Chapter 480 "A Serious Talk"

Following the direction of the dragon's roar, Sean and Hermione walked carefully through the forest.

"It's so far." Said Hermione.

Sean handed over a handkerchief, "The dragons gathered together will cause them to roar at each other and arouse their desire to attack. Maintaining this state for a long time is not good for the dragons themselves. The MacFusty's will not intervene in the things that happen among dragons, but if it is a man-made situation, they will definitely intervene."

Hermione took the handkerchief and wiped her forehead softly. Then, in a low voice, she asked, "Does the MacFusty clan really like dragons?"

Sean spread his hands, "No, they are more like guarding the honor and creed of their own clan. They only care about their Hebridean dragons, and other dragons are not within their concern. They didn't even allow this dragon to go to other dragons' habitats to preserve them.

"Is it to maintain the dignity and nature of the dragon within their control?" Hermione concluded.

"Something like that. Many wizarding families have this habit of maintaining the codes and creeds passed down from their ancestors." Sean said.

If the MacFusty clan really loved the Hebridean dragon, they might listen to the dragon's own opinion, but this was unlikely. They looked for the dragons alone far away. When Sean and Hermione found it, the moon was already hanging high above their heads.

The two quietly approached the open space. In the huge specially made cage, two dragons were half lying on the ground, and one of them looked around from time to time.

"It looks like it's waiting for you," Hermione whispered.

"You may be right." Sean looked over, and there were eight people around the cage. They were wearing dark wizard robes and thick dragon skin cloaks, and they were whispering something at this moment.

Sean was impressed with this attire. The MacFusty clan was dressed like this when they came to pick up the little dragon back then, and the clan crest was on the hem of the robe.

Sean looked at this group of people and found that the leader he had seen before did not seem to be there. It seemed that he was not leading the team this time.

Sean stood still and considered it. Hermione watched from the side and, after a while, couldn't help asking, "Do you know these people? Can you reach a consensus with them?"

"I don't know. It's not good to show up suddenly. If we don't reach an agreement and the dragon disappears later, they will suspect me," Sean said.

"An agreement?" Hermione asked.

"I met two people from the clan when I was in first grade," Sean explained, "I wanted to see if I could make some talk with them and…"

Hermione was taken aback for a moment and looked at him in disbelief, "Do you really want to get it in a legit way?"

"I was going to buy it directly with Galleons." Sean spread his hands.

Hermione slapped her head, "That's a dragon! Are you going to buy two dragons?!"

"There's nothing wrong with it. The sale of live magical animals has always existed. Owls, toads, lizards, spiders, and even raw materials used for various magic items can be bought and sold. Some are illegal, and some are legal. It's not that strange when you make an offer for a dragon."

"But will they sell it?" Hermione asked hesitantly.

"That's the problem. According to Stephanie, the clan will sell the corpses of dragons that die of old age or accidental death, such as dragon heartstrings, but they don't seem to sell live dragons. Mr. Ollivander wanted to buy a small Hebridean dragon to try out the effect of a live dragon heartstring as a wand core, but he was rejected by them."

"It sounds like..." Hermione frowned.

Sean smiled, "It's a bit cruel."

"It has always been the case. Among the three core materials used by Mr. Ollivander, the dragon heartstring was taken from the corpse. Although they have various magical powers, for wizards, they can be domesticated, controlled, and of course slaughtered as a source of raw materials." Sean said calmly.

Hermione pursed her lips, frowning together.

Sean continued, "The materials you use to brew the potion come from various animals and plants, and some materials even have to be taken out of living bodies in order to maintain the medicinal properties. The dragon leather gloves and cloak you use also come from corpses, the books you like to read are made of animal skins, and the runes are made of animal blood. There's nothing wrong with it."

"I, I..." Hermione wanted to explain but didn't know what to say. Sean was right.

She lowered her head and said nothing more.

Sean glanced at her, "I know what you think. These two dragons will become my partners, and in your eyes, their status has become higher, just like Dave and Naja."

Hermione clenched her fist and released it dejectedly. She said with frustration, "I have a double standard. I don't know now whether my so-called pity is sympathy for these animals or if it is to satisfy my own need."

Sean smiled, "Why can't we have both?"

Hermione looked up in bewilderment, "The two conflicted with each other."

"Hermione, I just want to tell you one thing, don't use your own opinions to add to other things, whether it's magical animals or wizards."

"Do I like Fantastic Beasts?" Sean asked.

"Yes, I like it very much, but I am still using materials derived from various magical animals, and I will not rush in front of the MacFusty clan and shout that I want to rescue the dragons. I choose to treat my animal friends well, and I still support the magical animal economy, but I will definitely stop such behaviors like abuse and private trafficking."

"But..." Hermione's lips twitched twice.

