The oak boat within sight was probably twice as big as Harry and Hermione's little boat, and this was due to the special consideration Professor Brian had made to accommodate the large sizes of the two young witches aboard.
Slitherin's Crouch and Goyle!
Because Professor Brian had previously said that it was a race, so, Draco Malfoy threw his two loyal little followers without any mercy and chose Miss Pansy Parkinson.
At the sight of the two, Harry's face fell immediately. He turned the boat's wheel to change direction and leave, but before he could do so, Hermione called him back.
"Wait, Harry, look at their expressions,"
Hermione blinked, looking at the Clab and Goyle that were slowly drifting towards the orange light group, soon realizing,
"They seem to be enchanted by the Hinkypunk!"
Indeed, this was the case. Even though their oak boat was bigger than any other person's by a factor of two, the Clab and Goyle still had the cabin packed full, with their eyes glassy and staring blankly. They looked on with dazed expressions as the orange-yellow light group slowly drifted towards them, oblivious to Harry and Hermione standing not far away. They just steered the little boat aimlessly towards wherever it was going.
"It's not easy for these two big goofballs --"
Harry wore a mocking expression.
"I guess the two of them must have had their brains cooked to figure out how to make this boat move, because that's exactly what allowed Hinkypunk to take control of their minds."
"Don't say that, Harry."
Hermione said with a slightly reproachful tone, then looked worriedly at Clab and Goyle, who were slowly but steadily sliding towards the whirlpool in the mist.
"You said, should we remind them, Harry?"
"Are you mad, Hermione?"
Harry's eyes widened in shock.
Harry stared in disbelief, "These two fools wouldn't appreciate us showing them some kindness... and Professor Brian won't really put the young witches in danger, just a little discomfort... I think it would be perfect if they went to take a bath... as for Malfoy, who's been causing trouble for Hagrid and lying to avoid playing against Gryffindor's team, in my opinion, they should go take a bath!"
Frowning slightly, Hermione hesitated and nodded her head.
"All right, you're right --"
Splash!
Just as the two were preparing to mind their own business and change direction to continue exploring, a monster with horns and green teeth and long fingers suddenly jumped up from the shallow green mud below the calm water. It grabbed onto the side of the little boat with one hand and snatched Clab's collar with the other, seemingly intending to pull them both into the water and drown them!
"Ease off the tension!"
Upon seeing this, Hermione, without much consideration, reacted instinctively. She pulled out her wand and aimed it at the Grindylow, giving a sharp cry after raising her voice. A faint stream of air shot across the sixty-foot distance in an instant and accurately hit the claws with thin and long fingers that were clinging to the boat's railing!
Splash!
The Grindylow let out a surprised cry as it sank into the water. After it realized who had ruined its hunt, it turned towards Harry and Hermione with teeth bared, making a gurgling sound.
"Alright, it seems Professor Brian has prepared the final exam for our Black Magic Defense class in advance --"
Harry raised an eyebrow and quickly pulled out his wand, holding it in front of him as a precaution. His casual demeanor made Hermione feel a bit embarrassed.
"Let me, Harry. This is my trouble, so I have a spell that might scare it away..."
Watching the Grindylow, which was like a shark racing and splashing up two lines of silvery white waves, Hermione came to Harry's side, swallowed her saliva nervously, and gently circled her delicate wrist once around before whispering, "Dislodging Charm!"
"Cantrips of Luminous Invigoration!"
Click!
Nearby, a brittle branch was nearly falling off the Blackwood tree. Under Hermione's control, it made a loud snapping sound as it broke the water surface with a high-pitched shriek. In an instant, the calm water turned turbulent as a ten-foot-high wave crashed into the approaching Grindylow, knocking it unconscious instantly.
Drawing his gaze away from Ron and Pansy, who were frantically dodging the water arrows of the Hirakimba in the mud, Amortensa floated in mid-air and fixed a surprised gaze on Hermione, then softly smiled.
"Very impressive, Miss Granger--"
"Professor Brian's Controlling Charm?!"
Harry's emerald eyes almost popped out of his sockets. He stared at Hermione in astonishment, calling out in shock, "When did you learn this trick!"
"Only recently--"
Hermione pursed her lips, smiled shyly, but it seems she was still pleased with Harry's respectful expression.
"Potter--"
As Harry and Hermione were still in awe of the spell's power and applicability, the water wall raised by the Controlling Charm came crashing down, hitting Clab and Goyle's little boat directly, snapping them out of their dazed state.
Inside the oak cabin, the two big goofs, now a bit like drowned rats, tried to make sense of what had happened by spinning their walnut-sized brains. They were soon attracted by Harry Potter's attention from a distance.
After a joyful glance, Goyle smiled foolishly, pointing at Harry.
"You're in for trouble, Potter, Draco told us--"
"Malfoy?"
From sixty feet away, Harry's eyes narrowed with caution. He glared at the two big goofs, who had narrowly escaped a fate thanks to Hermione's kindness, and barked,
"What did Malfoy tell you?"
However, Clab and Goyle were surprisingly more witty than Harry had imagined. They exchanged a disingenuous glance before the next second, one lunged towards the bow of the boat and another towards the stern.
"Dammit!"
Hermione was still in a state of shock, but Harry was quick-witted. He immediately understood what Malfoy had actually told the Slytherins to do, which were a bunch of dirty snakes.
"Go to the stern, Hermione!"
Harry shouted, "I guess Malfoy gave them the order to attack as soon as they saw our boat!"
"But, Harry!" Hermione stumbled back to the stern, trying to cast a spell to make the oak boat move, "Professor Brian clearly said that we weren't allowed to attack each other!"
"Professor Brian only said we weren't allowed to attack each other with our wands, Hermione!"
Since last year when Professor Brian played a trick on him during the confrontation with the 'Spectral Clones,' Harry had learned to listen to the tone of voice!
Just as Harry said, Clab and Goyle were driving their boat straight at them, which wasn't fun. Their boat was bigger than normal, so if they were hit, Harry and Hermione's little boat wouldn't stand a chance against its superior mass.
Clank!
It was just a slight collision, and with Hermione's scream, their little boat lurched violently from side to side. If Harry and Hermione hadn't mentally prepared themselves well, they might have been thrown out of the cabin.
"I thought their boat would be slow!"
Harry gritted his teeth and said.
"Professor Brian must have enchanted the boat, ignoring the weight factor and only considering our magic power!" Hermione screamed.
During the process of avoiding the water giants, Harry and Hermione had both used a lot of magic, while Clab and Goyle... although their heads were not very bright, their magic power was still in line with that of average young witches. They had been staring straight into the trap, still dazed, but their magic inside them was still abundant.
Due to their high speed, Clab and Goyle's boat made a large curve as it turned, giving Harry and Hermione a moment to stabilize their boat. However, the mad Clab and Goyle snarled and chased after them without any regard for danger.
"These two big dummies must have never experienced such a glorious moment in their lives!"
Harry was furious, thinking that he was like riding a broomstick in a race against a Firebolt, constantly being crushed by the straight line, and could only escape by continuously making flexible turns to avoid Clab and Goyle's successive crashes.
"Use the spell you just showed us, Hermione, or we'll just have to go underwater and feed the fish."
"Oh no, Harry!"
Her cheeks sweaty, Hermione stubbornly called out, "No, Harry!"
"You yourself said, Professor Brian doesn't allow us to use magic to attack each other!"
Study Hall
