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Chapter 743: Hagrid's Request
Chapter 743: Hagrid's Request
After the start-of-term feast, Dumbledore returned to give Harry his weekly lesson on memories.
However, by the time Kyle received the message from the portrait and went to look for him, Dumbledore had already finished the lesson and left the school again, leaving only Harry in the office, who was still a little dazed after viewing a memory.
"Kyle, were you looking for Professor Dumbledore, too?" Harry said, "He just received a message from the fireplace about the Dark Mark appearing somewhere, and he rushed off in a hurry."
"Ah, it doesn't matter." Kyle said, "I didn't have anything important to discuss with him anyway. We can talk another time."
After two wasted trips in a row, Kyle wasn't as eager as he had been at the start. After all, he had the Time-Turner, and Dumbledore would come find him if he needed anything.
The two of them left the Headmaster's office together.
As they reached the corridor outside, Harry turned to look at Kyle beside him, his mouth opening as if to say something—
But at that moment, he closed his mouth again.
"What is it?" Kyle asked, puzzled.
"Nothing," Harry shook his head. "It's nothing."
With Dumbledore's sudden departure after the memory viewing, Harry had a lot of questions buzzing in his mind, and he needed someone to share them with...
Kyle would indeed be a good choice; he was smart and knowledgeable, and he had even personally participated in several secret plans.
But it was precisely because of this that Harry found it hard to see him as a peer. He preferred to discuss such matters with Ron or Hermione.
"It's just..." Harry quickly changed the subject to avoid arousing Kyle's suspicion. "I wanted to ask if Apparition is difficult to learn. We'll be learning that spell this Saturday.
"Sirius was supposed to teach us, but he left school not long after the term started, and he still hasn't found the time to come back."
"It's not too hard," Kyle glanced at him and said, "There's a little trick to it, though. If someone takes you along once before you learn it, it'll be much easier afterward."
"In that case, Professor Dumbledore did take me along once..." Harry said, "The night we went to find Professor Slughorn. But that experience wasn't very pleasant; I felt like a stuffed toy being tossed into a washing machine."
"That's normal; you'll get used to it," Kyle said. "Also, if you've experienced something more exciting, you'll definitely feel that being a stuffed toy isn't so bad."
"More exciting?" Harry asked, puzzled. "What do you mean? Does everyone's Apparition experience differ?"
"Not people, a phoenix," Kyle said, glancing warily behind him.
He dared to say that anyone who had ever flown with a phoenix would find Apparition easy to master.
It was just that not many people had that opportunity.
Harry had not had such an experience either, so he found it hard to understand what Kyle meant.
The conversation came to a halt at this point, but fortunately, they had now reached the vicinity of the Gryffindor common room.
Harry glanced at the large portrait of the Fat Lady and breathed a sigh of relief.
"See you tomorrow, Kyle."
"See you tomorrow."
After Harry left, Kyle went downstairs in another direction.
...
The day after the holiday, Hogwarts was covered in a thick layer of snow, with about five inches of accumulation on the ground.
A group of first-year little witches and wizards were trudging through the snow on their way to the greenhouse for Herbology class.
The same went for those who had Care of Magical Creatures class.
Near the edge of the Forbidden Forest, Hagrid seemed distracted as he brought out a group of Mooncalfs from the now-empty pumpkin patch.
The creatures' unique appearance quickly captivated the students, who gathered around eagerly.
"I can't believe it," Connor whispered. "Hagrid is actually showing us Mooncalfs instead of some fanged and clawed beasts for our seventh-year class."
"Yeah," Kyle nodded in agreement.
It was no secret at Hogwarts that Hagrid preferred creatures with less friendly appearances.
It was fine for students in the lower years, as Hagrid had to choose beasts with a XXX rating or lower due to their age. But it was different for the sixth and seventh years.
The scope of the N.E.W.T. exams was vast, and there weren't as many restrictions on the curriculum. Lately, their Care of Magical Creatures classes had almost turned into a "Guide to Ferocious Magical Creatures."
Last time it was Scorpion-tailed Monstrosities... the time before that, it was the Giant Fanged Beast... To be honest, even Kyle was curious where Hagrid found these creatures, and he couldn't help but marvel at the sheer variety of species in the Forbidden Forest.
Now, Hagrid had suddenly brought out harmless Mooncalfs, and Kyle wasn't quite used to it.
"I wonder if he's been Imperiused," Ryan muttered beside them, clearly thinking along the same lines.
