russian roulette ∙ isis

If she wanted to go foraging in bushes and trudging through the dirt, Hazel would have signed up for hiking. In her head, taking science classes had meant that they would be reading science books, solving scientific equations, or occasionally practicing experiments using equipment and ingredients that had been provided to them – like in Potions class. This little expedition they were on had not been a part of the plan. She glowered.

The professor had put them in pairs, and though Hazel was already seated beside Sienna, they had different partners. Their teacher wanted to encourage inter-school relations, to aid them in learning about other cultures. Hazel, however, believed the professor’s main goal was to see how annoyed he could make her in one day. She held little interest in today’s challenges. And, furthermore, due to her annoyance at being separated from her best friend, she held little interest in her partner. Currently, Hazel was lagging behind another second year from America, Isis Arceneaux, a perpetual optimist with admittedly great hair. Hazel made a mental note to ask her which potions she used on it later.

Isis seemed to be approaching this event enthusiastically. Hazel watched as she flounced from tree to bush without even batting an eyelash, gathering different specimens. She supposed that it wasn’t entirely bad, since it meant she could avoid that part. Whenever Isis would find something, Hazel would cross-reference with a photo in the book to ensure they’d retrieved the right thing. Every so often, she huffed and made a comment about she didn’t know camp offered Herbology – really, wasn’t that all this was? Once they had enough different plant samples, Hazel insisted that they pause to go over everything one more time. Herbology had never been her strong suit – who could blame her with all that dirt and mud? It also didn’t help that the plants they dealt with were disgusting semi-creatures rather than pretty flowers – and the activity being reminiscent of the class made her feel wary.

By the time they were done, they realised they were missing one important sample. The other groups around them had dwindled, but she felt comfortable enough with the amount of people left to chance going a little further into the greenery. Big mistake. Hazel followed Isis, book in arm, stepping around mud and rocks that looked a little too mossy, features twisted in a disapproving scowl. A creature cawed above and Hazel ducked, then scoffed, irritated. “I despise this,” she said during their trek, skittering to the side when a bug crawled past then. “Ugh!”

Isis had run ahead and managed to find the sample, but when they turned around, there was no one else behind them… and two diverting paths. Hazel nearly dropped her book.

“Oh no!” she cried. “Which one is the right one?”

Isis loved the way things turned out sometimes. One of her 'free choice' activities (meaning one where she hadn't been able to make up her mind and had stuck a quill into the page and signed up for whatever it landed on) had been science class, and she had felt her heart sink a little. Expecting to turn up to a long session of sitting at a desk learning complicated formulas or mixing even more complicated potions that, unlike the ones they learned about at school didn't even do anything magical, she had been thrilled to learn that part of the class would be collecting their own botanical samples.

Yes! They would basically be going outside on a hike, stopping to pick up whatever they needed on the way! Even more interesting was the professor's decision to split them into pairs from different schools. Isis thought the way the Hogwarts kids all stuck together like glue was cute and funny, but it did make it more difficult to make friends with them, when they all knew each other so well already. She secretly hoped she would be paired with the nice Trudy or maybe the boy who had known about the toadstools, but neither of them seemed to be in this session.

Instead, she ended up with a girl several inches shorter than herself who seemed totally unimpressed by what she'd signed up to. Isis had introduced herself cheerfully, but gotten the distinct impression that Hazel So would rather not be her partner...or better still, not be taking this class at all. Still, it could be worse, because Hazel didn't seem to want to do anything except read the identification guide and mutter about how this wasn't what she'd been expecting. Isis had ignored the complaints, because it meant that she got to collect everything and not stand around waiting, and had patiently fetched a second sample of yellow moss when her first one had been rejected for “not being the same shade as the picture”.

They were just about done by now, only one red leaf left to find that looked an awful lot like the other red leaf they'd found early on. “Shall we try in there?” she asked, pointing through the undergrowth where there seemed to be a clearing with several reddish trees, and then led the way. A twig got caught in her hair and she paused to get it out, not noticing the muttering behind her as she found what they were looking for. “I think I've got it!” she exclaimed, running back the way they had come and holding out the leaf to Hazel for approval :What..?”

Then her eyes widened in surprise. Somehow they'd got themselves turned around and were staring at two possible paths. “It's okay. Just stay quiet and listen...” she said, straining her ears for the sound of voices. But there was only the sound of birds, and something that might have been a babbling stream off in the distance. Her heart began pounding faster, but she knew that they couldn't be lost, not really. The others would be close by, they just had to stay calm and find them.

“Do you hear anything?” she asked, already certain what the answer would be “Shall we try the right path? It looks like folks have walked on it recently, so if we run, we'll probably catch up with them...” she took a tentative step onto the unknown route, and then began leading the way, secretly hoping Hazel would have a better idea and turn out to know where they were. 

Just stay quiet and listen.

Hazel shot her associate an indignant look, but did as told, paying close attention to the surrounding sounds for more reasons than one; not only did they need to find the group, but all the talk of hidebehinds during their campfire made her feel like she had to stay alert. Although Hazel believed herself to be a talented witch, she unfortunately wasn’t sure if she could scare away the creatures if they appeared. Defence Against the Dark Arts was one of her weaker classes; she loathed fighting, it was beneath her, and she preferred not to have an encounter with a ghastly beast if she could help it. The only need for the class, she thought, was if she wanted to go into a field that required it, and she would never do something as brutish as becoming an Auror. She knew the pursuit of Minister would put a target on her back, but that’s what bodyguards were for. She gave Isis a sidelong glance, wondering what the curriculum of Ilvermorny was like.

