The Room of Requirement

On Saturday afternoon, William, Cedric, and Cho had to put aside their homework and leave the castle for Hagrid's Hut.

The hut had changed completely. Ring after ring of fencing had been added outside to reinforce it, making it look like a maze.

Hagrid, an artist who drew from the soul, had drawn a map. Following the crooked little sketch, William went around several times before finally finding his way in.

When William knocked, there was a frantic struggle inside, followed by three deep barks.

Then Hagrid's voice rang out. "Back up, Fluffy, back up!"

Hagrid opened the door a crack, revealing his great, bearded face.

"Wait a moment," he said. "Back up, Fluffy."

Hagrid pulled the door open and let the three of them in while desperately clutching the collar of an enormous black hound.

Hagrid's Hut had changed completely. The hams and pheasants that had hung from the ceiling were all gone, replaced by several thick books:

"Three-Headed Dog Breeds of Great Britain and Ireland," "Three-Headed Dogs: From Birth to Pregnancy to Death," and "A Guide to Neutering Three-Headed Dogs."

Apart from those books, nothing in the hut was intact.

All four legs of the great bed in the corner had been broken, leaving the bed on the floor, and there was a row of dog-tooth marks on the splintered wood.

The room was a mess, with shredded objects everywhere.

Fluffy had torn Hagrid's Hut apart!

There was another boy in the hut: Charlie Weasley.

Like Hagrid, Charlie was very interested in furry Magical Creatures, and the two were good friends.

Hagrid brought five stools over from the corner, and they all sat down.

Cho glanced around and asked, "Where's Fang?"

Hagrid sighed. "I left Fang at the edge of the Forbidden Forest. He'd rather live there than come home!"

Fluffy had already grown bigger than Fang. Fang had stolen plenty of Fluffy's snacks a while ago, and now he was afraid Fluffy would get back at him.

Not only was Fluffy big, but he was also growing uglier by the day. His three heads had their mouths open, drool dripping from them, and he looked especially frightening.

"Let him go, Hagrid," Cedric urged. "Set him free."

"I can't," Hagrid said, aggrieved. "He's only six months old. He's still a baby!"

"..."

"Hagrid," Charlie said, "three-headed dogs grow fast. In less than a year, he'll be as big as your hut.

"Don't forget, we still don't know whether Professor Snape attacked the Ministry of Magic, but what if the Aurors come again and find your three-headed dog?"

Hagrid looked at Fluffy through tear-blurred eyes. Fluffy's three heads were still tearing at the furry toy Hagrid had made him.

"Then where can we put him?" Hagrid finally relented.

"The Forbidden Forest?" Cho suggested.

"No." Hagrid shook his head. "I asked the creatures in the Forbidden Forest. The centaur tribe told me plainly that if I put Fluffy there, they'd kill him!"

An adult three-headed dog was naturally very powerful in a fight, but right now Fluffy was still a combat weakling.

The matter was actually very simple. All they had to do was tell Dumbledore, but Hagrid refused to tell the headmaster no matter what.

Though William suspected Dumbledore had known for a long time.

"We can keep Fluffy in Hogwarts Castle." Charlie hesitated for a moment, then said, "I know he grows fast. We only need to get through this year, and I'll graduate.

"During the summer holidays, I can take Fluffy to Romania. I'm planning to go there to study dragons!"

Everyone stared at Charlie in surprise.

Professor McGonagall had called Charlie a Quidditch prodigy.

She wasn't wrong. Charlie had shown extraordinary talent when he first joined the house team in his second year.

In the final that year, he had held up under immense pressure and caught the Golden Snitch in just fifteen minutes, helping Gryffindor win the Quidditch Cup for the first time in five years.

Although they had gone without a title for four consecutive years after that, it didn't reflect on his ability. His teammates just hadn't pulled their weight!

Almost every witch and wizard who had seen Charlie play believed he would join the national team after graduation.

There were even rumors that the England National Team had already contacted Charlie.

But now he was saying he would go to Romania to study dragons next year... The news was simply too shocking!

Charlie raised a hand and laughed. "Don't look at me like that. Counting this last year, I'll have played Quidditch for six years.

"I love the sport, but I'm tired. I want to find some other adventure, one that's exciting enough to get my adrenaline pumping."

Charlie stood up and patted Fluffy's heads. Fluffy immediately lay down obediently, looking like a "simp" ready to let Charlie do as he pleased.

Charlie laughed heartily. "I'm not the sort of wizard who stays the same all his life. I hate it when nothing exciting happens!

"Everyone thinks I'm going to join a Quidditch team. Sometimes, when I'm alone at night, I think so too... But that kind of predictable future really isn't what I want.

"And I happen to like Magical Creatures, so one day I asked myself, why not study dragons?

"It's that simple."

William and Cedric looked at Charlie in surprise. A wizard who followed his heart like that really was a born Gryffindor.

Hagrid pursed his lips, looking rather like Professor McGonagall. After a moment, he asked seriously, "Have you told Arthur and Molly?"

Charlie was silent for a few seconds, then nodded. "I told Dad. He told me not to tell Mum for now. Dad said he'd find an opportunity..."

Hagrid sighed. "Yes, that's how it was when your older brother Bill suddenly decided to go to Egypt.

"He was such a brilliant boy. He got twelve certificates on his O.W.L.s, and everyone thought he'd join the Ministry of Magic.

"Molly was heartbroken. Now you're doing the same thing, and Romania is so far away."

Charlie managed a smile. "It's all right. Mum will agree, I'm sure. It's not as if I'll never come back."

Hagrid fell silent.

Although he liked all kinds of Magical Creatures too, he treasured the word "home" even more!

He loved dragons, but he wouldn't urge Charlie to go to Romania to study them either. Hagrid would never leave Hogwarts for the sake of dragons.

This was his home!

Of course, Hagrid's usual approach was to bring those little cuties home with him. (Hands on hips.)

After a moment of silence, Charlie said with a forced lightness, "Don't let this get out, especially not to George and Fred."

William, Cedric, and Cho all nodded quickly.

"All right, let's stop talking about me. Let's deal with the problem of Fluffy first."

"We definitely can't keep Fluffy here any longer. We need a very well-hidden place to raise him.

"And I happen to know a place called the Room of Requirement."

(The third update will be this afternoon. Dear readers, please vote with your recommendation tickets!)