Professor McGonagall marched Maurice briskly out of the castle, leading him on a determined path toward the northeast grounds.
They swept past the glistening glass of the greenhouses and skirted the flailing branches of the Whomping Willow before finally coming to a halt in front of a rather haphazard structure. It was a wooden cabin that looked less like it had been built and more like it had been knitted together from timber, sitting on the edge of the Forbidden Forest.
The most striking feature was the door. It was enormous, suggesting that whoever lived inside was not merely tall, but truly gigantic.
McGonagall rapped sharply on the wood.
"Comin'!"
A booming, gruff voice rumbled from within. Maurice immediately knew who to expect.
The door swung open with a groan. Sure enough, Rubeus Hagrid stood there, his vast frame effectively eclipsing the sun and filling the entire doorframe.
"Afternoon, Professor McGonagall," he said, nodding respectfully at the Transfiguration teacher before gesturing inside with a hand the size of a trash can lid. "Fancy a cuppa tea?"
McGonagall waved the offer away. "No thank you, Hagrid. I am leaving Mr. Black in your care. I have a class to attend shortly."
She gave Maurice a curt nod, turned on her heel, and swept back toward the castle with her usual efficient stride.
Maurice was left standing alone with the half-giant.
"Right then, hello there." Hagrid leaned down, beaming, and extended a hand. "Reckon yeh know who I am. Call me Hagrid."
"I'm Maurice Black," Maurice replied, reaching out to shake the hand.
Hagrid's palm was astonishingly large. It engulfed Maurice's entire forearm. Maurice winced internally, realizing that if this man decided to squeeze even a fraction too hard, his arm would snap like a dry twig. Fortunately, Hagrid was gentle.
"Professor McGonagall told me why yer here," Hagrid said warmly, stepping aside to clear the entrance. "Come on in. Make yerself at home."
The inside of Hagrid's hut was a single, crowded room. Everything seemed to be scaled up for a giant. There was a massive bed in the corner, a table that looked more like a workbench, and a roaring fire in the grate. The ceiling was a chaotic hanging garden of cured hams, pheasants, and bundles of herbs Maurice could not identify.
"Sit anywhere," Hagrid offered.
Maurice eyed the chairs, realizing his legs would dangle a foot off the ground, and opted to perch on the edge of the bed instead.
"So," Maurice began, looking around, "where are these Thestrals?"
"Forbidden Forest," Hagrid said, thumbing a massive digit toward the dark window facing the tree line. "Usually, students aren't allowed near the place, but this is a special case. I'll be takin' yeh there shortly. Want a rock cake?"
"Thank you."
"Don't mention it. Baked 'em meself!"
Maurice took the lumpy, uneven object from Hagrid. It looked less like a pastry and more like a geological specimen.
The moment he bit down, he regretted it.
It was not a cake. It was a weapon of war.
A distinct shock travelled up his jaw, and he was fairly certain he had nearly cracked a molar. It would likely require the jaw strength of a dragon to make a dent in this thing.
Discreetly, Maurice placed the rock cake on the table when Hagrid was not looking.
"When do we leave?" he asked, trying to look casual while massaging his jaw.
"Right now." Hagrid nudged a massive black boarhound sleeping by the fire with his boot. "Up yeh get, Fang. Time fer work."
Fang let out a lazy, grumbling yawn and hauled himself upright. The dog was nearly as tall as Maurice, though he looked like a puppy next to Hagrid. The hound trotted over, sniffed Maurice loudly, and then proceeded to wash Maurice's hand with a tongue the size of a wet flannel.
"Look at that. He likes yeh!" Hagrid beamed, patting Fang's massive head. "Fang's a bit of a coward, truth be told, but it's good to have company."
Maurice looked at the viscous slobber coating his hand. He quietly slipped his wand out and cast a cleaning charm, 'Scourgify'. It was not in the first-year curriculum, but he had picked it up from some supplementary reading over the summer.
"Right, let's go," Hagrid said, grabbing a crossbow from above the door. "The herd lives a fair bit in. Stick close to me, alright?"
The two of them, plus the dog, headed toward the towering wall of trees.
The Forbidden Forest.
Maurice remembered Dumbledore's warning at the start-of-term feast. The forest was strictly out of bounds. Naturally, this only made him more curious about what exactly was hiding in there.
"Thestrals usually stay deep in the woods," Hagrid explained as he effortlessly swept aside a branch as thick as Maurice's leg. "But they come to the edge sometimes. If the school needs 'em for the carriages, or if there's a new foal comin'. They're herd animals, see. Very protective."
"So, is the forest actually dangerous?" Maurice asked casually.
"Ah, well, I don't wanna scare yeh, but there's plenty in here that isn't exactly friendly," Hagrid said, taking a sharp turn at a fork in the overgrown path. "Yeh got yer Acromantulas, fer one. Though Aragog and his lot mostly stay in their hollow."
"Acromantulas? Aragog?"
Hagrid froze, looking suddenly guilty. "Er... forget I said that. Shouldn't have said that. Just don't go wanderin' off the path."
"Alright," Maurice said with a shrug.
He found it mildly amusing that the half-giant was the one scaring himself. Giant spiders sounded fascinating. Maurice had never been particularly bothered by creepy crawlies. In fact, he rather liked them. He made a mental note to look up "Aragog" in the library later.
"We're nearly there," Hagrid whispered loudly, signaling for quiet. "Their clearin's just ahead."
They pushed through a final thicket of brambles, and the view opened up.
It was a dim, secluded clearing surrounded by ancient trees. The canopy was so thick that the afternoon sun barely penetrated it, leaving the area in a perpetual twilight.
Standing silently in the shadows were several skeletal, winged horses. They were jet black, reptilian, and looked exactly like the creature that had carried Maurice the previous night.
Thestrals.
The atmosphere shifted the moment Maurice stepped into the clearing. He felt the gaze of every single beast snap toward him.
"They're a bit shy, usually," Hagrid whispered confidently. "Took me three days just to get 'em to eat out of my hand when I first started trainin' 'em. They don't trust easy."
"Er..." Maurice scratched his head. "I don't think 'shy' is the word I'd use."
There was something deeply unsettling about the way the creatures were looking at him. It was not fear. In their white, pupil-less eyes, Maurice saw something closer to enthusiasm, or perhaps hunger.
It was the look one might give a long-lost friend, or a particularly delicious meal.
Suddenly, the largest Thestral threw its dragon-like head back and let out a piercing shriek that echoed through the trees.
The reaction was immediate.
From the shadows of the forest, more Thestrals materialized. They emerged from the gloom like ghosts, converging on the clearing from every direction. Within moments, Maurice and Hagrid were surrounded by dozens of skeletal creatures.
"Blimey. Look at that, they're comin' to say hello," Hagrid beamed, opening his arms wide toward the nearest horse. "Come here, you beauties. Who's a good girl?"
The nearest Thestral stepped forward.
Then it walked straight past Hagrid's outstretched arms and pressed its skeletal face against Maurice's chest, nuzzling him with unmistakable affection.
Hagrid stood frozen, arms still open, hugging nothing but empty air.