[ could've told me sholmes was on the ceiling and i'd have believed you britt
oh, fun. hua cheng finds it vaguely hilarious because he's a bastard that he's watching his suitemate get tossed into the garbage. tiny, tiny claude is tossed down into the abyss. goodbye.
he comes over and stands at hope's shoulder, setting the box down and pulling out a sheet. he twists one end at the longest side, before grabbing another to twist and tie while they're standing there just. waiting for a noise to come from the chute.
i'm going to wager that he's too damn big to fit down the chute and he highly doubts hope will volunteer to climb down, so this is mostly to see if something or someone is on the other end. ]
[he can write notes, and it'll be on there until he tries to leave. but the paper poofs back, totally blank. it's like a hard reset.
anyway, goodbye forever, claude.
the figure makes the sort of noise you'd expect from a 3d-printed figure hitting metal, though it gets fainter and fainter as it goes... it never makes a final noise like it's hit the very bottom, though. hm.
also i was about to be like how do you know it's me but then i remembered i'm the one who contacted you about this breakin. kill me. i'm dead inside, i should match.
anyway!
hua cheng will not hear anything that indicates that someone or something is down there. at a glance, the chute does seem a little small for him, but maybe he'll have a clearer picture if he gets up close and personal with it.]
[ well. that's concerning! also, binch, he is only a couple of inches shorter than hc, how dare u.
when it becomes apparent that poor claude (tiny) never hits anything that could be construed as "the end" of the chute, hope will give hua cheng an extremely hesitant side glance. ]
. . . Would you be comfortable having your fox try to climb down?
This would be easier if he could still change shapes and fly down. [ sigh ] I can probably tie this around him if it doesn't snap closed on my face or something. Here, hold one end of it - step on it if you have to put your weight into it.
[ he passes it off to hope, going to tie the other end as securely as possible to the handle of the chute? because he's a paranoid bastard and isn't going to just let this thing try to EAT HIM.
but mama didn't raise no quitter, he's going to lean in to take a look. ]
hua cheng will find that, despite how broad his shoulders are and despite how much smaller the chute looked by comparison, he'll fit into the chute just enough to get a look around! it's still extremely dark further down, but. it fits around him, even though it should be physically impossible for that.
weird.
it does not slam shut on him even though i'm very tempted to make it, can you imagine having to explain that injury. "what happened" "i stuck my face into the trash"]
[ it's a good thing that hua cheng suggests the foot thing (hate that i said it like that), because hope wouldn't have thought about that to begin with. steadily planting some of the sheet rope under his boot, he keeps a firm grip on the rest as hc peeks down... and, like, he notes how weird it is that he was able to fit in there at all? hewwo? ]
C...can you get back out?
[ DOES HE NEED TO START WINNIE THE POOHING YOUR BIG GHOST ASS OUTTA THERE ]
... shouldn't be able to fit in here, I think, but we shouldn't be surprised by changing locations at this point in our lives.
[ weird! but he sighs, bracing one hand against the side of the chute interior and feeling around with the other to see if he can't locate some weird shit in here or touch hands with a spooky shadow while he's doing something incredibly stupid.
just close it on him. it'd be funny. more suspicious injuries for him to sigh about. ]
Probably. Hang on. [ he'll move to. just. exit the chute if nothing happens from him groping in the dark. ]
[ hope breathes a tiny little sigh of relief as hua cheng pulls himself out of the chute... while hua cheng debates on whether or not to lower his furry soul down the hole, hope tries to see if he can open the other door they have not tried yet. if it does not open with a simple knob turn, he will again try the knife trick. what other secrets lurk in the closet...
he is also keeping an eye on both hc and tanhua in case something happens at which point he will drop whatever he's doing to save smol friend ]
[ small favors in the form of chutes not eating him. he eyeballs it for a moment, before letting out a short, sharp whistle. the daemon comes trotting back in, looking up at him, waiting for a signal, or why he was called back in.
he grabs another sheet to twist and tie, going until he has a decent enough rope that he sure hopes is secure. for how detached he is about his soul, it's, well. still his soul? (it's disconnected from him now, but still.) ]
Alright. Here goes. [ tanhua allows the end of the sheet rope to be tied around him like a harness, although seems a little wary when he's fed into the chute. goodbye! ]
[the closet door opens easily! inside are uniforms in a range of sizes - they're in colors that match the hotel staff's uniforms, though they're in this style. at a glance, it looks like just about anyone would be able to find something that fit them in here, if they were so inclined.
tanhua, meanwhile, is lowered into the chute. why are you doing this to your soul. what the fuck, hua cheng. be nice to your fox.
anyway, he gets lowered further in, and in, and in, until they can't see him in the darkness anymore. he eventually hits the bottom, but it's impossible to tell just how many sheets were needed for this or how far down he went - perception's a little off. the claude figure rests at his paws.
while the boys are doing this, though... the lights within the room flicker ominously. when the lights stabilize, they'll find that their own shadows look a little rough around the edges, and there's the distinct feeling that they're being watched.]
