meeting friends in the summer

Aspen

Aspen

Centaur, Groundskeeper, Intrigued, Lonely.
 
Messages
315
OOC First Name
Mia
Wand
a bow, arrows and a dagger
Age
48 (08/2014)
Aspen was on the hunt, she didn't hunt big animals any more as it was a waste, a deer was good when there was a whole clan to feed, but when there was just her she usually went for rabbit, or birds, or other small animals. however as the young outcast centaur prowled towards the edge of the trees the creature seemed to have been spooked about something, she shot her arrow at the tree near where it had been before galloping towards it and reclaiming it, perfectly balanced ones were hard to make and this was one of her best. she then looked around to see what had made the noise, she hoped that it was her sister or another student from the school. she had been in this forest for almost a year and as much as she liked the students she had only spoken to her sister, rowan, and her other sister. rowan had been in more often recently ever since the holidays. she had only met Madlyn once and that day she had spoken to her had not been a happy time, she hoped that she would meet some other students whom she could get to know.
 
Last charms lesson that had taken place outside the castle, had tempted Minoas to break his promise of staying away from trouble and dedicating himself on revision. He was equipped with his bow and quiver, an excuse to to cast away his qualms for postponing his revision as he was supposed to be practising as well his archery.
Although it was a bright, summer morning, the forest's canopy was casting a carpet of shadow, covering the most part of the dry ground. A few golden rays of light managed to pass through the impenetrable dome of the forest, creating scattered spotlights. Minoas had earnth from his past mistakes. Forbidden forest was a dangerous place. Last time he had ventured deeper inside those trees' fortress, he had risked his life. This time, he had chosen the safety of daytime. Although, safety in this part of the grounds was a controversial term.

Stealthily, he was headng right into the area were a professor died almost a year ago. Of course Minoas didn't believed the rumours that were suggesting that centaurs committed the murder. He grew up with centaurs and that was an unacceptable accusation for him unless he was going to confirm it on his own. Studying the signs of the forest, that he had set, he reaised that he was also near to the hole he had fallen in last year, almost becoming the snack for large spiders.
Before he was able to adjust his path away from that dangerous area, his senses caught a presence somewhere in the distance. He heard what seemed to him, an arrow slashing the wind before impacting on a tree's cortex. "Homenum Revelio!" he whispered alerted and waved his wand to cover the whole area before him. He searched around him to spot the red outline that would reveal the location of the person that was causing that sound. However, it seemed that there was no person in the range of his spell but something else...

Confident, armed with his bow and his wand in hand, he left his cover and revealed himself to the source of the sound. The shade of the trees was concealing the deatails of the figure in front of him but it seemed to be a centaur. "H-hi! Are you a centaur?" he asked as he wasn't expecting to find one so easily.
 
OOCOut of Character:
I had sort of seen it as boing day time, not night time but if you want it to be night then i guess that that would be okay

the young centaur looked around to see if she could see where the rabbit had gone and whilst she was doing this she got her bow ready to shoot it when it did appear, however it seemed to have vanished, maybe it had a burrow near by where it could disappear. her ears were on full alert for any sound of movement there was not the movement what she was straining to hear, but there was one sound, and she guessed that it was what had scared the small creature, she was sure she heard a voice cast a spell, as spell that she had heard hr sister cast once before before telling her what had happened to her over the winter. the centaur was pretty sure she could remember what it did, it showed humans in the local area. "I dont think that that will work on me" she said smiling and heading towards the sound.
She saw a boy step put from behind a tree. he seemed pretty young compared to the other students she had met, but he was someone to talk to. "Hello, My name is Aspen, and yes i am a centaur. if you don't mind me asking, who are you?" she said shouldering her bow and putting the arrow back in the quiver. she could continue looking fo dinner later, she would much rather talk to someone, as she hadnt spoken to anyone for a few days. just the trees and creatures. that was the problem of being an outast, not the lack of security, or the having to do everything for yourself, those things you couldget used to, it was the not having enyone around and being on your own. she knew rowan viseted her when she could but she had classes and flying practice, plus her own problems to deal with. she smiled and looked at the boy, she wondered if he knew Rowan, from what she could tell her sister had made quite a name for herself at the school.
 
As the young centaur came closer to him, his eyes locked enthusiastically at her figure. He just then realised how much he had missed his centaur educator. He admired the wildness and the knowledge that the existance of those creatures were radiating. He switched his gaze on his wand and quickly hide it behind him, embarrased. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to be rude or anything. I wasn't expecting to come across a centaur." he apologised as he knew how proud centaurs were. Furthermore, they hated when wizards and witches were casting magic against them but the centaur before him, didn't look offended.

