Open Was That a Ghost?

[Marley Owens-Lee]

Marley was still getting used to the whole idea of this magic school. While she knew since she was little that she was part of the magical world, she had only been in the orphanage for a bit before her dad adopted her and had grown up mostly in the muggle world. She had other family members who would help her with the magical world, but she was still amazed with the magical world.

Marley knew that there were a few ghosts that floated around the school, but it still shocked her when she saw one up close. She had been walking around for a bit when she noticed the ghost floating around. Out of curiosity, Marley had decided to follow the ghost, trying her best to be quiet, not to startle the ghost. She had looked away for just one second and saw a beautiful painting on the way as she was following it, but by the time she turned back around to where she thought the ghost was, the ghost had disappeared. "Dang it... Where did you go?" Marley muttered to herself as she looked around the corridor, hoping she didn't lose sign of the ghost.

 

[Teddy Pirrip]

Teddy thought he was on the seventh floor but this didn't look like the seventh floor. Navigating the castle layout wasn't always easy and he pondered whether he had miscounted floors until his attention was captured by a peculiar sight up ahead — a silvery, ethereal figure that could only be a ghost. Intrigued, his investigative spirit kicked in, prompting him to approach the corridor. It was then that he spotted Marley, an unexpected but welcome encounter. "Oh hey!" he chimed, a warm smile on his face, "You've got that 'I've-just-seen-a-ghost' look too, Marley!"

 

[Marley Owens-Lee]

Marley smiled when she heard a familiar voice. "Hey, Teddy!" Marley says with a wide smile. She chuckled a little at the comment. "That's funny because I just did," Marley says with a laugh. She whipped around trying to find the familiar ghost again but it seemed like she couldn't find any sign of the ghost anywhere. "But I they disappeared off somewhere, I'm not too sure where they went" Marley frowned a little. Maybe she'd have to go on a searching spree to find this ghost, maybe asking it questions or something. "Have you seen a ghost?"

 

[Teddy Pirrip]

Teddy's smile broadened as Marley said she saw a ghost. He nodded in reply, "Yeah, I caught a glimpse of something," he answered, recalling the fleeting sight he had. "I swear they enjoy disappearing just when you start to get curious." Teddy's tone was lighthearted, and a sense of amusement flowed naturally from him. "I thought I saw it go this way" He pointed while exchanging a look with Marley, hoping that a ghost hunt was on the horizon.

 

[Marley Owens-Lee]

Marley smiled, pleased that she wasn't the only one who saw a ghost around. She was curious about the ghost and she had questions to ask. But she had hoped that the ghost was okay to answer some questions. "Right! They suddenly wanna hide. Like they don't want you to find out information about them" Marley said as she nodded in agreement at the statement Teddy had said. "Really?" Marley piped up at where Teddy said where he saw the ghost go. "Let's go!" Marley said hurriedly as she suddenly took off in the direction that Teddy had pointed to.

 

[Teddy Pirrip]

And she was off. Teddy had to quicken his pace to match Marley's determined stride. He didn't hold much hope for finding the ghost, but the prospect of an adventure was too good to pass up. "Being a ghost doesn't sound like much fun to me. Stuck in one place, unable to really interact with the living, sounds boring," he said. "Poltergeist, on the other hand. They seem like they have fun!" Teddy kept looking but couldn't see any trace of a ghost.

 

[Marley Owens-Lee]

Marley smiled happily as Teddy followed her on the adventure of finding the ghost. She shrugged a little at Teddy's comment. "That's true! Being a ghost does seem a bit boring, but I've always been curious about their story, and why they died. I mean there's gotta be a reason why their spirit is still here right?" Marley explained with a shrug. She hadn't seen many ghosts around before Hogwarts. But now that she was at school, she had seen them around school a lot more which she thought was quite fun.

"Poltergeist are interesting! I heard a few people saying that we have one around the school but I dunno if that's true" Marley said with a shrug, as she kept walking and looking around, just to find at least a trace of a ghost somewhere. She had heard a few people around the school talking about a poltergeist around the school, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to believe it.

 

[Teddy Pirrip]

Teddy nodded in agreement as he followed Marley. "You've got a point," he replied, his voice filled with curiosity. "Maybe they have some unfinished business or a message to pass on." He didn't imagine that a soul having been through what they had would want to speak to two first years, but that did not deter him from imagining helping a ghost anyway.

As they continued their search, it started to feel like a long shot. Marley mentioned the school poltergeist. Teddy lowered his voice conspiratorially, "Yes, they're known to be a bit mischievous. I think I'd like them." He glanced around, half-expecting something to go flying at any moment.

 

[Vex]

Don't know if that's true? Don't know if that's true? Vex was frankly offended. He had been following the firsties invisibly now for some time, waiting for them to question the veracity of one of his legendary pranks, at which point he would materialise in front of them with a triumphant toot of his horns and declare, "Yes! It's true! I did all of it." Instead, they were questioning whether he even existed. The indignity! Admittedly, he had just taken a ninety-three-day nap, but only because he'd predicted that was how long it would take the staff to unstick all the keyholes, disarm all the booby-traps, unblock the great hall fireplace chimney, remove the goats, and locate the source of that mysterious poo-ey smell. What, did the firsties think a student had orchestrated this glorious chaos? It was an insult to his genius, and he would not stand for that.

Still invisible, Vex tapped the two first years on the backs of their shoulders. Then, hoping they would look around, he flew over their heads, hung up-side down at eye-level, and materialised with an unpleasant grin. "I think the word is 'boo'. Hehe." He up-righted himself. "Oh, you don't have to worry whether you'll like me. The important question is, do I like you? So, tell me. Should Vexxie like you?" He had a full kettle of cold tea if the answer turned out to be no, and he wasn't afraid to use it.

 

[Marley Owens-Lee]

"Unfinished business is a good word for it," Marley said with a smile. She nodded a little as Teddy explained to her a little more about Poltergeist. She had heard people talking about this poltergeist around the school, though she thought it was maybe to scare the firsties, so she didn't really believe it.

Marley continued to walk down the corridor, still hoping to find this ghost, when she felt a tap on her shoulder, She quickly whipped around and let out a gasp at what she saw next. No words came out of her, all she could do now was that her eyes were wide and her mouth was agape. She was speechless.

 

[Teddy Pirrip]

A sudden tap on their shoulders sent Teddy and Marley looking around, only to find nobody there. But then the poltergeist materialised hanging upside down with an enormous frown etched onto his face. Or was it a gruesome smile? Teddy's brain needed a moment to process the strange, upside-down angle, after he stopped being terrified. Marley was lost for words but Teddy managed to stammer out, "Uh, well, we're pretty friendly... generally. Right, Marley?" He chuckled nervously.