It seemed that they'd only just returned from holiday break, and Jesús was still a little anxious (given what they'd thrown at the competitors during the first challenge.) It was no surprise that the sixth year was even more cautious than before, and was more or less on edge as he walked along the pathway. Given that it was still winter, Jesús figured it wouldn't do for him to tackle the challenge half-frozen. He pulled out his wand and cast the Insulation Charm over himself to warm himself a little bit.

He still hadn't gotten used to the layout of Hogwarts, but was coming to believe that the school was poorly designed (inside and out.) As he approached the end of the pathway, he paused, not just because the path had ended but because there was an abnormally large tree a little ways away. Blinking, Jesús looked around him and then back at the tree. He must've zoned out when they discussed the flora that inhabited the grounds of Hogwarts, but he never thought he'd ever come into contact with a Whomping Willow. He was actually impressed, and a little wary. The sixth year rubbed his hands together, still feeling a little cold (not enough for it to be a problem; he was a New Yorker, after all!)

That the competitors still weren't given any sort of clues or hints (or even help, really,) said a lot about Hawthorne and Moxley. Clearly, they wanted the students to get severely injured (or, if he could be truly honest with himself, die) in order to further whatever twisted plot they had in the works. This brought Jesús to suspect Melanie and Duncan Williams even more. He thought if anything those two would have given the Ilvermorny students a little assistance. For all Jesús knew, the goal of the challenge might've been to get as close as he could to the Whomping Willow without dying. Jesús shrugged off the thought; it was absurd, but absurdity seemed to be a running theme with the adults lately, so the Thunderbird figured that that must have been the goal. Or, rather, something very, very close to that.

He shuffled to the side of the large stone, debating over how close he should actually get in order to investigate the tree further. Pulling his wand out, he silently thanked his past self for working tirelessly on nonverbal spells over the summer. Jesús cast Loricatus over himself (no need to go through this unprotected, and if necessary, he would cast something stronger later on) hoping that the spell would be enough for the time being. And, because a nagging voice in the back of his head was being persistent, he cast the Feather-light Charm on himself as well. He wasn't particularly athletic (he could run, yes, but that was about it) and in dealing with a tree like a Whomping Willow, agility was key.

The only question that remained was: should he move forward or remain in place and observe the unusually-still tree? Jesús doubted that him remaining in place would deter the judges from forcing his hand anyway, so the sixth year swallowed any doubt that he had about coming out of the challenge alive, and inched closer. He considered using a spell to melt the icicles off of the branches (the thought that the tree would suddenly start moving and would use the icicles to defend itself unnerved him) but he wondered if it would be that simple. Could he really melt them, or was there a trick? There had to be a trick, and Jesús briefly wondered if he was leaving himself too vulnerable so he stopped walking, and mulled over whether to press forward or push back.

Snow crunches under your feet as you make your way along the grounds. Wand light shines before you, making the ground sparkle.

The night is still despite the fact that it’s a cold winter night, and there is nothing to be seen in the area. That is until the Whomping Willow pops into view, icicles glimmering off of its branches. Coming closer to the tree will show you that there are other objects contained in its limbs as well, though of course you don’t want to get TOO close or disaster will ensue.

Sensing a presence nearby, the branches start to sway, though the tree isn’t in full attack mode. Icicles and a few other objects fall to the ground, and if you look as close as you dare to, you can see that they are vials. More potions ingredients are still contained within the branches, though more of those may start to fall.

Glancing around you, your wand illuminates a cauldron and nearby workstation. Within the cauldron is a note telling you what needs to be done in order to progress further into the challenge:

"Well, this isn't a hat. Get on with it! Make your way to the passage beneath the tree."

Better get to it! That potion isn’t going to brew itself!

OOC: It is up to you to decide what ingredients to collect and what potion to brew.

Jesús didn't know what to expect which, he supposed, was the whole point of the challenge. The Whomping Willow wasn't something that he could tackle head on or take lightly, at that. He felt that the challenge, so far anyway, was about 65% better than dealing with an insidious dementor and life-like dummies controlled by absurd Ministry officials. The sixth year was still not over the slight (yes, a slight) from Hawthorne and Moxley. He realized that this was all the more reason for him to at least make it to the final challenge; he would set a slow-burning fire (metaphorically, speaking) in motion, to ensure that they suffered the most.

Still, he had a challenge to complete, and fussing over what should or shouldn't have happened would get him nowhere. From his vantage point, he could see the tree a little more clearly, making out details that he wasn't able to see previously. He had to hand it to them; they were really gunning for mystery, and Jesús could appreciate that. What he could not appreciate, however, was the lack of instruction, or direction, really. Jesús valued a good puzzle, often liked trying to figure things out, but this? He really could not figure it out. So, he stood, for a good minute, staring at the tree, debating over which spell to cast at it, when he noticed movement.

If it were up to him, he would've left the vicinity and not stuck around for the tree to start an attack using the icicles as projectiles. Unfortunately, he had no choice but to see the challenge through, even if it meant doing things that he wouldn't normally do. If his relatives could see him now, they would suck their teeth, shake their heads, offer prayers, and then give him an earful for being idiotic. Jesús frowned, his dark brows sloped downward, and he remained still save for his eyes (they were watching the tree carefully.) As the icicles fell, his eyes followed their descent and noted that there were indistinguishable (the distance did not help his vision at all) objects that fell as well. Curious. At that moment, the sixth year turned to look around him again. Surveying the area, Jesús didn't notice anything out of place and as he turned to his right, he saw something that he hadn't noticed before.

