The Overlook Meme

[nauseous]

The Overlook Meme

Welcome to the Overlook Hotel, with more rooms than you can count and enough creature comforts to last the winter. And you'll be wanting them, because it's a long, long winter and we've been looking forward to your stay here so much. Just don't get lost in the hedge maze, and remember that the bathroom in Room 237 is off limits. Mind the elevators, they may be a bit...leaky.

 

1. Comment with character name, preferences, ect.
2. Pick a role and a scenario ("1 + 4", "Caretaker + Snowed in")
3. Tag around.
 

ROLES

1. THE NEW CARETAKER. Congratulations! You're the newest caretaker of the Overlook. Apparently the last few had some trouble with the job before, but those are just rumors. Over time, you may start to notice things changing a little. Why can't you just get a drink in this place? Why don't people listen to you? You're getting angrier, maybe even violent, but you'll make sure that people pay attention.

2. CARETAKER'S COMPANION. You might be the caretaker's spouse or family, or maybe you're just a friend keeping them company. But this place gives you a bad feeling, and you're starting to notice they're acting a little strangely lately. You just want to help. Put down the axe, honey, and we can talk about this.

3. THE STAFF. You've always been here at the Overlook, as part of the staff, that is. Your job is to make sure the new caretaker does their job right, to give advice when they need it, and point them in the right direction. Why don't you sit down, share your troubles? After all, you're happy to listen.

4. THE VISITOR. You're not part of the staff or an official guest. Maybe your car broke down, maybe the weather's bad, but whatever the reason, you're taking shelter in one of the rooms, if just for tonight. Creepy old place, isn't it? You can't wait for morning to come.

SCENARIOS

1. MIDNIGHT BALL. Now this is more like it. Who wants to stay in their stuffy room all day when there's dancing and fun to be had? Have a drink, take a load off. Who cares where all these people came from, it's a party and everyone's invited. Masks optional.

2. YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE GONE IN THERE. You broke the rules, and now you're in for it, big time. Whether there's a corpse in the bathtub or a nest full of angry wasps, you've disturbed something that was better left alone. Too bad the phones don't work to try calling for help. At least there's lots of rooms to hide in, right?

3. CABIN FEVER. Your caretaker friend has finally snapped. Rather than the creepy inhabitants of the Overlook coming after you in option 2, now you have to deal with whoever you came with instead, and they can't be reasoned with. Be sure to hide the axes and roque mallets at all costs.

4. SNOWED IN. A winter wonderland is one thing, but it keeps snowing, and snowing, and snowing... Hopefully you saved enough food to last, and better pray that the electricity and heat won't go out any time soon.

5. WILDCARD. Choose your own or mix and match. Maybe you're snowed in and you have a crazy caretaker after you.

Comments

lydia martin ♗ TEEN WOLF

[chromatist]

Joan Watson | Elementary

[formersurgeon]

[My favorite movie and a damn fine book. Couldn't resist.]

Re: Joan Watson | Elementary

[attic_theory]

[ooc: I've never seen the movie or read the book. Any ideas for this?]

Re: Joan Watson | Elementary

[formersurgeon]

[Really? You're missing out!

Let's see. Both are basically about an ex-alcoholic, Jack, who becomes the off-season caretaker for a large hotel in the Rockies. He brings his wife Wendy and son Danny (who has psychic abilities called "The Shining", hence the title) and the three of them are snowed in. Jack goes insane, and is seduced by the hotel (which is an evil entity due to horrible things having happened there, not to mention being built on a goddamn Indian burial ground, really, does no one ever realize that's a bad idea?) to kill his family. Along the way, some really messed up stuff happens, like the infamous twins appearing to Danny, and the equally infamous beautiful woman in the bathtub that turns into a rotting corpse in Jack's arms.

So! I could see Sherlock being the caretaker, and Joan being the companion. Maybe he's fascinated by the hotel's violent history? Part of the hotel's seduction of Jack involved offering him alcohol, drawing on his resentment of having been forced dry for the sake of his wife and son. Maybe Sherlock would have a similar experience with drugs? It's up to you how far he allows himself to fall, and how violent he gets with Joan. I think Sherlock would probably be able to ultimately recognize the Hotel's manipulation for what it is. Perhaps he'll need Joan to ground him?]

Re: Joan Watson | Elementary

[attic_theory]

[I do not do well with horror. Over active imagination. Bad thing.

