Haphephobia

Utter Madness

Immediately, the feeling of tentacles curling around her arms and legs made her aware of what exactly it was that had cushioned her fall. Devil's Snare. What sane person would hide all this in a school full of children? Adeline couldn't believe the things she'd seen so far and was quietly seething. The mighty Headmaster had some explaining to do after she was done here. She closed her eyes and tapped the little floating ball of light, enlarging it until it burned the Devil's Snare right off her body, and allowed her to drop down on her behind on something much, much harder. ''Ridiculous...'' She decided as she stared down the hall, scrunching up her nose at the plethora of flying keys.  Flying. Keys. What has the world come to? Adeline stood up and walked closer, ignoring the grime and dirt that stuck to her outfit and hair from her adventure so far. She quite liked the feeling, it made her more comfortable as she felt more like herself than she had for the past few weeks. A quick inspection told her that she needed a particular key to open the door on the other side of the room, and the rickety old broom that hovered near the middle of the room said enough. But she was not going to fly, not while she had no idea how to avoid something as what happened to Harry. She stepped further into the room and used an Accio spell to call the entire flock towards the area of the broom, having failed using the spell on just a single key, jumping up to grab the only key that was different; the one with a broken wing. As soon as her tiny fist enclosed around it, all the keys froze and turned around, lining up to no doubt pierce her through. ''You've got to be kidding me...'' She hissed through gritted teeth before she dove to the other side of the room, hearing the ominous fluttering of wings as the keys hurried to shoot themselves at her. 

She shoved the broken one into the lock and burst through the door, closing it wandlessly just in time as she heard the keys drill themselves into the wood. ''Utter madness.'' She decided, rubbing some sweat from her brow as she peered into the new room she was in. It was a giant chessboard.  Adeline was smart, brilliantly so, but she had never played chess. How could she, having grown up in the conditions she had? The giant board and all its pieces received a flat stare as the young elf made her way forwards, hoping to just walk across it and be done. Luck was not on her side, however, because as soon as she stood in front of the Queen on the other side of the board, the statue moved and blocked her way. ''I assume I have to play this idiotic game in order to be let through?'' The elf questioned with a sigh, watching dispassionately as the statue nodded its head. ''And if I just destroy every single piece on both sides? The little monster with the three heads would surely help me out, it seemed to rather like my pets and scratches.'' The girl continued airily, making a so-so motion with her hand. The Queen statue froze, realizing that if the girl had rallied the creature to her side without the use of music, she must have been powerful. Too powerful for the rather basic spells on the pieces on the board to be able to withstand an assault by. Reluctantly, the King and Queen pieces on both sides dropped their sword and froze once more, allowing the little elfling to calmly walk through to the next door.

''Now this--'' Adeline's lips curled in an amused smile, eyes gleaming in joy. ''-this reeks of Severus Snape from beginning to end.'' There were several dubious potion bottles placed in a row in front of her, and according to the riddle that 'someone' left with it, there were the options of certain death, alcoholic drinks or the invisible protection to walk through the flames.  Not one to let an opportunity just pass by, the girl reached out and waved her hand over the parchment, watching as the riddle and ink re-arranged itself to a different message. 

To whoever may read this; 

your failure in decent spellwork has come to my attention, seeing as all your little riddles up until this point failed spectacularly to the cunning of a first year. 

Tell Professor Snape that I applaud him, I do believe this little potions riddle is not a first-year skill, but a second one. Meaning he has presented a slightly bigger challenge than the other bigots who decided it was smart to organize all this in a school full of children. 

Bravo, you can be proud of your utter stupidity. 

Sincerely, a first-year with more intelligence in a single finger than you all have combined in your entire body. 

Satisfied with her handiwork, Adeline swallows down the correct potion and makes her way through the flames. Nearing the door, she hesitates as her hand hovers above the handle. So far, there hadn't been much of a challenge in these riddles. But the dog creature that guards the first entrance gave her the idea that not only the entrance was guarded, but also something precious. Something that warrants all these games and riddles. But if it was that valuable, then why were the riddles made in such a way that a first-year could breach through them? She hadn't used any advanced spells so far, except perhaps the Accio on the flock of keys. Which could have been substituted by just flying the damn broom, to begin with. Also a first year learned skill. Adeline bit down on her bottom lip in worry, gnawing gently on the slowly reddening flesh. Mistakes. She saw so many flaws and mistakes in what the Headmaster was doing with all this, that her head hurt. So much danger, so much... manipulation. She was starting to believe that his grandfatherly appearance was a facade, one she had to find a way to see past. She would have to look into the figurehead of the Light, Albus Dumbledore, just like she had to look into the figurehead of the Dark, Lord Voldemort. Both people have their stories, their beliefs and their reasons for the choices they made. Adeline wants to find and know them all, and then decide. Decide which side she would give her full loyalty to. Determined after her inner dialogue, the young elf pushed the handle down and opened the door.