"Care for a bite of something scrumptious, dears?"
A round-faced witch pushing a trolley appeared at their compartment door, stacked high with all manner of strange and colorful wizard snacks.
Harry's eyes lit up, and he immediately stood.
"Definitely!"
Charlie stood up too, pulling out his coin pouch. He hadn't eaten anything since leaving the orphanage, and his stomach was growling.
The two of them bought armfuls of sweets, leaving the trolley witch beaming as she counted her stack of silver Sickles.
Ron, on the other hand, stared at the mountain of snacks and swallowed hard. Then, somewhat shyly, he pulled out a brown paper-wrapped sandwich from his bag.
"My mum made this for me," he muttered.
"She always forgets I don't like corned beef…"
He unwrapped it to reveal a dry, unappetizing-looking sandwich. It really didn't look very appealing.
Harry noticed Ron's embarrassment and felt a twinge of sympathy.
It reminded him of the meals he used to get at the Dursleys', which wasn't a pleasant thought.
"Want to trade?" Harry offered.
"I've got way too many sweets. I'll get sick of them anyway."
It was his first time sharing food with a friend, and his eyes sparkled with anticipation.
Ron eyed the cakes in Harry's hand with obvious longing but shook his head.
"Nah… it's cold and dry. Not really worth trading. You guys go ahead."
That was when Charlie chimed in.
"Why wouldn't it be good?" he said gently. "Food made by family, that's the best kind."
He took out the biscuits Granny White had packed for him. The packaging was plain but carefully tied with a little ribbon.
"I grew up in an orphanage," Charlie said softly.
"It wasn't much, we were poor, but our caretaker, Granny White, always found ways to cook something nice for us."
"She used to say that even if we couldn't afford gourmet meals, food made with love can still fill the emptiness inside."
Both Ron and Harry were stunned by his words. Clearly, they'd struck a chord.
Harry thought of the years with the Dursleys, and his eyes grew misty. He couldn't help but envy that kind of sincere affection.
Charlie opened the biscuit packet, and a sweet, buttery aroma filled the compartment.
"Here, try one," he said, offering it to the others.
"They're really good."
Ron, touched by Charlie's words, finally loosened up. He split his sandwich and handed pieces to them.
"As long as you guys don't mind…"
Harry accepted both the biscuit and the sandwich, a warm feeling blooming in his chest.
They each took a bite and chewed slowly.
"These biscuits are amazing!" Ron said earnestly.
Harry nodded in agreement. The sandwich was dry, sure, but somehow it tasted better than anything from the trolley.
Soon, the hefty sandwich and those generously packed biscuits had them both feeling full.
"Ugh… I'm stuffed," Ron said, patting his stomach.
Charlie, however, casually set aside the rest of the biscuits and sandwich, and picked up the last pumpkin pasty on the table, taking a big bite with satisfaction.
Harry blinked.
"Wait, Charlie, didn't you just say, ?"
"Oh," Charlie said, chewing happily,
"I was just gonna try the pasty first. I'll get back to the biscuits and sandwich later."
Harry & Ron: "..."
Charlie narrowed his eyes in bliss.
Sure, food made with love is amazing… but it's day one in the wizarding world. Gotta sample the local flavors, right?
Britain might be a culinary wasteland that birthed eldritch horrors like "spotted dick," but wizard snacks? Surprisingly legit.
[Does His Majesty feel no shame tricking his loyal companions? +2 Tyrant Points]
Heh. Bonus points. I'll take it.
Ron and Harry, now full, begrudgingly opened a few Chocolate Frogs as dessert.
Just then, there was a knock at the door.
"Excuse me… have you seen a toad?"
The door opened to reveal a round-faced boy on the verge of tears.
His chubby cheeks quivered with helplessness.
"His name's Trevor. He's my toad… he's missing," he said, voice wobbling.
Charlie shook his head.
"Haven't seen your toad."
"But there are plenty of frogs on the table."
Ron had just opened one, his Chocolate Frog leapt onto the table, hopping frantically.
The boy's eyes lit up and locked onto the candy frog like it was his long-lost pet.
Charlie chuckled.
"Wanna try one? They're pretty tasty."
The boy instantly forgot about his missing toad and accepted the chocolate frog with wide eyes.
"Thanks! I'm Neville. Neville Longbottom."
"Charlie White."
"Ron Weasley."
When it came to Harry's turn, he hesitated slightly.
"…Harry Potter."
Neville blinked but didn't react much.
"Oh, hi Harry," he said, nodding.
Harry looked pleasantly surprised.
Finally, at Hogwarts, people didn't lose their minds at the sound of his name.
Neville kept munching happily on his chocolate frog, completely immersed in sugary joy.
Before long, someone else knocked at the door.
A girl with thick, bushy brown hair entered. The moment she saw Neville, she wrinkled her nose.
"Neville! Are you still looking for that toad?"
Neville blinked, chocolate still in his mouth.
"Oh, right! I'm supposed to find Trevor!"
He'd actually forgotten all about it while eating the chocolate frog.
The girl shook her head in disbelief, then turned to the others.
"I'm Hermione Granger. Have any of you seen Neville's toad?"
Before any of them could answer, her eyes landed on Harry's forehead.
"Wait a minute… you're Harry Potter?!"
Neville almost dropped his chocolate.
"Harry Potter?!"
So apparently, when Harry introduced himself earlier, Neville was too focused on dessert to even register it.
Harry gave a small sigh and nodded.
"Yes. I am."
Hermione's eyes lit up with excitement, and she launched into a rapid-fire monologue.
"I've read all about you in Modern Magical History, The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts, and Notable Magical Events of the Twentieth Century! You must know loads of spells already, I've tried a few at home, and they all worked! My family's all Muggles, so I'm really grateful for this chance! I've memorized all our textbooks already. Do you know which House we'll be sorted into?"
Charlie quickly cut in.
"Okay, okay, hold up. Weren't you two looking for a toad? Trevor, right?"
Holy Merlin, this girl looked cute, but once she got going, she was a verbal hurricane.
Charlie pulled out his wand.
"Accio Trevor."
He'd drawn the Summoning Charm over the summer.
Only Level 1, low proficiency, but enough to handle a toad.
Outside the compartment, a commotion erupted.
"A flying toad!"
"You idiot, someone just cast a spell!"
Amid the chaos, a plump toad came soaring through the window and landed squarely in Neville's lap.
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200 P.S = 1 Extra Chapters