Strange. He was certain that there was nothing but the large stone near him when he'd first arrived. But it seemed that a cauldron and a workstation had joined him and he half-wondered if this was another set of charmed objects that were somehow sentient like in the previous challenge. Moving closer to the cauldron, Jesús glanced down inside it and plucked a note from the bottom. He read the note over several times, before turning his attention back at the tree. It seemed to have gone still again (but for how long?) and Jesús, according to the instructions on the note, needed to get to the passageway on the base of the tree. Wonderful! Jesús muttered under his breath, several words that he was fairly certain his mother would faint at (and would, subsequently, ground him for life for him saying them out loud) before looking towards the fallen objects near the tree.

He took a deep breath (the amount of work they were putting into these challenges was becoming annoying) and pointed his wand towards the objects, wondering what they could actually be, and used the Summoning Charm to bring them over to him. Jesús hoped that this wouldn't disturb the tree too much, and only hoped that the objects helped and not hindered his progress in the challenge. Once they arrived, Jesús saw that they were actually vials, and, again, was impressed that they'd managed to stay intact on the tree's branches. Looking back over to the Whomping Willow, Jesús guessed that the rest of the branches held more vials; he grimaced at the thought of having to retrieve more.

Jesús moved quickly and placed the cauldron and vials near the large stone (something about it felt oddly safe) before proceeding to move the workstation as well. Taking precaution would be key to surviving (he was fairly certain that his life would continue to be in danger the longer he remained in the competition) and finishing the challenge. The boy sighed loudly, frustrated that the challenge required him to brew a potion (at least, that's what he inferred from the cauldron, workstation, and ingredients.) He silently cursed his past self for not being diligent enough in Potions, and figured that this would be it for him. He looked over at the vials and frowned, trying to decide what exactly he could brew with the ingredients he had.

In his possession he had just enough ingredients to make a Girding Potion. Biting down hard on his lip, Jesús looked over the ingredients again, and then turned towards the tree. He was missing an ingredient (fairy wings, specifically,) and wasn't sure if having an exact amount of each ingredient would work in his favor. Having a few extra ingredients wouldn't hurt, and the tree had so many vials, he was bound to find fairy wings, right? Hopefully. He really hoped that he wasn't putting too much faith into the architects of this challenge. Putting on a brave face, Jesús walked a little closer to the tree, making sure to keep a good enough distance. Using fire would only agitate the tree and possibly melt the vials (and he needed them in one piece, obviously,) so he opted to sort of knock the vials off of the branches.

His plan was very simple. He would cushion the snow in the area between him and the tree, and then use the Ventus Jinx to knock the icicles and vials off of some of the branches. It seemed to be a safe (read: least invasive) method, that probably wouldn't result in the tree pummeling his body into the ground. He had high hopes, more or less, for his success. At that, Jesús pointed his wand towards the ground near the tree, and said "Mollaire," casting the Cushioning Charm to a few areas. It was just a precaution (although it was necessary in his mind,) in case the snow on the ground didn't actually break the vials' fall. He turned slightly, and pointed his wand towards the nearest branch, silently hoping that he did not agitate the tree anymore than he needed to (he was still worried about the whole passageway part of the note,) and said "Ventus!" The sixth year watched as a quick jet of wind burst from his wand and towards the nearest branch; Jesús hoped (desperately, at that) that the vials on that branch contained just what he needed, so that he could go back and brew the potion quickly.

The tree’s branches stop swaying, but it is still on the alert. It can sense that someone is nearby and that has it on its guard. It would be a mistake to assume that just because things are calm NOW that you are out of any potential danger.

Using a Cushioning Charm and Ventus is an interesting idea and you had better hope that none of the vials end up shattering, because of course the force of the wind blown on the tree’s branches cause it to start thrashing around rather violently. More icicles and vials fall to the ground.

The question is: has it dropped the ingredient that you sorely need to brew your potion?

Jesús watched the Whomping Willow with mild interest and caution. Casting the Ventus Jinx was risky, he knew that, however Jesús felt the risk was necessary. He felt that taking risks was an integral part of life and wouldn't apologize for doing things his own way (however offbeat it might be.) His hope was that the wind would only knock into the vials and icicles, but the tree seemed to have been a tad bit sensitive that night so he took a few steps back and continued to watch.

The thrashing was expected; in fact, he was surprised it hadn't happened sooner. Was the tree being subdued by some enchantment? With the Ministry involved, he wouldn't put it past them. It seemed that casting the Cushioning Charm worked in his favor, and even though the Ventus Jinx had inadvertently caused a commotion, Jesús was relatively pleased with the results. Once the last vial dropped, Jesús made his way back to the workstation and large stone. He summoned the vials to him and set to investigate what was useful and what wasn't.

Not that he considered himself superstitious in any way (read: he was very, very superstitious,) but luck, apparently, was on his side that night. Keeping a straight-face, Jesús went to work. As it was nighttime, he knew that he would only be able to see so much with a lit wand, so he searched the workstation until he came upon a jar. Waving his wand, he produced some Bluebell Flames and placed them into the jar for a bigger light source. The tree would have to keep thrashing on its own (though every now and then, Jesús glanced over his shoulder to make sure there was nothing else around him) because the sixth year was preoccupied with putting the ingredients together. Sifting through the vials, Jesús tried his best to recall the exact measurements for each ingredient. He sorted them, placing them in their own individual piles so he would have better access to them.

