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Gryffindoll · #1 (**permalink**) 06-14-2015, 04:52 AM

Everybody loves Hogwarts.
Students couldn’t be prouder of the beloved castle they get to call home for most part of the year, and those unfortunate enough not to receive an invitation, dream of racing the moving staircases and finding secret passageways behind talking portraits.
Enchanting as it may be, Hogwarts remains, above all: a school. Which means that Hogwarts students don’t necessarily spend all their time at the castle joking with nearly-headless ghosts, sneaking into forbidden forests, or enjoying a cup of hot chocolate by the fireplace. Like any other student at any other school, magical or otherwise, they have their fair share of responsibilities: homework to get done, tests to study for, grades to improve. Overall, Hogwarts students tend to be hard-working, smart individuals who surpass challenges set by each and every lesson, moving on to higher levels.
There are, however, those classes that are just IMPOSSIBLE for some to pass. And for some Hogwarts students the main culprit tends to be:
Muggle. Studies.

These students can perform a perfect patronus, handle a crying mandrake, predict your untimely demise in a teacup, but they simply can NOT figure out the workings of a “TV remote” no matter how many times they press all the bloody buttons. It looks just like a tel-uh-phony, what is even the point of this thing!? GAHHH.
For these students, a special summer lesson has been put together by Professor Willoughby, Hogwarts’ one and only Muggle Studies master. These students failed all exams and either didn’t turn in their homework, or turned in something that made no more sense than a two-headed dog with chicken legs and fire breath. If these students don’t want to end up repeating the class next term (and I’m more than certain they don’t), they MUST pass the summer lesson, which, in consequence, will take up a good half of their summer break.

So, what is Professor Willoughby’s challenge?
Surviving one month in suburbia.

The worst Muggle Studies students in every House and every year must pack their belongings (without the help of magic) and move to a standard, uniformed suburban home in the middle of a friendly muggle neighbourhood in the outskirts of London. Doesn’t sound too bad, does it? Well, there’s a catch: the students must give up their wands to Professor Willoughby at the end of term, and they may only retrieve them after successfully completing all challenges set up by the professor. So, absolutely no magic can be performed during the entire month the students spend in this home, performing their daily tasks without the aid of their wands. They must learn to live life… the muggle way.

It’s not all so bad, though. The house is large and comfortable, there’s a pool in the backyard, they get a mini van to drive around, and there’s other youths in the neighbourhood. Just next door is a house occupied entirely by muggle university students, who our muggle-challenged witches and wizards must interact with without raising any suspicion to complete some of their tasks. If they’re nice enough, they could maybe even get the muggles to perform some of these tasks for them. …Long as they’re not caught by the Professor’s ~~pet~~ assistant. There will be one student, the best student, in fact, who is already familiar with all things muggle and will be in charge of making sure that all tasks are completed by his classmates. Should anyone be caught cheating, this student will be in charge of reporting them to Professor Willoughby, and they may permanently lose their wand in consequence.

To help the students stay on track and remember all the tasks they must complete, a chalkboard has been set up in the living room area of the home. Here, the professor’s assistant has listed all the tasks the students must complete, in the order they must be performed. Also, all students have been equipped with the muggle version of a wand - a cellphone. Each cellphone is activated with its own phone number and the students are free to use them as they please, the more they play around with the gadget and experience first-hand muggle technology, the better! But please do try to take it easy on the selfies.

And so, girls and boys… welcome to suburbia! Have fun and try not to get electrocuted by that tricky muggle invention - electricity!

__________________________________________________ ___

Hello everyone!
So, since the general RP section of the site is pretty dead, The Amazing Ru (pinecone) and I have decided to start something new that will hopefully get more members involved in RPs outside of the school!
If you’re interested in joining, please just post a bio for your character(s) and we’ll add them to the list below!
You may RP students, muggles, or both. Ru and I will be taking care of the professor and his assistant (we may or may not have some surprises in store for you… ). You may also bring in any necessary extras if a certain scene asks for it, the more realistic we make this, the better! If you have any ideas of extra characters you’d like to add in besides the students and their muggle neighbors, tell us! Want to be a gardener that’s onto them? A thief that breaks into the house at night? A troublesome child that rings the bell and runs away!? ALL CHARACTERS ARE WELCOME. BE CREATIVE!

And for your reference, here is a shot of the board listing all the kids’ challenges. Below is a link to see a larger version.

CLICK HERE FOR LARGER VERSION!

Please remember to follow all SS rules while RPing, and, most of all, don’t forget to have FUN!!!

__________________________________________________ ___

CHARACTER LIST:

- Allegra Reynolds
- Serina May Souza
- Leonardo Huntley
- Adam Nicholas Kipling

pinecone · 06-18-2015, 05:48 PM

[ Allegra Reynolds ]

Name: Allegra Reynolds
Nickname(s): Please refrain.
Age: 17
Year: 7th
House: Ravenclaw
Blood Status: Pureblood

Patronus: Siamese Cat
Strongest Subjects: Charms, Arithmancy, Astronomy, Potions, Muggle Studies, Herbology, Care of Magical Creatures, Transfiguration
Weakest Subjects: ...?
Hobbies: Chess, graffiti, causing quiet mischief.
Pets: Large toad named "Felix"

Appearance:
Hair: Dark brown, straight, just past her shoulders
Eyes: Gray
Build: Thin, delicate.
Height: 5'4"
Distinctive Characteristics: Large eyebrows, mischievous attitude, lack of speaking

Background:
Allegra is an only child in a family with a long history. Her family line dates back centuries and for the most part only includes Pureblood witches and wizards, but she has always had a quiet fascination of muggle culture and therefore has thrived in her Muggle Studies class as she does in most subjects. She is the first in her family line to be sorted into any house other than Slytherin.

Personality:
Allegra is most certainly called, "that weird Ravenclaw girl" more than her actual name. Most people don't know her, but often notice her in the background, quietly observing with an impish smile on her porcelain face. She always seems to be giggling at something no one else witnessed, and can often be found sneakily writing/painting/doodling when not completing school work. Allegra isn't necessarily the warmest girl you'll ever meet, but that's not quite the reason she doesn't have many friends. Perhaps it's her large, ever-staring gray eyes or her habit of never speaking or the way she explores the castle alone, ignoring all others. Either way, it's true that Allegra Reynolds really only has the Hogwarts ghosts for friends.

She doesn't speak much, preferring to make her mark through gestures, knowing looks, and drawings. Most of her peers rarely hear her speaking voice more than once every few weeks. She gets through classes with her supreme intelligence, and most professors don't force her to speak as they know her written homework will be dripping with genius. Don't confuse her quiet demeanor for a shy personality. Granted, Allegra doesn't socialize in the same way as her peers, but she lives quite boldly - often finding herself in trouble with administration for her "doodles" found all over school property.

Likes: Spray paint, neutral colors, inside jokes with Hogwarts ghosts and paintings.

Dislikes: Loud personalities, those who lack of intelligence, people who force her to speak.

[ Leonardo Huntley ]

Full Name: Leonardo Huntley
Nickname(s): Leo
Date of Birth: July 31st
Place of Birth: London, England
Age: 17
Year: 7th
House: Gryffindor
Blood Status: Mixed Blood
Relationship Status: Single and ready to miiiiiingle

Patronus: (hasn’t been able to focus enough yet to find out)
Wand: 12 1/2″ Cherry wand with core of Dragon Heartstring
Strongest Subjects: Care of Magical Creatures, Astronomy
Weakest Subjects: Muggle Studies, Arithmancy, History of Magic, Herbology, Charms, Transfiguration, Flying, Potions (”Guys, guys, I made something purple!” - Failed, also lost half an eyebrow)
Hobbies: Trying to free the hippogriffs from their corral, camping by the lake, sleeping in unusual places

Pets: Once had a fish named Gerald but released him into the lake in the hopes he might eventually become “king of all fish, of all time, ever”. Claimed the bowl was “keeping him from his destiny” and the bowl also needed weekly cleaning so “FO’GET THAAAAAT.”

