A week passed, and Norbert grew at an incredible rate.
He had started out as a little lizard, but now he was as big as Fang.
The timid hound tucked his tail between his legs and scurried into a corner whenever he saw Norbert, as if he wished he could bury himself in the ground.
Malfoy didn't go and tell the professors, either. He was genuinely a little afraid of Charlie. The man was just too weird. Just look at the way he trained dragons. Malfoy had no doubt he'd poison someone.
Hagrid fed Norbert Chicken Blood Brandy every day. As a result, the chickens he kept suffered for it.
"Norbert, time to eat!" Hagrid said, carefully setting a large bowl of blood-red liquid on the table.
Norbert flapped his wings and downed the entire bowl of Chicken Blood Brandy in one go, then burped contentedly.
"Good grief, that thing's almost a drunkard," Ron said, pinching his nose as he backed away.
Charlie sat in a chair, watching Norbert snuggle in Hagrid's arms.
After the recent Training Camp with Pan Hong, the little Fire Dragon was both afraid of and respectful toward Charlie. Whenever he saw Charlie, he behaved like a kitten.
"Hagrid, in another two weeks, your house won't be big enough for him," Hermione said, pointing at the ceiling.
Hagrid looked troubled.
"I don't know what to do, either."
"Couldn't you keep him in the Forbidden Forest?"
Hagrid shook his head.
"I asked the Centaurs, but they wouldn't agree."
A few days earlier, Hagrid had gone to discuss the matter with the Centaurs. When they heard he wanted to keep a Fire Dragon in the Forbidden Forest, they were so shocked they nearly jumped out of their skins.
"Firenze told us before that Hogwarts was raising a Fire