Graphic credit: Felixir

At the very edge of the school grounds lies the Forbidden Forest, huge and sprawling, as seen from the vantage point of the castle. While this place has its uses, its intriguing secrets, and is called home many creatures and beings, it is also dangerous. You should safely assume that all the rumours you've heard about the Forbidden Forest are true, and keep a safe distance from the treeline. Who knows what may be lurking in the shadows? The place has an ominous and foreboding aura about it, not that you should be getting close enough to truly feel it.

In case the name is too subtle a hint, the Forbidden Forest is strictly off-limits to all Hogwarts students. No student is to enter the Forbidden Forest without staff accompaniment. That is a firm school rule. Professor DeVries may seem like a soft touch, but you will find he can be stubborn (especially about this).

How forbidden was the 'forbidden forest'? That was the question on Fredrick's mind as he stood right at the edge of the forest, with his small backpack-of-collection pulled close to his shoulder.

What if he just dipped in and dipped out? Surely monsters or more weren't waiting right at the entrance of the thick forest ahead. So, he could just go in, grab the herbs he saw so clearly right from where he stood and come out?

It sounded so easy. He was also getting pretty good at DADA and he could manage ... some defence. Yes, it all seemed very possible to him. Giving a look left and then right, the seventeen year old proceeded.

Upon scowering her dorm twice over and unpacking her trunk only to repack it thrice and still Anna had not been able to find it. Retracing her steps about the common room had proved fruitless as well and interviewing the portraits hadn't helped either - although she had received many a pleasant chat and learned another thing or two about Hogwarts and its two-dimensional in habitants. The last time she remembered seeing it, having it in her possession, was during their little Forbidden Forest trip with Professor Paton. Anna obviously hadn't retracted THOSE steps yet, so out of the castle and across the grounds she went with a couple of rocks weighing down her steps.

As she approached the forest, the Hufflepuffle spotted a familiar but un-familiar boy and quickened her pace to catch up with him. "Hi," she chirped while she was still a few paces away. "Did you lose something in the forest too?" What a coincidence that would be! They could go looking for their lost items together. Matching his hesitant steps with an enthusiastic skip of her own, Anna crossed the threshold between Hogwarts grounds and centaur territory. "I can help you look if you'd like."

The gryffindor had finally gathered the courage to do it and was about to step inside when a familiar yet not so familiar voice reached him. Busted?!

...

Not quite.

Trying not to show the tiny bit of fear he felt over the idea of getting caught for this - he straightened his back out of habit and shook his head, "No, I actually just need to retrieve a few ingredients from in there," He replied, as a matter-of-factly, before asking: "What did you lose in there?" And then he walked further inside, going straight to the herb he had noticed in there earlier - and not at all wondering if she was going to be following him or getting lost in there on her own. There was no time to waste. The quicker he got what he needed, the quicker he could get out -- and not end up in detention.

.....Detention without Fynley would be a bore anyway.

What WAS she looking for...she was almost embarrassed that she may have already forgotten and her hands immediately shoveded themselves into the pockets of her robes to rub her thumb over the golden ring of her broken remembrall. Doing so had never jolted her memory in the past, but there was always a first for everything.

"My nose ring...I think," she concluded after a couple of moments and some uneven strides to try and keep pace with him on his right side as he proceeded forward. "It's got tiny rainbow glass beads on it that ought to stand out against the dark ground of the forest, especially once I light my wand." Or, well, incredibly easy to spot were she to move to his left side and therefore presenting the side of her nose where the very nose ring was. "What kind of ingredients? Like...unicorn hair or more plant based ingredients? If it's plant based ingredients you could always as Professor DeVries, you know. He is incredibly accommodating, especially when it comes to the curious endeavors of students like us. Unless the sort of ingredients are the ones that might raise questions as to what you are intending to use them for or tiptoeing along the lines of legality, which I suppose is terribly Gryffindor of you to be a bit devil-may-care about how you go about collecting your ingredients...though you don't give me the impression that you are doing anything with a sinister intent...then AGAIN, appearances can be rather deceiving which is perhaps why you did not want to ask Professor DeVries about plants in the first place because many do misjudge him because of his gigantic appearance. Suppose it just goes to show you that you can't judge a book by its cover!" Anna surveyed the ground a bit more, to no avail for either herself or Sir Handsome Princely Nose, and when she looked back she saw that he was marching straight for a plant of some sort. "Oooooh, what's that?" A pause. "I'm Anna, by the way."

Did she realise she was talking too much?

......in the forbidden forest.

"You are a bit of a chatterbox, aren't you?" he asked distractedly - as he surveyed the ground for the most muddy area near the herbs he needed. The book said it was essential to only get the herb from the muddiest area, the dry area ones wouldn't work - it was why he was wearing his worn out shoes too, as if he owned any other pairs.

"Also, yes, I know Professor DeVries can help. But this way is more fun" he added easily as his shoes finally sunk into something terribly gooey. Alright, mud, hello. "Are you sure the nose ring is worth the risk being in the forbidden forest at this hour?" he asked, as he crouched low and pulled his clippers out of his backpack.

