The Owl That Did a Bad Thing, Just Didn't Want to Stand By and Watch Someone Die

Gryffindor room.

Professor McGonagall sat on a sofa by the fireplace, while Hermione called out names one by one from a long list.

Since Dumbledore's request was to search secretly, they didn't make a big fuss. They simply made up a reason and asked everyone to fill out the form for going home for Christmas again.

Students whose names were called would step forward to sign, completely ignoring the owl locked in a cage.

From morning to noon, from seventh grade to first grade, Gryffindor in the school was checked, but Hedwig showed no obvious reaction.

"Professor, is there some mistake?" Hermione asked dejectedly. "We've tried all the Gryffindor except for Harry and his friends."

Professor McGonagall rubbed her temples wearily. "I have the same feeling. Maybe I'm missing something."

"Could it not be Gryffindor?"

"That's impossible," Professor McGonagall said with certainty. "The Fat Lady wouldn't let anyone in who doesn't know the password."

"What if he knows the password?"

Two years ago, Sirius Black found the Gryffindor password and was able to get in.

"This..." Professor McGonagall hesitated for a moment, then walked to the entrance of the lounge. "Good morning, Fat Lady."

"Good morning, Professor," the Fat Lady said with a grin.

"I'd like to ask if any students from other colleges came here last night?"

"No, absolutely not." The Fat Lady shook her head seriously. "I don't even let people into Gryffindor without a password, let alone other houses."

"See!" Professor McGonagall said to Hermione.

"However, Professor Dumbledore did come by last night."

"Who did you say? Professor Dumbledore?"

Professor McGonagall staggered, nearly losing her composure, while Hermione stared in astonishment, her mouth agape.

"Yes, he came by around midnight," the Fat Lady recalled. "He said he had something very urgent to discuss, so I let him in."

Upon hearing this, Professor McGonagall and Hermione exchanged bewildered glances.

No wonder they couldn't find anyone in Gryffindor, because this person wasn't even from Gryffindor.

Professor McGonagall looked dejected, muttering to herself, "How could this be? A Prophecy genius has just missed out on Gryffindor?"

"Uh... Professor, should we continue searching?"

"Why don't you look for it?"

Regardless of which college he was from, the fact that he managed to deliver that letter to Ron meant that he had a sense of justice and that there was still a chance to fight for him.

"But Professor..." Hermione hesitated, "We'll be on holiday tomorrow. We've already spent the whole morning just looking at Gryffindor House. At this rate, we won't be able to find out about the other three houses."

Moreover, Professor Dumbledore meant to conduct clandestine raids; investigating several houses at once was somewhat blatant.

Professor McGonagall's expression immediately darkened. After a long silence, she sighed reluctantly, "Never mind, let's talk about it after the Christmas holidays!"

After saying that, Professor McGonagall turned and left, leaving Hermione with a desolate silhouette.

"Wait, Professor, perhaps I have a way."

The Great Hall, the night before the holiday.

Hermione was the first to arrive at the Great Hall, and sat at the end of the Gryffindor Long Table, brazenly placing the birdcage containing Hedwig on the table.

Students gradually entered, preparing to enjoy their pre-departure dinner.

Hermione had no appetite and kept an eye on Hedwig's movements while reading.

Professor McGonagall, sitting in the chair, felt a sense of satisfaction upon seeing this.

She unconditionally supported Hermione's method, which both met Dumbledore's requirements and allowed her to filter out the vast majority of students.

Unless that person doesn't come to eat, there's absolutely no way to avoid it.

More than half an hour passed before Hedwig finally flapped her wings and made an excited sound.

Hermione and Professor McGonagall immediately looked toward the entrance of the Great Hall, and then their eyes widened in unison.

Aaron strode in, carrying Abei in his arms.

He clearly didn't notice the two gazes fixed on him and continued eating his dinner.

Professor McGonagall gave Hermione a wink, then left her seat.

The two met outside the Great Hall and walked all the way to the Entrance Hall before stopping.

"Are you sure it's Mr. Gaius?"

"Didn't you see it all? Hedwig said it was him," Hermione stammered. "It was unexpected, yet also quite reasonable!"

Aaron's Transfiguration is quite good; even if he can't transform into other people, the Fat Lady can't see through his Illusion Magic.

