The first week of November is hectic, with preparations for the third battle underway and everyone suggesting different ways of using transfiguration in battle, now that it has been officially allowed. Most of it is completely useless, of course, or would take an inordinate amount of time, but you still do your duty of listening to them just in case they give you any ideas.

What worries you, however, is the location. The first battle was in an open forest. The second was in the upper corridors of the castle, where no maps could be traced. The location of the third battle, with its new set of rules, would not be revealed until the last moment. Whenever you had asked Potter about it, he had simply grinned.

Harry Potter being in a good mood about his battle class was not a good sign.

“You wouldn’t happen to know,” you ask Lily as you train battling in the Room of Requirement. “What your father’s planning, do you?”

“Maybe. Though it would be unfair if I told you, wouldn’t it?” She answered, not answering your question.

“Yes, yes it would.”

“It would be awfully unfair.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Terribly unfair.”

“Lily!”

She simply laughs before stunning you.

“Ennervate! You really have to watch your barriers, Little Elliot.”

Close by Arty fights ferociously against some other Hufflepuff, but you can already see the exhaustion seeping in, even though you’ve been training for barely twenty minutes. Her wand movements are getting sloppy and beads of sweat are forming on her head.

“You know,” Lily says. “I think someone in Gryffindor has a camera you can borrow.”

“Huh?”

“You know, just in case you want to take a picture instead. I hear they last longer.”

You blush and look away from Arty. Your date had also been running through your head for the past few days, and it was hard to tell which one you thought about more. You two hugging in the forest. You two watching the lake in comfortable silence. The look she gave you when you told her you baked the cupcakes yourself.

But you had other things to focus on now. The Raiders were depending on you to lead them to victory.

“Right,” you say, changing the subject. “Show me that move again.”

> Battle Magic +2! New Total: +18

Forty minutes later the Hufflepuffs leave, helping an Arty so exhausted she stumbles away without barely saying goodbye. Lily waves them away, still larger and grander than life as the daughter of Harry Potter should be, and ensures they’re on their way back to their common rooms before turning to you, Raven and Taylor. In a moment, she seems more relaxed. Calm. Smaller.

“So,” Lily asks. “Have you managed to get anything off that old book?”

What will you tell her?

> Tell her everything
> Tell her about what you found in the Astronomy classroom, but not about the incident with Taylor
> Tell her you found the location of the star, but not how or where it is
> “We didn’t manage to find anything”
> Other (Write in)

>>5785512
>Tell her about discovering the star's location and the incident with Taylor, but not the precise details of the room and its runes.
Hurray! It's back!

>>5785512
>Tell her about discovering the star's location and the incident with Taylor, but not the precise details of the room and its runes.
Supporting this. Welcome back, QM!

>>5785522
+1, we'll let her know the location on the day we go and not before

>>5785512
>> Tell her everything
OH YEAH IT'S BACK!

Ah, as an addendum, I added Talon, Amalia and Elend to the character sheets above, and updated the roll bonuses to the most recent values.

I'm planning on keeping the old character sheet versions unchanged and creating a new version every thread, just so the archive makes sense.

>>5785522
>>5785540
>>5785544

“We did,” you answer. “And Taylor almost died because of it.”

“I didn’t almost die,” Taylor corrects. “It could have just turned me into a mindbroken husk, for all we know.”

Raven punches him on the shoulder so you don’t have to while you explain the incident in the Room of Requirement.

“Once we detransfigured him, we got his notes and found the star. We know where to go, but if we’re leaving the astronomy towers to follow it, we’ll probably need brooms.”

“I’m assuming none of you have personal brooms?” Lily asks.

“Do any of us look like a Quidditch player?”

“Judging by your arms? No. It’s fine, I can get into the school training supply and get a few. But there is trouble coming. Or, more trouble coming. I overheard my father talking. Or maybe he let me overhear it, I’m not sure. Apparently, something is happening in the Ministry, with the Unspeakables. I don’t know what, but it has the higher ups of the ministry rattled.”

“Your dad told me. Apparently no more prophecies are being produced.”

For a fleeting instant, you think you see a gleam of something like triumph in Lily’s eyes. But it morphs into shock an instant later.

“No more prophecies? Yeah, that explains it. The Minister herself was pressing dad into revealing what he knows, and they know he knows something because he’s been snooping around the Department of Mysteries. But he hasn’t said a thing. He trusts my aunt, but I don’t think he thinks the Unspeakables are above kidnapping you and waterboarding you with veritaserum to figure it all out.”

“Crap,” you say, worried. “Do you know who else knows about me?”

“Me, dad, the headmistress. But he went around asking people about you when we first noticed you were, you know, not in our memories. It wouldn’t be super difficult to find out if they decided to start questioning the students.”

“They’d have to go over McGonagall first,” Taylor says. “And I never met your Granger, but I’d bet on Hogwarts and the boy-who-lived winning this fight.”

“I think so too… but the winter holidays are coming and not everyone stays here. A lot of people have parents working in the Ministry.”

You bury your face in your hands.

“First of December, Elliot.” Raven says, putting a hand on your shoulder. “We get there, figure out what is going on, and fix it.”

“Raven, I don’t know what is going to happen in December first, but I doubt this mess ends there.”

“Me neither, but there’s nothing we can do about it now. We can’t stop the Ministry and we can’t stop Potter. Focus on what we can do. One step at a time.”

You nod, trying to shake away the sinking feeling of dread at the pit of your stomach.


[Cont.]

>>5785788

You go to sleep still haunted by what Lily told you, and take a long while to fall asleep as your brain can’t decide if it wants to think about shadowy figures coming in the night to kidnap you and run tests on you, about the battle on the following day or about Arty in incredibly ungentlemanly ways.

Sleep, however, eventually takes you.

“GOOD MORNING, SUNSHINE!”

Your soul nearly jumps out of your body as you jolt awake. You look around to see the sun already peeking through the window and the dormitory empty, except for Taylor who’s rolling on the floor laughing.

“Taylor, what the fuck was that about?”

“I don’t know!”, clutching his stomach from laughter. “Arty pulled me over while you were battling Lily and offered me a sickle to do it.”

“She paid you a sickle to almost give me a heart attack?”

“No, of course not,” he says, struggling to get up from the floor. “I told her I’d do it for free!”

--

The next army battle is today. What potion will you take with you?

> Girding Potion, for endurance (+10 for the next physical/battle roll)
> Edurus Potion, creates a a rocky film on your skin, protecting you from damage
> Shrinking Solution, causes the drinker to shrink to a smaller form, though it does not affect their casting power
> Erumpent Potion, causing an explosion on hit
> Garroting Gas, choke and suffocate people in an area
> Scintillation Solution, makes those hit by it shine brightly
> Alchemist’s Flashbang, a mix of Scintillation Solution and gunpowder, momentarily blinds people in the thrown area.
> Other (Write in. Non-cannon, made up potions with reasonable effects are allowed)

>>5785788
>you think you see a gleam of something like triumph in Lily’s eyes.
Yeah alright fuck Lily we're not trusting her anymore. Even without meta-gaming from the mindwipe we're a Slytherin and should be able to pick up something's not right there. Also interesting that Potter is telling us about what happened and not his own daughter.

> Alchemist’s Flashbang, a mix of Scintillation Solution and gunpowder, momentarily blinds people in the thrown area.
Might as well. Not like people will be wearing sunnies the whole time.

>>5785791
Based Arty, avenging her eardrums.
> Alchemist’s Flashbang
We never got to use it last battle so they won't expect it.

>>5785791
Terrible Slytherin behaviour, Taylor. ALWAYS take the money.
Pretty good, Arty. Pretty good.

> Alchemist’s Flashbang

>>5785791
> Alchemist’s Flashbang, a mix of Scintillation Solution and gunpowder, momentarily blinds people in the thrown area.
Can we make it so it explodes and does the blinding when it's destroyed? Potter DID say last Battle Class if someone throws something unknown, destroy it first and ask questions later. So them destroying it would play into our hands, since they wouldn't have time to react to it suddenly blinding them.

Also in accordance with the points of >>5785799 and >>5785815 I do want us to say these two things to Taylor right now since he's here:
> "Terrible Slytherin behavior, Taylor. If someone offers you money to do something, you use your cunning to haggle for more THEN do the thing. Not do it for free!"
> "By the way...when I mentioned there are no more prophecies last night...is it just me, or did Lily look almost triumphant when I mentioned that for a brief moment?"
>>5785815

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45 KB JPG

>>5785791
> Alchemist’s Flashbang, a mix of Scintillation Solution and gunpowder, momentarily blinds people in the thrown area.

I suppose I will go with this since it is going to win. I have reservations though. This potion is most useful in small spaces or in the dark.

I am going to guess the next battle is going to be either an open field or completely in the air. If we are lucky it will be a night fight so we can use the flashbang kinda effectively.

The other option I can think of is straight urban combat, fighting house to house, which would suck. That kind of battle is always messy. He might get the other teachers to help make a scale fake Hogsmead or something for us to fight in or something if that is the case.

>>5785791
>Alchemist’s Flashbang, a mix of Scintillation Solution and gunpowder, momentarily blinds people in the thrown area.

>>5785791

I will also support:
>>5785855

I wonder if anyone in our army can cast a protean charm and if we have time to establish a set of coded for what the changes to the object mean. If it is urban combat being able to communicate over distance is important.

>>5785883

Taylor, Elend and Talon are all able to cast corporeal Patronuses (I added that info to the character sheets), and even though Taylor isn’t in this battle because of his incident, you still have a couple other soldiers who can also cast it.

It won’t make for fluid conversation, but enough to fire off orders.

Now, on to the update.

--

“You did it for free?" You ask, surprised. "Taylor, that’s not Slytherin!“

“No, Elliot. It’s called ‘getting the sister of the super hufflepuff to owe you a favor’. You should try it. Though you’re probably after something else from her, huh?”

“Shut up.”

“I hear you telling me to stay quiet, not that I’m wrong.”

You throw your pillow at him.

“Taylor,” you ask as you two are making your way to breakfast a few minutes later. “Did you notice anything strange about Lily yesterday? When I told her about the prophecies?”

“No, why?”

“Nothing, I just… found her expression weird, that’s all.”

“After all the fighting you did, I’d be surprised if you could pay proper attention to that. Besides, Lily is weird. We know that.”

You nod, still unsure of what exactly you saw on the previous night.

--

Things start to get weird when all four armies are called to the Battle Class classroom half an hour before normal and given orders to not leave until Potter shows up. When he does show up, he has a wide grin on his face.

You don’t like that.

“So, there is a slight alteration on what I told you last time. There will still be a shrinking area which will take you out of the game if you spend over ten seconds in it, yes, but it will no longer be a cylinder around the battlefield. It shall be a sphere, to account for height.”

“We’ll be fighting in the air?” You ask, incredulous. If there was one way to completely render your flashbangs useless it was-

“No, Mr. Hallaster. You shall be fighting in Hogwarts.”

