━ DENOUEMENT ( jerome clarke. )

38 ⊳ HOUSE OF CRUSHES.

However, before they were able to figure out what the pattern was, the sound of a man pierced the air - the same man from beforehand, who had informed them about Amber being blind for twenty-four hours due to the booby trap - and he spoke in rhyme, telling the group, "Traverse the grid with step or hop. Follow the sequence, do not stop. All must complete the hopscotch test before the ceiling stays at rest."

"Just when I thought I couldn't dislike Frobisher more, he turns a child's game into a death trap." Sydney muttered - as much as she should have had respect for the highly-esteemed Egyptologist, he did keep leading the group towards death for some artifacts that should have really remained in a tomb, and she didn't particularly feel fond of a happy memory of her childhood (hopscotch) being turned into a memory of suffering, "I mean, hopscotch? Really?"

And, whilst Sydney Anderson was worried about her childhood memories being tarnished, Fabian Rutter was worried about something else, and he soon informed the group members of that as he shook his head, "I can't hopscotch to save my life."

"Well, Fabian, you might have to." Nina responded, and she was right, considering that both him and Nina were cursed with the Mark of Anubis by the spirit, and they had to get past the hopscotch task in order to find the Mask of Anubis, or else they'd have to forfeit their lives; they literally did have to hopscotch to save their lives.

Although, Sydney Anderson had more pressing matters on her mind.

"You're bad at something, finally!" Sydney exclaimed gleefully, causing the pair to shoot her an exasperated glare, considering that it really was not the time - however, she was quick to defend herself and her excitement over the nerd not being perfect at something, "Hey! He never does anything wrong and always gets good grades - there had to be something wrong with him, alongside his awkwardness when talking to people-."

"I am not awkward!"

"Back to the task at hand." Nina intercepted loudly, stopping the pair from bickering further just when the prankster was about to remind him about his experience with relationships, and she glanced over to the pattern on the ground - the hopscotch task, and told them once more, "We have to do hopscotch."

"I was hopscotch champion two years running." Amber informed them matter-of-factly, causing them all to smirk proudly - at least they had one member of the group who was good at hopscotch, though apparently there was an addition to that when Sydney added:

"I was pretty good at hopscotch too." Sydney told them with a nod, and she was true - her and Jerome Clarke had spent numerous hours when they were much younger playing the game during their breaks at school, though the latter would have never admitted to it; it was a way to pass the time when it was just Anderson and Clarke.

And that meant there were at least two out of four of the members of the secret group that were good at their next task - well, if they were still good at it, and that's why Amber soon spoke,  "I wonder if we've still got it."

"Floor's all yours." Sydney responded, motioning to the hopscotch pattern on the ground upon seeing how eager the fashionista was to try hopscotching again - she had already picked up a rock from the ground in order to try it out.

So, upon being motioned to start hopscotching, Amber tossed the rock that had been in her hand across the ground, and began to hop towards where it landed, doing it expertly. Despite that, the ceiling still lowered, causing the group to hastily and worriedly call out for her, forcing her to come to a halt whilst the group pulled her back to safety, and once she was off the pattern on the ground, the ceiling rose once more.