The Hit Wizards scoured the pile of leaves for ages but, in the end, only found half of a shoe sole, marked with teeth.
Oren must have damaged his shoe earlier when he was kicking a Chomping Cabbage, which had clearly gnawed at it. Perhaps he had dropped it while escaping, or maybe he'd left it there on purpose.
Hit Wizard Hadd stood nearby, his expression dark as storm clouds. He knew exactly what awaited him next. Failing to apprehend anyone would be seen as a grave oversight, and coupled with Oren's parting words, Hadd was practically the obvious choice to take the fall. The Ministry would surely blame him for letting Oren escape, especially that meddlesome pink toad… A demotion would likely be the least severe punishment to quell the anger back at the Ministry.
Furious, Hadd bellowed orders, commanding the Hit Wizards to search the vicinity for any trace of Oren. The Centaurs tried to stand in their way, but Hadd brandished his wand, forcing them back.
“That’s an important prisoner of the Ministry of Magic. If any of you dare obstruct this search, you’ll all be considered accomplices!”
Under his threat, the Centaurs kept silent.
But none of this concerned Kyle anymore.
Professor McGonagall had arrived.
Her face was a sight Kyle had never seen—pale with tightly pressed lips, an anger that chilled to the bone. The idea that the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor would attempt to kill a student was beyond her worst fears. Had Dumbledore completely lost his senses when he hired Oren?
Taking a quick glance around, Professor McGonagall hurried over to Kyle, her voice low but tight with worry. “Are you alright, Kyle? Are you hurt?”
“I’m fine, Professor,” Kyle replied. “Thanks to the Centaurs and the Hit Wizards, Oren didn’t get a chance to do anything before they drove him away.”
The nearby Hit Wizards looked momentarily stunned, but soon their relief was palpable, as if a great weight had lifted. With Kyle’s casual remark, the entire situation shifted. No longer was this a failure, with a dangerous prisoner on the loose; instead, they had successfully saved a student from a dark wizard.
What had started as a botched capture was now... well, a victory of sorts. And if they hadn’t made a mistake, then all the better.
One by one, the Hit Wizards approached Kyle, asking after his health with exaggerated concern, each trying to seem like a caring adult neighbor. Hadd was the most enthusiastic of all, and, after confirming that Kyle was unharmed, he assured him that the Ministry of Magic would take full responsibility for any impact and losses from the incident, with compensation to follow.
He gave Kyle a meaningful wink as he said this.
Kyle got the message immediately but remained calm on the surface. It seemed his garden could stand to expand a bit next year.
Unlike the Hit Wizards, Professor McGonagall was clearly unconvinced by Kyle’s words. The area around them in the Forbidden Forest was a wreck, with magic scorch marks everywhere and fallen trees littering the ground. It hardly looked like “nothing” had happened. Yet McGonagall said nothing more, focused only on ensuring Kyle was truly unharmed.
At that moment, Professors Flitwick and Sprout arrived.
Taking in the scene, Professor Flitwick clenched his fists, and Professor Sprout’s eyes glistened with unshed tears.
Professor McGonagall dismissed the Hit Wizards, then turned to take Kyle back to the castle.
"Oh, Professor McGonagall," Kyle said, pointing to a spot nearby before they left, "there's a witch trapped under that tree. She's an illegal Animagus who's been lurking around disguised as Kanna's pet."
Professor McGonagall froze in her tracks. "Animagus?"
"Yes," Kyle continued. "She tried to attack me after I uncovered her identity. She’s the one responsible for most of the charms around here."
"By Merlin’s beard…" Professor McGonagall muttered, overwhelmed by the information. They still hadn’t sorted out what had happened with Oren, and now there was an illegal Animagus to deal with. This year at Hogwarts was like no other.
Still, now that she knew, Professor McGonagall wouldn’t let it go unchecked. She led Kyle, along with Professors Flitwick and Sprout, to the place he indicated. By now, the witch had fainted, and two Hit Wizards were pulling her out from under the fallen tree.
Professor Flitwick gasped at the sight of her. "My boy, did you do this?"
"I didn’t mean to," Kyle replied, looking down. "I just didn’t realize she was so… fragile."
Kyle then gave a brief rundown of the events, though he purposely left out the beginning, skipping directly to when he had released the first Softening Charm. From that point on, he explained everything truthfully.
As Professor Flitwick listened, his eyes sparkled, watching Kyle as if seeing a young prodigy in the dueling world. Though the moment wasn’t right to show his excitement, he patted Kyle encouragingly on the arm. Restarting the Dueling Club was already on his mind.
Professor McGonagall, on the other hand, was focused solely on getting Kyle and the witch back to the castle. The idea of an Animagus hiding among the students needed urgent investigation, and she felt strongly about handling it herself rather than involving the Ministry. She approached Hadd and stated firmly, "This witch is connected to our student, and I’ll be taking her with me."
Hadd frowned, reluctant to let the witch go. She was, after all, the only catch they had, and if he let McGonagall take her, he’d be left with little more than half a shoe sole to hand in. But with all three Hogwarts professors present, he couldn’t argue, especially considering what had just transpired.
After a moment’s hesitation, Hadd agreed. "Only until morning, Professor McGonagall," he said, adding, "We’ll come to Hogwarts first thing to retrieve her."
Professor McGonagall nodded, then took out her wand and levitated the witch, preparing to leave.
Meanwhile, a large crowd had gathered at the edge of the Forbidden Forest, their eyes fixed anxiously on the trees, awaiting any sign of movement.
"Look, Professor McGonagall is coming out!" someone shouted.
Two figures, one tall and one shorter, emerged from the depths of the forest. Kanna broke away from the crowd and rushed toward Kyle, her eyes red and swollen from crying.
"Are you… are you okay?" she asked, voice trembling.
"Oh, I’m fine," Kyle replied with a playful grin. "Though, now that I’m a ghost, I feel quite at ease."
Kanna’s eyes widened, and fresh tears began to stream down her cheeks.
"What nonsense!" Professor McGonagall chided, giving Kyle a light tap. Then, with a soft, comforting hand, she wiped Kanna’s tears away and said gently, "Take a good look. Does he look like a ghost?"