[Soccer+HP] Mario and the Vanishing King

Even Mario himself was a little surprised, how they managed to keep up without Thomas and Manu noticing.Maybe it's because the two of them are having a hard time chasing the tabby cat?Or maybe it was the three of them who were careful to pay off?In any case, he, Marco, and Andrea managed to safely reach the third floor of the castle without being spotted along the way.

"Are you sure you see clearly, Thomas?" Manu's voice came from ahead.

"I'm sure, Manu! It's just in the stairwell left on the third floor, I can't mistake it! After all, its coat color is so special, it looks very similar to the Peggy I raised when I was a child, but of course they are different Yep, I can still tell the difference! I'm just saying he looks a lot like Peggy to me, so I feel kind of familiar - and we've all had him for so long, right? But why does he always Disappeared in the blink of an eye? This corridor is so long—”

"You're right, Thomas. There's no way it just disappeared," Manu said. "Maybe it just didn't want us to find it. Don't forget what a smart animal it was."

"Yeah, yeah... A cat that can only survive in the Forbidden Forest? There are all kinds of creatures in the Forbidden Forest. To be honest, I didn't expect there to be a cat in there! Poor little guy, it must have been Horrified! Isn't it, Manu? Can't believe he wouldn't have been eaten if we weren't there! But you're right, he's smart, and he'll always come back...but what the heck Why do you want that pawn? There are so many pawns on the board, and it only picked the white king..."

"Sure enough!" Marco looked at Mario and Andre, mouthing his meaning.Mario made a silence gesture to him, indicating to continue listening.

"Maybe it just took one randomly? I don't know... What I'm worried about is not which piece, but if I don't return the piece, will it affect the room? After all, the room itself is quite strange."

"No way? The loss of a pawn has little effect, and we ate a lot of food in the house! Manu, are you thinking too much? I think it should come back, since it likes that pawn , maybe looking for a place to hide! Cats always like to hide things! I think the weather outside is nice, why don't we change our plan and go for a walk by the lake? I bet the giant squid must be basking in the sun on the lake!"

"They're leaving." Mario whispered, nodding towards Marco and Andre.

"Wait!" Marco listened carefully, then turned his head in horror, "They are coming this way!"

Damn, how did they forget that this corridor is only this long, and there is only one entrance and exit behind them? "What shall we do now?" Marco's voice raised unconsciously.Andre looked around, pulled the two of them past and hid behind a statue.But the problem is that this statue can only temporarily block them, once Thomas and Manu come over, they will still be exposed.

"Andre, do you know the magic spell that can hide us?" Mario asked nervously.

"The Disillusionment Curse and the Invisibility Curse." Andre said while paying attention to the movement on the other side of the statue, "But these are quite advanced magics, even if we reach the seventh grade, we may not be able to learn them."

"I really wish there was an invisibility cloak! Even if it costs three hundred Galleons, I would buy it!" Marco said desperately.

Now they are almost cornered.Thomas and Manu would have spotted them a dozen or so paces further, and they could do nothing but crouch behind the statue, praying to themselves that they would disappear.They instinctively backed away, and Mario felt that he was completely pressed against the wall, almost crushed into a pancake.Then his back was suddenly empty, and he immediately fell backwards on his back, grabbing Marco in front of him for balance.But this move didn't work, because Marco quickly lost his balance and turned upside down. What's worse, Andre at the front also followed them——

"Ow, Andrei! You're crushing my leg!" Marko yelled, his voice being echoed by the surrounding buzz.

Mario rubbed his aching back and barely got up.It was pitch black here, and it was impossible to tell where they were, but judging from the echo just now, they were probably in a narrow corridor.

"Lumos," whispered Andre, his wand emitting a thin ray of light.Mario did as well, and his guess was confirmed.

There was indeed a corridor here, but it looked like it had been dug in a hurry, or never finished.Unlike the corridor outside, the walls here are made of uneven rocks, and they look extremely rough. There are no torches on the walls, not even a torch holder.It was cold and wet in here, and very disturbing.

"Wait a minute—" Marco said suddenly, startling them all, and Mario turned around and gave him a glare.Marko drew out his wand to light it, and then took a good look at the entrance they had fallen through, which was now completely sealed, as if there had never been a door. "We were on the third floor, right?" Marco asked, and Andre nodded.

"The third floor...the west side...the third floor..." He muttered something, then he suddenly took a breath and shouted, "Gregory the sycophant! That is the statue of Gregory just now!"

Andre frowned, and Mario also felt completely confused. "So what does that mean, Marco?"

Marco smiled mysteriously. "This means that we have found a secret passage!"

"You mean?" Mario's eyes widened.

"That's right!" Marco nodded, "Do you still remember the secret passage I heard about in the bathroom? It's right behind Gregory the sycophant! The corridor on the west side of the third floor!"

"Wow - we found the Hogwarts secret passage!"

"Where does it lead?" Andre asked.

