"Eh?" Hermione said happily. "Vivi has joined the Ministry of Magic? That really is good news… I think I should write her a letter to congratulate her…"
"Mm."
Harry rummaged in the envelope, took out a badge with Austrian German on it, and handed it to Hermione.
"Vivi prepared this for you. Of course… it seems she only prepared a gift for you, and she asked me to pass on a message: she sincerely invites you to work at the Austrian Ministry of Magic after graduation."
"Really? Wow!"
Hermione happily took the badge, cupped it in her palm and examined it for a long while, then said a bit regretfully, "I really do want to work with Vivi, but unfortunately—I can't leave the United Kingdom. After all, my mum and dad are still in the United Kingdom."
"We'll talk about it when we graduate. We're only in third year now," Ron said from the side.
"We'll be in fourth year as soon as term starts," Hermione said, shaking her head.
"The letter also says that Miss Fari from Slytherin went to Austria with Vivi, and she also successfully joined the Austrian Ministry of Magic," Harry put the letter down and said to them with a smile. "Seems pretty great. At least Vivi has someone she knows over there, so she won't get bullied…"
Get bullied?
Hermione showed a worried look, but everyone else in the compartment looked like they'd just seen a ghost.
Seriously, you think someone with the surname Grindelwald would get bullied by people from the Austrian Ministry of Magic?
Good grief, that would really be something to be thankful for—who knew the Austrian Ministry of Magic had suddenly become so impressive.
"Compared to that, you should be worrying more about whether people in the Austrian Ministry of Magic will be bullied by her," the Weasley Twins muttered under their breath.
Why under their breath?
Because in here there's a boyfriend of Miss Grindelwald, and a little fangirl of Miss Grindelwald. Who knows which of the two might leak what they just said?
If Miss Grindelwald found out, they really wouldn't know how they died.
Harry didn't notice the twins' little exchange at all. His head was full of how he was going to fight back against Vivi's invisible Mind Reading next time he saw her.
He had to make her call him "Master" properly a few times! Harry thought viciously to himself.
"Speaking of which, have you arranged when you're meeting at the Black Family Mansion?" Fred suddenly said. "I remember Little Ronnie went with you lot to the Black Family Mansion over Christmas holidays, right? I heard it's really fun there… so, can we tag along next time?"
"Of course you can." Harry agreed cheerfully; he didn't see himself as an outsider at the Black Family Mansion at all.
Honestly, he was Sirius Black's godson—round it up a bit and the Black Family Mansion was basically his home too, wasn't it?
Of course, Harry had never actually thought of the Black Family Mansion as his.
"Cool!" The Gemini grinned in anticipation. "Dad says he can get tickets for the Quidditch World Cup. He bragged in his letter about knowing Ludo Bagman, and we think there's a decent chance he really does know a guy like that… hopefully he can get a few extra tickets."
"I'm really scared he won't get enough tickets," Ron said pessimistically. "If there aren't enough, some of us might not be able to go to the Quidditch match in person—I feel like I'll be one of the ones left behind."
"How could that be?" The Weasley Twins hooked their arms around Ron's shoulders, giggling. "We don't think you'd be first in line. We two are ahead of you—of course, if we gave you twenty Galleons, could this matter just be let go?"
"Then I can pretend the Quidditch World Cup doesn't exist," Ron said righteously.
Twenty Galleons!
Quidditch World Cup who? Never heard of it, okay?
"But what Dad thinks is a real pity is that you don't live with your uncle and aunt anymore," Ron suddenly said. "You know, Dad's really interested in everything about Muggles—like televisions, telephones, all sorts of electronics, fridges and stuff—what's a fridge anyway, I've never really understood what it means."
"Honestly, I've never really understood why they use that word either, it makes people have no idea what it is," Harry said, spreading his hands. "Anyway, it's something for keeping food cold so it doesn't go bad… You should know that even though Muggles don't have magic, their science is a kind of magic in its own way."
"Cool." Ron grinned.
"If your dad wants to learn about Muggle stuff, maybe he could come to my house," Hermione suggested. "My dad actually likes your dad quite a bit. I think the two of them would have a lot to talk about."
"Speaking of your dad," Harry suddenly asked, "I remember last time they said they were going to buy a house in China, right? So now what? What are they planning next?"
"Oh, he said in his last letter that he was going to invest in something or other… I didn't remember the details," Hermione said with a shrug. "I don't really interfere with what he does anyway. I don't exactly know much about economics."
"There are actually things Miss Omniscient doesn't know?" The Gemini looked intrigued.
"Even gods aren't omniscient and omnipotent," Hermione said, propping her palm on her thigh, uttering something that would sound quite blasphemous to Muggles.
The train kept clattering on, and just as they were about to arrive at King's Cross Station, the door of the compartment was suddenly knocked on.
Hermione opened the door; outside was Cassandra.
"Miss Malfoy," Hermione greeted politely.
"Hello, Miss Granger."
Cassandra gave a flawless smile, then looked at Harry.
"Potter?" she said. "Come out with me for a bit, I have something I want to talk to you about."
With that, she turned and walked off to the side.
Once Cassandra had disappeared from the doorway and Harry stood up, a wave of "yooooooo" rose in the carriage.
"'Potter, come out with me~'" Fred vividly mimicked Cassandra's tone and expression—hmm, it was actually kind of similar.
But that innate arrogance Cassandra carried in her bones was something Fred couldn't imitate.
"Hey, stop being such a copycat."
Harry looked helplessly at the twins, who were doubled over with laughter, then stepped out.
Following the direction Cassandra had left in, Harry walked to the connection between carriages and finally saw Cassandra standing there, staring out the window in a daze.
"What's wrong, Kathy?" Harry asked with concern.
"You're coming back to Malfoy Manor with me," Cassandra said coldly. "That's the agreement we made, understood?"
"Ah, that…"
Harry had intended to argue, but when he caught the faint, almost imperceptible look of anticipation in Cassandra's eyes, the words got stuck in his throat and slid back down.
"All right, I'll go back with you," he said crisply. "But before that, I have to let my Godfather know—he's still waiting for me at the Black Family Mansion."
Hearing Harry agree, a trace of satisfaction flashed in Cassandra's eyes.
"Mm." She made a small sound. "Looks like you haven't forgotten our agreement, my little lackey—then it's settled: when the train pulls into the platform, you're coming back with me."
The feeling was just like going back to the old days.
Harry sighed inwardly, and copied his old manner by giving a bow.
"Understood, Miss Malfoy."
But no reply came from Cassandra; he waited and waited and still didn't hear anything.
He lifted his head, only to find Cassandra looking at him with a complicated expression.
When their eyes met, Cassandra's lips suddenly curled up.
"So you still remember your place, do you, Potter?"