Underneath it All

A/N : I've been writing quite a bit since I have so much free time… I hope you enjoy the longer chapters… They're also updated faster too, lolz. Isn't it much easier on the eyes now that I know how to make it bold, italicized, and underlines!! =)  

DISCLAIMER : All characters and places are brought to you by JK Rowling - not me.

Reviews-

I just wanted to thank everyone whose reviewed my story so far. I've yet to receive a flame, and I just love to read all of the reviews you guys send me in! They're all so flattering, and make me want to keep on writing! =) And I always say that I only need 5 reviews and I'll updated – and it's so easy to get those 5 reviews!! =) So, once again, thanks for reading and reviewing, and keep that up, lolz. =)

Thanks:
                NoseyMCNosey - Thankies!! =) Here's your update!

Ashes Kittyhawk - Lolz, thank you! =)

BBLLPMLover - Aw, thanks! And I love how you always leave me a wonderful review. =)

Hilary - Thanks so much!! =) And I'm glad you liked it that much, lolz. =)




Now we begin...

September 23rd,

-

Afternoon

-

I guess I managed to get to sleep last night… It must have been all of that crying. I can't believe that I cried so much! I suppose it was good that I did, since I got all my feelings out, but I'm so disgusted with myself too! I've never broken down like that before – no matter what the situation! And there I was, crying like a baby… At least no one saw me; at least I can have some dignity in that.

The fairies were long gone by the time I woke up… Eva was already awake; she was watching the opening of the cave with a tearstained face. She keeps getting angry with herself for coming into the Forest and causing all of this. I keep telling her that it's not her fault, after all, I didn't have to follow her. And I didn't have to keep going with her after I caught up with her. I could have just as easily cast a spell on her to take her back to the castle. It's as much her fault as it is mine – I craved adventure, but I forgot that with adventure come many troubles…

The cave is quite empty, and I've transfigured some stones into food, water, and a blanket. There aren't many stones left, so we're going to have to find other things to transfigure if we want to survive and make it out… I'm just glad that I brought my diary. I don't know what I would do without it… It was odd, really. I wasn't even thinking when I packed it – I just took it.

I kept yelling for the fairies and for help ever so often. I just know that we'll get out of here – we have to! But it's not looking good for Eva. I don't know what's wrong with her, but she won't eat or drink anything. She's so pale now, and she looks so sick. She just sits on the blanket, arms wrapped around her knees, lost in thought. She won't say anything, and she looks weaker and weaker by the minute. Her turquoise eyes; once bright and filled with energy, are now dull and lifeless. I don't know what's wrong with her, and every time I ask her, she shakes her head. If only I knew, I could help.

Classes have started, it's already the middle of the day, I'm sure. By now, someone must have noticed our absence. But will they come after us? Will they find us? Or, are we doomed to stay in this dank cave until we can no longer survive? No, I refuse to believe that! We will get out – someone will find us, or we, ourselves, will find a way out. There must be a way!

I searched through the entire cave, and mind you, there wasn't much to search. I felt around everything, and tried every charm or spell I could think of. I tried to move the stone covering the opening, and I tried to claw off pieces of the stones that made up the wall… But, nothing… Nothing worked. But I'm not giving up hope. Everything has a weakness, and sooner or later, I will find it… We will get out.

I heard the fairies! Just now, I heard the fairies! Oh, maybe we'll get lucky this time… Maybe, maybe they'll help us… Maybe they'll have mercy. I must try!

-

Evening

-

I knew it! I knew that we would get out! We're finally out of the cave!! Oh, it feels so good to breathe fresh air… Mind you, we've still got a long way to get back to Hogwarts, but, at least we're out of the cave… They're still hope!

Here, let me tell you how we got out…

I yelled, and I yelled for a good long time. I blocked out the taunting laughter of the fairies, and I think that that's what made me keep going and not give up. I kept yelling, even though I heard the fairies leaving. There was nothing to be lost if I kept going. I was about to accept defeat, when I saw the stone covering the opening move. It wasn't a large movement, just something very subtle – as if to acknowledge someone was there. At first I didn't believe it – I was sure that it was just a figment of my imagination.

