Summer Ready Errand

Hex Colour: #8C94E9

It had been a very long time since Aly Salinger had roamed the Hogwarts grounds like this, cleaning, gardening. Once upon a time, this had been one of her favourite ways to while away the hours outside of her beloved classes - though, honestly, she had stuck more to flowers than to dead leaves, fallen branches, and misshapen rocks. Still, since her return to Hogwarts, she'd been mostly stuck indoors, trying to catch up with everything she'd missed over her months-long absence, and the freckles on her cheeks had even begun to fade, which was a tell-tale sign that she needed to get outside and enjoy some sun, even if just a little bit.

And so she arrived to this clean-up on what was shaping up to be a very nice day in her grey hoodie and dark pants, simply grabbed a rake, and began to get to work on a nearby stretch of grass that had, seeing as how it was beneath a tree, nearly been covered in dry, crinkly discards from the giant above. It was no "tending to flowers in the bright summer sun", as a younger version of her might have loved, but it would do.

As Aly raked in silence, she let her green gaze roam over the other try-hards who had shown up to help out with the cleaning - not that she could really call them that, since she was here, too. They were mostly first-years, by the looks of them, though she spotted a student or two who may have been in their second or third years at the castle; she recognised none of them, but that was probably due to her having been away for so long. Am I the oldest one here? she wondered, in her own mind, of course, looking at the other students' young, innocent faces. Merlin, did I ever look that little, once?

Of course, she was only fifteen, but as fifteen-year-olds tend to do, she was beginning to think of herself as having grown up quite a bit, especially in her absence from school. Like the flowers she had once so loved to tend - and still did love, really, but just in a more hidden manner from the rest of the world - Aly's ego had begun to grow, and that would likely bring about disastrous consequences if unchecked.

Still, she raked away, trying her best to enjoy the dappled sunshine as it streamed down onto her face. Over the last month, and even the months before that back at the Salinger home, she had spent so much time out of its warm rays; it felt so good to get outside for once.

Friday, June 28^th 2023

Thought | Said

Zach returned to Great Lake, but this time he didn't bring Zephyr because he had other plans. He wasn't there to relax as usual. He was there to help clean the Great Lake with other students. He had seen an announcement from prefects Monica and Simon about the clean-up and decided to join without hesitation. Great Lake was his favorite place, where he often went to relax or spend time with his pet owl. Now, he stood there, wearing casual clothes he had taken from the top of his trunk - a green t-shirt, black sweatpants, and gray sneakers.

Zach arrived a little late because he visited Zephyr first to feed him because he thought he would not have time to feed him because there would be a bonfire. However, when he got there, he still had time to hear some messages from Prefect Monica about what we needed to do to clean up the Great Lake. Zach listened carefully. He could see some equipment near Prefect Monica: rakes, shovels, hedge trimmers, bags, and buckets. Zach looked at all the tools and thought about what he should take as his cleaning tool. When Prefect Monica finished speaking, all the students there immediately went their separate ways, some taking equipment first and some just leaving. Not wanting to be left behind, Zach quickly went to where the equipment was available. He decided to take a rake and two bags as his tools.

He scanned her surroundings in search of a suitable place to clean up, but found none nearby. Consequently, He opted to head to his usual serene spot, which was a little distant from his current location. The spot was nestled under a tree and featured large rocks. While en route, he spotted two familiar faces, Simon, a friend with whom he shared a bunk bed, and Duvessa, his dueling opponent, engaged in a conversation. Zach decided to continue on his path and thought to greet them later at the bonfire. As he walked, he noticed a student in the distance with flying rocks. She used a Levitation Spell to clean them. Zachary smiled at the sight. He thought, maybe that's how wizards and witches do their cleaning tasks. Magic is indeed very convenient.

Zach walked until he reached his usual relaxation spot, where he noticed scattered leaves and twigs on the ground. He placed his bag on the ground and began picking up twigs with ease, filling the bag until there were none left. He then used a rake to collect the leaves and put them in another bag. Once the bag was full, Zach took a break on a nearby rock to rest. After feeling refreshed, he returned with two bags, one filled with twigs and the other with leaves. On his way back, he occasionally stopped to pick up more twigs.

