Harry Potter: Shadow Eminence

Chapter 31

"Oh, fine, if you want to head back on your own," Hagrid grumbled at Malfoy while holding onto Hermione and Ron.

Malfoy looked shaken; he stared at the furious flames ahead and the ominously dark forest surrounding him, his jaw quivering.

"Wait for me!" As Hagrid and the others moved further away, he hurried to catch up.

Deeper in the woods, the sound of hooves drew near. Soon, a silver centaur appeared, with Harry sprawled across its back.

"Ah, Firenze," Hagrid greeted the centaur and, spotting Harry resting on its back, sighed with relief, "And Harry, it's such a relief to see you are alright."

"I'm fine." Harry slid off Firenze, shivering as he spoke in a quiet, raspy voice. "The unicorn is dead, Hagrid, just over there in that clearing."

"I'm relieved you're okay." Hermione softly reassured him.

"Good luck, Harry Potter." The centaur Firenze didn't say much more, offering a blessing before vanishing into the depths of the Forbidden Forest.

Hagrid slapped Harry on the shoulder, almost knocking him over.

"Alright, alright, we'll talk about the unicorn later; let's get back and douse that fire."

"Agumanti." Hagrid swung the large umbrella he wielded, sending a powerful stream of water at the flames.

Hermione guided the dazed Harry to sit next to the stiff Fang and then rushed over to assist.

"Ron, stop daydreaming and come help put out the fire!" Hermione called out, frustrated by Ron's dazed state.

"Oh, Hermione, don't tell me you're unaware of what's happening!" Ron snapped out of his shock, covering his face, starting to break down, "It's the Killing Curse! Hermione, we almost got hit by the Killing Curse!"

"It's not us, it's Hagrid! And the attacker has already left!" Hermione shouted back, her brows knitting in response to the heat radiating from the flames.

"Pitch in! And you too, Malfoy!" Hermione furrowed her brows as she saw the fire spreading.

"No, I'm going to tell my dad about this; I don't want to stay at Hogwarts!" Malfoy whined. He was thoroughly terrified tonight. "I want my dad to transfer me to Durmstrang!"

"Suit yourself!" Hagrid barked, "But right now, you either pitch in or get out of the way!"

Ron attempted to cast spells against the flames like Hermione, but his attempts were sporadic, with his wand merely spraying tiny droplets. Noticing Malfoy's predicament, he felt somewhat better about his own embarrassment.

After resting a bit, Harry joined in to help as well.

Malfoy watched the busy group with a sense of boredom. He slumped down next to Fang.

He had no interest in helping.

"They must be insane!" Malfoy thought, "They nearly died tonight, yet they're acting like nothing happened."

Crossing his arms and catching a whiff of the charred odor coming from Fang, he couldn't help but swallow.

The flames dwindled, and gradually the Forbidden Forest returned to calm.

…

Brian took advantage of the night to cross the grounds back to the castle.

He first used a potion outside the Forbidden Forest to mask his scent again, then made his way directly to the Room of Requirement.

The castle was incredibly quiet, utterly unaffected by the events in the Forbidden Forest.

Looking out from within the castle, the Forbidden Forest appeared tranquil. The incidents took place deep within its boundaries, completely out of sight.

Brian removed his cloak and mask and set them ablaze.

"Alohomora. Lumos. Wingardium Leviosa…"

He continuously cast minor spells with his wand, reflecting on his actions from that night.

First, the witness points; this time he received 1.2 witness points, far less than he had anticipated.

[Witnessed and participated in the Forbidden Forest unicorn incident, witness points +0.6×2]

This brought his total to 2.1 witness points.

"Tonight's witness event is clearly not worth it," Brian frowned.

The situation had been quite perilous, and he had faced significant danger, yet the rewards were minimal.

Moreover, the emergence of the Killing Curse tonight significantly escalated the severity of the incident.

It remained to be seen if Dumbledore would delve into this matter thoroughly and cease ignoring Quirrell's actions.

