In the wizarding world, Harry's fortune was more than enough to place him among the very top tier of the rich.
So the moment the train slowly rolled forward—wheels grinding against rails in a steady rhythm—Harry stood up, walked over to the trolley witch pushing her snack cart, and without hesitation swept his hand grandly, buying a huge pile of sweets to share with the little otter.
The little otter sat opposite him, staring without blinking. She popped a lollipop into her mouth, cheeks puffing slightly as she kept sucking, like she meant to squeeze every last thread of sweetness out of the oversized candy.
After a moment, she gently drew the lollipop back from between her lips. From the clear, glossy tip of the candy to her rosy mouth, a faint, glittering thread stretched—shimmering in the compartment's soft light—before it finally snapped.
At first, Harry didn't think much of it. He assumed she was just preoccupied. But as time went on, that unwavering gaze prickled like needles, and even Harry started feeling uncomfortable all over.
Finally, he couldn't take it anymore. He shifted slightly and met Hermione's eyes head-on, confusion plain in his expression as he asked softly, "Hermione, what's wrong? Why have you been staring at me?"
Only then did Hermione snap back to herself. Her pretty face turned bright red. She took a deep breath and blurted out the sentence she'd revised a dozen times in her head:
"Harry… during the holiday, can I come to your house to play?"
Harry immediately broke into a broad, sunny grin and answered without hesitation, "Of course! No problem at all!"
Then, as if remembering something, he added with a smile, "But our homes are pretty far apart. If you want to come over, you can call me, and I'll open a portal for you. Blink—and you'll be at my house."
"A portal?" Hermione's brows knit together, her eyes full of confusion. She'd never heard of that kind of magic.
Harry nodded and explained patiently, "Yeah. It's my bloodline magic. It's somewhat similar to Apparition, but it can open a stable portal between two locations—and it can bring other people through with you.
"As long as you set the starting point and the destination, you can reach anywhere instantly."
Hermione's eyes lit up at once. What an unbelievably convenient kind of magic!
But in the very next second, it was like someone dumped a bucket of cold water over her head. The excitement vanished. Her shoulders drooped, and she murmured in a worried, disappointed tone, "But the Ministry of Magic has clear rules—you can't just use magic in the Muggle world. If we do that, wouldn't we be breaking regulations? The Ministry will investigate… we could even get expelled from Hogwarts!"
Hermione's concern meant nothing to Harry.
His mouth tilted upward. He raised his eyebrows slightly. "Don't worry. The Ministry detects us using magic because of the Trace attached to wands. If we switch to a wand without a Trace, we can easily fool them. And it just so happens I've got quite a few spare wands."
"That's wonderful!" Hermione beamed, dimples appearing as her smile lifted high.
Outside the Hogwarts Express window, snow drifted down in flurries. In the far distance, rolling mountains lay blanketed in white, their softened outlines like a sleeping giant dragon.
The view was beautiful. Harry and Hermione chatted idly as they watched the scenery. When the snow finally stopped, the train pulled into Platform Nine and Three-Quarters.
When Harry and Hermione slipped through the wall that looked ordinary but hid deep magic within, stepping into King's Cross Station, the platform was already packed with people.
Parents of young witches and wizards had arrived early, eyes filled with anticipation as they urgently searched the crowd pouring out of the barrier for their own children.
Harry only needed a casual glance to spot the Dursleys.
Uncle Vernon's burly frame stood out like a beacon in the crowd. Aunt Petunia was beside him, her thin, blade-like lips equally unmistakable.
And Dudley—fat as a small hill—seemed to squeeze the space around him until it felt cramped.
As time passed, Harry had come to understand the Dursleys more deeply.
They were nothing compared to Uncle Ben and Aunt May, but they had still taken care of him in many ways.
After all, when Harry's parents died, it was Aunt Petunia who took in a swaddled infant despite the risk of retaliation from dark wizards.
Not every aunt would raise her nephew while risking the possibility that her whole family could be slaughtered.
Harry was just about to say goodbye to Hermione and head over to the Dursleys, who were waving frantically in the distance—
When Hermione's crisp voice rang out behind him, bright with excitement: "Dad! Mum!"
Hermione darted forward, light on her feet, and flung herself straight into the arms of a graceful woman.
The woman's face was full of a gentle smile, her eyes overflowing with love as she patted Hermione's back, murmuring something softly.
Harry recognized her at once. On the day school started, he'd met this couple at King's Cross and spoken with them briefly.
