Legal Private Property

Andrew Marcus rushed into the cavern with his wand raised higher than his handlebar mustache.

Charlie ran ahead of him, the hem of his fireproof robe torn on a rock, his face streaked with sweat and ash. Several other wizards followed behind them.

They all stopped.

A Black Dragon lay in the middle of the cavern.

Its fifteen-foot body lay curled beside the half-dried swamp mud. A tear ran across one wing membrane from tip to base, and a long sword was lodged between the scales on its back.

Where its purple pupils should have been, there was nothing. Its eyes were empty, its tail club hung limp on the ground, and its chin rested beside a puddle of vomit mixed with stomach fluid and half-digested bones.

Norbert crouched beside the Black Dragon, pawing at its tail club. When he saw the newcomers, he raised his head and let out an indignant rumble.

Andrew opened his mouth, then closed it.

His gaze moved from the dragon's corpse to Norbert, then from Norbert to the boy sitting against the cavern wall, his robes caked with mud, ash, and Dragon Blood, with several burns still visible on his face.

It took him a few seconds to piece together what he was seeing. Then a furious expression, edged with cruelty, spread across his face.

"You—" Andrew stepped forward, kicking a loose stone aside. His voice echoed through the cavern. "You slaughtered one of the sanctuary's rare animals! A Hebridean Black—a 5X-class magical creature registered with the International Confederation of Wizards—and you killed it!"

Gavin lifted his head from the cavern wall and glanced at him.

"Your rare animal nearly killed me." His voice was still a little hoarse, but his tone was calm. "I acted to save my life. I'm sure Wizarding World