Of course, providing a custom service for Neville alone wouldn't amount to much, but in Tom's eyes, this was nothing less than a massive business opportunity.
After all, he was a Cat who could communicate fluently with humans and understand what animals were saying. That alone meant he could offer translation services to young wizards who desperately wanted to know what their pets were thinking.
"Young Wizard, you wouldn't want to disappoint your precious little darling just because you can't understand what your pet is saying, would you? (・∀・)"
Yes, it sounded a bit strange when you thought about it carefully, but that was more or less the idea. In Tom's view, this was definitely a market with broad prospects and enormous potential.
As for the ability to understand pets—so long as the wizard wasn't the sort to abuse animals, who would ever refuse such a service? Especially since he himself was a Cat. That alone guaranteed professionalism and authenticity. No middlemen. No misunderstandings. Just pure, direct communication.
"Hmm, what should I charge?" Tom pondered seriously. "One Galleon? Would that be too cheap? If there are too many customers, I'll be exhausted… but if there's money involved, hehe (￣▽￣)"*
At that moment, Tom was completely immersed in his own fantasy.
In his mind's eye, he saw countless young wizards surrounding him, desperately scrambling to hire him as their personal translator. He saw mountains of gold piling up. He even imagined himself buying The Quibbler outright and forcing Xenophilius Lovegood to work for him for the rest of his life, printing lines like "Tom is the most handsome and strongest Cat in the world" on every issue.
"Meow~"
(Hehe, Xenophilius. Just work obediently for me forever!)
Just as Tom's fantasy reached a truly luxurious level—one where he employed 365 beautiful maids to take turns massaging him and feeding him every single day—a series of urgent voices yanked him violently back to reality.
"Tom? Tom!"
"Meow!"
(Who is it?! Didn't you see my maid was about to trim my claws— (;´д｀)ゞ Oops!)
The moment the sound left his mouth, Tom froze.
There were no maids. No palace. No luxurious cushions.
He was still on the Hogwarts Express.
And the only girl sitting anywhere near him was Hannah.
The hallucination shattered instantly, replaced by the familiar, slightly cramped train compartment, filled with old-fashioned seats and rattling windows.
"Meow~"
(Good thing, good thing. No one could understand what I just said…)
Looking at Hannah, who was frowning with visible concern, Tom breathed a sigh of relief and lifted a paw to pat his chest in exaggerated reassurance.
That had been close. Very close.
If someone nearby could understand what he had been saying, he would have suffered a complete social death on the spot. At that point, he might have had no choice but to use a Memory Charm—the physical kind.
To be honest, Tom's personality really was similar to that Cat from the animation. He was quite lecherous at heart. That said, lechery aside, the current Tom—who retained his memories from his past human life—had absolutely no interest in actual Cats.
Likewise, because he clearly understood his current situation and had no intention of becoming human again, he wasn't about to go around messing with human girls either. Of course, that was assuming anyone would even want to be messed with by him in the first place.
Still, just because he wouldn't act didn't mean he couldn't fantasize.
Having this rare opportunity, Tom had wanted to indulge in it just a little longer.
Fantasy, however, was only fantasy. If he ever actually got intimate with a beautiful girl, he would probably freeze instantly, transform into a pure-hearted virgin, and evaporate into a cloud of steam on the spot.
He was good at flirting, yes—but only in theory. When it came to actual practice, he was hopelessly inexperienced.
In short, once Tom confirmed that he hadn't exposed himself, he secretly shot an annoyed glare at Hannah, who had interrupted his beautiful daydream.
[What's wrong?]
"N-nothing," Hannah replied quickly. "I just saw that your expression looked a little strange, and I was worried something might've happened to you…"
She put on an innocent expression, but Tom still caught a faint hint of unnatural tension on her face.
"?"
He stared straight into her eyes with suspicion. After a few seconds, Hannah's cheeks began to turn slightly red. Only then did Tom finally look away and shake his head lightly.
[Don't worry. I'm fine.]
Although Hannah's reaction felt a little suspicious, Tom hadn't actually caught her doing anything "bad." So, he decided to let it go and act as though nothing had happened.
Besides, when his Cat Translation Shop officially opened in the future, he might need Hannah's help. As long as it wasn't a matter of principle—like demanding permanent petting rights—he was willing to be generous.
(๑•̀ㅂ•́)و✧ Of course, it'd be even better if I caught her making a mistake someday. Free labor is best labor~
After saying goodbye to Neville—who had to find a suitable container for Trevor so he wouldn't accidentally squash his pet to death—Tom and Hannah returned to their original compartment. Once seated, Hannah took out the snacks again.
"By the way, Tom, try this!"
Just as Tom lifted a glass of iced pumpkin juice to take a sip, Hannah suddenly stuffed something small into his paw.
He accepted it instinctively—and immediately felt it move.
No way…
Lowering his gaze, Tom saw exactly what he had feared: a chocolate frog, still wrapped in its packaging, hopping energetically in his palm.
His expression instantly became complicated, torn between laughter and irritation.
[Thanks, but no thanks. Cats can't eat chocolate.]
"Is that so?" Hannah said hesitantly. "But Tom, you should be fine, right? After all… you're special…"
As she spoke, her face grew noticeably flushed, and her voice gradually faded. She no longer looked cheerful like usual. Instead, she resembled Neville earlier—nervous, uncertain, and oddly earnest.
For some reason, the phrase "married couple resemblance" popped into Tom's mind.
Along with it came a distant memory from the original story. Hadn't Hannah and Neville ended up together?
Tom shrugged the thought away. It didn't really matter to him. As long as he had his precious Luna, everything else was irrelevant.
Still, to prevent similar accidents in the future, he decided to clarify matters firmly.
[It's true that I'm not an ordinary Cat—I'm a magical Cat. But a Cat is still a Cat. It wouldn't be good if I actually got poisoned.]
After a brief pause, he added:
[Once we get to Hogwarts, I could try testing whether chocolate has any effect on me. The wizard healers there should be able to pull me back before I kick the bucket, right?]
Although he wasn't certain whether chocolate would truly harm him, he was undeniably a Cat. Getting poisoned—even temporarily—would be troublesome.
Since becoming Tom, he hadn't touched chocolate even once.
Just because he couldn't die didn't mean he was willing to experience death for the sake of a single bite.
Still…
(´-ω-`) Chocolate… such a nostalgic flavor.
As memories stirred, Tom suddenly felt the smooth, rich texture of chocolate reappear vividly on the tip of his tongue, as though he had just eaten it moments ago.
Wait.
Something's wrong.
Tom's eyes snapped wide open.
He had been a Cat for over ten years. Even counting his past life, the last time he'd eaten chocolate must have been at least fifteen or sixteen years ago.
So how could he remember its taste so clearly?
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