Those who try to open the door find that the door is locked and will not open. Those who look for the children outside cannot see evidence of the children in the middle of the thick fog. The house is quiet now, almost as if it is holding its breath. Then a moment later, music floats down the stairs—a harpsichord. However, the music is far from expertly played. The music continues to start and stop as you listen to it.

With no way back outside, the only option left is to explore the house as the only option to continue. There are the doors left on this floor which presumable lead to other rooms. Otherwise, the baby, Walter, must be up the stairs; along with the harpsichord and its novice player.

"You all shouldn't have followed me," Emma says in a small voice. "Nothing would happen if I were locked in, but all of you..." 

The sudden music startles Emma. She was very nervous. "Is there someone with the baby then?" Must mean the parents have dealt with the monster. Why didn't they call the children in? "Maybe we should find another door, or a window we can open?" 

"I suspect we'll find there is no actual baby up there," Kal says.  "Though we might as well go see where the music is coming from."

"No baby?" Star raises an eyebrow. "Why would there not be a baby? The children said so, and I do not feel that they lied."

He looks up the stairs. "I am more concerned about the music. It is... not good. Perhaps I may offer the player some advice, though I do not know much about such instruments. Shall we go up?"

Juniper does not like this one bit. Accustomed to wandering the wilds freely, for her to be locked indoors against her will – even in a home as large and well-appointed as this one seems to be – causes her jaw to set and her eyes to harden. The softness of her youthful face is replaced by piercing eyes and that annoyed pucker. “This day gets longer and longer,” she quips, aching to rest.

“Either baby Walter has been taking harpsichord lessons, or there’s someone up there old enough to have procrastinated significantly when they should have been practicing.” Juniper dons her shield. “What?,” if anyone points accusing eyes her way. “Maybe they’re bad with music but good with their claws.” She follows Star up the stairs.

Vice nods, his face dark. There's an annoyance in him, but more presently, anger. If there's someone in the house, they should know the children are wondering outside by themselves. Although there's a weird feeling about the whole situation, he feels mad at the parents' irresponsibility more than anything. He remembers when he was little, unable to face the empty house, his father would go on long worktrips, leaving him alone at home to jolt awake at night by frightening nightmares. He looks up the stairs, prepares himself, "Yeah, let's go."

"Shouldn't we look for a way out first?" Emma asks but quickly follows the others. She doesn't want to be left alone, especially now that everyone is inside anyway. The thought that there is no real baby upstairs confuses her, but since this entire scene is like something out of a nightmare, she doesn't say anything. Maybe they knew what they were saying. 

As you climb the marble staircase, a cold draft sweeps down. The second-floor landing is just as elegant as the first, with wood panelling and a large marble hearth on the back wall. A fire within the fireplace gives off gentle warmth and an orange glow. Above the hearth is a family portrait of an aristocratic man and woman and their two smiling children. You recognise the children as the ones you met outside, the young boy, Thorne, and the young girl. Cradled in the father's arms is a swaddled baby, which the mother regards with thinly veiled scorn.

A panel beneath the portrait bears the inscription:

Mr Gustav Durst, his loving wife, Mrs Elizabeth Durst,
and their three children, Miss Rose Durst, Master Thorn Durst, and Master Walter Durst.

There are standing suits of decorative armour flanking two pairs of doors. Each suit of armour clutches a spear and has a visored help shaped like a wolf's head. One set of doors is wooden are carved with dancing youths, and ajar. A glance within reveals a warm study. The other set of doors is set with stained glass, and a warm glow of lamplight comes from within. The light flickers as someone, or something moves behind the door.

Star points to the painting. "You see?" he says to Kal. "A baby. What a strange thing to suggest." He laughs warmly, then "Aha!" at the flickering light behind the glazed door. "Someone is at home, perhaps our mystery musician."

Moving towards the door he calls out "Hello? Greetings! We mean no harm! Did you know your children are outside in the cold?"

(@EMIW roll for perception.)

Perception: 13

Juniper’s eyes shoot to the someone or something which moved behind the door. ‘I’d do the same if I had unexpected visitors standing in the hall.’

“They said they were too scared to watch their baby brother and asked us to check on him,” she adds to what Star says, locking eyes with him and trying to match his friendly tone, then focusing her senses back toward the presumed hiding creature. 

Star calls out through the door. However, there is no reply. Instead, Star hears the sound of tiny footsteps running across the floor.

Star pauses. Unexpected. "It sounds like a child, I think. But... human babies do not walk so soon, I believe." Tabaxi children learned to walk in the first few days of life. The jungle could be a dangerous place, and you had to be able to run to safety.

He shrugs in confusion. "Perhaps they have a pet?"

"I really think we should get out of here." Emma nervously remarks on the whole situation. "Either run down and find an exit or run up, check on the baby, and then do the same as the first option. Whether it is a monster on the loose or parents capable of keeping one in their basement, who think we're trespassing into their house, I do not wish to meet either. On this floor, there can't possibly be anything good waiting for us." Emma already stands at the foot of the stairs leading up, assuming that the others will prefer to check on the baby before leaving, or else they would have left already, but would gladly go down instead. "Let's move," she pleads.

Vice furrows his brows at the family portrait. There's something about the house matron's gaze towards the swaddled baby, almost disgust, or contempt. Why would a mother look at her child like that? Adding to Rose and Thorn's claim of the monster in the basement, Vice is starting to think there might not be a monster at all, but their parents doing some... unspeakable things, which would be a far more reasonable explanation than an actual monster residing in their basement. And fits his usual opinion of rich people often have skeletons in their closet. 

There comes no response from the door as Star and Juniper explains the children are outside the house. Whoever's behind the door probably knows, but just doesn't care. Vice looks solemnly at the others and whispers. "They apparently don't care about their children. Let's go check on the baby and figure out what to do." 

“Emma!,” Juniper pleads back in a whisper, “You’re freaking me out. We’re just trying to help, then I’m just as eager to get out as you, ok?”

To Vice and Star, voice still lowered, “Maybe the baby is… you know, an early learner and that’s him in there hiding behind the door?”

Setting her jaw, crouched and with her shield raised, the elf pokes her head into the room and cranes around to try to spot whatever moved.

"We just heard the baby crying upstairs." Vice says doubtfully. But then he goes to the door with Juniper and tries to peer in as well. 

"But," Emma wants to protest, but seeing she is the only one who does not seem eager to check what's behind the door, she never finishes that sentence. Instead, she just follows Juniper's example and prepares her large lid to be used as a shield if necessary. 

She stays behind the others, but not too far. She wouldn't go into the room, however, standing at its doorstep at most, and only if everyone else went in.

Juniper opens the door to find a conservatory. A harpsichord looms out from the dark, facing a nearby standing harp. The brass-plated chandelier casts a dull sheen. A fireplace lies at one end of the room, decorated by alabaster figurines of dancers neatly placed on the mantelpiece. Another fire is lit within the fireplace. Velvet upholstered chairs line the walls for those that would be serenaded with what would no doubt be beautiful music.

Then Juniper notices something under the harpsichord. Hiding underneath the musical instrument is a small dog, a hound dog. The dog is trembling in fright at the sight of Juniper in the doorway. However, the dog is wearing an aged leather collar with a dog tag which jingles as the dog shakes.

It seems that no one else is in the room, and no one to play the harpsichord.