2020-01-11 - You Are Standing in a Grassy Meadow

Well, Thew was in the middle of some of the last touches to the theater. Working on the ticket booth - so this... this is definitely not a work break, or... well this is also not Jade bringing him those spicy chicken roll things that he can't pronounce. Standing staring, looking around to see if he's alone or not - and also keeping an eye on the river for the moment, lest it... well do something.

Esme had been up late, in her 'war room', pouring over her case files as she prepared for an upcoming meeting. As such, she had fallen asleep on the little couch in there. Likely dreaming of darker things than a meadow. But..somehow, some way...that's where she was now. Her brow furrowed in confusion, looking around as she tried to get her bearings. "Thewlis?" Spotting the man in her scan. Confused.

Nicole was napping on a couch in the back office of the salon. She's been functioning on too little sleep lately and no amount of coffee seems to be helping. She was having a slightly strange, but lovely dream but it definitely was not in a meadow. Blinking, confused, she looks around and spots Esme and Thewlis not too far away. "Uh... hi."

Turning slowly at on voice, then another, Thewlis blinks and tilts his head. "Oh. I. This... Hrmmm." Articulate as ever as he looks about, focusing on Esme once more.

"Th-th-that's... I." and then as things shift, Thew stops, looking to the coffin, the door, and the unclear south. "I wo-wuh-wonder which is... Scary... Vuh-Very Scary and n-n--not sk-scary at all.." fumbling in his pockets, willing himself to find a pack, tuck a smoke in the corner of his mouth and take a drag on it to make it light up. "I... I bet c-c-coh-coff-ff-ff-ffin is the luh-least scary... you?" looking to the assembled ladies.

Esme peered at Nicole a moment...she knew her...well, vaguely. She had been at that paint night thing! She started to say something but then tensed as the scene shifted some. Not a meadow. A room. Going into detective mode! "Uh...yeah. It probably is...at least we could be ready...but also, you know, doors could lead out." She started to instinctively reach for her gun, which of course wasn't there.

"Hey neighbor," Nicole smiles to Thewlis. Except, the appearance of the Where changes and she looks around, suddenly a bit warier than before. Brown eyes flick up to the coffin just hanging there in the corner of the ceiling like some kind of giant, legless, possibly carting a dead body, spider then to the blue door. "You would... think it the less scary." She says that not with any sort of snark or sarcasm, just as a statement of understanding, considering his job and all. "Personally... the blue door looks like the better option to me." Nodding along with Esme, she agrees, but then counters, "out may or may not be good. Kind of a 50/50 chance. Should we flip a coin? Anyone have a coin?"

Thewlis frowns, taking another drag, exhaling through his nose while looking between the pair. "Wh-we-w-well... T-t-two for door..." stepping up he nods between them. "Don't nuh-n-nn... Coin... No." he shrugs... This damn town... musing to himself. "I c-c-aa-haan open it... you two be ready?" shoulders hunched, eyes on the blue door, brow knitting together.

Esme quickly ran through the options. "Okay..." Take charge! It was just in her nature. "Thew, you open the door slowly. I'll be ready to potentially punch whatever is on the other side. Nicole, you stay with me and keep an eye on the coffin?" She suggested, starting towards the door.

"Yeah, sure," Nicole says, watching the coffin as they ease towards the door. "Dracula, if you pop out, I'm gonna stake you. Unless it's not Dracula but Count Chocula, then I'm gonna eat you."

Taking the direction, brow knitting despite the giggle that Nicole's comment brings, Thew hunkers a bit and pushes open the door slowly - assuming it opens, reading to dodge, duck, dip, dive, or dodge.

Esme is at the ready, fully expecting there to be something to hit. But there isn't. Well, that's not too terrible? "It's...a staircase? That looks like a death trap waiting to happen. We might need your lighter Thew..." She looked over at the pair and also to the coffin.

"It's going down... never go down the stairs into the darkness..." Nicole shakes her head. "Haven't you seen the movies?" But she looks up again, watching the coffin rise. "It went up... the coffin. I suddenly feel the coffin is the safer option to going down those stairs into darkness. Can they even hold us?"

