Morning, a little after nine.




The morning sun settled just beyond the tree line, filtering past the topmost edges and dappling the ground below.

The fifth years gathered at the edge of the clearing, milling about beneath the branches. Kitted up in boots and robes sturdier than standard issue, some of them clutched their clipboards close to their chests, anxious, eager and impatient in varying degrees. A few of them held them loosely at their sides, expressions and posture open enough to tell even a distant observer that their minds – and conversations – were on other things.

And then one of them took their clipboard and smacked her classmate with it. Shona stifled a laugh.

“Morrell.”  The Slytherin jerked back. Meeting Shona’s look, she turned a swift bright red.

Beside her, Connor Todd snickered. But Shona’s gaze had already shifted back onto the trees. Something restless – perhaps even hopeful – tugged at her gut.

Mostly, though, she was resigned.

Prior to the kidnappings, she had approached the headmistress with a request to take the children off-site for today’s lesson; since the dementors’ encroachment back in March,[1] neither hide nor hair of the Forbidden Forest’s resident unicorn herd could be find. No matter what form she had taken – be it two legs or four – or who she had asked, every lead had gone cold, producing little else save for the odd, unexpected encounter or remnants of an old establishment.

(One instance had resulted in a single unicorn hair—offered, she suspected, in pity, but unicorns shed so rarely, she’d taken it for the sign of hope it was.)

What had once been a sure answer, had become a delicate, regretful, but otherwise immovable no. After the kidnappings, a grim shadow had been cast on Hogwarts’ ability to protect its students. Privately Shona thought it was rather unfair, since Hogsmeade was not actually within its perimeters and thus did not fall under its jurisdiction of usual safety measures, but it was what it was: disappointing, but not unexpected. In fact, two months was hardly any time at all.

Nevertheless, she was determined to make the best of it. The Forbidden Forest had more than unicorns. So even if they didn’t find one today…

Shona clapped loudly to get their attention. “Alright, you guys. Before we get started—would anyone like to help remind the rest of us some basic facts we should know about unicorns?”

1.	[March 31] Rowan for Raiding, Sage for a Seige

Esther’s face was still red from the reprimand, but her hand shot up like an arrow anyway, whip quick and certain—eager for redemption. “As a whole they are innately magical creatures, and just about every part of them can be a potent ingredient.” Her hand dropped to clutch at her clipboard again. There was a faint, textbook-like quality when she answered, but there was a gleam in her eye that said to all she was ready to rattle off more than a few facts. “The horn – also known alicorn – is used in antidotes for common poisons. The hair is a common wand core.”

The very idea of seeing a unicorn was enough to make the witch’s stomach clench in excitement. She had never quite gotten into horses and similar equine creatures as some peers had (although that did not mean she was without her own winged horses, both winged and not), but even she wasn’t invulnerable to the magnetic charms of unicorns.

Not everyone was as enraptured by them, however, and it was because of this Esther eyed Juni when she thought the other witch wasn’t looking. She had been on edge since breakfast, and it showed. Connor and the other boys were doing what they could to help her relax, but Esther could see that their attempts were having the opposite effect—hence the smacking earlier.

As Shona moved on to other answers, Esther sidled closer. “Juni?” The whisper – while devoid of a proper question – was packed with unspoken concern.

The Forbidden Forest was not Fred’s favorite place.  It’s name said enough: forbidden was bad.  Plus, there were spiders.  Masses of them from what he read, and after the button incident… Fred shuddered everytime he thought he saw something move.  Thankfully, most of the time it was a stray leaf or a a rustling patch of weed-filled grass.  Plus, he’d had enough near death experiences for any human being. 

After the fall and subsequent healing… well, Fred didn’t want to die.  He also ddin’t want to get in the middle of anything and there was a lot of tension in the group.  As much as he had to trust, however, that Professor Donovan knew what she was doing, he tried to stick close by.  Fred trailed the professor only by a few feet, wanting to stay ahead of the pack of students.   