But Eva saw it too, and I saw a flicker of hope in her eyes. That little sign made me believe. I yelled once more, and I kept yelling. After a bit, Eva joined in. As we yelled, louder and louder, we began to feel stronger. We glanced at each other and smiled, and yelled louder again. Suddenly, we were screaming at the top of our lungs, and the stone moved a bit more. As we kept yelling, it kept moving. Little by little, there was an opening big enough for us to leave though.

It was strange, really. We had tried yelling before, but it hadn't worked… We didn't stop to think though, we just ran out of the cave as fast as we could. We didn't hesitate to think about what could be awaiting us on the other side – we just ran out as fast as we could.

We could feel the cool breeze on our faces; the fresh air filling our lungs; the dark night surrounding us… We got out just as the sun was setting, and the moon was rising. We looked around to see where we were…

We were greeted by a fairy… He was as all fairies, shorter than us – but he was much shorter… He was probably one of the shortest fairies. Unlike the other fairies, he didn't hold himself with confidence or arrogance. He looked nervous, and kept blushing when he looked at us. He kept glancing in all directions, as if afraid. I wonder if he had helped us by defying orders. Perhaps he wasn't supposed to help us, and that's why he was afraid. But we didn't think much of it. We just kept thanking and thanking him.

Unfortunately, we didn't have much time. He handed us a package, glanced both ways, and disappeared. We weren't sure what was going on, but we took the package, and sat down on nearby stones, wondering what to do. Suddenly, a gust of wind blew our way, and I swear we heard a voice say 'Go, go now!' Eva must have heard it as well, because she stood up at the same time as me. We had no idea where we were, or how to get out of the Forest, so we just chose a random direction and started walking.

The night was cold, and we were shivering in our uniforms. We hadn't brought our cloaks since we thought that we would get out. I tried to transfigure things into cloaks, but it wouldn't work. So I tried some other simple charms and spells to make it warmer, but nothing worked – no magic did. We were stranded in the middle of the Forest clueless as to anything around us, and helpless without magic. 

Nevertheless, we kept going. We had gotten out of the cave, and we were bound to end up out of the Forest eventually. So, ignoring the cold, we walked further and further in silence. We were dead scared though. The Forest is, after all, filled with many dangerous creatures that we can't even dream of! And without magic, we had no ways to defend ourselves if we were to be attacked. We walked carefully, and as silently as possibly – perhaps nothing would attack us if we didn't bother anything.

The only problem was that we were tired… It was late at night, and the little bit of moon that shone through the trees wasn't providing much light. We couldn't find our way back to the cave, and we didn't want to risk getting attacked while we slept. So, we decided to sleep in shifts until morning.

Eva's sleeping right now – how she can sleep so well in such circumstances amazes me. I offered that I would wake her up once I felt myself drifting off to sleep, but I'm as wide awake as ever. I haven't gotten much sleep lately, but I do know that once I get back to Hogwarts, I'm going to sleep and sleep for a long time…

I never appreciated how easy I had it before now. I always took my soft, warm bed for granted, but I would give anything to be in that bed now… Or to be in one of the cozy armchairs by the fire in the Common Room… Or to have a delicious meal in the Great Hall… I did find a few berries, but, I'm reluctant to try them – who knows what they can do to you.

I always hated going into the Forbidden Forest… It's so eerie and unpredictable. The trees scare me the most, though. It sounds strange when you think about it, but, they're just so big and dark… They hide whatever lives in the Forest, and gives them protection. It seems that everything in the Forest works together… They keep swaying in the wind, and their branches keep creaking… Oh, how I wish I was anywhere but here… There really is no place like home…

At least we haven't run into anything dangerous, yet. We've been really lucky so far to not have much trouble with anything but the fairies. It's making me uneasy though. I mean, when there are two vulnerable girls in a vast Forest, filled with dangerous creatures, you'd think that something would happen to them while they're walking… It's odd, really… It's quite unsettling. I keep getting the feeling that when something happens, it will be much bigger, and much worse than if little things happened along the way…

