Treasure Hunt: End of Line

[Josef Muller]

((Continued from Treasure Hunt: Courage, Strength and Magic))

Josef was glad that Jared hadn’t gotten upset with the fact that he’d gotten the clue first, although he couldn’t help smiling—maybe just a little—at the fact that Jared was gasping and sweating. It wasn’t so much that the boy was having a more difficult time than he was…

…Okay, maybe it was. C’mon. What forty-year-old man wouldn’t be pleased by the fact that he wasn’t as out of breath as a teenager? He was only human. But he suppressed his grin and instead tried to make himself look semi-serious.

“I don’t know what it is either,” he had to admit to the question of “pease porridge.” He’d kind of played along with it on the principle that someone seemed to know what they were doing. It only now occurred to him that, as the adult of the group, he probably shouldn’t be just playing along. Oops. “Maybe it’s sort of like oatmeal? Anyways.” he waved it off. Of course, Jordan looking to him for the idea only reinforced the idea that he had to be…responsible. Fun stuff.

“I…don’t think it’s sugar,” he said after a moment, slowly, staring some ways over the boy’s shoulders to think about this. “And I don’t think it’s chocolate. I think that’s from South America. No, I think it’s…coffee.” He shrugged. “I think. C’mon.” He turned to smile down at them, then turned and headed to his car.

He hadn’t been there for very long, but as a deep sleeper who didn’t handle mornings well, there wasn’t much he knew better than coffee. So he headed to the best known café in town—Kali’s. He figured if it WAS about coffee, this would probably be the place. This time, his driving was even slow and steady. Sorry, Jared. Josef would rather not get into an accident, or get a ticket. They arrived without incident, and he stepped out.

“I think this is the answer,” he said. “Or…sort of. You know, a coffee place. You two want to go in and check it out?”

Might as well determine quickly if he was wrong or not.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean Neville had a keen sense of community spirit. It was why he chaperoned all of the dances at Hammel, it was why he volunteered at the LGBT youth center, it was why he volunteered at field day, and it was why he was currently seated in Kali’s café with a Danish, a cup of coffee, and a riddle that he had committed to memory.

Taking the time for the little treasure hunt hadn’t been difficult; with M.S.A.D. neutralized and the hours he kept, he had seemingly unlimited free time when not in his office.

No, the most difficult aspect of the whole situation had been finding a dragon costume.

But he had managed to find one, even if it was less than flattering. His attic was filled with costume chests from past Halloween parties, theme dances, and the occasional Renaissance Faire or convention that his nephew or a friend managed to talk him into attending. But nothing in his attic had been quite satisfactory, which had meant a trip to a costume shop and a bit of online shopping.

It would be easier if he was a shapeshifter, but at least he was getting used to his tail.

While he sat there with his Danish and his coffee, he heard mental chatter and looked out the window. Someone had finally reached the final riddle, and now it was his turn to participate. He pushed aside his paper plate and plastic cup, and stood, going to the corner to look either wise or menacing, whichever was more appropriate for this little game.

Then he waited.

[Jared Park]

Thank goodness Jared wasn’t telepathic. Not only is the world a whole lot peaceful and quieter with the boy not being privy to Jordan’s (nasty) thoughts about him (not that the CampbellScholl kid made any effort to be subtle about his irritation and condescension), but should he have heard about Josef’s ‘gloating’ upon seeing him pant so hard, the boy would’ve been upset as hell. He looked at Josef as some sort of ally – not fully on his side, but not fully against him either; if he knew about such thoughts, he would think that Josef’s just putting up with him but is really on the brat’s side.

Oh how crushing that would feel.

“Ha. Then you shouldn’t have suggested it in the first place. And you call me stupid,” said Jared with a smug grin. It wasn’t much, but it counted as some small victory in the Canadian boy’s books. “Hot sugar isn’t dumb. You know that brown topping they put in crème brûlée? It’s burnt sugar.” Or at least that’s what his sister told him.

