Chapter 149: Forbidden Forest
The Easter holiday lasted about two weeks, and during this ti, Hogwarts had transitioned into sumr. The school was adorned with lush bushes and evergreen shrubs.
However, the students didn't feel the leisure of the holiday at all. Professors had assigned a significant amount of howork, making the Easter break much less fun than the Christmas holidays.
Especially under Professor Burbage's guidance, the professors (led by Professor McGonagall) had discovered new uses for the parchnt quizzes, continuously updating them with various questions.
In the common room, Ron stared at the parchnt, crafting a simple dice from it to choose answers based on the results of his rolls.
To his surprise, he rolled three sixes in a row.
He tapped the parchnt with the tip of his wand, exclaiming in frustration, "Look here, there are only five possible answers at most. If you give
a non-existent option again..."
Impatiently, Hermione lifted her head. "Can't you just focus and do the work properly?"
Ron slumped onto the table with a despairing look. "What can I do? Every professor left so much howork."
"You simply piled up all your assignnts till the last minute! For the first three days, you went to watch Harry train every day!"
Amidst the bickering, Harry returned with a tired body. He looked quite exhausted.
"Harry, are you alright?" Hermione asked with concern. "You don't look too good."
"I'm fine," Harry said, noticing his voice was unusually hoarse. He cleared his throat and explained, "Spent too much ti discussing tactics with Wood..."
"We're currently in the lead, Slytherin's second, and the points are close," Harry continued.
"How big is the gap?" Ron asked with interest, stuffing the parchnt quiz into his backpack absentmindedly.
"Thirty points."
"That's a dangerous number."
"Wood said the sa. They're getting more proficient with the new brooms and have earned quite a few points in the recent matches."
"When's the next ga?"
"The first Saturday after the holiday ends."
Harry took out his parchnt and started working on his assignnts. He noticed Hermione using different-colored inks to draw squares.
"What's that?" he asked.
Hermione didn't look up. "Revision schedule."
Ron's mouth dropped open. "Hermione, aren't you thinking way too ahead?"
"I have to remind you," Hermione raised her head, looking at them with a serious expression. "We're only six weeks away from exams."
...
In the heart of the Forbidden Forest,
Felix Harp and Bellby trudged through knee-high grass, making their way laboriously. There were no paths left here; everywhere they looked were towering trees, low shrubs, and rampant herbaceous plants.
A thin layer of mist painted the Forbidden Forest with an ethereal hue.
During the Easter break, Felix and Bellby had decided to explore the Forbidden Forest together. Bellby aid to gather materials for his Dark Magic Defense class on Forbidden Forest creatures, while Felix simply wanted to encounter so intriguing new flora and fauna and gather so materials for his experints.
"Damocles, wait up!"
Felix crouched down, parting a clump of shrubbery, carefully uprooting a magical plant with black roots and white flowers.
Bellby glanced at it and said excitedly, "Is that Blackroot? It's quite rare. What are you planning to do with it?"
"Prepare a potion, a recipe I found in the library. It can neutralize the chilling properties of magical creature materials."
Bellby pondered, "I'm not sure about that. I just know that consuming Blackroot helps resist the harm of Dark Magic."
"Is the effect that impressive?" Felix looked at the black plant in his hand with surprise.
"I would say it has so effect... though brewing it into a potion would be better. It works wonders against various harms caused by Dark Magic." Bellby was an authority on this subject.
Felix transplanted the Blackroot into a copper vessel, and Bellby took out a thumb-sized transparent glass vial from his robes, carefully adding two drops of liquid onto it. "Alright, it should survive the transplanting period—if you intend to keep it."
"I need its flowers. Which part do you need?" Felix inquired.
"The roots," Bellby replied without hesitation.
They exchanged a knowing smile, the result of three days of adventuring in the Forbidden Forest. They had co to understand each other's attitudes and habits well.
A heavy footstep sounded in the distance—
Both of them aid their wands in that direction simultaneously.
The shrubbery ahead rustled vigorously. In the dim light, Bellby tensely called out, "Who's there?"
The Forbidden Forest was also known as the Dark Forest due to its dense, towering trees that blocked out the sunlight.
"Woof! Woof!" A massive black hound erged from the thick leaves, followed by a burly man.
His imposing height made him seem like a giant. His tangled black hair and beard covered much of his face.
"Hello, Hagrid," Felix greeted.
Hagrid carried a large bucket and cast a wary look at Bellby before spotting Felix behind him. His expression eased. "Hello, Felix."
Hagrid asked gruffly, "What're you lot doin' here?"
"Finding so magical materials," Felix indicated the copper vessel in his hand. Then, he discreetly stowed the Blackroot into a specific compartnt of his ring.
Bellby said politely, "I'm here to learn about Forbidden Forest creatures, pick so for my lessons with young wizards."
"Is that so?" Hagrid asked with interest. "Got any targets?"
"So of the more dangerous ones," Bellby said, "Regular magical creatures aren't part of Dark Magic Defense."
Suddenly, Felix spoke up, "Hagrid, I heard Professor Kettleburn has officially retired. He recomnded you to Dumbledore."
Hagrid's face reddened. "Yeah, I didn't bring it up with anyone else, felt a bit... uncertain 'bout it. But Dumbledore promised to sort out my identity issue. He's a man of his word."
Next, Hagrid led them around the vicinity, always easily spotting traces left by various magical creatures. Pointing to an indentation on the ground, he said, "Looks a bit like a porcupine's footprint, maybe a Skrewt. Seen a few of 'em before..."
They walked on for a while, and Hagrid said, "Up ahead is the unicorns' territory. They just had foals, so they're extra vigilant."
Hagrid placed the large bucket on an open patch of ground, took a step back, and whistled.
Two to three minutes later, a majestic, agile male unicorn walked out, its fur as white as snow. It watched Felix and Bellby warily.
"Lupin, they're my friends," Hagrid shouted from a distance. He then turned to the two of them and explained, "I've brought 'em so nourishnt, good for the female unicorns after giving birth. In a while, I'll be able to get closer. Right now, they're at their most vigilant."
The unicorn nodded at Hagrid and carried the bucket away.
Bellby asked with great interest, "Are they always this proud?"
Hagrid replied in his booming voice, "Not really, take humans, for instance. To so creatures, we're quite peculiar too, don't even eat raw at. It's all about habits, isn't it?"
"A fascinating perspective, Hagrid." Felix added.
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