He shuffled over to the scales and began weighing out each ingredient; as much as he didn't care for the subject, Jesús could at least take pride in remembering the basics. More or less. He wasn't ashamed of his lack of skill, he just did not appreciate being put on the spot (and for all of Hogwarts and Ilvermorny to see,) in the middle of the night, and in front of a violent, semi-sentient tree. The sixth year shook his head at that, pushed some hair out of his face, and continued to work. Efficiency was key, but Jesús knew that brewing potions did need an amount of carefulness and grace that he sometimes lacked.

After weighing out everything, Jesús placed the cauldron on the workstation. He pointed his wand at the cauldron and used the Scourging Charm to clean. There was no telling how long it had been sitting out or even how long it'd been since it was last cleaned. Without missing a beat, he cast the Aguamenti Spell to start filling the cauldron with water. He paused for a quick moment to think about whether or not he was supposed to toast certain ingredients. He was fairly certain that it was the dragonfly thoraxes that needed toasting, and opted to take a gamble on those. He gathered forty of them and toasted them quickly, before moving on to add the first batch of ingredients.

Carefully, Jesús added fairy wings, and then positioned the cauldron to begin heating it. He watched and waited, until the potion started changing color. Squinting, Jesús had a brief internal debate over whether or not the color was turquoise or another frilly shade of blue. Not wanting to continue wasting time, he took a leap of faith and proceeded to add three doxy eggs while heating the potion. Once it turned pink, he moved to place the toasted dragonfly thoraxes into the cauldron; he started adding them in individually until the potion turned red. If Jesús were in a better mood, he might have smiled at his success; but he wasn't (and knew that once he completed the challenge, his mood would pick up,) so he continued to concentrate on the task at hand.

Very quickly, Jesús once again scanned the area; he would chalk up his paranoia due to the eeriness that nighttime offered on Hogwarts' grounds. Turning his attention back to the cauldron, he heated the potion until it turned blue (this was one of the reasons why he disliked Potions, there were too many moving parts) and then added more of the toasted dragonfly thoraxes. It was honestly the most tedious subject to study. Jesús didn't even have the patience to cook properly, so potion brewing was just an affront to his unyielding nature. Still, and he wished he didn't have to, he kept at it. Eyes trained on the liquid inside the cauldron, Jesús watched the potion turn colors again. Once it turned silver, Jesús heated the cauldron once again, and waited until the potion changed from silver to red.

Again, he wondered how anyone could love potion brewing, but he supposed that the world wouldn't be an interesting place if there weren't weird potion-loving-individuals around too. He was almost done, so, with that in mind, he found the drive to push through. Jesús carefully placed the remaining nine doxy eggs into the potion before adding the dragonfly thoraxes that weren't toasted (ten of them, to be exact.) He heated the potion, again, and watched with extreme disinterest, for the liquid to change colors. When it turned blue, he moved to grab the flying seahorses and added three of them into the cauldron. Heating the potion (for the last time, thankfully,) Jesús stood-by and bounced on his heels for a little bit while the potion turned green. Finally. If the final color change hadn't indicated that the potion was complete, the foul stench did. He made a face and wrinkled his nose; he needed to bottle it quickly and move away. Searching the workstation again, he looked around for a clean, empty vial. After finding one, he poured the potion into it and sealed it. Great. Jesús held the vial in his hand and then it hit him that he didn't actually know what to do next.

Groaning loudly (and dramatically at that, he was getting so tired of them,) he plucked the note out of his pocket and read over it again. What was he supposed to do with the potion? And what did brewing it have to do with some passageway in the Whomping Willow? The questions continued to plague him, until he decided to turn and face the tree again. They'd made it painfully obvious that he was supposed to come into contact (there was no way to avoid it really) with the tree again and it suddenly dawned on him that they probably wanted him to drink the potion too. Jesús grimaced at that. Inhaling deeply, the sixth year made his way back towards the tree (not by choice, obviously, his hand was being forced and he did not like it.) He stopped midway, pulled out the potion and drank it. It was ironic that he brewed a potion for endurance, considering the sort of situation he was currently in.

Just as foul as it smelled, it tasted even worse. Jesús managed to down it all, and then made to move closer to the tree. The thrashing was going to prove difficult to deal with, especially with all the icicles that were still attached to the branches up ahead. Again, he was stuck, debating what to do and how to approach the passageway (wherever it actually was) in the safest way possible. He hoped that even if he got hit, the potion would do its job and allow him to continue moving.

Making progress on that potion is wonderful, but with all the time that it is taking to get things done, the Whomping Willow is only getting more and more restless. It senses something in its vicinity but can’t do anything about it.

SMASH!

A limb crashes to the ground followed by another and another. Icicles shatter from the impact, but of course that isn’t all; vials are also destroyed in the chaos.

Time to see how well that Girding Potion has turned out.

Jesús had to hand it to himself; he had previously doubted his time-management capabilities when it came to potion-making, but he was particularly quick-footed and efficient that night. He supposed it mostly had to do with his use of the Feather-light Charm earlier. Or, and he was certain this also played a large role, it might have been due to his anxiety over the possibility of not completing the challenge on time. Either way, he'd gotten the task done in less time than he had originally thought he would, and for that, he was content.

