Early in the morning, as the sun had just risen, Albertalready opened his eyes, waking from his slumber. He slightly turned his head towards the door, and a familiar sound of footsteps echoed in the Hallway.
The next moment, the door was knocked, and Nia's voice sounded from outside.
"Get up, Albert, hurry up and get up!"
Albert got out of bed, stifled a yawn, and stretched. The door was then opened, and Tom squeezed through the gap, trotting onto a chair, then leaping onto the soft cushion on the table, settling down comfortably.
"It seems Tom really likes this cushion." Albert reached out and stroked Tom's head, saying with a smile to Nia, "You go out first, I'm changing."
"Hurry up, Dad said we need to arrive in London before ten o'clock." Nia called Tom to leave, not forgetting to take Tom's cushion with her.
"That early?" Albert was a little surprised.
"He said to go early so we'd have enough time to stroll around Diagon Alley." Nia said, leaning against the wall. She clearly agreed with Herb's approach.
After all, this time the The Anderson Family were going to Diagon Alley together; in essence, it was a family outing to Diagon Alley.
If they didn't set aside time beforehand, the rest of the trip would become very rushed.
When Albert went downstairs for breakfast, Nia even suggested bringing a camera to take a few photos, but Albert immediately rejected it.
"Doing that would make you stand out, and that's not a good thing."
"They..." Daisy frowned slightly, choosing her words carefully, "...'look down on' ordinary people?"
She ultimately didn't use the word 'discrimination'.
"Yes, some Wizards are like that." Albert didn't deny this, "They think they are superior because they possess extraordinary magic. In fact, the entire Wizarding Worldis very backward; you'll know when you go to Diagon Alley. But sometimes you can't deny that magic is indeed very good and can solve a lot of problems. However, the thinking of most Wizards is too backward, or rather, they are very insecure and afraid of being persecuted. Well, ordinary people also bear a large part of the blame in this regard."
Actually, if magic could be combined with technology...
Albert immediately shook off that unrealistic idea.
Reformers are usually the unlucky ones who die on the front lines.
For a small person like Albert, living a good, short life is the most important thing. Even if this world explodes in three hundred years, it has nothing to do with him.
Until the end of the meal, they didn't continue the unpleasant topic, only discussing things to pay attention to when going to Diagon Alley.
At half past eight, Albert and his family set off by car for London.
In Britain, this time is considered quite early for most people.
The The Anderson Family took some time to arrive in London, and Herb quickly led them to the large bookstore and record store.
"Are we there?" Nia looked between the large bookstore and the record store, asking confusedly, "Where's the pub?"
"We're here." Albert nodded.
"While you were studying at Hogwarts, I came here a few more times, but no matter what, I couldn't find that pub." Herb couldn't help but sigh, "magic truly is a wondrous thing."
"Because there's a spell nearby that shields Muggles." Albert explained, "The effect of this spell is to make Muggles overlook certain things, which prevents Muggles from accidentally entering the Leaky Cauldron."
"How do we get in?" Daisy asked.
"Follow me." Albert took Nia's hand, "Don't be nervous, just try to look natural."
With Albert's help, the The Anderson Family finally entered the Leaky Cauldron.
"I can't believe I didn't notice there was a pub here just now!" After Nia followed Albert into the Leaky Cauldron, she was startled by the sight inside, shrinking back and hiding behind Albert, gripping his hand tightly.
There was no other way; it was simply too dark and dirty in there, and there were a few strange characters sitting in the pub: an old woman smoking a pipe, a bald, slovenly old man, and a middle-aged man who was already drunk. No matter how you looked at it, this group of people had a completely different vibe from those Nia usually encountered.
Albert nodded slightly to Tom, the pub owner, ignoring the gazes of the others, and led his family towards the backyard.
"Don't be nervous, you're here to shop." Albert noticed Daisy biting her lip and spoke to comfort her.
Although Daisy looked as calm as usual, Albert knew she had a habit of biting her lip when she was nervous.
"The environment here is more... dilapidated than I imagined." Daisy surveyed the backyard and asked, "Is the entrance here?"
Since Albert had visited Diagon Alley last year, the The Anderson Family all knew that the entrance to Diagon Alley was in the backyard of the Leaky Cauldron.
"Yes." Albert took out his wand, tapped the third brick from the left above the trash can, and then motioned for everyone to step back.
Watching the archway to Diagon Alley open on the wall, Nia looked exceptionally excited and shrieked, "It's truly magical!"
Albert smiled and said, "Welcome to Diagon Alley."
"I didn't expect Diagon Alley to be a street." Daisylooked at the Wizards coming and going, and the old shops on both sides of the alley, starting to understand Albert's description. It certainly looked like it had been there for a while; describing it as backward wasn't too much of an exaggeration.
"Where do we go next?" Daisy asked.
"Let's buy books first." Albert said.