Though he has to agree, Jordan’s chocolate assumption pretty much hit the mark. Only…“Even I know chocolate comes from South America.” Not really, but every little opportunity to gloat counts. Especially when he was almost convinced that his nemesis was right. “Coffee seems more right.” Josef’s never failed them so far after all.

He happily strapped himself on Josef’s back seat once more and was a little disappointed that the man’s theatrical driving (read: Fast and Furious-esque tricks) weren’t on the agenda. Damn. “Hopefully this one’s right. We could spend the whole day checking through coffee shops if this isn’t it.” An exaggeration, but since it’s almost evening, it’s not entirely false.

“Let me just get something to drink,” he grinned as he made his way to the counter. Hooray focus. “You want anything Josef?” A little thank you, he says.

And yes, he did not ask Jordan if he wants any. The day he spends his money for the boy would be the day hell froze over.

[Jordan Scholl]

"It's still not hot when you eat it," Jordan insisted on the topic of sugar. He wasn't quite willing to let this one go.

At Jared's proud statement that he knew where chocolate came from, Jordan gave him a look. However, since he couldn't think of a way to test this statement, he had to let it go. At least for the time being. Especially since he agreed with the coffee idea. Now that Josef had said it, it made complete sense. "All right, coffee sounds good. I guess we go to a coffee shop then."

Since Josef seemed to know where he was going for this one, Jordan was happy to let him figure out where they were going. This time he sat in the back and let Jared have the front. Because he likes to be nice like that every once in a while. And he was glad to see that there was no more dangerous driving to make him carsick.

"We should all go in, right?" Jordan asked Josef. "I mean, we have to be together as a team when we win this." He stepped out of the car and followed Jared into the shop. This was a part of town he hadn't been to before, but he vaguely remembered someone mentioning Kali's Cafe. It seemed like a pretty good spot, since Ginny was the one placing all the clues.

When he first walked in, he made a point to ignore whatever Jared was saying--it probably wasn't important anyway--and instead looked around. The giant dragon in the corner looked promising.

Walking over to the dragon, he squinted up at it. "So, are we supposed to kill the dragon or something? 'Cause I left my wand and my lightsaber up at the school." He knew it was a bad idea to leave his wand behind.

"Jared," he said, turning around. "Did you bring anything to kill a dragon?" If not he could always just find a stick outside, but it just wouldn't be the same. He hoped someone else had brought the proper dragon-slaying materials with them.

[Josef Muller]

The peace, it seemed, was doomed from the start. They were back to arguing and it had been all of…what? A half-hour? Jared was now calling Jordan stupid, and Jordan didn’t seem to believe that another idea might have merit…although, to be fair, he did agree to go along with Josef’s idea. Good.

“I don’t think there are that many coffee places in Pilot Ridge, Jared,” he said instead, glancing over at him. “But I suppose we should all go in.” To present the illusion of teamwork at least. No, that wasn’t fair. They were trying, and they were somewhat getting along now. So when Jordan went in, he followed, his eyes scanning the room for who might offer the clue. He was only half paying attention to what Jared was saying, but it was enough for something in the back of his brain to start waving the red flag. He’d been offered a drink but not Jordan? Not good.

“I’m all right,” he told the boy. Then, realizing that Jordan was moving forward, he leaned over and caught Jared’s collar (no, he has no faith in his ability to listen) and gently dragged him back. “Maybe we should get the clue first. Then we’ll talk about drinks. That dragon looks…promising.”

Actually, ridiculous came to mind. Sorry, Sean. Josef never believed in costumes anyways, and he’s had a bit of a rough day.

“No slaying,” he told Jordan firmly. “None whatsoever.” Especially because he did have something that could kill the “dragon” in the trunk of his car. “I don’t think it’s necessary. Ah, sir…” He turned his attention to the dragon. He didn’t really want to be the one to do this, but he also wanted to avoid the boys climbing on top of the man in an attempt to beat the clue out of him. “What’s the next step?”

He had a feeling that it should have been more…poetically phrased, but he'd already known he'd make a horrendous quester of any nature.

