Chapter 119: Three-Headed Dog’s Favorite Seasoning

Deep within the Forbidden Forest, in a sunken clearing— Hagrid stood solemnly before Fluffy, scolding the massive three-headed dog for frightening Harold. "You nearly killed Harold last time you were in the castle. That's not okay!" Hagrid's tone was stern. Whether Fluffy could understand him or not, he roared on, "If that had been a Slytherin student, they'd have gone straight to the Ministry. You'd be put down for sure—Dumbledore himself wouldn't be able to protect you!" "It was Harold who let it go. He pulled you out of the castle—he saved your life!" Fluffy let out a low, ambiguous grunt. Each of its three heads looked in a different direction, refusing to meet Harold's eyes. It was sulking. "Alright, Hagrid, let me talk to him," Harold said, steeling his nerves and stepping forward. Fluffy growled deep in its throat, but with Hagrid there, it reluctantly swallowed the sound. Now up close, Harold realized just how much Fluffy had grown. He wasn't even as tall as one of its heads. "Can it actually understand me?" Harold asked. "Somewhat," said Hagrid. "Fluffy's a clever boy—he can understand basic things, just not anything too complicated." "Well then, I'll leave you two to chat. I'm gonna tidy up his bed—he's always making a mess of it." What Hagrid called a "bed" was really just a giant patch of trimmed shrubbery, shaped like an oversized doghouse—exactly like Fang's back at the hut. As Hagrid busied himself, Harold turned back to Fluffy. So it could only understand simple words... basically dumber than Tom, then. Maybe even dumber than a crup. At least crups could understand most wizarding commands—they were popular pets, just expensive. There was one for sale in Diagon Alley—cost as much as ten owls. Harold smirked. With three heads and still this dumb. Fluffy sensed something. All three heads snapped to stare at Harold, lips curling back to bare teeth. Harold drew a sharp breath, then spun around— "Hagrid!" At the call, Fluffy immediately put on a goofy grin—faster than flipping a switch. "What's wrong?" Hagrid rushed over, only relaxing slightly when he saw both of them unharmed. "Nothing," Harold said casually. "Just wanted to ask if you needed help." "No need. I've got it," Hagrid replied. "You can feed Fluffy some of the elk meat—it's in that bucket." "Sure thing." This time, when Harold turned back, Fluffy didn't bare its teeth. "That's more like it. I know you're a dog, but let's have some manners," Harold said, picking out a chunk of meat and tossing it into the middle mouth. "Okay, sure, I did blow up your jaw once. But you chased me halfway through the castle after that—let's call it even." The other two heads leaned in, eyeing the bucket expectantly. Harold handed each a piece. "Even now, yeah?" He figured Fluffy understood. The dog was at least good at reading the room—maybe smarter than he thought. About half as smart as Tom, maybe. Fluffy didn't respond. It just kept staring longingly into the bucket, drool puddling around its paws. Only once the entire bucket was empty did Fluffy emit a moan of disappointment, reverting to a grumpy expression. "Come on, I even gave you a present after I blew up your mouth—that troll wasn't tasty enough?" Harold said. Fluffy tilted its heads in confusion. Harold pantomimed wildly—acting like a lumbering troll, then flopping dramatically to the ground. Recognition dawned. Six eyes sparkled. Fluffy remembered. That delicious meat roll had landed right in front of it just like that. A gust of wind blew past Harold. He looked up—Fluffy was wagging its tail so furiously it smacked nearby trees, shaking down branches and leaves. "Oh, looks like you two are getting along." Hagrid returned just then, eyeing the empty bucket and the dog's wagging tail with satisfaction. "That's more like it—you've got to be friends with Harold." He reached out to pat Fluffy's head but ended up touching something slimy. Ew. Drool. The rightmost head had raised too high, and the saliva had landed square on the middle one. "You gluttonous beast," Hagrid laughed. "You just ate a whole bucket of elk! How are you still hungry? ...Well, I've got nothing left." "I don't think he's hungry," Harold said. "I think he's craving." "Craving what?" "Troll." "There might be trolls in the forest," Hagrid said slowly. "Probably on the far side, way beyond the swamp." "Don't you even think about it," he added, suddenly wary. "That swamp's huge, full of grindylows and vampire bats—and there are werewolves past it. Stay far away." "Relax, Hagrid. I won't," Harold said quickly. "It's Fluffy. He likes how trolls taste." But clearly, Hagrid didn't buy it. He was sure Harold was just trying to get another troll spine. Not that trolls were so easy to handle... The thought wiped the smile from Hagrid's face, and soon he herded Harold out of the forest altogether. Fluffy trotted behind them, almost as if escorting them out—and very effectively, too. With a three-headed dog looming behind them, no creature dared approach, and they made it back to the hut without trouble. Once there, Hagrid ordered Fluffy back into the depths of the forest. No one was chasing down last year's incident anymore, but Hagrid still thought it best for Fluffy to remain hidden—just in case. Back in the hut, Hagrid poured Harold a cup of tea and went to fetch a plate of rock cakes—his standard guest fare. Meanwhile, Harold inspected his haul from the forest. Ten wand-worthy branches in varying lengths—the longest was thirty inches, the shortest fifteen. All usable. The quality was excellent, especially the oak. Smooth, intact, and free from cracks. He also had two coarse, wiry Fluffy hairs. He'd wanted to pluck one from each head, to be fair—but when it came to the head he'd blown up, he couldn't quite bring himself to do it. Still, two was plenty. And now that he and Fluffy were on good terms, getting more wouldn't be hard. With the right gift... maybe even a tooth wasn't out of the question. Harold stroked his chin and thought of Silvermane's last two wand traits: [Spellpierce]: +20% penetration against magical defenses. Chance to shatter defensive spells outright. [Rend]: After damage, reduces opponent's counter-curse effectiveness by 30%. His current wand, Silvermane, always worked best with unicorn-related magic—whether calming soul fragments, resisting the Killing Curse's residue, or reversing petrification. But those two traits clearly came from Fluffy. Though Harold was still only in second year, he'd probably benefit from them later. Wait—chance to shatter defensive spells? Harold blinked. Was Fluffy specifically built to counter trolls? Troll-core wands boosted defensive magic. Then along came Fluffy hair with Spellpierce? Seemed like the dog had a grudge... "What are you thinking about?" Hagrid asked, placing a plate of rock-hard cakes in front of him. "Nothing much," Harold said, putting Silvermane away. "Just wondering when we can head back into the forest again. There's so much treasure in there." "Of course there is! The Forbidden Forest is Hogwarts' greatest treasure," Hagrid declared. Then quickly added, "But students aren't allowed in, you know that." "Then I'll wait until the holidays—Christmas break, Easter, or summer. If school's not in session, it's not against the rules, is it?" Hagrid froze. The first two were debatable, but summer break... that might actually be fair game, assuming Harold could enter the grounds. "No way. It's too dangerous," Hagrid said, frowning. "You're still a second-year." "I'd bring you with me, of course," Harold said. "We'd go see Fluffy together." "...Well, alright then," Hagrid said automatically, nodding. (End of Chapter)