"Are you sure?" Saga asked, glancing between Ondine and Aideen. "You think we should investigate that of all things? It's probably some stupid girls' club."
"The way they were being all secretive," Aideen said as she folded her arms across her chest, "something didn't feel right."
"You're basing this off of intuition, then," Ondine said.
"Don't say it like I'm crazy," Aideen said. "All the greatest wizards and witches relied on their intuition above all else."
"This isn't as simple as intuition," Saga said. "We're trying to do a legitimate investigation here, Aideen."
"So?" Aideen asked.
"So!" Saga sounded outraged. "No-Maj detectives use logic and reason, and their criminal justice system is so much more advanced than ours is! Partially because we rely on crap like intuition over actual reason!"
"Actually, wasn't Sherlock Holmes a No-Maj detective who used a lot of intuition?" Aideen asked, remembering the require No-Maj literature they had to read in third year.
"And facts," Ondine said. "He noticed lots and lots of facts and made legitimate guesses based on them."
"Well, if you're not going to listen to me, I'll just take a torch myself and stake them out," Aideen said.
"You'll be on your own, then," Saga said with a shrug. "The rest of us plan on investigating the spells used. What was the spell you used back there?"
"Umbramalas Revelio," Aideen mumbled.
"I'll go with you," Rhys offered.
Ondine sighed. "You don't need to be all diplomatic, Rhys."
"It's my choice," Rhys insisted. "And I want to check out the Snakewood Tree, I've heard rumors about it."
"Like what?" Aideen asked.
Rhys shrugged.
"It's supposed to have come from Slytherin's wand," Saga said. "As in, Salazar Slytherin, Founder of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."
"How did it get all the way over here?" Aideen asked.
"Something to do with Isolt, I'd guess," Saga said with a shrug. "If you guys want to get to the Snakewood Tree before Kyla Grimsditch and her crowd, you'd better get a move on."
Rhys grabbed two torches, and Aideen's hand. "Come on, we'll take a look."
"Fine!" Saga shouted as Rhys pulled Aideen along out of the classroom.
"Slow down!" Aideen cried after a few minutes.
"Oh, sorry," Rhys said, and she dropped Aideen's wrist. Aideen shook it out, and followed Rhys at a slower pace.
"Thanks for sticking with me," Aideen said.
"Not a problem," Rhys assured her. "I think you've got it right: something about Adele Owens is strange."
"What do you mean?" Aideen asked, confused.
Rhys shrugged. "There's just something weird about her, you know? Especially since she was born to No-Majs, yet gets along with Kyla Grimsditch and her crowd of old colonial families."
"That is a little strange," Aideen admitted.
"But anyway, Saga was right about needing to walk fast. We want to get a good spot to watch what goes down," Rhys said.
"Agreed."
Aideen quickened her pace once more at that.
They came to a stop in front of the Snakewood tree. With vibrant green leaves that were large and had vines trickling down, and carvings of snakes and figures Aideen didn't recognize in the pattern of the wood, it was a near-sacred site to those who attended Ilvermorny.
"Whoa," Aideen murmured. She'd rarely been this way, but had been blown away by it every single time. She closed her eyes, and could hear the vines rustling in the wind— it almost sounded like a snake hissing.
"They'll be hiding under all these vines, most likely," Rhys said, looking up at the tree.
"And I liked these tights," Aideen said mournfully.
"Don't you know some sort of sewing spell?" Rhys asked.
"I'm working on developing one, as an Arithomancy project," Aideen admitted.
"Really?" Rhys asked, looking to Aideen.
"Yeah, but there's still a lot of bugs," Aideen said, looking down at her cranberry uniform dress and matching tights. "I guess we'd better get climbing, shouldn't we?"
Rhys nodded her assent, and the two girls approached the base.
"We might be able to use the vines as ropes," Aideen said thoughtfully as she grabbed a particularly thick vine hanging close to the trunk.
"I'll admit, I like that idea better than what I had in mind," Rhys admitted, grabbing a vine of her own. "Up we go, then."