When she asked about unicorns, Fred’s ears perked up.  He remembered the chapter!  Though Esther had the first shot at answering, his hand shot up and he added.  “Unicorn blood can also be used… but they say you’re cursed if you drink it,” he wrinkled his nose, “something about purity, I think?” he looked at Professor Donovan for reassurance.  “And aren't the foals born gold?”   

“And then go silver,” Ambrose added to Fred’s response, “when they’re about two, and then pure white when they’re seven. Like, actual white, not like horses are only ever grey.”

He stubbed the toe of his boot in a relaxed manner as he added his contribution, hands in his pockets, and clipboard between arm and his hip. He’d forgotten to raise his hand. Professor Donovan’s creatures lessons were the little oases in his week. The one subject where he actually soaked information in like a sponge and enjoyed that process. He didn’t give textbook answers like some of his classmates, but he could explain a difficult concept correctly in his vocabulary, and he even showed willing in reading around the subject - at the detriment of several of his other subjects he was disinterested in. Whereas he might ordinarily be intrigued and distracted by the interactions of his classmates on April Fool’s Day, the Gryffindor had barely noticed.

Though his shoulder still smarted from Esther’s censure, Connor raised his hand anyway (though he might as well have been anywhere but class, the gesture being as lazy as it was). “Virginity’s not as big of a thing like Muggles think it is,” he drawled, shoving both hands into his pockets. A grin – his usual grin, the kind that so often made people feel hot or unclean (and sometimes both) – peeked around the corners of a lazy, almost innocent smile. “They still prefer girls, yeah, buuuuuuuut…”

He leaned against Bastian, practically hanging off of the other boy’s shoulder. “The young ones are more…” He glanced away briefly, clucking his tongue in mock-thought. “Chill.”

Juni didn't like horses in any form except fictional. They could stand on two legs like a human and punch you in the face with their hooves. Their eyes were on the sides of their heads. They were made of pure muscle... And their teeth were just plain unholy. A horse could easily kill a person, so the fact that some horses had the added ability of flying was downright terrifying. And then there were unicorns.

A horse with a horn on it's head? Great. Now the bloody thing had a weapon to impale unsuspecting students with. Needless to say, she was not happy about the task set before them. Not happy at all.

"Juni?" Esther whispered with concern.

Arms crossed over her chest and shoulders tense, Juni exhibited body language that pretty much screamed that she wanted to be anywhere else but here.

"Unicorns, Esther." Juni replied through gritted teeth, though her voice carried further than she intended. "Their blood is silver. Silver. If that doesn't scream 'harbinger of doom and terror' then I don't know what does. I. Don't. Know." Why couldn't they be tracking baby alpacas? Hell, she'd rather be poking flobberworms all day instead of this.

Daniel was really going to enjoy this lesson.  He loved tracking and hunting. It had been a favourite pastime of his family and so he was quite good at reading tracks. He wasn't sure if his other classmates shared his enthusiasm especially since the forest had a well earned reputation for danger.

Daniel wasn't exactly ignorant of the forest's many dangers which was why he had taken a few extra precautions earlier. Stashing a few things in his clothes that may come in handy when encountering dangerous magical creatures.

He trailed at the back of the group, keeping his eye out for anything that might try to follow. Daniel figured he would have the best chance of spotting something.  He tried not to get too far behind after all he'd still have to hear the professor if he was going to get better marks.

Ayla was being quiet and observant. She rather liked the class and despite the recent 'quarrel' with some of her fellow classmates she was determined not to let it bother her. She had spent too much time worrying about what others thought about her. She could figure all of that out in her own time. Now was time for learning, listening and performing well. True, she was standing no where near the offending (offended?) parties but that didn't mean anything. Honest. It also gave her a reprieve from whatever the hell Connor was talking about which was always a bonus. She would have been with her fellow Hufflepuffs but she was also kind of sort of avoiding Fred so instead she was closer to the back of the group today.

