Chapter 45 - Future Plans
I reached King's Cross a little earlier than usual. The station felt the same as it always had. Crowded, noisy and full of people rushing about in every direction. But Platform Nine and Three-Quarters was calm in its own strange way. The scarlet-red train waited with its windows open, steam drifting around the wheels. I climbed aboard to find an empty compartment and settled my trunk by the window. The familiar smell of the Hogwarts Express made my shoulders relaxed. It always felt great to be back with friends.
I did not stay alone for long. My roommates and other friends came and gradually on the seats and adjoining compartment and the noise rose as everyone talked over everyone else. Being here, like this, reminded me why I did not want to leave Hogwarts too soon.
This year would be different than the previous couple of years. The elective subjects would be held from this year and I had chosen to take all of them. Most students thought I was crazy or were concerned about how taxing it would be to cover all these classes. But I had my reasons.
I wanted to stay in the castle after I graduated. I am three years ahead of Harry, which normally means that after the year of the Triwizard Tournament, fourth year for Harry, I would have to leave. That would mean leaving Harry, and Dudley too, alone to face things they should never have to face alone.
If I took enough subjects, built the right path and stood out enough, maybe then I could stay at Hogwarts as an assistant or apprentice. So, I have changed my strategy of being less noticeable and avoiding limelight as I realised that being Harry's cousin will be enough to render all those efforts meaningless. So, I have decided to be outstanding. Anything that keeps me close to them when the worst began.
And the worst will begin soon, as soon as Harry will arrive at Hogwarts, I know that too well.
Horcruxes. The word itself made my stomach tighten. I had already destroyed what I could, and found ways to reach the others. The Slytherin locket was with Kreacher, the House-Elf of the Black family. I knew exactly how to retrieve the locket and destroy it. The Diadem of Rowena Ravenclaw is in the Room of Requirement on the seventh floor. I could destroy both without much trouble.
As for the Gaunt ring, I do not plan to get that for now, as I don't have enough power yet to destroy its protective spells or around the house it was kept in. But I am confident that it will be possible soon, hopefully before Dumbledore found it.
But two Horcruxes remained difficult to find and out of reach. The diary and the snake.
The diary will come to Hogwarts, through Ginny, courtesy to Lucius Malfoy, three years from now, when Harry will be in his second year. At least that one could be dealt with. I have already made friends with Ginny. When the diary appears, I can take it before it harms anyone. That part was simple enough and needs just patience.
Nagini, the snake, is the biggest problem. I know she was currently somewhere far away, deep in forests where dark wizards hide. I know she would matter more to Voldemort than any other Horcrux. But I could not go searching for a giant snake in the middle of cursed woods. They are filled with things worse than Death Eaters. Also, whether Nagini has already been made a Horcrux or not is also unclear. So, I will wait. When Voldemort returns, Nagini will come to him. That is when I will strike.
As we reached Hogsmeade Station, the train slowed with a long hiss of steam. Students stood, stretched and reached for their trunks. I glanced out of the window and saw Hagrid on the platform, holding his lamp high and calling for the first-years to follow him. His voice carried across the crowd, with the perpetual warmth and familiarity.
Watching him, I made a quiet decision. I should become better acquainted with Hagrid this year. There were several reasons for it.
First, if Dumbledore remained the same man I knew him to be, he will almost certainly send Hagrid to fetch Harry for Hogwarts next year. It would be easier for everyone if I built a friendly bridge now.
As I thought about Dumbledore, I realised my thoughts about him have started to darken. His actions in Sirius's case troubled me more than I had expected. In my past life, I brushed it off as part of the story, something written for drama, and I never questioned it deeply.
But living through it now, learning wizarding law properly and seeing how the Ministry works, I found it almost impossible to believe that a man with such power and authority could make such a "mistake." It felt deliberate, not careless.
I also began to suspect that Dumbledore sending Hagrid to fetch Harry was not only for nostalgia or sentiment. It seemed more like shaping Harry's mind from the very beginning. Surrounding him with softness, humour, wonder, and no real sense of strategy or danger. Perhaps Dumbledore wanted Harry to grow into someone who follows, not someone who questions. Someone who would walk the path Dumbledore chose, even if that path ended in Harry's sacrifice. At least, that is what I feared.
Still, I tried not to judge him too harshly. Maybe he truly was losing his sanity after everything he has endured. He lost his family early and carried guilt for it. And the only person who understood him, his rumoured lover, he later defeated him and had been imprisoned for almost fifty years. His brother, the only remaining family member, barely spoke to him. To lose both family and love and then carry the burden of guiding an entire world and thousands of children for decades, maybe it had really worn him down until he is loosing his mind.
Maybe he was not evil. Maybe he was simply slipping and losing his edge.
I digressed. Let's get back to Hagrid.
Second, Hagrid knew every tree, creature and path in the Forbidden Forest. I think getting acquainted with Hagrid would help me more than any book or professor when it comes to the Forbidden Forest. He knew every creature in it. Their habits, their moods, what they like and what they avoid, and which actions they treat as threats. His knowledge is practical, earned by living beside them, not by reading from a safe distance.
I know there is our professor who has lost or broken nearly every bone in his body through his research, but Hagrid understood the forest in a far more natural way. And I will need that knowledge. If I wanted to work with magical animals safely, he was the best guide I could have. There are magical ingredients in the forest that could help both my potion practice and later, maybe even some sort of business.
I do not need money at the moment, my vaults are full, all thanks to Bellatrix and the Lestranges, but one should always think ahead. Opportunity matters, and magical materials are very valuable if they could be gathered safely.
I would never harm any creature and I know Hagrid would not allow it anyway. But some creatures shed feathers, skin or some other parts naturally. With Hagrid's help, I could collect them without trouble.
In return, I could help him as well, give him a few suggestions on grooming or clothes perhaps. If Harry and Dudley see him next year looking the way he does now, they may faint on the spot. It would be good to ease the shock.
Hagrid is a gentle giant, soft-hearted with both children and animals, and he deserves to be seen as he truly is.
As I stepped off the train and walked toward the carriages for the older students, another thought came to me. This year, I might also deal with one more danger, the one that sleeps deep below the school.
The Basilisk beneath Hogwarts was a threat that should not be left waiting for Harry to face alone. I will find a chance to deal with it safely. But the biggest headache was how to open the damn magical entrance as it only opens by Parsletongue.
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End of Chapter 45 - Future Plans