Chapter 53 The meeting of two young dragons
Hagrid was teasing the newborn Norbert, but his eyes kept glancing at Abey, who was gnawing on an eggshell, his gaze filled with novelty.
He wished Abey could walk over to him now, so he could get a closer look, and it would be even better if he could touch him.
But with Hermione watching him sternly, this idea was just wishful thinking.
Harry and Ron, on the other hand, were enjoying Norbertwith great interest; unlike Hagrid, they had tried everything to steal Abey the cat in recent days.
They had already experienced Hagrid's luxury of close observation and petting; in comparison, Norbert the Norwegian Ridgeback held greater attraction for them.
Abey might be an unknown magic creature, but it couldn't possibly surpass the pinnacle of magical animals: a Dragon.
At the same time, Crabbe and Goyle finally arrived at the Slytherin Common Room.
"Pure-blood!"
They entered the door after inputting the password.
The two didn't delay at all, rushing into the dormitory without stopping.
"Aaron, something big has happened, something very big," Crabbe said breathlessly.
"What's going on?" Aaron calmly looked at the two. "Where's Draco?
It's curfew; didn't he come back with you two?"
"He's the one who sent us to tell you," Goyle added anxiously, still gasping for air. "There's no time, hurry and come with us."
"Calm down, both of you. What exactly happened?
Goyle, you tell me."
"Harry Potter, Ron, and Hermione... they, they..."
"What happened?"
"They took Abey to Hagrid's place."
"What?" Aaron's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately stood up from the bed. "Are you sure you didn't see wrong?"
"Absolutely not. One person might be mistaken, but it's impossible for all three of us to be mistaken," Crabbe said.
"Good heavens, I knew Hermione wouldn't borrow Abeyfrom me for no reason! It turns out it was premeditated!
Hagrid, you thick-browed, big-eyed fellow, to actually play such a dirty trick, I really misjudged you."
"Exactly, if we hadn't seen it with our own eyes, we wouldn't believe it," Crabbe said. "Aaron, you should go check it out quickly!"
"I'm going now.
You two stay in the dormitory obediently; don't follow."
"But..."
"No buts, listen to me.
I'll explain to Draco." Aaron's tone was beyond dispute; he felt that Abey's identity might not be kept secret.
Since that was the case, he should minimize the impact as much as possible; the fewer people who knew, the better.
Crabbe and Goyle exchanged glances and nodded. If they could stay in the dormitory and sleep, they weren't willing to go back.
A quick night run, the two fat boys could handle it, but if they had to go again, they'd probably collapse halfway.
Aaron quickly changed his clothes, and just in case, he also took a spare pet outfit from his wardrobe.
After leaving the Slytherin Common Room, he sprinted towards the Forbidden Forest.
Hopefully, it's not too late. My foolish Dragon, you must protect yourself and absolutely must not take off your clothes!
What he didn't know was that shortly after he ran out, Madam Norris emerged from the shadows, watching the figure sprinting in the moonlight, a glint flashing in her cat's eyes... *Crunch! Crunch!*
More than ten minutes passed, and Abey finished eating the eggshells scattered in the hut.
Although only eighty percent full, it still patted its stomach contentedly.
It surveyed its surroundings, its gaze sweeping over Hagrid, Harry, Ron, and then resting on the young lady its master had asked it to accompany.
It immediately walked over, then lightly leaped, landing in front of Hermione.
"Come here!" Hermione waved to Abey, and in Hagrid's eager gaze, she picked him up into her arms.
"Hermione." Hagrid gave an embarrassed smile. "Abeyseems quite well-behaved. Do you think I could... you know."
"I'm afraid not.
When conscious, Abey won't let strangers touch him."
"She's telling the truth, Hagrid," Harry said with a laugh. "We've been feeding him for days, but as soon as a hand gets close, he'll bare his teeth in protest.
I suggest you don't try; it wouldn't be good if you got bitten."
"Haha! I'm not afraid of that," Hagrid said, extending his finger towards Norbert and placing it on his mouth.
The next moment, Norbert bit the Giant's finger.
But Hagrid was unfazed; he was an adult Giant, thick-skinned and tough. The biting of a baby Dragon, less than an hour old, might cause a little harm to a child, but to him, it was just a tickle.
"See, Abey's teeth can't possibly be sharper than a Dragon's, can they!"