Mentioning: @Monica Evans, @Simon Tilia, @Duvessa Ember, @Aurora Griffith

Since I was finished, I was thinking of heading to the bonfire event. The description had sounded very invited, and I was so excited to go, and then I saw my friend Rita nearby. "Hi Rita! It's good to see you!" I should've known that Rita would be out here eventually. As far as I know, she's never missed an errand. "No, I don't mind if we do it together! I was looking to see if I could help anybody with their part!"

I purposefully didn't tell her how I was doing these days, but that wasn't something I was going to worry about. I didn't see a lot of other badgers at the errand, only one other. "Hufflepuffs helping out each other and the environment! Sounds familiar, doesn't it?" I really didn't mind getting down in the dirt to help out, I did it all the time at home anyway. I watched as Rita used the Levitation spell on a piece of trash like I had.

I grinned. "I keep telling myself, everything is more fun with magic," I said. "Plus, it kind of makes it easier." I loved magic and how it could be used or just about anything, including helping the environment. Who knew! We weren't entirely hopeless after all, not that I thought we were, of course. Admitting that would be very unkind, which was against my house.

"Of course I'll go to the bonfire event with you! It does sound fun, I can't wait!" I smiled as I used the levitating spell once again to lift a chocolate frog card wrapping and guide it into my bin nearby. there was still a lot of work to be done, but it was always better with a friend, I was sure of that.

── ❋ ──

𝓘t was easy to tell when summer was approaching; students filled the grassy knolls outside of Hogwarts, the sound of their laughter wafting through the slight breeze rustling the trees and making leaves dance. Amadea loved the warmer weather, but it was always an adjustment having so many other bodies around her for her daily walks when she was used to the solitude that the winter months brought.

Today, however, she had another mission. Amadea had heard that some of the prefects were organizing a cleanup day to prepare for the summer and incoming festivities. As a formerly dubbed "tree-hugger," Amadea would never refuse a day spent in nature, so here she was, heading toward the Great Lake where a group of people had gathered. As she approached, she scanned the group looking for familiar faces. Why hadn't she forced one of her friends to come along with her? Her nerves were high as she approached, the wind rustling her curls in front of her face blocking any potential view she could have had of the individuals at the event. She knew socialization was good for her, but even at the end of her sixth year at Hogwarts, Amadea was still uncomfortable interacting with new people. Additionally, it seemed like the majority of the people here were significantly younger than her. If she was being completely honest, Amadea did not know many of the first and second years. Their classes never overlapped and with Amadea's lapse of community participation, she was never in the right place to cross paths with the younger years.

Oh well, she thought to herself. This was a good cause and she wouldn't let her social anxiety ruin this for her. Brushing her hair back, she took a deep breath and looked around to see if someone was giving any instructions. She listened as the Prefects explained the priority of tasks: picking up sticks and raking up the grassy area around the Great Lake. Amadea was about to pick up a rake when she noticed a significant number of students utilizing magic to clean up the area, levitating trash toward the piles that were beginning to form. Smiling to herself, she decided to head down closer to the shoreline, looking for debris that she could clear. The sunlight glistened off of the water, making her want to jump in and take a quick swim. This was definitely not a good idea, as Amadea remembered the many odd creatures she had caught glimpses of over the years in the lake. It was intriguing, for sure, but also extremely terrifying. Amadea didn't think there was enough money in the world that could convince her to take a swim in the depths.

Settling into a spot next to the shore, Amadea began raking the twigs into a small pile where she could transfer it to one of the larger piles closer to the grass. She began a separate pile of small stones that she would throw back into the lake. Maybe she would practice skipping them. Amadea had never been quite good at the art of skipping rocks, and a lot of the ones she was finding were too round to be good skipping rocks, but it definitely didn't hurt to try. Setting down the rake, she picked up the flattest stone she could find and rubbed her thumb along the smooth edge. Steadying herself, she practiced flicking her wrist before winding up and releasing the rock. To her surprise, it bounced once on the water's surface before sinking down to the bottom. It certainly wasn't the most impressive rock skip of all time, but better than Amadea was expecting. Smiling to herself, she picked up the rake again. Now that she had accomplished that, she could go back to cleaning up.

