Near Wild Heaven

[Lia Barros]

Today was the day she was going to finally figure out what was in the Forbidden Forest. No more edging closer to the forest, then turning away. No more putting it off. She was tired of the oppressive darkness of the castle, the manicured garden, the calm of the lake. Even the scattered trees on the Great Lawn were not enough for the young Hufflepuff. No, after days of dark stone walls, she needed an expanse of wilderness. She needed a whole forest of trees, something real.

After briefly glancing around to make sure no one was watching her, Lia slipped into the woods. There were no discernable trails, but aside from fallen leaves and dead branches, there wasn't much covering the forest floor. She ventured foward, choosing her steps carefully, and immediately felt a sense of calm as the clean air filled her lungs. If she just kept on going, she could pretend she was back home, in the forest that bordered her backyard.

But even Lia knew that going much forward probably wouldn't be the smartest idea. At least not now, before she had time to establish landmarks and figure out where exactly she was. If she lost sight of the forest line, there was a very real chance she could get lost, and she had no idea how far these woods extended. Lia contemplated her predicament, circling a large tree as she craned her neck, looking for a possible path. But it was difficult trying to see much further than a several dozen meters.

With a start, Lia realized that the solution was very easy. She could just climb a tree and try to scout out a path from there. The girl immediately got to work and found an appropriate tree. After a bit of a struggle hauling herself up to the lowest branch, Lia picked her way up the trunk easily. She paused after 15 or so feet and started to maneuver herself into a sitting position on the nearest branch. However, just as she was swinging her first leg over onto the branch, the sound of leaves crunching reached her ears.

Startled, Lia flinched violently. The good news was that she wasn't in real danger of falling although her second foot slipped, leaving her hanging awkwardly onto the tree by three limbs. The bad news was that her wand slipped from her pocket, plummeting down to the ground, where it almost definitely didn't go unnoticed by the newcomer. Lia quickly righted herself and looked down, where she spotted a figure. Although she couldn't quite tell who it was, it was definitely a human figure.

For a second, she considered keeping quiet in the off chance the stranger hadn't noticed her. But she needed to recover her wand before the person stepped on it and snapped it or it got lost in the foliage forever. "Sorry about that!" Lia called down, hoping the wand hadn't hit the person. She was in a rather vulnerable position, and if the person down below was angry at her... Well, that could be tricky. Lia sighed and began her descent downwards.

 

[Oliver Foy]

Oliver felt a rush of adrenaline as the castle slipped completely from sight. He had watched his back carefully before sneaking off into the trees, and now safely hidden from any prying student's eye, he dashed off, no particular goal in mind. The castle was incredible with its innumerable, twisty corridors and moving stairways, but the Hogwarts grounds were something even moreso.

Oliver found everything outdoors here even more enchanting than the spells and magic of the castle, and he craned his neck to marvel at everything in sight as he walked further in the forest. He hadn't been planning to visit this place so early in the year, but the boy eventually lost his willpower. The temptation was far too strong. Oliver had visited just every other place on the grounds, even the cliffs which were themselves frowned upon, but he'd been wanting to come here ever since he'd been sorted.

His neck began to feel stiff and sore, so he lowered his gaze. Perhaps he could find a high point , a tree with a good view, and he scanned his surroundings looking for such. It wasn't long before the boy found a very large tree matching his criteria, but before he even looked upwards to begin climbing, something fell at his feet. It just barely missed his head, and Oliver knelt down to pick it up, noticing with wide eyes it was a wand.

He shot his gaze up as far as he could see, and he noticed another student apparently had the same idea. The boy grinned up at them and raised their wand high where they could see it better. 'You missed me.' He jested playfully. Oliver twirled the wand in his hands, suddenly feeling very good about another student being out here. He had just begun to wonder if he even remembered his way back to the castle. Hopefully they did.

 

[Lia Barros]

Lia carefully made her way down, trying not to rush, because the last thing she needed was another accident. However, she couldn't resist taking her eyes off the branches for a second and glancing down again in an attempt to figure out who was down there. Waiting at the base was a boy who was grinning up at her, waving her wand so that she could see it. Thank god. Her wand had cost a fortune, and she was pretty sure her parents wouldn't have been thrilled to hear she needed a new one.

She couldn't help but smile at his joke, even if it was mostly out of relief. She had reached the last branch and without hesitating, Lia jumped down, landing on her feet next to the stranger. "That's a shame. I guess I should work on my aim," she replied, her eyes twinkling as she held out her hand for her wand. Now that she was facing him, Lia could see that he was around her age, which was good because that meant he wasn't a prefect about to tell her off for being in the woods. Hopefully he knew a bit about the forest. "Are you familiar with these woods? I'm trying to find a trail or some landmark to navigate by."