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Chapter 321: Niffler and Valen
Chapter 321: Niffler and Valen
When Felix extended an invitation to Charlie, the adventurous side of Charlie's personality took over, and he accepted the suggestion without much hesitation.
"You're even less conscientious than Norbert, you know that?" Charlie reached out with his rough hand and patted the spike on the Hungarian Tree Hornet's head. The fire dragon rolled its eyes, ignoring his accusation.
Charlie began to take over Felix's work, brushing the sauce layer by layer. "Based on my experience, brushing in one direction—"
"Will make it more flavorful?" Felix asked.
"No, it will look better", Charlie laughed. "Like melted amber. Alright—"
The two of them cut out a tenth of the roasted meat, and the rest went straight into the Hungarian Tree Hornet's belly. "Charlie's tent, bring the fruit wine!" Charlie shouted. Two wine jugs flew over like cannonballs. He told Felix, "This is our own brew, made from local fruits. You can't find it anywhere else."
Felix shared some amusing stories from school, especially when mentioning Hagrid and Ron. Charlie relaxed even more, breaking into hearty laughter from time to time. He said enthusiastically, "I had a good relationship with Hagrid when I was in school, because we both were interested in fire dragons. He always talked about wanting to raise one. In the first year after I left, he managed to do it."
"You mentioned Norbert just now?"
"Right, a Norwegian Ridgeback less than three years old. We released it back into the wild." Charlie grinned. "These dragons grow the fastest in their first few months, and their fire-breathing abilities develop early. Hagrid quickly realized that keeping it would be a big problem, so he asked me to take Norbert away."
"Norbert got used to us and often came to beg for food. After eating, it would run off", Charlie said. "We suspect it might bring its own offspring back someday."
"It also often sneaks into the camp to drink brandy, which is the captain's favorite. The captain pretends to be upset, but secretly leaves the bottle open. We have alarms, you know."
Felix said, "Brandy? You don't mean Hagrid—"
"Exactly, Hagrid is a bad influence", Charlie chuckled softly. "I suspect he read some remedy in a book and thought brandy could enhance its fire-breathing ability."
...
Felix stayed in the fire dragon protection area for two more days. On the day he was about to leave, he finally met the famous Norwegian Ridgeback, Norbert, in the camp. It was only twelve to thirteen feet long, much smaller compared to an adult dragon.
The Norwegian Ridgeback was somewhat similar to the Hungarian Tree Hornet, with a lizard-like body and broad wings, but its tail was smooth. The young dragon named Norbert had a white nose tip, protruding orange-red eyes, and black, spiky wings that flapped constantly.
The campers had prepared a sheep and a barrel of brandy for it. The dark-skinned captain watched with a pained expression as Norbert drank the brandy, belched loudly, and spat out a few sparkling sparks.
Then, Norbert let out a couple of cheerful roars and flew off with the sheep.
"Clever rascal", the middle-aged captain muttered.
Felix also bid his farewell and apparated away. Over the next week, he spent time visiting some friends. Some visits were pre-arranged, like with the Longbottoms, while others were spontaneous, like with Newt Scamander.
After returning from Newt's place, Felix had a small companion with him—a baby Niffler.
Newt had originally planned to release these magical creatures periodically. When Felix visited, Newt was preparing to release the three Nifflers he had seen at the Ministry of Magic: Valen, Sal, and Sop.
"I suggest you only choose one. Their destructive power increases exponentially with their numbers", Newt said.
"Let's go with Valen. I remember it insulted me", Felix said.
The lively Niffler turned its back to him and was excitedly snatching shiny gold coins from its two brothers. Upon hearing Felix's words, its body froze in place.
Newt and Felix seemed to hear the sound of a neck creaking as Niffler Valen looked at them with an innocent expression.
"Mr. Heap..."
"I was just joking. I’ll take good care of it."
Newt shook his head, watching helplessly as Felix lured the Niffler away with a pearl necklace conjured by a quill. He wasn't sure if he had made the right choice.
However, he still took out a silver pocket watch and handed it to Felix. "You’ve seen it at the Ministry of Magic. When you use it, just gently snap it open. It’s about the size of a classroom, and Valen will love it."
...
At that moment, Felix was reading in one of Nicolas Flamel's secret libraries. Niffler Valen lay on its back on the carpet, its tiny hands constantly pawing at the shiny Runic Script, trying to stuff it into its pocket.
Nearly a week had passed, and he had found a way to get along with the little creature. He cast a solidifying charm in the room and then released the Runic Script from his Mind Chamber for it to play with.
He had also crafted a fine dream—a mountain of Galleons—stored in his Merlin-level two badge. This was now one of Niffler Valen's treasures, along with a broken Time-Turner.
The latter had been hidden in an ancient box, which Niffler Valen had discovered. Inside, there was a note left by Nicolas Flamel, explaining its origin.
This completely damaged Time-Turner had been acquired by Nicolas Flamel three hundred years ago for a hefty price. It was said to have been confiscated by the Ministry of Magic from a criminal. Its previous owner had used it incorrectly, trapping herself in a temporal rift where no one could find her, leading to her eventual starvation.
She had written down the events in her own blood, which was later discovered by the Ministry of Magic. The Time-Turner was confiscated along with the note and somehow ended up in circulation, eventually being purchased by Nicolas Flamel.
He had conducted extensive research on it and attempted to repair it but was ultimately unsuccessful, leaving behind a thick volume of notes on time-related matters.
Felix tried it repeatedly, convinced that it was indeed broken and now served only as a decorative hourglass. It eventually became one of Niffler Valen's prized possessions.
Saturday, July 16th.
The sky was overcast, and Felix was dressed in a black suit. He removed his emerald ring and ouroboros ring from his left and right hands, placing them in his pocket. The Niffler was also tucked into the silver pocket watch, which he kept close to his body.
Today was the day of Regulus, Sirius's younger brother's funeral. Felix was ready and stepped out.
It started drizzling, and Felix, under a human-form armoring charm, arrived at the funeral site. There were already many people there, all dressed in black robes or suits. Among the adults, a few children stood out—Ron Weasley with his red hair, Harry Potter with his black hair, and Draco Malfoy with his platinum blonde hair.
He also saw many familiar faces—Tonks, Barty Crouch, the Malfoy couple, the Longbottom couple, and Neville's grandmother, among others.
Some people were sitting together, and when Felix approached, they all looked uneasy.
Felix smiled, noticing the face of the Head of the Parkinson family, which was an unusual purplish-red.
"Old acquaintances, all."
(End of Chapter)
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