The Vigil

In the old Romanian villages, the dead are never left alone before burial.
Your grandmother died two days ago. A snowstorm has cut off the village, and the priest cannot come, so she lies in an open coffin in her living room until the roads clear. On the first night, a cat jumped over her body. Everyone in the village knows what that means.
Now you must keep her wake alone for seven nights and do what her old book asks, before she rises as a strigoi, one of the restless undead of Romanian folklore.

Keep the Vigil
The dead must not be left alone at night. While you are away, she grows restless, and her body changes when nobody is watching. Listen for the creak of the coffin, the knock of a hand on wood, a long rattling breath. Come back before it is too late.

See What the Dead See
Light a funeral candle and the house changes. For a few short breaths you see it as the dead do, with signs that are invisible in the light of the living. But candles are few, the flame burns down, and she follows the light.

Her Book
Each night her book asks for something more: an old custom, half remembered, written in her hand. What it means, and how to do it, is for you to find out. Search the house, read the signs, and follow where they lead.

What You Have
Funeral candles, to see what the dead see, though never for long

Poppy seeds, because the dead must stop and count every one

Garlic, as old as the fear of her

Her glass of water, which she drinks while she is alone

Seven Nights, Seven Chances
If she rises, the house pulls you into darkness and she comes for you down the hallway. If she reaches you, the night is lost. Lose all seven, and she walks free.

Features
Slow-burn psychological horror rooted in real Romanian folklore

One house, seven nights, and a dread you hear before you see

Clues that exist only by candlelight

What her book asks, and where the answers hide, change with every new vigil

No combat: only your wits, your candles and a handful of poppy seeds