At the year-end feast that night, to everyone's astonishment, Gryffindor, which had been in last place in terms of House points, made a surprising comeback and snatched the House Cup from Slytherin.
This reversal was thanks to Dumbledore, who included everything that had happened in the underground classroom when awarding final points. First, he awarded one hundred points to Robert Ollivander for leading the frenzied Fluffy out of the castle, putting his own safety at risk to protect the lives of many students.
This single award immediately lifted Gryffindor from last place to second.
Then Ron, Hermione, and Harry were each given fifty points for bravely protecting the Sorcerer's Stone despite the danger. Neville also received ten points for standing his ground—though, by the time Harry's points were added, Gryffindor had already overtaken Slytherin, clinching the House Cup.
The Gryffindors celebrated long into the night.
This suited Robert just fine. For reasons of his own, his dormitory was far too cold; staying in the warm and lively common room was much more comfortable.
It wasn't until early morning, after most had left or fallen asleep, that Robert returned to his dormitory, his heart still pounding with excitement.
There was more good news: after months of close observation, he found that the dragon blood wood he'd been working with remained completely unaffected by the fragment of Voldemort's soul. This made it the ideal material for a wand core.
Still, he couldn't help but feel uneasy—almost like it was too good to be true.
As the other students slept soundly, ready to welcome the approaching holiday, their peaceful slumber was shattered by a sudden explosion.
With a loud bang, at least a dozen windows shattered. Hogwarts Castle, quiet just moments before, was instantly bathed in light as candles flared and lanterns glowed.
The first Gryffindors to awaken stumbled to their windows—only to be met with a stunning and surreal sight: a Unicorn, glowing with an ethereal blue light, floated outside. Alongside it was a face—one that defied description.
Merlin's beard! This was the eighth floor. What was a Unicorn doing here?
Before they could react or get a better look, the Unicorn vanished, leaving behind only a chaotic mess on the ground below.
Within minutes, the Professors arrived.
But the strange disturbance had appeared and vanished so suddenly that no one could explain what had really happened. All they could determine was that the explosion had originated near the Gryffindor common room, which suffered the most damage; nearly all its dormitory windows were destroyed.
Ravenclaw came next, with about half of their windows broken. Hufflepuff and Slytherin, being in the basements, had escaped unscathed.
When Professor McGonagall, still in her pajamas, stepped into the Gryffindor common room, her sharp eyes immediately settled on Robert.
It was only natural. Robert had a reputation. The last wand he'd made—nearly two feet long—had woken half the castle. And this time? The entire student body and all the Professors were up.
When she questioned him, Robert simply opened his dormitory door.
There was nothing unusual inside. Though the tables, chairs, and bookshelves had suffered damage, the scene wasn't much different from the other dormitories.
Professor McGonagall pursed her lips. Her instincts told her Robert had something to do with this, and several students were casting him furtive glances.
There was no hard evidence, but she made a mental note. Until someone was caught red-handed, she wouldn't dismiss her suspicions.
Still, with the holidays just around the corner, the Professors didn't push the matter further. After bringing in a few older students to restore the dormitories, they left.
The castle was noisy and chaotic for a time but gradually quieted down over the next hour.
However, the incident was far from forgotten.
The next day, as students gathered to take the train to Hogsmeade Station, conversations about the mysterious blue Unicorn were everywhere.
Opinions were sharply divided.
"Unicorns aren't blue, and they definitely don't fly," Cedric Diggory of Hufflepuff said skeptically, believing the Gryffindors were exaggerating. He couldn't help but offer a brief lesson on Unicorn biology.
But the Gryffindors stuck to their story, swearing they saw it.
Initially, most students laughed off the claim as a Gryffindor tall tale—until several Ravenclaws stepped forward with the same story.
Unlike the notoriously dramatic Gryffindors, Ravenclaws rarely boasted, and this time more than twenty students shared similar accounts.
"I know it sounds ridiculous, but I swear I saw it with my own eyes," said Cho Chang, a second-year Ravenclaw.
According to her, the Unicorn had flown right past their dormitory window. Its luminous blue body shimmered like it was cloaked in starlight. The image was so breathtaking that it was burned into her memory.
When she heard Cedric's dismissive comments, she immediately spoke up. "If you didn't see it with your own eyes, don't be so quick to deny it. Besides, this is Hogwarts. Magic makes anything possible, doesn't it?"
Cedric was left speechless. "Uh, sorry…" he said, embarrassed.
After the Ravenclaws testified, even he began to second-guess himself.
Could there really be blue, flying Unicorns in the magical world?
With the holidays ahead, he decided he'd ask his father, who worked at the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures.
Meanwhile, elsewhere in the castle...
"It was you, wasn't it?" Fred and George Weasley cornered Robert on a second-floor corridor just as he was heading downstairs.
"What did I do?" Robert blinked innocently.
"The Unicorn last night, of course," Fred said, stepping forward.
"You've been acting all mysterious lately, barely leaving your dormitory," George added.
"This same sort of thing happened over Christmas."
"And both times, your dorm was completely trashed."
"It's happening again. Are you seriously going to pretend it has nothing to do with you?"
They looked at him with narrowed eyes, clearly convinced of his involvement.
"We're not as easily fooled as the Professors," George muttered.
Normally, Robert might have shrugged and said something like, "So what? Are you going to report me?"
But not today.
He looked pale, drained of energy, and clearly not in the mood. With a weak smile, he brushed past the twins with some vague excuse.
Fred and George exchanged a look. Robert's current state was concerning—his face was as white as a sheet, and he looked as exhausted as Harry had when he'd ended up in the hospital wing.
They decided not to press further.
Instead, Fred called after him, "We'll come find you during the holiday. Don't forget, you said you live at Ollivander's Wand Shop in Diagon Alley."
With Floo Network connections, it was basically like being neighbors.
Robert gave a faint nod and continued walking.
What exactly had happened last night? Why had the dragon blood wood resisted the soul fragment so perfectly, and what was that luminous blue creature? Questions piled up in his mind, but he had no answers.
For now, all he could do was go home—and hope that the answers would come, eventually.
For more chapters
patreon.com/Robertt45