"Half oni," Jihi corrected her reflexively. "I'm Jihi. I just need to go back and get my things, and then we'll leave. Do you need the light?"
She paused for a moment, then gave the stranger a frown. "What do you mean, you already tried getting out? Who stopped you? Was it that thing that walked past?"
The stranger leaned on one leg as their tail swished along the floor, hips tilted just so. “Alright.” She folded her arms. “And no. I don’t need the light.”
A beat passed as she seemed to think for a moment. “Hmm, not a who… well, you’ll see.” They responded. “Oh, that and the residents. That thing is just the living one.” She shrugged as if it was no big deal, although just moments ago she was telling Jihi to hide.
From what Jihi knows about magical creatures. This individual checks all the boxes for a kitsune. Though she might know that they can be quite tricky but not overly evil. So far it doesn’t seem like they have been deceiving Jihi purposely.
"Good," Jihi said, setting the lantern down on the floor. The darkness would make it difficult to see, but not impossible. More importantly, it would make the pair less noticeable while moving about the house. Jihi had no desire to face whatever she had heard earlier, nor the other residents to which the stranger had alluded.
Jihi crept back out in the hallway, but looked over her shoulder back at the stranger. "What should I call you?" she asked. Initially, she'd intended to ask the kitsune's name, but given how evasive she'd been so far, Jihi doubted she'd tell her. Kitsune were natural tricksters, or so Jihi had heard; talking in riddles was probably just natural for her despite the seriousness of the situation.
Regardless of the stranger's response, Jihi retraced her steps to her room, moving quietly to avoid alerting the house's other residents.
The stranger crept quietly behind Jihi, she wasn’t acting very stealthily, standing up straight and walking a bit normally. But her steps were quiet, the floor barely creaked with each light step. Their bare feet peeking out from underneath their kimono each time.
Jihi despite being quite noiseless herself, couldn’t prevent the floor from creaking under each foot. It wasn’t loud but someone in the vicinity would definitely hear.
But despite that, Jihi and the stranger would come to reach the room Jihi had been offered without any encounters or confrontations.
“Call me whatever you want, Hanako, Harumi, she, it… it’s not like you’re going to remember after we get out of here… if we get out.”
"That's too bad," Jihi said. "I like to meet new people. I wish I could remember you."
She meant what she said, but it wasn't her main concern. She wanted to curse every time the house's ancient floorboards creaked under her feet. They would have to walk through a lot of hallways to get out of the house, and she didn't want to be heard. That's assuming they even could walk out. Hanako had alluded to something stopping them - something Jihi suspected was supernatural - but Jihi would have to deal with that when she got to it.
When she reached her room, Jihi set her knife, nunchaku, and thieves tools aside, then shamelessly stripped off the kimono. Heedless of Hanako's eyes, she folded it neatly and put it back inside her pack before donning her traveling clothes. They were still damp, uncomfortably so against her bare skin, but that was the least of her problems. She was still barefoot, her sandals left at the house's entrance. Jihi didn't look forward to walking through the forest without them, but if necessary, should could handle it.
"I saw a garden on the way in," Jihi whispered to Hanako, gathering her things and donning her pack. "Maybe we can get on the roof there. It should be safer than walking out the front door."
Assuming Hanako did not object, Jihi stepped back into the hall, trying to retrace her steps to the garden.
Hanako's golden eyes seemed to reflect what little light was in the room as she watched Jihi strip. She would barely be able to see more than just Jihi's frame and silhouette in the darkness but not much else. "You have a nice body, unlike most Oni I've seen." Hanako quipped in a low voice as her tail swished and her ears twitched.
"Lead the way." Hanako responded after hearing Jihi's exit strategy. She didn't seem to be opposed to the idea, nor did she seem too excited about it either. But Hanako followed Jihi out of the room.
Jihi's steps were much quieter, well after walking on the creaky floor, she was able to compensate for a potentially loud floorboard and could adjust the weight in her steps as she walked.
Reaching the courtyard with the path the Jihi had taken before without any interruptions the pair would find all the doors leading into the garden open just like they had been before. Rain drizzled through the open section of roof into the central courtyard. A thick mist had settled into the garden that spilled up onto the wood landing that stepped down into the courtyard.
"Half oni," Jihi corrected her, again out of reflex. As she pulled on her clothes, she looked over at Hanako. "And thank you. You have a pretty face...it's a shame I won't remember it."
