https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-168-Hogwarts-Live-Action-Challenge/12572541/
Chapter 169: Bowtruckles and Nightmares
Chapter 169: Bowtruckles and Nightmares
The long line inched forward, snaking slowly through the grounds. From above, it resembled a sluggish, writhing serpent.
At first, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were at the very back, but soon a dozen more students joined the queue behind them.
"It's almost dinnertime," Ron said hopefully, looking at the line stretching ahead of them. "Maybe everyone will go for dinner soon, and then it'll be our turn."
"I'm sure everyone else is hoping for the same thing," Harry replied.
Hermione anxiously bit her finger. "You know, Michael Corner said they've put some dangerous creatures in there... and some of Professor Sprout's plants too..."
"I should have reviewed 'One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi' and 'Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them' again before coming here... Why do we only have Care of Magical Creatures classes in our third year?"
"Probably because we're only ready to handle those dangerous creatures in our third year?" Harry suggested casually.
Hermione visibly became more anxious.
"Maybe we should step out of the line. I'm not very confident with my Shield Charm yet..."
"No way, that would be too embarrassing! Look, there are even first-year students ahead of us!" Ron disagreed.
At that moment, a Hufflepuff student standing in line behind them spoke up. "Is this your first time, Potter?"
Harry nodded.
The boy smiled. "Don't worry. The first level only has ordinary plants and creatures. As long as you're careful, even Muggles won't get hurt. It should be a piece of cake for you guys."
"Hey, there you are, Ron, Harry, and Hermione!"
Suddenly, a voice called out from above, and before Harry could turn around, he heard Ron's annoyed voice. "I've told you not to call me that, Fred!"
"When you can tell me apart from George, then I'll stop calling you by your nickname," said one of the red-haired twins.
Ron was left speechless.
After all these years, even his mother sometimes had trouble telling the two apart. How could he be expected to always get it right?
"George, what are you holding?" Hermione asked, changing the subject.
"Good question."
George was holding a large cage covered with a green cloth. Strange squeaking noises came from within, as if he were carrying a cage full of rats.
Excitedly, he reached into the cage and pulled out something thin and root-like, with a greenish hue. It had two small brown eyes and slender fingers that resembled vines.
"A Bowtruckle!" Hermione exclaimed. "I know it's a tree-guardian creature that loves wood lice."
"Well done, Hermione, but I can't give you any points for that," George said, winking.
He quickly scribbled "Hermione Granger" on a piece of parchment, then handed it to the Bowtruckle.
The little creature clasped the parchment and timidly climbed onto Hermione's shoulder, perching there.
Hermione eyed it cautiously. "...?"
The Bowtruckle looked back at her with eyes no bigger than sesame seeds, making it impossible to discern its emotions.
"Take good care of these little guys," George said as he distributed Bowtruckles to Harry and Ron as well. "They are carefully bred in Mr. Scamander's estate and are very intelligent. They'll be your scorers."
"Scorers?" Harry repeated, intrigued.
"Yeah!" George explained. "The professors can't follow each challenger to keep score, can they?"
He took a couple of steps away, then turned back. "By the way, in case you haven't heard—if your Bowtruckle dies during the challenge, all your points will be cleared, and it's uncertain if you'll be allowed to challenge again!"
"What?" Ron exclaimed in alarm, his voice rising. "But it's so weak!"
His Bowtruckle tugged at his hair irritably.
"That's what makes it the ultimate challenge!" George waved dismissively. "You understand, right? These intelligent Bowtruckles are a limited resource!"
With that, he moved on to distribute Bowtruckles to other first-time challengers. Harry, Ron, and Hermione exchanged glances, their faces filled with concern.
"If we encounter danger, we should cast Shield Charms on them first, right?" Hermione suggested.
Harry nodded silently.
Ron Weasley frowned, deep in thought. Harry had been teaching him the Iron Armor Charm, but Ron hadn't mastered it yet.