And I keep getting the feeling that we're being watched. It's hard to tell whether or not it's just my mind playing tricks on me since it's so dark all around me. It's as if there are eyes all over, watching my every move… It's just a matter of time before something strikes and we're rendered completely helpless. At least we've got the use of our legs to run, and we've got our minds… Sometimes the mind is the only weapon you need… But I can't help thinking that that's not enough…

What if we just keep walking and walking, and never getting out of the Forest? What if, no matter how hard we try, and how much we keep going, we just end up back where we started? I wonder… Has anyone come to look for us? Surly, they've noticed we're gone by now! We left on Saturday, and it's already Monday… Oh, we've missed a whole day of classes! I can't remember what we had today…

Oh, I don't know how we'll manage! We've just got out of the cave, and already it's not going that well… We're cold and hungry… And we're tired! We have such a long way to go! Wait, what if it was a trap? What if that fairy had been put up to it – and we've just been let out, only to be led into something much worse? What if it's Voldemort's doing? Oh, this is much worse than I though…

So much for having a wonderful adventure…

~*~

September 24th,

I've no idea how I'm living, and being able to keep going… I haven't gotten a wink of sleep in what seems like ages! Going without sleep for this long CAN'T be good for you… But I can't get to sleep, I just can't… I'm too scared… I envy Eva for that… She sleeps like a baby… Although, somehow, she's tired during the day – even though she's slept for so long!

Well, we did all we could do today – we walked. I woke up Eva as the sun was rising – we need as much time as we can get if we want to get back to Hogwarts anytime soon. At first, we didn't have much light because the trees kept blocking the light, but as the sun rose higher, and got stronger, it penetrated through the tree tops.

The Forest is actually quite beautiful when it's so calm and lit… Everything looked so fresh and alive… There were flowers blooming, and other exotic plants all over the place… It really was quite gorgeous… It would have been a walk in the park had we not been so worried about what could happen and about getting back to Hogwarts…

Luckily, we didn't run into anything today. We had close encounters though! We were getting ready to stop and eat lunch, when we heard the skittering of many feet, and through all of the foliage, we saw giant spiders – as big as the fairies, and some even as big as us! I just couldn't move after I saw them! Thank goodness Eva was there to drag me away from there… If she hadn't been there, I don't know what I would have done…

As we were walking, I started wondering whether or not we were going in the right direction… After all, we had no idea where we were, and the Forbidden Forest was quite big… For all we knew, we could be headed further into the Forest and just getting ourselves more lost. But, like all forests, the Forbidden Forest has to end somewhere – so, even if we're going the wrong way, we'll end up somewhere near civilization – hopefully. And, it shouldn't be that hard to get back to Hogwarts from somewhere else, right?

When it started to get dark, we decided that we may as well stop. At least with the light we could see where we were going and see if anything was in our way. So, we found a spot that looked safe enough, and lit a fire.

It seemed like we just noticed that package from the fairy as we sat down. You'd think we would notice it sooner though… Ah well. We weren't sure whether or not we should open it – after all, who knew what could be in it? But, we decided that we may as well open it… Something of help might be in there… And am I glad we did! There were 2 large blankets, a compass, a lantern, a loaf of bread, a bottle of water, 2 cloaks, and a necklace. I could swear that those blankets and cloaks are bewitched; but then again, it IS from a fairy… They're so warm, and they're lifesavers since it's getting so cold out! We didn't eat much bread since who knew how long we would be stuck in the Forest, but, it was simply heavenly! It was so soft and sweet… Truly the bread of fairies! The water was normal water, unless I'm mistaken.

The lantern is quite useful indeed – we decided to go on a bit further since we could use the lantern to light our way a bit. We didn't get far, but, it's better than nothing. The compass is wonderful as well, but, the only problem is that we don't know which way the castle is or anything. We decided to just head North; it would lead us out of the Forest no matter what, and, we had a feeling that North was the right way…

Now, the necklace confused us a bit. After all, what would we need a necklace for if we're stuck in the middle of the Forbidden Forest? But, nevertheless, we kept it anyways. We decided that I should wear it, since, whenever Eva tried to put it on, but the clasp wouldn't close around her neck. Perhaps it has some magical powers that will help us along the way, but, it looks like a common necklace. Then again, magic can be found in places you least expect…

