[network] voice; @standardissue; Norfinbury's smallest piano plays My Heart Bleeds For You [Day 95]

[deus_ex_phs]

I was looking through my pack today, trying to lighten my load, and I found something I forgot to share. Here, take a look.

[He switches to video briefly, showing a light blue envelope in his gloved hand, decorated in the corner with cute white cartoon stars, with "Winter" written on the front in large, neat script. He flips it over, opens it, shows that it's empty, but it looks like it might have held a card once. Then it's back to audio.]

We found this in the house we think is Andromeda's. Just thought it was interesting.

[And physical proof that Winter might once have been here.]

On the topic of other interesting things to share, though, my group recently checked out the house with the piano on the eastern side of town. At the same time, some of the others were at the school. Given what happened with the instruments at the school when Dr. House played the piano there, we set up a video feed between us to see if the same thing happened between the pianos.

It'd probably be easier to show you what happened than to try to describe it, but I'll warn you up front. It gets a little disturbing. Don't watch this if you have a problem with blood.

[When he switches this time, it's to a prerecorded video clip, and then a second one, showing Zell at the piano in the school and Tifa at the other one. The two are talking to each other as Zell teaches her the song that House composed, and then they play.

And the pianos bleed.

The video becomes more and more distorted the longer they play, until finally the video clips end.

Then Kunsel's voice comes back on.]

There's definitely a connection. Still not sure what it means.

Comments

@CaptSteveRogers; voice

[starsandtights]

Interesting. I think Winter mentioned at some point that she had some sort of connection with Andromeda.

[Steve watches the bleeding piano videos. The look on his face, oh my god. He's not upset or freaked out or anything, just... really, really disturbed.]

Dear God, that's completely horrifying. ...I'm... not sure what it could mean, either. ...Sometimes I think this place does things on purpose just to be creepy.

[GETTING KINDA META THERE, STEVE.]

voice; @standardissue

[deus_ex_phs]

I think it's safe to say that she was probably telling the truth, at least about that.

[He laughs weakly, not so much because Steve's expression is funny as because he's trying to lighten the mood.]

It is, isn't it. Of course, this happened after I'd cleaned out the blood stains from the last time the eastern piano bled.

[starsandtights]

...Or everything about this place is rigged, but... yeah. On the whole I'm inclined to believe her.

[Steve just looks more unhappy, not that anyone but Peggy can actually see.]

...Why do the pianos have to bleed?

[He laughs a little, too, because complaining loudly and then laughing about it is really all that they can do about it and still retain their sanity.]

...So aside from these thrilling developments, how are you doing, Kain? And the others? All right?

@endureandsurvive; voice

[brickmaster]

Well that's creepy.

[Out of tune pianos? That's fine. Sure. Bleeding? That's a new one. The envelope doesn't attract her attention nearly as much - the name Winter doesn't mean anything to her.]

Stuff like that happen here often?

@standardissue; voice

[deus_ex_phs]

Creepy things in general, yes. Bleeding pianos? As far as I know, this is a first.

Or, well, maybe second. I did clean out some blood stains before we played.

You're one of the newest ones here, aren't you.

[Yes, he makes note of new usernames showing up.]

[brickmaster]

Somehow that doesn't make me feel a whole lot better about it.

["Creepy" could mean all sorts of things, a lot of which translate to "dangerous." At least in her experience.]

Ellie. I'm guessing you're not?

[One of the newest people, she means. Pretty easy guess considering the obvious experience when he's talking.]

@zd; text HERE YOU GO

[swatsflies]

I heard there's also a house some where that bleeds.
It's one of the houses that are painted red on the inside.

@Ecks | text

[ecks]

It is a house in the tunnels. It does not have a piano. The walls bleed. There did not seem to be a way to prompt it.

AND THEN LIFE SMACKED ME IN THE FACE LIKE A BRAT

[brickmaster]

A whole house. [Ew.] That is seriously gnarly.

[And by that they mean gross. In maybe the most vaguely fascinating of ways.]

How does that even happen?

@griever, audio

[canyouhandlethismany]

That may be a small proof she is a bit more than a ghost in this town or some kind of rebellious AI.

[The the videos... Darn. He has seen his share of weird and creepy things in his life cosidering Leon's world was pretty much destroyed, still...]

