You've been walking along a road you don't know, until your feet hurt. Night has fallen, black as a sheer gap above you, any lampposts far off on the highway. You approached this house to ask to borrow something to light your way. When no-one answered, you tried the door. It's not locked. Your Little Haunting An Interactive Fiction by Christina Nordlander Release 1 / Serial number 241031 / Inform 7 build 6M62 (I6/v6.33 lib 6/12N) Murky Hallway It doesn't look particularly run-down, or romantically old, but all furnishings have been stripped out. It is impossible to tell what pattern the wallpaper was. There is an empty doorway to the south, and a stairway at the end of the hall leading up into blackness. The heavy front door leads back out to the west. >about That's not a verb I recognise. >x me You are you. >i You are carrying nothing. >x stairway Plain wood. It looks dark, but that may be the bad light. >up Upper Storey Hallway A dingy hallway, narrow around your shoulders, running east and west. At the eastern end, a stairway leads up and down. A plain door leads south. >down Murky Hallway It doesn't look particularly run-down, or romantically old, but all furnishings have been stripped out. It is impossible to tell what pattern the wallpaper was. There is an empty doorway to the south, and a stairway at the end of the hall leading up into blackness. The heavy front door leads back out to the west. >s Kitchen A square room, as stripped as the rest of the house, lit with large slashes of shadow from the electric lantern outside the window. A doorway to the north leads back to the hallway. An ancient electric stove stands along one wall. A sink and tap stands next to the oven. >x stove White enamel, peeling in the corners. Plates dark with rust. The stove is currently switched off. >peel enamel That's not a verb I recognise. >x sink An empty hollow of metal, a tap jutting out over it. The metal looks clean in the slivers of light from the window, but this close up, there is an unpleasant smell. The sink is currently switched off. >x tap A simple, narrow metal pipe sticking out over the sink, glinting where it catches the light. >x window All you can see outside is the glare of the lantern on the facade, then a blackness that might be forest or just sky. >open window It isn't something you can open. >open stope You can't see any such thing. >open stove It isn't something you can open. >turn on sink Water rushes out of the tap. >drink What do you want to drink? >drink water You crane your head under the jet and drink a few mouthfuls. The water is cold and metallic-tasting, but you feel a distant, acerbic undertaste that doesn't fade away. >turn off sink You turn the tap with a squeak. The water stops. You feel a sudden sliver of cramp through your entrails. It's enough to make your steps falter for a second. >wait Time passes. >wait Time passes. >wait Time passes. You can't keep pushing against the pain. You double over with your arms clutching your midsection, reeling, the floor wavering before your eyes. As a last-ditch effort, you try to vomit, but the pain isn't that kind. The lights wink out, and only the agony remains. You open your eyes and get up from the floor. The pain is gone. You wait a few seconds, but it doesn't come back. >l Kitchen A square room, as stripped as the rest of the house, lit with large slashes of shadow from the electric lantern outside the window. A doorway to the north leads back to the hallway. A human figure of pale light is here. It doesn't seem to see you. An ancient electric stove stands along one wall. A sink and tap stands next to the oven. >x figure You can't see any such thing. >x ghost It stands completely still, hunched over, as if unable to straighten up. When you walk around to see its face, it is a rictus of pain. . >touch ghost Your hand moves through it. If your eyes were closed, you wouldn't even notice. The ghost doesn't seem to notice your touch. >smell You smell nothing unexpected. >smell ghost You smell nothing unexpected. >lick ghost That's not a verb I recognise. >l Kitchen A square room, as stripped as the rest of the house, lit with large slashes of shadow from the electric lantern outside the window. A doorway to the north leads back to the hallway. A human figure of pale light is here. It doesn't seem to see you. An ancient electric stove stands along one wall. A sink and tap stands next to the oven. >x sink An empty hollow of metal, a tap jutting out over it. The metal looks clean in the slivers of light from the window, but this close up, there is an unpleasant smell. The sink is currently switched off. >n Murky Hallway It doesn't look particularly run-down, or romantically old, but all furnishings have been stripped out. It is impossible to tell what pattern the wallpaper was. There is an empty doorway to the south, and a stairway at the end of the hall leading up into blackness. The heavy front door leads back out to the west. >u Upper Storey Hallway A dingy hallway, narrow around your shoulders, running east and west. At the eastern end, a stairway leads up and down. A plain door leads south. >s (first opening the plain door) Bedroom This one hasn't been cleared