Ron-Weasly book 1. V2

"It's true?" The pale-faced man asked from the doorway. "Bully Granger said that Harry Potter was riding in this compartment. So it's you, right?"

"That's right," Harry nodded.

The two who came with the pale-faced man were tough guys, and they looked rather unpleasant. Flanking the pale boy, they resembled his bodyguards.

"This is Crabbe, and this is Goyle," the pale-faced man casually introduced them, noticing that Harry was looking at his companions. "And I'm Malfoy, Draco Malfoy."

I cleared my throat. Well, they gave him a name. Dragon, wow. Although I've heard that the Malfoys are descended from ice dragons. Just like the Weasleys from the fiery ones. That's why we fight all the time. I could barely contain my laughter. Draco Malfoy looked at me disapprovingly.

"You find my name funny, don't you? I won't even ask you your name. My father told me that if you see a red-haired and freckled boy, it means he's from the Weasley family. A family with more children than their parents can afford."

And a punch in the face for that?

Having delivered this murderous tirade, Malfoy turned back to Harry:

"You'll soon find out, Potter, that there are several wizarding dynasties in our world that are much cooler than all the others. You don't need to be friends with people who aren't worthy of it. I'll help you figure it out. You're my second cousin."

He held out his hand to shake, but Harry pretended not to notice. Damn, he's my second cousin, just like Harry. But my grandmother Lucretia can't stand the Blacks, and neither can the Malfoys. She comes from the Black family herself, and when she married Pruitt, there was a scandal.

"Thanks, but I think I can figure out who deserves what," Harry said coldly.

Draco Malfoy did not blush, but pink spots appeared on his pale cheeks.

"I'd be more careful if I were you, Potter," He said it slowly. "If you're not more polite, you'll end up like your parents. They, like you, didn't know what was good for them and what was bad for them. If you hang out with scum like Weasley and that Hagrid, it'll be worse for you. You might be a half-breed because of your dirty-blooded mother, but you're twenty-eight."

Harry and I rose from our seats at the same time. My face turned copper-red. Right now, someone's going to take a hit. I'll smash his nose without any magic. How dare he call someone a mudblood? The devouring brat.

"Repeat what you said," I demanded. I started flexing my arms before hitting the sturdy left one. It's not right somehow. We're magicians. Even future ones.

"Oh, you're going to fight us, aren't you?" Malfoy said contemptuously.

"Yes, if you don't get out of here right away," Harry said bravely.

"Oh, we're not going to leave at all, are we, guys?" Malfoy chuckled, turning to his companions. "Besides, we're hungry, and you've got a lot of food here."

I remembered the fighting techniques that Bill showed me last summer. First, drop the burly man on the right, then punch the left one in the nose, and while they come to their senses, give this blond brute a hard time.

Goyle reached for the chocolate frogs on one of the seats. I jumped on Creb, but before I could touch him, Goyle let out a terrifying scream. There was a Brat hanging from Goyle's hand, biting into his finger with small, sharp teeth. Crabbe and Malfoy staggered back, and Goyle waved his hand, trying to shake off the rat and howling in pain. And as soon as the Brat finally unclenched his teeth and flew away, hitting the closed window, all three of them instantly disappeared. They probably thought there were more rats hiding in the compartment, or maybe they heard footsteps, because a second later Hermione Granger looked into the compartment.

"What's going on here?" she asked, looking at the sweets scattered on the floor and me holding the rat by the tail.

"I think he's passed out," I said, turning to Harry. And then I took a closer look at the Brat. "No... I can't believe it! Imagine, he fell asleep again."

The brat was actually asleep. By the way, what else is this about the Hagrid clause? Is this where he saw him with Harry? Isn't he a forester and doesn't go further than Hogsmeade Castle? Although Harry seemed to say something about Hagrid bringing him a letter. So stop. Did he take him shopping?! Were all the professors busy?

"Have you ever dated Malfoy before?" I asked.