Appearance:
Hair: Bronze-ish, rusty gold, grown out and wavy
Eyes: Mint green
Build: Thin, athletic, very tanned skin tone
Height: 5′11″
Distinctive Characteristics: Cat-like grin, taste for ill-advised adventure, lack of average logic and reason. Also, enjoys pizza.

Background:

Leo was born as an only child of two rather free-spirited parents who often spent more time travelling than with their son. Growing up with little structure, little company, and extravagant funding, he has always found comfort in new adventure to distract him from the boredom of life. As a result, he has an issue with keeping his attention on any one project at a time, and often prefers to spend money on useless things or explore many horizons most others would deem “dangerous” or “stupid” or “who-in-their-right-mind-would-even-think-to-do-that”. That’s where Leo flourishes. He’s not the best in his schoolwork, but not for lack of intelligence. Rather, he merely doesn’t have the patience for work he won’t use. (After Hogwarts, he plans to travel the world until his money runs out and promptly move into the woods to try and join the centaurs.)

Personality:

Some would call Leo off-beat, but he doesn’t seem to realize much of a difference between himself and his peers. He can be very strong-willed in his pursuit of what he wants, and at times conniving to get what he wants from others. He’s certainly spoiled by his lifestyle, and isn’t used to being told “no”. Granted, many things he wants, he gets. But when he doesn’t? Prepare for the fight of your life. As his name implies, he does roar when need be. (Literally, sometimes he roars at people…and hisses…really anything a cat might do. Including biting.)

He hangs around with a posse who inexplicably adores him and supports his ill-advised choices, making him somewhat of a ~~Queen~~ King Bee, and probably would've been voted Prom King if Hogwarts did that sort of thing. The carefree, fast-paced aspects of his unique personality attract others, and he often entangles innocent bystanders into his spontaneous adventures without realizing the repercussions it might have on those who can't buy their way out of trouble.

Likes: Astronomy, centaurs, his band ("Peripheral Pandemonium", he's the lead singer unfortunately) mermaids, pizza, colorful bracelets, singing a pop song lyric out of tune any time the professor turns around to the board, and then closing his mouth quickly when the professor looks back and then starting up again when they turn back around.

Dislikes: Annoying people, jealous ex-girlfriends, people who don’t enjoy pizza (”WHO DOESN’T LIKE PIZZA? WHAT ARE YOU? WHERE DID YOU COME FROM?”)

Gryffindoll · 06-18-2015, 06:03 PM

Full name: Serina May Souza
Goes by: Seri
Birthdate: August 21st
Age: 16
Height: 5'6"
Blood: Pureblood
Eyes: Hazel
Hair: Curly and brown, sometimes charmed straight.
Complexion: Caramel

House: Slytherin
Year: 6th
------

P E R S O N A L I T Y :

PERFECT.
… If it was Serina herself filling out this form, it would all come down to that one word.
But she’s not. So, back to reality:
Serina May is smart. Very smart. You could even say brilliant. And this isn’t her arrogance influencing these descriptives. The girl has an agile and clever mind; she loves problem-solving and puzzles, anything that exercises the most important muscle (yes, it’s muscle-like) organ in her petite body. The brain. An organ it seems not all are privileged enough to be born with, according to her.
Smart as she is, Serina does have her weaknesses: Muggle. Studies.
Throw any arithmancy problem at her, quiz her on the exact recipe for creating a successful Elixir of Life but for the love of Merlin, PLEASE don’t ask her the difference between a TV and a radio. “They both emit sound and are utterly useless to my every day life, who bloody cares?!”

Serina’s “smart girl” status by no means shadows or even challenges her other defining features: a beauty to rival any veela’s (ahem, according to her) and a sense of fashion as sharp as her wit. The girl is ambitious and sets high goals for herself, easily accomplishing them with the confidence that pushes her forward, encourages her to out-do herself and everyone else every single day. This is probably the most admirable of the girl’s qualities; her ability to take on any challenge, no matter how daunting, and overcome it successfully.

There are some challenges Serina still, to this day, can’t overcome. For example, her lack of patience. If you can’t keep up, then please kindly bugger off. “If I need an anchor I’ll take a trip on Pai’s yacht.”
Serena is usually quiet, though not necessarily reserved. She’s an observer, her sharp, critical hazel eyes usually taking in even the most minute detail. This helps her both excel in lessons and point out her classmates’ weaknesses. A good weapon to carry around.

B A C K G R O U N D :
Serina comes from an exclusively pureblood family. Were they former Death Eaters? No. There was no specific reason for it; it simply hadn’t happened yet, a muggle or muggleborn witch or wizard becoming part of the Souza family. And Serina, with her disregard for all things muggle, certainly wasn’t about to make history in her family tree. It was simply easier to stick to your own kind, she supposed.

Angelica Pickford-Souza, Serina’s mother, was born in Holland but raised in London. The girl’s father, Miguel Souza, is the oldest in an influential family of Brazilian descent. There’s still a thick Portuguese accent in his English. Both Angelica and Miguel work in the Department of Mysteries at the Ministry of Magic, where they first met and, years later, decided it would be a good idea to start a family. Two years after Serina’s arrival to the world, came Marina, her younger sister. Serina loves her little sister to bits but lacks the patience to play the role of loving older sister; for this reason, she tends to avoid Marina (who was thankfully sorted into Hufflepuff) during school terms.

O T H E R :
Serina has no pets. She hates pets. Well, maybe hate is a strong word, but she has no patience to play along and earn their trust. Dogs are cute but that bark is just so irritating, and cats remind her too much of herself, minus the fur that makes her nose itch.

She will literally claw at anyone who tries to become roommates with her during this AWFUL, NIGHTMARISH summer assignment (more like punishment) - a room will be hers and ONLY hers. “I’m not here to make friends. All that matters is getting that nasty little stain of a poor grade on this brainless, unnecessary subject (that should honestly be BANNED from being taught in all wizarding schools worldwide) off my record, so please kindly bugger off while I try to figure out how to activate the moving images contraption.”

___________________________________________

Full name: Adam Nicholas Kipling
Goes by: Adam. Nick by cousins and family. “You bloody idiot!” by classmates.
Birthdate: October 1st
Age: 17
Height: 6’1”
Blood: Pureblood
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Dark Dark brown, almost black
Complexion: Pale
Defining feature: Pointless tattoos scattered like doodles on his arms

House: Slytherin
Year: 7th
------

P E R S O N A L I T Y :
It is strongly suspected and, deeply believed by the boy himself, that Adam was a sloth in his past life. And part of his sloth-y qualities transferred over to his current existence as a human. Simply put: Adam’s outstanding feature is his absolute laziness. He’s late to each and every single class every morning. And if class happens in the afternoon, he’ll still be late, as his slothy instincts forbid him from moving at a normal pace. Adam enjoys taking his time with things and will not rush through anything unless it’s escape from a man-eating beast. During his free time, he can be found lounging by the fireplace in the common room. On the grass in the grounds. On a windowsill in a classroom. On the Slytherin table in the Great Hall. Hell, he’ll even lounge on the stone floor if all other cozy alternatives are inaccessible.

