"Why are you here?"
Albert had just left Hagrid and was on his way back to the castle when he ran into an acquaintance who shouldn't have been at Hogwarts.
"I was invited here."
Rita Skeeter lowered her eyes to the suitcase that was swaying slightly in Albert's hand, and asked curiously, "What's in your suitcase?"
"How many Galleons did old Malfoy give you?" Albert suddenly asked.
“He’s very generous,” Rita Skeeter said, smiling.
"That guy is really rich." Albert said sarcastically, "I don't know how many Galleons he has spent to kill Hagrid's Hippogriff."
"Do you think the Hippogriff is innocent?" Rita Skeeter seemed interested and wanted to interview Albert about his opinion on the matter.
"This matter is actually very simple." Albert said calmly, "Someone tried to grab a dog's tail on purpose, and was bitten by the dog. Then he blamed the dog and wanted to beat it to death."
"You know it very well." Rita Skeeter naturally knew about this matter, and the actual situation was really similar to this.
However, the truth has nothing to do with her.
She is a journalist.
Responsible only for newspaper sales.
The so-called truth is not that important in the face of hot sales.
"Who do you think will win this time?" Rita Skeeter demanded.
"Hagrid had no chance of winning from the beginning. The reason was that he had no money or power. He couldn't bribe the officials of the Ministry of Magic, so naturally he couldn't win."
"Do you think the Ministry of Magic is corrupt?" Rita Skeeter pressed.
"At least, it has never been fair." Albert stopped and said to Rita Skeeter, "I can tell you something. Maybe after a while, you will understand what I mean."
"What's going to happen?" Rita Skeeter asked curiously. "Is it true that you're a prophet?"
"If you want to know, just wait."
"Okay, then can you tell me what's in the suitcase? It seems to be moving." Rita Skeeter refocused her attention on the slightly shaking suitcase.
"There's a Boggart in it," Albert said without hesitation, "Just got it from Hagrid. Why, are you interested in writing a report on Boggarts?"
As he said this, Albert pretended to open the box and let the Boggart out for the other party to see.
"No, not interested. I'm actually more interested in you."
"Unfortunately, I have no interest in you."
"People are very interested in you. Oh, don't go away. I can tell you a secret."
"Not interested." Albert turned and left.
Rita Skeeter had to hurry up and catch up. She felt like she was facing a hard, stinky rock and was completely frustrated.
"I heard that the Wizengamot is going to award you the title of Wizengamot British Youth Representative." Rita Skeeter stared at Albert's face, wanting to see how he would react when he knew this.
"You know, I don't like my news appearing in the newspapers." Albert warned, "I don't want our conversation to appear in the newspapers."
"Of course I know, and I won't let it appear in the newspapers, I promise."
"Your promise is worthless." Albert said calmly, "Of course, I'm not afraid of you doing that, because you can't afford the consequences."
For some reason, after hearing this, Rita Skeeter felt cold all over and the smile on her face froze.
"We are in a partnership, and I have always abided by the agreement between us."
"Well, I did hear other friends talking about this," Albert said, "but I didn't receive any specific notification, so I think the Wizengamot British Youth Representative is just a rumor."
"As far as I know, this is indeed the case. It is said that it is still going through the process at the Ministry of Magic." Rita Skeeter hesitated for a moment and lowered her voice, "They paid a lot of money."
"Oh." Albert nodded to show that he understood.
"Your reaction is really abnormal."
"Otherwise, what kind of reaction do you want from me? He's just a British youth representative from the Wizengamot. It doesn't matter whether he's here or not."
With that, Albert walked toward the hallway carrying his suitcase.
“Are they all the same?”
Rita Skeeter suddenly felt very bored.
That’s right, Albert already has two world championship titles, who knows if he will have more titles
If he continues to participate, this is indeed possible.
The halo on his head is almost blinding others' eyes. The title of British Youth Representative of the Wizengamot is really something dispensable.
