Chapter 479: Unreliable as Expected
Chapter 479: Unreliable as Expected
Albert wasn't exactly sure how Qilo had been doing lately; he was more concerned with living his own comfortable life.
One day after the Easter holidays, Hagrid suddenly sent a note to Albert through Sheila, which read: "It's about to hatch."
"What's about to hatch?" Fred asked curiously as he read the note.
"Hagrid's little pet," Albert casually replied as he tucked the note into his pocket. Although witnessing the hatching of a fire dragon was a rare occurrence, Albert had no intention of going to watch the spectacle.
If he went, Fred, George, and Lee Jordan might tag along, and who knew what chaos would ensue.
So, let Harry Potter and his friends deal with it! "What kind of pet?" George inquired.
"A little lizard," Albert reminded them. "Anyway, you guys aren't interested, are you? Don't forget, we still have classes later."
In their minds, the pets Hagrid usually kept were more on the fierce side, so it puzzled them that he would have a lizard as a pet. However, they didn't dwell on it for too long and accompanied Albert to class.
If Albert wasn't going, they probably wouldn't either, as their relationship with Hagrid wasn't as close as Albert's.
However, Harry was an exception. He had an excellent relationship with Hagrid, and upon receiving Hagrid's note, he even considered skipping class to witness the little dragon's hatching.
Both he and Ron were sternly stopped by Hermione, who reminded them of the trouble they could cause for Hagrid.
What they didn't realize was that their conversation had been overheard by Draco Malfoy as he passed by.
If Draco Malfoy had remembered Albert's prophecy, he might not have gotten involved in this matter. Unfortunately, Draco had long forgotten the prophecy Albert had given him.
And so, this unlucky fellow had been dragged into the mess by Harry Potter.
After their Herbology class ended, Harry, Ron, and Hermione hastily threw down their spades and rushed towards Hagrid's hut.
Surprisingly, Hagrid was waiting for them outside, looking thrilled.
"The dragon egg has cracks on it; it's about to hatch!" Hagrid exclaimed as he ushered them inside.
"Where's Albert?" Hermione asked, surprised that she didn't see Albert there as she entered the hut. She knew that even if Albert were busy, he would usually find a way to make it.
"He's not coming," Hagrid said distractedly as he stared at the cracks on the dragon egg. "Seems like he has other matters to attend to."
"That's a shame. Most wizards rarely get to witness a dragon hatching in their lifetime," Ron said, his eyes fixed on the egg in anticipation. "I can hear something!"
A fascinating clicking sound was emanating from the dragon egg in front of them.
Perhaps, the little dragon inside was struggling to break free from its shell.
The three of them grew more tense and focused, not noticing that Draco Malfoy, who had been trailing behind them earlier, was now cautiously circling the hut and peeking through the curtain gap, spying on the events inside.
Suddenly, a piercing scraping sound came from the dragon egg.
The egg cracked open.
The little dragon wobbled its way out of the shell, looked around without fear, sneezed, and sprayed sparks from its nose, setting Hagrid's beard on fire. Then, it bit Hagrid's finger, which was about to stroke its head, baring its sharp, pointed teeth—a true predator.
"Oh my, look, it recognizes its mother! It recognizes its mother!" Hagrid screamed in excitement, causing Hermione to want to cover her face. As she turned, she spotted a dark figure by the window and screamed, "Who's there!"
"What's going on?"
"Someone was peeping through the curtain gap!"
Hearing the fleeing footsteps, Hagrid's face turned ashen. He jumped up and rushed to the window.
Harry and Ron almost simultaneously dashed to the door, frantically opening it to look outside.
Even from a distance, and even if the person were just a skeleton, Harry would never mistake the identity of the one who had been peeping—it was Draco Malfoy.
What's worse, he had seen the baby dragon.
At that moment, Harry, Ron, and Hermione felt uneasy. They realized that Draco Malfoy had probably followed them.
Albert was right; their ability to keep secrets was indeed terrible.
Harry felt sad as he looked at the flustered Hagrid. He had gradually figured out why Draco had followed them—it was evident that Draco had overheard their conversation about the dragon egg during mealtimes.
However, Harry dared not mention this to Hagrid.
"I'm sorry, Hagrid. Draco Malfoy probably followed us because he overheard our conversation. Albert was right; we can't keep secrets well," Hermione said shamefully, lowering her head.
Harry's face turned pale, then flushed with embarrassment as he felt ashamed for trying to evade responsibility.
Ron's face also looked a bit unnatural, as he recalled his words from before: "We'll definitely keep this secret well."
And look where they were now—they had leaked the secret! Hagrid also regretted not heeding Albert's words earlier. He finally understood the true meaning behind Albert's warning. At the time, he hadn't taken it seriously, but now it was too late.
"What should I do?" Hagrid asked, his body trembling at the thought of what might happen next.
"Write a letter to Albert; he'll definitely have a solution," Hermione suggested.
"Yes, Albert will know what to do," Hagrid agreed as he prepared to write a letter to Albert.
"Didn't he want Professor Dumbledore to send the dragon away?" Ron whispered, and his words made Hagrid, who was about to start writing, pause.
"It's too young. It'll die without proper care," Hagrid said, his cheeks now wet with tears.
An eerie silence filled the room.
"Don't worry, Hagrid. We'll definitely come up with a solution," Hermione assured him.
"Are you crazy?" Ron whispered as they left Hagrid's hut. "What can you do? That genius, Albert, didn't have a good solution either. Even if Malfoy doesn't go and report this, there's no way we can hide this little dragon from the rest of the school for even a month. Moreover, Malfoy can go to Professor Dumbledore at any time."
"I'm not worried about the headmaster," Harry said, "Since Albert thinks the headmaster is reliable, he should be somewhat trustworthy. But Snape is obviously not that easy to deal with."
"Maybe we should go talk to Albert," Harry suggested, wanting to make up for his mistake.
(End of Chapter)
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