Chapter 10: Dragon Rescue
Quirrell, however, must have been braver than the four first year Gryffindors thought. In the weeks that followed he did seem to be getting paler and thinner, but it didn't look as though he'd cracked yet. Every time they pass the third floor corridor, Harry, Josh, Ron, and Hermione would press their ears to the door to see if they could hear Fluffy was still growling inside.
Snape was walking around in his sour and angry self as always ,which surely meant that the stone was still safe and guarded. And Whenever Harry passed Quirrell, he would give him an encouraging smile, Josh would tell him how a great teacher he was, and Ron would tell people off for laughing at Quirrell's stutter.
Hermione, however, had something else on her mind than the Sorcerer's Stone. She had started drawing up study schedules and color coding all of her notes. The boys wouldn't have minded, but she kept nagging them to do the same.
"Hermione, the exams are ages away," Ron told her.
"Ten weeks!" Hermione snapped. "That's not ages, that's like a second to Nicolas Flamel."
"We're not 600 years old," Ron snapped back. Harry and Josh shared a glance and rolled their eyes. "Why are you studying anyways? You already know it all."
"What am i studying for? Are you crazy?" Hermione nearly shouted. "You realize we need to pass these exams to get into our second year. They're very important. I should have started studying a month ago! And as the top student, I need to keep up the reputation."
"Why, you're not the top student anymore," Ron said lazily making Hermione look up in surprise and Josh freeze. Harry looked up to see what was up.
"What do you mean I'm not the top student anymore?" Hermione asked worriedly. Ron looked up at Hermione.
"Well, it looks like someone is smarter than you Hermione," Ron replied with a smirk. Harry looked at Josh who was glaring at Ron.
"Who?" Hermione asked.
"It's J-"
"Justin Flinch-Fletchy!" Josh blurted out quickly and loudly. Hermione, Ron, and Harry stared at Josh.
"Him!" Hermione said exasperatedly. "Oh my gosh, I so am behind, i really need to get to the Library," she said to herself and started gathering her things. Ron looked at Josh who was glaring at him again. "Josh?" Josh looked at Hermione questioningly and with a smile. "You coming?"
"Yeah, just a minute," Josh replied. Hermione nodded and went ahead. Josh turned towards Ron. "What's the big idea Weasley!"
"What?" Ron said. "She was getting annoying and I wanted to tell her she wasn't the best and that you were."
"Look, if you have told her that, then she would have hated me or something," Josh replied.
"No she wouldn't," Ron said. Josh rolled his eyes and sighed and left for the library where he found Hermione off to the side on her favorite table. He sat next to her.
"You know Josh, I've was wondering how you got the information on the Sorcerer's Stone," Hermione told him.
"I told you Hermione, I got it from here," Josh lied again and again.
"I know and when i came to check for myself the same day, the book you got it from was gone," Hermione stated. Josh looked at his notes refusing to look at Hermione.
"Maybe someone took it before you got here," Josh replied as Hermione continued to look at him.
"Who would want Eldest Witches and Wizards?" Hermione asked.
"I dunno, an older student," Josh answered with a shrug.
"Josh, look me in the eye and tell me you got the information here," Hermione said. Josh hesitated then looked at Hermione.
"I got it here, in the Library, Hermione," He said with a straight face. For a few seconds, the two Gryffindors stared at one another, and Hermione looked away first. Josh silently sighed and went back to his notes. His friendship with Daphne Greengrass was safe.
Days passed and the first years were given more and more Homework each day. It turned out that the teachers were along the lines of Hermione's thinking. When Easter Holiday arrived, it wasn't filled with fun but with copious amounts of studying and doing homework. Harry, Josh, and Ron spent most of their free time with Hermione studying in the Library or trying to get through all their extra work. Josh spent twice as much time doing the same with Daphne.
"I'll never remember this," Ron burst out one afternoon, throwing down his quill and looking longingly out the library window. It was the first really fine day the had had in months. The sky was a clear, forget-me-not blue, and there was a feeling in the air of summer approaching.
Harry and Josh, who were sharing a book and looking up Dittany in One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi, didn't look up until they heard Ron say, "Hagrid? What are you doing here in the library?"
Hagrid shuffled into view, hiding something behind his back. "Jus' lookin'," he said in a shifty that got everyone at the table's attention. "An' what are ye' lot up ter?" He looked suddenly suspicious. "Yer still not lookin' fer Nicolas Flamel, are ye'?"
