London

"So the person who invented the camera was actually a Wizard?"

Leaning against the window ledge of the Hogwarts Express compartment, Tom crossed his legs and played with the camera Nelson had bought. The Black siblings had gotten off at the previous stop, leaving only Nelson and Tom in the compartment.

"Yes. Look at the name on the bottom of the camera. He may have made this camera himself."

"Just what I'd expect from a historian. Want to take a picture?" Tom held a red Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Bean in one hand and waved the camera in the other. "Mm... not bad. Tomato flavor."

"When I asked you to take pictures yesterday, you refused." Nelson sprawled across the seat opposite him and rolled his eyes helplessly. To trick his pet into its cage, he had fought his damn British Shorthair all night—the cat named Question Mark was currently lying comfortably atop his head, purring away. Yet he had no sleepiness at all, with heavy dark circles under his eyes and so lifeless he looked like a puddle of liquid.

"There were too many people yesterday. It would've been too embarrassing in front of all those people." Tom shamelessly defended himself, stood up, walked over, and sat beside Nelson. Pulling Nelson's arm over, he said, "Come on, cheese!"

"This camera that doesn't need developing is so convenient!" As a wisp of green smoke slowly rose from the camera and dispersed, Tom caught the photo it spat out in his hand. "Not bad. Very handsome." He praised it happily.

"Let me see." Nelson raised his head to look at the photo. In the black-and-white picture, he was smiling brightly, while the kitten on his head was making a face at the camera. Tom had an arm around his shoulders, wearing an equally radiant smile. "Not bad. This camera even has a beauty filter."

"What's a beauty filter?" Tom took the photo back and carefully slipped it into the inner pocket of his clothes.

"..."

Seeing no reaction from Nelson, Tom turned to look at him. Question Mark slid down because Nelson had raised his head, and the man and cat began another fierce battle...

"I've always wondered whether you let out exhaust fumes when you ride a Broomstick." After the battle ended, Tom stood by the window and breathed onto the glass. The train was passing through thick fog.

"This is just London weather, especially these past two years. The factories dump pollution every day."

"But I think it looks cool to fly with a trail of smoke," Tom said. He took out his Wand, thought for a moment, and slowly floated into the air. A cloud of black smoke churned beneath his flapping wizard's robes. Turning in midair, he smugly tipped his chin at Nelson. "Well? Not bad, right?"

"We will arrive at King's Cross Station in ten minutes. Please prepare to disembark." The train broadcast repeated the arrival notice.

Watching Tom float and even fly without any tools, relying solely on magic, Nelson praised him. "Very impressive. But I think it'd be even cooler if you left a rainbow behind while flying, like a fairy."

"Is your uncle home today?" Tom asked as they pulled their luggage through the streets of London. Bella's house was only two blocks away. "Tch, disgusting."

Tom's polished leather shoes nearly stepped into a puddle of filthy water. London was full of such dirty, chaotic scenes these days. Residents on both sides of the street casually dumped household garbage and wastewater onto the road. Beggars, thugs, and thieves were everywhere, along with hurried strangers from elsewhere. The chimneys of suburban factories billowed thick black smoke, casting an ashen veil over this city already known as the City of Fog.

Before getting off the train, they had changed into Muggle clothes in their compartment. Nelson wore a loose black-and-white striped wool sweater, thick work jeans, brown leather dress boots, and a beige trench coat with four large pockets. A gray wool scarf hung loosely around his neck, trailing down to his waist. Tom, meanwhile, was dressed very formally, wrapped tightly in a black suit. An emerald-and-silver tie pin glinted faintly at his collar. He pulled a suitcase with one hand and carried a Birdcage draped in black cloth with the other. Nelson's cat stood proudly atop Tom's head, seemingly unwilling to acknowledge its owner.

Over the past few months at school, both boys had grown quite a bit taller. Pedestrians on the street openly appraised the two well-dressed teenagers, and several unemployed loafers even wore malicious smiles.

"This is the level of public safety in the British Empire?" Tom sneered disdainfully, then returned their looks with a provocative smile. "Chamberlain ought to bury himself in his own backyard. If I use magic to fight back while being attacked, that doesn't violate the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy, does it?" Tom licked his lips with some excitement. His handsome face twisted slightly, and a trace of scarlet flashed through his black eyes.

"That depends on the situation. If you blow up an entire street, it'd probably still be illegal." Nelson stopped Tom's dangerous train of thought as they approached a deserted alley. Across from it stood the orphanage where they had grown up. "Uncle Jonas should be home. He wrote last week that he'd already left Poland and was heading back."

"Bang—" As they passed the mouth of the alley, a skinny boy in a worn Newsboy Cap crashed into Nelson's chest. "Sorry, sir." He sounded about ten years old. He apologized as he backed away, holding down the brim of his cap, then quickly turned and ran off.

