Vaughn only noticed Hagrid's letter in the evening.
At the time, he had been planning the coming weeks—particularly his research into the Philosopher's Stone and how to use it.
Over the past several days, nearly all of his free time had gone into redesigning the Stone's protective mechanisms. Because of this, he had formally applied to Albus Dumbledore for an extension on borrowing the Stone.
The original seven days had been extended to one full month.
With the Stone already in Vaughn's possession—and with Dumbledore now relying on him to redesign the safeguards—there was little room to refuse.
That said, Vaughn wasn't deliberately stalling. He truly hadn't had time to study it properly.
For a while, he had been meeting Dumbledore almost every day, dictating designs for new mechanisms while the old wizard drew them out. In Vaughn's opinion, this was the single greatest use of a wizard who'd lived for over a century—someone who knew a little bit of everything.
Only today had construction officially begun. To avoid making Quirinus Quirrell and a certain "no-nosed gentleman" suspicious, Dumbledore redistributed the work among the professors.
Vaughn no longer needed to appear there—and finally had time for his own matters.
"System."
At his call, the familiar panel appeared before his eyes:
[Host: Vaughn Weasley]
[Magic Capacity: 470 (Average adult wizard: 500)]
[Talents:]
Charms 7
Dark Arts 6
Transfiguration 8
Potions 10
Herbology 6
Alchemy 6
Divination 2
(Maximum: 10)
[Spells:]
Occlumency LV5 (MAX)
Shield Charm LV5 (MAX)
Disarming Charm LV5 (MAX)
Banishing Charm LV4 (11/16)
Levitation Charm LV4 (10/16)
…
Legilimency LV3 (1/32)
Disillusionment Charm LV2 (7/8)
Sectumsempra LV2 (3/12)
Patronus Charm LV1 (6/8)
Apparition/Disapparition LV1 (1/6)
…
[Alchemy LV0 (0/20)]
[Potions:]
"Vaughn Beauty" series
"Vaughn Hair Care" series
Wolfsbane Potion
…
[Reputation Points: 16]
[Side Quest ①: Obtain the Philosopher's Stone — Completed]
[Reward: Alchemy Talent — Received]
Vaughn studied the completed quest and reward, then turned his attention to the talent section.
The alchemy talent hadn't amazed him—only six points.
Based on his previous experience with Dark Arts training, that was merely slightly above passing level.
Still, he wasn't disappointed.
Alchemy wasn't like Muggle physics or chemistry. It had no fixed formulas, no standard answers. Its study depended heavily on talent—having it or not was the difference between two entirely separate worlds.
That distinction was clear from the very first line of the introductory alchemy texts:
"The natural universe is One; body and soul are likewise One. This is the principle of duality. The Great Reality manifests as the sun sheds light—dividing into the world without diminishing the perfection of the aether. When One reunites with One, miracles are born."
(Adapted from the alchemical "scripture,"The Emerald Tablet)
It sounded mystical—borderline incomprehensible.
Yet that was the strange thing.
Before gaining alchemical talent, Vaughn had found these words vague and meaningless, all clouds and riddles.
After receiving the talent, he suddenly understood.
The passage described the true nature of the world—and alchemy's role within it.
"The One" was the "Great Reality": the original unified form of all matter and spiritual illusion, the universe's primordial state.
At some point, like sunlight scattering, it divided—giving birth to the world and all things. Yet these things were never fully separated; they remained interconnected by something called aether, akin to a world-soul.
Alchemy's secret lay in traversing that aether—using the small universe formed by one's body and soul to communicate with the greater universe, and thus create miracles.
"So that's it… This world's underlying logic really is strange," Vaughn muttered.
"Anything tied to magic shifts from materialism to idealism. The magical world's 'nuclear physics' is basically philosophy…"
He gave a wry smile.
No wonder alchemy had been impossible for him before. Without the talent, he couldn't even comprehend the theory—how could he practice it?
Alchemical talent, in truth, was less a skill than an awakening—a bridge connecting his "inner universe" to the outer one.
