Whoosh
It is a funny thing, how sound seems always to be the first sense to return.
For Cassidy- it was the sound of wind whistling through trees that awoke her.
I'm awake, was the first bleary thought in Cassidy's increasingly confused mind.
She had imagined death many times before. One does not watch their parents die at the age of 12 or join a secret armory facing a Dark Lord without seriously pondering death at some point in time. She always imagined it distinctly different from this though. As a realist, she never held out too much hope that it would be peaceful and painless, such was the fate meant for those wise enough to steer away from Albus Dumbledore- she did not blame the wizard, no, but she was a realist. Cassidy knew that her death would be violent, likely painful, and after that... well, such is a hard thing to place.
The entire affair of the Dark Lord's return and the rising war fully dispelled any beliefs in muggle religion from her mind. No god would ever allow such an abomination to return a second time. Instead of an afterlife, Cassidy always imagined that death would eventually bring nothingness, peace. She thought that her body would decompose and that every element that once made up her form would break apart and return back to the earth, maybe in her more romantic moments she imagined that her soul would travel high into the sky, would dance among the clouds and fly further towards the moon or the sun.
She never imagined it to feel like a cool wind tugging at her hair, chilling her damp cloths.
With a sudden, lurching gasp, Cassidy's mind processed the sound of wind, the feeling of the damp earth, and the scent of a rich forest. She sat up, eyes flying open, hand clutching tightly around her wand to remind herself that it was still there.
She swung her head around, taking in the sights of everything that she never imagined she would find on the other end of that Blasting Curse.
The wind was indeed whistling a long tune as it blew around the towering trees. Taking her time, Cassidy slowly stood, leaning on one great trunk for support. She looked down at herself, "take stock of yourself first, you must always know your own body, your own mind, what you can and cannot do," she recalled the carefully spoken words as she observed herself in the same clothing that she had set out for the mission in: black jeans, a grey turtleneck, and a black cloak. She was dressed for steal and to blend in among the purebloods if she had to. Her clothing was all covered in a thing layer of mud, and her hair was slowly falling out of its tight braid. She cast a quick examination charm over herself and found that she was surprisingly in good health save a few cuts and scrapes that she received while breaking into Malfoy Manor. Casting a quick cleaning charm, her cloak and underclothes were back to their warm and insulating selves, no more caked in mud.
"Observe your surroundings, what do you face?" she turned and looked around once more, this time at the forest which she appeared to have miraculously landed in. It was not the Forbidden Forest on the grounds of Hogwarts, a place she knew all too well. Nor was it the forest which Malfoy Manor backed up to. In fact, if Cassidy was the betting sort then she would have staked her first edition copy of Potions, a Complete Text on the fact that it was not a forest in England at all. If she were the type to jump to instinctual conclusions, then she would have claimed that it was no forest on Earth.
She would save the latter though for much, much later.
Waving her wand to find the cardinal directions, Cassidy took up walking north, hoping that if she walked long enough then she would find something of use. The air was cold, but her clock held several layers of warming charms that kept the chill away. Her dragon hide boots, spelled to prevent footsteps from making a sound, treaded upon dead leaves without a single crinkle. Reaching under her cloak, Cassidy found the small pouch tied to her belt still secure. She wrapped a hand around it, squeezing it for a moment to take comfort in knowing that she still had it. She had gone into that Manner equipped for absolutely anything.
As she walked further and further into the forest however, Cassidy's suspicion grew. There was no sign of life, not the chirp of a cricket nor the song of a bird. There was also a strange magic to the forest. It was not the bizarrely unique magic of the Forbidden Forest, which many thought of as dark but was in fact simply different, a place where Cassidy always felt strongly at home. No, this magic was ticklish, like it was trying to slip between Cassidy's defenses as she moved North, like it was up to something.
"Homino Revelio," she whispered, wand aloft. She watched the little light fly from her wand tip, floating through the air before dissipating. There were no humans in the forest.
She continued onward, and eventually, she heard it.
Something was following her.
She wasn't sure exactly what it was, but she knew by its movements and her previous spell that it certainly wasn't human. The way the things trailed her, hoping from tree to tree with only the slightest hint of a rustle reminded her far too much of the acromantula of the Forbidden Forest. She continued to walk, feigning unawareness while her wand arm tensed slightly. She did exactly as she had been trained in all those years practicing the art of dueling. She exhaled deeply, searched internally to check every joint in her body, and then cleared her mind. She was conscious of every step that she took, every change in the breeze, and every rustle above her head.
More than one, her mind supplied as she realized that the rustling was coming from both in front and behind her. A scuttling in the trees above her head made her cognizant of even more. They had her completely surrounded on all sides, maybe a dozen of them. They moved far faster than a human ever could, they lept from the trees like beasts.
She increased her walking speed and they increased theirs, she wasn't sure if they knew that she was aware of them yet, but they would figure it out eventually. There were maybe a dozen of them, too close to the number of Death Eaters chasing Cassidy for her to feel in any was secure.
