OOC: Unless otherwise indicated, your character's response and answers should be roleplayed and posted in this thread rather than PMed to the round host.

The Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures
Hosted by: Tailzinator

Chad was a little nervous as he stood at the front of the room. This was his first time speaking to a LARGE group of people and he was afraid that his English was still not as well established as he hoped it would be. Reagan was trying her best, but his brain just didn’t want to learn.
With his hands safely tucked into his pockets, Chad finally opened his mouth and started to teach his lesson.

“Bonjour, my friends, and welcome to the fourth floor, department for the regulation and control of magical creatures. For those of you who do not know me, I am Chad Stryker, the department head. Creatures of all sorts are around us. Just take a look at my office. I cannot even pour a cup of coffee without a kitten or a kneazle trying to steal a sip out of my cup.” He gave a gentle chuckle. Eh. So far, so good!

“Not all creatures are cute and cuddly though. In fact, some can even be the complete opposite. Dangerous. Vicious. Something you would definitely not want in your household. And, I am not talking about the ‘eat your favourite cereal while you’re not looking’ kind of creature.” He finally pulled his hands out of his pockets.

“Creatures can even be mysterious. Ghosts and Poltergeists can be regarded as one of the most mysterious creatures within our world. They can walk through walls, move stuff, hide when they do not want to be seen, and make havoc when they’re feeling playful.

“But, there are differences that set the two apart and it is important to understand these two complex creatures...” Chad snapped his fingers and some writing appeared on a chalkboard just behind him:

GHOSTS

Text Cut: Info. under here

A soul or spirit of a deceased person
Capable of appearing in visible form
Semi-transparent, non-corporeal being
Manifestations of ghosts can vary from full body form to wisps or even invisibility
Are usually described to “haunt” a location that have had particular meaning to that person before death
Wizards may only become a ghost if they choose that path before death – enter a state between living and dead
May pass through walls, cannot eat, cannot lift objects
You will feel a chill over your body when walking through a ghost
EXAMPLE: The four Hogwarts ghosts

POLTERGEISTS

Text Cut: Info. under here

Can also be seen as “indestructible spirit of chaos”
Solid looking, not transparent, but can be invisible
Makes presence through making noise and moving items
EXAMPLE: Peeves of Hogwarts and the 2059/2060 Case at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Now, if you feel confident enough that you know how to distinguish the two, it is time to put it to the test! Go on and head out into the world!” With a smile, Chad waves them off and then reaches for his mug of coffee. He had a feeling he was going to go through quite a few of these today...

**NOTE: All points on ghosts are from HP Lexicon & Wikipedia

***

You have entered a narrow, dingy hallway. Its dark, its creepy, and the walls are a little slimy. There's a door at the end of the hallway - could that be the way out? You should probably start to head to it and get out of this scary place as quick as possible.

A little ways down, you notice there's a patch of floor that is a little shiny. Almost a little too shiny? Hmm, do you chance been risky and stepping on it or you care do avoid it? There seems to be some sort of...sticky substance, like adhesive...

After a little bit more walking, you approach the area where an invisible trick line has been set up. Have a nice trip?

You're probably feeling frustrated by now, but you should keep on your way. If you choose to keep going, you head down the hallway a little more....you're SO CLOSE! And then...tennis balls start flying at you from any direction! What in the world!? What do you do?

And then, a sudden chill fills over the hall way and the figure of a woman appears in front of you! She appears to be rather solid looking and is watching you with amusement. She seems to be enjoying your struggles. In fact, she holds another tennis ball in her hand.

Quickly name the type of spirit standing before you: ghost or poltergeist? Answer right and she will let you pass unharmed. Answer wrong and...well, I hope you have you good dodging skills.

Finally, his department. Things could only get better from here, right?

He listed well to his department head. He hid his displeasure at the mention of how many cats and kneazles were around the place. And then... it was about ghosts and poltergeists. Lovely... Then it was time to carry on.

Dark and creepy hallways currently reminded him of vampires, blood, and Goya. Was someone purposefully torturing him? Or did Cassandra pull some strings somewhere to make him feel more like his old self. She never let him be Drago with her. She never let him escape his past, even if she didn't know that what she was doing.

He saw something shiny and was instantly reminded of the devil's trap. He looked up to the ceiling to be sure, but still avoided the shiny area. Closer, however, it looked somewhat thick. What in the world? He took care to look at everything. The walls, the ceiling, the fl-- And then he was down. He pushed himself up a little and looked back. His foot was caught on something he couldn't see. Lovely. He gave himself a once-over to make sure he didn't have any scratches or scrapes... though one would think the burn scars on his hands would have made him give up on his appearance.

With a groan he continued on. Then, there was an odd sound and something was coming at him. He dodged it the best he could, though he was a large man in a small hallway. He knew the next wouldn't be so easy. Or... the next five? In a quick move his wand was in his hand and he had a sheilding spell in place. As well as it worked, it wasn't in all directions, and the ricochets made their way around... as well as ones coming from somewhere he couldn't discern. He put his wand away and just settled for keeping an arm up and his head down so none hit him in the face.

