To the Station, Meeting Harry Potter Again

Charlie pushed his luggage cart through the bustling crowd at King's Cross Station.

Storm stood atop the suitcase, looking around with an imposing air, drawing startled glances from many passersby.

"Platform Nine and Three-Quarters..." Charlie glanced down at the ticket in his hand, his brow furrowing slightly.

He paced back and forth between Platforms Nine and Ten a few times but found no sign of anything related to Nine and Three-Quarters.

Ask a staff member? Forget it—this was clearly a secret of the wizarding world; asking would only get him labeled a lunatic.

Just as Charlie hesitated, a familiar figure caught his eye.

That black-haired boy from the wand shop—Harry Potter—was pushing a cart piled with luggage, looking just as lost as Charlie.

More striking was the fact that Harry was talking to a family with fiery red hair.

The red-haired woman was short and plump, with a kind face, accompanied by five children, all with the same red hair.

Charlie pushed his cart closer, watching as one of the red-haired boys charged his luggage cart straight at the barrier wall between Platforms Nine and Ten.

Just as Charlie's surprise peaked, the boy vanished into the wall.

"Wall-passing technique?" Charlie couldn't help blurting out in amazement.

Could the childhood dream of learning to walk through walls and sneak into the girls' bathhouse finally come true?

The red-haired woman heard his voice and turned to look at Charlie.

She immediately noticed his luggage and the owl perched on the trunk, and smiled knowingly.

"You're a first-year heading to Hogwarts too, dear?" she asked gently.

Charlie nodded.

"Yes, ma'am. I can't find Platform Nine and Three-Quarters."

"Oh, don't worry," the red-haired woman said warmly.

"You just need to walk straight at the barrier wall between Platforms Nine and Ten. Don't stop, don't be afraid," she explained.

"If you're nervous, you can jog toward it."

Charlie nodded gratefully.

"Thank you, ma'am."

Harry had already gone ahead, pushing his cart toward the wall and disappearing into it.

Charlie took a deep breath and followed.

He closed his eyes and charged forward with his cart.

The expected impact never came. When he opened his eyes, the sight before him left him in awe.

A scarlet steam locomotive stood beside the platform, with "Hogwarts Express" written across its front.

The platform was packed with students and parents, the cries of owls, the clatter of luggage, and the chatter of voices all blending together.

"Whoa..." Charlie couldn't help exclaiming.

This blend of steam engine and magic felt truly wondrous.

Harry stood not far away, looking just as stunned as Charlie.

Their eyes met, and they both smiled without thinking.

"Hey, want to find a compartment together?" Charlie asked first.

Harry nodded. "Sure."

Together, they loaded their luggage onto the train and found an empty compartment. After stowing their bags, they sat down across from each other.

"I'm Charlie White." Charlie extended his hand.

"Harry Potter." Harry shook it, nervously watching Charlie's reaction.

Charlie just nodded, showing no particular surprise.

Harry breathed a sigh of relief, feeling a spark of kinship.

"Did you live in the Muggle world before too?" Harry asked.

Charlie nodded. "Yeah, I only found out I was a wizard a month ago."

"Me too!" Harry said excitedly.

"I grew up with a Muggle family. I didn't know I was a wizard until Hagrid came and told me."

"Hagrid is the Gamekeeper at Hogwarts."

The two exchanged smiles, finding common ground in an unfamiliar environment.

Outside the window, Mrs. Weasley was lecturing the pair of red-haired twins.

"—You two behave yourselves this year, understand? If I get another letter saying you blew up the toilet—"

"Blew up a toilet? We've never blown up a toilet," one of the twins said.

"But that's a great idea, thanks Mum!" the other chimed in.

"That's not funny!" Mrs. Weasley said loudly.

Charlie watched the twins' retreating figures and couldn't help sighing:

"Now that's true genius. Even a Tyrant would have to say, 'You're the real tyrants here.'"

Blowing up the school toilets—he didn't dare imagine how many Tyrant Points that would earn.

Harry looked at him in confusion: "What Tyrant?"

"Uh, nothing, just a joke." Charlie quickly changed the subject.

Not long after, the compartment door slid open, and the twins walked in with the red-haired boy they'd seen earlier.

"Hey, any room in here?" the red-haired boy asked. "All the other compartments are full."

"Of course," Harry and Charlie said at the same time.

After the three sat down, the twins introduced themselves:

"I'm Fred Weasley."

"And I'm George Weasley."

"And this is our little brother, Ron."

"Charlie White."

"Harry Potter."

"Wait, you're Harry Potter?"

Harry nodded, his cheeks flushing slightly.

"Really?" Fred asked in surprise. "Do you actually have... the scar?"

Harry lifted his fringe, revealing the lightning-shaped scar on his forehead. The twins and Ron all stared wide-eyed.

"Whoa!" Ron gasped involuntarily.

Harry looked visibly uncomfortable. He still wasn't used to being treated like some rare creature.

Seeing Harry's face turn red, Charlie spoke up at the right moment.

"Fred, George," Charlie suddenly said.

"When you go blow up the toilet, can I join?"

The twins froze for a moment, blinking in surprise. They clearly hadn't expected this handsome, noble-looking new student to be a kindred spirit!

Fred looked Charlie up and down and asked suspiciously: "Why do you want to join us?"

"Because pulling pranks makes me stronger, and I can learn new magic."

"Haha, that's a great excuse, George. Next time Mum asks why we're pranking, we'll use that."

Charlie shrugged. In this day and age, no one believed the truth.

He had to change his tune.

"Alright, because it's fun. Blowing up a toilet sounds exciting—way more interesting than staring at boring textbooks."

George grinned: "Haha, I like that reason!"

Fred and George exchanged a glance, then said in unison: "Welcome to the Weasley Prank Squad!"

"But we can't tell you our secret plan yet," Fred said mysteriously.

"We'll talk when we get to Hogwarts," George added.

The two stood up to leave. Fred turned back before going: "Remember, we're professionals."

"A rookie might not keep up with our pace," George said with a wink.

Charlie made an OK gesture: "Don't worry, I won't hold you back."

The twins left satisfied, heading back to their own compartment.

The compartment fell quiet again, leaving only Ron, Harry, and Charlie.

Ron looked at Charlie with admiration: "You actually dare to mess around with Fred and George? They're the biggest troublemakers in school."

"Mum gets complaint letters about them every year."

Harry nodded too: "Sounds fun. I've never had friends like that."

Charlie leaned back in his seat, crossing his legs: "Life's short, have fun while you can."

Ron and Harry both found Charlie interesting. His carefree attitude felt refreshing to them.

As they chatted, the train let out a whistle and began to slowly move.

Charlie watched the scenery slide past the window, feeling a bit frustrated.

His current "business" was just sitting on the train, which meant his Tyrant Points weren't going up.

If he took a dump right there in the train car in front of everyone, that would earn him Tyrant Points—but that was way too idiotic.

[Servant agrees with Your Majesty doing that, but if anyone asks why, please don't mention me.]

Charlie: ...