“Where in Hogwarts?” Brighton asks.

“Four leaders, four houses. Why, I think starting in each of your leader’s common rooms is as fine a place as any, don’t you agree Mr. Longbottom?”

“Wait, Hogwarts Hogwarts? Like, the main castle?”

“Precisely. Home turf. The entire student body is currently in the outer gardens, some very begrudgingly, waiting for your battle. Some few places, like the common room dormitories, the teachers’ private rooms and the Hospital Wing, are off limits, but are well marked as such by red barriers. Everything else is fair game.”

You can feel the electricity in the air. Every single student is suddenly very excited to fight in the same halls they studied and learned for the past six years, and maybe wreck wanton destruction upon the classrooms of the teachers they most disliked.

[Cont.]

>>5785893

“Ah, sir,” you ask, noticing a very big problem called Apollo Pertinger breathing down your metaphorical neck, the Hufflepuff common room being a just stairwell and a corridor away from Slytherin’s. “I don’t think-”

“That the common rooms are well spaced apart? Why, you’d be correct. Not every battle in real life will start with all armies equally spaced out, Mr. Hallaster. Why should our battles be any different?”

“Can we use things in the school?” Weasley asks.

“Yes, anything and everything you can put your hands on and which is in the allowed areas, including any secret passages you may know.” He throws each of the leaders a small glass cube with a translucent sphere on it. “Imagine the cube is a miniature Hogwarts. Once you hear the gong, you will have ten minutes. After that, the cube in your hands will show you the general area towards which the bounding sphere is shrinking, and the shrinking starts. Ten minutes of it standing still, ten minutes of it shrinking, then it repeats. In an hour, the sphere will be reduced to a point and the battle will end either way.”

“Now, off you go. And please, try not to wreck the school too much.”

[Cont.]

>>5785894

“What’s the plan, Elliot?” Raven asks, your four lieutenants around you. Taylor, unfortunately, is still too ill to participate in the fight.

“The plan is that Apollo will stomp us within three seconds of the gong going off,” you say. You had thought about rushing to the Room of Requirement, but Potter had informed you that it was off limits during the fight. “We’re right by Hufflepuff. Potter screwed us big time.”

“Come on, sir! We can’t count on not fighting Apollo every time!” Elend says.

You sigh, shaking away the distraught. “Fine. You’re right. We can’t give up. He’s just one guy, we can take him. We’re close to Hufflepuff, but we’re also close to the Potions classroom. If we can make it there, we can try brewing a full batch of potions.”

“We won’t have much time,” Amalia says, adjusting her glasses before sticking them to her face with a spell. “We’ll have to get lucky with the shrinking direction to brew anything, otherwise we’ll get kicked out of there by the sphere.”

“Any other suggestions?”

“Hold fort, move when we need to,” Raven says. “Keep with the storm, wait for everyone to fight it out first.”

“Could get us trapped by the sphere,” Amalia says. “Also, storm?”

“It’s the muggle name for the shrinking sphere, don’t ask.”

“Right. Well, I don’t like it. There’s a secret passage nearby, we could use it to get out of the way of Apollo, try flanking the Lions or the Claws.“

“If we attack the Lions we’re attacking the Claws too,” Elend says. “Gryffindor and Ravenclaw’s common rooms are also super close. We can try to pince one of them against the other, but then we’ll have to deal with the one remaining. I say we charge the Fours, sir. The area close to the kitchen is filled with barrels of pumpkin juice. We blast them open, flood them with pumpkin juice and freeze them while their vests are covered in orange goo.”

What is your plan?

> Go to the Potions’ classroom, try to brew something against the clock
> Wait here as much as you can before moving,
> Take a secret passageway, try to pince either the Claws or the Lions
> Charge the Fours
> Other (Write in)

And with that post, I'll go to sleep for the day.

>>5785893
Sorry I meant that charm that lets you transfigure 1 thing and it affect other linked things as well, not a patronus.

>>5785895
I am to tired to plan and have to be up early. I will think and try and come up with something. Right now I am tied between going straight for potions and using our flashbang to buy us room if needed and the secret passage. Apollo will probably not expect us to not avoid him though so there may be merit in going straight after his team and use our superior tactics and coordination. He is the 4s trump and while I am sure they have other competent members, knocking him out will hit their moral.

>>5785895
If we charge the Fours I think we need to immediately throw the Flashbang and pray that Apollo is blinded along with the rest of his team, so we take him out quick and then the rest of the Fours are uncoordinated.
If we go to the Potions Classroom right now not only do we give Apollo plenty of time to Transfigure things, but it's an obvious place for us to be so anyone who knows we're a potions guy(which is all the leaders, to my knowledge) will know to rush us if they're not already in a battle, leaving us unprepared

>>5785895
> Go to the Potions’ classroom, try to brew something against the clock
GAS GRENADES AND FLASHBANGS FOR EVERYONE
We can make smoke bombs too, right?

>>5785926
What if we set up an ambush for him in the potions classroom?

>>5785895
>Send a patronus to Apollo, try to entreat him to temporarily join forces with you to utterly annihilate the other two teams. You'd rather have either of your teams win the whole thing over the other two.
I think he'd be open to the idea. And it's a very Slytherin thing to do.
Besides, once the other two teams are down and out, we're going to be in an excellent position to, say...flashbang apollo and his entire team.

>>5785895
> Go to the Potions’ classroom, try to brew something against the clock

>>5785949
I think at least offering would be good. I have a feeling that cunt Brighton will try and join up with Granger-Weasley out of fear of the super 'Puff. If he says no, nothing lost. Just be on the move when we send it.

Besides, joining up with someone you might not be an ally with to take on a superior force is a valid tactic in real battles.

>>5785895
>Send a patronus to Apollo, try to entreat him to temporarily join forces with you to utterly annihilate the other two teams. You'd rather have either of your teams win the whole thing over the other two.

>>5785949
We don't even have to actually wait until the end of the battle. Our army still knows the codeword to look away when the flashbang is thrown, right? We just need to throw it when a good amount of both the Lions and Claws are down. After that, we prioritize eliminating Apollo, and we cleanup the rest of the competition.

With that in mind, support. Use the fact that Brighton will likely have the same plan in mind since he definitely doesn't want to be in a fight with the Lions immediately, and if he says no then we go brew potions.

One potion I have in mind, if such a thing is feasible, is a potion that causes a lingering effect in a small area that makes anyone within said area hallucinate. That way we can throw it outside the classroom and use the hallucinations as momentum to strike first against any enemies that come for us.

As you plan, the rest of your soldiers are watching the common room with interest. For all of them, this is the first time they’re entering another house’s common room, so they are marveling at the decorations, at the windows watching the depths of the great lake and at the paintings of old Slytherins who scowl at them with disgust.

“Elend, send a patronus to Apollo,” you say. “Offer him a temporary alliance against the other two.”

He nods, closes his eyes in focus, and an honest smile appears on his face.

“Expecto Patronum!” From the tip of his wand, a silver light appears, taking the shape of a tiny bird, wings fluttering rapidly. You can’t help but think the silver light reminds you of the light you saw in the astronomy tower, seeping through the runes in the window. “Go to Apollo. Tell him: I am the patronus of Elend from the Raiders of Lost Worlds. Our army leader is offering an alliance. We wish to join, crush the two other armies, then resolve the conflict between ourselves.”

The shining hummingbird winks out and disappears. It reappears a few seconds later, speaking in Elend’s exact voice.

“Apollo says: You and Brighton won alone. So will I.”

And it disappears.

“Right,” you say. “That went about as well as I expected. We do this ourselves then. Who here is halfway decent at potions?”

A handful of people raise their hands.

“Good. We make it for the Potions classroom. I figure if we rush, we can make a halfway decent batch of potions before we’re kicked out by the sphere. Most potions decay quickly when off heat and outside a bottle, but here we can just chuck a whole cauldron at people. Let’s see them try to defend against that.” You turn to your soldiers and attach your mustache and monocle. “Stick to your teams. Move quietly and swiftly. Win.”

The gong sounds in the distance.

“For Atlantis, my friends!”

> Roll a d100+15. Bo3, DC: 70

If you reach the potions classroom, what will you brew?

> Girding Potion, giving your army more endurance
> Edurus Potion, creates a a rocky film the drinker’s skin, protecting your soldiers from damage
> Shrinking Solution, causes the drinker to shrink to a smaller form, have an army of tiny soldiers
> Erumpent Potion, arm each soldier with the muggle equivalent of a grenade
> Other (Write in. Non-cannon, made up potions with reasonable effects are allowed)

Rolled 64 + 15 (1d100 + 15)

>>5786358
> Erumpent Potion, arm each soldier with the muggle equivalent of a grenade

Rolled 15 + 15 (1d100 + 15)

>>5786358
> Erumpent Potion, arm each soldier with the muggle equivalent of a grenade
Lots and lots of area denial. Plus, if explodes when touched by any outside source. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think there's any feasible method to stop it from exploding without touching it.

Rolled 39 + 15 (1d100 + 15)

>>5786358
> Edurus Potion, creates a a rocky film the drinker’s skin, protecting your soldiers from damage
Extremely useful against surprise attacks. The less mooks we lose to stunners the better, too. Won't protect against restraining things, so best be on the lookout for those still. And it won't impair us navigating the castle like shrinking would.
I advise against Erumpents because it could cause a lot of chaos for US due to, you know...depulso. From the other team.

>>5786358
> Erumpent Potion, arm each soldier with the muggle equivalent of a grenade

We are in tight quarters. Grenades are very useful for sweep and clear maneuvers. While we brew, try and brief the army on what we have learned about how muggles soldiers work through confined, hostile indoor areas. Lessons from Falluja and even Berlin may be useful, though we don't have armored support. Check your corners, keep in line of sight but don't bunch up, having assigned roles like point man, defense, designated marksman for who ever has the strongest attacks and best accuracy, basic hand signs for stop, go, enemy, attack, ect. While the people good at potions brew, have the others cast disillusionment charms and quitus to help us move more stealthily.

When we exit the classroom, be ready to fight our way out because anyone with half a brain will expect us to use that resource. Be ready to finite incantum on a moments notice. Eyes out for transfigured areas in the halls that may be trapped or hiding enemies.

>>5786358
>>5786403
You know what, that is fair, and people are going to be transfiguring crap left and right this fight

Changing to:
> Edurus Potion, creates a a rocky film the drinker’s skin, protecting your soldiers from damage

>>5786403
Sure, maybe it could do that. But here's the thing: does Depulso work by sending out a projectile at the target? If it does, that counts as an outside source touching it, and an outside source makes it immediately explode. Therefore, the potion just explodes before it can be sent back towards us.

If it DOESN'T do that, then we can just Depulso the Erumpent Potions ourselves, since that will make it fly away faster than if we had just thrown it, and give the person it's aimed at less time to react.