The centaur was actually really polite and humble. She even introduced herself first, before asking his name.
"Hi! My name is Minoas. I'm a student here in Hogwarts. Nice to meet you Aspen!" he replied respectfully. He checked his surroundings, expecting more centaurs to appear from behind the green cover of the forest. However, it seemed that Aspen was venturing alone. It was strange to him. Usually centaurs were depended on the safety and the collaboration of their herd. He noticed the bow and the quiver that she was shouldering, realising that he might had interrupted her hunting. "Umm, sorry if I just interrupted something. Were you hunting?" he asked, still checking for any indications that more centaurs were close to their location.
 
aspen saw him quickly hide his wand, most centaurs didn't like magic, but aspen was intrigued by it, that was why she had come all of this way to the magic school when she had been kicked out of her heard. "you didn't come across as rude, so no need to appologise" she said she had wanted to learn magic, but knew she wouldn't be able to as she wasn't a witch, but a centaur.
when he said his name something clicked in the back of her mind. "Nice to meet you Minoas, my sister talks about you a lot, you seem to be like a little brother to her." she said glad to have finally have met the boy at last. she had now met both of her sisters 'family' at the school Rowans her sister and little brother, therefore her sister and little brother, as the way the herd worked family was family, weather blood or adopted and a sisters brother was a brother at the end of the day. she could see the boy was looking around a little nervously, as though expecting a lot more centaurs to burst out of the trees. "i am alone, I'm not native to the forest so I'm not part of the local heard." she said trying to make him feel a little safer. at his question about hunting she laughed, "I was, but there are plenty more rabbits in the woods, and besides the one i was after looked a little scrawny. if you know what i mean, probably a good job you scared it away, give it time to fatten up a little." she said words flowing freely as if to make up for the little she usually spoke.
OOCOut of Character:
sorry wrong account, it is aspen posting this
 
Minoas took a confused expression as Aspen told him that her sister had talked to her about him. He hadn't met a centaur before from the local herd so he puzzled when she told him that he was like a little brother to her sister. When Aspen revealed that she wasn't from the local herd as well, Minoas got even more confused. "Excuse me but I've never met a centaur from these parts before. I don't think I have met your sister, maybe you are mistaken with someone else." he replied still looking a little bit puzzled. The young gryffindor was wondering why Aspen was venturing alone. He knew that nomadic centaurs had more difficulties and troubles when it came to survival as the herd was cooperating for the hunting and they were defending each other.

Considering the words of the centaur, an idea ignited in his mind. Maybe Aspen knew what was existing out of the boundaries of the forest. "How come you ended up here? It's a mysterious place if you ask me. Last time I was reckless enough to enter deeper I was almost eaten by acromantulas." he started a conversation that he was going soon to guide it right on his query. He grinned as the centaur used some good humour there and he decided to help her out with her hunting. "I can help you find a better one. I'm a pretty good tracker and I must improve my archery skills as well." he offered kindly, taking off his bow from his shoulder. "Don't worry, I've been taught as well how to be stealthy." he reassured her as he was drawing an arrow out of his quiver.
 
Aspen was pretty sure he was the right boy but she didn't want to make it awkward, "maybe i have got the wrong person. sorry" she said bowing her head slightly. before quickly looking back at the boy. she quite liked him but she saw what he was carrying and she was a little uneasy, she didn't think they taught archery at the school, and she wasn't sure how well he knew how to use it, but at lest it wasn't loaded so the feeling was only momentary. "I was kicked out of my own heard, for mixing with humans and wizards too much. and it took me ages to get here. but i didn't know where else to go as i didn't know anyone outside my heard other than Rowan" she said. then when he mentioned acromantulas something sparked in her mind. "you are the right person, i forgot to say, my sister isn't a centaur, she goes to the school, her name is Rowan." she added, she was pretty sure that he would recognise the name, even though she knew she went by a different name, she still kept rowan as a second name, and she couldn't remember the new name. banner or something but that wasn't right. when he offered to help her hunt, she frowned, she wasn't sure if she wanted to hunt any more, and even if she did she wasn't sure if he would be much of a help for her, she had been hunting since she was a foal. "I don't know if i fancy hunting any more, maybe i will go vegitatarian for the night, there is a lot of fruit and plants around at this time of the year." she said.
 