“I don’t hear anything, no,” Hazel responded after a beat, noting only the warbling of birds and the rustling of leaves. She sighed loudly, following Isis’ gaze to the footpath. Shallow steps indented the dirt. “I supposed that’s the most logical one to follow,” she agreed, smoothing down her shirt. Isis had already begun walking, so Hazel followed warily behind, keeping her ears open for any foreign noises. “Great deal of fun this has been,” she murmured sarcastically. “They bring us out here to frolic through the dirt and then leave us behind.” She used a hand to give a branch that stuck out in front of her a small shove, grimacing as she stepped aside. As they trudged deeper in, Hazel surveyed their surroundings in disapproval.

The more they walked, the more an uncertain feeling tugged at her. A low gurgle could be heard in the distance. Hazel paused. “Are you sure we’re going the right way?” she questioned.

Truth be told, Isis wasn't particularly worried. The area here wasn't so different from the Ilvermorny grounds so she it was easy to imagine she was safe. Really, she did feel that way, and was confident that any minute now they were going to round a corner and find the tail end of the larger group. Besides, they were following a clear set of footprints, so someone had definitely come this way recently.

"Oh, I think it's been fun" she replied, hoping Hazel would cheer up soon. Isis didn't understand why anyone would be feeling annoyed - they'd completed the task, now they were going back and there were sure to be pitchers of lemonade and cookies before the next activity. She could really enjoy a tall glass of fresh lemonade right about now... "Did you want to carry the ID guide? We might be able to find better samples..." she held it out as she spoke, thinking the other girl might be appeased by her offer. Isis often stopped and wondered about the plants and bugs around her, so it seemed reasonable that someone else would want to do the same. Though now she thought of it, her companion didn't seem like the sort of person who would enjoy a bug hunt...

Her next words brought Isis up short. "Sure! Of course we're..." she trailed off, heartrate increasing as she looked down and realised that there were no longer any footprints on the path in front of them. She bit her lip and looked at Hazel, then back down at the ground. "I thought..." They'd gone the wrong way. She'd been so sure, and they'd gone the wrong way. "I guess I messed up" she admitted "We'd better go back and try the other path. That's sure to be the right one" She didn't sound quite so confident now, and as she turned around she became aware of an unfamiliar sound. This time when she looked at her companion there was the beginning of fear in her eyes.

"Just a forest sound. Probably a bird" she assured Hazel - and herself.

At least it wasn’t nighttime. Had they been stuck in the forest trying to find their way back in the dark, her heart would have been racing far more erratically. It was easy to keep her wits about her with the sun overhead. When Isis stopped to offer her the I.D. guide Hazel’s eyebrow quirked, her arms akimbo, until she peeled them from her waist and held her hands out to accept it.

Now, she remained fixed at the mouth of the pathway, uncertain. She was grateful to have the book just because it gave her something to cling to. Hazel held it close to her chest, eyeing their surroundings with caution. “Do you take a fighting class at your school?” She voiced her earlier conjecture, hoping that at least one of them would have to skills to protect against a hidebehind. Hazel tried to go through a list of defensive spells they had learned in her brain; if she couldn’t conjure offensive magic, at least she could shield them from an attack. This seemed reasonable in her head and she was proud of herself for rationalising before another sound unmasked her fear.

“And you’re sure about that?” She challenged Isis’ assurance, looking upwards for the mysterious bird. “Maybe we do need to take the other path.” Hazel turned on her heels and started walking. She was not about to be eaten by some forest creature – she refused to go down before she’d even had the chance to make prefect.

Honestly, Isis was surprised when the other girl accepted the field guide. She'd been expecting a refusal, perhaps a claim that she'd already memorised the list or didn't want to touch it in case a bug had landed on it, but she said nothing, though her own mouth dropped open for a moment in surprise at the next question.

Her mind went blank. A fighting class? "Well, we do defense against the dark arts, and defense against no-maj hysteria..." The first was a core class, the second something she knew her brother had studied and excelled in, but other than that... "There's a martial magic class, but its not in my schedule...I take shadow magic, though, that's kind of useful for fighting..." even as she spoke, she knew that creating something to snuff out the light was the absolute last thing either of them wanted, but maybe if Hazel didn't actually ask what the class involved, she would feel reassured. For Isis knew exactly why the question had been asked. Now they were alone, with no other students in earshot and possibly travelling in the wrong direction, every sound felt strange and potentially threatening.

"There's the adventure cadets. I was going to join next year. I figured if I did all the outdoors stuff here they'd have to let me in" she added, still trying to sound cheerful and keep their minds off where they were "How about at Hogwarts? What kind of stuff do you learn there?" she asked, anxious to keep the conversation going as Hazel turned back to find the other path. With a nervous glance over her shoulder Isis followed, continuing to chatter about her lessons and quite forgetting to look for a fork in the path which she walked straight past, or indeed, listen out for signs of anyone else.