Cold. Why was it always cold when it came to this competition?

Not that the cold bothered her anyway as the Wampus once again locking away reasons so as to deny herself vulnerability in memories. But this was becoming a nuisance. Her annoyance as she stood in snow that hid her black combat boots beneath its cold surface only heightened like the sting to her cheeks when an ice blast of air or two cut right through her significantly thinner competition uniform. One meant for spring time and not these freezing conditions. The only thought in all this was she knew Jesus would be suffering more than herself and she liked to imagine that seemingly foul voice on the air created by the wind rushing between the bowels of the mountain just now were his cries of anguish.

As long as she was not on bottom she could endure.

Taking a small step forward, Valerie wince as the snow toppled over the rim of her boot and leaked inside. Muttering to herself as the cold sent an unwanted chill up her spine, she pointed her wand at the boot and nonverbally banished the snow contained within before it truly at the chance to melt against her continuously lowering body heat. Soon her teeth began to chatter and it was obvious she would need to take care of this before she proceeded any further. The most obvious obstacle in her way at the moment was this snow. Creating a path either by fire or digging with some charmswork seemed efficient enough, but utilizing such methodology would occupy her wand and prevent her from other rapid casting should the need arise. Although perhaps fire would not be a bad option in melting a path given the conditions. Prime yeti territory from what little she remembered of the creature. The wind was too strong for another obvious option (one she was still furious had been exposed in a task that had been nothing more than a daydream) and quickly dismissed the thought along with the previous two.

Which left her with her fourth notion and without waiting for the next icy chill to momentarily paralyze her spine and slice at her pale cheeks, Valerie had flourished her wand at her feet to cast a nonverbals Feather-light Charm on herself. On the next exhale the Wampus lifted one foot out of the snow and carefully placed it in front of herself slowly and observed it as it pressed down upon the white powdery surface. When her boot hardly sank into the snow, she applied all her weight there to hoist herself up and out of the snow. The spell did make her slightly more susceptible to the wind but she was confident in her balance and quick reflexes to not be knocked off her feet and the delayed howl of the wind provided just enough time to react before each icy blast. Giving a small hop (once again to test the effectiveness of her charm) and offering herself a satisfied ‘hmph’ with accompanying nod of the head, the Wampus set next to applying a Heating Charm on her competition uniform when she steadied her hand.

No, not a Heating Charm.

Although the irony of overheating given these conditions was an appealing twist of fate, Valerie instead opted to deploy another method and raised her wand above her head to trace a large circle in the air. “Solis Lucidem,” she whispered into the wind. Soon a burst of warm sunshine flowed forth from her wand and created a bit of a sunshine umbrella over herself to provide balanced warmth to her entire body. She may need to readminister the charm along the way and it was not as quick a fix as a Heating Charm applied directly to her clothing, but it would suffice.

Waiting a bit more for her enchanted sunshine to warm her goosebump covered skin while standing atop the snow, she decided to take one last preemptive measure and once again conjured a small collection of bluebell flames that flanked either side like trusty Labradors. Satisfied (for now) with her conditions, she wiped her watering eyes and walked softly forward.

The environment, lack of attire suitable for the tundra, and what is yet to come is all part of a test. Fortunately for you, the snow seeping in was banished before it could do any damage. Though seconds, vital seconds, slipped by as you went through your notions, allowing the bitter cold to start turning your hands and cheeks a light shade of blue. The cold could not be endured much longer without serious repercussions.

Casting the Feather-light Charm was the beginnings of a smart plan to bypass trudging through the snow and its many drifts ahead. However, the western wind proved to be even more of a problem now. Moving forward was going to require even more strength, especially if you wanted to stay upright. Right now your balance was barely keeping you from being thrown into a drift.

As the sunlight charm was casted and bluebell flames appeared, the wind coming from he west suddenly ceased and your body begins to warm slightly. Even though the sun's rays and the flames provided a source of warmth, it isn't enough to counter the frozen chill in the air. Unexpectedly, a burst of wind from the north hits you, testing your balance and reflexes as its strong gusts push you from behind while blowing the blue flames away.

Hmm. Are sudden changes in wind patterns typical in this environment? Or could it possibly mean something?

Lifting her hands to her lips and cupping them there, Valerie blew how air against her skin. Her charm was helping, but the stabbing tingling sensation from the initial blast upon arrival remained. She could feel her fingers stiffening and when she glanced down to look was taken aback by the blueish hue. Where in Scotland was there tundra like this? She had not thought to study geography between tasks and had instead focused her efforts full heartedly on those subjects she struggled more with than others. It was this thought, and others that convinced her mind of something. “Another stupid daydream,” she convinced herself as the bitter taste in her mouth returned and she continued to move slowly forward. Slowly but not cautiously per say. Her hand was being forced by the ferocious wind across the tundra.

Lifting her arms to bring her icy fingers closer to the source of her warmth, the Wampus grew impatient with how this awkward position hindered her movements further and readied her wand once more. “Manus Letrom,” she whispered through her teeth as she drew a small circular flick in the air to promptly conjure herself a pair of goatskin leather gloves with strategically thicker insulation the backs for additional warmth but thinner on the palm and fingers for better dexterity. They were the same gloves she recalled her uncle wearing whenever he would drag them all backpacking into the Blue Mountains during the winter holidays but with a few modifications in their length so they came to her elbows. Performing a quick nonverbal Gripping Charm on the glove to go over her wand hand, Valerie quickly slipped both gloves on and readied her wand again (this time tracing a line from top to bottom in the air) to conjure herself a wool scarf. “Escarpa vellus,” she whispered and quickly wrapped the scarf snugly around her neck and over her mouth and nose.

But her pause in movements and shift in focus to her conjuration came at a price.

The Wampus had just resumed her movements forward (pleasantly so during the lull in the wind) when her bluebell flames were sent off into oblivion by another icy blast. From an entirely different direction? “What the he---” Valerie had just barely cursed into the wool of her scarf seeing her conjured warmth sent away when the force of the wind struck her deceptively delicate frame and caused her to lunge forward suddenly and was even swept off her feet a little thanks to the influence of the Feather-light Charm. Her hands were thrust out in front of her and took the most impact from her fall as the snow came nearly all the way up to her shoulders while skidding to a stop. Her knees had thankfully just barely scraped the surface of the snow, but it was more than enough to warn the sixteen year old that the stakes had intensified and she forgot her skepticism in the moment.