While he was not accustomed to be working in such low light, he didn't want to risk any light to attract any unwanted attention, which Anna was clearly was.

"Fredrick" he mused, as he gingerly grabbed the plant and stroked it with his thumb to figure out where he could make a clean cut.

"Oh...yeah..." she laughed while rubbing the curls on either side of her head with her palms - something that only served to increase their volume and friz. "Been told it's a bad habit of mine, saying everything that comes to mind in any moment, but rather than a bad habit it is a personality trait...at least in my opinion. I mean...you are what you do repeatedly, right? And, I mean, isn't bad and good a social construct anyway?" Well, it really wasn't so black and white but bad habits and pet peeves varied from person to person. At least Anna was self-aware enough to know that she was a chatterbox. "Been like this for as long as I can remember, a chatterbox as you put it." Like some part of her noggin was missing so the stop button forever malfunctioned.

Casting Lumos, Anna scanned the ground around her feet and spun the beads on her nose ring with her other hand - no, the connection that she was wearing the very thing she thought she was looking for was not made - and she eventually veered over in his direction. "If we're giving each other some character defining labels...I would say that you are giving off some big sensation seeker vibes," she hummed as she came to crouch beside him and directed her wand's light at the plant he was examining. "I'm not questioning you being out here at this hour looking for herbs," she laughed. "It's important to you, so my opinion on whether or not it is worth the risk isn't really all that valid. Different strokes for different brushes."

He had very gentle hands for someone with such a bold approach, for the record. Perhaps an indication of a true herbologist's hands given the manner in which he caressed the plant. It was like a reassuring whisper, she decided, or perhaps it was more like a feather landing on the desk without disturbing a single speck of dust. In whatever case, he touched the plant with an awareness and appreciation that you did not always see in Herbology class and perhaps one you may not expect from a sensation seeker - see what she means by not judging a book by its cover! "Frederick," she repeated softly, turning her wand away from his hands and the for a moment so she could write the name on her palm with her finger. "Like Captain Frederick Wentworth, rather befitting," she mused. It really did changed everything and, obviously, her nickname was going to require some major revision now that she had actually had a conversation with him and not just noticed him in profile - hence the handsome nose. "...and...they are....?" she asked again with a little jab of her wand towards the plant in question, her voice lowering to a whisper to match his tender strokes.

Foolish students adventuring into the darkness of the Forbidden Forest by themselves. Did they not know it was f o r b i d d e n for a reason?

*click, click, click*

What was that strange noise emanating from behind that clump of trees?

*rustle, rustle, snap*

Did that tree branch just snap by itself or was it an odd gust of wind? And could that be a hairy leg appearing from between those tree trunks?

*click, click, click*

The strange sound was getting louder and louder. If the students knew any better they should escape before it was too late…

It was any other casual day at one of the most prestigious schools for Witchcraft and Wizardry. One Archie O'Brien found himself meandering along the (outside) edge of the Forbidden Forest. Although it was totally his thing to go wandering into dark and foreboding places such as this, not even he would dare to fully venture into the forest itself without an extremely large group of others. This was primarily out of fear. There were stories that anyone might hear of students getting hurt from all manners of creatures which creeped and crawled inside the desolate woods. Some of which weren't so scary, like the Unicorns seen earlier in the school year during that one Care of Magical Creatures class. Even those, the third year would stray away from just out of the unpredictable nature which could be displayed in the creatures. Then of course there were the not-so-nice-looking ones. Like giant bugs. Even the thought of those ones were enough to send shivers down the teen's spine. Nonetheless, it didn't stop him from simply walking along the outside of it. There wasn't anything really that could nullify or quell that certain spark of adventure that dwelled deep down in his heart. And so long as he didn't actually go in the forest, he couldn't possibly get in trouble for it, right? Right?

After a few minutes of just casually strolling along, he'd start to hear voices which actually came from within the Forbidden Forest's depths. At first, Archie wouldn't make much of this. Could have just been slightly hearing things, but taking a glance inwards, off in the distance and through the tree-line, he could see a light begin to illuminate. It was in the same vein as seeing someone cast the lumos spell or another similar light-bearing charm. Now, normally and naturally, there was no inclination in the boy to go run and tell. However, as the two different voices kept echoing and going in deeper and deeper, is when his anxiety started to go upwards ever so slightly. Being the observant person he was as well, the snake would be able to spot some spiderwebs in the branches of the trees. These spiderwebs would grow in size and structure the more and more he'd trace his eyes inwards towards where the voices could be heard coming from. Putting two and two together, Archie wouldn't need to give it too much thought to piece it all together. This particular bit must have had some acromantulas present.

Eugh...why, oh why...on today of all days... He was not about to go rushing in by himself. But he wasn't about to possibly let whoever go in any further than they already were. So, he'd just hope for the best, and at the top of his lungs yell "OIIIIIII!!! LOOK UPWARDS TO THE LEAVES AND BRANCHES!!!!" This was to point out the fact to the duo who was just out of his sight by this point of the path they were treading on. "I WOULDN'T BE GOING IN ANY FURTHER IF I WERE Y'ALL!!!"

