Chapter 26. The Train.
Night fell, and 12 Grimmauld Place fell into silence.
Edward lay on the bed, the flame at his fingertips flickering.
Hogwarts Castle, the speeding express train, unknown classmates, the upcoming Sorting Ceremony... countless thoughts swirled in his mind, making him toss and turn, unable to sleep.
He simply sat up from the bed, looking at the moonlight outside the window, a helpless smile curling the corners of his mouth.
Too excited.
He raised his wand, tapped himself lightly, and whispered: "Stupefy."
A soft red light flashed, and sleepiness instantly swept over him.
Edward lay back on the bed and soon fell into a deep sleep.
The next morning, Kreacher's loud voice woke him up on time: "Master Edward! Wake up! If you don't get up, you won't make it to the Hogwarts Express!"
Edward rubbed his eyes and sat up from the bed.
The sunlight outside was just right, shining through the stained-glass windows onto the floor, casting warm spots of light.
After washing up and changing into clean Muggle clothes, Edward picked up his trunk and followed Kreacher into the carriage, heading straight for King's Cross Station.
The station was crowded with people, and the noisy sounds rushed towards them.
Kreacher, carrying another small bag filled with snacks, followed closely behind Edward, his withered body looking particularly eye-catching in the crowd.
Edward watched the Muggles around him rushing about, yet not a single person cast a strange look at Kreacher's weird attire and hunched figure, and couldn't help but be a bit curious: "Kreacher, why don't these Muggles find it strange when they see you?"
Kreacher proudly puffed out his chest, his voice filled with a bit of showing off: "Master Edward, Kreacher is very smart! There are Ministry of Magic patrolling wizards here, and Kreacher cast a Confundo on himself! This spell can make Muggles ignore things they find abnormal, even if they see me, they will only think I'm an ordinary old man and won't meddle in other people's business!"
"Confundo?" Edward raised an eyebrow; he had seen this spell in "Standard Book of Spells," but had not yet practiced it.
"Yes!" Kreacher nodded, his tone light, "This is not some profound magic. If Master Edward is interested, you can ask the Charms class Professor when you get to Hogwarts! Although Professor Flitwick is from Ravenclaw, he is very good at teaching basic spells!"
As they talked, they had already reached the location of Platform Nine and Three-Quarters - right in front of a brick wall between platforms nine and ten.
Kreacher pointed to the wall and lowered his voice to remind him: "Master Edward, just walk straight towards the brick wall, don't hesitate! When Master Regulus came for the first time, he walked through with his head held high!"
Edward nodded.
He took a deep breath, adjusted his collar, straightened his back, and lifted his foot to walk slowly towards the brick wall.
Without the slightest pause or hesitation, the confidence of the House of Black and his own composure made his pace calm and unhurried.
The moment his body passed through the brick wall, after a slight sense of dizziness, the scene before him suddenly changed - a steam-filled platform came into view, a dark red steam train was parked by the track, with the golden words "Hogwarts Express" printed on the carriage body, and countless students and parents wearing wizard robes were moving about on the platform, noisy and lively.
Edward smoothed his clothes, his gaze sweeping across the platform, a trace of amazement flashing in his eyes.
This is the Hogwarts Express.
"Master Edward! You are amazing!" Kreacher followed behind him, rubbing his hands excitedly, "Even more composed than Master Regulus was back then!"
Just as Edward was about to speak, a tall figure suddenly blocked his path.
He looked up and saw it was Vincent Crabbe.
Crabbe was wearing a brand-new wizard robe, his face showing a restraint that didn't match his rugged appearance, and he even bowed slightly, his tone full of implied awe: "E-Edward, Master Edward, Draco asked me to wait for you here. He says, please come to the exclusive Slytherin carriage, it has the best seats."
Several pure-blood juniors passing by heard this and couldn't help but cast envious glances. Edward wondered what was that "Slytherin carriage".
Crabbe explained the exclusive Slytherin carriage was not something just anyone could enter. It was the place where most of the Slytherin selected join together.
Edward looked at Crabbe's cautious appearance, remembering the other's perfunctory attitude at the Malfoy Manor banquet, and a faint, imperceptible arc curled the corners of his mouth.
The changes brought by power are indeed everywhere.
He nodded slightly, his tone flat: "Lead the way."
Crabbe immediately straightened his body, as if he had received some great order, and walked in front eagerly, pushing aside the crowded people for Edward, heading towards the back of the train.
Kreacher watched Edward's back, his eyes slightly red, muttering repeatedly: "The honor of the House of Black has truly returned..."
The exclusive Slytherin carriage was decorated far more luxuriously than the other carriages, with silver-green silk curtains hanging low, soft and comfortable leather sofas, and exquisite snacks and iced pumpkin juice placed on the coffee table. All of this prepared for other Senior grade Slytherins, a way to keed their status higher than other houses.
Draco was sitting on the main sofa, surrounded by Pansy Parkinson, Gregory Goyle, and several pure-bloods of the same age that Edward had seen at the banquet. They hadn't been selected to Slytherin, but still had a seat right there.
Besides them, several senior students were sitting in the corner of the carriage; looking at the badges on their robes, they were seniors from old-line pure-blood families like Selwyn and Nott.
Seeing Edward enter, Draco immediately stood up, the arrogance on his face fading a little, with the familiarity of a peer: "Edward, you've finally arrived. Let me introduce you, these few here are our peers of the same year, we were in a rush at the banquet and didn't have time to properly greet each other; those in the corner are seniors from the house, all our own people."
Pansy sat on the sofa, just nodding coldly at Edward, without saying anything more - she really had no affection for this Black who had made her mother humble herself and come to apologize.
The senior students in the corner also raised their eyes one after another, nodding slightly at Edward, with a bit of wary scrutiny in their eyes.
Edward nodded faintly, as a response.
He walked straight to the sofa and sat down, the flame at his fingertips jumping silently in his cuffs, having no interest in engaging in superficial pleasantries with everyone.
After simple greetings, the children of the same age gathered together to talk about Hogwarts' Quidditch team and Potions class, while the senior students whispered about the content of the academic year assessments.
The atmosphere in the carriage was not lively, but it was peaceful.
Edward leaned on the sofa, watching the passing scenery outside the window, the flame at his fingertips flickering with his will.
Not long after, Draco seemed to remember something, his eyes lighting up, and he leaned over to Edward, his tone filled with irrepressible showing off: "By the way, Edward, I heard that the 'Boy Who Lived' is also on this train. Do you want to go with me to see him? That Harry Potter, it is said that he defeated the one whose name cannot be mentioned, I want to see what kind of ability he actually has."
Edward raised his eyes, a trace of indifference flashing in his eyes.
He had no interest in any savior; compared to meeting a stranger, he wanted more to figure out how to make the cooperation between the flame and the wand more tacit.
"Not interested."
He spat out the three words flatly.
Draco was stunned for a moment, then shrugged, not insisting: "Alright, then Goyle, Crabbe and I will go and see."
After saying that, he left the carriage excitedly with his two followers.