On the train corridor, students who heard the announcement jostled their way toward the nearest doors. The moment they stepped onto the platform, torrential rain lashed them head-on, and the chill in the air made everyone shiver.
"I hate rain."
Alice pulled her pointed hat over her head and suddenly understood why Hogwarts Memoirs had specifically mentioned rainy days.
"I should've brought an umbrella."
Cracking a British joke, Daphne copied Alice and pulled her pointed hat over her head to keep the rain from pounding directly on it.
"Impervious to Water and Fire."
Alice had just cast the spell on her pointed hat when she heard a familiar voice from nearby.
Hagrid raised his lantern above everyone's heads, using its light to draw their attention while shouting at the new students on the platform, "First Years! First Years, over here! Alice, where are you? Come over here!"
"You know him?"
Daphne froze for a moment, surprised that the man knew Alice—and seemed to know her quite well.
"He's Dad's friend. Let's go!"
Alice tapped Daphne with her wand, then headed toward the light.
"And you said you couldn't do magic."
Feeling warmth return to her body, Daphne wore a complicated expression. From the casual way Alice used magic, she had clearly left Daphne far behind.
Just how big was that so-called little gap? "They're all little tricks from Albert's Life Hacks. Once you get started with magic, you'll learn them with a bit of practice." Alice seemed to know what Daphne was thinking and offered a casual reassurance.
Daphne clearly did not believe that nonsense about learning it with a bit of practice, but Hagrid's overwhelming height soon startled her.
Daphne was not the only one. The other First Years were equally astonished by Hagrid's abnormal height.
He was definitely