Chapter Eight
Not mine, ECT.
Neville spun around as the whistling noise was joined by what sounded like a large animal forcing its' way through heavy underbrush. Professor Sprout burst out of the bushes across the clearing and ran towards them.
"Run! Hagrid, get the students away!" She was in the middle of the clearing when the bushes behind her were violently uprooted and thrown aside.
Most of the students ran at the sight of the adult bogent. The pictures in their books had shown the plant in its' rooted phase, looking like a lumpy, thick branched tree. What charged into the clearing looked nothing like the pictures. The roots slid across the ground like snakes. They met at the trunk which was two feet wide near the ground, but quickly split into several thick branches of at least ten feet long. Each branch had a gaping mouth about two thirds of its length from the trunk, filled with sharp fangs (actually thorns) and many smaller branches extended from the main ones like tentacles. With slender pointed leaves covering it, the bogent looked like a fuzzy green mutant hydra/medusa crossbreed that only Hagrid would think up.
Whatever Hagrid might have thought of the thing, he had the sense to get the students away before he tried to make friends with it. Blowing a loud whistle he summoned the spread out students and shoved them back down the trail towards the school. "Neville! Get away from there!" Hagrid yelled as Blaise streaked by him. "Harry, get moving!"
Neville emerged from his shocked state and started backing away, still watching Professor Sprout as she cast repeated blocking spells between herself and the enraged tree. He promptly tripped over the bogent seedling and fell on his rear. The infant tree scurried back into the bushes in fright at being stepped on. Neville scrambled back to his feet and saw Professor Sprout turn and run after casting one last spell.
Harry hadn't moved at all. When Sprout ran, Harry cast an incendio charm in front of the oncoming tree, creating a wall of flame. The bogent made a noise like an ice pick on a chalkboard and charged directly at Harry.
Neville had started to run as soon as Sprout did, but spun around at the noise. "No!" he yelled as branches sent the boy who lived flying into a tree. Teeth sliced into Harry's' leg before he could fall. "Stupify!" Neville cast, and then cursed himself as an idiot. Harry was limp, whether from hitting the tree or Neville's spell Neville didn't know, but the bogent only turned and started towards him.
"Get back Neville!" Sprout yelled. She stopped running when Harry was attacked, and ran towards the tree. "Frissio!" she cast, aiming for the side that wasn't chewing on her student. Ice formed on the branches, but was quickly shaken off as the tree turned back towards her, and away from Neville.
Neville didn't move. He couldn't leave his second favorite teacher to a carnivorous magic resistant tree, and Harry was the best hope for killing Voldemort. He tried desperately to think. The tree was resistant to magical attack, and pretty damn resistant to physical attacks also, though he noticed that something had hurt it recently. Two of its' branches were burnt stumps oozing sap, and Neville was sure Harry's' fire hadn't done that. It explained why the creature was attacking them. It must have been driven from its' rooting spot by something, and was probably crazed with pain and rage.
Neville took a deep breath. Attacking hadn't worked, and he only knew one spell that could influence a bogent, so he cast the soil modifying charm at the ground under the creature with all his strength. He knew it wasn't strong enough, but he repeated it over and over, concentrating on calming the enraged creature. At some point Neville stopped speaking and just stood silent while the energy continued to flow from him, directed only by his will.
"Neville," a quiet voice made him open his eyes, only then realizing that he had closed them. The clearing was quiet. McGonagall was bandaging Harry, who was lying on the ground, some distance away from the bogent which was now rooted and still. Neville turned to Professor Sprout who was looking at him with concerned amazement.
"What happened?" Neville asked. He sat down abruptly feeling drained.
Professor Sprout sat down next to him and offered him a glass of water that he accepted gratefully. "What do you remember happening?"
"Um, it came out of the bushes after you. You slowed it down, then Harry used incendio and it went after him. I tried to stun it." Neville winced at his stupidity, but continued. "You were trying to get Harry free, I think, and tried to freeze it. I cast the soil charm you showed us. I thought if I cast it strong enough, it might calm down a little. I don't remember anything else but trying to calm it." Neville glanced around again seeing McGonagall creating a stretcher for Harry. "What happened?" He asked again.
Sprout looked thoughtful. "Well, the spell you used is one of the basic earth spells. It's very sensitive to the intention of the caster. You were obviously in a trance when the bogent stopped and released Harry. What's the last thing you remember wishing as you cast it?"
Neville frowned. He was a little embarrassed to realize he hadn't been stopping the bogent or saving his friends. "I was wishing I could heal it. It had some burns in the back. I think it was injured somehow, and that's what made it violent." He blushed in embarrassment, but Sprout looked bemused rather then annoyed.
"Oh Neville," Professor Sprout ruffled his hair in affection, then bounced to her feet. "I hope you never change." Then she leaned over and peered behind him and grinned. "Well, I see this field trip was a success after all!"
Neville looked behind himself in confusion, and was surprised to find the bogent seedling snuggling up against his back.