Well, Eva's sleeping again. She was a bit worried when I told her that I would stay guard the whole night again. She said that I should get some sleep; but I told her that I was fine and not tired at all – which is the truth. Last night, I felt so afraid to be awake and vulnerable in the dark Forest, but, tonight I felt fine – I suppose I'm getting used to the Forest. The noises don't scare me much anymore, and, I can tell what they are. The trees still frighten me, but, I'm able to forget about them…

~*~

September 25th,

-

Afternoon

-

With the rising of the sun, I felt a burst of energy inside me. I had a feeling about today – I knew we were going to get somewhere! Eva got up quite early and, though she felt tired, she was ready to face whatever the Forest wanted to throw our was as well.

So, with thoughts of Hogwarts and our return on our minds; and the compass in my hand; we packed up our things and headed North.

The Forest was eerily calm and silent in the morning… The only noise was of the wind blowing ever so softly. There was something unsettling about the placidity of everything. Eva didn't seem to care one bit… But it wasn't right… I may not be an expert on the Forbidden Forest, but, something didn't feel right…

There were no obstacles blocking our path, and we got a lot of ground covered in a short amount of time. That disturbed me as well. It was easy – too easy. On every other occasion that I've entered the Forest, something has interfered with whatever we were doing… But today – nothing. It just wasn't right…

We did find another cave though. We were quite reluctant to go in it, but, something seemed to be pushing us to go into the cave and examine it. It was quite a fairly small cave – about the size of the one we were trapped in. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary in it. Except… There was a stone; a large stone that resembled a table. And on it, there was a book. It was old and musty; and covered in dust – no one had touched it in what seemed like a long time. I don't know why I did it, but, as we were leaving the cave, I slipped the book into our package – perhaps it will be useful. The writing on the cover was faded, and I couldn't make it out without more light.

Although, from the moment that I touched the book, to the moment I let go of it as it was placed in the package, it seemed like the necklace from the fairies glowed… It was only for a split second, but, I could swear that it glowed… It was probably only my imagination, but, I can't help but wonder… Why would touching a book make it glow?

Eva didn't notice that I took the book since she was already out of the cave and waiting for me to come out. We walked a bit more until we came to a clearing. It was similar to the one where we had been captured by the fairies, but, it couldn't be that one. The clearing was quite small, and surrounded by trees. The grass was green, and looked as if nothing had ever set foot on it. And, unless I'm mistaken, there were several Bowtruckles surrounding us in the trees.

Needless to say, we ran through the clearing and kept going. Although, something about that clearing seemed familiar – I felt like I'd been there before… The only time I'd ever gone into the Forbidden Forest, was back in Fifth Year to do an assignment for Care of Magical Creatures… But, it couldn't be the same clearing, could it? Well, if it was, then that meant we were close to Hogwarts. I decided to keep the information to myself. Mainly, because I had snuck out on my own to go, and because I didn't want to give Eva a false sense of hope… If I turned out to be wrong, it would be easier for us to move on…

A bit after that clearing, we stopped for lunch since we were getting hungry. We ate some of the bread, which boosted up our energy and filled us up. We drank some water as well, but, it didn't do anything… I don't know why I was expecting it to…

We've decided to take a little rest – we've been walking for a long time, and the only times we've stopped have been to sleep or just now, to eat lunch. Eva's taking a nap, and, I told her I would stand guard once more. She was too tired to object, and fell right to sleep.

I decided to try some magic once more, just to see if maybe it was working again – it was! I knew we had to be close to Hogwarts now! Although, I wish I knew why it was malfunctioning last time… So, I shrank our package to make it fit in my pocket, and decided to levitate Eva so that she could sleep, and we could get a bit closer to Hogwarts. I knew we were close – I could feel it!

 

-

Evening

-

Well, we made it! I knew we would! Everyone was so happy that we were back – and they were all so worried while we were gone!! I'm just so happy that we made it back safe and sound. Let me start from the beginning…

Eva woke up not long after I started levitating her. It was much easier to carry on since levitation takes quite a bit of energy out of you… Easy it is, but it still drains power. She didn't bother asking why I had levitated her, or where the package was. She was quite happy that magic was working though. Although, it didn't really help her since she had left her wand back at Hogwarts.

