On Monday, January 15th, 1995, Harry walked with Neville and Hermione to their Care of Magical Creatures class.
When they arrived, they were surprised to see that Hagrid was not there. Instead, there was an older woman with short gray hair and a pointed chin.
"I am Professor Grubbly Plank," said the woman matter of factly, "Hagrid is away due to a personal issue."
Harry felt his heart sink. What kind of personal issue did Hagrid have that was keeping him away?
Harry, Neville, and Hermione barely heard what Professor Grubbly Plank was saying about unicorns during the lesson as they were lost in worry.
Some students, especially Parvati Patil and Lavender Brown, absolutely adored the unicorns and showed it. Harry, Neville, and Hermione, however, were too tense and uneasy to even register whether they found the unicorn lesson interesting or not.
Things only got worse at the end of the lesson when Draco Malfoy strutted over to them carrying a newspaper.
"I think we're shot of that oaf for good," said Draco, smirking, "Check this out."
And Draco tossed the newspaper to Harry.
Dumbledore's Giant Mistake?
Albus Dumbledore, eccentric Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, has never been afraid to make controversial staff appointments, writes Rita Skeeter, Special Correspondent. In September of this year, he hired Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody, the notoriously jinx-happy ex-Auror, to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts, a decision that caused many raised eyebrows at the Ministry of Magic, given Moody's well-known habit of attacking anybody who makes a sudden movement in his presence. Mad-Eye Moody, however, looks responsible and kindly when set beside the part-human Dumbledore employs to teach Care of Magical Creatures. Rubeus Hagrid, who admits to being expelled from Hogwarts in his third year, has enjoyed the position of Gamekeeper at the school ever since, a job secured for him by Dumbledore. Last year, however, Hagrid used his mysterious influence over the headmaster to secure the additional post of Care of Magical Creatures teacher, over the heads of many better-qualified candidates. An alarming large and ferocious-looking man, Hagrid has been using his new-found authority to terrify the students in his care with a succession of horrific creatures. While Dumbledore turns a blind eye, Hagrid has maimed several pupils during a series of lessons that many admit to being "very frightening." "I was attacked by a hippogriff, and my friend Vincent Crabbe got a bad bite off a flobberworm," says Draco Malfoy, a fourth year student. "We all hate Hagrid, but we're just too scared to say anything." Hagrid has no intention of ceasing his campaign of intimidation, however.
In conversation with a Daily Prophet reporter last month, he admitted breeding creatures he has dubbed "Blast-Ended Skrewts," highly dangerous crosses between manticores and fire crabs. The creation of new breeds of magical creature is, of course, an activity usually closely observed by the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. Hagrid, however, considers himself to be above such petty restrictions. "I was just having some fun," he says, before hastily changing the subject. As if this were not enough, the Daily Prophet has now unearthed evidence that Hagrid is not - as he has always pretended - a pure-blood wizard. He is not, in fact, even pure human. His mother, we can exclusively reveal, is none other than the giantess Fridwulfa, whose whereabouts are currently unknown. Bloodthirsty and brutal, the giants brought themselves to the point of extinction by warring amongst themselves during the last century. The handful that remained joined the ranks of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and were responsible for some of the worst mass Muggle killings of his reign of terror. While many of the giants who served He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named were killed by Aurors working against the Dark Side, Fridwulfa was not among them. It is possible she escaped to one of the giant communities still existing in foreign mountain ranges. If his antics during Care of Magical Creatures lessons are any guide, however, Fridwulfa's son appears to have inherited her brutal nature. In a bizarre twist, Hagrid is reputed to have developed a close friendship with the boy who brought around You-Know-Who's fall from power - thereby driving Hagrid's own mother, like the rest of the Death Eaters, into hiding. Perhaps Harry Potter is unaware of this unpleasant truth about his large friend - but Albus Dumbledore surely has a duty to ensure that Harry Potter, along with his fellow students, is warned about the dangers of associating with half-giants.
"Well," said Draco dramatically, "This should put an end to that oaf's teaching career. All the mommies and daddies won't want that off teaching their children. They'll be scared he'll eat them alive. And here I was just thinking he'd swallowed a bottle of Skelo Gro or something."
"Shut up, Malfoy!" said Harry angrily.
"But what's this about Crabbe getting a bad bite off a flobberworm?" demanded Neville, "They haven't even got teeth."