── ❋ ──

It seemed that this summer cleaning event was a quite popular event, since a short while after Rita arrived at the great lake, several other students also arrived at this place, and started to clean out several remaining trash and other stuff such as fallen leaves around this quite popular area to hold out activities and events throughout the year, doing the same thing as the black-haired second year Hufflepuff first-string beater was doing. Anyway, as Rita`s little fellow badger friend Roro agreed to clean the great lake with her together, the two badgers then stayed together to clean out some trash and fallen leaves, sometimes using some magic to make things a little easier.

"Well, I guess you are right, Roro! Magic does make this cleaning task a little more fun and easier! Let`s get cleaning then since there sure are a lot of things that need to be cleaned away!" Rita smiled to her little Hufflepuff friend as she picked up some tissue paper and snack packages from the ground using the levitation spell as an aid for cleaning.

After cleaning for roughly an hour, Rita was getting a little tired, and she decided to take a little break and maybe go to the bonfire event to see what was going to there with her little friend Roro. "Oh, I`m getting a little tired! Maybe we can call it a day and go to the bonfire event for some snacks and rest? What do you think, Roro? Shall we go now?" The black-haired Second Year Hufflepuff beater believed her little friend must also be excited about the bonfire event, it was just the perfect way for a break for some tough cleaning around the great lake! Rita also believed that at least several people would share the same opinion as herself.
WC: 612+305=917
Interacting with: @Aurora Griffith

Reducio

Shall we leave for bonfire after this post?

Mentions: @Linda Ramirez
Italics: thoughts

Outfit:

Reducio

I was so ready for the summer. This has been my first year at Hogwarts, and I have loved it so much. I have made many new friends, learned a lot of things, and now it was time for vacation. I was going to miss Hogwarts a lot, but I would not miss the homework at all.
Today was the summer cleanup, an errand for house points with good rewards. Even if there wasn't a good reward, I would still do it because that was just a thing that Hufflepuffs would do. And the bonfire party afterwards would be quite fun as well.
The prefect called us all over and gave us the instructions that we would be picking up trash. Not that I didn't know that already. And so we began to pick up the trash.
The sun was already shining on our backs, but I continued on putting all of my effort into cleaning up our school. Piece by piece, trash by trash, the school's campus became cleaner and cleaner.
By now, many bags of trash were filled. And many piles of trash had been made on the ground.
People picked up trash in many different ways. Someone like me who picked up trash with their hands, or some who picked up trash using their wands.
It was a little while before I finally finished my first bag of trash. I looked at how others were doing. Many seemed very tired, but others seem to have a good speed going.
Most people had around one bag of trash filled, or some people just kept theirs in a little pile in the corner. I took a moment to listen to the birds, singing in the distance, and watch the trees. Nature is so beautiful I definitely should've come out here more often. Well, that was something to do for next year!
It was getting hotter and hotter as it became later and later into the day. And I was starting to get more and more exhausted.
I was quite exhausted as I had been spending a lot of energy, so I took a small break to drink some water. Many others had also stopped to take a break and drink some water, but some still kept on going. I wondered how they weren't tired yet, but maybe they just had a lot of stamina. A small breeze swept by and lifted my hair. I sighed in joy.
Many others were also enjoying this particular breeze that made us all feel cooler and calmer.
Just then I saw Linda going to drink some water as well. I ran up to her. "Hey Linda!!!!" I exclaimed. "How do you do?"

Word Count: 451/400

Outfit Reducio White undershirt Blue suit with striped tie Green handkerchief with the same embroidered texture.	Languages English Parseltongue French Hebrew Spanish Thoughts Spells	Age 14
Mentioning No One	Location Great Lake	IC Date 06/14/2023

