The Drowned Palace Group 3

October 4th 2025
Speech: #cfa120
Thoughts: Italics
@Jun Mayumi Mochizuki, @Meyra Lancaster, @Katsuro Souto, @Colin McCoire, @AngelFyre McCubbin, @Simon Kincaid

Her revelio was a success and Emily stared wide-eyed at what was revealed to her. A puddle of words with no complete sentences. No doubt one half of a riddle that had yet to be solved.

"Interesting..." Emily nodded as her brain got to work. "Though I'm stumped to figure out what the rest of the words could possibly be..."

She left the wall and examined the rest of the room. Meyra had sung along with the strange voice that had been circling the room the entire time. The room suddenly glowed and more of its secrets were revealed to the group, mostly a collection of seashells, portraits and books.

Books!

"The best weapons in the world!"

Emily hurried over to the books that laid on a seashell-built bookshelf over to the right. Her eyes greedily read the front covers of each book as she plucked them off the shelf one by one. While she was flicking through the worn out pages, the others had been drawn to the moving portraits. Beautiful as they were, one book stood out to Emily as she glanced back and forth between the portraits and the assortment of books.

Tucking the copy of Pearl Cordelia's Below the Waters under her arm - because being armed without a book was almost unheard of for the Shephard child - the youngest Huffie rejoined the others and watched the portraits for herself. She had to admit, the artwork on the walls were impressive. It never ceased to amaze Emily how framed magical moving images could look so brilliant. She could feel the eyes of the last portrait watching her, even while Emily was more focused on the others, marvelling at the creatures of the deep as they dominated their portrait environments.

Colin came over, asking about the mysterious singing from earlier. Emily regrettably shook her head. "I can't say I have an explanation for it. Although... As folklore dictates, sirens and mermaids sing and present themselves in forms that appeal to any and all incoming prey."

That triggered a chain reaction of thoughts in Emily's head. "If Meyra is singing the same notes as the song that's been playing in the room, then that confirms we all hear the same song..." She gave him a "Yes, I'm stating the obvious, but--" look to him before she continued. "The song must be appealing to what we all want... Whether it's the answer to completing the whole game, one part of a puzzle, the riddle on the wall... Or something else."

She suddenly laughed nervously. Maybe it was the trick of the light but it looked like she was getting a few confuddled faces from the rest of the group, which only made Emily go shy.

"Heh... Listen to me, prattling on about something that's been clichéd and romanticised for fiction for many years..." Just as well she took that book with her, because then it meant she could hide behind it.

She opened back up Below the Waters and flicked through it a second time with her nose buried in it, casting quick glances back to the portraits as she did so.

"It's quite fascinating really... The creatures that live beneath the surface of our oceans, that is," Emily mused aloud.

_{Word Count: 552}

Action: Examining the books and the portraits (while "armed" with Below the Waters )

Stats: Stamina: 8 | Evasion: 7 | Strength: 7 | Wisdom: 9 | Arcane Power: 8 | Accuracy: 8
Abilities: Non-Human Enthusiast |Cat's Grace |Calming Presence

Meyra was still giving her attention to the algae at the wall when another boy entered the room. He was not familiar to her so she deduced he was the foreign kid, Katsuro...Katsuro something. She couldn't bring herself to remember what she had read a few minutes ago at the board outside. And she had this tiny little feeling, that she didn't want to find out anything thing more about him anyway...her first impression of him was proving to not favour him at all. What was that strange look on his face? The smirk that spread all over Colin's lips made her dislike the asian boy even more and wanting to aim her shoe at Colin's face this time.

After a few minutes of discussion between those already present, some of them decided to cast their spells around the room and see if they could find something useful. "It was helpful AngerFyre," Meyra kindly told to the oldest girl, giving her a small smile, as her Reparifarge revealed that beneath some of the furniture's surface what was there were actually sponges, "At least we now know that we don't need to search through those."

Mey saw as Emmi and Katsuro also tried their luck with their own spells and some of the clues started to reveal themselves. The algae at the wall shone brighter as Emmi's revelio touched them, some formed readable words that seemed to be part of the song repeatedly playing at the background. "I think we can have almost sure Angelfyre is right, these words are definitely part of the poem in your card." Mey said this in a murmured, thoughtful tone, while her eyes alternated between the card in her hands and the words on the wall.

It was simply by mere reflexes that the book flying towards Katsuro didn't hit her as it passed a few inches of her face. The same couldn't be said by the boy who caught it straight into his nose. Meyra had to conceal her will to laugh, but an audible snort inevitably escaped from her. But her expression quickly changed from amusement to surprise and distrust as the boy asked her about Jun. How would he know about...Oh! Wait... was he? No, it couldn't be... "Are you "frog boy?" she asked, her voice sounding a little more shrill than she intended. But if she was right...oh boy...he was in trouble!

