» Group #8

[Hogsmeade Trail]

EVENT ANNOUNCER - ROUND 1
After spending three and three-quarters hours wandering through the maze of the Ministry with several cramped lift rides (at least one having been uncomfortably haunted by a grumpy and blood purist old ghost), you have been given your supplies and map stuffed into a grey knapsack. If you are the first group member, you have also been given the responsibility of caring for a Ministry owl and are told to keep it with you at all times - you don't need to worry about feeding it, as it can hunt for itself. Then, you are shown the door and instructed to meet with your group members at a designated spot. You are also issued a harsh reminder of the consequences of being a deserter before you're shoved out into the spring's early morning sunlight.

The adventure has begun.

You have been informed that your group members are:

Roderick MacFusty, 27, Recordkeeper
Maximillian de Winter, 18, 7th year Slytherin
Luka Dolohov, 21, Creature-Induced Injuries Healer, Middle Class
Alexander Page, 35, Head Auror, Middle Class

You introduce yourselves, review your maps, and then must come to a decision of which direction you need to start in.

Which part of Hogsmeade do you disembark from?
a. West Slums
b. East Slums
c. South Slums

OOC DIRECTIONS:
1.) Have your character introduce themselves. Mention in their post (doesn't have to spoken aloud) what else, if anything, they have brought with them. If it isn't mentioned here, then they won't have it later on in the trail unless it is found/made. Those who post first will be assumed to have spoken first.

2.) Assume all introductions have been made and then have them choose a direction/remain neutral. Points 1 and 2 should both be included in your character's first post.

3.) If the group comes to a decision before the round ends, you can have your group head in that direction. (Decisions will be made when all characters have had a turn to state their choice or the three days are up. Special instances are allowed and must be discussed with Lola.)

Round 2 begins May 19th

[Alexander Page]

Mia was at home with seven kids to fuss over. Alone. Such thoughts frustrated the auror as he paced back and forth through the designated area for his group. Mia was due to have a child within a few weeks, would he even be home by then? Or would he be galloping through the forests like an ignorant baffoon? The Pages didn't need money, nor land. Their adequately sized house in Bartonburg was more than enough, especially now that some of the children were beginning to reach school age.

He shrugged his backpack further up onto his shoulders. This simply black canvas so painstakingly packed by Hermia the night before contained parchment and ink, a photograph of his seven children (including Alison), a slice of pumpernickel bread, and an extra set of clothing. Not to mention all the new items packed into the bag that had been given to them by the ministry. The tag brown owl rested contently on Alex's shoulder, though it's habitual hooting sounded through his ears more often than he could count.

With a frustrated sigh and grimace towards the other groups gathering around them, Alexander began further arranging the supplies for the others. He wanted to head out as soon as possible, the sooner they left the sooner they'd be able to come back. However, after his exploits with the killer whom had slaughtered his best friend, Alex knew the only sure direction to head in would be south. Jonathon had lived east of here, and the killer made his way off to the west. "South," he decided, "We must head south."

[Maximillian de Winter]

Maxim hated orders. He hated many things, but ordering him around... He HATED THAT with passion. So when the guy said “must”, a rebel in Maximillian resurfaced. ”Must? Why must we go south, Mr...? We must go anywhere, east, west, all sound good to me, so I want to know: why south, on Merlin's beard? I might be just a silly seventh year, but I have the right to make that decision too. I'm Maximillian de Winter, but no calling me Max. The tall boy said. He was wearing a leather jacket he got after his father and loved so much. He brought some food and weapons along with the ministry's giveaways. He had one knife and one dagger. He hoped it will be enough.

[Luka Dolohov]

Luka didn't want to attend to this draft, but he knew he must serve his duty to the Ministry. He also wanted to show Julie how devoted he was to helping others, not just himself or her. As a healer devoted primarily to creatures and non-human entities, he knew his particular skills would come in handy as the majority of beings were dangerous living in the uncharted woods surrounding Hogsmeade and Hogwart's. Many of them could cleave a man in two if given the chance to even get one handle on them.

