Many Thanks to Crimson for becoming a Patron!♥♥
__________
The Slytherin senior, Eirene, led the way, with Eda following dazedly behind her.
They crossed a large stretch of grass and approached the Forbidden Forest.
The lights in Hagrid's hut were still on, and Eda desperately wanted to break free from the control, but for now, she was powerless against the Imperius Curse.
Eda couldn't make any sound or movement; she could only act according to Eirene's commands.
As the lights from the hut gradually disappeared, they entered the Forbidden Forest.
The two did not linger at the edge of the forest; they continued walking deep into the Forbidden Forest. No animals approached them, and there wasn't even a single insect on the ground.
The figure leading Eda stopped walking. Her originally petite frame suddenly began to grow taller, and the robes she was wearing became ill-fitting. Her light-colored long hair also began to darken and shorten.
In just a moment, the Slytherin senior was gone, replaced by a burly man dressed in Hogwarts robes.
"..."
Unfortunately, the only witness to this dramatic transformation was Eda, and she couldn't even clap or cheer.
The fake senior, now a real brute, turned to look at Eda. He was none other than Benedict Fawley, the former Defense Against the Dark Arts professor who had left the school long ago!
Fawley walked behind a tree to change his clothes, muttering to himself, "The duration of Polyjuice Potion is still hard to control. Potions are as irritating as Snape."
After changing his clothes, Fawley emerged from behind the tree, holding Eda's wand in his right hand, tapping it against his left palm. He walked up to Eda and said, "Today, I'll send you on your way. This is the greatest honor of your life."
Fawley lightly tapped Eda's face with the wand and continued, "I originally thought of throwing you into the Acromantula nest; they'd leave nothing of you behind. But that would be too cruel, and I'm such a merciful person, aren't I? It's better to kill you first, then do it."
Fawley flashed a sinister smile, raising his wand and beginning to chant, "Avada—Augh!"
But before he could finish the incantation, Eda, who had been standing motionless like a wooden post, suddenly kicked him in the abdomen.
The sudden pain interrupted Fawley, causing him not only to stop mid-curse but also to double over in pain, bending like a shrimp.
Breaking free from the Imperius Curse, Eda launched herself at Fawley with a rocket-like headbutt, slamming into him with full force. The impact caused Fawley to drop his wand.
Eda knew she couldn't handle Fawley the same way she had dealt with Avery. That approach wouldn't work here. She wasn't a battle mage with both strength and speed; trying to engage in hand-to-hand combat with an adult man would be a foolish move. She might be reckless, but she wasn't stupid.
Quickly grabbing the wand from the ground, Eda cast a Stunning Spell and immediately turned to run, not waiting to see if the spell had hit Fawley.
Fawley, who had been knocked to the ground by the unexpected attack, instinctively dodged Eda's Stunning Spell in the first moment. His ability to react swiftly to danger was a testament to his combat instincts and experience.
Furious, Fawley drew his own wand, ready to retaliate. He was enraged now!
"Crucio!" he shouted angrily, his desire to kill Eda no longer enough to quench his wrath.
But the Cruciatus Curse missed Eda, who had begun zigzagging to avoid being hit. As she fled, Eda had immediately abandoned running in a straight line, opting for a serpentine path to make herself a harder target for the enraged Fawley behind her.
Curse after curse struck the ground near Eda, with Fawley relentlessly closing in on her.
"Run, keep running!" Fawley roared behind her, his voice dripping with malice. "I'll make sure to torture you thoroughly before tossing you into the spider's lair, watching you become their dinner!"
"Stupefy! Confringo!" Eda yelled as she ran, turning back to fire off spells in retaliation. This frantic, defensive mode seemed to have become her new normal.
But these spells were no real trouble for Fawley; he easily deflected them with a wave of his wand. "Running is useless, Twist. You won't escape!" he shouted.
Despite Eda's efforts to put some distance between them, Fawley was steadily closing the gap.
"Why are you running? Weren't you pretty capable when you were in the castle?" Fawley taunted. "If that foolish girl, Eirene, had been in your place, you would have succeeded by now!"
Though Eda's earlier attack had angered Fawley, during the chase, he forced himself to calm down. He didn't mind letting Eda live a little longer; after all, the prey couldn't escape the net.
