After finishing the first trimester, Hogwarts entered December, and the weather suddenly turned cold. Strong winds and snowstorms swept through the Scottish Highlands, filling Hogwarts Castle with cold, icy drafts.
At that moment, leaning against the thick stone walls, feeling the warmth of the fire, and hearing the howling wind outside was undoubtedly a feeling of happiness. The life of Durmstrang students must have been challenging since their ghost ship didn't seem capable of withstanding the wind and rain. Whenever the strong wind blew, the ship swayed on the Black Lake, with its sails fluttering in the wind. This kind of living environment was far from ideal. An ordinary person would probably vomit within half a day on that ship. Although Durmstrang students were resilient, they also had limits to endure such conditions. Therefore, they preferred to stay in Hogwarts Castle as long as possible and return to the ship only before bedtime.
Madame Maxime's Abraxans were very demanding and only drank pure malt whisky. After the weather cooled down, Hagrid increased the supply of whisky, filling the entire stable with its aroma. The scent of whisky was so strong that even students coming to class felt a bit dizzy.
Of course, Hagrid was very considerate and provided his fellow professors with a hangover remedy: the Blast-Ended Skrewts.
Now, these Blast-Ended Skrewts were not simple creatures like shrimp. Each of them was nearly two meters long, had a thick protective gray layer, crossed legs, a tail that could shoot fire, as well as spikes and suckers...
Tom thought the creature was a magical tank.
"If Dumbledore had the help of these things, maybe Voldemort would have already been defeated in Azkaban," Tom joked. These terrifying and magical creatures were undoubtedly not beings that ordinary wizards could face. If you encountered one in the wild, it was best to run.
"I hope Hagrid doesn't throw them into the Forbidden Forest," Hermione said compassionately, looking toward the forest.
At that moment, Hagrid was moving some large boxes filled with pillows and blankets.
"Let's try to see if Blast-Ended Skrewts hibernate. Come on, let's get them into the boxes and then cover the lids to see what happens." Hagrid directed the young wizards to put the Blast-Ended Skrewts into the boxes.
Tom, standing aside, thought this seemed unreliable. It was true that animals hibernated, involving species of mammals, insects, land snails, amphibians, reptiles, and other species. However, Tom had the intuition that Blast-Ended Skrewts wouldn't hibernate.
The reason was also simple. Who has seen an animal hibernate without any prior signs? They didn't even have extra stored energy for hibernation! How could they hibernate without energy reserves?
Hibernating wasn't just finding a hole and sleeping deeply. Bears did that, but it wasn't real hibernation; it was more of a state of dormancy. Hibernation was an extremely complex state that required long-term preparation; it wasn't something an animal would want to do and immediately do.
Looking at the energetically active Blast-Ended Skrewts, Tom felt that the idea of hibernation was far from applicable to them.
Perhaps Hagrid thought of passively inducing hibernation by changing the length of the day, food, and ambient temperature to induce hibernation. That might work for hamsters, but for Blast-Ended Skrewts, it seemed like it would only bring joy to Hagrid.
It turns out that Blast-Ended Skrewts weren't too pleased about this. They shredded the box and wreaked havoc in Hagrid's pumpkin patch, colliding awkwardly with Buckbeak. However, the creeping creatures couldn't harm Buckbeak the Hippogriff, and its claws and beak could barely make a dent in the Blast-Ended Skrewts.
The already unhappy students fled, ran to Hagrid's cabin, and locked themselves in.
Blast-Ended Skrewts
Tom looked at the chaos and sighed. Despite Hagrid studying with Newt last semester, how could he still be so stubborn this semester? These Blast-Ended Skrewts really weren't suitable for young wizards to study.
But he couldn't just stand there and watch Hagrid become a laughingstock.
He motioned for Hermione to come closer.
"Use a Levitation spell, and let's make these fellows float. It'll be easier for us to control them," Tom told the students who were still willing to clean up the mess.
"Three, two, one, Wingardium Leviosa." Six or seven Levitation spells hit one particularly aggressive Blast-Ended Skrewt simultaneously, causing it to rise into the air.
Tom deftly flipped them over, leaving them upside down. As expected, the fierce Blast-Ended Skrewt descended after breaking free from the ground. Despite its tail thrashing wildly and shooting sparks of fire, despite all the spikes on its back standing on end and activating every muscle in its body, it couldn't break free from the Levitation charm cast by several wizards working together.
"Tie it up with ropes!"
Without Tom needing to say it, the young wizards around him quickly produced ropes and securely tied up the Blast-Ended Skrewt.
They all followed the same procedure and soon managed to subdue all the Blast-Ended Skrewts, surprisingly easy to handle once they were turned upside down.
"Interesting creatures," said Rita Skeeter, who knows when she had appeared at the edge of Hagrid's pumpkin patch. She leaned on the fence, observing the spectacle with some pity: why were there no injured students? If someone got hurt, she'd have material for an excellent story.
After Hagrid and the other students had subdued the last Blast-Ended Skrewt, they looked at Rita Skeeter.
"I'm Rita Skeeter, a reporter for The Prophet. Could I know the name of these fascinating creatures?" Rita smiled widely, and her large, golden teeth gleamed.
"They're Blast-Ended Skrewts," Hagrid said, forcefully dragging one of the creatures and placing it alongside its companions.
"Oh, I see... And where did you get them? Do they have any special uses? By the way, was the Hippogriff we saw earlier the same one that injured a student before?" Rita pulled out her notepad and parchment from her bag; it seemed like she was prepared to conduct an interview on the spot.
"They're our food; their taste is exquisite. Would you like to try some special Hogwarts dishes?" Tom stepped forward, willingly changing the subject. He knew that if he let Rita continue asking questions, Hagrid would probably end up in Azkaban.
Tom could easily imagine that the origin of these Blast-Ended Skrewts couldn't be revealed. What respectable wizard would breed those things?
"Ah, Tom Yodel! So, these are food... Wait a moment? Did you say they're food?!" Rita felt quite delighted to see Tom but suddenly heard something astonishing.
Blast-Ended Skrewts, food? Are you serious?
Rita looked at the strange Blast-Ended Skrewts; her face remained expressionless. Even in the UK, these creatures were unusual enough to be considered bizarre.