The sunshine on September 1st was exceptionally bright, and it seemed that even God was congratulating all the new students on their admission.
The sky above London is clear, with a few faint clouds hanging on the blue sky. The refreshing breeze blows in everyone's ears, like a soft whisper that makes people intoxicated.
Maka bought a new suitcase in Diagon Alley. This suitcase was bought second-hand at a junk shop. The Invisible Stretch Spell inside it was a bit damaged and the space became much smaller. Fortunately, the permission slip from the Ministry of Magic It also sticks firmly to the inside flap.
After Maka tried her best to belittle the box and cut the price several times, she finally endured the pain and bought it. At this moment, he was walking relaxedly on the platform aisle of King's Cross Station, enjoying the happiness he bought with gold galleons - his luggage only had an owl and a light suitcase. What a journey like this. of beauty.
After a while, he came to the place between Platform 9 and Platform 10, but he hesitated while staring at the thick support column.
"Oh?" Maka stretched out her hand, and indeed passed through the pillar wall made of stone bricks, and couldn't help showing a surprised expression.
The first time is always a bit unaccustomed. Although I don’t feel any pain, I am still a little nervous. With a small step forward, he found that he had passed through it and arrived at the real Hogwarts Express platform.
Thick smoke from steam locomotives lingered over the chattering crowd, and cats of various colors walked back and forth under people's feet. Amid the hum of the crowd and the noise of hauling heavy luggage, owls hooted in response.
The owl standing on Maka's left shoulder looked larger than the others, and it was very quiet, not like those little guys who kept cooing. It blinked its bright big eyes and looked at the crowded crowd in the aisle in front, unmoved at all.
Yes, after this period of getting along, Maka discovered that his pure black owl didn't seem to like staying in the cage. Ever since he let it out, it never went back.
"Mafa, let's go!" Maka gave it a rather majestic name - Malfurion, of course, referred to as "Marfa".
"Gu." Mafa yelled in agreement.
There were already a lot of people in the carriage. Maka passed several carriages but didn't see anyone he knew, so he randomly chose a compartment with fewer people and walked in.
"Oh, good morning!" Maka stood at the door and nodded to the people inside, "Do you mind if I sit here?"
"Of course, please come in!" A black-haired boy replied immediately.
This boy looked a little reserved and didn't seem to be very good at communicating with others. After he answered, he huddled in his seat and stopped talking.
"Do you mind introducing yourself?" Maka saw that the atmosphere in the cubicle was a bit cold, so she had to start a topic first, "My name is Maka, Maka McClain, what about you?"
"...Anthony Goldstein." The black-haired boy muttered, looking even more nervous.
It seems like he really isn't very good at chatting. Maka nodded and stopped communicating with the other party. He still had a lot of things to do! Like, endorsements, endorsements, and endorsements.
Taking out a copy of "Thousands of Miraculous Herbs and Mushrooms" from the suitcase, Maka read it carefully - this book is really a bit thick, and the types of plants in it are quite complicated. He has only memorized them until now. Less than half.
After a short while, two more people entered the cubicle one after another. It seemed that because there were more people, the black-haired Anthony was always in an unnatural state from the beginning. He kept forcing himself to look out the window, pretending to be looking at the scenery.
"Hello everyone! My name is Ernie McMillan, nice to meet you." The blond boy who just came in looked very sunny. He looked at Maka sitting opposite him and said hello loudly.
Maka nodded to him, introduced herself with a smile, and then turned to look at the last girl who came in.
"Well, that..." The girl was stroking her long brown hair vigorously, as if she wanted to make them more docile. It seemed that she was not satisfied with her naturally slightly curly hair.
"Lisa, Lisa Dupin... Oh!" As she was talking, she suddenly screamed in pain. She probably pulled out a few hairs because she had rubbed them too hard.
"Hey, Maka! I said, what are you reading?" Ernie is short and fat, but his clothes are gorgeous and bright. It seems that his family background is very good.
However, Maka didn't find in him the arrogant temperament that children from noble families often have, and he seemed to be a friend worth making.
"Oh, I'm reading the textbook!" Maka put the book up and showed the cover to Ernie.
"Oh! I have this book at home, but I never thought of reading it. It's too thick, and the title probably looks boring." Ernie scratched his head and made it tidy. Her blond hair became messy.