When they come to the courtyard, Jihi stops, surveying the area with suspicion. Something about the mist doesn't feel right - she couldn't even see the earth of the garden. Jihi was reminded, strangely, of a cloud. She tried to shake off the unnatural feeling, turning her eyes to one of the wooden supports.
"I have a rope," Jihi says to Hanako, stepping over to the support. "If you help me up onto the roof, I'll lower it so you can climb up. Ready?"
Hanako stared blankly at Jihi before finally heaving a labored sigh. “Fine. At least your feet are clean.” She moved in front of Jihi and knelt down, clasping her hands together to make a basket for her to step onto. Once Jihi placed her foot on her hands she gently lifted her up so Jihi could grab at the edge of the roof, using the support beam to stabilize. Rain water splashed off her hands and rivulets of water trickled down her arms.
The rain water made Jihi’s grip slippery and it threatened to make her slip. But with help fro Hanako, Jihi would be able to clamber up onto the roof. The tiles slick with rain water and with Jihi just a bit more moist. “You better not leave me here… you don’t happen to have an umbrella too?”
Once on the roof, Jihi suddenly felt grateful she'd been forced to do this barefoot. Even with her additional podial dexterity, the rain-slicked roof tiles felt treacherous and unforgiving, and she doubted she could have kept any grip at all in her sandals. Steadying herself, she reached into her backpack and took out the rope.
"No umbrella," she said, lowering one end of the rope to Hanako. "Don't you live in nature? I thought you'd be more comfortable in the rain.
"Hold onto that rope, but don't climb up yet. It's too slippery, you'll just pull me off. I'm going to find something to tie it onto. When you feel three tugs, start climbing, or at least hold on. I'll help pull you up if I can."
Rainwater dripped off the edge of Jihi's straw hat as she looked around the rooftop, looking for somewhere to secure the rope, or perhaps another edge she can hang off of to counterbalance Hanako. Due to the length of the rope, it would have to be within fifty feet.
“I don’t like getting wet.” Hanako grumbled stroking her long black hair. Once the end of the rope dangled in front of Hanako, she took hold of it.
The roof was about 40 feet wide all around the small courtyard, with each side coming to a peak at the middle. There were four corners of the roof that the tiles came to a protruding wooden knob. It was solid enough to hold weight if a secure knot was tied. Jihi could also counterbalance Hanako using the peak of the roof and positioning herself on the opposite side.
“Hurry… I think I hear something coming.” Hanako’s voice came from below.
"Okay, hold on tight," Jihi said, then ascended the rooftop. When she reached the peak, she held the rope at a point where there was only a little slack between herself and Hanako, then gave it three sharp tugs. Immediately, she stepped to the opposite side of the peak and put her weight on it, hoping to not only counterbalance Hanako, but perhaps pull her up with her own body weight.
Once she was confident Hanako was on the roof, she would steady herself on the roof tiles as best she could and climb back up, intending to meet Hanako at the peak.
The rope luckily wasn’t too wet to be very slippery but the roof was a bit more difficult to keep sure footing on. It was incredibly difficult to pull Hanako up without losing footing once weight was put on the rope. It was pretty much up to Hanako to get herself up.
The rope jostled as Hanako attempted the climb. Every moment passed that Jihi might expect to see them to climb over the peak. The rope jostled a bit more frantically and instead of Hanako climbing up over the edge of the roof, the rope went slack as the weight suddenly disappeared.
A beat passed followed by a thump and a small sploosh as Hanako fell onto the muddy ground below. “No!” She shouted suddenly in distress.
When the rope went slack, Jihi yanked on it hard enough to pull several feet towards her, then desperately scrabbled for purchase on the roof tiles. Only the fact that she had laid herself flat against the roof tiles prevented her from sliding down the opposite side. Only when her hands and feet found purchase did she hold there for a moment, feeling her heart race.
"Shit!" Jihi whispered, looking up at the roof's apex. She could just leave now. She'd made it out of the house and onto the roof. She'd done as much to help Hanako as Hanako had done to help her. Going back for her could well be suicide. She didn't even know what the danger was - it was completely possible she couldn't help Hanako even if she tried.
She put her forehead to the cool roof tiles, sighing through grit teeth. She felt the weight of her mother's ashes in her backpack.
