A magical journey that begins at Hogwarts

Besides, we've both warned him; if he still insists on his own way, he's only asking for it.

"But...we have to give it a try!"

"Go for it! I believe in you!"

Hermione's lips twitched slightly. Although she had prepared herself mentally before coming, she still couldn't help but feel disappointed when she was rejected. However, Aaron's next words swept away most of the gloom in her heart.

"However, I will try my best to help him, after all, I don't like owing people things."

......

On Tuesday, during the Magical Creatures Protection class, Hagrid arrived at the students carrying half a dead cow, but Professor Grapland was nowhere to be seen.

Students who liked Hagrid cheered enthusiastically, while some students were very disappointed.

After all, in their eyes, Professor Grapland was a truly dedicated and responsible teacher, and most importantly, there was no danger in her class.

Hagrid led his students into the Forbidden Forest, saying as they walked, "We have class in the forest because they love the darkness."

"What likes the dark?" Draco asked, somewhat frightened.

"There are so many!" Aaron said seriously, counting on his fingers. "Vampires, leopard cats, nocturnal beasts..."

"Wait, don't say that yet," Draco hurriedly interrupted. "Let me catch my breath."

"I'm not trying to be mean, but you really need to work on your courage."

“How can you blame me?” Draco said dejectedly. “I’ve never been afraid in Professor Grapple’s class, but he… look at that half-dead cow he’s carrying on his shoulder.”

It was just slaughtered not long ago; the meat is still bloody. It can't be for us to eat, can it?

The students seemed to realize something when they heard Draco say that.

Their faces were slightly pale, and they kept a distance from Haigra as much as possible.

"You!" Harry looked at the students who were backing away and was immediately furious, especially since a significant portion of them were Gryffindors.

“Potter, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with what I’m saying.” Draco was unusually serious. “Who knows what kind of carnivorous beast he might bring along.”

In my opinion, he's better suited to be a gamekeeper; Grapple is far more suited to be the professor.

Harry glared at him angrily, but had nothing to say.

Because he knew that Draco wasn't the only one who thought this way; many people thought the same way, and he even secretly admired Professor Grapland. But if he had to choose, he would support Hagrid one hundred percent.

Harry walked over to Hermione and asked worriedly, "Will this class be alright?"

Hermione was silent for a moment, then said, "I don't know either."

"No way, didn't you say you were going to help him vet the candidates?"

“I tried my best, but he wasn’t in the house whenever I looked for him.” Hermione sighed deeply. “When he finally came out of the Forbidden Forest, he didn’t tell me anything, saying he had a surprise for us.”

“I didn’t see any surprises, but the shock was real,” Ron said with some fear. “Malfoy was right. The animal we’re going to meet in this class is probably a carnivore, and a big one at that, the kind that can eat half a cow.”

Hermione and Harry's hearts sank immediately. Now they could only hope that Umbridge would have something come up and couldn't come, otherwise Hagrid would be in danger this time.

Hagrid stopped where the forest was densest. It had snowed heavily the past two days, but there wasn't a single snowflake in sight.

"The animal we are going to learn about today is very rare."

"You've tamed them, haven't you?" Draco asked, somewhat fearfully.

"of course."

Many people were skeptical of this claim, and they looked around cautiously, seemingly on guard against a possible attack at any moment.

“Uh… don’t be so nervous.” Hagrid put the dead cow down. “They’ll be attracted by the smell of meat, but I’d better call them.”

He tossed his hair aside, cleared his throat, and made a strange sound.

The sound echoed through the dark forest, and many students dared not speak, feeling only fear spreading in their hearts.

A few minutes later, Aaron heard soft footsteps and turned to see a huge black horse with exposed bones and black wings emerge from the darkness.

"Oh, so that's it!" Aaron exclaimed. "Don't be afraid, these magical creatures become very docile once they are tamed."

"You can see?" Hagrid asked, somewhat surprised.

“Anyone who has killed can see it,” Aaron said casually, but he immediately realized he had misspoke. “Well… I might have exaggerated a bit. What I meant was that anyone who has witnessed life slipping through their fingers can see it.”

"What did you see?" Hermione asked, puzzled.

Aaron shrugged and pointed to the half-dead cow on the ground.

hiss!

The Gryffindor and Slytherin students gasped as they watched pieces of flesh being peeled from the bones, with clear bite marks on them.

Even though everyone here is a wizard, they still couldn't help but feel a chill when they saw this eerie scene.

“These are Thestrals,” Aaron explained. “We’re quite familiar with them, since they’ve been the ones pulling the carriages every time we come to Hogwarts Castle since our second year.”

“But it’s unlucky, very unlucky,” Parvati said in horror. “Professor Trelawney said it will bring all sorts of terrible disasters to anyone who sees them.”

