Hogwarts' Golden Glory

The September sunlight slanted through the glass dome of King's Cross Station, gilding Platform 9¾ with a golden edge.

The Hogwarts Express spewed steam, like a silver dragon poised to pounce.

Harry Potter caused a commotion as he dragged his suitcase through the brick wall.

Not only because of the famous lightning bolt scar on his forehead, but also because of the tall, thin man with black hair and gray eyes beside him.

"Merlin's beard! That's Sirius Black!"

A fourth-grade Hufflepuff girl gasped, covering her mouth.

"He looks like he's giving Harry Potter a ride! But why does it look like he's getting on the bus too?" Her companion gasped.

Harry heard these comments but did not offer any explanation.

Sirius just smiled lazily and casually helped a first-year student carry the heavy owl cage onto the car.

"Don't worry about it, Harry," he said softly, a mischievous glint in his grey eyes. "Their expressions will be even more interesting when they find out I'm the new Defence Against the Dark Arts assistant instructor."

......

The Hogwarts Express travels through the mists of the Scottish Highlands, sunlight filtering through the clouds and casting dappled shadows inside the carriages.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione squeezed into a box.

They were sharing the chocolate frogs they bought from the shopping cart.

"Seriously," Ron munched on a pumpkin pie, "with Sirius in school, this semester's going to be way more exciting than last year! Just imagine, he might be explaining Dementors in class—"

"That's too dangerous!" Hermione immediately objected, but her eyes sparkled. "However... if he were really willing to share some practical combat techniques..."

Harry looked out the window, a smile unconsciously creeping onto his face.

Ever since Sirius told him that he would be a teaching assistant for Defense Against the Dark Arts.

A warm feeling kept welling up in his chest—this would be his first school year at Hogwarts with family by his side.

"I'm going to the restroom," Harry said, standing up.

The corridor was packed with returning students, and Harry had to step aside to avoid them.

As he passed a half-open private room, a burst of silvery laughter caught his attention.

"They particularly love tangled thoughts," a dreamlike voice said. "You have two of them above your head right now."

Harry peered out curiously, and the sight before him left him speechless.

Kane Malfoy, the Slytherin student who was always elegant and aloof.

At that moment, a blonde girl was pointing a magic wand at his forehead.

The girl wore carrot-shaped earrings and a pair of colored glasses with lenses that constantly changed strange colors.

"What?" Kane's voice was unusually confused.

"A harassing fly," the girl explained earnestly, her blonde hair shimmering like moonlight in the sunlight.

"They can crawl into your ears and mess up your thoughts."

She suddenly leaned close to Kane, her nose almost touching his cheek.

"Your thinking is unique...like a silver stream, but some parts are blocked by black stones."

The other Slytherin students in the box froze.

Draco Malfoy's expression was as if he were watching a troll performing ballet.

Pansy Parkinson covered her mouth, looking like she was about to faint.

But what surprised Harry the most was Kane's reaction.

Instead of pushing the strange girl away, he lowered his head slightly so that she could better "examine" her forehead.

"Black stone?" Kane repeated softly.

"Um."

The girl's glasses had turned a deep purple, and she gently tapped Kane's temple with her slender fingers.

"Someone planted a seed of doubt here, and now it has grown into a thorny vine."

A piercing screech of brakes suddenly rang out, and the train shook violently.

The girl lost her balance and fell forward, and Kane instinctively reached out to catch her on the shoulder.

"Thank you," the girl said with a smile after she regained her balance, her carrot earring swaying gently.

"I am Luna Lovegood, a freshman this year."

"Kane Malfoy." Kane recognized the little girl in front of him, of course.

The other person has an incredibly wild imagination!

"I know," Luna said dreamily. "You have a pale purple halo above your head, the same color as the amethyst chandelier in Malfoy Manor. That signifies an ancient magical bloodline."

Draco finally found his voice: "Brother! Ignore this crazy girl. Her father is the editor-in-chief of *The Quibbler*, and he's always making up stories—"

"The Quibbler?" Kane suddenly interrupted his brother, his eyes widening slightly. "Was that article about the invisible hedgehog written by your father?"

Luna's face lit up with surprise: "You've read it! Most people think it's made up, but it really exists, you just need mint leaves to see it..."

Harry quietly took a few steps back, not wanting to interrupt this strange conversation.

When he returned to the box, Ron and Hermione were arguing about the Werewolf Rights Act.

"You'll never guess what I just saw," Harry said in a low voice, closing the door.

"Kane is talking to a crazy girl—the girl seems a bit eccentric, and the things she says are really weird."

"A crazy girl?" Ron's eyes widened. "What kind of people could the Malfoys know? Maybe that crazy girl is just some crazy Slytherin!"

Hermione didn't say anything, but she frowned deeply.

The train continued northward, and the scenery outside the window gradually became desolate.

Harry passed by that box again when the announcement came that they were about to arrive at Hogsmeade Station.

They discovered that Luna had already left, while Kane was still sitting by the window.

"What are you looking at, Potter?" Draco noticed Harry.

Kane looked up, his grey-blue eyes briefly meeting Harry's, and there was an emotion in them that Harry couldn't understand.

Then he gently pulled the curtain of the box closed, blocking Harry's view.

Of course, Kane was worried that the diary in his bag would have an impact on Harry.

This made Harry wonder if Kane didn't want to talk to him.

A biting wind swept across the platform, and Hagrid's massive figure beckoned to the first-year students from afar.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione followed the other upperclassmen toward the Thestrals carriage when they suddenly heard Luna's ethereal voice behind them:

"They say there will be a bubble slug party in the castle tonight."

Harry turned around and saw Luna standing in front of Kane, holding a magazine with a strange cover.

Then he asked a strange question.

Do you know anything about bubble slugs?

Kane actually responded seriously:

"Bubble slugs prefer humid environments, and the humidity tonight is just right."

Draco looked like he'd swallowed a whole box of seductive pills: "Brother! We should go!"

Kane ignored his brother's urging and instead took a silver coin from the inner pocket of his robe and handed it to Luna: "If you see the Invisible Hedgehog, use this to contact me. I'll know."

Luna took the coin, her carrot earring jingling merrily. "Thank you. Your aura has turned pale blue now, that represents goodwill."

She drifted away, her golden hair flowing like moonlight in the cold wind.