"Indecision... Worst thing... Here." Thewlis notes, looking to Esme especially. "Th-th-thi-hii... hiis... Dream." no other explanation. It'd take to long. At the question of the stairs holding he looks to the two, "Buh-be ready... ca-catch mmme." stepping out, carefully, Thew actually rips part of his shirt sleeve off, balls up the cloth and casts it out where it will hopefully not hit and ignite the steps as the cloth bursts into magnificently bright flames.

Because this idea is the best.

"I guess the question is - risk what's in the dark or risk becoming vampires?" Esme asked. Then she was looking at Thew. Confused. "I mean yeah, I kind of figured I ate something off and now I'm having a weird ass-" and then he threw a ball off shirt and it burst into flames. "What the fuck?! How'd you do that?? Wait. Can I do that?! This is a dream right? I wonder if I can fly..." Because, of course, Esme is totally ignorant to Dreams and Glimmer and all of that. For now.

Nicole watches as Thewlis brings fire into existence, which should have lit the way into the darkness at least for a few feet around them. She sighs and moves to follow them. "Alright... just... don't say I didn't warn you..." But it is NOT the way that is lit. The coffin way up yonder at the ceiling starts to blaze. Struck in awe for a moment because fire is pretty, people, she finally says, "I guess we'll find out if the vamp is in there now."

"Guh-ge-guess w-w-we take ou-how-houu-our option" Thew notes, watching the coffin and looking to Esme. "Mh-mm-haybe... I don't... nuh-nuh-know." looking to the ladies and then back to the coffin, he opened the damn door and he knows his shirt is messed up. What're they going to try?

There is a knock from inside the coffin.

To say that he's usually out of sorts is still being modest to generous. Grant Baxter opens his eyes away from the Wakening into darkness. Trying to sit up he bumps his head on the inside of something, tries to move and sloooooowly pushes up on the lid with a muffled sound "Rude!" But the darkness gets brighter and it becomes apparent that his goal is to incinerate or escape. He does try, however, to blow out the coffin like a birthday candle. It's sensible as he tries to push the lid off from the inside.

Esme didn't know whether to be worried, fascinated, or terrified. Maybe a little of both? She looked puzzled again, internally until the flames engulfed the coffin and not the stairs. "At least it'll be a dead vampire?" She rocked on her heels a moment, maybee testing cautiously lifting off the ground. "Maybe darker is better. Can you like...hold a fireball or somthing Thew?" This is allllll a dream. Anything is possible right? "Do vampires knock??"

A thing falls out of the coffin, thumping on the floor and... Well it could be candy. It could be a body. It could be twinkies in chocolate sauce. Thew's option for the moment? Investigate. Without all that prose about madness used before.

Even if it was sweet.

And this became really meta.

Dreams man.

Peering quizzically at the knocking sound from inside, Nicole answers Esme, "I dunno... maybe sometimes?" But then the lid comes crashing down. She expects a louder noise, sharper, but it seems to hit with a thud that is dull.

Towards the top of the rickety stair case Maggi sits fully dressed, smoking a lit cigarette. Surveying the scene with a raise of her eyebrow, she supposes this is just normal for whatever day of the week it was. Unsure of the sturdiness of the stairs, she gives a small wave to those down below with the call of “Ahoy!”

Blowing out a puff of smoke, she watches the others with interest. After all the last time she had jumped right in, some 1950’s jerk had tried to beat her up.

Grant was never much there to begin with, but it seems as if his body is catching up to his mind. He's... he's clear? "Awww no shit!?" He looks up at the coffin on fire and the lid then himself thoughtfully... okay he's not here! "Wait this make me Booberry or Count Chocula?" He looks up and signs to his neighbor, stops, and realizes quickly this is not to work if his hands are not visible. He looks up up up at Thewlis coming over and the rest, "Wow I'm dead... again and get to haunt a cool dude and a couple of hot chicks. This could be worse."

