After saying goodbye to Cedric, Kyle left the castle and made his way toward the Forbidden Forest. Hagrid was standing in his vegetable garden outside his cabin, watering pumpkins the size of wheels.
“Kyle, come on in and have a seat.”
The two entered the cabin, where Hagrid cheerfully set down a plate of Rock Cakes and a teapot for Kyle.
“How’s the new school year treating you?” Hagrid asked.
“Not bad.” Kyle didn’t touch the Rock Cakes but took a sip of tea instead. “It’s just that there are a few more classes each week than last year.”
“Yes, second year is a bit tougher than the first,” Hagrid said with a warm smile. “But you’ll be fine, I’m sure of it. Harry was here yesterday and mentioned you, actually.”
“Potter?” Kyle was surprised. He and Harry hadn’t had much interaction; other than a brief meeting in the corridor, they hadn’t spent any time together. Back then, he’d given Harry a map and a bag of pet treats, so he doubted Harry had said anything unkind about him.
“Harry said thanks to that map you gave him, he hasn’t been late once these past few days,” Hagrid chuckled.
Hagrid’s face lit up as he thought back to Harry’s visit. The boy had sat in the hut, eagerly sharing amusing stories about school. Hagrid’s heart warmed at the memory. Although, Harry’s curiosity about the Philosopher’s Stone had been a bit of a challenge. Dumbledore had repeatedly stressed its secrecy, and as Hogwarts' most loyal keeper of secrets, Hagrid would never reveal it. But he hadn’t wanted to mislead Harry either, so he’d had to come up with excuse after excuse to avoid answering. It had been quite a mental workout.
“I see…” Kyle nodded, choosing not to ask any more. He figured Harry had probably mentioned it casually, as one would talk about the weather, with no particular significance. Had he come a few days later, Hagrid might have already forgotten.
Seeing Kyle’s silence, Hagrid picked up the brass pot beside him and poured him another cup of tea. As he did, he couldn’t help but think to himself: This is what chatting should be—relaxed, enjoyable, and best of all, no brain strain required.
“Try this,” Hagrid said, smiling as he pushed the plate of Rock Cakes closer. “Baked ’em yesterday—they’re still nice and crisp. By the way, where’re your friends? Why didn’t they come along?”
“Oh, sorry, I just had breakfast and really can’t eat anything more,” Kyle replied politely, declining the Rock Cake that might very well leave his teeth sore. “The others are all at the pitch. Cedric and the rest are holding tryouts for new Quidditch players.”
“Ah, Quidditch…” Hagrid sighed. “Time does fly, doesn’t it? I can’t believe it’s time for tryouts again. I remember you like Quidditch too, right?”
“Yeah,” Kyle nodded. “I’ve already signed up, but I can’t try out until next week.”
“You’ll pass, I’m sure of it.”
“I think so too,” Kyle smiled. “And maybe Potter will make the team this year as well.”
“Harry? Not a chance,” Hagrid shook his head. “First-years aren’t allowed to play Quidditch—that’s the rule.”
“That’s true, but Gryffindor really needs a Seeker this year,” Kyle replied. “If Potter inherited his father’s talent, Professor McGonagall might just make an exception.”
“James…” Hagrid mused, and then his face brightened as he remembered. “Oh, yes, James was a fantastic Seeker. He even led Gryffindor to several Quidditch Cup victories.”
The thought made Hagrid chuckle. If Harry truly did join the Quidditch team as a first-year, Hagrid knew he’d be thrilled. After all, who didn’t love Quidditch?
But soon, Hagrid thought of something that wiped the smile from his face. If both Kyle and Harry made their house teams, then when Hufflepuff played Gryffindor… who would he cheer for?
Hagrid’s face gradually crumpled, and he tugged at his beard in indecision. Kyle called out to him three times before Hagrid snapped out of his thoughts.
“What were you thinking about just now, so intently?”
“Oh, nothing. Just suddenly remembered I haven’t finished watering the pumpkin patch,” Hagrid fibbed. He’d just decided he would cheer for both teams, applauding for whoever scored next, but he definitely couldn’t say that out loud.
Hagrid returned to watering his pumpkin patch, and Kyle followed him outside instead of heading back to the castle. None of his friends, including Mikel and Ryan, were at the Quidditch pitch, so there was no reason to go there.
Looking around, Kyle found a flat spot and began digging through his bag. Out came a portable stove, a cauldron, various herbs… soon a small pile was assembled.
“Kyle, what are you doing?” Hagrid asked curiously.
“Brewing some potions—actually, a pet tonic,” Kyle replied.
With a flick of his wand, Kyle lit the stove and placed the cauldron on it.
Hagrid was initially quite interested when he heard Kyle was making remedies for pets, but after watching for a few minutes, he turned back to his pumpkins. I just can’t follow it, he thought. Hagrid couldn’t understand why Kyle had to add the powdered ingredients in three separate doses at varying intervals instead of just pouring them all in at once. He’d started jotting down notes to remember the steps, but the intervals alone made his head spin, and the notes he’d just taken seemed to vanish from memory instantly.
Deciding it was pointless to try learning anything useful from this, Hagrid returned to watering his pumpkins. Meanwhile, Kyle was fully absorbed in his work, not noticing Hagrid’s retreat. He carefully held his wand and stirred the potion in the cauldron at regular intervals. Potion-making required precision; even a simple task could go wrong with a single misstep, and he didn’t want to start over.
Time crept by slowly.
When Hagrid finished watering all his pumpkins, Kyle was nearly done as well. He added a final scoop of dark green powder and stirred the mixture counterclockwise. The orange-yellow liquid in the cauldron gradually turned a beautiful red, clear as crystal, like melted rubies.
Kyle turned off the stove and, after the cauldron had cooled, carefully poured the potion into a small bottle he’d prepared. It was precisely one bottle’s worth.
“Is this the pet tonic?” Hagrid asked, eyeing the bottle with interest.
“Yes,” Kyle replied, handing it over with a smile. “Though, more precisely, it’s a special tonic for rats.”