"I don't know..." Kyle said, "Maybe it's more convenient to prepare for the Mooncalves."
Treading through the thick snow, they reached the vicinity of the pumpkin patch, and it was only when they drew closer that he noticed Hagrid seemed distracted and not as enthusiastic as he usually was during class.
After seeing that everyone had arrived, Hagrid merely said a few brief words and handed each student a cabbage to try feeding the Mooncalves.
However, no one felt dissatisfied, and the girls, in particular, were delighted. From the moment they had laid eyes on the Mooncalves, they had wanted to do just this.
This unusual behavior from Hagrid actually increased his favorability among the students.
"Kyle, do you have time now?" Just as Kyle was about to get a cabbage from the basket, Hagrid approached him and said in a lowered voice.
"You're the professor for this class, Hagrid." Kyle shrugged, "If you think I have time, then it's fine."
"It's like this..." Hagrid led Kyle to a more secluded spot and lowered his voice, "Do you still have that spider tonic you gave me before?"
"What?" Kyle didn't realize what Hagrid was talking about at first, and it was only after he repeated himself that Kyle finally remembered.
He had indeed prepared spider tonic before and even got...well, a large bottle of Eight-Eyed Giant Spider venom from Hagrid in exchange.
"I gave it all to you." Kyle said, "But it's not that complicated to make, so I can make a few more bottles anytime if you need them."
"That's great." Hagrid breathed a sigh of relief, "It's just...could you make it quickly? Aragog is very old, and I should have come to you sooner."
"Oh right, I can pay you, and I can give you the venom this afternoon."
Because he was so nervous, Hagrid didn't even realize he had slipped up. Before, when he asked Kyle for the spider tonic, he had used the excuse of it being for a friend, but now he had directly called out Aragog's name.
This was the name of the Eight-Eyed Giant Spider he had been raising in the Forbidden Forest for about sixty years.
Kyle had even interacted with it; it was a very amicable spider, and they had gotten along well...at least, Kyle had enjoyed their interactions.
"Don't worry about payment." Kyle waved his hand, "I didn't use up all the venom last time, so I don't need any more."
Times had changed; thanks to Aragog's generosity, he had long achieved freedom with spider venom, and he now had several bottles, all in large one-pint containers, stored in his trunk.
He had intended to sell them for Galleons, but he hadn't found an opportunity yet. Now, he could finally put them to good use.
Additionally, Kyle genuinely wanted to help Aragog. After all, he still wanted to harvest some venom before graduation, so it was only right to help with the tonic.
"Never mind." Kyle glanced at the students gathered in the pumpkin patch, "There's still some time before class ends; I can start now and should be able to give it to you by the end of class. Let me just find a place..."
"No need to look." Hagrid stopped Kyle, "Just go to my hut; it's warm there, and no one will disturb you."
"Alright." Kyle nodded and turned toward the nearby hut.
The fireplace inside was blazing, and as soon as he opened the door, a wave of heat washed over him.
However, such a hot stove was definitely not usable, so Kyle could only create a smaller heating furnace beside it and place a crucible on top.
Hagrid stood at the door, keeping watch and occasionally glancing inside through the window.
Half an hour later, just as class was ending, Kyle emerged from the hut with a large bottle of blue tonic and handed it to Hagrid.
"This should be enough for three months."
"Thank you, Kyle." Hagrid said happily and then rushed into the Forbidden Forest.
"What's going on with him?" Connor walked over and asked curiously, "What did you give him? Is it a potion?"
"It's spider tonic." Kyle said, "Hagrid has been raising a group of Eight-Eyed Giant Spiders in the Forbidden Forest."
Upon hearing the name 'Eight-Eyed Giant Spider,' Connor's expression changed... Those spiders were as big as cars, and even Kyle found them a bit hard to accept, let alone Connor, who was a witch.
"You can brew a tonic for spiders?" She looked at Kyle in disbelief.
"It's necessary because their venom is so valuable." Kyle shrugged, "Just don't tell Professor Snape, or else I won't get any of that venom."
"Aren't those Hagrid's spiders?" Connor asked.
"It's not a conflict of interest." Kyle put away the empty crucible and walked out of the hut, "If the spiders give it to me willingly, I can't refuse, can I?"
Connor pouted, not believing a word Kyle said.
Although she disliked the Eight-Eyed Giant Spiders, she had learned about them due to her interest in potions. Those spiders were known for their vicious nature and strong aggression toward wizards.
