You Bug Me, Shut Up. Finished

[font=big caslon]Wren breathed in the brisk air as she stepped out of the castle and onto the grounds. It was snowing lightly, but the flecks of snow in her hair were the least of her concerns. Her mind had been on the scroll for days, despite the fact that it had been shoved under her bed. No matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't get the word, "Adwa.", out of her head. Every spare moment in the library when she finished studying was spent looking for the definition of the phrase. But so far, she hadn't found anything.

"Sorry, I... Dipper." Wren recognized the voice of Paisley as she stumbled forward. Wren quickly hid the scroll she was clutching in her jacket, but she didn't think she was quick enough. Deciding it wasn't worth the effort to hide it, she pulled it back out and let her arm lay on her side, the scroll in plain view.

"Needles." she said tersely, "What are you doing out here? It's getting dark. Shouldn't you be in bed?" She considered just leaving her by the door and heading out to the forest to look for the crystal, but memories of what happened the night they found the scroll stopped her. The small truce they'd made while they worked on finding the crystals was already bugging her, even though it had only been a few days. She didn't like having to force herself to be nice to someone that she didn't like.

Suppressing a sigh, she said, "I'm going to go look for the first crystal. I think it might be out here on the grounds. Do you want to come or not?"[/font]

@Wren Windgazer

"I'm just walking. Thinking about tests. You know, being normal. I like to do that, sometimes. Also, I'm enjoying my freedom. Actually, it's none of " said Paisley, feeling her neck prickle with sweat. This was too close for comfort. Dipper could absolutely not know about Paisley's condition. It would overcomplicate and ruin everything that they had. We don't have anything. No friendship, no nothing. Just a truce. Paisley reminded herself. So, if you tell her, there's nothing to ruin. Paisley continued to argue with herself as Dipper continued to speak.

At the thought of actually doing something about the scroll, Paisley nodded. The feeling that she needed to get to the shrieking shack tugged at the back of her mind, but she ignored it. This was more important. She still had time.

She straightened up. "I'll come with you. I have a little bit of time before...before..." she thought quickly, her head spinning. "Before I'm going to meet up with Akari. You know, I have actual friends, unlike you." the words slipped out of her mouth before she could stop them. That always seemed to happen with Dipper. All of the kind words she had been taught to say vanished, and were replaced with insults. She always felt bad, but knew that in a few moments, Wren would retort with something even worse.

The two of them continued walking until they came to the tree where they found the scroll. "Wow," said Paisley, looking up. She couldn't see the top of the tree. "It's tall." she turned to Wren, impressed. "You climbed up that tree."

[font=big caslon]Wren barely heard Paisley as she talked about being normal. It didn't bother her and even if it did she wouldn't give the Gryffindor the satisfaction of seeing it get to her.

"I'll come with you. I have a little bit of time before...before..." Paisley started, having finally moved away from her old thoughts, but she trailed off. That's odd. The girl must have had something distract her, but there was nothing off or unusual in sight.

"Before...?" asked Wren, trying to get the girl to finish her sentence.

"Before I'm going to meet up with Akari. You know, I have actual friends, unlike you." said Paisley, snapping out of her thoughts. Wren glared at her, forcing herself not to give a nasty retort. They had to work together on this or they would never figure it out.

"Fine. Keep up." said Wren, starting off for the tree that they had found the scroll. This time her wand was safety in her pocket, ready to be used if Paisley decided to take it from her again. They walked in silence, the only sound was that of their shoes on the freshly fallen snow.

"Wow, it's tall. You climbed up that tree." said Paisley as they reached the tree.

"Of course I did." Wren replied, making sure everything was secure in her pocket before climbing up onto the branch where she had found the scroll. A little snow had collected on the branch and she pushed it away before moving closer to the hollow in the trunk. It had filled with leaves, but even after she cleared them away it didn't seem like anything was there.[/font]

@Wren Windgazer

Paisley watched as Wren climbed the tree. It was getting dark, and she pulled out her wand, liking that she was able to use it well. "Lumos," she muttered, and started looking around the roots of the tree for anything shiny that looked like a crystal. The snow sparkled, tricking her eyes. She would plunge her hand into cold snow, thinking it was one of the gems. "That's cold," she said. She wasn't wearing good gloves; she hadn't been planning on digging through the snow on her way to the shrieking shack.

