TREASURE HUNT: An Expedition! ( Robbie+Gerri)

[Catherine Novella]

Cat could see the disappointment on each face as she observed the two. Honestly that was not her intent. Luckily the two of them perked right back up when they heard her input about the clue might be hidden in the library. She shyly looked down as the two basically burst out of the store. Time for her to start reading again she thought. When the two started talking to her again about leading the expedition further she had no choice but to laugh.

Laughing at the suggestion she realized neither must know just how directionally challenged she was. Smiling at the two of them she knew she had to set them straight. “ As much as the suggestion is appreciated I am afraid you two have yet to realize how directionally challenged I am.” Cat opened her bag and pulled out water and provisions she had in case she ever got lost. “ I even come prepared in case I get lost. Want some?” Cat offered the cookies and some water to her two teammates with a small smile. Hey even if they could not find the library, it did not mean they had to go hungry.

When Robbie pointed to a building with a book she had to stifle a laugh. “ Robbie that’s not the library. The library is an old brick building with a brass sign above the entry way which states Pilot Ridge Public Library above the doorframe” Cat had been there in the past and the memory was still in her mind., even if she could not remember the way. Looking down she had an idea but was almost too afraid to say it. “Either of you any good with technology or have a GPS? Or a map for that matter? And if all else fails we can ask for directions…”

[Robbie Wilkes]

The mention of cookies perked Robbie right up and he nodded as he took a few and started munching on them happily. He laughed at his own stupidity when Cat pointed out that he was wrong. "Well duh," Robbie smacked his forehead and shook his head. "Obviously!" He exclaimed and when asked about GPS and technology, Robbie's eyes glazed over before he screeched to a halt.

"People have not failed me yet. I'm going with that." He grinned at his two companions before turning around and grabbing the first person who made eye contact with him. "Excuse me sir. My friends and I are looking for the library. Do you mind terribly giving us the direction to...it?" His voice trailed as the man pointed to somewhere behind Robbie's shoulder. He followed the finger and saw the building Cat had described and his eyes sparkled with glee.

"You guys! We found it!" Robbie jumped and pointed to the building in question.

[Germaine Sharpe]

Gerri's head tilted as she failed to understand the reason for Cat's laughter. As far as she could tell, nothing she had said was in humor, and she was completely serious about letting the other girl lead. Even if she was directionally challenged, Cat's leadership wouldn't have been any worse than that of the clueless brunette. Germaine just gave the explanation a smile and shrug. It wasn't a problem for her or Robbie to lead, if that's what Cat really wanted.

"Oo!" she cried at the site of the snacks, claiming her own handful of cookies and stuffing them in her mouth. "Fank 'oo." The thanks was sloppy and came with flying crumbs, but she was sincere in her appreciation.

Looking over at the building Robbie indicated, Gerri nodded furiously. She couldn't throw in her own two cents because of the glob of cookie she was still chewing on, but that was her way of agreeing with the boy. It did seem like a reasonable guess. Until Cat correct him. The fourteen-year-old promptly swallowed the mass so she could speak properly. "I think I've seen that before," she commented between lip smacks, "But I don't remember where. No maps either." It would have been awesome if the hunt came with a map, but this wasn't that kind of treasure hunt. Next time.

Robbie was able to remedy that problem, however, and Gerri bounced with excitement when the gentleman helped them. She knew she had seen it before. "Oh, yay! Let's go!" she shouted, taking off for the building. This time she waited for her companions to catch up with her before jumping through the doors. "Do you think the clerk has the next clue?" she asked them. "I would hate to have to search all the books in here too."

[Catherine Novella]

Cat just nodded as Robbie and Gerri took the cookies. That is what they were there for. To eat. Smiling she took one herself and munched on it as the two ate theirs. She just watched as Robbie went up to a random stranger and started talking to them. When Gerri began to talk again she looked over at her and smiled. “ You are welcome.”

Cat looked back at Gerri when she started to talk again. “ I know right? Its hard to remember everywhere.”

Cat smiled as the Robbie turned around and indicated a building that looked like the one she had described. A small smile played back on her features. Yes this was it. She smiled and took a deep breath as she watched the building. Yes this was most definitely the library it was exerting the same feeling she always got when she was near books. A quiet, content happy.


Cat smiled as she started to walk towards the library, almost all of her intent on the building that always would hold her interest. She slowly walked towards it. Slower then Gerri, of course, and slowly then Robbie. She liked to savor the thoughts that would stream into her head as she got closer to a sister of her sanctuary. She smiled as Gerri enthusiastically started bouncing towards the library obviously anticipating their search for the clue. She smiled as the younger girl waited at the entrance for both her and Robbie to catch up. Cat gave a soft smile and looked over towards the younger girl. “I think the clerk will have it. I don't think the organizers will expect us to search the entire library. It would take too long.”

