Raised Dais

[Felixir]

The dance is in full swing, the cloudless sky dark, the stars visible overhead. At one end of the dance, a small platform raises itself up out of the ground, just beyond the boundary of the dance floor itself. Here, the music has lowered enough for a speaker to be easily heard.

Just off to the left, the uppermost branches of the trees in the not-so-distant forest sway gently in the slight breeze and silhouetted against the stars. It really is a very beautiful night.

[Felixir]

Wearing dress robes in deep forest green, Kamran stepped up onto the little dais so as to be more easily seen in the crowd. He'd spent the majority of the time quietly milling around, keeping a general eye on things, but now he had an announcement of sorts.

"Students, a moment of your time, if you please," he called out, withdrawing a small scroll of parchment from his pocket. "I told you at the start-of-term feast, a small section of the castle has been out of bounds to you this year, and I believe I also said explanations would come in due course."

That was now, by the way. Due course was happening. He unscrolled the parchment, and held it ready.

"We've had some, ah, disturbances around the castle this year..." Nothing new there. "And the locked door was recently discovered unlocked, with an enchanted chamber beyond, hot, sandy, partially forested..." The recap was probably not necessary. Word travelled around quickly in the school, but... just in case. "A few of you discovered this message there:

"Morning, noon, and evening
I prowled these lonely sands
Found now in greener pastures
Though not in distant lands
Who is your little vandal?
Who writes upon your walls?
Who might have caused a scandal
Beyond these sheltered halls?
Guardian turned treasure
One question and one chance
Find an answer at your leisure
In the meantime, shall we dance?"

Kamran rolled the scroll back up, and looked around at the students, smiling a rare smile, eyes twinkling slightly which was not concerning at all. "Any thoughts on what this might mean?" Only made sense to ask; these messages were clearly for an audience.

[FearlessLeader19]

ria thought that Headmaster Kazmi looked delightful that evening. Not that he wasn’t always good looking; it was just that he looked even more delightful in those robes. It suited him magnificently. This future clothing designer and model approved!

Indeed she had heard of this riddle but hadn’t paid much mind to it. From what she had gathered, this thing that had been lurking about didn’t seem dangerous. It seemed as though it was just interested in causing mischief and having a good dance. “This mysterious creature, being or whatever it is, wants to spend lots of time shuffling its feet!’’ Aria volunteered, hand in the air with fingers wiggling just as she did in class when offering an answer.


Jude gave Kazmi his undivided attention. He felt so much at ease since his concerns had been cleared up by the man when they had encountered at the Unlocked Door. The important thing was that they had been in no danger. The riddle had certainly puzzled him and he often thought that it referred to a Veela. Perhaps he was simply thinking of the Veela being the mascot of the Bulgarian Quidditch team and that one of their talents included dancing.

But what did it mean? That the mysterious figure wanted them to figure out what it was in one try - they were allowed to take their time in doing so - and they could have a dance or dances in the meanwhile.

[astrocat]

"I would like to dance," Ash said, to nobody in particular. Not gonna lie, the weird stuff happening at Hogwarts kind of put her on edge, especially the weird wailing at the start of term(that had kind of got to her badly). But Kazmi didn't seem that concerned(she waved at him, because he was one of the professors that she really respected and liked), so she wasn't worried. Especially since he was asking at the dance. That meant it wasn't an emergency. "That was four questions," she said quietly, to nobody.

1. Who is your little vandal?
2. Who writes upon your walls?
3. Who might have caused a scandal beyond these sheltered halls?(sheltered halls???)
4. Shall we dance?

She really hoped it wasn't a ghost. She wasn't particularly fond of ghosts, or things that screamed loudly. She was okay with riddles though.

She thought about the question quietly. Did they really only get one shot?

[PhoenixRising]

Leanne was distracted tonight and had nothing to do with Hogwarts. She really wanted tonight to be a good night for the students as for many it was their first foray into the world of formals of dances. And all she could think of was the owl she'd received earlier in the year in regards to a different dance. Her daughter - her baby , who was now 30-something years old but still forever her baby - had not returned from the ministry gala. She knew her daughter was smart, but somehow the thoughts of something terrible happening to her seemed to weigh heavily on her..

