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Chapter 446: Give Hagrid Picking?!!
Darren, of course, did not tell Harry that life in Slytherin was actually going very well.
The Head of House tolerated him, his classmates cared about him, he even lived in a single room—and Paige regularly delivered food to him.
If one had to be honest, only Slytherin had treatment this good.
But outwardly, Darren just said everything was "fine".
Harry did not believe a word of it.
Fortunately, they were told to put their bags away, so Harry had to separate from him.
There was no time to argue.
---
When Darren entered the Great Hall, he immediately noticed that the decorations had changed.
A massive banner hung high above.
It showed a lion, an eagle, a badger, and a snake—forming the Hogwarts coat of arms.
From a distance, Darren saw Fred and George standing together, looking dejected as they discussed the Triwizard Tournament.
"They asked Professor McGonagall how to enter," Malfoy said disdainfully, standing beside Darren.
"And she scolded them into silence."
"They're idiots. If it were me, I'd ask my father. He'd definitely find a way—though he still wouldn't let me compete!"
Malfoy spoke with obvious frustration.
Darren ignored him.
Malfoy was becoming more childish by the day.
---
"All right, everyone, line up and move forward!" Professor McGonagall called sharply.
"And Malfoy, wipe that expression off your face!"
She led the entire group toward the castle entrance.
It was exactly six o'clock.
Darren stood at the front and… started thinking about fried rice.
He was hungry.
Was all of this really necessary? Standing outside in the cold, waiting, without even dinner?
He shivered slightly.
Fortunately, Cassandra quietly drew her wand and cast a warming charm on him.
Darren didn't know how long it would last, but at least for now, he was comfortable.
Otherwise, as a little Holy Father, if he had started casting warming charms on himself, he would have felt obligated to cast it on everyone else—and the professors would definitely not approve.
That was why he rarely used warming charms in public.
Darren complained silently.
Winter was unbearable.
In his opinion, winter was meant for staying indoors, wrapped in blankets, eating ice cream, listening to the wind and snow outside.
Not standing outside freezing.
It was torture.
---
Fortunately, before Darren could mentally drift from winter into next spring, Beauxbatons' carriage finally arrived.
A massive powder-blue carriage descended from the sky.
Twelve winged horses pulled it.
Silver-maned, each one as large as an elephant.
With a heavy thud, they landed.
Darren, who stood in the first row, instinctively stepped back.
The sound alone made his ears ring.
Why was he always placed in front?
Was it just because he stood out too much?
---
The carriage door opened.
Madame Maxime stepped down.
She was enormous—no different from Hagrid in size.
She carried giant blood, though she never admitted it.
But despite her height and build, she was beautiful.
Clear, bright eyes.
A dignified face.
Her hair was tied neatly into a bun, and her black satin evening gown made her look elegant and noble despite its enormous size.
A gemstone ring on her finger glittered under the torchlight.
The gemstone itself was so large that Darren felt it was about the size of his nose.
"Dear Madame Maxime!" Dumbledore exclaimed warmly.
She reached out her hand.
Dumbledore bowed slightly and kissed the back of it.
Then her eyes fell on Darren.
"Oh, Darren," she laughed softly. "You're even more handsome than before. If only you would grow taller!"
Darren sighed inwardly.
He preferred being normal height.
Growing as tall as Hagrid would make finding a partner nearly impossible.
"I'm joking, child," Madame Maxime added cheerfully.
"Last summer, Nicolas even told me he wanted to find you a Beauxbatons girlfriend."
"So…"
She flicked her wand.
The carriage door opened again.
One by one, the female students of Beauxbatons stepped out.
Tall.
Beautiful.
Smiling confidently.
"Choose freely," Madame Maxime said with a laugh.
"I guarantee you'll like at least one of them. They're far better than your Hogwarts girls."
"Oh, Albus, I'm not saying your girls are ugly—just not as romantic and open as ours!"
She spoke proudly.
Darren immediately sensed danger.
He saw the expressions among the Hogwarts girls darken.
Hermione glared at Madame Maxime openly.
Cassandra subtly tightened her grip on her wand.
Darren's scalp tingled.
As a qualified little Holy Father, he intervened immediately:
"You're misunderstanding, Madam," Darren said awkwardly.
"I'm not thinking about girlfriends right now. The teacher is only joking."
At once, the atmosphere relaxed a little.
The Hogwarts girls looked less hostile.
"Well, you're still a child anyway," Madame Maxime said with a laugh, finally letting the matter drop.
She turned to Dumbledore.
"Albus, is Karkaroff here yet?"
"He's still a little way off," Dumbledore replied kindly.
"If you like, you may wait here—or go inside and warm yourselves."
"No waiting," Madame Maxime decided at once. "We're freezing."
"Let's go in. As for the carriage…"
She looked slightly troubled.
"It's fine," Dumbledore reassured her.
"Our Care of Magical Creatures professor will look after them."
"Though they may take some strength to handle."
"Don't worry," Dumbledore said with a chuckle.
"I'm sure Hagrid will manage just fine."
"In fact, he's wrestling with something right now—you'll see him very soon."
Darren narrowed his eyes slightly.
He had a suspicious feeling.
Dumbledore looked far too pleased.
It was almost as if…
He was deliberately arranging a certain heavy-duty task for someone.
"Give Hagrid picking duty?" Darren muttered under his breath.
Yes.
That sounded exactly like something Dumbledore would do.