"George, thank you for showing me out!"
Stepping out of the gloomy Knockturn Alley and into the bustling and prosperous Diagon Alley, Harry finally breathed a sigh of relief. He immediately thanked George.
He felt that if George hadn't escorted him out just now, the strange and eerie wizards along the way might have devoured him.
"Harry! Harry!"
Just then, a small girl with thick, bushy brown hair came running toward them from down the street.
"It's so good to see you! Why are you covered in dust? And your glasses!"
"It's good to see you too, Hermione."
Harry adjusted his cracked glasses, a happy smile spreading across his face.
"It was an accident."
"Alright, let me fix them for you. Reparo!"
Hermione pulled out her wand and cast the Repairing Charm on Harry's glasses.
As if time had reversed, the previously cracked glasses were restored to a brand-new state in just a few seconds.
"Looks like I need to practice that spell too."
Harry looked at his new, flawless glasses and couldn't help but sigh.
He wasn't Hermione, who had not only learned all the first-year textbook spells but also self-taught many more. He hadn't even fully mastered the basic spells, including the Repairing Charm.
Like Harry, George had the same thought at that moment.
The Repairing Charm could do more than just fix small items like glasses; if mastered well, it could easily repair collapsed buildings.
In the future, in the main Marvel world, just with this spell, he could earn a considerable amount of money.
"And you are?"
After helping Harry fix his glasses, Hermione turned to George, who was standing next to Harry, her face showing a puzzled expression.
"He's a friend I just met, George. This is Hermione Granger."
Harry quickly introduced the two of them.
George also extended his hand and smiled:
"Hello, beautiful Miss Granger."
"Hello, George."
Hearing George praise her beauty, Hermione's impression of him immediately shot up. She happily extended her hand and shook George's.
Aside from her parents, it was the first time anyone had praised her for being pretty; many had praised her for being smart, though.
"Harry, since your friend is here, I should go back now. See you at Hogwarts."
After shaking hands with Hermione, George didn't linger. He waved goodbye and walked into Knockturn Alley.
It was their first meeting; getting acquainted was enough. There was no need to be too forceful, as that would seem too deliberate. Besides, his time was precious, and he needed to continue studying magic.
Most importantly, he did not intend to prevent Lucius Malfoy from secretly slipping Voldemort's diary to Ginny.
Voldemort's diary contained a piece of Voldemort's soul and could corrupt minds. Even with his psychic abilities, he wasn't confident he could resist it, so he had no intention of touching it or claiming it for himself.
There was also no need to try and stop it; after all, with Dumbledore around, it would ultimately become a challenge for Harry, and no young wizard would truly be harmed.
He was even hoping to leverage this incident to gain some benefits.
"He seems quite nice. Why haven't I seen him at school before?"
Hermione watched George's retreating back, a hint of confusion in her voice.
George didn't seem older than her; he was either in the same year or a year above her. She shouldn't have failed to notice him.
Harry heard her and smiled:
"Because he's only going to Hogwarts for his first year this year. Of course, you haven't seen him."
"So he's younger than us. How did you two meet then?"
Hermione led Harry towards Flourish and Blotts, asking curiously.
And Harry recounted his recent experience.
Meanwhile, as George returned to the front of his shop, he unexpectedly saw a very burly figure standing by his shop's entrance, looking around.
"Burly" wasn't quite enough to describe him, as his height already exceeded the normal human limit.
Roughly estimating, he was probably around three and a half meters tall. If George reached out, he might not even touch the man's waist. The imposing presence was immense.
"Why is this guy at my shop entrance?"
With that build and attire, George immediately guessed his identity.
It was Rubeus Hagrid, who possessed both wizard and giant blood, the Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts, and a Master of Magical Creatures.
Thinking of Hagrid's parentage, he couldn't help but give a thumbs-up to Mr. Hagrid, truly a formidable man.
It was well known that normal giants were around seven or eight meters tall. For Mr. Hagrid, a male wizard of normal height, to be able to mate with a female giant and even father a child, one had to admire his astonishing capabilities.
"Sir, can I help you?"
George stepped forward and asked.
Hagrid turned and looked down at George, realizing it was a thin young wizard. His voice immediately softened as he replied:
"I'm looking for a potion to get rid of carnivorous slugs. I heard this potion shop was the only place that had it, but it seems to be closed."
Though his voice was gentle, because of his massive size, it sounded to George's ears roughly equivalent to a normal person shouting.
"Mr. Merton, the owner of this potion shop, unfortunately passed away recently in a potion-making accident. I've taken over now. I know the potion you're talking about and can find it for you."
George took out his key, opened the door, and quickly went to the counter to retrieve a bottle of potion.
Though Dora didn't brew potions, she knew all about the functions of the shop's herbs and potions from having to describe them and attract customers.
"A repellent potion. Besides carnivorous slugs, it's also very effective against cabbage caterpillars and turnip-tail maggots."
"Oh, thank you, young shopkeeper."
Hagrid took the potion with a hint of surprise, a satisfied smile spreading across his face.
"How much?"
"A pleasure. Fourteen Sickles."
George extended his hand with a smile.
"Much cheaper than I expected."
Hagrid dug a handful of silver Sickles from the pocket of his huge moleskin overcoat, counted out fourteen, and placed them in George's hand.
He had expected such a rare potion to cost at least close to two Galleons.
"Because I'm going to Hogwarts soon, I'm in a very good mood, so I gave you half price."
George put the fourteen Sickles into the box on the counter, speaking cheerfully on purpose.
Since he could communicate with animals using his psychic abilities and had the potential to become a Master of Magical Creatures, he naturally shouldn't waste that.
Building a good relationship with Hagrid and learning extra knowledge about magical creatures would be a good choice, whether for making money or for raising some magical animals to increase his strength.
So, upon recognizing Hagrid, he decided to befriend him.
Hagrid was warm, kind, and straightforward, without many hidden motives. Getting along with him wouldn't be difficult.
Sure enough, upon hearing his words, Hagrid was clearly stunned, and his demeanor instantly became much more cordial. He carefully looked at George's face and smiled:
"So, you're a new student this year. I'm Rubeus Hagrid, the gamekeeper at Hogwarts. You can come find me when you're at school; I'll make you rock cakes."