"Yes, I met him at Madame Malkin's when I was buying robes. He was all about kicking Muggleborns out of Hogwarts. And I'm like a Muggle-born myself, since I grew up with Muggles. And then I went shopping with Hagrid, and Malfoy saw him through the window. And he said he was a drunk. After Aunt Petunia's lectures about my drunken parents, I'm just freaking out with such words. She always used to say that my parents were lazy drunks and crashed in a car after drinking too much alcohol. I almost got killed, too, and now I'm wondering why she was talking about it. You-know-who killed them, and she knew it. Didn't want to scare you? So I grabbed my robes and ran out of the store. I didn't even look at my clothes. Although there was money. My aunt had to ask me to buy shirts and trousers at a second-hand store. And even though she takes good things, she makes me grow up. I look very small in them. But she gave me good shoes. Although I grumbled that it was better to take boots for the winter, but I'm used to light ones. She also gave me Uncle Vernon's school sweater at school.

"Harry, it's really cold at school in winter, the upperclassmen use warming charms to escape, and the younger students buy warm clothes. I'm going to wear warm jeans and a knitted sweater in winter."

"Damn, is my aunt really going to have to write in November to buy more things, it's a damn shame. I'm sitting on their necks, because they don't even pay my allowance, I found out from Uncle Vernon."

Yeah, what can I say. By the way, why did they send this bully with him? He hadn't even told him how to get on the platform, and neither had Harry's clothes. Madame Malkin seemed to think that he, like all Muggleborns, only needed robes. But they buy them in their stores. And Harry is too shy.

"I've heard about his family." I began in a gloomy tone, remembering Dad's stories about the Malfoy family. They were one of the first to come back to our side when You-Know-Who disappeared. They said he had bewitched them. There's a spell that gets you locked up in Azkaban for life. And my father doesn't believe in it. He said that Malfoy's father didn't even need a reason to turn to the Dark Side. They say that pure-blooded magicians like to kill Muggles during rituals and generally for entertainment, as they did in the magical war.

Hermione was still standing in the doorway of the compartment, and I turned to her:

"Is there anything we can help you with?" And why is this girl picking on us. I've never understood my sister and her friend Luna. And here's a total stranger. What's another crush on Harry? She's staring at me, though. Oh, whatever. I have Hannah, damn, she's probably going to Halfpalf.

"You'd better hurry, otherwise you won't have time to change clothes. I was just in the driver's cabin talking to him. He said we were almost there. Have you been fighting here? They're good, nothing to say. We haven't reached school yet, and we've already got into trouble!"

When will she leave us alone? How to get her out of here. Oh, right.

"It was the Brat who fought, not us." I glared at the girl. "Why don't you come out and let us change?"

"Of course. Actually, I just came to see you because there is a terrible fuss in all the carriages, everyone is behaving like little children and rushing through the corridors." Hermione snorted contemptuously, as if to say that she disapproved of such behavior. "By the way, you have dirt on your nose, you know?"

I glared after her, and Harry stared out the window. Outside the window, where the mountains towered and endless forests stretched, it began to darken, and the sky turned dark purple with the first stars. The train slowed down.

Harry and I quickly took off our jackets and pulled on long black robes. My robe was a little too short for me, and my gray plaid trousers were sticking out from under it. And leather boots. I was a little shy about my appearance. But I'll grow up before the end of the year. The robes will become even shorter, and the trousers with the legs turned up will be fine for me.

"We'll be at Hogwarts in five minutes." The driver's loud voice echoed through the carriages. Traditionally, squibs who were educated on the railway by Muggles worked as machinists. "Please leave your luggage on the train, it will be delivered to the school separately. Do not forget the familiars in the compartment. We're taking it with us."

Harry got nervous, and I turned very pale.

"Harry, take Hedwig with you, and let her go on the platform. There's an owlery in the castle. She'll find her own way. Leave the cage here."

I put the Brat in my bosom. We stuffed the rest of the sweets into our pockets and went out into the hallway, where the rest of the children were already crowding. Hedwig, the delighted owl, flew next to us.

The train slowed down and slowed down and finally stopped. There was a terrible crowd in the corridor, but after a few minutes I finally found myself on an unlit small platform. It was cold outside, and I shivered. Damn, I shouldn't have taken off my jacket. Then a large lamp swung over the heads of the guys standing on the platform, and I heard a voice:

"Freshmen! Freshmen, come here! Hey, Harry, are you all right?"

Above the sea of heads towered the shining face of a giant. I wonder if Hagrid fell into a cauldron of bone as a child? And why was he expelled from school? Charlie said he was an underachiever.