Jihi climbed back up the roof, quickly tied one end of the rope to one of the wooden knobs, then descended to edge of the roof where she had left Hanako. Carefully, trying not to reveal herself, she peeked over the edge and tried to spot the kitsune - or signs of where she had gone, if something had taken her.
Peeking over the edge of the roof Jihi would see Hanako below on the muddy ground of the garden. Hanako peers up at Jihi with a horrified look on her face as if she was about to die. She opened her mouth in despair, but no words came from her.
Then finally they eked out the words, “I’m all muddy…” and held up a section of her muddied kimono. The mist had blown away from her so that the ground was clear. She seemed fine other than that. Slumping in defeat before slowly climbing to her feet, Hanako looked up at Jihi.
Then as the mist formed back around Hanako’s legs, Hanako felt to ground like she was pulled down. “S-something is grabbing me!” Hanako let out a startled squeak and looked up at Jihi. “Aren’t you going to help me? I can’t get up.”
Jihi sighed, looking down at Hanako. She wasn't even that muddy. Jihi thought back to her last harvest season back home, stooped over in flooded rice paddies for every hour of sunlight they could squeeze out of the day. She wondered how long Hanako would last in that situation. Which would kill her first? she wondered. The mud or the hard work?
"I thought kitsune lived in the forest," Jihi says, carefully lowering herself on the rope. "You don't like the rain, you don't like the mud. How do you even live your life? No wonder you got tricked into coming into this house."
Jihi froze when the mist moves back in and Hanako fell to the ground. She had known there was something odd about it. Swiftly, she throws the loose end of the rope down to Hanako. "Grab it!" she says. "Pull yourself up! We'll work together!"
Hanako stretches her arm up to grasp at the rope. At first it bounced off her hand as she swipes for it. Then as it swings back towards her she reaches out fingers splayed before finally grasping onto it. It didn’t seem like whatever had them allowed them to move very easily.
As this happens, towards the center of the garden where the mist grows more dense a shape rises from the ground. The shape very slowly moves toward Hanako, it’s too dark and the mist is too think to see what it is.
Finally, Hanako is able to pull and slip out of the grasp of whatever had her. Hanako begins scrambling up the rope onto the roof, fingers scrabbling against the tiles. “…thanks.” Hanako pants.
At first, Jihi doesn't think much of Hanako's difficulty grabbing the rope, simply assuming she's struggling in the dark. It's only when it becomes clear something is hampering her movements that Jihi leans forward, watching her with concern.
That concern turns into alarm as something begins coalescing in the mist. "Hurry!" Jihi whispers, her eyes going wide. As Hanako finally pulls herself free of whatever grabbed her and began climbing the rope, Jihi reached out and grabbed her wrist, helping pull her onto the rooftop. She puts an arm around Hanako, holding her there, as Jihi peers down guardedly at the shape in the garden.
"Are you alright?" Jihi says softly, rubbing Hanako's back. "Whatever that was, we're safe now. Let's get across the roof and get out of here."
“I’m… fine.” Hanako replied after Jihi helped pull her up onto the roof. A beat passed. “Thanks…” Hanako muttered.
Rain continued to douse the roof as the pair stood atop it. One more second below and they might have encountered something potentially unsavory. With the cloud cover it was impossible to tell what position the moon was at. Just like the garden a heavy mist surrounded the ground around the large house.
There wasn’t any clear indication of where the road was that Jihi had come from. As far as they could tell they’re ere surrounded by a forest with no clear path out.
The ground was about 10 feet down and could be relatively easy to just jump down or ease off of the edge of the roof. Crossing the roof was easy enough and nothing would impede their way.
"I said we'd get out together, didn't I?" Jihi grinned.
She untied the rope, then carefully moved to the edge of the rooftop. The forest and mist was too thick for her to pick out the path, but she remembered approaching the house with the old woman Yuu - or whatever she was. If she could find the entrance, she could hopefully orient herself back towards the road. Jihi crept along the edge of the rooftop until she found the front door, then - checking to see Hanako was following behind - dropped off the side onto the muddy ground.
Hanako follows Jihi quietly and watches as Jihi hops down onto the rain soaked dirt below. Hanako follows suit, her bare feet making barely any noise as they landed.
The front door was shut and from here on the exterior it didn’t seem like it was lived in at all, let alone inhabited by frightening beings. There also wasn’t any indication of a clear path leading from the front door.
