...

....

Oh for Circe sake." The Headmaster shoved his plate away, a hard scowl marring his already discontent expression. So much for trying to enjoy one bloody dinner.

His jaw set and he looked to the students. No doubt one of them thinking they were clever with the new spells and potions they were learning. Well. They would learn today. The man pushed away from the staff dais and began making his way down the Great Hall, his path between the Hufflepuff and Slytherin table.

"Who is responsible for this? If you know, I suggest you speak now." He had ways of making them talk and had had it up to his ears in disrespectful children who had steadily become the bane of his existence over the course of the school year.

"Speak up, you've already ruined dinner for us all." And things were about to get far worse.

Carsyn was minding her own business until the food before her rotted and she promptly spat it right back out feeling truly gross. One glance around the great hall told her that essentially it happened to ALL the food in here and now the headmaster was trying to blame a student ???

The seventh year stood up, "if I may, Headmaster. I don't think this was the responsibility of any student as it seems to be magic far beyond any student's capabilities." although if it was a student, perhaps they should be doing the teaching because quite impressive magic at that.

To be honest, Ashley hadn't been feeling too well over the last couple of days. She had a big headache that wouldn't go away. And the headmaster being annoying was not helping. She rolled her eyes. Didn't he know it was his fault? He was the one who took that dude's treasure.


And all of a sudden, her headache went away. But she felt very weird and angry and out of control. He took her treasure. My treasure. No it isn't my treasure, it's the ghosts treasure. NO, it WAS my treasure. "IT WAS ALL OF YOUR FAULTS. ESPECIALLY YOU, TRENT. HOW DARE YOU SPEND MY WEALTH ON FRIVOLOUS MONSTROSITIES!!!" she yelled at him. "I WANT IT BACK RIGHT NOW OR ELSE. I'VE WARNED YOU! THINGS WILL ONLY GET WORSE. YOU ARE GOING TO PAY FOR THIS!"


And then she sneezed very hard. She was back, and so was the headache. She groaned and rested her head on the table after pushing the rotting food away. "I'm not feeling too well. I don't know why. I didn't eat any of this gross food. Who did it by the way? Was it that weird ghost dude?" She continued normally, as if she hadn't just yelled at the headmaster. She had forgotten it, actually. She couldn't remember the past couple seconds at all, but she was pretty sure she hadn't blacked out. So why was there a gap in her normally great memory? "My head hurts. And... I don't..."

Violet had been absently picking at her food, moving more of it around on her plate than getting any of it into her mouth. She was mulling over the events of the past few weeks--the chaos in the Muggle Studies classroom, the destruction in Charms class and in the Trophy Room, the inexplicable behavior of Headmaster Trent, and the giant Ghost up in the Seventh Floor corridor...not to mention the letter she'd had from Miss Howard and her private talk with Professor Schmoe.

Suddenly she looked down and froze, fork in hand--what had happened to the food?!? For a minute, she thought some student was playing a prank on her by hexing her food, but glancing briefly around, she saw that the problem extended to all the food on the table, not just her plate. Curiously, Violet took her fork and picked up a piece of her rotting dinner and examined it for clues.

“You may not, Rose.“ Was there ever a more useless statement uttered by a student? Probably. Definitely, but in the moment, this was it. “Clearly someone must have done it. The food didn’t go bad on its own. Your professors have no desire to see their stomachs turned with rotting food and it certainly wasn’t the elves. Do I need to get your Arithmancy Professor down here for you to understand this simple equation?”

Wasting his time like this. There were many things the students here were not meant to be capable of doing and yet, the detentions he gave often proved otherwise.

“Now, I’ll ask again. Who is responsible for this?!”

This time, he did not have to wait.

Fox. He was only marginally surprised. The first year had increasingly become a thorn in his side over the course of the term.”A confession. Don’t try to play those silly games. Oh, where am I? I don’t remember what I just said. It’s the oldest trick in the book. You may not like the renovations but it gives you no right to ruin a perfectly good meal for everyone. I’ll make an example of you yet. 200 points from Ravenclaw. I’ll make it 3 if you don’t give up your accomplices.”

She could barely conjure fortified shield let alone rot an entire Great Hall.

Ashley looked confusedly up at the headmaster. What had she done? "I didn't rot the food. And I don't know what you're talking about. I don't have any accomplices, because I didn't do anything. Not like you care." And she tried not to cry. She failed. But at least she didn't pass out. Everyone in Ravenclaw would hate her now. This was so embarrassing. She was losing 200 points for nothing. What would people say about her now that she had lost 200 points in one moment? Even if it was unfair and she didn't do anything. She wished the ground would just open up and send her home.

Violet's head snapped up when she heard Ashley--her voice sounded strange and her words sounded a lot like what that huge ghost up in the Seventh Floor Corridor had been saying. Was Ashley possessed?! Was this what the ghost had meant by revenge? Violet hadn't thought a dead person could do much, but maybe she was wrong.