Adam’s ability to remain slender to the point of scrawniness is the world’s 8th wonder. One thing the boy’s definitely never been lazy with, is his appetite. He can eat six full plates of food and three large desserts with three cups of pumpkin juice in one sitting. He then burns off these calories by taking a nap on the nearest seating surface.

Adam is more than a fur-less sloth and a stomach with infinite capacity, though. He’s also observant and sometimes even clever. Brains isn’t necessarily something that the boy is known for, actually, his lack of is a more prominent feature. But, sometimes, when the planets and the stars align just right, Adam can and does say some pretty meaningful things, point out clever observations, and even figure out the solution to a problem. These occurrences are rare, but always impressive when seen in action. Breath-taking, even.

Though good-hearted and never resentful or vengeful toward anyone, Adam’s selfishness was what got him sorted into Slytherin. He doesn’t do it out of ill will, though. It’s the laziness. He’d rather finish his nap than help a classmate drowning in the lake. It’s not that he doesn’t care about others’ well-being, it’s just… effort.
Overall, Adam can be an entertaining company to have around. When he’s not eating your food or suffering from sudden narcolepsy in the middle of breakfast, he enjoys good humor, pranks (especially on the professors), flying his broom, and warm cozy drinks like a hot cup of cinnamon coffee or hot chocolate, even in the warmest of summers.

B A C K G R O U N D :
The Kiplings are a middle-class family of Purebloods living in the heart of London. Neither Adam or either of his two brothers (Evan, younger by two years and Geoffrey, older by two years) have ever visited outside of the UK. Adam’s mother, Jessica Kipling, works as a Herbologist and Master Potioneer while his father, Timothy Kipling, works as a Healer at St. Mungo’s. The family has never moved from their comfortable five-bedroom home that looks like a simple townhouse in the middle of the suburbs from the outside. The walls are covered in family portraits and markings on one of the kitchen walls documents Adam’s, Evan’s, and Geoffrey’s slow growth through the years, since they were two years old until now. So far, Adam has beat out his brothers in the race to space (literally as a child he claimed his wish was to be so tall that his torso would reach outer space). Having lived in the same neighborhood his whole life, Adam has a generous amount of friends, both wizard and muggle back at home.

O T H E R :
Adam has a black-and-white kitten named Tux, its name brought upon by the way his different-colored fur parts so evenly in the middle to create the illusion of a cat wearing a black tuxedo with a white dress shirt beneath. A spot of black fur directly on his neck passes as the signature bowtie of Tux’s attire.
For someone with rather poor grades, Adam is extremely confident of his abilities to face any given challenge (probably because he’s honestly just too lazy to think or care about consequences), which has gotten him into some dangerous and embarrassing situations. Like the time he tried out for the Slytherin Quidditch team and thought it would be a great idea to impress his peers by walking on the broomstick while it was still in motion. …He ended up at the Hospital Wing for four weeks, half his teeth gone, his nose broken, and his skull cracked. He remembers the daring attempt fondly.
Also, he’s never had a girlfriend. Ahem. Well, not a PROPER girlfriend. Last girl that ever let him kiss her was Jennifer Caldwell, the neighbor’s daughter who wanted to confirm for herself the rumor of whether boys really did have cooties or not, a task she bravely put her own life at risk for. Needless to say, Jennifer survived the expedition. Adam, not so much. He was heartbroken for months after finding out it had all been an experiment from the girl’s part.

Magical Soul · 07-09-2015, 08:58 PM

HI, I would like to join in this thread, too.

Can I have one witch and one muggle? :3

Gryffindoll · 07-10-2015, 04:07 AM

~* DAY ONE *~

Serina could not believe this was seriously her life, as Professor Willoughby closed the door behind them and returned to the coziness of Hogwarts castle.

Microfiber couches, not even leather!, odd chrome machinery that made all strange sorts of sounds and visuals, still photographs that depicted absolutely no story at all with their lack of movement, and a glass candy bar as replacement for her wand. And that wasn’t even the worst of it! The absolute worst, most foul part of it all, came in the form of two brainless idiot boys and a mute. These were the ONLY people she would see for Merlin knows how long and dfshgdfhasld. Life was not pretty for the pretty princess right now. It was not.

Serina shrieked in horror when the glass candy bar in her hand suddenly caught a life of its own and moved about ferociously in her hand. When she looked down at it, the glass lit up and on it were the words: “NEW MESSAGE.” The girl glared at the tiny gadget as if it had just insulted her family.

“Did you get it, did you get it?!” Adam was across the room, by the kitchen, tapping away on his own glass candy bar. Every one in the house had received one, and in consequence, they had received Adam’s text as well (which consisted of an alien head emoji and the message “heyu can ytou kkljskd”).

“You’d better undo whatever you just did, you bloody idiot,” she hissed dangerously, hazel eyes narrowing at the stupid boy. UGH. They hadn’t been in the house for even a minute yet, and already that sloth knobhead was trying to break her muggle “wand.”

From the open kitchen, Adam smirked, pouring himself a cup of coffee (exactly when he’d gotten around to making coffee was beyond her and she suspected it had probably been prepared before their arrival).

“If you don’t fix whatever you just did, I will tell Willo—”

“Hey, look.” Adam was looking past her and at the wall just behind the girl. On it hung a large chalkboard, on which a number of words magically began to appear, all in the familiar cursive handwriting of Professor Willoughby.

Hope you’ve settled alright, kids! Please try not to break anything - including each other. Remember the entire castle can see and hear everything you do or say (I’m looking at you, Miss Souza), so please do try to act civil.
I present to you, your first challenge as new muggle roommates! Solve the below riddle to figure out exactly what it is you need to do:
“Find me black when I sleep, but with the push of a button I can be the brightest window you see; whatever view you may prefer, a few more buttons you will need to press!”

pinecone · 07-10-2015, 04:25 AM

As soon as Professor Willoughby closed the door, Leo knew he was in trouble. Yes this had all sounded fun and interesting and adventurous when he had signed up for the opportunity to win a prize, but now!?

He glanced around himself with mild concern: a Slytherin princess, a sloth come to life, and a mute girl he'd never seen before in his life. Greeeeeat. And now that the Professor had taken their wands and exchanged them for these "celly phooones", Leo all too suddenly felt exposed and vulnerable. Of course, this didn't matter too terribly much, as in the next minute he was distracted by the fridge full of food.

"Guuuuuys guys, look. Fully STOOOOOCKED," he hollered loudly to the other three as he rifled through the fridge to find a soda. He immediately popped it open and began to investigate their new digs. For a simulated muggle home, it looked pretty sweet. Full kitchen, full dining room, nice living area... He assumed the living quarters were upstairs. It was then that the small brick in his pocket began to vibrate and he jumped, pulling it out only to see "NEW MESSAGE" displayed abrasively. Was that an alien? "Dude, rule numero uuuuno with me," he addressed Adam vaguely, taking a swig of the soda. "No funny business." His large eyebrows rose, about to elaborate when the princess and the sloth seemed to notice something -- a blackboard with writing on it.

Leo, however, seemed to examine the Slytherin girl next to it more than the board itself. Perhaps this wouldn't be the worst scenario, after all.

As if she had been there all along, Allegra was already quietly standing before the chalkboard, her large eyes scanning its contents for any sign of the next step towards winning. Granted, she had signed up for this and was clearly going to win, but the less amount of time she had to spend here, the better. Being trapped inside a small suburban home on Hogwarts grounds wasn't her favorite idea, especially with the present company. Quietly and quickly she slipped out of view as the others approached, memorizing the riddle in her head and taking a seat in the plush living room to begin and try and crack the code.

