"You said it yourself, didn't you? You're raising a dragon." Harry grinned mischievously. "Hagrid's been going on about how much he wants one for ages~"
"Oh my goodness! Doesn't he know it's illegal to keep a dragon privately?!" Hermione was startled by Harry's guess.
If Hagrid really had gotten his hands on a Dragon, then this was serious!
This wasn't like Harry breaking school rules, something they could easily cover up!
It was a Dragon—a dangerous Magical Creature that the Ministry of Magic had explicitly forbidden people from raising privately!!
"Let's go take a look together."
Speaking of Dragons, Harry was pretty interested in them too. Of course, he was even more curious about how Hagrid planned to hatch the egg.
Would he sit motionless in a nest he'd built himself, just like a mother hen~
Full of anticipation, the Granger Siblings knocked on the door of Hagrid's Hut an hour later.
"What brings you here?"
The wooden door opened cautiously just a crack. Once Hagrid had confirmed it was someone he knew, he warily ushered Harry and Hermione inside.
"Hey, can't we come visit you just because we feel like it?" Harry gave him a mischievous, knowing grin. "You've covered every window in the place so no one can see in. We're here to check whether you're up to something you shouldn't be~"
"I... I'm not!!" Harry's sudden question left Hagrid looking extremely flustered.
"But we found your library borrowing record," Hermione chimed in perfectly. "Want to hear what books you checked out? Dragon Breeding for Pleasure and Profit, for example..."
"All right, all right, I admit it. Happy now?" Hagrid put on a rueful expression and pointed toward the fireplace. "The egg's right there. Go and see for yourselves~"
Following Hagrid's gesture, the two of them spotted a huge, motionless egg in the blazing fireplace.
Of course, Harry had already figured out where the egg was as soon as he'd entered. Hagrid couldn't hide the Voice of Magic coming from a Dragon Egg, after all.
Hmm... It sounded a lot like the one beneath Gringotts: faint, but incredibly explosive!
"Is this a Dragon Egg?" Hermione asked in amazement. "How did you get it?"
"I won it~" Hagrid explained nonchalantly. "I was drinking in Hogsmeade Village last night when a stranger in a hood lost it to me in a card game. I reckon he was probably glad to get rid of it."
Hogsmeade Village was a settlement near the school made up entirely of wizards. It was Hogwarts students' favorite destination, but they weren't allowed to go until their third year, and even then they needed to complete the approval process in advance, including getting their parents' signatures.
Basically, it was like having a Diagon Alley right next to the school. All sorts of people passed through, so it wasn't strange to run into the odd unusual character.
But Harry still grew suspicious.
"Is that really how it happened?" Harry narrowed his eyes, noncommittal. "As far as I know, keeping a Dragon privately is illegal, but there are still ways to get rid of a Dragon Egg before it hatches."
Across all of Hogwarts, apart from Hagrid, the gamekeeper, and Professor Kettleburn, who taught Care of Magical Creatures Class, Harry was probably one of the people who knew the most about Fantastic Beasts.
After all, he and Scamander were such close friends that they were practically father and son, despite their age difference~
Under Article 73 of the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy, Dragon Eggs were classified as Class A non-trade goods. Importing or selling them between countries was strictly forbidden, but there were still plenty of ways to deal with one within Britain.
Harry knew of three.
Let's start with the third. It only took two words: throw it away~
If a wizard really did find a Dragon Egg, they could simply toss it into the wilderness. There was nothing wrong with handling it that way, and no one would come after them afterward.
But almost no wizard would do that, because Dragon Eggs were easy to turn into money, whether on the black market or the legitimate one.
If they wanted to get more Galleons for it, they could find a buyer in Knockturn Alley. They were sure to run into plenty of interested people.
If they were worried about getting into trouble and didn't want to go somewhere as seedy as that, they could also take the egg to the Ministry of Magic.
A dangerous creature like a Dragon, classified as Level Five—the highest rating—could bring the entire Ministry of Magic of its country under scrutiny by the International Confederation of Wizards if it ever threatened ordinary people. So the Ministry's Beast Division would be more than happy to have a wizard voluntarily hand over a Dragon Egg.
Not only would they waive the wizard's charge of "illegally possessing a Dragon Egg," they would also award them a bounty as encouragement.
Scamander had witnessed similar incidents more than once. It had happened in 1918, when he was still working at the Ministry of Magic. According to the rates in effect over seventy years ago, turning in a Dragon Egg earned a reward of 30 Galleons.
