A deserted house in the mountains

About three hours on foot from the world summit place.

No one knows how long it has been there or who used to live in it.

Rumors said that it was...

Haunted.

"It's really here~ We finally found it, eh?"

"I expected it to be nothing more than a rumor….I never thought that we'd really find it…"

"Ooh! Such a creepy old feel to it! Nice!~"

"Meh, I've seen scarier…"

Ottawa, Tokyo, Wellington, and Moscow gazed up at the immense manor before them, their curious eyes darting around to examine the old looking windows and over grown gardens. The outer appearance wasn't exceptional and in fact looked very similar to many places they could find within their city limits, only a little less tidy. But it did hold a certain feeling of foreboding.

"It's not very interesting though, дa?" Moscow observed, cocking her head a little and making her messy ash blond hair fall in her face, slightly obscuring her one of her bright violet eyes.

"I agree with Moscow-chan, can't we just look from the outside and go?" Tokyo asked with a yawn that she covered with the sleeves of her haori. She was itching to get home as she was eager to begin playing a new game she'd ordered.

Ottawa frowned and tilted her head to the left, her honey blond pigtails bouncing ever so slightly, "Aw, but… we already went through the trouble of finding it, can't we go in for just a little while?" she asked quietly.

"Yeah, guys! Don't be so boring! Let's go check it out!" Wellington- the spirited New Zealander- commanded, shaking with excitement, "We've got to! Come on? Please? Please?! PLEASEPLEASEPLEASEPLEASEPLEASEPLEASE-!"

Tokyo shoved an onigiri into Wellington's mouth, eye twitching in irritation, "If you would kindly quiet down a little, Wellington-san, and then we might go in…"

Wellington nodded and saluted.

With that, the curious quartet stepped into the desolate mansion, looking around in awe at the vast hallways around them. The floors were made of polished hard wood and the walls appeared to be freshly painted; it hardly looked abandoned… but there was the unmistakable feeling of something not quite right that sent shivers up their spines, more intense than the ominous feeling of something lurking outside.

"Hey, друг, can we leave..?" Moscow asked, glancing over her shoulder.

"What? Are you scared?~" Wellington teased, good naturedly patting her Russian friend on the shoulder.

Moscow loomed over her, "I've seen scarier things come out of my sister's bedroom, I am not afraid of this house."

Wellington shuddered, "I-I was only joking!"

The Russian leered, "Oh, bad joke, Wellington, if you choose to repeat it, I'll crush you like a bug, дa?"

"… WAH! OTTAWA SAVE ME!" Wellington pleaded.

"Oh… um… guys, there's no need to be fighting…" Ottawa laughed awkwardly.

Tokyo stood quietly, observing her friends and mentally noting the slight scent of something unpleasant in the air.

The echoing sound of glass shattering silenced, as well as startled, the four capitals.

Moscow huffed and crossed her arms, "Alright, now we really should go, дa?"

The auburn haired New Zealander shivered, backing away, "Yeah, I'd prefer not to be eaten by a troll thanks!"

"Nonsense," Tokyo dismissed her, folding her hands and inhaling to begin a short lecture, "There's a logical explanation for it, an animal has maybe made a nest inside this mansion. Where's your common sense?" she scolded and turned towards the sound.

"Wah! You're not really leaving us, are you?!" Wellington demanded, alarmed, and grabbed onto Moscow's arm.

Tokyo glanced back, already a little ways down the right hallway, "Don't worry, I'm just taking a look, I'll be right back," she assured the New Zealander with a small smile, before continuing to through the door at the end.

The young Japanese girl found herself in a room which appeared to be the kitchen, "It must have been something… ah, here!" she stood over a shattered plate, which appeared to have fallen from the sink, "I'd better be careful not to cut myself…" she furrowed her brows, lifting one of the ceramic shards up to her face. "I wonder… how did it fall..? I don't see any evidence of a rat's nest…" she examined it, "…What interesting timing…" she cocked her head, 'What if… there really was a yōkai here…?'

Shaking the thought from her mind, Tokyo exited the kitchen and began to jog down the hall to alert her friends of the cause of the noise and tell them off again for being so silly.

"?!" she stopped, finding the front hall empty and that Ottawa, Moscow, and Wellington had seemingly vanished, "… did they leave without me?" she sighed, "How regrettable…" she reached for the door handle with the intent of giving the other three capitals a lesson on not leaving friends alone in abandoned houses, but instead found the door was locked.

"It won't open…" she sighed after trying a few more times, 'perhaps they are still here… it wouldn't hurt to look at least…' the shy Japanese girl nodded conclusively, "I guess I should start with that hallway," she began down the left hall, opposite to the one she'd left previously.

Along the walls there were few doors, but to her aggravation none would open when she jiggled the handles, making her all the more inquisitive.

The hallway suddenly turned, as Tokyo was just about to rounded the corner she caught a glimpse of something down the hall that halted her in her tracks and made her blood run cold. For a brief moment that felt like hours, she was frozen in place, then, cautiously she took a peek down the hall.

Nothing. Simple as that.

"…" The raven haired girl sighed, tucking her hair back, "It must have been my imagination… I'm sure I must be tired from the walk, hmm… yes, I'll make sure to get a good rest tonight," she told herself, sternly, "…" still, she couldn't help looking back at the door way at the end of the hall, as if her feet were moving on their own Tokyo slowly walked down, looking up the sturdy looking oak door when she stood before it, "… Na..?" she reached for the handle and hesitated, the voice in the back of her mind screaming to run, "一… 二… 三!" she jerked the handle.

