He had been thwarted before in his epic search - which now made him miss the phoenix haired Alice again - but NOT TODAY! He hadn't even needed to borrow Jessa's cloak of invisibility to find himself in an unfamiliar part of the castle. Although now that he was here...er...having that on his person did not seem like such a bad idea.

Oh well. Too late now.

It was kinda dark down here though, which meant the third year was pulling his wand from its holster tucked away in his trouser pocket. "Lumos," he whispered to himself, SUCCESSFULLY casting the spell now that he mostly had his stutter under control. Which brought an especially wide grin to the Hufflepuff's face as he proceeded forward.

Part of him knew he should be cautious...and perhaps feel a little bad that he was down here because of Abey matters...but right now the hatstall Ravenpuff was overcome with curiosity and everything channeled through that lens.

Derf soon approached the dusty table aaaaaaaand...boring. Oh but hey there were doors! He was quickly able to figure out that no, he had not found the Chamber of Secrets (obviously since he had not gone through the loo) but soooooomething about here was triggering and tickling his excitement bone. Quickening his steps, Derf proceeded further through the various rooms and chambers (bypassing the mirror entirely because he did not care to look at his reflection really) until he came to the room with the ... "Chess board?"

Hold on. He needed a moment to process this.

This castle was much bigger than she'd realised. It didn't look this big from the outside. That palace in Russia had seemed so much bigger, but she'd never gotten lost in it! Twenty seven bathrooms and she remembered each and every single one. Even Dad had been impressed.

But Hogwarts was... hard. Lots of corridors didn't make any sense and she was sure she'd passed the same painting three times on her way to breakfast this morning. She needed a map! Sure she was a first year but she wanted to be the best first year, and the best first years didn't get lost!

Not that she was lost. Nope. Just a little directionally challenged at the moment. Blinking around her, and frowning at the stone walls as if it was entirely their fault, Philippa suddenly noticed a door just to her right. What? That... hadn't she walked here earlier?! See? This castle made no sense.

Pushing open the door carefully, Philippa gulped at the utter darkness. She wasn't scared of the dark, but it was a little bit frightening. She didn't know any spells yet, not any that could help her anyways, but a little squinting and she could just make out a little light bopping up ahead. There was someone there! Shutting the door quietly behind her as her curiosity piqued, Philippa padded quietly towards the dim light until-

"OOOOOUCH!" she walked RIGHT into a wall, stumbled and fell back onto a window?? glass wall? a mirror?! only to bounce off and crash onto her knees on the dusty floor with a smack, bang and loud thud. "OWWWWWW!" Philippa's eyes welled up with tears, which she angrily brushed aside. "HELP ME I'M DYYYYIIIIINNGGGG!!!" PLEASE COME SAVE HER. She'd broken all her bones! And her knees! And her HEAD must be SPLIT OPEN. What would Papa say?? Dad would be so sad! Merlin she didn't want to die!!

Her arm itched. Philippa paused her heartfelt crying to scratch it thoroughly because itchy skin was annoying. She hoped there were no spiders crawling on her. That would be super gross.

Oh, wait. "HELLPPPP!"

HOLY FLAMING SALAMANDERS!!!! WHAT?!

No sooner had the third year finally come to the conclusion that he was standing on a giant chess board - and not just any chess board but THE chess board - had he heard the screams of a fair maiden. Yes, the pieces of a chess board WERE already getting to the blonde's imagination and he had obviously taken up the sword to become a knight.

"I'M COMING!" he shouted back after just a moment hesitation as he bounded off the board and fussed for his wand from his trouser pocket. Which meant he wasn't really bounding off anything and more doing this awkward sort of shuffle while trying not to get his legs tangled up with one another. So really...he was the world's most awkward knight at the moment.

He sorta remembered how knights spoke in old books and stories, but all that went out the window when he saw her on the ground and then ACTUAL panic sunk in. THE MONSTER WAS BACK AND IT HAD ATTACKED THIS GIRL AND NO NO NO NO NOOOOOOOOOOO!

