#59 - Hagrid's Secret

"Little guy, we meet again."

Arriving at the cabin, Bouncy was clearly happier than Moon.

Hagrid took out some dried insect snacks, and Fang carried it around, frolicking.

Watching the two pets having so much fun, Hagrid turned to look at Moon.

"Luckily, you came today, or I really wouldn't know what to do with these two little guys."

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As Hagrid spoke, he brought out two pots of flowers from under the eaves of the cabin, which were the pitcher plants Moon had given him to get rid of insects.

Now that the pumpkin harvesting season had arrived, the lids on the pitcher plants were completely closed.

"Actually, you don't have to worry at all. This kind of grass really likes cold, humid environments, which is perfect for here."

Moon took the flower pot and looked at the flower tubes of the pitcher plant, which were already densely packed with insect corpses.

"Is that so? I even went to Ms. Pince to borrow some books, but I couldn't find any information about this plant."

Hagrid's words made Moon's heart tighten.

Pitcher plants are not plants from this world at all, so of course, you won't find them.

But luckily, Hagrid didn't delve too deeply, otherwise, he would have had to make some insincere explanations.

"Actually, you don't need to look for any information. This kind of grass is very adaptable. It will enter a dormant period in winter to nurture its seeds, and more of them will grow in the spring of the following year."

"That's good. They really helped me a lot this year. It's the most pumpkins I've ever harvested."

Hagrid said, putting the two pots of flowers back under the eaves, and then gently stroked the well-fed flowers with his hand.

"Don't worry, little guys, if your population grows next year, I'll find you a good spot in the Forbidden Forest."

Hearing this familiar sentence, Moon recalled that Hagrid seemed to have said something similar to Bouncy.

At that time, it was the beginning of the school year, and Hagrid was worried that Bouncy would not be able to live in the castle, so he also said that he would find a place in the Forbidden Forest to settle it.

Thinking of this, Moon looked at the grim Forbidden Forest in the distance.

Could it be that the dangerous factors there were all caused by Hagrid!

"Alright, let's go inside quickly. What's so good about the Forbidden Forest? I've specially saved you more than twenty small pumpkins."

Hagrid's voice pulled Moon's thoughts back, and then he hurriedly followed him into the house.

......

"Hagrid, did you use some new grafting method?"

Looking at the two baskets of pumpkins in front of him, which differed greatly in size, Moon couldn't help but wonder.

At York Farm, Moon had studied crop planting for four years, but it was the first time he had seen the same variety produce pumpkins with such a big difference.

"Oh, it's actually my secret."

Hagrid said, subconsciously looking around to make sure no new guests would come, before he spoke.

"Making it bigger actually only requires a little magic."

"Magic can make food bigger?"

In Moon's view, bigger pumpkins not only meant bigger jack-o'-lanterns, but also meant that many people could fill their stomachs.

Neil had been worried about food lately.

Even though he had encouraged more people to take out their money to buy supplies, it was still far from enough.

The longer the war preparations took, the longer the chaotic period would be.

Two weeks ago, Neil specifically organized manpower to run to the more distant East Port City to buy supplies, but in the end, they only brought back a small amount of food.

Now the price of food in Xilin is changing every day.

Rye has risen from five pounds for one silver coin to one pound for three silver coins.

As for fresh vegetables, the prices are even more outrageously expensive.

The day before Moon came back, Neil even started to reduce supplies, cutting everyone's meals from three a day to two.

And now Moon has discovered a way to feed more people, and he naturally can't miss it.

"Food? Oh, right, pumpkin pie is really delicious."

Hagrid ultimately couldn't understand Moon's suffering, or rather, the people at Hogwarts couldn't understand it.

Moon still wanted to continue asking about the magic of making pumpkins bigger, but Hagrid deliberately changed the subject.

Moon noticed that Hagrid's expression was a little strange, and his eyes were fixed on the head of the bed.

There was nothing there except a small pink umbrella.

Hagrid didn't want to say more, and Moon didn't delve into it. He didn't have the habit of forcing his friends.

For Moon, now that he knew there was this magic, he could find the answer in the library or from Professor Sprout.

"Okay, can we start then?"

Thinking that he still had things to do tonight, Moon directly took out his tool bag, which contained five neatly arranged knives of various shapes.

"Wow, these little gadgets of yours are really exquisite."

Hagrid picked up Moon's main carving knife, as if he had grabbed a toy.

"The one you're holding in your hand is the knife I use to split wands."

"Is that so?"

Hagrid carefully turned the knife back and forth in his hand to examine it.

"By the way, I heard from Professor Sprout that your wand has been completed, right?"

"That's right."

Moon took out the other knives one after another.

"It only took you less than a month. How did you do it?"

Hagrid put down the knife, his eyes full of curiosity.

Moon didn't want to deceive Hagrid. He could only explain that he might be very talented in carving wood.

But Hagrid seemed to have become a different person, constantly asking Moon many questions about wand repair.

"Although I haven't been involved in wand repair, as long as I know the shaft, core, length, weight, and style, I think it shouldn't be difficult to replicate an identical wand."

Moon responded to Hagrid's question while fiddling with the pumpkin in his hand.

"But I......, uh, that person prefers the original wand. What should I do?"

"If, as you said, the wand is broken in the middle, then first check whether the core is damaged."

"The core has no problems at all. I've checked it several times."

Hagrid's voice was a little hurried.

"If there is no problem with the core, then check whether the core is misaligned. If it is misaligned, you have to help it return to its original groove position."

......

"Then, the broken parts of the shaft must be aligned perfectly. If any wood chips are lost, they must be repaired."

......

"Finally, use glue with good magical conductivity to reinforce it."

Moon said his general guess.

Although he hadn't repaired a wand before, he now considered every step very clearly.

"So it's so troublesome! No wonder it's not as smooth as it used to be."

Hagrid muttered softly. Moon didn't hear clearly. He was now focused on looking at the jack-o'-lantern in his hand.

"Wait! When did you carve these three?"

Hagrid was holding a half-peeled pumpkin in his hand. He looked at the three jack-o'-lanterns in front of Moon with a somewhat dazed expression. They had a terrifying aura, but were also very cute.

"Just when you were talking."

Moon's fourth jack-o'-lantern was about to be completed.

After experiencing the wand splitting training, Moon's carving speed was no longer what it used to be.

If he still needed to set up a stall at the zoo to sell wood carvings during the holidays, Moon was confident that he would never let the line in front of the stall form again.

Moreover, Moon's four jack-o'-lantern styles were completely different. He had drawn inspiration from the various jack-o'-lantern toys that his classmates had received in the morning.

"Alright, I'll carve four to practice today, and I'll continue to come tomorrow."

Moon said, wiping the knives, and left the cabin with Bouncy.

Hagrid only reacted at this time, looking at Moon's four jack-o'-lanterns, and then looking at his five baskets of large pumpkins.

He felt that he might have to stay up all night these few days.