Orell furrowed his brow. "The place you mentioned..." His eyes flickered, and he trailed off, not finishing his sentence.
Dylan shot him a look. "What, are your centaur kin living there now?"
Orell's eyes widened. "How did you know?!"
Dylan: "..." He felt a twitch in his lip. He was worried that if he spent too much time with this centaur, his own intelligence would start to suffer. He didn't even need to use Legilimency or any other spell. Just by looking at the centaur, he knew exactly where he'd stopped talking mid-sentence.
Dylan rolled his eyes. "If the unicorn went to your centaur settlement, surely you'd know?"
Orell paused, thought for a moment, and his expression shifted slightly. Watching him, Dylan understood. Clearly, this fellow knew something, but perhaps other centaurs were deliberately hiding the unicorn's presence, keeping Orell in the dark. This suggested that not many centaurs knew about the unicorn's situation.
"And you call me the unicorn's killer? You centaurs are sheltering an injured unicorn and keeping it a secret. I wonder what you're up to."
Though Orell suspected his family might have hidden the unicorn, hearing Dylan speak ill of his kin made him stiffen his neck. "How dare you say that about them? Perhaps the unicorn was injured, and they hid it not just to heal it, but to keep those who were hunting it from finding it!"
Dylan pursed his lips and nodded. "Hmm, impressive. You've gotten much better at making excuses in such a short time."
Orell: ">_>"
Luna chuckled softly.
Orell's defiance deflated again, and he mumbled, "No wonder... no wonder Brother Bane hasn't shown his face for the past two days. I tried to find him to teach me archery, but he just kept putting me off."
Dylan looked at him. "So, what's the plan now? Can you take us to your place as guests, perhaps offer us some tea?"
Orell immediately shook his head. "No!" But as the word left his lips, his gaze involuntarily drifted towards the golden-haired girl with thick hair standing beside Dylan. "This... I have to go back and ask for everyone else's opinion first. I can't make a decision on my own."
"You centaurs have to ask everyone's permission just to bring a friend home as a guest?" Dylan let out a sigh. "That's truly no freedom at all. I've never seen a sapient race more miserable than yours, and yet you centaurs claim to love pursuing freedom?"
Hmm... he shouldn't put it quite like that. He had, in fact, seen more miserable sapient races.
Orell bristled. "This is called following rules! Our home is the home of all centaurs, not just mine! If I want to bring others back, of course I have to ask for everyone else's opinion!"
Dylan pursed his lips and shrugged. "If that's the case, then go back and ask. Of course, I imagine your elders probably won't agree, so I'll give you a month to sort things out. See if you can manage to invite us back as guests."
Orell, now somewhat composed, snorted softly. "You're not my friend, why should I invite you as a guest?"
"Oh, you don't think we're friends, so that means we're enemies, eh?" Dylan looked up at him.
Orell: "..." What did that mean? Was it a threat?! Ridiculous! Would centaurs be afraid of threats? Hmph! Orell's nostrils puffed out two wisps of white steam. "We are neither friends, nor enemies! We are merely strangers who've had some brief encounters and exchanged a few words, nothing more!"
Oh, really? Dylan eyed him sideways. This fellow seemed to have gotten a bit smarter? Tsk, tsk, he knew it. No matter who it was, just a little time spent with him and they'd pick up a few tricks. Look at Orell. At first, he was utterly tongue-tied. Now he can even spout high-sounding words. Truly, he was exceptional! He had to admit, the magic emanating from him was too potent. It was only natural that it could influence others.
"Alright, last time you were injured and didn't run straight home. Instead, you kept wandering around and met Luna. I think you probably don't fully endorse all those old centaur ideals, do you? Don't you want to venture into a wider world?" Dylan tempted.
Orell remained silent.
See? People were all like this. After staying in one environment for too long, they'd want to try another place. Even if they didn't adapt to the new place, they could always return to where they started. But the journey itself was necessary. Call it a craving for novelty, or a desire for exploration. But as long as it was a being, curiosity always existed. Don't centaurs also consider themselves akin to humans? Therefore, they couldn't be exempt from this.
A centaur as young as Orell, who was practically an infant compared to their long lifespans, possessed a mind that wasn't childish by human standards. Naturally, he would have higher aspirations.
"I'll be waiting for you here in a month." Dylan waved his hand. He'd been out long enough; he was starting to feel a bit sleepy. Besides, it wasn't good for a girl like Luna to stay up so late. His own skin could afford to be a bit rougher; worst case, he'd just research a spell or potion to reverse aging. But for a girl, if she was naturally beautiful, it was best not to over-embellish.
"Let's go back to bed, Luna. You should get some sleep too." Dylan turned to the golden-haired girl.
Luna nodded. "Since the unicorn isn't truly in trouble, I suppose I don't need to interfere much."
Orell's eyes widened. "Then you won't come? I mean, if I convince them and can bring you back as guests?"
Luna blinked. "If that's the case, then I will come. I haven't explored a centaur settlement before." Perhaps she'd find something she'd been looking for there.
"Really?" Orell grinned. "Then you two wait for me here. I think I'll have good news."
Dylan noticed Orell's attitude towards Luna was distinctly different from his attitude towards him, and he found it a bit odd. Orell's aesthetic taste seemed to be a little different from other centaurs? Other centaurs would definitely not find humans attractive; in fact, they'd probably find hairless humans ugly and frightening. Luna's golden hair was very thick, which in a way could be seen as a symbol of dense fur. But Luna's skin was still very smooth. By rights, centaurs shouldn't like it.
"Now, go quickly and convince your family, you little whipper-snapper. We need to go back to bed." Dylan shot Orell a look.
