Regulus of Hogwarts: Lord of the Stars

Early in the morning, Avery, Alex, and Hermes huddled together around Regulus's desk, their heads pressed close together as they peered down at the surface.

A spider the size of a palm was lying on the table.

It was furry, with eight short little legs that swayed back and forth on the table, wandering around under the three big faces that were crowding around it. It didn't try to run away, but just looked around here and there, quite at ease.

It crawled to Avery's side, raised its front leg and touched his knuckles, then turned to Alex, tilted its head and looked at him for a while, its chelicerae opening and closing with a click.

Then it moved to Hermes' side. Hermes didn't reach out, but it stopped right under his face, opening and closing its chelipeds twice, as if to greet him.

Avery stared at it for a while, pursed his lips, clicked his tongue, and turned to look at Regulus, his face full of disbelief.

"This little thing can kill us?"

Regulus ignored him.

He made a point of getting up early this morning to cast a Transfiguration Charm on Baruch, otherwise he would have recovered by now.

Eight-eyed giant spider, XXXXX level, carnivorous, dangerous.

It looks harmless now, no bigger than a palm, but that's thanks to the Transfiguration Charm, it has nothing to do with the thing itself.

A normal-sized eight-eyed giant spider, let alone Avery, wouldn't be able to handle the whole dorm room.

He watched Avery turn back to the table, and the backs of Hermes and Alex.

Hermes' dark magic might harm Baruch, but Baruch has eight legs, pincers, venom, and spider silk.

If a real fight broke out in such a confined space, Hermes would probably be caught and eaten, but the flesh might turn sour from the struggle.

As for Avery and Alex, needless to say.

Of course, that won't happen.

He had told Baruch not to bite or inject venom. A pinch from his chelicerae or a entanglement in his web wouldn't matter; with his size, it wouldn't cause any serious harm.

Avery and the others have already said something similar to what they said to Hermes: these are small animals that can only kill you, so behave yourselves.

Even if they don't believe it, they'll just tease them a little and won't go too far.

After all, no matter how you look at it, this is Regulus's...pet?

Anyway, I've explained things to both sides, and we're getting along harmoniously, so there's nothing wrong.

Alex turned around, his tone hesitant, and whispered, "An eight-eyed giant spider?"

Regulus raised an eyebrow and nodded.

Alex gasped and took a step back, distancing himself from the desk.

He was guessing, but he was right every time.

A spider capable of killing a young wizard must be a magical creature; and if it looks like that, it can only be an eight-eyed giant spider.

He didn't know why Regulus put such a thing in the dormitory, and he didn't intend to ask any further questions.

Regulus was a man of action; sometimes he wouldn't answer even if you asked, and it was actually easier not to ask.

But he couldn't help wondering what strange hobby Regulus had finally awakened.

It's not that there's no precedent for this.

It's true that quite a few young wizards at Hogwarts like to keep strange pets, such as toads, snakes, and various small lizards, which is all within the normal range.

Some people keep tree grouse, some keep fire salamanders, some keep pufferfish, and I heard that some upperclassmen secretly kept a Niffler in their dorm room, but it was later discovered by the professor and sent away.

Those things steal things, so the school doesn't allow us to keep them.

But the giant eight-eyed spider is a level XXXXX, and the school doesn't allow keeping it as a pet!

After the Ministry of Magic enacted the Animal Breeding and Experimentation Prohibition Act in 1965, breeding and trading of animals were strictly prohibited.

But that's about breeding and trading; it doesn't say you can't raise a ready-made one.

The question is, who would keep an eight-eyed giant spider as a pet?

Regulus could certainly get one if he wanted to; the Black family could get anything. But why an eight-eyed giant spider?

What can Regulus do if he insists on keeping it in his bedroom?

They couldn't win a fight, and they couldn't win an argument.

He glanced at the spider again; its eight legs were still stomping around on the table.

"What are you thinking about?" Avery asked Alex in a lazy tone, with a hint of mockery.

How big is the giant eight-eyed spider? Where in the UK can you find it?

Those things are all in Southeast Asia, on the island of Borneo, used to guard wizards' homes and treasures. Haven't you seen "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them"?

He had just finished speaking when he turned around and saw Regulus nod.

Avery paused for a moment, gasped, took two steps back, and stood next to Alex.

The two stood side by side, looked at each other, and said nothing.

There was a moment of silence.

Avery took a half step forward, his brow still furrowed, his mouth still pursed, and his neck shrank back.

Then his expression changed; his eyes narrowed slightly, then widened, shining brightly as he stared intently at Regulus.

"The eight-eyed giant spider," he raised his voice, barely containing his excitement, "isn't that what it's all about—guarding the wizard's dwelling?"

He glanced back at the spider on the table, then back at Regulus, his mouth stretching into a wide grin.

He wanted one too.

That's so cool.

Before 1965, these things were still available on the market, but now they are basically extinct. Regulus somehow got hold of one, and it's this small.

This is the real Black family scion; he plays with things that are truly different.

The young master of the Cuthbert family couldn't be any less impressive.

He was already thinking about where to put it, what to feed it, and what name to give it if he got one himself.

He even wondered what tone he should use when someone asked him what it was and how he should describe the eight-eyed giant spider.

Regulus glanced at him, too lazy to bother with him, and pretended not to see him.

Avery didn't mind and turned back to the desk.

He had nothing to worry about. If Regulus put the eight-eyed giant spiders in the bedroom, it certainly wasn't to kill them.

And look at this little thing, all fluffy, its eight legs moving about quite busily, it even has some delicate features.

He reached out a finger to poke Baruch's carapace. Baruch's chelicerae opened slightly, and he quickly withdrew them, laughing again.