>we back
aah shit, how could i miss the beginning? well, time to catch up

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>>5786374
They can transfigure it mid flight with good aim. I thing most teams are going to be very on guard for shit flying at them. If it does win though, we can always rig some up as IEDs and disillusion the trigger/string.

Honestly, both options, grenades and stoneskin are going to give us good benefits so I don't really care which one wins.

>>5786448
It hurls a closeby object in a general direction at high speeds. In the case of Erumpent potion, that could very much cause the potion to explode because of the high acceleration. Also, any destructive spell aimed at it would probably cause it to explode.

>>5786492
Transfiguring it into a rock or something before it hit the ground/a wall still works, however, correct? We can't turn stuff into a liquid or gas but turning a liquid into a solid is within the rules it sounds like.

>>5786524
Ah... I have no fucking clue how transfigured potions work in HP and cannon gives me no answers.

I'm going to say magical potions can't be transfigured without losing their powers, as you're essentially trying to transfigure a magical artifact and the magical interferences are either destructive or repel each other to the point of uselessness. It would be, at the very least, not something you could do in instants, in the middle of battle with a potion that is flying through the air.

There are spells such as Arresto Momentum which could safely stop it from crashing and exploding after being thrown.

>>5786538
My guess would be that it'd act chaotically and not produce the expected transfiguration. Transfiguration itself seems fairly precise, so if you're trying to transfigure something MAGIC and VOLATILE that you don't understand 100% in a split second? You're probably going to have a bad time. All the magic in that potion is going to go haywire.

>>5786540
Indeed. It would, at the very least, cause McGonagall to shout at you for using transfiguration irresponsibly.

Transfiguration isn't exactly the type of art you use mid-battle. It is the sort of thing you use when you have a moment of respite and need something specific, like in the previous battle when you transfigured a blockade to the corridor while you weren't being attacked.

You could, for example, use it to transfigure a cauldron to brew your potions if you didn't have one at hand, or a barricade for an ambush. When spells start flying, it is probably time to use something else.

>>5786358
Do we know of any Slytherin who are a) assholes and b) have brooms? Or, missing that, have brooms? If we can stea- borrow some, and we have good flyers we have some air cover too, and fast scouts.

>>5786568
Potter specified the dormitories were off limits (probably precisely to stop us from getting any other magical artifacts we had there)

>>5786573
Right, crap. Do we know if anyone has anything not stored in the dorms?

Should I just change my vote back to erumptus since per QM, there is only like one spell that directly stops a tossed potion, so we can break the deadlock? Like I said both options are good, it is just choosing between magic grenades and wizard body armor.

Rolled 61 + 15 (1d100 + 15)

>>5786358
> Erumpent Potion, arm each soldier with the muggle equivalent of a grenade
you alos mentioned something about chuking an entire cauldron of that, i suggest brew our magical granades, and whatever is leftover of the potion, we create a big bang version of it using a cauldron

>>5786358
> Erumpent Potion, arm each soldier with the muggle equivalent of a grenade

You and your army set out through the corridors, but trying to move stealthily with 16 people is not exactly the easiest thing in the world. Still, you need to move fast if you ever hope to avoid fighting against Apollo in the middle of the halls.

You take the long way, through secret passages and empty classrooms, until you suddenly come to a stop, raising your fist.

“Chatter, up ahead.”

The army retreats a couple of steps, and you transfigure a small mirror at the end of a stick which you use to peek over the bend of the corridor from where the sound is coming from.

“There’s nothing there,” you whisper. “But I see shadows coming from the next turn in the corridor.”

“No… There is… something familiar about this.” Talon says, with a weird look on his face. Suddenly, his face lights up. “This isn’t people talking. Hufflepuff’s common room has a couple gramophones around. I can just barely recognize the words from some of the disks we have, they just muffled the melody.”

“Can you do that? And why would they do that?”

“You can, if you’re good enough with quietus and know the song. And as to why they’d do that… What would you do if you thought the Fours were just around that bend? Would you send someone to check it out or would you just go around?”

“Go around,” you say, understanding. “Losing precious time. If we don’t go through that corridor, we’d lose at least five minutes finding another way.”

“A Ventriliquo would get the same effect, but the range is limited. With this, they can just set it there and leave.”

“You’re sure?”

He nods. “I’m sure.”

“That’s a bad plan,” Raven says. “All armies have Hufflepuffs, they’d all recognize it.”

“Brighton doesn’t have Hufflepuff lieutenants,” Amalia says.

“Neither does Weasley,” Elend says. “Says they’re only good as cannon fodder.”

“He sounds like a twat.”

“He is a twat.”

You send a soldier in front of you to check and sure enough, a few moments later he nods, giving the all clear.

You pass two old-looking gramophones and a series of small dolls in front of a flickering enchanted flame used to create the shadows to fool you. You know Apollo enough to know that meant he’d started using his Ravenclaws to come up with plans.

Good for him.

[Cont.]

>>5786778
After that, you arrive at the Potions classroom without incident.

“I want guards at each end of the corridor,” Elend barks as soon as you make sure the room is empty. “And more guards at the door, looking at the ones at the ends. We need to make sure we have time to escape if anyone comes for us.”

Meanwhile, Raven is already distributing cauldrons while Amalia gets ingredients from the shelves.

“Right, listen up,” you say, writing instructions frankly on the board. “We’re going to make the Erumpent potion. But it usually takes half an hour to make, and we don’t have that long. So we’re going to have to improvise and speed things up. Everyone who got an Exceeds Expectations or higher on your OWLs, get a cauldron and try to keep up. We don’t need everyone to succeed, but a single cauldron won’t be enough for everyone.”

> Roll a d100+20. Bo3
> DC for arming half of the army: 75
> DC for brewing enough for everyone: 95

Rolled 54 + 20 (1d100 + 20)

>>5786780

Rolled 93 + 20 (1d100 + 20)

>>5786780

Rolled 71 + 20 (1d100 + 20)

>>5786780

>>5786780
Just got caught up to the thread. Kudos to you QM, despite me not knowing much about Harry Potter this is a great quest.

>>5786853
>Just got caught up to the thread. Kudos to you QM, despite me not knowing much about Harry Potter this is a great quest.
You and me both.

>>5786796
Hahaha, YEEESSSS

>>5786780
>Goes to war
>Hosts an impromptu potions class
classic

File: look out below.png (777 KB, 724x790)

777 KB PNG

>>5786796
Nice one.

So Apollo's decided to ignore us and go straight for the other two. What a colossal fucking mistake that was, hope he likes our grenades.

>>5786796
Grenade spam incoming

>>5786789
>>5786796
>>5786823

*Feel free to insert you favorite cooking show montage music as this scene’s soundtrack*
“Right,” you say, taking a silver knife and twirling it over the palm of your hand. As you speak, you do, just barely stopping to check if your ‘students’ are managing to keep up. “The base of the Erumpent Potion is the exploding fluid which permeates the horn of an Erumpent, a lovely and deadly magical beast found in Africa. Now, usually we’d only use a third of the horn, but given that we’re in a hurry…”

You talk as you move, building the plan for your potion in your mind as you work. It is as much logic as intuition, a deeper feeling of what “should” work than simple notes and classes could teach you. You crush herbs, slice roots and macerate ingredients as your eyes keep glancing at the glass cube on the table.

The sphere moves, going from occupying the entire cube to a smaller part of its lower corner, about two thirds of the original size. You may have time, you realize, as you stir. Somewhere in the classroom, you hear a violent blast and look up to see a cauldron melted and someone’s hair on fire.

“Aguamenti,” you say, barely registering the incident as you sprinkle pepper leaves over the boiling liquid. “And Evanesco! Eyes on me, everyone. Keep on working, we don’t have time to stop. And someone get her a Wiggenweld, they’re not that difficult to make!”

The recipe is much more involved than usual, and you need to keep gentle and constant stirring to make sure it neither goes stale nor explodes in your face. You get a total of two more explosions and a melted cauldron before taking a small spoon, scooping some of the liquid in it and launching it at the wall with force where it explodes with a loud bang.

“And that’s how you improvise a Erumpent potion!”

A third of the time and half as powerful, but it was going in your recipe book all the same.

You look back to your soldiers, expecting at least a couple of them to clap, but instead you find a mess of scrambling soldiers trying desperately to follow your instructions.

“Right. Someone get to bottling this, let me see how you all did.” You say, passing over the still intact cauldrons. Your display of potioncraft, though impressive, clearly wasn’t as easy to follow as you’d hoped. They’re almost all worthless. “Evanesco, evanesco, evanesco, eva- Wait.” You stop by a cauldron, bend close to it, sniff it. “I think this may be right.”

“Thank you, sir.” Amalia says, still flustered from the effort. “I’ll admit it was quite challenging.”

You turn to the rest of your soldiers, eyeing the glass cube and the sphere growing dangerously small.

“Come on people, form a line! Everyone gets a bottle! And for fucks sake, be careful with them! They explode!”

[Cont.]

>>5787115

You manage to get out of the classroom and dash down the halls just as the glimmering red wall of Endgame comes. Every one of your soldiers now carries a shimmering red potion on their hips. The Erumpent Potion, and also this modified version of it. is more stable than the Erumpent’s exploding fluid, but it’s still temperamental. You tell everyone to keep theirs on the side of their non-dominant hand just in case.
Still, when the sphere stops shrinking, you’re all panting from all the running. You look around, finally noticing where you ended up.
“We’re by the library,” you say. By the library doors, you see a red barrier marking it as off limits and a fair share of curious paintings watching you with interest. “Right. We can make our way to-”
You hear rushed steps coming your way. Clearly, you had been quick but not quiet, and the empty halls of Hogwarts echoed far better than you gave them credit for.
“Ah, crap. Wand’s at the ready!”
Apollo bursts through the nearby door, looking almost surprised as if he didn’t expect you to be here, before spells start raining.

> Roll a d100+30, Bo3! (+15 from your Army Rolls, +15 from your new potions!)
> Also, as a reminder, you still have a banked roll of 118 from the last thread!

>>5786853
Ahhh, thanks anon!

Rolled 16 + 30 (1d100 + 30)

>>5787116
pineapple surprise!

Rolled 62 + 30 (1d100 + 30)

>>5787116
GLORY TO THE FIRST MAN TO BE STUNNED

>>5787116
Also, this isn't Best of 3, this is "Beat 2 out of 3" I just messed it up

Rolled 85 + 15 (1d100 + 15)

>>5787116
Time for the show to begin!

Rolled 58, 2, 39 + 15 = 114 (3d100 + 15)

>>5787118
>>5787120
>>5787122

46 92 115

Let's see how Apollo handles a couple of grenades (+20 from Apollo, -5 because they're missing half their army)

>>5787127
TOTAL SLYTHERIN VICTORY

>>5787127
Oh he's going to feel this one when he wakes up.

>>5787127
Ha

>>5787127
Not well at all, apparently.

