Written for Hogwarts Challenges & Assignments - Term 14, Assignment 8 - Celtic Studies, Task #3: Write about getting lost in the woods.
Detention in the Forbidden Forest
Angelina tried not to shiver as she followed Lee, Fred, and George down to Hagrid's hut. The night air was cold, and she wished that she had thought to wear her cloak, although maybe she wouldn't have been allowed to wear it anyway. After all, she was here to serve detention—all because she had "aided and abetted" Lee and the twins in a prank that involved broomsticks, magical spray paint, and a very angry Filch.
In reality, she hadn't had anything to do with the prank, but Professor McGonagall seemed to think that she had, and Angelina was not about to argue with the stern head of Gryffindor. That woman was scary.
Hagrid was waiting outside of the hut when they reached it. "Hullo there, you lot."
"Hey, Hagrid," the boys chorused. Angelina merely nodded at him, too cold to attempt speaking just then.
"What're we doing tonight, Hagrid?" Fred asked eagerly. He lowered his voice conspiratorially. "Will we be milking Blood-Sucking Bugbears again?"
Angelina's head whipped around to stare at the redhead, her mouth dropping open in horror.
"Relax, Angie, he's pulling your leg," Lee assured her. "About milking the Blood-Sucking Bugbears, I mean. They do live in the forest, but we've never interacted with them before."
Hagrid cleared his throat. "Righ'. Tonight's task is simple enough. Yer going to find some Asphodel flowers. Professor Snape wants 'em for an upcoming lesson."
"Why now, though?" Angelina wondered aloud, teeth chattering slightly. "Why send us to pick a bunch of flowers at night?"
She immediately regretted questioning the groundskeeper, but to her relief, he didn't seem annoyed.
"Fair question. The ones yer after only bloom at night, ye see." He reached into one of the pockets in his great overcoat and pulled out a frail-looking flower with wilted white petals. "Here's what it looks like. There should be some growing in clusters near that large Wiggentree, the one with the Bowtruckles livin' in it." He nodded at Fred and George. "I trust you two'll be able to lead the way."
The twins nodded. Their expressions in the dim lighting were far more eager than Angelina thought they had any right to be, though.
"You won't be going with us?" Lee asked. Angelina was glad to hear a slight note of panic in his voice. At least she wasn't the only one feeling afraid.
"No, I've got me hands full with Fang tonigh'. He's been ill. Must've eaten somethin' funny yesterday."
George finally spoke up. "Bad luck, Hagrid. Hope he feels better soon."
"Yeah," Fred agreed. "Anyway, I guess that's us off, then. Don't worry about us, Hagrid, we'll be fine."
Angelina swallowed and took the burlap sack that Hagrid held out to her. "Yeah, let's go."
...
The Forbidden Forest was even more foreboding at night, Angelina quickly realized. Tree limbs would appear out of nowhere, threatening to snag her robes and scratch her face. A couple of times, she even swore she saw them move. The forest floor was far from flat, too—more than once, she stumbled over a wayward rock or twig. Her fingers began to grow numb as she gripped her wand at her side, ready to use it if the situation called for it.
Her friends didn't seem terribly bothered by their surroundings. They merely chatted quietly amongst themselves, letting out the occasional chuckle. Angelina envied them. Of course, they had done detentions in here loads of times before, she reminded herself. She shouldn't envy them that.
After what seemed like an eternity of wandering around, she cleared her throat and asked if they had reached the tree that Hagrid had mentioned yet.
The light emanating from Fred's wand illuminated his face enough to show his frown. "Hmm. I thought we'd be there by now, actually."
Panic wrapped cold fingers around Angelina's heart. "What do you mean, you thought we'd be there by now?" She rounded on him and poked her wand to his chest. "Frederick Gideon Weasley, you'd better not be telling me that we're lost!"
His face paled. "No, of course not, Angie. That'd be daft of me, wouldn't it, when you've got your wand pointed at me like that?"
"Angie," George began in what she assumed was meant to be a placating tone, "it's dark in here, alright? We're doing the best we can."
"This is unbelievable," Angelina snapped. "I didn't even take part in your stupid prank, let alone ask to be given detention with you lot, and now you've gone and gotten us lost!"
