Harry Potter: The Golden Viper

0207 Weird Things

"The Feathered Serpent-" Professor McGonagall gasped as if someone had choked her throat with a cold hand. She said breathlessly, "A rare magical creature as a Patronus, Albus! I have never seen another besides yours!" Her eyes were wide with astonishment and awe, as she stared at the enormous thing that filled the sky above them.

"It is indeed very rare," Dumbledore replied, gazing at the sky-covering White-Winged Snake with a frown of curiosity and concern. "-But not unique. In fact, what surprises me is that this Patronus's size has never been recorded. I am amazed that the wizard's Patronus can have such a huge size." He stroked his long beard, as if trying to recall some ancient lore or legend.

"Could it be related to our own magic, Albus?" Professor Flitwick squeaked out his opinion, his eyes wide with excitement and wonder. He was always fascinated by the mysteries of spells and charms, and this was a sight he had never witnessed before. "Maybe, the wizard has a special affinity with this creature, or a powerful bond with his wand?"

"I'm afraid not," Dumbledore said solemnly, shaking his head. "We all know that the Patronus Charm is the only spell that wizards can master to counter the Dementors, the indestructible evil creatures. Its power comes from the most positive emotions in our hearts. In other words, this spell's power comes from our souls." He looked at the young wizard who had cast the spell, standing above the high hoops, surrounded by a silvery glow, and muttered softly, "So, the question is, what kind of soul does he have?"

"So Bryan has a particularly strong soul power?" Flitwick asked eagerly, leaning forward in his seat. When it came to the field of spells, he was always passionate and eager to learn more.

But this time, Dumbledore did not give his answer. From his serious expression, he seemed to disagree with this view. 

As Dumbledore and several heads discussed this Unique Patronus, Bryan above the pitch was also plunged into an unprecedented shock. 

Yes, that's right. He did intend to summon his own Patronus to drive away the out-of-control Dementors. He had practiced the spell many times, and he knew that his Patronus took the form of a snake, a common and simple animal. But the behemoth in front of him was nothing like he expected. It was a creature of legend, a mythical beast that he had only read about in books.

Everyone on the Quidditch pitch was puzzled, but not only the wizards. The dim-witted Dementors that floated in the air, shaped like the Grim Reaper, were also filled with confusion. They hovered in front of the huge snake head of the Patronus that came out of the myths, not understanding why they were not afraid of this seemingly very powerful Patronus. Even more strangely, they felt a little bit of affection! 

At this moment, the Winged Snake, which was almost as high as the main building of Hogwarts, flapped its white wings on its own. Under Bryan's condensed gaze, one of the silver-white wings suddenly stained with a touch of black, like a drop of ink dripping into clear water. In just a few breaths, the wing was completely blackened. Thus, the Patronus of the giant python-like creature carried two wings, one black and one white. It was a very strange sight! 

Hum! With that black wing as the center, an invisible wave swept away in an instant. The Dementors that were swept by the energy appeared on the left and right of the black wing, like bees attracted by the fragrance of flowers. 

"Those Dementors…" In the crowd of the young wizards, someone muttered in a trance. They could not believe what they were seeing. They had never seen a Patronus like this, nor a Dementor behave like this.

"Can Professor Watson control them?" Another voice asked, sounding fearful. 

The crowd became restless. Many people exchanged uneasy glances, feeling terrified by this terrible guess. 

Control the Dementors? If the Wizarding world's residents voted for the most terrifying creature, then undoubtedly, the ruthless guards of Azkaban, who could drain the wizard's happy memories and magic, turning the wizards into soulless beasts, the Dementors would win by a landslide. 

Just like Parselmouth, the power to control this kind of terrifying creature was probably not something that a decent wizard could have. 

The whispers of the young wizards reached the ears of the teachers in the center of the stands, making their faces look ugly. 

"What do you think, Albus?" Professor McGonagall asked seriously, her voice trembling slightly.

