Chapter 15: Wizards Have Peculiar Tastes
Chapter 15: Wizards Have Peculiar Tastes
"You... you actually placed a bet?" George Weasley swallowed, his eyes widening at the thought, "That's 25 galleons! What if... what if..."
He couldn't bring himself to say the words 'I guessed wrong.' "I trust my luck and intuition," Albert said calmly. "You guys should give it a try. If you guess right, you could make a nice profit."
"We don't have any money to spare," the twins shook their heads after a quick glance at each other. The Weasley family wasn't well off, and the twins wouldn't waste what little they had on a bet.
"Don't look at me," Lee Jordan shook his head. "I plan on saving my money for other things. I think what you're doing is crazy, Albert. Even if I had that kind of money, I wouldn't spend it like that."
As the four chatted, the train left London and sped through meadows and fields.
Albert flipped through the newspaper, listening to the others chat about Quidditch. He couldn't join in, even if he knew the rules; he had to pretend ignorance. After all, as someone from the Muggle world, he shouldn't know anything about Quidditch.
"Oh, have you guys heard about what happened with Gabriel Truman?" George suddenly brought up a recent incident.
"Natali almost got expelled by the Ministry of Magic," Fred whispered. "It was only after he personally apologized to Gabriel Truman that the matter was settled."
"I heard about that too," Jordan piped in. "But my mom says Rita Skeeter's articles can't be trusted. That woman loves to exaggerate."
"Most newspapers are like that, but there's usually a grain of truth in them," Albert said as he closed the paper. As one of the culprits behind the whole incident, he naturally knew what had transpired.
"I went to Truman's compartment earlier, and I overheard him talking about it," Fred said. "He said that during the summer, he encountered a Hogwarts newcomer practicing magic, and then he suddenly received a letter saying he had been expelled from Hogwarts." "Dumbledore and someone from the Ministry of Magic showed up at his door, and the Ministry official was very rude, not even offering an apology, so he..."
Albert raised an eyebrow at Fred's words. He had to admit that Westerners tended to be more outspoken. He had reminded Truman to keep things discreet, but it seemed the man had forgotten. However, Albert didn't reveal his own involvement.
At his core, Albert was still an Easterner. The humility and restraint in his bones hadn't disappeared, and he didn't like to draw attention to himself.
Changing the subject, Albert asked, "By the way, do you know how the school houses students into different groups?"
"No idea," Jordan shook his head. "My family didn't tell me."
"Percy said there's some sort of test," George said, a bit annoyed. "They never want to tell us, saying it's supposed to be a fun surprise."
"So, how is life as a wizard? Is it interesting?" Albert asked, curious. "When I first got my letter, my family was shocked. My mother wasn't very welcoming to Professor McGonagall, worried that I wouldn't be able to find a job after graduation."
"That won't be a problem," the twins chimed in. "Our oldest brother graduated."
"Bill works for Gringotts in Africa."
"What about your father?" Albert asked, even though he already knew the answer.
"He works at the Ministry of Magic," the twins said in unison, exchanging a glance.
"I think I'll probably stay in the Muggle world after graduation," Albert said.
"Why?" The three asked, puzzled. To them, this seemed like a strange decision.
"I came to Hogwarts mainly to learn magic and master its use," Albert explained. "Professor McGonagall said that if I don't learn to control my magic, it could get out of hand later on."
"But in the Muggle world, we can't use magic freely, and we can't let Muggles know about its existence, or we'll get into trouble," Jordan added.
"So, what do you guys want to do after graduation?" Albert asked.
"I don't want to work for the Ministry of Magic," Fred stated.
"Me neither," George agreed, and they both laughed.
"Being a Quidditch player wouldn't be bad," George said, a hint of regret in his voice. "Charlie became the Gryffindor Quidditch captain this year, but it's a shame we have to wait until second year to join."
"I haven't decided yet," Jordan admitted.
"What about you, Albert?" The three turned to him.
"Me? I'm looking for something simple, relaxed, and profitable."
"Do jobs like that even exist?" The three exchanged glances once more, intrigued by the idea. "They should, and I'm looking for one," Albert said with a smile. He was curious as to when the twins had come up with the idea of opening a joke shop.
"Let me know if you find one," Jordan said seriously, patting Albert's shoulder, a smile playing on his lips.
"Would you mind if I took a picture of you guys?" Albert asked, taking out his camera.
"A picture?"
"Yes, my family wants to know more about the wizarding world," Albert explained as he arranged the three together and took several photos.
"Why don't the photos move?" Jordan asked, poking at the picture with his finger, as if trying to make the people in it come to life.
"Muggle photos don't move," Albert explained, taking the photo back to examine it. He was quite pleased with how it had turned out. "Looks like my photography skills are improving."
"Photos that don't move are boring," the three said, quickly losing interest in the pictures.
As noon approached, the corridor outside their compartment became noisy.
Soon enough, a witch pushed open the compartment door and poked her head in. "Anything to eat, dears?" she asked.
"I'll have some Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans," Jordan said, as he had brought his own food. The twins had sandwiches, but they didn't have much money, so they didn't buy anything.
"I'll have one of everything," Albert said to the kindly witch.
Having witnessed Albert's bold bet earlier, the other three were numb to his extravagant spending.
Albert paid one galleon for the pile of snacks on the table.
"I have to say, your family must be quite well off," Jordan commented.
"Not really," Albert said as he opened the Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans and popped one into his mouth. It tasted like bean sprouts. "They're lawyers."
"What's that?" The three were clueless about Muggle occupations.
"They're people who argue in court on behalf of others, or what you might call 'people who legally exploit loopholes,'" Albert explained.
"Legally exploit loopholes?" The three were bewildered. How could exploiting loopholes be legal? What kind of trick was that?
"Could you please introduce these foods to me?" Albert made a 'please' gesture. He didn't want to eat something strange by mistake. Wizards had peculiar tastes, after all. Besides, this was an opportunity to foster friendship, which required effort and maintenance.
(End of Chapter)
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