Violet turned to gape at the Headmaster--was he kidding? What was wrong with the man!? Couldn't he see that something was wrong with Ashley? Maybe he was possessed, too, come to think of it. Violet opened her mouth and almost said something, but then thought better of it. Trent was just too unstable to have a reasonable discussion with any more.

Uh ... what was happening??? Carsyn looked from young first year back at the Headmaster, who seemed to not believe her?? Also he was accusing a first year of all people to have been responsible for this???

While as a Gryffindor she wasn't affected by the points loss, there was a small part of her that felt the outrage because of the injustice and unreasonable actions, which as a prefect she felt compelled to say something.

"Are you seriously thinking a first year did this? Do you not see how differently she acted in the span of less than five minutes? How differently she's acting now. Someone .... I think Dark Arts are at play here." The last line she admitted quietly. Surely as Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor he should be able to see that of all people here.

The rotting food, while dramatic, wasn't QUITE getting the reaction Slyvester had been hoping for. He had been watching in the shadows, keeping himself hidden, hoping that his tricks would stir some sort of fervor in Trent to start moving forward with the return of his treasure. Nope. Time to take this up another notch.

The ghost made himself visible, floating above the staff table and GLARING down at Trent, who was continuing to disappoint him at every turn. How many more threats was it going to take? He wasn't asking for much - just for them to RETURN what was HIS and his alone!

"I am sick of your games, Trent! What do I have to do to get you to realize that I. WANT. MY. TREASURE. BACK!" Slyvester yelled at Trent before turning in anger and glaring at the students nearby. This wasn't enough, not enough at all!

He balled his hands up in to fists and SWOOPED through the air, flying through a number of students (Violet, Carsyn, Irithel and Avalon) and causing that unsettling sort of cold feeling as he passed by. A moment later, he had vanished in to thin air once again.

Maybe that would get their attention...

"Ashley!!" she gasped, so shocked by what she just witnessed that she forgot her mission to look for clean water. Irithel knew her friend could be bold and fearless, but this ... this was not her. She did not even seem to realise what she just said. Clearly, the Gryffindor Prefect understood that something was wrong, but the Headmaster was just being a dumb bully. She put her arm around Ashley comfortingly when she began to cry. "Sir, that's not fair! She didn't do anything," she defended, scowling.

She let out another surprised gasp when an angry ghost appeared above the staff table and yelled at Trent to return his treasure. It did not take a genius to see that that was basically what Ashley said in her strange state. This was getting super weird and she couldn't understand what was happening. She glanced at the Headmaster, but before she could see his reaction the angry ghost was flying THROUGH her. "EEEEEK!" How RUDE. She experienced the unpleasant cold feeling she got whenever she accidentally walked through a ghost. Why did he have to bother the students? Just deal with Trent, take the treasure or whatever, and leave them alone.

"Why don't you find that ghost and talk to him first, Headmaster? If you don't mind, I'll take Ashley to the hospital wing, since she is not feeling well."

Serena had been pre occupied with her charms homework, and she had been midway into swallowing her dinner with she noticed the flies, then the stench, then the rancid taste in her mouth.

"EEEEWW!" She exclaimed, practically spitting out the apparently now rotten food, and scraping it off her tongue. She looked up and down the Slytherin table and finding that everyone's dinner had rotted too. She looked around the hall and was surprise that the room had descended into chaos.

Ashley was screaming her head off about some treasure, and it was honestly terrifying. Could this have anything do to with that ghost that she mentioned during their muggle studies class? However, before she could dwell into it even further - said ghost came swooping down on them.

"Professor, just give it what it wants!!" She wailed, as she covered her blonde head with her hands (as if that would stop any ghosts.) She was not fond of ghosts, and she didn't want that thing even near here.

Honestly, Headmaster Trent should be keeping his student safe, not putting them in any more unnecessary danger! Wasn't the acromantula thing enough torment?

Avalon stared in disbelief as Ashley started shrieking. First the moldy food, and now this? The first year certainly had a big personality, but even for her, shouting was very unusual. Avalon couldn't help but wonder if something was wrong with her. She didn't know a lot about possessions, but it almost sounded like Ashley was speaking as someone else. Maybe she should go to the Hospital Wing. She was about to offer to walk her there, but it seemed like Irithel had it covered.

The Prefect was even more taken aback when Headmaster Trent docked 200 points from Ravenclaw. Did he honestly think that a first year was capable of spoiling all the food in the Great Hall? That would be advanced magic, far beyond the capabilities of most students at Hogwarts - let alone an 11-year-old. Before she could even complain, though, a ghost was yelling at Trent about treasure. What treasure?

Ohhhhh. It suddenly dawned on her. That day on the grounds, back at the beginning of the term. The weird chest with the runes. Something had flown out of it when it was opened. Maybe this was the same ghost. Avalon's brows knit together, deep in thought as she tried to connect the dots. She didn't get very far, though, because the ghost had swooped down and flown right through her, sending an icy chill down her spine and leaving an uneasy feeling in her chest. UGH. Why did the ghosts have to be SO rude?

Um.....

