Minerva woke up to the sound of soft snoring. A few times she sniffed, thinking her nose was stuffed, but somehow the snores continued. She pulled the stuffed cat a little closer to her chest and wanted to roll over to her side, but then she realised the toy had grown a lot heavier overnight. And warmer. With longer hair that was tickling her left cheek.

She opened her eyes and looked down. Sybill had pressed her face into her shoulder and had an arm around her waist. Minerva's left arm was resting around her back, keeping her close. And at the foot of the bed, three small dragons were staring at them with big yellow eyes.

"Go away!" Minerva whispered fiercely.

"Yes, okay… In a minute…" Sybill muttered and yawned. "Let… Let me wake up first…"

"Not you," Minerva smiled, breathing a sigh of relief as the small creatures fluttered back through the keyhole, reminding her that she had to repair it when she got out of bed.

Sybill had managed to get her eyes open and pulled away with a surprised squeak. "Oh no… I'm sorry… " she gasped. "I didn't mean to…"

"Sybill, calm down," Minerva said, gently pushing her back in place. "I'm perfectly comfortable, so there is no need to apologise at all."

Sybill blushed. "I had a nightmare," she said, sheepishly.

"I'm sorry to hear that. Was it about Hogwarts' new heating system?" Minerva inquired.

Sybill nodded and then giggled. "You make it sound so silly."

"What?" Minerva turned the words over in her mind, hoping that she hadn't said anything that would make Sybill think she was ridiculing her phobia.

"Yes… 'heating system'. Like they're some kind of appliance. They're dragons… Tiny dragons…" Then she sighed. "That's the scary bit… That they're so small."

Minerva frowned. "But… It's what makes them less dangerous. Although, of course, it does make it easier for them to enter rooms they're not supposed to…"

"That's it," Sybill said. "They could be anywhere. Right on top of you before you notice. They could be hiding in your drawers or behind your books. Like rats or…" she shivered, "mice…"

Minerva nodded. "And I couldn't trace them by magic. I assume the same is true for the Second Sight?"

Sybill nodded. "It's like they're not even there. Until suddenly they… they are." She shook her head. "I know it shouldn't bother me. I'm not afraid they'll hurt me. They're just… creepy."

"It's okay," Minerva said. "I understand now."

They didn't move until Winky walked into the room with a giant tray, holding breakfast for both of them and seeming more cheerful than usual. Even while they were eating, their shoulders kept touching and though Minerva tried not to think of it too much, she had to suppress the urge to laugh out loud with happiness.

Yet once they had finally gotten out of bed, there wasn't much time for her thoughts to linger on the matter. The first students arrived less than an hour later and the dragons did indeed become quite agitated, eager to sniff them and play with them. Hagrid actually had to come to the rescue with some bacon when a second-years Slytherin had ended up with seven dragons in her hair. After that, Minerva had to go look for Sybill in her office, as she had run off to hide. Surprisingly, the fact that Lavender was scuttling around between Minerva's quills did not seem to bother her.

The day seemed to pass in a rush and before she knew it, Minerva was welcoming a long row of Weasleys, Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and a blushing Angelina Johnson. Last to enter was Charlie, who was accompanied by a nervous young man who did not quite meet Minerva's eyes as he shook her hand.

"This is Shihui," Charlie said. "We're 'borrowing' him from China. He's the author of Dragons of Asia and Oceania. He's the top expert on all the eastern breeds."

"He's wha'?" Hagrid exclaimed, pushing through the crowd to gawk at the young man. "Are you tellin' me that this here lad is Huang Shihui? No, he can't be… He's jus' a kid..."

"Pleased to meet you," Minerva said, shaking his hand. "You'll find an interesting object of study around here." She gestured at the three dragons chasing each other around Ginny's head.

Shihui looked up at the small creatures and narrowed his eyes. "What are they?" he asked, his voice soft with only a hint of an accent. "Where did they come from?"

"What exactly they are we don't know," Minerva said, "but I'm sure Hagrid will want to tell you the whole story over dinner."

Nodding eagerly, Hagrid steered Charlie and his friend away from the others to find them a couple of chairs to move next to his. The rest of the family settled at the Gryffindor table along with the handful of students that had returned. The Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws sat together, leaving only the three Slytherins sitting alone.

After Minerva had told the Hufflepuffs to invite them to their table, she took her own seat next to Sybill and dinner could start. As only about half of the teachers had arrived yet, they were sitting at the House tables too. Now and then, when a dragon fluttered by, Minerva would lean in to Sybill or take her hand, showing her support, although she made sure that the Weasleys surrounding them didn't see.

Dinner was almost over when the lively conversation was suddenly interrupted by a loud gasp followed by the clatter of a cup falling to the floor.

"Nooooo…." Hagrid said, looking stunned while Charlie grinned at him, clapping his hands. His friend Shihui was making a note in a little book, smiling.

"What is it, Charlie?" Fred called from his seat between George and Angelina. "What are you three up to?"

Hagrid blushed and then hid his face in his large hands.

"They're a new breed," Charlie informed them all. "Shihui is naming them after Hagrid."

"Draculus rubeus," Shihui said, nodding. "They will be a sensation, once word gets out."

"But Hagrid could simply buy the egg in a shop," Minerva frowned. "So they already existed, and if they can be spread like that, I doubt they are rare."

"Oh, the eggs have been around for ages," Shihui said. "As long as there have been dragons, I suppose."

Charlie nodded. "It's not a common thing, but once in like every 10.000 clutches, a dragon will lay a 'dead egg'. Nobody knows why exactly, but it seems something has gone wrong in the fertilisation of the egg, that is much smaller than the others in the clutch. Such eggs are usually left in the nest until the others hatch and then the mother will discard it with the empty shells. Sometimes, dragon tenders will collect these eggs for decorations. Even selling them, it seems. But no one has ever managed to make one of them hatch. Until now."

"The embryo was not viable," Shihui said. "Containing parts of hundreds of dragons, but not a whole one. But Hagrid's spell… fixed this… Instead of creating copies of the same egg, he gave all the little ones their own egg. And room and energy to grow."

"So Hagrid not only discovered this breed," Charlie said. "In a way he created it."

The entire hall erupted in a cacophony of cheers, clapping and shouts of congratulations, as half the students and all of the Weasleys got to their feet and lined up to shake Hagrid's hand.

…

It was late when everyone had either returned home or to their dormitory. Fortunately that meant that most of the Draculi rubei had gone to sleep by the time Minerva and Sybill returned to the Head's quarters.

"It's funny," Sybill said. "Now that I know what they are… they don't seem quite so bad…"

Minerva smiled. "See… We'll yet get you to like them."

"Tolerate them," Sybill corrected her and giggled as they entered Minerva's bedroom. She seemed about to say something else when they heard a small rustling above them and looked up. Sybill frowned. "They're hard to tell apart. But that one… It's the one called Cho, right?"

Minerva nodded, looking up at it too.

Sybill narrowed her eyes to see in the soft light from the fireplace. "What's that hanging from its tail?"

Merry Christmas!

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