Summer Errands

Tristan stepped into the sunlight, basking in the light that kissed his skin, reflecting off the lake and surrounding the air. His lips twitched into a slight smile, with an awe of the beautiful scenery that he saw. He heard the prefects announce what needed to be done. As he looked around the lake, Tristan saw that he could assist in removing the large rock from around the bed and throwing it into the lake. As he considered his options to move the rock, Tristan came up with the idea to reduce the size of the rocks then use the levitation charm to move it towards the lake. He could also have fun and blast the rocks if he wanted to as well. At the first rock he cast the spell, “Reducio”, reducing the size of the rock, he then easily cast the spell, “Wingardium Leviosa” lifting up the small, tiny little pebble, into the lake and letting it drop. He supposed that it demonstrated magical success but it was not truly enjoyable in any sense. It was a bit of tedious work that had no intellectual stimulation. He could cause a lot more chaos than this while also still helping out. So twirling his wand, he displayed a little smirk and cast “Flipendo” into the next rock, smashing it into bits. Now that was more like him, chaos, but being helpful at the same time. Well now that that rock was in pieces he should put it into the lake. So, he once again cast the levitation spell, sending the rocks into the lake, finishing the job that he should. So, Tristan went towards the grass area so that he could clean up and clear it up. As he came walking through the grass, he started picking up the sticks that he found along the way, as well as the small rocks that he found. Perhaps he could keep the sticks and throw them in the bonfire later as he heard they would be having. As he walked along the path he was surprised to find muggle chocolate wrappers along the edge of the lake. His eyebrow twitched and rose at his abject surprise as he could not believe completely that even the trash of muggles were flying into this place. But as instructed he picked up the trash and threw it away in the correct place. However, he wondered if he would one day learn a spell that would help him clean faster. With his job done he went back to the main area and lay on the grass for a moment, then stood up to look for if other people needed help.

Open to Interaction

Mentions: @Linda Ramirez
Italics: thoughts

Outfit:

Reducio

I poured some water into my mouth as Linda responded to my question. “Reyna, hi. You are here too? I'm great, what about you? Are you here since long time? Sorry if I didn't notice you earlier. Are you tired? I am a little bit tired. It was a really great year, right? I can't believe first year finished and we are now about to go home for summer. How much did you do here? If you want to share for sure.”
Wow that sure was one long paragraph! I nodded my head. "I am great too! I’ve been here for a little while only. How about you? I did about a bag. We can share! I would love to!" I replied, "I am super excited for the summer, and I can not wait to spend time with you!"
I was really excited. We had planned this whole thing out in April, and I have been looking forward to it ever cents. I would spend time with my family in the beginning of the summer and my friends at the end we will then go to Hogwarts together I knew Linda and I will get closer over the summer and I was excited.
“Hey, are you going to the bonfire? I am thinking about going… Maybe we could go together?" I suggested.
While waiting for a response, I began to pick up trash again. The breeze was gone and it was hot, but doing this with a friend made it way better. And plus now we were sharing exactly what friends do together.

Word Count: 276

When Ava arrived for what was said to be clean up, she didn’t expect so many people to show up. She felt that she was required to show up and support the school and show her commitment, maybe even her goodness. She was dressed in a loose T-shirt and athletic shorts, both good for active work.

When Ava finally arrived at the place where people were gathered, she looked around for someone she knew, after all, this excursion would be terribly dull if she knew no one and had no one to hang out with. She didn’t want to commit to hanging out with anyone until everyone had showed up, but when she saw Charlie making her way towards her, she quickly walked over and threw her arms around her best friend. "Charlie!" She cried out happily, leading her towards the group already gathered. Her and Charlie’s friendship had been everywhere, from friends, to only being able to talk to letters, to not talking at all. But having made it through all that now, their friendship was back and larger than ever. They had only returned to speaking a little over a week ago. Ava was glad to have her best friend back.

They had little time to talk, as the prefect, Monica, had begun to speak. She welcomed them all to the event, and explained what they would be doing, ending by reminding them of the campfire at the end of the event. Ava wanted to help with the clean up near the lake, wanting to give a tribute to the thing that had revived her and Charlie’s friendship. She shared a smile with Charlie and set off towards the shoreline to pick up trash, sticks and various other items. Ava found a few sticks that she tossed onto a growing pile, and had to toss a few rocks into the lake. It was pretty uneventful and boring, but she was looking forward to the bonfire at the end.

While cleaning, she busied herself with her thoughts. She currently had no plans for the summer, but she had heard about a summer camp and wanted to attend, so long as she knew someone there. Maybe Charlie would be going, she thought. She would have to ask later, maybe at the bonfire.

Soon she had finished up, and she joined the group heading towards the bonfire. She gave an encouraging smile to Charlie and called out, "To the bonfire we go!"

419/400

June 28th

@Charlie Jacobsen

Permission given for godmods