#91 - Section 91
The group still entered through the Leaky Cauldron. Today, business was slow, with only a few drunkards sitting in a corner, talking loudly.
Arriving at the backyard, they skillfully tapped the bricks on the wall. Upon entering Diagon Alley, the foot traffic was indeed heavier than usual.
"Ethan, look, the Christmas business is still so good."
Hermione pointed to a small shop beside them.
It was located at the entrance from the Leaky Cauldron to Diagon Alley, a prime location, and was the shop Ethan had partnered with the Warre family on.
When Hermione came to buy Christmas gifts a few days ago, there was a queue. Unexpectedly, even on Christmas Day, after the gifts had been given out, people were still queuing to buy.
"Perhaps some people found it convenient after using it, so they came back to buy more."
You certainly couldn't expect people to give out much parchment as Christmas gifts.
With a cover price of ten Galleons and a parchment price of two Galleons, it wasn't cheap.
Ethan had originally planned to price it at half that, but Amos had convinced him that with exclusive operation, and with both the parchment and cover lasting for years with a little care, they had to sell it at a high price to make money, and it could only be bought from their store.
When Ethan gave gifts, he also included a cover with ten sheets of parchment. Others probably did the same, or perhaps even less, like five sheets or so.
In actual use, five sheets wouldn't be enough even for communicating with family, let alone friends, so they would definitely have to come out and buy more.
Ethan also saw Rita Skeeter interviewing nearby. She had taken Ethan's words to heart these past few days, attracting a large wave of customers.
"That's true!"
Hermione nodded knowingly. They didn't have this worry, as Ethan had given them several books each when they were at school.
Afterward, Ethan was dragged around Diagon Alley by them, especially after entering Madam Primpernelle's Beautifying Potions, where the girls were quite excited, constantly moving between the bottles and jars.
Sure enough, women, regardless of age, couldn't resist these things. Then, they went to Twilfitt and Tattings and Quality Quidditch Supplies.
"Ethan, I want to eat that!"
When passing Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour, Cassandra stopped Ethan.
Although she had first seen Ethan at Flourish and Blotts, they had truly met here.
Ethan looked at Cassandra in confusion. Although the snow had stopped today, was she sure she wanted to eat ice cream in this weather?
Cassandra nodded firmly, and Ethan went over, even having to queue to buy it.
[Thank you to the patrons City South Daily and A Snowy Chick for the monthly tickets, thank you both!]
Chapter 121: Norbert and Onyxia
The second day back to school after the Christmas holidays.
Deep in the Forbidden Forest, by a tributary channel of the Black Lake.
Ethan, who had just arrived, felt a gust of foul wind rushing from above, and his whole body was covered by a shadow.
Ethan wasn't surprised by any of this. He looked up to see a gray dragon swooping down from the sky, in a standard hunting posture.
If it were any other wizard, they would already be reminiscing about their life.
With a body length of about nine meters and a wingspan of over seventeen meters, this size was considered a behemoth among dragons.
Boom!
The dragon swooped down and landed, causing a huge roar and splashing large amounts of snow and water.
"Norbert!"
Ethan hugged the dragon's head as it burrowed into his arms, rubbing it a few times on its horns.
Although Hagrid had raised it, it was much closer to Ethan than Hagrid. When it was small, it liked to crash into Ethan's arms every time they met.
After it grew up, Ethan didn't dare to take it head-on anymore. That would kill someone, even if Ethan's physical fitness was much higher than ordinary people, he wouldn't dare to resist a swooping dragon with his bare body!
After a few training sessions, Norbert could also brake suddenly!
Avoiding Norbert's sticky tongue, Ethan took out a handful of energy cubes from his pocket and stuffed them into Norbert's mouth.
Watching Norbert happily squint his deep red eyes, constantly rejecting the huge dragon mouth, and wagging its tail, Ethan immediately said to Norbert:
"Norbert, it's quite lonely for you here alone. I've found you a companion, what do you think?"
"Woof!"
"You agree?"
"Woof woof!"
"I know you agree, don't get excited!"
