Forbidden Forest

"Solitary confinement?"

In Professor McGonagall's office, Kyle said innocently, "But Professor McGonagall, we only sold some things; we didn't violate any school rules, did we?"

"This is what the principal requested."

Professor McGonagall said sternly, "He thinks you should be spending your time reading or practicing your wand gestures to prepare for the exam, rather than focusing your energy on other things."

"Well... okay, I understand."

Kyle sighed and didn't argue anymore.

So what if he's locked up? As long as we don't make him give a refund, everything's negotiable.

After leaving Professor McGonagall's office, the six of them exchanged glances and sighed.

"Take it easy, guys."

Fred and George, who had extensive experience with confinement, were the first to return to normal.

Fred said with a smile, "At least Professor McGonagall didn't make us refund the money or deduct any points from our score, which is already quite remarkable."

"Yeah," George said, patting Cedric on the shoulder, "And for you guys, experiencing what it's like to be locked up isn't bad."

"Merlin's beard," Fred said with an exaggerated expression. "George, I've just realized that everyone here is a good student except for the two of us."

"Yes, Fred, compared to them, we who are often locked up do feel a bit out of place."

George squeezed out two tears and said, "They won't look down on us, will they?"

"Why don't we hurry back and study while there's still time?"

"I'll try to get as many 'O's' as possible in the final exams."

"That's too difficult, let's go with 'e'."

The two of them spoke in a back-and-forth, accompanied by exaggerated expressions, which quickly made everyone else laugh.

Kyle laughed and said, "Thanks, but you're overthinking it."

"Yeah," Cedric shrugged. "If I could get a hundred Galleon for every time I was put in solitary confinement, I guarantee I'd show up in front of Filch every night."

Qiu and Kanna nodded in agreement.

Yes, that's right.

"Uh-huh..."

As Cedric said, in the face of one hundred Galleon, confinement doesn't seem so unbearable.

"So what just now..." Fred's expression froze for a moment, then he said angrily, "Well, you guys actually dared to play me!"

Kyle shook his head and said, "Don't say that, I'm just a little slow to react."

That was true; he never imagined that Dumbledore would put them in solitary confinement for such a trivial matter.

This isn't like him at all.

After walking down the corridor where Professor McGonagall's office was located, the group parted ways and returned to their respective colleges.

Then, at dinner that evening, they received a note from Professor McGonagall.

Your confinement begins at 11 p. m. tonight. Find Mr. Filch in the Entrance Hall.

--Professor McGonagall.

"When were you put in solitary confinement?!"

Mikel, standing nearby, frowned and said, "Could it be that Professor McGonagall put the note in the wrong place?"

In his view, Kyle was the kind of student who would never break school rules, let alone be put in solitary confinement... How could that be possible?

Kyle calmly put away the note and said, "No mistake, it's definitely mine."

"This..." Mikel thought for a moment, then said uncertainly, "Could it be that you got caught going out at night... but wasn't that during the Easter holiday?"

Because of the tight deadline, Kyle was always busy until midnight on the last two days of the Easter holiday before returning to his dorm.

Mikel and Ryan both knew about this.

Kyle neither admitted nor denied it, but simply patted him on the shoulder earnestly and said, "So, you guys absolutely mustn't go out at night anymore, even on holidays."

Mikel and Ryan both shook their heads, seemingly having gained a new understanding of Hogwarts ' school rules.

That's way too strict.

At 11 p. m. that night, Kyle, Cedric, and Kanna arrived at the Entrance Hall, where Filch was already waiting, along with the Weasley brothers and Cho.

"Come with me," Filch said, lighting a lamp and leading them outside.

"I think you should think twice before breaking school rules again, right?"

He glanced sideways at the crowd and said, "But I believe that hard work and suffering are the best teachers. It's a shame they abolished those old-fashioned methods of punishment... hanging you by the wrists and suspending you from the ceiling for days..."

Filch's sinister voice made Qiu and Kanna turn pale with fright, and even Cedric nervously swallowed.

However, Fred and George's expressions didn't change at all; they even turned around and made faces at the others when Filch wasn't looking.

They hear this kind of talk every few days; they're practically sick of it.

"Arrive."

After walking for a while, they stopped in front of a door. Filch took out his key, opened the door, and said, "Go in. You're responsible for cleaning the Trophy Room."

I really don't understand what Professor McGonagall was thinking, making so many people clean the Trophy Room... This punishment is way too lenient."

Upon hearing that it was just cleaning the Trophy Room, Qiu and Kanna's complexions regained some color.

Everyone entered the room one after another, but an accident happened when it was Kyle's turn.

Filch stopped him, saying expressionlessly, "Your punishment isn't here."

Mrs. Norris was left there, while Filch took Kyle back to the Entrance Hall and left the castle.

The two strode across the dark ground, and Filch refrained from making any more sarcastic remarks.

Kyle noticed that the road appeared to lead to the Forbidden Forest.

"Is that you, Filch? Hurry up, we need to leave."

Hagrid stood at the door of his hut and began waving to them from a distance.

"The Forbidden Forest is dangerous," Filch suddenly said. "You'd better not stray too far from that idiot, or those school rules you've memorized won't save your life."

"I understand," Kyle nodded.

Filch acted as if he hadn't heard and continued walking forward.

"It's almost time." Hagrid strode towards them from the darkness, with Fang following behind.

"Are you ready, Kyle?"

"He's in your hands, Hagrid," Filch said coldly. "I'll be back at dawn, and hopefully I won't find his remains then."

"No need for you to trouble yourself with that," Hagrid said to Filch, frowning. "You don't need to come pick him up; I'll take Kyle back to the castle myself."

Filch glared at Hagrid, then turned and walked toward the castle, the lamp swaying as it disappeared into the darkness.

"That annoying guy is finally gone, that old idiot."

Hagrid picked up his giant crossbow and quiver, winked at Kyle, and said, "It's so good to see you... Sorry, I didn't mean it's a good thing you're in solitary confinement, but with your help, tonight will probably go much more smoothly."

Kyle looked at Hagrid, who was fully armed, and asked in confusion, "What exactly happened in the Forbidden Forest?"

"A Unicorn cub has been stolen; we need to go to the Forbidden Forest to look for clues."

Hagrid tightened his grip on the giant crossbow, his eyes blazing with fury. "If I find out who did this, I'll make sure they pay!"