Chapter 128. At the Station
Harry toppled to the ground under a heap of odd bits and pieces, while Adrian Wesson was rapping away at a pillar that looked perfectly ordinary.
It was obviously a strange, intrusive sight in the middle of a railway station.
They drew quite a few curious looks from passers-by.
Two men in suits even pointed at Wesson and muttered to each other.
Seeing this, Wesson quietly cast a small Obliviate, then performed a simple Muggle-Repelling Charm beside the pillar.
That way, Muggles would pay less attention to this spot.
Very soon, the people nearby suddenly lost interest and hurriedly detoured around them.
After studying the sealed passage for a while—
"Mm… clearly house-elf magic."
Wesson murmured as he drew his wand.
"Immobulus."
However, the spell had no effect.
Wesson frowned as the glow at his wand tip faded, and he regarded the pillar thoughtfully.
It seemed house-elf magic was far trickier than he had imagined.
He needed something stronger, a more effective counter-spell.
What spell would that be?
The answer was Finite Incantatem.
The only problem: it was not a charm one could perform at full strength alone.
Under normal circumstances, Finite Incantatem required multiple witches and wizards casting together.
And Wesson just happened to have a solution.
Tendrils of Devil's Snare peeked from the hem of Wesson's robes.
Yes—the Devil's Snare that had learned to use wands could help Wesson cast Finite Incantatem in concert.
What was more, the Devil's Snare could wield three wands at once.
One plant could count for three wizards.
"Finite Incantatem!"
Wesson's soft incantation sounded.
Harry had expected a great commotion.
Yet the pillar only flickered faintly, and the spell's effect ended there.
If one didn't look closely, it was easy to miss.
"All right, Harry," Wesson put away his wand and the Devil's Snare, then turned to him. "You can go in."
Harry nodded, gathered his luggage again, and pushed his trolley at a brisk pace toward the pillar.
This time, he passed through without the slightest hindrance, and the familiar Platform Nine and Three-Quarters sprang into view.
But when he turned around, he realised Wesson had not come in.
After waiting on the spot for a few minutes—
"Professor?" Harry asked in puzzlement.
Meanwhile, outside—
Wesson had meant to follow Harry into the station, but his steps halted abruptly just short of the entrance.
"No—something's wrong!"
He suddenly sensed a strange ripple of magic nearby—his many hours of duelling practice had sharpened his feel for magical currents—
Wesson snapped his head toward a dustbin; a transparent ripple was spreading through apparently empty air.
Clearly, this was the trace left by some sort of Disillusionment or invisibility magic. "Found you…"
Wesson murmured, gliding toward it on silent feet, his wand slipping noiselessly into his palm.
If he was not mistaken, that presence was very likely Dobby.
A reasonable deduction: if Dobby had cast magic on the station entrance, then he himself had to be somewhere close by.
As it turned out, Wesson's guess was right.
Ten paces away, the invisible Dobby was trembling all over; his tennis-ball eyes reflected the black-robed figure drawing ever nearer.
He knew the sharp-eyed wizard had noticed him.
So Dobby made the wisest choice at once.
The instant Wesson closed in, Dobby vanished with a pop.
Apparition.
Wesson's brow creased at once; no matter how quick he was, he could not outpace a house-elf Apparating.
They only needed to snap their fingers to transfer themselves in an instant, unlike wizards who still had to speak an incantation.
An enviable gift indeed—house-elf magic truly had its natural advantages.
Trying to track someone after they Apparated was a fool's errand.
Perhaps he could study anti-Apparition wards some other time.
After that, Wesson had no choice but to return to the entrance and go in.
What he did not know was that after he entered Platform Nine and Three-Quarters, several distinct cracks silently appeared across the pillar.
A few minutes after the cracks formed, several red-haired figures arrived as well.
In fact, very few Hogwarts professors chose to ride the Hogwarts Express to school—Wesson might be an exception.
He liked gazing at the scenery streaming past the window and letting his mind drift.
It calmed him.
This time, he again borrowed the front staff carriage of the train.
After the train had been running for a while, two heads poked in through the door.
"Professor Wesson!"
Wesson turned and saw Harry and Hermione, both looking rather flustered.
"What is it?" he asked, puzzled.
"Have you seen Ron, sir?" Harry said, and Hermione quickly added, "And the rest of the Weasleys? We've searched the whole train and can't find them."
"No," Wesson said with a shake of his head.
He had just made an initial sweep of the platform crowd and hadn't seen the Weasley family either.
He had assumed the Weasley children had already boarded.
It seemed now that some mishap had occurred.
"They didn't miss the train, did they?" Hermione looked at Wesson. "Will they still be able to reach Hogwarts on time, Professor?"
"I shouldn't think there'll be a problem," Wesson said. "With Mr Weasley and Mrs Weasley there, they'll get to Hogwarts on time."
There was more than one way to reach Hogwarts besides taking the Hogwarts Express.
Seeing how unconcerned Wesson was, Harry and Hermione relaxed.
When Harry and Hermione arrived at Hogwarts and entered the Great Hall, they were surprised to find—
Ron, the Weasley twins, and Percy were already seated at the Gryffindor table.
"How did you lot get to Hogwarts?" Harry looked at Ron, baffled. "Hermione and I didn't see you on the train."
"Don't ask!"
Ron let out a heavy sigh.
"Somehow the entrance to the platform got broken," he said. "Dad found a Ministry of Magic official on duty at the station. They contacted Professor Dumbledore, and in the end we were given a Portkey to Hogwarts."
Harry nodded stiffly.
He wasn't sure how the entrance had been damaged, but he suddenly remembered that Wesson had cast a spell at it.
"And Ginny?" Harry steered the topic elsewhere.
"Ginny?" Ron glanced at Harry. "She was absolutely gutted—she's been looking forward to riding the Hogwarts Express for ages. As soon as we got to Hogwarts, Hagrid took her away."
As Ron said, Ginny was brought along by Hagrid not long after, folded into the line of first-years.
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