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What if Professor McGonagall finds out again...
"Meow--"
Suddenly, a cat leaped out from behind a stone pillar and slowly walked up to Maurice.
Morris stood frozen in place, staring intently at the cat in front of him.
The familiar ginger yellow, the familiar dark stripes, the familiar gaze.
There's absolutely no mistake, this is...
The cat's body began to elongate, and its fur slowly began to fall away.
A few seconds later, a living Professor McGonagall appeared in front of him.
She said coldly, "Mr. Black, I don't think I can pretend I didn't see what just happened."
"..."
Morris felt as if he had heard the exact same thing yesterday.
He gave an awkward laugh. "I'm sorry, Professor. I just felt that Thestrals were safe."
He discreetly observed the professor's expression and added, "Furthermore... I don't think there's a rule in Hogwarts' school rules that forbids riding Thestrals."
Professor McGonagall cast a sharp glance at him. "So, have you read the school rules, Mr. Blake?"
"Uh…no, not at all," Morris replied sheepishly.
However, he still felt that this rule wouldn't exist in the school regulations.
Professor McGonagall sighed softly, her expression softening slightly. "You're right, there's no explicit rule in the school regulations prohibiting riding Thestrals, and I won't deduct any points from your record."
"But as your professor, I hope you understand that for your own safety, it's better not to do such dangerous things, as it only causes trouble for others."
Morris nodded obediently, "I won't do it again."
It seems that Professor McGonagall has no intention of punishing him.
Sure enough, Professor McGonagall was a reasonable and kind person.
Chapter 32 Exchange
"Oh, right, there's one more thing," Professor McGonagall suddenly realized something and asked, "Where's Hagrid?"
She clearly entrusted Maurice to Hagrid's care.
But now only Maurice has returned on his Thestral.
This is clearly not right.
"If you're looking for Hagrid, he's still in the Forbidden Forest," Maurice said. "We didn't find the Thestral from last night; instead, we were attacked by wild beasts, and he's taking care of the aftermath. But none of us are injured, so don't worry."
"A beast?" Professor McGonagall was taken aback at first, then a knowing look appeared on her face. "I understand."
She thought that Hagrid must have sent Maurice back on Thestral after they encountered danger.
In an emergency, this behavior is understandable.
As the Vice-Headmistress of Hogwarts, she was naturally aware of the situation in the Forbidden Forest.
In the forbidden forest, being attacked by wild animals is a very common occurrence.
However, she wasn't too worried, because Hagrid had plenty of experience handling similar incidents. Besides, the boy didn't seem frightened; he had probably just encountered an ordinary wild animal.
As for whether or not the Thestral had been found—she no longer cared.
Thinking about it carefully, even with Hagrid's supervision, letting a first-year student enter the Forbidden Forest was still a bit reckless.
"Can I go now?" Morris asked.
"Yes," Professor McGonagall nodded, then suddenly noticed the small box in Maurice's hand. "Oh, wait, that wooden box, was it created by Transfiguration?"
"Yes," Moritz replied readily.
"What's inside?" Professor McGonagall asked curiously.
"A small insect," Morris answered truthfully. "I caught it in the Forbidden Forest. I've never seen anything like it in the Muggle world, so I'm a little interested. Maybe I'll keep it as a pet."
Keeping an eight-eyed giant spider... shouldn't be a problem, right?
After all, the students here also raise toads, don't they?
In his view, there is no difference between spiders and toads—except for the number of legs.
"I see."
Professor McGonagall withdrew her inquisitive gaze.
Since Maurice was so nonchalant, she stopped paying too much attention.
The box probably doesn't contain any contraband.
It's their freedom to choose what pets they keep; she doesn't need to interfere.
She was more interested in Maurice's level of transfiguration than the contents of the box.
"Then, goodbye, Professor McGonagall." Morris gave a slight bow.
Professor McGonagall nodded in response, watching Maurice disappear around the corner with the wooden box in his arms.
"Not an easy student to manage." She sighed and turned to walk towards the Forbidden Forest.
Now, she had to remind Hagrid to keep a close watch on the Thestrals.
At least we can no longer let them carry little wizards up into the sky at will.
...
Since it was lunchtime, Maurice said goodbye to Professor McGonagall and went straight to the hall.
The auditorium was already bustling with people.
He casually found a seat at the Ravenclaw table, set aside the box containing the eight-eyed giant spider, and began to enjoy his lunch.
Although the food couldn't compare to last night's banquet, it was still quite plentiful.
Roast beef, fried fish fillets, some kind of pie, and sausages that looked very bright in color.
Morris picked up a sausage and put it on his plate, then took a bite.
Well, those cheap goods in the orphanage that cost thirty pence a bag are nothing compared to this.
As expected.
"So you've been here, Maurice."
A voice came from behind him, and then two red-haired figures sat down on either side of him.
They were the Weasley twins.
"What's wrong, George? And Fred?" Maurice chewed on his beef, looking around. "By the way, how am I supposed to tell you two apart?"
In his eyes, the twins looked exactly alike.
Even their tone of voice is similar.
"Guess," Weasley Number One said cheekily.
Morris immediately decided to ignore them and focus on the fish and chips in front of him.
"Okay, I'm Fred, and this is George." Fred abandoned the old twin trick and said seriously, "Let's get down to business. Were you flying in the sky yesterday? Oh, don't rush to refute us. We saw you waving at us."
Morris recalled that he had indeed encountered them the previous night while riding the Thestral.
"Oh, indeed." He nodded. "I was riding a Thestral at the time."
Thestral?
"You don't know?" Maurice asked, somewhat surprised. "It's those animals that pull your carriages."
The twins shook their heads simultaneously.
So Maurice briefly explained the existence of Thestrals to the two of them.
"Only those who have seen death can see Thestrals?" Fred exclaimed in surprise. "I always thought the carriages at Hogwarts could fly!"
"Me too," George replied, his gaze falling on the wooden box Morris had placed on the table.
As luck would have it, the box shook twice.
"What's in there?" he asked curiously.
"Insects," Morris replied casually, pressing down on the lid of the box as he did so. "Caught in the Forbidden Forest, quite unique."
Fred's eyes immediately lit up. "The Forbidden Forest? You went to the Forbidden Forest?"
"Hagrid took me there," Maurice said calmly, "because of what happened yesterday with the Thestrals. But it's nothing serious, and I wasn't punished."
"Cool!" George said, leaning closer to the box and trying to peek through the crack. "What kind of insect is inside?"
Morris didn't think it was something that needed to be hidden.
He boldly opened the lid of the wooden box, revealing the unconscious eight-eyed giant spider inside, and showed it to the two of them.
"Merlin's beard!"
The twins gasped and shrank back.
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