At the time, Scamander had earned two Silver Sickles a week. To save up 30 Galleons, he would have had to go five whole years without eating, drinking, or spending a penny!
Back then, he'd dreamed of finding a Dragon Egg even in his sleep~
If he hadn't failed to find one, he might never have switched careers and written books ┌|*′?｀|┘
So, in short, the person Hagrid had met hadn't been unable to get rid of the egg. He'd deliberately pushed it onto Hagrid!!
(p.s. Don't worry about the 30-Galleon price. I made it up to make the plot work, that's all~)
Chapter 79: Hatching an Egg Wasn't That Easy
"So tell us, then. What exactly did you let slip?" Harry asked, raising an eyebrow after he'd pieced together what had happened.
"I, I didn't really talk about anything with him..." Hagrid tugged at his beard, conflicted. "I'd had a few too many, and the Dragon Egg got me talking about Fluffy... Oh, the three-headed dog. You know how hard it is to come across a creature like that. The other fellow seemed interested too, so I chatted with him a bit and mentioned things like how Fluffy would fall asleep as soon as he heard music..."
That settled it~
Since Hagrid had mentioned his three-headed dog, Harry could be completely certain that the person who'd given Hagrid the Dragon Egg was Quirrell!
Pretty much every teacher at Hogwarts knew Hagrid wanted to raise a Dragon. Quirrell had used that to appeal to Hagrid's interests, so getting Hagrid to let his guard down had been ridiculously easy.
What Quirrell hadn't counted on, though, was that Harry, who was with Hagrid, knew a great deal not only about Magical Creatures, but also about the law. He'd identified him without breaking a sweat!
As a matter of fact, Hagrid was quite good at keeping secrets, and he always remembered that he was supposed to keep them. The problem was... he couldn't be allowed to start chatting with people~
Once he got carried away talking, who knew which sentence would let some crucial information fly right out of his mouth.
Still, there wasn't much to worry about. Quirrell would have found out in the original story anyway, so nothing had really changed.
Harry was more interested in the Dragon Egg. He'd been hearing the little creature inside calling out for a while now.
"This Dragon Egg... Hagrid, I'm not against you hatching it, but I think there might be a problem with the way you're doing it." After listening carefully, Harry shook his head.
"A problem?" Hagrid scratched his head, puzzled. "I'm doing exactly what the book says. You're supposed to keep a Dragon Egg in a fire, because their mothers breathe on them..."
"That's exactly the problem!" Harry put a hand to his forehead in exasperation. "A Dragon's mother is a Dragon too, and what they breathe is Dragon fire! You don't think a little fireplace can produce the same heat as an adult Dragon, do you?"
Harry was completely certain that if Hagrid kept hatching the egg this way, the little Dragon would be weak from birth. Even when it grew up, it probably wouldn't measure up to an ordinary Dragon.
Of course, he wasn't making that up. He could hear it.
Harry had gotten used to the sounds of magic flowing. Although he couldn't actively respond to certain magical objects and Magical Creatures, he could now basically understand what they were trying to express.
The little Dragon's voice inside the egg came in fits and starts. It kept sending Harry the same message... It was cold, and it was hungry!
The fireplace wasn't hot enough, and it didn't contain enough magic either. The little Dragon needed flames with a higher temperature and more active magic!
"Th-then what should I do, if that's really the case?"
Hagrid had no idea what to do. He didn't doubt Harry, of course, and couldn't help worrying that the crude conditions in his hut might hold back the little Dragon's growth.
"Let me give it a try... Incendio!!"
Harry raised his wand and cast the spell. The flames in the fireplace suddenly shot upward, nearly licking the beams of the hut!
"Harry, be careful! Hagrid's house is made of wood!" Hermione cried urgently, flustered.
"I know."
Harry gave his wand a gentle flick, using his powerful control to shape the flames into a spiral Fire Serpent coiling around the Dragon Egg.
Flame-like patterns gradually appeared across the shell of the egg. It trembled slightly, as if thanking Harry.
"It really worked? That's wonderful!!" Hagrid was so happy he nearly jumped.
"This isn't bad... All right, I've made up my mind!" Harry quickly came up with a plan. "Starting tonight, I'll stay here and help you hatch the Dragon Egg. Every day, as soon as classes are over, I'll come straight back!"
Just now, Harry had discovered a new way to improve his strength: heating the Dragon Egg.
