Scavenger Hunt (Waaaay open)

[Loren Hayes]

Loren dawdled at the edge of the forest. She knew she had to go inside, but whenever her determination tried to guide her like a mental patient by the elbow into the tight trees, her nerves cried out in protest, forcing her stay glued to the spot. There was a mixture of things keeping her from going inside - the first being the memory of a werewolf attack some months ago, resulting in Jac staying in the hospital wing for a couple of days, and the second being the various consequences involving teachers and the ever thickening presence of the ministry...

But, of course, Felix needed feeding. Although the Room of Requirement had provided the handsome griffin with all his basic comforts, it seemed to would be up to Loren and Ian to gather appropriate food such as large rodents and birds. The idea of hunting down and killing the poor things was absolutely horrific in Loren's mind, and if she could not locate anything that was already dead then... well, she would come to that when it happened.

Two owls hooted nearby, conversing over whatever owls bothered to concern themselves with. The light of a wand appeared up near the castle, and Loren silently ducked inside the trees before the brilliant light could be directed toward her. By the low voices that drifted down the hill, Loren thought that it was probably two ministry officials on one of their new protocol patrols.

With a shaky sigh, Loren turned on her heel and slipped into the forest, pitch blackness washing over her in a cold wave...

[Jerred Boneman]

'No, you don't!' Jerred said, clasping his hand onto the back of Loren's robes, ceasing her from falling. His other hand was attached to a nearby tree. He smiled cheerfully as he propped down from the tree, hopefully his movements not attracting whoever was at the top of the hill. Sitting beside Loren, Jerred poked her to see if she was awake.

'You alive or can I hand your body to the Ministry Morgue?' He said cheekily, despite trying to be quiet.

[Ian Gray]

Ian glanced at his watch warily, before slipping out the entrance of the school. He had been left in the Room of Requirement to nurse after the hungry Griffin until it had fallen asleep and almost grinned at the irony of being the one to coddle Felix while Loren played the role of the hunter.

Glancing behind him, skeptical of being followed, Ian burrowed deeper into his dark cloak and ran over to the Forest. The looming trees obscured his vision of what was waiting inside, and he took a deep breath, pulling out his wand.

A sharp gust of wind blew against him, creating an eerie whistle as it traveled deep within the spindling vegetation. Tentatively, he pulled away one of the tangled tree limbs and stepped toward dark unknown.

"Loren?" Hoping she hadn't ventured too far in, he moved a bit closer toward the twisting, thicker trees. A sudden noise caught his attention, almost causing him to stumble over a protruding root before he spun around, waving his lit wand unceremoniously around in a quick panicked motion. "Loren, is that you?"

A large owl, seemingly coming out of nowhere, flew up behind him. In surprise, he jerked forward, toppling over the previous root and falling into a ditch of sorts. Groaning, he wiped his-- now muddy-- face with the sleeve of his dirtier robe and sat cross-legged on the ground, catching his breath.

Widening his eyes at the sight of Loren and a strange companion, he shone his wand wildly. "Who are you?"

[Jerred Boneman]

'Shine that light somewhere else!' Jerred cried out impatiently, throwing his hand at the Gryffindors hand. Blinded for a second, Jerred shook his head. 'You were the one who had the lit wand, weren't you? Damn idiot! You're the reason Loren here turned out of fear and slid.' Jerred leapt to his feet and cracked his neck.

'You're lucky I don't really care what House a person is in, if they need help and no one else is around, I'll do it.' Jerred said to no one particularly. He dusted his robes off before he began to walk away.

[Ian Gray]

"Whoa there, hang on." Ian reached over, grabbing the younger boy's arm and pulling him back. Bewildered, he gave him a quick once-over, before sending Loren an uneasily look. Turning off the blinding light of his wand, he dropped his grip on the other boy and chewed his lip thoughtfully.

"We can't keep our wands lit?" He said anxiously, still keeping his eyes locked on the younger student. A low growl rumbled underneath their feet, and Ian winced as ground vibrated. "Now look," he said a bit exasperatedly, "You seem like you've been in here before, and I don't really know my way around..." Pausing, he grabbed a swaying tree branch and pulled himself up, feeling a dull sting in his legs. "Plus, going back through this forest alone isn't very wise." Nodding at his logic, he clasped the boy's collar with a gentle grip and tugged him back impatiently.

The rumbling grew louder, and Ian raised an eyebrow at the Slytherin, before it finally died away. "Now, who did you say you were?"

