Monday, October 13th, 2014
Turn 2
She dug through the freezers for corn and broccoli, bashed the bags bodily against the table to break the contents a little, then dumped them both through hot running water to speed defrost them. While they soaked, she grabbed a skillet, browned butter in it with pepper, and toasted the bread in the skillet. When the vegetables were halfway defrosted, Mary-Anne would add more butter, more pepper, a dash of salt, and a cup of hot water to the skillet. She'd transfer the half-thawed vegetables to the skillet, cover the skillet, and speed steam the mixture. It would be vegetarian, not exactly to her husband's taste, but it was the best she could manage on short notice.
...Mary-Anne wastes no time crying over spoiled lunchmeah; she needs to act quickly to get dinner on the table in time! While a bag of corn is on a shelf near the front of the freezer, it takes a long couple minutes of frigid searching to unearth an icy bag of broccoli towards the back. Wasting no time, she breaks up the solid lump of vegetables before throwing it in the sink to thaw.
Grabbing a skillet, she proceeds to the nearest stove. The style is an old one, and the controls are less than intuitive; it takes a moment to determine which dial corresponds to which burner, since the designers seem to think that something resembling abstract braille is more informative (or more attractive) than a simple picture. The dials themselves lack any kind of label, but soon enough Mary-Anne has the skillet right at the temperature she wants it.
The toasting itself goes well, but these minor speedbumps inherent in settling in to a new kitchen do set her back a bit, preventing her from getting so far as steaming the vegetable blend currently thawing in the sink.
Toast: Toasted!Vegetables: Half-Thawed!Floyd looks for a trash can out in the garage to dump the rotten food into, then unpacks the family's belongings and places them in a convenient looking room - like, say, a foyer - until he's called to dinner.
...Floyd wrinkles his nose as he picks up the tray of rotten meat, sincerely hoping that he wouldn't have to clean the cooler to erase the stench. Carefully holding the tray away from his body, he makes his way back outside.
Supposedly, there is in fact an incinerator somewhere on the property for the family to use; the Mansion does not maintain a regular garbage service, and the deep wintertime snows would prevent garbage trucks from hauling away waste anyhow. However, Floyd doesn't particularly remember where the incinerator is supposed to be, and the folder with that "picayune detail" is currently sitting on the passenger seat of the Cyclone.
Fortunately, Floyd had seen a large dumpster around the side of the garage while parking the car. Heading over, he finds that the dumpster is basically what he'd expected, bright green and empty. Technically, the Weatherford Group had said to only use the dumpster for waste that couldn't be incinerated, but it's cold and windy, and the twilight darkness is rapidly deepening through the help of the billowing clouds coming in from the west. Into the dumpster it goes!
Dusting off his hands, he ducks into the garage. There's still quite a bit of unpacking to do. Eying the load, Floyd grabs the two lightest suitcases (his own, and Maryn's,) and heads for the foyer. The garage door is a little tricky to fit through- he should have left the overhead door open instead of using the side door- and while the front doors are easier to fit through, Floyd realizes he could have just left them open. There's an inner set of doors, it's not like the heat is gonna get out.
Oh well. Garen and Mary-Anne will probably be worth a couple trips on their own to get them settled for the night, but Floyd's job is almost done!
Luggage stowed: 2/4Dogs brought in: 0Raccoons are bad news. This is something Harpo knows from experience. They don't play fair, and they are very, very nasty when chased. The fact that there were some around was disheartening.
Sniff different landmarks. Are the raccoons purely localized to the small house, or are they... everywhere?
...Raccoons.Harpo growls. Raccoons are thieves! Scoundrels! Invaders! They take the food that the Floyd man carefully protected in the metal cans outside! They pee on everything like they own the place, when clearly it is Harpo who defends the territory! Insufferable!