Hanako crouched down and seemed to peer intensely at the mud before looking up at Jihi. “I think I might be able to find a way to the road, if that’s where you want to go.” Hanako muttered quietly.
"Yes!" Jihi told Hanako. "I came here with that old woman earlier tonight. Find our tracks and get us out of here! I just need to grab something."
Letting Hanako work, Jihi crept to the house's porch, grabbing her sandals and backing away before slipping them on. She wasn't fond of getting caught out in the rain, but she figured it was better than getting caught in a haunted house. She'll curl up under a tree until morning if she has to.
Stealth roll to move quietly: 14. This is probably unnecessary, but I'm rolling it just in case.
Jihi silently, crept up to the house and would be able to easily retrieve her sandals. Though nothing ever heard her, there was a deep thump come from the inside. It was if the house was trying to get her attention but it didn’t seem like she was specifically detected from anything inside.
“Come on, I found them.” Hanako beckoned Jihi to follow. Then scampering into the trees, Hanako would lead Jihi if she chose to follow.
If Jihi followed Hanako, she’d see her scampering close to the ground as if following an invisible trail. After trudging through the forest for what seemed like longer than Jihi had before when coming to the house. Finally when the trees broke, what met them was a short cliff face instead of a main road. A cave entrance sat right before them nestled of the face of the cliff. “This.. isn’t the road.” Hanako turned to look at Jihi chuckling nervously as if embarrassed for making a mistake. “It… seems dry, maybe would should just stay here the night and wait out the rain.” Hanako approached the mouth of the cave and peered inside curiously.
Jihi started to get a bad feeling the further they got from the house. Hanako didn't seem to know where she was going, and Jihi didn't have the skills to find the road on her own. She had unpleasant visions in her head of wandering the forest until she starved to death or was eaten by a yōkai. Or just a wild animal. Her pessimistic imagination wasn't picky.
When they finally reached the cave, Jihi sighed softly. She looked at the black cave entrance, then at Hanako, and then finally craned her head up to look at the night sky. Rain fell on her face, running down her neck and under her clothes. Wandering around in the dark and the rain was not going to fix the situation. Besides, she was tired. She'd already spent the whole day on the road, and she hadn't slept.
Jihi moved to the cave entrance and peered over Hanako's shoulder, pressing her body against the kitsune's back to disguise her silhouette from anything inside. "Maybe we can make a fire and dry off," she whispers to Hanako. "Or maybe there's more ghosts in there. Why don't you go first, since you're the expert?"
Perception check (with disadvantage): 6, 11 Visual perception is done with disadvantage because this is effectively dim light (i.e., darkness viewed with darkvision). Auditory perception is rolled straight, but the first roll is the worse roll anyway.
The cave extended more than 60 feet into the earth. There was nothing of note within that range and it was difficult to see anything else beyond that in the darkness. There were no sounds coming from the cave, only the sounds of the rain like static and the rustling of Hanako’s clothing and tail swishing.
Hanako pushed back against Jihi as she pressed up against her only to counter herself from falling forward. “Since when am I the expert?” Hanako turned her head to the side. “Fine.” Then with a deep breath, Hanako began to push tentatively into the cave.
After a moment of walking in the darkness. The pair would come across a number of items that indicated that someone had been or is living there. There were multiple thin tatami mats rolled out to cover about a 10 square foot area. There was an unlit campfire with a pot and a single bed roll.
Hanako froze instinctively at the sight of the camp before proceeding cautiously. She crawled onto the tatami and peered at the dead campfire. “There’s some wood but it hasn’t been lit yet. You think they’re still around?” She turned to look at Jihi.
Jihi approaches the campsite after Hanako, looking around. When Hanako mentions the unlit wood, she looks at the campfire. After a moment, she lifts the lid off the pot, trying to see if there's any food inside and, if so, how old. After that, she briefly looks around the campsite for any other clues that may tell her how long it's been left alone.
"They must be coming back, right?" Jihi asks Hanako. "But if so, why aren't they here now? It's raining and the middle of the night! Why would they be outside?"
She looks in the direction of the entrance, like she expects the campsite owner to come walking in right at that moment. "Do you think something happened to them? Maybe they found that house and got trapped..."
Investigation check to determine how long the camp has been left alone: 17
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