"I don't see any problem, Minerva!" Before Dumbledore could speak, Snape rudely interrupted the question. He said harshly, "Bryan has a talent for spell modification that is beyond the reach of ordinary wizards. Maybe, he just made some changes to the Patronus Charm!" 

"A reasonable guess, Severus." Dumbledore concealed the astonishment on his old face, regained his calm. His sharp eyes pointed at Bryan standing above the Quidditch hoops. After thinking for a while, he quickly walked down the platform, and came to the pitch below. He decided to talk to Bryan personally and find out the truth behind this mystery. 

Boom– The ground shook violently, as if an earthquake had struck. In the incredulous eyes of the young wizards, the cracked ground suddenly grew a huge stone pillar, as if it had been summoned from the depths of the earth. This pillar supported Dumbledore as he rose to the air and came to Bryan's side. 

Dumbledore had thought that everything was under Bryan's control, but when he saw Bryan's solemn expression and his gray hair flying in the wind, he knew that his guess was wrong. 

"Has this happened before, Bryan?" He asked softly, looking into Bryan's eyes. 

Huge things always gave people an extraordinary sense of shock. Compared to being on the ground, observing this sky-covering Patronus up close, even a wizard like Albus Dumbledore could not help but sway. He took back his gaze from the Winged Snake and focused on Bryan. 

"No, Headmaster Dumbledore," Bryan shook his head. "I have mastered the Patronus Charm for a few years. I used it to deal with the Vampyr Bats in Papua New Guinea before. There was nothing unusual then. It was the size of the normal Patronus that wizards knew well. This is the first time I used it to deal with the Dementors. What do you think of this?" 

For this unprecedented magical phenomenon, Dumbledore did not dare to make a conclusion easily. His deep blue eyes fell on the Winged Snake's black wing again. As a 'Magus', he had a unique perspective beyond anyone else. He could sense the connection between Bryan and his Patronus, and the influence they had on each other. He suppressed the bad thoughts in his heart and still whispered, "It's hard to say, Bryan. What I'm concerned about is, can you still control your Patronus now?" 

Bryan squinted his eyes and concentrated for a while. He confirmed that he had no problem controlling his Patronus. Then, he nodded slowly. "It's the same as before." 

Hearing that the Winged-Snake had not lost control, Dumbledore's face looked a little more relaxed. He breathed a sigh of relief, and smiled faintly. If Bryan really lost control of his Patronus, letting this big 'monster' rampage in Hogwarts, to be honest, Dumbledore really couldn't find anything in the air that could control it. He doubted that even his own Phoenix Patronus could match the Winged Snake in size and strength without disturbing the environment. He feared that the out of control Winged Snake would cause a lot of damage and chaos, and that it would endanger the lives of the students and teachers.

"In that case-" Dumbledore glanced at the increasingly restless young wizards. The anger caused by the Dementors was unconsciously replaced by the worry for Bryan. After a sigh, he said, "Then let it disappear first, Bryan. I'm afraid it will scare the children." 

"Let's do that for now," Bryan agreed. He flicked his wand, and uttered a word. Although his Patronus couldn't appear in solid form like Gryffindor's in reality, but once such a huge creature moved, it would immediately give people a sense of fear that the world would collapse. 

Many young wizards screamed and ran away, as the Winged Snake began to shrink. Some timid ones even collapsed on the ground and couldn't move, as if they had been petrified. 

The mountain-like snake body quickly shrank, until it was only a small silver thread. After a dazzling brilliance, the terrifying Winged Snake finally disappeared, leaving behind a trail of silver sparks. And Bryan's hand also had a black, icy glass bottle, containing the dark and twisted forms of the Dementors. 

"Every Dementor is registered in the Ministry of Magic," Dumbledore said a bit helplessly, seeing this scene. "They won't let this kind of creature fall into private hands, Bryan." 

"Then let the Minister of Magic come to me personally to get it, Dumbledore," 

Bryan said coldly, his mood sour. 

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