Hogwarts: Don't call me Wandmaker

Chapter 326 Yeqi
When the Hogwarts Express finally slowed down and stopped at Hogsmeade Station, the rain that had been falling all day showed no signs of stopping; in fact, it was getting heavier.

The sky was pitch black, with occasional rumbles of thunder.

The train doors opened, and everyone had to get off the train and plunge into the torrential rain outside.

Older students are fine; even if they don't know waterproof or moisture-proof spells, a simple transformation spell can conjure a large umbrella or raincoat for them, enough for them to run onto the carriage.

But the younger students couldn't keep up. Ordinary umbrellas were no match for the heavy rain, and they were soaked through in just a few minutes, standing there shivering like a flock of quails.

To make matters worse, they also had to cross the river to Hogwarts in a little while.

"Oh, thank goodness it wasn't raining this hard when we enrolled," Ron muttered to himself, shivering.

“Yes.” Celen waved vigorously, greeting Hagrid, who had come to pick up the first-year students. “Crossing the river by ferry in this weather would be a disaster.”

"Let's go quickly," Hermione urged.

Although the waterproof and moisture-proof spell could help them keep out the rain, it couldn't stop the cold wind. In just a short while, she was shivering from the cold.

The group immediately quickened their pace and walked across the dark platform.

Outside the station, a hundred Thestral carriages were waiting for them.

At times like this, Xiren couldn't help but sigh in his heart... Hogwarts truly deserves its reputation as a magic school that has existed for a thousand years; its heritage is astonishing.

In the magical world, Thestrals are even rarer than dragons, and Thestral carriages are usually the first choice for important figures to travel in.

But Hogwarts has over a hundred of them, which carry students between the station and the castle during school holidays, making quite a spectacle.

Of course, most students are not aware of this yet... after all, only a very small number of people can see and recognize Thestrals.

The carriage passed through a gate flanked by winged warthog sculptures and, following the wide driveway, swayed and came to a stop on the stone steps before two oak gates.

Xilun was the first to jump out of the carriage, glancing instinctively at the Thestrals.

Legend has it that the core of the Elder Wand is made from the tail feathers of a Thestral, and Siron has always wanted to try it, but has never succeeded.

As for the reason...

Siren turned his gaze to the Thestral's bare, lizard-like tail... completely devoid of any hair or feathers.

As expected, Xilun seemed to have known all along that this would happen.

After all, from first to fourth grade, he had never seen a Thestral with tail feathers. Even Hagrid had said that Thestrals did not have tail feathers.

Siren also doubted whether the legend was wrong, that the Elder Wand's core was actually made of other materials, such as the bones of a Thestral.

This kind of thing is easy to confirm; you just need to look at the Elder Wand to know. But the thing is, he has never seen the Elder Wand with his own eyes.

Strangely enough, while Siren had seen Dumbledore cast spells, he had never seen the Elder Wand.

"Good heavens, if this keeps going on, the lake is going to flood!" Ron jumped out of the carriage, shook his head vigorously, and splashed water everywhere.

Hermione's waterproof and moisture-proof spell on him had already worn off, so to avoid getting wet, he lowered his head and ran into the castle.

Harry and Hermione followed closely behind, with Hermione even glancing back.

"Silen, what are you doing standing there..."

"Ah, it's nothing, I'm coming," Xilun said, then turned his gaze away from the Thestral's tail and quickly walked up the stone steps.

Ron, who was walking at the front, thought things would get better once he entered the castle, but he never expected that as soon as he passed through the gate, a large red balloon filled with water would fall from the ceiling. The balloon exploded above his head, and Ron, who hadn't even reacted yet, was soaked to the bone. He muttered something, slipped, and almost fell to the ground.

Harry, who was standing nearby, was also affected, and his shoes got wet from the splashing water.

Seeing their embarrassed state, the instigator, Pippi the Ghost, laughed heartily twenty feet above their heads.

There was no time to be angry, because a second water-filled balloon fell down, and the people around screamed and shoved each other, trying to get away from this place of trouble.

"You little devil, get down here right now!" an angry voice shouted.

Professor McGonagall rushed out of the Great Hall. The ground was so wet that she slipped and had to grab Hermione's neck to avoid falling.

Chokehold?

Siren subconsciously touched his neck; it was really solid. Hermione even rolled her eyes.

“…Oh dear, I’m so sorry, Miss Granger…”

“No, it’s alright, Professor McGonagall,” Hermione said breathlessly, her voice sounding a little hoarse.

"Petty, get down here right now!" Professor McGonagall shouted.

Peeves, though fond of pranks, dared not go against the professor. When Professor McGonagall yelled at him, he immediately ran away with a cacophony of laughter.

However, the remaining water balloons were not wasted. Pipi threw them all down when he ran, about five or six of them. They hit the ground with a crackling sound like firecrackers, and water was everywhere.

Xilun looked at the size of the balloons and compared them to Pippi's height of about three feet... He really didn't know how it managed to hold so many balloons.

“It’s true, it happens every year…” Professor McGonagall said, waving her wand and the wet floor instantly became clean again.

"Alright, hurry up and get into the auditorium," she said to the other students. "Hurry up, the new students will be here soon."

Everyone immediately sprang into action.

Celen walked through the foyer and into a double door behind Professor McGonagall.

The auditorium was as magnificent as ever, seemingly decorated again for the new semester banquet, with everything sparkling under the light of hundreds and thousands of candles in mid-air.

Siren walked to the long table and sat down, right next to the Gryffindor ghost, Nick, who was almost headless.

He was talking to the fat monk from Hufflepuff at that moment.

“Perhaps we can give Pippi a chance,” the fat monk said. “If we agree to let him attend the freshman banquet, he certainly won’t cause trouble in the foyer.”

“Yeah, the Great Hall will be in chaos, and the Sorting Ceremony might even have to be postponed,” Nick said with a certainty. “No one will agree to let Peeves attend the party. That suggestion is worse than teaching trolls to dance ballet.”

It turned out to be the case.

Xilen blinked.

No wonder Mischievous Ghost makes a ruckus in the lobby every year at the start of the school year; he wants to attend the freshman banquet.

Silen agreed with Nick; letting that guy in would be a disaster for all the students and teachers.

……

(End of this chapter)