There was a magical legend circulating in Ravenclaw: when you wanted to encounter the Rose of Ravenclaw, you could go to the rooftop or the eighth floor.
Now, the golden trio followed Ravenclaw's ancient and mystical legend, beginning their quest.
Pushing open the rooftop door, they indeed found that beautiful figure lounging in the afternoon sunlight.
"Why are you always here every time we come to the rooftop to find you?" Ron complained, though his tone held more fondness than irritation.
"Is it possible that to grow taller, one needs more sunlight?" Aiden replied, looking at Ron, who was already a head taller than him, with infinite regret.
"Hmph." Ron proudly raised his head, feeling his elder brother's dignity expanding.
"Alright, enough of this. Aiden, we have something important to ask you," Hermione said, pushing Ron aside with practiced efficiency.
"About Hagrid's situation, right?" Aiden asked, leisurely turning over on his makeshift rooftop lounge.
"How did you know?" Harry's face showed genuine confusion.
"Because I've already intervened. Otherwise, do you think Hagrid could still remain at Hogwarts unharmed?" Aiden said, rolling his eyes with characteristic dramatic flair.
"What do you mean?" Ron's elder brother's dignity didn't last five seconds as he showed a completely dumbfounded expression.
"Through my connections, I submitted an appeal to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement at the Ministry. This incident was ultimately classified as a teaching accident, not a dangerous creature attack caused by negligent supervision," Aiden explained, adjusting his monocle with practiced precision.
"Malfoy actually planned to send Hagrid to Azkaban too," Hermione said, her voice rising with indignation as the full scope of the plot became clear.
"What else did you expect? Ever since last semester when he was kicked out of the Board of Governors by Dumbledore and me working together, his retaliatory strikes against anything connected to Dumbledore have been relentless," Aiden said, sitting up with elegant grace.
"So what should we do now?" Ron asked, his earlier bravado replaced by genuine concern.
"What else is there to do? The rest depends on how many tribunal members Hagrid can convince at the hearing," Aiden replied, interlocking his fingers in a gesture that somehow managed to look both casual and calculating.
"Then isn't Buckbeak doomed?" Harry asked, recalling Hagrid's usual bumbling manner of speaking with growing dread.
"My dear friends, with Malfoy watching like a hawk and the political machinery already in motion, being able to save Hagrid is already extremely difficult," Aiden said, his eyebrows drooping as his face showed genuine regret.
His beautiful heterochromatic eyes were remarkably expressive, and the melancholy emotion seemed to infect all three visitors.
"It's okay, Aiden has already done so much. Leave the rest to us. We'll prepare Hagrid's defense," Hermione stepped forward first, her voice filled with determination.
"Right! As long as we work together, we can definitely save Buckbeak," Harry declared, greatly encouraged by Hermione's resolve.
The three, having given themselves a proper pep talk, left the rooftop with renewed excitement and purpose.
"I feel like this scene is very familiar, Headmaster," Aiden said without turning around.
"Perhaps our memories are playing tricks on us," Dumbledore replied, materializing from behind him with his characteristic fondness for dramatic entrances.
"Sigh, why do you bother with this elaborate charade? Wouldn't it be simpler to just rescue both Hagrid and the hippogriff together? Why save half and abandon half?" Aiden asked, genuine frustration creeping into his voice.
"We need to let young people experience how power truly operates in our world," Dumbledore said, his expression growing unusually grave.
"So you let them struggle against impossible odds, watch them fail, and hope they'll emerge with a healthy understanding of political reality? I'd say your educational model has some serious flaws," Aiden replied helplessly.
"But only through direct experience can we stimulate their inner resistance to injustice—though it might also awaken their desire for power," Dumbledore mused, his eyes seeming to look into the distant past.
Aiden shook his head. The two could never agree on this fundamental issue.
"So you're planning to let them start a doomed rebellion?" Aiden asked, taking out a bottle of ice-cold cola from his robes.
