September 1st.
King's Cross Station was packed with noise, steam, and exhausted parents dragging heavy luggage across crowded platforms.
The conductor near Platform Nine looked utterly drained.
Every single year, the same thing happened.
"Sorry," he repeated for what felt like the hundredth time that morning, "there is no Platform Nine and Three-Quarters."
And every single time, another confused child would appear immediately afterward asking the exact same question.
Worse still, strange people constantly wandered through the station wearing bizarre clothes and behaving suspiciously.
The conductor glanced toward one especially horrifying example nearby—
A giant bearded man wearing a floral dress.
The sight nearly made him sick.
Not far away, a bushy-haired girl also looked visibly disturbed by the scene around her.
Before discovering the magical world, Hermione Granger always assumed people dressed like this were performing street theatre.
Now she understood the truth.
These were wizards.
And most of them clearly knew absolutely nothing about ordinary society.
"Wizards naturally look down on Muggles," a gentle voice suddenly said behind her. "That arrogance makes many of them unwilling to understand normal life."
Hermione turned immediately.
A blond-haired boy stood nearby carrying himself with calm elegance.
"Hello," he said politely. "My name is Lucien Grindelwald. I'm starting Hogwarts this year as well."
"Hermione Granger."
Hermione answered automatically before blinking in surprise.
Lucien smiled faintly.
"You're trying to find Platform Nine and Three-Quarters, aren't you?"
"Yes!"
Hermione looked relieved someone finally understood her problem.
"I've been searching everywhere, but nobody seems to know where it is."
"Of course the conductor doesn't know," Lucien replied calmly. "You'd have better luck asking the strangely dressed people nearby."
Hermione froze briefly.
Then realization suddenly struck her.
"The wizards!"
"Exactly."
Hermione looked both embarrassed and excited.
"How did I not think of that?"
"There's no need."
Lucien glanced toward the clock overhead.
"We don't have much time left. I'll take you there."
Hermione immediately brightened.
Before she could properly thank him, however, Lucien's attention shifted toward the enormous trunk beside her.
Without hesitation, he quietly drew his wand beneath the platform's cover.
"Reducio."
Hermione's trunk instantly shrank from nearly waist-high down to the size of a matchbox.
She stared at it in complete shock.
Lucien casually picked up the tiny trunk and slipped it into her pocket.
"There," he said smoothly. "Much easier."
Hermione looked utterly stunned.
"That was a Shrinking Charm!"
Her eyes widened dramatically.
"Isn't that advanced magic?"
Lucien chuckled softly.
"You'll encounter it sometime around second year."
Hermione looked even more horrified.
"Then why do you already know it?"
Lucien wisely chose not to answer directly.
Instead, he guided her toward the barrier between Platforms Nine and Ten.
Hermione looked increasingly nervous the closer they approached.
"Wait…" she whispered. "Are we actually supposed to run directly into the wall?"
"Yes."
"That sounds insane."
"It usually works."
"Usually?"
Before Hermione could panic further, Lucien simply grabbed her hand and walked straight through the barrier.
A moment later, they emerged onto Platform Nine and Three-Quarters.
The scarlet Hogwarts Express stood waiting amid clouds of steam while countless witches and wizards bustled around the platform.
Hermione looked completely speechless.
It wasn't until they finally settled inside an empty train compartment that she recovered enough to speak again.
"You just used a Shrinking Charm," she said immediately. "And you mentioned second-year coursework earlier."
Her eyes narrowed suspiciously.
"I've already read all my first-year textbooks, and I don't remember seeing that spell anywhere."
Lucien almost sighed aloud.
There it was.
The legendary overachiever instincts activating already.
"No need to reread everything," he reassured her. "The spell genuinely isn't part of the first-year curriculum."
Hermione immediately relaxed slightly.
Then Lucien added—
"If you want, I can teach it to you later."
Hermione's eyes lit up instantly.
"Really?"
Then she quickly covered her mouth, clearly embarrassed by how excited she sounded.
Lucien smiled faintly and began casually explaining the basic theory behind the spell.
Not long afterward, two identical red-haired heads suddenly appeared through the compartment doorway.
"Well, George," one of them announced dramatically, "looks like we interrupted a romantic confession."
"Unfortunate timing," the other agreed solemnly. "Especially since our dear little brother abandoned us for other friends."
Both boys grinned mischievously while leaning against the compartment entrance.
Their robes looked slightly burned in several places.
Lucien instantly recognised them.
Fred and George Weasley.
The future kings of chaos themselves.
"We were discussing spells," Lucien explained calmly.
Then he opened the compartment door wider.
"If you two haven't found seats yet, feel free to join us."
"Merlin's socks," Fred exclaimed while dropping into a seat opposite Lucien. "First-years already discussing magic?"
"When we started Hogwarts," George added dramatically, "we barely remembered how to hold a wand."
The twins quickly unpacked several rolls of parchment.
"Stop talking and finish the homework," George muttered while searching through his bag. "Percy watched us too closely all summer. We couldn't copy anything properly."
"If we don't finish before arriving," Fred groaned, "McGonagall's going to murder us."
Hermione looked genuinely horrified.
"You haven't finished your homework yet?"
Fred and George blinked at her.
Then immediately ignored the question.
"George," Fred asked suddenly, "where did Bezoar Stones come from again?"
"A dog's stomach?"
"Sounds right."
"Absolutely not!"
Hermione practically exploded.
"Bezoars come from a goat's stomach!"
The twins stared at her blankly.
Hermione huffed indignantly.
"I told you the answer. Believe it or not."
Lucien quietly suppressed a smile.
"If I remember correctly," he added calmly, "Hermione is right. It's mentioned in Chapter Three, Section Two of The Book of Potions."
George froze completely.
"…You memorised the chapter numbers?"
Hermione also stared at Lucien in shock.
Until now, she believed he simply studied ahead slightly.
Now she suddenly realised the terrifying truth.
This boy had probably memorised multiple years' worth of textbooks already.
"Not completely memorised," Lucien corrected modestly. "But I remember most of it."
Fred clutched his chest dramatically.
"He's a saviour."
George immediately nodded.
"A genuine academic miracle."
The twins instantly abandoned all dignity and crowded around Lucien from both sides while shoving parchment toward him.
"Help me with this one."
"What ingredients go into Shrinking Solution again?"
"Daisy roots, shrivelled figs, caterpillars, leech juice, and rat spleen."
"And wormwood?"
"Commonly used in sleeping potions and Draught of Living Death."
"What about—"
Meanwhile, Hermione sat squeezed awkwardly against the compartment wall while staring at Lucien in complete disbelief.
Her entire worldview regarding academic superiority was beginning to crack.
For the first time in her life—
She might not actually be the top student anymore.
....
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