A stroll through the Trees (Jayden)

[Bridget Ashford]

Bridget wandered through the Forbidden Forest of Hogwarts, feeling her shoes sink into the damp ground underneath her. She made a point to make time for these walks at least once a month. Back when she was a student, Bridget had spent a large amount of her free time exploring these prohibited trees. The constant chance of danger gave her a thrilling fear that put her whole body on edge. She never felt more connected and alive than when she was walking through the forest. Her steps were hesitant, testing the trodden earth below.

She had found Dixie in these same woods three years ago, a large gash in her side. Bridget remembered how she patched the poor unicorn up, and how she would sneak out at night to play with her. She had always felt a strange connection with these beasts that drew her to them like bugs to a light bulb. She had never been a people person, and the animals of the forest were her confidents. Unlike people, unicorns were incapable of deceit and betrayal. Bridget flinched at the mention of deceit. Her whole existence revolved around lies and secrets. Sure talking to Regulus had helped reveal some of those confidential facts, but talking about that didn’t make the pain go away.

She shook her head, trying to bring herself more pleasant thoughts. Clearing her head from bad memories wasn’t an easy task. The forest around her was dark and depressing, not helping her brighten her mood. She sighed, knowing that that was probably her fault for choosing the Forbidden Forest for her walk in the first place. She slumped down and sat next to a nearby tree, resting her head against the moss on its bark. She felt a few tears escape her eyes, and she quickly brushed them away. This was no time for crying.

Her body tensed when she heard twigs snapping behind her. She silently reached for her wand which was tucked into a pocket on the inside of her jacket. Preparing herself for attack, she inched around slowly, being sure to stay mostly covered by the tree.

“Who’s there?” she called, trying to sound threatening but failing miserably.

[Jayden Hawls]

Jayden was quite an impulsive person. Sometimes, he felt that he was too impulsive. The little dog of trouble that followed him around often was the cause of this. It was as if the dog controlled every thought that he had, every desire he thought of. It was kind of creepy in a way, and it bothered him quite a bit. After all, it had gotten him into sticky situations such as nearly getting expelled from most of the school he had attended.

Nonetheless, the dog pursued, and today it led him to take a stroll in the Forbidden Forest. For no apparent reason, of course. Jayden shook his head as he continued to walk towards the forest, hearing leaves crunching as he walked past. He spied the gamekeepers hut, with smoke puffing its way out of the chimney. Finally, he reached the Forest itself, and he made sure that his wand was still in his pocket before going inside.

Looking carefully around him for landmarks so he wouldn't get lost, he watched the dark, damp, but also beautiful scenery around him. Even though most people would be creeped out by a random walk in the forest, Jayden doubted that anything would try and harm him. Besides, he was sixteen years old. He should be able to fend for himself after having to fight off Death Eaters for his own survival not long ago. After all, that's why he was here at Hogwarts: Because he had managed to survive in a world that wanted him dead.

Spying someone, or something, through the trees ahead, he stopped abruptly. Brown, dead leaves swirled around him in a haze as they fell off the branches, signaling the beginning of winter. Hearing a twig snap near him, he sighed inwardly. He wasn't exactly a stealthy person, and whatever was in front of him was probably already aware of his presence. Jayden drew his wand and cautiously prodded the branch in front of him, bending it downwards so he could have a clearly look at whatever lied ahead. Still not being able to see what was there, he cautiously took a few steps ahead.

Suddenly, he heard a voice cry out, asking who was there. It was a girls voice, but she sounded much more mature than the majority of the students at Hogwarts. Maybe it was a teacher. If it was, that dog of trouble had led Jayden right into his first detention of the year. Jayden attempted to inwardly kick the dog, but to no avail. Sighing in resignation, he stepped forward some more. Finally seeing the full body of the person, he realized that she wasn't a teacher, nor a student.

This confused him even further, but he stowed his wand and closed the gap between them. Brushing his curly hair slightly with his hand, he murmered, "You don't need to be scared. If I meant to harm you, I doubt I would have been a git and broke the branch." Smiling at her, he held out his hand and said, "I dont think I've seen you around before. May I have the pleasure of learning your name?" Jayden felt that it was necessary to be as polite as possible when you meet people that definitally aren't students, especially in a situation as odd as the one he was in now.

[Bridget Ashford]

Bridget peered through the branches, trying to locate the cause of the noise. She made out a figure through the brush, but the form was too far away for her to recognize. The shadow came closer, closing the gap between them until he was only a few yards away. She cautiously stepped out from behind the tree, her wand ready. She sighed in relief when she realized that the mysterious form was only a student, and not some creature that would enjoy eating her. She slipped her wand back into her pocket, deciding that the boy couldn’t do much harm.

