"Why would I run away? I'm still planning to go to Hogwarts."
Ezio waved a hand, then raised his wand and pointed it at Draco Malfoy once more.
Is he going to kill him to keep him quiet?! Harry's heart lurched. Ezio was going to scare him to death.
"Scourgify."
Just as Draco shut his eyes in despair, waiting to die, he heard a strange spell—not the Killing Curse.
His trousers no longer felt cold. Something had disappeared.
He reached down to check. Little Draco was still there, but the damp, pale yellow liquid was gone, and his trousers were completely dry.
"Since you came to make friends with Harry, you've accomplished your goal now, haven't you?"
Ezio put his wand away languidly and began eating the Chocolate Frog Harry had given him earlier.
"Yeah..." Draco glanced up at Harry, then swallowed nervously. "I guess we're... friends?" he said uncertainly. At that moment, Harry reached out to help him up. But when Harry realized Draco seemed to have just reached into his trousers, he stiffened. The two stared wide-eyed at each other, and the atmosphere turned terribly awkward.
"We've already said hello, so I won't keep you here chatting," Ezio said, waving Draco off. "Remember to take those two with you when you leave."
"Y-yes... all right!" As if granted a pardon, Draco hurried to his feet. When he opened the compartment door, he heard two loud, alternating snores—from Crabbe and Goyle. Several people poked their heads out of nearby compartments, pointing at the pair and laughing as they chatted.
They're not dead?! Draco was full of questions, but now wasn't the time to ask them. After closing the compartment door, he kicked the two idiots several times, but Crabbe and Goyle merely rolled over and went right on snoring.
Fuming so hard his nose seemed to twist, Draco gritted his teeth, rolled up his sleeves, grabbed them by the feet, and dragged them along with considerable effort. His compartment was quite a distance away, so it was going to take a lot of work.
Watching this, Harry looked at Ezio in surprise.
"You didn't kill them?"
"The Light Charm can change the color of its light. I have two wands," Ezio explained simply. "I've learned to cast quite a few spells nonverbally. I used green light and two Sleeping Charms just now. They'll sleep until we arrive."
Harry let out a long breath. "I thought you'd really used the Killing Curse."
"I deliberately mispronounced the incantation, too. I said 'Avada Kedavra,' not the proper pronunciation of 'Kedavra.'"
"Oh, right!" Harry nodded, only partly understanding.
"By the way, Ezio," Harry suddenly said. "Just now, when you were casting the spell, I saw a scene. I think I was very, very little. I heard a woman's voice, and saw her trying to protect me."
Harry's voice grew quieter. "That must have been my mother. She was begging Voldemort not to hurt me, to spare me. Then she threw herself in front of me to protect me... but Voldemort used that green spell. It was the Killing Curse, right? He killed my mother, then tried to kill me."
Harry drew his knees up and curled into himself in the corner, burying his face against them. His eyes were red, but he kept his head down, hiding his tears.
"You must have been less than a year old when it happened. Under normal circumstances, you wouldn't remember anything from that age."
Ezio spoke calmly beside him. He saw what seemed to be a small spark of fire kindle in Harry's bloodshot eyes.
"But things might be different in the magical world. Perhaps the magic of the Killing Curse left that scar on you and also burned that scene into your heart."
"Maybe..."
Ezio fell silent. After a moment, Harry could no longer contain his curiosity. "Maybe what?"
"Maybe magic wanted you to remember that moment—to remember what your parents did for you then."
At that answer, something inside Harry finally gave way. He sobbed quietly, trying hard not to make a sound.
In his mind, the blurred faces of a man and a woman seemed to appear. Harry couldn't make out their features, but he knew they were the two figures hidden in his memories—blurred, perhaps, but never to disappear.
"I miss you so much... I wish you could call me by my name, even just once."
He imagined having a happy home, with parents who loved and cherished him. But the vision had barely flashed through his mind when blinding green light painted the entire world.
"Voldemort..."
Harry clenched his fists. At that moment, he seemed to understand something. He couldn't put it into words, but he knew he understood.
Night fell quickly. The Hogwarts Express traveled beneath the starlight. Hermione came by again during the journey to ask a few small questions about spellcasting. She also told them they could change into their robes now, as they would reach Hogwarts soon.
They changed into their Hogwarts uniforms, and a man's voice echoed through the train. "The train will arrive at Hogwarts in five minutes. Please leave your luggage on the train. We will have it delivered to the school for you."
Harry pressed his face to the window, trying to glimpse Hogwarts through the darkness.
With a jolt that nearly threw everyone off their feet, the train pulled into the station. People jostled and hurried toward the doors, and Ezio and Harry followed the crowd onto a tiny, dark platform.
The press of warm bodies did nothing to keep out the chill of the night. Just as the young wizards were wondering where to go, a booming voice rang out, loud enough to make their ears ring. "First-years! First-years, over here!"
Hagrid's tall, broad figure stood out on the platform. He held a huge lantern and looked in Harry's direction.
"That's Hagrid!" Harry waved to him, then turned to Ezio to explain. "He's the one who took me to Diagon Alley. Hagrid's a great guy."
Following the giant Hagrid, the first-year students stumbled along behind him down a narrow path. After they rounded the first bend, Hogwarts Castle appeared in the distance, its windows blazing with light. Then they crossed the Black Lake by boat and stepped from the mist-shrouded landing onto the grounds where Hogwarts Castle stood.
As all the young wizards watched in eager anticipation, Hagrid walked up to the castle doors and knocked three times with his fist. The dull thuds echoed: "Thump, thump, thump."
The doors opened at once, revealing a stern-faced witch in emerald-green robes.
"First-year students, Professor McGonagall," Hagrid said.
"Thank you, Hagrid. I'll take it from here."
Professor McGonagall's gaze swept over the crowd, and the young wizards fell silent at once.
"Follow me."
Before you continue