A though came to her, what if he sent me here? The terrible thought sent her tentative hope crashing down. What if she did not succeed in killing herself and the Death Eaters, but was captured? What if Voldemort tiered of his usual methods of crucio and so sent Cassidy into an illusion of his own making to twist the secrets from her a different way? He won't succeed, she thought with a firm sense of determination.
Just as that thought came to mind, the one who had been walking in front of Cassidy stilled. It was waiting for her, expecting her to walk right into its trap. She was patient, walking forward as if there was no care in the world until she was less than four feet away from where she knew the creature stood. At the last moment, she whipped out her wand, pointing it directly front of her and cried out,
"Expelliarmus," she cried, causing the creature before her to be stop backwards, "Protego," she added, spinning in a circle around herself to create a bubbled shield. It was just in time too as six more figures stepped out from all sides. Cassidy could hear the slight rustle of more beings in the treetops readjusting their positions.
The fires were all tall and straight, long, gleaming hair that would put Lucious Malfoy to shame cascaded down their backs, braided in delicate patterns. While their slim forms and sooth faces made Cassidy first assume them to be female, she quickly noticed that most had features far too angular to no be male. They were dressed in garb of greys, greens, and browns that blended perfectly with the forest, and each one present had a wooden bow with an arrow knocked and pointed directly at Cassidy. A quick scan with her wand informed her that there was no magic in the arrows. A child's charm could repel such silly things. She almost laughed.
The figure that she threw back, lept to its feet and, upon finding their bow missing from their hands, wretched a sword from its scabbard and leveled the blade at Cassidy. When it got a foot away from her, the blade bounded lightly off her charm. She again did her best to hold back her laughter.
"Who are you witch, and what business have you in the Golden Wood?" he spoke haughtily in the tone of one used to being obeyed. As he spoke however, Cassidy could not help but notice that his ears were of a delicate point. Like the others his hair was straight, skin fair. Cassidy marveled at the thought that these beings may be in some way related to Veelas, but steeled herself once again as she remembered that this was likely all a trick, an absurd fantasy that would cause her to let her guard down.
"What are you creatures? Are you the dependents of Veela?" she asked. Though she was surrounded, it was obvious that if these creatures did have magic than it was very little.
"Insolent woman," he hissed in anger. Apparently pretty boy doesn't like people asking him questions. "Isn't it obvious that we are elvenkind. You are trespassing in the Golden Wood and bearing dark magic."
"Elves... you guys are elves?"
"Is that not what I said?"
Cassidy took a moment to let that sink in. These tall, fair beings with beauty unlike anything that she witnessed before... were elves. A rather amusing image of Dobby, with his large flopping ears and bulging eyes, dressed in a find green and brown tunic bearing and elegantly carved bow popped into her mind and her attempts to stave off laughter failed miserably. Cassidy doubled over, laughing so hard that she feared she would drop her wand. Imagine house elves running around Hogwarts "stop, you beez trespassing in da Goldeeen Woods." Cassidy wouldn't stop her mirth, the image of the sweet house elves running about in forests, after days of darkness and despair, leading up to a mission promising certain death... she couldn't remember the last time that she laughed.
"How dare you mock the Firstborn," his authoritative voice was enough to draw Cassidy from her humor induced stupor.
"Sorry bud... I just can't help it," she coughed lightly to stem any remaining laughs before adjusting her cloak around herself, smoothing it out. "As for your question, I was not aware that I was trespassing, nor that the woods where we stand were known as the 'Golden Wood,' I am lost. How I arrive here I do not know, but I appeared somewhere about two hours from where your party started to follow me." The blond figure appeared to ignore her insulation that he was caught, but continued on none the less.
"Who are you that casts spells and walks without a sound?"
"Cassidy Oleander, Ravenclaw and proud Mudblood. And who are you?"
"I am Haldir, Marchwarden of Lothlorien. The land which you are encroaching upon."
"Well, if Lothlorien is indeed in my current direction, then I believe that I shall continue walking this way for I am quite curious. You may follow along as you wish. Good day Haldir, Marchwarden of Lothlorien." With that, Cassidy continued walking forward, smirking lightly in satisfaction as her protego charm bumped Haldier out of the way. The elf remained stuck in place for a moment as if in shock before racing forward and blocking Cassidy's path once more.
"You cannot continue for your kind are not allowed in Caras Galadhon," he interjected.
"I care not. I mean you and your kin no harm, but you mustn't try to stop me. I am hungry, tiered, and very very lost. A moment ago I was about to die fighting a Dark Lord's minions and now I'm in a forest of unfriendly elves. It has been a rather harsh week and I think from now on I will go where it pleases me."
