Hogwarts Expressly Slow

"This is so slow. How is this the Hogwarts Express? It's more like the Hogwarts Expressly Slow." Lily leaned against Petunia in boredom and saw that she was studying ahead for Potions Class.

"If you're bored, study the textbooks with me."

Petunia peeled Lily off her shoulder. "Come on, let's review together."

"No, no. I've already studied everything for next year. All I want now is a holiday!" Lily had nothing but admiration for her overachieving sister. With three hours left before the express reached the station, she began practicing spells into the air out of sheer boredom, treating it as a way to raise her proficiency. Watching the Shield Charm and Impediment Jinx go from gray to green filled Lily with a sense of accomplishment.

She raised her hand and tried a Relashio. Petunia finally noticed something was wrong. Lily had been casting the Shield Charm and Impediment Jinx nonstop for half an hour, yet her magic showed no sign of running dry. After two and a half years in the wizarding world, Petunia could say that this simply defied common sense.

"Lily, what's your maximum magic capacity?"

Petunia watched how quickly and in what manner her sister cast her spells. It seemed no different from the way she herself did it.

"I don't know. I've never tried using up all my magic."

"Don't try that casually. I read in a book that it can damage a young wizard's magic nexus, especially while their magic is still growing. Magic exhaustion is very serious. If something goes wrong, you could become a Squib."

Petunia sternly warned her sister not to do it. With how daring Lily was, she would absolutely try it.

"I know, I know. I'm not going to do something that has no benefits and only drawbacks." Lily got up and headed outside, intending to look for Mary and the others.

"I'm going to find Mary and the others. See you when we get off." With that, she darted out. Petunia watched her sister's boundless energy helplessly. With the holidays about to begin, she decided to let her do as she pleased.

Lily knocked on the compartment doors one by one, looking for them. Sometimes she really wished Pindaodao would give her some mobile phones so she could quickly find whoever she wanted. "Give up on that idea. Networks aren't widespread yet, and any electronic device will stop working inside Hogwarts."

As expected of Pindaodao, it was even quicker to twist the knife than she had imagined. "I was only thinking about it."

After persistently knocking on seven or eight compartment doors, she finally found Mary. Her friends were all sitting together, saving her the trouble of looking for them again.

"I've been looking everywhere for you. I thought you'd disappeared."

Mary scooted over to make room. Marlene had just bought a pile of snacks when the trolley came by. "Come have some. It's not often we get to see our very busy Lily on the train home."

Marlene pushed a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans in front of Lily. "Come on, eat three as punishment and I'll forgive you."

Lily plopped down beside Mary and grabbed the box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans. "You missed me that much after an hour apart? We only just saw each other in the castle."

"Eat, eat! We want to see how lucky you are. Marlene just ate several, and they were all dirt or vomit flavored. Now she wants to stuff beans into everyone she sees." Dorcas explained Marlene's bored antics.

"Several bad beans in a row? That's pretty unlucky."

With the four of them watching expectantly, Lily ate the first one. They watched her face remain unchanged.

"It's strawberry."

Everyone urged her to continue, so Lily swallowed the bean in her mouth and ate another. She had good reason to suspect Marlene wanted her to keep eating until she got a bad one. Chew, chew, chew. Mm, another good one. A green apple flavor spread through her mouth. "Green apple."

"Damn it, you're way too lucky! I didn't get a single good bean." Marlene beat her chest and stamped her feet in frustration.

"You poor thing." Dorcas patted Marlene's back sympathetically. "It's fine. I don't believe they'll all be good beans." Marlene had faith in her own luck. How could she possibly have bought a box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans with no bad ones?

"Chocolate."

"Coconut. Mm, not bad."

"Popcorn. Oh, I like this one."

"Mm, coffee. A little bitter."

"I don't believe it. Could the whole box really be good beans?" Marlene refused to accept it and took a few beans from the box in Lily's hand. "Ugh, vomit again."

Marlene grabbed a tissue at random and spat the beans out. "I can't take it. My luck is just too awful." Marlene leaned peacefully against Alice, as though she had exhausted every means and all her strength. Lily looked at the box in her hand, took out a bean, and popped it into Dorcas's mouth. "What flavor?"

Dorcas chewed the bean with a frown. Marlene opened one eye and stared fixedly at her. "Please don't look at me like that. It's kind of scary."

"What flavor is it?" Marlene kept her eyes on Dorcas, waiting for the answer.

Dorcas thought back over the flavors she had tasted. "Uh, toffee."

"So I'm the only one who can't get a good bean, mmph—"

Lily had silenced Marlene in the physical sense, stuffing several beans of the same color into her mouth. Marlene had nothing left to live for. She didn't dare imagine what it would be like to have a mouthful of vomit-flavored beans.

"Hm?" They didn't seem to taste bad. They were like a combination of toasted marshmallow, strawberry, and cheesecake, and were actually pretty good. She swore that from now on she would only eat beans Lily brought to her mouth.

"What are you doing to that girl?"

"Let that girl go!"

Who was being so melodramatic? A deafening bang followed, as though someone had slammed hard into the compartment door.

"Merlin, what was that?"

Marlene pulled Alice well away from the door, afraid it would fall on them. "What's happening out there?"

Lily got up and pulled the door open. At a glance, she saw the four Marauders surrounding an older Slytherin student: Prefect Rosier, the very one who had caught them fighting on the train at the start of term. James disarmed him with an Expelliarmus, and Sirius fired an Impedimenta, sending Rosier crashing hard into the compartment door. That was where the loud bang had come from. Lupin and Peter stood to one side, continuously firing Foam Charms at Rosier, white foam pouring endlessly from his mouth.

Lily frowned. Sirius glanced at Lily and immediately spotted the half bag of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans in her hand.

"Potter, what are you going to do to my Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans—" Before he could finish, the words seemed to stick in his throat. Sirius stuffed all the beans straight into Rosier's mouth, which was still overflowing with foam. Even Lily had to praise their teamwork.

"Merlin, that's disgusting. Shut the door, quick." Mary and Dorcas joined forces to kick Rosier away, then immediately shut the door. "Can't those boys settle down even on their way home?" Mary always felt that much of the time, the Marauders were just deliberately showing off.

"It's all the Slytherin's fault. The Slytherin must have been picking on someone younger just now." Dorcas pounded the table in anger, nearly sending a Cauldron Cake flying. "Darling, what did the cake ever do to you?"

Lily caught the free-falling Cauldron Cake in midair. The train rattled along, and all the restless commotion died down once it reached the station. The young witches and wizards got off one after another with their luggage, including Rosier, who had been beaten black and blue. He simply put on a black cloak and covered himself completely.

Lily carried her suitcase off the express and followed the crowd out of Platform Nine and Three-Quarters into King's Cross Station. "I wonder where Petunia and Severus are."

"Hi, Lily. Are you looking for me?" James came over with his suitcase as though he had caught her scent. "Yes, I'm looking for... Wait, no, I'm looking for Petunia. Who said I was looking for you?"

Lily had inadvertently let James lead her astray. "Hehe, I knew you were looking for me." Grinning, James even tried to take Lily's suitcase. "No, thank you. I can carry it myself."

Lily moved her suitcase farther away from James. Surely he wasn't planning to take her luggage and then take her home along with it? "I'm going to find Petunia. See you around." Lily darted off. She certainly wasn't going to give James a chance to say something like, "Come meet my parents in a bit."