RP - Returning to the Forbidden Forest.
Quietly, swiftly as she dared, Padma retraced their steps towards the clearing where they'd found Hermione. Or so she hoped; the forest was always dark, regardless of the hour of day. There were no signs of the spiders they'd dispatched, nor the remains of the sentislabra, although this wasn't surprising: many of the forest creatures existed merely on their ability to find and gorge upon the fallen.
In the dim, shifting light the vague trail stretched ahead of her. Here was the twisted, bird-like tree she'd seen, and they'd taken the next left fork...
**
Ernie wiped the sweat from his grimy brow as he did the last combination of petrificus and incarcerous. He really hoped he'd counted right. He was pretty sure he'd accounted for all the trolls. Almost certainly.
Bedraggled and slimy with troll snot, he made his way carefully through the forest, avoiding the "special" trees, wand drawn, just in case he HAD counted wrong.
**
Padma stood in the very centre of the clearing. The brief satisfaction of having found the place had been crushed in an instant because Valerius wasn't here. No one was here. But she'd seen him, on the map! And now she couldn't check the map, because she was here. And there was no way of...
I am an idiot.
With chilly fingers she reached into her pocket for the floo-stick.
"Lotus to Veleno, please respond."
Nothing.
"Lotus to Veleno. Can you hear me?"
Her heart lurched, and with it, reason vanished. She screamed out, "Valerius!"
**
Ernie heard a crackling sound. Too soft for a troll foot crashing through the undergrowth, it was more like the static crackle from a fl.... "Valerius!". Ernie froze in his tracks.
It was Padma's voice. Clearly in some distress too. Or was it? I mean, surely she wouldn't shout out like that where anyone could hear?. Fearing a trap of some sort, Ernie crept in the direction of the voice, sensing menace in every shadow, an enemy behind every tree.
**
"Valerius!"
The cloaked figure whirled around, and beneath the mask his features twisted into a cruel smile. Someone's lost. Or just lost it. Whoever it was, she wasn't far away. He wouldn't need backup either, by the sounds of it. And if he bagged one all on his own, the Dark Lord would look on him more favourably...
Confidently, the Death Eater made his way towards the source of the sound.
**
Ernie moved on through the forest, following the sound of.... well someone's voice. As the path wound around, he saw a cloaked figure ahead of him. "I was right. it isn't Padma at all", he muttered to himself, anger boiling within him. "If they've hurt her I'll....." The cloaked and hooded figure disappeared round the next corner. Ernie crept onwards, grimly determined, ready to hurl a hex should the figure turn in his direction.
**
Hah. There she was. The Death Eater smirked, and smoothly drew his wand. He was only a few yards away from promotion, even if it was just a girl. She was just...standing there, crying. An easy target. He stood too, thinking for a moment how he could best relate the story. He wanted to look good after all...
**
As Ernie rounded the corner, he stopped dead in his tracks. The cloaked figure had stopped, and was drawing his wand. Further along stood another figure. Ernie recognised her immediately. So Padma was there.
Great wracking sobs were coming from deep within her, and she had her back to her assailant.
As the Death Eater's wand started to move. Ernie raised his own, hoping against hope that the spell against dark magic that Professor Lupin had taught them in the defence classes actually worked. "Protego Horribilis", he yelled, wand swishing towards Padma.
Lost in grief, Padma didn't hear the shout but the surge of heat from the Protego and the hex it engulfed brought her to her knees. Scrambling to her feet, she turned to face the Death Eater who by now had turned his attentions - and his wand - on someone else. Ernie!
Ernie crouched low as the Death Eater turned towards him. Pointing his wand, he yelled "Stupefy." With a disdainful flick, his opponent cast a Protego which reflected enough of Ernie's hex to momentarily stun Ernie.
The Death Eater smirked. "Expelliarmus!"
Ernie's wand leapt from his hand and skittered along the path. Diving forwards, he scrambled towards it, pudgy fingers grasping desperately.
Grief and distress forgotten, Padma flung out her wand hand. "Impedimenta!" she yelled, as the Death Eater made a lunge towards Ernie. It wasn't perfect, but it was enough to stop the cloaked figure in his tracks. Furious now, he attempted to disarm her with an Expelliarmus but she ducked away in time, the spell whistling over her head.
