Briallen Bevin and the Snatcher's Cave

Chapter 24: The North Wood

The tall oaks, elms and evergreens of the north wood stretched high in the sky and covered the ground of the forest thickly, leaving hardly any space unfilled aside from a few clearings here and there. Not far off from the north wood's wall was a large rock formation sticking out of a large hill and at the base, a small opening that was the mouth of the cave. Briallen, Marisol and Toby hovered above the clearing in front of the cave.

"We should hurry up and land," said Toby, worried, as he glanced nervously back at the castle which was not that far away. "Somebody might see us from one of the windows."

"We have to make sure it's safe first!" Marisol explained, circling around above the clearing.

"There's nothing and nobody there! I'm landing." It had been some time since Briallen was last on a broom and she tried to remember the correct landing procedure that Miss Winsome had taught the previous semester, but all she could remember from that day in the courtyard was an ugly rat that kept staring at her from underneath the statue of Sarosh the Blind. Briallen crossed her fingers and aimed her broom for the ground. It shot downwards and before Briallen knew it, she was on her back in the grass, the broomstick on the ground a few feet from her. Toby and Marisol landed next to Briallen in a way that graceful in comparison.

"I love watching you land," said Marisol with a laugh that quickly turned into a scream. "Centaur! Centaur!" Marisol screamed again and pointed to a patch of trees behind Briallen.

Toby quickly helped Briallen to her feet and the two of them pulled out their wands and stared at the trees, expecting a confrontation. When nothing happened, Briallen lowered her wand and scowled at Marisol. "There's nothing there! You're just being paranoid. Now, let's go look around the cave already."

From its place within the trees, the centaur watched the three children walk into the cave, their wand-light growing dimmer as they went further in.

"Should we tell them? They are only children," said a tall black centaur.

"No... Oberon says that all the children at the school believe there are monsters in these woods. These children wander here knowing the risk. We need to go now; the herd is expecting us," commanded a noble white and red painted centaur.

Marisol and Toby followed Briallen as she went further into the cave, all of them holding out their wands and looking for anything out of the ordinary. The wall of the cave were made of the same yellow-brown stone of the castle, but the floor of the cave was a dry, packed dirt with an occasional lonely weed. Boulders of all sizes were spaced sporadically throughout the cave, becoming more prevalent the deeper they went.

"Oh! Look here!" said Marisol with a giggle. "GW and DM, forever! And it's written inside a heart! How sweet!"

Toby shook his head, grabbed Marisol's hand and yanked her forward. "We already know that students used to come here to make out, okay? We're looking for something helpful. Clues, right, Briallen?"

"Toby, you're a boy and I'm a girl... we think different things are cool," Marisol explained, miffed. There were more writings and drawings on the wall, most of them hearts with names or initials, but some of the musings were of the rude sort typically found in bathroom stalls, and Marisol kept trying to stop and get a closer look at all of them.

Briallen shushed her bickering friends. "I hear something," she whispered as she pointed her lit wand to a passage that turned off to the right.

"BEVIN! ESCUDERO! DAVIS!" shouted a shrill voice from behind them. All three kids screamed and pointed their wands at the person who had shouted at them.

"Miss Winsome?" asked Briallen, her heart racing and her head pounding. She had thought they had been captured by the snatcher at first, though, in her opinion, Miss Winsome was little better. Thankfully, not seen the cruel flying instructor for most of the spring since outdoor activities had been canceled for most of the semester, and so the wrath held between them seemed to have dissipated greatly.

"I saw something in the sky over here while in my office, and decided to have a look. Honestly, I'm not surprised that it's you three out here, judging by your detention records. Though, how you got here, Bevin, is beyond me, seeing how you can barely operate a broomstick."

"I have gotten a lot better since then, no thanks to you," said Briallen with sass, her hands on her hips.

