Chapter 243
Night fell over the Forbidden Forest. Stars were sparse, the castle lights gradually dimmed, and in the long corridors, only Filch patrolled slowly, lantern in hand.
Beside him, Mrs. Norris moved with elegant steps.
A shadow seemed to flit across Filch's peripheral vision. He looked up and saw a small bird flying above the castle.
It was a Peregrine Falcon.
Mrs. Norris also jumped onto the windowsill, looking up, her tail gently swaying.
The caretaker watched for a moment, then disinterestedly lowered his head and said to his pet, "Listen carefully, Mrs. Norris. On a night like this, there are bound to be a few little rascals sneaking out!"
"Meow~"
Mrs. Norris meowed towards the sky.
"It's no use, you can't catch that bird. Let's get to work," Filch said.
Mrs. Norris had no choice but to jump down from the windowsill. She looked back at the sky once more before following her master's footsteps.
The Peregrine Falcon was, of course, Wade.
After getting used to wings instead of arms, the feeling of free flight was even better than riding a broom.
Moreover, a bird's brain is tiny. Even though he still remembered who he was, his thoughts naturally simplified after transforming. He could usually only focus on one thing at a time.
So, when flying, he only thought about flying. When hunting, he focused solely on hunting, and the joy after a successful catch was purer and more natural.
When he returned to his original form, he felt as if his mind had been cleansed, and all those cumbersome, complicated thoughts had lightened.
Suddenly, he heard a sound of air vibrating. The Peregrine Falcon swiftly darted away as an Owl abruptly swooped past him, its broad wings making a deep, powerful sound as they flapped.
The Peregrine Falcon gracefully arced, then sharply folded its wings and dove, pouncing on the Owl.
It folded its wings, its entire body like a fighter jet, accelerating in a very short time to a speed almost invisible to the naked eye!
In an instant, the Owl felt sharp pain. It shrieked, thinking its neck had been severed!
The Peregrine Falcon swept past quickly, a few plucked feathers slowly drifting down.
As he flew past a window, he suddenly paused, tilting his head to look inside.
Professor Abigail, dressed in pajamas, was sitting at a table, disassembling a black gun into parts, cleaning and maintaining it, then slowly reassembling it.
Feeling a gaze on her, she turned and saw the Peregrine Falcon outside the window. She smiled, then casually grabbed a handful of dried meat from the table and placed it on the windowsill.
"Eat," she said gently.
The Peregrine Falcon dipped its head, picked up a piece, and flew off.
The pain-stricken Owl circled in a panic for a while. Finding its head still firmly on its neck, anger and hatred flared up again. It returned to the Owlery and summoned a dozen companions, flying menacingly towards the Peregrine Falcon.
A large flock of birds circled above Hogwarts, occasionally letting out shrill cries, making the castle's silent night lively.
Some students in the towers were woken up. They peered out from their beds and saw the vengeful Owls, muttering in surprise, "Did they find a big nest of mice? Why are they making such a racket?"
Dumbledore was writing a letter. Hearing the commotion, he put down his quill, tilted his head, and his gaze met that of the Peregrine Falcon outside the window.
The Headmaster thought for a moment, then got up, opened the window, and asked, "Want to come in and hide for a bit?"
The Peregrine Falcon, like most startled birds, suddenly spread its wings and fluttered away.
The Owls immediately spotted their enemy and surrounded it from all directions. The Peregrine Falcon weaved among them with agility and grace, avoiding every attack with unmatched speed and nimbleness. Before long, it broke through the encirclement and disappeared.
Seeing this, Dumbledore couldn't help but smile with pleasure.
"Young people certainly have a lot of energy..."
The Headmaster, like most elderly people, muttered a sigh of emotion, and sat back down at his desk.
He looked at the letter he had been writing earlier and suddenly found it dull.
Yesterday, Fudge had sent a letter, mainly questioning the high-intensity militarized training recently organized at Hogwarts, and doubting the intentions of the school's teachers and students, especially Dumbledore.
Dumbledore had originally written a long letter, explaining that it was a spontaneous student activity, where children greatly developed their willpower and magical abilities, and would undoubtedly become more outstanding Wizards after graduating.
As elders, they should encourage rather than roughly forbid, and that Hogwarts was fully prepared to ensure students would not suffer serious harm.
He also emphasized the necessity of such training, noting that O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s scores had been declining in recent years, and that the peaceful environment had made students less diligent in training. Many couldn't even cast an Shield Charm after graduating, and this training could significantly encourage children to learn, and so on.
But at this moment, after seeing the Peregrine Falcon gracefully evade the pursuit of a flock of Owls and escape calmly, that free and proud posture was etched in the old man's eyes.
Dumbledore sat at his desk for a few minutes. The previous letter suddenly flew into the air and ignited, burning into a pile of ashes.
He began writing again—
Thank you, Minister, for your concern for Hogwarts.
Although this is an internal school matter, we welcome guidance from the Ministry of Magic's elites.
Next month, we will be organizing another challenge. We sincerely invite you and excellent Aurors to participate.
Only a few short lines of dark green ink remained on the paper, followed by his signature. After the letter was folded, it was sealed with wax.
—Although there was now the convenient communication method of the Book of Friends, some traditional and meticulous Wizards still preferred conventional letters when there was no rush.
For example, Fudge was very resistant to new developments, as they made him feel out of his depth. He preferred to stay in his comfort zone and wished the world would remain exactly as he was most accustomed to.
Dumbledore was glad he hadn't become such a pedantic and slow-witted old man.
He sent off the letters.
The vengeful Owls hovered in the sky for most of the night, never seeing their enemy emerge. It wasn't until daybreak that they reluctantly returned to the Owlery.
Meanwhile, Wade, who had enjoyed a rare lie-in, was just waking up.
He stretched, then chuckled when he saw Miss Eva, looking sleepy-eyed, wobble back in from outside.
"Why are you so tired?" Wade caught his Owl, stroked her cool back, and asked, "Did you fly all night?"
"Hoo-hoo—"
Miss Eva let out a soft, aggrieved hoot, gently pecked Wade's palm with her beak, then eagerly landed on her perch and quickly began eating her Owl food.
It seemed she hadn't just been awake all night; she hadn't even had time to catch herself a mouse.
Wade affectionately added more food for her, including a piece of dried meat. Eva hooted, complaining about the Peregrine Falcon from last night, while she filled her belly.
Next chapter coming later
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