Ernie recovered his wand and rolled over on the ground to face his assailant. Levelling and aiming, he started to cast, but his opponent was quicker.
"Fiendfyre."
The air around them filled with a crackling inferno, forming into fiery animals, their distorted mouths roaring and spitting flame. They were like no beast Ernie had ever seen, even in some of the more lurid books to be found in the fiction section of Flourish and Botts. And those were imaginary beasts. These ones, while magical, were very very real.
Ernie leapt to one side, and the bush where his wand had come to rest disappeared in a roar of flame and smoke.
Recalling the inferno at St Mungos, and the way that Hermione's quick thinking had saved them, he swiftly cast a flame freezing spell around himself, and set to attacking the creatures with Aguamenti.
This was too easy. Smirking, the Death Eater began to back away, a fact which was not lost on Padma. She dodged again as a tail of fire lashed towards her, and shot a panicked glance towards Ernie who was bravely battling the flaming beasts.
"Divide and conquer!" yelled Ernie, his wand emitting a constant stream of water, clouds of steam almost obscuring him as he cleared the area closest to Padma. "I think I've got their measure."
With a whoosh a great burst of flame enveloped him, his hair singed, his eyebrows gone, but the flame freezing spell held the inferno back just enough. Reinforcing the spell with another, he smiled grimly and set to once more.
Taking Ernie at his word, Padma darted towards the masked wizard. He started to run from the clearing into the thick trees. "Oh no you don't," muttered Padma as she gave chase.
Ernie sprayed water back and forth from the tip of his wand. He discovered that if he bounced it off the ground, it sprayed the fiery beasts much more effectively than a single jet, giving off a very satisfying whoosh of steam as the creature was extinguished.
Revolving slowly on the spot, he kept them at bay, pausing every now and again to refresh the flame freezing charm. Finally he had extinguished the last one, and turned to look for Padma.
**
The cloaked figure stood perfectly still, flat against the trunk of a tree. If the stupid girl was going to follow him into this thickly-canopied area, she'd be a standing target. He would bring back a body, at least one. He'd have something to show for this. The Dark Lord had sneered at him when he'd offered to stand as his master's bodyguard, and that had hurt.
He couldn't see her, but that didn't mean she wasn't there.
Padma had made her way to a tree, too. Glad to be wearing dark clothes, she waited, listening out for the betraying snap of a twig. Had the wizard gone, or was he waiting? If he was still here, he'd be watching for her, so no sudden movements, and above all no lumos. "Let your eyes adjust," she heard Val say in her mind. "You can see more than you think."
He sweated behind his mask and fought the urge to lift it and scratch. Where was she, the bitch? He didn't want to be here all day.
A rustling sound at her feet made her glance down, heart pounding in her throat. She didn't move as a small but probably very poisonous snake slithered slowly over her boot before continuing on its way.
It was horrible here. Why'd the Dark Lord send him to this bloody forest? He should have been out in the open with the more favoured ones, laying the army to waste.
Padma kept her breathing even and quiet. The forest pressed in on her, stifling and humid as the sun shone above the tree-tops. But she would not move until he did. If she did, she was dead.
He should have been beside his Master, in the castle dungeons, in amongst the werewolves, anywhere but here. Was that a beetle that just crept down his collar? Unable to take any more, the Death Eater drew his wand and cast a Bombardia, blasting a nearby tree into pieces.
"Always be calm, and they will crack before you will." With an almost joyous smile, Padma hurled a Stupefy in the direction of the voice, and knew that her spell had hit its mark. She ran towards the frozen figure and quickly bound him with petrificus totalis.
She was about to shout for Ernie before remembering that this was not a good idea. Save the euphoria for later, Patil. Let's be sensible.
Out came the floo-stick. "Lotus to Braveheart, are you still there?"
**
Ernie heard the call with a great deal of relief. "Braveheart to Lotus - I am still in position." A sudden thought crossed his mind and he quickly continued. "Pa...er Lotus. Be sure to stick to the path. And if you see any trees with green numbers on them, don't go near them - I'm on my way to join you."
"Lotus to Braveheart, I hear you. Meet you on the path, I'm slightly off it." She paused, and looked grimly down at the prone figure for a moment. If he'd hurt Valerius in any way... Well. She'd find out one way or another. "Mobilicorpus."
