[Chapter Size: 1800 Words.]
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Free from Hermione's grip, Harry, Ron, and Neville were like three happy little pigs, or perhaps more. They would almost have run straight to Hagrid's hut if Hermione hadn't insisted on joining them.
Although Hermione wasn't willing to waste her precious revision time, she was still very curious about the Philosopher's Stone.
Curiosity is probably another important trait of Gryffindor, in addition to bravery. In summary, Harry and his friends are all very curious. There's a saying that curiosity killed the cat. Harry and the others had heard it, but they couldn't quite remember it at the moment.
That evening, Harry and his friends walked to the hunting grounds where Hagrid's hut was located.
"I love the air here. It smells like freedom," Ron said dramatically. "Most importantly, it doesn't smell like books."
He was then kicked by Hermione. "The revision plan will continue tomorrow."
"At least today, today I am free," Ron insisted.
At that moment, Harry was sure that Ron and the twins were brothers. The way Ron spoke now was strikingly similar to Fred and George.
When they arrived at the door, Harry and the others were somewhat surprised to find that all the windows were covered with thick curtains. Even though it was still a bit chilly at night in the UK at the end of April, it wasn't that cold during the day.
The sun had just set, so the weather definitely wasn't cold enough to justify.
There was something odd!
Harry and Ron exchanged glances and then knocked on the door.
After a brief question, Hagrid quickly let them in and shut the door behind them.
The room was excessively warm, with a fire crackling in the hearth, causing Harry's glasses to fog up the moment he entered.
"Hey, I really wanted to ask, is there any way for wizards to cure nearsightedness?" Harry complained as he asked Hermione to help him cast a defogging spell on his glasses.
The "Anti-Fog" charm is a very basic spell, but Harry didn't know that. He had decided to learn it many times but forgot as soon as he turned away. Now he was determined to learn it, but who knew how long he would remember?
Sometimes, having a helpful Hermione around doesn't exactly contribute to one's progress in learning.
Especially at times like these, Hermione was always willing to help.
Hagrid served tea and sandwiches to the four of them. However, after they learned that the filling was ferret meat, Harry and the others expressed indifference.
"Alright then, do you have any questions for me?" Hagrid looked at the four children with a hint of irritation.
"Yes," Harry nodded quickly. He didn't feel the need to beat around the bush. "We want to know if the Philosopher's Stone has any other protections besides your Fluffy. For example, do other professors also provide protection?"
Hagrid frowned when he heard this. "I can't say. First of all, I don't know. Dumbledore didn't tell me anything else. Secondly, you already know too much. So even if I did know something, I wouldn't tell you."
At that point, Hagrid pursed his lips and added, "There's a reason the Stone is kept here. It was nearly stolen from Gringotts, you must know that, right? I thought Gringotts was secure. Ah, I don't understand how you know about Fluffy and the Philosopher's Stone."
"Hey, Hagrid, you must know." Hermione's eyes softened, and she adopted a sweet voice with a cute expression: "We all know you're very clever. What could possibly be hidden from your eyes?"
Hermione's words made Harry feel extremely uncomfortable. The Hermione he knew was the one who picked up books weighing more than two kilograms and hit him and Ron with them. Who was this sweet girl in front of him?
Ron's reaction was even more extreme, and he couldn't help but shiver. He wanted to say something, but Hermione shot him a fierce look, and he immediately fell silent. The only person Harry knew who could make Ron control his mouth was Hermione.
Hagrid didn't notice the little exchanges between the others. He was so pleased to hear Hermione's praise that his face lit up with smiles. Even his beard seemed lighter. He looked so happy.
Hermione pressed on, "We just want to know who is involved in the protection of the Philosopher's Stone. We all know that Dumbledore trusts you more, and we want to know who else might have earned his trust."
Hearing the words "Dumbledore trusts you more," Hagrid straightened up: "Well, it shouldn't matter if I tell you this. As you know, the four heads of houses are involved, of course. Professor McGonagall, Professor Flitwick, Professor Sprout, and Professor Snape. Oh, and Professor Quirrell."
Harry and the others exchanged glances. It was pretty much as they had expected, though whether it was good or bad, they didn't know.
At that moment, a series of tremors grabbed the group's attention.
…
Harry felt a little upset.
It wasn't because there was more homework to do after the Easter holidays during the revision period than before. Of course, that was part of it. But the biggest reason was that he had discovered that Hagrid had raised a dragon.
If Harry hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he would never have believed it. Even after seeing it with his own eyes, Harry still didn't want to believe it.
