With exams finished and summer vacation beginning, the young wizards packed their luggage and prepared to head home.
Aiden got up early, and for some reason, Ethan pulled both him and Edmund aside, inviting them to visit his home during the summer vacation.
Under the watchful eyes of the professors, the young wizards boarded the scarlet steam engine.
On the train, to accommodate the crowd that squeezed in, Aiden could only use the Undetectable Extension Charm to widen their compartment.
"This spell that's supposed to be prohibited for private use has almost become public thanks to you," George complained.
"Perhaps we'll have to visit our beautiful little brother in Azkaban in the future," Fred immediately chimed in.
"If you don't want to sit here, get out," Aiden glanced at these two troublemakers, and they immediately quieted down.
Just then, a brown owl caught up with the train, delivering a letter to Harry.
Permission granted for Harry Potter to visit Hogsmeade. Signed: Sirius Black.
Seeing the words on the letter, Harry's face filled with pure joy.
Oh, by the way, I bought this owl. Give it to your friend who lost his pet.
Harry finished reading this passage and handed the owl to Ron.
"Me?" Ron couldn't believe this sudden surprise.
"But this isn't another Animagus, is it?" Ron was like someone who'd been bitten by a snake and feared well ropes for ten years.
"Just give it a name and feel whether you've established a magical connection with it," Aiden said, rolling his eyes.
"Hmm, let me think... I'll call it... Pigwidgeon," Ron named the owl.
A special connection formed between the human and owl due to magic, binding them together.
"Not afraid it's an Animagus anymore?" Aiden raised an eyebrow.
"Hmph, your cat is the Animagus, and she can talk too," Ron's love for Scabbers transferred immediately, but he didn't realize he'd offended someone he shouldn't mess with.
Lada leaped high and delivered a cat punch to Ron's head, making his skull hit the compartment wall.
"Ouch!" Ron held his head, feeling pain both front and back.
"Serves you right," Hermione also mocked him.
Then she picked up Lada and asked, "Aiden, how did you make Lada able to speak?"
Aiden put down his book, revealing a mischievous smile. "Magical experimentation."
Lada cooperated by looking sad. "To be able to speak, my throat endured sixteen magical modifications. The reason you can hear me talk now is actually because my vocal organs were modified to the point of mutation."
Hermione stared at Aiden accusingly after hearing this while hugging her Crookshanks tightly.
"Alright, stop fooling around. Lada can talk because her bloodline reverted, and she's now become a magical creature."
Aiden used a Summoning Charm to bring Lada back, lifting her up to show everyone the runes on her fur.
"What's this?" Harry asked.
"The rune Kenaz (ᚲ), representing flame," Aiden explained.
"Cool, I wish Pig could become a magical creature too," Ron looked enviously at Lada.
"The magical creature closest to owls is the Augurey," Hermione coldly shattered Ron's fantasy.
"Never mind then."
The train roared into King's Cross Station.
Everyone found their own family members.
Surprisingly, although Harry had fallen out with the Dursleys last year, Vernon still came to pick up Harry in his car.
Thinking of what he and Sirius had discussed at the Quidditch pitch, Aiden's conscience felt somewhat guilty.
"Get in the car, you..." Vernon was about to yell at Harry, but Harry interrupted him.
"I'm telling you, this year at school I made a murderer my godfather," Harry stared directly at Vernon.
This sentence successfully extinguished Vernon's anger and plunged the entire Dursley family into an eerie silence.
Harry left in Vernon's car, and Aiden shrugged, getting into Arthur's Ford Anglia.
On the first day of July, as summer vacation began, the peaceful and tranquil daily life of the Weasley family started.
Of course, the other Weasley children were all quite happy, except for Ron.
Flashes of spell light often appeared in the backyard while Arthur sat in the dining room with his newspaper, occasionally sipping his coffee.
Seeing that Mrs. Weasley seemed busy, Aiden put on an apron and began helping with the dishes in the sink and today's dinner.
"I heard rumors from Ravenclaw students that he's very domesticated," George whispered to Fred on the sofa.
"It does seem to be true," Fred nodded along.
Ginny, sitting between them, heard her brothers' words and looked at Aiden, wondering whether a sister-in-law or... would appear in the future.
"Bang!" With a violent explosion, Ron's screams came from outside.
Finally, the outside fell completely silent, and after a while, Mrs. Weasley dragged Ron inside.
"Too slack, Ronnie, it's only been one semester," Molly shook her head in disappointment.
"Only focused on playing after school started, your skills have gotten rusty," Aiden said as his palm passed over a potato, transforming it into thin slices by itself.
"Oh, Aiden, let me handle this," Mrs. Weasley said, seeing Aiden cooking.
"It's fine, Aunt Molly. It's rare for me to try, and I learned quite a few recipes during my trip to China."
The boss in China, from whom Aiden had learned, sent his protests from afar.
Cutting the ingredients, cleaning the organs, making stock with chicken, and adding butter, bean paste, fermented black beans, rock sugar, chili powder, ginger, peppercorns, salt, rice wine, and sweet rice wine that Aiden had painstakingly gathered.
A hot pot base was ready, and Aiden brought the hot pot to the dining table.
The cleaned ingredients were arranged around the hot pot.
"My goodness, Aiden, you haven't cooked this at all. How are we supposed to eat it?" Ron stared at the raw ingredients.
"This is cuisine from the China. Come on, learn from me," Aiden picked up a ladle and threw potato slices and kelp into the pot to cook.
He also added organs, beef, and mutton.
The flames cooked the ingredients in the pot, and soon enticing aromas began to fill the air.
"Can we eat it now?" Arthur was very interested.
"One more minute," Aiden asked them to be patient.
The water in the pot began to boil, and the meat started floating, looking about ready.
Aiden lifted the lid and served some for Molly and Arthur to try.
"It's quite good, just a bit spicy," Arthur stuck out his tongue and fanned it with his hand.
"The Far Eastern way of eating is so unique," Molly sighed after trying it.
With the parents leading the way, the other children also began selecting food they were interested in.
Ron only ate a tiny bit of meat from the spicy pot, and his whole face turned red.
"Looks like you're not suited for spicy food," Aiden handed him a drink.
Ron took it and poured it straight into his mouth, still sticking out his tongue and panting.
Night fell with starlight, but the warmth of home inside the Burrow drove away the loneliness that night brought.