In the very last compartment of the Hogwarts Express, Neville Longbottom sat frozen, having completely forgotten about looking for his lost pet as he listened to Sherlock, Harry, and Hermione casually discuss a taboo topic.
Several times he opened his mouth to speak, but the words died in his throat, leaving him shuddering.
Ron watched the three of them chatting so naturally, hesitating again and again.
Unable to take it any longer, he finally summoned the courage to interrupt: “W-wait a minute…
You…
you actually said You-Know-Who’s name!” “Why wouldn’t we?” Sherlock looked at Ron, who was nearly breathless, and Neville, who genuinely was, before asking curiously, “Are you really that afraid?” He knew the wizarding world held a severe taboo against the name Voldemort—otherwise, books wouldn’t substitute it with “He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.” Yet he hadn’t expected his lingering terror to remain so potent after more than a decade.
Simply hearing him, Harry, and Hermione utter the name was already too much for the two boys to bear.
Seeing Ron and Neville nod vigorously, Hermione couldn’t help asking out of curiosity, “Why be so afraid?” “Because…” Ron started to answer, only to realize he couldn’t quite explain it properly.
After a moment’s thought, he muttered, “My mum and dad used to scare me with it growing up…
Children from every wizard family are told by their parents that his name is taboo.
Unless it’s an absolute emergency, I don’t want to say his name.
In fact…
nobody does.” Beside him, Neville nodded repeatedly in total agreement.
Ron looked at Harry with admiration.
“Then again, I suppose it makes sense for you…” Harry hesitated briefly before explaining, “Saying his name isn’t because I’m brave or anything.
It’s just that I never knew it wasn’t supposed to be said.
Do you know what I mean?” Hermione nodded in agreement.
That was indeed the case for anyone raised outside the wizarding world.
After all, what was Voldemort compared to your mother calling you by your full name?
“Say what you like.
There’s nothing that can’t be spoken,” Sherlock said calmly under their astonished gazes.
“Fear comes from the unknown.
The best way to overcome fear is to face it.” Seeing Ron and Neville cowering like frightened quails, Sherlock offered the solution directly.
Harry and Hermione nodded along.
Ron and Neville stared at Sherlock with looks of awe.
Brilliant!
But that was as far as it went.
Even if they thought Sherlock made complete sense, a lifetime of conditioning wouldn’t let them actually say the name.
Hermione and Neville stayed in the compartment a bit longer until a smiling woman slid open the door to ask if anyone wanted snacks.
Only then did the two leave to resume their search for Neville’s toad.
Before leaving, Hermione didn’t forget to remind Ron that he really should get a new wand, as using an old secondhand one made spell failure far more likely.
Ron pulled a face.
Strange as it was, when Sherlock said the exact same thing, Ron accepted it without issue.
But coming from Hermione, it annoyed him to no end.
“Whatever house I get sorted into, I just hope I’m not in the same one as her,” Ron blurted out the moment Hermione left.
Harry nodded absentmindedly, his attention still fixed on Sherlock.
His newfound friend was simply amazing!
By then, Sherlock had stepped up to the trolley witch.
He looked with deep curiosity at the treats he had never seen before.
Just by their appearance, these magical sweets practically radiated enchantment.
Such seemingly minor things were precisely why he had plunged into the magical world in the first place.
“Did either of you bring lunch?” Sherlock asked, looking back at Harry and Ron.
Harry shook his head.
To be fair, aside from punishments, the Dursleys had never actually starved Harry, yet they had never truly let him eat his fill either—his cousin Dudley was always snatching away whatever Harry wanted.
Naturally, they hadn’t packed him anything for the journey.
Ron mumbled under his breath that he had brought sandwiches.
Seeing Ron’s flushed ears, Sherlock understood instantly: he wanted the treats, but didn’t have the money.
Without another word, Sherlock asked for the prices and bought a bit of everything, paying less than twelve Silver Sickles in total.
Not terribly expensive, but not cheap either.
“Lunch is on me,” Sherlock said.
“Though these are all sweets, so Ron, give me one of your sandwiches first to line my stomach.” Hearing Sherlock’s request, Ron nodded eagerly.
His mother always forgot that he didn’t like corned beef, so Sherlock’s suggestion was perfect.
Besides, sweets were far more appealing to him than corned beef sandwiches anyway.
Harry nodded with little hesitation.
It was the very first time someone his own age had offered to share food with him, and the feeling was quite wonderful.
Through their short time together, Sherlock had already read both of their personalities like an open book.
Harry seemed reclusive and introverted on the surface, but deep down he was strong and courageous, confident enough to accept kindness with quiet grace.
Ron, on the other hand, seemed carefree and boisterous, but having grown up in the shadow of five accomplished older brothers, he actually harbored an underlying insecurity.
If Sherlock had offered to buy him food outright, Ron would have found it hard to accept.
Framing it as a trade allowed Ron to accept with peace of mind.
Besides, Sherlock wasn’t lying—he genuinely felt it was better to have something solid before filling up on sweets.
To his pleasant surprise, Mrs.
Weasley was a good cook, and the beef was quite delicious.
Soon, the three were digging in, and the delicious aroma of food filled the compartment.
Ron began to shine in his own way, introducing Sherlock and Harry to the various magical treats.
Chocolate Frogs, for instance, weren’t real frogs—they were frog-shaped chocolates.
However, because of the spell placed on them, you had to be careful when unwrapping them lest they jump away.
They tasted wonderful, naturally, and were immensely popular among young witches and wizards.
Yet Sherlock and Harry were far more interested in the cards that came with the treats.
Every package of Chocolate Frogs came with a collectible card featuring a portrait of a famous wizard or witch on the front and a brief biography on the back.
Harry got a card of the Hogwarts headmaster, Albus Dumbledore.
Photographs in the wizarding world were different from those in the non-magical world; once captured, the people in them could move.
So when Harry finished reading Dumbledore’s biography and turned the card back over, he was shocked to find that Dumbledore’s face had completely vanished.
“Well, you can’t expect him to hang around all day,” Ron said casually upon seeing Harry’s surprise.
When Harry mentioned that people in non-magical photos stayed still forever, it was Ron’s turn to be amazed.
“You mean they don’t move at all?
How odd!” As they spoke, Dumbledore quietly slipped back into the frame.
Harry couldn’t help exclaiming, “That’s incredible!
Sherlock, aren’t you amazed?” Sherlock took a bite of his Chocolate Frog.
It really did taste good.
He took the card from Harry, looked at the white-bearded old man who had vanished and reappeared, and smiled.
“Things like this…
can actually be done without magic, too.”