Haunted tree house, actually!  According to local legend.

It certainly looks like it's been abandoned for a while, from down here.  The chopped-up 2x4s serving as footholds have certainly seen better days; they're covered in a thin, slippery moss, and there's more than one screw that he's not entirely sure will hold his weight.

But they all do.

Inside, it's similar.  Worn wood, a pile of weathered blankets, the smells of mildew and neglect.  A stack of water-wrinkled books in the corner most protected from the elements.

And one book, in the middle of the floor, open.  With two rocks on it, weighing down the pages on each side.  The book itself bears the same signs of decay as all the others, but Lucien can immediately see that the exposed pages are less decrepit than they should be.  It rained just a few days ago, here, and yet—these pages are in better condition than some of the ones underneath them.  In better condition than the cover, should he check.

(It's Banners and Watermarks.)

This is honestly confusing! Maybe someone else was checking out the supposedly haunted tree house? But the other stuff is pretty clearly damaged... Also whoever it was stopped just right before Dyrrm's (subtly flawed) tirade against the Shen for failing to use wind geists for naval logistics during their last major campaign, which was one of Lucien's favorite parts of the second book! Modern novels don't really work out the details of their fantasy infrastructure nearly so well. Lucien is just going to quickly reread up to that bit. Since it's right in front of him.

Twenty minutes later Lucien is interrupted by a dm.

found any ghosts?

Oh, right.

No, did find a copy of Banners and Watermarks though, which is really better than I expect.

if you say so. 
did you know that bruce springsteen is hot?

Isn't he like, 70?

sure but he's still hot

I prefer guys who aren't decades older than me.

Lucien doesn't actually need to be up here anymore - the internet seemed to be off the opinion that something about this place would seem so obviously ghostly that anyone would change their mind but all Lucien feels is a bit chilly. He's going to call it a day and go home, climbing down from the not-very-haunted-it-turns-out treehouse. 

Quite chilly indeed.

One of the screws that held up on Lucien's ascent - doesn't, this time.

Ah- maybe this flailing attempt to grab a different handhold will help.

It doesn't.  Something - he doesn't see what - slams into his shoulder and sends him falling off the tree and down the hill.  And into the creek that runs through the property.

Fu-

He scrapes his knees on the bottom, but not in a way that gives him a stable enough base to get his head above water.  It feels like something is pressing down on him, here, on his leg, and then there, on his back.  Could it be a branch?  It's so hard to see, down here; he can't make anything out.

Hopefully the correct response is desperate flailing!!

That does briefly get the whatever-it-is loose.  Another one hits him a few moments later.

What if he tries to flail and surface somewhere else?!

No.

In that case. he is. going... to... try.... some....thing...

When he wakes up there's someone else's face on his face.

What. 

He pulls back when Lucien jerks and looks him over.  "- Hey.  Hey, you awake?"

Lucien blinks.

"Um." Hot. Wait no don't say that. Say something normal.

"Wet?"

"...Yeah, you are."  The guy with the face mostly isn't.  "What's your name?"

Ummm.

"Lucien." 

That was a ridiculous pause, wasn't it.