CHAPTER 55
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CHAPTER 55
After a few days of recovery, all of them had healed. Elmi was still a bit angry at Harry. After the dinner, as Elmi was leaving the Great Hall, Harry called out to him.
"Elmi, wait!"
Elmi turned and looked at him, and his dissatisfaction was visible on his face. Harry was stunned. Elmi had never looked at him this way. Harry was used to Elmi's caring and friendly gaze. He didn't know what to say, and an awkward silence fell between them for a while.
" Are you still angry?"
" What do you think?"
Harry looked sad. Elmi sighed and said,
"Do you even know why I am angry at you?"
Harry nodded and said,
"Because I didn't believe you fully and didn't do what you told me."
Elmi looked angrier and pulled Harry into a corner where there was nobody and, with a disappointed voice,
"You couldn't be further from the truth. The things I have told you guys are a bitter pill to swallow; I would have understood it if you had told me so, but you lied to me, and because I trusted that lie, people almost died."
Elmi held him by his shoulders and shook him.
"Our friends could have died, Harry, just because you didn't have the guts to say you didn't fully believe me and didn't want to feel awkward with a Professor by touching his face."
Elmi released a sigh,
"But you taught me something valuable; I should always be ready for a fuck up."
Elmi turned around and started to leave, but he shook his head and turned back. Come next to Harry and say,
"If you were truthful with me, I would have made a different plan; I would have made it so McGonagall or Snape was in the room. I am angry at you, but I am angry at myself, too. I acted arrogant and recklessly, thinking everything would go as I wanted since I could see some glimpses from the future, but I learned I should be..."
An awkward silence fell between them. Elmi sighed and said,
"You should have been open with me, Harry. That is what friends do; I tell you everything."
...
The courtyard lay shrouded with darkness, its cobblestone paths illuminated by the soft flicker of torchlight along the archways. The crisp winter air cut through Elmi's senses, the cold both biting and invigorating. With only two weeks remaining until the end of the first semester, the castle walls seemed to echo with the anticipation of approaching exams and the promise of the holiday break.
Reaching into his enchanted bag, Elmi retrieved the cloak of invisibility, a borrowed artifact from Harry that he had yet to return. A lingering sense of frustration towards Harry fueled his decision to keep it a little longer; he was not going to give it back until Harry asked it back.
As he wrapped the cloak around himself, concealing his form from prying eyes, Elmi slipped into the comforting anonymity it provided. With cautious steps, he veered away from the well-trodden paths, drawn towards the shadows of the Forbidden Forest.
Towering trees with twisted branches loomed overhead, their gnarled silhouettes creating an intricate web against the starlit sky. Faint glimmers of moonlight filtered through the dense canopy, casting a mystical glow on the underbrush below.
Usually, he wouldn't dare enter the forest at night, but after some talks with Hagrid, he learned about some relatively safe spots at the edge of the forest. When he remembered his talks with Hagrid, he smiled. The goofy half-giant had a heart of gold, but that guy couldn't keep anything secret. When he feels safe, every other word that leaves his mouth is something he should say.
...
A WEEK AGO
In the beginning, Hagrid's skepticism toward Slytherins was evident. He had experienced years of mistrust and maltreatment, fostering a deep-rooted wariness toward students from the cunning house. Elmi couldn't blame him; Slytherin's reputation had been tarnished through the ages, leaving Hagrid with understandable reservations.
As Elmi spent more time in Hagrid's company, he worked hard to prove himself different from the stereotypes associated with Slytherins. There were moments of awkward silence and cautious glances, but slowly, Hagrid started to see beyond the green-trimmed robe.
Hagrid's eyes would glow with enthusiasm whenever they talked about the magical creatures. Elmi, sitting across from Hagrid, extended a steaming mug toward him.
"Here you go, Hagrid. Freshly brewed hot cocoa. The perfect drink for a chilly night."
Hagrid's eyes glowed with a childish fever, and he licked his lips,
"Well, I suppose a bit of warmth won't hurt."
"You know, Hagrid, I've always been fascinated by the creatures living in the Forbidden Forest. Do you have any stories you haven't shared yet?"
With a glint of enthusiasm in his eyes, Hagrid began recounting tales of encounters with magical beasts.
The conversations flowed. Naturally, Elmi's genuine interest and respect for Hagrid emboldened him, and he started to talk about all the beasts in the forest, where they lived, how many were there, their territory, habits, etc. Elmi was taking a mental note about everything.
...
This part of the forest was the safest for the same reason as the woodland next to their house. The biggest centaur population in England lived in this forest, but on top of it, there was a thestral herd, too. Humans were not the only ones who felt uncomfortable next to these beasts. Even the other animals didn't want to live next to these beasts.
Since he had witnessed the death of those Brazilian dark wizards, he was able to see them. Those reptilian-looking skeletal winged horses, contrary to their looks, had a really gentle nature. But when Elmi saw them, he managed to understand why other animals had an aversion to them.
Around the animals was a black and dark amethyst aura around them. This aura was so familiar to Elmi; he had felt something similar to this aura just several days ago when he looked at the cloak of invisibility for the first time.
Thestrals were hidden with the same power of death. Their invisibilities were coming from something similar, and seeing this made Elmi believe the Peverell brothers' story even more. But there was one difference: Thestral's invisibility had some black aura in it. It was not purely made out of death.
Thanks to the Lore of Death, Elmi became familiar with it, too. Other than collecting alchemical ingredients, this was the main reason he was here. Most of his Lore of Death spells had an aspect of fear in them, and he couldn't train that in the Room of Requirement since it couldn't summon anything alive.
Lore of Death had given him something unique; he looked into his shirt. On his chest, right on top of his heart, was a tattoo. Right now, it is not visible. It only became visible when he cast spells. From the information he received in his dream, he knew what this enchantment did; it was called Life Leeching: Whenever Elmi cast a spell, this enchantment slightly boosted his stamina by absorbing the life force around him.
This way, he could release one or two more winds of magic spells before he was exhausted. Elmi slowly approached a hive of pixies; he needed their pixie dust but didn't want to kill them. So, one of his new spells was perfect for this. He raised his hand and held it towards the pixies.
"Tenebrae Trepidatio"
Suddenly, black and amethyst ghostly apparitions appeared around one of the pixies. They passed through its tiny body. The spirits sapped the pixie's resolve, causing a sense of impending doom and terror. The beast was frozen with fear, stopped flipping its wings, and fell to the ground. It was shaking with terror but could not move.
When Elmi cast his spell like a hornet's nest, the rest of the pities started to fly around and attack him. Elmi used his shield spell, which was powerful against physical attacks. The pixies charged at him, but they bounced back from his shield like small pebbles. Elmi continued to cast the fear spell, and pixies dropped like flies. He took out a container from his magic bag and started shaking the pixies, collecting their dust.