However, Snape was obviously an intelligent and suspicious man. Telling him directly might have made him suspicious, so Adrian had chosen a more roundabout approach.
By guiding his friends to reach the conclusion themselves and then making sure Snape overheard their discussion, Adrian had let the Potions Master draw his own logical conclusions. It was the right way to handle someone as clever as Snape.
Actually, Adrian hadn't expected things to go quite so smoothly. He'd initially assumed Snape's private storage room would be covered with protective spells, but surprisingly, there had been none at all.
Thinking about it now, if second-year Hermione could steal Polyjuice ingredients from Snape in the original timeline, the security couldn't be that good. Still, Adrian had used a scent-removal charm afterward to make sure Snape couldn't track him by smell.
Adrian was still thinking over his successful heist when Hermione suddenly grabbed his wrist and started pulling him along.
"Hermione, where are we going?" Harry asked curiously.
Hermione looked around to make sure they weren't being overheard. "To see Hagrid, obviously. Whether someone actually stole Snape's ingredients or Snape staged the whole thing himself, the easiest way to get past Fluffy would be using Polyjuice Potion to impersonate someone Hagrid knows. We should ask Hagrid directly!"
"So we just need to ask if anyone's approached him recently in a weird way, and we'll have our next clue," Harry said excitedly.
Hermione nodded approvingly.
Adrian had no objections. It would be interesting to visit Hagrid now, he wondered if the dragon egg had arrived yet.
The group quickly made their way to Hagrid's hut. The difference from their usual visits was immediately obvious, thick smoke was pouring from the chimney above the fireplace. The moment Hermione knocked and they entered, Adrian felt a wave of overwhelming heat wash over them.
Harry and Ron frowned uncomfortably at the suffocating temperature. Even in winter, this seemed way too much.
Within a minute of entering, fine beads of sweat had appeared on their foreheads. Adrian felt a surge of excitement as his eyes moved to the roaring fire burning against the wall.
More precisely, to the large, dark egg nestled in the heart of the flames.
"Come in, come in! Have something to eat, don't be shy!" Hagrid enthusiastically brought over a large bowl of rock cakes and some jerky, but when he sat down, his massive frame positioned itself directly in front of the fireplace, completely blocking Adrian's view.
Hermione and Harry also noticed something was off about Hagrid. His expressions and movements seemed more restricted than usual, and he'd rather suffer the sweltering heat than open a window for relief.
"Hagrid, what have you done to make it so hot in here?" Ron complained.
"Nothing special... just the weather's been too cold lately," Hagrid explained with an awkward smile, quickly pushing the rock cakes and jerky toward his guests. "Don't you lot have classes this afternoon? Best finish up and head back soon."
This only made Hermione more suspicious, but she had more pressing concerns. Remembering their purpose, she asked urgently, "Hagrid, we're here about something important. Someone broke into Snape's potions storage room. We think the thief might have brewed Polyjuice Potion to approach you while impersonating someone you trust, trying to learn how to get past Fluffy. Has anyone you didn't recognize been asking about Fluffy recently?"
Hearing this news, Hagrid looked surprised, but he quickly recovered and muttered thoughtfully, "But nobody except you lot has been asking about that sort of thing."
Hagrid said this with a suddenly stern expression, glancing suspiciously at each of them. Hermione's words had just reminded him of something troubling. Now Hagrid was beginning to wonder if they might be impostors themselves, why else would they be so interested in Fluffy's secrets?
Suddenly, Hagrid looked around the room and realized someone seemed to be missing.
"Hang on... where's Adrian?" Hagrid asked with confusion.
Harry and the others had been mad about Hagrid's suspicions, but now they too noticed that Adrian, who had been sitting behind them moments ago, had vanished.
Their surprise was interrupted when they heard Adrian's voice coming from behind Hagrid.
"Is this a dragon egg? It's not nearly as pretty as I expected."
Hagrid started violently and spun around. Through the gap created by Hagrid's massive body, Hermione and the others could finally see Adrian standing next to the fireplace, examining the dark egg nestled among the flames, an egg roughly the size of their heads.
"That's a dragon egg!" Ron recognized it immediately, squeezing past Hagrid excitedly to join Adrian. Harry followed suit, both boys crowding around to examine the rare specimen.
Only Hermione noticed the various books scattered across Hagrid's table: "Dragon Breeding for Pleasure and Profit", "The Dragon Keeper's Guide", and "From Egg to Inferno: A Dragon Raiser's Handbook".
Hagrid covered his face with his large, calloused hands, knowing his secret was out.
"Hagrid, keeping dragons is illegal," Hermione reminded him seriously, despite her own fascination with the egg. "If someone discovers this, you could be sent to Azkaban."
"Don't worry, nobody will find out," Hagrid said, patting his chest confidently. "I've always wanted to raise a dragon, and I know exactly how to care for them. Nothing will go wrong."
However, Hermione remained deeply concerned. Dragons grew far too large and far too quickly, within a month, Hagrid's hut would be bursting at the seams.
Hermione turned around, planning to get Adrian's help in talking sense into Hagrid, but was shocked to hear Adrian say excitedly, "After it hatches, could I help you take care of it? This should be a Norwegian Ridgeback, shouldn't it?"
Hagrid was surprised that Adrian could identify the dragon species just from seeing the egg. Even after reading numerous books, Hagrid had only recently learned this was indeed a Norwegian Ridgeback.
This suggested Adrian had considerable knowledge about dragons.
"Of course you can help, as long as it doesn't get in the way of your classes," Hagrid said with a nod. Adrian's enthusiasm made him feel like he'd found a kindred spirit. "But I should warn you, it won't be easy."
Adrian had known about Hagrid's dragon-raising plans from his inherited memories, so he'd studied relevant books in advance and gained a solid understanding of dragon care. The two immediately launched into an animated discussion, completely sidelining Harry, Ron, and Hermione.