Katsuro looked at her with narrowed eyes, his expression a mix of confusion and disdain. But the door opened once again, and both their eyes turned to look at Jun that had arrived fashionable late. She looked beautiful as ever, her dress remembering one that could be a worn by a mermaid princess, "Hey!" Mey greeted her cousin back with a large smile. No matter the circumstances, her world would feel always complete as soon as she was with her best friend.

Mey saw as Jun glanced towards Katsuro and decided to ignore him. A smirk appeared on her lips at the same time the goofy smile disappeared from the boy's pretty face. "He's "frog boy" isn't he?" Mey asked in a whisper, leaning towards her cousin's ear, "First thing he asked was about you..." She couldn't help the glint of amusement in her green eyes and the smug expression on her face as she sent a suggestive look at Jun. She remembered the stories Jun told her about her neighbour in Japan, and she could swear now that all of those things had been about the boy who was now focusing on the book between his hands.

After a few more minutes exchanging thoughts, Jun and Colin had the same idea and cast dissendium, but no secret passage was in sight. Sadly... "I was hoping that would work..." Mey muttered a bit disappointed. But she caught the sign that now it was her turn to try something. The missing lyrics spread from her lips echoing through the room and that actually did something.

Like if her words had been a long forgotten spell, the room changed before their eyes. "Now that's better!" Mey said in a soft voice a smile spreading across her face.

As soon as the room enlightened and a lot of its secrets were revealed to their sight, everyone started to look around for more clues. Katsuro mentioned that the date on his book seemed to want to say something, as a glowing 1 caught his eyes. Angelfyre caught one of the shells and tried to listen to it and Simon decided to approach the lady on the portrait. Wait...Lady on the portrait...the sound of those words in her mind made something click into place. Or maybe it was just a foolish idea?

Meyra fumbled through the pocket of her black skirt and took the card the "zombie" pirate had given her at the Lost Pearl. "Guys....I have an idea." She spoke to the group trying to contain her excitement, "Let me look at the book you picked Emmi." She asked gently to the Hufflepuff girl as she walked to her and glanced over her shoulder to read the book's name and author.

"Yes!" She exclaimed not containing her excitement, "Look at this!" She said showing the card to the group, "The name of Capt. Vane's ship is Lost Pearl, and this is what he says in his greeting card:" Mey continued, now reading the words, "But even kings of the tides meet their doom, and now my proud lady lies abandoned, her treasure forever swallowed by the waves in some drowned palace no soul dares enter. Avast, matey, for the sea hides more than she shows. Words often conceal others. Fair wind!" Mey almost jumped in excitement, "What if Capt. Vane's Lost Lady's name is Pearl? And he named his ship after her?" her smile turned even more brighter, "Pearl Cordelia is the name of the author in your book Emmi! Maybe it's her book!" She said pointing at the lady on the portrait, "Please tell me I'm right!" She asked towards Simon who was speaking with the portrait, "And tell me if there's a map or something in it?" She turned to ask Emmi this time, hope enlacing her words.

"And maybe..." Her attention now focused at the adorable octopus at the portrait, hiding behind a rock, "Let me try this..." Mey walked near the octopus portrait and picked her wand from inside her sleeve, "Revelio" she muttered, casting the spell at the painting on the wall. If her guess was right...maybe the octopus would reveal to not be such a lovely creature.

Trunk: Accio!
Stats: Stamina: 6| Evasion: 7| Strength: 7 | Wisdom: 5| Arcane Power: 3| Accuracy: 7
Race & Abilities: Werewolf | Fearless
Spells & Potions: Here!
Items: Wand and Gillyweed
Moderated Action: casting revelio at the octopus portrait.

The blond guy who has decided to stand inconveniently in the doorway could at least have apologised, but instead, he gave him the most lame and cheesy excuse of all times. He was looking at the most beautiful girl in all Hogwarts? The room was dark as a hole in hells and he could see her? Pfff...yeah right! And if she was the most beautiful girl at Hogwarts...he clearly hadn't seen Jun... "My feet walked through the path they were supposed too." He told the boy in an almost dry tone, it was pretty obvious he was right about his stand.