Picking up the pace and his heart POUNDING in his ears to the point where he couldn't hear anything - not even his feet as they pounded against the floor - and came to a sliding stop by her side. "FLIPENDO!" he barked, sending the jinx off into the darkness behind her.

Oh yes, Derf to the rescue!

He hadn't been there for Abey. Or Simon. Or Henry. Or Etta. Or Junia. BUT HE WAS GOING TO BE THERE FOR YOU...ER...GIRL HE DID NOT KNOW YET BUT WAS THERE FOR!

Was that a voice?! Was there someone who would help her?? She sure hoped so, all this crying would be tiring for nothing. Her knees really hurt though, as did the back of her head. Somewhat. Who put a mirror in the middle of a room with no light?? Dad said Hogwarts had a sense of humour but this was NOT funny it was stupid and Philippa disliked it.

Oh, a person! A... boy! With a wand!! She was about to amp up the tears when he shot a spell. At something behind her. Behind her.

O.O

"Who are you aiming at????" Philippa screeched, bounding up on her feet and scuttling behind the boy, reaching to grab his shoulders tightly. "I can't see anything, what did you do that for??!!" more screeching, this time right by his hear. She was SCARED. Is this why Liv had to go to Ilvermorny?? Was she really going to die? :O "I don't want to die, I only just got here!" She was actually crying! This was serious! Tears and a little snot and everything!

And her knees REALLY hurt. So, like,whatever is out there should leave because she needed a Healer and a hug. Snifflesniffle.

Gaston was on the way back to his office when he heard... screeching?! That sounded like a student in trouble! it sounded like it was coming from the underground chambers...

Without thinking twice, he wheeled around and drew his wand. A quick nonverbal lumos, and he sprinted in the direction of the sound. As he approached he saw Mr. Ashbury-Hawthorne and... a girl hiding behind him. He was going to ask them what was going on when suddenly - BAM!

He was flat on his back.

It took him all of half a second to realize he'd been hit with a knockback jinx, but that was the last thing on his mind right now. he had to protect his students! In an instant, he was back on his feet, feeling around for the wand that had fallen out of his hand when he fell.

"Mr. Ashbury-Hawthorne, Miss Von Brandt...?" His eyes darted from one face to the other, confusion and panic written all over his face. "Are you alright? What's going on?"

As if the misadventure with the slug pit wasnt enough, the Gryffindor Ace once again drags his now official girlfriend down the dark confusing maze of the dungeons. Its nice to have someone who was just as ready to embrace the unknown as he did ya know? Yes thats what he's calling their predictable circumstances of getting lost yet again.

Like this door that is not a door because if it wasnt haphazardly closed he wouldnt even be able to tell it apart from the surrounding wall of the passageway. "There's something here..." he murmured at Vi as he pried the door open with his hands. When it finally swung open, a silent, somewhat dusty chamber greeted them.

Poking head first into this dark chamber, yknow as Gryffindors do....

And they were back in the dungeons. Was this just a place for them to go and hang out away from all the chaos? Or was there another secret down here...?
Then all of a sudden Ace spotted something in the corridor. She watched her boyfriend (she almost giggled when she thought that) pry open a door. All of a sudden, it swung open, revealing a dusty chamber. And then all of a sudden Tenacius had poked his head first into the chamber. Oh Merlin. Look at that Gryffindor bravery.... He didn't know what loomed ahead but just went into it without any thought. That whole scene made her feel very, very uneasy. "Ace..." she said with her voice filled with worry. What if something happened to him? She didn't want to think of that. It made her feel sick to her stomach and incredibly worried.

However, Ace seemed calm about the dusty chamber in front of them. Maybe it wasn't filled with creepy things...? Vi felt more calm being with him. Maybe it was going to be okay up ahead. Yes... It was going to be okay. She cast Lumos and then placed her hand on Tenacius' back. "Shall we go in?" she asked and then took a step forward into the chamber. Her eyebrows raised when she saw a dusty table ahead of them. What was this for?

