Maple Training Ground

Life became happier when you were with cheerful people.

Rubeus Hagrid was by far the most cheerful person Voldemort had ever met, in either his past or present life.

"Quirrell, look! I learned it too."

Hagrid roared as he flicked his oak wand. A wall rose from the ground, growing at a visible speed.

Voldemort gave him a big thumbs-up, all the while making the wall in front of himself grow just as quickly.

They were building a combat training ground.

As Voldemort envisioned it, the grounds would start at Hagrid's Hut and extend into the Forbidden Forest, winding through it like the veins of a leaf.

Then, inside the forest, the walls would split apart on either side, curve outward, and begin enclosing the area.

In the end, it would look like a maple leaf set in the Forbidden Forest, with its veins forming the paths inside.

The three tips of the maple leaf would represent three different levels of difficulty. The left side would be for first- and second-years, the right for third- and fourth-years, and the middle for fifth-, sixth-, and seventh-years.

The first- and second-year training grounds would mostly feature harmless creatures. The final boss would be a Boggart, which looked fearsome but was actually not very dangerous.

The third- and fourth-year grounds would be far more dangerous. The final boss would be an adorable Troll—not the sort that could be knocked out by its own club.

The final boss for the middle grounds was still undecided. Hagrid had suggested using his Hippogriff, but Voldemort had other ideas. He wanted to get a Dementor, and couldn't stop thinking about it.

All of this was only a preliminary plan. Voldemort hoped that, in time, they could replace the enemies in all three sections.

For example, a Troll on the left, a Dementor on the right, and a dragon or Thunderbird in the middle. That would be amazing.

Whether they could make that last idea happen remained to be seen, but the name of the training ground was already settled:

Maple Training Ground, named for its shape.

"Quirrell, this is a lot of work. It'll be difficult for just the two of us. Maybe we should ask the other professors for help." Hagrid kept working as he spoke.

"Professor McGonagall? I asked her, but she hasn't had any time lately." Voldemort had gone to Professor McGonagall first. As a master of Transfiguration, she was the best choice.

"No, I meant Professor Kettleburn. He knows more about Magical Creatures than I do," Hagrid said excitedly, his words tinged with admiration.

"Oh, I forgot about him. But does he have time?" Voldemort asked. "It's a rare holiday. Doesn't he want to spend it with his wife and children?"

"He doesn't have a wife or children." Hagrid grinned broadly. "Magical Creatures are his wife and children. If he finds out you're building a combat training ground centered around Magical Creatures, he'll definitely support you."

Voldemort was slightly taken aback. He hadn't known the professor was unmarried and childless. All he knew was that the man had been on probation for a full sixty-two years... What a sad story.

"There's also Professor Flitwick," Hagrid added.

"Professor Flitwick? He doesn't have a wife and children either?" Voldemort asked out of habit.

Hagrid's face fell. He spoke to Voldemort earnestly. "Quirrell, there are a lot of single professors at Hogwarts, but not all of them are single."

Voldemort nodded at once, but then he realized that most of the professors at Hogwarts really were single. Could that be some kind of curse, too?

"Professor Flitwick likes you a lot, and he likes dueling. He even won a dueling championship—though I don't know what it was called—so you could invite him."

"Hagrid, asking you to be my assistant professor was the best decision I ever made." Voldemort nodded emphatically. "Let's take a break and write two letters."

Hagrid readily agreed, and while they were writing, he suggested they go for a drink that evening.

"We'll go to the Three Broomsticks Inn. My treat. A professor earns more than an assistant professor," Voldemort said in a tone that brooked no refusal.

"All right, you're always right." Hagrid nodded, then added, "But we could write a few more letters, one to every professor. We should at least try."

"Except Snape," Voldemort said with a smile. Hagrid nodded in full agreement.

The Three Broomsticks Inn.

"Yes, he has endless brilliant ideas. Seeing him makes me feel like an idiot."

Hagrid loudly sang Voldemort's praises. Voldemort helplessly shrugged at Rosmerta, who was gazing at him with a bright smile.

"You can stay here tonight." While Hagrid was busy bragging to Professor Kettleburn, Rosmerta leaned close and whispered to Voldemort, "I have rooms upstairs, too."

In fact, she didn't, but Voldemort understood what she meant.

"I can't. I've been too busy lately, and I still have a lot to do," Voldemort refused.

Disappointment showed on Rosmerta's face. Voldemort pretended not to notice and turned his gaze to Professor Kettleburn, who had arrived that afternoon.

"Professor, I need more advice from you about Magical Creatures," Voldemort said. "You know I don't know much about them."

"Of course." Professor Kettleburn nodded, missing a hand and a leg. "I can still remember what you were like as a student. You were afraid of those creatures, but they weren't dangerous."

Voldemort smiled and nodded, though his gaze fell on the professor's missing arm and leg. The professor's body proved his words weren't very convincing.

"I recently got a Niffler. I think we could put it in there," Professor Kettleburn said. "It would add a lot of fun."

Voldemort shrugged. It didn't really matter whether they included a harmless little creature that just stole things.

"Anything a bit more exciting? An Erkling, for example?" Voldemort asked.

Hagrid's eyes lit up. He liked Voldemort's suggestion.

"That won't do. They need vast forests. Being penned in would make them aggressive." Professor Kettleburn pointed to his missing arm with his one good arm. "They did this. They're far too dangerous for students."

Voldemort nodded, having found Professor Kettleburn's limit. In that case, he could safely leave the task of finding Magical Creatures to him.

"Demiguises are good. They aren't very aggressive, but they like to pester people, and they can be trained."

Professor Kettleburn launched into an enthusiastic explanation. Voldemort and Hagrid could only listen.

"Occamies are dangerous, but I've bred a nest of them. They could come in handy..."

"Bite from a Billywig, and you'll start floating..."

"Gnomes are troublesome little pests, just the thing for..."

The more he talked, the more excited he became. Hagrid listened with stars in his eyes, while Voldemort couldn't work up much interest.

Instead, he wondered whether he should open a Magical Creature zoo in the Wizarding World. That would be a great way to teach people about Magical Creatures—and he could make money, too.

"I'll write to Pomona in a moment and make sure she comes," Professor Kettleburn said. At last, he had Voldemort's attention.

"Will she come?" Voldemort asked.

"She has to." Professor Kettleburn was firm. "Without her creating a suitable habitat for the Magical Creatures, the high walls won't be enough to hold them."

Voldemort understood, and found himself looking forward to it even more. It seemed more and more professors were getting involved.