A few minutes had passed and the group was starting to throw their guesses at what they were supposed to do. Some of them already cast their spells and so Katsuro decided he should try something too. Picking his wand from its holster at his hip, the accio spell fell naturally from his lips. It felt a bit too simple and maybe he was crossing the limits of luck as he chose that particular spell, but it turned out that it had worked! Except, the book was a bit too eager to find its summoner, and his reflexes, even if particularly good, hadn't been enough to escape the speed it hit straight into his nose. "Fuck!" He muttered under his breath, catching the red leathered book with one hand and massaging his nose with his other. He heard Jun's twin snort and immediately sent her his most venomous look, "Yeah, yeah...so funny!"

He had to know though, the girl was too weirdly similar to his childhood "friend". So he inevitably had to ask her if she knew Jun. He was expecting to hear her say they were family or something of the sorts, but what he was not expecting was the reply she gave him, "I'm WHAT?" he asked, frowning as he realised he knew exactly why she had called him that, and that realisation hit him a little more than his ego and pride.

But his world was about to forget all about that slightly too insulting nickname, to focus on the girl that has finally decided to arrive. She was wearing a light blue siren dress with delicate pearls, Katsuro found himself noticing all the details that accentuated her beautiful skin colour, and her dark eyes. Eyes that too soon diverted from him. The smile he hadn't even noticed, but which lit up his face as soon as he saw her, vanished when she walked away, completely ignoring him.

The nudge he felt on his ribs, coming from the blond boy, was the only thing that diverted his attention from the girl who had once been his playground companion. "They are really twins?" He asked, turning to look at him, "I don't remember Jun having a sister..." He muttered thoughtfully, his gaze briefly going to the girls that were now whispering to each other, "I don't think so..." He ended up replying to the boy's last comment. He was certain he was not their favourite person either.

Was then that Jun's friend sung the last sentences of that song and the room transfigured into what finally looked like a drowned palace. Like one of those caves were pirates used to hide their treasures in the depths of the oceans. Soon, they were having a lot to look at. Katsuro noticed the clock beside the locked door, the time frozen at 5:10 o'clock. He narrowed his eyebrows in concentration...what was that supposed to mean?

His eyes followed the girl that had arrived with the blonde boy, as she walked towards the bookshelf, he noticed the empty place where the book he was now holding used to be, between another titles. His glance got caught in one that said: "Watching the Waves, By Rylee Waters" and something about it made his mind work towards an idea. Maybe...the clock and that title were pointing at the number seven? Five plus two makes seven, and wasn't seven the number of waves that wives used to count as waiting to see their beloveds going to the sea? "I may be wrong....but I think the clock and that book," he pointed towards the book in question, "Are pointing at the number seven...but I'm not sure." He said to the group.

Katsuro decided then to focus once more on the book that his spell had brought to him. He caught the sight of the glowing number one on its date, "There's a number glowing in this book, it's number one. It has to mean something right?" He said, walking towards one of the candles with a blue flame, in hope that it's light would reveal something more to him as he examined the book more intently, going through its pages with extra careful in order to not damage the fragile old tome.

Trunk: Accio!
Stats: Stamina: 7 | Evasion: 8 | Strength: 4 | Wisdom: 9 | Arc. Power: 2 | Accuracy: 10
Abilities: 's Grace | Foulplay
Spells & Potions: Here!
Items: Wand and Gillyweed
Moderated Action: Examining the book Whispers of the Shells By Coral Ocean, under the blue candle light.

"Whoa! Everything went blue!" Colin called out excitedly. "Nice singing Mey!" Colin's spell casting didn't reveal anything: "Arrr. There be no treasure here in the floor!" But after they puzzled out the riddle, it seemed clear to Colin at least that singing it is what changed everything! For now, the whole room turned out to be filled with interesting things! "Gosh, those are big sponges, and look at all the books, and --- look at all the paintings! And the window! Emmi isn't this neat!?"

Everything before had been dim shadows and unclear shapes; but now everything in the room was plainly visible, though bathed in a watery blue. Colin giggled as AngelFyre stuck her hand in one of the sponges. Then she started talking with the seashells. Colin thought that was weird and chalked it up to something Muggles would do. Muggleborns really did have their own special kind of magic! "Ask the shells for a clue Fyre!" he called out as his attention focussed on Emily.

"What do ye make of the singing, lass? Mey's not got a bad voice at all!" he said, quickly glancing over towards the Gryffindorque.

Emily seemed lost in thought. Colin knew by now to sort of let it all bubble up from deep inside somewhere. She couldn't explain it, though did note that sirens and merfolk use their voices and forms to attract prey. "Hmm," Colin replied. "That would be us! Well, we'll just have to make sure we don't fall for their siren song, Em!"

