Olivia looked at the hard, unyielding biscuit in her hand and asked curiously, "What's this?"
" Rock Cakes!" Hagrid slapped his thigh. " Fang loves them the most, don't be shy!"
Each of them took a piece, ready to eat it.
Draco reached out and gently snatched the Rock Cakes from Hermione's hand.
She gave Draco a reproachful look, and was about to grab another piece when Draco whispered a reminder, "You won't like this."
Hermione tilted her head in confusion. "I haven't eaten yet."
Without thinking twice, the person in the group took a bite, their face instantly contorted in pain, and they almost broke their teeth.
"It's so hard!" Olivia grimaced. "Is this what they call Rock Cakes?"
Draco couldn't help but laugh and said, "Of course, otherwise why would it be called Rock Cakes?"
Hermione then realized that Draco had been protecting her.
Ron, unsure whether to chew or spit it out, mumbled, " Draco, why aren't you eating?"
"Neither Hermione nor I like it," Draco said casually.
Hermione nodded obediently beside her, "Indeed!"
"Well, Miss Granger?" Draco asked, looking at her.
"You're right," Hermione responded softly.
Ron belatedly realized, "Did you already know this pancake was rock hard?"
" Hagrid calls it Rock Cakes, just squeeze it and you'll know," Draco shrugged nonchalantly.
"Why didn't you warn us!" Ron wailed.
"You guys have good teeth, you're in the teething stage, practice more," Draco teased in a serious tone.
Hagrid was laughing so hard his beard was shaking.
Ron was furious. "What the hell is this 'toothing stage'?! What about Hermione?"
"Her teeth aren't good, she can't eat hard foods," Draco casually added.
Hermione immediately nodded in agreement.
"We can't just turn down Hagrid's kindness." Draco casually handed the Rock Cakes behind his back, Fang snatched it in one bite, crunching it with great relish.
The others silently put the Rock Cakes back on their plates, and those who had taken a bite silently swore an oath in their hearts.
If Draco does anything unusual in the future, we must follow up immediately; we absolutely cannot be a victim of injustice again.
This is no pancake; it's more than enough to be used as a brick to hit someone.
Harry rubbed his aching teeth and couldn't help but ask, " Hagrid, this thing is so hard, are you really used to eating it?"
Hagrid paused for a moment, then scratched his head and chuckled, "Not bad!"
" Hagrid's teeth are different from ours; he's Half-blood- Giant," Hermione added from the side.
Olivia suddenly realized, "That's true."
Hagrid then scratched the back of his head sheepishly, "Oh dear, I forgot."
Draco laughed and defuse the situation, saying, "It's alright, it just shows that Hagrid has never treated us like outsiders, and has always treated us all the same."
Ron silently groaned in his heart: You're okay, but we're in big trouble.
After Hagrid sat down, he immediately steered the conversation back to the Giant Squid:
"How's Old Wu... how's Octopus Brother doing lately? Has the old wound on that longest tentacle, the one with the little hook at the tip, gotten any better?"
"I'm in excellent spirits," Draco replied.
Olivia couldn't help but interject, "It's more than just good; it's all come to light today, and the whole school is buzzing about it!"
Hagrid looked regretful. "What a pity! I went to the Forbidden Forest to gather firewood this morning and missed it!"
"It's alright, it will come out again," Draco reassured him.
Hagrid's eyes lit up instantly. "Great! How about this weekend? Let's go to the lake together! I'll bring my giant homemade Rock Cakes —don't let its hardness fool you, squid love to gnaw on it! You introduce me to it, so I can formally meet it!"
Harry and Ron exchanged a glance, their faces clearly saying, "Who would believe an octopus could grind its teeth?" But neither of them interrupted Hagrid's interest.
Ron quickly raised his hand. "Take us with you too!"
"Okay, Saturday afternoon," Draco confirmed the time. "The upperclassmen go to Hogsmeade on the weekend; there are fewer people by the lake, so it won't disturb them."
Draco specifically instructed, "Don't tell anyone, Octopus Brother doesn't like being surrounded by onlookers."
Hagrid nodded emphatically. "That's right! Fantastic Beasts hate being stared at like monkeys by wizards."
As soon as he finished speaking, Hagrid suddenly and inexplicably started to suppress a laugh, his shoulders twitching.
Everyone looked at him in confusion, only to see him hold back for a few seconds before finally bursting into thunderous laughter, slapping Harry on the back, almost knocking him over:
"Hahaha! Octopus Brother! Merlin's beard, Draco, you're such a good name-giver! Such a big old guy, and such a... such a cute name! A hundred times better than 'Old Squid'! It's hilarious!"
Everyone looked at each other, completely baffled as to what Hagrid meant by being funny, and could only laugh awkwardly along with them.
After laughing, Hagrid turned to Harry: "How was your week, son?"
Harry briefly recounted his week at school, naturally including the major incidents Draco had caused.
Hagrid listened with repeated exclamations of amazement, his gaze towards me growing increasingly appreciative. "Incredible, Draco! To accomplish so many Fang -shattering things in just one week, and to be so talented in Fantastic Beasts —this is the first time I've ever been so enthusiastic towards a new student!"
"You're nowhere near as good as Hagrid," Draco said politely.
"Come sit here more often, and you'll surely surpass me!" Hagrid laughed heartily.
"If you welcome me, I'd be happy to come often."
As soon as he finished speaking, Fang behind him barked twice in unison, its tail slapping the ground with a thud.
Hagrid laughed even harder, "Look, even Fang nodded in approval!"
"Then I'll be troubling you from now on."
Just then, Harry suddenly picked up a scrap of newspaper clipping from the teapot warmer; it was a report from the Daily Prophet.
He quickly glanced at it, his expression changing slightly. " Hagrid, the day Gringotts was broken into was my birthday... We were also at Gringotts that day."
Hagrid's smile froze for a moment, and he said somewhat awkwardly, "No, they made their move after we left."
Hermione frowned, puzzled. "Isn't Gringotts supposed to be the safest place in the Wizarding World? How could they have been broken into?"
"As long as there is real treasure hidden, there is no absolute security; there will always be a way to find a loophole," Draco said.
Upon hearing this, Neville panicked and said, "Oh my god, this is terrible! My grandmother's entire savings are in Gringotts! Where will we be safe from now on?"
Hagrid quickly waved his hand to reassure him, "Don't think nonsense, the newspapers say nothing's missing!"
Draco added, " Gringotts is safe enough; it's been mostly intact for centuries. And the people who can get in wouldn't care about the small sums of money from Muggle and ordinary wizards, so we don't need to worry."
Neville breathed a sigh of relief, "Thank goodness you're all not worried, so I'm even less afraid."
Ron stroked his chin, growing increasingly nervous. "My dad said Gringotts has more anti-theft charms than the Ministry of Magic! Could it be the work of a dark wizard? Maybe... one of that person's followers?"