The Rebirth of Harry Potter

"You should know that at Hogwarts, there are four houses. At the end of each year, the house with the most points is awarded the House Cup. Let's make a bet—let's see who can earn more points for their house in the first year. Whoever gets fewer points will have to acknowledge the winner as their boss. What do you think?"

Malfoy quickly processed this in his mind, but responded nonchalantly, "What if we end up in the same house? How would we compete then?"

Harry smiled. "You don't need to worry about that. Didn't you say you wouldn't accept anything but Slytherin? I, on the other hand, am not particularly keen on it. There's a greater chance I'll be sorted into Gryffindor."

Malfoy secretly sneered. Because of his father's influence, his impression of Gryffindor was that it was full of half-blood wizards, students who were all reckless bravery with no brains, and impulsive fools…

"What's wrong? Haven't made up your mind yet? This is a very fair bet—no one can cheat, and in a way, all the professors will be acting as referees. Or is it that… you lack confidence? You're afraid? You don't think you can win?" Harry sat down, his tone sharp and cool.

Malfoy immediately got fired up. "Why wouldn't I? I am a Malfoy!"

"Then, what do you think—"

"Fine!" Malfoy took a deep breath to calm himself. "I want to add one more condition. The loser must stand in front of the entire school at the House Cup feast and loudly declare, 'I lost. From now on, so-and-so is my boss.' How about that?" He gave Harry a provocative glance.

Harry was momentarily stunned, then chuckled. "Looks like you're really confident. If you were hoping to intimidate me with this, I hate to tell you—you miscalculated."

Malfoy smirked. "Just wait until the day you have to stand up there. I hope you won't be too nervous to move."

"Alright, then. The bet is on. And don't think I'll go easy on you," Harry grinned before turning and leaving.

"Hmph! You're just walking right into trouble! I've been learning magic for two years already. There's no way I'll lose! What a joke!" After Harry left, Malfoy became smug, a sudden sense of intellectual superiority washing over him.

Back in his compartment, boredom crept over Harry once more. At least before, he had Little Cutie to play with, but now she had been taken away by Hermione.

He had no idea where the train was now. The dense forests from earlier were gone, replaced by vast fields where cows and sheep grazed. The wind swayed the grass, making it ripple like waves.

Harry placed a bundle at the end of the seat near the door, then lay down so he could see the bright blue sky and the occasional drifting cloud. Slowly, without realizing it… he drifted off to sleep.

As Harry slept, he didn't notice when a girl quietly entered the compartment.

Around four or five in the afternoon, the door was gently pushed open, and a cute girl stepped inside, carrying a white cat in her arms. She seemed to hesitate for a moment upon seeing Harry asleep, a slight disappointment on her face.

She blinked, then quietly tidied up the table, clearing away the scattered food. She glanced at the peacefully sleeping Harry, and a mischievous smile flickered across her lips before she tiptoed out.

Just as she was about to close the door, she paused, stealing another glance at him—his hair, eyebrows, eyes, nose…

Suddenly, her face flushed red, and her heartbeat quickened. She hurriedly shut the door tightly, leaned against it for a moment, and only after the warmth faded from her cheeks did she return to her own compartment.

By the time Harry woke up, the sky had darkened. He rubbed his eyes and peered out the window. The fields had disappeared, replaced by patches of dense forest, winding rivers, and dark green hills.

His stomach growled loudly. Harry reached for the food he had left on the table, only to find it all gone. He didn't need to think too hard to figure out who had taken it.

"That little rascal," Harry muttered, shaking his head helplessly.

The scenery outside became more and more rugged. Hogwarts must be getting close. The corridor outside was growing noisier, filled with footsteps and laughter—clearly, the students were getting restless with excitement.

Harry stepped out of his compartment, planning to take a stroll around the train. As soon as he closed the door, he heard an argument breaking out behind him.

A haughty voice rang out, "I don't even need to ask who you are. Just looking at your red hair, I can tell you're from the Weasley family. What a disgrace to pure-bloods—so many kids that you can't even afford to raise them properly. Your wand and robes must be hand-me-downs from your older brothers, right? Hahaha..."

Malfoy laughed mockingly. A few students in the corridor turned their attention toward the red-haired boy.

Ron's face turned as red as his hair. He had no idea how to respond—after all, Malfoy had hit on something he was already self-conscious about.

"That's still better than your father being a servant of the Dark Lord," Ron muttered, embarrassed but determined.

Malfoy's face immediately darkened. His smirk vanished, replaced by a slight flush on his pale skin. "Damn it!" he growled, before lunging at Ron.

The two boys started wrestling on the floor, using the most childish tactics—pulling hair, tugging at clothes, and an occasional cheap shot. They rolled around, locked in their clumsy battle, looking oddly... affectionate.

The onlookers were stunned. No one had expected things to escalate like this. Some were even regretting not having popcorn ready for the show.

Finally, a few students snapped out of their shock and tried to intervene, but they hesitated—getting too close might mean getting caught in the crossfire.

"Stop fighting! Stop it!" some shouted.

Others attempted to scare them. "A prefect is coming! Get up, quick!"

But it was useless. Both Ron and Malfoy glanced up, saw no one, and resumed their chaotic scuffle.

From the outer edge of the crowd, Harry, thanks to his height advantage, had a clear view of the fight. He was thoroughly entertained. "Nice move! Go for his nose!" he called out.

The student in front of him gave Harry a horrified look... and quietly stepped away.

Feeling that he'd enjoyed the show enough, Harry pulled out his wand. Just as he was about to cast a spell, he noticed someone across the corridor.

Hermione.

She was holding her wand as well, hesitating. Several times, she raised it, only to lower it again, uncertain.

Harry smiled slightly, then pointed his wand at the two tangled-up boys.

"If only I could take a picture of them in this position..." he mused.

He softly whispered, "Petrificus Totalus!"

With a sudden click, both Ron and Malfoy froze in place like statues.

The crowd fell silent. Then, slowly, all heads turned toward Harry and his wand.

Harry remained calm. "What are you all looking at? Hurry up and separate them."

A student hesitantly helped Ron up, glancing nervously at Harry. "Umm… how do we fix this?"

"They'll be back to normal in about ten minutes."

"Oh, right."

Then, with a serious expression, Harry added, "By the way..."

"What?"

He looked around at the curious students and solemnly declared, "I am… The Red Scarf!"

The onlookers: (⊙o⊙)…

Once the crowd had dispersed, Harry caught up with Hermione.

"Hermione!"

She turned around, pretending to have just noticed him. "Oh, it's you. What's up?"

Harry gave her a knowing look. "You were about to use magic just now, weren't you? Why didn't you go through with it?"

Hermione leaned against the corridor window and sighed. "I wanted to, but… I was worried I'd mess up the spell."

Harry nodded in understanding. "You must be really disappointed."

"I am!"

"If it were me, I'd be disappointed too. After all, how often do you get a chance to test spells on live targets?"

Hermione glared at him, annoyed. "Who else thinks like you?!"

Harry looked at her, feigning surprise. "Really? No one at all?"

Hermione hesitated, then, embarrassed, muttered, "Well… maybe a little bit..."

She actually admitted it!

Before Harry could tease her further, something outside the window caught his attention.

A towering castle loomed in the darkness. Under the pitch-black sky, it stood silent and mysterious, its presence commanding awe. Not far from the castle, a dense forest stretched into the night, shrouded in deep shadows.

"Woooot—" The train's whistle echoed.

Hogwarts had arrived!