Chapter 111

Chapter 111: Alexander's Suspicion

Time: 3:25 PM. Hagrid was sitting eye to eye with Harry.

"Hagrid, is there anything wrong with Professor Snape helping me? Is he a bad person?" Harry asked curiously.

"No, no, no, it's not like that," Hagrid replied hastily, shaking his head. The movement made Fang bark excitedly and rush toward him again.

"Dudley told me that Professor Snape was friends with my mum—and even knew my aunt. I asked him again after Potions class, and he said Snape grew up with my mother. He was the first wizard she ever knew," Harry said, frowning.

"Fang, now's not the time to fool around. Here, have a chicken drumstick," Hagrid muttered, distracting the boarhound.

"Wait—Dudley's still in touch with you?"

"Well... since you know Harry," Hagrid sighed, scratching his beard, "to be honest, I used to think they were just good friends. I didn't expect they were childhood sweethearts."

Harry went on to describe Snape's behavior in class.

"Aha, maybe he thinks you're more like your mum than James. Lily was brilliant at Potions—smart and gentle." Hagrid spoke a bit too quickly, and it was clear he'd accidentally let something slip.

"My dad? Professor Snape really doesn't like him," Harry said sharply.

"How do you know—?" Hagrid started, then realized he'd already said too much. "Yes, the two of them were enemies since their first year."

"I can't say any more," he muttered firmly.

"Sure enough... Alexander was right," Harry murmured to himself.

"Alexander? Oh—that's you." Hagrid's eyes shifted to Alexander Smith, who was quietly eating a slice of cake nearby. Ron, as usual, had faded into the background, nearly invisible in the conversation—just as Alexander preferred it.

"My father is George Smith," Alexander said casually, hoping to gauge Hagrid's impression of his father. Even if their last name was common, George Smith was well known—just like how Ollivander would always be remembered.

"Oh! The lucky lad who married the flower of Ravenclaw!"

"So you're Lucia's son," Hagrid said warmly, his expression softening with familiarity.

After a long conversation, Alexander gradually built a picture in his mind—an image of his parents when they were young, laughing and full of life. The most painful part was that he couldn't tell anyone the truth about their deaths. Their identities were now managed entirely by house-elves from afar. After all, a proper wizarding business needed at least the appearance of a living wizard in charge.

As evening approached, Hagrid shifted the topic and told Ron about his brother Charlie, who was quite skilled with magical creatures.

At one point, Hagrid accidentally bumped the teapot warmer, revealing a small piece of parchment tucked underneath—a clipped article from the Daily Prophet:

---

Gringotts Break-In Update:

Investigations into the July 31st break-in at Gringotts continue. Officials believe the perpetrators are linked to dark wizard activity.

Goblins confirmed that nothing was stolen. The vault in question had been emptied earlier that same day.

A Gringotts spokesperson said, "We cannot reveal what was stored in that vault. It is best not to interfere in these matters."

---

Alexander caught a glimpse of it. Considering Harry's mysterious visit to the fourth floor and Snape's oddly convenient appearances, he was beginning to suspect that Dumbledore was feeding Harry carefully chosen bits of information—clues leading him toward the secrets of the restricted corridor.

"Hagrid!" Harry suddenly exclaimed. "That break-in at Gringotts—it happened on my birthday! We might've been there when it happened!"

"That little package—could it be—" a sudden thought hit Harry.

Hagrid, never good at hiding his emotions, turned his head away awkwardly, pretending not to hear. Instead, he offered Harry another piece of rock cake to distract him.

Harry grimaced. He'd only just managed to finish his first portion of Hagrid's rock-solid biscuits. His stomach was still unsettled.

"Hagrid, it's getting late. We'll head back now," Harry said quickly. He pulled the dazed Ron to his feet. Alexander followed, waving goodbye.

Even then, Hagrid didn't forget one thing: he stuffed both Harry's and Ron's pockets with even more rock cakes before they left.

By the time they returned to the castle, it was already 6 o'clock—time for dinner in the Great Hall. Harry and Ron immediately unloaded their rock cakes into Alexander's arms. To their amazement, he happily accepted them.

"Harry, what were you asking Hagrid about?" Ron asked curiously.

"On my birthday, Hagrid took me to Gringotts to withdraw money. He also picked up a tiny, grubby little package from vault 713—Dumbledore's vault," Harry explained.

"The break-in happened that same day."

"Hagrid was being too obvious," Alexander muttered. "What was in that bag? Could it be… Ravenclaw's lost diadem?"

"Ravenclaw's diadem? You mean like a crown?" Ron asked aloud—too loudly.

Terry Boot, seated nearby, turned his head. "Did someone say the diadem?"

"I heard it vanished centuries ago, along with Rowena Ravenclaw herself. People have searched for it, but no one's ever found a trace," added Lisa Turpin, approaching with interest.

"They say it looks like a crown and can enhance the wearer's intelligence," Hermione chimed in helpfully.

"Why are you eavesdropping on my conversation with Harry?" Ron grumbled, gnawing on a chicken leg.

"Ron, you were talking too loudly," Harry said, half-amused.

"If you want to see what it looks like, I can take you to the common room. There's a statue there that wears it." Penelope Clearwater appeared and gave Alexander a gentle pinch on the arm.

"Wait—only Ravenclaw prefects know that kind of secret?" Ron asked excitedly.

Hermione cut him off before he could finish.

"Ron, sometimes I wonder if you are really in Ravenclaw. We walk past that statue every day. It literally has the crown on its head."

"And engraved below it," she added, "are the words: Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure."

"Oh, that's what that says," several students murmured together, before turning back to their dinner.

But for Alexander, today had sealed a decision in his heart. At Smith's Castle—and within the Smith family's alchemy workshop—there was an old invention worth reviving.

Now, Alexander knew exactly which one.

But before that, he needed to perform a magical ritual—an essential step for what would come next.

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