Harry Potter: Dragon Whisperer

Come Fly With Me

5:50am

Wednesday, 26 July 1995

Romanian Dragon Sanctuary, Romania

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The sun was barely cresting the horizon as Harry trudged up the hill behind Charlie. Exactly why he was walking instead of flying, he wasn't sure, especially as he had his Nimbus Two Thousand on his shoulder. But apparently, this was how it was done to 'wake you up and get your blood pumping ready for the day'.

Right at the top, under the trees where he'd first seen the great canyon the day before, Charlie stopped and rested his own broom against a trunk.

"Right, first things first," Charlie said. "Dragons, the Complete Compendium. This is everything that every dragon handler throughout history has learnt about dragons. It covers everything about dragons – different breeds, keeping them healthy, different illnesses and what to do, even what to do with the body if one dies, if you can think of it, it's in here. Read it, learn it. Most of us can all but recite it from memory."

From his pocket, Charlie pulled out a miniaturised book and tapped it with his wand, turning it into an exact replica of the Handbook that Harry had seen last night. Well, not exactly a replica. This was a brand-new copy; Miko's was old, the edges folded up, the pages all dog-eared and the spine all-but cracked in two.

"Thanks," Harry said, taking the book.

He took a moment to flick through it before noting that Charlie was waiting for him to pay attention again. Passing his hand over the book, Harry closed his eyes and felt his magic, just as Professor Flitwick had told him to. Instantly, the book responded, shrinking down to one sixth of its size and allowing him to stuff it into the pocket of his jeans.

"You, Harry, are just full of surprises," Charlie stated with a shake of his head. "Wandless, wordless magic at your age with less than a year of magical training under your belt. Right, moving on.

"The first task every morning here at the Reserve is a flyby over the Canyon. This gives us a chance to have a basic look at all of the dragons, check that there aren't any problems. After that, we give the okay to those in charge of feeding the dragons to open a section of the wards and allow the dragons out of the canyon for them to go down to the paddocks."

Harry frowned and cocked his head at that.

"You have to open wards for the dragons to come out of the canyon? But Ramaranth brought me back yesterday without you doing anything to the wards," Harry questioned.

"And here's your first big dragon reserve secret," Charlie said, stepping forward, laying one hand on Harrys' shoulder and looking him intently in his eyes. "These reserves are almost a myth. Sure, we have wards up to stop not only muggles from stumbling upon us and from magicals getting in and gaining access to the dragons. But the dragons themselves? The wards might give them a bit of sting and encourage them to stay where we'd like them, but if they really want, they can get out. We're certain that they only stay because they not only know that there's a steady supply of food here but also because they know how dangerous it is out there."

"But not all dragons live in reserves, do they?" Harry asked.

"No, not all," Charlie replied. "There's a handful that live in remote parts of the world, away from humans. But we keep an eye on them as well. At least as best as we can. Mind you, with you joining our ranks, that job might just become a little easier, seeing as you can talk to them."

"Well, that's what I'm here for," Harry grinned at him.

"Exactly, Harry, exactly," Charlie laughed, slapping him on the back before grabbing his broom. "Right, sun's getting higher which means there'll be light starting to reach the bottom of the canyon. Our job is to fly from one end to the other and back again. Nice and slow, don't want to miss anything. Ready?"