Treasure Hunt - Oliver Goulding

Posts : 1364 Join date : 2015-12-20

The Great Hall begins to empty as the students trickle out from breakfast. Eventually, the Hall is bare of any students except for you, and as you stand from your seat to leave your attention is pulled away from the treasure hunt by something unusual out of the corner of your eye. At the front, where the Professors usually sit, is a pedestal. It’s not that tall, perhaps only half your height, and is pure white. You can see intricate designs of leaves carved around it.

On top of the pedestal is a chest. You take a few steps closer to investigate. It’s not too large but you know that with magic, it could hold far more than meets the eye. It is a bit shabby and old looking, as if it's gone unopened for many years, a layer of dust and what seems to be cobwebs covering it. There are hints of water damage; the lock is tight and made of a strong metal that has some traces of rust on it, and there is moss growing on the side of the chest.

What do you do?

a) Approach and investigate the chest
b) Open the chest with Alohomora
c) Ignore the chest and leave the Great Hall

(OOC: At the end of your post, please make your choice clear by writing it in another color, or bolded.)

Guest

Oliver had waited until the very end of breakfast, hoping to find Serenity seeing as how the week had been rushing away from him. He was having no such luck, though, and as the Hall slowly emptied of students, Oliver knew that today was not the day he was going to catch up with the Ravenclaw witch. There would be another time, though, of that much he was very sure!

Almost ready to simply just leave the Hall all together, Oliver's eyes were caught by something unusual standing in the middle of the Hall. He could have sworn that hadn't been there before... His mind, almost belatedly, offered him the answer, though. Magic.

Eyeing the pedestal and chest that had, seemingly, appeared from nowhere, Oliver looked around for someone else who might be able to see it, but came up with no one else being around. Frowning, he got up from the Hufflepuff table and slowly, cautiously made his way closer to the box.

What on Earth was it from? There was moss on it... That brought a slight wrinkle to Oliver's nose. But, he was still curious.

Was this, perhaps, something to do with the Treasure Hunt he'd signed up for at the start of the year? There was only one way to find out!

a) Approach and investigate the chest

Posts : 1364 Join date : 2015-12-20

4.
You decide to take the safe route and investigate the chest. Approaching it, you become aware the lock isn’t as sturdy as it first appeared and is almost rusted through. Now right in front of it, you realise that the chest has begun to shake a little, as though there’s something inside. Suddenly, the top bursts open and there are squeaks that fill the empty hall. There is a blur of blue as something emerges from the chest and flies over your head.

The door to the great hall slams shut and you turn to find that it’s being guarded by six creatures. They are eight inches high and are electric blue. They have long pointed ears and long arms, three fingers on each hand. You recognise them as Cornish Pixies.

They start chattering to each other, loud, shrill noises that hurts your ears. You notice one of them is holding a piece of paper -- that must be the clue! Gripping your wand tightly, you prepare to fight them.

a) Defeat the pixies in order to receive the clue. End your post with picking up the clue.

Guest

Investigating the chest more closely, Oliver noted that the lock was not nearly as sturdy as it looked from a distance. A light prickling slid across the back of his neck, denoting that something simply wasn't right in that moment, but the Hufflepuff decided to ignore it. It was a chest, after all. Chests normally meant treasure...

But as the chest shook, Oliver took a step back, scared of what might be in the chest for the first time - and it was a good thing he did, for a moment later the lid burst open, and out came a number of small, blue, flying creatures. Moving out of their way, Oliver turned to see them slam the door closed.

Great! Oliver thought to himself, clumsily reaching for his wand and holding out before him. What were they... what were they... he chanted in his head, keeping his eyes on the six of them before, finally, he remembered. Cornish Pixies. Not the nicest of creatures to come up against, but he could deal with them.

"Immobulus!" Oliver called out in their direction, watching as they all stopped fluttering around, and the horrible noise that they made was brought to an end. His eyes moved to one, though, that until now he'd not noticed the piece of parchment in it's hand. A clue? Oliver wasn't sure. But, without further ado, he hurried forward, prizing the parchment from the creatures hands (Oliver had not yet learned the Summoning Charm) and opened it hastily.

