"I'm most afraid of dogs."
Ian gave Hagrid a peace-of-mind pill. Watching Hagrid's massive figure get farther away and finally disappear at the entrance of the Forbidden Forest, he squatted down in the pumpkin patch to catch caterpillars.
This is actually a kind of magic potion material. Embracing the mindset of "since I'm already here," Ian used the bag Hagrid returned to start searching for fresh caterpillars all over the pumpkin patch.
Time passed quickly.
Just when Ian felt like he was becoming a caterpillar hunter, Hagrid returned, carrying several large buckets full to the brim; this half-blood giant truly was a real frog killer.
Upon seeing a large bucket of frog brains, Ian was utterly bewildered. He was a bit worried—had Hagrid killed every frog in the entire Forbidden Forest?
"Actually, you don't need that many."
Ian was somewhat dumbfounded.
"It's no trouble. Little wizards usually fail many times when brewing magic potions. I hardly ever succeeded when I was in school, and Snape's potion to make things difficult for you will surely be hard to succeed in." Saying this, Hagrid handed several large buckets to Ian: besides a bucket of brains, there was also more than half a bucket each of Hypericum and Belladonna Essence.
"Unicorns are very hard to encounter creatures. Today, I only came across the two I know." Hagrid pulled out a bottle about the size of a cup from his pocket. A bottle full of unicorn saliva, really hard not to wonder if Hagrid had some special way to make unicorns spit on him.
"Thank you, Professor Hagrid!"
Ian carefully placed the bottle into his robe.
Hagrid scratched his head. "Although I like how you call me, I'm really not a professor. In fact, I was expelled from Hogwarts many years ago."
His voice was a bit somber.
"You don't necessarily need a diploma to be a professor. I believe in the field of fantastic beasts, the knowledge you have would qualify you to work at any magic school."
"You are willing to help little wizards in need, which is undoubtedly something a professor would do. Any school would be honored to hire a knowledgeable and kind professor like you."
This was truly Ian's honest opinion.
If only Hagrid could be a little less careless and impetuous, he could definitely be considered among the best among professors of the Care of Fantastic Beasts.
"You're making me believe in myself even more! Hahaha! I always thought I only liked Gryffindor, but now it seems Ravenclaw is a good house too!" Hagrid chuckled, unable to stop smiling, and ruffled Ian's hair, completely messing up the hairstyle Ian had just fixed.
"It's all true! I think you will definitely become our professor; it's just a matter of time." Ian deftly escaped Hagrid's grip by squatting down.
His words filled Hagrid's face with hope and happiness. "If I really become a Hogwarts professor, I will definitely give you a dragon egg! Yes! A dragon egg!"
Hagrid obviously didn't believe there was a possibility, or else he wouldn't have made such a promise. Deep down, the tall half-blood giant carried a sense of inferiority most people couldn't detect.
"Alright! Alright! You said it!" Ian's eyes lit up. If the Living Map didn't show Dumbledore, he wanted to quickly go back and send Dumbledore a recommendation letter.
The Wizarding World is also a society of connections.
Dumbledore personally promised that the Dumbledore family would be his connection.
"Of course!" Hagrid's whiskers trembled with laughter, and he looked at the sky where the sun was starting to set. "If you're free in the daytime, you can always come and play with me; we definitely could be friends. But now you should hurry back to the castle, or else those real professors will scold you."
A kindly reminder.
Ian picked up the buckets of materials.
"Professor Hagrid."
He suddenly stopped before leaving, turning to look at Hagrid, who was already at the door, seemingly waiting for Ian to leave entirely before daring to open his wooden house door.
"I believe I will surely get your dragon egg, but before that, you must stay alive." Ian's sincere words left Hagrid a bit flustered and confused.
"Huh? What's wrong with me?"
He even patted himself all over to make sure there weren't any injuries. Ian blinked, trying to casually remind him in a nonchalant voice.
"Poison Horned Beasts shouldn't be kept indoors... People die very quickly." He hadn't peeked inside, but when Hagrid opened the door, he had actually glimpsed in.
"Yaya was barking, not because he was scared of me."
Afterwards.
Ian turned and ran toward the castle.
Leaving Hagrid with a flushed face, standing there a bit flustered and at a loss.
...
Room of Requirement.
In the special magic potion classroom, Ian hurried back and focused intently on the changes in the crucible, occasionally adjusting the heat to ensure the potion reacted as expected.
"Glug~ Glug~ Glug~"
The crucible bubbled.
Ian stood in front of the potion-brewing crucible, carefully adjusting the magic potion materials in his hand. As he reached out his hand, the Dementor beside him automatically handed him the potion materials in the order he had arranged—this would definitely make other wizards drop their jaws, but there was no one else in the Room of Requirement.