2017 - A Ghostly Christmas
The concept for this year’s scavenger hunt was that Peeves, the poltergeist, has hidden your present and you need to get the ghosts of Hogwarts to help you find him (and your present). My vision was to have all of the clues hidden inside a closet or a dark cabinet. They would be in front of a candle (electric) and so have a spooky glow.
In the box with the Marauder’s Map was the first clue:
Oh no! Peeves has your gift!
Perhaps the ghosts of Hogwarts can help you find him?
I think I saw Sir Nicholas in Professor McGonagall’s closet?
From the map, and part of local lore, was that my wife’s office was Professor McGonagall’s, and so in her closet you would find…
The card reads…
You found Sir Nicholas!
Sir Nicholas says…
“I distinctly heard clanking in the Floo network.”
And so this establishes the pattern: you find a ghost, they direct you to some likely spot, and follow you there. Their idea doesn’t pan out and they direct you to where they think the next ghost might be. With four ghosts, that gives us eight clues with one of those as the starting clue in the box.
If you scan through the 44 Westwind Marauder’s Map, you will see that the pizza oven is labeled Floo Network, and inside is…
Closer up…
The text from the clue…
Sir Nicholas says…
“Apparently not.”
“The Gray Lady might know.
She reads illuminating books.”
After the marauder’s map scavenger hunt, the illuminated book went to live in the bookshelves in my office. In the darkest corner you find…
You found the Gray Lady!
The Gray Lady says…
“I heard a big bang in the closet by the door to the forbidden forest.”
And so in the closet in the front hall you find…
The text from the clue…
The Gray Lady says…
“Oh well. I suppose not.”
“Have you asked the Fat Friar?
He was inspecting cauldrons.”
Consulting the marauders map, you go to the Kitchen pantry and find in a dark corner…
You found the Fat Friar!
The Fat Friar says…
“I know he likes the closet by the Prefect’s bath!.”
“If only he would actually bathe.”
The Prefect’s bath isn’t actually marked out on the map, but in the guest hall bath, on a dark shelf you find…
The Fat Friar says…
“Hmm, no sign…or smell.”
“The Bloody Baron usually knows.”
“Have you tried the dungeons?”
And so downstairs, in the wine cellar1, you find…
You found the Bloody Baron!
The Bloody Baron says…
“Sigh.”
“I saw him hiding luggage in the restricted section of the library.”
In the restricted section (the secret bookshelf to my office), there is a box that the Harry Potter books came in that is made to look like a trunk. Inside you find your present!
Merry Christmas!
Footnotes
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I was happy to have the locations the ghosts were found match their personality. Sir Nicholas, a Gryffindor, is found in McGonagall’s closet, the Gray Lady, a Ravenclaw, is found reading a book, the Fat Friar is found inspecting pots in the Larder and the Bloody Baron is found moping in the dungeons. ↩