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Let the games begin!

>>28219606
-LAST TIME IN SALEM-
http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/28183484/

You, Natalia Jean-Louis, a young american witch of afro-caribbean descent have started your first year at the Salem Institute for Witches and Wizards. Your first day of school went fairly horrendous, with you losing all your hair due to a classmate's indiscretion. Unfortunately, the bad times didn't end that day, and you found out the morning of your third day of school that sometime during the night, a fellow Housemate passed away under mysterious circumstances. The student who found him was none other than Allen, the upperclassman who has been really nice to you ever since you arrived. During breakfast you received a message from your Dad and Helen that was overall encouraging, apart from a weird note at the end that had been redacted somehow. Somehow you kept getting deterred whenever you tried to write a reply- at least in the process you overheard a friend of the dead student talking about how he seemed out-of-character the past few weeks. On top of that, your dueling instructor, Professor Squall had been acting VERY strangely, showing up late to class and being very irritable. You decided maybe a one-on-one with her would be a two-birds-with-one-stone situation for you, you'd be able to ask about the weird postscript, and maybe be able to find out what's bothering her.

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: 1

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>>28219678
Your feet make no noise as you gently walk down the solid stone stairs back to the main hall where everyone eats and where your history class is taught. There are voices of the other children talking excitedly before class but they only thing you can hear are Squall’s words echoing in your head.

You had walked in on her in the middle of doing….something in her office. You darkened the doorway to her office only to see her stop speaking to an unknown someone and slip something quickly back into her desk. She looked up at you, her light brown eyes show surprise at your sudden appearance.

“Natalia?” Confusion peppered her voice. “What do you need help with?”

What did you say to her again?
>”Who were you talking to?”
>”Are you okay?”
>”Sorry I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”

>>28219695
>>”Sorry I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”

>>28219695
>>”Are you okay?”
>>”Sorry I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”
Both are probably good. We at least will want to make sure she is fine, but be sure to not be a pest.

>>28219695
Hope im not interupting

>>28219695
>”Sorry I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”

>>28219728
>>28219782
>>28219805
>>28219839
“Sorry, I hope I’m not interrupting anything.” It was the best thing you could think of to say. Your Mother always used to scold you for walking in on people unannounced. You felt a little guilty as you remembered this, you really should have knocked.

“No, of course not.” She said with a strange air of relief. “What can I help you with?”

Did you ask her about what you came here for or did you get side tracked?
>(Yes) Have you ever heard of letters having certain information redacted?
>(No) What do you think about what happened to Oliver?

>>28219874
>>(Yes) Have you ever heard of letters having certain information redacted?
We probably had ought to bite the bullet on this.

>>28219874
>(Yes) Have you ever heard of letters having certain information redacted?

>>28219874
>(Yes) Have you ever heard of letters having certain information redacted?

>>28219874
>>(Yes) Have you ever heard of letters having certain information redacted?

>>28219874
>(Yes) Have you ever heard of letters having certain information redacted?
Did we not hear anything of het conversation? I was kind of hoping for an eavesdrop option...

>>28219895
>>28219924
>>28219932
>>28219955
“Have you ever heard of letters having certain information redacted?” you ask.

“Did you get one of these letters?” She replied, to which you responded with a nod.
“Can I see it?”

You rummaged around in your robes before pulling out your Father’s letter and handing it to Squall. She narrowed her eyes at the page as they glanced over the contents. Squall then folded it back up and handed it to you.

“Natalia, how much has your family taught you about the Society?” Her eyebrows knitted.

“Not too much. Just the importance of behaving, following their rules, and understanding that whatever they do it is because Tituba would have wanted it that way..”

Her wooden chair made a slight squeak as she leaned back in it, absorbed in some sort of thought.

“The Society has certain blocks up for written information monitored by the post services. If there is anything that passes through their systems with those buzz words the whole section of the letter is then redacted,” she then quickly added, “for security reasons of course. There is sensitive information out there that would lower the morale of the witching world or put certain officials’ lives at risk.”

>What type of information?
>Why would my Dad be writing me something that would ‘lower morale’ or put someone’s life at risk?
>Other

>>28220003
>Why would my Dad be writing me something that would ‘lower morale’ or put someone’s life at risk?
Think this but don't actually ask and let's leave her to her business.

>>28220003
>>Why would my Dad be writing me something that would ‘lower morale’ or put someone’s life at risk?