Miss Winsome narrowed her eyes. "Well, I doubt you'll get the chance to continue improving what little skill you have as I plan on doing everything within my power to have all three of you expelled. Not only have you broken at least a dozen school rules today but you've managed to put yourselves in quite a lot of danger as well!"

"There's nothing dangerous in these woods! Mr Eldred said so himself and he should know since he's been here for about a million years!" argued Briallen.

"Oh, but there's danger now. You see, there's a special alignment of the stars occurring sometime soon, and so there is a large meeting of centaurs from all over the eastern seaboard meeting in this very wood - today!"

"I knew I saw a centaur!" said Marisol haughtily as she poked Toby in the shoulder. "I told you! I told you!

"Shut up, Escudero! All of you come with me right now!"

Miss Winsome stepped aside and pointed to the mouth of the cave, glaring sternly at Marisol, Toby and Briallen as they walked past her. Once they were in the clearing, Miss Winsome had them mount their brooms and then she led them back to the school.

* * *

"I understand," said Cal Bevin as he leaned back in his desk chair and nodded. Miss Winsome demanded he return to the school immediately but he didn't seem too upset at having been forced to leave his meeting early. "However, I think expulsion is too strong of a punishment for their misconduct. They are only first years, after all." He looked over the three young students standing before him and shook his head. "I would like to speak to them alone, Mara. If you don't mind."

Miss Winsome was visibly shaking with anger. She had apparently expected Dean Bevin to expel Briallen, Marisol and Toby as soon as she had brought them to his office. Still, she bit her tongue and did as Dean Bevin wished and left them alone in his office.

"Briallen Bevin, Marisol Escudero, and Toby Davis... I am... Well, I'm sure you all know how incredibly disappointed I am with all of you. You have all been doing so well lately, getting into hardly any trouble at all."

"Grandpa, we are really, really, really sorry. It's just that Professor Ananasi said- "

"Professor Ananasi?" Dean Bevin closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "I will have a word with her later. Right now, however, each of your respective head of house is on their way here to assign whatever punishment they feel is worthy of such a blatant disregard for school rules. I'm especially disappointed with you, Briallen. After our conversation this morning, I thought you understood me and that we'd come to an agreement. Now, I want you all to promise me you will never, ever, go into that part of the north wood again, and trust me when I say that the north wood wall is there for a very good reason."

"I promise," said Briallen, Marisol and Toby in unison.

"Good. That part of the wood is used for many reasons, by many creatures. Mr Eldred may not find it very dangerous, but he is an old wizard who knows protective magic very well, and knows that forest like the back of his hand. You three, however, are only first years. You do not have the necessary skills to protect yourselves should you come upon something dangerous, and none of you are at all familiar with the north wood. You could just as easily get lost as become the prey of some wild animal."

"Like werewolves?" asked Toby.

Dean Bevin showed the slightest hint of a smile. "Perhaps."

There was then a short knock on the door before it opened and the Professors Morra and Alembic entered.

"Good afternoon, Dean Bevin," said Professor Alembic politely. Then she noticed Marisol standing next to his desk and her jaw tensed. "I take it we are not here for tea as I had hoped?"

"I'm afraid not, Freya. It seems that these three have once again found their way into a spot of trouble, only this time they chose the cave in the north wood as the location for their rule-breaking."

Professor Alembic's eyes widened. "The north wood... I understand, Dean Bevin. I'll assign the appropriate punishment - as soon as I can think of it. Marisol, come with me, please."

Marisol apprehensively followed Professor Alembic out of Dean Bevin's office and didn't even look back at Briallen and Toby to say goodbye. Briallen knew her friend would be angry with her for getting them into trouble again. Professor Morra was still glaring at Toby and Briallen, both of whom were more annoyed by getting caught than worried.

"And as for you two," said Professor Morra threateningly. "I've already come up with the perfect detention for the both of you... I just wish it were colder outside so that the full weight of your misconduct could sink in."

