[prologue]

[murphy_pendleton]

There aren't a lot of places Murphy expected to end up - prison, most likely. Some shitty apartment back in Baltimore, maybe, if he's lucky. The general handyman/groundskeeper of a wilderness resort...thing? Not so much. It hadn't been an interview he expected to get much out of. Just some gasoline wasted on a pretty drive.

He's not going to look a gift horse in the mouth, though. Hartfield's nice. Decent weather. Tiny town nearby. A nice lake and some rivers off in the forest, probably with some decent fishing. He hasn't gone fishing in a long time. He's looking forward to that, when he gets a chance.

Murphy's considerably less excited about the apparent onslaught of tourists coming out to watch the leaves all change. Tourists. Lovely. He's already hoping that he doesn't actually have to deal with most of them, though that's likely to be mostly in vain. Customer service might not be the main parts of his job description, but the summer staff is packing up and leaving. He'll have to pick up the slack.

For now, though, he's got a few things to keep him busy before this round of guests shows up. He still needs to build up the firewood stores considerably before winter hits - that's a big fucking task, because apparently his predecessors never replenished what they used. It's also one he can only do some much of in a day. Eventually, he's just got to give up and wander down to the lake with what amounts to his lunch, axe in hand still. He never know when he'll need something like that.

Comments

[hopingfortheshore]

He's coming down to the lake. She's not sure what to make of that. Any time the staff changes is stressful for her, really. And there are new people pretty often. She's never sure if they'll be able to see her or not, and the ones that can see her usually don't react well. One of the side effects of being a ghost, she figures.

She retreats farther under the water once he gets close enough that she can see the ax. Definitely not a good sign. She wonders if it's a coincidence or if he can tell something big's coming.

[murphy_pendleton]

There's quite a few nice places to settle along the banks of the lake. Murphy settles for a spot on an old log with a clear view of the lodge, back to the forest.

There's something off about that lake. Murphy's gotten fairly prone to paranoia in general, feeling on edge - the axe he rests beside him is testament enough to that - but this is beyond his normal wariness. There's something there. He's been sure of it for a little while now. Not because of the spooky bullshit the rest of the staff talks about. That's tourist stuff. Bad Travel Channel documentary stuff. He tunes it out with very little difficulty.

No, this is pit of the stomach instinct. Murphy knows damn well when he's being watched, and there is most definitely something in that goddamn lake that's been watching him.

It's a scenic place, he'll give it that. Quiet enough that sitting here gnawing on his sandwich is otherwise pleasant, despite his furtive scanning of the surface of the water for something. Anything.

Why's it always water for him? Always lakes?

[hopingfortheshore]

She watches as he sits by the lake to eat his lunch. Why did he have to come down here to eat? She doesn't like this. She feels like he's looking for something. Like she's being watched. She really doesn't like it. She drops down farther into the water and edges toward the center of the lake. At least most of the other things here leave the lake alone.

She's just starting to relax when a sudden voice badly startles her. "Hey, uh, I heard there was a hiking trail somewhere around here? I think I'm all turned around, though." She hadn't even noticed the other man until he came strolling down from... she's not sure where, actually. She peers out of the water and the new guy... really doesn't look like much of a hiker. Mostly he looks awkward and kind of sheepish. He seems like someone she might have liked before. But she's at her limit. She drops down toward the bottom of the lake, leaving only a few ripples to suggest that anything might have been there.

[murphy_pendleton]

Murphy's fairly deep in thought when the sounds of approaching footsteps pull him out of his woolgathering. His gaze darts from the water's fairly placid surface to the stranger headed his way. Scruffy. Out of place.

Tourist.

"There's a few on this side of the property," He answers between bites of sandwich. Shit, he should probably actually be helpful, shouldn't he? He glances back to the lake briefly, but it's the same as before. Oh well. "I can give you directions, but that'd depend on which one you're looking for."

Don't they have maps in the lobby?

[vicsage]

It's easy enough to get settled in the nice room they gave him. Now it's time to start making nice with the employees. Making friends. Vic spies who he suspects is the groundskeeper he couldn't find any information on in his initial searching, which was interesting. Very interesting. He might just be the place to start.

