Written for the Camp Hogwarts challenge, Cabin Longbottom.
Task: Scavenger hunt- Write about the hunt for certain magical objects/creatures (100 points)
Drabble Club: creature – unicorn
Quidditch Pitch: absolve
March 1972
"This is stupid," Dorcas muttered.
"You're stupid. No one made you come, he dared me, not you," Lisa snapped, stopping to untangle the end of her robes, which had caught on to some brambles.
"Why do you even listen to what that prat Potter says? Who cares what he thinks?" Dorcas complained, gripping the robes and helping Lisa pull them away from the bush.
"He called me a coward!" Lisa exclaimed indignantly, continuing farther into the dark forest.
Dorcas groaned in frustration, but followed. "I really hate it when your Gryffindor begins to show. And what are you gonna do if we do find a Forest Troll? Talk him into giving you his hair?"
"I was thinking I could just... take it?" Lisa said, grinning sheepishly.
Dorcas looked at her friend as if she'd just breathed fire. "Take it? Are you serious?! You can't defeat a Forest Troll; they're immensely strong and ten feet tall! You don't truly believe Black's rubbish story about him wrestling one, do you?"
Lisa rolled her eyes. "I'm not an idiot. I just thought I could, you know, sneak up on him and pluck it."
"And then?"
"Run like hell."
"You're mental," Dorcas concluded, shaking her head.
"If I'm so mental, why did you come?" Lisa asked again, holding her lit wand high, so it was easier to see in the thick darkness.
"Because you're going to get yourself killed," the Slytherin said matter-of-factly.
"I never should have told you where I'm going," Lisa grumbled, swatting away a low branch.
"Why did you?" the other girl countered.
"Because you saw me sneaking out! Besides, if I die I'll need somebody to deliver the news to my parents."
"At least you admit this is suicide," Dorcas muttered. "What if we both die?"
"We won't, because you'll run away from danger, like the good little Slytherin you are."
Dorcas snorted. "Yeah, keep insulting your only backup. And for the record, if I was planning on running away at the first sign of danger, I wouldn't be complaining so much."
Lisa didn't say anything, but a small smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.
"There should be a Troll Bridge nearby," she said, catching sight of the dried up bed of a river that once ran through the forest. "There has to be at least one Troll there."
"And who told you that? Potter?" Dorcas sneered.
"No, I read it in a book!" Lisa retorted. "I read up on Trolls and the Forest before I left."
"Could it be I've actually met a Gryffindor that cracks open a book every now and then?" Dorcas said, sounding genuinely impressed.
"There's more to me than the color of my tie, you know," Lisa said in a mockingly high voice. Dorcas shoved her playfully from behind. Then she stopped abruptly.
"Wait."
"What?" Lisa turned around, a bit annoyed at the setback. "Why are you stopping; that's just begging to be ambushed!"
Dorcas held up a hand, her eyes trying fruitlessly to penetrate the thick darkness ahead of them. "Do you hear that?"
Lisa strained her ears and held up her wand as high as she could. After a few moments she heard it too. It sounded like... clicking.
"What is that?" Lisa said. Suddenly the light in Dorcas' wand went out and she felt the Slytherin's hand slip in hers.
"Turn it off, it's going to see us," Dorcas whispered in her ear. Lisa obeyed and Dorcas pulled her to the left, where they crouched behind some bushes. They laid there with bated breath as the clicking became louder, and as their eyes adjusted to the darkness, they were able to discern a large eight-legged silhouette make its way along the path. It dragged a limp white body that left a silvery trail on the ground behind it, clicking its enormous pincers as it walked. The Unicorn's big, glistening eyes met the young Gryffindor's and without thinking, Lisa made to stand up. Dorcas' hand, still in hers, drew her back.
The spider stopped. Its eight eyes shone in the pale moonlight, scanning the area. The two girls clung to each other, desperately trying to slow down their echoing heartbeats. Dorcas was focused on the spider, her whole body tense, but Lisa couldn't take her eyes off the injured Unicorn. It blinked at her imploringly and lifted its head weakly.
Suddenly a hairy limb shot through the bush and a pair of giant pincers closed around Dorcas. The Slytherin screamed as the three meter tall Acromatula lifted her into the air. Lisa stared at the sight, completely paralyzed. The monster opened its maw and began lowering the writhing girl into it. Something shot through Lisa's body – it could have been courage or it could have been fear – but she didn't have time to think about it. Her wand whipped out and she yelled the first spell that came to mind.
"Incendio!"
Red and orange flames erupted from the wand and hit one of the spider's many eyes. It began stomping all over the place, a terrible screeching emitting from its throat. Its limbs flailed as it thrashed around, and Dorcas slipped from the pincers and was flung into the air. Lisa tried to catch her, but the force of the throw sent them both flying backwards. They landed painfully in the dirt; Lisa's back grinding against small stones and hard earth. The impact knocked the air out of her, and her ribs felt like they'd been crushed.
