Becoming a Teaching Assistant for Care of Magical Creatures was probably the best title Hagrid could possibly come up with.
It was miles better than "assistant gamekeeper" or "deputy key administrator," or anything like that.
And it was also his little bit of pride—because really, standing in front of him was a "big shot" famous across the entire wizarding world.
How could someone like that have such "plain" work experience on their record?
A Green ought to be like Dumbledore—someone who shines.
"Mm. I accept," Sean said without hesitation.
He needed to practice weather charms and spatial magic. Before he could tailor living environments for magical creatures, he still had to find suitable places to observe, raise, and make contact with them…
And what place could possibly be more suitable than the Forbidden Forest?
"Thank you! Thank you! That's brilliant!"
Hagrid's beard practically flew upward with joy.
And just like that, the Forbidden Forest gained a new gamekeeper—well, officially, the title was Teaching Assistant for Care of Magical Creatures.
Honestly, Hogwarts gamekeepers always seemed to have especially "glorious" life stories.
The previous gamekeeper, Hagrid, had once tried to raise a dragon in his hut, and also kept that three-headed dog he called "Fluffy."
And the second gamekeeper, Mr. Green, even before taking the post, had already stored a basilisk in the Forest and beaten back an Acromantula colony…
"Have you ever heard of an assistant that young?" Ron blurted, unable to hold it in.
"With Sean's knowledge of magical creatures…" Hermione said slowly, remembering Sean trailing after Newt and even being invited as a guest, "Ron, he could teach—what—ten of you."
Ron's eyes flew wide. "Don't be ridiculous, Hermione… I think it's a hundred!"
That made Harry laugh so hard he trembled—then he thought about it and stopped, because…
…yeah. That actually sounded about right.
A breeze stirred the neatly trimmed hedges beside Hagrid's hut. Under a pale blue-and-pink sky, the lawn swayed gently in silence.
After afternoon tea, Hogwarts settled into its usual drowsy laziness.
The golden sun slipped behind the treetops, and a giant of a wizard was calling out his goodbyes:
"See you! Go on, get to the feast… I've got one more bit of good news—something that'll surprise you at dinner!"
Hagrid's voice echoed through the empty edge of the Forbidden Forest.
"What surprise—Merlin, Hagrid can actually keep a secret?" Ron said, astonished.
Anyway, with that faint sense of anticipation, they headed back to Hogwarts.
At the last feast of Hogwarts' Christmas holiday, everyone ate with gusto—including the younger students who'd only just returned.
They'd been reluctant to come back at first, but after trading a few bits of the latest Hogwarts gossip with friends and eating a slice of apple pie, Hogwarts became instantly lovable again.
The Great Hall was still magnificent.
There were a dozen Christmas trees frosted with silver, thick garlands of mistletoe and holly crisscrossing the ceiling, and enchanted snow—warm and dry—drifting gently down from above.
Sean and the others had barely sat down, still wondering what Hagrid's "surprise" was, when—
A moment later, Dumbledore arrived, and the noise in the Hall dropped by several notches.
"Another term has passed!"
Dumbledore said cheerfully. "But before we tuck into these delicious dishes, I must trouble you to listen to the ramblings of an old man."
Necks stretched. The young witches and wizards around Sean exchanged looks—everyone understood the "surprise" was beginning.
"Long ago—before I ever chose to become Headmaster of Hogwarts—a shocking murder took place here."
The Great Hall went dead silent… then erupted into whispering as students pulled out the latest newspapers.
"Yes—just as those reports have said. Now, imagine what Headmaster Armando Dippet faced at the time."
Dumbledore produced a diary. He tapped it, and the diary began to speak in a flat, self-narrating voice:
"It was I who framed Hagrid.
Imagine what Armando Dippet had to face.
On one side, there was me—Tom Riddle—poor but brilliant, orphaned but courageous, a prefect, a model student.
And on the other? That oaf Hagrid—clumsy, troublemaking, causing disasters at least once a week.
I'll admit, even I didn't expect it to go that smoothly. I thought surely someone would realize Hagrid couldn't possibly be Slytherin's heir.
It took me five full years to pry the Chamber's secrets loose, to find the hidden entrance… Did Hagrid have the brains? The ability?
Only one professor—Dumbledore, the Transfiguration teacher—believed Hagrid innocent. He persuaded Dippet to keep Hagrid on and train him as gamekeeper.
Yes… I think Dumbledore noticed something. He never liked me the way other teachers did…"
The voice dragged everyone into a sealed-up past. They were all listening to a murderer's confession.
Some students were trembling.
"I'm telling you—Dumbledore saw right through him from the start," Harry said slowly.
The others beside him nodded.
And the diary kept going, still smug—careless, self-satisfied, revolting:
"After Hagrid was expelled, Dumbledore watched me closely. Annoying.
I knew opening the Chamber again while I was still at school wasn't safe.
But I refused to waste all those years hunting for it. So I left behind a diary. One day, by sheer luck, I could guide someone else along my path—so they could complete Salazar Slytherin's noble work—kill every Mudblood—"
The voice turned cold and sinister. Quite a few Muggle-born students visibly recoiled.
After all, this wasn't just a criminal's past—it was a death threat, spoken aloud.
"Th-that diary…" Ernie from Hufflepuff asked shakily.
"Yes. The diary appeared—and it ended up in my hands," Dumbledore said with a genial smile.
"So you can imagine what happened next. In places unknown to most of us, a fierce battle was fought.
And so, I have some points to award. Let's see—ah, yes…
Harry Potter and Ron Weasley—who bravely followed their friend's guidance and found a way to destroy the dark magic within the diary—each of you earns one hundred points!"
The Hall exploded with gasps—now the Gryffindors finally knew where their sudden surge of points had come from.