Chapter 22 Sending Off the Dragon

Chapter 22

"Oh my goodness, Malfoy actually informed his father!" Hermione exclaimed anxiously as she unfolded the letter in her hands.

"But Charlie mentioned he can only come this Saturday to take the dragon away," Ron said, gripping his red hair.

"No, we need to inform Hagrid right away; we have to handle Norbert tonight," Harry said as he stood up suddenly.

"But what can we do?" Hermione said, running her fingers through her hair in frustration. "Put it in the Forbidden Forest? It'll set the Forbidden Forest on fire, and if that happens, Hagrid will be in serious trouble."

"Let's speak to Hagrid first." The three of them waited nervously until noon classes ended and then rushed to Hagrid's hut together.

"No, they can't take Norbert away," Hagrid said, blowing his nose with a loud sound.

"But you'll be sent to Azkaban!" Harry said, pacing anxiously. "Maybe you can knock him out and hide him in the lake or something."

"No, Norbert is still a baby," Hagrid shouted. "You can't do that to him!"

"If we have no other options, perhaps we can ask him for help," Hermione suggested, shaking Brian's letter.

"Hermione, this could be a trap; we can't depend on a Slytherin for Hagrid's safety!" Ron argued.

Harry concurred with him.

"But we don't have any other choices, do we?" Hermione said, crossing her arms. "Or can you think of a solution right now?"

"Anyway, asking for help from Walker or someone is absurd," Ron shook his head.

"Okay, then what should we do?" Hermione shot back.

"Maybe we can knock him out and hide him in the Forbidden Forest," Harry proposed.

"We don't know how long the aurors will take to investigate; the Dragon might starve," Hermione said. "Or it might wake up halfway and set the Forbidden Forest ablaze."

Hagrid sniffled and shook his head. He lovingly patted Norbert's head, allowing it to nibble on his hand.

"Norbert is such a lovely creature, healthy and full of life. I'm his mother; he can only depend on me, and I would never treat him like that."

"Maybe I can write to Charlie again," Ron said, his voice strained.

Hermione leaned against the door, letting out a deep sigh.

...

Seeing Hermione's request for help, Brian couldn't help but chuckle. He didn't expect Harry and Ron, these little troublemakers, to warm up to him.

Brian didn't have a solid plan either; he could only ask one of his father's friends to temporarily take the Dragon and then pass it on to Charlie Weasley.

Brian thought this way he should be able to earn some witness points, and they would be "participation" witness points.

"Tonight at midnight, bring the Dragon to the top of the highest tower. I've arranged for someone to take care of it temporarily. Brian."

He watched as the owl Becca flew away with the letter.

That night, close to midnight, Brian quietly made his way to the highest tower.

Standing at the top of the tower, the starry sky felt almost within reach, providing a sense of isolation that deeply captivated Brian.

Harry and the others had packed Norbert into a crate and said goodbye to Hagrid, whose eyes were filled with tears. His expression resembled that of a mother watching her child depart.

"Hermione, oh my goodness, you must be out of your mind! How could you think of secretly writing to Walker for help behind our backs?" Ron whispered, clutching his right hand, which was bandaged from being bitten by Norbert.

"I have a feeling tonight might be a trap," Harry said pessimistically. "We're going to ruin everything."

"But we don't have any other options, do we?" Hermione murmured. "Besides, we have the invisibility cloak; we can assess the situation first before deciding whether to reveal ourselves."

They climbed the long spiral staircase, the crate containing Norbert proving to be quite restless, exhausting them.

Finally, they reached the top of the tower. They quietly surveyed their surroundings, and fortunately, Norbert calmed down a bit and stopped making strange noises.

Brian stood quietly at the top of the tower, gazing at the stars in the night sky, appearing like a statue that had existed here since time immemorial, perfectly blending with the environment.

Hermione looked at his figure and couldn't help but think that she might have never truly understood him.

He was so close to her, yet so distant. It was like the mysterious, vast starry sky, drawing one in with its magic, urging them to explore the secrets hidden within, while also making them feel small and afraid to uncover the truth concealed beneath that loneliness and tenderness.

