Chapter 1031: Refusal
Chapter 1031: Refusal
"What are you guys talking about?"
Hagrid, who had just emerged from the woods, spotted Harry, Hermione, and Ron whispering to each other in front of the gamekeeper's hut and wondered what they were up to.
Hermione turned her head toward the direction of the Forbidden Forest and noticed the injuries on Hagrid's face. With concern, she asked, "Hagrid, what happened to you? You're hurt again."
"Did you get into a fight with a giant or something, Hagrid?" Harry inquired jokingly.
"Don't be ridiculous," Hagrid waved dismissively, clearly not wanting to discuss it.
"Your injuries look like someone beat you up," Ron added, doubtful that anything other than a giant in the Forbidden Forest could have harmed Hagrid.
Changing the subject, Hagrid asked, "What brings you here? Anything I can help with?" He reached into his pocket for the key to the gamekeeper's hut and invited the trio inside for a cup of tea.
The room was chilly, with the fireplace unlit and the contents of the hut in disarray. After stepping inside, Hagrid immediately lit the kindling in the fireplace, hung a kettle over it to boil water, and then took out what appeared to be a bone from a bag above the fireplace, tossing it to Grawp.
"What's that, Hagrid?" Ron asked curiously, eyeing Grawp as he devoured the bone-like object.
"It's Grawp's food, sent over by Albert last night through a house-elf," Hagrid explained, tossing a towel into a bucket of water before wringing it out and applying it to his facial wounds. "Hermione, could you hand me the medicine from the cabinet behind you?"
"What kind of medicine is this, Hagrid?" Hermione inquired.
"It's a painkiller," Hagrid replied. "Albert told me to throw away the dragon meat, but I think it's more effective for pain relief." He eyed the large jar of pills warily. "It doesn't say how many to take, though."
"You can't just take medicine without proper instructions," Hermione frowned. "Knowing Albert, he probably left a note or something."
"Oh, right, there was a letter," Hagrid recalled, searching around the room until he spotted it next to the mortar. He opened it and pulled out two pieces of parchment, glancing at the contents before looking back at the bottle of pills in his hand. "Am I supposed to take five at once? Hope this works."
Without further ado, Hagrid popped five pills into his mouth, chewed them with a grimace, and swallowed, his face contorting at the bitter taste.
"Hagrid, you're supposed to swallow the pills, not chew them," Hermione said, exasperated. It was the first time she had seen someone chew medicine like candy.
"Swallow them?" Hagrid looked confused. No wonder it tasted so bitter—he had never taken pills like this before.
Hermione picked up the letter and read it carefully, then turned to Hagrid with a helpless smile. Albert had indeed mentioned that the painkillers were best taken by swallowing them, and the parchment provided instructions not only on how to take the painkillers but also on wound care and the use of dittany for healing.
Hermione's gaze fell on the mortar, next to which was a large amount of dittany, most likely sent by Albert through the house-elf for Hagrid to treat his wounds.
"You should really pay attention to Albert's advice, Hagrid, and take better care of yourself," Hermione chided gently, suspecting that Albert was aware of the reason for Hagrid's injuries, hence the large supply of painkillers. She wondered how long the medicine would last.
"Oh, it's nothing serious, just a minor injury," Hagrid reassured them, clearly reluctant to elaborate on how he had gotten hurt. He soaked the towel in ice water again, wrung it out, and reapplied it to his wounds. Then he picked some dittany leaves and threw them into the mortar to pound into a paste, intending to use it on his wounds later.
"You don't look like you're just 'fine', Hagrid," Harry said worriedly, suspecting that Hagrid might have taken on something dangerous in the Forbidden Forest again. If Umbridge found out, she would be all too happy to fire Hagrid and possibly even send him to Azkaban.
Ron and Hermione shared a look, clearly having the same concerns. "By the way, Hagrid," Hermione began, "how's your preparation for the Care of Magical Creatures class going?"
"Umbridge is gunning for you, Hagrid. You're her number one target," Ron added, unsure if Hagrid fully grasped the severity of the situation.
"Umbridge?" Hagrid asked, confused.
"That's the nickname for Dolores Umbridge, the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher," Harry explained. "She was turned into a pink toad-like creature once, so people started calling her 'Umbridge' behind her back."
"Oh, right, the new Dark Arts professor Albert mentioned," Hagrid acknowledged. "Don't you worry; I've got everything under control."
The three friends exchanged glances, and finally, Harry spoke up. "Hagrid, you do realize that Umbridge has been trying to get rid of teachers close to Dumbledore, right?"
"We don't want you to get fired right after coming back," Ron added.
"Please, Hagrid, we're begging you," Hermione pleaded. "Teach us something normal for once. Something that will definitely be on the O.W.Ls, like Blast-Ended Skrewts, unicorns, or Fire Crabs."
"Don't you worry; I've got it all planned out," Hagrid assured them, looking like he wanted to pat his chest confidently. "I'll give you a real treat."
"Umbridge doesn't care about treats," Ron warned. "Look what happened to Trelawney. She's on probation now."