"Okay, okay, we'll figure this out." Lee placed a hand on her shoulder, but she quickly shrugged it off. "Maybe we could use the Four-Point Spell to figure out which direction is north, then figure out how to reach the Wiggentree from there?"
"Maybe." Fred didn't sound too convinced.
"You boys really need to make a map of this forest or something, honestly," Angelina muttered. Louder, she added, "Let's all light our wands and see if we can find some other familiar landmarks. Think very carefully: what else do you remember seeing near the Wiggentree? Are there any other notable trees, or"—she peered around nervously—"animals that might let us know we're close?"
"Maybe we'll run into a centaur, they probably know this place like the back of their...would you say hand or hoof, in this situation?" Lee snickered. Fred and George soon joined in, unaware of the glare that Angelina sent in their direction.
"If you're quite finished," she said icily when the laughter had died down, "perhaps you could answer my question? I don't fancy staying out all here all night. I'm tired and cold, and if we are forced to camp in here overnight, I am never speaking to any of you again."
"I think there's a clearing with reddish dirt close to the Wiggentree," Lee said.
Angelina nodded, though she wasn't sure if any of her friends could see her. "Okay, let's keep an eye out for that clearing, then."
...
"There!" Lee pointed to a spot ahead of them, his hand lit by the ghostly glow of his wand. "I see—yes! Reddish dirt!"
Angelina blew out a breath. "Great. Okay. How do we find the Wiggentree from here?"
Silence.
"Come on, Lee, I thought you said this was close to the Wiggentree?" Her breath grew shallow when her friend remained quiet. "If this is one of your stupid pranks, it isn't funny."
"It's not a prank, Angie." Angelina pointed her wand at Lee, taking in his apologetic expression. "I just...don't know which direction we should go now."
"Unbelievable," she said again, turning her wand towards the twins. "I don't suppose either of you have any idea where to go now?"
George frowned. "Give me a minute. I can't exactly think straight when you're blinding me with your wandlight."
Angelina dropped her wand a few inches and waited. Finally, George said that they should try going left once they reached the clearing.
The four friends continued on, more hushed than before. Angelina linked arms with Lee in an attempt to keep warm, but it didn't work as well as she had hoped it would. Still, it was better than nothing.
After the group made the left, they began to walk more slowly, keeping their eyes peeled for the Wiggentree. Every few minutes, Angelina reminded them to remain alert.
"We're going to find that tree." Her feet and fingers ached, but she pushed herself to keep walking and holding her wand aloft. "It has to be around here somewhere, right?"
Lee mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like, "Yeah, if we're even going in the right direction."
She ignored him and walked a few paces, then blinked at the spindly tree that suddenly loomed in front of her. "Hey, is this the Wiggentree?"
At the same time, George asked, "Don't those look like the flower we're supposed to be collecting?"
Angelina looked over and let out a whoop. The cluster of white flowers that George's wand was trained on looked exactly like the ones Hagrid had shown them.
"Right." Angelina took charge, not trusting any of the boys to organize themselves. "Lee, point your wand at the Asphodel. Fred and George, pick as many as you can fit in the bag. I'll hold it open for you."
Her friends murmured their assent and got to work. In a few short minutes, the sack was full.
"Finally," Angelina yawned. "Let's head back, yeah?"
...
"So, what'd you think of your first ever Forbidden Forest detention, Angie?" George asked, smirking over at her.
She groaned and trudged over to the staircase that led to the girls' dormitory before answering. Every inch of her was sore, and she didn't think she would ever feel warm again.
"It was awful. I think I preferred that time when Snape had me scrub cauldrons without magic, and that was absolutely disgusting." She looked pointedly at the twins. "Next time, maybe stand up for me when McGonagall accuses me of helping you?"
"Aw, come on, it builds character, Angie."
Angelina flipped Fred—who had just spoken—off. "I'm serious. I'm not doing that again."
"Fine. We'll try not to get you in trouble again." Fred's face split into a grin. "Oh, I've just remembered something. We've got Quidditch practice bright and early tomorrow."
Angelina swore under her breath. These boys were truly going to be the death of her someday.
"Goodnight, then, you three," she grumbled.
Without waiting for an answer, she began to tiptoe up the stairs, ready to collapse onto her four-poster bed. She wasn't even going to bother changing into her pyjamas. Sleep was far more important.
WC: 1,606