As for his talent for Prophecy... he's probably Professor Trelawney's proudest student.

"Now we're matched up," Professor McGonagall said with a wry smile.

She had been overjoyed, thinking that Gryffindor gained a genius and could finally hold her head high in front of Snape. But now it seemed she had been overthinking things; the situation hadn't changed at all.

"Professor, do you still want him to join the Phoenix Society?" Hermione asked hesitantly. "Knowing him as I do, I'm afraid he won't agree."

Professor McGonagall did not give a definite answer, leaving behind the words, "Be careful, no one can tell," before hurriedly leaving.

Instead of returning to the Great Hall, she went to the Headmaster's Office and Dumbledore everything directly.

"Albus," Professor McGonagall said, half-laughing and half-crying, "Gaius's abilities probably need to be reassessed; he is far more outstanding than we anticipated."

Dumbledore sat calmly in his chair, as if he had expected this all along.

"This child must be on our side, otherwise he wouldn't have sent a message to Ron."

My suggestion is to recruit him into the Phoenix Society; you'll have to talk to him yourself.

"It's not time yet, Minerva," Dumbledore voice.

"What do you mean by 'not the right time'?" Professor McGonagall asked, puzzled. "Harry, Ron, and Hermione all know about the Phoenix Society, so one more shouldn't be a problem!"

"He's different." Dumbledore shook his head, a wise glint in his eyes. "I don't deny that bringing him into the Phoenix Society would be a huge help to us, and many others would be inspired."

Gaius is a true Slytherin; he possesses all the qualities of Slytherin, his greatest strength being his ability to protect himself. Otherwise, he wouldn't have used that method to send a message. I'm certain that I won't gain anything by contacting him at this time.

"I completely agree with that." Phineas stroked his goatee with pride. "The Gaius family has stood strong, powerful, mysterious, and with intricate relationships for thousands of years."

They seem to always exist on the fringes of the Magic World, yet their every move profoundly influences the entire Magic World.

"Thanks for reminding me, Phineas," Dumbledore said speechlessly. "You've said that so many times, I'm sick of hearing it."

"One more time wouldn't hurt."

"Uh... I'm sorry, I don't quite understand what you mean," Professor McGonagall said.

"That means Dumbledore is right," Phineas said meaningfully. "If the timing is wrong, it will only backfire."

Professor McGonagall frowned slightly. "So, does that mean we have to pretend nothing happened?"

"That's certainly true." Dumbledore took out the letter from last night from the drawer. "As the headmaster of Hogwarts, it would be a bit unreasonable not to ask about someone breaking into Gryffindor's dormitory in the middle of the night."

Professor McGonagall seemed to have thought of something, a glint of light flashing in her eyes. "I'll go and fetch Gaius to the Headmaster's Office right away."

"Dumbledore, wasn't I clear enough?" Phineas said somewhat displeased. "Whatever you do, don't set your sights on the Gaius family."

"Don't worry, Phineas."

It's not as serious as you think. I know what I'm doing.

"That would be best."

On the other side, Aaron had just finished dinner and was thinking about how to spend the Christmas holidays when a tall, thin figure suddenly appeared in front of him.

"Professor McGonagall, what's going on?"

"Gaius, Professor Dumbledore asked me to invite you over."

Upon hearing this, Aaron remained outwardly calm, but his heart skipped a beat.

Something's not right. Something's definitely not right.

He had just sent the letter to Ron last night, Dumbledore was talking to him tonight. Even a dog wouldn't believe it was a coincidence.

"Professor McGonagall, if I may ask, what brings Professor Dumbledore to see me?"

"Don't worry, it's nothing serious."

They'll probably just ask you a few questions; just tell them the truth.

Aaron immediately knew the answer: Dumbledore knew about his mission.

But it doesn't matter, he's sure he didn't give anything away.

They absolutely cannot find any evidence, and as long as he denies it to the death, Dumbledore can't do anything about it.

Thinking this, Aaron stood up nonchalantly, "Then let's hurry up and go, we can't keep the principal waiting."

Professor McGonagall raised an eyebrow slightly and led the way with practiced ease.

Upon entering the Headmaster's Office, Aaron immediately noticed a letter on Dumbledore's desk and couldn't help but inwardly complain.

"Gaius, please have a seat."

