"Dumbledore?" Harry repeated.
Ron thought Harry didn't know Dumbledore, so he said, "Don't tell me you don't know Dumbledore, mate. He's the greatest wizard in the world."
"Really?" Harry replied nonchalantly.
"If you don't believe me, turn the card over," Ron said, pulling the card from Harry's hand. "Let me read it for you."
"Albus Dumbledore, current headmaster of Hogwarts, recognized as the greatest wizard of our time."
"Dumbledore's well-known contributions include defeating the Dark Wizard Grindelwald in 1945, discovering the twelve uses of dragon's blood, and making significant achievements in alchemy with his partner Nicolas Flamel..."
Hearing the familiar name, Harry instinctively interrupted him, "Who?"
"Nicolas Flamel," Ron shrugged. "His partner. Do you know him?"
"No, I meant the one before that. Who did he defeat?" Harry asked.
"The Dark Wizard, Grindelwald," Ron replied.
The familiar name suddenly pulled Harry's memory back to his fifth year, a century ago.
...
"Hey, mate."
Harry's roommate, Gareth, sat beside him, nudging his ribs with an elbow, "Did you hear? We're getting a transfer student this year."
"Oh, really?" Harry didn't think much of it, just picked up a water cup.
"Yeah, my aunt told me. You know, she's the vice-principal, so she's always more informed than us—but the banquet has begun, why isn't she here yet?"
As Gareth finished his words, the door swung open with a bang.
Harry turned his head and saw a disheveled Professor Figo standing there, alongside a girl so beautiful it was ridiculous.
Her blonde hair was even more dazzling than Malfoy's, Harry thought.
As if sensing Harry's gaze, the girl looked back at him and flashed a sweet smile.
The smile was like moonlight shining into Harry's heart, catching him off guard. He spat out the water he had in his mouth and clumsily wiped his mouth with his robe, only managing to return a silly grin to the girl.
"Hey, mate, snap out of it." Gareth elbowed him, "God, your eyes are glued to her. Look at Malfoy's face, be careful she doesn't mock you again!"
Harry finally came to his senses and looked back at the Slytherin table, where Cassandra Malfoy was gazing at him with utter disdain.
"Slytherin!" the Sorting Hat bellowed, and a round of enthusiastic applause erupted from the four long tables.
By the time Harry realized it, the girl was walking over to him under Gareth's envious, jealous, and hateful gaze.
"Hello, can I sit here?"
"Su-sure," Harry stammered, nudging Gareth. With a resentful glance, Gareth moved aside, and the girl sat down next to Harry.
And so, from that moment on, Harry met Villatia and they became best friends.
So, no matter what, Harry didn't believe Villatia would become a Dark Wizard.
"How could she be a Dark Wizard?"
Ron, chewing on some candy, glanced at Harry, "Her? Oh no, mate, isn't Grindelwald a man? I think he's called... Oh right, Gellert Grindelwald. I heard his relationship with Dumbledore was pretty complicated."
"Oh." Harry inexplicably breathed a sigh of relief.
Then he remembered, it was Gellert.
He had once been invited by Villatia during their fifth-year Christmas to visit Nimongard Castle in Austria-Hungary. It was then he met Gellert, Villatia's younger brother, who was just an eight-year-old kid, resembling a Sunflower Parrot, with a nasty temper.
But...
That little Sunflower Parrot, him?
Dark Wizard?
Maybe, maybe not black, but his chubby cheeks were certainly pinchable.
"Mate, you really ought to brush up on your knowledge of the Magic World," Ron said somewhat regretfully, "you're the Savior, you know. You can't go on like this."
"You're right," Harry agreed, nodding.
Just then, there was a knock on the room door.
A chubby little boy, eyes full of tears, asked pitifully, "Sorry to disturb you, but have you seen my toad?"
Seeing both of them shaking their heads, indicating they hadn't, the boy burst into tears.
"It's always trying to get away from me, and I've lost it again..."
"Take it easy," Ron advised, "maybe you'll find it soon enough."
But the boy ran off without looking back.
"If I had a toad, I would've gotten rid of it by now," Ron shrugged, "I really can't appreciate those things. I'm glad I brought Banban; although it's old and lazy and sleeps as if it's dead, it's been with me all these years—truth be told, I kind of like it. Despite being a rat, it behaves well when I sleep with it."
Harry was quite surprised that his newly acquainted friend had such an acquired taste, sleeping with a rat.
But Harry chose to respect his friend's little quirk. After all, sleeping with a pet is normal.
However, he would never allow Hedwig on the bed.
"Yesterday, Fred, George, and I learned a spell that can turn this rat yellow, and I want to try it," Ron said, pulling out an old magic wand from his pocket. "See, even the unicorn hair is poking out, but it's okay."
"Is that Charlie's?" Harry asked.
"Yep, Charlie's old magic wand," Ron replied a bit helplessly.
Harry remembered Olivander's words, how it's the wand choosing the wizard.
Can you get good compatibility with a wand that chose another wizard? Harry couldn't help but worry a little.
Before he could speak, the door opened again.
"Has anyone seen a toad? A boy named Neville has lost his toad."
Harry looked up at the familiar voice and exclaimed in surprise, "Hermione?"
"Oh, Harry?" Hermione also broke into a delighted smile, "I was looking for you just now, but then I saw Neville crying so pitifully, I wanted to help him—are you guys practicing magic? I've self-taught a few spells at home, though they're not very effective. Can I take a look?"
Hermione's rapid-fire speech left Ron slack-jawed. It was the first time he'd met anyone who talked so fast.
Hermione, acting quite familiar, sat down next to Harry, to whom he handed a bag of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans.
Ron coughed a couple of times and waved his magic wand, "Let me give it a try, then. Daisy, sweet cream, and sunlight, let me turn this silly rat golden—"
An awkward silence ensued, and nothing happened.
"Are you sure that's a spell?" Hermione asked, eyeing Ron with suspicion.
Ron lowered his wand, realizing that his twin brothers had tricked him once again.
Hermione turned back to Harry, "What about you, Harry?"
"What did you say that boy's called?" Harry asked.
"Neville," Hermione answered.
Harry took out his magic wand and pointed it at the door.
"Neville's toad, come here—"
Hermione put her hand on her forehead, truly not expecting that both people in the compartment would be so unreliable.
One was muttering a silly spell, and the other was daydreaming.
"Did you think you could just summon the toad like that?" she asked, exasperated.