Since Herb had exchanged a large amount of Galleons last year and hadn't spent them all yet, they didn't go to Gringotts this time. Nia was disappointed that she couldn't see the Goblins.
However, the magical shops lining the cobblestone street quickly caught Nia's attention.
Albert was pulled by Nia into Flourish and Blotts. Herband Daisy exchanged glances and followed them inside.
Nia's gaze was immediately drawn to the diverse magical books.
After entering the bookstore, Herb had a brief conversation with the owner to purchase the books Albert needed.
Well, actually, only one book needed to be bought, which was "the standard book of spells, Grade Two," used in Charms Class. The remaining textbooks would continue to be used from last semester.
"Is this book not for sale?" Albert asked the owner, pointing to a book on the display shelf.
"Yes, not for sale." The owner explained, "This is a new work by Mr. Mog MacDougal. It's said he only printed a hundred copies."
"All hundred copies are sold out?" Albert was a little surprised. He had originally thought Mr. Mog MacDougal's book wouldn't sell. "Why didn't he continue printing?"
"I heard the content inside is very difficult, and ordinary people can't understand it at all, so Mr. Mog MacDougalthought it wouldn't sell if he printed more, and he stopped." The owner explained, "If you are interested in Runes, I recommend you buy Mr. Mog MacDougal's 'Complete Guide to Basic Runes.' This book is simple and easy to understand."
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"So, the hundred copies Mr. MacDougal printed were mostly for giving away?" Albert muttered softly. That's right, if others couldn't even understand the book, how could they buy it? Would they spend five Galleons to buy it for collection?
"Don't you have one of these?" Nia asked, confused.
"Alright, let's go!" Albert took the books, paid one Galleon, and left with Nia.
There were still many things that needed to be purchased.
For example, going to the apothecary to replenish various ingredients for potions.
By the way, Nia really disliked the apothecary; the strange ingredients inside scared her quite a bit.
Before leaving the apothecary, Albert had Herbpurchase a bottle of White Essence. With this, if they accidentally got injured in the future, they could use the White Essence to heal quickly without leaving scars.
After Albert's introduction, Mr. and Mrs. Anderson were quite moved and bought another bottle to give to Grandpa Luke. This was a good thing that couldn't be bought in the Muggle World.
Since his school uniform was a few inches too short compared to his limbs, Albert needed to go to Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions to have a few new robes custom-made.
Albert met acquaintances here, the MacDougall sisters, and their mother. The three were there to pick up custom-made robes.
Neither party spoke a word from beginning to end. Mrs. MacDougall paid and then left with her daughters.
"You know each other." Daisy asked curiously.
"Sort of, we're in the same club." Albert replied casually.
This time, Nia didn't fuss about wanting a custom-made one for herself; she was just very curious, watching Madam Malkin help Albert tailor his clothes throughout the process.
While Albert was replenishing ink, quills, and parchment at Wiseacre's Wizarding Equipment, Nia's attention was drawn to a beautiful moving model of the constellations—a large glass sphere containing a model of the solar system.
However, Herb didn't buy it for her because he believed it had no value other than as a decoration, and it cost 15 Galleons, which was simply too expensive.
Nia was a little upset.
However, Albert secretly told her that as long as Nia's grades at school were excellent, he would help convince the family to buy it for her.
Nia's expression immediately brightened, and she smiled happily, saying she would study hard.
After purchasing the necessary items, the The Anderson Family continued to stroll around Diagon Alley. When they passed the Magical Menagerie, they even went inside to buy some food for Tom.
If they got tired of walking, they would eat something under the parasols outside a cafe and chat with their family about their experiences in Diagon Alley.
During this time, Albert also met Wood, who was shopping in Diagon Alley with his family. The Keeper didn't forget to remind him to buy a Flying Broom.
"A Flying Broom?"
Albert briefly explained Quidditch to his family. Herbasked Albert if he needed to visit the Quality QuidditchSupplies shop; they had passed by it earlier.
In Herb and Daisy's eyes, their son was the best, and simple Quidditch would clearly not stump him. Moreover, judging by the tone of the person just now, they believed Albert was qualified to join the Quidditchteam.
"No need." Albert politely declined, "It's not too late to buy a broom if I successfully join the team."
"Oh, alright." Herb respected Albert's opinion, but on the way back, he couldn't help but ask, "You don't seem to like Quidditch very much?"
"To be precise, I don't really like Quidditch training." Albert thought for a moment and still answered honestly, "It's too much of a waste of time; I think I could be doing other things."
"I think Albert just finds Quidditch training troublesome." Nia couldn't help but complain, "Before, he gave up basketball and tennis quite easily, and even the karate he actively started learning only lasted a few months."
Mr. and Mrs. Anderson fell silent; they both knew this. Albert knew many things, but he was just too lazy. He gave up on many things without delving deeply into them, otherwise, he should have achieved good results in some field.
Hmm, Mr. and Mrs. Anderson's brains seemed to have actively blocked out Albert's desire to enter the financial world.