Ron's Collapse

Besides being bad at keeping secrets, Hagrid's talent for naming Fantastic Beasts is equally questionable.

This time was no exception.

Norbert sounds like a nice name, but she's a female dragon... What's the difference between that and a little girl named Iron Egg?

Fortunately, it couldn't understand, otherwise it might have already sprayed Hagrid's beard with dragonfire.

"Hagrid, I think this name is a bit inappropriate, Zhuo... uh, what are you doing...?"

Just as Kyle was about to come up with a new name, he saw Hagrid covering Norbert's ears and looking at him nervously.

"Don't say it, Kyle, its name is Norbert..."

Hagrid was really nervous.

He thought of the owl named Ladon, who had refused to recognize him ever since Kyle changed his name.

He feared that this time would be the same.

"Its name is Norbert ..." Hagrid repeated, covering his face even more tightly with his hands.

His hands were just too big; they practically enveloped Norbert's entire head.

The little dragon was completely bewildered by having its head grabbed. Once it came to its senses, it started kicking its legs and flapping its wings incessantly on the table.

Finally, he simply breathed a mouthful of dragonfire at Hagrid, the flames landing on his hand and causing him to gasp in pain.

The air was thick with the smell of burning, but even so, Hagrid didn't let go of Kyle's hand, his face still fixed on him with intense tension.

"Okay, whatever you say." Kyle had guessed what Hagrid was thinking.

To avoid being kicked out, he wisely kept quiet.

Norbert Norbert is, he's still too young to remember anyway, we can just correct him later.

Anyway, Hagrid can't keep it forever.

Hagrid, clearly unaware of Kyle's thoughts, released Norbert after hearing his assurance and quickly went to a large bucket full of water, putting his hand inside.

Kyle laughed, "You're too nervous. It doesn't understand the meaning of its name right now."

But Hagrid didn't respond. Instead, he abruptly changed the subject, saying, "I never knew Dragon liked to eat fish. The books say their favorite food is sheep."

"The author of that book probably referenced Australian Opaleye, which love to eat local Australian sheep and also enjoy drinking brandy."

Kyle raised an eyebrow and said, "Of course, the other Dragon are similar; sheep and cows are their main food."

"But the Norwegian Ridgeback is different; due to its habitat, it was the only Dragon that would forage for food in the water."

Hagrid tossed aside the book, "Dragon Breeding for Pleasure and Profit," with a hint of frustration. "I really should have read something else... This one is all wrong."

"It's only a small part; most of the content is fine," Kyle said. "Or you could borrow a copy of * Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them*, which has a detailed description of the Norwegian Ridgeback."

Hagrid practically spoiled Norbert.

In the following days, all the dead minks on the shelf outside his cabin disappeared, replaced by whole cow legs and carefully prepared fish.

Moreover, these fish are all very large; even the smallest one is a foot long.

During this time, besides Kyle, Harry and the others would often come over, but they would mostly stay in the dimly lit hut, reasoning with Hagrid and persuading him to send the Dragon away.

"You can't keep it forever, Hagrid!"

Hermione repeated what she had said countless times before, "In two weeks, it will be as big as a house, and you won't be able to hide it anymore!"

"I know, but it's still a long way off, isn't it?" Hagrid replied vaguely. "It's too small right now. What if it gets bullied in the wild? I'm worried about it."

Norbert looked at them, then tilted his head to look at Kyle, and called out in confusion.

"Oh, they're discussing what to eat for their next meal." Kyle stroked the scales on its neck and whispered, "How about Tebo Warthog, with some corn and cabbage?"

Norbert grumbled in dissatisfaction and began rolling around on the ground.

"No, you have to eat all of this. Even if you're Dragon, you can't just eat meat."

Meanwhile, Hagrid was still arguing with Harry and the others about Norbert's custody, and none of them noticed the strange behavior on Kyle's side.

"Malfoy has already found it," Harry cautioned. "This is too dangerous, Hagrid."

Hagrid shook his head. "But Kyle said the window was small; he probably didn't even see it."

Suddenly, everyone's eyes were focused on Kyle in the corner.

"Don't look at me, it has nothing to do with me."

Kyle quickly said, "That's just a possibility. Given Malfoy's personality, if he really saw the Dragon, he would have reported it to the professor long ago. He wouldn't have waited until now."

Of course, it's also possible he wanted to use this information to threaten Harry... anything is possible."

"Did you hear that, Hagrid?" Harry raised his voice. "None of us can guarantee that Malfoy didn't see it; he could go to Dumbledore at any moment."

"Besides, keeping dragons is illegal," Hermione said. "If Dumbledore knew, how disappointed he would be..."

"Perhaps I could put it in the Forbidden Forest," Hagrid said hesitantly. "Like Fluffy and Aragog back then, they're both fine now."

"Wait a minute..." Harry seemed to have noticed something, and frowned. "I know Fluffy, that Three-headed Dog in the Forbidden Forest... but what is Aragog? Just how many things have you been keeping in the Forbidden Forest?"

"No, no, no, you've misheard. It's only Fluffy."

Despite Hagrid's efforts to explain that Aragog was just a harmless little darling, no one believed him.

Harry and his friends knew Hagrid all too well; they could tell from the Three-headed Dog and the Dragon that he was attracted to the kind of Fantastic Beasts that were extremely dangerous.

"Oh, right, Hagrid..."

Suddenly, Kyle took out a bottle of blue potion and placed it on the table.

"Here's the spider tonic you requested. I've specially increased its potency according to your requirements; it's safe even for a spider the size of a car to drink."

"So, Aragog is... a spider?" Harry asked.

"It must be Acromantula," Hermione thought for a moment. "I saw it in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them to Find Them; only they can grow as big as a car."

Ron didn't speak; his face quickly turned pale, and his body trembled involuntarily.

The once familiar little house suddenly felt strange; spiders seemed to be hiding everywhere—under the bed, in the corners, in the cabinets...

"Let's go back..." Ron stood there stiffly, breaking down, "I haven't finished my homework yet!"