The dragon's roar echoed far and wide through the silent night sky. Then, in the dragon-rearing grounds of Hogwarts, a little fire dragon, who had been sleeping with her eyes closed, suddenly felt a jolt in her heart. An overwhelming sense of oppression from her bloodline forced her to snap her eyes open. This creature, who had strutted proudly before Charlie and the others during the day, now trembled as she scurried to the corner of her "house" (dragon nest) to hide.
Startled awake by the same dragon roar from Harry that had roused the little fire dragon—Norberta, to be precise—was Fawkes in the headmaster's office. However, unlike Norberta's panic, Fawkes, unaffected by the direct pressure of a bloodline, remained far more composed.
Meanwhile, Harry, oblivious to the terror his earlier outburst had inflicted upon the two unfortunate creatures, finished reading the explanation left by Ansu—who only wanted to sleep—and finally understood why neither the dragon-blooded sorcerers of Faerûn nor the Animagi of this world could transform into dragons or other magical creatures.
First, whether it was the transfiguration magic of Faerûn or the Animagus transformation here, both relied on magic to temporarily alter the physical structure of the caster. Neither could truly turn one species into another. Second, transforming into a creature innately capable of wielding magic was vastly different from becoming an ordinary animal. Take the most extreme example: turning into a dragon. Even if a caster managed to obtain dragon blood or dragon magic to perform the transformation, the magic within a magical creature was often bound to its soul. Since the soul of the transformed person remained fundamentally human, a conflict arose—while the body tried to shift toward a dragon's form, the soul desperately yanked it back toward humanity.
When this happened, those unable to draw draconic traits from their own soul would, at best, fail the transformation and suffer severe physical damage. At worst, as Harry had experienced earlier, they'd turn into a wriggling mass of flesh.
After several attempts, Harry finally managed to revert to his human form. Then, under the cover of night, he slipped back toward the castle.
After months of arduous effort, the good news was that Harry had successfully achieved his Animagus form, allowing him to pay a "visit" to those eight-eyed giant spiders if he wished. The bad news? From that moment on, his mind housed a nagging new tenant.
The days that followed settled into a calm routine—until the semester's first, and likely last, heavy rain arrived.
Lead-gray clouds surged forth as if from an endless abyss, like a herd of galloping wild horses. They swiftly gathered and churned above Hogwarts Castle, pressing down heavily until they nearly brushed the tallest towers. The thick blanket of clouds plunged the sky into deep gloom, as though night had fallen early.
With the clouds smothering the heavens, an icy wind roared in, swirling fiercely through the castle's courtyards, corridors, and corners. It tore through ancient trees, stripping the last few withered yellow leaves from their branches and sending them dancing helplessly in the storm.
Soon after, fat raindrops began pelting down with a relentless pitter-patter. They struck the stone walls of Hogwarts Castle with force, splashing up in bursts of water like countless glistening gems blooming and shattering in an instant. The castle walls, washed by the rain, took on an even darker hue.
The courtyard's stone paths were quickly submerged, streams of water converging into shallow rivulets that flowed with the terrain before vanishing into the grass. The usually dignified statues stood drenched and silent in the downpour. Carefully tended flowers and trees bent and swayed under the onslaught of wind and rain, much like the students staggering through the tempest.
On Hogwarts' lake, raindrops rippled across the surface, transforming its once-calm waters into a churning expanse. The waves crashed against the shore with a rumbling roar, as if locked in a fierce contest with the rain. In the distance, the Forbidden Forest blurred behind a curtain of mist and rain. Occasionally, jagged bolts of lightning sliced through the sky like gleaming swords, briefly illuminating the darkness, followed by deafening thunder that shook the world—including Hogwarts Castle and the young witches and wizards within.
Yet even this could not dampen the enthusiasm of Hogwarts' students for Quidditch.
On Saturday morning at breakfast, Harry overheard Fred, George, and several other Gryffindor Quidditch team members angrily shouting things like "Shameless! Unfair! His injury healed ages ago!" after Wood spoke to them with a look of resignation.
"Ron, what's going on?" Harry asked curiously as Ron and Ginny stormed over, fuming.
"We just got word from Wood," Ron snapped. "The Slytherin team claims their new Seeker's injury hasn't healed, so our match today's been switched to Hufflepuff! 'Injury hasn't healed,' my foot! I reckon those Slytherins are just too scared to play in this weather—they haven't got the skill for it!"
Ron tore off half a chicken leg and chewed it furiously, as if it were a stand-in for the Slytherin Quidditch team.
After breakfast, Hogwarts students braved the torrential rain, heading toward the Quidditch pitch in twos and threes. Harry and Hermione grabbed their raincoats from the dormitory before joining the crowd.
Climbing the steep wooden steps to the stands, Harry and Hermione squeezed over to where Neville and the others were. They settled into the seats Neville had saved for them.
"With this much rain, can Ginny even see the Golden Snitch?" Hermione shouted to Harry over the wind, which whipped rain into their faces.
"I don't know!" Harry yelled back. His glasses were covered in water, leaving him barely able to see a thing.
Hermione sighed as she watched Harry repeatedly take off his glasses to wipe them. "Honestly, Harry, you should spend more time in the library."
She pulled out her wand and cast Impervius on his glasses. Instantly, Harry's vision cleared.
"Thanks, Hermione, that's a huge help," Harry said with a grin.
Finally, once the stands were nearly full, the match began.
--
Support me & read more advance & fast update chapter on my patreon:
pat reon .com/yuuwand