"If Meyra is singing the same notes as the song that's been playing in the room, then that confirms we all hear the same song..." Emily began. Colin gave her a look. Obviously they heard the same song. They were all in the same room, right? Of course this was some kind of virtual reality, but that was just the magic. They were all in the same virtual place. She returned his look with one that seemed to say I know what I'm on about. Just listen lad...

"The song must be appealing to what we all want... Whether it's the answer to completing the whole game, one part of a puzzle, the riddle on the wall... Or something else," she said. Colin blushed slightly as his eyes widened. Was it that obvious? Emily kept her gaze on him.

"Er!" Colin began. "I don't think that's what they're singing a---" Colin's eyes seemed to defocus for a moment. And then it struck him! Yeah, why would the sirens in this game be singing about that!? "Oh! Yeah! That makes sense Em! Right? I mean. Right? Puzzles and the game!" Colin turned away briefly. That was close!

For some reason, Emily seemed to be more embarrassed than Colin. She laughed nervously and opened up a book to hide her face. Colin turned back towards her. In stead of Emily, he saw the cover of the book. "Below the Waters," Colin intoned. "By Pearl Cordelia. Welp. We're definitely below the waters down here," he said, nodding towards the window through which they could see a number of creatures swimming around.

Colin's attention was shifted over towards Mey, who was now excitedly going on about a theory she'd just cooked up. "The name of Captain Vane's ship is Lost Pearl, and this is what he says in his greeting card: But even kings of the tides meet their doom, and now my proud lady lies abandoned, her treasure forever swallowed by the waves in some drowned palace no soul dares enter. Avast, matey, for the sea hides more than she shows. Words often conceal others. Fair wind!" Mey was clearly excited by the idea of connecting the parts of the puzzle. Colin wished he had paid more attention the ship and liche sailor on board the ship. "What if Captain Vane's lost lady's name is Pearl? And he named his ship after her?" Her smile brightened and Colin could practically see the intensity of her curiosity as she worked it out. "Pearl Cordelia is the name of the author in your book Emmi! Maybe it's her book!" Mey pointed esxcitedly at the lady on the portrait, "Please tell me I'm right Simon! And tell me if there's a map or something in it?"

Now Colin's interest was piqued. "A map! That's brilliant Mey! Pirates always have loads of treasure maps! Well known fact about pirates! And there were loads of pearls all over the deck of the ship. I mean. The pearls weren't exactly lost if they were all over the place. And weren't there strings of pearls hanging everywhere? And ye say the lady's name was Pearl. And the book is by Pearl? And the ship is named Pearl! There's just got to be a connexion!"

Colin turned towards the bookshelf. "Maybe there's more to learn from these other books too?" He heard Simon talking with the lady in the portrait. He noted that her eyes had been following them the whole time. It had felt like she was just staring at him, but he was pretty sure she was watching them all to see what they'd do. "Hopefully Simon can find something out." He made up his mind. Mey wondered about the existence of a treasure map. Maybe there was a map in among the books? "Accio maps!"

@Emily Shephard| @Meyra Lancaster | @Jun Mayumi Mochizuki | @AngelFyre McCubbin | @Simon Kincaid

Action: Caasting accio hoping to find some maps!

Abilities:
Heightened Sense of Smell | Evasive Manoeuvres | Werewolf Tracking | Perfectionist | Wolf's Grace

Stats:
Stamina: 7 | Evasion: 7 | Strength: 4 | Wisdom: 16 | Arcane Power: 7 | Accuracy: 13

+3 to all stats whilst flying

Colin's Enchanted Satchel

Colin has learned that it is very important to come prepared to a Hogwarts Ball! And the enchanted satchel is, in his experienced opinion, one of the best tools a young wizard has at his disposal. Apart from the usual assortment odds and ends, cheese snacks, and a bottle of water, Colin is carrying the following:

Colin's wand, Naur-an-Edraith, is secured within his sheath strapped to Colin's right arm, inside the sleeve of his loose fitting white shirt. 25,5 cm hawthorn wood and unicorn hair.

Colin's broom, Vailerama, confers +3 to all stats whilst flying.

Colin's shilelagh, Cernestaff, is made from Irish blackthorn and guarantees a solid drubbing when you get whacked!

Emily Shephard! Emily Shephard! She's the girl for me! Emily Shephard! No one else will do!

* Gillyweed * Antidote to Common Poisons * Burn Healing Paste * Murtlap Essence * Restorative Draught

* Set of Gobstones * Silver Arrow * Knife * Shilelagh * Key

Emily Shephard! Emily Shephard! Emily Shephard! Emily Shephard! Emily Shephard!

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MOD POST - GROUP 3