With Joan to ground him I think Sherlock would do well. I can't see him being a caretaker, he's not very good at that, but going to investigate the violent history sounds like him. Just to debunk the supernatural stuff and point out everything his human craziness.]

I love Thread-Stalking you Two

[yourinvisiblefriend]

[You're both so awesome and IC, and this is a very good plot.

A part of me sings out to ask to join in as another guest/ghost for you two to interact with, but I tell that part of me 'das rood' and return to quietly stalking you.

Just wanted to send you both my praises. :3]

Re: I love Thread-Stalking you Two

[formersurgeon]

Oh gosh, thank you! <3

Re: I love Thread-Stalking you Two

[yourinvisiblefriend]

[My Pleasure! <3 ]

AU! James Bond | movie!verse | ota

[oldfashioned_007]

Jack Torrance | The Shining

[scaretaker]

[If you'd like your character to be a visitor and meet the caretaker, this is your guy! It's flexible—if your character is a visitor and needs a drink, he can play bartender, he can be trimming hedges, fixing the elevator, etc.

Basically, if you'd like to do a thread where your character is killed (we can PM to discuss what level of awful you would like and be comfortable with), this is totally the meme and the guy to do it!

Or, be hurt and escape and leave Jack to die in the snow? It's all good!]

4, 3+4

[ex_photographed656]

['Scenic views', the brochure promised. 'Luxury accommodations', 'Fun for the whole family.' Even though this wasn't exactly a family vacation, more like her dad dumping her off while he went to attend some medical seminar, supposedly a few miles down the road. Not so much a 'memorable, exciting adventure for kids of all ages'.

Not so much of anything, actually. The brochure (a bunch of lies as most advertising was) had never mentioned the ugly decorations, the faded carpet and yellowing wallpaper, nor the smell of mothballs in the "luxury" rooms. And most of all, it failed to bring up the eerie lack of life. For such a large hotel, it looked completely deserted. The strangest thing was, she could've sworn it was full just an hour ago. She had heard the footsteps of people coming and going, shrieking laughter, the clinking of drink glasses. Now it was empty.

But aside from the vanishing crowds of people and empty hallways, it was a real fixer-upper. Such a charming place, for sure. Definitely the kind of place she wanted to spend the night in.

Her nails bit into her arm through the sleeve of her red hoodie, flipping open her cell phone for the tenth time in a minute. One lonely bar of battery power glowed on the screen, flickering feebly, and outside, the snow was piling up in sheets of white. Her stomach growled faintly; the last thing she had eaten were bad fast-food hamburgers, and those had been tiny and tasting of plastic. Hitching her hood up, Hayley made her way down the hall in search of the kitchen, her footsteps echoing after her.

'Welcoming, friendly atmosphere.' Yeah, right.

This place gave her a wrong feeling, coiled deep in her stomach.]

[scaretaker]

[It was cold and dark. For the day, at least, it was dark; overcast without much sun to be seen. It was a day that Jack Torrance would have rued in his life before the Overlook (though really, she'd always been there, hadn't she?), one where he'd have to dust off a crummy overcoat to throw on over the smell of liquor that hadn't quite gone away no matter how long he brushed his teeth.

It had never been a welcoming, friendly atmosphere. The moment he met the prick in charge, he knew that much. But he figured it would melt away as the snow came and he got into finishing his work, that it would be easier when no one else was around and he could do repairs as they were needed. Wendy and Danny would keep to themselves during the day, they could have a meal at night before he made sure Danny was doing well with the school work he had for him, and all would be right in the world.

Yeah, right.

The Overlook was never actually empty. She had a caretaker, after all. He was needed in times other than winter, though winter called for him the most. Sometimes, people appeared that weren't supposed to be there, and Jack knew they had to be dealt with. He didn't know why they needed to be taken care of; it wasn't his business, and he never asked. He just came when called, did his job, and was gone.

Though he wasn't ever exactly gone.

He was far too familiar with the kitchen for his own liking, but she seemed to have wandered there. Since he had to deal with her, that's where he had to go. It had been decades since it had seen fit to trap him, and he'd definitely gotten used to every part of her.

Still, of all the places she could have picked: it had to be the kitchen.

He was quiet when he wanted to be. He could creep just as well as the boiler. And, for a few moments, his steps were as silent as the grave as he fell in behind her and just to the left.

It was getting colder, but that wasn't why Jack cleared his throat to make his presence known.]

You, uh, you need some help there, ma'am?

[The staff had to be respectful, after all.]