>>28220003
>What type of information?
Wondering what is going on that might upset the wizarding world.

>>28220003
>>What type of information?

>>28220003
> Otherish
"But my father doesn't know anything like that. And, even if he did, he certainly wouldn't put it in a letter to his daughter."

>What year is this?
>What is The Society?
>Who is Tituba?

>>28220003
>>What type of information?
Should I be worried for my father?

I mean are we full on "papieren bitte" here?

>>28220228
>>28220131
>>28220129
“What kinds of information” you ask, a bit concerned.

“Oh it varies.” Squall shrugged. “It could be something as little as discussing an event that hasn’t been approved for the newspapers yet or it could be something as large as a rebel conspiracy against the Society.”

You felt your stomach plummet and the color drain out of your face. If your Dad had been writing something that was considered ‘conspiracy’ then he would have been taken as soon as the letter got blotted.

Squall seemed to notice your panic. “Don’t worry, The filters aren’t always accurate and sometimes will blot out things that don’t need to be. I wouldn’t concern yourself. Your family is fine. The content gets tagged and a copy is sent to an official in charge of such things who then reads it to see if it is a valid threat or not.”


What did you ask next?
>How often does this happen?
>He won’t get in trouble at all?
>Why is it like this? Don’t they trust us?
>Other

>>28220303
>>How often does this happen?

>>28220303
>Why is it like this? Don’t they trust us?
What are they worried about?

>>28220303
>Other
Will I get a copy of the letter without the redaction is it's not a valid threat?

>>28220303
>How often does this happen?
And, how often are the filters inaccurate?
Then make sure he won't get in trouble.

>>28220322
>>28220384
>>28220380
“How often does this happen?” And then another question popped into your mind. “Will I get a copy of the omitted letter if it’s deemed not a threat?”

“Every so often. At every witch or wizard will at least write one letter that will accidently have sensitive information in it that will be redacted but consequences will not follow. As for the parts that are taken out: No, they are not returned even if they are considered not a threat to the Society. It gets...annoying at times.”

>Why is it like this? Don’t they trust us?
>Thank you. I’m glad that this is just a misunderstanding. I’ll leave you to your work.
>Other

>>28220332
I mean is sedition that big of a concern at this point? I'd expect this kind of behavior if there was a recent or current Dark Lord threat and not standard procedure.

>>28220332
It's literally called "The Society," bro.

>>28220504
>>Other
Do they monitor muggle mail as well?

>>28220504
>Why is it like this? Don’t they trust us?

>>28220504
>Why is it like this? Don’t they trust us?
Let's learn more about this Society.

>>28220504
>Other
"What do you think about what happened to Oliver?"

>>28220504
>>Why is it like this? Don’t they trust us?
Jackboots and brown shirts, even in the wizarding world.

>>28220504
> Other
Would I get in trouble for mentioning it in my response? I want to let my parents know that part of the message didn't get through.

>>28220598
>>28220603
>>28220648
>>28220546
“Why is it like this? Don’t they trust us?” You asked her, figuring this is probably the last time you would be able to talk about this with her in privacy for a while.

“Natalia, there are many people who would like to…” she searched for the right words, “take away the ‘security’ that The Society as established for the Witching World. There are still many people who try to gain access to secret knowledge that we are told we aren’t supposed to know. Do you remember the warehouse break in that happened just a few days ago?”

You nodded slowly and you also remembered how strange it was that nothing was really discussed in the paper besides the fact that the event happened.

“People like that are the reason why The Society has to be so strict.” She was about to continue but she stopped. “Listen, we are well protected on this Island but we really should be careful about what we say. Understand?”

You found this confusing but nodded in agreement anyways.

“Good, now I believe your history class is about to begin.” She rose to accompany you to the door.

Suddenly a strange thought popped into your head as you made your way to the door.

“What about the Muggle’s mail? Do you think they watch that too?”

“I don’t know actually, but who knows what we are not being told.” Suddenly you can visibly see sadness on her face, a strange sight for such a mighty and fierce woman. Squall lets out a puff of sarcastic laughter. “I guess it’s what our kind and gentle mother Tituba would have wanted though.”

This pierced you with such a melancholy feeling that you could not shake even as you took your seat for your final class that day.