"It's okay!" he replied with the same kindness as Aspen did. He troubled his mind for a little longer as he made another attempt to remember if he had met another centaur in the forest but in the end he gave up. Aspen's story reminded him Briar's experience with centaurs in which the intelligent creatures were avoiding humans. For Minoas that was something that he couldn't believe that really existed. For generations, his family was aided by centaurs wisdom as he was now. He was going to share with Aspen, his relationship with centaurs when the centaur mentioned that familiar name. "Excuse me. Did you just said Rowan?" he asked to confirm what he had just heard. Aspen's explanation soon cleared things up and Minoas expessions brightened as now everything were making sense.

"Are you Briar's sister?!" he asked excited as he was coming to meet a family member. He was ignoring why Aspen was calling Briar with her surname. "She a good friend of me, well more something like a sister. She had saved my butt in the past and she had dedicated time to make me a better flyer." he explained his connection with her sister, not sure if what he had mentioned sounded complicated to the centaur. Aspen's unwillingness to continue her hunting, met Minoas' slight disappointment. He hesitated, before shouldering again his bow and placing the arrow back into the quiver. "I guess you won't have any trouble finding the best fruits around here. Briar knows all kinds of plants and fruits. It's remarkable!" he mentioned, expecting that Aspen would be even better.

He just then remembered that somewhere around there the professor was killed. He decided to ask Aspen without clearly sharing with her what he was searching for. "Say, have you seen anything strange around here?" he decided to start with a generic question.
 
Aspen nodded when he said it was okay that she had got the wrong person even though she was sure she was right. the thought back to see if she had the name right, and she was pretty sure that she did. however she was proved right, Yep, Rowan" she said before seeing his expression change. "Yes i am Briars sister, but we always called her Rowan back in the herd." she said, hot even thinking that he wouldn't know about the their past. "Well if my sister sees you as a brother. then it is nice to meet you brother" she said she seemed to get on pretty well with rowans friends. so she knew she would get on well with minoas. "i heard about that, but from what i heard you put up a good fight too. as for flying, I don't know how she gets any work done, she is on that broom so much" she said. Aspen knew she wouldn't be now though, it was the day of a full moon so she would probably in the cavern by now. <br />she had just reached up to a tree and picked tow apples just as he said that she was bound to be good as getting food. "Rowan was always one of the best as finding fruit, I think the fact she had limbs and feet in a way that enables her to climb trees helped. but i guess i'm okay. Apple?" she said adding the question at the end. and offering the fruit at the same time. <br />the next question was very broad. "anything odd, well there are a lot of odd things. what kind of odd specifically were you thinking about?" she said knowing that that question would usually have a reason behind it.
 
Minoas wondered if it was a custom in Aspen's old herd to call its members by their surname but soon he realised that Briar might had a different name during her time in the herd and later made it her surname. She had never met her biological parents after all so she would had required a surname when she had joined the magical community. The other fact that Minoas had found out was that both Asper and Briar had names, inspired by trees.
"I see. Is it a distinctive feature to have tree names in your herd?" he asked the centaur curiously. Maybe herd centaurs had different habits than nomads. His educator was a nomad that's why he preferred teaching to wizards and witches, keeping his distance from other centaurs.

Named by Aspen as her 'brother', made him flash a smile and then her comment inflated his pride. "They were too many though. Briar helped me a lot but in the end it was hard even with the two of us hexing them. Her flying skills were those that got us out of their. If she didn't have her broom with her, there would be two extra deaths in this forest." he said, scanning Aspen for any changes on her features, when he mentioned the two extra deaths. He didn't want to seem nosy and ask straight and clear. "It's alright to call Briar...umm...Briar? Or you would like me to call her Rowan?" he asked slightly confused as he thought that Aspen wasn't used to her name.

It was true that limbs and feet were helpful to climb up trees but centaurs were smart enough to find other ways to reach the fruits that were out of their hands range. "You are right but that's why you have your bow!" he said and took off his shoulder again his bow and arrow. He shot awkwardly an arrow towards an apple on the apple tree, just to miss his target and make the arrow ostracize on the hard bark of the tree. "Thank you." he muttered quite embarrassed and disappointed with his performance as he accepted the apple from Aspen. He rushed to retrieve the arrow as it was too time-consuming, making new ones all the time. He rested back in his shoulder his bow to enjoy the apple.
"I still need practice, that's why I came here. No worries hitting another student around here." he sarcasted and took a bite from his apple. He smirked when Aspen told him that everything was odd around those parts and he rolled his eyes on his miss on the obvious.

"You are right about that." he said and swallowed quickly to continue his phrase. "Well, I was thinking about the local centaur herd in particularly. There are rumours that they had murdered a professor somewhere around here." he decided to speak of what he was thinking roundabouts. He didn't know how much time had spent Aspen in the forbidden forest to know anything about it but he gave a shot.
 
