A town having a festival wasn't uncommon, but what was weird was that there were internal fights about a specific topic: the scavenger hunt. Some of the townsfolk felt it was far too difficult, while others thought if anything it was too easy. And so, they left it up to a mage to make the final decision. What could go wrong?
What went wrong was they ended up hiring Leanne, who thrived on causing trouble. She also had a love of collecting things that interested her, filling her family home with things many thought would count as junk. A heart shaped stone? She had one. Pressed flowers and toxic herbs? She had both carefully put in a good chunk of the notebooks in her desk. So, when it came to a scavenger hunt, Leanne was more than happy to take part... But whether she'd actually give back the goods was another story, one she'd surely giggle over later.
She looked at the list of items and read it aloud to herself as she began walking the streets. "A toy firetruck, a pink panda plushie, a rainbow yoyo... Is it all toys? Let's see... Firetruck, panda, yoyo, uh... Ah, here we are. A...Basket of paper cranes? That sounds weird. A rainbow pinwheel- that's two rainbows. Are they trying to make me sick?"
She was halfway through the list and already regretting her decision. At most, she was maybe interested in the panda. But really, Leanne didn't like bright colorful things. "Ooooh black licorice jelly bean bottle, that sounds interesting. A pool cue? That's just random. A white tire... Those exist? A wallet with ten thousand dollars in play money, a rainbow pillo- goddamnit, another rainbow item?! Come on last item, be good..." She squinted, reading the last line. "A pure black canvas... Okay that sounds like something I'd like."
Now that she knew what she had to find, it was time to start her hunt. She started by seeking out anything colorful: rocks, marbles, things that could be seen as rainbow from a distance. She was fooled about five times before she found the pinwheel and yoyo conveniently hidden in a box of toys for a donation pool. She wandered some dark alleys to find the pillow, leaving the less notably colored objects left. This first piece took about one and a half to two hours, so she was starting to agree with the worry warts about the difficulty.
Another hour passed, and she found the basket of paper cranes in a box once used to house abandoned kittens. She had to admit, she admired the strategic placement there, as well as some of the paper choices for cranes. She pocketed a couple of them, sure no one would notice. The jelly beans were unsurprisingly at the candy store in plane sight- well, almost. In actuality, they had a wrapper around it so it couldn't be seen through, which felt a lot like cheating. Again, she admired the creativity and sneaky method.
She had two hours left and five items to go. The wallet she found by fluke when she'd thought she found a real one and was hoping to pocket it. She put it in the box she'd taken from the cranes to carry all the junk in. The pool cue was carefully tucked into some foliage to look like a fallen branch. The panda was at the center of a fountain, just under where the water spout was.
One hour left, one more item: a pure black canvas. And she did find it, albeit with a minute to spare at most. The black canvas was hidden in a doghouse of all places. Really, a doghouse? But, with all the items in her box, she went to the one in charge of the event and announced her findings.
"Some of these were definitely hard to find, but others were too easy. I admired the placement of the pool cue, the cranes and jelly beans, but the beans were a bit... Even I think it was difficult beyond necessity. The easiest items to find were probably the wallet and the pillow. They stood out."
She opted not to stick around for the festival, fearing being dragged into the prep. Taking her prize, including the black canvas she managed to win from rock paper scissors, Leanne wandered home in the sunset of the coming eve. It was a bit of a walk, but the day had been worth it in adding to her collection.
What went wrong was they ended up hiring Leanne, who thrived on causing trouble. She also had a love of collecting things that interested her, filling her family home with things many thought would count as junk. A heart shaped stone? She had one. Pressed flowers and toxic herbs? She had both carefully put in a good chunk of the notebooks in her desk. So, when it came to a scavenger hunt, Leanne was more than happy to take part... But whether she'd actually give back the goods was another story, one she'd surely giggle over later.
She looked at the list of items and read it aloud to herself as she began walking the streets. "A toy firetruck, a pink panda plushie, a rainbow yoyo... Is it all toys? Let's see... Firetruck, panda, yoyo, uh... Ah, here we are. A...Basket of paper cranes? That sounds weird. A rainbow pinwheel- that's two rainbows. Are they trying to make me sick?"
She was halfway through the list and already regretting her decision. At most, she was maybe interested in the panda. But really, Leanne didn't like bright colorful things. "Ooooh black licorice jelly bean bottle, that sounds interesting. A pool cue? That's just random. A white tire... Those exist? A wallet with ten thousand dollars in play money, a rainbow pillo- goddamnit, another rainbow item?! Come on last item, be good..." She squinted, reading the last line. "A pure black canvas... Okay that sounds like something I'd like."
Now that she knew what she had to find, it was time to start her hunt. She started by seeking out anything colorful: rocks, marbles, things that could be seen as rainbow from a distance. She was fooled about five times before she found the pinwheel and yoyo conveniently hidden in a box of toys for a donation pool. She wandered some dark alleys to find the pillow, leaving the less notably colored objects left. This first piece took about one and a half to two hours, so she was starting to agree with the worry warts about the difficulty.
Another hour passed, and she found the basket of paper cranes in a box once used to house abandoned kittens. She had to admit, she admired the strategic placement there, as well as some of the paper choices for cranes. She pocketed a couple of them, sure no one would notice. The jelly beans were unsurprisingly at the candy store in plane sight- well, almost. In actuality, they had a wrapper around it so it couldn't be seen through, which felt a lot like cheating. Again, she admired the creativity and sneaky method.
She had two hours left and five items to go. The wallet she found by fluke when she'd thought she found a real one and was hoping to pocket it. She put it in the box she'd taken from the cranes to carry all the junk in. The pool cue was carefully tucked into some foliage to look like a fallen branch. The panda was at the center of a fountain, just under where the water spout was.
One hour left, one more item: a pure black canvas. And she did find it, albeit with a minute to spare at most. The black canvas was hidden in a doghouse of all places. Really, a doghouse? But, with all the items in her box, she went to the one in charge of the event and announced her findings.
"Some of these were definitely hard to find, but others were too easy. I admired the placement of the pool cue, the cranes and jelly beans, but the beans were a bit... Even I think it was difficult beyond necessity. The easiest items to find were probably the wallet and the pillow. They stood out."
She opted not to stick around for the festival, fearing being dragged into the prep. Taking her prize, including the black canvas she managed to win from rock paper scissors, Leanne wandered home in the sunset of the coming eve. It was a bit of a walk, but the day had been worth it in adding to her collection.