He heard Vi call his name out, but by then he has poked his head into the darkness and so far nothing untoward has happened in the few seconds he stood there. That means its safe to move forward yeah? #GryffindorLogic

Then a light shown beside him and he could feel Vi gaining the impetus to explore just as he does. "Yep lets go--" he murmured as he took his own wand out and cast the illumination charm as well.... of which the table caught their light.

Without those seven bottles it was hard for him to see the significance to a lone dusty table in the middle of a chamber "How many weird empty classrooms does Hogwarts have?..." he wondered aloud. It was a rhetorical question of course, but six years living in the castle and it still has so many secrets he was still discovering.

It was then that his gaze caught the two doors. He glanced back and forth between those and the table "You think somebody comes out of there, stops by the table and then exits the other door? I'm getting a Belle Be Our Guest moment with this layout."

His imagination is weird.

SPOILER!!: you two! XD

Quote:

Originally Posted by Daemon

Was that a voice?! Was there someone who would help her?? She sure hoped so, all this crying would be tiring for nothing. Her knees really hurt though, as did the back of her head. Somewhat. Who put a mirror in the middle of a room with no light?? Dad said Hogwarts had a sense of humour but this was NOT funny it was stupid and Philippa disliked it.

Oh, a person! A... boy! With a wand!! She was about to amp up the tears when he shot a spell. At something behind her. Behind her.

O.O

"Who are you aiming at????" Philippa screeched, bounding up on her feet and scuttling behind the boy, reaching to grab his shoulders tightly. "I can't see anything, what did you do that for??!!" more screeching, this time right by his hear. She was SCARED. Is this why Liv had to go to Ilvermorny?? Was she really going to die? :O "I don't want to die, I only just got here!" She was actually crying! This was serious! Tears and a little snot and everything!

And her knees REALLY hurt. So, like,whatever is out there should leave because she needed a Healer and a hug. Snifflesniffle.

Quote:

Originally Posted by MadMadamMalfoy

Gaston was on the way back to his office when he heard... screeching?! That sounded like a student in trouble! it sounded like it was coming from the underground chambers...

Without thinking twice, he wheeled around and drew his wand. A quick nonverbal lumos, and he sprinted in the direction of the sound. As he approached he saw Mr. Ashbury-Hawthorne and... a girl hiding behind him. He was going to ask them what was going on when suddenly - BAM!

He was flat on his back.

It took him all of half a second to realize he'd been hit with a knockback jinx, but that was the last thing on his mind right now. he had to protect his students! In an instant, he was back on his feet, feeling around for the wand that had fallen out of his hand when he fell.

"Mr. Ashbury-Hawthorne, Miss Von Brandt...?" His eyes darted from one face to the other, confusion and panic written all over his face. "Are you alright? What's going on?"

Who? Er...

"N-N-No one," he answered honestly. Because TECHNICALLY he had been aiming for a WHAT and not a WHO. The fact that she seemed more terrified than him in the moment was enough to pull strength from. Kinda like when he had taken Picketta for a walk and she had seen this dog with a stick it its mouth and completely freaked out. He felt protective, you know? Like he had a DUTY to make sure she knew she was okay.

A duty he had failed as a first year...but now was not the time to lament on this and spiral. Though it was kinda hard.

Ears RINGING at all her shrieking - was she part banshee because MERLIN - Derf simply wrapped his arms around her and held her TIGHT. "You're okay," he stated firmly. Well, hopefully she would be okay since there was no howling or roaring at his spell to indicate that the Monster was back.

Until there came that THUD and Derf just happened to catch the outline of someone falling after being struck by his rogue spell.

Derf TRIED to spin around and raise his wand, but the girl's death grip on his shoulders was kinda hindering that whole experience. And then he heard the familiar voice of the Charms professor...AND SUSPICIONS HAPPENED.

There was no way...NOOOOOOOOOO WAAAAAAAAAAAAY a Hogwarts profesor would be struck down by such haphazard magic. Especially coming from THIS particular Hufflepuff. Sure, his intent was true and that fueled his casting this time - desperately really - but Derf was SUSPICIOUS.