Aspen looked at the boy. he seemed to be thinking and a moment later she realised what he was contemplating. "I guess, most members had tree or plant names. rowan, and me aspen, there was also moss, daisy. but there was also snow, hoarfrost, and Shaiala" she said. remembering a list of names from her herd. most were plants, or other natural phenomenon. but there were others, which meant things n their native tongue.
"Yeah, I heard the story, briar comes in here quite often" she said, she often went for a run with her sister in the mornings, and they would talk about all sort things, mainly what they had been up to. "there are always deaths in the forest, there was almost another one a few minutes ago, but i know which one yo are referring to, and i guess thats what the odd thing you were asking about too." she said. she had helped her sisters find the truth about it, and the end wasn't pretty.
"I dont mind what you call her, I sometimes use both, but i am just used to Rowan." she said.
watching him aim at an apple, "not really what we use them for, you end up with holes and bruises. you seem to be going pretty well, try mounting the arrow a little lower on the tying so that it goes straight" she said recommending a way in which he could improve his aim it seemed that the arrow was flying a little down from where her was aiming. "well if it is practice that you are after, i may have to leave you to it" she said pretty sure that he would rather her stay. and at his next question she was confirmed right, mainly on her first suggestion but also partially on the later. yes, they was one killed in the forest but no where near here, in the herds territory. the sisters found it, i couldn't go onto their land, but they brought him back. it wasn't nice" she said.
 
Munching his apple, he listened as Aspen was confirming his idea about the tree names. It was a clever way to keep partnership between the herds members. "That's cool! Sounds like native american names!" he commented.
"If I had to choose, I would go with Chaste from chaste tree." he chose one randomly. He then listened quite intrigued as Aspen talked about the forest. His grey eyes widened when she mentioned that a death had occured a few minutes ago. "What do you mean? Where?" asked the young gryffindor alerted as he turned to look around him for a dead body, lying on the forest's ground. However, there was no corpse around there but maybe Aspen was talking metaphorically. Centaurs were good at giving riddles and talking with metaphors.

"No it's alright. I have all day free for today. I can practise later. Thanks for the hint though. I will try it later. For now I would like to keep you alive and away from my arrows tips." he said quite afraid to use again his bow when other living beings were around. The centaur might had realised that he was trying to gain information from her and she had decided to spill the beans. Although he didn't know the majority of the information that Aspen was sharing, he was first focuses on the word 'sisters'. "So you have other sisters except from Briar? Are they centaurs or humans?" he left open the possibility of Aspen's other sisters being either centaurs or humans. He then focused back on the main topic. The one that he had brought himself inside that forest. He waited until Aspen stopped talking, hoping that she would share more information and that he wouldn't have to ask further.
"And? What exactly happened? Were the centaurs the murderers?" he asked.
 
Asben bit her apple, "I dont know about native american names, so i cant compare." she said. she new how the names were chosen in her herd it was what was dominant around at the time, of birth, Rowan had been found under a rowan tree, she had been born next to an aspen tree. "you generally don't get much choice in the matter, it picks you" she said not quite sure if he would understand, but if she said mush more she may as well start a herd of her own, a human herd.
when he asked about where the death was she pointed over her shoulder to where her arrow had ht the tree. "just there, the rabbit i was hunting, but it managed to escape, so its won its self another day, maybe a wolf will get it tonight, maybe it will learn and live until it dies of a disease" she said, sure life was important, but she still needed to eat.
"did i say they were my sisters? I don't think i did. but you are right, they were, over here i have two sisters and a brother, you are the brother, Rowan is one sister, and her sister is mine too think about it." she said wondering it he would get it, as briar was her sister, all of her family also belonged to aspen. so the girl the same hight as her who she called sister was her sister. back home i have a lot of sisters and brothers, family works different there but it's hard to explain. "I dont know what happened, I wasn't there, it was in herd territory so i couldn't even have a look after, but the end result was not pretty." she said not liking to think about it. his next question shocked her. she looked around the forest to make sure that there was nothing in ear shot. she looked around to make sure that there was no one near by, and arrows were not going to come flying at them, as although she wasn't allowed n the herds land, they could go wherever they wanted. when she was sure that they were alone she knelt down. so she was a more similar height to her. "that is not something to say in the forest when to dont know who is around, and don't say you have that silly spell as like you said we don't show up. now listen close as i will only say this once. I could never betray my kind for calling them that, but i believe that they caused the death and it was unprovoked. but like i said i wasn't there" she said in a quiet rushed voice
 
