Harry carefully read Rita's report and realized that this woman was indeed very cunning. Throughout the entire report, Rita was basically telling the truth.
Was Hagrid a half-giant? Yes.
Were the animals Hagrid used in his classes closely monitored by the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures? Yes.
Did Hagrid cause injuries during his classes? They didn't even mention the students; Hagrid injured himself!
Rita had truly captured the Soviet Union's style of humor.
"How dare you defame Hagrid?"
"I'm repeating what Hagrid did."
Even after Harry thought seriously about it, he realized the situation was very unfavorable for Hagrid. Setting aside personal emotions, Hagrid's image in this report was simply horrendous.
He even began to wonder if Hagrid was really suitable to be a teacher.
He discussed with the Gryffindor kids about how to save Hagrid, but all their ideas were rejected. Before the class ended, they could almost take it for granted that Hagrid was doomed.
The only good news was that, like the second-year crisis, Hagrid wouldn't be sent to Azkaban. The maximum penalty he would face would be losing his job at Hogwarts and returning to be the Keeper of the Forbidden Forest.
However, Harry felt that if that happened, Hagrid's life would be ruined. That blow would be too much for him, and he might become a miserable alcoholic.
He couldn't allow it! Harry felt he had to find a way to help Hagrid.
While Harry and the Gryffindor kids discussed how to save Hagrid, Malfoy and his cronies were also discussing how to save his father.
Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy were being detained by the Ministry of Magic, and from the tone of Minister Bones, it seemed like they would only be released after being sent to Azkaban. This desperate Draco, who was willing to do anything to save his parents.
"Then join the Death Eaters," Goyle suggested innocently.
Draco fell silent; it was the first time he had something he couldn't say to his two cronies. Previously, he and Crabbe and Goyle used to talk about everything, even revealing information about the opening of the Chamber of Secrets. But today, he had something on his mind that he couldn't share.
Because if he said it, he would be disloyal to Voldemort. He, Draco Malfoy, didn't want to become a Death Eater.
He had a feeling that Voldemort was about to lose. Did the current Death Eaters really have the ability to resist the Ministry of Magic? After all, there were many opportunists among the Death Eaters. After the last defeat, many began to question, but they didn't dare to show it because Voldemort was still alive. They all feared being the next to be arrested, feared being kissed by the Dementors.
Tom's goal had been achieved. By using the death penalty on the facts, he had frightened the remaining Death Eaters, and the execution of those facts was one hundred percent.
What was worse than being kissed by the Dementors was that Voldemort had been injured in his confrontation with Dumbledore, an irreversible injury. This showed that Voldemort still couldn't match Dumbledore, not even come close.
If both were trapped in the same space, would Dumbledore kill Voldemort? Many people already had the answer in their hearts.
Voldemort had opted for terror to intimidate his subordinates. Now that his violence was not so impressive, it was also backfiring: unity among the Death Eaters was breaking.
When you asked those Death Eaters who had already escaped the Ministry of Magic's pursuit to release Lucius Malfoy, even if Voldemort himself gave them that order, they would likely opt to do it secretly.
Since his parents were arrested, Draco had been suffering from insomnia. At night, lying in bed, he had already analyzed all of this. Joining the Death Eaters meant taking on arduous tasks and facing a more terrifying future, and it didn't even guarantee his parents' safety.
So Draco didn't want to do it.
Crabbe looked at Draco's expression with his own thoughts. Even though the parents of him and Goyle had managed to escape the persecution, they still had to serve Voldemort.
However, upon seeing Draco's appearance, clearly...
He's not loyal!
Crabbe saw through it all. Despite his seemingly dimwitted appearance, Crabbe had his own thoughts. After realizing the change inside Draco, he decided to secretly inform his father.
He believed his father would make the most appropriate decision.
"But what will they do to us after we join the Death Eaters?" Draco lowered his voice, trying to unite his two cronies and himself.
Crabbe and Goyle shook their heads; they didn't know either. Seeing this, Draco sighed. He felt it would be better to discuss this with Pansy. That girl also had her own ideas, although she wasn't entirely trustworthy.
"Hey! I hope everyone can pay attention!" said Professor Grubbly-Plank with displeasure as she explained the wonderful qualities of unicorns, but she noticed that many kids weren't paying attention to her words.
The kids closed their mouths, but they all felt a little aggrieved, as all the girls in the classroom were surrounding the unicorn, stroking its soft fur, while the boys could only watch.
Not being able to touch the unicorn and getting scolded on top of that, that was really unfair in their minds. The boys from Gryffindor and Slytherin frowned, showing their dissatisfaction.
Fortunately, the class would end soon, and they only needed to endure a bit longer.
When the bell for the end of the class rang, everyone headed to the castle for lunch. The girls continued to praise Professor Grubbly-Plank, which annoyed Harry even more.
However, upon entering the Great Hall, one figure caught his attention. When he saw it, Harry's eyes lit up.
Tom should have a solution! Harry thought optimistically, so he ran over to Tom and sat down next to him at the Ravenclaw table, without caring about being cheeky.
After explaining his concerns to Tom, the latter fell into thought.
"It's not that there's no solution," Tom said, encouraging Harry.
"Does Hagrid have to bite the bullet and say he's not a half-giant? I don't think the old woman has proof—"
Tom shook his head. "As long as the majority believes Hagrid is a half-giant, he will be. What we need to do is stay calm, have Hagrid temporarily disappear from the public eye, and then find an opportunity for him to prove he's not a bloodthirsty half-giant but a law-abiding wizard in the magical community."
Tom's plan was simple: make Hagrid lay low for a while and then have him redeem himself by demonstrating that he's not a bloodthirsty half-giant but a law-abiding and respectful wizard in the magical world.
"Of course, you could also file a joint petition with the School Council. If you gain enough support from Hogwarts students, then keeping Hagrid as a teacher wouldn't be a problem, because that would be the trust of the students."
However, Tom felt that the latter option might not be feasible.