Knowing that we had magic back on our side, we felt more confident in reaching Hogwarts safely. After walking for several hours, and covering lots of ground, we started to catch glimpses of the majestic castle that is Hogwarts. We knew we were on the right track, and so we started to run. We kept seeing more and more of Hogwarts, and it kept getting closer and closer. Every time we got a peek at Hogwarts, we ran faster, and as we ran faster, we got more excited – we were almost there!

Finally, we were there. We reached Hogwarts. It never felt so good to be at Hogwarts. As soon as we stepped out of the Forbidden Forest, we couldn't believe it. We had been through so much in those four days in the Forbidden Forest, and now we were finally back! We started screaming for joy and jumping up and down while hugging each other. We must have been quite loud and caused quite a commotion, because several people started coming out of the castle to see what was going on.

Soon, it seemed like everyone was outside surrounding us, and telling us how relived they were that we were back. People we didn't even know were coming up to us and saying how happy they were, and giving us hugs. It felt so wonderful! After a while, though, people started clearing away and heading off to go back to whatever they had been doing. Then, it was just Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, Professor Sprout, and us. It was hard to tell how they were feeling. One the one hand, they looked relieved that we were back all safe and sound; but on the other, they looked quite mad at our behaviour.

We got 20 points apiece taken off for our Houses, and each got a detention with our Head of House for one night. They let us go after giving us a stern lecture about never wandering off again.

We went our separate ways; Eva headed to the Hufflepuff Common Room, while I went to Gryffindor Tower. We quickly said goodbye and hugged before going. This wasn't an adventure that we were soon to forget.

As soon as I entered the Common Room, everyone started to surround me trying to hug me and talk to me. After everyone had gotten a hug, and gotten a chance to tell me how happy they were to see me again, everyone calmed down. Someone called out asking me what had happened and where I had been. Everyone was curious and wanted to know, so, they all quieted down while I started to tell my story.

I told them about everything, and it took a good long while to go through everything – it had taken 4 days after all. No one could believe what had happened, and everyone was just so relieved that I had made it back. I'm so happy to be back as well. Someone started a party which I knew would last well into the morning. I managed to slip out very early – I don't think that I can pull another all-nighter.

As I was getting ready for bed, I noticed the package in my pocket. I charmed it all back to regular size, and decided to look through the book and see what it was about. It took me a long time to make out anything, and once I did, I couldn't make heads or tails of it! It must have been written in another language. I was too tired to really concentrate on it as well. I've decided to examine it more thoroughly tomorrow after classes – if I have time that is – I have two days to catch up on.

I decided to pack everything up before I went to bed, and then I noticed my gifts. I had put them in the bag and long since forgotten about them – it was time I saw what I had gotten for my birthday. I decided to open Harry's first. And you wouldn't believe what he had gotten me – a nice book. At least it's an interesting book – it's the most recent version of Hogwarts, a History. It should be quite a good read to see how they've updated it…

At least Ron didn't get me a book. I've no idea how he managed to afford it… It was a necklace… It was a fine gold chain – pure gold, not imitation! And there was a lovely charm in the shape of a heart. The heart was a gorgeous red with a tiny flower on the side of it. I think that the center of the flower is a tiny diamond, but, I might be mistaken… On the back of the heart, in flowing gold script, it says 'Love always, Ron.' It's such a beautiful piece of jewellery, and it looks so expensive… How could Ron ever afford it?! And why did he spend so much on me? He didn't have to get me something so elegant… I've decided to wear it everyday though – it's so exquisite!

It was strange though… I was trying to take of the fairy necklace, but it wouldn't let me – the clasp seemed to be stuck. I tried to magic it open, but, it wouldn't work. I was too tired to do anything else about it – I'll look at it tomorrow as well. Besides, there's nothing wrong with wearing two necklaces, right?

I couldn't find the other gift – the anonymous one. It's probably buried somewhere underneath my books, but, I'm too tired to look for it right now… It won't matter if I look at it tomorrow, I'm sure…

~*~