[ interesting... uniforms... how many sets are in here? he probably won't be able to count exactly how many but like, is it a lot or just a handful?
also, terrifying, i hate it. hope startles when the lights flicker, and boy, does he not appreciate that!! keeping an eye on their shadows, he tentatively raises his hand to the knife pocket again, just in case. ]
—I think something is onto us. We should get out of here sooner rather than later. Do you need help reeling it back up?
[ he's not intentionally misgendering tanhua he just doesn't know :( also he doesn't mind if tanhua brings claude back or not, it's whatever, sorry my dude. ]
[ honestly hua cheng spent 8 weeks misgendering his own soul so he doesn't even bat an eye at hope doing it. he instead glances up with the flickering of the lights, keeping a firm hold on the makeshift rope even as it feels a little more slack with tanhua reaching the bottom. the fox sniffs around a bit for anything amiss, picking around to see if there's anything besides claude.
if there is, he'll snatch it with his teeth. if there isn't, claude's coming home.
either way, he lets out a muffled yowl and paws at the rope. ]
You can either help or check if there's anything we missed. But you're right. [ he shifts to start pulling, hand over hand, to get the rope up with his daemon as he keeps an eye on the shadows. ] We'd better leave before we push our luck here.
[there isn't anything else in the chute just yet. tanhua gets his teeth around the figure of claude. claude's coming home...
the lights begin to flicker, again, as the makeshift rope is pulled back up, taking the fox with it. their shadows seem to be moving of their own accord whenever the lights flicker back on - they bolt for the door, then snap back to just being their shadows.
they will probably want to get moving as soon as they've got the soul fox back!]
[ yyyyeah that's not great! while hua cheng yeets tanhua back out, hope does a quick search of the room, takes a peek into the supposedly empty housekeeping cart, then grabs his notes and hightails it out of there!! he's so focused on getting out before the shadows fuck them up that he doesn't even notice they disappear once he crosses the threshold, but it's fine.
he will hold the door for hua cheng and tanhua to scuttle out, and then he will slam it shut! stay the fuck in there, shadow monsters! ]
[ bad! bad vibes. a glance keeps going down to the shadows, every time the light flickers, keeping close watch of them. tanhua keeps as still as possible, instead of scrabbling at the walls of the chute. it's not a comfortable trip back up, but they've had worse, considering, so he suffers it.
and once hua cheng sees blood orange fur...
he just reaches out to scruff the dog-sized fox, hauling him out and into his arms, rope and all, to back up quickly to the open doorway. ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
oh, fun. hua cheng finds it vaguely hilarious because he's a bastard that he's watching his suitemate get tossed into the garbage. tiny, tiny claude is tossed down into the abyss. goodbye.
he comes over and stands at hope's shoulder, setting the box down and pulling out a sheet. he twists one end at the longest side, before grabbing another to twist and tie while they're standing there just. waiting for a noise to come from the chute.
i'm going to wager that he's too damn big to fit down the chute and he highly doubts hope will volunteer to climb down, so this is mostly to see if something or someone is on the other end. ]
no subject
anyway, goodbye forever, claude.
the figure makes the sort of noise you'd expect from a 3d-printed figure hitting metal, though it gets fainter and fainter as it goes... it never makes a final noise like it's hit the very bottom, though. hm.
also i was about to be like how do you know it's me but then i remembered i'm the one who contacted you about this breakin. kill me. i'm dead inside, i should match.
anyway!
hua cheng will not hear anything that indicates that someone or something is down there. at a glance, the chute does seem a little small for him, but maybe he'll have a clearer picture if he gets up close and personal with it.]
no subject
when it becomes apparent that poor claude (tiny) never hits anything that could be construed as "the end" of the chute, hope will give hua cheng an extremely hesitant side glance. ]
. . . Would you be comfortable having your fox try to climb down?
