A reinvigorated Hagrid led them into Cohen's suitcase, dragging along an entire dead sheep as Norbert's lunch.
The once-empty wilderness inside now housed two new "structures."
Near the entrance, Hagrid had built a massive two-story wooden cabin that looked even more luxurious than his own hut.
"Hagrid… how many trees did you cut down?" Harry swallowed hard. The cabin must've taken hundreds of logs to construct.
"Oh—I got Professor Sprout to help with some tree fertilizer. Grew a bunch of wood in just a few days," Hagrid said, scratching his head. "I was still wondering if Cohen might think it's too small…"
"It's already bigger than my house," Cohen said, praising Hagrid's craftsmanship. "Hagrid, you're basically a god of construction!"
Cohen's compliment visibly delighted Hagrid.
*The little evil Dementor gains more experience in human interaction.jpg*
Cohen had originally intended this place as a backup base—somewhere just to sleep.
Now, it far exceeded his expectations, saving him the effort of rebuilding.
The cabin's interior matched Cohen's hopes perfectly. Hagrid hadn't just set up several second-floor bedrooms for him; he'd also equipped the first floor with a tool room, study, kitchen, bathroom, and a spacious living room.
"Since I had to come in to decorate, I made the doorframes a size bigger…" Hagrid said nervously.
"I love it," Cohen replied earnestly.
"Are you taking this suitcase home for the summer, Cohen?" Harry asked enviously. "If I could, I'd rather live in here than at the Dursleys'."
"Man, that'd be awesome…" Ron chimed in, equally jealous. "I'd love to stay here too—my bedroom's got nothing, and there's a noisy ghoul upstairs…"
Hagrid had already set up most of the basics—wooden tables, chairs, and beds—so Cohen could move in anytime.
The only downside was the lack of plumbing or a water supply, but with spells like *Aguamenti* and *Evanesco*, those weren't real issues.
Cohen was thrilled with his new cabin, and Hagrid was happy to have helped him out.
Win-win!
Harry was dying to spend the summer here to escape his own break, while Hermione suggested Cohen add some fireproofing charms around the cabin—just in case Norbert accidentally set it ablaze.
"Where's Norbert?" Cohen asked. "How big's he gotten?"
And why hadn't Norbert pounced on him the moment he walked in? That surprised Cohen, especially since Hagrid had brought in a bloody dead sheep.
Norbert's lair was nearby—a man-made cave. Cohen had previously helped conjure a small hill with a cavern inside the suitcase using magic, and Hagrid had given it a fancy renovation.
Harry and the others stayed cautiously outside the cave. They weren't keen on barging into a dragon's den, especially if Norbert had grown bigger than Hagrid by now.
Only Cohen and Hagrid ventured in.
"*Lumos.*"
Cohen lit the tip of his wand. To give the "dragon cave" some mystique, he'd extended its length and added a few twists and turns—perfect for giving Norbert that epic boss vibe.
"Rumble—"
The deeper they went, the louder the dragon's snoring grew.
When they reached the heart of the cave, they found piles of gold and silver coins spread across the floor by Hagrid. Curled up atop them slept Norbert, now roughly the size of a small car.
"Where'd you get all this money, Hagrid?" Cohen didn't even need to count it—covering the huge cave floor like this was no small feat.
"Found it in some Niffler nests in the forest. Probably coins students dropped over the years…" Hagrid explained. "Read in a book that dragons like sleeping on piles of treasure, figured it's like Nifflers' habits, so I just…"
The smell of the dead sheep's blood made Norbert twitch his nose.
He opened his eyes, his orange-red gaze glowing vividly in the dim surroundings.
He spotted Hagrid—the food delivery guy.
He spotted the dead sheep in Hagrid's hands—less meat than yesterday's cow, but still tasty.
He spotted Cohen—
*Holy crap, it's the ancestor!*
His pupils shrank, and he leaped up instantly.
Memories from his hatchling days came flooding back.
Like muscle memory, Norbert started wagging his tail frantically, trying to burrow into Cohen's arms like he used to—except now his head was nearly as big as Cohen's entire upper body.
"Calm down!"
After Cohen deployed his "soul drain," Norbert wisely backed off.
"Looks like Norbert really likes you…" Hagrid said, touched.
"Good boy—here, look what I brought you!"
Hagrid tossed the dead sheep to Norbert, who caught it midair with ease and began tearing into it, blood splattering everywhere.
The scene was a bit gory, so Cohen opted to step out. Checking that Norbert was behaving was enough—he didn't need to stick around and watch dragon mealtime like Hagrid did.
Though Norbert's body had grown fast, Cohen noticed his soul was developing much more slowly. Its strength hadn't changed, still hovering around 20 points. Maybe it tied to the species' lifespan—Cohen guessed a creature's soul might only fully mature near the end of its life.
Thinking back to Nico Flamel and Dumbledore's words about "death being another great adventure," perhaps souls moved on to another world after death. After all, Cohen himself had crossed over here after dying.
The visit wrapped up nicely. Cohen was pleased with the suitcase's upgrades—tons of effort saved.
Harry and the others headed back to the castle, but Cohen wasn't ready to leave yet. Before going home for the summer, he still needed to pick up Allie.
Hagrid planned to take Cohen to the unicorn herd's gathering spot to retrieve Allie together.
Thanks to butterbeer, Hagrid was confident the magical unicorn wouldn't say no. ("You can't go into the Forbidden Forest alone—it's too dangerous," Hagrid said sternly.)
But Cohen had a feeling Hagrid would regret this soon. They hadn't even glimpsed a unicorn hair yet, and already a faint whiff of alcohol hung in the air along the path.
"Oh, Merlin's beard…"
Following the forest trail to the lake where the unicorns often rested, Hagrid froze at the sight of the "bodies" strewn everywhere.
Allie—whose fur Cohen had once dyed white—had reverted to her natural black. She was sipping from a barrel of butterbeer, surrounded by a scattered mess of empty ones.
[*Hah—not a single one could fight…*]
Allie looked unsteady on her hooves, swaying slightly.
"How much butterbeer did you give her, Hagrid?" Cohen checked the unicorn "corpses" on the ground. "Good thing they're still alive, though."
It was obvious they'd just passed out drunk, but Allie standing smugly among the fallen herd, mouthing off, made it look like she'd taken them all out herself.
"I thought only she liked butterbeer—how'd the whole herd turn into a bunch of lushes?" Hagrid said, looking like he'd been struck by lightning.
(End of Chapter)