NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter -023.
Chapter 23
In the cozy Headmaster's chamber at Hogwarts...
Suddenly, the door swung open, and in walked Hagrid, a big, friendly Half Giant bundled up in a thick, furry coat, his long beard hiding half of his face. He was quite the sight!
"Ah, Hagrid! You made it!" Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts, looked up from his desk, a warm smile lighting up his face as he welcomed the big guy, who seemed to fill the room with his presence.
"Professor Dumbledore, sir! I heard you needed me for something," Hagrid said, his voice a bit shaky as he stood behind a small chair, looking at the wise old man he admired so much.
"That's right! But why are you just standing there? Come on, have a seat!" Dumbledore encouraged, still smiling. As Hagrid settled into the chair, Dumbledore offered him a packet of lemon sherbets, a new treat he had recently fallen in love with. "Give these a try!"
Hagrid, always eager to please Dumbledore, reached out for a few sweets. In his excitement, he accidentally knocked over some of the neatly arranged items on the table, creating a bit of a mess. Flustered, he tried to tidy up but only made things worse.
Seeing this, Dumbledore chuckled softly, raised his hand, and gently asked Hagrid to take a breath. With a snap of his fingers, the table returned to its tidy state, much to Hagrid's relief.
Dumbledore watched as Hagrid downed a handful of lemon sherbets in one go. Once he was sure Hagrid had swallowed them, he cleared his throat and handed him a letter. "Here, I need you to pick something up for me from Gringotts."
Hagrid glanced at the letter and noticed the word "Confidential" written on it. He looked back at Dumbledore, a bit puzzled, as if to say, "Why are you trusting me with something so important?" as he himself was aware about his capablities.
Dumbledore, who could easily read Hagrid's thoughts, just smiled and replied, "It's a job that I can only trust someone like you with, Hagrid." Even though there were others who could do it more easily, he didn't want to draw too much attention this matter. He added, "You can head out tonight if you don't have anything else going on. I'll send a letter to the head of Gringotts about your arrival."
The item he needed was safe in the vaults of Gringotts, but after yesterday's little incident, he felt a bit uneasy. While breaking through the security of those greedy goblins was nearly impossible, he knew that sometimes a little brute force could work wonders.
As Hagrid realized Dumbledore could read him like a book, he felt another surge of respect for the old man.
He clutched the letter and stuffed it into his pocket, which was already filled with all sorts of odd things. Then, as if a memory had suddenly hit him, he looked at Dumbledore with excitement and asked, "Professor Dumbledore, sir, about Harry—little Harry—we left him at that Muggle's doorstep. He must be turning eleven this year, right?"
Hearing Harry's name from Hagrid's mouth surprised Dumbledore for a moment.
Initially, he had planned to send Hagrid to check on the Dursleys since Harry's Hogwarts letter hadn't reached him yet. But given the strange happenings around Diagon Alley lately, he felt it was better to choose a different option.
He really wanted to make sure that boy was safe before his arrival at the Hogwarts, which is why he asked that young man to meet up tonight at the Leaky Cauldron, instead of chosing to trust little Harry to this gentle Half Giant.
"So you still remember that day, huh? Anyway, yes, Harry is turning eleven this year, so you'll get to see him at Hogwarts!" Dumbledore said, deciding not to mention Harry's potential visit to Diagon Alley the next day, only sharing what he felt was necessary.
Meanwhile, Hagrid couldn't help but beam at the news. "That's great!" and added, making a cute yet messy hand gesture, "About that day, How could I forget it? I was the one who brought him to that Muggle house! He was just like a little peach!".
As Hagrid reminisced about that day, he got so caught up in the memory that he forgot where he was seated and continued to recount the scene in great detail; Dumbledore, on the other hand, could only pretend to listen while focusing on the more pressing matters that needed his attention.
After about half an hour, Hagrid finally left, his big eyes glistening with a few tears. Of course, they were from memories of little Harry.
At the same time whether he would remember the task Dumbledore had given him after this emotional moment was another story. But since the old man trusted him, he didn't dwell on it too much. As evening fell, Dumbledore opened his window to take in the peaceful scenery of Hogwarts, which would soon be bustling with students again.
"Looks like it's time for me to head out; Theo must have arrived by now," Dumbledore said, glancing at his quirky watch that had little planet symbols instead of numbers. He made his way to his desk to grab his wand.
Koo~
Fawkes, the old phoenix perched regally on the table, watched Dumbledore closely. Sensing he was about to leave, Fawkes let out a soft cry, almost as if asking if he could join. It had been a while since he felt the thrill of flight, and with his time running short, he wanted to enjoy it before he had to wait a year to regrow his majestic feathers.
"Fawkes, I'm sorry, but I can't take you with me this time. However, I do have a little task for you. Could you please deliver this letter to our mutual friend? Make sure to remind him to investigate this matter carefully. I have some leads, but it's best to know the whole truth before the students arrive." Dumbledore would have loved to make a grand entrance with Fawkes by his side, as traveling together wouldn't be a problem for either of them instead it would help them ease the toll a wizard's body take during long apparition.
But he figured it would just create a scene in a pub full of rowdy folks. Plus, the information he needed could only be confirmed by that person who was all the way on the other side of the country.