>roll 1d100 to stay focused (and awake) in history class

Rolled 69

>>28220863
>roll 1d100 to stay focused (and awake) in history class

Rolled 96

>>28220863

Rolled 78

>>28220863

>>28220936
almost critfail we must be concerned about daddy.

Rolled 69

>>28220863
Shouldn't we have a bonus to this by now? We crit-succeeded twice in a row.

>>28220898
You’ve done very well in the past for this class so you find it a little easier to pay attention than you would otherwise. However, you still don’t feel fully connected to the lecture and find your mind wandering back to your conversation with Squall.

What you do remember is this:

Mr. Gonzalez began the lecture with a large projection of a portrait of a large black man with wild looking dreadlocks clad in an old style sailor dress. You knew by looking at him that he was none other than the notorious pirate of the sea, founder of Octopus house, and the only man known to attend the school before the reforms in 1866. One known by no other name than ‘The Black Storm’.

He was sold into slavery at thirteen for reasons unknown but while he was on his ship taking him towards his new destiny he came up with a plan to turn the tables on his captors. Blessed with a silver tongue he quickly became friendly with the ship’s sailors. Through this network he discovered that the captain of the ship had a flaw: an endless desire for fame and fortune.

He fabricated a story to the sailors about a secret treasure on an island not too far away from their planned path. He claimed that he found this out by another sailor who had later been the one to capture him and sell him to the slave ship. The captain was suspicious at first, after all why would someone want to give away the location of a treasure to someone else. The Black Storm pleaded that his only desire was for revenge against the sailor who had turned on him.

The captain agreed to take the treasure and steered his ship off course.
-CONT-

>>28221246
Obviously the Octopus founder would have to guide the captain and his crew to the island. The captain was right to be a bit suspicious of a slave boy running around free on his ship so The Black Storm suggested that he be tied to the ship’s mast to prevent any possible mutiny.

It was late at night when the greedy captain realized he had steered straight into a horrific storm. Because the boy was tied to the mast he was the only one who was not swept off of the ship’s deck that fateful evening. Freeing himself with little effort he commandeered the ship and all of its cargo which began a vicious pirate reign on the Atlantic for years. All of the ships that were stolen from were reported to be ravaged by a very strong storm before hand leaving the crew and ship weak.

The professor then began to say how The Black Storm met his wife, the future founder of Turtle house but you began to lose concentration at this point.

“Hey, Natalia.” You hear Todd’s voice which forces you back to reality. You notice that students are starting to leave because class is over. “Are we still on for questioning the fifth years?”

>Yes. We should try to get some information from them about Oliver.
>No, I think it’s best we stay out of it.

>>28221369
"Yes but be careful about it, if they don't want to talk don't press them."

Or something like that.

Also, the Black Storn is pretty neat.

>>28221369
>No, I think it’s best we stay out of it.

>>28221369
>>No, I think it’s best we stay out of it.

>>28221369
>Yes.
But, we need to handle it with kid-gloves. They did just lose a friend and classmate. Maybe tell Angela to let us (todd and ourself) do the talking.

>>28221369
>>Yes. We should try to get some information from them about Oliver.

>>28221393
Actually changing my mind to

>No, I think it’s best we stay out of it.

Wait at least a week before asking questions.

However, if we see any Fifth-Years talking, we should keep our ears open.

>>28221393
>>28221449
>>28221541
"Yes, but I think we do need to be cautious of what we say."

"Oh, yeah I agree. That's why I've tried telling Angela to reign it in a bit." Todd explained. "I think she understands how this could be a sensitive topic."

"Aaaaalllright!" A booming southern bell voice comes from behind the two of you. "We gots a mystery on our hands and we gotta be the ones to solve it. I'm gonna call it 'The Salem Gang and The Stiff In The Woods.'"

Angela's small, but surprisingly forceful hands slap both of you on the back.

Well, who are you going to question first?
>Try to find the older Starfish house girl that you heard sobbing in the nurses office earlier.
>Find Allen
>Go to the lounge in Eel house and try to find new 5th years that might know something.

>>28221557
Sorry mate, I'd already written a lot by the time you changed your mind.

>>28221676
>>Find Allen
Go to the forge. If he isn't there we can still practice smithing.

>>28221676
>Try to find the older Starfish house girl that you heard sobbing in the nurses office earlier.

>>28221676
Whichever group of witches is hotter, eels or starfish

>>28221676
>Try to find the older Starfish house girl that you heard sobbing in the nurses office earlier.

