Chapter 12: Chapter 12: Dragon
The two-week Christmas holiday soon passed, and Edward and Draco returned to Hogwarts.
In the past two weeks, Edward had a very leisurely life. In addition to occasionally pointing out Draco's homework, he occasionally went out to the Muggle world to see. Edward didn't plan to live only in the wizarding world all his life. That's true. Too dull and boring. In his spare time, Edward casually learnt a couple of spells. He found out that not all spells could receive rewards from the system. Even though he learnt dozens of spells, he only received two awards from the system. Sensory Deprivation: Take away one of the senses of the target, and Null Magic: Slip.
The wonderful vacation passed in a flash, and Edward and Draco returned to Hogwarts again.
Walking on the promenade, the joyful atmosphere of Christmas seems to have not completely dissipated, and the walls of the auditorium are still covered with silver frost.
Since the end of the vacation, Edward has found that the homework given by the professors has become more and more onerous. Many of the professors have been dividing the focus of the exam, suggesting that the date of the exam is getting closer. Even with Edward's ability, he began to feel the pressure. He thought that he could rely on every spell that he knew to learn magic, but some of the spells couldn't give magic. Thus Edward also began to work hard, but he gave up and just tried to use his system to mimic some spells and charms.
After coming back from the holidays, Ron reported their findings about Nicholas Flamel and the Philosophers stone and the argument happened again about who was trying to steal the treasure. Hermione, however, had more on her mind than the Sorcerer's Stone. She had started drawing up study schedules and color coding all her notes. Harry and Ron wouldn't have minded, but she kept nagging them to do the same.
"Hermione, the exams are ages away. "
"Ten weeks," Hermione snapped. "That's not ages, that's like a second to Nicolas Flamel. "
"But we're not six hundred years old," Ron reminded her. "Anyway, what are you studying for, you already know it's an A. "
"What am I studying for? Are you crazy? You realize we need to pass these exams to get into the second year? They're very important, I should have started studying a month ago, I don't know what's gotten into me. . . "
Unfortunately, the teachers seemed to be thinking along the same lines as Hermione. They piled so much homework on them that the Easter holidays weren't nearly as much fun as the Christmas ones. It was hard to relax with Hermione next to you reciting the twelve uses of dragon's blood or practicing wand movements. Moaning and yawning, Harry and Ron spent most of their free time in the library with her, trying to get through all their extra work.
After Charms had ended Draco and Edward were pulled outside to Hagrids house. "You won't believe it Edward, Hagrid's got a fire dragon in his house," said Harry."
"What!!! How did he get a fire dragon? Raising dragons is illegal in Britain without permission," said Draco incredulously.
"Well he-." Ron was dumbfounded by this question.
"It doesn't matter, we'll find out soon."
After they reached the cottage, Harry knocked on the door. Hagrid called "Who is it?" before he let them in, and then shut the door quickly behind them.
It was stiflingly hot inside. Even though it was such a warm day, there was a blazing fire in the grate. Hagrid made them tea and offered them stoat sandwiches, which they refused.
"So -- you wanted to ask me something?"
"Yes," said Harry. There was no point beating around the bush. "We were wondering if you could tell us what's guarding the Sorcerer's Stone apart from Fluffy. "
Hagrid frowned at him.
"O' course I can't," he said. "Number one, I don't' know myself. Number two, yeh know too much already, so I wouldn' tell you if I could. That Stone's here fer a good reason. It was almost stolen outta Gringotts -- I s'ppose yeh've worked that out an' all? Beats me how ya even know abou' Fluffy. "
"Oh, come on, Hagrid, you might not want to tell us, but you do know, you know everything that goes on round here," said Hermione in a warm, flattering voice. Hagrid's beard twitched and they could tell he was smiling. "We only wondered who had done the guarding, really. " Hermione went on. "We wondered who Dumbledore had trusted enough to help him, apart from you. "
Draco resisted an urge to barf at Hermione's flattery
"Well, I don' s'pose it could hurt ter tell yeh that. . . let's see. . . he borrowed Fluffy from me. . . then some o' the teachers did enchantments. . . Professor Sprout -- Professor Flitwick -- Professor McGonagall -- " he ticked them off on his fingers, "Professor Quirrell -- an' Dumbledore himself did something', o' course. Hang on, I've forgotten someone. Oh yeah, Professor Snape. "
"Snape?"
"Yeah -- yer not still on abou' that, are yeh? Look, Snape helped protect the Stone, he's not about to steal it. "
Harry knew Ron and Hermione were thinking the same as he was. If Snape had been in on protecting the Stone, it must have been easy to find out how the other teachers had guarded it. He probably knew everything -- except, it seemed, Quirrell's spell and how to get past Fluffy. Edward knew the plot so he didn't care, but Draco knew Snape's abilities. He would not need to use these tricks to get the stone.