[ex_photographed656]

[Ma'am? Her mother was ma'am, she was barely even a miss. The hood fell as she spun on her heel, the rubber sole of her sneakers squeaking on the floor. A box of dry cereal clutched in her hand fell to floor, spilling flakes that looked like bark and probably tasted like cardboard, crunching noisily beneath her shoes.

He looked older than her dad: it was the hair loss, the uneven shadow of stubble, the bloodshot tinge to his eyes. Older, but not old. Sharp enough to sneak up on her; her heart was still hammering in her ribs from that surprise. But she forced an awkward smile, too thin and fake to really be polite.]

I, uh—not really. It's just, I was hungry, and I thought I heard someone moving around. [Not just one person. An entire hotel full of people. But it's not like she could be subtle about asking, hey, where did a hundred other guests disappear to?]

Is—is anyone else here? [She stuffed her hands into her pockets, clutching her dead phone tighter. This was how ghost stories started: a young girl, a big lonely house.]

Hi dad, nice to see you again, feel free to lapse a few weeks or however long off this.

[watch_it_burn]

Fifteen years, technically sixteen really, but he'd been watching all that time. While his mother was alive, he'd been more discreet but after she and Dick had both passed on, he'd had no reason to keep up the front. School had been difficult at best, but he'd finally finished, and college wasn't even something he wanted to try. When the news of the re-opening of the resort hotel in Colorado had come to his attemtion though, he knew what he had to do.

It had been rebuilt, whitewashed, but he could still feel the pull as he approached from the town below the mountain. People were so fucking stupid and couldn't leave well enough alone. The history of the site should have been enough to make anyone re-think the idea of resurrecting that place, but greed won. It always won.

He stood at the end of the drive, staring up at the building silently. The grounds were different, those animals gone for good, at least, but that didn't mean a damn thing with the hotel standing in front of him. Everything inside it was probably new and shining, but it wasn't slated to open till spring, which of course meant they needed someone to take care of the place in the meantime.

There was the ghost of a bitter smile on his lips at that thought. His mother would never have understood why he needed to come back. She'd put all this to rest when they'd escaped the first time, but for him, it was different. She'd grieved for his father, of course, but he didn't hold any illusions about that either. If he'd lived, they would have probably ended up divorcing eventually, even if she'd tried to stay for his sake. Jack Torrance had been a weak man in his own way, after all.

So this was about laying ghosts to rest 'again' and seeing if the hotel was still as evil as he remembered. Even if it had burned to the ground before, that wasn't necessarily enough to cleanse it. He exhaled a slow breath before walking towards the building, forcing himself not to drag his feet. They just basically wanted someone to make sure nothing happened before the opening once the snow had thawed.

And damned if he'd let anyone else even come near this place for the job. This was his curse to end, assuming the hotel was more than just a hotel. The door closed behind him and he exhaled a slow breath, looking at the elevator at the top of the staircase.

This was going to go so well.

Come and take your medicine, boy.

[scaretaker]

It was two weeks into the off season before Jack felt the pull of his duty weighing down on him. It was heavy, though it never got the chance to move into suffocating territory. He wouldn't ignore the Overlook by any stretch of the imagination, but some days, some days, he just wanted to finish a beer before he went to do whatever he was supposed to. He never asked questions when there was someone he had to deal with. It wasn't his business, it wasn't anything he needed to know in-depth details about. It was just him doing his job, and as long as he did his job like he was supposed to? Everyone was happy.

Even Jack.

A hotel that had only one other person would be an easy job to take care of. There wasn't any crowd for him to observe and weed out the one he would have to deal with. There was just the original caretaker and this new one in this gleaming new hotel to find. It wasn't hard to find him, either, as Jack heard hammering coming from the second floor.

He didn't use an elevator because he didn't need to. It would only add to the confusion and make his job easier when the new caretaker heard footsteps coming upon him without having heard the ding and sliding doors. It would make things easier for both of them.

Or so he thought until he found himself standing not far off from someone who couldn't possibly be...but he looked like her, and he'd always had Jack in him, and even though it had been—

This wasn't a normal job. Normally, Jack cleared his throat. Now, however, the only thing he could bring himself to do with it was to let out a raspy, dry, "Danny?"

Hayley Stark | Hard Candy

[ex_photographed656]

BOB | Twin Peaks

[firewalkin]

wow bob wow... 1 & 1.

