The Leaky Cauldron, established in the early sixteenth century, is one of the favorite gathering places for wizards. It is also the entrance to Diagon Alley, the only wizarding street in the British wizarding world.
When Diana opened the door with Kyle, the originally noisy bar seemed to have pressed the pause button and instantly became silent.
It was as quiet as a self-study class in the evening of the third year of high school, and you could hear a pin drop.
This weird atmosphere did not continue until Chris walked in. However, it still did not return to its previous state, as if everyone deliberately lowered their voices.
But there are exceptions.
Tom, the bar owner, walked over with a look of surprise on his face: "Oh, Diana, long time no see, would you like a drink? I'll treat you."
"Next time, Tom."
Diana smiled, patted Kyle on the shoulder, and pointed to the Weasley family who were walking towards them and said: "We still have to go to Diagon Alley to buy some things, and we may not have enough time."
"Oh, of course."
Tom suddenly realized: "Time flies, little Kyle is already eleven years old, so is he going to buy admission items for Hogwarts?"
"Yes." Diana smiled and nodded.
"That's a bit stressful, really. Go ahead, you know where it is."
Tom leaned aside, clearing the way behind him. Then, looking down at Kyle, he said, "I have to warn you, little Kyle. If you try to move that trash can again, I'll be writing a letter of complaint to Hogwarts.
Merlin's beard, do you know how frantic those new students were when they discovered they couldn't get into Diagon Alley? You can't keep adding completely unnecessary work to an old man with a weak limb."
Kyle felt a bit embarrassed to be pointed out in public for his misdeeds.
Clearly, this wasn't his first time in Diagon Alley.
But honestly, if a time traveler didn't move the trash can in Diagon Alley, was he still a time traveler?
There was nothing wrong with that.
But he couldn't say that in front of his parents. Kyle could only smile and say, "Next time, for sure."
Tom didn't mind, but Diana, beside him, raised an eyebrow and glanced down at her son thoughtfully.
Her instincts told her that this statement was definitely wrong.
But since the Weasleys were already there, she didn't say anything.
"Oh, Kyle, dear,"
Mrs. Molly Weasley gave Kyle a big hug and then took Diana aside to talk.
Mr. Weasley, on the other hand, naturally moved over to Chris and started chatting.
The two families were close friends. Diana and Molly were close friends, and Chris and Arthur were also close friends. Especially after Kyle was born, at the Weasleys' gracious invitation, they moved in permanently.
These were all the adults' conversations during the dinner, and Kyle overheard a lot of them.
Because of the relationship between the two families, he and the Weasley children naturally became friends.
As soon as the adults left, two arms were draped around his shoulders, one on each side.
"Hey, Fred, look who's here."
"It's this year's new student at Hogwarts,"
George said, his voice distinct as he pronounced the word "new student."
"Hogwarts is very dangerous, especially for a first year like you..."
"Of course, if you say something nice, maybe we can help you."
Kyle ignored the two guys and greeted the other redheads nearby: "Long time no see, Percy, Ron, and Ginny."
They all nodded at him with smiles on their faces.
"Long time no see, Kyle." x3
Originally, the Weasley family had seven children, but Bill went to Egypt, and Charlie went somewhere unknown a month ago and was not home, so only five came today.
As they talked, they arrived at the backyard of the Leaky Cauldron, the entrance to Diagon Alley. Mr. Weasley, walking in front, found the correct brick at a glance and tapped it with his wand.
Meanwhile, at the back of the group, the Weasley brothers, who had not received a response for a long time, looked at each other and raised their eyebrows in tacit understanding, ready to teach their impolite junior a lesson.
For example, their newly invented jumping powder: just a little sprinkle on your hair will give you an unprecedented sour feeling.
They'd tried it on themselves, and the results were fantastic. But has anyone ever tried not washing their hair for ten days?
It was incredible.
If they were lucky, they might even trigger a hidden Easter egg and get a taste of the privileges afforded to middle-aged gentlemen.
Immediately, the brothers pulled out their jumping powder and were about to make their move when Chris's voice suddenly rang out from the front.
"Hagrid? What are you doing in Diagon Alley?"
The voice, no longer calm, now held a hint of alarm, instantly catching the twins' attention.
They hadn't heard that tone of alarm so often; it had become a reflex.