Then... there was a woman. Holding a tennis ball. He growled lightly... "Poltergeist." You might think he had something against them.

ooc: this isn't the same one that's been around the floor, is it?

Benjamin entered the room and sighed. His worst subject. Magical Creatures. Thankfully, they won't have to be wrestling Blast ended skrewts so Ben felt a little relieved, but still a little nervous. So, once again listened to instructions, noting the differences between poltergeists and ghost, and then, it was time for the challenge.

Benjamin entered the hallway and quickly lit his wand up to see clearer. He noticed a shiny substance on the ground. When in doubt, get around it. Ben leaped over the substance hoping not to touch whatever it was.

Benjamin made sure to check in front of him, the walls, floor, and ceiling before stomping in front of him and then taking a few steps before repeating. Eventually, he stomped and heard something snap. it was an invisible line.

As Benjamin made his way to the end, he decided to send something at the door. Something that might set off any more traps. "Avis!" Ben said conjuring birds. "Apugno!" they went at the door, and before he knew it, they were pelted by tennis balls.Ben cringed a little as he approached the door only to feel a chill in his body.

When the woman appeared Ben knew exactly what he had to do based on the lesson. The difference between a ghost and a poltergeist. All the traps were hand made, and there was a chill when she appeared. But there is a tiny difference that makes the point. "Hello... Poltergeist," he said to her. "How are you? I'm Ben... And... I need to get by." He hada 50/50 shot at it, he hopes he was right.

Walking into the room Skander decided that he was definitely psyched for this challenge. It didn't really appear like it would be too hard with the instructions that they were given. Hopefully it wasn't too hard anyway.

Walking down the corridor and trying to avoid all the icky substances Skander jumped over the puddles, glad that he had a good sense of balance. Now for the trip line. Stepping over it Skander finally came to the end of the line where he started to get tennis balls thrown at him. This wasn't fun.

Dodging as much as he could he was relieved when the thing finally appeared. Taking in the appearance Skander confidently proclaimed his answer. "It's a Poltergeist." he was sure of it and now all he had to do was wait.

Turning in the key Becca had handed her, Marina stepped into the next room. She was, thankfully, just in the nick of time - it looked like Mr. Stryker was just getting ready to speak.

She listened to him in silence, giving a little nod, every now and then - ghosts and poltergeists, she knew a little too well. That sort of knowledge came almost naturally, when you were an Unspeakable. Especially an Unspeakable heading the Death Chamber, at the Ministry.

Then it was time for the real challenge to begin, and Marina stepped into the hallway. It was not exactly the nicest place to be, and she was not too happy that she was wearing brand-new robes. But no worries. What does not kill us, makes us stronger, does it not?

She began to head towards the door at the very end of the hallway - and paused. What was this, on the floor? It seemed like some sticky substance. Not one to trust whatever was down there - or one to want her clothes dirty - she avoided it. But she had no time to be glad she had been able to step over it, without getting her heels stuck, or something - because half a minute later, she had tripped over what was supposedly an invisible trick line. It could not be anything else. Could it?

Ah, well.

She shook her head, glad that she had been able to regain her balance, before she could fall headfirst, on to the floor. That would just have been nasty, and she might have gotten a bruise, what with the dark and all. But, of course, she had little time to think further, on this matter -- next thing she knew, a tennis ball had thwacked her, on the forehead. Marina took a step backwards, and another tennis ball followed.

Then quite a solid-looking thing appeared in front of her, and Marina knew what it was, at once -- the 'appearance' clearly possessed the ability to lift and move objects. "Poltergeist," she said, almost to herself. Would the spirit allow her to get by?

Point to ponder, maybe?

Ronan was mildly interested in this task as his wife had been an employee of this department when they had first met. He noted carefully the differences between the poltergeist and a ghost and nodded to Mr Stryker as he entered into the hallway.

His eyes adjusted to the low lighting and Ronan looked around before noticing the slimy walls. Something brushed against the hem of his pants and the young man looked down to see a tripped wire he had set off.

Suddenly, a speeding tennis ball breezed past his head. The young man ducked out of instinct looking around for any other sort of object that might try to hit him. He covered his face so that none would injure him too badly, forgetting that he did own a wand and could deflect the objects if he wanted. Standing up, Ronan breathed heavily as he surveyed the area. He felt goose bumps rise on his skin with the decrease in temperature and looked around in alarm for the cause of it. There, floating before him was a grinning woman with a tennis ball in her hand.

'Perhaps she is able to control the temperature of the room?' Ronan wondered as he studied the smiling woman. "What are you going to do with that tennis ball there, Poltergeist?" he demanded to know, standing determined in his spot glaring at the floating figure as if daring her to throw the ball at him.

Erik opened the door to the other room expecting another puzzle only to find a very creepy room. Looking around a shiver came up his back. The place was just creepy. Why did things have to be creepy. He walked carefully down the hall careful not to touch...anything. Who knew what was what. Keeping his hands snuggly in his pockets he found himself falling as he tripped over something. Catching himself he took a deep breath and looked around. Well this was bound to be difficult.