"I don't know," Marco shook his head, "but I guess, people who know about this secret passage are unwilling to say it, right?" He blinked, looking a little impatient. "so we--"

"Why don't you try it yourself?" Mario immediately helped him finish the sentence.

"That's it!" Marco flashed him a big smile, "Ready for an adventure, gentlemen?"

"It's coming again, 'Spirit of Adventure'!" Andre shook his head helplessly, "Do you remember our mission? Our top priority is to find that cat!"

"Oh—okay." Marco's mood was visibly depressed.

"What's that sound?" Mario asked suddenly.They quickly closed their mouths and listened intently. The sound was very faint, but it caused an echo in the narrow corridor.

Is that... meowing?

They all raised their wands and walked forward, and after turning a corner, they immediately saw the ginger tabby cat.

And yes, it still had the White King in its mouth.

Mario quickly put cats on his list of animals he didn't like.

Because they run so fast!

They had just found the tabby cat in the secret passage a few minutes ago, and while they were secretly congratulating themselves on their luck, the cat that sensed their approach immediately began to flee forward.Although Mario knows that cats are very smart, it is really rare to see such a smart cat!In fact, the cat wasn't just running blindly. After running far enough away from them, it would deliberately turn around and stare at them.Mario even felt—could that be his illusion?He felt that the only time it looked less harshly was when it was looking at Marco.

Well, "harsh".

He didn't even know if he could use this word to describe a cat, but the way the cat looked at him only reminded him of the word.Not the kind of beastly threats and warnings, but...how should I put it?It's a bit like the way his mother looked at him when he made a mistake as a child.To be honest, he felt more and more that those eyes looked human.

When the three of them ran all the way out of breath, and the cat remained two meters away in front of them, no one bothered to notice whether the long secret road was going uphill or downhill.So when they got out of it, they were all frightened by the tall trees around them.

"This is the Black Lake?" Mario turned his head, and found that there was an open water in front of him, and the reflection of the castle was floating on the water with the wind.Marco followed suit. "It turns out that this secret passage leads to the outside of the school! I thought it was going to Hogsmeade!"

"Not just to the outside of the school," Andre said behind them.Mario and Marco turned around and found Andre was facing the dense forest. "We went straight to the Forbidden Forest."

"Okay... I think I know why it's called the Forbidden Forest..." Marko looked around and said, "And there's a decree that first graders are not allowed to approach... Seriously, it's really cool to see it at night Scary." Unlike the view seen next to Hagrid's hut during the Protection of Magical Creatures class, this place is obviously closer to the center of the Forbidden Forest.The surrounding trees were tall and dense, and it was difficult for even the moonlight to shine in. The entire forest showed a dark appearance, which made people have no desire to step into it.

"That cat just ran into the woods, right?" Mario was a little uneasy, "The three of us only know some simple spells we learned in Charms class. What do you think is in the Forbidden Forest? The Levitation spell will be fine." use it?"

Andre raised an eyebrow. "I thought you two would be clamoring to explore the woods right away."

"It's one thing to be adventurous, but it's another thing to lose your life..." Marco shrank his neck and said in a low voice.

"Andre, what's in the Forbidden Forest?"

"The book says that there are many creatures living in the Forbidden Forest. I only came in once when I was fetching the resurrection stone, and I was accompanied by Professor Love." Andre said, raising his wand and walking forward, Mario Pull Marco to follow.Marko didn't seem to be genuinely complaining about the danger, either, and once they did head out into the woods, he became curious again. "I only know that there are unicorns and centaurs. They are non-threatening creatures, or the centaurs are just indifferent to our lives." Andre continued, "But I didn't have a chance to know too much, last time only We met a centaur who led us to the location of the resurrection stone."

They walked along a narrow path, wands held up before them.It was still dark and silent in the Forbidden Forest, and there was no sound but their own footsteps.Mario didn't know what time it was, and how much time they had left, whether they could return the white king's property before the time returned to normal.He was a little worried, and raised his head to look at the sky, but the trees around him were so lush that he couldn't see the moon at all.

Since Mario was only looking up and not paying attention to the bottom of his feet, he quickly tripped over a bare/exposed tree root and almost fell on Andre.He quickly apologized: "I'm sorry, Andre, I didn't notice—"

"Hush——" Andre stretched out a hand to stop Mario from continuing, "There is movement, did you hear it?"

They immediately slowed down, leaned back to back, and listened intently with their ears pricked up.

"Is it a hoof?" Marco listened carefully and asked with a frown.

"Me too." Mario nodded.Their questions were quickly answered, the voice was getting closer, and then a figure appeared behind a tall tree in front of them, at first it was the upper body of a person, and then——

Can that thing be called a "person"?Above the waist is a human with red hair and beard, but below the waist is a shiny brown horse with a long red tail behind it.

"It's a horseman." Andre said in a low voice.

"Yeah, I see it..." Marko whispered.

"You are students?" the centaur said, and Mario noticed that his voice was low and sad. "You shouldn't have come here, there are too many secrets hidden in the forest."