According to the latest news obtained by Rita Skeeter, Albert seems to have invented a very important spell and is expected to win the Order of Merlin.
They simply can't suppress it, and they really have to make room for that guy, unless they really want to become a laughing stock.
"Alas, what a good treasure boy, it's a pity that we can't dig it up, it's such a waste." Rita Skeeter murmured as she watched Albert leave.
Rita Skeeter really didn't dare to dig, for fear that she would die on the spot. The cold feeling just now was not an illusion. That guy was definitely not as gentle as he seemed.
"You know him well?"
Shortly after Albert left, a voice sounded next to Rita Skeeter.
"Interviewed him once. A very difficult man to deal with," Rita Skeeter replied.
"I thought that was your area of expertise." Lucius Malfoy walked towards the castle's entrance hall.
"It's not worth it to write about him."
Rita Skeeter noticed a blond boy next to Lucius Malfoy. "This must be the person involved. Can I interview him?"
"It's not appropriate now. You can wait until the appeal is over before doing the interview." Lucius signaled Draco to shut up.
"Where is the appeal taking place, Dumbledore's office?" Rita Skeeter asked casually.
"Yes, in the headmaster's office. I'm here to pick up Draco to attend the appeal. Well, I think the representatives of the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures should be here soon." Lucius took out his pocket watch and checked the time. "Dumbledore is very suitable to be a witness. Look, they are here."
Two wizards were walking towards this side, one of them was very old, and the other was tall and held a shining axe in his hand.
"I thought you wouldn't come." The middle-aged wizard greeted Lucius.
"I really didn't want to come here at first, but..."
Lucius didn't want anything to go wrong, so he came in person and brought Rita Skeeter with him.
Before that, he spent a fortune in Galleons to ensure that Rita Skeeter's reports contained only what he wanted to see.
When they entered the castle, they noticed several unfriendly eyes staring at them.
They turned their heads and saw Harry and his two good friends looking at them with disgust.
"That's Harry Potter, the famous savior."
Lucius introduced him to the people around him with a faint sneer on his face, "But I heard that he is being hunted by Blake."
Draco had not forgotten the beating he received the day before yesterday. He gave Harry and the other two a malicious smile, then turned to Rita Skeeter and said, "Potter has been trying to excuse the Hippogriff. They even wanted to let the beast go. If it weren't for that big..."
"Shut up, Draco." Lucius glared at his son.
After the group of people disappeared, Ron spat on the ground with disdain and said with disgust, "This is what the Ministry of Magic calls an appeal. They even have the axe ready. It's disgusting."
"Don't forget, Albert doesn't let us get involved in this matter." Hermione glared at Ron fiercely.
"I regret it."
Harry looked at the backs of those people leaving and said gloomily, "Last time, I shouldn't have stopped you from turning Malfoy into a beast."
"If Buckbeak loses his head, put Malfoy's head in the toilet," Ron suggested. "That kind of beast deserves to eat shit."
"We should trust Albert. He will definitely prepare everything. Hagrid will not lose the appeal easily." Hermione actually wanted to find Albert, but she was worried that she would mess things up.
In fact, Albert did teach Hagrid some appeal skills and special cards, but those were obviously not meant to help Hagrid overcome his current difficulties, but to disgust the Malfoy family.
At this moment, in the principal's office.
Hagrid was sorting out the hand cards that Albert gave him yesterday. He took out a water bottle from his pocket and took a big gulp of tranquilizer.
"I'm glad you're ready to appeal." Dumbledore looked at Hagrid who was drinking water and asked, "Did Mr. Anderson prepare a sedative for you?"
"He said I should take some tranquilizers so that I can express my thoughts clearly during the appeal and not be swayed by emotions." Hagrid took out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his forehead. He lowered his voice and said, "He also prepared these hand cards for me. I will definitely win the case today."
