The Howler had put the Weasley twins in a sour mood as they trudged off to the Quidditch pitch.
Meanwhile, William and his friends left the castle, crossing the grounds toward the edge of the Forbidden Forest.
Hagrid's wooden hut sat at the forest's fringe, where he was enjoying the morning sun, carefully polishing a bronze-hued compound bow.
The bow was enormous, nearly as tall as Hermione, and gleamed brilliantly under the sunlight.
"Ah, William! You're here! Sit down, sit down," Hagrid greeted them warmly.
William nodded, flicking his wand to transform the scattered stones on the ground into four ornate chairs.
"This is Hermione," William introduced. "She's a friend of ours."
"Hello, I'm Hermione Granger. You can just call me Hermione," she said politely.
"Nice to meet you, Hermione. Call me Hagrid," he replied with a cheerful grin, setting down the massive bow.
Hagrid's friendly demeanor put Hermione at ease, though she'd already met him during her first year's arrival.
"I think I've heard your name before," Hagrid said, stroking his beard thoughtfully. "Yesterday, Harry and Ron—Fred and George's little brother—came by and mentioned you."
"Oh? What did he say?" Hermione asked, her brow furrowing.
"Ah, nothing much… Just said you're, uh, very studious and friendly…" Hagrid stammered, clearly fibbing.
"Really?" Hermione gave him a skeptical look. That didn't sound like Ron at all, especially considering the current frostiness between them.
Hagrid avoided her gaze, clearly uncomfortable. Ron had said some less-than-kind things, but Hagrid had no intention of relaying them.
To change the subject, William asked, "Hagrid, do you like the gift?"
"Like it? I love it! I've never been this happy," Hagrid beamed, handling the bow as if it were a treasure.
Hagrid's wand was concealed in his pink umbrella, but he preferred using his giant stone bow—a weapon William had seen him wield many times.
The old bow, though sturdy, was rudimentary, made of stone and strung with common cowhide.
So, William had commissioned Nicholas Flamel to craft a custom bow using alchemy. The result was a masterpiece, complete with ten golden arrows.
"It's almost too fine for me," Hagrid said, gently caressing the bow.
The bow was indeed extraordinary.
Its frame was a blend of dragon bone and oak, reinforced with metal.
The string, spun from dragon sinew and unicorn hair, was so durable even Hagrid couldn't break it.
Flamel had imbued the bow and arrows with magic, granting them unparalleled piercing and anti-magic properties.
With Hagrid's strength, a single arrow could pierce through armor or even the toughest magical creature shells.
This was no ordinary bow—it was a weapon worthy of legend.
More significantly, it was an alchemical creation by Nicholas Flamel, whose artifacts were as rare as they were priceless.
Of course, value was subjective. To Hagrid, the bow was a treasure beyond measure, though to Flamel, crafting it had been a simple task.
"My hut's stuffed with magical materials. If you need anything, just take it—no need to ask," Hagrid offered generously.
Indeed, Hagrid's home was a veritable treasure trove, especially of Forbidden Forest resources.
Unicorn hair alone was abundant enough to weave into carpets.
But Hagrid never sold these materials, instead letting them pile up or using them to line Fang's bed.
William nodded, appreciating the gesture.
"What's the string made of?" Hagrid asked, inspecting it closely. "I've never seen anything so strong. Can you get me more?"
William coughed awkwardly. He doubted Hagrid would be pleased to learn the string came from his beloved dragon.
"I'll see what I can do," William hedged. "But as for the material… uh, I'm not quite sure myself."
Dragon sinew was rare and valuable, but William had an entire dragon at his disposal.
He felt a growing urgency to make use of its parts before Snape pilfered everything for his personal stash.
Already, Snape had been quietly siphoning off dragon materials.
Over the summer, William hadn't seen the dragon, only to discover upon returning to school that one of its legs was mysteriously missing.
Better to use the resources to create meaningful items for his friends than let Snape hoard them.
Cedric, for instance, needed dragon nerves for wand-making, and even Professor Flitwick had requested some dragon blood, ostensibly for a "friend" in need of vitality.
"I'll bring this bow every time I venture into the Forbidden Forest," Hagrid declared proudly.
The forest was indeed scary, though Hagrid himself was arguably the most dangerous creature within it.
As they chatted, Hagrid stood up, offering to fetch them some rock cakes.
The group quickly declined, claiming they'd just had breakfast. No one was keen to try Hagrid's culinary experiments.
Hagrid looked a little crestfallen. He'd been perfecting his skills over the summer and had invented a new recipe: fermented herring and rock cake chocolate cupcakes.
Yesterday, he'd served them to Harry and Ron, who, much to his delight, had taken some home.
William suddenly understood why Ron had looked so pale and wobbly when he'd seen him later, clearly suffering from the aftermath.
"Hagrid, where's Fluffy?" Cho asked. "I haven't seen him in ages. Without my singing, he must be having trouble sleeping…"
"Don't try to fool me! You just want to know where Fluffy is," Hagrid said suspiciously.
It seemed Dumbledore had warned him not to disclose Fluffy's whereabouts.
"What's Fluffy?" Hermione asked.
"Fluffy's my sweet little pup! I bought him from a Greek chappie in the Leaky Cauldron last year," Hagrid said with a dreamy smile.
"Even cuter than Boba Tea!"
Hermione "oh"-ed, conjuring an image of an adorable puppy in her mind.
William chuckled. "You don't need to tell us, we already know where Fluffy is."
"Where?" Hagrid asked warily.
"The fourth-floor corridor," William said confidently.
"What—how do you know that?!" Hagrid exclaimed.
"Simple deduction," William explained.
"Dumbledore borrowed Fluffy but didn't put him in the Room of Requirement, and I'm there almost every day brewing potions.
"Then, during the opening feast, Dumbledore specifically warned against going to the fourth-floor corridor. Add that to what you've just said, and it's obvious."
"Is Fluffy guarding something for Dumbledore?" Cedric asked.
"Not another word! You won't get anything else out of me!" Hagrid said, frustrated.
"Fine," Cedric said with a grin. "Guess we'll just have to explore the fourth floor tonight."
"No! It's dangerous!"
"Dangerous?"
"Yes!"
"Fluffy's not dangerous," William said, smiling. "He's just a big sweetheart—just like Boba Tea."
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