章 31: Potter, Black, and Weasley - A New Trio!
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"You were joking about not knowing her, weren't you?" Harry asked, smiling.
Black grinned back and nodded. "It's hard not to know her, you know," he said, glancing outside. "I must say though, she seems rather unimpressive when surrounded by…"
"… normal people?" Harry added.
The boys looked at each other and shared a low chuckle.
As if their laugh was a cue, Daphne, standing among the Weasleys just outside Harry and Black's compartment, opened her mouth. "Hey, Ginny, guess who we just saw on the platform?"
"Who?"
"Harry Potter!"
Harry leaned back quickly, putting his head down as Black raised an eyebrow.
"Is he really, Daphne? How do you know?" Mrs. Weasley asked.
"I met him in the Diagon Alley," Darcie said.
The red-haired family stared at the girl, going quiet.
Inside the compartment, Arlen raised his second eyebrow. "Did you…"
Harry made a face. "Don't ask… Ugh!" he scratched his head. "I met her in the wand shop."
"That must have been something," Black jested, smiling. "You should go out and say hi…"
Harry had almost forgotten humor and sarcasm leaving with the Dursleys. So when he saw both of these lingering on Arlen's face, he couldn't help but smile along with him.
More voices came inside, then.
"You guys must have met him," Daphne commented. "We saw him enter the platform between Fred or George and Ron…"
"Whoa!" the twins' mouths opened wide, their heads snapping toward the compartment.
"Oh, Mom, can I go on the train and see him, Mom, eh please...." Ginny squeaked excitedly.
"You've already seen him, Ginny, and the poor boy isn't something you goggle at in a zoo — no wonder he was alone, I wondered. He was ever so polite when he asked how to get onto the platform."
"Never mind that, do you think he remembers what You-Know-" Fred couldn't finish the sentence. George had elbowed him meaningfully.
The twins and Percy the Prefect looked at Darcie from the corner of their eyes, shifting on their feet.
Mrs. Weasley suddenly became very stern. "I forbid you to ask him, Fred. No, don't you dare? As though he needs reminding of that on his first day at school. And… Darcie, dear. Sorry for…"
"It's quite alright, Mrs. Weasley," Darcie said, a small smile lingering on her lips.
Inside the compartment, Arlen and Harry shared a look.
"What was that all about?" Harry asked.
Arlen shrugged. "He mentioned Voldemort?"
Harry was taken aback. "You… You called his name…"
Arlen shrugged as if what else he was supposed to say.
Harry couldn't help but notice that Arlen was different from all the magical people he had met so far… in a good sort of way.
A whistle sounded.
"Should I go and invite your best friend to sit with us?" Black joked.
"No!" Harry almost screamed.
Outside, the Weasleys began saying goodbye to each other as the girls disappeared towards their compartment.
"Hurry up!" their mother said, and the three boys clambered onto the train.
Soon, the train began to move.
Stone buildings were replaced by green fields full of sheep and cows.
Harry felt a great leap of excitement. He didn't know what he was going to do — but it had to be better than what he was leaving behind.
…
The door of the compartment slid open and the youngest redheaded boy came in.
"Can I sit here?" he asked, pointing at the seat opposite Harry and next to Black. "Everywhere else is full."
Harry and Arlen shook their heads and the boy sat down.
Ron glanced at Harry and then looked quickly out of the window, pretending he hadn't looked. But then he found Black looking back at him as if he had been caught stealing something.
"I…" Ron tried to explain.
"Yes," Black said, "I am Harry Potter."
Harry broke out in a feat of laughter.
Ron's face went the same color as his hair.
Harry lifted his hair and showed him the lightning scar. "He's Arlen Black," he said, clearing up the confused look on the boy's blushing face.
"So that's where You-Know-Who —?"
"Yes," said Harry, "but I can't remember it."
"Nothing?" said Ron eagerly.
"Well — I remember a lot of green light, but nothing else."
"Wow," said Ron. He sat and stared at Harry for a few moments, then, as though he had suddenly realized what he was doing, he looked quickly out of the window again.
