117 Charing Cross Road, Westminster, London, England.
Professor McGonagall and Damon stopped in front of a small, dirty bar.
On the shabby wooden door outside the bar hung a moldy sign, the writing was blurred and almost unrecognizable.
"We are here, kid, this is the Leaky Cauldron I told you about, a place that connects the border between Muggles and wizards."
Damon whistled, watching the people passing by in a hurry with their unusual "indifference" to the bar, his eyes lit up with great interest.
Walking into the bar, with the ringing of the bell at the door, the originally quiet atmosphere around Damon's ears suddenly became lively and noisy.
In the dark and dirty bar, several old ladies sat in the corner of the room drinking sherry with small cups, one of them was smoking a long pipe, and the rude and unrestrained laughter of men and women could be heard from time to time.
Damon watched these with interest, feeling like he had suddenly broken into a scene of a large amusement park, and the corners of his mouth slightly raised.
However, after seeing Professor McGonagall, many wizards became much quieter, just like mice seeing a cat - many of them were once Professor McGonagall's students.
The bar owner saw Professor McGonagall's iconic green wizard robe and greeted her respectfully:
"Hello, Professor McGonagall, another freshman?"
Professor McGonagall nodded and responded politely, then led Damon through the bar counter to a small patio surrounded by walls on all sides.
There was nothing here except a trash can and some weeds.
"Count three blocks up and two blocks across." Professor McGonagall said in a steady tone, took out her wand and tapped a brick wall three times.
The brick she tapped shook violently, and the bricks in the center of the brick wall moved quickly. Soon, a wide archway appeared in front of the two of them, leading to a winding, endless cobblestone street.
"Damon, remember this place. This is your only passage to Diagon Alley."
Professor McGonagall led Damon, whose pupils were slightly dilated, into the archway. As they entered Diagon Alley, the road behind them immediately turned into the original solid wall again.
Damon looked at the nearest shop nearby. It seemed to be a bar selling cauldrons. There was a notice hanging at the door. He subconsciously read it.
Partridge's Crucible Shop - copper, brass, tin-plated, and silver cauldrons, complete models, automatic stirring, and foldable.
McGonagall took Damon to their first stop - Gringotts.
The snow-white building stood tall above the surrounding shops. Next to the shining bronze door stood a figure wearing a scarlet and gold uniform.
When they entered the door, the goblin bowed to them.
Then a second door appeared before them. It was silver, and the following words were engraved on both doors:
Enter, stranger, but beware
of the consequences of greed.
Unsatisfied and unearned gains
will be punished most severely. Therefore, if you want
to take a portion of the wealth that never belonged to you
from our underground vault ,
you have been warned, thief,
beware of the consequences of attracting evil instead of treasure.
Damon was led into a tall marble hall. There were about a hundred goblins sitting on high stools behind a long row of counters. Some weighed coins with copper scales, and some examined gems with eyepieces, while hastily recording in large ledgers.
The whole hall was very spacious and magnificent, with magical decorations hanging on the walls, shining with golden brilliance.
On the long counter, the goblin sat on a high stool and adjusted the glasses on his pointed ears to Damon.
"Good afternoon, I want to exchange some gold galleons."
As a former genius pianist, Damon was not short of money. He walked to the counter and looked at the goblin in front of him with curiosity. It must be said that this look is quite unique.
Damon took out a bundle of 20-pound banknotes and applied to exchange them for 200 gold galleons.
"Banknotes?" The goblin frowned, "These banknotes can be exchanged for gold galleons, but the exchange rate will be reduced. According to our current exchange rate, your banknotes are just enough to exchange for 200 gold galleons."
"Okay."
Damon nodded indifferently, with a very generous attitude, but the goblin's attitude was not half better. He showed his contempt with a stinky face, and muttered about banknotes, gold, gems and so on.
Damon knew that these goblins liked jewelry and gold the most. If he brought these, the value would be much higher, but his body was still a child at present, so it was not suitable for exchanging these, and there was no need.
Less is less, what's the matter.
He smiled and admired the goblin's greedy behavior that seemed to be labeled, and he was oblivious to his own losses.
According to the strange currency exchange system in the Harry Potter world, two hundred gold Galleons are enough to cover his daily needs for several years.
