Hogwarts Study Panel

Chapter 199: Forbidden Forest Assistant

"Come on, follow me quickly. After we finish eating, they'll be leaving soon—"

Hagrid strode into the Forbidden Forest, and Sheen followed him, going in his footsteps.

Soon, they arrived at the same place they had visited before, a place densely wooded and as dark as dusk.

"wait for me."

Hagrid placed Toothbrush next to Sheen and plunged into the yew forest.

A short while later, the cry of an eagle rang out from not far away.

An animal trotted toward Sheen.

This is a strange animal.

It has the body, hind legs, and tail of a horse, but its forelegs, wings, and head resemble those of an eagle. Its cold, sharp beak is the color of steel, and its bright, large eyes are orange.

The eagle's talons on its forelegs were half a foot long, and just as Hagrid had said, they looked terrifying.

Reassuringly, it wore a thick leather collar around its neck, secured by a long chain. The chain was gripped in Hagrid's large hands as he followed the monster slowly toward Sheen.

"I put in a lot of effort, Sheen, come quick, Merlin's beard—I know you must be thrilled!"

Hagrid himself was so excited that he kept rubbing his hands together.
“Remember, Sheen, I know you’ll listen carefully, and that’s for the best.”

What I'm about to tell you is that the first thing you need to know about the hippogriff is that it is very proud. You walk up to it and bow, and if it bows back to you, you can touch it.

If it doesn't bow, get away from it quickly; those claws can hurt. Try it, Sheen.

Sheen had been waiting for a long time. He looked at the animal with its head held high, and without hesitation, he took a step forward.

"Well done!"

Hagrid spoke in a gruff voice, appearing much more nervous than Sheehan.
"Okay—make eye contact with it, and don't blink—if you blink too often, the hippogriff won't believe you..."

Sheen stared at the hippogriff, while Hagrid stood nearby, offering a concerned reminder:

"Bowing, Sheen..."

Sheen knew he was now at the most crucial stage in taming the hippogriff.

Just as he slowly bowed.

To Hagrid’s great surprise, the hippogriff suddenly bent its scaly forelegs and made a clear bow.

"Well done, Sheen! You tamed it! Good heavens! It took me a whole week!"

Hagrid said with ecstasy,

"Alright—you can pet it now! Pat its mouth, go ahead!"

[You have gained the favor of the fantastic beast Buckbeak by meeting expert standards, proficiency +50]

[Hippogriff Buckbeak: Slightly Friendly (20/300)]

[Advanced: Having three relatively close (beginner-level) magical creature companions unlocks the beginner-level title in the magical creature realm]

It looked like a success. Sheen reached out and patted Buckbeak's mouth.

Sheen was very familiar with this name.

Buckbeak symbolizes freedom and overcoming adversity. It repelled werewolves, drove away Professor Snape, and even provided transportation for Sirius Black, who escaped from prison.

It is a loyal and magical creature.

In the forbidden forest.

Buckbeak lazily closed its eyes, seemingly enjoying having its mouth patted.

The dim forest smelled of damp earth as Sheen followed Hagrid relentlessly through the dense woods.

They fed the Bowtruckles with insects from around the trees, such as ground beetles, and then fed the Thestrals raw meat. A little while later, they would return to Hagrid's hut to cook for Toothpick.

Throughout the journey, Sheen heard the panel chiming happily: [You have gained the favor of the magical creature Bowtruckle (Tira) with beginner-level skill, proficiency +3]

[You've gained the favor of the magical creature Thestral (U-U) with beginner-level skill; your proficiency has increased by 3.]

……

The magical creatures' affinity increased rapidly because Sheen took on almost all the feeding tasks.

Hagrid held Tooth in his arms, feeling somewhat emotional:
"I knew it, he must be absolutely obsessed with magical creatures... just like me..."

Gaining the favor of magical creatures is not an easy task, especially for some of the more intelligent ones. It is quite common for their affinity level to get stuck at one point.

Sheen had long planned for the future.

Thanks to his ability as a Junior Magical Creature Affinity, Shin is able to understand some of the thoughts of magical creatures.

For example, Gugu is a relatively large tree-protecting humps.

It had always liked a small tree, but the tribe believed that as the tribe's great protector tree, the hunchback should go to a bigger tree, so it was always troubled.

After Sheen helped make an exchange, its affinity level increased dramatically, reaching the "relatively close" (beginner) level.

The days in the Forbidden Forest were quite interesting. Sheen planned the alchemical ritual for the new Fantastic Beast Cookies while patrolling the territory with Hagrid, who was as strong as a lion.

They processed raw meat, collected beetles, and guarded the Forbidden Forest, leading Hagrid to believe that Professor McGonagall had assigned him a little assistant.

She is also an excellent assistant who is good at using magic to improve efficiency (such as using Transfiguration to make five stone knives to process raw meat), has a mature mindset, and loves magical creatures.

That day, Harry, Ron, and Hermione came to the edge of the Forbidden Forest to look for Hagrid, but instead of Hagrid, they saw Sheen riding a strange animal.

Hagrid excitedly ran after him.

"Merlin! Buckbeak is willing to stay! Sheen, I'm so excited!"

Sheen smiled faintly; Buckbeak was willing to stay, and his magical animal cookies were finally secured.

"I remember, Hagrid was the hunting ground guard, wasn't he? Now Hagrid is just the key keeper?"

Ron muttered to himself.
“I know Sheen is currently in the Forbidden Forest, but when did he take office?”

As they talked, they instinctively followed Hagrid into the Forbidden Forest.

"What are you doing, huh?"

Hagrid saw their dangerous movements and suddenly roared, startling them into jumping.
"This is the Forbidden Forest! First-year students aren't allowed to wander around like this, Harry! And you two! How dare you do this!"

The three were so frightened that they quickly retreated, then looked at Hagrid and Sheen, who was riding Buckbeak away, with strange eyes.

"Ah—! You all saw it?"

Hagrid belatedly realized what was happening. He stood there for two seconds, then stared wide-eyed and said...

"Yeah, the first-year students are running around everywhere..."

Harry quietly added a sentence.

"Oh oh oh-"

Hagrid's face turned red.

"Hagrid, aren't you going with Sheen?"

Hermione asked with some concern.

"Oh my god! What am I doing! Sheen, danger! Wait for me—"

So Hagrid ran off too.

Harry and his two companions were left alone in the Forbidden Forest, staring at each other in bewilderment.