Volume 1 Chapter 12 Welcome Dinner at the Coast
This beach is very large, and outside the beach is a rocky beach with a dilapidated path that divides the beach into two halves. It looks like a place where few people go.
Hagrid had already gotten off the carriage in advance. He found a suitable open space near the sea, set up firewood and iron frame, and lit a bonfire.
In such a hot summer, the night sea breeze is very comfortable on the body. Senior students who ran out are gathering in groups of three or five, looking for fun on the beach.
"Hogwarts will find a place with a great view to hold the dinners on Orientation and Christmas nights."
Ron, who knew more about the school on the carriage than anyone else, explained it to Jon and the others.
"My three brothers all go to school here, and they told me that Hagrid always surprises everyone when choosing the location of the dinner. They once held a welcome party on the top of Ben Nevis (the highest mountain in the British Isles), and also spent Christmas Eve together on the Isle of Man. Our welcome dinner this year was also great, it was at the seaside."
His voice was excited, and everyone else's faces were filled with curiosity and excitement. Even Justin, who had been unhappy all the time, had a visibly relaxed expression on his face.
Ron, Justin and Lavender couldn't wait any longer and headed towards the beach, but Jon noticed that the curtain of the carriage was opened again from the inside, and a short old man who looked like a child walked down from the carriage.
He was wearing a well-fitting wizard robe and his hair was neatly groomed. As he got off the carriage, he shouted to two boys catching crabs in the distance.
"Don't get too far, Lee Jordan, and be careful when you use the petrification spell on crabs! You keep pronouncing it wrong, don't burn yourself to dust again!"
The dark-skinned boy in the distance responded loudly, and then continued to poke the crab with the magic wand in his hand.
The short old man's attention shifted to the students who were chasing the waves barefoot on the beach. While reminding them to be careful not to fall and be swept into the sea, he walked towards Hagrid who was lighting other bonfires.
"This is Professor Flitwick." Neville introduced him after noticing Jon's gaze. "He is our Charms class and part-time astronomy professor. Before Hogwarts Castle fell, he was the last head of Ravenclaw College."
Neville was thinking that John was a Muggle who had never been exposed to magic, and was about to enthusiastically introduce him to the four former Hogwarts colleges in detail, when he suddenly noticed that his attention had actually been focused on the empty right sleeve of Professor Flitwick.
"How did Professor Flitwick lose his right hand?" Jon asked softly.
The relaxed expression on Neville's face faded and he spoke in a low voice.
"It was cut off by a spell cast by one of the Dark Lord's men. When the professor was young, he once won the duelling tournament by wielding a wand with his right hand."
"Is there no way magic can reattach his broken arm?"
"My father told me that he was delayed for too long because of the battle, and his severed arm was never found again. Magic can help him reattach a limb that was severed in a short period of time, but it can't help him grow a new one."
Jon was silent.
He looked at the short old man who was helping Hagrid build a bonfire, and for some reason he felt a sense of sadness in his heart.
The sadness was not only because of the one-armed old man in front of him, but also because of the deceased Dean Sprout, Neville's mother Alice who died under the Killing Curse, and the people who had sacrificed their lives for Hogwarts.
Neville seemed to notice Jon's change in mood, patted his shoulder comfortingly and said with a smile.
"But in fact, Professor Flitwick himself didn't think it was a big deal. After learning that he had completely lost his right arm, my father told me that he smiled and said to Dumbledore, 'Fortunately, I still have my left hand to use.' It turned out that he was right. He can still cast spells with his left arm and has become our best spells professor."
Jon let out a long breath, turned to look at Neville, and smiled at this boy who was truly mature beyond his years.
"It's okay. I'm just a little bit emotional. So what can we do now?"
Neville looked at Jon and started laughing too.
In fact, when he first saw Jon, he already felt that he was different from the others. He behaved much more mature than Ron and Justin, which made Neville have a hunch that they could be friends.
It's not that he and Ron can't be friends, it's just that Neville lost his mother when he was young and has always been much more mature and sensible than his peers. When facing Ron and others, he always subconsciously has the mentality of helping adults take care of children.
But when I was communicating with Jon, I obviously didn't have this feeling.
"We can go and help the senior students prepare tonight's food. The meals at Hogwarts are prepared by the students themselves every day. After we start formal classes, there will be senior students who will teach us how to cook. The professors in this carriage are already very busy, and we should also try our best to take care of ourselves and reduce their pressure."
Neville said briskly as he led Jon towards where a group of senior girls were gathered.
There they were processing crabs and fish that the boys had just caught, as well as some ingredients that had been prepared in advance on the carriage.
Jon communicates so much with Neville, and there is actually some deliberateness in it.
This round-faced, blond boy obviously knew a lot about the current Hogwarts. Jon wanted to get more information from him after getting to know him better.
For example, whether Potions Professor Lily Potter has a son.
Although his purpose was not pure, Jon was willing to be sincere when he was with him.
Jon is destined to be bound to Hogwarts, which is carried on a carriage. Here gathers the last group of people in the entire British wizarding world who uphold justice and light in their hearts. When getting along with these people, he cannot and does not want to always maintain a hypocritical appearance.
Just as he and Neville were helping the seniors to prepare the fish, shrimp and seafood, Jon suddenly saw Lily, who had been missing since she sent him to the carriage, coming towards them from the path on the rocky beach with a chubby, older wizard with a walrus-like beard.
Not only Jon noticed this scene, other students also saw the fat old man.
"It's Professor Slughorn!"