Aideen focused on planting her feet along the ridges of the sides, and pulled up. Should've brought my broom, she thought.
Once both girls were on a secure branch, Aideen cast a Disillusionment Charm.
"This is wicked," Rhys said with amazement, looking at her hands.
"Don't move too much," Aideen warned, glancing down at the shaded area underneath the tree. "This doesn't make you completely invisible, you know, not unless you're really good at it. Which I am not. Yet."
"Yet," Rhys said, shaking her head with what Aideen thought might be a grin. It was hard to tell with the Disillusionment Charm.
"Shh," Aideen said, seeing a ripple in the vines.
Just as the two girls pressed themselves against the branch, careful in their balance, the group of Wampus girls Aideen had seen earlier entered. Not all at the same time, or same entry point, but they gathered all around Kyla Grimsditch. One of the stragglers to the party was Adele Owens, looking to be in a sorry state.
"Good," Kyla said, giving Adele a biting glare. "You all managed to make it. We're going to get the wand out, for tomorrow."
"What are we doing again?" Edith Prysny asked.
"We are going to curse the one Heir who could stop our plan," Kyla said, glancing at Adele. "Quidditch is dangerous, even more than Quodpot. If we can off her, then we stand a good chance of moving forward the plot we dreamed two years ago."
"I'll be able to do the most damage," Adele said. "I'll be able to delay the game, of course."
"Indeed," Kyla said with a smirk. "And you'll have the closest go at Scholt."
Aideen breathed in sharply, and she could feel Rhys's eyes on her.
"I won't let her stand in my way," Adele vowed. The other girls turned and glared at her. "Our way."
"Then you retrieve it," Kyla ordered.
"Gladly," Adele said. She turned to the base of the tree. "I want the wand."
The tree glowed and shuddered, and Aideen and Rhys both clutched the tree branch with all their might. Out of the trunk of the tree appeared a long wand, and it hovered straight into Adele's hand. She turned to Kyla.
"It's yours to use," she said.
Kyla grinned, and took it. "Thanks. Now we better get going, before anyone makes any unfortunate guesses."
Kyla turned, addressing all of the girls. "Tomorrow, we take out the most powerful of our enemies!"
She jabbed the wand into the air, creating a ghostly green light. The other girls cheered at that. Kyla then slid the wand into a holster in the fancy dueling belt she always wore.
Then, as soon as they had gathered, the girls had disbanded. While Rhys sat up, Aideen lay there, in shock at what she had heard.
"Say something," Rhys said finally.
"I don't what there is to say," Aideen said frustratedly.
"Can you remove the charms?" Rhys asked.
"Sure." Aideen forced herself to sit up, and reversed the spell. "Why am I their greatest enemy? Sure, Kyla and I have never gotten along. . . But I wouldn't call us enemies—rivals at most."
"That's what you latch onto?" Rhys demanded, her eyes gaping and wide. "They're going to kill you, Aideen! And they're planning something really bad."
"Well, I don't understand why they want me out of the way," Aideen said. "I'm not the heir to the Graves or Scholt lineages. Those titles have been passed to Finn and Freya, respectively."
"They might've meant it in a general way," Rhys rationalized. "And for wanting you out of the way— whatever it is they're up to, they know that you're the most powerful witch of our age. You'd probably be able to stop whatever they're up to."
"I think you overestimate my capabilities," Aideen said with a snort. "I'm just a girl who studies a lot. Not that special."
Rhys rolled her eyes. "And I thought Saga was bad with the faux-humble crap."
"Sorry," Aideen mumbled. "Others feel bad when they say that. I don't like making other people feel jealous or worthless."
"That's not necessarily on you," Rhys said. "Especially since you never flaunt that around. Nothing to be ashamed of, being good at something."
"Thanks," Aideen said. She glanced down at the ground once more. "I guess we have one course of action."
"Tell the teachers?" Rhys asked.
"No, we play Quidditch."