"Braveheart to Lotus - see you in a mo" - then, feeling very pleased with himself for recalling the muggle expression, he added "Robert and out."
__________________________________________________________________
With much kudos and thanks to badger_ernie for the play!
In the dim, shifting light the vague trail stretched ahead of her. Here was the twisted, bird-like tree she'd seen, and they'd taken the next left fork...
**
Ernie wiped the sweat from his grimy brow as he did the last combination of petrificus and incarcerous. He really hoped he'd counted right. He was pretty sure he'd accounted for all the trolls. Almost certainly.
Bedraggled and slimy with troll snot, he made his way carefully through the forest, avoiding the "special" trees, wand drawn, just in case he HAD counted wrong.
**
Padma stood in the very centre of the clearing. The brief satisfaction of having found the place had been crushed in an instant because Valerius wasn't here. No one was here. But she'd seen him, on the map! And now she couldn't check the map, because she was here. And there was no way of...
I am an idiot.
With chilly fingers she reached into her pocket for the floo-stick.
"Lotus to Veleno, please respond."
Nothing.
"Lotus to Veleno. Can you hear me?"
Her heart lurched, and with it, reason vanished. She screamed out, "Valerius!"
**
Ernie heard a crackling sound. Too soft for a troll foot crashing through the undergrowth, it was more like the static crackle from a fl.... "Valerius!". Ernie froze in his tracks.
It was Padma's voice. Clearly in some distress too. Or was it? I mean, surely she wouldn't shout out like that where anyone could hear?. Fearing a trap of some sort, Ernie crept in the direction of the voice, sensing menace in every shadow, an enemy behind every tree.
**
"Valerius!"
The cloaked figure whirled around, and beneath the mask his features twisted into a cruel smile. Someone's lost. Or just lost it. Whoever it was, she wasn't far away. He wouldn't need backup either, by the sounds of it. And if he bagged one all on his own, the Dark Lord would look on him more favourably...
Confidently, the Death Eater made his way towards the source of the sound.
**
Ernie moved on through the forest, following the sound of.... well someone's voice. As the path wound around, he saw a cloaked figure ahead of him. "I was right. it isn't Padma at all", he muttered to himself, anger boiling within him. "If they've hurt her I'll....." The cloaked and hooded figure disappeared round the next corner. Ernie crept onwards, grimly determined, ready to hurl a hex should the figure turn in his direction.
**
Hah. There she was. The Death Eater smirked, and smoothly drew his wand. He was only a few yards away from promotion, even if it was just a girl. She was just...standing there, crying. An easy target. He stood too, thinking for a moment how he could best relate the story. He wanted to look good after all...
**
As Ernie rounded the corner, he stopped dead in his tracks. The cloaked figure had stopped, and was drawing his wand. Further along stood another figure. Ernie recognised her immediately. So Padma was there.
Great wracking sobs were coming from deep within her, and she had her back to her assailant.
As the Death Eater's wand started to move. Ernie raised his own, hoping against hope that the spell against dark magic that Professor Lupin had taught them in the defence classes actually worked. "Protego Horribilis", he yelled, wand swishing towards Padma.
Lost in grief, Padma didn't hear the shout but the surge of heat from the Protego and the hex it engulfed brought her to her knees. Scrambling to her feet, she turned to face the Death Eater who by now had turned his attentions - and his wand - on someone else. Ernie!
Ernie crouched low as the Death Eater turned towards him. Pointing his wand, he yelled "Stupefy." With a disdainful flick, his opponent cast a Protego which reflected enough of Ernie's hex to momentarily stun Ernie.
The Death Eater smirked. "Expelliarmus!"
Ernie's wand leapt from his hand and skittered along the path. Diving forwards, he scrambled towards it, pudgy fingers grasping desperately.
Grief and distress forgotten, Padma flung out her wand hand. "Impedimenta!" she yelled, as the Death Eater made a lunge towards Ernie. It wasn't perfect, but it was enough to stop the cloaked figure in his tracks. Furious now, he attempted to disarm her with an Expelliarmus but she ducked away in time, the spell whistling over her head.
Ernie recovered his wand and rolled over on the ground to face his assailant. Levelling and aiming, he started to cast, but his opponent was quicker.
"Fiendfyre."
