"Who are you?" Lee Jordan stepped forward first.
A compartment full of Gryffindors—plus Harry and Ron, who were practically Gryffindors-in-waiting—was not lacking in courage.
Even when facing three adult wizards.
"Avada Kedavra!"
No warnings. No speeches.
Green light exploded from the masked wizard's wand.
The children screamed.
Casting the Killing Curse without hesitation—this was madness, even by dark standards.
The green beam shot straight toward Lee Jordan. As his entire field of vision filled with that sickly glow, his life began flashing before his eyes.
Then—
An orange beam slammed into the curse, stopping it cold.
The source of the magic was unmistakable.
Hydrus Lestrange, wand raised.
These dark wizards—each not even half as strong as Lucius Malfoy—were hopelessly outmatched if they thought they could overpower her.
The orange light crushed the green, surging forward.
The masked wizard cut his magic instantly and dove aside. Hydrus's spell tore past his shoulder and obliterated the window at the far end of the corridor. Howling mountain wind burst into the carriage, whipping the three cloaks violently.
"Hydrus Lestrange," the leader barked, "do not resist. Come with us!"
Hydrus rose calmly from her seat. Golden Tiger leapt onto the table.
For opponents like this, she didn't even need help.
She lifted her wand.
"Just the three of you?" she said coolly. "You don't have what it takes to take me anywhere."
And she meant it.
The past two months had been hell.
She'd been hunted down and beaten—relentlessly—by that man.
The man whose name made the entire European magical world tremble.
Two months of nonstop punishment.
Talent? Magical affinity? All meaningless.
Grindelwald had taught her one eternal truth—
A legend is still a legend.
Under magic refined to absolute perfection, Hydrus had been crushed again and again.
And yet—
That training had pushed her far beyond most witches and wizards alive.
At a conservative estimate?
She was worth at least three Lucius Malfoys.
After the first clash, she'd already reached a conclusion:
The enemy is weak. We hold overwhelming advantage.
"Can't take you?" the leader sneered. "Then go ahead—fight us here. We can't guarantee the safety of the students."
A naked threat.
He stepped closer, palm outstretched.
"Hand over your wand and come quietly. Unless you want your classmates to die."
Hydrus smiled faintly.
Then she vanished.
Through divination, she had already seen the next ninety seconds.
She didn't even bother switching magical states—she simply erased her presence.
Magic?
Unnecessary.
Her former life's close-combat training hadn't been for nothing.
Her current body rivaled magical beasts.
A humanoid fire dragon.
The leader was still staring in shock when a fist slammed into his mask.
The metal caved inward.
He dropped straight backward and entered blissful, infant-like unconsciousness.
The remaining two panicked.
One of them raised his wand, green light gathering at the tip, firing blindly into the compartment.
If he sprayed curses in a tight space, he was bound to hit something.
He never got the chance.
A brutal blow smashed into his stomach.
He doubled over, retching violently.
Unfortunately for him, his mask didn't have a mouth opening.
Colorful horror flooded the inside of the mask and leaked out the sides.
The children weren't scared anymore.
They were disgusted.
"Ewww—"
"That's vile!"
"This is revolting!"
Extremely Gryffindor.
Extremely twin-like.
Hydrus didn't let him suffer long.
A clean chop to the neck.
He collapsed.
The connecting door burst open.
Prefects and train staff rushed in.
"What happened here?!"
The final masked wizard didn't hesitate.
He dove through the shattered window and vanished with a sharp rip of Apparition.
Hydrus reappeared in her seat.
Golden Tiger settled onto her lap as she propped her chin on one hand, gazing out the window with deep interest—at nothing but jagged rocks and wild weeds.
Her voice was soft.
"You didn't see anything, did you?"
She had no intention of getting dragged into trouble.
Feigning ignorance was the best outcome.
First, though—she needed everyone here on the same page.
"Hydrus," Ron breathed, awestruck. "That was incredible. How did you do it?"
"I didn't."
"Nope."
"Not me."
The triple denial completely short-circuited Ron.
She'd done the right thing. She was unbelievably powerful.
Why deny it?
Hydrus thought fast.
"Ron," she said casually, never looking away from the window, "you should always keep something in reserve. If people know your trump card, it stops being one."
She paused.
"So help me out, alright? Don't tell anyone."
Footsteps were almost at the door.
The twins exchanged a look.
She was absolutely right.
What was a prank worth if people knew how it worked?
"Oh dear," George said loudly, stepping out. "How did these two just pass out?"
"Yes, yes," Fred added theatrically. "Very mysterious."
Honestly, Hydrus didn't even need an excuse.
Everyone in this compartment adored her.
Percy appeared, pale with alarm.
"Ron! Fred! George! Are you alright?!"
"Our prefect brother finally noticed us," Fred laughed.
"He does care!" George added.
Percy scrubbed his hair irritably.
"I'm serious. What happened?"
"Well, sir," George said solemnly, "three masked men tried to kidnap Hydrus."
Fred chimed in, "Maybe they wanted to take her home to hear her sing."
George nodded gravely. "There are a lot of sick people out there."
"And then a troll showed up!"
"No, George," Fred corrected, "the compartment's too small for a troll."
"Oh, right. A mysterious wizard appeared and knocked them out."
Percy's temples throbbed.
Sabotaged tracks. A forced stop. An attempted kidnapping.
This was organized.
"Ron," Percy said slowly, "you tell me. What happened?"
Ron glanced at Hydrus.
She was still calmly admiring the "scenery."
"Well… Percy," Ron said hesitantly, "Hydrus was singing. You didn't hear it—it was amazing. I fell asleep. I don't know what happened."
Harry and Lee lit up instantly.
"Yeah! Same!"
"We were asleep too!"
The problem landed squarely on Percy's shoulders.
He was no fool.
And yet—
He looked at Hydrus Lestrange, utterly focused on the window.
So…
Should he believe them?
Or should he believe them?