He smiled at her, and from the patch on his robes, Bridget could tell that he was in Ravenclaw. She grinned back suddenly curious on how the house turned out after she had left Hogwarts. He looked like he was in his sixth or seventh year, but she wasn’t too sure. She hadn’t run into any former house members in a long time, and she wasn’t surprised that she didn’t recognize this younger student. He probably was in his first few years while Bridget was in school, and she wasn’t the most popular person around.

“You don’t need to be scared. If I meant to harm you, I doubt I would have been a git and broke the branch.”

She chuckled at his statement. He did have a point, after all. She doubted any Ravenclaw would have been senseless enough to give their position away that easily. He stuck out his hand, asking for her name. She noted that he was very polite for a student. She didn’t know if she would have acted the same at his age to a complete stranger that she had met in the middle of a restricted area. Actually, she probably would have just run for her life at the first glimpse of another life from the fear of getting discovered. The consequence of being caught was a much larger fear than the one for her safety.

She took his hand, shaking gently. “Bridget Ashford, former Ravenclaw. I was just out here needing a change of scenery,” she explained in her thick American accent. That was the one thing that she hadn’t managed to lose from her life before Hogwarts. She had always hated the airplane ride to the states for a dreaded visit to her mother every holiday. Her mother had an exactly opposite personality, which caused confrontation in any conversation that Bridget attempted making with her.

“You’re a little far from the school. What are you doing out here anyways?” She wondered out loud.

[Jayden Hawls]

Ooc: Sorry that I took so long!

Jayden watched her carefully as she took his hand and shook it. She seemed slightly taken aback by his politeness, which was expected: After all, most students aren't this comfortable around complete strangers. Even so, Jayden was still on his guard. He had learnt from his father to be polite even to people he knew meant him harm. It created a smokescreen that often confused people, and helped him ultimately survive. An odd, but workable, strategy.

Jayden didn't have to have been so cautious, however. He could sense that she wasn't a threat when she laughed at his joke. and asked him why he was so far away from the school. He didn't quite now how to answer this, either. It's not like he could explain the little dog of trouble. In fact, it might not even exist. It could just be a figment of his imagination.

Finally getting some inspiration, as Jasmine would have called it, he said, "I just felt like I needed to come out here and get away from all the schoolwork and people. Besides, I've heard stories about the Forest already, and I've only been here three days. So, I figured it must be a pretty intresting place." This was infact true, as his outwardly reason for coming here was out of curiosity: Students didn't fearfully talk about a place if it was dull.

After he heard her explain why she was here, he suddenly realized that she had an accent that he had heard somewhere before. He cocked his head sideways, trying to remember, but the memory wouldn't come back to him. He decided to straight up ask her instead: "Where are you from? I recognized your accent. Are you Canadian or American?" Jayden had travelled to Canada once, as Father had some friends that lived there. He only had a few memories of the place, as it had been when he was very young.

[Bridget Ashford]

OOC: Sorry it took forever, life is hectic....I know the post is short, but I've been suffering from writers block...please forgive me

IC:

Bridget couldn’t help laughing at his response. She had to agree though. A forest filled with mythical creatures that could kill and/or torture you many different ways was definitely interesting. She supposed that the mystery of the forest was enough to spark someone’s curiosity enough to want to explore it. At least, it was enough for her.

"Where are you from? I recognized your accent. Are you Canadian or American?"

Bridget tensed as he mentioned it. She could tell that Jayden was only being friendly, but she had always been sensitive about that. “American, actually…though my mother is British. She moved just after she found out she was pregnant,” she told him, hoping she hadn’t have said too much. Bridget wasn't sure just how good he was at connecting the dots. She doubted that he would be able to figure out her connection to the Black family, but she still had to be careful. She couldn't afford for her secret to be leaked now.

Her childhood in the states was a blur compared to her Hogwarts memories. Her first eleven years had be spent living as a muggle. Bridget still preferred doing some things the muggle way, but overall she had adjusted well to wizard customs. Life was so much easier with magic. She no longer had to worry about trivial things such as cleaning her house by hand. Mops and scrub brushes are so overrated.

So he had only been at Hogwarts for three days? No wonder she didn’t remember him from school. She wondered why he had come to Hogwarts so late. Where did he attend school, if not at Hogwarts? “So you are a new student then? That’s odd… where are you coming from?” she questioned, silently cursing her curiosity for speaking that out loud. It wasn’t any of her business why he was new.