Chapter 658 - Patrolling Ⅹ (2/2)
Behind him, a silent shadow flits through the air nearing ever closer to the impervious figure of Professor Zephyros. There is no sound, no sudden warning except for a shiver of unease that races down Professor Zephyros' back. Reaching for his wand, Professor Zephyros far too late, he lets out a pained gurgle as powerful venomous fangs tear his throat open and he falls to the cold ground. Find authorized novels in , faster updates, better experience, Please click #%E2%85%B9_51538119178118261 for visiting.
Within seconds, Professor Zephyros bleeds out as he futilely presses his hand to his gushing neck as the ground becomes dark and painted wet. The powerful venom acts immediately, and his gaze grows dim and stiff. His eyes frantically dart around, but nary a trace nor shadow can be seen of his hidden attacker. It was no spell, but a living, breathing creature.
The panicked look on Professor Zephyros' face fades away as a much more relaxed and almost relieved expression appears on his visage. Staring above at the darkness, the tips of Professor Zephyros's lips twitch into the faintest of smiles. He croaks a muffled gurgle and which the only broken words that can be understood as ”Fogey.”
As if finally putting down a great weight, Professor Zephyros lets out a sigh as his dreamy eyes become dull, and the weak hand gripping his slippery neck slides limply to the floor. From the chest of Professor Zephyros, a black rune symbol of a Hydra appears as if screaming, before fading to smoke and is blown away by the chilly autumn wind into nothing. From the shadow emerges the figure of Nadira, who glows brightly beneath the moonlight. Peering up above the trees, she sees the figure of Rowan slowly descend and come to rest on the ground.
”Mm, the ruse would have been up, if he would have just looked up, but I suppose there is something to say about his arrogance working in our favor,” Rowan mused to herself as she stared at the dying corpse.
Turning to gaze at Nadira, Rowan arches her brow at the innocent blinking serpent. ”Really, Nadira, I said to watch and follow not him, not to kill him,” she chided in exasperation.
Nadira sheepishly flicks her tongue at Rowan. ”But protector it is my mortal enemy!” Nadira hissed indignantly. ”It slew my mother, and I have sworn to avenge her!”
Rowan did not soften her gaze at Nadira's words. ”Nadira, I am the first most person, who foremost wishes to see our enemy dead. But Professor Zephyros knew much, and he would have possibly led us the other vessels as well. And now, once more, we do not know who our enemy is, but our enemy will now be on guard as one of their own is dead.”
Nadira's head wilts sadly as she whimpers, ”I am sorry, protector.”
”It is what it is, and we shall make do as such,” Rowan sighed as she gently rubbed the warm, but smooth, serpent head of Nadira in an effort to console her. Withdrawing her hand, she lets out a very loud yawn at the late hour. ”Come, we must rid ourselves of the corpse.”
Nadira nods her head, before opening her mouth impossibly wide and swallowing the corpse whole. Rowan flinches and turns green at seeing hastily turning away from the gut-wrenching scene, she closes her eyes and breathes deeply in order not to hurl. Thankfully, since she was floating away above the ground, she did not have the scent wafting up to her as the breeze carried the scent away from her.
Once Nadira had finished swallowing the corpse, but her body to Rowan's great disturbance remained flat as if the serpent had not just swallowed an entire grown man whole. With ease, Nadira rose into the air as Rowan solemnly said, ”Do not wander around, Nadira, and if so only when invisible. And trust no one except those that are bound to keep your secret, is that understood?”
”Yes, protector,” Nadira grumbled reluctantly as her tongue fluttered in the air.
”No hurry back to the lake,” Rowan instructed.
”Will you not be returning, protector?” Nadira curiously asked.
”I shall return to Hogwarts in my own way,” Rowan truthfully replied, ”but we cannot be seen together.”
”Very well, protector,” Nadira mumbled, before turning invisible and flying back to the lake.
Closing her eyes, Rowan peers into her mind mapscape and finds that the map is empty, before teleporting back just outside of the Slytherin quarters. With a semi-yawn, she mumbled the password before stumbling into the dimly lit common room and up to her quarters. The day's events all hit her at once and she collapsed exhausted onto the bed with her clothes still on. She only paused to kick her cloak and boots off; she tugged the covers over her head and closed her eyes.
With the last smidgeon of ability, Rowan checked her mapscape and did not find anyone making their way to or from the Forbidden Forest except for Hagrid. Releasing her mapscape, she closed her eyes and fell into a deep, fatigued sleep. She did not stir at all that night despite her continuous nightmares until morning that involved the Basilisk from the Chamber of Secrets.
However, elsewhere in the castle, a female in the girl's dormitory is unable to sleep that night having felt Professor Zephyros's death. Either it was a coincidence or there was someone hunting them within the castle? Hogwarts bore watching and she would, but she could not do so alone. Thankfully, a new vessel had been acquired at the start of the term, and none would ever suspect him.