Early April arrived, and Alexander was midway through breakfast at the Ravenclaw table when a familiar bushy-haired figure approached with determined steps and a stack of parchment clutched to her chest.
Hermione Granger.
Cho noticed her first and smiled politely as Hermione stopped beside them.
"Good morning. Sorry to interrupt," Hermione said quickly. "I just had a few questions about class material… and dragons."
Alexander paused mid-bite but said nothing yet, letting Cho take the lead.
Cho answered smoothly, explaining what she knew from Care of Magical Creatures and supplementary readings.
She spoke about dragon breeds, temperament classifications, and handling protocols.
But Hermione seemed to have wanted more.
Alexander noticed and said.
"Most dragons in Britain aren't raised locally," he said casually. "They're usually sent to the Romanian Dragon Sanctuary. It's one of the largest reserves in Europe."
Hermione's eyes lit up instantly as she scribbled notes.
"They're extremely dangerous," Alexander continued. "If you want field information, you should ask Ron. His older brother Charlie works there — he's a Dragonologist."
Hermione's eyes light up.
"That's incredibly helpful, thank you! Both of you."
She hurried off toward the Gryffindor table.
Cho watched her leave, amused.
Alexander, however, had gone quiet.
He continued eating, but his mind had already drifted far away.
So… the dragon's already been born.
He chewed slowly.
Soon they'll get caught and get detention.
Detention will be in the Forbidden Forest.
A faint smirk appeared on his face.
Maybe I should go see the dragon myself… get punished with them.
His eyes gleamed slightly.
And seeing Quirrell drinking unicorn blood? That would be… interesting.
A sudden warmth touched his cheek.
Alexander blinked and came back to reality.
Cho was leaning slightly closer, smiling innocently.
He raised a brow. "Hey."
"You were completely lost in your own mind," she said. "I tried talking to you. You didn't respond."
Alexander tilted his head. "So you kissed me?"
Cho shrugged playfully. "I thought it might work."
He considered this seriously for a moment.
"You should try it again," he said. "I think it's kind of working."
Cho laughed, covering her mouth.
"Maybe later."
They finished breakfast together before heading off to class.
Over the next few days, Alexander dedicated some of his free time to quiet observation.
Under his invisibility cloak, he made occasional trips to the hut's outskirts, discreetly spying on the young dragon.
He confirmed several things:
The dragon was healthy.
It was growing fast.
Hagrid was completely incapable of hiding it.
Eventually, Alexander pieced together the timeline.
Charlie won't arrive until mid-May.
He clicked his tongue softly beneath the cloak.
"That's too long…"
He needed another project.
And as fate would have it, chaos delivered one.
One evening, while drifting through the corridors, Peeves appeared upside down from the ceiling, grinning wickedly.
"I've got news, Young Master Chen~."
Alexander didn't even slow his walking pace and said.
"What did you see?"
"The Hat's back," replied Peeves.
Alexander stopped.
"…The Sorting Hat?"
Peeves nodded eagerly.
"Headmaster's office. Sitting there. Sleeping like an ugly old mushroom."
Alexander's eyes gleamed.
A new target acquired.
Every evening, under his invisibility cloak, he visited the stone gargoyle guarding the Headmaster's office.
He tried everything.
Polite greetings.
Compliments.
Bribes.
Stories.
Nothing worked.
Days passed.
Alexander sighed one night, resting his forehead lightly against the stone gargoyle.
"Maybe I should just ask my parents this summer for the advanced spell Bombarda…" he muttered. "Blow every lock and door out of my way."
The gargoyle, of course, did not respond.
Then came the opportunity.
Late one night, Peeves found him again,
This time, he was vibrating with excitement.
"Dumbledore's left the castle!"
Alexander's head snapped up instantly.
"Are you sure?"
"Swear on Filch's misery."
That was good enough.
Alexander quickly stood up.
"Meet me at the Black Lake."
Peeves saluted dramatically and shot off cackling.
Moments later, Alexander donned his invisibility cloak and sprinted through the corridors.
He reached the gargoyle, slightly out of breath but determined.
"One last try," he whispered.
He pulled out a long parchment list.
The parchment had all of the British sweets on it.
He began reading one by one.
"Chocolate Frogs."
Nothing.
"Fizzing Whizzbees."
Still nothing.
"Sherbet Lemons."
The gargoyle remained still.
Alexander continued down the list patiently until —
"Ice Mice."
The gargoyle twitched.
So subtle that no normal student would notice.
But he knew every crack on that statue.
He saw it.
A slow grin spread across his face.
"Haha… Ice Mice, huh?"
The gargoyle stayed shut.
Alexander leaned closer.
"Ice Mice."
Silence.
"Ice Mice."
Still nothing.
He folded his arms.
"Ice Mice. Ice Mice. Ice Mice."
The statue remained stubborn, but Alexander was more stubborn.
"Ice Mice."
"Ice Mice."
"Ice Mice."
Finally, the gargoyle slowly slid aside.
Alexander beamed.
"Good friend. Thank you!"
He dashed up the spiral staircase quickly.
At the top, he pushed the door open and slipped inside.
The office was dim, quiet, and filled with sleeping portraits.
And there in its usual corner sat the Sorting Hat.
Dozing off.
Alexander stepped forward calmly.
All the sleeping portraits stopped pretending to sleep.
They all stared at him.
Alexander paused, then he raised a finger to his lips.
"Greetings, Headmasters," he whispered politely. "Please keep quiet about this."
They stared in silent disapproval.
Alexander thought for a moment, then added:
"Give me a five-minute head start at least."
No one answered, but none of them shouted either.
I will take it as a silent approval.
He drew his wand.
"Silencio."
The charm blanketed the room.
Hitting all the portraits and everything inside.
He grabbed the Sorting Hat quickly and tucked it under his arm.
Then he ran.
Out the door.
Down the spiral stairs.
Past the gargoyle.
Through the corridors.
And straight toward his destination.
The Black Lake.
Where one very excited poltergeist was already waiting for the chaos to begin.