Sean sighed, "You want to talk about those magical animals with advanced intelligence, right?"

"My opinion is to get along with those highly intelligent animals that can communicate normally with humans, but I don't care about others. You can't save every animal; it's part of nature, and wizards are part of the natural cycle."

This time, Hermione remained silent for a long time. When she looked up, tears were still in her eyes, but she nodded to Sean.

"I understand what you mean…"

Sean smiled, "Of course, you are a smart one."

It took Hermione a moment to recover before she said, "You're hinting at my house-elf movement as well, aren't you?"

Sean admitted it frankly, "Yes, many people have already approached me and asked me to persuade you about it."

Hermione touched her pocket, and an S.P.E.W. badge was inside. She was planning to launch a house elf movement campaign this year.

Sean took the badge and said softly, "I understand your intention, but like I said, it is a part of natural selection."

"I shouldn't impose my opinion forcefully on it, should I?" Hermione whispered.

"Yes, house elves are highly intelligent beings, and they should be given the right to choose. I have already put away those socks and pillowcases you are going to throw around the castle."

Hermione pursed her lips, "You already thought about it?"

"Because I'm friends with a lot of house elves, and I know your behavior will cause trouble for them. The last time I accidentally dropped a scarf when I went to the kitchen, Polis almost freaked out, and no one wanted to pick up that scarf." Sean laughed.

Looking at his face, Hermione froze for a moment.

Looking at Hermione, Sean put his arms around her shoulders and said, "Go make more friends with the house elves, ask their opinions, and think about how to develop your association."

Hermione nodded.

Sean smiled, "Now that we have successfully reached an agreement, there is still a thing we should do."

Hermione has always been compassionate and has a sense of justice. He did have this in mind when he brought Hermione, but he didn't expect to be able to get around it.

Sean pricked up his ears and listened for a while, then said, "You hide first; I'll go and eavesdrop on them."

"Be careful."

Sean cast a Disillusionment Charm on himself under the Invisibility Cloak and sneaked up to the MacFusty clan members.

"When today's dinner is over, we will take the dragon back." A person said.

"Well, the process has been discussed with Professor Dumbledore," another person continued, "However, I didn't expect that that kid could communicate with the dragons."

A man who looked like the leader looked back at the two dragons, "The two of them are much more excited than before when they came back, probably because of that kid."

"It's ironic to say that we have managed the dragons for generations, but there has never been such a person in the family who can communicate with the dragon."

The leader's face was serious, "We can only follow the ancestor's instruction to take care of the dragons. Other things like that are out of our consideration, and communicating with the dragon is meaningless to our mission."

A woman who looked much younger murmured, "I always feel that these two dragons are happier with that kid."

"Put away your sentimentality," the leader glanced at her, "The dragon's emotions are not our concern. There is only one thing we have to do: let the dragon keep its natural behavior and let the clan continue to be glorious."

The woman was silent but looked sullen.

Another young man scratched his head, "What if that kid wants these two dragons? For example, he taught us how to communicate with dragons, or bought them with money. Knowing that the family's financial situation is not that good."

"Impossible, it is absolutely impossible for us to sell any dragon." The leader said firmly.

He quietly added in his heart, "The dead don't count."

Sean listened for a while and understood their attitude. Just like he expected, it was not for the love of the dragons but for the glory of their clan.

They must continue to manage and raise this group of dragons "to maintain the dignity of the dragon family."

Sean thought silently. It is unrealistic to spend money to deal with this. Bypassing several guards, Sean sneaked to the cage of the dragon.

The dragon's nose twitched. It smelled Sean's invisible presence nearby, and they immediately became excited.

"Don't make too much noise." Sean communicated with the dragon.

The dragon snorted with sparks to express his understanding.

"Listen, I'm seriously asking again. If you want to come and live with me, you'll get along with other fantastic animals, like the Loch Ness Monster, the Basilisk, the Wampus Cat, and anything else. You have to give up your group later, and you have to give up the sky where you can fly freely. My place is big, and you can enjoy the freedom later."

"Have you really thought it through?"

Although he couldn't see Sean with a serious expression, the dragon shook its head.

"Okay, in that case," Sean laughed, "Come with me."

The dragon let out a deafening roar. The members of the MacFusty clan looked over and turned their heads after finding nothing unusual.

Sean was covered in cold sweat and rubbed his eardrums, "I said don't make too much noise."

"I thought of something to avoid causing trouble. When the time comes, you'll know later, and this is what I'm going to do…"

The dragon listened, indicating that he understood.

"Okay, it's settled; I'll see you later."

He opened his mouth wide and wanted to yell, but his wife came out to remind him of Sean's instructions.

Several guards looked at each other suspiciously, "Are the dragons okay?"