"Come on in, there's still room."
Baron raised his head without changing expression and gestured invitingly. "I'm Baron Shafiq, and this is K, who prefers not to reveal his name. It's a pleasure to travel with you."
"Cho Chang. It's nice to meet you both." The Asian girl smiled in greeting, then dragged her luggage inside. "What were you talking about just now? It didn't sound like a very cheerful conversation."
Baron answered earnestly, "We were discussing the state of Slytherin. We agreed that some people in Slytherin House have forgotten its former glory. They've let their indulgence blind them, and they give free rein to their nature..." He faltered, unsure what word to use for those disappointing older students.
"Bastards."
Avada offered a reasonably apt word from beside him.
"A little crude, but basically right."
Baron frowned slightly, but still nodded in agreement. "So I told him that this was absolutely not what Slytherin stood for, and asked him not to be prejudiced against the House. If a Slytherin ever offends him in the future, I'll do my best to help and apologize in advance."
"The same goes for you, Cho."
"Thank you for your kindness." Cho smiled, then asked hesitantly, "But forgive me for being blunt. I think Slytherin's reputation is so... less than stellar not only because of the things you mentioned, but also because of its admission criteria, right? Ambition, the pursuit of power, victory above all else... It must be hard to recruit good people."
"You left out the most important one: 'a respect for honor.'" Baron's expression was serious. "Besides, a person's conscience and moral boundaries are what determine whether they're good. It has nothing to do with ambition or power."
"I won't deny that people with these traits are more likely to lose themselves and abandon their principles and conscience. That's why Slytherin has produced more Dark wizards than any other House. But that doesn't mean it was Salazar Slytherin's intention, nor does it mean there are no honest, kind, and trustworthy people among Slytherins."
"I believe that, and I hope that once you're in Slytherin, you'll be able to change people's prejudice against the House."
Avada gently reassured Baron, then changed the subject. "Let's talk about something lighter. Cho, you seem to be Asian. You don't see many Asian faces in the United Kingdom, and even fewer among wizards."
"That's true." Cho smiled. "My mother is a British Chinese, and she graduated from Hogwarts, too. She says she was the first Chinese wizard admitted to Hogwarts in over a thousand years, and I may well be the second!" (Note)
"Actually, there's something I've always wondered about," Avada said. "Asia is the most populous continent in the world, yet it has the fewest wizards. There's only one wizarding school in all of Asia, Mahoutokoro. It admits students from across the continent, but it's the smallest of the eleven wizarding schools."
"I've read about this in my family's library," Baron replied. "The prevailing theory is that the birth of wizards seems to be connected to the Earth's magnetic field. The closer a place is to a magnetic pole, the more likely wizards are to be born there. Europe and North America are the largest population centers near the magnetic poles, so it's natural that they have the most wizards. Asia has the largest population, but it's farthest from the poles, so it has very few wizards."
"The southernmost parts of Africa and South America are close to the South Magnetic Pole, and both have sizable populations, so they also have a considerable number of wizards. But factors like climate and natural resources led to the wizarding schools being established in Uganda and Brazil."
Avada was fascinated by this theory. He had never considered anything like it while reading the original books.
"That sounds very reasonable," he said with genuine admiration.
"But this theory is just a summary of what we see in the real world. It hasn't been verified by any consistent rules," Baron sighed. "And it can't explain the distribution of Fantastic Beasts. They're found on every continent, and there are plenty of them everywhere. It's something Magizoologists have always puzzled over."
"I thought about this when I was little." Cho's eyes lit up. "I believe the bloodlines of magical creatures are more stable than those of wizards. So if a new magical creature comes into existence, or one migrates to a different environment, it can keep reproducing there. Over a long period of evolution, it can form a large population without being restricted by geography. The proof is that there's never been a Squib among Fantastic Beasts!"
"That's a fascinating theory!" Baron exclaimed. "Did you really come up with it yourself?"
"Of course!"
Cho nodded proudly. "I'm planning to learn more, refine the theory, and then write it up as a paper for the Daily Prophet. It might even earn me an Order of Merlin, Second Class!"
"You'll make an excellent Ravenclaw," he said admiringly.
"Thank you. That's what my mother hopes for me, too," Cho replied with a sweet smile.
Avada, a Muggle-born who knew little about the Wizarding World beyond the original books and the few books on magic he had just finished reading, listened in bewilderment.
Wasn't the wizarding world just Avada Kedavra and Expelliarmus?
"Whoo—"
Just then, the Hogwarts Express gave a whistle and began to move, speeding toward the ancient and mysterious Hogwarts. Sunlight streamed through the windows, and forests and grasslands raced past outside.
"Come to think of it, we've been talking about Cho and me this whole time, K, but you haven't introduced yourself yet."
On the speeding train, Baron bought some Chocolate Frogs and Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans to share with the two of them, then turned to ask Avada a question.
"Me?"
Avada thought about it and realized he didn't have much worth mentioning. "I'm Muggle-born, and I don't have any parents. I grew up in an orphanage. To be honest, I was pretty startled when an owl dropped my Hogwarts acceptance letter on my desk."
After observing others and reading what he could, Avada had realized that other wizards didn't seem able to sense magic directly the way he could. So he stopped mentioning his Magic Sense to anyone.
"Oh, I'm sorry."
Baron offered his condolences, then asked, "But what's the story behind your name? Why did Professor Dumbledore have to come and deal with it personally?"
"Professor Dumbledore?!" Cho exclaimed. She hadn't heard Avada and Baron's earlier conversation.
"I'm not sure myself."
Avada lied without batting an eye. "After Professor Dumbledore came, he showed me a few spells and explained the Wizarding World to me. Then he took me to a place called the Ministry of Magic and talked to the people there for ages about things I couldn't understand. After that, he gave me some compensation because of my name, and even went to Gringotts to open a vault for me..."
Baron and Cho were even more surprised. What kind of name could alarm both Dumbledore and the Ministry of Magic, and make the Ministry pay K compensation?
And the compensation had been enough to open a vault at Gringotts!
"Your name might mean there's serious trouble behind it." Cho furrowed her brows. "Professor Dumbledore is one of the most respected wizards in the entire Wizarding World. If even he warned you not to tell anyone your name, there must be a serious problem. It might even be something Professor Dumbledore can't solve!"
Baron also warned him, "You should avoid telling other people about the compensation, too. You may not know this, but having a vault at Gringotts means you're wealthier than most wizards. And you're Muggle-born and still very young. It could easily make you a target."
"I understand. Thanks for the warning." Avada felt a little touched and thanked them sincerely.
"But you seem to know quite a lot about the Wizarding World. Voldemort..." Cho shivered slightly. "Slytherin, and even the other wizarding schools. When we were talking earlier, I had no idea you were Muggle-born." Baron asked curiously.
"Reading." Avada smiled faintly. "Besides my textbooks, I bought quite a few books about the Wizarding World in Diagon Alley. I've learned most of what I need to know over the past month."
The scenery sped past outside the windows, and the sunlight gradually turned golden. After spending most of the day chatting and laughing together in the compartment, the train finally began to slow.
"The train will arrive at Hogwarts in five minutes. Please leave your luggage on board. Someone will take it to your dormitory!"
"'Someone' means House-elves," Baron explained as he straightened his clothes. "They're creatures who serve wizards. They run the Hogwarts Kitchen. If anyone is lucky enough to be sorted into Hufflepuff, they should get to see them often."
By the time the train finally stopped at a small station, it was completely dark and rather cold. Avada shivered. Then a loud, gruff voice shouted:
"First-years! First-years, over here!"
Before you continue