The roar of a dragon suddenly ripped through the quiet night sky of Hogwarts.
"Hagrid!" Harry yelled, immediately leaping onto his broom and flying off.
"Gryffindors..." Wade sighed, a hint of helplessness in his voice. Hagrid had only just entered the Forbidden Forest, at least a mile from where the fire appeared; he couldn't possibly be in any danger.
Wade also mounted his broom and shot into the Forbidden Forest. He gained altitude, navigating through the dark canopy with his excellent eyesight.
Ahead, Hagrid, clutching a barrel of mead, was calling "Norbert's" name, crashing through the Forbidden Forest towards the source of the light. His dog followed closely behind him. Harry, seeing that Hagrid was unharmed, had already flown ahead towards the dragon.
They were both fast, and it wasn't long before they reached a cave. Wade saw Harry standing nearby, pale-faced, while Norbert, as large as a house, lay on the ground. There were huge, gruesome wounds on its eyes and chest, and bright red blood flowed freely.
"Norbert—" Hagrid cried out in anguish, throwing himself over his baby dragon, trembling as he checked for a breath.
A few dying sparks of fire shot from Norbert's nostrils.
"Don't be scared, good baby... Mama will heal you now—" Hagrid's hands fumbled, rummaging through his pockets for healing potions.
Wade remained in the air, scanning his surroundings vigilantly. The dark, dense forest was eerily silent. The dragon's roar had silenced every tiny sound; now there was only the wind, Hagrid's wails, and the crackling of dry branches burning in the fire.
Wade shot two red spark signals into the sky, then cast detection spells around him before descending.
Hagrid was pouring dittany onto Norbert's wounds, but the blood, like water from an open tap, quickly washed all the potion away.
"These are wounds caused by dark magic; ordinary healing potions won't work," Wade stated. He pointed his wand at Norbert's wounds and quietly chanted a counter-curse—fortunately, he had just learned it from Remus two days ago—and half a minute later, the bleeding was finally stopped.
Hagrid watched, wide-eyed, and only now dared to ask, "Is he going to be okay?"
"No," Wade said. "I can only do this much; the rest needs a more professional hand. But at least... his... er, his life should be saved."
"Thank you, Wade... thank you so much!" Hagrid's tears streamed down his face. "If Norbert died, it would feel like my heart had been ripped out."
He tightly hugged the monstrous head of the Norwegian Ridgeback. The dragon weakly opened its eyes, watched Hagrid weep, and exhaled hot gas from its nostrils.
"What happened here?" a cold, seemingly furious voice sounded nearby, making Harry, who had been dazed, turn ashen.
Snape, clad in black robes, emerged from the darkness. His gaze fixed on each of them as if to drain their blood. His black robes billowed behind him like dark clouds, as if he hadn't run but flown.
Immediately after, a tabby cat leaped from a tree branch, transforming into Professor McGonagall in her pajamas as she landed. Seeing the scene, she gasped, "An injured dragon! What is going on here?"
Before Harry could answer, more people appeared—Professor Quirrell, stumbling through the trees, clutching his turban, and then Dumbledore, suddenly appearing with a flash of fire.
In a daze, this scene was strikingly similar to Halloween, only without Professor Flitwick and with Dumbledore instead.
Only...
Harry's body trembled slightly, and he instinctively took two steps towards Hagrid.
"Someone hurt Norbert, Dumbledore!" Hagrid pulled out a large handkerchief, wiping his tears, and said tearfully, "Please save him, this child is badly hurt!"
Dumbledore leaned down and examined Norbert. The dark magic wounds were clearly identifiable, but the wounds showed a tendency to close up. Dumbledore was only slightly surprised, quickly understanding which of the three present had the ability to do so.
"Very impressive Dark Arts counter-curse, Mr. Gray," Dumbledore praised.
Wade bowed slightly, saying nothing.
"Don't worry, Hagrid," Dumbledore said gently. "Madam Pomfrey will heal her. Minerva, would you mind moving this creature to a more suitable place?"
"—Alright."
Professor McGonagall, who had been sternly watching the two students, withdrew her gaze at Dumbledore's instruction and levitated Norbert away.
"Slowly, Professor McGonagall," Hagrid couldn't help but caution. "He's still a baby! It's all my fault for not taking good care of him..."
"Private dragon rearing is prohibited," Snape said ominously from the side. "Hagrid, I thought you knew that."
Hagrid bit his lip, his massive body looking pitiful.
"We'll discuss that later," Dumbledore said calmly. "Harry, Wade, why are the two of you here? Running out of the castle at night and coming into the dangerous Forbidden Forest is not a wise move."
"I couldn't sleep last night, so I was... looking at the stars in my dormitory or something," Harry suddenly stammered. "I accidentally saw Hagrid go into the Forbidden Forest... then I heard the dragon's roar and saw fire... I was worried something had happened to Hagrid, so I flew over to check... and then Wade came too..."
He omitted the fact that they had first violated curfew by flying around the school.
"Did you see what injured the dragon?" Dumbledore asked.
Harry shivered, still seemingly afraid. Wade said, "No. When we arrived, the scene was already like this."
Dumbledore nodded, looking at the pool of blood on the ground, lost in thought. Everyone else held their breath, waiting.
From inside the cave, a pattering of footsteps suddenly emerged. A pure white, sacred creature walked out, glowing faintly. Its long legs limped, and silvery-white blood dripped from its body.
"Merlin!" Hagrid exclaimed. "Someone dared to hurt a unicorn!"
The unicorn bowed to Dumbledore, then leaned against Hagrid, seemingly seeking his help.
Dumbledore healed the unicorn's wound with a spell and told Hagrid, "Take it to Madam Pomfrey as well. Take Wade and Harry along—I imagine they'll need a calming draught."
Hagrid nodded, picking up the unicorn without hesitation, and called out, "Come with me, children—thank you for worrying about my safety. But I have to say—this was too dangerous, truly very dangerous. Don't run around recklessly next time."
Harry mumbled his agreement. Turning his head, he saw Snape frowning, seemingly wanting to object to Dumbledore's lenient dismissal of them, but Dumbledore said, "Severus, Quirinus, could I trouble you to patrol the perimeter of the Forbidden Forest tonight? Perhaps the creature that injured the dragon is still lurking nearby... Of course, for safety, you'd best not separate..."
The dense forest blocked Harry's view.