>>28057838
-LAST TIME IN SALEM-
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/27976160/

You, Natalia Jean-Louis, a young american witch of afro-caribbean descent finished your second day of class. Your second day wasn’t quite as emotional as the first day, in which a Turtle House member spilt a baldness potion on you intentionally. Thankfully, the nurse gave you a tonic that seems to be growing your hair back fairly quickly. An upperclassman, a fellow Eel House member named Allen, gave you a cool bandana to wear in the meantime. Following Magical History, you, Angela, and Todd set out to hunt down a Chickacharney, a magical creature reported to give good luck to those who treat it well. Who couldn’t use a bit more luck, right?

Keep updated here: twitter.com/Salem_Institute

This quest uses a ROLL-UNDER system. I'll usually take the best of the first 3 1d100 rolls that are linked to my post. Critical fails are 98-100, Critical successes are 1-5 and take precedence.

There is an -ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED- Fate point system in which for every THREE achievements Natalia unlocks, you get ONE Fate Token which can reroll ONE die-roll. If someone expresses a wish to use a token, I’ll call for a y/n vote on whether to use one based on consensus.

Current Fate Tokens: 1
Achievements Needed to next Token: 2

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>>28057851
It was Snowball’s light nips to your hair that woke you up. He tugged on it slightly, making strange squeaking sounds as you drowsily moved from the dream world to the real one. You notice that the small white ferret is still on edge like he was last night. You scratch his head softly to put him at ease.

The search for the Chickacharney last night had been a bust . The three of you had wandered through the evening forest aimlessly for at least two hours before giving up and heading back to your dorms. Maybe magic creatures like that are meant to be encountered by surprise and not hunted down. There probably wasn’t any reasonable way to track it down seeing as it doesn’t make clear markings on its surroundings.

Angela seemed a bit miffed about the whole thing and Todd, of course, was quite the opposite. As Angela hurled a rock at a large oak tree in frustration, Todd replied with a small shrug and a calm smile, expressionless. He seemed pleased just to be able to spend some time with his housemates.

You roll up to a sitting position in your bed, noticing that your hair is now to ear-length and almost back to its former glory. You breathe a sigh in relief. You look over and see Angela at the foot of her bed, petting her rabbit Cotton a little more vigarously than usual. However, Cotton doesn’t seem to mind.

How do you feel about your outing last night?
>A little disappointed.
>Annoyed
>Eh, I had fun anyways.

>>28057901
>Eh, I had fun anyways.
At least we didn't technically fail anything.

>>28057901
>>Eh, I had fun anyways.

>>28057969
>>28058024
You realize that although the search was fruitless, you still had a surprising amount of fun. It was the first time you were able to get away from structured school life and just run around with some kids your age.

As you begin getting dressed for class you notice that there is a strange sort of buzz between your housemates. Everyone seems suddenly tense. You are brushing your quickly recovering hair in the bathroom when you hear a heavily freckled girl gasp when another girl mutters something to her.

>Try to figure out what’s going on.
>I’m going to continue getting ready. Because I mind my business

>>28058129
>Try to figure out what’s going on.
Curiosity.

>>28058129
>>Try to figure out what’s going on.

>>28058129
>Try to figure out what’s going on.
It seems to be happening to everyone, so it doesn't seem like a secret of some kind.

>>28058149
>>28058217
>>28058320

Roll 1d100, please

Rolled 90

>>28058367
EPIC FAILURE INCOMING.

Rolled 23

>>28058367
Time for everyone to not talk to the failure girl.

Rolled 17

>>28058367

Rolled 65

>>28058367
Bat roll

>>28058437
You don’t want to just butt into a conversation but you listen closer, catching clips of conversation.

“Boy found in the woods….”

“I heard he’s dead but they aren’t saying why yet….”

“A fifth year! From OUR House?! That’s horrible!”

Your heart plummets to the ground. A fifth year boy found dead in the woods? No it couldn’t be. Not Allen. You swallow hard and decide it’s time to ask questions. You needed to know and now if Allen was in trouble or not.

The freckled girl has yet to leave the bathroom and is still actively partaking in the conversation.

“Hey,” You step your way into the conversation out of necessity. “Who was found in the woods?”

She looks only a slightly startled at your appearance, not believing anyone could be listening to her talk with her friend. “Oh, a fifth year eel house boy. Terribly tragic. They aren’t sure what happened yet.”