However, Kyle merely smiled mysteriously and didn't explain further.
Of course, he had his own little tricks, but this method wasn't suitable for Connor. It was something he could handle himself.
After leaving Hagrid's hut, the two of them followed a long trail of footprints across the field and made their way back to Hogwarts Castle.
As they reached the entrance hall, they happened to run into Hermione, Harry, and Ron, who were walking down the stairs side by side, seemingly in the midst of an argument.
"No one is asking you to stay and help," Hermione said to Ron, her tone carrying a hint of impatience. "But could you please stop coming up with such ridiculous ideas?"
"Ridiculous ideas?" Ron exclaimed.
"What I said is absolutely true! Harry is Slughorn's Potions protege. If Harry asks him, he definitely won't refuse."
"Do you think Professor Slughorn can't tell that it's not Harry's true skill level?" Hermione grew even more impatient. "Moreover, even Dumbledore couldn't get his hands on it, so he must be determined to hide the truth. Why would he tell a student about it?
"Horcruxes... Horcruxes... I've never even heard of them. They must be extremely advanced magic. I think it will be very difficult to obtain this information, and we must come up with a plan."
"Why make things so complicated? You're just overthinking it!"
"That's better than not thinking at all!" Hermione snapped.
"I did think about it..." Ron retorted, also getting angry.
As the two bickered, Harry stood by helplessly, watching them. He was obviously used to this kind of argument between them.
Whenever he wanted to consult them for advice, they would end up quarreling due to their differing opinions.
However, the trio soon noticed Kyle and Connor walking towards them. Whether it was out of a desire for secrecy or something else, they very tacitly changed the subject.
"Ron, this is the key point of the Potions homework," Hermione said, her tone suddenly shifting and becoming somewhat stiff. "Make sure you write it up quickly. Professor Slughorn will be checking it in the next class, and you can't keep deducting points from Gryffindor like this."
"Yeah, that's right," Ron agreed, his voice equally stiff. "But if you could lend me your homework..."
"Don't even think about it!"
Listening to their conversation, Kyle shook his head slightly. Their attempt to change the subject was not very skillful, to say the least.
The key point of the Potions homework being Horcruxes? How could they say such a thing?
This wasn't even about Potions anymore; it was more like a supplementary class taught by Voldemort himself.
But in order to avoid embarrassing them further, Kyle didn't point it out and simply acted as if he hadn't heard anything. He greeted them and then turned to walk into the Great Hall.
"Hermione, you really don't have to do that," Harry said quietly after Kyle had walked away. "Kyle also knows about Horcruxes. He was there when Dumbledore showed me that memory."
"What? Why didn't you tell me earlier?" Hermione glared at Harry. She had thought that her attempt to change the subject had been seamless, but now it had turned into a joke.
"You didn't give me a chance," Harry whispered.
It was only when Hermione suddenly changed the topic that he noticed Kyle was right across from them. How could he have had the time to remind Hermione?
However, Harry's explanation didn't seem to satisfy Hermione, and her face reddened as she glared at him again, clearly still annoyed.
"Wait, Harry," Ron said, suddenly remembering something. "Since Kyle also knows about Horcruxes, why don't you ask him? He must know something about it."
"I... I just can't bring myself to do it," Harry shook his head and whispered, "I don't know why... When facing Kyle, I always feel like I'm facing a professor. Well, it's just a feeling."
"Really?" Ron blinked. "I don't feel that way at all."
"Maybe it's because I've seen him in the Headmaster's office more often," Harry thought about it. "You know, not many students get to go there, right?
"But Kyle has been there many times, and even the previous headmasters know him."
"In that case, it's even simpler," Ron said. "You don't have to ask; just call Kyle and go ask Slughorn about Horcruxes together. That way, the chances of success will be much greater."
Harry just shook his head without saying a word.
His rational mind told him that Ron was right. If he had Kyle's help, he probably wouldn't have to worry about this matter. Kyle would definitely find a way to get Slughorn's true memory.
But deep down, he didn't want to do that. Harry couldn't quite explain why, perhaps because this was the first task Dumbledore had given him, and he wanted to accomplish it himself.
Maybe he could try Ron's suggestion first...
Harry thought to himself.
He could directly ask Slughorn after the next Potions class. Maybe it would work, and honestly, he couldn't think of a better idea at the moment.
...
(End of Chapter)
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