"Oh, we found him ages ago," Ron said. "And we know what your dog's guarding, The Sorcerer's St-"
"SHHH!" Hagrid, Hermione, Josh, and Harry hushed and looking around quickly to make sure no one heard anything.
"Don' go shoutin' about it, What's the matter with yeh?" Hagrid said.
"There are a few things we wanted to ask you as a matter a fact," Harry said. "About what's guarding the Stone apart from Fluffy-"
"SHHH!" Hagrid said again. "Listen, come an' see me later, I'm not promisin' I'll tell you everythin', mind, but don' go rabbitin' about it in here, students aren' s'spposed ter know. They'll think I've told yeh-"
"Alright see you later, then," Harry said.
"Bye Hagrid," Josh waved. Hagrid waved back then shuffled out of the library.
"I wonder what he was hiding behind his back," Hermione wondered thoughtfully.
"Do you think it had anything to do with the stone?" Harry asked his friends. Ron shrugged.
"I'll go see what section he was in," Josh volunteered as he stood from his chair and walked over to the section Hagrid was in. He came back a minutes later with a few books in his arms where he slammed them down on their table. "Dragons!" he whispered fiercely. "Hagrid was looking up stuff on Dragons, look at these: Dragon Species of Great Britain and Ireland; From Egg to Inferno, A Dragon Keeper's Guide; How to Keep Safe From Dragons."
"Hagrid's always wanted a dragon, he told me the first time we met," Harry told his friends.
"But it's against our laws," Ron replied. Josh nodded in agreement. "Dragon breeding was outlawed by the Warlocks' Convention of 1709, everyone knows that. It's hard to stop Muggle's from noticing us if we're keeping dragons in our back garden. Anyways, you can't tame dragons, they're really dangerous."
"But they're aren't wild Dragons in Britain?" said Harry, puzzled.
"Of course there are," Josh spoke up. "Common Welsh Green and Hebridean Blacks. The Ministry of Magic has a job of hushing them up, let me tell you. Our people have to keep putting spells on Muggles who have spotted them, to make them forget."
"So, then what on earth is Hagrid up to?" Hermione asked no one in particular.
When the four Gryffindors knocked on the Gamekeeper's hut an hour later, they were surprised to see all the curtains closed. Hagrid called out, "Who is it!" before he let them in, and shut and locked the door.
It was blazing hot inside. Though it was a warm day, there was a blazing fire in the fireplace. Hagrid made the quad some tea and offered them rock cakes, which they refused.
"So, yeh wanted ter ask me somethin'?" Hagrid said to the four.
"Yes," Harry answered. "We were wondering if you could tell us what else is guarding the Sorcerer's Stone besides you dog, Fluffy?"
Hagrid frowned at Harry. "O' course i can'," he replied. "Number one, I don' know meself. Number two, yeh already know too much, so i wouldn' tell yeh if i could. That stone's there fer a good reason. It was almos' stolen outta Gringotts - I s'pose yeh've worked that out an' all."
"Oh, come on, Hagrid, you might not want to tell us, but you do know, you know everything that goes around here," Hermione said in a warm and flattering voice.
"We only wondered who did the guarding really," Josh went on. "We wondered who Dumbledore trusted enough to help him, apart from you."
"Well, I don' s'pose it couldn' hurt to tell yeh that..." Hagrid said as he began to think. Josh and Hermione looked at one another smirking while Ron was a little confused. "Let's see...he borrowed Fluffy from me...then some o' the teachers did some enchantments...like Professor Sprout, Professor Flitwick, Professor McGonagall, Professor Quirrell, an' Dumbledore did somethin himself o' course, oh! And Professor Snape o' course." Hagrid finished.
"Snape?" The four first years said in unison.
"Yeah - yer still not on about that are yeh? Look, Snape helped protect the Stone, he's not about ter steal it." Hagrid told them.
Josh knew that him, Harry, Hermione and Ron were all thinking the same thing. If Snape had been in on protecting the stone, it must have been easy to find out what the other teachers had use for their level of protection. Snape probably knew everything except, it seemed, Quirrell's spell and how to get past Fluffy.
"You're the only how knows how to get past your dog, aren't you, Hagrid?" Josh asked.
"And you wouldn't tell any one would you?" Harry added. "Not even one of the teachers?"
"Not a soul except me an' Dumbledore," Hagrid said proudly.
"Well, that's somethin," Ron muttered to the others.
