Harder Than It Looks

[Alice Holland]

In the previous semester, Alice had tried to climb a tree for the first time in years. It was all thanks to Elio Zephyr, a Gryffindor boy in her year. He had climbed up and talked about how fun it was, and Alice had tried to follow him. It had quickly become apparent to her that she wasn't quite as good as climbing trees as he was. She supposed the boy was stronger than her, as the hardest part had been to pull herself up. But now that she was back at school, and spending some time on her own outside, she kind of wanted to try again.

Alice walked up to a tree and looked up. From the ground, it didn't look all that impressive. But she had no doubt it would be different if she were sitting in the highest branch. For a moment she entertained herself by imagining the kind of expression Rose would get on her face at the thought of climbing up. Her oldest sister had never liked heights, and she had never been very good at concealing that fear. Not that Alice would ever tease her about it. Everyone was scared of something. Alice wasn't a big fan of the dark, though that wasn't something she had shared with her dormmates. She grabbed hold of a low branch and tried to pull herself up a bit, but all she ended up achieving was that she now dangled a few inches of the ground with her feet. There was no way she had enough strength to get onto that branch. Maybe if she used the base of the tree? She tried to 'walk' up the side to get her legs high enough to swing over the branch, but in the end she had to let go as her hands started to sting. She sighed and rubbed at her burning hands. It was quickly becoming clear to the girl that climbing a tree by yourself really wasn't all that fun. And maybe this wasn't the easiest tree to start with either.

 

[Daisy Parker-Taylor]

Climbing trees was something that came naturally to Daisy. She didn't think that there was any rhyme or rhythm to it (though, there apparently is), it was just something she always did. The Gryffindor knew there were lots of things that she did as a child that she couldn't do anymore, but she supposed because she never stopped climbing trees, it wasn't a skill she grew out of; though it wasn't until today that she realized it was a skill.
Ever since her incident in the Forbidden Forest, Daisy hadn't been too eager to get back up in the sky, but who was she to deny a young child the lesson of climbing trees? She had seen Alice, and approached the girl with a huge grin, watching her attempt to make her way up the tree. The girl wasn't very successful, but at least she was giving it a go. "My little Holland! Need a leg up? Or we could try a smaller tree to begin with? One where the branches start a bit further down. I'm sure there's one around here somewhere! But if you want, we can totally do this tree, there's nothing wrong with conquering our Everest's!"

 

[Alice Holland]

Alice was just about to give up and find something else to do, when she heard a familiar voice. The Hufflepuff looked up to see an older girl approach. "Hi Daisy!" She said brightly, giggling at the girl's way of addressing her. The older girl seemed like a lot of fun from what Alice had seen, and she felt lucky for being paired with her in the Heta Omega big sister thingy. Alice had never thought she needed more big sisters, but Daisy was different from Rose, Phoebe and Diana. She did sometimes remind Alice a little bit of Rose, but in this situation she knew her oldest sister would be trying to get her to stop climbing the tree. She was glad Daisy didn't have the same frame of mind. "Maybe a different one, to start." She said, after thinking it over for a moment. "Then this one when I'm really good at it! Are you good at climbing trees?" It wouldn't surprise her if that was the case. Daisy was a lot taller than Alice, and probably a lot stronger too. She was willing to bet the older girl could get into this tree in a few seconds.

 

[Daisy Parker-Taylor]

Daisy grinned at Alice, glad she wasn't too scared to try climbing trees, but also that she wasn't afraid to admit she needed to start on an easier tree. "Aye aye Cap!" Daisy replied, with a salute to Alice. The Gryffindor girl started walking over to a smaller tree, looking for one with lower branches. "I wouldn't say I'm the worst, but I did break my leg not so long ago." Daisy replied, but sent what she hoped was a reassuring smile. Daisy stopped in front of a tree that was a lot smaller. "Alright m-dear, this one is a good starter. All you gotta do, is make sure you 'got a good grasp on a higher branch with your hand before you lift your foot up to this branch - like this." Daisy held tightly onto a branch a bit higher than her, before placing her foot on another branch. She hoisted herself up, still keeping hold of the branch in her hand. "Don't let go just yet, gotta make sure you keep yourself stable. And use your legs to push your body up, if your arms aren't good at pulling yet!"

