The pillar of light from deep within the Forbidden Forest gradually vanished into the night sky as the ring quieted. Adam leaned against the railing of the Astronomy Tower, his gaze fixed on where the light had disappeared.
"I can't believe it... You really did find my mother." Helena's voice drifted over from behind him, trembling with an emotion Adam couldn't place. "What in the world was that place...?"
But Adam didn't have time to explain. He had just noticed a figure appear at the edge of the Forbidden Forest. The person, cloaked in a long black robe with a hood pulled low, was dragging a small, limp figure and then unceremoniously tossed them onto a pile of decaying leaves before disappearing back into the trees.
Thankfully, it was Halloween night, and even by Hagrid's hut, a few jack-o'-lanterns were glowing on the pumpkin patch. The dim light was just enough to reveal the victim's gruesome attire: a robe soaked in a dark red liquid, with a bizarre magical symbol scrawled on it, looking particularly terrifying in the moonlight.
Adam's breath hitched. He knew that bloody robe all too well. It was the costume he had suggested to Aiden just that afternoon, with a mixture of glycerin and carmine dye to mimic dried blood. But in the end, Aiden couldn't find the dye and had decided to use tomato sauce instead.
Helena followed Adam's gaze and gasped in terror. "Is that your friend?" she asked, her voice a horrified whisper.
Adam nodded sharply and turned to head for the stairs.
"Wait, you forgot this," Helena called out, carefully handing the ring back to Adam.
Adam frowned. "Aren't you going to try it again?"
"There's no need," Helena said, shaking her head resolutely. "You need this more than I do right now. Besides, I can feel that its power isn't strong enough to take me to that place. This ring is incomplete—or, more accurately, it's part of a magical artifact. That's why it resonated with the pillar of light."
Helena floated beside Adam, guiding him toward the Forbidden Forest. As they passed by the castle, Professor McGonagall was standing at the great oak doors, her lips a tight line, her expression grim. The young students around her were frozen as if under a Petrificus Totalus spell, their pale faces filled with terror. A few bags of sweets had slipped from their trembling hands, and shards of plates lay scattered on the ground as they frantically tried to explain what had happened.
"We were hiding outside the doors..." A young witch with a lopsided pigtail spoke, her voice shaking. Grass was clinging to the hem of her robes, suggesting she had just fled from the bushes.
"We were going to jump out with our sweet bags and scare people!" another boy blurted out, clutching his wand with a trembling hand. "When we heard footsteps, we jumped out."
"Anderson was pointing his pumpkin head at the person, and then that person just collapsed without warning, all twitchy and convulsing."
"We saw a purple light suddenly flare up on his robes, and then he just vanished in a flash..."
The student dressed as the Headless Horseman was the most frantic. His pumpkin head was askew on his shoulder, revealing a sweaty forehead. He gripped the pumpkin so tightly his fingers were digging into the orange flesh, and his voice was a sob. "It's not a dark magic prop, Professor, honestly! The pumpkin seeds are still inside, see?" He shook the jack-o'-lantern desperately, and a few shriveled seeds rattled onto the cobblestone path.
"Don't be afraid, children. What happened next?" McGonagall said, her voice soft with reassurance, though her own face was pale.
Adam, who had just arrived, quickly went up to McGonagall. "Professor McGonagall, I saw Aiden from the Astronomy Tower. Someone threw him at the edge of the Forbidden Forest."
Her expression froze. She leaned forward, grabbing Adam by the shoulders. "Quickly, show me! Do you remember where he was?"
The great doors behind her were pushed open again, and the other professors hurried out. Professor Sprout looked the most flustered, her voice trembling. "Minerva, a Hufflepuff student is missing!"
Adam's eyes scanned the professors behind her and looked toward the entrance hall, but he couldn't find the figure in the dark red robes. His heart sank. He didn't have time to explain to the others. He grabbed McGonagall's sleeve and started sprinting toward the Forbidden Forest. The other professors exchanged bewildered glances, but they quickly realized the seriousness of the situation. They gathered their robes and followed after them.