[ tanhua :( ]
no subject
[ he passes it off to hope, going to tie the other end as securely as possible to the handle of the chute? because he's a paranoid bastard and isn't going to just let this thing try to EAT HIM.
but mama didn't raise no quitter, he's going to lean in to take a look. ]
no subject
hua cheng will find that, despite how broad his shoulders are and despite how much smaller the chute looked by comparison, he'll fit into the chute just enough to get a look around! it's still extremely dark further down, but. it fits around him, even though it should be physically impossible for that.
weird.
it does not slam shut on him even though i'm very tempted to make it, can you imagine having to explain that injury. "what happened" "i stuck my face into the trash"]
no subject
[ it's a good thing that hua cheng suggests the foot thing (hate that i said it like that), because hope wouldn't have thought about that to begin with. steadily planting some of the sheet rope under his boot, he keeps a firm grip on the rest as hc peeks down... and, like, he notes how weird it is that he was able to fit in there at all? hewwo? ]
C...can you get back out?
[ DOES HE NEED TO START WINNIE THE POOHING YOUR BIG GHOST ASS OUTTA THERE ]
no subject
[ weird! but he sighs, bracing one hand against the side of the chute interior and feeling around with the other to see if he can't locate some weird shit in here or touch hands with a spooky shadow while he's doing something incredibly stupid.
just close it on him. it'd be funny. more suspicious injuries for him to sigh about. ]
Probably. Hang on. [ he'll move to. just. exit the chute if nothing happens from him groping in the dark. ]
no subject
he's able to exit the chute without much trouble. it's a bit of an awkward motion to get out, but nothing impedes him from it.
what now?]
no subject
he is also keeping an eye on both hc and tanhua in case something happens at which point he will drop whatever he's doing to save smol friend ]
no subject
he grabs another sheet to twist and tie, going until he has a decent enough rope that he sure hopes is secure. for how detached he is about his soul, it's, well. still his soul? (it's disconnected from him now, but still.) ]
Alright. Here goes. [ tanhua allows the end of the sheet rope to be tied around him like a harness, although seems a little wary when he's fed into the chute. goodbye! ]
no subject
tanhua, meanwhile, is lowered into the chute. why are you doing this to your soul. what the fuck, hua cheng. be nice to your fox.
anyway, he gets lowered further in, and in, and in, until they can't see him in the darkness anymore. he eventually hits the bottom, but it's impossible to tell just how many sheets were needed for this or how far down he went - perception's a little off. the claude figure rests at his paws.
while the boys are doing this, though... the lights within the room flicker ominously. when the lights stabilize, they'll find that their own shadows look a little rough around the edges, and there's the distinct feeling that they're being watched.]
no subject
also, terrifying, i hate it. hope startles when the lights flicker, and boy, does he not appreciate that!! keeping an eye on their shadows, he tentatively raises his hand to the knife pocket again, just in case. ]
—I think something is onto us. We should get out of here sooner rather than later. Do you need help reeling it back up?
[ he's not intentionally misgendering tanhua he just doesn't know :( also he doesn't mind if tanhua brings claude back or not, it's whatever, sorry my dude. ]
no subject
if there is, he'll snatch it with his teeth. if there isn't, claude's coming home.
either way, he lets out a muffled yowl and paws at the rope. ]
You can either help or check if there's anything we missed. But you're right. [ he shifts to start pulling, hand over hand, to get the rope up with his daemon as he keeps an eye on the shadows. ] We'd better leave before we push our luck here.
no subject
the lights begin to flicker, again, as the makeshift rope is pulled back up, taking the fox with it. their shadows seem to be moving of their own accord whenever the lights flicker back on - they bolt for the door, then snap back to just being their shadows.
they will probably want to get moving as soon as they've got the soul fox back!]
no subject
he will hold the door for hua cheng and tanhua to scuttle out, and then he will slam it shut! stay the fuck in there, shadow monsters! ]
no subject
and once hua cheng sees blood orange fur...
he just reaches out to scruff the dog-sized fox, hauling him out and into his arms, rope and all, to back up quickly to the open doorway. ]
no subject
the flickering lights stop once they're out in the hallway. everything looks normal.
literally everything! even the trash bags from before are gone.
the only difference is that the housekeeping door remains unlocked. good job, guys! you didn't die!]