Posts : 1364 Join date : 2015-12-20

5.
The clue reads:

Brewing potions isn’t easy unless you have all the ingredients and the skill. Luckily, three have already been made for you. Find them where you first learnt how to use your cauldron. Choose wisely and your next clue will be revealed.

Quickly, you make your way down to the dungeons, bypassing empty classrooms until you reach the Potions Classroom. Stepping inside, you find, as the note had said, three small glasses on the table. You approach them.

The first contains liquid that is clear and has no special scent, instead appearing to be water. Upon closer examination, you realise that it’s slightly thicker than normal water, but other than that there’s nothing to give away what it could be.

The second glass has a light gold liquid inside, reminding you of the sky at sunset. It’s got swirls of orange inside, and smells faintly of carrots, but other than that has no scent. It’s thick, like medicine, but doesn’t look unpleasant.

The last glass contains a beautiful dark blue liquid that sparkles in the light. There appears to be bits and pieces of glitter inside it as it refracts the light. It smells familiar, but you can’t quite place it. It makes you feel safe and relaxed.

You are now faced with a choice.

Which potion do you drink?

a) The clear, almost water-like liquid
b) The bright golden liquid
c) The dark blue, sparkly liquid

(OOC: At the end of your post, please make your choice clear by writing it in another colour, or bolded.)

Guest

Reading through the clue hastily, Oliver took in as much information as he could - he knew he was heading to the Potions classroom, so without reading much more, the Hufflepuff hurried past the demobilised Cornish Pixies and hurried through the doors of the Great Hall. Once the door had closed, Oliver reread - knowing he would have some safety now he was away from the Pixies.

"Three potions..." Oliver mumbled to himself, before nodding in understanding. Pick one. How hard could that be? He thought to himself, hurrying down the steps towards the Potions classroom as instructed.

Opening the door, Oliver was faced with the three potions before him as the clue had suggested. Tucking his wand away, he moved cautiously towards the table. Three potions. One clear, one gold, and one blue. Oliver's eyes roved over them, before he picked up the clear one and sniffed it. Nothing. That was strange. Oliver placed that vial back on the table before moving on.

The second one, Oliver lifted up and sniffed, smelling carrots. What. He didn't understand that one, so he placed it back down.

The third, Oliver knew almost in an instant after he smelt it, and knew that that one would place him in a sleep. Ruling that one out, Oliver was left with two potions he didn't know. Frowning to himself, the Hufflepuff took a few more moments to think it through, before picking up the clear one.

a) The clear, almost water-like liquid

Posts : 1364 Join date : 2015-12-20

6a.
You decide that the first one would be best and pick it up. There’s no special taste to it, but almost as soon as you swallow, you feel a chuckle building up in the pit of your stomach, although there’s nothing really funny going on. The chuckle escapes, quickly followed by another. Soon enough, you find yourself giggling at absolutely nothing. In a few moments, your giggles turn to outright laughter, and you quickly sit down.

By the twelve minute mark, you start to panic a little as the laughter keeps pouring out of you. It’s getting harder to breathe, but you can’t control it, as though someone is tickling you from the inside. Eventually, a further ten minutes later, the feeling starts to subside. You continue to giggle and titter for a while more as the potion -- a stronger version of giggle water, you realise -- wears off.

Finally, half an hour after you first consumed it, the effects are fully gone and you catch your breath, resting for a while more. When you have strength enough to stand, you approach the table again. You have two options remaining.

Which do you drink?

a) The bright golden liquid
b) The dark blue, sparkly liquid

(OOC: At the end of your post, please make your choice clear by writing it in another colour, or bolded.)

Guest

Almost in the same instant that Oliver had swallowed the first mouthful - he kept drinking to ensure he would get the full effect of the potion - he could feel a chuckle building up in the pit of his stomach. And yet, nothing that he'd done was remotely funny in any manner of the word.