“Relax, Boreas,” she muttered aloud while pushing herself to her feet as quickly as she could. Standing, her attention moved to banishing whatever snow was clinging to her uniform and had the potential to seep into the fabric and then to her skin. Her movements were not as fluid as before (of course) as the freezing temperatures were slowing things down, but swiftly enough. She nearly conjured herself some bluebell flames again but once again her wand was stilled. This wind was unpredictable so best not to waste her magical efforts just to have them blown away again, so she instead set to readministering her sunlight charm and magnifying its influence somewhat. Although this cold seemed particularly unnatural.

“Point me,” she demanded as she held her wand flat in the palm of her hand. The cherry wood struggled to swivel around (thanks to her Gripping Charm) but eventually repositioned itself in her palm with the tip pointing at her. North was behind her. The wind had been blowing from the West previously. Small details that gave her small comfort in that she at least knew which direction she was walking since the where was uncertain. Besides the obvious, that is. Plucking her wand from her palm and removing the spell in the next instant she continued forward. At least movement kept her muscles going and she saw no point in turning around and heading back into the wind when it could just as well dramatically shift again.

She was not particularly fond of science and never listened to the weather reports much on TV while they played during the nightly news that was often on in the background while the family had dinner, but she knew enough to know that this shift of a completely different change in direction was not something found in the natural world. While such details as to just how many degrees the wind was known to change every five minutes or so were not things the Wampus elected to pocket away in her memory, the dramatic shift now was interesting. Was there someone or something lurking around her hidden among the blinding white that was providing the source and hence the change in the wind? Where even was she?

All these unknowns and much more annoyed the Wampus as she continued forward and at this rate she was ready to cause a scene, make something explode, and draw out whatever it was she was meant to face. So sick of all this walking.

Conjuring a pair of gloves and a scarf was very wise of you. Another few minutes more of your hands being exposed to the harsh elements of the tundra ... well, it would not have been good for you. Fortunately the added articles of clothing you providing you with warmth, keeping formerly exposed skin from being harshly frostbit. It also made the fall into the snow more bearable. While you wound up shoulder-deep in snow, at least the precautions that were made, from the conjured clothes to the magnified Sunlight Charm, were keeping you from being frozen alive.

The wind, however, does not lessen. The Four-Point Spell confirms that the wind is coming from the north, though it had been blowing previously from the west. Could that observation about its change in direction mean anything? Maybe a prediction could be made out of it as a subtle clue of what is to come?

Ponder on that as you progress onward, smartly working with the wind, allowing it to push you forward. There was still quite a bit of walking ahead.

The sound of her combat boots gentle crunch upon the snow was easily drowned out by the wind as she moved forward with difficulty. One the one hand she was confident that her combat boots would continue to keep her feet warm so she could afford to sink back down into the snow and fall less victim to the overpowering gales. At least walking with the wind was speeding up all this stupid walking, which was really the only message she was receiving from the wind: Go this way. Since she already had this paralyzing cold to compete with, the Wampus was not keen on battling with another element despite her dislike of being shepherded. Glancing over her shoulder to eye the footprints left in the snow, Valerie adjusted the scarf half covering her features and groaned into the wind to try and release some of the growing tension in her body.

Thankful that for once her Gripping Charm was serving a purpose, her fingers flexed around the cherry wood as she looked ahead into the seemingly never ending white abyss while the wind continued to lick at her back furiously. She was incredibly done with walking and would much rather give cross country skiing a first attempt than keep this up. Seeing as she had only ever been sledding and not skiing, however, she dismissed the thought of conjuring herself a set of skis. She would likely just be blown over by this wind. But then the Wampus was struck by another thought and while it may perhaps waste some time she would either end up skipping out on all this damn walking or have something she could blow up in frustration.

Continuing to walk as she readied her wand (and yes, she was still considering thoughts about this wind as she did) and traced an ‘X’ in the air above her other hand. “Focalia,” she muttered through her still slightly chatting teeth. The spell conjured a thick piece of wood to her hand (about the same length as her elbow to palm) which she turned over in her hand as she slightly readjusted her hold upon her wand and performed a tight circle over the piece of wood. “Vegrandis Navis,” she whispered and just as the spell began to take hold of the wood (its ends curling together while stretching and expanding outward to fill in the gaps underneath to transform the small piece of firewood into her very own coracle boat for one) she threw it out in front of her like a frisbee and watched as it glided to a stop atop the snow. It was not immune to the wind, of course, and was propelled forward slightly with each gust. Hurrying over to the coracle before it could glide further away across the snow, the sixteen year old gave her wand linear trace in the air and cast Escarpa Cotone this time to conjure a pale white cotton scarf. Managing to catch it before the wind took it away as it had done with her bluebell flames, she gave her wand a purposefully tight flourish to cast Engorgio upon the white scarf with an incomplete clockwise circular movement of her wand. The stretching of the material made the fabric somewhat translucent and with thoughts of summer sailing trips around the Puget Sound playing vividly in her mind, she set to fastened it to the front of the circular boat. Fingers struggling now and then to pull at the woven pattern, the Wampus took longer than she would have liked to tie the ends together, but eventually she did have her makeshift sail attached and grinned as it billowed forward and easily caught the wind.

No more walking for her! And she could use her body weight to subtly steer in whatever direction she may need.

Hopping inside and gripping either side of the small boat (her knees tucked in tightly to her chest and wand now gripped between her teeth), the wind howled once more and sent her sledding ship forward across the frozen tundra.

Now that she could focus on more than how cold she was and how much she loathed walking, Valerie could properly think about this change in the wind and what it meant. It was magical in nature, that much she was able to deduct, but to what end she was uncertain. If these IMPS officials had created it specifically for the task using some sort of weather modifying charm or whether there was a Slavic demon creature lurking nearby was unknown to her. But she was wracking her brain for something to go on and kept coming to the same insufferable conclusion.