As the Whomping Willow's temper tantrum became more destructive and erratic, Jesús reminded himself that he was still on the clock and needed to find a way to get closer to the tree. Considering how irate the tree had become in such a short period of time, the sixth year figured that he needed to err on the side of caution. How would his body fare after a hit from one of those heavy branches? The Girding Potion would give him more endurance but just how much physical damage would he be able to tolerate before he ultimately collapsed? This brought him to also wonder, and not for the first time that night, if a Ministry official was trailing behind somewhere. If they were there to monitor them in the Dark Forest with dementors running loose (he still could not actually believe this was approved considering just how violent and unruly those dark creatures are,) then it only made sense that they would also be somewhere close just in case.

He wouldn't put it past Hawkeyes Hawthorn to let them suffer through the challenge without that backup, though.

If there was one thing that Jesús could be absolutely sure about, it was that the tree was overly dramatic. He also briefly wondered if the Whomping Willow ever tuckered itself out from all of that swinging. Shaking his head, he chastised himself for getting side-tracked. Jesús watched how the tree swung wide and slammed another branch on the ground, leaving bits of broken icicles and vials in its wake. Luckily, he was far enough away to not actually feel the impact of that attack, but still close enough to witness just how powerful the tree could be when pushed too far. With a loud sigh, he debated over which spell to use. Anything too aggressive or invasive would probably backfire, and Jesús was absolutely sure he didn't want to see how fast and hard the tree could slam its branches.

Immobilizing the tree was his best option. How long the tree would stop moving was another question entirely. His hope was that the combination of his lighter body and increased endurance would give him enough edge to make a quick dash for the base of the tree. The note specifically instructed him to get to the passageway and he refused to waste any more time than he had already. A thought crossed his mind as he began moving closer again. How accurate were the trees attacks? Jesús knew that it would sense his presence, but if he moved quick enough to dodge the branch how much time would pass between the tree slamming another branch in his direction? This worried him greatly, and the sixth year sported a frown as he decided just what he needed to do.

With his wand in hand, Jesús cast the Silver Shield Spell (this was an added precaution, as he was sure the armour he'd cast earlier would not hold out while he ran and searched for the passageway.) "Fianto Duri!" he said quickly, strengthening the shield. Again, he wasn't entirely sure just how hard the tree would be able to hit him before it was too late, but Jesús instently felt relieved knowing that he had some form of defense. The sixth year did a silent countdown before running towards the base of the tree. He was pleasantly surprised at just how much faster he was able to run (and then immediately berated himself for not running sooner.) His body felt incredibly light, and while he wasn't athletic, he was certainly nimble (something that had gotten him out of plenty of unsavory situations.) Using this to his advantage, Jesús ran a little faster and dodged (and just barely, at that) another attack.

Once the tree lifted the branch again, Jesús had his wand ready and pointed it at the Whomping Willow. "Aresto Momentum," he said loudly, making sure to keep moving (he didn't know exactly how much the tree would slow down, or for how long the spell would work.) Not missing a beat, he shouted "Immobulus!" The Freezing Charm wasn't anything too complicated, and he assumed that the Whomping Willow would be immobilized without fail (especially considering that the tree was much more sentient than other plants.) His eyes darted around for the passageway, and he hoped to find it as he didn't know exactly how long the charm would last on a tree of that size.

Speed and agility are definitely to your advantage as you make your way closer to the tree. The shield definitely helps as well. Wouldn’t be good if one of those branches gave you a good thwacking.

With the casting of Aresto Momentum the tree finds itself suddenly slowing down, its movements having become sluggish. Then BOOM it is hit with an Immobulus and freezes completely.

Better make your way through the hole by the roots before the Whomping Willow wakes up.

Watching the tree slow down, Jesús was certain that it would pick up speed again and crush his shield (which would subsequently crush him as well.) And while he was fairly certain that he'd enunciated correctly and made the proper wand movement to cast the Freezing Charm, there was no guarantee that it would work for a tree that size. So, the sixth year was pleasantly surprised to see the tree instantaneously stop moving, as if frozen in place. And because the tree had stopped moving, Jesús also paused, just briefly, to look at the Whomping Willow. He was in disbelief, to say the least; a tree of that size (with an absurd amount of force and an odd proclivity to violently attack on sight) should not have been able to stop with a spell like that, and yet there it was.

Still, and Jesús berated himself (again) for getting distracted, there was no time to think or even celebrate his near-death experience (this was getting to be something similar to an tired, unfunny joke.) He still had to find the passageway. Within the next moment, he was on the move again and moving quickly (in case his fear was actualized and the tree did start moving quicker than he anticipated) towards the base of the tree. Once he'd reached the large roots, Jesús surveyed and moved around until he found the passageway.

He really, truly believed that Hogwarts was probably one of the most dangerous places to ever send children to be formally educated. The hole looked big enough for him to fit, and he peered into it in order to assess the distance from the entrance to the bottom. He reminded himself that he really didn't have the sort of time to just gawk and wax poetic about what he should or shouldn't do, and, after carefully tucking his wand away, he hopped through the hole and slid down. Feeling anxious, Jesús tried to calm himself by focusing on landing as gracefully as possible. Granted, he wished that he actually did know just how far and deep the passageway went, because he knew next to nothing about what was inside the tree (save for a few rumors that he highly doubted were true.) Not entirely optimistic, Jesús figured that the challenge wouldn't actually end with him finding the passageway. But, and this was entirely naive on his part, he really hoped it did. After all, wasn't risking his life enough entertainment for them?

Congratulations on making it this far into the challenge!

It is relief to be away from the Whomping Willow, but of course things are not over yet; there is still quite a bit left to do before you are finished with this one. For one thing you need to make your way down this loooooooong passageway.

