"Long story short, tha's how it is. Wot happens next depends on how things turn out."
Hagrid stumbled through an explanation about Malfoy, but Wayne wasn't paying him any attention.
"Come here." He beckoned to Norbert as if calling Fang.
"Don'—Norbert's a bit feisty, he is." Hagrid warned. To a dragon, such a gesture was nothing short of a challenge, and they'd soon be on the receiving end of a fiery spit.
But what happened next left him stunned.
At Wayne's call, Norbert wobbled over, nuzzling against his trouser leg with an almost fawning affection—more attached to him than to his own 'dragon dad.'
Hagrid's gaze towards Wayne shifted instantly.
Wayne's black hair might as well have turned blond, while his own scalp suddenly felt a heavy presence atop it.
Harry and Ron exchanged glances, mutual envy clear in their eyes.
They'd nearly had their robes singed earlier—petting Norbert required stealth when it wasn't looking.
Yet here was Wayne, summoning and dismissing the dragon at will. Was this the fabled Hufflepuff talent?
Wayne lifted Norbert up, and the little creature didn't dare resist, letting out a soft, whimpering cry.
Wayne carried the strong scent of Ho-Oh, and since Norbert had hatched from Ho-Oh's flames, it instinctively felt both drawn to and fearful of him.
After carefully inspecting Norbert's teeth, wings, and limbs, Wayne finally released it.
"Not bad. It's developing very healthily—much stronger than an ordinary baby dragon."
"Norbert, breathe some fire."
He~tui!
Hagrid: "..."
His bed!
Wayne's eyes gleamed brighter.
This temperature… impressive.
And that was just a casual puff from Ho-Oh. If it had used Sacred Fire, infused with abundant life energy, would the hatched dragon have been even stronger?
He wondered if Quirrell had any spare dragon eggs left.
"Wayne, Malfoy's matter's more pressin' righ' now." Hagrid cautiously urged, worried that if Wayne kept this up, Norbert would end up demolishing his hut.
"Fine." Wayne placed Norbert back into the little nest Hagrid had built for it and clapped his hands.
"Actually, this is all Harry's fault."
"My fault?" Harry was baffled. "It's Malfoy's problem—why blame me?"
"Obviously." Wayne nudged Norbert away as it crawled back to his feet and continued, "Malfoy's been tailing you every day. If you hadn't come, he wouldn't have shown up either."
"What?" Harry's face twisted in horror. "You're saying Malfoy's been stalking me?"
"You didn't know?" Wayne looked at him in surprise.
"No!"
Wayne shrugged. "Well, every time I've seen you, Malfoy's been lurking within fifty metres. Without fail."
Harry's expression darkened further.
A boy following him around every day? The thought alone was revolting.
"So what do we do now? Malfoy already knows—he'll tell the other professors."
"He won't," Wayne spoke with absolute certainty.
Meeting the trio's puzzled gazes, he explained, "Malfoy's target isn't Hagrid—it's you, Harry."
"He'll use this as leverage to torment you, threaten you, and then go running to the professors."
From that moment on, Malfoy officially became the person Harry despised the most, second only to Snape, with his cousin Dudley dropping to third place.
"Here's the plan." Wayne pondered. "Let Malfoy gloat for a couple of days. Once he's had his fun, I'll have a little chat with him—make sure he keeps quiet about the dragon. That'll improve our chances."
He turned to Ron. "Your older brother works at the Romanian dragon reserve, right? Contact him and arrange for Norbert to be sent away as soon as possible."
"Right, I'll write to Charlie straight away," Ron nodded repeatedly.
Hagrid, however, looked heartbroken.
"Do we really hafta send 'im away? Norbert's still so small… I can' bear it, I can'."
"Hagrid." Wayne's tone was firm. "Dragons grow fast. In two weeks at most, Norbert won't fit in this hut anymore."
"What'll you do then? Run to Professor Dumbledore to clean up your mess again?"
The half-giant's sniffles came to an abrupt halt.
The matter was settled. No matter how reluctant Hagrid was, there was no changing it.
All they could do was follow Wayne's instructions—contact Charlie at the Romanian dragon reserve and, for now, avoid provoking Malfoy.
...
Over the next two days, Malfoy truly acted as Wayne had predicted, riding Harry relentlessly with vicious taunts each day.
Yet Harry and Ron could only avoid him, not daring to argue back loudly for fear that others might discover Norbert's existence. This only made Malfoy even more smug.
Finally, on the third day, just as Harry was nearing his breaking point, Wayne sought out Malfoy.
"Lawrence."
Malfoy was no fool. This was the first time Wayne had approached him proactively, and he could already guess the reason. His expression darkened.
"If you're here to plead on Potter's behalf, save your breath. I won't agree to anything."
"How about you hear me out first?" Wayne remained unruffled, gesturing for Malfoy to follow him. This was right outside the Slytherin Common Room—too many eyes and ears around.