[Jared Park]

A small ‘urgk!’ escaped the Canadian kid when he suddenly felt his collar ride up, the pressure on his vocal cords making his eyes and tongue pop out as he was stopped mid-step. “You didn’t have to do that you know,” grumbled the boy, arranging his collar as he let himself be led to wherever Josef was planning on taking them. He shot the man a slight glare, just so he knows that the whole tugging thing was ‘not cool’. God, when did he get so pushy? Did Jordan suddenly rub off him or something?

So focused was he with the prospect of grabbing some good old caffeine and cocoa that the ominous dragon by the corner escaped him. If Jordan hadn’t mentioned dragon-slaying, he still would’ve missed it, even if they’re walking towards it’s/his direction.

“Why would you want to kill a dragon-” whispered the boy to Jordan, backing up slightly so that Josef won’t hear, “-when you can catch it?” With an impish grin, Jared opened his bag, grabbing two palm-sized plush pokeballs. “I knew I shouldn’t have left my master ball back in the dorm. Darn it.”

And yes, if you’re wondering, the boy really is planning on throwing the ball on the mandragon. Pointless, yes, but he’s actually very excited about it and is already giggling and shaking like crazy.

“You ready?” he grinned, handing one to Jordan, “Aim for the head ok?”

And off the balls went.

ooc:
Seeeeeaaaaan. Hope you don't mind me butting in. I've been looking all over for you the past two days but I didn't catch you. So sorry for not asking before hand. D;. But yeah, since Jared didn't 'notice' Sean earlier, I figured I do something. SO SORRY. I could totes take this out if you like. D;. HEE. -rambling. SOrry. ^^.
- Jam

[Dr. Sean Neville]

The telepath sighed and reached up with his hands to catch the balls, one in each hand. He glanced down at them briefly, recognizing them from a cartoon he’d watched with Ryan years ago and from other students throughout the years. They clashed so terribly with the theme of this entire scavenger hunt that there were no words.

But he remained in character because this had been a promise to Ginny, and he was fond of her. Even with the discomfort of the costume and the fact that Jared had tried to capture him in a tiny red ball because that apparently made sense to the boy. “As with most situations in life, brains will triumph over brawn. Sharing and cooperation over hording and personal gain.” That was addressed to the entire group, not merely Jared.

Considering the fact that he was in a dragon costume, Sean thought that he had done a fair job of retaining his dignity; good oration and an air of confidence aided that immeasurably.

“You are nearly at the end of your quest. Your last challenge is to answer a riddle. I alone know the answer, and you cannot use your mechanical devices for that is an automatic forfeiture and you go home empty-handed. If you answer my riddle, you will be victorious, and you will be rewarded.”

The telepath quirked his eyebrow at them, challenging them. “Are you prepared?”

[Jordan Scholl]

So killing the dragon was out. Fine. Jordan was about to protest, but luckily Jared had a back-up plan. Finally the guy was good for something.

He took the offered pokeball and chucked it at the dragon's head. Not that he was necessarily sure that it would actually capture the creature, but it seemed like a better idea. Everyone knew that dragons were dangerous, and the appropriate step to take in approaching them was to get them under control.

But this one had opposable thumbs and was able to catch the balls. Yes, Jordan had been aware that this was just a human in a dragon costume, but he thought the guy could get a little more in character here. And what did he mean spouting off wise sayings like that? What did he think they were doing? They were a team, and they had gotten here by using their brains. (At least some of them had.)

He listened to the dragon's speech, arms crossed over his chest and brow furrowed. "Wait, you mean we could've been using our computers for the other ones? Well that would've made all this easier! You could've said something earlier, you know."

But he was ready to agree to whatever terms this "dragon" had to offer. He'd heard the word "reward" mentioned in there, so he was already nodding his head.

"Yeah, all right. We're ready for the dragon riddle. Let's go."

