A/N: I'm back again with another update! Hope you're enjoying the story. Please leave a review and/or favourite and follow the story to show your support! Thank you all for the support!

The day was too bright, too warm, and too perfect to ignore a visit to Hagrid. With a mix of excitement and worry, Lola, Harry, Ron, Fay, and Hermione made their way down to his hut, all five exchanging nervous glances. They knew, after Lola's manipulative tactics to make him involuntarily confess, that Hagrid was about to hatch the dragon egg, Norbert, and, naturally, each of them wanted to be there for the moment it cracked open. Yet Lola couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. Her "Seer sense," as her friends liked to call it, had been nagging at her all day, stirring unease with an almost tangible urgency.

They were greeted by Hagrid's huge grin as he threw open the door, ushering them inside. "Yer just in time! C'mon, c'mon! Look at 'im!" he whispered, practically trembling with excitement as he gestured toward the fireplace, where the large, speckled egg sat in the roaring heat.

Everyone huddled close, eyes fixed on the egg as it gave a little shudder and then another.

"Look, it's moving!" Ron said, eyes wide.

But as everyone crowded around, Lola felt that ominous tug again. Her gaze drifted to the window, and she froze. Someone was approaching the hut—a familiar, blond figure moving stealthily across the grounds.

"Malfoy!" Lola hissed, pulling back from the group.

"What?" Harry's face contorted in alarm. "He followed us?"

"Looks like it," Lola murmured, glancing back to the egg. They couldn't let him see Norbert. If Malfoy got even a glimpse of the dragon, he'd go straight to Filch or Professor Snape.

"We need to hide!" Hermione whispered urgently, pulling Ron by the sleeve.

Hagrid's face fell. "But... but Norbert's just about ta hatch!"

Lola's mind raced. "Hagrid, hide the egg under the blanket, just for a second, okay? We'll all stay out of sight until he's gone."

With a reluctant nod, Hagrid carefully covered the egg with an old woolen blanket, hiding it from view. The group scrambled to their hiding spots—Harry, Ron, and Hermione squeezed themselves into the shadows behind Hagrid's giant armchair, Fay ducked behind the massive cauldron, and Lola pressed herself flat against the wall next to the door, where she'd have a clear view of the window.

The doorknob turned, and the door creaked open slightly, just enough for Malfoy to peer inside, his narrowed eyes scanning the dimly lit room.

"Hagrid?" he called out, feigning an innocent tone.

Hagrid forced a laugh, sounding almost too hearty. "Malfoy! Didn't see ya there! What're yeh doin' wanderin' around here?"

Malfoy's eyes flitted around the hut, suspicion clouding his expression. "Just… enjoying the grounds. Thought I saw some people coming down here. Not hiding anything, are you?" He sniffed, his gaze lingering a bit too long on the odd blanket in front of the fireplace.

Hagrid, catching on, turned to Malfoy with a smirk. "Ah, good on ya to visit an old friend like me, but Filch might have other ideas 'bout where yeh should be, eh?"

Malfoy's expression faltered, suspicion flickering away as nervousness took its place. "I wasn't— Fine, but you'll all be sorry when you get caught!" He shot one last glare around the hut and then backed out, slamming the door behind him.

The room fell silent as the friends gradually emerged from their hiding places, each of them letting out the breaths they'd been holding.

"That was close!" Hermione whispered, shooting Hagrid a grateful look.

Hagrid wasted no time, lifting the blanket off the egg with trembling hands. "Thank Merlin he's gone… Now, quick! Look, it's happenin'!"

The egg had begun to wobble and crack in earnest. Tiny pieces of shell fell away, revealing dark scales and, eventually, a pair of bright, curious eyes peering up at them.

Harry's face split into a grin. "Look at that! It's… it's actually a dragon!"

Norbert, no bigger than Hagrid's teapot, wriggled out of his shell, hiccuping little puffs of smoke as he looked around with wide, innocent eyes. Hagrid gazed at him, eyes shining with pride and adoration.

"Blimey, Hagrid, he's... he's perfect!" Fay whispered.

But as they all cooed over the tiny creature, Hermione's voice cut through, filled with a note of practicality. "Now that he's hatched… what are we going to do?"

Hagrid's smile faltered slightly. "Er... I dunno, really. Haven't thought that far."

Lola shot Harry a meaningful look. They'd have to find a way to keep Norbert safe—and get him out of Hogwarts before anyone else found out.

For now, though, they enjoyed the rare, beautiful sight of a dragon's first moments, each of them knowing they'd done their part to keep Hagrid's secret safe for just a little longer.

...

