Enrollment Trouble

At King's Cross Station, Skylar and his older brother Draco bid their parents farewell, passed through the wall at Platform Nine and Three-Quarters, and boarded the Hogwarts Express.

Draco and Skylar had originally shared a compartment, but after Draco found his best mates, Goyle and Crabbe, he hesitated briefly before abandoning his younger brother and moving to their compartment instead. Skylar knew he could no longer resist showing off about his Broomstick and joining the Quidditch team. What a little brat who didn't know how to keep a low profile, Skylar sneered.

Skylar found an empty compartment and sat down. According to the plot, Harry and Ron would be pranked by Dobby this year and be unable to board the train. The two attention-seekers would then take Arthur Weasley's modified Flying Ford Anglia to Hogwarts. As Dobby's young master, Skylar had been capable of preventing it, but he chose to do nothing and let events unfold as they were meant to.

Not long afterward, the compartment door slid open. Daphne and Meredith stood outside. When they saw Skylar inside, obvious delight flashed across their faces, and they hurried in with their luggage.

Like a proper gentleman, Skylar used a Levitation Charm to help them stow their things. Daphne had a light piece of luggage made from Mokeskin. Skylar was certain it had both an Anti-Theft Charm and an Undetectable Extension Charm on it; it could be put away with the slightest lift. Meredith, on the other hand, had an old, large trunk. Its scuffed, faded exterior made it clear that it was extremely worn.

Skylar sighed inwardly. Had the mighty Shafiq Family really fallen so far that they could not even afford a trunk with an Undetectable Extension Charm? Perhaps he could make one for Meredith with alchemy this Christmas as a present?

To protect Meredith's pride, Skylar kept those thoughts to himself. Nothing showed on his face, either. He knew that, with Meredith's cold and proud personality, directly giving her a trunk would only hurt the girl's fragile feelings. Passing it off as a Christmas gift would minimize the chances of that happening.

After sitting down, Daphne suddenly puffed out her cheeks in irritation. Skylar scratched his head and asked, "What's wrong, Daphne? Who made you angry?"

"Skylar!" Daphne said unhappily.

"What is it?" Skylar looked at her in confusion. He did not seem to have done anything.

"Why didn't you write to me during the summer?"

"I did write! How could I not have?" Skylar was even more puzzled.

"Hmph! You still dare say that? Summer lasted two whole months, and you only wrote me one letter that was half a foot long—not even half the length of your usual essays!" Daphne huffed.

"Huh? Shouldn't the important thing in a letter be the content?" Skylar felt utterly wronged.

Only after Skylar agreed to a string of unequal treaties did Daphne finally let him off, satisfied. She turned to chat with Meredith about the new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor for the term and this year's incoming students.

The three chatted on and off, idly flipping through the thick books on their laps. In the middle of it, Skylar bought a large pile of sweets from the witch pushing the trolley. Sweets truly had a fatal attraction for girls, and as the two girls ate candy, the atmosphere quickly warmed up.

Suddenly, a burst of commotion came from outside. With a swish, the compartment door was pulled open. "Hello!" Hermione stepped inside. She had already changed into wizarding robes, and there was a hint of anxiety on her face. Behind her stood a little girl with a head full of red hair—although Skylar was meeting her for the first time, he knew she was Ginny Weasley.

Hermione seemed a little uncomfortable. She slightly turned her head to avoid Daphne and Meredith's gazes, then looked at Skylar. "Skylar, have you seen Harry and Ron? Ginny and I searched the whole train, but we haven't seen them anywhere."

"Maybe they missed the train?" Skylar pretended to think. "But don't worry. The school will definitely send professors to collect them—though they might have to face some punishment."

"Oh, no!" Ginny was so anxious she was nearly crying. "Punishment? They won't expel them, will they?"

"They won't." Skylar comforted her. "They only missed the train. That isn't such a serious mistake. I don't think Professor Dumbledore would make that decision."

"Exactly, Ginny. They only missed the train—oh my God, look over there!" Hermione suddenly screamed, pointing out the window with a face full of shock.

Everyone followed Hermione's finger and looked outside.

The weather outside was clear, with blue skies and white clouds. A blue Ford was flying through the air!

"Oh, no, that's..." Ginny's face filled with despair.

The car slowly descended, drawing closer and closer to the train. "Harry, Ron, how could you do this?!" Hermione saw Harry and Ron sitting in the car, grinning and waving at them, and shouted angrily. But the two boys clearly could not hear Hermione's scolding and continued waving with cheeky smiles.

"Will Harry be expelled?" Ginny looked at the car in the sky and was on the verge of tears again.

"They'll definitely be expelled! They've broken at least twenty school rules!" Hermione said, her face pale.

"I think you should write Professor Dumbledore a letter. If you do it quickly enough, perhaps you can keep this under wraps," Skylar suggested, withdrawing his gaze.

"That's right!" The others came back to their senses. Hermione immediately said, "I'll go do it now!" With that, Hermione and Ginny left, both looking ashen-faced.

Knock, knock, knock! An owl was pecking at the window from outside, carrying a newspaper. Seeing the paper on the owl, Skylar recognized where it had come from. "Oh, it's my subscription. Tonight's Evening Prophet. I didn't expect it to arrive so quickly."