"What a peculiar person," Hermione thought to herself, yet she couldn't help wanting to know more about him. She couldn't see through him.

Brian seemed to hear some noise; he turned his head and looked over, a slight smile on his lips.

The three of them exchanged glances under the invisibility cloak, and Harry took it off.

"You arrived a bit early; he hasn't come yet," Brian said with a gentle smile, his voice soft as if afraid to disturb the tranquility of the night sky.

"Oh, okay," Harry replied awkwardly, "Thank you, Brian."

"It's no problem. Actually, my father's friend is also very interested in studying Dragons," Brian's smile became more pronounced, "He has always wanted to find a Dragon, but unfortunately, he has never had the opportunity."

"Are you saying he would turn Norbert into a specimen?" Hermione's eyes widened. Although she disliked Norbert, she didn't want Hagrid to be heartbroken.

"No, he would probably just collect some blood, scales, and other samples," Brian said, resting his chin on one hand, "But this process certainly wouldn't make Norbert very happy."

The three of them sighed in relief. This was completely acceptable.

"However, he can't keep this Dragon for long; after all, it's illegal and very dangerous to privately raise a Dragon," Brian continued, "You'd better think of a reliable way to handle it, otherwise I believe he wouldn't mind turning the Dragon into a specimen or something."

"No, my brother Charlie is studying Dragons in Romania; he can take it away. He'll come this Saturday," Ron quickly said.

"Great, I'll give you an address, and you just tell him to go there to pick up the Dragon," Brian nodded.

They waited in the cold wind for a long time until Norbert banged the box loudly, and then they saw a small black dot slowly flying over from the horizon.

The newcomer was a tall, slender man in a black wizard's robe, with bronze skin and short black curly hair. He had two small mustaches and a weathered face.

"Uncle Light, long time no see," Brian said with a smile.

"Ah, Brian, you've grown so tall," Light said, adjusting his robe that had been blown by the wind, "The last time I saw you, you were just a little bean."

"Oh, is this inside... the Dragon?" He walked straight towards the crate and lowered his voice. His eyes were filled with excitement and urgency.

"That's right; I need you to keep it for a few days. Someone will come to take it away this Saturday," Brian said, "Please don't make it too miserable, okay?"

"Of course, of course, I'll take good care of it," Light's eyes were full of greed.

"Brian, your days are really quite thrilling," Light said, patting the crate with an exaggerated tone, "How come I never encountered a Dragon when I was in school!"

He pulled out his wand and cast a spell on the crate, making it light as a feather. Then with another wave of his wand, a bundle of rope tied up the crate.

"Alright, I have to go now. You all should get back early; it won't be fun if you get caught by the caretaker," Light tied the rope to his flying broom, "Forgive my eagerness; I can't wait to get back and bond with this little guy."

"Of course, goodbye, Uncle Light," Brian smiled and waved at him.

Harry and the others watched the receding figure and breathed a sigh of relief while silently wishing Norbert good luck. They had finally freed themselves from this Dragon that had tormented them for so long; who cared what would happen to it now?

"Alright, we should head back," Hermione said with a smile, tugging at Harry and Ron's robes, "Thanks this time; you really helped us a lot, Brian."

"It's no problem; friends should help each other, right?" Brian smiled warmly and modestly.

He then looked at Ron's bandaged right hand, which had a faint greenish tinge. He sincerely suggested, "Weasley, you better go to the hospital wing; Dragon teeth are poisonous."

"Okay, you all go back first; I'll leave later," Brian continued, "And please don't tell Draco about this, alright? I don't want him to know I've messed up his plans again."

"Of course," Hermione nodded.

Watching the three slowly walk away, Brian looked at the hint in his mind and let out a sigh of relief.

[Participated in the Dragon incident, Witness Points +0.3×2]

Well, now he had 0.9 Witness Points, which was quite uncomfortable for his obsessive-compulsive tendencies.

Brian planned to go back, but he noticed something shimmering on the ground under the moonlight, like a puddle of water.

Harry and the others had forgotten the invisibility cloak here.