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Chapter 647 – Slughorn's Invitation!!
Early the next morning, a car from the Ministry of Magic arrived to pick them up.
This time, in addition to Tonks, several Aurors were present.
Their expressions were extremely serious, spreading out around the vehicle and escorting it closely.
Darren even overheard one of the Aurors muttering that just standing near him made him nervous.
It felt a bit like standing beside Dumbledore.
Darren pouted inwardly.
He was clearly a handsome, gentle boy—what was there to be nervous about?
Of course, that might also have something to do with his increasingly notorious reputation.
Before they got into the car, Fleur appeared once again.
She grabbed Darren and kissed him hard on the cheek.
"Oh, darling, have a wonderful school year!"
Ron froze on the spot.
Ginny immediately kicked him hard in the leg.
"Nothing!" she snapped irritably.
Then she climbed into the car herself.
Hermione said nothing. She sat quietly by the window, watching the scene with a trace of jealousy.
When Darren looked over, she smiled sweetly, as if nothing were wrong.
When they arrived at King's Cross Station, the Aurors who had been guarding Darren finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Standing outside Platform Nine and Three-Quarters, they wiped the sweat from their foreheads and muttered quietly that this job was truly exhausting.
Darren followed Harry onto the train, and they found an empty compartment.
Ginny soon followed, but after saying she still had something to do, she left again.
Not long after, Luna and Neville arrived.
The moment they saw Darren, both of them nearly jumped with excitement.
"I knew you were still alive!" Neville said happily.
"Gran blamed herself so much. She thought that if she'd been home that day, nothing would have happened to you."
"She was upset all summer," he added softly.
"She even said that if something had really happened to you, she wouldn't know how to go on."
Darren was startled and quickly shook his head.
"I'm really fine. I didn't actually suffer much."
"I just fell in, and when I came out, more than a month had passed. I don't even remember what happened in between."
"So please tell Mrs. Longbottom not to blame herself," he said earnestly.
"If she feels guilty because of me, I wouldn't dare trouble her again in the future."
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding…]
"And this was my own fault," Darren continued.
"I only came out of St. Mungo's the day before yesterday. If I'd known how worried everyone was, I would have written to each of you first."
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding, Father +100]
[Ding…]
His words made the compartment fall quiet.
Darren had always been like this—so gentle that no one could bear to say another word to him.
Just then, there was a knock on the door.
A girl stood outside holding three invitations.
She blushed deeply and stammered at Darren,
"H-Hello… this is… this is from the front carriage… I was asked to deliver them…"
Darren had just taken the invitations when the girl turned and ran away.
"Charming," Ron muttered as he came in from the corridor.
Hermione shot him a glare, then turned to Darren.
"What is it?"
Darren opened the envelopes.
> Darren,
I would be honored if you would join me for lunch in Car C.
Yours sincerely,
Professor Slughorn
Hermione frowned slightly.
"This is the professor Dumbledore brought Harry to visit during the summer," she said suspiciously.
"Why would he invite you?"
Harry and Neville had received invitations as well.
Harry shrugged.
"Well, it looks like we don't really have a choice."
When a professor invited you—especially for the first time—refusing wasn't exactly an option.
They made their way toward Slughorn's compartment.
On the way, they ran into Cho Chang.
The moment she saw Darren, her eyes lit up.
She rushed over and hugged him tightly, tears soaking into his robes.
"You're really back… you're alive…"
She choked out the words, unable to stop crying.
It wasn't until Harry mentioned that they were heading to Professor Slughorn's compartment that she reluctantly let go.
When they finally arrived, they discovered that Slughorn had invited quite a few people.
But his enthusiasm toward them was obvious.
"Oh my goodness—Harry, my boy!" Slughorn exclaimed.
"Thank you for coming!"
"And this must be Darren," he said eagerly.
"I've heard your name so many times, but this is our first meeting."
"You really do look like your mother," he continued happily.
"A brilliant witch—and you, a genius among geniuses!"
Finally, he turned to Neville.
"And this must be a Longbottom! A good boy—very good indeed!"
He shook Neville's hand warmly, then placed an arm around Darren's shoulders.
"Darren, this one is from your house—"
Before Darren could speak, Blaise Zabini stood up quickly, nodded stiffly, and stepped aside.
Since the Dark Lord's return, he clearly had no intention of offending Darren—or getting close to him again.
"This is Michael," Slughorn continued.
Michael stood up and shook Darren's hand.
"Nice to meet you, Darren."
"And this is Belby," Slughorn said cheerfully.
"She just told me she likes you very much!"
Belby's face turned bright red as she covered it with her hands.
Slughorn laughed heartily.
"And of course—Ginny."
Ginny made a face at Darren.
"All right, everyone, sit down!" Slughorn said briskly.
"I brought my own lunch. Darren, try this pheasant—it's excellent."
"Oh, Marcus," he added, turning suddenly,
"How is your brother? I must introduce Darren to Damocles one day."
"Geniuses should exchange ideas—imagine the inspiration!"
Marcus hesitated.
"I… don't get along very well with him. He argues with my father all the time…"
His voice trailed off.
Slughorn's expression cooled immediately.
Later, when the food was passed around, Marcus was "accidentally" skipped.
Slughorn turned his attention elsewhere.
"McCall, wasn't your uncle from Norfolk?" he said brightly.
"I remember hunting there with Rufus—before he became Minister, of course!"
Harry finally understood.
Everyone in this compartment—except Ginny and Darren—had been invited because of who they were connected to.
Mrs. Weasley hadn't been wrong at all.
Professor Slughorn truly did enjoy surrounding himself with people of influence.
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