He brought as many medical supplies with him as possible, but he also carried a shortbow, some arrows, his own personal knife, and his surgical tools. He knew he would need them for this and made sure to be prepared. When he arrived, he looked around him, noticing the others. He nodded silently before examining the apparent age of each, "Luka Dolohov, healer. I say we go with Mr. Page's suggestion, Maximillian." He knew of Alexander Page as one of the greatest aurors of their time. He admired Alexander for his great skills and thus he knew they would be mostly safe.

He looked over to Alexander and bowed his head, "An honor to meet you finally, Mr. Page. I'm glad I was assigned with you."

[Alexander Page]

The sudden voice behind him nearly made him jump out of his skin. Why hadn't he heard the footsteps as they approached? 'Gettin' soft, Lex' he chided himself, 'far too soft.' Another mishap like that and he might as well be in the grave besides Jonathon. Alexander would never admit it, but losing his best friend had traumatized him in more ways than one.

Maximillian was going to be a challenge. Too much energy and fight in him whilst they were supposed to be working on the same team. "Mr. de Winters, I'm Alexander Page, head auror. But please, call me Alex." He stood from his crouched position and extended his hand in a friendly gesture, "I was chasing a serial killer whom moved from east to west. I don't want to cross his previous path of devastation nor do I want to follow his current one. My wife is pregnant, I wish to make it back home to her as soon as possible."

Alexander then handed Maximillion his supplies, everything was to be rationed out equally according to the ministry (not that Alex believed things would remain so equal on the trail; something about Max seemed off) "Ah. Mr. Dolohov, I've heard of your work as well. It is a great pleasure to have a skilled healer traveling with us. But please, as I told Maximillion, call me Alex. We're going to be traveling together for an undetermined amount of time, might as well skip the informalaties." He offered the same handshake to Luka as he did Max, and gave Dolohov a genuine smile. At least with one seemingly sane person they might possibly make it out of this mess alive.

[Luka Dolohov]

Luka bowed softly at Alexander and nodded in understanding as he took a step closer to the group, "Of course, Alex. I am glad to be here. its good to feel like I am serving the greater good beyond my work at the hospital, heh." He checked over his supplies once more before standing up straight and throwing his backpack over his shoulders. He wondered what Julie would think and if Julie had been drafted as well..he wondered deeply about that issue. It hurt him severely to know if she might be in harm's way.

He would find her even during these expeditions...he would find her or die trying. He must protect her from the evils of this world or he knows she'll be too easy to harm. She is a strong woman, but she is still fragile despite all the work he had accomplished to help restore her self-esteem and self-worth. He thought of his lovely Julie and pulled out a small drawing he had made of her from his pocket, caressing it gently.

He gazed up at Alexander and smiled, "We'll get home safely, Alex. I'd rather die then let any of us get hurt." He nodded firmly and affirmatively.

[Roderick MacFusty]

Roderick was dressed like one of dragonkeepers. He couldn’t find anything more comfortable than this outfit. It was practical, with many handy pockets and resistant. He packed everything that he thought might be useful and asked his brothers for extra advice.

He listened to his new group mates with moderate interest. Maxmillian asked right questions, but Alexander’s answer was reasonable. It made him think about his own wife and children, who he moved to the family’s estate for the time being. Morven was such a kind, good woman, despite having such unworthy husband. “I’m Roderick MacFusty” he introduced himself finally “Please to meet you, gentlemen. I think that whichever direction we chose it will be good as any other. However, south seems to be less crowded than the rest.”

[Hogsmeade Trail]

EVENT ANNOUNCER - ROUND 2
You travel south through the forest for the rest of the day. It's cool and shaded, but because it is so thick with trees, manuevering around them proves difficult. You do not come across any creeks or ponds, so are unable to refill your canteens with water. Finally in the late afternoon, you see mountains beginning to rise into the sky. The closer you get, the higher they become until you see that there are two different paths you can take. You could either try and climb the mountain, though it looks fairly steep and would not allow for the horse to be able to make it. The other option is to go to the West to go around the mountain, or at least until you find an easier place to climb. Night will fall soon, so you'll need to find a comfortable place to camp as well.

Which direction do you take?
a. Climb the mountain
b. Go around the mountain

OOC DIRECTIONS
1.) Have your character vote which route they are to take.