"So, is everyone here? Then follow me! And look at your feet! Freshmen, follow me!"

Slipping and stumbling, we followed Hagrid down a narrow path that sloped sharply down. We were surrounded by such dense darkness that it seemed to me as if we were making our way through a forest thicket. All conversations died down, and we walked in almost complete silence, except for Neville sneezing a couple of times.

"Just a few more seconds and you'll see Hogwarts!" Hagrid shouted without turning around. "Okay, careful! Everyone over here!"

"Oh-oh-oh-!" there was a collective, delighted exclamation.

We were standing on the shore of a large black lake. And on the other side of it, on top of a high cliff, stood a giant castle with turrets and loopholes, and its huge windows reflected the light of the stars strewn across the sky.

"Four people per boat, no more" Hagrid commanded, pointing to a whole flotilla of small boats bobbing near the shore.

Harry and I found ourselves in the same boat as Hermione and Neville. Pancake... As they say, you will communicate with whoever you sail with. Not with this nerd. It would be better if Hannah came to us. I would have chosen another boat, but Harry balked. Then he said he liked Neville. And we sat down first, and then Hermione dragged Neville to us with a toad in her hands.

"Are you seated?" Hagrid, who had a private boat, shouted. "Then go ahead!"

The flotilla moved, the boats glided across the glass-smooth lake. The boat glided quietly across the dark surface of the lake, cutting through the mirrored surface and leaving light ripples in its wake. There was an almost magical silence around — only a barely audible melody, as if woven from wind and water, quietly poured from somewhere, as if nature itself was humming a slow song.

Harry sat in the stern, holding the oars tightly, but hardly worked with them — the boat seemed to float by itself, driven not by force, but by some inner agreement of all four. He looked ahead to where the silhouette of Hogwarts loomed on top of the hill: the towers stretched to the sky, warm light flickered in the windows, and the castle seemed not just a school, but a safe haven waiting for them back.

Nearby, on the middle bench, I whistled softly to the beat of the music, glancing at my fellow travelers from time to time and checking if everything was in order.

"You know," I said softly, turning to Harry, "when you're floating like this, and it's quiet, and the castle is ahead... it doesn't seem like any problems can be really scary. Well, of course they can, but it's like everything's getting a little smaller. It's like a lake is washing away excess."

Hermione, sitting closer to the bow of the boat, tilted her head slightly, listening to the melody.

"It's not just music," she said softly. "I read that sometimes there is... well, not magic on the lake, but something like an echo of ancient enchantments. It's soothing. Probably so that the freshmen wouldn't be scared."

Neville, who had been staring at the water in silence, as if afraid to move and rock the boat, exhaled softly and squared his shoulders a little.

"I feel better when you're around." He confessed without looking up. "Even if there's something scary ahead."

I snorted, but there was no mockery in that snort-just a habitual attempt to hide excitement behind a joke.

"Well, if anything, we'll just hide behind Hermione. After all, she had already learned all the textbooks."

Hermione rolled her eyes, but she smiled.

"Thanks for your trust, Ron. But it's better if we act together."

Harry finally put down the oars and sat down next to his friends. The boat continued to sail as if it knew the way.

"We can really do this," he said softly, looking at each of them in turn. "Whatever's waiting in the castle. Together."

The music became a little quieter, as if nodding in response. And ahead, the windows of Hogwarts shone brighter and warmer, promising that there would always be a place for them here.

Everyone was silent, staring at the huge castle. The closer we got to the cliff he was standing on, the more he towered over us.

"Bow down and close your eyes!" Hagrid shouted loudly as we approached the cliff.

Everyone tilted their heads, and the boats ended up in a thicket of ivy that hid a huge crevice.

"This is so that we don't find out where the entrance to the underground harbor is. My dad told me about it."

After passing through the thicket, we entered a dark tunnel, which, apparently, ended right under the castle, and soon moored to an underground pier and disembarked on the rocks.

"Oh, my toad! I missed her again." Neville wailed as we floated through the dark tunnel.

The giant was examining the empty boats and apparently noticed something.

"Hey, you!" shouted Hagrid, addressing Neville. "Is this your toad?"

"Oh, Trevor!" Neville yelled happily, stretching out his arms and hugging his toad to him.