"How that happens?" he asked spontaneously, curious to find his own centaur name. That would be a different custom and maybe used only in Aspen's old tribe as the centaurs that Minoas knew back home, didn't have similar names. He couldn't help himself but let his smile form on his features. He loved the way centaurs were exressing themselves and when you thought they were talking about something specific then they managed to turn it into something completely generic. "Then this is not the death tha occured but this one." he said with a smirk and raised a little bit his hand with the eaten apple. "It used to have life when it was hanging on that tree. That's what my educator had told me. And assuming life never dies but moves on in circles, I guess now the apple lives in my stomach." he tried to show smart but at the same time he couldn't prevent himself from mocking his statement. He was too young to understand thouroughly the laws of life, the way centaurs were perceiving that matter.

His smile widened even more when Aspen started talking about her sisters and brother. It wasn't a mockery smile but a smile of innocence. He had just realised how much he had missed his educator once more. "I guess you mention as your second sister, Briar's friend Madlyn, right?" he asked slightly confused but still with a smile.
His smile vanished instantly when their talk focused on the notorious incident. Minoas took a frown, similar to that of a child listening to a very messed up fairytale. His imagination filled with terrible images as Aspen was mentioning the words 'not pretty' and of course Minoas was't going to stop at that. He was ready to ask more but Aspen's shocked expression, disarmed his next question. Alerted, he started looking around them as well, his hand slipping slowly nearer to his wand pocket. He approached closer to her as she knelt down to his height, wondering what would be her secret.

He knew that centaurs were devoted to their kind and that he had insulted her kind in some way. Minoas however, was a person that liked talking straightly when he had some facts. He had heard from so many people that the murder was commited by the centaurs that he came to believe that claim now. "I'm sorry for talking like that. In first place, I could't believe such kind of allegation. I had grown up with a centaur as well, I know that you are not barbaric. But in case that's the truth, then I can't see why I can't call murderers." he mattered his last words boldly, not addressing them to all centaurs but only at the local herd.
There was a moment of silence and Minoas tossed the core of his apple in the distance of trees. He decided that Aspen didn't know anything else and if she knew, she wasn't going to tell anymore to a reckless twelve year old. So he completely changed the subject away from murders and accusations. "Briar had told me that she and her family used to live in north Europe. How you manged to end down here?" he curiously asked. He didn't know if centaurs could use portkeys or had other means of transportation or navigation.
 
Aspen rolled her eyes, "It just sort of does, how did you get the name Minoas? did you choose it?" she asked pretty sure the answer would be no. why did she have to explain naming patterns when humans didn't, just because her background was different. she could tell that Minoas was not too sure on his statement, as though he was reporting something someone else had told him without believing it. "you're right. that is also a death, you are right, if you hadn't eaten it it could have grown into to tallest apple tree in the forest, or it may fall to the ground rotted and been lunch for a group of maggots. either way it is rare for a death to not have meaning. to not give life to something else, at least in nature" she said. in some places this wasn't the case, the rate at which they spread had caused a lot of unnecessary death, o they could have their houses, and land for farming.
"once again you are right, Madlyn is my other sister, although i don't know how well she and Briar are getting on at the moment, I think she blames Rowan for not being there for her after their farther died, but she doesn't know that right now Rowan needs her, as she has been and is going through a lot" she said before stoping abruptly. remembering that Rowan didn't want people in the castle to know about her infliction. she hoped that he wouldn't ask about why rowan needed Madlyn but he seemed pretty quick to pick up on most other things so it seemed unlikely that he would miss that. this time aspen knew what he was about to say before he said it and she covered his mouth with her hand. not to scare him but to stop the words ringing so loud. "you can not say that because you are in their land, and you don't want to upset them. say what you want in the castle. it is different for you, wen you have done here today you head back into those walls where they cant touch you. do you know what kind of trouble i would be in if that thought i was telling wizards that they were murderers. what little respect they had for me went when i helped the girls find their farther. if they found out they would not think twice of removing me from the forest then where will i go" she said, she didn't care if it sounded selfish, she was young and inexperienced in politics, she had taken to living by their specifications, on her own, in the worst parts of the forest, it was hard and she didn't know how much harder she would be able to cope with it being.
she was glad when he let the subject drop. and asked her how she had managed to get to new zealand. "most of the way was easy, it was over land, i ran, ad walked, sometimes getting rides on muggle transport when i thought i could get away with it. the last bit was the hardest, as you know new zealand is an island and a awful long way away from mainland eurasia, well one day i met a wizarding family. we got on pretty well, and after a few days with them i told them where i was going and the farther basically gave me a lift to Brightstone village. I bet i am the only centaur who has apparated" she said winking.
 
