Redheads, Dragons, and Luna Lovegood

The tyres of the bus screeched as the bus stopped to a halt in front of a pair of huge bronze gates.

“Romanian Dragon Reserve!” A loud, squeaky voice called as the doors of the lilac bus slid open.

A gaggle of red-heads followed by a few more people descended from the bus, some lugging suitcases with them.

“Have a good day, tourists!” The doors slid shut as the largest man most would’ve ever seen deboarded. A second later, the bus vanished with a bang.

“I am never traveling in magical buses again.” Ginny said faintly, clutching Harry’s shoulder. “I feel like I am about to puke.”

“Charlie should be here any minute,” Arthur checked a pocket watch. “Wait, is everyone here?”

“I’ll do a headcount,” Hermione volunteered, stepping up on the sidewalk. Her finger bounced up and down in the thin air as she counted.

“Eleven,” Hermione’s forehead creased. “That can’t be right?”

“Did you count yourself, ‘mione?” Ron asked.

“We were ten when we left, Ronald.” Hermione said.

“So we gained a member?” Luna chirped. “That doesn’t seem a problem.”

“I mean—” Hermione froze. “Wait, Luna. Since when were you with us?”

“Luna dear, when did you get here?” Molly turned around. “Does Xenoliphus know you’re in Romania?”

“Daddy knows.” Luna bobbed her head. “I am here searching for Crumpled-Horn Snorkacks. They might be blending in with smaller dragons, daddy says.”

“What are those?” Fleur whispered to Bill.

“Don’t bother,” her husband snorted.

“Well, she’s with us now,” Hagrid lumbered forward patting Luna’s head. “Are you goin’ to see the dragons as well, Luna?”

“Yes,” Luna’s eyes lit up. “They’re very cute creatures!”

“Only Luna and Hagrid would call dragons cute.” Ginny grinned at Harry.

“I saw Hagrid raise a dragon.” Harry said. “You don’t need to tell me.”

The bronze doors creaked open and a tall, lanky red-headed man emerged wearing a broad grin.

“Charlie!” Mrs. Weasley rushed forward, engulfing her son in a hug.

“Hey, mum. Hey family.” Charlie winked at them. “They’re all waiting for you inside. Let’s get going before these gates close automatically.”

“They do that?” Hermione picked her bag and began to usher everyone into the sanctuary.

“So, mum, dad and Bill have already been here before.” Charlie said as the locks on the bronze doors clicked shut. “For those who are new here, we have a special hotel for tourists. If you go out of the hotel, do not leave the premises unless you are in one of these.”

Charlie pointed at two open jeeps that stood next to the gate, each with two wizards or witches in it.

“They’re for your safety,” he continued. “Dragons are dangerous creatures. They can kill you if they find you threatening.”

“Oui,” Fleur whispered in Harry’s ear. “And we stole an egg from a dragon’s nest.”

Harry’s lips tugged into a grin. “I outflew the Horntail.”

The group split into two and boarded the jeeps. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Bill and Fleur in one while the rest in the other.

Fleur shivered as she climbed in. “These things are enchanted. I can feel the magic.”

“Of course, they are, pretty girl.” The witch in the front seat rolled her eyes. “We don’t want dragons picking ya up and eating ya, do we?”

“That’s true,” Hermione nodded, shooting Harry and Fleur a glare. “We are going to the hotel right now, aren’t we?”

“Wanna keep lugging bags around while you see dragons, do ya?” The witch asked. “Hotel first, Javier.”

The engine roared to life and they began to drive through the dragon sanctuary.

“Oooh, look, that’s a Vipertooth!” Hermione pointed to the sky.

A huge, black-scaled serpentine dragon flew in above them, its huge wings casting a shadow over the jeep.

“Harry, get the camera!” Ginny held her hand out.

“We are going to be going on tours of this whole sanctuary for the next four days, Ginny.” Harry rolled his eyes.

“The Peruvian Vipertooth is a very common dragon here,” the witch in the front said. “Ya will see a lotta them.”

“See?” Harry smiled and Ginny huffed.

“There’s our hotel,” Ron pointed to a huge building that rose in the distance. “Merlin, it’s big.”

The jeep pulled into the compound, stopping in front of the entrance.

“Leave ya bags here, fellas,” the witch jumped down from the vehicle. “They’ll be taken to the rooms. In two hours, Charlie has said ya all will be going to see the ones in the Dragon Enclosure.”

“Dragon Enclosure?” Hermione frowned. “You cage them?”

“The tame ones or the real wild ones.” The witch rolled her eyes. “They’d get eaten or slaughter the others if we let them out. We flew one of them from ya British school a few years ago.”

“Norberta?” Harry, Ron and Hermione blurted together.

“Yeah, she’s a sweetheart.” She looked between them. “So ya were the kids who raised her?”