Not mine, ECT.
Neville spun around as the whistling noise was joined by what sounded like a large animal forcing its' way through heavy underbrush. Professor Sprout burst out of the bushes across the clearing and ran towards them.
"Run! Hagrid, get the students away!" She was in the middle of the clearing when the bushes behind her were violently uprooted and thrown aside.
Most of the students ran at the sight of the adult bogent. The pictures in their books had shown the plant in its' rooted phase, looking like a lumpy, thick branched tree. What charged into the clearing looked nothing like the pictures. The roots slid across the ground like snakes. They met at the trunk which was two feet wide near the ground, but quickly split into several thick branches of at least ten feet long. Each branch had a gaping mouth about two thirds of its length from the trunk, filled with sharp fangs (actually thorns) and many smaller branches extended from the main ones like tentacles. With slender pointed leaves covering it, the bogent looked like a fuzzy green mutant hydra/medusa crossbreed that only Hagrid would think up.
Whatever Hagrid might have thought of the thing, he had the sense to get the students away before he tried to make friends with it. Blowing a loud whistle he summoned the spread out students and shoved them back down the trail towards the school. "Neville! Get away from there!" Hagrid yelled as Blaise streaked by him. "Harry, get moving!"
Neville emerged from his shocked state and started backing away, still watching Professor Sprout as she cast repeated blocking spells between herself and the enraged tree. He promptly tripped over the bogent seedling and fell on his rear. The infant tree scurried back into the bushes in fright at being stepped on. Neville scrambled back to his feet and saw Professor Sprout turn and run after casting one last spell.
Harry hadn't moved at all. When Sprout ran, Harry cast an incendio charm in front of the oncoming tree, creating a wall of flame. The bogent made a noise like an ice pick on a chalkboard and charged directly at Harry.
Neville had started to run as soon as Sprout did, but spun around at the noise. "No!" he yelled as branches sent the boy who lived flying into a tree. Teeth sliced into Harry's' leg before he could fall. "Stupify!" Neville cast, and then cursed himself as an idiot. Harry was limp, whether from hitting the tree or Neville's spell Neville didn't know, but the bogent only turned and started towards him.
"Get back Neville!" Sprout yelled. She stopped running when Harry was attacked, and ran towards the tree. "Frissio!" she cast, aiming for the side that wasn't chewing on her student. Ice formed on the branches, but was quickly shaken off as the tree turned back towards her, and away from Neville.
Neville didn't move. He couldn't leave his second favorite teacher to a carnivorous magic resistant tree, and Harry was the best hope for killing Voldemort. He tried desperately to think. The tree was resistant to magical attack, and pretty damn resistant to physical attacks also, though he noticed that something had hurt it recently. Two of its' branches were burnt stumps oozing sap, and Neville was sure Harry's' fire hadn't done that. It explained why the creature was attacking them. It must have been driven from its' rooting spot by something, and was probably crazed with pain and rage.
Neville took a deep breath. Attacking hadn't worked, and he only knew one spell that could influence a bogent, so he cast the soil modifying charm at the ground under the creature with all his strength. He knew it wasn't strong enough, but he repeated it over and over, concentrating on calming the enraged creature. At some point Neville stopped speaking and just stood silent while the energy continued to flow from him, directed only by his will.
"Neville," a quiet voice made him open his eyes, only then realizing that he had closed them. The clearing was quiet. McGonagall was bandaging Harry, who was lying on the ground, some distance away from the bogent which was now rooted and still. Neville turned to Professor Sprout who was looking at him with concerned amazement.
"What happened?" Neville asked. He sat down abruptly feeling drained.
Professor Sprout sat down next to him and offered him a glass of water that he accepted gratefully. "What do you remember happening?"
"Um, it came out of the bushes after you. You slowed it down, then Harry used incendio and it went after him. I tried to stun it." Neville winced at his stupidity, but continued. "You were trying to get Harry free, I think, and tried to freeze it. I cast the soil charm you showed us. I thought if I cast it strong enough, it might calm down a little. I don't remember anything else but trying to calm it." Neville glanced around again seeing McGonagall creating a stretcher for Harry. "What happened?" He asked again.
Sprout looked thoughtful. "Well, the spell you used is one of the basic earth spells. It's very sensitive to the intention of the caster. You were obviously in a trance when the bogent stopped and released Harry. What's the last thing you remember wishing as you cast it?"
Neville frowned. He was a little embarrassed to realize he hadn't been stopping the bogent or saving his friends. "I was wishing I could heal it. It had some burns in the back. I think it was injured somehow, and that's what made it violent." He blushed in embarrassment, but Sprout looked bemused rather then annoyed.
"Oh Neville," Professor Sprout ruffled his hair in affection, then bounced to her feet. "I hope you never change." Then she leaned over and peered behind him and grinned. "Well, I see this field trip was a success after all!"
Neville looked behind himself in confusion, and was surprised to find the bogent seedling snuggling up against his back.