He was no longer the little wizard who knew nothing when he first arrived at Hogwarts. Now, he had a basic but clear understanding of the magical world.
He had once thought that Hagrid's idea of raising a dragon was interesting.
But now, Harry knew clearly that Hagrid's idea of raising a dragon was a terrible one.
But when Hagrid spent more than a week and hatched a dragon egg in front of the four of them on a dark night, Harry's heart sank completely.
The Philosopher's Stone, Homework, Final Exams, Dragon.
Harry no longer found the magical world exciting. He felt a little tired.
Hermione had the same thought as Harry.
At that moment, she was glaring at the tiny dragon in front of her. The little dragon sneezed and released sparks, which burned a large hole in Hagrid's beard. She murmured:
"Hagrid, I must tell you that raising dragons has been illegal for over three hundred years."
Hermione is an excellent student, no doubt about that. But even being a top student, it would be impossible for her to be familiar with legal provisions after less than a year in the magical world.
Ron was the one who said the most about dragon breeding being illegal, since his brother Charlie was raising dragons on a dragon farm.
However, Charlie had sent pictures of dragons to Ron and other family members more than once. Yet, Ron still had no fond feelings for this extremely dangerous magical creature.
Before that, the only one slightly interested in the tiny dragon was Neville. He had never come into contact with anything related to dragons, probably because his grandmother, as he puts it, "doesn't want him near anything dangerous."
However, this small curiosity and interest disappeared after the little dragon took its first fiery breath.
"Look, it's so cute, isn't it?" Unlike Harry and the others, who were devastated, helpless, and worried, Hagrid seemed extremely happy. He casually swatted away the sparks from his body and then patted dragon's head nonchalantly.
The little dragon bit his finger, but since it was so small and just hatched, its fangs couldn't even pierce Hagrid's skin. This made Hagrid think the little dragon was playing with him. He smiled even more:
"Look, he knows his mother." As he said this, he scratched the dragon's jaw with his fingers.
At that moment, Harry felt as if he were petting a dog or stroking a cat.
"Hagrid, I need to tell you something..." Ron looked at Hagrid, who was treating the dragon like a dog, with a confused expression. "You must have read a lot of books about dragons, right? Don't deny it, I saw your library loan record. So, you must know that this is a Norwegian Ridgeback. A very rare dragon. Although its flames aren't particularly strong, it can definitely burn down your house easily. Also, its teeth are poisonous, very poisonous!"
Harry and Neville knew very little about dragons.
All Harry knew was that every part of a dragon was worth a lot of money. For example, the dragon leather gloves he had bought were extremely expensive. Furthermore, parts of dragons could be used to make wands. Dragon blood is also used occasionally in potion-making classes and is quite costly.
Hermione had learned a lot about dragons in the past few days, mainly information about dragons and some laws. After hearing what Ron said, she immediately agreed:
"Yes, Hagrid. While the Norwegian Ridgeback is small when it is born, it grows very quickly. In just one week, it will grow to three times its current size. In a month, at most, your room will no longer be able to accommodate it. What will you do then?"
"I've thought about that." Hagrid nodded seriously. "I can hide it in the Forbidden Forest. I'll make a clearing for it. As you said, Hermione, after a month, when it's big enough, there shouldn't be anything in the Forbidden Forest that would dare to intimidate a dragon. I'll also say hello to the guys in the Forbidden Forest."
"You can say hello to the creatures in the Forbidden Forest? I've heard there are werewolves there!" Ron's thoughts suddenly shifted. When the moon is full, the faint howling of wolves can be heard coming from the direction of the Forbidden Forest.
Harry and his friends were in Astronomy class during the full moon, and they had heard it while watching the sky.
Many students, mostly from wizarding families, said there were werewolves in the Forbidden Forest.
Harry's thoughts also wandered a bit: "If we put the dragon in the Forbidden Forest, it seems like a solution after all, the Forbidden Forest is so vast!"
The Gryffindor common room and dormitories are in the tower. Harry once flew his broomstick to a very high spot to look out far, but he couldn't see the edge of the Forbidden Forest. This misty dark forest is unexpectedly huge.
While Harry was lost in thought, Hagrid suddenly exclaimed: "Who's there?"
The next moment, Hagrid quickly jumped up and ran to the window, his agility completely disproportionate to his large size.
"What's going on?" Hermione immediately sensed something was wrong.
"There's someone, a student." Hagrid turned, his face pale and confused.
Harry reacted faster and went to the door, where he saw a boy walking toward the castle.
Platinum blonde hair and a slim figure.
It was Draco Malfoy.
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