"Of course," Hagrid replied, his voice carrying a hint of defensiveness.
"Then why are you still keeping it?" Dudley pressed, his tone measured but pointed.
Hagrid stammered, unable to give a coherent answer. He had always been impulsive, never considering the consequences of his actions. He knew it was illegal, but his desire to raise a dragon overrode any sense of caution.
"Hagrid, have you thought about what you'll do when it hatches?" Harry asked, genuinely curious but less obsessed with the dragon egg than Ron or Malfoy. Growing up outside the wizarding world, dragons seemed little different from zoo animals to him—just oversized lizards that could breathe fire.
"Of course I'll keep it at home! I've learned everything about raising dragons, and I've got brandy and chicken blood ready. It's a Norwegian Ridgeback—very rare!" Hagrid's eyes gleamed with excitement.
"But Norwegian Ridgebacks breathe fire, and your house is made of wood..." Ron looked around skeptically, doubting the hut could withstand a single blast of dragon fire.
Hagrid ignored him completely, humming as he poked at the fire, as if he hadn't heard a word. Everyone was reminded once again that Hagrid never thought things through.
"Why not sell it to me? Name your price!" Malfoy made his offer, his voice eager.
"No way! I'd never sell it to a Malfoy!" Hagrid shouted, then immediately realized his tone was too harsh. After all, it was Lucius Malfoy he disliked, not Draco. He softened slightly. "But you can come visit it."
"Really?!" Malfoy, who had been crestfallen by the rejection, instantly perked up. Even as they prepared to leave, his eyes lingered longingly on the spot by the fireplace. He truly loved dragons with an almost obsessive passion.
What Malfoy didn't notice was that another pair of eyes, burning with even more intense desire, was watching the dragon egg from behind him.
In the days that followed, whenever someone mentioned visiting Hagrid, Malfoy was the most enthusiastic—more so than Ron and Harry combined. He never complained about Hagrid's crude hut again. The dragon egg brought a touch of excitement to the morning training squad's otherwise busy and monotonous routine.
…
Time flew by, and the day of their agreement with Dumbledore drew near. One morning, after finishing their exercises, Hedwig brought them a brief note: "About to hatch."
After classes, they hurried to Hagrid's hut. Just as he'd said, the dragon was about to be born. A crack appeared in the egg, which began to shake more and more violently, accompanied by sharp scraping sounds. With a final piercing noise, a wrinkled creature broke free.
The baby dragon sneezed, sending out a few sparks from its nostrils.
"Beautiful, isn't it?" Hagrid murmured, reaching out to stroke its head. The dragon promptly bit his finger, baring its needle-sharp fangs.
"Look, it knows its mum!" Hagrid beamed.
"Want to pet it?" he offered.
Ron glanced at the dragon's teeth, then at himself. "I don't think that's a good idea."
It was less that the dragon thought Hagrid was its mother, and more that it saw him as potential food.
Yuck, wood. Tastes awful, Dudley heard the dragon's thoughts—it couldn't even bite through Hagrid's tough skin.
Magical Creature Language: Activated.
…
"Hagrid, if I remember correctly, a Norwegian Ridgeback will outgrow your hut in less than a month," Neville said in his deep voice. He had specifically studied dragon husbandry.
In fact, the dragon grew even faster than Neville predicted—tripling in size in just one week. One fiery breath nearly set the entire hut ablaze, finally waking Hagrid up to the magnitude of the problem.
What to do with the dragon became a pressing issue. Everyone gathered to discuss solutions.
Malfoy suggested again, "Why not give it to me? My family's manor is pretty big—"
"Draco," Dudley interrupted before he could finish, "your father Lucius would never agree. In fact, he'd probably report Hagrid to the Ministry. And Malfoy Manor isn't suitable for raising a dragon anyway."
"Your father and Professor Dumbledore have never gotten along."
Dudley was right—unless Draco became the true head of the Malfoy family, this option was impossible.
…
"My suggestion is to keep it in the Forbidden Forest," Dudley proposed.
The Forbidden Forest was legendary, home to countless magical creatures—unicorns, Acromantulas, thestrals, hippogriffs, griffins, and, according to some books, even dragons. "Let sleeping dragons lie" was practically a Hogwarts motto. Releasing the dragon into the forest was, in a way, returning it to nature.
"But it's too small," Hagrid protested. "Without my care, it'll die."
"Not true," Dudley shook his head. "As long as it has enough food, a Norwegian Ridgeback can reach maturity in just a month. You should know that better than anyone."
Dragons in this world grew at an extraordinary rate—unlike in other fantasy worlds where it took centuries. Of course, these dragons weren't as massive, intelligent, or magically gifted as those in other stories, but they were still formidable.
"You should think of Professor Dumbledore, too. You don't want to cause him trouble, do you?"
"Alright, but I'll miss it," Hagrid relented, not wanting to make trouble for Dumbledore.
"You can keep it in the outer forest for now. When it's grown, it'll leave on its own. If your bond is strong enough, maybe it'll come back to visit."
Hagrid agreed to Dudley's plan.
…
A week later, when the dragon had outgrown the hut entirely, Hagrid took it to the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Within three days, the dragon vanished without a trace.
"Norbert's gone. He doesn't want his mum anymore," Hagrid was heartbroken at first, blowing his nose loudly, but soon found a new distraction.
Rumors spread of a manticore sighting in the northern woods. Excited, Hagrid took Fang and hurried off to try and raise a manticore himself.
…
At midnight, under a full moon, the dense black canopy blocked out even the brightest moonlight. The Forbidden Forest, composed of these ancient trees, was like a giant black void, cut off from the world.
The faint glow of fireflies and luminous magical plants barely pierced the darkness, while strange rustlings and chirps echoed all around—leaves in the wind, nocturnal creatures on the move. It was the perfect setting for a fairy tale's haunted forest.
Suddenly, a brilliant light swept across the woods, illuminating half the forest. Magical creatures shrieked in terror and vanished into the shadows.
A powerful flashlight? Impossible at Hogwarts.
It was magic—a spell of pure light cutting through the darkness.
[Chapter Complete]
***
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