“I do not know a damn thing about anemoscopy or austromancy or whatever,” she barked into her scarf. The best she had was her knowledge of mythology and was what she was going to try and cull something from as the wind continued to push her southward. She had tried to study Divination between tasks but the pseudo magic that only those who were in possession of this Inner Eye business were the sort to truly have any reliable understanding in the branch of study. She, not so shockingly, was not one of them. She had gone over some very very basic theory (namely just knowing what each branch of Divination was and what it did) so she was very much out of her element at present. Did not a lot of this diving business come from ancient Greece? Maybe there was something in Greek mythology she could pull from to assist her somehow because her dry as a bone pool of Divination knowledge was not.

“Anemoi. Wind gods of the c-cardinal directions,” she spoke to herself as she glanced up at her Sunlight Charm briefly to make sure it was keeping up. Speaking aloud rather than in her head seemed to help quell her agitation. At least for now. “Zephyrus. God of the Western wind and bringer of light spring and early summer breezes...Boreas...god of the North wind and bringer of the cold winter air.” None of which was helpful at all.

“Winter is coming?” she questioned aloud to the wind. “It is already damn well here.”

She was officially done speaking aloud. Done.

Gripping the edges of her transfigured sledding boat, she searched her memory for pages from the illustrated pages of the mythology book back home for something, anything else. Depictions of Boreas with snakes instead of feet or as the violent tempered old man were of little use to her as well (even if it seemed quite fitting at the moment) and her recollection of his association with horses lead her nowhere either. But then a story of him kidnapping an Athenian princess popped to mind and left her wondering for a moment (although not to terribly long because what Greek god had not kidnapped and abducted?) if perhaps there was something to draw on from there. Was the wind meant to be kidnapping her since she was being funneled in one direction or was she being funneled towards a kidnapped individual?

She seemed to recall something about North winds also representing struggles, dire times ahead, and a need for patience (as one should expect from ancient peoples in times of winter) while winds from the West meant new beginnings and relationships. Although these beliefs were more closely associated with Asian cultures if she recalled correctly.

A struggle with a relationship lay ahead? Ugh. She hated this. She did not have the patience for this and any implications by this stupid wind that she ought to was beyond irksome.

West to North. And there had been a pause between gusts as she recalled then it had suddenly blown North. She was just going to conclude that this was bad laced with more bad and an indication of dire times and circumstances awaited her and were on their way. Or rather she was on her way to meet them. It was obviously unsettling behavior and a bad omen no matter how one looked at it. She suspected even someone as annoyingly cheerful as Louise or as would be able to infer that much. Was that not what all these Divination readings were about anyway? It was really all she could muster from such vagueness and her general disinterest as she continued to glide along the snow while carefully maintaining her balance so as not to tip the boat over.

Maybe she should have conjured more sticks, strung them together, and held them into the wind to see if it would speak to her.

Ugh.

She was even eye rolling at herself for her internal thoughts.

While your makeshift sail blew you and your sledding boat southward at a much faster pace than walking, your knowledge about mythology was not going to be of much use here. Your musings of Greek mythology are simply musings, but it is ones understanding of Anemoscopy that would provide a hint of what was to come. Whether your conclusion, after giving the wind's change in direction some thought, was genuine or lucky guesswork, it certainly did mean that dire circumstances were ahead.

But what were these dire circumstances? The wind was speedily taking you to where you would find out.

Gradually the strength of the wind begins to lessen, slowing your sledding boat down until the wind was no longer powerful enough to move it with you in it. Your luxury of sailing the sea of snow are now over and now you need to get back to walking. This time, however, it is clear where you are meant to go.

In plain view is a magically protected cage, its metal bars covered in ice. Looking at it closer, you can see that there is a strange metal box serving as a lock with a bunch of dots scattered about. But it is the human figure within that grasps your attention. As you step closer and closer, you realize that the person, shivering immensely as tuffs of air leave his mouth, is your eight-year-old cousin Ryan Kronshagen.

She felt the wind subsiding before noticing that her sledding boat was slowly as the loose wisps of white hair were no longer beating wildly against her cheeks and instead hung, as though exhausted, over her scarf and draped over her shoulders. Another hint she was meant to interpret on the air? Ought she prepare those sticks and perhaps set them ablaze to watch the smoke patterns? That was one form of Divination she did recall something about. Even if her foundation was just about as vague. Valerie waited until she had come to a complete stop and untied the cotton scarf which she then wrapped around her waist and tied in a knot in case it may be of use later. “Ugh this is so aggravating,” she muttered to herself as she climbed out and stood lightly atop the surface of the snow. A swish and a flick of her wand (and accompanying nonverbal Levitation Charm) later and the coracle boat was floating alongside her just in case she may need it. Even if said need was purely to blow it up.

It did not take long to see why the wind had brought her to this spot and she slowly began approaching the cage set out in the middle of the snow. At first she could not make out what was held within, but as the Wampus proceeded the small trembling shape of a small dirty blonde boy. There was something unsettling familiar about him and not in the same sense that the abomination that had been the first task had been. But then her grey eyes met his blue ones and it was as though she had been stripped down and exposed to the freezing temperature and was paralyzed in place until the shock had saturated her bones. Her blood ran cold and then came a shrill shriek as she took off at a sprint across the remaining distance between herself and the cage.

"RYAN!"

No. Why was he here. Surely this was a trick. Another dream. Another dummy. Please let her be manipulated again because she could not bear the thought of her No Maj cousin who had already endured so much at the young age of eight being traumatized and used as a pawn like this. It had to be. It had to be. But at the same time this was one assumption she could not risk.

It had not even been a year since the swimming accident that had taken his older brother right before his bright blue eyes, turning the boy all but mute in the process. There were very few that he would utter even the softest of whispers to and Valerie was among them. She had come to live with her aunt and uncle before he been born and thus he had become like the little brother she had lost, always by his side from birth and the embodiment of everything good in this world. He was exceptionally kind and she was suddenly struck with the guilt she had felt when she had left for school after the accident after spending the entire summer with him sleeping with her in her bed because he was afraid of doing so alone. His irrational fear of drowning in his sleep had brought him there, as had his nightmares, so his therapist had suggested making a dreamcatcher to hang above his bed as a way of making him feel empowered and in control of things in some way. They had made it together, her stringing beads and feathers onto the twine while he wove things with his clumsy unfocused fingers, but it had been their project and she could still vividly remember kissing the top of his head and swearing to him that she would never let anything hurt him.

And now here he was. In a cage and practically freezing to death.