Minoas smirked as he could see Aspen's point. "You are right but it didn't choose me either. My parents came up with my name, for their personal reasons I guess, so it was their choice." he tried to show her that it was after all the decision of someone else. "So I guess your parents named you after that name because you were born under an aspen tree." he made a wild guess. He listened to her philosophical mologue. To the majority of people that could be a waste of words but Minoas adored the way centaurs were realising life. "I might have heard this line thousand of times but still never gets old." he commented with glazed eyes as his educator was teaching him philosophy and life was a really popular topic.

Minoas had never met Briar's best friend and sister but he had the feeling from all those times that he had saw her from the distance, that he would like her as a person. Besides, Briar wasn't tolerating people that weren't good at heart. Aspen mentioned that Briar would be needing Madlyn's support this period of time and that was like a red banner for Minoas as he could see that Aspen knew something that was bothering his friend. "Do you mean she has a tough time with her lessons?" he asked cunningly. He knew that Briar difficultly would be pressured by her lessons and that it was something else. Maybe Aspen could spill something that could give him a hint, by not asking her straightly.

The youngster decided to ignore and not talk anymore about the professor's death. He had a completely different opinion about the event but he didn't want to make Briar's sister feel more uncomfortable than she was already feeling. Moreover, Aspen's journey to New Zealand was far more interesting than arguing over the integrity of the local herd. "Wow! That sounds amazing! I'm always up for a good adventure to be honest. I would really like to travel one day!" he daydreamed as he was trying to bring in his mind, vivid moments of Aspen travelling in secrecy among muggles. "I think except from you and my educator, there must be really few centaurs that might have been apparated. Personally, I don't really like it. My stomach feels sick for hours after apparating." he revealed with a grimace of sickness. "You must be really love your sister to travel that far but don't you miss the family you left behind?" he asked, wanting to see how strong were the bonds between the herds members.
 
Aspen nodded, she had always been intregued by the wizarding and muggle worlds, a curiosity that had got her in trouble many times before. so it was quite refreshing to find out that names were just randomly chsoen for people y their families without her own family rolling their eyes and making impatient noises behind her. "thats odd" she said, she had expected somethng a lot more creative form humans but apparently not. jut as plane as picking a word they liked. at his guess she smiled, "you are quicker than i gave you credit for, you got that basically bang on the head, however it isn't the same for everyone, and i think different herds have different naming styles" she said. she was a little surprised at his reaction to her talk on life. she hadn't expected him to have heard it before, but apparently he had/ she shrugged it off and cringed as she realised what she had said, hoping that she hadn't spoiled things for rowan by letting something slip "no classes are fine, secretly i think she is happy that sixth year is more practical and less theory" she said though not adding any more to his question, she was in two minds about letting something slip, she didn't want to let him know something that her sister didn't want him to, but then again, if he did know he could help her.
glad that the conversation had moved on from the death of the giant man she listened as he said he wanted to travel, "I didn't really get to see much, i mainly moved by night when i could hide and it was easier for me to be mistaken for a horse." when he mentioned aparation she was glad that she wasn't the only one who wasn't a big fan of it. "I know why many centaurs don't do it regally, i never felt like my hooves were in such a twist, and i felt pretty bad" she said though she had been grateful for the lift, it had saved her a whole lot of frustration, and reduced her chances of being spotted dramatically. "yeah, i miss them, but i had been kicked out of the herd, so i would be on my own there, here i have Rowan and you and madlyn" she said as well as the other lone centaur she had met a few weeks ago, she added in her head
 
]"It isn't the same for us either. My parents I guess, decided that name for me because of the island I was brought up. Other humans, give to their children the names of their parents. Depends on the person or their culture I guess." he said, speaking from his point of view and experience. Minoas had realised that Aspen had found out that he was trying to get from her farther information which she wasn't willing to offer that easily. He had also sensed that Aspen was trying to stir him away from that topic and oddly, he didn't pressured further.
"I hope that's true cause I'm not good in theory as well. Good for her anyways. The load of my homework had prevent me from hanging around with her." he said as he had to talk with Briar since the teams tryouts.

