(1941-11-14) Chili Challenge
Details for Chili Challenge
Summary: Lunch in the Great Hall features Asmund eating chili peppers for an essay in Herbology.
Date: November 14th, 1941
Location: Hogwarts Great Hall
Related:
Characters
AkilinaAntoninAsmundLissieMackenzieMateoRiddle

It is a fall afternoon. The weather is cool and clear.


Braziers that hang by chains from the beaks of griffin gargoyles that line the walls where they meet the high vaulted enchanted ceiling offer warm illuminating blazes. Four long tables are evenly spaced with the heads of the table at the north and south of the room. Each table has a cloth runner down the center and a plush rug underneath of the different House colors indicating to which house the table belongs.
The most westerly table is the Slytherin table. Beside them is the Ravenclaw table. The Gryffindor table is then between the Ravenclaw table to the west and the Hufflepuff table which is the most easterly table. One other table along the northern wall up on a dais for the Professors to sit at and look over all four of the other tables. Also on the dais is one lectern gilded in gold with an owl spreading it's wings at the top of the lectern. Candles line the tops of the owl's wings to illuminate anyone speaking at the lectern. A stool like protrusion comes out of the lectern as well as that's where the first years sit when they are sorted.
There are three sets of doors in the Great Hall. The main exit and entrance that leads to the Entry Hall is a large set of double wooden doors carved with vines and flanked by high stone pedestals each set with a small brazier above the stony 'H' carved in the pedestal. On the eastern wall is a much smaller door just next to the dais that's attached to the antechamber the first years come up from the lake through. Lastly one other door is set into the northwest corner behind the High Table.
As always high above within the obscured stone and wood cathedral like buttresses and crockets the outside weather is reflected in an illusion with all the sound and visuals of the weather, just without the actual effects of it.


Akilina, despite the looser rules of lunch time is still sitting at the Ravenclaw Table, alone but surrounded by a dozen books all opened and with pieces of paper filled with notes and bookmarks and a piece of ravenclaw blue ribbon laid out over the network of study material.

Much like Akilina, Tom Riddle is at his house table as well despite the ability to mingle. Several of his Knights of Walpurgis seated with him as well. They are enjoying their lunch and making small talk amongst themselves.

As for the Hufflepuff table, it seems that Asmund has taken yet another eating challenge and On his plate is a ring of chili peppers, mundane and magical alike going from mild to the sort that will have magical smoke pouring out of your ears if you can manage to keep it down. A huge glass of milk sitting in more of a taunting position across his plate from him. The challenge has not yet begun and he's pumping his hands in a manner that begs for some cheering on.

Lissie has managed to make it to lunch, but the girl goes still at the sight of Asmund. "Oy. You're right barmy, you know that?" She perches on a seat near him, looking at him with wide, somewhat admiring eyes. "Whose challenge is this, and what will ye win?" She grins, then says more clearly, "An' yer' goin' tae win again, even if ye' end up breathin' fire like a dragon…"

Mackenzie enters the Great Hall and takes a brief moment to look around. Giving a wry smile to Asmund and shaking her head at the commotion, she instead chooses a seat at her own Slytherin table, not far from Tom and the Knights.

Fellow Hufflepuff Prefect, Mateo Lovegood is seated at the Hufflepuff table not far from where Asmund is pigging out, his own plate bare by comparison as he leans his chin upon his hand and peers in the direction of the eating boy with a detached sort of attention. Lassie's hailing seems to jar the Lovegood from his considerations and he blinks before glancing her way and then back toward Asmund. "Yeah, he'll win. But I don't envy how he will feel once he gets done," he agrees with Lissie.

Lounging about at the Slytherin table with Riddle and the rest of the Knights is Antonin Dolohov. The boy is turned about with his back resting against the table, his arms crossed over his thin chest as he peers around at the other students filling the hall through dark eyes. As Mackenzie enters and makes her way to the table, he glances her way and offers a nod of greeting.
Mackenzie has partially disconnected.

Taking the nod as invitation, Mackenzie shuffles a bit closer to Antonin. "Hufflepuffs are making a fair amount of racket today," she says to him, pushing her black hair over her shoulder before beginning to scoop some food onto her plate.

Riddle greets the latest snake to join their table with a genteel bow of his head before he takes another sip of his soup lunch. "Lestrange. Yes, seems they are. Something about essay research. Think Fawley is trying to prove that NEWT classes can in fact kill you."

