Kyle and Kanna returned to the castle shortly after leaving Hagrid's hut. Once they were gone, Hagrid sat alone, pondering until evening. In the end, he decided to follow Kyle's advice and release Fluffy into the Forbidden Forest that very night. Although reluctant, he knew there was no other choice—first and foremost, it would make Fluffy happier. And if Fluffy was happy, Hagrid would be too.
Kyle had made a valid point: the situation was tense. Just earlier, Professor Oren from Defense Against the Dark Arts had complained to Hagrid while gathering materials in the Forbidden Forest. The professor had been frustrated that, due to the day's Daily Prophet report, the Ministry of Magic had deployed most of their best teams to track down any Magical Creatures with uncertain origins, to show they were handling the matter seriously.
This crackdown made it nearly impossible for Oren to buy the supplies he needed; instead, he was forced to catch them himself in the forest. Hagrid chuckled, remembering how Oren had cursed Fudge as an "idiot" in his frustration. At the time, it had seemed amusing, but now Hagrid regretted not joining in the cursing.
The truth was, Hagrid had bought Fluffy in a pub, and there had been quite a few witnesses. Even though they didn't know what exactly he had purchased, if any of them were caught, they might try to save themselves by reporting that Hagrid had been buying Magical Creatures.
After all, for those people, a correct guess could help them avoid punishment, and a wrong one wouldn't hurt them. So, for Fluffy's safety—and to avoid causing Dumbledore any unnecessary trouble—Hagrid had no choice but to release Fluffy. Surely, those Aurors wouldn't dare search the Forbidden Forest, right? But if they did, Hagrid wasn't too concerned.
After all, the forest's depths were home to Werewolves and Manticores, so what was one more Three-Headed Dog?
Meanwhile, back at the castle, Kyle was sitting in a corner of the common room, sorting through the bundle of Wiggentree branches he'd collected. Kanna watched curiously as he worked. "I was going to ask you," she said, eyeing the branches. "Why are you messing with those dead sticks when there are plenty of branches in the kitchen that you could just grab anytime?"
"These aren't just ordinary branches. They're from Wiggentrees," Kyle explained. "Wiggentrees are magical Rowan trees. Anyone touching their trunks is protected from attacks by dark creatures."
Kanna blinked. She knew that much—but what did that have to do with the branches? After all, branches and trunks weren't the same thing.
Kyle, noticing her confusion, sighed. "I... never mind, you'll understand later." He picked out a particularly straight stick and set it aside. Then, as if the thought just occurred to him, he asked, "By the way, how did you know there are branches in the kitchen? Have you eaten there?"
The kitchen was located close to the common room, and Kyle had been there a few times. However, every time he approached the door, he was promptly swarmed by House-elves. The kitchen stove was farther inside, and the only way to fully see it was to sit at one of the long tables.
Considering how enthusiastic the House-elves were, Kyle mused, it was impossible to visit the kitchen without getting roped into a meal. And halfway through, they'd probably try to serve you an entire cow!
"I'm not, I'm not… Don't say things like that..." Kanna's face suddenly turned beet red as she stammered, "I-I was just curious and went to take a look in the kitchen!"
"I see," Kyle replied nonchalantly, focusing on sorting the Wiggentree branches. By the time he finished, he realized Kanna had quietly returned to the dormitory, leaving him as the only one still in the common room.
Remembering that tomorrow was the weekend, Kyle decided to pack up and head to bed early—he had no intention of staying up late. After all, the next day was important for Hufflepuff. The Quidditch tournament was starting, and their first match was against Slytherin.
...
The next morning.
The Hufflepuff students were up bright and early, energized for the big game. After breakfast, they donned their uniforms and grabbed the cheer flags they'd made, heading to the Quidditch Pitch to support their team.
Kyle was supposed to join them, but after finishing breakfast, a plump ghost suddenly floated toward him.
"Hello, Kyle! I hope I'm not interrupting your breakfast," greeted the Fat Friar.
"Hello, Friar," Kyle replied politely. "Care to watch the Quidditch match with us? Hufflepuff has a good chance of winning this year."
"I prefer Gobstones, I'm afraid," the Friar said with a hint of regret. "Unfortunately, Hogwarts canceled that game decades ago."
"Oh, I see. Sorry to hear that," Kyle said quickly, not wanting to make the ghost feel bad. "I hope I haven't ruined your day."
"Of course not, my boy," the Friar smiled warmly. "The best part about being a ghost is that nothing ever really goes wrong. But speaking of things, I'm afraid you'll have to delay your plans to watch the game. Dumbledore wants to see you in his office—eighth floor. The password is Butterfinger."
"Dumbledore wants to see me?" Kyle was caught off guard. Curiosity piqued, he asked, "Do you know why the Headmaster wants to see me, Friar?"
"I'm just the messenger," the Fat Friar shook his head with a gentle smile.
"Alright, I'll go now. Thanks, Friar."
After saying goodbye, Kyle immediately made his way to the eighth floor. It wasn't every day the Headmaster requested a meeting, and Kyle wondered what it could be about. Hopefully, he wouldn't miss the Quidditch match.
Thanks to his familiarity with the castle's layout, Kyle quickly found the ugly stone gargoyle guarding the entrance to the Headmaster's Office.
"Butterfinger," Kyle said aloud.
With a jump, the gargoyle moved aside, and the wall behind it split open to reveal a set of revolving stairs, slowly ascending like an escalator. Kyle stepped on and rode the stairs up to a large oak door with a griffin-shaped knocker.
He hesitated for a moment before giving the door a gentle tap. The griffin knocker came to life, flapping its wings as the door slowly opened.
Kyle stepped into the Headmaster's Office and couldn't help but look around with wide-eyed curiosity. The room was spacious and circular, filled with odd, fascinating little noises. Various strange silver devices cluttered the desk, spinning and emitting wisps of smoke, their purposes entirely unknown to Kyle—but he was certain none of them were mere humidifiers.
Along the wall stood a stone basin engraved with mysterious symbols, and next to it was a colossal mirror. The mirror towered to the ceiling, framed in gleaming gold, with two claw-shaped feet supporting it on the ground.