Burn It To The Ground (Claude)

[anastasia]

Billie was making a run; transporting a horse to make a little extra cash and so this left Ana home alone for Halloween. Not that she didn't mind, this was a nice little bit of relaxation for her. She had some candy on hand just in case the same traditions held true in England as they were in the US. But she learned soon enough that was not really the case. Close, but not quite.

It was nice having the house to herself. Cooked herself a little something to eat earlier in the afternoon, around about the time most English people would have tea, she had her early supper. The evening went calmly and rather mellow despite the attempts to trick rather than treat. But she was spared especially when she scared some boys with a fake zombie that 'jumped out' at them from the shadows. Most of the day and night she was listening to Halloween songs like "This is Halloween" from Tim Burton's Nightmare Before Christmas or better yet, Michael Jackson's "Thriller" and Ray Park's "Ghostbusters" theme blasting some of her music but not too loud as she was at least a little courteous of the neighbors.

Later that evening she made some popcorn, grabbed some soda - lord she missed her Dr Pepper but found an cranberry substitute. Right now she was listening to "Burn it to the Ground" by Nickelback, volume up naturally but not too loud to annoy the neighbors. No one was planned to come over, it was just her and a movie tonight. Oh, what bliss! Dressed in her nightgown and popped in Tim Burton's "Sleepy Hollow" which she LOVED to watch on Halloween night. So, with the lights out, the movie starting, comfy on the couch with a massive bowl of popcorn and some pop. She was set!

After the movie, she went to bed rather content. Locking the doors, lights off after dishes done and put away. Everything was kosher.
Snug in bed in her satin-ish nightie under the covers, she slowly fell to sleep. Completely unaware of the horrors that were taking place over at the Manor.

[Claude Delacroix]

Claude was already in the home of the lovely woman… He had been watching Ana for the past few weeks since started visiting the manor. He found her very interesting, but not in the same manner that he found Teressa interesting. No… He was growing fond of Teressa and perhaps was even falling in love with her. But this woman he thought would be for an interesting little toy. He grinned to himself and shifted into a mist before reappearing in her home.

He looked around and grinned, hands thrust into his pockets as he rocked on his heels. He couldn't help but chuckle to himself when he saw all the Halloween decorations both in and outside her home. Very quaint, he mused before catching the scent of soda. YUCK! That sugary smell made him feel sick… And yet it made him feel a strong hunger. He had not fed in over a month and he needed to eat. There was a pang in what would have been the pit of his stomach though he had no need for human food. He did, however, find an apple and picked it up, tossing it between both hands. He began to look in every room: living room, kitchen, entryway, and then…. The bedroom.

There she was, that woman. He did not know her name but he liked the looks of her very much. Still holding the apple, Claude bent down and looked closely at her. The beautiful curves of her hips, her breasts… He reached out and gently brushed back her hair, his touch like a cool breeze against her cheek before he disappeared once more. Then he noticed… The candles all around. Perhaps he could bring her to the Manor without force but a mere 'accident'. "One should never leave candles unattended, miss. Especially at night. There just might be a fire."

Claude lifted up one of the candles and touched the flame to the curtains and then to the furniture in the other rooms. He could hear THEM in his head. "Burn it, master! Burn, burn until it's all gone![/color]" They laughed as the flames grew out of control and the smoke blackened the rooms. She may rebuild the house, but at least Claude would be able to torment her within the Manor for the time being. Oh, this was going to be fun!!

[anastasia]

No dreams, no thoughts, all silent and dark. Blank and fresh as Ana began to drift further into the dreamscape. Completely unaware of the stranger in the house, let alone her bedroom. Sleeping soundly as it would appear peacefully in bed with her chestnut brunette hair splayed out behind her on the pillow as she cradled it with her arm and her head resting upon both. The sensation of the 'cool breeze' caused her to slightly stir without sound, shifting from her side to lay upon her back with an arm draped over her midsection as the other was beside her head under the pillow.