Silently she held open the door for Robbie and Gerrie as they went inside the territory that Cat could call hers.

[Robbie Wilkes]

"Oh man, if they actually want us to search all the books like we did in the bookstore, I'd probably just forfeit. Dudettes, it's already been half an hour and we still haven't gotten our first clue." He grinned sheepishly and followed the girls up to the library door.

Robbie walked up to the librarian at the front and beamed at her. His approach towards older ladies was simple. He upped the cute charms and gave them plenty of smiles. That usually helped him. And true enough, the old lady librarian looked up and smiled widely. "How may I help you, love?" she croaked slightly.

"Hi Miss Librarian maam!" Robbie waved at her, talking in his most polite voice. Which wasn't really that polite. It didn't even follow the 'inside voice' policy. "So we're all in a treasure hunt and our first clue is to find something here. We were wondering if you could give us a clue on how to find it?" He asked, leaning against the counter.

"Oh yes! Your clue!" the lady spun in her chair left and right, trying to look for the card that held their next clue. "Oh dear, where is it...is that? No...that's my nephew's wedding invitation...oh! Here it is!" She waved a cream envelope up in the air and Robbie extended his hand out and grinned. "Thank you! Dudes!" He took the envelope and waved it in front of the girls. "We got it! Who would like to do the honours?"

[Germaine Sharpe]

Gerri nodded at Cat as she walked through the doors and into the cool air conditioning of the public library. She smiled at all the book-filled shelves, feeling slightly awed. This was one of the only times she had visited the building, never one to read in her spare time, and the size of it all amazed her.

Snapping out of her moment of wonderment, she followed the blond boy to the reception desk, and leaned on it as she took up the spot to his right. The girl refrained from adding anything to his inquiry; he seemed to know what he was doing, and he hadn't skipped out on any important details. The librarian knew what he was asking for. The woman's wild movements made her giggle a bit, and she had to cover her mouth to politely stifle the sound.

As Robbie held the envelope out in front of him, Germaine began to bounce again. "Oh, me! I want to!" she shouted, subsequently being hushed by the clerk. She spun around to whisper an apology before taking the envelope from the boy, and tearing it open. She read the clue allowed for her companions to hear:

I march before armies / a thousand salute me
My fall can bring victory / but no one would shoot me;
The wind is my lover / one-legged am I
Name me and see me / at home in the sky.

"What the heck is that suppose to mean?" she asked as she finished, looking between the other two. Her face was scrunched up in confusion. "Cat, you figured out the last one. Any ideas?" Germaine held the card out, so the other girl could reread the clue for herself.

[Catherine Novella]

Cat watched as the two walked into the library. Of course Cat was the last one in. She Liked to take her time entering any place that was filled top to bottom with books.She knew that the place was special. It was filled with the knowledge and the minds of great authors and great persons. Cat knew she was lucky that she was able to experience all of the feelings that were in hold of this pace. Cat had an easy smile on her face as she was able to slowly walk into the library behind her fellow partners in this search.

Cat had to hold out hope that Robbie's behavior wasn't what she thought it was. Sighing she realized that he was breaking just about every library etiquette rule there was. With his cheery “loud” attitude everything about him screamed he didn't belong in a library. From the way he flounced up to the librarian to his loud tone he took in the asking for the clue. Sure it got them the clue, but he could have been a bit more polite about it. Sighing she shook her head. She didn't understand that attitude he was using in a library. It was just rude.

Cat smiled as Gerri took the clue from Robbie and read it aloud. She had to stuffle a laugh as Gerri was promptly shushed by the librarian.You had to give her points for enthusiasm. Cat smiled as Gerri read it out. The clue made no sense. How can something both march, and stand on one leg. All she could think of was a flamingo. They were on one leg, flew in the sky and they were on the endangered species list, (at least she thought they were) so they wouldn't be shot. She didn't see why they would be standing in front of an army, or why they would be saluted though. Sighing she had to look down as Gerri handed over the note for her to look at.

Oh no! Gerri looked so hopeful that Cat was going to be able to solve this. Biting her lip Cat pondered whether or not to voice her opinion or a guess on what it could be. She really didn't want to let down the other girl. Cat thought a minute about what it could be. She honestly didn't have a clue. She might as well voice her guess though, if it would make Gerri feel better. “ Hmm... Maybe a Flamingo?” Cat hung her head and prepared for the laughter that was about to come. “ I know that's not right though...” Blushing bright read at her inability to figure out the clue she went over and pressed it into Robbie's hand. He would know what to do with the clue... If not he could find a flamingo.

OOC: Horribly late, sorry about that.

[Robbie Wilkes]

Robbie laughed at Gerri's antics and let her open the envelope. What came next was a jumble of words he did not at all understand. Yes. They were English. Yes they were in the correct order but they did not make sense. At all.

