Chapter 98 Defending Buckbeak
Upon seeing Hagrid's sorrowful gaze, Evan sighed.
He didn't know much about politics, but he knew exactly what had to be done. He couldn't stand idly by as Buckbeak faced decapitation. Hagrid would surely collapse.
"Listen, Hagrid," said Evan. "You can't give up. You need to prepare your defense speech. Harry, Ron, and Hermione can prove Buckbeak's innocence. I can assist you in publicizing it in the newspaper."
"Evan is right; I distinctly recall a case of a Griffin's attack on a Hippogriff," mused Hermione. "In that instance, the Hippogriff was entirely blameless. We might unearth something valuable if we delve back into the matter and conduct thorough research."
"Yes, we will help too," Harry and Ron hastened to add.
Although everyone pledged support, ultimately, the task fell solely upon Evan and Hermione.
After some time, Harry and Ron seemed to have completely forgotten about the issue.
Yet, they could not be faulted. Primarily, Harry had been exceedingly preoccupied as of late.
In late November, Ravenclaw triumphed over the Hufflepuff team, reigniting Wood's spirit. Despite not affording any more losses, Gryffindor still had a chance to compete.
He then implored the players to train day and night. Evan witnessed Harry multiple times practicing in the biting cold of December snow.
Fortunately, there were no Dementors spotted on the grounds since the last incident. The lessons they had been imparted previously and Dumbledore's wrath seemed to have thoroughly confined them to their posts at the school entrance.
In addition to the rigorous Quidditch training, Harry needed to master Professor Lupin's Patronus Charm.
He had to be able to cast a full Patronus as soon as possible to prevent any mishaps in the upcoming match.
Regarding Ron, his demeanor had been increasingly peculiar of late.
He scarcely interacted with most people and kept his distance from both Evan and Hermione. While Harry trained, he wandered the castle alone.
To safeguard Scabbers from Crookshanks, he carried him in his shirt pocket wherever he went.
On several occasions, they were beyond the reach of the Marauder's Map, hence Evan couldn't ascertain their whereabouts.
Yet, he couldn't spare a thought for Ron and Peter Pettigrew. He and Hermione spent almost all their time in the library and couldn't concern themselves with anything else.
Set Peter Pettigrew aside for a few days. In twenty days, it will be Christmas. At that time, the castle will have the fewest occupants, allowing Evan to spring Sirius Black and resolve this quagmire.
The most pressing matter now is mulling over ways to save Buckbeak. He and Hermione found a wealth of information and records in the library pertaining to the aforementioned famous case. They prepared defense arguments for Buckbeak. The titles of these files read: "Synopsis of Magical Creature Cases," "A Guide to Hippogriff Psychology," "Hippogriff Aviculture," and "A Study on Griffin Barbarity." Each of them was quite voluminous...
"Evan, you must see this!" Hermione placed a dusty volume before Evan and whispered, "This is a case involving a Manticore in 1926. It killed a human, yet was ultimately acquitted."
"That was because everyone was afraid and no one dared to approach it." Evan furrowed his brow, observing the scant number of words in the dossier.
"Yes, you're right," Hermione said disappointedly, tossing the thick volume aside.
Evan picked up the dossier and continued perusing it. The subsequent section was a brief introduction to the magical creature: the Manticore.
The Manticore is an incredibly perilous creature with a human head, lion's body, and scorpion's tail. It is exceedingly rare, rumored to softly sing to its victims as it devours them.
According to reliable documents, the skin of the Manticore repels nearly all known spells. Anyone stung by its tail will die instantly.
This dreadful creature was crafted by wizards and goblins. They used to be employed to safeguard significant properties or forbidden places and were once highly popular. However, since the enactment of the "Prohibition of Experimental Breeding" decree, the numbers of Manticores have gradually diminished.
In recent decades, they have even disappeared.
Evan set aside the file. Based on what has been read so far, the level of danger posed by the Hippogriff cannot be compared to that of the Manticore.
If Buckbeak possessed even half of the Manticore's power, they wouldn't have to sit there worrying about him.
Over the next two weeks, in addition to assisting Hermione in perfecting the defense speech, Evan also penned several articles advocating for Buckbeak.
He intended to pressure Lucius Malfoy and the Committee for the Eradication of Dangerous Creatures through public opinion, but things didn't unfold as smoothly as he had originally envisioned.
The Daily Prophet refused to publish Evan's articles. They deemed the matter as not being of much significance. The entire incident was, at best, a minor event at Hogwarts that would not pique people's interest to read about it.
Although Evan eventually published those articles in the Hogwarts Wizarding News, their impact was limited.
Mr. Barnabas Cuffe, the editor-in-chief of the Daily Prophet, was correct. Most readers were not concerned about the life and death of a Hippogriff, and young wizards were already aware of the issue.
In contrast, they were more intrigued by Black's connection to the Dementors.
Evan was not entirely alone. Colin, Ginny, and Luna expressed their support for his perspective. Luna even persuaded her father to publish Evan's articles in "The Quibbler" instead of the original headline about the Crumple-Horned Snorkacks.
However, that didn't make much of a difference. The current editions of "The Quibbler" were not selling even as much as the Hogwarts Magical Diary.
As Christmas approached, Evan and Hermione were not making much progress.
Despite writing ten full parchments of defense, Evan was very skeptical about the effect it could have other than inducing sleepiness and lethargy.
Not to mention whether those officials dealing with the Committee for the Eradication of Dangerous Creatures would adopt that defense. He doubted Hagrid could write all those things. With his ability, it might be difficult for him to read the arguments together. Everything was laborious.
"It's futile, Hermione!" looking at Hermione sitting in front of him, Evan sighed deeply.
Hermione continued to grapple with the tedious files. She was often the last to leave the Common Room at night. She was the first to head to the library the next morning. Burdened with heavy schoolwork, the intangible pressure from Ron, and preparing for Buckbeak's defense. These things overlapped, causing her to have dark circles under her eyes like Lupin.
"What did you say?" Hermione lifted her head from the data.
"Our reasoning seems to be mistaken. Whatever the reason, Buckbeak did indeed injure Draco Malfoy, right?" Evan said slowly. "We can't defend Buckbeak's innocence while Lucius Malfoy focuses on this fact, Hagrid's hopes of winning are quite slim."
"So what do we do? Nothing? Like Harry and Ron?" Hermione looked upset. "Are we just going to watch Buckbeak be executed and wait for Hagrid to collapse?"
"No, I mean, we should change our way of thinking." Evan's eyes fell on a book by Newt Scamander titled "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," and the author's experience provided him with great inspiration.