"We don't think you'll be that lucky," Harry added. "Umbridge hates your half-giant heritage and has even mentioned it in the newspaper. Don't take this lightly, Hagrid."
"Don't fret; I'm confident in my preparations," Hagrid said, patting his chest.
"Hagrid still doesn't plan on changing his mind," he said. "And even if I get fired, I can still work for the Order of the Phoenix."
The trio exchanged glances, feeling that their words had fallen on deaf ears.
"What advice did Albert give you, Hagrid?" Hermione suddenly asked, "I'm sure he must have said something about this."
"He told me to prepare for the inspection, I think," Hagrid replied, scratching his head in confusion.
"That's impossible, Harry. Look at the letter," Hermione said, not believing that Albert would fail to give Hagrid some sort of warning. The most likely scenario was that Hagrid had simply ignored it.
"What's a Thestral, Hagrid?" Harry asked abruptly.
"What about it, Harry?" Hagrid asked, looking surprised by the question.
"Anderson wants you to introduce Thestrals to the class," Harry said, holding up the parchment. "By the way, there's another letter here."
"What does it say?"
Harry went to hand the parchment to Hagrid, but he didn't take it, instead asking Harry to tell him what was written on it.
"Is that true?" Harry asked, sounding skeptical.
"Of course," Hagrid replied, busy applying the dittany to his wounds and unable to take the parchment.
"He said he acknowledges your efforts..."
Harry frowned as Hermione and Ron leaned in to read the parchment as well. He continued, "and he understands how you feel, but your efforts aren't very effective. He advises you to give up and that he can't help with this matter."
"What is it that Albert's talking about, Hagrid?" Hermione asked, feeling that the letter was referring to the reason for Hagrid's injuries.
"You're not keeping something dangerous in the Forbidden Forest, are you?" Harry asked anxiously.
"No," Hagrid shook his head.
"Umbridge has been looking for an opportunity to make an example of someone. And the person she wants to get rid of the most is you," Harry warned again. "If that toad finds out that you're keeping some dangerous creature in the Forbidden Forest, she'd be more than happy to sack you and then kill your pet. I'm sure she's capable of doing something like that."
"Albert mentioned it to me," Hagrid said, his fist clenching at the mention of Harry's words. He would never allow the situation Harry described to come to pass.
"Did he mention anything else in the letter?" Albert knowing about Grawp wasn't surprising to Hagrid; in his opinion, Albert was an all-knowing sort of fellow, and not much could escape his notice.
Seeing that Hagrid didn't want to talk about it, the trio dropped the subject, suspecting that Hagrid was indeed keeping some dangerous creature in the Forbidden Forest.
Harry's gaze returned to the parchment, and he continued, "He wrote that he hopes you'll go and pick up Firenze and prevent him from being killed by the centaurs... He thinks that Dumbledore might, possibly, overlook certain things, or..."
Firenze? Centaurs?
Harry, Ron, and Hermione were perplexed, not understanding what the parchment meant.
Why would Firenze be killed by the centaurs?
"I think I've heard that name somewhere before," Harry said quietly.
"The centaur who rescued you in the Forbidden Forest in our first year," Hermione reminded him.
"Oh, that's who it is. But isn't Firenze a centaur?" Harry was even more confused.
The three of them looked at Hagrid, but he seemed just as clueless about the meaning of the letter.
"I bet Albert knew you wouldn't read this letter carefully," Hermione said as she took the letter and read it carefully. "This letter was meant for us to read."
"That guy is always so mysterious. It's best to just ask him directly," Harry said to Hagrid. "He must have a reason for specifically reminding you about this."
After having tea with Hagrid, the trio returned to the castle. Harry and Ron had a lot of homework to catch up on, so they needed to get back and focus on that.
"What do you think Hagrid is keeping in the Forbidden Forest?" Harry asked suddenly as they made their way back to the castle.
"A giant, maybe?" Ron guessed.
"Definitely not," Hermione said, remembering Hagrid's appearance when he had returned earlier. "His injuries look like he got into a fight with someone."
"I bet Albert knows," Harry said, recalling the letter and Albert's aversion to whatever Hagrid was hiding in the forest.
"Could it be... a giant?" Hermione said, her voice shaking. "Hagrid said he spent a month finding the giant camp, but he took two months to come back, and his injuries are definitely from a fight."
Harry and Ron exchanged glances, feeling that Hermione's words made sense.
"But how did he do it? I mean, there's no way he could get a giant to follow him back," Harry said, trying to refute Hermione's guess.
After a long silence, Hermione said, her voice trembling, "Maybe... a young giant? Don't forget, Hagrid raised a dragon, but... I don't understand why Hagrid would do this. Why make his life so difficult?"
Hermione was almost certain of her guess, remembering Albert's words in the letter: I acknowledge your efforts, and I understand how you feel, but your efforts are not very effective. I advise you to give up, and in this matter, I cannot help you.
"Keeping a giant hidden in the forest, he must be crazy," Ron said, unable to fathom what Hagrid could possibly be thinking. "No wonder Anderson refused to help him."
"Albert definitely knows something. I need to talk to him," Hermione murmured. "I just don't understand why Hagrid would do this."
(End of Chapter)
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