Chapter 13. Completely
Broken Time flies.
In front of Lynn's house, he solemnly and resolutely handed the house key to Hermione, like the President of the United States handing over the nuclear launch button.
"These flowers are yours now. Remember to water them and weed them often. Clean the tables, chairs, and floors at least once a month, and air out the blankets and carpets when the sun comes out..."
Although Hermione thought Lynn was acting a bit like a gossip, her kind heart still nodded repeatedly, indicating that she would keep his instructions in mind.
"And most importantly, don't tell anyone about your superpowers. If anyone asks where I went, just say I went to a boarding school in another city." Of
all the things he said, she felt that Lynn's words were the most useful.
"Then... will they let you come back for Christmas?"
Hermione was a little reluctant to part with Lynn. She didn't have many close friends, and although they hadn't known each other for long, Lynn had become her best friend, especially since they shared a secret.
Lynn, who had deceived the girl's heart, showed no remorse, saying with a pained expression,
"I really want to come back, but they probably won't let me go. But I'll send you a Christmas present."
Lynn glanced at his watch.
"It's getting late, Hermione, I have to go."
He opened his arms and smiled at the girl.
"Give me a hug."
Hermione looked very sad; tears were welling up in her eyes, but hadn't fallen yet. She stepped forward and hugged Lynn.
"I hope everything is alright for you over there."
Lynn patted the girl's head and released her.
"I will."
He pulled his luggage, hailed a taxi, and waved back at Hermione.
"Goodbye Hermione, and you say goodbye to Umaru too."
"Hey, hey."
Umaru poked her head out from Lynn's hair and called out twice to the girl.
Hermione stood there, wiped her eyes, and waved to them.
"Goodbye Lynn and Umaru."
The taxi drove away, taking with it Hermione's blessings and her anticipation of seeing them again.
Lynn sat in the car, feeling a little sad about parting.
Of course, he couldn't possibly fall in love with a 10-year-old girl; that would be too absurd, and being a pervert in the real world was a capital offense.
From the moment he arrived in this world, he had been focused on figuring out how to get out of the orphanage, and had no interest in interacting with those self-proclaimed cunning but actually incredibly stupid brats.
Although Hermione was also a child, perhaps because she was the protagonist of this world, she was much smarter than her peers.
Although she had some minor flaws, her slight arrogance only made her more adorable. She
was many times better than those brats.
So she was Lynn's first friend in this world.
However, Lynn wasn't one to wallow in melancholy; this farewell wasn't forever.
In the future, Hermione would be attending the same school as him, becoming his junior.
It was quite interesting to think about.
Lynn's home wasn't too far from the train station; the taxi ride took about an hour to get him there.
After getting off the train, the driver helped him load his luggage onto a trolley, for which Lynn gave him a tip.
King's Cross Station is located in central London, a bustling area where people walk hurriedly, all in a rush.
"Platform 9¾..."
Lynn looked at his train ticket and pushed his luggage-laden trolley to the area between Platforms 9 and 10.
A group of strangely dressed people had already gathered there, standing together yet also splitting into different groups, seemingly chatting, but actually trying to slip through a wall between Platforms 3 and 4.
Anyone with a keen eye could notice their unusual behavior, but the surrounding flow of people paid no attention.
Clearly, a Muggle-repelling charm had been cast.
Lynn pushed his trolley and stood next to the group. A few people noticed him, but seeing his wand on top of his luggage, they didn't say anything.
At this moment, Lynn noticed a plump, middle-aged witch guarding a pile of luggage, looking around anxiously.
Suddenly, a group of red-haired boys ran over and gathered around the fat witch, their faces pale.
"Mama, I've searched the way we came, and even ran into Fred, but we still can't find Scabbers,"
said one of the two identical red-haired boys.
"Me too," said the oldest-looking boy, looking dejected. "Percy and I even went to the Muggle stationmaster, hoping they could help us, but they chased us away as soon as they heard we were looking for a mouse."
Percy, the boy who seemed the saddest, said,
"It must be because I haven't been feeding it properly. But that's how our family is; we can't even feed our children well, so what good food do we have for a mouse?"
The middle-aged witch Molly Weasley looked unwell, whether from the loss of Scabbers or Percy's words, it was unclear.
Lynn, overhearing their conversation and seeing their striking red hair, naturally guessed that they were the Weasley family.
Of the seven Weasley siblings, Bill has already graduated from Hogwarts, while Ron and Ginny haven't enrolled yet.
The four Weasleys Lynn encountered were Charlie, Percy, and the twins George and Fred.
Unwilling to offer help without a reason, Lynn didn't bother approaching them. They seemed to have lost Scabbers, that short, poor rat, but they'd definitely find him.
Otherwise, how would Ron inherit Scabbers' mantle, and who would Sirius seek revenge against?
Just as most of the wizards who had come to send their young wizards to school had passed by the wall, and it was Lynn's turn, Umaru suddenly jumped excitedly onto the suitcase, as if grabbing something.
"Hey!"
Umaru grabbed a rat's tail and excitedly waved a pitiful rat at Lynn, showing off.
The rat looked frightened and listless, its front paw missing a toe, quite conspicuous.
Lynn met Umaru's expectant gaze with a strange look.
Could it be such a coincidence?
Umaru didn't care about anything else; all it wanted now was to trade the mouse for food from Lynn.
"Hey, hey, hey!"
Lynn took the mouse tail from Umaru and rewarded it with a cookie.
Banban didn't struggle in his hand, just hung there in mid-air looking like it'd been thoroughly played with.
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(End of Chapter)