There's a pause and he shrugs, "Well looks like I have a job to do." There's a shrug and he pushes himself to a stand and gets to Haunting Thewlis. "Sup man. Boo and what have you."

Grant haunts Thewlis. haunt haunt haunt haunt haunt

No. Thew wanted an original film print of Raiders for his theater. That'd be a coup. Like when the Tsar and his family got wiped out. Helluva coup there. He does go to pick up said vase, opening it... but intelligently - pointing it away from himself. Not his first rodeo.

It's haunting though, and Thew isn't sure why. Looking around himself to see what visitant traipses about his immediate purlieu - Maggi's appearance draws his curiosity next, the appearance... He's met her... maybe once, or twice, and this dream is getting weird. "Is th-th-hi-hiiss... Ellis's D-dream? James?"

"What the fuck.." Nicole eloquenty expresses when she sees Thewlis vanish. "He was here... right? He was." She looks to Maggi then, who she vaguely knows and holds out her hands defensively. "Put the knife down... whatever it is... we can deal with it okay? Just.. don't hurt yourself."

Maggi gives a bit of a disappointed shrug at the sudden lack of cigarette, until she realizes that she has been gifted a weapon. Was she good with one? No. Does that stop her from brandishing the dangerous stiletto into whatever danger the air held? No. Maggi does check the shoe for blood considering the body nearby.

She needed to get down to join the others and the haunting? Must be a Tuesday. Yelling down to them whilst searching, "This is a dream? Right?" She had only really experienced the one, and this time there was no Leon. Seeing Thewilis disappear she takes her question as answered.

Voice of Grant (probably with pointing and hand waving... okay certainly with pointing and hand waving) says, "Uhhh this cookie jar urn thing just ate our neighbor. Can you maybe stab it to get him out? I'd tickle it to make i cough him up buuuuuut um... I lack hands? I think." There's a pause. "Boo." Haunting is serious business, alright? It's a work in progress! haunt haunt hover hover haunt.

Grumbling to himself, mouth in a hard line, Thewlis looks about his brand new prison, "Careful, d-d-o-hon't stab mu-me in here!" he calls out, trying to put his hand against the inside of the vase, wondering if this is the way out.

Looking around at the bodiless voice, Nicole asks the air, "uh.... Grant?" Then she goes to the vase, looking inside to see if Thewlis is actually in there. "Thewlis? Can you climb out if I put the vase on its side?" She does that, either way, putting it on its side. She keeps Maggi in her peripheral though. After all, she was smoking a knife...

There is a lot going on. A lot. Esme doesn't get overwhelmed easily but she is starting to feel the first little cracks of potential panic. Just wake up. It's just a dream. Wake up!...when that doesn't work - she feels even less in control of things. "What is all this dream nonsense people keep talking about?" As she finally moves over...just as Thewlis gets expelled. "Are you okay Thew??" Though she's looking warily at those scissors.

Grunting as he starts to pick himself up, Thewlis sighs and eyes the scissors, seriously considering just leaving the little metal bastards there... that aren't little. Ok, big cutty bastards.

"I... Huh-ha-hate this d-d-dre-he-heam..." looking to Esme when she asks if he's ok. "Wh-wu-will be... when w-w-wh-he wake back uh-up..." he blinks as he looks to the scissors again, spotting the writing.

Seeing nothing other than blood in the way of getting down, Maggi descends the stairs as carefully as she can. Seeing Thewlis return is a relief, though there was still another disembodied voice among them. She hopes she doesn't fall and holds the knife or shoe of whatever it is out to try to catch herself in case she does.

Nicole steps back as the vase coughs out a full-grown Thewlis. "Uh... are you okay?" She too looks to the scissors, seeing the writing. "Either someone stole these from Mount King, or... we are somewhere in a hall in Mount King? Where is Mount King?" She looks to the scissors, trying to imagine whose hands are big enough to hold them.