Pushing himself up he headed down the hallway again straightening out his shirt. As he made his way down he ducked as something flew over his head. "What is it and people throwin' things at me head?" he said irritably and ducked a few more balls. He kept walking, ducking balls here and there until he felt the temperature drop rapidly. Looking up he spotted the cause of the mayhem. Solid looking...moving objects..no doubt of what it was. "A Poltergeist eh?" He stood his ground and eyed the creature. He hated ghosts and poltergeists they freaked him out and a part of him wanted to run and hide. Gathering all of his strength he stayed there and cleared his throat, "I'd like to pass if that's alright with ye."

Inserting the key he had been given by Becky, Darius strolled into the next room to be greeted by his department head. Ah now we're talking he thought as he crossed his arms, a true honest smile on his face as he listened carefully to what Mr. Styker had to say. He didn't know about the kittens and kneazles, he hadn't had the pleasure of seeing any, but he did know about the messes they left.

Shuddering at that memory he nodded, all they had to do was that? Simple enough he'd be out of here before the next hurried owl came for him. Striding towards the door he grinned as he walked through and blinked. Ew, disgusting he thought, his mind going to strange ominous places. He almost expected a vampire or ghoul to come popping out of the walls, until he shook his head. Walking a little further in he noticed the slimy walls and scowled moviong on and stopping at the wet slippery substance on the ground.

Skittering the wall, he moved past it and was feeling confident he suddenly found himself on the ground, his knees throbbing painfully. Looking behind him he scowled again as he noticed the trip wire. Well it worked he thought, he had tripped. Glad that his department head hadn't seen that, Darius moved on, ever aware that something might happen. The door was so close he could almost reach out and lick it but the next thing he knew he had been hit in the back of the head by something.

Whirling around, his wand in his hand thanks to the flicking motion of his wrist he looked out through the somewhat darkness, his eyes adjusting nicely and blinked. A tennis ball? Oh great, just what he needed, exercise. Ducking another tennis ball he hugged the wall, weaving and blocking the barrage of balls feeling some hit him in the back and chest. He was being made a fool of, that was not good at all.

Stopping to take a break he watched as a woman appeared before him, looking very solid. She smiled charmingly at him as she held... another tennis ball? Smiling at her he said, "Hello madam Poltergeist may I get through please?" in a charming voice. Two could play at this game. And hey, if it didn't work he knew a few spells.

As Lucia made it to the next room, she was rather delighted to finally take part in the magical creatures challenge. And it was about Ghosts and Poltergeists too. Even better. She worked in this department and it would be pretty embarrassing if she failed. With a confident step, she walked through into the hallway, glancing around at the dark and dingy place.

A little further down the gloomy hallway, Lucia noticed a thick, slimy substance on the floor and she raised an eyebrow. She wasn't particulary sure about what it was and decided to avoid it completely and carried on down the hall. She glanced back at the curious spillage on the floor, then tripped over something in front of her. She gasped then fell flatly on her front. Oh this is ridiculous, an invisible line? Once she had stood up and shook off from that fall, she felt something smack her straight on the head. "Ow!" It could of been enough to knock her to the ground again.

"What the -" She said to herself as more tennis balls flew at her. She opened her eyes slowly as the balls eventually stopped pelting towards her and saw a figure in front of her. It was a rather solid figure of a woman who looked particulary amused with another tennis ball in her hand.

"A Poltergeist." She stated, catching her breath. "Hello there, may I come by?" She asked politely to the creature. She was pretty sure that it was a Poltergeist. If it wasn't then she would have to think quickly on her feet to dodge this tennis ball equipped creature.

The air was thick with foreboding. Prometheus’ very breathe felt thin, the tension in the hallway was so high-strung, one step felt like it was shattered the air. The oozing walls sent shivers down his spine, as if it was the devil’s xylophone. Curiosity took hold, and Prometheus could not help but touch the walls, wanting to see what this slimy substance was, the information in the previous room was enough to help him give a wild guess; spectral ooze. Wiping the slime onto his trousers, Prometheus ventured on.

Moving as silently and as light footed as possible, Prometheus made his way down the hall, with his hand hover over his wand holster, like some magical cowboy. With the next step, the floor came rushing to meet Prometheus was he tripped over some invisible protection spell. However using his gymnastic style ability he turned his fall into a combat roll, landing on this foot with his wand drawn. Before him was a lady, alone in the darkness, but before Prometheus had time to open his mouth to ask a question, a bombardment of tennis ball began to pommel him into submission. Once the deluge stopped he was able to make out the woman.

She stood there, a wicked grin etched into her face, slowly bouncing one of the tennis balls in her hand, a demon laugh left her lips and all Prometheus needed to say was one word; “Poltergeist".

Now, if she understood this correctly and actually knew where she was, than that meant...she was on her floor! Oh the relief! This alone gave her quite a bit more confidence. Since she worked on this level, that meant she would be better at whatever this challenge was right? Well, technically no, but it helped to calm her nerves to think that. Seeing Mr. Stryker, Lilah smiled (for one since she knew someone's name), and moved to the back while listening to him speak. Well, it really was a good thing she did read all those books on ghosts and poltergeist that she had bought for no reason.

