The following evening, Hagrid rushed into the Great Hall in a frantic rush, shouting from afar, “Linus!
Linus!” He squeezed his enormous frame all the way past the noisy Hufflepuffs and the even noisier Gryffindors until he reached Linus, who was currently eating a sandwich—indeed, Linus no longer ate near the library entrance lately, because Hermione had buried herself in her books and tasked him with bringing her meals instead.
In an urgent yet kept as low as possible (for him) whisper, Hagrid leaned in close to Linus’s ear.
“Linus, come with me for a moment.
Norbert and I need you.”
Linus looked at Hagrid in confusion, but agreed nonetheless.
“If it’s not an utmost emergency, I’d like to deliver food to Hermione first.”
“Al-alright,” Hagrid scratched his head.
“Delivering food to Hermione is very important too.”
Linus noticed Malfoy nearby straining his ears to listen.
It seemed the unexpected name ‘Norbert’ had caught his attention.
Linus kept an extra eye out because of it.
Taking a detour to the library, Linus handed the milk, cauldron cakes, and pumpkin pasties in his hands to Hermione, then hurried off with Hagrid in the direction of the grounds.
“What happened?” Linus asked.
“Norbert refuses to eat anything.
I’ve tried everything I can think of, but there’s no improvement,” Hagrid said, looking rather downcast.
“Then why come to me?
Do you need me to brew a potion for her?”
“No, no, that’s not it.
Norbert only became like this after you visited.
Yesterday, she’d only eat what you handed her.
I thought…
if it’s you, things might be different,” Hagrid shared his guess.
“Some people are just born with an affinity for certain magical creatures.
I think to dragons, Linus, you’re special.”
“Let’s go check on Norbert’s condition first.” Linus didn’t entirely dismiss Hagrid’s guess, as he too had felt a sense of closeness when he approached Norbert yesterday.
That was why he hadn’t brought up sending the dragon to Charlie in Romania when he left the hut last night.
As dusk gathered, the plants along the path reflected a dim, chilly light, giving the quiet, deserted lane an eerie feel.
Linus pulled his robes tighter around himself and kept pace with Hagrid, who was striding ahead with long steps.
“Fang!”
The moment they returned to the hut, the timid Fang burst out of the room, flinging himself onto Hagrid again and again.
Norbert, looking sickly, caught sight of Linus, and immediately flapped her wings, hurtling toward him.
The gust of wind created by her huge wings nearly sent Linus flying.
Mimicking the way Fang rubbed against Hagrid, Norbert rubbed her face against Linus’s robes. The source of this chapter is novelping.com.
“What did I say?
Norbert just really likes you!” Hagrid laughed delightedly upon seeing Norbert regain her energy.
“Let’s feed her first,” Linus patted Norbert’s head and said to Hagrid.
After successfully feeding Norbert and soothing her to sleep, Linus said gravely to Hagrid, “Hagrid, I can’t come here every day to feed her.”
Hagrid twined his ten massive fingers together, his giant body exuding an awkward, helpless anxiety.
“I know, I know…
but Norbert, that poor child…” As he spoke, he pulled out his massive handkerchief and began wiping away tears.
“Tears won’t solve the problem, Hagrid.” Linus acted more like an adult than his companion at that moment.
Hagrid’s sobbing paused, and he tried hard to compose his emotions.
“B-but I don’t have any better ideas for now.
I’m afraid that even if I send her away, she won’t be willing to eat.”
“I’m willing to adopt her,” Linus sighed softly.
“Th-that’s wonderful!” Hagrid jumped up in joy, as if he had been waiting for Linus to say those exact words all along.
Meeting Linus’s scrutinizing gaze, Hagrid sheepishly put his hands behind his back.
“I mean…
really?”
“There are a few conditions.
Hear me out first to see if you can manage them,” Linus said.
“Go ahead, I’m listening.”
“Norbert will soon grow to over three meters long.
So she’ll need a wooden house large enough for her to move around in, and a bed made of straw for sleeping.”
“Don’t worry, I can build that in a couple of days.”
“I’m still a student, so I can’t prepare food for Norbert.”
“I’ll prepare it and pack it in a trunk—a week’s supply at a time.
You just need to come to my place every Sunday evening to pick it up,” Hagrid promised, slapping his chest, though he soon showed a hint of concern.
“A student carrying such a huge creature walking around the castle every day…
will the professors mind?”
“I’ll use a Shrinking Charm to shrink Norbert’s wooden house along with her and put it in my bag.” Linus noticed Hagrid finally starting to care about the opinions of others in the school, feeling somewhat relieved.
“But wouldn’t that violate school rules?” Hagrid was still very worried.
The corner of Linus’s mouth twitched, and he looked at the black umbrella in Hagrid’s hand and the Forbidden Forest behind him.
“Hagrid, I think the original intent behind designing school rules was to protect the physical and mental health of all students.
If we can achieve that, there’s no need to worry about how it’s accomplished, is there?”
“Makes sense, Linus,” Hagrid muttered something about how the top student’s brain was indeed sharp.
I’ll come over to feed Norbert these next few evenings.” Linus patted Hagrid’s…
well, he couldn’t reach his shoulder, so he settled for his calf instead.
It took Hagrid only two days to build Norbert’s future grand house.
Norbert, who was currently only as tall as Linus, looked rather miniature in front of this structure.
When Linus, Harry, Hermione, and Ron arrived on Sunday, Hagrid was installing the final hinged wooden door for the house.
“Goodness, Hagrid!
Such a huge house, and you built it in just two days!” Ron marveled as he looked at the wooden house, which stood a full three stories high.
“With the help of…” Hagrid feigned nonchalance while tucking the large black umbrella in his hand behind his back, “…a little bit of help.”
“Is Norbert going to live in here from now on?” Hermione walked around inside the wooden house, feeling the soft straw bed built for Norbert.
“Once she grows up, won’t she knock the house down?”
Hagrid scratched his neck.
“Linus said he’d reinforce the house.”
“Alright, kids, time to come out.
I need to cast spells on the house and Norbert.” Linus ushered Hagrid, Harry, and the others out of the wooden house.
“Reducio.” As Linus uttered the incantation, the massive wooden house spun in place and shrank at breathtaking speed.
When it finally settled in Linus’s palm, it was only the size of a hand.
Then he followed up with protective charms like “Strengthening” and “Weatherproofing.”
Next was casting the Shrinking Charm on Norbert.
Dragons had a naturally high magic resistance, but fortunately, Norbert was cooperative enough.
Only after casting over ten consecutive Shrinking Charms did Linus compress her down to the size of an index finger knuckle and place her inside her wooden house.
“Is this…
magic?” Harry gasped in awe as he watched everything unfold.
“Hey, mate, don’t act like you’re new here,” Ron patted Harry’s shoulder.
“Unbelievable…
That this is something a first-year student can pull off.
I thought you’d need my help,” Hagrid said, his mouth wide open in astonishment.
“Is it really that hard?” Hermione said stubbornly.
“Next year, or at most the year after, I’ll be able to do it too.”
As a first-year, Ron wouldn’t say such things, because he’d rather believe he might never learn the Shrinking Charm in his whole life.
Compared to Ron, who had zero interest in studying, Hermione’s frustration index standing next to Linus was clearly showing signs of exploding.
“It’s very hard,” Hagrid said two words, but noticing the murderous glare Hermione shot him, he quickly corrected himself, “…for an ordinary young wizard, that is.”