Study Days at Hogwarts

In the train aisle, students who heard the announcement jostled toward the nearest doors. As soon as they stepped onto the platform, a downpour greeted them, and the chill in the air sent shivers down everyone's spines.

“I hate rain.”

Alice pulled her wizard's pointed hat over her head, suddenly understanding why 'Hogwarts: A History' made a special mention of rainy days.

“I knew I should have brought an umbrella.”

Daphne, while telling a British joke, imitated Alice by pulling her pointed hat over her head to avoid the heavy rain directly hitting her.

“Waterproof.”

Alice had just cast a spell on her pointed hat when she heard a familiar voice not far away.

Hagrid held a lantern above the crowd, using the light to attract everyone's attention, while also shouting towards the new students on the platform, “First years! First years, this way! Alice, where are you? Come over here.”

“An acquaintance of yours?”

Daphne was taken aback, a little surprised that the man knew Alice, and seemed to know her quite well.

“A friend of my dad's, let's go over!”

Alice tapped Daphne with her wand and headed towards the light.

“And you said you didn't know magic.”

Feeling her body warm up, Daphne looked complex. From Alice's casual use of magic, it was clear that she was already several streets ahead.

Just how big was the difference between 'a little'?

“Just little tricks from 'Albert's Little Life Hacks'. Once you get the hang of magic, you can learn them with a little time,” Alice said casually, as if she knew what Daphne was thinking, reassuring her.

Daphne obviously didn't believe the nonsense about "learning with a little time", but she was quickly startled by Hagrid's imposing height.

Not only Daphne, but other first years were also surprised by Hagrid's abnormal height.

He's definitely not a normal person!

“Good evening, Hagrid.”

“Albert wrote to me a while ago, saying you'd be coming to Hogwarts this year!” Hagrid counted the number of new students while taking a folded umbrella from his coat pocket and handing it to Alice, his bearded face showing a gentle smile. “This is for you!”

“Oh, thank you Hagrid, you're a great help!”

Alice was flattered, never expecting Hagrid to prepare an umbrella for her.

Such differential treatment caused many new students to cast measuring glances at Alice, and even Daphne next to her couldn't help but open her mouth, then watched Alice open the umbrella and move closer to her.

“Alright! First years, follow me!” Hagrid counted the number of people and walked at the front of the line with the oil lamp. “Watch your step, don't fall. I'm going to take you across the lake!”

Such terrible weather, and they were actually heading to the lake, which was obviously not a wise decision, but everyone had no choice because the big guy leading them said that crossing the lake was a Hogwarts tradition.

A boy who had just squeezed onto Alice's boat complained in a low voice, “What if we fall in and drown?”

“You definitely won't drown. If people actually drowned, this tradition would have been cancelled long ago.” Daphne thought this guy was stupid. She still preferred talking to smart people like Alice.

Alice didn't interrupt, silently put away her umbrella, and lowered her head to avoid hitting the stone wall in front. After passing through the dark tunnel, she saw a towering castle standing in the wind and rain.

After crossing the lake, everyone climbed the stone steps and gathered in front of a huge oak door, where a "short" man was already waiting for them.

Such a huge contrast left everyone unable to react for a moment.

Professor Flitwick led the new students to the waiting room for the Sorting Ceremony, then had the new students line up to let him clean off the rain and mud from their bodies.

When it was Alice's turn, Professor Flitwick paused slightly, as if thinking of something, and nodded at Alice with a smile.

“I dare say all the professors at Hogwarts know you!”

Daphne was right, but she still underestimated Alice's popularity.

Especially when the name Alice Anderson was the first one Professor Flitwick called out, not only did whispers come from the seats below, but even the professors sitting at the teacher's table watching the Sorting Ceremony turned their eyes this way, until the enthusiastic cheers of the Ravenclaws when the Sorting Hat called out Ravenclaw drew everyone's attention away.

Honestly, Alice herself didn't like this kind of attention, it made her feel like a monkey in a zoo.

The mysterious Avalon and the legendary Albert always aroused the curiosity of many people.

So, she remained silent and ate during the Welcome Feast, to avoid being asked all sorts of questions by the people around her.

Daphne saw Alice's embarrassment and took the initiative to steer the conversation towards the school's professors.

Both Hagrid and Professor Flitwick left a deep impression on the new students.

“That's Hagrid, Rubeus Hagrid, Hogwarts' Keeper of Keys and Grounds, and the current Professor of Care of Magical Creatures.” Alice knew she should say something, so she took the initiative to introduce him to everyone.

“You seem to be very familiar, you spend some time in Avalon every summer.”

“Yes, he's a friend of my father's.”

“He's so tall, I dare say ordinary people aren't that tall.” A student looked at Hagrid on the teacher's seat and muttered, “Maybe he has giant blood.”

“Yes, he has some giant blood.”

Alice noticed the uneasy expressions on everyone's faces and said softly, “Hagrid is a very gentle person. I remember when I was a kid, he often let everyone stand on his shoulders to pick fruit.”

“What about that Professor Flitwick?”

“Professor Flitwick is our Head of House and teaches Charms.” A senior girl looked at Alice and explained to everyone, “He seems to have some goblin blood. However, he's a respected and loved professor, you'll like him.”

“Oh, right, I'm your prefect, Daphne. Remember to stick close to me after the dinner, I'll take you to the Ravenclaw common room.”

After the topic was successfully diverted by Daphne, during the meal, everyone stopped paying so much attention to Alice and instead talked about the school's professors.

During this time, Albert's name still came up frequently, because many of the books used by Hogwarts students were written by Albert.

When talking about Professor Trelawney, the old fraud would always use their lack of Inner Eye as an excuse, and the excuse was always so speechless, after all, Albert, the greatest divination master of the last century, was taught by her.

“The old fraud seems to be looking forward to you coming to Hogwarts.” Daphne looked at Alice and said, “She seems to believe that you will have a talent for divination.”

“She's probably going to be disappointed, I don't think I have the so-called Inner Eye.” Alice wasn't discouraged. She was already very satisfied to have inherited her parents' powerful bloodline, clever mind, and beautiful face.

Ian and Sophia also failed to inherit the talents for divination and Legilimency, and their magical talents were far inferior to hers.