Making her way into the hallway, wondering if this was either created for the task thing, or it had been here all this time, Lilah stopped and took out her wand. It was light enough where she could see barely, but she just wanted to be sure just in case she needed it, and possibly feel safe at the same time. Eesh, this place was worse then the Department of Mysteries. At least in the creepy factor it was. Moving forward however, she stared straight ahead so she wouldn't have to look at the walls, or even think about where she was going- THUD.

Errrr, perhaps she should've been looking where she was walking as well. Gasping, finding herself flat on the floor, she rolled to her side, looking to the front and back of the hallway to see if she could spot what tripped her. Didn't seem like there was anything out of the ordinary. But, no wait. Looking down at her shoe, she noticed her shoelace seemed to be floating. Whaaat? Frowning, hoping that it wasn't her eyesight going back or it was just her about to have a panic attack, she reached forward to see what it was when... THWACK!

Seriously?! Just...really. Tripping and falling to the ground, and now something hitting the back of her head. Hearing what sounded to be little bounces echoing off the walls, Lilah turned her head to see what exactly had hit her. A tennis ball? What? Frowning she slowly stood up, her eyes widening at each passing second. Oh dear... "Evanesco!" she said, pointing her wand at the oncoming flood of tennis balls. Well, most of them disappeared. EEK!

Covering her head, feeling a few of the little green yellow horrors hitting her side and arms, when they stopped, Lilah peaked under her arm to see where they came from. Who was that? For a split second, the icy blue eyed woman involuntarily shivered, not really recognizing that the hallway seemed to decrease in temperature. That...woman...better not through that tennis ball at her! Pssh. She probably would...

"Poltergiest." she muttered to herself, narrowing her eyes and raising her wand slightly. Yea, she was ready if there was any throwing stuff at her!

Laura entered the next task room and this had got to do with the Creatures Department.Laura took a deep breath and looked at the man who introduced himself as Mr.Stryker.Mr.Stryker himself was looking very nervous as her.
Listening to him Laura nodded and took note of everything that he wrote on the board.
As he was done with his talk Laura nodded slightly and turned to enter the narrow hallway.
It was dingy and creepy and slimy and
yuck Laura thought.
As she began to walk through the narrow hallway she felt it to be a bit colder then the room she was prior in
maybe because it is so closed and dingy she thought.
As she continued to walk she found a door at the end of the hallway slightly open.She began to increase her pace so that she could get away from the dingy and creepy place as fast as possible.

But as she was walking she almost stepped on to what looked like a shiny part of the floor.
Gasping and holding on to the wall side by Laura stood there and took a deep breath.The shiny part was weird looking and she didnt want to try and step on it and see what might happen. She took her hand off the wall and then
yuck she thought again as she felt it all slimy.

Carefully stepping over the shiny part making sure that even a small tiny part of her heel doesnt touch it Laura crossed the shiny part of the floor properly.
As she walked she looked behind to have another look at the shiny peice of floor when something struck her leg and
BAM she fell flat on her face
ow... she exclaimed as she fell on the floor and tried to get up
what the hell was that? she asked out to no one in particular and looked at the floor for any sort of crevices that might have led her to fall,but she didnt find any.

Getting up Laura dusted her dress and then began her way down the hallway again and just then she felt sudden chillness and she looked around. But she couldnt find anyone.She looked back to see if the source was behind her and just then a green/yellow flash passed by her.
what? she exclaimed in her head and turned around to see few more such green/yellow balls coming her way. She dodged them and then saw a solid looking woman floating by in front of her with a tennis ball in her hand.
Laura looked at her for minute at the wickedly smiling woman almost forgetting what she had to do and then it struck her.She had to find out who this person was, a ghost or a politergist.
Laura looked at the solid figure,holding the tennis ball creating havoc and she voiced her answer
Poltergiest

Rinatta used the key Mrs. Lee had bestowed upon her and opened the door. A smile washed across her face, Level Four a place she had gotten to know well during the time she had spent here and it had grown on her. Walking into her level after all the others felt like coming home in a way, that fuzzy feeling of relief and security. She gave Mr. Stryker a warm smile as she saw him and let him speak.

He was definetly right about the cats and kneazles....drink your coffee on you or make you spill it on your employee... Monsieur Stryker was definitely right about the variance of creatures, Rin had seen many and some could be rather unsavory. Though most she found to be of the cute and cuddly variety in her book, whether considered dangerous by most or not, like dragons. Dragons are so adorable. When he mention that he didn't mean the ' eat your cereal when you aren't looking variety' she had to hold back a giggle. Her boss could be so cute and funny. Did he know that he was? She loved having Mr. Stryker as Department Head.

As soon as he spoke of mysterious creatures Rin's ears perked up and she got to wondering, but then her queries were answered. Ghosts and poltergists, did he know that she would make it here? Ah, the moving and throwing objects was still very fresh in her mind. The book upside her head namely, Mr. Stryker might remember that too. She had just finished handling a poltergist not too long ago and already at it again. This division was certainly keeping her busier than the previous one. She smiled at Chad again began down the hallway indicated.

