Chapter 248: The Niffler and First Meeting with Hagrid!
Darcie hadn't recognized the magical creature at the first sight, what with it being blurry and running away from them.
Now that she had glimpsed it twice, there was no mistaking it.
It was a Niffler.
The coat of black, fluffy fur, the odd gait with which it was dashing in a zig-zag pattern, and the way it kept stopping to look behind as if taunting its pursuers. Yes, all pointed in one direction.
A rogue Niffler had robbed Darcie, stealing all her money and her belongings, including the whistle that Madam Villanelle had given her for emergencies.
"It must have run away from Magical Menagerie!" Darcie shouted, running, covering as much distance as her tiny legs allowed her in a single jump. "The shop's further down the alley!"
The wizards and witches eyed the girls, running behind a house-elf, who seemed to scream at nothing. By the time someone processed what was going on, they had already passed them.
Darcie and Daphne, panting, passed the second-hand bookshop, an apothecary shop, and then the Eeylops Owl Emporium.
It was then the black, blurry magical creature took a sudden right turn and vanished.
Dobby vanished, too, screaming, the ice cream already gone.
Darcie slowed down, and Daphne was about to follow the two magical beings into the turn listlessly when Darcie grabbed her hand. "Wait!" she said, taking in successive bouts of icy breaths. "This is Knockturn Alley, Daphne. We mustn't go there."