Chapter 37

Raising dragons is illegal, a fact well known in the wizarding world. However, given Hagrid's current excitement, Albert felt he might not be easily persuaded to abandon his dream of raising a dragon.

Certainly, when Hermione pointed out that Hagrid lived in a wooden house and that a fire-breathing dragon inside could destroy everything, Hagrid remained eager to tell them about the dragon.

"I read a dragon-raising book for fun," Hagrid said. "It said that the eggs should be placed in the fire since their mothers breathe on them. Look, it says here that once hatched, they need to be fed half a bucket of brandy and chicken blood. And look here, it shows how to identify different types of eggs. What I have is a Norwegian Ridgeback, which is very rare."

Albert watched Hagrid, who was happily humming and poking the fire, and realized that persuading Hermione was likely futile.

Perhaps Hagrid would only wake up to the problems after a period of raising the dragon.

Moreover, Albert had a keen interest in Herbology and was familiar with plant cultivation. He now planned to grow a special plant once the dragon hatched, hoping to acquire some dragon-related items to aid in its cultivation.

Meanwhile, Harry and Ron began to follow the review plan outlined with Hermione's help. But this only added to their distress, as now there was another concern—the dragon—alongside the Philosopher's Stone. They felt they might go mad sooner or later if this continued.

Then, one day at breakfast, Hedwig brought another message for Hagrid, containing only four words.

Ron didn't want to go to Herbology class but wanted to head straight to Hagrid's hut, a notion Albert strongly disagreed with.

Ron wanted to argue, but Albert interrupted him rather brusquely.

"Be quiet," Albert said. "This isn't the place to discuss it. Haven't you seen a group of Slytherins coming in for breakfast?"

"Lunchtime."

As soon as the bell rang, Harry and the others quickly threw down their shovels and rushed across the field toward the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Hagrid greeted them, his face glowing with excitement.

"He'll be out soon," he said, letting them into the hut. "Where's Albert?"

"Albert and Professor Sprout have some questions for each other. He spends a lot of time in the greenhouse whenever he has a Herbology class," Hermione told Hagrid. "He'll be here shortly."

When Albert hurried from the greenhouse, the dragon hatchling had already been born. The newborn dragon had crinkled wings and was about the size of a chicken, occasionally emitting a spark or two from its mouth.

Hagrid, who had been bitten on the finger while trying to pet the dragon, was still cheerfully exclaiming, "Oh, look, he really knows me now!"

Seeing this, Hermione swallowed any advice she had been ready to give. At least today, Hagrid, so happy, would never listen to advice.

Let's wait until the little dragon grows and causes all sorts of problems, then we can advise Hagrid with the facts.

As they left Hagrid's hut and returned to the castle, Albert was surprised by something.

What was odd was that in the original story, Malfoy had seen Hagrid's dragon, but now he had not.

Albert looked at the hut and smiled with relief. However, thinking about Hagrid trying to raise a dragon inside, he suppressed his smile. After all, it would be very difficult for a passionate animal lover to give up on raising a dragon.

Albert's suspicions became reality. Dragons were not truly domesticated animals, at least not for Hagrid, but Hagrid refused to give up.

In just one week, the dragon's size had tripled, and clouds of smoke were coming from its nostrils. Hagrid had put aside his job guarding the hunting grounds because the dragon kept him busy. The floor was littered with empty brandy bottles and chicken feathers.

When Albert and the others went to see Hagrid, he had a maternal look on his large face as he petted the little dragon.

"I've decided to name him Norbert," Hagrid said, looking at the dragon with tear-filled eyes. "He really knows me now. Look, Norbert! Norbert!"

But Albert stepped in to persuade Hagrid. "Hagrid, if the dragon keeps growing at this rate, it will be the size of your house in two weeks. You can't hide it from the school, and you know the wizarding law. According to the law, raising dragons privately is a felony punishable by imprisonment in Azkaban. Not to mention, dragons are meant to be the kings of the skies; their nature isn't suited for you to keep in this house. For Norbert's sake, you should let him go."

It was clear Albert's words had an impact on Hagrid. He bit his lip and said, "I—I know I can't keep him forever, and I know I need to let him go soon. Dumbledore has helped me so much, and I shouldn't bother him anymore, but I can't just get rid of him. He's too small to live on his own."

Hagrid truly loved these creatures. Compared to those who kept pets out of mere whim in their past lives and then discarded them if things didn't go well.

But now the problem still needed solving. Ron thought for a moment and then spoke up. "My brother Charlie raises dragons in Romania. We could give him this dragon. I'm sure he has a way to take good care of it."

"That sounds good for Norbert." Hagrid cried as he said this, occasionally pulling out a large handkerchief to wipe the corners of his eyes.

Finally, in front of Hagrid, Ron wrote a letter to his brother asking about the matter.

The following week felt like a year. At around midnight on Wednesday, Albert and Hermione sat in the common room, starting their review. Harry and Ron were crawling through the hole in the common room, covered in invisibility cloaks, having just visited Hagrid's hut to feed Norbert.

"Albert, help me check Ron's hand issue," Harry said to Albert as he entered, having seen Albert heal himself after fighting a giant beast. Harry sought Albert's assistance.

Ron extended his finger, wrapped in a blood-stained handkerchief. Albert unwrapped it and found that the wound was from a dragon bite, with greenish tooth marks accompanied by redness and swelling.

"Damn, why are this dragon's teeth poisonous? Wait a moment, I'll get something." After saying that, Albert ran upstairs, leaving the three of them looking at each other in the common room.