[Chapter Size: 2000 Words.]

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Although Harry hadn't interacted much with Hagrid, he could tell that Hagrid had a deep sense of belonging to the school where he worked, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and that he loved it dearly.

It must be a great place if the staff are so fond of it. Harry thought to himself. He vividly remembered how Vernon Dursley complained about his presence every single day.

Beyond the silver door, two goblins greeted them again and led them into a grand hall paved with marble. Around a hundred goblins sat on high stools behind a row of large counters on either side. Some were weighing gold and silver coins on metal scales, while others carefully examined gemstones through magnifying lenses. A few were recording transactions in massive ledgers that seemed disproportionately large compared to their small frames.

Some goblins were escorting people in and out of those doors, and the place seemed incredibly busy.

Hagrid led Harry to a counter where a goblin was seated.

"Good morning!" Hagrid said. "We need to withdraw some money from Harry Potter's vault!" As he spoke, he nudged Harry forward.

"Very well, Mr. Potter. Do you have your key with you?" the goblin behind the counter asked, looking Harry up and down.

His voice was sharp, somewhat like Aunt Petunia’s, only harsher. But Harry found the goblin fascinating. There was no doubt about his gender, given his appearance.

"Ah, yes! I brought it, I brought it, I brought it!"

Beside him, Hagrid patted his forehead with his massive hand, then rubbed his arms for a moment.

He rummaged through his enormous coat, pulling out an assortment of objects. Most of them looked like junk to Harry, but to his astonishment, he spotted a live owl among them!

Luckily, there were no cockroaches or lizards, otherwise, Harry might have been too wary to let this giant man touch him in the future. Not that he was particularly afraid of insects.

Just as Harry started worrying that kind hearted but slightly scatterbrained Hagrid might have forgotten to bring his key, Hagrid finally fished out a small golden key.

However, instead of handing it to the goblin, he gave it to Harry. "Harry, this is the key to your vault! You must keep it safe! Of course, you'll be getting a wand soon. Once you've registered it, you’ll be able to use it to prove your identity."

Harry smacked his lips. By now, Hagrid had mentioned the wand quite a few times. Yet, he hadn’t seen one. Hagrid himself wasn’t carrying a wand.

Harry’s eyes shifted to the small red umbrella clutched in Hagrid’s arms.

Nodding to himself, Harry took the key and examined it. The weight of it made him wonder if it was actually made of gold. Then, he handed it over to the goblin.

The goblin inspected it carefully and nodded approvingly. "Looks good.”

"Oh, right!" Hagrid suddenly seemed to remember something and pulled a letter from another pocket. "I also have a letter from Professor Dumbledore. About the object, in the safe you know which one!" As he spoke, he handed the letter over.

The goblin took it, read it carefully, and hesitated before saying, "So soon? I thought it would be later."

"Well, yes, that’s what Dumbledore arranged." Hagrid looked slightly embarrassed but still tried to appear composed.

The goblin said nothing but gave a nod and called out, "Griphook! Take them.”

A goblin named Griphook led Harry and Hagrid through a door behind the counter. Harry glanced around curiously, only to find that behind the door was a narrow stone passage with a steep descent, a rather dull sight.

Finding it uninteresting, Harry, recalling what Hagrid had just said, whispered, "Hagrid, what's inside the Vault?"

"Ah, well, that’s... I can't tell you!" Hagrid shook his head. "It's a Hogwarts secret. Dumbledore entrusted me with it because he trusts me! This is a highly confidential task, and it’s really not something I can share with you!"

Harry shrugged and didn’t press further.

Ahead of them, Griphook led the way down the passage. Below them, a set of tracks extended into unknown depths underground.

What followed was the most thrilling roller coaster ride of Harry’s life! He silently swore to himself that he would never take that ride again unless absolutely necessary.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

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As Harry stepped out of Gringotts, his mouth stretched into a wide grin.

There was no way to hide his smile!

Although Hagrid had told him that his late father had left him a considerable fortune, actually seeing hundreds of thousands of gold Galleons piled before him had made Harry’s heart race with shock.

The Dursleys had never been particularly generous with him, and he had rarely had money of his own to spend.

Of course, Dudley hadn’t exactly been showered with cash either, so Harry had never felt particularly resentful about it.

Even so, when he stuffed over a hundred gold coins into his pocket, an unfamiliar yet exhilarating joy surged through him.

The only downside was that, despite being only slightly larger than buttons, the sheer number of gold coins made them surprisingly heavy! His trousers kept slipping down, forcing him to tug them up repeatedly, until Hagrid noticed and handed him a small pouch made of some unknown leather.

Harry found the little bag fascinating!

Although it didn’t seem very large, it held far more than it appeared to from the outside. More importantly, even after stuffing in hundreds of coins, it didn’t gain any weight at all!

"That was made by two funny little blokes from the academy. Well, you’ll meet them when you get to Hogwarts. They’re troublemakers, but very talented!" Hagrid said with a grin when he noticed how interested Harry was in the pouch.

