Norbert the Fire Dragon

Hagrid had actually shown up in the school library. Kano glanced at the cover of the book tucked under his arm and knew that Hagrid had obtained the dragon egg.

This dragon egg had been given to Hagrid by Quirrell in disguise. After their transaction, they had shared a few drinks.

Hagrid's mouth was as loose as his leather coat, and after a few cups of liquor, he had even less idea what he was saying.

Just like that, Quirrell had easily learned from him how to get past the first obstacle guarding the Philosopher's Stone.

But Hagrid had yet to realize that he had leaked the information. Right now, his mind was entirely occupied by the baby dragon that was about to hatch.

"Private dragon breeding has been banned by the Ministry of Magic," Ron said, clearly familiar with the subject. "Wizards used to keep dragons in their backyards all the time, and the Ministry had to constantly send people to clean up after them."

"And dragons are dangerous too. Charlie raises dragons in Romania, and he's covered in burn scars."

Harry wanted to go see Hagrid. He was very curious about dragons.

Kano, on the other hand, was not particularly interested. There were far too many varieties of dragons in Gensokyo. Even dragons that had vanished from the mortal world could still be found there.

So Kano had not only seen many dragons, but could even describe to Harry and the others what dragon meat tasted like...

Seeing that Kano had no intention of joining them, Harry and the other two headed straight for Hagrid's hut.

For the next while, their thoughts were almost entirely consumed by the dragon egg. Only Hermione's revision schedule could bring them back to reality.

According to Harry, it was a Norwegian Ridgeback egg. Kano's only impression of that kind of dragon was that its meat was rather tough—the sort that even fairy chefs could not salvage.

Maybe hatchlings tasted better?

Hagrid had already begun thinking of himself as the baby dragon's mother. If he knew what Kano was planning in his head, he would probably fight him to the death.

A week later, the baby dragon was about to hatch.

Kano still did not go. Harry and the others could barely focus during Herbology, their minds filled with thoughts of rushing over to Hagrid's place.

Newly hatched dragons looked for their mothers. As a traditional druid, Kano's aura was highly attractive to animals.

He did not want to steal Hagrid's role as the mother, nor did he have the time to care for a baby dragon.

"Kano, Malfoy followed us just now." Harry found Kano in a panic after returning from Hagrid's hut. "He saw the baby dragon through the window."

"If it's Malfoy, he probably won't say anything for the time being," Kano said with certainty.

The Malfoy name actually followed the Black Family's naming tradition as well, and had most likely been chosen by his mother, Narcissa.

Draco was the dragon constellation in the sky. He had always wanted a dragon, but Lucius had not indulged his son as usual.

So Malfoy was probably thinking about how to claim the baby dragon for himself.

"But I'd still advise you to send it away as soon as possible. They grow far too quickly," Kano said sincerely.

"How quickly?" Harry asked in confusion.

"In another two weeks, the three of you could fit inside its stomach," Kano gave a vivid description.

Harry's face went pale.

Ron and Hermione were frightened as well. Ron immediately wrote to his older brother Charlie, asking how they should deal with this rapidly expanding problem.

Hagrid? He was completely immersed in his raising game and had entirely set aside his work.

A week later, the Norwegian Ridgeback named Norbert had grown to three times its original size.

Charlie's reply arrived. From a professional perspective, he explained exactly how fast Norbert could grow. He told them that his friends were currently in Britain and could fly to Hogwarts next Saturday at midnight to collect Norbert.

Hagrid sobbed and sniffled, unwilling to part with Norbert, while Norbert only wanted to eat.

Two days later, even Hagrid could no longer take it.

Hagrid did not even have a place to sleep anymore. His hut had been taken over by Norbert. If Norbert had not been unwilling to burn down its own nest, Hagrid's hut would have gone up in flames long ago.

"All right, I knew this day would come, but I just... can't accept it."

Hagrid pulled out an enormous checkered handkerchief large enough to serve as a tablecloth and blew his nose loudly, making a sound like a train whistle.

Norbert answered from inside the hut, blasting a stream of dragonfire through the window. Ron, who knew how powerful dragonfire was, turned green.

Kano could not understand why Charlie's friends had chosen to ride brooms to the window of Hogwarts' tallest tower to collect Norbert.

Did they think a few young wizards could easily transport a dragon there at midnight?

Gryffindor's points had not been blown in by the wind. They had earned quite a few from Quidditch, and Hermione and Kano had gained plenty in class as well.

Gryffindor had a chance at competing for the House Cup this year. If Harry and the others were caught sneaking around at night because of Norbert, McGonagall would not let them off lightly.

"Kano, if Filch catches us, Gryffindor will be deducted into last place," Harry pleaded.

"Filch will skin Norbert and make a whip out of him, then hang us up and flog us," Ron added.

"McGonagall won't let Filch do that, but she'll be very disappointed." What Hermione, the model student, feared most was not anything else, but seeing disappointment in a professor's eyes.

Kano sighed and asked Ron for Charlie's letter.

"This thing shouldn't have been kept." Kano rubbed his fingers together, and the letter caught fire. The ashes were carried out the window by the wind.

"Harry, it's time to use your Invisibility Cloak."

On Saturday, Hagrid tearfully packed Norbert into a wooden crate.

"I put lots of rats in there. He can eat them on the way," Hagrid said, wiping away his tears.

"And his favorite toy, too."

The sound of tearing fabric came from inside the crate. That toy was probably already in pieces.

At midnight, the four of them, hidden beneath the Invisibility Cloak, used the Levitation Charm to carry the crate out of Hagrid's hut.

"Goodbye... goodbye, Norbert. Mommy will miss you."

Hagrid, the mother hen, bid farewell to his dragon hatchling in what he thought was a very quiet voice. Beneath the Invisibility Cloak, the four of them looked as if they were wearing masks of pain.

"Honestly," Ron muttered, "I really shouldn't have expected Hagrid to understand what keeping his voice down meant."

"Just like he doesn't understand what keeping a secret means. We've known that for ages," Hermione added, and the group quietly entered the castle.

They walked in silence along the moving staircases, gradually drawing closer to the highest tower.

Suddenly, Mrs. Norris came running out. She was Filch's cat, and the moment she spotted students out after curfew, she would immediately go tattling.

Harry and the others practically stopped breathing, but Kano was not too concerned. Mrs. Norris was a clever cat, but she was still only a cat.

The Invisibility Cloak was powerful. Mrs. Norris circled around once, then left.

In the end, they reached the top of the tower without incident. Charlie's friends arrived as promised, securely tied the crate to their brooms, and flew away beneath the moonlight.

Kano looked toward the headmaster's office. He always felt that Dumbledore was watching this place.

Then again, if old Dumbledore hadn't let them through, these people probably wouldn't even have been able to get into the school.

Malfoy seemed to still be dreaming of stealing Norbert for himself. Hopefully, he would soon discover that the dragon had already vanished.