Gryffindoll · 07-10-2015, 04:46 AM

Serina gritted her teeth and covered her ears when the Gryffindor oddball decided it was time to announce to the entire continent that there was food in their fridge. “Do you have to be so loud?” she hissed, rolling her eyes and returning her attention to the board. In the blink of an eye, the girl whom Serina was seriously beginning to suspect really lacked vocal chords, was standing there. In the next second, she was back in the living room, not a single word leaving her lips or eyes meeting anyone’s.

Oooookay. Weirdo.
Serina stood in front of the board, arms crossed, brows furrowed, and stared.
She read the message again and again. And again.
Buttons. Windows. Views.
Well, something with buttons could be anything. It seemed all muggle artifacts had a button of some sort that made it… wake up, or function. But… not windows?! So it was something… window-like?
Serina’s brows sunk deeper in concentration, her hazel eyes glancing momentarily at one of the open windows, then at the mute girl, then at the glass candy bar. Windows…. windows….

Meanwhile, Adam was tapping away on his shiny, golden iPhone 6+, suspiciously distracted………

“I think… Is it… the celu—celly—cell—this?” Serina raised her cellphone for the others to see. “It’s… sort of a window, right? And it’s usually black, until… until you press something.” That sounded legit, yeah?

pinecone · 07-10-2015, 05:07 AM

Leo merely sent a quick wink her way as Serina wondered aloud if he always needed to be so loud. "Yes, darling, otherwise how will you know where I am at all times?" He watched as she then held up her new device thing and pointed out that it was kiiiiind of a window, that was black until you pressed something.

"That doesn't sound right," he dismissed passively, circling around the island counter top in the middle of the kitchen, one of his ringed fingers trailing across the expensive stone. He certainly seemed unconcerned by all means, more interested in examining the many appliances that the kitchen had to offer. His sharp eyes focused quickly on a small box with buttons. A microwave, but of course the young wizard didn't know that. Curiously he pulled on the extended handle, opening it to find.... Nothing! His brows furrowed a the sight of an empty rotational plate. What was the point of a heavy, empty box?

He started pushing buttons. Beeeep. Beep beep. Beep. Beep. Beeeep beep beep beep. Beep. .......Beeeeeeeep. "Anyone know what 'frozen dinner plate' might mean??" he called out to no one in particular. Beep.

Allegra, meanwhile, was sitting on the couch perched like a bird, letting her mind scan through all of the various things they had last reviewed in Muggle Studies class. Window, with a view, controlled by buttons. Her large eyebrows furrowed just slightly as she thought. It was on the tip of her tongue! Ugh, how frustrating. She knew she had a flashcard with this on it somewhere. None of this frustration was vocalized, of course. Just a simple look of vague concentration directed at the wall in front of her.

Ironically, a potential answer was also sitting directly across from her - the television. She didn't seem to notice this large black box, however, and stared at the curtains beyond it, biting her lip in concentration. What was it?

Beeeeeeep.

Gryffindoll · 07-10-2015, 05:26 AM

Excuuuuuuse you? Serina glared at the Gryffindor that so very casually dismissed her very educated and thought-out guess. “Well, what’s your idea, then, brainiac?” Realizing she had just invited the boy to open his louder-than-necessary mouth yet again, Serina quickly added, “Never mind, I just remembered I don’t care.”

Meanwhile, Willoughby proceeded to send another message through the chalkboard, “Nice try Ms. Souza, but you’re not quite there yet! Try again!”

Serina huffed in frustration.

….“Anyone know what ‘frozen dinner plate’ might mean??”
Serina opened her mouth, ready to throw a long string of insults at the infuriatingly loud Gryffindor boy, but almost immediately changed her mind. No. No, you will not make a fool of yourself in front of all your classmates, Seri. Just… keep it cool. Deep breaths. Deeeeeep breaths. She followed her own advice while gazing absentmindedly at the glass orbs that hovered from corners of the room. Professor Willoughby had described these to be the “surveillance cameras” that were supposedly broadcasting this entire circus to all of Hogwarts.

“Oh, that’s like, when… the muggles take a plate and they, like… put it in the cold box,” explained Adam, looking up from his cellphone for the first time in the last seven minutes. He wasn’t sure that’s exactly what ‘frozen dinner plate’ meant, buuuut… it sounded legit, so whatever.

“Anyway,” he started casually, walking out of the kitchen and toward the living room area. He plopped down on the couch Serina had momentarily seated at, causing the girl to make a disgusted sound and immediately bounce back to her feet. “I solved the riddle.”

pinecone · 07-10-2015, 05:52 AM

Leo, too, seemed hyper-aware of the surveillance cameras all throughout the house. There seemed to be at least two or three in every room so far, constantly watching and monitoring the happenings.

Professor Willoughby had explained that this surveillance was for their safety, mostly, but it also provided fantastic entertainment for the rest of Hogwarts' population. Goody. The administration needed to ensure that the four students housed on Hogwarts grounds, alone, without supervision, were able to be...well, supervised, somehow. Professor Willoughby took this condition and ran with it, using the surveillance as an added bonus - other students in the castle would be able to observe those in the house and learn about muggle living as well! Plus, the only way to view the students in the house was through television sets throughout the castle, and students had to figure out how to turn them on in order to view. Everyone learned, and it was also better than reality television.

Every once in a while Leo threw a wink at a camera when he remembered they were there, fixing his long hair in any reflection he could find and continuing to rummage through the kitchen. He had long abandoned the microwave, listening in mild boredom as the sloth suggested it had to do with some large ice box. What was with muggles and their weird boxes?

Large clangs and bangs could be heard from the kitchen as the young lion practically dismantled it entirely, turning on the stove, turning off the stove, turning the stove on again and quickly forgetting about it... He was rummaging to the back of cabinets as if he might discover hidden muggle treasure there, and all he came up with was tupperware.

Allegra glanced around the room as movement entered her peripheral vision, vaguely aware that Serina had entered and painfully aware of Adam as he plopped down in her general vicinity. And yet, she ignored him, large gray eyes on the floor, scanning back and forth subtly as she attempted to understand the puzzle. That was about when the most ludicrous thing was announced -- someone else had solved the riddle. For the first time possibly ever, Allegra's large eyes landed on Adam, the full force of them enough to knock a mountain troll over. She didn't speak, but the sheer shock behind her pale expression was enough to ask the question that was on everyone's minds: Excuse me, you did what?

Just as it was getting almost tense in the room, Allegra staring Adam down as she waited impatiently for him to speak, Leo re-entered. Over his clothes he now wore a large red apron that read, 'Kiss the Chef' in tacky lettering. "Now now, ladies, let's not fight for first in line just yet..." he started from down the hall, making his appearance in the living room's doorway just as he finished fastening the tie behind his back. "Yeesh, who died in here?"

Gryffindoll · 07-14-2015, 04:30 AM

Serina’s eyes widened to the size of saucers and, like Allegra, the girl focused her entire attention on the slothy boy that lounged so casually on the couch. Knowing him, she had a feeling he might have a sudden episode of narcolepsy and pass out on the comfortable cushions before explaining how, exactly, he’d managed to solve Willoughby’s puzzle in less than ten minutes.

Adam looked up from his cellphone, through which he was scrolling distractedly, and raised an eyebrow at the sight of the two girls staring him down. If looks could kill, he would be back at Hogwarts now, as the unofficial ghost of Slytherin House.

