The tranquil Black Lake mirrored the twilight sky...
The setting sun cast its last rays under the towers of Hogwarts, the grass beneath them faintly yellowing...
A few birds, returning to their nests, chirped and flew over the Forbidden Forest...
The atmosphere on the lawn was heavy, as if everyone had been hit by a Petrification Charm, motionless, staring blankly into the distance...
Harry's mind was blank; he knelt powerlessly on the ground, his earlier excitement vanished, the sudden shock robbing him of the ability to think.
It was unclear who cried first, but the young wizards on the lawn burst into tears, no one able to remain indifferent to the passing of a life;
The crying woke Harry, and only then did he realize he was already in tears. He couldn't remember the last time he had cried, only that his stomach felt as if it held a heavy stone, and a crushing sadness gripped his throat like a large hand, making it hard to breathe.
His heart was filled with self-reproach: if he hadn't recklessly flown into the sky to confront them, Allen wouldn't have rushed up to save him, and none of this would have happened!
Thinking of this, Harry blamed himself even more, his thoughts growing increasingly extreme: if he hadn't come to Hogwarts, this wouldn't have happened! He should have stayed in the Muggle world forever, that way he wouldn't drag others down!
Ron also fell heavily from the sky, landing on the grass, his eyes red, muttering something unintelligible. He furiously punched the ground, as if venting the frustration in his heart.
Malfoy and his two companions also landed. Malfoy was filled with disbelief and shock; he had only wanted to teach Allen and his friends a lesson, at most breaking an arm or leg like Longbottom, never expecting things to escalate to this point.
He glared at Crabbe, who, like a little girl, hung his head, one hand tightly clutching the hem of his robe, the other still gripping a few broom twigs. He ran to Goyle's side, trying to hide behind Goyle's bulky figure to avoid being seen.
Malfoy was the first to regain his composure. He subtly tugged at Crabbe's sleeve, the hand that was holding the broom twigs. Only then did Crabbe realize he was still holding something and quickly threw it far away.
But none of this escaped the eyes of the young wizards; everyone was a first-hand witness.
A weeping Hermione, like an enraged lioness, rushed up to Crabbe, pointing at his nose and asking, "Why did you do that? We're all classmates, do you need to be so vicious? It was already over, why did you ambush Allen?"
"Ambush?!!" Harry was jolted awake from his self-reproach, regret, and sorrow.
"What ambush?!! What just happened?" he asked loudly.
"Allen was diving down to catch that glass orb just like you, and he flew past Crabbe. Crabbe flew up and grabbed the tail of Allen's broom, and then… then Allen's broom went out of control and just kept flying towards the sun!" Parvati Patil told Harry, her eyes red.
Harry looked at Ron with a questioning gaze. Ron dared not meet his eyes and said to Harry mournfully, "Yes, I hadn't even reacted yet when you two rushed down. When Allen's broom went out of control, I wanted to help him, but his broom was flying too fast, I just couldn't catch up!" He finished, covering his face and crying.
Harry then looked at the Slytherin wizards; they all avoided his gaze, some of the girls quietly sobbing.
Harry instantly confirmed the truth of the matter.
He walked angrily towards Malfoy and his two companions. Malfoy, knowing he was in the wrong, involuntarily shifted his feet.
Crabbe, like a quail, buried his head tightly behind Goyle and held onto him tightly, not letting him escape, while Goyle struggled vigorously.
Harry approached Crabbe step by step, the fury in his eyes seemingly ready to burn Crabbe alive. Despite the vast difference in their sizes, he remained resolute.
"Look over there!" a young wizard in the crowd pointed in the direction where Allen had fallen.
Harry sharply turned his head to look, and he saw a wingtip suddenly appear on the horizon, where the Forbidden Forest was burning red with the sunset, but it quickly vanished. He instantly thought he was seeing things, rubbed his eyes hard, and stared intently in that direction.
Harry indeed saw the wingtip again, and its appearance became more and more frequent.
The heavy atmosphere on the lawn was suddenly broken, and everyone looked towards the place where the wing appeared.
Soon after, Allen glided out from above the Forbidden Forest, seemingly carrying something in his hand. He landed lightly on a large rock, folded his wings, and crouched sideways on the rock, seemingly preparing to rest. His huge wings covered his body and most of his face.
Harry could only see his thin chin, not his expression. The feathers on his wings were disheveled, indicating he had been through a lot.
The young wizards excitedly rushed towards Allen, everyone cheering for such a miracle!
And then, Allen moved. He slowly stood up, slowly turned his head. By then, the distant sun behind him had released its last golden glow, turning into a large red fireball. The red sunlight made the contours of his face appear even colder and harder, illuminated his tightly pressed lips, and shadowed his eyes, but it could not conceal the furious and intimidating light within them!
The excited young wizards' voices grew softer and softer, until there was complete silence.
Allen, however, looked past them towards Malfoy and his two companions, who were trying to sneak away unnoticed in the distance. He suddenly threw down the object in his right hand; Harry looked closely and saw it was a broken broom handle...
Then Allen spread his huge wings, the disheveled feathers and scars making him appear even more majestic. He sharply flapped his wings, and his entire body shot into the sky like an arrow, his wings spread wide. In each hand, he held a green object, which was very conspicuous against the red light.
From the young wizards' perspective, Allen overlapped with the setting sun, which looked like a large fireball in the distance. The red sunlight illuminated his wings, turning them completely red, making the atmosphere even more chilling.
The high-altitude wind blew through Allen's huge wings, which constantly billowed as they caught the wind, allowing him to hover high in the sky. He stared intently at the fleeing Malfoy and his two companions, and shouted furiously:
"You are courting death!"