Chapter 178 – Hagrid Does Not Play by the Rules
The next morning at breakfast, Harry, Ron, and Draco each received a note.
All three were identical:
> Your detention begins tonight at eleven. Meet Mr. Filch in the entrance hall.
— Professor McGonagall
Ron groaned as he poked at his fried eggs.
"I thought maybe Professor Flitwick or even Professor Snape would handle this," he muttered. "Flitwick's kind, and Snape always favors his own House… but Filch? That can't be good."
Draco strolled over with Crabbe and Goyle at his side, smirking.
"Weasley," Draco drawled, "maybe that ridiculous story you've been spreading convinced McGonagall we weren't remorseful—and she decided to make our punishment worse."
Harry's face went pale. He hadn't thought of that. And why Filch, of all people? Nothing good ever came from being dragged out at night by Filch.
The only thing giving Harry a shred of comfort was that Ron had secretly arranged for his brothers to sneak the Invisibility Cloak back from the Astronomy Tower.
At least that precious artifact would be safe.
And thanks to Ron's wild tale about phoenixes and invisible beasts, no one was whispering anymore about any supposed "romance" between Harry, Ron, and Draco.
---
That night, the three said goodbye to Alexander Smith and the others in the Ravenclaw common room, then crept down to the entrance hall. Filch was waiting, lantern in hand—along with Draco, who'd been sent there from Slytherin.
"Come with me," Filch snapped, his lantern casting a sickly glow. "You'll think twice before breaking school rules again, won't you? Eh?"
He squinted at them with glee and launched into a speech about real punishments—how, in the old days, they'd hang students by their wrists from the ceiling for days. He even bragged that he still kept those chains polished in his office.
They followed him out into the dark grounds. The moon slipped in and out of the clouds, plunging them into alternating patches of silver light and shadow.
Draco walked with cool indifference—I'm the son of a school governor; nothing will happen to me.
Ron's knees wobbled a little, so he leaned against Harry.
Harry, meanwhile, kept wondering what kind of detention would take them out of the castle in the middle of the night.
"You little brats! I'm talking to you!" Filch suddenly barked, catching their distracted looks. "Thinking about romance, are you? You there—the red-haired one—you must be Ronnie Weasley! Get off your boyfriend!"
Ron's face flushed scarlet. Harry and Draco exchanged bewildered glances.
He actually believes Rita Skeeter's rubbish about us, Harry thought, horrified.
---
Time dragged on as they trudged across the fields. Filch kept up a stream of muttered threats, while Harry and Ron tried to ignore him. Ron finally stopped leaning on Harry, which Filch misread as fear.
His sharp eyes caught the faint relief on their faces when they spotted the light spilling from Hagrid's hut ahead.
"You think you're going to have fun with that oaf?" Filch sneered. "Think again. You're going to the Forbidden Forest. If you come out alive, I'll eat my lantern."
Draco stopped in his tracks.
"Oh? Is there still danger from the troll Harry and I defeated before?" he asked with a casualness that only he could pull off.
Ron pursed his lips. "The same Forbidden Forest Fred and George always sneak into?"
Harry wasn't worried at all. Hagrid's with us. What could go wrong?
Filch snorted. "Didn't you hear me? This is the Forbidden Forest. There are werewolves in there!" His voice echoed ominously.
---
A massive figure emerged from the shadows.
"Is that you, Filch? Come on then, I'm ready!" boomed Hagrid. Fang padded behind him, and Hagrid carried his huge crossbow with a quiver slung over one shoulder.
"You old ghoul," Hagrid said cheerfully, "you're just trying to scare 'em. These three aren't ones you can boss around, Filch!"
"I'm trying to keep them alive!" Filch snapped, but when no one paid him much attention, he stalked off in a huff, muttering curses under his breath.
---
When Filch was gone, Hagrid turned to them, his eyes crinkling kindly.
"Harry, Ron, Draco… you were caught because of me."
He hesitated. "Listen, you don't have to come. You can stay in my hut for a bit while I go into the Forest alone."
Hidden nearby, Headmaster Dumbledore raised an eyebrow. That wasn't in the plan, he thought, surprised. But no matter—I'm here, and I can adjust.
Alexander Smith, watching invisibly from above, merely nodded. This feels right, he thought. In the original timeline, Hagrid never offered because Draco wasn't with them and things were different. But now…
---
"No, Hagrid," Harry said firmly. "It's detention. We'll do it."
"Fred and George always brag about sneaking into the Forest," Ron added, eyes gleaming. "I can't miss this chance."
"If those two maniacs can do it, then so can I," Draco said with a proud toss of his head.
Hagrid sighed, then squared his shoulders. "Alright. But listen carefully. What we're doing tonight is dangerous. I don't want anyone hurt. Stick close to me."
He raised his lantern and pointed to a narrow path leading into the black depths of the trees.
"See that silvery stuff on the ground? That's unicorn blood. Something's hurt a unicorn badly. It's been happening for a week. We're going to track it and end its suffering."
Draco frowned. "What if whatever hurt the unicorn finds us first?"
Hagrid tightened his grip on the crossbow. "That's why you stay with me. Don't wander off, not for a second. And if you'd rather stay back and play with Fang, you can—but once we go in, you follow me, no arguments."
This time, unlike the original night in the Forest, Hagrid didn't even consider splitting them into two groups. He'd learned his lesson from the dragon egg incident.
High above in the shadows, Alexander Smith drifted silently, a small smile on his face.
Well, Dumbledore, let's see how your little plan plays out now.
(End of Chapter 178)
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