Indeed at the Hufflepuff table underneath his napkin, Asmund Fawley has a herbology note book. "Whittle said that it hasn't been done." So it's less of a wager and more of a simple self inflicted challenge. "That no one's been able to categorize these peppers. But I'm going to. Is the Manticore Chili the hotest? Or is the Prism Chili hotter?" He lifts up the Manticore Chili from the plate to display it when it's mentioned. It rather does look like a lions head with a golden pepper, blackish green leaves spread out at the base of the chili like bat wing and the stem that's still attached does look rather segmented and like a curled scorpians tail. Playfully Asmund pantomimes he chili rarring towards Lissie before he puts it back on his plate and then picking up to model the very curved rainbow patterned chili with a white stem and cottony leaves. "Everyone thinks it's the Manticore, but I think they are just fooled by appearances."

Antonin nods his head in agreement with Mackenzie and Riddle. "Yes, it would appear that they are making quite a bit of noise. But.. what else can you expect from their lot?" he questions with a weary sigh. He shrugs as he lifts his right hand and peers at the nails on his hand. "How are classes going for you this term, Lestrange? I trust that you are making our house proud and keeping us in the running for the cup?"

"Yes, but…." Lissie shakes her head. "Once y'eat one, how are y'tae judge th'other? Have tae wait until after the effect wears off, clears yer tongue, y'know? Else all you'll be tastin' is more o'the same. Y'see?" She shakes her head, smiling. "I mean, if y'want tae be scientific about it."

"Riddle," Mackenzie greets in return. She looks back at the Hufflepuff table again for a long moment, her green eyes focusing on Asmund until Antonin's question draws her attention back to her own table. "Some classes I'm doing well, some middling. Not failing anything this term, though, so that's a good way to make it through." She grins at him, looking a bit devious. "I've managed to scrape by and not get points taken from the house thus far, at least." She laughs at her own joke before taking a bite from her food.

Akilina looks over the top rim of her glasses at the ruckus that has her give a resigned sigh and she starts to close up the collection of books. One of the larger books is closed and the mooshed sandwich she had completely forgotten about is revealed. Big magnified eyes blink and stare at the forgotten lunch and her head is so full of research and study that it does take her a few moment to process and make a decision if she's going to eat that. Yes she is! She picks up the poor mans panini and takes the tiniest of nibbles from it with one hand while the other cleans the back cover of her make-shift panini press and continues to tidy up.

Asmund gives a wide, smile and an almost heroic pose as he lifts up the very first and mildest of the chilis. "Bol—" Pringle passing by with a steely gaze right for the chili eating prefect have said prefect minding his tongue and Bollox becomes, "Bolstering, I need bolstering. This isn't science! This is man versus pepper!" Move over Scoville Scale, Asmund want to be the Scoville of the magical world today!

Lissie tilts her head, and though she smiles broadly, there is worry in her eyes. "Right-o. Weel then, I s'pose I'll be watchin' this for… ah… posterity. Or somethin'." She idly starts to eat a pasty, nibbling squirrel-like while she watches him with wide eyes.

Akilina dabs his mouth with his napkin, "Thank Merlin for small favors?" He smiles towards Mackenzie. "I do not look forward to the first time anyone in our House even has an emerald quivering on the brink of even thinking about falling with our beloved Abraxas as Head Boy. The torture and flaying that snake will recieve I am sure will be found in Hogwarts, A History for the rest of all time."

"Yes…" Mackenzie draws out, pursing her lips for a moment as she visualizes Riddle's words. She's distant, distracted, but soon comes back into focus, looking at Tom. "Thank Merlin for small favors," she repeats, "So long as I don't get caught, I'm okay." She gives a devious smile before taking a drink.

Akilina is not even close to finishing her sandwhich by the time she is done stacking and buckling up her abundance of books. So it is neatly wrapped in a linen napkin and placed in the pocket of her Ravenclaw Robes. Little fingers wiggle to her housemates in passing as she exits the Great Hall, leaving the roudy pepper challenge to the more socially apt. She is headed for the sweet silence of her Common Room, where it only takes a pleading glance for her fellow scholars to quiet down allowing her ease of study.

Asmund doesn't even get to the third pepper and he's already squinting and mouth gaping and finally after the last bite of the second to hottest pepper he's already reaching for the milk!

"You might want a cooling potion. There are such things, aren't there?" Lissie looks up at Asmund. "You really don't look tha' weel. Are you certain tis wise tae go on t'day? Maybe better tae eat th'other t'morrow?" She nudges the milk towards him. "An' th'milk'll taste bloody awful after th' peppers."

