Basil felt a little blindsided by Lissington’s grin then, feeling the full force of its dazzle practically blind him. He averted his gaze quickly, unable to do much else. Luckily the red-head seized that exact moment to grab him by the sleeve and tug him in the direction of the entrance. Basil nodded as he understood the intention behind Lissington’s exam. It made sense, really; his puzzle-box did much the same thing, forcing students to build upon previous years’ experience. Basil wasn’t sure what Defense Against the Dark Arts lessons he still had rattling around in his transfiguration-centric brain, but he’d give it a shot. (This certainly wasn’t a chance to redeem himself after being blasted in the face and failing to be on the defense from Poppy, nope. Certainly not.) Grinning at Lissing’s quip, Basil pulled out his wand and brandished it like a sword. “I shall!” he declared. Basil wasn’t so terribly confident he could prove to Lissington why he’d done so well; the reality of the matter was that he just studied harder, and had a knack for remembering things. But Basil Foxwood was not one to shirk from a challenge. Instead, he tugged off his overcoat, tossing it onto the grass, and rolled up the white shirt sleeves underneath. Then, he followed Lissington into the abyss.
It was pitch darkness as Basil stepped into the maze and the shock of it hit him like a slap. It was cooler in here too, making the brunette wish he hadn’t actually taken off his overcoat. Too late now, he supposed. The entrance closed up to the hedge as soon as he’d passed over it and Basil frowned. Muttering a quick ‘lumos’ he illuminated his wand and peered about. Lissington’s face appeared just beside him then and Basil started violently. “Blast!” He sucked in a breath as the expletive escaped him. “Don’t do that!” He hissed. Not that it was Lissington’s fault. What had he expected the other to do other than stand around in the darkness? This was his challenge after all. Straightening his waistcoat, Basil moved past the other professor and began to walk cautiously along the hedge line to their right. He figured he might as well just follow it until they came to a fork or a turn.