The very first thought he had echoed Cat's words to a T and he frumped, snapping his fingers. "Well it has to be a bird. What else flies? I mean sure, rubbish flutters about in the wind but...no that doesn't make sense. What gets saluted by a thousand?" All he could think of was a person. "Maybe a one legged person? Like...a war veteran who got his leg chopped off?" He shook his head. The clue asked for something that marched.

"What marches? Or...okay like...what gets saluted? Oh my GOD these clues are insane!" He exclaimed, completely oblivious to Cat's issue about library etiquette. That was until the librarian shushed him and asked him to go outside if he wanted to continue shouting.

He clapped a hand over his mouth in amusement before waving at the librarian. "Thank you!" He whispered exaggeratedly before waving the clue at the lady librarian. He looked to his two companions and marched out the library. "Well!" He shouted before reading the clue once more. "Okay, salute. It's got something to do with like...respect. Army...erm...fighting? And if it's something so awesome nobody would shoot it even if it falls...it's gotta be something impenetrable. Or...not worth shooting." Robbie scratched his head.

"I seriously need Estelle on this one." Robbie huffed before widening his eyes. "Wait! Patriotism! Armies and salutes! I mean it's gotta be something to do with our country right?!" He asked wildly, bobbing his head from Gerri to Cat. But that was all he got. Patriotism. Not helping.

[Germaine Sharpe]

Yeah, Germaine was looking at the other girl a bit expectantly, waiting for her to come up with something completely brilliant. Cat had been the one to figure out the last clue, of course, so it just made sense that she would be able to get this one. The brunette really didn't consider that Cat was just familiar with the library. It was thus so that she didn't find the girl's answer odd. "Flamingos are cool," she said quite decisively, not distracted by the poor suggestion. "But I dunno where we would find those in Pilot Ridge." It wasn't like there was a zoo in town. At least, not one that she knew of, and this was the only reason why she didn't take the answer as the correct one.

Gerri could barely follow Robbie's reasoning as he thought out loud, only clinging onto a few of his words. Bird? One-legged? It all just pointed back to a flamingo. She giggled, though, when the boy's overexcitement got the librarian shushing them again, and she promptly followed Robbie outside where they could discuss the clue without further interruption. Leaning against one of the large, decorative columns that adorned the front of the building, she placed her hand on her chin contemplatively.

Something respected, not worth shooting..."What about a bald eagle?" she suggested. "They're birds so they fly, and they are the country mascot or something, so people respect them. And you can't shoot 'em 'cause they're protected."

"Although," she added after pondering it a moment more, "They don't march and they aren't one-legged. Hm." It was obvious that that still wasn't right, but if they wanted patriotic, then it was a step in the right direction. "This is hard," she complained. Then she had a brilliant epiphany. "Wait, maybe it is a flamingo. Like, one of those lawn flamingos, but dressed like Uncle Sam or something. That could work, right?" Gerri was having a bit of trouble grasping the clue as a whole.

"There's still the bit about saluting, though," she realized a second later. "Okay, right. What do people normally salute? Each other? Why would they salute a flamingo instead?" Always more questions, never enough answers. She was just a never ending circle of non-conclusiveness.

[Catherine Novella]

Cat was having a hard time keeping up with Robbie's logic. Flamingo, war veteran, marching, Saluting, all of which were odd in their own way. She was a bit disappointed however to have to move out side and waved goodbye to the librarian as she made her way outside with her extremely loud companions. It didn't help that Gerri was looking at her so expectantly when Cat didn't really have a clue.

Maybe Cat could offer more cookies? That way she wouldn't feel bad about letting Gerri down. After all in Cat's mind it was never a good thing to disappoint a child. AS she followed them out, still listening to Robbie's endless chatter, still trying to follow his thoughts. Much like Gerri she was not comprehending it and only was getting half of what he said.Cat knew that it was coming, at least something was. She didn't know what but she knew that they would get the clue. They just had to look at the problem a bit differently.

She herself also leaned against the same pillar Gerri was when they got out of the library. Sighing she listened and thought as the other two also explained. Robbie went off on a rant about patriotism and respect. She supposed that would have something to do with it. Seeing as It had to do with Armies and marching but not shooting. She nodded as the two began to think of more possible solutions. Then Gerri went back to the bird idea basing off Robbie's thought process. Only this time it was a bald eagle, as that was patriotic and respectful.