Seconds turned to minutes as the minutes kept accumulating. In that time frame the fire spread, engulfing everything in it's path as though dosed with some igniter to feed the dangerous flames.
Smoke bellowed and accumulated in her room. She began to cough to the point it woke her up. Sitting up as she coughed and choke, noticing the light under her bedroom down and something flowing under it. Also seeing the light in her room as her curtains were aflame as well as the rest of it. In a sheer panic she scrambled out of bed, choking some more. Wondering how she was going to get out, grabbing her nightie robe she made a little crawling scramble to the door only to feel that it was hot. Jerking her hand away, now she was starting to panic and trying desperately not to. But the house was in flames. She could not hear the sirens outside in the distance but whimpered, "God, please help me!" choking and coughing some more. She had to get out! With some stupid bravery, she opened the door as a massive flame whooshed in over her head and began to engulf the doorway. She crawled upon the floor towards the bathroom to see if she could use the sink. She was barely able to as the handles were hot and starting to melt. She was very hot and still coughing. But if she was going to survive this, she needed to soak her nightie and robe. She quickly did that, tossed in her little satin robe then took off the nightie and soaked it quickly before putting it back on followed by her robe which she used the sleeve to cover her mouth. Wetting her hair, too. Then exited the bathroom into the flaming hallway. It hurt! The flames were so intense it hurt and she whimpered in pain as she coughed. The carpet was burning, the walls engulfed in unnatural flames as the ceiling looked black and crawled. After what seemed like forever, she came to the stairs and forced herself to slide down upon her belly. It was difficult. The carpet was so hot it was melting and smoldering then some areas began to burst into flames.

Once downstairs it was worse! The intense heat continued to hurt and she choked, coughing and struggled to the door to get out. Feeling rather exhausted and sleepy, she stopped. Only a moment. Just a moment. She had to as she tried to breathe in all those smoke and intense flames. The toxic levels of the house flooded the house and she laid there, feeling her strength starting to fail and wanting to close her eyes. "help .... me..." was barely the words that escaped as she thought I don't want to die! barely able to whimper or sob. She tried in her failing strength to reach the door and came right up to it. Reaching for the knob then retracted with a slight yelp as a flame 'slapped' her hand. She wanted out. So very weakly she began to hit the door with her palm, then lost her strength as she laid right there at the door, her palm against it slowly unconsciousness threatened over take her.

[Claude Delacroix]

Claude grinned wickedly as he watched the flames lap at the upholstery and cloth of the drapes, burning everything in its path. The smoke began to billow throughout the house, snaking in and out of rooms as he watched the poor woman struggle to get out of the bed. He slipped into the shadows to get a better look at her as she coughed and called out…. Pitiful, he thought. Just pitiful… But she was very beautiful, though not as beautiful as Teressa whom he deeply longed for.

He watched her as she crawled, crawled like a worm. It was a beautiful sight, to see someone struggle as she did. He licked his lips and kept close behind her as he listened to her pained coughs and gasps for fresh air. The smoke was growing thicker and the flames hotter. Claude's grin spread across his face as he rubbed his hands together, his nails clicking together as the light of the flames danced in his eyes. Her silhouette against the bright, burning fire looked weak and frail…

Claude frowned. Something tugged at him, telling him to save this poor woman. He growled in his own frustration and turned away for a moment. He began to pace about then the flames started to consume the house more and more. He had no other choice. The sirens grew louder and the Devil snarled and grabbed the woman and threw her over his shoulder. He snapped his fingers and they were in the manor, the sirens now far off in the distance. He moved through the winding halls and came across a vacant room, pushing the door open with his foot. He laid the woman down upon the bed and took a step back to look at her. He paused a moment and tilted his head, studying her once more. With an easy gliding motion, Claude was beside Ana once more.

He looked at the woman's face and studied her expression. He moved back and slowly exited the room, leaving her alone in the dark as he mused over his damning predicament. First Teressa, now this woman…

What was happening to him?

[anastasia]

Completely unconscious and oblivious to what had happened, spirited away from her burning home to the mysterious Manor. A limp as a fresh cadaver in Claude's arms and upon the bed. Dirty and nearly covered in ash, that once pristine pink satin nightie had a couple burn marks. Short, shallow cuts on her collarbone, forearm and shin. That chestnut brown hair was in completely disarray and dirty.
Again, she was completely oblivious to the new turn of events.

The fire department had arrived on the scene of the raging inferno that engulfed the house just a little after midnight. Battling with the flames for more than an hour. By the time they were able to contain the fire, the house was nothing more than a mere husk of charred remains. Onlookers were in shock and some wondered if the new residents made it out.
When Billie arrived home an hour after the fire was contained, the concern for Ana was instigated. An investigation was immediately began along with the search for the missing woman. By dawn's early light, there was speculation that she died in the fire. The heat created was enough to incinerate any thing, even burning and melting the neighbor houses.

Front page of the local paper had a picture of the burning house as firefighters fought the flames a headline of "Missing woman presumed dead in overnight fire".




(( OOC: Author's Note: this story is continued, as part 2, in "Trip The Darkness" in Miscellaneous Rooms. ))