Locked.

"…" she gave her head a shake, as if to clear it, "I play too many horror videogames…" the capital turned away and began back down the hall, the aura of disconcert still hanging over her head.

'I am constantly reminded of Yamanashi here…I half expect her to jump out at me with one of her weird… friends…' the thought made her laugh lackadaisically as she started up the stairs to the second floor, "Hello? Ottawa-chan? Wellington-san?" she called, quietly, not being able to find the will to yell in the old abandoned house.

Upon reaching the top step, Tokyo shivered, suddenly feeling very cold, 'A draft perhaps..?' her eyes scanned the floor; she started with the far bedroom and, pleased to find it unlocked, pushed the door open.

The room, like so many others, appeared to be empty, Tokyo was about to close the door, when she saw, there on the bed was Moscow's pipe, "Strange," she said, picking it up, "to find such an item… yet not its owner…" she closed the door and, although she did so slowly, the sound echoed around her.

The Japanese girl took a breath before moving to the next door, "Anyone?" she called softly again.

As expected, she was greeted by silence. Tokyo sighed and opened the next door. At first it appeared unoccupied then upon examination, the Japanese girl noticed a closet, "… What's the worst that could happen..?" she asked herself, striding across the room, "It's just an old house after all…" and with that, she turned the handle.

"?! Moscow!"

The Russian girl huddled in the back of the closet, trembling all over.

"Moscow-chan, are you alright?!" Tokyo demanded, suddenly feeling very worried- possibly, she thought, more worried than she'd ever felt in her life. Never had she ever seen the tough blond acting such a way.

Moscow said nothing in reply, only continued to shake.

"Please, calm down, Moscow-chan, where are Ottawa and Wellington?"

When her friend once again didn't reply, Tokyo inhaled deeply, "You seem very shaken," she said, sympathetically rubbing her friend's trembling shoulder, "I'll go find you a drink, that will surely help you to calm down. Stay here, Moscow-chan," she instructed and received the expected lack of response.

The young brown eyed girl turned and exited the room. She took a small sky blue hair tie from her pocket and tied her hair back before she began making her way back downstairs.

Creak.

She spun around, hand ready to draw her katana, but was faced with only an empty staircase, "… I have got to calm myself down!" she sighed, turning again to continue her walk down the stairs. Tokyo rounded the corner when she reached the bottom, to go to the kitchen she'd stumbled across earlier in hopes of fetching a glass of water for her friend there.

Again, Tokyo stepped around the shattered plate and checked the cupboards, easily locating a ceramic mug, "Oh, perfect," she gave a small smile and held it under the faucet. However when she twisted the handles no water came out, "… it would appear the tap isn't working," she groaned, rubbing her forehead in annoyance, "I'll have to look for water elsewhere…"

She exited the kitchen, still holding the mug, 'Ah, I think I passed a bathroom in the next hallway…' Tokyo remembered, walking quickly down the hall and through the opposite one, hoping to return to Moscow soon and not be alone in the isolated house any longer.

The bathroom was a lot dustier than the rest of the house, when she looked into the mirror she could barely see her reflection under all the grime; however, something about it made her feel more secure than she did anywhere else in the old mansion.

Turning on the tap, Tokyo sighed in relief as water flowed out, "Ah, good, it doesn't seem to be broken." She filled the mug and splashed some cool water on her face, hoping it would calm her down a little. She then left the bathroom.

'How troublesome…' she thought as she hurried back towards the room Moscow was in, 'so much running around and I still haven't even found Ottawa…'

Tokyo knocked on the closet door before opening it, beads of water occasionally dripping down her tanned face, "Moscow-chan, I'm back and I've brought you some water, please try to calm down now…" she instructed coolly, handing the water to the Russian, "sorry, it's not filtered, though…"

Gradually, Moscow started drinking the water, "... This is… really water, дa?" she questioned, a curious and confused look on her face.

"I should think so…"

"Ah…" Moscow shook her head to clear it of the previous panic, "Anyways, sorry for falling apart like that, I feel much better now, спасибо…"

"I'm glad to hear it. Now, where are the others?" The Japanese girl inquired.

The blonde frowned, looking down, "I'm not sure… we all ran in different directions…"

"?!" The uneasy feelings immediately returned, "Ran? From what?!"

Moscow shuddered and hugged her knees, "I'll explain later. Why don't you give me a little time to compose myself, дa?"

Tokyo gulped, discontented that she would be alone again, and nodded, "Alright… I'll be back shortly… until then, please try to settle down, Moscow-chan," she was about to turn when her friend spoke again.

"Wait, take this!" The Russian capital held out a small key, "I found it while I was running, maybe it will be some use, дa?" she gave an eerie half-hearted smile.

"Ah, yes, thank you, Moscow-chan," The raven haired teen took the key and dipped her head to Moscow, who retreated back into the "safety" of her closet. Slipping the key into her pocket, Tokyo once more left the room. Finding herself alone again, the girl sighed, "How regrettable… why must I always do everything by myself?"

Thank you for reading, this is my first attempt to write a Horror fic so I hope you enjoyed it.