'It seems like the butterfly effect had long begun,'
Vale mused as he watched the interaction between Neville and Hannah unfold, a flicker of something akin to amusement crossing his features.
"Are you nervous about Hogwarts?" Hannah asked, her bright eyes wide with a mixture of excitement and apprehension.
Neville stammered, rubbing the back of his neck.
"A bit," he admitted sheepishly. "My gran keeps saying it'll be brilliant, but I've never even seen a real magic spell."
Hannah, always eager to reassure, squeezed his hand with reassuring force.
"It's going to be amazing, I promise! I've heard the rumours… We're going to be a strong batch!"
Vale's lips twitched up at the corner. Strong batch. Was it because the Saviour was going to be their batchmate?
'Or is it also because kids like Draco Malfoy are also going to be first years this coming school year?'
Connections mattered, after all. As a functioning member of society in his past life, Vale knew that all too well.
So, he couldn't help but reassess the two in front of him.
"I've heard some things about Hogwarts,"
Vale interjected, his voice a low murmur that caught both their attention.
For a moment there was silence, with Vale haphazardly glancing around as if he wasn't being suspicious enough.
"Not all of them were good."
Hannah gasped. Neville, bless his simple heart, just looked puzzled.
"Oh, what kind of things?" he asked with a slight frown.
Vale shrugged, a cryptic smile curving his lips. "Just more rumours, mostly. About important people and a few deaths…"
"A few deaths?!" Hannah's gasp turned into a shushed exclamation. "How? When? Why?"
The barrage of questions was exactly what Vale wanted to hear.
"It isn't recent. I'm talking about ancient history…"
Vale was smiling wholeheartedly now. A little mischief wouldn't hurt now, would it?
"…During the time of You-Know-Who."
Vale Windrow studied the reactions his words had provoked. Hannah's eyes were wide with alarm, her cheeks suddenly pale, while Neville's face had taken on a look of earnest concentration.
The boy was clearly trying to piece together the fragments of a story he had only heard in hushed whispers. The air in the Eeylops Owl Emporium seemed to grow denser with the gravity of Vale's revelation.
"You-Know-Who?" Neville repeated, his voice barely above a whisper. "But, isn't he... gone?"
Vale cocked his head slightly, his gaze steady on Neville's face.
"For now, perhaps," he said. "But history has a way of repeating itself, doesn't it?"
Hannah swallowed hard, her grip tightening on Neville's shoulder unconsciously. The friendly gesture was now a bit… forceful.
"That's... that's terrible," she murmured. "I hadn't heard about any of that."
Vale shrugged again, a gesture that seemed to belie the seriousness of his words.
"It's not something people like to talk about," he said. "Especially not around new students."
Neville's brow furrowed, and he opened his mouth as if to ask another question but was interrupted by a sudden rustling from the back of the shop.
An elderly woman emerged, her arms laden with a collection of owl pellets for examination. She squinted at the trio through her spectacles, a curious expression on her face.
"Everything alright here?" she inquired, her voice a touch stern.
Vale offered her a charming smile, one that did not quite reach his eyes.
"Just discussing Hogwarts legends, ma'am," he said smoothly.
The woman's eyes narrowed further, as if she could see straight through Vale's placating words to the darker truths beneath. But after a moment, she simply grunted and shuffled back to her work, leaving the three children once again in relative privacy.
The brief interruption had served its purpose, though. Neville seemed to shake off his earlier unease, and Hannah's colour was returning to her cheeks.
"We shouldn't dwell on such unhappy things," Hannah said with forced brightness. "We're about to start the most exciting part of our lives!"
Vale nodded, though his expression remained inscrutable.
"Of course," he agreed. "It's important to look forward, after all."
Neville managed a weak smile, his nerves clearly still frayed by Vale's ominous words.
"Right. Forward."
"…"
The trio lapsed into a somewhat awkward silence, each lost in their own thoughts. Vale watched them with a detached sort of interest, noting the way the kids clung to each other for comfort in the face of uncertainty. It was a stark contrast to the resolve that simmered beneath his own calm exterior.
It was a clear difference in mental age.
'…But that doesn't mean that I can't learn anything from them. Being an otherworlder, there is much for me to explore,' he thought, finding both Hannah and Neville quite pleasing to the eye.
After that awkward moment, Vale gestured to a small alcove tucked away in the corner of the shop, where they could speak more freely without the watchful eyes of the shopkeeper.
"Shall we move over there?" he suggested. "It's a bit more private."
Hannah nodded eagerly, eager to put distance between themselves and the unsettling conversation they had stumbled into.
Neville followed, still quiet, but with a resolute set to his jaw that suggested he was determined to face whatever Hogwarts might throw at him.
As they made their way to the alcove, Vale's mind raced with possibilities. These two, with their innocent worries and unguarded reactions, could prove to be useful allies... or unwitting pawns in the games to come.
It all depended on the moves he chose to make.
For now, though, he would play the part of the curious newcomer as he had grown quite familiar with its persona, biding his time until the pieces were perfectly aligned.
After all, the game had only just begun.
* * *
After a while, Vale bid farewell to Neville and Hannah, noting their youthful enthusiasm and eagerness to embrace the wonders of the wizarding world.
Given that they continued their discussion about Hogwarts, Vale excused himself, eager to explore Diagon Alley further and gather more information.
Weaving through the bustling crowds, Vale's sharp eyes scanned the storefronts, seeking opportunities to expand his knowledge. He paused outside Flourish and Blotts, the renowned bookshop, drawn by the prospect of figuring out the literary nature of the world from its rare tomes and obscure magical texts.
As Vale stepped through the doorway, the scent of old parchment and ink enveloped him, filling him with a sense of anticipation.
'Book stores really have a certain charm to them…'
He moved purposefully through the aisles, his fingers trailing along the spines of books, searching for anything that could intrigue him.
Letter after letter spilled down rows upon rows of spines, detailing incantations and enchantments.
A quiet hum of magic vibrated in the air, softened by the constant murmur of conversations between students and parents.
Towering stacks of spellbooks precariously balanced, demanding reverence with their raw power.
As Vale reached for a book titled "Intermediate Charms and Basic Hexes", having recognised the author from his required textbooks, a thunderous crash jolted him.
—Thud!
A nearby tower of books toppled, its victims cascading onto the floor in a comical avalanche. He instinctively dodged, moving with a speed that didn't match his outward air of awkwardness and confusion.
"Oh, goodness me! So very sorry, my good lad!"
A voice erupted, bouncing off the surrounding shelves. Vale turned to see a figure scrambling amongst the scattered books, his oversized purple cloak adorned with glittering gold stars snaking out like luminous tentacles.
The man tripped over a rogue copy of "Advanced Transfiguration", sending another stack of books tumbling. He compounded the disaster with a dramatic bow, his absurdly tall hat nearly falling over his eyes.
"Dedalus Diggle, at your service, young sir!" he declared, his voice booming with jovial enthusiasm. "New to our world, are you?"
Vale kept his expression polite but tightly controlled. "Yes, just arrived today," he replied, his voice carefully measured.
"What a time it must be, discovering magic for the first time!" Diggle exclaimed. "Simply marvellous, marvellous!"
'…Who is this guy, again?'
Vale drew a blank.
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