"What do I have to clean this time?" asked Briallen, sounding slightly irked.

"Clean? Oh, no, Ms Bevin, that is something those students who break minor rules do. I have something very special in mind for you and Mr Davis." Professor Morra turned to Cal Bevin. "Should I have them serve it today or tomorrow?"

"How long will it take?" asked Cal as he glanced at the clock on his desk. He wanted to talk with Briallen alone, and he knew that could take some time.

"A few hours, maybe more. Really, however long Mr Eldred feels it will take."

"Have them serve it tomorrow, then. They can be confined to their rooms for now and should get their homework out of the way first."

"Very well, Dean Bevin. Let's go, you two."

"I'd like Briallen to stay for a moment. She and I need to have a word."

Professor Morra nodded and, with her hand on Toby's shoulder, guided him out of Cal's office. Before, Briallen hadn't been so worried about being caught, mostly just annoyed. She had served numerous mind-numbing and disgusting sorts of detentions, and felt that nothing could phase her anymore; what she was angry about was that their trip to the north wood's cave had been for nothing, and she had found no clue that would help them locate the kidnapped children. Now, however, she realized how serious of trouble she was in, when her grandfather asked her to stay behind for a 'word,' which was his way of saying he wanted to scold and lecture her. He was beyond the point of using his disappointment-voice.

"You lied to me earlier," he said slowly. He wasn't a screamer or a shouter. He had the sort of elocutionary skill that would make most parents feel inadequate because he was able to, without resorting to yelling, scare the living daylight out of any child. He did this by speaking slowly and in almost a whisper, in a way that told the child he was so angry that just screaming at them could not properly express his anger. And this was how he was now speaking to Briallen.

"I don't know what you mean," said Briallen, trying to sound as innocent as possible.

"You've never so blatantly lied to me before. And I can't think, for the life of me, why you would start to do so now. Whose fault is it? Mine? Your parents? Your friends? Television?"

"No - what? I didn't mean-" began Briallen in an effort to explain herself.

"It's not one person's fault. I know you are a good kid, Briallen. You're parents always say so and there are professors here who just adore you," said Cal. He could see Briallen was about to cry and it made him hesitate. She was his only grandchild, and even though they had never been as close as he would have liked them to be in the past, he had hoped that with her coming to Bergamot that that could change. He softened his tone slightly. "Briallen, I need you to trust me. When I ask you to do something, I need you to do it because you should know that I always, always, have your very best interest at heart. Do you really want me to treat you better than everybody else? Give you special privileges just because you're my granddaughter?"

Briallen shook her head, remembering the mean things all the wizarding papers had written about her grandfather on the subject of favoritism.

"Of course you wouldn't. Because you are strong-willed and independent, and you like to earn things on your own merit - I know this of you and admire you for it. And I know that is also why you have not done as I asked to stop trying to find the missing students."

"You don't understand, grandpa..." said Briallen. She wanted badly to explain everything to him but she didn't know where to begin.

"I don't want to hear it," said Cal, putting up a hand. "I don't even want to know. Nothing I say will deter you from something you're determined to do it, however, I only ask that you be cautious and take into consideration not only your own safety, but that of your good friends. What if something horrible had happened to Marisol or Toby? I'm sure they weren't as eager to enter the north wood as you were. If you pushed them into danger, would you forgive yourself for their injuries?"

"Probably not."

"Definitely not. Please be careful and don't just rush into things. It's important to remain cautious; caution affords you a much better chance at survival in the long run." Cal Bevin paused and examined Briallen carefully. His words had definitely sunk in. She sat in one of the overstuffed chairs in front of his desk, looking dejected. He knew he didn't have to say anything else on the matter. "Will you stay and have lunch with me?"

"Okay," mumbled Briallen.

"Are you really interested in trying out for Quodpot eventually?" asked Cal, trying to change the subject to something happier.