Even if it seems to be never ending, there is of course an ending to it. A door that divides it from the next section. On said door is attached a piece of paper:

*Click Me*

Text Cut: Text Only

Remember: things are not always as they seem,
And with odd trinkets this shack does teem.
In the time remaining, you must find your way
And locate two items that have gone astray;

One is held dear to our pigletted friends.
It can’t build a home, but a house it does amend
To every boy and girl cherished at the castle,
But you won’t find it without much hassle.

You’re looking for a lever that unlocks a door,
But to find the item you might need a particular score.
Try them all, and you will see. Something is off.
Dust covers this place like an infernal cough.

Now, our next item is from across the seas.
It can attach and reattach as you please.
It doesn’t write; it surely isn’t a quill,
And it’s small in size as well as beautiful.

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.

Good luck, champions. Find them both here.
Look with your eyes, hear with your ears.
Search up and down, and then high and low,
But don’t be too hasty or too slow.

OOC: Here is a floor plan provided OOC to make it easier to RP your character exploring the shack. Feel free to be as creative as positive.


*Click Me!*


*Click Me!*

It felt like he was falling for much longer than he actually was. Once he reached the bottom (he'd stumbled a little but caught himself,) Jesús pulled out his wand and said "Lumos" softly before proceeding to walk down what appeared to be a very, very long passageway. The groan he made was dramatic, but ultimately necessary to prove just how tiresome the challenge already was. Wand lit, Jesús started to walk further into the passageway. He was grateful to be out of the cold, though the chill still remained with him as he continued walking. He supposed this was much better than going head-to-head with the Whomping Willow, but at least he more or less knew what to expect with the raging tree.

For all he knew, there could've been another surprise in the form of a dark creature (he wouldn't put it past them at all) waiting at the end of the passageway. This had the sixth year on edge as he moved further and further down. He started to brainstorm (an unwise idea on his part) the various scenarios that could possibly happen. While he should've been focusing on his surroundings, Jesús instead found himself focusing intently on his thoughts. They bounced around incessantly; each scenario he came up with progressively grew worse. Thankfully, he'd made it to the end of passageway after what felt like five years of walking. A door lay before him with some parchment attached.

Jesús plucked the note from the door and scanned the contents of it. Once he was done, he looked up at the door, and then back at the note. Irritation seeped out of him slowly. "You have got to be kidding me," he said, going over the note for a third time. Under normal circumstances, Jesús would've gladly welcomed a few riddles alongside a makeshift treasure hunt in a supposedly haunted place underneath a thrashing Whomping Willow tree. However, everything about the competition irritated him, but he calmed down and proceeded through the door. He'd wasted too much time already, and needed to find the two items so he could be done with it.

Once inside, Jesús immediately started sneezing. The dust was overwhelming, but he reminded himself that he only had to find the two items and get out. Hopefully. Wrinkling his nose, he moved around the room and eyed all the furniture. Most of it (if not all) was dilapidated and looked carelessly abandoned. Jesús almost let himself get wrapped up in the whos and whys of the place's origins, but he pressed on. As he reviewed the first two stanzas again, Jesús walked over to the couch and armchairs. "Pigletted friends," he mused aloud, while making his way to the dining area. A grimace took hold of his face (he couldn't help it, the place was disgusting,) and again Jesús wondered if the orchestrators of the challenge even realized what sort of health hazard the place was. He didn't want to give them too much credit; it would've taken a real cynical mind to have the competitors trudge through the building with no real regard for their wellbeing. But, and he couldn't deny it, Hawkeyes Hawthorne had it in her.

An old nursery rhyme about pigs and a wolf crept into his mind, and Jesús assumed that the first item was something wooden (like a stick, perhaps.) The issue was, with the house in the state it was, where would he even find a stick? And, was he even right about that part of the riddle? Jesús moved back to where the door was, and decided to check upstairs. He hadn't fully explored the bottom floor, but something told him to look elsewhere for the time being. After folding the note, he stuffed it into his pocket and ascended the staircase. "Oh, lovely," except it really, really wasn't. More useless, worn down furniture, books that were probably unreadable, and a piano.

The third stanza mentioned something about a score, and seeing as the only instrument in the room was a piano, Jesús hypothesized that that was where he should look next. Pointing his wand at the piano keys, he cast Tergeo (because touching the dust was out of the question for him.) Jesús admired the now dust-free keys and contemplated whether or not he should do the same for the rest of the furniture in the room. The sixth year knew that time was slowly running out, so he focused on investigating the room a little further. Lithe fingers hovering over the keys, Jesús hesitated, only briefly, before deciding to try them all one by one. Was it tedious? Yes. But the note said something about a lever and something being off. His best bet was to just see if there was a key that activated some hidden door (like in a no-maj spy film) or, at the very least, revealed the item he was looking for.

Dust clings to every surface, but then that is no surprise because no one has been here for a long time. That’s understandable, because on top of all the dust, there is boarded up windows, stains on the floor, and peeling wallpaper. This place looks like a nightmare.

You make your way upstairs, and towards the old piano. It has been a long time since someone had played it, and the notes that you strike sound quite loud in the empty shack. One by one you go along striking each key… but what is that? Did one of those notes sound off?

If his abuela could see him now, she'd scold him for not wanting to take up piano when he had the chance. Of course, back then, he'd told her that it was meaningless to pick up a musical instrument when he was not, in fact, musically inclined. Did he like music? Yes. Did he have the patience for playing? Absolutely not. But, seeing as the occasion did count for him to test out the piano, he would put aside his ambivalence and continue pressing the piano keys.

