"That noise..."
Dylan was about to go to sleep when he heard a faint but unusual sound—a creature's cry, with a sharp, metallic edge to it. The next moment, his form seemed to stretch like a shadow, blurring for an instant before he silently melted into the shadows of the corner. He then passed straight through the cold stone wall as if it were a thin mist. He hovered half a foot off the ground, gliding with a posture that was almost a slide, the hem of his black robe rustling softly against the dead grass. He made hardly a sound as he drifted toward the Forbidden Forest.
On the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest, the tree branches were tangled together. Moonlight was cut into tiny flecks of light by the thick leaves, speckling the ground covered in rotting leaves. Just as he reached the edge, Dylan's eyes were drawn to a slender figure—Luna Lovegood was standing beneath an old oak tree, her cloak swaying gently in the night breeze. She was looking up, as if at something in the treetop, so focused that she didn't even notice him approach.
"Oh?" Dylan raised an eyebrow, a bit surprised to see her here. He stopped, stepping out of the shadows, his foot snapping a small twig with a soft 'crunch.'
"Hey, good evening," he said, keeping his voice deliberately low.
Luna turned slowly at the sound. Her silvery-gray eyes, which always seemed a little unfocused, blinked and widened slightly in surprise when she saw Dylan.
"You're very quiet. I didn't hear a single footstep," she said.
Dylan's lips curved into a faint smile. "What are you doing at the edge of the Forbidden Forest at this hour? I recall Professor McGonagall warned everyone just tonight not to come near here."
Luna looked at him steadily, her face devoid of emotion, but her tone was one of simple truth. "Aren't you here, too?"
Dylan shrugged helplessly, his shoulders causing his black robe to slip a little, revealing the dark collar of his shirt. He turned his head, looking deep into the Forbidden Forest. The darkness there was as thick as ink, impenetrable to the moonlight. He could still faintly feel a familiar presence.
"Did you feel it too?" Luna noticed where his gaze was fixed and lowered her voice even further, as if afraid of disturbing whatever was in the woods. She looked at Dylan's profile with a hint of curiosity.
Dylan nodded, his gaze unwavering. "Yeah. I heard a call just now. It sounded a bit familiar, so I followed it."
Luna tilted her head, a strand of silver-gray hair slipping from behind her ear and falling against her cheek. She blinked, and her expression dimmed slightly. "A familiar call? Then I suppose it's not what I was looking for." She paused, then added, "I'm looking for the tracks of Crumple-Horned Snorkacks. I hear they've been appearing on the edge of the Forbidden Forest around the full moon."
Dylan was stunned for a moment before he realized what she meant. "Uh... although it's not what you're looking for, I think you'll still see a new creature, one you've definitely never seen before."
With that, he gestured for her to follow him, then led the way toward the presence he'd felt.
Luna didn't ask any more questions. She lifted the hem of her cloak and followed him with a light step.
As they went deeper into the Forbidden Forest, the light grew dimmer. The branches overhead grew denser, almost completely blocking out the sky. Only a few scattered specks of moonlight struggled through, barely enough to see the path. The air was filled with the scent of damp earth and rotting leaves, mixed with a faint, clean fragrance of minty herbs.
The surroundings were eerily quiet. All they could hear was the soft 'rustling' of their footsteps on the thick layer of decaying leaves. Occasionally, a low howl from some unknown creature in the distance would break the silence, only to fall quiet just as quickly.
After walking a bit farther and passing through a thicket of brambles, two figures gradually came into view in the faint moonlight filtering through the trees.
One was pure white. The other was… something else.
"Oh?" Luna looked closer. To the right, a white figure stood still. It was a unicorn. It was a bit smaller than an adult unicorn, its silver mane glowing softly in the darkness. Its tail hung at its side, occasionally flicking away insects near its hooves. The most striking thing about it was the spiral silver horn on its forehead, about half a foot long, with a cold glint at the tip, as if it had been forged in moonlight.
A few steps away from the unicorn stood Orelle. He was leaning slightly against a thick beech tree, his bow and arrow resting in the crook of his arm. The fletching of the arrow hung down, almost touching his horse-like legs covered in dark brown fur.
Hearing their footsteps, he raised his head, his eyes shining in the dark. His gaze first landed on Dylan, then swept past to Luna behind him.
"Is that Orelle?" Luna stepped forward, shifting her gaze from the Centaur to the white unicorn, her eyes widening. Her eyes lingered on the unicorn's silver, gleaming horn for a long time. The light from the horn was reflected in her silver-gray eyes.
It was so bright that she had an intense urge to snap it off and hang it from her ear. Hmm... it might be a bit too big and would need some careful sanding. Or perhaps wearing it on her head like a hat would be nice, too.
Dylan, unaware of Luna's thoughts, led her forward.
Seeing Dylan, Orelle looked at the unicorn beside him with a bit of surprise. "You really could call him over?"
Dylan stopped a few feet away, his eyes narrowed as he stared at the Centaur. This guy had the nerve to stand him up last time. He'd been considering whether to just wait until summer break, or perhaps the next school year, and take a detour to kidnap the entire Centaur tribe. But to his surprise, the guy had shown up again, and with a unicorn, no less.
Luna was staring at the unicorn, and the unicorn, in turn, noticed Luna and was staring back at her. Both seemed to sense the spiritual essence radiating from the other.