His gaze drifted to the new line on the panel:
[Alchemy LV0 (0/20)]
This was the first non-spell discipline he'd seen using an independent level system, separate from Charms. And the difficulty was absurd—twenty Reputation Points just to reach Level 1.
After some hesitation, Vaughn chose not to invest his reserved points.
Now that he understood alchemy properly, he also realized how flawed his previous interpretations had been. If he rushed ahead without rebuilding his theoretical foundation, he'd only stray further off course.
He closed the panel and opened his satchel, withdrawing a half-transparent crimson stone.
It was small enough to fit easily in one hand.
"In older alchemical texts," Vaughn murmured, "the Philosopher's Stone is called the Fifth Element. Not an element in the Muggle chemical sense—but a term describing dynamic relationships within matter."
"The first four elements are earth, water, fire, and air—solid, liquid, plasma, and gas. They describe cycles: light to heavy, cold to hot, and back again."
"So what does the Fifth Element describe?"
The question lingered unanswered.
In the end, Vaughn sighed, deciding to consult Dumbledore later and revisit alchemical theory from the ground up in the library.
His intuition told him alchemy might be the key to understanding the origin and essence of magic itself.
He put the Stone away.
Only then did he notice several unopened letters on his dormitory desk—the top one from Hagrid.
Opening it, Vaughn raised an eyebrow.
"So it hatched today? Pity I missed the moment. A newborn dragon is rare—especially since mother dragons are notoriously violent during the early stages."
"I should go take a look… A dragon, huh. Maybe I can help Hagrid out of this mess."
Inspired by ideas for the trials he was designing, Vaughn set the letter aside and picked up the next envelope.
It read:
"To Vaughn Weasley."
"From your close friend, Isabella Rosier."
Vaughn sighed softly.
If he remembered correctly, their last correspondence had been around Halloween—when he'd urged her to leave North America and return to Europe, even inviting her to his investiture ceremony.
Apparently, she hadn't listened.
Either that—or the situation there had deteriorated too far for her to leave.
Breaking the seal, he read on.
As expected, Isabella had run into serious trouble.
She was now wanted by the North American Magical Congress.
Her letter—six full pages of parchment—described months of chaos: attacks following the Woolworth Building incident, the suicide of the accused witch, rising tensions between wizarding groups and the Magical Congress, and even Muggle authorities arresting a Muggle-born wizard under "national security" charges.
North America, she wrote, was sliding toward the abyss at a terrifying pace.
She herself had been rescued by a witch from Ilvermorny, a member of an organization called the Watchers—and was now implicated alongside them, hunted by pure-blood families seeking revenge.
Despite everything, Isabella congratulated Vaughn on his achievements: the Wolfsbane Potion, the Werewolf Affairs Committee, his growing reputation overseas.
Reading the letter twice, Vaughn didn't reply immediately.
A letter couldn't fix this.
Instead, he considered options—seeking help, or even traveling to North America himself to extract her.
After all, she had been his first pen pal in this world—and his first supporter.
"The Rosier family has branches in both Britain and France," he mused. "I'll contact the main line first. If that fails… there's always Crouch. Or Dumbledore."
He found the Rosier contact details in his notebook and wrote a careful, diplomatic letter explaining the situation.
Only after sending that did he reply to Isabella—urging her to stay hidden, avoid Aurors, and provide a safer method of contact next time.
A Muggle telephone would be ideal.
By the time he finished, dusk had fallen.
Rather than return to Slytherin, Vaughn crossed the castle grounds directly, Guoguo Tea padding beside him.
Near the Forbidden Forest, Hagrid's hut glowed warmly in the night—but the atmosphere inside was anything but peaceful.
As Vaughn approached, he heard shouting.
"I won't agree!" Hagrid bellowed stubbornly. "Norbert's just been born—she's too small! Away from her mother, she'll die!"
"You're not her mother!" Harry shouted back. "You won the egg from a Greek bloke—you didn't lay it! Do you have any idea how serious this is? You could go to Azkaban!"
Ron joined in urgently.