[Jerred Boneman]

'Yes, I know my way about this forest, no I don't need any help in getting back either.' Jerred said, freeing himself of the tug on the back of his collar. 'I didn't say who I was either, so keep your wand lit if you want to feel like a man.'

Jerred raised his hand and freed himself of the tugging. 'If you want out of this forest, then simply go that way, there's a clear path through the trees without any roots or stones ready to knock you over.' Jerred instructed. 'Take care of yourself and Loren, okay? Just travel along the path, and you'll be by the lake in no time, trust me I know, I was the one that cleared it.'

Jerred turned away again, pausing for a moment in case the older Gryffindor complained again.

[Ian Gray]

Ian listened carefully, smiling despite their situation. The boy seemed alright, a bit troubled-- but all together fine. "I'm sure we can fend for ourselves," he said confidently, hands falling back to his side. "And your path would be more than helpful if... We were looking for a clear way out." Turning to the Slytherin a bit sheepishly, he lowered his voice in case any wandering creature took his next words as an invite.

"See... We're kind of looking for some grubs, and this seemed like the perfect place." Brushing off his robes carefully, and not allowing the Slytherin to turn away again, he ran a hand agitatedly through his hair. "We don't need a protector, but, we could use a guide." Peering into the uneasy blackness of what lay ahead in the forest, Ian made a face, before lighting his wand once more.

"What do you say?"

[Dax Simmons]

Dax had been walking around the grounds trying to clear his head. He had left the Hufflepuff common room when it was light and now it was dark and still he slowly made his way around the deserted grounds. When he was approaching the boundaries of the forest he was convinced he could hear talking. Puzzled Dax put his best foot forward and headed off toward the noise.

The trees of the forest were swaying in the night time breeze, forcing shadows to appear near the ground. Every time Dax saw movement he had to reassure himself that they were shadows and not monsters coming to kill him. With a sigh Dax was about to turn away when he saw flashes of light. There were students in the forest…or possible ministry officials. If they were students he best fetch them out before they get caught, if they are ministry officials…Dax wanted to know what they were doing.

Drawing his wand from his pocket Dax stepped into forest, relaying on the light from the moon not from his wand. However the deeper he got the less moonlight hit the ground. Lighting his wand Dax moved to where the noises were coming from. As he walked over a small hill there he saw 3 people. However his heart lurched when he saw one of them who was sitting on the ground.
“What are you guys doing here?”

[extreme]

An uneasy feeling loomed over Torin earlier that day when he had been sitting off to the side of the lake, a few meters away from the forest. The trees seemed to reach out for him, the darkness behind them awakening his more adventurous side.

At that time, there had been too many eyes watching him, most belonging to the Ministry that seemed to be on guard everywhere in the school. However, so late at night as it was, he was nearly positive that with his black cloak and draping hood he wouldn't be recognized or even seen.

Walking between the trees, not sure why the forest was so captivating, as though it were throbbing with liveliness, Torin heard a voice. Stopping in his tracks fearfully, he glanced from behind a tree as what looked like four students talked amongst themselves, their voices mingling with the growling of the forest floor.

Realising none of them were prefects, he timidly approached them, pulling down his hood as he did. The newest arrival uttered the same question he was thinking, and he moved closer. "I'm wondering the same thing..." Turning to them, noticing he didn't recognize any of the faces staring back at him, he grinned sheepishly. "A strange place for introductions, isn't it?"

(( OOC: Sorry Dax. Modified it ))

[Dax Simmons]

((OOC: It is no problem!))

Dax waited for someone to answer his question when another person turned up. Glancing around he noticed another Ravenclaw had turned up. With a small laugh Dax smiled as he listened to what the other boy had to say.
“Well I’m glad I’m not the only one who is confused here.”

Looking around at the silent others his Dax lasted longer on Loren then the others. He knew he should not be here, or at least he should not be near Loren. Trying to shake off the thought Dax looked back at the Ravenclaw.
“Good point but it think a rather quick intro will not go wrong. I’m Dax Simmons, the girl sitting on the floor is Loren Hayes, that Slytherin is Jerred Boneman and the Gryffindor…well I only know him as Ian.”

Dax shrugged at Ian in an apologetic manor. He had only really heard about this Gryffindor off Loren and never had the opportunity to met him.

[extreme]

Slightly overwhemled, Torin nodded, tucking his hands in his pockets as they were beginning to sting with the chilly cold that the trees seemed to trap. "Ah of course, most of you are on house-teams, aren't you? Loren is easy to recognize, being a Ravenclaw." He smiled brightly, though it dimmed as a bird calling swept over the treetops.