Crumbling to her knees in front of it and fumbling with her wand a moment to get it pointed in the right direction, she locked eyes with her cousin in an almost rabid desperation. “Ryan, do not worry. I will get you out of there. Just hold on,” she tried to assure soothingly, but her tone was last with panic and thickly woven together with an almost murderous rage. At least it would have been that level had she neglected her Calming Draught that morning which, thankfully for the administration, she had not. “Ventus! Ventus!,” she demanded, waving her wand intricately before the cage and at the ice frozen to the bars to cast a Hot-Air Charm that would hopefully both melt some of the ice (enough that she should slip him a jacket and blanket that she would transfigure in just a moment) and give him some warmth.

While administering the charm, her eyes flicked around the cage for a clue as to how to unlock it or destroy it, so it was then that her grey eyes fell on the dotted box and, without giving it a second thought, had her wand pointed at it with every intent of blasting it off assuming that a simple Alohomora would get her nowhere. “Bomba----”” But another glance at her cousin and the look of cold fear in his eyes steadied her wand. As much as she wanted to, she could not risk it. Surely there were repercussions for deploying magic (particularly of the explosive kind) on this unusual box. Frustration bubbling over, she instead thrust her wand towards her sledding boat and unleashed her Bombarda upon it. KABOOM!

The satisfaction that came from watching the smoldering splinters shower down upon the white snow was temporary (approximately five seconds at best) and soon she was focused back on freeing her cousin. It was only then that she properly noticed the unusual dotted pattern upon the box and she peered at it closely. The design was obviously an artistic representation of the Milky Way, but what about it? “What must I do?” she mostly pleaded with herself while glancing back to Ryan, speaking to him but not expecting him to be able to answer. “Push...trace over the correct combination of dots?” Trace the outline of a constellation? But which damn one was she meant to trace in that case among this seemingly haphazard dotted display? “Arithmos Revelio Scindo,” she said on an exhale as she traced her wand in a clockwise spiral flowing upwards until she came to a stop somewhere around her shoulder.

Now work and give her back her cousin, her brother. Now.

In spite of your efforts of using magic to tamper with the cage to set your cousin free, you quickly learn that it is wasted energy. Each spell that you cast at it rebounds, bouncing off the cage and landing somewhere in the snow or disappearing forever into the air. It is clear that advanced magic has been casted to protect the cage. Spell-casting will do nothing to make it open any time soon.

Observing the metal box is worth your time. It is the only way you can open the cage and getting Ryan out of it. The spell you casted reveals nothing. It, like the others, rebounds, though there were no numbers to be revealed anyway. So how do you open the cage? That is all part of the challenge, after all.

As you frantically try to free your cousin of his chilly prison, he tries to get your attention by muttering your name. Even though his blue-ish lips move, no sound leaves his mouth. He is too cold to speak, his teeth chattering. He tries to move his arm toward the bars, but the freezing temperature has made him stiff to the bone. What is he trying to do? And why?

If you look closely, his hand is clinging onto something off-white in colour. Could that be what you are looking for? Perhaps you should reach for it.

Growling (almost like a rabid animal) as she began tugging on the box violently box despite knowing that doing so would be futile. Her Hot-Air Charm had bounced off and blasted her in the face with an unwelcomed warmth that went right through her and left her blood simmering. That warmth had not been meant for her. “Dammit,” she gritted out in frustration while her back teeth grinded mercilessly against one another. Desperation clawing at her features, her attention went to the scarf wrapped around her waist which she quickly untied and reapplied a Hot-Air Charm to it. Balling it up, she acted quickly and traced an infinity sign in the air with her want to cast a nonverbal Caelum Saepio upon it. She then held it up to her cheek and although the exposure to the elements had softened the blast from the Hot-Air Charm at first, it was still significantly warmer than having nothing. If magic couldn’t penetrate the cage, then perhaps the physical could?

The lack of numbers was not surprising, not after the rebound of her other spellwork, but she was also going to assume that this also meant there was no curse work at hand. At last, something relatively positive about this whole experience.

Now on her knees, the Wampus tried her best to soften her expression for his sake knowing he was not accustomed to seeing her in this state. No more than she was seeing him looking like this with those lips. If his lips were already that color and his blood that depleted of oxygen, then he must have been out here for a while and theoretically under the watchful eye of some Disillusioned Ministry official as had been seen in the first task. “He is just a child,” she barked into the abyss. Eyes flying back to meet Ryan’s, it was only then that she noticed his attempts to speak. “No, Ryan. Do not speak,” she scolded, her tone near hysterics as a sting began agitating her eyes. One not brought on by the cold. “Save your energy for other matters.”

Ignoring the sting and the blurred vision for now, she made a proper attempt to pass the heated sheet between the bars of the cage to him. If this worked then she would set to conjuring him proper winter attire. “Can you wrap it around yourself?” she asked while giving his shivering form another look up and down as her arms passed through the gaps between frozen bars. "Never mind. Just let me." Allowing on end of the enchanted sheet to fall, Valerie strained her limbs as she attempted to pull it around his shoulders. Her neck and side of the face pressed firmly against the top of the cage and she grit her teeth at the applied pressure there that not even the scarf she had wrapped around her there for warmth could quell.

Only when she was sure she had someone draped it around him despite not being able to see all that well from her peripheral vision did she notice his trembling hand clutching something. “Ryan, what is that?” she asked as her eyes became ablaze again with purpose and she blinked a few annoyances free from her eyes that cascaded down her porcelain face and likely froze before they struck the ground. “Give it to me.” Or were his fingers too numb from this cold to be able to untangle his fingers from around it? Electing not to waste more time, she shifted her position in the snow and reached for his hand with both of hers. One gripping on the edge of the off-white mass while the other covered his hand to try and provide some warmth from her conjured gloves while also gently prying his fingers away from what he was holding.

Slipping the scarf through the bars of the cage is effective, though the boy is unable to wrap himself around it. Even your efforts to wrap the scarf around him from outside the cage prove to be difficult. The bars prevent you from being able to properly wrap the warm scarf around his neck. You manage to thrust it over his shoulders, though it doesn’t cover his neck at all. It was better than nothing though.

The boy’s eyes blinked and look from yours to his hand. Since he is unable to speak, it is his way of telling you to take whatever is in his hand from him. If he could, Ryan would have reached his hand toward you, but he physically could not do it though he was able to move his shoulders ever-so-slightly thanks to the scarf.

