THE FORBIDDEN FOREST
“Erm —”
“A bit,” said Hermione timidly.
“A bit. Well, that’s something.” Ronan sighed. He flung back his
head and stared at the sky. “Mars is bright tonight.”
“Yeah,” said Hagrid, glancing up, too. “Listen, I’m glad we’ve
run inter yeh, Ronan, ’cause there’s a unicorn bin hurt — you seen
anythin’?”
Ronan didn’t answer immediately. He stared unblinkingly up-
ward, then sighed again.
“Always the innocent are the first victims,” he said. “So it has
been for ages past, so it is now.”
“Yeah,” said Hagrid, “but have yeh seen anythin’, Ronan? Any-
thin’ unusual?”
“Mars is bright tonight,” Ronan repeated, while Hagrid watched
him impatiently. “Unusually bright.”
“Yeah, but I was meanin’ anythin’ unusual a bit nearer home,”
said Hagrid. “So yeh haven’t noticed anythin’ strange?”
Yet again, Ronan took a while to answer. At last, he said, “The
forest hides many secrets.”
A movement in the trees behind Ronan made Hagrid raise his
bow again, but it was only a second centaur, black-haired and
-bodied and wilder-looking than Ronan.
“Hullo, Bane,” said Hagrid. “All right?”
“Good evening, Hagrid, I hope you are well?”
“Well enough. Look, I’ve jus’ bin askin’ Ronan, you seen any-
thin’ odd in here lately? There’s a unicorn bin injured — would yeh
know anythin’ about it?”
Bane walked over to stand next to Ronan. He looked skyward.
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