However, the display lasted less than three seconds before Norbert coughed, and a fist-sized flame shot out of his mouth, Hagrid's finger taking the brunt of it.
"Hiss!" Hagrid gasped, quickly putting his finger in a cup of water to cool it down.
After a good while, Hagrid looked up to meet three pairs of playful eyes, and chuckled, "That was a bad example I just gave.
Of course, it was also to show you with practical action that no matter when, without absolute certainty, you should never put your body in front of a Dragon's mouth."
*Pfft!*
All three couldn't help but laugh, and Hermione hugged Abey a little tighter. "Hagrid, you should rein in your thoughts!
If you force it... I don't want to see Abey bite you."
"It's fine!
Besides, Abey doesn't breathe fire, so the danger isn't that great.
How about this! Let me try, and if it doesn't agree, I'll give up immediately."
"Alright!" Hermione hesitated and nodded. She didn't want to agree, but she also knew that Hagrid would never be content if she didn't let him try.
Hagrid was overjoyed, nervously, excitedly, and apprehensively extending his huge palm towards Abey.
Abey, however, was unfazed. Just as Hagrid's palm was about to touch him, he jumped from Hermione's arms onto the table, perfectly dodging it.
"Alright!" Hagrid spread his hands. "First contact failed."
Hermione gave an amused smile. Just as she was about to pick up Abey, she noticed the little fellow staring at Norbertin front of him.
"Stop it, that's a Dragon, don't get too close.
Be careful not to get burned by Dragon's breath."
Abey ignored Hermione's warning and walked straight forward, stopping about twenty centimeters in front of Norbert.
The two Dragons looked at each other at close range. Norbert shook his head, puzzled; he could feel a stirring in his bloodline, and the one opposite him also seemed to be a Dragon.
Abey, on the other hand, curiously observed Norbert. This was the first time he had seen a Dragon other than himself; it was completely different from the illustrations in the bestiary, a living fellow creature.
But after watching for a while, a faint hint of disdain appeared in his eyes.
This Dragon wasn't as good-looking as him.
"Harry, did I just see wrong?" Ron rubbed his eyes. "Why does it seem like Abey doesn't think much of Norbert?"
"I think I saw it too.
It feels very strange, similar to the way Draco looks at us."
"Impossible!" Hagrid said displeased. "This is clearly a historic meeting of two magical animal cubs, how sacred!
You must have seen wrong."
"Never mind all that, quickly separate them.
Don't forget, Abey is now in front of a Dragon's mouth, it's too dangerous."
"It's alright, Hermione.
Abey and Norbert should both be cubs, probably just curious about each other's identities.
Nothing will go wrong." Hagrid said with an air of composure.
Scenes of magical animals fighting were not unheard of, but they were very rare, and it was always adult magical animals that would fight to solve problems due to food, territory, mates, and other reasons.
Unless they were natural enemies and received warnings in their bloodline, cubs generally wouldn't get into major conflicts.
Seeing Hagrid so confident, Hermione also breathed a sigh of relief.
Hagrid was, after all, the gamekeeper, often dealing with creatures in the Forbidden Forest; in this regard, he was the authority at Hogwarts.
After a slightly disdainful glance at Norbert, Abey was about to leave, but just as he was about to go, he saw a few eggshells on the table, and his eyes instantly lit up.
He unhurriedly walked behind Norbert, lowered his body, and picked up one of them.
*Crunch!*
A clear crisp sound, as if signaling the start of a battle, made the hearts of the few present jump to their throats.
"Hagrid." Harry looked at the two magical animals on the table and couldn't help but swallow. "Although I haven't read much, I can tell.
This... should be considered a provocation, right?"
"This..." Hagrid hesitated and nodded. "Clearly, yes."
"It should be fine, right?" Ron asked, his mouth twitching.
"I don't know, it's my first time raising a Dragon too.
The books don't mention what happens when a young Dragon is provoked."
Upon hearing this, several people nervously watched Norbert, hoping that the Norwegian Ridgeback's tolerance would be greater and that he wouldn't stoop to Abey's level.
But things didn't go as planned. Norbert was also a Dragon, and although he was newly born, he knew what Dragon's dignity meant.
Gnawing on his shell in front of him was tantamount to rubbing his Dragon face on the ground, and no Dragon could tolerate that.
The next moment, Norbert tilted his head slightly, and tiny red spots appeared on his neck, growing deeper and deeper.
"Oh no, quickly separate them!" Hagrid shouted.