Two victory out of three gives him another round of battle (with an extra negative bonus for him) to try and turn the tide. You may choose to use your banked roll here to replace your losing roll and wipe him out completely in one go.

> Use banked roll
> Save it for later

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26 KB JPG

>>5787135
>completely remove apollo from the equation in our first encounter
holy shit, i think this is as good as its gonna get, i vote for using our banked roll

>>5787135
Nah, losing against Apollo isn't that bad. I vote to save the roll for Longbottom.

>>5787141
its not about loosing TO apollo, its about not losing BEFORE Longbottom, we are ok with losing to anyone except Longbottom

>>5787135
Do we still keep the banked roll for something else if we don't use it here?

>>5787141
In theory we should have a better chance against Apollo since he's getting an extra negative bonus, so I'm thinking it'll be easier if we save it for later on (knock on wood).

>>5787146
>Do we still keep the banked roll for something else if we don't use it here?
Yes

>>5787135
> Save it for later
Save it for whoever's left

>>5787135
> Save it for later

>>5787148
I'll vote to save it for later then.

>>5787135
> Use banked roll
Total hufflepuff annihilation. Even if we do control the battle I’d assume he takes out a lot more people than if we completely win

>>5787135
>Save it for later

>>5787135
>Use banked roll
This will mitigate early casualties, which is good.

Apollo is received by a hail of spells hammering against his barriers, stunner after stunner coming from him from all your soldiers. He’s in front, so he takes the brunt of the attack and protects his soldiers from most of it, but a well thrown potion from Elend makes the arch over his shields and blasts right in the middle of his troops, sending scattering through the room. You notice his army isn’t complete, almost half of it missing.

But even as Apollo flies through the air he is still casting as small stones fly from his hand, turning into pillars of stone coming up from the floor, raising up like great stone hands to turn him rightside up as he takes aim and fires two stunners in your direction. He doesn’t stop, pointing the wand back at his transfiguration, making it wide, blocking your spells and protecting half of his soldiers.

“Finite Incantatem!”

You cast against his ongoing transfiguration, but Finite is a brute force spell. It takes as much power to unmake something as it was invested into creating it, and you're not overpowering Apollo.

“How the fuck is he using tranfiguration mid-battle!?” Elend asks, hiding behind a pillar. “Most aurors can’t pull that off and live.”

“Most aurors aren’t Apollo,” Talon says, chucking his potion, shattering a piece of Apollo’s wall and hexing an unprepared Gryffindor on the other side. “We have potions, he has power, Brighton has herbology.”

“What does Weasley have?”

“A stick up his ass! Duck! Stupefy!”

You duck and Elend hits a slytherin behind you.

“How many of them are left?”

“Apollo and two others.”

You see a stray curse hit one of your soldiers, who falls down. Then a pillar of rock slams past you, then turns, the rock moving almost as if alive to crush you, forcing you to jump out of the way, only to be welcomed by a stunner coming your direction.

“Protego! Stupefy!”

It wasn’t you who shouted, but Raven, standing between you and the spell before jumping back, running away from the transfigured pillar of rock.

Apollo, you think, as you run. What an absolute fucking terror you’d be if you ever turned dark.

> Roll a d100+25 (+15 from your Army rolls, +10 from your remaining potions)
> Beat 2 out of 3

Rolled 83 + 25 (1d100 + 25)

>>5787237

Rolled 1 + 25 (1d100 + 25)

>>5787237
i swear, if apollo somehow clutches this...

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>>5787249
>a fucking 1

Rolled 3 + 25 (1d100 + 25)

>>5787237
Rolling.

>>5787249
And here is karma punishing our hubris. Well at least it wasn't against Longbottom.

>>5787249
>>5787254
You get what you deserve

Rolled 95, 75, 70 + 10 = 250 (3d100 + 10)

>>5787245
>>5787252
>>5787254

108 26 28

Amazing job, everyone.

>>5787259
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Merlin's fucking balls, Apollo is on fucking fire.

I'm assuming you're going to want to use that banked roll now? Or take a penalty and have a final round of battle?
(Also, I lot my trip for a couple posts, but it is back now)

> Use the banked roll
> Save it for later

File: i fucking told you.jpg (26 KB, 500x372)

26 KB JPG

>>5787266
I TOLD YOU FUCKERS TO USE THE BANKED ROLL FROM THE BEGINNING

>>5787266
> Use the banked roll
Dangit.

Lesson 1 in warfare: shorten battles as much as possible. If we're given the opportunity to end a bate in one fell swoop, use it next time.

>>5787266
This should end Apollo, right? If so, use it. Our potion bonus goes down by 5 every time we're in a battle. I am NOT wasting the entirety of our potion bonus on a dude with only half his army.

>>5787266
> Use the banked roll

>>5787266
> Use the banked roll
We should spike his food before the next battle. We're good at potions and we're in Slytherin, we can do that, right? Hell, we should spike everyone's food.

Banked roll used!

--

You watch as from his stone coffin Apollo transfigures the stone his protection is made of, morphing it into fists of stone slamming into every direction. You see two of your soldiers get crushed against the wall and thank Merlin for both wizards being more resistant than muggles and for Apollo knowing how to pull his punches.

Time to put your training to good use. You had practiced some team movements during practice, and finally one of the more… exquisite variations would come in use.

“Elend! Talon! Time for Reverse Caliburn!”

“Reverse Caliburn?” Elend shouts over the sound of a pillar of stone slamming against the wall. “I thought we had agreed it was stupid!”

“No, you thought it was stupid!”

“Everyone thought it was stupid, Eliiot!” Talon shouts.

“Well, then I’m about to prove everyone wrong! On three! One, two, three!”

You dash out into the open towards Apollo, who is blindly attacking, when-

“Wingardium Leviosa!” “Wingardium Leviosa!”

The double charge of the levitation spell takes you up, up and over the stone coffin, revealing its top and weakest part. You launch your Erumpent potion, and it shatters the stone cover revealing a focused Apollo and a surprised Ravenclaw watching you wide-eyed.

“Stupefy!”

You hit Apollo in the back, and he falls unconscious. Once he’s down, it takes moments for your soldiers to put you down and overwhelm the Four’s remaining soldier.

“I can’t believe you actually got to use a Reverse Caliburn,” Raven said. “I thought we had all agreed that move was stupid.”

“You agreed it was stupid.”

“So what now?” Amalia asks. “We have at least one other army to beat.”

“I think just one other army to beat,” Elend says. “Apollo was at half strength. He fought someone.”

“He was also retreating,” she says. “He wasn’t after us. He stumbled on us.”

“What can make Apollo run away? You think Weasley and Longbottom teamed up?”

“Doesn’t sound like Weasley, he doesn't do alliances. But he did just lose two battles in a row. Maybe he’s getting desperate.”

“There are a couple Lions dropped down the corridor,” Talon says, peeking into the doorway Apollo had come from. “But not what I’d expect from a battle with the Fours.”

“Right. How many potions do we still have left?”

“Five, no,” Raven says, picking up an intact bottle from a fallen soldier and giving it to you. “Six.”

“Hum… I think we should-”

“Barrier!”

You all look behind you in horror as the barrier surges forward.

“Let’s go!”

You and your army bolt, you going in front using your cube trying to desperately find where the damn barrier is pushing you towards. It moves slower now, but the area is smaller. Tighter corners and less space to move make the retreat difficult as you find dead ends and have to pull back and find another way. By the end of it, you’re all sweating and more than one painting on the wall is giggling at you.

[Cont.]

>>5787440

“Fuck that thing.”

“Take it up with Potter, he’s the one who came up with this.”

“So, what do we do now? There aren’t a lot of places left to hide.”

“If Longbottom and Weasley are teaming up, we could wait.” Amalia says. “Seeing the area shrink on them has to take a toll on their alliance, they’re going to have to turn on each other eventually.”

“That will make us have to fight in an even smaller area, and that's assuming we find them first.” Elend says. “The sphere could corner us as much as them, and we could get trapped by the storm if we’re in a bad position when it starts to shrink. If we could apparate that wouldn’t be as much of a problem, but Apparition classes don’t start until Christmas. I say we hunt for them, take them out before the shrinking becomes a problem again.”

“Or we could find a crossroad close to the center of the sphere and guard it,” Talon suggests. “If they come, we attack them. If they don’t, we have freedom to move in any direction.”

> Hide and wait until the sphere shrinks
> Hunt for the remaining team/teams
> Find a central position and defend it
> Other (Write in)

>>5787442
> Find a central position and defend it
We got grenades. The other teams don't. If they've teamed up that just means more targets for us to throw at. Should also set up a flanking guy with two potions to hit them from behind when they come across us.

Actually, is that enemy team tracking thing still working or was it only for the last battle? We can check if they're working together based on how close the pointers are.

>>5787444
That was just for last battle. This battle the sphere takes care of ensuring everyone meets each other

>>5787442
> Hunt for the remaining team/teams
i dont think hunkering down is a great idea in this occation, its been somewhat useful before, but with the storm approaching, who knows if this will work 100% in our favor.
i say we hunt down smaller teams/stragglers and push them out into the storm, if i remember correctly, they need to be out there for at least 10 seconds for them to be officially out, right? a couple of well places flipendos should be more than enough to knock anyone out for good into the storm, all we have to do is corner them

>>5787442
>>5787454 +1

>>5787454
Supporting.

>>5787442

>>5787454
+1

>>5787442
>> Find a central position and defend it
from the center we can push them against the storm, that's a huge advantage

>>5787454
>>5787477
>>5787504
>>5787658

“We’re finding them and ending this before the sphere has time to end us,” you say to your remaining eight soldiers. “I may lose to Brighton or Weasley, but I’m not losing to a fucking barrier. Let’s go.”

You make your way through the familiar corridors of Hogwarts under the watchful gaze of the paintings, some following you with interest as this was probably the most exciting thing that had happened to them in the past few decades. Room by room, corridor by corridor, you make your way through the school, but you just can’t seem to find them.

“Are all of us just circling around in the same direction? What the hell is going on here?”

Your question is answered immediately as you and your army turn into a wide windowed corridor by the Transfiguration courtyard, where you see three Prismatic Shields halfway through it. Behind them, is Weasley’s entire remaining army, including Hugo himself, grinning while wearing earplugs and holding what looks like an ugly plant baby in his hand. It is crying his lungs out, but without a single sound coming out.

“Earmuffs!” You shout, as Weasley points his wand to the Mandrake.

“Sonorus!”

The wail of the mandrake echoes through the halls, amplified tenfold. You hold the need to clutch your ear as you reach into your pockets and take out the earmuffs that every army had decided to carry after Brighton’s last stunt. As you slide them on, the wail continues, but its magical properties are dulled. The sonorus would amplify the sound of it, but not the magic that took people down, reducing it simply to a ridiculously loud and high-pitched, but not deadly, scream.

Weasley is a fool for not realizing that, you think. Then, something catches the corner of your vision. You look at the windows vibrating with the sound, see cracks spreading from its edges and look down in horror as you see the same cracks spreading through the bottle by your hips.