"I'm Torin Paley," he said quietly, thinking he had heard something. "To be honest, I have no idea why I'm here." Shaking his head he smoothed his palm over the bark of a bare tree before finding a layer of sticky liquid coating his hand as he pulled it off. Shuddering, he looked back at the others, tensing his fingers as the substance began to harden.

[Loren Hayes]

As a heavy grip landed on Loren's shoulder, she let out the strangest sound that seemed to be the combination of a squeal and a groan - she was done for! The ministry had caught her!

The forest floor grumbled uneasily, shifting under her feet so that in her attempt to volt forward she was dragged down so far even her ankles disappeared into the soil and mud, causing her to fall over backward into a particularly foul puddle. Cold water began to seep into the seat of her robes and she half-cried, half-growled in unhappiness. 'Jerred!' She moaned, gripping her chest. 'You nearly killed me!' She soon silenced herself with a hand over her mouth as wand light suddenly bloomed few yards away from them, but to her relief it was only Ian to arrive at last. 'Oooh thank Merlin, I thought I was going to have to do this alone...' Loren sighed wearily, attempting to stand up. However, she fell back down again as the forest floor tightened its grip on her ankles, causing her to loose balance once more.

Catching the last few sentence of Ian and Jerred's conversation, Loren strained her neck to look up at them both. 'Yes, we sort of... erm... need to stay for a while.' She muttered guiltily, she nor Ian ready to tell anyone about their secret new pet yet.

There was the sound of snapping twigs and Loren looked to see none other than Dax Simmons approaching them. 'Is everyone here tonight? The ministry will catch us for sure!' she said scathingly. Her eyes settled on Dax's face for a moment, her expression clearly marking her current feelings - Dax was still a swine, and she was not talking to him.

Feeling slightly embarrassed, Loren grabbed onto Ian's arm and tried to pull herself up, but once again failed. Someone else had now entered the group, and to Loren's surprise it was a Ravenclaw she recognised from the common room pep talks, although it was apparent he didn't know her. Ignoring what Dax said, Loren said, 'I'm Loren. And I know you - you're Torin, aren't you?'

The boy did not have time to reply however, when shouts began floating down from the castle. With colourless cheeks Loren's gaze set upon three stout figures standing in a neat line on top of the hill, all lighting their wands one by one as they prepared to come and investigate the noise the group had all clearly been making. Reaching up, Loren wrapped her hand around the tip of Ian's wand, dimming the light so that only a few beams escaped between her fingers. 'Put it out - and help me up! It's got me!' She said referring to the forest. Her blood ran cold as the figures started decend...

[Dax Simmons]

Dax saw the look that Loren gave him. He could not help put close his eyes and almost wince in pain. She was ignoring him, childish taticts but Dax still could not help put want to redeem him self. Although Loren was barking the order at Ian Dax moved closer. He slid his arms under hers and gently helped pull her too her feet. He knew what her reaction would be, most likely resorting in a slap across the face, but still he knew he had to do anything to make Loren think well of him again.

After she was back on her feet Dax leaned her against Ian and walked toward the back of the group looking out over the forest toward the castle. The lights of peoples wands were slowly moving. With a deep breath Dax turned back to the group waiting to see what they shall do next.

[Loren Hayes]

Loren's eyes flashed dangerously upon Dax daring to touch her, but now was not the time to be picky about who pulled her out of the mud. She stumbled into Ian slightly, and with a single dismissive toss of her hair that seemed to annihilate Dax from all of existence, she was off into the forest, her hair bouncing about as she leaped up and over fallen branches and ancient stumps.

Briefly she looked over her shoulder, beckoning the group, including Jerred, to follow.

Stupid boy... Loren thought angrily. What does he think he's playing at, coming near me? I won't trust him. I refuse to!

[Dax Simmons]

As Loren headed off deeper into the forest, Dax was tempted to turn back, distract the ministry so Loren…and the others would be safe. However something was niggling at him. He want to stay, almost so he could spend time with Loren, no matter how much she disliked him.
With a sigh Dax slowly placed one foot in front of the other and followed the way Loren went. He kept his distance from her knowing far to well she would not want to see him.
“Loren! Can you fill me in on what is happening?”

He watched the back of the Ravenclaw girl in hope that she might turn round…however he knew chances were slimmer then the giant squid turning vegetarian.