His plan was to play all the keys until he found one that was a little weird or off and unlike the rest. There were several keys missing from the piano (which made sense, as the shack looked like it had been unused for possibly a century,) and the thought that maybe the first item was inside where one of the keys was missing crossed his mind, just briefly. But, and he went over the stanza in his head again, the note said that something would off and that it was necessary for him to try them all. Jesús knew better than to try and find logic behind the riddle (wouldn't it have been easier for him to just forcibly remove the keys?) and would do things the way the note had intended him to.

And if that didn't work, he'd tear apart the piano until he got his answer.

As the shack was empty (and this was presumptuous of him, as he didn't actually know if the place was vacant or not,) he opted to play the keys loudly. That way, he would be able to tell whether or not a key was off or weird-sounding. He kept at it until he pressed down on a key that didn't sound right. Backtracking, Jesús went over the keys before it and then hit it again. A small smile crept onto his lips, he pressed it a few more times to make sure. Leaning forward, Jesús inspected the piano key, using his fingers feel over and around before ultimately tugging it upward to see if there was anything underneath.

As he continued investigating the key, his mind started dissecting the second half of the riddle, and came to the following hypothesis: if the first item was upstairs, the second one had to be downstairs. If he was remembering correctly, there was a small kitchen near the dining area. As soon as he figured out the mystery behind the off-sounding piano key, he would head back down to continue his investigation of the shack.

So you have noticed that one of the keys sounds a little off from the others.

Investigating further seems like a good idea, and the key pops out of the piano as you tug it. Not too surprising when you consider how old it is and how many other keys have been lost over the years.

Looks like you are getting warmer.

For a brief moment, Jesús wondered just how much time he had left. Was he moving too slow? Or, did he still have enough time to fiddle with the piano to find out what the instrument was hiding? Given the size, the piano seemed like it wouldn't hold anything too large; however, he also had to consider that, for the sake of the challenge, they might have used magic to transfigure the object. Shrinking it made the most sense to the sixth year, though he did wonder just how small it was. Would he miss it if he wasn't careful?

And when he found it, would it trigger some sort of reaction somewhere in the shack?

He thought about all of this as he continued fiddling with the piano key. After what felt like an unnecessarily long struggle, Jesús was finally able to tug the key off. If he had any sort of decency, he would've felt bad for treating the instrument so roughly. But, as he tried to continuously remind himself, he was in a hurry. As he didn't actually care for breaking things that didn't belong to him, his conscience was relatively clear. After placing the key to the side (there was no telling if this key, or any other piano key for that matter, was actually useful or not,) Jesús looked into the now vacant spot on the keyboard. To anyone just walking into the room, nothing would seem amiss. It would've just been another missing key on a rickety piano in a ridiculously dusty room.

Obviously, Jesús knew better (as he was partially responsible for adding to the piano's raggedy state.)

Brandishing his wand, the sixth year cast Lumos and peered into the hole. He considered just blasting the other keys off of the piano and then searching that way but, and his voice of reason always came at the most inopportune moment, the riddle was specific. More or less, anyway. He assumed that just removing the one key was necessary, and while Jesús lived for theatrics, he also didn't want to accidentally disqualify himself over an impulsive thought. He reserved that option as a last resort, if he couldn't actually find what the item inside (although he felt that lucky might be on his side.)

It was much darker than he thought it would be, and he found even more dust inside the piano (probably due to the exposure from the loss of the other keys.) Jesús searched and searched until he decided to just take the plunge and stick his fingers (the ones that fit, anyway) into the space. When that didn't work, he bent closer, moving his wand over the area to get a better look. While he wanted to scan quickly, he knew that he had to be careful to look thoroughly. Nothing about the challenge was predictable; for all he knew, the piano could come to life and start attacking him.

As his search continued, his thoughts drifted to the location of the second item. He narrowed the location down the kitchen, and was fairly certain the stove was his best bet to start looking (and if it wasn't in the stove, his only other options were one of the two fireplaces.) He just needed to find the first item. Brows sloping downwards, Jesús swore he saw something out place within the piano. He looked again just to be sure that his eyes wasn't playing tricks on him, but ultimately straightened himself and picked up the piano key again. Rolling it between his fingers, Jesús inspected the piece to see if there was anything special about it. He glanced back down at the newly-made empty space on the keyboard, and then looked at the piano key in his hand. He repeated this a few times before irritation settled in. There was something that he wasn't seeing; and while he didn't want to just keep standing in front of the piano, he knew he had to figure it out before moving on.

Lumos is amazing for shining light in even the smallest of spaces, but sometimes it does not do much good. Do you dare try sticking your fingers in the hole for a second time? Or is there another way to get at what you seek?

Do not give up, Ilvermornyan. Not when you are so close to the prize.

Without any sort of regard for the instrument, Jesús was tapping the piano key onto the dark wood, lost in thought. He was missing something, and he knew it was something incredibly obvious. This, and, again, his irritation started to take root and grow steadily, meant that he was thinking too hard about the riddle and missing a key detail. Reviewing the lines once again, Jesús looked down at the piano. He'd made sure to clean the keyboard, but hadn't bothered with the rest of the piano. It was an abysmal sight, with dust so thick Jesús would probably have to clean it several times before it was somewhat decent.

