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Standing before that giant over three meters tall, Vernon was clearly frightened, yet he still used his bulky frame to shield his family behind him.
The giant, as if entirely at ease, took the small pink umbrella tucked at his waist and pointed it toward the fireplace. In the very next instant, something extraordinary happened: the extinguished hearth burst back to life, flames roaring up as though they had never gone out.
Dudley's eyes lit up.
So this was magic?
Truly impressive.
The giant stepped closer to the fire, rubbing his hands together, but soon looked dissatisfied.
"Ah… I'd fancy a nice cup o' hot tea. You've got some, don't you?"
The blunt — almost demanding — tone instantly erased any interest Dudley might have had in learning something from him.
With a cold expression, he replied:
"Tea is served to guests."
The message was clear: it was a warning to leave.
"Oi, Dursley, take a look at this big lad in your house. He still doesn't understand something."
The giant cast a glance at Dudley.
"Remember, boy — when you're standin' before someone stronger than you, you don't say 'no.'"
Afraid the giant might do something to Dudley, Petunia moved to prepare the tea. But Dudley stopped her and went himself to make the drink.
Throughout the entire process, his face remained expressionless. He did not say a word.
Harry watched everything in silence.
But he knew.
This was the sign that Dudley was angry.
Normally, Dudley preferred to "persuade with arguments." But when he grew silent, face rigid… that was another kind of persuasion.
The first was logical.
The second was physical.
Harry had always believed Dudley was the strongest — he had never seen him lose a fight. But that giant was enormous. It was impossible not to feel a trace of worry.
'If he attacks, I'll hit him with the fireplace log.'
Harry's eyes began searching for something he could use as a weapon… eventually settling discreetly on the giant's back.
"Now that's more like it. Didn't think this clumsy big fella knew how to make tea."
Hagrid seemed completely indifferent to Dudley's expression. He took a sip of the drink and nodded in satisfaction. Then he looked at Harry, standing beside Vernon, and gave him a surprisingly gentle smile.
"Harry… anyway, happy birthday."
'Arrogant and ill-mannered,' Dudley assessed internally.
And his opinion of Hogwarts dropped another notch.
The giant then pulled a small, slightly crushed package from his pocket.
"Ah… might've gotten a bit squashed. But it'll be fine, I promise."
"Who are you?"
Harry did not step out from behind Vernon's protection. Nor did he reach for the present. He simply stared at the man cautiously.
Seeing that the boy would not accept it, Hagrid looked embarrassed and withdrew his hand.
"Ah, right… forgot to introduce myself. Rubeus Hagrid. You can call me Hagrid. Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts…"
He paused, fixing his enormous eyes on Harry.
"You know what Hogwarts is, don't you?"
Harry shrank slightly under the penetrating gaze and shook his head.
"No… I don't."
"You don't?!"
Hagrid suddenly roared, turning toward the Dursleys with a fierce glare. His size combined with his furious expression made him look like an enraged gorilla.
Across the room, Dudley had already shifted his stance, ready to act if necessary.
"What d'you mean you don't know?!"
Hagrid's voice shook the entire shack.
"I know you didn't get the letters, but you should've— Ah! I see now! Dursley!"
His volume rose even higher.
"You never told him, did you? Never told him what he ought to know!"
'What I ought to know?'
The question surfaced in Harry's mind.
But years of living together had convinced him that his aunt and uncle would never truly harm him.
When Hagrid looked back at Harry, his tone softened unexpectedly.
"Harry… you want to know about your parents, don't you? Come here, I'll tell you."
To Hagrid, any child would be curious about their own parents.
It was natural.
But Harry replied coldly:
"I'm not interested."
He wasn't naïve.
Deep down, he had already drawn his own conclusions. That man spoke of his parents like an old friend… yet he had never appeared during all those years.
Since he was small, Dudley had always taught him:
If someone you've never seen in your life suddenly shows up claiming to know your family, it's because they want something.
And that assumed they were even telling the truth.
Harry still remembered when he was very young and a man claiming to know his parents had taken him away. That day, Petunia and Vernon had gone frantic searching for him. It was Dudley who found him in an old, abandoned house, along with other children his age, trembling in a room with broken windows.
Later they discovered that the so-called "friend of the parents" was a human trafficker.
They had been going to be sold.
From that day on, Dudley had walked him to school every single day — even when he himself had to leave earlier.
So none of the possibilities were good.
Harry began to suspect that the giant named Hagrid had something to do with the letters. And that the place called Hogwarts meant he would not be able to study with Dudley at Smeltings.
That thought alone was enough to make him dislike Hogwarts.
And worry.
For Dudley.
For Uncle and Aunt.
'Maybe I should pretend to accept… and then call the police.'
Rejected by Harry, Hagrid's enthusiasm faded. He lowered his head for a moment, then lifted it again.
"Harry… do you know what you are? I'll bet the Dursleys never told you!"
"Shut up!"
The words seemed to strike something deep within the Dursleys. Vernon, mastering his fear, shouted firmly:
"Say no more! I will not allow you to tell him anything!"
"From the day we brought him into our home, we decided to cut all ties with that cursed place!"
Vernon turned his fear into strength. Even under Hagrid's furious stare, he did not step back.
"That place already killed his parents! Do you want the same thing to happen to this child?!"
He spread his arms wider, shielding them.
"We will protect the boy! I will not allow him to go there!"
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