At the edge of the Bosque Prohibido in November, the cold wind cut like a knife.
The wind howled mournfully, sweeping up thick layers of withered leaves and broken ice from the ground, creating a harsh, rustling noise.
A snow-white, elegantly built Ragdoll Cat was curled up in a pile of withered leaves.
Her sky-blue eyes scanned the surroundings warily, her body tensing at the slightest movement.
Lia had lived here for eleven years.
Or rather, this was her third life.
Cold was the end of her first life.
On a winter night as cold as this one, Lia was still a stray kitten, eventually losing her breath to endless hunger and bitter cold.
Fangs and claws were the final note of her second life.
A hunter's trap, smelling of rust, snapped her hind leg, ending her life with excruciating pain and blood loss.
And the third life... Lia's body trembled uncontrollably, a nightmare she didn't want to recall but was etched deep into her soul.
When she first entered the human world, a mark named "Fear" was left deep within her body.
Along with a gift named "Regeneration."
That was her first, and last, contact with humans.
Since then, she had hidden in this remote Bosque Prohibido, never daring to set foot in the human world again.
"Hoo—"
A hoot, out of place in the dead silence, sounded overhead.
Lia looked up warily, her sapphire-like eyes reflecting a dusty owl.
Its claws weren't clutching a struggling field mouse, but its beak held a strange, yellowed envelope sealed with wax.
On the envelope, emerald-green ink wrote an address she had never seen before:
"To Miss Lia, the white cat in the leaf pile at the edge of the Bosque Prohibido."
Specifically for her?
Lia's cat ears perked up alertly, her blue eyes filled with suspicion.
Was it a trap?
But who would use an owl to set a trap?
Curiosity ultimately overcame caution.
Lia slowly stood up, shaking off the ice and withered leaves clinging to her snow-white fur.
With her still somewhat clumsy paw pads, she cautiously reached out and gently slit open the envelope.
The moment the envelope was opened.
A figure appeared out of thin air, as if he had been standing there all along.
The newcomer had a waist-length silver-white beard and wore a pair of half-moon spectacles.
Behind the lenses, blue eyes shone with a gentle, all-knowing light, gazing kindly at her.
He held a thick book in his hand, and a quill floating beside it emitted a soft glow, clearly pointing at this seemingly ordinary Ragdoll Cat.
A human!
And one so powerful it was beyond her comprehension!
"Boom—!"
Lia's mind went blank instantly, overwhelming Fear flooding her like a tide.
"Hiss—hah!"
All her fur stood on end, her body arched into a taut bow, and a threatening hiss escaped her throat.
Those beautiful blue eyes now held only the panic and madness of being cornered.
"Oh! It seems my owl delivered it successfully."
The newcomer's voice was like the warmest winter sunlight, carrying a soothing power.
"Don't be nervous, child."
Albus Dumbledore, the Principal of Hogwarts, the greatest Wizard of the age, spoke gently.
"I've been looking for you for a long time."
He raised the envelope in his hand, a hint of apology in his smile.
"Hogwarts' acceptance letter, written for the first time for a... well, magical creature."
Hogwarts? An acceptance letter?
These unfamiliar words couldn't penetrate Lia's chaotic mind at all.
She only knew that the human before her was powerful beyond her understanding.
Extreme tension caused the magic within her to surge violently, her breathing becoming ragged with Fear.
Under Dumbledore's astonished gaze, the small cat body was rapidly lengthening and changing.
Soon, the leaf pile no longer held the snow-white Ragdoll Cat.
In its place was a barefoot, completely naked white-haired girl.
The girl's skin glowed white under the gloomy sky, her silver-white hair flowing smoothly down her back.
A pair of fluffy white cat ears trembled slightly from extreme tension.
Behind her, a fluffy white long tail swept the ground restlessly, stirring up a few withered leaves.
Her sapphire-like eyes were now filled with panic and confusion.
Lia stared blankly at her own slender, pale human hands.
She looked up in terror at Dumbledore before her.
Then, she blurted out the first words she had spoken to an intelligent being other than herself since coming to this world.
"Meow?!"
A soft, panicked meow came from the girl's mouth, filled with obvious bewilderment.
A flash of understanding surprise crossed Albus Dumbledore's eyes.
He looked at the naked girl with cat ears and a tail before him, his gentle blue eyes showing deep thought.
"Oh, a natural-born Animagus."
He said softly, as if admiring a rare treasure.
"It seems Hogwarts is about to welcome a special student."
As soon as he finished speaking, he waved his hand lightly.
A thick, warm woolen blanket appeared out of thin air, gently covering Lia and completely wrapping her naked body.
The warm sensation made Lia, who was trembling slightly from cold and Fear, stiffen.
She instinctively gripped the blanket, her blue eyes still fixed warily on Dumbledore, full of caution.
"Don't be afraid, I won't hurt you."
Dumbledore gently explained what Hogwarts was, and why the magic surging within her had earned her an acceptance letter.
Lia listened in a daze, but she could sense that this white-bearded old man didn't carry the nauseating malice she remembered.
"We need to prepare some things for you first, like... clothes."
Dumbledore said, extending his hand toward her.
"Hold on tight, child. The next sensation might feel a bit strange."
Lia hesitated, but looking into his gentle, sincere eyes, she inexplicably reached out and lightly grasped his arm.
The next second, a dizzying sensation suddenly struck!
Her entire body felt as if it were being stuffed into a narrow tube, squeezed and pulled wildly!
Lia was too scared to even scream, only able to shut her eyes tightly and curl up more tightly in the blanket.
In just an instant, that terrifying feeling disappeared.
Lia trembled as she opened her eyes, finding herself no longer at the familiar edge of the Bosque Prohibido.
She trembled and collapsed onto a dimly lit street.
Dumbledore led her into a small, dirty-looking bar.
The bar was bustling with noise, the air filled with a strange smell.
The Wizards inside, upon seeing Dumbledore, all showed deep respect and made way for him.
"Good afternoon, Albus."
"Merlin's beard, it's Professor Dumbledore!"
Greetings echoed one after another, but more curious gazes fell on Lia, who was wrapped tightly in a blanket and shielded behind Dumbledore.
Lia nervously buried her head lower, only revealing a pair of wary eyes, secretly observing these oddly dressed humans around her.
They passed through the bar and arrived at a small courtyard enclosed by brick walls in the backyard.
Dumbledore drew his magic wand and tapped it lightly against the brick wall a few times.
"Three up, two across..."
A miraculous scene unfolded.
The tapped bricks began to squirm and shift, a hole appearing in the center of the wall, rapidly expanding until it formed an imposing archway.
Beyond the archway was an unbelievably bustling commercial street!
A dazzling array of magical goods sparkled in shop windows.
Owls flew overhead, Wizards in pointed hats came and went, everything filled with novelty and magic.
Lia was stunned by the sight before her, her blue eyes wide open, momentarily forgetting her Fear.
"Welcome to Diagon Alley," Dumbledore said with a smile.
Their first stop was "Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions."
A short, plump, smiling Witch greeted them.
"Good afternoon, Professor Dumbledore! Here to prepare school robes for a new student?"
When Madam Malkin saw Lia peeking out from the blanket, with a pair of fluffy cat ears on her head, she covered her mouth in surprise.
"Oh, Merlin's beard! This child is adorable!"