When they arrived at the forest's edge, Aiden was lying on the pile of rotting leaves like a discarded puppet. When the professors saw the gruesome, blood-soaked robe, several of the female professors gasped, the sound sharp in the quiet of the forest. Professor Sprout's fingers dug into her palms, and she covered her mouth, fighting back a sob. Professor McGonagall's face was ashen, her eyes filled with disbelief and shock. She gripped the cuff of her robe tightly, her body swaying precariously.
Adam rushed forward to check on Aiden. A wave of relief washed over him when he heard the boy's steady breathing. As he reached to pull him up, he noticed his own sleeve was stained red. He quickly drew his wand and pointed it at Aiden.
"Wingardium Leviosa..."
"Don't do that, Adam! It's disrespectful to the dead." Professor Flitwick said softly, seeing the gesture.
"But..." Adam scratched his head. "I think Aiden might still be salvageable."
At his words, the professors realized something was wrong. When they got closer and caught the unmistakable scent of tomato sauce from the bloody robes, their eyes twitched. Adam tossed out a Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Bean, turned it into a comfortable stretcher with a Transfiguration spell, and then gently levitated Aiden onto it. They all hurried back toward Hogwarts Castle.
When they arrived at the hospital wing on the second floor, Madam Pomfrey was standing by a bed, handing a bottle of brown potion to a sickly-looking student. "This is for the vomiting and diarrhea," she said sternly. "You absolutely cannot gnaw on jack-o'-lanterns anymore. For a while, you're only allowed to have porridge and no greasy food!"
Hearing the hurried footsteps at the door, she frowned and said loudly, "Some patients need a quiet environment. Even if you're here for a visit, there's no need for so many of you..."
When she turned and saw Aiden, covered in blood, her face went instantly white, and she shrieked. "Merlin's beard! What happened?"
Madam Pomfrey rushed over and gently placed Aiden on an empty bed. McGonagall watched her every move, her knuckles white. She finally let out a small sigh of relief as she saw the matron's frown slowly ease after picking up her diagnostic instruments.
"Poppy, how is he?"
"Nothing too serious," Madam Pomfrey said, shaking her head. "His magic has just been completely drained. It seems it's because of this magical symbol."
"Isn't this that same magical symbol that Fitch left behind in the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom last term? Why haven't you..."
McGonagall finally let out a true sigh of relief at Madam Pomfrey's muttering. "Thank you, Poppy."
"It's no trouble, it's what I'm here for. But you really should have a word with Dumbledore. He can't keep letting dangerous people become professors." She then turned to Adam, her usually serious face softening into a warm expression. "And thank you, Adam. We really have you to thank for this. That was a brilliant Transfiguration spell, too. Twenty points to Hufflepuff... no, let's make it twenty-five."
"And the Levitation Charm!" Professor Flitwick chimed in from the side, his eyes full of admiration. "Though the Levitation Charm can't be used on people, it can be used on their clothes. I don't think many people would have thought of that in the moment. Twenty more points to Hufflepuff for your quick thinking under pressure."
Unfortunately, they weren't able to stay in the hospital wing for long. Madam Pomfrey kicked them all out, insisting the patient needed rest. Only Adam managed to sneak back in by shamelessly helping Madam Pomfrey with a few chores, which earned him a spot in the ward.
Just a few minutes after Madam Pomfrey had given Aiden a potion, his eyelids began to flutter wildly. His pale fingers slowly curled up as if trying to grasp something in the air, and he began to mumble softly. When Adam leaned in to hear, Aiden suddenly woke up with a violent twitch, grabbing Adam's wrist tightly. He looked terrified.
"Dark wizards! There are dark wizards in the Forbidden Forest!"
"I saw them chasing a unicorn..."
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