Hidden Wings - Part I

Too close

The full moon was the next day.
Mioha had been warned by Professor McGonagall, who was on duty to watch her that evening, that the moon would rise already at six p.m., a rare occasion where the white orb appeared very early. Mioha's last class of the day would be DADA with Professor Umbridge, which would end at five. All she would have to do, was keep her head down the entire lesson and get to the Forest room as quickly as possible.

Hagrid's reappearance at the staff table at breakfast next day was not greeted by enthusiasm from all students. Some, like Erica, Luna, Fred, George and Lee, looked excited and walked up the aisle between the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff table to shake Hagrid's enormous hand; others exchanged gloomy looks and shook their heads.
Mioha knew that many of them preferred Professor Grubbly-Planks lessons, and the worst of it was that a very small, unbiased part of her knew that they had good reason: Professor Grubbly-Plank's idea of an interesting class was not one where there was a risk that somebody might get their head ripped off.

It was with a certain amount of apprehension that Mioha headed down to Hagrid's on that morning, heavily muffled against the cold.

When she arrived at the hut with the other Slytherins and Ravenclaws, Hagrid was carrying what looked like half a dead cow over his shoulder.

"We're workin' in here today!", Hagrid called happily to the approaching students, jerking his head back at the dark trees behind him. "Bit more sheltered! Anyway, they prefer the dark."

"What prefers the dark?", Mioha heard Padma say sharply to Luna, a trace of panic in her voice. "What did he say prefers the dark - did you hear?"

"He probably means Black-skinned Rubbyheads", said Luna calmly. "They love the dark."

"Ready?", said Hagrid cheerfully, looking around at the class. "Right, well, I've bin savin' a trip inter the Forest fer yer fifth year. Thought we'd go an' see these creatures in their natural habitat. Now, what we're studyin' today is pretty rare, I reckon I'm probably the on'y person in Britain who's managed ter train 'em."

He turned and strode straight into the Forest. Nobody seemed much disposed to follow. Mioha glanced back and noticed how no one was moving, so, after a sigh, she set after Hagrid, leading the rest of the class.
They walked for about ten minutes until they reached a place where the trees stood so closely together that it was as dark as twilight and there was no snow at all on the ground. With a grunt, Hagrid deposited his half a cow on the ground, stepped back and turned to face his class, most of whom were creeping from tree to tree towards him, peering around nervously as though expecting to be set upon at any moment.

Mioha's forehead was wrinkled in worry as she noted the smell of decay in the air.
Surely he hadn't-

"Gather roun', gather roun'", Hagrid encouraged. "Now, they'll be attracted by the smell o the meat but I'm going ter give em a call anyway, 'cause they'll like ter know it's me."
He turned, shook his shaggy head to get the hair out of his face and gave an odd, shrieking cry that echoed through the dark trees like the call of some monstrous bird. Nobody laughed: most of them looked too scared to make a sound.
Hagrid gave the shrieking cry again. A minute passed in which the class continued to peer nervously over their shoulders and around trees for a first glimpse of whatever it was that was coming.