Chapter 765: Scheming
Chapter 765: Scheming
Despite it being March, the weather around Hogwarts remained cold. Perhaps due to the influence of the large number of Dementors, the snow around the castle had only just started to melt.
Albert made his way through the muddy fields, along a gravel path that led to Hagrid's hunting cabin on the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Something seemed to have caught his attention along the way, as he narrowed his eyes, looking toward the trees. He spotted a black dog sneaking through the grass at the edge of the forest, with a cat by its side—Hermione's Crookshanks, keeping pace with quick, small steps. Sensing Albert's gaze, the pair quickly disappeared into the forest.
Albert retracted his gaze and continued toward Hagrid's cabin.
Light shone through the windows of the cabin, and as Albert approached and knocked on the door, the sound of scratching came from within, followed by Hagrid's voice. "Back up, Fang, back up."
"Sorry to disturb you at this hour," Albert called out.
Hagrid opened the door and let Albert in.
"It's no trouble," Albert said, noticing Hagrid sticking his head out the door and carefully observing their surroundings. He furrowed his brows and asked, "What's wrong?"
"I don't know," Hagrid said casually. "I've just been feeling something odd lately, like someone's watching this place. Maybe it's the Ministry, worried I'll let Buckbeak loose again."
"Someone's watching you?"
Albert moved to the window, discreetly checking the outside area.
"There's no one around the cabin, or Fang would've alerted me," Hagrid said, scratching his head. "But still, something feels off." He turned and moved toward the fireplace to boil some water for tea.
Albert was certain it wasn't the Ministry; they wouldn't go to such lengths. Lucius Malfoy, on the other hand, would be delighted if Hagrid set Buckbeak free, as it would give him an excuse to have Hagrid thrown into Azkaban.
Albert already had a guess as to what was going on. He pulled out the Marauder's Map from his pocket and checked the surroundings of Hagrid's cabin.
There were five names inside the cabin, including himself, Hagrid, Fang, and Buckbeak. The fifth name belonged to someone who should have been dead—Wormtail.
He was indeed hiding in Hagrid's hunting cabin.
No wonder Sirius Black and Crookshanks were in the vicinity.
"What did you find?" Hagrid turned to ask.
"A rat," Albert replied softly.
"A rat?" Hagrid was even more confused.
"Yes, a rat," Albert said, casting a Silencing Charm without warning to prevent Peter from eavesdropping on their conversation.
"Oh, that's nothing," Hagrid said nonchalantly. "I often have rats coming over to steal food. I saw one just the other day." He added, "You can lend me your cat if you want."
"My Tom doesn't catch rats," Albert said helplessly. He had considered introducing Crookshanks to Hagrid but decided against it, thinking it might scare Peter away.
"A cat that doesn't catch rats?" Hagrid found that hard to believe.
Albert didn't respond to that and instead turned his attention to Buckbeak, the hippogriff, who returned his gaze, its head held high with no sense of impending doom.
"You'll need to give it a new name; Buckbeak won't do anymore," Albert said as he stepped forward, ignoring Hagrid's warning and reaching out to pat the creature's head.
"You should be careful," Hagrid chided, a bit reproachful of Albert's recklessness. "But yes, I should give it a new name."
He took the kettle from the fireplace, now boiled, and poured the water into a large teapot, serving Albert a cup of hot tea along with a slice of chocolate cake and a piece of parchment—a notice from the Ministry of Magic addressed to Hagrid.
Albert quickly scanned the letter and looked up at Hagrid. "The situation isn't too bad, for now."
"Not too bad?"
"At least the Ministry didn't bring an executioner along to hear your appeal."
Albert lifted the cup to his lips, blowing gently to cool the tea, and took a small sip. "I estimate that after this appeal fails, the next time they come to hear your appeal, the Ministry will bring an executioner with them."
"What should I do?" Hagrid asked anxiously, looking to Albert for useful advice.
Albert set down his cup and said calmly, "You need help."
"Haven't you and Hermione been helping me already?" Hagrid asked, confused.
"No, you misunderstood me," Albert explained. "When I say help, I mean a professional—someone who specializes in these matters." He continued, "In the Muggle world, there are people who make a living helping others with legal matters; they're called lawyers."
"But there are no lawyers in the wizarding world," Hagrid said, his eyes widening.
"I know," Albert acknowledged. "But you can hire someone well-versed in Ministry laws to advise you and help you win this case."
