Old Bartholomew was lurking. The weather was changing as could be seen to anyone who looked out at the Black Lake. It was beginning to freeze and soon would be a giant hunk of ice. The cold did little to bother Bart this November so far. He was quite adaptable thanks to years of experience.

Bartholomew was in a sociable mood today but with the weather was there anyone around? The Squid would find out by going closer to the shore. Bart pushed his tentacles to and fro until he was at his destination.

Caleb needed some fresh air. School with homework and projects are starting to pile up. Caleb is entirely new to that. After waking up to a short nap he put on his scarf and walked towards the lake.

He stands near the shore as he looked up into the sky. The wind is getting colder and colder these days. He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. Soaking in how this moment feels.

"Nice." he whispered to himself.

It's definitely worth it to go out today.

Is swimming a good idea? He looks around but none of the students are swimmng. Is it the cold? Or the fact that someone or something could just drown you?

A teen stood by the shores as Bartholomew approached. Just like he usually would a tentacle was raised in greeting. "Hello, hello there. The cold is not something that bothers you?'' Bartholomew stopped moving when his tentacles touched the sandy bottom of the Lake. "Winter is coming, young sir, and it will be a rather cold one.'' Experience about the feel of mother nature told Bart that much.

GAAAAAASSSSPPP!

Caleb moved a step backward when a giant squid came closer to where he was standing. He was caught off guard, his heart beating fast for a moment. He still kept his composure calm nonetheless. The squid is being friendly after all.

Is he suppose to shake one of his tentacles? Is that like a form of greeting to his species as well?

He looked at the giant squid and smiled after pausing for a good amount of time.

"Hi there." taking a step forward. It's not going to eat him, right? "I brought my scarf" he said. The squid then proceeded with an advise 'Winter is coming' and that it will be a cold one too. "Thanks. I'll uhh, keep that in mind" he responded.

He is a nice squid. All caring for the students around here. Giving out suggestions and saying hello. Such hospitality.

"What brings you to the shore?" Caleb returned his gaze to him. Surely there is a reason.

Not long after Bartholomew's winter warning to the young boy, something happened.

For those paying close attention, you might notice something else bobbing above the surface of the lake for a split second. But before you can get a proper look at what it is, it disappeared from view and back into the lake as if it were never there to begin with.

What was that? Something to be worried about? Or was it just a figment of your imagination?

Caleb was staring at the water and then staring at Mr. Squid. He was about to ask another question when suddenly he sees something on the water. He can't really see it.

maybe it's another Squid. His wife perhaps? Are they going to have a vacation on land? Caleb moved a bit forward and his eyes squinted just to make sure he is not seeing things.

There is definitely something in the water.

He takes his wand out just to make sure. He's no longer looking at Mr. Squid. His eyes glued on the water. What was that earlier? Should he ask the Groundskeeper about this? Then again, he can't really describe what he saw. Caleb is not even sure if there was something. It could just have been the waves messing with him.

Yeah, yeah, it was cold, but that wasn't going to stop Anna. She had ran in worse weather conditions and, honestly, she wasn't going to allow a little bit of cold hinder her from her training.

So there she was, running. In slightly warmer gear, but still running.

Ohhhh, the squid. The Gryffindor smiled when she said the create come nearer the shore and talk to a boy. Huh! Anna didn't know it could SPEAK. Amazing!

The boy's reaction, though. HAHA! She couldn't help but let out a loud laugh. Good thing she wasn't that near and she could play it like she was laughing at something else and not him if it came to it.

She also did notice whatever it had been that had momentarily bobbed above the surface only to disappear just as quickly. The third year made no big deal out of it because that was Hogwarts' Lake after all. Anything could be living there, for all she knew. She raised her eyebrows and sent the other kid an amused side smile. Really? Did he think something would attack him or something?

Anna was kinda amuuuused.

Despite the fact that Trinetta was very ANTI COLD WEATHER she was still wandering down by the lake on this brisk fall day. She was sick of sitting in her dorm, though, doing nothing but homework all day - besides, it was sunny. A bit warmer than normal. Why not go for a walk? Maybe cold weather would grow on her eventually...

Doubtful, though.

As she wandered over to the lake, peering out and getting lost in her thoughts. She was just thinking about how she might ask for a broom for Christmas, a new one that she could use next term if she made the team again...when she saw something move.

Or...had she?

Blinking, the first year stood up and walked a bit closer to the waters edge, squinting at the area she had THOUGHT she'd seen something...

Caleb kept staring and staring at the water. There was something there right?But it happened in a blink of an eye he'snot eve sure if he really saw something.