The hallway was dingy and......slimy? Eh, nothing like spectral ooze in the morning. She walked down a little ways and saw a shiny spot. It looked preternaturally shiny to her and she thought it best to avoid it. She carefully stepped sideways to avoid the spot. As she moved a little further something hit her ankle and she yelped as she was sent forward. She caught herself by bracing one hand on the slimy wall..eww..and one on the floor. After she righted herself she looked back to see what she had tripped on...a wire? These shoes may be the death of me yet. She walked a little ways further, gripping her wand tightly. What next? she thought, but soon found an answer as a tennis ball went whirring past her. She immediately cast a shield charm and found herself dodging. "Arresto Momentum!" she cast and watched the tennis balls slow, thankfully, and was able to avoid them. That had to be it right? Nope. A certain chill filled the small, dingy hallway and she sighed lightly, knowing what that meant. Looking ahead, there stood a relatively solid-looking woman before her, holding yet another tennis ball and looking amused. More poltergeist? "Am I going to be seeing poltergeist everyday now?" she asked no one in particular while looking at the specteral woman before her.

DH walked through the doors of the fourth floor and he listened to Mr. Chad Stryker giving the intro to the next level. He nodded a little and smiled when the Magical Creatures Department Head said the "‘eat your favorite cereal while you’re not looking’ kind of creature".

He had experience with the creatures himself. Especially with a bestiary at home where his mom store all he spoils of creatures from his father. But they are all well-trained, knowing his mother.

He then listened carefully and paid attention to the ghost and poltergeist explanation given and then reminisced. They got ghost back home. So he know clearly what are they. And he had been in Hogwarts, so he know pretty much what a Poltergeist can do.

After listening, he walked down the hallway where a familiar stench he knew. It looks like a hallway to a dungeon or something. Aha! It looks like the dungeon from his best friend's place the first time they got punished by the latter's folks for causing trouble. They had to clean the stuff. Oh well, that was not his happiest thoughts, but the coolest. he thought.

But then he got a gut feeling that he needed his wand so he drew out his good ol' stick and pointed it towards the front direction where he is heading. All of a sudden, tennis balls came flying towards him. He yelled, "Protego" he said blocking every tennis ball as he walk straight forward.

He then saw a lady holding more tennis balls. "Great throw, Lady Poltergeist. But the fun stops here. So, can you please let me through?" he said aiming the wand at her, in case she will go berserk again.

Following the Department of Mysteries man, now that he knew that was what he was from his conversation with the woman running the last challenge, Dorian nodded as he listened to the explanation the department head of Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures was giving, as per what they'd be facing in the next challenge. Chad Stryker, he mentally filed away, just on the odd chance he'd need to know the names of the heads. It never hurt, and he was intrigued by the faint foreign-ness of the man. French, he decided. Perhaps his previous travels were more of an advantage than he'd thought, even though he still wished the reason for them was different.

Pushing thoughts of his lost fiancee to the back of his mind again, he arched an eyebrow at the possibility they would be faced by either a ghost or poltergeist. Neither one really scared him, not after what he'd experienced in life. So this would be interesting.

Moving into the hallway indicated, he paused at the entry for a second to let his eyes adjust to the dim light. Sometimes, and especially when he didn't know what he was facing, wand light would just hinder him. This was better, and besides, he'd have his wand more readily available if other spells were needed. Walking forward as he deemed his eyesight wasn't going to get any better, he scanned everything around him in only semi-feigned suspicion. he didn't know what he was facing, and he didn't want to slip up. Sticking to the center of the hallway as he noted the slimy walls, he paused again as his continually moving eyes took in a shiny spot on the floor. The odds of the rogue mops from two challenges back having stopped in here were slim, so he skirted around the area. Caution was the advantage here.

Moving back to the center of the hallway, he paused again as he saw a faint line crossing the pathway. Trip line, he thought, stepping over it carefully. He didn't want another incident like two challenges earlier, when he ended up on the floor. Continuing to walk as he left the trip line behind him, he ducked as a tennis ball came out of nowhere to speed at his head. Slipping his wand out as even more mysterious tennis balls zoomed around, several bounced off him before he spoke. "Impedimenta," he cast, successfully stopping at least a few of them as he kept moving, ignoring the thuds of the rest of the balls making contact with his sides and back. The pain was nothing. He'd survive. And as a chill entered the area several feet before he reached the door, he raised an eyebrow again, pausing. Obviously something was happening.

When a woman appeared in front of him, holding another tennis ball, he stood his ground, lips quirking up into a half-smile at the amusement on her face. "I'm happy you seem to be enjoying this, my good madam poltergeist," he said calmly, slipping the hand that wasn't still holding his wand into his pocket. Withdrawing it again, he revealed the shrunken pygmy puff toy. "Perhaps I could trade you for the tennis ball? Or simply leave you with a little gift?" Yes, she was obviously blocking his way out, and just as obviously was the one who had set all the traps that had left him with more faint bruises. But flattery was always a better route than threats, even with dealing with spectral beings.

