The Leaky Cauldron

The Leaky Cauldron, established in the early sixteenth century, was one of wizards' favorite gathering places. It was also the only entrance to Diagon Alley, the only wizarding street in the British Wizarding World.

After Diana took Kyle by the hand and pushed open the door, the noisy, bustling pub seemed to have had its pause button pressed. In an instant, it fell completely silent.

It was as quiet as a senior year study hall at night, silent enough to hear a pin drop.

Only after Chris walked in behind them did the strange atmosphere begin to dissipate. Even then, things didn't return to how they'd been before. It seemed everyone was deliberately keeping their voices down.

There were exceptions, though.

Tom, the pub's owner, came over with a delighted look. "Oh, Diana! It's been ages. Would you like a drink? It's on me."

"Maybe next time, Tom."

Diana smiled, patted Kyle on the shoulder, then gestured toward the Weasley family as they walked over. "We still have things to buy in Diagon Alley, and we might be short on time."

"Oh, of course."

Tom nodded in understanding. "Time really flies. Little Kyle is eleven already, so you're off to buy his Hogwarts supplies?"

"That's right." Diana smiled and nodded.

"Then I suppose you're in a bit of a rush. Off you go—you know where it is."

Tom stepped aside to clear the way behind him. Then he looked down at Kyle and said, "I have to warn you, little Kyle: if you move that rubbish bin again this time, I'll write a complaint to Hogwarts.

"Merlin's beard, do you know how frantic those first-years get when they find they can't get into Diagon Alley? You can't keep giving an old man with bad legs completely unnecessary work."

Having his past mischief called out in front of everyone left Kyle a little embarrassed.

Clearly, this wasn't his first trip to Diagon Alley.

But, honestly, if you were a transmigrator and didn't move the rubbish bin when you came to Diagon Alley, could you really call yourself a transmigrator?

There was nothing wrong with that.

Still, he couldn't exactly say that in front of his parents. Kyle could only grin sheepishly. "I'll definitely do it next time."

Tom didn't seem to think much of his answer, but Diana raised an eyebrow and gave her son a thoughtful look.

Her instincts told her that there was definitely something wrong with what he'd said.

But the Weasley family had arrived, so she didn't say anything.

"Oh, Kyle, darling."

Molly Weasley gave Kyle a warm, enthusiastic hug, then pulled Diana aside to talk.

Mr. Weasley naturally went over to chat with Chris.

The two families were close. Diana and Molly were the kind of friends who could talk about anything, and Chris and Arthur were close friends too. Especially after Kyle was born, the Weasleys had warmly invited them to move here, and they'd ended up staying for good.

Kyle had heard all this from the adults chatting at dinners.

Thanks to their parents' friendship, he and the Weasley children had naturally become friends too.

Sure enough, as soon as the adults left, a pair of arms draped over his shoulders from either side.

"Hey, Fred, look who's here."

"Isn't this Hogwarts' new first-year?"

George made sure to enunciate the word "first-year."

"Hogwarts can be dangerous, especially for a first-year like you..."

"Of course, if you say something nice, we might even give you a hand."

Kyle ignored the two of them and greeted the other redheads nearby. "Long time no see, Percy, Ron, and Ginny."

They all smiled and nodded back at him.

"Long time no see, Kyle." *3

The Weasley family originally had seven children, but Bill had gone to Egypt, and Charlie had disappeared somewhere a month ago, so only five of them had come today.

As they spoke, they reached the courtyard behind the Leaky Cauldron, where the entrance to Diagon Alley was. Mr. Weasley, who was leading the way, immediately found the right brick and tapped it with his wand.

Meanwhile, at the back of the group, the Weasley brothers—who still hadn't received an answer—exchanged a look and raised their eyebrows in perfect unison. They decided to teach a certain ill-mannered junior a little lesson.

For example, they could use some of the Jumping Powder they'd just invented. Sprinkle a little on someone's hair, and they'd get to experience a sensation unlike any other.

They'd tested it on themselves, and it worked like a charm. How could they put it? Had anyone ever experienced what it was like to go ten days without washing their hair?

It was something else.

And with a bit of luck, they might even trigger a hidden bonus and get an early taste of the special treatment usually reserved for middle-aged gentlemen.

No sooner had the brothers decided to do it than Chris's voice rang out from ahead.

"Hagrid? What are you doing in Diagon Alley?"

His voice was no longer calm. There was a hint of wariness in it, which immediately caught the twins' attention.

They'd heard that wary tone so often that they reacted to it on instinct.