The air around them filled with a crackling inferno, forming into fiery animals, their distorted mouths roaring and spitting flame. They were like no beast Ernie had ever seen, even in some of the more lurid books to be found in the fiction section of Flourish and Botts. And those were imaginary beasts. These ones, while magical, were very very real.
Ernie leapt to one side, and the bush where his wand had come to rest disappeared in a roar of flame and smoke.
Recalling the inferno at St Mungos, and the way that Hermione's quick thinking had saved them, he swiftly cast a flame freezing spell around himself, and set to attacking the creatures with Aguamenti.
This was too easy. Smirking, the Death Eater began to back away, a fact which was not lost on Padma. She dodged again as a tail of fire lashed towards her, and shot a panicked glance towards Ernie who was bravely battling the flaming beasts.
"Divide and conquer!" yelled Ernie, his wand emitting a constant stream of water, clouds of steam almost obscuring him as he cleared the area closest to Padma. "I think I've got their measure."
With a whoosh a great burst of flame enveloped him, his hair singed, his eyebrows gone, but the flame freezing spell held the inferno back just enough. Reinforcing the spell with another, he smiled grimly and set to once more.
Taking Ernie at his word, Padma darted towards the masked wizard. He started to run from the clearing into the thick trees. "Oh no you don't," muttered Padma as she gave chase.
Ernie sprayed water back and forth from the tip of his wand. He discovered that if he bounced it off the ground, it sprayed the fiery beasts much more effectively than a single jet, giving off a very satisfying whoosh of steam as the creature was extinguished.
Revolving slowly on the spot, he kept them at bay, pausing every now and again to refresh the flame freezing charm. Finally he had extinguished the last one, and turned to look for Padma.
**
The cloaked figure stood perfectly still, flat against the trunk of a tree. If the stupid girl was going to follow him into this thickly-canopied area, she'd be a standing target. He would bring back a body, at least one. He'd have something to show for this. The Dark Lord had sneered at him when he'd offered to stand as his master's bodyguard, and that had hurt.
He couldn't see her, but that didn't mean she wasn't there.
Padma had made her way to a tree, too. Glad to be wearing dark clothes, she waited, listening out for the betraying snap of a twig. Had the wizard gone, or was he waiting? If he was still here, he'd be watching for her, so no sudden movements, and above all no lumos. "Let your eyes adjust," she heard Val say in her mind. "You can see more than you think."
He sweated behind his mask and fought the urge to lift it and scratch. Where was she, the bitch? He didn't want to be here all day.
A rustling sound at her feet made her glance down, heart pounding in her throat. She didn't move as a small but probably very poisonous snake slithered slowly over her boot before continuing on its way.
It was horrible here. Why'd the Dark Lord send him to this bloody forest? He should have been out in the open with the more favoured ones, laying the army to waste.
Padma kept her breathing even and quiet. The forest pressed in on her, stifling and humid as the sun shone above the tree-tops. But she would not move until he did. If she did, she was dead.
He should have been beside his Master, in the castle dungeons, in amongst the werewolves, anywhere but here. Was that a beetle that just crept down his collar? Unable to take any more, the Death Eater drew his wand and cast a Bombardia, blasting a nearby tree into pieces.
"Always be calm, and they will crack before you will." With an almost joyous smile, Padma hurled a Stupefy in the direction of the voice, and knew that her spell had hit its mark. She ran towards the frozen figure and quickly bound him with petrificus totalis.
She was about to shout for Ernie before remembering that this was not a good idea. Save the euphoria for later, Patil. Let's be sensible.
Out came the floo-stick. "Lotus to Braveheart, are you still there?"
**
Ernie heard the call with a great deal of relief. "Braveheart to Lotus - I am still in position." A sudden thought crossed his mind and he quickly continued. "Pa...er Lotus. Be sure to stick to the path. And if you see any trees with green numbers on them, don't go near them - I'm on my way to join you."
"Lotus to Braveheart, I hear you. Meet you on the path, I'm slightly off it." She paused, and looked grimly down at the prone figure for a moment. If he'd hurt Valerius in any way... Well. She'd find out one way or another. "Mobilicorpus."
"Braveheart to Lotus - see you in a mo" - then, feeling very pleased with himself for recalling the muggle expression, he added "Robert and out."
__________________________________________________________________
With much kudos and thanks to badger_ernie for the play!