Okay y'all, here's the deal. I'm not supposed to be on the 'net until summer break, due to my&$! grades, so if the regular chapters become irregular, you know why. If ya want to contact me, e-mail me at the email on my bio-page. Also, check out ! Say that rondaru or SkyStar recommended you. (I really need the extra gold.) If you're already on Gaia, check out my apartment building on Roleplay, the Living Garden Apartments! Caio!
Getting stuck in the Dark Forest is definitely not the thing Draco Malfoy wants to do in the middle of winter. Getting stuck with Harry Potter is even worse. When the prideful Slytherin gets sick, what will befall him and his green-eyed companion? No magic, no idea of how to get back to Hogwarts? Such is the fate of poor Draco.
"To complete this assignment, you must collect a root from a winter-blooming carnatopiseda. You have two hours. GO!" Professor Apollo said, releasing the group of Gryffindors and Slytherins into the forest. They soon disappeared from sight. In one corner of the forest, a chance encounter was about to occur. Harry Potter trudged into the clearing. "Mmmmm. Looks like a good place to look." he murmured. After taking off his cloak, Harry began a careful, methodical search of the forest floor for the plant he needed. At the other end of the same clearing, Draco Malfoy was doing the same. As luck would have it, both boys sighted the required plant at the same time. They leaped, slamming their heads together. "OW!" both yelped, tumbling backwards. They were momentarily stunned, but scurried for the plant again quickly.
"Hands off Potter. It's mine." "Not a chance Malfoy. I was here first." "Pureblood before mixed, mutt. Go away." Harry pretended to reach for his wand, and Malfoy flinched. On an impulse, Harry quickly performed a duplication charm and uprooted the original plant before Draco had realized that Harry was faking. Before disappearing into the trees, Harry also cast an illusion over the disturbed ground, which meant the Slytherin believed that he had won the plant and he, Harry, was off to find a different plant. Smiling happily, Malfoy uprooted his plant and headed back to the school. What neither of the boys realized, however, was that they had both left their cloaks in the clearing.
Several hours later (about 8:30-9:00pm) "Hey, Ron. Have you seen my cloak?" Harry was searching the area around his bed. "Not since last class." came the response. " Oh well. Thanks anyway." Harry's voice was distinctly muffled, since he was underneath his bed, his torso (waist up) completely hidden. "Hang on, last class. I know!" Harry popped out from beneath the bed and headed for the door. "Harry, where are you going?" Ron asked sleepily. "To get my cloak." "In your pajamas?" Harry looked at the black cotton garments, and decided to change into something more suitable. After all, it was snowing hard outside. Jeans, a black t-shirt, and a pair of hiking boots were pulled on, and, with the addition of a hooded sweater and gloves, Harry headed out. Unfortunately, he forgot this wand.
Meanwhile, in the Slytherin common room "Where 'ya going Malfoy?" A half-asleep Goyle asked. The blonde boy was wearing blue jeans, a dark green t-shirt, a black sweater, and gloves. Goyle had caught him in the middle of pulling on a pair of hiking boots. He'd been standing on one foot, and toppled when Goyle spoke. "Why do you care? Out." The irritated male stomped out of the room without bothering to get his wand. Goyle forgot the event immediately.
In the forest "Bloody snow! I can hardly see." Malfoy grumbled, stomping through the cold white world in search of his cloak. Up ahead, he sighted a clearing, and a cloak lying at the base of a tree. "Yes!" he cried and ran for it. To busy to see the dark shape beyond, the blonde pounced on his cloak. His momentum carried him farther, and he collided with something that toppled over on him. Malfoy and the thing rolled several feet before coming to a stop in a large snowdrift. The irritated blonde surfaced from the heap, sputtering, and was startled when a second person popped up and spat out a mouthful of snow. "POTTER!? What are you doing here?" "Same thing you're here for. I left my cloak at the other end." "Great, now go away." "Can do." The Gryffindor stood and stalked off into the trees. A combination of whirling snow and darkness made him disappear within moments.
"Stupid, stuck up, Potter." Draco growled, turned, and headed into the forest. He wandered around for over two hours, by which time it had become completely dark. The wind howled around him, and ethereal voices whispered in his ears. An upraised tree root caught his foot, and he tumbled down a gentle slope. He jumped up, swearing and trying to get snow out of his eyes. He was in a small clearing, about 15 feet across. He started to the other side, and stopped halfway to stare at the infinite blackness overhead. "What did I do to deserve this!?" he yelled to nobody, and stamped his foot for emphasis. Bad idea. An earsplitting crack echoed in his ears, and he froze in realization of where he probably was, and what he'd just done, not to mention the severity of what he'd done if he was where he thought he was. Then the ice beneath him broke, and he plunged into the icy water of a river. His fate ran through his mind. The current would carry him under the ice, and he'd drown. His body, if it were ever found, wouldn't be seen until spring. Then a hand latched onto his shoulder, and he was heaved half out of the water. Malfoy turned to see who, or what, had saved him. "You again! Why can't I ever get rid of you!?" " Malfoy, if I let go of you, there's a 50 chance you'll still drown. Truce?" "With you are you-" Malfoy looked at the dark water. "-truce." "Good." Harry hauled Malfoy fully out of what was almost a cold, watery grave for the young adult. "How did you manage to keep from falling in yourself?" Draco asked, gasping at the icy wind that cut right through his waterlogged clothing. "By lying flat on the ice. You've got to do the same thing." Rather then argue, Draco spread himself out on the ice, thus distributing his weight over a larger area and giving a better chance of the ice being able to support him. After an eternal ten minutes, Harry and Draco stood on the bank of the river. "Well, I'm off." Harry stated, turned, and disappeared into the night again. Grumbling about having to call a truce with his most hated schoolmate, Draco turned and headed away, in a vain hope of retracing his steps. The thickly falling snow and howling wind had completely obscured any trace of his former trail. He was lost.