Harry walked over too, dipping his head politely as he greeted them. "Mr. Granger, Mrs. Granger—long time no see. I'm really happy to see you again."
Mr. Granger clearly remembered him as well—the young wizard who'd helped them before. He smiled back. "Potter. We're happy to see you too."
Mrs. Granger nodded beside him and added, "It looks like you and Hermione have become very good friends. That's wonderful."
"Yes," Harry replied with a warm smile. "Hermione's been excellent at school. She's helped Ron and me a lot."
The moment Harry said it, Hermione's cheeks flushed bright red—even her ears warmed.
In truth, the times she'd helped Harry could be counted on one hand. If anything, it was Harry who had helped her constantly, in every part of study and life.
Whether it was difficult magical theory or the social problems that gave her headaches, as long as she asked Harry, things always seemed to untangle smoothly.
Thinking of that, Hermione tilted her chin up slightly, looking at Harry as she protested in a small voice, "That's not true. I'm the one being looked after!"
Still hugging her mother tightly, Hermione proudly introduced Harry's "great achievements" to her parents:
"Dad, Mum, do you know? Harry's a super star on the Quidditch pitch at Hogwarts, and he's also the youngest Potions master in wizarding history.
"Not long ago, he even defeated Professor Quirrell and became a famous duelist. In private, some students even call him the Lightning Demon King. He's amazing!"
Hearing their daughter praise him so enthusiastically, the Grangers' curiosity grew obvious. Their gaze drifted to Harry as they studied him carefully.
As Hermione's parents, they knew her personality inside and out.
Hermione was proud down to her bones. There were very few people she truly respected—let alone someone she looked at with something close to admiration shining in her eyes like this.
The Grangers exchanged a subtle look. Their eyes narrowed slightly as they quietly observed the way Hermione and Harry interacted.
After a moment, Mrs. Granger seemed to have a good idea of what was going on. Her smile became even gentler, and she gave Harry a small nod.
Mr. Granger, on the other hand, looked downright awful—an expression of disbelief on his face.
In a soft, warm voice, Mrs. Granger said, "Thank you, Potter. Hermione has been in your care at Hogwarts.
"If you ever have time, you must come visit our home. The pizza I make is Hermione's absolute favorite—you have to try it. Consider it a small token of thanks."
Harry exchanged a few more words with the Grangers, then turned to wave goodbye to Hermione and headed toward the Dursleys.
After that, beneath the Dursleys' fawning smiles, Harry got into the car. The engine started, and the vehicle slowly drove away from King's Cross Station, disappearing around a street corner.
At the same time, the Grangers drove out of the station as well.
Inside their car, warm sunlight spilled across the seats. Mr. Granger held the steering wheel with both hands, eyes on the road ahead, but he couldn't help asking, puzzled, "Hermione, did you notice? Harry's aunt's family was far too polite to him. It's like they owe him a huge amount of money."
Mrs. Granger nodded lightly, the same confusion in her eyes. She'd noticed it too.
In the back seat, Hermione looked like it was the most natural thing in the world. She lifted her chin slightly and said with a touch of pride, "What's so strange about that? Harry is amazing! Just being a Potions master makes him very prestigious. Even Hogwarts professors have to be polite when they see him!"
All along the way, Hermione bubbled with excitement, telling her parents one by one about Harry's feats at Hogwarts.
As she spoke, their reactions shifted from curiosity to astonishment, and every so often they let out genuine cries of surprise.
When Hermione got animated and described how Harry could even use magic to fire a super electromagnetic railgun, the couple stared so hard their eyes nearly popped out, disbelief written all over their faces.
Mrs. Granger, who loved sci-fi novels in her spare time, naturally understood just how terrifying a railgun's power was.
She covered her lips lightly, eyes wide, murmuring in shock, "My goodness… that child is really that powerful?"
Hermione nodded so fast her head looked like one of those rattling drum toys. "Yes, yes! Harry's incredible!"
Dusk quietly climbed up the windowframe. Yellowed light filtered through mottled glass, casting irregular patches of shadow across the floor.
Pushing the door open, Harry returned to the familiar room. After using a Cleaning Charm to tidy up, he lay on the bed and began sorting his things.
From the many wands he'd made himself, he selected the one with the best overall compatibility, then stored his original wand inside his pocket dimension.
Next, he needed to hurry to Knockturn Alley and find a few unlucky fools to test the Avada Lightning Curse on!
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