"Shame that I can't cast yet a disillusionment charm. You could travel unseen and also you could come out of the forest and have a closer look of the castle." he said disappointed with his skills. He nodded lively his head in understanding as he was sharing the shame opinion about apparating. "It's the same with us and although we don't have hooves to feel twisted, our belly buttons come to know that feeling. I hope I'll be able to skip apparation lessons when I come to that age." he added hopeful. Although Aspen was having a couple of friends there, Minoas was wondering how lonely it could be to be a nomad. "And how you pass your time around here?" he asked her, keen to see if centaurs were something more that star gazers.
 
Aspen nodded. "I guess that that makes sense. if there was a set pattern for everyone there would be a lot less variation of names" she said. she saw that he realised that she didn't like telling a lot about hte workings of the herd, even is she wasn't a member any more she felt like it was a sort of betrayal. "from what i heard, it is the ravenclaws who are the ones who like books, maybe the gryfindors are too impatient" she said.
"hat is actually a good idea. but i think disillusionment charm is a sixth year spell. Rowan was practising it about a moon turn and a bit ago" she said. dripping a slight hint to her previous point. she hoped he wouldn't pick up on it and think that was how she usually told time, maybe only clicking in a while when a few other hints had come about. hopefully a hint here and a clue there, and in not too long he would work out something near to the truth. "I thought it was just me like that, the man seemed not to feel it at all, maybe you get used to it." she said from her own experience though she doubted she would, for starters she couldn't see herself aparating much as for starters she wasn't able to do magic. "as strange as it sounds, even though i don't have classes like the wizards my age here, i don't get much free time. for starters a lot of time goes on finding food, and shelter. and after all of that is done, i tend to explore, i haven't been in this forest that long, i am still finding new places here, even n my limited range" she said only the other week she had met another outcast, and he had shown her where he had set up a permanent camp, it was a good spot he had chosen, but she liked moving, never more than a week at one site.
 
Listening to Aspen talking about Hogwarts houses and the courses taught at specific years, Minoas was finding out that the centaur knew a lot about that castle. Of course Briar could have informed her sister about all this but Minoas knew that his friend wasn't finding interesting enough the topic of lessons and courses to share it.
"Lucky her! I hope she'll manage to use it successfully. Maybe she'll be patient enough and show me. Was she after an adventure or something?" he asked curiously as he suspected mischief out of Briar's attempt to learn that spell. The young gryffindor was completely ignorant about werewolves habits so he didn't manage to catch Aspens hint.

"Still you can leave behind a part of your body, a leg for example. That sounds horrified!" he said a bit freaked out as he was imagining a single feet, standing on the ground, separated from the rest of the body. "I prefer flying as a mean of transport. I'm sure Briar would have agreed with me." he nodded, sure for his statement.
It seemed that Aspen was moving a lot in search of food and shelter and she probably didn't have a permanent place to call home. "I see! Sounds like a full time immigration. But don't you want a place that you would know that it is safe all the time. A place to hide, a place to call home?" he asked the centaur. "I always wanted to build a tree house in this forest." he said but regretted it as he looked at Aspens hooves. "Well maybe we could find something else for you. I've seen a hollowed tree, with a thick trunk. That could be turned into a nice home with some magical assistance." he played with his eyebrows as he was taking out his wand. He wasn't sure how exactly he could create windows or a bigger opening for Aspen but he liked the idea.
 
Aspen saw that he was a little impressed about w well she knew about the castle. she had begged as much information as she could off her sister. she had been curious about humans and that had only grown since Rowan had left the herd. and she wanted to know everything she could about them. "I think she had it pretty much down to a tee, she was practicing doing it without talking, that was where she was struggling" she said before chuckling at his suggestion. "No i don't think so, i think that she wanted to get it right for class" she said. unaware how out of character this was for her sister as she had only arrived at the school at the end of last year, and it had only been this year that the girl had started working hard for class.
"That sounds horrible. I am glad that didn't happen to me, it would be a little explaining. how there was a centaur in New Zeland with a leg left in asia" she said. "I am sure she wold, she seems to spend all of her free time on that broom" she said agreeing with his statement. she laughed as he said that maybe she should find somewhere more permanent to set up camp. "I am happy traveling. always looking for something new is what i am used to. we always traveled at home. and as much as i like humans, i don't think a tree house will work, and thank you for the offer but a hollowed out tree would just feel wrong too" she said. she knew some of the locals were used to the small forest and kind seasons, but her forest had spanned countries, and the winters were harsh in some places but the summers in those places were lush and bountiful.
 
"She's practising spells without saying the incantations? That must be really hard but I'm so envious of her!" he exclaimed, impatient for the moment that he will be able to practise such kind of magic. He didn't really fall for Aspen's claim that Briar was just merely practising tha spell for classes. He knew Briar pretty well and a charm that was almost equivalent to an invisibility cloak was too tempting to just use it only for homework. Minoas could think a handful of situations that he was going to use that charm in the future. For now he could spy and see if there were any other humans in the are close to him.

