Chapter 192: Fluffy the Three-Headed Dog
Chapter 192: Fluffy the Three-Headed Dog
It had been raining for the past few days, and the paths through the Forbidden Forest were muddy and treacherous. Albert, following Hagrid, stumbled several times and almost fell.
"Hagrid, wait up," Albert finally called out, bringing Hagrid to a halt with a puzzled look on his face. Albert walked to the side and fashioned himself a branch to use as a walking stick with a quick spell.
"Now I understand why adventurers in novels always carry a walking stick," Albert said with a smile.
"You look like a little old man," Hagrid teased.
"No, this is the spirit of exploration," Albert said, unfazed by Hagrid's ribbing as he continued on the path behind him, with Fang bounding around them.
After walking a bit further, they were quite far from the school, but Albert felt that they hadn't ventured deep into the Forbidden Forest but were instead skirting its outer reaches.
Finally, they stopped in front of a large oak tree. Albert noticed a makeshift shelter on higher ground, presumably for shelter from the rain, if it could be called a shelter at all.
"Fluffy," Hagrid set down the iron bucket, cupped his hands around his mouth, and called out.
As Hagrid called Fluffy's name, Albert felt as if something was staring at him. A deep, youthful bark suddenly came from the right.
"Step back, Fluffy's a bit shy," Hagrid gestured for Albert to move back as he reached out and grabbed the black shadow that pounced towards them.
It was a dog, or to be more precise, a dog with three heads—Fluffy the three-headed dog. Wasn't this the same creature Dumbledore used as the first obstacle to guard the Philosopher's Stone?
However, Fluffy was still a pup, about the size of a bulldog, and Hagrid held it in his arms like a baby, struggling desperately to break free.
Fluffy seemed wary of Albert, this stranger. Its six eyes fixed on him intently. If it weren't for its small size, Albert felt he might not have been able to stand there so calmly.
"Don't worry, this is Albert, my friend," Hagrid said in a soothing tone, as if comforting a child.
Albert stared at Fluffy in Hagrid's arms, his lips twitching as he asked, "Hagrid, this is your... dog?"
"Fluffy's cautious around unfamiliar scents," Hagrid said, holding the three-headed pup close with his fan-like hands, refusing to let it wriggle free.
"I understand," Albert took a few more steps back, reaching down to pat Fang's head, and muttered, "Fang is much cuter."
"No, no, this little darling is adorable too," Hagrid brought Fluffy closer to Albert, allowing it to sniff Albert's scent.
"Little darling?" Albert felt his face twitch. "How old is it?"
"About... five months old, I reckon," Hagrid said uncertainly. "I bought it from a Greek chap at the Hog's Head in Hogsmeade about a month and a half ago."
"I thought three-headed dogs were extremely rare magical creatures," Albert raised an eyebrow.
"That bloke was a smuggler," Hagrid said, still sounding upset. "Fluffy was in bad shape back then, and he didn't want to be stuck with a dying animal, so he sold it to me for a bargain price."
The Ministry of Magic was as unreliable as ever.
"Bunch of incompetents, the lot of 'em at the Ministry," Hagrid said with disdain. "Even if they catch the smugglers, they just dispose of the creatures."
Albert suddenly asked, "Does Dumbledore know about this?"
At that moment, Albert saw Hagrid's face change, and he looked flustered.
Ah well, I'll bring this up another time, Albert thought to himself. He sighed, already knowing the answer from Hagrid's expression.
"Can I feed Fluffy?" he asked, changing the subject.
"Oh, of course," Hagrid set Fluffy down and whispered soothingly, "Don't worry, Fluffy just wants to sniff you out."
"Even if you say that..." Albert gripped his wand, still worried that Fluffy might suddenly take a bite out of him. Even though it was small, a nip from such a sturdy-looking pup would still hurt.
Fluffy, held back by Hagrid, circled around Albert, sniffing intently. Occasionally, one of its heads would bare its teeth, but a swift smack on the head from Hagrid would calm it down again.
"All right, sit, sit." Hagrid said to Rover.
"Is Rover not afraid of Fang?" Albert asked in confusion as he fed the three-headed dog. The creature seemed well-behaved while eating, with each of its three heads happily munching on their respective portions of beef.
"They get along just fine," Hagrid explained. "Before the start of term, I kept Rover in my hut until he fully recovered, and then I let him roam freely here."
Hagrid had also used a long vine to securely tie up the massive dog.
"Hagrid, can I pet him?" Albert turned and asked.
"Umm, I think... that should be fine!" Hagrid replied uncertainly.
"The way you're acting isn't really reassuring," Albert held back the urge to tease, eventually giving up on the idea of petting the three-headed dog.
He merely poked at the little guy with his walking stick, noticing the bite marks on it, and completely abandoned any thoughts of rubbing the dog's heads.
"Ain't he adorable," Hagrid giggled.
"Most animals are pretty cute when they're young," Albert didn't deny, "If only they didn't bite. But..."
"Hagrid, have you thought about what you'll do when he... I mean, when Rover grows up?" Albert emptied his pockets, feeding the rest of the dog treats to the three-headed dog. The little guy seemed to really enjoy the biscuits, and as Albert fed him, his demeanor softened, showing less vigilance and hostility.
"That..."
"As far as I know, three-headed dogs can grow to the height of an adult human. Once he's fully grown, he could swat me down and snap my neck with ease." Albert offered a friendly reminder, "In a year at most, he'll be too big to be restrained by vines."
"Don't worry, I won't let him roam around Hogwarts, and I know a way to calm him easily." Hagrid confidently patted his chest and pulled out a rather crude-looking pipe from his pocket, placing it to his lips and playing a melody. Surprisingly, Rover, who had been eating just moments ago, began to feel drowsy and soon fell asleep.
"How did you do that?" Albert asked, even though he knew that music could lull Rover to sleep, witnessing it firsthand still felt incredible.
"That's my little secret." Hagrid beamed with pride, "It took me half a month to figure this trick out."
"Well!" Albert raised an eyebrow, "But as far as I know, in Muggle Greek mythology, there's a three-headed hellhound called Cerberus, and to get past him, you need to put him to sleep with music."
Hagrid was left speechless by Albert's words, never expecting him to bring up such a topic.
In fact, the method to control the three-headed dog had indeed come from that Greek fellow.
"Is that really mentioned in Muggle stories?"
"Yes," Albert affirmed, "But that's not important. You still need to be careful, and I don't think Dumbledore would approve of you keeping this creature. My suggestion is that once Rover is fully grown, you send him back to Greece or keep him deep within the Forbidden Forest."
"Umm..." Hagrid's face was filled with conflict.
"Hagrid, I want to pet him." Albert interrupted Hagrid's train of thought, "Can you play the pipe to make him sleep?"
"Alright, sure!" Hagrid nodded in agreement and began to play the pipe again, and Rover, who had just woken up, soon dozed off once more.
Albert immediately stepped forward and started rubbing the three dog heads, wishing he had a camera to capture the moment.
"The brown fur of a three-headed dog is surprisingly soft," Albert murmured as he took turns rubbing each head.
"Albert really likes Rover, doesn't he?" Hagrid thought to himself, watching the scene unfold.
Once Albert was satisfied, Hagrid stopped playing the pipe. They quietly slipped away while Rover was still eating, and Fang, after glancing at Rover, turned and followed them.
(End of Chapter)
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