Lisa, who was sitting next to Maka, looked at Ernie's hair and frowned, but didn't say anything. She just turned her head and looked at Maka.
Maka has always felt that maintaining a neat appearance is a necessary task, which can make others feel good about her. After all, most people still prefer plain clothing and a clean appearance, although Maka personally feels that as long as it is comfortable, it will be fine.
Lisa looked at Maka secretly, and then nodded with satisfaction.
Obviously, this cute-looking girl not only has high standards for her own appearance, but also for others.
After that, except for Anthony who basically didn't talk much, the other three people had some preliminary exchanges and agreed to interact more in school. Of course, Lisa obviously preferred talking to Maka, although Ernie, who was a bit nervous, didn't notice this.
As for the gains along the way, apart from memorizing dozens of more herbal medicines, the rest is probably "a quick meeting with Miss Hermione Granger"!
However, her arrogant attitude, super fast speaking speed, and fast-paced actions made Maka a little bit overwhelmed. After a few perfunctory words, Hermione left in a hurry.
By the way, she was helping Neville find a toad - that's about it. In fact, Maka hardly heard it clearly. At that time, his attention was all on memorizing the names of the herbs!
The Hogwarts Express traveled throughout the day, and when the speed gradually slowed down, it was already dark.
The terminal station of the train is set across the lake outside the back door of Hogwarts. The new students have to take a four-person boat to Hogwarts. This can probably be regarded as one of the traditions of Hogwarts. Of course, if you feel you're getting seasick in the future, maybe you can walk around the lake to your front door, although that does sound a bit silly.
"Lower your head!" Hagrid, who was occupying one boat by himself, shouted loudly as the first boats approached the cliff.
Everyone lowered their heads as the boat carried them through the ivy curtain covering the face of the cliff to the hidden open entrance. They followed a dark tunnel that seemed to lead beneath the castle, and finally arrived at a place that resembled an underground dock, and then climbed up onto a ground of gravel and pebbles.
Under the light of Hagrid's lantern, the new students climbed up a tunnel in the rock, and finally reached a flat, damp grassland in the shadow of the castle.
Everyone climbed up a flight of stone steps and gathered in front of a huge oak door.
"Is everyone here?" Hagrid raised his huge fist and knocked on the castle door three times.
The door suddenly opened, and a tall black-haired witch wearing emerald green robes stood in front of the door. She had a serious look on her face and clearly seemed like a character who was not easy to fool.
"First year, Professor McGonagall," Hagrid said.
"Thank you, Hagrid. Leave it to me to pick you up when you get here."
After all, this is Hogwarts Castle, even the hall at the back entrance is terrifyingly large. There was a row of blazing torches inserted into the stone wall, the ceiling was so high that the top was almost invisible, and in front was a luxurious marble staircase that led all the way to the upper floor.
There was faint noise from the door on the right. The other senior students of Hogwarts must have arrived first. But Professor McGonagall did not take them directly inside. Instead, he led everyone to an empty room across the hall.
This empty room is not very spacious, and the freshmen are crowded shoulder to shoulder, and most of them are nervously observing everything around them.
Maka was no exception. He was carrying a suitcase and was pushed into a corner by the crowd. Even the owl Mafa helplessly stood on top of him.
"Welcome to Hogwarts," Professor McGonagall said. "The opening banquet is about to begin, but before you go to the restaurant to sit down, you must first determine which house you are entering. Classification is a A very important ceremony, because while you are at school, the college is like your home at Hogwarts... "
Maka was squeezed in the back and had no interest in listening to Professor McGonagall's speech carefully. She just waited quietly for everything to begin.
"...I will come to pick you up when the other side is ready." Professor McGonagall said, "Please keep quiet while waiting."
Just as Professor McGonagall finished speaking, Maka suddenly heard a "Gulu" sound.
"Leifu!" A boy shouted from the front, and Maka shook her head in confusion.
"Please keep quiet!"
Professor McGonagall repeated it in a stiff tone before leaving the room. Maka immediately heard the laughter of several people in front of her.
"Oh!" Suddenly, several more people screamed from the front.
"What's wrong?" Maka complained in a low voice, standing on tiptoes and looking forward, "Hey, that's-"