[Josef Muller]

Josef really hadn’t meant to hurt the boy, and his lips turned into a slight frown at the sound. Oops. “Sorry,” he offered to him. “You just seemed very…” Distracted? Energetic? Focused on all the wrong things? “Driven,” was what he settled on, eventually. It seemed like the safest word. And as he did feel bad for dragging Jared, he felt it was only fair for him to say something that was relatively nice to him.

That desire, however, went straight down the drain as Jared pulled out the pokeballs and, before Josef could figure out what he was about, threw them. The expression on his face could be described as sour at best, and deadly at worse. Deadly for Jared, of course, and possibly Jordan, because they both chucked the blasted things at the “dragon’s” head. Josef wasn’t sure whether to just quietly excuse himself to hit his head against a wall or to hit their heads together until they weren’t moving. But the latter would probably get him arrested, so he refrained.

He did think the quote was a little ironic, though. At least for him—the man who had lived off of brawn over brains. Oh well.

He sighed at Jordan’s comment and resisted the urge to face-palm again, then shrugged his shoulders.

“If we’re done chucking pokeballs,” he said, eyeing the two younger boys again meaningfully, “then I think we are ready. Jared? What do you think?”

[Jared Park]

Ok. So maaaaybe the pokeballs were somewhat of an overkill. But come on. Sean came into the café wearing a dragon costume and he expected easily excitable teenagers to approach him in a peaceful manner? Not a chance. Considering the roller coaster Jared went through for the day, he’d happily jump over any chance of having fun he can get. Chugging balls at Institute officials who are institutions themselves included.

“Aww shucks. This is why we should’ve weakened him first,” groaned the teen when the dragon easily caught the balls in his hands. He tried to keep a straight-face throughout, but within seconds, he was burst out laughing, clutching his stomach with one hand as he put another on Jordan’s shoulder. He didn’t really know who was in the costume until he turned around and talked. Good god. He could never look at Dr. Neville the same way again. (Good luck for his turn at the sex ed seminar at that).

His boisterous laughter continued for a while (when he heard Dr. Neville speak), and though while it decreased in volume due to the looks he’s getting, it was still rather distracting. “Big words. Oh my god,” was all he could say as he tried to catch his breath, wiping the tears that form on the sides of his eyes. He was still rather red and panting hard, but he managed to pull an ‘ok’ sign out and grinned. “Not like I have a choice anyway.”

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean could overheard Jared’s thoughts, which would lead to a lecture after this scavenger hunt was over, when he was back in a suit and tie and wasn’t in the middle of a café. Extracurricular activities were no excuse to undermine professional courtesy, and he would see that there would be no changes in interaction as a result of his volunteering. Jordan’s thoughts were less concerning and unworthy of later conversation because that was simply Jordan, and he had realized that slaying him would serve no purpose other than ruining the mood.

Honestly, the telepath felt for Josef, being charged with the task of keeping the two of them in line. And Josef wasn’t affiliated with Hammel, so he felt a bit more keenly for him as a result; Hammel staff had experience, after all. Josef was merely along for the ride.

“I’m sure it would have been; I have no control over what you did or didn’t do before stepping in my lair,” he remarked. He was certain Ginny would have put the kibosh on that, but he had wanted to reiterate the rules.

With the agreement of all three that they were prepared to begin, Sean nodded in acknowledgment and then spoke, “There is a room with three light switches, labeled "One," "Two," and "Three." The next room over contains a single light bulb. One of those three switches turns on the light; the other two do nothing. You have fifteen minutes in the first room, and you can play with the switches as much as you want. When those fifteen minutes pass, you have fifteen minutes in the room with the light bulb, and you can examine the bulb as much as you want. You cannot leave the rooms; you cannot see into the other room while in the switch room, or alter the walls to see what is happening in there. How do you determine which switch controls the light bulb?”

[Jordan Scholl]

Jordan furrowed his brow at the question. He felt like he knew this one...

"I think," he said slowly, "I think it has something to do with leaving them on. Like, leave them on so they get hot. I remember it from a show I watched once, and they were talking about it, but I don't remember what else to do." He bit his lip as he tried to think harder, remembering what was on the show.

