"Go on, you silly dog! Eat outside!"
Hagrid scooped another pot of water from the barrel outside his hut and set it on the fire. When he returned, he saw Fang feasting on a dead ferret. He tossed the mangled lump of flesh and fur out of the hut, driving Fang out with it.
"Go on, Hagrid!"
Harry urged eagerly.
"Where was I—oh, rumors... yes, rumors are flying everywhere!"
Hagrid sat back down on the bed with a thud, shaking the small hut.
"You two definitely haven't read the papers, Harry, Ron.
The Daily Prophet published an interview with the Minister for Magic. He told people that not a single student died in the disaster—but, sigh, you don't know the Minister. His words don't hold much credibility with the public. No one believes him."
"What about Professor Dumbledore?"
Harry asked.
"People should believe him, right?"
"He's stuck too," Hagrid said sympathetically.
"I saw him in the castle this morning... In all these years, I've never seen him look so tired—he probably hasn't slept for two nights.
The reporters from the Daily Prophet have gone mad. They won't listen to reason and just want to break into the school to see how many little wizards died...
Last night, the centaurs sent word that they caught a few trying to sneak into the school from the Forbidden Forest and asked me if they could just kill them... Oh, don't worry, Dumbledore has negotiated with them. Those reporters are safe now.
Just from this, you can imagine how much effort Dumbledore has put in to keep them out of the school.
He also has to write replies to the students' parents... at least a few hundred letters, demanding Dumbledore reveal the truth about the Hogwarts Express losing control—honestly, it's not like he broke the train.
And the Board of Governors is causing trouble too. They demand Dumbledore accept inquiries, respond to media concerns, and publish the injury status of every single student..."
Listening to Hagrid's rambling description, Harry could well imagine the pressure Dumbledore was under right now.
"My mum was terrified too!"
Ron bluffed.
"She sent a letter the afternoon before yesterday—a letter to everyone in our family, asking about our condition... She even wanted to come to school to visit us."
"Yeah—"
Hagrid nodded in agreement.
"Not surprising. Parents are bound to worry, but if they all swarm Hogwarts, how can the school run?"
"What about the Ministry?"
Harry flashed back to the chubby Minister who presided over their Sorting Ceremony.
"Did they do anything—er, besides issuing some inspiring reports? Have they figured out how the train lost control?"
"That's a silly question, Harry—"
Hagrid snorted coldly.
"It's good enough if they don't cause trouble. How dare anyone expect them to be useful?
Oh, of course, the Minister did make some moves—he fired the Head of the Department of Magical Transportation immediately... poor guy lost his job for no reason. Hmm... besides that, the Minister has been trying to egg Dumbledore on to pressure Ares to accept an interview and put in a good word for the Ministry!"
"He's not willing?"
That night, Harry did see Professor Dumbledore and the Minister for Magic enter Professor Delfino's ward for a discussion, but the door was closed, so no one knew what they "conspired."
But—
"This is a good thing, isn't it?"
Harry frowned, judging the matter from a Muggle perspective.
"He could become famous—er, I think many people would admire him?"
"Oh, hehe, you don't know Ares, Harry—"
Hagrid laughed.
"With his personality, he wouldn't invite such trouble on himself!"
"So!"
Harry and Ron looked at each other, both sensing the intense interest the other felt in the hidden information revealed by Hagrid's words.
Ron asked excitedly, "You and Professor Delfino are old acquaintances, aren't you, Hagrid? You know him very well?"
"Not exactly—"
Hagrid could sense Harry and Ron's admiration for Ares... He had also heard snippets from students about how Ares stopped the train, and he was shocked by it too.
Boys always looked up to heroes.
Hagrid said beamingly, "He almost became my assistant."
"What?!"
"Are you joking?!"
Harry and Ron shouted in unison, demanding Hagrid explain clearly.
"Oh, yes, I'm not mistaken—"
Hagrid's tone was light.
"Speaking of which, his experience is actually somewhat similar to mine, Harry, Ron—when Ares was expelled from school and his wand snapped, Professor Dumbledore also hoped he would stay and become my assistant, the Gamekeeper of Hogwarts...
Professor Kettleburn—he teaches Care of Magical Creatures, you won't have his class until third year.
He said Ares was suitable to be my successor. He had a natural aptitude. In Care of Magical Creatures classes, he could keep magical creatures calm with almost no effort."
Beaming at the two shocked faces, Hagrid paused, then continued smilingly.
"Professor Dumbledore asked me to have a chat with Ares, so I did—I told Ares that being expelled was nothing, and one could be a reliable wizard even without a wand... I told him all about my experiences, but he—"
At this point, Hagrid's beetle-black eyes dimmed, and he sighed.
"Professor McGonagall said Ares wasn't very sociable since he entered Gryffindor—he almost never played with his classmates... couldn't find any hobbies he liked, even lacked interest in Quidditch... That's really abnormal. What kid isn't interested in Quidditch?
His grades were mediocre when he was in school, and he disappeared as soon as you took your eyes off him... skipping classes. Even his dormmates didn't know where he went—Professor McGonagall always said he was listless, full of laziness, lacking the vitality you kids have."
"Wait, Hagrid!"
Harry shouted, his emerald eyes wide with shock, his brain spinning rapidly, trying to digest the key information mixed in Hagrid's string of narratives.
"You mean, Professor Delfino was expelled by Professor Dumbledore back then?!"
"For what!"
Ron shouted too, vaguely understanding why Percy and those older students, who clearly knew something about Professor Delfino's past, all acted so secretive!
Ron erupted with the same high-pitched excitement as Harry.
"Why did Professor Dumbledore expel him... It couldn't be because of skipping classes, could it?!"