69novels Chapter 144 Encounter at the Station
Chapter 144 Encounter at the Station
Chapter 144 Encounter at the Station
At King's Cross Station, in front of that seemingly ordinary brick wall between Platform 9 and Platform 10, people come and go, and few people pay any attention to that wall.
Karen pushed his suitcase and walked confidently toward the wall, his eyes scanning the surrounding crowd.
Just then, his gaze caught sight of a figure.
A very thin boy, dressed in obviously oversized old clothes, pushed a rather heavy-looking old suitcase bound with a lot of duct tape. He wore round-framed glasses, taped shut in several places, and behind the lenses were a pair of bright green eyes, now filled with confusion and anxiety. He stood by a pillar between platforms nine and ten, nervously looking around, seemingly searching for something, or perhaps feeling lost. Most striking was a faint, lightning-shaped scar on his forehead, beneath a few strands of messy black hair.
Harry Potter.
Karen's heart skipped a beat. He took a deep breath, suppressing the complex emotions surging within him—curiosity, excitement,
There was also a subtle sense of distance, as if he were a time traveler. He adjusted the cart, pushed the suitcase, and naturally walked in that direction.
"Need any help?" Karen stopped a few steps in front of Harry and asked calmly. Phoebus, inside the cage, tilted his head, curiously observing the nervous newcomer.
Harry jerked his head up, a flicker of surprise and wariness in his emerald eyes, but upon seeing the owl on Cullen's luggage cart, he immediately realized that the person before him was one of his own. "I...I'm looking for Platform Nine and Three-Quarters," he said, his voice hurried and slightly embarrassed. "They said it's at Platform Nine and Three-Quarters, but I can't find it—"
Karen's gaze lingered for a moment on the scar on his forehead before shifting away, a knowing smile spreading across her face. "It's easy to be a little confused the first time you come. Follow me, it's over here." He stepped aside, gesturing for Harry to follow, then walked straight toward the solid brick wall without the slightest hesitation.
Harry watched Cullen's retreating figure, then glanced at the solid wall, an expression of disbelief on his face, but instinctively pushed his suitcase and followed.
Just as she was about to hit the wall, Karen's figure disappeared without any hindrance, as if she had merged into water.
Harry gasped, stopped in his tracks, and stared in horror at the wall.
"Don't stop, just charge through!" Karen's clear voice came from inside the wall.
Harry gritted his teeth, closed his eyes, steeled his resolve, and shoved the heavy trunk forward with all his might.
The expected impact didn't come; instead, a strange, cool breeze brushed his face. He opened his eyes and found himself standing on a completely different platform! A deep red steam locomotive, puffing out thick smoke, was parked beside the platform, a prominent sign on its front reading: "Hogwarts Express." The platform was packed with students and parents; the hooting of owls, the barking of pets, and the chatter of people created a noisy sea.
Karen was standing not far in front of him. She turned around with an encouraging smile on her face: "Welcome to Platform Nine and Three-Quarters."
"Th-thank you!" Harry breathed a sigh of relief, looking at Cullen gratefully, his emerald green eyes brightening. "I am Harry, Harry Potter."
"Karen Hawthorne." Karen extended her hand and shook his briefly. She could feel that Harry's hand was a little cold and slightly sweaty. At that moment, Karen suddenly wanted to see what Harry's magic was like, and sure enough, there was something incongruous about it.
Especially the deep scar on his forehead, where the magic it contained was incompatible with Harry's own, yet strangely coexisted with it. This sight sent a chill down Karen's spine; he knew it must be a fragment of Voldemort's soul, but his expression remained unchanged. "Hurry up and get on the bus and find a seat. It's the first day of school; the compartments near the front usually have more empty seats," he pointed ahead, offering a practical suggestion.
"Okay! Thank you again, Karen!" Hari nodded vigorously, pushing his heavy suitcase, and somewhat laboriously merged into the flow of people boarding the train.
Karen watched him for a few seconds before looking away, not lingering. After boarding, he walked familiarly along the aisle, his gaze sweeping over the doors and windows of each compartment. Soon, he found his target near the middle of the train—
One of the private rooms had a small sign on the door that read, "Eagle's Nest Inside, Do Not Disturb."
He opened the door.
"Karen!" A loud cheer almost lifted the roof off the car.
Before Karen could even see the people in the private room, he was suddenly and firmly embraced by a muscular figure with reddish-brown hair. The force was so great that he almost lost his balance.
"Wesley! You almost strangled me!" Karen protested with a laugh, patting her roommate's broad back hard.
"Haha! The savior of French pastries is back!" Wesley released him, his face beaming with excitement. He waved a meticulously crafted Quidditch pitch model with a dozen tiny figures simulating movement. "Look at this! The Frenchmen's tactical model! It's amazing! I've used it to simulate beating Slytherin seventeen times! Different formations! But it's not quite the same in reality. At least my simulated Slytherin isn't as dirty as the real Slytherin!"
"Karen! Welcome back!" Fabian stood up as well, a warm and sincere smile on his face. He pointed to a clear glass jar on the corner of the small table in the private room. Inside, several vibrant green water lily leaves with silvery edges floated in the shallow water, and a tiny flower bud had just emerged from the surface. "The moonlight water lily is growing very well. Although it hasn't bloomed yet, I feel it will definitely bloom one day. Thank you for the gift, Karen!"
Ernesto sat by the window, toying with a fist-sized crystal ball whose interior seemed to contain a slowly rotating galaxy.
It was the one Karen had given him. Seeing Karen enter, he held up the crystal ball and said, "Not bad, this Star Orbit Memory Crystal Ball is quite accurate."