"...I don't know of any Mount King around..." Esme says, though she's also distracted by the vase. "...Did that just talk? I can't even...why can't we just wake up now?? I think I'm done with this crazy!" Esme also pinched herself, just a bit. Maybe it would wake her up!...It didn't. It just hurt.

Trolls... They brought a cave troll.

Thewlis ducks when things start getting violent, rock chunks slashes. "You n-nuh-n-know... I'm going s-suh-south." towards the weird wall from earlier. Because is is nuts. Super nuts. They're in someone's dozing acid trip. Keeping his head down, in hopes of not getting hurt, he calls out, "I'll c-call h-hi-h-if it's ok!" maybe. He might just get gaked, or turned into a vase, or something else in the Gnome King's collection. And then he'll have to rely on Tik-Tok to help Dorothy cheat.

Maggi has made it about halfway down the stairs before the troll begins angry destruction of it's environment, which it unfortunately shared with the rest of them. She attempts to jump down the rest of the way clear of the tantruming troll, weapon in hand. Splitting up seemed like it could cause further apocalyptic circumstances, so if she is able to reach the ground, she will simply follow Thewlis.

Nicole lets out a rather undignified sort of 'Ack!' sound and ducks, covering her head to protect herself from the violent troll thrashing his way about now. Closing her eyes, she repeats to herself a few times, "wake up wake up wake up!"

A big white house. Boarded windows. Zoiks. Thewlis does at least take a moment to breathe in the clearer air, looking to Maggi and then back out at what lays before them.

"Wuh-wh-h-well... " eloquent as always, he looks back to Maggi. "Ss-s-hounds weird... B-bu-hut... h-h-old my hand... In c-case w-he-ee have something th-thu-hu-that tr-tr-tries to separate us?" offering one of his hands, head tipped

In her right hand, which had been grasping her prized possibly murder weapon, Maggi hands it to Thew, taking his offered hand in hers and offering the other to her incorporeal ally. She simply gives a shrug and smiles at Thewlis "This stuff happen often?" August had only given her limited and vague information on what was happening the last time. If he wanted to used the object on the boards, that was honestly a better option than her slender arms hacking at them.

Thewlis just goes up to the door itself of the building, assuming there is such, frowning and looking to Maggi, "Dep-pe-peh-pends... on th-the Dream..." looking then to his task, and should he find a door he tries the knob, expecting locked again, or resistant.

Maggi attempts to kick at the boards with a single onyx Martin. If the troll could cause destruction, she could at least try right? If it resulted in failure, well, Thew was in charge as Senior Dream Explorer.

When Maggi kicks, Thew acts with her, keeping her hand held and trying to bring his foot in at the same time! YEAH! TEAM. WORK! DO IT

Grant isn't visible. The good news is this is no new so everything must be okay! Grant is, for all it's worth, consistent in this. he floats over and reads the note. "Heeeeey, Nicole? Uhhhh Ghost Grant here. Longtime listener, first time haunter. Uhhhh there's a um, there's a not and I can't like touch it to see if there's anything on the back. It might be a receipt for a door out of here though?"

The initial success is rewarding, squeezing Thewlis' hand in lieu of a high five. Maggi squints distrustfully at the objects for a moment before attempting to move into the heated room to try to read the note until she hears the Ghost. "I think we lost the Jell-O champion, you're stuck with us." Maggi says indicating herself and Thewlis. Then she is hit by the ninety degree invisible fluid which she really hopes is not blood. It is probably blood.

Nope. Nope. That's what Thewlis wants to say. Very much. Clap hands and declare 'he out'. But this is not the way it's going to be for him it seems. That feels like blood. He wishes he didn't know what that is, but still holding Maggi's hands he rushes forward, trying to put a hand against what is above the knife, maybe he'll find face. It'll probably be more blood. But if it's a face then he can try to help, and heal the injury... or find the source of the sensations!

Grant makes a sound, a small strangled panic. No one can see the look on his face. The author assures you he's not only aware but is also not excited about this situation. Eyes glaze over so he gets that backseat view: he's not controlling his body, he can only watch and... feel? Do ghosts feel? He feels panic. He feels the sharp rusty tang, and he feels the tears on his face and his shirt get hot and wet in decidedly not a Saturday-Night-at-Firefly sort of way.