After a moment's hesitation, Malfoy followed.
He was merely curious about what Wayne could say to sway him. It certainly wasn't because he was afraid of getting beaten up.
The two arrived at the Potions classroom, where, under Malfoy's stunned gaze, Wayne forcibly picked the lock and pushed the door open.
"Let's talk inside."
"Aren't you afraid Professor Snape will find out?" Malfoy gulped, taking a seat opposite Wayne.
"If neither of us says anything, how would he know? I trust you, Malfoy."
Malfoy couldn't help but lift his chin.
Now this was more like it!
This was the unspoken understanding between nobles!
"Malfoy, I'll cut to the chase." Wayne clasped his hands together, getting straight to the point. "About Norbert—oh, that's the dragon—I don't want you reporting it to the professors."
"Impossible." Though his mood had improved slightly, when it came to Potter, he wouldn't be so easily swayed.
"What do you stand to gain by telling the professors?" Wayne pressed. "You're a Slytherin. You don't do things without benefit."
"I could get Gryffindor points docked, and that oaf expelled," Malfoy retorted without hesitation.
"That won't happen." Wayne shook his head. "Hagrid is Dumbledore's man. Dumbledore will smooth things over for him.
"At most, it'll be a fine. Do you think a gamekeeper cares about gold?"
Malfoy fell silent for a moment before stubbornly adding, "But it'll still get Potter detention, points deducted—maybe even expelled!"
"You're joking again." Wayne continued shaking his head. "Harry's the Boy Who Lived. There's no way he'd be expelled."
"As for points… just look at Gryffindor's current tally. Even without your interference, they'll lose them all on their own."
Malfoy sucked in a sharp breath.
That… made an unsettling amount of sense.
Right now, Gryffindor has a measly 200 points. The 150 points from the Quidditch season were also practically out of reach.
Which meant that even without his meddling, Gryffindor had no chance of winning the House Cup.
Deducting points would barely scratch Harry.
Is this the legendary tactic of "if I don't care, no one can touch me"?
"At the very least, they'll get scolded by the professors! That alone would make me happy!" Malfoy snapped, frustration boiling over.
"But it's hardly worth it, is it? I've got a proposal..."
Wayne smiled, slowly drawing Malfoy into his carefully laid trap. "Your name is Draco—clearly tied to dragons. I'd wager you're quite fond of them, aren't you?"
Malfoy said nothing, meeting him with silence.
"If you can't beat them, join them for the fun," Wayne tempted. "That's a purebred Norwegian Ridgeback, still a hatchling—the kind you can touch."
Malfoy's breathing grew ragged.
Wayne wasn't wrong. The Malfoys had an undeniable obsession with dragons—their family crest even bore two Welsh Greens.
"I can make the call. As long as you don't report Hagrid, you can visit Norbert in the hut anytime before the dragon's sent away."
"As for Harry… haven't you mocked him enough these past two days?"
Finally swayed, Malfoy hesitated. "You can decide this?"
"Of course. That dragon hatched with Ho-Oh's help—I've got a say in this."
The allure of touching a hatchling proved too much. Malfoy yielded.
"Fine, but you're taking me there tomorrow."
...
The next afternoon, Hagrid's Hut was packed.
Harry, Ron, Malfoy, Wayne, Cho, and Hermione—six young wizards spanning all four Houses, a half-giant, and a dragon.
A bizarre gathering, to say the least.
Harry and Ron glared daggers at Malfoy, but for Hagrid's sake—and their own—they had no choice but to accept his terms.
Cho and Hermione paid no mind to the grudges between the others, instead circling the dragon with fascination.
Under Wayne's control, Norbert behaved far better, docilely lying still as the girls inspected her.
With the matter resolved, Hagrid cheerfully bustled off to prepare treats, his hands wrapped in thick bandages from Norbert's recent nips.
With a trembling heart and unsteady hands, Malfoy finally brushed Norbert's rough scales.
He, Draco Malfoy, had touched a dragon!
What, those Christmas photos?
All fake. Staff used transfiguration to conjure flimsy imitations for tourist snaps—eight Sickles a pop.
"My turn, Malfoy."
Ron shoved past the blond, eagerly petting Norbert. Malfoy bristled, and the two nearly came to blows before Wayne booted them both out.
He then produced a syringe as thick as an arm.
Hagrid, returning with desserts, paled.
"Wayne, Norbert's jus' a baby!"
"If yeh must, take me blood 'stead!"
"What use is yours?" Wayne scoffed. "Mosquito repellent?"
"Do giant hybrids have that trait?" Harry's eyes lit up.
"Only pure-blooded giants. No idea about Hagrid." Wayne dismissed this before approaching the quivering Norbert.
"Relax. Norbert's healthy—this won't even dent her reserves."
