Victor lay on the living room sofa, sprawled out so that he occupied almost its entire length. He was incredibly bored. There were still twenty whole days until the start of the school year—an eternity for a person whose mind now worked at double speed, absorbing information and impressions completely. He had already explored London inside out, visited all the museums and attractions, and read all the books he had bought. It seemed every day dragged on endlessly when there was no familiar internal dialogue, no one to argue with, no one to discuss new ideas with.
He sighed deeply and said aloud, addressing the emptiness, "Maybe we should go punish some more bandits?" Naturally, no one answered him in the empty house. "Well, of course, no one will answer me," he muttered to himself, feeling a slight pang of his usual longing for his former inner voice. He looked towards the shelves where all his magic books, which he had already memorized, stood in neat rows. History of Magic, Charms, Potions—all of it was now in his head, as if he had been doing nothing else his whole life. He was already thinking of going to the City Library to find something new, when suddenly there was a soft but persistent knock at the door.
"Finally!" Victor jumped up from the sofa with such agility that he almost crashed into the coffee table. He quickly went to the door and flung it open. Hermione Granger stood on the doorstep. She was wearing a summer dress, her hair, as always, slightly dishevelled.
"Oh, hi! Come in, don't be shy! Tea, coffee? Oh, you probably don't drink coffee. Oh, there's juice! So what can I pour you?" Victor exclaimed, his hyperactivity immediately on full display. He rattled on, barely giving Hermione a chance to get a word in edgewise.
Hermione froze on the doorstep, taken aback by his intensity and speed of speech. Her eyes widened, and her mouth opened slightly, but no words escaped her lips.
"Hey!" Victor snapped his fingers in front of her face. "Are you frozen?" He looked her over. "Did you break, or something?"
Hermione, finally coming to her senses, immediately blushed to the roots of her hair and indignantly replied, "You're the one who's broken! What's wrong with you? Do you greet all your guests so actively?"
Victor merely laughed, stepping back into the hallway to let her pass. "Sorry, sorry! I was just terribly bored, and then—guests! And such pleasant ones, too," he winked. "Have a seat, I'll get some juice." He was about to go to the fridge when Hermione stopped him, holding out her hand.
"Wait, Victor, I didn't just come for nothing. I came to invite you and your parents to our house for dinner. Mum said it would be a great chance to get to know our new neighbors better."
Victor smiled. "Oh, for dinner! Alright, I'll come."
Hermione blinked. "And your parents? Or are they at work?"
Victor shrugged, completely indifferent. "No, I don't have parents. I live alone."
Hermione immediately faltered, her face expressing sincere sympathy. "I'm sorry, I didn't know..."
"It's nothing," Victor smiled again, looking unconcerned. "I'll just get dressed and we can go." He quickly went upstairs to change.
Hermione was left alone in the living room. At first, she squirmed with awkwardness, and then, involuntarily, she began to look around. The house was surprisingly clean for a boy who lived alone. Not a speck of dust, no scattered things, everything in its place. Her gaze was drawn to the bookshelves. Approaching closer, she began to carefully examine the spines. Historical novels, scientific encyclopedias, classic literature—the collection was impressive for a girl her age. Suddenly, she came across a separate shelf, literally overflowing with books signed in a handwriting familiar to her. The titles "Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1," "The Theory of Magical Transfiguration," "Hogwarts: A History"—all of it was literature for the first year of Hogwarts! Hermione's eyes widened in surprise.
Just then, Victor came down the stairs, already changed into clean jeans and a fresh T-shirt. "Alright, I'm ready!"
Hermione, holding the Transfiguration textbook in her hand and pointing at it, exclaimed in confusion, "Why didn't you tell me you were going to Hogwarts too?!"
Victor raised an eyebrow, crossing his arms over his chest. "Why should I have told you? You didn't tell me either."
Hermione pouted, her cheeks reddening again. "I didn't know you were a wizard too! But you saw that I was reading Transfiguration, so you must have guessed and could have told me!" She seemed genuinely indignant at his secretiveness.