Be subtle about it though.

>>28221676
>>Try to find the older Starfish house girl that you heard sobbing in the nurses office earlier.
Try to tread lightly, as she was obviously distraught. No need to aid to her grief.

>>28221775
>>28221880
>>28221899
You bring in the gang like a Windleflux coach conducting their next move. You remember the Starfish house girl from earlier who was clearly distraught in the nurse’s office. She seemed to know the most.

“The Starfish house girl from earlier seemed to have a lot to say about this whole thing.” You mention to your team. Todd nods in agreement as Angela narrows her eyes a bit. “We should find her and try to ask her more about it. I think she might want someone who might actually believe her to listen anyways. Do we know what 5th year Starfish house has for their last class?”

Todd gives you a puzzled shrug but Angela suddenly stands at attention. She is silent while she is clearly trying her best to remember details.

“Advanced potions.” She gives you a wild smile as she remembers this information. “She should be on her way back to the Starfish House dorms right now. If we hurry we can possibly catch her before she starts the water bridge puzzle.”

Todd raises an eyebrow. “How could you possibly know that?”

“I’ve got a strange memory,” she responds simply.

Looks like this is the best lead you got.

Roll1d100, please.

Rolled 50

>>28222073

Rolled 70

>>28222073
Charge!

Rolled 59

>>28222073
>crit fail

Rolled 45

>>28222073
critwin

>>28222189
The three of you go as quickly as your little eleven year old legs can carry you. Unfortunately when you make it out to the harbor you see the last of the starfish house members crossing the water in a strange pattern to get to their house-boat. Squinting into the distance you can see the brown curls of the girl you were looking for bounce as she hops from invisible platform to invisible platform.

“Not fast enough.” Todd’s frustrated hand messes with his already untidy brown hair.

You are about to make the group re-strategize when you see Angela rolling up her robes to her knees and removing her shoes.

“Wait, you aren’t going to try to solve the puzzle are you?” You ask her with great disbelief. “You know each puzzle is made with the mentality and thought process of the house members in mind. It would be incredibly difficult for us to-”

“Come on.” Angela rolls her light eyes. “It’s Starfish house we’re talkin’ about. They are pleasant but let’s be honest not the sharpest tools in the shed.”

She then strides out confidently on to the water, but instead of hitting the first invisible platform over the ocean her feet are met with the water. Angela seems to have not lost her faith yet as she tries splashing around on the shore’s edge to find the start of the puzzle.

You take a seat on the sandy shore, trying to think of what would be the next best move. Allen was always a possibility, and you would be lying to yourself if you said that wanting to see him wasn’t just motivated by solving the mystery of Oliver. There was also always the chance of catching the Starfish house girl at a later time which might turn out for the best anyways.

“She really isn’t going to quit now is she?” Todd sits down beside you as Angela even goes as far as knee deep, all the while kicking and cursing at the ocean for defying her.

-NEXT TIME IN SALEM-

-CONT-

>>28222508
-NEXT TIME IN SALEM-
-Natalia and the Gang (tm) break into Starfish House
-Snowball eats a carrot
-Natalia finally writes that pesky letter
-Natalia goes to sleep
-A few weeks go by

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!

>>28222508
Who wants to bet the start of the puzzle is only available to those wearing the correct pin.

>>28222571
Why did you skip the eavesdrop option I was hoping for? Also, is Allen officially our crush? What does our father do for a living?

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>>28222571
Thanks for running this quest.

>>28222786
The other individual left before you could hear anything. Also Squall would have heard you coming regardless. She's very well trained.

Natalia's father is an investor, essentially. He receives residual income from some intellectual property (which will be revealed later in the story, nothing ominous, I promise), and uses that money to seed other businesses. Entrepreneur and investor.

>>28222839
BUSINESS WIZARD. Financomancer. Does his wife work? Is the intellectual property his work, or inherited?

>>28222571
>ALL THIS AND MORE, TOMORROW NIGHT ON:

Soooo... Friday night?

>>28222988
Inherited, after a sort. Helen used to work in Human Resources. She doesn't need to work now that she's married your dad.

>>28222996
Funny. No, Tomorrow.

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>>28223060
>Funny. No, Tomorrow.
Well I'll be a monkey drinking whisky in a saloon! Really?