Off to the side, Sean was quietly taking notes.
Actually, not really.
[Notes – Levitation Charm]
– Wrist: flick, then a light shake at the end.
– Pronunciation is crucial — do NOT turn the "f" into an "s".
– It's "Wingardium Leviosa", with the "ga" drawn out and clear.
Sean looked at the lines he'd just scribbled, satisfied, then put his quill back in the inkwell.
As long as you capped it fast enough, the ink wouldn't dry; that way, the same vial lasted longer.
"I practiced fifteen times, Hermione. I'm not going to be the dumbest first-year, am I?"
Justin's voice carried a hint of worry. Faced with something completely new,
even someone as upbeat as him sounded a little deflated.
Sean, putting away his notes:
Actually, not really.
"I don't know," Hermione frowned, shaking her head. "With only myself as a reference, I can't judge…"
Then her eyes suddenly lit up.
"Sean, you… definitely know the Levitation Charm too, don't you?"
Being called on so abruptly, Sean just nodded.
His wrist flicked once, then twice.
"Wingar—dium—Leviosa!"
[You practiced the Levitation Charm once at Initiate standard. Proficiency +3]
As the incantation left his lips, the feather rose again, bobbing lazily in the air.
"Cool!"
Justin let out a genuine exclamation. Compared to his own one-second float,
Sean's version was obviously far smoother and more stable.
"You must've picked it up really fast, right? I mean—for someone like you,
who grew up in a wizarding family."
The second half of Justin's sentence made Sean tilt his head, puzzled.
Seeing those big questioning green eyes, Justin's own eyes went wide.
"You're… not from a wizarding family? You're Muggle-born?"
He lowered his voice as he said it, like he was sharing a secret.
"That means—you only started learning magic this summer…
and in two months, you've already learned something as hard as Transfiguration?"
Sean nodded calmly.
"What's that phrase again? Mer… Mer…"
Justin clearly wanted to say something dramatic,
but the word got stuck halfway out.
"Merlin," Hermione prompted under her breath.
"Right. Merlin…"
Justin repeated it quietly, then suddenly looked at Sean with a kind of friendly awe.
"Both Hermione and I—well, we're Muggle-born. Our parents aren't wizards at all.
Which also means—everyone in this compartment is Muggle-born.
Funny, isn't it? I heard pure-blood wizards are much more common in the magical world."
As he was speaking, the noise outside the compartment rose sharply.
Mixed in with the chatter was a rhythmic clank-clank sound.
Strangely, unlike other bursts of excitement that came and went,
this one only grew louder.
A moment later, the compartment door slid open.
A plump witch in an apron stepped in, pushing a trolley piled high with sweets.
All three pairs of eyes were immediately drawn to it.
"Anything from the trolley, dears?"
The plump witch's cheeks dimpled when she smiled;
even her voice sounded warm and soft.
Sean gave the dazzling array of sweets a single glance—
then forcibly dragged his eyes away.
It had been a long time since breakfast; he was already very hungry.
He knew the Hogwarts Express would be running for hours,
from morning all the way to nightfall.
But he hadn't been able to bring any food.
Matron Anna would never have allowed him to take so much as a slice of toast.
It'll be fine once we reach Hogwarts.
Sean told himself that firmly.
"I'll have one of everything—
…actually, make it two."
The moment Justin got the words "one of" out,
the trolley witch's smile brightened even more.
"All right, dear. That's Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, Drooble's Best Blowing Gum, Chocolate Frogs, Pumpkin Pasties, Cauldron Cakes, Liquorice Wands…"
She rattled off the names with the ease of long practice.
"…all together, one Galleon and five Sickles."
Hermione almost choked at the price.
She opened her mouth to suggest restraint—
—then the Galleons in Justin's hand caught the light,
and the advice died in her throat.
Justin paid briskly, then, a faint flush on his face, explained:
"This money was originally meant for my fees at Eton.
Then, the very next day, I got my Hogwarts letter.
Mum still thinks Hogwarts isn't as good as Eton, of course,
but come on—learning magic? That's miles better than becoming a barrister or some business big shot…"
He trailed off and tucked the remaining Galleons back into his trunk.
Only then did Sean finally connect the dots.
Justin Finch-Fletchley.
A genuinely kind and honest Hufflepuff.
He would later join the Duelling Club, then Dumbledore's Army.
And when he found out he'd wrongly suspected Harry of being Slytherin's heir,
he actually walked up and apologized with a handshake.
Compared to all the kids who pretended nothing had happened,
that took real courage.
And then there was the fact he'd turned down Eton for Hogwarts.
In Britain, Eton didn't just accept anyone with good marks.
Almost everyone who got in was some kind of aristocratic heir.
"My aunt's son's classmate's cousin's nephew got into Eton!
Ha! Bet you lot are jealous, you country brats!
Kids like you? Bastards like you don't even need to dream about it."
That was one of Anna's favourite lines when mocking them.
It also said everything about Eton's status.
In other words—
Justin was Hogwarts' hidden rich kid.
Pure-bred money.
Sean thought dryly.
The trolley witch was already pushing her cart away,
murmuring something about "two very generous little wizards"
as she disappeared down the corridor.
Inside the compartment,
Justin began stacking sweets onto the table,
until the pile looked like a small sugary hill.
"Help me out and eat some, will you?"
His voice floated up from behind the fort of sweets.
"There's no way I can finish all this. Please."
"You're laying it on too thick,"
Hermione said bluntly, unwrapping a Fizzy Sherbet Lemon without hesitation.
Then she leaned closer and muttered:
"He'll notice."
"Shh—"
Justin put a finger to his lips, then he and Hermione peeked together at a certain boy.
His robes were a little worn and pilled,
the fabric at his sleeves slightly frayed and splitting.
If you ignored his delicate, pale face,
he really did look like one of those children nobody wanted in an orphanage.
"Try a Chocolate Frog? I heard wizard kids are crazy about these."
Justin held one out in an overly casual tone.
Sean took it faster than he meant to.
"…Thanks."
His voice was very soft.
No hardship can beat me. No exam, no subject.
But temptation? Yeah, that's different.
Sean fell under the sugar-coated onslaught of capital in seconds.
"My Chocolate Frog!"
Just as Justin was happily unwrapping his own sweets,
his frog suddenly gave a mighty leap, aiming straight for the open window.
"Wingar—dium—Leviosa!"
A calm voice cut in.
Sean, who had clearly been expecting this, flicked his wand.
The Chocolate Frog dropped neatly back into Justin's hands.
"Chocolate Frogs will always jump once,"
Sean explained slowly.
Then, nibbling his own frog in small, careful bites,
he opened One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi on his lap.
Outside the window, the sky was slowly darkening.
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