Dumbledore's magic surged forward. The dragonfire spewing from the Norwegian Ridgeback was instantly forced back. A flicker of human-like astonishment flashed in the beast's eyes.
Dumbledore's brow furrowed slightly. Gazing up at the dragons wheeling in the sky, he murmured, "Purple flames? Erwin, you've really stirred up a hornet's nest this time."
He plunged the Elder Wand into the ground. A commanding voice rang out: "Finite Incantatem!"
In the next moment, a golden light—brighter and more potent than the combined efforts of two dozen Aurors—erupted into the sky. It bore down on the dragons like an unyielding barrier.
The creatures sensed the peril and roared in defiance, unleashing torrents of flame toward Dumbledore. But the golden shield held firm, absorbing every lick of fire.
Realizing the futility, the dragons ceased their struggles. The light suppressed them entirely, and soon all the fire dragons were extinguished in bursts of fading embers.
Dumbledore pocketed his wand with a quiet sigh of relief, wiping a bead of sweat from his forehead. "Erwin's grown this powerful already? If this keeps up for another couple of years, I might not be able to rein him in."
The once-vast Forbidden Forest had been reduced to half its size, charred and smoldering. The Head of the Auror Office exhaled sharply. "Thank you, Headmaster Dumbledore."
Dumbledore waved it off dismissively. The Auror's expression darkened. "Whoever unleashed Fiendfyre in the Forbidden Forest won't get away with this—I swear it."
"I'd advise against digging into it," Dumbledore replied evenly. "Stay out of this one. It's beyond you."
The Auror blinked in surprise. "You know who did it?"
Dumbledore offered no answer. "That's the end of it. I'm off." With that, he vanished into a swirl of Apparition.
The Auror stood there, brow creased in frustration. Moments later, one of his subordinates hurried over. "Sir, I've got something!"
The Head paused. "Out with it."
The Auror puffed up a bit with pride. "Purple flames—classic Fiendfyre signature. It points to one person: Erwin Cavendish. I read about it in the Daily Prophet; his fire's got that distinctive purple hue. And during that Slytherin challenge, he used a fire shield—shows he's a master with Fiendfyre!"
The Head's eyes widened. Erwin? He recalled Dumbledore's warning and nodded grimly. That explained everything.
The subordinate pressed on. "Should we bring him in?"
The Head's face hardened. "New to the force this year, aren't you?"
The Auror nodded eagerly.
"Good work—I'll note it in your file. But this stays between us. Clear?"
The Auror beamed and nodded vigorously.
"Right, back to your post. I'm heading to the Ministry."
Straightaway, the Head returned to the Ministry of Magic and briefed the Minister.
The Minister's face drained of color as he listened. "Why was he in the Forbidden Forest?"
"No idea, sir," the Head replied. "But our intel shows the vampires took the worst of it. We even recovered Lily Elise's body—burned beyond recognition—but she had the Elise family patriarch's ring on her finger."
The Minister steepled his fingers, thinking. "Sounds like the dark creatures poked the wrong bear. Keep this quiet. Act like we found nothing. As for your sharp-eyed Auror, reassign him—somewhere he'll never cross paths with this again. Understood?"
The Head nodded and departed.
Alone, the Minister sank into his chair. Theirs was a modest Ministry at best, propped up by the Forbidden Forest's strategic importance in this corner of the wizarding world. They lacked the clout to tangle with someone like Erwin Cavendish. Pretending ignorance was the wisest course—they couldn't afford the fallout.
Meanwhile, back at Cavendish Manor, Erwin remained blissfully unaware of the chaos he'd unleashed. He hadn't anticipated how profoundly his Fiendfyre Blessing had evolved. A wizard never glances back at his own explosion, after all, which was why he'd missed the shift entirely.
In the end, Dumbledore had cleaned up the mess. Without the Headmaster's intervention, Erwin might have sparked a true disaster.
Now, he eyed Nagini on the desk with keen curiosity. The serpent sat coiled, watching him just as intently. She could sense the soothing aura radiating from him—a rare comfort that even her deep-seated distrust of humans couldn't entirely repel.
Erwin's fingers trailed gently along her scales. Magic flowed from his touch, delving into her serpentine form to probe its essence.
He pulled back, pondering. So this was the Maledictus curse: a volatile energy at war with her bloodline, twisting her toward permanence. It echoed the turmoil in his own Draconic bloodline somehow.
If that was the case, could his harmonizing magic soothe her affliction?
Just then, a magical alert chimed in his mind: power gain halted.
Erwin raised an eyebrow. "That was fast. Pity—nearly had enough to advance. The British Ministry's got some spine after all; they shut it down quick. Might need to look into them properly next time."
He shook his head, dismissing the thought. No level-up this round? Plenty more chances ahead.
These dark creatures were proving resilient pests, but if they bred fast enough and spilled out of the Forbidden Forest, his day of settling scores would come soon.
Erwin tapped Nagini's head lightly. Harmonizing magic surged forth in a warm pulse.
She sensed the intrusion and thrashed uneasily, her body coiling in alarm.
Erwin frowned, channeling more magic to bind her in place. "Easy now—hold still!"
...
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