HP: A Sociopath Gamer In Magic World [ Chapter 105: A Unicorn?! ] (Patreon)
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"Can I ask why?"
"Need help tracking down an injured unicorn," he admitted.
"…that seems kind of dangerous. Are you sure it's okay to let first years go?" I asked worriedly.
The large man puffed his chest and spoke in a confident tone, "They'll be just fine, so long as they stick with me."
"Still," I muttered with a frown before gaining a look of realization, "Wait, if all you really need is for more people to help you search, do you think it's possible for me to join you?"
"What?" he replied, looking taken aback by the seemingly random question.
Gaining an excited look, I went on, "Yeah, I mean if you're sure there's no real danger, then there's no harm in letting me accompany you. I've also been getting dueling lessons from Professor Flitwick, so I know plenty of defensive and offensive spells just in case."
"Not really my place to say, you should speak to Professor McGonagall," he tried to protest but I wasn't ready to give up.
Getting off the barrel I turned to the door, "I'll go ask right now."
I ran out the entrance before he could protest any further.
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Hagrid's Hut:-
As expected, I was able to gain permission to join the search. After all, if they were willing to let a couple of inexperienced first years enter the forest by themselves, what was one more to them?
Of course, I had to tell Flitwick, as he was my Head of House, but other than giving me a brief lecture about the dangers of the forest he seemed to agree that I was strong enough to protect myself.
"How much longer are they going to take?" I asked before biting into the giant turkey leg covered in bacon, grease smearing the edges of my mouth.
"Shouldn't be too long," Hagrid muttered while throwing a mouthful of turkey, "Mmm, this is really good."
"Thanks," I said, taking one last bite and throwing the rest to Fang who was looking at me with pleading eyes. Liking my fingers clean I continued to talk, "So what were you saying about music?"
"Hmm, right. You'd be surprised by how many creatures like music, it's how I trained Fluffy."
"Really? Are you planning on taming any more creatures?" I said offhandedly.
"Actually, I spotted a hippogriff grazing in the woods two hills east of here."
"A hippogriff, those are the ones that are part horse and bird, right? I read that those are quite temperamental," I said getting up from my seat as I noticed people coming down the hill, "Looks like they're here."
Hagrid turned around too, "I guess it's time." Standing up he threw his unfinished leg at Fang and went to fetch his crossbow.
I took this time to check my own equipment. Seeing as I didn't know what to expect I prepared for everything. I had on a pair of dark blue pants, a long sleeve shirt, and a pair of comfortable running shoes.
At my waist I attached a utility belt for easy access tools I might need such as my wand, a knife, a modified flashlight, a first aid kit and some leather pouches with an expandable charm filled with potions.
I was wearing a set of knee and elbow pads for added protection as well as a leather vest over my shirt. The last two pieces of my gear were a crossbow and my trusty top hat.
While it was true that I had better equipment, I was not so foolish as to let it be seen by others.
Caw!
Hermes landed gracefully on my shoulder, the shadows of the night doing a remarkable job of hiding his body.
'I found it just like you asked, and I managed to keep it from dying, but it's still injured and growing weaker by the second,' Hermes reported his take on the unicorn's state.
'Good job,' I said, petting his head.
Placing a smirk on my face I walked forward to greet the group of students, "Well, well, well, if it isn't Hogwarts most notorious delinquents."
"Charles!" Hermione shouted in surprise. Harry and Neville also looked shocked at my entrance.
Draco on the other hand frowned, "Bell? What are you doing here? I figured you had too much of a goody two shoes to get detention."
I gave a snort, "Me? Detention? You wish, I actually volunteered for this."
"Why would you-" Harry started to say before getting cut off my Flitch.
"Enough, already. This isn't some tea party for you to talk amongst yourselves," he said nastily.
Hagrid stepped forward brandishing the large crossbow over his shoulder. "You can go back to the castle now Filch; I can handle it from here. Harry, Hermione," he greeted them.
"You shouldn't be too friendly with Hagrid," Filch said, "they're here to be punished, after all."
"Is that why they're late, you've been lecturing them," Hagrid questioned with a frown, "It's not your place to do that, you've done your bit, you can go back to the castle."
The unpleasant man looked visibly upset as he turned around, "I'll be back at dawn for what's left of them."
Once he was gone, Malfoy turned to complain to Hagrid, which I ignored in favor of talking with the others.
"Hey Hermione, Harry," I said before turning to the plump boy and sticking out my hand, "And you must be Neville, right? It's nice meeting you."
He took my hand and shook it nervously.
Harry stepped forward, "So, Charles, do you know why we're here?"
"Isn't it because you guys got caught out of bed," I started joking.
"Charles please, this is serious," Hermione pleaded, shivering slightly from the cold.
Visibly frowning I took off my top hat and reached inside, pulling out a sweater and handing it over to her, "Here, you look cold," then I turned to Harry, "And yes I do know the reason. We're here to help Hagrid search for an injured unicorn."
"A unicorn?" Harry asked curiously.