"Interesting." Nelson watched his retreating back and whistled, slipping his hands into the pockets of his trench coat. Tom curved his lips, released his suitcase, and lightly flicked his arm. His Wand slid out from his sleeve and into his hand.

"That was magic, wasn't it?" He looked eager to try something. "Coming home for the holidays really was a good choice. There's actually a Wizard stealing in a Muggle neighborhood."

"It was magic." Nelson narrowed his eyes and saw the child in the Newsboy Cap slip through the orphanage's back door in the distance. "How impressive. We'd barely left, and the orphanage already produced someone like that."

"Mrs. Cole must've picked him up. I feel like she's about to work herself to death, yet she still keeps bringing people into the orphanage like some nun." Tom lifted his chin toward the orphanage. "What did he steal?"

"Just a wallet. I don't even have many Pounds Sterling on me. The Galleons are all in the suitcase." Nelson shrugged. "Nuns from the church wouldn't pick up children. At most, they'd pick up a few gentlemen willing to donate."

"That really disgusts me, but it's unrealistic to expect everyone to be like Mrs. Cole." Tom curled his lip in distaste. "She really is a good person. Let's help Mrs. Cole teach that kid a lesson. She always says that starving to death is still better than stealing."

"Let's go home first. I put a little something in his pocket." Nelson took his hand out of his pocket and gripped the suitcase handle. "We should put down our luggage first. Judging by his age, he should be a new Hogwarts student next year."

"Fine. We were going to visit the orphanage in a few days anyway."

"Hahaha, I wonder whether he ate the chocolate Brother Tom left for everyone?" Nelson grinned mischievously.

Tom's face flushed bright red. He stiffly dragged his suitcase toward Aunt Bella's house at a brisk pace.

"Wait for me, Brother Tom! I want chocolate too!" Nelson chased after Tom with his suitcase. Tom walked even faster, as though he wished he could summon a broom and fly away immediately.

Before long, the two stood at Aunt Bella's door. Nelson took a deep breath, stepped forward, and rang the doorbell.

"Uh, Nal, were you abandoned too?" In the biting wind, Tom, who had stood at the door for half an hour, wrapped his coat tighter around himself and tucked his hands beneath the kitten's belly against his chest. He and Nelson shared a sense of solidarity in their mutual misery.

"Maybe, Tom." Nelson fastened the large buttons of his trench coat and tightened his scarf, looking like a sculpture from an anti-war exhibition.

"Two handsome gentlemen, what are you doing out here?" Two large hands landed on Nelson and Tom's shoulders, and the pair slowly turned around.

"Un... Uncle Jonas, Aunt Bella." Nelson stammered his greeting in the cold wind. Tom also nodded stiffly in greeting, pretending not to be cold. But the sudden cold war between them made Jonas and Bella behind him burst out laughing.

"We went out to buy you something tasty." Bella raised her hand, showing Nelson and Tom the ingredients she was carrying. "Come in. We'll make you a Christmas feast."

Jonas took out his key and opened the door. The moment they entered, Nelson and Tom rushed to the sofa near the fireplace and hugged the cushions.

Jonas brought a bottle of fruit wine and four glasses from the kitchen, clattering as he set them on the coffee table. Bella played with the kitten nearby. "It looks so funny!" It seemed very fond of Bella, rubbing its chin against the back of her hand and purring contentedly.

"This fruit wine was sent by relatives from my hometown. It's very low in alcohol, so you two can have some too." Jonas filled all four glasses with rosy fruit wine, and a sweet-and-sour fermented fragrance spread through the living room.

"I'm going to the kitchen. You two talk first." Bella took a bamboo basket from beside the fireplace, picked a square cushion of suitable size from the sofa and placed it inside, then lifted the British Shorthair by the scruff and put it in the basket. It curled into a ball inside with a few meows, then soon fell silent. She added some water to Tom's owl cage and opened its door. "Tom, this bird is nice. Can it eat corn?"

"I brought feed, Aunt Bella," Tom answered obediently.

"Very good." Jonas sat down on the sofa, crossed his legs, and took a sip from his glass. "The gifts we brought you are in the basement. You can go take a look later."

"Thank you, Uncle." Tom was so well-behaved now that he was like the perfect child everyone else talked about. He did not even touch his wineglass.

"Uncle Jonas, how was Poland?" Nelson asked, idly turning his wineglass in his hand.

"Not good. I feel like war is about to break out. The people there are all fanatical, and there are homeless people everywhere." Jonas looked worried. "Now that you're away at school, I can't keep an eye on you. But don't go running around recklessly."

"Jonas, come help me chop the vegetables!" Bella called from the kitchen.

"Go take a look at the gifts in the basement." Jonas pushed himself up from the sofa and headed for the kitchen. "You'll like them."