Dylan's lips twitched as he saw the unicorn, instead of greeting him, was gazing at Luna as if they were long-lost lovers. He ignored them and turned his attention back to Orelle. "Well? Not going to explain yourself?"
Orelle's mouth twitched. This human's words were so annoying! Just two sentences and he wanted to grab his bow and shoot him full of holes! Orelle took a deep breath. "There's nothing to explain, really..."
"Hmm?" Dylan raised an eyebrow.
Orelle immediately felt a powerful, almost murderous, pressure slam into him. His body stiffened, and he stood up straight, taking a few steps toward Dylan.
"I'm sorry! My uncles wouldn't let me leave or tell you where our home was. When I told them about it last time, they almost locked me in the basement!"
Hearing this, Dylan's expression softened slightly. A basement was an uncommon structure among the Centaurs. In a different context, it might be called a dungeon. Centaurs loved freedom, and they read the stars. Being locked in a dungeon meant they couldn't see the sky. For a Centaur, this was both a humiliating and effective punishment.
Since Orelle said so, Dylan wasn't going to press the matter. He hadn't been that bothered by it in the first place. He wasn't angry about being stood up. What was there to be angry about? The worst that could happen was he'd just slaughter… no, he'd just invite the entire Centaur race to be guests in his world. There was no need to get angry.
"And what about him...?" Dylan's gaze shifted to the unicorn.
Orelle glanced at the unicorn. "I knew you were about to be out of school, so I brought him here while they weren't looking."
"The people who were hunting them have pretty much disappeared lately, so my uncle was going to let him go back to the Forbidden Forest anyway. They weren't watching him as closely."
Dylan pondered this for a moment, then nodded softly. "I see."
"And he told me that he could get you to come here," Orelle continued. "I can't believe he just made that one little call and you actually showed up."
Dylan smiled. "Because his call sounded very familiar to me."
Orelle was still confused. "But the sound was so quiet! I was afraid it would attract the people who were chasing him before. I mean, they're gone now, but who knows if there are still strange people hiding in the forest?"
Dylan just smiled in response, offering no explanation. Seeing that he had no intention of explaining, Orelle pouted. Hmph. Not that he was that desperate for an answer, anyway.
Orelle shot a glare at the unicorn. He'd asked him earlier, and the unicorn hadn't explained either! It just pulled a weird, crooked-mouthed expression and told him that Dylan would definitely come. What were these two—the man and the beast—hiding?
The thought of the unicorn's expression made Orelle shiver. What the heck! Why was a unicorn making a face like that? It made the unicorn look completely impure, almost evil. He even wondered if the people who were originally hunting the unicorn had caught it and performed some kind of evil experiment on it, turning it into something strange and not quite a unicorn anymore.
But this was something he could only speculate about.
"So," Dylan asked, "do you still need to take this little fellow back to your herd?"
Orelle nodded. "My uncle said that if nothing happens in another month or two, we can let him go. His herd should still be waiting for him."
This time, Dylan was a little curious. "So, who was chasing him, and where is his herd? Why did he come to you Centaurs for refuge instead of going to his own kind?"
Orelle sighed. "I don't know either. He won't tell me. No matter what I say, he won't tell me." He got annoyed just thinking about it. What a pain! No one would tell him anything! Not about the unicorn's story, not about his uncles' actions, and not about why a unicorn's quiet call could attract Dylan. What would it hurt to just explain things clearly? Why did they have to be so cryptic?!
Ugh, no, no, no... He was going to have to look at the stars again later. Let the stars give him the answers.
Dylan's lips curled. "So... you've been home all this time and didn't figure anything out?"
Orelle's face hardened. He couldn't argue with Dylan's mocking words because it was the truth. When faced with the facts, any defense was just a pale excuse. But after thinking for a moment, Orelle said defiantly, "I don't know everything, but I did hear some things!"
Dylan tilted his head. "Oh? Tell me."
Orelle immediately started spilling everything he knew, like a child trying to prove himself. "The people hunting the unicorn were from some secret organization. I'm not sure who they are, but it's a few Dark wizards. I accidentally overheard a conversation with my uncles once."
"I didn't hear the name of the organization, but it seems they're following a Dark Lord."
"And they've done a lot of bad things, but not in an overly evil way. They seem to be focused on acquiring things that can be sold for Galleons, and the unicorn is clearly one of them."
"As for the rest... I don't know."
Dylan's head tilted further. Wait a minute? The Dark Lord he's talking about… is that me? From Orelle's description, it sounded like the people trying to catch the unicorn were Delphi and her gang.
He pursed his lips. Dylan decided that next time he had a chance, he would just find Orelle's uncles and ask them directly. It would save him the trouble of guessing all the time. Of course, if his uncles weren't cooperative or didn't like him, he wouldn't need to waste any words. He'd just invite them all to leave.
Dylan nodded. "So... that's all you know?"
Orelle's face was stern. "Isn't that enough? I only overheard... I just happened to hear it. Isn't that enough to get a general idea?"
Dylan waved his hand. "Fine, fine." Then he added, "Alright, you can go back now. I need to have a little more 'bonding time' with the unicorn."
Orelle's eyes widened. "Huh? You and him... bonding?"
Dylan rolled his eyes. "Stop calling it 'he' all the time. What if it's a 'she'? That's not very polite."