Chapter 360: Return to Hogwarts
Chapter 360: Return to Hogwarts
The next morning, after having breakfast, Ivan took Hermione out to prepare for their return to Hogwarts.
Before leaving, Ivan turned around and said to Aisha and the others who had come to see him off.
"Mom, Dean Dought, I'll be heading back to school! And Fleur, Walker, remember to write to me if anything happens!"
The group of Werewolf Wizards all patted their chests, promising Ivan that they would handle any trouble that came their way, so he could rest assured.
Ivan nodded. A group of Werewolf Wizards who could transform at will was a formidable force in Knockturn Alley, capable of dealing with most problems.
Moreover, with Brock dead and the remaining Dark Wizards eliminated, no one in Knockturn Alley would deliberately target Aisha.
With this thought, Ivan felt no lingering concerns and turned to Hermione.
"Let's go, Hermione!"
"Okay!" Hermione replied, tightly gripping Ivan's wrist.
"Apparition!"
Ivan cast the spell, waving his Wand. With a swirl of light, the two figures were sucked into a vortex and vanished from everyone's sight.
Hermione felt a dizzying sensation. When she opened her eyes, she found herself in a strange forest. In the distance, she could see an old-fashioned station, which seemed familiar—it was the Wizarding station where they boarded the train to Hogwarts every year.
"Where are we? Aren't we going to Hogwarts?" the young witch asked, puzzled.
"Hogwarts is protected by anti-Apparition magic, so we can't go there directly. Besides, we need to bring a large creature back with us, if it's still here", Ivan explained, looking around and sensing the tracking magic he had set up.
Since it had been two months, Ivan found that the magic he had set up was quite faint, only allowing him to sense the general direction. In another day or two, the magic would likely fail completely.
Hermione was still confused and about to ask more when Ivan suddenly looked up and said, "It's here!"
Who? Who is here? Hermione followed Ivan's gaze and her eyes widened in surprise.
A large reddish-brown creature with wide wings was soaring down towards them, its beautiful feathers shimmering in the sunlight, making it look incredibly striking.
"Is that the Thestral? But how did it get here?" Hermione's brown eyes were filled with astonishment. She quickly recognized that this large creature was likely the same one she had seen in Hagrid's Care of Magical Creatures class.
"Of course, I brought it from the Forbidden Forest, so now we have to take it back with us!" Ivan smiled.
While they were talking, the reddish-brown Thestral had already landed in front of Ivan, lowering its large head to nuzzle his cheek and sniffing around his Wizard's robe pocket.
"Good boy, looks like you have a good memory!" Ivan stroked the Thestral's large head but then noticed its actions and said with a hint of exasperation, "Don't look for it, I didn't bring the Elixir of Life this time."
Perhaps understanding Ivan's words, the reddish-brown giant lifted its head, its eyes showing disappointment. However, its attention was soon drawn to Hermione, and it looked at her with a slight wariness.
Noticing the Thestral's fondness for Ivan, the clever young witch quickly understood that Ivan had already tamed the giant creature.
No wonder it approached him voluntarily during the Care of Magical Creatures class.
"Are we going to ride it back to Hogwarts this time?" Hermione was a bit worried; she had never tried riding a Thestral to school before.
"Yes! But first, you need to gain its approval", Ivan said with a smile. "You shouldn't have forgotten what Hagrid taught us in class, right?"
"Of course! I need to bow to it and wait for its response. During this process, I need to keep staring into the Thestral's eyes, which helps gain their trust", Hermione recited the instructions Hagrid had given in class, but she still felt nervous when facing the giant creature.
She suddenly remembered that the creature didn't seem to like her during Hagrid's class, so she was worried she wouldn't be able to gain the Thestral's approval.
However, encouraged by Ivan's supportive gaze, Hermione steadied herself and fixed her gaze on the red-brown giant creature's eyes, bowing down.
The Thestral snorted and occasionally let out a sharp eagle-like cry, scrutinizing the small witch before it, reluctant to lower its proud head.
Hermione didn't give up. She kept her eyes, which were starting to feel sore, fixed on the creature and bowed again.
Perhaps sensing Hermione's sincerity, the Thestral's attitude softened. With Ivan calming it from the side, it soon bent its scaly front knee and bowed to Hermione.
The young witch was overjoyed. She cautiously approached a few steps, and seeing that the Thestral didn't react aggressively, she reached out to stroke its red-brown feathers.
The Thestral responded positively, enjoying Hermione's touch and even licking her palm with its tongue.
Seeing the Thestral and Hermione getting so close, Ivan was somewhat surprised.
He also remembered that the red-brown giant creature wasn't friendly to Hermione during the Care of Magical Creatures class, so Ivan had even prepared to soothe the Thestral himself, allowing it to temporarily permit Hermione to ride with him.
Just like how Harry, in the original timeline, could carry Hermione and Sirius while riding the Thestral.
However, things went more smoothly than he had expected, or perhaps it was more surprising than he had anticipated.
"Get on!" Ivan didn't think too much about it, quickly leaping onto the Thestral's back and then reaching out to pull Hermione up, letting her sit in front of him.
Once the young witch was settled, the Thestral, with a keen sense of awareness, flapped its wings, stirring up a cloud of dust, and soared straight into the sky!
Hermione was startled, clutching the feathers on the Thestral's back. This was her first time riding such a giant creature. During the class, because of Malfoy, she didn't get the chance to ride a Thestral and fly around like the others.
(End of Chapter)
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