The Raven's Call

The Golden Egg

The next morning, I awaken to some hustle and bustle about in the common room. Luna, my GIRLFRIEND, is still cuddled into me. I'm still in my suit, hair a mess, head pounding from the music that had been blasting. And I wouldn't have it any other way. The night was wonderful, the most magical night that hadn't actually involved any magic. I give Luna a small kiss on the cheek before getting up, letting her sleep as I get ready for the day. As I stand, I notice a piece of paper float to the floor, must've been on me before I stood up. I take a look at the paper, but it's only a crudely drawn map of a specific location in Hogwarts. Well, that's not ominous at all.

I throw on a green button up and some jeans before leaving the common room, being greeted by Cedric. "Happy Christmas, Attic." He beams. "Happy Christmas, Ceddy." I beam in return, looking down at the object in his arms as I begin walking down the large spiral staircase, Cedric following. "Is that the egg?" I ask, raising a brow. He nods. "I figured since you helped me with the first task, you might want to help me with this one." He suggests, holding the large egg towards me. "Have you tried opening it?" I ask. "Well, not yet, no." He responds sheepishly. "Well-," I say with a smile as I open the latch at the top. The egg pops open with a deafening scream, effectively startling the passers-by. I quickly shut the damn thing. "Well, then." I say with a sigh, examining the outer contents. We're both puzzled by the enigma of this egg that only screams when opened. "I can't wrap my head around it, Attic," Cedric says, as I turn the golden egg over in my hands while we walk. "What do you reckon could be inside?" I furrow my brow, deep in thought. "Honestly, I'm stumped. But maybe it's something that reacts to air?" Cedric nods, considering my suggestion. "Could be. But how do we test it without triggering that awful scream?" We ponder the question for a moment, until I'm struck with an idea. "What if... what if we try opening it underwater?" I propose eagerly. Cedric grins, impressed by my lateral thinking. "That's brilliant! Water would create a barrier, right? Preventing whatever's inside from reacting to the air." Cedric exclaims. "Come on!" He begins running off, I struggle to keep up with the large egg clasped in my hands.

Soon enough, he leads me to the prefect's bathroom on the fifth floor. Concealed behind a beautiful tapestry showing mermaids, this huge bathroom inhabits a large marble bathtub that stays warm and releases calming scents, with multiple taps each with their own stream a different colour of the rainbow. There's also a comfy lounge area with cozy seating for students to relax before or after their bath. I cannot wait to become the Ravenclaw prefect, and, let's face it, of course I'm going to become prefect. 

We kneel over the rim of the large bathtub as I place the egg under the water. Ceddy and I look at each other for a moment before I reach in and unlatch the top. The egg bursts itself open once again. This time, a muffled noise emanates from the egg, barely audible above the water. No screams. We exchange excited glances, realizing we might have cracked the first half of the puzzle. Soon we both shove our heads under the water, listening to the melodious voices emanating from the egg.

"Come seek us where our voices sound,
we cannot sing above the ground.
An hour long, you'll have to look,
to recover what we took."

Alright. Okay, a riddle. I'm good at those.

We both return our heads to the surface, taking a big gulp of fresh air, as our hair had now become mops on our heads. "Okay, 'Come seek us where our voices sound,' suggests that the search should take place underwater, seeing as that's what we had to do to hear the riddle." I begin, dissecting the riddle line by line as I fix my hair. " 'we cannot sing above the ground,' Well, obviously, that's why we heard the screeching out of the water, but singing inside the water." I continue. "The third line, 'An hour long, you'll have to look,' implies that the search may take some time or effort. Finally, 'to recover what we took' suggests that the searcher is going to retrieve something that was lost or taken underwater." I finish. "The black lake. It's gotta be." I announce, looking at Cedric, who has a look of bewilderment on his face. "I am so glad to call you my brother." He says proudly, ruffling my mop of hair. 

Best Christmas gift ever!

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