But Leanne was trying her best to put it all aside. To know that Tia was a fully capable witch helped things some.

As she surveyed around the room, she blinked as the headmaster was saying something about disturbances and a read off a message. A riddle? Fascinating. If her head was in the right place she might think more about it but for now, she would just listen to the discussion.

[Charely Potter]

Adom found the event quite pleasant as he assisted with chaperoning. He was sure his young man was somewhere with his own date, that was fine. Just as Kamran was addressing the crowd, his eyes scanned the area and found his colleague Leanne, "What a lovely event, this is." He commented in her direction. Given the news on ministry employees declared missing, one at least was someone he knew. Tia had been his wife's friend and it was quite a shock to them both. From his own feelings he could only imagine how much more Leanne felt.


Freddie just loved what seemed to be a scavenger hunt. Riddles usually involved a hunt and that excited the young 15-year-old lion. "So it came from the sands... A creature from the sands.." He suddenly regretted pouring into his weaker subjects in studying and forgetting most of his creature knowledge. What creature could've came from a sandy region. Maybe it came from a desert since it was so lonely.

Hearing Aria, he chuckled. "It sounds like a nice creature if it wants to dance." Who would dance with it first though? He wasn't going to be the first even if dateless.

[MadMadamMalfoy]

Seeing no signs of shenanigans at the refreshment table, Norman took the headmaster’s announcement as his cue to take a short break from chaperoning and headed toward the raised dais where the current action was. Eyes and ears keenly attuned to his surroundings, he noted the riddle. While he had his own thoughts on the matter, he was going to keep quiet and let the students figure it out on their own. Don’t mind him; he was just here to observe for now.

FInding an inconspicuous place to stand, he spotted Adom and Leann. “Good evening,” he greeted, nodding to each of his colleagues in turn. HIs bluish-green eyes lingered on Leann for a split second, though his stoic face betrayed no sign of the sympathy he felt. Oh yes, he’d heard all about the missing Ministry employees from his first year YATI daughter. He understood, better than anyone would ever know. There was a time many years ago when he went missing in the line of work. He knew all too well what that did to his wife, and he could only imagine what he would’ve done if his own daughter had been one of the employees taken. Suffice it to say, he doubted he would’ve handled it as well as Leann appeared to be doing!



Hearing Headmaster Aladdin Kazmi’s voice, Desiree reluctantly made her way from the dance floor toward the raised dais, still twirling as she went. Blink, blink. She stared at the man in confusion. She had soooo many questions, the most nagging of which was, why now? Couldn’t the explanation have waited until after the dance?!

The riddle had her even more confused! A few lines stood out to her. I roam these lonely sands… so something that lived in the desert? Guardian turned treasure… Did that mean a creature that guarded treasure or one that was regarded as a treasure? Or both? Maybe it was a creature that was considered lucky? Her thoughts immediately turned to dragons. She knew dragons were lucky in Chinese culture. Was there some kind of sand-dwelling dragon?

Remembering the last line of the riddle, Desiree’s mood turned from curiosity to worry. Shall we dance? Wait, did that mean whatever the answer to the riddle was, was coming here?! Nononononono, she didn’t want a “little vandal” that “writes upon your walls” here! What if it vandalized the dance? OR worse, what if it got everyone dirty? That would ruin everything! FIguring out the riddle was now the last thing on her mind. She A) didn’t know the answer, B) didn’t care, and C) didn’t want to be nearby if it made an appearance. Instinctively clutching her wand, she hid behind the tallest person she saw.

[Felixir]

When McLeod spoke, Kamran allowed the slightest hint of a smile, and half-raised his hand in a wave to return the greeting to Fox as he spoke. "I daresay you're right, Miss McLeod..." And for that matter... "And you, Mr McLeod." Half-right, when the enchanted chamber was factored in.

Well. As Kamran Kazmi was often fond of saying: no time like the present.

"Some degree of secrecy has been necessary until now..." Though their guest had apparently preferred mystery to outright secrecy. "... but I think it's high time we bring everything out into the open, don't you?"