Dorcas rolled off and pulled her up to her feet.
"I think we've hit the 'run like hell' phase of your plan!" she yelled and the two girls sprinted through the darkness. The Acromantula came back to its senses and gave chase. Lisa could hear the clicking of its pincers behind them and tried frantically to remember what she knew about spiders. Well for starters, this one had eight legs and they only had two.
Lisa grabbed on to Dorcas' back and pushed her forward.
"Get to the castle!" she yelled and whirled around, shooting more sparks at the monster in an attempt to draw its attention. "Over here, dungbreath! You go for the closest victim, don't you? Here I am!"
It worked, and the spider strayed from the trail and came after her. Lisa darted to the right, though she knew running was pointless. She tried to think of an appropriate hex, but she was only a first year, she didn't know any spider-repelling spells! So she kept retreating, but the spider followed suit, the flames hitting its body dissipating without doing any harm. One of its appendages shot forward and hit Lisa in the stomach, knocking the air out of her again as she fell to the ground.
Gasping for breath, she looked up only to see the Acromantula leaning over her. She scrambled backwards, but sharp pincers pierced her leg and drew her back. She screamed and tried to hex the monster again, but it bit into her arm, venom dripping from its fangs. Lisa didn't even have the presence of mind to scream again, her head beginning to swim as the poison entered her bloodstream. Her limbs felt heavy, her movements were sluggish, her vision was smudged and she couldn't even bring herself to be afraid when the spiders' huge jaws snapped right in front of her face.
Suddenly some strange noise cut through her confusion. The ground beneath her was vibrating with the thumping of hooves. A flash of white and gold crashed into the Acromantula and tipped it over, red blood gushing from its side. Lisa looked up dazedly and saw the magnificent snow-white horse almost glow in the moonlight, its horn coated in red. A pair of hands slipped under her arms and she heard Dorcas grunt in her ear as she was being lifted off the ground and slung over the Unicorn's back. Somewhere in the background, the eight hairy legs of the giant spider wiggled frantically, but just as it managed to get upright again, wind beat against her face and everything became a blur. Then it all went black.
oOo
Lisa woke up to terrible pain in her right arm and left leg. She groaned and opened her eyes only to be met with the blinding sunlight that filled the Hospital Wing. A shadow fell on her face, as someone leaned over the bed and she heard Dorcas' distressed voice.
"Are you okay?"
Footsteps echoed through the floor and Lisa saw Madam Pomfrey place a hand on the Slytherin's shoulder.
"Let her have some space," the matron said, helping Lisa sit up and placing a steaming cup of potion in her hands. "I must go and alert the Headmaster. Drink this; it will make you feel better."
Lisa nodded weakly and raised the cup to her lips, as Madam Pomfrey's skirts disappeared behind the big door at the end of the ward. The potion was very bitter, but the young Gryffindor felt her head clear almost immediately.
"What happened?" she asked Dorcas.
"Your idiocy almost got us killed, that's what happened," Dorcas said, sitting down in a chair next to the bed. "How much do you remember?"
Lisa screwed up her face in thought. "We ran into an Acromantula. Tried to run away, but it was going to catch us, so I tried to distract it... that's about it."
Dorcas nodded. "Yeah. I figured we couldn't outrun it too, so I went back and tried to find that Unicorn it wounded. I tried a Rennervate on it, and that seemed to work. We came back for you, and I managed to get you on its back. You almost gave me a heart attack by the way, the thing was already munching on you! But Madam Pomfrey thinks you'll be alright. She fed you a bezoar and said we were lucky I got you there as soon as I did, the Acromantula venom hadn't reached your heart."
"What about you?" Lisa asked, spying the red blood that had congealed on her friend's robes, somewhere around the waist.
"Oh, this?" Dorcas looked down. "Just a scratch from when that thing grabbed me. Madam Pomfrey healed it in less than a minute."
Lisa looked down at her lap and said glumly, "Hey, Dorcas? I'm really sorry I got you involved in this. It was my fault you got hurt."
Dorcas just shrugged nonchalantly. "You didn't hold a wand to my head; I could've let you go in alone, if I wanted to. Besides, you'd be dead without me, so it's a good thing I tagged along." The two girls laughed lightly, before the Slytherin added, "And don't call me Dorcas."
Lisa gave her a bewildered look. "What else am I supposed to call you?"
"Anything else. I hate my mother's stupid tradition following! Who wants to have a name like Dorcas?"
Lisa chuckled lightly. "I guess I get that. My grandfather wanted me to be named Elvendork. But everyone else calls you Dorcas, including me! Why is this suddenly an issue?"
Dorcas thought about her answer for several moments. "Because you're not like everyone else. Not to me, at least. And to be fair, most call me Meadowes, anyway. You're the only one that calls me by my first name on regular basis."