 

[Alice Holland]

Alice was glad Daisy would help her find a better tree, and followed the girl with a smile on her face. That smile disappeared when the older girl told her she had broken her leg recently. She gasped, her hand flying to her mouth. "Really? that must have really hurt!" She knew broken bones could be fixed almost instantly, but from what she had heard it did hurt a lot. Suddenly, the tree looked a lot more intimidating, and she frowned at it. "I don't want to break my leg." She told the girl, as if Daisy might have misunderstood her reasons for wanting to climb this tree. Still, she listened closely to the girl's instructions, watching her demonstration. "I think that's my problem, my arms aren't very strong." She said, glancing at her arms with a slight frown as if they had betrayed her. But then it was time to try for herself. Alice pushed her worries of leg-breaking aside and tried to follow Daisy's lead. She grabbed a branch a little higher and tried to get her foot on another branch. It took her a few tries, but eventually she was standing on a lower branch while holding one a bit higher to keep herself steady. "Look!"

 

[Daisy Parker-Taylor]

Daisy nodded her head when Alice said it must've hurt. It did, and she couldn't even begin to explain what the pain felt like. But she shook her head when Alice said she didn't want to break her leg. "You won't babes, I promise, I got you! Besides, I fell from quite high up, because there was a spider - and usually spiders are fine, but it just appeared out of no where and - it's a long story." Shaking her head again when the girl said her arms aren't strong. "You can do this little Holland!" Daisy watched, excited, with a huge grin on her face when Alice managed to get onto a branch. "Yay!! Well done! I'm so proud. You ready to keep going? We'll find somewhere high and comfy enough for us to sit!" Daisy said, looking up at the tree again. It wasn't that big of a tree, but there was a few thicker and sturdier branches further up. Daisy looked back down at Alice. "Just make sure you're always holding onto something okay? That way you have something to keep you upright when you wobble. Then, make sure your foot is sturdy before stepping up to the next branch, and make sure you give weak looking branches a tug before you climb. Hands first, then feet!" Daisy exclaimed, before reaching for the next branch and stepping up.

 

[Alice Holland]

Alice was glad that the older girl reassured her she wasn't going to break her leg. It sounded awful. The story about the spider made her a little nervous again and she looked up at the tree to see if she could see any spiders in there. Daisy's encouragements really helped, and Alice grinned at her. "I'm ready!" she said firmly. The idea of sitting up high in a tree with Daisy was really fun, and Alice couldn't help thinking it would be a good place for spying on people, if she ever wanted to do that. Alice looked at Daisy and listened to her advice, trying to keep track of it all in her mind. "Okay!" She said, watching her step up to the next branch and then trying to do so herself. It took her a lot more effort than it had Daisy, but in the end she ended up a branch higher. A little out of breath, the girl made sure her feet were sturdy and she was holding onto something before she looked up. "Have you found a good spot yet?"

 

[Daisy Parker-Taylor]

Daisy grinned at Alice, loving her enthusiasm to try new things, and not be afraid. "Yay!" Daisy exclaimed when she said she was ready. She watched her carefully, making sure she wasn't going to fall - Daisy would've hated it to happen after she just told her it wouldn't. But Alice was fine - she made it up a branch. "You're a pro! A real natural at this Alice!" Daisy looked up again when she asked if she'd found a good spot. "Yeah, there's a really sturdy branch just up here, like two more climbs. And we can sit on the branch! That's half the fun of tree climbing." Daisy said, before grabbing onto a branch above her, and climbing up onto it. "Just follow my lead, you'll be here in no time!" Daisy exclaimed, moving to the branch where they could sit, but ready to lend a hand if Alice needed it.

 

[Alice Holland]

Daisy's encouragement helped Alice forget about the pain in her hands as she pulled herself up on rough bark. She was having a fun time, even though tree-climbing didn't exactly come naturally to her. She listened to her advice and climbed up another branch. The girl was a little out of breath now, and her hands were a little dirty by now but she didn't care. "Okay!" She said as Daisy told her she had found a good spot for sitting. That did sound like fun! Especially now that the climbing had made her tired. She watched as Daisy moved to the branch she had pointed out, and tried her best to follow her. She finally arrived at the last branch to climb and looked up at her friend. "Can you give me a hand?" She asked, reaching up. She was almost there.