Prince Charming

That day, Dumbledore was admiring portraits of a blond old man in the headmaster's office.

Suddenly, an explosion sounded outside the door, and the floor seemed to tremble.

Dumbledore hurriedly put away the photo album and rushed outside to see what was happening.

The moment he stepped out, he found Horatio sticking C4 onto the wall outside the headmaster's office. Startled, he immediately stopped him. "Child, what are you doing?"

"Old Deng, I needed to see you, but that gargoyle at your door wouldn't let me in, so I gave it a hard one." Horatio pointed at the stone statue that had been blown to pieces.

"Since I couldn't enter the headmaster's office through the front door, I thought I'd open a side entrance for you. It'll make getting in and out easier." Horatio continued attaching C4 to the wall. "No need to thank me."

"Thank you, my ass!" Dumbledore hurriedly tore the C4 off the wall and restored the statue by the door. "I'll tell you the password for the headmaster's office from now on. You don't need to be so extreme."

Dumbledore led Horatio into the headmaster's office. "Tell me, what did you need?"

Horatio took an egg from his cloth bag and placed it on the table. "This was confiscated from Quirrell's office. It seems to be a Dragon Egg. Find me a place—I want to raise a dragon for fun."

Dumbledore looked at the Dragon Egg on the table, his eye twitching. "Child, Fire Dragons are far too dangerous, and they cannot be tamed. How about I give you a Puffskein instead? Or a Niffler?"

"???"

"Old Deng, who do you think is more dangerous, me or a Fire Dragon? If I can't raise a Fire Dragon, then get me a Dementor. I'd like to study one."

In the end, Horatio gave up on raising a Fire Dragon. Mainly because Dumbledore told him that raising one was troublesome. A newly hatched baby dragon needed to be fed a bucket of brandy and chicken blood every half hour.

In exchange, Dumbledore agreed to have Hagrid give Horatio a baby Hippogriff, satisfying his desire for a flying mount.

Horatio handed the Dragon Egg to Dumbledore and said, "The Quirrell Alchemy Golem you wanted is finished. As for what you want it to teach, make something up yourself."

"Also, I recently started teaching Harry the Disarming Charm and the Shield Charm. Seriously, is Harry really the so-called savior? His head feels as empty as a troll's."

Afterward, Horatio took Dumbledore's written authorization and went to Hagrid's hut.

After reading it, Hagrid led Horatio out of the hut. "Come on. There happens to be a nest of Hippogriffs that were born not long ago. Why would Dumbledore allow a first-year wizard to keep a magical creature with a danger rating of XXX?"

"Because I got a Dragon Egg. I originally wanted to raise a Fire Dragon as a mount, but Dumbledore said they were troublesome to raise. So I gave him the egg, and as compensation, he allowed me to keep a Hippogriff as a mount."

"You mean a Dragon Egg?" Hagrid looked deeply regretful. "What a shame you already gave it to Headmaster Dumbledore."

"Hagrid, do you like dragons that much?"

"Yeah. I've dreamed of raising a dragon my whole life."

"Fine. I'll give you an alchemical Fire Dragon statue for Christmas in a few days."

"Thank you very much."

When they arrived at the Hippogriffs' territory, Hagrid spoke with the adult Hippogriffs watching over the young, then brought Horatio to a nest of Hippogriff chicks.

Horatio immediately took a liking to a pure white Hippogriff chick.

It was a female Hippogriff chick, snow-white all over like winter snow. Her golden eyes shone brightly, and the eagle talons on her front half were sharp and powerful. Though she was still young, she already stood far taller than Horatio.

Horatio had just reached out to pet her when she suddenly opened her beak and viciously bit at his hand. Horatio reacted quickly and pulled his hand back in time. The chick bit only air and let out an unhappy cry.

Hagrid said awkwardly, "Hippogriffs are very proud creatures. You have to bow to them first."

Unbothered, Horatio pulled out some beef jerky from his cloth bag—the kind he usually fed Hathor and the others—and carefully held it out before the chick.

The chick first eyed the beef jerky warily, then slowly moved closer and sniffed it. Suddenly, she snatched it away in one bite.

After finishing it, her eyes suddenly lit up, showing Horatio that she wanted more. Horatio took out another piece and gave it to her, taking the chance to gently stroke her head. This time, she did not resist.

Hagrid said in surprise, "Huh? She was tamed that easily?"

Horatio made it clear that this was the power of good food. A mere little foal was easy prey.

In the end, Horatio led the white Hippogriff he had named Nut out of the Forbidden Forest and into his greenhouse.

Harry and Neville were carefully tending to a pot of white moss when they saw Horatio lead a beautiful Hippogriff into the greenhouse.

"What kind of animal is that?" Harry asked, somewhat surprised.

Horatio told Harry, "Go look it up in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them."

Then Horatio introduced Hathor, who was on duty that day, to Nut, telling her that he was her future companion and that she was not allowed to eat him.

Although Nut might not necessarily be able to beat Hathor, who knew how many ridiculous devices Horatio had added to the collar and bell around Hathor's neck?

Still, Horatio hoped they could get along peacefully, and said that if she got hungry, she could eat the two house-elves nearby.

Harry and Neville: "..."

Horatio then left them a large amount of beef jerky, turned around, and entered his workshop to make Nut a saddle with some absurd properties.

After thinking it over, Horatio decided to first make a saddle with basic functions such as protection, counterattacks, and invisibility. Later, he could add functional modules like an Annihilation Laser Cannon or a Cruciatus Curse Gatling gun.

After all, Horatio's pets could not suffer even the slightest grievance. They had to possess the strength to wipe out the Death Eaters or the Ministry of Magic.

By the time Horatio finished making the saddle, the sky had already grown dark. After putting it on Nut, he held Hathor and mounted Nut, preparing to fly back to Hogwarts.

Harry and Neville said, "What about us? We haven't gotten on yet!"

Horatio said, "You mere house-elves want to hitch a ride on my mount? Run back yourselves."

In the end, Horatio cast a Levitation Charm on the two house-elves, tied ropes around their feet, and had Nut drag them through the air toward Hogwarts like garbage.

After flying into the Hogwarts Great Hall, Horatio dismounted and clapped his hands. The ropes around Harry and Neville's feet automatically came undone.

Under the astonished gazes of the young Wizards, Horatio led Nut toward the Gryffindor table and sat beside Hermione.

"A Hippogriff?"

"It seems Miss Know-It-All has quite the store of knowledge." Horatio placed Hathor on the dining table as he replied.

"How did you do it?"

"I told Dumbledore that I wanted to become a dragon rider, but he said dragons were too big to fit in the dormitories. So I settled for a Hippogriff instead." Horatio stroked Nut's eagle head as she nudged closer.

The next day, a story about Prince Charming and his two servants spread throughout Hogwarts without anyone knowing where it had begun.

Malfoy of Slytherin declared that riding Magic Wands was utterly lame. If one was going to ride, one should ride a winged beast. He had already written to his father, saying that he wanted one.