After leaving the Magical Creatures shop, Hermione was hugging that big ginger cat.
"Thank you, Harry."
"It's nothing. Just an early birthday present."
As for Hermione's claim that Crookshanks was "really pretty," Harry couldn't agree.
The cat's ginger fur was fluffy and soft—rather like Hermione's hair. But its paws were clearly turned in a bit, and with all that thick, long fur it looked permanently gloomy. Its face was strange and squashed, like a dried persimmon—like it had once headbutted a brick wall and flattened itself.
Of course, Harry wasn't going to say any of that out loud.
Cradled in Hermione's arms, the cat purred in contentment.
"It's so strange," Hermione said, stroking Crookshanks. "The witch said Crookshanks has been in the shop for ages and nobody wanted him—he's obviously so beautiful."
"That's because they have no taste," Harry said without hesitation.
When they passed the Quidditch flagship shop again and Harry saw the Firebolt displayed in the window, something stirred in him.
Next to it, a large sign read: "The fastest broom in the world—this World Cup's most popular racing broom!"
Another placard advertised:
This latest high-speed broom features streamlined design, premium ash handle, diamond-polished finish, and hand-engraved registration number. Each carefully selected birch twig in the tail is honed into an aerodynamic shape, granting unmatched balance and precision. The Firebolt accelerates from standstill to 150 miles per hour in ten seconds, and exhibits magical braking capabilities. Price upon request.
Price upon request…
Very much the wizarding world's style.
In the Muggle world, prices were fixed. A supermarket had countless customers—whoever wanted something bought it.
In the wizarding world, first, there were far fewer witches and wizards, so most transactions were one-on-one. Second, as a brand-new top-tier broom, it really was expensive—and they worried that writing a shocking price would scare people off. So it became a bargaining game: the final price depended on the customer's haggling, and the highest and lowest prices could differ wildly.
"Wait here a moment," Harry said, then went into the Quidditch shop.
Not long after, he came back out holding an impressive broom, while the shopkeeper—sweating profusely—saw him off.
Seeing the flash of fiery red poking out from the package, Hermione immediately guessed what it was.
"You don't even like Quidditch! Why would you buy a Firebolt?" Hermione suddenly huffed. "Hmph. You're giving it to Cho Chang, aren't you? She's Ravenclaw's Seeker."
Hermione sulked. "All I got was a cheap big yellow cat, and Cho gets a broom that expensive."
Black's ears pricked up at once—he thought he'd just heard another girl's name.
Harry said, "Yours is a living creature. The Firebolt is just an object. How can you compare them by price?"
Hermione still refused to budge. "Sophistry."
Harry sighed and finally said, "Actually, I didn't spend a single Galleon."
"No way. I don't believe you." Hermione shook her head.
"I just told the owner: I, Harry Potter—if you don't give it to me for free, I'll ride a Firebolt in a match, crash on purpose, and then tell reporters the Firebolt is a shoddy product."
Hermione stared blankly for a second, then broke into giggles. "You're awful."
But then she quieted down, her eyes bright. "That's not good. You should go back and pay for it properly."
Harry ruffled Hermione's hair and said gently, "No need. I didn't pay in Galleons, but I paid in something else. Honestly, that shop made a killing."
Hermione looked confused.
Just then, the shopkeeper flicked his wand, and on the advertisement sheet, beneath 'Most popular broom of the World Cup', an even larger, ultra-flashy line appeared:
HARRY POTTER PURCHASED THIS PRODUCT AT OUR SHOP!
So even more people gathered around.
Celebrity endorsement. Name recognition.
…
The next day.
In the bright lobby of the Leaky Cauldron, in the lounge area—
A black-haired girl sat there quietly.
A suitcase rested at her feet, and in her arms she held a small, snow-white kitten, extremely adorable.
"So elegant," two British Muggle girls whispered, trying to imitate her calm, detached air, but failing completely and giving up in frustration.
"Are there Asian wizards too?" they wondered, noticing that the girl wore the same school uniform they had seen on wizard students many times.
Harry and Hermione, having finished getting ready and pulling on their robes, came downstairs and saw Cho Chang already waiting for them.
"Why didn't you call for me?" Harry said.
Cho only smiled slightly.
The little sweetheart in her arms wriggled free, jumped onto Harry, and scrambled up to perch on his shoulder.
Cho said, "I took care of her for two months, you know. And the moment she sees you, she still runs straight to you."
Harry pinched the cat's ear; she closed her eyes and rubbed her head against his fingers.
"Thanks for looking after her."
The little sweetheart looked just like she had when Harry first bought her again—every injury Filch had caused had healed.
During the holiday, Harry had to wait for Black and couldn't take care of her. And the cat had psychological trauma too. So Harry had entrusted her to Cho, trusting that Cho would be gentle and patient enough to nurse her back properly.
Hermione and Cho exchanged a look. Cho smiled and greeted her; Hermione lifted her chin and turned away.
Cho won that round.
Cho's temperament was like water—able to accommodate anything.
No matter how sharp Hermione was, Cho wouldn't take it personally.
…
After Harry used Apparition—
In the blink of an eye, they arrived at Platform Nine and Three-Quarters, with a solid wall behind them.
They looked up and saw the Hogwarts Express, a scarlet steam engine puffing smoke, the platform packed with witches and wizards seeing their children off.
Black breathed in the air here—so long since he'd tasted it.
Seeing the train, he couldn't help recalling his own days at Hogwarts.
Two figures came hurrying through the wall behind them, panting.
Black's expression changed. His eyes locked on them.
They had vivid red hair.
"Percy—th-there's a huge dog," Ginny said fearfully, gripping Percy's arm. "It looks like it's going to bite."
Stared down by such a vicious-looking dog, even Percy paled.
"Sorry—I scared you," Harry said, pulling Black aside.
"It's fine, it's fine," Ginny said, her face turning pink.
But when she noticed Hermione and Cho beside Harry, Ginny's expression dimmed.
Seeing nothing was wrong, Percy didn't bother with Ginny any further. "Wait here for Ron and the others. I've got something to do—I'm going on ahead."
He smoothed his hair and walked toward a tall girl with a cool expression and long, curled hair.
He puffed out his chest so everyone could see his gleaming prefect badge.
"Ah, Penelope," Percy said, greeting her as if he'd only just happened to notice her.
From over there came something like: "Didn't I say, stop bothering me?"
Ginny looked mortified.
Harry led Cho and Hermione onto the train—he was worried that if he didn't leave soon, Ginny would blush herself into a faint.
"Another fangirl," Hermione said. "So cute. Wonder if someone's going to be tempted."
"Not right now," Harry said with a smile. "Because the vinegar jar at my house just tipped over."
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⚡🪄 THE REBIRTH OF HARRY POTTER
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⚡ MAGIC HAS BEEN GIVEN A SECOND CHANCE.
A familiar world.
A different path.
And a destiny that refuses to remain the same.
The Rebirth of Harry Potter has 100+ chapters ahead available right now.
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🪄 THE WIZARDING WORLD WON'T FOLLOW THE SAME STORY TWICE
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What happens when someone walks through the wizarding world again...
Knowing that things don't have to happen the same way twice?
Destiny can be rewritten.
Choices can change.
And magic always has another secret waiting.
✨ 100+ CHAPTERS AHEAD.
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