With this one there were only five challenges left to go. Which was...still a lot. An annoying lot. Upon entering the next room Michel's eyes widened a little in surprise as the man in charge of the challenge spoke up. Bonjour? The man was French? Somehow this comforted him a little. This challenge could not be as bad as the last ones. Why, he did not know, but the man was French after all.

...that was until it became clear which department he worked for. Oh no, Magical Creatures? Did they have to work with Blast-Ended Skrewts? Hopefully not...though a few moments later Michel hoped that they would have had to work with Blast-Ended Skrewts. Ghosts? Poltergeists? This highly suggested dark, scary castles and/or corridors. Shudder.

...and it did. "Lumos Maxima!" The 29 year old muttered, anxiety clearly obvious in his voice as he entered the barely lit corridor. Involuntarily shivering he moved forward hesitantly, swearing under his breath once again. Why did he have to bear something like that? For the Minister, yes, thank you very much. He gripped his wand tightly as he took another few steps forward. The reward for this better be good...

As his eyes fell on something glowing in the dark Michel stopped dead in his tracks...was it-? Though, upon taking a closer look he recognized it as a sticky, shiny substance which did not exactly look as if it was any good to step on it. Well, at least it wasn't a ghost...

He carefully moved around the shiny patch on the floor, anxiously glancing over his shoulder in case there was something there which would attack him from behind. All of a sudden Michel whirled around, his eyes wide with fear. What was that?! Though, as he moved the beam of light erupting from his wand behind him, he could not see anything which could be any danger to him. Without turning around he slowly took another step forward - cold sweat on his forehead - and was just about to turn his head back when...

SMACK!

...he landed face-first on the floor. A red stream of light shot out of his wand automatically as he sent a Stunner at whatever had made him trip. His heart was beating so hard that he feared it would jump out of his chest. What was going on?! After a few minutes of simply lying there on the floor as if paralyzed the 29 year old slowly raised his head to look ahead, to face whatever was attacking him. To face...err...nothing? He frowned at the nothingness ahead of him as he quickly got up off the floor. What the hell?!

He hugged himself, shivering, and carefully moved on. Hopefully this corridor ended soon...hopefully this challenge ended soon. Hopefully- "Arrgh!" A number of French swear-words escaped his mouth as he automatically ducked and sent a spell at the approaching object. As it blew up before him he noticed another one coming at him...another tennis ball? It was only then that he saw a woman...a scary woman who was apparently throwing the tennis balls at him. It was a Poltergeist. He KNEW it was a Poltergeist. To SAY it was a Poltergeist was something totally different though. It was as if he could not get his mouth to form words anymore.

Michel stared at the Poltergeist in shock, subconsciously blowing up the tennis balls without his eyes ever leaving the woman. "I-it-it's a-a-a-a Polter-a Poltergeist." He finally stuttered, another shiver running down his spine. Could he leave now? Pleeeeeeeeeeease?

Pippa had skipped the ENTIRE way from Becca's challenge to this one, and in she continued to skip into the place, only coming to a stop when the person she presumed was Heading this challenge began to speak. Animals? Oh ... how fantastic. The only animals she could really deal with was her Labrador Aero. They weren't going to be expected to handle some freaky looking poop dropping animals, right? ERK.

Alas, much to her happiness, they weren't. Which pleased her ... but still. Ghosts and poltergeists? Maybe she did prefer the poop dropping animals, they could be nice right? And she knew poltergeists and ghosts were EVIL. EEEEVIL. Hmpfh.

But off the blonde went, her ponytail bobbing up and down as the spring in her step ceased to fade away. Oh grrrreat, it was like a dark hallway. Wasn't that fantastic. It was okay, she ate A LOT of carrots, so she was good. They could make you see in the dark alright, yeah? After a few second of standing at the entrance, the hallway lightened up to her eyes and she beamed. Good ol' carrots. Little did she know, it hadn't been all that dark in the first place, but she was going to praise the carrots till she went to her grave. Yummy orange carrots.

Right. Back on track. With a look back at that board behind the Department Head, Pippa seat off down the hallway, eyes feverishly up, down, right left, in the back of her head, and all over again. She had caught sight of the slimy walls and decided then to keep her focus on the floor and the ceiling.

Her steps now lost the bounce they had had at the beginning and she was now almost tiptoeing her way carefully down the hallway, eyes still dancing up and down every few seconds. Best to be careful, rather than sorry right?

Or so she was going to keep thinking.

Her eyes caught sight of something on the floor a few feet away but she dismissed it, until of course she was within one whole foot away from whatever it was. And whatever it was, she certainly wasn't going to be treading in that. No way was she risking it. So she edged round it, making sure she didn't get too close to the wall, it was kinda icky, so she didn't reeeeally want to do that either. As soon as she was atleast 5 feet from whatever it had been, Pippa did a full 360 degree turn, to check there was nothing behind her at that moment, and then continued, her tiptoe steps once more guiding her along the hallway.

