“Have a pleasant journey, Young Master Rowle.” “Thank you, Barclay.” David had chosen an empty compartment and settled his luggage inside before stepping back onto the platform to see Barclay off.
He extended his hand.
Barclay shook it, bidding him farewell with the formal manners of another era.
David watched the steward disappear into the crowd.
The whispers around him hadn’t stopped.
Neither had the curious glances.
He ignored both.
Returning to his compartment, David removed his hat, set aside his walking stick, and pulled a copy of the Daily Prophet from his bag.
According to James, the newspaper was mostly nonsense.
But perhaps ten percent of what it printed was worth knowing.
David wanted to integrate into British wizarding society as quickly as possible, and that meant understanding what was happening in the country.
Spending every day in pubs or wandering Diagon Alley probably wasn’t the best method.
So the newspaper had become one of his regular sources of entertainment.
“Excuse me.
Mind if we sit here?” The compartment door slid open.
Two boys around David’s age stood outside.
“Finding an empty compartment is getting difficult, so we thought…” “Of course.” David smiled politely.
“Come in.” The two boys had clearly boarded recently.
They hadn’t been on the platform long enough to hear the gossip.
After putting away their luggage, they noticed David had returned his attention to the newspaper.
An awkward silence followed.
Eventually, the dark-haired boy introduced himself.
“Hello.
I’m Hugo Scott.
Third year.
Hufflepuff.” The other boy followed.
“Stephen Hall.
Also third year.
Ravenclaw.” David lowered his newspaper.
“Nice to meet you.” He gave them a slight nod.
“David Rowle.
Third year as well.” A faint smile crossed his face.
“Though I don’t know which House I’ll be in yet.” Hugo froze.
“Rowle?” His eyes widened.
“The Rowle family?” The words escaped before he could stop himself.
He quickly covered his mouth and glanced towards Stephen.
Stephen looked equally horrified.
“You mean…” His lips trembled slightly.
“Rowle as in that Rowle family?” David narrowed one eye.
His smile gradually lost some of its warmth.
“Why?” “Is there something wrong with the Rowle family?” “No!” Stephen answered far too quickly.
Then he turned towards Hugo and began blinking at him furiously.
“Hugo.” “Weren’t we supposed to go find Cedric?” “Right!” Hugo nodded so hard David wondered whether he might injure his neck.
“Yes.” “Cedric.” “We definitely planned that.” Their expressions radiated sincerity.
David watched the two boys practically flee from the compartment.
He sighed.
With a casual flick of his wand, the compartment door slid shut behind them.
Silence returned.
Or at least, it tried to.
The Hogwarts Express was ancient enough that the walls did very little to block sound.
David could still hear the whispers outside.
More than once, students searching for seats approached his compartment only to be dragged away by their friends.
“Not that one.” “Why?” “There’s a Rowle in there.” That usually ended the discussion.
Even after the train departed, David remained alone.
Pansy didn’t come to see him either.
Apparently, there were two famous students aboard the Hogwarts Express this year.
The first was Harry Potter.
The Boy Who Lived.
The saviour every British wizarding child had heard stories about since they could walk.
The second— was David Rowle.
Heir to a dangerous family.
Harry’s story needed no explanation.
David’s was more complicated.
Many students had never heard his name before today, so groups began gathering in the corridors and compartments, exchanging everything they knew about the Rowles.
Disregard for the International Statute of Secrecy.
Death Eaters who had followed You-Know-Who.
An internationally wanted poaching crew.
One story after another spread through the train until the Rowle name became a dark cloud hanging over the younger students.
His family’s reputation really was remarkable.
As for John… Well.
David could only say that his father’s reputation had travelled farther than he had.
Some stories were good.
Others considerably less so.
But the past was the past.
David had already stopped trying to explain everything.
Misunderstanding and prejudice couldn’t always be defeated through argument.
He had other ways of dealing with them.
Hiss— The steam train slowly pulled into the station.
Noise instantly returned to the corridors.
Following the announcement, David changed into his Hogwarts robes and left the rest of his luggage neatly arranged in the compartment.
The journey had lasted from midday until evening.
And the students had not been quiet for a single second.
Not one.
Apparently three months of summer holiday was far too long.
At this point, even sworn enemies would probably greet one another like old friends.
David’s compartment, however, had remained peaceful throughout the journey.
He had spent nearly the entire trip alone, quietly reading.
At one point, an elderly witch pushing a trolley had opened the door and asked whether he wanted anything to eat.
Then she noticed the delicate cakes and fresh fruit already arranged across his table.
She politely closed the door again.
David hadn’t seen her since.
“First years!” A booming voice echoed across the dark platform.
“First years, over here!” “Harry!
Over here!
How are yeh?” David recognised the enormous bearded man immediately.
Hagrid.
The same man who had bought Fluffy from Yule.
Hagrid stood above the crowd holding a lantern, almost like a lighthouse guiding a fleet of tiny ships through the darkness.
First-years gathered around him.
David did not.
He wasn’t a first-year.
Instead, he took a moment to examine his surroundings.
The station was small.
Old.
Rather shabby.
A few nearby buildings glowed faintly with lamplight.
The moon wasn’t bright enough to illuminate the distant mountains, but their dark silhouettes against the night sky made one thing obvious.
Hogwarts was somewhere deep in the countryside.
Mountains.
Water.
Forests.
The occasional animal call echoing through the night.
A beautiful location.
If one ignored the fact that it seemed designed specifically to discourage human habitation.
“You!” David turned.
“Yes, you!” Hagrid was pointing directly at him.
A crowd of first-years clustered around the half-giant like chicks around a hen, staring curiously at David.
“You’re the one I mean!” David pointed at himself.
Hagrid nodded, making the lantern swing wildly in his hand.
“David Rowle, right?” “I remember yeh.” “You’re a new student too.” Hagrid paused.
“In a manner of speakin’.” David looked towards the carriages waiting near the edge of the trees.
Then sighed and walked back.
“Stay together!” Hagrid lifted the lantern.
“I never lose a new student.” He swept the light over the children around him, apparently satisfied after counting them.
Then he led the group down a narrow, uneven path.
The first-years clearly already knew who David was.
They kept sneaking glances at him as they walked.
Several stared so intently that they tripped.
David watched them climb back to their feet, faces miserable and robes splattered with mud.
He had to suppress a laugh.
The descending path eventually opened onto the shore of a vast black lake.
Across the water, high atop a cliff, stood an enormous castle.
Towers and turrets pierced the night sky.
Hundreds of illuminated windows glittered beneath the stars.
A collective gasp rose from the first-years.
“Oh…” Even David had to admit it was impressive.
Hagrid began assigning four students to each boat.
Pansy spotted David and immediately waved him over.
David ignored her.
It was only a boat ride.
Not a marriage arrangement.
He stepped into an empty boat instead.
Then looked down at himself.
Mud covered his shoes and had splashed across his robes during the walk.
David drew his wand.
“Scourgify.” The dirt vanished.
“Nice Cleaning Charm!” A girl with thick brown hair and rather prominent front teeth had noticed.
She sounded genuinely impressed.
Then, with a touch of pride, she added, “I can do that too.” She raised her wand and cleaned both herself and the round-faced boy beside her.
David stared at her silently.
She stared back.
Hagrid called for everyone to board.
David finally raised an eyebrow.
“If you don’t intend to get into the boat…” He gestured towards the empty seat blocking his way.
“…would you mind letting me leave first?” CREATORS’ THOUGHTS SYSTEMATIC_MANIAC Enjoying the novel?
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