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Leaky Cauldron, everyone waved goodbye and agreed to meet on the platform on September 1. Mr. Weasley looked eager to ask Mr. Granger something but was pulled back by Mrs. Weasley.
The Weasleys and Harry went home through the fireplace, while Ryan and the Grangers drove home. During the ride, the car was unusually quiet. When they arrived at Hermione's house, Ryan took the luggage from the trunk, bid farewell to the Grangers, and was about to walk home when Hermione caught up to him.
After seeing Mr. Granger helping Mrs. Granger into the house, Hermione leaned closer to Ryan and whispered, "When we go back to school, can you teach me how to fight with magic? I noticed you spent the whole vacation learning that."
Ryan looked surprised. "Why the sudden change? I remember you were against fighting before and even said a few days ago that now isn't the time to learn that."
Hermione's face grew serious. "Because today, at the bookstore, when Mr. Weasley and Malfoy were fighting, you were the only one who thought of pulling my parents to safety. It made me realize that not everyone is as kind as Mr. Weasley. In fact, many wizards look down on Muggles or simply don't care about them.
"Both the Malfoys and the Weasleys are powerful in the wizarding world, so conflicts between them are unlikely to escalate. But for Muggle-borns like us, we might have to rely on our own strength to avoid harm. I doubt Malfoy would hold back if he wanted to curse us.
"So, you're right. We need to protect ourselves and those we care about. I believe you learned a lot about combat this summer. Would you share that knowledge with me?"
Ryan smiled. "Of course. Once we're back at school, I'll teach you everything I know."
After saying goodbye, Ryan dragged his suitcase home, reflecting on Hermione's words.
"She's so clever," he thought. "If it weren't for the experiences from my previous life and my mental age being in my 30s, I wouldn't have realized that either."
Ryan knew the wizarding world didn't see Muggles and wizards as equals. For example, Hagrid had given Dudley a pig's tail but faced no punishment. Even wizards who believed in equality, like Mr. Weasley, were considered odd.
If a Muggle-born wanted to live peacefully in this world, they would need to grow stronger. Hermione realizing this at her age showed just how gifted she was.
Once home, Ryan pulled out the diary that served as Voldemort's Horcrux. Using life magic, he could sense the twisted, evil presence inside. He considered using his newly learned life magic to destroy it, but after realizing just how dangerous it was, he thought better of it.
He admired Voldemort's genius. To create something this sinister while still a student was remarkable. Ryan realized how far he was from reaching that level of power. If he wanted to stand a chance, he would need to gain more strength through the Tim Hortans grocery store.
Ryan put the diary in a tin box and stored it in the Tim Hortans grocery store. This way, he could safely bring it to school without anyone coming into contact with it.
The rest of the holiday passed peacefully. Mr. Lambert was busy writing a novel, claiming it would be his masterpiece. Meanwhile, Hermione admired Lockhart's achievements whenever they met and looked forward to asking him questions about Defense Against the Dark Arts.
However, she wasn't as obsessed with Lockhart as in the original story. Ryan had pointed out that their adventures last year were just as exciting, if not more so. After all, the three-headed dog was classified as more dangerous than a vampire, not to mention facing the Dark Lord.
He also cleverly avoided directly calling Lockhart a fraud, knowing it would trigger Hermione's rebellious side. Instead, he suggested that Lockhart was simply more open about his experiences than other Hogwarts professors.
Hermione admitted she had been influenced by Lockhart's charming personality and storytelling but decided to see him as a good teacher rather than a hero.
Before long, September 1 arrived. Mr. Lambert finally emerged from his writing retreat and offered to drive Ryan to King's Cross. On the way, he excitedly explained the plot of his novel, getting so carried away that he accidentally rear-ended the car in front of them at a red light.
Although no one was hurt, the minor accident took time to resolve. By the time they reached King's Cross with the luggage cart, they bumped into Harry and the Weasleys, who were also running late.
After greeting them, the Weasleys began crossing the barrier to Platform 9¾ one by one. Ryan said goodbye to his father and watched him walk out the station's doors. Just then, he heard a loud thud behind him.
Turning around, he saw Harry and Ron sprawled on the floor, their luggage carts overturned and their belongings scattered everywhere. A curious crowd gathered around them, whispering and pointing.
Taking advantage of the distraction, Ryan pushed through the crowd and hurried to their side. "What happened? Why are you two on the floor?"
"I don't know," Harry groaned, rubbing his ribs. "It's like the barrier's blocked."
Ryan walked up to the wall and reached out. Sure enough, the magical barrier was sealed. He immediately thought of Dobby, the house-elf, whose well-meaning but disruptive efforts were likely behind this.
As the station clock ticked closer to the train's departure time, Harry tried once more to push his cart against the wall. It didn't budge.
Ryan quickly realized that thanks to Dobby's interference, Harry couldn't get to Hogwarts. And as collateral damage, he and Ron were stuck as well.
Ryan shook his head, silently acknowledging that Dobby's method of helping Harry was troublesome, to say the least. However, this twist of fate presented Ryan with an unexpected opportunity—to earn some offset points.
Feeling a surge of excitement, Ryan grinned as a plan began to form in his mind.
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