Chapter 629 End Of The Dance
Evan and Hermione returned to the Great Hall. Ron and Lavender were still missing. Ginny and Gabrielle were seated with a group of Beauxbatons girls. Neville and Luna were dancing together. Harry and Colin sat at a table away from the dance floor.
"Have you seen Ron?" Harry asked, looking at Evan and Hermione who had just returned.
"He's busy somewhere!" Hermione replied grumpily. She looked around to make sure no one was listening to their conversation. Then she lowered her voice and said, "I just heard from Evan..."
She repeated what Hagrid had said, and Harry and Colin were equally astonished.
"So, Hagrid is half-giant?!" exclaimed Colin in surprise.
"Yes, this is very concerning," nodded Evan and Hermione.
"I don't understand. What's wrong with Hagrid being a giant?" said Harry, gazing at Madame Maxime seated alone at the judges' table, deep in thought. "If Hagrid is half-giant, she must be too. Bony... the only thing bigger than her bones is a dinosaur."
"You don't get it, Harry," Hermione explained. "The fact that Hagrid is half-giant is dreadful. It's stated in the books that giants are very dangerous magical creatures unrecognized by the wizarding world."
"And who cares?" Harry retorted stubbornly. "There's nothing wrong with Hagrid. We all like him!"
"I know he's not, but... in general, giants are seen as very fierce humanoid magical creatures," Evan had to explain as Harry and Colin still seemed puzzled and unaware of the gravity of the situation. "Like trolls, they enjoy killing, but they are far more dangerous than trolls. Giants have an average height of 22 feet, almost twice that of trolls. Their robust physique enables them to withstand most forms of magic. They are essentially humanoid killing machines. In the dark past, they brought much fear to the wizarding world, but they are scarce in Britain now."
"Then, where did they go?"
"Probably went extinct... many were killed by Aurors. There are supposed to be giants abroad, though. They mainly hide in the mountains. After all, the present era is different from the past, when giants could wreak havoc," Evan continued. "It's not how they disappeared that matters. The key is that during Voldemort's reign, many giants joined him and killed a lot of people."
"Still, how does this relate to Hagrid? He's not dangerous!"
"People who know him don't worry because they know he's not dangerous, but those who don't know him, or are not familiar with him..." Evan shook his head, observing many people whispering like them.
Obviously, this matter had already leaked out. There were many people around the fountain at that moment.
It was impossible to keep it hidden any longer, and it was not a long-term solution. It wasn't good for Hagrid.
The issue of blood status and identity had always been a problem for Hagrid. Concealing it only delayed the eruption of conflicts.
The only right thing to do was to expose it fully and make Hagrid realize people were still willing to accept him.
In this matter, Evan decided to make some preparations and couldn't allow public opinion to ferment and develop in the wrong direction.
Additionally, he was also a bit curious. Hagrid's father was just a common wizard, hearing the description of Hagrid, relatively tiny, so how did he manage to impregnate his mother, a pure giantess?!
Although descendants of mixed wizarding races and all kinds of magical creatures were common, half-giants had always been a minority.
Upon careful consideration, the image was truly quite dreadful!
When they saw Evan and Hermione return, Ginny and Gabrielle approached them.
The six spent the rest of the dance discussing giants in their corner, none of them felt like dancing. No matter who came to invite them, they declined!
Harry tried not to look too much at Cho and Cedric; it gave him a strong urge to kick something.
Evan advised him to invite Cho. Harry hesitated for a long time, but ultimately shook his head and didn't act.
As for Fleur and Roger Davies, Ron and Lavender, and the other couples, they did not return until the end.
When the Strange Sisters finished playing at midnight, everyone gave them one last, hearty ovation and began making their way to the entrance hall. Evan, Hermione, and Harry accompanied Gabrielle back to the carriage.
On their way back, at the entrance to the Common Room, they saw Ron standing there happily, hand in hand with Lavender.
"Oh." Ron saw Evan, Harry, and Hermione, and he abruptly stopped.
Lavender nervously laughed and ran off embarrassed.
There was an awkward silence, and Ron seemed to be trying to explain something, but not a word came out. He simply looked at them rather strangely, as if waiting for an explosion.
But there was nothing to say to Ron, and even though he and Lavender were moving too fast, it was up to them to determine what was right.
Thus, in silence and at a standstill for a while, they returned to the Common Room to sleep, each with many thoughts on their minds.
Harry was going to tell Ron about Hagrid.
The next day, everyone woke up late. The Gryffindor Common Room was much quieter than usual, many yawns interrupting lazy conversations.
Hermione's hair was disheveled again. She confessed to Evan that she had used generous amounts of Sleekeazy's Hair Potion for the dance, "but it's too much work to do it every day," she said casually as she stroked a purring Crookshanks behind the ears.
Although Hermione looked stunning the night before, she was also very pleasant this way. At least, that's what Evan thought. That was the true, natural Hermione.
Regarding Ron and Lavender, everyone pretended silently that they hadn't seen them.
They both were less effusive today, not as obviously clingy to each other.
Harry also told Ron about Hagrid. Ron was even more surprised than imagined and shared many horrible stories about giants, showing the dreadful nature of that news.
But Hermione calmed down after browsing through some books.
"I have always suspected that Hagrid is a half-giant," she told everyone, raising a magic book in her hand. "I just read about the history of giants. I think we shouldn't get so hysterical about giants. Not all of them can be as horrible as the rumors say. It's the same kind of prejudice people have towards werewolves. It's simple intolerance, isn't it?!"
