Author's Note: Many readers were complaining that these chapters were weird and confusing so iam rewriting these chapters. if you find some mistakes please comment them.
Although they knew there were two people on their side, although they knew all the members of the Gryffindor Quidditch team were nearby, when Bryan's dreadful gaze pierced in their direction, Henry and Grace still shuddered in unison. It was as if a full-grown Hungarian Horntail had opened its gaping maw towards them, ready to choose and devour!
"Henry~"
Grace gripped her boyfriend's wrist tightly, her voice trembling.
"Are you sure he's just an odd Slytherin bookworm, Henry? Why do I find his gaze so terrifying, a bit like the crazed hippogriff Professor Kettleburn showed us last week?"
"Don't talk nonsense, Grace. We're Gryffindors—the House of Courage!"
Henry inwardly agreed with Grace's assessment. Just a moment ago, when his eyes met Watson's, if Grace hadn't been hiding in his embrace, he might have turned and fled.
But a man's dignity compelled him to stand firm.
"Hey, bad boy Watson, don't look at us like that. You brought this upon yourself. Who told you to sneak into the Forbidden Forest in the dead of night to cast dark curses on someone... Wait, what are you doing?!"
Whoosh!
Magic power raged as the scattered flames on the mud, tree trunks, and stones united at the tip of Bryan's wand into a tangible golden fireball, like a blinding sun rising above the night-cloaked sea.
The terrifying heat rapidly vaporized the moisture in the damp, cold air before spreading outward. A pine tree near Bryan combusted, and the two young wizards dozens of feet away instantly broke into a sweat, as if standing at the mouth of an erupting volcano!
"No, no, please don't, Bryan. We didn't mean to..."
Fear caused two lines of tears to stream down Grace's beautiful face. She was completely unaware of what she was saying, merely pleading instinctively.
Henry also raised his wand, but he knew full well that his dubious Shield Charm could never withstand the ferocious golden blaze at Bryan's wand tip.
"Get on your broom and run!"
At the very moment Bryan's ashen face swung his wand down, Henry finally mustered a shred of courage. He threw all his might into hurling Grace and her Cleansweep-five backwards, letting out a heart-wrenching roar,
"Find Professor McGonagall! Don't look back!"
Henry might never know that it was the brief flicker of humanity in the face of death that saved him.
Witnessing this scene, Bryan's resentful gaze wavered for an instant. The next second, his steady wrist abruptly lowered slightly, and the fireball that would have landed at his feet instead struck the ground ten feet away with a thunderous boom!
Kaboom!
Like the brilliant flash of a supernova at the end of its life, the fireball brimming with terrifying magic power instantly turned the cracked earth into molten lava upon impact.
The scorching air violently displaced erupted in a deafening roar, like a pressure cooker suddenly bursting open. Henry's Shield Charm shattered in less than a second. He didn't even have time to scream before the overwhelming shockwave blasted him away. There was a sickening crack as he collided with a tree trunk-thick tree, then tumbled dozens of feet before finally stopping, his back a bloody mess!
Grace suffered relatively lighter injuries, as Henry had shielded her from much of the blast. Nevertheless, the powerful wave still flung her over ten feet away.
Standing behind an ivory magical barrier unscathed, Bryan glared darkly at the battered and wailing Grace as she scrambled onto her broomstick, not even bothering to extinguish the flames on her robes before bolting towards the castle. Ultimately, he did not attack again.
The surroundings were in utter chaos. Without magical sustenance, the special fire stubbornly devoured the ravaged world.
Crunch, crunch...
Bryan stepped through the scorched earth, approaching Henry's side and looking down at the horrifying wounds on his back with no change in expression.
Of course, Henry wasn't dead. Bryan had no desire to go to Azkaban for further studies, at least not yet.
"I was about to let you taste the agony of dismemberment," Bryan said emotionlessly. "To teach you a lesson. But your final bravery has earned you some dignity."
From a pouch, Bryan retrieved a bottle of dittany along with several colorful, enigmatic potions. Mixing them in proportion, he poured the concoction over Henry's back and, with a wave of his wand, the torn flesh pulsed as new skin rapidly grew over the wounds.