"But didn't you say we can't win this case?" Hagrid was getting more confused by Albert's statements.
"Yes, we may not win," Albert agreed, "but that doesn't mean we can't make things difficult for Malfoy.
Albert smiled slyly. "Moreover, having a wizard well-versed in legal matters on your side can save you a lot of trouble. Of course, it would be even better if we could win the case."
"I don't know anyone like that," Hagrid said awkwardly.
"I can help you ask around, and then you can do this, then that, and finally that." Albert lowered his voice and shared his plan with Hagrid.
Hagrid stared at Albert, his eyes wide. "Are you suggesting that we get Malfoy to bribe my advisor, and then we split the money from him?"
"Of course," Albert replied. "The Prophet would love to report on such gossip. If they don't want this matter to be exposed, they'll have to pay him off to ensure your complete failure."
"But... why don't we just win the case directly?" Hagrid asked, confused.
Tasting the chocolate cake, Albert frowned. The cake was a bit hard and dry, probably having been left out for several days. "Because we can't win," he said. "Even if this matter is exposed, your chances of winning the case are still low. At most, we'll just cause some trouble for Malfoy."
"So, it's simpler and more effective to use other means, and isn't it interesting this way? The Malfoys have gone to great lengths to try and kill Buckbeak, spending a lot of galleons, only to have it slip away at the last moment. I'm sure they'll be furious about that!"
"You're right; that family deserves to be punished!" Hagrid thought back to the events of the previous term and felt nothing but disdain for the Malfoys.
If it hadn't been for Albert's timely discovery of the Slytherin heir's secret, Ginny Weasley might have been in danger, and Albert would have been locked up in Azkaban forever.
This plan would teach the Malfoys a lesson, and he could also vent some of his anger.
"But how do you plan to handle this? Can you at least give me a hint so I can rest easy?" Hagrid trusted that Albert had found a way to save Buckbeak. He asked tentatively, "You're not planning to take Buckbeak away on the day of the execution, are you?"
"Of course not," Albert shook his head. "I won't use such a risky method. However, I can't tell you the details yet; your mouth isn't exactly tight-lipped. It's best that you don't think about it at all, and I think it's better not to let others know about this either, to avoid any leaks."
"Alright, alright! As long as Buckbeak can be saved, I don't care about the rest." Hagrid finally conceded, deciding not to pry further into Albert's plan.
"It's getting dark. I'll walk you back to the castle."
Hagrid stood up to escort Albert back, even though he didn't think Albert would be in any danger walking back alone. It was just something he felt he ought to do.
After seeing Hagrid off, Albert found a secluded corridor. Checking that no one was around, he cast a Disillusionment Charm on himself and quietly made his way to the eighth-floor bathroom, waiting for the other him to arrive.
When he heard three knocks, he counted to thirty in his mind and stepped out of the bathroom. Fred, George, and Lee Jordan were waiting outside.
"You're really not going to use the eighth-floor Room of Requirement?" the trio continued their earlier conversation.
"I plan to create a room myself," Albert explained briefly.
"Create a room yourself?" Fred, George, and Lee Jordan were taken aback, unsure how Albert intended to create a new room within the castle.
"Did you forget about the Undetectable Extension Charm?" Albert reminded them with a smile. "We can use that charm to create an empty room, then move some things from the Room of Requirement into it. The only problem is finding a hidden passageway that hardly anyone knows about."
"Why not just use the Room of Requirement directly?" Fred didn't understand why Albert was going to such lengths when they had a perfectly good space available.
"I don't want too many people to know about the Room of Requirement," Albert explained. "If too many people are aware of it, we won't be able to use it freely in the future. Besides, this is also an experiment of sorts. We'll be using this technique a lot going forward."
"I think your idea is brilliant," George said, feeling that Albert had his reasons and choosing not to question him further. He also wanted to take the opportunity to learn the Undetectable Extension Charm from Albert.
"As for hidden passages, we know quite a few," Fred said after a moment's thought. "The one behind the portraits on the seventh floor would be suitable. I'd bet even Filch doesn't know about the passageway behind them."
"Everyone will be surprised if they find that the secret room they were planning to use for their gatherings has turned into a passageway," Lee Jordan added, imagining the shocked expressions of those who had intended to use the room for their gatherings, only to find it missing.
(End of Chapter)
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