Gerard Way and the Triwizard Tournament

Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Care of Magical Creatures was one of the few classes that I didn't share with Ray. It made things a little bit harder, since I didn't really have anyone to talk to during class, but I still loved playing with the animals. Professor Hagrid was also an awesome teacher.

I got lost going to class that day (the magical staircases are confusing), so I was late getting to Hagrid's hut. "Gerard! Why are yeh late for class?" Hagrid asked when I got there.

"I'm sorry, Professor," I said. "I got lost."

"Well, don' do it again," Hagrid said. I sat down next to Frank, who already had his notes out and was ready for class.

"Class, today I have a very excitin' lesson for you all. Today, we will be talkin' about dragons!"

"This is totally illegal," Frank whispered to me. "That's a good thing!"

Frank was right. There was no way that Hagrid could ever bring dragons into the classroom. This would probably be a boring lesson then. It would just be Hagrid talking.

"Can someone tell me what ye know about dragons?" Hagrid asked. Frank's hand shot into the air. "Yes Frank?"

Frank opened his Care of Magical Creatures textbook and read, "Probably the most famous of all magical beasts, dragons are among the most difficult to hide. The female is generally larger and more aggressive than the male, though neither should be approached by any but highly skilled and trained wizards. Dragon hide, blood, heart, liver, and horn all have highly magical properties, but dragon eggs are defined as Class A Non-Tradeable Goods. There are ten breeds of dragon, though these have been known to interbreed on occasion, producing rare hybrids. Pure-bred dragons are as follows...uh, Professor? Do you want me to read the different breeds?"

"No Frank, that's enough," Hagrid said. "Today, we'll be playin' wi' three different breeds: th' Common Welsh Green, th' Antipodean Opaleye, and th' Romanian Longhorn. We will only be usin' young dragons, 'cause they are easier to control. You will be split into partners, an' each partner group will get a dragon."

Hagrid then gave us all partners. I wasn't called until the very end, when Hagrid decided to put me with Frank. Frank and I were then given a baby Common Welsh Green. The Common Welsh Greens seemed kind of boring to me, so I didn't expect much. I was really hoping for an Opaleye, but Hayley and Jeremy Davis were the only two students that were given an Opaleye.

Hagrid went over a few "safety procedures," which was really just him reminding us to "treat th' dragons wi' respect." Hagrid was never one for student safety. After that, we were allowed to mess around with the dragons. I reached out to touch our dragon, but it just turned around and bit my finger.

"Ow!" I shrieked. "Frank! It bit me!"

Frank took out his wand. "Episkey," he said, pointing his wand at my finger. The dragon bite went hot, then cold, and then the bite was gone.

"Thanks Frank," I said.

"Here, let's try something else," Frank said. He took some of the meat that Hagrid had given us. "Fetch!" he exclaimed, throwing the meat towards the Forbidden Forest. The dragon ran off and came back a few minutes with the meat. "See?" Frank said. "It's just like a dog."

"Can I try?" I asked. Frank nodded, and I grabbed a piece of meat. I tossed it into the forest, and the dragon came back with it.

"Good boy," Frank said, giving the dragon a piece of meat to reward its good behavior.

"Frank, I think Hagrid said our dragon was a girl," I said.

"Good girl then," Frank said. "You know, my wand core is dragon heartstring."

"That's random," I said, although my own wand core was also dragon heartstring. I briefly wondered if our wand cores were made from the same dragon, but I decided that this was silly. Dragon heartstring was one of the most common wand cores.

We played with the dragon until class was over. Frank even managed to teach it how to do a couple of tricks. Frank was surprisingly good with animals.

After class, Frank said, "I still can't believe Hagrid let us play with the dragons."

"It was fun though," I reminded him.

"Yeah, it was a great lesson, but he shouldn't have been allowed to bring dragons into class. I think they're using the dragons for the Triwizard Tournament."

I laughed. "Those baby dragons? They're not scary."

"If there are baby dragons, there are adult dragons somewhere, and I think they're using the adult dragons for the Tournament," Frank said.

"Well, let's ask Hagrid," I said. We ran back towards Hagrid's hut, and I asked, "Hagrid, are they using those dragons for the Triwizard Tournament?"

"I'm afraid I can' tell ye that," Hagrid said.

"Come on Hagrid," I said. "We need to know."

"I can't help ye. I'm sorry," Hagrid said.

I rolled my eyes. "Thank you for the venom, Professor Hagrid," I said as I left.

"It's definitely dragons," Frank concluded. "If it wasn't dragons, he would have told you that."

"I don't know what to do though. How would I even defeat a dragon?" I asked.

"Meet me in the library tomorrow," Frank said. "I'll tell you what to do."