The group crossed the wet grass and arrived outside Hagrid's Hut.
After Douglas knocked, a gruff shout came from inside:
"Come in, the door's unlocked."
Douglas pushed the door open and entered. Hagrid was wearing a formal shirt for once, sitting beside a thoroughly scrubbed wooden table.
When his hound Fang saw Douglas, he whined a few times, lifted his head from Hagrid's lap, and walked over to Douglas. He caught Douglas's trouser leg in his teeth and tugged him toward Hagrid.
Smelling the alcohol that filled the room, Douglas said to the three youngsters behind him:
"Stay outside for now, and don't close the door."
Then he snapped his fingers. Gusts of wind sprang up out of thin air, circled the room, and flew out through the doorway.
It took about five minutes for the smell of alcohol to barely dissipate.
Throughout this, Hagrid kept his head down and said nothing.
Douglas waved a hand, and the bucket-sized pewter tankard on the table flew into a corner of the room.
Then he sat down without further ado, while the three youngsters stood in the doorway, looking inside.
Just as Douglas sat down, Hagrid raised his befuddled head. His vision seemed blurry, and he only managed to recognize Douglas with some difficulty.
He said in a muffled voice:
"I think I've broken a record. No teacher's ever taught for just one day before."
Douglas said with a smile:
"And here I thought you could break Professor Kettleburn's record of being put on probation sixty-two times."
Hearing this, Hagrid suddenly chuckled, then grew very miserable again and said pitifully:
"I reckon it's only a matter of time before I'm sacked. Madam Pomfrey's already done everything she can to treat him, but he still says it hurts something awful, lying there wrapped