As they neared the entrance, Ron's eyes lit up as an idea struck him.
Bending down, he picked up a few nut shells from the ground and, using an imperfect Sticking Charm, glued them together to create a makeshift "armor" for his Bowtruckle.
"Hopefully, this will protect you. But you also have to take care of yourself and not worry me," Ron said solemnly as he outfitted the little creature with its new armor.
The Bowtruckle, named Grolli, tapped on the armor with its long fingers, seemingly unsure of the comfort of its new attire.
Finally, it was their turn to enter. Ron went first, followed by Harry, and then Hermione.
As Hermione stepped inside, she found that Harry and Ron, who had entered a few seconds earlier, were already out of sight.
"Okay, I guess that makes sense. Since they're letting us enter one by one, they probably won't let us gather together," she muttered to herself, trying to stay brave as she ventured forward.
"It's only the first level, it can't be that difficult. What do you think? Hmm... How about I call you Grolli? Do you like that name?"
The newly named Bowtruckle suddenly chirped and pointed with its hand to the side.
Hermione jumped in surprise and turned to see a snow-white rabbit.
"Oh—"
Her expression softened, and she slowly approached the rabbit, intending to pet it.
The little rabbit took a step back.
"Squeak—"
Grolli chirped again.
Hermione paused, suddenly realizing something. Just as she tried to back away, she found herself surrounded by seven or eight rabbits.
As she turned, the white rabbit leaped forward and rammed into her!
Within the maze, students' screams echoed from time to time.
Even the most ordinary animals could be startling when they displayed aggression.
For the time being, Victor Krum, acting as a patrol officer, rode on his Thestral, surveying the maze from above.
Ron was being chased by a flock of large geese, running for his life with his head down.
Hermione, after escaping the rabbits, found herself entangled with a group of monkeys. She could handle them, but her reactions were always a bit slow in the heat of the moment.
Harry, on the other hand, was doing quite well and had already entered the second circle, struggling to retrieve his glasses from a Sniffle.
With blurred vision, he stumbled and fell several times, looking a bit disheveled.
Neville Longbottom had finally found the passage from the outer layer to the second circle, but he accidentally triggered a trap and found himself hanging upside down. His luck stat had always been rather low.
Victor waited nearby for a while. Seeing that Neville wasn't giving up and was trying to cut the vines holding him with a Severing Charm, he decided to check on other students.
Theo Nott had just been sent out by a house-elf, while Leanne was still persevering in the third circle. Several auguries were chirping nearby, filling her with a sense of gloom and sadness, making her reluctant to move.
A Red Cap was stealthily approaching Leanne from behind. If she didn't snap out of her melancholy soon, she might be eliminated.
Noticing that a house-elf was already guarding the area, Victor turned his Thestral in another direction.
Padma Patil had just been scared out of the maze by a Boggart... Rolf Scamander had actually made it to the third circle, where most of the participants were third-year students and above...
Then it occurred to Victor that Rolf came from a family with a long magical heritage, so dealing with these magical creatures might be easier for him than for most students.
In fact, some of the creatures in the maze had originally come from the Scamander family's luggage-trunk, so Rolf, having been raised with them, had no fear of being harmed by these familiar beasts.
If it weren't for the various obstacles set up by Hogwarts within the maze, that little guy might have charged straight into the seventh circle!
Victor observed from above for a while and saw that Rolf was stuck trying to solve one of Professor Snape's riddles, unable to free himself for the time being. So, he continued to check on other students.
"Ahhhh—"
Suddenly, several screams pierced the air within the maze.
Victor was startled.
Without needing to be told, his Thestral swiftly flew toward the source of the screams.
"Bang!"
In the shocked gaze of several students, Harry flew backward, a spray of blood erupting from his chest!
What they couldn't see was a Thestral rearing up and stomping its hoof down on the boy lying on the ground!
(End of Chapter)
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