With her words the elf in front of her seems to deflate a little, asking her to stop for a moment so that he could consult with the others. She nodded in acquiesce as he stepped to the side and began a whispered conversations with another trio of elves. They spoke in a beautiful and mystic language which sounded an awful lot like singing to Cassidy as she contemplated her situation. If Voldemort was trying to trick her, then he was certainly showing more creativity than she ever imagined he could posses. However, if he wanted to trick her, wouldn't it be in a way that she didn't expect? Pretty elves with little magic might just cause her to let her guard down enough for him to slip into her mind.
"You have not caused harm to the woods or us though you have had many an opportunity," when Haldir spoke, there was a distinct frown on his face as if the other had come to a conclusion that differed from his own. "Thus, we shall escort you to Caras Galadhon and there you shall be judged by Lady Galadriel and Lord Celeborn. In return you will remain with us at all times and not harm a single elf or mallorn."
Cassidy shrugged and agreed to the terms, taking down her protego when it was obvious that they had no more intentions of skewering her with their arrows. Most of the party melted back into the treetops, but a few remained to walk on the ground with Cassidy. She would have assumed that they were purposely leading her astray, but something about the elves seemed so intrinsically honest that she decided that she could at least trust them to hold up their end of the bargain.
As they walked fro several more hours, Cassidy found herself growing parched and thus searched her small waist satchel until she found her water bottle. She watched eyes of the elf next to her grow impossibly wide as the pulled the large bottle from the tiny bag.
"It's a simple spell," she shrugged. "The same one that all the school trunks have."
The elf gave her a puzzled look and a light smile. From up ahead where he was leading the group, Haldir called over his shoulder without looking back,
"He does not speak Common."
"My apologies," she smiled lightly and turned to the gentle looking elf. "Cassidy," she spoke her name slowly, palm pressed against her chest.
"Rumil," he replied, a light twinkle in his eyes. He made a few gestures, pointing to himself and Haldir several times.
"Brothers?" she asked, slowly making the connection.
"Yes, he is my youngest brother," Haldir replied.
"Well Rumil, it is lowly to meet you," she smirked lightly.
They lapsed into silence once more until the sun was nearly set. Haldir paused at the base of a giant tree before turning to his brother and instructing him in that strangely musical language. His brother responded and the Marchwarded clambered up the tree as if he were some sort of bowtrukel.
"Showoff," Cassidy hissed under her breath. Rumil, from beside her, laughed in understanding as she watched the elder elf disappear into the branches. A few moments later, the same elf reappeared with a long, thin rope in hand.
"We will sleep in the flet tonight, I will assist you upwards," the broad elf explained, arm out as if asking Cassidy to take home of him. She looked unimpressedly at the long, thin rope disappearing into the boughs of the tree.
"You want me to let you pull me up there?" she asked.
"I can assure you that you will not fall. Dangerous things may stalk the forest at night, we are safest in the trees."
"I'm assuming there is some sort of platform up there?"
"Yes."
"Okay, then I'll meet you at the top," Cassidy smirked and enjoyed the expression of shock on their faces as she apparated to the platform in the tree.
When she arrived, there were already a few elf on the platform setting up their bedrolls. They all instantly had their hands on their weapons in shock, but none drew them as they eyes the young girl warily. Before long, with Haldir and Rumil were scrambling over the edge of the platform obvious still slightly in shock.
"What was that?" Haldir hissed.
"Relax," she held up her hands placatingly. "I'm seventeen, I've got my apparition license."
Haldir merely snapped something to the other elves who instantly all seemed very occupied with something else. Someone handed Cassidy a bedroll which she took with a gracious smile. Haldir then stepped over and moved her closer to the trunk of the tree, away from the platform's edge and the other elves. He then conspicuously set his own bedroll between Cassidy and the other elves.
The witch rolled her eyes and transfigured her bedroll into an actual bed, smiling in amusement as Rumil openly gaped at her work. Haldir merely barked out another command causing the younger elf to blush and turn away. Cassidy ignored the exchange.
"How much longer until we arrive in Caras... ga-"
"Caras Galadhon," he supplied quickly, not making eyes contact with Cassidy as he swept the surroundings. "We should arrive early tomorrow afternoon."
"If you're worried about safety, then I can place a protection charm around us tonight."
"That is not necessary," he said tightly.
"Suit yourself," Cassidy relied lightly. But, before she went to sleep that night, she did indeed place a protection charm around her bed.
She was still wary and her mind was still swimming. One moment she was blasting herself to nothingness and the next, she was here among beautiful elves in a forest of giant trees. She dearly hoped that Voldemort was not somehow behind it all, but she was not naive enough to believe such hope.
So instead, she ran through her mental defenses, reaffirming her occlumency and checking that there were no kinks in the shielding of her mind. Occlumency was one of the first things that she was taught as a child learning to control her magic. She could do it with or without a wand, and any Legilimens would receive a nasty surprise trying to invade her sanctum.
Satisfied that she was safe as one could be when possibly in a Dark Lord created illusion, Cassidy fell into a fitful slumber, dreaming of the war and what may become of it. She served her part. She could only hope that Dumbledore and the Order would continue to prevail.