“Crap,” comes first to your mind, but “How did he know?” takes over, but is completely overridden by “Quietus!”

> Roll a d100+18 (from your Battle Rolls)
> Bo3, DC: 90

Rolled 92 + 18 (1d100 + 18)

>>5788001

Rolled 97 + 18 (1d100 + 18)

>>5788005
Weasley BTFOed by immediate high roll once again

Rolled 11 + 18 (1d100 + 18)

>>5788001
stop stop he's already dead

>>5788005
>>5788015
Hah, nice.

>>5788005
>>5788015
Weasley just can't catch a fucking break, huh?

>>5788040
Shouldn't have groped our schizo backup waifu.

>>5788040
Anytime he makes a somewhat good plan, he better fucking pray he's not using it against us, because we will simply roll high and invalidate all of his efforts.

But hey, at least it's not as bad as that nat 100 last thread. That was incredibly embarrassing for him.

>>5788044
>backup waifu
Bro don't stick dick in crazy-controlling.

>>5788040
At least he's a dick, so he deserves the dice fucking him over.

>>5788005
>>5788015
>>5788024

The world silences around you and the cracking stops. First you try casting “Reparo”, but obviously no words come out in the silence. The flask is just barely holding together, useless, more a danger to you than Weasley.

Right, you think. Priority number one next class of non-verbal spells is mastering Reparo. Right after mastering how to kick Weasley’s ass, that is.

You do the only thing you can, flinging it forward, hoping to reach the Lion’s before exploding, but it is useless. The potion goes off mid-air, and at the same time you see stunners coming your direction, Weasley’s soldiers standing on tables and firing them from behind the cover of the Prismatic Shields.

You jump out of the way, but are suddenly launched forwards, almost as if caught in the path of a depulso. It is only when you leave the area of your quietus that you hear the explosion behind you.

You weren’t the only one with potions, you realize, and not everyone had been caught in the radius of your quietus.

You fall to the ground rolling, shouting “Protego!” at the top of your lungs as you scramble into one of the side rooms and away from the spells coming at you. Once you’re in relative safety, you peer back to see three of your soldiers on the floor, knowing full well you could have lost your entire army just then, or more than just three soldiers if you had cast your quietus with just a smidge less power.

You can see Amalia and Elend behind Elend’s Prismatic Shield right in the middle of the corridor, unable to move without dropping the barrier and exposing themselves to enemy fire. Talon is down, caught by one of the explosions. Raven is hiding around the corner of the corridor with two other soldiers.

Six people in total, including you. All your potions, gone, even your personal Alchemist’s Flashbang spattered uselessly on the floor by both the wailing and the explosion. Things are not looking good.

The wailing stops and you take out your earmuffs.

“Elliot!” Weasley shouts from behind his barrier. “You have five soldiers. I have ten, and a fortified position. Would you like to surrender?”

“Why, no, Weasley, I would not,” you shout back. “If, say, an army leader with at least one victory were to make that offer, maybe I’d consider it, but as it stands I’m afraid I must refuse.”

You can feel him fuming from where you hide.

“Very well, then,” Then, speaking to someone else. “Daniel, come over here. Everyone, be ready to fire as their shields fall. Daniel, fire.”

“Laggan!”

You see the green spiral fly past you and slam against Elend’s shield, shattering it, followed by no less than seven red bolts. Three of them hit Elend in the chest while Amalia dives out of the way and into an open classroom.

“Four soldiers now, Elliot. Feel free to surrender at any time.”

> Roll a d100+7 (+15 from your army roll, -8 from lost people)
> Beat 2 out of 3

Rolled 87 + 7 (1d100 + 7)

>>5788116

Rolled 82 + 7 (1d100 + 7)

>>5788116
Rolling properly now.

>>5788127
Goddammit, this I what I get for posting and eating at the same time.

Rolled 91 + 7 (1d100 + 7)

>>578811
2 out of 3 what

Rolled 43, 13, 87 + 15 = 158 (3d100 + 15)

>>5788121
>>5788129
>>5788130

94 89 98

Fucking Merlin what are these fucking rolls?

>>5788127
Anon, how the fuck did you manage to do this?

>>5788133
weasley fucked by the dice twice in a row, lmao

>>5788133
>those numbers
holy shit! eat shit weasley!

>>5788133
Weasley has been destroyed

>>5788133
>Anon, how the fuck did you manage to do this?
Honestly I have no idea.

>>5788133
How is Weasly this incompetent?

>>5788133

You look around trying to come up with a plan. There is still a long time before the sphere begins moving again, and you’re sure if you wait Weasley will get impatient and move to take you out. You look at each of your soldiers, before stopping at Raven, who shakes a still intact bottle of Erumpent Potion in your direction. How she managed to keep it whole, you don’t know, but Merlin you’re glad she did.

A plan begins to form in your mind as you mouth “Disillusion” to her and point to the potion. She does so, and you whisper “Accio” before grabbing it from mid air. Weasley might have anti-disillusionment charms, but even those took a few moments to take effect, which allowed the bottle to pass unnoticed.

You tap your wand on the bottle and whisper “Sonorus”.

“Hey, Hugo! How’s your History of Magic?”

“Huh?”

“What’s the name of the sword Arthur pulled from the stone?”

“What?” He asks, utterly confused. “Excalibur!”

“Wrong! It was Caliburn!”

You dash into the corridor, bottle in hand.

“Wingardium Leviosa!” “Wingardium Leviosa!”

You fly into the air once more, up and over the Lion’s Prismatic Shields and launch the Erumpent Potion at Weasley. But he’s ready for it.

“Arresto Momentum!”

“Bombarda!”

The bottle explodes, the Sonorus and the potion amplifying Bombarda’s explosion into a massive blastwave sending you flying backwards and Weasley and his soldiers tumbling to the ground. The ones holding the barriers also tumble forwards, their shields faltering.

“Now!”

You four soldiers attack the scrambling and disoriented Lions, stunning and blowing back, stopping them from reforming a cohesive formation. The corridor becomes a mess of spells, shields and glass shards as you fall to the ground. Weasley’s soldiers, moments earlier protected by the primatis, now scramble to find defense.

“Blast you and your potions!” Weasley shouts. “You’re not winning this, Hallaster! Stupefy!”

“Big words from someone who just lost half of its army! Somnius!”

> Roll a d100+7, beat 2 out of 3

>>5788164
Round 2 Weasley. Let's see if it goes better for him this time.

Rolled 78 + 7 (1d100 + 7)

>>5788164

Rolled 97 (1d100)

>>5788165
>Forgot to roll again

>>5788164
KWAB

Rolled 59 + 7 (1d100 + 7)

>>5788164

Rolled 99 + 7 (1d100 + 7)

>>5788164

Rolled 10, 97, 15 + 10 = 132 (3d100 + 10)

>>5788166
>>5788168
>>5788173

85 104 66

Aaaand...

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>>5788183

>>5788183
>Weasley lost with double the amount of soldiers that we have
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
This dude's definitely getting stabbed in the back at the start of the next battle.

>>5788183
Weasley is getting deposed after this, isn't he?

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12 KB JPG

>>5788183

>>5788183
I sorta feel sorry for Weasley. He just keeps getting dice-based wedgies in such spectacular fashion. Then I remember he's a twat and stop feeling sorry for him.

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>>5788183

>>5788185
>>5788188
surprised he made this far

>>5788193
I was wondering this, do we know he's a twat other than 7th Year Lioness telling us about that? What does the school know him as?

>>5788242
The only other piece of info on that is Elend saying that Weasley calls Hufflepuffs "canon fodder" which, if true, is enough on it's own for us to hate him, considering Arty is a Hufflepuff.

>>5788193
>>5788236

I feel sorry for him because he is meant to be an actually smart and challenging threat, but never before have I seen someone be as hated by the dice as this fucker.

In any case, here's the update.

>>5788183

You fight tooth and nail against Weasley, and what began as an ambush now quickly turned the other way. With their defense broken, his remaining soldiers fall one by one as you two duel furiously in the middle of the hall. You lose two more soldiers, but take three, then four or his soldiers, until it’s just him, you, Raven and Amalia, as he fights like a wounded beast.

But he doesn’t have a chance against the three of you. He’s no Apollo, after all.

He falls with an expelliarmus followed by a stupefy, a rage-filled look still on his unconscious face.

“Three soldiers,” you say, taking a deep breath. “I hope Brighton’s army had as rough a time as us because-”

A gong sounds over Hogwarts, signaling your victory.

> +5 to your Army rolls! New Total: +20!

--

Turned out Weasley had used the paintings, spoken to them and convinced them to tell him where all the other armies were and what they were doing. Using that knowledge, he’d carefully used hit and run tactics to funnel the Claws towards Apollo, then picked on the Fours from afar as they were weakened, forcing them to retreat directly towards you. He’d been told of your fight against Apollo and knew you were using potions, which was why he’d nicked Brighton’s mandrake and used it to shatter your bottles.

It had been incredibly well executed and coordinated. Until he’d gotten cocky and decided to face your army head on, that is.

You try limping back to your common room but are met with a deluge of students coming back in, all congratulating you on your victory. But the cost had been high. As soon as the battle ended, Potter had appeared to take those caught in the blast to the infirmary. There’d been nothing fatal, Potter had been watching closely to be sure, but some of your soldiers would have to spend a couple days in bed and at least one of them would have to regrow a couple of fingers.

Thank fuck for magic, and for your Erumpent Potion not being as powerful as the classic recipe.

Still, the army is happy for the victory, even those who lost fingers. You reach your bed and collapse to a blissfully dreamless sleep.

By the morning, however, there is a congregation of parents in the corridor of Hogwarts, demanding to speak to the Headmistress about the fact a student “had his arm blasted off,” you hear, as the story of your battle had grown vastly out of proportion. By afternoon the Daily Prophet’s headline was “BOY-WHO-LIVED PROMOTES BRUTAL VIOLENCE AMONG STUDENTS” while the Quibbler’s said “BOY-WHO-LIVED OFFICIALLY CROWNED MOST FUN TEACHER OF THE DECADE.”

So, just another average weekend in Hogwarts.

--

It is the weekend. What will you do with your time? (Pick one)

> Take your army out to celebrate your victory in the Three Broomsticks
> Go out with Raven, Taylor, Arty, Apollo and Lily as you’d mentioned a while ago
> Take a rest from all the insanity that is going around you and just read a harmless book in front of a fireplace
> Other (Write in)

>>5788308
>> Take your army out to celebrate your victory in the Three Broomsticks

>>5788308
> Go out with Raven, Taylor, Arty, Apollo and Lily as you’d mentioned a while ago
Sorry, Raiders, but we've already made commitments for this weekend, and ditching the hangout when we were the one who planned it woulda be a dick move. They can go and use the Raider's room for a party if they want though.