He didn't have time for any of that, though, so as he tap-tap-tapped the key onto the piano, his mind continued to dissect the note. The first line had originally reminded him of a nursery rhyme, but he figured that was too specific towards no-maj born students, and therefore wouldn't have worked in this challenge. This made him think of the many uses of a pig, and immediately he remembered that leather was also made from pig skin. The second line reaffirmed his suspicions as well. The line that mentioned the item's inability to build a home (meaning they couldn't actually use this item for anything but its intended purpose) but it was able to amend a house, gave him pause. It was the third line that finally put everything together. This item was something that the students (and staff) of a particular school held near and dear to their hearts.

Fighting back another smile, Jesús had to hand it to the architect of the poem. It was very clever, and it would've kept him stumped for a while if he didn't have a penchant for obsessing over unnecessary details. The item was probably something from Hogwarts and, more importantly, if he was right, (and he was fairly certain he was,) it was an incredibly rare, one-of-a-kind item at that. His eyes then drifted downwards, to the top of the piano. It was strange; but from the brief interactions he'd had with this sort of instrument in the past, Jesús knew that the piano's lid should've been propped upward.

Setting the lone piano key down, Jesús lifted the lid, a little less carefully than he meant to, and peered inside. He fumbled around and found the stick for the lid and propped it up. With his wand lit, Jesús looked back into the piano. The interior was worn down, just like the exterior, but in slightly better condition.

Looking around, Jesús felt like a piano tuner. And as disheveled as the strings were, they held together stubbornly (as if they had a point to make.) He waved his wand over the area, and came upon the spot where he'd pried the loose piano key from. With his free hand, the sixth year reached towards it, feeling around with a purpose. He was determined to find the first item so that he could carry on with the challenge. A very hazy memory plagued him during his search; he recalled looking into the various differences between Hogwarts and Ilvermorny, and his new hypothesis on the item in question, was that it had to do with how the students were sorted into their individual houses.

His fingers were met with a lot of dust, but he really didn't care at this point. And if he was correct about the first item, then the second item made even more sense. One from Hogwarts, one from Ilvermorny. So very, very clever. Jesús continued to feel around, moving closer, even more determined to get to the Sorting Cap (or, was it a beret? a cricket cap??) or whatever it was called, so he could finally go back downstairs and thoroughly investigate the kitchen area.

Opening the lid, you search and search within the dusty piano for the object that has been placed inside. It’s slow going since you don’t want to miss anything, but soon enough your hand lands on something lying where the weird sounding key had been.

Well done!

You have found the first object: the Hogwarts Sorting Hat!

Jesús' search was finally complete. He moved his fingers around until they met something smooth and leathery. Triumphant, Jesús latched onto the cloth and pulled it out of the piano. The Sorting Whatever! Dusting off the hat (he found it so strange that they stuffed it into the piano,) Jesús took a good look at it. He was so underwhelmed by how ugly the hat was, but he was successful, and he could move on at last. Time, he reminded himself for the umpteenth time that night, was of the essence. The sixth year looked at the hat, wondered if the thing was actually sentient, and then placed it on top of his head.

It wasn't ideal, but he didn't want to treat it roughly. He was a saint, after all (so considerate and so kind to all.)

Moving away from the piano, Jesús quickly made it downstairs. No more creeping around the house playing the role of a slow-moving investigator, he really, really wanted to be done with it all. He paused for a brief moment, and brandished his wand once more. The smell from the bathroom, the couch and armchairs, and the dining area were enough to make him almost gag. It was one thing to stomach standing in a dusty area, it was another to try and withstand the stench of rotting furniture, decaying wood, and rancid food. If, by the end of this, a Ministry Official popped up behind him, Jesús would make sure to send the food flying in their face. A little thank you for for allowing him to take such a lovely tour throughout the elegant, well-kept, highly recommended Château Whomping Willow.

He waved his wand and cast the Anti-Odour Charm, around the area. If he wanted to make his way through the first floor quickly, he needed to be able to breathe a little better. His hands went immediately to the hat on his head and adjusted it slightly before heading off to the kitchen. There wasn't that much within the area; it was small and, unsurprisingly, had a few broken and/or unusable appliances. He walked carefully through the space, made his way past the sink, and stood in front of the stove. Again, he went over the second portion of the riddle in his head.

The first line in the fourth stanza mentioned that the second item was from "across the seas." This confirmed Jesús' hypothesis that the item in question was from Ilvermorny (just as the first one was from Hogwarts.) The next two lines of the stanza dealt with the functionality of the item which, again, placed more validity in his supposition that this item was held in high regard (and was probably something that defined Ilvermorny at its core.) And, lastly, the assertion that the object was beautiful only confirmed Jesús' previous suspicions. The only item that would symbolically encapsulate everything that was Ilvermorny, would be the Gordian Knot.

Keeping this in mind, Jesús reached out to the stove and started investigating the burners on top. He jiggled all of them and tried to look underneath to see if he could find the object. Frowning slightly, Jesús straightened up, and stared at the stove momentarily before deciding to try the knobs in front. The riddle suggested that turning them clockwise wouldn't amount to anything (he turned them all clockwise anyway, just to be certain,) and that turning them in the opposite direction would emit some sort of gas. In order to prevent an accidental death on his part, Jesús pointed his wand towards his face and cast the Bubble-Head Charm. Once the bubble was in place, and he could breathe better, Jesús set to work, twisting each of the stove's knobs counterclockwise. One of the knobs surely would reveal the brooch's whereabouts. He did consider maybe summoning the brooch, but, and he didn't want to give them too much credit but he couldn't help his paranoia over not doing the task correctly, it was probably lodged deep within the stove and he didn't want to run the risk of breaking it.

