On Hagrid's part, he had never met somebody who handed him a worn paper card with the words, "Hello. Nice to meet you!" instead of saying it.
But he handled it with a smile and gentle hand on her shoulder, looking into her eyes. "What's this now?" he asked quietly, none of the loud booming that had announced his entrance into the cottage. "Ah, I see."
Something in Amy recognized Hagrid as a kindred spirit and simply basked in his kindness.
"I'm a witch?" she asked, handing him her notebook.
He nodded, seating himself on the worn sofa with a thump. Behind her, Dudley let out a whimper and a guilty, secret part of Amy was pleased. She pushed that back down. Just because Dudley was a bully didn't mean she was one too.
"Just like your mom and dad, and everyone in your family!" he said, looking pleased for her. "Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where generations of your family have learned for years."
Amy wanted to ask badly whether mermaids existed since witches did too. But Amy had spent too long hiding things to ask a stranger that, however kind the stranger was.
"We're going shopping for school supplies?" she asked, passing him her notebook. In the back of her mind, it irritated her. What was the point of learning BSL when everyone else and their mother didn't learn it as well?
"Tomorrow, lassie," he grunted, squinting at her letters. "I have to take a rest. Having to come to the middle of nowhere, journeying from Scotland, is a bit of a longer walk than I expected."
Amy worried for a moment on what to feed Hagrid, because Uncle Vernon didn't give everyone the time to pack things properly when he went mad. Then Hagrid reached into his coat pockets and let out a tea pot, of all things, as well as skillet and a while string of sausages.
Magic, she thought, delighted.
.
.
Diagon Alley, Amy mused, was the kind of place one could get lost in.
Hagrid seemed to have a preternatural sensing ability when it came to quiet people and never lost her, not for a moment. His giant hands were gentle as he tugged her away from windows and steered her to where they were supposed to go.
If it had been Aunt Petunia, she could have slipped away ages ago.
Amy was equal parts annoyed and delighted. She had Hagrid's complete attention, even when he wasn't looking at her. For the first time in her life, she didn't have to tug at someone's shirt for it.
"Look, it's solid gold!" she wrote, gesturing to the golden cauldron.
Hagrid laughed. "You won't get to that stage yet," he explained with a smile. "All beginners start with pewter. More stable. Dunno what gold does to potions."
"It's pretty," Amy insisted, caressing the rounded bottom.
Hagrid understood and let her admire it for a couple more minutes, before nudging her in the direction of a jewelry store.
Which was definitely a good idea. They had seashell hair clips and starfish earrings. Amy was so happy, she wanted to sing.
"Can I?" she asked, dumping the notebook in his outstretched hand.
"Have fun," he said. "I'll be back in a moment.
Amy kitted herself out with anything sea-related. She was an undercover mermaid. Nobody would ever guess!
.
.
Hagrid came back with an owl.
Snowy white, haughty demeanor. She loved her, even if Hedwig was likely a predator. That beak spoke to her and made her want to grow claws of her own.
"I'm calling her Hedwig," Amy wrote. "Thank you, Hagrid."
He blushed into his soup. "It's nothing. Happy Birthday, Amy."
Aside from learning that her parents were murdered and not actually in a car accident, it was the best birthday of Amy's life.
It reached all the way to top ten, almost trumping the moment she discovered she could breathe water.
"Can I stay here?" she asked. "I don't want to think what my relatives would do to me if I go back."
His eyes spoke volumes of sympathy. Somehow, she knew that Hagrid understood bullying on a personal level.
"It's alright. You just gotta make sure to keep safe, alright, Amy?" he said gruffly.
She nodded enthusiastically.
.
.
On September, Amy boarded the train and met the most important person of her life.
Her name was Hermione Granger.
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Will update more tomorrow two more chapters.
Have headache.
Reviews pls.
~hallen