Placing both of your hands on his warms his one hand slightly, just enough to loosen his grip on what he had been firmly grasping. A small rolled piece of parchment is pried out of his hands and is now in your hold. Slip your arms out of the cage and you will find that written on it are numbers that need decoding:

285 6995 19751

Longing to draped the Engorgio’d scarf more snugly around her cousin, Valerie nearly gave her wand another flick to try and levitate the ends around him. It was impossible to focus entirely with him shivering like that and his lip turning more and more blue with each passing moment. But it was these precious moments that steadied her hand and forced her to turn her eyes to the parchment now in her possession. “It will all be fine,” she tried assuring him. Her thoughts became distracted once more, wondering if perhaps now that her arms were inside the cage if she could cast spells that would stick. Wards were only exterior were they not? Even with the insulated fabric hanging around him it was not enough. He was not safe yet. Her wand hand gave another twitch, ready to attempt another Hot-Air Charm or Insulation Charm when her thoughts once again steadied her hand and she held his terrified gaze.

The only way he was going to be safe was if he got out of this prison. So it would be a waste of precious seconds thinking about anything else.

Swiftly pulling her arms from the cage and wincing as her forearms grazed the ice that dug into the sleeves of her uniform (perhaps even cutting the fabric), Valerie sat back on her feet while still kneeling before the cage and unfolded the parchment. Numbers. Her head instantly snapped around to the small box and glared at it. “Now you give me these? Really?” she barked while giving it a bit of an obscene gesture with one of her gloved hands. She could feel the tension rising in her body and the only thing that was keeping her from getting aggressive and violent with box the box and the cage (kicking and such) was the fact that Ryan was still in there.

Shivering. Just barely surviving.

Cursing and muttering under her breath, she forced herself to look solely on the piece of paper in her hands and the numbers displayed there. She had to tune Ryan out or else her thoughts would continue to distract her. Continue making her want to make sure he was still with her.

She did not know much about Arithmancy (which was where her train of thought continued to ride its course) but it was a subject she had actually spent some time with between tasks. Numbers were something tangible and solid. More concrete than the pseudo work involved with Divination (a subject she had dropped long ago due to its unappeal). But there was something perplexing with these numbers in combination with the spell she had just performed previously. There were parts missing to the ‘curse’ seeing as there were not two single digits at the end of the spell to represent the cline and therefore type of ‘curse’. Which either meant that her previous notions involving the box and there being a lack of a curse upon it was correct (hence the missing bits) or she was meant to just know to detach the last two digits in the longest series of numbers and decode things that way. Or was she missing the basis of the curse? All options seemed likely.

“285 6995 19751,” she read aloud. Keeping everything in her head was just going to make things a muddled mess, so she leaned down slightly and extended a finger to begin writing in the snow. Thoughts of these numbers associating with the Milky Way depicted on the lock, but that did not make much sense to her. If these were meant to be some kind of coordinates of the celestial and cosmic variety then there would be degrees associated with them and even if they were referring to something specific in the night sky there was absolutely no way she would be able to deduce anything from those.

So she quickly ruled that out for the sake of her sanity and attempted to focus on this one method for now. However nonsensical it was still making to her in the moment.

“Two. Relationships and humans,” she began, electing to select only the most applicable from the recalled meanings of the numbers as well as speaking aloud. Perhaps her words (no matter how shrill they came now and then) could provide Ryan with some comfort. Keep him conscious. Keep him thinking. “Eight. Movement. Five. Freedom, physical world, physical touch.” If she were to dismiss and then replace the word ‘curse’ or ‘spell’ with ‘cage’ and ‘lock’ then this seemed fitting. Ryan, her No Maj cousin, was trapped in a cage and unable to move. That much was obvious and clearly fit with the basis, the affected thing, the numbers in the sequence represented. Exhaling and watching her breath come out in puffs of white mist, Valerie dared glance at Ryan but soon tore her eyes away once more to attempt to decipher the next sequence. Which was rather obvious she supposed. Was it not clear what the cage and lock by association were doing? “Six. Stability, family focus. Nine. Endings, power and strength, immediacy. Nine again. Emphasis.” Or potential attack, result, in weakness or fainting. Little tidbits she kept to herself rather than speak for worry of alarming Ryan. At least she recalled there being other specific meanings to numbers when in the kernel position and she could only infer that the double nine in use meant that was the most prominent. Otherwise there was alto the potential for dizziness and disorientation as the six implied and shaking as the five did. Again, all of this made sense and was apparent when she looked at him. “Five. Already discussed.”

Rubbing her forehead between her brows, the Wampus rolled her shoulders and tried to keep her focus as she proceeded. “One. Verbal expression, independence. Nine. Metamorphosis, strength. Seven. Magic. Five. Change, freedom. One. Already said.” Sitting back and looking at the numbers on the ground made her no less confident in what she was doing and tears of frustration were slowly edging their way out of the corners of her eyes once again. Just give her her cousin back. Unable to control herself, she kicked at the lock with one of her combat boots and welcome the discomfort that came from the outlash. She hated this and would take facing another dementor over trying to logic through another damn puzzle. Had the last task not been enough with testing their minds?

Pounding her fist into the snow to release some pent up anger to start, her finger went back to writing in the snow below each set of numbers. She opted to break off the last two numbers because what else was she supposed to do to figure this out? Without those last two, she would be helpless in figuring this out. Unless there was hidden ink on the parchment and she needed to cast a spell to reveal it. One thing at a time, Valerie. One thing at a time.

“This makes no sense” she roared again as she pounded her fist into the snow and now with tears freely falling down her cheeks. What did she need to do? And why did that damn box have the Milky Way on it? That stupid thing was keeping her from her loved one.

And then another thought struck her.

Milky Way. Dividing two people from one another.

“Vega and Altair?” she wondered aloud as she spun around from her notes and returned to holding the box in her hand. Was she meant to find those two stars on this box?

Using Arithmancy at this point in the challenge is a step in the right direction. Your thought process, however, proves to have taking you down a different path, one that was only going to frustrate you more. As you write your thoughts in the snow with your finger, the wind gradually begins to fill your musings in with snow.

As for Vega and Altair, if that is what you think will open the lock, then perhaps you should tap those stars on the box and see what happens. ... Or you could return your attention to those numbers, starting from square one and going back to the basics of Arithmancy. The Pythagorean Number System might be of use to you.