Henry's pallid face regained some color, though several ribs remained unnaturally bent. Bryan did not treat the broken bones—those minor injuries would be easy for Madam Pomfrey to fix.
"I should have known better than to think we'd be safe even at school—"
Swish, swish, swish!
Suddenly, several piercing sounds rent the air from deep within the Forbidden Forest. As they drew closer, they split off, surrounding Bryan from all sides as five shadowy figures gradually emerged through the billowing mist.
Bryan did not seem surprised. As soon as he saw Henry and Grace's Gryffindor Quidditch robes, he knew they would not be acting alone.
However, when one short, stocky silhouette came into focus, Bryan could not help his mouth twitch involuntarily.
Charlie Weasley—Bill Weasley's younger brother, the second-eldest Weasley son, Gryffindor's genius Seeker. Dangling from his broomstick was a spider the size of a car, simultaneously petrified by at least three Stunning Spells!
Bryan had no idea the Forbidden Forest even housed Acromantulas. These Gryffindor lions certainly knew how to have fun!
With a Seeker's keen eyes, Charlie immediately noticed Henry lying at Watson's feet. Despite his youthful age, Charlie remained composed, not demanding answers hastily. Mounted high on his broom, he surveyed the daunting devastation, inhaling sharply when he saw the nearly three-foot-deep, still-smoldering crater before Bryan.
"Where is Grace, Watson?" Charlie's voice was as weathered as his appearance.
"Perhaps she has already become one with the earth," Bryan calmly replied. "You're welcome to search and see if you can dig up a few fingernail shards."
"You killed Grace?!" One of the Gryffindor players roared in disbelief. "And Henry, where are his clothes? What did you do to him?!"
A torrent of outraged shouts poured forth as they all raised their wands at Bryan, some even calling to have him sent to Azkaban.
Indeed, Charlie Weasley possessed a leadership quality beyond his years. Among this group, he was the youngest yet most level-headed. He did not believe Bryan would actually kill Grace unless he truly wished to go to wizarding prison. However, Henry's severe injuries were undeniable, and ensuring his safety was the top priority.
Charlie severed the ropes holding the Acromantula with his wand, maneuvering his broom in the air as he said gravely,
"Hand Henry over to us, Watson, or you may be in for a rough time."
Assessing situations and weighing pros and cons is not something a group of Gryffindor wizards in their teens excels at. If they were of Slytherin heritage, they would likely have reacted with much more restraint and decorum upon witnessing the ravaged and battered state of the Forbidden Forest around them.
"Stop wasting words on him, Charlie! We'll cover you - go save Priam!"
A Gryffindor player mounted on a Comet-series broomstick shouted from above and to Bryan' left, before resolutely flinging a vibrant red spell his way.
The Gryffindor Quidditch team members indeed acted in excellent coordination. That Stunning Spell seemed to be an attack signal, and apart from Charlie, the three other players immediately responded upon receiving it.
To maximally confuse Bryan, they constantly switched positions mid-air on their broomsticks, their shadowy forms weaving an intricate net over his head, intermittently casting Stunning Spells and Body-Bind Curses.
Truth be told, Bryan had originally intended to return Priam to them and had no plans to engage them.
Grace had already gone to fetch help from the castle. The professors would soon learn that students were dueling in the Forbidden Forest. Point deductions and detentions would be unavoidable punishments, but Bryan hoped the detention duration would be relatively short - he certainly did not wish to remain in Snape's office until next Christmas.
However, since the Gryffindors struck first, defending himself through retaliation posed no issue; in fact, it was a welcome outlet for his vexation.
With a flick of his wand, a swirling vortex of intertwined silver and black magical energy materialized before Bryan, its center an indented, unfathomably deep black hole.
Akin to the mythical Charybdis Maelstrom of Greek lore, it hovered by his side, automatically rising to meet and effortlessly devour any spells cast its way from any direction, without need for wand control.
"What sort of magic is that?"
The Gryffindor team tried valiantly - simultaneously attacking from multiple angles or focusing their efforts to breach the vortex - but to no avail.
"I don't know, but it looks like Dark magic!" another yelled in response.
