Chance Encounter—This Had to Be a Coincidence, Right?

Chance Encounter—This Had to Be a Coincidence, Right?

A red-and-black train stood beside the platform, its engine blasting out scorching white steam.

A sign for the Hogwarts Express hung at the front, while the passageway to one side was marked Platform Nine and Three-Quarters.

The platform was rather crowded. After all, it was the first day of school, and many wizarding parents had come to see their children off. Nearly every one of them had brought a trolley.

Cats and owls, the two types of pets permitted by the school, were everywhere. Only a very few people carried toads in their arms.

After passing through the wall, Aaron found the boy staring wide-eyed, looking around at everything with a curious expression. His gaze lingered longest on the train.

He could not help feeling a little more sympathy for him. This kid did not merely know nothing about the Magical World—judging by this, he seemed to know less about the Muggle world than normal people did. His delighted expression made it clear that he had barely ridden a train before.

"Ahem! I can see you're excited, but a friendly reminder: the train leaves in about ten minutes. What you should do now is find a compartment, then put away your luggage and owl."

The boy came back to his senses and said gratefully, "Thank you. Can you tell me your name?"

"Just call me Aaron. No need to thank me—it was nothing."

"Oh." The boy nodded, seemingly wanting to say something but holding back.

The two made their way through the bustling crowd and found an empty compartment on the train.

Aaron had it easy enough. His luggage was not that heavy, so he could put it away without much effort. But the boy was different—he had quite a lot of things, and they were exceptionally heavy.

He dragged and pulled for a long while, yet could not lift them at all.

"Ah!" Aaron sighed. "You should feel honored. This is the first time I've ever carried things for someone else."

"Sorry," the boy said awkwardly.

Aaron had wanted to show off his strength in front of this future classmate, but when he tried to lift the suitcase, he found it especially difficult as well.

"Ahem! It's pretty heavy."

"Should I find someone else to help?"

"No. It's only a suitcase. There's absolutely no need to ask someone for help." Aaron looked at the compartment more than ten meters away and could not help sighing inwardly. This will be the longest walk I take today.

"Need a hand?"

A voice sounded behind them. Though it carried a hint of frivolity, to Aaron, it was simply heavenly music.

"N—"

The boy had barely gotten out the word "no" when Aaron eagerly said, "That would be great."

"Didn't you just say—"

"Asking someone for help and someone offering help voluntarily are two completely different things," Aaron said righteously. His voice carried a composure beyond his age. "Trust me, you'll understand that someday."

The boy seemed to understand something. Looking at the red-haired boy, he said shyly and hesitantly, "I think I really do need help."

He immediately turned around and shouted, "Hey, Fred, come help out."

A moment later, another red-haired boy who looked exactly like the first one walked over.

They had to be twins. Not only did they look alike, even the luggage they carried was identical.

With two more people helping, they finally managed to carry the suitcase into the compartment.

"Thanks. If it had just been the two of us, who knows how long it would have taken!" the boy said.

Aaron directly took two lollipops from Abei's clothing pocket and handed them over, making the Young Dragon give him a pitiful look.

"Though this suitcase had nothing to do with me, proper thanks are still necessary. Please don't dislike them—do accept them."

"This..." One of the red-haired boys hesitated. Though the lollipops were unopened, they had been snatched from a pet's pocket.

The brothers might usually be mischievous, but they had never actually snatched food from a pet's mouth.

"There's no need. It was nothing," the other red-haired boy said.

Hearing this, Abei's big eyes narrowed smugly as it took its own candy back from Aaron's hand.

The first red-haired boy's eyes lit up. His gaze toward Abei was full of eagerness. "Your cat is so cute. Can we hold it? Just once."

"Uh... I'm afraid not. Abei has never liked strangers."

"What a shame," the red-haired boy said regretfully.

Just then, a shout came from outside the compartment. "Fred, George, are you on the train?"

"Coming, Mum!"

The brothers called back at once and jumped out of the compartment.

From Aaron and Harry's angle, they could see them walk over to a plump woman. In front of her stood a red-haired boy and a red-haired girl. They looked like one family.

Aaron sincerely admired this mother. Raising four children was already no easy task.

Yet a moment later, another taller red-haired boy walked over and gathered with them, though Aaron could not hear what they were saying.

"Good grief. Good grief."

"What did you say?"

"Nothing. I just think that plump woman must be a great mother.

Five whole children! And she can still keep the family relationships so harmonious."

The boy turned his head and saw the twin brothers waving at him, startling him into immediately ducking his head back.

Before long, the Hogwarts Express began moving, gradually picking up speed amid a rhythmic clatter.

The boy was thrilled. Buildings flashed past before his eyes, and the forests, fields, even the blue sky and white clouds outside—things that were usually so ordinary—seemed incomparably new and beautiful to him.

This was the happiest time of his life. He was far away from his aunt and uncle, far away from his cousin's bullying, and he would no longer drift through a Muggle secondary school.

Then the boy noticed something strange. Aaron, sitting opposite him, seemed even more excited than he was. There was even a glimmer in his eyes as he looked out the window.

That completely threw him off. Could Aaron, like him, be a child fostered in someone else's home and oppressed every day? He did not look like it!

Several seconds later, the boy cautiously asked, "Aaron."

"Hm? What is it?"

"Nothing. It's just... don't you think you're a little too excited?"

"Am I? Is it that obvious?" Aaron awkwardly picked up Abei, who was holding a lollipop in its mouth, and soothed his exaggerated expression by Petting Dragon.

The boy hurriedly nodded. "Very obvious."

"We're going to a magic school, after all. It's normal to be a little excited," Aaron said. Then he looked at the boy. "By the way, I still don't know your name."

"My name is—"

Before the boy could finish, the compartment door slid open. A red-haired boy looked at them rather nervously and said, "Sorry to bother you. Can I sit here? Everywhere else is full."

The boy immediately recognized him as the younger brother of the twin brothers who had helped carry his suitcase. He patted the seat beside him. "Go ahead!"

"Thanks!" The red-haired boy sat down and introduced himself directly. "I'm Ron. Ron Weasley."

"I'm Harry, Harry Potter." After speaking, the boy pointed at Aaron opposite him. "He's Aaron."

"Pfft!"

Aaron instantly felt as though he had been struck dumb. He nearly threw Abei in his hands out the train window.

What was going on? All the absurd things he had never encountered in the past eleven years had all happened over these few days before school started.

He had not even arrived at school yet, and he had already met the main cast? What kind of insane luck was this?

Ron's eyes widened at once. There was now a touch of admiration in the way he looked at Harry. Nervously, he pointed at Harry's forehead. "Then... is it real?

I mean, do you really have that... that..."

"That what?" Harry asked in confusion.

"The scar."

"Oh!" Harry lifted the hair from his forehead, revealing a lightning-shaped scar with a hint of pride.

"That's incredible," Ron said in amazement.

"Ah!" Aaron let out a deep sigh.

"What do you mean by sighing?" Ron asked. "He's a famous figure in the Magic World—the Boy Who Lived, Harry Potter! Some books even record his legendary deeds!"

Aaron rolled his eyes at him. "So what? I'm not a fanboy. Besides, that scar isn't a good thing for him.

But I really didn't expect to end up in the same compartment as the famous Harry Potter."

"Right? That's what I think too. Fate is just that wonderfully mysterious."

Aaron: ...