After he'd hit a bottleneck in improving his strength with the Mirror of Erised, Harry had been looking for a way to keep progressing.
And according to the usual logic of fantasy novels, constantly maintaining a cycle of releasing magic and replenishing it should at least refine his magic, even if it couldn't increase his total reserves.
So, within Hogwarts right now, what could consume more magic than keeping a Dragon Egg heated continuously~
"Haha, that's wonderful!" Hagrid excitedly slapped Harry on the shoulder, nearly knocking him to the ground.
"Please, Hagrid. You're as strong as a Dragon!"
Harry rubbed his shoulder and complained, then sat cross-legged in front of the fireplace and began continuously releasing magic to maintain the flames.
"Hehe, I just got a little too excited~" Hagrid sheepishly rubbed his nose. "Harry, it's great of you to help. Here, you keep the egg warm, and I'll go make you something to eat!"
"So... what about me?" Hermione looked back and forth between Harry and Hagrid, who had already divided up the work, and finally spoke up, looking troubled. "One of you is hatching the egg, and the other's handling the food. What am I supposed to do?"
"You can do my homework for me~" Harry said with a cheeky grin.
"Drop dead!" Hermione wrinkled her nose and glared at Harry, but she didn't actually refuse.
The clock ticked on, and once Harry had started hatching the egg in earnest, he discovered just how big an appetite the unborn little creature had!
Harry had to go to class during the day, so the Dragon Egg had to stay by itself in the fireplace. But Harry couldn't skimp on the flames—he had to make up for all the magic he'd missed using at night!
Hagrid had tried taking over for Harry during the day, but he found that his control over magic was nowhere near as precise as Harry's. He nearly set the house on fire several times, and was so frightened that he didn't dare try again.
This left Harry with no choice but to stay up all night releasing magic to maintain the flames. Then, after showing up for his classes during the day, he'd sleep soundly in the classroom to recover his strength.
All in all, he'd figured out that this little creature was being hatched purely on his magic, his blood and sweat, and Ravenclaw's House Points!
What, you're asking what Ravenclaw had to do with it?
Who knew how many times Harry had been caught sleeping in class by Professor McGonagall and made to stand by Snape... He'd even gotten so good at it that he could sleep standing up, just like Hedwig~
Still, all that effort had paid off. The day-and-night training had made Harry feel that his magic was more concentrated. The spells Snape had taught him had once felt a little awkward to cast, but now he could use them with complete ease.
Meanwhile, the flame-like patterns on the eggshell changed a little every day. When Harry kept the egg warm, they even flickered in rhythm with his magic.
Then, one morning, as Harry released his magic, he clearly heard it... the roar of the baby Dragon inside the egg!
It was about to hatch!
(p.s. The artist changed the picture to portrait orientation, so the landscape version wouldn't be squashed so small on the screen~)
Chapter 80: Deciding to Raise a Dragon Was Crazy
"Has the little Dragon hatched? Hurry up and let me see!"
When Hermione received Hedwig's letter early in the morning, she skipped her second class of the day for the first time ever and hurried to Hagrid's Hut.
"Not yet, but it's close." Harry pointed to the huge egg, which had been moved onto the table. A crack in its shell was gradually widening.
"By the way, did anyone follow you here?" Harry suddenly asked.
"Follow me... Why do you ask? I was in a hurry and didn't pay attention~" Hermione was taken aback, not understanding what Harry meant.
"We'll talk about it after the egg hatches."
Harry smiled mysteriously, but didn't explain right away.
Some little brat had been sneaking over to spy on the Dragon Egg almost every night lately. Did he really think Harry hadn't noticed?
"It should hatch any moment now, right?"
Hagrid rubbed his hands together excitedly. The three of them leaned in toward the table, one big head and two small ones.
The Dragon Egg trembled gently, and the sound of cracking came steadily from inside the shell. The little Dragon was breaking free by biting its way out.
Soon... they'd be able to see it.
The three people in the room all held their breath without thinking, not daring to make a sound.
But just as a harsh scraping noise came from the eggshell, Hagrid, who was always allergic to cat hair, couldn't hold it in. He let out a huge sneeze!
"Ah... ah-choo!!"
Hagrid's body lurched. The hand resting on Harry's shoulder instinctively pushed forward, pinning Harry firmly against the table.
At the same time, the long-awaited little Dragon finally broke out of its shell.
Before you continue