Serina twitched slightly as pots and pans were thrown around carelessly somewhere in the background, the noise so loud she was certain it was causing some permanent damage to her eardrums. Her arms uncrossed and her right hand lingered awkwardly by her hip. She almost forgot she had given Willoughby her wand earlier. Ughhhhh. Instead, all she had was this USELESS glass and aluminum brick which couldn’t perform even a simple silencio charm!

“As if,” Serina scoffed, rolling her eyes when Leo entered the room. “You.” She turned to Sloth Boy then. “What’s the answer to the riddle, then?”

“It’s a…” Adam looked away from her and down to his cellphone again, the tiny screen illuminating his face with blue light. “…Tel-e-vision, commonly referred to as TV or telly.”

Serina looked as if someone had just sucked all the oxygen from the room. She turned her head sharply as the chalk scratched against the chalkboard on the wall all on its own. On it, Professor Willoughby’s familiar handwriting appeared, “Very well done, Mr. Kipling! Five points to you, sir! Now, for another five points, turn on the television and find the channel ‘HBO’ there is an amazing Muggle show about a world much like ours, oh it’s amazing, it… well, you’ll see! Go on!”

Serina’s eyebrows furrowed as she read over the words. REALLY. REALLY NOW. Adam Good-for-nothing Kipling was winning already?! No. Something was definitely off here, and she’d be bloody damned if that idiot got away with this. “Hold on just a minute there, Kipling,” hissed Serina slowly, snatching away the TV remote just as Adam sat up and reached for it. “I demand an examination of Kipling’s response, please,” she spoke to the board.

“What?!”

pinecone · 07-14-2015, 06:20 AM

Allegra was far too impatient to wait for the young man to explain his sudden genius answer, sighing ever so slightly to herself as he indulged in a dramatic pause. She could already tell he might be the worst part of this whole endeavor.

As he finally let out the response, the television, Allegra knew he was correct the moment the few syllables left his seemingly careless lips. As soon as she registered the answer, her large gray eyes closed in disappointment. How could she have forgotten the television!? It was one of the most integral muggle possessions, she'd written two separate essays on it in the past few years! Ugh, and the sloth boy remembered first!

All of this disappointment and self-reprimand happened silently to herself, her pale expression barely shifting at all. It was then that she quickly caught up on the current happenings, reading the board as the Professor congratulated Adam and quickly scanning it for the bonus points. Change the channel! Redemption! She watched with large gray eyes as Serina grabbed the remote from Adam and held it hostage, demanding a re-evaluation of the sloth boy's answer. Allegra had no time for this, silently standing and taking the remote from Serina's tan hands without saying a word, quickly pressing the "power" button without skipping a beat. Now that she knew it was the television, this wasn't an issue. She'd done an extended study on how it worked with its elec-trissss-eeeteee.

In the next moment, the TV was loudly displaying a cheesy soap opera. Allegra's brows furrowed ever so slightly as she began to press the channel buttons seemingly without reason, attempting to find the TV guide to help her towards HBO.

Leo, ever the unhelpful one, took this opportunity to sprawl out before the large screen, his bright eyes now transfixed on the colorful moving screen. "Whoooooa-hooo-ho-ho," he let out in vague admiration, sprawling out on the floor to better examine it. "Silent girl makes the box work!"

Gryffindoll · 07-14-2015, 08:25 PM

“Great job, Ms. Reynolds! Find the correct channel and five points shall be yours!” read the chalkboard.

Serina was so distracted glaring daggers at Sloth Boy, that she failed to notice the mute girl snatching the remote from her and quickly earning points for herself. Which left the part-Brazilian, part-Dutch girl in third place, alongside the idiot Gryffindor boy that was yet again blabbering nonsense somewhere in the background.

Fools! Earning points might be a priority in this competition, but Serina found other tasks more important - like completely eliminating the competition, which would then decrease the number of challenges and make her victory all the much easier. For this reason, she focused her attention on the only Slytherin boy in the room. She would get him disqualified one way or another. There was no way he figured out the riddle all on his own, the idiot could barely perform a simple alohomora spell without setting his wand on fire.

Adam, eager with the distraction of the television, avoided Serina’s suspicious gaze and watched as the Ravenclaw girl flipped through various screens - settings, different channels, etc.

“These things sometimes have thousands of channels, how are you going to find H-D-O in that mess?” he pointed out, relaxing into the couch once more and not expecting response from the famously quiet girl. This would take YEARS. He was better off taking a nap or something.

pinecone · 07-14-2015, 09:51 PM

Rather than listening to the rest of the room, Allegra zoned out entirely. There wasn't a chance she'd release these five points to one of the other prisoners sharing this ridiculous house with her. Besides, if she had paid the slightest attention to everyone else, she'd be entirely distracted by the hollering coming out of Leo, the laser glare of Serina, or Adam's suspicious, doubting response to her actions. Honestly, sloth boy. Just be quiet!

In a matter of ten seconds, Allegra had found the TV guide, punched in the correct channel number, and flipped to Game of Thrones. The theme music blared throughout the house and the silent girl dropped the remote on the couch as if dropping the mic after a solid performance. The chalkboard quickly changed, "Congratulations, Ms. Reynolds. Your advanced study in the TV remote's functions has paid off! Five points for you!"

The slightest smirk crossed her pixie-like expression as she turned to the sloth-like young man on the couch. Without a word, she clearly conveyed, 'That's how it's done' haughtily before leaving the room and making her way into the kitchen to find some kind of snack.

Leo, on the other hand, was transfixed before the television set, watching as the intro music of the television show revealed an entire unknown land before his eyes. "Quiet girl got the box to gooooooo!"

Gryffindoll · 07-14-2015, 10:17 PM

Adam watched Allegra’s performance, which consisted of drowning any other sound in the room with a fittingly dramatic music as she dropped the TV remote nonchalantly. Raising an eyebrow, the Slytherin lifted his hands and clapped slowly. Well, well, well.

Serina, meanwhile, continued to glare at her fellow snake. At least Mute Girl had done the challenge all on her own, but that bloody sloth had definitely cheated. She was certain of it and she would NOT drop it until he was kicked out of the house and she could be forever blessed with his absence for the duration of this stupid competition.

“Well, now that everyone has earned their poi—” “Quiet girl got the box to gooooooo!” “WOULD YOU BE QUIET?!” she growled at the Gryffindor before continuing, her voice as calm as the Atlantic ocean on a summer morning (whoa look at me getting all poetic there), “Professor Willoughby,” she walked toward the nearest orb that was in the corner of the ceiling and spoke directly to it, “I would like to please request an examination of Mr. Kipling’s response.”

Adam groaned and looked at the orb as well. “Professor, can we lose points for being sore losers? ‘Cause if so, I think Serina needs to go.”

“He cheated!”

“Says who!?”

“Says I! There’s no bloody way you figured that answer all on your own, you empty-headed dimwit!” The others may have been too blind and dimwitted themselves to realize this very OBVIOUS situation, but she certainly wasn’t about to ignore it. Besides, she’d gotten to this point by playing fair, there was no way a lazy sloth was going to take this from her.

pinecone · 07-15-2015, 12:03 AM

Leo nearly jumped out of his skin as Serina hissed at him to stop talking, his large eyebrows raising at her fiery disposition. Despite what she might have intended, his reaction was that of a large grin that spread handsomely across his tan face. Then, of course, he was back to the television.

Allegra, now with a snack, appeared just in the doorway to watch with amused gray eyes as Serina confronted the nearest camera and demanded that Adam's points be reconsidered. Allegra couldn't disagree with this proposition. And yet, the Professor seemed to have other ideas, the chalkboard now displaying: "Ms. Souza, it would appear that Mr. Kipling was merely using the muggle tools given to him in order to complete this challenge. The ruling stands."