“Actually, he did.” Harry glanced at Hagrid who was helping Luna down from the jeep. “HAGRID! Norberta’s here.”

Hagrid’s eyes immediately lit up. “She still is?”

“We are going to see her in a few hours, they say!” Ron grinned. “Who would’ve thought?”

Hagrid grinned before looking down as Luna tugged his sleeve.

“Do you think she’ll recognize us?” Hermione asked.

“She might recognize Hagrid, maybe.” Harry shrugged. “And if she does, he’d be elated.”

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Furious roars and hisses emanated from within the building in front of them.

“This is the enclosure.” Charlie stood in front of the group. “You can see dragons up close here and without danger. There are wards to protect the visitors. And Hagrid, yes, we are visiting Norberta right away.”

The half-giant beamed and followed Charlie eagerly into the enclosure.

Beneath a transparent shimmer, a huge green dragon snored right next to the entrance. Smoke billowed from its nostrils as the dragon took breaths.

“That is a big enclosure.” Hermione craned her neck. “Space expansion charms, artificial light… wow.”

“That is a Welsh Green.” Charlie said. “She is pregnant so we are keeping her here. Next door, we have a Romanian Longhorn. He is the oldest dragon here right now. And finally—”

“NORBERTA!” Hagrid pressed himself against the shimmer.

The dragon’s yellow eyes widened and it flew forward within its enclosure, its head hitting the shimmer. Both Hagrid and the dragon stumbled back as the shield glowed, trembling slightly.

Norberta laid down on her belly and nudged the shield, baring her fangs.

“Is she… smiling?” Ron turned to Charlie.

“She recognizes her mumma!” Hagrid laid his hand against the shimmer, right in front of Norberta’s snout. “Arry! She recognizes me! Look!”

The dragon turned to look at them, tilting her head.

“Norberta, this is Harry, Ron, and Hermione.” Hagrid pulled them toward himself. “You remember them? They were little when we got you.”

The dragon turned its head, looking at them with a single yellow eye.

“I don’t think she—”

The dragon raised its head and roared before nudging the barrier again. Her spike tail dragged across the ground and slammed into rocks.

“She remembers!” Hagrid exclaimed.

“What’s happening?” Three dragon rangers came running toward them, their wands drawn.

“Nothing.” Charlie said. “You know Norberta’s story? This is the man who raised her.”

“Damn,” one of the dragon handlers said. “So, it seems true that they remember their birth and circumstances. That’s why she’s so good.”

“She hasn’t been giving you any trouble, is she?” Hagrid turned to them and so did the dragon.

“Nah, she is the best dragon here, man.” The dragon handler shook his head. “Never given us trouble. She’s very sweet. Always entertains the children.”

The dragon seemed to puff up her chest. She nudged the barrier again, flapping her wings.

“Oh, look. She wants you to play.” Luna said in a dreamy voice as she patted Norberta’s scales.

“Wait.” Harry paled. “How did Luna get inside?”

“They wanted me in so I went in.” Luna turned to Harry as Norberta purred. “Mr. Sprinkles wanted to look nice. So I made him look nice too!”

They all turned to see the dragon in the cage next to Norberta.

The Romanian Longhorn was admiring its new blue claws, prodding the new blue tie around his neck.

“What the hell?” Charlie muttered.

“How did she get in the enclosure?”

“Mr. Sprinkles wanted a suit.” Luna said sadly. “But I cannot make a suit for someone as big as him. So, I convinced him that he looks good with the tie!”

The Romanian Longhorn gave a roar in response and Luna beamed. “You’re welcome, Mr. Sprinkles!”

Beside Harry, Ginny facepalmed.

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AND… DONE! Hope you liked the drabble.

It is silly, it is fun!

A huge thank you to Mughil for betaing this chapter!

First, a very Happy New Year to all of you. May 2024 bring joy and prosperity to your lives alongside a lot of success. On my side, I will continue writing and strive to give you excellent stories through this new year too!

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NOTE REGARDING UPDATES:–

On 3rd of Jan, my fic, Guardian of the Soul: Infinity Saga will be updated. The Marvel Arc officially starts with that chapter.

I will soon put up a new drabble during January titled The Hospital Heist, which is ready from my side, just waiting to be betaed.

I will also put up the third side story of LoSP: A Venison Date in the month of January (Though, in the second half, probably a couple of days after the LoSP chapter).

These are the updates already lined up from my side. I am aiming to push regular story updates toward the middle of the week, as I realized it will give me time to write through the weekend which will be the only long time I’ll get as the new semester in college starts tomorrow. That gives me and my betas time to work.

Updating in the middle of the week is something that the audience is also preferring according to the recent poll.

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Stay Happy! Stay Safe! Keep Smiling! Keep Reading!

HPfanfictioner66