Leaky Cauldron, also the famous Wizard Street, is the entrance to Diagon Alley.
Kael comes here once a year to buy the new textbooks needed for school, as well as things like ink and parchment.
But every time he comes, nothing seems to change. This year is no different.
Dim lights, tables so old they're polished with age, and the noisy, bustling customers all around—everything is exactly the same as before.
After Newt Apparated back to Dorset, Kael walked into the backyard and entered Diagon Alley from there.
Kael first went to Scrivenshaft's to buy a massive amount of parchment and ink, and then headed toward Flourish and Blotts.
This year he didn't need to buy too many new textbooks—apart from The Monster Book of Monsters, he just needed to grab a copy of Intermediate Runic Symbols Explained.
When passing by the Quidditch Boutique, Kael noticed a big crowd had gathered there.
Everyone was trying their hardest to squeeze forward, wanting to get as close to the shop window as possible, and Kael even spotted a familiar face in the crowd... Harry Potter.
Harry's head was being squished under some giant wizard's arm, his face practically flattened from the pressure—but he didn't seem bothered at all. Those green eyes stayed glued to whatever was in the window, and every now and then he'd wipe his mouth, looking totally satisfied.
...Honestly, he looked kind of sleazy, with just a hint of doofus added in.
"Harry, what are you doing here!"
Kael called him three times in a row before Harry finally snapped out of it.
"Kael!"
Harry reluctantly dragged his gaze away from the shop window and grinned. "Great, I'm so happy to see you here."
"What were you just looking at?" Kael asked,
"The Firebolt!"
At the mention of it, Harry immediately lit up, chattering non-stop to Kael about how amazing that broom was.
"Streamlined design...ash wood handle, and the birch twigs at the tail, also shaped to cut through the air...
And get this, did you know—from a standstill to one hundred and fifty miles per hour, it only takes ten seconds? It's the fastest broom in the world!"
Harry looked like he could spend the whole day just praising the Firebolt.
Kael wasn't nearly as excited as he was.
The Firebolt was great, sure—but his Nimbus 2000 wasn't exactly shabby.
Besides, when the Nimbus 2000 first came out, it was also the fastest broom around—same for the Cleansweep 150 before it.
So, really, everyone gets their moment in the spotlight; in a way, we're all the same.
"I need to go to Flourish and Blotts for new textbooks, what about you?" Kael asked. "Want to keep ogling the Firebolt here? Though honestly, if you just want to look, you could go into the shop—no charge for browsing."
"Nah, I've already come by to stare at it a bunch of times these past few days... The truth is, I've been living here for a while because of, well, some stuff,"
Harry shook his head. "I was actually hoping to find Ron and Hermione, they should be getting here soon."
"If that's the case..." Kael pointed at Florean Fosco's ice cream shop not far off. "See those two over there—could that be them?"
"Huh?" Harry turned around.
Even though it was just the backs of two people, he recognized them immediately—the two buying ice cream could only be Hermione and Ron.
"Hermione! Ron!" he called out, a bit excited.
They turned around, looking just as surprised and happy.
"Harry!"
"Kael!"
Ron waved, running over excitedly.
"Finally found you!"
He said to Harry, "We went to the Leaky Cauldron, but they said you'd already left. Then we tried Flourish and Blotts and Madam Malkin, but no luck."
Hearing Ron talk, Kael couldn't help picturing Harry wedged in that crowd earlier, with only his rear end sticking out.
If he hadn't accidentally seen those green eyes reflected in the glass, he probably wouldn't have found Harry either.
Soon Hermione joined them too, holding four big ice creams in her hands.
"Thanks." Kael took one and took a bite.
Almond chocolate flavor—not bad at all.
The group strolled onward, munching on ice cream as they went, letting their conversation wander wherever it felt like.
But of course, talk drifted to Harry's situation.
"So you're saying Harry, you actually blew up your aunt?" Hermione asked, her tone serious.
"I didn't mean to," Harry said, "I just got so angry, I couldn't control it."
Ron burst out laughing beside him.
"This isn't actually a laughing matter, Ron," Hermione scolded sharply. "Honestly, Harry not getting expelled surprises me.
You both ought to know that a young wizard is expelled from school for using magic illegally twice outside Hogwarts. And Harry already got a warning once last year."
"I know, right?" Harry said. "But Fudge just told me to stay here, no other punishment. Why do you think he let me off the hook?"
"Maybe just because it's you...the famous Harry Potter." Ron shrugged and chuckled softly. "I can't even imagine what would happen if I blew up an aunt. The Ministry of Magic would tear me apart.
But first they'd have to dig me up, because Mum would definitely have killed me before then."
With that, Ron couldn't hold back a laugh.
Hermione and Harry laughed too.
All things considered—not getting expelled and no serious punishment, that's the best outcome imaginable.
They walked a bit further, and soon came to Flourish and Blotts.
Kael went in to grab his books, while the others headed over to the pet shop a few dozen meters away.
Hermione wanted to get herself a pet, and Ron decided to go check on his rat, Scabbers.
"Last year Scabbers was already like this—skinnier every day, and just lying around looking dead tired." He cupped the rat. "I thought maybe taking him out for a bit of fun would lift his mood, but now I think he might just be having a hard time adjusting."
Once they split up at the door, Kael strode into the chaos that was Flourish and Blotts.
There were no brawls this year, but there were dozens of The Monster Book of Monsters—these books were tearing into each other like wild wrestlers, scraps of paper flying everywhere.
An employee, wearing a pair of thick gloves, was whacking the books with a gnarly, knotty stick, trying to separate them.
"Hello..." He glanced at Kael in between. "If you want one of those books, you'll need to wait a bit—I've got to split them up first... Hey! Stop it! Don't bite that one!"
Bloody hell, I'm never ordering those again, never ever—what a nightmare!"
"It's alright, I already have that one," Kael said.
"Really?" The employee looked instantly relieved. "Thank God, I've been bitten five times today already... So, what can I get you?"
"I need Intermediate Runic Symbols Explained."
"Ah, moving on to learning Ancient Runes, are you?" The shop assistant took off his gloves and found the book Kael needed in a corner of the shop.
"Hardly anyone buys this one—it's a tough subject, but I've got to admit, this is a really great guide. Super detailed."
He handed the book over. "That'll be two Galleons."