"Hagrid, Norwegian Ridgebacks grow huge in two months—and they breathe fire! If we don't move her now, not only are you in trouble, she is too. Dad says the Ministry usually destroys large dragons on sight!"
Hagrid was sobbing openly—but still refused to yield.
Vaughn rubbed his temples and pushed the door open.
Everyone turned. Relief washed over their faces when they saw him.
Hermione was the happiest—dropping her notebook and rushing over to cling to his arm.
Harry spoke quickly.
"Vaughn, please help us convince him. Malfoy saw the dragon—he'll tell everyone!"
Malfoy?
Vaughn understood immediately.
Still—Draco wouldn't spread it indiscriminately. He only cared about Harry; Hagrid's dragon was leverage, nothing more.
True love, really.
Hagrid stepped forward, eyes red and swollen.
"Norberta's just been born," he sniffed. "She's so small—rats could kill her."
He opened his massive palm.
A scrawny, ugly little dragon lay there, gnawing on his finger.
Despite being only a day old, it had already broken Hagrid's thick skin; blood seeped from the wound.
Harry and Ron, once fascinated, now looked terrified.
Vaughn ignored the noise and crouched closer, examining the hatchling.
"You named her Norbert?" he asked.
Hagrid nodded eagerly.
"Aye! Fine little lad—"
"She's female," Vaughn said bluntly.
Silence.
Hagrid froze. Harry and Ron stared. Only Hermione calmly retrieved her notebook and filled in Sex: Female.
"Change the name," Vaughn continued. "Norberta. Thoughts?"
Hermione considered, then nodded.
"It suits her."
Thus, the dragon was renamed.
Vaughn extended a finger to touch her head.
Sensing softer skin, the aggressive hatchling released Hagrid's finger and bit Vaughn instead—
Snap!
Vaughn flicked her forehead.
The dragon squealed and toppled backward.
"Hey!" Hagrid protested, rushing to shield her.
"This is how you train dangerous beasts," Vaughn said calmly. "Spoil them, and they'll never know their place."
With a silent, wandless Levitation Charm, he lifted Norberta into the air.
At last, the hatchling sensed danger. Her scales bristled—but when Vaughn's eyes glimmered with magic, the dragon went limp in terror.
Guoguo Tea appeared beside them, staring hungrily.
Norberta went completely still.
Harry and Ron were dumbstruck. Ron quietly hid his own bitten finger behind his back.
"See, Hagrid?" Harry said weakly. "You're really not suited to raising a dragon…"
Hagrid began crying again.
Vaughn examined Norberta's life aura, brighter than before—white light threaded with faint orange.
Her magic wasn't merely used—it was part of her body.
Fire, venom, flight—each likely relied on magic to function.
He looked away before curiosity tempted him too far.
Carefully placing Norberta on his lap, Vaughn addressed Hagrid.
"They're right. Keeping a dragon is illegal—especially at Hogwarts. Even if the Ministry ignores you, the Board of Governors won't."
"And Minister Cornelius Fudge is already hunting for excuses to attack Dumbledore and me over the Werewolf Committee. If he learns this, he'll be delighted."
Hagrid stiffened.
"What should I do?" he asked weakly.
"Two options," Vaughn said, raising a finger.
"First: I write to Charlie Weasley. He comes in a few days and takes Norberta to Romania. Professionals. Legal care."
Harry and Ron brightened.
Hagrid didn't.
Too far. Too small.
Vaughn raised a second finger.
"Second: I arrange somewhere safe. You don't need to know where. For the first three weeks, while she's still weak, I can bring her back regularly so you can feed her."
Ron whispered to Harry,
"If I were Hagrid, I'd never give a pet to Vaughn. 'Safe' probably means potion ingredients—ow!"
Harry elbowed him.
After a long silence, Hagrid whispered,
"…Must I choose?"
"Yes," Vaughn said calmly. "She can't stay."
Norberta squeaked pitifully—but Guoguo Tea's paw gently pinned her head.
Hagrid broke.
"Just… let me keep her three more weeks…"
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