He pushed open the window, and the owl darted into the compartment, extending its leg toward Skylar. Skylar took the newspaper and slipped five Knuts into its money pouch. The owl immediately flew away.

Skylar opened the paper and clicked his tongue as he looked at the front-page headline: "Ford Anglia Flies Over London, Muggles Astonished." Daphne and Meredith were also drawn in by the headline. The two girls stood up at the same time, went over to Skylar's side of the compartment, and sat down tightly against him on either side as they read the major story together.

The two girls pressed against Skylar with excessive intimacy, whether deliberately or not. Daphne's soft curves repeatedly brushed against his left arm, sending an electric numbness through him. When Meredith lowered her head to read the paper, her smooth golden hair lightly tickled his chin. From Skylar's angle, he could catch glimpses of Meredith's long, slender swan neck and the delicate hint of her collarbones. Together with the fresh, youthful fragrance drifting from her, Skylar's mouth went dry and his thoughts began to wander.

No matter how dense or unromantic Skylar might have been, he understood now that the two girls probably had designs on him. To be honest, he did not dislike either of them. Whether it was their family background, appearance, talent, or personality, they were both excellent choices. But first, Skylar was rather conservative. He was only twelve and was not ready for a relationship. Second, he knew troubled times were approaching and did not want to waste time on romance.

Skylar forcibly composed himself, pretending not to notice the girls' suggestive behavior as he made himself focus on the newspaper. "Two Muggles in London are certain they saw an old car flying over the Post Office Tower. One of them took a blurry photograph. At noon in Norfolk, Mrs. Hetty Bayliss looked up while hanging laundry and saw... Mr. Angus Fleet of Peeblesshire reported to the police..."

The rest of the train journey passed in those alluring few hours.

At the Sorting Ceremony, Skylar noticed that Professor Snape, Harry, and Ron were all absent.

As in previous years, the Sorting Hat assigned each new student to their respective House: Ginny Weasley to Gryffindor, Colin Creevey to Gryffindor, Vicky Frobisher to Gryffindor, Luna Lovegood to Ravenclaw, Eloise Midgen to Hufflepuff, Edward Harper to Slytherin...

(Note: Vicky and Eloise are characters from the original work, but their year levels were invented by the author. Harper is also a character from the original work, though the author supplied his given name.)

As the Sorting Ceremony and Dumbledore's speech came to an end, the young wizards began to feast. Skylar noticed that Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall left the Great Hall one after the other. While eating, the students discussed the blue flying car reported in the Evening Prophet—at the Slytherin table, Draco bragged that he had long known Harry Potter and Ron Weasley were the ones in the blue car, reveling in being the center of attention.

Skylar curled his lip and made no comment. Daphne and Meredith had been secretly watching Skylar all along, and at that moment, they sensibly did not go over to join the commotion.

After returning to his familiar dormitory, Skylar locked the door and cast a Silencing Charm and an Anti-Disturbance Charm on it. Only then did he snap his fingers. With a pop, a filthy House Elf Apparated in the room. It was Dobby.

Dobby was usually close to Skylar and was normally delighted to see him. But now, Dobby looked like a child who had done something wrong. He kept his head lowered, not daring to meet Skylar's eyes, though his constantly trembling body betrayed the tension and fear in his heart.

"Tell me the truth, Dobby. Did you do something to Harry Potter and his friends?"

Dobby's eyes instantly widened to enormous proportions!

Dobby repeatedly slammed his head against the wall. "Bad Dobby, bad Dobby! Dobby knew old master wanted to harm great Harry Potter, so Dobby found a way to stop Harry Potter from coming to school. Dobby tried to ruin old master's plans. Dobby deserves to die! Dobby is a bad elf!"

"Enough!" Skylar cut him off forcefully. Dobby shuddered, raised his head, and slowly looked toward Skylar. Dobby had watched Skylar grow from a baby, but this was the first time he had felt such authority from Skylar.

Although Skylar was only twelve, he had survived a fierce battle with a Troll and outwitted Dumbledore. The childishness had long vanished from his face, replaced by resolute determination and a ruthless air. Dobby froze, immediately stopping his self-punishment. He looked at Skylar eagerly, longing for his young master's forgiveness.

Dobby was an oddity among House Elves. He held no reverence for his masters, House of Malfoy, and obeyed their orders only because the contract magic embedded in his soul left him no choice. Yet Dobby's feelings for his young master, Skylar, were sincere. That was because Skylar believed, deep down, that everyone was equal. Ever since he was young, he had treated Dobby as an equal friend rather than a lowly slave.

"Dobby, I've told you many times—we're friends in private, not master and servant. I can't be kept in the dark about what Father intends to do, but I must make this clear: Father is Father, and I am me. I don't approve of what he does. So, Dobby, I don't think you did anything wrong! Stop punishing yourself."

Tears streamed endlessly down Dobby's face as he said emotionally, "Thank you, young master, thank you, young master. Dobby knew the young master was as great as Harry Potter..."

"From now on, don't involve yourself in Harry's affairs anymore. I promise you, he'll be fine. Next year, Harry Potter will still return to Hogwarts safe and sound. On the other hand, your young master has quite a few matters at school this year that require an assistant. Dobby, are you willing to help me?"

Dobby nodded vigorously and eagerly. "Dobby is willing, Dobby is willing! It is Dobby's honor to be able to help the great young master!"