Ice, Ice, Baby Errand

Sara usually didn't do unusual stuff like this. She could be found curled in her bed, reading her favourite book and cuddling her cat Cinnamon. But in 2023, Sara decided that she wants to get out of her comfort zone, at least a little bit. And then she heard that, at the beginning of the year, plunging into the cold cold Great Lake is happening. And she thought that was a great idea to get out of her comfort zone. Literally. She would have to get out of the warmth of the huge Hogwarts castle and dip her body in the arctic cold lake. Oh, Merlin! as wizards say! Only thoughts of her body in cold water sent chills down her spine. Brrr, she can't do it... but she has to, for self-improvement!

Sara got her clothes on, braced herself for the adventure she is just about to encounter. She is, of course, a litleee bit frightened, but also excited. She got to the Great Lake and saw the portion of the lake that has been marked off for the event while the Caretaker of Hogwarts and the school Nurse stand near the lake and were giving out pieces of parchment.

The Caretaker of Hogwarts gave every student a piece of parchment to write something on it that they would like to do or see in themselves in the new year. Sara wrote: I want to finish this year with good grades, make at least two good friends and come home safely to my family. And yes, get out of my comfort zone and actually talk to people. Seems about right. Yup. Happy new year girl! Here we gooo!

When the Caretaker gave the signal, Sara hesitated a little bit, but she already promised herself she would do this. She took off her cloak and shoes, staying in her comfy outfit."Let's go!!!" she shouted at the top of her lungs and ran into the water with others and with the parchment in her hand. It was really really REALLY cold. Like, freezing. Although the cold was biting her skin, Sara found some kind of enjoyment in this. it felt exciting and very new, like being reborn. Maybe this was the right way to start the year!

The parchment dissolved in water because, Sara figured, it's been enchanted to dissolve in the water. Sara didn't want to swim because the cold was almost paralyzing. Because she already felt reborn and ready for the fresh new year, Sara decided to head out of the water. What an experience!

Once she was outside, on dry land, she walked as fast as she could to get the promised nice warm coat to at least warm her (almost frozen) body up a little. She got the coat and a "well done" from the Caretaker. Sara was really proud of herself for doing this. Now, she's going to reward herself with a warm cup of tea and maybe a little bit of chocolate. And a shower and a new outfit, of course.

WC: 505

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Date: 01/07/23 | Time: 00:00 |
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─────Lilliana had woken up that Saturday morning, in an energetic mood. She felt different than she normally did, longing for something… adventure. Adrenaline was rushing through her but she couldn’t find the source. So when the girl found the posters, a wide smile spread through her face. It wasn’t the first time she’d seen the posters, Lilliana had passed it many times before, but never got the opportunity to acknowledge it. Until now.

What caught her eye were the words ‘Polar Plunge’. She had done a Polar Plunge before, not long ago, just before winter break had occurred, actually. A confused expression arose on her face, and she leaned in and read the information. “Hey.” The girl directed the question to a group of three. When they looked, she gestured to the poster, “What’s this Polar Plunge event thing about?” She had asked.

A red-haired Ravenclaw was the one to reply, “Oh, the Polar Plunge? I’ve heard Caretaker Finley is letting students jump in the lake.” Lilliana reread the flyer, and tried reminiscing in the plunge she had done earlier, but, the details were beginning to slowly fade away from her memory. The girl hesitated for a moment, and glanced at the group of kids huddled together.

She nodded at the group and said a quick thanks before rushing to her dorm. She pulled out a swimsuit, changed into it, grabbing a pair of shorts. She stood there momentarily, before feeling a shiver run through her spine. She grabbed a pair of pants, and a crop top, put it on, and began to make her way out of the door when she realized she forgot something. She smacked her forehead, “Can’t believe I almost forgot a towel.” She murmured, letting out a light chuckle.

The girl grabbed a towel, particularly a warm, soft towel, and she made her way outside, to the Great Lake. When she stepped outside she was met with a sweep of wind, and she wrapped her towel around her tightly, using it as a jacket. She forged on, until she saw a cluster of people preparing for the plunge. She walked closer, and was handed a piece of parchment, and was instructed to write something she’d like to do this year. A New Year’s Resolution. She shrugged, finding it simple enough a task, and began to write.

- Be more social, and warm too.
- Get good grades in all classes, and attempt not to fail Flying.
- Keep my temper in check, try to be pleasant even when someone’s being unpleasant.
- Make more friends and build meaningful relationships with them.
- Be adventurous.

Lilliana stared at her paper for a minute, before setting it off to the side, taking off everything but her swimsuit, and walked towards the lake, her arms wrapped around herself. Don’t think about the cold. She warned herself. But it was hard not too. She was standing out in the cold with nothing but a swimsuit to provide her warmth. She felt her skin getting numb, and she was thankful when she heard the voice of the Caretaker.

