Mr. Weasley decided against joining the commotion near the Dark Mark and instead led everyone back to their original tent. Luckily, since it was located at the camp's edge, it had remained untouched by the rioting crowd and was still intact.
As they approached, Percy nervously poked his head out of the tent. When he saw Mr. Weasley, he relaxed somewhat, though he was clutching his arm with a sheet that was slowly soaking with blood—he looked as though he'd been seriously injured.
"Where were you?" Mr. Weasley hurried over to him, concern etched on his face. "How's your arm? Is it bad?"
"It's nothing," Percy replied, his face contorted with pain but still sporting a look of satisfaction. "Mr. Crouch saw me get it... my heroic stand against that dark wizard."
"Right, right..." Charlie muttered, giving Percy a sharp look. "Maybe tomorrow he'll promote you to Deputy Head of International Magical Cooperation—the heroic Percy Weasley."
There was an edge to Charlie's voice that he couldn't hide. Only a short while ago, they'd been ambushed by the Malfoys and barely escaped. If Kyle hadn't shown up when he did, there was no telling what would have happened to them. They might have survived, but they'd certainly have been tortured by the Cruciatus Curse.
Even Kyle, upon sensing the danger Mr. Weasley was in, had come to help. But Percy? He'd been busy impressing Crouch with his supposed bravery. If they hadn't had other witnesses around, Charlie would've been sorely tempted to take a swing at him.
Beside him, Bill's expression mirrored his own displeasure.
Unfazed by the tension around him, Percy continued, still gloating. "You're just joking around, that's not possible." He didn't seem to notice Charlie's sarcasm, nor did he care that Fred and George had been mispronouncing his name in jest for days. He was so accustomed to it by now. "I just hope Mr. Crouch will assign me some more challenging work after this... This was almost too easy."
Charlie scoffed under his breath, rolling his eyes and deciding not to respond. Instead, he took a long drink of water to calm himself down before heading for the tent door with Mr. Weasley, intent on looking for Harry, Ron, and the others.
But just as they were about to leave, a group entered from outside: Cedric in the lead, followed by Cho, Kanna, Harry, and—bringing up the rear—Fred and George. All of them had returned, not one of them missing, but their faces were pale and they looked as though they'd been through quite a fright.
"Thank goodness, you're all safe!" Mr. Weasley said in relief. "I'm sure you're shaken, but it's over now. Come in, have some water, and then we'll head home soon."
The group remained silent, their eyes collectively turning toward Kyle as he entered behind them. They were indeed shaken, but it wasn't the riots that had terrified them—it was Kyle's suitcase.
At first, when they discovered the suitcase was actually a small room, everyone was stunned, and even their nervousness eased a little.
But then, driven by curiosity, Ron opened the door. And that's when they saw it: a dragon nearly tens of feet tall. The dragon lay curled up in the doorway, and as soon as the door opened, they could feel the heat from its nostrils. It was like coming face-to-face with a dragon... no words could capture that feeling.
Ron, who was closest, fainted on the spot.
So they stood there, frozen in a silent standoff with the dragon. No one knew how long it lasted—maybe a minute, maybe half an hour—until Kanna finally gathered the courage to step forward and close the door. Even so, they were too petrified to move, standing rooted in place, barely daring to breathe, fearing any sound might disturb the massive creature outside.
Even Fred and George, who'd been on the verge of a heated argument about leaving, had fallen silent. The group simply waited, paralyzed, until Kyle returned to check on them.
"Tell me that wasn't real, right?" Cedric asked through gritted teeth as Mr. Weasley brought over some water.
"What?" Kyle replied, looking confused.
"The dragon!" Ron exclaimed beside him, his face red as if he'd been struck.
"Oh, you mean Norbert," Kyle said, catching on. "Yes, yes, of course, it's fake! There was no dragon in the suitcase at all. You must have imagined it!"
Everyone's faces darkened immediately. That was a blatant lie—they'd all heard Kyle call the dragon by name just moments ago. And if one person had imagined it, could all of them have been wrong? That was impossible. And that name... Norbert...
In the crowd, Hermione lowered her head, deep in thought. That name stirred a memory. Oh, of course...
She suddenly remembered the Norwegian Ridgeback Hagrid had hatched in their first year, a dragon he'd named Norbert. Kyle had been there too, and mysteriously, the dragon had disappeared. No one knew what had happened to it, and Hagrid hadn't said a word. Could it be...
Hermione glanced at the suitcase again. Now she understood what Hagrid might have meant when he said that "it was taken care of."
"Believe me, you really have the wrong suitcase," Kyle insisted, sounding entirely confident. "How could I not know my own suitcase? If you don't believe me, I can show you again. There's really nothing inside."
"What are you talking about...?" Mr. Weasley, who had just come over with water, bread, and sausages, looked at him questioningly.
"Dad, Kyle's..." Ron began, but then he noticed Kyle watching him with an intense expression.
For a moment, Ron felt his heart skip, then his mind cleared as if by instinct. "It's nothing, Dad," he said, quickly changing the subject. "We were just a bit shaken. Those guys were horrible. They pretended to be from the Ministry earlier and tried to kill Harry..."
"What?!" Mr. Weasley gasped in horror. He rushed to Harry, checking him over thoroughly until he was certain he was unharmed.
Mr. Weasley, still shaken, patted his own chest and asked, "Tell me, what happened?"
"Well, it's , Mr. Weasley..." Ron started, but Cedric stepped in, volunteering to recount the story. Likely aware that Kyle had released them just outside the tent, Cedric didn't mention the suitcase; he simply explained they'd hidden in a secure place.
While they were talking, Kanna stood nearby, her gaze fixed on Kyle with a curious intensity. Feeling her stare, Kyle shrugged uncomfortably and said, "Alright, if you're that interested, why don't you come take a look inside my suitcase? I can even be your tour guide."
"But it might be too late tonight. How about after school starts?"
"Sure," Kanna replied with a smile.
Just then, the tent door burst open again—it was Kreacher, the House-elf who'd come with Kanna. He ran in, sobbing loudly and sniffing as he went.