Innocent Exploration Finished

Kendra took some careful steps towards the cold black water. She struggled to make out what was lying underneath the surface leaning a bit forward. She could definitely see something moving in there, or maybe it was just the water moving around that tricked her eyes. She stood upstrait and sighed, she wasn't going to find out what it was that was calling her under the water today. But maybe one day... 

She glanced around her. This place was really something. She began walking along the edge. Just a small slip and the deep cold water was there, waiting for her. Danger made her feel powerful although it was not a feeling she fully understood yet. She walked for a good five minutes admiring the dangerous beauty that was spreading out in front of her. It was a few hours before sunset. The sky was clear except for a few clouds that were beginning to obtain a pink-peach color as the sun would soon begin fading in the distance. She ought to go back inside, it was getting late for students to wander around. She was an expert at following rules.

 As she neared the Forbidden Forest she stopped walking and felt goosebumps all over her body as she watched the soft wind ruffle the leaves and send some of them flying in the distance. She walked a little further towards the once again dangerous scenery that was lying ahead. Among the green and blue and black her eyes caught glimpse of another color. Red, red hair, a girl, heading towards the woods. She froze. The girl was on her way to certain death. Death... Her eyes opened wide as she took a deep breath "Hey!!" she called, heart beating fast. "Stop!" 

"Hey!! Stop!" A high pitched voice called out behind Alice, making her freeze. She cocked her head and looked around, surprised to see a girl about her size heading towards her. She had enviously smooth, dark hair that flowed gracefully behind her as she walked. Despite her graceful walk, however, her eyes were wide with fear, something that perplexed Alice. 

"Oh, hello!" She said cheerily, giving a small wave. "I was just about to have a quick look around. Something about this forest seems so... well, intriguing, I guess, doesn't it?" She smiled again, but the girl still looked fearful. As she got closer Alice could see her better. A slender figure, with light eyes and flushed cheeks. She looked cold, despite what Alice thought was a pleasant breeze, and only a few meters behind her the lake glistened with the setting sun. 

What a beautiful scene Alice thought, as the girl finally got up to her.

(OOC: sorry if i got the eye color wrong, I couldn't see it super well in the pic you have) 

Kendra blinked multiple times looking at the girl while her heart beat slowly went back to normal. The girl was absolutely right, now that she was closer to the forest she felt it too. It was yet another call, similar to that from the lake. She felt relieved that the girl hadn't had the chance to enter these dark woods and even felt a little proud of herself for stepping in at the right moment. "You can't go in there! It's dangerous...and forbidden." she said lowering her gaze. She thought she might have overreacted making herself look like a fool. But something inside her was telling her this forest should not be visited especially not by young girls and especially not alone. "I am sorry if I startled you." she said looking back up straight into the girl's dark eyes. This girl looked like no other girl Kendra had met before. She instantly became fascinated by her curly red hair and the beautiful freckles that spread all over her face. She reminded her of sunshine, and warmth and all sorts of beautiful things that Kendra was definitely not accustomed to. "My name is Kendra." she said with a small smile on her lips. 

Alice frowned as the girl told her the forest was dangerous. It simply didn't feel dangerous, and besides, plenty of people went in and came back out again just fine. Still, she didn't argue but gave a slight shrug of her shoulders, letting the matter drop from her mind. 

"Nice to meet ya, Kendra. I'm Alice." She said, turning away from the forest. "Gosh, it's getting dark, we'd better crack on if we want to make it in time. Wanna walk back with me?" 

Kendra admired the girl's bravery. She would like to come back here again with her. Maybe she would be willing enough to endulge in danger one day. "Yeah let's go." she said with a smile on her lips. They began walking away and as the distance between them and the dark woods grew, she felt   "Maybe we can come back one day." she said voicing her thoughts from earlier and taking one last look back before continuing her way back to the castle alongside Alice. "I haven't seen you in the castle before, in which house are you?" she asked curiously. She was certain now she could never judge someone just by the way they looked. 

Alice and Kendra walked back to the castle side by side. She was still in awe of the place, how wonderful it all was. Already she was thinking about other places to explore, when Kendra spoke again.  
"I'd love to come back someday. Maybe we could explore the grounds some more first and see if the forest still seems so scary. And I'm in Ravenclaw, what about you?" They were nearing the castle now, but Alice was finding that she rather liked Kendra. She was different from the girls she had met so far. Kind, certainly, but a little more reserved. She felt like they would get along well, and hoped that maybe they had classes together, although she was certain they weren't in the same house. Just thinking about Ravenclaw left Alice weary. She didn't want to climb the long stairs all the way to the dormitory again, but it was inevitable. Maybe she'd get used to it, though. She shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts as Kendra spoke again. 

"I am in Slytherin" she said hoping that wouldn't disappoint the girl in any way. 

Her feeling towards her house were not negative nor positive. A few of her housemated had pointed out facts that made her begin realising the traits of a Slytherin and trying to find them within herself. As for the other houses she wasn't able to identify them or tell differences between them but it was too early for that to happen in any case.  She had realised that some people saw Slytherin as the "black sheep" of Hogwarts. She didn't really mind but she wouldn't want it to affect her relationship with anyone.  

Alice seemed to share Kendra's curiosity and that could have numerous outcomes some of those not so pleasant. Kendra had already barely escaped getting caught with a book from the Restricted Section. Now the Forbidden Forest? The thought grew larger and larger in her mind. Her instincts were telling her no but something else drew her in. 

"We could try practicing some spells, you know, for defense. If we want to go back there we should be prepared." she said confidently. 

"Slytherin?" said Alice, sounding pleased. "My Mum was in slytherin, she loved it. Said that it gets a bad rep as a house. She expected me or my sisters to get into slytherin, but my sisters are in hufflepuff and gryfindor. My little brother might get into slytherin but I think he'll be in hufflepuff myself" She said this all in a bit of a rush, as if eager to not show prejudice towards any one house. Kendra seemed pleased and started talking about plans for exploring the forest a little more. 

"That'd be great!" Alice said, mulling over the idea. "How about tomorrow we meet in the library, after classes are over, and start looking up some spells? Then we can practice them together! And maybe we should go to dueling club too, although, I'm really not much of a fighter if I can help it." 

"Wow you have a lot of siblings!" Kendra pointed out as Alice spoke about her family.  She had two brothers herself but she would rather never talk about them. 

Kendra's eyes sparked as she listened to Alice's invitation for practicing spells. She didn't really use her wand, except when she really had to in lessons and such. It could be tricky for her but something about the thought of being able to defend herself in a dangerous place like the Forbidden Forest made her very confident about it. She knew she was only a first year but she was positive she would try her best. Her new friend definitely helped her thoughts develop in such a way. Something about Alice made her craving adventure. She had never been the adventurous type, not by choice, rather by force. Her parents never really supported her going anywhere further from the gardens. She had missed that freedom up until now, so she was determined to make the most of it. 

"Great! So meet you in the library tomorrow after class? I think I have seen a couple of books that could help us out. " she said smiling brightly.

They had a plan and it seemed they would do anything it would take to carry it out.