Victor merely smiled, walked over to her, gently took the book from her hands, and placed it back on the shelf. "Yes, yes, do what you must, and let fate decide," he said theatrically, quoting one of his favorite movie clichés, though she, of course, didn't understand it. "Now, little girl, put that uncle's book down and let's go visit."
He took a flustered Hermione by the hand, and with her, as if on a towline, walked out of the house. Hermione awkwardly tried to pull her hand away, but Victor held on tightly, smiling at her embarrassment. Upon reaching the Granger family's house, Hermione finally pulled her hand away decisively: "I can walk by myself!" She was about to open the door when Victor suddenly said, "Wait! I didn't bring a gift!"
Hermione looked at him, puzzled. "What gift?"
Victor looked around to make sure no one was nearby. Then, without blinking, he pulled out his wand. With obvious pleasure, he clearly pronounced: "Accio box!"
A beautifully decorated box, emitting a faint scent of grapes, smoothly flew directly into his hands.
"According to etiquette, when you go to visit someone, you should bring a gift," Victor said instructively, as if it were self-evident.
Hermione blinked, looking at the box of expensive wine. Her face expressed complete bewilderment. "How did you learn that spell?" she finally managed to blurt out.
Victor merely shrugged. "From a book, of course."
"Which book?!" Hermione exclaimed, her voice rising in indignation. "There was no such spell in the first-year literature!"
"Well, I bought other books besides those," Victor replied unperturbed.
Hermione stared at him, trying to figure out if he was joking. "And where did you get galleons from? Muggles are only allowed to exchange up to two hundred galleons a year!"
Victor waved her off. "Well, let's just say... I won the magical lottery." He winked mischievously.
Hermione continued to bore into him with her gaze, clearly trying to understand if he was deceiving her. She disliked his secretiveness, his evasions. She was used to clarity and logic, and Victor was a walking enigma she desperately wanted to solve.
"Alright, let's go, they're waiting for us in there," Victor opened the door and gently nudged Hermione forward.
Upon entering the Grangers' house, they immediately felt a warm, cozy atmosphere. The smell of freshly cooked food permeated the air, mixing with the scent of old books and some pleasant floral essence.
"Oh, there you are!" exclaimed Jane Granger, emerging from the kitchen. Her smile was as warm as her embrace, which she bestowed upon Victor. "Welcome, Victor! We're so glad you came!"
Wendell Granger also came out to greet them, wiping his hands with a towel. "Hi, Victor!" He extended his hand to Victor, who shook it firmly.
Victor handed Jane the box of wine. "This is for you, as a token of neighborliness."
Jane gasped. "Oh, Victor, you really shouldn't have! This must be very expensive wine!"
"Nonsense," Victor waved off. "Happy to do something nice."
They went into the dining room, where the table was already set. The food looked appetizing: roasted chicken, potatoes, fresh vegetables, and a fluffy pie for dessert.
Wendell Granger asked: "Victor, where are your parents?" Victor replied without much emotion: "They're not around, I'm an orphan." Hermione's parents were surprised but didn't ask further questions. Sitting at the table, they asked Victor about his move and whether he liked London. He answered evasively but friendly, trying not to go into details about his past. He felt surprisingly comfortable in their company, as if he had known these people for a long time. Hermione initially sat silently, glancing at Victor furtively, but gradually joined the conversation, especially when it came to books. She even said that Victor, like her, was a wizard, which surprised them greatly.
Towards the end of dinner, when the table had been cleared and tea and biscuits were on the table, Wendell Granger said, "Victor, Jane and I were thinking... since you're our neighbor, and you don't have parents..."
Jane immediately chimed in: "We'd like you to come visit us more often. Feel at home here, okay? Hermione will be happy to have company, and we'll feel better knowing you're not alone."
Victor thought for a moment and looked at Hermione, who, though trying to appear unperturbed, showed in her eyes that she was also awaiting his answer.
"That's... that's very kind of you, thank you," He nodded. "I'd be happy to come."
Hermione smiled contentedly. Wendell and Jane exchanged joyful glances.