Albert had already quietly left that foul-smelling area. Since he had never intended to stay and help from the beginning, there was naturally no reason for him to remain there and get in the way.
On his way to the Forbidden Forest, he noticed wizards gathering at Hogwarts in sporadic groups.
The latest newspaper headlines had probably already spread.
But what were those people coming to Hogwarts for? To claim bodies?
Or... to look for their children? The latter seemed more likely.
After all, the final battle had broken out at Hogwarts. Having finally received news that the war was over, the parents were naturally eager to confirm that their children were safe.
That was only human nature.
Unfortunately, they had arrived too early. The students had yet to be transferred back.
Hogwarts was littered with corpses at the moment, and that could easily cast a terrible psychological shadow over young children.
The pile of bodies at the Oak Door, in particular, would surely give those "unruly" family members a hard lesson in the horrors of war.
By the time he finished considering it, Albert had reached the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Just as he was about to look around for Hagrid, he heard a sound. Fang came charging toward him, wildly wagging his tail as he circled Albert.
Albert crouched down and patted Fang on the head. Following the direction the dog had come from, he easily found Hagrid sitting with the Centaurs. Firenze, the Divination Professor, was there as well, and had clearly been accepted back into his former Centaur herd.
"Albert!"
Hagrid had noticed Fang's behavior too. When he turned and saw Albert walking over, he looked rather surprised, clearly not expecting Albert to come looking for him at this time.
"Albert Anderson."
Compared with Hagrid's