The grip on her wand tightened a bit as her eyes darting from left to right this time, how wrong was she to look there and not keep her eyes on the floor or ceiling. It took about 2 seconds for her to finally just land on the floor after doing a forward roll over what had tripped her and she immediately sighed, before pulling herself up from the floor and glaring down at the trip-wire. "This is your fault, why were you invented?" Guh. They were so annoying, no doubt she was probably dirty now, and more than likely was she probably bruised somewhere. Hopefully it wasn't a visible bruise.

This was WAR. Whatever it was, had made her do a front roll. Something she had vowed not to do after that gymnastics class when she was 6. That vow? ...was now broken.

Her wand grip tightened and there went something.. Through the air ... straight at her left arm. "Why you- OW." How ... RUDE? Hmpfh. "Protego!" She cast quickly , holding the shield in place as more tennis balls bounced off it, obviously aimed at her. "Bloody things. Cause more pain than fun." She muttered bitterly, vowing there and then not to ever buy one for her nephew. No. She did not deserve bruises that big.

It was then that the figure of a woman stood before her, and Pippa laughed at the way she looked amused at her pain. "Was my forward roll funny to you, poltergeist?" Because it hadn't been to her. "I'd try footballs next time. Tennis balls don't cause as much pain." She laughed again, keeping her shield in place as she watched the figure of them woman. Now she was gonna let her past right? Oh pretty please?

Differences between ghosts and poltergeists seemed to be pretty easy however he did not know what was waititng for him in the next room and especially when it concerned ghosts or poltergeists it was way harder to make any guesses.

Once the head for Magical Creatures department finished his speech, Ryan walked in the next room, slowly stepping into the darkness. He did not like darkness so as he looked around he got a hold of his wand murmuring ''Lumos''. When the weak light at the tip of his wand illuminated the place a little, the man decided that this place was definintely not suitable for an enjoyable experience.

Hopefully there was a door at the end of the creepy corridor, however since the place looked too empty with nothing extraordinary except that little shiny thing on the floor. The man stepped towards it and examined the substance. It looked like somebody had spilt some potion here. He was not sure which potion that was, the only thing he could decide that he was definitely not going to step on it.

So, he jumped over the shiny substance but tripped afterwards. What was going on? Was that a trap? Managing his balance with difficulty, he examined the floor a little but could see nothing. What was wrong with his observing skills and what was wrong with this place? Where were the ghosts?

Trying to ignore the fact that he had started to feel more annoyed as he spent more and more minutes in this place, the man halted in a sudden when a tennis ball flew over his head then he felt an instant coldness. Finally. Frowning a little he casted a nonverbal shield charm to avoid the balls and eyed the figure of the woman before him. ''A Poltergeist''

After culling important information and instructions from the department head, Chris already made his way to the actual challenge. As he entered a rather spooky hallway, he felt nothing but a little chill right in the back of his neck. He touched it and felt its hairs moved; oh, he thought he was having some goosebumps.

Well, a brave, valiant man like he could never ever be scared of any ghosts nor poltergeists neither. He'd finish the challenge soon, yeah he would and he should. He ambled toward the door at the end of the hallway, he knew by his own instincts that that would be the way out.

Okay so far, he wasn't facing any troubles yet. He continued walking while carefully avoiding a patch of the floor which was looking a bit shiny. He was getting nearer and nearer but oh, what the--!?

He dodged from any tennis balls flying on his direction. He was thankful that he had really good dodging skills and that was because he was physically fit and constantly vigilant. And then, unsurprisingly, a woman who looked solid appeared in front of him and she seemed to be liking what was happening to him right now and or the difficulties he was facing. He knew now what she is.

"Poltergeist, now let me pass." He uttered with an air of pure authority.

Samuel entered the room, and it was only when the Department Head started to talk that he realized this was for the Magical Creatures Department. OHH, Sarah worked on this level! Hehe. He would finally get to see what kind of stuff his best friend got to do at work. Staying near the door, he listened closely as the Department Head explained what the difference was between a Ghost and...a Poltergeist, blehhh. Thinking about a Poltergeist reminded him of Peeves and that Poltergeist's pranks back in his school years.

He WAS feeling confident that he could tell these two apart, so he headed on right through the door to the challenge.

This was just a tiny bit creepy, but that didn't stop him continuing down the hallway! He only stopped walking when he noticed something shiny on the floor. Hmm, what was that? It did look sticky. After staring at it for a few moments, he decided to just carry on and just avoid stepping on the shiny thing. It could be a trap for all he knew.

A few seconds after he passed the shiny substance, he found himself lying face down on the ground. He was going to be feeling THAT fall in the morning, that was for sure. Standing up, he looked around for the source of his fall, but saw nothing. He assumed it was an invisible line or something like that. Shrugging it off, he continued on his way down the corridor.

Then...

WHAM!

A tennis ball hit on the forehead. WHAT THE HECK?! He so wanted to flail his arm at the moment, but that wouldn't be manly at alllll. Instead, he remained calm as another tennis ball hit him in the stomach. He quickly pulled out his wand, and he nonverbally casted a shield around him. Whoever was throwing tennis balls at him couldn't hit him anymore. Haha.