The Caretaker had given her instructions, and the nurse had given theirs too, and when they spoke, Lilliana shook her arms slightly to regain feeling in them. She then set her eyes on the lake, and felt goosebumps appear on her skin, but brushed it away with a reassuring smile to herself. The Caretaker began to say, "Okay, I think that's everything! Everyone ready? Set...GO!"

The only problem with that is on the ready, her eyes flicked over to her towel, which was a few feet behind her. On set, she dashed over to it, picked it up, and began sprinting back. and on Go, she ran towards the lake, and was a beat later than the majority of the people, and was left behind with those rethinking their choices. Then Lilliana heard someone scream, “Ah Shit! My ankle!”

That’s when the girl jumped in, only it wasn’t for the spot she was originally aiming for. She leapt in towards the voice, feeling the frigid water cover her skin, the sensation felt nice, and the rush of adrenaline she felt through her was satisfying, but she ignored it. The girl opened her eyes to see and held out a hand to the person, who was clutching their ankle.

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Dialogue: ✕ Thoughts: ✕ Quotes: ✕

:Interacting With @Finley Greer @Polonious Frogge :Mentions

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The Saturday sun rose swiftly, bringing light to the new day. Monica stirred in her bed, though her chambers were under the great lake, there was still the smallest amount of light that peaked through the icy depths of the winter's lake. Monica lay with her thoughts, the week that had just past, coming back from holidays, and all the happened over them. The things she learned, and now she was finally able to sit in such thoughts. There was no plan for the day, nothing that needed to be done, she was free to ponder all she wished.

When she finally got out of bed, and made her way down to the great hall for breakfast, she made a point to sit on her own. She wanted this day to be hers, there was so much to think about now. Who she was, the truth about her bloodline, her birth mother, all of it was still so knew and fresh.

As she finished her meal, she heard various people talking around, something about a poster and the Great lake being mentioned... curiosity struck Monica, so she went to the board to see what the fuss was all about. And there it was, a poster for a polar plunge... Today!

Despite the fact that there would be several other kids there, Monica wanted to go and do this. It seemed like the perfect way to signify the new year to come! What an amazing idea, plus who was Monica to ever turn down the chance to swim?

She took off to her room, picked out her swim suit, and put it on under her robe. Making her way out to the Great lake, she could see the crowd gathering there. So many kids had shown up for this advent. Monica kept to the back of the crowd. She saw a few faces of people she new, but she kept everyone at arms length, offering a smile and nod if noticed, but not engaging in much conversation.

When it seemed like most of who wanted to show up were there, Miss Greer called for everyones attention. Sharing the heart behind the activity, and explaining what to do for it. Monica looked down to the paper she was given, what did she eve want to write down? It seemed like everything leading up to the end of this year was all about Monica learning her life wasn't what she thought it was, and now, she was learning who she really was, and where she came from. What did she want to do this year? She wanted to know who she truly was! She wanted to be the person she was meant to be! But all that seemed rather vague, and hard to write down...

Finally she came to her conclusion... putting quill to parchment she began to write.

"What I want to do in 2023 is, meet my mom. I want to ask her why she gave me up? Why did she run away from her family heritage? I want to know more about who I am."
She paused for a moment, looking up at Miss Greer as she talked with other students, a smile grew on Monica's face... she rather liked Greer, she couldn't place why, but she felt this... safety with her. Perhaps Monica would share what she learned over the holidays with her?

A loud noise broke Monica's focus, she folded up the parchment she wrote on and stood off to the side waiting for the call to run. After sometime, everyone was ready, waiting for Fin's "Go!"

Monica never heard it, but just saw the sea of students rush ahead of her, she quickly followed after. The water stung her ankles as she jumped in. The splash flung water on her face, her body began to shake nearly immediately. Should she turn back? No! She must keep going!

The further in she got, the more the water engulfed her, she could no longer feel her feet, any part of her body below the water's surface lost all feeling. When she felt like she was in a good place, she held up her parchment, looking at it one last time. This year... She was going to discover so much about herself!

And with that she lay down, falling underneath the water, the cold overtaking her. She could feel the parchment as it disappeared from her grasp....one....two....three

She counted in her head...eight...nine....ten.

She pushed up from the bottom, leaping out of the water, and running back to the shore. Fin and Frogge were waiting, covering her with a warm coat, Monica smiled up at them, "T---th-that was.....n't sooo.... bbbbb----bad" Her words were shaken, as heat started to return to her body once more. What a way to start of this new year!

| WC |
802

STA 8 • EVA 8 • STR 8 • WIS 5 • ARC 6 • ACC 5
Slytherin Prefect

Kayla was a swimmer.