“Yes?” You try to keep the anxiety from your voice. “Any idea what his name is?”

-CONT-

>>28058551
“Oliver Walters.” She replied with a small nod.

You feel a huge weight being lifted off of you. Allen was okay.

>Ask about Oliver.
>Ask about how he was found.
>Ask general details.

>>28058551
>>Ask about Oliver.

>>28058579
>Ask about Oliver

Including how he looked when they found him?

>>28058579
>Ask general details.
We're curious, but not a detective.

>>28058579
>Ask general details.

>>28058596
>>28058666
“Who was he?” You simply state, now out of curiosity instead of panic.

“Well,” Said the tall girl who was speaking to the freckled one. “I don’t know too much about him. Just that he was kind of a quiet kid. Hung out with his bunkmate a lot. Worked in the forges only at strange times at night to keep to himself. Very private. A pureblood, not that it makes much a difference.”

>Ask about how he was found.
>Ask about his family line.
>Other

>>28058795
>>Ask about how he was found.

>>28058795
>Ask about how he was found

>>28058843
>>28058923
“How was he found? The forests here are pretty thick and seem to go on for quite a bit,” you say, speaking from experience.

“It’s so sad,” said the freckled girl. “It was the same bunkmate.”

“The one that hung out with him all the time,” the tall one elaborated, “you know, the friendly blonde boy. Allen, I think his name is.”

Your eyes widen with shock as you process this news. Allen, the nice boy who helped you work the forges on your first day. Allen, the nice boy who gave you the awesome bandana and said you looked cool in your most humiliating moment. Allen had found his bunkmate… dead.

>Allen must be distraught. You must go comfort him like he comforted you!
>Get more details about Oliver and what happened.

>>28059054
>>Get more details about Oliver and what happened.

If I was in this situation, I would like to more more.

>>28059054
>Allen must be distraught. You must go comfort him like he comforted you!
He's the kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiilleeeeeeeeeeeeerrrrrrrrrr

>>28059054
>Allen must be distraught. You must go comfort him like he comforted you!

>>28059054
>Get more details about Oliver and what happened.
Was it... messy?

>>28059054
>>Get more details about Oliver and what happened.

>>28059085
know more

>>28059054
>Allen must be distraught. You must go comfort him like he comforted you!
I know it'll probably end poorly because we're 11 and he's 16, and also because he doesn't really know that, but we're an 11-year-old girl with her first ~crush~.

>>28059200
>he doesn't really know that
He doesn't really know US that WELL.

Wow.

>>28059097
>>28059096
>>28059085

You’ll go to Allen later, right now you need to know the full situation.

“Do you know anything else? Do you know how he died?”

The freckled one shakes her head. “They aren’t really saying anything right now. They are still evaluating the situation and what happened.”

“As for Oliver,” the tall one interjects “I know he’s… was a very gifted crafter from a long line of those with similar skills. I know the fifth years always admired how much he would work on and quality he would produce. He will be a great loss to the House.”

You get the feeling that you’ve gotten all the information that these two know. You thank them for their time.

>Go to breakfast.
>Find Allen.
>Other

>>28059286
>Find Allen

TERRIBLE IDEA GO

>>28059286
>>Find Allen.

>>28059286
>>Find Allen.
You know what you must do.

>>28059286
>Find Allen.

>>28059307
Yeah... we don't know him that much.

>>28059307
>>28059309
>>28059312
>>28059409
You know instinctively where he must be and your legs guide you down the stairs, to the main lobby with Matilda’s portrait staring fiercely at empty air, and down into the forges. Before you round the corner of the staircase downward you already can hear the steady twangs of metal striking metal.

You see him silhouetted by the glow of the coals. Hair much messier than when you saw him previously, heavy apron and gloves on tightly as he swings a steady hammer on to a dome piece of metal. He seems completely consumed with his work, not making any acknowledgement to your arrival.

>Ask him what he’s working on.
>Ask him if he’s okay.
>Join him, working silently.

>>28059431
>>Ask him if he’s okay.

>>28059431
>Join him, working silently.

>>28059431
>>Join him, working silently.
It lets us give him some space for a little while, but also know that we're there if he needs us.

>>28059431
> Join him with a quiet "Hi."

>>28059431
>Join him, working silently.

Time to critfail at forging.