There was still ... a lot of talking, and he did not miss that she went on a ramble of sorts the moment she got the prompt of being called a chatterbox -- which then went into talking about labels, and while he would enjoy giving her a LOOK -- he was already having a lot of trouble seeing what he was doing.

... and then there was light.

It became almost necessary to give her the look then! So he did, noticing her nose ring instantly too. What? "What are you doing?!" he hissed, before making use of that light and quickly slicing the plant the way he wanted. "In case you forgot we are in the forbidd--" He started heatedly but stopped immediately when he heard the click.

.....

Feeling his stomach turn, he carefully yet urgently put that plant in his bag, and turned to her, which is also when someone started shouting in the distance -- maybe it was enough adventure for the day ---

"We need to get out of here, Anna" he firmly said, getting up, "come on, lets go"

What was she doing? Was that a rhetorical question because it was pretty obvious to that she was trying to help him see more easily - at least to her it seemed obvious! It was what they had all done in Care of Magical Creatures while going into the forest, a whole slew of them with bluebell flames and lit wands and the like. Wait..had any of them had their wands lit or had she filled in that information on her own because, presently, there were no bluebell flames and since she had not yet learned how to conjure those on her own this was the only option? A mystery that would have to be riddled for another time. "I'm just trying to help you see..." What if he cut the plant TOO far down and it could never regrow or he managed to cut himself?!

She did not need to hear any unsavory sounds to hear the urgency in his voice and, as one not to doubt people and especially people who showed such sincere bursts of raw emotion, and instinctively reached out with her hand for his. She might not have heard the clicking of pincers all that well, but she did hear the sound of someone shouting. "What...what is it? What was that?" she squeaked out while flicking her wand to put out its light - since he had already displayed a firm dislike for it being lit in the first place.

*click, click, click*

Were those clicking noises getting louder or were there more of them joining the gathering?

If it wasn’t for the connection of the Acromantula’s pincers, the students might not have ever known they were there. For silently from behind a cluster of trees stepped one giant hairy leg, followed by another and another until all eight legs and all eight eyes were fully exposed glinting in the dying light from the Lumos spell.

“Dinner” The Acromantula spat, black eyes focused on the small curly-haired one first. This particular Acromantula was not the biggest, nor the fastest or the strongest. But the rest of the web would not be far behind. Best escape now before the rest followed suit.

Giving it a few moments after shouting into the forest, there would be no direct response. At least the light that was seen wasn't traveling any further inwards though. But it wasn't coming back in Archie's direction either. This didn't entirely sit well with him. There was a slight off-feeling about it, but nothing that pinged any major red flags. To say the least, though, it certainly didn't help qualm the doubts of potential danger. Which only then made things even worse. It added a layer of internal conflict. Aghhh. I can't let them sit there, but going in on foot could spell doom. The thought would pander about in his brain with him knowing that he wasn't the fastest runner. And with it still being unknown whether or not whoever was in there could also say the same, well. That made the third year have to start at least coming up with a plan, and fast. He still didn't want to go and grab a Professor, although that would have most likely been the best course of action. Think, Archie. Think. Then, suddenly. A wild idea rushed towards him like a train.

A way to assist if they were in any trouble, without throwing anyone into any harm's way. Brooms. Archie knew of the location where they were all stored, and that's all that he needed to know for the Summoning Charm to work. Albeit, it was out of sight and a good distance away from the current location, so it would be hard. But he still knew with magic, it wasn't impossible just highly improbable. The third year was still good with Charms though, and it was worth a shot. Had it failed, that just meant he'd need to come up with another plan. Grabbing his wand, he'd perform arching motion, saying "Accio brooms!" ... but nothing happened...and he at least was sure that he would know if the spell was working. So he'd try again, but this time, ensuring that the location of the broom shed was held in his mind. "Accio brooms!" This time, there was more of a feeling that it slightly must have worked, but not fully.

Never one to give up, hopefully this third time was the charm. "Accio brooms!" And this time, it would happen. Two brooms would come flying into his free hand as if at the speed of light. Basic ones, but, they should still do the trick. It wasn't one for each, but it was the best Archie could do right now. Hopping onto one of them, he'd grab a hold of it placing his wand into his left hand with the other broom. Then, the Slytherin would start his flight into the Forbidden Forest, going towards the direction of the light. Hopefully, the two in there wouldn't get into any trouble until he got to them and was able to drop off the spare.

Quick chivalrous thinking or reckless tomfoolery? That may be for none but the trees to decide as bark, branch, and leaf seem to be growing thicker and denser as the third year Slytherin soars ahead.

All too soon the gaps between trees seems nonexistent and the light that once was gone. Continue on if you insist young one, but be not be surprised should you find yourself smacked across the bristles or worse by a tree's branches or trunk through the thickening woods.

There are whispers around these parts that acromantula are rather fond of a dash of cedar flavoring with their prey.