Damon and Fudge exchanged brief pleasantries.
There was no point in provoking Fudge at this moment—he was always incredibly tolerant of anyone or anything that didn't threaten his position in the system.
But equally, if he sensed you could potentially impact his position, he'd flip from extreme conservatism to extreme radicalism, sinking almost to the point of paranoia.
Fudge then turned his attention back to Harry, displaying an even more tolerant and inclusive attitude toward our savior. It was hard to imagine this was the same person who would later persecute Harry.
After they left, Ron whispered,
"You're already able to chat and laugh with such a powerful figure?"
"Powerful? Perhaps you'll develop a relationship with someone of that stature someday, Ron."
Entering the cabin, Hagrid appeared downcast, a mood unchanged despite their visit.
"I'm so sorry you had to see this,"
he said glumly, taking out his rock biscuits and saying goodbye to everyone. He sat before the dying fire, lost in thought.
Harry couldn't bring himself to ask the question.
He turned to Damon, leaving the decision to him.
Damon spoke decisively—he knew what had happened, knew Hagrid had been misunderstood, and naturally wasn't afraid.
He delayed because he believed everything needed time to process, like the Snape and Sirius misunderstanding. He couldn't tell Snape yet that Peter Pettigrew, not Sirius, told Voldemort Lily's location.
That wouldn't be convincing at all, it wouldn't be accepted.
The same thing went for Hagrid.
Now was the perfect time to bring it up.
"Hagrid, what did Fudge mean by 'pre-existing record'?" Hagrid's
head shot up, partly because of Damon's harsh words toward Fudge—he didn't even bother to mention the word "Minister"—and partly because of that past.
"It's some not-so-good things. I made a fatal mistake when I was a student, and it got me expelled."
Hagrid's face darkened. Harry's breath hitched. Was Lockhart's claim true? Had Hagrid killed Myrtle, making her cry in the bathroom?
Hagrid didn't notice the expressions of the others, and he didn't want to talk about it either. He stood up and saw them off:
"This matter has nothing to do with you. I'm in a really bad mood today. Please go back."
"The mistake you made is related to Moaning Myrtle, isn't it?"
"You, how do you know?"
Harry saw Hagrid's face turn pale, and Hermione and Ron stared at Damon with wide eyes - why does he always know things we don't know?
"Helena told me about this. As the school's ghost, she has witnessed much more than you can imagine."
Looking at the giant who looked like a child who had made a mistake, Damon said gently:
"Hagrid, you are actually confused about this matter yourself, aren't you?"
"Why do you say that? I know how it happened. It must have been Aragog."
"Who is Aragog?" Harry asked immediately after seeing that the conversation had started.
"Aragog is a male Acromantula. A distant traveler gave him to me as a pet when I was a student. I secretly fed him with breadcrumbs around school."
"You kept him in school?" Hermione screamed. "Acromantulas are cannibals!"
"He wouldn't do that! He promised me!" Hagrid responded gruffly, almost shouting. "He promised me that, as a thank you, he wouldn't prey on humans!"
"So what about Myrtle, Hagrid?"
Ron, angered by Hagrid's irresponsible attitude, questioned him seriously.
"I don't know. Aragog insists he didn't attack anyone. He didn't kill Myrtle. He was sleeping at the time."
"But Myrtle is dead, isn't he? You should have seen her. Even as a ghost, she was often bullied by Peeves, and the other ghosts didn't like her!"
Harry felt a little angry.
Hagrid's face flushed red, and the conversation was about to end.
"
"Calm down," Damon said. "Doesn't the Lockhart situation make sense? You can't take things at face value or believe everything you hear."
The three little ones turned to look at Damon, silent.
Although they believed the facts were obvious, that was Damon, and none of them would question his beliefs unless they were absolutely certain.
"Thank you, Damon, but you don't have to be like this. I've thought about this many times over the years. Perhaps Aragog really couldn't control his instincts back then, and everything that happened to me is my own fault."
"No, Hagrid, it wasn't Aragog who killed Myrtle, it was the monster in the Chamber of Secrets."
"Chamber of Secrets?!"
Harry hadn't expected this to be related to the Chamber of Secrets.
"Yes, the Chamber of Secrets was opened once in 1943, and Helena witnessed it—though because of the terrifying monster, she didn't see it firsthand—it was a basilisk that killed Myrtle."
"Basilisk?" Hagrid's expression grew excited. "But how is that possible? Basilisks are such rare creatures! How could they possibly appear in Hogwarts?"
"Harry, you tell the story from now on."
Damon picked up the rock cake, which had been soaked in milk until it softened, and slowly began to eat it.
"It was Salazar Slytherin! He had a disagreement with the other three and left Hogwarts in anger, but before he left, he left the basilisk in the school! In the Chamber of Secrets!
The Gorgon! He actually left a basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets?"
Although Harry had no idea how terrifying the basilisk was, just hearing the name, he could already imagine how evil this creature was.
Hermione had finally sorted out her thoughts and exclaimed,
"So, someone opened the Chamber of Secrets at that time, and it was the Basilisk that killed Myrtle, not Hagrid's Aragog? Hagrid was misunderstood!"
Hagrid leaped to his feet, his hands trembling.
"The Chamber of Secrets! The Basilisk! Am I being wronged?! Aragog didn't kill anyone! I knew he was a good kid!"
He was almost in tears, covering his face with his hairy arms, as if on the verge of tears.
"Since Hagrid was misunderstood, what are we waiting for? We should clear this up!"
Harry stood up immediately, eager to unlock the secrets of the Chamber of Secrets right now!
Read 20+ chapters ahead at
[email protected]/Horizons685
(End of Chapter)