Odd. Very odd indeed. He should definitely ask the squid about it.

As he returned his gaze back to the Mr. Squid to ask about it, he was interrupted by a loud laugh not that far from him. He looked to his side and a girl is apparently laughing at him or 'pretending' to laugh at something.

His left raised at the girl as he slowly placed his wand back in his pocket.

"Can I help you?" he asked her. Surely there was something else funny other than him being paranoid and talking to a huge squid, right? He looked at the girl, smiling a bit. He has to be nice.

Anna's gaze moved momentarily towards a little girl who showed up by the lake. She gave the kid a small smile before turning her attention back to the boy who was acting all funny and paranoid, amused side-smirk still in place.

Haheehee, he was trying to act cool now, was he? Funnyyy.

The third year shook her head and shifted the weight of her body to her right leg. Placing her right hand on her hip, she waved her other hand dismissively. "I'm alright, thanks. Do you need any help?" She asked, the tone of amusement aaaallll over her voice because she had seen him almost panic a little, y'know.

Heehee.

Caleb took a few steps backwards from Mr. Squid and nearer to the girl that appeared from nowhere and is laughing at a peculiar moment. Caleb knew that there is nothing funny around the scene other than the fact that Mr. Squid is spouting words of care.

She was a bit feisty, he can tell. Must be a Gryffindor. He kinda liked that. He shook his head at her snide remark and casually responded "No." Instead he walked much nearer to her and spoke again "Mr. Squid said it was going to be cold this winter." he felt the cold breeze against his skin. Yes, it is cold.

He was about to walk away but didn't, he thought that this would be a good time to ask her. Just so he knows he's not gone mad. He should ask nicely or not all at once so it won't freak her out. But then again, maybe it wouldn't. Or he should just start it out as a joke...

"Did you see something in the water?" he asked. More straight-forward than what he had rehearsed in his head. It's better he had just asked.

Bartholomew was puzzled at the sudden shift in attention. One minute her was talking to the boy with eye contact but the next the boy was looking further out at the Lake. Bartholomew could not see behind him so he had not the vaguest of ideas of what had just bobbed into view. There was a possibility that the boy had already grown tired of him.

Bartholomew turned his great big eyes to the girl who had laughed. "Hi, there. Out and about enjoying the cold as well?'' Movement not far from his location caught his eye. Had that other girl seen something interesting as well? Was that what the squinting was about?

"Something in the water?" Bartholomew inquired upon hearing the conversation. "You mean other than I myself being up here at the surface?''

White. Grey. Eh, for describing the older man's hair, it was close enough. This wasn't a potion where accuracy and precision mattered.

And Noble didn't feel apologetic at all for interrupting Paul's state, teasing tone or otherwise. If he'd wanted to meditate longer, he should have come down earlier. Noble had been right on time and was raring to go. He'd even already considered the cold feet problem, given he had no intention of scaring those sensitive specimens away.

"Good job I brought these then," he replied, reaching into his robes and pulling out a pair of socks. "Wetsuit socks. Designed to keep your dear little tootsies warm even in winter." He passed the pair to Paul, his own ones already on under his shoes. "I rather like Milton. Can't have him upset at me for sending you back to him for Christmas with toes in a gift box."

Anna laughed when the boy said the squid had said it would be a cold winter. "All winters are cold up here." She smiled as she told him and the squid, if the creature was still listening.

Speaking of the Giant Squid, he spoke to her sooo that meant he was listening! "Of course!" The third year replied. "I'm not afraid of a little ice." She added with her signature cheeky grin.

When the boy asked her about something in the water, she looked from him back to where she had seen something. Apart from the Giant Squid, that was. "Well, yeah, but it's not like it's weird to see creatures come up and down in the water, y'know?" Anna shrugged as she told him and the Squid. She looked back up at the giant creature. "You're not the only dweller there, isn't that right... sir?" The young lioness blinked before looking again from the Squid to the boy. "I'm Anna, by the way. What are your names?"

Bartholomew's huge eyes twinkled. "It certainly can get colder.'' That was all he would say on the matter. "I don't doubt that. Soon the Lake will be completely frozen. Ice skating? Would you do it?'' Old Bartholomew shifted in the water so that he could look towards the water. He could see nothing strange now. Bart turned back to the students. "Not by a longshot. There are merfolk and grindylows as well. Occasionally Moaning Myrtle likes to make an appearance.'' Bartholomew's eyes seemed to form a smile. "My name is Bartholomew Henry. Pleasure to meet you Anna.'' A tentacle was held out to be shook.