"That's an impostor," he whispered confidently to the girl as he moved between her and the approaching FAKE PROFESSOR. "Polyjuice I reckon."

His bright blue eyes then returned to the man with a SQUINT. This was it. The moment of truth. Three ish years of conspiracy theories were coming to a head! Only this was the super confusing part...was this a hag or a werewolf coming towards them now and WAS it possible for it to be a hybrid of the two?

He could already feel his brain beginning to overheat thinking about this.

"Nothing....professor." OR SHOULD HE SAY...well...okay...he was still sorta figuring that bit out.

His rhetorical question was a question that she had at that precise moment. "Enough to write several mysteries..." she murmured, shivering slightly as she eyed the cobwebs in the corners of the room. It felt colder in here. She knew that his answer wasn't one that required a question but still... Vi made her way over to the table and gently placed her hand on the table as she glanced at the seven bottles. Hmm... What was the significance of the seven bottles? She was getting a vibe that things were stranger down here than in the rest of school.


Ace's reference to Beauty and the Beast made Vi giggle. Vi loved his imagination. His ability to think so creatively. She turned her blue eyes towards the door, expecting to see a candlestick jump out and starting singing 'Be Our Guest'. "I can see it now that you mention it..." Vi made her way towards Ace and the doors. "I was thinking more of Indiana Jones or Lara Croft in an undiscovered temple."

Glancing at the doors in front of them, she paused. "Do you think those doors will open easily by hand or perhaps we have to do something..." Sing a song? Find some perfect combination of tiles to press? Something else?

SPOILER!!: Derf and Charms Prof

*lalala quoting happened*

"No one??" she was going to scream in his ear again when he hugged her and honestly? Philippa loved hugging. She loved it so much. She always liked being hugged, it felt so warm and nice just the best really. Plus, the people who hugged her always had good things to say about her, and about how pretty she was and how amazing she'd be when she got older so really, Philippa von Brandt was all about hugging.

Snuggling into his chest because she could, Philippa enjoyed her two milliseconds of blissful hugging when a NOISE happened and she jumped into the air, complete with a gasp, shriek and talon grip on her SAVIOUR.

Because he totally was.

She blinked into the darkness, eyes wide as she recognised the professor's voice, immediately wondering if they were in trouble. The spell hadn't been on purpose, the boy was just saving her from- well, she didn't know but she was sure it hadn't been on purpose.

Biting her lip and grabbing a fistful of the boy's shirt, Philippa gasped once more at his words. "An impostor?? Polyjuiced??!" she whispered as she looked between the boy and the "Professor", deciding she trusted the boy more. A gut instinct. Because why would the professor not make more sound before being hit by the spell?? And HOW did he know who they were in this darkness unless he had super evil, see in the dark, magic?? And.. and.. well. The boy was older so he obviously knew that the Professor was an impostor, because he could totally tell that he was different now! Yes. She was so smart. Valid reasons, all of them.

And so, because she was brave and the absolute best and obviously would go down in Hogwarts history as the bravest first year since Harry Potter himself, Philippa squared her shoulders and gave the man her best "I am better than you" glare. Which he would totally be able to see because of his dark magic sight. Take THAT.

.... Okay but why was there an impostor here? She leaned in to whisper in the boy's ear, standing on the tips of her toes. "Uhmmmmmmmm. Is he going to kill us? What's the plan? I'm really good at sneaking up on people and kicking them in the shins," she offered helpfully. Helpful Philippa. So smart. So courageous. So cunning.

At the mention of Indiana Jones and Lara Croft, the Curly Top let out a joyous laughter that echoed a bit around the chamber "Good one Vi!" he said between gasps of hilarity. He ran towards the doors and comically gestured at one and then the other like a gameshow hostess "So whats behind Door#1? Why its the latest in cardio fitness equipment care of a two ton rolling boulder chasing you down a cave! And what about Door#2? Why its a free class to the hippest dance craze taught by the multi-talented, multi-handed, quadro-faced giant statue!"