Ethan patted Norbert's head, actually understanding nothing. Animal affinity didn't come with a translation function, and Parseltongue could only communicate with snakes.
"Okay, okay, don't get excited, I'll let it out to accompany you later."
Ethan said, comforting Norbert as it kept shaking its big head.
Anyway, no matter what response you make, I just don't understand it.
Norbert was now one year old. Originally, due to various external factors when it was still an egg, Norbert was weaker than other dragons from birth.
But with the energy cubes provided by Ethan and Hagrid's care, it had recovered.
Now it was developing quite well, its size was even stronger than the Ukrainian Ironbelly of the same age, and it breathed fire and flew earlier than normal.
At about nine months, Norbert was already able to fly quite skillfully.
After Hagrid spent more time with Norbert, he chose to let go and return to living in the hut on the edge of the Forbidden Forest.
Norbert had grown up, could fly, and was still in the same location, increasing the chance of being discovered. If someone caught him in the act, Hagrid wouldn't be able to explain it.
If Norbert was discovered alone, they could say it flew in from out of town, which wouldn't be a big deal. After all, there were many magical creatures migrating to the Forbidden Forest.
It also had the ability to hunt independently and no longer needed to be fed. In the wild, this size would have been driven out of the dragon's nest long ago.
The three-headed dog Fluffy also went out to work before the age of one, so Hagrid wasn't reluctant. Anyway, they were all in the Forbidden Forest and could meet at any time.
Around Halloween, Hagrid placed Norbert in the location he had chosen to live, which was where Ethan and Norbert were now.
This was a tributary of the Black Lake, with no shortage of water, and there were many large fish and various aquatic magical creatures, with abundant animal resources. At the same time, it was deep in the Forbidden Forest, ensuring secrecy, which was definitely a very good habitat.
The Chimera, who originally lived here, chose to move to a deeper location in the Forbidden Forest after Hagrid's friendly persuasion, giving this territory to Norbert.
When Hagrid told him this, Ethan didn't feel anything until he received Hagrid's Christmas gift a few days ago.
Inside were four Chimera fangs, and they were quite fresh, with blood still on them. At that time, Ethan knew how Hagrid had persuaded them.
A Chimera, a XXXXX magical creature, possesses the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and the tail of a fire dragon, making it a rather bloodthirsty and violent magical beast.
In the Forbidden Forest, it can be considered a local overlord, and generally, no one dares to provoke it.
According to Ethan's estimation, its territory, along with a fire dragon, shouldn't be much of a problem. The fish in the Black Lake, and the magical creatures and beasts in the Forbidden Forest, provide ample resources, so it certainly won't starve.
Originally, Ethan planned to release Onyxia when she grew to ten meters, but now she's almost nine meters tall, already considered a large size among fire dragons.
Ethan doesn't visit the Room of Requirement as frequently now, so it's better to release her early.
Basilisks, Murtlaps, Flobberworms, and Nagini don't take up much space and can be carried around, but a fire dragon is different. During this vacation, Onyxia has been confined in the box and is almost developing mania.
So, after drawing a pint of dragon blood yesterday, Ethan came to the Forbidden Forest this morning while he had no classes.
Ethan is also expanding the box with Undetectable Extension Charms, but the current area is far from enough to raise a fire dragon. By the time he graduates, the area inside will definitely be enough for the fire dragon to survive, and then he can carry her around.
At that time, he estimates he'll reach Newt Scamander's level when he was expelled from Hogwarts. Newt focused most of his energy on magical creatures and the box, but Ethan can't.
"Onyxia, come out!"
Ethan opened the box with Undetectable Extension Charms and shouted loudly inside, then stepped aside.
After about four or five seconds, a dark shadow burst out, flew around in the air, and then landed on Ethan's left side, staring intently at Norbert.
Norbert's deep red eyes were also fixed on Onyxia, his mouth wide open in an attacking posture.
As the saying goes, a mountain cannot accommodate two tigers, unless one is male and the other is female.
"Roar!"
Onyxia roared at Ethan in dissatisfaction. Although he couldn't understand, after spending so much time together, he could still distinguish her emotions.