"We're, uh...we're looking for a yellow tabby..." Mario said, trying to be as polite as possible, "and he's got a white pawn in his mouth...you, you saw him Is it?" "Sir?" he added.

However, the centaur didn't answer directly, he flicked his tail and looked towards the sky. "Mars is bright tonight," he said.

"Fire, Mars...?" Marco repeated suspiciously, looking at Mario and Andre.Mario shook his head to express his incomprehension, while Andre stood aside vigilantly without saying a word.

"Human? Ronan?" Another centaur appeared. He looked a little rougher than the previous one, with black hair and a black horse body.

"It's a colt, Bane," replied the centaur, who was called Ronan, still sad.

"There are outsiders in the forest. We don't welcome humans at this time." Bane's tone was a little annoyed.

"We are not outsiders, we are students in this school." Andre said.

"You shouldn't be here, humans." Bane continued, and behind him, more centaurs approached.Some of them must have bows, Mario thought. "This is the territory of the horsemen."

"They're just ponies, Bane," said Ronan.

Mario said carefully, "We don't mean to offend you, sir... I mean...we're just looking for a cat, can you tell me..."

"We have no obligation to humans!" Bane said angrily, digging the soil with his hoof.

"Bane!" A third centaur stepped forward.The centaur looked younger.His hair was platinum-blond, he had the body of a horse with a silver mane, and his eyes were startlingly blue, like pale sapphires. "Put down your prejudices against humanity! Don't forget our commitment to this school! And don't you see? This is the Cadmus kid!" he said, pointing to Andre.

"Firenzie?" Andre's eyes widened in surprise.

"Meet you again, son." Firenze took two steps forward, and slightly bowed towards Andre, "Thank you for everything you have done for the forest. The centaur will always remember your help."

"I just did what I was supposed to do," Andre said. "Thank you for taking us there that day."

"You revealed the secrets of the planet?" Bane roared at him from behind, "We have sworn that we will never defy God's will!"

"Enough, Bane!" Firenze shot back unceremoniously, "You made the wrong choice 13 years ago, and you still want to repeat the same mistake now? If helping mankind can prevent the disaster from coming, then I will stand Human side! Don't you see what Mars looks like tonight, Bane? Are you going to stand by like you did 13 years ago?"

"Mars is bright tonight," Ronan said suddenly, "just like it was 13 years ago."

Bane stopped talking, and just let out a few rough breaths to express his dissatisfaction.

Firenze also seemed to have calmed down. He turned to face them and said, "There are many dangers hidden in the forest, and you are indeed not suitable for this place."

"But we're looking for a cat..." Marco said anxiously. "That's right, it's a yellow tabby cat!" Mario added, "It took a chess piece away, and if you can't return the chess piece on time—"

"We will change the past." Andre said calmly, "or change the future. This is more dangerous than the relics of Cadmus."

Firenze didn't speak, he stared at them for a moment with his blue eyes, then he flicked his tail and looked up to the sky. "There are strangers in the forest, both familiar and strange to us. And the sparks portend disaster. You are right, Cadmus boy, it is more dangerous than the stone." He looked down at them. "If you're looking for something, follow the moon, but don't leave the path. Hagrid's scent and tracks on the path may protect you."

"Thank you, Firenze."

"Forgive me for not being able to go with you this time." Firenze said, "The centaurs seldom leave their territory, and not all residents in the forest welcome us."

"I understand, last time it was because of Professor Loew." Andre nodded.

Firenze lowered his upper body towards him, then turned and walked into the nearby woods.Bane gave them one last look and followed them.

"Good luck, then," Ronan said in a sad tone.Behind him, the horsemen who surrounded him also left one after another.The tense atmosphere just now finally eased, and after a while, the surroundings became quiet again.

"I still think the centaurs are a little too inscrutable," Marko said.They stood there a while longer, making sure that the hoofbeats could no longer be heard, before continuing on.

"They know a lot of secrets, but they seldom tell them." Andre said while pushing aside the branches blocking his eyes, "So Firenze may be considered an outlier, and he probably didn't live well in the group. .”

"But the people of Firenze are really nice," Mario said earnestly. "If it wasn't for his help, maybe we would have been arrested by Bane."

"He's nice? Why does it sound a bit weird..."

"Then I can't say 'horse is good'?" Mario glared at Marco involuntarily.

"That's an insult to the centaur," Andre reminded. "The centaur's intelligence is much higher than ours. Don't compare them with ordinary animals. That will anger them."

"Then... a good horse man?" Mario asked tentatively.

Andre thought about it carefully, then nodded seriously: "A good horseman."

"Okay..." Marco sighed resignedly, "Firenze, a good horse."

The author has something to say: *The statue of Gregory the Flatterer appears in the original Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone in the dialogue between the Weasley twins and Harry and Ron. ("We've got to go, though, Lee Jordan thinks he's found a new secret passage to the outside of the school." "I'm guessing it's the one behind the statue of Gregory the Sycophant, our first I found it in a week. Goodbye.") Here I set this secret road leading to the Forbidden Forest.

*There are two more chapters to finish!