Week Three - Task #14. “A Bargain”

[Katherine Laurier]

The wind grows louder. The Pumpkin Tree looms ever near.

You’ve circled the world. Danced with ghosts. Faced old fears. But still, Pipkin is not with you.

And then you see him. Trapped.

Not in chains, but frozen and breathlessly waiting. Pipkin’s pumpkin is dark and sealed, his own face carved in the hollow curve.

Moundshroud appears.

“You may have him,” he says. “But everything costs.”

You understand now that time has a toll and memory a weight. You must offer something in return. A fear you haven’t faced and a truth you’ve hidden. You must break off a piece of your heart.

Not a trinket or a name this time, it must be something real: one year sacrificed off each of your own lives in exchange for the return of your friend.

You consent swiftly along with the others and Pipkin breathes again. His eyes open as the tree stirs. Thirteen pumpkins flare in celebration, including his own. A bargain has been made.

You do not look back.

Task:
The trade took its toll on you. Now you have Pipkin, but your mind is a little foggy from the cost of the trade and the weight of the journey. Solve the following 10 riddles:
1. I don’t have eyes, but once I did see. Once I had thoughts, but now I’m white and empty. What am I?
2. The more you take, the more you leave behind. What am I?
3. A vampire’s biggest fear, but a chef’s favorite ingredient. What is it?
4. I have a body, arms, legs and a head, but I’m heartless and have no guts. What am I?
5. What has four fingers and a thumb, but is not living?
6. I am a room in your house where you watch TV and have fun, but I’m the one room in which ghosts, ghouls, and vampires will never, ever come. What am I?
7. ​​I’m tall when I’m young, and I’m short when I’m old. What am I?
8. What is always in front of you but can’t be seen?
9. What can’t talk but will reply when spoken to?
10. The more of this there is, the less you see. What is it?

For the task to be considered complete, solve at least 6 riddles. Each riddle is worth 1 bean. Send your answers through Roost Private Message to Katherine Laurier and Prof. Sindor Aloyarc.

Alternatively, in at least 125 words, write about a sacrifice, big or small, that you have made for someone else, or a sacrifice someone else made for you, why it was done, and its impact.

This task is worth 10 beans, with an additional 13 bonus beans for completing all Week Three tasks by end of activity. Deadline is 11:59pm (HOL time) on Friday November 21st.