"What? Little whipper-snapper?!" Orell was so incensed he almost laughed. "You call me a little whipper-snapper? I'm twice your age!"
Dylan shrugged. "So what?"
Orell's eyes widened. "So what?! You're being awfully arrogant!" He held his breath and yelled, "Even if I can't beat you now, I'll beat you someday—but I can beat you now! I'll smash you to smithereens, pin you to the ground! No matter how you struggle..." Orell gritted his teeth. "You think I'm some calm little pebble? I am a mighty, surging wave! When you fall in, you'll never struggle free!"
Listening to Orell's declaration, Dylan and Luna exchanged glances and blinked.
"Are you... reciting poetry?" Dylan asked, confused.
Luna: (・_・)
Orell clenched his fists in frustration.
Dylan taunted, "What, you can only manage grand declarations in words?"
"You! I'm going to—" Orell raised his fist, intending to punch Dylan. However, Dylan simply raised his wand, and instantly, a terrifying amount of magic gathered at its tip. The powerful air pressure kicked up a gale, making Orell's hair whip around like he was possessed. Even the skin on his face was pulled back.
Orell silently lowered his hand. "I'm going back." With that, he turned and left.
Dylan called after him, "Hurry up and convince your family. I still hope I can visit — in a civil manner."
But Orell walked even faster, his four hooves kicking up dust. Not until he was completely out of sight did Dylan shake his head. "That fellow is only in his twenties? Compared to a centaur's lifespan, he really is a little infant."
Luna pressed her lips together. "I wonder if there are any Crumple-Horned Snorkacks in the centaur settlement."
Dylan: "...I don't know. Maybe?"
Luna sighed. "I should have asked him just now."
Dylan put his wand away. "It's alright, we can ask next time."
Luna nodded. "That's true."
Dylan turned and headed for the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest. "Let's go back quickly now. It's getting late."
Luna yawned faintly, her mouth slightly open. "Good thing tomorrow's Saturday. We can rest and sleep in a bit."
Dylan said nothing more, just nodded. He still had a pile of things to do. Though he wasn't in an immediate rush. But his body clock was set; even if he wanted to sleep more, it would probably be difficult. It had already become a habit. Sleeping late and waking late? Simply unheard of. Even if he slept late, he could still wake early!
The two walked shoulder to shoulder, emerging from the dark Forbidden Forest. The path was quiet, and they didn't encounter any threatening creatures.
"Well, I'll head back now," Dylan said to Luna as they stood outside the castle.
"Okay," Luna nodded silently.
Then, Dylan's figure transformed into a shadow, melting into the castle wall and disappearing.
Watching Dylan disappear into the darkness, Luna's eyes gleamed with interest. Dylan... he truly was a mysterious boy. And mystery was exactly what she loved to explore.
With her head bowed, Luna seemed lost in thought. A moment later, she walked unhurriedly towards her dormitory.
---
Back in his dormitory, Dylan yawned. He used a spell to clean the mud and snow from his clothes. Dylan changed into the specially tailored pajamas he'd had made with Galleons and climbed into bed. It had to be said, the bed was truly comfortable. The moment he lay down, sleepiness washed over him. Dylan fell into a deep, pleasant sleep.
The next morning, Dylan woke leisurely. He happened to run into Wood, who was looking for Harry. "Morning, Dylan," Wood whispered, tiptoeing, but he seemed relieved to see Dylan was also awake and greeted him.
Dylan nodded at him. Harry was still asleep. Wood walked straight over and yanked off Harry's duvet. Harry, clutching his pillow, jolted awake. "Wh-what's wrong?" The warmth of his body was quickly stripped away. Harry saw Wood standing by his bed and pulled the duvet back over himself.
"Harry, it's time to get up for practice!" Wood urged.
Harry groaned in agony. "I know, but you don't have to just rip off my duvet... it's freezing!" And what if he hadn't been wearing anything? Wouldn't that be utterly mortifying in front of his roommates? Wood really was something!
Harry turned his head and saw Dylan watching him, giving a sheepish smile. He knew it! Someone was watching him! If he really hadn't been wearing anything and made such a fool of himself, he'd be too embarrassed to stay in the dormitory.
"Quick, quick! Time waits for no one! Get up and get ready, we'll eat, then go practice!" Wood clearly didn't have the subtle mind to guess what Harry was thinking; he just kept hurrying him.
Harry sighed, helpless, and could only nod. "I know... I'm getting up now..." He slowly pulled back his duvet, then drew the curtains to change before finally getting out of bed.
Harry looked at Dylan. "Um, Dylan..." Dylan understood instantly and cast a spell. All traces of drowsiness vanished! Harry instantly felt much more awake.
"Thanks." The words had barely left Harry's mouth when Wood grabbed his arm and quickly led him out.
Watching the two walk off hand-in-hand, Dylan clicked his tongue. He shook his head slightly, then slowly tidied himself up and got out of bed. He went to eat as usual and fed Luna.
---
More time passed. Sirius's gift to him, the state-of-the-art Firebolt, still hadn't been returned.
When it was time to rush through homework again, Harry was scribbling furiously while complaining to Ron and Dylan. "You won't believe what happened today! Wood is just too much!"
Ron's ears perked up at the sound of gossip, and he immediately put down his quill. "What happened?"
Harry sighed deeply. "Normally, with the broom Dylan gave me, I'd be perfectly fine for matches, but Wood keeps saying that Firebolt someone gave me for Christmas is the most advanced on the market right now, even better than Dylan's, and he wants me to use that broom for the tournament..."
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