The little wizards bustled out of the carriages, their emotions a mix of excitement and nervousness.
Harry, Ron, Hermione, Neville, and Devereux squeezed out of the train with the crowd.
At that moment, Devereux was cheerfully tagging the other young wizards with various magical attribute markers. He even spotted several rare purple "magic talent" tags.
"Straight into the shopping cart!" he thought, thrilled.
Awesome!
This was exactly why he had come to Hogwarts.
Night had already fallen. The Hogwarts Express had pulled into a remote little station, surrounded by darkness.
Only distant street lamps offered a faint glow.
"Wait!" Neville suddenly cried out.
He had just remembered that his luggage was still in the carriage. He turned to go back.
Devereux quickly stopped him and comforted him.
"Don't worry, Neville. The school will have our luggage delivered to the dormitories. No need to worry."
Neville hesitated, but seeing the others had already disembarked, he nodded and followed Devereux.
They made their way through the crowd to the platform, where many other first-years had already gathered.
Everyone looked around, wondering where to go next.
"First-year students, this way, please!"
A deep, powerful voice rang out.
Everyone turned.
There stood a tall, sturdy figure not far away, holding a bright lantern—
Rubeus Hagrid, Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts.
"Come on, follow me," Hagrid called.
His voice echoed across the quiet night.
The students followed him along a winding path that led toward a lake.
On the water, many small boats floated, each lit by a tiny lantern, casting gentle light on the lake.
"Four to a boat!" Hagrid instructed.
"Careful now! Some creatures in the lake don't like being disturbed this late!"
Devereux helped Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Neville climb into one boat, then boarded another with a few unfamiliar classmates.
The boats pushed off, gliding slowly across the shimmering lake. The reflection of the starry sky on the water made it feel like a fairy tale scene.
"Wow, is that Hogwarts?" a little girl in Devereux's boat gasped.
She had big, sparkling eyes and looked South Asian. Her gaze was fixed on the castle, full of excitement.
A boy next to Devereux clutched the side of the boat tightly, afraid of falling in.
Another boy gleefully dipped his hand into the cold lake, splashing the water and laughing.
"Zacharias, that's too dangerous!" the girl scolded.
But the boy kept splashing, teasing,
"Hehe, you're all cowards. I bet you'll all end up in Hufflepuff!"
His mocking grin irritated everyone else, but Devereux didn't let it bother him.
He turned to comfort a very nervous-looking boy sitting nearby.
"My name's Devereux. Don't worry—we'll be there soon."
The nervous boy managed a small smile.
"Thanks… I'm Stebbins."
Devereux smiled back and thought to himself, Stebbins? That name rings no bells...
Suddenly—
"Ah!"
The boy splashing in the water shrieked.
He flailed and fell back into the boat, a tiny creature clinging to his finger.
It looked like a Thumbelina with a fish tail—a miniature mermaid.
It stared at them angrily, then shot a stream of water at the boy's face.
He screamed again, waking nearby students with the noise.
Devereux quickly stepped in, grabbing the boy's hand and gently lowering it back into the lake.
The mermaid detached and darted away into the dark waters.
He turned to calm the startled children.
"This is a Scottish Kelpie," he explained.
"A magical creature. When they grow up, they can be as big as a human. There are lots of them here."
He'd read about Kelpies in one of his books and knew how to handle them.
"They're not dangerous unless provoked," he continued.
"They just like pranks. If you don't bother them, they won't attack."
The soaked boy slowly sat up, still shaken but no longer screaming.
He rubbed his eyes where the water had hit and looked embarrassed.
"Thanks… my name's Zacharias Smith," he mumbled.
"Devereux Alexander," Devereux replied with a smile, while thinking:
Ah, so this is that Zacharias Smith. The one who always argued with Hermione in the Order of the Phoenix... Not a fan. Added to the blacklist.
The others were now eyeing Devereux with curiosity.
"You're so knowledgeable, Devereux!" the little girl exclaimed.
"My name's Padma. How do you know so much about magical creatures?"
Padma was as charming as Hermione, with a bright and inquisitive spirit.
"I bought lots of books in Diagon Alley—and brought some from home," Devereux replied.
"I've always been really into this stuff."
He began sharing fun facts from his readings, and soon all the children (except Zacharias) were listening with admiration.
Zacharias sat grumpily, still sore from the mermaid incident, but Devereux didn't care.
As the boats docked, the students passed the boathouse and climbed the long cliffside stairs behind Hagrid.
They finally arrived at the entrance to Hogwarts Castle.
The scene left them breathless.
The castle stood tall and proud atop the mountain—an immense, ancient fortress guarding a world of magic.
Its towers and spires stretched into the clouds like spears.
The outer walls were made of thick, weathered stone blocks, aged by centuries of wind and rain.
Vines crept along the walls, and flickering lanterns added a touch of warmth to the towering structure.
Massive windows lined the walls, glowing softly from within—
like a hundred eyes watching the arrival of new students.
Before them stood two enormous oak doors, carved with intricate magical runes.
And there, awaiting them with dignity and grace, was a stately older woman—
ready to welcome the next generation of witches and wizards to Hogwarts.