Adrian gathered the students on an open space beside the Black Lake.
"Do you think he'll teach better than Professor Kettleburn?" one of the Weasley brothers said to the other.
"Idiot!" His brother rolled his eyes in disgust. "We've never had Professor Kettleburn's class! We're only third-years."
"Ah, right... we're only third-years."
"..."
Adrian decided to ignore these two clowning redheads.
He clapped his hands, signaling for all students to look at him.
"First," Adrian smiled at all the students, "I have a few precautions to tell everyone. Firstly, without my permission, no one is allowed to approach the magical creature that will appear shortly. Additionally, put away your wands; we won't need them for this lesson. Using your wands rashly will only lead to unnecessary trouble."
The students immediately began discussing in low voices but still complied, putting their wands back into their pockets.
Seeing this, Adrian nodded with satisfaction.
Then, he raised his finger to his lips and blew a crisp whistle.
In an instant, the clear sky seemed to be disturbed by some invisible force. Clouds rapidly gathered from all directions, blocking the sunlight.
The giant squid in the Black Lake also surfaced, restlessly stirring.
Before the students could react, a blazing white lightning bolt tore through the sky, accompanied by a deep rumble of thunder, startling everyone.
"Professor!" a student shouted. "It's going to rain."
The next second, a figure with a distinctly different color violently pierced through the clouds, diving down.
While everyone watched in astonishment, Ray circled in the air before gently landing beside Adrian, folding its wings and slightly lowering its head.
Adrian reached out to gently stroke the Thunderbird's neck, a smile spreading across his face as he asked, "Who can tell me what magical creature this is?"
In reality, a Thunderbird was very easy to identify because no other bird in nature had two pairs of wings.
"A Thunderbird, Professor!" a student exclaimed excitedly.
Adrian glanced at that student.
'Hmm, Hufflepuff.'
"Five points to Hufflepuff, but, sir, remember to raise your hand next time." He nodded cheerfully, generously adding a few points to his own house.
At this, a continuous stream of discussions suddenly erupted among the students.
"Quiet," Adrian stepped forward, bringing Ray closer to the students. "Everyone, this is the focus of your lesson today—a Thunderbird, and its name is 'Ray.' Ah, I almost forgot to mention, it's just a newborn, so it might be a bit mischievous."
He paused, then added, "Of course, its temper isn't too bad... at least better than some of you."
The students' discussions grew more animated. It's worth noting that this was an "XXXXX"-class magical creature.
Even if some students weren't familiar with Thunderbirds, they certainly knew about dragons.
For a Thunderbird to be in the same class as dragons naturally indicated its special nature.
The Weasley brothers were in the first row of students, closest to Ray.
One of them, seeing this, had a gleam of eagerness in his eyes.
Fred carefully moved a few steps forward, stretched out his hand, trying to approach the Thunderbird.
However, Ray merely tilted its head, emitting a low cry.
As Fred's hand still hung in mid-air.
"Boom!"
A lightning bolt exploded beside him, leaving a charred mark and emanating a faint burnt smell.
"Merlin's hair!"
Fred jumped back violently, stumbled, and landed on his backside, his face pale.
The other students also retreated in fear.
Adrian watched this scene with composure, raising an eyebrow, saying in a light tone, "Very good, Mr. Weasley. It seems you completely ignored what I said at the beginning. You've just personally experienced Ray's warning method."
Fred gulped, trembling as he looked at Ray, who remained elegantly in place.
Of course, Adrian wouldn't let Ray truly harm the students; the lightning just now was merely a small joke.
If it had actually struck a student, his teaching career would probably end prematurely.
Adrian surveyed the students, his gaze resting on Fred for a moment, then slowly said, "Thunderbirds are magical creatures extremely sensitive to danger. If you want to approach it, you must put aside all your malice. Of course, not just Thunderbirds, many magical creatures can keenly sense others' malice.
So, regarding how to treat magical creatures, the first thing you need to learn is how to suppress your own malice."
A tall male student hesitated, raised his hand, and carefully asked, "Professor, how exactly should we do that?"
Adrian looked at the person asking the question and found that it was the Hufflepuff student who had first identified the Thunderbird.
"Good question, sir," Adrian nodded with satisfaction, then asked, "What's your name?"
"Cedric Diggory, Professor," the Hufflepuff student answered.
"Alright, Mr. Diggory, would you please come to the front?" Adrian smiled.
Cedric followed Adrian's instructions, obediently walking to the front, standing between Adrian and Ray.
He looked at the Thunderbird, then glanced at his classmates around, seeming a bit nervous.
"First, you must understand that 'malice' isn't just your thoughts, but also includes your emotions, body language, and even the rhythm of your breathing will reveal your state. And Thunderbirds can very sensitively perceive these details, which is one reason why they are highly sensitive to danger."
After explaining, Adrian patted Cedric's shoulder, then handed him a piece of honeycomb toffee he had sneaked from Dumbledore, "Relax, Mr. Diggory. Now your task is to get Ray to accept the candy in your hand."
Cedric looked at the honeycomb toffee in his hand, nervously swallowing.
Although he trusted Adrian wouldn't put him in danger, the lightning Ray had summoned earlier still left him uneasy.
Regarding the name Cedric Diggory, Adrian naturally had an impression.
He was an excellent, brave, and righteous student. Moreover, he was a Hufflepuff, which raised Adrian's fondness for him another notch.
Unfortunately, in the original story, he seemed to have lost his life in the end.
Cedric carefully extended his hand, holding the candy, his gaze focused on Ray.
________________
You can get more chapters on:
patreon.com/IamLuis