Chapter 86: Burning the Forbidden Forest
Chapter 86: Burning the Forbidden Forest
Sherlock led Harry and Ron back to Hagrid's hut.
He rekindled the stove, filled a kettle with some water, and placed it on the stove to boil.
Ron and Harry sat on the bench like obedient schoolchildren, while Sherlock lounged in Hagrid's single sofa, waving his wand to summon a plate of cookies that looked reasonably good. He calmly watched the two of them, munching on a cookie.
"Tell me, why did you run into the Forbidden Forest?"
Harry felt as if he were sitting on pins and needles, still hesitating about whether to tell the truth.
Sherlock didn't rush him, continuing to gnaw on the cookie.
It wasn't that he had any peculiar habits; it was just that when he put the cookie in his mouth, he realized that unless he had the jaw strength of a giant, he could only grind it down like stone.
Ron whispered.
"Maybe we should just tell Professor Forrest everything. He already knows Hagrid is innocent."
Harry finally made up his mind and told Sherlock everything about the Diary and Riddle.
From finding the diary on his desk, to talking with Riddle inside it, and being taken into his memories to witness what happened fifty years ago, Harry laid it all out.
As Sherlock listened, his face grew darker and darker. By the end, he threw the cookie aside and just stared at Harry.
After Harry finished recounting his experiences, he felt uncomfortable under Sherlock's gaze and asked nervously.
"Professor, why are you looking at me like that?"
"Did you say the diary's owner is Tom Riddle?" Sherlock asked grimly.
Harry nodded rapidly, like a chicken pecking at grain.
"And he talked to you and showed you Hagrid's experience fifty years ago?"
Harry continued nodding.
"And the diary was in your possession for several months, and then you lost it?"
Harry stopped nodding. He could sense Sherlock's growing anger and asked cautiously.
"Professor, is there something wrong with Riddle's diary?"
"Not only is there something wrong with the diary, but you three have a big problem as well!"
Sherlock's voice rose, and for the first time, he felt a strong urge to scold them.
"Why didn't you report what you learned about Hagrid from the diary to the school?"
Harry explained guiltily.
"We were afraid Hagrid would be misunderstood. We believed he wasn't the kind of person who would hurt anyone."
Sherlock was almost amused by their naivety.
"If you know Hagrid isn't that kind of person, Dumbledore and Mcgonagall, who have known Hagrid for over fifty years, would also know he isn't that kind of person. You're being too presumptuous and underestimating adults."
Harry and Ron exchanged glances, feeling both ashamed and confused.
They knew it was wrong not to report to the school, but they didn't understand why Sherlock was so angry.
Sherlock was frustrated. If Harry had turned in the diary after finding it, none of this trouble would have happened.
But then again, if Harry and his friends were such well-behaved children, they wouldn't be the protagonists of this world.
He sighed, calmed down, and waved his hand at them.
"The real culprit behind the opening of the Chamber of Secrets isn't a Hogwarts student. It's that diary. The student named Tom Riddle inside it is the Heir of Slytherin. Fifty years ago, he was the one who framed Hagrid."
Harry and Ron stared with eyes as wide as cowbells.
Neither of them had ever imagined that the diary was the mastermind behind everything, and it had been in their possession for two whole months!
Upon reflecting on past events, they could indeed find some unusual signs from the clues.
While the Diary was in Harry's possession, there were no more attacks in the castle.
But as soon as the Diary disappeared, the attacks resumed, which clearly pointed to a problem.
Harry and Ron felt terrible.
They had had the chance to prevent all of this, as Hermione had already suggested they turn the diary over to the teachers, but they hadn't listened to her.
In a sense, it was their fault that Hermione had been petrified and was now in her current state.
Sherlock shook his head.
"It's too late to talk about this now. Hogwarts is about to close, and that might not be the worst solution. Come on, I'll take you back to the castle."
Harry and Ron walked back to the castle, heads hanging low, under Sherlock's escort.
Meanwhile, deep in the Forbidden Forest, at the spot where Sherlock had set the fire, the Centaurs had already sensed the commotion and gathered by the inferno.
"We must organize a firefighting effort! The wind is blowing the fire towards our territory, and if we don't take action, it will reach our tribe by nightfall!"
Firenze, a rare Centaur with strikingly blue eyes and white-gold hair, was organizing his people to fight the fire.
Bane, another Centaur with a wild and proud appearance, a beard, and black, shaggy fur, fumed beside him.
"Who did this! Winter isn't even over, and the Forbidden Forest is full of dry branches. He's trying to burn the entire forest to the ground!"
It wasn't an exaggeration to say that the fire would burn the entire Forbidden Forest.
Compared to when Sherlock left, the flames had now spread over a hundred meters, igniting everything in their path!
The wind was strong tonight, and the fire was spreading rapidly. Even if the Centaurs tried to organize a firefighting effort, their numbers and abilities were insufficient to extinguish the blaze.
Firenze looked at the raging inferno and shook his head in pain.
"There's no point in fighting the fire. We must immediately organize the evacuation of our tribe. We have to leave; we can't put out this fire on our own."
Bane, agitated, stomped on the leaves with his hooves. Just as they were about to lead their people to safety, the wind suddenly stopped!
The strong wind gradually ceased, and both Firenze and Bane's eyes lit up with hope.
The wind stopping meant the fire wouldn't spread further, giving them a chance to fight it!
However, before they could reorganize their people to fight the fire, an even stronger wind started blowing again!
This time, the wind direction changed, sweeping in the opposite direction and carrying an even more intense inferno towards another area.
Bane stared in amazement at the miraculous sight.
"Maybe we don't need to evacuate our tribe?"
Firenze, however, looked up at the sky with shock, then turned his gaze to where the fire was now spreading.
"The constellations have changed. We are safe, but according to the direction of the fire, all the spiders will be burned alive!"
(End of Chapter)
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