Allegra glanced from the board, back to Adam, and then straight to the glass brick in his hands. The phone thingy! She immediately retrieved her own from her back pocket and examined in with curious, large eyes, not seeming to understand exactly how it worked. And it bothered her. Before anything could be said, she was at Adam's side, sitting nearly atop him on the couch, her curious eyes clearly asking how he had done it.

Gryffindoll · 07-15-2015, 02:53 AM

Serina’s jaw dropped with full force, her hazel eyes wide and her eyebrows furrowed deeply as she took in the message from the chalkboard. “THIS—THAT—HE—THAT’S REALLY—YOU CAN’T—UGHHHHH!!!” Without further ado, the girl stormed out of the small living room area and to the kitchen. It was amazing, she hadn’t even inspected the bedrooms yet, which would usually be her first priority - to pick the largest room with the most spacious walk-in closet. No, she was so upset all she could do without punching something or someone was pour herself a glass of ice cold water from the fridge.

Un-be-lievable. Absolutely RIDICULOUS. Who did Willoughby think he was, making up these stupid rules where cheating is actually considered OK?! The man was mental, that much she had known for years now, but this was taking it to a whole new level.

Serina was quietly grumbling to herself, taking small sips from her water, when… There was a strange scent in the kitchen. Serina’s little nose scrunched slightly as she followed it, it was something she’d never smelled ever before in her life (like burnt wires), and it led her straight to the oven.

Meanwhile, back in the living room, Adam could hardly wipe the smug grin off his face. “You see that, Souza?! Doesn’t pay off to be a sore loser, does it?!” he called out to the kitchen, a pleased chuckle escaping his lips. They were only a little less than an hour into the house challenge and he was already on top of the list. Well, alongside Mute Girl, but he didn’t mind sharing the glory with anyone long as it wasn’t Ms. Souza.

The Sloth had sunk further into the soft pillows of the couch, watching as a bunch of half-naked, dirty muggles chanted “Khaleesi!” on the moving pictures box. “Bloody hell,” muttered an amazed Adam as the girl addressed as ‘Khaleesi’ came on screen. “Do you reckon there are muggle veelas out there?” ‘Cause she had to be one.

Adam was so immersed in the story unfolding within the TV box that he was actually a little startled when Allegra (who by default startled him every time she appeared anywhere, as she usually did so with the same lack of noise as a ghost) took up a good chunk of the couch to stare at him like a puppy who had been tricked during a game of Catch.

Sinking further into the pillows to recover some of his personal space, Adam stared at her with a raised eyebrow. “…What?” He didn’t like to admit it aloud, but the girl kinda creeped him out. He felt like she was staring straight into his soul and seeing all the terrible things he had done in his life so far, like stealing his cousin Nick’s hamster when he was six.

pinecone · 07-15-2015, 03:43 AM

Leo's bright eyes shifted away from the television set as Serina loudly exploded into a torrent of complaints, clearly upset with the ruling on Adam's points. Honestly, the young lion couldn't care less about the point system. As far as he was concerned, this whole project was a school vacation -- no classes, no homework, just live in a little house WITH ENDLESS FOOD AND ENTERTAINMENT!? C'mon, who honestly cared about who would win?

As he watched her tear out of the room and make her way back into the kitchen, the young man was torn. He internally debated between the beautiful girl on screen and the beautiful girl fuming in the kitchen. Fictional dragon girl? All-too-real, fuming and beautiful Slytherin princess in need of some Leo comfort? Without much further thought beyond that, he scrambled to his feet and followed after Serina like a cartoon coyote chasing a roadrunner.

He appeared as if from nowhere, hopping up onto the kitchen island silently and swiftly picking up a nearby apple, immediately taking a loud bite. Bright eyes following the Slytherin girl like a large cat, he began speaking without bothering to finish his bite first, "What's so fascinating over there?" he questioned through his food, referring to the oven she was so curiously inspecting.

Meanwhile, in the other room, Allegra kept her large eyes fixed on Adam shamelessly, watching curiously as he became all too aware of her presence so close to him. Personal space wasn't exactly something of priority to the girl, who oft resembled a small bird hopping from surface to surface, perched and attentive. As he asked what she wanted from him, the young girl reached out and for a moment it looked as if she was about to try and hold his hand. But, of course, she was only reaching for his cellular phone, quickly grabbing it and inspecting it to see if it was any different from her own -- if there was anyway he could have been cheating with it. Why could he find answers within it and she couldn't?

Upon realizing there was no difference externally between his and her own, she tossed it back at him, allowing it to land with a soft 'thump' on his stomach. Brows furrowed, she let out an exasperated sigh, and, upon seeing an empty room around them, turned to look at Adam with evaluating eyes. Clearly she wouldn't get the answers she needed just by nudging the dull young man. It would seem as though she was examining him for trustworthiness, scanning his expression as though looking for something. After several long moments that felt more like eternities, perhaps in which she was ensuring the others wouldn't return suddenly, Allegra spoke.

"Hello."

She said this as if they hadn't been in one another's company for more than an hour already, her gaze now filled with a slight mischief. Her voice, so rarely heard, didn't disappoint -- soft and clear and melodic, just like the song bird she so resembled.

"You can operate the brick," she continued softly, blatantly, her eyes expectant.

Gryffindoll · 07-15-2015, 04:12 PM

Serina inhaled deeply, taking in the strange scent. Something was off. What, exactly, she wasn’t sure. But something was definitely not right in this kitchen. What WAS that terrible smell?!

Before she could figure it out, an all too familiar voice made a predictable appearance. Serina, who had been bending by the oven, stood straight and rolled her eyes before turning around to face the Gryffindor boy. Arms crossed, the girl took a step toward where he sat on the kitchen island (she made a mental note to pass a disinfecting wipe over that area soon as he disappeared). “Huntley,” she started through gritted teeth, making a Herculean effort to keep as cool and collected as it was possible to be around the child-like boy. “Did you touch the cooking box?” she asked, gesturing toward the oven.

“Uh…”
Adam looked at Allegra for a moment, shivered a little, and looked away awkwardly at the television on which a handsome young man clad in black was being told off by a fiery redhead that claimed he ‘knows nothing’. Interesting as the scene looked, he couldn’t focus when there was a mute girl just STARING at him all creepy-like.

“Kinda looks like Hogwarts, doesn’t it?” he commented casually as an image of a castle came on screen. But it seemed Allegra had no intentions of making small talk on the overdramatic TV show, as she remained silent and, instead of providing him with any comments or even acknowledgement that she’d heard him, she reached out for his hand.

Adam made a small, startled sound and snatched away his hand. Instead, the girl grabbed his cellphone and after a moment dumped it on his stomach like this was the proper resting place for it. “Ow.” Hey, those things hurt if thrown at!

“Hello.”
Wide-eyed, Adam stared at the girl disbelievingly. BLOODY DANCING GOBLINS, SHE SPOKE!!! SHE ACTUALLY HAD A VOICE! “Wha—what? Did you—did you just…?” Wait, did he imagine that?? WAIT he needed witnesses for this moment or else NO ONE would ever believe him. Or maybe he really was just imagining it…

Adam sat up on the couch and looked around wildly, but there were no signs of the other two. He could vaguely hear Serina blabbering on somewhere around the kitchen area. And then Allegra spoke again. Sharply, he turned his head in her direction and stared wide-eyed.