"Hagrid, can we have a window open or somethin?" Hermione asked as she tugged on her shirt. "I'm boiling."
"Can't, Hermione, sorry," Hagrid said. Harry and Josh noticed Hagrid glance at the fire. The two looked at it too.
"Hagrid, what's that?" Harry asked while pointing into the fire, but he already knew what it was. And inside the very heart of the fire, underneath the kettle, was a huge, black egg.
"Ah," Hagrid said, fiddling nervously with his fingers. "That's...er.."
"I know what that is!" Ron blurted out. Then walked over to take a closer look. "This must've cost a fortune, how did you get it?"
"I won it, actually," said Hagrid. "Las' night. I was in the village havin' a few drinks an' got into a game o' cards with stranger. Think he was glad ter get rid of it ter be honest."
"But what are you going to do with it when it's hatched?" Hermione asked.
"Well, i've bin doin some reading," Hagrid told her and pulled out a large book from under his mattress. "Got this outta the library, Dragon Breeding for Pleasure and Profit. It's a bit outta date, o' course, but it's all in here. Keep the egg in the fire, cause their mothers breathe fire on em, an when it hatches, feed it on a bucket o' brandy mixed with chicken blood every half hour. An' see here, how ter recognize differen' eggs - what i got here is a..."
"Norwegian Ridgeback," Josh answered in awe. "Those are rare they are."
"How do you know that?" Hermione asked curiously.
"I love dragons," Josh answered. "And when i grow up, I want to be a dragon handler, study dragons and all." Hagrid beamed at Josh who smiled back.
"See, i bet Josh likes the idea," Hagrid said.
"Actually Hagrid, though they are very cool, they are pretty dangerous," Josh replied. "I mean, you know how they breathe fire, right?"
"Yeah, an what's the problem with that?" Hagrid said stubbornly.
"Hagrid, you live in a wooden house," Hermione told him, but Hagrid wasn't listening as he was humming something and stroking the fire.
Now there was another thing to be worried about: what would happen to Hagrid if anyone found out that he was hiding an illegal dragon in his hut.
"Wonder what it's like to have a peaceful life," Ron sighed as every evening so far was filled with doing extra homework. Hermione had now made study schedules for Harry, Josh, and Ron and it was really driving them nuts. Then, one breakfast, Hedwig brought Harry a letter from Hagrid. There were only two words on the paper saying: It's Hatching. Ron and Josh wanted to skip Herbology and go straight down there to the hut, but Hermione would not hear any of it.
"Hermione, how many times in out lives are we going to see a dragon hatching?" Ron asked her with Josh nodding eagerly.
Hermione sighed and rolled her eyes. "We've got lessons, we'll get into trouble, and that's nothing to what Hagrid's going to be in when someone finds out what he's doing -"
"Shut up!" Harry hissed softly.
Malfoy was only a few feet away and he had stopped dead to listen to what Ron and Hermione were arguing about. Josh looked over at Malfoy and wondered how mush he had heard. He did not like the look on Malfoy's face.
Ron and Hermione argued all the way towards Herbology. Hermione finally agreed to go down to Hagrid's during the morning break. When the bell sounded at the end of the lesson, Josh, Harry, Hermione, and Ron quickly hurried through the grounds to the edge of the forest where Hagrid greeted them looking flustered and excited.
"It's nearly out," Hagrid told them as he ushered the four Gryffindors inside.
The leg was lying on the table, there were deep cracks in it. Something was moving inside; a funny clicking noise was coming from it. They all drew up their chairs up towards the table and watched in bated breathe and awe.
All at once, there was a scraping noise and the egg split open The baby dragon flopped down onto the table. Josh thought it looked like a crumpled, black umbrella yet he was still fascinated by it all. Its spiny wings were huge compared to its skinny jet body, it had a long snout with wide nostrils, the stubs of horns and bulging, orange eyes. It then sneezed and a couple of sparks flew out of its mouth.
"Isn't he beautiful?" Hagrid said as he reached out with his hand to stroke the dragon's head. It snapped at his fingers, showing pointed fangs. "Bless him, and look, he knows his mummy," Hagrid said.
"Hagrid," said Hermione. "How fast do Norwegian Ridgebacks grow exactly?" Hagrid was about to answer when the color suddenly drained from his face. He then leapt to his feet and ran to the window.
"What's the matter?" Josh asked.
"Someone was lookin through the gap through the curtains...It's a kid and he's running back to the castle," Hagrid told them.