With that, Kamran turned in the direction of the forest, stuck his forefinger and thumb into his mouth, and gave a shrill whistle. He looked back to the staff and students gathered just in time to notice one of the younger students ducking out of sight. "It's alright, Miss Marchand," he said, by way of reassuring the Hufflepuff and any others who might be a little... anxious. "You're all perfectly safe. You have our word."

[Sphinx of the Forest]

Ears (figuratively) twitched at the sound of the whistle, the signal that it was time to come out. With a gleeful laugh, the creature that waited in the forest rustled her way through the undergrowth and the trees, and sprinted towards the source of the whistle, in amongst the music and lights and colours.

Still outside of the pool of light, she could not yet be seen, but the pounding of paws on the ground announced an... enthusiastic approach.

[Felixir]

Hearing the tell-tale sign of approaching footsteps - pawsteps? - Kamran cleared his throat with a little cough, and gave his most basic explanation. Children plus creatures charging at them through the darkness had the potential to equal alarm.

"We've had her as our guest in the castle all year for her protection, as she was very young and without a mother. Rather vulnerable, you see, to those sought to steal or harm her." Aka, those who had already tried, but they didn't need to get into all that right now. "Now that she's a little older, she'll be staying in the forest and making it her home."

From what Kamran could tell, the creature was very happy with the decision. He gave a sideways glance towards the forest again and quickly stepped down from the dais.

[Sphinx of the Forest]

From the darkness and into the pool of light suddenly leapt... a big cat?

No, a sphinx. Still young - an adolescent, in sphinx years - but with all the elegance of a full grown counterpart as she landed gracefully and sprung up to the raised dais. She would no doubt grow to be somber and sophisticated, mysterious and enigmatic; right now her face was split into a wide, eager grin.

"Hello!"

[emjay]

Karleigh had been enjoying herself on the dance floor and was just about to head off for a drink of water when she heard the Headmaster speak. She was torn between heading towards the refreshment tables and listen as she walked since his voice was loud enough to carry or follow the crowd that had begun to gather around the raised dais. And since it wasn't that far and her curiosity was getting the better of her, she opted for the latter.

She knew about the locked door from back in the beginning of the term and had heard rumors about some students getting inside, but hadn't really delved too deeply into thinking about it. And she had no idea what this riddle was. Though the sand part got her thinking.. and perhaps the riddle itself, just being a riddle was... But before she could think any further, she thought she heard what sounded like running, getting closer.

"Does anyone hear that?" she spoke aloud, asking the collective group, though at the same time it was rhetorical. Karleigh peered into the darkness, trying to locate the source, when the creature finally came into view. Karleigh gasped. "A sphinx!" Wow, she had never had the opportunity to see on in real life... this was really amazing. And she was young from her appearance and from what the Headmaster just explained. Karleigh returned the smile that the young sphinx gave as well as the greeting. "Hi! Welcome to Hogwarts!"

[astrocat]

Ash's eyes widened. Seriously? This was... this was... REALLY COOL. She was so down with this! For once in her whole life, a good surprise. She'd never met a sphinx before... and this one wrote on walls! And was fun! "Hi!" She waved enthusiastically at the coolest sphinx she'd ever met.

Seriously, Ash was SO happy right now. She was not a big fan of the screaming noises, which reminded her of when she was locked in the room. But she did like writing on walls! And meeting people who didn't try to kill you! "Can we keep the wall writing and not get rid of it, Headmaster Kazmi?" Please?

This was like, the best year at Hogwarts ever.

[FearlessLeader19]

Aria shot cousin Freddie a grin. “I agree! I mean, for once something nice is happening at Hogwarts, isn’t it?’’ Her thoughts anyway but she would not be surprised if many gathered here agreed with her. She beamed at Kazmi who had agreed with her and Freddie’s earlier comments. The Slytherin wished the guest would reveal itself soon! Or was it herself or himself? Themselves? All she knew was that she didn’t want to offend it by saying the wrong thing! Aria’s ears perked up the second she heard the slap of something on the ground. Or was that the beat of the music?

