Harry had held back for a long time, but finally couldn't help himself and laughed out loud sitting on the so-called "bed" of wooden planks.
Merlin's bowtie, Principal Black, he was dead!
Phineas Black was the most disliked principal in the entire school.
To what extent was this man disliked? Two students who didn't know each other could talk like brothers as soon as Phineas Black was mentioned.
At that time, there was a popular saying at Hogwarts: As long as you hated Principal Black, we were like siblings.
Shaking off his memories, Harry went back to reviewing the letter.
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
Principal: Albus Dumbledore
(President of the International Wizarding Union, First-level Grand Mage of the Merlin Order, Chief Mage of Wizengamot)
Dear Mr. Potter,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Enclosed is a list of necessary books and equipment.
The term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31.
Vice Principal, (female)
Minerva McGonagall
Owl reply?
Harry instinctively rubbed the letter with his fingers. At this time, he hadn't been exposed to the Magic World yet and naturally didn't have an owl.
If he were to go to Diagon Alley to buy one now, being penniless and from a poor family, he couldn't afford it.
He flipped through the appendix, noting there were many textbooks he couldn't afford, and he also needed to buy a magic wand...
A hundred years ago when attending school, it was Vice Principal Lady Matilda Weasley who kindly advanced his fees and helped him apply for the Hogwarts scholarship.
Harry took off his glasses and rubbed his eyelids.
Maybe... borrow from a Dark Wizard?
Over a hundred years ago in the Wizarding World, Dark Wizards were rampant. Thanks to them, Harry always managed to borrow a considerable amount of Galleons after practicing magic spells with them.
So, having Uncle Vernon drive him to the Broken Cauldron Bar might be a good idea, Harry thought.
But, Dark Wizards...
It seemed his father and mother were killed by a powerful Dark Wizard.
Harry's grip subconsciously tightened.
From the look of Aunt Penny, it seemed she didn't know much either. After all, with the secrecy laws, it was already the limit that Muggles could know about the existence of wizards.
He didn't intend to question Aunt Penny, who didn't understand the Magic World; this matter needed to be asked to the wizards.
Just then, he heard a knock on the door.
Opening it, he faced Aunt Penny's complex expression.
"What's the matter, Aunt?" Harry still kept his politeness.
"Just now, when I pushed open the door, I saw an owl on the mailbox at the entrance— I mean, an owl."
Aunt Penny's tone was a bit impatient, but Harry keenly sensed that this impatience was hiding some emotion.
"I suppose your letter was delivered by it. Back then, Lily— that is, your mother, used owls to send letters to her friends. Perhaps you'll need it to send a reply."
"Thank you, Aunt. I understand— could you kindly prepare some food for it?"
Harry gave a slight smile.
Aunt Penny's expression wasn't great, but she turned away nonetheless.
After Aunt's departure, Harry took out paper and pen from under the bed and wrote an elegantly worded reply.
Walking out of the small compartment, Harry unexpectedly found a bowl filled with sliced sausage and a bowl of water at the door.
"Thank you," he softly said to Aunt Penny, who was cleaning, and then picked up the plate, casually tossing two slices of sausage into his mouth.
The owl wouldn't mind, he thought, as he took the food out the door.
The owl was perched on the mailbox of the Dursley family, with one leg tucked in the fluff under its belly, striking a pose like a golden rooster standing alone.
"Hello."
Harry approached, "Are you my courier?"
"Hoo-hoo," the owl hooted twice.
"You must be tired. If you don't mind, have some water and a bit to eat." Harry reached out to pat the owl's head.
The owl put its foot down, first looking at the sausage in Harry's left-hand bowl, its eyes showing an exceptionally human-like expression.
An uppercase disgust...
Then it drank some water from the other bowl, flapped its wings, and hooted twice.
Understanding its meaning, Harry shrugged and said, "Such good Cumberland sausage, it's a real shame not to eat it."
The owl hooted twice, picked up the letter, and flew away from the Dursley family, this dismal place devoid of good food.
"Being picky isn't a quality of a good owl." Harry shrugged, skillfully inserting the sausage slices meant for the owl into his mouth, one by one.
Back inside, Harry skillfully entered the kitchen, snapped his fingers, and turned the empty basin under the sink into a wooden stool, then stepped on it, washing and arranging the dishes neatly before returning to his small compartment.
Harry didn't have to wait long. That afternoon, the person from Hogwarts sent to pick him up arrived, just like Vice Principal Matilda Weasley had escorted him into the Magic World a hundred years ago.
"Someone for you! Freak..."
Aunt Penny harshly pounded the small door of the stairwell compartment, intending to shout "freak" but recalled her husband's experience floating in the air that morning.
She had halted her words, but didn't expect to open the compartment door to see Harry's face.
It looked exactly like that arrogant, pretentious face from over ten years ago!
Aunt Penny's anger surged anew in an instant.
"Freak!" she spat venomously, storming off toward the study room without looking back.
Harry was a bit baffled, but he was also aware of his aunt's family's quirk.
Muggles, well.
Muggles over a hundred years ago resisted even more when faced with wizards compared to Uncle and Aunt.
He moved to the door, met by a furry head almost wedged into the doorframe.
"Oh, Harry..."
The furry head's eyes welled up at the sight of Harry, and tears the size of beans rolled from their sockets.
"The last time I saw you, you were just a baby... Sorry, I'm a bit tall, can't squeeze through the door..."
He even choked a bit as he spoke.
Harry could feel a genuine kindness from the man, and this overly tall person left him with a good first impression.
"Hello, I am Harry, Harry Potter. Do you know me?" He politely introduced himself.
"Ah, of course, I know you." The man wiped his clothes with his hand, "I'm Rubeus Hagrid. I was the one who brought you here back then."
Hagrid looked at Harry's face again, his nose crinkling.
"Goodness, you look almost just like your dad, and those eyes, you have your mom's eyes..."