The sky was growing dark.
The chill in the air and the gathering clouds hastened the arrival of night.
"Found them!"
The enormous Half-Giant Hagrid, his face buried beneath a tangle of whiskers, lit the lantern in his hand and led a crowd of young wizards toward the Black Lake.
"What are those two doing over there?"
"Are they new students this year too? Why didn't they ride the train with us?"
"Maybe they live near Hogwarts."
Ian and Aurora were crouched by the Black Lake, playing in the water. They immediately attracted the attention of the young wizards, who chattered among themselves as they followed Hagrid.
"You two must be the children Dumbledore mentioned, right?" Hagrid still held his pink umbrella in his other hand, a striking contrast to his burly frame.
Aurora had to tilt her head back almost as far as she could just to see Hagrid's whiskered face.
"If there's no one else here, then I suppose he meant us." Ian hurried to grab his suitcase and walked with Aurora toward the crowd of first-years.
"Hahaha, sorry, sorry. I was delayed because I had to find a student who'd gotten lost." Hagrid laughed, his beard trembling as he rubbed Ian's hair with one huge hand. "Just call me Hagrid. I'm only Hogwarts' gamekeeper, so don't get it wrong. You're a little squirt, but you sure are adorable."
Clearly,
being called "Professor" had really touched Hagrid.
"It's all the same, it's all the same."
Ian felt as though Hagrid's huge hand could cover his entire head.
"Everyone's here now. Hurry up and get into the boats. We're running out of time."
Hagrid was always easy to win over. Seeing how slight Ian was, he even tucked his pink umbrella into his waistband and effortlessly freed a hand to help Ian and Aurora carry their suitcases.
"Thank you, Professor Hagrid. You're a good person."
Ian trotted along behind Hagrid. Aurora seemed to have figured something out, and the two of them joined the line of young wizards following him.
But
no one spoke to them.
Most friendships
began aboard the Hogwarts Express. The chance encounters in the train compartments had, in many ways, already determined the young wizards' initial social circles.
The group soon reached the boats moored on the Black Lake.
"Four to a boat. Don't push or crowd each other. It's for your safety!" Hagrid bellowed at the eager young wizards.
Then,
he promptly tossed Ian and Aurora's suitcases into the boat in front of them. They had no choice, of course, so they climbed aboard without hesitation.
"You there! Yes, you! Don't cram ten people into one boat!"
Hagrid ran over to the other young wizards.
Just then,
two girls arrived one after the other and climbed into the same boat as Ian and Aurora. They didn't seem to know each other very well, and left a wide gap between them as they sat opposite Ian and Aurora.
"Hello."
One of the girls greeted Ian and Aurora warmly.
Aurora gave a slight nod.
Ian let out a long sigh of relief.
"I thought I'd have to ride to school in a boat with big Hagrid."
He was relieved that everyone in the boat was as small as he was.
"You just called him Professor and said he was a good person. Now you're saying you don't want to ride with him?" Aurora glanced at Ian in surprise.
"It's not a matter of whether I want to."
Ian answered with perfect confidence. "Of course I think he's a good person, but what does that have to do with the risk of the boat capsizing?"
That was a very good point.
Even the girl who'd greeted them so warmly couldn't help nodding.
Just then,
"Everyone, sit tight. We're off!" Hagrid found a boat for himself. At his shout, all the little boats began gliding across the glassy lake on their own.
"This isn't scientific!"
Ian watched as Hagrid's boat sat in the water no lower than the other boats. He was surprised, then murmured as if he'd suddenly realized something:
"But it is magical."
There was no way Hagrid weighed only as much as four young wizards. The boats ferrying the students to Hogwarts were clearly some kind of alchemical creation with several different abilities.
As he felt the boat move on its own,
Ian found himself looking forward to studying Alchemy.
"Your eyes are so beautiful."
The friendly girl had noticed Aurora's eyes.
"Thank you."
Aurora replied calmly.
"My name's Cho Chang. I hope we can all be friends." The friendly girl sitting opposite Aurora held out her hand. Aurora hesitated, but eventually gave it a light shake.
However,
she didn't introduce herself at all.
"She has social anxiety and doesn't like talking."
Seeing that the mood had turned awkward, Ian hurried to make an excuse for his friend. His explanation made Aurora turn to look at him several times.
"I see."
Cho Chang didn't seem sure whether to believe him.
"Just call me Ian. I'm not like her. I like talking."
Ian eagerly reached out to shake Cho Chang's hand. The girl before him, Harry Potter's first love, certainly had the delicate features of a typical Asian girl.
"Lumos!"
As the sky darkened, the aloof girl, who had been silent all this time, suddenly drew her wand and spoke the incantation. A soft white light hovered at its tip.
She really seemed to be naturally quiet. She hadn't spoken to Ian or the other two at all.
"Lumos!"
"Lumos!"
On the other boats,
white lights began to appear here and there.
Across the lake,
the boats floated in neat rows toward Hogwarts Castle, leaving winding trails across the water that sketched out a scene like a painting beneath the endless night sky.
"I've heard that the Four Founders of Hogwarts arrived over there by boat and founded Hogwarts." Cho Chang seemed to have a rather friendly, outgoing nature.
She gazed at the distant silhouette of Hogwarts Castle, revealing the sort of enthusiasm for sharing knowledge that would eventually lead her to Ravenclaw. "I remember someone once telling me a story. It said that when young wizards crossed the lake, they received the blessing of the Four Founders, and the Founders' legacy would cleanse their magic."
Her slow, measured words made Ian perk up.
A moment later,
"Rumors! Absolutely nothing but rumors!"
Ian checked his status panel and sighed in disappointment.
Women might lie to him,
but his status panel wouldn't.
"I said it was a story. Of course it might not be true." Cho Chang flicked her hair and smiled. She didn't seem to mind that Ian had contradicted her.
"I don't mind you chatting."
Just then,
the aloof girl with the glowing wand spoke up. "I'm only suggesting that, instead of talking about vague legends, you should pay more attention to the danger right in front of you."
Her sudden words left Ian and the others staring at her in surprise.
Danger?
What danger could there be at Hogwarts?
Let me recommend a friend's book: If you're interested, give it a look. It's called Transmigration Together! But I'm Silver Age Superman.