HP: Alchemy? Nah, It's Crafting

Kasenhis and the young wizards left the alchemy classroom covered in dust and soot.

Although the process had been a bit chaotic, at least they all got a good look at the Nether Star inside the beacon.

Before leaving the classroom, Kasenhis handed each student a mini beacon as a parting gift. He had enchanted them so that they would only work when used by their rightful owner. If given to anyone else, the beacons would turn to stone, becoming completely useless—a small, thoughtful token they could use as a personal enhancement charm or pendant.

...

By evening, after cleaning up thoroughly, Kasenhis arrived at the Great Hall. Spotting Quirrell's perpetually empty seat, he let out a satisfied hum.

"Hmm~"

After dinner, Kasenhis didn't return to his office right away. Instead, he noticed Hagrid's overly conspiratorial glances and his not-so-stealthy attempts at subtlety. Curious, Kasenhis quietly followed.

"I'm guessing you've found some fine wine," Kasenhis said, breaking the silence.

"It's not wine—though it's even better. You'll see when we get there!" Hagrid replied, his tone excited yet mysteriously coy.

They soon arrived at Hagrid's newly refurbished hut, which now looked much livelier thanks to Hagrid's enthusiastic decorating. Although it didn't entirely match the original rustic style of the place, as the saying goes: happiness is what matters most.

The two entered the hut and settled into the armchairs near the fireplace.

It was then that Kasenhis realized why Hagrid had invited him.

"Is that dragon egg of yours about to hatch? Forgive me—I'm completely clueless when it comes to magical creatures."

"Pretty much, this is the first time I've witnessed the birth of such a wonderful little life with my own eyes..."

Hagrid was about to say more when an untimely knock on the door interrupted him.

When he opened the door, it was exactly as he expected—four familiar faces.

"Hello, Hagrid."

"Ah, hello there. But let me just say this upfront: I hope you're not here today to convince me that Quirrell is a Dark Wizard," Hagrid said as he ushered the young wizards inside.

"No, no, we're here to apologize for my shouting last time," Harry said awkwardly.

"Hahah~ You really don't have to do that, honestly. I'd forgotten all about it until you brought it up. It's no big deal," Hagrid waved his hand dismissively.

Once inside, the group moved to the living room and sat on the small sofas arranged around the fireplace. Only then did they notice that someone else was already there.

"Oh? Hi Professor!"

"Hello there. I was just guessing how long it would take for you to notice that someone's sitting here... Not bad, though—your reaction time's pretty decent," Kasenhis said with a smile.

"Must be because your clothes contrast too much with the sofa," Ron quipped.

"Can't help it. Hagrid just loves his pink sofa."

"Pfft! Hagrid is like a big baby!"

"Aye Harry! Don't laugh; there's nothing embarrassing about this."

"Oh, yes, yes, we're not laughing."

"We just thought of something funny."

"What funny thing?" Hagrid asked.

"Once upon a time, there was a giant, strong, and fierce-looking man, and then he... he liked pink—Bahahah!!!"

Kasenhis and Hagrid exchanged glances, both seeing the helplessness in each other's eyes.

After the four little ones had laughed to their hearts' content, Hagrid brought out a tray of rock cakes from the kitchen. Kasenhis picked one up, grabbed a cup of milk warming by the fireplace, violently broke the rock cake into pieces, and tossed them into the hot milk.

This was a method he had discovered—soaked in milk, the rock cakes were, surprisingly, quite delicious.

After all, aside from being a bit overbaked, Hagrid's cookies didn't have many other flaws. Plus, he was generous with the ingredients.

Watching Kasenhis eat this way, the four little ones picked up cups of milk, intending to place them by the fireplace to warm, and then... and then...

"Blimey! Is that a dragon egg?" Ron asked, his face frozen in disbelief.

"Oh... yes, keep it a secret for me. This is a secret among the six of us," Hagrid said with a smile.

"Of course, of course, we'll keep it a secret," Harry, Neville, and Ron all nodded in agreement.

However, Hermione, still maintaining her rationality, asked, "But Hagrid, where are you planning to raise this dragon? I think I read in a book that a three-month-old dragon could use an elephant as a snack."

For a moment, the entire hut fell into a heavy silence.

Hermione then turned to Kasenhis, as in her eyes, he was the most serious and reliable person in the room.

Kasenhis, looking completely baffled, stared back at everyone. "Why are you all looking at me? I've never seen a dragon before! I thought the biggest they'd get was about the size of an elephant... or maybe like the three-headed dog..."

Hermione rolled her eyes helplessly.

"Oh, dear..."

"Maybe I could raise it in the Forbidden Forest?" Hagrid mumbled.

"Sure, if you're not worried about the dragon eating every living thing in the Forbidden Forest into extinction. And when it's done, it'll probably set its sights on Hogwarts," Hermione retorted.

"That won't work either... Professor Kasenhis, is there any spell to shrink it?" Hagrid asked.

"A dragon's magic resistance is so high it can perfectly block even curses. Otherwise, they wouldn't be made into dragon-hide gloves."

Hermione's triple verbal blow nearly knocked Hagrid's "little pearls" (tears) out.

"Forget it, Hagrid. Even if you can't keep a dragon forever, at least this dragon is about to hatch. You just need to wait a few days and you will witness the birth of such a life, at that moment, your life and the dragon's life will have intertwined. Even if you part ways in the future, you'd have still experienced something extraordinary. That's much luckier than most people," Kasenhis said, patting Hagrid's shoulder in comfort.

But as it turned out, comforting him only made things worse.

Hagrid's tears flowed freely.

The half-giant hugged Kasenhis, burying his head—which was even larger than Kasenhis's chest—into him and started sobbing.

"Neville… all I can say is, thank goodness I wasn't wearing your robe today," Kasenhis said with a look of utter despair.

"Yeah.."

Neville glanced at Kasenhis, whose face was full of resignation, then at the endlessly sobbing Hagrid, and nodded in agreement.

Thud!

"Someone's outside!" Harry suddenly said, alert.

"It's not even curfew yet," Kasenhis replied helplessly.

"I'll go open the door and check." Hagrid wiped his tears and stood up, leaving behind a thoroughly disheveled Kasenhis.

Not long after, Hagrid brought another young wizard into the hut.

The moment this person entered, the entire living room almost exploded with tension!

"Draco Malfoy!"

Malfoy scoffed, crossed his arms, and let out a disdainful snort. "What's the problem? Is this some sort of forbidden area?"

As he spoke, he glanced around at the people in the room.

He looked at Hagrid—the oversized giant.

He looked at Harry—a clueless fool.

He looked at Neville—a dimwit barely better than a Squib.

Sure, Neville had managed to best him once..

But that was just because I was careless and hadn't dodged properly!!

He looked at Ron—a penniless pauper.

He looked at Hermione... eh... not even worth looking at.

Finally, he looked at Professor Kasenhis...

Draco stared at Kasenhis, especially at the wizard robe soaked with tears, and a flicker of pity appeared in his eyes.

Poor Professor Kasenhis.

__________

o(*￣▽￣*)ブRead two weeks ahead of everyone!

[email protected]/Dragonel