"Great, looks like the gift was delivered to the right place." Karen stuffed her suitcase under the seat, placed the basket of snacks on the small table, and Phoebus flew to the luggage rack, finding a comfortable spot to squat down. He sat down next to Fabian, and the box was instantly filled with the joyful atmosphere of their reunion.
"Tell me quickly, how's France? Is there gold moving around everywhere in Nicolas Flamel's workshop?" Wesley asked impatiently, his eyes shining.
"And those magical botanical gardens! Are there any particularly rare or unusual species?" Fabian asked with great interest.
Ernesto didn't speak, but he put down the crystal ball and looked at Karen.
Karen opened the pastry basket, and a rich, sweet aroma wafted out. "The workshop is indeed impressive, but gold doesn't move on its own, and there isn't that much gold. The entire workshop is powered by a sophisticated alchemical array." He smiled, picked up a slice of lemon curd tart and handed it to Wesley.
He picked up a raspberry pie and gave it to Fabian, then handed Ernesto a hazelnut chocolate chip. "The botanical garden is huge. I saw quite a few rare species, like the mother plant of the moon lily, which really does glow in the moonlight. I also bought some interesting seeds; I'll try planting them near the moon moss when I get back to school." He avoided sensitive topics like core alchemy and the "Touch of Hermes," focusing instead on sharing his observations and the kindness of the Nicos.
"Cool!" Wesley took a big bite of his pastry and mumbled, "I've spent the whole vacation playing soccer and studying Quidditch! My dad says I've practically shaved the backyard lawn bare! But I feel like my footwork and reaction time have improved, and I'm definitely going to join the college team this semester."
“I went on a trip to Wales with my parents,” Fabian said, taking a small bite of a pie. “There’s a very special kind of moss in the mountains there that’s incredibly effective at treating minor burns, and I collected some samples. Oh, and I also tried practicing the Silent Levitation Charm, it was so difficult, I was lucky to succeed once out of ten attempts.” He was a little embarrassed.
"The family library," Enes said succinctly, taking an elegant bite of a chocolate chip. "I flipped through a few rare books on ancient astronomical records. The Silent Spell—I've made a slight attempt."
Karen also shared her experience of consolidating her spells and experimenting with magic compression. The four of them enthusiastically exchanged their practice experiences during the holiday and their expectations for the new course.
Just then, Ernesto's gaze inadvertently swept over the thinning crowd on the platform outside the window. As if remembering something, he suddenly turned his head, his eyes filled with curiosity and inquiry: "By the way, did you notice anyone special on the platform just now? Like—that 'boy who survived' who's going to enroll this year? Harry Potter?"
The atmosphere in the private room paused subtly for a moment.
Wesley swallowed his snack with a blank look on his face. "Harry Potter? Who's that? Is he famous?" He looked at Fabian and Karen.
Fabian pushed up his glasses, his tone tinged with curiosity: "Ah! You mean that Harry Potter! The boy who defeated the mysterious man?" He looked at Ernesto for confirmation.
Ernesto nodded, and seeing Wesley's ignorance, added, "Yes. Eleven years ago, he stopped that Dark Lord whose name cannot be spoken. And he was the only one to survive the Killing Curse, bearing a lightning bolt-shaped scar on his forehead. The entire wizarding world knows him."
"Wow!" Wesley's mouth dropped open in surprise, he was truly stunned this time. "That powerful? The Killing Curse? You mean that—the curse that kills? He survived? And he even defeated the Dark Lord?" He looked at Fabian and Ernesto, "What does he look like?"
Does he have three heads and six arms? And why can't we mention the Dark Lord's name?
Fabian recalled the descriptions his mother had occasionally mentioned and the rumors among wizards: "Hmm, my mother mentioned it. His most distinctive feature is the lightning bolt-shaped scar on his forehead, and I've also heard that his eyes are green, but he's definitely not ordinary. Everyone says he's the savior of the wizarding world." He looked at Karen, as if seeking confirmation, "Karen, did you see that? There were quite a lot of people outside just now."
Karen calmly picked up a pastry, took a bite, swallowed it, and then spoke, his tone as if he were talking about an ordinary freshman: "Yeah, I saw him. He's right outside the platform. He couldn't find the entrance, so I pointed him in the right direction." He gestured with his eyes towards the front of the train. "He was indeed a thin boy, wearing glasses, with green eyes, and a scar on his forehead. He looked—ordinary, and a little nervous and lost." He deliberately used the word "ordinary" to temper his roommates' possible over-imagination.
"That's it?" Wesley seemed a little disappointed that the legendary savior didn't have three heads and six arms or be glowing.
"What else?" Karen shrugged. "Just like us last year, he's a freshman. Only his experience is a bit...unique." He subtly changed the subject. "More than that, I'm curious about our second-year schedule. Also, our 'Eagle's Nest' needs some serious planning this semester. The Moonmoss area on the edge of the Forbidden Forest deserves further in-depth research." He patted his backpack. "Also, I made some new modifications to the protective badges over the summer; everyone needs to test them together."
The mention of "Eagle's Nest," the course, and the joint research project immediately drew Wesley and Fabian's attention back, and even Ernesto put aside his curiosity about Harry Potter, his eyes revealing interest in Cullen's new ideas.
Karen watched his roommates enthusiastically discussing their plans for the new semester, a subtle smile playing on his lips. His gaze swept through the train window again to the end of the platform; there were no students left. Last year he'd lamented not being able to meet the main characters and witness the story unfold; this year he'd actually encountered them, but he wasn't quite as interested.
But Cullen knew that the curtain had been raised on the story, and the protagonists had officially entered the scene. But for the four members of the Eyrie Squad, their Hogwarts second year, and the secrets and adventures hidden deep within the castle, on the edge of the Forbidden Forest, and within the alchemical runes, were the true stage they were focused on. The train emitted a long whistle, slowly started moving, and headed towards the ancient castle.