"Woof!"
Norbert also refused to be outdone, equally disliking this jumping dragon.
"Roar!"
"Woof!"
The two fire dragons roared closer and closer, their heads almost touching.
If Ethan wasn't here, the two dragons would probably have started fighting.
As the saying goes, a mountain cannot accommodate two tigers, unless one is male and the other is female.
But both of these fire dragons are female, and they need to be integrated to coexist peacefully. Ethan can only try to appease them, feeding them some energy cubes and stroking their chins.
The fire dragons in the fire dragon reserve and farm don't have as much activity space as in the wild, and many are also mixed. They can still coexist peacefully, and their wildness is not as strong as purely wild ones. At most, they just fight a few more times, and they'll get used to it.
The two fire dragons are about the same in both length and wingspan.
It's just that Onyxia is about half a year younger than Norbert, having hatched in June.
They are about the same length, but not the same width. Norbert's belly and figure look a bit round, not because he's gotten fat, but because the Ukrainian Ironbelly breed is like that, large in size but unable to fly fast.
Onyxia has an extra pair of front legs, a slender figure, and different wings and tail than ordinary fire dragons.
If the two fight, Onyxia will have a certain advantage, flying faster and having an extra pair of front legs suitable for close combat.
After feeding each dragon a large handful of energy cubes again, Ethan specifically instructed Onyxia before turning to leave.
Magical creatures are like that. You can't understand what they say, and at most you can understand the meanings represented by some of their movements and calls. But magical creatures can understand what wizards are saying, especially those of XXXX level or above.
0 Seeking Flowers
Having just turned around and walked a few hundred meters, Ethan heard a roar behind him, and flames reflecting half the sky, including Onyxia's black flames and Norbert's orange flames.
After a little thought, Ethan decided to ignore it. Living together will always lead to fighting, unless the two grew up together.
With Ethan's instructions, and the fact that fire dragons are inherently strong in terms of physical fitness, recovery, and magic resistance, as long as it's not a fatal injury, they can heal themselves in no time.
Arriving at Hagrid's hut, after patting Fang's dog head that was circling around his feet a few times, Ethan directly pushed the door open and went in.
Hagrid was making his rock cakes by the stove.
He has to patrol the Forbidden Forest every night, so Hagrid usually gets up later in the morning when he has nothing to do, and it's common for him to eat breakfast and lunch together.
Hearing the door open, Hagrid turned his head and, upon discovering that it was Ethan, immediately said with a smile:
"Ethan, how was your Christmas vacation? I saw the photos of you at the investiture ceremony, it looked pretty good!"
"It was very good, and I really like the gift you gave me."
Ethan sat directly on the sofa on the side and poured himself a cup of tea. He's been here so many times that there's no need to be polite.
"Your gift was also very good, and very useful to me!"
Speaking of this, Hagrid was quite excited. He hadn't received such a good gift in a long time.
The last time was when he received Sirius Black's motorcycle. He couldn't use a flying broom well, so Sirius Black gave him the modified motorcycle, fulfilling his flying dream. Although he now despises Sirius Black and even wants to return the motorcycle to him, he was indeed very happy when he received the gift.
Ethan gave him a set of powerful crossbows modified with alchemy, which can automatically cock the crossbow arrows when placed on them, and can continuously fire ten crossbow arrows, with even greater power.
Both the crossbow arrows and the quiver are enchanted, and after being shot out, they can automatically return.
Hagrid liked it after using it once.
"Rock cakes just out of the oven, want to try one?"
Hagrid placed a large plate of rock cakes on the table and sat directly opposite Ethan.
"No, I just had breakfast in Hogwarts."
Rock cakes are okay when eaten in soup, but Ethan estimated that he couldn't handle eating them dry like this early in the morning.
"Then I'll eat it myself, I haven't had breakfast yet."
Hagrid said, grabbing a piece of rock cake and eating it. There was no need to be polite between the two.
After Hagrid finished breakfast, Ethan started talking about business.
"I know a fire dragon that has no place to raise, so I put it in the Forbidden Forest, together with Norbert."