"N-nothing."

When Hagrid saw Chris, the three-meter-tall, two-meter-wide half-blood Giant gave an involuntary shudder, his eyes darting about.

Then, as if he'd remembered something, he relaxed at once and took a small package from his pocket. "Harry Potter is coming to Hogwarts next year. I thought I'd make him a birthday cake by hand as a welcome gift, so I came to buy some berry seeds."

"Really?"

Chris's tone barely softened. He eyed the small package warily. "If I remember correctly, the ingredients in the Hogwarts kitchens should be enough to make ten cakes."

To be honest, Chris's tone was rather aggressive. Anyone who didn't know the circumstances would have taken him for a villain.

But Kyle, the twins, and even the Weasleys, who were on good terms with Hagrid, didn't react at all. Not even their expressions changed, as if this were only natural.

And, in fact, it was.

As deputy head of the Department for Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures and head of the Beast Division, Chris knew Hagrid all too well.

To put it this way, if Chris had to pick one person he least wanted to see, it would undoubtedly be the Hogwarts Keeper of Keys standing before him: the famous half-blood Giant, Rubeus Hagrid.

Merlin's beard, the trouble Hagrid caused on his own made up more than a tenth of Chris's workload for the entire year.

The crossbred Fantastic Beasts he'd tinkered with in particular drove Chris nearly mad.

What was it last time? Oh, right—the Snake-bodied Swallow-tailed Beast, a two-tailed snake bred from a Swallow-tailed Dog and a Runespoor.

Heaven knew where Hagrid got so many Fantastic Beasts. Surely they couldn't all have come from the Forbidden Forest. Chris didn't remember there being any Runespoors in the forest when he was at school.

As a traditional Magizoologist, Chris considered this sort of artificial crossbreeding heresy, an evil practice that had to be strictly forbidden.

Unfortunately, it wasn't illegal. He'd submitted draft legislation several times, but never received any response. After Cornelius Fudge took office recently, Chris had even gone to the Minister's Office especially to discuss it. But Fudge had put him off again and again with his remarkable talent for smoothing things over, until the matter was eventually dropped.

Clearly, in the eyes of their new Minister, legislation about Fantastic Beasts was too low-priority to be worth the time. He was better off making a few more trips to the Hogwarts Headmaster's office. At least that would put his mind at ease and improve his public image.

So Chris couldn't do much about Hagrid.

Besides, the Fantastic Beasts Hagrid created were new lives, after all. He couldn't simply ignore them or throw them away.

Chris had to grit his teeth and observe, document, and classify them.

Over time, Chris's resentment toward Hagrid had grown beyond measure. The only reason he hadn't attacked him on sight was that there were children nearby.

Otherwise, he'd have beaten Hagrid up, even if Dumbledore had been standing right there.

Don't be surprised. Although Chris was a deputy head, he still spent much of his time on the front lines, dealing with Fantastic Beasts. He had the skills to back it up.

A Pure-blood Giant might be another matter, but Chris was confident he could handle a half-blood Giant, especially one without a wand.

Hagrid knew he was in the wrong, so he opened the package without being asked. It really did contain nothing but a pile of unfamiliar seeds.

"On Dumbledore's honor, I really did come to Diagon Alley just to buy seeds this time."

At that, the deep furrow in Chris's brow eased a little. He stopped questioning Hagrid, gave him a few simple instructions, then let him go.

Hagrid respected Dumbledore too much to lie about something like this.

Kyle, however, thoughtfully watched Hagrid's back as he left.

"This time" meant what about the other times?

Kyle remembered that Fluffy, the Three-headed Dog in the first book, was bought by Hagrid from a Greek man in a pub. Whether that pub was the Hog's Head Inn or the Leaky Cauldron, he didn't know.

Don't think the Leaky Cauldron was all respectable. There were plenty of shady dealings, and it was the only place around that offered lodging without checking anyone's identification. That was why quite a few smugglers with small loads and no criminal record chose to stay there.

A small load meant convenience. You could just stuff it into any old box, and no one would notice.

It was perfectly normal to go out for a meal and happen to make a deal with some customer on the side.

And every broker knew that Hogwarts had a gamekeeper who was exceptionally fond of Fantastic Beasts.

It wasn't difficult to find out more about him.

"Huh. Who said Hagrid was simple-minded? He's got plenty of tricks up his sleeve."

Kyle guessed his father still didn't know about Fluffy. He had no intention of reporting Hagrid, though.

After all, who could say no to a Three-headed Dog?