Dipper and Paisley had decided that the shapes on the scroll were crystals. From what they could make out, if they found all the crystals and arranged them in a circle, something would happen. A strange message sat in the center of the diagram that neither of them could decode.

"Is there anything up there?" Paisley called after awhile, getting down on her hands and knees. She dug through the lightly blanket of snow, pointing her wand in every crevice, but she found nothing. It seemed as if she were just getting herself cold and went. "There doesn't seem to be anything down here." she concluded at last. "Maybe we should look somewhere else. Besides, it's getting dark. I should probably..." she trailed off, her eye catching something red. "Wren! I think I saw it!" she said, looking back up to the top of the tree. "I don't know where, but I think it's up there. Here," she shined her light as high as she could reach, trying to illuminate the darkening sky for her housemate.

[font=big caslon]The sound of something rustling through snow could be heard from up in the tree as Paisley started to look for the crystal. Even with her wand lit, the girl didn't seem to be having much luck. "Darn it." Wren muttered in Parselmouth as she continued to dig out the leaves. It didn't look like there was anything in there, but she had to keep trying. It was getting darker now, making it harder to see. If they didn't find it now they would have to look for it tomorrow, and Wren really didn't want to do that.

"There doesn't seem to be anything down here. Maybe we should look somewhere else. Besides, it's getting dark. I should probably..." Paisley trailed off. Wren started to look even harder as a small flash of red caught her eye, "Wren! I think I saw it! I don't know where, but I think it's up there. Here,"

"You don't say." Wren hissed under her breath as the girl held up her illuminated wand. By now almost all the leaves had been taken out, and she couldn't resist the urge to drop a couple onto Paisley's head.

"I think I got it!" she said at last, reaching into the hollow once again and pulling out a small, red crystal. It was about the size of her hand, with smooth edges and a sharp tip. Holding it in one hand, she climbed skillfully back down the tree and dropped back down next to Paisley.[/font]

@Wren Windgazer

"We got it!" After Wren was down the tree, Paisley gave her a huge hug. squeezing her ribs as tightly as she could. They were had found one of the crystals! "We did it!" she then immediately realized what she was doing, and let go, coughing awkwardly. She muttered something to herself, tried to kick the snow, and ended up falling on her bottom.
"Well, now I'm just embarrassing myself," she said sarcastically, standing up and dusting herself off. She stood there for a few moments, glancing around. She felt a pang of pain across her chest, and her eyes opened wide. She clutched her stomach, her mind whirling. She couldn't transform here! she had to get to the shack! "I have to go,"

Her legs were practically carrying her above the wind. She felt as if she were flying as she ran. She had to get away from Wren. She couldn't know. If Wren knew, it would all be over. Just a little faster! She urged herself, fear driving her. At last a tearing pain made her stop short, but Wren was no where in sight. She felt herself transform. She could see the shrieking shack in the distance. Just a little further. She passed over the last hill, huffing and puffing. At last she made it to the shack. She dove inside, roaring angrily. This will never happen again. she vowed furiously.

[font=big caslon]"We got it!" Wren stood ridged as Paisley pulled her into a hug. It always amazed her at how strong the Gryffindor was, but that only made the situation more awkward, "Well, now I'm just embarrassing myself." Through the slowly darkening sky, she could just make out Paisley's slightly redden face as she let go. Wren took a hurried step backwards as she was released. The crystal was still clamped in her hand, and she quickly turned her attention to it. There was nothing new about it, yet still she continued to look. Is she okay? She thought, glancing up slightly as Paisley grunted rather loudly. She was bent over, clutching her stomach and swaying on her feet.

"I have to go." yelled Paisley. Her voice was twinged with pain as she ran away, not even waiting for a response.

"Hey, what are you doing?" asked Wren, starting after her but the girl wouldn't stop. She kept going, running faster than she had seen her do. What is she doing? Wren stopped running and watched Paisley go. She wasn't heading to the castle nor deeper into the forest. By now she was stumbling and practically falling over as she went along the grassy grounds.

"The shrieking shack?" she muttered, snapping her head up to the sky. The moon was full. Without thinking she ran towards the castle as fast as she could. She didn't want to risk it if Paisley didn't make it. Werewolves were not to be underestimated.[/font]