John had thought the first wedding he would attend would be Percy's, but unexpectedly, it turned out to be Fred's.
Fred was getting married.
An owl delivered the invitation, and John was genuinely surprised when he received it.
"I didn't expect Fred to be the first Weasley to get married."
John shook his head with a wry smile.
If there was one Weasley who was the most mischievous, it was undoubtedly Fred.
Even George was a little more mature than him.
For someone like Fred to marry before his older brothers was truly unexpected.
John had thought Fred would enjoy a few more years of freedom before settling down.
The bride was also someone familiar.
Angelina Johnson, the former captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team.
She was a spirited and capable witch.
Her pairing with Fred was just as unexpected.
John set the invitation down and looked at the poor owl Basil had cornered against the wall.
Because there were so many invitations to deliver, Fred had borrowed Ron's owl.
The result was obvious. If John had not told Basil to restrain itself, Pigwidgeon would probably have lost a large patch of feathers by now.
He wrote a reply and handed it to Pigwidgeon to take back.
There were usually dried fish kept in a drawer in the attic. John took out two pieces and fed them to Pigwidgeon.
Just as Pigwidgeon was about to eat them, it noticed Basil staring at it.
After hesitating for a long time, Pigwidgeon set one piece down and pushed it towards Basil ingratiatingly.
Basil nodded in satisfaction, signalling that it could leave.
Pigwidgeon hurriedly flew away.
John looked speechlessly at his owl, whose personality seemed to be developing in an increasingly strange direction.
"I don't remember you being like this before."
He picked Basil up and examined it.
"Did something about you mutate?"
Basil flapped its wings unhappily.
John raised an eyebrow and set it back down.
When he went downstairs, he found Ariana doing almost exactly what he had just done.
She was holding Kiki upside down by the legs and angrily shaking its body, which was beginning to look a little too plump.
"What happened, Ariana?" John asked casually.
Ariana immediately complained, "Kiki ate my biscuits."
At those words, the way John looked at Kiki immediately changed.
You're a dragon, for goodness' sake. How did you end up stealing biscuits?
Kiki: I didn't want to either. I've been fed salad for an entire month.
Seeing how miserable Kiki's life had become, John stroked Ariana's hair and smiled. "I think it was just too hungry. Let it have the biscuits. I'll take you somewhere else to eat something good."
Ariana did not even hesitate before putting Kiki down and abandoning the entire box of biscuits.
Kiki was so moved that it nearly cried.
As expected of its king. He treated it far too well.
It treasured the biscuits like precious jewels, pushing them behind the sofa and eating as though afraid someone might snatch them away.
Tom passed by, glanced over, and could not understand why an owl was so moved by a box of biscuits.
John looked at the delighted Ariana.
Fred had not said anything about not bringing anyone else.
It should not be a problem if he brought one person along.
He would also need to pick out a gift.
John said to Tom, "We'll be back a little later today."
Tom wagged her tail, clearly wanting to come as well.
John rubbed her head, but unfortunately, he had no intention of taking her.
"How should we get there?" John thought for a moment, then looked at Ariana. "Want to try the Knight Bus?"
Ariana tilted her head, unfamiliar with what the Knight Bus was.
After all, it had not existed in her time.
John took Ariana outside and immediately felt at least a dozen gazes fall on him.
"They're all watching Dad."
John swept his gaze around and immediately knew who they were.
His expression remained unchanged as he led Ariana out. By the time they reached Crescent Street, he knew someone was following them.
With a casual wave of his hand, a strong wind swept through the area.
The followers were blinded by dust and grit. When they looked again, John and Ariana had disappeared.
In reality, John had never left.
He had simply cast a Confundus Charm, making them believe he was gone.
John held out his wand.
Before long, a speeding three-storey purple bus came racing towards them and screeched to a halt.
The pimply conductor opened the door and stepped out, ready to launch into his usual introduction, only for his eyes to widen.
"Good heavens, John Wick!"
Stan Shunpike shrieked, "The Second King of the wizarding world! In person!"
He immediately became enthusiastic, fawning over John throughout the journey.
