"Wu!!"
The shattering roar of the train's whistle jolted Percy out of his reverie. He blinked, and saw that the landscape had changed. Gone were the hills and forests and clear lakes in the valleys. Now he was speeding across open fields, with cows grazing on the grassland. They were getting close to Hogwarts Express now.
The vast expanse under the bright sunshine didn't improve Percy's mood.
He slid just a little away from the cushioned sofa in the compartment, gazing in the direction of departure. The imposing and majestic Hogwarts had completely disappeared from sight, leaving not even a shadow behind.
"Ai—"
The heavy sigh of relief dissipated in the rhythmic clanging of the train wheels on the tracks. Percy bent down, covering his face with his open hands.
Professor Bran did not convince himself.
Percy didn't want to deceive himself into believing he hadn't anticipated such a situation, but Professor Bran's decisiveness even went as far as not explaining the reason for his refusal, which was something Percy hadn't expected.
To himself, Professor Bran seemed to be very concerned about him.
At the time he was Mr. Barty Crouch, Sr.'s assistant, he had just taken on the daily tasks of the International Magical Cooperation Department after Mr. Crouch had been on sick leave, and that time was very tough for him, with countless trivial and mundane tasks plaguing him. Professor Bran gave him some advice, telling him to consult his father often and to ask his father to take him to visit heads of departments in various divisions.
He followed the advice with skepticism, and from that time until he was expelled from the International Magical Cooperation Department, his work became much more manageable compared to before.
"Why don't you want to help me again?"
A sigh of disappointment and regret flowed from his open hand.
It's only about allowing Professor Umbridge to teach at Hogwarts; the young wizards are in need of a Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. Isn't this a win-win situation?
Why did Professor Bran refuse Percy? He didn't want to dwell on it, but the current situation is that he has fallen into a more desperate predicament.
He didn't pass the test of the Minister, so he couldn't expect to become the Minister's assistant. He had to continue wasting his precious time in the office of the centaurs, which did nothing more than clean tables and sweep floors every day. Maybe until the next Minister took office, his desperate situation might be turned around.
He wiped his face with his hands, then rubbed his eyes, which might have been slightly tinged with sourness. Percy once again directed his frozen gaze out the window.
What's the next step?
Not only did I not receive Professor Bran's support, but I also enraged my father, Ron was right; my father had strongly opposed my coming to Hogwarts, and about that we had a major fight.
Thinking of his father, Percy's heart filled with confusion, and there was some anger in it.
He really couldn't understand what the benefit of standing up to a powerful Minister of Magic would be, unless it was... for always.
Tock, tock, tock——
The sudden knock on the compartment window caught Percy's attention. In his line of sight was a smiling woman with dimples, standing beside a small trolley.
Seeing Percy looking at her, the woman smilingly pushed open the compartment door.
"Dear, do you want any snacks from the train?"
"Oh, thank you. No, I brought my own."
Habits from the past caused Percy to automatically give a refusal, but before he finished, he came to his senses. He was no longer a student at Hogwarts; he didn't have the pie his mother had prepared for him. Moreover, he didn't live as cramped as when he was studying; working at the Ministry had given him some savings, though not much.
The vendor of snacks did not seem put off by Percy's refusal; she still smiled at Percy and nodded before preparing to close the compartment door.
"Wait!"
Percy said, looking at the variety of foods on the trolley, he suddenly realized that he hadn't responded to Professor Bran's suggestion to eat lunch at school and had left Hogwarts directly. Now, he was indeed feeling a bit hungry, and to his delight, there were some Galleons in his moneybag.
"Have you changed your mind, dear?"
The plump witch looked at Percy with a hint of expectation.
"Oh, yes--"
Percy stood up from his seat and examined the snacks on the trolley.
The snacks were very rich. The trolley was piled high with Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, Bubotuber Tuffets, Chocolate Frogs, Pumpkin Pasties, Kneazles, Licorice Wands, and some candies from the Honeydukes Sweetshop.
He couldn't remember if he had ever made a purchase from this witch's mobile stall during his seven years at Hogwarts, even if he had, it would likely have been a very limited number of times due to some reasons he didn't wish to mention.
"Oh, are you sure you want to buy so much, dear?"
The witch's surprised voice pulled Percy back from his reverie. He blinked and saw the snacks he had picked were already piled up on the seats of the compartment, which was indeed more than he could finish by himself.
"How much will I need to pay if I buy all of these?"
Percy bit his lip and said cautiously.
"Oh, the prices of these things have been rising recently, dear——"
The plump witch's response made Percy's heart skip a beat. Before he could turn red, he heard the witch continue.
"Sixteen silver galleons and nine bronze knuts."
"Oh—"
Percy let out a breath of relief. He pulled out a galleon from his pocket, feeling an odd sense of satisfaction.
"Here you are, no change necessary——"
"Oh, thank you, kind and generous Sir——"
The plump witch took the galleon with a smiling face, considerately closing the compartment door for Percy.
Generous gentleman.
The smile on Percy's lips slowly faded away only as the clinking sound of the trolley receded, and his melancholy mood also lifted somewhat during this delightful transaction.
With a bit of urgency, Percy returned to his seat and began to enjoy his food. These common snacks were familiar to him, but perhaps due to his hunger, he had never found them so delicious. It was as if he couldn't get enough, and his eating posture was almost like wolfing it down.
Although he wasn't particularly fond of these 'kid's snacks', he had never experienced such 'wealth'.
Throughout his student days at Hogwarts, most of the things, including the spellbooks, cauldrons, balances, telescopes, and robes of a wizard were all provided by Bill and Charlie. When he first arrived at Hogwarts, the only completely new thing he owned was his wand. It was only after he became Head Boy in fifth year that his parents bought him a pet owl. This "affluence" was something he had never experienced.
In this household, poverty humiliated everyone's pride, yet no one dared to speak of it publicly. This was undoubtedly a kind of cowardice.
Greedily, Percy tore into the snacks.
It wasn't that they couldn't afford to live well. Their poverty wasn't entirely due to having too many siblings.
The root cause, at the heart of it all, stemmed from his father.
His father had always been the biggest enthusiast of fiddling with those useless things from the muggle world, never putting in much effort on his job. He had no ambition, unwilling to please his superior, content to stay in a small department without value and ignore the impoverished life at home.
Compared to that, what was wrong with him, really?
Since entering the Ministry, he has dedicated all his energy to his work, hoping to make a good career development and fulfill his ambitions while making the family's life more comfortable. He hoped that his mother wouldn't have to worry about money all the time.
To achieve this goal, he needed the favor of the Minister of Magic, which was why he had come to Hogwarts today.
A chocolate cake choked his throat, causing him to gasp in pain. He curled up into a ball, his body convulsing slightly. His hand reached out towards the water glass on the table, and after taking a few gulps of water, he finally breathed more easily.
Percy collapsed into the chair, perhaps because of the pain he had just endured. The thin young man's eyes were slightly moist at the corners, and he breathed heavily with hollow eyes, gazing out the window at the drifting clouds.
Why? No one understood his plight.
(This chapter is complete)