She liked horses, though she was a much bigger fan of regular non magical horses. They were beautiful and majestic and she loved riding them. Her cousin had taught her once, back when she could still ride. Now the creatures seemed to be too weary of her to let her near them, she had always supposed it was a werewolf thing, though wouldn't that make things hard for Professor Donovan? She'd have to ask Lexus about it sometime.

Dan kept his eye on Ayla, he knew she'd had a bit of trouble with a few other students so it wasn't surprising she was up the back near him. He both hated and loved people being bullied. Hated it because he didn't like seeing people being put down and hurt, emotionally and physically, but on the other hand he got a rush from defending people.

He didn't know her very well but she seemed nice so he was going to try and help her out if anything happened today. Maybe it would keep his mind of his mad cousin Dugan for a while.

Alistair was comfortable around creatures-- it was practically a requirement if you were a Spectre! However, he wasn't usually one to speak up in class; Fred and Ambrose needed all the smart points he could get. Really, it was out of the benevolence of Alistair's heart that he stayed quiet. Other students deserved to be the star for a change. It was a confidence booster, really.

Usually he would have stuck by Fred's side, cracking jokes and being generally magnificent together. But class hadn't really started yet-- in that they werne't actively tracking the unicorn. Esther looked like she was busy comforting Juni, who looked absolutely livid for some reason. He wondered if she and Ambrose were in a fight. That could be some fun drama to listen to.

Ayla, however, was being quiet and probably introspective. With her bright blue hair, it was hard to ignore her. So, the Slytherin made his way over to the Hufflepuff and threw an arm over her shoulder, pulling her into a side-hug. "What's on your mind?" He asked with the sort of arrogant confidence that only a teenage boy could muster. Pssh. He didn't need to focus on the class material yet. Girls his age were more interesting than Professor Donovan, who probably liked other ladies anyway (and was too classy to pursue anyone too much younger than her).

Ayla's cheeks almost instantly turned scarlet, a rather complementary colour to her bright blue hair. There was a comfortable warmth that ran along her shoulder where Alistair's arm was sitting and she instinctively wrapped her own arm around his lower back pressing her hip against his own. On any other given day she would have flawlessly and effortlessly flirted with him after being put in such an 'intimate' position. However she was having a hard time getting past the screaming of 'He Doesn't Hate Me!' going through her head.

He asked what she had been thinking of and a million or more answers tried to untangle her tongue. There was of course the obvious, 'thanks for not hating me', 'I'm sorry for turning you into a squirrel' and 'you looked really cute as a squirrel'. Then there was the not so obvious, never to be spoken, 'I really like this', 'we should do this more often' and 'wanna go make out?' As the responses continued to bubble forth getting more and more ridiculous she finally blurted out the first thing thing that she could get out that she didn't think would cause him or her or both of them to become incredibly uncomfortable.

"Werewolves." She gave a nervous chuckle and wished she could hex herself. Also hoping she hadn't said it too loud, "I was wondering if it's hard for Professor Donovan to work with animals when a lot of them don't like werewolves." Yeah okay that didn't sound any better, "I mean like when a rabbit would get skittish around a fox, or when a deer freezes up. Do you think there are animals that know she's a werewolf and try to get away from her?"

Oh yeah, she definitely should have gone with 'wanna go make out?' instead.   

Shona glowed under Esther’s, Fred’s and Ambrose’s contributions—and outright laughed at Connor’s.

“That’s right,” she grinned, pleased as punch.  “Five points for each of you!”

She wasn’t oblivious to the whispering going on in the back, but given what was actually said – and her own closeness to the students involved – she felt a pang of guilt, rather than annoyance. She’d been aware of the Ravenclaw’s phobia, to a certain extent (it had come up during one of the many conversations that went on at the Hideaway), and she had warned her, but—maybe she should have done more…?

“‘Chill’ is certainly one way to describe it. Young unicorns—adolescents, specifically—don’t care about it like adult unicorns do. They are much more likely to approach so long as their guardians deems it safe. However, there is a grain of truth to the virginity myth.

