Alexander returned home in high spirits.
He ran to his room and jumped into his briefcase.
He called out.
"Silver. Copper."
Both house elves appeared instantly.
"How are the two new baby unicorns?"
Silver's eyes sparkled the moment he mentioned them.
"So small… so pure… so shiny…"
"Young Master, they are doing well," Copper replied.
Before Alexander could say anything else, Silver grabbed Copper's sleeve and dragged him forward.
"COME! WE MUST SERVE THE BABY ROYALTY!"
Copper stumbled and shouted.
"We will protect them with our lives, Young Master!"
As Silver dragged him back to the unicorns.
Alexander chuckled.
"Good, they were in reliable hands."
After he left the briefcase, he thought briefly about names.
He shook his head.
"No… I'll let Cho name them."
Just imagining her reaction made him smile.
That evening, the Chen family prepared to go out.
They were visiting one of his parents' former colleagues for dinner.
A quiet, respectable household.
Their daughter, Ashley, greeted them at the door.
She had known Alexander since childhood.
And she had always liked him.
Dinner was peaceful.
Adults discussed business, research, and international magical affairs.
Alexander ate politely, occasionally answering when spoken to.
Afterward, Ashley approached him.
"Want to see the garden?"
Alexander nodded.
"Sure."
They walked beneath softly glowing lanterns and enchanted flowers.
The garden was beautiful.
Carefully maintained.
The scenery was beautiful.
They talked casually at first—
School.
Friends.
Experiences abroad.
Ashley listened closely whenever he spoke about Hogwarts.
Especially when he mentioned Cho.
As the night deepened, Ashley finally stopped walking.
Her hands clasped together nervously.
"I know… You got a girlfriend."
Alexander answered honestly.
"Yes. Cho Chang."
He spoke happily.
"She's smart and kind. Very thoughtful. My mom adores her. Also, Cho is amazing."
Ashley's expression tightened.
"…Why not me?"
Alexander didn't hesitate.
"We've been friends since we were kids. I can't see you that way."
Silence fell.
Her eyes watered almost instantly.
She tried to hold it in—
Failed—
And ran off toward the house in tears.
Alexander sighed softly.
He didn't chase her.
It would only make things worse.
He simply walked back inside.
Mrs. Chen immediately noticed.
"Where's Ashley?"
"She's upset. Went to her room."
Mrs. Chen exchanged a look with Mr. Chen.
A silent signal.
Time to leave.
Goodbyes were polite and brief.
Once inside the car, Mr. Chen asked:
"What happened?"
Alexander explained everything.
How she asked.
How he answered.
How she cried and ran off.
Mrs. Chen nodded gently.
"At least you were kind about it."
Alexander leaned back in his seat.
"Yeah… I just never liked her that way."
His parents comforted him lightly.
Reassuring him, he handled it correctly.
Soon, they arrived home and turned in for the night.
The next day, Alexander received an invitation from Steve.
He prepared quickly and flew over to Steve's family estate.
Once he landed, he remembered something.
He handed Silver a magical camera.
"I forgot to take pictures at Nick's place. So let's take some here."
Silver saluted dramatically.
"Yes, Young Master!"
Silver and Copper immediately ran off to photograph everything with the other house elves.
The Heart Family was one of the most respected alchemy families in the United States.
Their inventions were legendary.
Steve welcomed him enthusiastically.
"Come on! I've got new stuff to show you."
They toured multiple labs and crafting halls.
Shelves filled with experimental items.
Prototype prank tools.
Alchemy-infused fireworks.
Magical sporting gear.
Steve demonstrated his improved enchanted golf clubs that could curve mid-air.
Alexander was impressed and grabbed a few for Peeves.
As they walked, Alexander casually offered improvement ideas.
Material substitutions.
Trigger timing adjustments.
Enchantments.
Steve's self-writing quill wrote everything down frantically.
Alexander was not bothered when Steve took public credit for inventions from his ideas.
He didn't have time to manufacture everything himself anyway.
Letting Steve's family handle production was efficient and very profitable.
During lunch, Alexander asked Steve to make some inventions and give advice on how to make them.
Steve was excited as Alexander kept talking about the new inventions.
Once lunch was over, Steve said.
"It will take some time to make what you're talking about. I will send letters when I have questions. For now, I have a good idea of what you want."
Alexander smiled.
"I knew it! Steve, you never let me down!"
Steve laughed and handed him a large package.
"Test items. New prank gear. Experimental fireworks. Oh—and these."
He passed over several textbooks and handwritten notes.
"Alchemy theories and beginner Alchemy books."
Alexander's eyes lit up.
Perfect timing.
He had been planning to study alchemy seriously this year.
And now with the Sorcerer's Stone in his possession.
His research possibilities had just multiplied dramatically.
"Thanks man, I was about to ask you for these later in the summer. What do you want for them?"
"Nothing, you have already helped me enough. Hurry up and leave. I want to start working." Steve replied.
They both laughed and regrouped with Silver and Copper, who proudly presented stacks of photographs.
Creature shots.
Workshop shots.
Even candid house-elf group photos.
Alexander nodded in approval.
They took a few final group pictures together.
Steve wanted some photos, so Alexander made copies for him before heading home.
After he got home, he had to take a quick bath and change into nice-looking clothes.
The Chen family went out for dinner in the city.
A calm, relaxing outing.
Good food and interesting conversation.
He was quite satisfied with the magical summer so far.