"No, nothing."
Upon seeing Chris, Hagrid, a three-meter-tall, two-meter-wide half-giant, shuddered subconsciously, his gaze shifting slightly.
But then, as if a thought struck him, he relaxed a bit, pulling a small package from his pocket. "Harry Potter will be coming to Hogwarts next year. As a gift, I wanted to make him a birthday cake, so I bought some berry seeds."
"Really?"
Chris's tone didn't soften much, as he eyed the package warily. "If I remember correctly, with the ingredients in the Hogwarts cafeteria, I think we should have enough for ten cakes."
Honestly, Chris's tone was a bit aggressive; anyone uninformed would have mistaken him for a villain.
But Kyle, the twins, and even Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, who were close to Hagrid, remained silent upon seeing this scene. Their expressions didn't even change, as if this was just how it should be.
And indeed, that was the case.
As Deputy Director of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures and Head of the Beast Office, Chris was incredibly familiar with Hagrid.
If Chris had to pick the one person he least wanted to see, it would undoubtedly be the Hogwarts Key Keeper, the infamous half-giant Rubeus Hagrid.
Merlin's beard, the trouble he caused alone, accounted for more than a tenth of Chris's annual workload.
The hybrid magical creatures he created, in particular, drove Chris a bit crazy.
Oh, what was that last time? Oh, a serpent-bodied serpent, a two-tailed snake bred from a crup and a runespoor.
Who knew where Hagrid got all those magical creatures? They couldn't all be from the Forbidden Forest. Chris didn't even remember runespoors being in the Forbidden Forest when he was in school.
As a traditional magizoologist, Chris considered this kind of artificial hybridization to be heresy, an evil act that must be absolutely prohibited.
Unfortunately, it wasn't illegal, and he submitted several draft bills, but received no response. He had even visited the Minister's office recently, after Cornelius Fudge took office, but the Minister's skillful deliberations kept stalling, ultimately leading to the bill falling by the wayside.
Clearly, the new Minister considered the magical creatures bill too low a value. He'd better spend his time visiting the Hogwarts Headmaster's office more often, which would at least give him peace of mind and improve his public image.
So, Chris couldn't do anything to Hagrid.
Besides, the magical creatures he'd created were new lives, after all; he couldn't just abandon them.
Chris had no choice but to observe, record, and catalog them.
Over time, Chris's resentment towards Hagrid had grown intense. He hadn't taken direct action against Hagrid during their encounter, simply because he had children with him.
Otherwise, he'd beat Hagrid to a pulp, even with Dumbledore nearby.
Don't be surprised. Despite being Deputy Director, Chris had been on the front lines of dealing with magical creatures for years, so he was certainly capable.
A pure-blood giant wasn't easy to say, but a half-blood giant, wandless at that, Chris was confident.
Hagrid, knowing he was in the wrong, opened the package. Inside was indeed a pile of unknown seeds.
"In Dumbledore's name, I'm really only here to buy some seeds in Diagon Alley."
Hearing Hagrid's words, Chris's frown relaxed slightly. He stopped questioning and, after a few brief instructions, let Hagrid leave.
With Hagrid's respect for Dumbledore, he couldn't lie about such a thing.
Kyle, on the other hand, turned thoughtfully to watch Hagrid's back as he left.
"Not this time," then what about other times?
Kyle remembered that Fluffy, the three-headed dog that appeared in the first film, was bought by Hagrid from a Greek man in a bar. Whether this bar is the Hog's Head or the Leaky Cauldron, no one knows.
Don't think that the Leaky Cauldron is very formal. There are too many gray transactions. Moreover, it is the only place that provides accommodation, and the ID card is not checked. Therefore, many smugglers with little goods and no criminal record will choose to stay here.
Small amount of goods means convenience. You can just find a box to stuff it in, and basically no one will notice.
It is normal to do a business with a customer while going out for dinner.
And there is a gamekeeper in Hogwarts who loves magical animals very much. This is already known to everyone in the broker circle.
It is not difficult to find out about his situation.
"Tsk, who said Hagrid was honest? He has a lot of tricks on his mind."
Kyle guessed that his father probably didn't know about Fluffy at this time, but he didn't plan to tell on him.
After all, who can refuse a three-headed dog.
[End of the chapter]