>>5788305
Just wait for Weasley to get deposed. The Lions will immediately start having incredible luck with their rolls. Mark my words.

>>5788308
> Go out with Raven, Taylor, Arty, Apollo and Lily as you’d mentioned a while ago

>>5788308
Right after last post I just realized the paints. I really should have remembered sooner.

>>5788308
> Go out with Raven, Taylor, Arty, Apollo and Lily as you’d mentioned a while ago

>>5788308
> Go out with Raven, Taylor, Arty, Apollo and Lily as you’d mentioned a while ago
i say, fuck it, we stealing quick on Arty´s lips, we deserve it

>>5788336
>we stealing quick on Arty´s lips
meant to type, we stealing a quick kiss, dont know why the keyboard eat that word...

>>5788305
> Take a rest from all the insanity that is going around you and just read a harmless book in front of a fireplace
This option will kill us. We do not do this. Ever.

> Take your army out to celebrate your victory in the Three Broomsticks
> Go out with Raven, Taylor, Arty, Apollo and Lily as you’d mentioned a while ago
Can we do both? Get the Raiders together in our best foppish outfits...but just pay for the drinks and food and let our army know we're hanging with friends?

>>5788308
>>5788342
I like this idea.

>>5788342
> but just pay for the drinks and food
Do we even have the money for that? That's paying for food and drinks for like 10 people

>>5788349
Well mom, is a [NOT YET DEFINED], and dad works at [NOT YET DEFINED], we got enough. May just have to tighten the belt after this for a few months.

>>5788354
I mean honestly, fuck it. If paying for 10 or so members of our army to have food or drinks at the Three Broomsticks is something we can afford, and ideally not waste all of our audience on, then yeah sure I'm down for that.

>>5788359
why the fuck did I type audience.
I meant allowance

It is time for an early lunch when the six of you arrive at the Remus Lupin Werewolf Aid Center. A young woman with a pair of large scars on her left arm is standing by the entrance to an open area with tables, chairs and flowers. She smiles and takes you to your seat, putting a menu in front of each of you, long with a pitcher of clear water.

“I’d never come here,” Arty says. “This is lovely.”

“Most people haven’t,” you say. “It is away from Hogsmeade proper, and there is a whole stigma around werewolves, so most people pick the Three Broomsticks instead. But it has a faithful clientele, I know plenty of people from the Ministry come to have lunch here. When Professor Irakay first showed up on my doorstep to deliver my letter to Hogwarts, my parents were very suspicious of the whole thing. So she brought them here, to at least see Hogwarts from afar, even if they weren’t able to go into the school proper. Though at the time she didn’t tell them what Remus Lupin was and why this place was named after him, of course.”

The restaurant itself was by the outer area of the Center proper, in the vast green area surrounding the place. Though it was already autumn, the area was kept at a pleasant temperature, and flowers grew on well trimmed bushes surrounding the place.

You read the menu, which is also filled with facts about werewolves here and there, and order something. A waiter with a scar over his left eye takes the order and leaves for the kitchen.

You all talk about, mostly, your last fight. Arty impressed with how you’d defeated Weasley, Lily impressed with Apollo’s transfiguration prowess, while Taylor and Raven mostly chat between themselves, except when they take the time to tell a joke at your expense. Soon the food comes, and you all eat eagerly between chatting and laughing. The food doesn’t have the same home-made feel as the Three Broomsticks has, instead reminding you more of going to a fancy restaurant in the muggle world, though the price is still affordable.

[Cont.]

>>5788550

You find it weird when Lily’s eyes grow wide.

“Oh no.”

“What?” You ask.

“Oh my, Lily!" Comes a voice from behind you. "I didn’t expect to find you here! Who are your friends?”

“Hi, auntie. Uncle.”

You turn around to find the MINISTER FOR MAGIC standing behind you, with a redheaded man with his arm intertwined with hers.

“These are my friends from Battle Class,” Lily says. “Elliot, Apollo, Arty, Taylor and Raven. Friends, meet… Well, you know who they are.”

“Hermione, delighted to meet you,” she says, nodding to all of you

“Ronald, but you can call me Ron,” he says, stroking his beard.

As your brain finally catches up to what is happening, your senses immediately enter battle mode. You realize that by this time of day, there should be more people in the restaurant. Not only there aren’t, but the people who were there when you arrived are gone. So are the waiters and the lady out front.

Not only that but it seems to you extremely unlikely that the Minister herself would come here without any protection, which meant that there was protection, but you couldn’t see it.

Ah crap.

“So, Lily, tell me more about this Battle Class! Harry has been sparse with the details.” As she speaks, she waves her wand and a table and chairs float to join up with yours, allowing them to sit with you. “Is it true a boy was injured? Hugo told me in his letters and I was quite shocked! Not that no one got injured in my years, but-”

Hermione and Lily start talking to each other, as if without a care in the world. By your side, Taylor is stiff as a board, and you can see Raven wiping her hands on the table cloth as they're sweating profusely. You told them everything you know, so they’re also perfectly aware that this, whatever it is, is anything except a random encounter between aunt and niece.

Arty, meanwhile, is watching Hermione with sparkling eyes, trying to drag herself into their conversation while Apollo is simply looking at everyone with a mix of confusion and annoyance.

What do you do?

> Strike a conversation with Ron (About what?)
> Keep on talking with Raven and Taylor, ignoring the newcomers
> Make up an excuse to leave
> Other(Write in)

>>5788551
ooh fuck, we in some dangerous shit now
> Strike a conversation with Ron (About what?)
no way, this is only gonna get us deeper into shit
> Keep on talking with Raven and Taylor, ignoring the newcomers
i feel like we COULD pull this off if we do it carefully enough, maybe just get lost in the noice of their conversations and go relatively unnoticed
> Make up an excuse to leave
no way we arent surrounded, this was set up, they have the place guarded
but i feel like apollo might be our savior here but im still not sure how...
for now i´ll vote for
> Keep on talking with Raven and Taylor, ignoring the newcomers

>>5788551
God fucking damnit. Can we just have one god damn week where we don't have to deal with anything relating to mystery bullshit?

> Keep on talking with Raven, Taylor, and Apollo, ignoring the newcomers
No reason not to include Apollo in the conversation, since we ARE trying to get him and everyone else friendly with each other. Maybe make an icebreaker joke with how it just got crowded here all of a sudden and let him vent his frustrations a little, as well as get Raven and Taylor's focus away from the Minister so they don't look panicked. Maybe if we can manage it we can move somewhere else while Hermione, Ron, and Lily catch up. The number one priority is that we DON'T leave the restaurant alone, if we're even able to leave at all.

>>5788551
> Keep on talking with Raven and Taylor, ignoring the newcomers

>>5788551
> Strike a conversation with Ron
>Ask him if Hugo is still seething over his crushing defeat
>Ask him what his years at Hogwarts were like
I'll bet they're here to try and wring some info out of Lily, not for us.

>>5788585
I'm not sure about mocking/taunting their child to their face...

>>5788568
I can support this approach, though.

>>5788551

>>5788551
Calling it now, Harry's trip to the Ministry set off their alarm bells and now they're digging into what's going on. They're probably here to figure out what he's pulling and what he knows.

> Strike a conversation with Ron (About his adventures with the deputy-headmaster and if they ever thought they'd end up here)
Keep calm, and try not to reveal anything about what we know and can't know. Also I really think we should ask Harry for more help with guarding our mind. I know Hermione's not going to give any shits about reading peoples minds without their permission.

>>5788606
Aren't we learning Occulumency in the background, since Potter gave us a book to learn it(plus a tutor once we have the basics the book gives us), or is that something we actually have to vote on to pursue?
I'm assuming the former since we never had a default vote option to read the book/go to the tutor, but best to get confirmation on it now.

>>5788611
You are training on the background, yes. There will come a time when it will be a choice to train, but for now it is just a background thing.

>>5788568
Support, but I wish there was a way to get Raven, Taylor, and Apollo to chat with, you know, two of the most important people in Wizarding.
The minister is Muggleborn, maybe a passing comment about a wizard school on the moon...

>>5788551
> Keep on talking with Raven, Taylor, and Apollo, ignoring the newcomers
I'm going to trust the the other anons in knowing what we should be doing.

>>5788819
If things were different sure but now they want to pry about what's happening, can't take on too much without expecting something negative to happen.

“Well, things have gotten pretty crowded, huh, Apollo?” You say, trying to make casual conversation while not showing how nervous you are.

“Yes,” he answers with his usual eloquence.

“Any ideas for where the next battle can be?”

“No.”

Why did I ever think Apollo was the best person to keep a conversation with is beyond me.

“Well, I think we’re bound for something weird,” Taylor says, understanding what you’re trying to do. “A forest and Hogwarts are normal locations. I think Potter will pull out all the stops for the next one.”

The bearded man laughs, clearly paying attention to your conversation. “Harry has never been the most creative person when it comes to anything except Defense Against the Dark Arts. I was surprised when Hugo told me about the battles.”

“Elliot and Apollo are army leaders for our year,” Raven says. “Longbottom is the other one.”

“Yes, Hugo wrote about it. Apparently Apollo here is quite an accomplished spellcaster, while Elliot is extremely versatile at potion-making, though I hear it led to some injuries in the last fight.”

“You can’t fight without getting hurt,” Apollo says, flatly.

“Well, it isn’t as if we didn’t have our fair share of injuries during our time at Hogwarts. Though it was mostly Harry who got the short end of the stick, to be fair. Mione got off almost unscathed.”

“I’m sorry?” The minister says, pulling back from her conversation. “I was petrified in our second year!”

“An extended forced nap, nothing to cry about.”

She rolls her eyes and stands up. “Well, me and Lily are going to take a walk over the gardens.“

They leave, with Lily giving Arty a meaningful look to stay behind.

“How about you five?” Ron asks. “Any exciting adventures?”

“No, fortunately,” Taylor says, just a bit too quickly. “I think the battles are excitement enough.”

“Well, good,” Raven says. “I’d be just fine with a year of simply studying. I don’t know how you coped sir, having to save the world once a year.”

“Well, it was the price of studying with fate’s lightning rod of doom as your classmate. But luckily I don’t see another wizard war with a megalomaniacal nutcase in the future, so you five should be fine.”

You keep on talking, as it soon becomes very clear the man is refusing to not only not butt into your conversation, but also to not be the center of attention either, making wide gestures and speaking loudly. It goes on for several minutes, until a red-chested bird lands on your table and starts pecking at the food.

“And then his entire arm just turns into rubber! And we’re all looking at Lockhart like-”

“Your auror wants to speak with you,” Apollo says, suddenly and sounding annoyed.

Ron hesitates for a second, clearly not used to being interrupted.

“I’m sorry?”

“I know birds,” he says, pointing. “That ain’t one.”

Ron sighs.

“Very well, Garro. You may appear.”

[Cont.]

>>5789097

The bird hops off the table and becomes a tall, lanky man with red tattoos on his face in the same shade as the bird’s chest.