So, he continued to fiddle with the knobs some more, hoping to somehow trigger whatever reaction the stove was supposed to give him (he was about 93% sure that it was in the stove) so he could complete the challenge and be on his way.

You slide the hat on your head, and while it seems to be rather inanimate, suddenly a voice greets you as if appearing out of nowhere.

You are not a Hogwarts student… Yet you possess a sharp mind and a keen wit. You are well on your way to solving the riddle.

Casting the Anti-Odour Charm has the immediate effect of eliminating the stink of the Shack, but it does nothing to get rid of the rotten food or the rats that scurry about this way and that. Best make sure that you don’t get in their way as things could become rather unpleasant for you then.

The stove seems to be a good place to look, and the Bubble Head Charm is a good idea because there is no knowing what horrible stench might greet you if you decide to investigate further by looking inside the oven. Turning each of the knobs counter-clockwise each in turn, you can feel one wiggle and jiggle slightly and smoke appears from the oven.

Well done! You know what you need to do now.

The hat was sort of comfortable, in a strange way. He almost forgot it was on his head. Almost. The voice startled him and he should've been spooked but he was much too tired for that. Looking around, it took him a few seconds to realize that it was coming from the hat. That ridiculously old hat that shouldn't move or think or do anything was talking at him,...or to him, actually. He blinked several times, in awe that a sentient piece of cloth was attempting conversation. Or maybe it was just trying to fill in the silence after having been stuffed into a piano. Amazing. "I suppose this is the part where I thank you for your vote of confidence," he replied casually, making quick work of the stove and forgetting the hat altogether.

Detecting a hint of movement, Jesús turned his face to the right and caught sight of some rats roaming around, acting as if they owned that section of the house. He shook his head and went back to fussing with the stove. Rats weren't a concern for him. Plus, those rats looked like bugs compared to the ones he'd encountered his entire life back in New York. Completely underwhelming. As he turned the knobs, he thought about the probability of him being wrong about the location of the second item. This didn't stop Jesús from testing out the knobs, however; it only made him that much more determined to getting the riddle right.

One of the knobs seemed off (in the same way that that lone piano key upstairs seemed off,) so the sixth year paused and wiggled the knob more. He contemplated blasting the stove (that would've been one way to get the brooch,) but he considered the consequences of doing so and stuck to wiggling the knob more. It didn't feel stuck, but it wasn't coming out easily either. Jesús let go momentarily before adjusting the hat on his head so that it wouldn't fall. He then went back to tugging on the knob, making sure to twist and pull hard. Jesús felt ridiculous, pulling at the knob with both of his hands, but he would do anything to get himself out and he refused to come in last. The sixth year continued to hold onto the knob tightly, and pulled as hard as he could.

You tug and you tug on the knob with all your might and it seems that the object will not budge. At the last moment, it pops free. It looks like there was some strong magic in place but you seem to have been able to succeed after all. Well done!

Looking down at the knob, you see something odd. Well, that looks like a brooch more than anything else.

The knob was proving to be as difficult as a certain friend of his that thrived off of being difficult for the sake of irking every single nerve in his body. A dramatic comparison, but Jesús felt justified in comparing the somewhat unyielding knob to Valerie. After tugging repeatedly, the knob finally came off. Feeling victorious, he looked at the space where the knob once was and then looked at his hand. Surprised, because Jesús swore the object in his hand was in fact one very stubborn stove knob, he held the item up to get a better look at it.

"Hey," he nudged the hat with his free hand, "are you going to reveal what happens next, or you just going to sit there and keep quiet?" He kept his eyes trained on the brooch, looking at it from all angles. The Gordian Knot certainly felt easier to obtain than the Sorting Hat-thing, but Jesús still felt underwhelmed by it. He glanced around the kitchen again, before resorting to reviewing the riddle for a final time. He'd found the hat and he'd found the Gordian Knot. So, what next? Jesús nudged the hat again, briefly considered that maybe the hat actually couldn't feel him touch it, and then spun the small brooch in his hand.

He supposed he could backtrack, try to go back through the door and out where he came from. Thoughts of the raging, childish Whomping Willow prevented him from moving, however. Would the tree still be immobilized? Or would he have to risk his life, again, to complete the challenge? What did the Silent Sorting Thing and the Gordian Knot have to do with the potion he drank and the melodramatic battle with the tree? He was starting to think that the competition was one big joke (a very, very unfunny one, at that.) His only consolation was that Valerie was suffering too. Which, he supposed, wasn't a very good thing, but if she was having as much trouble with the challenge as he was, then he didn't feel so bad about the whole ordeal.

Again, he addressed the hat on top of his head. "Is there a way to get out of here that doesn't involve dealing with the Whomping Willow again?" The probability that the hat would respond was pretty low, but Jesús wasn't going to stop trying. He considered kicking the stove to see if it revealed anything else, but didn't want to accidentally incur the wrath of any other sentient thing in the house.

The Sorting Hat does not reply to you, because at that very moment you feel a jolt and white light surrounds you on all sides. Don't worry, for everything is alright.

Where one second you were standing in the Shrieking Shack, the next you are lying in a bed in a white room with a Ministry employee greeting you. The entire time you have been in a magically modified daydream.

The employee asks if you need any medical assistance and tells you that your scores will be up soon. You are free to head over to the stands to join in cheering the other competitors on as they finish the challenge.

OOC: You are now free to view both the viewing stands and the other competitors’ threads.