As a swimmer, she had never been scared of large bodies of water, she enjoyed being in the water to say the least.
The lake at Hogwarts was an exception.
The day Kayla had arrived at the castle, one of the first rules she learnt was that no one was allowed in the Great Lake unsupervised. One of the first things she discovered was the Giant Squid, it was one of things the first years all talked about. A giant squid, how could that be safe? Now, as a swimmer, she'd have a natural desire to swim in that lake. It was a body of water, wasn't it? But the lake gave her the chills, knowing there was a squid somewhere in that lake. She wasn't scared of squids, but she sure was scared of giant ones. Kayla thought people who weren't scared were just idiots.

So, when she heard about the polar plunge errand, she was excited yet hesitant to take part. First, the squid still spooked her. But it wasn't like she was going to swim, the group was just going to take a dip and that would be the end of it. Kayla being Kayla, she obviously wanted to join. Kayla didn't know anyone who'd also do the errand, but she was sure she

The day of the errand, Kayla was kind of hesitating on the journey to the lake.
She jad gotten dressed in a blue shirt and blue jeans, she wasn't going to wear anything valuable, though all her clothes were valuable, so she settled with something simple. Well, simple for her anyway. She didn't wear any earrings this time, as she feared she'd get them lost in the lake. Of course, this was unlikely but Kayla liked her earrings so she wasn't taking any chances.

When she arrived at the scene, she had to stop herself from gasping so loudly.
There was so. Many. People! Not like she was upset, she just wasn't expecting so many people wanting to take a jump in the lake. As thrilling as it sounded, if Kayla wasn't a fan of swimming she probably would've waved the errand off. Actually, Kayla was a thrill seeker so she would've done the errand. Or not. A lot of these confusing things went through her mind as she scanned the crowd. Her thoughts were immiedietly broken by the voice that wavered through the crowd.

It was Miss Finely Greer, the caretaker. Kayla didn't know her, but as a first year student, you don't know much anyway. Unless it's related to school work, but Kayla never took her work seriously, but somehow her grades were miraculously good. As the caretaker walked around and gave everyone a piece of parchemnt that they would to do in the new year to come.
Kayla frowned slightly at this.
She had no problem with the errand, she was just thinking. What would she see herself doing in 2023? It sounded like the vision board her teacher in muggle school had made her do once. She simply loved decorating the project, but when she sat down with her dad to decide what to write, her mind went blank. After a bit of thinking, she scribbled down some things. She didn't mean to write, she just meant to list, but this was the first thing that came to her mind:

In the new year, I wish to keep my grades up. I have not always been serious with my school and my older brother with kill me if I even failed one class. I also want to dive in the lake sometime, maybe take a short swim. I was told not to stay in the lake for more than five minutes, but it could be seriously fun, since I love swimming so much. I also want to train Squeaky some more, she is a rabid ferret and any bird that comes in her sight will be torn to rags(or wings) if it approaches her. So, I should work on that. I don't really know what I wanna do, but I kind of leave that to the universe to decide.

As she finished writing, she took a breath and relaxed her writing hand. She was an idiot, why couldn't she just list things down? But before Kayla could scold herself, she hear Caretaker Greer call out and Kaula braced herself. On the 'GO' Kayla and a billion other students ran into the lake. She let out an inaudible scream as she came in contact with the cold water. She felt the parchment in her hand melt into nothing, but that was the least of her worries. As she stood, she waited until she could hear teeth chattering and complaints before she moved out of the water. She was cold. She was freezing. But you know what? She feeling pretty damn amazing to be back in water, just for five seconds. She grinned as she wrapped her arms around herself, moving forward in the crowd, wanting to grab a coat. She had a crooked smile plastered on her face. This was certainly a way to live.

Word count: 859

word count: 214/200
mentions:
interacting:
@Kim Sato ||

Kim hurried to dip in the lake, seeming to want to get it over as soon as possible. He came back and as Bailey draped the now dry towel over Kim's shoulders, she noticed how muscular Kim was - something she had not noticed before. He wasn't like super body builder muscular, but more like a dancer, or a martial artists, with more subtle muscles compared to body builders and lifters.
Bailey felt her cheeks reddening, and she turned away as Kim got dressed again. Bailey looked around, hoping to see a familiar face but also hoping that no one would notice her and her flaming cheeks. Kim turned to her after he finished changing, and caught her eyes. She smiled, and said in reply to his question, "yep!! that was a little colder than i expected - i am definitely gonna make some tea now!"
As they left bailey waived to the nurse and caretaker, smiling and thanking them. She had honestly enjoyed the errand, liking the refreshing rush she got from the frigid waters. Bailey was more awake now, more than she usually was, and felt like being productive.
once she was back in her dorm with a cuppa steaming tea, Bailey settled into a nook to read and do some of her homework.