Punished Yet Again

The following Saturday was a pitch-black, cloud-covered night. Muya pulled Draco along as they hurried to Hagrid's hut.

Harry and the others had already arrived. Hagrid had packed Norbert into a large wooden crate, and everything appeared to be ready.

"I've prepared brandy and plenty of rats for him. I think that'll be enough to feed him on the journey," Hagrid said in a mournful voice, gazing reluctantly at the crate. "I also put his teddy bear in there, so he won't feel lonely."

Then a tearing sound came from inside the crate. It seemed the teddy bear was doomed.

"Goodbye, Norbert!" Hagrid sniffled. "Mummy won't forget you!" Harry and Hermione covered the crate with the Invisibility Cloak before crawling under it themselves. Draco was still staring in shock when Muya shoved him inside as well. "I'll keep watch outside and use the Levitation Charm to lighten the load a little."

Harry and Hermione looked at Draco, who had suddenly joined them. Though they were unhappy about it, they had more important things to do. Draco felt the same way.

Muya drank the invisibility potion Theodore had given her, and they set off.

Under Muya's scouting, they passed through one dark corridor after another and slowly climbed floor after floor until they finally reached the second-highest level.

Suddenly, footsteps sounded ahead. Muya had everyone hide in a corner first.

It was Professor McGonagall in her pajamas. Apparently, she was checking for students wandering around after curfew that night.

Everyone held their breath, terrified that Professor McGonagall would discover them and dock points or give them detention again.

Once Professor McGonagall went downstairs, they all breathed a sigh of relief. They continued upward, only lifting the Invisibility Cloak when they felt the cool night breeze. Muya also ended her invisibility.

"Oh, that nearly scared me to death." Draco walked over to Muya's side.

"Charlie's friends should be here soon," Harry said.

About ten minutes later, four brooms suddenly descended from the night sky.

Charlie's friends were all easygoing people. After chatting about Norbert for a while, they tied several ropes around the crate so they could suspend Norbert between them. They hurriedly secured Norbert safely to the ropes, then shook hands with the others and thanked them repeatedly.

Norbert had finally left, and they no longer had to worry about Hagrid being sent to Azkaban.

Feeling thoroughly relieved, they headed down the stairs. The moment they entered the corridor, they saw Filch's face—and Harry had forgotten the Invisibility Cloak at the top of the tower.

"Well, well. So many students wandering around at night together. I ought to take you to see Professor McGonagall." Filch smiled, but Muya and the others could not.

Filch led them to Professor McGonagall's office on the second floor. They sat there without saying a word. Hermione and Draco were trembling all over. Harry rapidly thought up excuses and reasons to defend himself, even making up lies in hopes of getting through it, but every one of them fell apart under scrutiny. Muya was wondering how to gently explain to Cedric and the others why their house points had dropped. No matter what excuses they gave, Professor McGonagall would never forgive them for sneaking around the school in the dead of night instead of sleeping, especially when they had climbed to the highest Astronomy Tower, where students were not allowed except during class.

"I simply cannot believe it. You four are from different houses, yet you went to the Astronomy Tower together—and it is one o'clock in the morning." Professor McGonagall's eyes widened when she saw four students from three different houses.

"I'm taking fifty points from each of you. Miss Granger, I thought you had more sense. Mr. Malfoy, I thought you would consider yourself above such behavior. Mr. Potter, I also thought you cared deeply about Gryffindor's honor. Miss Muya, it seems Headmaster Dumbledore, your guardian, will need to hear about this. I think his guidance may have been lacking." It would be best to hand Muya over to him.

The four of them felt as though the sky had fallen. Gryffindor had lost a full hundred points. Muya felt as if all strength and means had left her. It seemed they would have to tell the others this terrible news early the next morning. Hopefully, they could take it.

Early the next morning, Muya told her friends in advance that she had been caught wandering at night and had lost fifty points. Yet they did not seem especially upset. They only kept asking whether she had been hurt anywhere. She had—she had accidentally scraped the skin off her index finger.

Harry, however, became the target of everyone's anger. They had lost a hundred points all at once. Though he was the famous Savior and the hero of two Quidditch matches, he still could not stop some Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff students from giving him dirty looks.

Muya and the others comforted him, saying it was not his fault alone. "But they're all disappointed in me. I... I don't know what to do. Maybe I should go talk to Wood and quit the team," Harry said despondently.

"No, Harry. That won't make them shut up either. They're just a bunch of useless people who can't earn points themselves and are jealous of anyone else becoming famous." Muya's words stunned Harry, the others, and the Gryffindor students around them.

But when they thought about it carefully, Muya was right. The ones criticizing Harry were all students who had never earned points for their house.

"There are plenty of people in this world who dislike you. They care more about you surpassing them than about improving themselves. The moment you do anything wrong, they swarm in to mock you, even if they have nothing to do with you."

Color returned to Harry's face, and he nodded.

The four of them had earned plenty of points for their houses. Even after losing fifty points, they still had some left. Looking at it that way, they had merely lost points they had earned themselves.

They quietly began studying even harder. One evening, Filch summoned them to the castle entrance and said their punishment had been arranged.

Muya ran into Draco on the way, so she went with him to the entrance to wait for Harry and Hermione.

Once everyone had arrived, Filch held up a lantern and said, "Follow me. It's a pity they abolished those old-fashioned punishments... hanging you by the wrists from the ceiling for days at a time." He glanced sideways at the four of them. Even though Muya had given him fruit and vegetables before and he had a slight fondness for her, he treated all young wizards caught wandering at night equally.

The four of them walked along a familiar path before finally stopping in front of the Forbidden Forest. They saw Hagrid holding Fang's leash and carrying two lanterns.

"You'll be accompanying Hagrid on a patrol through the Forbidden Forest," Filch said.

Draco abruptly stopped walking, his voice trembling slightly. "We can't go into the Forbidden Forest at midnight. I've heard there are werewolves in there!"