It turned out that raising a dragon was about as easy as sneaking a Blast-Ended Skrewt into Professor McGonagall's office and expecting her not to notice.

Hagrid was absolutely besotted with Norbert, treating him like an overgrown puppy, cooing at him, rocking him to sleep in his arms, and even singing to him in a voice that could shatter glass. Unfortunately, Norbert's idea of affection involved setting things on fire, biting fingers, and producing smells so foul even Hagrid had to admit, "Maybe a bit strong, eh?"

"He is cute and all, but we have to get him out of here," Fay whispered fiercely, dodging a flying bit of charred furniture as Norbert hiccuped out a plume of flame. "Before Malfoy comes snooping again or, you know, Hagrid becomes a human torch."

Harry, Ron, and Lola nodded. Hermione had already retreated behind Hagrid's cauldron again, pretending she was somewhere else entirely.

"So what's the plan?" Ron asked. "Because if it involves carrying that thing up to the tallest tower, I'd like to submit my resignation from this suicide mission immediately."

Fay rolled her eyes. "Come on, Weasley, where's your Gryffindor courage?"

"Currently trying to stay alive, thanks," Ron muttered.

After an extensive session of whispering, arguing, and one near-fatal encounter with Norbert's teeth (RIP Hagrid's left boot), they settled on the best course of action: Charlie Weasley. If anyone could handle a dragon without setting the school on fire or losing a limb, it was him.

Hedwig delivered the message to Charlie, and miraculously, he responded within a day: "I'll send some friends to pick him up. Midnight. Astronomy Tower. Don't get caught." Short and sweet, with just a hint of "if you die, that's on you."

The night of the handoff, things went about as smoothly as they could, which is to say, complete chaos. First, getting Norbert out of Hagrid's hut involved convincing Hagrid to part with him. This took an hour, multiple sobbing fits, and a very awkward group hug.

"Be a good boy, Norbert," Hagrid blubbered, clutching the dragon's tiny, scaly form. Norbert responded by sneezing a fireball that nearly took off Hermione's eyebrows.

"Touching," Ron coughed through the smoke. "Can we go before we all die?"

Then came the small issue of smuggling a baby dragon through the castle. It was past curfew, Filch was prowling, Mrs. Norris was lurking, and Peeves was… well, being Peeves. More than once, the gang had to flatten themselves against walls or dive into empty classrooms as Filch's lantern bobbed past.

Norbert, naturally, was not a cooperative fugitive. He wiggled, he hissed, and at one point, he let out a delighted, smoke-filled screech that echoed down the corridor.

"Shut up, you flying menace!" Ron hissed, clamping a hand over Norbert's snout.

By some miracle, they made it to the Astronomy Tower alive, where Charlie's friends were waiting with a crate and the tired expressions of people who had done this before.

"Wow," one of them said, eyeing Norbert. "He's… feisty."

"Understatement of the year," Fay muttered, rubbing a scorch mark on her sleeve.

With a final, dramatic sob, Hagrid's beloved Norbert was packed away and hoisted into the sky, off to Romania where he could grow up safely and, hopefully, away from anything flammable.

As the friends stood watching the silhouettes of the departing dragon handlers disappear into the night, Ron let out a long breath. "Well, that was the most illegal thing I've ever done."

Lola smirked. "At least we didn't get caught."

"Yet," Harry muttered.

And, as if summoned by the universe to punish them for that very statement, the unmistakable sound of a throat clearing echoed behind them.

They turned, slowly, as one. Professor McGonagall stood there in her tartan dressing gown, arms crossed, expression unreadable—except for the twitch in her left eye, which suggested she was already considering a month's worth of detentions.

Ron gulped. "Bugger."

It was going to be a long night.

...

Professor McGonagall's office was as intimidating as ever, her lips pressed into a thin line as she paced behind her desk. Lola, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Fay sat in a stiff row, hands in their laps, doing their best to look innocent—an effort that was quickly unraveling under McGonagall's scrutinising gaze.

And then there was Malfoy.

He was standing off to the side, arms crossed, looking smug despite the fact that he too had been caught lurking around the Astronomy Tower after curfew.

"Well?" McGonagall finally said, fixing them all with a steely glare. "Would anyone care to explain what exactly you were doing out of bed at midnight?"

Lola cleared her throat. "Uh, well, you see, Professor—"

"We were stargazing!" Ron blurted out.

Harry blinked at him. Hermione shot him a look of pure betrayal. Malfoy scoffed.

"Stargazing?" McGonagall repeated, raising a dubious eyebrow.

"Yes," Hermione said quickly, regaining her composure. "Astronomy is a very important subject, as you know, Professor. We wanted to get some extra credit."