When he gets closer, he notices some odd rippling in the water. Hmm. He's pretty sure he remembers there being something about the lake in his files. He'll take another look when he gets back to his room. In the meantime, time to play the ditz. "Well uh," Vic starts, reaching up to scratch at the back of his head, "I think I probably should stick to one of the novice trails."

Vic pauses a moment to consider. There are a lot of trails around the lodge. Well. Since he's already here and curious... "Maybe, uh, the one around the lake?"

[murphy_pendleton]

Murphy sets aside his lunch for the moment, since apparently this is going to take more talking. He considers this guy for a moment. Doesn't really look like he's a particularly wilderness capable sort. He doesn't look like he sees the sun much at all, really.

"That one's not bad if you stick to the western half. Long, though. The lake's bigger than you'd think." Murphy's almost betting he's going to have to go find this guy in the woods later. It's not a big leap; he seems to be kind of lost already. "I'd suggest making sure you have a compass and one of the trail maps on you."

[vicsage]

Vic knows exactly how big the lake is, of course. Not that he'll say so. "Really? That's good to know." He bounces on the balls of his feet a little. "Thanks."

He stuffs his hands in his pockets and looks out over the lake briefly before looking back at the man in front of him. "Oh hey, there's maps in the lobby aren't there." As if he didn't already have one of those and another of his own.

[murphy_pendleton]

"Uh-huh. Er, welcome." Murphy might need to work on those approachability skills. And general politeness. He wasn't hired for that though so really his employers shouldn't be surprised. "There's supplies, too. And a guide schedule if you'd rather do that sort of thing."

[vicsage]

"Guide? Oh yeah. I saw something about that. To look at the leaves, right?" Vic could probably be more inane than this, but it would take effort. More effort than he's caffeinated for at the moment. He pauses to think. About the lake more than whether he'd like a guided tour, but this guy has no way of knowing. "I dunno. Sounds an awful lot like a field trip to me. More being herded around than getting to look at anything."

[murphy_pendleton]

"It's the season for it," Murphy answers with very little enthusiasm. They're leaves. They're everywhere. And he's probably going to see a lot of them when he has to rake.

He mostly just shrugs at the next comment. "Field trip, huh? Hope you remembered to bring your parents' permission slip." A couple ducks waddle towards the shore not far. Murphy tears off some bread to toss to them, but they seem mostly unimpressed with the groundskeeper's meager offerings. "The leaf thing is the standard seasonal tour that most of the tourists go for. Our guide does private hikes all over the property and surroundings, though."

Which from what he understands is generally to keep people from getting lost constantly.

[vicsage]

Vic chuckles. "I did, but I forgot my sack lunch. It's too bad, I had Fruit Rollups and everything." He pauses to watch the ducks turn their bills up at bread crust and then waddle on down to the water. He hadn't even known ducks could be snooty, but maybe he shouldn't be surprised. They're not that different from geese, and geese are known to be the devil in feathered form.

"Really?" He perks up a little. "That sounds more exciting. I might have to see about scheduling one of those." The groundskeeper isn't being very helpful, not for Vic's purposes at least. He can't tell whether it's intentional or not, though. Oh well. He made small talk, laid the foundations for more informative conversation later. Now if only...

"Well," he says finally, "I'd better go back and look for those maps. Nice talkin' to ya. I'm Vic." He could have faked an identity for this investigation, but he didn't think it was necessary.

[murphy_pendleton]

"What a tragedy," Murph lets out a quick laugh, twisting half is mouth down in an amused semi-frown.

"Uh-huh. We haven't hit season peak yet, so they should have plenty of time slots available." That sounds... professional, right? Right. Nailed it. He smiles in a way that he hopes doesn't look as awkward as it feels; this has never been his forte. "Have fun. Uh, tell 'em Murphy sent you."

Maybe he can finish his lunch in peace after Vic here's wandered off.

[vicsage]

Murphy, huh? Well, it's a start. "I'll do that." Vic nods at Murphy and ambles back the way he came. He's willing to bet the tour guide will be chattier. He pauses in the lobby long enough to schedule a private hike and then heads back to his room. Time to see what he has on that lake.