Soon, two piercing shrieks echoed through the hut—one from Norbert, the other from Hagrid, mourning his 'child's' ordeal.
...
In the following days, Malfoy visited the hut more than Harry and Ron combined, never empty-handed, always bringing meat for Norbert. Yet every encounter with the duo inevitably sparked another row.
In Malfoy's mind, what he fancied were dragons, not that annoying Potter or the pauper Weasley.
Meanwhile, Harry and Ron, wary of Malfoy potentially reporting them, didn't dare go all out during their arguments, let alone resort to physical blows.
All in all, the atmosphere remained relatively civil.
...
Time flew by, and soon it was Friday. Ron received a letter from Charlie and was visibly thrilled.
"Charlie says we should go to the Astronomy Tower next Wednesday evening—a few of his friends will come to take Norbert away!"
"So soon?"
This time, it was Malfoy who wasn't pleased. He hadn't had his fill of fun yet.
"Hmph," Ron snorted, shooting Malfoy a disdainful look. "If it weren't for someone's tendency to snitch, we wouldn't be in such a hurry."
Malfoy lowered his head awkwardly, watching as Norbert spat out little sparks.
"Now, now," Hagrid interjected, trying to smooth things over. "Much as I hate ter see 'im go, Norbert really oughta be sent away. He's growin' too fast, he is."
Hagrid looked sorrowful. His brief week-long experience raising a dragon had left him utterly exhausted—dragons were far too energetic.
Nearly all the furniture in his hut had been replaced, and his Unicorn hair-woven rug had been scorched black.
Most crucially, just as Wayne had predicted, if they waited any longer, Norbert would soon outgrow the space.
So, despite his reluctance, Hagrid agreed that Norbert had to go.
"Hagrid, you shouldn't come along—you're too big, you'd be spotted easily," Harry said after some thought. "Ron and I can handle taking Norbert."
"Then I'll leave it ter yeh." Hagrid murmured mournfully, gazing at Norbert.
"I'm coming too," Malfoy suddenly declared. "I've been the one feeding Norbert these past few days. I've earned the right."
Ron and Harry wanted to refuse, but under Malfoy's threat of reporting them if excluded, they reluctantly agreed.
The trio then went to find Wayne, only for him to flatly refuse. Spending a perfectly good night sneaking around just to deliver a dragon? He wasn't that bored.
As for dragon blood, he'd already collected enough over the past few days.
With Wayne out, Hermione and Cho certainly wouldn't go either, so in the end, it was just Harry, Ron, and Malfoy.
...
Wednesday night arrived.
The three of them first gathered at Hagrid's hut and, under his tearful gaze, took Norbert away.
"No! Me baby! Don' yeh ferget yer mum when yeh grow up!"
Hearing Hagrid's heart-wrenching wails behind them, all three shuddered in unison.
No male mother figures, please!
Wayne had fed Norbert a dose of Draught of Living Death earlier that afternoon, so the dragon was now fast asleep, causing no trouble on the journey.
Charlie's friends descended onto the Astronomy Tower on broomsticks, and the handover went smoothly.
Malfoy cast a sorrowful glance in the direction where the dark figure had vanished, then turned back to Harry and Ron with undisguised malice in his eyes.
With the dragon gone, their relationship reverted to its usual hostility.
Harry's fists itched. He wondered if he and Ron should take advantage of Malfoy's lack of cronies and give him a good thrashing.
In the end, he decided against it.
Ah well. Consider it a reward for Malfoy not snitching. Honestly, what could they do with him?
Before descending the Tower, the three cautiously checked the map for Filch's location and deliberately chose a corridor on the opposite side of the castle.
But they forgot one thing—this area was dangerously close to the professors' quarters.
"Stop right there!" A tall shadow loomed over the trio, freezing them in their tracks from head to toe, chilling them to the bone.
This voice was one no young witch or wizard would fail to recognise. Professor McGonagall!
"You... you..." McGonagall's chest heaved with barely contained fury, rendering her almost speechless.
"It's one o'clock in the morning!" McGonagall roared. "Mr Potter, I am deeply disappointed in you!"
"Professor, I—"
Harry trembled as he tried to speak, but Professor McGonagall cut him off: "No amount of excuses will save you now! Fifty points! Fifty points from each of you! And detention!"
Harry could scarcely breathe. Malfoy, however, suddenly perked up, a faint smirk playing on his lips.
Two against one—the odds were in his favour!
Just then, a silky, sinister voice drifted from around the corner.
"Professor McGonagall, I believe you're being far too lenient. Wandering the castle at this hour and only losing fifty points?
"I think one hundred points each would be more appropriate."
Snape sauntered into view, wearing a smug grin—until his eyes landed on Malfoy, who was practically burying his face in his chest. The smile slowly faded.
Merlin's beard, was he hallucinating? Potter and Malfoy, out of bed together?!