Ivy didn't feel the need for sympathy from a boy who had been orphaned and spent eleven years in his aunt's house.
So, he tried to change the subject. "You know? I'm a wizard from over a hundred years ago."
When Harry and Ron heard this, they both stared at him, but quickly broke into smiles, probably thinking that what Ivy said was just a joke.
"That sounds so cool!" Ron exclaimed. "So why are you going to school with us? Is it to relive your school days?"
"That's part of the reason," Ivy admitted, nodding.
"Then, where's your beard?" Harry asked, looking a bit mischievous. "Since you're over a hundred years old…"
"I'm one hundred and forty-four years old," Ivy continued, sticking with the truth—he liked telling the truth. "Because of a terrible magical accident, I was sealed in a crystal and slept for over a hundred years. Not only did my body not age, but I became younger."
"Wow! That's amazing!" Ron looked fascinated by the topic. It seemed like he would use Ivy's story for bragging rights next time. "So, what about magic? What's the difference between the magic from over a hundred years ago and today?"
"Well, for the first-year textbooks, there's not much difference," Ivy shrugged. "But the magical accident that trapped me for over a hundred years was caused by ancient magic, which has almost been lost."
"Ancient magic!" Ron nodded eagerly, leaning forward in his seat, his bottom squirming uncomfortably on the bench. "What can ancient magic do?"
"In simple terms, it's incredibly powerful and difficult to control," Ivy began to describe the characteristics of ancient magic. "It can summon lightning, cause earthquakes, and throw huge stones around like feathers."
"Show us a trick, Ivy!" Ron urged, excited. "Let us see some of that ancient magic you're talking about!"
"That's not a simple task... I woke up too early this morning, so I didn't have breakfast... and using ancient magic is very physically taxing..." Ivy wore a mischievous grin.
"So, if we feed you, you'll show us?" Harry, being quick-witted, immediately caught the hint. While he didn't fully believe in Ivy's talk about ancient magic, he had seen Ivy's luggage float into the compartment earlier. So, he was curious to see what other magic Ivy could perform.
"Exactly!" Ivy clapped his hands.
"Then, where do we get food from? I was so nervous about catching the train that I forgot breakfast... and I'm hungry now." Harry glanced down at his stomach.
"I've got sandwiches!" Ron started rummaging through his luggage and pulled out a paper box containing four sandwiches. "My mom made these, corned beef in a can… but she has to take care of five kids, so they might be a bit dry. If you don't mind…"
"Of course." Ivy took one, and Harry grabbed another.
"Mmm—pretty good," Harry gave a fair assessment. This was the first time someone had shared food with him, and maybe the novelty made the canned corned beef sandwiches taste better.
Sharing food always made it taste better, and since all three were teenagers (except for Ivy, who, at 144 years old, was shorter than Ron and appeared to be their peer), they quickly finished all four sandwiches.
However, someone's stomach was still growling.
Just then, the time was about right, and the sound of wheels rolling along the floor of the train corridor echoed.
A friendly-looking woman opened the compartment door and asked, "Would you like some snacks from the trolley, dear?"
Harry jumped up immediately. With pockets full of Galleons and Sickles from Gringotts, he couldn't wait to spend them.
"I'll treat this time!" Harry cheered. There were snacks on the trolley that Harry had never seen before, so he took a little of each kind, returning to his seat with an armful of goodies.
The pile of snacks nearly overwhelmed the table, and despite that, Harry didn't spend a single Galleon; the total only came to under twelve Sickles.
"I've never had snacks from the magical world!" Harry said. He had hardly had any Muggle snacks either, as his cousin Dudley would always take everything he had.
Since Ron had just shared his sandwich with Harry, he felt no hesitation in devouring the snacks Harry had bought. He was busy shoving a pumpkin pasty into his mouth with his left hand, while his right hand picked up a treacle tart.
"What's this?" Harry picked up a Chocolate Frog package. "They aren't real frogs, are they?"
"Chocolate Frogs," Ivy warned, "Be careful when you open it. It might jump away." He added, "It looks pretty much the same as the ones from over a hundred years ago. I'm just not sure if Honeydukes has added any new cards."
"Oh! It's Dumbledore," Harry said, already pulling out a card that hadn't existed over a hundred years ago.
"You must know his name, right? After all, it's written on your acceptance letter," Ron said, not expecting much from Harry's knowledge of the wizarding world but figuring Harry should at least recognize Dumbledore. "They say that's the most valuable Chocolate Frog card because he's considered the greatest wizard of the twentieth century."
"Wow, this is the first time I've seen a new card." Ivy raised an eyebrow, taking the card from Harry's hand while maintaining his persona as an ancient wizard.
"Hey! I remember you said you've met Dumbledore!" Harry, chewing on snacks, suddenly remembered something and asked, "Does he look like the picture on the card?"
"Pretty close, maybe a little older," Ivy glanced at the card in his hand. The Dumbledore on it had already passed away.
Ron stopped eating and looked at Ivy in surprise. "Why have you met Dumbledore? Where did you meet him?"
"Of course, at Hogwarts. Where else?"
"But they don't allow underage wizards into Hogwarts!" Ron was even more confused.
"Remember? Ivy's a 144-year-old wizard!" Harry answered for Ivy.
"True... that makes sense," Ron said, no longer dwelling on it, and continued eating the snacks on the table.