Lisa chuckled. "So what should it be then? Doe?" Dorcas scrunched up her nose in distaste. "Dorky?" She glared at her, and Lisa snorted again. "Alright then, how about Cassie?"
"Makes me sound like a dog," Dorcas grumbled. Lisa shot her a perplexed look. "Lassie? You've never heard of it?" Lisa shook her head, while Dorcas sighed and mumbled, "Bloody purebloods."
Just then the Hospital Wing door flung open, and a breathless, windswept James Potter stumbled in. He stopped right next to the bed and leaned on his knees to catch his breath.
"Flitwick... said... you... spiders... forest... okay?"
The two girls exchanged glances and erupted in giggles. Then the door swung open again and Professor McGonagall walked in, followed by Slughorn, Madam Pomfrey and Professor Dumbledore.
"Ah, Potter. Good, that saves me the trouble of sending for you," said the Head of Gryffindor house, approaching in broad, brisk steps. "Now tell me the whole story, from the top."
The three kids exchanged glances and James explained to the teachers how he dared Lisa to go into the Forbidden Forest as a joke, and bring him the hair of a Forest Troll. Then Dorcas stepped in to say how she saw Lisa sneaking through the Entrance Hall and asked to join her, then recounted the fight with the Acromantula. By the end of the story Slughorn was ghostly white, wiping the sweat from his brow with a large green handkerchief, McGonagall's mouth was pressed into a line so thin it was almost intelligible, and Dumbledore's electric blue eyes moved from one face to the other, as if looking into their very souls. James, Lisa and Dorcas exchanged an awkward glance.
"I swear Professor, it was just a joke. I didn't think she'd actually—"
"And that is precisely what the problem is, Mister Potter," McGonagall said sharply. "You didn't think. That does not absolve you of guilt in the matter! Do you even realize what this 'joke' could have brought on?!"
"It was my fault, Professor," Lisa interrupted. "I wanted to prove I wasn't a coward. And I dragged Dorcas into it, she—"
"That isn't true, I asked to come along!" the Slytherin piped up.
"You did that so you could look after me!" Lisa retorted. "You said it yourself, it was suicide. It was my fault you got hurt, I insisted on going into the forest!" She turned to the Headmaster. "Please, Sir. James didn't know I would really do it, and Dorcas only tried to protect me. If you're going to..." Lisa swallowed thickly and looked down again. "If you're going to expel someone, it should be me. They didn't do anything wrong."
James and Dorcas exchanged a panicked look.
"Professor, you can't expel her, she didn't hurt anyone—"
"Yeah, I dared her; she wouldn't have been in there if it wasn't for me—"
Dumbledore held up his hand to silence them.
"No one said anything about expulsion," the Headmaster said calmly. "However, you three need to learn that there are consequences to your actions."
"That's right!" McGonagall piped up. "All three of you will write a fifty-inch essay about the dangers of the Forbidden Forest, and fifty points will be deducted from your house! Each! Does that seem fair, Headmaster?"
Dumbledore nodded, but his gaze lingered on Dorcas for a moment. "It does. But since we're punishing recklessness... it seems only fair to reward loyalty. I award fifty points to Miss Meadowes for thinking on her feet and rescuing Miss Fawley from the Acromantula. Now, Mr. Potter, I believe you have a Charms class to finish? And it seems a few other students have also forsaken their studies."
He inclined his head towards the door, where a few heads were looking in through the crack. Dumbledore motioned for them to enter, and Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Frank Longbottom, Lily Evans and Alice Prewett stepped inside awkwardly.
"Are you all satisfied?" Dumbledore asked, sounding slightly amused. Lily went all red in the face and nodded, but Frank stepped up.
"Is she going to be okay?"
"I'm awake, you know," Lisa mumbled under her breath. Her cousin threw her a glare, then turned his questioning glance to Madam Pomfrey.
"She'll be perfectly fine," the matron said. "Just make sure she doesn't overexert herself and stays away from Acromantulas for the time being."
The kids snickered and even McGonagall cracked something resembling a smile.
"Now off you go," the Transfiguration professor said. "Miss Fawley needs rest, and you lot need to get back to class. Off with you!"
James threw Lisa one last apologetic glance before he followed the others out the door.
"You too, Meadowes!" McGonagall beckoned.
"I'll come back after class," Dorcas whispered to her friend.
"Bring me books!" Lisa said. The Slytherin cracked a smile and waved, leaving her to lie down in the bed and get some rest.
oOo
That afternoon Dorcas came back with a whole stack of muggle books labeled The Darwin Awards. On the back of each one of them it said:
'In the spirit of Charles Darwin, the Darwin Awards commemorate individuals who protect our gene pool by making the ultimate sacrifice of their own lives. Darwin Award winners eliminate themselves in an extraordinarily idiotic manner, thereby improving our species' chances of long-term survival.'