She didn't mind the colder weather per say, but the little Ravenclaw was bundled to the max even if it wasn't completely freezing just yet. Going near the lake was fun, but the wind from the trees could go right through you some days and today Chloe McCarthy was prepared.

Skipping her way down she had stopped to look at something that was shining on the ground.

What was it?

Bending down she tried to pick it up, but the object seemed buried in the ground. So digging was started, her wand on the ground she used both hands to try to dig the object up.

Looking around she noticed a boy standing closer by, "Hey can you help me over here?"

As the typical light squalls and showers of March arrived, the lake had finally abandoned its frozen state. The surface was no longer the smooth, black ice of winter, but had resumed its usual rolls and waves that heralded the arrival of spring. This iconic feature of the Hogwarts grounds was clearly back to normal, or so it seemed...

As the lake's waves lapped gently against the grassy shores, they brought something other than the typical water and dirt up on land. The small, round objects that were swept on shore sported a good covering of mud and bore the dirt accumulated by the passage of time. Enterprising Hogwarts residents might still glimpse something of a glitter or a glint from the objects' surfaces from afar, for these objects were not entirely mud balls. Beneath the grime, the gold coins would sparkle in the spring sunlight. In their current state, only a small, uncovered portion of that golden surface would shine through the muck to hint at the objects' identity. Dare you collect such odd, old gold coins? If you have the guts to pluck them from the ground, what will you do with these curiosities? Or will you let them slumber in the obscurity of the lake's shores?

With the arrival of Spring, Skylar was in full gear mode to muddle through on these long-term assignments that she honestly should have begun working on ages ago. It wasn't exactly like her to procrastinate and she was fully blaming senioritis for taking its toll, although deep down, she knew it was much more than that.

Headed out to the lake with her black journal tucked in her hand to muddle through on her training log (something that she was sure was ridiculous for her since she already trained quite regularly), she stopped short when something shiny caught her eye. Huh?

Dropping her planner at her side, she squatted down by one of the objects to have a look, unafraid to touch it, and rubbed the mud and dirt from it. Was this ... related to the treasures found in the Fall? And why all of a sudden the reveal of them?

"SpeRevelio," she muttered, figuring she should probably be safe. Just in case. Considering she did want to maybe study cursebreaking, if she got accepted.

A walk along the Great Lake (not to be confused with the Great Lakes along the U.S.-Canada border) was what was needed in his current state, or so Ronan had decided. So, that was exactly what he was doing that March day, dressed in simple jeans, t-shirt and boots.

He was halfway around the lake when he noticed something shining in the dirt under his soles. At first, he thought that someone had gone a little overboard with the glitter. But, at second look, it seemed to be some kind of metal. Squatting down to get a closer look, he saw that not only was it metal, it was a coin of some sort. And that it wasn't the only one. Could they be from the hoard that was found earlier this term?

He plucked a few of the coins up and performed a cleaning charm on them trying to see the image on them. Though, he probably should've thought about casting the charm that Skylar was now doing as well.....

SPOILER!!: Narrator and Skylar

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Narrator

As the typical light squalls and showers of March arrived, the lake had finally abandoned its frozen state. The surface was no longer the smooth, black ice of winter, but had resumed its usual rolls and waves that heralded the arrival of spring. This iconic feature of the Hogwarts grounds was clearly back to normal, or so it seemed...

As the lake's waves lapped gently against the grassy shores, they brought something other than the typical water and dirt up on land. The small, round objects that were swept on shore sported a good covering of mud and bore the dirt accumulated by the passage of time. Enterprising Hogwarts residents might still glimpse something of a glitter or a glint from the objects' surfaces from afar, for these objects were not entirely mud balls. Beneath the grime, the gold coins would sparkle in the spring sunlight. In their current state, only a small, uncovered portion of that golden surface would shine through the muck to hint at the objects' identity. Dare you collect such odd, old gold coins? If you have the guts to pluck them from the ground, what will you do with these curiosities? Or will you let them slumber in the obscurity of the lake's shores?

Quote:

Originally Posted by PhoenixRising

With the arrival of Spring, Skylar was in full gear mode to muddle through on these long-term assignments that she honestly should have begun working on ages ago. It wasn't exactly like her to procrastinate and she was fully blaming senioritis for taking its toll, although deep down, she knew it was much more than that.

Headed out to the lake with her black journal tucked in her hand to muddle through on her training log (something that she was sure was ridiculous for her since she already trained quite regularly), she stopped short when something shiny caught her eye. Huh?

Dropping her planner at her side, she squatted down by one of the objects to have a look, unafraid to touch it, and rubbed the mud and dirt from it. Was this ... related to the treasures found in the Fall? And why all of a sudden the reveal of them?

