What the--

... Oh.

It took a second for Kyle to register what he was looking at, because at first glance he worried that it might be some kind of animal that had curled up inside the piano to die. However, it didn't really smell very pungent, and in fact looked more like some bundled up cloth. After a second, he realised it was some bundled up cloth, or rather a patched and frayed old wizard's hat. Then, finally, it clicked that he was staring at the Hogwarts Sorting Hat.

Now, that made sense. It was even like the relevance of the Gordian Knot at Ilvermorny, down to being related to the Sorting. Kyle reached inside the piano and pulled the hat out, resisting the urge to try it on and see if it felt like telling him what Hogwarts house he would belong to. No need, really; Kyle was fairly certain he already knew.

Clearly, this was the first item. It fit with those stanzas of the riddle perfectly, and there was really very little chance that he should be looking for something else. The Hat was to do with Hogwarts and its houses and was cherished by the people at the school. Right. Easy.

Onto the next object then, and this time Kyle was slightly more unsure. He had pretty much decided that he really was looking for a Gordian Knot - had been resolute before he had even found the Sorting Hat - but was stumped on where he might need to start looking. Stepping away from the piano, Kyle took up the parchment again and unrolled it, pinning the Sorting Hat to his side with one of his arms.

'Twist clockwise and nothing you’ll get,
But counter that, and you might regret
The noxious gas that fills your space
If you turn it too quickly, wood it would deface.'

So... there was something that, if he twisted it clockwise it would give him nothing, but if he turned it the other way it would give off a noxious gas? Things that might be twistable and present in this shack included... door handles, faucets, the dials on the oven... and not much else. As for what would deface wood, that was a slightly more helpful clue, but again, could be a lot of things. Water, for instance. Or fire. Or the source of a noxious gas. Or even just brute force.

Looking up from the parchment, Kyle scanned the room he was stood in, the floorboards creaking below him as he turned slowly on the spot. Nothing up here seemed to really fit the bill regarding the clues he had been given, and... well, how likely was it that the second trinket would also be hidden upstairs? With that thought in mind, Kyle made a beeline for the staircase again, his heard thudding wildly in his chest; how long did he have left? Could he finish before the time was up? All there was left to do was to try.

As he reached the bottom of the stairs, Kyle paused, took a breath, and tried to centre himself. He missed the bracing cold of the outside; so long in that tunnel and now in this filthy, musty place was making him feel slow, sluggish. He needed more oxygen to get to his brain but there was no time. Even knowing the history of the place didn't help to trigger any bright ideas.

Noxious gas... noxious gas...

Before, he had narrowed it down to two potential places to look; a bathroom sink, or a kitchen sink, or a kitchen oven. With no other brainwaves to go on, he decided to check those two avenues first.

The bathroom had, if Kyle recalled correctly (and he did, because it had been mere minutes ago), smelled absolutely foul. Did that count as a noxious gas? If you asked Kyle, it did, but it wasn't his opinion that drove this challenge. Then again, if they were counting bad smells into that category, then the table full of disgusting rotten food also needed to be considered... but what might need to be twisted over there? No, he needed to pause, slow down, and check possible hiding places one at a time. Bathroom first - it was closest, anyway.

Passing by the trapdoor again, Kyle veered to the left and faced the bathroom door. Bracing himself, he pushed it open again, and peered inside, using the Sorting Hat to hold over his nose and mouth like a makeshift mask; there was simply no time to mess about with Bubblehead Charms, every second counted now.

Was there a Gordian Knot somewhere in here? Or... more likely... would he need to do something that would point him towards it, like with the piano.

Kyle reached out for the faucets on the sink, covering his hand with his sleeve just in case. Reluctantly, and very tentatively, he turned them both clockwise........ and then slowly anti-clockwise, before moving towards the bath - and avoiding even looking at the toilet - to try the same thing there, all the while peering at his surroundings for the potential hidden item.

Somewhere? Anywhere?

"Please."