OHHH! The guest was a ‘she’! Nice of the Headmaster to clear that up. The fifth year turned to look around and she spied a SPHINX! She squealed in delight and in welcome. “You’re MAJESTIC!!” Aria said, clearly in awe of the young creature.


Jude’s attention had been focused on Kazmi too much to notice that Desiree was hiding behind him. It wasn’t until the Headmaster mentioned her that Jude looked around and found her lurking behind him. “Hey, Desiree,’’ he said quietly, smiling at her at the same time. “It’s fine, you’re fine.” The older Hufflepuff held out a hand for her to take if she wanted to, and to let her know that she was safe with him.

His misgivings about all the writing left around in the School had finally faded because well, he trusted Kazmi one hundred percent. This guest couldn’t be dangerous since she had been living with them all this time and never harmed them. Jude wished he had caught a glimpse of her when she had trekked into the Hufflepuff common room. But that was okay; he could see her now, right? “I hear it,’’ he replied to Karleigh, tilting his head in the direction of the said sounds. And suddenly… a sphinx appeared before them! “WOAH! Hi, there!’’ He waved in delight. “Are we allowed to visit you?’’ he asked the sphinx before his gaze shifted to their Headmaster.

[MadAlice]

Tapio had been enjoying the dance greatly, but his attention turned to the dais when he heard the sound of the Headmaster's voice and he slowly made his way over there and stood in back, so as not to block anyone's view (though as the announcement went on, he did notice a student or two apparently using his tall form to hide behind, or so it seemed.

So, it was time to let the cat out of the bag--or the sphinx out of the forest, in this case. It was really about time, because Tapio didn't see how they could contain the young sphinx's desire to make an appearance much longer. He looked around, wondering if anyone had or would guess the answer from the riddles they'd seen or heard (and he thought that last one was rather good--the young creature was definitely improving rapidly from its earlier clumsy efforts). No one seemed to have stumbled on the truth before the spinx in question bounded out into their midst, seemingly glad to be the center of attention. Well, this was certainly a big finish for the dance, to be sure!

[Sphinx of the Forest]

"Hello!" the sphinx said again, still beaming. "Thank you!" She turned nimbly around once upon the dais and sitting down with her tufted tail wrapped neatly around her paws. Like a queen holding court.

Majestic. Oh yes. She liked that.

The writing! She spoke up again, interrupting whatever answer was coming. "Did you like my riddles? I only just got the hang of them. It's very boring in hiding, and I wanted to play." Still young, the violent nature that often went hand in hand with those riddles had not yet fully developed. Except for the walls. There had been violence against the walls, to write the riddles, but as the sphinx lacked the opposable thumbs to wield a quill...

The sphinx's eyes suddenly lit up. "Visit? Oh, I hope so." Wait. 'Forbidden' Forest? Undeterred, and not waiting for an official answer, she went on, "Or I can visit all of you."

[Felixir]

Kamran stepped away to allow the students and the sphinx to interact with each other, ending up beside Tapio and flashing him a satisfied smile. "I'd call that a success, overall," he said quietly, referring mostly to the situation with their new creature resident. The dance itself too, though he knew better than to risk speaking too soon there.

To Fox's question, Kamran considered for just a second, which was just long enough to be interrupted. Honestly. "I'll think about it, Miss Fox," he said, and he would.

Even when Anders spoke, Kamran was a little too slow off the mark before the sphinx beat him to it, and he cleared his throat. "I'm sure we can figure out some kind of arrangement, Mr Anders. Any visits into the forest will need to be supervised by staff of course, but I daresay we'll be seeing plenty of our new friend here in the future." She had, after all, been eager to, uh... play, and now she was mature enough to defend herself and not be kept secret, the isolation was no longer necessary either. Good times for all.

And an added security measure for Hogwarts in years to come, if they ever needed it.

[Watson]

All seemed well at the Refreshments Table so Simon headed towards the dais to stand near Tapio and observe the speech. He listened to the students as they posed questions and guesses with a wide amused grin plastered on his lips. And then their guest of honour appeared and he, even, clapped a little at her arrival. MacLeod’s comments did not go unnoticed by him. “It is nice,” he mentioned in return to the comment that nice things did happen at Hogwarts. They all needed something to lift their spirits.