"I don't know... Benjamin did offer to help me practice this summer. But I was kind of mean to him this morning and I'm not sure he'll want to help me anymore after what I said to him."

"He's a good lad, and I'm sure he'll forgive you."

"I don't know if I want to try-out anymore anyways. Not with Conall as the captain. His standards are too high," whined Briallen. She was feeling better already, just having a normal conversation with her grandfather. "I don't want to have to practice and train and stuff all the time."

"I think the discipline of a sport would be beneficial to improving your general character. And I'd love to be able to invite your parents to a game and have them see you play. It'd show them how involved you are and how well you've adjusted."

"It'd show them how much I suck at flying," said Briallen, with a grin.

Cal chuckled. "Well, there's no shame in sitting on the bench. You'd still be a part of a team, and Meda wouldn't be so concerned about the fact that in Quodpot the ball explodes."

"Oh, yeah, there's that too," laughed Briallen. "Alright, alright, you've convinced me. I'll tell Benjamin I'm sorry after the game... which I can go to tonight, right?"

"No. You are still in trouble, young lady."

Briallen groaned and dropped her head in her hands.

* * *

She stood by the side of the lake, her hand just above her eyes to keep the early-morning sun from blinding her. Briallen was glad it was hot out again that day, as she and Toby were both in their swimsuits. She figured that even if their detention wasn't in the lake, she'd have taken advantage of the warm weather to go swimming anyway. Toby stood next to her, slightly hunched over, his eyes closed. Briallen wondered briefly if her friend had fallen asleep again. She decided to smack him in the stomach as a wake-up call. Toby's head shot up and he looked around wildly, as if he had just realized he was standing by the lake. Briallen laughed merrily.

"Stop messing around, kiddies," commanded a deep, scratchy voice from behind them. Mr Eldred walked around in front of them and handed each of them a short, wide, dagger. "Alright, then. We've been having some problems with overgrown weeds and other plant life catching up the hippocampi, and I'm getting sick and tired of having to cut them out so you both're just gonna trim up the plants down there, got it?"

Toby stared at the old man as if he were crazy. "What? You want us to go to the bottom of the lake? The lake where you said there was an infestation of Grindylows?"

"Oh, calm down, sonny! That was last winter. The only thing you gotta worry about down there is those Plimpys. Annoying little bastards. But you'll both have your wands and if they start tuggin' at you, you just give 'em a lil' zap and they'll go away."

"What are Plimpys?"

"They look like little green beach balls with two webbed feet. You'll know 'em when you see 'em. Actually, if you want to get rid of one for good, just tie its legs in a knot above its head. It won't come back until it gets 'em untied, which should take a couple of hours."

"And how are we supposed to breath down there?" asked Briallen as she glanced at the lake. She seriously doubted that Mr Eldred had scuba diving equipment stashed in his office.

"Oh, right, completely forgot about that." Mr Eldred pulled his wand out of his jacket pocket and then tapped both Briallen's and Toby's head. Instantly, plastic bubbles appeared around their heads, yet somehow they could still breathe. "Now get down there. I'm not sure how long it'll take yous but those head bubbles don't last no longer than three hours."

Briallen and Toby looked at each other, frowning, before hesitantly walking to the lake shore. The water was now warm under the summer sun, unlike it had been when Briallen last felt it after falling into the lake just before winter break, but it was still a little slimy.

The hours didn't pass fast enough for Briallen. The water was clear a few feet down from the surface, but the bottom of the lake was more than thirty feet deep where they were working. Briallen had to dig her feet into the sandy bottom to keep from rising, and had to light her wand so she could see the underwater weeds she had to cut. It was a time-consuming, tedious, process and not once did she see one hippocampus or Plimpy, no matter how little she moved. She and Toby weren't even close to being finished when their breathing bubbles started to shrink, and they both only just made it to the surface before the bubbles disappeared entirely.