Time is quickly passing by, Miss Gray. The weather isn't getting any warmer, Miss Gray. Ryan is only getting colder and stiffer the longer he is in that cage, Miss Gray. Hurry up!

Tears were steadily trickling down her cheeks as she stared at her notes in the snow as frustration took hold. Howling through her grit teeth and clenched jaw while watching the wind gently blow snow into the hollow spaces in the snow left by her fingers. Was this another stupid message it was trying to deliver? That this was wrong? The wind could stop taunting her and informing of her the obvious. Growling, the Wampus began savagely clawing at the snow and removing all evidence of the thought process that had wasted so much time. She felt helpless and she hated it. For once, just once, could she protect the ones she loved? And while perhaps somewhere in the back of her mind she had a false certainty that the task and competition would not be cruel enough to allow a mere child to perish, it was not a thought that entertained her mind for long.

The stakes were too high. And she was inadequate. Unable to meet them.

Her arms moved around herself and just as the ground beneath her began to shake as she was consumed by memories of the past again (turning her into that terrified six year old girl under the table), Valerie’s teeth bore into her lower lip with such force that the plump pink flesh tore and in the next instant she tasted blood. It was enough. Enough to pull her from her own despair. Whether taunting or genuine, the wind was another confirmation that this was wrong. So what else was there to decode from numbers on a piece of paper?

Her thought still lingered on her analysis by cursebreaking and wrong as it may have been were at least a reminder that she had much work left to do. Surely it was something simple. Something staring her right in the face. She disregarded her thoughts about the two stars rather quickly (meaning the need to push those two specifically) and began looking at the bigger picture. The night sky displayed (artistic rendering as it was) on the box. Returning to her previous musings she had had before she had gone down the rabbit hole of cursebreaking, she reminded herself that Altair belonged to the constellation Aquila and Vega the constellation Lyra simply to provide herself with some comfort that she at least knew something.

Constellations.

Once again berating herself for not following her gut instincts, her eyes narrowed once more on the numbers on the parchment. The answer was clearly staring her right in the face and it should be obvious what she was meant to do but she was far too in her head to see. Pounding her fist into the ground again and she glanced over her shoulder at Ryan with a failed attempted at a reassuring smile. This was reminding her of the times he would write notes to her using that absurd leetspeak language or whatever it was called. She knew he did it just to annoy her so she would chase him around the house (something that almost always ended in a tickle fight) but right now she would take reading “1 w4n7 Pudd1n9” on a piece of paper over this sequence of numbers.

But it was this spiral (the thought of never having to decipher another of his insufferable codes again) that triggered something. Numbers and letters. “You have got to be joking,” she sneered as she set to tracing in the snow one again. But this time her movements were rapid and less methodical.

Muttering to herself for completely overlooking the obvious, she pinched the bridge of her nose and rubbed there to nurse the migraine that was coming on. She then focused first on the possible positions of each vowel in each and it was the repeat of ‘ir’ in the second word that made an instant click in her darkened mind. “Fire,” she said aloud to herself. And then she was not even trying to decode the other two words, but rather seeking confirmation on a hunch. A ‘t’ ‘h’ and ‘e’ in the first word was all it took and then her eyes flew to the final sequence to ensure all the proper letters were present. “The fire signs,” she whispered, her body and mind on the brink of exhaustion and the wear was beginning to show in her features. Despite the moisture from her eyes still staining her cheeks, her heart was pumping fresh wild blood through her veins as she spun back around and removed her wand (for precision with the tip) from its holster in her combat boot. “Leo, Sagittarius and Aries,” she said to herself, her grey eyes looking over the artistic interpretation of the Milky Way. Her mind began over analyzing in the moment. But what of the order, Valerie Gray? But she quickly dismissed this. Overthinking had already caused her waste too much time. She would likely be back to pounding snow soon when this did not work, but she was done thinking and desperate. Following her gut and moving (even if only tracing) seemed the only way to keep herself sane.

Watch her need only push the constellations, not trace them.

Perhaps she would leave a finger over each once she was done to cover all her bases.

Searching first for the Big Dipper asterism and finding high up above the concave curve of the Milky Way, she followed the pointer stars downwards away from Polaris until her gaze fell on the backwards question mark shape of the Sickle that formed the celestial lion’s head. Holding her breath and somehow believing that doing so would help steady her hand, she traced over the outline of the first fire sign and pressed a finger to it. Bending her head around to look for the next, her eyes went all the way to the leftmost corner of the box where she found Sagittarius next. Although to be fair she had found Scorpius first and recalled that the archer was not far from that constellation and just on the edge of the downward curve of Milky Way. Swiftly tracing her wand over this this one next and leaving a finger resting upon it, she pulled her focus away and looked at the entire box again. All that was left to find was Aries.

Dammit.

This was like looking for a needle in a haystack given the incredibly simplicity that was this particular constellation. Composing of only four stars (as she recalled from her excessive cramming) it could literally be anywhere on this damn box. The only thing she had going for her was that she had one constellation on the left, one in the middle, which meant that perhaps she needed to turn her attention to the right. Which was really of little help at all considering how many possible lines she could draw. Her eyes found Cassiopeia (a constellation so incredibly distinct it was almost impossible to miss really, even with her cursory knowledge of Astronomy) and they her eyes began looking at the surrounding area. Falling upon Pegasus and the boxy form that made the body, she rubbed her forehead with her wand hand and grit her teeth once more in frustration. Where was this stupid thing? She could vaguely recall something about the Sun’s path and equinox something or other, but it was nothing that stuck with her in the moment as anything to help her find it. But then her eyes fell upon Taurus and then she knew for certain that she was in the right vicinity.

Wait. Was that perhaps it? Right there?

Throwing caution to the wind (ugh the wind) she traced over the stars with her wand and then pressed a third finger to it. “Give me back my cousin,” she demanded of the box. Jaw set and back teeth grinding on one another, eliciting a sound like to large rocks being rubbed against one another, she pushed firmly down on all three constellations at once.

As you write in the snow once more, this time your work isn't filled in with snow nearly as fast as before. Now you're heading down the right path, rather than the other that was taking you nowhere. Of all the things you'd expect in a challenge, using the Pythagorean Number System likely was not expected due to its simplicity. But here you are, using it to crack the code.

