Albus Dumbledore's Weariness
Harry handed the box to Charlie. "Take good care of it."
"Don't worry." Charlie took the box. "The Romania reserve has a special Dragon Field, a hundred times bigger than Hagrid's Hut. It has plenty of room to run."
After chatting for a few minutes, seeing that it was almost time, the four of them immediately got to work, securing the box containing Norbert with several ropes, and using four brooms to hold the ropes, thus firmly fixing the box in place.
Harry thanked them repeatedly and watched them take off on their broomsticks.
But no one expected that Norbert, as if sensing that he was about to be sent to an unfamiliar place, would struggle frantically inside the box.
It's important to know that Norbert, hatched in an ordinary furnace, would at most be considered a premature baby, but the one hatched in the Gubraithian Fire was several times stronger than other fire dragons of the same age, developed rapidly, and emitted flames of ridiculously high temperature.
The four of them hadn't flown far when they felt a scorching heat rush towards them.
The next second, to their horrified gaze, the box shattered into pieces with a "crack," and flames erupted, not only burning through the ropes but also rushing towards their brooms.
"Roar--!"
The young yet resounding dragon roar pierced the night sky. Although it couldn't penetrate the earth, the students in Ravenclaw and Gryffindor Tower heard it clearly!
"It's a fire dragon! There's a fire dragon!" Many young wizards scrambled up and clung to the windows, shouting excitedly, almost jumping out of bed.
In Professor McGonagall's office, Ron, Harry, Charlie, and his friends were all dragged over.
The group sat trembling in the chairs, barely daring to breathe.
Harry and Ron's minds went blank at that moment, already imagining Professor McGonagall's furious reaction;
Those four graduates weren't much better off. So what if they graduated?
Professor McGonagall was their homeroom teacher and dean of students for seven years. Who wouldn't be as docile as a mouse before a cat when they saw her?
Albus Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall walked in wearing pajamas and robes. Professor McGonagall was so flustered that she put her slippers on backwards.
Hagrid followed behind, carrying Norbert, who was under Stunning Spell, his face as white as paper.
After entering the room, Albus Dumbledore remained silent, his expression calm as if nothing had happened. But those who knew him well knew that this was the calm before the storm.
Professor McGonagall, however, was different. She strode up to Harry and Ron, her lips trembling, her eyes blazing, and her long nostrils flaring with breath.
Harry's heart pounded: Professor McGonagall now was even more like a dragon than Norbert! At least he wasn't afraid of Norbert now, but facing McGonagall like this, his legs went weak.
"I never imagined you would be so audacious!" Professor McGonagall's voice trembled as she pointed at Harry and Ron.
"It's one in the morning! Instead of sleeping, you're at the Astronomy Tower, bringing along a dragon that the Ministry of Magic explicitly forbids private ownership! Are you all crazy?"
"Professor McGonagall, it's all my fault." Even though Hagrid was panicking, he still had a sense of loyalty and quickly stepped forward, trying to take all the blame upon himself.
"Shut up, Rubeus!" Professor McGonagall whirled around and roared, startling the three- or four-meter-tall Half-blood Giant into silence, like a schoolchild who had done something wrong.
She turned back, glaring angrily at Harry and Ron: "I've never been more ashamed of Gryffindor students than I am now! You've broken at least fifty rules tonight!"
Caught red-handed, Harry and Ron were speechless, and could only lower their heads, wishing they could disappear into the ground.
After venting her anger, Professor McGonagall turned her attention to the four graduates. "I thought you would be more mature after graduation, but I didn't expect you to be just as unreliable as you were in school!"
She turned to Albus Dumbledore, and said angrily, "Albus Dumbledore, you handle this! I can't control these lawless bastards!"
Albus Dumbledore in a worse mood than anyone else; the group of people around him were truly a bunch of brilliant minds!
The dragon was alive! Couldn't they have given it a sleeping Potions before sending it? Now, half the school knows.
In a few days, the Ministry of Magic will definitely come knocking, and in the end, he'll have to clean up the mess. Albus Dumbledore tired he wants to retire on the spot.
"Sigh..." The old man sighed deeply, and this sigh was more effective than McGonagall's roar. Everyone in the room was so ashamed that they wanted to disappear.
"Minerva, what's done is done, there's no point in blaming her," Albus Dumbledore, softening his tone as he tried to smooth things over for the group.
"Wrongdoings must be punished!" Professor McGonagall's chest heaved; she was not persuaded by Albus Dumbledore.
"Punishment is certainly necessary, but the most important thing now is to mitigate the impact." Albus Dumbledore looked at Hagrid and asked in a deep voice, "Hagrid, besides Harry and Ron, who else knows about the dragon?"
Hagrid mumbled softly, "And Riddle, Hermione, and Greengrass."
"And Malfoy," Harry quickly added.
Albus Dumbledore nodded slightly, understanding the situation: Riddle wasn't a troublemaker, and neither were his friends.
"Hagrid, from now on, say that I obtained this dragon egg by accident, and that I'm entrusting it to your care for the time being. We're about to send it to Romanian Dragon Sanctuary, understand?"
Hagrid was so moved he almost cried. Albus Dumbledore was taking the blame for him! Professor McGonagall understood Albus Dumbledore's intentions; it was also for the sake of the school's reputation.
"And what about these little ones?" Professor McGonagall pointed at a row of Gryffindor (graduates and non-graduates), her anger rising.
"Charlie, thank you for your hard work." Albus Dumbledore gestured for Hagrid to hand Norbert over to them. "Norbert won't wake up for the next couple of days, so you can leave without worry."
Charlie and his friend, overjoyed at being granted a pardon, nodded hastily and patted their chests to promise to keep the secret. They practically snatched Norbert and fled the castle in a sorry state.
Only Harry and Ron remained in the room. Albus Dumbledore stared intently at Harry.
"Harry, I hope this will teach you a lesson. Be prepared for anything you do. You were discovered without anyone informing on you; it was purely your own fault."
Professor McGonagall grew increasingly uneasy: it sounded like Albus Dumbledore was advising Harry to be more careful next time he broke school rules?
"Because you woke up most of the students in the school, I must deduct 100 points from your Gryffindor to remind you of the seriousness of this matter."
"Furthermore, starting next week, you will also be subject to confinement as punishment."
One hundred points? Harry lowered his head guiltily, but inwardly he breathed a sigh of relief. For such a big commotion, only losing one hundred points was already enough of Albus Dumbledore's consideration for them.
But the next second, Albus Dumbledore paused and added, "One hundred points for each person."
Harry's face instantly contorted in shock, and Ron's eyes rolled back, nearly causing him to faint.
Professor McGonagall stood to the side, itching with anger, wishing she could scratch something to vent her frustration. This punishment was far too lenient!