He even completely ignored Ariana, despite how strikingly delicate she looked.
It probably would not be long before Stan Shunpike started boasting in some pub about his connection with the Second King the next time he tried to impress a girl.
Before long, the Knight Bus arrived at the Leaky Cauldron.
"It was an honour to serve you," Stan said respectfully, removing his hat. "Mr Wick."
John nodded slightly and led the curious Ariana into the Leaky Cauldron.
The moment he entered, he saw Hannah being shown the ropes by the owner.
"Hannah."
"John?"
Hannah looked delighted, even though it had not even been a week since they had last seen each other at Hogwarts.
When she noticed Ariana, Hannah asked curiously, "Who is this?"
"My younger sister, Ariana Wick." John introduced them. "Ariana, this is Hannah Abbott."
"I didn't even know you had a sister." Hannah looked at Ariana enviously. Not only was she beautiful, she was also the Second King's younger sister.
Just which window had fate closed on this girl?
Ariana hid behind John, peeking out timidly.
"Hello."
"Hello, Ariana. Is she a witch?"
The second question was directed at John.
John nodded and smiled. "I hope you can make this place a little cleaner."
"I think so too." Hannah was troubled by the poor hygiene standards of her family's business.
John did not stay long before entering Diagon Alley through the Leaky Cauldron.
As they walked, Ariana's nervousness at being in an unfamiliar place gradually faded.
Throughout Diagon Alley, everyone who saw John respectfully addressed him as Mr Wick.
Ariana received quite a few gifts as well, including a commemorative Golden Snitch from Quality Quidditch Supplies and a new flavour of ice cream from the ice cream parlour.
They also took a crate of drinks from the Silver Hand Cellar.
The two then headed for the Burrow.
The Burrow was extremely lively.
The Weasleys' status as the second ancient family was immediately apparent.
All kinds of relatives had arrived, including members of Mrs Weasley's maternal family.
Harry and the others were there as well.
Before John even arrived, he had already spotted Luna in one of her strange outfits.
Mr Lovegood was there too. Both of them had come to attend the wedding.
Fred, for once, was dressed properly in a tailcoat that made him look like a hotel attendant, which was rather amusing.
Percy stood with his girlfriend Penelope, a faint smile on his face.
He was clearly happy to see his younger brother getting married.
Because there were so many people, tents had been erected in the open space outside the Burrow.
Guests were received by George and Mr Weasley as they arrived.
"This way, sir." George was wearing the same tailcoat as Fred.
"Oh, the great John Wick." George hurried over in an exaggeratedly respectful manner. "May I assist you, sir?"
"The red carpet! Hurry, bring out the red carpet!"
The Weasley twins were still very much the Weasley twins.
John glanced speechlessly at George's antics.
"Don't tell me you're playing the 'Which Twin Am I?' game again today."
George smiled awkwardly, and John shook his head helplessly.
"Hopefully the poor fool you tricked won't get angry."
The brothers often swapped identities to mess with people.
The moment John saw George dressed exactly like Fred, he knew what was going on.
"Well, aside from you, everyone else is pretty fun to fool," George said as he invited John inside.
John swept his gaze around and saw Dumbledore chatting with an elderly woman whose back was turned to him.
Ron, being the younger brother, had no status to speak of. He had been conscripted as a temporary waiter.
Mostly because his Great-Aunt Muriel kept ordering him around.
Harry wore a well-fitted suit, and standing beside his godfather Sirius, the two looked almost like father and son.
Luna noticed John and greeted him.
"This is my younger sister, Ariana Wick."
Ariana looked curiously at Luna's strange outfit, especially the glittering sequins.
Luna immediately took a liking to Ariana, and the two quickly got along.
That was because Luna could always keenly sense Ariana's emotions and understand what she meant.
"Ariana? Albus, I think I heard someone say Ariana."
"Madam Bagshot."
John noticed the elderly woman speaking with Dumbledore turn around.
Time had aged her features.
Her hair was completely white, and a woollen shawl rested over her shoulders.
John stared at her in a daze.
That face overlapped with the image of the woman who had once loved reading.
Bathilda Bagshot.
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