McGonagall, who was watching this scene, opened her lips, as if she wanted to say something good for her student, but she saw that Damon had already taken out one of the two hundred gold Galleons and flicked it in front of the goblin on the counter with his thumb.
"This is a tip for you."
"Oh!" The goblin quickly grabbed the gold Galleon in his hand, with a warm smile on his face. "I don't like your frivolous attitude, but I appreciate your action."
"You are such a generous little wizard. If you need anything, feel free to come to me."
"You're welcome. This is a reward for you." Damon winked at it, "For our first meeting."
As for the goblin's promise, he was not stupid enough to believe it.
Professor McGonagall, who was watching this scene, was a little stunned. She always felt that such behavior was a little too casual. After hesitating for a moment, she asked:
"Tip, is this a rule in the Muggle world?"
"Well, professor, tipping is usually used to express gratitude for service or performance. It is a common etiquette in the Muggle world."
"Etiquette? It seems that the etiquette in the Muggle world is indeed different from the rules of our magical world."
Professor McGonagall's voice returned to calm, and she gave up the idea of continuing to investigate, but she couldn't help but look at Damon more.
The wizarding world has always had a strong prejudice and resistance to the Muggle society, and disdained to understand and contact it. Even wizard scholars who specialize in Muggle research have limited knowledge.
But according to those Muggle research scholars, with the continuous progress of Muggle social civilization, perhaps one day wizards and Muggles will live under the same sky.
Damon was born a Muggle, and he also possesses extraordinary magical talent. So will he become a bridge between the two worlds one day?
No, it is too far-fetched to think about this now.
Professor McGonagall shook her head, hiding the "absurd idea" that flashed through her mind, and continued:
"Let's go, in order to make it easier, I will take you to buy uniforms and owls first, and then we will go to buy classroom supplies."
[Madam Malkin's Robe Store]
As soon as Damon walked into the store, the soft and elegant fragrance filled his nostrils, and his body subconsciously relaxed.
He was greeted by a short and plump witch wearing a purple robe - Madam Malkin.
"Are you buying a Hogwarts school uniform, dear?"
Seeing Damon nod, she smiled more cordially, let Damon stand on a footstool, put a robe on him, pinned it to a suitable length for him, and praised:
"What a handsome little wizard, I like your eyes like sapphires."
"You are taller than most little wizards, like that child, but he doesn't have such beautiful eyes as yours."
"Thank you."
Madam Malkin pulled out a row of exquisite robes in her work and recommended:
"You should try this one. The dark blue tone with gold embroidery just sets off your temperament. If you take out this set at the ball, you will definitely become the focus of the audience!"
"Thank you, just book it for me."
"Oh, what a decisive little wizard! It seems that I have to be more decisive too."
Madam Malkin moved faster and said soon:
"Okay, it's done, dear."
Damon nodded, picked up the school uniform and the special dark blue gorgeous robe and left the store.
Then he went to Eeyore Owl Shop and bought an owl as a pet. It was a pure white snowy owl, the same style as Harry Potter, but purer than his, without any other colors on it. Damon named it Cha Cha Barton.
After buying these two things, the only things left were wands and school supplies.
List of necessary supplies: Uniforms
First
-year students need:
three sets of plain work robes (black)
A plain peaked hat for daytime wear (black)
A pair of protective gloves (made of dragon skin or similar material)
A winter cloak (black, silver buttons)
Please note: All student clothing must be attached with name tags
Textbooks
All students need to prepare the following books:
"Standard Spells (Elementary)" by Miranda Goshawk
"A History of Magic" by Bathilda Bagshot
"Magic Theory" by Adelbert Waffling
"A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration" by Emery Switch
"A Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi" by Phyllida Spurr
"Magic Potions and Liquids" by Arseny Jigg
"Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" by Newt Scamander
"Dark Powers: A Guide to Self-Defense" by Quentin Trimble
Other Equipment
A wand
A large pot (tin-plated, standard size 2)
A set of glass or crystal phials
A telescope
A brass balance
Students may bring an owl, a cat or a toad. Parents are reminded that first-year students are not allowed to bring their own broomsticks.
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(End of this chapter)