"How could that be? Perhaps they'll succeed," Dumbledore said, extending his hand with shameless expectation.
Aiden tossed him a bottle and continued, "Having already extracted Hagrid from the situation, all parties' interests have been carefully balanced. The outcome is completely predetermined. Even if something unexpected happens, there'll be convenient 'accidents' to maintain the status quo."
Aiden rolled his beautiful eyes with practiced disdain.
"Speaking of modern innovations, I heard the Daily Prophet described firearms as a type of metal wand," Dumbledore said, clearly attempting to change the subject.
Too tired to deal with Dumbledore's deflection tactics, Aiden turned and left the rooftop.
On the other side, the passionate trio's rescue plan immediately went from three people to one person at the very start.
Harry and Ron were completely absorbed in their own concerns and activities. Meanwhile, Hermione already had to face Hogwarts' increasingly complex curriculum alone.
Her two supposedly supportive friends couldn't help with the legal research, leaving Hermione to face Hagrid's lawsuit entirely by herself.
Sitting in a quiet grove near the castle, Hermione felt tears of frustration threatening to fall.
Then, a pair of slender hands gently touched her head in comfort.
Hermione turned to see a blonde girl standing behind her.
"Astoria? What are you doing here?" Hermione asked, recognizing the Slytherin.
"Witnessing the hard worker's fate stuck with companions who don't truly care," Astoria sighed with genuine sympathy.
Thinking of her two absent friends, Hermione sighed as well. The two girls reached an understanding beneath the ancient tree.
"So, how's your lawsuit preparation progressing?" Astoria asked with genuine interest.
"Still searching for relevant provisions in the Magical Decree," Hermione answered wearily.
"Aiden suggested I might be able to help you. Here, take this," Astoria said with a conspiratorial wink, handing Hermione a leather-bound book.
Hermione opened the volume to find detailed notes on various unwritten rules and precedents within the Magical Decree that Astoria had carefully documented.
If this were a game, Astoria might have just unlocked the 'Aiding the Enemy' achievement.
The two girls gathered their materials and headed to the library, where Hogwarts housed the complete Magical Decree in all its bureaucratic glory.
After claiming a table and organizing all the necessary reference books, they began their systematic search.
After what felt like hours of tedious legal research, Astoria suddenly found what they needed.
"Hermione, look here, Article 1245 of the Magical Decree," Astoria said excitedly, pointing to a specific passage.
"Let me see," Hermione said, taking the book and reading aloud:
"Those who keep magical creatures that cause harm to others shall bear full responsibility for said harm; however, if it can be proven that the damage was caused by the victim's intentional provocation or gross negligence, responsibility may be reduced or entirely waived."
"That's it!" Astoria exclaimed, punching the air in triumph.
"Come on, let's go tell Harry and Ron," Hermione said, pulling Astoria toward Gryffindor Tower with renewed energy.
In her excitement, Hermione actually dragged Astoria all the way into Gryffindor territory. By the time Hermione realized what she'd done, they had already reached the boys' dormitory entrance.
Every young wizard they'd passed had stared at Astoria with curious expressions. The mind reader's abilities activated rapidly as she processed their thoughts, and her acting progress advanced accordingly.
"Oh, look who this is," George said with theatrical surprise.
"Isn't this our youngest brother's special friend?" Fred added, emphasizing the word 'special' with obvious implication.
"What's wrong? If you're looking for Aiden, you should head to Ravenclaw," Percy said, being unusually helpful for once.
"Good day, gentlemen of the Weasley family. I haven't come looking for anyone in particular today—just accidentally brought along by a friend," Astoria replied smoothly, gesturing toward Hermione.
"Ah, I see," the others said, not pursuing the matter further.
Hermione and Astoria shared their legal discovery with Harry and Ron. After a brief discussion, they decided that Hagrid would need intensive coaching before his hearing.
Afterward, Astoria left Gryffindor under Hermione's careful escort, both girls feeling they'd made significant progress toward saving an innocent hippogriff.