Josh bolted towards the door and opened it up as fast as he could. Even at a distance there was no mistaking that blonde haired git. Josh turned to look at Harry who seemed to know what he was thinking.
"Malfoy," Harry said. Josh nodded as everyone nervously glance at one another.
Something about the triumphant smile on Malfoy's face during the next week made Harry, Josh, Ron, and Hermione very, very nervous. They spent most of their free time at Hagrid's darkened hut, trying to reason with him before something really bad happened.
"Just let him go," Harry urged. "Set him free."
"I can't," Hagrid replied. "He's too little and if i did, he would die."
Everyone looked at the dragon. It had grown three times in length in just a week. Smoke kept fuming from its nostrils and Hagrid had not been doing any gamekeeping duties because the dragon was keeping him pretty busy. There were empty brandy bottles and chicken feathers scattered all over the floor.
"I've decided to call him Norbert," Hagrid told the four Gryffindors. "He really knows me now, watch. Norbert! Norbert! Where's mummy?"
"He's lost his marbles," Ron muttered to Josh and Harry.
"Hagrid," Harry said loudly. "Give it two weeks and Norbert's going to be as long as your house. Malfoy could go to Dumbledore at any moment." Hagrid bit his lip nervously.
"I know, i know. I can't keep him forever, but i can't just dump him, I can't!" Hagrid said.
Josh turned to Ron. "Charlie!" He blurted out. Ron turned to looked at Josh incredulously.
"No, not Charlie," Ron said. "I'm Ron, remember?"
Josh rolled his eyes and shook his head. "No, your brother Charlie, the one that study's dragons. we could send Norbert to him and he could take care of Norbert and then put him back into the wild." he explained.
"Brilliant!" Ron said. "How bout it Hagrid?"
Hagrid sagged his shoulders in defeat, and agreed that they could send an owl to Charlie and ask him.
The following week dragged by. Wednesday found Josh and Hermione sitting alone in the common room, long after everyone else had gone off to bed. The clock on the wall chimed midnight when the portrait hole burst open. Ron and Harry appeared out of no where as they pulled off Harry's invisibility cloak. Ron had an arm around Harry who was standing on one leg while Ron was nursing one of his arms. The two had been down at Hagrid's, helping him feed Norbert who was now eating dead rats by the crate.
"It bit me!" Ron said as he helped Harry over to the couch and set him down. Josh and Hermione joined them as Harry examined his leg where part of the pants were missing and that his leg looked to be burned. "I'm not going to be able to hold a quill for a week. I tell you, that dragon's the most horrible animal I've ever met, but the way Hagrid goes on about it, you'd think it was a fluffy little bunny rabbit. When it bit me, then it accidentally burned Harry's leg, he told me off for frightening it. And when we left, he was singing it a lullaby." Once Ron finished his rant, there was a tap on the dark window.
"It's Hedwig!" Hermione said, hurrying over to let her in. "She'll have Charlie's answer!"
The four of them put their heads together to read the note.
Dear Ron,
How are you? Thanks for the letter. I'd be glad to take the Norwegian Ridgeback, but it won't be easy getting him here. I think the best thing will be to send him over with some friends of mine who are coming to visit me next week. Trouble is, the mustn't be seen carrying an illegal dragon.
Could you get the Ridgeback up to the tallest tower at midnight on Saturday? They can meet you there and take him while it's still dark.
Send me an answer as soon as possible.
Love, Charlie.
The four Gryffindors looked at one another. "We do have the invisibility cloak," Harry said. "I'm sure that it's big enough to cover me, someone else, and Norbert."
"You!" Hermione said. "You can barely walk."
"She's right," Josh told Harry. "We'll do it, me and Hermione."
"Are you sure?" Harry asked them.
"Yes, anything to get rid of Norbert," Hermione agreed.
"And Malfoy off our backs," Ron said.
By the next morning, things went from bad to worse. Ron's arm had swollen twice its size while Harry's burnt leg had got infected, and he had received a fever. They were pretty nervous to go see Madam Pomfrey, afraid that she'll find out where the two got their injuries from. Yet, the two decided to go once they saw that Ron's arm turned to a nasty shade of green, and that Harry's fever had gotten worse.
Hermione and Josh rushed up to the Hospital Wing at the end of the day to find Ron in a terrible state in bed while Harry was asleep, having no idea what was going on.