Aaron didn't stand on ceremony and casually found a chair to sit down.

"Um... Professor Dumbledore, we're so familiar with each other, just say what you need to say."

Dumbledore, then picked up the letter on the table. "Does it look familiar?"

"Weasley is in mortal danger... Also... this is not a prank, and you will bear the consequences if you do not believe it." Aaron read the words without batting an eye, then frowned slightly. "It's definitely not Slytherin."

After all, as their Prefect, I often collect their homework and have never seen this kind of handwriting before.

This must just be some school prank!

"It wasn't a prank; Arthur Weasley was attacked and seriously injured."

In a sense, the letter arrived at the perfect time, even saving Arthur's life.

"What?" A look of shock appeared on Aaron's face as he carefully examined the letter in his hand. "This is truly... truly unbelievable!"

This must be Professor Trelawney's doing; she's the only one in all of Hogwarts with this kind of Prophecy ability.

Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall exchanged a glance, both seeing the speechless look in each other's eyes.

With acting skills like that, if they didn't know the truth, they might have been fooled.

"Ahem!" Dumbledore coughed. "Unfortunately, this letter should have nothing to do with Professor Trelawney."

Last night, someone impersonated me and tricked the Fat Lady into opening the door to the Gryffindor Common Room. Then, this letter was placed by Ron's bedside, and an alarm was kindly set.

If it were Sybill, it wouldn't be this complicated at all.

"No way!" Aaron raised an eyebrow, then looked at Dumbledore with feigned anger. "Headmaster, you didn't call me here because you suspect me, did you?"

Dumbledore:...

Doubt? What do you mean, doubt? You dare say it wasn't you?

"Don't get excited. The main thing is that this letter definitely wasn't left by the professor."

"It's not Gryffindor either," Professor McGonagall added. "Gryffindor know the password, so they don't need to impersonate the headmaster."

"That's right." Dumbledore. "You are the best in the school, and your Transfiguration and Divination are something the professor is very proud of."

Besides, you get along well with the Weasley; Ron, Ginny, Fred, and George are all your friends.

"So, this is your reason for doubting me?" Aaron asked Yu. "Isn't that a bit too hasty?"

"I also think it was a bit hasty, but..." Dumbledore pointed to the birdcage in the window, "Harry's owl saw what happened last night."

Click!

A bolt from the blue struck Aaron's heart.

Damn, I miscalculated! Even the best plans can go wrong!

He considered everything except Hedwig.

He then realized that he had sneaked in while invisible last night, so Hedwig couldn't see him at all and could only identify him by his scent.

Besides, even if this owl undergoes a genetic mutation and can see through his magic, so what? It's all for nothing if it can't speak.

"Professor, I think this might be a misunderstanding," Aaron said seriously. "I slept in my dormitory all night and didn't leave it for even a moment."

Hedwig immediately flapped her wings and made a strange hissing sound, as if she were refuting his words.

"Roar!"

Abei roared, and a dragon's might pressed down on Hedwig like a mountain.

It immediately chose to follow its heart, its voice and movements abruptly ceasing, and it just obediently squatted in the cage.

"Aaron," Professor McGonagall glared at him, "Keep an eye on your pet."

"Yes, yes, but Abei didn't do anything wrong either."

"It's perfectly normal for it to be angry when I, its owner, am falsely accused."

"Alright! Let's just assume it's a misunderstanding!" Dumbledore said nonchalantly, then changed the subject, "Gaius, who do you think left this letter?"

Aaron took a deep breath and stood tall with his head held high. "How would I know? Anyway, it wasn't me."

Dumbledore's forehead creased with a few black lines. "Don't you feel ashamed to say that?"

"So what do you think this person means?" Dumbledore asked meaningfully.

"Uh... Professor, I'm just an ordinary Slytherin. Is it appropriate for you to ask me this?"

"It's okay. Teachers and students have completely different views. I'd like to hear your opinion."

"The eight-character phrase was a prank; it just happened to match up."

"What if it wasn't a prank?" Professor McGonagall asked. "Suppose this person possessed a rare ability Prophecy foresee Arthur's injury and then deliberately left this letter?"

"Hmm..." Aaron pondered for a moment, knowing they were trying to trick him into talking, so he decided to tell the truth, "Maybe they just didn't want to see someone die."