catch me if you can! (serafina/open)

[Autumn Rathjen]

The Whomping Willow had always been one of Autumn's worst enemies, what with its brutality and overall cruelty. For years it had tormented students and staff alike, much to the Gryffindor's dismay. The only positive thing to come from this monster was the fact that without it, she wouldn't know her dear friends, Jessica Thompson or Cory Benson. But that surely had to be the only good thing that the Whomping Willow had ever provided, right? Well, unless you include pain and suffering a positive thing, but that just made you a Slytherin, or something. (Heh, love you guys!) In an attempt to bring joy and happiness back to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the Gryffindor decided to put her own life on the line to try and protect those around her. That's just how she worked. Now did she actually think this through more than once? Of course not! Because that wouldn't make her a Gryffindor. Most don't take the time to give things a second glance, and Autumn was one of them.

Armed with nothing but a helmet and her ever-trusty wand, the Gryffindor set off toward the Whomping Willow with the utmost pride and determination. She smirked as she crossed the Lawns, thinking about how sweet victory was going to feel against her ruthless opponent. When she reached the tree, Autumn decided to make the first safe call throughout her entire endeavor. Maybe standing a few feet away from the thing wouldn't be such a bad idea... After all, it could get a cheap shot easier if she was all up in it's face, and cheap shots were for weenies. "Alas, you stupid hunk of bark!" The girl called, her head raised in confidence. "I beseech thee! I, The Noble Redwood, have come for a battle! A battle where I shall prevail!” Did she know the meaning of most of the words spewing out of her mouth? Not really, but she had a feeling those were fighting words!

But as soon as the 'stupid hunk of bark' started swinging its branches, the Gryffindor suddenly had a nagging feeling that maybe, just maybe this wasn't one of her best ideas. She gulped nervously and gripped onto her wand, struggling to find a spell to protect herself. Before she knew it, Autumn had wasted too much time and had the Willow using almost any method to try and get to her. With a bit of hesitation, the girl yelled the first spell that came to her mind. ”Rictusepmra!” She watched in disappointment as her tickling charm had absolutely no effect on the Whomping Willow. “Ah, son of a batch of coo-“ She tried yelling in frustration, only to be knocked into the air and hitting the ground. Well, one thing was for sure. That was going to leave a mark!

[Professor Serafina Butail]

Serafina, as was pretty normal for her or it was at least most recently, was lurking in and around the Forbidden Forest yet again. She'd meandered her way through the trees and ended up somewhere near the whomping willow, she could hear the soft swaying of its branches with her wicked strength hearing that wasn't the simple rustling of leaves in the wind. That tree was always a bit iffy, yes so it was clever and interesting certainly but it had one hell of a nasty streak.

Making a mental note to avoid in Sera was about to turn in another direction and veer away from getting caught by the tree when she heard a rather familiar voice echo out from somewhere near the willow. Creeping through the thick brush of the forest Sera hid around the edge of the trees and peered out towards the monsterous swaying willow and the absolutely tiny in comparrison figure of Autumn.

What on earth was the girl doing? Sera wondered looking curiously at the helmet she was wearing and the way she was brandishing her wand at the tree. The words that came out of her mouth however almost caused Sera to double up with laughter, oh the knightly jargon she was coming out with and the knave she had come to vanquish was a tree? Well couldn't say she didn't have your typical Gryffindors courage, but not the careful planning smarts that would come with a Slytherin. Some would call it plotting, Sera just liked to think of it as covering all of your angles.

Creeping closer Sera made sure to stay hidden within the trees and, clearing her throat, she put on a theatical deep voice. "Ha such brave fighting words little Gryffindor, do you really expect to best me? The mightiest tree in this here forest?"

Apparantely Autumn did as she cast a tickling charm at the bark. Sera shook her head of all the things she could have chosen and it was the tickling charm that came to her lips, surely that would simply make the tree writhe and sway even more. "Foolish girl your spells cannot penetrate my armour like bark." Sera intoned once again still trying to hold back the laughter.

That was until she saw Autumn sent flying by one particularly vicious swing of the trees whip-like branches. She watched carefully, hoping that she wouldn't have to run out to the resuce seeing as taking on the whole white knight role really didn't suit her, however Autumn seemed to be okay, must be that stubborn Gryffindor determination. And so Sera began again with her 'tree voice' "Be gone small child and leave me be, I would not want to have to squash you where you stand!"

[Autumn Rathjen]

So, maybe Autumn was a little dinged up from the stupid Willow's cheap shot. Maybe she was a hell of a lot shorter than the dumb tree that just tried to smack her into oblivion because it was a cheater. But that didn't mean that she was going to give up! The Gryffindor wasn't going to quit until she was victorious. Or, you know, until she was knocked unconscious and rushed to the Hospital Wing. Autumn moaned in a quiet tone as she sat up, her back in an immense amount of pain already, but there was no way in hell that she was going to let that mean old tree notice that. Picking her wand off the ground (and moaning once more because of her injured back), the girl prepared to strike once more.

Just as Autumn prepared to attack for a second time, her eyes widened and her jaw dropped when she heard a loud, manly-sounding voice coming from the tree's direction. She glared at the hunk of bark as all of the words coming out of it started to sink in. The fact that she let it finish without interrupting it was amazing on her part. "Yeah? Well, guess what?! I'M NOT SCARED OF YOU, YOU DUMB TREE." Maybe throwing threats his way was another of her not-so-great ideas of the day, but she didn't care anymore. The Whomping Willow, like Autumn herself, could talk the talk, but could it walk the walk? Probably, yeah, seeing as it's huge as hell. But did that discourage the little Gryffindor ball of energy? Of course not!

Once again spitting out the first thing that came to mind, the Gryffindor yelled, "Incarcerous!" She smirked triumphantly as ropes flew from the tip of her wand and wrapped harshly around the stupid tree that nearly killed her (give or take a few details), but her face fell when the tree broke free of them almost immediately. "WHY WON'T YOU STAY STILL?!" Autumn yelled, frustrated. Thankfully, she saw the tree try and swing back at her once more and lunged out of the way in a tuck-and-roll manner.

(Sorry it took so long. >_<)

[Professor Serafina Butail]

Serafina watched in almost dismay as Autumn picked herself up off of the ground and seemed not at all willing to give up the fight with the tree. Though it was rather classic Gryffindor behaviour really wasn't it? Endless amounts of courage but not really all that much common sense to go along with it. Still she looked well enough, not gravely injured or anything so Sera saw no reason why she couldn't continue with her little charade for a bit longer and not feel guitly about it.

It was funny how the tree talking to her seemed to do little to sway nor surprise Autumn away from the task in hand, there was that good old Gryffindor determination again Sera supposed, and the girl continued to talk back but had significantly lost her cavalier dictionary along the way. Maybe the bump on the ground had knocked it out of her. Sera however would continue in the same manner, after all the tree had not been phased at all by the tickling charm.

"We shall see who is the one to cower when all this is done!" Sera called out in as deep as as booming a voice as she could muster. Before another spell flew from Autumns lips. Serafina had to give it to her it was certainly a better idea than the first one had been, trying to tie the tree up could work in theory but in practice the ropes were just far too weedy to hold the massive branches steady. The whipping of them began again with some fury and Sera had to skitter out of the way to avoid being slashed with one of them herself. She found another tree to hide behind and hoped that Autumn hadn't noticed her moving.

"Hah, such feeble ropes will not bind my mightly branches." Sera called out, "Try again little Gryffindor if you still think you can best me." The tree reached out as if to hit her rather badly but thankfully Sera saw Autumn dive out of the way with pretty decent reflexes, she really didn't fancy a trip to the hospital wing and having to explain how she'd been egging the girl on.