The Great Hall.
The young wizards were having breakfast.
Draco Malfoy was excitedly recounting his Quidditch experiences, specifically how he skillfully and dangerously dodged a Muggle crop-dusting plane.
A group of first-year wizards from various houses gathered around him, listening intently and occasionally gasping in amazement.
Malfoy seemed to revel in being the center of attention and spoke with even more fervor.
Just then, Allen entered the Great Hall, dragging his long wings behind him, carefully navigating past the long tables, wary of knocking over the tableware.
The young wizards in the hall spotted him and rushed towards him, hooting and hollering, eager to touch his wings; some mischievous children even tried to pluck feathers from them, and Allen was instantly overwhelmed.
Fortunately, Percy was also having breakfast and, using his prefect's authority, managed to calm the young wizards. Allen's roommates seized the opportunity to rescue him from the crowd, but his wings were now covered in various jams and butter.
The young wizards were still reluctant to disperse and clustered around Allen, chirping questions, but at least they no longer tried to touch him. Ron and Harry actively maintained order among the questioners.
Allen had no choice but to eat breakfast while answering the young wizards' questions; even some older wizards couldn't resist stopping to listen.
What Allen didn't notice was Malfoy staring intently at him from a distance, his eyes filled with jealousy and resentment.
Just as Allen's throat was dry from explaining, an arrogant voice interjected, "What's so great about a 'birdman'?!"
Allen stopped and turned to see Malfoy with his cronies, Crabbe and Goyle. Malfoy's slicked-back hair gleamed, and he looked at Allen with an arrogant, upturned chin.
Allen knew the best way to deal with such an arrogant person was to ignore him and treat him as insignificant, so he merely glanced at Malfoy and continued answering the young wizard's question.
As expected, Malfoy, being ignored, became even more furious. He pushed through the crowd and walked in front of Allen: "Have those stupid wings made you deaf, too, half-breed?!"
Ron and Harry's eyes blazed with anger, and they were about to rush forward and confront Malfoy, but Allen quickly pulled them back and calmly said to Malfoy, "Oh? What do you want?"
"I just can't stand people like you misleading everyone!" Malfoy tried to claim the moral high ground.
"Oh, well, thank you for the reminder." Allen didn't want to stoop to the level of this little brat. He tightened his grip on Harry and Ron again and continued to ignore Malfoy.
"No one has ever dared to ignore me like this!" Malfoy, as expected, became even more exasperated.
"Well, now there is. You're welcome." Allen replied calmly.
The surrounding young wizards burst into laughter, Ron's being the most exaggerated, as he slapped the table with mirth.
Malfoy's face turned red to his ears. He had never been so angry and was so furious he didn't know what to say.
But Allen, whose mood had suddenly brightened today, wasn't about to let him off the hook. Looking at Malfoy's slicked-back hair, he suddenly remembered a meme he'd seen in a short video in his previous life and said to Malfoy, "You must use a lot of hair gel for that hairstyle every day, right? Using so much hair gel at your age will make you go bald later."
The Muggle-born wizards burst into laughter, while the wizard-born wizards looked a bit bewildered.
Malfoy felt his soul had been critically hit. Although he didn't quite understand what hair gel meant, a faint voice deep within his soul told him he had just received the most vicious attack of his life.
Rage made Malfoy lose some of his reason, and he blurted out, "You Mudblood, you parentless half-breed, didn't your dead parents teach you how to speak?!"
Allen's face instantly darkened. As a transmigrator, his parents on Earth had always been a sore spot for him, something he never wanted to bring up. Moreover, as a Chinese person, filial piety came first. Getting a few insults himself was fine, he could laugh it off, but if his parents were insulted, that was truly intolerable.
Allen sprang to his feet, his wings, in anger, suddenly fully unfurled. The air currents stirred by his massive wings pushed the onlookers back a few steps and blew out many candles floating in the Great Hall.
Only then did the young wizards realize how enormous Allen's unfurled wings were, with a wingspan of over 5 meters, and when fully spread, they were as tall as an adult wizard.
Allen walked towards Malfoy, step by step, enveloping him in the shadow of his wings. Malfoy felt like a small animal being stalked by a beast, his heart trembling, his body constantly retreating. His cronies, Crabbe and Goyle, were also terrified.
Just then, Allen felt someone tightly hugging his waist. He looked back and saw it was Harry, Ron, and Neville.
He was about to struggle free, but then Professor McGonagall's voice came from nearby: "Aren't you all eating breakfast this early? Don't you have classes this morning? What are you all doing gathered here?"
No one dared to ignore Professor McGonagall's authority, and everyone quickly dispersed.
Allen instantly calmed down as well, and everyone pretended as if nothing had happened.
Professor McGonagall gave Allen and Malfoy a stern glare and walked away.
...
Back in his seat, Allen somewhat regretted his impulsiveness. It was too high-profile, but since it had already happened, there was nothing to regret.
Harry looked at Allen and said sincerely, "I held you back just now because we're all orphans, and Hogwarts is our last home. I don't want my good friend to be expelled from Hogwarts." Harry's voice became a little emotional at the end.
Allen's heart softened instantly, perhaps softened by the words "home" and "good friend."
He gently shifted his gaze, somewhat afraid to look directly into the light in Harry's emerald green eyes. He sniffed softly and said to Harry, Ron, and Neville, "I'm fine now, thank you all!"
Neville's face turned beet red, and it took him a while to say, "Allen, you're a very good person. Don't stoop to Malfoy's level."
Ron took the opportunity to interject with a joke, "Allen, you know, Fred, George, and Jordan are betting on whether you can fly with your wings. They're planning to trick you into going to the top floor of the Gryffindor Tower and then push you off!"
"Haha, then I'd better be careful. I don't want to be the first 'birdman' to fall to his death!" Allen quipped.
Everyone was amused by Allen's witty remark and began to enjoy their breakfasts.
Just then, Hermione sat down opposite Allen, holding a book titled "Quidditch Through the Ages," and cheerfully said to Allen, "Your wings are dirty. Can I help you clean them?"
Allen felt a bit puzzled. Are we that close already? But it seemed harmless to let her clean them.
So he nodded gently, "I'd be honored!"
Hermione's face was a little flushed, but she steadily recited the spell, "Scourgify!"
Immediately, all the jam, butter, and other grime on Allen's wings quickly disappeared, and his wings became pristine white again.
This made Allen feel even better, and he thanked Hermione gratefully.
Hermione opened the book on the table and said to Allen, "You're welcome. I couldn't stand such pristine wings getting dirty."
"Also, you looked much cooler when you got angry today than the legendary wizards in books!" Hermione quickly glanced at Allen and then quickly blurted out this sentence.
Allen was momentarily speechless.
Hermione also felt a bit awkward. Looking behind Allen, she quickly changed the subject: "Don't worry about that. What you should be concerned about now is Malfoy. He looks indignant, as if he's not giving up."
Allen turned to look at the Slytherin table. Malfoy was red-faced, explaining something to the other young wizards, seemingly embarrassed by his momentary cowardice and constantly trying to justify himself to everyone.
Suddenly, he seemed to sense Allen's gaze. He turned his head, and their eyes met in the air. Allen clearly saw humiliation and unwillingness in his eyes. Allen snorted lightly, turning his head away with a hint of disdain, ending the staring contest with Malfoy.
Hermione, sitting opposite, clearly saw everything and quietly said to Allen, "We have flying lessons with Slytherin this afternoon." She held up "Quidditch Through the Ages" in her hand. "Would you like me to give you some flying tips?"
Allen smiled gently at her, "I'd be delighted!"