Harry Potter: From Muggle Cousin to Conceptual Wizard

Chapter 14: The entrance to Diagon Alley, the Leaky Cauldron!

Outside the Dursleys’ house, Dudley shoved a large bag of sandwiches into Hagrid’s hands, and the three of them walked and talked.

"Have a sandwich, you sturdy Hagrid!"

Dudley said that he and Harry had already had breakfast.

"Oh! I like this nickname. I always cause some minor trouble for others because of my size and strength."

Hagrid put on his floral coat, took the sandwich, and replied naturally, "But more often than not, they make me more reliable and trustworthy. Obviously, Dumbledore thinks so too!"

He always entrusted me with very important tasks, like picking you all up and retrieving something highly classified from Gringotts!

Dudley suddenly felt like he was outsmarting thin air. He had just played a pair of threes when Hagrid voluntarily played all his trump cards.

There's absolutely no sense of accomplishment in outsmarting a tight-lipped fool who's as tight-lipped as a broken open bottle.

"Gringotts, what's that?"

Harry asked curiously, noting that he was feeling much better than last night.

Anyone who has been an orphan since childhood knows that self-regulation of emotions and psychological issues is an essential skill.

Harry was no exception; despite Dudley's help and guidance, it was ultimately no match for his father's and mother's love.

“Gringotts is the wizarding bank, Harry. We need to go there first to get the money your parents left you, so we'll have Galleons to buy things,” Hagrid replied.

“Gold Galleons! I know! My cousin told me they’re the money wizards use for trading, along with silver sieges and bronze nats. The exchange rates are hard to remember! You can also exchange them for pounds!”

Harry flaunted the knowledge Dudley had taught him in a youthful manner, which was one of his secrets to making himself happy.

But his memory wasn't perfect; Dudley had actually mentioned Gringotts to him once, but Harry had forgotten.

Harry finished showing off, then suddenly realized something. "Hagrid! What did you just say? My parents left me something?"

“Oh! Of course! Let’s take it one step at a time. First and foremost, yes, Harry, your parents left you a large sum of money in the Gringotts vault.”

The wizards keep most of their money there, managed by the fairies, who are not to be trifled with…”

Hagrid gave Harry a detailed explanation of Gringotts, praising its high level of security. Later, when they got to the second topic, he corrected a mistake Harry had made.

"Harry, Dudley isn't a wizard. The information he heard is inaccurate. The goblins at Gringotts do offer a service to exchange Muggle money for wizarding currency, but that's only a scholarship for Muggle-born young wizards, and there's a limit to the amount each person can receive."

Goblins don't really need Muggle money, Harry. Even though you grew up in a Muggle family like the Dursleys, your parents are wizards, so strictly speaking, you don't enjoy that benefit.

So, we don't need the Muggle money Dudley prepared; you can just use the money in your parents' vault!

Hagrid says whatever he knows without mincing words, which makes Dudley roll his eyes.

"Hagrid, you're wrong!"

Dudley corrected, “If I’m not mistaken about the wizarding common sense books I’ve read, Gringotts is in Diagon Alley, Diagon Alley is in London, and to get to London you need to buy a train ticket unless you plan to use some unconventional wizarding methods to get around.”

The half-giant smiled shyly: "You're right, Dudley!"

Then she turned and went to chat with Harry.

Dudley's forehead creased with a few black lines, then he gave up struggling. Having a straightforward friend and being a little careful isn't so bad.

The three continued walking down the street.

Given Hagrid's size and weight, he couldn't possibly take a taxi, and even a bus would be out of the question, not to mention he had cast a Muggle banishment spell. The three of them had no choice but to walk to the train station in Little Huiglin.

Throughout the journey, Hagrid ate sandwiches, pointing and gesturing wildly, spitting as he spoke.

He started by mentioning the story of Gringotts using fire dragons to guard high-level underground vaults, and then mentioned that he had always dreamed of raising dragons.

Because of Harry's curiosity and questioning, he told some details about Dumbledore asking him to retrieve a secret item, including a retrieval certificate given to him by Dumbledore, and that the secret item was stored in the 713 underground vault of Gringotts.

They were practically about to say the name of that thing out loud.

After Dudley steered the conversation slightly, Hagrid confessed why he couldn't use his wand to cast spells, and about how he was expelled from school for keeping a cute little spider as a pet in his third year.

Poor kid! He still doesn't know that Voldemort tricked him.

They know they are innocent, but they can't explain why.

While the eight-eyed giant spider he kept was certainly not a good thing, he did not kill Myrtle when he was young.

And so he took the blame.

When Hagrid talked about this, he became quite downcast, but soon he perked up again and began to express his opinions on all sorts of Muggle things on the street.

An hour later, the three arrived at the station, and Dali bought the tickets.

Hagrid finally managed to squeeze through the ticket gate, which was far too narrow for him, and boarded the Muggle train with Dudley and Harry's help.

It drove towards London with a whirring sound.

The Little Wheeking district in Surrey is not too far from London; it takes less than an hour to drive there.

Despite Haig's complaints about the Muggle train being cramped, narrow, and slow, they soon arrived at the entrance to their destination.

The Leaky Cauldron, which was also cursed with a Muggle expulsion spell.

A wizard who disregards martial ethics carved out a piece of land in the bustling downtown area of ​​the Muggle world, struggling to survive in the cracks, and running a dirty and chaotic old bar between a bookstore and a record store.

Hagrid is an alcoholic and a regular at the Leaky Cauldron.

He naturally pulled Dudley and Harry inside.

The bar was filled with wizards dressed in retro attire, scattered around the tables in twos and threes, clinking glasses and chatting animatedly.

As soon as Dali and his group entered, they attracted everyone's attention.

At first, they recognized Hagrid as an acquaintance.

Behind them was Tom, the bald, hairless, ugly, hunchbacked, and old pub owner, who recognized Harry by the lightning bolt-shaped scar on his forehead, thus recognizing Harry as the savior of the wizarding world.

As soon as Harry Potter's name was mentioned, all the wizards in the bar got excited and rushed forward to shake hands with him.

A memorable scene: the boy who survived a great ordeal, just stepping into the world of wizards, held a unique fan meeting with his wizarding fans.

Dudley and Hagrid were left out in the cold.

However, they are not bothered by this.

Hagrid claimed he still had to do things for Hogwarts, but he still accepted the butterbeer that his boss Tom had summoned with a wandless spell and tasted it, introducing Harry to his wizard friends as he drank.

Dudley, while keeping an eye on Harry, also began to spy on the wizards in the pub.

He saw his old friend Mr. Digg, the not-so-bright wizard who generously gave him books, shaking hands with Harry excitedly and reminiscing about bowing to Harry in the Muggle shop in the past.

It wasn't until he was pushed down by others that he noticed Dudley, his Muggle friend with whom he had traded celebrity merchandise.

Dudley wasn't in the mood for catching up with Digg, so he brushed him off with a few perfunctory words, and casually took the wand from Digg's waist, hiding it in his coat for future use.

You know, he's been flipping through that book, "Standard Spells," for years.

He remembered the pronunciation of the spell and the gesture of waving the wand very clearly, but he had never actually practiced it.