Harpo whines as Harpo remembers the time Harpo got out the door in time to chase them. Raccoons are
mean. They bite, and they're bigger than they look, and they fight together, and they have those freaky little people hands to pinch and grab and gouge with. Their fur is thick, too, and tastes something awful.
Harpo does not want to mess with any raccoons tonight.
Harpo sniffs the ground around the small house. Fortunately, the raccoons' stench does not come from anywhere else. It seems that the raccoons live there. Harpo would still like to get closer to investigate the small house, especially since the door seems to be ajar, but Harpo would rather not beard the raccoons in their den.
Harpo backs away from the small house cautiously, alternately growling and whining. Once Harpo is a safe distance from the small house, Harpo turns and sprints, barking loudly in defiance! You have the small house, raccoons, but Harpo is here, and you have not fought Harpo, nor have you prevented Harpo from running to the next landmark outside!
Harpo screeches to a halt, panting. Harpo thought Harpo had been running toward the weird shaped bushes, or the house that is bigger than the little house but not quite so big as the big house everyone else went toward.
Harpo has, in fact, run into the dark pine-fresh woods. There is nothing of interest here. Harpo can still see the weird bushes and the cluster of houses in the distance, but they are in the distance, and not near enough for Harpo to smell.
CURSE YOU RACCOONS!Garen heads into the room on the left.
Quickly go into the doorway of and survey all the rooms Garen didn't pick, and if I find a really big one claim it on the spot. Otherwise check the room he is going into last, and then claim the biggest one of the lot.
...Seeing Garen start moving toward the first door on the left, Maryn springs into action, knocking past her big brother!
She throws open the door on the right- bathroom. Not a bedroom.
SLAM!She throws open the second door on the left- dark, pool table, cabinets. Not a bedroom.
SLAM!Darting down the hall, she throws open the last door- dark, big desk, shadowy lumps on shelves. Not a bedroom.
"Garen!" she shouts. "I call dibs on that room!"
"It's not a bedroom." Garen calls back from inside. The first door on the left was, in fact, the lounge. Comfy, overstuffed chairs and a sofa are arranged around a low, polished coffee table on plush blue carpeting. A small table holds a vase for flowers near the pair of big windows, with another chair perfectly situated to catch the afternoon sun. The view is beautiful; too bad this room doesn't have a bed in it. The whole room seems... lopsided, like a drunkenly slanted trapezoid. The windows are right next to each other, but on different walls, providing different vistas. Garen hesitates, wondering what could be in the giant wooden cabinet on the northeastern wall, but knows he doesn't have any time to waste if he's going to get the best room available.
He hurries out into the hall; Maryn is already investigating around the corner. The ticking grandfather clock is just past the bend, flanked by pedestals holding busts of an old man and, for a change of pace, an old woman. The wall makes another sharp turn to the right, where Maryn is already sizing up the doors revealed there. There is one door opposite the grandfather clock, one door on the right side of the hallway, two doors on the left side, and one door where the hallway ends.
This seems to be the extent of the second floor. Three of these doors are bedrooms, but which one is the prize?
Floyd the FatherObjective:
Unpack the car!AP:
3/3XP:
0/10Status: Normal
Inventory: Manilla Folder (last seen on Cyclone passenger seat)
Traits:
Gearhead Mary-Anne the MotherObjective:
Feed the family!AP:
3/3XP:
0/10Status: Normal
Inventory: None
Traits:
Mama's Healing Kisses Garen the TeenagerObjective:
Get the best room!AP: 3/3XP: 0/5Status: Normal
Inventory: Nintendo DSi
Traits: Diverse Interests (Geography) Maryn the Little KidObjective:
Get the best room!AP: 3/3XP: 0/10Status: Normal
Inventory: None
Traits: Curious Little Monkey Harpo the Family Dog.Objective:
SMELL EVERYTHINGAP: 3/3XP: 0/10Status: Normal
Inventory: None
Trait: Loyal Companion 
Author
Topic: Winter on the Mountain: Round 2 (Read 11972 times)