[coops]

He's only doing this because he decided to. How hard could it be - watching over a rarely-visited hotel for a few months in the middle of nowhere? He's still getting paid from the Bureau. And if nothing really hokey happens? He'll just consider it a paid vacation away from the world.

Dale Cooper knew the stories behind the Overlook. He'd always been interested in reading about all things out-of-the-ordinary ever since he could remember - this place being no exception.

But one evening during his routine of meditation, he can't explain the music coming from downstairs. The ballroom. A distant, airy jazz that just keeps playing and playing...

So he goes through the empty hotel. Down the stairs. Past the lobby. And approaches the closed ballroom doors.

The music is louder. He opens the door.

[firewalkin]

The Overlook hotel. Many things were said about this place, that it was the stomping grounds of the legendary wendigo, that natives buried their dead here some time ago. Many things could be said about it, but it doesn't reflect one glaring fact: its hunger. It is the same hunger that drew the Black Lodge, the hunger for suffering. Bob was a hungry creature and someplace like the Overlook could help feed him.

The ballroom had a great deal of curtains covering the area. In the air spread big band music like an odious perfume. On the side tables, covered in red table cloth, sat several dishes. On them? All of them? Creamed corn.

And in the center of the room danced Bob, his body now in the form of a hapless highwayman. The freshly white-haired highway seemed to sobbing profusely, it was hard to tell. Come dance with us, Coop.

Chris/Alice | OC| Visitor

[yourinvisiblefriend]

[OOC: Any scenario is fine with me! And if you wanna write in action tags or whatever instead of prose, I can dig that.]

It was getting cold outside, and the place she had found herself in this time didn't have any houses for miles and miles it seemed. But there was a really, very big house: a hotel, Alice had called it.

Chris couldn't remember if she had ever been to one before, but it didn't much matter. She was cold, and a bit hungry. There had to be a few other guests inside, she could easily be overlooked by any employees if she was careful.

Quietly, she crept inside, her bare feet grateful for the warm carpet with the funny patterns on it. Native American designs, Alice helpfully supplied from wherever she was when she wasn't protecting Chris. Smiling, she padded quickly down the hall, being sure to not make too much noise, and was happy to find the second door she tried to be unlocked and its room empty.

With a happy little noise, she bounded over to the bed and flopped down on top of the mattress before snuggling under the sheets and coverlet for more warmth.

[acrookedchild]

The house, once known as Geap Manor, had been turned into a hotel some time ago. Not that very many people ever stayed there. But sometimes local or even international ghost hunting shows liked to visit the place. No one had seen the spirits yet, but some things were known.

At 3:43 every morning, three knocks came at the door. Which boasted a very... unique knocker. Some people reported screaming in the middle of the night, coming from the upstairs. One room was permanent shut and locked. The old nursery. Sometimes, though, some guests would swear they heard and scratch-scratch-scratch at the door from the inside.

The proprietor of the house was one Abigail Widdowson. The last of the Widdowson line.


It wasn't a particularly eventful night, and Abigail had been seeing to the fireplaces throughout the house. Even though it had been fitted with modern wiring, it simply didn't take. It was as if the house decided sometimes to simply to refused to let anything later than Victorian work inside its walls.

By the time she returned to her bedroom, there was... a lump. Under her covers. There weren't any other guests, she knew that. No one tonight.

"Hello?" It was quiet, careful. Full of uncertainty on whether she wanted to be answered or not.

not gonna lie, that knocker is super creepy. I want it.

[yourinvisiblefriend]

She hadn't meant to sleep so long, but the bed was so very comfortable and warm. Chris could not even remember the last time she slept in a bed! It must have been a very long time ago though.

She dreamed of quiet springs where she had taken her bathes, and the soft meadows that were gentle and perfect in the summer times, but far too cold and scratchy and wet now. There were strange scratchy and scary sounds that made their way into her dreams, but they would simply become scraggy trees in a wind or grumpy squirrels to child's mind.

Chris, wake up, her friend Alice warned her, shaking her a little from her nest in the meadow. This was the only times she really got to speak with Alice, and they were nice. Someone else is there, Chris. Wake up!

She startled under the covers, and immediately held her breath, listening to the other person in the room. Goodness! Was this room not empty after all? Slowly, she poked her head up from under the covers, short brown hair a mess from sleep, and her eyes wide and fearful.

Charlie McGee || Firestarter || OTA

[that_cost]

Hansel | Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters | OTA

[halfwitchhypocrite]

Blaine W Anderson.glee.gay

[blainewanderson]