Okay, he had DEFINITELY not imagined that.
“You—you speak?!” Her question didn’t register through his amazement with her possession of vocal chords.

pinecone · 07-15-2015, 10:15 PM

The goofy boy couldn't help but admit to himself that the Slytherin princess grew only more attractive to him as she addressed him by his last name through gritted teeth. "Huntley." In response, Leo mouthed a cat-like little 'rawr', bringing up a hand as if to mime a cat scratch. His face immediately broke back into a large grin, taking another bite of apple. He seemed to be watching her more than listening to her, and so it took several moments for the dopey young man to realize a question had been asked of him. "Eek, I'm sorry, love, I wasn't listening in the slightest. What was that?" It became clear Serina wouldn't be repeating herself and so he was forced to follow her outstretched hand to the oven she appeared to be gesturing towards.

"Ah, yes, the hot box thing. Yes, I touched it. I pressed all of the little buttons but nothing emerged from its big door..." His brows furrowed in disappointment before he let out a carefree sigh and took another bite of his apple. "Quite disappointing, really."

Allegra watched with mischief behind her light eyes as the young man before her practically jumped up on the couch at the sound of her voice. It was always an amusing side affect of being naturally quiet -- the moment a new person heard her speak for the first time. Often people seemed to forget she even had the capability of speech, as was the case with Kipling. It never got any less offensive to the young woman who prided herself on intelligence and eloquence.

"Of course I speak," Allegra confirmed with the slightest furrow of her large eyebrows, as if this question had come entirely out of the blue, even a bit annoyed. This was dismissed quickly though, more amused than anything else with Kipling's response to her voice. Most people were surprised, and yet Adam's particular jumpiness made this all too fun. "I'm not some sort of mute, if that's what you were thinking," she answered, clearly aware that was more than likely his assumption of her. "I speak quite a lot when I'm so inclined, I just often avoid wasting words with people I dislike. Which often happens to be everyone. Except the paintings on the seventh floor, they're actually decent to speak with." Not only could Allegra speak, she could ramble. Her words flew out like water over river rocks, sort of tumbling melodically and messily, still remaining clear and concise but somehow very exciting even for her to hear.

She seemed to remember the point. "I've deemed you decent company...at least in comparison to the rest of them." She scanned him over once more, as if re-assessing her statement, but returned her eyes to his with the same confidence. "I'm proposing we might be allies, Mr. Kipling."

Gryffindoll · 07-15-2015, 10:55 PM

Serina’s hand, the one that wasn’t gesturing toward the cooking box, rolled into a tiny fist of aggravation when the dull Gryffindor boy confessed to not having heard a single word she said (which hadn’t even been many!). Sweet, wise Merlin please give me the strength not to strangle this buffoon before the competition is over, PLEASE. Soon as she won this stupid competition, though, Huntley’s strangling was totally going to happen, oh yes. Something to look forward to and pull her through this nightmare.

“I pressed all of the little buttons but nothing emerged from its big door…”
HOW. HOW he had made it this far into the competition was absolutely beyond Serina. She was no muggle expert herself, but she remembered bits from the very first lessons which covered the basics, like the television, the radio, and some kitchen appliances. She wasn’t an expert at handling all their ‘little buttons’ but at least she understood their purpose. Which obviously, Huntley did not.

“You idiot, you’re supposed to place food inside the box and THEN press the buttons!” she hissed, gesturing wildly with her hands as she explained this procedure. “Whatever you just did broke it.” She didn’t know this for certain but if it smelled funny it had to be broken or something, right? “And I’m sure Willoughby won’t be pleased about that,” she added with a little smirk, her hazel eyes focusing on the surveillance camera in one corner of the kitchen.

Speechless and bug-eyed, Adam looked as if he had just seen Voldemort himself, as Allegra continued to speak. And like, a lot. She was doing a LOT of the talking thing and it was… bloody hell, it was mind-blowing. He smiled guiltily when she confirmed that she wasn’t “some sort of mute.” Can you blame me, though?!

She was just going on and on about people and paintings now, and though he was paying a tremendous amount of attention to the sound of her voice, he wasn’t fully registering her words. SHE HAD A VOICE, WHO EVEN CARED WHAT SHE ACTUALLY HAD TO SAY?! (Kipling logic) He did catch the bit about him being ‘decent company’ and he was torn between offense of the use of the word ‘decent’ and pride in being one of the few who knew what Allegra Reynolds sounded like. And the next bit, he DEFINITELY heard and understood completely.

“Allies?” he repeated, an eyebrow raising slightly. The boy lifted one doodle-tattoo-covered arm and scratched his chin distractedly. “And how do I know you can be trusted? Literally I thought you were mute until a minute ago...” This is why people have trust issues, Allegra!

pinecone · 07-15-2015, 11:47 PM

Leo rolled his eyes as Serina once again reprimanded him for something that was beyond his knowledge in the muggle house. "How was I supposed to know the food had to go in there first!?" he demanded, letting out a bored sigh as he laid back entirely on the counter and finished off his apple. Honestly, this girl was taking everything far too seriously. He knew that it had something to do with FOOD, it was in the KITCHEN, after all! But...he wanted to press all the buttons first... For all she knew, maybe the buttons would've told him what to do from there!

But it was then that the young man smelled it too -- the unpleasant smell of..something electrical...burning? He sat up on the island once more, sniffing the air like a cartoon hound, brows furrowing slightly.

"Did you set something on fire?" he inquired of the girl near him. He then locked eyes with the nearest surveillance camera and grinned. "Oooh, Willoughby's gonna be sooooo angry with youuuuu."

Allegra watched curiously as Adam brought up a hand to scratch his chin, her gray eyes immediately latching onto his doodle-like tattoos. What. Were. Those. Without skipping a beat, she brought a hand up to delicately take his other arm and examine the several tattoos present on his pale skin, one of her cold fingers gently tracing the outline of the nearest image. She did this as if it was the most natural thing in the world, as if they'd known each other for decades, and her confidence in the action was enough to make anyone question how long they'd known the girl. It was almost comfortable. Almost. There was a reason she was oft labelled the weird girl. Many things that the average person would deem unusual or strange were all natural behavior for the young woman who often seemed unaware of personal space or proper social constructs.

It was then that she heard him wonder aloud how he could know if she was trustworthy or not, noting that he had assumed her to be mute up until a moment ago. She took this moment to look up from his arm, her bright eyes locking onto his own with clear mischief behind her gaze. How did he know if she could be trusted? "You can't know for sure," she admitted, the sides of her lips twitching up into a soft smile. "That's half the fun."

Gryffindoll · 07-16-2015, 03:40 AM

“Um, hello, have you ever been to a Muggle Studies class? It was the third lesson on the fourth day of class. We went over all the kitchen appliances after finishing the chapters on television and radio,” said Serina, rolling her eyes in exasperation. She forced herself to look at the positive side of the situation - at least the dull Gryffindor would be easy to get kicked out of the competition. Maybe… maybe, if she played her cards right, she could get him kicked out now. With the whole cooking box situation. Smiiiiirk.

…

“Did I set something on fire?” Serina repeated, her smirk immediately replaced with an angry frown. “Are you bloody joking?!” HE. HE was the one who set something on fire!!! Like, what did he think she was talking about earlier?! When she said he broke it?! The fool probably hadn’t even listened. UGH. “YOU did this, you dimwit!” the girl exclaimed, quickly losing all patience. “You pressed all the buttons and caused whatever in Merlin’s beard is happening now!”