'And," added Harry bitterly, "It's your own fucking fault you were attacked by that hippogriff. Hagrid explicitly warned us not to insult hippogriffs. It's your own fault you weren't paying attention because you were mouthing off to Crabbe and Goyle. You were the one who called the hippogriff that offensive "U" word.
"How does this Skeeter bitch even know any of this," demanded Hermione, "By the way, she isn't allowed at Hogwarts anymore. Dumbledore banned her! "
"We have ways of feeding her stuff," boasted Draco carelessly as a beetle soared above his head.
At this, a lightbulb went off in Hermione's head.
"Well," said Hermione, pretending to concede defeat, "I guess Hagrid really has gone."
"He has," grinned Draco, and he left.
The nanosecond Draco was out of earshot, Hermione told Harry, "Please go retrieve the Marauder's Map at once. It's urgent."
Harry rushed up to his dorm and retrieved the Marander's Map from his trunk without thinking about it and then returned to Neville and Hermione.
"Activate it quickly," said Hermione urgently.
Harry retrieved his wand from his right hand pocket with his right hand and pointed it at the map.
"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," said Harry in a crystal clear voice.
To Harry's and Neville's surprise, but not Hermione's, the name "Rita Skeeter" appeared on the map and the map showed she was standing close by them."
"What?" wondered a confused Neville, looking around.
"Maybe she has an invisibility cloak," suggested Harry.
Hermione, however, retrieved her own wand from her right hand pocket with her right hand and snatched the map from Harry.
Hermione pointed her wand directly at the map and cried, "Animagus Reivilo!"
At this, the word "Beetle," appeared below the name "Rita Skeeter" on the Marauder's Map.
"What?!" exclaimed Harry, "That beetle nearby is Rita Skeeter?"
"Yes," said Hermione bluntly, "I read about a spell to reveal unregistered animagi on objects like this map in a bestiary called Wonderous Winged World. It is a bestiary published by the witch Sally Soar in 1414 that focuses on creatures with the power of flight. It includes a section on how to use objects, artifacts, or materials that are bewitched to reveal the presence in confined areas to reveal unregistered animagi and this map is such an object. DAMN!"
"You thought you were about to catch her, and the beetle flew away and thus disappeared from the map?" guessed Harry instantaneously.
"Yes," said Hermione, handing the map back to Harry, "I'm going to be on the lookout for her though. I did get a good view of what her beetle form looks like. It's a matter of time before she is good and cornered."
"What are you going to do if you do capture her?" grilled Neville.
"I'm going to alert Madam Bones to the situation because there are potential legal issues involved here. I hope I can catch her before the Second Task. The Champions Closer Ties and the changes the champions forced to the Second Task could be fodder for her. She'd want to make it out that one of you is trying to lure the others into trusting you so you could kill them or at least take advantage of them. That's the type of sensationalism Rita Skeeter thrives on," explained Hermione, "If I can't get a hold of Madam Bones right away, then I will inform Madam Maxime. If I feel it appropriate, I may ask Susan Bones of Hufflepuff to help me contact Madam Bones. Either way, Rita is going to get her comeuppance soon."
"What about Hagrid though?" asked Harry.
"He is likely just staying in his hut and never coming out," said Hermione swiftly, "We need to go convince him to come back."
"Not today," said Harry quietly, "He'll be too upset today and we might only make things worse. Give him a day or two to calm down and then we should try to talk him into coming back. OOH!"
"What have you just realized, Harry?" inquired Hermione and Neville together.
"I am going to ask Cedric, Viktor, and Fleur to help us convince Hagrid to come back to teaching. I am confident that they will be on Hagrid's side when they hear the story."
"We will help you too," declared one of the Slytherin girls in the class, pointing at her friends, "We will tell Hagrid that he is a great teacher and that we miss his presence."
Harry was startled to hear this from a Slytherin, though to be fair, he'd never seen the girl who had spoken interact with Draco Malfoy or his cronies.
Harry, Neville, and Hermione saw that the girl who had spoken had very deeply tanned skin and really light brown hair. Harry, Neville, and Hermione all felt awkward at the idea of a Slytherin helping them, but come to think of it, they all realized that this girl and her friends had always flat out refused the company of Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, Nott, Parkinson, and Bulstrode.
"Thank you," Harry told the girl quietly.
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