Harry nodded eagerly, his excitement about studying magic at Hogwarts growing even stronger. He was also curious about something else, his gaze drifted to Hagrid’s thick coat, where, in an inner pocket, the half-giant had tucked away a small bag retrieved from Vault. Harry couldn’t help but wonder what was inside.

After that, Hagrid took Harry to buy his school supplies. Harry had asked Hagrid in advance not to mention his name, so this time there were no awkward handshaking incidents.

First, they bought books, followed by cauldrons, glass phials, telescopes, and scales.

The eight books were all thick and heavy, but Hagrid casually tied them together with a rope and carried them with ease, as if they weighed no more than a bottle of water.

"Now, let’s get your robes." Hagrid didn’t remember the entire shopping list, but Harry had memorized it and was able to remind him. He pointed to Madam Malkin’s Robes for All Occasions just a short distance away, hesitated for a moment, and said:

"Harry, would you mind going in on your own? I want to stop by the Leaky Cauldron for a drink. That cart ride made me feel awful."

Hagrid had already shown his discomfort with roller coasters back in Gringotts. Harry had felt queasy as well, though not as obviously as Hagrid. After all, he and Dudley had gone to amusement parks a few times a year, and roller coasters had always been a must, though this one had been at least a hundred times more intense.

Hearing Hagrid’s request, Harry immediately nodded and flashed a big smile. "No problem, I can handle it."

"Alright, I’ll drop this off in your room first." Hagrid beamed.

Even though he had said he was fine, Harry still felt a little nervous as he stepped into the shop alone.

Fortunately, Madam Malkin was very friendly, and she mistook Harry for a girl.

Although he had played along with this mix-up countless times before, it still amused him, and he found himself relaxing quite a bit.

What relieved Harry even more was that the woman didn’t recognize him. He decided not to reveal his identity until it was absolutely necessary.

Of course, in the end, he would have to put his name on the robe’s label anyway.

Madam Malkin called over a young witch to take Harry’s measurements. A moment later, another girl entered the shop.

She wasn’t very tall, about the same height as Harry, with long, thick brown hair and very fair skin, which made the freckles on her face stand out even more. She had large eyes, a small nose and mouth.

Madam Malkin went over to greet the newcomer.

"My dear, are you a first-year student? Do you need a custom-fitted robe?" she asked warmly.

"Good morning, ma’am," the girl replied with a polite smile. "I’m not entirely sure about the process, but yes, I do need a fitted robe."

Despite admitting her uncertainty, her tone and posture remained remarkably composed, almost proud, even.

Madam Malkin’s smile grew even more welcoming. She seated the girl next to Harry and instructed another assistant to take her measurements.

"Hello? First year?" the girl asked, glancing at Harry.

"Yes," Harry replied, deliberately lowering his voice. He was curious to see the girl’s reaction when she realized he was actually a boy. Given how confident and slightly arrogant she had seemed when she walked in, her surprise would surely be amusing.

To his surprise, the girl simply nodded before tilting her head slightly and saying, "You do realize, don’t you? You look quite a bit, well, not just a bit, but a lot, like a girl. Why do you keep your hair long? It’s easy to be mistaken."

Harry blinked in shock. "Wait… You knew I was a boy from the start?"

"Of course!" the girl replied as if it were obvious. Then she pointed first at her chest, then at Harry’s Adam’s apple. "It’s not that hard to tell, is it?"

Harry: “…”

This girl had an incredible eye for detail.

At eleven or twelve, many girls had already started developing, but plenty hadn’t. On the other hand, unless a boy was particularly overweight, his Adam’s apple was usually visible.

Yet before now, everyone had been fooled by Harry’s face. She was the first person to notice Adam's apple right away.

"I’m Granger, Hermione Granger," the girl introduced herself proudly. "You’re a first-year at Hogwarts too, right?"

"Um, yeah..."

Harry hesitated. He still wasn’t keen on revealing his name, fearing it would cause unnecessary reactions. But if he refused to introduce himself now, it would seem rude. He had no choice but to say, "I’m Harry. Harry Potter."

"Nice to meet you," Hermione nodded, then, nothing.

That surprised Harry again. This girl was very strange.

However, while Hermione didn’t react, the assistant measuring their robes suddenly froze. Almost at the same moment, several witches in the shop gasped.

"Harry Potter?" they exclaimed in unison.

And so, under Hermione’s puzzled gaze, Harry once again found himself shaking hands with every single person in Madam Malkin’s.

"Are you famous?" Hermione asked, frowning slightly. "Are you, uh, what’s it called? Quidditch, right? The son of a Quidditch star?"

"I suppose...?" Harry said uncertainty.

He had no idea what Quidditch was, nor whether he was really the son of a famous wizarding athlete.

But then again, if a famous person's son walked down the street in the wizarding world and got mobbed with handshakes, that wouldn’t seem particularly reasonable either.

At that moment, the assistant finished taking Harry’s measurements, and just in time, Hagrid appeared in the shop doorway, holding two enormous ice cream cones and grinning at Harry.

"Wow." Hermione’s already large eyes widened even further as she stared up at Hagrid, who was several sizes bigger than a normal person.

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