"Can you guys think of the rest?" He looked up at Josef. He didn't have much hope that Jared would be able to solve the clue. But surely with two good heads and a sidekick they would be able to put together a decent answer.

He was also distinctly not going to get into a fight with Jared right now. Because he had a feeling that would mean they would lose the game. After all, they were supposed to be a team. And he also had a sneaking suspicion that they were the first ones here, which meant that if they could solve this last puzzle they'd get the prize.

It'd better be a great prize for all that he'd gone through.

[Josef Muller]

Josef sighed a little at Jared and stared at him, looking anything but amused as he doubled over with laughter. But he managed to control his expression enough to look annoyed and not murderous. Barely. He was going to get a drink after this, he decided. And wasn’t it convenient that the bar was very close by. Still, he shrugged it off and tapped Jared’s shoulder to try to get him pay attention to the riddle, then folded his arms over his chest as he listened.

Yup. Failing at logic again. He would have just turned three on, but that would have been him. Or maybe just pulled out the panel and see what sparked—poor man’s mechanic one-oh-one. But he doubted that inelegant solution would win them the “prize,” whatever that was. “Maybe,” he agreed, slowly. “But leaving all three on wouldn’t do any good, nor would one…” He bit his lip, frowning now and once again looking over everyone’s shoulders as he tried to process this. It was easier. Faces tended to distract him. “So yes. It’d have to be two, left on for a while for the heat, like you thought, Jordan.” He offered the boy an approving nod, then shrugged. “But I don’t know what else. What do you think, Jared?”

He had hopes that the boy might think of something. They seemed to be…mostly there at least.

[Jared Park]

Unfortunately Sean, unless you’d use your powers on the boy, I don’t think Jared can get over laughing, or at least snickering, every time he sees you. But who knows, maybe a lecture after all this would do him some good.

As for now though, the Canadian still isn’t over the whole thing as the more Sean talked, the more mystic and ominous he becomes (that maybe what he’s going for anyway), and the more the boy wants to laugh. He had to bite his lower lip and clamp on it hard just to calm himself.

Jordan was, once again, right about Jared. He’s totally clueless about the whole thing.

“That’s hard,” he grumbled, his grin disappearing and a scowl forming to take its place. His pout was accompanied by the whole hand-on-my-chin gesture, which made him look a little too immature for his own good. “This is some kind of a trick question, isn’t it?”

He knows he should be building up on his companions ideas, but how they might connect or help just escapes him. So what if they turn on switches? There weren’t any specifications about the wall or the adjacent room, so maybe there’d be a shadow? “I don’t know. Maybe one goes to the light room and another goes to the switch room? And he shouts ‘That’s the one’ when they turn on the right switch?”

He’s hopeless. Sorry.

[Jordan Scholl]

Forget the sidekick. Who even needed a sidekick? What did they ever do except get you into trouble, anyway? Of course, the idea of Jared in scaly green underwear and a yellow nylon cape made Jordan want to laugh. He had to redirect his attention back to the riddle.

"Yeah, that makes sense!" he said in response to Josef.

"Not what you said," he told Jared, turning to the other boy. "You can't do that. That's not the point of the riddle. It's supposed to be if it's just you--and didn't you hear him? You spend fifteen minutes in one room, then go to the other room." Idiot. He thought it, but made a point not to say it. He also made a point not to stick out his tongue. Because that was not only childish but not appropriate in front of a Hammel staff member (though apparently just fine in front of other adults).

"Okay, okay, so we leave two of the lights on," he said, thinking to himself and rubbing his chin. And then...the thing gets hot? But what if it's the third one? Oh, wait, but then it wouldn't get hot, so we'd know it was that one!" He was on the verge of something, he just knew it. "But if it was not...we still need to know which one of the other two it is."

Despite the fact that his teammates had been a large part of their mutual success (well, okay, at least Jared had done something), Jordan was already mentally patting himself on the back for having completed the challenge single-handedly in spite of a massive handicap.