Adam, who’d been looking at the girl suspiciously, looked down to his arm as Allegra took it into her delicate hands.
Um.
Uh.
Err…
!?
To say he was uncomfortable was hardly enough. Adam didn’t usually mind manners or the unusual much, but Allegra was a whole new level of strange. It wasn’t her touching his arm or invading his personal space that bothered him. It was what her intentions were. Because he had NO IDEA what they could be. She could just innocently be checking out his arm. But she could also be looking for the right spot to… who knows, stab him with a muggle pencil or something?! With her, he couldn’t be sure.

When she admitted he couldn’t know if she was trustworthy for sure, it was as if she’d entered his mind and echoed his thoughts exactly. Perhaps she was skilled in occlumency? Adam stared at her wide-eyed.

Half the fun!?
“Doubt it would be very fun if you betray me tomorrow and I find out you were ‘allies’ with Serina too,” pointed out the Slytherin with furrowed brows. Dull as he may be, Adam was still good with trickery and loopholes. And he never underestimated an enemy. However, it didn’t stop him from making stupid decisions because, well, that was just another thing he was good at. As good as sleeping on hard surfaces or drinking an entire jug of pumpkin juice without pause.

Adam turned his head to look back at the kitchen, where he could only see a bit of Leo’s head peeking through, then back at Allegra. “….Alright. Deal.” He would shake on it, but the girl was already holding his one arm hostage. Looking down at it again, he spotted the cellphone sitting on her lap. “…So you were asking about the ‘brick’?”

pinecone · 07-16-2015, 03:59 AM

Leo couldn't get a word in edge-wise as Serina laid a handful of insults on him, suggesting it was all his fault that something was wrong with the cooking box. His fault! Just because he missed a few classes!? Honestly...

He was just about to retort, fully armed with his own defense, when he was distracted from Serina's blatant yelling. He glanced past her as a bright light caught his attention just over her shoulder, he could see it very clearly as it suddenly popped up in a puff of smoke. A small flame had emerged from the oven's opening, even some of it coming out of the stove top above, quickly travelling across the surface of the appliance and beginning to look for other things to latch onto. "Fire," Leo whispered softly to himself as he first saw it. Then, finally registering: "FIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRRRRRRREEEEE!!!!!!!" he yelled, hopping down from the counter and physically grabbing Serina's shoulders to turn her around to see. Standing there for a moment, he was almost stunned at the sight, before he immediately began running around the kitchen, trying to find anything to put it out. Of course, he'd never used or heard of a fire extinguisher in his life, so he was more just opening cabinets and tearing everything out of them in desperation.

Allegra only seemed to be more and more entertained by Adam's increasing discomfort. To her, it was all innocent fun and games. She knew she wouldn't hurt him or wrong him and yet his uncertainty made it all the more entertaining. As he mentioned how little fun it would be to find himself betrayed as she became allies with Serina the next day, she gave him a look as if he should know her better than that. Which, of course, he had no reason to. But Allegra was fiercely loyal, a part of her personality that few saw. Often it took months, sometimes years to reveal itself and yet this was a very unique situation. She needed a friend, and a smart one at that. Kipling having won the first challenge practically put a target on his own back as the perfect ally for her. "I couldn't be allied with someone like Serina even if I wanted to. Being in her mere presence makes me want to vomit at times." Harsh words, and yet she followed them up with a glittering smile, amusement once more filling her features. "Listen. There's four of us. Clearly we're going to be dwindled down to a final two at some point. Leo's clearly bait for first out, he'll probably forget the rules and leave the house to chase a butterfly or something and BOOM. Done. Serina, however will be much more difficult. If we're together, at least, we can make sure we're the last two standing. If it's me and Serina I might voluntarily throw myself out the window." She sighed softly before returning her eyes to Kipling. "You?" She paused. "You might actually be legitimate competition. And that's fun."

Her eyebrows rose as he declared it was a deal and a very pixie-esque grin spread across the young girl's face. She released his arm in order to shake the hand attached to it in a very business-like manner before he returned her attention to the brick phone thingy. "Yes!" she exclaimed softly. "How do you get it to work? I think I was sick the week Willoughby went over them in class..." Clearly this fact was a huge disappointment to the girl, who's large eyebrows furrowed as she began to examine it when ----

"FIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRRRRRRREEEEE!!!!!!!"

Allegra immediately looked up with alarmed eyes, suddenly able to see the smoke that was beginning to waft in from the kitchen. She turned to look at Adam with wide eyes before scrambling to her feet silently and running into the other room.

Gryffindoll · 07-16-2015, 04:34 AM

“I mean, honestly, were you in class at all this term?! Muggle systems can’t be trusted at all, one little thing goes wrong an—” “Fire.” Serina blinked. “What? Ugh, MUST you interrupt every time I need to say som—” FIRE. Bright, hot and growing at an alarming rate. FIRE.

Serina gasped loudly, so shocked she actually didn’t consider to yell at Leo for touching her, even if it was to warn her on their life-threatening situation. While the Gryffindor ran around in circles, creating an even bigger mess of the kitchen than before (and unknowingly feeding the fire in the process), Serina had the opposite reaction. She’d become stone, unable to move, unable to speak. FIRE. There was a bloody FIRE in the house she was to call home for the next who-knows-how-long and—and—SHE DIDN’T HAVE HER WAND TO STOP IT. NO ONE DID. THEY WERE GOING TO DIE.

Serina took a deeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep breath and, shutting her hazel eyes tight and furrowing her eyebrows in concentration, let out the loudest, most deafening, bloodcurdling scream ever heard since Hitchcock’s “Psycho”.

Adam was almost giddy, and it reflected as clear as day on his grinning face, as Allegra went on about her deep dislike for the Souza girl. Her insults to the Slytherin girl were like a bedtime melody to his ears, and that, right there, was the moment Adam Kipling figured out the answer to his earlier question. Allegra was definitely trustworthy. Even if she somehow changed her mind halfway though the game and decided to team with Leo or no one at all instead, long as she was against Serina, she would definitely be an ally to him.

As for him being legitimate competition, the boy placed a hand on his heart and replied with mock flattery, “You overestimate me, Reynolds.” Perhaps there was some truth to his words.

“Oh, I can show you.” Adam picked up his own cellphone and lifted it for both of them to get a clear view of the screen. “It’s easy, first you jus—” Leo’s yelling and Serina’s girlish shrieking were like a stab on the boy’s side, and he jumped on the couch, startled and dropping the shiny iPhone to the floor with a thud! that would make any muggle teen cry.

Following Allegra, the Slytherin ran straight toward the kitchen and stopped abruptly on the doorway, one leg halfway in. The small space had filled with smoke but the bright fire was hard to miss. “What the hell?!” He looked at the other two, but neither seemed to have an explanation (or a sane response) for what was going on - Serina had stopped shrieking but looked too panic to function, and Leo was causing as much damage as the fire itself.

“What the--Willoughby can’t just let us… burn in here!” exclaimed Adam as he filled a glass with tap water and poured it at the fire. The flames merely laughed in his face. “Oy, Willoughby! Come extinguish this, will you!?”

From her spot in the middle of the kitchen, Serina gasped softly. An action she immediately regretted as it caused the awful smoke to sneak into her lungs. “That’s it!” she wheezed and, coughing, pushed her way past Leo, Adam, and Allegra.

A couple moments later, there was an odd buzzing sound and the entire kitchen was covered in a thick layer of foam beneath which the fire by the oven immediately disappeared. Catching her breath, Serina stood by the doorway, a large and bright red cylinder in arms. “Day twelve, lesson fifteen… sideffects of muggle technology, accidents, and catastrophes.”

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