Mr Eldred sat on the beach, nearly fifty feet away, doing something with a strange, silver threaded net. "Have yerselves a lunch break!" he shouted to them, not lifting his eyes from his work on the net.

Toby and Briallen swam to the beach, thankful for the break. They both realized that neither of them had thought to bring towels to dry themselves with as they splashed their way onto the beach. From the knees down they were covered in the dirty brown sand of the beach, and the whole body had a thin, though invisible, layer of slime that had already dried in some parts to a gray crust. Neither cared, however, as their stomachs rumbled with hunger. Carelessly, they traipsed into the entrance hall and to the dining hall, tracking sand and slime where they walked.

"What have you two been doing all morning?" Hayden Van Vlerah asked as Briallen and Toby, damp and dirty, sat down at the Withers table for a late breakfast.

"We had the trim the plants at the bottom of the lake for our detention," mumbled Toby, bitter and cold and now wishing he had remembered his fluffy beach towel.

Hayden left the Wenlock table to sit down next to Briallen. He pulled a strand of long green grass out of her hair, and smiled. "What'd you do to get detention?"

"We went into the cave in the north wood looking for... well, it doesn't matter, but it was a mistake. We were caught by Miss Winsome, who, of course, wanted to expel us all," Briallen explained before taking a very long drink of orange juice. She smacked her lips as she put the cup back on the table and began to load her plated with a healthy helping of buttermilk biscuits and white gravy.

"You're kidding," said Hayden, wide-eyed. "Were you wearing the talisman I gave you at Christmas?"

"Yes, not that there was anything there anyway," said Briallen, brushing off how dangerous their adventure had really been. She had quickly learned that Hayden was the sort of person who fretted over everything and she didn't want him trying to baby her for the rest of the day.

"Not true! Miss Winsome said there's a bunch of centaurs in the north wood right now, and your grandpa said that there's always a bunch of creatures in there, and he practically confirmed the werewolves!" reminded Toby, out of breath by the time he had finished. "It was fun at the time but I don't think we should have gone in."

Hayden wore a look of genuine concern but it wasn't for Toby - he never took his eyes off of Briallen. "I'm glad you wear my talisman. It protected you. If you hadn't..."

"Whatever my grandpa or Miss Winsome says, I don't believe it's as dangerous as they make it out to be. And if we just take a few precautions next time... There's something else going on there, alright? I saw something in the back of the cave, just before Miss Winsome caught us, I know it."

"What'd you see?" asked Toby.

"I'm not really sure. It looked like a sweater, maybe - and it was bronze and purple."

"Withers colors..." mumbled Toby, understanding what that meant if Briallen really saw what she said she did.

Lucan Stone, quiet and sitting by not far from Briallen and her friends, discreetly listened in on their conversation. The others didn't notice his presence.

"What does that mean?" asked Hayden. He put his arm around Briallen but she was too busy eating her biscuits to push him away.

"That we weren't the first kids to sneak into the north wood..." said Toby slowly. He wasn't sure how much to reveal but because he didn't really like Hayden, he wasn't going to reveal much anyway. It wasn't personal; he thought Hayden was nice enough, if a little annoying at times, but he didn't like how Marisol was always talking about good-looking he was and how Briallen was always complaining about how he was always trying to hold her hand or hug her.

"Oh... hey, Briallen, are you free for the rest of the day?" Hayden asked, completely ignoring Toby.

"Mr Eldred said we have to come back and finish when we're done eating... and have waited a half hour," explained Briallen. She had added the last part herself, out of habit, from hearing her mother say it repeatedly every summer since she had learned to swim.

Hayden looked disappointed. "Well, at least now you know better than to sneak into the north wood!"

Toby snorted but Hayden didn't notice. Lucan stood up from the Platt table and quietly left, a look of determination in his eyes. He had the same courage to muster as Briallen - the courage to speak to her, and continue the investigation they had originally started together last fall. But he had something to offer her, something she couldn't refuse.