Homecoming from Hogwarts

Ernie wasn't the only classmate they met in Diagon Alley.

Many young wizards from Hogwarts come here to shop with their parents on the weekend before school starts.

In addition to those they didn't know, they also met their roommate Seamus and the twins' good friend Lee Jordan here.

After Harry greeted Finch-Fletchley from Hufflepuff, he turned around and saw Qiu Zhang walking into the Owl Shop accompanied by an elegant Asian-looking man.

He subconsciously shrank his neck and turned his head, and in a blink of an eye, he found that Ginny and Hermione were looking at him with contempt.
In any case, Gringotts' building is the tallest one in Diagon Alley. Even if it is replaced with a tent, it is still the largest one among the tents.

Instead of a warning, a notice was posted at the entrance to the tent.

"Due to the Battle of Diagon Alley, many cracks have appeared in the underground vault, which is currently being repaired. For the safety of our valued customers:

All customers who wish to withdraw cash must have Gringotts staff go to the underground vault to withdraw the money on their behalf.

Gringotts will continue to safeguard the wealth of all our valued users. Thank you for your cooperation!"

Hermione read the words on the notice quietly.

"That makes things easier, doesn't it?"

Ron shrugged fearlessly.

"I'd rather eat booger-flavored Beebe's Every Flavour Beans than ride in a Gringotts cart."

"Oh, you're disgusting, Ron!"

Ginny rolled her eyes at Ron.

In any case, it is still difficult to move the majestic and solemn hall of Gringotts into a tent.

Although the overall shape is similar, the space is still quite cramped.

They followed the team's difficult movement. Ginny, who was squeezed into Harry's arms, had her face flushed all the way to her neck. Feeling the softness rubbing against her chest and the hair fluttering under his nose, Harry felt as if he was hit by some dark magic. Blood rushed to his head in waves.

Even Qiu Zhang's gentle face, whom he had just met briefly, became insignificant in Harry's mind.

"--Speaking of which, Harry"

Ron, who was standing right behind Harry, didn't notice the change in Harry's expression. He was looking at the counter in front of him.

A wizard was bargaining with a goblin over a few rubies as red as charcoal. Finally, the two sides reached an agreement. The goblin took out an exquisite wooden box from under the counter and opened it. The piles of Galleons inside fell onto the table with a clatter.

Ron looked at the wizard who was checking the quality of the gold coins with envy.

"I never knew how much gold your parents left for you."

Hermione looked surprised. She patted Ron's back.

"That's Harry's privacy, Ron, you shouldn't ask that!"

"Oh, it's okay, Hermione--"

Harry gasped as he recalled the amount of wealth in his vault.

"To be honest, I'm not sure, Ron. I've never counted them. Probably tens of thousands?"

Not to mention Ron, even Fred and George had envy in their eyes.

In order to facilitate the wizards to withdraw money, the goblins moved several large boxes of gold to the small room behind the hall and adopted the method of redeeming first and recording the accounts.

So, Harry soon had enough gold to last him a whole school year.

Holding a heavy bag of gold in one's hand was always a pleasure. During the two months he stayed at Grimmauld Place, apart from a trip to the Ministry of Magic for trial, a visit to St. Mungo's to see Mr. Weasley and a quick trip to Diagon Alley, he had spent a lot of time there.

This summer, Harry just strolled around the square near the old house.

He can't wait to go out and spend money.

However, Mrs. Weasley encountered a little controversy when withdrawing the money.

"From the list of books Hogwarts sent, you don't need to buy any new books, which can save you money. Oh, but you all need new robes and some materials. Ginny's cauldron can no longer be used, so you need to buy a new one."

Mrs. Weasley counted on her fingers.

"I can buy it myself, Mom—"

Ginny said thoughtfully, "I haven't spent much of the prize money I won from the competition yet!"

"Oh, dear, that's your own money. You can use it elsewhere. It's your father's and my duty to buy you school supplies--"

Mrs. Weasley looked at Ginny lovingly and ruffled her thick red hair.

This scene made Ron feel "indignant". When Mrs. Weasley was negotiating with the goblin, he turned his head and frowned and complained to Hermione who was raising her eyebrows and crossing her arms.
"Oh, then why do I have to spend my own gold to buy a broom? And I have to apply for it in advance!"

"It's simple, silly--"

George also imitated Mrs. Weasley, ruffled Ron's hair, and said with a smile,

"Because there isn't that much gold in Daddy and Mommy's coffers for you to squander."

Surprisingly, Hermione withdrew a full thousand Galleons from her account, and to do so, she had to spend a dozen more Galleons to buy a special purse from the goblin to hold the gold.

"What are you going to do, Hermione?"

Harry looked at Hermione in surprise as she weighed her purse.
"Are you planning on clearing out the stock at Flourish and Blotts?"

"Oh. This is my privacy, Harry, don't ask any more questions."

Hermione said slightly unkindly.

Going to Madam Malkin's robe shop to buy robes was their last collective activity.

As if knowing that these adolescent boys and girls had broken doors at home, Mrs. Weasley generously allowed Harry and his friends to move around freely, while she took Ginny to buy a cauldron.

Fred and George disappeared in a flash.

Hermione wasn't particularly interested in Ron buying a broom, and as Harry expected, when she found the Flourish and Blotts tent she went inside and ignored them.

"Let's go--"

Ron anxiously dragged Harry to the Quidditch boutique.
"I've wasted so much time. Ernie must be waiting for me!"

They had spent much longer in the Quidditch boutique than they had expected.

Harry only spent a little time restocking his broomstick maintenance box with some consumables, but Ron was hesitant between the two series, Sideswipe and Comet, so he had to work with Ernie to help come up with ideas.

By the time Ron walked out of the Quidditch boutique with satisfaction, taking his first proper Quidditch broom in his life, the sun had risen above their heads.

After that, Ernie parted ways with them.

Ron suggested that while everyone was away, they go to the tent in the Leaky Cauldron and have a Butterbeer to celebrate his first broom.

Of course Harry had no objection, and they searched among the numerous tents for a while before they found the tent of the Leaky Cauldron.

Like most shops, the Leaky Cauldron was built on the original site, but the portal connecting to the Muggle world was destroyed.

"How's business, Tom?"

Harry was an acquaintance of the owner of the Leaky Cauldron. He once lived on the second floor of his bar for almost a month.

"Oh, Mr. Potter, is that you?"

There were indeed some guests in the tent, which was brighter than the original bar, but they were basically parents with their children having lunch. The original "beautiful" scenery of the Leaky Cauldron was gone.

Tom was wiping the wine glasses boredly behind the bar. The sunlight that followed Harry and Ron into the bar made old Tom squint his eyes.

And as soon as he saw Harry's face clearly, Old Tom immediately walked out from behind the bar and came to them.

"Well, as you can see, business has plummeted--"

After the greetings, Old Tom's face immediately fell. He used his eyes to indicate the food that the guests ordered, and he looked dejected.

"In this terrible world, most people are not willing to stay abroad for a long time.
So, now no one comes to drink here. Those who come here at most eat something and then leave in a hurry. To be honest, I really miss my old bar, but the Ministry of Magic said that it will take at least another half year to return the original Diagon Alley to us--"

"That's fast enough—"

Ron said,
"Think about last year's Quidditch stadium. It took hundreds of employees of the Ministry of Magic half a year to build that stadium. They definitely can't spare so many people now——"

"The key is--"

Harry was more concerned about this issue because it involved Professor Brain. He looked at Old Tom with concern.
"Does the Ministry offer any compensation for your losses?" (End of this chapter)