Asmund leans over his plate because the way he glugs down most of the milk out of the large glass there is a very real chance it will dribble down the sides of his chin. "Taste? What's Taste?" Though it comes out "Tabsts wubbibs tabsts?" The pained smile on his face shows the numb mouth talking is exagerated on his part. But only some. One big deep breath and he goes back in to chugging more milk.

"Tha's bloody disgusting," murmurs Lissie, though there is a hint of appreciation in her voice. "Could win lots of bets, just figurin' what you can eat. I mean… an' no offence by't, but last I saw as could eat so was a big old goat. He was a right horny bastard, too. We et him for supper las' year."

Asmund doesn't even get to the third pepper and he's already squinting and mouth gaping and finally after the last bite of the second to hottest pepper he's already reaching for the milk!

"You might want a cooling potion. There are such things, aren't there?" Lissie looks up at Asmund. "You really don't look tha' weel. Are you certain tis wise tae go on t'day? Maybe better tae eat th'other t'morrow?" She nudges the milk towards him. "An' th'milk'll taste bloody awful after th' peppers."

Asmund leans over his plate because the way he glugs down most of the milk out of the large glass there is a very real chance it will dribble down the sides of his chin. "Taste? What's Taste?" Though it comes out "Tabsts wubbibs tabsts?" The pained smile on his face shows the numb mouth talking is exaggerated on his part. But only some. One big deep breath and he goes back in to chugging more milk.

"Tha's bloody disgusting," murmurs Lissie, though there is a hint of appreciation in her voice. "Could win lots of bets, just figurin' what you can eat. I mean… an' no offence by't, but last I saw as could eat so was a big old goat. He was a right horny bastard, too. We et him for supper las' year."

Asmund spurts milk out of his nose and mouth, thankfully most of the snarfed fluid just goes right back into the glass. A cough and a quick swipe and press of a napkin stops any more from escaping and as he cleans up his face he just stares at Lissie with that Prefecty look he always gives her when she's unleashing her growingly famous Lissie-isms. "Liss! Crimeny!" He is still choked up from the snarf and any further scolding is cut off by some coughing and throat clearing.

"What? He was tough as all get-out, so we chopped him up intae sausage bits. 'Cept his bollocks. My mum fried 'em an' served 'em tae my Da tae make a point in some argument they were havin'. Lissie tosses over a second napkin. "An' he made a lot o' baby goats o'er th' years, so it's a good thing he were horny anyhow. An' he had horns, so it's doubly so, no?"

Asmund takes up the clean napkin letting the previous one drop and sopp up the spilled milk. "Liss, you can't say things like that. I'm going to get into trouble for not getting you into trouble for saying things like that. Nevermind the threat to my life." The last part is a tease about how she always times her shocking comments for when he's got his mouth full and near chokes to death every time.

"Would't be better if I said my mum fried his testicles an' he were havin' manl… erm… he were havin' goatly urges right often?" Lissie offers a kindly smile. "Though, I mean, doan' worry. He were properly dead first. I mean, he were butchered. Not like… he dinnae jus' drop dead an' we cooked him."

Asmund nods his head though it's a weak gesture. "Yes, it would be better Lissie. It would, please?" He's back to pleading eyes over the edge of the napkin he's using. Finally the napkin is put down and he stands up and stretches. His face twisting and stretching as his mouth is still going this way and that in the lingering burning sensation. "Somehow the peppers must have gotten mixed up. That one at 3 o'clock, should have certainly been more at 7." He did have the peppers arranged like a clock face. "But now we won't know until I can get another batch of peppers." This batch ruined by a splattering spray of snarfed milk.

Lissie looks at the pepper, the hot one. The Hottest Pepper Ever? She reaches over to it and dunks it in a goblet of water a couple of times, then wipes it off with a napkin. "They was off, y'know," she murmurs. "So, nae need tae get new peppers." She tilts her head, looking at it, then pops the whole pepper into her mouth and starts to chew.

The girl takes a deep breath, and then her eyebrows rise. She continues to chew. "Righ' weel. Is a wee bit hot, aye, but naught tha' cannae be borne, y'ken? Got a bit o' sweetness in't. I wouldnae say no tae somethin' tae drink, b'cause my throat's a wee bit dry. An then…. weel. We'll see." She gets up, smiling brightly. "Seeya in th'common room t'night!"

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