After sending the injured students to the Hospital Wing, Aiden rubbed his sore shoulders as he walked out of the room. Being with those Gryffindors and rolling around in the sewers made the naturally clean dragon feel uncomfortable all over. So he decided to take a nice, long bath. He hid himself in a conscious blind spot and, without a shred of hesitation, invaded the prefects' private bathroom.
Seeing that the room was empty, Aiden walked in with peace of mind. The interior of the bathroom was luxuriously decorated in a classical, magical style. In the center was a huge, circular pool, its water crystal clear, surrounded by delicate mosaic tiles. The walls were hung with ornate mirrors and various magical items. The water in the pool could be sourced from various magical faucets, each providing water of a different temperature and with different magical effects.
Aiden waved his wand, and a torrent of bubbles spewed out of one of the faucets. After a simple rinse, Aiden stepped into the circular pool.
"Hoo..." The warm water washed away the fatigue from his days of travel. The two translucent, white dragon horns on his head seemed to glow under the bathroom's enchanted lights.
But this peace was soon broken. A silver phoenix... or rather, a phoenix head... emerged from the bubbles. "Aiden," it began, its voice Dumbledore's, "I'm sorry to disturb you while you're taking a bath, but please come to the headmaster's office as soon as possible. An old friend may be coming." The phoenix then dissipated, giving Aiden no chance to respond.
Aiden sighed. "..."
His happy bath time, poof, was gone. Full of resentment, he casually flicked his hand, and the water droplets on his body gathered into the shape of a water man, which came to the edge of the tub, did a somersault, and dove back in. After casually putting on his robe, Aiden walked out of the prefects' private bathroom. His freshly washed silver hair was as smooth and lustrous as silk under the sunlight, and the two dragon horns on his head were as sharp and pristine as ever. A breeze blew, and the air filled with the scent of aromatherapy. It was a beautiful sight, but the people around him were blind to it.
Walking up the revolving staircase, Aiden waved at the stone gargoyle guarding the headmaster's office and rudely pushed open the door. He entered and heard the Head of Gryffindor favoring her two beloved disciples.
"In the past few hours," Dumbledore was saying, pretending to be serious, "you two have violated dozens of school rules, which is more than enough for the school to expel you."
"Yes, sir," Harry and Ron muttered, lowering their heads and preparing to be scolded.
"But," Dumbledore continued, looking at them over his half-moon glasses, a smile in his eyes, "what you have done is also enough for you to receive Hogwarts' Special Award for Services to the School." He stood up and handed a letter to Ron. "At the same time, because of this contribution award, you can get a reward of two hundred points each. Now, Mr. Weasley, please send this letter to the Ministry of Magic. It's time for our gamekeeper to come back."
Ron took the letter and turned to leave. As he stepped onto the staircase, Aiden entered the headmaster's office, releasing his invisibility. Ron saw him, and his eyes widened at the sight of his brother wandering around with dragon horns on his head. "Aiden, where's your hat?" he asked anxiously. "You didn't walk all the way here like this, did you?"
"It's okay," Aiden said calmly. "They can't see me." He took out a letter and handed it to Ron. "You're going to the Ministry of Magic, right? Please help me send this out. The address is the Lestrange family."
Ron took the letter. "When did you become so familiar with them?"
"Stop talking nonsense and go," Aiden said. "The sooner you send that letter, the sooner Hagrid will be released." Hearing Aiden's words, Ron couldn't be bothered with anything else and ran out quickly.
In the office, Dumbledore had already started a new round of heart-to-heart talks with Harry. "First of all, I want to thank you, Harry. You must have shown absolute loyalty to me to summon Fawkes to your side. Secondly, you seem to be troubled by something. Do you need my help?"
"Professor," Harry began, "I noticed that I seem to have some similar characteristics to Tom Riddle."
"You are both Parselmouths, right?" Dumbledore's eyes narrowed. "I guess it was when he gave you that scar that he also transferred a part of his magic to you." He turned his head and walked to his desk, not daring to look Harry in the eye. "This was not his intention, but it is indeed a fact."
"So the Sorting Hat was right?" Harry asked, looking at Dumbledore. "Should I have gone to Slytherin?"
"That's right, Harry," Dumbledore said, pointing to the Sorting Hat. "You do have some of the characteristics that Lord Voldemort is proud of: resourceful, determined, and not very good at following the rules. But why did the Sorting Hat sort you into Gryffindor?"
"Because that's what I asked for," Harry replied after a moment's thought.
"That's right, Harry," Dumbledore said, handing the sword to him. "That's what makes you different from Lord Voldemort. It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities. If you still have doubts, then look at this sword. Only a true Gryffindor can pull it out." He winked his left eye at Harry.
On the sofa, the lazy dragon stretched and yawned, indicating that he was about to fall asleep. "Professor," Aiden suddenly said, "I would like to remind you that your old friend is about to arrive."
His voice made the two of them, who had been in a 'good atmosphere,' instantly focus their attention on him.
"Aiden, when did you get here?" Harry asked, then trailed off, seeing his horns. "And who is the old friend? And your..."
"Oh," Dumbledore sighed, looking at his unreliable student. "Aiden, I want to apologize to you. I shouldn't have disturbed you while you were taking a bath. Forgive this exhausted old man. The people who are coming next are not easy to deal with." The old fox had apologized, blocking Aiden's room to maneuver.
"Hmph." The arrogant dragon on the sofa turned his head away.
Harry, full of questions, had to turn his inquiring eyes back to Dumbledore.
Dumbledore, 'unable to stand' Harry's gaze, answered his unasked question. "That's right. Actually, I'm still technically suspended. Although I have obtained the revocation orders from ten of the school board members, I still have to face the final questioning from the last one." He sighed dramatically. "Ah, this old man is really tired. It would be great if there was a considerate student who was also a school board member and happened to be strong enough to help me deal with it." He turned his gaze pointedly to Aiden.
The dragon, humming on the sofa, ignored him, just raised a hand, and rubbed the air.
"I'll teach you the Patronus Charm," Dumbledore said, throwing out the bait. "And my own improvements to it."
The dragon on the sofa immediately bit the bait. "It is our students' bounden duty to solve problems for the headmaster," he said righteously.
Harry, still in the office, had never witnessed such a scene before. He was so shocked by the world of adults that he couldn't speak.
[Chapter Complete]
***
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