Just as another tennis ball came towards him, but it bounced right off the shield, he noticed a woman appear out of nowhere, and the chills that followed her made goosebumps on his arms. "Poltergeist," he quickly stated. How else would she be able to carry tennis balls? Ghost surely couldn't do that.

Annabeth quietly listened to this Department Head, and made her way to the corridor he motioned to. She could barely see a door at the far end. was that it? No, wait a minute, there was slime on the floor. EWEWEWEWEWEWEW. Annabeth stepped around that gently. She had just bought these heels and she wasn't about to get them all slimy. Annabeth walked a little bit more, looking every where for the elusive creature she was supposed to identify and.. OOF. She TRIPPED. Annabeth never trips. Or at least is really good at avoiding things that could make her trip. From the floor, she glanced back. Nothing. Grr. Annabeth got back up gracefully, and continued on. Suddenly, millions of tennis balls flew at her from different directs. AARRRG! She swatted away as many as she could, but still managed to get smack by a dozen. A woman appeared, grinning at Annabeth's plight. Annabeth saw the tennis ball in the lady's hand, and eyed it warily. What was this thing? This lady reminded Annabeth of the trickster of Hogwarts, Peeves. And Peeves was a... "You're a poltergeist, darling. Do you mind if I pass through?"

Pierre listened to what the man had to say first ha he was French...it was nice to see more of his people around. He walked out into a dingy hallway....it's walls slimy and dirty. Pierre took s cautious steps until he felt his foot hit something. It was an invisible trip line? "Very funny" he whispered continuing his trip until he felt a tennis ball hit the back of his head. "What the-" he turned only to have one hit him straight in the face, his nose felt warm as he pulled out his wand to fix it. He tapped his nose and looked upon feeling chills run down his back. He frowned this was enough he saw a woman she held a tennis ball as she stared at him. "You had better not throw that you hear me" he said shaking a finger "you're a poltergeist" he wiped the blood form his robes "and I'll have you know you're very unoriginal also!"

Alyssa smiled as she made her way into the next challenge. She was flying through these, or at least it felt like it. She read to next challenge. She went over and over the definitions of the two different things. She stood up from a table and then moved along the wall and watched as things got scary! She then had to ducked from a someone or something throwing tennis balls at her!

This must be what they had to identfy! Alyssa thought about the definitions of the two different spirts again and then thought for a second. "you're a poltergeist" Alyssa sighed as she got hit in the arm by another tennis ball! "And that's not very nice you know!!" Alyssa cursed and picked up a Tennis ball wanting to through it back, but realized it wouldn't help in the slightest.

D-d-d-d-did he say ghosts and poltergeists?

He did?

Crap.

Olivia whimpered quietly in the corner as she listened to the French man explain the difference between the two.Obviously it was important for this challenge, but all she knew was that they scared her.Why couldnt this have been something living? There were so many magical creatures to choose from.

Taking a deep breath, she entered the dark corridor, and fumbled around for her wand.Holding it out in front of her, she squinted ahead as she lit her way, "Lumos." Scrunching her face at the disgusting slime on the walls, she kept her eyes peeled for anything that looked like what they were meant to see.She couldn't even currently bring herself to think or say it - although she knew she'd have to eventually.

Walking along slowly, the door at the other end her goal, Olivia spotted a shiny part on the floor.Too shiny.Not meant to be there. "Hmmm," she muttered, scooting around it carefully, eyes fixed so she didn't step in it.But of course that meant she missed seeing the trip wire across the width of the corridor.Fabulous.

THWACK!!

"Arrgghhhhhhh!!!!"

THUD

She hit the floor with a fair amount of force, but had managed to get her arms out to cushion it slightly. "Owww," Olivia grumbled, sitting herself up and looking around in the darkness now her wand light had gone out. "WHAT IS WITH ALL THE TRIPPING TODAY?!?! HUH??" She wasn't expecting a response, but she got one in the form of a tennis ball smacking her on the nose.Oh this was just peachy.Grabbing hold of it, she threw it back in the direction it came from.Hard.It wouldn't hurt them, but hey, it made her feel better.But then another came at her, and she was forced to bat them away. "Urrrghhhh."

Scrambling to her feet, she re-lit her wand, and pointed it in the direction of the door.Standing in the light was a solid-ish figure, tennis ball in hand.Smiling. EEEEEPPPPPPP! Eyes widening at the sight, Olivia tried to keep her nerve and not show her fear.That would probably make the thing take more delight in her torture.Taking another deep breath, she spoke, hoping to reason with it. "I'm afraid Mrs - Miss? Poltergeist....that you will have to let me through.I very much need to get on with the next challenge, and have no time for tennis..." And I'm due to faint the other side of that door.Please and thank you.

A slight wind seems to blow into the room, carrying a small piece of parchment with it. The parchment flutters about for a few moments, then finally falls to the floor in the middle of the room.



OOC: The Ministry of Magic RPG Education Fair Mystery is scheduled to come to a close on Wednesday, May 5. We hope everyone is enjoying the roleplay!