[Luka Dolohov]

The group was a good combination of power, strength, wisdom and talent, which meant that they could handle anything with relative ease. It was on his mind about how and what they would experience on their way. With few places to get direct access to large amounts of water, it would be necessary to figure out alternative ways to get water. Even with magic, there were certain limitations that they had to deal with. Luka was not one to ask or expect others to work harder than they needed to.

The group stopped at the base of the mountain and took a moment to breathe, drink some water and plan out their next move. Luka went around making sure everyone had water and didn't experience dehydration, starvation, sores, over-tiredness or any other ailment that might affect their ability to complete the task ordered by the Ministry. He felt that if the Ministry had asked for assistance instead of drafted everyone, it might turn out better for their public relations, but such was not the case.

"I say we should figure out which is the least dangerous in terms of environmental hazards before we decide on which way to go, gentlemen."

[Alexander Page]

Hours and hours of treacherous traveling left Alex feeling weary and run down. He felt thirsty, very, very thirsty, though he refused to drink anymore of his preserved water. If he was right, and he usually was, they weren't going to come across any sources of water anytime soon.

He took a look at the mountain and then a look around it. His instincts were screaming at him to go up and over it, to keep walking straight. But walking up like so would be greeted with much resentment and they'd have to stop at some point to regain their strength. Still, Alexander felt it would take even longer to go around the mountain. And if there were any wild animals out here, it'd be best for them to be higher up for at some point food becomes too scarce for the animals at higher aplitutdes.

"I suggest going up. Not only for safety reasons, but it'd be best to continue straight on our journey. Going around the mountain will only add time and leave us vulnerable to attacks."

[Maximillian de Winter]

Max nodded his head. ”I agree. Going up is the best way, in my opinion.” The boy said, looking around. ”It's the fastest and I think the safest too. We will save a lot of time. We're strong men, we can do it.”

[Hogsmeade Trail]

EVENT ANNOUNCER - ROUND 3
Your group chooses to try to climb the mountain during the last few hours of daylight. Unfortunately, the mountain is so steep that it is slow going and you're forced to continue climbing in the dark. With wands lit, you're able to pick your way up the mountain, but it doesn't stop someone from injuring themselves. There's a 'pop' of a bone breaking before Alexander Page falls to the ground. A quick once over and it's obvious that the ankle is broken. He's in a lot of pain and your group must decide whether to keep going until you find a better place to camp, or to camp here and hope to get him some rest. Luckily you have a healer in your group and should be able to get him mended up, if you want to take the time to do so.

What do you do?
a. Keep going
b. Stop and camp for the night

OOC DIRECTIONS
1. Make a decision

Round 4 begins May 26th

[Maximillian de Winter]

Maxim yelled at the other guys to stop as soon as he heard the familiar pop. As a Quidditch Captain, he saw a lot of broken bones.
”His leg is broken. We need to camp, so he can get some rest after mr Dolohov fixes his leg” Max said with his voice calm and steady.

[Alexander Page]

The choice to go up the mountain may have been a bad one, Alex had no qualms about admitting so. The mountain was much steeper than it looked, and the path they were following began to get narrower and narrower. It made the journey to be much more treacherous than he had ever hoped for.

Suddenly, as they were scaling up a particularly steep path, Alex became blinded by searing pain in his leg. Luckily, he had just reached the top of the cliff and so he didn't fall to his death. That would've been even worse than a simple broken bone.

"If Luka would be so find to heal my ankle, I suggest we keep going. This doesn't look like a comfortable place to set up camp."

[Luka Dolohov]

Luka wasn't expecting too much to happen, but life always had a way of changing how we experienced things. Luka stopped for a moment to take a drink of water when he heard Alex's crumble down the mountain. He hurried over to Alex and pulled out his medkit. He checked over the wound and nodded, "Don't worry about it, Alex. You'll be fine." He wrapped the bone, putting a splint on that then cast a couple of setting spells to allow the bone to set and then gave Alex a fresh drink of the bone growing stuff.

He stood up and nodded, "We do need to keep moving. Find a more advantageous spot to make camp. Alex, you'll need to be careful as you move or try to make yourself levitate." He waited for the others to keep moving.