via a creep, old, dilapidated house was so cliche she wonder if this wasn't some prank from her Ex. This was made all the more better (or worse) but the company with her. Her only silverlining was that none of the men (least, she was assuming papyrus was male) were her enemies.

Ringing out her jacket (and trying not to shiver in the short sleeved sweater), Sonya tried to access the situation they were in: it was storming outside, bad enough that every other minute, thunder would rumble the house, old and dusty as this place was, it was dry. All they needed to do was set up the fire place in what Sonya could only guess was the sitting room and hopefully they'd be able to wait out the storm.

There was a part of her that also wanted to explore, but even she wasn't so 'genre blind' as to risk splitting up in this place. Even if this was just an empty house, no telling what sort of death traps there might be.  Still, they needed some sort of fuel for burning. All she had was some fluid and a way to start a fire, but nothing that wouldn't burn up instantly.

"Anyone want to come with me to find fuel for the fire?" It wasn't completely a question.

Comments

[solar_powered_kahn]

The three men in question were either wringing out their clothing or, in the case of Kotal Kahn, trying to dry themselves off with a threadbare, but clean, rag. All of the actual towels were still in the car, and none of them were eager to venture out into pouring rain and hail. While Ermac and Kotal simply didn't want to get soaked again, Papyrus was trying his damndest to maintain his fearless image and keep himself from jumping every time there was a clap of thunder.

Kotal and Papyrus both perk up at the mention of finding fuel for the fire.

"Good idea. Where would the owners have stored their firewood?"

Papyrus, wringing out his long scarf, glances around the room and notices that all of the old furniture seems to be made of wood. His experience with building fires was embarassingly limited; fire magic had almost always been used rather than actual fire in the Underground, and the cold just wasn't a concern for skeleton monsters.

"HMMM... WE COULD PROBABLY GET AN HOUR OR SO OUT OF ONE OF THOSE CHAIRS."

Kotal raises a brow at that.

"Earthrealm furniture is often treated with chemicals, is it not? You may not have lungs, Papyrus, but the rest of us need to breathe clean air."

[soldier_blade]

Had it not been as dark as it was, Sonya would've noticed the slight jump from Papyrus at the sound of thunder. That she didn't was probably just as well-he was an adult and she was in no mood to play gentle.

She pulled out a small flashlight: both parenthood and being in the military meant being prepared for anything.

"Outdoor furniture's treated, yes." She checked the state of where they were. "Looking around, doubt the furnishings here are younger than..fifty years old, should be safe to burn."

And she definitely knew enough from her aunt and grandma's house for how flammable things could be. "We should be fine if we can find a chair without fabric."

[solar_powered_kahn]

Kotal picks up an old, wooden chest, taking a moment to admire the floral motif carved into it.

"It seems a shame that such beautiful craftsmanship has been left here to do nothing but gather dust."

Papyrus snorts derisively as Kotal sets it down near the fireplace.

"IT CAN'T HAVE BEEN ANY GOOD IF THEY JUST LEFT IT BEHIND, CAN IT?"

The skeleton hauls a cobweb covered chair to the fireplace, setting it down a bit hastily as a fresh peal of thunder shakes the house. As if to cover up his moment of weakness, he summons an oversized femur in his hands and uses it like a club to break up the furniture.

"We do not think the owners left..."

Ermac seems to be watching something in the darkness of the next room. It's subtle, but his posture has shifted into a kind of tensed readiness, as if he were preparing to pounce on some small, unwary animal.

"Spirits?"

"We can sense one, perhaps two nearby. There may be more."

[soldier_blade]

All signs pointed to her being the one building the fire; fine, she'd rather keep busy anyway. The state of the house though, part of her shared Kotal's feelings on the house. If it had been properly taken care of, she could see how it would've been a nice place to live-too big for her personally, but she could see the charm.

She hooked the flashlight onto her belt, needing both of her hands to clear the fireplace out. After being neglected for so long, she feared that a fire would fill the room with smoke and choke them all out.

As she worked, Ermac would've been right to be wary, but not the way he imagined. To the corner of his eye he would've sensed the presents of two spirits, a pair of small boys who're drawn by both the presence of new adults, and one that could sense them.

There's another feeling around them as well, a sense of anxiousness surrounding them.

Sonya frowned, stopping her work. Now that she thought about it, she did feel there was something else with them. "Course, a place like this would be haunted. So long as they keep to themselves, I think we can deal."

[scarsandspikes]

"HAUNTED? BY GHOSTS?"

Papyrus shrugs, and resumes bashing the chair to smithereens.

"GHOSTS ARE NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT! I CAN DRIVE THEM OFF IF THEY BECOME A NUISANCE!"

Ermac drifts toward where he senses the spirits, now completely uninterested in helping with the fire.

"They're watching us... We could deal with them, if you wish."

"That won't be necessary, Ermac."

[soldier_blade]

"They were here first." Sonya continued clearing out the fireplace, quickly moving out of the way when she felt some ash fall on her. "Hold your breath!"

She moved as a cloud of ash fell into the fire. "Jesus Christ!" She waved some of the ash away, covering her nose and mouth. "This place really had been abandoned."

If it was that bad when she cleaned it, she didn't want to imagine what it would've been like if they'd tried to start a fire without checking.

She went back to the fire when she was certain she could brief, but then was aware of how cold it was-chillier then it'd been before. The light on her flashlight started to flicker, and she frowned as she pulled it off her belt-the batteries were supposed to be new.

Sonya racked her brain of everything she knew of the paranormal. "Don't try anything yet. If they're curious, they can remain that way-we're guests after all."

Good lord, she never thought she'd hear herself reference ghosts in this manner.

The two boys were now between Ermac and Sonya, drawn between the two. One of them pointed at the stairwell, the feeling of anxiousness growing.