“As creatures widely considered beings of purity and light, it isn’t your virginity they care about so much as what’s inside you that counts.”  A finger tapped against her chest; lips ticked up into a wry smile.  “Cheesy, I know. But think about it; they’re naturally averse to Dark creatures and beings. That indicates an innate sense of Dark and Light.

“The virgins only myth comes from the old association between virginity and purity. If you were a virgin, then you were considered pure, and vice versa. But as ideas of what constitutes as actual sex–”  Fingers curled into actual scare marks, accompanied by a lopsided grin,  “–reveal themselves to be increasingly plural and diverse, the myth no longer holds the water it once did.”

Deciding to leave it at that and let the kids connect the dots themselves, rather than set herself up for, say, a question regarding her own ability to approach unicorns, Shona took a step down the path and cocked her head. “Shall we?”




They spent the better part of the first hour simply trekking through the forest, occasionally stopping by for a break, or a chance to observe their surroundings. Though Shona knew the chances of encountering the herd were even slimmer with a gaggle of students in tow, she still considered it as good an opportunity as any for a refresher course. If anyone could benefit from one, it was the fifth years—more so, perhaps, than even seventh years, who at least had the option of focusing on select subjects. Fifth years, on the hand, were expected to know the basics in every core class on top of chosen electives.

And so Shona pointed at tree bark and shrubbery, crouched by patches of ground and the odd stool. This one, she said, resting a hand against a young oak, was a mark of territory; another, she told them, had simply been a scratching post. Direction could be determined from broken foliage; dung that resembled clumps of dirt or rocks were old, but sometimes retained hints of past meals. A set of squat, webbed footprints this far inland could only be a mooncalf passing through.

As time wore on, however, she noticed some of the students were beginning to lag behind, or develop the pinched looks of the tired and hungry. Others were more vocal, and demonstrated as such.

“Professor…” Connor whined.  “Please. I’m dyin’.”  He fell to his knees, then hands, quite dramatically.

“Connor,” Esther hissed.  “Get up.”  But she darted a glance at Shona, a twist of guilty agreement.

Shona scratched her neck, lips pursed. They had just taken a break only, what—twenty minutes ago? Not long at all.

They hadn’t found a new sign of anything in a while, though, and she knew it, they knew it, they all knew it. Plus, she had underestimated her own disappointment. Shona heaved a sigh.  “Fine. I’ll scout ahead. You guys… stay here.”

Connor sprang to his feet, instantly revived—and cheering.  “WARDS,” Shona barked.  “We are still in the Forbidden Forest, guys!”

Wands drawn, she showed them how to cast the spell, and then other ways of concealing sound and scent. Once she was assured that no one would be mauled, dragged away, or eaten in her absence, Shona turned into a wolf and bounded away. It was still only ten in the morning; anything capable or liable to eat pesky fifth years wouldn’t be up until five. At least.

Ambrose visibly glowed at the Professor’s declaration that he had won five points for Gryffindor. His chin lifted and he stood a little straighter. These incentives and rewards made Professor Donovan’s class extra worth it. He was more than keen to pursue her into the forest, clipboard in hand.

Their class progressed through the forest for what became an increasingly long time. Ambrose was trying to get a bearing on their direction in proximity to the castle and the lake, without using a four-point spell but it was tricky when the sun was obscured by the trees, as was the distant view.

He did his best to pay attention to their surroundings, content to walk miles if it meant doing something practical and explore than write an essay or wave his wand. Most of the time Ambrose’s gaze was glued upwards and about them, glancing down to avoid tripping over roots or crushing flora.

Occasionally he’d engage in a little discussion with classmates as the group order organically rearranged in the breaks. When they whined, like Connor was always prone, Ambrose rolled his eyes and tried to ignore him. He sighed in frustration as the Professor bounded off ahead of them, leaving them grounded for a bit.

“If you’re dying, Connor,” Ambrose suggested with lopsided grin, in one of his bolder moments, meaning it as a joke than any threat, “perhaps you should stay outside of the wards,” he thumbed away from the group, “and let something show you mercy and make it quick.”