Why was there always singing in these things? The large man holding her hand suddenly goes down, her arm jerking with it. She attempts to remain on her feet, unable to hear anything but garbled sounds coming from the Ghost of Grant. Trying not to panic she takes a breath, taking stock of her surrounds and trying to match pitch with the knife, whilst attempting to hand the bracelet to troll number something. Always friggn singing, maybe it would be easier if she could recall a song with the same pitch?

Being struck and knocked to the ground sparks something in Thewlis, eyes wide, near panic, the arm that smacked him becoming the focus of the constant fear and anxiety that seems to rule him, swiping out a hand, trying to 'claw' the troll with his mind.

Grant works on gaining control of his body. Can he move? Is he dying a THIRD TIME since this morning?? Well he was alive. Then undead. Then dead dead? Now... Dead...er?! Whatever is happening he's got two things going for him: Gravediggers make great healers for ghosts (so he figures) and South Park proved you cannot kill that which has no life??

Look it's still painful (n theory) and scary as shit.

Also he needs his head of he's going to go out tonight and hit up the bar. Maybe his body too. His hand, once he gets it back, fishes some gaff tape out of his back pocket to tape his head back on. Failing this he's going to have to carry it around like a football. Ghost problems man. These need to come with a warning.

Trolls disappeared, Maggi singing, daffodils and daggers. Thewlis stumbles back to his feet and sighs, looking around for more threats, and simply rests his hand on Mags's shoulder, to try and ward against people being separated further. "This dream..." shaking his head.

Maggi does in fact wish to continue the battle, finding the strength to go on through rock and roll. Also she had yet to encounter a dream that wouldn't have been solved by singing? She pats Thewils' head gingerly as he rests it against her, for she too understood that whatever day of the week this was was just upsetting. Though she cannot see what the troll is doing now, she finds it does not seem violent and leaves it be. They could try for another exit once this senseless violence had ceased. Somehow the pitch to her matches 'The Trees' by Rush, so Rush it was.

Grant blindly pats around for his head, stumbling. "Guys... guys sec he's, um.... Sup, Trolly, maybe... you're making me look left. no like can you please quit adjusting I-.. Dude. Dude I'll hold my head. You tape. Cool?" The words are really raspy but there. With a sigh he says as the Troll tapes, "I always thought getting head is pretty fun, but getting my own head from the floor? UNcool." He's not letting go of his noggin until he's sure the tape is going to hold. There's a pause and he looks at Maggi rasp murmuring along,

"There is trouble in the forest
And the creatures all have fled
As the maples scream 'oppression!'
And the oaks, just shake their heads"

Seeing the doors, Thewlis blinks several times, mouth in a tight frown again as he looks to Maggi. "I think we need to run. Same door?" hand on hers again, intent on not letting folks get stranded if he can help the matter. The door opposite of where they came in being the one he watches more fervently

Grant is lost in the song for a moment and watches the bird coming to a way surreal enlightened state of awareness on this bird. Woah! Still his head is heavy and the tape is not going to hold forever. or maybe it will. The living are getting ready to bolt, but Grant? well... he just stops haunting Thewlis and Maggie.

He's gone. did he disappear? Transcend? Wake up in his own reality? Start a rock band with the Troll and the bird? It's hard to say but that? That is a different adventure for another time. The Ghost of Grant Baxter and the Bird-Troll Band.

Hearing the haunting song of Ghost Grant stop, Maggi nods to Thewlis. "Count of three?" The most disturbing part of dealing with a ghost is you never really know if they are still there or not, or even listening to you. Kind of like a distracted significant other. The additional singing has ceased, so she assumes departure. Squeezing Thewlis' hand again she begins to count and take steps to the theif's door "One..." Step. "Two..." Running. "Three..." She leaps into the pearly unknown with the Senior Dream Captain.