Little Beasties

[Aaron Walden]

The way the two young Gryffindors, Aaron and Lucas, had behaved most recently you would think that they would be looking for ways to keep a low profile around castle. However, this was Aaron and Lucas, and they were already thinking of new ways to have fun and to potentially cause mischief around Hogwarts. The two could never stay still for long and when they were together there was always an adventure to be had and of course, this night was no different.

After dinner the two Gryffindor boys had decided to pay the Forbidden Forest a visit. Despite being there for almost a semester, Aaron had never been in the Forest despite his sister being in there at least twice when she was in her first semester (or so she had bragged to him). He pulled on his cloak and left the castle, keeping to the shadows so he would not be spotted by any Professors or Prefects. He didn't want the night to end too soon, he needed a bit of a head start to explore what was so 'forbidden' in the forest. Aaron had left before Lucas so as not to draw attention to two young students leaving the castle together. He leaned on a tree at the entrance of the forest and waited for Lucas to arrive.

 

[Lucas Woodlock]

The fact that Lucas's first encounter into the forest landed him in trouble with first James then Professor Kingsley had not deterred him at all from agreeing to go back in. He wasn't going to miss a chance to head into the so called forbidden forest with his best friend. Of course he still wasn't sure what made the forest so forbidden or scary, the scariest thing he found in there last time was his cousin James lurking behind a bush to ambush he and Zara. Creepy, but by no means scary. He chuckled at the memory as he made his way down.

At the suggestion of Aaron, Lucas hung back in the Great hall while his friend headed down to the castle. Since the mandrake incident, almost every Professor knew to look out for the two of them doing anything suspicious. So the two of them seen leaving the castle, even if it was before curfew, would surely raise some red flags with who ever was to see them. While he waited, Lucas had a couple of extra chicken wings making sure he stripped them completely down to the bone. Finally, after about ten minutes of waiting Lucas wiped his hands and made his own way out of the castle and down towards the forest where Aaron was waiting for him. "Coast is clear dude, I don't think anyone saw me come down," He said as he saw Aaron in the shadows.

 

[Amber Chou Wilson]

Amber had purposely eaten dinner a little early tonight, so she could head out to the grounds after finishing before it became dark. It still felt a little risky to be out in the evening and Amber felt a small thrill as she glanced back at the castle. She didn't think she was technically doing anything wrong, but she was sure students weren't encouraged to be outside after dinner.

It was the only way she could think of to go without Ainsley noticing. It hadn't been easy to avoid the other girl for long enough to make a surprise for her, since they were in the same house and year and were very close friends. The last thing Amber wanted to do was send her friend away or act like she didn't want to hang out, so it had taken some effort to slip out unnoticed. She hoped Ainsley didn't think she was avoiding her, but surely the gift Amber was making for her now would make up for it if she did.

She bent down to pick another flower, looking it over carefully for blemishes before adding it to the small bunch of different flowers she was already holding. A small bouquet of flowers would definitely cheer up the girls dormitory, and would hopefully help her friend feel at home. She wondered if there were spells that would keep flowers from wilting for longer, maybe if she dared she could ask an older student?

Her flow of thoughts was interrupted when she looked up and saw to her surprise she was nearing the forest. The best flowers grew further away from the castle, but she hadn't planned to go this close to the Forbidden Forest. Amber didn't know exactly why it was forbidden, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to find out. She was just about to head back when she suddenly heard a rustling sound and then what sounded like a voice. She froze on the spot. Her first instinct was to hurry back and ignore it, but what if someone was in there that needed her help?

"Hello?" She called out as she reached for her wand. She couldn't think of any spells she could do if a monster came charging out at her, but it felt better to have it in her hand all the same.

 

[Aaron Walden]

Aaron was glad that the person he saw walking towards him wasn't a prefect but his best friend, Lucas. He waved is hand to make Lucas move faster. They had to be quick while they were out in the open, he was sure that they were going to get caught waiting outside the entrance to the forest. "Okay, good" he replied in a low voice. "Lets get going then?" he said to his friend. He was just about to set off when he heard a soft hello calling out from behind one of the trees around the edge of the forest. He instinctively hid behind a tree in case it was a prefect but he figured a prefect wouldn't announce their position, they'd just catch them straight away. He raised an eyebrow as he listened out for more signs of movement but nothing came. He turned to Lucas "did you hear that?" he asked. He then turned back to where the voice had come from "Hello?" he called back. "Who are you? and... Where are you?" he added it was quite dark and he could barely see Lucas.

 

[Amber Chou Wilson]

The voice that answered Amber didn't sound like a scary monster, but that didn't mean it wasn't one just the same. There was still a part of her that wanted to just run away and get a teacher, but if it was a student they could get in trouble. She was also a little worried she could get in trouble herself. Curiously, she took a few steps closer, trying to peer into the darkness of the forest and make out who was talking.

She chewed on her lip, thinking of what to do. "Are you a monster?" She called eventually, though she wasn't sure if it would be honest if it was. "I know lots of good spells so if you are, don't come out!" Truthfully, the only spells that came to her mind were the levitation spell and the summoning spell. She knew she wouldn't be able to levitate anything big, and the last thing she wanted as to summon it if it was something scary, but she hoped it wouldn't come to that. "And ... if you're not, who are you? It's forbidden here, you know? Are you lost? Should I go get a teacher?" She ignored the voice's last question, though she was sure they would be able to find her from the sound of her voice alone if they tried.