Dumbledore stepped forward and patted Bing Huan on the shoulder reassuringly. "Don't worry, my boy. If this works, I'll have a reason to add the points back. Gryffindor will still win the House Cup. Now, off you go. Your little girlfriend probably needs your comfort."
Bing Huan reluctantly took the note. He was increasingly convinced that Dumbledore was a capitalist who exploited the workforce. Meanwhile, the four kids were on their way to Hagrid's, with Filch leading them.
"It's a shame they've done away with the old-fashioned punishments. They used to hang you by your wrists from the ceiling for days at a time. I've still got those chains in my office. I ought to oil them up—might come in handy someday." Filch led the way with his lamp, grinning wickedly as he tried to frighten them.
"If you miss it so much, I can hang you up right now." Bing Huan appeared and blocked their path. Filch glanced sideways at him. "Another student out after curfew. What a haul I've had tonight! Just wait until I—"
Bing Huan jumped up and shoved Dumbledore's note into Filch's mouth. "Next time, think before you bark. You can leave now." Filch pulled out the note and, after confirming Dumbledore's handwriting, glared bitterly at Bing Huan. "You'd better hope I never get my hands on you."
After Filch left, Hermione rushed over with tears in her voice. "Huan, we're in trouble. Professor McGonagall took 150 points from us. What are we going to do?" Draco popped up beside her. "And my fifty points!" Harry immediately pulled him back down.
Bing Huan patted the young witch's head and comforted her. "It's okay. At least we lost points for doing something good that we weren't supposed to do, right? If points can be taken away, they can be earned back. I promise I'll help you win this year's House Cup. All right?"
"...And next year's, too." Hermione wiped away her tears and stepped out of Bing Huan's arms. She gave the three boys behind Harry a kindly look, hoping they'd keep quiet. Yes, very kindly.
They brought the others to Hagrid's Hut, where Hagrid was still blaming himself for getting them into trouble and costing them points. Harry and Ron had to reassure him that it wasn't his fault. Before long, they had reached the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Draco looked uneasy. "Do we really have to go in? I heard there are Werewolves in there."
Hagrid looked apologetically at Draco. "I'm sorry, but there's no choice. We have to go in. So, to stay safe, you all need to stick close to me or Fang. Don't leave the path, and the creatures in the forest won't hurt you."
A pool of silvery-white liquid shimmered on the ground nearby in the moonlight. "See that?" Hagrid pointed to it. "That's Unicorn Blood. We have to find the poor thing and make sure it isn't hurt again. Now, we'll have to split up."
"Then I want Fang." Draco felt safer with the big black dog and his enormous teeth. "All right, but I should warn you, he's a coward. So, Ron, Hermione, and I will take one path, and Little Huan, Draco, and Harry will take the other. Let's go."
Bing Huan waved his arm at Hermione, letting her know that he'd come running if there was any danger. Then he led the others through the pitch-dark forest. As they walked, Draco kept muttering, "If my father finds out I'm doing this at school..."
"You're scared, aren't you, Draco?"
"I'm not scared, Potter."
Whoosh—a slithering sound came from nearby. "Did you hear that, Potter?"
Hissss...
Now all three of them had heard it. They continued onward, until they saw something white gleaming on the ground. It was a dead unicorn. They'd arrived too late.
The unicorn's long, slender legs were frozen in the position it had fallen. Under the moonlight, it looked beautiful and tragic. Harry was about to approach when a sudden, searing pain shot through the scar on his forehead. A hooded figure emerged from the shadows beside the unicorn.
It was shaped like a person, yet crawled slowly along the ground like a snake as it advanced on them. Harry's head hurt more and more until he could barely remain standing. Bing Huan drew Crimson Trail and slashed his palm. Blue flames immediately rose from the bloodstained blade.
"Blazing Flame!"
The flames on the blade surged toward the monster with his slash, setting anything they touched alight. Just then, the sound of hooves trotting came from behind them. A figure leaped over Harry's head and pounced at the monster. It was a centaur, with platinum-blond hair and the body of an Abraxan.
"My name is Firenze." The centaur turned to them after driving the monster away. "Harry Potter, you must return to Hagrid at once. The Forbidden Forest is too dangerous for you right now." Firenze led the three of them back to Hagrid, then nodded to Bing Huan before leaving.
"Good luck, Harry Potter."
Back in the common room, Harry paced back and forth. Hermione and Ron's eyes widened as they listened to his story.
"Snape is helping Voldemort get the Philosopher's Stone... and Voldemort is waiting in the Forbidden Forest. We thought Snape just wanted to get rich with the Stone."