>>28059455
>>28059461
>>28059592

Roll 1d100, please

Rolled 69

>>28059625

Rolled 5

>>28059625

Rolled 54

>>28059625
We got this.

>>28059650
>1-5 are Critical Success

-CRITICAL SUCCESS-
Writing.

>>28059680
...Something we don't suck at?

Incroyable.

>>28059770
Don't worry, fate still has it out for us.

>>28059680
You give him a small ‘Hey’ before starting on your own project, letting your creativity flow. You heat up a bit of discarded metal rod with the flames and begin crafting them together. Soon you are spiraling the rod like Allen had shown you on the day that you met. This time, however, instead of just curling it into a ‘s’ shape you coil it up on itself, making an intricate coil bracelet for yourself.

Tossing it into the trough of water, you wipe the sweat from your brow. For the first time in your three days here you felt well in tuned with yourself and the task at hand. You smile, finally feeling satisfied and you take the large metal tongs to pull the bracelet out to get a better look at it.

“Not bad.” Says a voice behind you.

You turn around to look at Allen who has taken a break from his work to admire yours. He holds his heavily gloved hands out to you and you plop the still cooling bracelet into them. Looking at your craftsmanship closely.

“Actually, this is pretty good.” He flashes you a smile.

“Thanks.” You can already feel your cheeks redden slightly.

“A little heavy though,” He jostles it slightly in one palm to get a good idea about it. “Let me show you something.”

Allen’s blonde head gestures to the forge and he takes a long almost needle thin rod from his work apron. He heats it and then begins to draw something delicately onto the bracelet. He then gives it a quick dunk back into the water before handing it to you. When you show hesitance he assures you that it is only ‘slightly warm’.

When you take it back into your hands you find the bracelet weighs significantly less than it did when you gave it to him. You give him an inquisitive look but inspect the bracelet yourself. He had engraved a triangle with a strange tail coming out the bottom.

-CONT-

>>28060045
>>28060045
He explains, “This rune makes things lighter than they really are, among other things. Very handy.”

-ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: LIGHT AS A FEATHER- +3 to smithing, Rune #1 unlocked.

>Ask him how he is doing.
>Ask him what he is working on.
>Ask him to show you more
>Other

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>>28060074
smEnglo Theological

>>28060074
>>Ask him how he is doing.

>>28060074
>Ask him how he is doing.
>Ask what else it does since "among other things"?
Awww yeeee new stuff.

>>28060074
Be ambiguous.
> How's it going?
Could be asking about his project or his life. Let him figure out the we're here for him in any way he needs us.

>>28060170
Seconding

>>28060170
This.

And we do mean /any/ way. *wiggles eyebrows suggestively*

>>28060074
How's it going?

>>28060170
>>28060216
>>28060231
>>28060259
“So,” you begin after thanking him for showing you the rune, “how’s it going?”

He thinks for a moment, choosing his words with the utmost care.

“I’m okay as I could be in a situation like this,” he says after a moment, “it’s just difficult to...adjust.”

Allen then picks back up the bowl shaped object to study it and distract himself from whatever else is on his mind. You feel a bit unsettled to see him in this state.

>Respond with empathy. “I know what it’s like to have someone really close to you die.”
>Respond with humor. “It’s ok, it doesn’t look THAT bad.” (indicate metal-dome-thing)
>Other


Sorry for the long delay, guys, my internet is cutting in and out quite a bit. I'm gonna do my best to power through for at least another half-hour, but no promises.

>>28060470
>Respond with empathy. “I know what it’s like to have someone really close to you die.”

>>28060470
>Respond with empathy. “I know what it’s like to have someone really close to you die.”

Oh right, our mom.

>>28060470
>>Respond with empathy. “I know what it’s like to have someone really close to you die.”

>>28060470
>>Respond with empathy. “I know what it’s like to have someone really close to you die.”

>>28060470
>>Respond with empathy. “I know what it’s like to have someone really close to you die.”
"Care to take a walk?"

>>28060492
>>28060493
>>28060519
>>28060520
“I understand.” You have an urge to reach out to him, grab his hand tenderly or show him some sort of physical reassurance. You fight it. “I know what it’s like to lose someone close to you.”

You think about your mother for a brief moment before pushing her image out of your head. You know she wouldn’t want you to feel sad all the time about what happened to her.

“Oh?” Allen inquires with a raised eyebrow.

“Yeah, my mom passed away a few years ago,” you remark.
“It was really hard, but Dad and I were able to get through it. I still miss her a lot, though.”

