Hagrid's New Pet

At the end of the month, the rain that had lasted for several days stopped, and the sky finally began to clear. The bright sunshine swept away the gloomy mood of everyone these past few days, and the students who had been holed up in the castle all came out to play. The energetic Weasley Twins were already frolicking with Lee Jordan.

Beside the Hunting Cabin, Hagrid was drying moldy animal hides. Hearing footsteps approaching, he turned around and greeted the person, "You don't look very energetic?"

"I guess he's been cooped up in the castle for too long, and he's been under a lot of academic pressure lately." Albert bent down, reached out and rubbed Fang's head, then took out the dog food he had prepared beforehand and fed Fang.

"Look what I just heard! You actually said you have academic pressure?" Hagrid paused in his hand movements, his eyes widening.

Hagrid knew a thing or two about Albert. It was truly unbelievable that a famous genius at Hogwarts would say he had academic pressure.

"Hmm." Albert didn't say much, just waved the boomerang he made in front of Fang, and then threw it away forcefully.

He came here specifically to play this game with Fang; playing with pets is a great way to relax.

"This isn't like you. Oh, by the way, I just baked some cookies, want some?" Hagrid took out the other stored items to air them out.

"Forget it, my teeth aren't as good as yours," Albert said curtly.

"That's a shame," Hagrid, sitting on a wooden chair. He placed the plate of cookies beside him, picked one up, and took a bite. The crisp sound of the cookie could be heard even from a distance.

"You have too high expectations of yourself."

"Maybe." Albert took a Chocolate Toffee out of his robe pocket, popped it into his mouth, and slowly chewed it.

Not long ago, Professor Broad wrote to me with the advice of focusing. He believed that Albert should concentrate on doing one thing first, such as Runes or improving the Protective Bracelet.

Albert understood what Professor Broad meant. The former Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor actually wanted him to slow down. Sometimes, slowing down can help overcome obstacles.

In fact, Albert himself knew why: his ambition was too great, which led to situations similar to Hermione's.

However, unlike Hermione, Albert has an advantage, so his potential is actually very high. But the more he learns, the more he has to study, and with the addition of alchemy, he doesn't have enough energy, which is why he says he has academic pressure.

Actually, it was all trouble that Albert created for himself.

This is the consequence of being too greedy.

"By the way, you cast a spell on that thing?"

Hagrid was quite surprised to see the boomerang fly back automatically.

"Yes, it's a kind of Tracking Charm." Albert didn't deny it. There are actually many kinds of Tracking Charm spells and many uses. The boomerang he created was designed to return the dart to its owner.

Of course, the spell's effect is not very strong. The boomerang is already spinning automatically, and its effect is just to pull it on, making the boomerang return directly to Albert's hand.

"What a brilliant spell!" Hagrid couldn't help but exclaim, though he himself had no real talent for magic.

Albert's expression was a bit strange. He had specifically learned this spell after Fred and George disappeared in the Forbidden Forest, but the spell's weakness was its short range; it would lose its effect if it went too far.

While the two were talking, Fang chased after the boomerang back again, not understanding how the thing had returned on its own.

Albert reached out and touched Fang, fed it some more, and then threw the boomerang. Fang darted off again and chased after it.

"Hagrid, do you have a fishing rod?" Albert suddenly asked.

"What do you need a fishing rod for?" Hagrid looked at Albert, puzzled. "Are you going fishing?"

"Uh, relax," Albert said.

"Relax, why don't you ride your broomstick and fly around in the sky?" Hagrid asked curiously. "By the way, I heard from Charlie that you didn't join the Quidditch team."

"I have a lot on my plate. If I can't train with everyone, then I shouldn't join the team," Albert said honestly. "Also, I went fishing mainly because I wanted to eat grilled fish."

"So, you're planning to go catch one yourself and roast it?" Hagrid's eyes widened, unable to comprehend Albert's thinking.

"My cooking skills are actually pretty good."

"I have some fresh beef here, do you want some?" Hagrid asked.

"Your lunch?" Albert looked at Hagrid with some surprise, but still refused. "If I eat it, what will you eat?"

"You're so small, how much can you eat? Besides, I have plenty," Hagrid said dismissively. He then led Albert to see the beef; there was indeed a considerable amount, but it didn't look very appetizing, indicating it hadn't been properly prepared.

"You can eat all this by yourself?" Albert stared at the beef in the metal bucket, raising an eyebrow.

"No, I'll eat some, and then I'll take the rest to the Forbidden Forest to feed them..." Hagrid suddenly stopped.

"What should I feed you?" Albert asked curiously.

"Dog." Hagrid said firmly, seemingly to make his point.

"Dog, don't you already have one?" Albert had barely finished speaking when there was a loud bang on the wooden door, as if something had hit it.

When Albert opened the door, he found Fang lying on the ground chewing on a boomerang; he had finally caught the cunning little thing.

Because the wooden door was temporarily closed, the boomerang that Albert had forgotten hit the door and was caught by Fang.

"As expected of Fang." Albert gave Fang some dog food, tilted his head and looked at Hagrid, asking, "Isn't there one already? Although it's a bit timid, Fang is pretty good, isn't he? And, where's the dog you were talking about?"

"They're kept in the Forbidden Forest," Hagrid said awkwardly.

"Why keep them in the Forbidden Forest?" Albert asked reflexively, but quickly realized there was something wrong. He suddenly repeated, "Aren't dogs kept in the Forbidden Forest dangerous?"

"No, Fluffy is not dangerous at all," Hagrid retorted hastily.

"Fluffy?" Albert repeated, feeling a strange sense of familiarity with the name, as if he had heard it somewhere before.

"Hagrid, I've warned you more than once, what you call not dangerous only means not dangerous to you," Albert reminded Hagrid again.

"Don't worry, I'll keep it in the Forbidden Forest and won't let it appear in front of the Hogwarts students," Hagrid reassured him. He knew Albert meant well and heeded his suggestion, so he kept Fluffy in the Forbidden Forest after careful consideration.

"Alright!" Albert raised an eyebrow. "You wouldn't mind taking me to see your new dog, would you?"

"This..." Hagrid hesitated.

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone else," Albert reassured him. "You know I never talk nonsense."

"Alright!" Hagrid finally nodded in agreement.

"By the way, do you want some grilled beef too?"

"Why not? It's a good time to marinate it." Albert took out his wand from his pocket, reached into the iron bucket and turned over the beef, selecting the cuts that were best suited for roasting.

As he spoke, he turned his head and looked at Hagrid: "By the way, Hagrid, do you want it?"

"Want."

Hagrid watched as Albert used Cutting Curse to cut two pieces of beef from the top, then cut them in half again, placed them in a large bowl, poured in beer and some seasonings in a seemingly professional manner, gave them a quick massage, and then covered the bowl to start marinating.

"That's it?"

"The way Muggle eat," Albert said without hesitation. "I've always thought that Muggle are better at cooking than wizards. Don't be so quick to deny it, Muggle know how to enjoy life better than wizards, even though the Britain have always been... mediocre at cooking."

Albert went outside to fetch water to wash his hands, while Hagrid divided the beef into four portions: one for his meal that day, and the other three were clearly intended for his dog.

"Three portions." Albert raised an eyebrow slightly, finally remembering what Hagrid's new pet was.

A few minutes later, Albert followed Hagrid, who was carrying the iron Hagrid, toward the Forbidden Forest. Fang, who had been eating beef, immediately swallowed the last small piece and quickly followed behind the two.