Harry Potter 03 - Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Cauldron?’
    ‘Dad,’ said Ron simply.
    Mr Weasley, who worked at the Ministry of Magic, would of course have heard the whole story of what had happened to Aunt Marge.
    ‘Did you really blow up your aunt, Harry?’ said Hermione in a very serious voice.
    ‘I didn’t mean to,’ said Harry, while Ron roared with laughter. ‘I just – lost control.’
    ‘It’s not funny, Ron,’ said Hermione sharply. ‘Honestly, I’m amazed Harry wasn’t expelled.’
    ‘So am I,’ admitted Harry. ‘Forget expelled, I thought I was going to be arrested.’ He looked at Ron. ‘Your dad doesn’t know why Fudge let me off, does he?’
    ‘Probably ’cause it’s you, isn’t it?’ shrugged Ron, still chuckling. ‘Famous Harry Potter and all that. I’d hate to see what the Ministry’d do to me if I blew up an aunt. Mind you, they’d have to dig me up first, because Mum would’ve killed me. Anyway, you can ask Dad yourself this evening. We’re staying at the Leaky Cauldron tonight, too! So you can come to King’s Cross with us tomorrow! Hermione’s there as well!’
    Hermione nodded, beaming. ‘Mum and Dad dropped me off this morning with all my Hogwarts things.’
    ‘Excellent!’ said Harry happily. ‘So, have you got all your new books and stuff?’
    ‘Look at this,’ said Ron, pulling a long thin box out of a bag and opening it. ‘Brand-new wand. Fourteen inches, willow, containing one unicorn tail-hair. And we’ve got all our books’ – he pointed at a large bag under his chair. ‘What about those Monster Books , eh? The assistant nearly cried when we said we wanted two.’
    ‘What’s all that, Hermione?’ Harry asked, pointing at not one, but three, bulging bags in the chair next to her.
    ‘Well, I’m taking more new subjects than you, aren’t I?’said Hermione. ‘Those are my books for Arithmancy, Care of Magical Creatures, Divination, Study of Ancient Runes, Muggle Studies –’
    ‘What are you doing Muggle Studies for?’ said Ron, rolling his eyes at Harry. ‘You’re Muggle-born! Your mum and dad are Muggles! You already know all about Muggles!’
    ‘But it’ll be fascinating to study them from the wizarding point of view,’ said Hermione earnestly.
    ‘Are you planning to eat or sleep at all this year, Hermione?’ asked Harry, while Ron sniggered. Hermione ignored them.
    ‘I’ve still got ten Galleons,’ she said, checking her purse. ‘It’s my birthday in September, and Mum and Dad gave me some money to get myself an early birthday present.’
    ‘How about a nice book ?’ said Ron innocently.
    ‘No, I don’t think so,’ said Hermione composedly. ‘I really want an owl. I mean, Harry’s got Hedwig and you’ve got Errol –’
    ‘I haven’t,’ said Ron. ‘Errol’s a family owl. All I’ve got is Scabbers.’ He pulled his pet rat out of his pocket. ‘And I want to get him checked over,’ he added, placing Scabbers on the table in front of them. ‘I don’t think Egypt agreed with him.’
    Scabbers was looking thinner than usual, and there was a definite droop to his whiskers.
    ‘There’s a magical-creature shop just over there,’ said Harry, who knew Diagon Alley very well by now. ‘You can see if they’ve got anything for Scabbers, and Hermione can get her owl.’
    So they paid for their ice-creams and crossed the street to the Magical Menagerie.
    There wasn’t much room inside. Every inch of wall was hidden by cages. It was smelly and very noisy because the occupants of these cages were all squeaking, squawking, jabbering or hissing. The witch behind the counter was already advising a wizard on the care of double-ended newts, so Harry, Ron and Hermione waited, examining the cages.
    A pair of enormous purple toads sat gulping wetly and feasting on dead blowflies. A gigantic tortoise with a jewel-encrusted shell was glittering near the window. Poisonous orange snails were oozing slowly up the side of their glass tank, and a fat white rabbit kept changing into a silk top hat and back again with a loud popping noise. Then there were cats of every colour, a noisy cage of ravens, a basket of funny custard-coloured furballs that were humming loudly, and, on the counter, a vast cage of sleek black rats which were playing some sort of skipping game using their long bald tails.
    The double-ended-newt wizard left and Ron approached the counter.
    ‘It’s my rat,’ he told the witch. ‘He’s been a bit off-colour ever since I brought him back from