You lock eyes for a moment, his face furrowed, before he turns away from you.

“I’m sorry about what happened to Oliver.” You place a gentle hand on his shoulder and continue, “it’s not fair.”

His head bobs up and down. “Breakfast should be starting soon, you should go.”

>Invite him to go with you.
>Leave him be, go on your own.
>Other

>>28060719
>>Invite him to go with you.

>>28060719
>Leave him be, go on your own.
He said 'you' not 'we' and that should be respected.

>>28060719
>Invite him to go with you.

>>28060719
>Leave him be, go on your own.

>>28060719
>Leave him be, go on your own.

>>28060719
>Invite him to go with you.
Something somewhat open-ended, though, like, "shouldn't you get something to eat too?"

>>28060719
>>Invite him to go with you.
"Would you have breakfast with me, please?"

>>28060758
>>28060775
>>28060805
You decide it’s best to leave him alone and give him some time to himself. After all, as soon as he leaves Eel House he’ll be bombarded with questions and unwanted attention. At least his Housemates gave him the privacy he obviously needed. Eel House members had a way of being eerily in tune with one another. On the outside they had a reputation for being a stoic House, but ever since she had gotten sorted, you have felt nothing but included in the community. As you turn to leave the steady twangs of metal work begin once more and only fade away when you walk up the stairs. You wonder idly if the other Houses had similar misconceptions about them.

When you make it to the Main House you are unsurprised to see it in a state of commotion. Everyone has heard about the lost Eel House boy and you even see a few students wipe tears from their eyes and one older Starfish house girl call out in a loud wail. You uncomfortably make it to the Eel house table to do your best to eat breakfast before your first class.

As soon as you take your seat you hear a loud caw of a crow as one zooms low across the heads of several students before landing in front of you, envelope in beak. It’s slick black wings and copper band around its left leg told you it was a federal bird, loaned out to witches and wizards for delivering mail at little cost to the individual.

It promptly drops the mail in front of you, you grab a small bit of bacon off of one of the platters and hand it to the feathered mail man. It snaps it up promptly before zooming back up into the air to a destination unknown.

‘To Natalia Jean-Louis, first year, Salem Institute’ Long elegant letters grace the front and you don’t need to read the upper left hand corner to see ‘Maximilian and Helen Jean-Louis’ to know it’s from your father.

Do you open it now or later?
>Now
>Later

>>28061018
>>Now

>>28061018
Now.

>>28061018
Now, but no one reads over our shoulder without permission.

>>28061018
>Now
Hopefully we haven't already received notice from the school

>>28061036
>>28061051
>>28061096
>>28061098
To our Dear Natalia,

Hope you are doing well. We are, but are missing you very much. Helen and I went down to the coast side for a short vacation, we found a nice house to rent out for a weekend. I’m sure you would love it, it’s very peaceful We’ll be sure to bring you there during one of your breaks.

How did sorting go? Which house are you in? Are you making friends?

Much love,
Dad

P.S. [REDACTED]

-NEXT TIME IN SALEM-
-Natalia goes back to Potions class
-Natalia attends her first Flying class
-Snowball sniffs a houseplant
-Sir Ferdinand discusses the pros and cons of a matriarchal society with a toad

ALL THIS AND MORE, TOMORROW NIGHT ON:
-SALEM INSTITUTE QUEST-

Q&A starts now!
As always, stay updated with twitter:
twitter.com/Salem_Institute

Any comments, critiques, suggestions etc are welcome!

>>28061223
Redacted? What? as in they scratched out the part? Blackened it into a blotch of ink?

>>28061276
It just says "[REDACTED]" in plain block lettering. It's not blacked-out.

>>28061311
Magic redaction?

>>28061311
So it was magicked?

>>28061311
I get the feeling the message was intercepted and someone got around to fucking with it

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>>28061315
Bingo.

>>28061346
Ok, who would do that? And how? I'm asking if we know anything about this kind of thing.

>>28061453
That's the kind of question you should roleplay out, not ask me. Just saying.

>>28061468
Following up with that: You'll have plenty of chances to investigate this, naturally.

>>28061223
Thank you for the run. As before, excelent cliffhanger. Hope to catch your game tomorrow.

>bored
>come by teegee
>new harry potter quest

:DDDDDDD

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>>28061788
I am with you in your enthusiasm.