Hogwarts: I'm Harry's older cousin

Chapter 9. Meow Meow Meow Meow (Seeking votes during the new book period)

The cover is square and fuzzy, with four large, round, bright, clear yellow eyes and a row of sharp teeth showing their gums.

It's less like a book and more like some kind of monster.

However, Dudley recognized it as a book at a glance.

Because its body is engraved with several striking, large, gold-plated characters—'The Book of Yokai'.

Although he had known all along that Harry Potter possessed magical powers and longed for that magical world, this was the first time he had ever witnessed such a sight, or rather, the first time Dudley had come into contact with anything related to magic since he came into this world.

If Matou Shinji's magician physique counts, then it's the second time.

Just as Dudley was in a daze, the strange book seemed to have spotted Dudley, abandoned its pursuit of the cats, turned around, bared its sharp teeth, and pounced on Dudley at high speed.

Upon seeing this, Xue'er's fur stood on end, her whole body became fluffy, and she breathed on the strange book while letting out a high-pitched scream.

It is issuing a warning about the strange book.

Unfortunately, Xue'er's threat was useless, and the strange book still rushed straight towards Dali.

Cheryl was terrified of the strange book, but she still stayed by Dudley's feet, her sharp claws hidden under her paw pads reaching out, ready for a desperate fight.

"Hey, how do we deal with this thing? Cast a spell? But I don't know how."

Dudley was trying to find a solution when he caught a glimpse of a cat lying motionless on the ground.

This is the fourth cat, Titi.

Was Titi injured or dead?

No matter what, it must be this strange book that's responsible.

Dudley has always loved cats, and after spending time with them, he loves the four cats even more.

Anger welled up inside him.

"Forget it, I'll just use my own method." With that, Dali rolled up his sleeves.

As the strange book drew closer, he took a step forward and suddenly threw a punch.

With lightning speed and unparalleled precision, it struck the strange book.

A dull thud sounded as a heavy object fell to the ground, the sound like a strong man slamming a hammer into the ground, causing the whole room to tremble slightly.

Then the world became quiet.

It was with that one punch that Dudley instantly defeated that guy who claimed to be the strongest high school boxer in all of England.

Dudley slowly withdrew his fist from the cover of the strange book, which lay quietly in place without making a sound.

"Try being fierce again!" Dudley pinched the spine of the strange book with one hand and shook it.

At this point, the strange book had become very docile, limp and soft, with two ribbon-like tongues sticking out of its mouth.

If that really is a tongue.

"I hope I don't accidentally punch myself to death?"

Seeing that the book remained motionless, Dali couldn't help but think of something.

"I remember I held back three-tenths of my strength."

"How am I supposed to compensate for this if it really dies?"

Just as Dali was lost in thought, a gasp rang out from outside the door.

"Oh, my Merlin, what on earth has happened?"

Mrs. Figg, still carrying a vegetable basket, rushed in in a panic. Looking at the messy room, which looked as if a thief had broken in, her expression changed slightly, and she asked Dudley.

"Dali, what happened?"

The tone conveyed more doubt than questioning.

To be honest, Mrs. Figg's attitude was already very good.

Imagine you agree to help your neighbor babysit their child, even trusting them enough to give them a key to your house, only to return home one day to find them in a room you've locked, and the room is a mess.

If it were you, what would you think?

At the very least, Vernon certainly wouldn't be so calm.

"Mrs. Figg, I thought a thief had broken into the house." Dudley waved the strange book in his hand. "This guy killed Titi."

Mrs. Figg pointed suspiciously at a cat that had "just happened to be passing by" and said, "Wasn't Titi doing just fine over there?"

In fact, when she saw the "Book of Monsters" in Dudley's hand, her pupils contracted slightly and her heart beat faster.

"Damn, Titi was just pretending to be dead."

Just as Dudley was at a loss, unsure how to organize his thoughts to explain, Cherrie ran lightly to Mrs. Figg's feet.

"Mimi mimi (first tone) meow meow meow (first tone) meow meow meow (second tone)."

This was a tone of voice that Dudley had never heard before; he didn't even know that cats could make such a variety of sounds.

Another miraculous scene unfolded.

"So that's how it is, Xue'er." As Xue'er meowed, Mrs. Figg would nod at Xue'er from time to time, as if she understood.

Turning to Dudley with an apologetic look, he said, "I'm sorry, child. I misunderstood you. Thank you for helping them."

Daddy doesn't care whether or not he apologizes; the point is...

"Can Mrs. Figg understand what Cher is saying?"

Do you understand cat language?

"Could Mrs. Figg be a witch?"

Dali's eyes lit up, then he took a deep breath and tried to calm himself down.

Countless thoughts flashed through her mind in an instant, while she wore an expression that was both hesitant and curious: "Mrs. Figg, are you and Harry the same kind of people?"

"My parents always called Harry 'monster boy,' because sometimes he could do things that ordinary people couldn't."

"I've overheard them referring to these things as magic in private."

Dudley's words surprised Mrs. Figg, but upon reflection, they made sense. Growing up with a natural-born wizard, he must have witnessed inexplicable magical phenomena more than once. Magical outbursts are something every young wizard experiences, especially since Dudley was such a clever child.

After thinking for a moment, Mrs. Figg said, "You are very clever, child."

Does magic really exist?

"Can you teach me? I want to learn magic too."

Dudley's behavior was like that of a child who had just discovered the existence of magic in the world, full of longing and thirst for knowledge about the unknown.

"I'm sorry, child. I can't do it."

Mrs. Figg shook her head regretfully: "Actually, it wouldn't matter if I told you. You'd find out sooner or later anyway, since you're that child's brother."

Mrs. Figg took a deep breath and said with a serious expression, "I am the same as Harry, yet different."

For the first time, someone told Dudley about the wonders of this world. As Mrs. Figg narrated, information about the magical world that was previously unavailable to Dudley gradually came into view.

A magical world that captivates the soul.

In the world of Harry Potter, people can be roughly divided into three types: wizards, Muggles, and Squibs.

Wizards need no further explanation; they are spellcasters and magicians. The famous Harry Potter is one such person.

Muggles are those who are not connected to magic, and Dudley Dursley was one of them.

As for Squibs, they are people born into wizarding families who cannot learn magic. Mrs. Figg is a Squib, a type of person who is neither a wizard nor a Muggle.

Unlike true Muggles, they cannot cast spells, but they also have some unique characteristics compared to ordinary Muggles.

Mrs. Figg's ability to communicate with cats is one of them, an ability that some wizards do not possess.

P.S.: Mrs. Figg is indeed a Squib, but Squibs in this world are not the same as Muggles. Compared to Muggles, they still possess many magical abilities, they just cannot use magic.

For example, Muggles cannot see Dementors, but Mrs. Figg can. Also, in the original setting, Mrs. Figg was a member of the Order of the Phoenix, and she kept cats supposedly to use them as spies.

(End of this chapter)