He looked at the doors now as Vi's question echoed around the chamber.... "So basically.... do we push or do we pull?" snicker.

"Y'knoooooww, Ace," she began, drawing out the y'know a little bit too long as she thought of the options and also how wonderful Ace was. There he was... Her Ace just having a good time and pretending to be a game show hostess. Vi laughed, grinning from ear to ear, as he went up there being as silly as always. He was just himself and she loved him for that. "Those are really difficult options to choose between. Despite the allure of being chased by a two ton boulder down a cave which- don't get me wrong, sounds fantastic and all," she smiled, imagining herself with Indiana Jones' hat on and all, running through some merlin forsaken temple in the middle of nowhere.... "Knowing my luck with gravity and my feet, I'll take the safer option which would be dancing with the quadro-faced giant statue."

Now to Ace's question, Vi kept her eyes fixed on both doors. Push or pull? "Hah..." She glanced at him, chuckling, as he snickered. "Maybe its not that easy... It can't be right... There has to be some catch..." There had to be something more to it, right? It couldn't be THAT easy. She paused, slowly glancing at either door, before walking over and biting her lip. Well then again... she did have a history of overcomplicating.... EVERYTHING. "You pull. I'll push?" she suggested with a smirk before she headed towards door #2. She'd take dancing classes with the statue. But then again.... Vi turned around to face Ace with a teasing grin and pointed to door two. "Let's try door number two," she said as she gently pushed the door. At first, it didn't budge until she heard a click and then the door crrrrrreeeeeeeaaaaked open. A soft thud followed.

"To dancing statues?" she said with one final look at Tenacius before taking a step further into the unknown chamber. "This place is practically empty... Oh wait." Her eyes landed on a grand mirror and they widened. She went to go investigate. "Hello? What's this?"

Merlin, these kids were going to be the death of him! Gaston massaged the back of his head where it struck the ground when he fell. There was definitely going to be a lump there... but no time to think about it now. He had to find his wand! If only the light from his Lumos spell hadn't gone out when he dropped it! He felt along the ground until he found something long and thin. He hoped that was his wand and not a troll bone... or who knows what else! His fingers brushed over a raised design at one end of the object and he knew he'd found it. "Lumos."

Once again, light appeared at the tip of his wand, but his heart sank when he saw the students' faces. They looked even more scared than they had in the brief look he got at them before got hit with the knockback jinx and lost his wand. At least Miss Von Brandt had stopped crying. That was a good sign, right? Then again, maybe not in this case...

Gaston's expression turned even more puzzled than ever as he waited for at least one of them to explain what was going on. And why were they whispering amongst themselves? He couldn't make out all of what was being said, but he was almost sure he heard the word "imposter". He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. Really?! As if students thinking he was a werewolf wasn't enough... These kids never hesitated to assume the worst of him, did they?

He raised a skeptical eyebrow in reply when Mr. Ashbury-Hawthorne finally (albeit dishonestly) answered him; the boy really was a horrible liar. "It certainly didn't sound like nothing," he said. "Those screams sounded like someone in trouble." Then Miss Von Brandt gave him a glare that broke his heart... and there was more whispering.

He wracked his brains for a way to ease the kids' fears. Should he challenge Mr. Ashbury-Hawthorne to ask him a question only the real Professor Marchand could answer? Or let them follow him around for the time it would take for a Polyjuice potion to wear off and let them see he wasn't going to transform back into anyone else? The more he thought about it, the more he was convinced that trying to deny he was an imposter would only confirm their suspicions. Maybe he could try to convince them that he was a friendly imposter?

"I'm not going to hurt you..." Gaston assured them, taking care to keep his tone soft and calm. Just to prove his point, he held his wand off to the side, far enough away so as not to look like he was pointing it at them but close enough for them to see it. Come on, kids, think! If he was going to harm them, he would've done it already instead of trying to reason with them. "I came here because I heard screams and thought somebody might be hurt, but now i see I've only made things worse. I'm sorry I scared you..."