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Hagrid didn't know why Robert suddenly ran toward the center of the Forbidden Forest, but seeing how anxious he looked, he decided to follow.
Time seemed to crawl by, minute after minute. The deeper they went, the quieter the surroundings became. Their ears felt sharper than usual, picking up every gust of wind and every snapping twig.
After an unknown amount of time, the trees thickened. The once spacious path became nearly impassable, but none of the three slowed down—because the bloodstains around them were increasing.
At this point, Robert no longer needed to lead the way. Hagrid had taken the front, pushing aside vines and branches to clear the path for Harry and Robert.
Finally, after parting a thick patch of bushes, a pure white shape entered their line of sight.
It was a dying Unicorn, collapsed at the base of an ancient oak tree, trembling in pain. Its silver-blue blood flowed over its coat, mane, and onto the ground like glittering gems.
Beside the Unicorn, a black figure crawled across the ground. It resembled a person in a hooded cloak, but its movements were animalistic. Harry was stunned. He had never seen anything so beautiful, tragic, and terrifying all at once.
He felt like he should act. But someone moved first.
"What are you!" Hagrid roared, crashing through the bushes. "Get away from the Unicorn, or I won't be nice to you!"
The black figure hadn't expected anyone. Faced with Hagrid's fury, it only hesitated for a moment—then lunged at the injured Unicorn, greedily sucking the blood flowing from its wound.
The Unicorn's struggles weakened. Its mouth opened and closed, but it couldn't make a sound.
"Stop!" Hagrid shouted, his eyes red with rage.
Just as he reached the figure, ready to deliver a powerful punch, the intruder wrapped itself around a nearby tree like a serpent and twisted its body, vanishing into the dark underbrush.
Without thinking, Hagrid charged after it, leaving only Robert and Harry behind.
Eventually, even the sound of Hagrid's heavy footsteps faded away. All that remained was the rustling of leaves in the wind.
"Do you think that monster will come back…" Harry asked quietly.
"I don't know," Robert replied, shaking his head. His gaze remained fixed on the Unicorn as he slowly approached.
Harry followed closely behind. "Is it dead?"
Robert didn't respond. He stared into the Unicorn's fading eyes. Within them, he saw resistance, sorrow, longing, pain, and a silent plea.
"It's about to die…"
"Who's there?" Harry spun around, startled by a sudden voice. He nearly dropped his wand.
By the dim moonlight, Harry finally saw the speaker—a Centaur. But not Ronan or Bane, whom they had seen earlier. This one was younger, with platinum hair.
"This place is dangerous," the Centaur said. "Especially for you. I can take you away. Can you ride a horse?"
"I…" Harry stammered, then pointed at Robert. "What about him?"
Robert hadn't turned around once during the conversation. He remained facing the Unicorn.
"I'm sorry," the Centaur said. "I can only carry one person."
"Then I'm not going," Harry said without hesitation.
Although often reckless, Harry's loyalty was sincere. If Robert had heard him, he would've been touched.
But Robert wasn't listening.
Because he was somewhere else entirely.
He still stood in the Forbidden Forest, yet before him stretched a boundless white world. In the distance, he could vaguely make out flowers, lakes, and trees.
Looking down, Robert saw the boundary between two spaces ripple and clash like waves. They pushed against one another, distinct yet constantly shifting.
When he looked up again, the Unicorn stood in the white space—uninjured, bloodless, calm.
How could this be?
Robert wanted to move closer, but couldn't. Though it seemed just a few feet away, it also felt like five hundred. He couldn't reach it.
Then, a thought occurred to him. He looked at the Whomping Willow Wand in his hand. At some point, its blue-silver glow had faded, and the runes had grown dull and blurry.
It seemed the Unicorn had already died, but somehow, the Wand's runes mistook its lingering soul for a dying core—and activated.
These runes were meant to protect a Wand core, like a Unicorn tail hair. Their effect on a full-grown Unicorn was minimal—just enough to suspend it on the threshold of death for a little while.
But only a little while.
Once the runes vanished, he would return.
A new dilemma surfaced.
Robert stared at the Wand, then at the Unicorn. He sighed.
The Whomping Willow Wand was empty. Now, its only suitable core could be this Unicorn.
He just hoped Hagrid and Dumbledore would grant him the Unicorn's horn in exchange for helping them navigate.
He couldn't help but glance at the top of the Unicorn's head.
With such a fine Wand body, it would be a waste to only use a tail hair.
Perhaps his stare was too intense. The Unicorn raised its head, assuming a defensive posture.
"Relax," Robert muttered. "You gonna charge me?"
He sighed again. "I won't take your horn for free. Here's the deal: when I make the Wand, I'll lend it to Harry."
He paused, then added, "That way, when he defeats Quirrell, you can count that as your revenge."
The Unicorn kept staring from across the white space.
"What, don't believe me?" Robert sat cross-legged on the ground. Whether the Unicorn could understand or not, he kept talking.
"I'm a… well, a Wandmaker. One with a few special skills."
He held up the Wand. "Do you know what a Wand is? Probably not, but that's okay…"
While Robert spoke, the white space across from him slowly eroded. The boundary waves advanced, shrinking it down until only a window-sized patch remained.
He could now hear Harry's voice. At first faint, it grew clearer.
Harry seemed to be talking to someone—was it Hagrid?
When the last sliver of white space disappeared, the Unicorn would truly die.
Robert stood up.
"Anyway," he said, "I'll place a part of you into this Wand. Someone will use it to destroy the creature that killed you. It's a fair trade."
The last bit of white space was now palm-sized, glowing like a lamp in the Forest.
"What a strange experience," Robert thought. "I wonder if my grandfather knew an empty Wand body could do this. I'll write to ask him tomorrow."
The voices grew louder.
Behind him, Harry had reappeared, but instead of Hagrid, a Centaur stood beside him.
That explained the hoofbeats he had heard earlier…
Wait. The Centaur hadn't moved—so why could he still hear hoofbeats?
Robert spun around again.
The white space had vanished completely—but the Unicorn remained.
Now it glowed with a blue, spectral light, like a ghost. Gathering the last of its strength, it charged—horn-first—toward the Whomping Willow Wand in Robert's hand.
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