Alex didn't think so. He stood there for a while, wanting to say something but stopping himself, and then stopping again, but he couldn't stop.

He walked over to Regulus: "Regulus, are you alright?"

Regulus knew what he was worried about.

He glanced over there; Avery and Hermes were huddled around the desk, one studying a spider, the other poking at it.

Each one of them was more fearless than the last.

Alex's reaction was the normal one a young wizard should have; knowing what it was, he should have been afraid.

Unlike those two.

He turned back, looked at Alex, and nodded: "This one is well-behaved and easy to teach, don't worry."

Alex hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped himself.

He certainly knew that the eight-eyed giant spider was intelligent, but wasn't it precisely because it was intelligent that it was more dangerous?

A smart, thoughtful giant spider that can judge when to bite and when not to bite will wait, choose its moment, and strike when its prey is least paying attention.

Is there anything more terrifying than this?

He was completely devastated.

Suddenly, Avery exclaimed, "Ha—!"

He raised his hand, his entire wrist wrapped in white spider silk, which had bound his fingers together. He kept waving it outwards, laughing as he did so, finding it quite amusing.

Regulus ignored him and got up to walk over.

Baruch was lying in the middle of the table, his eight eyes looking up at him, his chelicerae stopped moving.

"This is Baruch," he said to Avery and the others, then bowed to Baruch: "This is Avery, Alex, and Hermes."

Avery was taken aback. This little thing even had a name?

He bent down, leaned closer, and waved to the spider: "Baruch."

Baruch clicked its claws and waved them as a greeting, then turned halfway around in Alex's direction.

Alex instinctively took a half-step back, but held on, slowly leaning forward and saying in a very soft voice, "...Hello."

Baruch clicked again.

Hermes stood nearby.

He overheard what Avery and Alex were saying, and he knew what the eight-eyed giant spider was.

But right now, he only had one thing on his mind: how could he kill someone of that size?

I'd like to give it a try.

He believed Regulus, but he couldn't help but wonder.

How could a spider the size of a palm possibly kill a wizard?

venom?

It has to bite first.

Spider silk?

What good will it do if we get entangled?

Baruch also clicked at Hermes, then sprang up and jumped onto Regulus's shoulder, in the same spot.

It gripped the cloth with its eight legs, moved around a bit, then settled down. Its chelicerae opened and closed, clicking and clacking, and circled Regulus's ear twice.

"Reg...les?"

This spider was clever; it remembered Avery and Alex's calls after hearing them make them a few times.

Regulus nodded: "Regulus, Regulus Black."

Baruch jumped, its chelicerae opening and closing several times in quick succession, clicking and clicking, sounding somewhat excited.

"Baruch".

"Yes," Regulus reached out, touched its carapace, then picked it up and put it back in the drawer. "Stay here, don't wander off."

Baruch turned around in the drawer, his chelipeds opening and closing with a click.

Regulus said, "I'll be back at noon and bring you food."

There was a moment of silence in the drawer, then Baruch raised his front leg and gestured in the air.

"You can... hunt..."

Regulus shook his head. "What do you want to hunt, little wizard?"

He said, "No, wait for me."

A rustling, spinning sound came from the drawer, then finally stopped, which was a sign of agreement.

Intelligent beings can understand rules, but they still occasionally need to test the boundaries, and he understands that.

Regulus closed the drawer halfway, leaving a crack.

They should be easier to raise now that they've shrunk.

He didn't know how to feed a normal-sized eight-eyed giant spider at Hogwarts.

How much does it eat in one meal? Deer? Goat?

He can't exactly go into the forbidden forest to hunt for it.

Let Baruch try some cooked food at noon to see if he likes it. If he does, then it's simple; the canteen has everything.

He turned and beckoned Avery and the others to go eat.

Avery was restless throughout breakfast.

He started asking questions as soon as he sat down, his voice low but full of energy.

"Where did you get it done? How was it done? How much did it cost? Is it easy to do?"

Regulus ignored him and focused on eating.

Alex, standing next to Avery, nudged him with his elbow and said in an even lower voice, "Keep your voice down. Keeping this in the dorm is against the rules. What are you yelling about?"

"What did I yell about?" Avery glanced around; everyone was eating their own food and no one was looking at him. He lowered his voice even further.

"I just want to raise one, so what? Regulus can get one, but I can't?"

Alex, seeing his excitement, looked at him with worry: "Where are you going to put it after you get it?"

"The dormitory."

"There's already one in the dorm."

"So what? Two are fine too."

"Avery," Alex looked at him seriously, "do you think it's appropriate to put two giant eight-eyed spiders in one bedroom?"

Avery forked a piece of sausage, put it in his mouth, chewed it a couple of times, and asked vaguely, "Regulus, do you think this is appropriate?"

Regulus took a sip of pumpkin juice from his cup, but still ignored him.

"Look," Avery said, gesturing to Alex with his chin as evidence, "he didn't say no."

Alex sighed. "He didn't say anything."

Avery stated matter-of-factly, "If it doesn't say no, then it does!"

Alex took a deep breath, lowered his head to take a sip of soup, and changed direction.

"Do you know how two dogs would get along if you kept them together?"

Avery thought for a moment, but couldn't figure it out.

"The eight-eyed giant spider is territorial," Alex whispered. "If you put two together, they'll fight."

"Then I'll keep a female?" Avery suddenly had an idea, then asked Regulus, "Is your male female?"

Regulus remained silent.

Avery muttered something, forked a piece of potato, and decided to put it aside for now and think about it later.

Hermes sat opposite, eating the whole time. He had trained too hard yesterday and didn't feel it right after finishing, but he was starving when he woke up after a nap.

Bread, bacon, fried eggs, roasted potatoes—plate after plate. The way they ate wasn't unsightly, but the speed was astonishing.