Forbidden Forest

After bidding Hagrid farewell, they slowly made their way back toward the castle.

The young wizards were all preoccupied and silent. In the end, Hermione was the first to speak. "Professor, you won't report us and Hagrid to the Ministry of Magic, will you?"

Without turning around, Sagreles said, "Of course not. After all, I have no evidence, and I didn't catch you in the act."

The young wizards could not help smiling at that.

"Thank you, Professor."

"You don't need to thank me. I told you, I didn't do anything." He continued, "I only hope you can learn something from this. Mistakes aren't frightening. What is frightening is failing to learn from them. Loneliness isn't frightening either, because it is a whetstone for growth, one that can make you sharper."

The young wizards fell into thoughtful silence. He patted each of them on the head and continued, "Besides, this time you had each other... If one day in the future, you have no choice but to face a challenge alone, then I hope this lesson will help you."

Just after Harry and the others bade Sagreles farewell and returned to the Public Lounge, a note from Professor McGonagall found them.

"Detention begins at eleven tonight. Report to Mr. Filch in the entrance hall."

All three notes said the same thing. They looked at one another, but for once, none of them complained, because they felt they truly deserved the punishment.

Just as Professor Greengrass had said, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff students had no right to sneer at them, but Gryffindor students had every reason to resent them.

This was the reality they had to face: accept their punishment, then find a chance to earn back the points they had lost.

It was nearly midnight when Sagreles left the library, timing it precisely. He headed alone to the edge of the Forbidden Forest to wait for the contact arranged by Lady Snow Owl.

Not long before that, Filch had brought Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Malfoy to Hagrid's hut. Their detention consisted of patrolling the Forbidden Forest with Hagrid.

Despite Malfoy's repeated protests, even invoking his father on the Board of Governors failed to change the terms of his detention.

Malfoy swallowed nervously and muttered, "We can't go into that pitch-black Forbidden Forest. I heard it's full of all sorts of strange things. There might even be Werewolves..."

Hagrid raised an eyebrow and shot back gruffly, "What were you thinking earlier? You should've considered all that before causing trouble. It's too late to say that now!"

"I'm not going in!"

"If you still want to stay at Hogwarts, then you have no choice." Hagrid showed no mercy. "Not even your father can change that! Of course, if you want to be expelled, go back to your dormitory and pack your things!"

Malfoy froze where he stood as if he had been hit by a Full Body-Bind Curse, glaring at Hagrid with fire in his eyes. His lips pressed tightly together, as though he wanted to say something, but in the end, he chose silence.

The trio was delighted to see Malfoy put in his place, and they were not worried about the detention at all.

"After all, Hagrid has done this job for decades without any problems. There's no reason we'd run into danger the moment we come along," Hermione whispered to Harry and Ron.

But Hagrid's next words immediately dispelled that thought.

"Listen up, all of you. Tonight's work is extremely dangerous. I don't want to see anyone get hurt." Hagrid's tone brooked no argument.

He led them to the edge of the Forbidden Forest and raised the lantern in his hand over his head. Its light swept over the darkness like a searchlight, illuminating a winding path that gradually disappeared into the depths of the woods.

"Look over there!" Hagrid's voice was especially clear in the night. "See that glimmer on the ground? Silvery white. That's Unicorn blood. A Unicorn in the Forbidden Forest was attacked by another creature and badly injured. This is already the second time this week. Last Wednesday, I found a dead Unicorn. What we need to do now is find that poor creature and give it some help."

The trio stood stunned, their hearts full of doubt. They could not tell whether Hagrid was merely trying to scare Malfoy or whether it was true.

"If—if there's a chance that we'll meet the monster that hurt the Unicorn first?" Fear made Malfoy's voice tremble, and he no longer cared about the trio's mockery.

"As long as you stay with me or Fang, nothing in the Forbidden Forest will hurt you." Hagrid's voice was full of confidence. "Now, we follow the blood trail. Remember, don't fall behind, and don't leave the path."

The group began moving forward slowly. The Forbidden Forest was pitch-black and utterly silent. After walking deeper inside, they came to a fork in the path. Hagrid had originally planned to split into two groups, but to be safe, he decided they would stay together.

"Are there really Werewolves in the Forbidden Forest?" Harry asked.

"Maybe. Sometimes I hear wolves howling."

"Could a Werewolf have killed the Unicorn?" Ron asked.

"Absolutely not..." Hagrid said uneasily. "Catching a Unicorn is no easy task. They're creatures with powerful magic, and they're incredibly fast. Before this, I'd never heard of a Unicorn being injured. Never!"

They passed an ancient tree stump covered in moss, like a green throne. Not far away, the soft murmur of running water arose, like nature's gentle melody, telling secrets of the depths of the Forbidden Forest.

Suddenly, they all heard it. Something was approaching them.

Hagrid stopped the four young wizards and herded them behind a towering oak tree like ducks.

Then he drew an arrow, loaded it onto his crossbow, and raised it, ready to fire.

Something was sliding through the fallen leaves nearby with a swishing sound, like a cloak dragging across the ground. Then came the faint sound of hooves. Hagrid narrowed his eyes at the dark path, and a few seconds later, the sounds gradually faded away.

"I think I understand," he muttered. "Something that doesn't belong here must have slipped in and is lurking around."

"Could it be a Werewolf?" Ron asked softly.

"No!" Hagrid said firmly. "I don't know what it is, but it definitely isn't a Werewolf."

Their pace grew slower and slower. Everyone held their breath, trying to catch every faint sound.

After nearly another half hour, they had gone deeper and deeper into the forest. The trees became incredibly dense, and the path was almost impassable.

The bloodstains on the ground also grew denser, nearly forming a silver line.

Through the twisting branches of ancient oak trees, a patch of silver-white suddenly appeared amid the mottled shadows. Harry abruptly held his breath and pointed ahead.

"Look over there..." His voice was hoarse, trembling in his throat.

A white halo lay amid the rotten leaves. It was a dead Unicorn.

It was curled up on a thick bed of fallen leaves, its long limbs sprawled like carelessly discarded sticks, every strand of its mane glowing with a pale white light.

Its emerald eyes still held the clarity of life, but reflected not the slightest trace of vitality, as though all the silence of the Forbidden Forest had frozen within them.

Hagrid's eyes widened. Just as he prepared to approach and examine it, a bush at the edge of the clearing began shaking wildly... Then, a hooded figure darted out of the shadows.

It crawled slowly along the ground, like a beast gradually closing in.

Everyone stood frozen in place, clearly terrified by the bizarre sight.

Only Hagrid carefully took out his massive crossbow and slowly aimed it at the cloaked figure.

Whoosh—

The bolt left the bowstring and shot toward the strange figure.

The cloaked figure immediately raised its head at the sound, and everyone finally saw it—beneath the hood, silvery Unicorn blood covered its face—it was drinking the Unicorn's blood!

The strange figure sprang to its feet. The young wizards clearly saw the arrow flying toward it suddenly slow down, then transform into a writhing venomous snake before dropping to the ground with a slap.