"You sent me a birthday card!" Harry stopped what he was doing and looked at Allen as though he had been deeply shaken. After all, no one had ever written Harry a letter in all his life.
Allen was also surprised by Harry's excitement. He had merely sent a card casually to get it over with.
Leaving aside how Allen and the other two had run wild around the neighborhood and celebrated Harry's birthday; leaving aside how Harry had battled wits with the Dursleys to get his letter after returning home, how he had met Hagrid, and how shocked and delighted he had been to learn that he was a young wizard; let us instead look at the letter Allen received after returning home.
"Congratulations, Allen!" When Allen pushed open his bedroom door, he was greeted by a spray of streamers. The room had been decorated in a riot of colors, dazzling and dreamlike beneath the fireworks sprayed from wands and the constantly bubbling colored foam. Allen's family beamed at him from behind the door, while Mrs. Harris and Daisy emerged from the kitchen pushing an enormous cake. The sight filled Allen with warmth and happiness. His eyes seemed to have been washed by tears of joy, sparkling as they reflected the beautiful scene before him and making him look all the more radiant.
Emily took Allen's bag and put it away. Mr. Harris walked over and handed Allen a letter. The envelope was made of thick parchment, and the address had been written in emerald-green ink. There was no stamp. Allen turned the envelope over and saw a wax seal bearing a shield-shaped crest: around a large letter "H" were a lion, an eagle, a badger, and a snake.
"Congratulations, Allen! You've received your Hogwarts admission letter. Hurry and open it," Mrs. Harris said lovingly.
The letter informed the young wizard of what he needed to bring for school and the matters requiring attention. After Allen finished reading it, he handed the letter to Mrs. Harris. Though everyone had seen such letters many times before, they could not help passing it around again. Mr. Harris immediately declared that he would have it laminated and preserve it forever.
The family sat happily around the dining table, eating delicacies such as roasted mushrooms, fried sausages, and butter cake carefully prepared by Mrs. Harris and Daisy, while chatting about all sorts of strange and interesting tales from Hogwarts.
"I wonder which House my brother will get into?" Emily asked expectantly.
"No matter which House you enter, it will be worth experiencing with all your heart. Study hard. Remember, being sorted into a House doesn't mean you only possess that House's virtues. I was reluctantly sorted into Slytherin, which was known for ambition and the thirst for power, yet don't I now possess Gryffindor's courage and fearlessness, Hufflepuff's perseverance and honesty, and Ravenclaw's wisdom and learning as well?" Listening to Mr. Harris brag so wildly, Allen felt much less nervous about the Sorting.
"But how can you tell which House you'll be sorted into?" little Emily asked curiously.
All the experienced people in the family smiled at her. Mrs. Harris stroked her younger daughter's soft blonde hair and said, "You'll know when the time comes."
Growing up was always accompanied by countless hopes and blessings. With his whole family as witnesses, Allen sent his reply to Hogwarts through Edward, the family owl, carrying hopes for his new life in his heart.
"Allen, don't forget to write Harry a letter. He still doesn't know you're a wizard too, does he? Don't let a small oversight like this make all our previous efforts go to waste," Mr. Harris reminded him afterward.
At the same time, Harry also received the birthday cake Hagrid had given him and learned about his own origins. Wrapped in Hagrid's coat, he ate fragrant, sizzling sausages and felt as though he were in a dream. He was a young wizard, and he would be attending a top wizarding school rather than Stonewall High School. He could leave this home that made him feel so suffocated! Yet amid his joy, he thought of his friends Allen and Flag. They would be separated, no longer attending the same school or even living in the same city. They would make new friends. Yes, Allen was so outstanding, and Flag was so cheerful. They shone among any crowd and were so well liked... Thinking of this, Harry could not help feeling a little sad.
Just then, the window of the shabby hut standing on the reef made a thumping sound. Harry looked over and saw an owl. After the barrage of magical letters during the day, Harry already knew that these animals were adorable messengers. He sprang to his feet, ran over, and pulled open the window. A fierce sea wind immediately blasted him in the face. The owl staggered under the powerful gust, but it still struggled stubbornly onto the armrest of the battered sofa. Tilting its head, it looked at Harry as though asking why he was not coming over to open the letter.
It was a very sturdy owl, soaked from head to toe. Delivering a letter in such dreadful weather, it was not hard to imagine how many storms it had fought through. Although it was exhausted, it still stubbornly held itself upright before completing its mission, its sharp eyes fixed on Harry.
"Hurry and untie the letter from its leg. It couldn't have been easy to fly here in this weather. What a loyal messenger!" Hagrid exclaimed admiringly, urging Harry to open the letter quickly.
Harry hurried over. The owl extended its left leg, where a small roll of parchment was tied with a red cloth cord. Miraculously, despite the raging wind and rain, both the cord and the parchment were completely dry, without the slightest trace of water!
Whose letter was this? Who was it for?
Before you continue