The Monster Book of Monsters, by Edwardus Lima.
It was a guide to dangerous magical creatures, though what truly set it apart from an ordinary textbook was the fact that it was very much alive.
The cover of The Monster Book of Monsters was coated in coarse, stiff fur.
Four round eyes stared alertly ahead, while rows of sharp teeth protruded from between the edges of its pages.
The moment Leo picked it up, the book clamped down on his hand.
“Hiss…
Doesn’t hurt.” Leo gave his hand a light shake and sent The Monster Book of Monsters flying across the room.
When he looked down, there was not so much as a tooth mark on his skin.
The Monster Book growled after being thrown aside.
Bracing itself on four stubby little legs, it charged wildly across the floor before launching itself at Leo again.
“Pretty sturdy, too.” “Master Leo, if you want it to settle down, all you have to do is stroke its spine,” the old butler explained.
“No need.” Leo put a little more strength into his hand and rapped the book across the cover.
Bang!
The Monster Book immediately behaved itself.
It obediently flipped open its cover and presented its contents for him to read.
“Hippogriffs, sphinxes, Nazog trolls…” Leo skimmed through a few pages, and his interest quickly grew.
“Do you think we could—” “No,” the old butler cut in without hesitation.
“I was wondering why you didn’t choose a pet earlier.
So this is what you were waiting for.” “Toads, cats, and owls are all a little too ordinary.” Leo shook his head regretfully.
“I need a pet with some character.” “When you say ‘character,’ you usually mean ‘dangerous.'” The old butler sighed.
“You can worry about that once you’re an adult.
At that point, you can buy an entire dragon reserve if that’s what you want.” “Fine.
I suppose I can make do with this as a pet for now.” Leo weighed the Monster Book in his hands.
The old butler fell silent for a moment before casting a Confundus Charm on the book, just in case it decided to bite off another young wizard’s fingers.
…
Time passed quickly, and before long, September first arrived.
King’s Cross Station.
“Master Leo, I won’t lecture you about everything else.
Just try not to kill any of the other students…
or the professors.” The old butler handed Leo his luggage.
“Otherwise, we’ll have to flee to Germany, and you’ll be transferring to Durmstrang.” “I heard they have quite a few masters of the Dark Arts there…” Leo’s eyes immediately lit up.
“Even Gellert Grindelwald couldn’t graduate from Durmstrang without getting expelled.
Do you really think they’d tolerate someone who was genuinely devoted to the Dark Arts?” the old butler hurriedly added.
“I was only saying.” Leo shrugged.
“Besides, I have no intention of leaving Hogwarts before I get the chance to fight Dumbledore.” “That’s good…
Wait.” It took the old butler a second to process what Leo had just said, and a chill ran across his scalp.
“Who did you just say you wanted to fight?” “The strongest, obviously.” Grinning, Leo walked straight toward a pillar between Platforms Nine and Ten.
“Wait, that isn’t the entrance to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters—” Before the old butler could finish, Leo slammed directly into the pillar.
His absurdly tough body smashed a person-shaped crater into the brickwork, sending chunks of masonry flying in every direction.
“Platform Nine and Three-Quarters is behind the third pillar between Platforms Nine and Ten…” The old butler covered his face in despair.
“You just ran into the second one.” “Ahem…
I miscounted.” Leo looked distinctly embarrassed.
“Scourgify.” The old butler sighed and cast a Cleaning Charm over Leo, removing the dust and debris from his clothes.
Then he turned his wand toward the battered pillar.
“Reparo.” The broken bricks flew back into place, restoring the pillar as though nothing had happened.
“See you.” Leo picked up his luggage and entered Platform Nine and Three-Quarters, where a gleaming red steam locomotive stood waiting beneath a sign that read HOGWARTS EXPRESS.
Plenty of young witches and wizards were already lining up to board.
Unfortunately, several of them had witnessed Leo demolish the wrong pillar moments earlier, and whispers soon began spreading through the crowd.
“Tch.
I went through the wrong entrance once.
Is it really that big a deal?” Leo muttered as he boarded the train.
Still feeling somewhat embarrassed, he found an empty compartment and sat down by himself.
He had barely finished putting away his luggage when the compartment door slid open with a clatter.
The boy standing outside had short black hair, green eyes, round glasses, and a lightning-shaped scar on his forehead.
The sight was so unmistakable that Leo immediately felt as though he had seen him somewhere before.
“Harry Potter?” “That’s me.” Harry had already been recognized by plenty of people that day, so he no longer found the reaction particularly surprising.
He tried to lift his trunk onto the luggage rack, but despite his efforts, he could barely get it off the floor.
Then a thick, muscular arm reached past him and casually hoisted the trunk up as though it weighed nothing.
“Thanks…” Harry said, slightly out of breath.
He looked more closely at Leo, then frowned in thought.
“…Have we met somewhere before?” “Have we?” Leo paused.
“I don’t think so.” Harry Potter was distinctive enough that Leo was certain he would have remembered meeting him before.
“What’s your name?” Harry asked.
“Leo William.” Harry’s eyes widened with sudden recognition.
“Oh!
Now I remember.
Er…
my cousin is a fan of yours.
I’ve seen posters of you at home.” “Huh?” Leo blinked, then thought about it for a moment.
‘Could he mean those junior boxing tournaments I used to compete in?’ “Hello!
I’m Ron Weasley.
I haven’t found an empty seat anywhere.
Mind if I sit in here?” A red-haired boy poked his head through the compartment doorway.
“Sure, come in.
I’m Leo William.” “And I’m Harry Potter.” The moment Ron heard Harry’s name, he stared at him in astonishment.
“The Harry Potter?” “Yes, that Harry Potter.” Harry nodded helplessly.
“Wow!” Ron looked completely awestruck.
“Can I see your scar?” Leo smiled and shook his head before picking up The Monster Book of Monsters and idly playing with it.
There was not much entertainment to be found on a train, so he had to find something to occupy himself with.
Harry and Ron quickly struck up a conversation, and before long, the subject turned to which Hogwarts house they hoped to join.
As everyone knew, Hogwarts had four houses.
Gryffindor valued courage.
Ravenclaw valued intelligence.
Slytherin had green as its house color and, at one point, produced a particularly famous alumnus who became rather obsessed with immortality.
And then there was Hufflepuff, whose students seemed especially fond of good food.
‘Wait a second.
Put it like that, why do these four houses sound kind of like…?’ “Leo, which house do you want to be in?” Harry asked, interrupting his train of thought.
“Gryffindor or Slytherin, I suppose,” Leo replied after thinking about it.
“Huh?
Why?” Ron looked genuinely baffled.
It was the first time he had ever heard someone narrow their preferred houses down to those particular two.
“Because whichever one I join, I’ll be able to beat up students from the other one whenever I want,” Leo answered with complete sincerity.
“Hahaha!
In that case, I hope you get into Gryffindor…” Ron burst out laughing, but as he studied Leo’s expression, his laughter gradually died away.
“…You’re joking, right?” “Hmm…” “No, Leo, don’t just go quiet!” Ron exclaimed.
“Say something!”