Harry did not enjoy being the center of attention, especially since everyone who recognized his name wanted to see the scar on his forehead.
It made him feel like an animal in a zoo.
But he did not have the courage to refuse—or rather, he hoped that showing it would at least help him get familiar with others more quickly.
So, when he noticed Ron staring at his forehead with flickering eyes, he pulled back his bangs to let him see.
“Merlin’s socks…” Ron couldn’t help but marvel, his eyes still glued to Harry’s forehead, making Harry flush slightly.
Vaughn tapped Ron’s head with his wand.
Ron let out a cry of pain, clutching his head and complaining, “What was that for?” “Because you’re being rude.” “I…
I was just curious…” Ron turned away awkwardly, staring out the window.
Harry sat beside him in embarrassment.
His eyes darted around with nowhere to rest, finally settling on the wand in Vaughn’s hand.
Having received help from the Weasleys twice now, Harry felt this family was truly kind.
The timidity in his heart finally dissipated a little.
After watching for a moment, he couldn’t help but ask out of curiosity, “Er, Vaughn…
can I call you Vaughn?” Vaughn, who was grooming Fruit Tea’s fur, nodded.
“Of course you can, Harry.” “Vaughn, the thing you used just now was…” “The Levitation Charm.
It’s a very basic spell that makes things float, and it’s right there in our first-year textbooks.” “That’s amazing…” Harry blinked his green eyes, then looked a bit downcast.
“I tried for a month and couldn’t learn anything.” Vaughn waved it off.
“I’ve been practicing spells at home since I was eight.
But you grew up in Muggle society, Harry.
There’s no need to compare yourself to me.
A lot of Muggle-born witches and wizards are in the same boat as you.” What he didn’t mention, however, was that he had learned the Levitation Charm after practicing it only twice.
There was nothing to brag about in front of a child.
This made Harry feel a bit better.
Stepping into a completely new environment, he had been terrified of falling behind his classmates.
With that in mind, Harry realized he was ignoring Ron.
He quickly shifted the topic to him, wanting to give his new friend a chance to show off and build a rapport.
“Ron, you must know a lot of spells too, right?” Ron: “…” Harry watched Ron’s face turn visibly red.
He stammered, unable to find his tongue, while Vaughn across from them burst out laughing.
Harry realized he had done something incredibly foolish.
How embarrassing!
Fortunately, the compartment door slid open again at that moment.
A smiling, dimpled woman asked, “Would you like some snacks, dears?” She pushed a trolley piled high with treats.
Harry jumped up immediately.
He had never had friends before and didn’t know how to socialize with peers, but putting himself in their shoes, he felt that treating them to snacks was a good way to start.
Fortunately, he had money!
When Harry returned, the massive pile of snacks clutched in his arms instantly caught Ron’s eye.
Ron stared blankly as Harry dumped the treats onto the seat and warmly invited them to join in.
“Go on, help yourselves.
I bought a lot, and there’s no way I can finish it all on my own.” Ron wanted to be polite.
“Mum packed me some sandwiches…” But Vaughn had already merrily picked up a pumpkin pasty and torn open the packaging.
He wasn’t a real child, so he had no reason to be shy about these things; at worst, he would just return the favor later.
Seeing Vaughn dig in, Ron sheepishly accepted a pasty and began to munch away heartily.
Harry was delighted.
For the past eleven years, he had never shared anything with anyone, nor had he possessed anything or anyone to share with.
This feeling was absolutely wonderful!
Harry and Ron chatted as they ate, soon hitting it off.
They discussed Chocolate Frog cards and Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans, with Vaughn chiming in occasionally.
But most of the time, Vaughn just watched them with a smile, his mind drifting.
In his past life, he had once wondered: given the environment Harry grew up in, what would have happened to him without Ron and Hermione?
The outcome was almost entirely predictable— Harry would either have fallen from grace, basking in the public’s adoration and flattery as the Savior, ultimately becoming a useless nobody.
Or he would have gone down the same path as Voldemort.
But those were just “what ifs.” The reality was that here, on this very train to Hogwarts, at the turning point of his life, Harry had met two lifelong companions who would refill his parched and withered heart with love.
Dumbledore always said that love was the greatest power of all.
But in Vaughn’s eyes— Destiny…
was the most awe-inspiring power of all!
How he longed to grasp it in his own hands!
Stroking his wand, Vaughn turned his gaze out the window.
The train had just sped past the last neat farmland, and the fields stretching toward the distant horizon grew increasingly wild, giving way to dark, looming hills, scattered forests, and winding rivers cutting through the land.
Sometime later, the compartment door was pushed open for the third time.
A round-faced boy stood weeping at the door, asking, “Excuse me, but have you seen a toad?
His name is Trevor, and I’ve lost him.” Harry and Ron shook their heads blankly.
“I’ll help you look!” Vaughn stood up.
“Come on, Fruit Tea, get a sniff of his scent.” Fruit Tea hopped off the table and followed behind him.
The round-faced boy sniveled with gratitude.
“Thank you, thank you.
I’m Neville.
Neville Longbottom.” “Don’t mention it.
Just call me Vaughn.” Of course, Vaughn wasn’t actually that altruistic; he just wanted an excuse to look around.
And, as a side benefit, to let his younger brother and Harry bond properly.
Watching Vaughn leave with Neville, Harry marveled, “Your brother is a really nice person, Ron.” Ron’s face puckered up like a dried prune.
“He is not!
You don’t know how many times he’s pranked and scared me since we were kids.
And Fred and George are just as awful as him!” Harry didn’t think much of it.
“You’re brothers, so of course he’s going to mess around with you.
But look at how he treated me and that boy.
Before today, I thought all older brothers in the world were like Dudley.” The two had talked about Dudley earlier, with Harry describing him as practically a demon.
Compared to him, Ron actually began to feel that Vaughn was practically an angel.
He couldn’t help but brag, “…Well, he’s not *that* bad.
In fact, aside from teasing me, Vaughn is great at everything.
He’s been brewing potions since he was eight.
Everyone’s heard of him—he’s a famous genius.” “He’s also the biggest breadwinner in our family.
Look, this new wand of mine—he bought it for me.” Harry looked at Ron cradling the wand like a precious treasure, feeling envious.
No one had ever given him a gift like that.
On the other side, Vaughn, unaware that his brother was boasting about him to Harry, quickly found Trevor with Fruit Tea’s help.
After sending away a tearfully grateful Neville, Vaughn was just about to leave when he heard someone call his name.
“Vaughn…
Weasley?” Turning around, not far away, a bushy-haired Hermione Granger was staring at him, her eyes shining.