out. There is a bed, piles of bed-linen, a wardrobe; just lumpy dark silhouettes. A doorway leads back north to the dark hallway. >x wardrobe You can't see any such thing. >x silhouettes You can't see any such thing. >n Upper Storey Hallway A dingy hallway, narrow around your shoulders, running east and west. At the eastern end, a stairway leads up and down. A plain door leads south. >u Attic An attic, dirt piled up around the edges, the roof too low to stand straight except in the middle. The house wall is to the east. To the west, the attic continues into pitch blackness. It makes you uncomfortable to have it so close. The stairway is a black hole down to the rest of the house. On the wall next to you sits a fusebox, its door torn off. >x fusebox Inside it are stretched wires. Several have had the insulation gnawed off them, exposing the shining metal. Next to the wires is a Bakelite handle. The fusebox is currently switched off. >turn on fusebox You pull the handle. Nothing immediately obvious happens. >l Attic An attic, dirt piled up around the edges, the roof too low to stand straight except in the middle. The house wall is to the east. To the west, the attic continues into pitch blackness. It makes you uncomfortable to have it so close. The stairway is a black hole down to the rest of the house. On the wall next to you sits a fusebox, its door torn off. >e You can't go that way. >w Darkness It is pitch dark, and you can't see a thing. >e Attic An attic, dirt piled up around the edges, the roof too low to stand straight except in the middle. The house wall is to the east. To the west, the attic continues into pitch blackness. It makes you uncomfortable to have it so close. The stairway is a black hole down to the rest of the house. On the wall next to you sits a fusebox, its door torn off. >touch wire Your hand cramps around the wires. At first, there is only confusion, then the electricity shoots through your body, a force too bright to even be pain. You don't know whether your eyes are open or closed as the light passes through you. Your spine is just a lightning-rod as you spasm, locked to the wire by your translucent hand. After a long empty space of time, you open your eyes. You can move. There is no pain. >l Attic An attic, dirt piled up around the edges, the roof too low to stand straight except in the middle. The house wall is to the east. To the west, the attic continues into pitch blackness. It makes you uncomfortable to have it so close. The stairway is a black hole down to the rest of the house. A glowing human figure is here, standing on tiptoe, lit through with a wild glow. On the wall next to you sits a fusebox, its door torn off. >x ghost Transparent, its entire nervous system lit by fire. Its head is flung back, its hair streaming out. Its eyes are dark pits. With an abrupt crackle, small blue-white sparks fly from the wires. >touch ghost Your hand moves through it. If your eyes were closed, you wouldn't even notice. The ghost doesn't seem to notice your touch. >w Western End The bare end of the attic room. To the east, you can see the stairs. A flashlight in a sturdy metal case sits on the floor near the bare wooden wall. >take flashlight Taken. >x it A sturdy, military-looking flashlight in an olive-dark metal case. The flashlight is currently switched off. >turn it on You press the large, comfortable button. A strong beam comes on. >l Western End The bare end of the attic room. To the east, you can see the stairs. >e Attic An attic, dirt piled up around the edges, the roof too low to stand straight except in the middle. The house wall is to the east. To the west, the attic continues into pitch blackness. It makes you uncomfortable to have it so close. The stairway is a black hole down to the rest of the house. A glowing human figure is here, standing on tiptoe, lit through with a wild glow. On the wall next to you sits a fusebox, its door torn off. >light ghost This dangerous act would achieve little. >d Upper Storey Hallway A dingy hallway, narrow around your shoulders, running east and west. At the eastern end, a stairway leads up and down. A plain door leads south. >s Bedroom This one hasn't been cleared out. There is a bed, piles of bed-linen, a wardrobe; just lumpy dark silhouettes. A doorway leads back north to the dark hallway. >n Upper Storey Hallway A dingy hallway, narrow around your shoulders, running east and west. At the eastern end, a stairway leads up and down. A plain door leads south. >d Murky Hallway It doesn't look particularly run-down, or romantically old, but all furnishings have been stripped out. It is impossible to tell what pattern the wallpaper was. There is an empty doorway to the south, and a stairway at the end of the hall leading up into blackness. The heavy front door leads back out to the west. >w The door creaks as you open it. You step out onto the wet-rotted porch. You don't have the flashlight. Your hand, and arm, and the rest of your body, is generating its own pale light. Turning back to the hallway, you see the faces of your ghosts, bidding you to stay. *** YOU WERE NEVER GOING TO LEAVE *** Would you like to RESTART, RESTORE a saved game, QUIT or UNDO the last command? >