Chapter 477: I Knew It All Along
Chapter 477: I Knew It All Along
The hatching of a dragon egg was a slow process. According to the book, dragon eggs needed to be slowly heated over a fire, mimicking the breath of a fire dragon. Usually, a mother dragon would use her breath to incubate the eggs, an incredible fact considering how the eggs didn't cook or turn into roasted dragon eggs despite the intense heat.
Albert couldn't help but wonder what a roasted dragon egg would taste like if Hagrid accidentally overcooked it. To his surprise, a new quest popped up in his mind at that very moment: Gourmet.
Glancing at the quest, then at the egg, and finally at the rewards, Albert promptly abandoned the idea after considering it for all of three seconds.
If he sneaked a bite of the dragon egg, Hagrid would probably be heartbroken! He wasn't the kind of person who would do anything for a quest.
He'd find another opportunity to taste dragon egg later.
In fact, if it weren't for his knowledge that the egg would hatch into a dragon, Albert would have thought Hagrid had already cooked it.
Unfortunately, the surface of the egg was already charred black from Hagrid's enthusiastic attempts.
Hagrid had to put the egg over the fire regularly, but not for too long. Far from being bothered by the tedious task, Hagrid happily hummed to himself, enjoying the process of bringing a dragon to life, and had even started referring to himself as the dragon's mother, a mental image that made Albert want to facepalm.
During the Easter holidays, Albert frequently visited Hagrid to help with the preparations for the dragon's arrival, ensuring that Hagrid wouldn't be caught off guard when the egg hatched.
According to the book, Hagrid had stocked up on brandy and kept several chickens in his coop, as the combination of brandy and chicken blood was ideal for newborn dragons.
As for whether Harry and his two friends had discovered Hagrid's dragon egg, Albert wasn't sure. He hadn't run into Harry, Ron, or Hermione during his visits to Hagrid's hut.
With the Easter holidays coming to an end, Albert intended to ask Hagrid if anyone else knew about the dragon egg.
Before he could, however, Hermione found him first.
"You knew Hagrid wanted to raise a dragon?" Albert asked, perplexed, as he looked at the hesitant girl before him. He had a good idea of what was going on and gently reassured her, "He's been talking about wanting to raise a dragon for a long time."
"Hagrid... somehow got his hands on a dragon egg," Hermione said, taking a deep breath as she struggled to find the right words. "What will happen to him if someone finds out he's illegally raising a dragon in his hut? Your prediction is coming true."
"He'll probably be fined a large sum and spend some time in Azkaban," Albert replied after a moment's thought.
Hermione's expression became more anxious as she opened her mouth, but she knew that convincing Hagrid to give up on the dragon egg was practically impossible.
It had taken Hermione a lot of hesitation to gather the courage to come to Albert for advice, as he had predicted this situation long ago.
She had also discussed it with Harry and Ron, but they hadn't come up with any satisfactory solutions.
Hermione wasn't Harry or Ron; she thought more carefully than her two friends.
There was no way Hagrid could keep the dragon a secret, especially once it hatched. It would only be a matter of time, perhaps a month at most, before others found out.
"Also, you shouldn't have brought this up with me here," Albert said kindly. "The more people who know, the more troublesome it becomes. You should keep it a secret. In fact, I already advised Hagrid not to let others know about it."
"Wait, did you know about this..." Hermione trailed off, looking at Albert with newfound hope.
Albert raised a finger to his lips in a shushing motion. "Don't worry about this," he whispered. "When the time comes, we can just ask Headmaster Dumbledore to send it away."
Hermione's eyes widened. "You want to involve the Headmaster? But doesn't that risk getting Hagrid into even more trouble?"
"Of course not," Albert reassured her. "We'll just have to be honest with him about the situation."
"What about Hagrid, though?" Hermione pressed. "What will happen to him?"
"He might get his wages docked for a few months," Albert replied, a hint of uncertainty in his voice. "But I don't think he'll be expelled; the likelihood of that is slim."
"Isn't there any other way?" Hermione asked, her concern for Hagrid evident. "I really don't want him to be expelled. This school is his home."
Albert sighed. "I already talked to Hagrid about this. He insisted on doing things his way, and I can't force him otherwise. If he does get expelled, he'll have to face the consequences of his actions. Now, you two should stop discussing this. Your secrecy skills are lacking, and you might end up causing more trouble for Hagrid."
As he watched Hermione walk away, Albert shook his head and turned to leave as well.
...
"So, Albert already knew that Hagrid was incubating a dragon's egg?" Harry and Ron exchanged astonished looks as they listened to Hermione's story.
"Wait, Hermione, you told Albert about this?" Harry was a bit puzzled as to why Hermione had done so, even though he had a favorable impression of Albert. "I mean, I understand he's Hagrid's friend, but... I just feel like we shouldn't involve too many people. The more people who know, the more trouble it could cause for Hagrid."
"I told you, Albert predicted this ages ago," Hermione said, a hint of exasperation creeping into her voice as she looked at Harry. "And he's got a good head on his shoulders. I thought he might be able to help us find a solution, and you don't want Hagrid to get into trouble either, do you?"
If there had been any other viable options, Hermione wouldn't have involved Albert either. But having a reliable senior around certainly helped alleviate some of their worries.
"So, what did he suggest?" Ron asked, curious about Albert's proposed solution.
"He said we should ask the Headmaster to send it away when the time comes," Hermione replied, her expression complicated.
Harry and Ron shared a glance, feeling that this 'solution' wasn't much of a solution at all. They had been trying to keep this a secret precisely because they didn't want others to find out, and now they were being told to involve the Headmaster?
"If the Headmaster finds out Hagrid has a dragon, won't he expel him?" Harry voiced his concern.
"Albert doesn't think so," Hermione said, raising her index finger to her lips in a shushing motion, just as Albert had done. "He believes that, at most, Hagrid will have his wages docked. The Headmaster isn't the type to expel someone over this. And he's right about our poor secrecy skills; we really should stop discussing this elsewhere. The fewer people who know, the better."
Ron scowled, not liking the implication that they couldn't keep a secret. "We can keep a secret!" he insisted.
After that, Harry and Ron refrained from talking about the dragon's egg. Partly because of Hermione's warning, but also because Harry's attention had shifted to the matter of the Philosopher's Stone, having learned from Hagrid that Snape was involved in its protection.
Harry suspected that Snape might have figured out the other teachers' magical protections, in addition to how to get past Quirrell and whatever magic they had set up.
Ron and Hermione, however, were reserved in their judgment of Snape's intentions. After all, they reasoned, Dumbledore wasn't an idiot.
Little did Harry know that Snape was already aware of Harry's suspicions and had mentally labeled him as arrogant and meddlesome.
(End of Chapter)
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