And again Ron found Black looking at him, smiling.
"Don't wanna see my scar?" Arlen asked, almost laughing.
"You've… got one, too?" Ron asked, pressing his brows as if he didn't believe it.
Harry had figured out Black's personality by now. He chuckled and said, "Stop teasing…"
Then, to the utter shock of Harry Potter and Ron Weasley, the young Black lifted his hair and showed the scar.
There it was… on the left side of his forehead.
A lightning scar!
As Harry and Arlen were seated opposite each other, Black's scar looked exactly like Harry's scar's mirror image.
Arlen laughed seeing the stunned looks on the boys' faces.
"How?" Harry asked, taken aback. "Were you too…"
Ron couldn't even say anything. He just kept looking at Black incredulously.
"Blimey!" Black suddenly laughed. "You two are easy to fool. It's just a scar I got when I was young. Haha!"
It wasn't just a scar, though.
…
[
Item: Lightning Bolt Tattoo
Grade: Uncommon (Consumable)
Specification: A lightning bolt tattoo sticker which will tattoo the forehead with a real lightning-shaped scar.
Requirement:
1. Intelligence >40
2. Perception >30
3. Strength >30
Attributes:
1. Permanent Tattoo Sticker (3 x 3 cm)
2. Waterproof, Hypoallergenic, and Non-Toxic
3. Not To Be Used Below Age 5
Effect:
1. Once tattooed, reflect all Curses equivalent to a C+ Grade or below
2. Negates a Mortal Magical Attack every hour
Quality: 100%
WARNING: If the Mortal Magical Attack does damage twice the HP, then the Effect is subjected to failure
]
…
As the Item was consumable, Kai had tattooed it upon himself.
Once tattooed, the Item behaved exactly like a Skill in active mode permanently, letting Kai and Black exchange the tattoo as a Concept between themselves whenever they wanted.
Black let his hair cover the scar again.
"Hey, Ron."
The twins were back.
"Listen, we're going down the middle of the train — Lee Jordan's got a giant tarantula down there."
"R… Right," mumbled Ron, still shocked.
"So… you are Harry," said the other twin. "Did we introduce ourselves? Fred and George Weasley. And this is Ron, our brother. See you later, then."
"Bye," said Harry and Ron.
The twins slid the compartment door shut behind them.
"Are all your family wizards?" asked Harry, who found Ron just as interesting as he had found Black.
"Er — Yes, I think so," said Ron.
They looked at Black, then.
"I am from a long line of squibs," Black said flatly.
"Oh…" Ron looked away.
Harry felt puzzled, feeling strange again with all these magical terms. "Squibs?"
"When you are born to magical parents, but got no magic," Black briefly introduced.
"So your parents…"
"They are Muggles."
"Oh…" Harry's eyes matched Ron's.
"Huh?!" Ron suddenly sat straight. "Your name's… Arlen… Black?"
"Finally caught up?" Black said, raising a brow and smiling. "Cousin…"
Harry blurted out. "You two are cousins?!"
Ron smiled sheepishly. "Distant relatives, I guess…" he said, and then he almost stood off his seat. "Then… then you are a distant relative to Darcie, too, you know!"
"What?" Shocked, Harry looked at Arlen.
Black smiled back. "Told you, didn't I?" he said, shrugging. "It's hard not to know her…"
Harry slumped into his seat. "You got all distant relatives… Wish I'd had three wizard brothers."
"Five," said Ron. For some reason, he was looking gloomy. "I'm the sixth in our family to go to Hogwarts…"
Black sat there, the Ad Infinitum preparing all the dialogues for him keeping the Timeline in mind, diverging it subtly.
"… I've got Bill's old robes, Charlie's old wand, and Percy's old rat."
Ron reached inside his jacket and pulled out a fat gray rat, which was asleep. "His name's Scabbers and he's useless, he hardly ever wakes up. Percy got an owl from my dad for being made a prefect, but they couldn't aff — I mean, I got Scabbers instead."
Black stared at the rat… and smiled, finally seeing the test subject he direly needed to continue his experiments related to Magical Xenomorphs.
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