“I’m sorry, sir, but the Minister is needed.”

“The Minister is always needed, Garro.”

“This time she is actually needed. Your brother is calling.”

Ron sighs once more.

“You know, my other brothers have much more fun professions. I really should have just stuck with George and the store. Instead, no, I’m stuck with Bill.” He shakes his head and stands up. “Very well, another day where I can’t have a proper lunch with my wife. Well, it was a pleasure meeting all of you. Hope you all have terrible luck in your battles and that my son crushes you. Goodbye!”

He walks over to where Hermione is clearly having a heated argument with Lily. They talk for a few seconds before disappearing. Then, you hear nothing less than seven other apparition pops coming from invisible people, followed by the bird animagus.

“Well, that was certainly something,” Lily says, sitting back down.

“What did she want?”

She doesn’t answer, instead raising her wand and casting spells at the environment. You only recognize a couple of them, but enough to understand they’re detection and protection enchantments.

She gets to the sixteenth and something begins to glow in your pocket. You notice the same glow in the vests of every one of your friends. She finishes five more enchantments before stopping, seemingly tired, before picking up the glowing point that had appeared on her chest and showing it to you. It is a little semi-transparent creature with dozens of tiny legs.

“Tracking bugs,” she explains before crushing it. “Uncle Ron is very good at attracting attention while these slip in people’s pockets. You can barely feel it against your skin too, so they can follow you even if you change clothes. Dad is going to be furious at them.”

“Uh,” Arty says, looking worried as she pulls one out of her hair. “Why would they put these on us?”

“Because Hermione thinks my dad decided to train armies for a reason and won’t tell her. Don’t worry, she’s just being paranoid. It’s her job.”

“Are you sure she won’t be mad if we crush her things?”

She takes it from Arty’s hand and crushes it. “Well, then she should learn how to not spy on people.”

You all crush your bugs, and are left feeling slightly disturbed by what just happened. It takes a while before you manage to eat again, and your stomach never stops being in a tight knot.

--

Once you finish the meal, Arty leaves for her job and Apollo returns to Hogwarts. You leave to sit on the fields near Hogsmeade and she casts all twenty one spells before speaking.

“Aunt wanted to know what dad is up to,” Lily says as you walk through the fields close to Hogwarts. “They know something is happening, but they don’t know what. They think you’re involved, but don’t know how.”

“How the hell did they figure that out?”

“Hugo told them.”

[Cont.]

“What?” You ask confused. “But how does he know-”

“He doesn’t. He just saw a chance to fuck with the boy who crushed him last battle and took it. He’s clever enough to know there’s something going on from family letters, so when Hermione asked if hed noticed something something weird, he immediately responded by saying he saw you doing something suspicious. It was sheer dumb chance that you happened to be the right person to look at.”

“Merlin’s balls, my luck doesn’t fucking get any better, does it?”

“If it’s any consolation, I told them Hugo was just being an arse. Hogwarts also has enchantments against the bugs, so as long as you stay within the school’s boundaries you’ll be fine.” She sighs. “The Unspeakables are losing their shit about the prophecies.”

“I noticed. Do you think there’s any chance they could come after me?”

“Not yet. Aunt Hermione is cautious, she wouldn’t send them on a student without absolute proof he’s the second coming of Voldemort or something like that. I think that’s what she wanted to get with the bugs.”

“December first can’t come fast enough,” you say. “It feels like a time bomb, waiting to explode.”

“Just hang on, Elliot,” she says. “Just a little bit more.”

> Go to your army’s celebration in the Three Broomsticks
> Return to Hogwarts and rest

>>5789102
> Go to your army’s celebration in the Three Broomsticks
Fucking Hermione ruining our friendly get together.

>>5789102
> Return to Hogwarts and rest
Oof. Gotta' decompress from that.

>>5789102
> Go to your army’s celebration in the Three Broomsticks

>>5789102
> Return to Hogwarts and rest
as much as i want to be a nice General and celebrate with our army, we need to rest for this one, maybe talking things with our pillow will help us clear our mind and figure out what to do next after all this info was dumped on us

>>5789102
> Go to your army’s celebration in the Three Broomsticks

Damn, IRL strikes and we crush Hugo because even the dice think he is a twat. I am okay even if we lose our next battle because we would still end with the best record. Also Apollo fucks, using silent free transmutation in a fight is like Dumbledore/Gredlewald level shit, and he is still a student.

As a note, if we hadn't already figured out what Merlin's Last Light was, I would vote to rest since it smells like a Dream Lady interaction but I see no pressing need to speak with her right now.

>>5789205
There's always more stuff we can ask her to get a clearer picture of what is going on, and what we need to do. I'm particularly interested in how mind lady's future seeing abilities bypass the fact that time is broken, and no more prophecies are being made.
>>5789102
> Return to Hogwarts and rest

>>5789102
> Go to your army’s celebration in the Three Broomsticks

>>5789102
> Return to Hogwarts and rest
I'd like to hear what Potter says about this.

>>5789354
It's probably optimal to go straight to potter to make it obvious how his involvement is causing things to spiral

>>5789102
> Go to your army’s celebration in the Three Broomsticks

>>5789102
>> Return to Hogwarts and rest

I go away for a couple of hours and when I return...

> Go to your army’s celebration in the Three Broomsticks
> Return to Hogwarts and rest
> Go to your army’s celebration in the Three Broomsticks
> Return to Hogwarts and rest
> Go to your army’s celebration in the Three Broomsticks
> Return to Hogwarts and rest
> Go to your army’s celebration in the Three Broomsticks
> Return to Hogwarts and rest
> Weird porn game vg thread mispost that was deleted
> Go to your army’s celebration in the Three Broomsticks
> Return to Hogwarts and rest

Fucking hell. It's a tie, so I'm going to give it another half an hour and close the vote, then roll a d2 if it is still tied

>>5789404
It wasn't a mispost, some asshole has been spamming that in a bunch of quests for weeks now.

>>5789357
I wouldn't be so optimistic. He might take that as a sign to involve them in what's happening to us.

>>5789404
Go to the celebration
Tie broken

>>5789445
I was just about to go ahead and change my vote because
>>5789276
Had some good points but fuck it, I am not deadlocking us again.

>>5789357
Haven't we been told even telling him that much is a recipe for shit to go south quick. Like even just telling him he can't be involved seemed like we were treading on thin ice.

>>5789478
Mindlady has been vague on what we're allowed to tell him. She's told us that if he knows too much then disaster happens, but WHAT will cause him to know too much is unknown. It's obvious we can't keep everything secret from him, but it's also obvious that he won't stop digging until he knows everything, so we're in a pickle.

File: E9lRwk0XEAs8cvJ.jpg (66 KB, 2048x1176)

66 KB JPG

So while reading back up on some Harry Potter lore waiting for an update, I just relearned how you become an animagus: a difficult and time-consuming potion. Too bad our character isn't a potions prodigy because being able to turn back and forth from animal to human would be super useful. Oh wait, we are a master potioneer with a book of complex potions and the notes from likely the most talented potion maker in the series.

I does take a month to brew and then only catalyses during a lightning storm, so something for after we keep the word from ending, but I do think it is a good project to pursue with our talents. If Peter fucking Petigrew and Rita Skeeter could pull it off we can too.

>>5789102
I really hope I haven't voted.
> Go to your army’s celebration in the Three Broomsticks to clear the deadlock.

>>5789548
>So while reading back up on some Harry Potter lore waiting for an update, I just relearned how you become an animagus: a difficult and time-consuming potion. Too bad our character isn't a potions prodigy because being able to turn back and forth from animal to human would be super useful. Oh wait, we are a master potioneer with a book of complex potions and the notes from likely the most talented potion maker in the series.
We should totally do this. What do we want to be? A dinosaur would fit the 'lost world' bit...What other lost animals are there?

>>5789548
>>5789564

Becoming an animagus is the single most overcomplicated process in the series, and for good reason. The step by step is:

- Keep a single Mandrake leaf in your mouth for an entire month (from full moon to full moon). If the leaf was removed or swallowed, you have to start over again.
- Wait for the next visible full moon (if it was cloudy, you need to start over), spit the leaf in a phial under moonlight, add one of their own hairs, a silver teaspoon of dew that has not seen sunlight or been touched by human feet for seven days, and the chrysalis of a Death's-head Hawk Moth.
- Store that shit in the dark and wait for the next thunderstorm
- While the thunderstorm doesn't happen, you have to say and incantation at sunset and sunrise
- During the thunderstorm, drink the "potion"
- Register yourself as an animagus with the ministry

It isn't as much a potion as a whole-ass ritual. How the fuck four fuckers managed to do it during Hogwarts without anyone knowing boggles the fucking mind. The third book says there are 7 registered animagi in the 20th century, but considering how crap the ministry is, there is probably more.

Also, you don't pick the form (though in the event of this coming up in the quest I may allow the players to choose, though I'm not certain yet)

>>5789585
>Also, you don't pick the form
Kek, makes pettigrew turning into a rat even funnier.

>>5789564
Tasmanian tiger? Unless the animal has to be currently extant to be something you transform into. I believe some species of wolf have gone extinct in the past several hundred years as well. One of those big ass condors from New Zealand or a dodo?

I think a largish cat has the most use if we want to explore lost places, a good mix of can defend itself and can make it through collaped passages we might encounter, if we do this and QM gives us a choice.

And if we do end up making the "potion", fuck registering ourselves. Ministry can get fucked and in one of the games, I think, a character's parents were murdered by death eaters because the registry is public.

>>5789596
I think the animal is supposed to reflect part of who you really are and is sometimes the same as your patronus, like with McGonagal where both are cats.

>>5789585
>-Register yourself as an animagus with the ministry
this one isnt 100% necessary, not doing so would gives an huge boost to our stealth because there is no way anybody would ever know we are an animal, con is that its "illegal" but thats about it

>>5789604
True, though it isn't necessary that both forms are the same (since Dumbledore's patrouns was a fucking phoenix). Though, interestingly, I couldn't find anyone in cannon whose patronus is different than their animagus form.

>>5789614
We're Slytherin. Being a little dodgy is expected.

>>5789600
Tasmanian tiger. Fuck yes.

>>5789600
Also 'Giant Cats of Scottland' are less weird OOP entities with Wizards 'cause isn't there a creature in the wizarding lore that is actually that?

Even though you’re mentally tired from… whatever that was that happened in the restaurant, you still have a celebration to go to. You three quickly pop back to Hogwarts to get the proper attire before heading for the Three Broomsticks.

“Why, my good sire! What a lovely evening to see you in this fine establishment!” Talon says, welcoming you as you enter wearing your finest suit and monocles. “You will see I have procured the best tables available and already requested their finest butterbeer!”

“Explandid! Now, dear Talon, let us all celebrate our victory over the forces of evil shall we?”