Is that a regular occurence whenever someone plays the piano, now, or it's related to that particular music? And what did you find about the blood? Any possible source?

@standardissue; voice

[deus_ex_phs]

I was thinking the same thing.

[Though of course, it could still be some kind of trick. It's hard to discount anything.]

The pianos only bled when we played them together. Didn't matter what song we played. The blood seems like normal, human blood. It came from somewhere deep in the piano, but we couldn't find a source. It faded into stains at some point when we weren't looking.

@Rdua, Video

[blessedmaiden]

[Sorry, she doesn't like this Winter and she doesn't trust her so her attention is all on the pianos]

Did you perhaps feel any presence of sort? It looks like you triggered something related to a ghost infestation or something.

@standardissue; voice

[deus_ex_phs]

No, nothing of the sort. Other than the blood and the video distortions, it was just like playing a normal piano.

[rubikscomplex]

[Oh, hell no! The one good thing in this place and it gets ruined?]

did the blood stay or did it disappear?
anyone taste it?
apparently there are people who do that here

that better still be playable the next time i'm over there
i left my piano cleaning and tuning kit in my other pants

[deus_ex_phs]

Why would someone taste the blood?

[That probably answers that question.]

Jim collected a sample. It hasn't disappeared. As for the blood in the pianos, it faded when we weren't looking. All that's left is stains.

I can't speak for the piano in the school, but I had some luck cleaning out some of the old blood from the piano on the eastern side of town. We even managed to get it back in tune.

[Which, frankly, is a bit of a miracle, considering the tools they had.]

[rubikscomplex]

maybe they're a secret vampire
ask becky if he gets a tingly sense around you guys

[There's a break as he considers the rest of Kunsel's explanation.]

interesting
definitely need to try out other tunes between those two pianos
if we can find some of them around
i'll keep an ear out

[Hey, as long as the piano is actually fine, this is cool. Blood doesn't bother him all that much. It's creepy, but it's just blood. And this place seems hellbent of freaking them out.]

@zd; text /threadjack

[swatsflies]

We left some for someone to test.

[Three guesses who that someone is and the first two guesses don't count.]

The school piano was still playable later.
Like Kunsel said, the blood vanished. It did leave a stain on the inside.
It also doesn't seem to bleed when I played it again.

[But it could bleed randomly later on like the other piano]

[rubikscomplex]

you play it tandem with the other one again?
might be a one-use only creepy song for a particular action
same reason i only got the kid whispering once

@Mnemosyne; text

[bookofnope]

You are sure that this was the only effect? Nothing that we can't perceive, like a change of atmosphere in the house? This is a classic sign of spectre presence - or it would be, if the ghosts here deigned to behave.

Zell is leaving a sample of the blood for me to test. I'll let you know the results.

@standardissue; text

[deus_ex_phs]

As far as we can tell, nothing has changed, except that there are now blood stains in the school piano.

Thank you. I'd appreciate that.

[bookofnope]

Odd... but then, what isn't. I suppose it's always possible that there is another element to the invocation that we are simply not aware of yet.

text - @claytonator

[dr_unconscious]

[...You know what, he's not even gonna talk about the bleeding piano because fuck that creepy bullshit. Let's talk about Winter.]

Better show that envelope to Winter next time she decides to pop in on the network. Think it was a gift? Access card or something? It's in awfully good condition, considering.

@standardissue; text

[deus_ex_phs]

That's a good idea. Maybe she'll have something to say about it - though honestly, I suspect it might have just been a birthday card or something. It seems about the right size.

[He's actually hoping Winter doesn't show up at all, even if Handsome Jack is in custody. He might still manage to pull something, and no matter who or what Winter is, she doesn't deserve that.]

Video

[ninjainviolet]

Bleeding pianos? [ She shakes her head. She's seen some weird things in her life, but this takes the cake.

Well, maybe not all of it as an idea comes to her. ]

Was there anything else special about the house you were in? Like...voices? Perhaps someone in that house went to that school and played both pianos? And something...happened to them there?

[ Spirits did some interesting things when restless. ]

@standardissue; voice

[deus_ex_phs]

There's nothing in the house except the piano. No sheet music, no furniture, no toys or books... There aren't even any other rooms left from this house. Just the one empty room with the piano. Nothing feels particularly special about it, either. It's just a room with a piano.