On a clearing in the Forbidden Forest,
Felix, satisfied, gazed at the Thestrals he'd caught using a half-blood-soaked cow; he was content.
"Hagrid's secret, seems you lot fancy it?" Felix remarked, as two Thestrals leaned in, exposing their gaunt necks to tear into the bloody cow at. "He said you're bright, so surely you understand ... I need a tad of your help."
The Thestrals remained silent, relishing their al. While omnivorous—grasses, fruits, ats were all on their nu—it wasn't every day they feasted on fresh cow at. As he spoke, another cautious Thestral poked its head from the woods, hesitating whether to join its companions and the unfamiliar wizard.
The sound of their feeding enticed the newcor, and soon, it joined in.
Seizing the mont, Felix slipped his hand into the closest Thestral's mane, encountering a tough mbrane covering re bones—no flesh.
Restlessly, the Thestral raised its head, silver eyes fixed on Felix.
"Eat, eat," he chuckled, patting its bald head, eyes akin to a wolf eyeing a rabbit. The Thestral shook its black tail, then resud tearing into the cow.
The new arrival was initially wary, spreading its enormous wings, but ignored by Felix and the others, it seed to find its actions dull. Seeing the ground food as more important, when Felix touched its smooth, furless body, it rely snorted.
Felix smirked slightly, his body beginning to transform.
...
"I still can't accept it. To , it seems more like a mockery of the Deathly Hallows legend by the Bard, none of the brothers escaped Death in the end. Even the third with the Invisibility Cloak rely accepted Death's arrival calmly; their significance even falls short of a Philosopher's Stone. Nick lived for over six hundred years!" Hermione, Luna, and Ginny strolled along the forest's edge, debating the recent topic.
"That's because they didn't get recognition," Luna said in her dreamy voice.
"What recognition?" Hermione asked.
"I'm not sure," Luna dreamily replied, "maybe so sort of ritual or pre-designed thod of use, or," she gazed blankly at Hermione and Ginny, "as my dad says, only when soone possesses all three Hallows will they wield their power."
Hermione, though highly skeptical, calmly inquired, "Is that the odd symbol you displayed?"
"Perhaps," Luna said.
"Let's talk about sothing else," Ginny hurriedly interjected, uninterested in the topic. "Luna, do you have the bone whistle with you?"
"Yes," Luna happily replied, pulling out a thin rope woven from grass stems from around her neck, adorned with a gray-white whistle.
Glancing at it, Hermione asked, "The one Hagrid gave us?"
"Yes," Luna said. "It calls Hagrid's creatures, but there aren't any dangerous ones at the forest edge. Sotis I use it for unicorns, Thestrals... and Valen." She glanced around sneakily. "Don't tell Valen; he wouldn't be pleased."
"Can centaurs hear it too?" Hermione asked, intrigued.
"Of course," Luna said seriously. "But he might not be nearby. Let's try so other places."
Pushing through bushes, they faintly slled blood. Luna cleared the branches, revealing six or seven Thestrals gathered in a circle.
"Wow, lucky us," Luna exclaid.
"Soone's been here," Hermione stared at the half-skeletal remains of a cow, murmuring to herself, "Hagrid? But at this ti, he's unlikely to focus on other creatures; he's dealing with a massive trouble..."
Luna skipped happily onto the clearing, warmly greeting the Thestrals.
Already familiar, the Thestrals just glanced up, then resud feasting, allowing Luna to stroke them.
Ginny eyed the at on the ground, unable to see the Thestrals, witnessing only chunks disappearing from the bones into thin air, followed by eerie chewing sounds. "This feels awful, like there's an invisible mouth full of sharp teeth in the air, you never know when it might approach willingly..."
"This Thestral's peculiar," Hermione said. Luna turned to look at the unique Thestral—a creature that lay quietly, emanating a serene aura from its gaunt face. Its eyes half-closed, it showed no surprise or discomfort at their arrival.
"Are you new? I don't rember seeing you before," Luna crouched, softly asking.
The Thestral glanced at her, closing its eyes, seemingly uninterested in engaging.
Skillfully, Luna picked up so grass, offering it to the Thestral, which turned its head away, eyeing her disdainfully.
"Oh, are you not hungry?"
"Luna, the books say Thestrals are dangerous, even these ones in the forest trained by Hagrid," Hermione said, reminding her. Whenever she thought of Hagrid's acromantula Aragog and the giant Grawp residing in the forest, she had zero faith in his notion of 'safe.'
The bone whistle Hagrid gave her was tucked deepest inside her bead purse; she never believed she'd need it.
"But it feels friendly," Luna said, blinking her light-colored eyes, addressing the Thestral lying on the ground. "Right?"
Suddenly, the Thestral opened its large mouth, revealing sharp teeth, emitting a "howling" sound that startled the trio. Ginny stumbled back, bewildered. "What's happening?"
Even the Thestral engrossed in eating ceased, turning their attention towards them.
"They're friendly, right?" Hermione sharply asked.
Luna didn't respond, carefully scrutinizing the Thestral. "Strange, you give
a completely different feeling. Lots of botherso flies buzzing around... huh? Suddenly gone." Luna said blankly.
"Let's go, Luna, let's check elsewhere... maybe another day," Hermione urged, pulling Luna and Ginny away. Luna felt reluctant to leave the unique Thestral behind. "Maybe I could be friends with it; it might be the leader of these Thestrals in the forest..."
In the final scene, the unique Thestral stood up from the ground, joining the other Thestrals as they trotted into the depths of the forest.
"You see, its walk is so different," Luna remarked.
After a while, Felix erged from another part of the Forbidden Forest, wiping non-existent sweat from his forehead, feeling extrely odd about the day's events.
The following two weeks were quiet, except for an encounter with Snape in the corridor one afternoon. Snape warned him, "I've inford 'the old wand' information to that person. They didn't involve
further; it seems they have other plans."
Hearing this, Felix took ti to inspect the Leaning Fortress in Knockturn Alley from top to bottom; the entire defense system was operational, everything normal.
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