Next his smile grew wider as he watched the young sphinx interact with the students enthusiastically. He couldn’t imagine being stuck in a room for quite some time. Boredom would have set in easily especially for one with a sphinx’s mind and thirst for knowledge.

[FearlessLeader19]

Being up in front and further away from Holden, the girl had not heard his comment of agreement. Indeed it was SOOO nice that good things were happening for a change. Mhmmm! Aria McLeod was still taken up with the sphinx. She could hardly tear her eyes away from the way in which the creature moved and carried herself. Such grace! Such elegance! If only the Slytherin could channel all of that, then she’d be Britain’s next top model for sure! Visit the sphinx? Aria would surely love that! She also wondered if this beauty had yet gotten a name. Surely she had? The fifth year wouldn’t like to go about calling her ‘the sphinx’ forever! “I liked your riddles!’’ she called. “And I hope you enjoy your stay in the Forest!”


Jude grinned when there was agreement from both Kazmi and the sphinx. “Whatever works!’’ he replied quite enthusiastically. It made sense that the students be chaperoned to the Forest if they were going to make a visit there. Visits would definitely make up for them not actually setting eyes on the creature up until now. For some reason, the Hufflepuff already really liked her; perhaps because she was a dance fan.

[MadMadamMalfoy]

Norman stood back, nonchalantly watching the scene unfold around him. Only when he heard the sound of pattering paws did his blue-green eyes dart in the direction of the sound, just in time to see the young sphinx leap out of the shadows and onto the dais. He returned the sphinx’s greeting with a polite nod, though he remained quiet for now to allow the students more time for interaction.

Kazmi’s description of the creature got a slight smile from him. Young and without a mother…that reminded him of someone he knew, a certain red-haired YATI. Something else that reminded him a lot of Normandie? The sphinx’s enthusiasm and friendly interaction with the students. As he watched, he vaguely wondered what would happen if the sphinx and his daughter ever interacted with each other. Maybe he could ask the sphinx if she’d be willing to speak to her over a two-way mirror, at some point later of course. For the time being, there were more important matters, like that of supervised visits to the Forbidden Forest.

Overhearing the sphinx then later Anders and Kazmi mention visits, Norman nodded in agreement, “I’d be glad to help supervise a few visits,” he offered.



Desiree blinked, unsure what to make of Headmaster Aladdin Kazmi’s reassurance. It wasn’t that she doubted him, but perfectly safe and perfectly clean were two different things. Whatever was coming could still wreck her outfit without being actually dangerous. That kind of thing happened all the time in classes! Nope, she’d worked too hard on her Belle dress to have it ruined! Just in case, she was staying right here, at least until she had more time to assess the situation, though she did return Jude’s smile with a slightly shaky one of her own as she took his hand.

Her heart beat faster as she heard the pounding sound. She cautiously peered around Jude to see what looked like a giant cat jump out of nowhere, and she had to stifle a gasp. As she got a better look at the creature, she saw that it wasn’t just a cat. It was a sphinx! Ooh… she’d never seen a real sphinx before, only in books! She was so beautiful - and she seemed friendly too!

Finally lured out of hiding by her curiosity, Desire took a small step closer. “Wow… you’re really pretty!” she said with a smile. Then, remembering her manners, she blushed slightly and added, “Hello! I’m Desiree. What’s your name?” Was that the polite thing to say to a sphinx?

[emjay]

So the sphinx was going to be staying in the Forbidden Forest? Karleigh glanced first at Jude when he asked if they could visit, then towards the Headmaster as she'd like to know the answer too. Well, she hoped they could visit anyway, but it was promising to know that they'd see more of the young sphinx. She was so friendly and lovely; Karleigh instantly liked her. She loved creatures of all kinds, but this was really something special.

She was just about to ask her if she had a name when that younger girl beat her to the punch. But there was plenty else she could ask, though she wasn't sure if it would feel too much like an interrogation. "I'd like to come visit you too, if that's okay," she let the sphinx know, before adding, "My name's Karleigh." And if the sphinx didn't have a name yet, maybe they could help her come up with one.