"SpeRevelio," she muttered, figuring she should probably be safe. Just in case. Considering she did want to maybe study cursebreaking, if she got accepted.

Running around the lake, or at least the parts of the lake that were accessible to students, every day was a part of Isa's planned training schedule that she had been working on for flying. Even though she no longer had time to balance quidditch and school, she still wanted to stay in shape. The sixth year girl just couldn't give up being active. Working on her long distance endurance was the part of her training plan that Isa was focusing on today.

Running was temporarily set aside, however, when she noticed Skylar and the head boy Ronan examining something on the ground. "Hi Sky! What's that?" Watching the head boy, Isa could see that it appeared to be more treasure. Was it part of the same treasure trove that had been discovered earlier in the term. "Head Boy Carter." Isa nodded in greeting. "Do you think it's related to what was found earlier this term? Or maybe even cursed? Someone should probably inform the headmistress...." That somebody was probably going to end up being her unless one of the others volunteered to do it first. The advice she had once heard that 'if you say someone should do something, that someone should be you' came to mind.

The Revealing Charm detects that no hex or charm has been placed on the coins. Of course, those that already touched and picked them up with their bare hands would have proved just as much without the spell being casted. No negative side effects have taken place as a result of that (thank Merlin). The coins were simply coins.

Cleaning away the grime makes it much easier to see the images etched onto the coins, which sparkle in the light now that they aren't covered in mud. They look old enough to date back to the Middle Ages. If you've paid visit to the chamber off the Great Hall recently, the designs on them would seem oddly familiar.

Now, the question of the hour is how did these coins get on the shore of the lake? Hmm...

The cold Lake had thawed. What this meant was that old Bartholomew was yet again free to roam to the surface. Yet again there could be chats with the humans. The cold never bothered Bartholomew but this particular winter had been one of the coldest. Hadn’t the Squid told some students that weeks ago? His words had doubtlessly come to pass.

Bartholomew swam slowly towards the shore. There was some glinting caused by the sun’s light reflecting off shiny surfaces. Whatever could be causing that? “Good day, students. Something caught my eyes. What is it that you have there?’’ Huge eyes went from Skylar to Ronan to Isabelle.

"I'm not....Flynn," was Ronan's flat-toned (though a slight bit of hurt could be heard when he said the Slytherin Prefect's name) reply to Isa's use of Head Boy Carter. "you can call me Ronan." He tried to take a bit of the sting out of his response by smiling, but it just came off all crooked and wrong seeming. Oops?

Was he just a slight bit disappointed that nothing had happened when he'd picked up the coins? Yes, yes he was. Not that he wished anyone injured or anything, it just seemed anticlimatic in a way. His disappointment became more apparent when his cleaning spell revealed the same markings as the rest of the hoard from earlier this term. He was hoping for a bit more of a mystery. He let out an audible sigh, letting the coins fall back to the ground.

"It appears to be more coins from that hoard the Creature Companions found this past fall," he told Mr. Henry, flat-toned, when he asked.

The glinting of the coins continued to hold old Bart’s attention even with the Head Boy explaining what they were. Bartholomew could see the truth of the student’s words. The coins afterall were very very familiar to himself. But it was all very puzzling business. “Are all those coins not up at the School?’’ Wary but suspicious eyes moved from student to student. “How could these have gotten here? I am unsure myself.’’

Skylar looked up from the coins in her palm to see the Head Boy and the Former Hufflepuff Captain joining her and merely shrugged at Isa's question. "Apparently more treasure?" Which wasn't cursed; although if it had been, she'd probably have felt the affects first given she'd made the rookie mistake of touching it before casting the revealing charm. So thank Merlin that it wasn't but oh look, the Giant Squid was surfacing.

"Hey Bartholomew," she greeted of the familiar lake being whom had frequented the window in the Slytherin Common room on occasion over the years. She glanced over at Ronan who seemed a tad offended by the use of his title with his surname. Which to be honest, yes she knew Flynn could be pushy and demanding, but he was also one of her best friends. Which meant she of course felt defensive by the way he reacted. "And what's so wrong with that?" she muttered bitterly, in response to his 'I'm not Flynn'.

But more pressing matters were on hand than acting (or not) like the Slytherin Prefect. Which was that of the coins. Listening to the conversation between Ronan and the Squid, Skylar shrugged again. "It's almost like someone is trying to lure us somewhere. Or send a message. The ones at the school had runes on them, which had some meanings. So I'm wondering ... what sort of message someone would be sending us. And why?"