All around the pub, several adults were watching all of you with amused expressions on their faces. This included Hannah, the owner, and Arty, who was already wearing her own set of mustache and monocles. She’s by your table the moment you sit.

“Ah, if it isn’t the dashing leader of this fearsome army! What might I procure for you on this fine day, sir?”

“Why, I don’t suppose the lady of the house would allow us to sample her finest alcohol, would she?”

“Not knowingly, no. But, say, if some happened to accidentally mix with the butterbeer…”

“Ah, no need to go to such measures, my dear. Then the usual, along with your delightful tallian fries, if you wouldn’t mind.”

“Very well, sir.”

And she skates off to fetch your order as you sit by your lieutenants.

“I’m going to be honest, Elliot,” Elend says, clearly already in here for a while and tired of speaking like an idiot. To be fair, it is much harder to maintain it for a long time without a hefty dose of alcohol in you. “When I got stunned, I didn’t think I’d wake up to a victory.”

“All thanks to the power of the great Reverse Caliburn! Truly a move for the ages!”

“It’s still a stupid move,” Talon said, taking a swig of his butterbeer.

“It won us two fights, and the battle!”

“Doesn’t stop it from being stupid!”

“As the great maxim always said, if it is foolish but effective, then it is not foolish at all!”

“Why is it called the Reverse Caliburn, again?” Taylor asks. “I think Elliot came up with it in one of the training sessions I missed.”

“Caliburn was a magic sword pulled up from a stone, the Reverse Caliburn is sending magic down towards your foe.” Amalia explains. “There is absolutely no reason for it to be called that other than Elliot wanting a move referencing it so he could explain that Caliburn, not Excalibur, was the sword from the stone.”

“Exactly!” You say. “If we ever have a move where we push someone into a lake, we can call it Reverse Excalibur, too.”

“But it was the same sword,” Elend says. “The lady of the lake just repaired it! You don’t just change the name of your sword because you broke it and fixed it back again.”

“Tell that to Andúril.”

“Anduril wasn’t a real sword! It’s just something Tolkien came up with, it’s not relevant!”

“He came up with it based on Arthurian legend! It is very much relevant!”

[Cont.]

>>5789701

Somewhere out of your range of attention of trying to fix Elend’s clearly and objectively wrong opinion, Amalia leans over to Talon and whispers.

“Do you have any idea what an Anduril or a Tolkien is?”

“Probably crazy muggle stuff. Want to see if that old radio has something worth dancing to?”

“Well, I didn’t go through the effort of getting in this uncomfortable dress for nothing.”

--

The rest of the evening goes smoothly, with your army having fun and chatting loudly, Arty keeping a steady supply of cold butterbeer. Once Amalia manages to convince Hannah to allow them to push a few tables out of the way and cast a sonorus on the radio so they could dance, things start getting heated up.

The songs vary from current pop to classic music, which leads to what any sane observer would classify as 'utter insanity'. This includes, to your complete surprise, Taylor and Raven going to dance together, though you never see who invited who.

“Damn,” Talon says, falling on a seat by you. “I missed my chance.”

“What do you mean?”

“Amalia,” he points to where she’s dancing with Elend. “Figured I’d shoot my shot, but she put me down. Elend is difficult to beat. He got money and looks. I only have the looks.”

You laugh with him and watch the dancing for a while.

“How about you?”

“Huh?”

“Come on, I’m from Hufflepuff. I know you and Arty have been ‘learning potions’ together and ‘training battle magic’.”

“What? That’s not an euphemism! We really were studying and training, you can ask the other fifth years! And the potions thing happened, like, twice!”

“Uh-huh. And you’re telling me you weren’t watching her every time she passed by to get us some more butterbeer? I saw how you smiled every time she was close, general. You could at least ask her to dance.”

“Uh… She’s working right now.”

“Yes, and I’m sure that if you were to kindly ask Hannah she’d let her off duty for a few minutes.”

You hesitate.

“Well, if you’re sure you really were just studying together, then maybe I will go ask her to dance.”

“Talon, I swear to Merlin that if you do that I will hex you into April.”

He laughs loudly. “I knew it. Very well, I’ll keep my distance, general. But what’s the worst that can happen if you go ask her?”

“She can say ‘no’. She can say ‘ew’. She can hex me. I can fall on my face and look like an ass. I can step on her toes. She can have a severe allergic reaction to Slytherins. Too many possibilities to count.”

“If you say so, boss. Want me to ask for another butterbeer so you can watch as she leaves?”

“The ‘hexing you into April’ offer is still very much on the table, Talon.”

> Ask Arty to dance
> Just enjoy the party

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>>5789676
Kneazles? Granger's cat was a F1 cat/kneazle and was huge and smart.

>>5789669
It would get style points and could probably fuck shit up, but would be useless for spying or hiding from people, unless wizards have a secret population of them. Same for most cool animals, and if we did not register, which we should never do, would be pretty easy to trace to us if anyone ever sees us in animal form. A kneazel or giant cat is at least a little more subtle.

>>5789640
If that is the case, I would say if you are animagus and can cast a formed patronus, they are the same, since there is no example where they are different. Unless you want them to be, it is your show.

>>5789706
> Ask Arty to dance
Shoot our shot! I mean, she keeps kissing our cheek and went on a date with us. If she says no, I bet she's just shy about dancing or PDA; I feel confident she likes us.

>>5789706
WE BALLING
> Ask Arty to dance

>>5789706
> Ask Arty to dance
I'm personally going to bat for mindlady so long as she doesn't start possessing us, but Arty is nice and we might as well.

>>5789710
That's it, Kneazle. Any other HP animals that are clearly mythological for our poor pulp-loving brain?
And so what if it's not 'there are dozens of rats in London' sneaky, it is still 'apex predator that has been keeping itself unseen for decades, if not centuries'. That's gotta count for something, as well as style.

Anyway, >>5789706. If she says 'no' we dance with Raven too.

>>5789706
> Ask Arty to dance

>>5789585
This sounds extremely convoluted and challenging. I almost want to try doing this because of that.
Is Harry Potter usually this complicated with magic?

>>5789726
Just when Rowling spent more than 5 seconds thinking about the consequences of it being easy, so not a lot.

She implies there are more complex rituals (like with the horcrux and reviving Voldemort), but the only thing that we do see and that comes close are other potions (like Polyjuice and Felix Felicis which take months to brew).

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>>5789706
> Ask Arty to dance
> "Do you want to dance for a minute, I know the song they are playi... I, mean Dame Pertinger, would you do the conquering hero the great service of accomponing him to the dance floor? Though I am familiar with this lovely muggle ditty, I fear I have no one to share in my appreciation of it with!"

Like you even had to ask QM.

>>5789706
> This includes, to your complete surprise, Taylor and Raven going to dance together
Well anons, all I'm seeing here is that neither of these two can tease Elliot about Arty again. At least, assuming they can't take what they dish out.

> Ask Arty to dance
Fuck it, might as well. In order to surpass Snape in potion making, we must first surpass him in the art of getting a girlfriend.

inb4 we have to roll so we don't fuck up the dance

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>>5789723
I haven't read the books or supplementary stuff in well over a decade but if you run through the magical creature section of the HPWiki, like at least half of them are based off of or are just straight mythological creatures. Some are just pure WTF like Erumpents, but the point stands. If there is a relatively well known legendary creature, it is either real or something pretty close is. Like in China, I could almost guarantee some of their wands have Qulin whiskers instead of unicorn hair and others use, like, firebird beaks vs Phoenix feathers. Assuming the chink wizards haven't done what their muggle countrymen have and eaten magical animals into near extinction to make their cocks work better, that is.

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>>5789762
The Erumpent is quite similar to ONE mythological creature, albeit more... Child-targeted series friendly.

Rolled 49 (1d100)

>>5789706
WE DANCING BOIS!
also, rolling for lucky slow romanting song playing next, if over 50 we get our song, if under 50 we ALSO get our song, fuck you, i want a slow romantic song and steal a kiss already!

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>>5789785
We are going to get the club mix of Baby Shark or something because Merlin/god hates us.

We will end up as the 2nd coming of Snape, a forever alone potions nerd, although I don't think we will stoop to...uhg... teaching.

>>5789788
anon, we already tutor Arty, help teach people battle strats and techniques with Lilly, and were literally running an impromptu potions lesson in the middle of our last battle class

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>>5789788
dont you fucking dare jinx this for me, i keel ya

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Rolled 2 + 1 (1d10 + 1)

>>5789794
I mean her brother cucked us out of that 1st walk home; I don't think QM is going to give us freebies when it comes to our love life. And are we going to walk back with the twins again tonight? I would say yes when it comes to a vote.

Also rolling for penis size. Too big and we send her to St.Mungo's and Apollo bodies us for hurting her. Normally I would do +2 but Elliot is a wee man.

Rolled 4 + 1 (1d10 + 1)

>>5789860
best of 3

Rolled 1 + 1 (1d10 + 1)

>>5789860
>3
Damn...

>>5789870
I'm so sorry, Elliot.

>>5789860
Welp, don't have to worry about St. Mungo's, just her laughing.

Getting killed by her brother seems like a preferable outcome.

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>>5789870
"Little Elliot"
Seems like Lily already knew. What a terrible night for a curse.
Maybe that is why we want to find Agartha or Atlantis; surely they have the technology modern wizard kind has lost.

>>5789867
This is acceptable for a dude who is like 5'3

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Rolled 1 + 1 (1d10 + 1)

>>5789860
>rolling for penis size
>these results so far
please, im begging you RNGesus! WITNESS MY ROLLS!

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>>5789880
its so over...im so sorry bros

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>>5789880

Rolled 1 + 1 (1d10 + 1)

>>5789860
>>5789867
>>5789870
>>5789880
>Dicklets
Lel

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>>5789880
>>5789870
Hahahaha

"I'm sorry Elliot, its cute and all, but at this point I might as well just use my fingers. Oh, but you can watch I guess..." [sad Arty smile]

>elliot casts the self extinction charm

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Rolled 9 + 2 (1d10 + 2)

>>5789894
It keeps fucking happening. Kek. Top kek even.

Rolling for Apollo dick size.

>>5789894
>another fucking 1
are you fucking serious right now!?

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>>5789896
FUCKING BULLSHIT!!!!

>>5789896
Apollochads, who can stop our grindset?

>>5789896
"Elliot, get the fuck out, I'm fucking my sister now" - Apollo

Rolled 9 (1d10)

>>5789896
Rolling for Brighton

>>5789904
Okay, this isn't funny anymore.

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>>5789904
HAHAHAHA

>>5789902
He would snap her in half, lol. You know living together for most of their lives, she has to have walked in to him pissing in the middle of the night at least once.

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>>5789904
ok, fuck this, we are a perfect, middle of the road 5 and thats it, maybe more if QM feels generous, but im fucking done with this bullshit, the dice are obviously weighted

Rolled 9 (1d10)

>>5789910
>the dice are obviously weighted
Let's test that out. Rolling for Hugo