"It's not just my hand though it feels like it's going to fall off," Ron whispered. "Malfoy told Madam Pomfrey he wanted to borrow a book from me so he could come in and have a right laugh at me. He kept threatening to tell Pomfrey what really bit me; i told her it was a dog and i don't think she believed me."
Hermione and Josh tried to calm him down. "It'll all be over at midnight on Saturday," said Hermione, but this did not make Ron feel any better. He then sat bolt upright and broke into sweat with a distraught look.
"Oh no!" he cried. "I totally forgot that Charlie's letter was in that book Malfoy took, he's going to know that we're getting rid of Norbert."
Josh and Hermione did not get a chance to reply as Madam Pomfrey appeared and kicked them out saying Ron needed sleep and him and Harry needed silence.
"It's too late to change the plan now," Josh told Hermione minutes later as the two were walking on the grounds towards Hagrid's hut. "We haven't got time to send Charlie another owl, and this could be our only chance to get rid of Norbert. We'll have to risk it, and we have to get Harry's cloak which thankfully Malfoy does not know about." The two first years then found fang sitting on the front steps of Hagrid's hut. Josh exchanged glances with Hermione as he walked up and knocked on the door. "Hagrid?"
A window opened and Hagrid's voice came out. "I won't let you in," he puffed. "Norbert's at a tricky stage, nothin i can't handle."
When the two told Hagrid about Charlies reply, his eyes filled with tears, although that might have been because Norbert had bit him in the foot. "Aargh! It's all right, he only caught my boot, jus' playin, he's only a baby after all." The baby banged it's tail on the wall making the windows rattle. Josh and Hermione walked back towards the castle feeling Saturday couldn't come quickly enough.
Josh and Hermione would have felt sorry from Hagrid when the time came for him to say good-bye to Norbert if they hadn't been so worried about what they had to do. It was very dark, cloudy night, and they were a bit late arriving to Hagrid's hut, but they made it unnoticed all because of Harry's invisibility cloak.
Luckily, Hagrid already had Norbert packed into a large crate. "He's got rats and brandy fer the journey," Hagrid cried. "Bye bye Norbert." he finished as Josh and Hermione left with the crate.
How they managed to get the crate up to the castle, they never knew. Midnight ticked nearer and nearer as they heaved Norbert up the marble staircase in the entrance and along the dark corridors. Up another staircase, then another. None of the shortcuts did not even make their work easier.
"Nearly there," Josh breathed out as the two reached the corridor beneath the tallest tower.
Then, a sudden movement ahead of them made them nearly drop the crate. Forgetting they were invisible, they shrank into the dark shadows, staring at two dark outlines of two people grappling each other ten feet away. And then a lamp flared.
McGonagall, in her dressing gown, had Malfoy by the ear. "Detention!" she shouted. "And twenty points from Slytherin! Wandering around in the middle of the night. How dare you."
"You don't understand, Professor. Harry Potter's coming...He's got a dragon!" Malfoy pleaded.
"What utter rubbish! How dare you tell such lies! Come on, I shall see Professor Snape about you, Malfoy!"
The spiral staircase up to the top of the tower seemed the easiest thing after that. Not until they'd stepped out into the cold night air did they throw off the cloak, glad to be able to breathe properly.
"Finally," Josh breathed out.
Chuckling about Malfoy, they waited. Norbert was thrashing about in his crate and about ten minutes later, four broomsticks appeared and came swooping out of the darkness. Charlie's friends were pretty cheery and friendly. They buckled Norbert's crate into a harness they had rigged up and then left. Norbert was gone. And Josh and Hermione could live in peace again.
Josh sighed as he sat down and Hermione join him. He was going to miss that little Dragon even if it was dangerous. He couldn't wait to grow up and handle them. It was going to be great. It wasn't until seconds later, he felt weight on his shoulder. He looked to see Hermione was pretty close and had her head on his shoulder.
"Nice night," she said quietly.
"Yep, sure is," Josh agreed.
"This is nice," Hermione sighed after a few seconds of silence. Josh looked at her with a puzzled expression and then nodded. It was pretty nice. No more Dragon, Malfoy in detention, what could spoil their happiness. The answer to that sounded when the two heard a cat's meow. The two turned towards the cat.
"Mrs. Norris?" Josh murmured.
"If she's there, then that means..." Before Hermione finished her thought, Filch appeared from the shadows with a menacing grin.
"Well, well, well," he whispered. "We are in trouble."