Chapter 11: Harry Potter
Harry did not enjoy being the center of attention, especially when everyone who knew his name wanted to see the scar on his forehead, which made him feel like an animal in a zoo.
But he didn’t have the courage to refuse, or rather, this could at least help him get acquainted with people faster.
So when he noticed Ron staring at his forehead with a flicker in his eyes, he pushed back his hair and let him see.
“Merlin’s socks…”
Ron exclaimed involuntarily, his eyes still fixed on Harry’s forehead, making Harry’s face flush slightly.
Vaughn tapped him on the head with his wand.
Ron yelped and clutched his head, complaining, “What are you doing?”
“Because you were impolite.”
“I… I was just curious…”
Ron turned his face away shyly, looking out the window.
Harry sat awkwardly beside him, his eyes darting around aimlessly, finally settling on the wand in Vaughn’s hand.
Having received help from the Weasley family twice in a row, Harry felt that they were very nice.
The timidity in his heart finally subsided a little, and after watching for a while, he couldn’t help but ask curiously:
“Uh, Vaughn… can I call you Vaughn?”
Vaughn, who was grooming Guo Guo Cha, nodded, “Of course, Harry.”
“Vaughn, what was that you just used…”
“The Levitation Charm, a very basic spell that makes objects float, it’s in our first year textbook.”
“That’s amazing…” Harry blinked his green eyes, then became a little dejected, “I tried for a month and didn’t learn anything.”
Vaughn dismissed it, “I’ve been practicing spells at home since I was 8, and you’ve grown up in Muggle society. Don’t compare yourself to me, Harry. Many Muggle-born young wizards are just like you.”
However, he didn’t say that he had only learned the Levitation Charm after two recitations.
There was nothing to brag about in front of a child.
This made Harry feel a little better. As he was about to enter a new environment, he was afraid he wouldn’t be able to keep up with his classmates.
Thinking this, Harry noticed that he had neglected Ron and quickly changed the subject to Ron, wanting this new friend to show off a bit to him and strengthen their bond: “Ron, you must know many spells too, right?”
Ron: “…”
Harry saw Ron’s face visibly turn red, stammering incoherently. Vaughn opposite him even let out a laugh, and he realized he might have done something foolish.
So embarrassing!
Fortunately, at this moment, the compartment door was pushed open again, and a woman with a smiling face and dimples asked:
“My dear, would you like to buy some snacks?”
She was pushing a trolley piled high with things.
Harry jumped up immediately. He had never had friends and didn’t know how to interact with people his own age, but from his own perspective, he felt that spending money to treat people to snacks was a good idea.
And he had money!
When Harry returned, the large pile of snacks he was carrying in his arms indeed attracted Ron’s attention. His eyes were fixed on Harry as he dumped the snacks on the seats and then enthusiastically invited them to share.
“Come on, come on, I bought a lot, I can’t eat it all by myself.”
Ron still wanted to be reserved: “Mom prepared sandwiches…”
But Vaughn had already happily picked up a pumpkin pastry, torn open the wrapper. He wasn’t a child and wasn’t shy about such things; he could always treat them back later.
Seeing Vaughn eat his food, Ron hesitantly took a pie and then began to eat heartily. Harry was very happy. In the past 11 years, he had never shared anything with anyone, nor had he had anything or anyone to share with.
This feeling was wonderful!
Harry and Ron chatted while they ate, and soon they were talking enthusiastically, discussing Chocolate Frog Cards and Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans. Vaughn occasionally interjected.
But more often, he just smiled and watched them, his thoughts racing.
In his past life, he had had a hypothetical scenario: given Harry’s upbringing, what would happen if he didn’t have Ron or Hermione?
The outcome was almost predictable—
Harry would either fall into depravity, immersed in the attention and praise of others as the Boy Who Lived, becoming a useless person.
Or he would go down Voldemort’s path.
But that was just a hypothetical. In reality, Harry was on this very train to Hogwarts, the turning point of his life, and met two friends who would accompany him for a lifetime, filling his dry and barren heart with love again.
Dumbledore always said that love was the greatest power.
But in Vaughn’s opinion—
Destiny… was the most awe-inspiring power!
He really wanted to grasp it in his hands!
His fingers lightly brushed his wand as Vaughn turned to look out the window. The train had just passed the last neatly tilled farmland, and the fields outside, stretching towards the distant horizon, gradually became desolate, followed by a range of mountains like dark ink, scattered forests, and a winding river across the land.
After an unknown amount of time, the compartment door was pushed open for the third time. A boy with a round face, sobbing, asked at the door, “Excuse me, have you seen a toad? Its name is Trevor, and I’ve lost it.”
Harry and Ron shook their heads blankly.
“I’ll go look for it!” Vaughn stood up. “Come, Guo Guo Cha, smell him.”
Guo Guo Cha hopped off the table and followed behind him.
The round-faced boy gratefully blew a snot bubble, “Thank you, thank you. My name is Neville, Neville Longbottom.”
“You’re welcome, just call me Vaughn.”
Vaughn wasn’t actually that enthusiastic; he just wanted an excuse to wander around.
And to let his brother and Harry build some rapport.
Watching Vaughn leave with Neville, Harry sighed, “Your brother is such a good person, Ron.”
Ron’s face contorted like a chrysanthemum: “He’s not at all! All my life, I don’t know how many times he’s scared me, and Fred and George are just as annoying as he is!”
Harry was unconcerned: “You’re brothers, of course he’ll joke around with you. But look at how he treats me and that boy. Before today, I always thought all brothers in the world were like Dudley.”
They had talked about Dudley during their previous conversation, and Harry had described him as almost a devil.
Compared to him, Ron actually felt that Vaughn was practically an angel and couldn’t help but brag: “…He’s not that bad, really. Besides scaring me, Vaughn is good at everything. He’s been brewing potions since he was 8. Everyone has heard of him; he’s a famous genius.”
“He also makes the most money in our family. Look, this new wand of mine, he bought it for me.”
Harry looked enviously at Ron cradling the wand like a treasure.
No one had ever given him such a gift.
On the other side, Vaughn, unaware that his brother was boasting about him to Harry, soon found Trevor with Guo Guo Cha’s help. After sending away a tearfully grateful Neville, he was about to leave when he heard someone call him.
“Vaughn… Weasley?”
Turning around, not far away, Hermione Granger, with her messy hair, was staring at him with sparkling eyes.