That was it. Go back to the riddle. Cat ran the lines through her head once more his time working backwards. “Name me and see me / at home in the sky.” Cat muttered working backwards. She didn't really realize it was being said aloud as she was absorbed by the riddle. Cat continued with her musings. “The wind is my lover / one-legged am I..” Well it had a name. That was apparent. It lived in the sky... was it always raised in it? “My fall can bring victory / but no one would shoot me” So if it lived in the sky and it called that its home, then it might fall, fall away from its home, no longer having a name. It wouldn't be shot so how would it get down out of the air without shooting it... a bird wouldn't come down out of the air, its home, willingly unless it was shot. So Cat reluctantly deducted it wouldn't not be a bird, “ not a bird...” Cat bit her lip. There was still the last clue... “I march before armies / a thousand salute me” Cat frowned and stood up pacing back and forth, utterly lost in her own world. Robbie was right. It had something to do with patriotism. Something to do with Respect, since that was the salute and something t do with it being one legged. Cat was still pacing back and forth thinking it through when she was sure that she was missing something.

Just what was it though?

[Robbie Wilkes]

Pondering over the riddle once more, he kept figuring out what else there was to his thought process that he hadn't skimmed over at least. He too would have looked to Cat for guidance if it hadn't been for his own thought. One more thing about patriotism and armies. What promotes patriotism more than uncle Sam? And of course the combination colours red, white and blue. But other than that, what? A flag of course!

"You guys! You guys! You know how at soccer matches like the World Cup and of course the Olympics, where you want to be identified as a country, you have a flag up? And, and, and when we sing the national anthem, we have to bring the flag up right? And like we totally salute the flag afterwards! Or...I do anyway. And, and, and think about it, it has a pole so it's standing on one foot. It's always out in the open sky, flapping away in the wind." He breathed in before continuing.

"We need to find a flag! I see the flag all the time in front of the courthouse. I'm sure it's there you guys!" Excited, Robbie grabbed Cat and Gerri's hand and flew off to find the next clue. One more clue and they're homeward bound!

[Germaine Sharpe]

Gerri was quiet as Cat reviewed the clue once more. She was tired of asking questions, tired of trying to seek the answer. This was worse than being in school and getting asked to present the answer to a question she didn't understand. "Not a bird," she repeated. That was another step in the right direction, another step closer to the answer, but instead of trying to crack it, she got lost watching Cat's pacing.

She remained hypnotized until Robbie shouted, and her head snapped up to regard him. Once again, Gerri was completely unable to absorb his ramblings, and she stared blankly at the boy as he tried to explain the clue. Even as he finally announced the answer and where to find the next clue, she stood dumbfounded in front of the pillar. She hardly even blinked. Until Robbie grabbed her hand and dragged her off again, anyway, to which she responded by stumbling awkwardly after him until she regained her footing. It was a good thing the blond boy had taken the lead, because she didn't know where the courthouse was and sprinted behind him as they traveled.

The brunette skidded to a stop on the sidewalk in front of the courthouse when they arrived, looking up at the flagpole before scurrying closer. The clue was pinned to the line a little ways up, and while she had to jump a couple times before she was able to nab it, Germaine pulled the envelope from it's perch with relative ease. She did a little victory dance, hopping around the pole and singing "We found it!", as soon as the slip was in her hand.

Having opened the last clue, she paused in her dancing to hold up the envelope and present it to her comrades. "So who's gonna read this one first?"

[Catherine Novella]

Cat was too absorbed in her musings to really notice anyone else. That was until Robbie started shouting. She nodded quite happy that someone else was getting the clue. It really did make sense. A flag. Why in the world did she not think of that? Well, she supposed different people thought differently. She most likely wouldn't have gotten it the first time anyway, nor the fifth hundred and seventieth. Her brain just didn't operate that way.

Then of course Robbie grabbed her and Gerrie's hands before taking off at a running pace.Cat barely had time to grab her bag, which contained her books and her important stuff, before she was pulled away by the insistent teenager. Cat of course was glad that Robbie at least knew where they were going. She really didn't have a clue and was semi surprised when he led them to the courtyard.

Cat stifled a laugh as Gerri successfully spotted the clue and jumped a few times to get it. It really was semi adorable. She smiled at Gerri and encouraged her to read it. Hoping that it would be easier then the last. “Go ahead Gerri, read the clue!” Cat smiled at the younger girl encouraging her to read it. “ Unless of course Robbie would like to read it?” Cat offered a smile to the fellow teen waiting for someone to read it.

[Robbie Wilkes]

Robbie couldn't have cared any less had he pulled their arms out of the socket in the hopes of getting to their clue faster than other groups and once Gerri got the clue, the blond weather manipulator vibrated with excitement. "Yeah, Gerri. Read the clue, Gerri."

But he was already halfway through ripping the envelope in half in the effort to hasten their expedition. "Oh sorry!" he apologised half-heartedly, not really meaning it but it was the thought that counted, right?

He read over Gerri's shoulder and pondered over it. It was longer than the first two and it had something to do with flavour. Two things he was definitely not sure of. But sitting down, good company and savouring, it had to be for a food establishment. So that was what he presented to his group first. "Whaddya think, girlies? Something to do with food?"