“That’s utter nonsense,” Aaron chuckled. “If that were true, Hagrid, who tamed them, would have died countless times over.”

“Could you please stop using me as an example?” Hagrid said. “But all that bad luck is just superstition. They’re very clever and useful. They mainly help pull the school’s carriages, and Dumbledore uses them to travel long distances when he doesn’t want to Apparate.”

"A mount!" Aaron chuckled, shaking his head as he pictured Dumbledore riding a Thestral. "I always thought he rode a phoenix!"

"The Fox is powerful, but using it for travel is a waste of its potential."

"maybe!"

"Who else besides Aaron can see them?"

Harry was the first to raise his hand, followed by Neville, and then a Slytherin.

“Uh… excuse me for interrupting,” Draco stepped forward and said, “You’re teaching dozens of people, not just a few. Most of us can’t see them.”

"Ahem! Ahem!"

A cough suddenly rang out, and Umbridge walked over arrogantly, holding a writing tablet.

"Oh, hello," Hagrid said with a forced smile.

"I think you should have received my note. I will come to your class."

“Received.” Hagrid nodded. “Today we’re talking about Thestrals, but I don’t know if you’ll be able to see it.”

"what?"

“It’s a Thestral, a horse with wings.” Hagrid thought she couldn’t see him, so he flapped his thick arms like wings twice.

Umbridge raised an eyebrow and then wrote on the writing board: “Use clumsy gestures.”

“Hagrid just wanted to make things clearer,” Aaron said calmly. “He didn’t gesture anything before you arrived.”

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying you're intellectually challenged and need gestures to understand what he's saying.

puff!

Some students couldn't help but laugh, while others struggled to hold it in and turned their faces away so Umbridge wouldn't see.

Gryffindor genuinely disliked the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor sent by the Ministry of Magic, feeling that she was abusing her power and abusing her authority for personal gain. Slytherin, on the other hand, only showed superficial respect, since Defense Against the Dark Arts was the subject that Slytherin was most interested in, but this professor clearly couldn't teach them anything.

The shrill laughter made Umbridge's face flash with displeasure, but she quickly suppressed it.

She gave Aaron a smile, then crossed out 'use clumsy gestures' from the whiteboard; to keep that comment now would be disrespectful to her own intelligence.

Chapter 470 Responding to Each Move, Umbridge Filled with Grief and Indignation

“Mr. Malfoy is absolutely right. He’s going to teach students from two houses, not just a few,” Umbridge said smugly. “If the students can’t even see the magical creatures he’s going to teach, then the lesson is pointless. Teaching in the air is no better than handing out a picture book and letting everyone look at it themselves.”

Hagrid's expression changed slightly, and just as he was about to explain something, he saw Aaron give him a reassuring look.

"Professor Umbridge, you don't need to worry about this issue. Professor Hagrid has already discussed it with me."

"Discuss?" Umbridge chuckled. "Discuss what?"

Snapped!

Aaron snapped his fingers, and several huge black horses suddenly appeared in everyone's sight.

The scene erupted in uproar. Everyone was utterly shocked by the enormous black creature that was emaciated, with the body of a horse, the head of a dragon, and the wings of a bat.

"What's going on?" Umbridge asked in surprise.

“Illusion,” Aaron explained calmly. “I only let everyone see what I could see. Professor Hagrid was worried that people wouldn’t be able to see it, so he specifically consulted with me.”

Otherwise, he wouldn't have bothered taking out the Night Sturdy, as it would be easier to distinguish between a prickly creature and a hedgehog.

"Is that right, Professor Hagrid?"

“Ah? Yes, that’s it.” Hagrid said earnestly, looking at Aaron with such emotion that he almost cried.

What a wonderful boy!

He made up this story to get him out of trouble, and he almost believed it himself.

“Very well! Very well.” Umbridge said, barely suppressing her anger. “Even if you were prepared, the Ministry of Magic has long listed Thestrals as ‘dangerous animals’.”

“Thestrals aren’t dangerous,” Hagrid chuckled easily. “Of course, if you really piss one off, it might bite you.”

“To show pleasure in brutality.” Umbridge wrote a line of text on the writing board with delight.

"Um... Professor, I think there might be some room for discussion about this statement!"

"Does Mr. Gaius have a problem?"

"No, how could I possibly have a problem!"

"However, I have a small question for Professor Umbridge." Aaron pursed his lips. "Professor, do you consider cats to be dangerous animals?"

“Of course not,” Umbridge replied without hesitation.

"If you provoke the cat, will it scratch you?"

"You, what do you want to say?"

Aaron looked at Umbridge's writing board and said meaningfully, "I just think this sentence isn't quite right. What do you think?"

Of course, if the Ministry of Magic issues an order listing cats as dangerous animals, then disregard what I said.

call!