"However, I've always concealed myself well," Brian pondered whether he had overlooked anything.

He hadn't revealed himself to anyone tonight, creating the impression that only Quirrell was present. Even during his later encounter with Hagrid and the others, he remained invisible, keeping his voice low and hoarse.

Hagrid and the others would naturally assume he was the one who killed the unicorn, particularly after Harry relayed the events.

The only one who might suspect there were two individuals present was Yaya the dog, but it was incapable of speaking.

"So, ultimately, all attention will be directed towards Quirrell," Brian thought, "If Dumbledore learns about this from Hagrid, he shouldn't deduce I was involved."

"He might have some doubts, but he wouldn't suspect me."

Brian cast various spells on nearby objects, his gaze deepening.

To avoid raising suspicion, he would need to cast more minor spells to obscure traces of the killing curse.

"But tonight was far too dangerous," Brian lowered his eyelids, "It conflicts with my goal of steady progress."

Reflecting back, if he were indeed exposed to Dumbledore, he wouldn't be in life-threatening danger, yet he would undoubtedly be under close scrutiny, complicating every action he took.

"Let's avoid such risks in the future." He decided, "I won't interfere with this school year's plot like this."

Next, Quirrell would attempt to obtain the Philosopher's Stone through the trapdoor but would be thwarted by the Erised mirror placed by Dumbledore, followed by interference from the group of heroes, potentially derailing Dumbledore's plans.

Brian had no intention of witnessing it; he didn't feel equipped to step in at this juncture. He was neither the hero nor someone capable of consistently turning danger into safety.

Overstepping would not only be perilous but could also spark suspicion and easily unravel the plot.

After packing his belongings and addressing the suspicions about the invisibility cloak, Brian returned to the dormitory.

Malfoy had not yet returned, and the snores from Crabbe and Goyle were quite loud. Brian lay back on the four-poster bed and closed his eyes.

"You never realize how despicable you can be, Brian," he scolded himself.

"But it's all for a higher purpose, isn't it?"

…

"Harry, do you think the one who killed the unicorn is... is the dark lord?" Ron asked awkwardly in the Gryffindor common room.

"That's right, Firenze the centaur told me that," Harry replied animatedly as he paced before the fireplace. "Snape is helping Voldemort acquire the Philosopher's Stone, trying to revive him."

"I thought Snape only wanted wealth or a long life; I didn't know he was looking to restore Voldemort and then kill me!" Harry spoke quickly. "By the way, there's also Walker; his dad is a Death Eater, so he's likely in on this too!"

"Can we please stop saying that name?" Ron lowered his voice.

"Harry, the dark lord fears Dumbledore. So, you should be safe," Hermione said, also anxious, attempting to reassure Harry.

"However, Firenze mentioned that there appears to be something more sinister behind Voldemort. He claimed to have seen a star that shouldn't exist; he wasn't sure if it was good or evil." Harry said, a bit bewildered by this revelation.

…

The next morning, Malfoy animatedly recounted his experience from the previous night. Despite the heavy dark circles under his eyes, he was quite lively.

The narrative was not without embellishments, but it was reasonable and believable. Brian would have easily bought it if he hadn't been there himself.

"… We found the unicorn's body deep in the Forbidden Forest; it had been slain," Malfoy said ominously. "That bat-like figure was hovering over it, drinking its blood; it had a pale complexion, greenish skin, fangs, and its eyes glowed with an evil red light!"

"Potter was so terrified he couldn't move... that monster was out to kill us; I cast a spell to block its attack and managed to escape its clutches…"

"Potter was trembling with fear; I was the one who drew the monster's attention so he could save himself!"

"… Later, I found Hagrid and the others, and we encountered that monster again; it cast the Killing Curse at us!" Malfoy shook as he recounted this. "I dodged, and that curse nearly struck me, just half a foot away!"

Crabbe and Goyle listened, visibly shivering.

*****

Tl/N: If you want to read more [20+Chapters] while supporting me ☺️, you can join me on patreon.com/EmptyThoughts ;Thanks