"Mr. Anderson is as reliable as ever." Dumbledore looked at the calm Hagrid and sighed in his heart. He also knew that the probability of Hagrid winning was slim.
"In fact, Anderson once told me that I didn't have much chance of winning and asked me to be mentally prepared. That's why he asked me to drink more tranquilizers. He always said that panicking won't solve any problems." Hagrid's cheeks were a little stiff, and his mood didn't seem as calm as his face showed. His hands were still shaking slightly. It was obvious that the giant's bloodline also had a certain resistance to potions.
"Didn't Mr. Anderson come up with a better solution for you?" the portrait on the wall of the headmaster's office asked. "I heard that he is the smartest student in the history of Hogwarts. But, damn it, why was he sorted into Gryffindor?"
"That was Mr. Anderson's own wish." The Sorting Hat on the shelf indicated that it would not take the blame.
"Yes. When the incident happened at the beginning of the school year, Albert asked me to send Buckbeak away. Now I regret not listening to his advice." Hagrid really regretted not listening to Albert's advice.
"Very prescient." Another portrait said, "I heard that Mr. Anderson is also a prophet."
"I heard from an old friend that the Ministry of Magic plans to award him the title of British Youth Representative of the Wizengamot." The portraits in the office stopped pretending to be asleep and got up to chat, but the topic seemed to have gone a little off topic.
"No." Hagrid said suddenly, "The Ministry of Magic seems to be deliberately blocking the title, saying that they are going through the procedures. I guess by the time the Ministry of Magic finishes the procedures, Albert will have come of age."
"It's just a crappy title. It's fine if the Ministry of Magic doesn't give it to him. But with the level Albert has shown, I doubt he can get all the awards before graduation."
"It's really hard to imagine that such a genius is a Muggle wizard."
"Don't be silly, Evra, that kid is not a Muggle." Phineas interrupted rudely: "The guy you are talking about is of Smith's bloodline."
"Albert is a pure-blood wizard?" Hagrid couldn't help but widen his eyes. He felt that this was very wrong because Albert once said that his parents were Muggles.
"I think Mr. Anderson should know." Dumbledore intertwined his fingers and said calmly, "But he probably doesn't want anyone to mention this matter."
Dumbledore's words aroused the curiosity of the portraits. They were all curious about what the Smith family had done to cause such a genius to be stranded outside.
"Because of some unpleasant things, Mr. Anderson's grandfather was kicked out of the Smith family, so their relationship is quite bad." Dumbledore did not intend to elaborate on this matter.
"I know." Phineas said suddenly.
"Hurry up and tell us what's happening, Phineas. Stop hiding it and keeping us in suspense." The portraits began to denounce Phineas.
One old man even waved his cane at Phineas and threatened, "Tell me or I'll beat you up."
"A squib."
The headmaster's office suddenly fell into silence. In most wizard families, Squibs were a sensitive topic, a taboo that no one wanted to mention.
However, the most ironic thing is that the descendant of the dud turned out to be a genius.
The silence in the principal's office was broken by a sudden knock on the door.
The portraits on the walls pretended to be asleep.
Hagrid opened the door and saw Lucius coming in with the others. He could hardly suppress his anger. "What are you doing here?"
"Dear friend, please believe me, if possible, I don't want to come and listen to your appeal." Lucius had a sneer on the corner of his mouth.
"Okay, it's almost time, let's officially begin now!" Dumbledore waved his wand and pulled out several armchairs out of thin air.
"Draco, stay next to me." Lucius pulled his son away from Hagrid, fearing that the other party would go crazy and hurt his son.
"Well, let's start the appeal of the Hippogriff injury case now." After asking Dumbledore for consent, the old wizard took out a piece of parchment from his pocket. After reading the contents of the parchment, he narrowed his eyes and said, "Hagrid, you disagree with the first death sentence and hope to change it to compensate the victim for medical expenses, right?"
"right."
"So, you agree that the Hippogriff is guilty, right?"