McGonagall stared at them for a long moment, then turned to Malfoy. "And you, Mr. Malfoy? Were you also stargazing?"

Malfoy's mouth opened, then closed. He shifted uncomfortably. "I… I was making sure they weren't up to anything suspicious."

Harry snorted. "Oh, right, because that's your job now, is it?"

McGonagall's gaze flickered between them, unimpressed. "So, let me get this straight," she said slowly. "Five Gryffindors decided, completely unprompted, to conduct a midnight astronomy session… and a Slytherin student just happened to follow them to ensure they weren't misbehaving?"

"…Yes?" Fay offered weakly.

McGonagall let out a long, weary sigh. "Do you all take me for a fool?"

"No, Professor," they chorused miserably.

She pinched the bridge of her nose. "I should have known. I don't know what exactly you were up to, but I highly doubt it involved an innocent appreciation of the night sky."

Malfoy straightened, ready to throw them under the Knight Bus. "I saw them with—"

McGonagall held up a hand, silencing him with a look. "I don't want to hear it, Mr. Malfoy. You were just as out of bounds as they were."

Malfoy paled. "But—"

"You will all serve detention," McGonagall declared, ignoring his protests. "And fifty points will be deducted from Gryffindor and Slytherin alike."

Ron groaned. "Fifty?"

McGonagall's expression softened, just a fraction. "Consider yourselves lucky. If I ever catch any of you sneaking about again, I will personally ensure you're cleaning bedpans in the hospital wing for a month."

They all nodded hastily, accepting their fate. Malfoy looked like he'd swallowed a lemon, no doubt regretting getting himself caught in the crossfire.

"Now, get out of my sight," McGonagall sighed. "Before I change my mind and double your detention."

As the rest of the group filed out of McGonagall's office, dragging their feet like prisoners heading for Azkaban, Lola lingered behind, rocking on the balls of her feet.

McGonagall, who had been massaging her temples as if warding off a headache, sighed. "Miss Allen, unless you are here to confess to further crimes, I suggest you follow your friends."

Lola hesitated, then took a deep breath. "Actually, Professor, I was hoping I could… talk to you for a moment. Privately."

McGonagall raised an eyebrow but gestured for her to continue.

Lola cast a wary glance at the door before speaking. "I can't say too much, but… something's wrong. Something important. And I think Professor Dumbledore should know."

McGonagall's lips pressed into an even thinner line. "Miss Allen, I have been told about your supposed powers as a... 'Seer'" McGonagall scoffed as she spoke the last word, making it obvious for Lola that she had zero belief in this idea. "But I sincerely hope this isn't an elaborate attempt to talk your way out of detention."

Lola threw up her hands. "What? No! I fully accept my punishment. Cleaning the Trophy Room with Filch? Love that for me. But this is serious."

"Actually, you will serve detention in the Forbidden Forest." McGonagall studied her for a long moment. "And what, exactly, is 'serious'?"

Lola swallowed. "As you know, there's… an item. A very important, very secret item. One that might be in danger."

McGonagall didn't react outwardly, but something in her gaze sharpened. "Go on."

"I—I don't want to say too much, in case, you know, certain nosy blond ferrets are still lurking about," Lola muttered. "But let's just say, if I were hiding something really valuable in the school, I'd be double-checking the locks right about now."

McGonagall was silent for several long seconds. Then, in a voice so even it was almost unnerving, she said, "Miss Allen, what exactly do you know?"

Lola exhaled slowly. "Not as much as I'd like, but enough to be worried. And if I'm worried, I figure you should be too."

McGonagall's eyes flickered with something unreadable—annoyance? Concern? The deep, existential exhaustion that came with supervising Gryffindors?

After another pause, she nodded. "I will see to it that your concerns are relayed to the Headmaster."

Relief flooded through Lola. "Thank you, Professor."

"However," McGonagall continued, leveling her with a look that could petrify a basilisk, "I expect you and your friends to stay out of whatever it is you think you know. Hogwarts has enough chaos without a group of eleven-year-olds deciding to play heroes."

Lola gave an innocent grin. "We wouldn't dare meddle, Professor."

McGonagall exhaled sharply, looking skyward, as though asking the heavens why she had chosen teaching as a career. "Out. Now."

Lola saluted and scurried toward the door before McGonagall could rethink her stance on cruel and unusual punishments.

As she slipped out into the corridor, she found the others waiting for her, Ron looking particularly antsy.

"What was that about?" Harry asked in a low voice.

Lola smirked. "Just a friendly chat. You know, catching up."

And with that, the five of them marched on, straight toward whatever reckless disaster awaited them next.

A/N: Thank you for reading! Please leave a review and/or favorite and follow the story to show your support!