Things now make sense to you. To open the cage, you need to find Aries, Leo, and Sagittarius on the metal lock. Do so quickly, for your overthinking caused much time to pass by. Your decision to not fuss about the order in which the constellations need to be selected was a smart move on your part. Time was beginning to run thin.

Leo and Sagittarius are found quickly. Tapping each star that made up the constellations with your wand causes the dots to connect and light up white, whereas pressing fingers on them does nothing. The lit dots linger there as you frantically search for Aries. You find it soon enough, causing it to also connect and light up. What now?

After a brief pause, the three constellations light up green. The lock clicks and the door swings open. Ryan is free to leave, but his exposure to the harsh cold isn't going to make walking out of it on his own accord easy.

Valerie had not realized she had been holding her breath until the long exhale had come seeing the stars she hoped were associated with Aries light up and stay that way. But when nothing happened immediately her eyes turned wild and she was on the verge of lashing out once more when the star patterns’ light turned green. And then came the most beautiful sound she could imagine in the moment: the click of the lock.

Wasting no time at all, the Wampus dove inside the cage and embraced her cousin ferociously. Although she was careful not to hold him too tightly, she did hold him close to herself in hopes of giving him some of her own body warmth and just wanting to selfishly hold him for a moment. Her face buried itself in his sweet smelling hair and hid there a moment to give in to the tears (now more from relief than frustration) that were battling to be released. “I am so sorry,” she whispered to him while her one hand rubbed up and down his back both to sooth and help warm up his muscles there. “You are safe now. I-I have you.” Thoughts of Obliviating him despite this being even more in direct conflict with the Statute came to mind for surely the trauma of being but through something such as this would haunt him for years to come. All for the sake of a competition.

Hell hath no fury like what was presently bubbling up inside Valerie Gray at this moment.

Composing herself and careful to make sure she continued to have some physical contact, she pulled him free from the cage and shifted Ryan to sit in her lap (her own legs stretched out straight before her and resting on either side of the eight year old). Leaning her arms around and over him to shield him from the elements while she worked, Valerie draping the cotton cloth across his lap. Performing a curly q movement with her wand, the Wampus transfigured the now tattered cloth into a warm red (Ryan’s favorite color) wool blanket with a nonverbal Vestis Vellus. Leaning back from him just enough to wrap it around him snugly and tucked the ends inside the blanket to hold him secure in a tight burrito wrap. Administering a Severing Charm first to part of the overlapping bits of blanket, she gave her wand a tight circular flick and performed Caput Vellus upon it to transfigure him a hat which was quickly set upon his head. An infinity sign was traced over the blanket wrapped around his person and Caelum Saepio performed. While the urge to blast him with a Hot-Air Charm had been her initial instinct, she knew she needed to slow his warming or else risk shocking his system.

She did not even bother asking him if he could stand or walk on his own and while she was tempted to conjure firewood and repeat what she had done to arrive her with the help of the wind, that was not nearly immediate enough. “Stay with me, Ryan,” she instructed firmly. “ Do not go to sleep. Tell me about the trip dad took you on to the Children's Museum of Tacoma over Christmas.” For she had still been here, at Hogwarts, over the holidays and missed out. Something, anything, to keep him alert while she tried to figure out what to do next.

Upon performing a Feather-light Charm on Ryan, Valerie scooped the boy up in her arms and carefully maneuvered him so she was giving him a piggyback. It was crud and made her vulnerable, but it would do for the time being. She could not help but glare at the lock as she did and the cruel irony and blatant joke it was that the secret to unlocking Ryan (who was freezing to death inside the cage upon which it was set) was with fire signs. His body lighter on her back, Valerie was able to hold him up with one arm behind her back and thus freed her wand arm to do what it must.

Which was what, exactly?

Again the thought of returning to the start was on her mind, but by now the wind had surely blown snow back over her footprints and while Point Me would help her locate the direction from which she had come, it had been a long walk and Ryan needed immediate attention. So her warm was thrust upwards towards the sky and (unless the wind or whatever told her otherwise) readied herself to cast Periculum.

Your body warmth helps in bringing some source of warmth to Ryan, and rubbing his back is indeed comforting. But it is not enough to warm him up to the point where he can move on his own accord. Pulling him from the cage causes him to wince and, for the first time in this cold environment, speak, "V - V - Val - Valerie." It was his way of saying that he could not move yet. It hurt to move.

Shielding him from the elements while you work was a good idea. He watches intently as you transfigure for him the blanket and hat. They feel so warm the moment they are put on him. His eyes close as he absorbs the heat. He was still with you though. Ryan's eyes open when you mention the museum.

"It - it was s - s - so..." he begins, and then you pick him up. There is a slight wince as you maneuver him onto your back. He still was too cold to move, on his own accord or yours. And how you managed to lift him up and steady him with one arm puzzles him. "Wh - wh..."

The wind was still coming from the north, blowing cold air and snow southward. Do you continue moving with the wind or do you venture off in a different direction? That decision lies upon you.

Despite the Feather-light Charm, Valerie could hardly keep her hold on Ryan with only one arm even with how hunched over she stood to take on more of his mass that way. While the intent to cast the red sparks into the air was very much embedded in her muscles, the moment the incantation began slipping through her lips her arm dropped and the sparks shot into the snow instead to create a small hole that would no doubt freeze over soon enough. Gripping her wand between her teeth, both arms went around back to hoist Ryan further up on her back and then remained there with her fingers intertwined and resting below his rump to hold him in place.

She did not think much of his speech and simply associated it with the cold (his lips had been blue the last time she had looked). Still counting on the combination of their continual contact providing him with the steady flow of body warmth along with the now insulated blanket and hat to do the job of warming him. If she could just do something about this wind. It made her briefly consider transfiguring a tent, but the particular spell she had in mind was for wooden boxes and that lock had been of metal. Along with the reminder that spells did not work on the cage to begin with, so it was quickly discarded from her mind as she move away from it as quickly as she possibly could walking with the wind. She did not wish to look at the cage again. Ever. It only made her blood boil and she was certain she would require a potion to regrow her teeth by the end of all this given how hard her bath ones were acting like tectonic plates against one another. Although the wand between her teeth prevented this somewhat. At least for the time being.

