A house is a dear, dear thing, young explorer. It sees many lives and deaths. It is filled with the memories of not just people but generations of people. A well-kept house will keep its inhabitants safe and warm, but an abandoned one… Let’s just say there are less treacherous things in the world that could just as easily fulfill your foolish “adventurous spirit.” Yet, if you are one of the reckless ones who chooses to see these warnings as recommendations, I have some advice that may give you a chance at surviving.

• Wear a mask. You don’t want them to see your face.
• Never say your name aloud, and preferably, don’t think it. You want to remain unidentified.
• Feel free to take friends with you. There is a supposed safety in numbers after all. Note: avoid taking siblings or other family members. 
• Go during the day and leave the premises by 19:37. Few have returned afterwards.
• Take a flower with you. They prefer tulips, but daisies are also fine. 
• Leave the flower at the doorstep, and walk away for a few minutes. If the flower is gone upon your return, you may enter. If the flower has turned black, it is too late for you. Unfortunately, you chose the wrong house.
• It will be darker inside than you expect. Candles will prove more effective than torches.
• Knock before entering any room. It will hopefully keep any particularly nasty surprises away.
• NEVER take anything back with you. Tag-alongs are near impossible to remove.
• Bring headphones to listen to music. Otherwise, you might hear things that are best left unheard.
• Learn to distrust your senses in general. Convince yourself it’s the wind howling, not a person; a trick of the light, not movement in the darkness; wind brushing past your hand, not fingers. Choose sanity over truth.
• There may be multiple doors leading outside. Ensure you leave through the same door that you entered from.
• If upon exiting your surroundings look the same as before, thank your God(s) for keeping you safe. Walk in a straight line as far and as fast as you can. Never look back, never return.
• Most importantly, trust your instincts. A house that has lost its humans will do anything to get them back and keep them. Anything.