Charlie Weasley knew he had to act; he could not simply stand idly by any longer.
As the prodigious Seeker discovered by Gryffindor House, Charlie's flying skills truly surpassed others by a whole tier. He flitted like an ethereal ghost, briefly lingering in one spot before reappearing elsewhere in a blink.
Moreover, his spellcasting prowess was impressive. Under such high-speed motion, accurately aiming each spell at Bryan was no easy feat - even young Professor Flitwick might not have managed such agility.
Alas, that did not mean he could penetrate Bryan' defenses.
Deep into the night, Bryan unexpectedly enjoyed a high-difficulty aerial display in the Forbidden Forest. Those breathtaking flying techniques awed even Bryan, who lacked much Quidditch enthusiasm. No wonder the Slytherin team had been trounced by Gryffindor's last year.
"You measly worm, will you only cower behind that thing and not come out?"
Unable to overcome his defenses for long, the Gryffindor took to taunting.
"Perhaps we should try a different approach!"
Seeing his Disarming Charm fail again, a panting Charlie hovered, scanning left and right before immediately realizing.
"Fly higher, everyone! Watch out for the Acromantula's venom burning through your robes - Immobulus!"
Everyone, Bryan included, understood Charlie's intention. He immediately turned towards the Acromantula, witnessing Charlie's wand beam strike its hairy, densely-covered legs.
Clack, clack, clack!
Regaining mobility, the spider instantly brandished its two massive, glistening black pincers, emitting an enraged hiss at the wizards before it.
The eight-legged Acromantula, having been toyed with by Charlie and his friends, shook its grotesque head frantically, blinking its emerald compound eyes. In its senses, the buzzing, erratically flying red gnats above and the small wizards not far from it on the ground were in cahoots!
Crack!
The eight-legged spider moved astoundingly swiftly, its massive body's forceful charge effortlessly shattering several trees as thick as bowl-rims.
Bryan arched a brow. He knew about Acromantulas - the venom of these magical creatures was incredibly precious, a single ounce fetching a hundred Galleons. Granted, this particular spider seemed too young, unlikely containing enough venom.
Still, even that was significant, and Bryan had no wasteful habits.
Seeing Bryan unmoving against the spider, worry flickered across Charlie's weathered face. He feared Bryan might have been paralyzed by the terrifying beast. Just as he prepared to caution him, Bryan abruptly raised his arm, wand pointed at the leaping Acromantula mid-pounce.
"Reducio!"
The Acromantula's massive body instantly froze mid-air, its eight eyes simultaneously betraying bewilderment. Before it could react, its surroundings rapidly warped in its vision, and it found itself uncontrollably flying into a glass jar.
"Thank you for this gift," Bryan raised his head after securing the jar with defensive enchantments. "I quite like it."
Gripping his upright wand like a mallet, he sighed, "I'll likely have much trouble to deal with next, so let's quickly end this sorry state and return to the castle. If all goes well, I might even squeeze in half an hour's nap back in the dorms."
"Dream on, Watson! You actually want to sleep?"
The first Gryffindor attacker snapped out of his daze over Bryan' nonchalant subduing of the Acromantula, baring his teeth menacingly, "The Dementors will entertain you thoroughly!"
"The winds are strong up there. I suggest you don't fly too high, or the fall will be quite painful," Bryan disregarded the threat, looking towards Charlie instead. "What did you intend?"
Heeding the warning, Charlie warily raised his wand to his chest, gripping his broomstick tightly, prepared to evade at any moment.
However, Bryan did not cast any spells. Instead, he swung his wand like a mallet, forcefully striking the empty space before him!
Buzz!
With that strike, a violent storm erupted in the invisible realm, magical energy rippling outwards in intense waves from Bryan' impact point like a once-placid surface disturbed by a falling stone.
Bam! Bam! Bam!
The Gryffindors, swept over by the chaotic magical forces, unceremoniously plummeted from their broomsticks like dumplings, each knocked out cold after a few heavy thumps.
"I warned you that it would come to this... Oh, it's never-ending,"
Bryan muttered turning towards the castle, where a concerned Bill Weasley rapidly approached from beyond the Forest's boundary on Grace's broomstick.