Chapter 82: A Nighttime Talk
Dinner was delightful. Afterward, Russell chatted with Mr. Weasley for a while longer before finally heading back with Cedric, despite Mr. Weasley's obvious reluctance to let the conversation end.
"They're a very warm family, aren't they?" Cedric said with a smile. "Thanks earlier, by the way."
"It was nothing," Russell nodded. "But you're right—they're genuinely good people."
Cedric had prepared two guest rooms, but Wednesday refused to sleep alone. In the end, Russell and Cedric conjured a small extra bed and set it up in Wednesday's room.
"Good night, you two," Cedric yawned. After an afternoon of Quidditch and wrestling garden gnomes, he was utterly exhausted and eager to sink into bed.
Russell, however, couldn't fall asleep. Whether it was the unfamiliar bed or the fact that it was his first time sharing a room with Wednesday, he lay awake, tossing and turning before giving up and staring at the ceiling.
Wednesday wasn't sleeping either. For some reason, her heartbeat felt unusually loud in her ears.
"Russell?" she whispered.
"I'm here," he turned toward her. "Can't sleep either?"
She nodded, burrowing deeper under the covers until only half her head showed—oddly adorable.
Though it was already late in the season and the days were warm, the countryside night air remained cool and crisp.
"I can't sleep either," Russell admitted. "Want to hear a story?"
Truth be told, he had no idea how to lull someone to sleep. But if nothing else, stories were worth a try.
"Okay." Wednesday tucked herself in even tighter.
Fairy tales about princes and princesses clearly wouldn't do, so Russell improvised—twisting them into darker versions. In The Little Mermaid, for instance, the mermaid bares sharp teeth at the prince in the end—because she's actually a shark.
He also told a few eerie tales inspired by Youyang Miscellany. To his surprise, Wednesday found these far more fascinating than dark fairy tales, peppering him with questions about how to encounter spirits or zombies.
Russell had no real answers and could only promise that one day they might travel east together. Satisfied, Wednesday finally let it go. In her mind, the East replaced the Bermuda Triangle as the place she most wanted to visit.
As he spoke, drowsiness overtook Russell. His voice faded, his eyelids drooped, and he slipped into sleep.
When the stories stopped, Wednesday peeked out from her covers and saw that Russell was already asleep. She carefully climbed out of bed and studied his sleeping face, a faint ripple of emotion passing through her otherwise calm gaze.
Russell woke early. Before opening his eyes, he sensed someone beside him. Turning his head, he found that Wednesday had somehow climbed into his bed.
Her sleeping posture was peculiar—hands crossed over her chest, like an Egyptian pharaoh at rest.
Russell slipped quietly out of bed, careful not to wake anyone, and prepared for his morning training.
"Cedric, wake up."
"Merlin's beard, it's the holidays, Russell," Cedric shuffled out sleepily, rubbing his eyes. "You're way too competitive," he complained.
By the time Russell returned from training, Wednesday was already awake.
Neither of them mentioned what had happened the night before—mostly because nothing had actually happened—and they went downstairs together for breakfast.
Wizarding life, truth be told, wasn't all that exciting. They took a stroll through a nearby Muggle village, played a bit of Quidditch, and before they knew it, evening had arrived.
During dinner, Russell asked Cedric whether he wanted to go to Diagon Alley together the next day to buy school supplies. To Russell's surprise, Cedric shook his head regretfully.
"Sorry. I'm going out with my parents tomorrow to visit relatives."
"Alright. Want me to pick up your textbooks while I'm there?" Russell asked. He was going anyway—one errand or two made little difference.
"That'd be great, thanks," Cedric replied without hesitation, handing him a small pouch of Galleons.
That night, Russell simply slept beside Wednesday. She always ended up sneaking over anyway, and this way there was more space.
"See you, Cedric."
After saying goodbye, Russell summoned the Knight Bus. He had originally planned to use Floo Powder, but since it could only transport one person at a time, he didn't want to risk anything going wrong—especially not Wednesday ending up in Knockturn Alley like Harry once had. There wouldn't necessarily be a Hagrid around to rescue her.
"This is the Leaky Cauldron," Russell explained as they stood outside its shabby entrance. "It's the gateway between the Muggle world and Diagon Alley."
"It looks… nice," Wednesday commented.
"Maybe," Russell said. Wednesday had her own very unique aesthetic sense—one he still didn't fully understand.
After greeting Tom, the bartender, Russell led Wednesday to a brick wall in a corner near some trash bins. As he was explaining which brick to tap, Wednesday frowned slightly.
"Why not use the trash bin as a reference point? It's more noticeable."
"Someone had the same idea once," Russell shrugged. "But certain troublemakers like to move the bins around, so people can't find the entrance."
He didn't need to guess who was responsible—the Weasley twins were obvious suspects.
Diagon Alley during the summer was bustling and lively, packed with people and buzzing with activity.
Wednesday clearly didn't enjoy the crowd. She clutched Russell's hand and tucked herself half behind him.
They went to Gringotts first. The goblins on duty immediately became far more cordial when they saw Russell's key.
Kevin must have tipped them off in advance, Russell thought.
The vault was of fairly high rank. The "small surprise" inside turned out to be a pile of Galleons—around two thousand in total. Russell withdrew part of it and took the cart back up.
"Let's buy the textbooks first," he suggested. "Otherwise the lines will be unbearable."
That turned out to be the right call. They had barely entered the bookstore before a long queue started forming behind them.
By the time they squeezed out of Flourish and Blotts, the line outside had grown enormous.
That was when Russell spotted some familiar faces—the Weasley twins, standing with Ron outside a secondhand cauldron shop.
Ron was holding a cauldron so dusty it looked like it hadn't been touched in decades.
When Fred and George saw Russell, it was as though they'd found a savior. They hurried over, dragging Ron along with them.
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