A grimace formed on his face as he visualised the seperated horse leg, standing alone somewhere in the countryside, even twitching a little. "Thanks for sharing. Now I'm never going to give a shot at apparation." he sad a bit grossed but still keeping his sarcasm vivid. He wasnt expecting the centaur to accept his offer. From her previous description of her everyday life, the young gryffindor had realised that the centaur was alright as far as she had her freedom. He always wanted to feel free and that was the main reason he liked to be flying and spending so much time off the ground. But there were sometimes that he really felt lonely when he was venturing for that kind of freedom. A partner in crime was always a welcoming company. "Still it must be too lonely, venturing alone. I see it from myself. I have discovered all sort of secret place in this castle but I had never someone to share with this experience. Most students are too afraid to do that as they don't want to hurt their reputation." he slightly complained, remembering that he already had a detention in his bio that had almost costed Briar's perfect's duties. "There must be other outcasts, I mean, other nomads to hunt together or form your own new herd. Haven't you spotted another lonely centaur around these parts?" he asked her quite embarrased for using the word outcast. It didn't sound too good to him.
 
aspen was fairly certain that class was the main reason she was working on such a spell, she was not very surprised that Minos was not convinced though, from what she had heard Briar had a knack for stretching the rules, and she wasn't sure how she had become a prefect, a title that according to briar you had to be a good students and a good role model. "yeah, she seems to find it hard, but she is getting the hang of it." she said a little surprised that Minoas found the charm particularly interesting. she had found her making birds and water appear from nothing more useful, although she was a little put out that the birds couldn't be eaten.
she laughed as the disgusted expression on his face when she had mentioned getting split up whilst apparating. "no worries," she said in a similar sarcastic tone, "I don't think it happens that often one you know what you are doing" she said trying to reassure him from what he had put her off although she was pretty sure, she was just making it up. "once you are used to it its not too bad, although you do start talking to random trees" she said although it was true she had said it lightheartedly. "well i wish i could go and have a look at those places, though i am afraid i cant. I am sure that there is someone in that castle who wants to explore and doesn't care about their reputation. there is a good couple of hundred students there from what i can work out" she said. maybe Rowan would if she wasn't too busy. "I have met a couple of other outcasts, but there is generally a reason we don't fit in the heard, we did things that aren't normal, and got kicked out, or we didn't like how herds worked and opted out, either way it is hard to make a herd out of singles" she explained, she had been one of the former, and had gotten to interested in humans for the rest of their liking so she had gone.
 
"I'm sure there are some great places to have a look in this forest as well. One day that I managed to visit this place without being caught, I came across a stone well. However, it was too laye at night and too dark to explore it so I left it. I still can't find it. Who knows what it might be hidden in its bottom." he showed to Aspen that there were opportunities of new discoveries even in the forest. He looked around them as if the well was going to appear somewhere in the distance out of thin air. Thoughts of treasures and lost artifacts got him into an exploring mood.

He smiled as Aspen used the word 'outcast', he was glad that he hadn't offend her in any way. "You are the first centaur that I meet in this forest. I've never seen another nomad or the local herd. I'm planning however, to sneak into their land. I wanna see what lies there." he said unaware of the recklessness of his words. Like a fly to the flames, it seemed that he was always magnetized by danger. Their conversation had brought him an appatite for adventure. The fact that he had to return back to his exams' revision, was going to deminish the scale of his idea. "Let's race to the stream north from here. I'm quite thirsty and I could use some fresh water." he suggested, knowing that he couldn't compete a centaur in running but he wanted to see Aspen in action.
 
aspen thought for a moment. "I don remember seeing a well here, maybe it was on herd land, or somewhere else i haven't found yet, though i am going to go out on a guess here and say that there was probably water on the bottom" she said. she didnt know where the well would be, but she was sure that she hadnt seen it.
"well I am glad to have met you first then." she said, but then when she said that he wanted to go into the herds land. "dont you remember anything for more than five minutes a man was killed on their land last year" she said a little exasperated. hoping that the conversation wouldn't end up back there. thankfully he made a suggestion that was almost laughable. there wouldn't be a race between him and her to the stream, she could easily out run Rowan and she was very fast and fit for a human,but the stream was a good idea. so she decided to go for it. "okay then, ready, steady, go" she said she would stay a few paces in front of the boy and let him catch up, then when he was level to her she would rung one or two steps and let him catch up,
 
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