The Game - Round Three - Pure Nerve and Outstanding Courage, Mission and Submissions Options

[Department_of_My...]

Welcome to round three of The Game!
Pure Nerve and Outstanding Courage!



Stoats: The first one of you to solve the riddle below wins a $20 gift card from Whimsic Alley!

Ferrets: Solve the riddle below to receive your writing mission for this round.




Think you know the answer?
Then send a PM to Department_of_Mysteries
If you answer wrong, you may try again.
Good Luck!
(And keep out of that corridor on the fourth floor!)

[muggle5]

Birth of a Seeker

It was a perfectly pleasant fall day with the sun out and blue skies. There were many students chatting in the open air, enjoying the scene and weather among the castle grounds. Even an owl could be seen here or there, enjoying the beautiful day among the calm skies. Neville, on the other hand, was inside the common room, resting after his broom accident from earlier that afternoon. Although some outdoor air might have done him some good, Madame Pomfrey had advised him to get some rest, and after the day’s dealings, Neville had heartily agreed. With his newly healed wrist, he lay upon the couch nearest the hearth, and let the worry of any previous matters whither away.

The portrait hole soon swung open and in came Dean and Seamus, broad grins upon each of their faces. They appeared to be impressed at some sort of affair, and, spotting Neville, quickly trotted over to speak with him.

“What is it?” Neville asked, sitting up.

“You should’ve seen him!” said Seamus.

“He was brilliant!” Dean agreed. They both sat down in the nearest armchairs.

“What?” Neville persisted.

“Harry!” said Seamus.

“I’ve never seen flying like that,” stated Dean.

“I think it was his first time too,” Seamus added.

“What’s gonna happen to him?” Dean questioned.

“I dunno. McGonagol didn’t seem too pleased,” Seamus pointed out.

“At least Malfoy got what was coming to him,” Dean said.

“It took long enough,” Seamus concurred.

“What are you talking about?” Neville asked, a bit aggravated at how long it was taking for them to make their point.

“Harry!” Seamus said again.

“He did some amazing flying after you’d left,” Dean said.

“What do you mean?” Neville inquired.

“After your little spill, we were all left standin’ around,” Seamus said.

“But not for too long. Draco was quick to take your remembral from the grass,” Dean added. Neville clutched at his sides, apparently realizing that it was missing for the first time.

“Oh,” Seamus said. “I almost forgot. Here you go.” He reached into his pocket and withdrew the remembral, passing it to Neville. Neville gratefully took the ball from him, and no sooner had he clutched it, than the smoke began to alter to a deep red. He would be sure to stow the ball away in his trunk later today to avoid this problem again. “You might need two remembrals in the future,” Seamus declared. There was a pause as everyone lost their train of thought, and Neville was the first to come to his senses again.

“What were you saying?” he inquired.

“Oh. Right,” said Seamus, continuing on. “Anyways, he started bein’ all cocky and stuff, mountin’ his broom and all, as if this was some amazing deal.”

“Cocky’s definitely the word for it,” Dean added.

“Right,” Seamus said. “Anyway, Harry mounts his broom too, and flies on up to get your remembral back.”

“Why would he do that?” Neville asked.

“Malfoy was being a bit of a git. Anyone would’ve done it,” Dean said.

“You didn’t do it,” said Seamus.

“You know what I mean,” Dean said.

“Anyways,” Seamus continued. “You’re just fortunate that Harry actually stood up to him. Everyone else was still waitin’ around. Doin’ nothin’.”

“There was something else going on inside him too,” Dean added, turning to Seamus. “Some sort of adrenaline rush kicking in, combined with his anger for Malfoy. What IS it between them, anyway?” Seamus shrugged his shoulders.

“So what happened next?” Neville eagerly asked.

“Well,” Dean said, “By now we were all in some sort of panic.”

“I wasn’t,” Seamus contradicted.

“Well, a couple people were. Harry had reached a really high height, and he kept looking like he could slip off at any moment.” He looked at Seamus for some sort of approval at what he’d said, and after receiving a nod, he continued. “They spoke for a little bit while they were up there. I couldn’t make out any of it.”

“It didn’t take that long,” Seamus argued.

Shaking off Seamus’s comments, Dean continued. “Well, before we all knew it, Malfoy had thrown your remembral at top speed, and Harry raced after it.”

“What do you mean by ‘thrown’’?” Neville asked.

“He just.... chucked it,” said Dean, shrugging.

“Malfoy has a pretty good arm, as a matter of fact,” Seamus noted.

“I guess,” Dean said, with a hint in his voice at his loss of interest about the subject. “Anyways, Harry did some fancy flying-”

“-Wicked fast-” Seamus interrupted.

“-And caught your remembral before it shattered.”

“How fast was he goin’ do you suppose?” Seamus questioned, turning to Dean.

“I dunno,” he said. Seamus turned to Neville.

“It was wicked fast though,” he said again.

“So, in the end,” Dean continued, “Harry caught it, flew on down with the thing, but... “

“But what?” Neville asked, slightly impatient.

“...McGonagol came out to get him pretty soon afterward,” Dean said.

“What happened to him?” Neville inquired.

“I’m not sure,” Seamus said. “What do you reckon?” Dean answered with a shrug.

“This feels like my fault,” Neville said, looking down.

"Er- how?" Dean asked, a bit confused. Neville wasn't even sure of this answer and kept looking at the rug beneath his feet.

“Calm down. I’m sure he’ll be fine,” Seamus said. "What's the worst that could happen?" Neville shook off this feeling of guilt and faced upward again.

“But did Harry really do all that? For my remembral?” Neville asked.

“Yeah,” said Seamus, “Although I wouldn’t get too hung up about it. It seemed more about Malfoy than the ball.” Neville’s look showed no sign of heavy-heartedness.

“I don’t care,” he said. “I wish I’d been there. Do you think he’ll ever do something like it again?”

“Probably,” Seamus said, eyes raised. “But next time you should lose something more valuable.”