The train slowly pulled to a stop at the platform, rain pouring down in sheets, splattering and forming puddles.
Everyone else had already returned to their compartments to pack and change. Theo stood up, ready to disembark, but Michael reached out to stop him.
"Wait a bit," Michael said. "The doorway will be completely jammed right now."
Through the glass, they could hear the students' urgent shouts and calls in the corridor.
Theo sat back down, then, as if he had a hedgehog under his backside, kept getting up to check outside. After a long while, seeing that the flow of people in the corridor had finally thinned out significantly, he quickly said,
"Most people have gotten off. Let's go quickly too."
Ryan smiled and stood up, followed by Wade.
Michael sighed and said to Wade, "Honestly, I'd rather wait until everyone's gone before getting off. The school isn't going to just leave us on the train anyway."
"Alright, get up." Ryan reached out and hauled him from his seat.
Wade pulled his raincoat from his pocket, shook it until it returned to its original size, and asked Michael, "Need a raincoat?"
When they had boarded the train, only Michael was soaked, clearly having left without an umbrella.
Michael chuckled, "My Transfiguration has been pretty good lately. Let me show you."
He pulled a Chocolate Frog wrapper from the table, pointed his Wand at it, and chanted a Transfiguration Spell.
Moments later, the wrapper gradually grew larger, transforming into a bluish-green Cloak adorned with golden patterns.
Ryan, waiting by the door, gave a thumbs-up: "Impressive!"
Michael raised an eyebrow, putting on the Cloak. "I hope you're genuinely praising my Transfiguration, and not just the pattern on this Cloak."
He walked ahead, and Wade, following behind, couldn't help but laugh—on the back of the Cloak was printed a goofy-looking frog.
At the carriage door, sure enough, a small group of people was still gathered there. Wade waited a bit longer before finally stepping out of the carriage.
Standing on the dark platform, he finally understood why the students were so slow—many older students were holding leaf umbrellas or flower umbrellas, deliberately strolling leisurely along the platform, showing off the results of their Transfiguration!
"Wade, they stole your idea!" Michael said indignantly.
"Let's go!" Ryan urged. "I'm freezing to death."
As they walked from the platform to the Thestral carriages, Wade noticed that some people's Transfiguration wasn't up to par. The leaf umbrellas that had just begun to unfurl were already wilting, and when too much rainwater accumulated in the center of a leaf, it would suddenly tilt, drenching the student below from head to toe with icy water.
Michael couldn't help but burst out laughing, while also nervously pulling his wrapper Cloak tighter.
Not only was it pouring rain, but a strong wind was also blowing, wrapping the rain around them from all directions. No umbrella was any good.
Fortunately, the Chocolate Frog manufacturer had some conscience; the wrapper was coated with a layer of wax, making it waterproof and moisture-resistant. When the carriage swayed into Hogwarts, Michael's Cloak hadn't been soaked through by the rain.
No one lingered at the entrance either. Wade stepped out of the carriage and quickly ascended the steps, entering the castle, passing through the Entrance Hall into the warm Great Hall, finally letting out a sigh of relief.
He greeted Theo, took off his Cloak, and walked towards the Ravenclaw table, shrinking his Cloak as he went.
Just as he found an empty seat and sat down, he heard a gasp from the entrance. Then Harry and the others, drenched, rushed into the Great Hall, followed by several screaming fifth-year girls.
"Hey, what's going on in the Entrance Hall, you guys?"
As the group walked through the aisle between the long tables, Fred asked curiously in a loud voice.
"Peeves is throwing water balloons," Ron said angrily. "It's just our luck..."
They sat down at the Gryffindor table, their backs to Wade. Their socks must have gotten wet, because they made squishing sounds as they walked.
Harry was taking off his shoes to pour out the water when a boy immediately came up to him, excitedly saying, "Harry, guess what? My brother started too! My brother's name is Dennis!"
Wade's fingertips trembled. He turned his head and looked at the boy.
Colin Creevey. He and his brother were both Harry Potter fans. If he remembered correctly, both of them died in the final war.
When they sacrificed themselves, neither of the brothers had even reached adulthood yet.
"Hi, Colin." Michael turned around and said with a grin, "Didn't you bring your camera? Not going to take a precious photo of 'Soaked Harry Potter'?"
"Hey, Michael!" Harry shouted.
"Good idea!" Colin's eyes lit up. He looked at Harry eagerly, raising his camera and asking, "Can I take one? Just one?"
"Thanks, but no, Colin." Harry decisively refused, putting his cold, wet sneakers back on.
Just then, the Great Hall doors suddenly opened, and Professor McGonagall led a group of first-years inside. The students immediately quieted down and looked over.
The children looked as if they'd been pulled from water, shivering from the cold. One first-year, wrapped in Hagrid's moleskin coat, excitedly gestured to Colin.
"I fell in the lake!" he mouthed happily.
When Professor McGonagall led the first-years to the front and took out the Sorting Hat, Harry stretched out his arm and tugged on Wade's sleeve.
Wade turned around to see Harry whispering, "Help us out, Wade, we're all drenched."
On the train, Michael had enthusiastically explained Wade's self-invented Warm Wind Spell to them. If there was a way to dry their clothes, who would want to endure the feeling of cold, wet clothes clinging to their skin?
"Oh, Harry." Nearly Headless Nick approached him, helpfully saying, "If you need, I can get you two candles."
Harry's mouth twitched. Hermione interjected, "Thanks, Nick, but I think we need quicker help."
She fretfully wrung the hem of her Robes, her hair still dripping water, wet as if she'd just been pulled from the sea like seaweed.
Wade smiled, pulled out his Wand, and with a flick of his wrist: "Warm Breeze."
A gust of hot wind swirled out from the tip of Wade's Wand, sweeping over Harry like a wave, then over Hermione, and in an instant, across the entire Great Hall.
Amidst the whooshing sound of the wind, the Sorting Hat, just about to sing, opened its mouth, its body puffing up from the hot air; many girls screamed as the hair plastered to their faces instantly became fluffy and soft; Professor McGonagall's pointed hat suddenly flew off, but she quickly caught it.
At the Slytherin table, Malfoy's perfectly neat hair now resembled a dandelion, while Pansy next to him looked even more like a poodle.
At the teachers' table, Professor Snape's Robes flared open abruptly, then were immediately pressed back down by him, after which he glared fiercely at Wade.
Professor Dumbledore, on the other hand, reacted very quickly; he timely reached out and held his beard to prevent his meticulously groomed facial hair from being messed up, then comfortably narrowed his eyes.
Above the Great Hall, the candlelight flickered wildly but did not extinguish. Only a few bats seemed startled, suddenly swooping through the air.
Moments later, the whirlwind dissipated, and the entire Great Hall fell silent. The first-year students blankly touched their now-dry clothes, and several Young Wizards from the Muggle world had astonishingly bright eyes.
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