"You're the only one who knows how to get past Fluffy. aren't you, Hagrid?" said Harry anxiously. "And you wouldn't tell anyone, would you? Not even one of the teachers?"
"Not a soul knows except me and Dumbledore," said Hagrid proudly.
"Well, that's something," Harry muttered to the others.
Ron asked,"Hagrid, can we have a window open? I'm boiling. "
"Can't, Ron, sorry," said Hagrid. Harry noticed him glancing at the fire. Harry looked at it, too.
"Hagrid -- what's that ?"
But he already knew what it was. In the very heart of the fire, underneath the kettle, was a huge, black egg.
"Ah," said Hagrid, fiddling nervously with his beard, "That's -- er. . . "
"Where did you get it, Hagrid?" said Ron, crouching over the fire to get a closer look at the egg. "It must've cost you a fortune. "
"Won it," said Hagrid. "Last night. I was down in the village having a few drinks and' got into a game o' cards with a stranger. Think he was quite glad to get rid of it, to be honest. "
"But what are you going to do with it when it's hatched?" said Hermione.
"Well, I've been doing' some reading'," said Hagrid, pulling a large book from under his pillow. "Got this outta the library -- Dragon Breeding for Pleasure and Profit -- it's a bit outta date, o' course, but it's all in here. Keep the egg in the fire, 'cause their mothers breathe on I em, see, an' when it hatches, feed it on a bucket o' brandy mixed with chicken blood every half hour. An `` see here -- how to recognize diff'rent eggs -- what I got there's a Norwegian Ridgeback. They're rare. "
He looked very pleased with himself, but Hermione didn't.
"Hagrid, you live in a wooden house," she said.
But Hagrid wasn't listening. He was humming merrily as he stoked the fire.
So now they had something else to worry about: what might happen to Hagrid if anyone found out he was hiding an illegal dragon in his hut.
"Wonder what it's like to have a peaceful life," Ron sighed.
Ron wanted to skip Herbology and go straight down to the hut. Hermione wouldn't hear of it.
"Hermione, how many times in our lives are we going to see a dragon hatching?"
"We've got lessons, we'll get into trouble, and that's nothing to what Hagrid's going to be in when someone finds out what he's doing--"
"Hermione, relax, we'll call my brother Draco and visit Hagrid.
When the bell sounded from the castle at the end of their lesson, the three of them dropped their trowels at once and hurried through the grounds to the edge of the forest. Hagrid greeted them, looking flushed and excited.
"It's nearly out. " He ushered them inside.
The egg was lying on the table. There were deep cracks in it. Something was moving inside; a funny clicking noise was coming from it.
They all drew their chairs up to the table and watched with bated breath.
All at once there was a scraping noise and the egg split open. The baby dragon flopped onto the table. It wasn't exactly pretty; Harry thought it looked like a crumpled, black umbrella. Its spiny wings were huge compared to its skinny jet body, it had a long snout with wide nostrils, the stubs of horns and bulging, orange eyes.
It sneezed. A couple of sparks flew out of its snout.
"Isn't he beautiful ?" Hagrid murmured. He reached out a hand to stroke the dragon's head. It snapped at his fingers, showing pointed fangs.
"Bless him, look, he knows his mommy!" said Hagrid.
Draco looked jealous of Hagrid. "Hey Hagrid, why don't you sell him to me. We have a couple of Dragon farms in Romania."
They looked at the dragon. It had grown three times in length in just a week. Smoke kept furling out of its nostrils. Hagrid hadn't been doing his gamekeeping duties because the dragon was keeping him so busy. There were empty brandy bottles and chicken feathers all over the floor.
"I've decided to call him Norbert," said Hagrid, looking at the dragon with misty eyes. "He really knows me now, watch. Norbert! Norbert! Where's Mommy?"
"He's lost his marbles," Ron muttered in Edward's ear.
"Hagrid," said Harry loudly, "give it two weeks and Norbert's going to be as long as your house.."
"Exactly Hagrid, don;t worry. We'll definitely take care of Nobert in Romania really well."
Harry suddenly thought of a brilliant idea," "Ron -- your brother, Charlie. In Romania. Studying dragons. We could send Norbert to him. Charlie can take care of him and then put him back in the wild!"
"Brilliant!" said Ron. "How about it, Hagrid?"
And in the end, Hagrid agreed that they could send an owl to Charlie to ask him.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone