A Shallow Grave

Chapter 12

Sebastian and I had stolen two of the school brooms so that we could travel to the North Ford Bog.

The journey took us about forty-five minutes, only losing our way a couple of times. Sebastian's sense of direction when travelling via broomstick was questionable, to put it mildly. He wasn't very good at turning round bends and corners and almost fell about twelve times in the space of ten minutes.

When we reached the Bog, the air around us became cold. Mist surrounded the damp, swamp-like area so much that it was hard to see anything. I could make out the distant shape of trees and rocks but that was about it.

"Okay," Sebastian said confidently, pulling out the map from the Undercroft that he had packed in his own bag, "I've heard people say that the camp is located towards the centre of the Bog."

He looked up and down, from the map to the road ahead, covered in fog. We left our brooms underneath a large rocky cavern so that they were hidden from any passers-by. I gripped onto the strap of my satchel. I was still feeling very uneasy about this plan. What if the camp didn't have any information about the magic that the goblins were wielding? What if we had made this journey and faced potential death for absolutely no reason?

I replayed these question over and over again in my mind as I walked alongside Sebastian, heading for the central area of the Bog. He seemed completely aloof as he rambled on about finally being able to find a way to heal Anne, and how grateful he was that I had agreed to help him. He sounded so calm. I asked myself how he could possibly be so cool despite the situation we found ourselves in. We didn't know anything about this camp or the goblins on the inside. It would have been smarter to just survey the place, take notes on potential entrance and exit points, how many goblins were situated there and then come back at a later date. But I was willing to agree to do this for him, completely without a plan and putting myself in almost guaranteed danger. I mean, he was one of my closest friends and despite our past arguments, we always seemed to come back together as if nothing had ever happened. Like there was an invisible string that constantly pulled us towards each other.

But this is still a bad idea.

"There! It's there!"

I was pulled from my thoughts and snapped back into reality as I heard Sebastian whispering voice quietly call out. I squinted to see a small light in the distance. We moved closer, scanning the area as we slowly approached, just to make sure that there were no stray goblin scouts wondering around. We ducked behind a large dark spruce tree about twenty metres from the camp. It was much easier to make out the rough shape of it, circular and barricaded all around with large wooden spikes dug into the wet grass. A clever defensive tactic. Inside, there were a few small tents, dark blue and red canopies hung, propped up by shining metal poles. I studied the camp intensely, trying to take in as much information as I could just by looking around. The deep mist did not help.

Sebastian opened his bag and stuffed the map deep within in and began rooting around. I could hear the rattling of glass as he pulled two potion bottles out and held one out to me. I took it a shook the bottle. The Invisibility potions.

"You're lucky I brewed two in Sharp's class." he was smirking, obviously proud with himself.

I rolled my eyes and pulled the cork from the top of the bottle.

"You're lucky I agreed to do this at all." I whispered, before placing the cold glass against my lips and drank the contents.

I saw the silly smirk fade from his mouth as he scoffed and swallowed his own potion.

Luckily, Sebastian wasn't as bad at potions as he was at flying. The potion worked instantly, camouflaging Sebastian and I. We blended seamlessly into our surroundings.