"So now I'm supposed to wait for Snape to steal the Philosopher's Stone," Harry said, sounding almost hysterical. "Then Voldemort will come here and kill me. Great."
Though she was frightened too, Hermione still tried to reassure him. "Calm down, Harry. Even the Dark Lord has someone he's afraid of, and that's Dumbledore. As long as Dumbledore is here, the Dark Lord won't be able to hurt a hair on your head."
Bing Huan stepped forward and patted Harry on the shoulder. "That's right. Don't worry. Like Hermione said, Dumbledore alone is enough to make Voldemort afraid. And besides, in this school, we have two and a half people with Dumbledore's kind of power. Even I managed to drive him off just now, didn't I?"
Bing Huan lit some calming incense for them, and soon the exhaustion from their fright caught up with them. Before they parted ways, Hermione couldn't help asking, "That other one and a half..."
Harry and Ron looked over too. "Actually, think about it. Isn't there a white-haired old man at school who wears a suit, does nothing all day, and never teaches?"
"Who's that?"
"Someone around Dumbledore's age, famous at the same time, and at Hogwarts but unable to teach. Who else could it be?"
"Gasp!" Hermione sucked in a sharp breath. "Gellert Grindelwald... He even tutored me on my Dark Arts Defense homework."
Back in the dormitory, they were about to turn in when Harry's voice came from behind them. "How does that count as half?"
"Um... as a import?" O_o
"..."
The time for exams had arrived. The weather had never been so stifling, and the common room and dungeons were sweltering. Only the area around Bing Huan felt as cool as if the air conditioning were on.
"I've never liked a boy so much before." Ron sprawled in the spot beside Bing Huan.
Bing Huan and Hermione: (・Д・)
Draco frowned at Ron. "So you're into that? I'll have to keep my distance from you, Weasley." Harry said nothing. He still seemed worried about whether he'd pass his exams, but quietly sat as far from Ron as possible.
Ron: "What's wrong with me?" (‧_‧?)
"Is your scar hurting again, Harry?" Hermione asked when she saw him clutching it. Ever since they'd returned from the Forbidden Forest, Harry's scar had been demanding attention.
"You should get Madam Pomfrey to look at it, Potter. If you keep this up, even if Gryffindor wins at Quidditch, I won't feel like I really beat you."
Harry rolled his eyes at him. "Please. I could still beat you right now."
"Hmph. Damn Potter."
"I don't think it's an illness. It's a warning. A warning that danger is coming."
As they headed back to the common room, they saw Hagrid standing outside his hut, playing a flute. Harry seemed to realize something. "Oh no! Snape might already know how to get past Fluffy."
"Hagrid wouldn't tell him. He's got a loose tongue, but he always catches himself before he gives away anything important," Ron said.
"What if they were talking about Fantastic Beasts?" Bing Huan asked from the side.
"Exactly!" Harry started toward Hagrid. "Don't you think it's strange? Hagrid's always wanted a dragon, and then he just happened to meet someone with one at a pub. Dragons are extremely rare even among illegal breeders, yet Hagrid just happened to find one."
When they reached Hagrid, Harry didn't wait for him to finish saying hello. "Hagrid, do you remember what happened the day you won Norbert?"
Hagrid stroked his beard as he recalled. "The bloke had a hood on, and I never saw his face, not even at the end. He asked if I was a gamekeeper, and I told him which animals I'd looked after. I said I'd always wanted a dragon, and he said he happened to have one,
but he needed to know if I could look after a dragon. I told him I could handle Fluffy."
"Was he interested in Fluffy?" Harry's heart was in his throat, but he did his best to ask calmly.
"Of course! I told him the most important thing with a beast like that is knowing how to calm it down. With Fluffy, all you have to do is..."
"Damn it!" Before Hagrid could finish, Harry ran toward the school building. Hagrid seemed to realize what he'd almost done. "That was close! I nearly let it slip."
The other four: "..."
They hurried to Professor McGonagall's office. "Professor McGonagall!"
Professor McGonagall stopped writing and looked at the five of them. "What is it? Miss Granger, I've just finished marking your exam. You did well."
"That doesn't matter, Professor McGonagall. We need to see Professor Dumbledore," Harry interrupted.
"Professor Dumbledore received an urgent message from the Ministry of Magic. He left Hogwarts ten minutes ago."
"At a time like this?!" Harry grew even more anxious. "Professor McGonagall, someone is going after the Philosopher's Stone!" Their catlike Head of House could never have imagined it would be about this.
She looked sternly at Harry. "Professor Dumbledore will be back tomorrow. I don't know how you found out about the Philosopher's Stone, but please rest assured that it's being closely guarded. Now, don't tell anyone. Go outside and enjoy the sunshine."
Before you continue