CHAPTER 16 AFTERMATH AND OMENS

The Professors' Wrath

Ezzy, Harry, and the others sprinted down the third-floor corridor, wands drawn, when a wall of flames erupted in front of them. Professor Alexander Riddle stepped through the fire, his face a storm.

"What in Merlin's name do you think you're doing?" he roared, his voice echoing like thunder.

"It's Quirrell!" Harry shouted. "He's behind the curse in the forest—he's killing creatures! We have proof!"

"Proof?" Alexander snarled. "You have recklessness! You're children, not Aurors!"

Suhi stepped forward, her voice trembling but firm. "The dagger—Tharion's dagger—it's real. We saw it. Quirrell's using it!"

Before Alexander could respond, Professor Bestimet emerged from the shadows, his rugged face grim. "They're not lying, Riddle. My thestrals are vanishing. The centaurs are in a panic. Something's feeding out there."

Alexander's fury cooled to icy resolve. "Detention. All of you. For a month. And if I catch you near the forest again, I'll expel you myself."

Quirrell's Fate

The next morning, chaos gripped Hogwarts. Professors flooded the third-floor corridor, wands lit as they inspected the trapdoor beneath Fluffy. Dumbledore emerged from the shadows, his face unreadable, but his twinkling eyes dimmed.

Quirrell's body lay sprawled on the stone floor, mutilated beyond recognition. His eyes and tongue were gouged out, his ears and nose reduced to ragged holes. His limbs were charred black, as though burned from the inside.

"Dark magic," Snape muttered, his usual sneer replaced by a pallor of disgust. "Ancient. Powerful."

Fluffy whimpered nearby, two of his three heads badly injured, his flanks slashed by deep, smoking wounds. Madam Pomfrey and Professor Bestimet worked tirelessly, healing draughts and spells flowing as they stabilized the massive dog.

"He'll live," Bestimet grunted, patting Fluffy's least-injured head. "But whatever did this… it wasn't human."

The Calm Before the Storm

With Quirrell dead and the forest temporarily pacified by Dumbledore's intervention, Hogwarts settled into an uneasy quiet. The staff doubled patrols, the corridors buzzing with prefects and professors. But for Ezzy's group, the victory felt hollow.

"They still don't believe us about the dagger," Hermione fumed, pacing the common room. "Dumbledore called it a 'tragic accident'!"

"Accident?" Ron scoffed. "Since when do accidents turn plants into roasted raisins?"

Harry stared into the fire. "Quirrell was a pawn. Someone else is pulling the strings."

Ezzy said nothing, his fingers tracing the cover of his mother's journal. Tharion's curse isn't over. It's just beginning.

 The Black Lake

To shake off the gloom, the group sneaked out to the shores of the Black Lake at dusk. The water shimmered under the setting sun, and Bumpi, the giant turtle, floated lazily beside the giant squid. The two creatures splashed and played, their movements oddly graceful for beings so massive.

Neville dipped his toes in the water, yelping as the squid tickled him with a tentacle. "Merlin's pants—it's like a wet noodle!"

Jane laughed, skipping stones across the surface. "Ten points if you hit Bumpi's shell!"

Ron, ever competitive, lobbed a rock—only for it to boomerang back and bonk him on the forehead. "Ow! Cheatin' squid!"

Suhi sat beside Ezzy, her voice soft. "You've been quiet. What's wrong?"

He watched Bumpi dive beneath the waves, the water rippling like liquid obsidian. "This peace… it's a lie. The curse isn't gone. Quirrell wasn't the mastermind—he was a puppet. And whatever controlled him is still out there."

Harry crouched next to them, his scar faintly throbbing. "You think it's connected to… you-know-who?"

Ezzy nodded. "Worse. This feels older. Hungrier."

Ezzy's Warning

As the group trudged back to the castle, Ezzy stopped them at the edge of the forest. The trees loomed, their branches clawing at the twilight sky.

"Whatever's coming… it's not just after the forest," he said quietly. "It's after magic itself. The dagger, the blight, Quirrell's death—it's all linked. And we're the only ones who see it."

Hermione gripped her wand tighter. "Then we stick together. Research. Prepare."

Ron groaned. "Why do we always have to save the world?"

"Because no one else eats as many Chocolate Frogs as we do," Jane said, tossing him a candy. "We've got the energy."

Even Harry smiled at that.