One minute she was enjoying her food, the next it was all rotten, people were yelling, a ghost was yelling and Headmaster Trent was yelling. Just raised voices all around. All over some sort of treasure? And now Whitney was confused. And suspicious. But mostly confused. "Is that how we've been getting all these renovations? That ghost's treasure?" Maybe not the brightest statement made by a Ravenclaw, but then she never claimed to be the brightest. Or had she? Oh, who cared?

If it got rid of the tacky stuff, she was all for returning it, getting the money back and giving it back to the ghost. Though, she would miss the pool. It was nice being able to swim without having to worry about grindylows...

Violet shivered as she felt a sudden coldness--'Someone must be walking on your grave!,"--her old nanny used to say. She started to stand up, but abruptly sat down again, feeling dizzy.

Suddenly Violet was on her feet, looking straight at Headmaster Trent and point directly at him with her right forefinger, and a strange, deep voice came out of her mouth:
"The Treasure is MINE! It will be returned, or you are all DOOMED! That is all."

Violet found herself sitting back on her seat, her head spinning. Did she just faint? She couldn't seem to remember the past few minutes at all. Maybe the smell of that food was making her ill.

The Gryffindor Prefect's comment had him rolling his eyes so hard they hurt. Had she not heard when he asked for the accomplices? Obviously Fox hadn't done this alone. He wasn't stupid. There were others and he would find out who they were.

"Spare me the act." He told the young Ravenclaw, ignoring Rose entirely.

...And then the ghost happened. Him again. This school was something else. Never a quiet moment, was there? Never a chance for him to just breathe. The Headmaster stared at the ghost through his little tirade, unimpressed to say the least. Was he done?

Good.

"We do not take orders from the dead." He informed Anders and Morin. No he would not give the gold back. There was still work to be done and a ghost would scarcely need even one gold chip from the chest. What did he plan to do with it? Stare at it longingly for the rest of eternity? No. The man would put it to better use.

"Where we've gotten the funds for the reservations is no concern of yours Quartermaine. Leave the ghost and the worry to me."

No sooner had he said this...another...now obviously possessed student.

Rather than looking at Blackthorne , he turned to look around into the empty space. [b]""Possess them all, if you'd like. The treasure is the property of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry now." He turned to the students again. "Get this mess cleaned up. I'll see about having the elves prepare something else."

That was an order. No more of this "just give it back". Ghosts did not frighten him.

Ashley looked up at the headmaster. Irritated, fragile, angry, embarrassed, but as an adverb. "Spare you the act of what? I didn't do anything. So I don't have any accomplices, because I didn't do anything. If you were talking about the food, that was obviously a ghost." Being competent? Being fair? Being helpful to the students? As far as she was concerned, she hadn't done anything. And even if she had done something, she certainly was not going to admit it. But she hadn't done anything, so that was not a problem. She looked at Irithel. "Let's go," she whispered. She really should go to the hospital wing, as she was not feeling well at all. And the smell in here was really revolting. "Irithel!" No! Her friend was flown through by the ghost. That was practically a bad omen. "Are you alright?" She was surprised again as Violet started repeating the ghost in a weird voice. She leaned over to Irithel. "We should take her with us." And by the way, Ashley didn't see Trent taking 200 points from Slytherin. Or protecting students. She just wanted to get out of here. And preferably stay away for a long time. She cleaned up her uneaten plate of rotten food. It was all she should be responsible for, and she was feeling too ill to do more than she had to.

Serena gave a start as Violet joined the ranks of students possessed. She scooted away from the girl - as much as their benches would allow, as a strange deep voice came over the younger girl. Was the ghost only targeting younger students?

'"We do not take orders from the dead."'

Serena glowered at their Professor. Was he really willing to risk everyone's lives just for gold?! "It's not as if Hogwarts is running any short on gold!" She snapped "Why is he risking everyone's lives just for a small spot of gold?!" She could live without the pool, and any of the new amenities around the castle if it meant a moment of peace!

She waved her wand at her plate, and muttered "Evanesco" and watched as the now spoiled dinner vanished into oblivion. 'So much for a peaceful evening'

"Yeah, I'm okay," she reassured Ashley after the unsettling cold feeling disappeared. There was a Slytherin girl who did not look alright though, as she was demanding the return of her treasure, just like what the ghost said earlier. And what is the Headmaster's response? "Possess them all, if you'd like." Irithel gasped when she heard his words. Unbelievable. He cared more about the treasure than his students. His indifference and the smell of rotting food together made her feel like throwing up.

She nodded at Ashley, stood up and headed to the Slytherin table where Violet sat looking confused. "Come on, you should go to the hospital wing with us."

Violet hated going to the hospital wing--she'd made it all term without having to go once--but she did still feel a bit dizzy and also a little sick. Had the rotten food affected her more than she realized? She hadn't eaten any, but she had put it up to her face to examine it. She didn't usually get bothered by bad smells, being used to brewing potions, but this was pretty bad.

"Okay, I guess you're right," she said, rising shakily and preparing to follow the other girls. At least someone would be with her in case she keeled over in the hallway.