After running for a while, Eda finally stopped, panting heavily as she hid behind a thick tree, trying to catch her breath and steady herself.
It wasn't that she couldn't run anymore and had decided to give up; it was that she realized she had been running in circles the whole time...
Everything around her looked familiar—she hadn't left the area at all.
She was trapped.
At first, Eda thought the lack of distance between them was because she hadn't been running in a straight line. But after a while, she noticed something strange: no matter how far she ran, she was always circling back near Fawley.
Behind her, Fawley was pursuing her at a leisurely pace, more like a cat toying with a mouse. Gasping for breath, Eda hid behind the tree, knowing she needed to regroup and prepare for one final attempt.
"Why did you stop running? Maybe if you ran a little faster, you'd actually escape," Fawley taunted, his voice dripping with mockery.
Nonsense!
Eda didn't believe a word of Fawley's lies. After causing such a commotion in the castle and now finding herself trapped as if in some kind of cursed loop, there was no way she could escape. If she could, Fawley might as well slit his own throat.
"It seems you've finally figured it out. You're not as dumb as I thought," Fawley sneered as he saw Eda stop running. He slowed his pace, approaching the spot where she was hiding.
He cast a spell, deliberately aiming it next to the tree she was hiding behind, as if he were merely toying with her.
"I have a bit of talent for Banishing Charms," Fawley said, his voice laced with arrogance. "And I'm quite skilled at trapping people. So, you won't escape, and no one will come here to interrupt me. You're as good as dead."
From behind the tree, Eda broke her silence, her voice laced with sarcasm. "Professor Fawley, you sure are impressive. Going to all this trouble just to trap a first-year student."
"A first-year student? You're being modest," Fawley replied, taking another step closer to her hiding place. "What first-year student can master Occlumency? Who can render my Legilimency completely useless? What first-year can cast so many spells so proficiently? And who can break free from the Imperius Curse so easily?"
"Maybe I'm just naturally gifted?" Eda quipped, trying to find humor in her dire situation.
"You are indeed talented, but you don't deserve such talent!" Fawley's voice suddenly boomed with anger. "Avada Kedavra!"
Fawley cast the Killing Curse directly at the tree where Eda was hiding.
The powerful curse drained the life from the sturdy tree instantly, causing its withered leaves to cascade to the ground.
"Expelliarmus!" Eda shouted, as she dashed toward another tree, casting a Disarming Charm as she moved. "Since I can't escape, Professor, at least grant me the courtesy of knowing why I'm going to die."
Fawley watched as Eda hid behind another tree, laughing loudly. "Do you really think that by changing your path, you can avoid my sight? Once or twice might have been a coincidence, but you were foolish enough to retrace my steps!"
"Was it you who trespassed into the Forbidden Forest earlier, Professor Fawley?" Eda asked.
"Indeed," Fawley replied, his tone dripping with disdain. "That barbarian Hagrid thought he could catch me. Ridiculous."
"And the thefts from all four houses—was that your doing too?"
"It was. That wasn't difficult."
Eda thought for a moment, then continued her questioning. "What about Daniel Bell?"
"Who?" Fawley seemed momentarily confused before recalling, "Oh, him. Yes, that was me."
"Why?" Eda was frustrated by Fawley's half-answers. "I'm going to die anyway. Can't you satisfy my curiosity?"
"Very well, after all, I am so merciful," Fawley said, his tone dripping with mockery. "I simply wanted him to assist me with something, but he had the audacity to resist my control. Naturally, he needed to be taught a lesson."
Fawley's nonchalant attitude infuriated Eda.
She had just been under the Imperius Curse herself, and the feeling of being completely powerless was terrifying. It was no wonder the Unforgivable Curses were named as such—the people who used them were truly unforgivable.
"So you turned him into that state?"
"I merely rewarded his bravery with the Cruciatus Curse. I didn't expect him to be so fragile."
Fawley paused, then continued, "In a little while, I'll reward you with the Cruciatus Curse as well. I hope you can endure it longer than that little crybaby who only knew how to call for his mother!"
With every answer, Fawley fired a spell at the tree where Eda was hiding, taunting her with his cruel game.
"One last question," Eda called out. "If you had already left, why did you come back? And why target me?"
_______
Read 12 Chaps ahead
Patreon.com/Dragonel