Valerie saw no point in going back the direction in which she had come. The wind was cold and laced with snow and both these things were counterproductive to what she wanted. She would save walking towards the mouth of Boreas for another day. The wind had forced her hand thus far and pushed her in this direction as well. Though she loathed being shepherded and funneled, continuing to walk southward seemed like the path of least resistance. Perhaps Notus would chime in at some point and validate her decision, but for now it was instinct and needing to put that cage out of sight and out of mind.

Thus like some winged companions in winter, she moved south.

She had only taken a step or two when she looked up and took note of the lack of previously administered Sunlight Charm. It must have dissolved when her concentration had shifted upon finding Ryan (and perhaps her frustrations and rabid behavior could have swayed some influence as well). Bending over even further so her waist was nearly at a ninety degree tilt to support her cousin on her back, she removed her wand hand and took the wand from between her teeth. “Solis Lucidem,” she repeated while she struggled to trace the skyward circle with her wand, refusing to lose any contact with her cousin as she did. Light poured forth from the tip once again and thus returned the sunshine umbrella over the two of them. Hopefully that would help protect him from the wind that threatened to lick his back (even though it was wrapped in a blanket) as they proceeded.

“It was so what?” she asked, returning cherry wood between her teeth and hand back to behind her back and under him for balance. Once she felt she had a sufficient enough hold on him in piggyback position, she walked onward slowly (hunched over and still somewhat unbalanced) over the snow.

You begin your trek south, an umbrella of sunlight shining on you and Ryan. How much are you going to have to walk this time? Considering the amount you had done to get to the cage, we can only imagine what you must be feeling about it now with a young boy to carry.

"It was so much fun," Ryan replies. There is a pause before he adds, "You should have been there."

At that point, the wind changes directions. Hopefully you are balanced enough for it to not blow you and the boy over. No longer coming from the north, the wind now comes from the east. It is prodding you to go west now toward snowy mountains. Is that a cave up ahead?

A rare genuine smile tugged at Valerie's pinkish lips as she continued to carry him. "I should have," she agreed. Her back was starting to ache from being hunched over as she moved but she dare not stop moving forward and refused to ask Ryan if he could walk on his own. No more time wasting. Thankfully her journey to the cage had been smooth sailing for the Wampus and her legs spared, which made all the extra effort now bearable. "This summer when I return home I will take you myself."

The change in wind caused Valerie to stumble (her legs crossing awkwardly in an attempt to keep their balance) and her pale features turned towards the new direction of the wind. So not Notus but Eurus had decided to grace them with their presence then? She ventured to guess that a wind coming from this direction was a good omen and followed obediently as it guided her towards the mountains and to a cave.

Not knowing why, Valerie felt her heart pounded faster in her chest. Perhaps it was the appeal of shelter that could properly protect Ryan from the elements that was the catalyst for her pace had quickened and her back straightened ever so slightly to allowed her better posture to begin lightly jogging towards the mouth of the cave and eventually inside.

Had you not been carrying Ryan, you would have seen his blue eyes light up. "Promise?" he asks. For now the verbal promise would have to work, as you couldn't pinky swear it right now.

The boy felt you stumbling, and a quiet whimper escaped his mouth. His arms around you shift slightly, wondering if you are going to let him walk. If you were too tired, he didn't want you to keep holding onto him. He was a big boy. He could do it. He could be strong for you and keep up.

You don't let him go, however, and venture inside the cave. The wind no longer hits either of you, the walls of the cave providing you with shelter. You continue walking further inside the cave, creating distance between you and the harsh elements outside. It is quiet in the cave ... too quiet.

Progressing forward, you notice that there is light flickering ahead. The walls of the cave are also changing, gradually transitioning from mountain stone to a wall. You then find yourself inside a room where two people are waiting. A male Ministry employee from the Department of Environmental Regulation and Protection, who has quietly been watching over you, and a male St. Mungo's healer are quietly conversing with each other until they notice you are there.

The healer approaches, removing Ryan from your back and giving you a look over first. Satisfied that the elements haven't drastically harmed you, he gives the man a thumbs up and moves on to Ryan.

"The healer is going to check over your cousin and make sure he is okay," the Ministry man states. "You are to go to the stands now." He then makes a gesture with his other hand toward a door that will take you to the stands.

OOC: You may now look at the viewing area and/or other competitors' threads.

She need not see his face to know his eyes were aglow. It was ever transparent in his voice and the way his chipper warmth seemed to cut through the icy wind and seemed to warm her more than her transfigured winter wears and Sunlight Charm combined. "Promise," she affirmed.

The quiet of the cave was not nearly as unsettling as the light she continued to walk towards, but what other choice did she have at this point but to move towards it? The wind had pushed her mercilessly in whatever direction it pleased (something that had made her want to defy it and attempt to work against it just out of spite in all honesty) and it was all clearly a calculated effort by the competition. As her body continued to warm (and no, Ryan, she was not putting you down) her head did as well. With time to breathe came time to think and the more she thought the more her lips were unable to resist curling into an ugly snarl.

Especially when she took notice of the subtle changes to the interior walls.

What sort of cruel manipulation had the competition thrust upon them this time? If she was about to be informed that she was carrying a sack of potatoes that had been magically modified to look and act like her cousin...

Her eyes narrowed and if looks could kill the two adults would be lying on the floor with more swift precision than Avada Kedavra could accomplish.

And then Ryan was plucked from her back and taken from her and her wand swiftly pulled and thrust into the man's neck. "How dare you. He is only a child," she managed to grit out while the dust (that was the story she would be eternally sticking to) from the room began agitating her eyes and caused them to water. "A No Maj child." Seeing the thumbs up nearly caused a dangerous slip of her wand and it was all she wanted to just blast those thumbs clear off his hands. "I am not leaving him," she spat back.

She tried to shove her way past and take Ryan in her arms again (because like hell was she going to let these people lay another hand on him), but the Ministry official's arm move clear across her face and impeded her progress. Her eyes flickered to Ryan apologetically (because she should have done more to protect him somehow from all this and from this part of her existence) and caught the look in his blue eyes begging her to just do as they asked.

For him and only him she would comply.

Eyes turning back towards and glaring at the man, Valerie could not control the rage that was taking its hold and spit his shoe before she followed his indicated path and went through the door to the stands.