The laughter grew, though, and Oliver soon found himself sat down, laughing uncontrollably at nothing in particular. Gigglewater, then, he decided, in a somewhat foggy haze as he leaned back a little, gasping for more air as the laughing grew harder.

Oliver slowly began to panic - drinking all of it perhaps wasn't such a good idea as he'd first thought - barely being able to breathe, the boy tried to gulp in larger amount of breath and failing. His mind was growing shorter on air, and all he could think of was that Professor Balan was going to murder him, slowly, by making him laugh so hard.

But, almost as soon as Oliver had thought as much, the giggling seemed to recede, allowing him to take the much needed breaths that he needed, and slowly come down from the giggling high that he'd been dealt in that moment. That... was quite something, Oliver decided, catching his breath quite quickly because he was relatively fit.

Knowing that that had not been the right potion, Oliver got up and looked back at the table. The middle one, now the one on the left, had been the right choice from the outset, but Oliver had not known what it was, so he'd dismissed it.

a) The bright golden liquid

Posts : 1364 Join date : 2015-12-20

8a.
The golden liquid seems to be a wise choice and you down it. It’s not unpleasant, tasting only slightly of carrots, but it’s thick and hard to swallow. For a while, nothing happens and you wonder if you’ve wasted your time -- but then, slowly, your start to see a tint of gold around your vision. You blink a few times, trying to clear it, but it only gets worse until all you can see is a film of gold.

Abruptly, the film clears, and as you look around, you realise you can see something written on the wall that wasn’t there before. Written in gold letters, it says:

Make your way to Greenhouse Two to find the next clue. Remember to watch your step, but don’t be afraid to take a leap of faith!

You leave the potions behind and make your way outside to the Greenhouses, finding Greenhouse Two easily enough. Opening the door, you find it’s pitch black. You take a while to adjust, but once you do, you realise that in front of you is a pit. Remembering the instructions of the clue, you take the jump and find yourself being grabbed by a plant! It twists itself around you and starts to squeeze.

You realise that you can’t reach your wand.

What do you do?

a) Struggle
b) Don’t struggle

(OOC: At the end of your post, please make your choice clear by writing it in another colour, or bolded.)

Guest

Swallowing the potion had not been easy, but Oliver continued to force it down. The potion tasted how it smelt -- of carrots -- but it wasn't in any way unpleasant, truthfully. Oliver waited for the effects of this potion to take hold, but it's effects were seemingly slow... Small bits of gold started to reach his eyes, as if they were tired, but now golden instead of white, he kept blinking to try and rid himself of the small specks.

But, they only got worse, until his eyes were filmed with the golden hue.

Trying not to panic -- though his breathing had started to get a little faster, Oliver looked around the room for something. Something that might help him... To find the writing on the wall that had not been there before. The next clue. The potion was some kind of eye enhancement that allowed you to see writing that had been hidden.

Taking in the information that had been given, Oliver hurried back up the stairs and out in to the grounds towards the greenhouses, as per the instructions that had been given.

Don’t be afraid to take a leap of faith!

What did that bit of the clue mean, though? Oliver wasn't sure, but as he got to the greenhouse, he faltered at the door. It was pitch black... shuffling forwards, Oliver felt the edge of something that he wasn't sure what it was. Putting himself on his backside, Oliver's legs dangled in to what he assumed to be a hole. A leap of faith...

Taking a deep breath, the Hufflepuff pushed himself forward and fell for a short while before he landed on something... weird. It was moving too... Quickly, Oliver became ensnared in what he believed to be a plant -- but he couldn't be sure -- that clutched at his arms, legs, torso, and eventually around his neck.

Instinct told Oliver to struggle, and the Hufflepuff did exactly that, struggling to save his own life as he felt his body being consumed more and more.

a) Struggle

» Treasure Hunt - Mathew Howard
» Treasure Hunt - Carlotta De Santis
» Treasure Hunt - Stephanie Richardson
» Treasure Hunt - Eli De Santis
» Treasure Hunt - Alexei Blackthorn