Billowing clouds of steam from the engine drifted over the heads of the chattering crowd, mingling with the hoots of owls.
Cats of various colors darted between people’s legs.
Fruit Tea perched on Vaughn’s trunk, casting a calm, poised glance at the passing felines.
Harry was already gone.
Surrounded by the dense crowd, the reckless boy had vanished to who-knows-where.
Vaughn didn’t make a special effort to search for him.
He stood on his tiptoes to scan the area, finally spotting Fred and George, and squeezed through to ask:
“Why is it just you two?
Where’s Percy?”
“No idea.
Prefect Percy the Great is a very busy man.
He vanished in the blink of an eye.”
“Oh?
Fred, when did Percy become a prefect?
How come I didn’t know?”
“You couldn’t possibly not know, George.
He’s mentioned it at least once…
no, twice…
no!”
The twins shouted in unison, “He’s been talking about it all summer!
Hahaha—”
Then, Percy—who had somehow already changed into a brand-new set of robes—appeared with a stern expression.
“If I were you two, Fred and George, knowing your own brother has become a prefect, I would behave myself and not make things difficult for him!”
“Merlin’s beard, Fred, I’m terrified!”
“I know, George.
It’s terrifying.
He sounds as if he’s become the Headmaster!”
“You…” Percy took a deep breath, finally deciding to ignore them.
He walked over and patted Vaughn’s shoulder, flamboyantly shaking his new robes in the process to ensure Vaughn caught a clear view of the silver ‘P’ badge pinned to his chest.
“Vaughn, dear brother, if you have any trouble once we get to school, remember to find me!”
Vaughn nodded with a smile.
“Sure, Percy.”
Just then, Mr.
and Mrs.
Weasley arrived with Ginny and Ron.
It was almost eleven o’clock, and the white steam puffing from the locomotive grew thicker—the train was about to depart.
Molly had no choice but to say goodbye to each of her children.
When it came to Vaughn and Ron, she emotionally wiped her eyes, wishing she could hold them both in her arms and never let go.
“You’ve grown so big, yet you’ve never been this far from home.”
“Don’t worry, Mum.
We’re going to school, and Hogwarts is the safest place in the world…” Vaughn comforted her against his own conscience, silently adding in his heart—
*Though that might not always be the case in the future!*
“Once we get to school, we’ll write to you and Dad.
And to Ginny, of course.”
After comforting his mother, Vaughn hugged Ginny.
The little girl had already cried herself into a puddle, clutching the hem of his coat and refusing to let go.
“Vaughn, I don’t want you to go…”
“But your brother has to go to school, and Ginny can come to Hogwarts next year.
We won’t be apart then.”
It took quite a while to finally coax her into a smile.
Throughout the process, Ron didn’t say a single word because he was also crying, snot dripping down his face.
As Mr.
and Mrs.
Weasley and Ginny waved their goodbyes, Vaughn and Ron pushed their heavy luggage onto the train, searching for a compartment with empty seats.
They certainly couldn’t go to the front of the train, which was reserved for older students; Percy had previously bragged about having a special prefect compartment up front.
So, the two of them had to search toward the back of the train.
Finally, they found an empty compartment.
Just as the train blew its long whistle and started moving, Ron dropped his luggage and flung himself against the window, pressing his face tightly to the glass as if trying to catch one last glimpse of his parents waving goodbye.
But he saw nothing.
Thick steam shrouded the platform, leaving only a sea of waving arms visible.
Dejected, the boy curled up on his seat.
Vaughn pulled out his wand and cast a Hover Charm to neatly stow both of their trunks on the racks.
Seeing Ron’s gloomy expression, Vaughn thought for a moment and pulled a sweet from his pocket.
“Here.”
Ron blinked in surprise, took it, and mumbled as he peeled the wrapper, “Th—thanks, Vaughn…”
“That’s ‘brother’ to you!”
Vaughn playfully ruffled his hair, instantly shattering the tiny bit of warmth that had just bloomed in the boy’s heart.
His face flushed red, and he flailed his arms to break free of Vaughn’s grip, shouting, “In your dreams—” Just then, the compartment door slid open, and a skinny figure dragging a large trunk stood timidly and dazed in the doorway.
“Excuse me…
do you mind if I sit here?”
Harry Potter felt that today had been absolutely dreadful.
First, his aunt and uncle had abandoned him at the station, and he couldn’t find Platform Nine and Three-Quarters.
After finally meeting a kind-hearted woman and successfully making it onto the platform, he had squeezed through the crowd in a daze for ages before finally boarding, only to find no empty compartments.
He had initially tried the front carriages, but older students with serpent badges pinned to their chests chased him out.
Walking all the way to the back of the train, almost every compartment was full.
He had searched for ages without finding a seat when he spotted two red-haired boys.
He recognized them.
They were from the kind family who had helped him back on the concourse.
Their fiery red hair was incredibly distinct—especially the tall boy named Vaughn, who had reddish-brown eyes like gemstones.
He was the most handsome boy Harry had ever seen, even better-looking than the actors Aunt Petunia fawned over on television.
Of course, what had impressed Harry the most was what he had seen just as he approached: Vaughn waving his wand to make luggage float.
Magic…
Harry didn’t know what had possessed him to impulsively slide the door open, but the moment the question left his mouth, he wanted to shrink back.
He was a complete stranger barging in on two brothers.
What if they didn’t want to be disturbed?
What if they kicked him out?
His thoughts raced in a chaotic tangle.
Growing up with the Dursleys, he was all too accustomed to being cautious and meekly yielding.
Inside the compartment, Vaughn was also a bit surprised.
When he hadn’t seen Harry Potter earlier, he had assumed the boy had already found a seat.
He couldn’t help but look at Harry, then at Ron.
There truly was such a thing as fate in the wizarding world—it was a part of magic itself.
Could it be that the Golden Trio was destined to meet?
Pondering this for a moment, and deciding it was a mystery he couldn’t solve just yet, Vaughn kept his face neutral and smiled at Harry.
“Of course.
Come on in.”
Harry thanked him, feeling a bit awkward, and turned to drag his trunk inside.
Then, he heard an incantation:
“*Wingardium Leviosa.*”
Instantly, his luggage floated into the air, suspended by a mysterious force.
Hedwig flapped her wings frantically inside her cage, but it was in vain.
Harry spun around in a panic and saw Vaughn holding a wand with prominent, knobby joints, guiding the trunk onto the overhead rack.
Hedwig’s cage was set down gently on the small table by the window.
There was also a massive cat resting there.
It cast a sideways glance at Hedwig, then returned to staring intently at the rat cage in the corner.
“Uh, um…” Harry was utterly spellbound, nearly lost for words.
Only after a good while did he manage to stammer, “Thank you, thank you.”
“You’re welcome.
Have a seat!” Vaughn said with a smile.
“I’m Vaughn Weasley, and this is my younger brother, Ron Weasley.
Hello, Harry Potter.”
Harry, who had stepped in with hunched shoulders, replied reservedly, “Hello, Vaughn…
wait, what?” His eyes widened.
“How did you know…”
Vaughn pointed to his own forehead.
“I saw your scar when we were outside the platform.”
So it wasn’t because of magic…
Harry breathed a sigh of relief.
He was about to reply when the freckle-faced Ron Weasley practically leaped to his feet, staring wide-eyed at his forehead.
“Harry Potter?!
*The* Harry Potter?”